The Ocala evening star. [volume] (Ocala, Fla.) 1895-1943, 1920-06-19
BRITISH FOLK LORE
Essay by Miss Lucille Gissendaner,
Graduating Class 1920 of the
Ocala High School


Folk lore has indeed been observed
and noted by many writer's from the
Father of History downward, but it
was not till after the beginning Of
the nineteenth century that the study
Of foil, lore really began. Popular
traditions began to be valued just as
they began to decline and disappear.
Fortunately, however. much material
had been gathered and put into writ
ing before the growing disfavor OF
everything supernatural, and the I'M
patience of everything beyond the
range of the practical and profitable
had deprived people of everything
they had received from their fathers.
The still surviving relics of the phil
osophy of primitive man, from which
folk lore aims to reconstruct, linger
longest among the least progressive
reople and it is in their superstitions
and stories that we find the richest
and most plentiful material.
Superstition is common not only
among the ignorant and lower classes
Of mankind, but among the highly
educated and cultured. AS the say
ing goes Ignorance is akin to super
stition," but Scott says that "this be-
lief in the existence in the spirit as
separated from the body is founded
on conscious knowledge of the divin-
Ity that speaks in our bosoms, demon
strating that there is something which
is not subject to laws of dissolution or
death" Herbert Spencer accounts for
il "by man being led through dreams
and shadows to look at himself as a
double being" Dryden says that "all
things are best unaltered, nothing dies
and here and there the embodied
spirit flies"
The English myths and legends
were not founded on the supernatural,
but were so closely interviewer with
the life of the people that tradition
is handed down. The myths and
legends sprang from the common
people as we'll as from the aristocrats,
and wandering minstrels sang of
ncble deeds in cottage and castle.
Children would gather around an old
hag and listen for hours to blood
curdling stories, chills running up
and down their backs. Old castles
and halls had gathered around them
weird stories, spectacular appearance
and mythical happenings.
Ireland, the oldest part of the Brit
ish Isles, holds sacred the memory
Of st. Patrick by celebrating March
18th as St. Patrick's Day. st. Pat
rick worked many miracles. Among
them was the freeing of Ireland from
snakes. A boy who wrote a compost
tion stated "there are no snakes in
Ireland, except in a jug"
The Blarney Stone is perhaps the
most known of all legends in Ireland.
The identity Of the Blarney Stone
has been the subject of debate, but it
is now generally agreed that it is in
the outer wall of Blarney castle. To
kiss it is was necessary that friend
should hold the feet of the aspirant to
eloquence, while he went head fore
most over the wall. No tourist should
visit the neighborhood of Cork with
out paying a visit to Blarney castle,
and if he have nerve enough for the
ordeal, kissing the celebrated Blarney
Stone, for
Like a magnet its influence is,
Attraction it gives all it touches;
If you kiss it, they say. from that
as blessed day,
You may kiss whom you please, wild
lt.. your barney"
The Irish were so warlike that the
first piece of meat that was given to
a child, was on the point of a sword
with wish that he might die either
in war or by the sword. Whether wei