ON THE VERGE OF HISTORY
their husbands. Superstition had invaded every domain of life. There existed a belief that exhibitions of the divine will could always be obtained by employing some process of divination or repeating some formula of incantation. Judicial decisions were based entirely on the result of ordeal; dreams were regarded as revelations for guidance at important crises, and the necessity of avoiding pollution dictated grotesque rules of conduct. Thus the mere fact of encountering a stranger, or of coming into contact with any of his belongings, was held to cause contamination that demanded a service of purification, and a traveller was consequently required to carry a bell which he rang as he moved along, after the manner of a leper in mediæval Europe. If he boiled his food by the roadside, he exposed himself to the lawful displeasure of the nearest household, and if he borrowed cooking utensils from anyone in the neighbourhood, they had to be solemnly purified before being returned to their owner or allowed to touch any other object. Evidently inns could not exist under such circumstances, and the difficulties of travel were enormous, as everything needed for the journey must be carried by the wayfarer. A woman had to be moved into a segregated hut at the time of parturition, and a ceremony of purification, a species of "churching," was necessary before she might return to her place in society. To have been present at a sudden death was another
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