The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1907-07-24
DOOR KEYS IN SWEDEN
Curious Custom of Hanging Them
Outside the Doors.
HOUSES LOCKED, YET OPEN.

The Dangling Key Informs You the
Tenants Are Out, but Friends Who
Call Are at Liberty to Unlock the
Door and Enter and Rest.
When the Swedes 60 calling, they
lock up and then hang the door key Oil
the bell or the doorknob OF some other
place. When they so visit.
inc for few weeks, bolts and bars are
Slid into place, and then out goes the
kew. II the house is shut up for an en-
tire season or full year, the gayly
swinging door key says ''Not at home
to passersby.
There is no kicking your heels on the
doormat in Sweden while the bell or
knocker awakes the echoes in a,n emp
ty house. Agents, peddlers, friends
and relatives all know this message Of
the door key and seeing it out pass by.
AS can be readily imagined, this
strange custom has been put to good
use in many instances when visitors
were not wanted. Instead Of telling
the maid 10 inform callers that Mrs.
Jones is not At home the mistress says
to Jennie: Hang out the door key at 5
o'clock this afternoon and bring 1t i'll
ats. don't wish to see any one for q
few hours"
About the first Of the month in GER
tain districts door keys swing to the
breeZes in great numbers, and collect
ors, knowing the custom and also its
misuse, scratch their heads in perplex-
ity at this not at home signal.
Many amusing stories are told OIL
creditors sitting down to await the re-
turn Of their man while the debtor sat
or the other side Of the locked door
and chuckled. There have been il
stances where q collector has taken
the key, unlocked the door and entered
the house to be met by the owner, who
calmly laughed over his ruse. Again q
creditor has entered house in which
he supposes the owner to be hiding on
ly to find it vacant and to be caught by
the irate master, arrested and made to
pay a fine, while the debtor got an ex'
tension of time on his bill.
These illegitimate uses Of this very
old custom Of not only leaving the
latchstring out but also putting the
door key at the disposal Of all who
pass. are not discovered at first glance.
and they are really very much in the
minority, for Sweden is pre-eminently
an honest land. In and around about
Stockholm there is very little need OF
policemen or strong boxes, for every
man, however low down in the social
scale, seems to have due respect for
anothea's property.
Although a few Of the more suspi
cious, or the foreigners who have moi
been brought up in this strange Gus
tom of leaving the door key out, may
lock up with bolts from the inside and
use another door for exit when they
| leave home for an extended visit, the
old residents actually leave their homes
at the disposal Of ary who may care tt
enter.
Friends who call and find the key
out feel at perfect liberty to unlock the
door, enter and rest bit before pass
ing On. Strangers seldom misuse the
confidence.
The custom started ages ago when Il
was the usual thing for 'holy men" o.
priests to travel through Swedish vil
lagos, stopping to leave their blessing
on the households Of the neighborhood
These visits were looked forward tt
with eagerness by the pious Swedes
and It was considered an act Of gross
est discourtesy to bar the door, fol
whatever reason, against a holy man
Consequently If O. family left home the
key was always put out against the ar
rival Of the priest Meat and drinl
were left, and should the holy maj
stop at q vacant house he entered, re
freshed himself, left his blessing in the
form Of q candle or bottle of holy
water or bit Of consecrated green ant
passed. Thus the custom originated
and, although these quaint village:
have become towns ard travelling
priests have passed away and the in
fux Of other nations has modernizet
Sweden and brought the evil OF thief
with it, the door keys still hang out a:
evidence Of trust and open doored hos
pitality.
4 thief seldom takes down one o.
the keys and enters, for there is tht
uncertainty about the absence Of thu
residents spoken Of to hold him back
and the knowledge that an exposed
door key may merely mean that tn
owner has stepped across to the store
and will return any minute make!
tampering with property risky busi
ness.
These facts, together with the bis
sne that Swedes are one Of the mos
honest people on the face Of the globe
make a custom safe there which would
be foolhardy tempting Of misfortune
In our LAND Of the free. LOS An
geles Times.
E..nl