HALLUCINATION 



2671 



HALLOWE'EN 



a time which was set apart, as Lowell expresses 

 it in his poem, All-Saints, to honor the mem- 

 ory of 



All Saints the unknown good that rest 

 In God's still memory folded deep. 



The bravely dumb who did their deed, 

 And scorned to blot it with a name ; 



Men of the plain heroic breed, 



That loved Heaven's silence more than fame. 



The building of bonfires, Cracking of nuts, 

 bobbing for apples floating in tubs of water, 

 and telling fortunes and ghost stories, which are 

 now Hallowe'en customs, are all relics of pa- 

 ganism. About thirteen centuries ago pagans 

 celebrated November 1 as All Spirits' Day, 

 when spirits, both good and evil, were believed 

 to be on earth. The Druids also celebrated 

 their harvest festival about that time, and 

 many strange ceremonies were performed. Even 

 after the pagans adopted Christianity they 

 still observed many of their old customs, and 

 so the Hallowe'en diversions of to-day are ones 

 which originated centuries ago. In past years 

 the ceremonies peculiar to the occasion in Scot- 

 land were of a highly superstitious nature, and 

 Bums humorously describes them in his poem, 

 Hallowe'en. See illustration and program, 

 herewith. 



HALLUCINATION, halluse na' shun, a men- 

 tal state in which a person is certain that he 

 sees, hears or otherwise perceives something 

 which does not actually exist. That is, the ob- 

 ject which seems to stimulate the organs of 

 sense is only imagined. Hallucinations are fre- 

 quently experienced by those laboring under 

 severe mental strain, and they are common in 

 cases of intoxication and insanity. Normal per- 

 sons, however, often hear voices and see visions 

 in the drowsy interval between waking and 

 sleeping. 



Hallucination usually comes through the 

 sense of hearing; sight is next in order, and 

 then follow smell, taste and touch. Probably 

 everyone has experienced the common halluci- 

 nation of hearing the striking of a clock or the 

 sounds of musical instruments. A well-known 

 historic example of hallucination may be found 

 in the experience of Joan of Arc, the French 

 peasant girl, who was inspired by heavenly 

 voices and visions to save her country from 

 the power of the English (see JOAN OF ARC). 



Hallucination should not be confused with 

 illusion, though the two mental states are 

 closely related. In the latter case the person 

 perceives something that has reality, but does 

 not see, or interpret, it correctly. A common 



Hallowe'en Suggestions 



Where the bee sucks, there suck I ; 



In a cowslip's bell I lie; 



There I couch when owls do cry. 



On the bat's back do I fly. Shakespeare. 



There is less of historical and educa- 

 tional interest in connection with this 

 holiday than with most of the special 

 days that are observed in schools, but 

 the children find a peculiar fascination in 

 its weird legends and in its time-honored 

 symbols. Since there are so many of 

 these symbols, the day lends itself espe- 

 cially to excellent "busy work." The pu- 

 pils may make booklets in the shape of 

 pumpkins, black cats, witches' hats or 

 brooms, and these may serve as invita- 

 tions to their parents to visit the school. 

 Rows of brownies or fairies may also be 

 cut from white paper and arranged about 

 the top of the blackboards as a border. 

 The following program makes use of 

 many of the special elements that make 

 the day attractive. 



The Brownie Song Gaynor 



Fairies of the Caldon Low Howitt 



The Shoemaker and the Elves. . .Grimm 

 The Gifts of the Dwarfs 



See article STORY TELLING 



The Fairies Allingham 



Dramatization of Cinderella 



Reading from Adventures of a Brownie 



Craik 



Tarn o'Shanter Burns 



Frau Holle See article STORY TELLING 



Little Orphant Annie Riley 



Jack o'Lantern Drill 



