The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1899-07-05

.r,ain degree Of culture the kiss is
;, old >ymbol of love, friendship and
8. ..,eem. Nations that remain socially
:. we'll as otherwise but little above
,te animal do not know the kiss.
gith them there is no mutual love,
,,isndship and esteem.
Even some nations that know do
Elasticity and family life-like the
:skimos, Laplanders, Somalis, Ma
l,rs, aud others-do not practice oscu-
,,t;op. Their sentiments are TOO sim
,le and natural to require particular
:rmbols. This, however, is also the
ase with some people among the most
i sighly developed nations.
The old Egyptians considered it a
d sjch degree Of politeness to kiss their
4 orn hand and then place the latter on
81 tbe top Of their head They also
8 Kissed the hand of man of high rank,
1 ss. they did not kiss women at ell.
u The Abyssinians kneel down and kiss
= be ground as a sign of their most
# profound respect.
With the ancient Jews the kiss was
q auite common, and the modern Jews
ahsYe abated the custom but little.
Among the ancients even mere ac-
|ouantanccs kissed each others hand
Ind shoulder, while they exchanged
The salutation, "Scholem alcikum''
Peace be with you). IF the old Jews
:;sA.sired to express their highest esteem
Dior somebody they kissed his feet, and
anen his footprints. There was moth
4ing extraordinary in the fact that
3Judas kissed the Messiah because this
4 node of salutation was as common in
Those days as a handst' '<e is to-day.
Jesus, the reformer, however, did not
Hook upon kiss as o mere formality,
S]but as token of love, and He there
ziere asked Judas "Do you betray the
Hon OF man with kiss?" and hence
3the Judas kiss, this token of treach-
auy, has become proverbial.
j Iu ancient Rome, where, with the
conquest Of the Orient, many Oriental
abad habits were introduced, kissing
became so promiscuous that it became
d positive nuisance in the days of
Emperor Augustus. Under the reign
af Romulus the old Romans, that is,
33,hc male portion, had a habit of kiss
Ding women for the ostensible reason
3to 6nd out whether they had partaken
3sf any wine, such imbihing being pro-
'3hibited for the weaker sex.
d Greece Of the olden times had law
aproviding that any man who kissed
q woman or girl on the public street
should suffer death. It happened
4 THAT an Athenian youth who was in
dlove with the daughter of Pisistratus,
4 5the tyrant, kissed her on the street.
History tells us that even tyrants may
aahsve softer sna1en:s, Ger szheH .the
wife Of Pisistratus demanded the death
,3penalty for the offending youth, the
Styrant replied: tsIf we remove those
THAT love us, what shall we do with
those that hate us?"
Publius Maevius Of Rome,son the
Sother hand, had "a liberated slave torn
TO pieces by wild horses because he
mad kissed the Roman stateman' 8.
laughter. The censor. Cato promul-
gated a law prohibiting married people
From kissing each other in the pres
fence Of their daughter.
The prohibition Of kissing in public
33lound formal expression in the old
sROman law. Some instances in this
connection are pointed. A married
woman who permitted any one but her
husband aud children to kiss her lost
aher dover. A hetrothed,, on the other
3Aand, who was kissed BY her dying
3athanced in the presence Of third per-
3sons, was declared to be his lawful
wife, and after his death she received
3half Of his estate. There are several
countries where at the present time
3she kiss Of betrothal iasdlegal effect.
During the imperial period Of an
s5clent Rome this serious and noble
conception Of the limitations Of kiss
]dlsaprcared gradually. Luston de-
3Scribes in his biographies Of twelve
#3enperors the kissing mania Of his
times. The abuse became 50 preva-
lent tha. Augustus and Tiberius issued
ledicts against kissing. At great ban
lquets the lips of the serving maids
we're kissed By every guest SO often as
there were letterssin the name Of the
most or tho guest ia whose honor the
least was given. 5
Homer describes how the servants
]ot the noble Odysseus kissed his head,
shoulders and hands, and he also