The St. Mary banner. (Franklin, Parish of St. Mary, La.) 1889-1931, 1908-07-25

That remnants of many superstl
tious customs that prevailed as lon1
ago as 1000 B. C. survive to the pres
ent day in the practice of astrology
phrenology. clairvoyancy and the IN
depreciation of dreams has beer
brought to light by DR.. Morris Jas
trow, Jr., of the University OF Penn
sylvania, who returned recently aftel
summer spent abroad making re
searches into the religions of the an
Client Assyrians and Babylonians, say:
the Philadelphia Ledger. DR.. Jastrow
incidentally, has disclosed some inter
est1ng data about the ancients, and
shows in his Interpretation Of the clay
tablets Of Nineveh that the people Of
that period accepted as religious truth
what science today brands as super
stition.
The divfnation of events to come
formed a great part of the religion
OF the ancients, and in their accom-
plfshment Of this end they employed
many objects and adopted numerous
strange customs. Among the objects
considered the most dependable in the
olvination Of the future were the liver
OF the sacridcal animal, a bowl con-
tanning water and oil, dogs, serpents
and the observation OF the sun, moon
and planets. The rites of divination
were sacred, and formed a part of the
training Of the priests. Occurrences
IN the lives of the royal family also
were considered to be fraught with
meaning, and from these predictions
were made as to the future fate of the
country.
At Work for Year.
i have been at work for the last
year and half on the divination texts
OF Babylonfa and Assyria,' said DR..
Jastrow, land the material which l
nave had at my disposal has been,
with few exceptions, from the Great
Royal Library of ancient Nineveh,
where It was placed by the Assyrian
King Ashurbanapal, who ruled from
626 to COG B. G.
The desire to foretell the future
was q natural one, as it was an i'm
pelling factor in all ancient religions,
giving rise to special classes OF pro-
phets and seers, supposed to be en-.
lowed with special powers. The same
desire for divination continues to play
q part In life. The chief of our sig
nal eel kice At Washington Is but the
logical and more practical successor Of
the astrologers, clairvoyants and
phrenologists still carry on their re-
spective trades, using methods not
unlike those which formed a part of
the equipment Of the ancient Babylon
Ian priest. The publishers OF dream
books continue to reap a,>profit upon
many Of the interpretations set forth
In the days before Christ, and many
persons living in the present day
doubtless accept such interpretations
quite seriously.
Read Future in Lambs Liver.
Under the class designated as
Dmens the most important feature
g that which is represented with the
texts which deal with the inspection
II the sacriflcial animal. Before en-
sagtng In battle with hostile nation
or tribe. in instances of serious ILL
hess and before entering upon any UNI
1ertaking of Importance, the priests
II the temple were consulted, and an
animal. usually a sheep or a lamb, was
'elected to be offered as a sacrifice to |
he gods. The liver of this animal |
vas subsequently removed, and,
trough a careful inspection of this or
,an, the future was read.
"The selection Of the liver Of the |
'acrifcial animal for this inspection
vas because of the belief that had pre-
'ailed throughout antiquity, that the
liver was the seat of the soul. Ac-
ording to the accepted belief of the
'eriod the liver represented the divine
art Of the animal.
"A long gall bladder was Interpret
d as pointing to length Of days. If
ny OF the markings on the liver re-
embed a weapon of any character
he consequence was thought to be
Tar. If the marking occurred on the
light side favorable outcome was
rognostfcated, while if it occurred on
be left side the result was supposed
. prove disastrous.
Some of'iciaI Recipes.
"As specimen of the Official re-
lpe for divination Of this character
lay be mentioned the following, as re- !,
Drded by the scribes OF Nabonidus.
he last king Of Babylonia, who ruled
rom SOS to 500 B. c.:
IF the systic duct is double on the
YER, the king also will be long"
II the hepatic duct is double on