Daily inter mountain. [volume] (Butte, Mont.) 1881-1901, 1899-07-03

tells death. The dish-.owel drops, and
the housewife, setting her table, puts on
an extra plate for the company that's
coming" Assigned 10 mo. 49, in a hotel,
one is pretty sure to find that the room
is tCo large or too small. too low or too
high. AnOlCgiZing for our owr weak
nesses n these respects, it is comforting
to recall that these same beliefs date back
in one f0lln CT another to remote anti
guilty, and that many of he most learned
OF people have been and are slaves of
superstition.
from following his innlnations by the alb
jact far which bad On1sns inspired.
Cromwell, tossing sie5plcssly upon his
bed one night. suddenly saw the curtain
part, and a gigantic woman appeared pc
fore him. who informed HIM that he
Wen enc day he the greatest man in
E.~ngiard-and than disappeared. NapO-
leon pointed to a star that he fancied he
saw shining n his room and SAID, 1T has
never deserted me. 1 see il on every great
occasion urging me onwail: it is an UNI
falling omen Of success" Napoleon,
Josephine. Robespierre and the Emperor
Alexander, all alike consulted Marie Len
orniard, a celebrated French necroman-
Ger. who died in 1918.
That common, everyday occurrence,
the sneeze. has been regarded as a por-
tent. lucky or unlucky according to the
time at which it takes place. In the Odys-
sey the sneezirg of Telemach'ls is ac-
cented as a lucky omen, coming at the
molrent his mother was ~Genouncing the
r.otous 2Crlnan nd: ZiEg sailors and praising
the valOr of Ulysses.
She spoke. Telemachus then sneezeo
aloud;
Constrained, his nostril echoed through
the crowd.
The smiling queen the happy omen bless
ed:
80 may these in1pious fall, by Fate OPP
pressed
Again, while X%enophon was delivering
his famous address tc the army, urging
his companions to be firm and bold. and
while they were undecided as to whether
resistance or retreat were the better part
a resounding sneeze echoed dow the
ranks. This omen was at once accepted.
Tents and ali s~uperf1uous requirements
were burned, and that famous retreat
was begun. The sneeze has ever been
c.ystallized into proverbs, the Turks de-
claring that "SneeZing is pleasing to
God" ard our old English forbears
agreeing that 1.-TWO or three sneezes be
wholesome
The old custom of saying God bless
you!' when a sneeze is heard is of an
cient origin, and still prevails in Oriental
countries, where all manner of supersti-
tons are rife. Omens and auguries both
good and evil are drawn from all the trir-
ling occurrences of every day, besides be-
ing sought for in the bones and e~ntrails
Of sla ug htered sheep and in the fiji ght OF
birds. All through Turkey, Greece and
the Balkans the belief in the "evil eye" is
universal, and no pains are spared to
avert it's glance. Purchasers of beautiful
kus Ghilem draperies, or exquisite silky
Turkish rugs here, are often puzzled at
finding strips OF calico or tresses of black
hair caught in with the weave. These
have been inserted by the wild Kurdish
WeaVers of this rugs, who believe that
when they are making anything specially
beautiful they must protect it this way
from the %blighting evil eye"
If a hen sheds her feathers In the house
or if one of her feathers hangs askew
without falling it foretells the arrival of
a friend or the receipt OF news from an
absent relative. Should the hen crow
nike a cock without turning it's head to the
east, it signifies a death or other serious
misfortune. If during the night a cock
crows at an nusua hour, it is either a
sign Of a change in the weather or that
important news will arrive in the morn
ing. If a cat NEWS repeatedly, some
member OF the family will soon fall i'll.
If she ticks a finger it is a sure sign OF
an. Among the Hebrews of the East
ncsebleed is considered most unlucky,
and wonderful are the means resorted to
to stop it. At the first indication the suf-
ferer usually hies him to a priest, who
will write for him the name of Levi
backward, or he must get a lawyer to
write for him also backwards these magic
words: Ana pipi Shila bar Sumko.'
Another charm is to stand with one foot
on each side of a small stream flowing
from east to west, and take up with the
right and some mud from under the left
fcot. and with the left hand from under
the right foot, then twist two threads of
wool and insert them in the nostril.
On the day or which the new moon is
first seen in Albania all possible work is
avoided and no important task of any
kind, such as pioughing, sowing or har-
vesting is begun, for It would be sure to pc
! unsuccessful. The girls look at the moon
through a sieve and rub their faces with
a piece of silver while they sing:
Young moon! Young maid!
Health to me! I'll to thee!
Head as soft as dough be thine,
Head as hard as stone be mine!