176 FLORA OF THE 



By the other, he thinks, they are plucking a lotus flower 

 from the top of the tree. This may be so, but I 

 interpret it differently. The tree is a conventional date 

 tree ; the ' key of life ' in one hand means that this tree 

 is the ' key of their existence ; ' the supposed lotus flower 

 I interpret into a sceptre tipped with a ' fleur-de-lys,' 

 by which they are protecting their tree of life against 

 evil spirits. 



Horns, with all their modifications of trident, ' fleur- 

 de-lys,' etc., became a weapon by which they held at 

 bay their ' banshees,' their ' gins,' and other demons — 

 the creations of their unscientific imagination — by which 

 they thought themselves continually persecuted. 



Hornism was among those people an emotion excited 

 by the supposed virtue of horns ; just as in mediaeval 

 times there was the emotion of wiic/iisnt — an epidemic 

 — a mania, which saw in every trouble the machina- 

 tions of some witch. It is only in the ' Standard ' of 

 2 1st November, 1892, that a trial for witchcraft was 

 reported from the court of Eichstaett, in Bavaria. The 

 witch was not burnt, but she brought an action for 

 slander against Father Aurelian, who had exorcised the 

 bewitched youth, and got 50 marks damages. This did 

 not occur 500 B.C. but in the year of civilization and 

 science — November^ i8g2 ! 



In all the life of those ancient peoples there was 

 undoubtedly a large undercurrent of myth ; but there 



