"And so the peasant awakes and goes to his work, contented and allegro–gay at heart–believing that he has seen in a dream and conversed with a saint–santo, o una santa–when instead of that be has been talking with a spirit."

This is absolutely heathen–witch-heathen–and a protest of "the old religion" against the new. For "a spirit instead of a saint" means here simply nothing but an old Romano-Etruscan or pure Etruscan deity. There are no such very beautiful incarnations of the Dawn in the Roman Catholic mythology with its wooden-plaster rococo saints who are all ofthe stage stagey, and of the shop shoppy, even here in Italy. This graceful Aurora–this spirito della alba–belongs to a purer and better race of beings. She comes out of true love to the peasant, asking neither tithes, prayers, or worship, fasting nor vigils, to please her vanity, but simply cheering him. This is very heathenish indeed, and quite in keeping with her simple old-time conservatism–that rich and poor must exist and observe mutual obligations one to the other

A learned friend who has revised this work, remarks of Tesana, that Thesan, according to Corssen, is an Etruscan goddess of the dawn (Die Sprache der Etrusker, i., p.259).

It cannot have escaped the reader that Tesana appears strangely in this legend as reflecting on stages of society, human laws, and relations. This is decidedly marked. And Gerhard (Gottheiten d. Etrusker, p. 39, and Eytus. Spiegeln, plate 76) remarks that there was an identity between Thesan and Themis. This if accidental is certainly extraordinary. Before I had met with this observation I had been deeply impressed with the remarkable character of the reflections as to social rights whichare so prominent in the song, and which were far above the range of thought of the woman who sung it.

It is remarkable that as the ancient Tusci surpassed all other nations inthe number of their gods of thunder and storm–having, indeed, one for every season–

so their descendants have also great fear not only of Tinia, or Jupiter, but also of Spulviero, the dreaded spirit of the wind and tempest,of whom there is an account which might have originated among the Algonkin Indians.

Spulviero, also Spolviero, is the Spirit of the Wind. His name literallyis probably derived from polvere– "dust," referring to the eddies or whirls of dust caused by the wind–the Pau-pu-ke-wiss of theChippeways. It may conceal, however, a derivation from pluvi–"rain." But this is the legend as recited to me and then written:–

"The Spirit of the Wind, called Spulviero, is an evil spirit–who in his lifetime was a wizard, one of those wizards so evil that he ruined many good families, people of good hearts–bonquore–who did good to all–even those who had done good to him. For he wasso wicked that when any one had done him good, he at once did them harm;nor could any one revenge himself on him, because he flew swift as the wind.

"But, evil as he was, his turn came and he died, but before dying he was in a hospital. And he commended himself to all there, patients and servants, and asked if any one would take the inheritance of his witchcraft; but none replied, for they knew him well. But a servant took two brooms, and put them under his bed, and said : "Leave it to these," since but for this he could not die.

"So he died at once, but suddenly there arose a great, terrible wind so that the hospital was nearly blown over, and his spirit departed in the wind."

The legacy refers to the belief that a wizard or witch cannot die till his or her power is transferred to another. The broom is an old Latin charm against sorcery. What is very ancient and purely Shamanic in this legend is the faith that all spirits or deities were once sorcerers. The train of facts is intricate, but it may be followed out. The Etruscans had risen to polytheism, still retaining Shamanic forms–but the people have remained in an earlier stage, believing that every great spiritwas once a man. So that they have here really led back a myth to its beginning. So Chuchulvia is declared to be a wizard, now become an evil spirit. But I doubt if this really be a relapse since it is not probable that the peasants of Romagna have ever really changed since the beginning. The Etruscan great and wise men developed gods, but the people while accepting them always believed in Euhemerism–that they were only developed magicians. And whether this legend be modern, or older than the earliest Tuscan records, one thing is selfevident–that the spirit of it is as old as anything recorded. Those who love the antique do not always reflect that a pebble may be older than anything man ever made.

Of this spirit I know nothing save that I heard it remarked, "E una donna che si presente nella casa" ("It is a lady who manifests herself in houses.") I believe she is a benevolent spirit.

"Lases was certainly in Rome the oldest form of the word" (Note p.93).

"Now it is very remarkable at first sight that under these extremely varied deities there are human souls." This is confirmed by MÜLLER with a mass of proofs. He then adds:–

"The Lares familiares must necessarily be included among these, asthey were generally nothing else than souls of ancestors become gods, many of the ancients (APULELUS, MARTIAN, and VARRO) having declared that genius and lar referring especially to domestic lares, were one and the same."

Our author declares that the Lasa were generally female spirits occupied in adorning men and women, as depicted on vases, and that, "so far as Etruscan is concerned, it is doubtful whether Lasa and the Lares are connected."

Conversing one day with my best authority on Tuscan folk-lore, I asked ifshe knew such a word as Lar, Lares, or Lare? "No, she had never heard it." "Did anything with a similar name haunt churchyards?" "No; but," reflecting a minute, "there arc the Lassi or Lassie." "And what are they?" The answer was as follows:–

"Lassi are spirits which are heard or seen in a house when one of the family dies. They are the ghosts of the ancestors of the family, who come at such a time."

This was conclusive, and I have no doubt that these Lassi or Lasie are the Lasa referred to in the song of the Arval brothers. Of course this is not absolutely proved, but when we consider that Tinia, Fufluns, Feronia, and Mania all exist with most of their ancient characteristics, it must be admitted that we have here an extremely strong probability. The Lasa were in the very oldest Latin in existence ghosts of ancestors, or domestic familiar spirits, and so are the Lassi. And MÜLLER gives no proof whatever that the Lasa, or "winged spirits on the vases, with a frontal band or cap and earrings, naked or in a short chiton with armlets, half boots or shoes," and holding a great variety of objects in their hands, were not Lares deified. It seems to me to be most natural that the spirits of the ancestors, revived in youth and beauty, should be the first to wait on and aid the descendant risen to paradise. MÜLLER himself says elsewhere, "In the Lar the Genius always comes to light." What are these Lasa if not the geniuses of the departed? Unfortunately, MÜLLER, though gifted with perfectly German industry, and not deficient in sagacity, had not a gleam of intelligence as regarded the folk-lore of a race, or the immense value of minor matters. To write in an admirable and clear style, en grand critique, over the great events or subjects of a race is certainly very fine, but it is to be hoped that a time is coming when we shall have seen the last of these Mr. Dombeys of History, with their prize works

crowned by Academies, in which there is not a gleam of intuition, nor a nuance of colour, and as little real knowledge of life.

There is a story of the Lasi or Lasii, also an invocation to them. I would say that, as regards the songs or metrical passages in all such accounts, I have not been able, with all care, to give them in the original or best form. In most cases my informant translated them from the original Romagnola dialect into Italian, and they were often manifestly imperfect or partly supplied. The tale is as follows:–

"There was once a great lord who was very rich, and he had a son who was a great prodigal–che sciupeva tutto il danaro. His father said to him, 'My son, I cannot live long, therefore I beg you to always behave well. Do not go on gambling, as you are wont to do, and waste all yourpatrimony. While I live I can take care of you, but I fear for you after my death.' After a little time the father died. And in a few days the son brought all to an end. Nothing remained but the palace, which he sold. But those who occupied it could not dwell there in peace, because at midnight there was heard a great clanking of chains and all the bells ringing. And they saw black figures like smoke passing about, and flames of fire. And they heard a voice saying:–

"So they gave back the palace to the heir. But he too was greatly terrified with the apparitions, and there came to him a voice which said:–

¹ In all cases where the text is in metre the original was chanted or intoned.

"Then the son answered:–

"Then the father replied:–

It was explained to me that by the beams meant breaking away the ceiling.Two things strike me in this strange semi-poem. One is that the story is very much like that of the Heir of Lynne in PERCY'S Relics. Secondly, that it is altogether more like an Icelandic narrative than anything Italian. It is grim, strong, and very simple–one may say almost archaic.

There is also an invocation of witchcraft to these spirits of ancestors which is not less curious:–

"But," added the fortune-teller, in a prosaic voice, "it will not be until after a long time."

Games of chance and lotteries are such a serious element in Italian life that no one need be astonished at an invocation like this being addressedto the Lares. Perhaps the Romans did the same for luck at alea, or dice. I would that I had by me my copy of PASCHASIUS JUSTUS' De Alea. I might find it in that!

It may be remarked that in this account the Lasii appear as benevolent spirits, devoted to a family. Since recording this Tuscan story ofthe Lasio who gave the treasure, I have met with the following in the Romische Mythologie of L. PRELLER:–

"The lar familiaris is the Schutzgeist–guardian spiritof the family. Next to the Lar familiaris, who is simply called the lar or lar pater (the father lasio), there are many lares familiares. … It happens, perhaps, that the grandfather confided a treasure to him which be secretly hid … and he gives this to the only daughter of the house, a good girl who has always given him daily offerings such as incense or wine or garlands."

This is briefly the same story as that which I have related. The Lar or Lasio has a treasure in reserve which he gives to the heir. It was comfortable to think that there was in the house an attached family spirit who might do one a good turn, and therefore the belief lasted long among all rural people.

The young man Peppino, who went about much, at home and in the marketplaces, to collect evidence of knowledge of the spirits by me recorded, foundthat the Lasii were known, but gives the name as Ilasii. This is evidently only an addition of the plural article i (the) to Lasii

Some time after I had written the foregoing relative to the Lasii, I heard the following, which I made the narrator repeat, and took down accurately:–

"When I was about twelve years of age something happened to me which I thought at the time was funny or queer (mi trovai à un caso buffo–cosi io lo chiamai), but I have since regarded it in a very different light. Once I went with some relations into the country. One day I was in a dark forest, and wandered about picking leaves and wood-flowers, and at last found myself in a very lonely place by a stream. I had a habit of talking aloud to myself and I said, 'Oh, I would like to bathethere'–the weather was very hot–when all at once there stood before me an old woman, who said: 'Dear child, if thou wouldst like to bathe, undress without fear, I will protect thee.' There was something about her which pleased me greatly, a care and kindness and sweetness which Icannot describe. And when I had bathed and dressed myself she said: 'Bimba, thou hast had many troubles, and many more are before thee, but be not afraid (non ti sgomentare), for in thy old age thou wilthave good fortune,' and so she disappeared, and I never saw her again–and I still await the good fortune which has not as yet come to me.

"I believe this was indeed a lasia, a spirit of some ancestor longdead, who wishes me well."

What was best in this story I cannot relate, and that was the earnestnesswith which it was told, and the manner in which the narrator repeated the details, and the deep faith with which she expressed the conviction that this was really a lasia. Truly they are a strange race, these Etruscan mountaineers–their young folk see visions and their old men dream dreams.

Pictures of Lases abound on Etruscan vases. They are represented as beautiful spirits, young, and more frequently feminine than male. They are, I believe almost always, winged, and generally bear a bottle or large phial. The old Etruscan religion, which was distinctly Euhemeristic, regarded the becoming a Lar as the first step to becoming a god. On which subject the following is of interest:–

"Les Lares, ou Lases, qui jouent un rôle si important dans les anciennes religions de l'Italie, qui peuplent le monde romain, qu'on trouve partont, au foyer de la famille, dans la ville, à la campagne, sur

les routes–Lares familiares, urbani, rurales, viales, &c.; les Lares ont sans acun doute fait partie de la cosmogonie Etrusque. Leur nom seul semble le prouver, Larth ou Laris est un nom et un titre d'honneur que l'on rencontre fréquemment sur les inscriptions funéraires de l'Etrurie. On lisait, d'ailleurs, dans les Livres Achérontiens qui faisaient partie de la doctrine de Tagès, que les âmes humaines pouvaient, en vertu de certaines expiations, participer a l'essence des dieux, et sous le nom de dii animales, ou âmes divines, prendre place parmi les Pénates et les Lares" (Servius ad Aen., iii., 168; cf. Fabretti, Gloss. Ital. s.v.). "Ainsi s'accomplissaient dans les croyances de l'Etrurie les mysterieuses destinées de l'âme humaine. Le Genius jovialis, aprèsl'avoir recueille comme une émanation de la divinité, lui donnait entrée dans la vie; puis quand la mort venait séparer de la matière ce souffle divin, l'âme, éprouvée par les sacrifices, ou l'expiation, pouvait retourner parmi les dieux, et comme pénate elle remontait au rang on le Genius jovialis, ainsi que nous l'avons vu, était placé lui-meme" (L'Etrurie et Les Etrusques, par A. Noël des Vergers, Paris, 1862, vol. i., pp. 301, 302).

It will be seen by this extract that the still existing very singular belief that certain sorcerers' souls are sometimes reborn as mightier sorcerers than before, and from. this proceed to be spirits, is exactly paralleled by the old Etruscan doctrine taught by Tages.

MÜLLER (die Etrusker, p. 81) says that CORSSEN (i., p. 346-7)"has erroneously attributed LOSNA, a goddess of the moon, to Etruria. She only occurs on a single mirror from Præneste (GERHARD, i., clxxi.), and is Latin (Lucna, Luna)."

"It is not for us to settle the question." But on asking my authority ifshe knew of such a being as Losna, I received the following reply, which I wrote down as uttered:–

"LOSNA is a spirit of the sun and moon–of both, not of the moon alone. When a brother debauches his sister it is always her doing. She loves to deride people gaily. When she has made her mischief she will appear at the table where a contadino is with his family, and laughand say: 'Thou art a stupid fellow, thou knowest not that thy daughter is incinta (with child) by her brother, for thou didst once say, "E un grande piacere à fare l'amore col proprio fratello." ' And when she has done this mischief she goes away singing, because she has caused discord in the family."

This startling myth has that in it which seems to prove great antiquity. The gypsies in the East of Europe have a legend that they are descended from the Sun and Moon; the Sun having debauched his Moon sister was condemned to wander for ever, in consequence of which they also can never rest. The natives of Borneo and the old Irish believed that the Man in the Moon is imprisoned there for the same deed. Finally, the Esquimaux have a similar story. These coincidences are fortuitous, but in any case they are remarkable. As for its character, I have already remarked that if these tales are truly handed down from the olden time they ought to be replete with sensua1ity–as they are. In

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