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This work surveys persistent superstitions and popular folklore, arguing that such beliefs remain alive in modern life. It traces how myths enter childhood and shape festivals, then categorizes and explains weather lore, omens, charms for luck and health, beliefs about jewels, love and marriage, haunted places, presentiments, and divination methods like the divining rod, astrology, and palmistry. It also considers popular marvels about the physical world and the cultural functions of legends, offering examples and reflections on why supernatural ideas endure.
Punctuation and spelling were made consistent when a predominant preference was found in this book; otherwise they were not changed.
Frequent use of dialect and archaic spelling retained.
Simple typographical errors were corrected. Occasional unmatched quotation marks were retained.
Ambiguous hyphens at the ends of lines were retained.
Page 19: the closing quotation mark after “lost his head.” has no matching opening mark.