74 THE LIGHT OF DAT 



of the world, is of such or similar incidents ! Cre- 

 dulity underlying religious fear and hope is the basis 

 of them all. In Catholic countries such supersti- 

 tions thrive luxuriantly. Recently, while some 

 friends of mine were stopping in Madrid, a good deal 

 of excitement was created by a reported miracle that 

 had just happened ; the beard of the picture of one 

 of the saints in a certain church had grown several 

 inches during the night ! Our grandfathers, who 

 nearly all believed in spooks, and witches, and hob- 

 goblins, and various signs and wonders, were all 

 victims of superstition. 



From simple credulity the element of the marvel- 

 ous and preternatural is missing. Boswell told Dr. 

 Johnson that while in Italy he had several times 

 seen the experiment tried of placing a scorpion 

 within a circle of burning coals, and that in every 

 instance the scorpion, after trying to break through 

 the fiery circle, retired to the centre and committed 

 suicide by darting its sting into its head. But the 

 doctor was skeptical ; appearances are deceptive ; he 

 would not believe the story unless some competent 

 anatomist, after dissecting the scorpion, declared 

 that the creature really had killed itself. It was 

 probably the doctor's combativeness, or disposition 

 to differ, that saved him in that case. Had the 

 story had any element of the mysterious or preter- 

 natural in it, so as to have touched Johnson's re- 

 ligious fears and prejudices, he would doubtless have 

 accepted it at once. 



It was once commonly believed that the salaman- 



