Show only clergymen were immune from comic valentine Ya lentine of why st valentines day should at once be an occasion tor for tearful sentimentalism ti and raucous buffoonery Is not the mystery it appears at first glance the bleeding heart decorated with old lace and scented with lavender once a favorite token of love sprang from an early roman festival in honor of the goddess febra ata juno which christians abolished by way af pf of making it less objectionable but then it became too sentimental which paved the way for the cheap comic valentines which sprang into favor late last century As celebrated in england and scotland st valentines day brought maids and bachelors together at a festival where they drew lots to discover which maid would be each youths valentine these imaginary K engagements lasted tor for a year during which the young man was bound to the service of his valentine sometimes they ended in real engagements but more often one or the other party was dissatisfied with his lot this gave rise to a custom of 0 ridiculing the valentine custom A MISS IS AS al A MILE A comic valentine first popularized late last century 1 I the sentimental valentine v alen fine heavy with lavender and old lace which grew from an early custom ably expressed by the satirist alexander pope you strattin str cockatoo of man you are my valentine I 1 know and for a year ill have to see your face and form cherer I 1 go but get this through your leather pate A year is all get of me for after that get the gate and never mair my face shall see in later years st valentines day has developed into a time tor for exchanging gifts though the comic valentine has bias retained most of the favor it enjoyed 30 or 40 years ago in those days nobody in the community was immune from receiving one of these anonymous shafts of 0 criticism except members of clergy the name valentine comes from a religious of the third century who reconciled lovers by his interest in their lives because of this interest and because his life ended in martyrdom he became the patron saint of lovers |