[Illustration: DRUIDIC SACRIFICE.]

"It was an article in the Druids' creed, and one to which they strictly
adhered, that no temple with a covered roof was to be built in honor of
the gods. All the places appointed for public worship were in the open
air, and generally on some eminence from which the moon and stars might
be observed; for to the heavenly bodies much adoration was offered. But
to afford shelter from wind or rain, and also to ensure privacy and shut
out all external objects, the place fixed upon, either for teaching
their disciples or for carrying out the rites of their idolatrous
worship, was in the recess of some grove or wood. An oak-grove was
supposed to be the favorite of the gods whom they ignorantly worshiped,
and therefore the Druids declared the oak to be a sacred tree. The Druid
priest always bound a wreath of oak-leaves on his forehead before he
would perform any religious ceremony. One of these ceremonies was to go
in search of the mistletoe, which sometimes grows on the oak and was
considered as sacred as the tree itself, being much used in their
worship. One priest would climb to the branch on which the misletoe was
growing and cut it with a golden knife, while another priest stood below
and held out his white robe to receive it.

"These sacred groves were all cut down by the Romans, who waged fierce
war against the Druids, and nothing is left of them now but the circles
of stones that formed their temples. At a place called Stonehenge,
'cromlechs,' or altar-tables, are still standing, and very ancient oaks
stood in a circle round these stones for many centuries after the Druids
were swept away."

"Miss Harson," said Clara when all had expressed their horror of the
Druids and rejoiced that they _were_ swept away, "are there any oak