the golden bough-第149节

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dentification　of　the　victim　with　the　corn　comes　out　in　the　African　custom　of　killing　him　with　spades　and　hoes；　and　the　Mexican　custom　of　grinding　him；　like　corn；　between　two　stones。

One　more　point　in　these　savage　customs　deserves　to　be　noted。　The　Pawnee　chief　devoured　the　heart　of　the　Sioux　girl；　and　the　Marimos　and　Gonds　ate　the　victim's　flesh。　If；　as　we　suppose；　the　victim　was　regarded　as　divine；　it　follows　that　in　eating　his　flesh　his　worshippers　believed　themselves　to　be　partaking　of　the　body　of　their　god。

4。　The　Corn…spirit　slain　in　his　Human　Representatives。

THE　BARBAROUS　rites　just　described　offer　analogies　to　the　harvest　customs　of　Europe。　Thus　the　fertilising　virtue　ascribed　to　the　corn…spirit　is　shown　equally　in　the　savage　custom　of　mixing　the　victim's　blood　or　ashes　with　the　seed…corn　and　the　European　custom　of　mixing　the　grain　from　the　last　sheaf　with　the　young　corn　in　spring。　Again；　the　identification　of　the　person　with　the　corn　appears　alike　in　the　savage　custom　of　adapting　the　age　and　stature　of　the　victim　to　the　age　and　stature；　whether　actual　or　expected；　of　the　crop；　in　the　Scotch　and　Styrian　rules　that　when　the　corn…spirit　is　conceived　as　the　Maiden　the　last　corn　shall　be　cut　by　a　young　maiden；　but　when　it　is　conceived　as　the　Corn…mother　it　shall　be　cut　by　an　old　woman；　in　the　warning　given　to　old　women　in　Lorraine　to　save　themselves　when　the　Old　Woman　is　being　killed；　that　is；　when　the　last　corn　is　being　threshed；　and　in　the　Tyrolese　expectation　that　if　the　man　who　gives　the　last　stroke　at　threshing　is　tall；　the　next　year's　corn　will　be　tall　also。　Further；　the　same　identification　is　implied　in　the　savage　custom　of　killing　the　representative　of　the　corn…spirit　with　hoes　or　spades　or　by　grinding　him　between　stones；　and　in　the　European　custom　of　pretending　to　kill　him　with　the　scythe　or　the　flail。　Once　more　the　Khond　custom　of　pouring　water　on　the　buried　flesh　of　the　victim　is　parallel　to　the　European　customs　of　pouring　water　on　the　personal　representative　of　the　corn…spirit　or　plunging　him　into　a　stream。　Both　the　Khond　and　the　European　customs　are　rain…charms。

To　return　now　to　the　Lityerses　story。　It　has　been　shown　that　in　rude　society　human　beings　have　been　commonly　killed　to　promote　the　growth　of　the　crops。　There　is　therefore　no　improbability　in　the　supposition　that　they　may　once　have　been　killed　for　a　like　purpose　in　Phrygia　and　Europe；　and　when　Phrygian　legend　and　European　folk…custom；　closely　agreeing　with　each　other；　point　to　the　conclusion　that　men　were　so　slain；　we　are　bound；　provisionally　at　least；　to　accept　the　conclusion。　Further；　both　the　Lityerses　story　and　European　harvest…customs　agree　in　indicating　that　the　victim　was　put　to　death　as　a　representative　of　the　corn…spirit；　and　this　indication　is　in　harmony　with　the　view　which　some　savages　appear　to　take　of　the　victim　slain　to　make　the　crops　flourish。　On　the　whole；　then；　we　may　fairly　suppose　that　both　in　Phrygia　and　in　Europe　the　representative　of　the　corn…spirit　was　annually　killed　upon　the　harvest…field。　Grounds　have　been　already　shown　for　believing　that　similarly　in　Europe　the　representative　of　the　tree…spirit　was　annually　slain。　The　proofs　of　these　two　remarkable　and　closely　analogous　customs　are　entirely　independent　of　each　other。　Their　coincidence　seems　to　furnish　fresh　presumption　in　favour　of　both。

To　the　question；　How　was　the　representative　of　the　corn…spirit　chosen？　one　answer　has　been　already　given。　Both　the　Lityerses　story　and　European　folk…custom　show　that　passing　strangers　were　regarded　as　manifestations　of　the　corn…spirit　escaping　from　the　cut　or　threshed　corn；　and　as　such　were　seized　and　slain。　But　this　is　not　the　only　answer　which　the　evidence　suggests。　According　to　the　Phrygian　legend　the　victims　of　Lityerses　were　not　simply　passing　strangers；　but　persons　whom　he　had　vanquished　in　a　reaping　contest　and　afterwards　wrapt　up　in　corn…sheaves　and　beheaded。　This　suggests　that　the　representative　of　the　corn…spirit　may　have　been　selected　by　means　of　a　competition　on　the　harvest…field；　in　which　the　vanquished　competitor　was　compelled　to　accept　the　fatal　honour。　The　supposition　is　countenanced　by　European　harvest…customs。　We　have　seen　that　in　Europe　there　is　sometimes　a　contest　amongst　the　reapers　to　avoid　being　last；　and　that　the　person　who　is　vanquished　in　this　competition；　that　is；　who　cuts　the　last　corn；　is　often　roughly　handled。　It　is　true　we　have　not　found　that　a　pretence　is　made　of　killing　him；　but　on　the　other　hand　we　have　found　that　a　pretence　is　made　of　killing　the　man　who　gives　the　last　stroke　at　threshing；　that　is；　who　is　vanquished　in　the　threshing　contest。　Now；　since　it　is　in　the　character　of　representative　of　the　corn…spirit　that　the　thresher　of　the　last　corn　is　slain　in　mimicry；　and　since　the　same　representative　character　attaches　（as　we　have　seen）　to　the　cutter　and　binder　as　well　as　to　the　thresher　of　the　last　corn；　and　since　the　same　repugnance　is　evinced　by　harvesters　to　be　last　in　any　one　of　these　labours；　we　may　conjecture　that　a　pretence　has　been　commonly　made　of　killing　the　reaper　and　binder　as　well　as　the　thresher　of　the　last　corn；　and　that　in　ancient　times　this　killing　was　actually　carried　out。　This　conjecture　is　corroborated　by　the　common　superstition　that　whoever　cuts　the　last　corn　must　die　soon。　Sometimes　it　is　thought　that　the　person　who　binds　the　last　sheaf　on　the　field　will　die　in　the　course　of　next　year。　The　reason　for　fixing　on　the　reaper；　binder；　or　thresher　of　the　last　corn　as　the　representative　of　the　corn…spirit　may　be　this。　The　corn…spirit　is　supposed　to　lurk　as　long　as　he　can　in　the　corn；　retreating　before　the　reapers；　the　binders；　and　the　threshers　at　their　work。　But　when　he　is　forcibly　expelled　from　his　refuge　in　the　last　corn　cut　or　the　last　sheaf　bound　or　the　last　grain　threshed；　he　necessarily　assumes　some　other　form　than　that　of　the　corn…stalks；　which　had　hitherto　been　his　garment　or　body。　And　what　form　can　the　expelled　corn…spirit　assume　more　naturally　than　that　of　the　person　who　stands　nearest　to　the　corn　from　which　he　（the　corn…spirit）　has　just　been　expelled？　But　the　person　in　question　is　necessarily　the　reaper；　binder；　or　thresher　of　the　last　corn。　He　or　she；　therefore；　is　seized　and　treated　as　the　corn…spirit　himself。

Thus　the　person　who　was　killed　on　the　harvest…field　as　the　representative　of　the　corn…spirit　may　have　been　either　a　passing　stranger　or　the　harvester　who　was　last　at　reaping；　binding；　or　threshing。　But　there　is　a　third　possibility；　to　which　ancient　legend　and　modern　folk…custom　alike　point。　Lityerses　not　only　put　strangers　to　death；　he　was　himself　slain；　and　apparently　in　the　same　way　as　he　had　slain　others；　namely；　by　being　wrapt　in　a　corn…sheaf；　beheaded；　and　cast　into　the　river；　and　it　is　implied　that　this　happened　to　Lityerses　on　his　own　land。　Similarly　in　modern　harvest…customs　the　pretence　of　killing　appears　to　be　carried　out　quite　as　often　on　the　person　of　the　master　（farmer　or　squire）　as　on　that　of　strangers。　Now　when　we　remember　that　Lityerses　was　said　to　have　been　a　son　of　the　King　of　Phrygia；　and　that　in　one　account　he　is　himself　called　a　king；　and　when　we　combine　with　this　the　tradition　that　he　was　put　to　death；　apparently　as　a　representative　of　the　corn…spirit；　we　are　led　to　conjecture　that　we　have　here　another　trace　of　the　custom　of　annually　slaying　one　of　those　divine　or　priestly　kings　who　are　known　to　have　held　ghostly　sway　in　many　parts　of　Western　Asia　and　particularly　in　Phrygia。　The　custom　appears；　as　we　have　seen；　to　have　been　so　far　modified　in　places　that　the　king's　son　was　slain　in　the　king's　stead。　Of　the　custom　thus　modified　the　story　of　Lityerses　would　be；　in　one　version　at　least；　a　reminiscence。

Turning　now　to　the　relation　of　the　Phrygian　Lityerses　to　the　Phrygian　Attis；　it　may　be　remembered　that　at　Pessinusthe　seat　of　a　priestly　kingshipthe　high…priest　appears　to　have　been　annually　slain　in　the　character　of　Attis；　a　god　of　vegetation；　and　that　Attis　was　described　by　an　ancient　authority　as　a　reaped　ear　of　corn。　Thus　Attis；　as　an　embodiment　of　the　corn…spirit；　annually　slain　in　the　person　of　his　representative；　might　be　thought　to　be　ultimately　identical　with　Lityerses；　the　latter　being　simply　the　rustic　prototype　out　of　which　the　state　religion　of　Attis　was　developed。　It　may　have　been　so；　but；　on　the　other　hand；　the　analogy　of　European　folk…custom　warns　us　that　amongst　the　same　people　two　distinct　deities　of　vegetation　may　have　their　separate　personal　representatives；　both　of　whom　are　slain　in　the　character　of　gods　at　different　times　of　the　year。　For　in　Europe；　as　we　have　seen；　it　appears　that　one　man　was　commonly　slain　in　the　character　of　the　tree…spirit　in　spring；　and　another　in　the　character　of　the　corn…spirit　in　autumn。　It　may　have　been　so　in　Phrygia　also。　Attis　was　especially　a　tree…god；　and　his　connexion　with　corn　may　have　been　only　such　an　extension　of　the　power　of　a　tree…spirit　as　is　indicated　in　customs　like　the　Harvest…May。　Again；　the　representative　of　Attis　appears　to　have　been　slain　in　spring；　whereas　Lityerses　must　have　been　slain　in　summer　or　autumn；　according　to　the　time　of　the　harvest　in　Phrygia。　On　the　whole；　then；　while　we　are　not　justified　in　regarding　Lityerses　as　the　prototype　of　Attis；　the　two　may　be　regarded　as　paral