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Among the Greeks and Egyptians, as well as among the Romans, sneezing was regarded as a kind of oracle, warning those who heard it against the danger of any course of action and foretelling the future.

There is an inscription in Latin, in the garden of the Fawn at Pompeii which may be freely rendered: "Victoria, good luck to thee and wherever thou wilt, sneeze pleasantly."

St. Austin declared that "the ancients were wont to go to bed again if they sneezed while they put on their shoe.'

In India, Hindoos at the Ganges, when interrupted in their devotions by a sneeze, never venture to continue, but repeat their prayers again from the beginning.

Among the Zulus of Africa, sneezing is a sign of the presence of a good or evil spirit, and among the Persians, of demoniacal possession.

The custom of responding to a sneeze is said to have originated with the Patriarch Jacob. According to an old legend, sneezing before his time was fatal. This was a great sorrow to him, for it kept everyone in constant fear lest by an unexpected sneeze death would immediately follow. So he prayed to God that this law of nature might be removed, and his prayer was granted on condition that every sneeze should be consecrated by an ejaculatory prayer-hence we find responses such as these in common use: "Long may you live, "Jupiter preserve you, May you enjoy health,' Hail," "God save you," "God bless you," etc. This last response is said to have been first used in Athens, where a sneeze by a person afflicted with the plague was regarded as an evidence that he had passed the crisis of his disease and that recovery was possible.

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May it not be that many people in past centuries have found confirmation for this strange superstition in the story of the raising of the Shunamite's son found in the Scriptures. (See II Ki. iv: 35).

He walks upon the highest part of the wall and says: "For safety we trust to God!" (Arabian).

Applied to people who expose themselves to danger

and expect God will keep them from suffering any harm.

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"If you leap into a well, Providence is not bound to help you out.' (English). 'God helps those who help themselves." (German, French, English, Italian, etc.).

He who has done eating will say, "He who eats at night is a sorcerer." (Oji-West African).

"Why

See Bible Proverbs-New Testament: beholdest thou the mote that is in thy brother's eye, but considerest not the beam that is in thine own eye?"

It is believed by many that the sin against which a man fights his hardest battles is the sin that he most severely condemns in others.

"He that finds fault with rusticity, is himself a rustic."-Julius Cæsar.

He who knows not how to play his game, says, " My place is narrow "; they have made him find room, and he says, "My sleeve is tight." (Osmanli).

"A cough is the musician's trick to hide a blunder." (Greek). "When a musician hath forgot his note he makes as though a crumb stuck in his throat." (English).

If thou forgettest to say, "Praise be to God," in what other words wilt thou pray? (Arabian).

This proverb is applied to people who, intending to execute some important business, become so absorbed in its details that they neglect to perform the most important part of the transaction.

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If you never went into another man's plantation, you would "I am the only planter." (Oji-West African). "He who does not go forth and explore all the earth is a well frog.' (Sanskrit). "The frog in the well sees nothing of the high seas.' (Japanese). "The frog mounted on a clod said he had seen Kashmir." (Indian). "He that imagines he hath knowledge enough hath none." "He that knows least commonly presumes most." (English). "Who knows nothing doubts nothing." (English, French).

If you say "Let it go" the snake will be angry; if you say "Hold it" the frog will be angry. (Telugu).

"He is not born who can please everybody." (Danish). "He labours in vain who tries to please everybody.' "Jupiter himself cannot please everybody." (Latin). "He must rise betimes that would please everybody." (French, Danish, English, Dutch). "He that would please all and himself too undertakes what he cannot do.' "No dish pleases all palates alike." (English). "One cannot please everybody and one's father." (French).

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"Not even Jove can please all, whether he rains or does not rain."-Theognis.

"I have forgotten thy name" is better than "I know thee not." (Wolof-West African).

In saying "I would be enfranchised from bondage, he falls into servitude.

(Osmanli).

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"It would be something to one man; but for two, it is but a small portion, " as Alexander said of the world. (Gaelic).

The reference is to Alexander the Great.

"Let us agree not to step on each other's feet," said the cock to the horse. (English).

"Mair haste the waur speed, " quo' the wee tailor to the lang thread.

(Scotch).

"Mair whistle than woo'," quo' the souter when he sheared the sow. (Scotch).

See Proverbs Suggested by the Bible: "Great cry and little wool.

The first part of this proverb is found in nearly all languages.

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"Loud cackling, little egg. "Great noise and little hurt. (Gaelic). 'Great boaster, little doer." (English, French). "Great cry and little wool,' as the fellow said when he shore his hogs." "Great cry and little wool,' quoth the devil, when he sheared his hogs. (English). Great cry and little wool,' as the man said who shaved

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the sow." (Italian). "Great cry and little wool,' said the fool, when he sheared his hogs." (German, Dutch).

An interesting variant of this proverb is found in two other Scotch sayings: The Scotch farmer or goadsman in olden times sought to guide and incite his oxen to harder and steadier work by whistling to them, which was often more of an encouragement to the man than to his beasts, and soon gave rise to the proverbs: "Muckle whistlin' for little red lan'," and "There's mair whistling wi' you than good red land," indicating that whistling was one thing and good turned up and well ploughed land another.

Mancius said, "Eating and drinking men are despised by their fellow men because they pamper what is little and lose what is great." (Chinese).

A phrase used in condemnation of gluttony.

"Mony a thing's made for the penny," as the auld wife said when she saw the plack man. (Scotch).

Sometimes the world "black" is used for "plack," thus making the proverb meaningless.

The plack was a Scotch coin extensively used during
the fifteenth century and worth about two-thirds
of a cent (U. S.). Thus a man without money
was called plackless.

"Ye Scots, wha wish auld Scotland well,
Ye chief, to you my tale I tell,

Poor plackless devils like mysel',

It sets you ill,

Wi' bitter, dearthfu' wines to mell,

Or foreign gill."-Robert Burns.

The plack man was the vender of inexpensive trinkets or catchpenny articles as they would be called in England and America.

"Muckle din about ane, as the deil said when he stole the collier. (Scotch).

Nwariwa stands with clustering fruit and says, “ An orphan is a slave." (Efik-West African).

Even the trees pity the orphan because of his helpless and dependent condition.

"Onything sets a gude face," quo' the monkey wi' the mirtch on. (Scotch).

“Rejoice, bucks, ” quo' Brodie, when he shot at the buryin' and thought it was a weddin'. (Scotch).

"So on and accordingly," quo' Willie Baird's doggie. (Scotch).

"Soor plooms," quo' the tod when he couldna climb the tree. (Scotch).

Tod, i.e., a fox.

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This is a variation of the familiar English proverbThe grapes are sour,' when he could not reach them," which was suggested by Æsop's fable.

It appears in many forms and is found in most of the modern languages.

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"The fox, when he cannot reach the grapes, says
they are not ripe. "Fie upon heps,' quoth
the fox, because he could not reach them."
(English). "The fox says of the mulberries when
he cannot get them: 'they are not good at all.
(French).

"A hungry fox saw some fine bunches of grapes
hanging from a vine that was trained along a
high trellis and did his best to reach them by
jumping as high as he could into the air; but it
was all in vain for they were just out of reach, so
he gave up trying and walked away with an air of
dignity and unconcern, remarking 'I thought
those grapes were ripe, but I see now they are
quite sour.""-Æsop.

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The baboon says, “If you put something into my mouth, then I will produce a good word, and tell you. (OjiWest African).

Putting into the mouth indicates the gift of food. This is a selfish proverb teaching that men do not help each other without being compensated. If you pay me I will give you advice.

The West Africans are fond of attributing speech to animals. As, for example, In the Ashante Empire inhabited by two million people, such sayings as these are often repeated: "Saith the fly,

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