Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1900-10-31
HALLOWEEN.


The tenaclty with which most ancient
customs and Impressions live on among
mankind from generation TO genera.
ton. On sulte OF enlightenment and
progress Is well Illustrated In the lin.
gerlrs observance Of yearly festivals Of
man.fes,'y pagan origin, such as the
Halloween. for Instance. This old
autumn festival was by the ancient
Cells observed al a time when fairies.
both good and bad, were supposed TO be
unusually active and when. as a con-
sequence, an manner OF dlvinatlons and
weird practices were resorted to- The
Roman church evidently sought 20 give
the festival a Christian" color. and
eradicate the superstition that chung TO
It, For this reason probably. the festl-
val known as All Saints day, or Hal
lowmas, was as early az the 9th CEN
fury celebrated on the 1st OF November.
The Anglican, and Lutheran churches
retained this holiday among their in
heritances from Rome. But notwlth-
standing this century-long ecclesiastical
Influence, Halloween remains-as far
as It Is remembered at alias the festl-
val Of fairies and ghosts, Of mischief
and superstition. The pagan ideas have
outlyed the so-called Christian"
This accounts for the fact that the
evening before the LIST day OF November
Is far from dedicated 60 the memory
Of the so.called saints and martyrs who
have found this place, In the calendar,or
TO their deeds Of sacrifice and benev-
olence il shows why social gatherings
on that day generally assume their pc
cullar character, and why hoodlumism
lets Itself loose with more than usual
freedom. These features are paganlsm
pure and simple.
In connection with this subject the
opinion expressed some time ago. by
Professor John Rhys, in an address
before the anthropological section OF the
British Association, on the origin OF
the extensive folk lore In which fairies
and Nlbelungen play such an important
part is Of much interest As quoted In
the New York Journal. he thinks that
those NEUROLOGICAL personages were
real race Of people. short, stumpy and
swarthy. TO whom all kinds OF attrl-
bu'es have been given by story-tellers
win a lively Imagination. The profess
sor believes they were hunters and
hshe7men living in holes in the ground
and subsistIng on milk. the produce Of
me chase and on what they could steal
/ from the races that oyerran and settled
| Europe
concerning the habits Of this ancient
race The professor says that they seem
70 have practiced the art OF spinning,
out had 300 tools except Of the most
primitive order They did not under
stand the language OF the invaders. and
when they desired 10 trade. they merely
lad down the exact amount they wished
70 pay FOR On article. and took It away
without utterIng a word. They were
fond Of music and dancing. had re-
markedly quick sense Of hearing, and
We're experts as thieves. They were
feared as magicians and mas
tiers OF black arts. and were
supposed 20 know the secrets OF
me future as well as the art
or healing the sick They concealed
lhe.r names as well as their abodes.
lhe.r family relations were Of the low
esq order, They had no notion OF pa
'erniiy. The men were ugly and re-
puI'iya while the women, probably,
We're beautiful and doIightsome. Prof.
Fhys said the race may have had some
aHn.ty 60 the stlll existing Lapps. and
he thinks 30 inhabited certain parts Of
me British Isles before the Picts and
Celtic peoples settled the country.
where the speaker gathered his In
formation from does not appear. But
ne seems to have endeavored to strip
me myths Of their Imaginative orna-
men.s and 90 retain the historical basis
E 70 Be found 10 them. with much skin
a0a discrimination All myths. we be-
leIf have a historical kernel and the
NeoIy OF Prof Rhys explains satisfac-
'Ti'y The many tales OF underground
people dw8rfs' fairies" 'imps'
chanra'lngs' "n.sse" "tomte," etc.
WIN which English. German and Scan
gna'.an literature and tradition are
= '4sl. To suppose that an those myths
Pc 'D1 stories have mo- foundation what
'er ln some kind OF fact is unreason'
p sue The existence of % race Of people
!, q he or'g.n Of them would explain
a''h that otherwise Is inexpllcablo'
" sven The spring and autumn festivals
!. " our remote ancestors. with their
i. sacred oonhres and lneantations, assume
n qeDniie meaning on the theory aa-
''heed by Prot. Rhys.