Edinburgh.
_Kissing under the Mistletoe_ (Vol. v., p. 13.).--The editorial reply to
An M.D. seems to me very unsatisfactory. Would it not be more reasonable
to refer the custom to the Scandinavian mythology, wherein the mistletoe
is dedicated to Friga, the Venus of the Scandinavians; especially when
we remember that previous to the introduction of Christianity, the feast
of Thor was celebrated by the Northmen at nearly the same period? a fact
which also accounts for the Bacchanalian character of the Christian
feast. Students of the Edda will remember the importance of the
mistletoe in the Scandinavian legends; the story of Loke's attack on
Balder hinging upon the parasite character of the plant. It is worth a
note in passing, that the holly owes its importance in the Christmas
festivities to paganism. The Romans dedicated the holly to Saturn, whose
festival was held in December; and the early Christians, to screen
themselves from persecution, decked their houses with its branches
during their own celebration of the Nativity.