The Marion daily mirror. (Marion, Ohio) 1892-1912, 1909-02-26
SURE SIGNS

ey Which Rain Can be ForetoId
and the Character Of the Seasons
Predlcted--How to interpret Ma
ture.
Our expert on farm and weather lore
has prepared some things for publica-
tion, some of which you may know
about, but some of which you don't.
When the cattle lie down as soon as
they go out to pasture In the morning,
rain will soon come. When a rooster
crows at o'clock at night, the wealth
or is sure to change. If the chickens
come out while 1t is raining the storm
inay be expected TO be long one, IL
they stand around under shelter he
storm will be of short duration. What
ever the weather is of the first dog
day" so It. will be of the subsequent
49, II one hears the quail or Bob
White" singing, More wet, more
wet" one may be most emphatically
sure there will be more wet" The
cry of the tree toads, too, Is a sign
of rain. If the snow on the roof melts
off, the next storm will be rain on
the contrary, IL it blows off the next
storm will he snow, and when 1t stays
on the trees for "a hours. more snow
will soon follow. Kindhearted people
must not complain IL the month of
May is stormy, for the old adage says:
A cold wet Nav
A barn full OF hay.
Many might think 1t a strange phe-
nomenon to see a cat eating grass,
but should one ever see 1t, you may be
sure rain will soon come. When the
leaves Of the trees turn up their un-
der sides be prepared for rain.
A peck of March dust is said by the
makers of the early "almanacs" to be
worth bag of gold. This means that
wind enough to blow the dust would
be strong enough to dry the mud and
get the ground ready for an early crop.
The willing learner may know that
there will be dry weather as long as
the dog star is in the ascendant. II a
storm clears off" in the night do
not plan a journey, for another storm
may be expected very soon.
Whenever a farmer loses a cow, he
catches n grandpa-long-legs, puts a
finger on one leg, and the. insect will
point with another leg in the direction
in which the cow went; with NO
grandpa-long-legs near, the farmer
spits on the palm of his left hand
strikes the spittle with a finger OF
the right hand. and the way the spit.
tie jumps will show the way in which
the animal went.
Probably all people in their child
hood days have taken dandelion tor
that has gone to seed and blown on
It with all their might to see If their
mother wanted them. II the seeds al
blew off their mother wanted them al
once
Those who have ever visited Gal.
lows hill in Salem will remember thai
in one part of that dreary spot there
is space where no grass ever grows
That is supposedly the location where
the so-called witches were put &c
death and IL is an old, old saying that
no grass will grow where a gallows
has been used.
Is there anyone who never tried
putting a buttercup under the skin ol
the chin of another person? II the
skin above the flower shows a glow
It Is a sign that the individual likes
butter.
In localities where Il is possible al
farmers try to have one or more hem.
lock trees near their buildings, as This
particular kind of tree Is said to at
tract lightning and thus draw It away
from the buildings.
Never walk on the opposite side o
tree from that on which a frienC
walks; If you do something will hap
pen so that the friendship will n,
longer exist.
II one wishes on the first robin seer
when this kind of bird first makes III
appearance in the spring the wish will
come true provided no one has beer
told of it. This is also true of tn,
frogs.
Many farmers will count the frs
three white horses that go by, ther
shake hands with somebody, and after
ward make wish, knowing that un
der such conditions the wish will com,
true, Many farmers also save tn,
wish bones of the fowls eaten, keel
them till dry and seasoned, then hav,
somebody grasp one end while holdinl
the other themselves; each makes
wish, and then both pull, The on,
who gets the top" of the wishbon,
for his share gets his wish The ide;
Of wishing on the moon with silver il
ones pocket is very common.
In many districts the farmers carr!
a horse-chestnut or sometimes po
tato in their pockets to ward off rheu
matism. They will also rub st,
with a gooseberry thorn to make /
get we'll. Many also put crude sulphur
in their shoes as a preventative of con
taglous diseases.
In 1907 the wise farmers said ther,
would be little fruit this year becaus
I 4