Mythology

Mythology Encyclopedia 221

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Susan, St.: Vide Chastity, Defilement, Infamy.
Sut: Moham. Myth. Son of Iblis, a jinn who suggests lies.
(Jew. Enc., Vol. IV, p. 521.)
Swallow: It is unlucky to kill a swallow.
Swallows forecast bad weather by flying low, and fine weather by flying high.
If a swallow builds its nest on a house, it is sure to bring good luck.
Swallows spend the winter underground.
The swallow is said to bring home from the sea-shore a stone which gives sight to her
fledglings.
If you turn the money in your pocket the first time you see a swallow in spring, you will
never be short of funds. (Thuringia, Silesia.-WUTTKE, p. 177.)
Witches are said to be incapable of assuming the form of swallows. (STRACKERJAN,
Vol. I, p. 327.)
According to a Scandinavian legend, the swallow hovered over the cross of Christ crying
Sval ! Sval ! (Cheer up! Cheer up!), and hence it received the name of Sval or
Swallow, “the bird of consolation.”
Swallows forewarn miseries and unnatural wars by fighting against one another.
(ALEXANDER Ross, Arcana Microcosmi, p. 219.)
If a woman accidentally treads on swallows’ eggs lying on the ground, she will be barren.
(PLOSS, Das Weib, Vol. I, p. 508.)
cf. Robin, Stork, Dove, Peewit, Plover, Lamb, Philomele.
Swan: Swans cannot hatch without a crack of thunder.
Swans retire from observation when about to die, and sing most melodiously; hence
the expression “Swansong.” Vide Cygnus, Red Swan.
Swan Maiden: In mythology these are elves or fairies capable of becoming maidens or
swans at will by donning or doffing a magic garment,the Swan-shift, or covering of
swan’s feathers.
The Norse and German literature constantly make mention of swan-maidens “who fly
through the air, come swimming along to bring tidings, or through putting aside their
swan-shifts have come into the power of him who has taken it away.” (DE LA SAUSSAYE.)
(See GRIMM, D.M.; HARTLAND, Science of Fairy Tales.)
Swarth: The Cumberland name for a “waif.”
Swastika: A mystical religious mark placed upon persons or things, and thought to he a
charm or a talisman. It is a sign of good luck and benediction. It is in, the form of a
Grek cross with the ends bent round. (ELWORTHY, E.E., p. 289.)
Swearing: Jack-o’-Lanterns can he driven away by swearing at them; praying has no
effect on them. (cf. WUTTKE for Germany, JONES for Wales, THORPE for Northern

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Mythology Encyclopedia 220

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If a pregnant woman walks over a suicide’s grave, she will have a miscarriage. (ibid., p.
215.)
Epilepsy can be cured by drinking out of the skull of a suicide. (G. HENDERSON,
Survivals in Belief among the Celts, p. 302.)
If the body of a suicide be buried in view of the sea, herrings will not be caught.
(CAMPBELL, Sup. Scot. Highi., p. 243.)
cf. Sati, Horse, Camel.
Suitengu: Jap. Myth. An obscure deity who is worshipped in Tokio at the present day as
a protector against the perils of the sea, burglary, and the pains of parturition.
Sumeru: Hind. Myth. A mountain; the abode of Indra and his consort.
Sun : There is a "bird with three legs," or a spirit, in the sun. (MAYERS, Chin. Read.
Man., p. 81.)
In India, it is believed that girls may be impregnated by the sun. (FRAZER, The Golden
Bough, Vol. II, p. 234; HARTLAND, Legend of Perseus, Vol. I, pp. 99, 138, 170;
CROOKE, P.R.I., Vol. I, p. ii; Ethnologie du Bengale, p. 66.) Vide Moon, Virgin.
Sunday : Of all the days in the week, Sunday is the luckiest.
It is unlucky to cut nails, or hair, on a Sunday.
Children born on a Sunday have the gift of foresight, and if they be christened on a
Sunday too, spirits, though invisible to others, will be visible to them at all times.
(WUTTKE, p. 10.)
"Sunday’s child is fair of face,
Monday’s child is full of grace;
Tuesday’s child is full of woe,
Wednesday’s child has far to go;
Thursday’s child has much to borrow,
Friday’s child is full of sorrow;
Saturday’s child must beg for its living
And never have rest night and morning."
–Popular Rhyme (Great Britain.) Sura: Hind. Myth. Wine or spirituous liquor personified as SAra-devi, a goddess ornymph who was produced at the churning of the ocean. Surabhi: Hind. Myth. "The cow of plenty" was produced at the churning of the ocean. Itgranted every desire, and is reverenced as the fountain of milk and curds. (DowsoN,
H.C.D., p. 209.) Susa no wo: Jap. Myth. A god of Rain-storm, who provides mankind with useful trees.
He and his wife are regarded as gods of wedlock. He was at first appointed to rule thesea, but after his mother Izanami’s death, preferred to join her in Yomi (Hades).
(ASTON, Shinto, pp. 17, 24.)

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Mythology Encyclopedia 219

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Stuttering: Children who are allowed to look at themselves. in the mirror before they
are a year old become stutterers. cf. Tickling.
Sty: A sty on the eye can be effectually cured by rubbing it with a wedding ring.
(STRACKERJAN, Vol. I, p. 83.)
Styx: Gr. Myth. The river which surrounded the infernal region seven times, and separated
the world of the living from the world of the dead. cf. Vaitarini.
Subeh: The Subeh of Syrian superstition is a demon "in the shape of a fabulous animal
or as a woman with coarse hair on her head, immense eyes, and long pendent
breasts." (WESTERMARCK, The Belief in Spirits in Morocco, p. 149, quoting VON
KREMER, Studien iii-iv, 34 sq., SNOUCK HURGRONJE, ii, 123 sq.)
Succubus: In the Middle Ages this was a demon in female form; she was supposed to
have carnal intercourse with men in their sleep.
"For forty years, he (Benedict of Berne) had kept up an amatorycommerce with a succubus,
called Hermeline." C. K. SHARPE, Law’s Memorialls, Pref., p. xx (i8i8)
cf. Incubus, Cuichi Supai, Tululu Supai.
Suckle: German Folklore. The dead mother comes back again during the night to suckle
her infant she has left behind on earth.
Suddenness: St. Martin saves from sudden deaths.
Sudicky: Bohemian Folklore. The three white women who come to a room where a
child is born and decide its future. They are the three goddesses(?) of fate.
(GROHMANN, p. 7.) cf. Fates, Norn, Parcae, Bidhatapurusha, Hathor.
Sugar: If a pregnant woman puts sugar on the window-sill, she will give birth to a baby
girl. (Bohemia.)
Sugar is put in the mouth of an infant the first time it enters the house of a stranger.
(DALYELL, Dark. Sup., p. 96; cf. E. CHAVANNES, Documents sur les Tou-Kiue (Turcs)
Occidentaux, p. 134; FRAZER, Magic Art, i, 157.)
Suhijini: Sand has been deified under this name in Japan.
Suicide: The spirits of those who have committed suicide cannot rest; they must haunt
the place where the crime was committed (East Prussia, Silesia.-WUTTKE, p. 217;
Great Britain, France, Bohemia, India, Japan.)
It is a recognized practice in Modern China for widows to commit suicide, in order to
accompany their husbands to the spirit world ; this is sometimes even performed in
public. (See DE GROOT, Religious System of China, Vol. II, Bk. I, pp. 720 sqq.)
The body of a suicide does not sink. (GREGOR, p. 208.)

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Mythology Encyclopedia 218

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If while sweeping the room, you find a piece of straw, it is a sign that someone will
shortly pay you a visit (Germany).
It is unlucky to see a load of straw.
It is a bad omen to find two pieces of straw crossed in one’s path. (Westphalia,
Rhineland.-WUTTKE, p. 35.)
Straw was once a powerful means of bewitching one’s neighbour. Getting possession
of the straw was said to carry with it possession of everything belonging to the other
man. (RHYS, C.F., p. 345.)
Straw Road: This is the Persian and Syrian name for the Galaxy, who compare it with
their lanes littered with morsels of straw that fall from the nets they carry it in.
Stream: "The modern Albanian still sees the stain of slaughter in streams running red
with earth, as to the ancient Greeks, the river that flowed by Byblos bore down its summer
floods the red blood of Adonis." (TYLOR, P.C., Vol. I, p. 367.)
Strength: Hair is the seat of a person’s strength. (FRAZER The Magic Art, Vol. I, pp.
102, 344.)
If you carry about with you a piece of wood chipped off by lightning, you will be strong.
(Bohemia.-GROHMANN, p. 40.) Vide Sacrifice, Hair, Topaz, Elephant Thunder,
Haircutting, Lion, Lightning, Ash Wednesday..
Striges: In Modern Greece they are usually confused with the Lami (q.v.) because of
their taste for blood, which they share with those demons. In reality, striges are women
who possess the power to transform themselves. into birds of prey and other animals.
(LAWSON, 179.)
String: It is unlucky to burn string (Great Britain, India.)
Stringed Instrument: The Elle-women are said to be capable of playing most enchantingly
on stringed instruments. (THIELE, Daninarks Folkesagn.)
Stromkarl: "River-man." In Norway it is the name of the spirit of the water-fall; in
Sweden it is any water-spirit.
Stumbling: The Moors believe that if a person stumbles in. the dark, the reason for it
may be that he has trod on a Jinn (q.v.). (WESTERMARCK, The Belief in Spirits in
Morocco, p. 15.)
Among the Kirghiz, the stumbling or the snorting of a horse while on a journey is a
prognostication of good luck. (SCHUYLER, Vol. II, p. 29.)
Sturgeon: The sturgeons of the Yellow River, in China, make an ascent of the stream in
the third moon of each year, when those which succeed in passing above the rapids of
the Lung Men ("Dragon Gate") become transformed into dragons. (MAYERS, Chin.
Read. Min., p. 320.)

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Mythology Encyclopedia 217

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Engraved stones with short sentences on them are worn by the Chinese women and
children, and are supposed to have great efficacy in preventing evil. (WILLIAMS, M.K.,
Vol. II, p. 256.)
"Meeting anyone carrying stones, bringing a bride, or an animal under yoke, or anyone
suffering from goitre, means mischief and loss; the king of devils will injure your familiar
good spirit ; so spit at him I " (Tibet.WADDELL, p. 136.)
On Christmas Eve, put a stone on every tree and they will hear more fruit. (RAGNER.)
Stones, Sepulchral: Pregnant women either sit on, or slide down them to ensure an
easy delivery; unmarried girls do the same to procure a husband. (BERENGER-FERAUD,
Vol. I, p. 529 if; T. A. TROLLOPE, A Summer in Brittany, (Lond. 1840), II, 229; W.
C. BORLASE, The Dolmens of Ireland (Lond. 1897), II, 841.)
Stork: It is unlucky to kill a stork.
A stork flying over a house promises an addition to the family (Silesia.-WUTTKE, p.
32.)
Perfect health can be obtained by drinking the blood of a stork.
According to a Swedish legend a stork fluttered round the cross of Jesus crying:
Styrk ! Styrk ! (Strengthen ye! Strengthen ye!), and was hence called the styrk or
stork, but ever after lost its voice.
Storm: Storms are caused by demons. (Slavic countries; cf. LEHMANN, A.Z., p. III.)
A storm may be caused by whistling.
When pigs run grunting home a storm is impending.
St. Barbara may be invoked to abate storms.
According to the Edda, Giants and Giantesses caused storms. (GRIMM, Teut. Myth.,
Vol. IT, p. 637.)
If a storm breaks out while a grave is still open, it is a sign that the deceased has led a
wicked life, and has sold his soul to the devil. (GREGOR, p. 214.)
In North Wales, thunder and storm presage the death of an important personage in the
parish. (Archaeologia Cambrensis, 1872, p. 333.)
In the Gulf of Carnero, storms and hurricanes were caused by sorcerers, who, when
offended, kindled great fires in caverns, causing the enraged earth to send forth their
storms. (JONES, Credulities, p. 72 ; BASSETT, p. 104.) Vide Meal, Cat, Deo, Whistling,
Menstruation, Sea, Porpoise, Cuttlefish, Shony, Hedgehog, Mirror.
Stranger: Unless a dead man is watched by someone from another town, his soul will
not rest in peace. (F. MARION CRAWFORD, A Roman Singer, Ch. XIII.) Vide Nose,
Magpie, Soot.
Straw: If a person succeeds in getting hold of a mara (q v.), he will find only a piece of
straw in his hand. If this piece of straw be nailed to the wall, or otherwise made fast,
the mara will be compelled to show herself next night (WUTTKE, p. 123), or the next
morning in her true form. (cf. GRIMM, D.M.; THORPE, North. Myth; TYLOR, P.C.;
STRACKERJAN, etc.)

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Mythology Encyclopedia 216

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China Review, XIII, 416-418, quoted by BENOY KUMAR SARCAR, Chinese Religion
through Hindu Eyes, Shanghai, 1918, p. 62).
For other superstitions about shooting stars and meteors, see FRAZER, The Dying
God, London, 1920, pp. 6o-68.
Stepping over a Child: If you step over a child it will stop growing (Jews of Kiev;
Virginia.-BERGEN, C.S., p. 23); to make it resume growing, repeat the action (Jews of
Galicia, India, some parts of England. Cf. SCHIFFER, Urquell, VI, iii.)
Stheno: Gr. Myth. One of the Gorgons.
Stihija: A Bulgarian household-spirit in the form of a snake; also called Tolosom.
Stija: Bulgarian Folklore. A class of water-spirits. They are remarkable for their long
hair, which they sometimes employ to choke those who fall into their power.
Stocking: To put the left stocking on first denotes ill luck, but putting the right one on
first protects the wearer from rheumatism. (STRACKERJAN, Vol. II, p. 18.)
To put on a pair of stockings with the wrong side out is lucky, provided you do not
change (CHAMBERS, Book of Days, Vol. II, p. 321; ABBOTT, p. 144; Ethnologie du
Bengale, p. 124).
The wife is recommended to carry a piece of her husband’s stockings or girdle as a
safeguard against premature birth. (WUTTKE, p. 195.)
"Wear at the toe,
Spend as you go;
Wear at the heel,
Spend a good deal;
Wear at the side,
You’ll be a rich bride;
Wear at the ball,
You’ll live to spend all."
-U.S.A.
Vide Hoarseness, Throatache.
Stomach: If you stir drinks with a knife, you will have a stomach ache. (STRACKERJAN,
Vol. I, p. 49.)
Stones: Stones grow on the earth as long as they are not touched by hand; they
receive nourishment through a "vein" by which they are joined to the earth. (STRACKERJAN,
Vol. II, p. 71.)
To find a perforated stone is a presage of good luck. (See SPENCER, Pr. of Sociology,
i, 310 sq.)
In India (CROOKE, Islam in India, p. 241), and in East Africa (C. W. HOBLEY, J.R.A.I.,
XLI, 432f), it is believed that throwing stones is a common habit of some mischievous
devils.

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Mythology Encyclopedia 215

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(East Prussia.-WUTTKE, p. 21.)
Stag: Stags draw serpents from their holes by their breath, and then trample them to
death.
A wound from a stag’s horn never heals.
A stag’s horn gives warning of the evil eye and is a safeguard against its malignant
influences (Spain).
Stair: To pass another on the stairs is unlucky.
If while coming down the stairs you fall down, it forebodes some misfortune; but if you
stumble while going up, it promises a wedding.
Star: The Esthonians believe that if anyone sees a failing star on New Year’s night, he
will die or be visited by some serious illness that year. (BOECLER-KREUTZWALD, p.
73; FRAZER, G.B2., Vol. II, p. 22.)
If you point to a star, your finger will get fixed in that position. (STRACKERJAN, Vol. 1,
p. 44.)
If a shooting star takes a direction towards some particular house, it is a sign that
someone will die therein (STRACKERJAN, Vol. I, p. 23: ELWORTHY, E.E., p. 424.)
A shooting star denotes the birth of a child (Great Britain, India; cf. W. ELLIS,
Polynesian Researches2; iii, 171.)
The Moors say that shooting stars are missiles hurled by God at evil spirits to make
them desist from trying to reach heaven. (MEAKIN, The Moors, p. 353 : LANE, Mod.
Egypt., Ch. X; C. VELTEN, Sitten u. Gebr uche der Suaheli, p. 339 sq.)
When you see the first star, wish for something and say
"Star light, star bright,
First star I see to-night,
I wish I may, I wish I might
Have the wish I wish to-night"
and your wish will come to pass provided of course, that you do not divulge it to anyone.
(Eastern Massachusetts.-BERGEN, C.S., p. 69.)
When you see a shooting star, the wish you form before its disappearance will be fulfilled.
(LEAN, Vol. II, p. 280.)
In Ruthenia a shooting star is looked upon as the track of an angel flying to receive a
departed spirit, or of a righteous soul going up to heaven. In the latter case, if a wish
be uttered at the moment the star shoots by, it will go straight up with the rejoicing spirit
to the throne of God. So when a star falls the Servians say: "Someone’s light has gone
out," meaning someone is dead. (RALSTON, Songs of the Russian People, p. 116.)
"It is then (6th century B.C.) that we find stars worshipped in particular cities and that
the twelve signs of the Zodiac were believed to control the destinies of states.
Particular stars or groups of stars were worshipped in the supposed causes of fires and
such-like calamities.
In 540 B.C. there is a more detailed account of the same worship in the Tso chwen,
and at the same time, in Kwo Y , we find abundant proof that the Chinese then
believed that the various baronies of China were all controlled by particular stars" (

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Mythology Encyclopedia 214

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Spot: If you accidentally make some ink-spots while writing, it is an omen of good luck.
In West Highland superstition, a beauty-spot cannot be resisted, hence Diarmaid
inspired masterless love by his beauty-spot. Vide Nail.
Spriggan: In Cornwall these were certain demons said to guard treasures. (HUNT, Pop.
Rem., p. 81.)
Sprite: Same as spirit; in ordinary language it denotes an elf.
Squint: It is very unlucky to meet a man who squints. (ELWORTHY, E.E., p. 32, 417.)
Squirrel: Squirrels are so charmed by snakes that they fall an easy prey to them. Vide
Ratatosk.
Saints: (See also under the first names of the saints.)
St. Alfonso di Liguori: He is believed to have had the power of preaching in church and
confessing penitents at home at the same time. (J. GARDNER, Faiths of the World.)
Vide Bilocalion.
St. Ambrose: When St. Ambrose died on Easter Eve, several newly-baptized children
claimed to have seen the holy bishop, and pointed him out to their parents, but these
with their less pure eyes could not see him (CALMET).
St. Ammonius: St. Anthony saw the soul of St. Ammonius. carried to heaven by a company
of angels, the same day the holy man died at a distance of five days’ journey in
the desert of Nitria.
St. Dunstan: St. Dunstan’s harp discoursed most enchanting music without being
struck by any player. cf. Teirtus’ Harp.
St. John: The first words of the Gospel of St. John have always. been held of great
virtue when carried on a person. These should be written upon virgin parchment,
enclosed in a goose-quill an hour before sunrise on the first Sunday in. the year.
(THIERS, Trait des Sup., Vol. I, p. 414; ELWORTHY, E.E., p. 400.)
On May 16, St. John Nepomuc is honoured in Magyar lands, by throwing his image in
the Danube, while people follow in boats, playing musical instruments, etc. (Magyar
Folklore in "Notes and Queries," 27 Dec., 1883; BASSETT, p. 415.)
St. John’s Eve: Folklore. It is believed that fasting watchers may, on this day, see the
apparitions of those doomed to die during the year come with the ministers to the
churchdoor and knock. These apparitions are the souls which come forth from their
bodies. (TYLOR, P.C., Vol. I, p. 440; RHYS, Vol. I, p. 329.)
St. Matthew’s Day (24th February): If you spin on this day, it will go ill with the geese.

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Mythology Encyclopedia 213

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No spider will spin its web on an Irish oak.
A spider enclosed in a quill and hung round the neck will cure the ague ; in cases of
sore-eye or fever, it may be enclosed in a nut-shell and treated likewise.
The bite of a spider is venomous; they envenom whatever they touch.
Spiders will never set their webs on a cedar roof.
Spiders spin only on dark days, and have a natural antipathy for toads; they indicate
where gold is to be found.
"Une araign e au matin, c’est du chagrin,
Une araign e au midi, c’est du plaisir,
Une araign e au soir, c’est de l’espoir."
Vide Money, Spider, Soreness, Arachne. Spindle: In Italy, women were forbidden by law to walk on the high roads twirling aspindle, because this was supposed to injure the crops. (FRAZER, G.B2., Vol. II, p.
461 note; PLINY, Nat. Hist., XXVIII, 28.) Spinning: Women in childbed should not spin, lest they spin a halter for the baby.
(Franken.-WUTTKE, p. 196.) Vide St. Matthew’s Day. Spinster: Vide Last Piece, Tea, Godfather. Spirit: A supernatural, incorporeal, rational being or personality, usually regarded asimperceptible at ordinary times to the human senses, but capable of becoming visibleat will, and frequently conceived as troublesome, terrible or horrible to mankind."It faded on the crowing of the cock."
-SHAKESPEARE, Hamlet, I, 1.1
Vide Midnight. Spitting: If you spit on the first money received during the day, you will have more.
(Great Britain, India, Germany. -WUTTKE, pp. 80, 186; cf. HAZLITT, p. 560 sq.)
Cattle will thrive if you spit on their food. (Mark, Silesia.-ib.)
Great virtue is and was always believed to belong to fasting spittle, both as curative
and protective. (ELWORTHY, E.E., p. 418, quoting HERRICK, Hesperides, The
Temple.")
In Macedonia, spitting is considered a great precaution against disease. (ABBOTT, p.
110.)
The Arabs believe that human saliva can cure a multitude of diseases; further they will
spit upon a lock which cannot easily be opened. (DOUGHTY, Arab. Des., Vol. I, p.
226.) Vide Saliva, Hair.
Splashing: If a girl splashes herself while washing clothes, it forebodes that her husband
will he a drunkard. (STRACKERJAN, Vol. I, p. 45; Great Britain, U.S.A.)
Spogelse : A common name in Denmark for the Bulderbasse or the Poltergeist.

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Gebr uche der Munda Kolhs, Zeitschr. f. Ethnologie, Vol. III (1871), p. 374; M.
GRANET, La religion des Chinois, Paris, 1922, pp. 165 sq.; TYLOR, P.C.. Vol. I, p. 407;
id., Early History of Mankind, Vol. I, p. 358; CROOKE, Pop. Rel., Vol. I, p. 280;
DURKHEIM, Elementary Forms of Religious Life, p. 242; KRAFT, Travels . . . in East
Africa, p. 150; E.R.E, Demonology.
Soup: Plenty of soup eaten slowly promotes long life.
Sow: Vide Pig.
Sparks: If sparks from a burning log are thrown out into the room, troubles and anxieties
must be expected. (Greece.-LAWSON, p. 328.) Vide Death Omens.
Sparrow: The chirping of sparrows portends much rain or snowfall (ABBOTT, p. 111), or
wet weather. (INWARDS, Weather Lore, p. 168.)
Speak: If a person appears just as you are speaking about him, it is a sign that he will
live long. (Great Britain, India.)
If you forget in the middle of your speech what you wished to say, you are telling a lie.
If two persons say the same thing at the same time, they will have a fulfilment of their
desire, provided that they wish before another word is spoken.
In folktales all animals can speak.
Speaking Foxes: Vide Silver Foxes.
Spectre: An apparition, phantom, ghost, especially one of a terrifying nature or aspect.
Speed: Speed can be acquired by partaking of the flesh of a kite. cf. Sight.
Sphinx: An animal with the body of a lion and the head of a human being, which,
according to the Egyptians represented the sun. The ancient Greeks endowed the
sphinx with mysterious powers and introduced it into their mythology. It is said that in
the time of (Edipus, a sphinx used to stop passers-by on their way to Thebes, and put
certain enigmas to them; if they could not answer these enigmas, they were devoured
by the monster. It asked (Edipus the following: Qtel est l’animal qui marche a quatre
pieds le matin, a deux pieds a midi et e trois le soir?
OEdipus recognized the symbol of infancy, youth and senility in this riddle. The sphinx
furious at this, threw itself into the sea, and was never seen any more. (Petit Larousse
Illustr , p. 1602.)
Spider: The Mohammedans will never kill a spider, because they say that when
Mohammed was flying from his enemies, he hid himself in a cave, and a spider spun
its web over the entrance in order to give it an unsuspicious appearance. A lizard pointed
Mohammed out to his followers.
There are no spiders in Ireland, because St. Patrick cleared the island of all vermin.

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