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made mortal, and the gods had no idea of ever allowing him a chance of immortality, and that they were shocked on finding by what a narrow chance, owing to their own oversight, he missed becoming an actual god. Here is a story changed from delightful tale of a garden of delight, such as all countries have, to an angry quarrel between one of a heavenly band and the poor man he had created and placed in a position of Temptation. The faintest touch of Church teaching and dogma destroys the delightful fragrance of these old-world tales. There is one verse we must touch on before we go into the history of this story. It suddenly says, "Unto Adam also and to his wife " (not Eve) "Jové of the Divine company made coats of skin and clothed them." This is a most astounding statement. Death had not yet come into the world, according to the Church belief founded on the New Testament reading of Genesis, yet here was Jové killing animals, creating Death," and acting as Butcher, Skinner, Tanner (it may be), or simply cleaner and dresser of skins, and then as Tailor and Fitter, as he not only made the coats for two differently shaped individuals, but he "clothed them."

Now this gives the key to the whole story. Paradise, in the Northern hemisphere, in which all our well-defined myths had origin, is the Summer, and when the Sun (Iové was essentially a sun god) withdrew his countenance and Autumn advanced it became cold, and so skin coats were necessary. The fig leaf might do for summer, but the Paradise of Summer must unfortunately come to an end, and the cold "outer world" of Winter must be faced with warm clothing.

This myth of the Fall is common to all countries as meaning the first sexual intercourse, and no Hebrew account could outdo the savagery of the tales or the rigid enforcement of the ceremonies with which circumcision and other acts of mutilation are carried out to-day by African, Indian, American, and Polynesian natives, owing to the sexual fall myth under exactly similar codes of priestly rules as are detailed for us in such wearisome detail in the Old Testament.

But when all these priestly adjuncts to the old myths are left aside, the beauty of folklore becomes apparent. We will see this when we examine the Fall story of other nations. The phallic nature of the Fall story is recognised by all ancient writers, and the reference

to "tilling" is understood in all countries. In India when a marriage takes place between Hindus a plough is set up as a symbol that tilling and fructification is about to take place, and many Indian princes have a plough amongst their insignia or for their signature, like our Broad Arrow or the French Fleurde-Lys, to represent their god-like power.

The Queens of Heaven, like the Virgin Mary, are always called gardens, and Adam is called the Red One who tills the garden. We will take India first, as being the Great Mother of Religions, and the Indian story is a very attractive one. The story happens with the Sun god of India, Siva, who held the same position in the Indian company of gods as Apollo did in the Greek, or Jupiter in the Roman. He was the young sun, manly, sweet-voiced, with god-like beauty and with flowing hair. All Sun-gods had flowing hair, as the hair represented the Sun's rays, and when the sun was weak in Winter it was represented that an enemy had cut his hair, as Delilah did Samson's. Siva, as represented by Christna, had many female companions, as befitted an Eastern god, but he had especially the exquisitely beautiful Prakriti, who symbolised the Rosy Dawn. In this tale mankind

is represented by a community of men and women living together in perfect innocence in a Garden of Eden and immersed in the many complicated acts of worship of the immortal gods which constituted, according to the then existing ideas, the ideal conduct leading to eternal bliss. Now, although they continued their ritual, yet by constant repetition and the frailty of human nature it no longer took up all their thoughts, and, in truth, desire had entered their hearts. The all-knowing god Siva divined their secret thoughts, and determined to make them conscious of their laxity. So he sent his beautiful mountain love, Prakriti, to show herself in a flowing gauzy robe, which the refreshing breeze of the Indian morning caused to flutter seductively, so as to give enchanting glimpses of her perfect form.

The male devotees were making ready for their ablutions and ceremonies. She gently approached with downcast eyes, with now and then a melting glance, and in a low sweet voice asked if she might join them. They left their pooja pooja paraphernalia, forgot their prayers, and gathered round her, saying:Be not offended with us for approaching thee, forgive us for our importunities, thou

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who art born to convey bliss, admit us to the number of thy slaves, let us have the comfort "to behold thee." Thus were the men seduced.

Siva himself appeared to the women, beautiful as Christna. Some dropped their jewels, others their garments, without noticing their loss or the exposure of their seductive beauties. All rushed after him, calling, “Oh,

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thou who art made to govern our hearts, "whose countenance is fresh as the morning, whose voice is the voice of pleasure, and thy breath like that of Spring in the opening rose, stay with us and we will serve thee."

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The men remained with the goddess all night, and the women with the god.

Next morning they found themselves alone; the god and the goddess had disappeared. Then they arose and returned to their houses with slow and troubled steps. The days that followed were days of embarrassment and shame. The women had failed in modesty, and the men had broken their vows. They were vexed at their weakness, they were sorry for what they had done, yet the tender sigh sometimes broke forth, and the eye often turned to where the men first saw the beauti