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the golden bough-及215准

弌傍 the golden bough 忖方 耽匈4000忖

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se a king of the badache or double axe察but it does not appear that he kindled the bonfire察which is said to have been lighted with great ceremony by the pr└fet and other authorities。

In Belgium the custom of kindling the midsummer bonfires has long disappeared from the great cities察but it is still kept up in rural districts and small towns。 In that country the Eve of St。 Peter's Day the twenty´ninth of June is celebrated by bonfires and dances exactly like those which commemorate St。 John's Eve。 Some people say that the fires of St。 Peter察like those of St。 John察are lighted in order to drive away dragons。 In French Flanders down to 1789 a straw figure representing a man was always burned in the midsummer bonfire察and the figure of a woman was burned on St。 Peter's Day察the twenty´ninth of June。 In Belgium people jump over the midsummer bonfires as a preventive of colic察and they keep the ashes at home to hinder fire from breaking out。

The custom of lighting bonfires at midsummer has been observed in many parts of our own country察and as usual people danced round and leaped over them。 In Wales three or nine different kinds of wood and charred faggots carefully preserved from the last midsummer were deemed necessary to build the bonfire察which was generally done on rising ground。 In the Vale of Glamorgan a cart´wheel swathed in straw used to be ignited and sent rolling down the hill。 If it kept alight all the way down and blazed for a long time察an abundant harvest was expected。 On Midsummer Eve people in the Isle of Man were wont to light fires to the windward of every field察so that the smoke might pass over the corn察and they folded their cattle and carried blazing furze or gorse round them several times。 In Ireland cattle察especially barren cattle察were driven through the midsummer fires察and the ashes were thrown on the fields to fertilise them察or live coals were carried into them to prevent blight。 In Scotland the traces of midsummer fires are few察but at that season in the highlands of Perthshire cowherds used to go round their folds thrice察in the direction of the sun察with lighted torches。 This they did to purify the flocks and herds and to keep them from falling sick。

The practice of lighting bonfires on Midsummer Eve and dancing or leaping over them is察or was till recently察common all over Spain and in some parts of Italy and Sicily。 In Malta great fires are kindled in the streets and squares of the towns and villages on the Eve of St。 John Midsummer Eve察formerly the Grand Master of the Order of St。 John used on that evening to set fire to a heap of pitch barrels placed in front of the sacred Hospital。 In Greece察too察the custom of kindling fires on St。 John's Eve and jumping over them is said to be still universal。 One reason assigned for it is a wish to escape from the fleas。 According to another account察the women cry out察as they leap over the fire察I leave my sins behind me。 In Lesbos the fires on St。 John's Eve are usually lighted by threes察and the people spring thrice over them察each with a stone on his head察saying察I jump the hare's fire察my head a stone In Calymnos the midsummer fire is supposed to ensure abundance in the coming year as well as deliverance from fleas。 The people dance round the fires singing察with stones on their heads察and then jump over the blaze or the glowing embers。 When the fire is burning low察they throw the stones into it察and when it is nearly out察they make crosses on their legs and then go straightway and bathe in the sea。

The custom of kindling bonfires on Midsummer Day or on Midsummer Eve is widely spread among the Mohammedan peoples of North Africa察particularly in Morocco and Algeria察it is common both to the Berbers and to many of the Arabs or Arabic´speaking tribes。 In these countries Midsummer Day the twenty´fourth of June察Old Style is called l'│nsara。 The fires are lit in the courtyards察at cross´roads察in the fields察and sometimes on the threshing´floors。 Plants which in burning give out a thick smoke and an aromatic smell are much sought after for fuel on these occasions察among the plants used for the purpose are giant´fennel察thyme察rue察chervil´seed察camomile察geranium察and penny´royal。 People expose themselves察and especially their children察to the smoke察and drive it towards the orchards and the crops。 Also they leap across the fires察in some places everybody ought to repeat the leap seven times。 Moreover they take burning brands from the fires and carry them through the houses in order to fumigate them。 They pass things through the fire察and bring the sick into contact with it察while they utter prayers for their recovery。 The ashes of the bonfires are also reputed to possess beneficial properties察hence in some places people rub their hair or their bodies with them。 In some places they think that by leaping over the fires they rid themselves of all misfortune察and that childless couples thereby obtain offspring。 Berbers of the Rif province察in Northern Morocco察make great use of fires at midsummer for the good of themselves察their cattle察and their fruit´trees。 They jump over the bonfires in the belief that this will preserve them in good health察and they light fires under fruit´trees to keep the fruit from falling untimely。 And they imagine that by rubbing a paste of the ashes on their hair they prevent the hair from falling off their heads。 In all these Moroccan customs察we are told察the beneficial effect is attributed wholly to the smoke察which is supposed to be endued with a magical quality that removes misfortune from men察animals察fruit´trees and crops。

The celebration of a midsummer festival by Mohammedan peoples is particularly remarkable察because the Mohammedan calendar察being purely lunar and uncorrected by intercalation察necessarily takes no note of festivals which occupy fixed points in the solar year察all strictly Mohammedan feasts察being pinned to the moon察slide gradually with that luminary through the whole period of the earth's revolution about the sun。 This fact of itself seems to prove that among the Mohammedan peoples of Northern Africa察as among the Christian peoples of Europe察the midsummer festival is quite independent of the religion which the people publicly profess察and is a relic of a far older paganism。

6。 The Hallowe'en Fires

FROM THE FOREGOING survey we may infer that among the heathen forefathers of the European peoples the most popular and widespread fire´festival of the year was the great celebration of Midsummer Eve or Midsummer Day。 The coincidence of the festival with the summer solstice can hardly be accidental。 Rather we must suppose that our pagan ancestors purposely timed the ceremony of fire on earth to coincide with the arrival of the sun at the highest point of his course in the sky。 If that was so察it follows that the old founders of the midsummer rites had observed the solstices or turning´points of the sun's apparent path in the sky察and that they accordingly regulated their festal calendar to some extent by astronomical considerations。

But while this may be regarded as fairly certain for what we may call the aborigines throughout a large part of the continent察it appears not to have been true of the Celtic peoples who inhabited the Land's End of Europe察the islands and promontories that stretch out into the Atlantic Ocean on the North´West。 The principal fire´festivals of the Celts察which have survived察though in a restricted area and with diminished pomp察to modern times and even to our own day察were seemingly timed without any reference to the position of the sun in the heaven。 They were two in number察and fell at an interval of six months察one being celebrated on the eve of May Day and the other on Allhallow Even or Hallowe'en察as it is now commonly called察that is察on the thirty´first of October察the day preceding All Saints' or Allhallows' Day。 These dates coincide with none of the four great hinges on which the solar year revolves察to wit察the solstices and the equinoxes。 Nor do they agree with the principal seasons of the agricultural year察the sowing in spring and the reaping in autumn。 For when May Day comes察the seed has long been committed to the earth察and when November opens察the harvest has long been reaped and garnered察the fields lie bare察the fruit´trees are stripped察and even the yellow leaves are fast fluttering to the ground。 Yet the first of May and the first of November mark turning´points of the year in Europe察the one ushers in the genial heat and the rich vegetation of summer察the other heralds察if it does not share察the cold and barrenness of winter。 Now these particular points of the year察as has been well pointed out by a learned and ingenious writer察while they are of comparatively little moment to the European husbandman察do deeply concern the European herdsman察for it is on the approach of summer that he drives his cattle out into the open to crop the fresh grass察and it is on the approach of winter that he leads them back to the safety and shelter of the stall。 Accordingly it seems not improbable that the Celtic bisection of the year into two halves at the beginning of May and the beginning of November dates from a time when the Celts were mainly a pastoral pe

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