The Hays free press. [volume] (Hays, Kan.) 1908-1924, 1917-02-10

or saucy documents, of lighter import. like tbe
sugary rhymes of our grandmothers' time nor the
flowers and gloves of today. Instead, they were
real human beings whom destiny paired for the
space of twelvemonth
1t was the duty of the Roman youth on the day
OF the least OF Lupercalia, which, according to
ancient ehronlclers, comedies with our St VaIen-
1ne'S DAY, TO repair to the Sacred urn in search
of a sweetheart. In the urn were the names of
the maidens of the neighborhood, written on sims
OF parchment The Roman youth never thought
OF shrinking from the ordeal Any attempt on
his part to around by the back streets on his av
to business or to spend the day on the golf Inks
instead of doing his duty man and a citizen
would nave marked him out man with no
sporting blood in his veins. So, assuming an air
OF gay indifference, he took his place in the line
called upon the gods for succor and boldly
plunged his hand into the Sacred urn.
Then, like the historic Horner he pulled out LET
US nope not Plum but in the modern language
or admiration, peach. If so, his face lighted de-
hghfuIly and he hurried out to buy an unusual1v
rich and varied assortment Of sacrifices for the
altar OF Venus. Cupid and the rest of the really
important dlvlnities. If however, fate had gone
against MIN and he had drawn an undesirable
maiden from the bowl striking his clenched fist
Hereby upon his brow, he strobe in silence from
the place of doom.
But he never thought of demanding a second
helping. No, the gods had willed it. and so If
was to be. He had acquired a sweetheart for a
year, and he stuck by her until next St Yalen-
une's day gave him the opportunity to break the
engagement.
1t was in the year 400 that Pope Gelasius
noting with pain the ancient method of observing
the feast of Lupercalia, which took place on
February 10, decided that something would have
to be done about it. AS the youths of the time
seemed to be strangely addicted to the practice
of pulling the names of young women out of the
Sacred urn, it was decided that it would not do
TO deprive them altogether of this playful diver
sion. Instead, they could be led by easy stages
away from the heathenish portent of the game
So the leaders of the reform movement hit upon
the scheme of permitting the Sacred urn to per-
form on its usual day, but the of saints and
martyrs were substituted upon the papers which
the youths picked out of this receptacle for those
OF maidens in the community. Then, reasoned the
reform leaders, the youths could consider that the
saints whose they drew out were their
patron saints and could pattern their lives by
those of these worthy persons. This would be
quite as exciting picking out the name Of ones
next seasons girl.
And to make the transformation of this day Of
pagan rites into Christian festival complete, it
was decided by the reform element that the day
should henceforth be known ST. Valentines
day and that it should be set on February IA in
honor Of the fact that in go A D. the good bishop
afterward St. Valentine beheaded by the
prosecutors of the early Christians because he
had performed the remarkable miracle of making
his Jailer's blind daughter see.
The Day of Lovers
st. Valentines day February IA indeed became
but, alas for human frailty although the name was
changed the spirit of the day remained as before
Down to our own time it is still the day of lovers
the world over. The of the saints which
came out of the Sacred instead of those OF the
pretty girls of old Rome were powerIess to turn
the thoughts OF young men away from love and
happiness toward selfsacrifce and piety. The
ancient usages persisted. and thus originated the
incongruous situation whereby ecclesiastic of
ascetic life and pious history has given his name
for all time to festival devoted to the impas-
stoned sentiment of lovers.
In later days. when valentines had eme TO be
delicate mSSiVeS in which lovers their
ardor in their own verses, the duke of Orleans
was one of the many great personages who thought
the inditing OF valentine verses not too small a
goal for his poetical ambitions. 1t was after
Charles taken prisoner at the battle OF Agin-
court in 1915. that he did the greatest amount of
his valentine poetizing He composed the first
written valentine which now exists. As he was
prisoner Of England for % years, he had plenty of
time to polish up these dainty epistes and he