Halloween Was First Celebrated
By Inhabitants of Rural Sections
Thanksgiving for
Good Crops Offered
By Earlv Man.
By CLIFF LANGE
Released by Western Newspaper Union.
Halloween is essentially and
basically a rural celebration.
It belongs to the country
side, the small town where
the people are close to the
earth, and all that comes from
and lives upon the earth.
Far back in history, man. realiz
ing that summer was done and the
work of nature, busy all the previ
ous months, was at an end, held re
ligious ceremonies to thank the gods
ORIGIN OF THE NAME
November 1 is All Saints' day,
also called All-Hallomas, or All
Hallows. The evening preceding
this day is All-halloween.
for sending him food upon which to
live.
To early man, Nature, with all
its blessings and woes, was some
thing of a mystery to him. As he
became more familiar with it and
civilized through the cen
more
turies, he had certain gods as guard
ians of his crops. When the crops
were collected, and the cattle gath
ered in, he then held his celebration
with his family and with friends.
This was the beginning of our
present day celebration of Hal
loween. Many of the wild spirits
in which early man believed are
reflected in the witches riding
brooms, the goblins with their
fearful faces that decorate Hal
loween parties wherever they
are held.
Primitive man's basic spirit of
thankfulness for favors done by the
ruler of all nature through religious
celebrations and ceremonies was
continued by the Druids of England,
the early Romans, and even the In
dians of the United States.
In the pre-Christian days of early
England, the Druids, priests of an
cient Britain, celebrated the feast
of Samhain on November 1. At that
time the flocks were driven in and
the workers of the community rest
ed from their arduous summertime
labors.
But before midnight on October
31 the Druids put out the old fire on
the altar of their god, Baal, and
made a new one. This signified the
beginning of another year of work
with Nature by those early ruralites
who worshiped before the heathen
god Baal.
In the early Roman festival of
Pomona, held at harvest time,
fruits and nuts played a very im
portant part. How the customs of
the early Roman religious festival
have come down to the present day
is noticed in the giving of fruits and
nuts to youngsters who go "visiting"
on Halloween.
There also is a definite reason for
pumpkins—always a necessary or
nament, either real or artificial
having a definite place in any Hal
loween decoration.
The reason is not difficult to
understand. The early Indians
combined deep solemnity and
hearty relaxation at their har
vest time celebration, held
around the present time of Hal
A Halloween Wish
"Let's see now, where was I? Oh,
yes. Phone Janey after this man
takes my picture and ask her if
she has some extra bobby pins. I
wish he would hurry up. I'm get
ting tired of sitting here holding this
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It isn't heavy, but the
pumpkin,
heat from the light in it IS hot. I
wish those people who see this pic
ture have a happy Halloween,
know I will. 1
in case you haven't recognized her.)
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(That's Ellen Drew,
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loween. The Indians of the
Southeast and Northeast United
States placed the pumpkin in a
conspicuous spot during their
celebrations because it was a
staple article of their diet.
Many people have further seen a
definite relation between the hol
lowed, decorated and lighted pump
kin in homes on Halloween with
the ceremonial dances and masques
of the Hopi Indians held in the
Southwest at harvest time.
In fact, almost all the early Amer
ican — rather, native American —
foodstuffs grown by the early In
dians and given proper appreciation
during their harvest celebrations
are today noticed in Halloween dec
orations. Corn is one of the out
standing foodstuffs so displayed.
The priests of early Christiani
ty found it difficult to stamp out
the mystery and symbolism of
the last night of October. They
effected a compromise between
the old religious ceremonies of
the Romans and • Druids and
those essentially Christian. To
offset the black magic of Druid
superstitions, the next day was
declared All Saints' day (as it
still is today) and the evening
preceding it was renamed hal
lowed or holy evening.
The corruption of the name, by j
constant usage by the untutored na- !
lives, came to be Halloween.
But the new name could not
change the character of the festi
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to the next town's Halloween celebration given for the benefit of the i
USD. Isn't it a far cry from the days when witches were in style in
stead of be-witching beauties such as she? Who said, "The good old days"?
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Just wailing for a train, boys.
She's been invited over
That's all.
val.
years ago, and continuing on down
through the centuries, Halloween
has always remained, both serious
ly and humorously, as a time when
supernatural influences prevailed.
Through the years the reli
gious significance of the eve has
all but disappeared. But the pic
ture of witches riding their
brooms across the harvest fields
with the full, bright moon in the
background has stayed with us.
And speaking of witches it should
be remembered that it hasn't been
so very long ago that here in the
United States they were considered
by many to be harmful old women
under the diabolic control of the
master Evil One, the Devil.
In New England during 1691-92,
when an outburst of fanaticism took
place there, hundreds of persons
were thrown in jail for either being
witches, or consorting with them. In
the summer of 1692, 19 persons were
tried in court, convicted and hanged
for witchcraft.
Today the emotion, the spirit of
thankfulness which the early peo
ples expressed in their harvest cere
monies on Halloween has been all
but forgotten.
Today the same power which
brought good crops and healthy
stock to the early dwellers brings
not only plenty for this nation, but
also for those nations battling with
us, the Evil One of Europe who is
riding the witch's broom of cruelty
and hate, but who will, when the
magical words of freedom are spo
ken, crash to earth destroying him
self and the evil spirits that have
been consorting with him.
There will be a poignant touch to
those who will celebrate Halloween
this year in the United States, re
To those back hundreds of
John Gay, the early English poet (1688-1732), wrote the following
lines of poetry which reflected a superstition of his day concerning
the Halloween festival:
At even o' Hallowmas no sleep 1 sought,
But to the field a bag of hempseed brought.
I scattered round the seed on every side.
And three times three in trembling accents cried,
"This hempseed with my virgin hand I sow,
Who shall my true love be, the crop shall mow."
This poem, as does the accompanying story, further brings out
the fact that Halloween is essentially a rural festival.
Who, Me?
Hoot Owl is a patient animal lie
is, he is. All year long: he doesn't
do anything but sleep all day, work
all night catching mice and other
delicacies that tickle his palate.
Then, come Halloween, he gets him
self all prettied up to have his pic
mais. Oh, well: What would Hal
loween be without an owl?
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turc taken. From the looks of him
you wouldn't believe that he has
been sitting like that for ten days.
Before that he was resting in a
storeroom with other stuffed ani
member that France, Belgium—
even Germany—when free, also cel
ebrated Halloween.
In those oppressed countries the
harvest has brought nothing but con
tinual privation, want and death.
In the United States it has been
different. A moral is here.
Editor Shows How
In southwestern Missouri the mer
chants of a progressive small town
dreaded the approach of Halloween
as much as the kids happily antici
pated it.
The police officials, school teach
ers, and principals were perplexed,
too, as to how they could stop the
damage, even though light, inflicted
by the masked kids as they trooped
about the streets on the night of
October 31.
The editor of the local weekly was
giving thought to the matter, too.
The editor was still a comparatively
young man. He remembered some
of his youthful Halloween pranks
all too well. It was a different situ
ation now, he realized.
Suddenly he got a brilliant idea.
He talked to the members of the
town's business club about it.
In the next edition of the editor's
newspaper was a large ad offering
an attractive money prize by the
towns' merchants to the young per
son who drew the most attractive,
artistic picture on any of the mer
chants' store windows with soap on
Halloween.
Result? Damage dropped off to a
minimum; many fine pictures
drawn; one youth the proud posses
sor of the money prize; much pub
licity for the town, the business men
—and the editor.
Hobble My Goblins!
<
Keep your eye on the pumkpins.
Then you will remember it's Hal
loween again. No, the second girl
on the right doesn't remind you of
anyone but movie actress Eva Ga
bor. Those you see (left to right)
acting as though they're scared are
Barbara Britton, Katharine Booth,
Eva, and Ella Neal.
It's always warm at Halloween
time where they work. That's why
they haven't pwt on far coats.
These Fashions Meet Demands
Of an Alert Teen-Age Group
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By CHERIE NICHOLAS
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OR novelty, variety,
color intrigue, general
wearableness and utilitari
an service attuned to the
demands of youth; for that
young look that fashion
alert juniors and 'teen-ag
ers want in the clothes
they wear, this season's
entrants into the fall-win
ter fashion contest score
about 100 per cent perfect.
First and foremost, color is the
F
magic word that turns even the most
simple fashion into a thing of beau
ty, and it's color that is stampeding
its way right through the entire
fashion picture this season. The
"big idea" centers brightly around
daring color contrast as interpreted
by the use of a ^ acket in one c °l° r
topping a skirt of another, or by the
A fashion that has completely cap
tured the fancy of modern youth is
the two-piece that tops a plaid or
checked wool skirt with a vivid vel
veteen jacket which is cunningly de
vv 'th buttons and which relates
^ t0 v skl ^ U companions by
f ln ? oa a ' 'll 11 ®. 0 1 S h™ 61 '? '
It s just as effective and style
use of materials of contrasting hues
seamed and patched together with
amazing adroitness.
I correct to contrast monotones. A
j fuchsia-purple skirt may be worn
with a fuchsia-red jacket, a bright
red jacket with an autumn leaf green
skirt and so on.
I Every girl nowadays is building
j her wardrobe around two basic
items, namely the softly styled
dressmaker suit and the little wool
dress that doesn't miss a "trick" in
taking on fetching trimming detail.
Even the simplest little jersey frock
is audaciously taking on glitter
touches in way of nailheads and
jewelry-embroidered necklines, and
the latest gesture of the demure
jersey dress is to go so far as to
steal the glory of a sequin-embroid
ered motif now and then. The in
triguing modes pictured in the above
illustration were given prominence
at a recent fashion revue present
, . .. . , .
ed by the style creators of Chicago
s
as types which have won the unani
mous vote of young girls.
It is evident that the suits shown
have succeeded in capturing the
Spaghetti Trim
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Here is an effective use of the new
and smart "spaghetti" fabric loop
trim. There is an epaulet of the
loops at one shoulder and also a
modish peplum effect. This is one
of those good looking black dresses
that go anywhere in perfect style.
Smart styling features are the
long fitted-below-the-elbow sleeves
with the new deep armhole cut that
is now so extremely fashionable. The
slim, sleek silhouette so admirably i
achieved is what every woman
covet/s. Designers are using self
trim, color contrast and sparkling
accents to achieve the variety so 1
m
nctjces>ble this season.
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spirit of youth which young moderns
demand. The suit to the right inter
prêts the contrast idea in that it
teams a vivid Kelly green wool jack
et with a shallow pleated (comply
ing with priority rulings as to hem
line measurement) skirt of black,
The black binding around the jacket
effects a tie-up between skirt and
jacket-top that achieves a unified
costume. Self-fabric surface deco
ration is placed high on the jacket
front in a manner to suggest pock
ets.
The other suit is done in pale
beige wool with a slightly ribbed
surface. The prominence of beige
is notable in both dress and coat
collections. The slender gored skirt
and slit breast pockets and the gen
eral bid for simplicity which it
makes is in keeping with the fabric
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an interesting detail. The two-piece
* * u i ** * * . .
to the left features contrast sleeves
knitted of bright red yarn,
edges, too, are finished off with
matched red yarn.
Released by Western Newspaper Union.
conservation program,
cially the girlish round neckline
which is important fashion news. The
new square shoulder look is stressed
via deft seaming.
Note espe
Every youthful wardrobe is sup
posed to have its quota of flattering
little one-piece frocks to wear under
the winter coat.
The significant
thing about the two frocks pictured
is that they owe much of their charm
to bright yarn trimming touches. It'
a jersey-dress season and no mis
take!
Both models pictured are
fashioned of natural wool and rab
bit's hair jersey.
Style features of interest in the
dress to the right are the wool em
broidered pockets and the use of
wool yarn stitching about the neck
and shoulders. The tie-belt is also
1
The
'Winter White' Is
Again a Favorite
The young set adores "winter"
white for the date dress or for in
formal party wear. And so the craze
is on for whites and near whites as
it was last season. Favored materi
als in the much beloved white in
clude the new Aralac flannel, wool
and rayon mixtures and a very
smart looking wool and rayon boucle,
but the darling of all is the white
jersey frock that is enlivened with
gay yarn embroidery or vividly col
orful insets, jewel buttons or per
haps crocheted wool edgings and gilt
leather touches done in applique.
White fur, especially in boxy short
casual coats and capes, is also popu
lar. Young girls are wearing these
white fur casuals with slacks, and
later on they will be wearing them
with their skating costumes.
Priorities Coin a New
fFord—'Companion Suit
Women who are looking to the fu
ture are buying wisely and thought
fully. They look upon a suit of good
quality as the answer to their need
for a costume that will be ready to
wear on all but the most formal oc
casions,
arately. However, designers and
manufacturers are making it pos
sible to secure a perfect match even
if the topcoat must be purchased
separately.
Buying a "companion" suit made
up of jacket, skirt and matching long
topcoat this year is very different
from last year's procedure. This
season priority rulings do not per
mit buying the three pieces as
unit, the parts must be sold sep
a
frshiivQton Digests
Axis Nations Face to Face
With Strong U.S. Air Power
«
Ü
America's Theoretical Aerial Strength
Translated Into Actuality; Japanese
Revise Three Major Campaigns.
By BAUKHAGE
News Analyst und
a
to
WNÜ Service, 1343 11 Street. N-W.
Washington, D. C.
* As this is written Washington is
discussing a pitched battle in the Sol
omons and the beginning of a sharp
rise in American air activity over
Europe. Exciting stories are com
ing in from all quarters of the globe
about the achievements of our pilots
and our planes but few civilians
realize the significance of these sep
arate exploits. The enemy does. And
in the opinion of air force officials
in Washington the Axis partners
have at last been brought face to
face with the fact that America is
in the war, that the theoretical strik
ing power of the United States has
been translated into a practical im
pact of American strength which is
now being felt on every front.
Since the smashing victory of Mid
way, the Japanese have been forced
I to change their whole campaigns in
three different sectors; in the Aleu
tians, in New Guinea, in the Solo
mons.
And, as Rommel girds for another
attack in Egypt, it is conceded that
what might have been a victory in
the drive on Alexandria was turned
to defeat in a not unimportant meas
ure by American bombers and fight
ers.
And lastly, with the great raid on
Lille early this month, the Germans
found themselves faced with the
prospect of terrific destruction of
their cities or the revision of their
whole program of air defense.
From the beginning, the Germans
knew that America had the men,
the money, the resources to build
the most powerful war machine in
the world. But they never thought
the parts of that machine could be
assembled in time. Now as we ap
proach the anniversary of Pearl
Harbor, we are still unable to fur
nish our Allies with the men and
material required to make any sin
gle front, of the many we are feed
ing, strong enough for an offensive
in which there is combined action,
air, land and sea. But in one arm
we have developed the beginning of
superiority and for the first time we
are emerging on many fronts as the
growing giant of the air.
This is now possible because we
have been able to do three things:
provide a terrific engine of preci
sion destruction in our mammoth
bombers; provide those bombers
with such fire-power that it makes
up for their lack of maneuverability
and thus offers in a single unit the
ability to carry out precision bomb
ing of individual targets and at the
same time the ability to fight off
the enemy defense in the air, a com
bination perfected for the first time
in this war.
A Comparison
To reduce this achievement to lay
terms: Heretofore the big bomber
which could drop tons of destruc
tion on the earth below, was so
cumbersome in the air that it was a
prey to fast moving acrobatic fight
er planes. Like the buffalo which
could be pulled down by a herd of
agile wolves. Now, because of the
terrific effectiveness of the guns our
bombers carry, those fighters can
not get near enough to them to dam
age them. The wolf pack is cut to
pieces before its fangs can seize
the monster.
In addition to giving our heavy
ships their own protection we have
built pursuit planes — the agile
wolves — which are sinewed with
some of the might of their bigger
brothers.
Our pursuit planes are able to
carry bombs, too, and perform
some of the functions of the dive
bomber with the added advantage
of maneuverability.
With this equipment we have been
able to make the Japanese hold on
the Aleutians untenable. We have
already dislodged two footholds (At
tu and Agattu islands, and will prob
ably force the Japs out of the third,
Kiska, before the winter sets in.
That is one radical change of plan
which the Japanese did not antici
pate we could bring about.
In the southwest Pacific there has
been wrought another change of
plan. In conjunction with Austra
lian fliers, American forces have
completely broken one offensive, the
one directed at Port Moresby, by
BRIEFS • • • by Baukhage
Almost 10,000 rural fire-fighting
companies have been organized this
year to protect America's farms
against destructive fires, with 100,
000 men enrolled.
Marketing, processing, and distri
bution facilities are operating at ca
pacity this fall, preparing the rec
ord 1942 farm production for mili
tary, lease-lend, and civilian use.
Commentator.
smashing enemy bases and supply
lines and forcing the Japs, who after
incredible hardships had crossed the
towering Owen Stanley ridge, to take
to their heels and flee.
And in Europe we have definitely
affected the tide of battle on three
fronts. In Russia, vicariously it is
true, because we have sent no pilots
there. But American planes played
vital part in harassing the Nazi
advance.
In Egypt, the British, according to
dispatches, credit American fliers
with a large part of the achievement
breaking down General Rommel's
advance into Egypt.
Attack on Rommel
There our heavy bombers helped
render Rommel's supply ports of
Tobruk and Benghazi virtually use
Nazi forces
our planes, notably the Airacobra,
acting as a shallow dive bomber and
also as a strafer, played a vital part
in smashing the Axis supply lines.
But it was—and is and will be—
American bomber wings over Ger
many itself that cast the most
alarming shadow across the Reich.
The Lille raid brought home the
fact that Germany must now face
American might.
In that raid 112 American bomb
ers, besides carrying out their mis
sion of precision daytime bombing,
were able to bring down 115 of the
120 Nazi fighter planes that were
destroyed.
Germany must rebuild her planes
to match ours, or suffer an incredi
ble handicap.
And so we see the faith in air
power and American invention justi
fied. This, however, does not mean
victory. It means merely the prep
aration. Smoking ruins are a tri
umph but possession is nine points
of victory. No land is conquered
until a human being stands upon it,
his feet firmly planted, his position
secure. And that means, in the
last analysis, man power, not air
power. That is the next step.
Aircraft Carrier —
Fleet
Spearhead
The aircraft carrier, says Rear
Admiral Carl Sherman, naval here
of World War I, and commander of
the Lexington, is "the spearhead
of the fleet, the backbone of the
navy, the slugger in offensive and
defensive warfare."
ft
The admiral may be a bit preju
diced, of course, but after you have
read "Queen of the Flat Tops,"
which is the story of the Lexington's
epic adventures, you may agree with
him. Lest I be carried away with
my own enthusiasm, I asked a lover
of the sea what he thought about it.
He pored over my copy and refused
to return it. So I am going to quote
his words.
"This is a fine book," he told me
"The author,.
Stanley Johnston, sums up my opin
ion. He says that the 'flat-top' Lex
ington ushered in a new era in naval
warfare which will rank with the
battle of the Monitor and the Merri
mac in the Civil war. And he makes
you believe it."
after he had read it.
Johnston was in the highly envia
ble position of being the only
porter on board, and now has given
the world a first-hand picture of the
terrifically important last cruise of
this converted battle
re
cruiser, right
up to the time she was sent to the
bottom by American torpedoes aft
er withstanding Jap "tin fish" and
direct bomb hits.
Johnston saw it all from the
"Lex," as she was affectionately
known.
All of our new group of naval air
heroes appear as modest young
of-mine men, in Johnston's record.
He was struck by the complete lack
of heroics, as he was struck during
every action and particularly dur
ing the last terrible hours aboard the
carrier, with the complete lack of
confusion and the outstanding brav
ery of all aboard, even when the
gallant ship was a blazing inferno.
This is all the
when it is known that a great many
of the ship's complement were mak
ing their first trip to sea. No naval
or military man is going to miss
reading and studying this volume,
and no civilian ought to who has
any interest in the methods of mod
ern sea battling.
run
more remarkable
Prices are responding to rising de
mand, and latest estimates of the
U. S. department of agriculture
that the total cash farm income this
year will exceed 15 billion dollars.
♦ ♦ *
The huge production of soybeans
peanuts, cottonseed, and flaxseed
this year on American farms has
greatly relieved the fats and oils,
situation.
»
are