The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1917-05-17
SUPERSTITIONS or OLD RETURN
 AS WAR WAGES
Black Cat Is Found Lucky and Left Shoe Is Always
 Put On First.

ing back into it's own as a result of the war Not only England but all the other European countries report the same condition-that wherever men are facing death they incline to watch little signs and omens, and this spirit quickly spreads through their families
 All units leaving for the front have some kind of pet or mascot, usually cat or dog, and the lives of these pets are guarded with extreme care. An Australian artillery battalian got into action early in the Dardan- elles campaign had a black cat which made its first appearance during the battalion's first engagement Men on every side of the unit were killed. but not a casualty occurred among those protected by the cat. Thereafter the commanding officer kept the cat in his quarters and each day sent his orderly out with the cat while it had it's airing.
 There were no chances taken of the mascot getting into danger, for when ever the orderly sallied forth on the constitutional, the officer made him
 
 vent it running away. The jokes that were passed by other units upon the orderly leading the cat may we'll be imagined. The battalion was later moved to the Somme and on June 26 discovered that the mascot had got into a house which was under heavy fire. One shell was seen to burst di- rectly over the building and rush waS made to find the cat. It was discovered on kitchen tab ble, hair on end and splitting but unhurt. Unfor- tunately 1t died later of shell shock, and the same day the battalion was cut to pieces while defending an ex- posed ridge.
 Little omens that seem ridiculous to the average man are reverenced by those who are about to face death. In an infantry regiment from Canada there was a private who boasted that by putting on his left sock and shoe first he invariably had good luck. The others were continually josh ing him about his superstition and one one morning before the big push in July of last year they hid his left sock and shoe just to make him use some picturesque Saskatchewan pro- fanity. He not only provided the explosives, but he announced to his unit that dire happenings were pend ing. Sure enough, when he and his comrades went over the parapet soon afterward their casualties were heav- fer than any of the nearby units Thereafter every man who survived religiously put on the left shoe and sock before touching the right.s
 Another superstition common among the fighting forces is that by rubbing spilled wine or spirits back of the ears it brings good luck It is believed that this sign spread among the British forces through contact with the French, who believe in the omen rehgiously. Just before the start of raid or dash over the para, pet the English forces are served with ration of whiskey or brandy, and in every case the men quietly gather around the one who pours out the stimulants, holding their hands un- der the jug to catch te drip an rub ping the little they catch back of their ears.
 In nearly every British newspaper may be seen avertisements of lucky omens. One especially popular is an imitation of little Mohammedan
 
 pocket piece carried by an Anzac who went through uncanny dangers on Gallipol and in Egypt without One company has secured a patent on this crazy looking little image, and from all reports is making a fortune on it's sale. Besides these images the men going to France usu- ally carry a piece of coal some place in their kit for good luck and piece of dried potato to keep away rheum- atisn. Some of the Irish troops have gone to France fairly plastered with good luck tokens given them by their people at home. :,
 This spirit of reverence for the signs and superstitions has been play ed upon extensively by fortune tell CTS and c1airvoyants, who just at this time are under the ban of the law in London and elsewhere in England. It is sorry reflection on the United States that a good many of these alleged psychics and clairvoyants come from across the Atlantic. Des- pite the activity of the police and the newspapers, the fortune teHers and trance mediums are still doing a thriving business by pretending to place bereaved relatives in communi- cation with men killed on the fields of France or on other fronts. There are even some who pretend they can get int touch with British prisoners in Germany, through the medium of clairvoyance. How utterly ridiculous are their claims has been shown in numerous police court exposures.
 Charms are said to be a legacy from our prehistoric ancestors, but right here in London today there are nystics who sell to the soliers snakes teth sewed up in bag of frog skin and who brew unearthly connections on Friday the 18th to sell to soldiers.
 In an editorial on the subject the Liverpool Post says:
 Whether this addiction to some peculiar little freak as an insurer of good luck can be traced to the inevi- table dependence of mankind upon a higher power which must be con ciliated in some manner, however chi!dlike and elemental, is a large question. The fact remains that hardly a soldier goes to the front or hardly a relative or interested friend sees him off but has some mascot, some flower leaf, quaint carving pr simple 'golliwog,' upon the influence of which reliance is placed for en- 1uite inexplicable thing known as luck"
 WAGES TO MEIET H. c. l..