Watauga Democrat. [volume] (Boone, Watauga County, N.C.) 1888-current, 1912-01-04
Ttasitless Areuid xlstislss.
Greensboro News. N

4 lSsSOssOVVAV xNCWbs -,f IT.
With the single exception per.
haps- OF holly, there in no plant
which is associated 90 closely
with the festive season OF Christ.
mas as the rnistletoe; and Ger
taihly there Is none which ls 40
curious ia its mode Of pr.senta- :
ttion and propagation, or around
which cluster go many strangt
mvths and traditions, says the
Anderson Daily Nah in the intro
ductory to an interesting e,lito.
rial in its Christmas issue. Then
in narrating the peculiar reve,.
ence ia which this parasite was
held by the pagans and early re.
ligioniats OF Europe and Britain,
also how it still today plays a
prom'nsnt part in the ceiebra.
tion OF the Yuletidp, our eontem.
poray says:
Before Caesar conquered west
ern Europe. then known as Gaul,
the mistletoe Was honored by the
tDruids, or wise men, of Gaul and
Britain as q divine plant, the &C.
lestial trees Or tree of the firma.
ment and also al all.heal, which
they distributed at acertain sea
son, our Christmas, with remar.
kable solemnity as q precious
gift. The reverence paid ii was
pxtraordinary. As Pliny says:
"Ths Druids held nothing more
eacred than the mistletoe, pro.
vided 1t be found on an oak; they
look upon It ae a certain sign
that their god hath made choice
Of that tree" They solemn,xed
no sacrifice nor performed any
s"cred ceremonies without brau-
ches and leaves thereof.
When the end ui tho year ap.
preached the Druids marched
with great solemnity and gath
cred the all.heal devoutly q n d
with much ceremony in order to
present it to Jupiter inviting all
to assist in the rite in these
words: "Ths new year is at hand,
gather the mistlet,,e. Hail to the
all-heal. hail to the new year!''
Preparation is made under the
tee upon which tue divine plant
has sprung tor the sacrifice and
festival cheer. Two young bul
locks, milk white, thathave nev'
or been yoked or brought for
ward and offered to the deity
then the priest arrayed ina sur
plice OF white vesture, climbi
the tree and with a golden hool
cuts the sacred parasite, letting
it fall into O white soldier cas'
sock; then they sacrifice thu
beast with many orislons for th'
prosperity 0f all.
Before the Reformation, th
historian, Stuckley, says tha
the veneration OF mistletoe wa
not peculiar to the Druide, thai
the custom prevailed in the nortl
end also in York. On the eve o
Christmas day they carried mis-
tletoe to the high altar Of t b
cathedral and universal liberty
pardon and freedom to all sort
OF wicked people at the gate o
the city towards the four quar-
ters of heaven.
In Burgundy the country peo
pie used on the Arst day OF tn
year to salute one another witt
"L0ng live the oak, long live th'
mistletoe." The common peopl'
in the upper part Of Germany q
bout Christmas time would RI,
about the village striking tn
doors and windows, shouting
"mistletce; all heal, all heal" Ii
lthess times the plant was consid
cred = remedy for all diseases
there was nothing (which it ha'
not been said tn cure, especial.
was it regarded by ancient mel
ical writer's as a remedy agains
lbarrenuess.
! The mietlet Oe was ea0red t,