Perrysburg journal. (Perrysburg, Wood Co., O. [Ohio]) 186?-1965, 1915-12-23
CHRISTMAS SuPERST|T|ONS
Old Legends Tell OF Many Quaint Customs and Odd Believers
Of the YuIetIde.

Strut, Brand, Hone and Chambers,
and some of which survive until the
present day, it is not intended here
= to make particular mention; the
reader may best be referred to those
monuments of painstaking research
and erudition. The present notes
deal more particularly with few
odd details of superstition, which still
exists in this and other countries, and
it is of the greatest interest to the
student to find what large proper
tion of these obsolete customs may be
traced back to Christmas times,
when the sacrifices to the gods of the
fields and trees were important cele-
brations in the middle of the winter
solstice. The earth was then perhaps,
snow covered or ice-bound the grain
was lying dormant, the fruit trees.
denuded of leaves, were looking as
lifeless as they we'll could, and our
primitive ancestors offered up sacri-
fices to the tutelary guardians Of
their pastures and orchards in graft
tude for past crops, and in hopes that
they might be still further, or at least
equally, blessed in the ensuing year.
One of the survivials is the quaint
custom of greeting apple trees, which
used to be regularly observed in the
west of England. Indeed, it is quite
possible that the custom may even
sstili exist, for according to a writer
in the Western Antiquary, 1883, in
some places the parishioners walk in
procession visiting the principal
orchards of the parish. In each Or
chard one tree is selected as tie
representative of the rest. This is
;saluted with a certain form of words
which have in them the form of an
incantation. They then sprinkle the
tree with cider or dash bowl of
cider against it to insure its bearing
plentifully the next year. In other
places the farmers and their servants
only assemble on the occasion, and
after immersing apples in cider hang
them on the apple tree. The trees
having been sprinkled with cider, a
formal incantation is uttered, and
after a dance around the tree the
company returns to the farmhouse to
conclude these solemn rites with CO.
pious draughts of cider. Sometimes
in Cornwall few of the household
took out jar of cider, bottle and a
gun to the orchard and put small
bough into the bottle. They then
said:
Here's to thee, old apple tree!
Hats full, packs full, great bushel
bags full.
Hurrah! and fire off the gun.
Occasionally small sugared cakes
were laid on the branches, possibly 10
propriate some local spirit or genius
of the orchard. A correspondent in
Folk Lore, Vol. vi, 1895, states that
the custom of Charming the or
.chards" was still followed by "the
old folks" as late as 60 years ago, but,
according to this writer, the jug of
cider had toast or cake in it. The
incantation was similar to the one
already quoted, and after this old
and for choice very noisy-guns were
fired. The "old folks" then drank the
cider and ate the sop, taking care to
leave large piece in the fork of the
tree for the robins; or the charm
"ooiu iioNC ilO SllSSl. fallCI cdSll
orchard had been visited they re-
turned to the farmhouse, drank more
cider, and told tales round the fireside
This was always done on the eve of
Old Christmas Day, "Old Twelfyane."
On the continent the Slavs have an
analogous custom, but it is hardly so
propitiatory, for it takes the form of
threatening the apple tree with a
hatchet if they do not produce fruit
during the year. Both in Derbyshire
and Lincolnshire it is popular be-
lief that the sun shining through the
apple trees on Christmas day be-
tokens heavy crop of fruit in the
ensuing autumn.
Births on Christmas Day have not
always been reckoned to be of advant-
age to those children who enter the
world on that date; in fact, in the
island of Cos, according to Mr.. Rouse,
such children are held to be accursed
because they thus impiously mimic
the beginning of our Lords life on
earth, and when born become what
the Greek islanders call Kalikazari,
which are curious monsters believed
in all over the Greek world.
They are not pleasant creatures, ac-
cording to all accounts, combining
the worst features and characteristics
of were-wolves, vampires, satyrs and
such like undesirables. According to
this old legand Christmas children are
not ordinary infants but by the power
of Beelzebub they become full-grown
men and women, or take upon them
some other shape. They remain or
earth for IL days until the Ephiphany
for on that day by baptism the whole
earth was made holy, and all demons
are forced to depart from it. The
Kaikazari flee away, crying out:
Flee away, that we may fee!
Priest, with pot-belly here is he
With his holy-Water brush.