The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram., 1908-01-31
HIS SATANICMAJESTY
CURIOUS OLD LEGENDS CONCERNING
THE EVIL SPIRIT.
In Popular Folklore the Prince Of
Tempters Is Constantly Outwitted,
and Pscts with Him Are Broken b-
the Simplest ESpedients.

the Simplest Espedients.
There is a curious legend OF the
devil making his confession in Cologne
cathedral. He processes TO repent his
crimes and to be willing to endure a
thousand years Of penance. My
son." says the priest. "all you need
is to bow before the image OF the
Crucified and ask him for pardon"
What cries the devil. He who
swept up the chips for Joseph, be
who hung on a gallows?' And he
turned on his heel, with a curse.
In popular legend and folklore the
devil is outwitted constantly, contracts
made with him are broken, and he is
again and again deceived by the simplest
expedients as substituting a lantern
for the sunrise. This. If l remem ber
rightly, occurs in the legend of the
Devils Dixie at Brighton. AS a child
terrified by a very different Satan |
remember the light brought to my
own spirit by some story Of the kind
The expedient in this case was cut
ting the sole out of the shoe which
the devil had to fill with silver The
shoe was never filled, and so he could
never claim his part OF the bargain. l
remember feeling a thrill of relief al
seeing that it was possible to evade
and elude him after all.
There is an Icelandic legend which
is possibly the origin OF the proverb.
THE DEVIL take the hindmost" He
had agreed to instruct seven scholars
in all the mysteries OF magic for nc
other reward than that when their
seven years apprenticeship was over
he should have as his thrall the last
to leave for the last time by the single
narrow door. On that fatal day the
last to leave literally escaped him
eluded him by slipping out of his
cloak, which the devil had grasped
He became most worthy paris
priest, venerated all over the island
AS the iron door slammed to 1t crush
ed his heel.
The devil is constantly represente
In tradition and folk tales as childisl
grotesque spiteful With his bellov
he tries to put out St Genevieve's can
die as she carries it aiight throug,
rain and wind to church. A very wei
known legend is that Of St Dunstap
who. when attacked by him while bus.
at the forge. brought the conflict to 81
end by sezing the adversary with til
redhot tongs. This incident was til
most popular pageant provided by tn
goldsmiths on lord mayors day, wheI
the mayor happened to be elected from
their company.
The hon and the dragon are the an
mails typical OF the devil 1t is sal
that the ancient idea OF the animosit,
between the lion and the cock is tn
origin of the placing Of the weathel
cock upon the steeple. A mediaeva
rhythm says of the cock, 'In noct
dun concinat leo perturbatur." ant
the Idea was to terrify Satan by
the sight Of the enemy on the high
est point Of the sacred building. The
dragon was the symbol Of the powers
Of darkness everywhere. In many OF
the stories Of saints delivering a coun-
trysde from a devouring dragon the
dragon obviously represents paganism
destroyed by the labors Of the Chris
tian apostle. Up to the French revolu.
ton a prisoner was set free at Rouen
every year on Ascension day in com.
memoration of the deliverance Of the
people from . dragon by St Roman
In Provence ST. Martha bound a mon
ster called the tarasque with her girdle
SO that the people could slay him with
swords and glaives;:" hence the name
Tarascon. In Spain monster snake
called Ia tarasca Is dragged in the
Corpus Christi professions to signify
Christs triumph over death and hell
By the way. the Elizabethan injunc
tions decreed that in the rogation tide
professions there should be neither
George nor Margaret, but the old
dragon to come on alone and show
himself"
He was believed to have specia
power over the air, to be continually
stirring up thunderstorms and tenn
pests Of wind and hail: hence the ring
ing of the bells during thunderstorms
to frighten the evil spirits away. II
was by the help of Satan that Simon
Magus. according to the early Chris
tian legend. foated in the air till com
manded by st. Peter to descend. 1t is
significant that Leonardo da Ninci. the
typical figure of the renaissance. spent
many years of his life in the endeavor
to invent flying machine. The op
position he met with from the clergy
and devout people was intense. 1t is
indeed difficult to imagine more con
crete symbol OF all that is most oppos
ed to what has been known HISTORICAL
ly as the Christian spirit than flying
machine. 1t must have seemed a par
taking of Lucifer's daring presump
ton, to be speedily followed by a sim
ilar fall.-National Review.
The Twilight OF Life.
The muscles of the stomach in old age are no
as strong or active as in youth and in cons
queuce old people are very subject to con stipa