be the fate of the careless one. What exactly is the penalty one must pay for breaking a mirror is not definite. Some people speak of seven years of misfortune, while others claim that it means seven years of celibacy.
To take certain things into the house is the height of folly, if you believe in superstitions. May or hawthorn blossom is one, though the berries of this flower seem to have no ill-potency. Peacock's feathers are another. Somewhat similar is the contention that it is very unlucky to open an umbrella indoors.
While sitting at the meal-table, there are several things that must not be done. Helping a friend to salt has been already mentioned, but you must not allow the knives or forks to become crossed. Quarrels with your friends will result if you do. Of course, you must not sit down, thirteen of you, around the table. As is well known, this belief has its origin in the Last Supper, when our Lord sat at meat with his twelve apostles. On the other hand, should you taste a fruit for the first time in that season, you have only to frame a wish and it will be granted. Much the same applies to mince-pies. You will be awarded with a whole happy month for each pie that you eat at Christmas-time which is made in a different house. Of course, it is highly unwise for two people to pour tea out of the same pot at the same meal.
To give a friend an edged tool is sure to cut the friendship, whether it be a knife, a pair of scissors, a razor or a chisel. When such a gift is to be made, the usual plan is to sell it to your friend for a penny.
You should never put a shoe on a table, and, to see a pin lying on the floor and leave it there, is an omen that you will want before you die. As the jingle runs:
See a pin and let it lie, you're sure to want before you die.
See a pin and pick it up, then you're sure to have good luck.
Elsewhere, a good deal is said about dreams. Here it will be sufficient to mention one or two items of interest. It is decidedly unlucky to dream of a baby, yet to dream of a funeral is lucky. The following is worth bearing in mind:
Friday dream and Saturday told;
Sure to come true, if ever so old.
And here it will be appropriate to recall the fact that it is an unwise thing to get out of bed on the wrong side. The devil will be with you all the day, if you do.
You should avoid looking at the new moon through glass; but if you have a wish that you want fulfilled, you have only to count seven stars on seven nights in succession. Let it be said, however, that to count seven stars for this space of time is not as simple as it appears.
It is unlucky to treasure locks of people's hair, and, should you drop a glove, it is to your advantage if someone else picks it up for you. If the fire refuses to light properly in the morning, anticipate a whole day with the devil.
Everybody knows that one of the luckiest things that can be done is to pick up a horse-shoe. But it is not generally known that the more nails left in it, the better. Nor is it sufficiently well recognized that a shoe, hung up, should have the tips pointing upwards. If they are turned down, the luck will run out of them.
Naturally, you will never start anything fresh on a Friday, and you will not cut your fingernails on a Sunday. Regarding fingernails, a poet, of sorts, has said:
Cut them on Monday, you cut them for news.
Cut them on Tuesday, a new pair of shoes.
Cut them on Wednesday, you cut them for health.
Cut them on Thursday, you cut them for wealth.
Cut them on Friday, a sweetheart you'll know.
Cut them on Saturday, a journey you'll go.
Cut them on Sunday, you cut them for evil:
For all the next week, you'll be ruled by the devil.
Of course, bad luck has not a monopoly on your superstitions, for good luck has something to say also. To see a piebald horse is fortunate; to find white heather, four-leaved clover or four-leaved shamrock is even more fortunate. To open a pea-pod and find ten peas in it is particularly lucky. For a black cat to come into your house is worth much. To come across a nickel with a hole in it is not without its merits, but the best thing of all is to put on some article of clothing inside out, and to wear it all day long, without being aware of it until bed-time.
HAVE YOU A TALISMAN?
"A person who finds a four-leaved clover, and believes it is a harbinger of something good, has adopted the right attitude, for he keeps a keen look-out for that particular good and holds out both hands for it. Seldom is he disappointed, for he has unconsciously set going the mental machinery which brings his wishes within reach. Had he not found the clover and had gone along life's highway unexpectant of anything good, he would never have discovered this pleasant happening. And therein lies the true psychology of luck, which seems too simple to be true, but then its simplicity is really the sign-manual of its verity."
This quotation from the writings of a well-known author goes direct to the point about talismans. If you adopt a talisman and put your faith in it, you immediately prepare your mind for receiving an abundance of good fortune. Reject all talismans and argue that there is no such thing as luck, and you straightway set going the mental machinery which looks on the dark side of things and which misses every slice of luck that comes along. Therefore, we say, with emphasis, take to yourself a talisman, a mascot, a charm—call it what you will—and you will never regret it.
Of talismans, there are countless varieties; some are known the world over, others are the particular choice of individuals. They range from the amulets and scarabs of the ancients to the golliwogs and crudities of the ultra-moderns. Your choice may roam between these two extremes, but whatever your choice, it must be set with the seal of your faith.
In order to assist you in picking out a talisman for yourself, we append the following accounts of those examples which are favored most:—
THE HORSE-SHOE.—No symbol is a greater favorite than the horse-shoe. There are many legends regarding its origin, but the most commonly accepted concerns the well-known visit of his Satanic Majesty to the shoe-smith. As a consequence, the Devil evinced a wholesome dread of horseshoes, and would not go near a house or person possessing one. It is more likely, however, that the horse-shoe was accepted as a symbol of luck because it was a commonplace object very nearly the same shape as the metal crescents worn by the Romans when they wanted to be fortunate. These crescents were always carried with the horns turned up, and, if a horse-shoe is to bring good luck, it, too, must be placed with the prongs uppermost. The reason for the prongs being so turned depends on a belief that misfortune always travels in circles, but when it reaches the tips of a horse-shoe, it is baffled, unless all the luck has already run out of the tips through them being turned downwards.
Of course, an old, worn shoe is more lucky than a new one, and it is a recognized fact that the more nails found in it the luckier will be the finder.
THE SCARAB.—This device is accounted very lucky or very unlucky, according to the disposition of the wearer. The symbol represents the scarab beetle with its wings outspread or with them closed. Such charms are made to-day in large numbers for sale in Egypt, but those who trade in them usually claim that each particular specimen has been in the family since Biblical times. As a rule, the device is made in a rough kind of bluish porcelain and is carved, in intaglio, with divine figures. The Egyptians used to make up the scarab as a neck pendant or as a little ornament for placing in the coffins of the dead. Its mission was to scare away the evil one.
No. 2.—An Egyptian Scarab, such as were used as talismen. Two forms are shown, one with the pectoral wings outspread; the other, with wings closed.
THE TET.—This