Chapter XIV

, Book I) that certain medicines attract poison as the magnet does iron. For this purpose a search for vipers, etc., was recommended; but, owing to the season being later and colder than usual, none could at that time be obtained, as they had not emerged from their winter quarters. An experiment was therefore substituted, after much consultation among the learned men of the Academy of Pisa, whereby oil of tobacco was introduced into the leg of a rooster. This was regarded as one of the most fatal of such substances, and was administered by impregnating a thread with it to the width of four fingers and drawing it through the punctured wound. One of the monks forthwith applied the stone, which behaved in the regular manner described. The bird did not recover, but it survived eight hours, to the admiration of the monks and other spectators of the experiment.

[Illustration:

Frontispiece and title-page of Francesco Redi’s “Experimenta naturalia,” Amsterdam, 1675, and two specimen pages of this treatise, referring to the snake-stones believed to be taken from the Indian _Cobras de Capello_, or hooded snakes. ]

[Illustration:

FORMS OF TABASHEER

Bought at Fair at Calcutta, 1888, by Dr. Valentine Ball. ]

Redi states that he himself possessed some of these stones, as did also Vincent Sandrinus, one of the most learned herbalists of Pisa. Redi describes them as “always lenticular in form, varying somewhat in size, but in general about as large as a farthing, more or less. In color some are black, others white, others black, with an ashy hue on one side or both,” etc.

Up to the present time no one has apparently identified what Tavernier referred to in speaking of snake-stones. It, however, occurred to the writer, after receiving a quantity of tabasheer from Dr. F. H. Mallet of the Geological Survey of India, who obtained it at the bazaar of the Calcutta Fair in November of 1888, that many, if not most of the Hindu snake-stones must have been tabasheer. Tabasheer is a variety of opal that is found in the joints of certain species of bamboo in Hindostan, Burma, and South America; it is originally a juice, which by evaporation changes into a mucilaginous state, then becomes a solid substance. It ranges from translucent to opaque in color, and is either white or bluish-white by reflected light, and pale yellow or slight sherry red by transmitted light. Upon fracture it breaks into irregular pieces like starch. As in Tavernier’s account of its clinging to the palate and causing water to boil when immersed, it actually has the property of strongly adhering to the tongue, and when put into water emits rapid streams of minute bubbles of air. It has a strong siliceous odor, but after absorbing an equal bulk of water becomes transparent like a Colorado hydrophane described by the writer several years ago before the New York Academy of Sciences.

Although tabasheer is mentioned in nearly all the textbooks, very little of it has reached the United States. It is highly interesting, since we have here an organic product scarcely to be distinguished from a similar opal-like body found by Mr. Arnold Hague in the geysers of the Yellowstone Park. Both tabasheer and the hydrophane were probably what was called “Oculus Beli,” “Oculus Mundi,” and “Lapis mutabilis” by Thomas Nicol, Robert Boyle, and other writers of the seventeenth century, and “Weltauge” by the Germans.

The great capacity of this substance for absorbing a fluid would undoubtedly render it as efficacious for the purpose of absorbing poison as any other known stone, providing the wound were open enough; and its internal use to-day as a medicine is possibly also due to this property.

Tabasheer, as known among mineralogists, is a corruption of the word tabixir, a name which was used even in the time of Avicenna, the Grand Vizier and body surgeon of the Sultan of Persia in the tenth century. It played a very important part in medicine during the Middle Ages. As to its origin, Sir David Brewster[468] says that tabasheer is only formed in diseased or injured bamboo joints or stalks.

[Illustration:

SPECIMENS OF TABASHEER

At the upper right-hand corner is figured a hydrophane, or “Magic Stone,” at the upper left-hand corner is a floating stone from Oregon. The tabasheer was bought at the Fair held in Calcutta in 1888. ]

Guibourt[469] differs from Brewster, inasmuch as he attributes the different rates of growth to the fact that when there is a superabundance of sap the tabasheer is formed from the residuum. More recently, Henry Cecil[470] says, “In the onrush of tropical growth in the young shoot, nature, after flooring the knot, has poured in, as it were, sap and silica sufficient for a normal length and width of stem to the knot next above it. But by some check to the impulse, or by irregularity of conditions, the portion of stem thus provided for is shorter or narrower than intended, and the unused silica is left behind as a sediment, compacted by the drying residuum sap.”

This latter view is sustained by Dr. Ernst Huth, who discusses the name, history, origin, and reputed virtues of this substance with much fulness.[471] In regard to its use in medicine during the Middle Ages, he quotes a remarkable list of applications to the ills that flesh is heir to.

Here it is cited as a remedy for affections of the eyes, the chest, and of the stomach, for coughs, fevers, and biliary complaints, and especially for melancholia arising from solitude, dread of the past, and fears for the future. Other writers speak of its use in bilious fevers and dysentery, internal and external heat, and injuries and maladies.

The writer has examined a large number of so-called madstones, and they have all proved to be an aluminous shale or other absorptive substance. But tabasheer possesses absorptive properties to a greater degree than any other of the mineral substances examined, and it is strange that it has never been mentioned as being used as an antidote. It may be confidently recommended to the credence of any person who may desire to believe in a madstone.

[Illustration:

Cobra de Capello. From Tavernier’s Travels, English translation by John Philips, London, 1684. ]

The writer believes that Tavernier’s snake-stones may all have been tabasheer, or again, while some of them were of this substance, others may have been artificially compounded by the authorized dealers of the Brahmin caste. The instance he gives of the successful use of such a stone is not altogether incredible, as, should one of the less active poisons be sucked out of a wound shortly after this were inflicted, a cure might well be effected. In view of the great difference in the virulence of poisons and the varying degrees of the sensibility to toxic effects, it is not strange that the snake-stones should sometimes seem to give good results. Tavernier states that these stones were brought to India by Portuguese soldiers returning from service in Mozambique.[472] For successful use a pair of them were needed, so that, when applied to a snake-bite, as soon as one became saturated with the venom the other could be immediately substituted. To have them always at hand, those natives fortunate enough to own a pair of _pedras de cobra_ carried them about in a little bag.[473]

A curious traditional belief is current in some parts of India, notably in Ceylon, to the effect that the male cobra, during the night, uses a certain luminous stone to lure its prey and to attract the female. This is probably the chlorophane, a variety of fluorite, a substance which shines with a phosphorescent light in the darkness, and this quality, quite mysterious in the eyes of the natives, may have induced them to associate the stone with the snake, the epitome of all subtlety and cunning. Serpent-stones were supposed to exist in both ancient and medieval times, and the belief in their existence is widespread among many races of mankind.

A chlorophane is also found in the microlite localities of Amelia Court House, Virginia. The writer made a series of experiments and noted that some of these specimens emit a phosphorescent light at a low temperature. The material occurs in Siberia, and Pallas describes a specimen from this locality. When subjected to the heat of the hand, it gave out a white light, in boiling water a green light, and when placed on a burning coal a brilliant emerald-green light, visible at a considerable distance. Similar phenomena have been observed by the writer, who has found that very slight attrition, even the rubbing of one specimen against another in the dark, will produce phosphorescence.[474]

The real or supposed virtues of the “snake-stones” of Ceylon are detailed at considerable length by the great Dutch naturalist, Rumphius. After noting the old tale that the “natural” snake-stones came from the _cobra de capello_ (_Serpens pilosus_), he proceeds to relate the information he had been able to gather regarding the “spurious” stones of this type. These were fabricated by the Brahmins, the process being kept a profound secret; indeed, there were those who asserted that the Brahmins themselves had lost the art, as this had been possessed by but a single family which had died out, leaving the secret unrevealed. Rumphius describes these artificial stones as usually round and flat, the size varying from that of a half-shilling piece to that of a two-shilling piece. Some were of lenticular form and a few were oblong; all had a white spot in the middle. In making the application, the bitten spot was first pricked until it bled, whereupon the stone was immediately laid on and allowed to remain until it dropped off of itself “just as a leech would do.” So intense was its absorbent activity that it would sometimes break, in which case a substitute had to be quickly applied. The saturated stone was placed in milk and the absorbed venom was thus drawn out, turning the milk blue.[475]

One of the tales of the Gesta Romanorum treats of a serpent-stone of singular medicinal virtue. According to the story—which is, of course, a mere legend—a certain Theodosius, who “reigned in a Roman city,” was a most prudent ruler, but was afflicted with blindness. In his care for the welfare of his subjects he had decreed that when anyone who desired justice rang the bell at the palace gate, a judge must forthwith appear and try his case. Now it happened that a serpent had its nest near the bell-rope, and one day, while the reptile was absent, a toad took possession of the nest. Returning and finding the nest occupied, the serpent,—evidently a worthy descendant of the original serpent of Paradise, “more subtle than any beast of the field,”—wound its tail about the bell-rope and pulled the bell. When the judge appeared, as in duty bound, he was struck by this strange spectacle, and reported it to the emperor, who told him to right the wrong which had been done, directing him to expel and kill the toad. Not long after, the serpent made its way into the palace and entered the emperor’s room, bearing in its mouth a small stone. Proceeding to the emperor’s couch, it crawled up, raised its head above the emperor’s face and dropped the stone upon his eyes. As soon as the stone touched the eyes, the emperor’s sight was restored. The serpent disappeared and was never seen again.[476]

A representative type of “madstone” is a concretionary calculus occasionally, but very rarely, found in the gullet of male deer. In form it bears a resemblance to a water-worn pebble and is usually of oblong shape, the largest specimens being 3 inches in length and 1½ inches in width. The chemical analysis of Dr. H. C. White showed that the chief component was tricalcic phosphate. His experiments demonstrated that while such a concretion would absorb water to the amount of 5 per cent. of its own weight, the quantity of blood or other fluid it was able to absorb only amounted to 2.3 per cent. of its weight. When immersed in water, after having been placed on a wound caused by the bite of a venomous creature, the liquid absorbed was given out so as to discolor the water, and the material exuded was found to be of toxic quality. However, experiments with animals that had been bitten by snakes or other reptiles, failed to show that the stone exercised any curative effect. Dr. White states that he has in his possession a “madstone” dating from 1654, but this is of a different type, being a porous sandstone.[477]

Even in South Africa snake-stones are known, but it appears that the few specimens reported had been brought thither from the Dutch East Indies; one such stone had been handed down for generations in a Dutch settler’s family. From their appearance some of these snake-stones were judged to be pieces of burnt hartshorn. A Boer farmer owned an amulet of this kind that he would loan from time to time to neighbors who might have need of it. On one occasion, when the daughter of an English hunter had been bitten by a snake, the father sent off a man on horseback to borrow this snake-stone. Owing to the unavoidable delay, some hours elapsed before it could be applied to the wound. The girl recovered after its use but the wound did not heal satisfactorily, and this was attributed to the length of time that had intervened between the attack of the snake and the use of the remedial stone.[478]

In December, 1887,[479] the writer described a white opaque variety of hydrophane with a white, chalky or glazed coating, which had recently been brought from a Colorado locality. The absorbent quality of this stone is quite remarkable, and when water is allowed to drop on it, it first becomes very white and chalky, and then gradually perfectly transparent. This property is developed so strikingly that the finder proposed the name “Magic Stone” for the mineral and suggested its use in rings, lockets, charms, etc., to conceal photographs, hair, and other objects, which the wearer wishes to reveal only as caprice dictates.

VI Angels and Ministers of Grace

The veneration of angels and the attribution to them of especial days or months, as well as the idea that they were guardians of those born on those days or during those months, was the result of many factors. The belief in the existence of angels is present in all parts of the Bible, but in the earlier portions they are not individualized in any way. The angel of God, or of the Lord (_malach Elohim_ or _malach Yahveh_) was simply a messenger of God, employed to communicate his will or else to accomplish some act of divine justice.

It is quite possible that the greater prominence given to angels among the Jews after the Babylonian Captivity was not solely dependent upon Babylonian or Persian influence. We learn from the historical and prophetical books of the Old Testament that the Jews had, from the earliest times, worshipped other gods besides the God of Israel, and were ever ready to assimilate the religious superstitions of the heathen world. Several of the divinities that were worshipped in Babylonia and Assyria were also objects of adoration in Israel, not indeed by the chosen spirits of the nation from whom we receive our records, but by the masses of the people. This very fact, however, served in a certain sense to maintain the purity of the national religion. As the superstitious inclinations of the populace were so fully satisfied from without, there was no necessity to develop or distort the national religion in this direction. The Babylonian Captivity changed all this. It was the élite of the Jewish nation that was deported, and the sufferings and humiliations to which they were subjected in a foreign land only served to strengthen their faith in Yahveh and in his Law. Hence it is, that when this tried and purified remnant returned to Judæa, rebuilt the fallen temple and reorganized the state, the latter became a theocracy in a much stricter sense than ever before, and from this time we can really speak of Judaism as the religion of the whole people.

But the inevitable tendency to split up the unity of the divine force, a tendency that makes itself felt in all religions and among all peoples, soon asserted itself anew and in a different direction. As the people were no longer allowed, we may even say were no longer inclined, to go after foreign gods, they proceeded to develop the idea of divine messengers or intermediaries which had always formed part of the national faith, but had never been fully evolved. While Isaiah and Ezekiel both knew of a division of the angels into certain categories as, for example, cherubim, seraphim, hayyot (living creatures), ofanim (wheels) and arelim, there is no attempt at individualization, and the first mention of an angel’s name occurs in the Book of Daniel, which later critics are disposed to assign to the second century B.C. It is most natural to suppose that such names were known and were familiar to the people long before that time. When we read in the Book of Daniel, xii, 1: “And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of Israel,” it is easy to see that the idea that certain special qualities were attributed to this angel was deeply rooted in the popular mind. In a previous verse, x, 13, we read: “Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me,”—a conclusive proof that a hierarchy of angels had already been thought out.

[Illustration]

Fossil Amethystine Lapis Anhydrite Banded Hematite Coral of Quartz Lazuli About 2500 Agate About About 2000 the About 2500 About 2000 B.C. 2800 B.C. B.C. Devonian B.C. B.C. Period 1000 B.C.

Amethystine Lapis Lazuli Aragonite-banded Amazon Stone Black Quartz 2000 B.C. or 3000 B.C. About 1500 Serpentine, Probably earlier B.C. hard and Assyrian of compact. 700 B.C. Seals of this type are generally as old as 2500 B.C.

Marble, Jaspery Agate Aragonite Rock-Crystal Serpentine discolored by As late as Probably as old About 1200 (banded) fire About 800 B.C. as 3000 B.C. B.C. Probably as 2500 B.C. early as 2500 B.C.

Ferruginous Shell 3000 Jasper, banded Chalcedony, Agate Agate About B.C. or red and black Blue (banded) 800 B.C. earlier About 1200 B.C. Saphirine Assyrian of About 700 about 700 B.C. B.C.

ILLUSTRATIONS OF ACTUAL PRECIOUS STONES AND MINERALS USED FOR SEALS IN ANCIENT ASSYRIA AND BABYLONIA

Mostly from the collection in the American Museum of Natural History, New York City.

The great source of information in regard to angelology is the Rabbinical literature which had its rise about the first century B.C. and culminated in the Talmuds of Babylon and Jerusalem in the fifth century A.D. As these compilations, although nominally commentaries on the books of the Old Testament, are almost encyclopedic in their character, they throw much light on this subject. In a monograph of Kohut, entitled “Jüdische Angelologie,”[480] many extracts, belonging to an early period, are given. Seven princes of heaven were recognized and among these four were especially favored. They occupied a place near to the Throne of Light and were bathed in its radiance. We are told that “God surrounded his Throne of Light with four angels: Michael, ‘Who is like God?’ at the right; Gabriel, ‘Might of God,’ at the left; Uriel, ‘Splendor of God,’ before it; and Raphael, ‘Salvation of God,’ at the west” (Numeri Rabba, c. 2).[481] They represented various attributes of the divine: Michael, goodness and mercy; Gabriel, punitive justice; Uriel, the majesty of God, and Raphael, his providence. Michael and Gabriel are particularly prominent and are called Royal Angels (‏מלכיהון דמלאכיא‎); they have especial care of Israel. As we have seen, Michael was singled out by Daniel and he was commonly regarded as chief prince. Gabriel was looked upon as the avenger and the executor of divine judgments and occupied the next place, while Uriel and Raphael are less frequently alluded to, although the latter appears prominently in the Book of Tobit.

In the New Testament, also, Michael and Gabriel are evidently regarded as the chief angels, and Revelation places Michael at the head of the hosts of the good angels in their conflict with Satan and his followers. We can see in the Gospels how widespread was the belief in demoniacal possession, and in the existence of evil spirits; it was almost inevitable that the aid of good spirits should be invoked to counteract them, and although both Christianity and Judaism sternly rebuked any direct worship of angels, they were regarded as ministering spirits, and it was only natural that the masses should be led to use their names on amulets and talismans, and little by little to arrive at the belief that a particular angel was entrusted with the welfare of each individual. The same tendencies were at work in both religions, but a new development was initiated for the Christian church by the growing veneration of the early martyrs and of their relics. When this became more pronounced, the saints to a great extent took the place of the angels; a passage from the writings of St. Ambrose composed in 377 A.D. shows us that this transformation of belief had already begun to make itself felt at that time. St. Ambrose writes: “We should address our supplications to the angels who are appointed to guard us; we should also address them to the martyrs, whose patronage seems assured to us by a physical pledge” (their relics).

The danger that the worshipping of angels might lead Christians away from the Church into magic practices and beliefs was clearly recognized in the early centuries, and at the Council of Laodicea, in 363 A.D., it was proclaimed that Christians should not render worship to angels outside the church, or in private assemblies or associations. Whoever was found guilty of such practices (of such idolatry, as it was called) was pronounced anathema, as he was considered to have turned away from the Lord Jesus Christ and worshipped idols. The first Council of Rome, held in 492 A.D., expressly forbids the wearing of talismans inscribed with the names “not of angels as they pretend, but rather with those of demons.” Indeed, there is abundant evidence that in this age, and even earlier, those addicted to angelolatry were not satisfied with the few angels named in the Holy Scriptures, but addressed their petitions to a multitude of angels evolved from the fervid imagination of the superstitious among the Jews. Of these angels not recognized by the Church, the following prayer of a certain Aldebert, condemned by the second Council of Rome, 745 A.D., gives us a few names: “I pray and supplicate the angel Uriel, angel Raguel, angel Michael, angel Adimis, angel Tubuas, angel Sabaoth and angel Simihel.” In the judgment of the Church fathers, all these names, with the exception of Michael, designated demons.[482]

A manuscript of the ninth or tenth century in the Library of Cologne gives the following “nomina angelorum”, and instructs the reader as to their special virtues:

If when it thunders you think of the Archangel Gabriel, no harm will befall you. If on awakening you think of Michael you will have a happy day. Have Orihel (Uriel) in mind against your adversary and you will prevail. When eating and drinking think of Raphael and abundance will be yours. On a journey think of Raguhel and everything will prosper. Should you have to lay your case before a judge, think of Barachahel and all will be explained. When you take part in a banquet, think of Pantasaron and all the guests will delight in you.[483]

On some medieval gems appear angel figures, one very curious specimen of this class being an onyx, engraved in intaglio. On this gem, which is in the British Museum, the engraver depicts the Annunciation, but the figure of the Angel Gabriel is precisely that of a nude Cupid; hand and foot are raised as though the little god (or angel) were dancing. It has been conjectured that this strange attempt at adapting a classic form is due to the fact that the gem was cut in Constantinople during one of the violent iconoclastic persecutions, and that the engraver thus sought to veil the true significance of his work. In this case, however, we must believe that the accompanying inscription was added at a later date, for it expressly names the Annunciation, the Angel Gabriel, and the Virgin (“Mother of God”).[484]

Another interesting gem, from about the same period, is a square amethyst, measuring about 3 cm. in each direction. This bears, engraved in intaglio, a standing figure of Christ, without a halo; behind his head is the monogram [Symbol], and in his left hand he holds a scroll with the words (in Greek): “In the beginning was the Word”; his right hand is stretched forth in benediction, and alongside the figure are the following angels’ names in Greek characters: Raphaêl, Penel, Ouriêl, Ichthys, Michaêl, Gabriêl, Azaêl. The fourth and middle name, Ichthys (fish) is the well-known anagram of the Greek words signifying “Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Saviour,” and the use of this as the name of an angel is thought to have been suggested by a passage in Isaiah (ix, 6).[485]

A “prime émeraude” among the Gorlæus gems is engraved with a design showing two souls brought before God by the two guardian angels.[486] Somewhat the same belief in the guiding or conducting of souls after death is found in Plato’s “Phædon,” where it is said that the _daimon_ which had guided a person during life led his spirit to the place in Hades where judgment was to be rendered.

The following list from Lodge’s “Wit’s Miserie,” printed in 1596, gives the seven good angels and sets over against them the seven bad angels, each of whom represents one of the seven deadly sins:

[Illustration:

By courtesy of the American Numismatic Society, New York.

ZODIAC MOHURS, COINED BY THE MOGUL SOVEREIGN SHAH JEHAN, ABOUT 1628. ]

Good Angels Bad Angels Michael Leviathan, pride Gabriel Mammon, avarice Raphael Asmodeus, lechery Uriel Beelzebub, envy Euchudiel Baalberith, ire Barchiel Belphagor, gluttony Salathiel Ashtaroth, sloth

The curious book called in Hebrew “Sepher de-Adam Kadmah” and attributed to the angel Raziel, is supposed to belong to the twelfth or the thirteenth century, or at the earliest to the eleventh century,[487] although the redactor may have used some earlier materials. Legend states that it was engraved upon a sapphire and was given by the angel Raziel to Adam when the latter was driven from Paradise. Handed down from generation to generation, it finally came into the possession of Solomon. The name Raziel signifies “secret of God,” in allusion to the revelations contained in the book, which was supposed to protect the house wherein it was from all danger of fire.

In this book there is an interesting list of angels, denominated the twelve princes, set over the twelve months of the year. The text of the first printed edition appears to be corrupt in some places, but the names may be transliterated as follows:[488]

Sh’efiel, “Balm of God” Presiding over Nisan (April) Ragael, “Balance of God” Presiding over Ayyar (May) Didanor, “Our Light” Presiding over Sivan (June) Ta’anbanu, “Answer for us” Presiding over Tammuz (July) Tohargar, “Whirlwind” Presiding over Ab (August) Morael, “Fear of God” Presiding over Elul (September) Hahedan, “The Brilliant” Presiding over Tishri (October) Uleranen, “To chant, celebrate” Presiding over Marchesvan (November) Anatganor, “Thou art the Guardian” Presiding over Kislev (December) Mephniel, “Before God” Presiding over Tebah (January) Tashnadernis, “Saturnus” Presiding over Shebat (February) Abarchiel, “Fire of God” Presiding over Adar (March)

The following list, while probably of later date than the one we have just given, is more frequently cited as authoritative:[489]

Orders Angels Tribes Signs Seraphim Malchidiel Dan Aries Cherubim Asmodel Reuben Taurus Thrones Ambriel Judah Gemini Dominations Muriel Manasseh Cancer Powers Verchiel Asher Leo Virtues Hamaliel Simeon Virgo Principalities Zuriel Issachar Libra Archangels Barbiel Benjamin Scorpio Angels Adnachiel Naphtali Sagittarius Innocents Hanael Gad Capricornus Martyrs Gabriel Zabulun Aquarius Confessors Borichiel Ephraim Pisces

In Rabbinical writings we are told that if a man fulfilled one of the commandments, one angel was bestowed upon him; if he fulfilled two commandments, he received two angels; if, however, he fulfilled all the commandments, many angels were given him. This was a literal construction of the text Ps. xci, 11: “For he shall give his _angels_ charge over thee.” These angels were believed to shield the believer from the attacks of evil spirits.[490]

[Illustration:

The medieval conception of the cosmos, the successive spheres of the planets, including the sun, and beyond these the crystalline heaven and the empyrean. In an outermost circle are named the great celestial powers, as recapitulated above the spheres. From a XIV century Italian MS. in the author’s library. ]

The Mohammedan Atlas, the angel appointed by God to bear the earth on his shoulders, was given a rock of ruby to stand upon. Beneath this ruby-rock, were, successively a huge bull, an immense fish, a mass of water, and lastly darkness.[491] Thus the grand vision of “the face of the deep” over which hovered the Spirit of God, before the creative words were spoken, giving form to the earth, is not altogether lost sight of in this Mohammedan fancy.

Luther was a firm believer in the existence of guardian angels, and he even goes so far as to assert that the angels assigned to men differed in rank and ability as did the men themselves. Of this he says:

Just as among men, one is large and another small, and one is strong and another weak, so one angel is larger, stronger, and wiser than another. Therefore, a prince has a much larger and stronger angel, one who is also shrewder and wiser, than that of a count, and the angel of a count is larger and stronger than that of a common man. The higher the rank and the more important the vocation of a man, the larger and stronger is the angel who guards him and holds the Devil aloof.[492]

Our idea of a guardian angel is so spiritual and so pure that it is difficult for us to understand the curious results this belief has occasionally produced among the primitive peoples. A weird tale is told of a Congo negro who killed his mother so as to gain an especially powerful guardian spirit.[493] The dreadful deed was perpetrated in the full conviction that the mother’s love would remain unshaken, while her power for good would be increased. Such ferocious egoism does not find an exact parallel among civilized peoples, but the underlying principle is unfortunately too often illustrated in our midst at the present day.

The belief in guardian angels has the best of Scripture warrant as offered by the text Matthew,