The Mt. Sterling advocate. (Mt. Sterling, Ky.) 1890-current, 1895-01-03
TIGHTEN YOUR HAlRRINs.
II You Don't, You viii Not Do Able TO
Keep Your Sweetheart.

II Keu Don't, You Viii Not DO Able to
Keep Your Sweetheart.
The following interesting little sto-
ry, accentuating the old creole dar-
ky superstition of Hold fast your
hairpins, hold fast your love, !" was
contributed by Miss Eva Dorsey An
derson: ] was walking on Canal
street one day and lost some of the
small silver hairpins that / used to
hold my hair in place. An old color
ed woman returned them to me with
the remark, Take care, honey, yo's
a-losin some of ,yo' sweethearts,
shore; yo' better hold 'em tight. :"
why, auntie, how is that?" / in
quired. ! am always interested in
the quaint superstitions of African
lore. find when sifted to the bot
tom they contain grains of golden
wisdom that make one almost be-
Geve the Swedenborgian theory that
these Africans are the remnant of
the most ancient church upon the
earth of the celestial nature. Her
old wrinkled face was all alive with
an intelligence that was certainly
not of the mind, but of the heart as
she answered: Laws, chile, don
yo' know OATS shore sign when
yo' draps 20 harpen dot yo's a-losin
yo' hol on yo' sweetheart? Now,
don yo' feel bad, honey, and cry
yo' purity eyes out for any son oh
Adam dat's alvin. Dey ain t wori
it, nary one of dem. An jes' 20
believe what ole Rose tells yo', hon
ey," continued the old woman ear
nestly. "Yo' take dem harpen and
lay 'em at the feet of the blessed Je-
sus, and he will shorely send you
back yo' sweetheart. I"
Then, as she saw incredulity in
my face, she said Indignantly,
Amt de blessed Lord done say ev-
cry hair OBJ yo' head is counted?"
/ thanked the dear old celestial
soul for her kindly aid as muttering
a blessing on "de dear mamselle'
she went away. But the quaint
words, so earnestly spoken, sunk
into my heart, and I pondered their
1t was easy to trace back
the superstition to the Swendenbor-
gian doctrine of correspondence of
type. Hair is the type of affection,
and every one knows that it is inn
possible not to show the character
by the lines and the arrangement OF
the hair. Fashions in hair show the
temper of the time, and men have
cut off their hair to denote austerity
and abstinence from earthly affec-
ton. The stern, austere Puritans
shaved their hair and were called
"roundheads, while the rollicking
cavaliers wore floating curls and
were addicted to all pleasures. An
other instance of the truth of this
type is the shearing of the beautiful
tresses of the nun when she takes
her vows to renounce the affections
of the world. A woman binds her
hair about her head to express fem
mime restraint, and st. Paul is very
explicit in his commands in regard
to the cutting and adjoining of hair
in woman.
And so, linking the wisdom of
Swedenborg, the sage, to the old
negro mammy's quaint fancy, I
thought that it was a beautiful thing
to hold that mans affection is thus
crowned with the type of the imper-
ishable. And did not old Rose quote
the highest authority? Verify !
say unto you the very hairs of your
head are numbered" believing in
her simplicity of heart that the least
things pertaining to our affections
are not lost, and the least loving
thought of our sweethearts can be
regained by laying it at the feet of
the Lord, where all love is surely
garnered. 1t was beautiful fancy,
if nothing more, and it brought to
me the thought of loving, weeping
woman who thousands of years ago
bathed the feet of Jesus with her
tears and wiped them with her ra-
ven tresses, bringing her best and
highest love into lowest service.
So l thought would send the lit
tie story to Woman's World and
Work to remind the girls to be care
full how they fastened their pretty
tresses with their gold and silver
pins, for as they place these pins
carefully and securely they are hold
ing in their faithful hearts their true
lovers best affection, but if they put