Nature . me be borrowed; andthe reason why this central light was put in the churchwas to dissociate it from the heathen ideas attachedformerly to it. As it was, the good people of theMiddle Ages were not quite satisfied with the centralchurch fire, and they had recourse in times of emer-gency tu others—and as the Church deemed them—unholy fires. When a plague and murrain appearedamong cattle, then they lighted need-fires from twopieces of dry wood, and drove the cattle between theflames, believing that this new- flame was wholesometo the purging away of the disease. For kindling theneed-fires
Nature . me be borrowed; andthe reason why this central light was put in the churchwas to dissociate it from the heathen ideas attachedformerly to it. As it was, the good people of theMiddle Ages were not quite satisfied with the centralchurch fire, and they had recourse in times of emer-gency tu others—and as the Church deemed them—unholy fires. When a plague and murrain appearedamong cattle, then they lighted need-fires from twopieces of dry wood, and drove the cattle between theflames, believing that this new- flame was wholesometo the purging away of the disease. For kindling theneed-fires the employment of flint and steel was for-bidden. The fire was only efficacious when extractedin prehistoric fashion, out of wood. The lighting ofthese need-fires was forbidden by the Church in theeighth century. What shows that this need-fire wasdistinctly heathen is that in the Church new fire wasobtained at Easter annually by striking flint and steeltogether. It was supposed that the old fire in a. Lew-From Baring-1 Strange Sur- January 4, 1906] NA TURE 225 twelvemonth had got exhausted, or perhaps that alllight expired with Christ, and that new fire must Accordingly the priest solemnly struck newfire out of flint and steel. But fire from flint andsteel was a novelty; and the people, Pagan at heart,had no confidence in it, and in time of adversity wentback to the need-fire kindled in the time-honoured wayfrom wood bv friction, before this new-fangled way ofdrawing it out of stone and iron was invented. The same authority informs us that beforeChristianity was introduced into Ireland by St. Patrick there was atemple at Tarawhere fireburned ever, andwas on noaccount sufferedto go out. Mr. Frazer,1quoting Cerbied,shows that in theancient religionof Armenia thenew fire waskindled at theFebruary festivalof the May year,in honour of thefire god Mihr. A bonfire was„, . made in a public,j^^it,l place and lampsX kindled at it werekept burningthroughout theyear in
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