Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1907-04-07

The head of the fish should be held in the
sufferers mouth for about a minute, and then
be thrown back into the water. The fish is
supposed to carry with it the disease. A
frog is occasionally used in place of a fish.
According to old time doctors, the beaten
Jawbone of a pike was good for peurlsy pain
in the heart and lungs and other complaints;
the heart and gall was a cure for ague and
febrile disorders, abated fevers, etc, and made
a good ointment for the eyes; while the small
bones, powdered were used to dry up sores.
The lamprey, while having an i'll omened repu-
tatlon, was said to remove smallpox scars when
its fat was applied to them; cancer could be
cured by tying a crab to the affected part
and crabs eyes would cure gall stone in man.
The natives of the Hawaiian Islands believe
that when the "alaauwa, "a red fish of most
delicious flavor when cooked, which visit the
islands only at infrequent intervalS,-appear in
large numbers in their waters it is sure pre-
cursor of the approaching death of some mem
Der of the royal family or some one occupying
high place. The fish do not remain for more
than week, and then disappear as mysteri-
schools disappear the death will take place
The Romans considered that if one met
remora during the progress of love or a law
suit, any business that required despatch,
it was bad omen. On the contrary, should
one have a lawsuit, Albertus Magnus advised
the sutton to place a Serrdnns eabrilld under
his arm, and the Judge would become his
friend. In Bohemia it is considered unlucky
to witness the plunge of pike before noon.
Talismanic Bones
CERTAIN bones and real or imaginary stones
~ found in fishes have always had great val
Tie to some people. When was boy it was the
wish OF every youngster to obtain from the
head of the common fresh water drurnfish one
of the small calcareous disks or Stones" to
talisnan. These were about like
half sucked lozenge, flesh tinted, and covered
on both sides with Concentric circles. The
Negroes of the South prize them highly. They
were known lucky stones" perhaps in al
fusion to the fact that they were marked by
figure resembling the letter l..
An old Esculapius mentions two little bones
which he said existed just above the eyes in
carp, and which were diligently preserved by
noble females against disease In Germany
the doctors used to prescribe two Imaginary
round bones from the perch's head as a rem
edy for gall stone.
Many people in New England carry a lucky
bone, SO that nothing will harm them. This
bone is from the head of the cod. 1t is she'll
like and narrow, with length of three-fourths
of an inch, the edge notched, and the color a
pearly white. Many carry two lucky bones in
order to have double luck, but they must both
be from the same fish.
The Irish treasure the bones that lie under
the round black marks on the sides of the had
dock In addition to warding off rheumatism,
these bones have many other virtues, and al
ways work good to the owner; but they must
not be exhibited and should never be loaned
or touched except by the owner.
In the scianoids the ear stones are COM
paratively large, and were formerly deemed
efhcacious against collie, provided they had
been received as gifts, as purchased ones were
believed to lose their virtue. They were
mounted in gold and worn suspended round
the neck. The Roman fishermen were ac-
customed to present the head as a species of
tribute to the three magistrates of Rome who
acted as conservators of the city.