(_Continued from page_ 171.)
The fore-foot of a _Hare_ worn constantly in the pocket, is esteemed by
certain worthy old dames as a sure preventive of rheumatic disorders.
The _Lynx_ was believed by the ancients, from the acuteness of its sight,
to have the power of seeing through stone walls; and amongst other
absurdities then gravely maintained were these: that the _Elephant_ had no
joints, and being unable to lie down, was obliged to sleep leaning against
a tree; that _Deer_ lived several hundred years; that the _Badger_ had the
legs of one side shorter than those of the other; that the _Chameleon_
lived entirely on air, and the _Salamander_ in fire; whilst the sphynx,
satyr, unicorn, centaur, hypogriff, hydra, dragon, griffin, cockatrice, &c.
&c. &c. were either the creations of fancy, or fabled accounts of
creatures of whose real form, origin, nature, and qualities, but the most
imperfect knowledge was afloat.
The flesh of the _Rhinoceros_, and almost every part of its body, is
reckoned by the ignorant natives of countries where it is found, an
antidote against poison.
That the _Jackal_ is the "Lion's Provider," entirely, is an erroneous idea;
but it is true that the terrific cry of this animal when in chase, rouses
the lion, whose ear is dull, and enables him to join in the pursuit of
prey. Many stories are told respecting the generosity of the _Lion_, and
it was once confidently believed that no stress of hunger would induce him
to devour a virgin, though his imperial appetite might satiate itself on
men and matrons. The title of King of the Beasts, given at a period when
strength and ferocity were deemed the prime qualities of man--is now more
justly considered to belong to the mild, majestic, and almost rational
elephant. The _White Elephant_ is a sacred animal with the Siamese, and
the cow with the Bramins and Hindoos.
The _Bear_ was believed never to devour a man whom it found dead; and it
was imagined to lick its cubs into proper shape: hence the expression
"unlicked cub," applied to a raw, awkward, unpolished youth. The saliva of
the _Lama_, which when angry it ejects, has been erroneously supposed to
possess a corrosive quality.
The hoof of the _Moose-deer_ was formerly in great repute for curing
epilepsies, but has now justly fallen into neglect. The Laplander,
commencing his journey, whispers into the ear of his _Rein-deer_,
believing these animals understand and will obey his oral directions. The
_Elk_ is accounted by the Indians an animal of good omen, and often to
dream of him indicates a long life. They imagine also the existence of a
gigantic elk, which walks without difficulty in eight feet of snow, has an
arm growing from its shoulder which it uses as we do, is invulnerable to
all weapons, is king of the elks and attended by a numerous herd of
courtiers. The fur of the _Glutton_ is so valued by the Kamschatdales that
they say celestial beings are clad in no other.
It was long a popular error that the _Porcupine_, when irritated,
discharged its quills at its adversary; that these quills were poisonous,
and rendered wounds inflicted by them difficult to cure: a better
acquaintance with the natural history of this harmless animal has now
exploded these fables. Our British porcupine, the innocuous _Hedgehog_,
has long been the object of unceasing persecution, from the popular belief
that it bites and sucks the udders of cows, an absurdity sufficiently
contradicted by the smallness of its mouth. In like manner, the
_Goat-sucker_ is a persecuted bird, since, as its name implies, it has been
thought to suck the teats of goats and other animals; whereas the form of
its bill entirely precludes such an act, and it is an inoffensive bird,
living upon insects. The superstition has probably originated from its
being often found in warm climates under cattle, capturing the insects
that torment them. It is supposed, in some places, that the _Shrew-mouse_
is of so baneful and deleterious a nature that whenever it creeps over a
beast, cow, sheep, or horse (in particular), the animal is afflicted with
cruel anguish, and threatened with a loss of the use of its limb.
A shrew-ash was the remedy for this misfortune, viz. an ash whose twigs or
branches gently applied to the affected members relieved the pain: our
provident forefathers, anticipating such an accident to their cattle,
always kept a shrew-ash at hand, which, once medicated, retained its
virtue for ever: it was thus prepared: into the body of an ash a deep hole
was bored with an auger, and a poor devoted shrew-mouse being thrust into
it, the orifice was plugged up, probably with quaint incantations now
forgotten.
The _Toad_, owing to its hideous, disgusting appearance, has been the
subject of many superstitions: it is commonly thought to spit venom,
whilst, as yet, the question is unsettled, whether or not it be poisonous
in any respect; some affirm that a viscous humour of poisonous quality
exudes from the skin, like perspiration; whilst others pretend that
cancers may be cured by the application of living toads to them; and a man
has been known to swallow one of these abominations for a wager, taking
care, however, to follow this horrid meal by an immediate and copious
draught of oil. But the very glance of the toad has been supposed fatal;
of its entrails fancied poisonous potions have been concocted; and for
magical purposes it was believed extremely efficacious; a precious stone
was asserted to be found in its head, invaluable in medicine and magic. In
Carthagena and Portobello (America) these creatures swarm to such a degree
in wet weather that many of the inhabitants believe every drop of rain to
be converted into a toad. It is said of the Pipa, or Surinam toad, a
hideous, but probably harmless, animal, that very malignant effects are
experienced from it when calcined.
The _Crocodile_ is feigned to weep and groan like a human being in pain
and distress, in order to excite the sympathy of man, and thus allure him
into his tremendous jaws.
The _Lizard_, though now declared by naturalists to be perfectly harmless,
was long considered poisonous by the ignorant; and in Sweden and
Kamschatka, the green lizard is the subject of strange superstitions, and
regarded with horror. Newts, efts, swifts, snakes, and blind-worms are,
in popular credence, all venomous; and that the _Ear-wig_ most justly
derives its name from entering people's ears, and either causing deafness,
or, by penetrating to the brain, death itself, is with many considered an
indisputable fact. The Irish have a large beetle of which strange tales
are believed; they term it the _Coffin-cutter_, and it has some connexion
with the grave and purgatory, not now, unfortunately, to be recalled to
our memory.
It is, in Germany, a popular belief, that the _Stag-beetle_ (perhaps the
same insect) carries burning coals into houses by means of its jaws, and
that it has thus occasioned many dreadful fires. (How convenient would
_Swing_ find such a superstition in England!) The _Death-watch_
superstition is too well known to need particular notice in this paper. It
is singular that the _House-cricket_ should by some persons be considered
an unlucky, by others a lucky, inmate of the mansion: those who hold the
latter opinion consider its destruction the means of bringing misfortune
on their habitations. "In Dumfries-shire," says Sir William Jardine, "it
is a common superstition that if crickets forsake a house which they have
long inhabited, some evil will befal the family; generally the death of
some member is portended. In like manner the presence or return of this
cheerful little insect is lucky, and portends some good to the family."
(_To be continued_.)
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