6 SWEDISH SUPERSTITIONS 



had placed it deep in the middle of the bowl of rice before 

 him. Tableau : French leave, and no more free meals 

 for the unlucky student in that family. 



When darkness sets in on Easter eve, you will see all 

 the hills lighted up by great bonfires which are kept up 

 till sunrise on Easter day. This is done in memory of an 

 old superstition that the devil and witches had full sway on 

 the earth during the days the Savior laid in the grave, and 

 particularly on Easter eve it was said that the witches by 

 riding on brooms through the air would congregate on the 

 hill-tops and concoct evil doings for the human race, and 

 to keep them away the superstitious people would light 

 every available hill-top with rousing bonfires. 



As the witches are all dead long ago with the exception 

 of their flaxen-haired and blue-eyed fair descendants which 

 the Swedes don't want to scare away, you see there is no 

 actual need at the present time to keep up these Easter 

 bonfires, except as a time-honored custom, and it is one of 

 the features of Easter eve for families to go out to look at 

 the display of bonfires in the evening, after supper. 



The 25th day of June, in Sweden, is St. John's day, or 

 midsummer day, and is one of the most social and enjoy- 

 able holidays in Sweden. The evening before is midsum- 

 mer night, which is celebrated by decorating of May-poles, 

 around which the peasants dance till early dawn. Months 

 before this festival, the peasant girls will save the egg- 

 shells by carefully blowing out the contents; such empty 

 egg-shells are strung on a twine like beads on a string and 

 the green covered May-pole is wound spirally by such 

 egg-shells, looking at a distance like white pearls on a 

 dark green ground, and has a very pretty effect. Besides 

 this the May-poles are dressed with flowered hoops, gar- 

 lands and bright ribbons, and for a couple of months after- 

 wards you will see the May-pole standing on the village 

 green as a monument of a joyous and happy occasion. 



