Show VALENTINE DAY LONG IN I 1 centuries have failed to dim the memory of the good old saint DISPUTE AS TO HIS IDENTITY i at least two bishops of ancient time times have been credited with the honor of being the founder of the day consecrated to cupid T VALENTINE of blessed mem S ST ory whose natal day da falls upon the of february seems to ba be the saint of this particular season his customs which have survived the lapse of centuries are associated soc socia ted in our minds with ith the ing of various amatory epistles and he rather more agreeable gifts and presents wh which ch are occasional occa occasionally siona ly sent in the shape of towers and candies by the young men and maidens one 0 to o another now york and new yorkers lers still retain memories of the saint who ho seems to have been like his associate the good st Nic nicholas bolas a patron saint of tho the netherlands and in this con lection we perhaps on account of our dutch ancestry celebrate bis his festival with a kettledrum says the new york times far back in the mists of antiquity lies the origin of tho the custom of sending letters or valentine on the saints day while tho the original st Vale valentine nUne would appear to be gifted with as many livee as the proverbial erbeal cat or reincarnations under the same title for we find two bishops of the name a virgin martyr aad and a tyro itan ican saint all of whom when have authentic records of their lives and deaths preserved in u history and none ot wacl would seem to be in any way connected with the valentines of today Kox however ever it is always possible to reconcile recon cilo the tile two or tereci and there Is sufficient evidence to show that st valentine a bishop of rome nome who died in A D was born on the of february and he is so go set down in the roman noman and anglican calendars I 1 he 0 o was a martyr to his faith and when cast into prison by his enemies he cured his keepers dau daughter ahter of blindness tor for which miracle he ho was beaten with clubs and then beheaded headed be and his remains repose in the church st praxades at rome while a gate now known as tho the porto was formerly called by the name of st valentine or porto valentine valentino another valentine also a bishop claims a share in the day and his claim to rests upon the cure of the son of craton the rhetorician his death was caused by choking on a fishbone whether of his own choos ing or administered by his enemies tho the legend does not state but in italy and greece they pray to this saint to curo cure them theia from epilepsy tho the 31 valentine of tyrol tyro 1 who beems to have baie been born a little later lid vid who died in the fourth century has a church consecrated to his mem cm ory in south tyrol at meran where here ho Is supposed to han hao 0 preached christianity to the heathen lombards bombards Lom bards in tho the legend he appears as a beautiful youth attired in the dress of a roman soldier bearing a cross on his sword sord hilt and coming over tho the mountains from italy entering meran moran lu in what Is now known as tyrol ho he encounters the heathen priest of the temple and after a long argument with him ho be calls upon bis his gods to destroy the temple the heathen and the priest are nil struck dumb by his threats and A hen with ith one blow be pushes down doun the pillars of the temple like samson they rush forth in horror expecting him to be destroyed under tho the fall ing walls instead of which alch st val entine kneale unhurt with a seraphic look upon his face while the wrath of their god Is not shown by the fierce wind and tempest which they expect and quantities of doves and birds alight upon the neighboring trees in peaceful flocks st valentine immediately after this miracle marries the first heathen couple and performs the first marriage ceremony in tyrol according to christian rites which would seem to associate him with mith at least two of the modern customs as the saint of lovers and with tho the emblem of his doves and birds |