The Telegraph-courier. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1888-1946, 1913-10-30
Boys and Girls Of Kenosha
Ready for the Annual OBJ
servance Of Halloween.
WITCHES TO RIDE FRIDAY NIGHT

sound It's the goblin man, and he IL
catch you if he can. Watch outi
Watch out!
Way up there in the north he Is gath
ering his elan. He's calling for the
witches, the Ssspooks'' and the bold
water spirits, and before little boys
know it, they II fill them with fright.
The witches are dressing for an
early fight; they re hunting their
brooms and scurrying round, to think
up more stories bad boys to confound.
That's what the little boys are
dreaming as they sleep over night, but
then, in the morning they forget it was
night They call all their pals and
think up bold schemes. Gates they will
rob and big men they will scare; Hal.
lowe 'en, Hallowe ZEN, talk everywhere.
Shop windows display loads Of novel
ties. Confectionery stores are showing
imitation pumpkins, stationery shops
display "spooky" looking place cards
and the department stores are offering
an innumerable assortment Of nymphs,
witches, ghosts and what not All go
ing to show that the fall festival
night has very hay significance.
Hallowe 'en is always celebrated the
last day of this month, and from the
old period Of superstition, evolution
brings it down to dinner parties and
a night of harmless play.
Those who are of historical turn of
mind say the holiday began its career
long before the Christian era, when the
worshipers of the sun god saw fit to
burn a few humans as protection
against the spooks. This was the deli
cate custom Of the Druids who felt
that of all nights of the year on which
witches aud hobgoblins were most
likely to appear was on October 81.
Soon witches grew scarce, and the
old superstition was dissipated and a
few hundred years after the time of
the Druias the day was Designated as
one Of thanksgiving. In looking
around for something else to be
thankful for our ancestors determined
that it might be the good harvest as
I
well as anything else, and thus for q
long time hallowe EN- was an interna-
tional thanksgiving holiday.
Unlike other holidays Hallowe EN-
has no formal edict Of q governor or
president to make it legal. 1t did
have such legal standing under the
Druids, who invoked Saman, the lord
of death to call together the wicked
souls in animals and punish them
The Romans, too, soon after the
conquest Of England, adopted the feast
of Samal idea and made Oct. 81 a le-
gal holiday for the worship of Pomona,
goddess Of apples and nuts. This was
where the apple ducking idea, familiar
to the old folks back ON the farm, had
its origin. Of course, no stiff necked
pagan Roman ever ducked for apples,
but the small boys of merry England
took up the idea as sort of joke on
the Roman holiday,
The Catholics gave the night its
name of All Hallow's eve, or Hallow-
mass, and the occasion still is observ-
ed as the vigil Of HalloN mass, or All
Saints day. Some places it is made
the time for decorating graves
To be sure, the night in certain Sc
cluded portions of ireland is known
even now as the Oidhahe Of Shamhma,
or the vigil of Saman. In equally Sc
Guided parts of Scotland and Wales it
is made into something of serious
frolic when bonfres are built and peb-
bles laid in the embers. Should one Of
the pebbles be found ont of place the
the mart morning it is a sure sign that
the person who laid it there viii die
during the ensuing year,