they take to be sent from heaven, and look upon it as a certain sign that their god has made choice of that particular tree for himself. But it is a thing very rarely to be met with; and when it is found, they resort to it with great devotion. In these ceremonies they principally observe that the moon be just six days old, with which they begin the computation of their months and years, and of that period which with them is called an age-that is, thirty years complete. And they choose the sixth day, because they reckon the moon is then of a considerable strength when she is not as yet half full; and they call the mistletoe by the name of all-heal (omnia sanantem). The sacrifice and a festival entertainment being prepared under the oak, they bring thither two white bulls, whose horns are then, and not till then, tied. This done, the priest, habited in a white vestment, climbs the tree, and with a golden pruning-knife cuts off the mistletoe, which is carefully received in a white woollen cloth by those who attend below. They then proceed to kill the beasts for sacrifice, and make their prayers to their god, that he would bless this his own gift to those to whom they shall dispense it. They have an idea that a decoction of the mistletoe is a cure of sterility, and that it is a sovereign antidote against all sorts of poison."1

Though, on the one hand, we may shudder at the cruel and bloody nature of the Druidical religion, and, on the other, pity the superstitions

1 The following curious note respecting the mistletoe occurs in one of the editions of Evelyn's Sylva, dated 1786:-"The mistletoe, instead of rooting and growing in the earth like other plants, fixes itself and takes root on the branches of trees. It spreads out with many branches, and forms a large bush. It is commonly found upon the white thorn, the apple, the crab, the ash, and maple, but is rarely seen upon the oak; which last kind, as Mr. Ray well observes, was chiefly esteemed in medicine, owing to the superstitious honours which the ancient Druids of this island paid to that plant when gathered there. This is a parasitical plant, and is always produced from seed. Some of the ancients called it an excrescence on the tree, growing without seed; which opinion is now fully confuted by a number of experiments. It is the opinion of some, that it is propagated by the mistletoe thrush, which feeding upon the berries, leaves the seeds with its dung upon the branches of the respective trees where the plant is commonly found. Others say, that as the berries are extremely glutinous, the seeds frequently stick to the beaks of those birds, which being rubbed off upon the branches of trees, they become inoculated, as it were, and take root. In the same manner the mistletoe may be propagated by art; for if the berries, when full ripe, be rubbed upon the smooth part of the bark of almost any tree, they will adhere closely, and produce plants the following winter. In the garden now belonging to Mr. James Collins, of Knaresbrough, are many large plants of the mistletoe, produced in this manner upon the dwarf apple-tree. Of mistletoe we have only one species growing in Europe, viz. viscum (album) foliis lanceolatis obtusis, caule dichotomo, spicis axillaribus, Lin. Sp. Plant. 1451. Mistletoe with blunt spear-shaped leaves, forked stalks, and spikes of flowers rising from the wings of the stalks. Viscum baccis albis, C. B. P. 423. Mistletoe with white berries."

RELIGION OF THE DRUIDS.

33

connected with it; yet it ought never to be forgotten, that in ages past, amid the primeval oak-groves of our country, these Druids taught the doctrine of the immortality of the soul. This is alluded to by the Latin poet Lucan, when he says:

"And you, O Druids, free from noise and arms,
Renew'd your barbarous rites and horrid charms;
What gods, what powers in happy mansions dwell,
Or only you, or all but you can tell.

To secret shades and unfrequented groves,

From world and cares your peaceful tribe removes ;
You teach that souls eas'd of their mortal load,
Not with grim Pluto make their dark abode,—
Nor wander in pale troops along the silent flood,
But on new regions cast resume their reign,
Content to govern earthly frames again.
Thus death is nothing but the line between
The lives that are to come and that have been.

Happy the people by your charms possest,

Nor fate, nor fears, disturb their peaceful breast;
On certain dangers unconcerned they run,

And meet with pleasure what they would not shun;
Defy Death's slighted power, and bravely scorn
To spare a life that will so soon return."

Though the Druids were spread all over England, yet their chief seat was in Mona, or what is now called the Island of Anglesea, at the extreme end of North Wales. This was sometimes called the Shady Island, and appears to have been, from its groves and trees, the most suitable place in England for Druidical worship. But from this their last stronghold they were driven by the Romans, who crossed the Menai Straits, defeated the armies opposed to them, and completely destroyed the sacred groves of the Druids.2

"There is no question so difficult to clear up as one relating to the derivation of a name; and though we have no desire to weary our readers with a discussion about the origin of the word Druid, yet we think the following extract is worthy of notice, from the evident learning and research it displays. It is taken from a communication of Mr. Jones, inserted in Toland's History of the Druids:-"I say that Druides, or Druidae, is a word that is derived from the British word Drudion; being the name of certain wise, discreet, learned, and religious persons among the Britons. Druidon is the plural number of this primitive word Drud. By adding ion to the singular number, you make the plural of it secundum formam Britannorum ; sic Drud, Drudion. This primitive word Drud has many significations. One signification is Dialer; that is, a revenger, or one that redresseth wrong; for so the justices called Drudion did supply the place of magistrates. Another signification, Krevlon, and that signifies cruel and merciless; for they did execute justice most righteously, and punished offenders most severely. Drud signifies also glew and prid; that is, valiant or hardy. Drud is also dear or precious, unde venit Drudanieth, which is dearth. These Drudion among

Nearly two thousand years have passed since then; under the oaktrees from which the old Druid cut the mistletoe, Saxon Parliaments, or Wittenagemots, have doubtless been held, and in all likelihood many a Christian church now occupies the site of one of these old oak-groves. The Druids have gone, the Roman empire has gone, millions of human beings since then have lived and died; but the truth of the old Scripture saying is revealed: "Generation after generation passeth away; but the earth endureth for ever." And still, as of old, the shady islandthe Island of Mona, Anglesea, stands facing the troubled waters of the Irish Sea, precisely as it did when the Roman legions landed on its shores. The Straits passed by the soldiers of Agricola remain ; the old forests and the sacred groves have disappeared; but the earth on which they stood "abideth for ever." And "the shady isle" is now covered with thriving towns and villages; its shores are noisy with the din of traffic, and over the remains of old forests and Druid stones stretch the iron fibres of that familiar wonder, a modern railway; while across those Straits are hung two masterpieces of human skill, the graceful and

the Britons by their office did determine all kind of matters, as well private as public, and were justices as well in religious matters and controversies, as in law matters and controversies, for offences of death and title of laws. These did the sacrifices to the heathen gods, and the sacrifices could not be made without them; and they did forbid sacrifices to be done by any man that did not obey their decree and sentence. All the arts, sciences, learning, philosophy, and divinity that were taught in the land, were taught by them; and they taught by memory, and never would that their knowledge and learning should be put in writing; whereby, when they were suppressed by the Emperor of Rome in the beginning of Christianity, their learning, arts, laws, sacrifices, and governments, were lost and extinguished here in this land; so that I can find no more mention of any of their deeds in our tongue than I have set down, but that they dwelt in rocks, and woods, and dark places, and some places in our land had their names from them, and are called after their names to this day. And the island of Mone, or Anglesea, is taken to be one of their chiefest seats in Britain, because it was a solitary island full of wood, and not inhabited of any but themselves; and then the isle of Mone, which is called Anglesea, was called yr Inys Dowyll; that is, the dark island. And after that the Drudion were suppressed, the huge groves which they favoured and kept afoot were rooted up, and that ground tilled. Then that island did yield such abundance and plenty of corn, that it might sustain and keep all Wales with bread; and therefore there arose then a proverb, and yet is to this day, viz. Mon mam Gymbre; that is, Mon, the mother of Wales. Some do term the proverb thus, Mon mam Gynedd; that is, Mon, the mother of North Wales; that is, that Mon was able to nourish and foster upon bread all Wales or North Wales. And after that this dark island had cast out for many years such abundance of corn where the disclosed woods and groves were, it surceased to yield corn, and yielded such plenty of grass for cattle, that the countrymen left off their great tilling, and turned it to grazing and breeding of cattle, and that did continue among them wonderful plentiful, so that it was an admirable thing to be heard, how so little a plat of ground should breed such great number of cattle; and now the inhabitants do till a great part of it, and breed a great number of cattle on the other part."