European Stars And Stripes (Newspaper) - October 30, 1987, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Magazine the lore and Gore of halloween bylds Chapiro it set for a grisly saturday night As ghouls ghosts and goblins dominate the halloween scene. From the gorgeous to the ghoulish nobody wants to be left out of ins haunting happenings. It s the Lime of Wilches and grotesque sprites of spirits Good and evil of Good Luck and bad. And of Irick or Ireail. For new yorkers hoping or even a ghost of a Chance at some fun. The time is right or some wild goings on in the streets at the annual Greenwich Village halloween Parade joining some 250.000 crazed costumed revellers. The Parade has become one of the City s most joyfully awaited events said one official. It s now a tradition Hal brings us All a Little closer together in a shared sense of Community creativity and  it s the 14th year of the outrageous March recognized As perhaps the nation s Audiest and saturday night s extravaganza promises to be the biggest yet. Trie Parade started out As a rather Low key gathering of 300 Village neighbors in 1974. But it has grown into the riotous Celebration that new yorkers love Hale with their customary yes no judgments on All things big and Small. This is big More than 250,000 people 50,000 marchers and 200,000 oilers from the in stale area including Mew Jersey and Connecticut and beyond pour into the Village area to give Mew yorkers their due a Blessing and a cure. Larger than life puppets and bizarre creatures Ara part of the Parade. In the past there were among others he ghost of Tom a 30-foot Skeleton that rattled High above the crowd hoisted by 10 poles and emperor Hadrian Riding in a gorging Hen Mouth on wheels. Halloween is a time of remembrance in Salem. Mass. Site of the 17th Century Witch hangings and currently Home to attractions designed to inform and scare visitors to this Walt City on the new Hampshire Border. Alter several years of poor harvests hunger and unusually harsh Winters the people of Salem Village became embroiled in the witchcraft hysteria which resulted in 20 people 14 women and six men being tried and Pul to death for allegedly consorting with the Devil. The Salem Witch museum offers an imaginative audio visual presentation where dioramas take the place of film. Next it s on to the Home of judge Jonathan Corwin of the witchcraft court in whose Home the preliminary questioning session of the accused Wilches took place. This four room Home now called the Witch House has furnishings that Are indigenous to the House and Many reproductions that Are native to the period. The Witch Dungeon museum features a live re enactment of a Witch trial and a tour of a re created prison cell. Halloween is also pumpkin  great Orange spheres become Jaci of Janiem with shiny eyed snuggle toothed laces glaring out from behind darkened windows. The Irish tale of the Jack of lantern is a sad one. Poor Jack wandered the Earth with his lantern until judgment Day his terrible drinking habits keeping him from heaven and his practical jokes on the Devil batting him irom hell halloween in spite of the fact Hal it lakes its name Friday october 30. 1987 irom a Christian festival All hallows Evo oct 31, and adj Saint s Day  irom Pagan i mos ant has never taken on a Christian significance there were two different festivals in the  world Al this Timo of year and Hoy arc both Rapina Enod in present Day halloween Lun and games when you Duck for apples or throw the peels of to Apple Over you shoulder to see what initials Hoy will form you Are doing As the romans did honouring Pomona the roman goddess of Orchards especially apply Orchards. And when you Light a canola inside Tho jeering pumpkin Laco you Are in a Small Way imitating the celtic druids of Northern Britain who lit a fire to scare away Winter and Tho evil spirits who were waiting to come Rushing in when summer was Over on thai night Between october and november. Iho druids kindled great fires on the Hills As a Basner against the evil to come. These halloween fires Stilt Burn every year in Many places but especially in Scotland and Wales. By waving wisps of plaited Straw aloft on pitchforks people tried to frighten Orf demons and witches but just in Case this did t work they also put on grotesque and terrifying costumes. If you dressed in a horrible fashion and went trooping around with spirits All night Thoy would think you were one of them and do you no harm. This is where who persistent halloween custom of dressing up and wearing masks originated. An Tong the children who come to the door on halloween calling Irick or  those with the most alarming costumes Are still considered the Best halloween characters trick or treat Means of course that the Young halloween visitors who come to your door will play no Iricks on you it you treat them a their bags with fruit nuts cake Candy or any other goodies. In recent Yoars poisoned Candy scares have spurred parents to make the Holiday a family or Community event with greater stress on indoor dress up parties for children. Halloween is a time when it was once supposed hat Wilches and ghosts were most Likely to wander abroad and residents of Many countries particularly great Britain Ireland and Scotland earned out numerous rites and traditions on that Day to Ward Oil the curses of the Wilches or to ensure a year of Good torture. The exact origins of witchcraft Are not known but everywhere in the world where witchcraft was and is known witches were considered to be people who had Powers above and beyond those of Ordinary Rock. These Powers could be used Lor Good and evil but most Witch stories picture the Wilches As fascinatingly evil people. Most of he familiar Witch lore is european in origin the Western hemisphere was settled mostly by europeans and they of course brought heir Witch lore with them. In the Western world witchcraft is generally associated with the Devil. The Christian concept of a Witch is hat of a person who makes a pact with the Devil. In return for the granting of certain Powers and flavors the Witch gives her or his there have also been male i scrws soul to the Devil. However even in Western culture witchcraft was not always thought to be the Devil s work. The association of witchcraft and satan is a Judco Christian concept. Witchcraft was probably part of ancient Pagan religions and was around for thousands of years before the establishment of christianity. In primitive Oci Tiei Wilches. Sorcerers or whatever they May have been called were thought to have Powers that enabled them to communicate with the forces of nature. A Man who planted crops needed to have ram at the right Lime. For a Price he Witch could bring rain or Al least make an Effort to do so. A Welch could also help one gel Back at an enemy. The curse could be one thai would cause death or cause the cursed person to be unlucky in love or make his cattle die or his crops not grow. On the other hand the Witch could be employed to get someone to Tova one. Love pollens Era spells were among Iho most sought after services witches had to Otter. One might wonder How witches managed to make a living at their Crall knowing that much of the Lime their incantations spells and so on would not succeed ii is conceivable that witches Couke have saved lace by uttering Money Back  Sid sch Pito a stars and stripes Mew Yak Bateau Retiree returns to old haunts for halloween the stars and stripes Page 13