Page:The Journal of English and Germanic Philology Volume 18.djvu/439

 The Origin of the German Carnival Comedy 435 bear animal names. We hear of a Carnival (Shrovetide) Bear, 260 Wolf, 261 and Goat. 262 The day preceding Shrove Tuesday is called in the Rhineland Hirsmonntag (Stag Monday), as the speaker is masked as a Hirsch (stag). The Perchta-racers wore bells, 263 a fact which strengthens our argument that they were representatives of vegetation demons. Bells are also worn by the human representatives of the vegetation spirits in Mexico. 264 Their white garments were meant to suggest their incorporeal forms. Garments of this color were also worn by the impersonators of the Roman larvae. Demons of the most varied figure played a significant part in the medieval processions of maskers. Among them there must also have been a masque of Death, which gave rise to the medieval pageant known as dance macabre (Totentanz in German). 265 There were masks of devils in the Nuremberg Schembartlauf 2 and in the Salzburg Perchtenlauf?* 1 The Ulm maskers painted their faces black, 268 and a black face was a feature in the medieval representation of devils. The devil already had appeared as an Ethiopian in the days of the Church fathers. The black face may also be seen in the modern survivals of the ancient agricultural customs in Central Europe. Either the leaf-clad representative of the vegetation spirit or one of his companions is black. 269 A Moorish king with a sooty face, 270 a Charcoal Man, 271 or a devil dressed in black and holding a chain in his hands, 272 is one of the figures among 260 Cf. Frazer, op. cit., iv. 230, viii. 261 Ibid., viii. 327. 262 Ibid. lbid.,ix. 242, 243, 244. /Wtf., ix. 278, 280, 284. 266 Cf. Tunison, op. cit., pp. 17 sq. Cf. also Fehse, Ursor. d. Totentanze (1908). 268 Cf. Panzer, op. cit., ii. 249. 267 Cf. Frazer, op. cit., ix. 244sg. 268 Cf. Jager, Ulms Verfassungs, -bur gel. u. kommerz. Leben im Mittelalter. (1831) p. 525. C/. Mannhardt, W.u.F.K., i. 162, 314, 321sq., 336, 342sg., 349, SSlsq., 367, 411, 4265?., 4A2sqq. 270 Cf. Frazer, op. cit., iv. 208. 272 Cf. Mannhardt, W.u.F.K., i. 328; Frazer, op. cit., ii. 83, iv. 231; Meier, op. cit., p. 374, No. 5.