The Canon City record with which is consolidated the Canon City cannon., 1918-12-26
BENEATH M|STLETOE.
Kissing Custom So Old No One
Knows When 1t Started.
Branches With Greatest Number of
Berries Favored. AZ kiss Must :.
Be Given for Each Berry
Plucked.

Plucked.
I According to scandinavian mythoi-
ogy, Loki, the god of evil, was the
sworn enemy of Baldur. the god OF
light, and tried by every means in
his power to kill him, but failed be-
cause he was invuInerable to every
thing that came from the earth. air.
fire or water.
| Lcki at last conceived the idea that
the mistletoe. springing from neither.
would serve his purpose and. having
an arrow made from the wood he
neIped Hodi. the blind god of dark
ness, to aim it. and BaIdur fell dead
shot through the heart.
All the gods and goddesses prayed
for his restoration to life, and when,
The prayer was granted it was de-
.reed that the mistletoe should never
more have power TO do harm unless IL
,ouched the earth, and the goddess OF
owe was appointed to guard it,
Some legends claim that the god
less kissed all who passed under the
,iant as a token that 1t was no longer
II weapon of death. but a symbol Of
owe. while others assert that she ex--
racted a kiss from each as propitia-
ion. or the bough should be allowed to.
'-ork harm.
Another reason for the kissing priv
tege conferred by the plant Is said to-
re that a lovely maiden preferred
ieath to the kisses of an amorous old
monk who pursued her. and her
prayers for deiiverance were answer
I'd by transforming her into a misde-
oe branch and placing her in a tree
Kiss For Each Berry.
The custom of kissing beneath the
nist,etoe' is so old that no one knows
shen it originated; but when young
People are found selecting the branches
hat have the berries on. it is fair to.
uppose that they know a kiss must
,e given for each berry plucked and
hat the ceremony is never complete
Until every berry is off the branch
There was once common. though
mistaken. belief that the mistletoe gree
IN oak trees only. but that was, 50 far
from true that the Druids. who held
ne. oak as absolutely sacred because
hey believed it to represent the One
Supreme God. deemed the mistletoe
LOUDLY sacred il found on one. and
carefully guarded 1t until the sixth day
sitter the first new moon ef each
rear.
When this. time arrived, priesta
'obed IN spotiess white. surrounded
he tree and held solemn ceremonies.
,mong which was the sacrifice of two
White bulls
After the ceremonies priest rooed
n spotiess white ascended the tree.
md with a golden knife cut the mis-
ietoe and let It fall onto q white
10th held by other priests
The branches were then formally
,iessed and divided among the people.
who believed the sprays given them
% have miraculous power
Called aAii-sieaI. Plant
The common belief in the efficacy
IT the plant was such that ii was CALI
ID "ali-heal; but according to an old
egend, a certain lover searched many
lays for q specimen growing on an
yak tree. that he might secure its
who was sick unto death. but when
he found it he touched the sap. while
cutting the branches. and fell dead
near the tree. indicating that the sap
vas a deadly poison.
Another legend accounts for the
fact that the plant Is a parasite by the
story that the mistletoe. originally
grew as a tree. and that the cross on
which Christ was crucified was mada
from mistietoe wood. after which IL
was accursed and condemned to never
more grow as a tree but to exist as
a parasite. killing every living thing
to which it became attached
The plant thrives in America from
New Jersey southwark and westward.
eno those who know it only as part
OF Christmas decorations can have
little idea Of how II overruns trees to
the extent Of being nuisance