Page:The Journal of English and Germanic Philology Volume 18.djvu/420

 416 Rudwin The pretence of beheading or burning the human representa- tive of the vegetation spirit is probably a substitue of an old custom of killing him in earnest. 92 This practice originated, or at least existed, in the hunting or pastoral stages of society, and survived in the agricultural stage. 93 In a number of instances the leaf-clad mummer after being killed is brought back to life by a doctor. 94 A variant of the ceremony of the death and resurrection of the fertility spirit is the twin custom of Carrying out or Driving out of Death and Bringing in of Summer. The view that in these spring customs Death meant originally the dying or dead vegetation of winter has the high support of Mannhardt. However, when the original meaning of these ceremonies was lost, the good but old god of vegetation, who had to be slain in order that he might rise again in renewed youth and vigor, was transformed into an evil spirit of Death, on whom were laid all the evils that had befallen the people during the past year, as was also the custom of the Jews in their treatment of their bibli- cal scapegoat. The custom of carrying out the dead vegetation widened out in this manner into banning or banishing death in general from the village or district. The ceremony of banishing, burying, or burning of Death is found in various parts of Teutonic Germany, but especially in districts such as Thuringia, Bohemia, Silesia where the popu- lation is wholly or mainly Slavonic. 95 The date of the obser- vance is not uniformly fixed. The ceremony takes place on March I, 96 on the first Sunday, 97 the third Sunday, 98 the fourth Sunday (Mid-Lent) 99 the fifth Sunday in Lent, 100 the first Sunday after Easter, 101 and on Ascension Day. 102 92 Cf. Frazer, op. tit., iv. 214^. 93 Ibid., iv. 221, ix. 1. "Ibid., iv. 208, 212*0. 233. 95 Ibid., iv. 233-240, 249sqq., 2tesq., x. 119^. 96 Ibid., iv. 235. 97 /&*., x. 116,118^. "Ibid., ii. 73sq., iv. 233-36, 24Qsqq., 247. Mid-Lent is, therefore, called in Germany Todsonntag. l Q Ibid., iv. 221, 23%., 239. m lbid., iv. 221. id., iv. 222nl.
 * Ibid., iv. 238.