In Ireland, in olden times, it was believed that the souls of
people left their sleeping bodies, and visited the place where death
would ultimately overtake them; and there were many who, in consequence,
would not sleep, but sat up all night. People also went out on St.
John's eve to gather certain plants which were held as sacred, such as
_the rose_, _the trifoil_, _St. John's wort_, and _vervain_, the
possession of which gave them influence over evil. To catch the seed of
the fern as it fell to the ground on St. John's eve, exactly at twelve
o'clock, was believed to confer upon the persons who caught it the power
of rendering themselves invisible at will.
In my opinion, the great prehistoric midsummer festival to the sun god
has diverged into the two Church feasts, Eucharist and St. John's day;
but St. John's day has absorbed the greater share of old customs and
superstitious ideas, and so numerous are they that the most meagre
description of them would yield matter for an hour's reading.
_HALLOWE'EN._
The northern nations, like the Hebrews, began their day in the evening.
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