Rockingham post-dispatch. [volume] (Rockingham, N.C.) 1917-1965, 1917-12-20
Is lost in traditions Of tile D1vfdS:

70 Go b1tuuE
erything animate and in
animate, the animals and
men and fish and birds,
the water and earth and rocks anu
trees, the winds and clouds and ram
and snow, all agreed never to harm
Baldur.
"Go forth and weep no more, daugh-
ter" said Wodin to Mamma, mo harm
can now come to your husband, my
son." and Mamma went forth happy.
After that all the gods used TO-
amuse themselves hurting stones ana
axes and spears at Baldur ana ne
stood and laughed at them, because
neither wood nor petal nor anything
could harm him. 1t was great sport
for everyone. One day while at this
sport an old woman asked Mamma why
they were trying to kill Baldur.
Everything has promised never to
harm him." she explained.
"Everything?" queried the old wom-
an.
Except the mistletoe, what can that
little shrub do?" Mamma laughed scorn-
fully,
The old woman hurried away. or
| course it was Loki in disguise. she
| got a twig of mstletoe and hardened
| II by charming the outside before the
fire, fitted the point to lance ana
hurled it at Baldur, whereupon 1t
pierced his heart and he fell dead.
Dedicated to Love and Affection.
As a peace offering the gods dedi-
Gated the mistletoe to love and affec-
ton and peace just so long as 1t never
touched Loki's territory, the ground.
Ever since then the mistletOe has
grown without roots, far away from
the ground, and even to this day 1t Is
used by suspending 1t above the floor
or ground.
And so IT Is that both ancient Brit
ain and Scandinavia lay their claim TO
mistletoe customs and the origin or
suspending branch of 1t beneath
which youth may kiss. There is little
doubt but what the custom was In use
thousand years before the origin OF
Christmas. While the story of the
maidens who lured back to their
camps, and to themselves, the young
men who were about 90 become DRUID
priests, gives good account Of our GUS
tom of kissing beneath the mistletoe
today, to Scandinavia also belongs
much credit. When those brave and
romantic Scandinavians looked for
ward to Valhala rs their heaven, and
!, worshiped the gods Thor and Wodin
ON Thor's day and Wodins day (Which
', is where we get our Thursday and
, Wednesday,, they used to have Ger
tain great feast days for their gods.
It became the custom, on observing
Thor's day, to build great fires. These
were called "Juul" fires. AS everyone
knows, the Scandinavian ~" is pro
nounced quite like our pronunciation
of the letter "Y," consequently thos'
fires were spoken of as "Yule" fires.
The brighter the fires, the highe
4 the flames lowered through the for
A ests where the Scandinavians used II
p gather to pay honor to the great go'
Thor, the greater pleased was Thor
q and so 1t became necessary to picl
g out the best of wood tc burn.
4 Then men would go into the fores
d looking for "Juul" logs, and they 500
learned that the trees upon whic
l. much mistletoe chung would give tn
IS brightest fires. They did not knoN
J. the reason for this, and believed tina
# it was due to the work of the grea
If Thor himself who caused the mistl'
% toe to grow on those trees withor
roots solely as means Of letting hi
people know which trees were bes
IS for burning in his honor.
he And so whenever anyone met undo
ID the mistletoe in the great forests, 4
ST matter how great enemies they wer
IN they dropped their weapons and gree
Sc ed each other kindly, nor would the
ID take up arms against each other unit
h. the sunrise of another day. This WI
IA their tribute in memory of Thor.
Id A Fetish of Good Luck.
They began to take bits of the mi
of tletoe into their homes and hang
IT. over the doorways, and If any enemi
he came, they could not enter the hous
he beneath the mistletoe without becol
al. ing friends to the people inside so lol
IN, as they remained there. From tn
he came the habit of greeting people WI
is stepped under the mistletoe with
embrace or kiss, and ut great indo
nd feasts the mistletoe was hung up
Die the room and the people greeted ca
nd other with kisses.
Ter Later this mistletoe hanging
as feasts came to be put in use only
srs the Christmas feast and from tn
rid grew the custom of hanging up I