From: nutteing@quickfindit.com   
      
   You'd think the internet was ideal for confirming   
   the following but no.   
   A recent UK TV prog on classical Italy presented by Brian Sewell   
   made mention of the following, can anyone confirm   
   or was it just hokum.   
   In classical times there used to be rude garden features   
   of statuary called herm for doing unspeakable things   
   with. Over time these became just sticks that the top   
   was painted red every year. Then these somehow transmogrified   
   into red hatted garden gnomes.   
      
   --- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05   
    * Origin: you cannot sedate... all the things you hate (1:229/2)