Madison County Democrat. (London, Ohio) 19??-1958, 1953-02-17
Teen
TALK
BY VIVIAN BROWN
up Newsfe atures

R Newsfeatures
There's just gotta be a St. VAL
entine.
Some eager book-worms who
love to do research to a fault en-
joy debunking the romantic idea
of st. Valentines Day. They tell
us that there were three st. Val
entines, and that maybe they
weren't connected with the lovers
day at all, at all!
Pure heresy, that's what it is =.
and kids will go on celebrating
the lovers day in spite of the old
ogres who want to put a damper
on the fun.
Why you'd just as soon burn
Santa Claus at the stake, eat the
Easter bunny or lasso st. Patrick
with snake as discard ST. Val
entine as lot of humbug.
Valentines Day is made for
lovers, a day that gives every
girl an even break with Cupid, a
day the shyest swain can find an
excuse for being sentimental.
How in the world could girls ever
give it up?
Any girl who hasn't the gunp-
ton to defend the day against ad-
verse bows and arrows deserves
a Spinster's fate, Smart girls will
organize now to perpetuate the
memory of st. Valentine. Just as
Sherlock Holmes fans perpetuate
his memory by their devout inter-
est in a society such as the Baker
Street Irregulars, so, too, it is the
duty of marriageable young fol-
lowers of the hearty st. Valen-
tine to keep plugging his cause
/ prefer to believe the history
of st. Valentine as romantic re-
searchers tell it, and as greeting
card publishers picture it. These
romantic enthusiasts tell the story
of the sentimental holiday in
verse and cards just the way you
want to hear it. They say .
st. Valentine was a young Ro-
man priest beheaded on February
ii, 270 AID, for refusing to re-
nounce Christianity. While in pri-
son he befriended the little Jail
or's daughter, whose blindness he
is said to have cured by prayer.
On the eve of. his execution he
signed his farewell letter to her,
From Your Valentine"
This excited the imaginations of
all who heard about it, and es-
tabIished ST. Valentines Day as
an occasion for exchanging SYM
bolic gifts of friendship.
The Romans had celebrated
February Is for centuries as the
Feast of Lupercalia, dedicated to
the pastoral god Lupercus, and
the GOODIES of love, Juno. Roman
tic significance was attached to
this lavish pagan ceremony, be-
cause ancient oracles believed the
birds of Italy began mating on
that day. Eventually the two pop
ular holidays merged.
Medieval swains began sending
Valentines around 1400. The old
est sweetheart Valentine is said
to have been designed by the
Duke of Orleans in 1415 and is
now on display at the British Mu-
scum. The tale is that the Duke,
imprisoned in the Tower of Lon
don after the Battle of Agincourt,
bribed guard to smuggle it out
In 18th century France, Cupid
with his bow and arrow was de-
picted in Valentine designs for
the first time. Gilt paper, jewels
ribbons, hearts and expensive
Venetian lace were used. Across
the channel English fathers were
telling their daughters that Val
entine was equivalent of mar
riage proposal.
During the revolutionary war,
Valentines became popular in this
country no fine papers were
available so they were simple pen
and ink drawings, romantic verse
in Spencerian script.
In 1910 Esther Rowland dis
covered an English Valentine in
her fathers store and arranged to
have it copied for her classmates
at Mt. Holyoke College for Wom-