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diff --git a/41148-0.txt b/41148-0.txt index c330f3e..3d18c16 100644 --- a/41148-0.txt +++ b/41148-0.txt @@ -1,42 +1,4 @@ -Project Gutenberg's Lancashire Folk-lore, by John Harland and T. T. Wilkinson - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with -almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org - - -Title: Lancashire Folk-lore - Illustrative of the Superstitious Beliefs and Practices, - Local Customs and Usages of the People of the County - Palatine - -Author: John Harland - T. T. Wilkinson - -Release Date: October 23, 2012 [EBook #41148] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK LANCASHIRE FOLK-LORE *** - - - - -Produced by Shaun Pinder, Stephen Blundell and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This -file was produced from images generously made available -by The Internet Archive) - - - - - - - - +*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 41148 *** Transcriber's Note: @@ -11318,361 +11280,4 @@ INDEX. End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Lancashire Folk-lore, by John Harland and T. T. 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You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org - - -Title: Lancashire Folk-lore - Illustrative of the Superstitious Beliefs and Practices, - Local Customs and Usages of the People of the County - Palatine - -Author: John Harland - T. T. Wilkinson - -Release Date: October 23, 2012 [EBook #41148] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK LANCASHIRE FOLK-LORE *** - - - - -Produced by Shaun Pinder, Stephen Blundell and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This -file was produced from images generously made available -by The Internet Archive) - - - - - - - - - -Transcriber's Note: - - Minor spelling and typographical errors have been corrected without - note. Archaic, dialect and variant spellings remain as printed. - Greek text has been transliterated and is shown between {braces}. - Missing chapter titles have been included to match the Contents - listing for readers' convenience. - - Non-standard characters are represented as follows: - [oe] oe ligature; - [=e] macron over _e_; - [)e] breve over _e_; - [*3] asterism; - and ^ precedes a superscript character. - - - - - LANCASHIRE - FOLK-LORE: - ILLUSTRATIVE OF THE - SUPERSTITIOUS BELIEFS AND PRACTICES, - LOCAL CUSTOMS AND USAGES - OF - THE PEOPLE OF THE COUNTY PALATINE. - - COMPILED AND EDITED BY - JOHN HARLAND, F.S.A. - AND - T. T. WILKINSON, F.R.A.S. - - [Device] - - LONDON: - FREDERICK WARNE AND CO. - BEDFORD STREET, COVENT GARDEN. - NEW YORK: SCRIBNER AND CO. - 1867. - - - - - LONDON: - SAVILL AND EDWARDS, PRINTERS, CHANDOS STREET, - COVENT GARDEN. - - - - -PREFACE. - - -"Folk-lore," though a term that will not be found in our standard -dictionaries, from Johnson down to Webster, is nevertheless simply a -modern combination of two genuine old English words--_Folc_, the folk, -the people, "the common people;" and _Lár_, _Laer_, _Lora_, learning, -doctrine, precept, law. In the earlier days of our English tongue, -folk-land, folk-gemote, folk-right, &c., were terms in common use, and -amongst this class of compound words our fore-elders had _folc-lare_, by -which they denoted plain, simple teaching suited for the people, what we -should now call "popular instruction," and hence _folk-lare_ also meant -a sermon. _Folk-Lore_, in its present signification--and for its general -acceptance we are largely indebted to the Editor of that valuable -periodical _Notes and Queries_,--means the notions of the folk or -people, from childhood upwards, especially their superstitious beliefs -and practices, as these have been handed down from generation to -generation, in popular tradition and tale, rhyme, proverb, or saying, -and it is well termed Folk-Lore in contradistinction to book-lore or -scholastic learning. It is the unlearned people's inheritance of -tradition from their ancestors, the modern reflection of ancient faith -and usage. This Folk-Lore has not been wholly without record in our -literature. Hone in his delightful _Every-Day Book_, _Year Book_, and -_Table Book_, has preserved many a choice bit of England's Folk-Lore; -and his example has been ably followed in Chambers's _Book of Days_. -Brand's _Popular Antiquities_, Aubrey's _Miscellanies_, Allies's -_Antiquities and Folk-Lore of Worcestershire_, and other like works, -have noted down for the information and amusement of future generations -the prevalent superstitions, and popular customs and usages of the -people in particular districts, during a past age, and at the present -time. But the greatest and best depository and record of the Folk-Lore -of various nations is that excellent periodical _Notes and Queries_, -from which a charming little volume entitled "_Choice Notes from Notes -and Queries,--Folk-Lore_," was compiled and published in 1859. - -But Lancashire has hitherto been without adequate record, at least in a -collected form, of its Folk-Lore. This has not been because of any lack -of such lore. The North of England generally, and Lancashire in -particular, is remarkably rich in this respect. Possessed and peopled in -succession by the Celts of ancient Britain, by the Angles and other -Teutonic peoples, by the Scandinavian races, and by Norman and other -foreign settlers at early periods,--the result of the respective -contributions of these various peoples is necessarily a large mass of -traditionary lore. To bring this together and present it in a collected -form is the object of this little volume. Its editors have been long -engaged, apart,--distinctly, and independently of each other,--in -collecting particulars of the superstitions in belief and practice, and -of the peculiar customs and usages of the people of Lancashire. One of -them, born in one of its rural districts, still rich in these respects, -is thus enabled to remember and to preserve many of those customs and -usages of his childhood and youth, now rapidly passing into decay, if -not oblivion. The other, conversant from his earliest remembrances with -the Folk-Lore of East Yorkshire, and with that of Lancashire for the -last thirty-five years, is thus enabled to compare the customs and -usages of both, and to recognise the same essential superstition under -slightly different forms. Similarity of pursuit having led to personal -communication, the Editors agreed to combine their respective -collections; and hence the present volume. They do not pretend herein to -have exhausted the whole range of Lancashire Folk-Lore; but simply to -have seized on the more salient features of its superstitious side, and -those of popular custom and usage. Part I. comprises notices of a great -number of superstitious beliefs and practices. Part II. treats of -various local customs and usages, at particular seasons of the year; -during the great festivals of the church; those connected with birth and -baptism; betrothal and wedding; dying, death-bed, and funeral customs; -as well as manorial and feudal tenures, services, and usages. - -Should the present volume find favour and acceptance, its Editors may -venture hereafter to offer another, embracing the fertile and -interesting subjects of popular pageants, maskings and mummings, -rushbearings, wakes and fairs, out-door sports and games; punishments, -legal and popular; legends and traditions; proverbs, popular sayings and -similes; folk-rhymes, &c. &c. - -_September, 1866._ - - -But for unavoidable delay, consequent on the preparation of a -large-paper edition, this volume would have been published prior to -"Notes on the Folk-Lore of the Northern Counties of England and the -Borders," by Wm. Henderson. As that work has appeared, it may be as well -to state that, notwithstanding similarity of subject, the two books do -not clash. Mr. Henderson's work relates chiefly to the three -north-eastern counties,--Northumberland, Durham, and Yorkshire,--with -large notices not only of the Scottish borders, but of Scotland -generally, and many details as to Devonshire folk-lore. Its notices of -Cumberland and Westmorland are fewer than of the three counties first -named; and Lancashire is only two or three times incidentally mentioned. -The field of this county palatine is therefore left free for the present -volume. - -_January, 1867._ - - - - -CONTENTS. - - - PART I. - - - SUPERSTITIOUS BELIEFS AND PRACTICES. - - PAGE - Introduction 1 - - Lancashire Alchemists 23 - - Lancashire Astrologers 33 - - Bells 41 - - Beal-tine or Beltane Fires; Relics of Baal Worship 45 - - Boggarts, Ghosts, and Haunted Places 49 - - Boggart Hole Clough 50 - - Boggarts or Ghosts in Old Halls 51 - - House Boggarts, or Labouring Goblins 56 - - Hornby Park Mistress and Margaret Brackin 59 - - Boggarts in the Nineteenth Century 61 - - - CHARMS AND SPELLS. - - Charms and Spells against Evil Beings 62 - - A Charm, written in Cypher, against Witchcraft and Evil Spirits 63 - - The Crow Charm and the Lady-bird Charm 70 - - Pimpernel 71 - - The Mountain Ash, or Wicken or Wiggen Tree 72 - - Charms to Cure Sickness, Wounds, Cattle Distemper, etc. 74 - - Charms for the Toothache 75 - - Vervain, for Wounds, etc. 76 - - Charms to Stop Bleeding 77 - - Touching for the King's Evil 77 - - Cures for Warts 78 - - Cure for Hydrocephalus in Cattle 79 - - Cattle Disorders.--The Shrew Tree in Carnforth 79 - - Charms for Ague 80 - - Stinging of Nettles 80 - - Jaundice 80 - - To Procure Sleep by Changing the Direction of the Bed 80 - - - THE DEVIL, DEMONS, &c. - - The Devil 81 - - Raising the Devil 83 - - The Devil and the Schoolmaster at Cockerham 83 - - Old Nick 84 - - Demonology 86 - - Demon and Goblin Superstitions 88 - - Dispossessing a Demoniac 92 - - Demoniacal Possession in 1594 92 - - Demoniacal Possession in 1689 98 - - - DIVINATION. - - Divination 102 - - Divination at Marriages 103 - - Divination by Bible and Key 103 - - Another Lancashire form of Divination 104 - - Divination by the Dying 104 - - Second-sight 105 - - Spirits of the Dying and the Dead 105 - - Casting Lots, &c. 106 - - - MISCELLANEOUS FOLK-LORE. - - Druidical Rock Basins 106 - - Elves and Fairies 110 - - Folk-Lore of Eccles and the Neighbourhood 113 - - Tree Barnacles; or, Geese hatched from Sea-shells 116 - - Warts from Washing in Egg-water 121 - - Fortune-telling.--Wise Men and Cunning Women, &c. 121 - - Magic and Magicians 126 - - Edward Kelly, the Seer 126 - - Raising the Dead at Walton-le-Dale 128 - - An Earl of Derby charged with keeping a Conjuror 129 - - - MIRACLES. - - Miracles, or Miraculous Stories 131 - - Miracles by a Dead Duke of Lancaster and King 132 - - A Miraculous Footprint in Brindle Church 134 - - The Footprint at Smithells of George Marsh, the Martyr 135 - - A Legend of Cartmel Church 137 - - The Prophet Elias, a Lancashire Fanatic 138 - - - OMENS AND PREDICATIONS. - - Omens and Predications 138 - - Cats 141 - - Dogs 142 - - Lambs 142 - - Birds 142 - - Swallows 143 - - Magpies 143 - - Dreams 145 - - The Moon 149 - - Hæver or Hiver 149 - - Deasil or Widersinnis 151 - - Omens of Weather for New Year's-day 151 - - Death Tick or Death Watch 152 - - - SUPERSTITIONS, GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS. - - Popular Superstitions 153 - - Bones of St. Lawrence, at Chorley 157 - - The Dead Man's Hand 158 - - Nineteenth Century Superstition 164 - - Pendle Forest Superstition 164 - - East Lancashire Superstition 165 - - Superstitious Fears and Cruelties 167 - - Superstitious Beliefs in Manchester in the Sixteenth Century 168 - - Wells and Springs 169 - - - WITCHES AND WITCHCRAFT. - - Witchcraft in the Fifteenth Century 174 - - The Famous History of the Lancashire Witches 176 - - Dr. Dee charged with Witchcraft 178 - - The Lancashire Witches 179 - - Superstitious Fear of Witchcraft 182 - - A Household Bewitched 184 - - The Lancashire Witches of 1612 185 - - The Samlesbury Witches 194 - - Witchcraft at Middleton 195 - - Witchcraft in 1633-34 195 - - The Lancashire Witches of 1633-4 200 - - Lancashire Witch-finders 200 - - The Forest of Pendle--The Haunt of the Lancashire Witches 202 - - Pendle Hill and its Witches 204 - - Witchcraft about 1654 206 - - A Liverpool Witch in 1667 206 - - The Witch of Singleton 207 - - Witchcraft at Chowbent in the Eighteenth Century 207 - - Killing a Witch 208 - - A Recent Witch, near Burnley 209 - - "Lating" or "Leeting" Witches 210 - - - PART II. - - - LOCAL CUSTOMS AND USAGES AT VARIOUS SEASONS. - - Church and Season Festivals 212 - - New Year's-day 214 - - Fire on New Year's Eve 214 - - New Year's Luck 214 - - New Year's First Caller 215 - - New Year's-day and Old Christmas-day 216 - - Auld Wife Hakes 216 - - New Year's Gifts and Wishes 216 - - Shrovetide 217 - - Shrove-Tuesday, or Pancake Tuesday 218 - - Cock-throwing and Cock-fighting 218 - - Cock-fighting about Blackburn 220 - - Cock-penny at Clitheroe 220 - - Cock-fighting at Burnley 220 - - Shrovetide Customs in the Fylde 221 - - Lent.--Ash-Wednesday 221 - - Mid-Lent Sunday, or "Mothering Sunday" 222 - - Simnel Cakes 223 - - To Dianeme 223 - - Bury 224 - - Bragot-Sunday 225 - - Fag-pie Sunday 226 - - Good Friday 226 - - Easter 227 - - Pasche, Pace, or Easter Eggs 228 - - Pace Egging in Blackburn 228 - - Pace or Peace Egging in East Lancashire 231 - - Easter Sports at the Manchester Free Grammar School 231 - - "Lifting," or "Heaving" at Easter 233 - - Easter Game of the Ring 234 - - Playing "Old Ball" 234 - - Acting with "Ball" 235 - - Easter Customs in the Fylde 236 - - May-day Customs 238 - - May Songs 239 - - May-day Eve 239 - - May-day Custom 240 - - Pendleton and Pendlebury May-pole and Games 240 - - May Custom in Spotland 242 - - May-day Customs in the Fylde 242 - - The May-pole of Lostock 243 - - Robin Hood and May-games at Burnley, in 1579 244 - - May-day in Manchester 245 - - Queen of the May, &c. 246 - - Whitsuntide 246 - - Whit-Tuesday.--King and Queen at Downham 248 - - Rogations or Gang Days 248 - - Oatmeal Charity at Ince 249 - - Names for Moons in Autumn 250 - - "Goose-Intentos" 250 - - All Souls'-day 251 - - Gunpowder Plot and Guy Fawkes 251 - - Christmas 252 - - Creatures Worshipping on Christmas Eve 253 - - Christmas Mumming 253 - - The Hobby Horse, or Old Ball 254 - - Christmas Customs in the Fylde 254 - - Celebration of Christmas at Wycoller Hall 256 - - Carols, &c. 257 - - - EATING AND DRINKING CUSTOMS. - - Various 258 - - The Havercake Lads 258 - - Wooden Shoes and Oaten Bread or Jannocks 259 - - Pork Pasties 260 - - - BIRTH AND BAPTISMAL CUSTOMS. - - Presents to Women in Childbed 260 - - Tea-drinking after Childbirth 261 - - Turning the Bed after Childbirth 261 - - An Unbaptized Child cannot die 262 - - Gifts to Infants 262 - - - BETROTHING AND BRIDAL OR WEDDING CUSTOMS. - - Betrothing Customs 263 - - Curious Wedding Custom 263 - - Courting and Wedding Customs in the Fylde 264 - - Ancient Bridal Custom.--The Bride's Chair and the Fairy Hole 265 - - Burnley 265 - - Marriages at Manchester Parish Church 265 - - - DYING, DEATH-BED, AND FUNERAL CUSTOMS. - - Dying Hardly 268 - - Burying in Woollen 269 - - Funeral Dole and Arval Cake 270 - - Dalton-in-Furness 271 - - Old Funeral Customs at Warton 271 - - Funeral Customs in the Fylde 272 - - Mode of Burial of a Widow who had taken Religious Vows 273 - - Funeral Customs in East Lancashire 273 - - Bidding to Funerals 274 - - Situation and Direction of Graves 275 - - - CUSTOMS OF MANORS. - - The Honour of Knighthood 277 - - Maritagium 278 - - Peculiar Services and Tenures 278 - - Manor of Cockerham--Regulations for the Sale of Ale 281 - - Manorial Customs in Furness 281 - - The Lord's Yule Feast at Ashton 286 - - Riding the Black Lad at Ashton-under-Lyne 289 - - Boon Shearing 292 - - The Principal or Heriot 293 - - Denton Rent-boons 294 - - A Saxon Constablewick 295 - - Talliage or Tallage 296 - - Rochdale Tithe, Easter-dues, Mortuaries, etc. 297 - - Farm and Agricultural Celebrations in the Fylde 298 - - Dalton-in-Furness 299 - - Letting Sheep Farms in Bowland 300 - - Mediæval Latin Law Terms 300 - - Customs [Dues] at Warrington 301 - - - - -LANCASHIRE FOLK-LORE. - - - - -PART I. - - - - -SUPERSTITIOUS BELIEFS AND PRACTICES. - - -INTRODUCTION. - - "'Tis a history - Handed from ages down; a nurse's tale - Which children open-eyed and mouth'd devour, - And thus, as garrulous ignorance relates, - We learn it and believe." - -In this large section of the Folk-lore of Lancashire we propose to treat -of all the notions and practices of the people which appear to recognise -a supernatural power or powers, especially as aids to impart to man a -knowledge of the future. An alphabetical arrangement has been adopted, -which is to some extent also chronological. Beginning with the pretended -sciences or arts of Alchemy and Astrology, the succeeding articles treat -of Bells, Beltane fires, Boggarts, Charms, Demons, Divination, &c. - -Many of these superstitions are important in an ethnological point of -view, and immediately place us _en rapport_ with those nations whose -inhabitants have either colonized or conquered this portion of our -country. In treasuring up these records of the olden times, tradition -has, in general, been faithful to her vocation. She has occasionally -grafted portions of one traditional custom, ceremony, or superstition, -upon another; but in the majority of cases enough has been left to -enable us to determine with considerable certainty the probable origin -of each. So far as regards the greater portion of our local Folk-lore, -we may safely assert that it is rapidly becoming obsolete, and many of -the most curious relics must be sought in the undisturbed nooks and -corners of the county. It is there where popular opinions are cherished -and preserved, long after an improved education has driven them from -more intelligent communities; and it is a remarkable fact that many of -these, although composed of such flimsy materials, and dependent upon -the fancies of the multitude for their very existence, have nevertheless -survived shocks by which kingdoms have been overthrown, and have -preserved their characteristic traits from the earliest times down to -the present. - -As what are called the Indo-European, or Aryan, nations--viz., the -Celts, Greeks, Latins, Germans (Teuton and Scandinavian), Letts, and -Sclaves--as is now generally acknowledged, have a common ancestry in the -race which once dwelt together in the regions of the Upper Oxus, in -Asia; so their mythologies, however diverse in their later European -developments, may be regarded as having a common origin. Space will not -allow us to enlarge on this great subject, which has been ably treated -by Jacob Grimm, Dr. Adalbert Kuhn, and many other German writers, and of -which an excellent _résumé_ is given in Kelly's _Curiosities of -Indo-European Tradition and Folk-lore_. - -When we refer to the ancient Egyptians, and to the oldest history -extant, we find some striking resemblances between their customs and our -own. The rod of the magician was then as necessary to the practice of -the art as it still is to the "Wizard of the North." The glory of the -art of magic may be said to have departed, but _the use of the rod_ by -the modern conjuror remains as a connecting link between the harmless -deceptions of the present, and that powerful instrument of the -priesthood in times remote. The divining rod, too, which indicates the -existence of a hidden spring, or treasure, or even a murdered corpse, is -another relic of the wand of the Oriental Magi. The divining cup, as -noticed in the case of Joseph and his brethren, supplies a third -instance of this close connexion. Both our wise men and maidens still -whirl the tea-cup, in order that the disposition of the floating leaves -may give them an intimation of their future destiny, or point out the -direction in which an offending party must be sought. We have yet -"wizards that do peep and mutter," and who profess to foretell future -events by looking "through a glass darkly." The practice of "causing -children to pass through the fire to Moloch," so strongly reprobated by -the prophet of old, may be cited as an instance in which Christianity -has not yet been able to efface all traces of one of the oldest forms of -heathen worship. Sir W. Betham has observed, in his _Gael and Cymbri_, -pp. 222-4, that "we see at this day fires lighted up in Ireland, on the -eve of the summer solstice and the equinoxes, to the Ph[oe]nician god -Baal; and they are called _Baal-tane_, or Baal's fire, though the -_object_ of veneration be forgotten." Such fires are still lighted in -Lancashire, on Hallowe'en, under the names of Beltains or Teanlas; and -even such _cakes_ as the Jews are said to have made in honour of the -Queen of Heaven, are yet to be found at this season amongst the -inhabitants of the banks of the Ribble. These circumstances may appear -the less strange when we reflect that this river is almost certainly the -Belisama of the Romans; that it was especially dedicated to the Queen of -Heaven, under the designation of Minerva Belisamæ; and that her worship -was long prevalent amongst the inhabitants of Coccium, Rigodunum, and -other Roman stations in the north of Lancashire. Both the fires and the -cakes, however, are now connected with superstitious notions respecting -Purgatory, &c., but their origin and perpetuation will scarcely admit of -doubt. - -A belief in astrology and in sacred numbers prevails to a considerable -extent amongst all classes of our society. With many the stars still -"fight in their courses," and our modern fortune-tellers are yet ready -to "rule the planets," and predict good or ill fortune, on payment of -the customary fee. That there is "luck in _odd_ numbers" was known for a -fact in Lancashire long before Mr. Lover immortalized the tradition. Our -housewives always take care that their hens shall sit upon an _odd_ -number of eggs; we always bathe _three_ times in the sea at Blackpool, -Southport, and elsewhere; and our names are called over _three_ times -when our services are required in courts of law. _Three_ times _three_ -is the orthodox number of cheers; and we still hold that the _seventh_ -son of a _seventh_ son is destined to form an infallible physician. We -inherit all such popular notions as these in common with the German and -Scandinavian nations; but more especially with those of the Saxons and -the Danes. Triads of leaders, or ships, constantly occur in their -annals; and punishments of _three_ and _seven_ years' duration form the -burden of many of the Anglo-Saxon and Danish laws. - -A full proportion of the popular stories which are perpetuated in our -nurseries most probably date their existence amongst us from some -amalgamation of races; or, it may be, from the intercourse attendant -upon trade and commerce. The Ph[oe]nicians, no doubt, would impart a -portion of their Oriental Folk-lore to the southern Britons; the Roman -legions would leave traces of their prolific mythology amongst the -Brigantes and the Sistuntii; and the Saxons and the Danes would add -their rugged northern modifications to the common stock. The "History of -the Hunchback" is common to both England and Arabia; the "man in the -moon" has found his way into the popular literature of almost every -nation with which we are acquainted; "Cinderella and her slipper" is -"The little golden shoe" of the ancient Scandinavians, and was equally -familiar to the Greeks and Romans; "Jack and the bean-stalk" is told in -Sweden and Norway as of "The boy who stole the giant's treasure;" whilst -our renowned "Jack the giant-killer" figures in Norway, Lapland, Persia, -and India, as the amusing story of "The herd boy and the giant." The -labours of Tom Hickathrift are evidently a distorted version of those of -Hercules; and these again agree in the main with the journey of Thor to -Utgard, and the more classical travels of Ulysses. In Greece the clash -of the elements during a thunderstorm was attributed to the chariot -wheels of Jove; the Scandinavians ascribed the sounds to the ponderous -wagon of the mighty Thor; our Lancashire nurses _Christianize_ the -phenomenon by assuring their young companions, poetically enough, that -thunder "is the noise which God makes when passing across the heavens." -The notion that the gods were wont to communicate knowledge of future -events to certain favoured individuals appears to have had a wide range -in ancient times; and this curiosity regarding futurity has exerted a -powerful influence over the minds of men in every stage of civilization. -Hence arose the consulting of oracles and the practice of divination -amongst the ancients, and to the same principles we must attribute the -credulity which at present exists with respect to the "_wise men_" who -are to be found in almost every town and village in Lancashire. The -means adopted by some of the oracles when responses were required, -strangely remind us of the modern feats of ventriloquism; others can be -well illustrated by what we now know of mesmerism and its kindred -agencies; whilst these and clairvoyance will account for many of those -where the agents are said by Eustathius to have spoken out of their -bellies, or breasts, from oak trees, or been "cast into trances in which -they lay like men dead or asleep, deprived of all sense and motion; but -after some time returning to themselves, gave strange relations of what -they had seen and heard." - -The ancient Greeks and Romans regarded dreams as so many warnings; they -prayed to Mercury to vouchsafe to them a night of good dreams. In this -county we still hold the same opinions; but our country maidens, having -Christianized the subject, now invoke St. Agnes and a multitude of other -saints to be similarly propitious. There are many other points of -resemblance between the Folk-lore of Lancashire and that of the -ancients. Long or short life, health or disease, good luck or bad, are -yet predicted by burning a lock of human hair; and the fire is -frequently poked with much anxiety when testing the disposition of an -absent lover. Many persons may be found who never put on the _left_ shoe -first; and the appearance of a _single_ magpie has disconcerted many a -stout Lancashire farmer when setting out on a journey of business or -pleasure. In the matter of sneezing we are just as superstitious as when -the Romans left us. They exclaimed, "May Jove protect you," when any one -sneezed in their presence, and an anxious "God bless you" is the common -ejaculation amongst our aged mothers. To the same sources we may -probably attribute the apprehensions which many Lancashire people -entertain with respect to spilling the salt; sudden silence, or fear; -lucky and unlucky days; the presence of thirteen at dinner; raising -ghosts; stopping blood by charms; spitting upon, or drawing blood from -persons in order to avert danger; the evil eye; and a multitude of -other minor superstitions. We possess much of all this in common with -the Saxons and the Danes, but the original source of a great, if not the -greater portion, is probably that of our earliest conquerors. - -Divination by means of the works of Homer and Virgil was not uncommon -amongst the ancients; the earlier Christians made use of the Psalter or -New Testament for such purposes. In Lancashire the Bible and a key are -resorted to, both for deciding doubts respecting a lover, and also to -aid in detecting a thief. Divination by water affords another striking -parallel. The ancients decided questions in dispute by means of a -tumbler of water, into which they lowered a ring suspended by a thread, -and having prayed to the gods to decide the question in dispute, the -ring of its own accord would strike the tumbler a certain number of -times. Our "Lancashire witches" adopt the same means, and follow the -Christianized formula, with a wedding-ring suspended by a hair, whenever -the time before marriage, the number of a family, or even the length of -life, becomes a matter of anxiety. - -Most nations, in all ages, have been accustomed to deck the graves of -their dead with appropriate flowers, much as we do at present. The last -words of the dying have, from the earliest times, been considered of -prophetic import; and according to Theocritus, some one of those -present endeavoured to receive into his mouth the last breath of a dying -parent or friend, "as fancying the soul to pass out with it and enter -into their own bodies." Few would expect to find this singular custom -still existing in Lancashire; and yet such is the fact. Witchcraft can -boast her votaries in this county even up to the present date, and she -numbers this practice amongst her rites and ceremonies. - -A very large portion of the Lancashire Folk-lore is identical in many -respects with that which prevailed amongst the sturdy warriors who -founded the Heptarchy, or ruled Northumbria. During the Saxon and Danish -periods their heathendom had a real existence. Its practices were -maintained by an array of priests and altars, with a prescribed ritual -and ceremonies; public worship was performed and oblations offered with -all the pomp and power of a church establishment. The remnants of this -ancient creed are now presented to us in the form of popular -superstitions, in legends and nursery tales, which have survived all -attempts to eradicate them from the minds of the people. Christ, his -apostles, and the saints, have supplanted the old mythological -conceptions; but many popular stories and impious incantations which now -involve these sacred names were formerly told of some northern hero, or -perhaps invoked the power of Satan himself. The great festival in honour -of Eostre may be instanced as having been transferred to the Christian -celebration of the resurrection of our Lord; whilst the lighting of -fires on St. John's eve, and the bringing in of the boar's head at -Christmas, serve to remind us that the worship of Freja is not extinct. -When Christianity became the national religion, the rooted prejudices of -the people were evidently respected by our early missionaries, and hence -the curious admixture of the sacred and the profane, which everywhere -presents itself in our local popular forms of expression for the -pretended cure of various diseases. The powers and attributes of Woden -and Freja are attributed to Jesus, Peter, or Mary; but in all other -respects the spells and incantations remain the same. - -Our forefathers appear to have possessed a full proportion of those -stern characteristics which have ever marked the Northumbrian -population. Whatever opinions they had acquired, they were prepared to -hold them firmly; nor did they give up their most heathenish practices -without a struggle. Both the "law and the testimony" had to be called -into requisition as occasion required; and even the terrors of these did -not at once suffice. In one of the Anglo-Saxon _Penitentiaries_, quoted -by Mr. Wright in his _Essays_, we find a penalty imposed upon those -women who use "any witchcraft to their children, or who draw them -through the earth at the meeting of roads, because that is great -heathenishness." A Saxon _Homily_, preserved in the public library at -Cambridge, states that divinations were used, "through the devil's -teaching," in taking a wife, in going a journey, in brewing, when -beginning any undertaking, when any person or animal is born, and when -children begin to pine away or to be unhealthy. The same _Homily_ also -speaks of divination by fowls, by sneezing, by horses, by dogs howling, -and concludes by declaring that "he is no Christian who does these -things." In a Latin _Penitentialia_ now in the British Museum, we find -allusions to incantations for taking away stores of milk, honey, or -other things belonging to another, and converting them to our own use. -He who rides with Diana and obeys her commands, he who prepares _three_ -knives in company in order to predestine happiness to those born there, -he who makes inquiry into the future on the first day of January, or -begins a work on that day in order to secure prosperity during the whole -of the year, is pointed out for reprobation; whilst hiding charms in -grass, or on a tree, or in a path, for the preservation of cattle, -placing children in a furnace, or on the roof of a house, and using -characters for curing disease, or charms for collecting medicinal herbs, -are enumerated, for the purpose of pointing out the penances to be -undergone by those found guilty of "such heinous sins." Nearly all these -instances may be said to belong to the transition state of our -Folk-lore, and relate at once both to the ancient and the modern -portions of our subject. We have seen that much the same practices were -used by the Greeks and Romans; and it is a curious fact that many of the -more important are still in vogue amongst the peasantry of Lancashire. -Many persons will still shudder with apprehension if a dog howl during -the sickness of a friend: dragging a child across the earth at "four -lane ends" is yet practised for the cure of whooping-cough: fern seed is -still said to be gathered on the Holy Bible, and is then believed to be -able to render those invisible who will dare to take it. We still have -prejudices respecting the first day of the new year; black-haired -visitors are most welcome on the morning of that day; charms for the -protection of families and cattle are yet to be found; and herbs for the -use of man and beast are still collected when their "proper planets are -ruling" in the heavens. More copies of Culpepper's _Herbal_ and Sibley's -_Astrology_ are sold in Lancashire than all other works on the same -subjects put together, and this principally on account of the planetary -influence with which each disease and its antidote are connected. Old -Moore's _Almanac_, however, is now sadly at a discount, because it lacks -the table of the Moon's signs; the farmers are consequently at a loss to -know which will be healthy cattle, and hence they prefer a spurious -edition which supplies the grave omission. - -Several lucky stones for the protection of cattle have, within a few -years past, been procured by the writer from the "shippons" of those -who, in other respects, are not counted behind the age; and it would -have been easy to collect an ample stock of horse-shoes and rusty -sickles from the same sources. However, during the last forty years the -inhabitants of Lancashire have made rapid progress both in numbers and -intelligence. They have had the "schoolmaster abroad" amongst them, and -have consequently divested themselves of many of the grosser -superstitions which formed a portion of the popular faith of their -immediate predecessors; but there is yet a dense substratum of popular -opinions existing in those localities which have escaped the renovating -influences of the spindle or the rail. As time progresses many of these -will become further modified, or perhaps totally disappear; and hence it -may be desirable to secure a permanent record of the customs and -superstitions of the county. - -As to the most ancient forms of religious belief or cult, we may surely -assume that the _simple_ must of necessity precede the _complex_, and -consequently the idea of _one_ supernatural Being must be anterior in -point of time to that of _two_ or more. Under this view, the good and -the evil principles would form the second stage of development--a -necessary consequence of increased observation--and, accordingly, we -find the Great Spirit and his Adversary among the prevailing notions of -some of the least civilized communities. A gradual progression from one -to many gods appears to have been the natural process by which all known -mythologies have been formed. The tendency of observation to multiply -causes, real or ideal, and to personify ideas, may be ranked as one of -the tendencies of unassisted human nature; and the operation of this -natural force must have been equally efficient at all times and in all -countries. In the early stages of social improvement, man would be very -forcibly affected by natural phenomena. The regular succession of day -and night--the order of the seasons--the heat of summer--the cold of -winter--storms and tempests on sea and land--the sensations of pleasure -and pain, hope and fear--would each impress him with ideas of effects -for which he could assign no adequate causes; but having become -susceptible of supernatural influences, the addition of imaginary beings -to his mythology would keep pace with his experience, until every -portion of the heavens, the earth, and the sea, was peopled with, and -presided over, by its respective deity or demi-god. Thus it was that the -rolling thunder and the "lightning's vivid flash" suggested the idea of -a Jupiter grasping his destructive bolts, or of a Thor wielding his -ponderous hammer. The "raging tempest" and the "boiling surge" gave -birth to a Neptune or Njörd, each endowed with attributes suited to the -aspects of the locality where the observations were made, and specially -adapted to the intellectual condition of the community which first -deified the conception. As society progressed in civilization, so did -the study of philosophy and religion. The poets and the priests, -however, did not entrust their speculations to the judgment of the -people; they were too sensible of the power which secrecy conferred upon -their occult pursuits, and hence they allegorized their conceptions of -supernatural agencies, and also their ideas of the ordinary operations -of nature and art. The elements were spoken of as persons, and the -changes which these underwent were regarded as the actions of -individuals; and these in the lapse of ages, by losing their esoteric -meaning, came to be considered as realities, and so passed into the -popular belief. This is eminently the case with the northern mythology, -respecting which we are at present more particularly concerned; for by -far the greater portion of these highly poetical, though rugged myths, -admit of a very plausible and rational explanation on astronomical and -physical principles.[1] Whether this was equally the case with the Greek -and Roman mythologies is now, perhaps, more difficult to determine. -Enough, however, remains in the etymology of the names to prove that -both these and the northern systems had much in common. The fundamental -conceptions of each possess the same leading characteristics; and both -are probably due to the conquering tribes who migrated into Europe from -the fertile plains of Central Asia.[2] - -During these early ages, war was considered to be the most honourable -occupation. Valour constituted the highest virtue; and in the absence of -all written records, tradition, in course of time, would add -considerably to the prowess of any daring chieftain. A mighty conqueror -would be considered by his followers as something more than human. The -fear of his enemies would clothe him with attributes peculiar to their -conceptions of inferior deities; and this, together with the almost -universal "longing after immortality" which seems to pervade society in -all its stages, sufficiently accounts for the origin of the heroes and -heroines--the demi-gods and goddesses of every mythology. Hence -Hercules--the younger Odin--and a numerous train of minor worthies to -whom divine honours were decreed in the rituals of Italy and of the -north. - -On the introduction of Christianity, a powerful reactionary force was -brought into the popular belief, and many of its grosser portions were -speedily eliminated. The whole of the mythological creations were -divided into two distinct classes, according to the attributes for which -they were more particularly distinguished. Those whose tendencies -inclined towards the benefit of mankind were translated to heavenly -mansions, with God as supreme; whilst the wickedly disposed were -consigned to the infernal regions, under the dominion of the Devil. The -festivals of the gods were transformed into Christian seasons for -rejoicing, their temples became churches, and the names of Christ, his -apostles, the Virgin Mary, and the saints, took the places of those of -Jupiter, Mercury, Thor, Freja, and Woden. All the inferior deities that -presided over the woods, the mountains, the seas, and the rivers, were -degraded into demons, and were classed amongst those fallen spirits who -are employed by the evil one to harass and deceive mankind. Our early -missionaries, however, had studied human nature too well to attempt too -violent a change. They contented themselves, for the most part, with -diverting the current of thought into different channels; they gave -_new_ names to _old_ conceptions, and then left their more rational and -more powerful faith to produce its known effects upon the superstitions -of the masses. But the habits and opinions of a people who have long -been under the influence of any mythological system, have become too -deeply rooted to admit of easy eradication; and hence, in our own -country, as in others, the transition from heathenism to Christianity -was effected by almost imperceptible steps. - -There are, however, many points of resemblance between the early -Scandinavian and the Roman mythologies. Both had probably a common -origin, but each became modified by increased civilization and the -character of the localities occupied by each succeeding wave of a -migratory population. "Every country in Europe," says the learned editor -of Warton's _History of Poetry_, "has invested its popular belief with -the same common marvels: all acknowledge the agency of the lifeless -productions of nature; the intervention of the same supernatural -machinery; the existence of elves, fairies, dwarfs, giants, witches, -wizards, and enchanters; the use of spells, charms, and amulets." The -explosions and rumbling sounds occasionally heard in the interior of -Etna and Stromboli were attributed, in ancient times, to the rage of -Typhon, or the labours of Vulcan: at this day, the popular belief -connects them with the suffering souls of men in the infernal regions. -"The marks which natural causes have impressed upon the unyielding -granite were produced, according to the common creed, by the powerful -hero, the saint or the god, and large masses of stone, resembling -domestic implements in form, were the toys or the tools of the demi-gods -and giants of old. The repetition of the voice among the hills of -Scandinavia is ascribed by the vulgar to the dwarfs mocking the human -speaker; in England the fairies are said to perform the same exploits; -while the more elegant fancy of Greece gave birth to Echo, a nymph who -pined for love, and who still fondly repeats the accents that she hears. -The magic scenery occasionally presented on the waters of the Straits of -Messina is ascribed by popular opinion to the power of the Fata Morgana; -the gossamer threads which float through the haze of an autumnal morning -are [in Lancashire also] supposed to be woven by the ingenious dwarfs; -the verdant circlets in the dewy mead are traced beneath the light steps -of the dancing elves; and St. Cuthbert is said to forge and fashion the -beads that bear his name, and lie scattered along the shores of -Lindisfarne."[3] If we draw our parallels a little closer, we shall -find, as has been well observed, that "the Nereids of antiquity are -evidently the same with the Mermaids of the British and northern shores: -the inhabitants of both are placed in crystal caves, or coral palaces, -beneath the waters of the ocean; they are alike distinguished for their -partialities to the human race, and their prophetic powers in disclosing -the events of futurity. The Naiades differ only in name from the Nixens -of Germany, the Nisses of Scandinavia, or the Water-elves of the British -Isles. The Brownies are of the same kindred as the Lares of Latium [and -these agree exactly with the Portuni mentioned by Gervase of Tilbury in -his _Otia Imperialis_]. The English Puck [the Lancashire Boggart], the -Scotch Bogle, the French Goblin, the Gobelinus of the Middle Ages, and -the German Kobold, are probably only varied names for the Grecian -Khobalus, whose sole delight consisted in perplexing the human race, and -evoking those harmless terrors that constantly hover round the minds of -the timid. So, also, the German Spuck, and the Danish Spogel, correspond -with the more northern Spog; whilst the German Hudkin, and the Icelandic -Puki, exactly answer to the character of the English Robin -Goodfellow."[4] Our modern devil, with his horns and hoof, is derived -from the Celtic Ourisk and the Roman Pan. - -Some of our elves and satyrs are arrayed in the costumes of Greece and -Rome; and the Fairy Queen, with her attendants, have at times too many -points of resemblance to escape being identified as Diana and her -nymphs. The Roman Jupiter, by an easy transformation, becomes identical -with the Scandinavian Thor--the thunderbolt and chariot of the former -corresponding to the hammer and wagon of the latter. Odin takes the -place of Mercury. Loki is the same as Lucifer, for, like him, he was -expelled from heaven for disobedience and rebellion. Hother encountered -Thor, as Diomede did Mars. "The Grendels of the north answer to the -Titans of the south; they were the gods of nature to our -forefathers--the spirits of the wood and wave." Jupiter's eagle, the -war-sign of the Romans, is similar in character to Odin's raven among -the Danes; both nations considered that if the bird appeared to flutter -its wings on the banners, conquest was certain; but if they hung -helplessly down, defeat would surely follow. Warcock Hill, on the -borders of Lancashire and Yorkshire, has probably derived its name from -the unfurling of this terrible ensign during the conflicts between the -Saxons and the Danes for the possession of Northumbria;--the local -nomenclature of the district attests the presence of colonists from both -nations, and extensive traces of their fortifications still remain as -evidence that our slopes and hill-tops formed at once the battle-fields -and the strongholds of the country. - -The power of the Devil, his personal appearance and the possibility of -bartering the soul for temporary gain, must still be numbered among the -articles of our popular faith. Repeating the Lord's Prayer backwards is -said to be the most effectual plan for causing him to rise from beneath; -but when the terms of the bargain are not satisfactory, his exit can -only be secured by making the sign of the cross and calling on the name -of Christ.[5] - -When we come to examine the miscellaneous customs and superstitions of -the county, we find many remarkable traces of a former belief. Tradition -has again been true to her vocation; and in several instances has been -most careful to preserve the _minutiæ_ of the mode of operation and -supposed effects of each minor spell and incantation. The principal -difficulty now lies in the selection; for the materials are so plentiful -that none but the most striking can be noticed. Among these we observe -that, a ringing in the ears; shooting of the eyes; throwing down, or -spilling the salt; putting on the left shoe first; lucky and unlucky -days; pouring melted lead into water; stopping blood by means of charms; -the use of waxen images; enchanted girdles; and lovers' knots, are all -observed and explained almost exactly as amongst the Greeks and Romans. -The details in many have been preserved to the very letter, whilst the -supposed effects are exactly the same both in the ancient and modern -times. Our marriageable maidens never receive knives, or any pointed -implements, from their suitors, for the very same reason that such -presents were rejected by their Scandinavian ancestors--they portend a -"breaking off" in the matrimonial arrangements, and are notorious for -"severing love." - - "If you love me as I love you, - No knife shall cut our love in two." - -We never return thanks for a loan of pins. A "winding sheet" on the -candle forebodes death; and dogs howling indicate a similar calamity.[6] -Almost every one is aware that cuttings of human hair ought always to be -burnt; that if _thirteen_ sit down to dinner one of them will die before -the end of the year; that it is unlucky to meet a woman the first thing -in the morning; and that a horse-shoe nailed or let into the step of -the door will prevent the entrance of any evil-disposed person. We have -probably derived nearly the whole of these notions from the Scandinavian -settlers in the North of England. They considered it quite possible too -to raise the Devil by the same means now practised by our "wise men;" -and after their conversion to Christianity they are known to have marked -their dough with a cross in order to ensure its rising--a practice which -many of our country matrons still retain. Sodden bread is always -considered to be bewitched, provided the yeast be good, and hence the -necessity for the protection of the cross. - -We always get out of bed either on the right side, or with the right -foot first; we take care not to cross two knives on the table; mothers -never allow a child to be weighed soon after its birth; our children -still blow their ages at marriage from the tops of the dandelion; and -all these for similar reasons, and with similar objects, to those of the -peasantry of Northumbria during the period of Danish rule. They supposed -that the dead followed their usual occupations in the spirit-world, and -hence, probably, the weapons of war and the implements of domestic life -which we find amongst the ashes of their dead. They were also of opinion -that buried treasure caused the ghosts of the owners to haunt the places -of concealment; and many of our country population retain the same -opinions without the slightest modification. - -The Folk-lore of dreams is an extensive subject, and would require a -series of essays for its full elucidation. The _Royal Dream Book_, and -_Napoleon's Book of Fate_, command an extensive sale amongst our -operatives, and may be consulted for additional information. Our country -maidens are well aware that _triple_ leaves plucked at hazard from the -common ash, are worn in the breast for the purpose of causing prophetic -dreams respecting a dilatory lover. The leaves of the yellow trefoil are -supposed to possess similar virtues; and the Bible is not unfrequently -put under their pillows with a crooked sixpence placed on the 16th and -17th verses of the first chapter of Ruth, in order that they may both -dream of, and see, their future husbands. "Opening the Bible for -direction" is still practised after any troublesome dream, or when about -to undertake any doubtful matter. To dream of the teeth falling out -betokens death, or the loss of a lawsuit. Other signs of death are -dreaming of seeing the Devil; or hearing a sound like the stroke of a -wand on any piece of furniture. The proverb that "lawyers and asses -always die in their shoes," is invariably quoted when any sudden -calamity befalls one of the profession. - -Like the ancients, the folk of Lancashire have various superstitious -observances and practices connected with the moon, especially with the -new moon. Christmas thorns are said to blossom only on _Old_ Christmas -Day; and persons will go considerable distances at midnight in order to -witness the blossoming. Oxen, too, are supposed to acknowledge the -importance of the Nativity of Christ, by going down on their knees at -the same hour; and this is often quoted as a proof that our legislators -were wrong in depriving our forefathers of their "eleven days" when the -new style was enforced by Act of Parliament.[7] - -Some of our farmers are superstitious enough to hang in the chimney a -portion of the flesh of any animal which has died of distemper, as a -protection from similar afflictions; they also preserve with great care -the membrane which sometimes envelopes a newly born foal, in the hope -that it will ensure them good luck for the future. Sailors do not like -to set sail on a Friday. Servant girls will rarely enter upon a new -service either on a Friday, or on a Saturday: should they do so, they -have an opinion that they will disagree with their mistresses and "not -stay long in place." Most females entertain strong objections against -giving evidence, or taking oaths, before the magistrates, when -_enceinte_. At Burnley, not long ago, a witness in a case of felony was -threatened with imprisonment before she would comply with the necessary -forms. All children that are born in the twilight of certain days are in -consequence supposed to be endowed with the faculty of seeing spirits; -and some of our "wise men" take advantage of this, and persuade their -dupes that they were so circumstanced at birth. - -Such instances might be multiplied to an almost indefinite extent, did -space permit; but the preceding will suffice to prove both the probable -origin and prevalence of many of our popular superstitions. To a greater -or less extent their influence pervades all classes of society; and he -who would elevate the intellectual condition of the people must not -neglect this thick stratum of _common notions_ which underlies the -deepest deposits of mental culture. As a recent writer in the _Quarterly -Review_ reports of Cornwall, so we may state of Lancashire:--"Pages -might be filled, not with mere legends wrought up for literary purposes, -but with serious accounts of the wild delusions which seem to have lived -on from the very birth of Pagan antiquity, and still to hold their -influence among the earnest and Christian people of this portion of -England.... Superstition lives on, with little abatement of vitality, in -the human heart. In the lower classes it wears its old fashions, with -very slow alterations--in the higher, it changes with the rapidity of -modes in fashionable circles. We read with a smile of amusement and -pity, the account of some provincial conjuror, who follows, with slight -changes, the trade of the Witch of Endor; and we then compose our -features to a grave expression of interest--for so society requires--to -listen to some enlightened person's description of the latest novelties -in table-turning or spirit-rapping; or to some fair patient's account of -her last conversation with her last quack-doctor." - -The labours of Croker, Keightley, Thorpe, and Kemble, following in the -wake of the Brothers Grimm, have added considerably to our knowledge of -the Folk-lore of the North of Europe; but much yet remains to be -collected before the subject can be examined in all its bearings. - -It is hoped that in the following pages the facts collected will suffice -to prove that the superstitious beliefs, observances, and usages of -Lancashire are by no means unworthy of the attention of the antiquary, -the ethnologist, or the historian. - - -LANCASHIRE ALCHEMISTS. - -Alchemy (from _al_, Arab. the, and {chêmeia}, chemistry), the pretended -art of transmuting the inferior metals into gold or silver, by means of -what was called the Philosopher's Stone, or the powder of projection, a -red powder possessing a peculiar smell, is supposed to have originated -among the Arabians; Geber, an Arabian physician of the seventh century, -being one of the earliest alchemists whose works are extant; but written -so obscurely as to have led to the suggestion that his name was the -origin of our modern term _gibberish_, for unintelligible jargon. A -subsequent object of alchemy was the discovery of a universal medicine, -the _Elixir Vitæ_, which was to give perpetual life, health, and youth. -The Egyptians are said to have practised alchemy; and Paulus Diaconus, a -writer of the eighth century, asserts that Dioclesian burned the library -of Alexandria, in order to prevent the Egyptians from becoming learned -in the art of producing at will those precious metals which might be -employed as "the sinews of war" against himself.[8] The earliest English -writer on alchemy was probably St. Dunstan, Archbishop of Canterbury, in -the tenth century. "He who shall have the happiness to meet with St. -Dunstan's work, 'De Occulta Philosophia' [that on the 'Philosopher's -stone' is in the Ashmole Museum], may therein read such stories as will -make him amazed to think what stupendous and immense things are to be -performed by virtue of the Philosopher's Mercury."[9] A John Garland is -also said to have written on alchemy and mineralogy prior to the -Conquest.[10] Alchemy was much studied in conventual establishments[11] -and by the most learned doctors and schoolmen, and the highest Church -dignitaries--nay, even by kings and popes. Albertus Magnus, a German, -born in 1282, wrote seven treatises on alchemy; and Thomas Aquinas "the -angelic doctor" (said to have been a pupil of Albert), wrote three works -on this subject. Roger Bacon ("Friar Bacon"), born at Ilchester in 1214, -though he wrote against the folly of believing in magic, necromancy, and -charms, nevertheless had faith in alchemy; and his chemical and -alchemical writings number eighteen. Of his _Myrrour of Alchemy_, Mr. J. -J. Conybeare observes, "Of all the alchemical works into which I have -been occasionally led to search, this appears the best calculated to -afford the curious reader an insight into the history of the art, and of -the arguments by which it was usually attacked and defended. It has the -additional merit of being more intelligible and more entertaining than -most books of the same class."[12] - -Raymond Lully, born at Majorca in 1235, is said to have been a scholar -of Roger Bacon, and to have written nineteen works on alchemy. Arnoldus -de Villa Nova, born in 1235, amongst a number of works on this subject, -wrote _The Rosarium_, a compendium of the alchemy of his time. He died -in 1313, on his way to visit Pope Clement V. at Avignon. Another pope, -John XXII., professed and described the art of transmuting metals, and -boasts in the beginning of his book that he had made two hundred ingots -of gold, each weighing one hundred pounds. Among English alchemists of -the fourteenth century may be mentioned Cremer, abbot of Westminster -(the disciple and friend of Lully), John Daustein, and Richard, who both -practised and wrote upon the "hermetic philosophy," as it was termed. In -the fifteenth century was born George Ripley, a canon registrar of -Bridlington, who wrote the _Medulla Alchymiæ_ (translated by Dr. Salmon -in his _Clavis_), and another work in rhyme, called "The Compound of -Alchemie," which was dedicated to Edward IV. Dr. John Dee (born 1527), -the warden of Manchester College, and his assistant, or "seer," Edward -Kelly (born 1555), were both avowed alchemists. Dee wrote a _Treatise of -the Rosie Crucian Secrets, their excellent methods of making Medicines -and Metals_, &c. Ashmole says of him, that "some time he bestowed in -vulgar chemistry, and was therein master of divers secrets: amongst -others, he revealed to one Roger Cooke 'the great secret of the elixir' -(as he called it) 'of the salt of metals, the projection whereof was -one upon a hundred.'[13] - -"'Tis generally reported that Dr. Dee and Sir Edward Kelly were so -strangely fortunate as to find a very large quantity of the elixir in -some parts of the ruins of Glastonbury Abbey." It had remained here, -perhaps, ever since the time of the highly gifted St. Dunstan, in the -tenth century.[14] The great Lord Bacon relates the following story in -his _Apothegms_:-- - -"Sir Edward Dyer, a grave and wise gentleman, did much believe in Kelly, -the alchemist, that he did indeed the work, and made gold; insomuch that -he went into Germany, where Kelly then was, to inform himself fully -thereof. After his return he dined with my Lord of Canterbury, where at -that time was at the table Dr. Brown, the physician. They fell in talk -of Kelly. Sir Edward Dyer, turning to the archbishop, said--'I do assure -your Grace that that I shall tell you is truth: I am an eye-witness -thereof; and if I had not seen it, I should not have believed it. I saw -Master Kelly put of the base metal into the crucible; and after it was -set a little upon the fire, and a very small quantity of the medicine -put in, and stirred with a stick of wood, it came forth, in great -proportion, perfect gold, to the touch, to the hammer, and to the test.' -My Lord Archbishop said, 'You had need take heed what you say, Sir -Edward Dyer, for here is an infidel at the board.' Sir Edward Dyer said -again pleasantly, 'I would have looked for an infidel sooner in any -place than at your Grace's table.' 'What say you, Dr. Brown?' said the -archbishop. Dr. Brown answered, after his blunt and huddling manner, -'The gentleman hath spoken enough for me.' 'Why,' saith the archbishop, -'what hath he said?' 'Marry,' saith Dr. Brown, 'he said he would not -have believed it except he had seen it; and no more will I.'" - -Professor De Morgan observes that "Alchemy was more than a popular -credulity: Newton and Boyle were amongst the earnest inquirers into it." -Bishop Berkeley was of opinion that M. Homberg made gold by introducing -light into the pores of mercury. Amongst the works of the Hon. Robert -Boyle (vol. iv. 13-19), is _An Historical Account of a Degradation of -Gold, made by an anti-Elixir: a Strange Chemical Narrative_, in which he -says--"To make it more credible that other metals are capable of being -graduated or exalted into gold, by way of projection, I will relate to -you, that by the like way, gold has been degraded or imbased.... Our -experiment plainly shows that gold, though confessedly the most -homogeneous and the least mutable of metals, may be in a very short time -(perhaps not amounting to many minutes), exceedingly changed, both as to -malleableness, colour, homogeneity, and (which is more) specific -gravity; and all this by so very inconsiderable a portion of injected -powder," &c. - -"When Locke, as one of the executors of Boyle, was about to publish some -of his works, Newton wished him to insert the second and third part of -Boyle's recipes (the first part of which was to obtain 'a mercury that -would grow hot with gold'), and which Boyle had communicated to him on -condition that they should be published after his death."[15] "Mangetus -relates a story of a stranger calling on Boyle, and leaving with him a -powder, which he projected into the crucible, and instantly went out. -After the fire had gone out, Boyle found in the crucible a -yellow-coloured metal, possessing all the properties of pure gold, and -only a little lighter than the weight of the materials originally put in -the crucible."[16] - -From these proofs of the credulity of great men, let us turn to the -encouragements vouchsafed to alchemy and its adepts by the Kings and -Parliaments of England. Raymond Lully visited England on the invitation -of Edward I.; and he affirms in one of his works, that in the secret -chamber of St. Katherine, in the Tower of London, he performed in the -royal presence the experiment of transmuting some crystal into a mass of -diamond, or adamant, as he calls it; on which Edward, he says, caused -some little pillars to be made for the tabernacle of God. It was -popularly believed, indeed, at the time, that the English king had been -furnished by Lully with a great quantity of gold for defraying the -expense of an expedition which he intended to make to the Holy Land. -Edward III. was not less credulous on this subject than his grandfather, -as appears by an order which he issued in 1329, in the following -terms:--"Know all men that we have been assured that John of Rous, and -Master William of Dalby, know how to make silver by the art of alchemy; -that they have made it in former times, and still continue to make it; -and considering that these men, by their art, and by making the precious -metal, may be profitable to us and to our kingdom, we have commanded our -well-beloved Thomas Cary to apprehend the aforesaid John and William -wherever they can be found, within liberties or without, and bring them -to us, together with all the instruments of their art, under safe and -sure custody." The first considerable coinage of gold in England was -begun by Edward III. in 1343: and "The alchemists did affirm, as an -unwritten verity, that the rose nobles, which were coined soon after, -were made by projection or multiplication alchemical, by Raymond Lully, -in the Tower of London." But Lully died in 1315; and the story only -shows the strength of the popular faith in alchemy. That this pretended -science was much cultivated in the fourteenth century, and with the -usual evil results, may be inferred from an Act passed 5 Hen. IV. cap. 4 -(1404), to make it felony "to multiply gold or silver, or to use the -craft of multiplication," &c. It is probable, however, that this statute -was enacted from some apprehension that the operations of the -multipliers might possibly affect the value of the king's coin. Henry -VI., a very pious, yet very weak and credulous prince, was as great a -patron of the alchemists as Edward III. had been before him. These -impostors practised with admirable success upon his weakness and -credulity, repeatedly inducing him to advance them money wherewith to -prosecute the operations, as well as procuring from him protections -(which he sometimes prevailed upon the Parliament to confirm) from the -penalties of the statute just mentioned.[17] In 1438, the king -commissioned three philosophers to make the precious metals; but, as -might be expected, he received no returns from them in gold or -silver.[18] His credulity, however, seems to have been unshaken by -disappointment, and we next find him issuing one of these protections, -which is too long to print entire, granted to the "three famous men," -John Fauceby, John Kirkeby, and John Ragny, which was confirmed by -Parliament May 31, 1456. In this document the object of the researches -of these "philosophers" is described to be "a certain most precious -medicine, called by some philosophers 'the mother and empress of -medicines;' by some, 'the inestimable glory;' by others, 'the -quintessence;' by others, 'the philosopher's stone;' by others, 'the -elixir of life;' which cures all curable diseases with ease; prolongs -human life in perfect vigour of faculty to its utmost natural term; -heals all healable wounds; is a most sovereign antidote against all -poisons; and is capable of preserving to us and our kingdom other great -advantages, such as the transmutation of other metals into the most real -and finest gold and silver."[19] Fauceby, here mentioned, is elsewhere -designated the king's physician.[20] We have not traced the position of -the other two adepts named. Fauceby, however, notwithstanding his power -of gold-making, did not refuse to accept a grant from the king, in 1456, -of a pension of 100_l._ a year for life.[21] - -We come now to the two most distinguished of Lancashire alchemists, both -knights, and at the head of the principal families of the county. They -seem to have been actively engaged together in the delusive pursuit of -the transmutation of metals; and, self-deceived, to have deluded the -weak king with promises of wealth which never could be realised. These -Lancashire adepts were Sir Edmund de Trafford, Knight, and Sir Thomas -Ashton [of Ashton], Knight. The former was the younger of two sons of -Henry de Trafford, Esq., and Elizabeth his wife, daughter of Sir Ralph -Radcliffe, Knight. The elder son, Henry, dying at the early age of -twenty-six years, this Edmund succeeded as his heir about King Henry V. -(1414), and he was knighted by Henry VI. at the Whitsuntide of 1426. He -married Dame Alice Venables, eldest daughter and co-heir to Sir William -Venables, of Bollyn, Knight. Their only son, Sir John Trafford, knighted -about 1444, in his father's life-time, married Elizabeth, daughter of -Sir Thomas Ashton, of Ashton-under-Lyne, Knight; whilst Sir Edmund's -youngest daughter, Dulcia, or Douce, married Sir John Ashton, a son of -Sir Thomas, in 1438; so that the two families were connected by this -double alliance. Sir Thomas Ashton, the alchemist, was the eldest son of -Sir John de Ashton (Knight of the Bath at the coronation of Henry IV. in -1399, Knight of the Shire in 1413, and Constable of Coutances in 1417), -and of his first wife, Jane, daughter of John Savile, of Tankersley, -county York. Sir Thomas married Elizabeth, daughter of Sir John Byron. -The date of his death is not known. Sir Edmund Trafford died in 1457. -Their supposed power of transmuting the baser metals into gold had great -attractions for a weak king, whose treasury was low, and who was -encumbered with debt. They were not mere adventurers, but men descended -from ancient families, opulent, and of high estimation in their native -county. Fuller found in the Tower of London, and copied,[22] a patent -granted to these two knights by Henry VI., in the twenty-fourth year of -his reign (1446), of which he gives the following translation:--"The -King to all unto whom, &c., greeting--Know ye, that whereas our beloved -and loyal Edmund de Trafford, Knight, and Thomas Ashton, Knight, have, -by a certain petition shown unto us, set forth that although they were -willing by the art or science of philosophy to work upon certain metals, -to translate [transmute] imperfect metals from their own kind, and then -to transubstantiate them by their said art or science, as they say, into -perfect gold or silver, unto all manner of proofs and trials, to be -expected and endured as any gold or silver growing in any mine; -notwithstanding certain persons ill-willing and maligning them, -conceiving them to work by unlawful art, and so may hinder and disturb -them in the trial of the said art and science: WE, considering the -premises, and willing to know the conclusion of the said work or -science, of our special grace have granted and given leave to the same -Edmund and Thomas, and to their servants, that they may work and try the -aforesaid art and science lawfully and freely, without any hindrance of -ours, or of our officers, whatsoever; any statute, act, ordinance, or -provision made, ordained, or provided to the contrary notwithstanding. -In witness whereof, &c., the King at Westminster, the 7th day of April" -[1446.][23] Fuller leaves this curious document, which might fitly have -been dated the _first_ instead of the 7th April, without a word of -comment. The two knightly alchemists, doubtlessly imposing on themselves -no less than on their royal patron, kept the king's expectation wound up -to the highest pitch; and in the following year he actually informed his -people that the happy hour was approaching when by means of "the stone" -he "should be able to pay off his debts!"[24] It is scarcely necessary -to add that the stone failed, and the king's debts must have remained -unpaid, if his majesty had not pawned the revenue of his Duchy of -Lancaster, to satisfy the demands of his clamorous creditors. Henry VI. -was deposed by Edward IV. in March, 1461, and though he was nominally -restored to the throne in October, 1470, he lost both crown and life in -May, 1471, being found dead (most probably murdered) in the Tower on the -evening or the morrow of the day on which Edward IV. entered London -after his victory at Barnet. Such are some of the most notable facts in -the practice of alchemy as connected with Lancashire. It will naturally -be asked if alchemy is still practised in this county? We can only say, -that if it be it is in very rare instances, and with the greatest -secrecy. The more chemistry is known--and the extent to which it has -been developed within the last twenty years is truly marvellous--the -more completely it takes the ground from under the feet of a believer in -alchemy. It is not like astrology, which accepts the facts of the true -science of astronomy, and only draws false conclusions from true -premisses. Alchemy could only have sprung up at a period when all the -operations of the chemist's laboratory were of the most rude, imperfect, -and blundering character; when the true bases of earths and minerals and -metals were unknown; when what was called chemistry was without -analysis, either quantitative or qualitative; before the law of definite -proportions had been discovered; when, in short, chemistry was a groping -in the dark without the help of any accurate weight or measure, or -other knowledge of the countless substances which are now so extensively -investigated, and so accurately described in the briefest formulas. A -man, to become an alchemist in the nineteenth century, must study only -the hermetical writings of past ages, shutting both eyes and ears to all -the facts of modern chemistry. It is scarcely possible at this day to -find such a combination of exploded learning and scientific ignorance. -Hence we conclude that alchemy is in all probability, from the very -nature of things, an obsolete and forgotten lore. - - -LANCASHIRE ASTROLOGERS. - -Astrology (literally the Science of the Stars), is now understood to -signify the mode of discovering future events by means of the position -of the heavenly bodies, which has been termed judicial astronomy. This -quasi science found universal belief among all the nations of antiquity -except the Greeks. Among the Romans it was eagerly cultivated from the -time of the conquest of Egypt. In the second century the whole world was -astrological. All the followers of Mohammed have ever been, and still -are, believers in it. The Church of Rome has repeatedly condemned the -art, but popes and cardinals rank amongst its votaries. Cardinal d'Ailly -(about 1400), calculated the horoscope of Jesus Christ; and in the -fifteenth century Pope Calixtus III. directed prayers and anathemas -against a comet which had either assisted in or predicted the success of -the Turks against the Christians. The establishment of the Copernican -system was the death of astrology. The last of the astrologers was -Morin, best known as the opponent of Gassendi. The latter in youth had -studied and believed in the art, but afterwards renounced and written -against it. Morin, who worked thirty years at a book on astrology, and -who disbelieved in the motion of the earth, repeatedly predicted the -death of Gassendi, but was always wrong, as he was in foretelling the -death of Louis XIII. Since his death, in 1656, the pseudo-science has -gradually sunk, and has not since, it is believed, been adopted by any -real astronomer. Roger Bacon and other early English philosophers were -believers in astrology, no less than in alchemy. In Lancashire the most -remarkable practisers of the art were Dr. John Dee, warden of Manchester -College, his friend and "seer," Sir Edward Kelly, and John Booker, of -Manchester. Dee was the son of a wealthy vintner, and was born in London -in 1527. At the age of fifteen he was entered at St. John's College, -Cambridge, where he seems to have devoted himself to the study of -mathematics, astronomy, and chemistry; displaying great assiduity and -industry. At twenty he made a year's tour on the Continent, chiefly in -Holland, and on his return was made one of the fellows of Trinity -College on its foundation by Henry VIII., in 1543. In 1548 he was -strongly suspected of being addicted to "the black art," probably from -his astrological pursuits; and having taken his degree of A.M., he again -went abroad to the university of Louvaine and to Rheims, and elsewhere -in France; returning to England in 1551, when he was presented by Cecil -to King Edward VI., who assigned him a pension of one hundred crowns, -which he subsequently relinquished for the rectory of Upton-on-Severn. -Shortly after the accession of Mary, he was accused of "practising -against the queen's life by _enchantment_;" the charge being founded on -some correspondence between him and "the servants of the Lady -Elizabeth." He was long imprisoned and frequently examined, but as -nothing could be established against him he was set at liberty by an -order of the church in 1555. On the accession of Elizabeth, Dee was -consulted by Lord Robert Dudley respecting "a propitious day" for the -coronation. He says, "I wrote at large and delivered it for her -Majesty's use, by the commandment of the Lord Robert (afterwards Earl of -Leicester), what in my judgment the ancient astrologers would determine -on the election day of such a time as was appointed for her Majesty to -be crowned in." He was presented to the queen, who made him great -promises (not always fulfilled); amongst others, that where her brother -Edward "had given him a crown, she would give him a noble" [one-third -more--viz., from 5_s._ to 6_s._ 8_d._]. Nothing can better mark the -belief in astrology than the fact that Queen Elizabeth's nativity was -cast, in order to ascertain whether she could marry with advantage to -the nation. Lilly, some eighty years later, declares[25] that he -received twenty pieces of gold, in order that he might ascertain where -Charles I. might be most safe from his enemies, and what hour would be -most favourable for his escape from Carisbrooke Castle. - -In 1564 Dee again visited the Continent, and was presented to the -Emperor Maximilian, probably on some secret mission; for Lilly says, "he -was the Queen's intelligencer, and had a salary for his maintenance from -the Secretaries of State. He was a ready-witted man, quick of -apprehension, and of great judgment in the Latin and Greek tongues. He -was a very great investigator of the more secret hermetical learning -(alchemy), a perfect astronomer, a curious astrologer, a serious -geometrician; to speak truth, he was excellent in all kinds of -learning."[26] Dee was repeatedly and urgently sent for one morning "to -prevent the mischief which divers of her Majesty's privy council -suspected to be intended against her Majesty, by means of a certain -image of wax, with a great pin stuck into it, about the breast of it, -found in Lincoln's Inn Fields." For some years Dee led a life of privacy -and study at Mortlake in Surrey, collecting books and MSS., beryls and -magic crystals, talismans, &c. So strong was the popular belief in his -neighbourhood that he had dealings with the devil, that in 1576 a mob -assembled, broke into his house, and destroyed nearly all his library -and collections; and it was with difficulty that he and his family -escaped the fury of the rabble. In October, 1578, by the Queen's -command, he had a conference with Dr. Bayley, her Majesty's physician, -"about her Majesty's grievous pains, by reason of toothache and the -rheum," &c.; and the same year he was sent on a winter journey of about -1500 miles by sea and land, "to consult with the learned physicians and -philosophers [_i.e._, astrologers], for her Majesty's health-recovering -and preserving." Passing over his more useful and valuable services to -the State and to the world, as we are only noting here his doings as an -astrologer, &c., we may remark that most of his proceedings and writings -in this pseudo-science or art were accomplished after he had passed his -fiftieth year. It was in 1581 that he took into his service, as an -assistant in his alchemical and astrological labours, an apothecary of -Worcester named Edward Kelly, born in 1555, and who was called "The -Seer," because, looking into magic crystals or speculæ, it was said he -saw many things which it was not permitted to Dee himself to behold. -Kelly also acted as Dee's amanuensis, and together they held -"conversations with spirits." They had a black speculum, it is said "a -polished piece of cannel coal," in which the angels Gabriel and Raphael -appeared at their invocation. Hence Butler says-- - - "Kelly did all his feats upon - The devil's looking-glass--a stone." - -In 1583 a Polish noble, Albert Lasque, palatine of Siradia [? Sieradz] -being in England, Dee and Kelly were introduced to him, and accompanied -him to Poland. He persuaded them to pay a visit to Rodolph, king of -Bohemia, who, though a weak and credulous man, is said to have become -disgusted with their pretensions. They had no better success with the -king of Poland, but were soon after invited by a rich Bohemian noble to -his castle of Trebona, where they continued for some time in great -affluence, owing, as they asserted, to their transmuting the baser -metals into gold. Kelly is said to have been sordid and grasping, -without honour or principle. Lilly asserts that the reason of many -failures in the conferences with spirits was because Kelly was very -vicious, "unto whom the angels were not obedient, or willingly did -declare [answers to] the questions propounded." Dee and Kelly quarrelled -and separated in Bohemia; Dee returning to England, while Kelly remained -at Prague. He died in 1595. In 1595 the Queen appointed Dee warden of -Manchester College, he being then sixty-eight years of age. He resided -at Manchester nine years, quitting it in 1604 for his old abode at -Mortlake, where he died in 1608, aged eighty-one, in great poverty, and -leaving a numerous family and a great many printed works and forty -unpublished writings behind him. The catalogue of Dee's library at -Mortlake shows that it was rich in the works of preceding astrologers -and alchemists, especially those of Roger Bacon, Raymond Lully, Albertus -Magnus, Arnold de Villa Nova, &c. - -John Booker, a celebrated astrologer of the seventeenth century, was the -son of John Bowker (commonly pronounced Booker), of Manchester, and was -born 23rd March, 1601. He was educated at the Manchester Grammar School, -where he acquired some acquaintance with Latin. From childhood he showed -an inclination for astrology, and amused himself with studying almanacks -and other books on that subject. After serving some time to a -haberdasher in London, he practised as a writing-master at Hadley, -Middlesex; and was subsequently clerk for some time to the aldermen at -Guildhall. Becoming famous by his studies, he was appointed Licenser of -Mathematical Publications, which then included all those relating to the -"celestial sciences." Lilly tells us that he once thought him the -greatest astrologer in the world; but he afterwards came to think -himself a much greater man. George Wharton, who had been one of his -astrological acquaintances, quarrelled with him, and in consequence -published at Oxford in 1644, in answer to one of Booker's pamphlets, -what he called "Mercurio-C[oe]lica-Mastyx; or an Anti-caveat to all such -as have heretofore had the misfortune to be cheated and deluded by the -great and treacherous impostor, John Booker; in an answer to his -frivolous pamphlet, entitled 'Mercurius-C[oe]licus, or a Caveat to all -the People of England.'" Booker died of dysentery in April, 1667, and -was buried in St. James's Church, Duke's Place, London, where the -following monument was erected to him by Ashmole, who was one of his -greatest admirers:--"Ne oblivione conteretur Urna Johannis Bookeri, -Astrologi, qui Fatis cessit 6 idus Aprilis, A.D. 1667. Hoc illi posuit -amoris Monumentum, Elias Ashmole, Armiger." Lilly, in his _Life and -Times_, gives the following character of Booker:-- - -"He was a great proficient in astrology, whose excellent verses upon -the twelve months, framed according to the configurations of each month, -being blest with success according to his predictions, procured him much -reputation all over England. He was a very honest man; abhorred any -deceit in the art he studied; had a curious fancy in judging of thefts; -and was successful in resolving love questions. He was no mean -proficient in astronomy; understood much of physic; was a great admirer -of the antimonial cup; not unlearned in chemistry, which he loved, but -did not practise; and since his decease I have seen a nativity of his -performance, exactly directed, and judged with as much learning as from -astrology can be expected. His library of books came short of the -world's approbation, and were sold by his widow to Elias Ashmole, Esq., -who most generously gave far more than they were worth." - -Lilly and Booker were frequently consulted during the differences -between the king and the parliamentary army, and were once invited by -General Fairfax, and sent in a coach-and-four to head quarters at -Windsor, to give their opinions on [_i.e._, their predictions as to] the -prosecution of the war. Booker became famous for a prediction on the -solar eclipse of 1613, in which year both the king of Bohemia and -Gustavus, king of Sweden, died. Booker's works (chiefly tracts or -pamphlets) were about fifteen or sixteen in number. The only work now -worth notice is his _Bloody Irish Almanack_ (London, 1646, quarto), -which contains some memorable particulars relative to the war in -Ireland.[27] - -Another Lancashire astrologer was Charles Leadbetter, who was born at -Cronton, near Prescot, and was the author of a _Treatise on Eclipses of -the Sun and Moon, commencing A.D. 1715, and ending A.D. 1749_; in which -he gives the horoscope of every eclipse of importance; and, from the -aspects of the stars, predicts the principal occurrences that may be -expected within limited periods. He failed, however, to predict the -Rebellion of 1715, or that of 1745; and though under the years 1720 and -1721 he predicated "Sea Fights and Death of Fish," no hint of the "South -Sea Bubble," the great event of those years, can be found amongst his -prophecies. He entertained no doubt of an "eclipse of the moon, moving -subjects to seduction [? sedition], servants to disobedience, and wives -to a disorder against their husbands." Yet Leadbetter's Works on -Astronomy, &c., were held in able repute, and he taught the "Arts and -Sciences Mathematical" with much success, "at the Hand and Pen, Cock -Lane, near Shore Ditch, London." - -If we close here our notices of Lancashire Astrologers, it is not -because we suppose the class to be wholly extinct. But those to whom we -have so far referred, were well acquainted with astronomy, and erred -only in superadding the delusions of astrology to the truths of that -real science. The class still remaining in Lancashire, chiefly in -country districts, are (with very few exceptions) greatly inferior in -knowledge, and, mixing up the arts of the so-called sorcerer or conjuror -with the deductions of the so-called "astral science" (of which they are -blundering smatterers, often ignorant of the very elements of -astronomy), they do not merit the name of astrologers, but should be -classed with the numerous "wise men," "cunning women," and other -varieties of fortune-tellers, who have not even the negative merit of -being self-deluded by the phenomena of a supposed science; but are in -their way mere charlatans and cheats, knowingly cozening their credulous -dupes of as much money as they can extort. Some notices of this class -will be found in later pages. - - -BELLS. - -It is not with Bells generally, but only with Church Bells, and not with -all their uses, but only such of them as are superstitious, that we are -called upon to deal here. The large church bells are said to have been -invented by Paulinus, Bishop of Nola, in Campania (whence the low Latin -name of Campana), about A.D. 400. Two hundred years afterwards they -appear to have been in great use in churches. Pope John XIII., in A.D. -968, consecrated a very large newly-cast bell in the Lateran Church at -Rome, giving it the name of John. This is the first instance known of -what has since been called "the baptising of bells," a Roman Catholic -superstition of which vestiges remain in England in the names of great -bells, as "Tom of Lincoln," "Great Tom of Oxford," &c. The priests -anciently rung them themselves. Amongst their superstitious uses, were -to drive away lightning and thunder; to chase evil spirits from persons -and places; to expedite childbirth, when women were in labour; and the -original use of the soul-bell or passing-bell was to drive away any -demon that might seek to take possession of the soul of the deceased. -Grose says that the passing-bell was anciently rung for two purposes: -one, to bespeak the prayers of all good Christians for a soul just -departing; the other, to drive away the evil spirits who stood at the -bed's foot and about the house, ready to seize their prey, or at least -to molest and terrify the soul in its passage. By the ringing of the -bell they were kept aloof, and the soul, like a hunted hare, gained the -start, or had what sportsmen call "law." Hence the high charge for -tolling the great bell of the church, which, being louder, the evil -spirits must go further off to be clear of its sound, by which the poor -soul got so much the more start of them; besides, being heard further -off, it would likewise procure the dying man a greater number of -prayers. Till about 1830, it was customary at Roman Catholic funerals in -many parts of Lancashire, to ring a merry peal on the bells, as soon as -the interment was over. Doubtless the greater the clang of the bells, -the further the flight of the fiends waiting to seize the soul of the -departed. There are some monkish rhymes in Latin on the uses of church -bells, some of which are retained in the following doggerel:-- - - Men's deaths I tell By doleful knell; - Lightning and thunder I break asunder; - On Sabbath all To church I call; - The sleepy head I raise from bed; - The winds so fierce I do disperse; - Men's cruel rage I do assuage. - -The following verses (the spelling modernized) further illustrate the -subject:[28]-- - - "If that the thunder chance to roar, and stormy tempest shake, - A wonder is it for to see the wretches how they quake; - How that no faith at all they have, nor trust in any thing, - The clerk doth all the bells forthwith at once in steeple ring; - With wondrous sound and deeper far than he was wont before, - Till in the lofty heavens dark the thunders bray no more. - For in these christen'd bells they think doth lie much pow'r and might - As able is the tempest great and storm to vanquish quite. - - I saw myself at Nurnberg once, a town in Toring coast, - A bell that with this title bold herself did proudly boast: - By name I 'Mary' called am, with sound I put to flight - The thunder-cracks and hurtful storms, and every wicked sprite. - Such things when as these bells can do, no wonder certainly - It is, if that the papists to their tolling always fly, - When hail, or any raging storm, or tempest comes in sight, - Or thunderbolts, or lightning fierce, that every place doth smite." - -Wynkin de Worde[29] tells us that bells are rung during thunder-storms, -to the end that the fiends and wicked spirits should be abashed, and -flee, and cease the moving of the tempest.[30] Bells appear to have had -an inherent power against evil spirits, but this power was held to be -greatly increased by the bells being christened. There is a custom in -some Lancashire parishes, in ringing the passing-bell, to conclude its -tolling with nine knells or strokes of the clapper, for a man, six for a -woman, and three for a child; the vestiges of an ancient Roman Catholic -injunction.[31] In an Old English Homily for Trinity Sunday,[32] it is -stated that "the form of the Trinity was found in man; that was, Adam -our forefather, on earth, one person, and Eve of Adam, the second -person; and of them both was the third person. At the death of a man -three bells should be rung, as his knell, in worship of the Trinity, and -for a woman, who was the second person of the Trinity, two bells should -be rung." Two couplets on the passing-bell may be inserted here:-- - - "When the bell begins to toll, - Lord have mercy on the soul! - - When thou dost hear a toll or knell - Then think upon _thy_ passing-bell."[33] - -The great bell which used to be rung on Shrove-Tuesday to call the -people together for the purpose of confessing their sins, or to be -"shriven," was called the "Pancake Bell," and some have regarded it -simply as a signal for the people to begin frying their pancakes. This -custom prevails still in some parts of Lancashire, and in many country -places throughout the North of England. Another bell, rung in some -places as the congregation quits the church on Sunday, is popularly -known among country people as the "pudding-bell," they supposing that -its use is to warn those at home to get the dinner ready, as, in homely -phrase, "pudding-time has come." A Lancashire clergyman[34] states that -this bell is still rung in some of the old Lancashire parish churches; -but he does not suggest any more probable reason for tolling this bell. -The Curfew Bell [_couvre feu_, cover-fire] is commonly believed to be of -Norman origin; a law having been made by William the Conqueror that all -people should put out their fires and lights at the eight o'clock -(evening) bell, and go to bed. In one place the sexton of a parish was -required to lie in the church steeple, and at eight o'clock every night -to ring the curfew for a quarter of an hour. The curfew-bell is still -rung at Burnley, Colne, Blackburn, Padiham, and indeed in most of the -older towns and many of the villages of Lancashire. It has nearly lost -its ancient name, and is a remarkable instance of the persistence of an -old custom or usage, long after all its significance or value has -ceased. It is now merely called "the eight o'clock bell." A morning -bell, rung anciently at four, now more commonly at six o'clock, is also -to be heard in Burnley and other places, and is called "the six o'clock -bell." Of what maybe called "the vocal ghosts of bells" many stories -might be told. Opposite the Cross-slack, on the sands near Blackpool, -out at sea, once stood the church and cemetery of Kilgrimol, long since -submerged. Many tales are told of benighted wanderers near this spot -being terrified with the sound of bells pealing dismal chimes o'er the -murmuring sea.[35] - - -BEAL-TINE OR BELTANE FIRES; RELICS OF BAAL WORSHIP. - -Among the dim traces of an extinct worship of Bel, or Baal, the ancient -sun-god, perceptible still among Celtic peoples, especially in Ireland -and Scotland, are the three festival periods when fires are kindled on -eminences in honour of the sun. The _Bel_, or _Belus_, the chief deity -of the Babylonians and the Assyrians, seems to have been identical with -the _Baal_ of the Ph[oe]nicians and Carthaginians. The Chaldee _Bel_ and -the Hebrew _Baal_ alike mean "Lord;" and under these names worship was -paid by the old Asiatics to the sun, whose light and heat-giving -properties were typified by fires kindled on the tops of high hills. In -parts of Lancashire, especially in the Fylde, these traces of a heathen -cult still linger. "From the great heaps of stones on eminences, called -Cairns, from the Toot-hills (_i.e._, the hills dedicated to the worship -of the Celtic god, Tot, or Teut, or Teutates, the same with the Egyptian -Thoth), and the Belenian eminences, whereon was worshipped Bel, or -Belus, or Belenus, the sun-god; from these three kinds of heights the -grand sacred fires of the _Bel-Tine_ flamed thrice a year, at three of -the great festivals of the Druids, in honour of Beal, or the Sun--viz., -on the eve of May-day, on Midsummer Eve, and on the eve of the 1st -November. Two such fires were kindled by one another on May-day Eve in -every village of the nation, as well throughout all Gaul as in Britain, -Ireland, and the outlying lesser islands, between which fires the men -and the beasts to be sacrificed were to pass; from whence came the -proverb, 'Between Bel's two fires,' meaning one in a great strait, not -knowing how to extricate himself. One of the fires was on the cairn, and -the other on the ground. On the eve of the 1st of November all the -people, out of a religious persuasion instilled into them by the Druids, -extinguished their fires. Then every master of a family was religiously -obliged to take home a portion of the consecrated fire, and to kindle -the fire anew in his house, which for the ensuing year was to be lucky -and prosperous. Any man who had not paid all his last year's dues to the -Druids was neither to have a spark of this holy fire from the cairns, -nor dared any of his neighbours let him take the benefit of theirs, -under pain of excommunication; which, as managed by the Druids, was -worse than death. If, therefore, he would live the winter out, he must -pay the Druids' dues by the last day of October. The Midsummer fires and -sacrifices were to obtain a blessing on the fruits of the earth, now -becoming ready for gathering; as those on the 1st of May, that they -might prosperously grow; and those on the last of October were a -thanksgiving for finishing their harvest. But in all of them regard was -had to the several degrees of increase and decrease in the heat of the -sun. At the cairn fires it was customary for the lord of the place, or -his son, or some other person of distinction, to take the entrails of -the sacrificed animal into his hands, and walking bare-foot over the -coals thrice, after the flames had ceased, to carry them to the Druid, -who waited in a whole skin at the altar. If the fire-treader escaped -harmless, it was reckoned a good omen, and welcomed with loud -acclamations; but if he received any hurt, it was deemed unlucky both to -the community and to himself."[36] In Ireland, May-day is called _la na -Beal tina_, and its eve, _neen na Beal tina_--_i.e._, the day and eve of -Beal's fire, from its having been in heathen times consecrated to the -god Beal, or Belus. The ceremony practised on May-day Eve, of making the -cows leap over lighted straw or faggots, has been generally traced to -the worship of this deity.[37] - -The Irish have ever been worshippers of fire and of Baal, and are so to -this day. The chief festival in honour of the sun and fire is upon the -21st [24th] June, when the sun arrives at the summer solstice, or rather -begins its retrograde motion. "At the house where I was entertained, in -the summer of 1782, it was told me that we should see at midnight the -most singular sight in Ireland, which was _the lighting of fires in -honour of the sun_. Accordingly, exactly at midnight, the fires began to -appear; and, going up to the leads of the house, which had a -widely-extended view, I saw, on a radius of thirty miles all around, the -fires burning on every eminence. I learned from undoubted authority that -the people danced round the fires, and at the close went through these -fires, and made their sons and daughters, together with their cattle, -pass the fire; and the whole was conducted with religious -solemnity."[38] Bonfires are still made on Midsummer Eve in the northern -parts of England and in Wales. The 1st of November was considered among -the ancient Welsh as the conclusion of summer, and was celebrated with -bonfires, accompanied with ceremonies suitable to these events, and some -parts of Wales still retain these customs. Dr. Jamieson, in his -_Dictionary of the Scottish Language_, mentions a festival called -_Beltane_ or _Beltein_, annually held in Scotland on Old May Day (May -13th). A town in Perthshire is called _Tillee Beltein_--_i.e._, the -eminence or high place of the fire of Baal. Near it are two Druidical -Temples of upright stones, with a well adjacent to one of them, still -held in great veneration for its sanctity. The doctor describes the -drawing of bits of a cake, one part of which is made perfectly black -with charcoal, and he who draws the black bit is considered as "devoted -to Baal, and is obliged to leap three times through the flame." Pennant, -in his _Tour in Scotland_, gives a like account, with other ceremonies. -The custom existed in the Isle of Man on the eve of the 1st of May, of -lighting _two_ fires on a hill-top, in honour of the pagan god Baal, and -of driving cattle between those fires, as an antidote against murrain or -any pestilent distemper for the year following. It was also customary to -light these fires on St. John's Eve (June 23rd), and up to the present -time a stranger is surprised to see on this day, as evening approaches, -fires springing up in all directions around him, accompanied with the -blowing of horns and other rejoicings.[39] Macpherson notices the -_Beltein_ ceremonies in Ireland, and adds, "Beltein is also observed in -Lancashire." On Horwich Moor are two heaps of stones, or cairns, which -are called by the country people "The Wilder Lads." It is believed that -on May Day Eve the Druids made prodigious fires on cairns, situated as -these are, on lofty eminences, which being every one in sight of some -other like fire, symbolized a universal celebration. These fires were in -honour of _Beal_, or _Bealan_, latinized into _Belenus_, by which name -the Gauls and their colonies denoted the sun; and to this time the -first day of May is by the Irish called _La Bealtine_, or the Day of -Belen's Fire. It bears a like name among the Highlanders of Scotland, -and in the Isle of Man.[40] - -The last evening in October was called the "Teanlay Night," or "The Fast -of All Souls." At the close of that day, till of late years, the hills -which encircle the Fylde shone brightly with many a bonfire; the mosses -of Marton, &c., rivalling them with their fires, kindled for the avowed -object of succouring their friends, whose souls were supposed to be -detained in purgatory. A field near Poulton in which the mummery of the -"Teanlay" was once celebrated (a circle of men standing with bundles of -straw, raised on high with forks), is named "Purgatory" by the old -inhabitants. Formerly this custom was not confined to one village or -town of the Fylde district, but was generally practised as a sacred -ceremony.[41] - - -BOGGARTS, GHOSTS, AND HAUNTED PLACES. - -What is a Boggart? A sort of ghost or sprite. But what is the meaning of -the word Boggart? Brand says that "in the northern parts of England, -ghost is pronounced _gheist_ and _guest_. Hence _bar-guest_, or -_bar-gheist_. Many streets are haunted by a guest, who assumes many -strange appearances, as a mastiff-dog, &c. It is a corruption of the -Anglo-Saxon _gast_, spiritus, anima." Brand might have added that _bar_ -is a term for gate in the north, and that all the gates of York are -named "bars," so that a _bar-gheist_ is literally a gate-ghost; and many -are the tales of strange appearances suddenly seen perched on the top of -a gate or fence, whence they sometimes leaped upon the shoulders of the -scared passenger. Drake, in his _Eboracum_, says (Appendix, p. 7), "I -have been so frightened with stories of the _barguest_ when I was a -child, that I cannot help throwing away an etymology upon it. I suppose -it comes from Anglo-Saxon _burh_, a town, and _gast_, a ghost, and so -signifies a town sprite. N.B.--_Guest_ is in the Belgic and Teutonic -softened into _gheist_ and _geyst_." The "Boggart Hole" therefore means -the hollow haunted by the bar-gheist or gate-ghost. - - -BOGGART HOLE CLOUGH. - -"Not far from the little snug, smoky village of Blakeley or Blackley, -there lies one of the most romantic of dells, rejoicing in a state of -singular seclusion, and in the oddest of Lancashire names, to wit, the -'Boggart Hole.' [In the present generation, by pleonasm, the place is -named 'Boggart Hole Clough.'] Rich in every requisite for picturesque -beauty and poetical association, it is impossible for me (who am neither -a painter nor a poet) to describe this dell as it should be described; -and I will, therefore, only beg of thee, gentle reader, who, -peradventure, mayst not have lingered in this classical neighbourhood, -to fancy a deep, deep, dell, its steep sides fringed down with hazel, -and beech, and fern, and thick undergrowth, and clothed at the bottom -with the richest and greenest sward in the world. You descend, clinging -to the trees, and scrambling as best you may, and now you stand on -haunted ground! Tread softly, for this is the Boggart's Clough, and see, -in yonder dark corner, and beneath the projecting mossy stone, where -that dusky sullen cave yawns before us, like a bit of Salvator's best, -there lurks that strange elf, the sly and mischievous Boggart. Bounce! I -see him coming; oh no, it was only a hare bounding from her form; there -it goes--there!"--Such is the introduction to a tale of a boggart, told -by Crofton Croker, in Roby's _Traditions of Lancashire_; but which, if -memory serve us faithfully, is but a localized version of a story told -of an Irish sprite, and also of a Scotch brownie; for in all three tales -when the farmer and his family are "flitting" in order to get away from -the nocturnal disturbance, the sprite pops up his head from the cart, -exclaiming, "Ay, neighbour, we're flitting!" Tradition, which has -preserved the name of the clough selected by the Lancashire boggart for -his domicile, has failed to record any particular pranks of this -individual elf, and we can only notice this charming little clough, as -conveying by its popular name the only remaining vestige of its lost -traditions. Perhaps the best story of this clough is that graphically -told by Bamford[42] of three friends seeking by a charm (consisting in -gathering three grains of St. John's fern seed there), to win for one of -them the love of a damsel who was indifferent to him. - - -BOGGARTS OR GHOSTS IN OLD HALLS. - -There is scarcely an old house, or hall, of any antiquity in Lancashire, -that cannot boast of that proud distinction over the houses of -yesterday, a ghost or boggart. _Radcliffe Tower_ was haunted by a black -dog; perhaps in commemoration of the Fair Ellen of Radcliffe, who, by -order of her stepmother, was murdered by the master cook, and cut up -small, and of her flesh a venison pasty made for her father's dinner! - -_Smithells Hall_, near Bolton, was formerly haunted by the ghost of the -martyr George Marsh, whose stamped footstep indenting a flagstone, is -still shown there. - -_Ince Hall_ stands about a mile from Wigan, on the left-hand of the high -road to Bolton. It is a very conspicuous object, its ancient and -well-preserved front--one of those black and white half-timbered façades -now almost confined to the two counties palatine of Lancashire and -Cheshire--generally attracting the notice and inquiry of travellers. -About a mile to the south-east stands another place of the same name, -once belonging to the Gerards of Bryn. The manor is now the property of -Charles Walmsley, Esq., of Westwood, near Wigan. The two mansions _Ince -Hall_ and _Ince Manor House_, are sometimes confounded together in -topographical inquiries; and it is not now certain to which of them -properly belongs a tradition about a forged will and a ghost, on which -Mr. Roby has founded a very graphic story, in his _Traditions of -Lancashire_. There are the Boggart of _Clegg Hall_, near Rochdale; the -_Clayton Hall_ Boggart, Droylsden; the _Clock House_ Boggart, in the -same neighbourhood; the _Thackergate_ Boggart, near Alderdale; and many -others: indeed they are too numerous for us to attempt a full -enumeration. Mr. Higson observes[43] that few sombre or out-of-the-way -places, retired nooks and corners, or sequestered by-paths, escaped the -reputation of being haunted. Many domiciles had their presiding boggart, -and _feeorin'_ [fairies] swarmed at every turn of the dark old lanes, -and arch-boggarts held revel at every "three-road-end." After dusk, each -rustle of the leaves, or sigh of the night wind through the branches, to -the timid wayfarer heralded the instant and unceremonious appearance of -old wizards and witches, "Nut Nans," and "Clapcans," or the terrific -exploits of headless trunks, alias "men beawt yeds," or other -traditionary "sperrits," hobgoblins, and sprites, or the startling -semblances of black dogs, phantoms, and other indescribable apparitions. -Aqueous nymphs or _nixies_, yclept "Grindylow," and "Jenny Green Teeth," -lurked at the bottom of pits, and with their long, sinewy arms dragged -in and drowned children who ventured too near. On autumnal evenings, the -flickering flame (carburetted hydrogen, spontaneously ignited) of the -"Corpse Candle," "Will-o'-th'-Wisp," or "Jack" or "Peg-a-Lantern" (for -the sex was not clearly ascertained), performed his or her fantastic and -impossible jumps in the plashy meadows near Edge Lane, to the terror of -many a simple-minded rustic. Fairies, also, were believed to commit many -depredations; such as eating the children's porridge, nocturnally riding -out the horses, loosing the cows in the shippon, or churning the milk -whilst "calving," by the fireside, and stealing the butter; and hence, -behind many a door, as yet observable in Clayton, both of dwelling and -shippon, was carefully nailed a worn horse-shoe, believed to be a potent -counter-charm or talisman against their freaks and fancies. There were -certain localities in the township of Droylsden notorious as the -rendezvous or favourite promenades of boggarts and feeorin', which after -nightfall few persons could muster pluck sufficient to linger in, or -even pass by, for-- - - "Grey superstition's whisper dread, - Debarr'd the spot to vulgar tread." - -Manifestly pre-eminent was "th' owd Green Lone," which "Jem Hill, th' -king o' Dreighlesdin," used to assert "swaarmt wi' fairees, witches, un' -boggerts, un' which nob'dy could mester bur hissel'." The boggart -located at Thackergate, near Alderdale, has well-nigh scared many a -sober person out of his senses. Herds of four-footed boggarts used to -issue from a pit at East End, in form resembling "great big dhogs, wi' -great glarin' een, as big as tay-cups." The boggart at the -croft-tenter's lodge (South) Clock-house, as fancy dictated, stalked -through the chamber and stripped the bedclothes off the sleepers; or, -assuming gigantic proportions and snow-white vestments, perched in the -solemn yew-tree, a startling object by contrast. At last, being -exorcised by an array of divines, it was _laid_ for a time, beneath its -favourite tree. A field-path from Fairfield to Ashton Hill-lane was -nightly traversed by a being of another world, mostly representing a -shadowy lady, draped according to whim, either in a loose white robe, or -in rustling black silk. For a certain distance she glided in advance of -the pedestrian, and then, by suddenly vanishing, most likely left his -hair standing on end. At one of the Greenside farms a murder was said to -have been committed in the shippon; and the exact spot was supposed to -be indicated by the impossibility of securely fastening a cow in one -particular boose; for, however carefully its occupant was chained -overnight, next morning she was sure to be found at large, and once was -actually discovered on the shippon balks. Thither, it was believed, the -cow had been carried by supernatural agency; but, be that as it may, it -was necessary to lower her cautiously down, with the aid of ropes and -blocks. At a cottage adjoining, a boggart varied its amusements by -drumming on the old oaken chest, still preserved; or, growing -emboldened, shook the hangings of the bed, or rustled amongst the -clothes; the alarmed occupants sometimes in despair rolling up the -coverlet, and unavailingly whirling it at their invisible tormentor. At -a neighbouring farm-house, amongst other vagaries, the boggart would -snatch up the infant, whilst asleep between its parents, and, without -awakening them, would harmlessly deposit it on the hearthstone, -downstairs. "Clayton Ho'" [Hall] was of course honoured with a boggart, -which at dead of night diversified its pranks by snatching the clothes -from the beds, trailing heavy iron weights on the floors, or rattling -ponderous chains through the crazy apartments. These pranks becoming -insufferable, the help of a clergyman from the parish church was -obtained; and fortunately, with the aid of counter-spells and -incantations, he succeeded in _laying_ the spirit for ever, declaring -that, - - "Whilst ivy climbs and holly is green, - Clayton Hall Boggart shall no more be seen." - -Even yet one room in the mansion is named "the Bloody Chamber," from -some supposed stains of human gore on the oaken floor planks; which, -however, in reality are only natural red tinges of the wood, denoting -the presence of iron. Even since the formation of the new road, J. -W----, the last of the ancient race of boggart-seers in the township, -used to combat with feeorin' between East End and Droylsden toll-gate; -but as he died a few years ago without bequeathing his gift, he -(happily) carried with him his mantle to the grave. At a period just -within memory, oft, after sunset, has the weary and tardy pedestrian -quickened his speed on approaching some lonely place, by remembering how -its tutelar spirit or Boggart could assume at will the shape of a -rabbit, dog, bear, or still more fearful form. On its appearance, of -course, the wayfarer fled in affright, and from fear and unwonted -exertion, often reached home utterly exhausted. Next day the story would -be widely circulated through the thinly populated district, detailing at -length (and of course gathering minuteness and improvement in its -transmission), how "Owd Yethurt o' Grunsho," or "Lung Tum woife," "th' -neet afore wur welly ta'en by a great black Boggart, wi' great lung -hurms, un' a whiskin' tail, un' yure as black as soot, un' rowlin' e'en -as big as saucers." The decadence of all these old superstitions is to -be attributed to a variety of causes. Straight, well-paved roads; -increased intellectual activity in useful channels, informing the minds -of one locality with the ideas of another, the publication of scientific -works; and lastly, according to one aged unbeliever, the introduction of -"Owd Ned [the steam-engine], un' lung chimblies; fact'ry folk havin' -summat else t'mind nur wanderin' ghosts un' rollickin' sperrits." The -same authority archly declared as a clincher, "There's no Boggarts neaw, -un' iv ther' were, folk han grown so wacken, they'd soon catch 'em."[44] - - -HOUSE BOGGARTS, OR LABOURING GOBLINS. - -These humbler classes of boggarts are by turns both useful and -troublesome to the farmers of the district where they choose to reside. -Syke Lumb Farm, near Blackburn, is reputed to be still visited by one -of these anomalous beings, and many of his mad pranks are still talked -of and believed in the neighbourhood. When in a good humour, this noted -goblin will milk the cows, pull the hay, fodder the cattle, harness the -horses, load the carts, and stack the crops. When irritated by the -utterance of some unguarded expression or mark of disrespect, either -from the farmer or his servants, the cream-mugs are smashed to atoms; no -butter can be obtained by churning; the horses and other cattle are -turned loose or driven into the woods; two cows will sometimes be found -fastened in the same stall; no hay can be pulled from the mow; and all -the while the wicked imp sits grinning with delight upon one of the -cross-beams in the barn. At other times the horses are unable to draw -the empty carts across the farm-yard; if loaded, they are upset; whilst -the cattle tremble with fear, not at any visible cause. Nor do the -inmates of the house experience any better or gentler usage. During the -night the clothes are said to be violently torn from off the beds of the -offending parties, whilst invisible hands drag these individuals down -the stone stairs by the legs, one step at a time, after a more -uncomfortable manner than we need describe. Hothershall Hall, near -Ribchester, was formerly the scene of similar exploits; but the goblin -is understood to have been "laid" under the roots of a large laurel tree -at the end of the house, and will not be able to molest the family so -long as the tree exists. It is a common opinion in that part of the -country that the roots have to be moistened with milk on certain -occasions, in order to prolong its existence, and also to preserve the -power of the spell under which the goblin is laid. None but the Roman -Catholic priesthood are supposed to have the power of "laying an evil -spirit," and hence they have always the honour to be cited in our local -legends. Sometimes, too, they have the credit of outwitting the goblins; -and many an old farm residence has the reputation of having thus been -freed from these imps of darkness till they can spin a rope from the -sands of the Ribble. The mansion at Towneley does not escape the -imputation of having its "_Boggart_," although its visits are now -limited to once in seven years, when its thirst for vengeance has to be -satisfied by the untimely death of one of the residents at the Hall. A -Sir John Towneley is supposed to have injured the poor of the district, -nearly four hundred years ago, by "laying-in" a considerable portion of -common to his park, and, as a punishment for this offence, his soul is -said to haunt the scenes of his oppression. The peasantry still aver -"that the old knight's spirit, being unable to rest, wanders about the -mansion, and may be heard over the very parts taken in, crying, in most -piteous tones-- - - "Be warned! Lay out! Be warned! Lay out! - Around Hore-law and Hollin-hey clough: - To her children give back the widow's cot, - For you and yours there is still enough."[45] - -The popular story of "The Boggart Flitting" is common to both Lancashire -and Yorkshire; and indeed to most of the nations in the North of Europe. - -Of boggarts the Rev. William Thornber observes,[46] that there were -several different kinds, having their haunts in that part of the Fylde -near Blackpool; as, for instance, the wandering ghost of the homicide or -the suicide; that of the steward of injustice, or that of the victim of -a cruel murder; again, the lubber-fiends, the horse-boggarts, and the -house-boggarts, or industrious, yet mischievous imps, haunting -dwellings. He names, "The headless Boggart of White-gate Lane," as a -sample of the first class. So was "The Boggart of Staining Hall," near -Blackpool, said to be the wandering ghost of a Scotchman who was -murdered there near a tree, which has since marked the deed by perfuming -the soil around with a sweet odour of thyme. Of another kind were those -whose appearance was the forerunner of death in some families. The -Walmsleys, of Poulton-le-Fylde, he adds, were haunted by a boggart of -this description, always making its appearance with alarming noises -before the decease of one of the family. - -Of the lubber-fiends, house-boggarts, or brownies, so strikingly -described by Milton,[47] Mr. Thornber mentions the ancient one of -Rayscar and Inskip, which at times kindly housed the grain, collected -the horses, and got them ready for the market; but at other times played -the most mischievous pranks. The famous "Boggart of Hackensall Hall" -had the appearance of a huge horse, which was very industrious if -treated with kindness. Every night it was indulged with a fire, before -which it was frequently seen reclining; and when deprived of this -indulgence by neglect, it expressed its anger by fearful outcries. - - -HORNBY PARK MISTRESS AND MARGARET BRACKIN. - -The following story is told and believed by some persons in Hornby. The -Park Mistress may be supposed to be the ghost of Lady Harrington, who -committed murder three hundred years ago. Margaret Brackin was born in -1745, and died in 1795. The dialect is that of the locality:-- - - "In days that oud folks tell on still, - Meg Brackin went up Windy Bank; - Shou lated kinlin' on the hill, - Till owr t' Lake Mountains t' sun it sank. - - Nat lang at efter t' sun was set, - And shou hed fill'd her brat wi' sticks, - Shou sid aside at t' Park wood yett, - A woman stan'in mang the wicks. - - T' leaves on t' trees, they owm'ered t' land, - And fadin' was the summer light, - When Marget sid that woman stand - Donn'd like a ghoost o' oor i' white. - - Marget was fear'd, but spak and ex'd, - 'Hey Missis! let me gang wi' ye, - I hope as that ye'll nut be vext, - But it is gitten dark and dree.' - - T' Park Mistress e'en shin'd o' wi' leet; - Shou whyatly cam te Marget's side; - T' gerss didn't bend underneath her feet; - Shou seem'd in t' air te float and glide. - - As soon's shou cam whare Marget stood, - Shou gript a tight houd on her hand; - Shou led her first intul t' Park wood, - Then back and forret o' owr t' land. - - They kept na road, they kept na path, - They went thro' brackins, scrogs, and briar, - Marget shou soon was out of breath, - But t' lady didn't seem te tire. - - They baath com down te Wenning's brink, - And Marget's throat was dry wi' dread, - But shou dursn't ex te stop and drink, - Saa forret still that woman led. - - Owr shillar and rough staans they trod, - Intu t' Wenning, then out fra t' stream; - Surlie their walkin' wasn't snod, - T' way they travell'd was naan saa weam. - - Marget lous'd t' strings of her brat, - And trail'd it gerss and bushes through, - Till deg'd and damp and wet it gat; - Then suck'd it out for t' cooling dew. - - Fra Weaver's Ayr they went up t' wood, - Now gaain' straight and then aslant, - They niver stopt, they niver stood, - But raac'd up t' brow saa rough and brant. - - Marget could niver gradely say - Where nesht wi' t' ghoost shou went that neet; - On Windy Bank, when it was day, - They fun' her liggin, spent wi' freet. - - Marget hed been stout and throddy, - But t' walk she tuk that summer neet, - Left lile fatness on her body; - At efter shou was thin and leet." - - -BOGGARTS IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY. - -Having fallen into conversation with a working man on our road to Holme -Chapel, we asked him if people in those parts were now ever annoyed by -beings of another world. Affecting the _esprit fort_, he boldly -answered, "Noa! the country's too full o' folk;" while his whole manner, -and especially his countenance, as plainly said "Yes!" A boy who stood -near was more honest. "O, yes!" he exclaimed, turning pale; "the Boggart -has driven William Clarke out of his house; he flitted last Friday." -"Why," I asked; "what did the Boggart do?" "O, he wouldn't let 'em -sleep; he stripp'd off the clothes." "Was that all?" "I canna' say," -answered the lad, in a tone which showed he was afraid to repeat all he -had heard; "but they're gone, and the house is empty. You can go and see -for yoursel', if you loike. Will's a plasterer, and the house is in -Burnley Wood, on Brown Hills."[48] - -Edwin Waugh, in his story of "_The Grave of Grislehurst Boggart_,"[49] -says, the most notable boggart of the hilly district towards Blackstone -Edge, was the Clegg Ho' Boggart, still the theme of many a winter's tale -among the people of the hills above Clegg Hall. The proverb, "Aw 'm -heere agen, like Clegg Ho' Boggart," is common there, and in all the -surrounding villages.... Boggarts appear, however, to have been more -numerous than they are now upon the country side, when working people -wove what was called "one lamb's wool" in a day; but when it came to -pass that they had to weave "three lambs' wools" in a day, and the -cotton trade arose, boggarts, and fairies, and feeorin' of all kinds, -began to flee away from the clatter of shuttles. As to the Grislehurst -Boggart, here is part of the story as told to Waugh, or by him:--"Whau -it isn't aboon a fortnit sin' th' farmer's wife at the end theer yerd -seed summat i' th' dyhed time o' th' neet; an' hoo war welly thrut eawt -o' bed, too, besides--so then" ... "Th' pranks 'at it's played abeawt -this plaze at time an' time, 'ud flay ony wick soul to yer tell on ... -unyawkin' th' byes, an' turnin' carts an' things o'er i' th' deep neet -time; an' shiftin' stuff up and deawn th' heawse when folk are i' bed; -it's rayther flaysome yo may depend." - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[1] See Thorpe's _Northern Mythology_, vol. i. pp. 118-231. - -[2] See Mallet's _Northern Antiquities_, Keightley's _Mythology of -Greece and Rome_, and Kelly's _Indo-European Tradition and Folk-lore_. - -[3] Keightley's _Fairy Mythology_, pp. 2, 3. - -[4] Roby's _Traditions of Lancashire_, p. xiv. - -[5] It may be stated that this introductory essay is abridged from two -papers read before the Historical Society of Lancashire and Cheshire, in -1859 and 1860, which were written long before the writer saw any of the -almost identical general deductions and conclusions in Dr. Dasent's -introduction to his _Popular Tales from the Norse_. - -[6] This popular opinion appears to be very ancient and wide-spread; for -it has been noticed by Moses as prevailing in Egypt.--Exodus xi. 5-7. - -[7] The use of the old style in effect, is not yet extinct in -Lancashire. The writer knows an old man, R. H., of Habergham, about 77 -years of age, who always reckons the changes of the seasons in this -manner. He alleges the practice of his grandfather and father in support -of his method; and states with much confidence that--"Perliment didn't -change t' seeasuns wen thay chang'd t' day o't' munth." - -[8] _Conybeare_, p. 242. - -[9] Charnock's _Breviary of Natural Philosophy_ in Ashmole's _Theatrum -Chemicum_, p. 297. - -[10] _Companion to Almanac_ for 1837, p. 22. - -[11] Maier's _Symbola Ameæ Mensæ_. - -[12] Thomson's _Annals of Philosophy_, n. s., vol. vi. p. 241. - -[13] Ben Jonson, in his play of the _Alchemist_, has the following -lines:-- - - "But when you see th' effects of the Great Medium, - Of which one part projected on a hundred - Of Mercury, or Venus, or the Moon, - Shall turn it to as many of the Sun; - Nay to a thousand, so ad infinitum, - You will believe me." - -[14] Godwin's _Lives of Necromancers_, Art. Dee. Dr. Dee's _Diary_ -(Camden Soc.) contains many references to his alchemical pursuits.--See -pp. 7, 22, 25, 27, 28, 37, and 63. - -[15] Brewster's _Life of Sir Isaac Newton_, vol. ii. p. 376. - -[16] Preface to _Bibl. Chem. Curiosa_, quoted by Thomson, p. 18. For a -list of Boyle's works connected with alchemy, see the _Philosophical -Epitaphs_, by W. C. - -[17] _Pictorial History of England_, vol. ii. p. 207. - -[18] Baines's _Lancashire_. - -[19] _F[oe]dera_, vol. ix. p. 379. - -[20] _Rot. Parl._, vol. v. p. 314_a_. - -[21] _Rot. Parl._, vol. v. p. 314_a_. - -[22] _Worthies_, &c., p. 122. - -[23] For a copy of this patent in the original Latin, see Baines's -_Lancashire_, vol. i. p. 406. - -[24] Pennant's _London_. - -[25] _History of his Life and Times._ - -[26] Lilly's _Life and Times_, p. 224. - -[27] Whatton's _Memoir_ in Baines's _Lancashire_, vol. ii. p. 367. - -[28] From Barnaby Googe's Translation of the _Regnum Papisticum_ (or -Popish Kingdom) of Naogeorgus, fol. 41 _b_. - -[29] _Golden Legend._ - -[30] Hone's _Every-Day Book_, p. 141. - -[31] See Durand's _Rationale_. - -[32] Strutt's _Manners and Customs_, vol. iii. p. 176. - -[33] Ray's _Collection of Old English Proverbs_. - -[34] P. P., in _Notes and Queries_, vol. ix. p. 569. - -[35] Thornber's _History of Blackpool_, p. 342. - -[36] Toland's _History of the Druids_. - -[37] Hone's _Every-Day Book_, vol. i. p. 594. - -[38] _Gentleman's Magazine_, February, 1795. - -[39] Mr. William Harrison's notes on Waldron's _Description of the Isle -of Man_, p. 125. - -[40] Hampson's _Medii Ævi Kalendarium_, vol. i. p. 252. - -[41] Rev. W. Thornber's _History of Blackpool_. - -[42] _Passages in the Life of a Radical_, vol. i. p. 130. - -[43] _History of Droylsden_, p. 67. - -[44] Mr. John Higson's _Notices of Droylsden_. - -[45] See _Pictorial History of Lancashire_, p. 189, and Whitaker's -_History of Whalley_, p. 342. - -[46] _History of Blackpool_, p. 332. - -[47] In his _L'Allegro_, where he - - "Tells how the drudging goblin sweat - To earn the cream-bowl duly set, - When, in one night, ere glimpse of morn, - His shad'wy flail had thresh'd the corn, - That ten day-labours could not end; - Then lies him down the _lubber-fiend_, - And stretch'd out all the chimney's length, - Basks at the fire his hairy strength, - And, cropful, out of doors he flings, - Ere the first cock his matin rings." - -[48] _Pictorial History of Lancashire._ - -[49] _Sketches of Lancashire Life_, p. 192. - - - - -CHARMS AND SPELLS. - - -These may be placed in two classes--those directed against evil beings, -witchcraft, &c., and those which may be termed in their object curative -of "all the ills that flesh is heir to." First as to - - -CHARMS AND SPELLS AGAINST EVIL BEINGS. - -These are usually supplied for a consideration by the fortune-tellers, -astrologers, or "wise men" of a neighbourhood. The following is a -correct copy of one of these documents which was found over the door of -a house in the neighbourhood of Burnley. Its occupier had experienced -"ill luck," and he thus sought protection from all evil-doers:-- - -"Sun, Moon, Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, Venus, Saturn, Trine, Sextile, -Dragon's Head, Dragon's Tail, I charge you all to gard this hause from -all evils spirits whatever, and gard it from all Desorders, and from -aney thing being taken wrangasly, and give this famaly good Ealth & -Welth." - -Another individual, well known to the writer, was so far convinced that -certain casualties that happened to his cattle arose from the practice -of witchcraft, that he unconsciously resorted to Baal-worship, and -consumed a live calf in the fire, in order to counteract the influences -of his unknown enemies. At the same time, almost every door about his -house had its horse-shoe nailed to it as a charm, to protect all within -it from demons and witches. - - -A CHARM, WRITTEN IN CYPHER, AGAINST WITCHCRAFT AND EVIL SPIRITS. - -Early in the nineteenth century, some men engaged in pulling down a -barn, or shippon, at West Bradford, about two miles north of Clitheroe, -were attracted by seeing a small square piece of wood fall from one of -the beams, and from it dropped a paper, folded as a small letter, but -measuring, when opened, 7-1/4 by 6 inches. A sort of superscription was -in large and unknown characters, and inside the paper was nearly covered -with a species of hieroglyphics, mixed with strange symbols; and in the -top left corner a table or square of thirty-six small squares, filled -with characters in red ink, the great bulk of the writing being in black -ink. The charm belongs to Jeremiah Garnett, Esq., of Roefield, -Clitheroe, and it was first deciphered by his brother, the late Rev. -Richard Garnett, of the British Museum, in May, 1825. It is this -gentleman's explanation, with a very few additions and corrections by -the present writer, the substance of which is now appended:--The table -in the top corner is a sort of magic square, called by astrologers "The -Table of the Sun." It consists of six rows of six small squares each, -and is so arranged that the sum of the figures in every row of six -squares, whether counted vertically, horizontally, or diagonally, -amounts to 111, and the sum total of the table to 666--a favourite -magical number, being that of "the beast."[50] To mystify the thing as -much as possible the numerals are expressed by letters, or rather by a -sort of cypher, chiefly formed from the Greek alphabet. Thus 1 is -represented by _a_; 2 = _e_; 3 = _i_; 4 = _o_; 5 = _u_; 6 = _l_; 7 = -_m_; 8 = _n_; 9 = _r_; and 0 = _z_. In a tablet, or space at the top of -the paper, flanking this table, are five mystical characters, or -symbols, in red ink. The first consists of the symbols of the sun, and -of the constellation Leo, which, in astrology, is "the sun's own house," -and where, of course, he is supposed to have the greatest power. A word -in black-ink cyphers, under these symbols, is _Machen_, the cabalistic -name of "the third [or fourth] heaven;" and the Archangel Michael being -supposed to preside over the sphere [and to be the "Angel of the Lord's -Day"], his seal, or cypher, is introduced below these symbols--a series -of joined lines and swirls, like some long word written in one of the -older English shorthands. [This figure will be found under "The Lord's -Day," in the Heptameron of one Peter de Abano.] In cyphers below, in -black ink, is written his name, "Michael." The next cabalistic character -represents "the _Intelligence_ of the Sun," and over it, in cypher or -Greek letters, is written "intelligence." Under this is another -cabalistic symbol, denoting the "Spirit of the Sun," the word "spirit" -being written within it. In astrology, every planet is supposed to have -two beings, or spirits, attached to it, and called its Intelligence and -its Spirit. The last figure (which contains in a sort of quartering the -word _sigil_, seal) is "the seal of the Sun" himself, in astrological -language. All these symbols show that the charm was meant to be put in -operation on a Sunday, that being the day of the Archangel Michael, as -well as of the sun. These symbols and table occupy the upper third of -the paper, the remaining two-thirds being filled with the words of the -charm itself, in fourteen lines, of a sort of cypher-writing, in which -the five vowels are represented by a sort of arbitrary character, as are -most of the consonants, g, l, m, n, and p, being written as Greek -letters. The fourteen lines may be thus rendered in ordinary letters; -and it may be supposed that whoever pronounces the incantation, makes -the sign of the cross wherever it is indicated in the writing:-- - -Line 1. "apanton [or awanton] + hora + camab. + naadgrass + pynavet -ayias + araptenas. - -2. "+ quo + signasque + payns [or pagns ? pagus] + sut gosikl + -tetragrammaton + - -3. "inverma + amo + {th} [apparently an abbreviation for _Theos_, God] + -dominus + deus + hora + [here a hole in the paper has destroyed a word] -+ fiat + fiat + fiat + - -4. "ut dicitur decimo septimo capitulo Sancti Matthæi a vigesimo carmine - -5. "fide demoveatis montes, fiat secundum fidem, si sit, vel fuerit - -6. "ut cunque fascinum vel dæmon habitat vel perturbat hanc - -7. "personam, vel hunc locum, vel hanc bestiam, adjuro te, abìre - -8. "Sine perturbatione, molestia, vel tumultu minime, nomine - -9. "Patris, et Filii, et Spiritus Sanctu. Amen. Pater noster qui es - -10. "in c[oe]lis, sanctificetur nomen tuum, veniat regnum tuum, fiat -voluntas - -11. "tuo, sicut in c[oe]lo etiam in terra, panem nostrum quotidianum da - -12. "nobis in diem, et remitte nobis peccata nostra, etenim ipsi - -13. "remittimus omnibus qui nobis debent; et ne nos inducas in tentat- - -14. "-ionem, sed libera nos a malo. Fiat." - - * * * * * - -It will be seen that the first three lines of this charm are a sort of -gibberish, with an admixture of Greek and Latin words, constituting in -itself a charm, supposed to be efficacious in expelling or restraining -evil spirits. With the fourth line, then, we begin our translation. - -"As it is said in the seventeenth chapter of St. Matthew, at the -twentieth verse, 'By faith ye may remove mountains: be it according to -[my] faith,'[51] if there is, or ever shall be, witchcraft [or -enchantment] or evil spirit, that haunts or troubles this person, or -this place, or this beast [or these cattle], I adjure thee to depart, -without disturbance, molestation, or trouble in the least, in the name -of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen." [Then -follows the Lord's Prayer in Latin, ending with the word "Fiat" (be it -done), instead of Amen.] These words are endorsed or written outside the -paper in two lines:-- - - "Agla + On [or En] Tetragrammaton." - -In a charm cited in the _Heptameron, or Mercurial Elements_ of Peter de -Abano, these are called "the three secret names." The first two are -names given to the Deity by the Jewish cabalists. The third (which is -also the last word in the second line of the charm) is one also -frequently in use amongst Talmudists and Jewish writers, meaning -literally "four-lettered," as descriptive of the sacred and -unpronounceable name ("Jehovah," written in Hebrew by four letters). The -word is here endorsed, as if to authenticate the whole charm, and to -show that it is the production of an artist who understood his business; -for "tetragrammaton," and "fiat," are words of such potency, that a -charm without them would be of no efficacy whatever. The Rev. Richard -Garnett adds to his account of this charm (in May, 1825):--"I should -think that the document is of no great antiquity, probably not more than -thirty or forty years old. It was doubtless manufactured by some country -'wise man,' a regular dealer in such articles. There are, I believe, -several persons within twenty miles of Blackburn, who still carry on a -trade of this sort." - - * * * * * - -[In the _Heptameron_, already quoted, is "The Conjuration of the Lord's -Day," which runs thus:--"I conjure and confirm upon you, ye strong and -holy angels of God ... [here follow various names of angels, including -those 'who rule in the fourth heaven'], and by the name of his star, -which is _Sol_, and by his sign, and by the immense name of the living -God, and by all the names aforesaid--I conjure thee, Michael, O! great -angel, who art chief ruler of the Lord's Day," &c.]. - -Amongst other charms against evil may be named that of our ancestors, -who, when eating eggs, were careful to break the shells, lest the -witches should use them to their disadvantage. We do the same for a -similar reason; it is accounted unlucky to leave them whole. They -avoided cutting their nails on a Friday, because bad luck would follow; -but we have improved upon their practice, and lay down the whole theory -as follows:-- - - "Cut your nails on a Monday, cut them for news; - Cut them on Tuesday, a new pair of shoes; - Cut them on Wednesday, cut them for health; - Cut them on Thursday, cut them for wealth; - Cut them on Friday, cut them for woe; - Cut them on Saturday, a journey you'll go; - Cut them on Sunday, you cut them for evil, - For all the next week you'll be ruled by the Devil." - -Most grandmothers will exclaim, "God bless you!" when they hear a child -sneeze, and they sum up the philosophy of the subject with the following -lines, which used to delight the writer in days of his childhood:-- - - "Sneeze on a Monday, you sneeze for danger; - Sneeze on a Tuesday, you kiss a stranger; - Sneeze on a Wednesday, you sneeze for a letter; - Sneeze on a Thursday, for something better; - Sneeze on a Friday, you sneeze for sorrow; - Sneeze on a Saturday, your sweetheart to-morrow; - Sneeze on a Sunday, your safety seek, - The Devil will have you the whole of the week." - -These lines may be taken either as charms or spells to produce the -effect predicted; or as omens or warnings of the results to follow. In -most parts of Lancashire it is customary for children to repeat the -following invocation every evening on retiring to bed, after saying the -Lord's Prayer and the Apostles' Creed:-- - - "Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, - Bless the bed that I lie on; - There are four corners to my bed, - And four angels overspread, - Two at the feet, two at the head. - - If any ill thing me betide, - Beneath your wings my body hide. - Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, - Bless the bed that I lie on. Amen."[52] - -The influence of the "_evil eye_" is felt as strongly in this county as -in any other part of the world, and various means are resorted to in -order to prevent its effects. "Drawing blood above the mouth" of the -person suspected is the favourite antidote in the neighbourhood of -Burnley; and in the district of Craven, a few miles within the borders -of Yorkshire, a person who was well disposed towards his neighbours is -believed to have slain a pear-tree which grew opposite his house by -directing towards it "the first morning glances" of his evil eye.[53] -Spitting three times in the person's face; turning a live coal on the -fire; and exclaiming, "The Lord be with us," are other means of averting -its influence. - -In Lancashire our boys spit over their fingers in order to screw up -their courage to the fighting point, or to give them luck in the battle. -Sometimes they do this as a sort of asseveration, to attest their -innocence of some petty crime laid to their charge. Travellers and -recruits still spit upon a stone and then throw it away, in order to -insure a prosperous journey. Hucksters, market-people, &c., always spit -upon the first money they receive in the morning, in order to insure -ready sale and "good luck" during the day. "Hansell (they say) is always -lucky when well wet." - -The ancients performed certain rites and ceremonies at the changes of -the moon; and hence that luminary has added some curious items to the -popular creed. _Old Mother Bunch's Garland_ is an authority on these -matters, and amongst many other things it teaches expectant females who -desire to pry into futurity, to cross their hands on the appearance of -the new moon, and exclaim-- - - "All hail! new Moon; all hail to thee! - I pray thee, good Moon, declare to me - This night who my true love shall be." - -We have noticed, in the introductory chapter, various other minor charms -and spells to avert evil, or "bad luck," and to secure "good luck" or -fortune for a coming period, usually a year. - - -THE CROW CHARM AND THE LADY-BIRD CHARM. - -The following charms are repeated by children throughout Lancashire and -Yorkshire:-- - -_Crow Charm._ - - "Crow, crow, get out of my sight, - Or else I'll eat thy liver and lights." - -_Lady-Bird Charm._ - - "Lady-bird, lady-bird, eigh [hie] thy way home, - Thy house is on fire, thy children all roam; - Except little Nan, who sits in her pan, - Weaving gold laces as fast as she can." - -I remember as a child sitting out of doors on an evening of a warm -summer or autumn day, and repeating the crow charm to flights of rooks, -as they winged home to their rookery. The charm was chanted so long as a -crow remained in sight, their final disappearing being to my mind strong -proof of the efficacy of the charm. The lady-bird charm is repeated to -the insect (the _Coccinella septempunctata_ of Linnæus), the common -Seven-spotted Lady-bird, to be found in every field and garden during -summer. The lady-bird is placed upon the child's open hand, and the -charm is repeated until the insect takes to flight. The warmth and -moisture of the hand no doubt facilitate this, although the child fully -believes in the moving power of the charm. The lady-bird is also known -as _lady-cow_, _cow-lady_, and is sometimes addressed as -"_Cusha-cow-lady_."[54] - -One of the present editors has often joined in the lady-bird charm, in -the East Riding of Yorkshire, where it ran-- - - "Cusha-coo-lady, fly away home, - Thy house is a-fire and all thy bairns gone," &c. - - -PIMPERNEL. - -According to a MS. on Magic, preserved in Chetham's Library, Manchester, -"the herb pimpernel is good to prevent witchcraft, as Mother Bumby doth -affirm;" and the following lines must be used when it is gathered:-- - - "Herb pimpernel I have thee found - Growing upon Christ Jesus' ground; - The same gift the Lord Jesus gave unto thee, - When He shed his blood upon the tree. - Arise up, pimpernel, and go with me, - And God bless me, - And all that shall wear thee. Amen." - -Say this fifteen days together, twice a day; morning early fasting, and -in the evening full.--(_MS. Ibid._) - - -THE MOUNTAIN ASH, OR WICKEN OR WIGGEN TREE. - -The anti-witching properties of this tree are held in very high esteem -in the northern counties of England. No witch will come near it; and it -is believed that its smallest twig crossing the path of a witch, will -effectually stop her career. To prevent the churn being bewitched, so -that the butter will not come, the churn-staff must be made of the -wiggen-tree. So cattle must be protected from witchery by sprigs of -wiggen over or in the shippons. All honest people wishing to have sound -sleep must keep the witches from their beds by having a branch of wiggen -at their bed-heads.[55] - -The charms against the malevolence of witches and of evil beings were -very numerous. A horse-shoe nailed to the door protected the family -domicile; a _hag_-stone, penetrated with a hole, and attached to the key -of the stable, preserved the horse within from being ridden by the -witch; and when hung up at the bed-head, was a safeguard to the master -himself. A hot heater, put into the churn, kept witches and evil beings -from spoiling the cream or retarding the butter. The baking of dough was -protected by a cross, and so was the kneading-trough barred against -fiendly visitation. Another class of charms was of those used by and -amongst the witches themselves. - -In the "Confession of James Device, prisoner at Lancaster," charged -with being a witch and practicing witchcraft, before "William Sands, -James Anderton, and Thomas Cowell, Esqrs.," we have the following -"charm" to get "_drink_ within one hour after saying the said prayer:"-- - - "Upon Good Friday I will fast while I may, - Untill I heare them knell - Our Lord's own bell. - Lord in his messe - With his twelve Apostles good;-- - What hath he in his hand? - Ligh in leath wand: - What hath he in his other hand? - Heaven's doore keys. - Steck, Steck Hell door, - Let Chrizun child - Goe to its mother mild. - What is yonder that casts a light so farrandly? - Mine own dear Sonne that's naild to the tree. - He is naild sore by the head and hand; - And Holy harne Panne. - Well is that man - That Friday spell can, - His child to learne:-- - A cross of Blue and another of Red, - As Good Lord was to the Roode. - Gabriel laid him down to sleep - Upon the ground of Holy weepe:-- - Good Lord came walking by, - Sleepest thou, wakest thou, Gabriel? - No, Lord, I am sted with stick and stake, - That I can neither sleepe nor wake. - Rise up, Gabriel, and go with me, - The stick nor the stake shall never deere thee. - Sweet Jesus. Our Lord. Amen." - -But James Device's charm was not the only one brought to light in this -memorable trial;--the witches themselves were liable to be bewitched by -others of superior power, nor were their domestic preparations -altogether free from the malevolent effects of an envious practitioner. -In these cases _counter charms_ were of frequent necessity, and none of -these seem to be of greater efficacy than the following one from the -"Examination of Anne Whittle, _alias_ Chattox [a celebrated Lancashire -witch], before Roger Nowell, Esq., of Read, April 2nd, 1612." "A charm -to help _drink_ that is forespoken or bewitched." - - "Three biters hast thou bitten. - The Heart, ill Eye, ill Tongue. - Three bitter shall be thy Boote, - Father, Sonne, and Holy Ghost:--a God's name. - Five Paternosters, five Avies and a Creede, - In worship of five woundes of our Lorde." - -The Scotch appear to have held similar notions on these subjects with -ourselves, for in Sinclair's "_Satan's Invisible World Discovered_" we -find the following charm, "To preserve the house and those in it from -danger at night:"-- - - "Who sains the house the night? - They that sains it ilk a night, - Saint Bryde and her brate; - Saint Colme and his hat; - Saint Michael and his spear; - Keep this house from the weir-- - From running thiefe-- - And burning thiefe-- - And from and ill Rea:-- - That be the gate can gae:-- - And from an ill wight:-- - That be the gate can light. - Nine reeds about the house; - Keep it all the night. - What is that what I see, - So red, so bright, beyond the sea? - 'Tis he was pierced through the hands, - Through the feet, through the throat, - Through the tongue, - Through the liver and the lung. - Well is them that well may - Fast on Good Friday." - - -CHARMS TO CURE SICKNESS, WOUNDS, CATTLE DISTEMPER, ETC. - -Many are the charms and spells which operate against disease or sickness -in two ways--they either ward it off, if it threaten; or if too late for -that, they dispel its virulence, and effect a marvellous cure. No -medical man, we are told, will rub ointment on a wound with the -forefinger of his right hand, because it is popularly accounted -venomous. A dead man's hand is said to have the power of curing wens and -other excrescences of the neck. Three spiders, worn about the neck, will -prevent the ague. A string with _nine_ knots tied upon it, placed about -the neck of a child, is reported to be an infallible remedy for the -whooping-cough. The same effect also follows from passing the child -_nine_ times round the neck of a she-ass, according to the popular creed -of the county. Formerly silver rings, made from the hinges of coffins, -were worn as charms for the cure of fits, or for the prevention of -cramp, or even of rheumatism. The superstition continues, though the -metal is of necessity changed, few coffins having now hinges of silver. -The stranger in Lancashire can be nowhere, in town or country, amongst -any considerable number of the humbler classes, without seeing on the -fingers of women chiefly, but occasionally of men, what are called -galvanized rings, made of two hoops, one of zinc, the other of copper, -soldered together. Many wear a belt to charm away rheumatism; brimstone -carried about the person is regarded as a sure remedy against cramp; so -also is placing the shoes under the bed, the toes peeping outwards. -These are the modern charms or cure-alls against disease. Fried mice are -yet given to children in some parts of Lancashire, to cure non-retention -of urine during sleep. - - -CHARMS FOR THE TOOTHACHE. - -"The following," says the Rev. W. Thornber, of Blackpool, "is a foolish -charm, yet much accredited amongst us [in the Fylde] for the -toothache:"-- - - "Peter sat weeping on a marble stone. - Jesus came near and said, 'What aileth thee, O Peter?' - He answer'd and said, 'My Lord and my God!' - He that can say this, and believeth it for my sake, - Never more shall have the toothache." - -Our "wise men" still sell the following charm for the cure of continued -toothache, but it must be worn inside the vest or stays, and over the -left breast:-- - -"Ass Sant Petter sat at the geats of Jerusalm our Blessed Lord and -Sevour Jesus Crist Pased by and Sead, What Eleth thee hee sead Lord my -Teeth ecketh hee sead arise and folow mee and thy Teeth shall never Eake -Eney moor. Fiat + Fiat + Fiat."[56] - - -VERVAIN, FOR WOUNDS, ETC. - -A magical MS. in Chetham's Library, Manchester, of the time of Queen -Elizabeth, supplies the following metrical prayer, to be said in -gathering this herb:-- - - "All-hele, thou holy herb, Vervin, - Growing on the ground; - In the Mount of Calvary - There wast thou found; - Thou helpest many a grief, - And stanchest many a wound. - In the name of sweet Jesus - I take thee from the ground. - O Lord, effect the same - That I do now go about." - -The following lines, according to the same authority, were to be said -when pulling it:-- - - "In the name of God, on Mount Olivet - First I thee found; - In the name of Jesus - I pull thee from the ground." - - -CHARMS TO STOP BLEEDING. - -In an ancient 8vo. MS. volume, described by Dr. Whitaker, in his -_History of Whalley_, entitled _Liber Loci Benedicti de Whalley_, -commencing with the translation of the convent from Stanlaw (in 1296) -and ending about the year 1346, are the following monkish charms (in -Latin) for stopping hæmorrhage:-- - -"_For staunching bleeding from the Nostrils, or from Wounds, an approved -remedy._--O God, be Thou merciful to this Thy servant N., nor allow to -flow from his body more than one drop of blood. So may it please the Son -of God. So his mother Mary. In the name of the Father, stop, O blood! In -the name of the Son, stop, O blood! In the name of the Holy Ghost, stop, -O blood! In the name of the Holy Trinity. - -"_To staunch Bleeding._--A soldier of old thrust a lance into the side -of the Saviour: immediately there flowed thence blood and water,--the -blood of Redemption, and the water of Baptism. In the name of the Father -+ may the blood cease. In the name of the Son + may the blood remain. In -the name of the Holy Ghost + may no more blood flow from the mouth, the -vein, or the nose." - -To particular persons was attached the virtue of stopping bleeding by a -word; and a woman of Marton, near Blackpool, whose maiden name was -Bamber, was so celebrated for her success, that she was sought for to -stop hæmorrhage throughout a district of twenty miles around. - - -TOUCHING FOR THE KING'S EVIL. - -The records of the Corporation of Preston contain two votes of money, to -enable persons to go from Preston to be touched for the evil. Both are -in the reign of James II. In 1682, the bailiffs were ordered to "pay -unto James Harrison, bricklayer, 10_s._ towards the carrying of his son -to London, in order to the procuring of his Majesty's touch." And in -1687, when James was at Chester, the council passed a vote that "the -bailiffs pay unto the persons undermentioned each of them 5_s._ towards -their charge in going to Chester to get his Majesty's touch: Anne, -daughter of Abel Mope, ---- daughter of Richard Letmore."[57] - - -CURES FOR WARTS. - -Steal a piece of meat from a butcher's stall or his basket, and, after -having well rubbed the parts affected with the stolen morsel, bury it -under a gateway at four lane ends, or, in case of emergency, in any -secluded place. All this must be done so secretly as to escape -detection; and as the portion of meat decays, the warts will disappear. -This practice is very prevalent in Lancashire, and two of my female -acquaintances having tried the remedy, stoutly maintain its -efficacy.[58] - -The following superstition prevails in the neighbourhood of Manchester: -Take a piece of twine, making upon it as many knots as there are warts -to be removed; touch each wart with the corresponding knot; then bury -the twine in a moist place, saying at the same time, "There is none to -redeem it besides thee." As the process of decay goes on [in the twine] -the warts gradually disappear.[59] - -A snail hung upon a thorn is another favourite spell against warts; as -the snail wastes away, so do the warts. Again, take a bag of stones, -equal in number with the warts to be destroyed, and throw them over the -left shoulder; the warts soon quit the thrower. But whoever chances to -pick up one or more of these stones, takes with them as many of the -warts, which are thus transferred from the loser to the finder of the -stones. - - -CURE FOR HYDROCEPHALUS IN CATTLE. - -Dr. Whitaker mentions what he designates as "one practical superstition" -in the district about Pendle, and peculiar to that neighbourhood. "The -hydrocephalus (he says) is a disease incident to adolescent animals, and -is supposed by the shepherds and herdsmen to be contagious; but in order -to arrest the progress of the disease, whenever a young beast had died -of this complaint, it was usual, and it has, I believe, been practised -by farmers yet alive, to cut off the head and convey it for interment -into the nearest part of the adjoining county. Stiperden, a desert plain -upon the border of Yorkshire, was the place of skulls." Whitaker thinks -the practice may have originated in some confused and fanciful analogy -to the case of Azazel (Numbers xvi. 22), an analogy between the removal -of sin and disease--that as the transgressions of the people were laid -upon the head of the scape-goat, the diseases of the herd should be laid -upon the head of the deceased animal.[60] - - -CATTLE DISORDERS.--THE SHREW TREE IN CARNFORTH. - -On an elevation in the township of Carnforth, in the parish of Warton, -called Moothaw [? Moot Hall], the ancient Saxon courts were held. Near -this place stood the "Shrew Tree" mentioned by Lucas, which, according -to rustic superstition, received so much virtue from plugging up a -number of living shrews, or field-mice, in a cavity prepared for their -reception in the tree, that a twig cut from it, when freely applied to -the backs of disordered cattle, would cure them of their maladies.[61] - - -CHARMS FOR AGUE. - -"Casting out the ague" was but another name for "casting out the devil," -for it was his possession of the sufferer that caused the body to shiver -and shake. One man, of somewhat better education than his neighbours, -acquired a reputation for thus removing the ague by exorcism, and was -much resorted to for many years for relief. - - -STINGING OF NETTLES. - -This was at once removed by the saying aloud of some charm in doggerel -verse. - - -JAUNDICE. - -Persons in the Fylde district suffering from this disorder were some -years ago cured at the rate of a shilling per head, by a person living -at the Fold, who, by some charm or incantation, performed on the urine -of the afflicted person, suspended in a bottle over the smoke of his -fire, was believed to effect most wonderful cures. - - -TO PROCURE SLEEP BY CHANGING THE DIRECTION OF THE BED. - -There are two superstitions respecting restlessness. One is that it is -caused by the bed standing north and south, and that it will be cured if -the bedstead be so moved as to stand east and west. The other goes -further, and says that to effect a perfect remedy, not only must the -bedstead range east and west, but that the head must be towards the -east. One informant stated that this was because the earth revolved from -west to east, or in an easterly course. - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[50] Revelation xiii. 18. - -[51] This is not a literal quotation. The verse runs thus in the -ordinary version: "If ye have faith as a grain of mustard-seed, ye shall -say to this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place, and it shall -remove; and nothing shall be impossible to you." - -[52] This is noticed by the Rev. W. Thornber in his _History of -Blackpool_, p. 99; also in the _Oxford Essays_, 1858, p. 127; and the -late Rev. James Dugan, M.A., T.C.D., informed the writer that the Irish -midwives in Ulster use a very similar formula when visiting their -patients. They first mark each corner of the house, on the outside, with -a cross, and previously to entering repeat the following words:-- - - "There are four corners to her bed, - Four angels at her head: - Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, - God bless the bed that she lies on. - New Moon, new Moon, God bless me, - God bless this house and family." - -[53] See Carr's _Craven Glossary_, vol. i. p. 137.--"Look, sir," said -Mr. Carr's informant, "at that pear-tree, it wor some years back, sir, a -maast flourishin' tree. Ivvry mornin, as soon as he first oppans the -door, that he may not cast his ee on onny yan passin' by, he fixes his -een o' that pear-tree, and ye plainly see how it's deed away." - -[54] Mr. Robert Rawlinson in _Notes and Queries_, vol. iv. p. 55. - -[55] See Hone's _Table Book_, vol. i. p. 674. - -[56] Carr's _Glossary_, vol. ii. p. 264. - -[57] Wm. Dobson, in _Notes and Queries_, 2nd series, vol. iv. p. 287. - -[58] T. T. W., ibid., vol. ii. p. 68. - -[59] H., ibid. - -[60] _History of Whalley._ - -[61] Baines's _Lancashire_. - - - - -THE DEVIL, DEMONS, &c. - - -THE DEVIL. - -The power of the devil, his personal appearance, and the possibility of -bartering the soul for temporary gain, must still be numbered among the -articles of our popular faith. Repeating the Lord's Prayer backwards is -said to be the most effectual plan for "raising the devil;" but when -the terms of the bargain are not satisfactory, his exit can only be -secured by making the sign of the cross and calling on the name of -Christ. In the neighbourhood of Blackburn a story prevails that two -threshers once succeeded in raising him through the barn floor; but on -their becoming alarmed at their success, he was summarily dismissed by -means of a vigorous thrashing on the head with the flails. His -partiality for playing at cards has long been proverbial, both in -Lancashire and elsewhere. A near relative of the writer firmly believed -that the devil had once visited their company when they had prolonged -their play into Sunday. How he joined them they never rightly knew, but -(as in the Danish legend respecting a similar visit) his presence was -first suspected in consequence of his extraordinary "run of good luck;" -and a casual detection of his _cloven foot_ completed the dispersion of -the players. It is not always, however, that he obtains the advantage; -for he has more than once been outwitted by a crafty woman or a cunning -priest. In the Lancashire tradition we find the poor tailor of Chatburn -stipulating for _three_ wishes, and, on the advice of his wife, -consulting the "holy father of Salley" in his extremity. When the fatal -day arrived, he freed himself from the bond by expressing as his last -wish, that his tormentor "were riding back to his quarters on a dun -horse, never to plague him more." The devil, it is said, gave a yell -which was heard to Colne, on finding that he had lost his man. Mr. Roby -in his _Traditions_, and the author of the _Pictorial History of -Lancashire_, give humorous engravings of this noted ride; and the sign -of "The Dule upo' Dun," over the door of the wayside inn, attests the -popular belief in the local tradition. From these and many other -instances it is evident that we have derived many of these superstitions -from the Saxon and Danish settlers in Northumbria. The essential parts -of each are identical, and as regards these particular bargains, it may -be added as a curious circumstance, that in no case is the bond held to -be binding unless it be signed with the blood of the person -contracting.[62] - -Offering fowls to evil spirits appears to have been an ancient and -wide-spread practice. It was common to sacrifice a cock to the devil. -Burns, in his "Address to the Deil," says--"Some cock or cat your rage -must stop." Music and dancing are also associated in our popular -superstitions with witches, evil spirits, and the devil. The devils, it -is said, love music, but dread bells, and have a very delicate sense of -smells. In the _True and Faithful Relation of what passed between Dr. -Dee and some Spirits_, we learn that the devil appeared to the doctor -"as an angel in a white robe, holding a bloody cross in his right hand, -the same hand being also bloody," and in this guise he prayed, and -"anabaptistically bewailed the wickedness of the world."[63] - - -RAISING THE DEVIL. - -The boys at the Burnley Grammar-school are said to have succeeded on one -occasion in raising the devil. They repeated the Lord's Prayer -backwards, and performed some incantations by which, as it is said, -Satan was induced to make his appearance through a stone flag on the -floor of the school-house. After he had got his head and shoulders well -out, the boys became alarmed, and began to hammer him down with the -poker and tongs. With much ado they drove him back; but the _black mark_ -he had left on the flag was shown in proof of his appearance until the -school-house was repaired, a few years ago, when the floor was boarded -over, and the flagstone disappeared. - - -THE DEVIL & THE SCHOOLMASTER AT COCKERHAM. - -It is said that the arch Spirit of Evil once took up his abode in -Cockerham, and so scared and disturbed the inhabitants of that quiet -place, that at length in public meeting, to consider how to free -themselves from this fiendish persecution, they appointed the -schoolmaster, as the wisest and cleverest man in the place, to do his -best to drive the devil away. Using the prescribed incantation at -midnight, the pedagogue succeeded in raising Satan; but when he saw his -large horns and tail, saucer eyes, and long claws, he became almost -speechless. According to the recognised procedure in such cases, the -devil granted him the privilege of setting three tasks, which if he -(Satan) accomplished, the schoolmaster became his prey; if he failed, it -would compel the flight of the demon from Cockerham. The first task, to -count the number of dewdrops on certain hedges, was soon accomplished; -and so was the second, to count the number of stalks in a field of -grain. The third task was then proposed in the following words, -according to a doggerel version of the tradition:-- - - "Now make me, dear sir, a rope of yon sand, - Which will bear washing in Cocker, and not lose a strand." - -Speedily the rope was twisted of fine sand, but it would not stand -washing; so the devil was foiled, and at one stride he stepped over the -bridge over Broadfleet, at Pilling Moss. The metrical version of the -legend is scarcely worth printing. - - -OLD NICK. - -According to Scandinavian mythology, the supreme god Odin assumes the -name of Nick, Neck, Nikkar, Nikur, or Hnikar, when he acts as the evil -or destructive principle. In the character of Nikur, or Hnikudur, a -Protean water-sprite, he inhabits the lakes and rivers of Scandinavia, -where he raises sudden storms and tempests, and leads mankind into -destruction. Nick, or Nickar, being an object of dread to the -Scandinavians, propitiatory worship was offered to him; and hence it has -been imagined that the Scandinavian spirit of the waters became, in the -middle ages, St. Nicholas, the patron of sailors, who invoke his aid in -storms and tempests. This supposition (which has a degree of probability -almost amounting to certainty) receives countenance from the great -devotion still felt by the Gothic nations towards St. Nicholas, to whom -many churches on the sea-shore are dedicated. The church of St. -Nicholas, in this situation at Liverpool, was consecrated in 1361; and, -says Mr. Baines,[64] "in the vicinity there formerly stood a statue of -St. Nicholas; and when the faith in the intercession of saints was more -operative than at present, the mariners were wont to present a -peace-offering for a prosperous voyage on their going out to sea, and a -wave-offering on their return; but the saint, having lost his votaries, -has long since disappeared." The Danish Vikings called the Scandinavian -sea-god _Hold Nickar_, which in time degenerated into the ludicrous -expression, "Old Nick."[65] - -Another writer on this subject says:--We derive the familiar epithet of -"_Old Nick_" from the Norwegian Nök, the Norse Nikr, or the Swedish -Neck; and no further proof of their identity is required than a -comparison between the attributes possessed in common by all these -supernatural beings. The _Nök_ is said to require a human sacrifice once -a year, and some one is therefore annually missing in the vicinity of -the pond or river where this sprite has taken up its abode. The males -are said to be very partial to young maidens, whom they seize and drag -under the water; whilst those of the opposite sex are quite as -attractive and dangerous to the young fishermen who frequent the rivers. -The German _Nixes_ possess the same attributes. Both sexes have large -green teeth; and the male wears a green hat, which is frequently -mistaken by his victims for a tuft of beautiful vegetation. He is said -to kill without mercy whenever he drags a person down; and a fountain of -blood, which shoots up from the surface of the water, announces the -completion of the deed. A perfect identification of this with our own -popular belief is now easy. Nothing is more common at present than for -children who reside in the country to be cautioned against venturing too -near the water's brink, lest "_Green Teeth_" or "_Bloody Bones_" should -pull them in. "_Old Nick_" is said to lurk under the shady willows which -overhang the deep water; and the bubbles of gas which may be observed -escaping from the bottoms of quiet pools are attributed to the movements -of the water-sprites which lurk beneath. - - -DEMONOLOGY. - -A recent writer in _Blackwood's Magazine_ asks if Demonology "was not a -vague spirit-worship, the ancient religion of the bulk of mankind?" -"This Demonology" (he continues) "may be said to have been imported into -Christianity in its early days. It was the universal belief of the Pagan -world, and not easily to be eradicated; as the early Church accepted -things pretty much as it found them, and turned them to account; -teaching that these objects of heathen awe and reverence were fallen -angels, whose power for evil had been permitted to exist uncontrolled -till the advent of our Saviour. The early Roman Church elaborately -imitated, if it did not exceed, the Greeks and Romans in their -demonology. Every class of men had their guardians, who practically -represented the _Dii minores_ or _minorum gentium_; the hills and dales -and woods had their patrons, the successors of the Orcades, Napææ, and -the Dryades; every kind of disease, from the toothache to the gout, had -its special healer, and even birds and beasts their spiritual -protectors." No one who has paid the most passing attention to the -folk-lore of this country can have failed to note amongst us, even yet, -the remnants of this curious superstition. In 1531, John Cousell, of -Cambridge, and John Clarke, of Oxford, two learned clerks, applied for -and obtained from Henry VIII. a formal license to practise sorcery, and -to build churches, a quaint combination of evil and antidote. They -professed power to summon "the sprytes of the ayre," and to make use of -them generally, and particularly in the discovery of treasure and stolen -property. Their seventh petition is to build churches, bridges, and -chapels, and to have cognizance of all sciences. One of their petitions -refers to a certain "noyntment" to see the sprytes, and to speak with -them dayly. Strange that Henry VIII. should have granted this license, -seeing that a statute was passed in his reign, making "witchcraft and -sorcery felony, without benefit of clergy."[66] Bishop Jewell, preaching -before Queen Anne, on the marvellous increase of witches and sorcerers, -after describing how the victims pined away, even unto death, loyally -concluded his sermon thus, "I pray God they never practise further than -upon the subject." The following charm or spell against St. Vitus's -Dance was, and very likely is still, in use in Devonshire. It was -written on parchment, and carried about by an old woman so afflicted:-- - - "Shake her, good Devil, - Shake her once well; - Then shake her no more, - Till you shake her in hell." - -Some of our laws against sorcery remained unrepealed a little more than -forty years ago. The Irish law against sorcery was only repealed in -1831. So late as August, 1863, an old man of eighty was flung into a -mill-stream in the parish of Little Hedingham, being what is called -"swimming for a wizard," and he died of his maltreatment. One curious -book on Demonology is entitled "An Account of Demoniacs, and the power -of casting out Demons, both in the New Testament, and the four first -Centuries," by William Whiston, M.A. (London, 1737, 8vo). He observes -that "The symptoms of these demoniacal distresses were very different -from the symptoms of other diseases, and even included wild raving, -irregular convulsions of the body, unnatural contortions of the limbs, -or dismal malady of the mind, and came upon the unhappy patients by -terrible fits of paroxysms, to the amazement of the spectators, and the -horrible affection of the possessed, and included the sorest illness and -madness in the world." The same symptoms revived in the extraordinary -epidemic called the _hystero-demonopathy_, which visited Morzine, in -Savoy, in 1857. The persons afflicted were violently and unnaturally -convulsed; now rushed phrenetically into the woods, or to the river, now -were subject to fits of coma; were insensible to pain; believed -themselves to be haunted by evil spirits; were violent, but in their -violence injured no one; and exhibited generally symptoms not observed -in any known disorder.[67] The people of Morzine believed themselves -possessed by spirits of dead persons, a peculiarity which appears to -have occurred in many cases during the prevalence of the epidemic. - - -DEMON AND GOBLIN SUPERSTITIONS. - -Among the more prominent of the demon superstitions prevalent in -Lancashire, we may instance that of the _Spectre Huntsman_, which -occupies so conspicuous a place in the folk-lore of Germany and the -North. This superstition is still extant in the Gorge of Cliviger, where -he is believed to hunt a milk-white doe round the Eagle's Crag in the -Vale of Todmorden, on All-Hallows' Eve. His hounds are said to fly -yelping through the air on many other occasions, and under the local -name of "_Gabriel Ratchets_," are supposed to predict death or -misfortune to all who hear the sounds.[68] The "_Lubber Fiend_," or -stupid demon, still stretches his hairy length across the hearth-stones -of the farm-houses in the same district, and the feats of the "_Goblin -Builders_" form a portion of the popular literature of almost every -locality. They are said to have removed the foundations of Rochdale -Church from the banks of the river Roach, up to their present elevated -position. Samlesbury Church, near Preston, possesses a similar -tradition. The "_Demon Pig_" not only determined the site of St. -Oswald's Church, at Warwick, but gave a name to the parish. The -parochial church at Burnley, it is said, was originally intended to be -built on the site occupied by the old Saxon Cross in Godly Lane; but, -however much the masons might have built during the day, both the stones -and the scaffolding were invariably found where the church now stands, -on their coming to work next morning. The local legend states that on -this occasion, also, the goblins took the form of _pigs_, and a rude -sculpture of such an animal, on the south side of the steeple, lends its -aid to confirm and perpetuate the story. - -Our peasantry retain the notion so prevalent in North Germany, that the -_Night-mare_ is a demon, which sometimes takes the form of a cat or a -dog, and they seek to counteract its influence by placing their shoes -under the bed with the toes outwards, on retiring to rest. - -The _Water Sprites_, believed in by our ancestors in the north of -England, still form a portion of the folk-lore of Lancashire and -Yorkshire. There is scarcely a stream of any magnitude in either county -which does not possess a presiding spirit in some part of its course. -The stepping-stones at Bungerley, near Clitheroe, are said to be haunted -by a malevolent sprite, who assumes almost as many shapes as Proteus of -old. He is not known by any particular designation, nor are there any -traditions to account for his first appearance; but at least _one_ life -in every _seven_ years is required to appease the anger of the spirit -of the Ribble at this place. It was at these stepping-stones that King -Henry VI. was treacherously betrayed by a Talbot of Bashall and others; -whence may have arisen a tradition of a malevolent spirit at that place. - -Our local literature possesses Roby's traditions of "The _Mermaid_ of -Martin Mere," which has given permanence to the popular notions -respecting mermen and mermaids. The _Schrat_, or _Schritel_, of the -German nations, is identical with the more ancient _Skrat_ of the -Scandinavians. He is noted for making game of persons who are out late -at night. Occasionally he places himself on a cart, or other vehicle, -which then becomes so heavy that the horses are unable to move the load. -They begin to tremble and perspire, as if sensible of the presence of -something diabolical; but after a short time "_Old Scrat_" slips off -behind, and disappears with a malicious laugh. In Lancashire we are no -strangers to Old Scrat and his doings. With many the name is merely a -synonyme for that of the devil; but our city carters are able to mark -the distinction, and have besides a goodly store of anecdotes respecting -the heavy loads which their horses have sometimes been compelled to -draw, when nothing could be seen except the empty cart. One of them -assured me that on such occasions his horses reared, and became almost -frantic; their manes stood erect; and he himself could see the wicked -imp actually dancing with delight between their ears. Another very -respectable person affirms that, not many years ago, as a funeral was -proceeding to church, the coffin became so heavy that it could not be -carried. On this being made known to a clergyman, who was present, he -offered up a short prayer, and commanded Old Scrat to take his own. This -was no sooner done than the excessive weight was felt no more, and the -corpse was carried forward to the place of interment. Similar -superstitions prevail in the more northern cities with but slight -variations; and hence sufficiently indicate their common origin. The -_Barguest_, or _Barn-ghaist_ of the Teutons, is also reported to be a -frequent visitor in Lancashire. The appearance of this sprite is -considered as a certain death-sign, and has obtained the local names of -"_Trash_" and "_Skriker_." He generally appears to one of the family -from whom Death is about to select his victim, and is more or less -visible, according to the distance of the event. I have met with persons -to whom the barguest [bar-ghaist, _i.e._, gate-ghost] has assumed the -form of a white cow, or a horse; but on most occasions "Trash" is -described as having the appearance of a very large dog, with very broad -feet, shaggy hair, drooping ears, and eyes "as large as saucers." When -walking, his feet make a loud splashing noise, like old shoes in a miry -road, and hence the name of "Trash." The appellation "_Skriker_" has -reference to the screams uttered by the sprite, which are frequently -heard when the animal is invisible. When followed by any individual he -begins to walk backwards with his eyes fixed full on his pursuer, and -vanishes on the slightest momentary inattention. Occasionally he plunges -into a pool of water, and at times he sinks at the feet of the persons -to whom he appears with a loud splashing noise, as if a heavy stone were -thrown into the miry road. Some are reported to have attempted to strike -him with any weapon they had at hand, but there was no substance to -receive the blows, although the Skriker kept his ground. He is said to -frequent the neighbourhood of Burnley at present, and is mostly seen in -Godly Lane, and about the parish church. But he by no means confines his -visits to the churchyard, as similar sprites are said to do in other -parts of England and Wales.[69] - - -DISPOSSESSING A DEMONIAC. - -Richard Rothwell, a native of Bolton-le-Moors, born about 1563, a -minister of the Gospel, ordained by Dr. Whitgift, Archbishop of -Canterbury, who was called by his biographer, the Rev. Stanley Gower, -minister of Dorchester--"_Orbis terrarum Anglicarum oculus_" (the eye of -our English world), is said to have dispossessed one John Fox, near -Nottingham, of a devil; with whom he had a discourse, by way of question -and answer, a good while. Such dialogues are said to be frequent amongst -the Popish exorcists, but being rare amongst Protestants, is the more to -be observed, and not disbelieved, because vouched by so good a man. Mr. -Rothwell died at Mansfield, Notts, in 1627, aged sixty-four.[70] - -[There is a long account of this contest with the devil in Rothwell's -_Life_, by Gower, pp. 178-183. After the devil had been driven out of -him, John Fox was dumb for three years, but afterwards had speech -restored to him, and wrote a book about the temptations the devil -haunted him with.] - - -DEMONIACAL POSSESSION IN 1594. - -Towards the close of the sixteenth century, seven persons in Lancashire -were alleged to be "possessed by evil spirits." According to the -narrative of the Rev. John Darrell, himself a principal actor in the -scene, there lived in 1594 at Cleworth (now called Clayworth), in the -parish of Leigh, one Nicholas Starkie, who had only two children, John -and Ann; the former ten and the latter nine years of age. These -children, according to Mr. Darrell, became possessed with an evil -spirit; and John Hartlay, a reputed conjuror, was applied to, at the end -of from two to three months, to give them relief, which he effected by -various charms, and the use of a magical circle with four crosses, drawn -near Mr. Starkie's seat, at Huntroyd, in the parish of Whalley. Hartlay -was conjuror enough to discover the difference between Mr. Starkie's -table and his own, and he contrived to fix himself as a constant inmate -in his benefactor's family for two or three years. Being considered so -essential to their peace, he advanced in his demands, till Mr. Starkie -demurred, and a separation took place; but not till five other persons, -three of them the female wards of Mr. Starkie, and two other females, -had become "possessed," through the agency of Hartlay, "and it was -judged in the house that whomsoever he kissed, on them he breathed the -devil." According to the narrative, all the seven demoniacs sent forth a -strange and supernatural voice of loud shouting. In this extremity Dr. -Dee, the Warden of Manchester College, was applied to, to exorcise the -evil spirits; but he refused to interfere, advising that they should -call in some godly preachers, with whom he would, if they thought -proper, consult concerning a public or private fast; at the same time he -sharply reproved Hartlay for his fraudulent practices. Some remission of -violence followed, but the evil spirits soon returned, and Mr. -Starkie's house became a perfect bedlam. John Starkie, the son, was "as -fierce as a madman, or a mad dog;" his sister Anne was little better; -Margaret Hardman, a gay, sprightly girl, was also troubled, and aspired -after all the splendid attire of fashionable life, calling for one gay -thing after another, and repeatedly telling her "lad," as she called her -unseen familiar, that she would be finer than him. Ellinor, her younger -sister, and Ellen Holland, another of Mr. Starkie's wards, were also -"troubled;" and Margaret Byrom, of Salford, a woman of thirty-three, who -was on a visit at Cleworth, became giddy, and partook of the general -malady. The young ladies fell down, as if dead, while they were dancing -and singing, and "playing the minstrel," and talked at such a rate that -nobody could be heard but themselves. The preachers being called in, -according to the advice of Dr. Dee, they inquired how the demoniacs were -handled. The "possessed" replied that an angel, like a dove, came from -God, and said that they must follow him to heaven, which way soever he -would lead them. Margaret Hardman then ran under a bed, and began to -make a hole, as she said, that her "lad" (or familiar) might get through -the wall to her; and, amongst other of her feats, she would have leaped -out of the window. The others were equally extravagant in their -proceedings, but when they had the use of their feet, the use of their -tongues was taken away. The girls were so sagacious that they foretold -when their fits would come on. When they were about any game or sport, -they seemed quite happy; but any godly exercise was a trouble to them. -Margaret Byrom was grievously troubled. She thought in her fits that -something rolled in her inside like a calf, and lay ever on her left -side; and when it rose up towards her heart, she thought the head and -nose thereof had been full of nails, wherewith being pricked, she was -compelled to shriek aloud, with very pain and fear; sometimes she barked -and howled, and at others she so much quaked that her teeth chattered in -her head. At the sight of Hartlay she fell down speechless, and saw a -great black dog, with a monstrous tail and a long chain, running at her -open-mouthed. Six times within six weeks the spirit would not suffer her -to eat or drink, and afterwards her senses were taken away, and she was -as stiff as iron. Two nights before the day of her examination against -Hartlay, who was committed to Lancaster Castle, the devil appeared to -her in his likeness, and told her to speak the truth! On the 16th of -March, Maister George More, pastor of Cawlke, in Derbyshire, and Maister -John Darrell, afterwards preacher at St. Mary's, in Nottingham, came to -Cleworth, when they saw the girls grievously tormented. Jane Ashton, the -servant of Mr. Starkie, howled in a supernatural manner--Hartlay had -given her kisses, and promised her marriage. The ministers having got -all the seven into one chamber, gave them spiritual advice; but, on the -Bible being brought up to them, three or four of them began to scoff, -and called it--"Bib-le, Bab-le; Bible, Bable." The next morning they -were got into a large parlour, and laid on couches, when Maister More -and Maister Dickens, a preacher (and their pastor), along with Maister -Darrell and thirty other persons, spent the day with them in prayer and -fasting, and hearing the word of God. All the parties afflicted remained -in their fits the whole of the day. Towards evening every one of them, -with voice and hands lifted up, cried to God for mercy, and He was -pleased to hear them, so that six of them were shortly dispossessed, and -Jane Ashton in the course of the next day experienced the same -deliverance. At the moment of dispossession, some of them were miserably -rent, and the blood gushed out both at the nose and mouth. Margaret -Byrom said that she felt the spirit come up her throat, when it gave her -"a sore lug" at the time of quitting her, and went out of the window -with a flash of fire, she only seeing it. John Starkie said his spirit -left him, in appearance like a man with a hunch on his back, very -ill-favoured; Ellinor Hardman's was like an urchin; Margaret Byrom's -like an ugly black man, with shoulders higher than his head. Two or -three days afterwards the unclean spirits returned, and would have -re-entered had they not been resisted. When they could not succeed -either by bribes or entreaties, they threw some of them [the -dispossessed] violently down, and deprived others of the use of their -legs and other members; but the victory was finally obtained by the -preachers, and all the devils banished from Mr. Starkie's household. -Meanwhile Hartlay the conjuror, who seems to have been a designing -knave, after undergoing an examination before two magistrates, was -committed to Lancaster Castle, where, on the evidence of Mr. Starkie and -his family, he was convicted of witchcraft, and sentenced to death, -principally, as it is stated, for drawing the magic circle, which seems -to have been the least part of his offence, though the most obnoxious to -the law. In this trial _spectral evidence_ was adduced against the -prisoner, and the experiment was tried of saying the Lord's Prayer. When -it no longer served his purpose he endeavoured to divest himself of the -character of a conjuror, and declared that he was not guilty of the -crime for which he was doomed to suffer; the law, however, was -inexorable, and he was brought to execution. On the scaffold he -persisted in declaring his innocence, but to no purpose; the executioner -did his duty, and the criminal was suspended. While hanging, the rope -broke, when Hartlay confessed his guilt; being again tied up, he died, -the victim of his own craft, and of the infatuation of the age in which -he lived. On the appearance of Mr. Darrell's book, the _Narrative_ of -these remarkable events, a long controversy arose on the doctrine of -Demonology, and it was charged upon him by the Rev. Samuel Harsnet, -afterwards Bishop of Chichester and Norwich, and Archbishop of York, -that he made a trade of casting out devils, and that he instructed the -"possessed" how to conduct themselves, in order to aid him in carrying -on the imposition. Mr. Darrell was afterwards examined by the Queen's -Commissioners; and by the full agreement of the whole court, he was -condemned as a counterfeit, deposed from the ministry, and committed to -close confinement, there to remain for further punishment. The clergy, -in order to prevent the scandal brought upon the Church by false -pretensions to the power of dispossessing demons, soon afterwards -introduced a new canon into the ecclesiastical law, in these -terms:--"That no minister or ministers, without license and direction of -the bishop, under his hand and seal obtained, attempt, upon any pretence -whatever, either of possession or obsession, by fasting and prayer, to -cast out any devil or devils, under pain of the imputation of imposture, -or cozenage, and deposition from the ministry." Some light is cast upon -the case of Mr. Starkie's household by "A Discourse Concerning the -Possession and Dispossession of Seven Persons in one Family in -Lancashire," written by George More, a puritanical minister, who had -engaged in exorcising devils. This discourse agrees substantially with -Darrell's narrative, but adds some noteworthy facts: amongst others, -that he (Mr. More) was a prisoner in the Clinke for nearly two years, -for justifying and bearing witness to the facts stated by Darrell. He -also states that Mr. Nicholas Starkie having married a gentlewoman that -was an inheritrix [Ann, widow of Thurstan Barton, Esq., of Smithells, -and daughter and sole heiress of John Parr, Esq., of Kempnough, and -Cleworth, Lancashire], and of whose kindred some were Papists; -these--partly for religion, and partly because the estate descended but -to heirs male--prayed for the perishing of her issue, and that four sons -pined away in a strange manner; but that Mrs. Starkie, learning this -circumstance, estated her lands on her husband, and _his_ heirs, failing -issue of her own body; after which a son and daughter were born, who -prospered _well till_ they became "possessed."[71] - - -DEMONIACAL POSSESSION IN 1689. - -Richard Dugdale, called "The Surey Demoniac," was a youth just rising -into manhood, a gardener, living with his parents at Surey, in the -parish of Whalley, addicted to posture, and distinguished even at school -as a posture-master and ventriloquist. During his "possession" he was -attended by six Dissenting ministers--the Revs. Thomas Jolly, Charles -Sagar, Nicholas Kershaw, Robert Waddington, Thomas Whalley, and John -Carrington, who were occasionally assisted at the meetings held to -exorcise the demon by the Rev. Messrs. Frankland, Pendlebury, and Oliver -Heywood. According to the narrative, under their sanction, entitled _An -Account of Satan's entering in and about the Body of Richard Dugdale, -and of Satan's removal thence through the Lord's blessing of the -within-mentioned Ministers and People_, when Dugdale was about nineteen -years of age he was seized with an affliction early in 1689; and from -the strange fits which violently seized him, he was supposed to be -possessed by the devil. When the fit was upon him "he shewed great -despite [says the narrative], against the ordinary of God, and raged as -if he had been nothing but a devil in Richard's bodily shape; though -when he was not in his fits he manifested great inclination to the word -of God and prayer; for the exercise of which in his behalf he desired -that a day of fasting might be set apart, as the only means from which -he could expect help, seeing that he had tried all other means, lawful -and unlawful." Meetings were accordingly appointed of the ministers, to -which the people crowded in vast numbers. These meetings began on the -8th May, 1689, and were continued about twice a month till the February -following. At the first meeting the parents of the demoniac were -examined by the ministers, and they represented that "at Whalley -rush-bearing, on the James's tide, in July, 1688, there was a great -dancing and drinking, when Richard offered himself to the devil, on -condition that he would make him the best dancer in Lancashire." After -becoming extremely drunk he went home, where several apparitions -appeared to him, and presented to him all kinds of dainties and fine -clothing, with gold and precious things, inviting him at the same time -to "take his fill of pleasure." In the course of the day some compact, -or bond, was entered into between him and the devil, after which his -fits grew frequent and violent. While in these fits his body was often -hurled about very desperately, and he abused the minister and blasphemed -his Maker. Sometimes he would fall into dreadful fits; at others he -would talk Greek and Latin, though untaught; sometimes his voice was -small and shrill, at others hollow and hideous. Now he was as light as a -bag of feathers, then as heavy as lead. At one time he upbraided the -ministers for their neglect, at others he said they had saved him from -hell. He was weather-wise and money-wise by turns; he could tell when -there would be rain, and when he should receive presents. Sometimes he -would vomit stones an inch and a half square, and in others of his -trances there was a noise in his throat, as if he was singing psalms -inwardly. But the strongest mark of demoniacal possession consisted in a -lump, which rose from the thick of his leg, about the size of a mole, -and did work up like such a creature towards the chest of his body, till -it reached his breast, when it was as big as a man's fist, and uttered -strange voices. He opened his mouth at the beginning of his fits so -often, that it was thought spirits went in and out of him. In agility he -was unequalled, "especially in dancing, wherein he excelled all that the -spectators had seen, and all that mere mortals could perform. The -demoniac would for six or seven times together leap up, so as that part -of his legs might be seen shaking and quivering above the heads of the -people, from which heights he oft fell down on his knees, which he long -shivered and traversed on the ground, at least as nimbly as other men -can twinkle or sparkle their fingers; thence springing up into his high -leaps again, and then falling on his feet, which seemed to reach the -earth but with the gentlest and scarce perceivable touches when he made -his highest leaps." And yet the divines by whom he was attended most -unjustly rallied the devil for the want of skill in his pupil. The Rev. -Mr. Carrington, addressing himself to the devil, says, "Cease dancing, -Satan, and begone from him. Canst thou dance no better, Satan? Ransack -the old record of all past times and places in thy memory: canst thou -not there find out some other way of finer trampling? Pump thine -invention dry! Cannot that universal seed-plot of subtle wiles and -stratagems spring up one new method of cutting capers? Is this the top -of skill and pride, to shuffle feet and brandish knees thus, and to trip -like a doe, and skip like a squirrel? And wherein differs thy leapings -from the hoppings of a frog, or bounces of a goat, or friskings of a -dog, or gesticulations of a monkey? And cannot a palsy shake such a -loose leg as that? Dost thou not twirl like a calf that has the turn, -and twitch up thy houghs just like a spring-hault [? spring-galled] -tit?" In some of his last fits he announced that he must be either -killed or cured before the 25th March. This, says the deposition of his -father and mother, and two of his sisters, proved true; for on the 24th -of that month he had his last fit, the devil being no longer able to -withstand the means used with so much vigour and perseverance to expel -him; one of the most effectual of which was a medicine, prescribed, in -the way of his profession, by Dr. Chew, a medical practitioner in the -neighbourhood. Mr. Zachary Taylor asserts that the preachers, -disappointed and mortified at their ill success in Dugdale's case, gave -it out that some of his connexions were witches, and in contract with -the devil, and that, they supposed, was the cause why they had not been -able to relieve him. Under this impression they procured some of the -family to be searched, that they might see if they had not teats, or the -devil's mark; and they tried them by the test of saying the Lord's -Prayer. Some remains of the evil spirit, however, seem still to have -possessed Richard; for, though after this he had no fits, yet once, when -he had got too much drink, he was after another manner than drunken -persons usually are. In confirmation of which feats, not only the eight -ministers, but twenty respectable inhabitants, affixed their -attestations to a document prepared for the purpose; and three of the -magistrates of the district--Hugh, Lord Willoughby [of Parham], Ralph -Egerton, Esq., and Thos. Braddyll, Esq.--received depositions from the -attesting parties. This monstrous mass of absurdity, superstition, and -fraud--for it was beyond doubt a compound of them all--was exposed with -success by the Rev. Zachary Taylor, the Bishop of Chester's curate at -Wigan, one of the King's preachers in Lancashire; but the reverend -divine mixed with his censures too much party asperity, insisting that -the whole was an artifice of the Nonconformist ministers, in imitation -of the pretended miracles of the Roman Catholic priests, and likening it -to the fictions of John Darrell, B.A., which had been practised a -century before upon the family of Mr. Starkie, in the same county. Of -the resemblance in many of its parts there can be no doubt; but the -names of the venerable Oliver Heywood and Thomas Jolly form a sufficient -guarantee against imposition on their part; and the probability is that -the ministers were the dupes of a popular superstition in the hands of a -dissolute and artful family.[72] - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[62] See _Transactions of Historical Society of Lancashire and -Cheshire_. - -[63] Casaubon, extracted from Dee's MSS., P. I., p. 22, fol. 1659. - -[64] _History of Lancashire_, vol. iv. p. 63. - -[65] Hampson's _Medii Ævi Kal._, vol. i. p. 74. - -[66] 33 Henry VIII., cap. 8. - -[67] "The Devils of Morzine," in the _Cornhill Magazine_, April, 1865. - -[68] See Roby's _Traditions of Lancashire_; Homerton's _Isles of Loch -Awe_ and _Choice Notes: Folk-Lore_, pp. 247-8. - -[69] See _Transactions of Lancashire and Cheshire Historical Society_. - -[70] _Magna Britannica_, by Rev. M. S. Cox, p. 1303. - -[71] Baines's _Lancashire_. - -[72] Baines's _Lancashire_. - - - - -DIVINATION. - - -This word, derived from _divinare_, to foretell, denotes a mode of -foretelling future events, and which, among the ancients, was divided -into two kinds, natural and artificial. Natural divination was prophecy -or prediction, the result of supposed inspiration or the divine -afflatus; artificial divination was effected by certain rites, -experiments, or observations, as by sacrifices, cakes, flour, wine, -observation of entrails, flight of birds, lots, verses, omens, position -of the stars, &c. In modern divination, two modes are in popular -favour--thrusting a pin or a key between the leaves of a closed Bible, -and taking the verse the pin or key touches as a direction or omen; and -the divining-rod, a long forked branch or twig of hazel, which being -held between the finger and thumb in a particular way, is said to turn -of itself when held near the earth over any hidden treasure, precious -metals, or over a spring of water. It has also been used to discover a -buried body of one murdered. - - -DIVINATION AT MARRIAGES. - -The following practices are very prevalent at marriages in the districts -around Burnley, and they are not noticed in the last edition of Brand's -_Popular Antiquities_:--1. Put a wedding-ring into the _posset_, and -after serving it out, the unmarried person whose cup contains the ring -will be the first of the company to be married. 2. Make a common flat -cake of flour, water, currants, &c., and put therein a wedding-ring and -a sixpence. When the company are about to retire on the wedding-day the -cake must be broken, and distributed amongst the unmarried females. She -who gets the ring in her portion of the cake will shortly be married, -and the one who gets the sixpence will die an old maid.[73] - - -DIVINATION BY BIBLE AND KEY. - -When some choice specimen of the "Lancashire Witches" thinks it -necessary to decide upon selecting a suitor from among the number of her -admirers, she not unfrequently calls in the aid of the Bible and a key -to assist in deciding her choice. Having opened the Bible at the passage -in Ruth: "Whither thou goest will I go," &c., and having carefully -placed the wards of the key upon the verses, she ties the book firmly -with a piece of cord, and having mentioned the name of an admirer, she -very solemnly repeats the passage in question, at the same time holding -the Bible suspended _by joining the ends of her little fingers_ inserted -under the handle of the key. If the key retain its position during the -repetition the person whose name has been mentioned is considered to be -rejected; and so another name is tried, till the book turns round and -falls through the fingers, which is held to be a sure token the name -just mentioned is that of an individual who will certainly marry her. I -have a Bible in my possession which bears evidence of having seen much -service of this description.[74] - - -ANOTHER LANCASHIRE FORM OF DIVINATION. - -When a Lancashire damsel desires to know what sort of a husband she will -have, on New Year's Eve she pours some melted lead into a glass of -water, and observes what forms the drops assume. When they resemble -scissors, she concludes that she must rest satisfied with a tailor; if -they appear in the form of a hammer, he will be a smith or a carpenter, -and so on of others. The writer has met with many instances of this -class, in which the examples given did not admit of easy contradiction. - - -DIVINATION BY THE DYING. - -Dying persons, especially if they have been distinguished for piety when -in health, are considered to possess, for a short time, the spirit of -prophecy. Hence many persons are then anxious to see them, in order that -they may divine the _future_ by means of their oracular words. They also -_know_ persons who have died before them. This is a curious remnant of -the old Greek and Roman belief. Homer makes Hector foretell the death of -Achilles, _Iliad_, v. 355. Virgil causes Orodes to foretell the death -of Mezentius, _Æneid_, x. 739. Cicero also furnishes another instance, -_De Divin._ lib. ii. - - -SECOND-SIGHT. - -Though this faculty of seeing into the future has usually been regarded -as limited to Scotland, and there chiefly possessed by natives of the -Highlands, there have been individuals in Lancashire who have laid claim -to the possession of this species of foresight. Amongst those in the -Fylde district was a man named Cardwell, of Marton, near Blackpool, who -foretold deaths and evil events from his vision of things to come. Men -of superior ability were credulous enough to visit him, and to give -implicit faith to his marvellous stories. The real form of second-sight -is the seeing of the wraith, spirit, or ghost of one about to die; and -in one notable instance Cardwell's second-sight failed him utterly. On -seeing something in a vision, he concluded that his own child was about -to die, and so strong was his own faith in this delusion that he carried -sand to the churchyard to be ready for its grave. The death, however, -did not happen: the child grew to maturity, and retaining robust health, -lived for many years afterwards. - - -SPIRITS OF THE DYING AND THE DEAD. - -1. Persons born during twilight are supposed to be able to _see_ -spirits, and to know who of their acquaintance will die next. - -2. Some say that this property also belongs to those who happen to be -born _exactly_ at twelve o'clock at night. - -3. The spirits of persons about to die, especially if the persons be in -distant lands, are supposed to return to their friends, and thus predict -the calamity. While the spirit is thus _away_, the person is supposed to -be in a _swoon_, and unaware of what is passing. His _desire_ to see his -friends is also necessary; he must have been _thinking_ of them. I am -not aware that these spirits ever _speak_. - -4. If no one in a family can _see_ a spirit, most can hear them, and -hence strange noises are supposed to indicate death or misfortune to -distant friends. - - -CASTING LOTS, ETC. - -This is a species of divination or consulting of fate by omen. Great -faith is placed by most in casting lots. Putting numbers in a box or bag -is the common practice, and then drawing them out at random. Scripture -was once quoted to the writer in proof that this mode of deciding -doubtful matters was of God's appointment, and therefore could not -fail. "The lot is cast into the bag, but the _disposal_ thereof is the -Lord's." (Prov. xvi. 33; 1. Sam. xiv. 41.) When boys do not wish to -divide anything they decide "who must take all" by drawing "short-cuts." -A number of straws, pieces of twine, &c., of different lengths, are held -by one not interested; each boy draws one, and he who gets the _longest_ -is entitled to the whole. - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[73] T. T. W., in _Notes and Queries_, vol. ii. p. 117. - -[74] T. T. W., in _Notes and Queries_, vol. ii. p. 5. - - - - -MISCELLANEOUS FOLK-LORE. - - -DRUIDICAL ROCK BASINS. - -Dr. Borlase, in his _Antiquities of Cornwall_, notices the existence of -Druidical Rock Basins, which appear to have been scooped out of the -granite rocks and boulders which lie on the tops of the hills in the -county. Several such cavities in stones are found on Brimham Rocks, -near Knaresborough, and they have also been found at Plumpton and -Rigton, in Yorkshire,[75] and on Stanton Moor, in Derbyshire. The writer -first drew attention to the fact of similar Druidical remains existing -in Lancashire in a paper read before the Historical Society of -Lancashire and Cheshire, in December, 1864. They are found in -considerable numbers around Boulsworth, Gorple, Todmorden, and on the -hills which separate Lancashire from Yorkshire between these places. -Commencing the enumeration of the groups of boulders, &c., containing -rock basins, with the slopes of Boulsworth, about seven miles from -Burnley, we have first the Standing Stones, mostly single blocks of -millstone grit, at short distances from each other on the north-western -side of the hill. One is locally termed the Buttock Stone, and near it -is a block which has a circular cavity scooped out on its flat upper -surface. Not far from these are the Joiner Stones, the Abbot Stone, the -Weather Stones, and the Law Lad Stones [? from _llad_, British, -sacrifices]. Next come the Great and Little Saucer Stones, so named from -the cavities scooped out upon them. The Little Chair Stones, the Fox -Stones, and the Broad Head Stones lie at no great distance, each group -containing numerous like cavities. Several of these groups are locally -named from resemblance to animals or other objects, as the Grey Stones -and the Steeple Stones on Barn Hill, and one spur of Boulsworth is -called Wycoller Ark, as resembling a farmer's chest or ark. On Warcock -Hill several groups of natural rocks and boulders are locally named -Dave or Dew Stones. On the surface of one immense Dave Stone boulder is -a perfect hemispherical cavity, ten inches in diameter. The surface of -another contains an oblong basin of larger dimensions, with a long -grooved channel leading from its curved contour towards the edge of the -stone. On a third there are four circular cavities of varying -dimensions, the largest in the centre, and three others surrounding it, -but none of these is more than a few inches in diameter. At the Bride -Stones, near Todmorden, thirteen cavities were counted on one block, and -eleven on another. All the basins here and elsewhere are formed on the -_flat_ surfaces of the blocks; their upper surfaces being always -parallel to the lamination of the stone. Along Widdop Moor we find the -Grey Stones, the Fold Hole Stones, the Clattering Stones, and the -Rigging Stones; the last named from occupying the rig or ridge of the -hills in this locality. Amongst the Bride Stones is an immense mass of -rock which might almost be classed among the rocking stones. It is about -twenty-five feet in height, at least twelve feet across its broadest -part, and rests on a base only about two feet in diameter. The Todmorden -group contains the Hawk Stones, on Stansfield Moor, not far from -Stiperden Cross, on the line of the Long Causeway (a Roman road); the -Bride Stones, near Windy Harbour; the Chisley Stones, near Keelham; and -Hoar Law, not far from Ashenhurst Royd and Todmorden. The rock basins on -these boulders are very numerous, and of all sizes, from a few inches in -diameter and depth to upwards of two feet. The elliptical axes of some -of these basins did not appear to the writer to have been caused by the -action of wind or water, or to follow any regular law. Lastly, taking -for a centre, Gorple,[76] about five miles south-east of Burnley is -another extensive group of naked rocks and boulders. Close to the -solitary farm-house there are the Gorple Stones; and at a short distance -the Hanging Stones form conspicuous objects in the sombre landscape. On -Thistleden Dean are the Upper, Middle, and Lower Whinberry Stones, so -named from the "whinberry" shrubs, with which this moor abounds. The -Higher and Lower Boggart Stones come next, and these are followed by the -Wicken Clough, and other minor groups of stones. Above Gorple Bottom is -another set of grey stones; and these are followed by the Upper, Middle, -and Lower Hanging Stones, on Shuttleworth Moor.[77] The rock basins here -are very numerous, and mostly well defined. There are forty-three -cavities in these Gorple, Gorple Gate, and Hanging Stones, ranging from -four to forty inches in length, from four to twenty-five in breadth, and -from two to thirteen inches in depth. - -Dr. Borlase confidently asserts that the ancient Druids used these rock -basins for baptismal and sacrificial purposes--a conjecture which the -authors of the _Beauties of Derbyshire_ admit to be probable; and so -does Higgins in his elaborate work on the _Celtic Druids_. The -supposition is supported by the fact of their occurring in such numbers -mostly _on the tops of hills_, in so many counties, and in such -different materials as the granite and the millstone-grit -formations.[78] Whether they have been formed by natural or artificial -means is still a matter of dispute. On the whole the writer's opinion -is, that the rock basins of Scilly, Cornwall, Derbyshire, Yorkshire, and -East Lancashire are partly natural, and partly artificial; the former -being comparatively few, and easily distinguished by their varying -depths and forms.[79] Whether wholly or partially natural or artificial, -he thinks it safe to conclude that they have been appropriated by the -Druids to their religious worship, as furnishing the means by which they -could offer their sacrifices and perform their ablutions. They would -also suffice for baptism, and preserve the rain or the dew from being -polluted by touching the earth. The Tolmen on the neighbouring hills[80] -may be taken as an additional reason for associating Druidical worship -with such remains. These contain small basins on the summits, which -differ in no respect from those here enumerated. They have, therefore, -most probably been used for similar purposes. Those above described form -a curious chapter in the oldest folk-lore of Lancashire. - - -ELVES AND FAIRIES. - - "Like elves and fairies in a ring."--_Macbeth._ - -England has ever been full of the favourite haunts of those pleasantest -of all the supernatural sprites of childhood and superstition--elves and -fairies. Volumes might be filled with the stories of their feats and -pranks in all parts of England; and our greatest poet has for ever -embalmed this superstition in the richest hues of poetic imagery and -fancy--especially in his _Midsummer Night's Dream_. The _Fairies_, or -"Hill Folk," yet live amongst the rural people of Lancashire. Antique -tobacco-pipes, "formerly belonging to the fairies," are still -occasionally found in the corners of newly-ploughed fields. They -themselves still gambol on the grassy meads at dewy eve, and their -revels are yet believed to be witnessed at times by some privileged -inhabitants of our "calm sequestered vales." It is generally stated -that, in order to see one of these diminutive beings, the use of -ointments, four-leaved clover, or other specific preparations, is -necessary; but a near relative of the writer, not more imbued with -superstition than the majority, firmly believed that he once saw a real -dwarf or fairy, without the use of any incantation. He had been amusing -himself one summer evening on the top of Mellor Moor, near Blackburn, -close to the remains of the Roman encampment, when his attention was -arrested by the appearance of a dwarf-like man, attired in full hunting -costume, with top-boots and spurs, a green jacket, red hairy cap, and a -thick hunting whip in his hand. He ran briskly along the moor for a -considerable distance, when, leaping over a low stone wall, he darted -down a steep declivity, and was lost to sight. The popular opinion of -the neighbourhood is, that an underground city exists at this place; -that an earthquake swallowed up the encampment, and that on certain days -in the year the hill folk may be heard ringing their bells, and -indulging in various festivities. Considerable quantities of stone, -which still remain around the ditches of this rectangular place, may -have suggested the ideas of a city and an earthquake. On other occasions -the fairies are supposed to exhibit themselves in military array on the -mountain sides; their evolutions conforming in every respect to the -movements of modern troops. Such appearances are believed to portend the -approach of civil commotions, and are said to have been more than -usually common about the time of the rebellion in 1745-6. This would -suggest an explanation of a more rational character. [Doubtless the -mirage, Fata Morgana, or Spectral appearances of the Hartz mountains.] - -One Lancashire Fairy tale runs thus:-- - -Two men went poaching, and having placed nets, or rather sacks, over -what they supposed to be rabbit holes, but which were in reality -fairies' houses, the fairies rushed into the sacks, and the poachers -(believing them to be rabbits), content with their prey, marched -homewards again. One fairy missing another in the sack, called out (the -story was told in the broad Lancashire dialect)--"Dick" (dignified name -for a fairy), "where art thou?" To which fairy Dick replied,-- - - "In a sack, - On a back, - Riding up Barley Brow." - -The story has a good moral ending; for the men were so frightened that -they never poached again.[81] - -The Rev. William Thornber[82] characterizes the elves and fairies as -kind, good-natured creatures, at times seeking the assistance of -mortals, and in return, liberally rewarding them. They have a favourite -spot between Hardhorn and Staining, at a cold spring of water called -"Fairies' Well" to this day. Most amusing stories of fairies are told -around that district. A poor woman, when filling her pitcher at the well -just named, in order to bathe the weak eyes of her infant child, was -mildly accosted by a handsome man, who presented her with a box of -ointment, and told her it would be a specific remedy. She was grateful -for the gift, but love for her child made her somewhat mistrustful; so -she first applied the ointment to one of her own eyes. Shortly -afterwards, she saw her benefactor at Preston, stealing corn from the -mouths of the sacks open for sale, and, much to his amazement, accosted -him. On his inquiry how she could recognise him, since he was invisible -to all else around, she told him how she had used his ointment, and -pointed to the powerful eye; when he immediately struck it out. A -milkmaid, observing a jug and a sixpence placed at her side by some -invisible being, filled the jug with milk, and took the money; this was -repeated for weeks, till, overjoyed with her good fortune, she could not -refrain from imparting it to her lover; but the jug and sixpence never -appeared again. A ploughman when engaged in his daily labour, heard a -plaintive cry, "I have broken my _speet_."[83] Hastily turning round, -the ploughman beheld a lady, holding in her hand a broken _spittle_, a -hammer, and nails, and beckoning him to repair it. He did so, and -instantly received a handsome reward; and then the lady vanished, -apparently sinking into the earth. - - -FOLK-LORE. - -Under this general head we bring together a few scattered notices not -naturally falling under any precise classification, but all showing the -nature and character of common and popular notions, beliefs, and -superstitions. Where, however, the subject will admit of it, many -examples of this Folk-lore will be found in later pages, under the -general head of "Superstitions." - - -FOLK-LORE OF ECCLES AND THE NEIGHBOURHOOD. - -A very curious book exhibits some of the usages of our ancestors in this -part of the county, early in the reign of James I., entitled _The Way to -the True Church ... directed to all that seek for Resolution; and -especially to all his loving Countrymen of Lancashire, by John White, -Minister of God's Word at Eccles_. [White was vicar of Eccles only a few -months--from May, 1609.] The fifth edition or "impression" is a folio, -printed at London, 1624, but the Preface is dated Oct. 29th, 1608. White -complains of "the prodigious ignorance" which he found among his -parishioners when he entered upon his ministrations, and he proceeds -thus to tell his own tale:--"I will only mention what I saw and learned, -dwelling among them, concerning the saying of their prayers; for what -man is he whose heart trembles not to simple people so far seduced [or -so ill-taught] that they know not how to pronounce or say their daily -prayers; or so to pray that all that hear them shall be filled with -laughter? And while, superstitiously, they refuse to pray in their own -language with understanding, they speak that which their leaders [Roman -Catholic priests] may blush to hear. These examples I have observed from -the common people: - -"'_The Creed._ - -"'Creezum zuum patrum onitentem Creatorum ejus anicum, Dominum nostrum -qui sum sops, virgini Mariæ, crixus fixus, Ponchi Pilati audubitiers, -morti by Sonday, father a fernes, scelerest unjudicarum, finis a -mortibus. Creezum spirituum sanctum, eccli Catholi, remissurum -peccaturum, communiorum obliviorum, bitam et turnam again.' - -"'_The Little Creed._ - - "'Little creed, can I need - Kneele before our Ladies' knee; - Candlelight, candles burne, - Our Ladie pray'd to her dear Sonne - That we all to heaven might come. - Little creed. Amen.' - -"This that followeth they call-- - -"'_The White Paternoster._ - - "'White Paternoster, Saint Peter's brother, - What hast i' th' t' one hand? White book leaves. - What hast i' th' t' other hand? Heaven yate keys. - Open heaven yates, and steyk [shut] hell yates: - And let every crysome child creep to it own mother. - White Paternoster, Amen.' - -"'_Another Prayer._ - - "'I bless me with God and the rood, - With his sweet flesh and precious blood; - With his cross and his creed, - With his length and his breed, - From my toe to my crown, - And all my body up and down, - From my back to my breast, - My five wits be my rest; - God let never ill come at ill, - But through Jesus' own will, - Sweet Jesus, Lord, Amen.' - -"Many also use to wear vervain against blasts; and, when they gather it -for this purpose, first they cross the herb with their hand, and then -they bless it thus:-- - - "'Hallowed be thou, Vervain, - As thou growest on the ground, - For in the Mount of Calvary, - There thou wast first found. - Thou healedst our Saviour Jesus Christ, - And staunchedst his bleeding wound; - In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, - I take thee from the ground.' - -"And so they pluck it up and wear it. Their prayers and traditions of -this sort are infinite, and the ceremonies they use in their actions are -nothing inferior to the Gentiles in number and strangeness. Which any -man may easily observe that converseth with them."[84] - - -TREE BARNACLES; OR, GEESE HATCHED FROM SEA-SHELLS. - -The learned and venerable John Gerarde, author or translator of _A -History of Plants, or Herball_; first published in folio in 1597, has -the following marvellous story respecting barnacle-shells growing on -trees, and giving birth to young geese; not as a thing which some -wonder-monger had related to him, but as what he had seen with his own -eyes, and the truth of which he could, therefore, and does, most -solemnly avouch. - -"There are found in the north parts of Scotland, and the isles adjacent -called Orcades, certain trees, whereon do grow certain shell-fishes, of -a white colour, tending to russet; wherein are contained little living -creatures; which shells in time of maturity do open, and out of them -grow those little living things; which, falling into the water, do -become fowls, whom we call barnacles, in the North of England brant -geese, and in Lancashire tree geese; but the others that do fall upon -the land perish and do come to nothing. Thus much by the writings of -others, and also from the mouths of people of those parts, which may -very well accord with truth. But _what our eyes have seen and hands have -touched, we shall declare_. There is a small island in Lancashire called -The Pile of Foulders [or Peel of Fouldrey] wherein are found the broken -pieces of old and bruised ships, some whereof have been cast thither by -shipwreck, and also the trunks or bodies, with the branches, of old -rotten trees, cast up there likewise; whereon is found a certain spume -or froth, that in time breedeth unto certain shells, in shape like those -of the mussel, but sharper pointed, and of a whitish colour; wherein is -contained a thing in form like a lace of silk, finely woven as it were -together, as of a whitish colour, one end whereof is fastened unto the -inside of the shell, even as the fish of oysters and mussels are. The -other end is made fast unto the belly of a rude masse or lump, which in -time cometh to the shape and form of a bird; when it is perfectly formed -the shell gapeth open, and the first thing that appeareth is the -foresaid lace or string; next come the legs of the bird hanging out; and -as it groweth greater it openeth the shell by degrees, till at length it -is all come forth and hangeth only by the bill. In short space after it -cometh to full maturity and falleth into the sea, where it gathereth -feathers and groweth to a fowl, bigger than a mallard and lesser than a -goose; and black legs and bill, or beak, and feathers black and white, -spotted in such a manner as is our magpie (called in some places a -pie-annet), which [not the magpie, but the barnacle-hatched fowl] the -people of Lancashire call by no other name than a tree goose; which -place aforesaid, and all those parts adjoining, do so much abound -therewith, that one of the best is bought for 3_d._; For the truth -hereof, if any doubt, may it please them to repair to me, and I shall -satisfy them by the testimony of good witnesses(!).... They spawn as it -were in March and April; the geese are formed in May and June, and come -to fulness of feathers in the month after." "There is another sort -hereof, the history of which is _true, and of mine own knowledge_; for -travelling upon the shores of our English coast between Dover and -Romney, I found the trunk of an old rotten tree, which (with some help -that I procured by fishermen's wives, that were there attending their -husbands' return from the sea) we drew out of the water upon dry land. -On this rotten tree I found growing many thousands of long crimson -bladders, in shape like unto puddings newly filled, before they be -sodden, which were very clear and shining; at the nether end whereof did -grow a shell-fish, fashioned somewhat like a small mussel, but much -whiter, resembling a shell-fish that groweth upon the rocks about -Guernsey and Jersey, called a limpet. Many of these shells I brought -with me to London, which, after I had opened, I found in them living -things, without form or shape; in others, which were nearer come to -ripeness, I found living things that were very naked, in shape like a -bird; in others, the birds covered with soft down, the shell half open, -and the bird ready to fall out, which no doubt were the fowls called -barnacles.... That which I have seen with my eyes and handled with my -hands, I dare confidently avouch and boldly put down for verity.... We -conclude and end our present volume with this wonder of God. For which -God's name be ever honoured and praised." This author figures the -_Britannica Conchæ Anatifera_, or the breed of barnacles; the woodcut -representing a tree growing by the sea, with leaves like mussel shells, -opening, and living creatures emerging; while others, swimming about in -the sea beneath, are perfect goslings! Well may the old herbalist call -this "one of the marvels of this land; we may say of the world." Dr. -Charles Leigh, in his _Natural History of Lancashire_, gravely labours -to refute the notion that barnacles grow into geese, as had been -asserted by Speed and others. - -Sir J. Emerson Tennent, writing in _Notes and Queries_ (vol. viii. p. -223), referring to Porta's _Natural Magic_ for the vulgar error that not -only in Scotland, but in the river Thames, "there is a kind of -shell-fish which get out of their shells and grow to be ducks, or -such-like birds," observes that this tradition is very ancient, Porta, -the author, having died in 1515. In _Hudibras_ is an allusion to those-- - - "Who from the most refin'd of saints, - As naturally grow miscreants, - As _barnacles_ turn Soland geese, - In th' islands of the Orcades." - -The story (says Sir James) has its origin in the peculiar formation of -the little mollusc which inhabits the multivalve shell, the _Pentalasmi -Anatifera_, which by a fleshy peduncle attaches itself by one end to the -bottoms of ships or floating timber, whilst from the other there -protrudes a bunch of curling and fringe-like cirrhi, by the agitation of -which it attracts and collects its food. These cirrhi so much resemble -feathers, as to have suggested the leading idea of a bird's tail; and -hence the construction of the remainder of the fable, which is given -with grave minuteness in _The Herball, or General Historie of Plants_, -gathered by John Gerarde, Master in Chirurgie (London, 1597). After -quoting the account, Sir James adds, that Gerarde, who is doubtless -Butler's authority, says elsewhere, "that in the north parts of -Scotland, and the islands called Orcades, there are certain trees -whereon these tree geese and barnacles abound." The conversion of the -fish into a bird, however fabulous, would be scarcely more astounding -than the metamorphosis which it actually undergoes, the young of the -little animal having no feature to identify it with its final -development. In its early stage (see Carpenter's _Physiology_, i. 52) it -has a form not unlike that of the crab, "possessing eyes and powers of -free motion: but afterwards becoming fixed to one spot for the remainder -of its life, it loses its eyes, and forms a shell, which, though -composed of various pieces, has nothing in common with the jointed shell -of the crab." Mr. T. J. Buckton (_Notes and Queries_, vol. viii. p. -224) says that Drayton (1613), in his _Polyolbion_, p. iii., in -connexion with the river Dee, speaks of-- - - "Th' anatomised fish, and fowls from planchers sprung," - -to which a note is appended in Southey's edition (p. 609), that such -fowls were "_barnacles_, a bird breeding upon old ships." In the -_Entertaining Library_, "Habits of Birds," (pp. 363-379), the whole -story of this extraordinary ignorance of natural history is amply -developed. The barnacle-shells which I once saw in a sea-port attached -to a vessel just arrived from the Mediterranean had the brilliant -appearance at a distance of flowers in bloom. (See _Penny Cyclopædia_, -article "Cirripeda," vii. 206, reversing the woodcut). The foot of the -_Lepas Anatifera_ (Linn.), appeared to me like the stalk of a plant -growing from the ship's side. The shell had the semblance of a calyx, -and the flower consisted of the fingers (_tentacula_) of the shell-fish, -"of which twelve project in an elegant curve, and are used by it for -making prey of small fish." The very ancient error was to mistake the -foot of the shell-fish for the neck of a goose, the shell for its head, -and the _tentacula_ for a tuft of feathers. As to the body, _non est -inventus_. The Barnacle Goose is a well-known bird; and these shell-fish -bearing, as seen out of the water, resemblance to the goose's neck, -were ignorantly, and without investigation, confounded with geese -themselves. In France, the barnacle goose may be eaten on fast-days, by -virtue of this old belief in its fishy origin. From a passage in the -_Memoirs of Lady Fanshaw_, it appears that Sir Kenelm Digby, at the -table of the Governor of Calais, declared that barnacles, a bird in -Jersey, was first a shell-fish to appearance, and from that, sticking -upon old wood, became in time a goose! An advertisement of June, 1807, -sets forth that the "Wonderful curiosity called the Goose Tree, Barnacle -Tree, or Tree bearing geese, taken up at sea on the 12th January, 1807, -by Captain Bytheway, and was more than twenty men could raise out of the -water--may be seen at the Exhibition Rooms, Spring Gardens, from ten -o'clock in the morning till ten at night, every day. The Barnacles which -form the present exhibition possess a neck upwards of two feet in -length, resembling the windpipe of a chicken; each shell contains five -pieces, and notwithstanding the many thousands which hang to eight -inches of the tree, part of the fowl may be seen from each shell. Sir -Robert Moxay, in the _Wonders of Nature and Art_, speaking of this -singularly curious production, says, that in every shell he opened he -found a perfect sea-fowl[!], with a bill like that of a goose, feet like -those of water-fowl, and the feathers all plainly formed." (_Ibid._, p. -300.) - - -WARTS FROM WASHING IN EGG-WATER. - -It is commonly held that washing the hands in water in which eggs have -been boiled will produce a plentiful crop of warts. Not long ago two -young and intelligent ladies stated that they had inadvertently washed -their hands and arms in egg-water, and in each case this had been -followed by large numbers of warts. This sequence they affirmed to be a -consequence, and the warts were shown as an ocular demonstration of the -unpleasant results of such lavation. - - -FORTUNE-TELLING.--WISE MEN AND CUNNING WOMEN, ETC. - -There is scarcely a town of any magnitude in Lancashire, or in one or -two adjacent counties, which does not possess its local "fortune-teller" -or pretender to a knowledge of astrology, and to a power of predicting -the future events of life, under the talismanic name of "fortune," to a -large and credulous number of applicants. The fortune-teller of the -nineteenth century professes to be able to "cast nativities" and to -"rule the planets." If, as is not unfrequently the case, he be a medical -botanist, he gathers his herbs when the proper planet is "in the -ascendant." Some of these impostors also profess to "charge the crystal" -(_i.e._, to look into a globular or egg-shaped glass), and thereby to -solve the gravest questions respecting the future fortunes of those who -consult them. Nor is this by any means an unprofitable pursuit. The -writer is aware of several instances in which "casting nativities," &c., -has proved a golden harvest to the professor. One individual gave up a -well-paid occupation in order that he might devote himself wholly to the -still more lucrative practice of astrology and fortune-telling. He not -only predicted future events by means of the stars, but he gave heads of -families advice as to the recovery of stolen property and the detection -of the thief; while impatient maidens he counselled how to bring shy or -dilatory lovers to the point. Another practitioner added to these -practices the construction of sun-dials, in which he was very -ingenious, and thereby amassed considerable property after a long and -successful career. Instances are very common that credulity is not -confined to the ignorant or uneducated classes. An intelligent and -well-meaning lady once very seriously cautioned the writer against -diving into the secrets of astrology, as, she said, that pursuit had -"turned the head" of one of her acquaintance. She not only had a firm -faith in the truth of all astrological predictions, but (from -apprehension engendered by this faith) she would not on any account -suffer any of these practitioners to predict her fortune, nor would she -on any account consult them. It seems that on one occasion she did -commit herself so far as to go to "a wise man," whom we will call Mr. -I., in company with Miss J., whose marriage with Mr. K. was then -somewhat doubtful; and she afterwards solemnly affirmed that the -astrologer told her all her fortune. She described him as first -carefully drawing the requisite diagram, showing the state of the -heavens at the hour of Miss J.'s birth; and after "charging his glass" -he declared that the marriage would take place within a few months; -"but," he added, "he was also very sorry to inform her that she would -die young." Both these events did really happen within a limited period; -and of course the lady's belief in the truth of astrological prediction -was very powerfully strengthened and confirmed. Some time after these -events, this identical Mr. I. was brought before the magistrates in -petty sessions, charged with obtaining money under false pretences; with -practising astrology, palmistry, &c., and he only narrowly escaped -imprisonment through some technical error in the charge or summons. It -was said that the charge was a vindictive one--hence there was great -rejoicing amongst his friends when it was dismissed; but the inspector -of police who had charge of the case did not hesitate to declare that -there were many persons then present who had paid Mr. I. money for his -predictions. - -Another specimen of the fortune-teller we may notice from a rural -district. In the hamlet of Roe Green, in the township of Worsley, in a -humble cottage, a few years ago lived a man who held the position of -overseer or head of one class of workmen in the employ of the -Bridgewater Trust. In the language of the locality, "Owd Rollison -[Rawlinson] was a _gaffer_." But to this regular avocation he added the -profession of fortune-telling, and in the evenings many were the -applicants for a little knowledge of future events from the villages and -hamlets for miles around. His stock-in-trade consisted of various books -on astrology, &c., and of two magic glasses or crystals, one a small -globular mass of common white glass, with a short stem by which to hold -it; the other was about the size and shape of a large hen's egg, but -without any stem or handle. His whole apparatus was for some months in -the possession of the writer, and a list of his books may serve to show -the sort of literature held in esteem amongst this class of planet -rulers. 1. _The Three Books of Occult Philosophy_ of Henry Cornelius -Agrippa, translated by J. Freake (London, 1651, pp. 583).[85] 2. Lilly's -_Christian Astrology_, in three books (London, 1659, pp. 832). 3. John -Gadbury's _Thesaurus Astrologiæ_ (Westminster, 1674, pp. 272). 4. _The -Star_, by Ebn Shemaya (London, 1839, pp. 203). Zadkiel's _Grammar of -Astrology_ (London, 1849, pp. 178): in this volume were also bound up -"Tables for Calculating Nativities," by Zadkiel (London, 1850, pp. 64). -6. _A Plea for Urania_ (London, 1854, pp. 387). - -One or two MS. books, apparently blank copy-books, which had been used -to draw diagrams, or, as the phrase goes, to "construct horoscopes," or -"erect schemes," or "cast nativities," showed that "Owd Rollison" had -dabbled a little in a sort of Astrology; but the rudeness of these -attempts betrayed him to be but a mere tyro in the "celestial science." -He had also a reputation for selling "charms" against the various ills -that flesh is heir to; amongst others, one to stop hæmorrhage. One -countryman told the writer that he remembered, when a boy, that his -uncle having a very severe hæmorrhage, so that he was believed to be -bleeding to death, this boy was told to run off as hard as he could to -Owd Rollison to get something to stop the bleeding. He soon received a -small piece of parchment containing sundry unintelligible characters -upon it, which was to be sewed up in a small bag and worn continually, -so that the bag should rest on the skin just over the heart. This was -done, the bleeding stopped, and the man recovered. Another person, who -had been a sort of confidant of the wise man, told the writer that at -one period Rawlinson went at regular intervals, and on stated days, to -Manchester, where at a quiet public-house he met other "wise men," and -they assembled in an upper chamber, with locked door, and sometimes -remained for hours in deliberation. Of the subject of such deliberations -the informant said he knew nothing, for he was never admitted; he had -the honour of remaining outside the door as watchman, guard, or -sentinel, to prevent any prying listeners from approaching. He -conjectured that what they were about was "magic and such like;" but -more he knew not. "Owd Rollison" kept his situation under the -Bridgewater Trust until his death, at a ripe old age; and though he left -several sons and a daughter, the mantle of his astrological or -fortune-telling wisdom does not seem to have fallen on any of them. - -Much might be stated respecting the practice of the art of -fortune-telling by wandering gipsies, especially in that branch of it -termed palmistry--predicting the future from an examination of the -"lines" of the palm of the left hand, each of which, in the jargon of -palmists, has its own peculiar character and name, as the line of life, -of fortune, &c.; but as these wanderers are not indigenous to -Lancashire, but may be found in every county in England, it may suffice -thus to name them. Of the old women who tell fortunes by cards chiefly, -to silly women who are always wanting to know whether their future -husband is to be denoted by the King of Hearts (a true-loving swain) or -by the Monarch of Diamonds (as indicative of great wealth), it is enough -to say that they may be found by scores or hundreds in every town in -Lancashire. - - -MAGIC AND MAGICIANS. - -Our forefathers had a strong faith in the power of magic, and even -divided the knowledge of it into two opposite kinds--viz., "white -magic," which was acquired from the communications of the archangels and -angels, or at least from some of the good spirits who were allowed to -aid human beings by their supernatural power in deeds of beneficence; -and black magic, or "the black art," also termed "necromancy," which was -derived from dealings with the devil, or at least from commerce with -his imps, or the evil spirits of wicked dead men. At one period the -terms magician and conjuror had the same meaning--one who conjured, by -magical power, spirits and demons to appear and do his bidding. Conjuror -has since become a name for a professor of _legerdemain_ or -sleight-of-hand. - - -EDWARD KELLY, THE SEER. - -Edward Kelly, whose dealings in the Black Art, it is said, would fill a -volume, was born at Worcester, and had been an apothecary. We have -elsewhere noticed his doings as an alchemist. He was for a considerable -time the companion and associate of "Dr." John Dee, performing for him -the office of "Seer," by looking into the doctor's crystal or stone, a -faculty not possessed by Dee, who in consequence was obliged to have -recourse to Kelly for the revelations he has published respecting the -world of spirits. These curious transactions may be found in Casaubon's -work, entitled, _A True and Faithful Relation of what Passed for many -years between Dr. John Dee and some Spirits_--opening out another dark -page in the history of imposture and credulity. Dee says that he was -brought into unison with Kelly by the mediation of the angel Uriel. -Afterwards he found himself deceived by him, in his opinion that these -spirits which ministered unto him were messengers of the Deity. They had -had several quarrels before; but when Dee found Kelly degenerating into -the worst species of the magic art, for the purposes of avarice and -fraud, he broke off all connexion with him, and would never afterwards -be seen in his company. Kelly, being discountenanced by the doctor, -betook himself to the meanest practices of magic, in all which money and -the works of the devil appear to have been his chief aim. Many wicked -and abominable transactions are recorded of him. - -In Lilly's Memoirs are the following passages relating to this -Seer:--"Kelly outwent the Doctor, viz., about the Elixir and the -Philosopher's Stone, which neither he nor his master attained by their -own labour and industry. It was in this manner that Kelly obtained it, -as I had it related from an ancient minister, who knew the certainty -thereof from an old English merchant, resident in Germany, at what time -both Kelly and Dee were there. Dee and Kelly, being on the confines of -the Emperor's dominions, in a city where resided many English merchants, -with whom they had much familiarity, there happened an old friar to come -to Dr. Dee's lodgings, knocking at the door. Dee peeped down stairs: -'Kelly,' says he, 'tell the old man I am not at home.' Kelly did so. The -friar said, 'I will take another time to wait upon him.' Some few days -after, he came again. Dee ordered Kelly, if it were the same person, to -deny him again. He did so; at which the friar was very angry. 'Tell thy -master I came to speak with him, and to do him good; because he is a -great scholar, and famous: but now tell him, he put forth a book, and -dedicated it to the Emperor. It is called _Monas Hieroglyphicas_. He -understands it not. I wrote it myself. I came to instruct him therein, -and in some other more profound things. Do thou, Kelly, come along with -me. I will make thee more famous than thy master Dee.' Kelly was very -apprehensive of what the friar delivered, and thereupon suddenly -retired from Dr. Dee, and wholly applied unto the friar, and of him -either had the Elixir ready made, or the perfect method of its -preparation and making. The poor friar lived a very short time after: -whether he died a natural death, or was otherwise poisoned or made away -by Kelly, the merchant who related this, did not certainly know." "It -was vulgarly reported that he [Kelly] had a compact with the devil, -which he out-lived, and was seized at midnight by infernal spirits, who -carried him off in sight of his family, at the instant he was meditating -a mischievous design against the minister of the parish, with whom he -was greatly at enmity."[86] - - -RAISING THE DEAD AT WALTON-LE-DALE. - -In the reign of Queen Elizabeth and the year 1560, three judicial -astrologers met in Preston, for the purpose of raising a corpse by -incantations. They were Dr. Dee, Warden of Manchester, Edward Kelly, his -assistant, and "seer," and Paul Wareing, of Dove Cotes, near Clayton -Brook. Casaubon, in his "True and faithful Account of what passed for -many years between John Dee and some Spirits," (apparently quoting from -Weever's _Funeral Monuments_) states that "The aforesaid Master Edward -Kelly, a person well skilled in judicial astrology, with one Paul -Wareing (who acted with him in these incantations and all these -conjurations) and Dr. Dee, went to the churchyard of St. Leonard's, in -Walton-le-Dale, near Preston, and entered the burial ground exactly at -midnight, the moon shining brightly, for the purpose of raising the body -of a person who had been interred there, and who had during his life -hidden a quantity of money without disclosing the fact previous to his -death. Having had the grave pointed out to them on the preceding day, -they opened it, removed the coffin lid, and set to work by various -exorcisms, until the body became animated, by the spirit entering it -again. The body then rose out of the grave and stood upright before -them. It not only satisfied their wicked desires, it is said, but -delivered several strange predictions concerning persons in the -neighbourhood, which were literally and exactly fulfilled. Sibley, in -his _Occult Sciences_, relates a similar account of this transaction, -and also gives an engraving representing the scene, which took place at -the midnight hour in the church of Walton. Another account states that -Dr. Dee was engaged with Kelly in this enterprise, August 12th, 1560, -and that Paul Wareing, of Clayton Brook, was the other who gave -assistance in endeavouring to obtain an intercourse with familiar -spirits."--(_Whittle's Preston._) - - -AN EARL OF DERBY CHARGED WITH KEEPING A CONJUROR. - -The loyal and munificent Edward (third) Earl of Derby, notwithstanding -his great services to Queen Elizabeth, and his long-proved loyalty, was -maligned and accused of traitorous intentions. The Earl of Huntingdon -wrote to Sir William Cecil, then the Queen's Secretary of State -(afterwards Lord Burghley, her Treasurer), a letter, communicating -suspicions of the Earl of Derby, which the writer asked should be burned -as soon as read, but which has been preserved (and printed) amongst Lord -Burghley's _State Papers_ (I. 603.) Modernising the spelling, the letter -runs thus:-- - - Sir,--I am bolder to write to you on weighty matters, than I dare be - to some others; the cause I leave to your consideration, and so to - you only I am bold to impart that I hear. The matter in short is - this:--Among the Papists of Lancashire, Cheshire, and the Cosynes - (?), great hope and expectation there is, that Derby will play as - foul a part this year as the two Earls did the last year. [See the - Rising in the North.] I hope better of him for my part, and for my - respects, both general and particular, I wish him to do better. I - know he hath hitherto been loyal, and even the last year, as you - know, gave good testimony of his fidelity, and of his own - disposition, I think, will do so still; but he may be drawn by evil - counsel, God knoweth to what. I fear he hath even at this time many - wicked counsellors, and some too near him. _There is one Browne, a - conjuror, in his house, kept secretly._ There is also one Uphalle, - who was a pirate, and had lately his pardon, that could tell - somewhat, as I hear, if you could get him. He that carried my Lord - Morley over, was also there within this se'ennight, kept secretly. - He with his whole family never raged so much against religion as - they do now, he never came to common prayer for this quarter or this - year, as I hear, neither doth any of the family, except five or six - persons. I dare not write what more I hear, because I cannot justify - and prove it; but this may suffice for you in time to look to it. - And surely, in my simple opinion, if you send some faithful and wise - spy, that would dissemble to come from D'Alva, and dissemble popery, - you might understand all; for if all be true that is said, there is - a very fond company in the house at this present. I doubt not but - you can and will use this matter better than I can advise you. Yet - let me wish you to take heed to which of your companions (though you - be now but five together) you utter this matter _ne fortè_ it be in - Lathom sooner than you would have it; for some of you have men about - you and friends attending on you, &c., that deal not always well. I - pray God save our Elizabeth and confound all her enemies; and thus I - take my leave, committing you to God his tuition. - - Your assured poor friend, - H. HUNTYNGDON. - From Ashby, 24 Aug., 1570. - - P.S.--Because none there should know of my letter, I would not send - it by my servant, but have desired Mr. Ad to deliver it to you in - secret. When you have read it, I pray you to burn it and forget the - name of the writer. I pray God I may not hear any more of your - coming to ----. - -There seems to have been no substantial ground for suspecting the -loyalty of the Earl of Derby, which remained unshaken through another -ordeal, the conspiracy of the Duke of Norfolk to marry the Queen of -Scots, and place her on the English throne. But the Bishop of Ross gave -evidence, that in Mary's design, in 1571, to escape from Sheffield -Castle to the Continent, she was aided by several Lancashire gentlemen; -and adds, that she wrote a letter by a little priest of Rolleston's to -Sir Thomas Stanley. Sir Thomas Gerrard and Rolleston devised a cypher -for her; and they offered to convey her away, and willed the Bishop to -ask the Duke of Norfolk's opinion therein. The prelate further stated -that Hall told him that if the Queen [Mary] would get two men landed in -Lancashire, Sir Thomas Stanley, and Sir Edward Stanley, along with Sir -Thomas Gerrard, and Rolleston, would effect her escape to France or -Flanders, &c. Upon this evidence Sir Thomas Stanley, Sir Thomas Gerrard, -and Rolleston, were apprehended, and committed to the Tower as state -prisoners.[87] - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[75] Allen's _History of Yorkshire_, vol. iii. pp. 421-425. - -[76] _Gort_, narrow; _gor_, upper, Brit.; _gór_, blood, A.-S. _Gorple_ -may mean the bloody pile, or the upper pile. - -[77] From _Sceot-hull_, afterwards _Scout_ or _Shoot-hill_, and -_worth_--_i.e._, the farm or hamlet of the projecting ledge or hill. - -[78] Dr. Borlase's argument is cumulative. He observes that rock basins -are always on the _top_, never on the _sides_ of the stones; that the -ancients sacrificed on rocks; that water was used by them for lustration -and purification; that snow, rain, or dew, was preferred by them to -running water; that it was not permitted to touch the earth; that the -Druids practised similar rites, and held rain or snow-water to be holy; -and they attributed a healing virtue to the gods inhabiting rocks; that -their priests stood upon rocks to wash, sprinkle, and drink, &c. All -these considerations, he conceives, favour his opinion that rock basins -were _used_, if not _formed_, by the Druids. - -[79] See Watson's _History of Halifax_, pp. 27-36. - -[80] Professor Hunt is of the same opinion. See his recent work on the -_Drolls of Cornwall_, vol. i. pp. 186-228. - -[81] T. G. C., in _Notes and Queries_, vol. vii. p. 177. - -[82] In his _History of Blackpool_, pp. 333-4. - -[83] Speet, spit, or spittle, are names in Lancashire for a spade. - -[84] L. B., in _Notes and Queries_, vol. viii. p. 613.--_Bibliographical -Notice of the Works of the Learned and Rev. Divine, John White, D.D., -&c._ London, 1624; in _Chet. Soc. Books_, vol. xxxviii. p. 52. - -[85] There is another curious volume, which professes to contain a -fourth book of Agrippa; but it is spurious. It includes five -treatises--viz., 1. Henry Cornelius Agrippa's Fourth Book on Occult -Philosophy and Geomancy; 2. The Magical Elements of Peter de Abano; 3. -The Astronomical Geomancy of Gerard Cremonensis; 4. Isagoge, or the -Nature of Spirits, by Geo. Victorius Villinganus, M.D.; and 5. Arbatel -of Magick. Translated into English by Robert Turner, Philomathées. -(London, 1665, 8vo, pp. 266.) Another version of this book appeared in -1783, 8vo. It would lead us too far to describe the strange contents of -this book, which contains long lists of the names of good and evil -spirits, and symbols representing their characters; also symbols of the -archangels and angels, their sigils, planets, signs, &c. - -[86] See Roby's _Traditions of Lancashire_. - -[87] (_Lord Burghley's Papers_, vol. ii., p. 771.) The death of Edward -Earl of Derby, "with whom (says Camden) the glory of hospitality hath in -a manner been laid asleep," took place on the 24th October, 1572. - - - - -MIRACLES, OR MIRACULOUS STORIES. - - -An age of credulity is naturally rich in miracles. Superstition is ever -prone to explain the mysterious, or to account for the questionable, by -hunting for some supernatural cause; and hence the popular love for and -strong faith in the miraculous. No church erected before the Reformation -but had its miraculous legend; no well or spring of a remote antiquity -but had its tradition, either connected with its origin or with its -marvellous and miraculous powers of healing. The miracle of a past age, -preserved to the present in the form of a legend, is equally entitled to -a place in our Folk-Lore. - - -MIRACLES BY A DEAD DUKE OF LANCASTER AND KING. - -One of the Harleian Manuscripts (Cod. 423), found amongst the papers of -Fox the Martyrologist, and entitled "De Miraculis Beatissimi Militis Xpi -Henrici Vj." (Of the Miracles of the Most blessed Knight of Christ, -Henry VI.), consisting of about 150 closely written pages, contains an -account of a vast number of reputed miracles performed by this weak and -credulous monarch (who long hoped to pay his large debts by the aid of -two alchemists!) and of which the following specimens will doubtless -suffice for our readers:--How Richard Whytby, priest of St. Michael's, -was long ill of a fever, and at last miraculously cured by journeying to -the tomb of Henry VI. John, called Robynson, who had been blind ten -years, recovered his sight by visiting Henry's tomb. How Henry -Lancaster, afflicted in fever, was miraculously cured in three days by -the appearance of the blessed prince Henry VI. in the sky. How a girl -called Joan Knyght, who was nearly killed with a bone sticking in her -throat, and considered dead, on the bystanders invoking Henry VI., -vomited the bone and was restored to health. If these superstitions -wanted a crowning absurdity, that is not wanting in the fact that Henry -VII. actually sent an embassy to Rome, to importune the newly-elected -Pope Julius II. to canonize Henry VI. as a saint! His holiness referred -the matter to certain cardinals, to take the verification of the -deceased monarch's holy acts and miracles; but these were not -sufficiently obvious to entitle him to the dignity of the calendar, and -the negotiation was abandoned in despair.[88] - -Mr. Monckton Milnes, M.P. (now Lord Houghton), in an interesting letter -in _Notes and Queries_, I. 181, asks for information respecting this -popular "saint," to whom the Church, however, denied canonization. He -refers to Brady for an account of the miracle performed at the tomb of -Thomas Earl of Lancaster, and of the picture or image of the Earl -exhibited in St. Paul's, London, and the object of many offerings. Brady -cites the opinion of an ecclesiastic, who doubted the propriety of this -devotion being encouraged by the Church; the Earl, besides his political -offences, having been a notorious evil-liver. In June 1327, a "King's -letter" (of Edward III.) was given to Robert de Weryngton, authorizing -him and his agents to collect alms throughout the Kingdom for the -purpose of building a chapel on the hill where the Earl was beheaded; -and praying all prelates and authorities to give him aid and heed. This -sanction gave rise to imposture; and in the following December a -proclamation appeared, ordering the arrest and punishment of -unauthorized persons collecting money under this pretence and taking it -for their own use. The chapel was constructed, and officiated in till -the dissolution of the monasteries; the image in St. Paul's was always -regarded with especial affection, and the cognomen of "_Saint_ Thomas of -Lancaster" was generally accepted and understood. Five hundred years -after the execution of the Earl of Lancaster [in 1822], a large stone -coffin, massive and roughly hewn, was found in a field that belonged of -old to the Priory of Pomfret, but at least a quarter of a mile distant -from the hill where the chapel stood. Within was the skeleton of a -full-grown man, partially preserved; the skull lay between the thighs. -There is no record of the decapitation of any person at Pontefract of -sufficient dignity to have been interred in a manner showing so much -care for the preservation of the body, except the Earl of Lancaster. The -coffin may have been removed here at the time the opposite party forbade -its veneration, from motives of precaution for its safety.--R. M. -M.--[The Editor of _Notes and Queries_ adds, that "The Office of St. -Thomas of Lancaster," which begins "_Gaude, Thoma, ducum decus, lucerna -Lancastriæ_," is printed in the volume of "_Political Songs_" edited by -Mr. Wright for the Camden Society, from a royal MS. in the British -Museum, _MS. Reg. 12_. Another correspondent, we believe Mr. James -Thompson of Leicester, states that at the dissolution of the monasteries -in that town, several relics of St. Thomas (who was Earl of Leicester, -as well as of Lancaster) were exhibited; amongst others his felt hat, -which was considered a great remedy for the headache!] - - -A MIRACULOUS FOOTPRINT IN BRINDLE CHURCH. - -Beneath the eastern gable of the chancel lies a huge stone coffin, with -a cavity for the head, but its history is unknown. In the wall just -above it is a small indentation, resembling the form of a foot, which, -according to tradition, was made by the high-heeled shoe of a Popish -disputant, who, in the ardour of debate, wished, if the doctrine he -advanced was not true, that his foot might sink into the stone, "upon -which the reforming stone instantly softened, and buried the papistical -foot;" much in the same way, no doubt, as the flag in Smithells Hall -received the print of the foot of George Marsh, the martyr.[89] - - -THE FOOTPRINT AT SMITHELLS OF GEORGE MARSH, THE MARTYR. - -George Marsh, one of the three Lancashire martyrs in the reign of Queen -Mary, was the son of Mr. George Marsh, a yeoman of Dean, and was born -about 1575. He was educated at the Bolton Free Grammar School, and for a -time followed farming, and, marrying at twenty-five, settled there till -the death of his wife; when, placing his children with his father, he -became a student at Cambridge University, was ordained, and was -appointed curate of All-Hallows, Bread-street, London. He continued for -some time preaching the reformed doctrines, and zealously supporting the -Protestant faith, both in London and Lancashire; and while in his native -county, in March 1555, he learned that he had been sought after by the -servants of Mr. Barton of Smithells Hall, a magistrate; on which he went -thither voluntarily, and was examined before Mr. Barton. In a passage -near the door of the dining-room is a cavity in a flag, bearing some -resemblance to the print of a man's foot, and this cavity is said by -tradition to have been caused by the martyr stamping his foot to confirm -his testimony, and it is shown to this day as a miraculous memorial of -the holy man. The story goes, that "being provoked by the taunts and -persecutions of his examiners, he stamped with his foot upon a stone, -and, looking up to Heaven, appealed to God for the justness of his -cause; and prayed that there might remain in that place a constant -memorial of the wickedness and injustice of his enemies." It is said -that about the beginning of the eighteenth century this stone was -removed by two or three young men, of the family of Barton, then living -at the hall, during the absence of their parents; that they cast it into -the clough behind the hall; but all the inmates of the house were so -much disturbed that same night by alarming noises, that they could not -rest. Inquiry led to confession, the stone was replaced, and the noises -ceased. It is also stated that in 1732, a guest (John Butterworth, of -Manchester,) sleeping alone in the Green Chamber at Smithells Hall, saw -an apparition, in the dress of a minister with bands, and a book in his -hand. The ghost of Marsh (for so it was pronounced to be) disappeared -through the door-way, and on the owner of Smithells hearing the story, -he directed that divine service (long discontinued) should be resumed at -the hall chapel every Sunday. Such are some of the stories told about -Smithells Hall; and there is hardly an old hall in the country that has -not one or more such traditions floating about its neighbourhood. It is -as if ghostly visitants scorned to honour with their presence any house -below the dignity of a hall. In this case, it may be observed that -neither in Marsh's own account of what passed at Smithells, nor in Mr. -Whatton's Biographical notice of him in Baines's _History of -Lancashire_, is any mention made of the miraculous footprint. But in a -volume of four or five tracts printed at Bolton (no year stated) the -third tract is "The Life and Martyrdom of George Marshe," &c. "Also, the -particulars respecting the print of a foot on the flag shewn at -Smithills Hall, near Bolton;" which latter is signed "W. D.," and dated -"August 22, 1787." Amongst other discrepancies, it may be observed that -W. D. makes Marsh's interrogator "Sir Roger Barton;" while Marsh, a -native of the immediate neighbourhood invariably writes of him as "Mr. -Barton." - - -A LEGEND OF CARTMEL CHURCH. - -Better than six hundred years ago (runs the story) some monks came over -to Lancashire from another country; and, finding all this part of the -kingdom covered with wood, they resolved to build a monastery in some -part of Cartmel Forest. In their rambles, they found a hill which -commanded a prospect so beautiful and extensive that they were quite -charmed with it. They marked out a piece of ground on the summit, and -were preparing to build the church, when a voice spoke to them out of -the air, saying "Not there, but in a valley, between two rivers, where -the one runs north, and the other south." Astonished at this strange -command, they marvelled where the valley could be, for they had never -seen a valley where two rivers ran in contrary directions. They set out -to seek this singular valley, and travelled throughout the North of -England, but in vain. Wearied with their fruitless search, they were -returning to the hill where they had heard the strange voice. In passing -through a valley covered with wood, they came to a small river, the -stream of which ran north. They waded through it, and shortly after -found another, the stream of which ran south. They placed the church -midway between the two streams, upon a little island, of hard ground, in -the midst of a morass; dedicating it to St. Mary. They also built a -small chapel on the hill where they had heard the voice, which they -dedicated to St. Bernard. The chapel has long since disappeared, but the -hill is still called Mount Bernard.[90] - - -THE PROPHET ELIAS, A LANCASHIRE FANATIC. - -In 1562, a native of Manchester who called himself Elias, but whose real -name was Ellys, pretended to possess the spirit of prophecy. He went to -London, where he made some proselytes, uttering his "warning voice" in -the public places. James Pilkington, D.D., a native of Rivington, in -Lancashire, and an eminent Protestant divine, who was raised by Queen -Elizabeth in 1560 to the See of Durham, preached before the Queen at -Greenwich, against the supposed mission of this Manchester fanatic. The -Bishop of London, three days afterwards, ordered the northern prophet to -be put in the pillory in Cheapside. He was thence committed to -Bridewell, where he died in or about 1565. - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[88] Baines's _Lancashire_. - -[89] Baines's _Lancashire_. - -[90] See _Lonsdale Magazine_, February, 1821. - - - - -OMENS AND PREDICATIONS. - - -An intense desire to know future events, besides being the great -encouragement of astrologers, sorcerers, and magicians, wise men, -cunning women, fortune-tellers, &c., has given rise to a large class of -small circumstances which are regarded as indicative of coming good or -bad luck, of good or evil fortune, to the observer or the person -experiencing their influence. Hence, nothing is more common than to hear -amongst uneducated and credulous people predications from the most -trivial occurrences of daily life. A winding-sheet in the candle, -spilling the salt, crossing knives, and various other trifles, are omens -of evil to thousands of lore-folk to this day. Should one of your -children fall sick when on a visit at a friend's house, it is held to be -sure to entail bad luck on that family for the rest of the year, if you -stay over New Year's-day. Persons have been known to travel sixty miles -with a sick child rather than run the risk. A flake of soot on the bars -of the grate is said to indicate the approach of a stranger; a bright -spark on the wick of a candle, or a long piece of stalk in the tea-cup, -betokens a similar event. When the fire burns briskly, some lover smirks -or is good-humoured. A cinder thrown out of the fire by a jet of gas -from burning coals, is looked upon as a coffin, if its hollow be long; -as a purse of gold, if the cavity be roundish. Crickets in a house are -said to indicate good fortune; but should they forsake the chimney -corner, it is a sure sign of coming misfortunes. - -In the neighbourhood of Lancaster I know ladies who consider it "lucky" -to find _old iron_: a horse-shoe or rusty nail is carefully conveyed -home and hoarded up. It is also considered lucky if you see the _head_ -of the first lamb in spring; to present his _tail_ is the certain -harbinger of misfortune. It is also said that if you have money in your -pocket the first time you hear the cuckoo, you will never be without all -the year.[91] - -In Lancashire we still dislike the moaning or hooting of owls and the -croaking of ravens, as much as the Romans did of old. In a large class -of our population few would yet defy evil fate, by beginning a journey -or any important undertaking, or marrying, on a Friday; on which day -Lancashire, like other sailors, have a strong repugnance to beginning a -voyage. This day of the week is regarded as of evil augury, because it -was the day (Good Friday) when our Saviour's blood was shed. The -auguries of dreams are so numerous, that a large class of chap-books are -still to be found circulating in country places, from _Mother Shipton_ -to _Napoleon's Book of Fate_. Few young women in the country, farmers' -daughters and servants, were without a favourite "Dream-Book." Again, -the farmer or cottager deems it necessary, in order to secure a crop of -onions, to sow the seed on St. Gregory's-day [March 12] named -"Gregory-gret-Onion," (_i.e._, Gregory the Great). Amongst the more -pardonable longings to raise the veil of futurity are those of village -maidens (and not a few of those in towns too, and of all ranks) to get a -peep at the figure of the husband whom the future has in store for her. -On All-Hallows' Eve she strews the ashes which are to take the form of -one or more letters of her lover's name; she throws hemp-seed over her -shoulder and timidly glances to see who follows her. On the fast of St. -Agnes she watches a small candle called a "pig-tail," to see the passing -image of her future husband. The up-turned tea-cup, for its leaves, or -the coffee-cup for its "grounds;" the pack of cards, with the desired -King of Hearts or Diamonds, the sputterings and spurtings of a -tallow-candle, all furnished to the omen-instructed damsel some sign by -which to read the future, and to arrive at a knowledge of her lot in -life, as to husband, children, fortune, &c. When leaving home to begin a -journey, or to commence any future enterprise, it is deemed an -important observance, necessary to insure good luck, to walk -"withershins" (_i.e._, as the weather or sun shines). In many country -places this is always observed by a bridal party when advancing to the -altar to have the marriage solemnized, and, of course, one particular -aisle of the church is the only fortunate or lucky one to proceed by. -Some, however, say that to walk "widdershins" is to take a direction -contrary to the course of the sun, _i.e._, from right to left.[92] Some -persons more credulous than humane, will shut up a poor cat in the oven, -to ensure their own good luck. Days have long been parcelled out between -lucky and unlucky, for any important undertaking, as a journey, taking a -partner in business or for life, buying land, or even for such trivial -matters as blood-letting, taking physic, cutting the hair, or paring -nails. Again, the moon's age is an important element in securing future -weal or woe. For the first year of an infant's life many mothers will -not have its hair or nails cut, and when the year is gone these -operations must be performed when the moon is so many days old, to -ensure good results. A tooth, as soon as it has been drawn, should be -sprinkled with salt, and thrown into the fire; if it be lost, no rest or -peace will be enjoyed till it is found again. The following are a few -omens drawn from observing peculiarities about animals:-- - - -CATS. - -1. If a cat tear at the cushions, carpets, &c., with its claws, it is -considered to be a sign of wind. Hence we say, "the cat is raising the -wind." 2. If a cat in washing its face draw its paw quite over its -forehead, it is a sign of fair weather. If not so, it betokens speedy -rain. 3. Allowing cats to sleep with you is considered very unhealthy. -They are said to "draw your health away." 4. Those who play much with -cats have never good health. A cat's hair is said to be indigestible, -and you will die if one get into your stomach. 5. It is counted unlucky -to allow cats to die in a house. Hence when they begin to be ill they -are usually drowned. A case of this kind occurred in Burnley a short -time ago. 6. If a kitten come to a house, it is counted a lucky omen. - - -DOGS. - -1. Dogs are said to sit down and howl before the door when any one is -about to be sick, or die. A death is considered _certain_ if the dog -return as often as driven away. 2. Dogs are hence considered to be -somehow acquainted with the spirit world, "or else," as one said, "how -should they know when a person is going to die?" This is firmly -believed in about Mellor and Blackburn. In Burnley and neighbourhood -equally so at present. 3. The _life_ of a dog is sometimes said to be -_bound up_ with that of its master or mistress. When either _dies_ the -other cannot _live_. Is this a remnant of the old belief in the -transmigration of souls? 4. The whining of a favourite dog is considered -by many to betoken calamity to the family to which it belongs. - - -LAMBS. - -It is very lucky for lambs to have their faces towards you when you -first see them in Spring. The omen is much more favourable when they are -looking towards the east. - - -BIRDS. - -To kill or ill-use swallows, wrens, redbreasts, &c., is accounted -unfortunate; for these all frequent our houses for good. There is a -stanza common among us which declares that - - "A Cock Robin and a Jenny Wren - Are God Almighty's cock and hen; - A Spink and a Sparrow - Are the Devil's bow and arrow." - -Birds are supposed by some to be somehow cognizant of what is about to -happen. A _jackdaw_ is always an unwelcome visitor, if it alight on the -window-sill of a sick chamber. A _white dove_ is thought to be a -favourable omen; its presence betokens recovery to the person within, or -it is _an angel in that form_ ready to convey the soul of a dying person -to heaven. I once knew a Wesleyan Methodist who was of opinion that -"forgiveness of sins" was assured to her by a small bird, which flew -across her path when she had long been praying for a token of this kind. -When a _Canary-bird_ sings cheerfully, all is well with the family that -keeps it; when it becomes silent, and remains so, there is calamity in -store for that household. If you hear the _cuckoo_ shout towards the -east, for the first time in any year, and have gold, silver, and copper -coin in your pockets, you will never want money during that year. - - -SWALLOWS. - -1. If swallows, or martins, begin to build their nests about a house or -barn, it is looked upon as predicating good luck to the occupier. "The -_more_ birds the _better_ luck." 2. On the contrary, when they forsake a -haunt, the occupiers become apprehensive of misfortune. Hence farmers -will always protect such birds, and often ill-use boys who may be -stoning them, or attempting to rob their nests. - - -MAGPIES. - -There are, at least in Lancashire and Yorkshire, many curious -superstitions connected with this bird. Its appearance _singly_ is still -regarded in both these counties by many even of the educated -representatives of the last generation, as an evil omen, and some of the -customs supposed to break the charm are curious. One is simply to raise -the hat as in salutation, another to sign the cross on the breast, and -to make the same sign by crossing the thumbs. This last custom is -confined to Yorkshire, and I know one elderly gentleman who not only -crosses his thumbs, but spits over them when in that position, a -practice which was, he says, common in his youth. The superstition -applies only to a single magpie, according to the old nursery legend:-- - - "One for sorrow, - Two for mirth, - Three for a wedding, - And four for a birth."[93] - -I met a person the other day who solemnly assured me that he had seen a -'pynot' as he came along the road; but he had made the figure of a cross -on the mire in the road, in order to avert the evil omen.[94] - -In Lancashire they say:-- - - "One for anger, - Two for mirth, - Three for a wedding, - Four for a birth, - Five for rich, - Six for poor, - Seven for a witch: - I can tell you no more."[95] - -But in Tim Bobbin it is expressly said that two magpies are indicative -of ill-fortune:--"I saigh two rott'n pynots, hong 'um, that wur a sign -of bad fashin; for I heerd my gronny say hoo'd as leef o' seen two Owd -Harries os two pynots."[96] "I shall catch none to-day," we heard a man -advanced in life, exclaim in a melancholy tone, who was angling in the -river Ribble. "Why?" we asked, "the day is not inauspicious." "No; but -do you not see that magpie?" In fact _pynots_, that is, magpies, -according to an old Lancashire superstition, are considered birds of -ill-omen. In spring it is considered by old-fashioned anglers unlucky to -see a single magpie; but two are a favourable auspice, because in cold -weather one bird only leaves the nest in search of food, the other -remaining to keep the eggs or the young ones warm; but when both are out -together, the weather is warm, mild, and favourable for fishing.[97] - - -DREAMS. - -This might well form a great division of itself, in any work on -Folk-lore. Yet a little reflection will serve to show that it is only -one branch, though a very large one, of the general subject of "Omens." -Dreams are regarded by the superstitious simply for what they predicate -as about to happen; in other words, they are important to the credulous -only as _omens_ of coming events. Itinerant hawkers and small village -shops drive a considerable trade in "Dream Books," or "Books of Fate," -which profess to interpret every dream and to explain every omen, -whether of good or evil import. Of the great variety and extent of -"Dream-Book literature" we cannot treat, for want of space. Hawkers and -small shops sell a vast quantity of penny dream-books in Lancashire. One -of the oldest specimens of these chap-books we have met with is a little -32mo. volume, entitled "_Mother Shipton's Legacy_, or a favourite -Fortune-book, in which is given a pleasing interpretation of dreams, and -a collection of prophetic verses, moral and entertaining." (York, 1797, -price 4_d._) Cap. I. treats of Lucky and Unlucky Days; II. of Moles on -the Person; III. Miscellaneous; IV. Dreams; and V. a Magical Table. A -few specimens of the dream portion may suffice:--To dream of joy denotes -grief; of fine clothes, poverty; of sweetmeats, a whipping; of flying, -falling down; of fire, anger; of serpents, private enemies; of money, -loss; of weeping, joy; of bathing, ease from pain; of kissing, strife; -of feasting, want; of many people, affliction; of singing, sorrow; of -changing abode, sudden news; of fishing, good luck; of death, marriage; -of finding money, bad luck; of gold, death; of embracing, death; of -being bald, misfortune; of a long nose, death; of growing fat, wealth; -of drinking water, good entertainment; of the sun rising, preferment; of -flashes of fire, sudden death; of being among tombs, riches by the death -of relations; of your teeth falling out, losses; of a lean ox, famine; -of a fine garden, much pleasure. - - [_Moral._] - - Though plain and palpable each subject seems, - Yet do not put your trust too much in dreams; - Events may happen, which in dreams you see, - And yet as often quite contrary be: - This learned hint observe, for Shipton's sake-- - Dreams are but interludes which fancies make. - -Many persons persuade themselves into the belief that events are -revealed to them in dreams. Those who can neither _see_ nor _hear_ -spirits generally presume to have this faculty. _One_ dream is not taken -much notice of, but if the dream be repeated substantially _three_ -times, the events of the dreams are supposed to be sure to come to pass. -Some _see_ all the circumstances as _realities_ in their dreams, others -only have dim recollections; they _hear_ all but do not _see_ the -persons. This agrees with the supposed _prophetical_ dreams of the -ancient Greeks and Romans. (_Homer_, _Virgil_, _Ovid_, &c.) Morning -dreams are more to be relied on than those of any other time. Those of -the morning twilight are most valued. Horrid dreams, or those in which -the dreamer feels very uneasy, are supposed to predict bad luck, or -misfortune to the family. "Dreams," they say, "always go by contraries." -There is a very general belief in dreams among the people of Lancashire. -The following are a few not hitherto noticed by the writer:--1. Dreaming -of _misfortune_ betokens _prosperity_. - - "Content and happy may they be - Who dream of cold adversity; - To married man and married wife - It promises a happy life." - -2. To dream of sickness betokens _marriage_ to young persons. 3. -Dreaming of being before an altar indicates sorrow and misfortune. 4. To -see angels is a sure sign of coming happiness. 5. When you dream of -being angry with any one, you may count that person amongst your best -friends. 6. To dream of catching fish is very unfortunate; every fish -you take betokens the death of some valued friend. 7. Dreaming about -balls, dances, &c., indicates coming good fortune. To the young we may -say:-- - - "Who dreams of being at a ball, - No cause have they for fear; - For soon they will united be - To those they hold most dear." - -8. When persons dream of losing their hair, it is a sign of loss of -health, friends, or property. 9. If a person dream of losing _one_, or -_more_, of his teeth, it is a sign that he will lose _one_, or _more_, -lawsuits which he may happen to be engaged in. I knew a person who had a -case in our county court. The case was to come on on the Thursday; but -on Wednesday night he dreamt he had lost a tooth. On the case being -decided against him, he appealed to his dream as a sure indication of -his non-success. 10. Dreaming of bees is counted lucky, because they are -industrious. - - "Happy the man who dreaming sees - The little humble busy bees - Fly humming round their hive." - -If the bees sting you, it is a sign of bad luck, crosses and -difficulties. 11. Dreaming of marriage, brides, &c., is a sign of death, -or long sickness. 12. To dream of a candle burning _brightly_ betokens -health, prosperity; and _vice versâ_. 13. Dreaming of cats betokens -treachery; but if you kill the cat you will have revenge. 14. To dream -of seeing a _coffin_ is unlucky; but to dream of seeing a _corpse_ -betokens a speedy marriage. 15. Dreaming of _death_ betokens long life -and happiness. 16. To dream that you are _dirty_ implies sickness for a -longer or shorter period. 17. If you dream of being _drowned_ you will -experience some loss. 18. To dream of _falling_ indicates loss. 19. To -dream of _flying_ implies that you will not succeed in accomplishing -high things. 20. If you dream of the water in a river being very _clear_ -you will have good luck; if the water be _muddy_ you will have -misfortune. 21. When a widow dreams of seeing her husband, it is a sure -sign that she will soon have an eligible offer. 22. If you dream that -you are daubed with ink, you may be sure that some one is _writing_ evil -of you. 23. Dreaming of going on a journey indicates a change in your -circumstances. 24. To dream of flying kites, or playing with bunches of -keys, betokens prosperity and advancement in business. 25. To dream of -cutting yourself, or of being infested with lice, indicates misfortune -or disease. 26. It is very fortunate to dream of milk. 27. To dream of -being naked indicates shame and misfortune. 28. To dream of the nose -bleeding is a very sure sign of misfortune and loss. 29. Dreaming of -seeing the ocean in a calm state betokens steadiness of circumstances; -and _vice versâ_. 30. To dream of rats indicates difficulties; of snow, -prosperity and success; of a wedding, death; and of a widow, that your -husband, wife, or lover, will desert you. - -All the preceding, and many more, are well-known to every Lancashire lad -and lass. - - -THE MOON. - -Our farmers predict fair weather, or the reverse, according as the new -moon "lies on her back," or "stands upright." It is also very unlucky -for anyone to look at the new moon, for the first time, through the -window. - - -HÆVER OR HIVER. - -A "quarter" of the heavens, or compass, or direction; "a lucky hæver" is -a fortunate or desirable direction. The origin of this word is somewhat -difficult of explanation; nor is it certain whether its proper etymon -has yet been ascertained. It is still in common use among some of the -farmers in East Lancashire, and was much more frequently used some -thirty or forty years ago. "What _hæver_ is the wind in this morning?" -was a common inquiry when any prediction respecting the weather for the -day was about to be hazarded. "I don't expect much rain," would probably -be the reply, "the wind is in a good _hæver_." There is generally most -rain in these parts of Lancashire when the wind blows from the south or -south-west; and hence if the wind came from the eastward continued rain -was not to be expected. - -Most persons have a notion that the East is the most sacred point of the -compass. The Star of the Nativity was seen in the east; the chancel, or -most holy portion of a church is placed at the east; and the dead are -buried so as to rise with their faces towards the east on the morning of -the resurrection. These considerations have been applied to the _hæver_ -from which the wind may blow; and hence the proverb occasionally met -with among those who live in the neighbourhood of Mellor and Ramsgreave, -near Blackburn, to the effect that "the East is a lucky _hæver_." - -A writer who signs himself "F. C. H." in _Notes and Queries_, 3rd -series, vol. vii. p. 310, asks whether _hæver_ is not "a peculiar -pronunciation of ever, so that the above inquiry would be in plain -English, _whatever_ is the wind in this morning?" This derivation -appears both too fanciful and insufficient; for when we consider that -Lancashire formed part of the Danelagh, and was long a Danish kingdom, -and that its dialect contains a large admixture of Danish words; we are -naturally led to examine whether such a term may not be found in the -Danish language. On examination this proves to be the fact, for "Hive," -(pronounced "heeve," as "high" is pronounced "hee,") is the verb "to -blow;" and hence "hiver" or "hæver," as applied to the place whence the -wind is blowing. This derivation appears to be both natural and -sufficient, since it fully accounts for the use of this peculiar term; -which, by the way, is not found in Halliwell's _Dictionary of Archaic -Words_, or in Wright's more recent work on the same subject. - - -DEASIL OR WIDERSINNIS. - -These are Celtic names for going round by way of ensuring good fortune. -The former name is derived from the Gaelic _deas_ or _des_, the right -hand, and _Syl_, the sun, and denotes a motion from east to west, or -according to the apparent motion of the sun; and is a custom of high -antiquity in religious ceremonies. In the western isles fire was carried -in the right hand in this course, about the house, corn, cattle, &c., -about women before they were churched, and children before they were -baptized. So the fishermen rowed the boat about first sun-wise to ensure -a lucky voyage. On the other hand, the Highland _Wider-sinnis_ (whence -the Lancashire _Wither-shins_) was from left to right or west to east, -or opposed to the course of the sun, a course used in magical -ceremonies, and said to be the mode of salutation given by witches and -warlocks to the devil.[98]--(See page 140 _suprâ_.) - - -OMENS OF WEATHER FOR NEW YEAR'S-DAY. - -In a Saxon MS. we find that "If the Kalends, or first of January, fall -on the Lord's-day, then will the winter be good, pleasant and warm."[99] -Another Saxon MS. in the Cotton Library contains the omens to the -following effect:--"If the Kalends of January be on the moon's day -(Monday) then there will be a severe and confused winter, a good spring, -windy summer, and a rueful year, in which there will be much sickness. -If the Kalends fall on Tuesday, then the winter will be dreary and -severe, a windy heat and rainy summer, and many women will die; ships -will voyage in danger, and kings and princes will die. If on Wednesday, -there will be a hard winter and bad spring; but a good summer. The -fruits of the earth will be much beaten down, honey will be scarce, and -young men will die. If on Thursday, there will be a good winter, windy -spring, good summer, and abundance of the fruits of the earth, and the -plough will be over the earth; but sheep and children will die. If on -Friday, there will be a variable winter, good spring and summer, with -great abundance, and sheep's eyes will be tender in the year. If on -Saturday, there will be a snowy winter, blowing spring, and rainy -summer; earth fruits will labour, sheep perish, old men die, and other -men be sick; the eyes of many will be tender, and fires will be -prevalent in the course of the year. If the Kalends fall on Sunday, -there will be a good winter, windy spring, and dry summer; and a very -good year this year will be; sheep will increase, there will be much -honey, and plenty and peace will be upon the earth."[100] - - -DEATH TICK OR DEATH WATCH. - -The death tick is not yet forgotten in the district around Burnley. Very -recently the insect has disturbed the imagination of a young lady, and -its ticks have led to more than one gloomy conjecture. It is a curious -circumstance that the _real_ death tick must only tick _three_ times on -each occasion. - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[91] T. D., in _Notes and Queries_. - -[92] See Halliwell's _Archaic Dictionary_, in voce. - -[93] E. B., (Liverpool) in _Notes and Queries_, 3rd series, vol. ix. p. -187. - -[94] T. T. W. - -[95] Another version has the last four lines thus:-- - - "Five for a fiddle, - Six for a dance, - Seven for England, - Eight for France." - -[96] J. O. Halliwell's _Nursery Rhymes_. - -[97] _Pictorial History of Lancashire._ - -[98] Hampson's _Medii Ævi Kalend._, vol. I. 255. - -[99] Hickes's _Thesaurus_, II. 194. - -[100] _Bibl. Cott. MSS. Tiberius, A._ III., fol. 39 b., and 40. - - - - -SUPERSTITIONS, GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS. - - -There are great numbers of small superstitions, beliefs, and practices -which we must place under this general head. Before entering on these at -length, we may briefly notice the fact in many cases, the probability in -a still greater number, that the origin of superstitions still held to -the popular heart, is to be found in other countries and in remote -times. Indeed Folk-lore superstitions may be said to be the _débris_ of -ancient mythologies; it may be of Egypt or India, Greece or Rome, -Germany or Scandinavia. Many of the following superstitions have been -already glanced at or briefly referred to in the introductory chapter. - - -POPULAR SUPERSTITIONS. - -Lancashire, like all other counties, has its own peculiar superstitions, -manners, and customs, which find no parallels in those of other -localities. It has also, no doubt, many local observances, current -opinions, old proverbs, and vulgar ditties, which are held and taken in -common with the inhabitants of a greater extent of country, and differ -merely in minor particulars,--the necessary result of imperfect oral -transmission. The following are a few of these local superstitions:-- - -1. If a person's hair, when thrown into the fire, burns brightly, it is -a sure sign that the individual will live long. The brighter the flame, -the longer life; and _vice versâ_. - -2. A young person lightly stirs the fire with the poker to test the -humour of a lover. If the fire blaze brightly, the lover is -good-humoured; and _vice versâ_. - -3. A crooked sixpence, or a copper coin with a hole through, is -accounted a _lucky_ coin. - -4. Cutting or paring the nails of the hands or feet, on a Friday or -Sunday, is very unlucky. - -5. If a person's _left_ ear burn, or feel hot, somebody is praising the -party; if the _right_ ear burn, then it is a sure sign that some one is -speaking evil of the person. - -6. Children are frequently cautioned by their parents not to walk -_backwards_ when going an errand; it is a sure sign that they will be -unfortunate in their objects. - -7. Belief in witchcraft is still strong in many of the rural districts. -Many believe that others have the power to bewitch cows, sheep, horses, -and even persons to whom the witch has an antipathy. One respectable -farmer assured me that his horse was bewitched into a stable through a -loophole twelve inches by three! The fact, he said, was beyond doubt, -for he had locked the stable-door himself when the horse was in the -field, and had kept the key in his pocket. Soon afterwards a party of -farmers went through the process known as "burning the witch out," or -"killing the witch" as some express it; the person suspected soon died, -and the neighbourhood became free from his evil doings. - -8. A horse-shoe is still nailed behind many doors to counteract the -effects of witchcraft. A _hagstone_ with a hole through, tied to the key -of the stable-door, protects the horses, and, if hung up at the bed's -head, the farmer also. - -9. A hot iron put into the cream during the process of churning, expels -the witch from the churn. Dough in preparation for the baker is -protected by being marked with the figure of a cross. - -10. Warts are cured by being rubbed over with a black snail; but the -snail must afterwards be impaled upon a hawthorn. If a bag, containing -as many pebbles as a person has warts, be tossed over the _left_ -shoulder, it will transfer the warts to whomsoever is unfortunate enough -to pick up the bag. - -11. If black snails are seized by the horns and tossed over the _left_ -shoulder, the process will ensure good luck to the person who performs -it. - -12. Profuse bleeding is said to be instantly stopped by certain persons, -who pretend to possess the secret of a certain form of words or charm. - -13. The power of bewitching, producing evil to persons by _wishing_ it, -&c., is supposed to be transmitted from one possessor to another when -one of the parties is about to die. - -14. Cramp is effectually prevented by placing the shoes with the toes -just peeping from beneath the coverlet; or by tying the garter round the -_left_ leg, below the knee. - -15. Charmed rings are worn by many for the cure of dyspepsia; and so -also are charmed belts for the cure of rheumatism. - -16. A red-haired person is supposed to bring ill-luck, if he be the -first to enter a house on New Year's Day. Black-haired persons [are on -the contrary deemed so lucky that they] are rewarded with liquor or -small gratuities for "taking in the New Year" to the principal houses in -their respective neighbourhoods. - -17. If any householder's fire does not burn _through_ the night of New -Year's Eve, it betokens bad luck through the ensuing year. If any one -allow another to take a live coal, or to light a candle, on that eve, -the bad luck extends to the grantor.[101] - -Amongst other Lancashire popular superstitions are the following:-- - -That a man must never "go a courting" on a Friday. If an unlucky fellow -is caught with his lady-love on that day, he is followed home by a band -of musicians, playing on pokers, tongs, pan-lids, &c., unless he can rid -himself of his tormentors by giving them money for drink. - -That whooping-cough will never be taken by any child that has ridden -upon a bear. The old bearward's profits arose in great part from the -money given by parents whose children had had a ride. The writer knows -of cases in which the charm is said to have been effectual. - -That whooping-cough may be cured by tying a hairy caterpillar in a small -bag round the child's neck, and as the caterpillar dies the cough goes. - -That Good Friday is the best day of all the year to begin weaning -children, which ought, if possible, to be put off till that day. - -That May cats are unlucky, and will suck the breath of infants. - -That crickets are lucky about a house, and will do no harm to those who -use them well; but that they eat holes in the worsted stockings of such -members of the family as kill them. I was assured of this on the -experience of a respectable farmer's family. - -That ghosts or boggarts haunt certain neighbourhoods. There is scarcely -a dell in my vicinity where a running stream crosses a road by a small -bridge or stone plat, where such may not be seen. Wells, ponds, gates, -&c., have often this bad repute. I have heard of a calf with "eyes like -saucers," a woman without a head, a white greyhound, a column of white -foam like a large sugar loaf in the midst of a pond, or group of little -cats, &c., as the shape of the boggart; and sometimes it took that of a -lady, who jumped behind hapless passengers on horseback. It is supposed -that a Romish priest can lay them, and that it is best to cheat them to -consent to being laid "while hollies are green." Hollies being -evergreens, the ghosts can reappear no more.[102] - -Mr. J. Eastwood, of Ecclesfield, adds to T. T. W.'s seventeen -superstitions the following six:-- - -1. If a cock near the door crows with his face towards it, it is a sure -prediction of the arrival of a stranger. - -2. If the cat frisk about the house in an unusually lively manner, windy -or stormy weather is approaching. - -3. If a dog howl under the window at night, a death will shortly happen -in the house. - -4. If a _female_ be the first to enter a house on Christmas or New -Year's Day, she brings ill-luck to the house for the coming year. - -5. For whooping-cough, pass the child nine times over the back and under -the belly of an ass. (This ceremony I once witnessed, but cannot vouch -for its having had the desired effect.) - -6. For warts, rub them with a cinder, and this tied up in paper, and -dropped where four roads meet [_i.e._, where two roads cross] will -transfer the warts to whoever opens the parcel.[103] - - -BONES OF ST. LAWRENCE, AT CHORLEY. - -In the parish church of Chorley, within the porch of the chancel, which -belongs to the Standish family of Duxbury, _four_ bones were shown, -apparently thigh bones, said to have belonged to Saint Lawrence, the -patron saint, which were brought over from Normandy by Sir Rowland -Standish, in 1442, along with the head of that saint, which skull has, -amongst the _Harl. MSS._,[104] a certificate of a vicar of Croston, to -which Chorley was then subject, preserved with the arms of the knight -(azure, 3 plates) rudely tricked:--"Be it known to all men that I, -Thomas Tarlton [or Talbot] vicar of the church of Croston, beareth -witness and certify, that Mr. James Standish, of Duxbury, hath delivered -a relique of St. Laurence's head unto the church of Chorley, the which -Sir Rowland of Standish, knight, brother of the said James, and Jane his -wife, brought out of Normandy, to the worship of God and St. Lawrence, -for the profit and avail of the said church; to the intent that the -foresaid Sir Rowland Standish, and Dame Jane his wife, with their -predecessors and successors, may be in the said church perpetually -prayed for. And in witness of the which to this my present writing I -have set my seal. Written at Croston aforesaid, the 2nd day of March, in -the year of our Lord God, 1442." [20 Hen. VI.][105] St. Lawrence's Day -is August 10. As his martyrdom was said to be roasting alive upon a -gridiron, it is not clear how his thigh bones should be preserved. But -when we find there are _four_ of them, the miraculous character of the -relics is at once exhibited. - - -THE DEAD MAN'S HAND. - -At Bryn Hall, now demolished, once the seat of the Gerards, was a Roman -Catholic Chapel and a priest, who continued long after the family had -departed, having in his custody "The Dead Man's Hand," which is still -kept by the same or another priest, now residing at Garswood. Preserved -with great care, in a white silk bag, it is still resorted to by many -diseased persons, and wonderful cures are said to have been wrought by -this saintly relic. It is said to be the hand of Father Arrowsmith,--a -priest who is stated to have been put to death at Lancaster for his -religion, in the time of William III. The story goes, that when about to -suffer, he desired his spiritual attendant to cut off his right hand, -which should then have the power to work miraculous cures on those who -had faith to believe in its efficacy. Not many years ago, a female sick -of the small-pox had this dead hand lying in bed with her every night -for six weeks, in order to effect her recovery, which took place.[106] A -poor lad, living in Withy Grove, Manchester, afflicted with scrofulous -sores, was rubbed with it; and though it had been said he was -miraculously restored, on inquiry the assertion was found incorrect, -inasmuch as he died in about a fortnight after the operation.[107] Not -less devoid of truth is the tradition that Arrowsmith was hanged for -"witnessing a good confession." - -Having been found guilty of a rape (says Mr. Roby), in all probability -this story of his martyrdom, and of the miraculous attestation to the -truth of the cause for which he suffered, were contrived for the purpose -of preventing the scandal that would have come upon the church through -the delinquency of an unworthy member. A subordinate tradition -accompanies that already related. It is said that one of the family of -the Kenyons attended as under-sheriff at the execution, and that he -refused the culprit some trifling favour at the gallows; whereupon -Arrowsmith denounced a curse upon him,--to wit, that whilst the family -could boast of an heir, so long they should never want a cripple; which -prediction was supposed by the credulous to have been literally -fulfilled.[108] Mr. Roby, professing to give the _fact_ upon which he -founded one of his tales, accuses the unfortunate priest of rape, and -states that he was executed for that crime in the reign of William III. -All this Mr. Roby gives as from himself, and mentions a curse pronounced -by Father Arrowsmith upon the under-sheriff who executed him, in the -reign of William III. Now Arrowsmith was hung, under sanction of an -atrocious law, for no other reason but because he had taken orders as a -Catholic priest, and had endeavoured to prevail upon others to be of his -own faith. For this offence, and for this offence alone, in 1628,--in -the reign not of William III., but of Charles I.,--he was tried at -Lancashire Assizes, and hanged, drawn, and quartered, in the same year -that Edmund Ashton, Esq., was sheriff. Mr. Roby must have seen what was -the real state of the case in the same history of Lancashire[109] as -that which he repeatedly quotes.[110] - -The hand of Arrowsmith, having been cut off after his death, was brought -to Bryn Hall, where it was used by the superstitious to heal the sick, -sometimes by the touch, and at others by friction: faith, however, is -essential to success, and a lack of the necessary quality in the -patient, rather than any decrease in the healing emission from the -relic, is made to account for the disappointment which awaits the -superstitious votaries of this fanatical operation. The "dead man's -hand," or, as the Irish harvestmen are accustomed to call it, "the holy -hand," was removed from Bryn to Garswood, and subsequently to the -priest's house at Ashton, near Lancaster, where it remains in possession -of the priest, if the light and knowledge of the present age have not -consigned it to the earth.[111] A Roman Catholic publication, issued in -1737, signed by nineteen witnesses, seventeen of whom were Protestants -(the names being withheld, however, as it is alleged, for prudential -reasons), attest, that in 1736, a boy of twelve years, the son of Caryl -Hawarden, of Appleton-within-Widness, county of Lancaster, was cured of -what appeared to be a fatal malady by the application of Father -Arrowsmith's hand, which, according to the narrative, was effected in -the following manner:--The boy had been ill fifteen months, and was at -length deprived of the use of his limbs, with loss of his memory, and -impaired sight. In this condition, which the physicians had declared -hopeless, it was suggested to his parents, that as wonderful cures had -been effected by the hand of "the martyred saint," it was advisable to -try its effects upon their afflicted child. The "holy hand" was -accordingly procured from Bryn, packed in a box, and wrapped in linen. -Mrs. Hawarden having explained to the invalid her hopes and intentions, -applied the back part of the dead hand to his back, stroking it down -each side the backbone, and making the sign of the cross, which she -accompanied with a fervent prayer that Jesus Christ would aid it with -his blessing. Having twice repeated this operation, the patient, who had -before been utterly helpless, rose from his seat, and walked about the -house, to the surprise of seven persons who had witnessed the "miracle." -From that day the boy's pains left him, his memory was restored, and his -health became re-established! The witnesses add, that the boy, on being -afterwards interrogated, said that he _believed_ the hand would do him -good, and that upon its first touch he felt something give a short or -sudden motion from his back to the end of his toes![112] - -Another account states that Father Edmund Arrowsmith, of the Society of -Jesus, was a native of Haydock, in the parish of Winwick, and was born -in 1585. In 1605 he entered the Roman Catholic College of Douay, where -he was educated, and in 1612 he was ordained priest. His father's name -was Robert Arrowsmith, and his mother, Margery, was a lady of the -ancient family of the Gerards. In 1613 Father Arrowsmith was sent upon -the English mission, and in 1628 (4th Charles I.) was apprehended and -brought to Lancaster on the charge of being a priest, contrary to the -laws of the realm. He was tried, sentenced to death, and executed on the -28th of August, 1628, his last words being "Bone Jesu!" He was -afterwards cut down, embowelled, and quartered. His head was set upon a -pole or stake amongst the pinnacles of Lancaster Castle, and his -quarters were hung upon four separate places of the same building. The -hand of the martyr, having been cut off after his death, was brought to -Bryn Hall [amongst his maternal relatives], where it was preserved as a -precious relic, and by the application of which numerous miraculous -cures are said to have been effected. "The holy hand" was removed from -Bryn to Garswood [in Ashton, a seat of the Gerards], and subsequently to -the priest's house at Ashton-in-Makerfield, where it still remains.[113] -While the relic remained at Garswood, it was under the care of the -Gerards' family-chaplain for the time being, and a fee was charged for -its application to all who were able to pay, and this money was bestowed -in charity on the needy or distressed. It is believed that no fee is now -charged. The late Sir John Gerard had no faith in its efficacy, and many -ludicrous anecdotes are current in the neighbourhood of pilgrims having -been rather roughly handled by some of his servants, who were as -incredulous as himself;--such as getting a good beating with a wooden -hand (used for stretching gloves), and other heavy weapons; so that the -patients rapidly retraced their steps, without having had the -application of the "holy hand." The applicants usually provide -themselves with a quantity of calico or flannel, which the priest of St. -Oswald's, Ashton, causes to come in contact with the "dead hand;" the -cloth is then applied to the part affected. Many instances are recorded -of persons coming upon crutches or with sticks, having been suddenly so -far restored as to be able to leave behind them these helps, as -memorials, and return home, walking and leaping; praising the priest for -his charity; the holy hand, for being the means of obtaining a cure; and -God for giving such power to the dead hand. Persons have been known to -come from Ireland, and other distant parts, to be cured. Some of these -return home with a large piece of the cloth which has been in contact -with the hand. This they tear into shreds, and dispose of them to the -credulous neighbours who have not the means of undertaking so long a -pilgrimage. About four years ago (writes our informant), I saw a poor -maniac being dragged along by two or three of her relatives, and howling -most piteously. I asked what they were going to do with her, when one of -them (apparently her mother) replied: "And sure enough, master, we're -taking her to the priest, to be rubbed with the holy hand, that the -devil may leave her." A short time afterwards I saw them returning, but -the rubbing had not been effectual. A policeman assisted to remove the -struggling maniac to a neighbouring house, till a conveyance could be -got to take her to Newton Bridge railway station.[114] - - -NINETEENTH CENTURY SUPERSTITION. - -Will it be credited that thousands of people have, during the past week, -crowded a certain road in the village of Melling, near Ormskirk, to -inspect a sycamore tree, which has burst its bark, and the sap protrudes -in a shape resembling a man's head? Rumour spread abroad that it was the -re-appearance of Palmer, who "had come again, because he was buried -without a coffin!" Some inns in the neighbourhood of this singular tree -reaped a rich harvest.[115] - - -PENDLE FOREST SUPERSTITION. - -Pendle Forest, in the neighbourhood of Burnley, has long been notorious -for its witches. [After referring to the cases of alleged witchcraft in -the beginning of the 17th century, the writer continues:] Two hundred -years have since passed away, and yet the old opinions survive; for it -is notorious that throughout the Forest the farmers still endeavour to - - "Chase the evil spirits away by dint - Of sickle, horse-shoe, and hollow flint." - -Clay or wax images, pierced through with pins and needles, are -occasionally met with in churchyards and gardens, where they have been -placed for the purpose of causing the death of the persons they -represent. Consumptive patients and paralytics are frequently said to be -bewitched; and the common Lancashire proverb, "Draw blood of a witch, -and she cannot harm you," has been many times practically verified upon -quarrelsome females within my own experience. In extreme cases the -"witch-killer" is resorted to, and implicit faith in his powers is not a -rare item in the popular creed. Such a person usually combines the -practice of Astrology with his other avocations. He casts nativities; -gives advice respecting stolen property; tells fortunes; and writes out -"charms" for the protection of those who may consult him.... Even the -wives of clergymen have been known to consult "wise men" on doubtful -matters respecting which they desired more satisfactory -information.--_T. T. W._ - - -EAST LANCASHIRE SUPERSTITION. - -Strong minds often are unable to escape the thraldom of tradition and -custom, with the help of liberal education and social intercourse. How -then are the solitary farmers on the skirts of moorland wastes, to free -themselves from hereditary superstition? The strength of such traditions -is often secret and unacknowledged. It nevertheless influences the life; -it lurks out of sight, ready to assert its power in any great crisis of -our being. It is a homage to the unseen and the unknown, in fearful -contradiction with the teaching of Christianity, for it creates, like -the religion of the Jezzidies, a ritual of propitiation to malignant -powers, instead of the prayer of faith to the All-merciful. The solitude -of the life in the moorland farm-houses does not, however, foster the -influence of superstitious madness, perhaps, so much as the wild, stormy -climate, which holds its blustering reign through six months of every -year, in this region of morass and fog, dark clough, and craggy chasm. -Night shuts in early. The sun has gone down through a portentous gulf of -clouds which have seemed to swallow up the day in a pit of darkness. The -great sycamores stagger in the blast which rushes from the distant sea. -The wind moans through the night like a troubled spirit, shakes the -house as though it demanded admittance from the storm, and rushes down -the huge chimney (built two centuries ago for the log fires, and large, -hot heap of wood ashes), driving down a cloud of smoke and soot, as -though by some wicked cantrip the witches careering in the storm would -scatter the embers and fire the building. The lone watcher by some sick -bed, shudders as the casements are battered by the tempest; or the bough -of some tree, or a branch of ivy, strikes the panes like the hand of -some unseen thing fumbling at the casement latch; or, awake from pain or -care, restless with fever or fatigue, or troubled with superstitious -horror, the lone shepherd waits for the day, as for a reprieve to -conscious guilt, and even trembles while he mutters some charm to -exorcise the evil that rides exulting on the storm. A year of ill-luck -comes. The ewes are barren; the cows drop their untimely calves, though -crooked sickles and lucky stones have been hung in the shippons. The -milk is "bynged," or will not churn, though a hot poker has been used to -spoil the witchery. The horses escape from the stable at night, though -there is a horse-shoe over the door, and the hinds say they were -carefully "heawsed an' fettled, and t'dooers o weel latched, bur -t'feeorin (fairies) han 'ticed 'em eawt o' t' leawphooles, an' flown wi' -em' o'er t'stone dykes, wi' o t'yates tynt (gates shut), an' clapp'd 'em -reet i' t' meadow, or t' corn, just wheer tey shudna be." As the year -advances, with such misadventures, apprehension grows. Is there some -evil eye on the house? Will the hay be spoiled in the field? Will the -oats ripen, or must they be cut green and given to the cattle? Or, if -they ripen, will the stormy autumn wrap its mantle of mist and rain so -closely about them, that they cannot be housed before they have -sprouted, or have spoiled? The cold, bitter damp benumbs the strength of -the feeble. Appetite and health fail; a fear creeps into the life. Fate -seems to have dragged the sufferer into a vault of gloom, to whisper -foreboding and inspire dread. These traditions of mischief wrought by -malignant men inheriting the wicked craft and vindictive spite of the -sorcerers, are uttered at the fireside, or if not so uttered, are -brooded upon by a disturbed fancy.[116] - - -SUPERSTITIOUS FEARS AND CRUELTIES. - -John Webster, the great exposer of shams and denouncer of superstitions -in his day, and author of the "_Discovery of pretended Witchcraft_," -speaking of a clear head and sound judgment as necessary to competent -witnesses, says:--"They ought to be of a sound judgment, and not of a -vitiated and distempered phantasy, nor of a melancholic constitution; -for these will take a bush to be a bugbear, and a black sheep to be a -demon; the noise of the wild swans flying high in the night, to be -spirits; or, as they call them here in the north, 'Gabriel Ratchets;' -the calling of a daker hen in the meadow, to be the Whistlers; the -howlings of the female fox in a gill or clough for the male, to be the -cry of fairies." The Gabriel Ratchets seem to be the same with the -German Rachtvogel or Rachtraven. The word and the superstition are still -known in Lancashire, though in a sense somewhat different; for the -Gabriel Ratchets are supposed to be something like litters of puppies -yelping in the air. Ratch is certainly a name for a dog in general (see -_Junius, in voce_). The whistlers are supposed to be the green or -whistling plovers, which fly very high in the night, uttering their -characteristic note. Speaking of the practices of witch-finders, Webster -says:--"By such wicked means and unchristian practices, divers innocent -persons have lost their lives; and these wicked rogues wanted not -greater persons (even of the ministry too) that did authorize and -encourage them in their diabolical courses. And the like in my time -happened here in Lancashire, where divers, both men and women, were -accused of supposed witchcraft, and were so unchristianly and inhumanly -handled, as to be stripped stark naked and laid upon tables and beds to -be searched for their supposed witch-marks; so barbarous and cruel acts -doth diabolical instigation, working upon ignorance and superstition, -produce."[117] - - -SUPERSTITIOUS BELIEFS IN MANCHESTER IN THE SIXTEENTH CENTURY. - -At no period in the history of Manchester was there a greater -disposition to believe in witchcraft, demoniacal possession, and the -occult sciences, than at the close of the sixteenth century. The seer, -Edward Kelly, was ranging through the country, practising the black art. -Dr. Dee, the friend and associate of this impostor, had recently -obtained the appointment of warden of the Collegiate Church of -Manchester, by favour of his royal patroness, Queen Elizabeth, herself a -believer in his astrological calculations; and the fame of the strange -doings [the alleged demoniacal possession of seven persons] in the -family of Mr. Starkie, had spread far and wide. The new warden was -really a learned man, of the most inquisitive mind, addicted to chemical -pursuits, not wholly unconnected with those of alchemy, and not -altogether detached from the practice of necromancy and magic, -notwithstanding his positive asseverations to the contrary, in his -petition to King James. His life was full of vicissitudes; though -enjoying the patronage of princes, he was always involved in -embarrassments, and was at length obliged to relinquish his church -preferment at Manchester, owing to the differences that existed between -himself and his ecclesiastical brethren. It does not appear that during -his residence in Lancashire he encouraged the deceptions of the -exorcists. On the contrary he refused to become a party in the pretended -attempt to cast out devils at Cleworth, and he strongly rebuked Hartlay, -the conjuror, who was afterwards executed at Lancaster for his -disgraceful practices. - - -WELLS AND SPRINGS. - -Water, everywhere a prime necessity of life, is pre-eminently so in the -hot and arid plains and stony deserts of Asia and Africa. We need not be -surprised, therefore, to find that in all the ancient Eastern cults and -mythologies, springs and wells were held in reverence, as holy and -sacred gifts to man from the Great Spirit of the universe. The great -Indo-European tide of migration, rolling ever westward, bore on its -bosom these graceful superstitions, which were eagerly adopted by the -old church of Christendom; and there is scarcely an ancient well of any -consequence in the United Kingdom which has not been solemnly dedicated -to some saint in the Roman Catholic calendar. - -WELLS NEAR LIVERPOOL.--At Wavertree, near Liverpool, is a well bearing -the following inscription, "Qui non dat quod habet, dæmon infra videt: -1414" (Who giveth not what he hath, the devil below, seeth--or, if the -last word be not _videt_ but _ridet_--laughs). Tradition says that at -one period there was a cross above it, inscribed "Deus dedit, homo -bibit" (God gave it, man drinks it); and that all travellers gave alms -on drinking. If they omitted to do so, a devil who was chained at the -bottom of the well, laughed. A monastic building stood near, and the -occupants received the contributions.[118] A well at Everton, near -Liverpool, has the reputation of being haunted, a fratricide having been -committed there; but it is not mentioned in the local history of Syer, -which merely says,--"The water for this well is procured by direct -access to the liquid itself, through the medium of a few stone steps: it -is free to the public, and seldom dry." Being formerly in a lonely -situation, it was a haunt of pickpockets and other disorderly -characters. It is now built over, and in a few years the short -subterranean passage leading to the well will be forgotten.[119] - -PEGGY'S WELL.--Peggy's Well is near the Ribble, in a field below Waddow -Hall, not far from Brunckerley stepping-stones, in attempting to cross -by which several lives have been lost, when the river was swollen by a -rapid rise, which even a day's rain will produce. These calamities, as -well as any other fatal accidents that occur in the neighbourhood, are -usually attributed to Peggy, the evil spirit of the well. There is a -mutilated stone figure by the well, which has been the subject of many -strange tales and apprehensions. It was placed there when turned out of -the house at Waddow, to allay the terrors of the domestics, who durst -not continue under the same roof with this mis-shapen figure. It was -then broken, either from accident or design, and the head, some time -ago, as is understood, was in one of the attic chambers at Waddow. Who -Peggy of the Well was, tradition doth not inform us. - -The writer of the _Pictorial History of Lancashire_ states that going to -Waddow Hall he inquired after the headless stone statue known as "Peg o' -th' Well;" and a neat, intelligent young woman, one of the domestics, -showed him Peggy's head on the pantry table, and the trunk by a well in -an adjacent field. He gives the following as the substance of the -tradition:--The old religion had been supplanted in most parts of the -country, yet had left memorials of itself and its rites in no few -places, nor least in those which were in the vicinity of an old Catholic -family, or a monastic institution. Some such relic may Peggy have -originally been. The scrupulous proprietors of Waddow Hall regarded the -innocuous image with distrust and aversion; nor did they think -themselves otherwise than justified in ascribing to Peggy all the evils -and mischances that befel in the house. If a storm struck and damaged -the house, Peggy was the author of the damage. If the wind whistled or -moaned through the ill-fitting doors and casements, it was "Peggy at her -work," requiring to be appeased, else some sad accident was sure to -come. On one occasion Master Starkie--so was the host named--returned -home very late with a broken leg. He had been hunting that day, and, -report said, made too free with the ale afterwards. But, as usual, Peggy -bore the blame: for some dissatisfaction she had waylaid the master of -the house and caused his horse to fall. Even this was forgiven. A short -time afterwards a Puritan preacher was overtaken by a fresh in the -river, in attempting to cross over on the stepping-stones which lay just -above the Hall, the very stones on which poor King Henry (VI.) was -captured. Now, Mrs. Starkie had a great attachment to those preachers, -and had indeed sent for the one in question, for him to exorcise and -dispossess her youngest son, a boy of ten years of age, who was -grievously afflicted with a demon, or, as was suspected, tormented by -Peggy. "Why does he not come?" asked the lady, as she sat that night in -her best apparel, before a blazing fire and near a well-furnished table. -"The storm seems to get worse. Hark! heard ye no cry? Yes! there again. -Oh, if the dear man be in the river! Run all of ye to his rescue." In a -few minutes two trusty men-servants returned, panting under the huge -weight of the dripping parson. He told his tale. "'Tis Peg," she -suddenly exclaimed, "at her old tricks! This way, all!" She hurried from -the apartment, rushed into the garden, where Peggy stood quiet enough -near a spring, and with one blow of an axe, which she had seized in her -passage, severed Peggy's head from her body. - -ST. HELEN'S WELL IN BRINDLE.--Dr. Kuerden in one of his MSS., describing -the parish of Brindle in Leyland, states that "Over against Swansey -House, a little towards the hill, standeth an ancient fabric, once the -manor-house of Brindle, where hath been a chapel belonging to the same; -and a little above it, a spring of very clear water, rushing straight -upwards into the midst of a fair fountain, walled square about in stone -and flagged in the bottom, very transparent to be seen, and a strong -stream issuing out of the same. This fountain is called St. Ellen's -Well, to which place the vulgar neighbouring people of the Red Letter -[_i.e._, Roman Catholics] do much resort with pretended devotion on each -year upon St. Ellins-day--[St. Helen's-day is either on May 21, August -18, or September 3, the two first being days of a queen, and the last of -an empress saint]--where and when, out of a foolish ceremony, they offer -or throw into the well, pins, which there being left, may be seen a long -time after by any visitor of the fountain."[120] - -ST. HELEN'S WELL, NEAR SEFTON.--Mr. Hampson[121] notices the -superstition of casting pins or pebbles into wells, and observing the -circles formed thereby on the surface of the agitated water, and also -whether the water were troubled or preserved its clearness and -transparency; from which appearances they drew omens or inferences as to -future events. He adds: "I have frequently seen the bottom of St. -Helen's Well, near Sefton, Lancashire, almost covered with pins, which, -I suppose, must have been thrown in for the like purposes." - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[101] T. T. W., in _Notes and Queries_, iii. 55. - -[102] P. P., in _Notes and Queries_, iii. 516. - -[103] _Notes and Queries_, iii. p. 516. - -[104] Harl. MSS. Cod. 2042, fol. 239 a. - -[105] Harl. MSS. Cod. 2042, fol. 239. - -[106] Mr. Roby derived this statement from Thomas Barritt, the -antiquary, who in one of his MSS. writes--"I was in company with a woman -who had lain with a relation of hers sick of the small-pox. During all -the time they had this hand lying with them every night, on purpose to -effect a safe recovery of the afflicted person." Barritt does not say, -however, that the recovery took place. - -[107] This story Mr. Roby derived from the same MSS. of Barritt, and -also the statement of the real crime for which Arrowsmith was executed, -and his alleged prophecy as to the Kenyons. Barritt says the dead hand -was brought to Manchester about the time of the troubles in 1745, to -cure a poor Papist lad, who came with Hill. - -[108] See Roby's _Traditions of Lancashire_. - -[109] Baines's _Lancashire_, vol. iii. p. 638. - -[110] _Pictorial History of Lancashire._ - -[111] Mannex's _Hist. and Topog. of Lancashire_. - -[112] Baines's _History of Lancashire_, vol. iii. pp. 638-9. - -[113] Mannex's _History and Topography of Lancashire_. - -[114] From a Correspondent. - -[115] The _Tablet_, July 26, 1856. - -[116] Scarsdale. - -[117] Dr. Whitaker's _History of Whalley_. - -[118] Mr. Baines, in his _History of Lancashire_ (vol. iii. p. 760), -says that in Wavertree is an ancient well with a rude, unintelligible -inscription, of the date of 1414, which is thus _charitably_ rendered by -the villagers:-- - - "He that hath, and won't bestow, - The Devil will reckon with him below." - -Or, - - "He who here does not bestow, - The Devil laughs at him below." - -[119] "Agmond," in _Notes and Queries_, vol. vi. p. 305. - -[120] Baines's _History of Lancashire_, vol. iii. p. 497. - -[121] _Medii Ævi Kalendarium._ - - - - -WITCHES AND WITCHCRAFT. - - -In the lore of these subjects no county in England is richer than -Lancashire. The subject is a large one, and may even be said to include -all the cases of demoniacal possession described in the earlier pages of -this volume, since all these alleged possessions were the result of -malice and (so-called) witchcraft. Indeed it is not easy to separate -these two superstitious beliefs in their practical operation; witchcraft -being the supposed cause, and demoniacal possession the imagined effect. -The reader will find much, bearing on both branches of the subject, -under both titles. - - -WITCHCRAFT IN THE FIFTEENTH CENTURY. - -The first distinct charge of witchcraft in any way connected with this -county, is that of the wife of the good Duke Humphrey, Eleanor, Duchess -of Gloucester, the associate of Roger Bolingbroke, the priest and -necromancer, and Margery Jourdain, the witch of Eye. The Duke of -Gloucester, uncle and protector to the king, having become obnoxious to -the predominant party, they got up in 1441 a strange prosecution. The -Duchess of Gloucester, Eleanor, the daughter of Lord Cobham, a lady of -haughty carriage and ambitious mind, being attached to the prevailing -superstitions of the day, was accused of the crime of witchcraft "for -that she, by sorcery and enchantment, intended to destroy the king, to -the intent to advance and promote her husband to the crown."[122] It was -alleged against her and her associates, Sir Roger Bolingbroke, a priest, -and chaplain to the Duke, (who was addicted to astrology,) and Margery -Jourdain, the witch of Eye, that they had in their possession a wax -figure of the king, which they melted by a magical device before a slow -fire, with the intention of wasting away his force and vigour by -insensible degrees. The imbecile mind of Henry was sensibly affected by -this wicked invention; and the Duchess of Gloucester, on being brought -to trial (in St. Stephen's Chapel, before the Archbishop of Canterbury) -and found guilty of the design to destroy the king and his ministers by -the agency of witchcraft, was sentenced to do public penance in three -places within the city of London, and to suffer perpetual imprisonment. -Her confederates were condemned to death and executed, Margery Jourdain -being burnt to death in Smithfield. The duchess, after enduring the -ignominy of her public penance, rendered peculiarly severe by the -exalted state from which she had fallen, was banished to the Isle of -Man, where she was placed under the ward of Sir Thomas Stanley. On the -way to her place of exile, she was confined for some time, first in -Leeds Castle, and afterwards in the Castle of Liverpool;[123] the -earliest and the noblest witch on record within the county of Lancaster. -Another account states that amongst those arrested as accomplices of the -duchess were a priest and canon of St. Stephen's, Westminster, named -Southwell, and another priest named John Hum or Hume. Roger Bolingbroke, -the learned astronomer and astrologer (who died protesting his ignorance -of all evil intentions), was drawn and quartered at Tyburn; Southwell -died in prison before the time of execution; and John Hum received the -royal pardon. The worst thing proved against the duchess was that she -had sought for love-philters to secure the constancy of her -husband.[124] Shakspere, in the _Second Part of King Henry VI._, Act 1, -Scene 4, represents the duchess, Margery Jourdain, Hume, Southwell, and -Bolingbroke, as engaged in raising an evil spirit in the Duke of -Gloucester's garden, when they are surprised and seized by the Dukes of -York and Buckingham and their guards. The duchess, after remaining in -the Isle of Man some years, was transferred to Calais, under the ward of -Sir John Steward, knight, and there died. - - -THE FAMOUS HISTORY OF THE LANCASHIRE WITCHES: - - Containing the manner of their becoming such; their enchantments, - spells, revels, merry pranks, raising of storms and tempests, riding - on winds, &c. The entertainments and frolics which have happened - among them. With the loves and humours of Roger and Dorothy. Also, a - Treatise of Witches in general, conducive to mirth and recreation. - The like never before published.[125] - - CHAPTER I.--_The Lancashire Witch's Tentation, and of the Devil's - appearing to her in sundry shapes, and giving her money._ - - Lancashire is a famous and noted place, abounding with rivers, - hills, woods, pastures, and pleasant towns, many of which are of - great antiquity. It has also been famous for witches, and the - strange pranks they played. Therefore, since the name of Lancashire - Witches has been so frequent in the mouths of old and young, and - many imperfect stories have been rumoured abroad, it would - doubtless tend to the satisfaction of the reader, to give some - account of them in their merry sports and pastimes. - - Some time since lived one Mother Cuthbert, in a little hovel at the - bottom of a hill, called Wood-and-Mountain Hill, in Lancashire. - This woman had two lusty daughters, who both carded and spun for - their living, yet was very poor; which made them often repine at - and lament their want. One day, as Mother Cuthbert was sauntering - about the hill-side, picking the wool off the bushes, out started a - thing like a rabbit, which ran about two or three times, and then - changed into a hound, and afterwards into a man, which made the old - beldame to tremble, yet she had no power to run away. So, putting a - purse of money in her hand, and charging her to be there the next - day, he immediately vanished away, and old Mother Cuthbert returned - home, being somewhat disturbed between jealousy and fear. - -Such is the first chapter of this marvellous story, which, it is clear, -is a fiction based upon real narratives. It relates the witcheries of -Mother Cuthbert and her two daughters, Margery and Cicely, under the -auspices of an arch-witch, "Mother Grady, the Witch of Penmure -[Penmaen-mawr] a great mountain of Wales." Here is "_The Description of -a Spell._--A spell is a piece of paper written with magical characters, -fixed in a critical season of the moon, and conjunction of the planets; -or sometimes by repeating mystical words. Of these there are many -sorts." As showing what was the popular notion as to witches, take the -following:--"About this time great search was made after witches and -many were apprehended, but most of them gave the hangman and the gaoler -the slip; though some hold that when a witch is taken she hath no power -to avoid justice. It happened, as some of them were going in a cart to -be tried, a coach passed by, in which appeared a person like a judge, -who, calling to one, bid her be of good comfort, for neither she nor any -of her companions should be harmed. In that night all the prison locks -flew open, and they made their escape; and many, when they had been cast -into the water for a trial, have swam like a cork. One of them boasted -she could go over the sea in an egg-shell. It is held on all hands they -adore the devil, and become his bond-slaves, to have for a term of years -their pleasure and revenge. And indeed many of them are more mischievous -than others in laming and destroying cattle, and in drowning ships at -sea, by raising storms. But the Lancashire witches, we see, chiefly -divert themselves in merriment, and are therefore found to be more -sociable than the rest." The closing chapter in this chap-book, contains -"A short description of the famous Lapland Witches." - - -DR. DEE CHARGED WITH WITCHCRAFT. - -On the usual proclamation of a general pardon, on the accession of James -I., the crime of witchcraft was specially excepted from the general -amnesty; and the credulous King's belief in this superstition encouraged -witch-finders and numerous accusations in all parts of the country. -Amongst others, it was remembered that Dr. Dee, then warden of the -Collegiate Church of Manchester, had in the preceding reign predicted a -fortunate day for the coronation of Queen Elizabeth, and had also -undertaken to render innocuous the waxen effigy of that Queen, found in -Lincoln's Inn-fields. He was also known to have made various -predictions, to be the possessor of a magic crystal or stone,[126] and -to have held a close intimacy with Edward Kelly, _alias_ Talbot, a noted -seer, conjuror and necromancer of the time. Accordingly Dr. Dee was -formally accused of practising witchcraft, and a petition from him, -dated 5th January, 1604, (preserved in the _Lansdowne MSS._, Cod. 161,) -praying to be freed from this revolting imputation, even at the risk of -a trial for his life, sufficiently indicates the horror excited by the -charge. The doctor's petition sets forth that "It has been affirmed that -your Majesty's supplicant was the conjuror belonging to the most -honourable privy council of your Majesty's predecessor of famous memory, -Queen Elizabeth, and that he is, or hath been, a caller or invocator of -devils or damned spirits. These slanders, which have tended to his utter -undoing, can no longer be endured; and if, on trial, he is found guilty -of the offence imputed to him, he offers himself willingly to the -punishment of death, yea, either to be stoned to death, or to be buried -quick, or to be burned unmercifully." He seems to have escaped -scatheless, save in reputation; and in 1594, when applied to for the -purpose of exorcising seven demons who held possession of five females -and two of the children of Mr. Nicholas Starkie, of Leigh, he refused to -interfere; advising they should call in some godly preachers, with whom -he would, if they thought proper, consult concerning a public or private -fast. He also sharply reproved Hartlay, a conjuror, for his practices in -this case. - - -THE LANCASHIRE WITCHES. - - Come, gallant sisters, come along, - Let's meet the devil ten thousand strong; - Upon the whales' and dolphins' backs, - Let's try to choak the sea with wracks, - Spring leaks, and sink them down to rights. - [_Line wanting._] - And then we'll scud away to shour, - And try what tricks we can play more. - - Blow houses down, ye jolly dames, - Or burn them up in fiery flames; - Let's rowse up mortals from their sleep, - And send them packing to the deep, - Let's strike them dead with thunder-stones, - With lightning search [? scorch] to skin and bones; - For winds and storms, by sea and land, - You may dispose, you may command. - - Sometimes in dismal caves we lie, - Or in the air aloft we flie; - Sometimes we caper o'er the main, - Thunders and lightnings we disdain; - Sometimes we tumble churches down, - And level castles with the ground; - We fire whole cities, and destroy - Whole armies, if they us annoy. - - We strangle infants in the womb, - And raise the dead out of their tomb; - We haunt the palaces of kings, - And play such pranks and pretty things - And this is all our chief delight, - To do all mischief in despight; - And when we've done, to shift away, - Untoucht, unseen, by night or day. - - When imps do * * * - We make them act unlucky feats; - In puppets' wax, sharp needles' points - We stick, to torture limbs and joints. - With frogs' and toads' most poys'nous gore - Our grizly limbs we 'noint all o'er, - And straight away, away we go, - Sparing no mortal, friend or foe. - - We'll sell you winds, and ev'ry charm - Or venomous drug that may do harm; - For beasts or fowls we have our spells - Laid up in store in our dark cells; - For there the devils used to meet, - And dance with horns and cloven feet; - And when we've done, we frisk about, - And through the world play revel-rout. - - We ride on cows' and horses' backs, - O'er lakes and rivers play nice knacks; - We grasp the moon and scale the sun, - And stop the planets as they run. - We kindle comets' whizzing flames, - And whistle for the winds by names; - And for our pastimes and mad freaks, - 'Mongst stars we play at barley-breaks.[127] - - We are ambassadors of state, - And know the mysteries of fate; - In Pluto's bosom there we ly, - To learn each mortal's destiny. - As oracles their fortunes show, - If they be born to wealth or wo, - The spinning Sisters' hands we guide, - And in all this we take a pride. - - To Lapland, Finland, we do skice, - Sliding on seas and rocks of ice, - T' old beldames there, our sisters kind, - We do impart our hellish mind; - We take their seals and hands in blood - For ever to renounce all good. - And then, as they in dens do lurk, - We set the ugly jades a-work. - - We know the treasures and the stores - Lock'd up in caves with brazen doors; - Gold and silver, sparkling stones, - We pile on heaps, like dead men's bones. - There the devils brood and hover, - Keep guards, that none should them discover; - Put upon all the coasts of hell, - 'Tis we, 'tis we, stand sentinel. - - -SUPERSTITIOUS FEAR OF WITCHCRAFT. - -During the sixteenth century whole districts in some parts of Lancashire -seemed contaminated with the presence of witches; men and beasts were -supposed to languish under their charm, and the delusion which preyed -alike on the learned and the vulgar did not allow any family to suppose -that they were beyond the reach of the witch's power. Was the family -visited by sickness? It was believed to be the work of an invisible -agency, which in secret wasted the image made in clay before the fire, -or crumbled its various parts into dust. Did the cattle sicken and die? -The witch and the wizard were the authors of the calamity. Did the yeast -refuse to ferment, either in the bread or the beer? It was the -consequence of a "bad wish." Did the butter refuse to _come_? The -"familiar" was in the churn. Did the ship founder at sea? The gale or -hurricane was blown by the lungless hag who had scarcely sufficient -breath to cool her own pottage. Did the Ribble overflow its banks? The -floods descended from the congregated sisterhood at Malkin tower. The -blight of the season, which consigned the crops of the farmer to -destruction, was the saliva of the enchantress, or distillations from -the blear-eyed dame who flew by night over the field on mischief bent. -To refuse an alms to a haggard mendicant, was to incur maledictions soon -manifest in afflictions of body, mind, and estate, in loss of cattle and -other property, of health, and sometimes even of life itself. To escape -from evils like these no sacrifice was thought too great. Superstitions -begat cruelty and injustice; the poor and the rich were equally -interested in obtaining a deliverance; and the magistrate in his -mansion, no less than the peasant in his cot, was deeply interested in -abating the universal affliction. The Lancashire witches were -principally fortune-tellers and conjurors. The alleged securities -against witchcraft were numerous, the most popular being the horse-shoe; -hence we see in Lancashire so many thresholds ornamented with this -counter-charm. Under these circumstances the situation of the reputed -witch was not more enviable than that of the individuals or families -over whom she exerted her influence. Linked by a species of infernal -compact to an imaginary imp, she was shunned as a common pest, or -caressed only on the same principle which leads some Indian tribes to -pay homage to the devil. The reputed witches themselves were frequently -disowned by their families, feared and detested by their neighbours, and -hunted by the dogs as pernicious monsters. When apprehended they were -cast into ponds in the belief that witches swim; so that to sink or swim -was almost equally perilous to them; they were punctured by bodkins to -discover the witch imp or devil marks; they were subjected to hunger and -kept in perpetual motion till confessions were obtained from a -distracted mind. On their trials they were listened to with incredulity -and horror, and consigned to the gallows with as little pity as the -basest of malefactors. Their imaginary crimes created a thirst for their -blood; and people of all stations, from the highest to the lowest, -attended their trials at Lancaster with an intensity of interest that -such mischievous persons, now divested of their sting, naturally -excited. It has been said that witchcraft and kingcraft in England came -in and went out with the Stuarts. This is not true. The doctrine of -necromancy was in universal belief in the fourteenth and fifteenth -centuries, and there was not perhaps a man in Lancashire who doubted its -existence. The belief in witchcraft and in demoniacal possession was -confined to no particular sect or persuasion; the Roman Catholics, the -members of the Church of England, the Presbyterians, Independents, and -even the Methodists (though a sect of more recent standing) have all -fallen into this delusion; and yet each denomination has upbraided the -other with gross superstition, and not unfrequently with wilful fraud. -It is due, however, to the ministers of the Established Church to say -that they were among the first of our public writers to denounce the -belief in witchcraft with all its attendant mischiefs; and the names of -Dr. Harsnett, afterwards Archbishop of York, of Dr. John Webster (who -detected Robinson, the Lancashire witch-hunter), of Zach. Taylor, one of -the king's preachers for Lancashire, and of Dr. Hutchinson, the chaplain -in ordinary to George I., are all entitled to the public gratitude for -their efforts to explode these pernicious superstitions. For upwards of -a century the sanguinary and superstitious laws of James I. disgraced -the English statute-book; but in the ninth year of George II. (1735) a -law was enacted repealing the statute of James I., and prohibiting any -prosecution, suit, or proceeding against any person for witchcraft, -sorcery, enchantment, or conjuration. In this way the doctrine of -witchcraft, with all its attendant errors, was finally exploded, except -among the most ignorant of the vulgar.[128] - - -A HOUSEHOLD BEWITCHED. - -(From the _Late Lancashire Witches_, a comedy, by Thomas Heywood.) - - My Uncle has of late become the sole - Discourse of all the country; for a man respected - As master of a govern'd family; - The house (as if the ridge were fix'd below, - And groundsills lifted up to make the roof), - All now's turn'd topsy turvy - In such a retrograde, preposterous way - As seldom hath been heard of, I think never. - The good man - In all obedience kneels unto his Son; - He, with an austere brow, commands his Father. - The Wife presumes not in the Daughter's sight - Without a prepared curtsey; the Girl, she - Expects it as a duty, chides her mother, - Who quakes and trembles at each word she speaks; - And what's as strange, the Maid, she domineers - O'er her young Mistress, who is awed by her. - The Son, to whom the Father creeps and bends, - Stands in as much fear of the groom, his Man! - All in such rare disorder, that in some - As it breeds pity, and in others wonder, - So in the most part laughter. It is thought - This comes by WITCHCRAFT! - - -THE LANCASHIRE WITCHES OF 1612. - -King James VI. of Scotland, in 1594 (nine years before he ascended the -English throne as James I.), wrote and published his disgracefully -credulous and cruel treatise, entitled "Dæmonologie," containing -statements as to the making of witches, and their practice of -witchcraft, which, _if true_, would only prove their revealer to be deep -in the councils of Satan, and a regular member or attendant of -assemblages of witches. The royal witch-hater held that, as witchcraft -is an act of treason against the prince, the evidence of barnes -[children] or wives [weak women], or ever so defamed persons [_i.e._, of -character however infamous], may serve for sufficient witnesses against -them; for [he asks], who but witches can be provers, and so witnesses of -the doings of witches? Besides evidence, "there are two other good helps -that may be used for their trial; the one is the finding of their -_mark_, and then trying the insensibleness thereof; the other is -floating on the water" [or drowning], &c. Having thus opened the door by -admitting the loosest evidence and the most absurd tests for the most -unjust convictions, the royal fanatic adds, that all witches [_i.e._, -persons thus convicted] ought to be put to death, without distinction of -age, sex, or rank. This "British Solomon" ascended the English throne in -1603, and, as might have been expected, witch-finders soon plied their -infamous vocation with success. The wild and desolate parts of the -parish of Whalley furnished a fitting scene for witch assemblies, and it -was alleged that such meetings were held at Malkin Tower, in Pendle -Forest, within that parish. At the assizes at Lancaster in the autumn of -1612, twenty persons, of whom sixteen were women of various ages, were -committed for trial, and most of them tried for witchcraft. Their names -were--1. Elizabeth Southerne, widow, _alias_ "Old Demdike" (aged eighty -or more); 2. Elizabeth Device [probably Davies], _alias_ "Young -Demdike," her daughter; 3. James Device, son of No. 2; 4. Alizon Device, -daughter of No. 2; 5. Anne Whittle, widow, _alias_ "Chattox," _alias_ -Chatterbox [more probably Chadwicks], the rival witch of "Old Demdike" -(and, like her, eighty or more years of age); 6. Anne Redferne, daughter -of No. 5; 7. Alice Nutter; 8. Katherine Hewytt, _alias_ "Mould-heels;" -9. Jane Bulcock, of the Moss End; 10. John Bulcock, her son; 11. Isabel -Robey; and 12. Margaret Pearson, of Padiham. No. 12 was tried first for -murder by witchcraft; 2nd for bewitching a neighbour; 3rd for bewitching -a horse; and, being acquitted of the two former charges, was sentenced -for the last to stand upon the pillory in the markets of Clitheroe, -Padiham, Colne, and Lancaster for four successive market days, with a -printed paper upon her head, stating her offence. The twelve persons -already named were styled "Witches of Pendle Forest." The following -eight were called "Witches of Samlesbury:"--13. Jennet Bierley; 14. -Ellen Bierley; 15. Jane Southworth; 16. John Ramsden; 17. Elizabeth -Astley; 18. Alice Gray; 19. Isabel Sidegraves; and 20. Lawrence Haye. -The last four were all discharged without trial. The sensation produced -by these trials was immense, not only in this, but throughout -neighbouring counties, and Thomas Potts, Esq., the clerk of the court, -was directed by the judges of assize, Sir Edward Bromley, Knt., and Sir -James Altham, Knt., to collect and publish the evidence and other -documents connected with the trial, under the revision of the judges -themselves; and Potts's "Discovery of Witches," originally published in -1613, has been reprinted by the Chetham Society (vol. vi.), under the -editorship of its president, Mr. James Crossley, F.S.A. According to -Potts, Old Mother Demdike, the principal actress in the tragedy, was a -general agent for the devil in all these parts; no man escaping her or -her furies that ever gave them occasion of offence, or denied them -anything they stood in need of. The justices of the peace in this part -of the country, Roger Nowell and Nicholas Bannister, having learned that -Malkin Tower [Malkin is a north-country name for a hare], in the Forest -of Pendle, the residence of Old Demdike and her daughter, was the resort -of the witches, ventured to arrest their head and another of her -followers, and to commit them to Lancaster Castle. Amongst the rest of -the voluntary confessions made by the witches, that of Dame Demdike is -preserved. She confessed that, about twenty years ago, as she was coming -home from begging, she was met near Gould's Hey, in the forest of -Pendle, by a spirit or devil in the shape of a boy, the one half of his -coat black and the other brown, who told her to stop, and said that if -she would give him her soul, she should have anything she wished for. -She asked his name, and was told _Tib_. She consented, from the hope of -gain, to give him her soul. For several years she had no occasion to -make any application to her evil spirit; but one Sunday morning, having -a little child upon her knee, and she being in a slumber, the spirit -appeared to her in the likeness of a brown dog, and forced himself upon -her knee, and begun to suck her blood under her left arm, on which she -exclaimed, "Jesus! save me!" and the brown dog vanished, leaving her -almost stark mad for eight weeks. On another occasion she was led, being -blind, to the house of Richard Baldwyn, to obtain payment for the -services her daughter had performed at his mill, when Baldwyn fell into -a passion, and bid them to get off his ground, calling them w----s and -witches, and saying he would burn the one and hang the other. On this, -_Tib_ appeared, and they concerted matters to revenge themselves on -Baldwyn; how, is not stated. This poor mendicant pretender to the powers -of witchcraft, in her examination stated that the surest way of taking a -man's life by witchcraft is to make a picture of clay, like unto the -shape of the person meant to be killed, and when they would have the -object of their vengeance suffer in any particular part of his body, to -take a thorn or pin and prick it into that part of the effigy; and when -they would have any of the body to consume away, then to burn that part -of the figure; and when they would have the whole body to consume, then -to burn the clay image; by which means the afflicted will die. The -substance of the examinations of the so-called witches and others, may -be given as follows:--Old Demdike persuaded her daughter, Elizabeth -Device, to sell herself to the devil, which she did, and in turn -initiated her daughter, Alizon Device, in these infernal arts. When the -old witch had been sent to Lancaster Castle, a grand convocation of -seventeen witches and three wizards was held at Malkin Tower on Good -Friday, at which it was determined to kill Mr. M'Covell, the governor of -the castle, and to blow up the building, to enable the witches to make -their escape. The other two objects of this convocation were to christen -the familiar of Alizon Device, one of the witches in the castle, and -also to bewitch and murder Mr. Lister, a gentleman of Westby-in-Craven, -Yorkshire. The business being ended, the witches, in quitting the -meeting, walked out of the barn, named Malkin Tower, in their proper -shapes, but on reaching the door, each mounted his or her spirit, which -was in the form of a young horse, and quickly vanished. Before the -assizes, Old Demdike, worn out by age and trouble, died in prison. The -others were brought to trial. The first person arraigned before Sir -Edward Bromley, who presided in the criminal court, was Ann Whittle, -_alias_ "Chattox," who is described by Potts as a very old, withered, -spent, and decrepit creature, eighty years of age, and nearly blind, a -dangerous witch, of very long countenance, always opposed to Old -Demdike, for whom the one favoured, the other hated deadly, and they -accused each other in their examinations. This witch was more -mischievous to men's goods than to themselves; her lips ever chattered -as she walked (hence, probably, her name of Chattox or Chatterbox), but -no one knew what she said. Her abode was in the Forest of Pendle, -amongst the company of other witches, where the woollen trade was -carried on, she having been in her younger days a wool-carder. She was -indicted for having exercised various wicked and devilish arts called -witchcrafts, enchantments, charms and sorceries, upon one Robert Nutter, -of Greenhead, in the Forest of Pendle, and with having, by force -thereof, feloniously killed him. To establish this charge her own -examination was read, from which it appeared that fourteen or fifteen -years ago, a thing like "a Christian man" had importuned her to sell her -soul to the devil, and that she had done so, giving to her familiar the -name of _Fancy_. On account of an insult offered to her daughter, -Redfern, by Robert Nutter, they two conspired to place a bad wish upon -Nutter, of which he died. It was further deposed against her that John -Device had agreed to give Old Chattox a dole of meal yearly if she would -not hurt him, and that when he ceased to make this annual tribute, he -took to his bed and died. She was further charged with having bewitched -the drink of John Moore, and also with having, without using the churn, -produced a quantity of butter from a dish of skimmed milk! In the face -of this evidence, and no longer anxious about her own life, she -acknowledged her guilt, but humbly prayed the judges to be merciful to -her daughter, Anne Redfern; but her prayer was in vain. Against -Elizabeth Device, the testimony of her own daughter, a child nine years -of age, was received; and the way in which her evidence was given, -instead of filling the court with horror, seems to have excited their -applause and admiration. Her familiar had the form of a dog and was -called _Bull_, and by his agency she bewitched to death John and James -Robinson and James Mitton; the first having called her a strumpet, and -the last having refused to give Old Demdike a penny when she asked him -for charity. To render her daughter proficient in the art, the prisoner -taught her two prayers, by one of which she cured the bewitched, and by -the other procured drink. The person of Elizabeth Device, as described -by Potts, seems witch-like. "She was branded (says he) with a -preposterous mark in nature; her left eye standing lower than her right; -the one looking down and the other up at the same time." Her process of -destruction was by modelling clay or marl figures, and wasting her -victims away along with them. James Device was convicted principally on -the evidence of his child-sister, of bewitching and killing Mrs. Ann -Towneley, the wife of Mr. Henry Towneley, of the Carr, by means of a -picture of clay; and both he and his sister were witnesses against their -mother. This wizard (James Device), whose spirit was called _Dandy_, is -described as a poor, decrepit boy, apparently of weak intellect, and so -infirm, that it was found necessary to hold him up in court on his -trial. - -Upon evidence of this kind no fewer than ten of these unfortunate people -were found guilty at Lancaster, and sentenced to suffer death. Eight -others were acquitted; why, it is not easy to see, for the evidence -appears to have been equally strong, or rather equally weak and absurd, -against all. The ten persons sentenced were--Ann Whittle _alias_ -"Chattox," Elizabeth Device, James Device, Anne Redfern, Alice Nutter, -Catherine Hewytt, John Bulcock, Jane Bulcock, Alizon Device, and Isabel -Robey. - -The judge, Sir Edward Bromley, in passing sentence on the convicted -prisoners, said, "You, of all people, have the least cause of complaint; -since on the trial for your lives there hath been much care and pains -taken; and what persons of your nature and condition were ever arraigned -and tried with so much solemnity? The court hath had great care to -receive nothing in evidence against you but matter of fact(!)[129] As -you stand simply (your offence and bloody practices not considered) -your fate would rather move compassion than exasperate any man; for whom -would not the ruin of so many poor creatures at one time touch, as in -appearance simple, and of little understanding? But the blood of these -innocent children, and others his Majesty's subjects whom cruelly and -barbarously you have murdered and cut off, cries unto the Lord for -vengeance. It is impossible that you, who are stained with so much -innocent blood, should either prosper or continue in this world, or -receive reward in the next." Having thus shut the door of hope, both as -to this life and the future, the judge proceeded to urge the wretched -victims of superstition to repentance! and concluded by sentencing them -all to be hanged. They were executed at Lancaster on the 20th of August, -1612, for having bewitched to death "by devilish practices and hellish -means" no fewer than sixteen inhabitants of the Forest of Pendle. These -were, 1. Robert Nutter, of Greenhead. 2. Richard Assheton, son of -Richard Assheton, Esq., of Downham. 3. A child of Richard Baldwin, of -Westhead, in the Forest of Pendle. 4. John Device, or Davies, of Pendle. -5. Ann Nutter, daughter of Anthony Nutter, of Pendle. 6. A child of John -Moor, of Higham. 7. Hugh Moor, of Pendle. 8. John Robinson, _alias_ -Swyer. 9. James Robinson. 10. Henry Mytton, of Rough Lee. 11. Ann -Towneley, wife of Henry Towneley, of Carr Hall, gentleman. 12. John -Duckworth. 13. John Hargreaves, of Goldshaw Booth. 14. Blaize -Hargreaves, of Higham. 15. Christopher Nutter. 16. Ann Folds, near -Colne. John Law, a pedlar, was also bewitched, so as to lose the use of -his limbs, by Alizon Device, because he refused to give her some pins -without money, when requested to do so by her on his way from Colne. -Alizon Device herself _was a beggar by profession_, and the evidence -sufficiently proved that Law's affliction was nothing more than what -would now be termed paralysis of the lower extremities. - -In his _Introduction_ to _Potts's Discovery of Witches_, Mr. Crossley -observes that "the main interest in reviewing this miserable band of -victims will be felt to centre in Alice Nutter. Wealthy, well conducted, -well connected, and placed probably on an equality with most of the -neighbouring families, and the magistrate before whom she was brought -and by whom she was committed, she deserves to be distinguished from the -companions with whom she suffered, and to attract an attention which has -never yet been directed to her. That James Device, on whose evidence she -was convicted, was instructed to accuse her by her own nearest -relatives, and that the magistrate, Roger Nowell, entered actively as a -confederate into the conspiracy, from a grudge entertained against her -on account of a long-disputed boundary, are allegations which tradition -has preserved, but the truth or falsehood of which, at this distance of -time, it is scarcely possible satisfactorily to examine. Her mansion, -Rough Lee, is still standing, a very substantial and rather fine -specimen of the houses of the inferior gentry, _temp._ James I., but now -divided into cottages." - - -THE SAMLESBURY WITCHES. - -The trials of these persons took place at the same assizes, and before -the same judge. Against Jane and Ellen Bierley and Jane Southworth, all -of Samlesbury, charged with having bewitched Grace Sowerbutts there, the -only material evidence was that of Grace Sowerbutts herself, a girl of -licentious and vagrant habits, who swore that these women (one of them -being her grandmother), did draw her by the hair of the head and lay her -upon the top of a hay-mow, and did take her senses and memory from her; -that they appeared to her sometimes in their own likeness, and sometimes -like a black dog. She declared that they by their arts had induced her -to join their sisterhood; and that they were met from time to time by -"four black things going upright and yet not like men in the face," who -conveyed them across the Ribble, where they danced with them, &c. The -prisoners were also charged with bewitching and slaying a child of -Thomas Walshman's, by placing a nail in its navel; and after its burial, -they took up the corpse, when they ate part of the flesh, and made an -"_unxious_ ointment" by boiling the bones. This was more than even the -capacious credulity of the judge and jury could digest. The Samlesbury -witches were, therefore, acquitted, and a seminary priest named Thompson -_alias_ Southworth, was suspected by two of the county magistrates [the -Rev. William Leigh and Edward Chisnall, Esq.,] to whom the affair was -afterwards referred, of having instigated Sowerbutts to make the charge; -but this imputation was not supported by any satisfactory evidence. - - -WITCHCRAFT AT MIDDLETON. - -About 1630, a man named Utley, a reputed wizard, was tried, found -guilty, and hanged, at Lancaster, for having bewitched to death, -Richard, the son of Ralph Assheton, Esq., of Downham, and Lord of -Middleton.[130] - - -WITCHCRAFT IN 1633-34. - -In 1633, a number of poor and ignorant people, inhabitants of Pendle -Forest, or the neighbourhood, were apprehended, upon the information of -a boy named Edmund Robinson, and charged with witchcraft. The following -is a copy of Robinson's deposition:-- - - "The examination of Edmund Robinson, son of Edmund Robinson, of - Pendle Forest, mason, taken at Padiham, before Richard Shuttleworth - [of Gawthorpe, Esq., then forty-seven or forty-eight] and John - Starkie, Esq. [one of the seven demoniacs of Cleworth, in 1595] two - of his Majesty's Justices of the Peace, within the county of - Lancaster, 10th of February, A.D. 1633 [1634]. Who informeth upon - oath (being examined concerning the great outrages of the witches), - and saith, that upon All Saints' Day last past [Nov. 1, 1633], he, - this informer, being with one Henry Parker, a next door neighbour to - him, in Wheatley-lane, desired the said Parker to give him leave to - get some bulloes [? bullace], which he did. In which time of getting - bulloes, he saw two greyhounds, viz., a black and a brown one, come - running over the next field towards him; he verily thinking the one - of them to be Mr. Nutter's, and the other to be Mr. Robinson's, the - said Mr. Nutter and Mr. Robinson having then such like. And the said - greyhounds came to him and fawned on him, they having about their - necks either of them a collar, and to either of which collars was - tied a string, which collars, as this informant affirmeth, did shine - like gold; and he thinking that some either of Mr. Nutter's or Mr. - Robinson's family should have followed them, but seeing nobody to - follow them, he took the said greyhounds, thinking to hunt with - them, and presently a hare rise [rose] very near before him, at the - sight of which he cried 'Loo! loo!' but the dogs would not run. - Whereupon being very angry he took them, and with the strings that - were at their collars, tied either of them to a little bush on the - next hedge, and with a rod that he had in his hand he beat them. And - instead of the black greyhound, one Dickonson wife stood up (a - neighbour), whom this informer knoweth; and instead of the brown - greyhound a little boy, whom this informer knoweth not. At which - sight this informer being afraid, endeavoured to run away, but being - stayed by the woman, viz., by Dickonson's wife, she put her hand - into her pocket and pulled out a piece of silver much like to a fair - shilling, and offered to give him to hold his tongue, and not to - tell, which he refused, saying, 'Nay, thou art a witch.' Whereupon - she put her hand into her pocket again, and pulled out a string like - unto a bridle, that jingled, which she put upon the little boy's - head that stood up in the brown greyhound's stead; whereupon the - said boy stood up a white horse. Then immediately the said - Dickonson's wife took this informer before her upon the said horse - and carried him to a new house called Hoare-stones, being about a - quarter of a mile off; whither when they were come there were divers - persons about the door, and he saw divers others come riding upon - horses of several colours towards the said house, which tied their - horses to a hedge near to the said house, and which persons went - into the said house, to the number of three score or thereabouts, as - this informer thinketh, where they had a fire and meat roasting, - and some other meat stirring in the house, whereof a young woman, - whom he, this informer, knoweth not, gave him flesh and bread upon a - trencher, and drink in a glass, which, after the first taste, he - refused, and would have no more, and said it was nought. And - presently after, seeing divers of the company going to a barn - adjoining, he followed after, and there he saw six of them kneeling, - and pulling at six several ropes, which were fastened or tied to the - top of the house, at or with which pulling came then in this - informer's sight flesh smoking, butter in lumps, and milk as it were - syling [skimming or straining] from the said ropes, all which fell - into basins which were placed under the said ropes. And after that - these six had done, there came other six, which did likewise; and - during all the time of their so pulling, they made such foul faces - that feared this informer, so as he was glad to steal out and run - home; whom, when they wanted, some of their company came running - after him, near to a place in a highway called Boggard-hole, where - this informer met two horsemen, at the sight whereof the said - persons left following him; and the foremost of which persons that - followed him, he knoweth to be one Loynd wife, which said wife, - together with one Dickonson wife, and one Janet Davies, he hath seen - at several times in a croft or close adjoining to his father's - house, which put him in a great fear. And further this informer - saith, upon Thursday after New Year's Day last past, he saw the said - Loynd wife sitting upon a cross piece of wood being near the chimney - of his father's dwelling-house: and he, calling to her, said, 'Come - down, thou Loynd wife,' and immediately the said Loynd wife went up - out of his sight. And further, this informer saith, that after he - was come from the company aforesaid to his father's house, being - towards evening, his father bade him go fetch home two kine to seal - [cows to yoke], and in the way, in a field called the Ollers - [_i.e._, Alders,] he chanced to hap upon a boy who began to quarrel - with him, and they fought so together till this informer had his - ears made very bloody by fighting; and looking down, he saw the boy - had a cloven foot, at which sight he was afraid, and ran away from - him to seek the kine. And in the way he saw a light like a lantern, - towards which he made haste, supposing it to be carried by some of - Mr. Robinson's people; but when he came to the place he only found a - woman standing on a bridge, whom, when he saw her, he knew to be - Loynd wife, and knowing her he turned back again, and immediately he - met with the aforesaid boy, from whom he offered to run; which boy - gave him a blow on the back, which caused him to cry. And he further - saith, that when he was in the barn, he saw three women take three - pictures from off the beam, in the which pictures many thorns, or - such like things, sticked; and that Loynd wife took one of the said - pictures down; but the other two women that took the other two - pictures down he knoweth not. And being further asked what persons - were at the meeting aforesaid, he nominated these persons hereafter - mentioned; viz., Dickonson wife, Henry Priestly wife and her son, - Alice Hargreaves, widow, Jennet Davies, William Davies, the wife of - Henry Jacks and her son John, James Hargreaves of Marsden, Miles - wife of Dicks, James wife, Saunders as he believes, Lawrence wife of - Saunders, Loynd wife, Boys wife of Barrowford, one Holgate and his - wife as he believes, Little Robin wife of Leonards of the West - Close. - - "Edmund Robinson of Pendle, father of the said Edmund Robinson, the - aforesaid informer, upon oath saith, that upon All Saints' Day he - sent his son, the aforesaid informer, to fetch home two kine to - seal, and saith that he thought his son stayed longer than he - should have done, and went to seek him; and in seeking him heard - him cry very pitifully, and found him so afraid and distracted, - that he neither knew his father, nor did know where he was, and so - continued very near a quarter of an hour before he came to himself; - and he told this informer his father all the particular passages - that are before declared in the said Edmund Robinson his son's - information." - -Upon such evidence as the above, these poor creatures, chiefly women and -children, were committed by the two magistrates named, to Lancaster -Castle, for trial. On their trials at the assizes, a jury, doubtless -full of prejudice and superstitious fear, found seventeen of them -guilty. The judge respited the convicts and reported the case to the -king in council. They were next remitted to the Bishop of Chester (Dr. -Bridgeman), who certified his opinion of the case, which, however, does -not appear. Subsequently, four of these poor women, Margaret Johnson, -Frances Dickonson, Mary Spencer, and the wife of one of the -Hargreaveses, were sent for to London, and examined, first by the king's -physicians and surgeons, and afterwards by Charles I. in person. The -strangest part of this sad story of superstition is that one of the -four, who underwent examination before the magistrates, trial before "my -lords the king's justices," a sifting question by the Right Rev. the -Lord Bishop of Chester, aided, probably, by his chancellor, archdeacons, -chaplains, proctors, &c., next before the lords of his majesty's privy -council, and lastly, before his sacred majesty the king himself, whose -very touch would remove the king's evil,--one of these four women, -doubtless after much badgering, bullying, and artful questioning, -actually made a confession of her guilt as a witch. When this was made -it does not appear; but here is the confession as preserved in -Dodsworth's Collection of MSS., vol. lxi. p. 47:-- - - "THE CONFESSION OF MARGARET JOHNSON.--That betwixt seven and eight - years since, she being in her own house in Marsden in a great - passion of anger and discontent, and withal pressed with some want, - there appeared unto her a spirit or devil in the proportion or - similitude of a man, apparelled in a suit of black, tied about with - silk points; who offered that if she would give him her soul he - would supply all her wants, and bring to her whatsoever she did - need; and at her appointment would in revenge either kill or hurt - whom or what she desired, were it man or beast. And saith, that - after a solicitation or two, she contracted and covenanted with the - said devil for her soul. And that the said devil or spirit bade her - call him by the name of Mamilian; and when she would have him do - anything for her, call in 'Mamilian,' and he would be ready to do - her will. And saith, that in all her talk and confidence she calleth - her said devil, 'Mamil, my God.' She further saith that the said - Mamilian, her devil (by her consent) did abuse and defile * * * And - saith that she was not at the great meeting at Hoare-stones, at the - Forest of Pendle, upon All Saints' Day, where * * * But saith she - was at a second meeting the Sunday next after All Saints' Day, at - the place aforesaid, where there was at the time between thirty and - forty witches, who did all ride to the said meeting, and the end of - the meeting was to consult for the killing and hurting of men and - beasts. And that besides their private familiars or spirits, there - was one great or grand devil or spirit, more eminent than the rest. - And if any desire to have a great and more wonderful devil, whereby - they may have more power to hurt, they may have one such. And saith - that such witches as have sharp bones given them by the devil to - prick them, have no paps or dugs whereon the devil may suck; but the - devil receiveth blood from the place pricked with the bone; and they - are more grand witches than any that have marks. She also saith, - that if a witch had but one mark, she hath but one spirit; if two, - then two spirits; if three, yet but two spirits. And saith that - their spirits usually have keeping of their bodies. And being - desired to name such as she knew to be witches, she named, &c. And - if they would torment a man, they bid their spirit go and torment - him in any particular place. And that Good Friday is one constant - day for a yearly general meeting of witches, and that on Good Friday - last they had a meeting near Pendle water-side. She also saith that - men witches usually have women spirits, and women witches men - spirits. And their devil or spirit gives them notice of their - meeting, and tells them the place where it must be. And saith, if - they desire to be in any place upon a sudden their devil or spirit - will, upon a rod, dog, or anything else, presently convey them - thither; yea, into any room of a man's house. But she saith, it is - not the substance of their bodies, but their spirit [that] assumeth - such form and shape as go into such rooms. She also saith that the - devil (after he begins to suck) will make a pap or dug in a short - time, and the matter which he sucks is blood. And saith that their - devils can cause foul weather and storms, and so did at their - meetings. She also saith that when her devil did come to suck her - pap, he usually came to her in the likeness of a cat, sometimes of - one colour and sometimes of another. And that since this trouble - befel her, her spirit hath left her, and she never saw him since." - -One cannot read this farrago of revolting absurdities without -instinctively feeling that no uneducated woman could have dictated it; -that it must have been prepared and dressed up for her to attach her -mark, and that all she did was to make the cross to it, in fear, -peradventure, of impending tortures. It is at least satisfactory to know -that all these examinations of the poor women by legal, ecclesiastic, -and regal authorities had a beneficial result. Strong presumption was -afforded that the chief witness, the boy Robinson, had been suborned to -accuse the prisoners falsely; and they were accordingly discharged. The -boy afterwards confessed that he was suborned. The story excited, at the -time, so much interest in the public, that in the following year, 1634, -was acted and published a play entitled "The Witches of Lancashire," -which Steevens cites in illustration of Shakspeare's witches. _Dr. -Whitaker's Whalley._ [Reference is probably made here to Heywood and -Broome's play of "The late Lancashire Witches" (London, 1634, quarto). -There was a much later play entitled "The Lancashire Witches," by -Shadwell (London, 1682)]. - - -THE LANCASHIRE WITCHES OF 1633-4. - -Sir Wm. Pelham writes, May 16, 1634, to Lord Conway:--"The greatest news -from the country is of a huge pack of witches, which are lately -discovered in Lancashire, whereof, 'tis said, 19 are condemned, and that -there are at least 60 already discovered, and yet daily there are more -revealed: there are divers of them of good ability, and they have done -much harm. I hear it is suspected that they had a hand in raising the -great storm, wherein his Majesty [Charles I.] was in so great danger at -sea in Scotland." The original is in the State Paper Office.[131] - - -LANCASHIRE WITCH-FINDERS. - -Dr. Webster, in his "Display of Witchcraft," depicts the consternation -and alarm amongst the old and decrepit, from the machinations of the -witch-finders. Of the boy Robinson, who was a witness on several trials -of witches, he says--"This said boy was brought into the church at -Kildwick [in Yorkshire, on the confines of Lancashire], a large parish -church, where I, being then curate there, was preaching in the -afternoon, and was set upon a stool to look about him, which moved some -little disturbance in the congregation for a while. After prayers, I -enquired what the matter was: the people told me that it was the boy -that discovered witches; upon which I went to the house where he was to -stay all night, and here I found him and two very unlikely persons, that -did conduct him and manage the business. I desired to have some -discourse with the boy in private, but that they utterly refused. Then, -in the presence of a great many people, I took the boy near me and said: -'Good boy, tell me truly and in earnest, didst thou see and hear such -strange things at the meeting of witches as is reported by many thou -didst relate?' But the two men, not giving the boy leave to answer, did -pluck him from me, and said he had been examined by two _able_ justices -of the peace, and _they did never ask him such a question_. To whom I -replied, the persons accused had therefore the more wrong." Dr. Webster -subsequently adds, that "The boy Robinson, in more mature years, -acknowledged that he had been instructed and suborned to make these -accusations against the accused persons, by his father and others, and -that, of course, the whole was a fraud. By such wicked means and -unchristian practices, divers innocent persons lost their lives; and -these wicked rogues wanted not greater persons (even of the ministry -too) that did authorise and encourage them in their diabolical courses; -and the like in my time happened here in Lancashire, where divers, both -men and women, were accused of supposed witchcraft, and were so -unchristianly and inhumanly handled, as to be stript stark naked, and -laid upon tables and beds to be searched for their supposed witch-marks; -so barbarous and cruel acts doth diabolical instigation, working upon -ignorance and superstition, produce." - - -THE FOREST OF PENDLE--THE HAUNT OF THE LANCASHIRE WITCHES. - -The Forest of Pendle is a portion of the greater one of -"Blackburnshire," and is so called from the celebrated mountain of that -name, over the declivity of which it extends, and stretches in a long -but interrupted descent of five miles to the Water of Pendle, a barren -and dreary tract. Dr. Whitaker observes of this and the neighbouring -forests, and the remark even yet holds good, "that they still bear the -marks of original barrenness and recent cultivation; that they are still -distinguished from the ancient freehold tracts around them, by want of -old houses, old woods, high fences (for these were forbidden by the -forest laws); by peculiarities of dialect and manners in their -inhabitants; and lastly, by a general air of poverty which all the -opulence of manufactures cannot remove." He considers that "at an -uncertain period during the occupancy of the Lacies, the first principle -of population (in these forests) commenced;" it was found that these -wilds, bleak and barren as they were, might be occupied to some -advantage in breeding young and depasturing lean "cattle, which were -afterwards fattened in the lower domain. _Vaccaries_, or great upland -pastures, were laid out for this purpose; _booths_ or mansions erected -upon them for the residence of herdsmen; and at the same time that herds -of deer were permitted to range at large as heretofore, _lawnds_, by -which are meant parks within a forest, were enclosed, in order to chase -them with greater facility, or by confinement to produce fatter venison. -Of these lawnds Pendle had New and Old Lawnd, with the contiguous Park -of Ightenhill." In the early part of the 17th century the inhabitants of -this district must have been, with few exceptions, a wretchedly poor and -uncultivated race, having little communication with the occupants of the -more fertile regions around them, and in whose minds superstition, even -yet unextinguished, must have had absolute and uncontrollable -domination. Under the disenchanting influence of steam, still much of -the old character of its population remains. The "parting genius" of -superstition still clings to the hoary hill tops and rugged slopes and -mossy water sides, along which the old forest stretched its length, and -the voices of ancestral tradition are still heard to speak from the -depth of its quiet hollows, and along the course of its gurgling -streams. He who visits Pendle will find that charms are yet generally -resorted to amongst the lower classes; that there are hares which, in -their persuasion, never can be caught, and which survive only to baffle -and confound the huntsman; that each small hamlet has its peculiar and -gifted personage, whom it is dangerous to offend; that the wise man and -woman (the white witches of our ancestors) still continue their -investigations of truth, undisturbed by the rural police or the progress -of the schoolmaster; that each locality has its haunted house; that -apparitions still walk their ghostly rounds,--and little would his -reputation for piety avail that clergyman in the eyes of his -parishioners, who should refuse to lay those "extravagant and erring -spirits," when requested, by those liturgic ceremonies which the -orthodoxy of tradition requires. In the early part of the reign of James -I., and at the period when his execrable statute against witchcraft -might have been sharpening its appetite by a temporary fast for the full -meal of blood by which it was eventually glutted--for as yet it could -count no recorded victims--two wretched old women with their families -resided in the Forest of Pendle. Their names were Elizabeth Southernes -and Ann Whittle, better known, perhaps, in the chronicles of witchcraft -by the appellations of Old Demdike and Old Chattox [perhaps, Chadwick]. -Both had attained, or reached the verge of the advanced age of eighty, -and were evidently in a state of extreme poverty, subsisting with their -families by occasional employment, by mendicancy, but principally, -perhaps, by the assumption of that unlawful power which commerce with -spirits of evil was supposed to procure, and of which their sex, life, -appearance, and peculiarities might seem to the prejudiced neighbourhood -in the Forest to render them not unsuitable depositaries.[132] - -[For the details of the witchcraft alleged to be practised by these old -crones and their families, with their trials and fate, see an article -(page 185 _suprâ_) in the present volume, entitled "The Lancashire -Witches of 1612."] - - -PENDLE HILL AND ITS WITCHES. - -(From Rev. Richard James's _Iter Lancastrense_.) - - "Penigent, Pendle Hill, and Ingleborough, - Three such hills be not in all England thorough."[133] - - I long to climb up Pendle[134]: Pendle stands - Round cop, surveying all the wild moor lands, - And Malkin's Tower,[135] a little cottage, where - Report makes caitiff witches meet, to swear - Their homage to the devil, and contrive - The deaths of men and beasts. Let who will dive - Into this baneful search, I wonder much - If judges' sentence with belief on such - Doth pass: then sure, they would not for lewd gain - Bad clients favour, or put good to pain - Of long pursuit; for terror of the fiend - Or love of God, they would give causes end - With equal justice. Yet I do confess - Needs must strange fancies poor old wives possess, - Who in those desert, misty moors do live, - Hungry and cold, and scarce see priest to give - Them ghostly counsel. Churches far do stand - In laymen's hands, and chapels have no land - To cherish learned curates,[136] though Sir John - Do preach for four pounds unto Haslingden. - Such yearly rent, with right of begging corn, - Makes John a sharer in my Lady's horn: - He drinks and prays, and forty years this life - Leading at home, keeps children and a wife.[137] - These are the wonders of our careless days: - Small store serves him who for the people prays. - - -WITCHCRAFT ABOUT 1654. - -Dr. Webster, in his _Display of Witchcraft_, dated February 23, 1673, -mentions two cases somewhat vaguely, in the following terms:--"I myself -have known two supposed witches to be put to death at Lancaster, within -these eighteen years [_i.e._, between 1654 and 1673] that did utterly -deny any league or covenant with the devil, or even to have seen any -visible devil at all; and may not the confessions of those (who both -died penitent) be as well credited as the confessions of those that were -brought to such confessions by force, fraud, or cunning persuasion and -allurement?" - - -A LIVERPOOL WITCH IN 1667. - -In the MS. _Rental of Sir Edward More_ (p. 62), dated in the year 1667, -it is gravely recorded that one of his tenants residing in -Castle-street, Liverpool, was a witch, descended from a witch, and -inheriting the faculty of witchcraft in common with her maiden -sister:--"Widow Bridge, a poor old woman, her own sister Margaret Ley, -being arraigned for a witch, confessed she was one, and when she was -asked how long she had so been, replied, since the death of her mother, -who died thirty years agone, and at her decease she had nothing to leave -her and this widow Bridge, that were sisters, but her two spirits, and -named then the elder spirit to this widow, and the other spirit to her, -the said Margaret Ley. God bless me and all mine from such legacies. -Amen."[138] - - -THE WITCH OF SINGLETON. - -The village of Singleton [in the Fylde] is remarkable only for having -been the residence of "Mag Shelton," a famous witch in her day. Her -food, we are told, was _haggis_ (at that time commonly used in the -district) made of boiled groats, mixed with thyme or parsley. Many are -the wild tales related of her dealings in the black art. The cows of her -neighbours were constantly milked by her; the pitcher in which she -conveyed the stolen milk away, walking before her in the shape of a -goose. Under this disguise her depredations were carried on till a -neighbour, suspecting the trick, struck the seeming goose, and lo! -immediately it was changed into a broken pitcher, and the vaccine liquor -flowed. Once only was this witch foiled by a powerful spell, the -contrivance of a maiden, who, having seated her in a chair, before a -large fire, and stuck a bodkin, crossed with two weaver's healds, about -her person, thus fixed her irremovably to her seat.[139] - - -WITCHCRAFT AT CHOWBENT IN THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY. - -In the beginning of this [the eighteenth] century, one Katherine -Walkden, an old woman of the township of Atherton, Chowbent, was -committed to Lancaster as a witch. She was examined at Hulton Hall, -where the magistrate then resided, by a jury of matrons, by whom a -private teat was discovered, and upon this and other evidence (I suppose -of equal importance) her _mittimus_ was made out, but she died in gaol -before the ensuing assizes.[140] - - -KILLING A WITCH. - -Some years ago I formed the acquaintance of an elderly gentleman who had -retired from business, after amassing an ample fortune by the -manufacture of cotton. He was possessed of a considerable amount of -general information--had studied the world by which he was -surrounded--and was a leading member of the Wesleyan connexion. The -faith element, however, predominated amongst his religious principles, -and hence both he and his family were firm believers in witchcraft. On -one occasion, according to my informant, both he and the neighbouring -farmers suffered much from loss of cattle, and from the unproductiveness -of their sheep. The cream was _bynged_ [soured] in the churn, and would -bring forth no butter. Their cows died mad in the shippons, and no -farrier could be found who was able to fix upon the diseases which -afflicted them. Horses were bewitched out of their stables through the -loopholes, after the doors had been safely locked, and were frequently -found strayed to a considerable distance when they ought to have been -safe in their stalls. Lucky-stones had lost their virtues; horse-shoes -nailed behind the doors were of little use; and sickles hung across the -beams had no effect in averting the malevolence of the evil-doer. At -length suspicion rested upon an old man, a noted astrologer and -fortune-teller, who resided near New Church, in Rossendale, and it was -determined to put an end both to their ill-fortune and his career, by -performing the requisite ceremonials for "killing a witch." It was a -cold November evening when the process commenced. A thick fog covered -the valleys, and the wild winds whistled across the dreary moors. The -farmers, however, were not deterred. They met at the house of one of -their number, whose cattle were then supposed to be under the influence -of the wizard; and having procured a live cock-chicken, they stuck him -full of pins and burnt him alive, whilst repeating some magical -incantation. A cake was also made of oatmeal, mixed with the urine of -those bewitched, and, after having been marked with the name of the -person suspected, was then burnt in a similar manner.... The wind -suddenly rose to a tempest and threatened the destruction of the house. -Dreadful moanings as of some one in intense agony, were heard without, -whilst a sense of horror seized upon all within. At the moment when the -storm was at the wildest, the wizard knocked at the door, and in piteous -tones desired admittance. They had previously been warned by the "wise -man" whom they had consulted, that such would be the case, and had been -charged not to yield to their feelings of humanity by allowing him to -enter. Had they done so, he would have regained all his influence, for -the virtue of the spell would have been dissolved. Again and again did -he implore them to open the door, and pleaded the bitterness of the -wintry blast, but no one answered from within. They were deaf to all his -entreaties, and at last the wizard wended his way across the moors as -best he could. The spell, therefore, was enabled to have its full -effect, and within a week the Rossendale wizard was locked in the cold -embrace of death.[141] - - -A RECENT WITCH, NEAR BURNLEY. - -Not many years ago there resided in the neighbourhood of Burnley an old -woman, whose malevolent practices were supposed to render themselves -manifest by the injuries she inflicted on her neighbours' cattle; and -many a lucky-stone, many a stout horse-shoe and rusty sickle may now be -found behind the doors or hung from the beams in the cow-houses and -stables belonging to the farmers in that locality, which date their -suspension from the time when this "witch" in reputation held the -country-side in awe. Not one of her neighbours ever dared to offend her -openly; and if she at any time preferred a request, it was granted at -all hazards, regardless of inconvenience and expense. If, in some -thoughtless moment, any one spoke slightingly, either of her or her -powers, a corresponding penalty was threatened as soon as it reached her -ears, and the loss of cattle, personal health, or a general "run of bad -luck" soon led the offending party to think seriously of making peace -with his powerful tormentor. As time wore on, she herself sickened and -died; but before she could "shuffle off this mortal coil" she must needs -_transfer her familiar spirit_ to some trusty successor. An intimate -acquaintance from a neighbouring township was consequently sent for in -all haste, and on her arrival was immediately closeted with her dying -friend. What passed between them has never fully transpired, but it is -confidently affirmed that at the close of the interview this associate -_received the witch's last breath into her mouth, and with it the -familiar spirit_. The dreaded woman thus ceased to exist, but her powers -for good or evil were transferred to her companion; and on passing along -the road from Burnley to Blackburn, we can point out a farm-house at no -great distance, with whose thrifty matron no one will yet dare to -quarrel. - - -"LATING" OR "LEETING" WITCHES. - -All-Hallows' Eve, Hallowe'en, &c. (from the old English _halwen_, -saints), denote the vigil and day of All Saints, October 31 and November -1, a season abounding in superstitious observances. It was firmly -believed in Lancashire that the witches assembled on this night at their -general rendezvous in the Forest of Pendle,--a ruined and desolate -farm-house, called the _Malkin Tower_ (_Malkin_ being the name of a -familiar demon in Middleton's old play of _The Witch_; derived from -_maca_, an equal, a companion). This superstition led to another, that -of _lighting_, _lating_, or _leeting_ the witches (from _leoht_, A.-S. -light). It was believed that if a lighted candle were carried about the -fells or hills from eleven to twelve o'clock at night, and burned all -that time steadily, it had so far triumphed over the evil power of the -witches, who, as they passed to the Malkin Tower, would employ their -utmost efforts to extinguish the light, and the person whom it -represented might safely defy their malice during the season; but if, by -any accident the candle went out, it was an omen of evil to the luckless -wight for whom the experiment was made. It was also deemed inauspicious -to cross the threshold of that person until after the return from -_leeting_, and not then unless the candle had preserved its light. Mr. -Milner describes this ceremony as having been recently performed.[142] - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[122] Hall's _Chronicle_. - -[123] William of Worcester's _Annales Rerum Anglicarum_, pp. 460-61. - -[124] _Pictorial History of England_, vol. ii. p. 81; also Hall's -_Chronicle_. - -[125] This is the title-page of an old 12mo chap-book, the date of -publication of which is not shown. - -[126] This was sold by auction only a few years ago. - -[127] For Sir Philip Sidney's poetical description of this old game, see -his _Arcadia_, or Brand's _Popular Antiquities_ (Ed. 1841, vol. ii. p. -236). - -[128] Baines's _History of Lancashire_. - -[129] To prove the guilt of one of the prisoners, evidence was received -that it was the opinion of a man not in court, that she had turned his -beer sour. To prove the charge of murder, it was thought sufficient to -attest that the sick person had declared his belief that he owed his -approaching death to the maledictions of the prisoner. The bleeding of -the corpse on the touch of Jennet Preston, was received as an -incontrovertible evidence of guilt. It would be nearer the truth to say -that nothing but fiction was received in evidence. - -[130] Dr. Whitaker's _Whalley_, p. 528. - -[131] W. N. S., in _Notes and Queries_, 2nd series, vol. iv. p. 365. - -[132] Mr. James Crossley's introduction to _Potts's Discovery of -Witches_. - -[133] This is an old local proverb, amongst the Yorkshire proverbs in -Grose's _Provincial Glossary_. Ray gives it thus:-- - - "Ingleborough, Pendle, and Penigent, - Are the highest hills between Scotland and Trent." - -[134] Pendle Hill, or _Pen hull_ (_i.e._, the head hill) is situated on -the borders of Lancashire, in the northern part of Whalley, and rises -about 1800 feet above the level of the sea. The views from the summit -are very extensive, including the Irish sea on one side, and York -Minster (at a distance of nearly sixty miles) on the other. -Notwithstanding the boast of the old proverb above, there are several -hills round it of higher elevation. - -[135] Malkin Tower, in the Forest of Pendle, and on the declivity of -Pendle Hill, was the place where, according to vulgar belief, a sort of -assembly or convention of reputed witches took place on Good Friday in -1612, which was attended by seventeen pretended witches and three -wizards, who were afterwards brought to trial at Lancaster Assizes, and -ten of these unfortunate creatures being found guilty, were executed. - -[136] The laymen here referred to were not the patrons, but the persons -officiating, who were called readers, and had no orders. Nearly every -chapel in the parish of Whalley was destitute of land in 1636. - -[137] The Sir John was probably John Butterworth, clerk, curate of -Haslingden about this period. "Sir John" was a designation frequently -applied to an illiterate priest. The old allowance to the priest in -Haslingden, according to Bishop Gastrell, was 4_l._ Formerly parish -clerks (and perhaps the priests of poor cures also) claimed once a year -a bowl of corn from each parishioner of substance. - -[138] The _Moore Rental_, p. 62. - -[139] Rev. W. Thornber's _History of Blackpool_, p. 308. - -[140] _MS. Description of Atherton and Chowbent in 1787_, by Dorning -Rasbotham, Esq. - -[141] See _Transactions of Lancashire and Cheshire Historical Society_. - -[142] _Year Book_, part xiii. col. 1558. - - - - -PART II. - - - - -LOCAL CUSTOMS AND USAGES AT VARIOUS SEASONS. - - -Every greater or lesser festival of the church had its popular no less -than its ecclesiastical observances. The three great events of human -birth, marriage, and death, with their church rites of baptism, wedding, -and burial, naturally draw towards them many customs and usages deemed -fitting to such occasions. There are many customs in connexion with the -free and the inferior tenants of manors, and their services to the -manorial lord. Another class of customs will be found in observance in -agricultural districts amongst the owners, occupiers, and labourers of -farms and the peasantry generally. Lastly, as has been observed of the -English generally, every great occasion, collective or individual, must -have its festal celebration by eating and drinking in assembly. The -viands and the beverages proper to particular occasions, therefore, -constitute a not unimportant part of the local customs and usages of the -people; and hence demand a place in a volume of Folk-Lore. To these -subjects the present Part of this book is appropriated, and it is -believed that they will be found not less strikingly illustrative of the -manners and habits of the people of Lancashire, than the Superstitious -Beliefs and Practices recorded in the first Part of this little work. - - -CHURCH AND SEASON FESTIVALS. - -The feasts of dedication of parish churches to their particular -tutelary saints, of course are much too numerous to be more than named -in a work of this nature. The eve of such anniversary was the yearly -wake [or watching] of the parishioners; and originally booths were -erected in the churchyards, and feasting, dancing, and other revelry -continued throughout the night. The parishioners attended divine service -on the feast day, and the rest of that day was then devoted to popular -festivities. So great grew the excesses committed during these prolonged -orgies, that at length it became necessary to close the churches against -the pageants and mummeries performed in them at these anniversaries, and -the churchyards against the noisy, disorderly, and tumultuous -merry-makings of the people. Thenceforth the great seat of the revels -was transferred from the church and its graveyard, to the village green -or the town market-place, or some space of open ground, large enough for -popular assemblages to enjoy the favourite sports and pastimes of the -period. Such were the general character and features of the wakes and -feasts of country parishes, changing only with the name of the patron -saint, the date of the celebration. But the great festivals of the -church, celebrated alike in city and town, in village and hamlet, -wherever a church "pointed its spire to heaven," were held with more -general display, as uniting the ceremonials and rites of the church, -with the popular festivities outside the sacred precincts. Of these -great festivals the chief were New Year's Day, Twelfth Night (Jan. 5), -Shrove or Pancake Tuesday, Ash-Wednesday or the first day of Lent, -Mid-Lent or Mothering Sunday, Palm Sunday, Good Friday, Easter, -Whitsuntide or Pentecost, May-Day, Midsummer Day (St. John's Eve and -Day, June 23 and 24), Michaelmas Day (Sept. 29), and Christmas Day, with -the Eve of the New Year. Of these we propose to notice various customs -and practices as observed in Lancashire from the beginning to the close -of the year. - - -NEW YEAR'S DAY. - -In the church calendar this day is the festival of the Circumcision; in -the Roman church it is the day of no fewer than seven saints. But it is -much more honoured as a popular festival. Many families in Lancashire -sit up on New Year's Eve till after twelve o'clock midnight, and then -drink "a happy New Year" to each other over a cheerful glass. The church -bells, too, in merry peals ring out the Old Year, and ring in the New. -In the olden time the wassail-bowl, the spiced ale called "lamb's wool," -and currant bread and cheese, were the viands and liquor in vogue on New -Year's Eve and Day. A turkey is still a favourite dish at dinner on New -Year's Day. - - -FIRE ON NEW YEAR'S EVE. - -My maid, who comes from the neighbourhood of Pendle, informs me that an -unlucky old woman in her native village, having allowed her fire to go -out on New Year's Eve, had to wait till one o'clock on the following day -before any neighbour would supply her with a light.[143] - - -NEW YEAR'S LUCK. - -Should a female, or a light-haired male, be the first to enter a house -on the morning of New Year's Day, it is supposed to bring bad luck for -the whole of the year then commencing. Various precautions are taken to -prevent this misfortune: hence many male persons with black or dark -hair, are in the habit of going from house to house, on that day, "to -take the New Year in;" for which they are treated with liquor, and -presented with a small gratuity. So far is the apprehension carried, -that some families will not open the door to any one until satisfied by -the voice that he is likely to bring the house a year's good luck by -entering it. Then, the most kindly and charitable woman in a -neighbourhood will sternly refuse to give any one a light on the morning -of New Year's Day, as most unlucky to the one who gives away light. - - -NEW YEAR'S FIRST CALLER. - -For years past, an old lady, a friend of mine, has regularly reminded me -to pay her an early visit on New Year's Day; in short, to be her first -caller, and to "let the New Year in." I have done this for years, except -on one occasion. When I, who am of fair complexion, have been her first -visitor, she has enjoyed happy and prosperous years; but on the occasion -I missed, some dark-complexioned, black-haired gentleman -called;--sickness and trouble, and commercial disasters, were the -result.[144] [This is at variance with the preceding paragraph as to -the favourite colour of the hair, &c. Perhaps this differs in different -localities; but of this at least we are assured, that any male, dark or -fair, is regarded as a much more lucky "letter-in" of the New Year, than -any girl or woman, be she blonde or brunette.] - -In Lancashire, even in the larger towns, it is considered at this time -of day particularly fortunate if "a black man" (meaning one of a dark -complexion) be the first person that enters the house on New Year's -Day.[145] - - -NEW YEAR'S DAY AND OLD CHRISTMAS DAY. - -Some persons still keep Old Christmas Day. They always look for a change -of weather on that day, and never on the 25th December. The common -people have long begun their year with the 1st of January. The Act of -1752, so far as they were concerned, only caused the Civil and the -Ecclesiastical Year to begin together. In Hopton's _Year Book_ for A.D. -1612, he thus speaks of _January 1st_:--"January. New-yeares day in the -morning being red, portends great tempest and warre." - - -AULD WIFE HAKES. - -Christmas and New Year's tea parties and dances are called "Auld Wife -Hakes" in the Furness district of Lancashire. The word _hake_ is never -used in the central part of the county.[146] Can this be from _hacken_ -(? from _hacking_, chopping small), a pudding made in the maw of a sheep -or hog. It was formerly a standard dish at Christmas, and is mentioned -by N. Fairfax, _Bulk and Selvedge_, 1674, p. 159.[147] [To _hake_, is to -sneak, or loiter about.] - - -NEW YEAR'S GIFTS AND WISHES. - -It was formerly a universal custom to make presents, especially from -superiors to dependents, and _vice versâ_. Now the custom is chiefly -confined to parents and elders giving to children or young persons. The -practice of making presents on New Year's Day existed among the Romans, -and also amongst the Saxons; from one or both of which peoples we have -doubtless derived it. The salutation or greeting on New Year's Day is -also of great antiquity. Pieces of Roman pottery have been found -inscribed "A happy new year to you," and one inscriber wishes the like -to himself and his son. In country districts, the homely phrase is: "A -happy New Year t'ye, and monny on 'em." In more polished society, and in -correspondence, "I wish you a happy New Year," or "The compliments of -the season to you." - - -SHROVETIDE. - -This name, given to the last few days before Lent, is from its being the -custom for the people to go to the priest to be _shriven_, _i.e._, to -make their confession, before entering on the great fast of Lent, which -begins on Ash-Wednesday. _Tide_ is the old Anglo-Saxon word for time, -and it is still retained in Whitsuntide. After the people had made the -confession required by the ancient discipline of the church, they were -permitted to indulge in festive amusements, though restricted from -partaking of any repasts beyond the usual substitutes for flesh: hence -the Latin and continental name _Carnaval_,--literally "Carne, vale," -"Flesh, farewell." In Lancashire and other Northern counties, three days -in this week had their peculiar dishes, viz.: "Collop Monday," "Pancake -Tuesday," and "Fritters Wednesday." Originally, collops were simply -slices of bread, but these were long ago discarded for slices or rashers -of bacon. Fritters were thick, soft cakes, made from flour batter, with -or without sliced apples intermixed. Shrovetide was anciently a great -time for cock-throwing and cock-fighting, and indeed of many other loose -and cruel diversions, arising from the indulgences formerly granted by -the church, to compensate for the long season of fasting and humiliation -which commenced on Ash-Wednesday. As Selden observes--"What the church -debars us on one day, she gives us leave to take on another; first we -feast, and then we fast; there is a carnival, and then a Lent." - - -SHROVE-TUESDAY, OR PANCAKE TUESDAY. - -The tossing of pancakes (and in some places fritters) on this day was a -source of harmless mirth, and is still practised in the rural parts of -Lancashire and Cheshire, with its ancient accompaniments:-- - - "It is the day whereon the rich and poor, - Are chiefly feasted on the self-same dish, - When every paunch till it can hold no more, - Is fritter-filled, as well as heart can wish; - And every man and maid do take their turn - And toss their pancakes up for fear they burn, - And all the kitchen doth with laughter sound, - To see the pancakes fall upon the ground."[148] - -Another writer gives this injunction:-- - - "Maids, fritters and pancakes enow see ye make, - Let Slut have one pancake for company's sake."[149] - - -COCK-THROWING AND COCK-FIGHTING. - -Cock-fighting was a barbarous pastime of high antiquity, being practised -by the Greeks and Romans. In England it may be traced back to the -twelfth century, when it appears to have been a childish or boyish -sport. FitzStephen, in his description of London in the time of Henry -II., says: "Every year, on the morning of Shrove-Tuesday, the schoolboys -of the city of London, and of other cities and great towns, bring game -cocks to their masters, and in the fore-part of the day, till -dinner-time, are permitted to amuse themselves with seeing them fight." -The school was the cock-pit, and the master the comptroller or director -of the pastime. The victor, or hero of the school, who had won the -greatest number of fights was carried about upon a pole by two of his -companions. He held the cock in his hands, and was followed by other -boys bearing flags, &c. Cock-throwing was a sport equally cruel; but -only one cock was needed. The poor bird was tied to a peg or stake, by a -string, sometimes long, sometimes short, and the boys from a certain -distance, in turn, threw a stick at the cock. The victor in this case -was he whose missile killed the poor bird. Amongst the recognised -payments by the boys at the old Free Grammar Schools, was a penny yearly -to the master for the privilege of cock-fighting or cock-throwing on -Shrove-Tuesday. The statutes of the Manchester Free Grammar School, made -about 1525, show a creditable desire to abolish these barbarous sports. -One of these statutes, as to the fees of the master, provides that "he -shall teach freely and indifferently [not carelessly, but impartially] -every child and scholar coming to the same school, without any money or -other reward taking there-for, as cock-penny, victor-penny," &c. Another -is still more explicit:--"The scholars of the same school shall use no -cock-fights, nor other unlawful games, and riding about for victors, -&c., which be to the great let [hindrance] of virtue, and to charge and -cost of the scholars, and of their friends." At a much later period, -however, the scholars seem to have been allowed, on Easter Monday, to -have archery practice at a target, one of the prizes being a -dunghill-cock; but this was abolished by the late Dr. Smith, when high -master. - - -COCK-FIGHTING ABOUT BLACKBURN. - -About thirty years ago cock-fighting formed a common pastime about -Mellor and Blackburn. A blacksmith, named Miller, used to keep a large -number of cocks for fighting purposes. He was said to have "sold himself -to the devil" in order to have money enough for betting; and it was -remarked that he rarely won! If the practice is still followed, it is -done _in secret_; but the number of game-cocks one sees kept by -"sporting characters" can scarcely admit of any other inference. - - -COCK-PENNY AT CLITHEROE. - -In the Clitheroe Grammar School an annual present at Shrovetide is -expected from the scholars, varying in amount according to the -circumstances of the parents. With the exception of this _cock-penny_, -the school is free. The origin of this custom it is now difficult to -trace. Shrove-Tuesday, indeed, was a sad day for cocks. Cock-fighting -and throwing at cocks were among its barbarous sports. Schoolboys used -to bring game-cocks to the master, and delight themselves in -cock-fighting all the forenoon. In Scotland, the masters presided at the -fight, and claimed the runaway cocks called "forgers" [? 'fugees] as -their perquisites. The "cock-penny" may have been the substitute devised -by a less cruel age for the ordinary gratuity.[150] - - -COCK-FIGHTING AT BURNLEY. - -The head master of Burnley Grammar School used to derive a portion of -his income from "cock-pence" paid to him by his pupils at Shrovetide. -This has been disused for half a century. Latterly it degenerated into a -"clubbing together" of pence by the pupils for the purpose of providing -themselves with materials for a carouse. This was, therefore, at last -prohibited. - - -SHROVETIDE CUSTOMS IN THE FYLDE. - -Shrove-Tuesday was also called "Pancake Day," pancakes being the -principal delicacy of the day. At eleven o'clock in the forenoon, the -"pancake bell" rang at Poulton church, and operations were immediately -commenced. Great was the fun in "tossing" or turning the pancake by a -sudden jerk of the pan; while the appetites of the urchins never -flagged. Amongst the sports on Shrove-Tuesday, was pre-eminently -cock-fighting; though bull and bear baiting were also among the rude and -savage pastimes of the season.[151] In Poulton, on Shrove-Tuesday, the -pancake bell still warns the apprentice to quit his work, not indeed to -go to the confessional and be _shriven_, but to prepare for the feast of -the day.[152] - - -LENT.--ASH-WEDNESDAY. - -The forty days' fast at the beginning of spring, in commemoration of the -temptation and fast of our Saviour in the wilderness, was called Lent, -from the Saxon name for Spring, _lengten-tide_. The fast, as prescribed -by the church, consisted in abstaining from flesh, eggs, preparations of -milk, and wine, and in making only one meal, and that in the evening. -Fish was not forbidden, though many restricted themselves to pulse and -fruit. Ash-Wednesday, the first day in Lent, was one of severe -discipline in the Roman church; and to remind the faithful, at the -beginning of the long penitential fast, that men are but "dust and -ashes," the priest, with ashes of the wood of the palm-tree, marked the -sign of the cross on the forehead of each confessing worshipper; whence -the name. Since the Reformation the observance of Lent by fasting is not -general in Lancashire. - - -MID-LENT SUNDAY, OR "MOTHERING SUNDAY." - -The fourth or middle Sunday between Quadragesima (the first Sunday in -Lent) and Easter Sunday. It was of old called _Dominica Refectionis_, or -the Sunday of Refreshment, from the gospel of the day treating of the -miraculous feeding of the five thousand. It was originally called -"Mothering Sunday," from the ancient usage of visiting the mother or -cathedral churches of the dioceses, when Lent or Easter offerings were -made. The public processions have been discontinued ever since the -middle of the thirteenth century; but the name of Mothering Sunday is -still retained, a custom having been substituted amongst the people of -Lancashire, Cheshire, Yorkshire, and other counties, of those who have -left the paternal roof visiting their natural mother, and presenting to -her small tokens of their filial affection, in money, trinkets, -frumenty, or cakes. In some parts of Lancashire, the particular kind of -cakes have long been fixed by old custom, being what are called -"simnels," or, in the dialect of the district, "simlins;" and with these -sweet-cakes, it was, and in places is still, the custom to drink warm, -spiced ale, called "bragot." Another viand especially eaten on Mid-Lent -Sunday was that of fig or fag-pies. - - -SIMNEL CAKES. - -In days of yore, there was a little alleviation of the severities of -Lent permitted to the faithful, in the shape of a cake called "Simnel." -Two English towns claim the honour of its origin,--Shrewsbury and -Devizes. The first makes its simnel in the form of a warden-pie, the -crust being of saffron and very thick; the last has no crust, is -star-shaped, and the saffron is mixed with a mass of currants, spice, -and candied lemon. Bury, in Lancashire, is almost world-famous for its -simnels and its bragot (or spiced sweet ale), on Mothering Sunday, or -Mid-Lent. As to the name, Dr. Cowell, in his _Law Directory or -Interpreter_ (folio, 1727), derives _simnell_ (Lat. _siminellus_), from -the Latin _simila_, the finest part of the flour: "_panis -similageneus_," simnel bread,--"still in use, especially in Lent." The -English _simnel_ was the purest white bread, as in the Book of Battle -Abbey: "Panem regiæ mensæ apsum, qui _simenel_ vulgo vocatur." (Bread -fit for the royal table, which is commonly called _simenel_.) Dr. Cowell -adds that it was sometimes called _simnellus_, as in the "Annals of the -Church of Winchester," under the year 1042, "conventus centum -_simnellos_" (the convent 100 _simnels_). He also quotes the statute of -51 Henry III. (1266-7), which enacts that "bread made into a _simnel_ -should weigh two shillings less than wastel bread;" and also an old -manuscript of the customs of the House of Farendon (where it is called -"bread of symenel"), to the same effect. Wastel was the finest sort of -bread. Herrick, who was born in 1591, and died in 1674 (?) has the -following in his _Hesperides_:-- - - TO DIANEME. - A Ceremony in Gloucester. - - I'll to thee a _Simnell_ bring - 'Gainst thou go'st a _mothering_; - So that when she blesseth thee, - Half that blessing thou'lt give me. - -Bailey, in his Dictionary (folio 1764), says _simnel_ is probably -derived from the Latin _simila_, fine flour, and means, "a sort of cake -or bun, made of fine flour, spice, &c." It will thus appear that -_simnel_ cakes can boast a much higher antiquity than the reign of Henry -VII. (Lambert _Simnel_ probably taking his name from them, as a baker, -and not giving his name to them), and that they were not originally -confined to any particular time or place.[153] - -In the _Dictionarius_ of John de Garlande, compiled at Paris in the -thirteenth century, the word _simineus_ or _simnels_, is used as the -equivalent to the Latin _placentæ_, which are described as cakes exposed -in the windows of the hucksters, to sell to the scholars of the -University and others.[154] - - -BURY. - -There is an ancient celebration in Bury, on Mid-Lent Sunday, there -called "Simblin Sunday," when large cakes called "simblins" (_i.e._, -simnels), are sold generally in the town, and the shops are kept open -the whole day, except during Divine Service, for the purpose of vending -this mysterious aliment.[155] These cakes are a compound of currants, -candied lemon, sugar, and spice, sandwich-wise, between crust of short -or puff paste. They are in great request at the period, not only in -Bury, but in Manchester and most of the surrounding towns. A still -richer kind, approaching the bride-cake in character, are called "Almond -Simnels." - - -BRAGOT-SUNDAY. - -Formerly it was the practice in Leigh to use a beverage on Mid-Lent -Sunday, called "bragot," consisting of a kind of spiced ale; and also -for the boys to indulge themselves by persecuting the women on their way -to church, by secretly hooking a piece of coloured cloth to their gowns. -A similar custom prevails in Portugal, at Carnival time, when many -persons that walk the streets on the three last days of the Intrudo, -have a long paper train hooked to their dress behind, on which the -populace set up the cry of "Raboleve," which is continued till the butt -of the joke is divested of his "tail." As to "Bragot," or more properly -"Braget" Sunday, it is a name given in Lancashire to the fourth Sunday -in Lent, which is in other places called "Mothering Sunday." Both -appellations arise out of the same custom. Voluntary oblations, called -_Quadragesimalia_ (from the Latin name of Lent, signifying forty days), -were formerly paid by the inhabitants of a diocese to the Mother -Cathedral Church, and at this time prevailed the custom of processions -to the Cathedral on Mid-Lent Sunday. On the discontinuance of -processions, the practice of "mothering," or visiting parents, began; -and the spiced ale used on these occasions was called _braget_, from the -British _bragawd_, the name of a kind of metheglin. Whitaker[156] -observes that this description of liquor was called "Welsh ale" by the -Saxons. Since his time, the liquor drunk on this day is principally -_mulled ale_, of which there is a large consumption in Lancashire on -Mid-Lent Sunday.[157] - - -FAG-PIE SUNDAY. - -Fig-pies--(made of dry figs, sugar, treacle, spice, &c., and by some -described as "luscious," by others as "of a sickly taste")--or, as they -are locally termed, "fag-pies," are, or were at least till recently, -eaten in Lancashire on a Sunday in Lent [? Mid-Lent Sunday], thence -called "Fag-pie Sunday."[158] - -In the neighbourhood of Burnley Fag-pie Sunday is the second Sunday -before Easter, or that which comes between Mid-Lent and Palm Sunday. -About Blackburn fig-pies are always prepared for Mid-Lent Sunday, and -visits are usually made to friends' houses in order to partake of the -luxury. - - -GOOD FRIDAY. - -This name is believed to be an adoption of the old German _Gute_ or -_Gottes Freytag_, Good or God's Friday, so called on the same principle -that Easter Day in England was at no very remote period called "God's -Day." The length of the Church Services in ancient times, on this day, -occasioned it to be called Long Friday. In most parts of Lancashire, -buns with crosses stamped upon them, and hence called "cross buns," are -eaten on this day at breakfast; and it is in many places believed that a -cross bun, preserved from one Good Friday to another, will effectually -prevent an attack of the whooping-cough. Some writers declare that our -cross buns at Easter are only the cakes which our pagan Saxon -forefathers ate in honour of their goddess Eostre, and from which the -Christian clergy, who were unable to prevent people from eating them, -sought to expel the paganism by marking them with the cross. On the -Monday before Good Friday the youths about Poulton-le-Fylde and its -neighbourhood congregate in strange dresses, and visit their friends' -houses, playing antics, on which occasion they are styled "the Jolly -Lads."[159] It is stated that in some places in Lancashire, Good Friday -is termed "Cracklin' Friday," as on that day it is a custom for children -to go with a small basket to different houses, to beg small wheaten -cakes, which are something like the Jews' Passover bread; but made -shorter or richer, by having butter or lard mixed with the flour. "Take -with thee loaves and cracknels." (1 Kings xiv.) - - -EASTER. - -This name is clearly traced to that of Eostre, a goddess to whom the -Saxons and other Northern nations sacrificed in the month of April, in -which our Easter usually falls. Easter Sunday is held as the day of our -Lord's resurrection. Connected with this great festival of the Church -are various local rites and customs, pageants and festivities; such as -_pace_ or _Pasche_ [_i.e._, Easter] egging, lifting or heaving, Ball -play, the game of the ring, guisings or disguisings, fancy cakes, "old -hob," "old Ball," or hobby horse, &c. - -Easter-Day is a moveable feast, appointed to be held on the first Sunday -after the full moon immediately following the 21st of March; but if the -moon happen to be at the full on a Sunday, then Easter is held on the -following Sunday and not on the day of the full moon. Thus, Easter-Day -cannot fall earlier than the 22nd of March, nor later than the 25th of -April, in any year. - - -PASCHE, PACE, OR EASTER EGGS. - -In Lancashire and Cheshire children go round the village and beg eggs -for the Easter dinner, accompanying their solicitation by a short song, -the burthen of which is addressed to the farmer's dame, asking for "an -egg, bacon, cheese, or an apple, or any good thing that will make us -merry;" and ending with - - And I pray you, good dame, an Easter egg. - -In the North of Lancashire, Cumberland, Westmorland, and other parts of -the North of England, boys beg on Easter Eve eggs to play with, and -beggars ask for them to eat. These eggs are hardened by boiling and -tinged with the juice of herbs, broom-flowers, &c. The eggs being thus -prepared, the boys go out and play with them in the fields, rolling them -up and down like bowls, or throwing them up like balls into the -air.[160] - - -PACE EGGING IN BLACKBURN. - -The old custom of "pace egging" is still observed in Blackburn. It is an -observance limited to the week before Easter-Day, and is said to be -traceable up to the theology and philosophy of the Egyptians, Persians, -Gauls, Greeks, and Romans; among all of whom an egg was an emblem of the -universe, the production of the Supreme Divinity. The Christians -adopted the egg as an emblem of the resurrection, since it contains the -elements of a future life. - -The immediate occasion of the observance may have been in the resumption -on the part of our forefathers of eggs as a food at Easter on the -termination of Lent; hence the origin of the term _pace_ or _pasque_ -[rather from _Pasche_] that is, Easter egg. In a curious roll of the -expenses of the household of Edward I., communicated to the Society of -Antiquaries, is the following item in the accounts for Easter Sunday: -"For four hundred and a half of eggs, eighteen pence." The following -prayer, found in the ritual of Pope Paul V., composed for the use of -England, Ireland, and Scotland, illustrates the meaning of the custom: -"Bless, O Lord, we beseech thee, this Thy creation of eggs, that it may -become a wholesome sustenance to Thy faithful servants, eating it in -thankfulness to Thee, on account of the resurrection of our Lord." In -Blackburn at the present day, pace egging commences on the Monday and -finishes on the Thursday before the Easter-week. Young men in groups -varying in number from three to twenty, dressed in various fantastic -garbs, and wearing masks--some of the groups accompanied by a player or -two on the violin--go from house to house singing, dancing, and -capering. At most places they are liberally treated with wine, punch, or -ale, dealt out to them by the host or hostess. The young men strive to -disguise their walk and voice; and the persons whom they visit use their -efforts on the other hand to discover who they are; in which mutual -endeavour many and ludicrous mistakes are made. Here you will see -Macbeth and a fox-hunter arm in arm; Richard the Third and a black -footman in familiar converse; a quack doctor and a bishop smoking their -pipes and quaffing their "half and half;" a gentleman and an -oyster-seller; an admiral and an Irish umbrella-mender; in short, every -variety of character, some exceedingly well-dressed, and the characters -well sustained. A few years ago parties of this description were much -subject to annoyance from a gang of fellows styled the "Carr-laners," -(so-called, because living in Carr-lane, Blackburn,) armed with -bludgeons, who endeavoured to despoil the pace-eggers. Numerous fights, -with the usual concomitants of broken eggs and various contusions, were -amongst the results. This lawless gang of ruffians is now broken up, and -the serious affrays between different gangs of pace-eggers have become -of comparatively rare occurrence. An accident, however, which ended -fatally, occurred last year [? 1842]. Two parties had come into -collision, and during the affray one of the young men had his skull -fractured, and death ensued. Besides parties of the sort we have -attempted to describe, children, both male and female, with little -baskets in their hands, dressed in all the tinsel-coloured paper, -ribbons, and "doll rags" which they can command, go up and down from -house to house; at some receiving pence, at others eggs, at others -gingerbread, some of which is called _hot_ gingerbread, having in it a -mixture of ginger and Cayenne, causing the most ridiculous contortions -of feature in the unfortunate being who partakes of it. Houses are -literally besieged by these juvenile troops from morning till night. -"God's sake! a pace-egg," is the continual cry. There is no particular -tune, but various versions of pace-egging and other songs are sung. The -eggs obtained by the juveniles are very frequently boiled and dyed in -logwood and other dyes, on the Easter Sunday, and rolled in the fields -one egg at another till broken. Great quantities of mulled ale are drunk -in this district on Easter Sunday. The actors do not take the eggs with -them; they are given at the places where they call. The actors are -mostly males; but in the course of one's peregrinations on one of these -evenings it is not unusual to discover one or two of the fair sex in -male habiliments, and supporting the character admirably. This old -custom of pace-egging was again observed this year [? 1843] -notwithstanding the fatal accidents we have mentioned, without any -molestation from the authorities, and without any accident -occurring.[161] - - -PACE OR PEACE EGGING IN EAST LANCASHIRE. - -The week before Easter is a busy one for the boys and girls in East -Lancashire. They generally deck themselves up in ribbons and fantastic -dresses, and go about the country begging for money or eggs. -Occasionally they go out singly, and then are very careful to provide -themselves with a neat little basket, lined with moss. Halfpence or -eggs, or even small cakes of gingerbread, are alike thankfully received. -Sometimes the grown young men are very elaborately dressed in ribbons, -and ornamented with watches and other jewellery. They then go out in -groups of five or six, and are attended by a "fool" or "tosspot," with -his face blackened. Some of them play on musical instruments while the -rest dance. Occasionally young women join in the sport, and then the -_men_ are dressed in women's clothing, and the _women_ in men's. - - -EASTER SPORTS AT THE MANCHESTER FREE GRAMMAR SCHOOL. - -A gentleman, using the initials G. H. F., some years ago communicated to -a local paper the following facts relative to the sports of the scholars -at Easter in the early part of the nineteenth century:--"On Easter -Monday the senior scholars had a treat and various festivities. On the -morning of that day, masters and scholars assembled in the school-room, -with a band of music, banners, &c. One essential thing was a target, in -a square frame, to which were suspended one or more pairs of silver -buckles, constituting the chief archery prize, the second being a good -dunghill-cock. These were the only prizes, and they were duly contended -for by the scholars, the whole being probably devised in the old times, -with a view to keep the youth of Manchester in the practice of the old -English archery, which on the invention of gunpowder and fire-arms fell -rapidly into desuetude. The gay procession thus provided, the scholars, -bearing their bows and arrows, set out from the Grammar School, headed -by some reverend gentleman of the Collegiate church, by the masters of -the school, the churchwardens, &c.--the band playing some popular airs -of the day--and took its route by Long Millgate, to Hunt's Bank, and -along the Walkers' [_i.e._, fullers'] Croft, to some gardens, where it -was then the custom for artizans on Sunday mornings to buy 'a penny -posy.' Here the targets were set up, and the 'artillery practice,' as -it was the fashion to call archery, commenced. At its close the prizes -were awarded, and the procession returned in the same order, along -Hunt's Bank, the Apple Market, Fennel Street, Hanging Ditch, and Old -Millgate, to the Bull's Head, in the Market Place,--in those days a very -celebrated house, where the junior boys were treated with -_frumenty_--wheat stewed, and then boiled in milk with raisins, -currants, and spices, till it forms a thick, porridge-like mess, -exceedingly palatable to young folk. The masters and assistants, and the -senior scholars, partook of roast beef, plum pudding, &c. The abolition -of this Easter Monday custom, said to have been by Dr. Smith, was by no -means relished by the Grammar School boys." - - -"LIFTING" OR "HEAVING" AT EASTER. - -This singular custom formerly prevailed in Manchester, and it is now -common in the neighbourhood of Liverpool, in the parish of Whalley, at -Warrington, Bolton, and in some other parts of Lancashire, especially in -rural districts, though it is by no means general, and in some places is -quite unknown. A Manchester man, in 1784, thus describes it:--"_Lifting_ -was originally designed to represent our Saviour's resurrection. The men -lift the women on Easter Monday, and the women the men on Tuesday. One -or more take hold of each leg, and one or more of each arm, near the -body, and lift the person up, in a horizontal position, three times. It -is a rude, indecent, and dangerous diversion, practised chiefly by the -lower class of people. Our magistrates constantly prohibit it by the -bellman, but it subsists at the end of the town; and the women have of -late years converted it into a money job. I believe it is chiefly -confined to these northern counties." - -The following [translated] extract from a document entitled _Liber -Contrarotulatoris Hospicii_, 13 Edward I. [1225], shows the antiquity of -the custom:--"To the Ladies of the Queen's Chamber, 15th of May; seven -ladies and damsels of the queen, because they took [or lifted] the king -in his bed, on the morrow of Easter, and made him pay fine for the peace -of the king, which he made of his gift by the hand of Hugh de Cerr [or -Kerr], Esq., to the lady of Weston, £14."[162] - -On Easter Monday, between Radcliffe and Bolton, we saw a number of -females surround a male, whom they mastered, and fairly lifted aloft in -the air. It was a merry scene. What humour in the faces of these -Lancashire witches! What a hearty laugh! What gratification in their -eyes! The next day would bring reprisals: the girls would then be the -party to be subjected to this rude treatment.[163] - - -EASTER GAME OF THE RING. - -In his _History of Lancashire_, Mr. Baines states that the Easter Game -of the Ring, little known in other parts of Lancashire, prevails at -Padiham, in the parish of Whalley, on the Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday in -Easter week; when young people, having formed themselves into a ring, -tap each other repeatedly with a stick, after the manner of the holiday -folks at Greenwich. The stick may be a slight difference; but the game -of Easter ring, with taps of the hand, or the dropping of a handkerchief -at the foot, the writer has seen played at Easter and at Whitsuntide in -many villages and hamlets round Manchester. - - -PLAYING "OLD BALL." - -This is an Easter custom. A huge and rude representation of a horse's -head is made; the eyes are formed of the bottoms of old broken wine or -other "black bottles"; the lower and upper jaws have large nails put in -them to serve as teeth; the lower jaw is made to move by a contrivance -fixed at its back end, to be operated on by the man who plays "Old -Ball." There is a stick, on which the head rests, which is handled and -used by the operator, to move "Old Ball" about, and as a rest. Fixed to -the whole is a sheet of rough sacking-cloth, under which the operator -puts himself, and at the end of which is a tail. The operator then gets -into his position, so as to make the whole as like a horse as possible. -He opens the mouth by means of the contrivance before spoken of. Through -the opening he can see the crowd, and he runs first at one and then -another, neighing like a horse, kicking, rising on his hind legs, -performing all descriptions of gambols, and running after the crowd; the -consequence is, the women scream, the children are frightened, and all -is one scene of the most ridiculous and boisterous mirth. This was -played by sundry "Old Balls" some five years ago, at the pace-egging -time, at Blackburn; but it has gradually fallen into disuse. This year -[? 1843] our informant has not heard it even mentioned. [It is still -continued in various parts of Lancashire, amongst others at Swinton, -Worsley, &c.] The idea of this rude game may have been taken from the -hobby-horse in the ancient Christmas mummings.--_Pictorial History of -Lancashire._ [From the editor of the above work calling this "playing -the old ball," and never marking the word ball by a capital B, he seems -to have supposed it meant a spherical ball; whereas "Old Ball" -throughout Lancashire is a favourite name for a cart-horse,--See a -further notice of "Old Ball" under Christmas.--EDS.] - - -ACTING WITH "BALL." - -This is a curious practice, and is often substituted for "pace-egging." -The bones of a horse's head are fixed in their natural position by means -of wires. The bottoms of glass bottles do duty for eyes; and the head is -covered with the skin of a calf. A handle is then fixed in the upper -portion of the head, and the whole skull is supported on a stout pole -shod with an iron hoop. A sack is then made to fit the skull neatly, and -to hang low enough down so as to hide the person who plays "Ball." The -sack, or cover, is also provided with a tail so as to look as nearly -like a horse's tail as possible. Some five or six then take "Ball" about -the country and play him where they can obtain leave. Sometimes a -doggrel song is sung, while "Ball" prances about and snaps at the -company. As soon as the song is finished, "Ball" plays his most -boisterous pranks, and frequently hurts some of the company by snapping -their fingers between his teeth when they are defending themselves from -his attacks. The writer has seen ladies so alarmed as to faint and go -into hysterics:--on this account "Ball" is now nearly extinct in the -neighbourhoods of Blackburn, Burnley, &c. - - -EASTER CUSTOMS IN THE FYLDE. - -Children and young people as Easter approached, claimed their -"pace-eggs" [from Pasche, the old term for Easter] as a privileged "dow" -[dole]. On the afternoon of Easter Sunday the young of both sexes amused -themselves in the meadows with these eggs, which they had dyed by the -yellow blossoms of the "whin," or of other colours by dyeing materials. -Others performed a kind of Morris or Moorish dance or play, called -"_Ignagning_," which some have supposed to be in honour of St. Ignatius; -but more probably its derivation is from "_ignis Agnæ_," a virgin and -martyr who suffered at the stake about this time of the year. -"Ignagning," says the Rev. William Thornber,[164] "has almost fallen -into disuse, and a band of boys, termed 'Jolly Lads,' has succeeded, -who, instead of reciting the combat of the Turk and St. George, the -champion of England, the death of the former, and his restoration to -life by the far-travelled doctor, now sing of the noble deeds of Nelson -and Collingwood; retaining, however, the freaks and jokes of 'Old -Toss-pot,' the fool of the party, who still jingles the small bells hung -about his dress." Easter Monday was a great day for the young people of -the neighbourhood going to the yearly fair at Poulton. Happy was the -maiden who could outvie her youthful acquaintance in exhibiting a -greater number of "white cakes," the gifts of admiring youths; thereby -proving beyond dispute the superior effects of her charms. Then the -excitement and exertion of the dance! At that time dancing consisted in -the feet beating time to a fiddle, playing a jig in double quick time; -one damsel succeeding another, and striving to outdo her companions in -her power of continuing this violent exercise, for much honour was -attached to success in this respect, the bystanders meanwhile -encouraging their favourites, as sportsmen do their dogs, with voice and -clapping of hands. Such was-- - - "The dancing pair that simply sought renown, - By holding out, to tire each other down." - -On Good Friday a jorum of _browis_ and roasted wheat or _frumenty_ was -the treat for dinner; white _jannocks_, introduced by the Flemish -refugees, and _throdkins_[165] were also then eaten with great zest by -the hungry labourer.[166] - - -MAY-DAY CUSTOMS. - -The Romans commenced the festival of Flora on the 28th April, and -continued it through several days in May, with various ceremonies and -rejoicings, and offerings of spring flowers and the branches of trees in -bloom, which, through the accommodation of the Romish church to the -pagan usages, remain to us as May-day celebrations to the present time. -It was formerly a custom in Cheshire [and Lancashire] for young men to -place birchen boughs on May-day over the doors of their mistresses, and -mark the residence of a scold by an alder bough. There is an old rhyme -which mentions peculiar boughs for various tempers, as an owler (alder) -for a scolder, a nut for a slut, &c. Ormerod thinks the practice is -disused; but he mentions that in the main street of Weverham are two -May-poles, which are decorated on May-day with all due attention to the -ancient solemnity; the sides are hung with garlands, and the top -terminated by a birch, or other tall slender tree with its leaves on; -the bark being peeled off and the stem spliced to the pole, so as to -give the appearance of one tree from the summit.[167] The principal -characteristics of May-day celebrations and festivities are of rejoicing -that the reign of winter is at an end, and that of early summer with its -floral beauties, has come. The hawthorn furnishes its white blossoms in -profusion; and the tall May-poles, gaily decorated with garlands of -leaves and flowers, and festoons of ribbons of the brightest colours, -are centres of attraction on the village green, for the youth of both -sexes to dance the May-pole dance, hand-in-hand, in a ring. - - -MAY SONGS. - -Amongst the old customs of rural Lancashire and Cheshire is that of a -small party of minstrels or carollers going round from house to house -during the last few evenings of April, and singing a number of verses, -expressive of rejoicing that "cold winter is driven away," and that the -season is "drawing near to the merry month of May." The singers are -generally accompanied by one or two musical instruments, a violin and -clarionet for instance, and the tunes are very quaint and peculiar. Of -course for their good wishes for the master of the house, with his -"chain of gold," for the mistress, with "gold along her breast," and the -children "in rich attire," a trifling gift in money is made.[168] - - -MAY-DAY EVE. - -The evening before May-day is termed "Mischief Night" by the young -people of Burnley and the surrounding district. All kinds of mischief -are then perpetrated. Formerly shopkeepers' sign-boards were exchanged; -"John Smith, grocer," finding his name and vocation changed, by the sign -over his door, to "Thomas Jones, tailor," and _vice versâ_; but the -police have put an end to these practical jokes. Young men and women, -however, still continue to play each other tricks, by placing branches -of trees, shrubs, or flowers under each others' windows, or before their -doors. All these have a symbolical meaning, as significant, if not -always as complimentary, as "the Language of Flowers." Thus, "a thorn" -implies "scorn;" "wicken" (the mountain ash) "my dear chicken;" a -"bramble," for one who likes to "ramble," &c. Much ill-feeling is at -times engendered by this custom. - - -MAY-DAY CUSTOM. - -On the 1st of May the following custom is observed in some parts of -Lancashire, though now very nearly obsolete. Late on the preceding -night, or early on that morning, small branches of trees are placed at -the doors of houses in which reside any marriageable girls. They are -emblematical of the character of the maidens, and have a well-understood -language of their own, which is rhythmical. Some speak flatteringly; -others quite the reverse; the latter being used when the character of -the person for whom it is intended is not quite "above suspicion." A -malicious rustic wag may sometimes put a branch of the latter -description where it is not deserved; but I believe this is an -exception. I only remember a few of the various trees which are laid -under contribution for this purpose. _Wicken_ is the local name for -mountain ash. - -_Wicken_, sweet chicken. - -_Oak_, for a joke. - -_Gorse, in bloom_, rhymes with "at noon" (I omit the epithet given here -to an unchaste woman) and used for a notorious delinquent.[169] - - -PENDLETON AND PENDLEBURY MAY-POLE AND GAMES. - -The people of these townships for centuries celebrated May-day (a relic -of the ancient heathen festival of the goddess Flora) by the May-pole, -to which the watchful care of Charles I. and his royal progenitor -extended, when they printed in their proclamation and "Book of Sports," -that after the end of divine service on Sundays, their "good people be -not disturbed, letted, nor discharged from the having of May-games, and -the setting up of the May-poles," &c. The ancient practice was to erect -the pole on May-day, and to surround it with a number of verdant boughs, -brought from "Blakeley Forest," which were decked usually with garlands -and flowers, and around which the people assembled to dance and -celebrate their May-games. "Pendleton Pole" is of much higher antiquity -than the Reformation; for in the will of Thomas del Bothe, who died 47 -Edw. III. (1373) the sum of 30_s._ is bequeathed towards making the -causeway at Pendleton near "le Poll." In the time of the Commonwealth -the Pendleton Pole was taken down, in virtue of an ordinance of -Parliament against May-poles, and such other "heathenish vanities;" but -it was re-erected at the Restoration, and still presents its lofty head, -surmounted by a Royal Crown; though much of the spacious field of the -ancient May-games is now occupied by buildings [in 1780 the township -was little more than a fold of cottages, with its May-pole and green], -and much of the spirit of the rural sports of our ancestors has -subsided. In Pasquil's "_Palinodia_," (published in 1654) the decay of -May-games two centuries ago, is recorded and lamented:-- - - "Happy the age, and harmless were the days - (For then true love and amity was found); - When every village did a May-pole raise, - And Whitsun ales and May-games did abound, - And all the lusty younkers in a rout, - With merry lasses, danced the rod about; - Then friendship to their banquets bid the guests, - And poor men fared the better for their feasts. - - The lords of castles, manors, towns, and towers, - Rejoiced when they beheld the farmers flourish, - And would come down unto the summer bowers, - To see the country gallants dance the Morice. - . . . . . - But since the summer poles were overthrown, - And all good sports and merriments decay'd, - How times and men are changed, so well is known, - It were but labour lost if more were said." - - -MAY CUSTOM IN SPOTLAND. - -A custom of high antiquity and of primitive simplicity prevails in the -district of Spotland, in the parish of Rochdale. On the first Sunday in -May the young people of the surrounding country assemble at Knott Hill -yearly, for the purpose of presenting to each other their mutual -greetings and congratulations on the arrival of this cheering season, -and of pledging each other in the pure beverage which flows from the -mountain springs.[170] - - -MAY-DAY CUSTOMS IN THE FYLDE. - -On the morning of the first day of May, many a May-bough[171] ornamented -the villages and towns of the Fylde, inserted by some mischievous -youngsters, at the risk of life or limb, in the chimney-tops of their -neighbours' houses. Then came a most imposing piece of pageantry, that -of "bringing-in May;" when a king and queen, with their royal attendants -and rustic band of music, mummers, &c., attracted the attention and -admiration of the country side. May-day with its pageants, sports, -games, dances, garlands, and May-poles, was peculiarly a season of -hilarity, merry-making, and good humour. The pageant of "bringing-in -May," was a favourite pastime at Poulton about fifty years ago [_i.e._, -about 1787]; the causeways were strewed with flowers, and at the door of -the house of each respectable inhabitant, sweetmeats, ale, and even -wine, were handed about as a treat and refreshment to the young, who -were thus affording them amusement. By degrees the pageant ceased; a -vigorous attempt, however, was made to revive it in 1818, with all its -honours; but the age-worn custom proved to be utterly incapable of -resuscitation. Another writer,[172] however, states that at -Poulton-le-Fylde and in its neighbourhood, some of the customs of the -olden time are still observed. Very recently May-day was ushered in with -a dance round the May-pole, and the lavish exhibition of garlands and -merriment. - - -THE MAY-POLE OF LOSTOCK. - -The May-pole of Lostock, a village near Bolton, is probably the most -ancient upon record. It is mentioned in a charter by which the town of -Westhalchton [? Westhaughton] was granted to the Abbey of Cockersand, -about the reign of King John. The pole, it appears, had superseded a -cross, and formed one of the landmarks which defined the boundaries, and -it must therefore have been a permanent and not an annual erection. The -words of the charter are:--"De Lostock meypull, ubi crux situ fuit, -recta linea in austro, usque ad crucem super le Tunge."[173] (From -Lostock May-pole, where the cross was formerly, in a straight line to -the south, as far as to the cross upon the Tunge.) - - -ROBIN HOOD AND MAY-GAMES AT BURNLEY, IN 1579. - -In a letter from Edmond Assheton, Esq., then a magistrate of Lancashire, -and aged 75, to William Farington, Esq. (who was also in the commission -of the peace), dated Manchester, May 12, 1580, the writer thus complains -of "lewd sports" and sabbath-breaking:--"I am sure, Right Worshipful, -you have not forgotten the last year stirs at Burnley about Robin Hood -and the May-games. Now, considering that it is a cause that bringeth no -good effect, being contrary to the best, therefore a number of the -justices of the peace herein in Salford Hundred have consulted with the -[Ecclesiastical] Commission [of Queen Elizabeth] to suppress those lewd -sports, tending to no other end but to stir up our frail natures to -wantonness; and mean not to allow neither old custom. Then their excuse -in coming to the church in time of divine service, for every man may -well know with what minds, after their embracings, kissings, and -unchaste beholding of each other, they can come presently prepared to -prayer. A fit assembly to confer of worse causes, over and besides their -marching and walking together in the night time. But chiefly because it -is a profanation of the Sabbath-day, and done in some places in -contempt of the gospel and the religion established, I pray God it be -not so at Burnley. It is called in the Scriptures the Lord's Day, and -was not lawful under the old law to carry a pitcher of water on the -Sabbath, or to gather sticks, but it was death. Such regard was had in -the time of the law to keeping holy the Sabbath. And do not we withdraw -even the practice and use of good and godly works upon the same day? -Then in reason the other should cease. Tell me, I pray you, if you can -find in the presence of the foresaid lewd pastimes, good example or -profit to the commonwealth, the defence of the realm, honour to the -prince, or to the glory of God? Then, let them continue; otherwise, in -my opinion, they are to be withdrawn. For to that end I address these -contents unto you, because we would not deal for any reformation within -the limits of your walk; and for the better credit of the consent of the -Commissioners, you may peruse how they mean to proceed against them of -Burnley who have revived their former follies, if you redress not the -same.... Your assured always to use, EDMOND ASSHETON. It will not be -long afore [there] will be order taken for this dancing, either by the -Privy Council or by the Bishops by their commandment. My meaning is, I -would have you to do it yourself, which will with one word be brought to -pass.... If you would set your hand to this precept with us, I think it -would end these disorders within prescribed."[174] - - -MAY-DAY IN MANCHESTER. - -In the now olden days of coaching, this was a great day in Manchester. -The great coaching establishments, those of the royal mails, north, -south, east, and west, and all the highflyers, &c., turned out all their -spare vehicles and horses for a grand procession through the principal -streets of the town. Many of the mail and other coaches were newly -painted for the occasion; all the teams were provided with new harness -and gearing; the coachmen and guards had new uniforms; Jehu wore a great -cockade of ribbons, and a huge bouquet of flowers, and he handled the -new ribbons with a dignity and grace peculiar to this almost defunct -race. The guard, in bright scarlet uniform, blew on his Kent bugle some -popular tune of the time; and the horses wore cockades and nosegays -about their heads and ears; almost every coach on this occasion was -drawn by four horses, their coats shining with an extra polish for -May-day; and the cavalcade was really a pretty sight on a bright May-day -morning. Second only to it in decorative splendour, and in horseflesh, -was the display of lorries, wagons, drays, and carts, with their fine -draught-horses. Then came the milk-carts, with their drivers in dresses -covered with ribbons. These equine and asinine glories have passed -away, extinguished by the rail. - - -QUEEN OF THE MAY, &c. - -The custom of choosing a May King and Queen is now disused. May-games, -and the May-pole, were kept up at the quiet little village of Downham -when all other places in the neighbourhood had ceased to celebrate -May-day. Nothing is now made of May-day, if we except the custom of -carters dressing their horses' heads and tails with ribbons on that day. - - -WHITSUNTIDE. - -The Feast of Pentecost, or Whitsuntide, was formerly kept as a high -church festival, and by the people was celebrated by out-door sports and -festivities, and especially by the drinking assemblies called -"Whitsun-Ales." One writer (inquiring whether the custom of "lifting at -Easter" is a memorial of Christ being raised up from the grave) observes -that, "there seems to be a trace of the descent of the Holy Ghost on the -heads of the Apostles, in what passes at Whitsuntide Fair, in some parts -of Lancashire; where one person holds a stick over the head of another, -whilst a third, unperceived, strikes the stick, and thus gives a smart -blow to the first. But this probably is only local."[175] "Whit-week," -as it is generally called, has gradually grown to be the great yearly -holiday of the hundred of Salford, and the manufacturing district of -which Manchester is the centre. This seems to have arisen from the -yearly races at Manchester being held from the Wednesday to the Saturday -inclusive, in that week. After the rise of Sunday-schools, their -conductors, desiring to keep youth of both sexes from the demoralizing -recreations of the racecourse, took them to fields in the neighbourhood -and held anniversary celebrations, tea-parties, &c., in the schools. The -extension of the railway system has led to "cheap trips" and "school -excursion trains" during Whitsuntide; which are occasionally taken to -Wales, the Lakes, and other great distances. Canal boats take large -numbers of Sunday scholars to Dunham Park, Worsley, &c. Short excursions -are made in carts, temporarily fitted with seats. It is customary for -the cotton-mills, &c., to close for Whitsuntide week to give the hands a -holiday; the men going to the races, &c., and the women visiting -Manchester on Whit-Saturday, thronging the markets, the Royal Exchange, -the Infirmary Esplanade, and other public places; and gazing in at the -"shop windows," whence this day is usually called "Gaping Saturday." The -collieries, too, are generally closed in Whit-week; and in some the -underground horses are brought to the surface to have a week's daylight, -the only time they enjoy it during the year. The mills, coalpits, &c., -generally have the requisite repairs of machinery, &c., made during this -yearly holiday--those at least which would necessitate the stoppage of -the work at another time. - - -WHIT-TUESDAY.--KING AND QUEEN AT DOWNHAM. - -The last rural queen chosen at Downham is still living in Burnley. The -lot always fell to the prettiest girl in the village, and certainly it -must be admitted that in this instance they exercised good judgment. A -committee of young men made the selection; then an iron crown was -procured and dressed with flowers. The king and queen were ornamented -with flowers, a procession was then formed, headed by a fiddler. This -proceeded from the Inn to the front of "Squire Assheton's," Downham -Hall, and was composed of javelin men, and all the attendants of -royalty. Chairs were brought out of the Hall for the king and queen, ale -was handed round, and then a dance was performed on the lawn, the king -and queen leading off. The procession next passed along through the -village to the green, where seats were provided for a considerable -company. Here again the dancing began, the king and queen dancing the -first set. The afternoon was spent in the usual games, dances, &c. On -the next night all the young persons met at the inn, on invitation from -the king and queen--each paid a shilling towards the "Queen's Posset." A -large posset was then made and handed round to the company. After this -the evening was spent in dancing and merry-making. - - -ROGATIONS OR GANG DAYS. - -These days are so named from the Litanies or Processions of the Church, -before Holy Thursday or Ascension Day. It was a general custom in -country parishes to "gang" or go round the boundaries and limits of the -parish, on one of the three days before Holy Thursday, or the Feast of -our Lord's Ascension; when the minister, accompanied by his -churchwardens and parishioners, was wont to deprecate the vengeance of -God, beg a blessing on the fruits of the earth, and preserve the rights -and properties of the parish. In some parishes this perambulation took -place on Ascension Day itself. In a parochial account-book, entitled "A -Record of the Acts and Doings of the thirty men of the parish of -Kirkham," Lancashire, is the following entry under the year 1665: "Spent -on going perambulations on Ascension Day, 1_s._ 6_d._" - - -OATMEAL CHARITY AT INCE. - -Under the name of Richardson's Charity, a distribution takes place -annually on the Feast of the Ascension or Holy Thursday (ten days before -Whit-Sunday) of _five loads of oatmeal_, each load weighing 240 lb. -Three loads are given to the poor of the township of Ince, one to the -poor of Abram, and the other to the poor of Hindley; adjacent -townships, all in the parish of Wigan. The Charity Commissioners, in -their twenty-first report, state that the meal is provided by Mr. -Cowley, of Widnes, the owner of an estate in Ince, formerly the property -of Edward Richardson, who, as the commissioners were informed, directed -by his will that this distribution should be made for fifty years from -the time of his death. The year 1784 was given as the date of this -benefaction, in the Returns made to Parliament in 1786. Mr. Cowley has -himself had the disposal of this charity. The charity would, according -to this statement, legally cease in 1836. - - -NAMES FOR MOONS IN AUTUMN. - -In Lancashire, as well as in the South of Scotland and the South of -Ireland, the moon of September is commonly called "the harvest moon," -that of October "the huntsman's moon."[176] - - -"GOOSE-INTENTOS." - -In "An Universal Etymological English Dictionary," by N. Bailey, London, -1745, I read:--"Goose-intentos, a goose claimed by custom by the -husbandmen in Lancashire, upon the sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost, -when the old Church prayers ended thus: 'ac bonis operis jugiter -præstat esse _intentos_.'" These words occur in the old Sarum books, in -the Collect for the sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost; in the present -Liturgy, in that for the seventeenth Sunday after Trinity.[177] - -Blount, in his _Glossographia_, says that "in Lancashire the husbandmen -claim it as a due to have a goose-intentos on the sixteenth Sunday after -Pentecost: which custom takes its origin from the last word of the old -Church prayer of that day:--'Tua nos Domine, quæ sumus, gratia semper et -præveniat et sequatur; ac bonis operibus jugiter præstet esse -_intentos_.' The vulgar people called it 'a goose with ten toes.'" -Beckwith, in his new edition of Blount's _Fragmenta Antiquitatis_ -(London, 4to, 1815, p. 413), after quoting this passage, remarks:--"But -besides that the sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost, or after Trinity -rather, being movable, and seldom falling upon Michaelmas Day, which is -an immovable feast, the service for that day could very rarely be used -at Michaelmas, there does not appear to be the most distant allusion to -a goose in the words of that prayer. Probably no other reason can be -given for this custom, but that Michaelmas Day was a great festival, and -geese at that time most plentiful. In Denmark, where the harvest is -later, every family has a roasted goose for supper on St. Martin's Eve -[Nov. 10]." It must be borne in mind that the term _husbandman_ was -formerly applied to persons of a somewhat higher position in life than -an agricultural labourer, as for instance to the occupier and holder of -the land. In ancient grants from landlords of manors to their free -tenants, among other reserved rents, boons, and services, the landlord -frequently laid claim to a good stubble goose at Michaelmas. After all, -the connexion between the goose and the collect is not apparent.[178] - - -ALL SOULS' DAY.--NOV. 2. - - So named, because in the Church of Rome prayers are offered on this - day for "all the faithful deceased." - -There is a singular custom still kept up at Great Marton, in the Fylde -district, on this day. In some places it is called "soul-caking," but -there it is named "psalm-caking,"--from their reciting psalms for which -they receive cakes. The custom is changing its character also--for in -place of collecting cakes from house to house, as in the old time, they -now beg for money. The term "psalm" is evidently a corruption of the old -word "sal," for soul; the mass or requiem for the dead was called -"Sal-mas," as late as the reign of Henry VI. - - -GUNPOWDER PLOT AND GUY FAWKES. - -The anniversary of the Gunpowder Plot of November 5, 1605, is still more -or less kept in many parts of Lancashire, in towns by the effigy of Guy -Fawkes being paraded about the streets, and burnt at night with great -rejoicing; and by the discharge of small cannon, guns, pistols, &c., and -of fireworks. In the country the more common celebration is confined to -huge bonfires, and the firing of pistols and fireworks. In some places, -especially about Blackburn, Burnley, and that district, as well as in -villages about Eccles, Worsley, &c., it is customary for boys for some -days before the 5th of November, to go round to their friends and -neighbours to beg for coals. They generally take their stand before the -door, and either say or sing some doggerel, to the following effect:-- - - "Remember, remember, - The Fifth of November, - The gunpowder treason and plot; - A stick and a stake, - For King George's sake, - We hope it will ne'er be forgot." - - -CHRISTMAS. - -In the olden time, before the Reformation, Christmas was the highest -festival of the Church. In some rural parts of Lancashire it is now but -little regarded, and many of its customs are observed a week later,--on -the eve and day of the New Year. But still there linger in many places -some relics of the old observances and festivities, as the carols, the -frumenty on Christmas Eve, the mummers, with "old Ball," or the -hobby-horse, and the decoration of churches and dwellings with boughs of -evergreen shrubs and plants; in the centre of which is still to be -found, in many country halls and kitchens, and in some also in the -towns, that mystic bough of the mistletoe, beneath whose white berries, -it is the custom and licence of the season to steal a kiss from fair -maidens, and even from matrons "forty, fat, and fair." - - -CREATURES WORSHIPPING ON CHRISTMAS EVE. - -I have been told in Lancashire, that at midnight on Christmas Eve the -cows fall on their knees, and the bees hum the Hundredth Psalm. I am -unwilling to destroy the poetry of these old superstitions; but their -origin can, I think, be accounted for. Cows, it is well known, on rising -from the ground, get up on their knees first; and a person going into -the shippon at midnight would, no doubt, disturb the occupants, and by -the time he looked around, they would all be rising on their knees. The -buzzing of the bees, too, might easily be formed into a tune, and, with -the Hundredth Psalm running in the head of the listener, fancy would -supply the rest.[179] - - -CHRISTMAS MUMMING. - -Mr. J. O. Halliwell, in his _Nursery Rhymes of England_, relates the -following as a Christmas custom in Lancashire:--The boys dress -themselves up with ribands, and perform various pantomimes, after which -one of them, who has a blackened face, a rough skin coat, and a broom in -his hand, sings as follows:-- - - Here come I, - Little David Doubt; - If you don't give me money, - I'll sweep you all out. - Money I want, - Money I crave; - If you don't give me money, - I'll sweep you all to the grave. - - -THE HOBBY HORSE, OR OLD BALL. - -In an old painted window at Betley, Staffordshire, exhibiting in twelve -diamond-octagon panes, the mummers and morris-dancers of May-day, the -centre pane below the May-pole represents the old hobby-horse, supposed -to have once been the King of the May, though now a mere buffoon. The -hobby (of this window) is a spirited horse of pasteboard, in which the -master dances and displays tricks of legerdemain, &c. In the horse's -mouth is stuck a ladle, ornamented with a ribbon; its use being to -receive the spectators' pecuniary donations. In Lancashire the old -custom seems to have so far changed, that it is the head of a dead horse -that is carried about at Christmas, as described amongst the Easter -customs. "Old Ball" bites everybody it can lay hold of, and holds its -victims till they buy their release with a few pence. - - -CHRISTMAS CUSTOMS IN THE FYLDE. - -The Rev. W. Thornber[180] describes the Christmas gambols and customs in -the Fylde nearly a century ago, as having been kept up with great -spirit. The midnight carols of the church-singers[181]--the penny laid -on the hob by the fireside, the prize of him who came first to the outer -door, to "let Christmas in,"--the regular round of visits--the treat of -mince pies[182]--in turn engrossed their attention. Each farm-house and -hut possessed a pack of cards, which were obtained as an alms from the -rich, if poverty forbade the purchase. Night after night of Christmas -was consumed in poring over these dirty and obscured cards. Nor were the -youngsters excluded from a share in the amusements of this festal -season. Early, long before dawn, on Christmas morning, young voices -echoed through streets and lanes, in the words of the old song-- - - Get up old wives, - And bake your pies, - 'Tis Christmas-day in the morning; - The bells shall ring, - The birds shall sing, - Tis Christmas-day in the morning. - -Many an evening was beguiled with snap-dragon, bobbing for apples, -jack-stone, blind-man's buff, forfeits, hot cockles, hunting the -slipper, hide lose my supper, London Bridge, turning the trencher, and -other games now little played. Fortune-telling by cards, &c., must not -be omitted. In the bright frost and moonshine, out-door sports were -eagerly pursued, guns were in great request, to shoot the shore-birds, -and many found pleasure in "watching the fleet;" others played at -foot-ball in the lanes or streets; or engaged in the games of -prison-bars, tee-touch-wood, thread-my-needle, horse-shoe, leap-frog, -black-thorn, cad, bandy, honey-pot, hop-scotch, hammer and block, bang -about and shedding copies. Cymbling for larks[183] was a very common -pastime; now it is scarcely known by name, and few have retained any of -the implements or instruments requisite to practise the art. Tradesmen -presented their customers with the Yule-loaf,[184] or two mould candles -for the church, or some other Christmas-box. The churches and -house-windows were decked with evergreens; a superstition derived -probably from the Druids, who decked their temples and houses with -evergreens in December, that the Sylvan Spirits might avoid the chilly -frosts and storms of winter, by settling in their branches. For some -weeks before Christmas, a band of young men called "Mutes," roused at -early morn the slumbering to their devotions, or to activity in their -domestic duties. The beggar at the door, craving an _awmas_ [? alms] or -_saumas_ [soul-mass] cake, reminded the inmates that charity should be a -characteristic of the season. The Eve of Christmas Day was named "Flesh -Day," from the country people flocking to Poulton to buy beef, &c., -sufficient to supply the needs of the coming year. On the morning of -Christmas Day the usual breakfast was of black puddings, with jannock, -&c. - - -CELEBRATION OF CHRISTMAS AT WYCOLLER HALL. - -At Wycoller Hall, the family usually kept open house the twelve days at -Christmas. The entertainment was [in] a large hall of curious ashlar -work, [on] a long table, plenty of _frumenty_, like new milk, in a -morning, made of husked wheat boiled, roasted beef, with a fat goose and -a pudding, with plenty of good beer for dinner. A round-about -fire-place, surrounded with stone benches, where the young folks sat and -cracked nuts, and diverted themselves; and in this manner the sons and -daughters got matching, without going much from home.[185] - - -CAROLS, &c. - -"Carol" is supposed to be derived from _cantare_ to sing, and _rola_, an -interjection of joy. Amongst our Christmas customs that of carol-singing -prevails over a great part of Lancashire. It is the old custom of -celebrating with song the birth of the Saviour, even as the angels are -said to have sung "Glory to God in the highest," &c., at this great -event. Almost every European nation has its carols. Our earliest -Christian forefathers had theirs; one or two Anglo-Norman carols have -been preserved, and some of every century from the thirteenth to the -eighteenth. Numerous books containing carols have been printed (one by -Wynkin de Worde), and it would occupy too much space to insert even the -most popular of these carols here. A verse of one common to Lancashire -and Yorkshire must suffice:-- - - God rest you all, merry gentlemen, - Let nothing you dismay; - Remember Christ our Saviour - Was born on Christmas-day. - -The town or the village waitts go about after midnight, waking many a -sleeper with their homely music, which sounds all the sweeter for being -heard in the stilly night. Various items of payment to the Manchester -waitts occur in the Church Leet Books of that manor. A dance tune called -"The Warrington Waitts" occurs in a printed Tune-Book of 1732. Hand-bell -ringing, a favourite Lancashire diversion, is much practised about -Christmas. - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[143] Hermentrude, in _Notes and Queries_, 3rd ser., vol. ii. p. 484. - -[144] Prestoniensis, in _Notes and Queries_, 2nd ser., vol. ii. p. 326. - -[145] Hampson's _Medii Ævi Kalendarium_, vol. i. p. 98. - -[146] Prestoniensis, in _Notes and Queries_, 2nd series, vol. iii. p. -50. - -[147] Halliwell's _Archaic and Provincial Dictionary_. - -[148] Pasquil's _Palinodia_. - -[149] _Ploughman's Feasting Days_, stanza 3. - -[150] _Pictorial History of Lancashire._ - -[151] See Rev. W. Thornber's _History of Blackpool_. - -[152] See also, under BELLS, the Pancake Bell. - -[153] _Notes and Queries_, 2nd ser., V. - -[154] For the Simnel cakes of Shrewsbury, &c., see _Book of Days_, I. -336. - -[155] Baines's _History of Lancashire_. - -[156] _History of Manchester_, II. 265. - -[157] Baines's _History of Lancashire_. - -[158] H. T. Riley, in _Notes and Queries_, 2nd ser., ii. 320. - -[159] _Pictorial History of Lancashire._ - -[160] Hone's _Every-Day Book_, ii. 450; Brand's _Popular Antiquities, -&c._ - -[161] _Pictorial History of Lancashire._ - -[162] Baines's _History of Lancashire_. - -[163] _Pictorial History of Lancashire._ - -[164] _History of Blackpool_, p. 92. - -[165] _Browis_ or _brewis_ is broth or pottage; _frumenty_, is hulled -wheat boiled in milk, and flavoured with cinnamon, sugar, allspice; and -_jannocks_, oaten bread in large, coarse loaves; _throdkins_, a cake -made of oatmeal and bacon. - -[166] Rev. W. Thornber's _History of Blackpool_. - -[167] Hone's _Every-Day Book_, ii. 597. - -[168] For the words of these songs, see Harland's _Ballads and Songs of -Lancashire_, p. 116; and for words and music, Chambers's _Book of Days_, -i. 546. - -[169] A. B., Liverpool, in _Notes and Queries_, v. 581. - -[170] Baines's _History of Lancashire_. - -[171] These boughs, says Mr. Thornber, in his _History of Blackpool_, -were emblematical of the character of the maiden thus conspicuously -distinguished; an elder-bough for a scold, one of ash for a swearer, &c. - -[172] _Pictorial History of Lancashire._ - -[173] Dugdale's _Monast. Anglic._, vol. vi. p. 906. - -[174] _Farington Papers_, p. 128. - -[175] _Gent. Mag._, vol. liii., for July, 1783, p. 578. - -[176] M. F., in _Notes and Queries_, 3rd series, ii. 397. - -[177] Aquinas, in _Notes and Queries_, 3rd series, v., April 2., 1864. - -[178] Ed. _Notes and Queries_. - -[179] Wellbank, in _Notes and Queries_, 2nd series, viii. 242. - -[180] See _History of Blackpool_. - -[181] Here is the specimen of one sung from house to house during -Christmas:-- - - We're nather cum to yare hase to beg nor to borrow, - But we're cum to yare hase to drive away o sorrow; - A suop o' drink, as yau may think, for we're varra droy, - We'll tell yau what we're cum for--a piece o' Christmas poye. - -[182] The mince-pie, made of a compound of Eastern productions, -represented the offerings of the wise men who came from far to worship -the Saviour, bringing spices. Its old English coffin-shape was in -imitation of the manger in which the infant Jesus was laid. - -[183] We have not been able to find any account of this mode of catching -larks, at least, under the name here given. - -[184] The baker formerly gave his customers a baby of paste; and in my -own recollection a cake, decorated with the head of a lamb, named "the -Ewe loaf," was the Christmas present of bakers at Poulton. On Christmas -Eve the houses were illuminated with candles of an enormous size.--W. T. - -[185] From a family MS. of the Cunliffes, quoted in Baines's -_Lancashire_, iii. 244. - - - - -EATING AND DRINKING CUSTOMS. - - -In many instances of particular Church Festivals, and of popular -celebrations, we have already enumerated various viands appropriated to -special occasions, as the turkey to New Year's Day; the pancake to -Shrove-Tuesday; the simnel, carlins, bragot, and fig-pie to Mid-Lent -Sunday; the goose to Michaelmas; frumenty, mince-pies, &c., to -Christmas. A few remain, however, for notice here:--Eccles cakes, -Ormskirk gingerbread, Everton toffy, and other sweet cakes have "all -seasons for their own." The two rival shops in Eccles, on opposite sides -of Church-street, the one called "The genuine Eccles cake shop, from -over the way," and the other "The real Eccles cake shop, never removed," -so much puzzle the stranger and visitor, that purchases are often made -at both in order to secure the real, genuine, original article. - - -THE HAVERCAKE LADS. - -Formerly the bread eaten by the labouring classes in the parish of -Rochdale and others in the east of Lancashire was oat-cake, which was -also pretty generally in use in the west of Yorkshire. A regiment of -soldiers raised in these two adjoining districts at the beginning of the -last war took the name of the "Havercake Lads," assuming as their badge -an oat cake [oats are called havers], which was placed (for the purpose -of attracting recruits) on the point of the recruiting sergeant's sword. -Oat bread is still eaten in various manufacturing and hilly districts of -Lancashire, but not nearly so generally as half a century ago.[186] - - -WOODEN SHOES AND OATEN BREAD OR JANNOCKS. - -Both these are said to have been introduced by the Flemish immigrant -weavers about the year 1567. Their sabots, however, were made entirely -of wood, lined with a little lamb's skin, to protect the top of the -foot; while the _clogs_ of the present day have strong leather tops -[often brass clasps] and thick wooden soles. The kind of bread -introduced by the Flemings into Bolton and other manufacturing districts -of Lancashire was made of oatmeal in the form of a loaf, and called -_jannock_; but the gradual change in manners and improvement in social -condition have almost banished this food, and wheaten-bread and -oat-cakes have almost altogether taken its place. - -In the _Shepherd's Play_, performed at Chester in 1577, in honour of the -visit to that city of the Earl of Derby, the third Shepherd says:-- - - And brave ale of Halton I have, - And what meat I had to my hire; - A pudding may no man deprave, - And a _jannock_ of Lancaster-shire. - -Jannock is now used in Leigh more commonly than in most other parts of -Lancashire. Warrington ale was no less celebrated than Halton ale, and a -song in praise of the former is printed in Harland's _Lancashire -Ballads_.[187] - - -PORK PASTIES. - -In West Houghton, at the annual feast or wakes, there is a singular -local custom of making large flat pasties of pork, which are eaten in -great quantities on the Wakes Sunday, with a liberal accompaniment of -ale; and people resort to the village from all places for miles round, -on this Sunday, just as they rush into Bury on Mid-Lent or Mothering -Sunday to eat simnels and drink bragot ale. - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[186] Baines's _Lancashire_. - -[187] P. 199. - - - - -BIRTH AND BAPTISMAL CUSTOMS. - - -Many of the customs attending child-bearing, churching, and christening -are not peculiar to Lancashire, but common nearly all over England. The -term "the lady in the straw," merely meant the lady confined to her bed, -as all beds were anciently stuffed with straw. It was formerly the -custom in Lancashire, as elsewhere, for the husband against the birth of -the child to provide a large cheese and a cake. These were called "the -groaning" cheese and cake; and throughout the north of England the first -cut of the sick wife's cheese, or groaning cheese, is taken and laid -under the pillows of young women to cause them to dream of their lovers. -Amongst customs now obsolete was the giving a large entertainment at the -churching. Now it is usually given at the christening. - - -PRESENTS TO WOMEN IN CHILDBED. - -In a note on an entry of _Nicholls's Assheton's Journal_, Dr. Whitaker -and its Editor, the Rev. Canon Raines, say that the custom of making -presents to women in childbed, is yet called "pr[=e]s[)e]nting" in -Craven. It is now quite obsolete in South Lancashire, although it -continued to be observed to the middle of the eighteenth century. In a -MS. journal of 1706 is an entry "John Leigh brought my wife a -groaning-cake: gave him 6_d._" Other entries in the same journal show -that money gifts ranged from 1_s._ 6_d._ to 5_s._ (the last being to the -minister's wife); besides smaller gifts to maids and midwives, and -bottles of wine, syrup of ginger, and other creature comforts to the -person confined. - - -TEA-DRINKING AFTER CHILDBIRTH. - -In some parts of North Lancashire it is customary to have a tea-drinking -after the recovery from childbirth. All the neighbours and friends are -invited--sometimes many more than can be comfortably accommodated--and -both tea and rum are plentifully distributed. After tea, each visitor -pays a shilling towards the expense of the birth feast; and the evening -is spent in the usual gossip. - - -TURNING THE BED AFTER CHILDBIRTH. - -An attendant was making a bed occupied by the mother of a child born a -few days previously. When she attempted to turn it over, to give it a -better shaking, the nurse energetically interfered, peremptorily -forbidding her doing so till a month after the confinement, on the -ground that it was decidedly unlucky; and said that she never allowed it -to be done till then, on any account whatever.[188] - - -AN UNBAPTIZED CHILD CANNOT DIE. - -The _Morning Herald_ of the 18th June, 1860, notices a case of attempted -infanticide near Liverpool. The wretched mother, having gained access to -a gentleman's grounds, laid her child on the ground and covered it with -sods. The child was happily discovered and its life saved. The mother -was apprehended and charged with having attempted to murder her child. -She confessed that she was guilty, and added ["the tender mercies of the -wicked are cruel"] that she had previously succeeded in getting the -child baptized, as she believed it could not otherwise have died. This -is a strange bit of folk-lore.[189] - - -GIFTS TO INFANTS. - -It is a custom in some parts of Lancashire, as well as in Yorkshire, -Northumberland, and other counties, that when an infant first goes out -of the house, in the arms of the mother or the nurse, in some cases the -first family visited, in others every neighbour receiving the call, -presents to or for the infant an egg, some salt, some bread, and in some -cases a small piece of money. These gifts are to ensure, as the gossips -avow, that the child shall never want bread, meat, or salt to it, or -money, throughout life. The old custom of sponsors giving the child -twelve tea-spoons, called "Apostle Spoons," is now obsolete. The gift of -a coral with bells, is supposed to have had its origin in a very ancient -superstition. Coral, according to Pliny, was deemed an amulet against -fascination; and it was thought to preserve and fasten the teeth. The -coral-bells (especially if blest by the priest) would scare away evil -spirits from the child. - - -CHANGELINGS. - -There is even yet in some parts of Lancashire a strong dread of the -fairies or witches coming secretly and exchanging their own ill-favoured -imps, for the newly born infant; and various charms are used to prevent -the child from being thus stolen away. - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[188] A. B., Liverpool, in _Notes and Queries_, vi. 432. - -[189] W. S. Simpson, in _Notes and Queries_, 2nd series, x. p. 184. - - - - -BETROTHING AND BRIDAL OR WEDDING CUSTOMS. - - -BETROTHING CUSTOMS. - -The common custom of breaking a piece of silver or gold (if it be -crooked, so much the luckier) between lovers of the humbler classes, -especially when the man is going to a distance, is believed to have had -its origin in a sort of betrothal or promise of marriage, much practised -amongst the ancient Danes, called _Hand-festing_, which is mentioned by -Ray in his Collection or Glossary of Northumbrian Words. It means -hand-fastening or binding. In betrothal it was also the custom to change -rings, formed of two links or hoops, called gemmel rings, from -_gemelli_, twins. - - -CURIOUS WEDDING CUSTOM. - -An ancient custom at weddings of the poorer classes in Lancashire, and -in some parts of Cumberland, is thus described:--The Lord of the Manor, -in whose jurisdiction the marriage takes place, allowed the parties a -piece of ground for a house and garden. All their friends assembled on -the wedding-day, and the bridegroom having provided a dinner and drink, -they set to work and constructed a dwelling for the young couple, of -clay and wood, what is called post and petrel, or wattle and daub. Many -of these "clay biggins" still remain in the Fylde district and the -northern parts of Lancashire. The relatives of the pair supplied the -most necessary part of the furniture, and thus they were enabled to -"start fair" in the world.[190] - - -COURTING AND WEDDING CUSTOMS IN THE FYLDE. - -On the occasion of a marriage, a christening, or a churching, each guest -either sent or presented some offering of money or food; thus providing -a sufficient stock of provisions for the entertainment without much, if -any, cost to the host. The preliminaries before marriage, the addresses -paid by the swain to his sweetheart after the day's labour was done, -were styled "the sitting-up," the night being the time allotted to -courtship, by the kitchen fire, after the other members of the family -had retired to rest. This "sitting-up" was regularly observed every -Saturday night if the lover was faithful; if otherwise, the price of the -"lant" (?) of the forsaken fair was transmitted by her to the rival -preferred by her inconstant swain. On the wedding-day, when a bride and -her "groom" left the house to have the marriage rites solemnized, some -relative or servant threw at or after the smiling pair a "shuffle" -(_Pantoufle_, an old shoe or slipper)--a custom in its origin said to be -Jewish--as a preventive of future unhappiness, an omen of good-luck and -prosperity. At the church-door an idle crowd was always ready for the -"perry,"--that is, to contest for the dole of scattered half-pence, or -if disappointed, to deprive the bride of her shawl or shoes, till some -largess was bestowed. The day was spent in the company of a merry party -of friends, who, after the ceremony of "throwing the stocking" over the -bed of the wedded pair was performed, retired to their homes.[191] - - -ANCIENT BRIDAL CUSTOM.--THE BRIDE'S CHAIR AND THE FAIRY HOLE. - -On the lower declivity of Warton Crag, in the parish of Warton (which -abuts on Morecambe Bay and the Westmorland border), commanding a -beautiful and extended prospect of the bay, a seat called "The Bride's -Chair" was resorted to on the day of marriage by the brides of the -village; and in this seat they were enthroned with due solemnity by -their friends; but the origin and the object of the custom, which has -now fallen in disuse, are unknown. Not far from Warton Crag are three -rocking-stones placed in a line, about forty feet asunder, the largest -stone lying in the middle. A cave is also mentioned by Lucas, named "The -Fairy Hole," where dwarf spirits called Elves or Fairies, were wont to -resort.[192] - - -BURNLEY. - -An ancient custom prevails at Burnley Grammar School, by which all -persons married at St. Peter's Church in that town are fined by the -boys. As soon as a wedding is fixed the parish clerk informs the boys, -and on the day appointed they depute two of their number to wait upon -the groomsman and demand a fee. There is no fixed sum named; but enough -is got to purchase books and maintain a tolerable library for the use of -the pupils. Former pupils always pay a liberal fine. - - -MARRIAGES AT MANCHESTER PARISH CHURCH. - -"Th'owd Church," as the collegiate church of Manchester was provincially -designated before it attained the dignity of a cathedral, was known and -celebrated far and wide over the extensive parish. Its altar has -witnessed the joining together of thousands of happy [and unhappy] -couples. The fees here being less than those demanded at other churches, -which had to pay tribute to it, it was of course the most popular -sanctuary in the whole parish for the solemnization of matrimony. At the -expiration of Lent (during which the marriage fees are doubled) crowds -of candidates for nuptial honours present themselves; indeed so numerous -are they that the ceremony is performed by wholesale on Easter Monday. A -chaplain of facetious memory [the Rev. Joshua Brookes] is said to have -on one of these occasions accidentally united the wrong parties. When -the occurrence was represented to him, his ready reply was, "Pair as you -go out; you're all married; pair as you go out." This verbal certificate -appeared to give general satisfaction, and each bridegroom soon found -his right bride. Sir George Head, in his _Home Tour through the -Manufacturing Districts, in the summer of 1835_, thus describes what he -saw of these wholesale Monday marriages:--"I attended the Old Church at -Manchester one Monday morning, in order to witness the solemnization of -several marriages, which I had reason to suppose were then and there to -take place. I had heard on the preceding Sunday the banns proclaimed as -follows:--'For the first time of asking, 65; for the second time, 72; -for the third time, 60. Total, 197.' Having been informed that it would -be expedient to be on the spot at eight in the morning I repaired -thither at that hour. Operations, however, did not commence before ten. -The latter is the usual time of proceeding to business, although in -cases of persons married by licence 8 o'clock is the hour. When all was -ready and the church doors opened, the clergyman and clerk betook -themselves to the vestry; and the people who were about to be married, -and their friends, seated themselves in the body of the church opposite -the communion table, on benches which were placed there for the purpose. -Not less than fifty persons were assembled, among whom I took my seat -quietly, without being noticed. A party who had arrived in a narrow _vis -à vis_ fly, most exclusively paraded in the meantime up and down (as if -unwilling to identify themselves with the humbler candidates of -matrimony) in another part of the church. The people at first took their -seats in solemn silence, each one inquisitively surveying his neighbour; -but as the clergyman and clerk were some time in preparation, the men -first began to whisper one to another and the women to titter, till by -degrees they all threw off their reserve, and made audible remarks on -the new comers. There was little _mauvaise honte_ among the women, but -of the men, poor fellows! some were seriously abashed; while among the -hymeneal throng there seemed to prevail a sentiment that obtains pretty -generally among their betters, namely, inclination to put shy people out -of conceit with themselves. Thus, at the advance of a sheepish-looking -bridegroom, he was immediately assailed on all sides with 'Come in, man; -what art thou afraid of? Nobody 'll hurt thee!' And then a general laugh -went round in a repressed tone, but quite sufficient to confound and -subdue the new comer. Presently a sudden buzz broke out, 'The -clergyman's coming;' and all was perfectly silent. About twelve couples -were to be married; the rest were friends and attendants. The former -were called upon to arrange themselves all together around the altar. -The clerk was an adept in his business, and performed the duties of his -office in a mode admirably calculated to set the people at their ease -and direct the proceedings. In appointing them to their proper places, -he addressed each in an intonation of voice perfectly soft and soothing, -and which carried with it more of encouragement as he made use of no -appellative but the Christian name of the person spoken to. Thus he -proceeded:--'Daniel and Ph[oe]be; this way, Daniel, take off your -gloves, Daniel. William and Anne; no, Anne; here, Anne; t'other side, -William. John and Mary; here, John; oh! John.' And then addressing them -all together, 'Now, all of you give your hats to some person to hold.' -Although the marriage service appeared to me (adds Sir George) to be -generally addressed to the whole party, the clergyman was scrupulously -exact in obtaining the accurate responses from each individual." - - * * * * * - -Many wedding customs, as the bridesmaids and best men, the wedding-ring, -the nuptial kiss in the church, the bouquet borne in the hand of the -bride, &c., the scattering of flowers in her path, the throwing of an -old shoe after her for luck, the giving gloves, &c., are of ancient -origin, and are the relics of Anglo-Saxon or Danish usages. - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[190] Hampson's _Medii Ævi Kalend._ i. 289. - -[191] See Rev. W. Thornber's _History of Blackpool_. - -[192] Baines's _History of Lancashire_. - - - - -DYING, DEATH-BED, AND FUNERAL CUSTOMS. - - -DYING HARDLY. - -Persons are said to "die hardly," as the phrase is, meaning to be -unable to expire, when there are pigeons' feathers in the bed. Some will -not allow dying persons to lie on a feather-bed, because they hold that -it very much increases their pain and suffering, and actually retards -their departure. On the other hand, there is a superstitious feeling -that it is a great misfortune, nay, even a _judgment_, not to die in a -bed. - - -BURYING IN WOOLLEN. - -By a statute of 30 Car. II., stat. I, cap. 3 (1678), entitled "An act -for the lessening the importation of linen from beyond the seas, and the -encouragement of the woollen and paper manufactures of the kingdom," it -is enacted that the curate of every parish shall keep a register, to be -provided at the charge of the parish, wherein to enter all burials and -affidavits of persons being buried in woollen; the affidavit to be taken -by any justice of the peace, mayor, or such like chief officer, in the -parish where the body was interred; and if there be no officer, then by -any curate within the city where the corpse was buried (except him in -whose parish the corpse was buried), who must administer the oath and -set his hand gratis. No affidavit to be necessary for a person dying of -the plague. It imposes a fine of £5 for every infringement; one half to -go to the informer, and the other half to the poor of the parish. This -act was repealed by the 54 Geo. III. cap. 108 (1814). In the parish of -Prestwich, the first entry in the book provided for such purposes was in -August, 1678; and there is no entry later than 1681, which appears also -to be the limit of the act's observance in the adjacent parish of -Radcliffe; where the entries immediately follow the record of the burial -itself in the registers, and not in a separate book as at Prestwich. -Under the year 1679, is the following entry in the parish register of -Radcliffe:-- - -"An orphan of Ralph Mather's, of Radcliffe, was buried the 9th day of -April, and certified to be wound up in woollen only, under the hand of -Mr. William Hulme." - -In the churchwardens' accounts of Prestwich, for the year 1681, is the -following item of receipt:-- - -"Received a fine of James Crompton, for burying his son, and not -bringing in an affidavit, according to the act for burying in woollen, -£2 10_s._"[193] - - -FUNERAL DOLE AND ARVAL CAKE. - -In Lancashire, the funeral was formerly celebrated with great profusion -in meats and drinks, to which was added in those of the richer sort, -what was called a penny dole, or promiscuous distribution of that sum, -anciently delivered in silver to the poor. The effect of this custom, -says Lucas (as quoted by Dr. Whitaker[194]) was such, that he had seen -many "who would rather go seven or eight miles to a penny dole, than -earn sixpence in the same time by laudable industry." This custom of -distributing a small money alms or dole at funerals still existed in -parts of Lancashire within the last fifty years. One sexagenarian -informant told the writer that, when a lad, he went to the funeral of a -Mr. D., in the hamlet of Swinton, parish of Eccles, and there was what -he called "a _dow_, gi'en to every lad and every wench [boy or girl] as -went, far and near,--a penny a-piece; and them as carrit a choilt -[carried a child] had tuppence." Usually at country funerals, after the -interment, the relations first, and next their attendants, threw into -the grave sprigs of bay, rosemary, or other odoriferous evergreens, -which had been previously distributed amongst them. In some cases, a -messenger went round the neighbourhood, "bidding" parties to the -funeral, and at each house where he gave the invitation, he left a sprig -of rosemary, &c. After the rites at the grave, the company adjourned to -a neighbouring public-house, where they were severally presented with a -cake and ale, which was called an _arval_. This word seems to have -greatly puzzled Dr. Whitaker. It is the Sueo-Gothic _arföl_, which is a -compound of _arf_, inheritance, and _öl_, ale,--expressive of a feast -given by the heir, at the funeral, on succeeding to the estate. The -feast and its name were imparted to us by the Danes, whose _arfwöl_ is -described by Olaus Wormius as a solemn banquet, celebrated by kings and -nobles, in honour of deceased relations, whom they are succeeding. - - -DALTON-IN-FURNESS. - -The most singular mode of conducting funerals prevails at this place. A -full meal of bread and cheese and ale is provided at the funeral house; -and, after the corpse is interred the parish clerk proclaims, at the -grave-side, that the company must repair to some appointed public-house. -Arrived there, they sit down by fours together, and each four is served -with two quarts of ale.[195] One half of this is paid for by the -conductor of the funeral, and the other half by the company. While they -are drinking the ale, the waiter goes round with cakes, serving out one -to each guest, which he is expected to carry home.[196] - - -OLD FUNERAL CUSTOMS AT WARTON. - -A singular practice, which was growing obsolete in the time of Lucas -(says Dr. Whitaker) once prevailed in the parish of Warton; which was, -that most householders were furnished with a kind of family pall, or -finely wrought coverlet, to be laid over the bier when the corpse was -carried to church. Amongst other funeral customs at Warton, were the -great feasting and drinking; the funeral dole, distributed to the poor; -the casting of odoriferous herbs into the grave; and the cake and -_arval_-ale, already described, pp. 270, 271, _suprâ_.[197] - - -FUNERAL CUSTOMS IN THE FYLDE. - -When the last offices of respect to a departed friend or neighbour were -to be rendered, a whole district, called "their side" of the country, -was "bidden" or invited to assist in carrying the remains to their -narrow home. At a stated hour the crowd assembled, not to mourn with -widowed wife or weeping children, but to consume ale and tobacco, and to -talk over their farms or trade till all was in readiness to depart for -the completion of the obsequies. A particular order was observed. From -the door of his former home, and into, and out of, the church, the -corpse was carried on the shoulders of four of his relatives--his -nearest kinsman, the chief mourner, walking in front with the clergyman. -At the close of the ceremony, after the sprigs of box or rosemary had -been deposited on the coffin, each person also adding a sprinkling of -dust, the rough voice of the parish clerk was heard grating harshly in -that solemn moment, inviting the "bidden" to show further their respect -to the deceased by partaking of a dinner provided at the village inn. -How the day terminated may be supposed, and indeed was a matter of sad -notoriety. Indeed, it was not very unusual to see those who were to -convey the dead to the sepulchre, tottering from intoxication under -their sad burden. The best features of these old-time funerals were that -doles in money were distributed to the aged and the very young; the poor -were fed, and sometimes warm cloaks or other useful articles of attire -were given, to be worn in memory of the departed.[198] Fifty-five years -ago, says Mr. Thornber, writing in 1837, the more respectable portion of -the inhabitants of Poulton were buried by candle-light--a custom long -observed by some of the oldest families in the town. It was regarded as -a sacred duty to expose a lighted candle in the window of every house as -the corpse passed through the streets towards the church for interment; -and he was poor indeed who did not pay this tribute of respect to the -dead. So late as 1813 this church was strewed with rushes. - - -MODE OF BURIAL OF A WIDOW WHO HAD TAKEN RELIGIOUS VOWS. - -A daughter of William Balderstone, of Balderstone, in her widowhood, -makes a will of which the following is the commencement:--"Seventh day -of January, 1497. I, Dame Jane Pilkington, widow, make and ordain this -my last will and testament: First, I bequeath my bodye to be buried in -y^e Nunnes Quire of Monketon, in my habit, holding my hand upon my -breast, with my ring upon my finger, having taken in my resolves the -mantel and the ring," &c.[199] - - -FUNERAL CUSTOMS IN EAST LANCASHIRE. - -In _Nicholas Assheton's Journal_, he mentions that the corpse of a Mrs. -Starkie was carried to church by four relatives; there was a sermon, and -afterwards dinner, forty messes being provided for. On this, Dr. -Whitaker remarks:--"An ancient usage. The nearest relations always took -up the corpse at the door; and once more, if the distance was -considerable, at the church gates. By forty messes, I suppose are to be -understood so many dishes of meat." The editor (the Rev. Canon Raines) -adds:--"This custom, which appears to be quite patriarchal, is still -prevalent in some of the country parishes in South Lancashire. The -custom of preaching funeral sermons on the day of the burial is now -exploded, although so recently as 1776 the vicar of one of the largest -parishes in Lancashire (Rev. John White, B.A., of Blackburn), objected -to the building of a church in his parish unless he had 'some -compensation made for the funeral sermons to be preached in it.'[200] I -should rather understand the forty messes to be dinners provided for -forty persons, although funerals in Lancashire at this period were -conducted on a scale of prodigality scarcely to be conceived." [_The -House and Farm Accounts of the Shuttleworths_ give examples of three -burial customs--that of a dole to the poor; at one place 40_s._ 7_d._, -at another 57_s._ 4_d._, at a third 47_s._ 8_d._ (?) a penny to each -person; that of payment to the clergyman for a funeral sermon, in one -case 5_s._; and that of providing dinners for the mourners, chiefly for -those from a distance, in one case twenty-four messes of meat cost -58_s._ 8_d._; in another instance seventy dined at 6_d._ the mess or -meal, seventy-six and sixty-five at 5_d._; in all 211 persons attending -one funeral.--EDS.] - - -BIDDING TO FUNERALS. - -Previously to the formation of cemeteries, and the employment of -omnibus-hearses, it was customary to invite large numbers to attend -funerals. Guests were invited by _dozens_; and as each entered the house -where the deceased lay, he was met at the door by a female attendant -habited in black, and wearing a white apron, who offered him spiced -liquor from a silver tankard. In the house each person was presented -with a bun and a slice of currant bread. When the time for closing up -the coffin arrived, each took his last look at the corpse and presented -a shilling, or more, to the nearest relative of the deceased; who always -sat at the head of the coffin for this purpose. In the neighbourhoods of -Little Hulton, Peel Yate, Walkden Moor, &c., it was till of late years -the custom for two persons to be nominated as "bidders" of guests to a -funeral. These went to the various houses of the persons to be invited, -and presented to each a sprig of rosemary; which the guest wore or -carried in the hand at the funeral. This inviting or "bidding" was -usually called "lating" or "lathing;" from the A.-S. verb _Lathian_, to -invite, bid, or send for. - - -SITUATION AND DIRECTION OF GRAVES. - -As churches are built to stand about East and West, the greatest spaces -in the churchyard are the North and South sides of the church. -Throughout Lancashire and the North of England there is a universal -superstition that the south side of the church is the holiest or most -consecrated ground, and it may be observed that that side of the -graveyard is generally crowded with grave-stones, or green hillocks of -turf, while the north side has but few. This is an old superstition, -which held that the north side of the church was really unhallowed -ground, fit only to be the last resting place of still-born infants and -suicides. Then almost all graves are ranged east and west; and in a rare -tract of the Marprelate series, called "_Martin's Month's Mind_" (1589) -it is stated that "he would not be laid east and west (for he ever went -against the hair), but north and south: I think because 'Ab aquilone -omne malum' (from the north comes all evil), and the south wind ever -brings corruption with it." The celebrated antiquary Thomas Hearne, left -orders for his grave to be made straight by a compass, due east and -west. Sir Thomas Browne[201] observes that "the Persians were buried -lying north and south; the Megarians and Ph[oe]nicians placed their -heads to the east; the Athenians, some think, towards the west, which -Christians still retain; and Bede will have it to be the posture of our -Saviour." One "Article of Inquiry" in a visitation of the Bishop of Ely -in 1662, was--"When graves are digged, are they made six feet deep (at -the least), and east and west?" - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[193] Rev. John Booker, Prestwich, in _Notes and Queries_, v. 543. - -[194] _Richmondshire_, ii. 298. - -[195] In many instances, in social feasts, four persons were regarded as -a "mess." - -[196] The Rev. Mr. Hodgson's _Description of Westmorland_. - -[197] Baines's _History of Lancashire_. - -[198] Rev. W. Thornber's _History of Blackpool_. - -[199] Dr. Whitaker's _Whalley_, addenda. - -[200] _Lancashire MSS.--Letters._ - -[201] In his _Urn Burial_. - - - - -CUSTOMS OF MANORS. - - -This subject would require extensive notice, if the materials requisite -for its elucidation were more numerous and accessible. All prescriptive -customs of manors have existed beyond what is termed "legal -memory"--_i.e._, from the reign of Richard I. (1189-1199). Many others, -relating to the military and other free tenures of the chief tenants of -manors, and to the socage and inferior or servile tenures, with the -boons of the cottagers, &c., and the various services attached to these -different tenures, would make a very curious piece of history of customs -and usages; but these are usually recorded only in private grants, -charters, and other deeds, or in copy-rolls and other records of manors, -not generally accessible. The following are some examples:-- - - -THE HONOUR OF KNIGHTHOOD. - -In the early ages of our history, the honour of knighthood, with the -military services to which it was incident under the feudal system, was -often forced upon the subject. In the year 1278, a writ to the Sheriff -of Lancashire commanded him to distrain upon all persons seised of land -of the value of £20 yearly, whether held of the King _in capite_, or of -any other lords who ought to be knights and were not; and all such were -ordered forthwith to take out their patent of knighthood. Fourteen years -after this, a writ was issued, wherein the qualification was raised to -double the amount; and a writ, dated 6th February, 1292, was issued to -the Sheriff of Lancashire (with others), proclaiming that all persons -holding lands in fee, or of inheritance, of the value of £40 per annum, -must take the order of knighthood before Christmas in that year. The -crown might relax or vary these services: hence a writ to the Sheriff of -Lancashire recites "that the commonalty of England, having performed -good services against the Welsh, the king excuses persons not holding -lands of the value of £100 yearly from taking the order of knighthood;" -but all holding above that amount, and not taking the order before the -Nativity of the Virgin (Sept. 8), were to be distrained upon. -Subsequently, injunctions were addressed to the Sheriff, commanding him -to make extents of the lands of those refusing to take the order of -knighthood, and to hold them for the king until further orders. Another -writ to the Sheriff of Lancashire, of 6th April, 1305, directs him to -proclaim that all who should become knights, and are not, must repair to -London before the following Whit Sunday to receive that distinction, if -properly qualified.[202] - - -MARITAGIUM. - -On the marriage of the Princess Alianora (sister of Edward III.) with -the Earl of Guelders, an order was issued to the abbot of Furness, and -to the priors of Burscough, Up-Holland, and Hornby, as well as to the -abbot of Whalley, and to the priors of Cartmell and Coningshead, -requesting them to levy the subsidy on their respective houses, towards -the _Maritagium_, an impost of early times, which ceased with the feudal -system.[203] This order the priests were slow to obey, in consequence of -which another letter was issued by the king from Pontefract, reminding -them of their neglect, and ordering them to communicate their intention -to the proper authority. No further documents appear on the subject; and -it may be presumed that this second application produced the desired -effect.[204] - - -PECULIAR SERVICES AND TENURES. - -The following are entries in the "Testa de Nevill," a book supposed to -have been compiled towards the close of the reign of Edward II. or the -beginning of that of Edward III., and consequently to exhibit the -services and tenures existing about the beginning of the 12th -century:--Thomas and Alicia de Gersingham, by keeping the king's -[John's] hawks in Lonsdale, till they became strong, when they were to -be committed to the Sheriff of Lancashire. Luke Pierpoint, by keeping an -aëry; Adam de Hemelesdale, by constabulary at Crosby. Quenilda de -Kirkdale, by conducting royal treasure. Richard Fitz Ralph, by -constabulary at Singleton. John de Oxeclive, by being carpenter at -Lancaster Castle. Adam Fitz Gilmighel, by being the king's carpenter. -Roger the carpenter, by being carpenter in Lancaster Castle. Ralph Barun -or Babrun, by being mason in Lancaster Castle. Walter, son of Walter -Smith, by forging iron instruments. Roger Gernet, by being chief -forester. William Gernet, by the service of meeting the king on the -borders of the city, with his horse and white rod, and conducting him -into and out of the city. William and Benedict de Gersingham, by the -sergeantry of keeping the king's aëries of hawks. Gilbert Fitz Orm, by -paying yearly 3_d._ or some spurs to Benedict Gernet, the heir of Roger -de Heton, in thanage. Roger de Leycester, by paying 8_s._ and two arrows -yearly. A great number of persons in thanage: others in drengage. John -de Thoroldesholme, by larderery; Roger de Skerton, by provostry. Roger -Fitz John, by making irons for the king's ploughs. Others, by gardenry, -and by masonry, or the service of finding pot-herbs and leeks for -Lancaster castle, smith's work, and carpentry; the burgesses of -Lancaster, by free-burgage and by royal charter. Peter de Mundevill, by -service of one brachet [a sort of hound] of one colour. The prior of -Wingal, by he knows not what service. Lady Hillaria Trussebut, by no -service, and she knows not by what warrant. Henry de Waleton, by being -head sergeant or bailiff of the Hundred of Derbyshire [_i.e._, West -Derby]. Galfridus Balistarius [Geoffrey Balistur] by presenting two -cross-bows to the king. William Fitz William, by presenting one brachet, -one _velosa_ [? a piece of velvet] and two _lintheamina_ [pieces of -linen cloth]. Roger Fitz Vivian holds the sergeantry of Heysham, by -blowing the horn before the king at his entrance into and exit from the -city of Lancaster. Thomas Gernet, in Heysham, by sounding the horn on -meeting the king on his arrival in those parts. William Gresle, by -presenting a bow without string, a quiver, 12 arrows, and a _buzon_ [? -possibly a quiver or arrow-case]. William Fitz Waukelin, by presenting -one soar-hawk. Hervi Gorge, by presenting one plough, one _linthola_ -[piece of linen cloth], one _velosa_ [piece of velvet], and one -_auricular_ [? a veil for the confessional]. Roger and Hugh de -Auberville, by keeping one hawk. Several religious houses held in pure -and free and perpetual alms, or what the Normans styled -"Frank-almoigne." A large number of persons held by donation, in -consideration of yearly rents, and some of these were nominal, as "a -pepper-corn, if demanded," "a clove," "a red rose on St. John the -Baptist's Day" (24th June), "a pair of white gloves or a peny," a -"Manchester knife," &c. - -SMITHELLS.--The mesne manor of Smithells in Sharples, near Bolton, is -dependent upon the superior manor of Sharples, the lord of which claims -from the owner of Smithells a pair of gilt spurs annually; and, by a -very singular and inconvenient custom, the unlimited use of the cellars -at Smithells Hall for a week in every year.[205] - -It does not appear, however, that the lord of Smithells was bound to the -quantity or to the quality of the liquors with which his cellars were at -that time to be stored. This feudal claim seems now nearly abandoned, as -it has not been enforced within the present century.[206] - - -MANOR OF COCKERHAM.--REGULATIONS FOR THE SALE OF ALE. - -The customs' dues of this manor appear to have been originally ordained -by Brother William Geryn, cellarer of the Abbey of Cokersand, in 1326, -and were confirmed by John the Abbot in 1st Richard III. (1483-4). The -confirmation is in the English of the period; and among other curious -ordinances, contains the following regulation as to the price, &c., of -ale (the spelling is modernised):--"There shall no brewer let no tenant -for to have ale for their silver out of their house, and such [may] have -four gallons within their house, so that they bring a vessel with them. -Ye shall not sell a gallon of ale above a halfpenny when ye may buy a -quarter of good oats for 2_d._ Ye shall give ale-founders [manorial -officers also called ale-tasters] a founding-gallon, or else a taste of -each vessel, and your charge, on pain [penalty] of grievous -amerciaments."[207] - - -MANORIAL CUSTOMS IN FURNESS. - -KIRKBY IRELETH.--In this manor the widow is entitled during her -widowhood to the moiety of the estate whereof her husband died seised; -but forfeits her right thereto upon re-marriage or breach of chastity. -Every tenant, upon being admitted to a tenement, pays to the lord of the -manor 20 years' quit-rent for a fine. Every entire tenement was formerly -obliged to keep one horse and harness, for the king's service, on the -borders or elsewhere. These were called "summer [? sumpter] nags," of -which 30 were kept in Kirkby. The tenant was also to furnish a boon -plough and a boon-harrow, that is, a day's ploughing and harrowing; and -no one is to let his land for any time exceeding 7 years, without -licence. Tenements in this manor are forfeited to the lord by treason or -felony. A tenant convicted of wilful perjury forfeits to the lord 20 -years' rent, and for petty larceny, 10 years' rent. - -PENNINGTON.--Pennington is the smallest parish in the county, and -contains fewer streams than any other parish in North Lonsdale. Some -feudal customs, obsolete in most places, are still observed in the manor -of Pennington. A tenant on admission pays a fine of 16 years' quit-rent. -On the death of the lord and on every change of the lord by descent, the -tenant pays a further fine of 6 years' quit-rent; and a running-fine, -town-term, or _gressom_, is payable every 7th year. The heir, where -there is a widow, pays a heriot. Every tenant must plant two trees of -the same kind for every one that he fells. Formerly every tenant was -obliged to carry a horse-load once a year to Manchester and half a -horse-load to Lancaster. In 1318 a dispute between the Pennington family -and the Abbot of Furness, as to boon services, was thus decided:--"That -the manor of Pennington was held by the service of 30_s._, and of -finding yearly, for one day in autumn, a man and woman, sufficient to -mow at the Grange of Lindale, for every house with a court-yard except -Sir William de Pennington's capital messuage; the convent to find the -daily refreshment of each mower while employed, according to ancient -custom; and Sir William granting that all the tenants of the manor, who -had or might have ploughs, should plough half an acre of the Abbot's -Grange at Lindale."[208] - -MUCHLAND.--Immediately after the Conquest Aldingham was granted to -Michael Flandrensis or le Fleming, and his land was called Michael's -land, to distinguish it from that of the abbey of Furness; spelled often -Mychel-land and Mychelande, till it got corrupted into Muchland. In the -manor of Muchland, the tenant on being admitted to his tenement pays to -the lord of the manor two years' rent over and above the usual annual -rent. Every tenant paying 40_s._ rent was formerly obliged to find a -horse and harness for the King's service, on the borders or elsewhere. -Every tenant who paid 20_s._ a year rent, was to furnish a man harnessed -for the King's service. Every old tenant paid a _gressom_ of one year's -rent on the death of the lord, and every new tenant pays two years' rent -to the next heir. The widow has one-third of the tenement during her -chaste widowhood. If a tenement is not presented within a year and a day -after the death of the tenant, or if it be sold, set, or let without -paying the fine, or _gressom_, for a year and a day, then the lord, if -there be not good distress upon the grounds, may seize such tenement -into his hands as a forfeiture, &c. - -LOWICK.--Here the customs are much the same as in Kirkby Ireleth, except -as to forfeitures. The running _gressom_, or town term, is a year's rent -every seventh year, paid to the lord. There are four house-lookers -annually appointed for reviewing and assigning timber for necessary -repairs. - -NEVIL HALL.--The admittance fine is two years' rent, over and above the -accustomed yearly rent. The heriot, on the change of lord, is half a -year's rent. The running _gressom_, or town-term, is half a year's rent -every seventh year. Every tenant paying 20_s._ rent was formerly to keep -a horse harnessed in readiness for the King's service. The widow in this -manor, if the first wife, to have half the tenement; but if she be a -latter wife, then only one-third the tenement. A tenant may, whenever he -pleases, give his tenement to any of his sons; and in default of sons to -any of his daughters, as he thinks fit. A tenant may let, or mortgage, -any tenement or part of it for a year, without a licence; and may sell -his whole tenant-right, or any part of it, with licence from the lord. -The rents mentioned above are old and immutable rents.[209] - -MUCH-URSWICK.--These customs include a fine of 20_d._ to the lord of the -manor on every change of tenancy, or on the death of the lord; except -one large house, which paying 4_s._ rent, paid a fine of five times the -lord's rent, or 5_d._ on the death of the lord, or a change of tenancy. -The tenant's widow had half the estate during chaste widowhood. The -tenants were obliged to carry a single horse-load, anciently fish, once -a year to Mowbreck Hall, near Kirkham; but this service was commuted for -a small rent called carriage rent. Tenements in this manor, on treason -or felony by the tenant are forfeited to the lord. A tenant convicted of -wilful perjury, forfeits to the lord twenty years' rent, and for petty -larceny, ten years' rent.[210] - -THE ROYAL MANOR OF WARTON.--These customs are similar in many respects -to those of the duchy manors in Furness. In the reign of Elizabeth a -commission of survey, and a jury of twenty-four, from the neighbouring -manors, made a return of the customs, which were confirmed by the Court -of Exchequer. These manorial bye-laws are applicable to customary -tenants, and relate to the subjects of heirships, performance of suit -and service, the powers of the steward, the enrolling of tenants, the -payment of rents, amounts of fines, &c. A fine of two years' rent is to -be imposed on changes of tenantry; all tenants paying above 20_s._ rent -were required to maintain a horse and man with armour, tenants paying -under 20_s._ being commanded to serve in person: these services to be -strictly and fully executed in cases of need. Each tenant is directed to -repair his own homestead. In case of the death of a married tenant, -one-half of the tenement is assigned to the widow, to be held during her -chaste widowhood, and the other half to the heir or heirs. The crime of -fornication to be punished with forfeiture. Tenants not to set, let, or -mortgage for above three years without licence; not to encroach on the -common without permission. The manor court to have jurisdiction in cases -of tithe and tenant right; the tenants to be at liberty to take ash -wood. The tenants are not to be abated in their rents for any loss they -may suffer in their several proportions of turbary, marsh and common. -These manorial regulations are now but seldom enforced, and the Court -Baron of Warton assembles only on rare occasions, not uncommonly after -intervals of years.[211] - -FEUDAL PRIVILEGES OF THE HONOUR AND MANOR OF HORNBY.--These ancient -privileges comprised free warren, subject to a fine of 10_l._ on -encroachments on the King's forests; right of market and fair at -Arkholme and at Hornby; court of view of frank-pledge; sheriff's turn; -free court of all pleas; assize of bread; soc, sac, tol, and them; -infangetheof and utfangetheof; hamsocn; leyrwite; murder; acquittance of -shires and hundreds, lestage [or lastage], aids of sheriffs and their -bailiffs, and amercements; wardships, and works and enclosures of -castles, parks, and bridges; and of passage, frontage, stallage, toll, -paiage, and money given for murder; and right to pontage, stallage, -hidage, and pickage. All these feudal customs were confirmed in the 12th -Charles I. (1636) to Henry Parker, Lord Morley and Monteagle.[212] - -A number of the above terms require explanation. "Money given for -murder," implied the fines levied on a district in which a murder had -been committed, and the criminal not discovered; "the privilege of -murder" was the power to levy such fines; thus the town or hundred which -suffered an Englishman, who had killed a Dane there to escape, was to be -amerced sixty-six marks [44_l._] to the King. _Hamsocn_, is the -privilege or liberty of a man's own house, its violation is burglary. -_Leyr_ or _lecher wite_, is the privilege of punishing adultery and -fornication. Passage is a toll for passing over water, as at a ford or -ferry; pontage is bridge toll; stallage, a toll for stalls in a market; -paiage or pavage, is a paving toll. _Sac_, the right of a lord to hold -pleas in his court, in causes of trespass among his tenants; _soc_, the -right to administer justice and execute laws; _toll_, the right to levy -tolls on tenants; _them_, the right to hear, restrain, and judge bondmen -and villeins, with their children, goods and chattels, &c. -_Infangetheof_, the lord's privilege to judge any thief taken within his -fee. _Outfangtheof_, the right of the lord to call men dwelling within -his manor, and taken for felony outside his fee, to judgment in the -lord's own court. - - -THE LORD'S YULE FEAST AT ASHTON. - -Among the customs of the Manor of Ashton-under-Lyne, as described by the -late Dr. Hibbert-Ware, was the making of so-called "presents" by the -tenants-at-will to the lord of the manor, for the sake of partaking in -the annual feast at the great hall. In the rental of Sir John de -Assheton, made in November 1422, these presents are claimed as an -obligatory service from the tenants-at-will, in the following -terms:--"That they shall give their presents at Yole [Christmas]; every -present to such a value as is written and set in the rental; and the -lord shall feed all his said tenants, and their wifes, upon Yole-day at -the dinner, if they like for to come; but the said tenants and their -wifes, though it be for their ease not to come, they shall send neither -man nor woman in their name,--but if [unless] they be their son or their -daughter dwelling with them,--unto the dinner; for the lord is not -bounden to feed them all, only the good man and the good wife." In some -manor-houses of Lancashire, once dedicated to these annual scenes of -festivity, may be observed an elevation of the floor [or _daïs_] at the -extremity of the great hall, or, in the place of it, a gallery which -stretches along one side of the room [many halls have both _daïs_ and -gallery] to accommodate the lord and his family, so that they might not -be annoyed by the coarse rustic freedoms which the tenants would be too -apt to take during the hours of their conviviality. In a hall, then, of -this kind in the manor-house at Assheton, we may imagine the large Yule -fire to be kindled; while in a gallery or raised floor Sir John of -Assheton, his lady, and family, together with his kinsmen, Elland of -Brighouse, and Sir John the Byron, are feasting apart, yet attentive to -the frolics or old songs of the company below. It was on these occasions -that peg-tankards were used, and horns that bore the names of the Saxons -and Danes, whom the Normans had ousted out of their possessions. Of the -description of ale that flowed merrily on these occasions we know -little; but there can be no doubt that it was like King Henry the -Eighth's ale, which contained neither hops nor brimstone. We may -suppose, then, that on annual festivals like these, the wooden bowl or -horn would pass freely through the hands of Sir John of Assheton's -tenants-at-will; among whom were such personages as Hobbe Adamson, Hobbe -of the Leghes, William the arrow-smith, Roger the baxter, Roger le -smith, Jack the spencer, Jack the hind, Elyn Wilkyn daughter, Elyn the -rose, and the widows Mergot of Staley, Peryn's wife, and Nan of the -Windy Bank,--all clad in their best hoods, and brown woollen jackets and -petticoats. The ancient musical instruments used in Lancashire were a -kind of fiddle, not of the present form, and a stringed instrument -called the virginals. The provincial songs of that period, few of which -were less than half-an-hour in length, rehearsed the deeds of Launcelot -du Lake, and his conquest of the giant Tarquin, at the castle of -Manchester; Ranulph of Chester, and his wars in the Holy Land; or the -warlike feats and amorous prowess of the renowned Cheshire hero, Roger -de Calverley. In order to preserve, as much as possible, the degree of -decorum that was necessary at such meetings, there was firstly -introduced a diminutive pair of stone stocks, of about eighteen inches -in length, for confining within them the fingers of the unruly. This -instrument was entrusted to the general prefect of manorial festivities -named the King of Misrule, whose office it was to punish all who -exceeded his royal notions of decency. Accordingly such a character -appears among the list of Sir John of Assheton's tenants, under the name -of Hobbe the king. From these entertainments being supported by the -contributions of the tenants, they were derisively called _Drink-leans_. -[_Læn_, A.-S. a loan, a gift, a reward; _Læne_, adj., lean, slender, -fragile.][213] - - -RIDING THE BLACK LAD AT ASHTON-UNDER-LYNE. - -In the rental of Sir John Assheton, knight, of his Manor of -Ashton-under-Lyne, A.D. 1422, it is stated that two of his sons, Rauf of -Assheton, and Robyn of Assheton, by grants to them, "have the sour carr -guld rode and stane rynges for the term of their lives." This donation -(says Dr. Hibbert-Ware) evidently alludes to the privilege of -_Guld-riding_, a custom that in Scotland at least is of great antiquity, -having been intended to prevent lands from being over-run with the -weeds, which, from their yellow colour, were named _gools_ or _gulds_, -_i.e._, the corn-marigold, or _Chrysanthemum Segetum_ of Linn. Boethius -(lib. 10) mentions a law of king Kenneth (probably rather of Alexander -II.) to prevent the growth of _manaleta_ or _guld_, and to impose a fine -of oxen on proof of its infraction. The Rev. J. P. Bannerman, in a -statistical account of the parish of Cargill, in Perthshire, states that -with a view of extirpating this weed, "after allowing a reasonable time -for procuring clean seed from other grounds, an act of the Baron Court -was passed, enforcing an old Act of Parliament to the same effect, -imposing a fine of 3_s._ 4_d._, or a wether sheep, on the tenants for -every stock of _gool_ that should be found growing in their corn at a -particular day; and certain persons styled _gool-riders_ were appointed -to ride through the fields, search for _gool_, and carry the law into -execution when they discovered it. Though the fine of a wether sheep is -now commuted and reduced to a penny, the practice of _gool-riding_ is -still kept up, and the fine rigidly exacted." To this origin Dr. -Hibbert-Ware attributes the custom peculiar to Ashton-under-Lyne of -"Riding the Black Lad." He states that in the days of Sir John of -Assheton (A.D. 1422) a large portion of low wet land in the vicinity of -Assheton was named the Sour Carr (carr being synonymous with the Scotch -word _carse_, and the well-known term _sour_ implying an impoverished -state of the carr). It had been over-run with corn-marigolds or -carr-gulds, which were so destructive to the corn that the lord of the -manor enforced some rigorous measures for their extirpation, similar to -the carr-guld riding in Perthshire. Ralph of Assheton, Sir John's son by -a second marriage, and Robin, his brother, were on a certain day in the -spring [Easter-Monday] invested with the power of riding over the lands -of the carr, named the _Carr Guld Rode_, of levying fines for all -_carr-gulds_ that were found among the corn, and, until the penalties -were paid, of punishing transgressors by putting them into the [finger] -_stocks_ or _stone rings_, or by incarceration. Ralph Assheton, by his -alliance with a rich heiress, became the lord of the neighbouring manor -of Middleton, and soon afterwards received the honour of knighthood; -being at the same time entrusted with the office of Vice-Constable of -the kingdom; and it is added, of Lieutenant of the Tower. Invested with -such authorities, he committed violent excesses in this part of the -kingdom. Retaining for life the privilege granted him in Ashton of -Guld-riding, he, on a certain day in spring, made his appearance in the -manor, clad in black armour (whence his name of the Black Lad or Black -Boy) mounted on a charger, and attended with a numerous train of his own -followers, in order to levy the penalty arising from the neglect of -clearing the land from carr-gulds. The interference of so powerful a -knight belonging to another township could not but be regarded by the -tenants of Assheton as the tyrannical intrusion of a stranger; and as -Sir Ralph, sanctioned by the political power given him by Henry VI., -exercised his privilege with the utmost severity, the name of the Black -Lad is still regarded with sentiments of horror. Tradition has, indeed, -perpetuated the prayer that was fervently ejaculated for a deliverance -from his tyranny:-- - - Sweet Jesu! for thy mercy's sake, - And for thy bitter passion, - Save us from the axe of the Tower, - And from Sir Ralph of Ashton. - -Upon the death of the Black Knight, Sir John's heir and successor -abolished the usage for ever, reserving for the estate a small sum of -money for the purpose of perpetuating, in an annual ceremony, the -dreaded annual visits of the Black Boy. This is still kept up. An effigy -is made of a man in armour; and since Sir Ralph was the son of a second -marriage (which, for this reason, had been esteemed by the heir of Sir -John as an unfortunate match) the image is deridingly emblazoned with -some emblem of the occupation of the first couple that are linked -together in the course of the year. [Mr. Edwin Butterworth says with the -initials of their names.] The Black Boy is then fixed on horseback, and, -after being led in procession round the town, is dismounted, made to -supply the place of a shooting-butt, and, all fire-arms being in -requisition for the occasion, he is put to an ignominious death. [The -origin of Riding the Black Lad, here suggested, is exceedingly -ingenious; but it seems questionable whether any real data for it are -given in the single passage cited from the rental of 1422. "The Sour -Carr Guld Rode and the Stane Ringes" taken as they stand, may mean the -Guld-ruyding, or ridding, as a piece of land cleared of stumps, &c., was -called; _ex. gr._ Hunt-royd, Orme-rod, Blake-rod, &c. The Stone Rings -may be a piece of land so-called. There is no mention of the power to -levy penalties, nor even of any official riding, but only the -_rode_,--not road, as it has been interpreted, but ridded land, perhaps -cleared from gulds and weeds, no less than from stubs, stumps, and -stones.--EDS.][214] - -Mr. Roby, from the above materials, has written a tale of Sir Ralph's -cruel seizure of a widow's only cow, as the heriot due to him as lord of -the manor, on the death of her husband. Her half-witted son is said to -have told Sir Ralph that on his death his master the devil would claim a -heriot, and that Sir Ralph himself would be given up. On this Sir Ralph -took fright, and sent back the heriot cow to the poor widow. Another -tradition exists as to the origin of the custom of "Riding the Black -Lad," which Mr. Roby thinks may have been fabricated merely to throw off -the odium attached to the name of Sir Ralph. In the reign of Edward III. -one Thomas Assheton fought under Queen Philippa in the battle of -Neville's Cross. Riding through the ranks of the enemy, he bore away the -royal standard from the Scotch king's tent, who himself was afterwards -taken prisoner. King Edward, on his return from France, conferred on -Thomas the honour of knighthood, with the title of "Sir Thomas Assheton -of Assheton-under-Lyne." To commemorate this singular display of valour, -Sir Thomas instituted the custom of "Riding the Black Knight or Lad" at -Assheton, on Easter-Monday; leaving 10_s._ yearly to support it, -together with his own suit of black velvet, and a coat of mail. Which of -these accounts of the origin of the custom is correct, there is now no -evidence to determine. - - -BOON SHEARING. - -In the manor of Ashton-under-Lyne, every tenant-at-will was thus -commanded:--"He that plough has, shall plough two days. He that half -plough has, shall plough a day, whenever the lord be liever [more -willing], in wheet-seeding, or in lenton-seeding; and every tenant -harrow a day with their harrow, in seeding time, when they bin charged. -And they should cart, every tenant ten cartful of turve from Doneam Moss -to Assheton, and shere four days in harvest, and cart a day corn." This -service, so profitable to the lord, was familiarly called boon-work. -Hence an old adage still retained in the North of England, when a man is -supposed to be working for nothing, that "he has been served like a -boon-shearer."[215] - - -THE PRINCIPAL OR HERIOT. - -One of the services of Sir John Assheton's tenants-at-will, in the manor -of Ashton-under-Lyne, in the fifteenth century, as appears by his rental -of 1422, was that "they should pay a principal at their death, to wit, -the best beast they have." This was evidently a heriot. As of a military -vassal, or tenant by knight-service, his horse was the heriot due to his -lord at death; so the custom became extended to that class of dependents -who were retained in the lord's employ to perform the busier services of -the manor. As their property consisted of cattle, or of implements of -husbandry, the heriot due to the lord was the best beast, cow, or horse, -of which the tenant might die possessed. This condition being fulfilled, -every further claim upon the goods of the deceased was remitted. At -times this expressive relic of ancient military subjection was found -exceedingly galling. In the manor of Assheton there are many traditional -stories still remaining on the subject of such principals or heriots. A -tenant's boy, on the death of his father, was driving an only cow to the -manor-house of the adjoining demesnes of Dukinfield. He was met by the -lord of the place, with whose person and rank he was unacquainted, who -questioned him whither he was taking his beast. "I am driving it as far -as Dukinfield for the heriot," replied the boy. "My father is dead--we -are many children--and we have no cow but this. Don't you think the -devil will take Sir Robert for a heriot, when he dies?" The lad was -fortunately addressing a humane landlord. "Take the cow back to thy -mother; I know Sir Robert,--I am going to Dukinfield myself, and will -make up the matter with him."[216] - - -DENTON RENT-BOONS. - -The lands of the Denton estates of the Hollands were held in 1780 by -seventeen tenants, subject to a rent of 294_l._ 6_s._ 8_d._ The entire -property was held by lease of lives, and this rental was exclusive of -fines paid on the renewal of leases. By the terms of their respective -leases the tenants were also pledged to the payment of certain -rent-boons, consisting of a dog and a cock, or (at the landlord's -option) of their equivalent in money--for the dog 10_s._, for the cock -1_s._; the landlord thus providing for his amusement in hunting and -cock-fighting in a manner least onerous to himself.[217] - - -A SAXON CONSTABLEWICK. - -Until within these few years a relic of Saxon polity more ancient than -the Domesday Survey existed in the Constablewick of Garstang, which -continued to our own days, the _freo borh_, _friborg_, or Saxon manor, -in a very perfect state. The free-burgh consisted of 11 townships, -surrounding the original lordship to which all but one were subject. The -reason for establishing this institution is stated in a Saxon law. The -_Wita_, or counsellors, having considered the impunity with which -trespasses against neighbours were committed, appointed over every ten -friborgs, justiciaries whom they denominated _tien heofod_ or "head of -ten." These (says Dr. Keuerden) handled smaller causes between townsmen -and neighbours, and according to the degree of the trespass, awarded -satisfaction; made agreements respecting pastures, meadows and -corn-lands, and reconciled differences among neighbours. The -constablewick of Garstang comprised the township of Garstang and ten -other townships, all of which are styled hamlets in the books of the -court, and were divided into three portions. Two constables were -annually elected for this district, and were alternately taken from each -third portion of the constablewick. The jury were nominated in a similar -manner. The jury were accustomed to adjourn from the court to an -eminence called Constable hillock, adjoining the river Wyre, where they -made choice of the constables by inscribing their names upon slips of -wood. These officers were empowered to collect the county-rates, and -serve for all the hamlets. The court was held annually, by direction of -a steward of the Duke of Hamilton, the superior lord of the wick, till -1816, when it fell into neglect, and its powers are now exercised in -such of the townships only as are the property of the Duke. The -adjournment of the court to the hillock is obviously the remnant of a -custom far more ancient than the institution of the friborg itself.[218] - - -TALLIAGE OR TALLAGE. - -This was a kind of occasional property tax, levied by order of the -monarch in emergencies, and throughout the kingdom. In the charter -granted by Randle, Earl of Chester, to the burgesses of Stafford, about -A.D. 1231, is a clause reserving to him and his heirs reasonable -tallage, when the King makes or takes tallage of his burgesses -throughout England. A precisely similar clause is found in Thomas -Greslet's charter to his burgesses of Mamecestre in 1301. In the 11th -Henry III. (1226-27) a still earlier talliage was made in Lancashire, -which enables us to measure the relative importance of the principal -towns in the county early in the thirteenth century. The impost was -assessed by Master Alexander de Dorsete and Simon de Hal; and the -payments were for the towns of Lancaster thirteen marks (£8 13_s._ -4_d._); Liverpool, eleven marks, 7_s._ 8_d._ (£7 14_s._ 4_d._); West -Derby, seven marks, 7_s._ 8_d._ (£5 1_s._); Preston, fifteen marks, -6_d._ (£10 0_s._ 6_d._). The tenants in thanage paid ten marks (£6 -13_s._ 4_d._) to have respite, that they might not be talliaged. Baines -deems it remarkable that Manchester, Stafford, and Wigan were not -included; but in these old manors it was the lord of the manor who had -the right to levy talliage within his manor. In 1332 a tallage of -one-fifteenth was levied by Edward III., to enable him to carry on the -war against Scotland.[219] - - -ROCHDALE TITHE, EASTER-DUES, MORTUARIES, ETC. - -The following is a literal copy of a small hand-bill in possession of -the writer, which appears to have been printed for distribution among -the farmers and the parishioners generally, with the purpose of -supplying information as to the various payments to be made to the -vicar, or at all events to the parish church:-- - - An EXTRACT out of the _Parliament Survey_, - Taken the 10th of _January_ 1620. - - The Parish of _Rochdale_ is divided into four Divisions, viz. - _Hundersfield_, _Spotland_, _Castleton_, and _Butterworth_. There is - also belonging to the Rectory of _Rochdale_, the Parish Chapel of - _Saddleworth_, in the County of _York_; and certain Parcels of Glebe - Lands, lying in _Saddleworth_. - - [*3] There is no Tythe Hay paid within the Parish, but a Penny a - Year every one payeth that holdeth any Lands within the Parish. - - No Tythe paid for Eggs, Apples, Hemp, or Flax. - - The Manner of receiving the _Easter-Role_ and Mortuarys are - thus--each Horse payeth a Penny; for every married Man or Widow at - the Offering, a Penny; every Plough a Penny; every Swarm of Bees a - Penny; every Cow one Penny; and every Colt, and every Calf, one - Halfpenny. - - For Mortuarys--Every one buried in the Chancel payeth 6_s._ 8_d._ - every one that dieth worth twenty Nobles, in moveable Goods, over - and above his Debts, payeth 3_s._ 4_d._ if worth 30_l._ payeth - 6_s._ 8_d._ if worth 40_l._ or upwards, 10_s._--Stat. 21. Hen. 8. - Chap. 6. - - N.B. That House or Smoke, and Garden, hath been substituted in the - Room of Horse and Plough. - - In Closes where there are more than ten Stacks of Corn (or even - tens) in one Close, _the odd Stacks shall not be tythed_; the - Land-Owner setting up the Corn in Stacks, may be a good - Consideration for the same; because of Common Right the Tytheman is - to take the Corn Tythe in the Sheaf, but when the same is stacked, - as is customary in many places, the Tytheman may not break any odd - Stack, for he cannot tythe both by the Stack and Sheaf. And this - was the Opinion of Serjeants _Poole_ and _Kenyan_, and of Lawyer - _Wilson_. - - No Complaint concerning any small Tythes, &c. shall be determined - by Justices of Peace, unless the Complaint be made within two Years - after the same Tythes, &c. become due. Stat. 7. and 8. William 3. - Chap. 6. - - -FARM AND AGRICULTURAL CELEBRATIONS IN THE FYLDE. - -In the olden times almost every great agricultural operation had its -peculiar festivities; now almost everywhere obsolete. The harvest home, -its procession and feast, still linger the last of these rural -celebrations, but shorn of much of its old ceremonial and jollity. -"Shutting of marling" had also its gala-day. Then a "lord" and a "lady" -presided at the feast; having been previously drawn out of the marl-pit -by a strong team of horses, gaily decorated with ribbons, mounted by -their drivers, who were trimmed out in their best. The procession -paraded through the village lanes and streets, some of its members -shaking tin boxes, and soliciting contributions from the bystanders. The -money collected was expended in good cheer at the feast. Again, -"Cob-seeding" was a time when mirth and good-nature prevailed. Like the -"bee" of our American cousins, it was an occasion when all helped every -one else in turn,--collecting, threshing, winnowing the crop on the -field; "housing" the seed ready prepared for the market; and when all -the work of the day was finished, partaking of a substantial supper, and -closing the evening with many a merry dance on the barn's clay -floor.[220] - - -DALTON-IN-FURNESS. - -Among the ancient customs of Dalton, is the practice of hiring reapers -on Sundays in time of harvest. Endeavours have been made to abolish it; -but by the statute of 27 Henry VI. cap. 5, for suppressing -Sabbath-breaking, four Sundays in harvest time are excepted from the -prohibition against holding markets and fairs on holydays, and the -people of Dalton have construed it to the hiring of such servants. Till -of late years there was at Dalton an annual festival called "The Dalton -Hunt," in which the gentlemen of the district partook of the sports of -the field by day, and joined the ladies in the ball-room at night. A -suite of rooms was erected in the town, and handsomely fitted-up for -this annual jubilee, which existed as early as the year 1703, as appears -from the columns of the _London Gazette_, in which it is styled "the -Dalton Route," and the pen of an elegant contributor to the _Tatler_ has -imparted to it additional celebrity. To the regret of the beaux and -belles of the neighbourhood the "route" was discontinued in 1789, and -has never since been revived.[221] - - -LETTING SHEEP FARMS IN BOWLAND. - -One custom, in letting the great sheep-farms in the higher parts of -Bowland, deserves to be mentioned, as I do not know that it prevails -anywhere else. It is this: That the flock, often consisting of 2000 -sheep, or more, is the property of the lord, and delivered to the tenant -by a schedule, subject to the condition of delivering up an equal number -of the same quality at the expiration of the term. Thus the tenant is -merely usufructuary of his own stock. The practice was familiar to the -Roman law, and seems to have arisen from the difficulty of procuring -tenants who were able to stock farms of such extent.[222] - - -MEDIÆVAL LATIN LAW TERMS. - -The old charters and deeds of Manchester, Warrington, and other -Lancashire towns, contain various words now obsolete, and amongst others -the words _namare_ and _namium_, which it is not easy to render -accurately. The first may be translated to seize in pledge, to arrest, -to distrain; the second is a pledge, or a distress, what is seized by -distraint. In connexion with the substantive _namium_, the following -anecdote of the great Sir Thomas More may be told, as illustrative of -the obscurity of some of these ancient law terms. It is said that Sir -Thomas, when travelling, arrived at Padua just as a boasting Professor -had placarded the walls of that University with a challenge to all the -world to dispute with him on any subject or in any art, and that Sir -Thomas accepted the challenge, and proposed for his subject this -question:-- - - "AN AVERIA CARUCÆ CAPTA IN VETITO NAMIO SINT IRREPLEGIBILIA?" - -which, it is almost needless to add, proved such a stumbling-block to -the challenger, who did not know even the very terms of the question, -that he surrendered at discretion, and acknowledged himself -vanquished.[223] - -Perhaps the best way to English the puzzling question, would be to -render it thus:--"Whether plough-cattle, taken in illegal distress, are -irrepleviable?" But several of the words are susceptible of two -meanings. Thus _averia_ means goods, as well as cattle; _caruca_, a -cart, as well as a plough; _namium_, a pledge, as well as a distress. It -is not to be wondered at that the continental Professor found himself -unable even to comprehend the terms of this perplexing question. - - -CUSTOMS [DUES] AT WARRINGTON. - -Amongst the Tower records are three royal charters bearing date -respectively 3 Edward II., 15 Edward II., and 12 Edward III. (1309-10, -1321-2, 1338), and granting, for the purpose of effecting repairs in the -bridges and pavements, certain temporary customs on articles brought -into Warrington for sale. In the two first of these charters, a custom -of one farthing is imposed on every 100 faggots and every 1000 turves; -and of one halfpenny on every cart-load of wood or wind-blown timber. -The last of the charters imposes a custom of one penny on every 1000 -faggots, one farthing on every 10,000 turves, one penny on every -ship-load of turves, and one halfpenny weekly on every cart-load of wood -and coals [_carbonum_, ? charcoal]. Amongst other articles, a custom was -imposed on salt, on bacon, on cheese (probably from Cheshire), on -butter, on lampreys, on salmon, on pelts of sheep, goats, stags, hinds, -deer, does, hares, rabbits, foxes, cats, and squirrels; on cloths in the -entire piece; on grice work (_i.e._, fur of the skins of blue weasels); -on Cordovan leather, on oil in flasks (_lagenas olei_); on hemp, on -linen webs; on Aylesbury webs and linen; on canvas, Irish cloths, -Galways and worsteds; on silks, diapered with gold (_de Samite_) and -tissue; on silks within gold; on sendal [or _cendal_, a kind of silk]; -on cloth of baudekin [silk cloth, interwoven with threads of gold]; on -gads of maple, and on Aberdeen gads; on every tun of wine (_et -cinerum_--the ashes of burnt wine lees); on honey; on wool in sacks; on -tin, brass, copper, iron, and lead; on alum, copperas, argil, and -verdigris; on onions and garlic; and on stock-fish, salt mullet, -herrings, and sea-fish, amongst a number of other articles.[224] - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[202] Baines's _Lancashire_. - -[203] Claus., 7 Edward III., 1333, p. 1, m. 23. - -[204] Baines's _Lancashire_. - -[205] Dr. Whitaker's _Whalley_. - -[206] Baines's _History of Lancashire_. - -[207] Baines's _History of Lancashire_. - -[208] Baines's _Lancashire_. - -[209] West's _History of Furness_. - -[210] Baines's _History of Lancashire_. - -[211] Baines's _History of Lancashire_. - -[212] Baines's _Lancashire_. - -[213] _Illustration of the Customs of a Manor in the North of England._ - -[214] Dr. Hibbert-Ware's _Illustration of the Customs of a Manor in the -North of England_. - -[215] Dr. Hibbert-Ware's _Illustration of the Customs of a Manor in the -North of England_. - -[216] _Illustration of the Customs of a Manor in the North of England_, -by Dr. Hibbert-Ware. - -[217] Rev. J. Booker's _Chapel of Denton_. - -[218] Baines's _Lancashire_. - -[219] Baines's _Lancashire_. - -[220] Rev. W. Thornber's _History of Blackpool_. - -[221] Baines's _Lancashire_. - -[222] Dr. Whitaker's _Whalley_. - -[223] Mr. Beamont's _Warrington in the Thirteenth Century_. - -[224] Mr. W. Beamont, in _Warrington in 1465_. - - - - -INDEX. - - - Agricultural and Farm Celebrations in the Fylde, 298 - - Alchemists, 23; - two Lancashire, 30 - - Alchemy, 23 - - Ale, price of, 281; - of Halton, 259; - Warrington, 259; - Cockerham, 281 - - Ale Founders, 281 - - All-Souls Night, 49 - - " Day, 251 - - Apostle Spoons, 262 - - Arrowsmith, Father, his execution and the dead hand, 158-163 - - Arval, cake and ale, 270-272 - - Ascension Day, or Holy Thursday, 249 - - Ash-Wednesday, 221 - - Ashton, (Sir Thomas), of Ashton, 30 - - Ashton-under-Lyne, manorial customs of, 286, 289, 292, 293; - the Lord's Yule Feast at, 286; - Riding the Black Lad at, 289 - - Assheton (Sir John de), 287 - - " (Sir Ralph de), 290-292 - - Astrologers, Lancashire, 33 - - Astrology, 33 - - Auld Wife Hakes, 216 - - Averia (cattle, goods), 300, 301 - - Aylesbury webs and linen, 302 - - - Baal Worship, 3-45 - - Bacon, Customs' dues on, 301 - - Ball, or "Old Ball," 234, 235 - - Baptismal Customs, 260 - - Barguest, bar- or barn-ghaist, 91 - - Barnacle Geese, 116-121 - - Bel, Belus, or Baal, 45 - - Belisama, the River Ribble, 4 - - Bells, church, 41, 42; - passing and funeral, 41, 42; - pancake, 44; - curfew, 44; - submarine, 44; - verses, 42 - - Beltane or Beltein fires, 3, 45, 47, 48 - - Betrothing and bridal customs, 263 - - Bible, for direction, divination, and dreams, 20 - - Bible and key, 103 - - Bidding to funerals, 274 - - Birth and baptismal customs, 260 - - Black Lad, at Ashton, 289 - - Bleeding, charms to stop, 77 - - Boggart, or bogle, 16; - the name, 49; - the flitting, 58 - - Boggart Hole Clough, 50 - - Boggarts, ghosts, and haunted places, 49; - various, 58; - in old halls, 51; - in the nineteenth century, 61 - - Bones of St. Lawrence at Chorley, 157 - - Booker (John), of Manchester, astrologer, 34-38 - - _Books of Fate_, 145 - - Boon rents at Denton, 294 - - Boon shearing at Ashton, 292, 293 - - Bothe (Thomas del) his will, 241 - - Bowland, letting sheep, &c., 300 - - Bragot-Sunday, 225, 258 - - Bridal bouquet, 268; - flowers, _ib._ - - Bride's chair at Warton, 265 - - Brindle Church, footprint at, 134 - - Bromley (Sir Edward), judge, 189 - - Brownies or _lares_, 16 - - Bryn Hall, the Gerards, and the dead man's hand, 158-163 - - Bungerley stepping-stones, 90 - - Burial by candle light, 273; - of a widow in vows, _ib._ - - Burnley, the church, 89; - a witch near, 209; - wedding customs at, 265 - - Burying in woollen, 269 - - - Cards, 140 - - Carlins, 258 - - Carnaval, 217 - - Carols, Christmas, 257 - - Carr Gulds, 290 - - Cartmel Church, Legend of, 137 - - Cattle Diseases, Charms for, 79 - - Celebrations, Farm and Agricultural, in the Fylde, 298 - - Changelings, 263 - - Charles I., King, 200, 240 - - Charm, a, in cypher, 63 - - Charms and spells, 62; - against evil beings, _ib._; - against sickness, wounds, &c., 74; - crow, lady-bird, 70-71; - to get drink, 72-74; - against danger by night, 74; - wounds, 74; - toothache, 75; - rheumatism and cramp, 75; - ague, 80; - nettle stings, _ib._; - jaundice, _ib._; - to get sleep, _ib._ - - "Chattox, Old," a witch, 186-189 - - Child, unbaptized, cannot die, 262 - - Childbed presents, 260 - - Childbirth, tea-drinking, 261 - - " turning the bed after, 261 - - Children, gifts to, 262 - - Christianizing of pagan gods and festivals, 14 - - Christmas, 252; - mumming at, 253; - carols, 254; - games, 255; - mutes, 256 - - Christmas at Wycoller Hall, 256 - - " Carols, 254; - rhymes, 253 - - Christmas customs in the Fylde, 254; - games there, 255 - - Christmas-day, old and new, 20; - breakfast in the Fylde, 256 - - Christmas Eve, creatures worshipping, 253; - called "Flesh-day," 256 - - " Evergreens, &c., 256 - - Christmas Frumenty, 252, 256 - - Christmas hobby-horse, 254 - - Christmas or Yule Feast, at Ashton-under-Lyne, 286 - - Church Festivals, 212, _et seq._ - - Churches and Churchyards, north and south sides of, 275 - - Cinderella and her slipper, 5 - - Clayton Hall Boggart, 52 - - Clegg Hall Boggart, 52 - - Cleworth, Demoniacs in 1594, 92 - - Clock-house Boggart, 52 - - Cob-seeding, 298 - - Cock-penny, at Clitheroe, 220 - - Cock-throwing and Cock-fighting, 218; - about Blackburn, 220; - at Burnley, _ib._ - - Cockerham Manor, 281; - ale in, _ib._ - - Cokersand Abbey, 281; - abbot of, _ib._ - - Collop Monday, 217 - - Constablewick, a Saxon, 295 - - Corals with bells, 262 - - Corpse, carrying the, 272, 274 - - Courting and Wedding Customs in the Fylde, 264 - - Cousell and Clarke, conjurors, 86 - - Cramp Rings, 75 - - Creed and Little Creed, at Eccles, 114 - - Cross-buns on Good Friday, 226 - - Crow Charm, 70 - - Curfew Bell, 44 - - Customs of Manors, 276; - in Furness, 281; - Ashton, 286, 289 - - Customs' dues at Warrington, 301 - - "Cuthbert, Old mother," and her daughters, 177 - - - Dalton-in-Furness, funerals at, 271; - manor, 299; - hunt and rout, _ib._ - - Dalton-in-Furness, hiring reapers on Sunday, 299 - - Danish Traditions, &c., 4, 5 - - Darrell's (Rev. John) _Narrative_, &c. 93, 96; - his punishment, 97 - - Dead and Dying, the, 7 - - " man's hand, 158, 163 - - " raising the, 128 - - Deasil, or Widersinnis, 151 - - Death tick or Death watch, 152 - - Dee (Dr. John), 25 - - " charged with Witchcraft, 178 - - Deities and demi-gods, 12 - - "Demdike, Old," a witch, 186; - "Young Demdike," _ib._ - - Demon and Goblin Superstitions, 88 - - Demon Pig, 89 - - Demoniacal possession in 1594, 92; - in 1686, 98 - - Demoniacs, 87; - dispossessing a, 92; - at Morzine, 88 - - Demonology, 86 - - Denton Rent-boons, 294 - - Derby (Edward 3rd) Earl of, charged with keeping a Conjuror, 129 - - Device, Elizabeth and Alizon, witches, 186, 189 - - Devil, the 16; - his names, 84-86; - a card-player, 81; - raised, 17, 81; - exorcised, 17, 81 - - Devil, at Burnley, 83 - - " and the Tailor of Chatburn, 82; - and the Dun horse, _ib._; - and the schoolmaster at Cockerham, 83 - - Devil, sacrifices to, 82; - appearances of, _ib._ - - "Devils of Morzine," (demoniacs) 88 - - Dispossession of Devils, 93-98 - - Divination, ancient, 7; - Lancashire, _ib._ - - " 102; - at marriages, 103; - by Bible and key, _ib._; - Lancashire form of, 104; - by the dying, _ib._; - second-sight, 105; - spirits of the dying and dead, _ib._; - by lots, 106 - - Doles at Weddings, 264; - at funerals, 270; - at Swinton, _ib._ - - Downham, King and Queen at, 248 - - Dreams, 6, 19, 140, 145-149 - - Drink-leans, 288 - - Druidical Rock basins, 106-110 - - Dugdale, the Surey demoniac, 98 - - Dukinfield (Sir Robert), and the heriot, 294 - - Dying, Death-bed, and Funeral Customs, 268 - - Dying hardly, 268 - - - Easter, _Eostre_, 8, 226, 227 - - " Customs, 227-237; - Fylde, 236 - - " Day, 227 - - " Eggs, 227, 228 - - " Monday, 233, 237 - - " "Lifting or heaving," 233; - game of the ring, 234; - Sports, 231 - - Easter sports at the Manchester Free Grammar School, 231 - - Eating and Drinking Customs, 258 - - Eccles, ignorance in, 113-115 - - Eccles cakes, 258 - - Edward I., King, 27; - his gift for "lifting," 233 - - Edward III., King, 28; - his letter for alms, 133 - - Edward IV., King, 32 - - Edward VI., King, 34 - - Eggs, Pace, Pasche, or Easter, 217, 228; - in Blackburn, 228, 229; - in East Lancashire, 231; - bought for Easter, 229; - papal prayer, blessing eggs, 229 - - "Elias, the Prophet," a fanatic, 138 - - Elizabeth, Queen, 35 - - Ellen's (St.) Well, in Brindle, 172 - - Elves and Fairies, 110-113 - - Everton toffy, 258 - - Evil Eye, the, 69 - - Ewe Loaf, the, 256 - - Exorcism of demons by godly ministers, 95, 98-101 - - - Fag-pie (or Fig-pie) Sunday, 226, 258 - - Fairies, 53; - and Elves, 106-110 - - Fairy, a, on Mellor Moor, 111 - - " Hole, at Warton, 265 - - " Queen, 16 - - " Tales, Lancashire, 112, 113 - - Familiar Spirit, Transfer of a, 210 - - _Famous History of Witches_, 176 - - Feeorin (fairies), 53 - - Fern Seed, 10 - - Festivals, Church and Season, 212 - - Finger Stocks of Stone, 288 - - Flemings' Wooden Shoes and Oaten Bread, 259 - - "Flesh-Day" (Christmas Eve), 256 - - Folk-Lore, Eastern, 2-6; - Greek and Roman, 5, 6; - Scandinavian, 4, 5; - various, 113; - of Eccles and neighbourhood, 113 - - Footprints at Brindle Church, 134; - at Smithells Hall, 135 - - Fortune-Telling, 121-126; - Story of, 122; - "Owd Rollison," 123 - - Frumenty, 262, 256, 258 - - Funeral Biddings, 274; - gifts, 275; - bay, rosemary, &c., 270, 272, 275 - - Funeral Customs, 268; - in East Lancashire, 273; - at Dalton-in-Furness, 271; - at Warton, 271; - Fylde, 272 - - Funeral Doles, 270; - at Swinton, _ib._; - various, 274 - - Funeral Sermons, 274; - dinners and drinkings, 272 - - Furness, Manorial Customs, 281, 285 - - Fylde, The (in Lancashire), _passim_. - - " Easter Customs in, 236, 242, 243 - - " Farm and Agricultural Celebrations in, 298 - - " Harvest Home, 298; - "shutting of marling," _ib._; - cob-seeding, _ib._ - - - Gabriel Ratchets, 89, 167 - - "Gang-Days," or Rogation Days, 248 - - Garstang, a Saxon Constablewick, 295 - - Geese, hatched from sea-shells, 116 - - Gemmel Rings, 263 - - Gerard (Sir Thomas), 131 - - " (Sir John), 162 - - Gerards of Bryn, 158-162 - - Gifts to Infants, 262 - - Gloucester (Eleanor), Duchess of, and Witchcraft, 174 - - Gloves, Wedding, 268 - - Goblin, Gobelinus, Kobold, Khobalus, &c., 16 - - Goblin Builders, 89 - - " Superstitions, 88 - - Good Friday, 226; - viands, 226, 237 - - "Goose-Intentos," 250 - - Graves, Situation and Direction of, 275 - - Greek Traditions and Superstitions, 5, 6, 13; - Mythology, 13 - - Grendels, The, 17 - - Grislehurst Boggart, 61 - - Groaning Cheese and Cake, 260 - - Guld-Riding, 289 - - Gunpowder Plot, 251 - - Guy Fawkes, 251 - - - Hackensall Hall Boggart, 59 - - Hæver or Hiver, 149 - - Hakes, Auld Wife, 216 - - Hallowe'en, 3 - - Halton Ale, 259 - - Hand-bell Ringing, 258 - - Hand-festing, 263 - - Hartlay (John), a Conjuror, 93-96 - - Harvest Home, 298 - - Havercake Lads, 258 - - Helen's (St.) Well in Brindle, 172; - near Sefton, 173 - - Henry IV., King, 20 - - Henry VI., King, 28, 29, 31; - miracles at his tomb, 132 - - Henry VII., King, his embassy to Pope Julius II., 132 - - Henry VIII., King, 87; - his ale, 287 - - Heriot or Principal, at Ashton-under-Lyne, 292, 293; - story of, 294 - - "Hobbe, the King," at Ashton, 288 - - Hobby-horse at Christmas, 254 - - Hornby, Honour and Manor of, 285 - - " Park Mistress and Margaret Brackin, 59 - - Horwich Moor, 48 - - Hothershall Hall, 5 - - House Boggarts, 56 - - Household bewitched, 184 - - Hunchback, story of the, 5 - - Huntingdon's, Earl of, letter, 130 - - Hydrocephalus in Cattle, to cure, 79 - - - Ignagning, 236 - - Imps, or Changelings, 263 - - Ince Hall, 52 - - Ince Manor House, 52 - - " Oatmeal Charity at, 249 - - Indo-European origin of superstitions, 2 - - Infants, gifts to, 262 - - Invocation at bedtime, 68, 69 - - - Jack and the Bean-Stalk, 5 - - Jack the Giant-Killer, 5 - - James I., King, his _Dæmonologie_, 185 - - Jannocks, 259 - - Johnson's (Margaret), confession, 198 - - Jolly Lads, 236 - - Jourdain (Margery), witch of Eye, 174 - - - Kelly (Edward), the Seer, 25, 126 - - Killing a witch, 208 - - King and Queen at Downham, 248 - - King of the May, 254 - - " of Misrule, 288 - - King's Evil, touching for, 77 - - Kirkby Ireleth, Manor of, 281 - - Knighthood, honour of, 277; - compulsory in 1278, 1292, and 1305, _ib._ - - Knives, &c., 18; - Manchester, 280 - - - Labouring Goblins, 56 - - Lady in the straw, 260 - - Lady-bird charm, 70, 71 - - Lancashire musical instruments, 288 - - " Witches, verses on, 179 - - Lancaster (Thomas), Earl of, a saint, 133, 134 - - Lating or Leeting Witches, 210 - - Law Terms, mediæval Latin, 300 - - Lawrence, St., his bones at Chorley, 157 - - Leadbetter (Charles), a Lancashire astrologer, 40 - - Legend of Cartmel Church, 137 - - Lent, 221 - - Local customs and usages at various seasons, 212, _et seq._ - - Lord's Day conjuration, 67 - - Lostock May-pole, 243 - - Lots, casting or drawing, 106 - - Lowick, Manor of, 283 - - Lubber Fiend, 59, 89 - - - Magic and Magicians, 126 - - Magpies, 143-145 - - Malkin Tower, in Pendle Forest, 186, 189, 204, 211 - - Manchester knife, a, 289 - - " Church, weddings at, 265 - - Manorial franchises, &c., 285 - - Manors, customs of, 276; - in Furness, 281; - Ashton-under-Lyne, 286, 289; - Smithells, 280; - Cockerham, 281; - Kirkby Ireleth, _ib._; - Pennington, 282; - Muchland, _ib._; - Lowick, 283; - Nevill Hall, _ib._; - Much Urswick, 284; - Warton, _ib._; - Hornby, 285; - Ashton-under-Lyne, 286, 289 - - Maritagium, custom of, 278 - - Marsh (Geo.), the martyr, 135-137 - - Martins, "shifting of," 143 - - Mary Queen of Scots, 131 - - May-day Eve, 46, 47, 239 - - " Customs, 238-246; - in Spotland, 242; - in Manchester, 245 - - May-day Games, decay of, 241; - at Burnley (1579), 244 - - May-Poles, 240-243; - Parliamentary ordinance against, 241 - - May King and Queen, 246 - - " Songs, 239 - - Mermaid of Marton Mere, 90 - - "Messes" at dinners, &c., 271, 274 - - Michaelmas Day, 250; - goose, _ib._, 258 - - Mid-Lent Sunday, or Mothering Sunday, 222, 225 - - Mince Pies, 255, 258 - - Miracles, or Miraculous Stories, 131 - - " of a dead Duke of Lancaster (King Henry VI.), 132-134 - - Miraculous cures by a dead man's hand, 158-163 - - Miraculous footprints in Brindle Church, 134; - in Smithells Hall, 135 - - "Mischief Night," 239 - - Mistletoe, 252 - - Money gift at funerals, 275 - - Moon, the, 70; - omens from, 149; - names for autumn moons, 250 - - More (Sir Thomas), Story of, 300 - - "Mothering Sunday," 222, 225 - - Mountain Ash, 72 - - Muchland, Manor of, 282 - - Much-Urswick, Manor of, 284 - - Mutes at Christmas, 256 - - Mythology of Greece and Rome, 13; - Oriental, _ib._; - Northern, _ib._ - - - Naiades, Nixies, Nisses, 16 - - Nails, cutting, 68 - - Nevill Hall, Manor of, 283 - - New Year's-Day, weather omens, 151; - Festival, 214; - and Old Christmas-Day, 212 - - New-Year's turkey, 258 - - " Eve, fire on, 214 - - New-Year's Luck, 214; - first caller, 215; - gifts and wishes, 216 - - Nicholas, St., 85 - - "Nick, Old" (the devil), 84-86 - - Night-mare, 89 - - Northumbrian Superstitions, 9 - - November 1, All Souls' Day, 251 - - November 5, Gunpowder Plot, 251 - - Numbers, odd, 4; - "3" and "7," _ib._ - - Nutter (Alice), a wealthy witch, 193 - - - Oat Cake, 258; - Jannocks, 259 - - Oatmeal charity at Ince, 249 - - "Old Nick" (the devil), 84-86 - - "Old Scrat," or Skrat, 90 - - Omens and Predications, 138, 139 - - Omens, Dreams, Withershins, Cards, Teacups, &c., 140 - - Omens--Cats, 141; - Dogs, Lambs, Birds, 142; - Swallows, Magpies, _ib._ - Deasil, or Widersinnis, 151; - weather for New Year's-Day, 151; - Death tick, or watch, 152 - - Ormskirk gingerbread, 258 - - - Pace or Pasche-egging, 128; - in Blackburn, _ib._; - East Lanc., 231 - - Pagan gods, festivals and temples, changed into Christian saints, - feasts and churches, 14 - - Pancake Bell, 44; - Tuesday, 218 - - Passing Bell, 44 - - Paternoster, White, &c., at Eccles, 115 - - Peel of Fouldrey and Tree-Geese, 116 - - Peggy's Well, Legend of, 171 - - Pendle, Forest and Hill of, 202, 204 - - Pendleton and Pendlebury, May-pole and games, 240, 241 - - Pentecost, 16th Sunday after, 250 - - Pentecost (See Whitsuntide). - - Persons bewitched, sixteen, 192 - - Philosopher's Mercury, 23 - - " Stone, 23 - - Pigeons' Feathers in beds, 268 - - Pilkington (Dame Jane), 273 - - Pimpernel, 71 - - Pork Pasties, 260 - - Prayer and Blessing on Eggs, 229 - - Prayer in Verse against Sir Ralph Ashton, 291 - - Predications (see Omens). - - Presents to Women in Childbed, 260 - - " to Infants, 262 - - Prestwich, Burying in Woollen at, 269 - - Principal or heriot at Ashton, 293 - - Prophet Elias, a fanatic, 138 - - - Queen of the May, 246 - - - Radcliffe, Burying in Woollen, 269 - - Radcliffe Tower, 51 - - Raising the Dead, 128; - the Devil, 17, 81 - - Rent-boons at Denton, 294 - - Rents, Nominal, 280 - - Rheumatism, charms to cure, 75 - - Riding the Black Lad at Ashton, 289 - - Rings, betrothal or gemmel, 263; - Wedding, 268 - - Robins and Wrens, 142 - - Robinson, Edmund, 195, 201 - - Rochdale Church, 89 - - " Tithe, Easter Dues, &c., 297 - - Rogation Days or Gang Days, 248 - - Rolleston, Mr., 131 - - "Rollison, Owd," 123-125 - - Roman Traditions and Superstitions, 5, 6, 18; - Mythology, 13 - - - Saint Cuthbert's Beads, 15 - - " John's Eve, 8, 46, 47 - - " Vitus's Dance, 87 - - Samlesbury Witches, 194 - - "Scrat, Old" (or Skrat), 90 - - Second-sight in Lancashire, 105 - - Services and Tenures, peculiar, 278 - - Sheep and Farms in Bowland, 300 - - Shoes, Old, for luck, 264, 268 - - Shrew Tree in Carnforth, 79 - - Shrovetide, 217; - Tuesday, 218; - Pancakes, _ib._, 258; - Sports, 219; - customs in the Fylde, 221 - - Sickness, charms to cure, 74 - - Simnel Cakes, 223; - at Bury, 224, 258 - - Sitting-up Courtship, 264 - - Skriker, 91 - - Smithells Hall, 51; - Marsh the Martyr, 135 - - Smithells, Manor of, custom, 280 - - Sneezing, 6, 68 - - Songs, Lancashire, about 1422, 288 - - Sparrows, 142 - - Spell, description of a, 177 - - Spirits of the dying and dead, 105 - - Spitting on money, &c., 69, 70 - - Stocks for the fingers, 283 - - Superstitions in Manchester in the 16th century, 168 - - Superstitions of Pendle Forest, 164; - of East Lancashire, 165 - - Superstitions, popular, 153-157; - Nineteenth Century, 164 - - Superstitious beliefs, and practices, 1; - fears and cruelties, 167 - - Superstitious fear of Witchcraft, 182 - - - Talliage or Tallage, 296; - of Lancashire towns, &c., _ib._ - - Teacups, Omens from, 140 - - Teanlay, or All Souls' Night, 49 - - Tenants of Ashton-under-Lyne, 288 - - Tenures and Services, peculiar, 278 - - Thackergate Boggart, 52 - - Throwing the Stocking, 264 - - Toothache, charms to cure, 75 - - Touching for King's Evil, 77 - - Towneley, ghost and tradition, 57 - - Trash or Skriker, 91 - - Tree Barnacles, or Tree Geese, 116 - - Turning Bed after Childbirth, 261 - - - Unbaptized Child, cannot die, 262 - - Urswick Much, Manor of, 284 - - Utley, hanged for witchcraft, 195 - - - Vervain, to cure wounds, a rhyming charm, 76, 115; - against blasts, 115 - - Victor Penny, 219 - - Vitus's (St.), Dance, 87 - - - Waddow Hall, 171 - - Waitts, the, 257; - of Manchester, 257; - of Warrington, 258 - - Walton-le-Dale, raising the dead, 128 - - Warcock Hill, 17 - - Warrington Ale, 259 - - Warton, Royal Manor of, 284; - wedding customs at, 265 - - Warts, cures for, 78; - caused by washing in egg-water, 121 - - Water Sprites, 89 - - Weather Omens, 141-145, 149-152 - - Wedding Customs, 263; - in the Fylde, 264; - at Warton, 265; - at Burnley, 265; - various, 268 - - Weddings at Manchester Church, 265 - - Well at Wavertree, 169 - - Well, Peggy's, 170; - Legend of, 171 - - Well, St. Helen's, in Brindle, 172; - near Sefton, 173 - - Wells and Springs, dedicated to saints, 169 - - West Houghton Wakes, 260 - - Whitsuntide, 246; - Fair, 246; - 16th Sunday after, 250 - - Whitsuntide Ales, 246 - - " Tuesday, 248 - - " week, 247 - - Whooping Cough, 10 - - Wicken or Wiggen Tree (the mountain ash), 72 - - Widersinnis, or Deasil, 151; - Withershins, 140, 151 - - Widow, Burial of a, 273 - - Widows, manorial customs, 281-285 - - Wilder Lads, 48 - - Will-o'-th'-Wisp, 53 - - Winwick Church, 89 - - Wise Men and Cunning Women, 121 - - Wizards, 87; - Swimming a, _ib._ - - Wooden Shoes and Oaten Bread, 259 - - Woollen, burying in, 269 - - Wounds, to cure, 74; - Vervain, 76 - - Wycoller Hall, Christmas at, 256 - - - Yule Loaf, 256 - - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Lancashire Folk-lore, by -John Harland and T. 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T. Wilkinson. @@ -62,49 +62,7 @@ </style> </head> <body> - - -<pre> - -Project Gutenberg's Lancashire Folk-lore, by John Harland and T. T. Wilkinson - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with -almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org - - -Title: Lancashire Folk-lore - Illustrative of the Superstitious Beliefs and Practices, - Local Customs and Usages of the People of the County - Palatine - -Author: John Harland - T. T. Wilkinson - -Release Date: October 23, 2012 [EBook #41148] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ASCII - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK LANCASHIRE FOLK-LORE *** - - - - -Produced by Shaun Pinder, Stephen Blundell and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This -file was produced from images generously made available -by The Internet Archive) - - - - - - -</pre> - +<div>*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 41148 ***</div> <div class="trn"><b>Transcriber's Note:</b> Minor spelling and typographical errors have been corrected without note. @@ -13179,383 +13137,6 @@ by Dr. Hibbert-Ware.</p></div> <ul><li><span class="smcap">Yule</span> Loaf, <a href="#Page_256">256</a></li> </ul> - - - - - - - -<pre> - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Lancashire Folk-lore, by -John Harland and T. T. 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You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org - - -Title: Lancashire Folk-lore - Illustrative of the Superstitious Beliefs and Practices, - Local Customs and Usages of the People of the County - Palatine - -Author: John Harland - T. T. Wilkinson - -Release Date: October 23, 2012 [EBook #41148] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ASCII - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK LANCASHIRE FOLK-LORE *** - - - - -Produced by Shaun Pinder, Stephen Blundell and the Online -Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This -file was produced from images generously made available -by The Internet Archive) - - - - - - - - - -Transcriber's Note: - - Minor spelling and typographical errors have been corrected without - note. Archaic, dialect and variant spellings remain as printed. - Greek text has been transliterated and is shown between {braces}. - Missing chapter titles have been included to match the Contents - listing for readers' convenience. - - Non-standard characters are represented as follows: - [oe] oe ligature; - [=e] macron over _e_; - [)e] breve over _e_; - [*3] asterism; - and ^ precedes a superscript character. - - - - - LANCASHIRE - FOLK-LORE: - ILLUSTRATIVE OF THE - SUPERSTITIOUS BELIEFS AND PRACTICES, - LOCAL CUSTOMS AND USAGES - OF - THE PEOPLE OF THE COUNTY PALATINE. - - COMPILED AND EDITED BY - JOHN HARLAND, F.S.A. - AND - T. T. WILKINSON, F.R.A.S. - - [Device] - - LONDON: - FREDERICK WARNE AND CO. - BEDFORD STREET, COVENT GARDEN. - NEW YORK: SCRIBNER AND CO. - 1867. - - - - - LONDON: - SAVILL AND EDWARDS, PRINTERS, CHANDOS STREET, - COVENT GARDEN. - - - - -PREFACE. - - -"Folk-lore," though a term that will not be found in our standard -dictionaries, from Johnson down to Webster, is nevertheless simply a -modern combination of two genuine old English words--_Folc_, the folk, -the people, "the common people;" and _Lar_, _Laer_, _Lora_, learning, -doctrine, precept, law. In the earlier days of our English tongue, -folk-land, folk-gemote, folk-right, &c., were terms in common use, and -amongst this class of compound words our fore-elders had _folc-lare_, by -which they denoted plain, simple teaching suited for the people, what we -should now call "popular instruction," and hence _folk-lare_ also meant -a sermon. _Folk-Lore_, in its present signification--and for its general -acceptance we are largely indebted to the Editor of that valuable -periodical _Notes and Queries_,--means the notions of the folk or -people, from childhood upwards, especially their superstitious beliefs -and practices, as these have been handed down from generation to -generation, in popular tradition and tale, rhyme, proverb, or saying, -and it is well termed Folk-Lore in contradistinction to book-lore or -scholastic learning. It is the unlearned people's inheritance of -tradition from their ancestors, the modern reflection of ancient faith -and usage. This Folk-Lore has not been wholly without record in our -literature. Hone in his delightful _Every-Day Book_, _Year Book_, and -_Table Book_, has preserved many a choice bit of England's Folk-Lore; -and his example has been ably followed in Chambers's _Book of Days_. -Brand's _Popular Antiquities_, Aubrey's _Miscellanies_, Allies's -_Antiquities and Folk-Lore of Worcestershire_, and other like works, -have noted down for the information and amusement of future generations -the prevalent superstitions, and popular customs and usages of the -people in particular districts, during a past age, and at the present -time. But the greatest and best depository and record of the Folk-Lore -of various nations is that excellent periodical _Notes and Queries_, -from which a charming little volume entitled "_Choice Notes from Notes -and Queries,--Folk-Lore_," was compiled and published in 1859. - -But Lancashire has hitherto been without adequate record, at least in a -collected form, of its Folk-Lore. This has not been because of any lack -of such lore. The North of England generally, and Lancashire in -particular, is remarkably rich in this respect. Possessed and peopled in -succession by the Celts of ancient Britain, by the Angles and other -Teutonic peoples, by the Scandinavian races, and by Norman and other -foreign settlers at early periods,--the result of the respective -contributions of these various peoples is necessarily a large mass of -traditionary lore. To bring this together and present it in a collected -form is the object of this little volume. Its editors have been long -engaged, apart,--distinctly, and independently of each other,--in -collecting particulars of the superstitions in belief and practice, and -of the peculiar customs and usages of the people of Lancashire. One of -them, born in one of its rural districts, still rich in these respects, -is thus enabled to remember and to preserve many of those customs and -usages of his childhood and youth, now rapidly passing into decay, if -not oblivion. The other, conversant from his earliest remembrances with -the Folk-Lore of East Yorkshire, and with that of Lancashire for the -last thirty-five years, is thus enabled to compare the customs and -usages of both, and to recognise the same essential superstition under -slightly different forms. Similarity of pursuit having led to personal -communication, the Editors agreed to combine their respective -collections; and hence the present volume. They do not pretend herein to -have exhausted the whole range of Lancashire Folk-Lore; but simply to -have seized on the more salient features of its superstitious side, and -those of popular custom and usage. Part I. comprises notices of a great -number of superstitious beliefs and practices. Part II. treats of -various local customs and usages, at particular seasons of the year; -during the great festivals of the church; those connected with birth and -baptism; betrothal and wedding; dying, death-bed, and funeral customs; -as well as manorial and feudal tenures, services, and usages. - -Should the present volume find favour and acceptance, its Editors may -venture hereafter to offer another, embracing the fertile and -interesting subjects of popular pageants, maskings and mummings, -rushbearings, wakes and fairs, out-door sports and games; punishments, -legal and popular; legends and traditions; proverbs, popular sayings and -similes; folk-rhymes, &c. &c. - -_September, 1866._ - - -But for unavoidable delay, consequent on the preparation of a -large-paper edition, this volume would have been published prior to -"Notes on the Folk-Lore of the Northern Counties of England and the -Borders," by Wm. Henderson. As that work has appeared, it may be as well -to state that, notwithstanding similarity of subject, the two books do -not clash. Mr. Henderson's work relates chiefly to the three -north-eastern counties,--Northumberland, Durham, and Yorkshire,--with -large notices not only of the Scottish borders, but of Scotland -generally, and many details as to Devonshire folk-lore. Its notices of -Cumberland and Westmorland are fewer than of the three counties first -named; and Lancashire is only two or three times incidentally mentioned. -The field of this county palatine is therefore left free for the present -volume. - -_January, 1867._ - - - - -CONTENTS. - - - PART I. - - - SUPERSTITIOUS BELIEFS AND PRACTICES. - - PAGE - Introduction 1 - - Lancashire Alchemists 23 - - Lancashire Astrologers 33 - - Bells 41 - - Beal-tine or Beltane Fires; Relics of Baal Worship 45 - - Boggarts, Ghosts, and Haunted Places 49 - - Boggart Hole Clough 50 - - Boggarts or Ghosts in Old Halls 51 - - House Boggarts, or Labouring Goblins 56 - - Hornby Park Mistress and Margaret Brackin 59 - - Boggarts in the Nineteenth Century 61 - - - CHARMS AND SPELLS. - - Charms and Spells against Evil Beings 62 - - A Charm, written in Cypher, against Witchcraft and Evil Spirits 63 - - The Crow Charm and the Lady-bird Charm 70 - - Pimpernel 71 - - The Mountain Ash, or Wicken or Wiggen Tree 72 - - Charms to Cure Sickness, Wounds, Cattle Distemper, etc. 74 - - Charms for the Toothache 75 - - Vervain, for Wounds, etc. 76 - - Charms to Stop Bleeding 77 - - Touching for the King's Evil 77 - - Cures for Warts 78 - - Cure for Hydrocephalus in Cattle 79 - - Cattle Disorders.--The Shrew Tree in Carnforth 79 - - Charms for Ague 80 - - Stinging of Nettles 80 - - Jaundice 80 - - To Procure Sleep by Changing the Direction of the Bed 80 - - - THE DEVIL, DEMONS, &c. - - The Devil 81 - - Raising the Devil 83 - - The Devil and the Schoolmaster at Cockerham 83 - - Old Nick 84 - - Demonology 86 - - Demon and Goblin Superstitions 88 - - Dispossessing a Demoniac 92 - - Demoniacal Possession in 1594 92 - - Demoniacal Possession in 1689 98 - - - DIVINATION. - - Divination 102 - - Divination at Marriages 103 - - Divination by Bible and Key 103 - - Another Lancashire form of Divination 104 - - Divination by the Dying 104 - - Second-sight 105 - - Spirits of the Dying and the Dead 105 - - Casting Lots, &c. 106 - - - MISCELLANEOUS FOLK-LORE. - - Druidical Rock Basins 106 - - Elves and Fairies 110 - - Folk-Lore of Eccles and the Neighbourhood 113 - - Tree Barnacles; or, Geese hatched from Sea-shells 116 - - Warts from Washing in Egg-water 121 - - Fortune-telling.--Wise Men and Cunning Women, &c. 121 - - Magic and Magicians 126 - - Edward Kelly, the Seer 126 - - Raising the Dead at Walton-le-Dale 128 - - An Earl of Derby charged with keeping a Conjuror 129 - - - MIRACLES. - - Miracles, or Miraculous Stories 131 - - Miracles by a Dead Duke of Lancaster and King 132 - - A Miraculous Footprint in Brindle Church 134 - - The Footprint at Smithells of George Marsh, the Martyr 135 - - A Legend of Cartmel Church 137 - - The Prophet Elias, a Lancashire Fanatic 138 - - - OMENS AND PREDICATIONS. - - Omens and Predications 138 - - Cats 141 - - Dogs 142 - - Lambs 142 - - Birds 142 - - Swallows 143 - - Magpies 143 - - Dreams 145 - - The Moon 149 - - Haever or Hiver 149 - - Deasil or Widersinnis 151 - - Omens of Weather for New Year's-day 151 - - Death Tick or Death Watch 152 - - - SUPERSTITIONS, GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS. - - Popular Superstitions 153 - - Bones of St. Lawrence, at Chorley 157 - - The Dead Man's Hand 158 - - Nineteenth Century Superstition 164 - - Pendle Forest Superstition 164 - - East Lancashire Superstition 165 - - Superstitious Fears and Cruelties 167 - - Superstitious Beliefs in Manchester in the Sixteenth Century 168 - - Wells and Springs 169 - - - WITCHES AND WITCHCRAFT. - - Witchcraft in the Fifteenth Century 174 - - The Famous History of the Lancashire Witches 176 - - Dr. Dee charged with Witchcraft 178 - - The Lancashire Witches 179 - - Superstitious Fear of Witchcraft 182 - - A Household Bewitched 184 - - The Lancashire Witches of 1612 185 - - The Samlesbury Witches 194 - - Witchcraft at Middleton 195 - - Witchcraft in 1633-34 195 - - The Lancashire Witches of 1633-4 200 - - Lancashire Witch-finders 200 - - The Forest of Pendle--The Haunt of the Lancashire Witches 202 - - Pendle Hill and its Witches 204 - - Witchcraft about 1654 206 - - A Liverpool Witch in 1667 206 - - The Witch of Singleton 207 - - Witchcraft at Chowbent in the Eighteenth Century 207 - - Killing a Witch 208 - - A Recent Witch, near Burnley 209 - - "Lating" or "Leeting" Witches 210 - - - PART II. - - - LOCAL CUSTOMS AND USAGES AT VARIOUS SEASONS. - - Church and Season Festivals 212 - - New Year's-day 214 - - Fire on New Year's Eve 214 - - New Year's Luck 214 - - New Year's First Caller 215 - - New Year's-day and Old Christmas-day 216 - - Auld Wife Hakes 216 - - New Year's Gifts and Wishes 216 - - Shrovetide 217 - - Shrove-Tuesday, or Pancake Tuesday 218 - - Cock-throwing and Cock-fighting 218 - - Cock-fighting about Blackburn 220 - - Cock-penny at Clitheroe 220 - - Cock-fighting at Burnley 220 - - Shrovetide Customs in the Fylde 221 - - Lent.--Ash-Wednesday 221 - - Mid-Lent Sunday, or "Mothering Sunday" 222 - - Simnel Cakes 223 - - To Dianeme 223 - - Bury 224 - - Bragot-Sunday 225 - - Fag-pie Sunday 226 - - Good Friday 226 - - Easter 227 - - Pasche, Pace, or Easter Eggs 228 - - Pace Egging in Blackburn 228 - - Pace or Peace Egging in East Lancashire 231 - - Easter Sports at the Manchester Free Grammar School 231 - - "Lifting," or "Heaving" at Easter 233 - - Easter Game of the Ring 234 - - Playing "Old Ball" 234 - - Acting with "Ball" 235 - - Easter Customs in the Fylde 236 - - May-day Customs 238 - - May Songs 239 - - May-day Eve 239 - - May-day Custom 240 - - Pendleton and Pendlebury May-pole and Games 240 - - May Custom in Spotland 242 - - May-day Customs in the Fylde 242 - - The May-pole of Lostock 243 - - Robin Hood and May-games at Burnley, in 1579 244 - - May-day in Manchester 245 - - Queen of the May, &c. 246 - - Whitsuntide 246 - - Whit-Tuesday.--King and Queen at Downham 248 - - Rogations or Gang Days 248 - - Oatmeal Charity at Ince 249 - - Names for Moons in Autumn 250 - - "Goose-Intentos" 250 - - All Souls'-day 251 - - Gunpowder Plot and Guy Fawkes 251 - - Christmas 252 - - Creatures Worshipping on Christmas Eve 253 - - Christmas Mumming 253 - - The Hobby Horse, or Old Ball 254 - - Christmas Customs in the Fylde 254 - - Celebration of Christmas at Wycoller Hall 256 - - Carols, &c. 257 - - - EATING AND DRINKING CUSTOMS. - - Various 258 - - The Havercake Lads 258 - - Wooden Shoes and Oaten Bread or Jannocks 259 - - Pork Pasties 260 - - - BIRTH AND BAPTISMAL CUSTOMS. - - Presents to Women in Childbed 260 - - Tea-drinking after Childbirth 261 - - Turning the Bed after Childbirth 261 - - An Unbaptized Child cannot die 262 - - Gifts to Infants 262 - - - BETROTHING AND BRIDAL OR WEDDING CUSTOMS. - - Betrothing Customs 263 - - Curious Wedding Custom 263 - - Courting and Wedding Customs in the Fylde 264 - - Ancient Bridal Custom.--The Bride's Chair and the Fairy Hole 265 - - Burnley 265 - - Marriages at Manchester Parish Church 265 - - - DYING, DEATH-BED, AND FUNERAL CUSTOMS. - - Dying Hardly 268 - - Burying in Woollen 269 - - Funeral Dole and Arval Cake 270 - - Dalton-in-Furness 271 - - Old Funeral Customs at Warton 271 - - Funeral Customs in the Fylde 272 - - Mode of Burial of a Widow who had taken Religious Vows 273 - - Funeral Customs in East Lancashire 273 - - Bidding to Funerals 274 - - Situation and Direction of Graves 275 - - - CUSTOMS OF MANORS. - - The Honour of Knighthood 277 - - Maritagium 278 - - Peculiar Services and Tenures 278 - - Manor of Cockerham--Regulations for the Sale of Ale 281 - - Manorial Customs in Furness 281 - - The Lord's Yule Feast at Ashton 286 - - Riding the Black Lad at Ashton-under-Lyne 289 - - Boon Shearing 292 - - The Principal or Heriot 293 - - Denton Rent-boons 294 - - A Saxon Constablewick 295 - - Talliage or Tallage 296 - - Rochdale Tithe, Easter-dues, Mortuaries, etc. 297 - - Farm and Agricultural Celebrations in the Fylde 298 - - Dalton-in-Furness 299 - - Letting Sheep Farms in Bowland 300 - - Mediaeval Latin Law Terms 300 - - Customs [Dues] at Warrington 301 - - - - -LANCASHIRE FOLK-LORE. - - - - -PART I. - - - - -SUPERSTITIOUS BELIEFS AND PRACTICES. - - -INTRODUCTION. - - "'Tis a history - Handed from ages down; a nurse's tale - Which children open-eyed and mouth'd devour, - And thus, as garrulous ignorance relates, - We learn it and believe." - -In this large section of the Folk-lore of Lancashire we propose to treat -of all the notions and practices of the people which appear to recognise -a supernatural power or powers, especially as aids to impart to man a -knowledge of the future. An alphabetical arrangement has been adopted, -which is to some extent also chronological. Beginning with the pretended -sciences or arts of Alchemy and Astrology, the succeeding articles treat -of Bells, Beltane fires, Boggarts, Charms, Demons, Divination, &c. - -Many of these superstitions are important in an ethnological point of -view, and immediately place us _en rapport_ with those nations whose -inhabitants have either colonized or conquered this portion of our -country. In treasuring up these records of the olden times, tradition -has, in general, been faithful to her vocation. She has occasionally -grafted portions of one traditional custom, ceremony, or superstition, -upon another; but in the majority of cases enough has been left to -enable us to determine with considerable certainty the probable origin -of each. So far as regards the greater portion of our local Folk-lore, -we may safely assert that it is rapidly becoming obsolete, and many of -the most curious relics must be sought in the undisturbed nooks and -corners of the county. It is there where popular opinions are cherished -and preserved, long after an improved education has driven them from -more intelligent communities; and it is a remarkable fact that many of -these, although composed of such flimsy materials, and dependent upon -the fancies of the multitude for their very existence, have nevertheless -survived shocks by which kingdoms have been overthrown, and have -preserved their characteristic traits from the earliest times down to -the present. - -As what are called the Indo-European, or Aryan, nations--viz., the -Celts, Greeks, Latins, Germans (Teuton and Scandinavian), Letts, and -Sclaves--as is now generally acknowledged, have a common ancestry in the -race which once dwelt together in the regions of the Upper Oxus, in -Asia; so their mythologies, however diverse in their later European -developments, may be regarded as having a common origin. Space will not -allow us to enlarge on this great subject, which has been ably treated -by Jacob Grimm, Dr. Adalbert Kuhn, and many other German writers, and of -which an excellent _resume_ is given in Kelly's _Curiosities of -Indo-European Tradition and Folk-lore_. - -When we refer to the ancient Egyptians, and to the oldest history -extant, we find some striking resemblances between their customs and our -own. The rod of the magician was then as necessary to the practice of -the art as it still is to the "Wizard of the North." The glory of the -art of magic may be said to have departed, but _the use of the rod_ by -the modern conjuror remains as a connecting link between the harmless -deceptions of the present, and that powerful instrument of the -priesthood in times remote. The divining rod, too, which indicates the -existence of a hidden spring, or treasure, or even a murdered corpse, is -another relic of the wand of the Oriental Magi. The divining cup, as -noticed in the case of Joseph and his brethren, supplies a third -instance of this close connexion. Both our wise men and maidens still -whirl the tea-cup, in order that the disposition of the floating leaves -may give them an intimation of their future destiny, or point out the -direction in which an offending party must be sought. We have yet -"wizards that do peep and mutter," and who profess to foretell future -events by looking "through a glass darkly." The practice of "causing -children to pass through the fire to Moloch," so strongly reprobated by -the prophet of old, may be cited as an instance in which Christianity -has not yet been able to efface all traces of one of the oldest forms of -heathen worship. Sir W. Betham has observed, in his _Gael and Cymbri_, -pp. 222-4, that "we see at this day fires lighted up in Ireland, on the -eve of the summer solstice and the equinoxes, to the Ph[oe]nician god -Baal; and they are called _Baal-tane_, or Baal's fire, though the -_object_ of veneration be forgotten." Such fires are still lighted in -Lancashire, on Hallowe'en, under the names of Beltains or Teanlas; and -even such _cakes_ as the Jews are said to have made in honour of the -Queen of Heaven, are yet to be found at this season amongst the -inhabitants of the banks of the Ribble. These circumstances may appear -the less strange when we reflect that this river is almost certainly the -Belisama of the Romans; that it was especially dedicated to the Queen of -Heaven, under the designation of Minerva Belisamae; and that her worship -was long prevalent amongst the inhabitants of Coccium, Rigodunum, and -other Roman stations in the north of Lancashire. Both the fires and the -cakes, however, are now connected with superstitious notions respecting -Purgatory, &c., but their origin and perpetuation will scarcely admit of -doubt. - -A belief in astrology and in sacred numbers prevails to a considerable -extent amongst all classes of our society. With many the stars still -"fight in their courses," and our modern fortune-tellers are yet ready -to "rule the planets," and predict good or ill fortune, on payment of -the customary fee. That there is "luck in _odd_ numbers" was known for a -fact in Lancashire long before Mr. Lover immortalized the tradition. Our -housewives always take care that their hens shall sit upon an _odd_ -number of eggs; we always bathe _three_ times in the sea at Blackpool, -Southport, and elsewhere; and our names are called over _three_ times -when our services are required in courts of law. _Three_ times _three_ -is the orthodox number of cheers; and we still hold that the _seventh_ -son of a _seventh_ son is destined to form an infallible physician. We -inherit all such popular notions as these in common with the German and -Scandinavian nations; but more especially with those of the Saxons and -the Danes. Triads of leaders, or ships, constantly occur in their -annals; and punishments of _three_ and _seven_ years' duration form the -burden of many of the Anglo-Saxon and Danish laws. - -A full proportion of the popular stories which are perpetuated in our -nurseries most probably date their existence amongst us from some -amalgamation of races; or, it may be, from the intercourse attendant -upon trade and commerce. The Ph[oe]nicians, no doubt, would impart a -portion of their Oriental Folk-lore to the southern Britons; the Roman -legions would leave traces of their prolific mythology amongst the -Brigantes and the Sistuntii; and the Saxons and the Danes would add -their rugged northern modifications to the common stock. The "History of -the Hunchback" is common to both England and Arabia; the "man in the -moon" has found his way into the popular literature of almost every -nation with which we are acquainted; "Cinderella and her slipper" is -"The little golden shoe" of the ancient Scandinavians, and was equally -familiar to the Greeks and Romans; "Jack and the bean-stalk" is told in -Sweden and Norway as of "The boy who stole the giant's treasure;" whilst -our renowned "Jack the giant-killer" figures in Norway, Lapland, Persia, -and India, as the amusing story of "The herd boy and the giant." The -labours of Tom Hickathrift are evidently a distorted version of those of -Hercules; and these again agree in the main with the journey of Thor to -Utgard, and the more classical travels of Ulysses. In Greece the clash -of the elements during a thunderstorm was attributed to the chariot -wheels of Jove; the Scandinavians ascribed the sounds to the ponderous -wagon of the mighty Thor; our Lancashire nurses _Christianize_ the -phenomenon by assuring their young companions, poetically enough, that -thunder "is the noise which God makes when passing across the heavens." -The notion that the gods were wont to communicate knowledge of future -events to certain favoured individuals appears to have had a wide range -in ancient times; and this curiosity regarding futurity has exerted a -powerful influence over the minds of men in every stage of civilization. -Hence arose the consulting of oracles and the practice of divination -amongst the ancients, and to the same principles we must attribute the -credulity which at present exists with respect to the "_wise men_" who -are to be found in almost every town and village in Lancashire. The -means adopted by some of the oracles when responses were required, -strangely remind us of the modern feats of ventriloquism; others can be -well illustrated by what we now know of mesmerism and its kindred -agencies; whilst these and clairvoyance will account for many of those -where the agents are said by Eustathius to have spoken out of their -bellies, or breasts, from oak trees, or been "cast into trances in which -they lay like men dead or asleep, deprived of all sense and motion; but -after some time returning to themselves, gave strange relations of what -they had seen and heard." - -The ancient Greeks and Romans regarded dreams as so many warnings; they -prayed to Mercury to vouchsafe to them a night of good dreams. In this -county we still hold the same opinions; but our country maidens, having -Christianized the subject, now invoke St. Agnes and a multitude of other -saints to be similarly propitious. There are many other points of -resemblance between the Folk-lore of Lancashire and that of the -ancients. Long or short life, health or disease, good luck or bad, are -yet predicted by burning a lock of human hair; and the fire is -frequently poked with much anxiety when testing the disposition of an -absent lover. Many persons may be found who never put on the _left_ shoe -first; and the appearance of a _single_ magpie has disconcerted many a -stout Lancashire farmer when setting out on a journey of business or -pleasure. In the matter of sneezing we are just as superstitious as when -the Romans left us. They exclaimed, "May Jove protect you," when any one -sneezed in their presence, and an anxious "God bless you" is the common -ejaculation amongst our aged mothers. To the same sources we may -probably attribute the apprehensions which many Lancashire people -entertain with respect to spilling the salt; sudden silence, or fear; -lucky and unlucky days; the presence of thirteen at dinner; raising -ghosts; stopping blood by charms; spitting upon, or drawing blood from -persons in order to avert danger; the evil eye; and a multitude of -other minor superstitions. We possess much of all this in common with -the Saxons and the Danes, but the original source of a great, if not the -greater portion, is probably that of our earliest conquerors. - -Divination by means of the works of Homer and Virgil was not uncommon -amongst the ancients; the earlier Christians made use of the Psalter or -New Testament for such purposes. In Lancashire the Bible and a key are -resorted to, both for deciding doubts respecting a lover, and also to -aid in detecting a thief. Divination by water affords another striking -parallel. The ancients decided questions in dispute by means of a -tumbler of water, into which they lowered a ring suspended by a thread, -and having prayed to the gods to decide the question in dispute, the -ring of its own accord would strike the tumbler a certain number of -times. Our "Lancashire witches" adopt the same means, and follow the -Christianized formula, with a wedding-ring suspended by a hair, whenever -the time before marriage, the number of a family, or even the length of -life, becomes a matter of anxiety. - -Most nations, in all ages, have been accustomed to deck the graves of -their dead with appropriate flowers, much as we do at present. The last -words of the dying have, from the earliest times, been considered of -prophetic import; and according to Theocritus, some one of those -present endeavoured to receive into his mouth the last breath of a dying -parent or friend, "as fancying the soul to pass out with it and enter -into their own bodies." Few would expect to find this singular custom -still existing in Lancashire; and yet such is the fact. Witchcraft can -boast her votaries in this county even up to the present date, and she -numbers this practice amongst her rites and ceremonies. - -A very large portion of the Lancashire Folk-lore is identical in many -respects with that which prevailed amongst the sturdy warriors who -founded the Heptarchy, or ruled Northumbria. During the Saxon and Danish -periods their heathendom had a real existence. Its practices were -maintained by an array of priests and altars, with a prescribed ritual -and ceremonies; public worship was performed and oblations offered with -all the pomp and power of a church establishment. The remnants of this -ancient creed are now presented to us in the form of popular -superstitions, in legends and nursery tales, which have survived all -attempts to eradicate them from the minds of the people. Christ, his -apostles, and the saints, have supplanted the old mythological -conceptions; but many popular stories and impious incantations which now -involve these sacred names were formerly told of some northern hero, or -perhaps invoked the power of Satan himself. The great festival in honour -of Eostre may be instanced as having been transferred to the Christian -celebration of the resurrection of our Lord; whilst the lighting of -fires on St. John's eve, and the bringing in of the boar's head at -Christmas, serve to remind us that the worship of Freja is not extinct. -When Christianity became the national religion, the rooted prejudices of -the people were evidently respected by our early missionaries, and hence -the curious admixture of the sacred and the profane, which everywhere -presents itself in our local popular forms of expression for the -pretended cure of various diseases. The powers and attributes of Woden -and Freja are attributed to Jesus, Peter, or Mary; but in all other -respects the spells and incantations remain the same. - -Our forefathers appear to have possessed a full proportion of those -stern characteristics which have ever marked the Northumbrian -population. Whatever opinions they had acquired, they were prepared to -hold them firmly; nor did they give up their most heathenish practices -without a struggle. Both the "law and the testimony" had to be called -into requisition as occasion required; and even the terrors of these did -not at once suffice. In one of the Anglo-Saxon _Penitentiaries_, quoted -by Mr. Wright in his _Essays_, we find a penalty imposed upon those -women who use "any witchcraft to their children, or who draw them -through the earth at the meeting of roads, because that is great -heathenishness." A Saxon _Homily_, preserved in the public library at -Cambridge, states that divinations were used, "through the devil's -teaching," in taking a wife, in going a journey, in brewing, when -beginning any undertaking, when any person or animal is born, and when -children begin to pine away or to be unhealthy. The same _Homily_ also -speaks of divination by fowls, by sneezing, by horses, by dogs howling, -and concludes by declaring that "he is no Christian who does these -things." In a Latin _Penitentialia_ now in the British Museum, we find -allusions to incantations for taking away stores of milk, honey, or -other things belonging to another, and converting them to our own use. -He who rides with Diana and obeys her commands, he who prepares _three_ -knives in company in order to predestine happiness to those born there, -he who makes inquiry into the future on the first day of January, or -begins a work on that day in order to secure prosperity during the whole -of the year, is pointed out for reprobation; whilst hiding charms in -grass, or on a tree, or in a path, for the preservation of cattle, -placing children in a furnace, or on the roof of a house, and using -characters for curing disease, or charms for collecting medicinal herbs, -are enumerated, for the purpose of pointing out the penances to be -undergone by those found guilty of "such heinous sins." Nearly all these -instances may be said to belong to the transition state of our -Folk-lore, and relate at once both to the ancient and the modern -portions of our subject. We have seen that much the same practices were -used by the Greeks and Romans; and it is a curious fact that many of the -more important are still in vogue amongst the peasantry of Lancashire. -Many persons will still shudder with apprehension if a dog howl during -the sickness of a friend: dragging a child across the earth at "four -lane ends" is yet practised for the cure of whooping-cough: fern seed is -still said to be gathered on the Holy Bible, and is then believed to be -able to render those invisible who will dare to take it. We still have -prejudices respecting the first day of the new year; black-haired -visitors are most welcome on the morning of that day; charms for the -protection of families and cattle are yet to be found; and herbs for the -use of man and beast are still collected when their "proper planets are -ruling" in the heavens. More copies of Culpepper's _Herbal_ and Sibley's -_Astrology_ are sold in Lancashire than all other works on the same -subjects put together, and this principally on account of the planetary -influence with which each disease and its antidote are connected. Old -Moore's _Almanac_, however, is now sadly at a discount, because it lacks -the table of the Moon's signs; the farmers are consequently at a loss to -know which will be healthy cattle, and hence they prefer a spurious -edition which supplies the grave omission. - -Several lucky stones for the protection of cattle have, within a few -years past, been procured by the writer from the "shippons" of those -who, in other respects, are not counted behind the age; and it would -have been easy to collect an ample stock of horse-shoes and rusty -sickles from the same sources. However, during the last forty years the -inhabitants of Lancashire have made rapid progress both in numbers and -intelligence. They have had the "schoolmaster abroad" amongst them, and -have consequently divested themselves of many of the grosser -superstitions which formed a portion of the popular faith of their -immediate predecessors; but there is yet a dense substratum of popular -opinions existing in those localities which have escaped the renovating -influences of the spindle or the rail. As time progresses many of these -will become further modified, or perhaps totally disappear; and hence it -may be desirable to secure a permanent record of the customs and -superstitions of the county. - -As to the most ancient forms of religious belief or cult, we may surely -assume that the _simple_ must of necessity precede the _complex_, and -consequently the idea of _one_ supernatural Being must be anterior in -point of time to that of _two_ or more. Under this view, the good and -the evil principles would form the second stage of development--a -necessary consequence of increased observation--and, accordingly, we -find the Great Spirit and his Adversary among the prevailing notions of -some of the least civilized communities. A gradual progression from one -to many gods appears to have been the natural process by which all known -mythologies have been formed. The tendency of observation to multiply -causes, real or ideal, and to personify ideas, may be ranked as one of -the tendencies of unassisted human nature; and the operation of this -natural force must have been equally efficient at all times and in all -countries. In the early stages of social improvement, man would be very -forcibly affected by natural phenomena. The regular succession of day -and night--the order of the seasons--the heat of summer--the cold of -winter--storms and tempests on sea and land--the sensations of pleasure -and pain, hope and fear--would each impress him with ideas of effects -for which he could assign no adequate causes; but having become -susceptible of supernatural influences, the addition of imaginary beings -to his mythology would keep pace with his experience, until every -portion of the heavens, the earth, and the sea, was peopled with, and -presided over, by its respective deity or demi-god. Thus it was that the -rolling thunder and the "lightning's vivid flash" suggested the idea of -a Jupiter grasping his destructive bolts, or of a Thor wielding his -ponderous hammer. The "raging tempest" and the "boiling surge" gave -birth to a Neptune or Njoerd, each endowed with attributes suited to the -aspects of the locality where the observations were made, and specially -adapted to the intellectual condition of the community which first -deified the conception. As society progressed in civilization, so did -the study of philosophy and religion. The poets and the priests, -however, did not entrust their speculations to the judgment of the -people; they were too sensible of the power which secrecy conferred upon -their occult pursuits, and hence they allegorized their conceptions of -supernatural agencies, and also their ideas of the ordinary operations -of nature and art. The elements were spoken of as persons, and the -changes which these underwent were regarded as the actions of -individuals; and these in the lapse of ages, by losing their esoteric -meaning, came to be considered as realities, and so passed into the -popular belief. This is eminently the case with the northern mythology, -respecting which we are at present more particularly concerned; for by -far the greater portion of these highly poetical, though rugged myths, -admit of a very plausible and rational explanation on astronomical and -physical principles.[1] Whether this was equally the case with the Greek -and Roman mythologies is now, perhaps, more difficult to determine. -Enough, however, remains in the etymology of the names to prove that -both these and the northern systems had much in common. The fundamental -conceptions of each possess the same leading characteristics; and both -are probably due to the conquering tribes who migrated into Europe from -the fertile plains of Central Asia.[2] - -During these early ages, war was considered to be the most honourable -occupation. Valour constituted the highest virtue; and in the absence of -all written records, tradition, in course of time, would add -considerably to the prowess of any daring chieftain. A mighty conqueror -would be considered by his followers as something more than human. The -fear of his enemies would clothe him with attributes peculiar to their -conceptions of inferior deities; and this, together with the almost -universal "longing after immortality" which seems to pervade society in -all its stages, sufficiently accounts for the origin of the heroes and -heroines--the demi-gods and goddesses of every mythology. Hence -Hercules--the younger Odin--and a numerous train of minor worthies to -whom divine honours were decreed in the rituals of Italy and of the -north. - -On the introduction of Christianity, a powerful reactionary force was -brought into the popular belief, and many of its grosser portions were -speedily eliminated. The whole of the mythological creations were -divided into two distinct classes, according to the attributes for which -they were more particularly distinguished. Those whose tendencies -inclined towards the benefit of mankind were translated to heavenly -mansions, with God as supreme; whilst the wickedly disposed were -consigned to the infernal regions, under the dominion of the Devil. The -festivals of the gods were transformed into Christian seasons for -rejoicing, their temples became churches, and the names of Christ, his -apostles, the Virgin Mary, and the saints, took the places of those of -Jupiter, Mercury, Thor, Freja, and Woden. All the inferior deities that -presided over the woods, the mountains, the seas, and the rivers, were -degraded into demons, and were classed amongst those fallen spirits who -are employed by the evil one to harass and deceive mankind. Our early -missionaries, however, had studied human nature too well to attempt too -violent a change. They contented themselves, for the most part, with -diverting the current of thought into different channels; they gave -_new_ names to _old_ conceptions, and then left their more rational and -more powerful faith to produce its known effects upon the superstitions -of the masses. But the habits and opinions of a people who have long -been under the influence of any mythological system, have become too -deeply rooted to admit of easy eradication; and hence, in our own -country, as in others, the transition from heathenism to Christianity -was effected by almost imperceptible steps. - -There are, however, many points of resemblance between the early -Scandinavian and the Roman mythologies. Both had probably a common -origin, but each became modified by increased civilization and the -character of the localities occupied by each succeeding wave of a -migratory population. "Every country in Europe," says the learned editor -of Warton's _History of Poetry_, "has invested its popular belief with -the same common marvels: all acknowledge the agency of the lifeless -productions of nature; the intervention of the same supernatural -machinery; the existence of elves, fairies, dwarfs, giants, witches, -wizards, and enchanters; the use of spells, charms, and amulets." The -explosions and rumbling sounds occasionally heard in the interior of -Etna and Stromboli were attributed, in ancient times, to the rage of -Typhon, or the labours of Vulcan: at this day, the popular belief -connects them with the suffering souls of men in the infernal regions. -"The marks which natural causes have impressed upon the unyielding -granite were produced, according to the common creed, by the powerful -hero, the saint or the god, and large masses of stone, resembling -domestic implements in form, were the toys or the tools of the demi-gods -and giants of old. The repetition of the voice among the hills of -Scandinavia is ascribed by the vulgar to the dwarfs mocking the human -speaker; in England the fairies are said to perform the same exploits; -while the more elegant fancy of Greece gave birth to Echo, a nymph who -pined for love, and who still fondly repeats the accents that she hears. -The magic scenery occasionally presented on the waters of the Straits of -Messina is ascribed by popular opinion to the power of the Fata Morgana; -the gossamer threads which float through the haze of an autumnal morning -are [in Lancashire also] supposed to be woven by the ingenious dwarfs; -the verdant circlets in the dewy mead are traced beneath the light steps -of the dancing elves; and St. Cuthbert is said to forge and fashion the -beads that bear his name, and lie scattered along the shores of -Lindisfarne."[3] If we draw our parallels a little closer, we shall -find, as has been well observed, that "the Nereids of antiquity are -evidently the same with the Mermaids of the British and northern shores: -the inhabitants of both are placed in crystal caves, or coral palaces, -beneath the waters of the ocean; they are alike distinguished for their -partialities to the human race, and their prophetic powers in disclosing -the events of futurity. The Naiades differ only in name from the Nixens -of Germany, the Nisses of Scandinavia, or the Water-elves of the British -Isles. The Brownies are of the same kindred as the Lares of Latium [and -these agree exactly with the Portuni mentioned by Gervase of Tilbury in -his _Otia Imperialis_]. The English Puck [the Lancashire Boggart], the -Scotch Bogle, the French Goblin, the Gobelinus of the Middle Ages, and -the German Kobold, are probably only varied names for the Grecian -Khobalus, whose sole delight consisted in perplexing the human race, and -evoking those harmless terrors that constantly hover round the minds of -the timid. So, also, the German Spuck, and the Danish Spogel, correspond -with the more northern Spog; whilst the German Hudkin, and the Icelandic -Puki, exactly answer to the character of the English Robin -Goodfellow."[4] Our modern devil, with his horns and hoof, is derived -from the Celtic Ourisk and the Roman Pan. - -Some of our elves and satyrs are arrayed in the costumes of Greece and -Rome; and the Fairy Queen, with her attendants, have at times too many -points of resemblance to escape being identified as Diana and her -nymphs. The Roman Jupiter, by an easy transformation, becomes identical -with the Scandinavian Thor--the thunderbolt and chariot of the former -corresponding to the hammer and wagon of the latter. Odin takes the -place of Mercury. Loki is the same as Lucifer, for, like him, he was -expelled from heaven for disobedience and rebellion. Hother encountered -Thor, as Diomede did Mars. "The Grendels of the north answer to the -Titans of the south; they were the gods of nature to our -forefathers--the spirits of the wood and wave." Jupiter's eagle, the -war-sign of the Romans, is similar in character to Odin's raven among -the Danes; both nations considered that if the bird appeared to flutter -its wings on the banners, conquest was certain; but if they hung -helplessly down, defeat would surely follow. Warcock Hill, on the -borders of Lancashire and Yorkshire, has probably derived its name from -the unfurling of this terrible ensign during the conflicts between the -Saxons and the Danes for the possession of Northumbria;--the local -nomenclature of the district attests the presence of colonists from both -nations, and extensive traces of their fortifications still remain as -evidence that our slopes and hill-tops formed at once the battle-fields -and the strongholds of the country. - -The power of the Devil, his personal appearance and the possibility of -bartering the soul for temporary gain, must still be numbered among the -articles of our popular faith. Repeating the Lord's Prayer backwards is -said to be the most effectual plan for causing him to rise from beneath; -but when the terms of the bargain are not satisfactory, his exit can -only be secured by making the sign of the cross and calling on the name -of Christ.[5] - -When we come to examine the miscellaneous customs and superstitions of -the county, we find many remarkable traces of a former belief. Tradition -has again been true to her vocation; and in several instances has been -most careful to preserve the _minutiae_ of the mode of operation and -supposed effects of each minor spell and incantation. The principal -difficulty now lies in the selection; for the materials are so plentiful -that none but the most striking can be noticed. Among these we observe -that, a ringing in the ears; shooting of the eyes; throwing down, or -spilling the salt; putting on the left shoe first; lucky and unlucky -days; pouring melted lead into water; stopping blood by means of charms; -the use of waxen images; enchanted girdles; and lovers' knots, are all -observed and explained almost exactly as amongst the Greeks and Romans. -The details in many have been preserved to the very letter, whilst the -supposed effects are exactly the same both in the ancient and modern -times. Our marriageable maidens never receive knives, or any pointed -implements, from their suitors, for the very same reason that such -presents were rejected by their Scandinavian ancestors--they portend a -"breaking off" in the matrimonial arrangements, and are notorious for -"severing love." - - "If you love me as I love you, - No knife shall cut our love in two." - -We never return thanks for a loan of pins. A "winding sheet" on the -candle forebodes death; and dogs howling indicate a similar calamity.[6] -Almost every one is aware that cuttings of human hair ought always to be -burnt; that if _thirteen_ sit down to dinner one of them will die before -the end of the year; that it is unlucky to meet a woman the first thing -in the morning; and that a horse-shoe nailed or let into the step of -the door will prevent the entrance of any evil-disposed person. We have -probably derived nearly the whole of these notions from the Scandinavian -settlers in the North of England. They considered it quite possible too -to raise the Devil by the same means now practised by our "wise men;" -and after their conversion to Christianity they are known to have marked -their dough with a cross in order to ensure its rising--a practice which -many of our country matrons still retain. Sodden bread is always -considered to be bewitched, provided the yeast be good, and hence the -necessity for the protection of the cross. - -We always get out of bed either on the right side, or with the right -foot first; we take care not to cross two knives on the table; mothers -never allow a child to be weighed soon after its birth; our children -still blow their ages at marriage from the tops of the dandelion; and -all these for similar reasons, and with similar objects, to those of the -peasantry of Northumbria during the period of Danish rule. They supposed -that the dead followed their usual occupations in the spirit-world, and -hence, probably, the weapons of war and the implements of domestic life -which we find amongst the ashes of their dead. They were also of opinion -that buried treasure caused the ghosts of the owners to haunt the places -of concealment; and many of our country population retain the same -opinions without the slightest modification. - -The Folk-lore of dreams is an extensive subject, and would require a -series of essays for its full elucidation. The _Royal Dream Book_, and -_Napoleon's Book of Fate_, command an extensive sale amongst our -operatives, and may be consulted for additional information. Our country -maidens are well aware that _triple_ leaves plucked at hazard from the -common ash, are worn in the breast for the purpose of causing prophetic -dreams respecting a dilatory lover. The leaves of the yellow trefoil are -supposed to possess similar virtues; and the Bible is not unfrequently -put under their pillows with a crooked sixpence placed on the 16th and -17th verses of the first chapter of Ruth, in order that they may both -dream of, and see, their future husbands. "Opening the Bible for -direction" is still practised after any troublesome dream, or when about -to undertake any doubtful matter. To dream of the teeth falling out -betokens death, or the loss of a lawsuit. Other signs of death are -dreaming of seeing the Devil; or hearing a sound like the stroke of a -wand on any piece of furniture. The proverb that "lawyers and asses -always die in their shoes," is invariably quoted when any sudden -calamity befalls one of the profession. - -Like the ancients, the folk of Lancashire have various superstitious -observances and practices connected with the moon, especially with the -new moon. Christmas thorns are said to blossom only on _Old_ Christmas -Day; and persons will go considerable distances at midnight in order to -witness the blossoming. Oxen, too, are supposed to acknowledge the -importance of the Nativity of Christ, by going down on their knees at -the same hour; and this is often quoted as a proof that our legislators -were wrong in depriving our forefathers of their "eleven days" when the -new style was enforced by Act of Parliament.[7] - -Some of our farmers are superstitious enough to hang in the chimney a -portion of the flesh of any animal which has died of distemper, as a -protection from similar afflictions; they also preserve with great care -the membrane which sometimes envelopes a newly born foal, in the hope -that it will ensure them good luck for the future. Sailors do not like -to set sail on a Friday. Servant girls will rarely enter upon a new -service either on a Friday, or on a Saturday: should they do so, they -have an opinion that they will disagree with their mistresses and "not -stay long in place." Most females entertain strong objections against -giving evidence, or taking oaths, before the magistrates, when -_enceinte_. At Burnley, not long ago, a witness in a case of felony was -threatened with imprisonment before she would comply with the necessary -forms. All children that are born in the twilight of certain days are in -consequence supposed to be endowed with the faculty of seeing spirits; -and some of our "wise men" take advantage of this, and persuade their -dupes that they were so circumstanced at birth. - -Such instances might be multiplied to an almost indefinite extent, did -space permit; but the preceding will suffice to prove both the probable -origin and prevalence of many of our popular superstitions. To a greater -or less extent their influence pervades all classes of society; and he -who would elevate the intellectual condition of the people must not -neglect this thick stratum of _common notions_ which underlies the -deepest deposits of mental culture. As a recent writer in the _Quarterly -Review_ reports of Cornwall, so we may state of Lancashire:--"Pages -might be filled, not with mere legends wrought up for literary purposes, -but with serious accounts of the wild delusions which seem to have lived -on from the very birth of Pagan antiquity, and still to hold their -influence among the earnest and Christian people of this portion of -England.... Superstition lives on, with little abatement of vitality, in -the human heart. In the lower classes it wears its old fashions, with -very slow alterations--in the higher, it changes with the rapidity of -modes in fashionable circles. We read with a smile of amusement and -pity, the account of some provincial conjuror, who follows, with slight -changes, the trade of the Witch of Endor; and we then compose our -features to a grave expression of interest--for so society requires--to -listen to some enlightened person's description of the latest novelties -in table-turning or spirit-rapping; or to some fair patient's account of -her last conversation with her last quack-doctor." - -The labours of Croker, Keightley, Thorpe, and Kemble, following in the -wake of the Brothers Grimm, have added considerably to our knowledge of -the Folk-lore of the North of Europe; but much yet remains to be -collected before the subject can be examined in all its bearings. - -It is hoped that in the following pages the facts collected will suffice -to prove that the superstitious beliefs, observances, and usages of -Lancashire are by no means unworthy of the attention of the antiquary, -the ethnologist, or the historian. - - -LANCASHIRE ALCHEMISTS. - -Alchemy (from _al_, Arab. the, and {chemeia}, chemistry), the pretended -art of transmuting the inferior metals into gold or silver, by means of -what was called the Philosopher's Stone, or the powder of projection, a -red powder possessing a peculiar smell, is supposed to have originated -among the Arabians; Geber, an Arabian physician of the seventh century, -being one of the earliest alchemists whose works are extant; but written -so obscurely as to have led to the suggestion that his name was the -origin of our modern term _gibberish_, for unintelligible jargon. A -subsequent object of alchemy was the discovery of a universal medicine, -the _Elixir Vitae_, which was to give perpetual life, health, and youth. -The Egyptians are said to have practised alchemy; and Paulus Diaconus, a -writer of the eighth century, asserts that Dioclesian burned the library -of Alexandria, in order to prevent the Egyptians from becoming learned -in the art of producing at will those precious metals which might be -employed as "the sinews of war" against himself.[8] The earliest English -writer on alchemy was probably St. Dunstan, Archbishop of Canterbury, in -the tenth century. "He who shall have the happiness to meet with St. -Dunstan's work, 'De Occulta Philosophia' [that on the 'Philosopher's -stone' is in the Ashmole Museum], may therein read such stories as will -make him amazed to think what stupendous and immense things are to be -performed by virtue of the Philosopher's Mercury."[9] A John Garland is -also said to have written on alchemy and mineralogy prior to the -Conquest.[10] Alchemy was much studied in conventual establishments[11] -and by the most learned doctors and schoolmen, and the highest Church -dignitaries--nay, even by kings and popes. Albertus Magnus, a German, -born in 1282, wrote seven treatises on alchemy; and Thomas Aquinas "the -angelic doctor" (said to have been a pupil of Albert), wrote three works -on this subject. Roger Bacon ("Friar Bacon"), born at Ilchester in 1214, -though he wrote against the folly of believing in magic, necromancy, and -charms, nevertheless had faith in alchemy; and his chemical and -alchemical writings number eighteen. Of his _Myrrour of Alchemy_, Mr. J. -J. Conybeare observes, "Of all the alchemical works into which I have -been occasionally led to search, this appears the best calculated to -afford the curious reader an insight into the history of the art, and of -the arguments by which it was usually attacked and defended. It has the -additional merit of being more intelligible and more entertaining than -most books of the same class."[12] - -Raymond Lully, born at Majorca in 1235, is said to have been a scholar -of Roger Bacon, and to have written nineteen works on alchemy. Arnoldus -de Villa Nova, born in 1235, amongst a number of works on this subject, -wrote _The Rosarium_, a compendium of the alchemy of his time. He died -in 1313, on his way to visit Pope Clement V. at Avignon. Another pope, -John XXII., professed and described the art of transmuting metals, and -boasts in the beginning of his book that he had made two hundred ingots -of gold, each weighing one hundred pounds. Among English alchemists of -the fourteenth century may be mentioned Cremer, abbot of Westminster -(the disciple and friend of Lully), John Daustein, and Richard, who both -practised and wrote upon the "hermetic philosophy," as it was termed. In -the fifteenth century was born George Ripley, a canon registrar of -Bridlington, who wrote the _Medulla Alchymiae_ (translated by Dr. Salmon -in his _Clavis_), and another work in rhyme, called "The Compound of -Alchemie," which was dedicated to Edward IV. Dr. John Dee (born 1527), -the warden of Manchester College, and his assistant, or "seer," Edward -Kelly (born 1555), were both avowed alchemists. Dee wrote a _Treatise of -the Rosie Crucian Secrets, their excellent methods of making Medicines -and Metals_, &c. Ashmole says of him, that "some time he bestowed in -vulgar chemistry, and was therein master of divers secrets: amongst -others, he revealed to one Roger Cooke 'the great secret of the elixir' -(as he called it) 'of the salt of metals, the projection whereof was -one upon a hundred.'[13] - -"'Tis generally reported that Dr. Dee and Sir Edward Kelly were so -strangely fortunate as to find a very large quantity of the elixir in -some parts of the ruins of Glastonbury Abbey." It had remained here, -perhaps, ever since the time of the highly gifted St. Dunstan, in the -tenth century.[14] The great Lord Bacon relates the following story in -his _Apothegms_:-- - -"Sir Edward Dyer, a grave and wise gentleman, did much believe in Kelly, -the alchemist, that he did indeed the work, and made gold; insomuch that -he went into Germany, where Kelly then was, to inform himself fully -thereof. After his return he dined with my Lord of Canterbury, where at -that time was at the table Dr. Brown, the physician. They fell in talk -of Kelly. Sir Edward Dyer, turning to the archbishop, said--'I do assure -your Grace that that I shall tell you is truth: I am an eye-witness -thereof; and if I had not seen it, I should not have believed it. I saw -Master Kelly put of the base metal into the crucible; and after it was -set a little upon the fire, and a very small quantity of the medicine -put in, and stirred with a stick of wood, it came forth, in great -proportion, perfect gold, to the touch, to the hammer, and to the test.' -My Lord Archbishop said, 'You had need take heed what you say, Sir -Edward Dyer, for here is an infidel at the board.' Sir Edward Dyer said -again pleasantly, 'I would have looked for an infidel sooner in any -place than at your Grace's table.' 'What say you, Dr. Brown?' said the -archbishop. Dr. Brown answered, after his blunt and huddling manner, -'The gentleman hath spoken enough for me.' 'Why,' saith the archbishop, -'what hath he said?' 'Marry,' saith Dr. Brown, 'he said he would not -have believed it except he had seen it; and no more will I.'" - -Professor De Morgan observes that "Alchemy was more than a popular -credulity: Newton and Boyle were amongst the earnest inquirers into it." -Bishop Berkeley was of opinion that M. Homberg made gold by introducing -light into the pores of mercury. Amongst the works of the Hon. Robert -Boyle (vol. iv. 13-19), is _An Historical Account of a Degradation of -Gold, made by an anti-Elixir: a Strange Chemical Narrative_, in which he -says--"To make it more credible that other metals are capable of being -graduated or exalted into gold, by way of projection, I will relate to -you, that by the like way, gold has been degraded or imbased.... Our -experiment plainly shows that gold, though confessedly the most -homogeneous and the least mutable of metals, may be in a very short time -(perhaps not amounting to many minutes), exceedingly changed, both as to -malleableness, colour, homogeneity, and (which is more) specific -gravity; and all this by so very inconsiderable a portion of injected -powder," &c. - -"When Locke, as one of the executors of Boyle, was about to publish some -of his works, Newton wished him to insert the second and third part of -Boyle's recipes (the first part of which was to obtain 'a mercury that -would grow hot with gold'), and which Boyle had communicated to him on -condition that they should be published after his death."[15] "Mangetus -relates a story of a stranger calling on Boyle, and leaving with him a -powder, which he projected into the crucible, and instantly went out. -After the fire had gone out, Boyle found in the crucible a -yellow-coloured metal, possessing all the properties of pure gold, and -only a little lighter than the weight of the materials originally put in -the crucible."[16] - -From these proofs of the credulity of great men, let us turn to the -encouragements vouchsafed to alchemy and its adepts by the Kings and -Parliaments of England. Raymond Lully visited England on the invitation -of Edward I.; and he affirms in one of his works, that in the secret -chamber of St. Katherine, in the Tower of London, he performed in the -royal presence the experiment of transmuting some crystal into a mass of -diamond, or adamant, as he calls it; on which Edward, he says, caused -some little pillars to be made for the tabernacle of God. It was -popularly believed, indeed, at the time, that the English king had been -furnished by Lully with a great quantity of gold for defraying the -expense of an expedition which he intended to make to the Holy Land. -Edward III. was not less credulous on this subject than his grandfather, -as appears by an order which he issued in 1329, in the following -terms:--"Know all men that we have been assured that John of Rous, and -Master William of Dalby, know how to make silver by the art of alchemy; -that they have made it in former times, and still continue to make it; -and considering that these men, by their art, and by making the precious -metal, may be profitable to us and to our kingdom, we have commanded our -well-beloved Thomas Cary to apprehend the aforesaid John and William -wherever they can be found, within liberties or without, and bring them -to us, together with all the instruments of their art, under safe and -sure custody." The first considerable coinage of gold in England was -begun by Edward III. in 1343: and "The alchemists did affirm, as an -unwritten verity, that the rose nobles, which were coined soon after, -were made by projection or multiplication alchemical, by Raymond Lully, -in the Tower of London." But Lully died in 1315; and the story only -shows the strength of the popular faith in alchemy. That this pretended -science was much cultivated in the fourteenth century, and with the -usual evil results, may be inferred from an Act passed 5 Hen. IV. cap. 4 -(1404), to make it felony "to multiply gold or silver, or to use the -craft of multiplication," &c. It is probable, however, that this statute -was enacted from some apprehension that the operations of the -multipliers might possibly affect the value of the king's coin. Henry -VI., a very pious, yet very weak and credulous prince, was as great a -patron of the alchemists as Edward III. had been before him. These -impostors practised with admirable success upon his weakness and -credulity, repeatedly inducing him to advance them money wherewith to -prosecute the operations, as well as procuring from him protections -(which he sometimes prevailed upon the Parliament to confirm) from the -penalties of the statute just mentioned.[17] In 1438, the king -commissioned three philosophers to make the precious metals; but, as -might be expected, he received no returns from them in gold or -silver.[18] His credulity, however, seems to have been unshaken by -disappointment, and we next find him issuing one of these protections, -which is too long to print entire, granted to the "three famous men," -John Fauceby, John Kirkeby, and John Ragny, which was confirmed by -Parliament May 31, 1456. In this document the object of the researches -of these "philosophers" is described to be "a certain most precious -medicine, called by some philosophers 'the mother and empress of -medicines;' by some, 'the inestimable glory;' by others, 'the -quintessence;' by others, 'the philosopher's stone;' by others, 'the -elixir of life;' which cures all curable diseases with ease; prolongs -human life in perfect vigour of faculty to its utmost natural term; -heals all healable wounds; is a most sovereign antidote against all -poisons; and is capable of preserving to us and our kingdom other great -advantages, such as the transmutation of other metals into the most real -and finest gold and silver."[19] Fauceby, here mentioned, is elsewhere -designated the king's physician.[20] We have not traced the position of -the other two adepts named. Fauceby, however, notwithstanding his power -of gold-making, did not refuse to accept a grant from the king, in 1456, -of a pension of 100_l._ a year for life.[21] - -We come now to the two most distinguished of Lancashire alchemists, both -knights, and at the head of the principal families of the county. They -seem to have been actively engaged together in the delusive pursuit of -the transmutation of metals; and, self-deceived, to have deluded the -weak king with promises of wealth which never could be realised. These -Lancashire adepts were Sir Edmund de Trafford, Knight, and Sir Thomas -Ashton [of Ashton], Knight. The former was the younger of two sons of -Henry de Trafford, Esq., and Elizabeth his wife, daughter of Sir Ralph -Radcliffe, Knight. The elder son, Henry, dying at the early age of -twenty-six years, this Edmund succeeded as his heir about King Henry V. -(1414), and he was knighted by Henry VI. at the Whitsuntide of 1426. He -married Dame Alice Venables, eldest daughter and co-heir to Sir William -Venables, of Bollyn, Knight. Their only son, Sir John Trafford, knighted -about 1444, in his father's life-time, married Elizabeth, daughter of -Sir Thomas Ashton, of Ashton-under-Lyne, Knight; whilst Sir Edmund's -youngest daughter, Dulcia, or Douce, married Sir John Ashton, a son of -Sir Thomas, in 1438; so that the two families were connected by this -double alliance. Sir Thomas Ashton, the alchemist, was the eldest son of -Sir John de Ashton (Knight of the Bath at the coronation of Henry IV. in -1399, Knight of the Shire in 1413, and Constable of Coutances in 1417), -and of his first wife, Jane, daughter of John Savile, of Tankersley, -county York. Sir Thomas married Elizabeth, daughter of Sir John Byron. -The date of his death is not known. Sir Edmund Trafford died in 1457. -Their supposed power of transmuting the baser metals into gold had great -attractions for a weak king, whose treasury was low, and who was -encumbered with debt. They were not mere adventurers, but men descended -from ancient families, opulent, and of high estimation in their native -county. Fuller found in the Tower of London, and copied,[22] a patent -granted to these two knights by Henry VI., in the twenty-fourth year of -his reign (1446), of which he gives the following translation:--"The -King to all unto whom, &c., greeting--Know ye, that whereas our beloved -and loyal Edmund de Trafford, Knight, and Thomas Ashton, Knight, have, -by a certain petition shown unto us, set forth that although they were -willing by the art or science of philosophy to work upon certain metals, -to translate [transmute] imperfect metals from their own kind, and then -to transubstantiate them by their said art or science, as they say, into -perfect gold or silver, unto all manner of proofs and trials, to be -expected and endured as any gold or silver growing in any mine; -notwithstanding certain persons ill-willing and maligning them, -conceiving them to work by unlawful art, and so may hinder and disturb -them in the trial of the said art and science: WE, considering the -premises, and willing to know the conclusion of the said work or -science, of our special grace have granted and given leave to the same -Edmund and Thomas, and to their servants, that they may work and try the -aforesaid art and science lawfully and freely, without any hindrance of -ours, or of our officers, whatsoever; any statute, act, ordinance, or -provision made, ordained, or provided to the contrary notwithstanding. -In witness whereof, &c., the King at Westminster, the 7th day of April" -[1446.][23] Fuller leaves this curious document, which might fitly have -been dated the _first_ instead of the 7th April, without a word of -comment. The two knightly alchemists, doubtlessly imposing on themselves -no less than on their royal patron, kept the king's expectation wound up -to the highest pitch; and in the following year he actually informed his -people that the happy hour was approaching when by means of "the stone" -he "should be able to pay off his debts!"[24] It is scarcely necessary -to add that the stone failed, and the king's debts must have remained -unpaid, if his majesty had not pawned the revenue of his Duchy of -Lancaster, to satisfy the demands of his clamorous creditors. Henry VI. -was deposed by Edward IV. in March, 1461, and though he was nominally -restored to the throne in October, 1470, he lost both crown and life in -May, 1471, being found dead (most probably murdered) in the Tower on the -evening or the morrow of the day on which Edward IV. entered London -after his victory at Barnet. Such are some of the most notable facts in -the practice of alchemy as connected with Lancashire. It will naturally -be asked if alchemy is still practised in this county? We can only say, -that if it be it is in very rare instances, and with the greatest -secrecy. The more chemistry is known--and the extent to which it has -been developed within the last twenty years is truly marvellous--the -more completely it takes the ground from under the feet of a believer in -alchemy. It is not like astrology, which accepts the facts of the true -science of astronomy, and only draws false conclusions from true -premisses. Alchemy could only have sprung up at a period when all the -operations of the chemist's laboratory were of the most rude, imperfect, -and blundering character; when the true bases of earths and minerals and -metals were unknown; when what was called chemistry was without -analysis, either quantitative or qualitative; before the law of definite -proportions had been discovered; when, in short, chemistry was a groping -in the dark without the help of any accurate weight or measure, or -other knowledge of the countless substances which are now so extensively -investigated, and so accurately described in the briefest formulas. A -man, to become an alchemist in the nineteenth century, must study only -the hermetical writings of past ages, shutting both eyes and ears to all -the facts of modern chemistry. It is scarcely possible at this day to -find such a combination of exploded learning and scientific ignorance. -Hence we conclude that alchemy is in all probability, from the very -nature of things, an obsolete and forgotten lore. - - -LANCASHIRE ASTROLOGERS. - -Astrology (literally the Science of the Stars), is now understood to -signify the mode of discovering future events by means of the position -of the heavenly bodies, which has been termed judicial astronomy. This -quasi science found universal belief among all the nations of antiquity -except the Greeks. Among the Romans it was eagerly cultivated from the -time of the conquest of Egypt. In the second century the whole world was -astrological. All the followers of Mohammed have ever been, and still -are, believers in it. The Church of Rome has repeatedly condemned the -art, but popes and cardinals rank amongst its votaries. Cardinal d'Ailly -(about 1400), calculated the horoscope of Jesus Christ; and in the -fifteenth century Pope Calixtus III. directed prayers and anathemas -against a comet which had either assisted in or predicted the success of -the Turks against the Christians. The establishment of the Copernican -system was the death of astrology. The last of the astrologers was -Morin, best known as the opponent of Gassendi. The latter in youth had -studied and believed in the art, but afterwards renounced and written -against it. Morin, who worked thirty years at a book on astrology, and -who disbelieved in the motion of the earth, repeatedly predicted the -death of Gassendi, but was always wrong, as he was in foretelling the -death of Louis XIII. Since his death, in 1656, the pseudo-science has -gradually sunk, and has not since, it is believed, been adopted by any -real astronomer. Roger Bacon and other early English philosophers were -believers in astrology, no less than in alchemy. In Lancashire the most -remarkable practisers of the art were Dr. John Dee, warden of Manchester -College, his friend and "seer," Sir Edward Kelly, and John Booker, of -Manchester. Dee was the son of a wealthy vintner, and was born in London -in 1527. At the age of fifteen he was entered at St. John's College, -Cambridge, where he seems to have devoted himself to the study of -mathematics, astronomy, and chemistry; displaying great assiduity and -industry. At twenty he made a year's tour on the Continent, chiefly in -Holland, and on his return was made one of the fellows of Trinity -College on its foundation by Henry VIII., in 1543. In 1548 he was -strongly suspected of being addicted to "the black art," probably from -his astrological pursuits; and having taken his degree of A.M., he again -went abroad to the university of Louvaine and to Rheims, and elsewhere -in France; returning to England in 1551, when he was presented by Cecil -to King Edward VI., who assigned him a pension of one hundred crowns, -which he subsequently relinquished for the rectory of Upton-on-Severn. -Shortly after the accession of Mary, he was accused of "practising -against the queen's life by _enchantment_;" the charge being founded on -some correspondence between him and "the servants of the Lady -Elizabeth." He was long imprisoned and frequently examined, but as -nothing could be established against him he was set at liberty by an -order of the church in 1555. On the accession of Elizabeth, Dee was -consulted by Lord Robert Dudley respecting "a propitious day" for the -coronation. He says, "I wrote at large and delivered it for her -Majesty's use, by the commandment of the Lord Robert (afterwards Earl of -Leicester), what in my judgment the ancient astrologers would determine -on the election day of such a time as was appointed for her Majesty to -be crowned in." He was presented to the queen, who made him great -promises (not always fulfilled); amongst others, that where her brother -Edward "had given him a crown, she would give him a noble" [one-third -more--viz., from 5_s._ to 6_s._ 8_d._]. Nothing can better mark the -belief in astrology than the fact that Queen Elizabeth's nativity was -cast, in order to ascertain whether she could marry with advantage to -the nation. Lilly, some eighty years later, declares[25] that he -received twenty pieces of gold, in order that he might ascertain where -Charles I. might be most safe from his enemies, and what hour would be -most favourable for his escape from Carisbrooke Castle. - -In 1564 Dee again visited the Continent, and was presented to the -Emperor Maximilian, probably on some secret mission; for Lilly says, "he -was the Queen's intelligencer, and had a salary for his maintenance from -the Secretaries of State. He was a ready-witted man, quick of -apprehension, and of great judgment in the Latin and Greek tongues. He -was a very great investigator of the more secret hermetical learning -(alchemy), a perfect astronomer, a curious astrologer, a serious -geometrician; to speak truth, he was excellent in all kinds of -learning."[26] Dee was repeatedly and urgently sent for one morning "to -prevent the mischief which divers of her Majesty's privy council -suspected to be intended against her Majesty, by means of a certain -image of wax, with a great pin stuck into it, about the breast of it, -found in Lincoln's Inn Fields." For some years Dee led a life of privacy -and study at Mortlake in Surrey, collecting books and MSS., beryls and -magic crystals, talismans, &c. So strong was the popular belief in his -neighbourhood that he had dealings with the devil, that in 1576 a mob -assembled, broke into his house, and destroyed nearly all his library -and collections; and it was with difficulty that he and his family -escaped the fury of the rabble. In October, 1578, by the Queen's -command, he had a conference with Dr. Bayley, her Majesty's physician, -"about her Majesty's grievous pains, by reason of toothache and the -rheum," &c.; and the same year he was sent on a winter journey of about -1500 miles by sea and land, "to consult with the learned physicians and -philosophers [_i.e._, astrologers], for her Majesty's health-recovering -and preserving." Passing over his more useful and valuable services to -the State and to the world, as we are only noting here his doings as an -astrologer, &c., we may remark that most of his proceedings and writings -in this pseudo-science or art were accomplished after he had passed his -fiftieth year. It was in 1581 that he took into his service, as an -assistant in his alchemical and astrological labours, an apothecary of -Worcester named Edward Kelly, born in 1555, and who was called "The -Seer," because, looking into magic crystals or speculae, it was said he -saw many things which it was not permitted to Dee himself to behold. -Kelly also acted as Dee's amanuensis, and together they held -"conversations with spirits." They had a black speculum, it is said "a -polished piece of cannel coal," in which the angels Gabriel and Raphael -appeared at their invocation. Hence Butler says-- - - "Kelly did all his feats upon - The devil's looking-glass--a stone." - -In 1583 a Polish noble, Albert Lasque, palatine of Siradia [? Sieradz] -being in England, Dee and Kelly were introduced to him, and accompanied -him to Poland. He persuaded them to pay a visit to Rodolph, king of -Bohemia, who, though a weak and credulous man, is said to have become -disgusted with their pretensions. They had no better success with the -king of Poland, but were soon after invited by a rich Bohemian noble to -his castle of Trebona, where they continued for some time in great -affluence, owing, as they asserted, to their transmuting the baser -metals into gold. Kelly is said to have been sordid and grasping, -without honour or principle. Lilly asserts that the reason of many -failures in the conferences with spirits was because Kelly was very -vicious, "unto whom the angels were not obedient, or willingly did -declare [answers to] the questions propounded." Dee and Kelly quarrelled -and separated in Bohemia; Dee returning to England, while Kelly remained -at Prague. He died in 1595. In 1595 the Queen appointed Dee warden of -Manchester College, he being then sixty-eight years of age. He resided -at Manchester nine years, quitting it in 1604 for his old abode at -Mortlake, where he died in 1608, aged eighty-one, in great poverty, and -leaving a numerous family and a great many printed works and forty -unpublished writings behind him. The catalogue of Dee's library at -Mortlake shows that it was rich in the works of preceding astrologers -and alchemists, especially those of Roger Bacon, Raymond Lully, Albertus -Magnus, Arnold de Villa Nova, &c. - -John Booker, a celebrated astrologer of the seventeenth century, was the -son of John Bowker (commonly pronounced Booker), of Manchester, and was -born 23rd March, 1601. He was educated at the Manchester Grammar School, -where he acquired some acquaintance with Latin. From childhood he showed -an inclination for astrology, and amused himself with studying almanacks -and other books on that subject. After serving some time to a -haberdasher in London, he practised as a writing-master at Hadley, -Middlesex; and was subsequently clerk for some time to the aldermen at -Guildhall. Becoming famous by his studies, he was appointed Licenser of -Mathematical Publications, which then included all those relating to the -"celestial sciences." Lilly tells us that he once thought him the -greatest astrologer in the world; but he afterwards came to think -himself a much greater man. George Wharton, who had been one of his -astrological acquaintances, quarrelled with him, and in consequence -published at Oxford in 1644, in answer to one of Booker's pamphlets, -what he called "Mercurio-C[oe]lica-Mastyx; or an Anti-caveat to all such -as have heretofore had the misfortune to be cheated and deluded by the -great and treacherous impostor, John Booker; in an answer to his -frivolous pamphlet, entitled 'Mercurius-C[oe]licus, or a Caveat to all -the People of England.'" Booker died of dysentery in April, 1667, and -was buried in St. James's Church, Duke's Place, London, where the -following monument was erected to him by Ashmole, who was one of his -greatest admirers:--"Ne oblivione conteretur Urna Johannis Bookeri, -Astrologi, qui Fatis cessit 6 idus Aprilis, A.D. 1667. Hoc illi posuit -amoris Monumentum, Elias Ashmole, Armiger." Lilly, in his _Life and -Times_, gives the following character of Booker:-- - -"He was a great proficient in astrology, whose excellent verses upon -the twelve months, framed according to the configurations of each month, -being blest with success according to his predictions, procured him much -reputation all over England. He was a very honest man; abhorred any -deceit in the art he studied; had a curious fancy in judging of thefts; -and was successful in resolving love questions. He was no mean -proficient in astronomy; understood much of physic; was a great admirer -of the antimonial cup; not unlearned in chemistry, which he loved, but -did not practise; and since his decease I have seen a nativity of his -performance, exactly directed, and judged with as much learning as from -astrology can be expected. His library of books came short of the -world's approbation, and were sold by his widow to Elias Ashmole, Esq., -who most generously gave far more than they were worth." - -Lilly and Booker were frequently consulted during the differences -between the king and the parliamentary army, and were once invited by -General Fairfax, and sent in a coach-and-four to head quarters at -Windsor, to give their opinions on [_i.e._, their predictions as to] the -prosecution of the war. Booker became famous for a prediction on the -solar eclipse of 1613, in which year both the king of Bohemia and -Gustavus, king of Sweden, died. Booker's works (chiefly tracts or -pamphlets) were about fifteen or sixteen in number. The only work now -worth notice is his _Bloody Irish Almanack_ (London, 1646, quarto), -which contains some memorable particulars relative to the war in -Ireland.[27] - -Another Lancashire astrologer was Charles Leadbetter, who was born at -Cronton, near Prescot, and was the author of a _Treatise on Eclipses of -the Sun and Moon, commencing A.D. 1715, and ending A.D. 1749_; in which -he gives the horoscope of every eclipse of importance; and, from the -aspects of the stars, predicts the principal occurrences that may be -expected within limited periods. He failed, however, to predict the -Rebellion of 1715, or that of 1745; and though under the years 1720 and -1721 he predicated "Sea Fights and Death of Fish," no hint of the "South -Sea Bubble," the great event of those years, can be found amongst his -prophecies. He entertained no doubt of an "eclipse of the moon, moving -subjects to seduction [? sedition], servants to disobedience, and wives -to a disorder against their husbands." Yet Leadbetter's Works on -Astronomy, &c., were held in able repute, and he taught the "Arts and -Sciences Mathematical" with much success, "at the Hand and Pen, Cock -Lane, near Shore Ditch, London." - -If we close here our notices of Lancashire Astrologers, it is not -because we suppose the class to be wholly extinct. But those to whom we -have so far referred, were well acquainted with astronomy, and erred -only in superadding the delusions of astrology to the truths of that -real science. The class still remaining in Lancashire, chiefly in -country districts, are (with very few exceptions) greatly inferior in -knowledge, and, mixing up the arts of the so-called sorcerer or conjuror -with the deductions of the so-called "astral science" (of which they are -blundering smatterers, often ignorant of the very elements of -astronomy), they do not merit the name of astrologers, but should be -classed with the numerous "wise men," "cunning women," and other -varieties of fortune-tellers, who have not even the negative merit of -being self-deluded by the phenomena of a supposed science; but are in -their way mere charlatans and cheats, knowingly cozening their credulous -dupes of as much money as they can extort. Some notices of this class -will be found in later pages. - - -BELLS. - -It is not with Bells generally, but only with Church Bells, and not with -all their uses, but only such of them as are superstitious, that we are -called upon to deal here. The large church bells are said to have been -invented by Paulinus, Bishop of Nola, in Campania (whence the low Latin -name of Campana), about A.D. 400. Two hundred years afterwards they -appear to have been in great use in churches. Pope John XIII., in A.D. -968, consecrated a very large newly-cast bell in the Lateran Church at -Rome, giving it the name of John. This is the first instance known of -what has since been called "the baptising of bells," a Roman Catholic -superstition of which vestiges remain in England in the names of great -bells, as "Tom of Lincoln," "Great Tom of Oxford," &c. The priests -anciently rung them themselves. Amongst their superstitious uses, were -to drive away lightning and thunder; to chase evil spirits from persons -and places; to expedite childbirth, when women were in labour; and the -original use of the soul-bell or passing-bell was to drive away any -demon that might seek to take possession of the soul of the deceased. -Grose says that the passing-bell was anciently rung for two purposes: -one, to bespeak the prayers of all good Christians for a soul just -departing; the other, to drive away the evil spirits who stood at the -bed's foot and about the house, ready to seize their prey, or at least -to molest and terrify the soul in its passage. By the ringing of the -bell they were kept aloof, and the soul, like a hunted hare, gained the -start, or had what sportsmen call "law." Hence the high charge for -tolling the great bell of the church, which, being louder, the evil -spirits must go further off to be clear of its sound, by which the poor -soul got so much the more start of them; besides, being heard further -off, it would likewise procure the dying man a greater number of -prayers. Till about 1830, it was customary at Roman Catholic funerals in -many parts of Lancashire, to ring a merry peal on the bells, as soon as -the interment was over. Doubtless the greater the clang of the bells, -the further the flight of the fiends waiting to seize the soul of the -departed. There are some monkish rhymes in Latin on the uses of church -bells, some of which are retained in the following doggerel:-- - - Men's deaths I tell By doleful knell; - Lightning and thunder I break asunder; - On Sabbath all To church I call; - The sleepy head I raise from bed; - The winds so fierce I do disperse; - Men's cruel rage I do assuage. - -The following verses (the spelling modernized) further illustrate the -subject:[28]-- - - "If that the thunder chance to roar, and stormy tempest shake, - A wonder is it for to see the wretches how they quake; - How that no faith at all they have, nor trust in any thing, - The clerk doth all the bells forthwith at once in steeple ring; - With wondrous sound and deeper far than he was wont before, - Till in the lofty heavens dark the thunders bray no more. - For in these christen'd bells they think doth lie much pow'r and might - As able is the tempest great and storm to vanquish quite. - - I saw myself at Nurnberg once, a town in Toring coast, - A bell that with this title bold herself did proudly boast: - By name I 'Mary' called am, with sound I put to flight - The thunder-cracks and hurtful storms, and every wicked sprite. - Such things when as these bells can do, no wonder certainly - It is, if that the papists to their tolling always fly, - When hail, or any raging storm, or tempest comes in sight, - Or thunderbolts, or lightning fierce, that every place doth smite." - -Wynkin de Worde[29] tells us that bells are rung during thunder-storms, -to the end that the fiends and wicked spirits should be abashed, and -flee, and cease the moving of the tempest.[30] Bells appear to have had -an inherent power against evil spirits, but this power was held to be -greatly increased by the bells being christened. There is a custom in -some Lancashire parishes, in ringing the passing-bell, to conclude its -tolling with nine knells or strokes of the clapper, for a man, six for a -woman, and three for a child; the vestiges of an ancient Roman Catholic -injunction.[31] In an Old English Homily for Trinity Sunday,[32] it is -stated that "the form of the Trinity was found in man; that was, Adam -our forefather, on earth, one person, and Eve of Adam, the second -person; and of them both was the third person. At the death of a man -three bells should be rung, as his knell, in worship of the Trinity, and -for a woman, who was the second person of the Trinity, two bells should -be rung." Two couplets on the passing-bell may be inserted here:-- - - "When the bell begins to toll, - Lord have mercy on the soul! - - When thou dost hear a toll or knell - Then think upon _thy_ passing-bell."[33] - -The great bell which used to be rung on Shrove-Tuesday to call the -people together for the purpose of confessing their sins, or to be -"shriven," was called the "Pancake Bell," and some have regarded it -simply as a signal for the people to begin frying their pancakes. This -custom prevails still in some parts of Lancashire, and in many country -places throughout the North of England. Another bell, rung in some -places as the congregation quits the church on Sunday, is popularly -known among country people as the "pudding-bell," they supposing that -its use is to warn those at home to get the dinner ready, as, in homely -phrase, "pudding-time has come." A Lancashire clergyman[34] states that -this bell is still rung in some of the old Lancashire parish churches; -but he does not suggest any more probable reason for tolling this bell. -The Curfew Bell [_couvre feu_, cover-fire] is commonly believed to be of -Norman origin; a law having been made by William the Conqueror that all -people should put out their fires and lights at the eight o'clock -(evening) bell, and go to bed. In one place the sexton of a parish was -required to lie in the church steeple, and at eight o'clock every night -to ring the curfew for a quarter of an hour. The curfew-bell is still -rung at Burnley, Colne, Blackburn, Padiham, and indeed in most of the -older towns and many of the villages of Lancashire. It has nearly lost -its ancient name, and is a remarkable instance of the persistence of an -old custom or usage, long after all its significance or value has -ceased. It is now merely called "the eight o'clock bell." A morning -bell, rung anciently at four, now more commonly at six o'clock, is also -to be heard in Burnley and other places, and is called "the six o'clock -bell." Of what maybe called "the vocal ghosts of bells" many stories -might be told. Opposite the Cross-slack, on the sands near Blackpool, -out at sea, once stood the church and cemetery of Kilgrimol, long since -submerged. Many tales are told of benighted wanderers near this spot -being terrified with the sound of bells pealing dismal chimes o'er the -murmuring sea.[35] - - -BEAL-TINE OR BELTANE FIRES; RELICS OF BAAL WORSHIP. - -Among the dim traces of an extinct worship of Bel, or Baal, the ancient -sun-god, perceptible still among Celtic peoples, especially in Ireland -and Scotland, are the three festival periods when fires are kindled on -eminences in honour of the sun. The _Bel_, or _Belus_, the chief deity -of the Babylonians and the Assyrians, seems to have been identical with -the _Baal_ of the Ph[oe]nicians and Carthaginians. The Chaldee _Bel_ and -the Hebrew _Baal_ alike mean "Lord;" and under these names worship was -paid by the old Asiatics to the sun, whose light and heat-giving -properties were typified by fires kindled on the tops of high hills. In -parts of Lancashire, especially in the Fylde, these traces of a heathen -cult still linger. "From the great heaps of stones on eminences, called -Cairns, from the Toot-hills (_i.e._, the hills dedicated to the worship -of the Celtic god, Tot, or Teut, or Teutates, the same with the Egyptian -Thoth), and the Belenian eminences, whereon was worshipped Bel, or -Belus, or Belenus, the sun-god; from these three kinds of heights the -grand sacred fires of the _Bel-Tine_ flamed thrice a year, at three of -the great festivals of the Druids, in honour of Beal, or the Sun--viz., -on the eve of May-day, on Midsummer Eve, and on the eve of the 1st -November. Two such fires were kindled by one another on May-day Eve in -every village of the nation, as well throughout all Gaul as in Britain, -Ireland, and the outlying lesser islands, between which fires the men -and the beasts to be sacrificed were to pass; from whence came the -proverb, 'Between Bel's two fires,' meaning one in a great strait, not -knowing how to extricate himself. One of the fires was on the cairn, and -the other on the ground. On the eve of the 1st of November all the -people, out of a religious persuasion instilled into them by the Druids, -extinguished their fires. Then every master of a family was religiously -obliged to take home a portion of the consecrated fire, and to kindle -the fire anew in his house, which for the ensuing year was to be lucky -and prosperous. Any man who had not paid all his last year's dues to the -Druids was neither to have a spark of this holy fire from the cairns, -nor dared any of his neighbours let him take the benefit of theirs, -under pain of excommunication; which, as managed by the Druids, was -worse than death. If, therefore, he would live the winter out, he must -pay the Druids' dues by the last day of October. The Midsummer fires and -sacrifices were to obtain a blessing on the fruits of the earth, now -becoming ready for gathering; as those on the 1st of May, that they -might prosperously grow; and those on the last of October were a -thanksgiving for finishing their harvest. But in all of them regard was -had to the several degrees of increase and decrease in the heat of the -sun. At the cairn fires it was customary for the lord of the place, or -his son, or some other person of distinction, to take the entrails of -the sacrificed animal into his hands, and walking bare-foot over the -coals thrice, after the flames had ceased, to carry them to the Druid, -who waited in a whole skin at the altar. If the fire-treader escaped -harmless, it was reckoned a good omen, and welcomed with loud -acclamations; but if he received any hurt, it was deemed unlucky both to -the community and to himself."[36] In Ireland, May-day is called _la na -Beal tina_, and its eve, _neen na Beal tina_--_i.e._, the day and eve of -Beal's fire, from its having been in heathen times consecrated to the -god Beal, or Belus. The ceremony practised on May-day Eve, of making the -cows leap over lighted straw or faggots, has been generally traced to -the worship of this deity.[37] - -The Irish have ever been worshippers of fire and of Baal, and are so to -this day. The chief festival in honour of the sun and fire is upon the -21st [24th] June, when the sun arrives at the summer solstice, or rather -begins its retrograde motion. "At the house where I was entertained, in -the summer of 1782, it was told me that we should see at midnight the -most singular sight in Ireland, which was _the lighting of fires in -honour of the sun_. Accordingly, exactly at midnight, the fires began to -appear; and, going up to the leads of the house, which had a -widely-extended view, I saw, on a radius of thirty miles all around, the -fires burning on every eminence. I learned from undoubted authority that -the people danced round the fires, and at the close went through these -fires, and made their sons and daughters, together with their cattle, -pass the fire; and the whole was conducted with religious -solemnity."[38] Bonfires are still made on Midsummer Eve in the northern -parts of England and in Wales. The 1st of November was considered among -the ancient Welsh as the conclusion of summer, and was celebrated with -bonfires, accompanied with ceremonies suitable to these events, and some -parts of Wales still retain these customs. Dr. Jamieson, in his -_Dictionary of the Scottish Language_, mentions a festival called -_Beltane_ or _Beltein_, annually held in Scotland on Old May Day (May -13th). A town in Perthshire is called _Tillee Beltein_--_i.e._, the -eminence or high place of the fire of Baal. Near it are two Druidical -Temples of upright stones, with a well adjacent to one of them, still -held in great veneration for its sanctity. The doctor describes the -drawing of bits of a cake, one part of which is made perfectly black -with charcoal, and he who draws the black bit is considered as "devoted -to Baal, and is obliged to leap three times through the flame." Pennant, -in his _Tour in Scotland_, gives a like account, with other ceremonies. -The custom existed in the Isle of Man on the eve of the 1st of May, of -lighting _two_ fires on a hill-top, in honour of the pagan god Baal, and -of driving cattle between those fires, as an antidote against murrain or -any pestilent distemper for the year following. It was also customary to -light these fires on St. John's Eve (June 23rd), and up to the present -time a stranger is surprised to see on this day, as evening approaches, -fires springing up in all directions around him, accompanied with the -blowing of horns and other rejoicings.[39] Macpherson notices the -_Beltein_ ceremonies in Ireland, and adds, "Beltein is also observed in -Lancashire." On Horwich Moor are two heaps of stones, or cairns, which -are called by the country people "The Wilder Lads." It is believed that -on May Day Eve the Druids made prodigious fires on cairns, situated as -these are, on lofty eminences, which being every one in sight of some -other like fire, symbolized a universal celebration. These fires were in -honour of _Beal_, or _Bealan_, latinized into _Belenus_, by which name -the Gauls and their colonies denoted the sun; and to this time the -first day of May is by the Irish called _La Bealtine_, or the Day of -Belen's Fire. It bears a like name among the Highlanders of Scotland, -and in the Isle of Man.[40] - -The last evening in October was called the "Teanlay Night," or "The Fast -of All Souls." At the close of that day, till of late years, the hills -which encircle the Fylde shone brightly with many a bonfire; the mosses -of Marton, &c., rivalling them with their fires, kindled for the avowed -object of succouring their friends, whose souls were supposed to be -detained in purgatory. A field near Poulton in which the mummery of the -"Teanlay" was once celebrated (a circle of men standing with bundles of -straw, raised on high with forks), is named "Purgatory" by the old -inhabitants. Formerly this custom was not confined to one village or -town of the Fylde district, but was generally practised as a sacred -ceremony.[41] - - -BOGGARTS, GHOSTS, AND HAUNTED PLACES. - -What is a Boggart? A sort of ghost or sprite. But what is the meaning of -the word Boggart? Brand says that "in the northern parts of England, -ghost is pronounced _gheist_ and _guest_. Hence _bar-guest_, or -_bar-gheist_. Many streets are haunted by a guest, who assumes many -strange appearances, as a mastiff-dog, &c. It is a corruption of the -Anglo-Saxon _gast_, spiritus, anima." Brand might have added that _bar_ -is a term for gate in the north, and that all the gates of York are -named "bars," so that a _bar-gheist_ is literally a gate-ghost; and many -are the tales of strange appearances suddenly seen perched on the top of -a gate or fence, whence they sometimes leaped upon the shoulders of the -scared passenger. Drake, in his _Eboracum_, says (Appendix, p. 7), "I -have been so frightened with stories of the _barguest_ when I was a -child, that I cannot help throwing away an etymology upon it. I suppose -it comes from Anglo-Saxon _burh_, a town, and _gast_, a ghost, and so -signifies a town sprite. N.B.--_Guest_ is in the Belgic and Teutonic -softened into _gheist_ and _geyst_." The "Boggart Hole" therefore means -the hollow haunted by the bar-gheist or gate-ghost. - - -BOGGART HOLE CLOUGH. - -"Not far from the little snug, smoky village of Blakeley or Blackley, -there lies one of the most romantic of dells, rejoicing in a state of -singular seclusion, and in the oddest of Lancashire names, to wit, the -'Boggart Hole.' [In the present generation, by pleonasm, the place is -named 'Boggart Hole Clough.'] Rich in every requisite for picturesque -beauty and poetical association, it is impossible for me (who am neither -a painter nor a poet) to describe this dell as it should be described; -and I will, therefore, only beg of thee, gentle reader, who, -peradventure, mayst not have lingered in this classical neighbourhood, -to fancy a deep, deep, dell, its steep sides fringed down with hazel, -and beech, and fern, and thick undergrowth, and clothed at the bottom -with the richest and greenest sward in the world. You descend, clinging -to the trees, and scrambling as best you may, and now you stand on -haunted ground! Tread softly, for this is the Boggart's Clough, and see, -in yonder dark corner, and beneath the projecting mossy stone, where -that dusky sullen cave yawns before us, like a bit of Salvator's best, -there lurks that strange elf, the sly and mischievous Boggart. Bounce! I -see him coming; oh no, it was only a hare bounding from her form; there -it goes--there!"--Such is the introduction to a tale of a boggart, told -by Crofton Croker, in Roby's _Traditions of Lancashire_; but which, if -memory serve us faithfully, is but a localized version of a story told -of an Irish sprite, and also of a Scotch brownie; for in all three tales -when the farmer and his family are "flitting" in order to get away from -the nocturnal disturbance, the sprite pops up his head from the cart, -exclaiming, "Ay, neighbour, we're flitting!" Tradition, which has -preserved the name of the clough selected by the Lancashire boggart for -his domicile, has failed to record any particular pranks of this -individual elf, and we can only notice this charming little clough, as -conveying by its popular name the only remaining vestige of its lost -traditions. Perhaps the best story of this clough is that graphically -told by Bamford[42] of three friends seeking by a charm (consisting in -gathering three grains of St. John's fern seed there), to win for one of -them the love of a damsel who was indifferent to him. - - -BOGGARTS OR GHOSTS IN OLD HALLS. - -There is scarcely an old house, or hall, of any antiquity in Lancashire, -that cannot boast of that proud distinction over the houses of -yesterday, a ghost or boggart. _Radcliffe Tower_ was haunted by a black -dog; perhaps in commemoration of the Fair Ellen of Radcliffe, who, by -order of her stepmother, was murdered by the master cook, and cut up -small, and of her flesh a venison pasty made for her father's dinner! - -_Smithells Hall_, near Bolton, was formerly haunted by the ghost of the -martyr George Marsh, whose stamped footstep indenting a flagstone, is -still shown there. - -_Ince Hall_ stands about a mile from Wigan, on the left-hand of the high -road to Bolton. It is a very conspicuous object, its ancient and -well-preserved front--one of those black and white half-timbered facades -now almost confined to the two counties palatine of Lancashire and -Cheshire--generally attracting the notice and inquiry of travellers. -About a mile to the south-east stands another place of the same name, -once belonging to the Gerards of Bryn. The manor is now the property of -Charles Walmsley, Esq., of Westwood, near Wigan. The two mansions _Ince -Hall_ and _Ince Manor House_, are sometimes confounded together in -topographical inquiries; and it is not now certain to which of them -properly belongs a tradition about a forged will and a ghost, on which -Mr. Roby has founded a very graphic story, in his _Traditions of -Lancashire_. There are the Boggart of _Clegg Hall_, near Rochdale; the -_Clayton Hall_ Boggart, Droylsden; the _Clock House_ Boggart, in the -same neighbourhood; the _Thackergate_ Boggart, near Alderdale; and many -others: indeed they are too numerous for us to attempt a full -enumeration. Mr. Higson observes[43] that few sombre or out-of-the-way -places, retired nooks and corners, or sequestered by-paths, escaped the -reputation of being haunted. Many domiciles had their presiding boggart, -and _feeorin'_ [fairies] swarmed at every turn of the dark old lanes, -and arch-boggarts held revel at every "three-road-end." After dusk, each -rustle of the leaves, or sigh of the night wind through the branches, to -the timid wayfarer heralded the instant and unceremonious appearance of -old wizards and witches, "Nut Nans," and "Clapcans," or the terrific -exploits of headless trunks, alias "men beawt yeds," or other -traditionary "sperrits," hobgoblins, and sprites, or the startling -semblances of black dogs, phantoms, and other indescribable apparitions. -Aqueous nymphs or _nixies_, yclept "Grindylow," and "Jenny Green Teeth," -lurked at the bottom of pits, and with their long, sinewy arms dragged -in and drowned children who ventured too near. On autumnal evenings, the -flickering flame (carburetted hydrogen, spontaneously ignited) of the -"Corpse Candle," "Will-o'-th'-Wisp," or "Jack" or "Peg-a-Lantern" (for -the sex was not clearly ascertained), performed his or her fantastic and -impossible jumps in the plashy meadows near Edge Lane, to the terror of -many a simple-minded rustic. Fairies, also, were believed to commit many -depredations; such as eating the children's porridge, nocturnally riding -out the horses, loosing the cows in the shippon, or churning the milk -whilst "calving," by the fireside, and stealing the butter; and hence, -behind many a door, as yet observable in Clayton, both of dwelling and -shippon, was carefully nailed a worn horse-shoe, believed to be a potent -counter-charm or talisman against their freaks and fancies. There were -certain localities in the township of Droylsden notorious as the -rendezvous or favourite promenades of boggarts and feeorin', which after -nightfall few persons could muster pluck sufficient to linger in, or -even pass by, for-- - - "Grey superstition's whisper dread, - Debarr'd the spot to vulgar tread." - -Manifestly pre-eminent was "th' owd Green Lone," which "Jem Hill, th' -king o' Dreighlesdin," used to assert "swaarmt wi' fairees, witches, un' -boggerts, un' which nob'dy could mester bur hissel'." The boggart -located at Thackergate, near Alderdale, has well-nigh scared many a -sober person out of his senses. Herds of four-footed boggarts used to -issue from a pit at East End, in form resembling "great big dhogs, wi' -great glarin' een, as big as tay-cups." The boggart at the -croft-tenter's lodge (South) Clock-house, as fancy dictated, stalked -through the chamber and stripped the bedclothes off the sleepers; or, -assuming gigantic proportions and snow-white vestments, perched in the -solemn yew-tree, a startling object by contrast. At last, being -exorcised by an array of divines, it was _laid_ for a time, beneath its -favourite tree. A field-path from Fairfield to Ashton Hill-lane was -nightly traversed by a being of another world, mostly representing a -shadowy lady, draped according to whim, either in a loose white robe, or -in rustling black silk. For a certain distance she glided in advance of -the pedestrian, and then, by suddenly vanishing, most likely left his -hair standing on end. At one of the Greenside farms a murder was said to -have been committed in the shippon; and the exact spot was supposed to -be indicated by the impossibility of securely fastening a cow in one -particular boose; for, however carefully its occupant was chained -overnight, next morning she was sure to be found at large, and once was -actually discovered on the shippon balks. Thither, it was believed, the -cow had been carried by supernatural agency; but, be that as it may, it -was necessary to lower her cautiously down, with the aid of ropes and -blocks. At a cottage adjoining, a boggart varied its amusements by -drumming on the old oaken chest, still preserved; or, growing -emboldened, shook the hangings of the bed, or rustled amongst the -clothes; the alarmed occupants sometimes in despair rolling up the -coverlet, and unavailingly whirling it at their invisible tormentor. At -a neighbouring farm-house, amongst other vagaries, the boggart would -snatch up the infant, whilst asleep between its parents, and, without -awakening them, would harmlessly deposit it on the hearthstone, -downstairs. "Clayton Ho'" [Hall] was of course honoured with a boggart, -which at dead of night diversified its pranks by snatching the clothes -from the beds, trailing heavy iron weights on the floors, or rattling -ponderous chains through the crazy apartments. These pranks becoming -insufferable, the help of a clergyman from the parish church was -obtained; and fortunately, with the aid of counter-spells and -incantations, he succeeded in _laying_ the spirit for ever, declaring -that, - - "Whilst ivy climbs and holly is green, - Clayton Hall Boggart shall no more be seen." - -Even yet one room in the mansion is named "the Bloody Chamber," from -some supposed stains of human gore on the oaken floor planks; which, -however, in reality are only natural red tinges of the wood, denoting -the presence of iron. Even since the formation of the new road, J. -W----, the last of the ancient race of boggart-seers in the township, -used to combat with feeorin' between East End and Droylsden toll-gate; -but as he died a few years ago without bequeathing his gift, he -(happily) carried with him his mantle to the grave. At a period just -within memory, oft, after sunset, has the weary and tardy pedestrian -quickened his speed on approaching some lonely place, by remembering how -its tutelar spirit or Boggart could assume at will the shape of a -rabbit, dog, bear, or still more fearful form. On its appearance, of -course, the wayfarer fled in affright, and from fear and unwonted -exertion, often reached home utterly exhausted. Next day the story would -be widely circulated through the thinly populated district, detailing at -length (and of course gathering minuteness and improvement in its -transmission), how "Owd Yethurt o' Grunsho," or "Lung Tum woife," "th' -neet afore wur welly ta'en by a great black Boggart, wi' great lung -hurms, un' a whiskin' tail, un' yure as black as soot, un' rowlin' e'en -as big as saucers." The decadence of all these old superstitions is to -be attributed to a variety of causes. Straight, well-paved roads; -increased intellectual activity in useful channels, informing the minds -of one locality with the ideas of another, the publication of scientific -works; and lastly, according to one aged unbeliever, the introduction of -"Owd Ned [the steam-engine], un' lung chimblies; fact'ry folk havin' -summat else t'mind nur wanderin' ghosts un' rollickin' sperrits." The -same authority archly declared as a clincher, "There's no Boggarts neaw, -un' iv ther' were, folk han grown so wacken, they'd soon catch 'em."[44] - - -HOUSE BOGGARTS, OR LABOURING GOBLINS. - -These humbler classes of boggarts are by turns both useful and -troublesome to the farmers of the district where they choose to reside. -Syke Lumb Farm, near Blackburn, is reputed to be still visited by one -of these anomalous beings, and many of his mad pranks are still talked -of and believed in the neighbourhood. When in a good humour, this noted -goblin will milk the cows, pull the hay, fodder the cattle, harness the -horses, load the carts, and stack the crops. When irritated by the -utterance of some unguarded expression or mark of disrespect, either -from the farmer or his servants, the cream-mugs are smashed to atoms; no -butter can be obtained by churning; the horses and other cattle are -turned loose or driven into the woods; two cows will sometimes be found -fastened in the same stall; no hay can be pulled from the mow; and all -the while the wicked imp sits grinning with delight upon one of the -cross-beams in the barn. At other times the horses are unable to draw -the empty carts across the farm-yard; if loaded, they are upset; whilst -the cattle tremble with fear, not at any visible cause. Nor do the -inmates of the house experience any better or gentler usage. During the -night the clothes are said to be violently torn from off the beds of the -offending parties, whilst invisible hands drag these individuals down -the stone stairs by the legs, one step at a time, after a more -uncomfortable manner than we need describe. Hothershall Hall, near -Ribchester, was formerly the scene of similar exploits; but the goblin -is understood to have been "laid" under the roots of a large laurel tree -at the end of the house, and will not be able to molest the family so -long as the tree exists. It is a common opinion in that part of the -country that the roots have to be moistened with milk on certain -occasions, in order to prolong its existence, and also to preserve the -power of the spell under which the goblin is laid. None but the Roman -Catholic priesthood are supposed to have the power of "laying an evil -spirit," and hence they have always the honour to be cited in our local -legends. Sometimes, too, they have the credit of outwitting the goblins; -and many an old farm residence has the reputation of having thus been -freed from these imps of darkness till they can spin a rope from the -sands of the Ribble. The mansion at Towneley does not escape the -imputation of having its "_Boggart_," although its visits are now -limited to once in seven years, when its thirst for vengeance has to be -satisfied by the untimely death of one of the residents at the Hall. A -Sir John Towneley is supposed to have injured the poor of the district, -nearly four hundred years ago, by "laying-in" a considerable portion of -common to his park, and, as a punishment for this offence, his soul is -said to haunt the scenes of his oppression. The peasantry still aver -"that the old knight's spirit, being unable to rest, wanders about the -mansion, and may be heard over the very parts taken in, crying, in most -piteous tones-- - - "Be warned! Lay out! Be warned! Lay out! - Around Hore-law and Hollin-hey clough: - To her children give back the widow's cot, - For you and yours there is still enough."[45] - -The popular story of "The Boggart Flitting" is common to both Lancashire -and Yorkshire; and indeed to most of the nations in the North of Europe. - -Of boggarts the Rev. William Thornber observes,[46] that there were -several different kinds, having their haunts in that part of the Fylde -near Blackpool; as, for instance, the wandering ghost of the homicide or -the suicide; that of the steward of injustice, or that of the victim of -a cruel murder; again, the lubber-fiends, the horse-boggarts, and the -house-boggarts, or industrious, yet mischievous imps, haunting -dwellings. He names, "The headless Boggart of White-gate Lane," as a -sample of the first class. So was "The Boggart of Staining Hall," near -Blackpool, said to be the wandering ghost of a Scotchman who was -murdered there near a tree, which has since marked the deed by perfuming -the soil around with a sweet odour of thyme. Of another kind were those -whose appearance was the forerunner of death in some families. The -Walmsleys, of Poulton-le-Fylde, he adds, were haunted by a boggart of -this description, always making its appearance with alarming noises -before the decease of one of the family. - -Of the lubber-fiends, house-boggarts, or brownies, so strikingly -described by Milton,[47] Mr. Thornber mentions the ancient one of -Rayscar and Inskip, which at times kindly housed the grain, collected -the horses, and got them ready for the market; but at other times played -the most mischievous pranks. The famous "Boggart of Hackensall Hall" -had the appearance of a huge horse, which was very industrious if -treated with kindness. Every night it was indulged with a fire, before -which it was frequently seen reclining; and when deprived of this -indulgence by neglect, it expressed its anger by fearful outcries. - - -HORNBY PARK MISTRESS AND MARGARET BRACKIN. - -The following story is told and believed by some persons in Hornby. The -Park Mistress may be supposed to be the ghost of Lady Harrington, who -committed murder three hundred years ago. Margaret Brackin was born in -1745, and died in 1795. The dialect is that of the locality:-- - - "In days that oud folks tell on still, - Meg Brackin went up Windy Bank; - Shou lated kinlin' on the hill, - Till owr t' Lake Mountains t' sun it sank. - - Nat lang at efter t' sun was set, - And shou hed fill'd her brat wi' sticks, - Shou sid aside at t' Park wood yett, - A woman stan'in mang the wicks. - - T' leaves on t' trees, they owm'ered t' land, - And fadin' was the summer light, - When Marget sid that woman stand - Donn'd like a ghoost o' oor i' white. - - Marget was fear'd, but spak and ex'd, - 'Hey Missis! let me gang wi' ye, - I hope as that ye'll nut be vext, - But it is gitten dark and dree.' - - T' Park Mistress e'en shin'd o' wi' leet; - Shou whyatly cam te Marget's side; - T' gerss didn't bend underneath her feet; - Shou seem'd in t' air te float and glide. - - As soon's shou cam whare Marget stood, - Shou gript a tight houd on her hand; - Shou led her first intul t' Park wood, - Then back and forret o' owr t' land. - - They kept na road, they kept na path, - They went thro' brackins, scrogs, and briar, - Marget shou soon was out of breath, - But t' lady didn't seem te tire. - - They baath com down te Wenning's brink, - And Marget's throat was dry wi' dread, - But shou dursn't ex te stop and drink, - Saa forret still that woman led. - - Owr shillar and rough staans they trod, - Intu t' Wenning, then out fra t' stream; - Surlie their walkin' wasn't snod, - T' way they travell'd was naan saa weam. - - Marget lous'd t' strings of her brat, - And trail'd it gerss and bushes through, - Till deg'd and damp and wet it gat; - Then suck'd it out for t' cooling dew. - - Fra Weaver's Ayr they went up t' wood, - Now gaain' straight and then aslant, - They niver stopt, they niver stood, - But raac'd up t' brow saa rough and brant. - - Marget could niver gradely say - Where nesht wi' t' ghoost shou went that neet; - On Windy Bank, when it was day, - They fun' her liggin, spent wi' freet. - - Marget hed been stout and throddy, - But t' walk she tuk that summer neet, - Left lile fatness on her body; - At efter shou was thin and leet." - - -BOGGARTS IN THE NINETEENTH CENTURY. - -Having fallen into conversation with a working man on our road to Holme -Chapel, we asked him if people in those parts were now ever annoyed by -beings of another world. Affecting the _esprit fort_, he boldly -answered, "Noa! the country's too full o' folk;" while his whole manner, -and especially his countenance, as plainly said "Yes!" A boy who stood -near was more honest. "O, yes!" he exclaimed, turning pale; "the Boggart -has driven William Clarke out of his house; he flitted last Friday." -"Why," I asked; "what did the Boggart do?" "O, he wouldn't let 'em -sleep; he stripp'd off the clothes." "Was that all?" "I canna' say," -answered the lad, in a tone which showed he was afraid to repeat all he -had heard; "but they're gone, and the house is empty. You can go and see -for yoursel', if you loike. Will's a plasterer, and the house is in -Burnley Wood, on Brown Hills."[48] - -Edwin Waugh, in his story of "_The Grave of Grislehurst Boggart_,"[49] -says, the most notable boggart of the hilly district towards Blackstone -Edge, was the Clegg Ho' Boggart, still the theme of many a winter's tale -among the people of the hills above Clegg Hall. The proverb, "Aw 'm -heere agen, like Clegg Ho' Boggart," is common there, and in all the -surrounding villages.... Boggarts appear, however, to have been more -numerous than they are now upon the country side, when working people -wove what was called "one lamb's wool" in a day; but when it came to -pass that they had to weave "three lambs' wools" in a day, and the -cotton trade arose, boggarts, and fairies, and feeorin' of all kinds, -began to flee away from the clatter of shuttles. As to the Grislehurst -Boggart, here is part of the story as told to Waugh, or by him:--"Whau -it isn't aboon a fortnit sin' th' farmer's wife at the end theer yerd -seed summat i' th' dyhed time o' th' neet; an' hoo war welly thrut eawt -o' bed, too, besides--so then" ... "Th' pranks 'at it's played abeawt -this plaze at time an' time, 'ud flay ony wick soul to yer tell on ... -unyawkin' th' byes, an' turnin' carts an' things o'er i' th' deep neet -time; an' shiftin' stuff up and deawn th' heawse when folk are i' bed; -it's rayther flaysome yo may depend." - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[1] See Thorpe's _Northern Mythology_, vol. i. pp. 118-231. - -[2] See Mallet's _Northern Antiquities_, Keightley's _Mythology of -Greece and Rome_, and Kelly's _Indo-European Tradition and Folk-lore_. - -[3] Keightley's _Fairy Mythology_, pp. 2, 3. - -[4] Roby's _Traditions of Lancashire_, p. xiv. - -[5] It may be stated that this introductory essay is abridged from two -papers read before the Historical Society of Lancashire and Cheshire, in -1859 and 1860, which were written long before the writer saw any of the -almost identical general deductions and conclusions in Dr. Dasent's -introduction to his _Popular Tales from the Norse_. - -[6] This popular opinion appears to be very ancient and wide-spread; for -it has been noticed by Moses as prevailing in Egypt.--Exodus xi. 5-7. - -[7] The use of the old style in effect, is not yet extinct in -Lancashire. The writer knows an old man, R. H., of Habergham, about 77 -years of age, who always reckons the changes of the seasons in this -manner. He alleges the practice of his grandfather and father in support -of his method; and states with much confidence that--"Perliment didn't -change t' seeasuns wen thay chang'd t' day o't' munth." - -[8] _Conybeare_, p. 242. - -[9] Charnock's _Breviary of Natural Philosophy_ in Ashmole's _Theatrum -Chemicum_, p. 297. - -[10] _Companion to Almanac_ for 1837, p. 22. - -[11] Maier's _Symbola Ameae Mensae_. - -[12] Thomson's _Annals of Philosophy_, n. s., vol. vi. p. 241. - -[13] Ben Jonson, in his play of the _Alchemist_, has the following -lines:-- - - "But when you see th' effects of the Great Medium, - Of which one part projected on a hundred - Of Mercury, or Venus, or the Moon, - Shall turn it to as many of the Sun; - Nay to a thousand, so ad infinitum, - You will believe me." - -[14] Godwin's _Lives of Necromancers_, Art. Dee. Dr. Dee's _Diary_ -(Camden Soc.) contains many references to his alchemical pursuits.--See -pp. 7, 22, 25, 27, 28, 37, and 63. - -[15] Brewster's _Life of Sir Isaac Newton_, vol. ii. p. 376. - -[16] Preface to _Bibl. Chem. Curiosa_, quoted by Thomson, p. 18. For a -list of Boyle's works connected with alchemy, see the _Philosophical -Epitaphs_, by W. C. - -[17] _Pictorial History of England_, vol. ii. p. 207. - -[18] Baines's _Lancashire_. - -[19] _F[oe]dera_, vol. ix. p. 379. - -[20] _Rot. Parl._, vol. v. p. 314_a_. - -[21] _Rot. Parl._, vol. v. p. 314_a_. - -[22] _Worthies_, &c., p. 122. - -[23] For a copy of this patent in the original Latin, see Baines's -_Lancashire_, vol. i. p. 406. - -[24] Pennant's _London_. - -[25] _History of his Life and Times._ - -[26] Lilly's _Life and Times_, p. 224. - -[27] Whatton's _Memoir_ in Baines's _Lancashire_, vol. ii. p. 367. - -[28] From Barnaby Googe's Translation of the _Regnum Papisticum_ (or -Popish Kingdom) of Naogeorgus, fol. 41 _b_. - -[29] _Golden Legend._ - -[30] Hone's _Every-Day Book_, p. 141. - -[31] See Durand's _Rationale_. - -[32] Strutt's _Manners and Customs_, vol. iii. p. 176. - -[33] Ray's _Collection of Old English Proverbs_. - -[34] P. P., in _Notes and Queries_, vol. ix. p. 569. - -[35] Thornber's _History of Blackpool_, p. 342. - -[36] Toland's _History of the Druids_. - -[37] Hone's _Every-Day Book_, vol. i. p. 594. - -[38] _Gentleman's Magazine_, February, 1795. - -[39] Mr. William Harrison's notes on Waldron's _Description of the Isle -of Man_, p. 125. - -[40] Hampson's _Medii AEvi Kalendarium_, vol. i. p. 252. - -[41] Rev. W. Thornber's _History of Blackpool_. - -[42] _Passages in the Life of a Radical_, vol. i. p. 130. - -[43] _History of Droylsden_, p. 67. - -[44] Mr. John Higson's _Notices of Droylsden_. - -[45] See _Pictorial History of Lancashire_, p. 189, and Whitaker's -_History of Whalley_, p. 342. - -[46] _History of Blackpool_, p. 332. - -[47] In his _L'Allegro_, where he - - "Tells how the drudging goblin sweat - To earn the cream-bowl duly set, - When, in one night, ere glimpse of morn, - His shad'wy flail had thresh'd the corn, - That ten day-labours could not end; - Then lies him down the _lubber-fiend_, - And stretch'd out all the chimney's length, - Basks at the fire his hairy strength, - And, cropful, out of doors he flings, - Ere the first cock his matin rings." - -[48] _Pictorial History of Lancashire._ - -[49] _Sketches of Lancashire Life_, p. 192. - - - - -CHARMS AND SPELLS. - - -These may be placed in two classes--those directed against evil beings, -witchcraft, &c., and those which may be termed in their object curative -of "all the ills that flesh is heir to." First as to - - -CHARMS AND SPELLS AGAINST EVIL BEINGS. - -These are usually supplied for a consideration by the fortune-tellers, -astrologers, or "wise men" of a neighbourhood. The following is a -correct copy of one of these documents which was found over the door of -a house in the neighbourhood of Burnley. Its occupier had experienced -"ill luck," and he thus sought protection from all evil-doers:-- - -"Sun, Moon, Mars, Mercury, Jupiter, Venus, Saturn, Trine, Sextile, -Dragon's Head, Dragon's Tail, I charge you all to gard this hause from -all evils spirits whatever, and gard it from all Desorders, and from -aney thing being taken wrangasly, and give this famaly good Ealth & -Welth." - -Another individual, well known to the writer, was so far convinced that -certain casualties that happened to his cattle arose from the practice -of witchcraft, that he unconsciously resorted to Baal-worship, and -consumed a live calf in the fire, in order to counteract the influences -of his unknown enemies. At the same time, almost every door about his -house had its horse-shoe nailed to it as a charm, to protect all within -it from demons and witches. - - -A CHARM, WRITTEN IN CYPHER, AGAINST WITCHCRAFT AND EVIL SPIRITS. - -Early in the nineteenth century, some men engaged in pulling down a -barn, or shippon, at West Bradford, about two miles north of Clitheroe, -were attracted by seeing a small square piece of wood fall from one of -the beams, and from it dropped a paper, folded as a small letter, but -measuring, when opened, 7-1/4 by 6 inches. A sort of superscription was -in large and unknown characters, and inside the paper was nearly covered -with a species of hieroglyphics, mixed with strange symbols; and in the -top left corner a table or square of thirty-six small squares, filled -with characters in red ink, the great bulk of the writing being in black -ink. The charm belongs to Jeremiah Garnett, Esq., of Roefield, -Clitheroe, and it was first deciphered by his brother, the late Rev. -Richard Garnett, of the British Museum, in May, 1825. It is this -gentleman's explanation, with a very few additions and corrections by -the present writer, the substance of which is now appended:--The table -in the top corner is a sort of magic square, called by astrologers "The -Table of the Sun." It consists of six rows of six small squares each, -and is so arranged that the sum of the figures in every row of six -squares, whether counted vertically, horizontally, or diagonally, -amounts to 111, and the sum total of the table to 666--a favourite -magical number, being that of "the beast."[50] To mystify the thing as -much as possible the numerals are expressed by letters, or rather by a -sort of cypher, chiefly formed from the Greek alphabet. Thus 1 is -represented by _a_; 2 = _e_; 3 = _i_; 4 = _o_; 5 = _u_; 6 = _l_; 7 = -_m_; 8 = _n_; 9 = _r_; and 0 = _z_. In a tablet, or space at the top of -the paper, flanking this table, are five mystical characters, or -symbols, in red ink. The first consists of the symbols of the sun, and -of the constellation Leo, which, in astrology, is "the sun's own house," -and where, of course, he is supposed to have the greatest power. A word -in black-ink cyphers, under these symbols, is _Machen_, the cabalistic -name of "the third [or fourth] heaven;" and the Archangel Michael being -supposed to preside over the sphere [and to be the "Angel of the Lord's -Day"], his seal, or cypher, is introduced below these symbols--a series -of joined lines and swirls, like some long word written in one of the -older English shorthands. [This figure will be found under "The Lord's -Day," in the Heptameron of one Peter de Abano.] In cyphers below, in -black ink, is written his name, "Michael." The next cabalistic character -represents "the _Intelligence_ of the Sun," and over it, in cypher or -Greek letters, is written "intelligence." Under this is another -cabalistic symbol, denoting the "Spirit of the Sun," the word "spirit" -being written within it. In astrology, every planet is supposed to have -two beings, or spirits, attached to it, and called its Intelligence and -its Spirit. The last figure (which contains in a sort of quartering the -word _sigil_, seal) is "the seal of the Sun" himself, in astrological -language. All these symbols show that the charm was meant to be put in -operation on a Sunday, that being the day of the Archangel Michael, as -well as of the sun. These symbols and table occupy the upper third of -the paper, the remaining two-thirds being filled with the words of the -charm itself, in fourteen lines, of a sort of cypher-writing, in which -the five vowels are represented by a sort of arbitrary character, as are -most of the consonants, g, l, m, n, and p, being written as Greek -letters. The fourteen lines may be thus rendered in ordinary letters; -and it may be supposed that whoever pronounces the incantation, makes -the sign of the cross wherever it is indicated in the writing:-- - -Line 1. "apanton [or awanton] + hora + camab. + naadgrass + pynavet -ayias + araptenas. - -2. "+ quo + signasque + payns [or pagns ? pagus] + sut gosikl + -tetragrammaton + - -3. "inverma + amo + {th} [apparently an abbreviation for _Theos_, God] + -dominus + deus + hora + [here a hole in the paper has destroyed a word] -+ fiat + fiat + fiat + - -4. "ut dicitur decimo septimo capitulo Sancti Matthaei a vigesimo carmine - -5. "fide demoveatis montes, fiat secundum fidem, si sit, vel fuerit - -6. "ut cunque fascinum vel daemon habitat vel perturbat hanc - -7. "personam, vel hunc locum, vel hanc bestiam, adjuro te, abire - -8. "Sine perturbatione, molestia, vel tumultu minime, nomine - -9. "Patris, et Filii, et Spiritus Sanctu. Amen. Pater noster qui es - -10. "in c[oe]lis, sanctificetur nomen tuum, veniat regnum tuum, fiat -voluntas - -11. "tuo, sicut in c[oe]lo etiam in terra, panem nostrum quotidianum da - -12. "nobis in diem, et remitte nobis peccata nostra, etenim ipsi - -13. "remittimus omnibus qui nobis debent; et ne nos inducas in tentat- - -14. "-ionem, sed libera nos a malo. Fiat." - - * * * * * - -It will be seen that the first three lines of this charm are a sort of -gibberish, with an admixture of Greek and Latin words, constituting in -itself a charm, supposed to be efficacious in expelling or restraining -evil spirits. With the fourth line, then, we begin our translation. - -"As it is said in the seventeenth chapter of St. Matthew, at the -twentieth verse, 'By faith ye may remove mountains: be it according to -[my] faith,'[51] if there is, or ever shall be, witchcraft [or -enchantment] or evil spirit, that haunts or troubles this person, or -this place, or this beast [or these cattle], I adjure thee to depart, -without disturbance, molestation, or trouble in the least, in the name -of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Amen." [Then -follows the Lord's Prayer in Latin, ending with the word "Fiat" (be it -done), instead of Amen.] These words are endorsed or written outside the -paper in two lines:-- - - "Agla + On [or En] Tetragrammaton." - -In a charm cited in the _Heptameron, or Mercurial Elements_ of Peter de -Abano, these are called "the three secret names." The first two are -names given to the Deity by the Jewish cabalists. The third (which is -also the last word in the second line of the charm) is one also -frequently in use amongst Talmudists and Jewish writers, meaning -literally "four-lettered," as descriptive of the sacred and -unpronounceable name ("Jehovah," written in Hebrew by four letters). The -word is here endorsed, as if to authenticate the whole charm, and to -show that it is the production of an artist who understood his business; -for "tetragrammaton," and "fiat," are words of such potency, that a -charm without them would be of no efficacy whatever. The Rev. Richard -Garnett adds to his account of this charm (in May, 1825):--"I should -think that the document is of no great antiquity, probably not more than -thirty or forty years old. It was doubtless manufactured by some country -'wise man,' a regular dealer in such articles. There are, I believe, -several persons within twenty miles of Blackburn, who still carry on a -trade of this sort." - - * * * * * - -[In the _Heptameron_, already quoted, is "The Conjuration of the Lord's -Day," which runs thus:--"I conjure and confirm upon you, ye strong and -holy angels of God ... [here follow various names of angels, including -those 'who rule in the fourth heaven'], and by the name of his star, -which is _Sol_, and by his sign, and by the immense name of the living -God, and by all the names aforesaid--I conjure thee, Michael, O! great -angel, who art chief ruler of the Lord's Day," &c.]. - -Amongst other charms against evil may be named that of our ancestors, -who, when eating eggs, were careful to break the shells, lest the -witches should use them to their disadvantage. We do the same for a -similar reason; it is accounted unlucky to leave them whole. They -avoided cutting their nails on a Friday, because bad luck would follow; -but we have improved upon their practice, and lay down the whole theory -as follows:-- - - "Cut your nails on a Monday, cut them for news; - Cut them on Tuesday, a new pair of shoes; - Cut them on Wednesday, cut them for health; - Cut them on Thursday, cut them for wealth; - Cut them on Friday, cut them for woe; - Cut them on Saturday, a journey you'll go; - Cut them on Sunday, you cut them for evil, - For all the next week you'll be ruled by the Devil." - -Most grandmothers will exclaim, "God bless you!" when they hear a child -sneeze, and they sum up the philosophy of the subject with the following -lines, which used to delight the writer in days of his childhood:-- - - "Sneeze on a Monday, you sneeze for danger; - Sneeze on a Tuesday, you kiss a stranger; - Sneeze on a Wednesday, you sneeze for a letter; - Sneeze on a Thursday, for something better; - Sneeze on a Friday, you sneeze for sorrow; - Sneeze on a Saturday, your sweetheart to-morrow; - Sneeze on a Sunday, your safety seek, - The Devil will have you the whole of the week." - -These lines may be taken either as charms or spells to produce the -effect predicted; or as omens or warnings of the results to follow. In -most parts of Lancashire it is customary for children to repeat the -following invocation every evening on retiring to bed, after saying the -Lord's Prayer and the Apostles' Creed:-- - - "Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, - Bless the bed that I lie on; - There are four corners to my bed, - And four angels overspread, - Two at the feet, two at the head. - - If any ill thing me betide, - Beneath your wings my body hide. - Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, - Bless the bed that I lie on. Amen."[52] - -The influence of the "_evil eye_" is felt as strongly in this county as -in any other part of the world, and various means are resorted to in -order to prevent its effects. "Drawing blood above the mouth" of the -person suspected is the favourite antidote in the neighbourhood of -Burnley; and in the district of Craven, a few miles within the borders -of Yorkshire, a person who was well disposed towards his neighbours is -believed to have slain a pear-tree which grew opposite his house by -directing towards it "the first morning glances" of his evil eye.[53] -Spitting three times in the person's face; turning a live coal on the -fire; and exclaiming, "The Lord be with us," are other means of averting -its influence. - -In Lancashire our boys spit over their fingers in order to screw up -their courage to the fighting point, or to give them luck in the battle. -Sometimes they do this as a sort of asseveration, to attest their -innocence of some petty crime laid to their charge. Travellers and -recruits still spit upon a stone and then throw it away, in order to -insure a prosperous journey. Hucksters, market-people, &c., always spit -upon the first money they receive in the morning, in order to insure -ready sale and "good luck" during the day. "Hansell (they say) is always -lucky when well wet." - -The ancients performed certain rites and ceremonies at the changes of -the moon; and hence that luminary has added some curious items to the -popular creed. _Old Mother Bunch's Garland_ is an authority on these -matters, and amongst many other things it teaches expectant females who -desire to pry into futurity, to cross their hands on the appearance of -the new moon, and exclaim-- - - "All hail! new Moon; all hail to thee! - I pray thee, good Moon, declare to me - This night who my true love shall be." - -We have noticed, in the introductory chapter, various other minor charms -and spells to avert evil, or "bad luck," and to secure "good luck" or -fortune for a coming period, usually a year. - - -THE CROW CHARM AND THE LADY-BIRD CHARM. - -The following charms are repeated by children throughout Lancashire and -Yorkshire:-- - -_Crow Charm._ - - "Crow, crow, get out of my sight, - Or else I'll eat thy liver and lights." - -_Lady-Bird Charm._ - - "Lady-bird, lady-bird, eigh [hie] thy way home, - Thy house is on fire, thy children all roam; - Except little Nan, who sits in her pan, - Weaving gold laces as fast as she can." - -I remember as a child sitting out of doors on an evening of a warm -summer or autumn day, and repeating the crow charm to flights of rooks, -as they winged home to their rookery. The charm was chanted so long as a -crow remained in sight, their final disappearing being to my mind strong -proof of the efficacy of the charm. The lady-bird charm is repeated to -the insect (the _Coccinella septempunctata_ of Linnaeus), the common -Seven-spotted Lady-bird, to be found in every field and garden during -summer. The lady-bird is placed upon the child's open hand, and the -charm is repeated until the insect takes to flight. The warmth and -moisture of the hand no doubt facilitate this, although the child fully -believes in the moving power of the charm. The lady-bird is also known -as _lady-cow_, _cow-lady_, and is sometimes addressed as -"_Cusha-cow-lady_."[54] - -One of the present editors has often joined in the lady-bird charm, in -the East Riding of Yorkshire, where it ran-- - - "Cusha-coo-lady, fly away home, - Thy house is a-fire and all thy bairns gone," &c. - - -PIMPERNEL. - -According to a MS. on Magic, preserved in Chetham's Library, Manchester, -"the herb pimpernel is good to prevent witchcraft, as Mother Bumby doth -affirm;" and the following lines must be used when it is gathered:-- - - "Herb pimpernel I have thee found - Growing upon Christ Jesus' ground; - The same gift the Lord Jesus gave unto thee, - When He shed his blood upon the tree. - Arise up, pimpernel, and go with me, - And God bless me, - And all that shall wear thee. Amen." - -Say this fifteen days together, twice a day; morning early fasting, and -in the evening full.--(_MS. Ibid._) - - -THE MOUNTAIN ASH, OR WICKEN OR WIGGEN TREE. - -The anti-witching properties of this tree are held in very high esteem -in the northern counties of England. No witch will come near it; and it -is believed that its smallest twig crossing the path of a witch, will -effectually stop her career. To prevent the churn being bewitched, so -that the butter will not come, the churn-staff must be made of the -wiggen-tree. So cattle must be protected from witchery by sprigs of -wiggen over or in the shippons. All honest people wishing to have sound -sleep must keep the witches from their beds by having a branch of wiggen -at their bed-heads.[55] - -The charms against the malevolence of witches and of evil beings were -very numerous. A horse-shoe nailed to the door protected the family -domicile; a _hag_-stone, penetrated with a hole, and attached to the key -of the stable, preserved the horse within from being ridden by the -witch; and when hung up at the bed-head, was a safeguard to the master -himself. A hot heater, put into the churn, kept witches and evil beings -from spoiling the cream or retarding the butter. The baking of dough was -protected by a cross, and so was the kneading-trough barred against -fiendly visitation. Another class of charms was of those used by and -amongst the witches themselves. - -In the "Confession of James Device, prisoner at Lancaster," charged -with being a witch and practicing witchcraft, before "William Sands, -James Anderton, and Thomas Cowell, Esqrs.," we have the following -"charm" to get "_drink_ within one hour after saying the said prayer:"-- - - "Upon Good Friday I will fast while I may, - Untill I heare them knell - Our Lord's own bell. - Lord in his messe - With his twelve Apostles good;-- - What hath he in his hand? - Ligh in leath wand: - What hath he in his other hand? - Heaven's doore keys. - Steck, Steck Hell door, - Let Chrizun child - Goe to its mother mild. - What is yonder that casts a light so farrandly? - Mine own dear Sonne that's naild to the tree. - He is naild sore by the head and hand; - And Holy harne Panne. - Well is that man - That Friday spell can, - His child to learne:-- - A cross of Blue and another of Red, - As Good Lord was to the Roode. - Gabriel laid him down to sleep - Upon the ground of Holy weepe:-- - Good Lord came walking by, - Sleepest thou, wakest thou, Gabriel? - No, Lord, I am sted with stick and stake, - That I can neither sleepe nor wake. - Rise up, Gabriel, and go with me, - The stick nor the stake shall never deere thee. - Sweet Jesus. Our Lord. Amen." - -But James Device's charm was not the only one brought to light in this -memorable trial;--the witches themselves were liable to be bewitched by -others of superior power, nor were their domestic preparations -altogether free from the malevolent effects of an envious practitioner. -In these cases _counter charms_ were of frequent necessity, and none of -these seem to be of greater efficacy than the following one from the -"Examination of Anne Whittle, _alias_ Chattox [a celebrated Lancashire -witch], before Roger Nowell, Esq., of Read, April 2nd, 1612." "A charm -to help _drink_ that is forespoken or bewitched." - - "Three biters hast thou bitten. - The Heart, ill Eye, ill Tongue. - Three bitter shall be thy Boote, - Father, Sonne, and Holy Ghost:--a God's name. - Five Paternosters, five Avies and a Creede, - In worship of five woundes of our Lorde." - -The Scotch appear to have held similar notions on these subjects with -ourselves, for in Sinclair's "_Satan's Invisible World Discovered_" we -find the following charm, "To preserve the house and those in it from -danger at night:"-- - - "Who sains the house the night? - They that sains it ilk a night, - Saint Bryde and her brate; - Saint Colme and his hat; - Saint Michael and his spear; - Keep this house from the weir-- - From running thiefe-- - And burning thiefe-- - And from and ill Rea:-- - That be the gate can gae:-- - And from an ill wight:-- - That be the gate can light. - Nine reeds about the house; - Keep it all the night. - What is that what I see, - So red, so bright, beyond the sea? - 'Tis he was pierced through the hands, - Through the feet, through the throat, - Through the tongue, - Through the liver and the lung. - Well is them that well may - Fast on Good Friday." - - -CHARMS TO CURE SICKNESS, WOUNDS, CATTLE DISTEMPER, ETC. - -Many are the charms and spells which operate against disease or sickness -in two ways--they either ward it off, if it threaten; or if too late for -that, they dispel its virulence, and effect a marvellous cure. No -medical man, we are told, will rub ointment on a wound with the -forefinger of his right hand, because it is popularly accounted -venomous. A dead man's hand is said to have the power of curing wens and -other excrescences of the neck. Three spiders, worn about the neck, will -prevent the ague. A string with _nine_ knots tied upon it, placed about -the neck of a child, is reported to be an infallible remedy for the -whooping-cough. The same effect also follows from passing the child -_nine_ times round the neck of a she-ass, according to the popular creed -of the county. Formerly silver rings, made from the hinges of coffins, -were worn as charms for the cure of fits, or for the prevention of -cramp, or even of rheumatism. The superstition continues, though the -metal is of necessity changed, few coffins having now hinges of silver. -The stranger in Lancashire can be nowhere, in town or country, amongst -any considerable number of the humbler classes, without seeing on the -fingers of women chiefly, but occasionally of men, what are called -galvanized rings, made of two hoops, one of zinc, the other of copper, -soldered together. Many wear a belt to charm away rheumatism; brimstone -carried about the person is regarded as a sure remedy against cramp; so -also is placing the shoes under the bed, the toes peeping outwards. -These are the modern charms or cure-alls against disease. Fried mice are -yet given to children in some parts of Lancashire, to cure non-retention -of urine during sleep. - - -CHARMS FOR THE TOOTHACHE. - -"The following," says the Rev. W. Thornber, of Blackpool, "is a foolish -charm, yet much accredited amongst us [in the Fylde] for the -toothache:"-- - - "Peter sat weeping on a marble stone. - Jesus came near and said, 'What aileth thee, O Peter?' - He answer'd and said, 'My Lord and my God!' - He that can say this, and believeth it for my sake, - Never more shall have the toothache." - -Our "wise men" still sell the following charm for the cure of continued -toothache, but it must be worn inside the vest or stays, and over the -left breast:-- - -"Ass Sant Petter sat at the geats of Jerusalm our Blessed Lord and -Sevour Jesus Crist Pased by and Sead, What Eleth thee hee sead Lord my -Teeth ecketh hee sead arise and folow mee and thy Teeth shall never Eake -Eney moor. Fiat + Fiat + Fiat."[56] - - -VERVAIN, FOR WOUNDS, ETC. - -A magical MS. in Chetham's Library, Manchester, of the time of Queen -Elizabeth, supplies the following metrical prayer, to be said in -gathering this herb:-- - - "All-hele, thou holy herb, Vervin, - Growing on the ground; - In the Mount of Calvary - There wast thou found; - Thou helpest many a grief, - And stanchest many a wound. - In the name of sweet Jesus - I take thee from the ground. - O Lord, effect the same - That I do now go about." - -The following lines, according to the same authority, were to be said -when pulling it:-- - - "In the name of God, on Mount Olivet - First I thee found; - In the name of Jesus - I pull thee from the ground." - - -CHARMS TO STOP BLEEDING. - -In an ancient 8vo. MS. volume, described by Dr. Whitaker, in his -_History of Whalley_, entitled _Liber Loci Benedicti de Whalley_, -commencing with the translation of the convent from Stanlaw (in 1296) -and ending about the year 1346, are the following monkish charms (in -Latin) for stopping haemorrhage:-- - -"_For staunching bleeding from the Nostrils, or from Wounds, an approved -remedy._--O God, be Thou merciful to this Thy servant N., nor allow to -flow from his body more than one drop of blood. So may it please the Son -of God. So his mother Mary. In the name of the Father, stop, O blood! In -the name of the Son, stop, O blood! In the name of the Holy Ghost, stop, -O blood! In the name of the Holy Trinity. - -"_To staunch Bleeding._--A soldier of old thrust a lance into the side -of the Saviour: immediately there flowed thence blood and water,--the -blood of Redemption, and the water of Baptism. In the name of the Father -+ may the blood cease. In the name of the Son + may the blood remain. In -the name of the Holy Ghost + may no more blood flow from the mouth, the -vein, or the nose." - -To particular persons was attached the virtue of stopping bleeding by a -word; and a woman of Marton, near Blackpool, whose maiden name was -Bamber, was so celebrated for her success, that she was sought for to -stop haemorrhage throughout a district of twenty miles around. - - -TOUCHING FOR THE KING'S EVIL. - -The records of the Corporation of Preston contain two votes of money, to -enable persons to go from Preston to be touched for the evil. Both are -in the reign of James II. In 1682, the bailiffs were ordered to "pay -unto James Harrison, bricklayer, 10_s._ towards the carrying of his son -to London, in order to the procuring of his Majesty's touch." And in -1687, when James was at Chester, the council passed a vote that "the -bailiffs pay unto the persons undermentioned each of them 5_s._ towards -their charge in going to Chester to get his Majesty's touch: Anne, -daughter of Abel Mope, ---- daughter of Richard Letmore."[57] - - -CURES FOR WARTS. - -Steal a piece of meat from a butcher's stall or his basket, and, after -having well rubbed the parts affected with the stolen morsel, bury it -under a gateway at four lane ends, or, in case of emergency, in any -secluded place. All this must be done so secretly as to escape -detection; and as the portion of meat decays, the warts will disappear. -This practice is very prevalent in Lancashire, and two of my female -acquaintances having tried the remedy, stoutly maintain its -efficacy.[58] - -The following superstition prevails in the neighbourhood of Manchester: -Take a piece of twine, making upon it as many knots as there are warts -to be removed; touch each wart with the corresponding knot; then bury -the twine in a moist place, saying at the same time, "There is none to -redeem it besides thee." As the process of decay goes on [in the twine] -the warts gradually disappear.[59] - -A snail hung upon a thorn is another favourite spell against warts; as -the snail wastes away, so do the warts. Again, take a bag of stones, -equal in number with the warts to be destroyed, and throw them over the -left shoulder; the warts soon quit the thrower. But whoever chances to -pick up one or more of these stones, takes with them as many of the -warts, which are thus transferred from the loser to the finder of the -stones. - - -CURE FOR HYDROCEPHALUS IN CATTLE. - -Dr. Whitaker mentions what he designates as "one practical superstition" -in the district about Pendle, and peculiar to that neighbourhood. "The -hydrocephalus (he says) is a disease incident to adolescent animals, and -is supposed by the shepherds and herdsmen to be contagious; but in order -to arrest the progress of the disease, whenever a young beast had died -of this complaint, it was usual, and it has, I believe, been practised -by farmers yet alive, to cut off the head and convey it for interment -into the nearest part of the adjoining county. Stiperden, a desert plain -upon the border of Yorkshire, was the place of skulls." Whitaker thinks -the practice may have originated in some confused and fanciful analogy -to the case of Azazel (Numbers xvi. 22), an analogy between the removal -of sin and disease--that as the transgressions of the people were laid -upon the head of the scape-goat, the diseases of the herd should be laid -upon the head of the deceased animal.[60] - - -CATTLE DISORDERS.--THE SHREW TREE IN CARNFORTH. - -On an elevation in the township of Carnforth, in the parish of Warton, -called Moothaw [? Moot Hall], the ancient Saxon courts were held. Near -this place stood the "Shrew Tree" mentioned by Lucas, which, according -to rustic superstition, received so much virtue from plugging up a -number of living shrews, or field-mice, in a cavity prepared for their -reception in the tree, that a twig cut from it, when freely applied to -the backs of disordered cattle, would cure them of their maladies.[61] - - -CHARMS FOR AGUE. - -"Casting out the ague" was but another name for "casting out the devil," -for it was his possession of the sufferer that caused the body to shiver -and shake. One man, of somewhat better education than his neighbours, -acquired a reputation for thus removing the ague by exorcism, and was -much resorted to for many years for relief. - - -STINGING OF NETTLES. - -This was at once removed by the saying aloud of some charm in doggerel -verse. - - -JAUNDICE. - -Persons in the Fylde district suffering from this disorder were some -years ago cured at the rate of a shilling per head, by a person living -at the Fold, who, by some charm or incantation, performed on the urine -of the afflicted person, suspended in a bottle over the smoke of his -fire, was believed to effect most wonderful cures. - - -TO PROCURE SLEEP BY CHANGING THE DIRECTION OF THE BED. - -There are two superstitions respecting restlessness. One is that it is -caused by the bed standing north and south, and that it will be cured if -the bedstead be so moved as to stand east and west. The other goes -further, and says that to effect a perfect remedy, not only must the -bedstead range east and west, but that the head must be towards the -east. One informant stated that this was because the earth revolved from -west to east, or in an easterly course. - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[50] Revelation xiii. 18. - -[51] This is not a literal quotation. The verse runs thus in the -ordinary version: "If ye have faith as a grain of mustard-seed, ye shall -say to this mountain, Remove hence to yonder place, and it shall -remove; and nothing shall be impossible to you." - -[52] This is noticed by the Rev. W. Thornber in his _History of -Blackpool_, p. 99; also in the _Oxford Essays_, 1858, p. 127; and the -late Rev. James Dugan, M.A., T.C.D., informed the writer that the Irish -midwives in Ulster use a very similar formula when visiting their -patients. They first mark each corner of the house, on the outside, with -a cross, and previously to entering repeat the following words:-- - - "There are four corners to her bed, - Four angels at her head: - Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, - God bless the bed that she lies on. - New Moon, new Moon, God bless me, - God bless this house and family." - -[53] See Carr's _Craven Glossary_, vol. i. p. 137.--"Look, sir," said -Mr. Carr's informant, "at that pear-tree, it wor some years back, sir, a -maast flourishin' tree. Ivvry mornin, as soon as he first oppans the -door, that he may not cast his ee on onny yan passin' by, he fixes his -een o' that pear-tree, and ye plainly see how it's deed away." - -[54] Mr. Robert Rawlinson in _Notes and Queries_, vol. iv. p. 55. - -[55] See Hone's _Table Book_, vol. i. p. 674. - -[56] Carr's _Glossary_, vol. ii. p. 264. - -[57] Wm. Dobson, in _Notes and Queries_, 2nd series, vol. iv. p. 287. - -[58] T. T. W., ibid., vol. ii. p. 68. - -[59] H., ibid. - -[60] _History of Whalley._ - -[61] Baines's _Lancashire_. - - - - -THE DEVIL, DEMONS, &c. - - -THE DEVIL. - -The power of the devil, his personal appearance, and the possibility of -bartering the soul for temporary gain, must still be numbered among the -articles of our popular faith. Repeating the Lord's Prayer backwards is -said to be the most effectual plan for "raising the devil;" but when -the terms of the bargain are not satisfactory, his exit can only be -secured by making the sign of the cross and calling on the name of -Christ. In the neighbourhood of Blackburn a story prevails that two -threshers once succeeded in raising him through the barn floor; but on -their becoming alarmed at their success, he was summarily dismissed by -means of a vigorous thrashing on the head with the flails. His -partiality for playing at cards has long been proverbial, both in -Lancashire and elsewhere. A near relative of the writer firmly believed -that the devil had once visited their company when they had prolonged -their play into Sunday. How he joined them they never rightly knew, but -(as in the Danish legend respecting a similar visit) his presence was -first suspected in consequence of his extraordinary "run of good luck;" -and a casual detection of his _cloven foot_ completed the dispersion of -the players. It is not always, however, that he obtains the advantage; -for he has more than once been outwitted by a crafty woman or a cunning -priest. In the Lancashire tradition we find the poor tailor of Chatburn -stipulating for _three_ wishes, and, on the advice of his wife, -consulting the "holy father of Salley" in his extremity. When the fatal -day arrived, he freed himself from the bond by expressing as his last -wish, that his tormentor "were riding back to his quarters on a dun -horse, never to plague him more." The devil, it is said, gave a yell -which was heard to Colne, on finding that he had lost his man. Mr. Roby -in his _Traditions_, and the author of the _Pictorial History of -Lancashire_, give humorous engravings of this noted ride; and the sign -of "The Dule upo' Dun," over the door of the wayside inn, attests the -popular belief in the local tradition. From these and many other -instances it is evident that we have derived many of these superstitions -from the Saxon and Danish settlers in Northumbria. The essential parts -of each are identical, and as regards these particular bargains, it may -be added as a curious circumstance, that in no case is the bond held to -be binding unless it be signed with the blood of the person -contracting.[62] - -Offering fowls to evil spirits appears to have been an ancient and -wide-spread practice. It was common to sacrifice a cock to the devil. -Burns, in his "Address to the Deil," says--"Some cock or cat your rage -must stop." Music and dancing are also associated in our popular -superstitions with witches, evil spirits, and the devil. The devils, it -is said, love music, but dread bells, and have a very delicate sense of -smells. In the _True and Faithful Relation of what passed between Dr. -Dee and some Spirits_, we learn that the devil appeared to the doctor -"as an angel in a white robe, holding a bloody cross in his right hand, -the same hand being also bloody," and in this guise he prayed, and -"anabaptistically bewailed the wickedness of the world."[63] - - -RAISING THE DEVIL. - -The boys at the Burnley Grammar-school are said to have succeeded on one -occasion in raising the devil. They repeated the Lord's Prayer -backwards, and performed some incantations by which, as it is said, -Satan was induced to make his appearance through a stone flag on the -floor of the school-house. After he had got his head and shoulders well -out, the boys became alarmed, and began to hammer him down with the -poker and tongs. With much ado they drove him back; but the _black mark_ -he had left on the flag was shown in proof of his appearance until the -school-house was repaired, a few years ago, when the floor was boarded -over, and the flagstone disappeared. - - -THE DEVIL & THE SCHOOLMASTER AT COCKERHAM. - -It is said that the arch Spirit of Evil once took up his abode in -Cockerham, and so scared and disturbed the inhabitants of that quiet -place, that at length in public meeting, to consider how to free -themselves from this fiendish persecution, they appointed the -schoolmaster, as the wisest and cleverest man in the place, to do his -best to drive the devil away. Using the prescribed incantation at -midnight, the pedagogue succeeded in raising Satan; but when he saw his -large horns and tail, saucer eyes, and long claws, he became almost -speechless. According to the recognised procedure in such cases, the -devil granted him the privilege of setting three tasks, which if he -(Satan) accomplished, the schoolmaster became his prey; if he failed, it -would compel the flight of the demon from Cockerham. The first task, to -count the number of dewdrops on certain hedges, was soon accomplished; -and so was the second, to count the number of stalks in a field of -grain. The third task was then proposed in the following words, -according to a doggerel version of the tradition:-- - - "Now make me, dear sir, a rope of yon sand, - Which will bear washing in Cocker, and not lose a strand." - -Speedily the rope was twisted of fine sand, but it would not stand -washing; so the devil was foiled, and at one stride he stepped over the -bridge over Broadfleet, at Pilling Moss. The metrical version of the -legend is scarcely worth printing. - - -OLD NICK. - -According to Scandinavian mythology, the supreme god Odin assumes the -name of Nick, Neck, Nikkar, Nikur, or Hnikar, when he acts as the evil -or destructive principle. In the character of Nikur, or Hnikudur, a -Protean water-sprite, he inhabits the lakes and rivers of Scandinavia, -where he raises sudden storms and tempests, and leads mankind into -destruction. Nick, or Nickar, being an object of dread to the -Scandinavians, propitiatory worship was offered to him; and hence it has -been imagined that the Scandinavian spirit of the waters became, in the -middle ages, St. Nicholas, the patron of sailors, who invoke his aid in -storms and tempests. This supposition (which has a degree of probability -almost amounting to certainty) receives countenance from the great -devotion still felt by the Gothic nations towards St. Nicholas, to whom -many churches on the sea-shore are dedicated. The church of St. -Nicholas, in this situation at Liverpool, was consecrated in 1361; and, -says Mr. Baines,[64] "in the vicinity there formerly stood a statue of -St. Nicholas; and when the faith in the intercession of saints was more -operative than at present, the mariners were wont to present a -peace-offering for a prosperous voyage on their going out to sea, and a -wave-offering on their return; but the saint, having lost his votaries, -has long since disappeared." The Danish Vikings called the Scandinavian -sea-god _Hold Nickar_, which in time degenerated into the ludicrous -expression, "Old Nick."[65] - -Another writer on this subject says:--We derive the familiar epithet of -"_Old Nick_" from the Norwegian Noek, the Norse Nikr, or the Swedish -Neck; and no further proof of their identity is required than a -comparison between the attributes possessed in common by all these -supernatural beings. The _Noek_ is said to require a human sacrifice once -a year, and some one is therefore annually missing in the vicinity of -the pond or river where this sprite has taken up its abode. The males -are said to be very partial to young maidens, whom they seize and drag -under the water; whilst those of the opposite sex are quite as -attractive and dangerous to the young fishermen who frequent the rivers. -The German _Nixes_ possess the same attributes. Both sexes have large -green teeth; and the male wears a green hat, which is frequently -mistaken by his victims for a tuft of beautiful vegetation. He is said -to kill without mercy whenever he drags a person down; and a fountain of -blood, which shoots up from the surface of the water, announces the -completion of the deed. A perfect identification of this with our own -popular belief is now easy. Nothing is more common at present than for -children who reside in the country to be cautioned against venturing too -near the water's brink, lest "_Green Teeth_" or "_Bloody Bones_" should -pull them in. "_Old Nick_" is said to lurk under the shady willows which -overhang the deep water; and the bubbles of gas which may be observed -escaping from the bottoms of quiet pools are attributed to the movements -of the water-sprites which lurk beneath. - - -DEMONOLOGY. - -A recent writer in _Blackwood's Magazine_ asks if Demonology "was not a -vague spirit-worship, the ancient religion of the bulk of mankind?" -"This Demonology" (he continues) "may be said to have been imported into -Christianity in its early days. It was the universal belief of the Pagan -world, and not easily to be eradicated; as the early Church accepted -things pretty much as it found them, and turned them to account; -teaching that these objects of heathen awe and reverence were fallen -angels, whose power for evil had been permitted to exist uncontrolled -till the advent of our Saviour. The early Roman Church elaborately -imitated, if it did not exceed, the Greeks and Romans in their -demonology. Every class of men had their guardians, who practically -represented the _Dii minores_ or _minorum gentium_; the hills and dales -and woods had their patrons, the successors of the Orcades, Napaeae, and -the Dryades; every kind of disease, from the toothache to the gout, had -its special healer, and even birds and beasts their spiritual -protectors." No one who has paid the most passing attention to the -folk-lore of this country can have failed to note amongst us, even yet, -the remnants of this curious superstition. In 1531, John Cousell, of -Cambridge, and John Clarke, of Oxford, two learned clerks, applied for -and obtained from Henry VIII. a formal license to practise sorcery, and -to build churches, a quaint combination of evil and antidote. They -professed power to summon "the sprytes of the ayre," and to make use of -them generally, and particularly in the discovery of treasure and stolen -property. Their seventh petition is to build churches, bridges, and -chapels, and to have cognizance of all sciences. One of their petitions -refers to a certain "noyntment" to see the sprytes, and to speak with -them dayly. Strange that Henry VIII. should have granted this license, -seeing that a statute was passed in his reign, making "witchcraft and -sorcery felony, without benefit of clergy."[66] Bishop Jewell, preaching -before Queen Anne, on the marvellous increase of witches and sorcerers, -after describing how the victims pined away, even unto death, loyally -concluded his sermon thus, "I pray God they never practise further than -upon the subject." The following charm or spell against St. Vitus's -Dance was, and very likely is still, in use in Devonshire. It was -written on parchment, and carried about by an old woman so afflicted:-- - - "Shake her, good Devil, - Shake her once well; - Then shake her no more, - Till you shake her in hell." - -Some of our laws against sorcery remained unrepealed a little more than -forty years ago. The Irish law against sorcery was only repealed in -1831. So late as August, 1863, an old man of eighty was flung into a -mill-stream in the parish of Little Hedingham, being what is called -"swimming for a wizard," and he died of his maltreatment. One curious -book on Demonology is entitled "An Account of Demoniacs, and the power -of casting out Demons, both in the New Testament, and the four first -Centuries," by William Whiston, M.A. (London, 1737, 8vo). He observes -that "The symptoms of these demoniacal distresses were very different -from the symptoms of other diseases, and even included wild raving, -irregular convulsions of the body, unnatural contortions of the limbs, -or dismal malady of the mind, and came upon the unhappy patients by -terrible fits of paroxysms, to the amazement of the spectators, and the -horrible affection of the possessed, and included the sorest illness and -madness in the world." The same symptoms revived in the extraordinary -epidemic called the _hystero-demonopathy_, which visited Morzine, in -Savoy, in 1857. The persons afflicted were violently and unnaturally -convulsed; now rushed phrenetically into the woods, or to the river, now -were subject to fits of coma; were insensible to pain; believed -themselves to be haunted by evil spirits; were violent, but in their -violence injured no one; and exhibited generally symptoms not observed -in any known disorder.[67] The people of Morzine believed themselves -possessed by spirits of dead persons, a peculiarity which appears to -have occurred in many cases during the prevalence of the epidemic. - - -DEMON AND GOBLIN SUPERSTITIONS. - -Among the more prominent of the demon superstitions prevalent in -Lancashire, we may instance that of the _Spectre Huntsman_, which -occupies so conspicuous a place in the folk-lore of Germany and the -North. This superstition is still extant in the Gorge of Cliviger, where -he is believed to hunt a milk-white doe round the Eagle's Crag in the -Vale of Todmorden, on All-Hallows' Eve. His hounds are said to fly -yelping through the air on many other occasions, and under the local -name of "_Gabriel Ratchets_," are supposed to predict death or -misfortune to all who hear the sounds.[68] The "_Lubber Fiend_," or -stupid demon, still stretches his hairy length across the hearth-stones -of the farm-houses in the same district, and the feats of the "_Goblin -Builders_" form a portion of the popular literature of almost every -locality. They are said to have removed the foundations of Rochdale -Church from the banks of the river Roach, up to their present elevated -position. Samlesbury Church, near Preston, possesses a similar -tradition. The "_Demon Pig_" not only determined the site of St. -Oswald's Church, at Warwick, but gave a name to the parish. The -parochial church at Burnley, it is said, was originally intended to be -built on the site occupied by the old Saxon Cross in Godly Lane; but, -however much the masons might have built during the day, both the stones -and the scaffolding were invariably found where the church now stands, -on their coming to work next morning. The local legend states that on -this occasion, also, the goblins took the form of _pigs_, and a rude -sculpture of such an animal, on the south side of the steeple, lends its -aid to confirm and perpetuate the story. - -Our peasantry retain the notion so prevalent in North Germany, that the -_Night-mare_ is a demon, which sometimes takes the form of a cat or a -dog, and they seek to counteract its influence by placing their shoes -under the bed with the toes outwards, on retiring to rest. - -The _Water Sprites_, believed in by our ancestors in the north of -England, still form a portion of the folk-lore of Lancashire and -Yorkshire. There is scarcely a stream of any magnitude in either county -which does not possess a presiding spirit in some part of its course. -The stepping-stones at Bungerley, near Clitheroe, are said to be haunted -by a malevolent sprite, who assumes almost as many shapes as Proteus of -old. He is not known by any particular designation, nor are there any -traditions to account for his first appearance; but at least _one_ life -in every _seven_ years is required to appease the anger of the spirit -of the Ribble at this place. It was at these stepping-stones that King -Henry VI. was treacherously betrayed by a Talbot of Bashall and others; -whence may have arisen a tradition of a malevolent spirit at that place. - -Our local literature possesses Roby's traditions of "The _Mermaid_ of -Martin Mere," which has given permanence to the popular notions -respecting mermen and mermaids. The _Schrat_, or _Schritel_, of the -German nations, is identical with the more ancient _Skrat_ of the -Scandinavians. He is noted for making game of persons who are out late -at night. Occasionally he places himself on a cart, or other vehicle, -which then becomes so heavy that the horses are unable to move the load. -They begin to tremble and perspire, as if sensible of the presence of -something diabolical; but after a short time "_Old Scrat_" slips off -behind, and disappears with a malicious laugh. In Lancashire we are no -strangers to Old Scrat and his doings. With many the name is merely a -synonyme for that of the devil; but our city carters are able to mark -the distinction, and have besides a goodly store of anecdotes respecting -the heavy loads which their horses have sometimes been compelled to -draw, when nothing could be seen except the empty cart. One of them -assured me that on such occasions his horses reared, and became almost -frantic; their manes stood erect; and he himself could see the wicked -imp actually dancing with delight between their ears. Another very -respectable person affirms that, not many years ago, as a funeral was -proceeding to church, the coffin became so heavy that it could not be -carried. On this being made known to a clergyman, who was present, he -offered up a short prayer, and commanded Old Scrat to take his own. This -was no sooner done than the excessive weight was felt no more, and the -corpse was carried forward to the place of interment. Similar -superstitions prevail in the more northern cities with but slight -variations; and hence sufficiently indicate their common origin. The -_Barguest_, or _Barn-ghaist_ of the Teutons, is also reported to be a -frequent visitor in Lancashire. The appearance of this sprite is -considered as a certain death-sign, and has obtained the local names of -"_Trash_" and "_Skriker_." He generally appears to one of the family -from whom Death is about to select his victim, and is more or less -visible, according to the distance of the event. I have met with persons -to whom the barguest [bar-ghaist, _i.e._, gate-ghost] has assumed the -form of a white cow, or a horse; but on most occasions "Trash" is -described as having the appearance of a very large dog, with very broad -feet, shaggy hair, drooping ears, and eyes "as large as saucers." When -walking, his feet make a loud splashing noise, like old shoes in a miry -road, and hence the name of "Trash." The appellation "_Skriker_" has -reference to the screams uttered by the sprite, which are frequently -heard when the animal is invisible. When followed by any individual he -begins to walk backwards with his eyes fixed full on his pursuer, and -vanishes on the slightest momentary inattention. Occasionally he plunges -into a pool of water, and at times he sinks at the feet of the persons -to whom he appears with a loud splashing noise, as if a heavy stone were -thrown into the miry road. Some are reported to have attempted to strike -him with any weapon they had at hand, but there was no substance to -receive the blows, although the Skriker kept his ground. He is said to -frequent the neighbourhood of Burnley at present, and is mostly seen in -Godly Lane, and about the parish church. But he by no means confines his -visits to the churchyard, as similar sprites are said to do in other -parts of England and Wales.[69] - - -DISPOSSESSING A DEMONIAC. - -Richard Rothwell, a native of Bolton-le-Moors, born about 1563, a -minister of the Gospel, ordained by Dr. Whitgift, Archbishop of -Canterbury, who was called by his biographer, the Rev. Stanley Gower, -minister of Dorchester--"_Orbis terrarum Anglicarum oculus_" (the eye of -our English world), is said to have dispossessed one John Fox, near -Nottingham, of a devil; with whom he had a discourse, by way of question -and answer, a good while. Such dialogues are said to be frequent amongst -the Popish exorcists, but being rare amongst Protestants, is the more to -be observed, and not disbelieved, because vouched by so good a man. Mr. -Rothwell died at Mansfield, Notts, in 1627, aged sixty-four.[70] - -[There is a long account of this contest with the devil in Rothwell's -_Life_, by Gower, pp. 178-183. After the devil had been driven out of -him, John Fox was dumb for three years, but afterwards had speech -restored to him, and wrote a book about the temptations the devil -haunted him with.] - - -DEMONIACAL POSSESSION IN 1594. - -Towards the close of the sixteenth century, seven persons in Lancashire -were alleged to be "possessed by evil spirits." According to the -narrative of the Rev. John Darrell, himself a principal actor in the -scene, there lived in 1594 at Cleworth (now called Clayworth), in the -parish of Leigh, one Nicholas Starkie, who had only two children, John -and Ann; the former ten and the latter nine years of age. These -children, according to Mr. Darrell, became possessed with an evil -spirit; and John Hartlay, a reputed conjuror, was applied to, at the end -of from two to three months, to give them relief, which he effected by -various charms, and the use of a magical circle with four crosses, drawn -near Mr. Starkie's seat, at Huntroyd, in the parish of Whalley. Hartlay -was conjuror enough to discover the difference between Mr. Starkie's -table and his own, and he contrived to fix himself as a constant inmate -in his benefactor's family for two or three years. Being considered so -essential to their peace, he advanced in his demands, till Mr. Starkie -demurred, and a separation took place; but not till five other persons, -three of them the female wards of Mr. Starkie, and two other females, -had become "possessed," through the agency of Hartlay, "and it was -judged in the house that whomsoever he kissed, on them he breathed the -devil." According to the narrative, all the seven demoniacs sent forth a -strange and supernatural voice of loud shouting. In this extremity Dr. -Dee, the Warden of Manchester College, was applied to, to exorcise the -evil spirits; but he refused to interfere, advising that they should -call in some godly preachers, with whom he would, if they thought -proper, consult concerning a public or private fast; at the same time he -sharply reproved Hartlay for his fraudulent practices. Some remission of -violence followed, but the evil spirits soon returned, and Mr. -Starkie's house became a perfect bedlam. John Starkie, the son, was "as -fierce as a madman, or a mad dog;" his sister Anne was little better; -Margaret Hardman, a gay, sprightly girl, was also troubled, and aspired -after all the splendid attire of fashionable life, calling for one gay -thing after another, and repeatedly telling her "lad," as she called her -unseen familiar, that she would be finer than him. Ellinor, her younger -sister, and Ellen Holland, another of Mr. Starkie's wards, were also -"troubled;" and Margaret Byrom, of Salford, a woman of thirty-three, who -was on a visit at Cleworth, became giddy, and partook of the general -malady. The young ladies fell down, as if dead, while they were dancing -and singing, and "playing the minstrel," and talked at such a rate that -nobody could be heard but themselves. The preachers being called in, -according to the advice of Dr. Dee, they inquired how the demoniacs were -handled. The "possessed" replied that an angel, like a dove, came from -God, and said that they must follow him to heaven, which way soever he -would lead them. Margaret Hardman then ran under a bed, and began to -make a hole, as she said, that her "lad" (or familiar) might get through -the wall to her; and, amongst other of her feats, she would have leaped -out of the window. The others were equally extravagant in their -proceedings, but when they had the use of their feet, the use of their -tongues was taken away. The girls were so sagacious that they foretold -when their fits would come on. When they were about any game or sport, -they seemed quite happy; but any godly exercise was a trouble to them. -Margaret Byrom was grievously troubled. She thought in her fits that -something rolled in her inside like a calf, and lay ever on her left -side; and when it rose up towards her heart, she thought the head and -nose thereof had been full of nails, wherewith being pricked, she was -compelled to shriek aloud, with very pain and fear; sometimes she barked -and howled, and at others she so much quaked that her teeth chattered in -her head. At the sight of Hartlay she fell down speechless, and saw a -great black dog, with a monstrous tail and a long chain, running at her -open-mouthed. Six times within six weeks the spirit would not suffer her -to eat or drink, and afterwards her senses were taken away, and she was -as stiff as iron. Two nights before the day of her examination against -Hartlay, who was committed to Lancaster Castle, the devil appeared to -her in his likeness, and told her to speak the truth! On the 16th of -March, Maister George More, pastor of Cawlke, in Derbyshire, and Maister -John Darrell, afterwards preacher at St. Mary's, in Nottingham, came to -Cleworth, when they saw the girls grievously tormented. Jane Ashton, the -servant of Mr. Starkie, howled in a supernatural manner--Hartlay had -given her kisses, and promised her marriage. The ministers having got -all the seven into one chamber, gave them spiritual advice; but, on the -Bible being brought up to them, three or four of them began to scoff, -and called it--"Bib-le, Bab-le; Bible, Bable." The next morning they -were got into a large parlour, and laid on couches, when Maister More -and Maister Dickens, a preacher (and their pastor), along with Maister -Darrell and thirty other persons, spent the day with them in prayer and -fasting, and hearing the word of God. All the parties afflicted remained -in their fits the whole of the day. Towards evening every one of them, -with voice and hands lifted up, cried to God for mercy, and He was -pleased to hear them, so that six of them were shortly dispossessed, and -Jane Ashton in the course of the next day experienced the same -deliverance. At the moment of dispossession, some of them were miserably -rent, and the blood gushed out both at the nose and mouth. Margaret -Byrom said that she felt the spirit come up her throat, when it gave her -"a sore lug" at the time of quitting her, and went out of the window -with a flash of fire, she only seeing it. John Starkie said his spirit -left him, in appearance like a man with a hunch on his back, very -ill-favoured; Ellinor Hardman's was like an urchin; Margaret Byrom's -like an ugly black man, with shoulders higher than his head. Two or -three days afterwards the unclean spirits returned, and would have -re-entered had they not been resisted. When they could not succeed -either by bribes or entreaties, they threw some of them [the -dispossessed] violently down, and deprived others of the use of their -legs and other members; but the victory was finally obtained by the -preachers, and all the devils banished from Mr. Starkie's household. -Meanwhile Hartlay the conjuror, who seems to have been a designing -knave, after undergoing an examination before two magistrates, was -committed to Lancaster Castle, where, on the evidence of Mr. Starkie and -his family, he was convicted of witchcraft, and sentenced to death, -principally, as it is stated, for drawing the magic circle, which seems -to have been the least part of his offence, though the most obnoxious to -the law. In this trial _spectral evidence_ was adduced against the -prisoner, and the experiment was tried of saying the Lord's Prayer. When -it no longer served his purpose he endeavoured to divest himself of the -character of a conjuror, and declared that he was not guilty of the -crime for which he was doomed to suffer; the law, however, was -inexorable, and he was brought to execution. On the scaffold he -persisted in declaring his innocence, but to no purpose; the executioner -did his duty, and the criminal was suspended. While hanging, the rope -broke, when Hartlay confessed his guilt; being again tied up, he died, -the victim of his own craft, and of the infatuation of the age in which -he lived. On the appearance of Mr. Darrell's book, the _Narrative_ of -these remarkable events, a long controversy arose on the doctrine of -Demonology, and it was charged upon him by the Rev. Samuel Harsnet, -afterwards Bishop of Chichester and Norwich, and Archbishop of York, -that he made a trade of casting out devils, and that he instructed the -"possessed" how to conduct themselves, in order to aid him in carrying -on the imposition. Mr. Darrell was afterwards examined by the Queen's -Commissioners; and by the full agreement of the whole court, he was -condemned as a counterfeit, deposed from the ministry, and committed to -close confinement, there to remain for further punishment. The clergy, -in order to prevent the scandal brought upon the Church by false -pretensions to the power of dispossessing demons, soon afterwards -introduced a new canon into the ecclesiastical law, in these -terms:--"That no minister or ministers, without license and direction of -the bishop, under his hand and seal obtained, attempt, upon any pretence -whatever, either of possession or obsession, by fasting and prayer, to -cast out any devil or devils, under pain of the imputation of imposture, -or cozenage, and deposition from the ministry." Some light is cast upon -the case of Mr. Starkie's household by "A Discourse Concerning the -Possession and Dispossession of Seven Persons in one Family in -Lancashire," written by George More, a puritanical minister, who had -engaged in exorcising devils. This discourse agrees substantially with -Darrell's narrative, but adds some noteworthy facts: amongst others, -that he (Mr. More) was a prisoner in the Clinke for nearly two years, -for justifying and bearing witness to the facts stated by Darrell. He -also states that Mr. Nicholas Starkie having married a gentlewoman that -was an inheritrix [Ann, widow of Thurstan Barton, Esq., of Smithells, -and daughter and sole heiress of John Parr, Esq., of Kempnough, and -Cleworth, Lancashire], and of whose kindred some were Papists; -these--partly for religion, and partly because the estate descended but -to heirs male--prayed for the perishing of her issue, and that four sons -pined away in a strange manner; but that Mrs. Starkie, learning this -circumstance, estated her lands on her husband, and _his_ heirs, failing -issue of her own body; after which a son and daughter were born, who -prospered _well till_ they became "possessed."[71] - - -DEMONIACAL POSSESSION IN 1689. - -Richard Dugdale, called "The Surey Demoniac," was a youth just rising -into manhood, a gardener, living with his parents at Surey, in the -parish of Whalley, addicted to posture, and distinguished even at school -as a posture-master and ventriloquist. During his "possession" he was -attended by six Dissenting ministers--the Revs. Thomas Jolly, Charles -Sagar, Nicholas Kershaw, Robert Waddington, Thomas Whalley, and John -Carrington, who were occasionally assisted at the meetings held to -exorcise the demon by the Rev. Messrs. Frankland, Pendlebury, and Oliver -Heywood. According to the narrative, under their sanction, entitled _An -Account of Satan's entering in and about the Body of Richard Dugdale, -and of Satan's removal thence through the Lord's blessing of the -within-mentioned Ministers and People_, when Dugdale was about nineteen -years of age he was seized with an affliction early in 1689; and from -the strange fits which violently seized him, he was supposed to be -possessed by the devil. When the fit was upon him "he shewed great -despite [says the narrative], against the ordinary of God, and raged as -if he had been nothing but a devil in Richard's bodily shape; though -when he was not in his fits he manifested great inclination to the word -of God and prayer; for the exercise of which in his behalf he desired -that a day of fasting might be set apart, as the only means from which -he could expect help, seeing that he had tried all other means, lawful -and unlawful." Meetings were accordingly appointed of the ministers, to -which the people crowded in vast numbers. These meetings began on the -8th May, 1689, and were continued about twice a month till the February -following. At the first meeting the parents of the demoniac were -examined by the ministers, and they represented that "at Whalley -rush-bearing, on the James's tide, in July, 1688, there was a great -dancing and drinking, when Richard offered himself to the devil, on -condition that he would make him the best dancer in Lancashire." After -becoming extremely drunk he went home, where several apparitions -appeared to him, and presented to him all kinds of dainties and fine -clothing, with gold and precious things, inviting him at the same time -to "take his fill of pleasure." In the course of the day some compact, -or bond, was entered into between him and the devil, after which his -fits grew frequent and violent. While in these fits his body was often -hurled about very desperately, and he abused the minister and blasphemed -his Maker. Sometimes he would fall into dreadful fits; at others he -would talk Greek and Latin, though untaught; sometimes his voice was -small and shrill, at others hollow and hideous. Now he was as light as a -bag of feathers, then as heavy as lead. At one time he upbraided the -ministers for their neglect, at others he said they had saved him from -hell. He was weather-wise and money-wise by turns; he could tell when -there would be rain, and when he should receive presents. Sometimes he -would vomit stones an inch and a half square, and in others of his -trances there was a noise in his throat, as if he was singing psalms -inwardly. But the strongest mark of demoniacal possession consisted in a -lump, which rose from the thick of his leg, about the size of a mole, -and did work up like such a creature towards the chest of his body, till -it reached his breast, when it was as big as a man's fist, and uttered -strange voices. He opened his mouth at the beginning of his fits so -often, that it was thought spirits went in and out of him. In agility he -was unequalled, "especially in dancing, wherein he excelled all that the -spectators had seen, and all that mere mortals could perform. The -demoniac would for six or seven times together leap up, so as that part -of his legs might be seen shaking and quivering above the heads of the -people, from which heights he oft fell down on his knees, which he long -shivered and traversed on the ground, at least as nimbly as other men -can twinkle or sparkle their fingers; thence springing up into his high -leaps again, and then falling on his feet, which seemed to reach the -earth but with the gentlest and scarce perceivable touches when he made -his highest leaps." And yet the divines by whom he was attended most -unjustly rallied the devil for the want of skill in his pupil. The Rev. -Mr. Carrington, addressing himself to the devil, says, "Cease dancing, -Satan, and begone from him. Canst thou dance no better, Satan? Ransack -the old record of all past times and places in thy memory: canst thou -not there find out some other way of finer trampling? Pump thine -invention dry! Cannot that universal seed-plot of subtle wiles and -stratagems spring up one new method of cutting capers? Is this the top -of skill and pride, to shuffle feet and brandish knees thus, and to trip -like a doe, and skip like a squirrel? And wherein differs thy leapings -from the hoppings of a frog, or bounces of a goat, or friskings of a -dog, or gesticulations of a monkey? And cannot a palsy shake such a -loose leg as that? Dost thou not twirl like a calf that has the turn, -and twitch up thy houghs just like a spring-hault [? spring-galled] -tit?" In some of his last fits he announced that he must be either -killed or cured before the 25th March. This, says the deposition of his -father and mother, and two of his sisters, proved true; for on the 24th -of that month he had his last fit, the devil being no longer able to -withstand the means used with so much vigour and perseverance to expel -him; one of the most effectual of which was a medicine, prescribed, in -the way of his profession, by Dr. Chew, a medical practitioner in the -neighbourhood. Mr. Zachary Taylor asserts that the preachers, -disappointed and mortified at their ill success in Dugdale's case, gave -it out that some of his connexions were witches, and in contract with -the devil, and that, they supposed, was the cause why they had not been -able to relieve him. Under this impression they procured some of the -family to be searched, that they might see if they had not teats, or the -devil's mark; and they tried them by the test of saying the Lord's -Prayer. Some remains of the evil spirit, however, seem still to have -possessed Richard; for, though after this he had no fits, yet once, when -he had got too much drink, he was after another manner than drunken -persons usually are. In confirmation of which feats, not only the eight -ministers, but twenty respectable inhabitants, affixed their -attestations to a document prepared for the purpose; and three of the -magistrates of the district--Hugh, Lord Willoughby [of Parham], Ralph -Egerton, Esq., and Thos. Braddyll, Esq.--received depositions from the -attesting parties. This monstrous mass of absurdity, superstition, and -fraud--for it was beyond doubt a compound of them all--was exposed with -success by the Rev. Zachary Taylor, the Bishop of Chester's curate at -Wigan, one of the King's preachers in Lancashire; but the reverend -divine mixed with his censures too much party asperity, insisting that -the whole was an artifice of the Nonconformist ministers, in imitation -of the pretended miracles of the Roman Catholic priests, and likening it -to the fictions of John Darrell, B.A., which had been practised a -century before upon the family of Mr. Starkie, in the same county. Of -the resemblance in many of its parts there can be no doubt; but the -names of the venerable Oliver Heywood and Thomas Jolly form a sufficient -guarantee against imposition on their part; and the probability is that -the ministers were the dupes of a popular superstition in the hands of a -dissolute and artful family.[72] - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[62] See _Transactions of Historical Society of Lancashire and -Cheshire_. - -[63] Casaubon, extracted from Dee's MSS., P. I., p. 22, fol. 1659. - -[64] _History of Lancashire_, vol. iv. p. 63. - -[65] Hampson's _Medii AEvi Kal._, vol. i. p. 74. - -[66] 33 Henry VIII., cap. 8. - -[67] "The Devils of Morzine," in the _Cornhill Magazine_, April, 1865. - -[68] See Roby's _Traditions of Lancashire_; Homerton's _Isles of Loch -Awe_ and _Choice Notes: Folk-Lore_, pp. 247-8. - -[69] See _Transactions of Lancashire and Cheshire Historical Society_. - -[70] _Magna Britannica_, by Rev. M. S. Cox, p. 1303. - -[71] Baines's _Lancashire_. - -[72] Baines's _Lancashire_. - - - - -DIVINATION. - - -This word, derived from _divinare_, to foretell, denotes a mode of -foretelling future events, and which, among the ancients, was divided -into two kinds, natural and artificial. Natural divination was prophecy -or prediction, the result of supposed inspiration or the divine -afflatus; artificial divination was effected by certain rites, -experiments, or observations, as by sacrifices, cakes, flour, wine, -observation of entrails, flight of birds, lots, verses, omens, position -of the stars, &c. In modern divination, two modes are in popular -favour--thrusting a pin or a key between the leaves of a closed Bible, -and taking the verse the pin or key touches as a direction or omen; and -the divining-rod, a long forked branch or twig of hazel, which being -held between the finger and thumb in a particular way, is said to turn -of itself when held near the earth over any hidden treasure, precious -metals, or over a spring of water. It has also been used to discover a -buried body of one murdered. - - -DIVINATION AT MARRIAGES. - -The following practices are very prevalent at marriages in the districts -around Burnley, and they are not noticed in the last edition of Brand's -_Popular Antiquities_:--1. Put a wedding-ring into the _posset_, and -after serving it out, the unmarried person whose cup contains the ring -will be the first of the company to be married. 2. Make a common flat -cake of flour, water, currants, &c., and put therein a wedding-ring and -a sixpence. When the company are about to retire on the wedding-day the -cake must be broken, and distributed amongst the unmarried females. She -who gets the ring in her portion of the cake will shortly be married, -and the one who gets the sixpence will die an old maid.[73] - - -DIVINATION BY BIBLE AND KEY. - -When some choice specimen of the "Lancashire Witches" thinks it -necessary to decide upon selecting a suitor from among the number of her -admirers, she not unfrequently calls in the aid of the Bible and a key -to assist in deciding her choice. Having opened the Bible at the passage -in Ruth: "Whither thou goest will I go," &c., and having carefully -placed the wards of the key upon the verses, she ties the book firmly -with a piece of cord, and having mentioned the name of an admirer, she -very solemnly repeats the passage in question, at the same time holding -the Bible suspended _by joining the ends of her little fingers_ inserted -under the handle of the key. If the key retain its position during the -repetition the person whose name has been mentioned is considered to be -rejected; and so another name is tried, till the book turns round and -falls through the fingers, which is held to be a sure token the name -just mentioned is that of an individual who will certainly marry her. I -have a Bible in my possession which bears evidence of having seen much -service of this description.[74] - - -ANOTHER LANCASHIRE FORM OF DIVINATION. - -When a Lancashire damsel desires to know what sort of a husband she will -have, on New Year's Eve she pours some melted lead into a glass of -water, and observes what forms the drops assume. When they resemble -scissors, she concludes that she must rest satisfied with a tailor; if -they appear in the form of a hammer, he will be a smith or a carpenter, -and so on of others. The writer has met with many instances of this -class, in which the examples given did not admit of easy contradiction. - - -DIVINATION BY THE DYING. - -Dying persons, especially if they have been distinguished for piety when -in health, are considered to possess, for a short time, the spirit of -prophecy. Hence many persons are then anxious to see them, in order that -they may divine the _future_ by means of their oracular words. They also -_know_ persons who have died before them. This is a curious remnant of -the old Greek and Roman belief. Homer makes Hector foretell the death of -Achilles, _Iliad_, v. 355. Virgil causes Orodes to foretell the death -of Mezentius, _AEneid_, x. 739. Cicero also furnishes another instance, -_De Divin._ lib. ii. - - -SECOND-SIGHT. - -Though this faculty of seeing into the future has usually been regarded -as limited to Scotland, and there chiefly possessed by natives of the -Highlands, there have been individuals in Lancashire who have laid claim -to the possession of this species of foresight. Amongst those in the -Fylde district was a man named Cardwell, of Marton, near Blackpool, who -foretold deaths and evil events from his vision of things to come. Men -of superior ability were credulous enough to visit him, and to give -implicit faith to his marvellous stories. The real form of second-sight -is the seeing of the wraith, spirit, or ghost of one about to die; and -in one notable instance Cardwell's second-sight failed him utterly. On -seeing something in a vision, he concluded that his own child was about -to die, and so strong was his own faith in this delusion that he carried -sand to the churchyard to be ready for its grave. The death, however, -did not happen: the child grew to maturity, and retaining robust health, -lived for many years afterwards. - - -SPIRITS OF THE DYING AND THE DEAD. - -1. Persons born during twilight are supposed to be able to _see_ -spirits, and to know who of their acquaintance will die next. - -2. Some say that this property also belongs to those who happen to be -born _exactly_ at twelve o'clock at night. - -3. The spirits of persons about to die, especially if the persons be in -distant lands, are supposed to return to their friends, and thus predict -the calamity. While the spirit is thus _away_, the person is supposed to -be in a _swoon_, and unaware of what is passing. His _desire_ to see his -friends is also necessary; he must have been _thinking_ of them. I am -not aware that these spirits ever _speak_. - -4. If no one in a family can _see_ a spirit, most can hear them, and -hence strange noises are supposed to indicate death or misfortune to -distant friends. - - -CASTING LOTS, ETC. - -This is a species of divination or consulting of fate by omen. Great -faith is placed by most in casting lots. Putting numbers in a box or bag -is the common practice, and then drawing them out at random. Scripture -was once quoted to the writer in proof that this mode of deciding -doubtful matters was of God's appointment, and therefore could not -fail. "The lot is cast into the bag, but the _disposal_ thereof is the -Lord's." (Prov. xvi. 33; 1. Sam. xiv. 41.) When boys do not wish to -divide anything they decide "who must take all" by drawing "short-cuts." -A number of straws, pieces of twine, &c., of different lengths, are held -by one not interested; each boy draws one, and he who gets the _longest_ -is entitled to the whole. - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[73] T. T. W., in _Notes and Queries_, vol. ii. p. 117. - -[74] T. T. W., in _Notes and Queries_, vol. ii. p. 5. - - - - -MISCELLANEOUS FOLK-LORE. - - -DRUIDICAL ROCK BASINS. - -Dr. Borlase, in his _Antiquities of Cornwall_, notices the existence of -Druidical Rock Basins, which appear to have been scooped out of the -granite rocks and boulders which lie on the tops of the hills in the -county. Several such cavities in stones are found on Brimham Rocks, -near Knaresborough, and they have also been found at Plumpton and -Rigton, in Yorkshire,[75] and on Stanton Moor, in Derbyshire. The writer -first drew attention to the fact of similar Druidical remains existing -in Lancashire in a paper read before the Historical Society of -Lancashire and Cheshire, in December, 1864. They are found in -considerable numbers around Boulsworth, Gorple, Todmorden, and on the -hills which separate Lancashire from Yorkshire between these places. -Commencing the enumeration of the groups of boulders, &c., containing -rock basins, with the slopes of Boulsworth, about seven miles from -Burnley, we have first the Standing Stones, mostly single blocks of -millstone grit, at short distances from each other on the north-western -side of the hill. One is locally termed the Buttock Stone, and near it -is a block which has a circular cavity scooped out on its flat upper -surface. Not far from these are the Joiner Stones, the Abbot Stone, the -Weather Stones, and the Law Lad Stones [? from _llad_, British, -sacrifices]. Next come the Great and Little Saucer Stones, so named from -the cavities scooped out upon them. The Little Chair Stones, the Fox -Stones, and the Broad Head Stones lie at no great distance, each group -containing numerous like cavities. Several of these groups are locally -named from resemblance to animals or other objects, as the Grey Stones -and the Steeple Stones on Barn Hill, and one spur of Boulsworth is -called Wycoller Ark, as resembling a farmer's chest or ark. On Warcock -Hill several groups of natural rocks and boulders are locally named -Dave or Dew Stones. On the surface of one immense Dave Stone boulder is -a perfect hemispherical cavity, ten inches in diameter. The surface of -another contains an oblong basin of larger dimensions, with a long -grooved channel leading from its curved contour towards the edge of the -stone. On a third there are four circular cavities of varying -dimensions, the largest in the centre, and three others surrounding it, -but none of these is more than a few inches in diameter. At the Bride -Stones, near Todmorden, thirteen cavities were counted on one block, and -eleven on another. All the basins here and elsewhere are formed on the -_flat_ surfaces of the blocks; their upper surfaces being always -parallel to the lamination of the stone. Along Widdop Moor we find the -Grey Stones, the Fold Hole Stones, the Clattering Stones, and the -Rigging Stones; the last named from occupying the rig or ridge of the -hills in this locality. Amongst the Bride Stones is an immense mass of -rock which might almost be classed among the rocking stones. It is about -twenty-five feet in height, at least twelve feet across its broadest -part, and rests on a base only about two feet in diameter. The Todmorden -group contains the Hawk Stones, on Stansfield Moor, not far from -Stiperden Cross, on the line of the Long Causeway (a Roman road); the -Bride Stones, near Windy Harbour; the Chisley Stones, near Keelham; and -Hoar Law, not far from Ashenhurst Royd and Todmorden. The rock basins on -these boulders are very numerous, and of all sizes, from a few inches in -diameter and depth to upwards of two feet. The elliptical axes of some -of these basins did not appear to the writer to have been caused by the -action of wind or water, or to follow any regular law. Lastly, taking -for a centre, Gorple,[76] about five miles south-east of Burnley is -another extensive group of naked rocks and boulders. Close to the -solitary farm-house there are the Gorple Stones; and at a short distance -the Hanging Stones form conspicuous objects in the sombre landscape. On -Thistleden Dean are the Upper, Middle, and Lower Whinberry Stones, so -named from the "whinberry" shrubs, with which this moor abounds. The -Higher and Lower Boggart Stones come next, and these are followed by the -Wicken Clough, and other minor groups of stones. Above Gorple Bottom is -another set of grey stones; and these are followed by the Upper, Middle, -and Lower Hanging Stones, on Shuttleworth Moor.[77] The rock basins here -are very numerous, and mostly well defined. There are forty-three -cavities in these Gorple, Gorple Gate, and Hanging Stones, ranging from -four to forty inches in length, from four to twenty-five in breadth, and -from two to thirteen inches in depth. - -Dr. Borlase confidently asserts that the ancient Druids used these rock -basins for baptismal and sacrificial purposes--a conjecture which the -authors of the _Beauties of Derbyshire_ admit to be probable; and so -does Higgins in his elaborate work on the _Celtic Druids_. The -supposition is supported by the fact of their occurring in such numbers -mostly _on the tops of hills_, in so many counties, and in such -different materials as the granite and the millstone-grit -formations.[78] Whether they have been formed by natural or artificial -means is still a matter of dispute. On the whole the writer's opinion -is, that the rock basins of Scilly, Cornwall, Derbyshire, Yorkshire, and -East Lancashire are partly natural, and partly artificial; the former -being comparatively few, and easily distinguished by their varying -depths and forms.[79] Whether wholly or partially natural or artificial, -he thinks it safe to conclude that they have been appropriated by the -Druids to their religious worship, as furnishing the means by which they -could offer their sacrifices and perform their ablutions. They would -also suffice for baptism, and preserve the rain or the dew from being -polluted by touching the earth. The Tolmen on the neighbouring hills[80] -may be taken as an additional reason for associating Druidical worship -with such remains. These contain small basins on the summits, which -differ in no respect from those here enumerated. They have, therefore, -most probably been used for similar purposes. Those above described form -a curious chapter in the oldest folk-lore of Lancashire. - - -ELVES AND FAIRIES. - - "Like elves and fairies in a ring."--_Macbeth._ - -England has ever been full of the favourite haunts of those pleasantest -of all the supernatural sprites of childhood and superstition--elves and -fairies. Volumes might be filled with the stories of their feats and -pranks in all parts of England; and our greatest poet has for ever -embalmed this superstition in the richest hues of poetic imagery and -fancy--especially in his _Midsummer Night's Dream_. The _Fairies_, or -"Hill Folk," yet live amongst the rural people of Lancashire. Antique -tobacco-pipes, "formerly belonging to the fairies," are still -occasionally found in the corners of newly-ploughed fields. They -themselves still gambol on the grassy meads at dewy eve, and their -revels are yet believed to be witnessed at times by some privileged -inhabitants of our "calm sequestered vales." It is generally stated -that, in order to see one of these diminutive beings, the use of -ointments, four-leaved clover, or other specific preparations, is -necessary; but a near relative of the writer, not more imbued with -superstition than the majority, firmly believed that he once saw a real -dwarf or fairy, without the use of any incantation. He had been amusing -himself one summer evening on the top of Mellor Moor, near Blackburn, -close to the remains of the Roman encampment, when his attention was -arrested by the appearance of a dwarf-like man, attired in full hunting -costume, with top-boots and spurs, a green jacket, red hairy cap, and a -thick hunting whip in his hand. He ran briskly along the moor for a -considerable distance, when, leaping over a low stone wall, he darted -down a steep declivity, and was lost to sight. The popular opinion of -the neighbourhood is, that an underground city exists at this place; -that an earthquake swallowed up the encampment, and that on certain days -in the year the hill folk may be heard ringing their bells, and -indulging in various festivities. Considerable quantities of stone, -which still remain around the ditches of this rectangular place, may -have suggested the ideas of a city and an earthquake. On other occasions -the fairies are supposed to exhibit themselves in military array on the -mountain sides; their evolutions conforming in every respect to the -movements of modern troops. Such appearances are believed to portend the -approach of civil commotions, and are said to have been more than -usually common about the time of the rebellion in 1745-6. This would -suggest an explanation of a more rational character. [Doubtless the -mirage, Fata Morgana, or Spectral appearances of the Hartz mountains.] - -One Lancashire Fairy tale runs thus:-- - -Two men went poaching, and having placed nets, or rather sacks, over -what they supposed to be rabbit holes, but which were in reality -fairies' houses, the fairies rushed into the sacks, and the poachers -(believing them to be rabbits), content with their prey, marched -homewards again. One fairy missing another in the sack, called out (the -story was told in the broad Lancashire dialect)--"Dick" (dignified name -for a fairy), "where art thou?" To which fairy Dick replied,-- - - "In a sack, - On a back, - Riding up Barley Brow." - -The story has a good moral ending; for the men were so frightened that -they never poached again.[81] - -The Rev. William Thornber[82] characterizes the elves and fairies as -kind, good-natured creatures, at times seeking the assistance of -mortals, and in return, liberally rewarding them. They have a favourite -spot between Hardhorn and Staining, at a cold spring of water called -"Fairies' Well" to this day. Most amusing stories of fairies are told -around that district. A poor woman, when filling her pitcher at the well -just named, in order to bathe the weak eyes of her infant child, was -mildly accosted by a handsome man, who presented her with a box of -ointment, and told her it would be a specific remedy. She was grateful -for the gift, but love for her child made her somewhat mistrustful; so -she first applied the ointment to one of her own eyes. Shortly -afterwards, she saw her benefactor at Preston, stealing corn from the -mouths of the sacks open for sale, and, much to his amazement, accosted -him. On his inquiry how she could recognise him, since he was invisible -to all else around, she told him how she had used his ointment, and -pointed to the powerful eye; when he immediately struck it out. A -milkmaid, observing a jug and a sixpence placed at her side by some -invisible being, filled the jug with milk, and took the money; this was -repeated for weeks, till, overjoyed with her good fortune, she could not -refrain from imparting it to her lover; but the jug and sixpence never -appeared again. A ploughman when engaged in his daily labour, heard a -plaintive cry, "I have broken my _speet_."[83] Hastily turning round, -the ploughman beheld a lady, holding in her hand a broken _spittle_, a -hammer, and nails, and beckoning him to repair it. He did so, and -instantly received a handsome reward; and then the lady vanished, -apparently sinking into the earth. - - -FOLK-LORE. - -Under this general head we bring together a few scattered notices not -naturally falling under any precise classification, but all showing the -nature and character of common and popular notions, beliefs, and -superstitions. Where, however, the subject will admit of it, many -examples of this Folk-lore will be found in later pages, under the -general head of "Superstitions." - - -FOLK-LORE OF ECCLES AND THE NEIGHBOURHOOD. - -A very curious book exhibits some of the usages of our ancestors in this -part of the county, early in the reign of James I., entitled _The Way to -the True Church ... directed to all that seek for Resolution; and -especially to all his loving Countrymen of Lancashire, by John White, -Minister of God's Word at Eccles_. [White was vicar of Eccles only a few -months--from May, 1609.] The fifth edition or "impression" is a folio, -printed at London, 1624, but the Preface is dated Oct. 29th, 1608. White -complains of "the prodigious ignorance" which he found among his -parishioners when he entered upon his ministrations, and he proceeds -thus to tell his own tale:--"I will only mention what I saw and learned, -dwelling among them, concerning the saying of their prayers; for what -man is he whose heart trembles not to simple people so far seduced [or -so ill-taught] that they know not how to pronounce or say their daily -prayers; or so to pray that all that hear them shall be filled with -laughter? And while, superstitiously, they refuse to pray in their own -language with understanding, they speak that which their leaders [Roman -Catholic priests] may blush to hear. These examples I have observed from -the common people: - -"'_The Creed._ - -"'Creezum zuum patrum onitentem Creatorum ejus anicum, Dominum nostrum -qui sum sops, virgini Mariae, crixus fixus, Ponchi Pilati audubitiers, -morti by Sonday, father a fernes, scelerest unjudicarum, finis a -mortibus. Creezum spirituum sanctum, eccli Catholi, remissurum -peccaturum, communiorum obliviorum, bitam et turnam again.' - -"'_The Little Creed._ - - "'Little creed, can I need - Kneele before our Ladies' knee; - Candlelight, candles burne, - Our Ladie pray'd to her dear Sonne - That we all to heaven might come. - Little creed. Amen.' - -"This that followeth they call-- - -"'_The White Paternoster._ - - "'White Paternoster, Saint Peter's brother, - What hast i' th' t' one hand? White book leaves. - What hast i' th' t' other hand? Heaven yate keys. - Open heaven yates, and steyk [shut] hell yates: - And let every crysome child creep to it own mother. - White Paternoster, Amen.' - -"'_Another Prayer._ - - "'I bless me with God and the rood, - With his sweet flesh and precious blood; - With his cross and his creed, - With his length and his breed, - From my toe to my crown, - And all my body up and down, - From my back to my breast, - My five wits be my rest; - God let never ill come at ill, - But through Jesus' own will, - Sweet Jesus, Lord, Amen.' - -"Many also use to wear vervain against blasts; and, when they gather it -for this purpose, first they cross the herb with their hand, and then -they bless it thus:-- - - "'Hallowed be thou, Vervain, - As thou growest on the ground, - For in the Mount of Calvary, - There thou wast first found. - Thou healedst our Saviour Jesus Christ, - And staunchedst his bleeding wound; - In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, - I take thee from the ground.' - -"And so they pluck it up and wear it. Their prayers and traditions of -this sort are infinite, and the ceremonies they use in their actions are -nothing inferior to the Gentiles in number and strangeness. Which any -man may easily observe that converseth with them."[84] - - -TREE BARNACLES; OR, GEESE HATCHED FROM SEA-SHELLS. - -The learned and venerable John Gerarde, author or translator of _A -History of Plants, or Herball_; first published in folio in 1597, has -the following marvellous story respecting barnacle-shells growing on -trees, and giving birth to young geese; not as a thing which some -wonder-monger had related to him, but as what he had seen with his own -eyes, and the truth of which he could, therefore, and does, most -solemnly avouch. - -"There are found in the north parts of Scotland, and the isles adjacent -called Orcades, certain trees, whereon do grow certain shell-fishes, of -a white colour, tending to russet; wherein are contained little living -creatures; which shells in time of maturity do open, and out of them -grow those little living things; which, falling into the water, do -become fowls, whom we call barnacles, in the North of England brant -geese, and in Lancashire tree geese; but the others that do fall upon -the land perish and do come to nothing. Thus much by the writings of -others, and also from the mouths of people of those parts, which may -very well accord with truth. But _what our eyes have seen and hands have -touched, we shall declare_. There is a small island in Lancashire called -The Pile of Foulders [or Peel of Fouldrey] wherein are found the broken -pieces of old and bruised ships, some whereof have been cast thither by -shipwreck, and also the trunks or bodies, with the branches, of old -rotten trees, cast up there likewise; whereon is found a certain spume -or froth, that in time breedeth unto certain shells, in shape like those -of the mussel, but sharper pointed, and of a whitish colour; wherein is -contained a thing in form like a lace of silk, finely woven as it were -together, as of a whitish colour, one end whereof is fastened unto the -inside of the shell, even as the fish of oysters and mussels are. The -other end is made fast unto the belly of a rude masse or lump, which in -time cometh to the shape and form of a bird; when it is perfectly formed -the shell gapeth open, and the first thing that appeareth is the -foresaid lace or string; next come the legs of the bird hanging out; and -as it groweth greater it openeth the shell by degrees, till at length it -is all come forth and hangeth only by the bill. In short space after it -cometh to full maturity and falleth into the sea, where it gathereth -feathers and groweth to a fowl, bigger than a mallard and lesser than a -goose; and black legs and bill, or beak, and feathers black and white, -spotted in such a manner as is our magpie (called in some places a -pie-annet), which [not the magpie, but the barnacle-hatched fowl] the -people of Lancashire call by no other name than a tree goose; which -place aforesaid, and all those parts adjoining, do so much abound -therewith, that one of the best is bought for 3_d._; For the truth -hereof, if any doubt, may it please them to repair to me, and I shall -satisfy them by the testimony of good witnesses(!).... They spawn as it -were in March and April; the geese are formed in May and June, and come -to fulness of feathers in the month after." "There is another sort -hereof, the history of which is _true, and of mine own knowledge_; for -travelling upon the shores of our English coast between Dover and -Romney, I found the trunk of an old rotten tree, which (with some help -that I procured by fishermen's wives, that were there attending their -husbands' return from the sea) we drew out of the water upon dry land. -On this rotten tree I found growing many thousands of long crimson -bladders, in shape like unto puddings newly filled, before they be -sodden, which were very clear and shining; at the nether end whereof did -grow a shell-fish, fashioned somewhat like a small mussel, but much -whiter, resembling a shell-fish that groweth upon the rocks about -Guernsey and Jersey, called a limpet. Many of these shells I brought -with me to London, which, after I had opened, I found in them living -things, without form or shape; in others, which were nearer come to -ripeness, I found living things that were very naked, in shape like a -bird; in others, the birds covered with soft down, the shell half open, -and the bird ready to fall out, which no doubt were the fowls called -barnacles.... That which I have seen with my eyes and handled with my -hands, I dare confidently avouch and boldly put down for verity.... We -conclude and end our present volume with this wonder of God. For which -God's name be ever honoured and praised." This author figures the -_Britannica Conchae Anatifera_, or the breed of barnacles; the woodcut -representing a tree growing by the sea, with leaves like mussel shells, -opening, and living creatures emerging; while others, swimming about in -the sea beneath, are perfect goslings! Well may the old herbalist call -this "one of the marvels of this land; we may say of the world." Dr. -Charles Leigh, in his _Natural History of Lancashire_, gravely labours -to refute the notion that barnacles grow into geese, as had been -asserted by Speed and others. - -Sir J. Emerson Tennent, writing in _Notes and Queries_ (vol. viii. p. -223), referring to Porta's _Natural Magic_ for the vulgar error that not -only in Scotland, but in the river Thames, "there is a kind of -shell-fish which get out of their shells and grow to be ducks, or -such-like birds," observes that this tradition is very ancient, Porta, -the author, having died in 1515. In _Hudibras_ is an allusion to those-- - - "Who from the most refin'd of saints, - As naturally grow miscreants, - As _barnacles_ turn Soland geese, - In th' islands of the Orcades." - -The story (says Sir James) has its origin in the peculiar formation of -the little mollusc which inhabits the multivalve shell, the _Pentalasmi -Anatifera_, which by a fleshy peduncle attaches itself by one end to the -bottoms of ships or floating timber, whilst from the other there -protrudes a bunch of curling and fringe-like cirrhi, by the agitation of -which it attracts and collects its food. These cirrhi so much resemble -feathers, as to have suggested the leading idea of a bird's tail; and -hence the construction of the remainder of the fable, which is given -with grave minuteness in _The Herball, or General Historie of Plants_, -gathered by John Gerarde, Master in Chirurgie (London, 1597). After -quoting the account, Sir James adds, that Gerarde, who is doubtless -Butler's authority, says elsewhere, "that in the north parts of -Scotland, and the islands called Orcades, there are certain trees -whereon these tree geese and barnacles abound." The conversion of the -fish into a bird, however fabulous, would be scarcely more astounding -than the metamorphosis which it actually undergoes, the young of the -little animal having no feature to identify it with its final -development. In its early stage (see Carpenter's _Physiology_, i. 52) it -has a form not unlike that of the crab, "possessing eyes and powers of -free motion: but afterwards becoming fixed to one spot for the remainder -of its life, it loses its eyes, and forms a shell, which, though -composed of various pieces, has nothing in common with the jointed shell -of the crab." Mr. T. J. Buckton (_Notes and Queries_, vol. viii. p. -224) says that Drayton (1613), in his _Polyolbion_, p. iii., in -connexion with the river Dee, speaks of-- - - "Th' anatomised fish, and fowls from planchers sprung," - -to which a note is appended in Southey's edition (p. 609), that such -fowls were "_barnacles_, a bird breeding upon old ships." In the -_Entertaining Library_, "Habits of Birds," (pp. 363-379), the whole -story of this extraordinary ignorance of natural history is amply -developed. The barnacle-shells which I once saw in a sea-port attached -to a vessel just arrived from the Mediterranean had the brilliant -appearance at a distance of flowers in bloom. (See _Penny Cyclopaedia_, -article "Cirripeda," vii. 206, reversing the woodcut). The foot of the -_Lepas Anatifera_ (Linn.), appeared to me like the stalk of a plant -growing from the ship's side. The shell had the semblance of a calyx, -and the flower consisted of the fingers (_tentacula_) of the shell-fish, -"of which twelve project in an elegant curve, and are used by it for -making prey of small fish." The very ancient error was to mistake the -foot of the shell-fish for the neck of a goose, the shell for its head, -and the _tentacula_ for a tuft of feathers. As to the body, _non est -inventus_. The Barnacle Goose is a well-known bird; and these shell-fish -bearing, as seen out of the water, resemblance to the goose's neck, -were ignorantly, and without investigation, confounded with geese -themselves. In France, the barnacle goose may be eaten on fast-days, by -virtue of this old belief in its fishy origin. From a passage in the -_Memoirs of Lady Fanshaw_, it appears that Sir Kenelm Digby, at the -table of the Governor of Calais, declared that barnacles, a bird in -Jersey, was first a shell-fish to appearance, and from that, sticking -upon old wood, became in time a goose! An advertisement of June, 1807, -sets forth that the "Wonderful curiosity called the Goose Tree, Barnacle -Tree, or Tree bearing geese, taken up at sea on the 12th January, 1807, -by Captain Bytheway, and was more than twenty men could raise out of the -water--may be seen at the Exhibition Rooms, Spring Gardens, from ten -o'clock in the morning till ten at night, every day. The Barnacles which -form the present exhibition possess a neck upwards of two feet in -length, resembling the windpipe of a chicken; each shell contains five -pieces, and notwithstanding the many thousands which hang to eight -inches of the tree, part of the fowl may be seen from each shell. Sir -Robert Moxay, in the _Wonders of Nature and Art_, speaking of this -singularly curious production, says, that in every shell he opened he -found a perfect sea-fowl[!], with a bill like that of a goose, feet like -those of water-fowl, and the feathers all plainly formed." (_Ibid._, p. -300.) - - -WARTS FROM WASHING IN EGG-WATER. - -It is commonly held that washing the hands in water in which eggs have -been boiled will produce a plentiful crop of warts. Not long ago two -young and intelligent ladies stated that they had inadvertently washed -their hands and arms in egg-water, and in each case this had been -followed by large numbers of warts. This sequence they affirmed to be a -consequence, and the warts were shown as an ocular demonstration of the -unpleasant results of such lavation. - - -FORTUNE-TELLING.--WISE MEN AND CUNNING WOMEN, ETC. - -There is scarcely a town of any magnitude in Lancashire, or in one or -two adjacent counties, which does not possess its local "fortune-teller" -or pretender to a knowledge of astrology, and to a power of predicting -the future events of life, under the talismanic name of "fortune," to a -large and credulous number of applicants. The fortune-teller of the -nineteenth century professes to be able to "cast nativities" and to -"rule the planets." If, as is not unfrequently the case, he be a medical -botanist, he gathers his herbs when the proper planet is "in the -ascendant." Some of these impostors also profess to "charge the crystal" -(_i.e._, to look into a globular or egg-shaped glass), and thereby to -solve the gravest questions respecting the future fortunes of those who -consult them. Nor is this by any means an unprofitable pursuit. The -writer is aware of several instances in which "casting nativities," &c., -has proved a golden harvest to the professor. One individual gave up a -well-paid occupation in order that he might devote himself wholly to the -still more lucrative practice of astrology and fortune-telling. He not -only predicted future events by means of the stars, but he gave heads of -families advice as to the recovery of stolen property and the detection -of the thief; while impatient maidens he counselled how to bring shy or -dilatory lovers to the point. Another practitioner added to these -practices the construction of sun-dials, in which he was very -ingenious, and thereby amassed considerable property after a long and -successful career. Instances are very common that credulity is not -confined to the ignorant or uneducated classes. An intelligent and -well-meaning lady once very seriously cautioned the writer against -diving into the secrets of astrology, as, she said, that pursuit had -"turned the head" of one of her acquaintance. She not only had a firm -faith in the truth of all astrological predictions, but (from -apprehension engendered by this faith) she would not on any account -suffer any of these practitioners to predict her fortune, nor would she -on any account consult them. It seems that on one occasion she did -commit herself so far as to go to "a wise man," whom we will call Mr. -I., in company with Miss J., whose marriage with Mr. K. was then -somewhat doubtful; and she afterwards solemnly affirmed that the -astrologer told her all her fortune. She described him as first -carefully drawing the requisite diagram, showing the state of the -heavens at the hour of Miss J.'s birth; and after "charging his glass" -he declared that the marriage would take place within a few months; -"but," he added, "he was also very sorry to inform her that she would -die young." Both these events did really happen within a limited period; -and of course the lady's belief in the truth of astrological prediction -was very powerfully strengthened and confirmed. Some time after these -events, this identical Mr. I. was brought before the magistrates in -petty sessions, charged with obtaining money under false pretences; with -practising astrology, palmistry, &c., and he only narrowly escaped -imprisonment through some technical error in the charge or summons. It -was said that the charge was a vindictive one--hence there was great -rejoicing amongst his friends when it was dismissed; but the inspector -of police who had charge of the case did not hesitate to declare that -there were many persons then present who had paid Mr. I. money for his -predictions. - -Another specimen of the fortune-teller we may notice from a rural -district. In the hamlet of Roe Green, in the township of Worsley, in a -humble cottage, a few years ago lived a man who held the position of -overseer or head of one class of workmen in the employ of the -Bridgewater Trust. In the language of the locality, "Owd Rollison -[Rawlinson] was a _gaffer_." But to this regular avocation he added the -profession of fortune-telling, and in the evenings many were the -applicants for a little knowledge of future events from the villages and -hamlets for miles around. His stock-in-trade consisted of various books -on astrology, &c., and of two magic glasses or crystals, one a small -globular mass of common white glass, with a short stem by which to hold -it; the other was about the size and shape of a large hen's egg, but -without any stem or handle. His whole apparatus was for some months in -the possession of the writer, and a list of his books may serve to show -the sort of literature held in esteem amongst this class of planet -rulers. 1. _The Three Books of Occult Philosophy_ of Henry Cornelius -Agrippa, translated by J. Freake (London, 1651, pp. 583).[85] 2. Lilly's -_Christian Astrology_, in three books (London, 1659, pp. 832). 3. John -Gadbury's _Thesaurus Astrologiae_ (Westminster, 1674, pp. 272). 4. _The -Star_, by Ebn Shemaya (London, 1839, pp. 203). Zadkiel's _Grammar of -Astrology_ (London, 1849, pp. 178): in this volume were also bound up -"Tables for Calculating Nativities," by Zadkiel (London, 1850, pp. 64). -6. _A Plea for Urania_ (London, 1854, pp. 387). - -One or two MS. books, apparently blank copy-books, which had been used -to draw diagrams, or, as the phrase goes, to "construct horoscopes," or -"erect schemes," or "cast nativities," showed that "Owd Rollison" had -dabbled a little in a sort of Astrology; but the rudeness of these -attempts betrayed him to be but a mere tyro in the "celestial science." -He had also a reputation for selling "charms" against the various ills -that flesh is heir to; amongst others, one to stop haemorrhage. One -countryman told the writer that he remembered, when a boy, that his -uncle having a very severe haemorrhage, so that he was believed to be -bleeding to death, this boy was told to run off as hard as he could to -Owd Rollison to get something to stop the bleeding. He soon received a -small piece of parchment containing sundry unintelligible characters -upon it, which was to be sewed up in a small bag and worn continually, -so that the bag should rest on the skin just over the heart. This was -done, the bleeding stopped, and the man recovered. Another person, who -had been a sort of confidant of the wise man, told the writer that at -one period Rawlinson went at regular intervals, and on stated days, to -Manchester, where at a quiet public-house he met other "wise men," and -they assembled in an upper chamber, with locked door, and sometimes -remained for hours in deliberation. Of the subject of such deliberations -the informant said he knew nothing, for he was never admitted; he had -the honour of remaining outside the door as watchman, guard, or -sentinel, to prevent any prying listeners from approaching. He -conjectured that what they were about was "magic and such like;" but -more he knew not. "Owd Rollison" kept his situation under the -Bridgewater Trust until his death, at a ripe old age; and though he left -several sons and a daughter, the mantle of his astrological or -fortune-telling wisdom does not seem to have fallen on any of them. - -Much might be stated respecting the practice of the art of -fortune-telling by wandering gipsies, especially in that branch of it -termed palmistry--predicting the future from an examination of the -"lines" of the palm of the left hand, each of which, in the jargon of -palmists, has its own peculiar character and name, as the line of life, -of fortune, &c.; but as these wanderers are not indigenous to -Lancashire, but may be found in every county in England, it may suffice -thus to name them. Of the old women who tell fortunes by cards chiefly, -to silly women who are always wanting to know whether their future -husband is to be denoted by the King of Hearts (a true-loving swain) or -by the Monarch of Diamonds (as indicative of great wealth), it is enough -to say that they may be found by scores or hundreds in every town in -Lancashire. - - -MAGIC AND MAGICIANS. - -Our forefathers had a strong faith in the power of magic, and even -divided the knowledge of it into two opposite kinds--viz., "white -magic," which was acquired from the communications of the archangels and -angels, or at least from some of the good spirits who were allowed to -aid human beings by their supernatural power in deeds of beneficence; -and black magic, or "the black art," also termed "necromancy," which was -derived from dealings with the devil, or at least from commerce with -his imps, or the evil spirits of wicked dead men. At one period the -terms magician and conjuror had the same meaning--one who conjured, by -magical power, spirits and demons to appear and do his bidding. Conjuror -has since become a name for a professor of _legerdemain_ or -sleight-of-hand. - - -EDWARD KELLY, THE SEER. - -Edward Kelly, whose dealings in the Black Art, it is said, would fill a -volume, was born at Worcester, and had been an apothecary. We have -elsewhere noticed his doings as an alchemist. He was for a considerable -time the companion and associate of "Dr." John Dee, performing for him -the office of "Seer," by looking into the doctor's crystal or stone, a -faculty not possessed by Dee, who in consequence was obliged to have -recourse to Kelly for the revelations he has published respecting the -world of spirits. These curious transactions may be found in Casaubon's -work, entitled, _A True and Faithful Relation of what Passed for many -years between Dr. John Dee and some Spirits_--opening out another dark -page in the history of imposture and credulity. Dee says that he was -brought into unison with Kelly by the mediation of the angel Uriel. -Afterwards he found himself deceived by him, in his opinion that these -spirits which ministered unto him were messengers of the Deity. They had -had several quarrels before; but when Dee found Kelly degenerating into -the worst species of the magic art, for the purposes of avarice and -fraud, he broke off all connexion with him, and would never afterwards -be seen in his company. Kelly, being discountenanced by the doctor, -betook himself to the meanest practices of magic, in all which money and -the works of the devil appear to have been his chief aim. Many wicked -and abominable transactions are recorded of him. - -In Lilly's Memoirs are the following passages relating to this -Seer:--"Kelly outwent the Doctor, viz., about the Elixir and the -Philosopher's Stone, which neither he nor his master attained by their -own labour and industry. It was in this manner that Kelly obtained it, -as I had it related from an ancient minister, who knew the certainty -thereof from an old English merchant, resident in Germany, at what time -both Kelly and Dee were there. Dee and Kelly, being on the confines of -the Emperor's dominions, in a city where resided many English merchants, -with whom they had much familiarity, there happened an old friar to come -to Dr. Dee's lodgings, knocking at the door. Dee peeped down stairs: -'Kelly,' says he, 'tell the old man I am not at home.' Kelly did so. The -friar said, 'I will take another time to wait upon him.' Some few days -after, he came again. Dee ordered Kelly, if it were the same person, to -deny him again. He did so; at which the friar was very angry. 'Tell thy -master I came to speak with him, and to do him good; because he is a -great scholar, and famous: but now tell him, he put forth a book, and -dedicated it to the Emperor. It is called _Monas Hieroglyphicas_. He -understands it not. I wrote it myself. I came to instruct him therein, -and in some other more profound things. Do thou, Kelly, come along with -me. I will make thee more famous than thy master Dee.' Kelly was very -apprehensive of what the friar delivered, and thereupon suddenly -retired from Dr. Dee, and wholly applied unto the friar, and of him -either had the Elixir ready made, or the perfect method of its -preparation and making. The poor friar lived a very short time after: -whether he died a natural death, or was otherwise poisoned or made away -by Kelly, the merchant who related this, did not certainly know." "It -was vulgarly reported that he [Kelly] had a compact with the devil, -which he out-lived, and was seized at midnight by infernal spirits, who -carried him off in sight of his family, at the instant he was meditating -a mischievous design against the minister of the parish, with whom he -was greatly at enmity."[86] - - -RAISING THE DEAD AT WALTON-LE-DALE. - -In the reign of Queen Elizabeth and the year 1560, three judicial -astrologers met in Preston, for the purpose of raising a corpse by -incantations. They were Dr. Dee, Warden of Manchester, Edward Kelly, his -assistant, and "seer," and Paul Wareing, of Dove Cotes, near Clayton -Brook. Casaubon, in his "True and faithful Account of what passed for -many years between John Dee and some Spirits," (apparently quoting from -Weever's _Funeral Monuments_) states that "The aforesaid Master Edward -Kelly, a person well skilled in judicial astrology, with one Paul -Wareing (who acted with him in these incantations and all these -conjurations) and Dr. Dee, went to the churchyard of St. Leonard's, in -Walton-le-Dale, near Preston, and entered the burial ground exactly at -midnight, the moon shining brightly, for the purpose of raising the body -of a person who had been interred there, and who had during his life -hidden a quantity of money without disclosing the fact previous to his -death. Having had the grave pointed out to them on the preceding day, -they opened it, removed the coffin lid, and set to work by various -exorcisms, until the body became animated, by the spirit entering it -again. The body then rose out of the grave and stood upright before -them. It not only satisfied their wicked desires, it is said, but -delivered several strange predictions concerning persons in the -neighbourhood, which were literally and exactly fulfilled. Sibley, in -his _Occult Sciences_, relates a similar account of this transaction, -and also gives an engraving representing the scene, which took place at -the midnight hour in the church of Walton. Another account states that -Dr. Dee was engaged with Kelly in this enterprise, August 12th, 1560, -and that Paul Wareing, of Clayton Brook, was the other who gave -assistance in endeavouring to obtain an intercourse with familiar -spirits."--(_Whittle's Preston._) - - -AN EARL OF DERBY CHARGED WITH KEEPING A CONJUROR. - -The loyal and munificent Edward (third) Earl of Derby, notwithstanding -his great services to Queen Elizabeth, and his long-proved loyalty, was -maligned and accused of traitorous intentions. The Earl of Huntingdon -wrote to Sir William Cecil, then the Queen's Secretary of State -(afterwards Lord Burghley, her Treasurer), a letter, communicating -suspicions of the Earl of Derby, which the writer asked should be burned -as soon as read, but which has been preserved (and printed) amongst Lord -Burghley's _State Papers_ (I. 603.) Modernising the spelling, the letter -runs thus:-- - - Sir,--I am bolder to write to you on weighty matters, than I dare be - to some others; the cause I leave to your consideration, and so to - you only I am bold to impart that I hear. The matter in short is - this:--Among the Papists of Lancashire, Cheshire, and the Cosynes - (?), great hope and expectation there is, that Derby will play as - foul a part this year as the two Earls did the last year. [See the - Rising in the North.] I hope better of him for my part, and for my - respects, both general and particular, I wish him to do better. I - know he hath hitherto been loyal, and even the last year, as you - know, gave good testimony of his fidelity, and of his own - disposition, I think, will do so still; but he may be drawn by evil - counsel, God knoweth to what. I fear he hath even at this time many - wicked counsellors, and some too near him. _There is one Browne, a - conjuror, in his house, kept secretly._ There is also one Uphalle, - who was a pirate, and had lately his pardon, that could tell - somewhat, as I hear, if you could get him. He that carried my Lord - Morley over, was also there within this se'ennight, kept secretly. - He with his whole family never raged so much against religion as - they do now, he never came to common prayer for this quarter or this - year, as I hear, neither doth any of the family, except five or six - persons. I dare not write what more I hear, because I cannot justify - and prove it; but this may suffice for you in time to look to it. - And surely, in my simple opinion, if you send some faithful and wise - spy, that would dissemble to come from D'Alva, and dissemble popery, - you might understand all; for if all be true that is said, there is - a very fond company in the house at this present. I doubt not but - you can and will use this matter better than I can advise you. Yet - let me wish you to take heed to which of your companions (though you - be now but five together) you utter this matter _ne forte_ it be in - Lathom sooner than you would have it; for some of you have men about - you and friends attending on you, &c., that deal not always well. I - pray God save our Elizabeth and confound all her enemies; and thus I - take my leave, committing you to God his tuition. - - Your assured poor friend, - H. HUNTYNGDON. - From Ashby, 24 Aug., 1570. - - P.S.--Because none there should know of my letter, I would not send - it by my servant, but have desired Mr. Ad to deliver it to you in - secret. When you have read it, I pray you to burn it and forget the - name of the writer. I pray God I may not hear any more of your - coming to ----. - -There seems to have been no substantial ground for suspecting the -loyalty of the Earl of Derby, which remained unshaken through another -ordeal, the conspiracy of the Duke of Norfolk to marry the Queen of -Scots, and place her on the English throne. But the Bishop of Ross gave -evidence, that in Mary's design, in 1571, to escape from Sheffield -Castle to the Continent, she was aided by several Lancashire gentlemen; -and adds, that she wrote a letter by a little priest of Rolleston's to -Sir Thomas Stanley. Sir Thomas Gerrard and Rolleston devised a cypher -for her; and they offered to convey her away, and willed the Bishop to -ask the Duke of Norfolk's opinion therein. The prelate further stated -that Hall told him that if the Queen [Mary] would get two men landed in -Lancashire, Sir Thomas Stanley, and Sir Edward Stanley, along with Sir -Thomas Gerrard, and Rolleston, would effect her escape to France or -Flanders, &c. Upon this evidence Sir Thomas Stanley, Sir Thomas Gerrard, -and Rolleston, were apprehended, and committed to the Tower as state -prisoners.[87] - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[75] Allen's _History of Yorkshire_, vol. iii. pp. 421-425. - -[76] _Gort_, narrow; _gor_, upper, Brit.; _gor_, blood, A.-S. _Gorple_ -may mean the bloody pile, or the upper pile. - -[77] From _Sceot-hull_, afterwards _Scout_ or _Shoot-hill_, and -_worth_--_i.e._, the farm or hamlet of the projecting ledge or hill. - -[78] Dr. Borlase's argument is cumulative. He observes that rock basins -are always on the _top_, never on the _sides_ of the stones; that the -ancients sacrificed on rocks; that water was used by them for lustration -and purification; that snow, rain, or dew, was preferred by them to -running water; that it was not permitted to touch the earth; that the -Druids practised similar rites, and held rain or snow-water to be holy; -and they attributed a healing virtue to the gods inhabiting rocks; that -their priests stood upon rocks to wash, sprinkle, and drink, &c. All -these considerations, he conceives, favour his opinion that rock basins -were _used_, if not _formed_, by the Druids. - -[79] See Watson's _History of Halifax_, pp. 27-36. - -[80] Professor Hunt is of the same opinion. See his recent work on the -_Drolls of Cornwall_, vol. i. pp. 186-228. - -[81] T. G. C., in _Notes and Queries_, vol. vii. p. 177. - -[82] In his _History of Blackpool_, pp. 333-4. - -[83] Speet, spit, or spittle, are names in Lancashire for a spade. - -[84] L. B., in _Notes and Queries_, vol. viii. p. 613.--_Bibliographical -Notice of the Works of the Learned and Rev. Divine, John White, D.D., -&c._ London, 1624; in _Chet. Soc. Books_, vol. xxxviii. p. 52. - -[85] There is another curious volume, which professes to contain a -fourth book of Agrippa; but it is spurious. It includes five -treatises--viz., 1. Henry Cornelius Agrippa's Fourth Book on Occult -Philosophy and Geomancy; 2. The Magical Elements of Peter de Abano; 3. -The Astronomical Geomancy of Gerard Cremonensis; 4. Isagoge, or the -Nature of Spirits, by Geo. Victorius Villinganus, M.D.; and 5. Arbatel -of Magick. Translated into English by Robert Turner, Philomathees. -(London, 1665, 8vo, pp. 266.) Another version of this book appeared in -1783, 8vo. It would lead us too far to describe the strange contents of -this book, which contains long lists of the names of good and evil -spirits, and symbols representing their characters; also symbols of the -archangels and angels, their sigils, planets, signs, &c. - -[86] See Roby's _Traditions of Lancashire_. - -[87] (_Lord Burghley's Papers_, vol. ii., p. 771.) The death of Edward -Earl of Derby, "with whom (says Camden) the glory of hospitality hath in -a manner been laid asleep," took place on the 24th October, 1572. - - - - -MIRACLES, OR MIRACULOUS STORIES. - - -An age of credulity is naturally rich in miracles. Superstition is ever -prone to explain the mysterious, or to account for the questionable, by -hunting for some supernatural cause; and hence the popular love for and -strong faith in the miraculous. No church erected before the Reformation -but had its miraculous legend; no well or spring of a remote antiquity -but had its tradition, either connected with its origin or with its -marvellous and miraculous powers of healing. The miracle of a past age, -preserved to the present in the form of a legend, is equally entitled to -a place in our Folk-Lore. - - -MIRACLES BY A DEAD DUKE OF LANCASTER AND KING. - -One of the Harleian Manuscripts (Cod. 423), found amongst the papers of -Fox the Martyrologist, and entitled "De Miraculis Beatissimi Militis Xpi -Henrici Vj." (Of the Miracles of the Most blessed Knight of Christ, -Henry VI.), consisting of about 150 closely written pages, contains an -account of a vast number of reputed miracles performed by this weak and -credulous monarch (who long hoped to pay his large debts by the aid of -two alchemists!) and of which the following specimens will doubtless -suffice for our readers:--How Richard Whytby, priest of St. Michael's, -was long ill of a fever, and at last miraculously cured by journeying to -the tomb of Henry VI. John, called Robynson, who had been blind ten -years, recovered his sight by visiting Henry's tomb. How Henry -Lancaster, afflicted in fever, was miraculously cured in three days by -the appearance of the blessed prince Henry VI. in the sky. How a girl -called Joan Knyght, who was nearly killed with a bone sticking in her -throat, and considered dead, on the bystanders invoking Henry VI., -vomited the bone and was restored to health. If these superstitions -wanted a crowning absurdity, that is not wanting in the fact that Henry -VII. actually sent an embassy to Rome, to importune the newly-elected -Pope Julius II. to canonize Henry VI. as a saint! His holiness referred -the matter to certain cardinals, to take the verification of the -deceased monarch's holy acts and miracles; but these were not -sufficiently obvious to entitle him to the dignity of the calendar, and -the negotiation was abandoned in despair.[88] - -Mr. Monckton Milnes, M.P. (now Lord Houghton), in an interesting letter -in _Notes and Queries_, I. 181, asks for information respecting this -popular "saint," to whom the Church, however, denied canonization. He -refers to Brady for an account of the miracle performed at the tomb of -Thomas Earl of Lancaster, and of the picture or image of the Earl -exhibited in St. Paul's, London, and the object of many offerings. Brady -cites the opinion of an ecclesiastic, who doubted the propriety of this -devotion being encouraged by the Church; the Earl, besides his political -offences, having been a notorious evil-liver. In June 1327, a "King's -letter" (of Edward III.) was given to Robert de Weryngton, authorizing -him and his agents to collect alms throughout the Kingdom for the -purpose of building a chapel on the hill where the Earl was beheaded; -and praying all prelates and authorities to give him aid and heed. This -sanction gave rise to imposture; and in the following December a -proclamation appeared, ordering the arrest and punishment of -unauthorized persons collecting money under this pretence and taking it -for their own use. The chapel was constructed, and officiated in till -the dissolution of the monasteries; the image in St. Paul's was always -regarded with especial affection, and the cognomen of "_Saint_ Thomas of -Lancaster" was generally accepted and understood. Five hundred years -after the execution of the Earl of Lancaster [in 1822], a large stone -coffin, massive and roughly hewn, was found in a field that belonged of -old to the Priory of Pomfret, but at least a quarter of a mile distant -from the hill where the chapel stood. Within was the skeleton of a -full-grown man, partially preserved; the skull lay between the thighs. -There is no record of the decapitation of any person at Pontefract of -sufficient dignity to have been interred in a manner showing so much -care for the preservation of the body, except the Earl of Lancaster. The -coffin may have been removed here at the time the opposite party forbade -its veneration, from motives of precaution for its safety.--R. M. -M.--[The Editor of _Notes and Queries_ adds, that "The Office of St. -Thomas of Lancaster," which begins "_Gaude, Thoma, ducum decus, lucerna -Lancastriae_," is printed in the volume of "_Political Songs_" edited by -Mr. Wright for the Camden Society, from a royal MS. in the British -Museum, _MS. Reg. 12_. Another correspondent, we believe Mr. James -Thompson of Leicester, states that at the dissolution of the monasteries -in that town, several relics of St. Thomas (who was Earl of Leicester, -as well as of Lancaster) were exhibited; amongst others his felt hat, -which was considered a great remedy for the headache!] - - -A MIRACULOUS FOOTPRINT IN BRINDLE CHURCH. - -Beneath the eastern gable of the chancel lies a huge stone coffin, with -a cavity for the head, but its history is unknown. In the wall just -above it is a small indentation, resembling the form of a foot, which, -according to tradition, was made by the high-heeled shoe of a Popish -disputant, who, in the ardour of debate, wished, if the doctrine he -advanced was not true, that his foot might sink into the stone, "upon -which the reforming stone instantly softened, and buried the papistical -foot;" much in the same way, no doubt, as the flag in Smithells Hall -received the print of the foot of George Marsh, the martyr.[89] - - -THE FOOTPRINT AT SMITHELLS OF GEORGE MARSH, THE MARTYR. - -George Marsh, one of the three Lancashire martyrs in the reign of Queen -Mary, was the son of Mr. George Marsh, a yeoman of Dean, and was born -about 1575. He was educated at the Bolton Free Grammar School, and for a -time followed farming, and, marrying at twenty-five, settled there till -the death of his wife; when, placing his children with his father, he -became a student at Cambridge University, was ordained, and was -appointed curate of All-Hallows, Bread-street, London. He continued for -some time preaching the reformed doctrines, and zealously supporting the -Protestant faith, both in London and Lancashire; and while in his native -county, in March 1555, he learned that he had been sought after by the -servants of Mr. Barton of Smithells Hall, a magistrate; on which he went -thither voluntarily, and was examined before Mr. Barton. In a passage -near the door of the dining-room is a cavity in a flag, bearing some -resemblance to the print of a man's foot, and this cavity is said by -tradition to have been caused by the martyr stamping his foot to confirm -his testimony, and it is shown to this day as a miraculous memorial of -the holy man. The story goes, that "being provoked by the taunts and -persecutions of his examiners, he stamped with his foot upon a stone, -and, looking up to Heaven, appealed to God for the justness of his -cause; and prayed that there might remain in that place a constant -memorial of the wickedness and injustice of his enemies." It is said -that about the beginning of the eighteenth century this stone was -removed by two or three young men, of the family of Barton, then living -at the hall, during the absence of their parents; that they cast it into -the clough behind the hall; but all the inmates of the house were so -much disturbed that same night by alarming noises, that they could not -rest. Inquiry led to confession, the stone was replaced, and the noises -ceased. It is also stated that in 1732, a guest (John Butterworth, of -Manchester,) sleeping alone in the Green Chamber at Smithells Hall, saw -an apparition, in the dress of a minister with bands, and a book in his -hand. The ghost of Marsh (for so it was pronounced to be) disappeared -through the door-way, and on the owner of Smithells hearing the story, -he directed that divine service (long discontinued) should be resumed at -the hall chapel every Sunday. Such are some of the stories told about -Smithells Hall; and there is hardly an old hall in the country that has -not one or more such traditions floating about its neighbourhood. It is -as if ghostly visitants scorned to honour with their presence any house -below the dignity of a hall. In this case, it may be observed that -neither in Marsh's own account of what passed at Smithells, nor in Mr. -Whatton's Biographical notice of him in Baines's _History of -Lancashire_, is any mention made of the miraculous footprint. But in a -volume of four or five tracts printed at Bolton (no year stated) the -third tract is "The Life and Martyrdom of George Marshe," &c. "Also, the -particulars respecting the print of a foot on the flag shewn at -Smithills Hall, near Bolton;" which latter is signed "W. D.," and dated -"August 22, 1787." Amongst other discrepancies, it may be observed that -W. D. makes Marsh's interrogator "Sir Roger Barton;" while Marsh, a -native of the immediate neighbourhood invariably writes of him as "Mr. -Barton." - - -A LEGEND OF CARTMEL CHURCH. - -Better than six hundred years ago (runs the story) some monks came over -to Lancashire from another country; and, finding all this part of the -kingdom covered with wood, they resolved to build a monastery in some -part of Cartmel Forest. In their rambles, they found a hill which -commanded a prospect so beautiful and extensive that they were quite -charmed with it. They marked out a piece of ground on the summit, and -were preparing to build the church, when a voice spoke to them out of -the air, saying "Not there, but in a valley, between two rivers, where -the one runs north, and the other south." Astonished at this strange -command, they marvelled where the valley could be, for they had never -seen a valley where two rivers ran in contrary directions. They set out -to seek this singular valley, and travelled throughout the North of -England, but in vain. Wearied with their fruitless search, they were -returning to the hill where they had heard the strange voice. In passing -through a valley covered with wood, they came to a small river, the -stream of which ran north. They waded through it, and shortly after -found another, the stream of which ran south. They placed the church -midway between the two streams, upon a little island, of hard ground, in -the midst of a morass; dedicating it to St. Mary. They also built a -small chapel on the hill where they had heard the voice, which they -dedicated to St. Bernard. The chapel has long since disappeared, but the -hill is still called Mount Bernard.[90] - - -THE PROPHET ELIAS, A LANCASHIRE FANATIC. - -In 1562, a native of Manchester who called himself Elias, but whose real -name was Ellys, pretended to possess the spirit of prophecy. He went to -London, where he made some proselytes, uttering his "warning voice" in -the public places. James Pilkington, D.D., a native of Rivington, in -Lancashire, and an eminent Protestant divine, who was raised by Queen -Elizabeth in 1560 to the See of Durham, preached before the Queen at -Greenwich, against the supposed mission of this Manchester fanatic. The -Bishop of London, three days afterwards, ordered the northern prophet to -be put in the pillory in Cheapside. He was thence committed to -Bridewell, where he died in or about 1565. - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[88] Baines's _Lancashire_. - -[89] Baines's _Lancashire_. - -[90] See _Lonsdale Magazine_, February, 1821. - - - - -OMENS AND PREDICATIONS. - - -An intense desire to know future events, besides being the great -encouragement of astrologers, sorcerers, and magicians, wise men, -cunning women, fortune-tellers, &c., has given rise to a large class of -small circumstances which are regarded as indicative of coming good or -bad luck, of good or evil fortune, to the observer or the person -experiencing their influence. Hence, nothing is more common than to hear -amongst uneducated and credulous people predications from the most -trivial occurrences of daily life. A winding-sheet in the candle, -spilling the salt, crossing knives, and various other trifles, are omens -of evil to thousands of lore-folk to this day. Should one of your -children fall sick when on a visit at a friend's house, it is held to be -sure to entail bad luck on that family for the rest of the year, if you -stay over New Year's-day. Persons have been known to travel sixty miles -with a sick child rather than run the risk. A flake of soot on the bars -of the grate is said to indicate the approach of a stranger; a bright -spark on the wick of a candle, or a long piece of stalk in the tea-cup, -betokens a similar event. When the fire burns briskly, some lover smirks -or is good-humoured. A cinder thrown out of the fire by a jet of gas -from burning coals, is looked upon as a coffin, if its hollow be long; -as a purse of gold, if the cavity be roundish. Crickets in a house are -said to indicate good fortune; but should they forsake the chimney -corner, it is a sure sign of coming misfortunes. - -In the neighbourhood of Lancaster I know ladies who consider it "lucky" -to find _old iron_: a horse-shoe or rusty nail is carefully conveyed -home and hoarded up. It is also considered lucky if you see the _head_ -of the first lamb in spring; to present his _tail_ is the certain -harbinger of misfortune. It is also said that if you have money in your -pocket the first time you hear the cuckoo, you will never be without all -the year.[91] - -In Lancashire we still dislike the moaning or hooting of owls and the -croaking of ravens, as much as the Romans did of old. In a large class -of our population few would yet defy evil fate, by beginning a journey -or any important undertaking, or marrying, on a Friday; on which day -Lancashire, like other sailors, have a strong repugnance to beginning a -voyage. This day of the week is regarded as of evil augury, because it -was the day (Good Friday) when our Saviour's blood was shed. The -auguries of dreams are so numerous, that a large class of chap-books are -still to be found circulating in country places, from _Mother Shipton_ -to _Napoleon's Book of Fate_. Few young women in the country, farmers' -daughters and servants, were without a favourite "Dream-Book." Again, -the farmer or cottager deems it necessary, in order to secure a crop of -onions, to sow the seed on St. Gregory's-day [March 12] named -"Gregory-gret-Onion," (_i.e._, Gregory the Great). Amongst the more -pardonable longings to raise the veil of futurity are those of village -maidens (and not a few of those in towns too, and of all ranks) to get a -peep at the figure of the husband whom the future has in store for her. -On All-Hallows' Eve she strews the ashes which are to take the form of -one or more letters of her lover's name; she throws hemp-seed over her -shoulder and timidly glances to see who follows her. On the fast of St. -Agnes she watches a small candle called a "pig-tail," to see the passing -image of her future husband. The up-turned tea-cup, for its leaves, or -the coffee-cup for its "grounds;" the pack of cards, with the desired -King of Hearts or Diamonds, the sputterings and spurtings of a -tallow-candle, all furnished to the omen-instructed damsel some sign by -which to read the future, and to arrive at a knowledge of her lot in -life, as to husband, children, fortune, &c. When leaving home to begin a -journey, or to commence any future enterprise, it is deemed an -important observance, necessary to insure good luck, to walk -"withershins" (_i.e._, as the weather or sun shines). In many country -places this is always observed by a bridal party when advancing to the -altar to have the marriage solemnized, and, of course, one particular -aisle of the church is the only fortunate or lucky one to proceed by. -Some, however, say that to walk "widdershins" is to take a direction -contrary to the course of the sun, _i.e._, from right to left.[92] Some -persons more credulous than humane, will shut up a poor cat in the oven, -to ensure their own good luck. Days have long been parcelled out between -lucky and unlucky, for any important undertaking, as a journey, taking a -partner in business or for life, buying land, or even for such trivial -matters as blood-letting, taking physic, cutting the hair, or paring -nails. Again, the moon's age is an important element in securing future -weal or woe. For the first year of an infant's life many mothers will -not have its hair or nails cut, and when the year is gone these -operations must be performed when the moon is so many days old, to -ensure good results. A tooth, as soon as it has been drawn, should be -sprinkled with salt, and thrown into the fire; if it be lost, no rest or -peace will be enjoyed till it is found again. The following are a few -omens drawn from observing peculiarities about animals:-- - - -CATS. - -1. If a cat tear at the cushions, carpets, &c., with its claws, it is -considered to be a sign of wind. Hence we say, "the cat is raising the -wind." 2. If a cat in washing its face draw its paw quite over its -forehead, it is a sign of fair weather. If not so, it betokens speedy -rain. 3. Allowing cats to sleep with you is considered very unhealthy. -They are said to "draw your health away." 4. Those who play much with -cats have never good health. A cat's hair is said to be indigestible, -and you will die if one get into your stomach. 5. It is counted unlucky -to allow cats to die in a house. Hence when they begin to be ill they -are usually drowned. A case of this kind occurred in Burnley a short -time ago. 6. If a kitten come to a house, it is counted a lucky omen. - - -DOGS. - -1. Dogs are said to sit down and howl before the door when any one is -about to be sick, or die. A death is considered _certain_ if the dog -return as often as driven away. 2. Dogs are hence considered to be -somehow acquainted with the spirit world, "or else," as one said, "how -should they know when a person is going to die?" This is firmly -believed in about Mellor and Blackburn. In Burnley and neighbourhood -equally so at present. 3. The _life_ of a dog is sometimes said to be -_bound up_ with that of its master or mistress. When either _dies_ the -other cannot _live_. Is this a remnant of the old belief in the -transmigration of souls? 4. The whining of a favourite dog is considered -by many to betoken calamity to the family to which it belongs. - - -LAMBS. - -It is very lucky for lambs to have their faces towards you when you -first see them in Spring. The omen is much more favourable when they are -looking towards the east. - - -BIRDS. - -To kill or ill-use swallows, wrens, redbreasts, &c., is accounted -unfortunate; for these all frequent our houses for good. There is a -stanza common among us which declares that - - "A Cock Robin and a Jenny Wren - Are God Almighty's cock and hen; - A Spink and a Sparrow - Are the Devil's bow and arrow." - -Birds are supposed by some to be somehow cognizant of what is about to -happen. A _jackdaw_ is always an unwelcome visitor, if it alight on the -window-sill of a sick chamber. A _white dove_ is thought to be a -favourable omen; its presence betokens recovery to the person within, or -it is _an angel in that form_ ready to convey the soul of a dying person -to heaven. I once knew a Wesleyan Methodist who was of opinion that -"forgiveness of sins" was assured to her by a small bird, which flew -across her path when she had long been praying for a token of this kind. -When a _Canary-bird_ sings cheerfully, all is well with the family that -keeps it; when it becomes silent, and remains so, there is calamity in -store for that household. If you hear the _cuckoo_ shout towards the -east, for the first time in any year, and have gold, silver, and copper -coin in your pockets, you will never want money during that year. - - -SWALLOWS. - -1. If swallows, or martins, begin to build their nests about a house or -barn, it is looked upon as predicating good luck to the occupier. "The -_more_ birds the _better_ luck." 2. On the contrary, when they forsake a -haunt, the occupiers become apprehensive of misfortune. Hence farmers -will always protect such birds, and often ill-use boys who may be -stoning them, or attempting to rob their nests. - - -MAGPIES. - -There are, at least in Lancashire and Yorkshire, many curious -superstitions connected with this bird. Its appearance _singly_ is still -regarded in both these counties by many even of the educated -representatives of the last generation, as an evil omen, and some of the -customs supposed to break the charm are curious. One is simply to raise -the hat as in salutation, another to sign the cross on the breast, and -to make the same sign by crossing the thumbs. This last custom is -confined to Yorkshire, and I know one elderly gentleman who not only -crosses his thumbs, but spits over them when in that position, a -practice which was, he says, common in his youth. The superstition -applies only to a single magpie, according to the old nursery legend:-- - - "One for sorrow, - Two for mirth, - Three for a wedding, - And four for a birth."[93] - -I met a person the other day who solemnly assured me that he had seen a -'pynot' as he came along the road; but he had made the figure of a cross -on the mire in the road, in order to avert the evil omen.[94] - -In Lancashire they say:-- - - "One for anger, - Two for mirth, - Three for a wedding, - Four for a birth, - Five for rich, - Six for poor, - Seven for a witch: - I can tell you no more."[95] - -But in Tim Bobbin it is expressly said that two magpies are indicative -of ill-fortune:--"I saigh two rott'n pynots, hong 'um, that wur a sign -of bad fashin; for I heerd my gronny say hoo'd as leef o' seen two Owd -Harries os two pynots."[96] "I shall catch none to-day," we heard a man -advanced in life, exclaim in a melancholy tone, who was angling in the -river Ribble. "Why?" we asked, "the day is not inauspicious." "No; but -do you not see that magpie?" In fact _pynots_, that is, magpies, -according to an old Lancashire superstition, are considered birds of -ill-omen. In spring it is considered by old-fashioned anglers unlucky to -see a single magpie; but two are a favourable auspice, because in cold -weather one bird only leaves the nest in search of food, the other -remaining to keep the eggs or the young ones warm; but when both are out -together, the weather is warm, mild, and favourable for fishing.[97] - - -DREAMS. - -This might well form a great division of itself, in any work on -Folk-lore. Yet a little reflection will serve to show that it is only -one branch, though a very large one, of the general subject of "Omens." -Dreams are regarded by the superstitious simply for what they predicate -as about to happen; in other words, they are important to the credulous -only as _omens_ of coming events. Itinerant hawkers and small village -shops drive a considerable trade in "Dream Books," or "Books of Fate," -which profess to interpret every dream and to explain every omen, -whether of good or evil import. Of the great variety and extent of -"Dream-Book literature" we cannot treat, for want of space. Hawkers and -small shops sell a vast quantity of penny dream-books in Lancashire. One -of the oldest specimens of these chap-books we have met with is a little -32mo. volume, entitled "_Mother Shipton's Legacy_, or a favourite -Fortune-book, in which is given a pleasing interpretation of dreams, and -a collection of prophetic verses, moral and entertaining." (York, 1797, -price 4_d._) Cap. I. treats of Lucky and Unlucky Days; II. of Moles on -the Person; III. Miscellaneous; IV. Dreams; and V. a Magical Table. A -few specimens of the dream portion may suffice:--To dream of joy denotes -grief; of fine clothes, poverty; of sweetmeats, a whipping; of flying, -falling down; of fire, anger; of serpents, private enemies; of money, -loss; of weeping, joy; of bathing, ease from pain; of kissing, strife; -of feasting, want; of many people, affliction; of singing, sorrow; of -changing abode, sudden news; of fishing, good luck; of death, marriage; -of finding money, bad luck; of gold, death; of embracing, death; of -being bald, misfortune; of a long nose, death; of growing fat, wealth; -of drinking water, good entertainment; of the sun rising, preferment; of -flashes of fire, sudden death; of being among tombs, riches by the death -of relations; of your teeth falling out, losses; of a lean ox, famine; -of a fine garden, much pleasure. - - [_Moral._] - - Though plain and palpable each subject seems, - Yet do not put your trust too much in dreams; - Events may happen, which in dreams you see, - And yet as often quite contrary be: - This learned hint observe, for Shipton's sake-- - Dreams are but interludes which fancies make. - -Many persons persuade themselves into the belief that events are -revealed to them in dreams. Those who can neither _see_ nor _hear_ -spirits generally presume to have this faculty. _One_ dream is not taken -much notice of, but if the dream be repeated substantially _three_ -times, the events of the dreams are supposed to be sure to come to pass. -Some _see_ all the circumstances as _realities_ in their dreams, others -only have dim recollections; they _hear_ all but do not _see_ the -persons. This agrees with the supposed _prophetical_ dreams of the -ancient Greeks and Romans. (_Homer_, _Virgil_, _Ovid_, &c.) Morning -dreams are more to be relied on than those of any other time. Those of -the morning twilight are most valued. Horrid dreams, or those in which -the dreamer feels very uneasy, are supposed to predict bad luck, or -misfortune to the family. "Dreams," they say, "always go by contraries." -There is a very general belief in dreams among the people of Lancashire. -The following are a few not hitherto noticed by the writer:--1. Dreaming -of _misfortune_ betokens _prosperity_. - - "Content and happy may they be - Who dream of cold adversity; - To married man and married wife - It promises a happy life." - -2. To dream of sickness betokens _marriage_ to young persons. 3. -Dreaming of being before an altar indicates sorrow and misfortune. 4. To -see angels is a sure sign of coming happiness. 5. When you dream of -being angry with any one, you may count that person amongst your best -friends. 6. To dream of catching fish is very unfortunate; every fish -you take betokens the death of some valued friend. 7. Dreaming about -balls, dances, &c., indicates coming good fortune. To the young we may -say:-- - - "Who dreams of being at a ball, - No cause have they for fear; - For soon they will united be - To those they hold most dear." - -8. When persons dream of losing their hair, it is a sign of loss of -health, friends, or property. 9. If a person dream of losing _one_, or -_more_, of his teeth, it is a sign that he will lose _one_, or _more_, -lawsuits which he may happen to be engaged in. I knew a person who had a -case in our county court. The case was to come on on the Thursday; but -on Wednesday night he dreamt he had lost a tooth. On the case being -decided against him, he appealed to his dream as a sure indication of -his non-success. 10. Dreaming of bees is counted lucky, because they are -industrious. - - "Happy the man who dreaming sees - The little humble busy bees - Fly humming round their hive." - -If the bees sting you, it is a sign of bad luck, crosses and -difficulties. 11. Dreaming of marriage, brides, &c., is a sign of death, -or long sickness. 12. To dream of a candle burning _brightly_ betokens -health, prosperity; and _vice versa_. 13. Dreaming of cats betokens -treachery; but if you kill the cat you will have revenge. 14. To dream -of seeing a _coffin_ is unlucky; but to dream of seeing a _corpse_ -betokens a speedy marriage. 15. Dreaming of _death_ betokens long life -and happiness. 16. To dream that you are _dirty_ implies sickness for a -longer or shorter period. 17. If you dream of being _drowned_ you will -experience some loss. 18. To dream of _falling_ indicates loss. 19. To -dream of _flying_ implies that you will not succeed in accomplishing -high things. 20. If you dream of the water in a river being very _clear_ -you will have good luck; if the water be _muddy_ you will have -misfortune. 21. When a widow dreams of seeing her husband, it is a sure -sign that she will soon have an eligible offer. 22. If you dream that -you are daubed with ink, you may be sure that some one is _writing_ evil -of you. 23. Dreaming of going on a journey indicates a change in your -circumstances. 24. To dream of flying kites, or playing with bunches of -keys, betokens prosperity and advancement in business. 25. To dream of -cutting yourself, or of being infested with lice, indicates misfortune -or disease. 26. It is very fortunate to dream of milk. 27. To dream of -being naked indicates shame and misfortune. 28. To dream of the nose -bleeding is a very sure sign of misfortune and loss. 29. Dreaming of -seeing the ocean in a calm state betokens steadiness of circumstances; -and _vice versa_. 30. To dream of rats indicates difficulties; of snow, -prosperity and success; of a wedding, death; and of a widow, that your -husband, wife, or lover, will desert you. - -All the preceding, and many more, are well-known to every Lancashire lad -and lass. - - -THE MOON. - -Our farmers predict fair weather, or the reverse, according as the new -moon "lies on her back," or "stands upright." It is also very unlucky -for anyone to look at the new moon, for the first time, through the -window. - - -HAEVER OR HIVER. - -A "quarter" of the heavens, or compass, or direction; "a lucky haever" is -a fortunate or desirable direction. The origin of this word is somewhat -difficult of explanation; nor is it certain whether its proper etymon -has yet been ascertained. It is still in common use among some of the -farmers in East Lancashire, and was much more frequently used some -thirty or forty years ago. "What _haever_ is the wind in this morning?" -was a common inquiry when any prediction respecting the weather for the -day was about to be hazarded. "I don't expect much rain," would probably -be the reply, "the wind is in a good _haever_." There is generally most -rain in these parts of Lancashire when the wind blows from the south or -south-west; and hence if the wind came from the eastward continued rain -was not to be expected. - -Most persons have a notion that the East is the most sacred point of the -compass. The Star of the Nativity was seen in the east; the chancel, or -most holy portion of a church is placed at the east; and the dead are -buried so as to rise with their faces towards the east on the morning of -the resurrection. These considerations have been applied to the _haever_ -from which the wind may blow; and hence the proverb occasionally met -with among those who live in the neighbourhood of Mellor and Ramsgreave, -near Blackburn, to the effect that "the East is a lucky _haever_." - -A writer who signs himself "F. C. H." in _Notes and Queries_, 3rd -series, vol. vii. p. 310, asks whether _haever_ is not "a peculiar -pronunciation of ever, so that the above inquiry would be in plain -English, _whatever_ is the wind in this morning?" This derivation -appears both too fanciful and insufficient; for when we consider that -Lancashire formed part of the Danelagh, and was long a Danish kingdom, -and that its dialect contains a large admixture of Danish words; we are -naturally led to examine whether such a term may not be found in the -Danish language. On examination this proves to be the fact, for "Hive," -(pronounced "heeve," as "high" is pronounced "hee,") is the verb "to -blow;" and hence "hiver" or "haever," as applied to the place whence the -wind is blowing. This derivation appears to be both natural and -sufficient, since it fully accounts for the use of this peculiar term; -which, by the way, is not found in Halliwell's _Dictionary of Archaic -Words_, or in Wright's more recent work on the same subject. - - -DEASIL OR WIDERSINNIS. - -These are Celtic names for going round by way of ensuring good fortune. -The former name is derived from the Gaelic _deas_ or _des_, the right -hand, and _Syl_, the sun, and denotes a motion from east to west, or -according to the apparent motion of the sun; and is a custom of high -antiquity in religious ceremonies. In the western isles fire was carried -in the right hand in this course, about the house, corn, cattle, &c., -about women before they were churched, and children before they were -baptized. So the fishermen rowed the boat about first sun-wise to ensure -a lucky voyage. On the other hand, the Highland _Wider-sinnis_ (whence -the Lancashire _Wither-shins_) was from left to right or west to east, -or opposed to the course of the sun, a course used in magical -ceremonies, and said to be the mode of salutation given by witches and -warlocks to the devil.[98]--(See page 140 _supra_.) - - -OMENS OF WEATHER FOR NEW YEAR'S-DAY. - -In a Saxon MS. we find that "If the Kalends, or first of January, fall -on the Lord's-day, then will the winter be good, pleasant and warm."[99] -Another Saxon MS. in the Cotton Library contains the omens to the -following effect:--"If the Kalends of January be on the moon's day -(Monday) then there will be a severe and confused winter, a good spring, -windy summer, and a rueful year, in which there will be much sickness. -If the Kalends fall on Tuesday, then the winter will be dreary and -severe, a windy heat and rainy summer, and many women will die; ships -will voyage in danger, and kings and princes will die. If on Wednesday, -there will be a hard winter and bad spring; but a good summer. The -fruits of the earth will be much beaten down, honey will be scarce, and -young men will die. If on Thursday, there will be a good winter, windy -spring, good summer, and abundance of the fruits of the earth, and the -plough will be over the earth; but sheep and children will die. If on -Friday, there will be a variable winter, good spring and summer, with -great abundance, and sheep's eyes will be tender in the year. If on -Saturday, there will be a snowy winter, blowing spring, and rainy -summer; earth fruits will labour, sheep perish, old men die, and other -men be sick; the eyes of many will be tender, and fires will be -prevalent in the course of the year. If the Kalends fall on Sunday, -there will be a good winter, windy spring, and dry summer; and a very -good year this year will be; sheep will increase, there will be much -honey, and plenty and peace will be upon the earth."[100] - - -DEATH TICK OR DEATH WATCH. - -The death tick is not yet forgotten in the district around Burnley. Very -recently the insect has disturbed the imagination of a young lady, and -its ticks have led to more than one gloomy conjecture. It is a curious -circumstance that the _real_ death tick must only tick _three_ times on -each occasion. - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[91] T. D., in _Notes and Queries_. - -[92] See Halliwell's _Archaic Dictionary_, in voce. - -[93] E. B., (Liverpool) in _Notes and Queries_, 3rd series, vol. ix. p. -187. - -[94] T. T. W. - -[95] Another version has the last four lines thus:-- - - "Five for a fiddle, - Six for a dance, - Seven for England, - Eight for France." - -[96] J. O. Halliwell's _Nursery Rhymes_. - -[97] _Pictorial History of Lancashire._ - -[98] Hampson's _Medii AEvi Kalend._, vol. I. 255. - -[99] Hickes's _Thesaurus_, II. 194. - -[100] _Bibl. Cott. MSS. Tiberius, A._ III., fol. 39 b., and 40. - - - - -SUPERSTITIONS, GENERAL AND MISCELLANEOUS. - - -There are great numbers of small superstitions, beliefs, and practices -which we must place under this general head. Before entering on these at -length, we may briefly notice the fact in many cases, the probability in -a still greater number, that the origin of superstitions still held to -the popular heart, is to be found in other countries and in remote -times. Indeed Folk-lore superstitions may be said to be the _debris_ of -ancient mythologies; it may be of Egypt or India, Greece or Rome, -Germany or Scandinavia. Many of the following superstitions have been -already glanced at or briefly referred to in the introductory chapter. - - -POPULAR SUPERSTITIONS. - -Lancashire, like all other counties, has its own peculiar superstitions, -manners, and customs, which find no parallels in those of other -localities. It has also, no doubt, many local observances, current -opinions, old proverbs, and vulgar ditties, which are held and taken in -common with the inhabitants of a greater extent of country, and differ -merely in minor particulars,--the necessary result of imperfect oral -transmission. The following are a few of these local superstitions:-- - -1. If a person's hair, when thrown into the fire, burns brightly, it is -a sure sign that the individual will live long. The brighter the flame, -the longer life; and _vice versa_. - -2. A young person lightly stirs the fire with the poker to test the -humour of a lover. If the fire blaze brightly, the lover is -good-humoured; and _vice versa_. - -3. A crooked sixpence, or a copper coin with a hole through, is -accounted a _lucky_ coin. - -4. Cutting or paring the nails of the hands or feet, on a Friday or -Sunday, is very unlucky. - -5. If a person's _left_ ear burn, or feel hot, somebody is praising the -party; if the _right_ ear burn, then it is a sure sign that some one is -speaking evil of the person. - -6. Children are frequently cautioned by their parents not to walk -_backwards_ when going an errand; it is a sure sign that they will be -unfortunate in their objects. - -7. Belief in witchcraft is still strong in many of the rural districts. -Many believe that others have the power to bewitch cows, sheep, horses, -and even persons to whom the witch has an antipathy. One respectable -farmer assured me that his horse was bewitched into a stable through a -loophole twelve inches by three! The fact, he said, was beyond doubt, -for he had locked the stable-door himself when the horse was in the -field, and had kept the key in his pocket. Soon afterwards a party of -farmers went through the process known as "burning the witch out," or -"killing the witch" as some express it; the person suspected soon died, -and the neighbourhood became free from his evil doings. - -8. A horse-shoe is still nailed behind many doors to counteract the -effects of witchcraft. A _hagstone_ with a hole through, tied to the key -of the stable-door, protects the horses, and, if hung up at the bed's -head, the farmer also. - -9. A hot iron put into the cream during the process of churning, expels -the witch from the churn. Dough in preparation for the baker is -protected by being marked with the figure of a cross. - -10. Warts are cured by being rubbed over with a black snail; but the -snail must afterwards be impaled upon a hawthorn. If a bag, containing -as many pebbles as a person has warts, be tossed over the _left_ -shoulder, it will transfer the warts to whomsoever is unfortunate enough -to pick up the bag. - -11. If black snails are seized by the horns and tossed over the _left_ -shoulder, the process will ensure good luck to the person who performs -it. - -12. Profuse bleeding is said to be instantly stopped by certain persons, -who pretend to possess the secret of a certain form of words or charm. - -13. The power of bewitching, producing evil to persons by _wishing_ it, -&c., is supposed to be transmitted from one possessor to another when -one of the parties is about to die. - -14. Cramp is effectually prevented by placing the shoes with the toes -just peeping from beneath the coverlet; or by tying the garter round the -_left_ leg, below the knee. - -15. Charmed rings are worn by many for the cure of dyspepsia; and so -also are charmed belts for the cure of rheumatism. - -16. A red-haired person is supposed to bring ill-luck, if he be the -first to enter a house on New Year's Day. Black-haired persons [are on -the contrary deemed so lucky that they] are rewarded with liquor or -small gratuities for "taking in the New Year" to the principal houses in -their respective neighbourhoods. - -17. If any householder's fire does not burn _through_ the night of New -Year's Eve, it betokens bad luck through the ensuing year. If any one -allow another to take a live coal, or to light a candle, on that eve, -the bad luck extends to the grantor.[101] - -Amongst other Lancashire popular superstitions are the following:-- - -That a man must never "go a courting" on a Friday. If an unlucky fellow -is caught with his lady-love on that day, he is followed home by a band -of musicians, playing on pokers, tongs, pan-lids, &c., unless he can rid -himself of his tormentors by giving them money for drink. - -That whooping-cough will never be taken by any child that has ridden -upon a bear. The old bearward's profits arose in great part from the -money given by parents whose children had had a ride. The writer knows -of cases in which the charm is said to have been effectual. - -That whooping-cough may be cured by tying a hairy caterpillar in a small -bag round the child's neck, and as the caterpillar dies the cough goes. - -That Good Friday is the best day of all the year to begin weaning -children, which ought, if possible, to be put off till that day. - -That May cats are unlucky, and will suck the breath of infants. - -That crickets are lucky about a house, and will do no harm to those who -use them well; but that they eat holes in the worsted stockings of such -members of the family as kill them. I was assured of this on the -experience of a respectable farmer's family. - -That ghosts or boggarts haunt certain neighbourhoods. There is scarcely -a dell in my vicinity where a running stream crosses a road by a small -bridge or stone plat, where such may not be seen. Wells, ponds, gates, -&c., have often this bad repute. I have heard of a calf with "eyes like -saucers," a woman without a head, a white greyhound, a column of white -foam like a large sugar loaf in the midst of a pond, or group of little -cats, &c., as the shape of the boggart; and sometimes it took that of a -lady, who jumped behind hapless passengers on horseback. It is supposed -that a Romish priest can lay them, and that it is best to cheat them to -consent to being laid "while hollies are green." Hollies being -evergreens, the ghosts can reappear no more.[102] - -Mr. J. Eastwood, of Ecclesfield, adds to T. T. W.'s seventeen -superstitions the following six:-- - -1. If a cock near the door crows with his face towards it, it is a sure -prediction of the arrival of a stranger. - -2. If the cat frisk about the house in an unusually lively manner, windy -or stormy weather is approaching. - -3. If a dog howl under the window at night, a death will shortly happen -in the house. - -4. If a _female_ be the first to enter a house on Christmas or New -Year's Day, she brings ill-luck to the house for the coming year. - -5. For whooping-cough, pass the child nine times over the back and under -the belly of an ass. (This ceremony I once witnessed, but cannot vouch -for its having had the desired effect.) - -6. For warts, rub them with a cinder, and this tied up in paper, and -dropped where four roads meet [_i.e._, where two roads cross] will -transfer the warts to whoever opens the parcel.[103] - - -BONES OF ST. LAWRENCE, AT CHORLEY. - -In the parish church of Chorley, within the porch of the chancel, which -belongs to the Standish family of Duxbury, _four_ bones were shown, -apparently thigh bones, said to have belonged to Saint Lawrence, the -patron saint, which were brought over from Normandy by Sir Rowland -Standish, in 1442, along with the head of that saint, which skull has, -amongst the _Harl. MSS._,[104] a certificate of a vicar of Croston, to -which Chorley was then subject, preserved with the arms of the knight -(azure, 3 plates) rudely tricked:--"Be it known to all men that I, -Thomas Tarlton [or Talbot] vicar of the church of Croston, beareth -witness and certify, that Mr. James Standish, of Duxbury, hath delivered -a relique of St. Laurence's head unto the church of Chorley, the which -Sir Rowland of Standish, knight, brother of the said James, and Jane his -wife, brought out of Normandy, to the worship of God and St. Lawrence, -for the profit and avail of the said church; to the intent that the -foresaid Sir Rowland Standish, and Dame Jane his wife, with their -predecessors and successors, may be in the said church perpetually -prayed for. And in witness of the which to this my present writing I -have set my seal. Written at Croston aforesaid, the 2nd day of March, in -the year of our Lord God, 1442." [20 Hen. VI.][105] St. Lawrence's Day -is August 10. As his martyrdom was said to be roasting alive upon a -gridiron, it is not clear how his thigh bones should be preserved. But -when we find there are _four_ of them, the miraculous character of the -relics is at once exhibited. - - -THE DEAD MAN'S HAND. - -At Bryn Hall, now demolished, once the seat of the Gerards, was a Roman -Catholic Chapel and a priest, who continued long after the family had -departed, having in his custody "The Dead Man's Hand," which is still -kept by the same or another priest, now residing at Garswood. Preserved -with great care, in a white silk bag, it is still resorted to by many -diseased persons, and wonderful cures are said to have been wrought by -this saintly relic. It is said to be the hand of Father Arrowsmith,--a -priest who is stated to have been put to death at Lancaster for his -religion, in the time of William III. The story goes, that when about to -suffer, he desired his spiritual attendant to cut off his right hand, -which should then have the power to work miraculous cures on those who -had faith to believe in its efficacy. Not many years ago, a female sick -of the small-pox had this dead hand lying in bed with her every night -for six weeks, in order to effect her recovery, which took place.[106] A -poor lad, living in Withy Grove, Manchester, afflicted with scrofulous -sores, was rubbed with it; and though it had been said he was -miraculously restored, on inquiry the assertion was found incorrect, -inasmuch as he died in about a fortnight after the operation.[107] Not -less devoid of truth is the tradition that Arrowsmith was hanged for -"witnessing a good confession." - -Having been found guilty of a rape (says Mr. Roby), in all probability -this story of his martyrdom, and of the miraculous attestation to the -truth of the cause for which he suffered, were contrived for the purpose -of preventing the scandal that would have come upon the church through -the delinquency of an unworthy member. A subordinate tradition -accompanies that already related. It is said that one of the family of -the Kenyons attended as under-sheriff at the execution, and that he -refused the culprit some trifling favour at the gallows; whereupon -Arrowsmith denounced a curse upon him,--to wit, that whilst the family -could boast of an heir, so long they should never want a cripple; which -prediction was supposed by the credulous to have been literally -fulfilled.[108] Mr. Roby, professing to give the _fact_ upon which he -founded one of his tales, accuses the unfortunate priest of rape, and -states that he was executed for that crime in the reign of William III. -All this Mr. Roby gives as from himself, and mentions a curse pronounced -by Father Arrowsmith upon the under-sheriff who executed him, in the -reign of William III. Now Arrowsmith was hung, under sanction of an -atrocious law, for no other reason but because he had taken orders as a -Catholic priest, and had endeavoured to prevail upon others to be of his -own faith. For this offence, and for this offence alone, in 1628,--in -the reign not of William III., but of Charles I.,--he was tried at -Lancashire Assizes, and hanged, drawn, and quartered, in the same year -that Edmund Ashton, Esq., was sheriff. Mr. Roby must have seen what was -the real state of the case in the same history of Lancashire[109] as -that which he repeatedly quotes.[110] - -The hand of Arrowsmith, having been cut off after his death, was brought -to Bryn Hall, where it was used by the superstitious to heal the sick, -sometimes by the touch, and at others by friction: faith, however, is -essential to success, and a lack of the necessary quality in the -patient, rather than any decrease in the healing emission from the -relic, is made to account for the disappointment which awaits the -superstitious votaries of this fanatical operation. The "dead man's -hand," or, as the Irish harvestmen are accustomed to call it, "the holy -hand," was removed from Bryn to Garswood, and subsequently to the -priest's house at Ashton, near Lancaster, where it remains in possession -of the priest, if the light and knowledge of the present age have not -consigned it to the earth.[111] A Roman Catholic publication, issued in -1737, signed by nineteen witnesses, seventeen of whom were Protestants -(the names being withheld, however, as it is alleged, for prudential -reasons), attest, that in 1736, a boy of twelve years, the son of Caryl -Hawarden, of Appleton-within-Widness, county of Lancaster, was cured of -what appeared to be a fatal malady by the application of Father -Arrowsmith's hand, which, according to the narrative, was effected in -the following manner:--The boy had been ill fifteen months, and was at -length deprived of the use of his limbs, with loss of his memory, and -impaired sight. In this condition, which the physicians had declared -hopeless, it was suggested to his parents, that as wonderful cures had -been effected by the hand of "the martyred saint," it was advisable to -try its effects upon their afflicted child. The "holy hand" was -accordingly procured from Bryn, packed in a box, and wrapped in linen. -Mrs. Hawarden having explained to the invalid her hopes and intentions, -applied the back part of the dead hand to his back, stroking it down -each side the backbone, and making the sign of the cross, which she -accompanied with a fervent prayer that Jesus Christ would aid it with -his blessing. Having twice repeated this operation, the patient, who had -before been utterly helpless, rose from his seat, and walked about the -house, to the surprise of seven persons who had witnessed the "miracle." -From that day the boy's pains left him, his memory was restored, and his -health became re-established! The witnesses add, that the boy, on being -afterwards interrogated, said that he _believed_ the hand would do him -good, and that upon its first touch he felt something give a short or -sudden motion from his back to the end of his toes![112] - -Another account states that Father Edmund Arrowsmith, of the Society of -Jesus, was a native of Haydock, in the parish of Winwick, and was born -in 1585. In 1605 he entered the Roman Catholic College of Douay, where -he was educated, and in 1612 he was ordained priest. His father's name -was Robert Arrowsmith, and his mother, Margery, was a lady of the -ancient family of the Gerards. In 1613 Father Arrowsmith was sent upon -the English mission, and in 1628 (4th Charles I.) was apprehended and -brought to Lancaster on the charge of being a priest, contrary to the -laws of the realm. He was tried, sentenced to death, and executed on the -28th of August, 1628, his last words being "Bone Jesu!" He was -afterwards cut down, embowelled, and quartered. His head was set upon a -pole or stake amongst the pinnacles of Lancaster Castle, and his -quarters were hung upon four separate places of the same building. The -hand of the martyr, having been cut off after his death, was brought to -Bryn Hall [amongst his maternal relatives], where it was preserved as a -precious relic, and by the application of which numerous miraculous -cures are said to have been effected. "The holy hand" was removed from -Bryn to Garswood [in Ashton, a seat of the Gerards], and subsequently to -the priest's house at Ashton-in-Makerfield, where it still remains.[113] -While the relic remained at Garswood, it was under the care of the -Gerards' family-chaplain for the time being, and a fee was charged for -its application to all who were able to pay, and this money was bestowed -in charity on the needy or distressed. It is believed that no fee is now -charged. The late Sir John Gerard had no faith in its efficacy, and many -ludicrous anecdotes are current in the neighbourhood of pilgrims having -been rather roughly handled by some of his servants, who were as -incredulous as himself;--such as getting a good beating with a wooden -hand (used for stretching gloves), and other heavy weapons; so that the -patients rapidly retraced their steps, without having had the -application of the "holy hand." The applicants usually provide -themselves with a quantity of calico or flannel, which the priest of St. -Oswald's, Ashton, causes to come in contact with the "dead hand;" the -cloth is then applied to the part affected. Many instances are recorded -of persons coming upon crutches or with sticks, having been suddenly so -far restored as to be able to leave behind them these helps, as -memorials, and return home, walking and leaping; praising the priest for -his charity; the holy hand, for being the means of obtaining a cure; and -God for giving such power to the dead hand. Persons have been known to -come from Ireland, and other distant parts, to be cured. Some of these -return home with a large piece of the cloth which has been in contact -with the hand. This they tear into shreds, and dispose of them to the -credulous neighbours who have not the means of undertaking so long a -pilgrimage. About four years ago (writes our informant), I saw a poor -maniac being dragged along by two or three of her relatives, and howling -most piteously. I asked what they were going to do with her, when one of -them (apparently her mother) replied: "And sure enough, master, we're -taking her to the priest, to be rubbed with the holy hand, that the -devil may leave her." A short time afterwards I saw them returning, but -the rubbing had not been effectual. A policeman assisted to remove the -struggling maniac to a neighbouring house, till a conveyance could be -got to take her to Newton Bridge railway station.[114] - - -NINETEENTH CENTURY SUPERSTITION. - -Will it be credited that thousands of people have, during the past week, -crowded a certain road in the village of Melling, near Ormskirk, to -inspect a sycamore tree, which has burst its bark, and the sap protrudes -in a shape resembling a man's head? Rumour spread abroad that it was the -re-appearance of Palmer, who "had come again, because he was buried -without a coffin!" Some inns in the neighbourhood of this singular tree -reaped a rich harvest.[115] - - -PENDLE FOREST SUPERSTITION. - -Pendle Forest, in the neighbourhood of Burnley, has long been notorious -for its witches. [After referring to the cases of alleged witchcraft in -the beginning of the 17th century, the writer continues:] Two hundred -years have since passed away, and yet the old opinions survive; for it -is notorious that throughout the Forest the farmers still endeavour to - - "Chase the evil spirits away by dint - Of sickle, horse-shoe, and hollow flint." - -Clay or wax images, pierced through with pins and needles, are -occasionally met with in churchyards and gardens, where they have been -placed for the purpose of causing the death of the persons they -represent. Consumptive patients and paralytics are frequently said to be -bewitched; and the common Lancashire proverb, "Draw blood of a witch, -and she cannot harm you," has been many times practically verified upon -quarrelsome females within my own experience. In extreme cases the -"witch-killer" is resorted to, and implicit faith in his powers is not a -rare item in the popular creed. Such a person usually combines the -practice of Astrology with his other avocations. He casts nativities; -gives advice respecting stolen property; tells fortunes; and writes out -"charms" for the protection of those who may consult him.... Even the -wives of clergymen have been known to consult "wise men" on doubtful -matters respecting which they desired more satisfactory -information.--_T. T. W._ - - -EAST LANCASHIRE SUPERSTITION. - -Strong minds often are unable to escape the thraldom of tradition and -custom, with the help of liberal education and social intercourse. How -then are the solitary farmers on the skirts of moorland wastes, to free -themselves from hereditary superstition? The strength of such traditions -is often secret and unacknowledged. It nevertheless influences the life; -it lurks out of sight, ready to assert its power in any great crisis of -our being. It is a homage to the unseen and the unknown, in fearful -contradiction with the teaching of Christianity, for it creates, like -the religion of the Jezzidies, a ritual of propitiation to malignant -powers, instead of the prayer of faith to the All-merciful. The solitude -of the life in the moorland farm-houses does not, however, foster the -influence of superstitious madness, perhaps, so much as the wild, stormy -climate, which holds its blustering reign through six months of every -year, in this region of morass and fog, dark clough, and craggy chasm. -Night shuts in early. The sun has gone down through a portentous gulf of -clouds which have seemed to swallow up the day in a pit of darkness. The -great sycamores stagger in the blast which rushes from the distant sea. -The wind moans through the night like a troubled spirit, shakes the -house as though it demanded admittance from the storm, and rushes down -the huge chimney (built two centuries ago for the log fires, and large, -hot heap of wood ashes), driving down a cloud of smoke and soot, as -though by some wicked cantrip the witches careering in the storm would -scatter the embers and fire the building. The lone watcher by some sick -bed, shudders as the casements are battered by the tempest; or the bough -of some tree, or a branch of ivy, strikes the panes like the hand of -some unseen thing fumbling at the casement latch; or, awake from pain or -care, restless with fever or fatigue, or troubled with superstitious -horror, the lone shepherd waits for the day, as for a reprieve to -conscious guilt, and even trembles while he mutters some charm to -exorcise the evil that rides exulting on the storm. A year of ill-luck -comes. The ewes are barren; the cows drop their untimely calves, though -crooked sickles and lucky stones have been hung in the shippons. The -milk is "bynged," or will not churn, though a hot poker has been used to -spoil the witchery. The horses escape from the stable at night, though -there is a horse-shoe over the door, and the hinds say they were -carefully "heawsed an' fettled, and t'dooers o weel latched, bur -t'feeorin (fairies) han 'ticed 'em eawt o' t' leawphooles, an' flown wi' -em' o'er t'stone dykes, wi' o t'yates tynt (gates shut), an' clapp'd 'em -reet i' t' meadow, or t' corn, just wheer tey shudna be." As the year -advances, with such misadventures, apprehension grows. Is there some -evil eye on the house? Will the hay be spoiled in the field? Will the -oats ripen, or must they be cut green and given to the cattle? Or, if -they ripen, will the stormy autumn wrap its mantle of mist and rain so -closely about them, that they cannot be housed before they have -sprouted, or have spoiled? The cold, bitter damp benumbs the strength of -the feeble. Appetite and health fail; a fear creeps into the life. Fate -seems to have dragged the sufferer into a vault of gloom, to whisper -foreboding and inspire dread. These traditions of mischief wrought by -malignant men inheriting the wicked craft and vindictive spite of the -sorcerers, are uttered at the fireside, or if not so uttered, are -brooded upon by a disturbed fancy.[116] - - -SUPERSTITIOUS FEARS AND CRUELTIES. - -John Webster, the great exposer of shams and denouncer of superstitions -in his day, and author of the "_Discovery of pretended Witchcraft_," -speaking of a clear head and sound judgment as necessary to competent -witnesses, says:--"They ought to be of a sound judgment, and not of a -vitiated and distempered phantasy, nor of a melancholic constitution; -for these will take a bush to be a bugbear, and a black sheep to be a -demon; the noise of the wild swans flying high in the night, to be -spirits; or, as they call them here in the north, 'Gabriel Ratchets;' -the calling of a daker hen in the meadow, to be the Whistlers; the -howlings of the female fox in a gill or clough for the male, to be the -cry of fairies." The Gabriel Ratchets seem to be the same with the -German Rachtvogel or Rachtraven. The word and the superstition are still -known in Lancashire, though in a sense somewhat different; for the -Gabriel Ratchets are supposed to be something like litters of puppies -yelping in the air. Ratch is certainly a name for a dog in general (see -_Junius, in voce_). The whistlers are supposed to be the green or -whistling plovers, which fly very high in the night, uttering their -characteristic note. Speaking of the practices of witch-finders, Webster -says:--"By such wicked means and unchristian practices, divers innocent -persons have lost their lives; and these wicked rogues wanted not -greater persons (even of the ministry too) that did authorize and -encourage them in their diabolical courses. And the like in my time -happened here in Lancashire, where divers, both men and women, were -accused of supposed witchcraft, and were so unchristianly and inhumanly -handled, as to be stripped stark naked and laid upon tables and beds to -be searched for their supposed witch-marks; so barbarous and cruel acts -doth diabolical instigation, working upon ignorance and superstition, -produce."[117] - - -SUPERSTITIOUS BELIEFS IN MANCHESTER IN THE SIXTEENTH CENTURY. - -At no period in the history of Manchester was there a greater -disposition to believe in witchcraft, demoniacal possession, and the -occult sciences, than at the close of the sixteenth century. The seer, -Edward Kelly, was ranging through the country, practising the black art. -Dr. Dee, the friend and associate of this impostor, had recently -obtained the appointment of warden of the Collegiate Church of -Manchester, by favour of his royal patroness, Queen Elizabeth, herself a -believer in his astrological calculations; and the fame of the strange -doings [the alleged demoniacal possession of seven persons] in the -family of Mr. Starkie, had spread far and wide. The new warden was -really a learned man, of the most inquisitive mind, addicted to chemical -pursuits, not wholly unconnected with those of alchemy, and not -altogether detached from the practice of necromancy and magic, -notwithstanding his positive asseverations to the contrary, in his -petition to King James. His life was full of vicissitudes; though -enjoying the patronage of princes, he was always involved in -embarrassments, and was at length obliged to relinquish his church -preferment at Manchester, owing to the differences that existed between -himself and his ecclesiastical brethren. It does not appear that during -his residence in Lancashire he encouraged the deceptions of the -exorcists. On the contrary he refused to become a party in the pretended -attempt to cast out devils at Cleworth, and he strongly rebuked Hartlay, -the conjuror, who was afterwards executed at Lancaster for his -disgraceful practices. - - -WELLS AND SPRINGS. - -Water, everywhere a prime necessity of life, is pre-eminently so in the -hot and arid plains and stony deserts of Asia and Africa. We need not be -surprised, therefore, to find that in all the ancient Eastern cults and -mythologies, springs and wells were held in reverence, as holy and -sacred gifts to man from the Great Spirit of the universe. The great -Indo-European tide of migration, rolling ever westward, bore on its -bosom these graceful superstitions, which were eagerly adopted by the -old church of Christendom; and there is scarcely an ancient well of any -consequence in the United Kingdom which has not been solemnly dedicated -to some saint in the Roman Catholic calendar. - -WELLS NEAR LIVERPOOL.--At Wavertree, near Liverpool, is a well bearing -the following inscription, "Qui non dat quod habet, daemon infra videt: -1414" (Who giveth not what he hath, the devil below, seeth--or, if the -last word be not _videt_ but _ridet_--laughs). Tradition says that at -one period there was a cross above it, inscribed "Deus dedit, homo -bibit" (God gave it, man drinks it); and that all travellers gave alms -on drinking. If they omitted to do so, a devil who was chained at the -bottom of the well, laughed. A monastic building stood near, and the -occupants received the contributions.[118] A well at Everton, near -Liverpool, has the reputation of being haunted, a fratricide having been -committed there; but it is not mentioned in the local history of Syer, -which merely says,--"The water for this well is procured by direct -access to the liquid itself, through the medium of a few stone steps: it -is free to the public, and seldom dry." Being formerly in a lonely -situation, it was a haunt of pickpockets and other disorderly -characters. It is now built over, and in a few years the short -subterranean passage leading to the well will be forgotten.[119] - -PEGGY'S WELL.--Peggy's Well is near the Ribble, in a field below Waddow -Hall, not far from Brunckerley stepping-stones, in attempting to cross -by which several lives have been lost, when the river was swollen by a -rapid rise, which even a day's rain will produce. These calamities, as -well as any other fatal accidents that occur in the neighbourhood, are -usually attributed to Peggy, the evil spirit of the well. There is a -mutilated stone figure by the well, which has been the subject of many -strange tales and apprehensions. It was placed there when turned out of -the house at Waddow, to allay the terrors of the domestics, who durst -not continue under the same roof with this mis-shapen figure. It was -then broken, either from accident or design, and the head, some time -ago, as is understood, was in one of the attic chambers at Waddow. Who -Peggy of the Well was, tradition doth not inform us. - -The writer of the _Pictorial History of Lancashire_ states that going to -Waddow Hall he inquired after the headless stone statue known as "Peg o' -th' Well;" and a neat, intelligent young woman, one of the domestics, -showed him Peggy's head on the pantry table, and the trunk by a well in -an adjacent field. He gives the following as the substance of the -tradition:--The old religion had been supplanted in most parts of the -country, yet had left memorials of itself and its rites in no few -places, nor least in those which were in the vicinity of an old Catholic -family, or a monastic institution. Some such relic may Peggy have -originally been. The scrupulous proprietors of Waddow Hall regarded the -innocuous image with distrust and aversion; nor did they think -themselves otherwise than justified in ascribing to Peggy all the evils -and mischances that befel in the house. If a storm struck and damaged -the house, Peggy was the author of the damage. If the wind whistled or -moaned through the ill-fitting doors and casements, it was "Peggy at her -work," requiring to be appeased, else some sad accident was sure to -come. On one occasion Master Starkie--so was the host named--returned -home very late with a broken leg. He had been hunting that day, and, -report said, made too free with the ale afterwards. But, as usual, Peggy -bore the blame: for some dissatisfaction she had waylaid the master of -the house and caused his horse to fall. Even this was forgiven. A short -time afterwards a Puritan preacher was overtaken by a fresh in the -river, in attempting to cross over on the stepping-stones which lay just -above the Hall, the very stones on which poor King Henry (VI.) was -captured. Now, Mrs. Starkie had a great attachment to those preachers, -and had indeed sent for the one in question, for him to exorcise and -dispossess her youngest son, a boy of ten years of age, who was -grievously afflicted with a demon, or, as was suspected, tormented by -Peggy. "Why does he not come?" asked the lady, as she sat that night in -her best apparel, before a blazing fire and near a well-furnished table. -"The storm seems to get worse. Hark! heard ye no cry? Yes! there again. -Oh, if the dear man be in the river! Run all of ye to his rescue." In a -few minutes two trusty men-servants returned, panting under the huge -weight of the dripping parson. He told his tale. "'Tis Peg," she -suddenly exclaimed, "at her old tricks! This way, all!" She hurried from -the apartment, rushed into the garden, where Peggy stood quiet enough -near a spring, and with one blow of an axe, which she had seized in her -passage, severed Peggy's head from her body. - -ST. HELEN'S WELL IN BRINDLE.--Dr. Kuerden in one of his MSS., describing -the parish of Brindle in Leyland, states that "Over against Swansey -House, a little towards the hill, standeth an ancient fabric, once the -manor-house of Brindle, where hath been a chapel belonging to the same; -and a little above it, a spring of very clear water, rushing straight -upwards into the midst of a fair fountain, walled square about in stone -and flagged in the bottom, very transparent to be seen, and a strong -stream issuing out of the same. This fountain is called St. Ellen's -Well, to which place the vulgar neighbouring people of the Red Letter -[_i.e._, Roman Catholics] do much resort with pretended devotion on each -year upon St. Ellins-day--[St. Helen's-day is either on May 21, August -18, or September 3, the two first being days of a queen, and the last of -an empress saint]--where and when, out of a foolish ceremony, they offer -or throw into the well, pins, which there being left, may be seen a long -time after by any visitor of the fountain."[120] - -ST. HELEN'S WELL, NEAR SEFTON.--Mr. Hampson[121] notices the -superstition of casting pins or pebbles into wells, and observing the -circles formed thereby on the surface of the agitated water, and also -whether the water were troubled or preserved its clearness and -transparency; from which appearances they drew omens or inferences as to -future events. He adds: "I have frequently seen the bottom of St. -Helen's Well, near Sefton, Lancashire, almost covered with pins, which, -I suppose, must have been thrown in for the like purposes." - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[101] T. T. W., in _Notes and Queries_, iii. 55. - -[102] P. P., in _Notes and Queries_, iii. 516. - -[103] _Notes and Queries_, iii. p. 516. - -[104] Harl. MSS. Cod. 2042, fol. 239 a. - -[105] Harl. MSS. Cod. 2042, fol. 239. - -[106] Mr. Roby derived this statement from Thomas Barritt, the -antiquary, who in one of his MSS. writes--"I was in company with a woman -who had lain with a relation of hers sick of the small-pox. During all -the time they had this hand lying with them every night, on purpose to -effect a safe recovery of the afflicted person." Barritt does not say, -however, that the recovery took place. - -[107] This story Mr. Roby derived from the same MSS. of Barritt, and -also the statement of the real crime for which Arrowsmith was executed, -and his alleged prophecy as to the Kenyons. Barritt says the dead hand -was brought to Manchester about the time of the troubles in 1745, to -cure a poor Papist lad, who came with Hill. - -[108] See Roby's _Traditions of Lancashire_. - -[109] Baines's _Lancashire_, vol. iii. p. 638. - -[110] _Pictorial History of Lancashire._ - -[111] Mannex's _Hist. and Topog. of Lancashire_. - -[112] Baines's _History of Lancashire_, vol. iii. pp. 638-9. - -[113] Mannex's _History and Topography of Lancashire_. - -[114] From a Correspondent. - -[115] The _Tablet_, July 26, 1856. - -[116] Scarsdale. - -[117] Dr. Whitaker's _History of Whalley_. - -[118] Mr. Baines, in his _History of Lancashire_ (vol. iii. p. 760), -says that in Wavertree is an ancient well with a rude, unintelligible -inscription, of the date of 1414, which is thus _charitably_ rendered by -the villagers:-- - - "He that hath, and won't bestow, - The Devil will reckon with him below." - -Or, - - "He who here does not bestow, - The Devil laughs at him below." - -[119] "Agmond," in _Notes and Queries_, vol. vi. p. 305. - -[120] Baines's _History of Lancashire_, vol. iii. p. 497. - -[121] _Medii AEvi Kalendarium._ - - - - -WITCHES AND WITCHCRAFT. - - -In the lore of these subjects no county in England is richer than -Lancashire. The subject is a large one, and may even be said to include -all the cases of demoniacal possession described in the earlier pages of -this volume, since all these alleged possessions were the result of -malice and (so-called) witchcraft. Indeed it is not easy to separate -these two superstitious beliefs in their practical operation; witchcraft -being the supposed cause, and demoniacal possession the imagined effect. -The reader will find much, bearing on both branches of the subject, -under both titles. - - -WITCHCRAFT IN THE FIFTEENTH CENTURY. - -The first distinct charge of witchcraft in any way connected with this -county, is that of the wife of the good Duke Humphrey, Eleanor, Duchess -of Gloucester, the associate of Roger Bolingbroke, the priest and -necromancer, and Margery Jourdain, the witch of Eye. The Duke of -Gloucester, uncle and protector to the king, having become obnoxious to -the predominant party, they got up in 1441 a strange prosecution. The -Duchess of Gloucester, Eleanor, the daughter of Lord Cobham, a lady of -haughty carriage and ambitious mind, being attached to the prevailing -superstitions of the day, was accused of the crime of witchcraft "for -that she, by sorcery and enchantment, intended to destroy the king, to -the intent to advance and promote her husband to the crown."[122] It was -alleged against her and her associates, Sir Roger Bolingbroke, a priest, -and chaplain to the Duke, (who was addicted to astrology,) and Margery -Jourdain, the witch of Eye, that they had in their possession a wax -figure of the king, which they melted by a magical device before a slow -fire, with the intention of wasting away his force and vigour by -insensible degrees. The imbecile mind of Henry was sensibly affected by -this wicked invention; and the Duchess of Gloucester, on being brought -to trial (in St. Stephen's Chapel, before the Archbishop of Canterbury) -and found guilty of the design to destroy the king and his ministers by -the agency of witchcraft, was sentenced to do public penance in three -places within the city of London, and to suffer perpetual imprisonment. -Her confederates were condemned to death and executed, Margery Jourdain -being burnt to death in Smithfield. The duchess, after enduring the -ignominy of her public penance, rendered peculiarly severe by the -exalted state from which she had fallen, was banished to the Isle of -Man, where she was placed under the ward of Sir Thomas Stanley. On the -way to her place of exile, she was confined for some time, first in -Leeds Castle, and afterwards in the Castle of Liverpool;[123] the -earliest and the noblest witch on record within the county of Lancaster. -Another account states that amongst those arrested as accomplices of the -duchess were a priest and canon of St. Stephen's, Westminster, named -Southwell, and another priest named John Hum or Hume. Roger Bolingbroke, -the learned astronomer and astrologer (who died protesting his ignorance -of all evil intentions), was drawn and quartered at Tyburn; Southwell -died in prison before the time of execution; and John Hum received the -royal pardon. The worst thing proved against the duchess was that she -had sought for love-philters to secure the constancy of her -husband.[124] Shakspere, in the _Second Part of King Henry VI._, Act 1, -Scene 4, represents the duchess, Margery Jourdain, Hume, Southwell, and -Bolingbroke, as engaged in raising an evil spirit in the Duke of -Gloucester's garden, when they are surprised and seized by the Dukes of -York and Buckingham and their guards. The duchess, after remaining in -the Isle of Man some years, was transferred to Calais, under the ward of -Sir John Steward, knight, and there died. - - -THE FAMOUS HISTORY OF THE LANCASHIRE WITCHES: - - Containing the manner of their becoming such; their enchantments, - spells, revels, merry pranks, raising of storms and tempests, riding - on winds, &c. The entertainments and frolics which have happened - among them. With the loves and humours of Roger and Dorothy. Also, a - Treatise of Witches in general, conducive to mirth and recreation. - The like never before published.[125] - - CHAPTER I.--_The Lancashire Witch's Tentation, and of the Devil's - appearing to her in sundry shapes, and giving her money._ - - Lancashire is a famous and noted place, abounding with rivers, - hills, woods, pastures, and pleasant towns, many of which are of - great antiquity. It has also been famous for witches, and the - strange pranks they played. Therefore, since the name of Lancashire - Witches has been so frequent in the mouths of old and young, and - many imperfect stories have been rumoured abroad, it would - doubtless tend to the satisfaction of the reader, to give some - account of them in their merry sports and pastimes. - - Some time since lived one Mother Cuthbert, in a little hovel at the - bottom of a hill, called Wood-and-Mountain Hill, in Lancashire. - This woman had two lusty daughters, who both carded and spun for - their living, yet was very poor; which made them often repine at - and lament their want. One day, as Mother Cuthbert was sauntering - about the hill-side, picking the wool off the bushes, out started a - thing like a rabbit, which ran about two or three times, and then - changed into a hound, and afterwards into a man, which made the old - beldame to tremble, yet she had no power to run away. So, putting a - purse of money in her hand, and charging her to be there the next - day, he immediately vanished away, and old Mother Cuthbert returned - home, being somewhat disturbed between jealousy and fear. - -Such is the first chapter of this marvellous story, which, it is clear, -is a fiction based upon real narratives. It relates the witcheries of -Mother Cuthbert and her two daughters, Margery and Cicely, under the -auspices of an arch-witch, "Mother Grady, the Witch of Penmure -[Penmaen-mawr] a great mountain of Wales." Here is "_The Description of -a Spell._--A spell is a piece of paper written with magical characters, -fixed in a critical season of the moon, and conjunction of the planets; -or sometimes by repeating mystical words. Of these there are many -sorts." As showing what was the popular notion as to witches, take the -following:--"About this time great search was made after witches and -many were apprehended, but most of them gave the hangman and the gaoler -the slip; though some hold that when a witch is taken she hath no power -to avoid justice. It happened, as some of them were going in a cart to -be tried, a coach passed by, in which appeared a person like a judge, -who, calling to one, bid her be of good comfort, for neither she nor any -of her companions should be harmed. In that night all the prison locks -flew open, and they made their escape; and many, when they had been cast -into the water for a trial, have swam like a cork. One of them boasted -she could go over the sea in an egg-shell. It is held on all hands they -adore the devil, and become his bond-slaves, to have for a term of years -their pleasure and revenge. And indeed many of them are more mischievous -than others in laming and destroying cattle, and in drowning ships at -sea, by raising storms. But the Lancashire witches, we see, chiefly -divert themselves in merriment, and are therefore found to be more -sociable than the rest." The closing chapter in this chap-book, contains -"A short description of the famous Lapland Witches." - - -DR. DEE CHARGED WITH WITCHCRAFT. - -On the usual proclamation of a general pardon, on the accession of James -I., the crime of witchcraft was specially excepted from the general -amnesty; and the credulous King's belief in this superstition encouraged -witch-finders and numerous accusations in all parts of the country. -Amongst others, it was remembered that Dr. Dee, then warden of the -Collegiate Church of Manchester, had in the preceding reign predicted a -fortunate day for the coronation of Queen Elizabeth, and had also -undertaken to render innocuous the waxen effigy of that Queen, found in -Lincoln's Inn-fields. He was also known to have made various -predictions, to be the possessor of a magic crystal or stone,[126] and -to have held a close intimacy with Edward Kelly, _alias_ Talbot, a noted -seer, conjuror and necromancer of the time. Accordingly Dr. Dee was -formally accused of practising witchcraft, and a petition from him, -dated 5th January, 1604, (preserved in the _Lansdowne MSS._, Cod. 161,) -praying to be freed from this revolting imputation, even at the risk of -a trial for his life, sufficiently indicates the horror excited by the -charge. The doctor's petition sets forth that "It has been affirmed that -your Majesty's supplicant was the conjuror belonging to the most -honourable privy council of your Majesty's predecessor of famous memory, -Queen Elizabeth, and that he is, or hath been, a caller or invocator of -devils or damned spirits. These slanders, which have tended to his utter -undoing, can no longer be endured; and if, on trial, he is found guilty -of the offence imputed to him, he offers himself willingly to the -punishment of death, yea, either to be stoned to death, or to be buried -quick, or to be burned unmercifully." He seems to have escaped -scatheless, save in reputation; and in 1594, when applied to for the -purpose of exorcising seven demons who held possession of five females -and two of the children of Mr. Nicholas Starkie, of Leigh, he refused to -interfere; advising they should call in some godly preachers, with whom -he would, if they thought proper, consult concerning a public or private -fast. He also sharply reproved Hartlay, a conjuror, for his practices in -this case. - - -THE LANCASHIRE WITCHES. - - Come, gallant sisters, come along, - Let's meet the devil ten thousand strong; - Upon the whales' and dolphins' backs, - Let's try to choak the sea with wracks, - Spring leaks, and sink them down to rights. - [_Line wanting._] - And then we'll scud away to shour, - And try what tricks we can play more. - - Blow houses down, ye jolly dames, - Or burn them up in fiery flames; - Let's rowse up mortals from their sleep, - And send them packing to the deep, - Let's strike them dead with thunder-stones, - With lightning search [? scorch] to skin and bones; - For winds and storms, by sea and land, - You may dispose, you may command. - - Sometimes in dismal caves we lie, - Or in the air aloft we flie; - Sometimes we caper o'er the main, - Thunders and lightnings we disdain; - Sometimes we tumble churches down, - And level castles with the ground; - We fire whole cities, and destroy - Whole armies, if they us annoy. - - We strangle infants in the womb, - And raise the dead out of their tomb; - We haunt the palaces of kings, - And play such pranks and pretty things - And this is all our chief delight, - To do all mischief in despight; - And when we've done, to shift away, - Untoucht, unseen, by night or day. - - When imps do * * * - We make them act unlucky feats; - In puppets' wax, sharp needles' points - We stick, to torture limbs and joints. - With frogs' and toads' most poys'nous gore - Our grizly limbs we 'noint all o'er, - And straight away, away we go, - Sparing no mortal, friend or foe. - - We'll sell you winds, and ev'ry charm - Or venomous drug that may do harm; - For beasts or fowls we have our spells - Laid up in store in our dark cells; - For there the devils used to meet, - And dance with horns and cloven feet; - And when we've done, we frisk about, - And through the world play revel-rout. - - We ride on cows' and horses' backs, - O'er lakes and rivers play nice knacks; - We grasp the moon and scale the sun, - And stop the planets as they run. - We kindle comets' whizzing flames, - And whistle for the winds by names; - And for our pastimes and mad freaks, - 'Mongst stars we play at barley-breaks.[127] - - We are ambassadors of state, - And know the mysteries of fate; - In Pluto's bosom there we ly, - To learn each mortal's destiny. - As oracles their fortunes show, - If they be born to wealth or wo, - The spinning Sisters' hands we guide, - And in all this we take a pride. - - To Lapland, Finland, we do skice, - Sliding on seas and rocks of ice, - T' old beldames there, our sisters kind, - We do impart our hellish mind; - We take their seals and hands in blood - For ever to renounce all good. - And then, as they in dens do lurk, - We set the ugly jades a-work. - - We know the treasures and the stores - Lock'd up in caves with brazen doors; - Gold and silver, sparkling stones, - We pile on heaps, like dead men's bones. - There the devils brood and hover, - Keep guards, that none should them discover; - Put upon all the coasts of hell, - 'Tis we, 'tis we, stand sentinel. - - -SUPERSTITIOUS FEAR OF WITCHCRAFT. - -During the sixteenth century whole districts in some parts of Lancashire -seemed contaminated with the presence of witches; men and beasts were -supposed to languish under their charm, and the delusion which preyed -alike on the learned and the vulgar did not allow any family to suppose -that they were beyond the reach of the witch's power. Was the family -visited by sickness? It was believed to be the work of an invisible -agency, which in secret wasted the image made in clay before the fire, -or crumbled its various parts into dust. Did the cattle sicken and die? -The witch and the wizard were the authors of the calamity. Did the yeast -refuse to ferment, either in the bread or the beer? It was the -consequence of a "bad wish." Did the butter refuse to _come_? The -"familiar" was in the churn. Did the ship founder at sea? The gale or -hurricane was blown by the lungless hag who had scarcely sufficient -breath to cool her own pottage. Did the Ribble overflow its banks? The -floods descended from the congregated sisterhood at Malkin tower. The -blight of the season, which consigned the crops of the farmer to -destruction, was the saliva of the enchantress, or distillations from -the blear-eyed dame who flew by night over the field on mischief bent. -To refuse an alms to a haggard mendicant, was to incur maledictions soon -manifest in afflictions of body, mind, and estate, in loss of cattle and -other property, of health, and sometimes even of life itself. To escape -from evils like these no sacrifice was thought too great. Superstitions -begat cruelty and injustice; the poor and the rich were equally -interested in obtaining a deliverance; and the magistrate in his -mansion, no less than the peasant in his cot, was deeply interested in -abating the universal affliction. The Lancashire witches were -principally fortune-tellers and conjurors. The alleged securities -against witchcraft were numerous, the most popular being the horse-shoe; -hence we see in Lancashire so many thresholds ornamented with this -counter-charm. Under these circumstances the situation of the reputed -witch was not more enviable than that of the individuals or families -over whom she exerted her influence. Linked by a species of infernal -compact to an imaginary imp, she was shunned as a common pest, or -caressed only on the same principle which leads some Indian tribes to -pay homage to the devil. The reputed witches themselves were frequently -disowned by their families, feared and detested by their neighbours, and -hunted by the dogs as pernicious monsters. When apprehended they were -cast into ponds in the belief that witches swim; so that to sink or swim -was almost equally perilous to them; they were punctured by bodkins to -discover the witch imp or devil marks; they were subjected to hunger and -kept in perpetual motion till confessions were obtained from a -distracted mind. On their trials they were listened to with incredulity -and horror, and consigned to the gallows with as little pity as the -basest of malefactors. Their imaginary crimes created a thirst for their -blood; and people of all stations, from the highest to the lowest, -attended their trials at Lancaster with an intensity of interest that -such mischievous persons, now divested of their sting, naturally -excited. It has been said that witchcraft and kingcraft in England came -in and went out with the Stuarts. This is not true. The doctrine of -necromancy was in universal belief in the fourteenth and fifteenth -centuries, and there was not perhaps a man in Lancashire who doubted its -existence. The belief in witchcraft and in demoniacal possession was -confined to no particular sect or persuasion; the Roman Catholics, the -members of the Church of England, the Presbyterians, Independents, and -even the Methodists (though a sect of more recent standing) have all -fallen into this delusion; and yet each denomination has upbraided the -other with gross superstition, and not unfrequently with wilful fraud. -It is due, however, to the ministers of the Established Church to say -that they were among the first of our public writers to denounce the -belief in witchcraft with all its attendant mischiefs; and the names of -Dr. Harsnett, afterwards Archbishop of York, of Dr. John Webster (who -detected Robinson, the Lancashire witch-hunter), of Zach. Taylor, one of -the king's preachers for Lancashire, and of Dr. Hutchinson, the chaplain -in ordinary to George I., are all entitled to the public gratitude for -their efforts to explode these pernicious superstitions. For upwards of -a century the sanguinary and superstitious laws of James I. disgraced -the English statute-book; but in the ninth year of George II. (1735) a -law was enacted repealing the statute of James I., and prohibiting any -prosecution, suit, or proceeding against any person for witchcraft, -sorcery, enchantment, or conjuration. In this way the doctrine of -witchcraft, with all its attendant errors, was finally exploded, except -among the most ignorant of the vulgar.[128] - - -A HOUSEHOLD BEWITCHED. - -(From the _Late Lancashire Witches_, a comedy, by Thomas Heywood.) - - My Uncle has of late become the sole - Discourse of all the country; for a man respected - As master of a govern'd family; - The house (as if the ridge were fix'd below, - And groundsills lifted up to make the roof), - All now's turn'd topsy turvy - In such a retrograde, preposterous way - As seldom hath been heard of, I think never. - The good man - In all obedience kneels unto his Son; - He, with an austere brow, commands his Father. - The Wife presumes not in the Daughter's sight - Without a prepared curtsey; the Girl, she - Expects it as a duty, chides her mother, - Who quakes and trembles at each word she speaks; - And what's as strange, the Maid, she domineers - O'er her young Mistress, who is awed by her. - The Son, to whom the Father creeps and bends, - Stands in as much fear of the groom, his Man! - All in such rare disorder, that in some - As it breeds pity, and in others wonder, - So in the most part laughter. It is thought - This comes by WITCHCRAFT! - - -THE LANCASHIRE WITCHES OF 1612. - -King James VI. of Scotland, in 1594 (nine years before he ascended the -English throne as James I.), wrote and published his disgracefully -credulous and cruel treatise, entitled "Daemonologie," containing -statements as to the making of witches, and their practice of -witchcraft, which, _if true_, would only prove their revealer to be deep -in the councils of Satan, and a regular member or attendant of -assemblages of witches. The royal witch-hater held that, as witchcraft -is an act of treason against the prince, the evidence of barnes -[children] or wives [weak women], or ever so defamed persons [_i.e._, of -character however infamous], may serve for sufficient witnesses against -them; for [he asks], who but witches can be provers, and so witnesses of -the doings of witches? Besides evidence, "there are two other good helps -that may be used for their trial; the one is the finding of their -_mark_, and then trying the insensibleness thereof; the other is -floating on the water" [or drowning], &c. Having thus opened the door by -admitting the loosest evidence and the most absurd tests for the most -unjust convictions, the royal fanatic adds, that all witches [_i.e._, -persons thus convicted] ought to be put to death, without distinction of -age, sex, or rank. This "British Solomon" ascended the English throne in -1603, and, as might have been expected, witch-finders soon plied their -infamous vocation with success. The wild and desolate parts of the -parish of Whalley furnished a fitting scene for witch assemblies, and it -was alleged that such meetings were held at Malkin Tower, in Pendle -Forest, within that parish. At the assizes at Lancaster in the autumn of -1612, twenty persons, of whom sixteen were women of various ages, were -committed for trial, and most of them tried for witchcraft. Their names -were--1. Elizabeth Southerne, widow, _alias_ "Old Demdike" (aged eighty -or more); 2. Elizabeth Device [probably Davies], _alias_ "Young -Demdike," her daughter; 3. James Device, son of No. 2; 4. Alizon Device, -daughter of No. 2; 5. Anne Whittle, widow, _alias_ "Chattox," _alias_ -Chatterbox [more probably Chadwicks], the rival witch of "Old Demdike" -(and, like her, eighty or more years of age); 6. Anne Redferne, daughter -of No. 5; 7. Alice Nutter; 8. Katherine Hewytt, _alias_ "Mould-heels;" -9. Jane Bulcock, of the Moss End; 10. John Bulcock, her son; 11. Isabel -Robey; and 12. Margaret Pearson, of Padiham. No. 12 was tried first for -murder by witchcraft; 2nd for bewitching a neighbour; 3rd for bewitching -a horse; and, being acquitted of the two former charges, was sentenced -for the last to stand upon the pillory in the markets of Clitheroe, -Padiham, Colne, and Lancaster for four successive market days, with a -printed paper upon her head, stating her offence. The twelve persons -already named were styled "Witches of Pendle Forest." The following -eight were called "Witches of Samlesbury:"--13. Jennet Bierley; 14. -Ellen Bierley; 15. Jane Southworth; 16. John Ramsden; 17. Elizabeth -Astley; 18. Alice Gray; 19. Isabel Sidegraves; and 20. Lawrence Haye. -The last four were all discharged without trial. The sensation produced -by these trials was immense, not only in this, but throughout -neighbouring counties, and Thomas Potts, Esq., the clerk of the court, -was directed by the judges of assize, Sir Edward Bromley, Knt., and Sir -James Altham, Knt., to collect and publish the evidence and other -documents connected with the trial, under the revision of the judges -themselves; and Potts's "Discovery of Witches," originally published in -1613, has been reprinted by the Chetham Society (vol. vi.), under the -editorship of its president, Mr. James Crossley, F.S.A. According to -Potts, Old Mother Demdike, the principal actress in the tragedy, was a -general agent for the devil in all these parts; no man escaping her or -her furies that ever gave them occasion of offence, or denied them -anything they stood in need of. The justices of the peace in this part -of the country, Roger Nowell and Nicholas Bannister, having learned that -Malkin Tower [Malkin is a north-country name for a hare], in the Forest -of Pendle, the residence of Old Demdike and her daughter, was the resort -of the witches, ventured to arrest their head and another of her -followers, and to commit them to Lancaster Castle. Amongst the rest of -the voluntary confessions made by the witches, that of Dame Demdike is -preserved. She confessed that, about twenty years ago, as she was coming -home from begging, she was met near Gould's Hey, in the forest of -Pendle, by a spirit or devil in the shape of a boy, the one half of his -coat black and the other brown, who told her to stop, and said that if -she would give him her soul, she should have anything she wished for. -She asked his name, and was told _Tib_. She consented, from the hope of -gain, to give him her soul. For several years she had no occasion to -make any application to her evil spirit; but one Sunday morning, having -a little child upon her knee, and she being in a slumber, the spirit -appeared to her in the likeness of a brown dog, and forced himself upon -her knee, and begun to suck her blood under her left arm, on which she -exclaimed, "Jesus! save me!" and the brown dog vanished, leaving her -almost stark mad for eight weeks. On another occasion she was led, being -blind, to the house of Richard Baldwyn, to obtain payment for the -services her daughter had performed at his mill, when Baldwyn fell into -a passion, and bid them to get off his ground, calling them w----s and -witches, and saying he would burn the one and hang the other. On this, -_Tib_ appeared, and they concerted matters to revenge themselves on -Baldwyn; how, is not stated. This poor mendicant pretender to the powers -of witchcraft, in her examination stated that the surest way of taking a -man's life by witchcraft is to make a picture of clay, like unto the -shape of the person meant to be killed, and when they would have the -object of their vengeance suffer in any particular part of his body, to -take a thorn or pin and prick it into that part of the effigy; and when -they would have any of the body to consume away, then to burn that part -of the figure; and when they would have the whole body to consume, then -to burn the clay image; by which means the afflicted will die. The -substance of the examinations of the so-called witches and others, may -be given as follows:--Old Demdike persuaded her daughter, Elizabeth -Device, to sell herself to the devil, which she did, and in turn -initiated her daughter, Alizon Device, in these infernal arts. When the -old witch had been sent to Lancaster Castle, a grand convocation of -seventeen witches and three wizards was held at Malkin Tower on Good -Friday, at which it was determined to kill Mr. M'Covell, the governor of -the castle, and to blow up the building, to enable the witches to make -their escape. The other two objects of this convocation were to christen -the familiar of Alizon Device, one of the witches in the castle, and -also to bewitch and murder Mr. Lister, a gentleman of Westby-in-Craven, -Yorkshire. The business being ended, the witches, in quitting the -meeting, walked out of the barn, named Malkin Tower, in their proper -shapes, but on reaching the door, each mounted his or her spirit, which -was in the form of a young horse, and quickly vanished. Before the -assizes, Old Demdike, worn out by age and trouble, died in prison. The -others were brought to trial. The first person arraigned before Sir -Edward Bromley, who presided in the criminal court, was Ann Whittle, -_alias_ "Chattox," who is described by Potts as a very old, withered, -spent, and decrepit creature, eighty years of age, and nearly blind, a -dangerous witch, of very long countenance, always opposed to Old -Demdike, for whom the one favoured, the other hated deadly, and they -accused each other in their examinations. This witch was more -mischievous to men's goods than to themselves; her lips ever chattered -as she walked (hence, probably, her name of Chattox or Chatterbox), but -no one knew what she said. Her abode was in the Forest of Pendle, -amongst the company of other witches, where the woollen trade was -carried on, she having been in her younger days a wool-carder. She was -indicted for having exercised various wicked and devilish arts called -witchcrafts, enchantments, charms and sorceries, upon one Robert Nutter, -of Greenhead, in the Forest of Pendle, and with having, by force -thereof, feloniously killed him. To establish this charge her own -examination was read, from which it appeared that fourteen or fifteen -years ago, a thing like "a Christian man" had importuned her to sell her -soul to the devil, and that she had done so, giving to her familiar the -name of _Fancy_. On account of an insult offered to her daughter, -Redfern, by Robert Nutter, they two conspired to place a bad wish upon -Nutter, of which he died. It was further deposed against her that John -Device had agreed to give Old Chattox a dole of meal yearly if she would -not hurt him, and that when he ceased to make this annual tribute, he -took to his bed and died. She was further charged with having bewitched -the drink of John Moore, and also with having, without using the churn, -produced a quantity of butter from a dish of skimmed milk! In the face -of this evidence, and no longer anxious about her own life, she -acknowledged her guilt, but humbly prayed the judges to be merciful to -her daughter, Anne Redfern; but her prayer was in vain. Against -Elizabeth Device, the testimony of her own daughter, a child nine years -of age, was received; and the way in which her evidence was given, -instead of filling the court with horror, seems to have excited their -applause and admiration. Her familiar had the form of a dog and was -called _Bull_, and by his agency she bewitched to death John and James -Robinson and James Mitton; the first having called her a strumpet, and -the last having refused to give Old Demdike a penny when she asked him -for charity. To render her daughter proficient in the art, the prisoner -taught her two prayers, by one of which she cured the bewitched, and by -the other procured drink. The person of Elizabeth Device, as described -by Potts, seems witch-like. "She was branded (says he) with a -preposterous mark in nature; her left eye standing lower than her right; -the one looking down and the other up at the same time." Her process of -destruction was by modelling clay or marl figures, and wasting her -victims away along with them. James Device was convicted principally on -the evidence of his child-sister, of bewitching and killing Mrs. Ann -Towneley, the wife of Mr. Henry Towneley, of the Carr, by means of a -picture of clay; and both he and his sister were witnesses against their -mother. This wizard (James Device), whose spirit was called _Dandy_, is -described as a poor, decrepit boy, apparently of weak intellect, and so -infirm, that it was found necessary to hold him up in court on his -trial. - -Upon evidence of this kind no fewer than ten of these unfortunate people -were found guilty at Lancaster, and sentenced to suffer death. Eight -others were acquitted; why, it is not easy to see, for the evidence -appears to have been equally strong, or rather equally weak and absurd, -against all. The ten persons sentenced were--Ann Whittle _alias_ -"Chattox," Elizabeth Device, James Device, Anne Redfern, Alice Nutter, -Catherine Hewytt, John Bulcock, Jane Bulcock, Alizon Device, and Isabel -Robey. - -The judge, Sir Edward Bromley, in passing sentence on the convicted -prisoners, said, "You, of all people, have the least cause of complaint; -since on the trial for your lives there hath been much care and pains -taken; and what persons of your nature and condition were ever arraigned -and tried with so much solemnity? The court hath had great care to -receive nothing in evidence against you but matter of fact(!)[129] As -you stand simply (your offence and bloody practices not considered) -your fate would rather move compassion than exasperate any man; for whom -would not the ruin of so many poor creatures at one time touch, as in -appearance simple, and of little understanding? But the blood of these -innocent children, and others his Majesty's subjects whom cruelly and -barbarously you have murdered and cut off, cries unto the Lord for -vengeance. It is impossible that you, who are stained with so much -innocent blood, should either prosper or continue in this world, or -receive reward in the next." Having thus shut the door of hope, both as -to this life and the future, the judge proceeded to urge the wretched -victims of superstition to repentance! and concluded by sentencing them -all to be hanged. They were executed at Lancaster on the 20th of August, -1612, for having bewitched to death "by devilish practices and hellish -means" no fewer than sixteen inhabitants of the Forest of Pendle. These -were, 1. Robert Nutter, of Greenhead. 2. Richard Assheton, son of -Richard Assheton, Esq., of Downham. 3. A child of Richard Baldwin, of -Westhead, in the Forest of Pendle. 4. John Device, or Davies, of Pendle. -5. Ann Nutter, daughter of Anthony Nutter, of Pendle. 6. A child of John -Moor, of Higham. 7. Hugh Moor, of Pendle. 8. John Robinson, _alias_ -Swyer. 9. James Robinson. 10. Henry Mytton, of Rough Lee. 11. Ann -Towneley, wife of Henry Towneley, of Carr Hall, gentleman. 12. John -Duckworth. 13. John Hargreaves, of Goldshaw Booth. 14. Blaize -Hargreaves, of Higham. 15. Christopher Nutter. 16. Ann Folds, near -Colne. John Law, a pedlar, was also bewitched, so as to lose the use of -his limbs, by Alizon Device, because he refused to give her some pins -without money, when requested to do so by her on his way from Colne. -Alizon Device herself _was a beggar by profession_, and the evidence -sufficiently proved that Law's affliction was nothing more than what -would now be termed paralysis of the lower extremities. - -In his _Introduction_ to _Potts's Discovery of Witches_, Mr. Crossley -observes that "the main interest in reviewing this miserable band of -victims will be felt to centre in Alice Nutter. Wealthy, well conducted, -well connected, and placed probably on an equality with most of the -neighbouring families, and the magistrate before whom she was brought -and by whom she was committed, she deserves to be distinguished from the -companions with whom she suffered, and to attract an attention which has -never yet been directed to her. That James Device, on whose evidence she -was convicted, was instructed to accuse her by her own nearest -relatives, and that the magistrate, Roger Nowell, entered actively as a -confederate into the conspiracy, from a grudge entertained against her -on account of a long-disputed boundary, are allegations which tradition -has preserved, but the truth or falsehood of which, at this distance of -time, it is scarcely possible satisfactorily to examine. Her mansion, -Rough Lee, is still standing, a very substantial and rather fine -specimen of the houses of the inferior gentry, _temp._ James I., but now -divided into cottages." - - -THE SAMLESBURY WITCHES. - -The trials of these persons took place at the same assizes, and before -the same judge. Against Jane and Ellen Bierley and Jane Southworth, all -of Samlesbury, charged with having bewitched Grace Sowerbutts there, the -only material evidence was that of Grace Sowerbutts herself, a girl of -licentious and vagrant habits, who swore that these women (one of them -being her grandmother), did draw her by the hair of the head and lay her -upon the top of a hay-mow, and did take her senses and memory from her; -that they appeared to her sometimes in their own likeness, and sometimes -like a black dog. She declared that they by their arts had induced her -to join their sisterhood; and that they were met from time to time by -"four black things going upright and yet not like men in the face," who -conveyed them across the Ribble, where they danced with them, &c. The -prisoners were also charged with bewitching and slaying a child of -Thomas Walshman's, by placing a nail in its navel; and after its burial, -they took up the corpse, when they ate part of the flesh, and made an -"_unxious_ ointment" by boiling the bones. This was more than even the -capacious credulity of the judge and jury could digest. The Samlesbury -witches were, therefore, acquitted, and a seminary priest named Thompson -_alias_ Southworth, was suspected by two of the county magistrates [the -Rev. William Leigh and Edward Chisnall, Esq.,] to whom the affair was -afterwards referred, of having instigated Sowerbutts to make the charge; -but this imputation was not supported by any satisfactory evidence. - - -WITCHCRAFT AT MIDDLETON. - -About 1630, a man named Utley, a reputed wizard, was tried, found -guilty, and hanged, at Lancaster, for having bewitched to death, -Richard, the son of Ralph Assheton, Esq., of Downham, and Lord of -Middleton.[130] - - -WITCHCRAFT IN 1633-34. - -In 1633, a number of poor and ignorant people, inhabitants of Pendle -Forest, or the neighbourhood, were apprehended, upon the information of -a boy named Edmund Robinson, and charged with witchcraft. The following -is a copy of Robinson's deposition:-- - - "The examination of Edmund Robinson, son of Edmund Robinson, of - Pendle Forest, mason, taken at Padiham, before Richard Shuttleworth - [of Gawthorpe, Esq., then forty-seven or forty-eight] and John - Starkie, Esq. [one of the seven demoniacs of Cleworth, in 1595] two - of his Majesty's Justices of the Peace, within the county of - Lancaster, 10th of February, A.D. 1633 [1634]. Who informeth upon - oath (being examined concerning the great outrages of the witches), - and saith, that upon All Saints' Day last past [Nov. 1, 1633], he, - this informer, being with one Henry Parker, a next door neighbour to - him, in Wheatley-lane, desired the said Parker to give him leave to - get some bulloes [? bullace], which he did. In which time of getting - bulloes, he saw two greyhounds, viz., a black and a brown one, come - running over the next field towards him; he verily thinking the one - of them to be Mr. Nutter's, and the other to be Mr. Robinson's, the - said Mr. Nutter and Mr. Robinson having then such like. And the said - greyhounds came to him and fawned on him, they having about their - necks either of them a collar, and to either of which collars was - tied a string, which collars, as this informant affirmeth, did shine - like gold; and he thinking that some either of Mr. Nutter's or Mr. - Robinson's family should have followed them, but seeing nobody to - follow them, he took the said greyhounds, thinking to hunt with - them, and presently a hare rise [rose] very near before him, at the - sight of which he cried 'Loo! loo!' but the dogs would not run. - Whereupon being very angry he took them, and with the strings that - were at their collars, tied either of them to a little bush on the - next hedge, and with a rod that he had in his hand he beat them. And - instead of the black greyhound, one Dickonson wife stood up (a - neighbour), whom this informer knoweth; and instead of the brown - greyhound a little boy, whom this informer knoweth not. At which - sight this informer being afraid, endeavoured to run away, but being - stayed by the woman, viz., by Dickonson's wife, she put her hand - into her pocket and pulled out a piece of silver much like to a fair - shilling, and offered to give him to hold his tongue, and not to - tell, which he refused, saying, 'Nay, thou art a witch.' Whereupon - she put her hand into her pocket again, and pulled out a string like - unto a bridle, that jingled, which she put upon the little boy's - head that stood up in the brown greyhound's stead; whereupon the - said boy stood up a white horse. Then immediately the said - Dickonson's wife took this informer before her upon the said horse - and carried him to a new house called Hoare-stones, being about a - quarter of a mile off; whither when they were come there were divers - persons about the door, and he saw divers others come riding upon - horses of several colours towards the said house, which tied their - horses to a hedge near to the said house, and which persons went - into the said house, to the number of three score or thereabouts, as - this informer thinketh, where they had a fire and meat roasting, - and some other meat stirring in the house, whereof a young woman, - whom he, this informer, knoweth not, gave him flesh and bread upon a - trencher, and drink in a glass, which, after the first taste, he - refused, and would have no more, and said it was nought. And - presently after, seeing divers of the company going to a barn - adjoining, he followed after, and there he saw six of them kneeling, - and pulling at six several ropes, which were fastened or tied to the - top of the house, at or with which pulling came then in this - informer's sight flesh smoking, butter in lumps, and milk as it were - syling [skimming or straining] from the said ropes, all which fell - into basins which were placed under the said ropes. And after that - these six had done, there came other six, which did likewise; and - during all the time of their so pulling, they made such foul faces - that feared this informer, so as he was glad to steal out and run - home; whom, when they wanted, some of their company came running - after him, near to a place in a highway called Boggard-hole, where - this informer met two horsemen, at the sight whereof the said - persons left following him; and the foremost of which persons that - followed him, he knoweth to be one Loynd wife, which said wife, - together with one Dickonson wife, and one Janet Davies, he hath seen - at several times in a croft or close adjoining to his father's - house, which put him in a great fear. And further this informer - saith, upon Thursday after New Year's Day last past, he saw the said - Loynd wife sitting upon a cross piece of wood being near the chimney - of his father's dwelling-house: and he, calling to her, said, 'Come - down, thou Loynd wife,' and immediately the said Loynd wife went up - out of his sight. And further, this informer saith, that after he - was come from the company aforesaid to his father's house, being - towards evening, his father bade him go fetch home two kine to seal - [cows to yoke], and in the way, in a field called the Ollers - [_i.e._, Alders,] he chanced to hap upon a boy who began to quarrel - with him, and they fought so together till this informer had his - ears made very bloody by fighting; and looking down, he saw the boy - had a cloven foot, at which sight he was afraid, and ran away from - him to seek the kine. And in the way he saw a light like a lantern, - towards which he made haste, supposing it to be carried by some of - Mr. Robinson's people; but when he came to the place he only found a - woman standing on a bridge, whom, when he saw her, he knew to be - Loynd wife, and knowing her he turned back again, and immediately he - met with the aforesaid boy, from whom he offered to run; which boy - gave him a blow on the back, which caused him to cry. And he further - saith, that when he was in the barn, he saw three women take three - pictures from off the beam, in the which pictures many thorns, or - such like things, sticked; and that Loynd wife took one of the said - pictures down; but the other two women that took the other two - pictures down he knoweth not. And being further asked what persons - were at the meeting aforesaid, he nominated these persons hereafter - mentioned; viz., Dickonson wife, Henry Priestly wife and her son, - Alice Hargreaves, widow, Jennet Davies, William Davies, the wife of - Henry Jacks and her son John, James Hargreaves of Marsden, Miles - wife of Dicks, James wife, Saunders as he believes, Lawrence wife of - Saunders, Loynd wife, Boys wife of Barrowford, one Holgate and his - wife as he believes, Little Robin wife of Leonards of the West - Close. - - "Edmund Robinson of Pendle, father of the said Edmund Robinson, the - aforesaid informer, upon oath saith, that upon All Saints' Day he - sent his son, the aforesaid informer, to fetch home two kine to - seal, and saith that he thought his son stayed longer than he - should have done, and went to seek him; and in seeking him heard - him cry very pitifully, and found him so afraid and distracted, - that he neither knew his father, nor did know where he was, and so - continued very near a quarter of an hour before he came to himself; - and he told this informer his father all the particular passages - that are before declared in the said Edmund Robinson his son's - information." - -Upon such evidence as the above, these poor creatures, chiefly women and -children, were committed by the two magistrates named, to Lancaster -Castle, for trial. On their trials at the assizes, a jury, doubtless -full of prejudice and superstitious fear, found seventeen of them -guilty. The judge respited the convicts and reported the case to the -king in council. They were next remitted to the Bishop of Chester (Dr. -Bridgeman), who certified his opinion of the case, which, however, does -not appear. Subsequently, four of these poor women, Margaret Johnson, -Frances Dickonson, Mary Spencer, and the wife of one of the -Hargreaveses, were sent for to London, and examined, first by the king's -physicians and surgeons, and afterwards by Charles I. in person. The -strangest part of this sad story of superstition is that one of the -four, who underwent examination before the magistrates, trial before "my -lords the king's justices," a sifting question by the Right Rev. the -Lord Bishop of Chester, aided, probably, by his chancellor, archdeacons, -chaplains, proctors, &c., next before the lords of his majesty's privy -council, and lastly, before his sacred majesty the king himself, whose -very touch would remove the king's evil,--one of these four women, -doubtless after much badgering, bullying, and artful questioning, -actually made a confession of her guilt as a witch. When this was made -it does not appear; but here is the confession as preserved in -Dodsworth's Collection of MSS., vol. lxi. p. 47:-- - - "THE CONFESSION OF MARGARET JOHNSON.--That betwixt seven and eight - years since, she being in her own house in Marsden in a great - passion of anger and discontent, and withal pressed with some want, - there appeared unto her a spirit or devil in the proportion or - similitude of a man, apparelled in a suit of black, tied about with - silk points; who offered that if she would give him her soul he - would supply all her wants, and bring to her whatsoever she did - need; and at her appointment would in revenge either kill or hurt - whom or what she desired, were it man or beast. And saith, that - after a solicitation or two, she contracted and covenanted with the - said devil for her soul. And that the said devil or spirit bade her - call him by the name of Mamilian; and when she would have him do - anything for her, call in 'Mamilian,' and he would be ready to do - her will. And saith, that in all her talk and confidence she calleth - her said devil, 'Mamil, my God.' She further saith that the said - Mamilian, her devil (by her consent) did abuse and defile * * * And - saith that she was not at the great meeting at Hoare-stones, at the - Forest of Pendle, upon All Saints' Day, where * * * But saith she - was at a second meeting the Sunday next after All Saints' Day, at - the place aforesaid, where there was at the time between thirty and - forty witches, who did all ride to the said meeting, and the end of - the meeting was to consult for the killing and hurting of men and - beasts. And that besides their private familiars or spirits, there - was one great or grand devil or spirit, more eminent than the rest. - And if any desire to have a great and more wonderful devil, whereby - they may have more power to hurt, they may have one such. And saith - that such witches as have sharp bones given them by the devil to - prick them, have no paps or dugs whereon the devil may suck; but the - devil receiveth blood from the place pricked with the bone; and they - are more grand witches than any that have marks. She also saith, - that if a witch had but one mark, she hath but one spirit; if two, - then two spirits; if three, yet but two spirits. And saith that - their spirits usually have keeping of their bodies. And being - desired to name such as she knew to be witches, she named, &c. And - if they would torment a man, they bid their spirit go and torment - him in any particular place. And that Good Friday is one constant - day for a yearly general meeting of witches, and that on Good Friday - last they had a meeting near Pendle water-side. She also saith that - men witches usually have women spirits, and women witches men - spirits. And their devil or spirit gives them notice of their - meeting, and tells them the place where it must be. And saith, if - they desire to be in any place upon a sudden their devil or spirit - will, upon a rod, dog, or anything else, presently convey them - thither; yea, into any room of a man's house. But she saith, it is - not the substance of their bodies, but their spirit [that] assumeth - such form and shape as go into such rooms. She also saith that the - devil (after he begins to suck) will make a pap or dug in a short - time, and the matter which he sucks is blood. And saith that their - devils can cause foul weather and storms, and so did at their - meetings. She also saith that when her devil did come to suck her - pap, he usually came to her in the likeness of a cat, sometimes of - one colour and sometimes of another. And that since this trouble - befel her, her spirit hath left her, and she never saw him since." - -One cannot read this farrago of revolting absurdities without -instinctively feeling that no uneducated woman could have dictated it; -that it must have been prepared and dressed up for her to attach her -mark, and that all she did was to make the cross to it, in fear, -peradventure, of impending tortures. It is at least satisfactory to know -that all these examinations of the poor women by legal, ecclesiastic, -and regal authorities had a beneficial result. Strong presumption was -afforded that the chief witness, the boy Robinson, had been suborned to -accuse the prisoners falsely; and they were accordingly discharged. The -boy afterwards confessed that he was suborned. The story excited, at the -time, so much interest in the public, that in the following year, 1634, -was acted and published a play entitled "The Witches of Lancashire," -which Steevens cites in illustration of Shakspeare's witches. _Dr. -Whitaker's Whalley._ [Reference is probably made here to Heywood and -Broome's play of "The late Lancashire Witches" (London, 1634, quarto). -There was a much later play entitled "The Lancashire Witches," by -Shadwell (London, 1682)]. - - -THE LANCASHIRE WITCHES OF 1633-4. - -Sir Wm. Pelham writes, May 16, 1634, to Lord Conway:--"The greatest news -from the country is of a huge pack of witches, which are lately -discovered in Lancashire, whereof, 'tis said, 19 are condemned, and that -there are at least 60 already discovered, and yet daily there are more -revealed: there are divers of them of good ability, and they have done -much harm. I hear it is suspected that they had a hand in raising the -great storm, wherein his Majesty [Charles I.] was in so great danger at -sea in Scotland." The original is in the State Paper Office.[131] - - -LANCASHIRE WITCH-FINDERS. - -Dr. Webster, in his "Display of Witchcraft," depicts the consternation -and alarm amongst the old and decrepit, from the machinations of the -witch-finders. Of the boy Robinson, who was a witness on several trials -of witches, he says--"This said boy was brought into the church at -Kildwick [in Yorkshire, on the confines of Lancashire], a large parish -church, where I, being then curate there, was preaching in the -afternoon, and was set upon a stool to look about him, which moved some -little disturbance in the congregation for a while. After prayers, I -enquired what the matter was: the people told me that it was the boy -that discovered witches; upon which I went to the house where he was to -stay all night, and here I found him and two very unlikely persons, that -did conduct him and manage the business. I desired to have some -discourse with the boy in private, but that they utterly refused. Then, -in the presence of a great many people, I took the boy near me and said: -'Good boy, tell me truly and in earnest, didst thou see and hear such -strange things at the meeting of witches as is reported by many thou -didst relate?' But the two men, not giving the boy leave to answer, did -pluck him from me, and said he had been examined by two _able_ justices -of the peace, and _they did never ask him such a question_. To whom I -replied, the persons accused had therefore the more wrong." Dr. Webster -subsequently adds, that "The boy Robinson, in more mature years, -acknowledged that he had been instructed and suborned to make these -accusations against the accused persons, by his father and others, and -that, of course, the whole was a fraud. By such wicked means and -unchristian practices, divers innocent persons lost their lives; and -these wicked rogues wanted not greater persons (even of the ministry -too) that did authorise and encourage them in their diabolical courses; -and the like in my time happened here in Lancashire, where divers, both -men and women, were accused of supposed witchcraft, and were so -unchristianly and inhumanly handled, as to be stript stark naked, and -laid upon tables and beds to be searched for their supposed witch-marks; -so barbarous and cruel acts doth diabolical instigation, working upon -ignorance and superstition, produce." - - -THE FOREST OF PENDLE--THE HAUNT OF THE LANCASHIRE WITCHES. - -The Forest of Pendle is a portion of the greater one of -"Blackburnshire," and is so called from the celebrated mountain of that -name, over the declivity of which it extends, and stretches in a long -but interrupted descent of five miles to the Water of Pendle, a barren -and dreary tract. Dr. Whitaker observes of this and the neighbouring -forests, and the remark even yet holds good, "that they still bear the -marks of original barrenness and recent cultivation; that they are still -distinguished from the ancient freehold tracts around them, by want of -old houses, old woods, high fences (for these were forbidden by the -forest laws); by peculiarities of dialect and manners in their -inhabitants; and lastly, by a general air of poverty which all the -opulence of manufactures cannot remove." He considers that "at an -uncertain period during the occupancy of the Lacies, the first principle -of population (in these forests) commenced;" it was found that these -wilds, bleak and barren as they were, might be occupied to some -advantage in breeding young and depasturing lean "cattle, which were -afterwards fattened in the lower domain. _Vaccaries_, or great upland -pastures, were laid out for this purpose; _booths_ or mansions erected -upon them for the residence of herdsmen; and at the same time that herds -of deer were permitted to range at large as heretofore, _lawnds_, by -which are meant parks within a forest, were enclosed, in order to chase -them with greater facility, or by confinement to produce fatter venison. -Of these lawnds Pendle had New and Old Lawnd, with the contiguous Park -of Ightenhill." In the early part of the 17th century the inhabitants of -this district must have been, with few exceptions, a wretchedly poor and -uncultivated race, having little communication with the occupants of the -more fertile regions around them, and in whose minds superstition, even -yet unextinguished, must have had absolute and uncontrollable -domination. Under the disenchanting influence of steam, still much of -the old character of its population remains. The "parting genius" of -superstition still clings to the hoary hill tops and rugged slopes and -mossy water sides, along which the old forest stretched its length, and -the voices of ancestral tradition are still heard to speak from the -depth of its quiet hollows, and along the course of its gurgling -streams. He who visits Pendle will find that charms are yet generally -resorted to amongst the lower classes; that there are hares which, in -their persuasion, never can be caught, and which survive only to baffle -and confound the huntsman; that each small hamlet has its peculiar and -gifted personage, whom it is dangerous to offend; that the wise man and -woman (the white witches of our ancestors) still continue their -investigations of truth, undisturbed by the rural police or the progress -of the schoolmaster; that each locality has its haunted house; that -apparitions still walk their ghostly rounds,--and little would his -reputation for piety avail that clergyman in the eyes of his -parishioners, who should refuse to lay those "extravagant and erring -spirits," when requested, by those liturgic ceremonies which the -orthodoxy of tradition requires. In the early part of the reign of James -I., and at the period when his execrable statute against witchcraft -might have been sharpening its appetite by a temporary fast for the full -meal of blood by which it was eventually glutted--for as yet it could -count no recorded victims--two wretched old women with their families -resided in the Forest of Pendle. Their names were Elizabeth Southernes -and Ann Whittle, better known, perhaps, in the chronicles of witchcraft -by the appellations of Old Demdike and Old Chattox [perhaps, Chadwick]. -Both had attained, or reached the verge of the advanced age of eighty, -and were evidently in a state of extreme poverty, subsisting with their -families by occasional employment, by mendicancy, but principally, -perhaps, by the assumption of that unlawful power which commerce with -spirits of evil was supposed to procure, and of which their sex, life, -appearance, and peculiarities might seem to the prejudiced neighbourhood -in the Forest to render them not unsuitable depositaries.[132] - -[For the details of the witchcraft alleged to be practised by these old -crones and their families, with their trials and fate, see an article -(page 185 _supra_) in the present volume, entitled "The Lancashire -Witches of 1612."] - - -PENDLE HILL AND ITS WITCHES. - -(From Rev. Richard James's _Iter Lancastrense_.) - - "Penigent, Pendle Hill, and Ingleborough, - Three such hills be not in all England thorough."[133] - - I long to climb up Pendle[134]: Pendle stands - Round cop, surveying all the wild moor lands, - And Malkin's Tower,[135] a little cottage, where - Report makes caitiff witches meet, to swear - Their homage to the devil, and contrive - The deaths of men and beasts. Let who will dive - Into this baneful search, I wonder much - If judges' sentence with belief on such - Doth pass: then sure, they would not for lewd gain - Bad clients favour, or put good to pain - Of long pursuit; for terror of the fiend - Or love of God, they would give causes end - With equal justice. Yet I do confess - Needs must strange fancies poor old wives possess, - Who in those desert, misty moors do live, - Hungry and cold, and scarce see priest to give - Them ghostly counsel. Churches far do stand - In laymen's hands, and chapels have no land - To cherish learned curates,[136] though Sir John - Do preach for four pounds unto Haslingden. - Such yearly rent, with right of begging corn, - Makes John a sharer in my Lady's horn: - He drinks and prays, and forty years this life - Leading at home, keeps children and a wife.[137] - These are the wonders of our careless days: - Small store serves him who for the people prays. - - -WITCHCRAFT ABOUT 1654. - -Dr. Webster, in his _Display of Witchcraft_, dated February 23, 1673, -mentions two cases somewhat vaguely, in the following terms:--"I myself -have known two supposed witches to be put to death at Lancaster, within -these eighteen years [_i.e._, between 1654 and 1673] that did utterly -deny any league or covenant with the devil, or even to have seen any -visible devil at all; and may not the confessions of those (who both -died penitent) be as well credited as the confessions of those that were -brought to such confessions by force, fraud, or cunning persuasion and -allurement?" - - -A LIVERPOOL WITCH IN 1667. - -In the MS. _Rental of Sir Edward More_ (p. 62), dated in the year 1667, -it is gravely recorded that one of his tenants residing in -Castle-street, Liverpool, was a witch, descended from a witch, and -inheriting the faculty of witchcraft in common with her maiden -sister:--"Widow Bridge, a poor old woman, her own sister Margaret Ley, -being arraigned for a witch, confessed she was one, and when she was -asked how long she had so been, replied, since the death of her mother, -who died thirty years agone, and at her decease she had nothing to leave -her and this widow Bridge, that were sisters, but her two spirits, and -named then the elder spirit to this widow, and the other spirit to her, -the said Margaret Ley. God bless me and all mine from such legacies. -Amen."[138] - - -THE WITCH OF SINGLETON. - -The village of Singleton [in the Fylde] is remarkable only for having -been the residence of "Mag Shelton," a famous witch in her day. Her -food, we are told, was _haggis_ (at that time commonly used in the -district) made of boiled groats, mixed with thyme or parsley. Many are -the wild tales related of her dealings in the black art. The cows of her -neighbours were constantly milked by her; the pitcher in which she -conveyed the stolen milk away, walking before her in the shape of a -goose. Under this disguise her depredations were carried on till a -neighbour, suspecting the trick, struck the seeming goose, and lo! -immediately it was changed into a broken pitcher, and the vaccine liquor -flowed. Once only was this witch foiled by a powerful spell, the -contrivance of a maiden, who, having seated her in a chair, before a -large fire, and stuck a bodkin, crossed with two weaver's healds, about -her person, thus fixed her irremovably to her seat.[139] - - -WITCHCRAFT AT CHOWBENT IN THE EIGHTEENTH CENTURY. - -In the beginning of this [the eighteenth] century, one Katherine -Walkden, an old woman of the township of Atherton, Chowbent, was -committed to Lancaster as a witch. She was examined at Hulton Hall, -where the magistrate then resided, by a jury of matrons, by whom a -private teat was discovered, and upon this and other evidence (I suppose -of equal importance) her _mittimus_ was made out, but she died in gaol -before the ensuing assizes.[140] - - -KILLING A WITCH. - -Some years ago I formed the acquaintance of an elderly gentleman who had -retired from business, after amassing an ample fortune by the -manufacture of cotton. He was possessed of a considerable amount of -general information--had studied the world by which he was -surrounded--and was a leading member of the Wesleyan connexion. The -faith element, however, predominated amongst his religious principles, -and hence both he and his family were firm believers in witchcraft. On -one occasion, according to my informant, both he and the neighbouring -farmers suffered much from loss of cattle, and from the unproductiveness -of their sheep. The cream was _bynged_ [soured] in the churn, and would -bring forth no butter. Their cows died mad in the shippons, and no -farrier could be found who was able to fix upon the diseases which -afflicted them. Horses were bewitched out of their stables through the -loopholes, after the doors had been safely locked, and were frequently -found strayed to a considerable distance when they ought to have been -safe in their stalls. Lucky-stones had lost their virtues; horse-shoes -nailed behind the doors were of little use; and sickles hung across the -beams had no effect in averting the malevolence of the evil-doer. At -length suspicion rested upon an old man, a noted astrologer and -fortune-teller, who resided near New Church, in Rossendale, and it was -determined to put an end both to their ill-fortune and his career, by -performing the requisite ceremonials for "killing a witch." It was a -cold November evening when the process commenced. A thick fog covered -the valleys, and the wild winds whistled across the dreary moors. The -farmers, however, were not deterred. They met at the house of one of -their number, whose cattle were then supposed to be under the influence -of the wizard; and having procured a live cock-chicken, they stuck him -full of pins and burnt him alive, whilst repeating some magical -incantation. A cake was also made of oatmeal, mixed with the urine of -those bewitched, and, after having been marked with the name of the -person suspected, was then burnt in a similar manner.... The wind -suddenly rose to a tempest and threatened the destruction of the house. -Dreadful moanings as of some one in intense agony, were heard without, -whilst a sense of horror seized upon all within. At the moment when the -storm was at the wildest, the wizard knocked at the door, and in piteous -tones desired admittance. They had previously been warned by the "wise -man" whom they had consulted, that such would be the case, and had been -charged not to yield to their feelings of humanity by allowing him to -enter. Had they done so, he would have regained all his influence, for -the virtue of the spell would have been dissolved. Again and again did -he implore them to open the door, and pleaded the bitterness of the -wintry blast, but no one answered from within. They were deaf to all his -entreaties, and at last the wizard wended his way across the moors as -best he could. The spell, therefore, was enabled to have its full -effect, and within a week the Rossendale wizard was locked in the cold -embrace of death.[141] - - -A RECENT WITCH, NEAR BURNLEY. - -Not many years ago there resided in the neighbourhood of Burnley an old -woman, whose malevolent practices were supposed to render themselves -manifest by the injuries she inflicted on her neighbours' cattle; and -many a lucky-stone, many a stout horse-shoe and rusty sickle may now be -found behind the doors or hung from the beams in the cow-houses and -stables belonging to the farmers in that locality, which date their -suspension from the time when this "witch" in reputation held the -country-side in awe. Not one of her neighbours ever dared to offend her -openly; and if she at any time preferred a request, it was granted at -all hazards, regardless of inconvenience and expense. If, in some -thoughtless moment, any one spoke slightingly, either of her or her -powers, a corresponding penalty was threatened as soon as it reached her -ears, and the loss of cattle, personal health, or a general "run of bad -luck" soon led the offending party to think seriously of making peace -with his powerful tormentor. As time wore on, she herself sickened and -died; but before she could "shuffle off this mortal coil" she must needs -_transfer her familiar spirit_ to some trusty successor. An intimate -acquaintance from a neighbouring township was consequently sent for in -all haste, and on her arrival was immediately closeted with her dying -friend. What passed between them has never fully transpired, but it is -confidently affirmed that at the close of the interview this associate -_received the witch's last breath into her mouth, and with it the -familiar spirit_. The dreaded woman thus ceased to exist, but her powers -for good or evil were transferred to her companion; and on passing along -the road from Burnley to Blackburn, we can point out a farm-house at no -great distance, with whose thrifty matron no one will yet dare to -quarrel. - - -"LATING" OR "LEETING" WITCHES. - -All-Hallows' Eve, Hallowe'en, &c. (from the old English _halwen_, -saints), denote the vigil and day of All Saints, October 31 and November -1, a season abounding in superstitious observances. It was firmly -believed in Lancashire that the witches assembled on this night at their -general rendezvous in the Forest of Pendle,--a ruined and desolate -farm-house, called the _Malkin Tower_ (_Malkin_ being the name of a -familiar demon in Middleton's old play of _The Witch_; derived from -_maca_, an equal, a companion). This superstition led to another, that -of _lighting_, _lating_, or _leeting_ the witches (from _leoht_, A.-S. -light). It was believed that if a lighted candle were carried about the -fells or hills from eleven to twelve o'clock at night, and burned all -that time steadily, it had so far triumphed over the evil power of the -witches, who, as they passed to the Malkin Tower, would employ their -utmost efforts to extinguish the light, and the person whom it -represented might safely defy their malice during the season; but if, by -any accident the candle went out, it was an omen of evil to the luckless -wight for whom the experiment was made. It was also deemed inauspicious -to cross the threshold of that person until after the return from -_leeting_, and not then unless the candle had preserved its light. Mr. -Milner describes this ceremony as having been recently performed.[142] - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[122] Hall's _Chronicle_. - -[123] William of Worcester's _Annales Rerum Anglicarum_, pp. 460-61. - -[124] _Pictorial History of England_, vol. ii. p. 81; also Hall's -_Chronicle_. - -[125] This is the title-page of an old 12mo chap-book, the date of -publication of which is not shown. - -[126] This was sold by auction only a few years ago. - -[127] For Sir Philip Sidney's poetical description of this old game, see -his _Arcadia_, or Brand's _Popular Antiquities_ (Ed. 1841, vol. ii. p. -236). - -[128] Baines's _History of Lancashire_. - -[129] To prove the guilt of one of the prisoners, evidence was received -that it was the opinion of a man not in court, that she had turned his -beer sour. To prove the charge of murder, it was thought sufficient to -attest that the sick person had declared his belief that he owed his -approaching death to the maledictions of the prisoner. The bleeding of -the corpse on the touch of Jennet Preston, was received as an -incontrovertible evidence of guilt. It would be nearer the truth to say -that nothing but fiction was received in evidence. - -[130] Dr. Whitaker's _Whalley_, p. 528. - -[131] W. N. S., in _Notes and Queries_, 2nd series, vol. iv. p. 365. - -[132] Mr. James Crossley's introduction to _Potts's Discovery of -Witches_. - -[133] This is an old local proverb, amongst the Yorkshire proverbs in -Grose's _Provincial Glossary_. Ray gives it thus:-- - - "Ingleborough, Pendle, and Penigent, - Are the highest hills between Scotland and Trent." - -[134] Pendle Hill, or _Pen hull_ (_i.e._, the head hill) is situated on -the borders of Lancashire, in the northern part of Whalley, and rises -about 1800 feet above the level of the sea. The views from the summit -are very extensive, including the Irish sea on one side, and York -Minster (at a distance of nearly sixty miles) on the other. -Notwithstanding the boast of the old proverb above, there are several -hills round it of higher elevation. - -[135] Malkin Tower, in the Forest of Pendle, and on the declivity of -Pendle Hill, was the place where, according to vulgar belief, a sort of -assembly or convention of reputed witches took place on Good Friday in -1612, which was attended by seventeen pretended witches and three -wizards, who were afterwards brought to trial at Lancaster Assizes, and -ten of these unfortunate creatures being found guilty, were executed. - -[136] The laymen here referred to were not the patrons, but the persons -officiating, who were called readers, and had no orders. Nearly every -chapel in the parish of Whalley was destitute of land in 1636. - -[137] The Sir John was probably John Butterworth, clerk, curate of -Haslingden about this period. "Sir John" was a designation frequently -applied to an illiterate priest. The old allowance to the priest in -Haslingden, according to Bishop Gastrell, was 4_l._ Formerly parish -clerks (and perhaps the priests of poor cures also) claimed once a year -a bowl of corn from each parishioner of substance. - -[138] The _Moore Rental_, p. 62. - -[139] Rev. W. Thornber's _History of Blackpool_, p. 308. - -[140] _MS. Description of Atherton and Chowbent in 1787_, by Dorning -Rasbotham, Esq. - -[141] See _Transactions of Lancashire and Cheshire Historical Society_. - -[142] _Year Book_, part xiii. col. 1558. - - - - -PART II. - - - - -LOCAL CUSTOMS AND USAGES AT VARIOUS SEASONS. - - -Every greater or lesser festival of the church had its popular no less -than its ecclesiastical observances. The three great events of human -birth, marriage, and death, with their church rites of baptism, wedding, -and burial, naturally draw towards them many customs and usages deemed -fitting to such occasions. There are many customs in connexion with the -free and the inferior tenants of manors, and their services to the -manorial lord. Another class of customs will be found in observance in -agricultural districts amongst the owners, occupiers, and labourers of -farms and the peasantry generally. Lastly, as has been observed of the -English generally, every great occasion, collective or individual, must -have its festal celebration by eating and drinking in assembly. The -viands and the beverages proper to particular occasions, therefore, -constitute a not unimportant part of the local customs and usages of the -people; and hence demand a place in a volume of Folk-Lore. To these -subjects the present Part of this book is appropriated, and it is -believed that they will be found not less strikingly illustrative of the -manners and habits of the people of Lancashire, than the Superstitious -Beliefs and Practices recorded in the first Part of this little work. - - -CHURCH AND SEASON FESTIVALS. - -The feasts of dedication of parish churches to their particular -tutelary saints, of course are much too numerous to be more than named -in a work of this nature. The eve of such anniversary was the yearly -wake [or watching] of the parishioners; and originally booths were -erected in the churchyards, and feasting, dancing, and other revelry -continued throughout the night. The parishioners attended divine service -on the feast day, and the rest of that day was then devoted to popular -festivities. So great grew the excesses committed during these prolonged -orgies, that at length it became necessary to close the churches against -the pageants and mummeries performed in them at these anniversaries, and -the churchyards against the noisy, disorderly, and tumultuous -merry-makings of the people. Thenceforth the great seat of the revels -was transferred from the church and its graveyard, to the village green -or the town market-place, or some space of open ground, large enough for -popular assemblages to enjoy the favourite sports and pastimes of the -period. Such were the general character and features of the wakes and -feasts of country parishes, changing only with the name of the patron -saint, the date of the celebration. But the great festivals of the -church, celebrated alike in city and town, in village and hamlet, -wherever a church "pointed its spire to heaven," were held with more -general display, as uniting the ceremonials and rites of the church, -with the popular festivities outside the sacred precincts. Of these -great festivals the chief were New Year's Day, Twelfth Night (Jan. 5), -Shrove or Pancake Tuesday, Ash-Wednesday or the first day of Lent, -Mid-Lent or Mothering Sunday, Palm Sunday, Good Friday, Easter, -Whitsuntide or Pentecost, May-Day, Midsummer Day (St. John's Eve and -Day, June 23 and 24), Michaelmas Day (Sept. 29), and Christmas Day, with -the Eve of the New Year. Of these we propose to notice various customs -and practices as observed in Lancashire from the beginning to the close -of the year. - - -NEW YEAR'S DAY. - -In the church calendar this day is the festival of the Circumcision; in -the Roman church it is the day of no fewer than seven saints. But it is -much more honoured as a popular festival. Many families in Lancashire -sit up on New Year's Eve till after twelve o'clock midnight, and then -drink "a happy New Year" to each other over a cheerful glass. The church -bells, too, in merry peals ring out the Old Year, and ring in the New. -In the olden time the wassail-bowl, the spiced ale called "lamb's wool," -and currant bread and cheese, were the viands and liquor in vogue on New -Year's Eve and Day. A turkey is still a favourite dish at dinner on New -Year's Day. - - -FIRE ON NEW YEAR'S EVE. - -My maid, who comes from the neighbourhood of Pendle, informs me that an -unlucky old woman in her native village, having allowed her fire to go -out on New Year's Eve, had to wait till one o'clock on the following day -before any neighbour would supply her with a light.[143] - - -NEW YEAR'S LUCK. - -Should a female, or a light-haired male, be the first to enter a house -on the morning of New Year's Day, it is supposed to bring bad luck for -the whole of the year then commencing. Various precautions are taken to -prevent this misfortune: hence many male persons with black or dark -hair, are in the habit of going from house to house, on that day, "to -take the New Year in;" for which they are treated with liquor, and -presented with a small gratuity. So far is the apprehension carried, -that some families will not open the door to any one until satisfied by -the voice that he is likely to bring the house a year's good luck by -entering it. Then, the most kindly and charitable woman in a -neighbourhood will sternly refuse to give any one a light on the morning -of New Year's Day, as most unlucky to the one who gives away light. - - -NEW YEAR'S FIRST CALLER. - -For years past, an old lady, a friend of mine, has regularly reminded me -to pay her an early visit on New Year's Day; in short, to be her first -caller, and to "let the New Year in." I have done this for years, except -on one occasion. When I, who am of fair complexion, have been her first -visitor, she has enjoyed happy and prosperous years; but on the occasion -I missed, some dark-complexioned, black-haired gentleman -called;--sickness and trouble, and commercial disasters, were the -result.[144] [This is at variance with the preceding paragraph as to -the favourite colour of the hair, &c. Perhaps this differs in different -localities; but of this at least we are assured, that any male, dark or -fair, is regarded as a much more lucky "letter-in" of the New Year, than -any girl or woman, be she blonde or brunette.] - -In Lancashire, even in the larger towns, it is considered at this time -of day particularly fortunate if "a black man" (meaning one of a dark -complexion) be the first person that enters the house on New Year's -Day.[145] - - -NEW YEAR'S DAY AND OLD CHRISTMAS DAY. - -Some persons still keep Old Christmas Day. They always look for a change -of weather on that day, and never on the 25th December. The common -people have long begun their year with the 1st of January. The Act of -1752, so far as they were concerned, only caused the Civil and the -Ecclesiastical Year to begin together. In Hopton's _Year Book_ for A.D. -1612, he thus speaks of _January 1st_:--"January. New-yeares day in the -morning being red, portends great tempest and warre." - - -AULD WIFE HAKES. - -Christmas and New Year's tea parties and dances are called "Auld Wife -Hakes" in the Furness district of Lancashire. The word _hake_ is never -used in the central part of the county.[146] Can this be from _hacken_ -(? from _hacking_, chopping small), a pudding made in the maw of a sheep -or hog. It was formerly a standard dish at Christmas, and is mentioned -by N. Fairfax, _Bulk and Selvedge_, 1674, p. 159.[147] [To _hake_, is to -sneak, or loiter about.] - - -NEW YEAR'S GIFTS AND WISHES. - -It was formerly a universal custom to make presents, especially from -superiors to dependents, and _vice versa_. Now the custom is chiefly -confined to parents and elders giving to children or young persons. The -practice of making presents on New Year's Day existed among the Romans, -and also amongst the Saxons; from one or both of which peoples we have -doubtless derived it. The salutation or greeting on New Year's Day is -also of great antiquity. Pieces of Roman pottery have been found -inscribed "A happy new year to you," and one inscriber wishes the like -to himself and his son. In country districts, the homely phrase is: "A -happy New Year t'ye, and monny on 'em." In more polished society, and in -correspondence, "I wish you a happy New Year," or "The compliments of -the season to you." - - -SHROVETIDE. - -This name, given to the last few days before Lent, is from its being the -custom for the people to go to the priest to be _shriven_, _i.e._, to -make their confession, before entering on the great fast of Lent, which -begins on Ash-Wednesday. _Tide_ is the old Anglo-Saxon word for time, -and it is still retained in Whitsuntide. After the people had made the -confession required by the ancient discipline of the church, they were -permitted to indulge in festive amusements, though restricted from -partaking of any repasts beyond the usual substitutes for flesh: hence -the Latin and continental name _Carnaval_,--literally "Carne, vale," -"Flesh, farewell." In Lancashire and other Northern counties, three days -in this week had their peculiar dishes, viz.: "Collop Monday," "Pancake -Tuesday," and "Fritters Wednesday." Originally, collops were simply -slices of bread, but these were long ago discarded for slices or rashers -of bacon. Fritters were thick, soft cakes, made from flour batter, with -or without sliced apples intermixed. Shrovetide was anciently a great -time for cock-throwing and cock-fighting, and indeed of many other loose -and cruel diversions, arising from the indulgences formerly granted by -the church, to compensate for the long season of fasting and humiliation -which commenced on Ash-Wednesday. As Selden observes--"What the church -debars us on one day, she gives us leave to take on another; first we -feast, and then we fast; there is a carnival, and then a Lent." - - -SHROVE-TUESDAY, OR PANCAKE TUESDAY. - -The tossing of pancakes (and in some places fritters) on this day was a -source of harmless mirth, and is still practised in the rural parts of -Lancashire and Cheshire, with its ancient accompaniments:-- - - "It is the day whereon the rich and poor, - Are chiefly feasted on the self-same dish, - When every paunch till it can hold no more, - Is fritter-filled, as well as heart can wish; - And every man and maid do take their turn - And toss their pancakes up for fear they burn, - And all the kitchen doth with laughter sound, - To see the pancakes fall upon the ground."[148] - -Another writer gives this injunction:-- - - "Maids, fritters and pancakes enow see ye make, - Let Slut have one pancake for company's sake."[149] - - -COCK-THROWING AND COCK-FIGHTING. - -Cock-fighting was a barbarous pastime of high antiquity, being practised -by the Greeks and Romans. In England it may be traced back to the -twelfth century, when it appears to have been a childish or boyish -sport. FitzStephen, in his description of London in the time of Henry -II., says: "Every year, on the morning of Shrove-Tuesday, the schoolboys -of the city of London, and of other cities and great towns, bring game -cocks to their masters, and in the fore-part of the day, till -dinner-time, are permitted to amuse themselves with seeing them fight." -The school was the cock-pit, and the master the comptroller or director -of the pastime. The victor, or hero of the school, who had won the -greatest number of fights was carried about upon a pole by two of his -companions. He held the cock in his hands, and was followed by other -boys bearing flags, &c. Cock-throwing was a sport equally cruel; but -only one cock was needed. The poor bird was tied to a peg or stake, by a -string, sometimes long, sometimes short, and the boys from a certain -distance, in turn, threw a stick at the cock. The victor in this case -was he whose missile killed the poor bird. Amongst the recognised -payments by the boys at the old Free Grammar Schools, was a penny yearly -to the master for the privilege of cock-fighting or cock-throwing on -Shrove-Tuesday. The statutes of the Manchester Free Grammar School, made -about 1525, show a creditable desire to abolish these barbarous sports. -One of these statutes, as to the fees of the master, provides that "he -shall teach freely and indifferently [not carelessly, but impartially] -every child and scholar coming to the same school, without any money or -other reward taking there-for, as cock-penny, victor-penny," &c. Another -is still more explicit:--"The scholars of the same school shall use no -cock-fights, nor other unlawful games, and riding about for victors, -&c., which be to the great let [hindrance] of virtue, and to charge and -cost of the scholars, and of their friends." At a much later period, -however, the scholars seem to have been allowed, on Easter Monday, to -have archery practice at a target, one of the prizes being a -dunghill-cock; but this was abolished by the late Dr. Smith, when high -master. - - -COCK-FIGHTING ABOUT BLACKBURN. - -About thirty years ago cock-fighting formed a common pastime about -Mellor and Blackburn. A blacksmith, named Miller, used to keep a large -number of cocks for fighting purposes. He was said to have "sold himself -to the devil" in order to have money enough for betting; and it was -remarked that he rarely won! If the practice is still followed, it is -done _in secret_; but the number of game-cocks one sees kept by -"sporting characters" can scarcely admit of any other inference. - - -COCK-PENNY AT CLITHEROE. - -In the Clitheroe Grammar School an annual present at Shrovetide is -expected from the scholars, varying in amount according to the -circumstances of the parents. With the exception of this _cock-penny_, -the school is free. The origin of this custom it is now difficult to -trace. Shrove-Tuesday, indeed, was a sad day for cocks. Cock-fighting -and throwing at cocks were among its barbarous sports. Schoolboys used -to bring game-cocks to the master, and delight themselves in -cock-fighting all the forenoon. In Scotland, the masters presided at the -fight, and claimed the runaway cocks called "forgers" [? 'fugees] as -their perquisites. The "cock-penny" may have been the substitute devised -by a less cruel age for the ordinary gratuity.[150] - - -COCK-FIGHTING AT BURNLEY. - -The head master of Burnley Grammar School used to derive a portion of -his income from "cock-pence" paid to him by his pupils at Shrovetide. -This has been disused for half a century. Latterly it degenerated into a -"clubbing together" of pence by the pupils for the purpose of providing -themselves with materials for a carouse. This was, therefore, at last -prohibited. - - -SHROVETIDE CUSTOMS IN THE FYLDE. - -Shrove-Tuesday was also called "Pancake Day," pancakes being the -principal delicacy of the day. At eleven o'clock in the forenoon, the -"pancake bell" rang at Poulton church, and operations were immediately -commenced. Great was the fun in "tossing" or turning the pancake by a -sudden jerk of the pan; while the appetites of the urchins never -flagged. Amongst the sports on Shrove-Tuesday, was pre-eminently -cock-fighting; though bull and bear baiting were also among the rude and -savage pastimes of the season.[151] In Poulton, on Shrove-Tuesday, the -pancake bell still warns the apprentice to quit his work, not indeed to -go to the confessional and be _shriven_, but to prepare for the feast of -the day.[152] - - -LENT.--ASH-WEDNESDAY. - -The forty days' fast at the beginning of spring, in commemoration of the -temptation and fast of our Saviour in the wilderness, was called Lent, -from the Saxon name for Spring, _lengten-tide_. The fast, as prescribed -by the church, consisted in abstaining from flesh, eggs, preparations of -milk, and wine, and in making only one meal, and that in the evening. -Fish was not forbidden, though many restricted themselves to pulse and -fruit. Ash-Wednesday, the first day in Lent, was one of severe -discipline in the Roman church; and to remind the faithful, at the -beginning of the long penitential fast, that men are but "dust and -ashes," the priest, with ashes of the wood of the palm-tree, marked the -sign of the cross on the forehead of each confessing worshipper; whence -the name. Since the Reformation the observance of Lent by fasting is not -general in Lancashire. - - -MID-LENT SUNDAY, OR "MOTHERING SUNDAY." - -The fourth or middle Sunday between Quadragesima (the first Sunday in -Lent) and Easter Sunday. It was of old called _Dominica Refectionis_, or -the Sunday of Refreshment, from the gospel of the day treating of the -miraculous feeding of the five thousand. It was originally called -"Mothering Sunday," from the ancient usage of visiting the mother or -cathedral churches of the dioceses, when Lent or Easter offerings were -made. The public processions have been discontinued ever since the -middle of the thirteenth century; but the name of Mothering Sunday is -still retained, a custom having been substituted amongst the people of -Lancashire, Cheshire, Yorkshire, and other counties, of those who have -left the paternal roof visiting their natural mother, and presenting to -her small tokens of their filial affection, in money, trinkets, -frumenty, or cakes. In some parts of Lancashire, the particular kind of -cakes have long been fixed by old custom, being what are called -"simnels," or, in the dialect of the district, "simlins;" and with these -sweet-cakes, it was, and in places is still, the custom to drink warm, -spiced ale, called "bragot." Another viand especially eaten on Mid-Lent -Sunday was that of fig or fag-pies. - - -SIMNEL CAKES. - -In days of yore, there was a little alleviation of the severities of -Lent permitted to the faithful, in the shape of a cake called "Simnel." -Two English towns claim the honour of its origin,--Shrewsbury and -Devizes. The first makes its simnel in the form of a warden-pie, the -crust being of saffron and very thick; the last has no crust, is -star-shaped, and the saffron is mixed with a mass of currants, spice, -and candied lemon. Bury, in Lancashire, is almost world-famous for its -simnels and its bragot (or spiced sweet ale), on Mothering Sunday, or -Mid-Lent. As to the name, Dr. Cowell, in his _Law Directory or -Interpreter_ (folio, 1727), derives _simnell_ (Lat. _siminellus_), from -the Latin _simila_, the finest part of the flour: "_panis -similageneus_," simnel bread,--"still in use, especially in Lent." The -English _simnel_ was the purest white bread, as in the Book of Battle -Abbey: "Panem regiae mensae apsum, qui _simenel_ vulgo vocatur." (Bread -fit for the royal table, which is commonly called _simenel_.) Dr. Cowell -adds that it was sometimes called _simnellus_, as in the "Annals of the -Church of Winchester," under the year 1042, "conventus centum -_simnellos_" (the convent 100 _simnels_). He also quotes the statute of -51 Henry III. (1266-7), which enacts that "bread made into a _simnel_ -should weigh two shillings less than wastel bread;" and also an old -manuscript of the customs of the House of Farendon (where it is called -"bread of symenel"), to the same effect. Wastel was the finest sort of -bread. Herrick, who was born in 1591, and died in 1674 (?) has the -following in his _Hesperides_:-- - - TO DIANEME. - A Ceremony in Gloucester. - - I'll to thee a _Simnell_ bring - 'Gainst thou go'st a _mothering_; - So that when she blesseth thee, - Half that blessing thou'lt give me. - -Bailey, in his Dictionary (folio 1764), says _simnel_ is probably -derived from the Latin _simila_, fine flour, and means, "a sort of cake -or bun, made of fine flour, spice, &c." It will thus appear that -_simnel_ cakes can boast a much higher antiquity than the reign of Henry -VII. (Lambert _Simnel_ probably taking his name from them, as a baker, -and not giving his name to them), and that they were not originally -confined to any particular time or place.[153] - -In the _Dictionarius_ of John de Garlande, compiled at Paris in the -thirteenth century, the word _simineus_ or _simnels_, is used as the -equivalent to the Latin _placentae_, which are described as cakes exposed -in the windows of the hucksters, to sell to the scholars of the -University and others.[154] - - -BURY. - -There is an ancient celebration in Bury, on Mid-Lent Sunday, there -called "Simblin Sunday," when large cakes called "simblins" (_i.e._, -simnels), are sold generally in the town, and the shops are kept open -the whole day, except during Divine Service, for the purpose of vending -this mysterious aliment.[155] These cakes are a compound of currants, -candied lemon, sugar, and spice, sandwich-wise, between crust of short -or puff paste. They are in great request at the period, not only in -Bury, but in Manchester and most of the surrounding towns. A still -richer kind, approaching the bride-cake in character, are called "Almond -Simnels." - - -BRAGOT-SUNDAY. - -Formerly it was the practice in Leigh to use a beverage on Mid-Lent -Sunday, called "bragot," consisting of a kind of spiced ale; and also -for the boys to indulge themselves by persecuting the women on their way -to church, by secretly hooking a piece of coloured cloth to their gowns. -A similar custom prevails in Portugal, at Carnival time, when many -persons that walk the streets on the three last days of the Intrudo, -have a long paper train hooked to their dress behind, on which the -populace set up the cry of "Raboleve," which is continued till the butt -of the joke is divested of his "tail." As to "Bragot," or more properly -"Braget" Sunday, it is a name given in Lancashire to the fourth Sunday -in Lent, which is in other places called "Mothering Sunday." Both -appellations arise out of the same custom. Voluntary oblations, called -_Quadragesimalia_ (from the Latin name of Lent, signifying forty days), -were formerly paid by the inhabitants of a diocese to the Mother -Cathedral Church, and at this time prevailed the custom of processions -to the Cathedral on Mid-Lent Sunday. On the discontinuance of -processions, the practice of "mothering," or visiting parents, began; -and the spiced ale used on these occasions was called _braget_, from the -British _bragawd_, the name of a kind of metheglin. Whitaker[156] -observes that this description of liquor was called "Welsh ale" by the -Saxons. Since his time, the liquor drunk on this day is principally -_mulled ale_, of which there is a large consumption in Lancashire on -Mid-Lent Sunday.[157] - - -FAG-PIE SUNDAY. - -Fig-pies--(made of dry figs, sugar, treacle, spice, &c., and by some -described as "luscious," by others as "of a sickly taste")--or, as they -are locally termed, "fag-pies," are, or were at least till recently, -eaten in Lancashire on a Sunday in Lent [? Mid-Lent Sunday], thence -called "Fag-pie Sunday."[158] - -In the neighbourhood of Burnley Fag-pie Sunday is the second Sunday -before Easter, or that which comes between Mid-Lent and Palm Sunday. -About Blackburn fig-pies are always prepared for Mid-Lent Sunday, and -visits are usually made to friends' houses in order to partake of the -luxury. - - -GOOD FRIDAY. - -This name is believed to be an adoption of the old German _Gute_ or -_Gottes Freytag_, Good or God's Friday, so called on the same principle -that Easter Day in England was at no very remote period called "God's -Day." The length of the Church Services in ancient times, on this day, -occasioned it to be called Long Friday. In most parts of Lancashire, -buns with crosses stamped upon them, and hence called "cross buns," are -eaten on this day at breakfast; and it is in many places believed that a -cross bun, preserved from one Good Friday to another, will effectually -prevent an attack of the whooping-cough. Some writers declare that our -cross buns at Easter are only the cakes which our pagan Saxon -forefathers ate in honour of their goddess Eostre, and from which the -Christian clergy, who were unable to prevent people from eating them, -sought to expel the paganism by marking them with the cross. On the -Monday before Good Friday the youths about Poulton-le-Fylde and its -neighbourhood congregate in strange dresses, and visit their friends' -houses, playing antics, on which occasion they are styled "the Jolly -Lads."[159] It is stated that in some places in Lancashire, Good Friday -is termed "Cracklin' Friday," as on that day it is a custom for children -to go with a small basket to different houses, to beg small wheaten -cakes, which are something like the Jews' Passover bread; but made -shorter or richer, by having butter or lard mixed with the flour. "Take -with thee loaves and cracknels." (1 Kings xiv.) - - -EASTER. - -This name is clearly traced to that of Eostre, a goddess to whom the -Saxons and other Northern nations sacrificed in the month of April, in -which our Easter usually falls. Easter Sunday is held as the day of our -Lord's resurrection. Connected with this great festival of the Church -are various local rites and customs, pageants and festivities; such as -_pace_ or _Pasche_ [_i.e._, Easter] egging, lifting or heaving, Ball -play, the game of the ring, guisings or disguisings, fancy cakes, "old -hob," "old Ball," or hobby horse, &c. - -Easter-Day is a moveable feast, appointed to be held on the first Sunday -after the full moon immediately following the 21st of March; but if the -moon happen to be at the full on a Sunday, then Easter is held on the -following Sunday and not on the day of the full moon. Thus, Easter-Day -cannot fall earlier than the 22nd of March, nor later than the 25th of -April, in any year. - - -PASCHE, PACE, OR EASTER EGGS. - -In Lancashire and Cheshire children go round the village and beg eggs -for the Easter dinner, accompanying their solicitation by a short song, -the burthen of which is addressed to the farmer's dame, asking for "an -egg, bacon, cheese, or an apple, or any good thing that will make us -merry;" and ending with - - And I pray you, good dame, an Easter egg. - -In the North of Lancashire, Cumberland, Westmorland, and other parts of -the North of England, boys beg on Easter Eve eggs to play with, and -beggars ask for them to eat. These eggs are hardened by boiling and -tinged with the juice of herbs, broom-flowers, &c. The eggs being thus -prepared, the boys go out and play with them in the fields, rolling them -up and down like bowls, or throwing them up like balls into the -air.[160] - - -PACE EGGING IN BLACKBURN. - -The old custom of "pace egging" is still observed in Blackburn. It is an -observance limited to the week before Easter-Day, and is said to be -traceable up to the theology and philosophy of the Egyptians, Persians, -Gauls, Greeks, and Romans; among all of whom an egg was an emblem of the -universe, the production of the Supreme Divinity. The Christians -adopted the egg as an emblem of the resurrection, since it contains the -elements of a future life. - -The immediate occasion of the observance may have been in the resumption -on the part of our forefathers of eggs as a food at Easter on the -termination of Lent; hence the origin of the term _pace_ or _pasque_ -[rather from _Pasche_] that is, Easter egg. In a curious roll of the -expenses of the household of Edward I., communicated to the Society of -Antiquaries, is the following item in the accounts for Easter Sunday: -"For four hundred and a half of eggs, eighteen pence." The following -prayer, found in the ritual of Pope Paul V., composed for the use of -England, Ireland, and Scotland, illustrates the meaning of the custom: -"Bless, O Lord, we beseech thee, this Thy creation of eggs, that it may -become a wholesome sustenance to Thy faithful servants, eating it in -thankfulness to Thee, on account of the resurrection of our Lord." In -Blackburn at the present day, pace egging commences on the Monday and -finishes on the Thursday before the Easter-week. Young men in groups -varying in number from three to twenty, dressed in various fantastic -garbs, and wearing masks--some of the groups accompanied by a player or -two on the violin--go from house to house singing, dancing, and -capering. At most places they are liberally treated with wine, punch, or -ale, dealt out to them by the host or hostess. The young men strive to -disguise their walk and voice; and the persons whom they visit use their -efforts on the other hand to discover who they are; in which mutual -endeavour many and ludicrous mistakes are made. Here you will see -Macbeth and a fox-hunter arm in arm; Richard the Third and a black -footman in familiar converse; a quack doctor and a bishop smoking their -pipes and quaffing their "half and half;" a gentleman and an -oyster-seller; an admiral and an Irish umbrella-mender; in short, every -variety of character, some exceedingly well-dressed, and the characters -well sustained. A few years ago parties of this description were much -subject to annoyance from a gang of fellows styled the "Carr-laners," -(so-called, because living in Carr-lane, Blackburn,) armed with -bludgeons, who endeavoured to despoil the pace-eggers. Numerous fights, -with the usual concomitants of broken eggs and various contusions, were -amongst the results. This lawless gang of ruffians is now broken up, and -the serious affrays between different gangs of pace-eggers have become -of comparatively rare occurrence. An accident, however, which ended -fatally, occurred last year [? 1842]. Two parties had come into -collision, and during the affray one of the young men had his skull -fractured, and death ensued. Besides parties of the sort we have -attempted to describe, children, both male and female, with little -baskets in their hands, dressed in all the tinsel-coloured paper, -ribbons, and "doll rags" which they can command, go up and down from -house to house; at some receiving pence, at others eggs, at others -gingerbread, some of which is called _hot_ gingerbread, having in it a -mixture of ginger and Cayenne, causing the most ridiculous contortions -of feature in the unfortunate being who partakes of it. Houses are -literally besieged by these juvenile troops from morning till night. -"God's sake! a pace-egg," is the continual cry. There is no particular -tune, but various versions of pace-egging and other songs are sung. The -eggs obtained by the juveniles are very frequently boiled and dyed in -logwood and other dyes, on the Easter Sunday, and rolled in the fields -one egg at another till broken. Great quantities of mulled ale are drunk -in this district on Easter Sunday. The actors do not take the eggs with -them; they are given at the places where they call. The actors are -mostly males; but in the course of one's peregrinations on one of these -evenings it is not unusual to discover one or two of the fair sex in -male habiliments, and supporting the character admirably. This old -custom of pace-egging was again observed this year [? 1843] -notwithstanding the fatal accidents we have mentioned, without any -molestation from the authorities, and without any accident -occurring.[161] - - -PACE OR PEACE EGGING IN EAST LANCASHIRE. - -The week before Easter is a busy one for the boys and girls in East -Lancashire. They generally deck themselves up in ribbons and fantastic -dresses, and go about the country begging for money or eggs. -Occasionally they go out singly, and then are very careful to provide -themselves with a neat little basket, lined with moss. Halfpence or -eggs, or even small cakes of gingerbread, are alike thankfully received. -Sometimes the grown young men are very elaborately dressed in ribbons, -and ornamented with watches and other jewellery. They then go out in -groups of five or six, and are attended by a "fool" or "tosspot," with -his face blackened. Some of them play on musical instruments while the -rest dance. Occasionally young women join in the sport, and then the -_men_ are dressed in women's clothing, and the _women_ in men's. - - -EASTER SPORTS AT THE MANCHESTER FREE GRAMMAR SCHOOL. - -A gentleman, using the initials G. H. F., some years ago communicated to -a local paper the following facts relative to the sports of the scholars -at Easter in the early part of the nineteenth century:--"On Easter -Monday the senior scholars had a treat and various festivities. On the -morning of that day, masters and scholars assembled in the school-room, -with a band of music, banners, &c. One essential thing was a target, in -a square frame, to which were suspended one or more pairs of silver -buckles, constituting the chief archery prize, the second being a good -dunghill-cock. These were the only prizes, and they were duly contended -for by the scholars, the whole being probably devised in the old times, -with a view to keep the youth of Manchester in the practice of the old -English archery, which on the invention of gunpowder and fire-arms fell -rapidly into desuetude. The gay procession thus provided, the scholars, -bearing their bows and arrows, set out from the Grammar School, headed -by some reverend gentleman of the Collegiate church, by the masters of -the school, the churchwardens, &c.--the band playing some popular airs -of the day--and took its route by Long Millgate, to Hunt's Bank, and -along the Walkers' [_i.e._, fullers'] Croft, to some gardens, where it -was then the custom for artizans on Sunday mornings to buy 'a penny -posy.' Here the targets were set up, and the 'artillery practice,' as -it was the fashion to call archery, commenced. At its close the prizes -were awarded, and the procession returned in the same order, along -Hunt's Bank, the Apple Market, Fennel Street, Hanging Ditch, and Old -Millgate, to the Bull's Head, in the Market Place,--in those days a very -celebrated house, where the junior boys were treated with -_frumenty_--wheat stewed, and then boiled in milk with raisins, -currants, and spices, till it forms a thick, porridge-like mess, -exceedingly palatable to young folk. The masters and assistants, and the -senior scholars, partook of roast beef, plum pudding, &c. The abolition -of this Easter Monday custom, said to have been by Dr. Smith, was by no -means relished by the Grammar School boys." - - -"LIFTING" OR "HEAVING" AT EASTER. - -This singular custom formerly prevailed in Manchester, and it is now -common in the neighbourhood of Liverpool, in the parish of Whalley, at -Warrington, Bolton, and in some other parts of Lancashire, especially in -rural districts, though it is by no means general, and in some places is -quite unknown. A Manchester man, in 1784, thus describes it:--"_Lifting_ -was originally designed to represent our Saviour's resurrection. The men -lift the women on Easter Monday, and the women the men on Tuesday. One -or more take hold of each leg, and one or more of each arm, near the -body, and lift the person up, in a horizontal position, three times. It -is a rude, indecent, and dangerous diversion, practised chiefly by the -lower class of people. Our magistrates constantly prohibit it by the -bellman, but it subsists at the end of the town; and the women have of -late years converted it into a money job. I believe it is chiefly -confined to these northern counties." - -The following [translated] extract from a document entitled _Liber -Contrarotulatoris Hospicii_, 13 Edward I. [1225], shows the antiquity of -the custom:--"To the Ladies of the Queen's Chamber, 15th of May; seven -ladies and damsels of the queen, because they took [or lifted] the king -in his bed, on the morrow of Easter, and made him pay fine for the peace -of the king, which he made of his gift by the hand of Hugh de Cerr [or -Kerr], Esq., to the lady of Weston, L14."[162] - -On Easter Monday, between Radcliffe and Bolton, we saw a number of -females surround a male, whom they mastered, and fairly lifted aloft in -the air. It was a merry scene. What humour in the faces of these -Lancashire witches! What a hearty laugh! What gratification in their -eyes! The next day would bring reprisals: the girls would then be the -party to be subjected to this rude treatment.[163] - - -EASTER GAME OF THE RING. - -In his _History of Lancashire_, Mr. Baines states that the Easter Game -of the Ring, little known in other parts of Lancashire, prevails at -Padiham, in the parish of Whalley, on the Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday in -Easter week; when young people, having formed themselves into a ring, -tap each other repeatedly with a stick, after the manner of the holiday -folks at Greenwich. The stick may be a slight difference; but the game -of Easter ring, with taps of the hand, or the dropping of a handkerchief -at the foot, the writer has seen played at Easter and at Whitsuntide in -many villages and hamlets round Manchester. - - -PLAYING "OLD BALL." - -This is an Easter custom. A huge and rude representation of a horse's -head is made; the eyes are formed of the bottoms of old broken wine or -other "black bottles"; the lower and upper jaws have large nails put in -them to serve as teeth; the lower jaw is made to move by a contrivance -fixed at its back end, to be operated on by the man who plays "Old -Ball." There is a stick, on which the head rests, which is handled and -used by the operator, to move "Old Ball" about, and as a rest. Fixed to -the whole is a sheet of rough sacking-cloth, under which the operator -puts himself, and at the end of which is a tail. The operator then gets -into his position, so as to make the whole as like a horse as possible. -He opens the mouth by means of the contrivance before spoken of. Through -the opening he can see the crowd, and he runs first at one and then -another, neighing like a horse, kicking, rising on his hind legs, -performing all descriptions of gambols, and running after the crowd; the -consequence is, the women scream, the children are frightened, and all -is one scene of the most ridiculous and boisterous mirth. This was -played by sundry "Old Balls" some five years ago, at the pace-egging -time, at Blackburn; but it has gradually fallen into disuse. This year -[? 1843] our informant has not heard it even mentioned. [It is still -continued in various parts of Lancashire, amongst others at Swinton, -Worsley, &c.] The idea of this rude game may have been taken from the -hobby-horse in the ancient Christmas mummings.--_Pictorial History of -Lancashire._ [From the editor of the above work calling this "playing -the old ball," and never marking the word ball by a capital B, he seems -to have supposed it meant a spherical ball; whereas "Old Ball" -throughout Lancashire is a favourite name for a cart-horse,--See a -further notice of "Old Ball" under Christmas.--EDS.] - - -ACTING WITH "BALL." - -This is a curious practice, and is often substituted for "pace-egging." -The bones of a horse's head are fixed in their natural position by means -of wires. The bottoms of glass bottles do duty for eyes; and the head is -covered with the skin of a calf. A handle is then fixed in the upper -portion of the head, and the whole skull is supported on a stout pole -shod with an iron hoop. A sack is then made to fit the skull neatly, and -to hang low enough down so as to hide the person who plays "Ball." The -sack, or cover, is also provided with a tail so as to look as nearly -like a horse's tail as possible. Some five or six then take "Ball" about -the country and play him where they can obtain leave. Sometimes a -doggrel song is sung, while "Ball" prances about and snaps at the -company. As soon as the song is finished, "Ball" plays his most -boisterous pranks, and frequently hurts some of the company by snapping -their fingers between his teeth when they are defending themselves from -his attacks. The writer has seen ladies so alarmed as to faint and go -into hysterics:--on this account "Ball" is now nearly extinct in the -neighbourhoods of Blackburn, Burnley, &c. - - -EASTER CUSTOMS IN THE FYLDE. - -Children and young people as Easter approached, claimed their -"pace-eggs" [from Pasche, the old term for Easter] as a privileged "dow" -[dole]. On the afternoon of Easter Sunday the young of both sexes amused -themselves in the meadows with these eggs, which they had dyed by the -yellow blossoms of the "whin," or of other colours by dyeing materials. -Others performed a kind of Morris or Moorish dance or play, called -"_Ignagning_," which some have supposed to be in honour of St. Ignatius; -but more probably its derivation is from "_ignis Agnae_," a virgin and -martyr who suffered at the stake about this time of the year. -"Ignagning," says the Rev. William Thornber,[164] "has almost fallen -into disuse, and a band of boys, termed 'Jolly Lads,' has succeeded, -who, instead of reciting the combat of the Turk and St. George, the -champion of England, the death of the former, and his restoration to -life by the far-travelled doctor, now sing of the noble deeds of Nelson -and Collingwood; retaining, however, the freaks and jokes of 'Old -Toss-pot,' the fool of the party, who still jingles the small bells hung -about his dress." Easter Monday was a great day for the young people of -the neighbourhood going to the yearly fair at Poulton. Happy was the -maiden who could outvie her youthful acquaintance in exhibiting a -greater number of "white cakes," the gifts of admiring youths; thereby -proving beyond dispute the superior effects of her charms. Then the -excitement and exertion of the dance! At that time dancing consisted in -the feet beating time to a fiddle, playing a jig in double quick time; -one damsel succeeding another, and striving to outdo her companions in -her power of continuing this violent exercise, for much honour was -attached to success in this respect, the bystanders meanwhile -encouraging their favourites, as sportsmen do their dogs, with voice and -clapping of hands. Such was-- - - "The dancing pair that simply sought renown, - By holding out, to tire each other down." - -On Good Friday a jorum of _browis_ and roasted wheat or _frumenty_ was -the treat for dinner; white _jannocks_, introduced by the Flemish -refugees, and _throdkins_[165] were also then eaten with great zest by -the hungry labourer.[166] - - -MAY-DAY CUSTOMS. - -The Romans commenced the festival of Flora on the 28th April, and -continued it through several days in May, with various ceremonies and -rejoicings, and offerings of spring flowers and the branches of trees in -bloom, which, through the accommodation of the Romish church to the -pagan usages, remain to us as May-day celebrations to the present time. -It was formerly a custom in Cheshire [and Lancashire] for young men to -place birchen boughs on May-day over the doors of their mistresses, and -mark the residence of a scold by an alder bough. There is an old rhyme -which mentions peculiar boughs for various tempers, as an owler (alder) -for a scolder, a nut for a slut, &c. Ormerod thinks the practice is -disused; but he mentions that in the main street of Weverham are two -May-poles, which are decorated on May-day with all due attention to the -ancient solemnity; the sides are hung with garlands, and the top -terminated by a birch, or other tall slender tree with its leaves on; -the bark being peeled off and the stem spliced to the pole, so as to -give the appearance of one tree from the summit.[167] The principal -characteristics of May-day celebrations and festivities are of rejoicing -that the reign of winter is at an end, and that of early summer with its -floral beauties, has come. The hawthorn furnishes its white blossoms in -profusion; and the tall May-poles, gaily decorated with garlands of -leaves and flowers, and festoons of ribbons of the brightest colours, -are centres of attraction on the village green, for the youth of both -sexes to dance the May-pole dance, hand-in-hand, in a ring. - - -MAY SONGS. - -Amongst the old customs of rural Lancashire and Cheshire is that of a -small party of minstrels or carollers going round from house to house -during the last few evenings of April, and singing a number of verses, -expressive of rejoicing that "cold winter is driven away," and that the -season is "drawing near to the merry month of May." The singers are -generally accompanied by one or two musical instruments, a violin and -clarionet for instance, and the tunes are very quaint and peculiar. Of -course for their good wishes for the master of the house, with his -"chain of gold," for the mistress, with "gold along her breast," and the -children "in rich attire," a trifling gift in money is made.[168] - - -MAY-DAY EVE. - -The evening before May-day is termed "Mischief Night" by the young -people of Burnley and the surrounding district. All kinds of mischief -are then perpetrated. Formerly shopkeepers' sign-boards were exchanged; -"John Smith, grocer," finding his name and vocation changed, by the sign -over his door, to "Thomas Jones, tailor," and _vice versa_; but the -police have put an end to these practical jokes. Young men and women, -however, still continue to play each other tricks, by placing branches -of trees, shrubs, or flowers under each others' windows, or before their -doors. All these have a symbolical meaning, as significant, if not -always as complimentary, as "the Language of Flowers." Thus, "a thorn" -implies "scorn;" "wicken" (the mountain ash) "my dear chicken;" a -"bramble," for one who likes to "ramble," &c. Much ill-feeling is at -times engendered by this custom. - - -MAY-DAY CUSTOM. - -On the 1st of May the following custom is observed in some parts of -Lancashire, though now very nearly obsolete. Late on the preceding -night, or early on that morning, small branches of trees are placed at -the doors of houses in which reside any marriageable girls. They are -emblematical of the character of the maidens, and have a well-understood -language of their own, which is rhythmical. Some speak flatteringly; -others quite the reverse; the latter being used when the character of -the person for whom it is intended is not quite "above suspicion." A -malicious rustic wag may sometimes put a branch of the latter -description where it is not deserved; but I believe this is an -exception. I only remember a few of the various trees which are laid -under contribution for this purpose. _Wicken_ is the local name for -mountain ash. - -_Wicken_, sweet chicken. - -_Oak_, for a joke. - -_Gorse, in bloom_, rhymes with "at noon" (I omit the epithet given here -to an unchaste woman) and used for a notorious delinquent.[169] - - -PENDLETON AND PENDLEBURY MAY-POLE AND GAMES. - -The people of these townships for centuries celebrated May-day (a relic -of the ancient heathen festival of the goddess Flora) by the May-pole, -to which the watchful care of Charles I. and his royal progenitor -extended, when they printed in their proclamation and "Book of Sports," -that after the end of divine service on Sundays, their "good people be -not disturbed, letted, nor discharged from the having of May-games, and -the setting up of the May-poles," &c. The ancient practice was to erect -the pole on May-day, and to surround it with a number of verdant boughs, -brought from "Blakeley Forest," which were decked usually with garlands -and flowers, and around which the people assembled to dance and -celebrate their May-games. "Pendleton Pole" is of much higher antiquity -than the Reformation; for in the will of Thomas del Bothe, who died 47 -Edw. III. (1373) the sum of 30_s._ is bequeathed towards making the -causeway at Pendleton near "le Poll." In the time of the Commonwealth -the Pendleton Pole was taken down, in virtue of an ordinance of -Parliament against May-poles, and such other "heathenish vanities;" but -it was re-erected at the Restoration, and still presents its lofty head, -surmounted by a Royal Crown; though much of the spacious field of the -ancient May-games is now occupied by buildings [in 1780 the township -was little more than a fold of cottages, with its May-pole and green], -and much of the spirit of the rural sports of our ancestors has -subsided. In Pasquil's "_Palinodia_," (published in 1654) the decay of -May-games two centuries ago, is recorded and lamented:-- - - "Happy the age, and harmless were the days - (For then true love and amity was found); - When every village did a May-pole raise, - And Whitsun ales and May-games did abound, - And all the lusty younkers in a rout, - With merry lasses, danced the rod about; - Then friendship to their banquets bid the guests, - And poor men fared the better for their feasts. - - The lords of castles, manors, towns, and towers, - Rejoiced when they beheld the farmers flourish, - And would come down unto the summer bowers, - To see the country gallants dance the Morice. - . . . . . - But since the summer poles were overthrown, - And all good sports and merriments decay'd, - How times and men are changed, so well is known, - It were but labour lost if more were said." - - -MAY CUSTOM IN SPOTLAND. - -A custom of high antiquity and of primitive simplicity prevails in the -district of Spotland, in the parish of Rochdale. On the first Sunday in -May the young people of the surrounding country assemble at Knott Hill -yearly, for the purpose of presenting to each other their mutual -greetings and congratulations on the arrival of this cheering season, -and of pledging each other in the pure beverage which flows from the -mountain springs.[170] - - -MAY-DAY CUSTOMS IN THE FYLDE. - -On the morning of the first day of May, many a May-bough[171] ornamented -the villages and towns of the Fylde, inserted by some mischievous -youngsters, at the risk of life or limb, in the chimney-tops of their -neighbours' houses. Then came a most imposing piece of pageantry, that -of "bringing-in May;" when a king and queen, with their royal attendants -and rustic band of music, mummers, &c., attracted the attention and -admiration of the country side. May-day with its pageants, sports, -games, dances, garlands, and May-poles, was peculiarly a season of -hilarity, merry-making, and good humour. The pageant of "bringing-in -May," was a favourite pastime at Poulton about fifty years ago [_i.e._, -about 1787]; the causeways were strewed with flowers, and at the door of -the house of each respectable inhabitant, sweetmeats, ale, and even -wine, were handed about as a treat and refreshment to the young, who -were thus affording them amusement. By degrees the pageant ceased; a -vigorous attempt, however, was made to revive it in 1818, with all its -honours; but the age-worn custom proved to be utterly incapable of -resuscitation. Another writer,[172] however, states that at -Poulton-le-Fylde and in its neighbourhood, some of the customs of the -olden time are still observed. Very recently May-day was ushered in with -a dance round the May-pole, and the lavish exhibition of garlands and -merriment. - - -THE MAY-POLE OF LOSTOCK. - -The May-pole of Lostock, a village near Bolton, is probably the most -ancient upon record. It is mentioned in a charter by which the town of -Westhalchton [? Westhaughton] was granted to the Abbey of Cockersand, -about the reign of King John. The pole, it appears, had superseded a -cross, and formed one of the landmarks which defined the boundaries, and -it must therefore have been a permanent and not an annual erection. The -words of the charter are:--"De Lostock meypull, ubi crux situ fuit, -recta linea in austro, usque ad crucem super le Tunge."[173] (From -Lostock May-pole, where the cross was formerly, in a straight line to -the south, as far as to the cross upon the Tunge.) - - -ROBIN HOOD AND MAY-GAMES AT BURNLEY, IN 1579. - -In a letter from Edmond Assheton, Esq., then a magistrate of Lancashire, -and aged 75, to William Farington, Esq. (who was also in the commission -of the peace), dated Manchester, May 12, 1580, the writer thus complains -of "lewd sports" and sabbath-breaking:--"I am sure, Right Worshipful, -you have not forgotten the last year stirs at Burnley about Robin Hood -and the May-games. Now, considering that it is a cause that bringeth no -good effect, being contrary to the best, therefore a number of the -justices of the peace herein in Salford Hundred have consulted with the -[Ecclesiastical] Commission [of Queen Elizabeth] to suppress those lewd -sports, tending to no other end but to stir up our frail natures to -wantonness; and mean not to allow neither old custom. Then their excuse -in coming to the church in time of divine service, for every man may -well know with what minds, after their embracings, kissings, and -unchaste beholding of each other, they can come presently prepared to -prayer. A fit assembly to confer of worse causes, over and besides their -marching and walking together in the night time. But chiefly because it -is a profanation of the Sabbath-day, and done in some places in -contempt of the gospel and the religion established, I pray God it be -not so at Burnley. It is called in the Scriptures the Lord's Day, and -was not lawful under the old law to carry a pitcher of water on the -Sabbath, or to gather sticks, but it was death. Such regard was had in -the time of the law to keeping holy the Sabbath. And do not we withdraw -even the practice and use of good and godly works upon the same day? -Then in reason the other should cease. Tell me, I pray you, if you can -find in the presence of the foresaid lewd pastimes, good example or -profit to the commonwealth, the defence of the realm, honour to the -prince, or to the glory of God? Then, let them continue; otherwise, in -my opinion, they are to be withdrawn. For to that end I address these -contents unto you, because we would not deal for any reformation within -the limits of your walk; and for the better credit of the consent of the -Commissioners, you may peruse how they mean to proceed against them of -Burnley who have revived their former follies, if you redress not the -same.... Your assured always to use, EDMOND ASSHETON. It will not be -long afore [there] will be order taken for this dancing, either by the -Privy Council or by the Bishops by their commandment. My meaning is, I -would have you to do it yourself, which will with one word be brought to -pass.... If you would set your hand to this precept with us, I think it -would end these disorders within prescribed."[174] - - -MAY-DAY IN MANCHESTER. - -In the now olden days of coaching, this was a great day in Manchester. -The great coaching establishments, those of the royal mails, north, -south, east, and west, and all the highflyers, &c., turned out all their -spare vehicles and horses for a grand procession through the principal -streets of the town. Many of the mail and other coaches were newly -painted for the occasion; all the teams were provided with new harness -and gearing; the coachmen and guards had new uniforms; Jehu wore a great -cockade of ribbons, and a huge bouquet of flowers, and he handled the -new ribbons with a dignity and grace peculiar to this almost defunct -race. The guard, in bright scarlet uniform, blew on his Kent bugle some -popular tune of the time; and the horses wore cockades and nosegays -about their heads and ears; almost every coach on this occasion was -drawn by four horses, their coats shining with an extra polish for -May-day; and the cavalcade was really a pretty sight on a bright May-day -morning. Second only to it in decorative splendour, and in horseflesh, -was the display of lorries, wagons, drays, and carts, with their fine -draught-horses. Then came the milk-carts, with their drivers in dresses -covered with ribbons. These equine and asinine glories have passed -away, extinguished by the rail. - - -QUEEN OF THE MAY, &c. - -The custom of choosing a May King and Queen is now disused. May-games, -and the May-pole, were kept up at the quiet little village of Downham -when all other places in the neighbourhood had ceased to celebrate -May-day. Nothing is now made of May-day, if we except the custom of -carters dressing their horses' heads and tails with ribbons on that day. - - -WHITSUNTIDE. - -The Feast of Pentecost, or Whitsuntide, was formerly kept as a high -church festival, and by the people was celebrated by out-door sports and -festivities, and especially by the drinking assemblies called -"Whitsun-Ales." One writer (inquiring whether the custom of "lifting at -Easter" is a memorial of Christ being raised up from the grave) observes -that, "there seems to be a trace of the descent of the Holy Ghost on the -heads of the Apostles, in what passes at Whitsuntide Fair, in some parts -of Lancashire; where one person holds a stick over the head of another, -whilst a third, unperceived, strikes the stick, and thus gives a smart -blow to the first. But this probably is only local."[175] "Whit-week," -as it is generally called, has gradually grown to be the great yearly -holiday of the hundred of Salford, and the manufacturing district of -which Manchester is the centre. This seems to have arisen from the -yearly races at Manchester being held from the Wednesday to the Saturday -inclusive, in that week. After the rise of Sunday-schools, their -conductors, desiring to keep youth of both sexes from the demoralizing -recreations of the racecourse, took them to fields in the neighbourhood -and held anniversary celebrations, tea-parties, &c., in the schools. The -extension of the railway system has led to "cheap trips" and "school -excursion trains" during Whitsuntide; which are occasionally taken to -Wales, the Lakes, and other great distances. Canal boats take large -numbers of Sunday scholars to Dunham Park, Worsley, &c. Short excursions -are made in carts, temporarily fitted with seats. It is customary for -the cotton-mills, &c., to close for Whitsuntide week to give the hands a -holiday; the men going to the races, &c., and the women visiting -Manchester on Whit-Saturday, thronging the markets, the Royal Exchange, -the Infirmary Esplanade, and other public places; and gazing in at the -"shop windows," whence this day is usually called "Gaping Saturday." The -collieries, too, are generally closed in Whit-week; and in some the -underground horses are brought to the surface to have a week's daylight, -the only time they enjoy it during the year. The mills, coalpits, &c., -generally have the requisite repairs of machinery, &c., made during this -yearly holiday--those at least which would necessitate the stoppage of -the work at another time. - - -WHIT-TUESDAY.--KING AND QUEEN AT DOWNHAM. - -The last rural queen chosen at Downham is still living in Burnley. The -lot always fell to the prettiest girl in the village, and certainly it -must be admitted that in this instance they exercised good judgment. A -committee of young men made the selection; then an iron crown was -procured and dressed with flowers. The king and queen were ornamented -with flowers, a procession was then formed, headed by a fiddler. This -proceeded from the Inn to the front of "Squire Assheton's," Downham -Hall, and was composed of javelin men, and all the attendants of -royalty. Chairs were brought out of the Hall for the king and queen, ale -was handed round, and then a dance was performed on the lawn, the king -and queen leading off. The procession next passed along through the -village to the green, where seats were provided for a considerable -company. Here again the dancing began, the king and queen dancing the -first set. The afternoon was spent in the usual games, dances, &c. On -the next night all the young persons met at the inn, on invitation from -the king and queen--each paid a shilling towards the "Queen's Posset." A -large posset was then made and handed round to the company. After this -the evening was spent in dancing and merry-making. - - -ROGATIONS OR GANG DAYS. - -These days are so named from the Litanies or Processions of the Church, -before Holy Thursday or Ascension Day. It was a general custom in -country parishes to "gang" or go round the boundaries and limits of the -parish, on one of the three days before Holy Thursday, or the Feast of -our Lord's Ascension; when the minister, accompanied by his -churchwardens and parishioners, was wont to deprecate the vengeance of -God, beg a blessing on the fruits of the earth, and preserve the rights -and properties of the parish. In some parishes this perambulation took -place on Ascension Day itself. In a parochial account-book, entitled "A -Record of the Acts and Doings of the thirty men of the parish of -Kirkham," Lancashire, is the following entry under the year 1665: "Spent -on going perambulations on Ascension Day, 1_s._ 6_d._" - - -OATMEAL CHARITY AT INCE. - -Under the name of Richardson's Charity, a distribution takes place -annually on the Feast of the Ascension or Holy Thursday (ten days before -Whit-Sunday) of _five loads of oatmeal_, each load weighing 240 lb. -Three loads are given to the poor of the township of Ince, one to the -poor of Abram, and the other to the poor of Hindley; adjacent -townships, all in the parish of Wigan. The Charity Commissioners, in -their twenty-first report, state that the meal is provided by Mr. -Cowley, of Widnes, the owner of an estate in Ince, formerly the property -of Edward Richardson, who, as the commissioners were informed, directed -by his will that this distribution should be made for fifty years from -the time of his death. The year 1784 was given as the date of this -benefaction, in the Returns made to Parliament in 1786. Mr. Cowley has -himself had the disposal of this charity. The charity would, according -to this statement, legally cease in 1836. - - -NAMES FOR MOONS IN AUTUMN. - -In Lancashire, as well as in the South of Scotland and the South of -Ireland, the moon of September is commonly called "the harvest moon," -that of October "the huntsman's moon."[176] - - -"GOOSE-INTENTOS." - -In "An Universal Etymological English Dictionary," by N. Bailey, London, -1745, I read:--"Goose-intentos, a goose claimed by custom by the -husbandmen in Lancashire, upon the sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost, -when the old Church prayers ended thus: 'ac bonis operis jugiter -praestat esse _intentos_.'" These words occur in the old Sarum books, in -the Collect for the sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost; in the present -Liturgy, in that for the seventeenth Sunday after Trinity.[177] - -Blount, in his _Glossographia_, says that "in Lancashire the husbandmen -claim it as a due to have a goose-intentos on the sixteenth Sunday after -Pentecost: which custom takes its origin from the last word of the old -Church prayer of that day:--'Tua nos Domine, quae sumus, gratia semper et -praeveniat et sequatur; ac bonis operibus jugiter praestet esse -_intentos_.' The vulgar people called it 'a goose with ten toes.'" -Beckwith, in his new edition of Blount's _Fragmenta Antiquitatis_ -(London, 4to, 1815, p. 413), after quoting this passage, remarks:--"But -besides that the sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost, or after Trinity -rather, being movable, and seldom falling upon Michaelmas Day, which is -an immovable feast, the service for that day could very rarely be used -at Michaelmas, there does not appear to be the most distant allusion to -a goose in the words of that prayer. Probably no other reason can be -given for this custom, but that Michaelmas Day was a great festival, and -geese at that time most plentiful. In Denmark, where the harvest is -later, every family has a roasted goose for supper on St. Martin's Eve -[Nov. 10]." It must be borne in mind that the term _husbandman_ was -formerly applied to persons of a somewhat higher position in life than -an agricultural labourer, as for instance to the occupier and holder of -the land. In ancient grants from landlords of manors to their free -tenants, among other reserved rents, boons, and services, the landlord -frequently laid claim to a good stubble goose at Michaelmas. After all, -the connexion between the goose and the collect is not apparent.[178] - - -ALL SOULS' DAY.--NOV. 2. - - So named, because in the Church of Rome prayers are offered on this - day for "all the faithful deceased." - -There is a singular custom still kept up at Great Marton, in the Fylde -district, on this day. In some places it is called "soul-caking," but -there it is named "psalm-caking,"--from their reciting psalms for which -they receive cakes. The custom is changing its character also--for in -place of collecting cakes from house to house, as in the old time, they -now beg for money. The term "psalm" is evidently a corruption of the old -word "sal," for soul; the mass or requiem for the dead was called -"Sal-mas," as late as the reign of Henry VI. - - -GUNPOWDER PLOT AND GUY FAWKES. - -The anniversary of the Gunpowder Plot of November 5, 1605, is still more -or less kept in many parts of Lancashire, in towns by the effigy of Guy -Fawkes being paraded about the streets, and burnt at night with great -rejoicing; and by the discharge of small cannon, guns, pistols, &c., and -of fireworks. In the country the more common celebration is confined to -huge bonfires, and the firing of pistols and fireworks. In some places, -especially about Blackburn, Burnley, and that district, as well as in -villages about Eccles, Worsley, &c., it is customary for boys for some -days before the 5th of November, to go round to their friends and -neighbours to beg for coals. They generally take their stand before the -door, and either say or sing some doggerel, to the following effect:-- - - "Remember, remember, - The Fifth of November, - The gunpowder treason and plot; - A stick and a stake, - For King George's sake, - We hope it will ne'er be forgot." - - -CHRISTMAS. - -In the olden time, before the Reformation, Christmas was the highest -festival of the Church. In some rural parts of Lancashire it is now but -little regarded, and many of its customs are observed a week later,--on -the eve and day of the New Year. But still there linger in many places -some relics of the old observances and festivities, as the carols, the -frumenty on Christmas Eve, the mummers, with "old Ball," or the -hobby-horse, and the decoration of churches and dwellings with boughs of -evergreen shrubs and plants; in the centre of which is still to be -found, in many country halls and kitchens, and in some also in the -towns, that mystic bough of the mistletoe, beneath whose white berries, -it is the custom and licence of the season to steal a kiss from fair -maidens, and even from matrons "forty, fat, and fair." - - -CREATURES WORSHIPPING ON CHRISTMAS EVE. - -I have been told in Lancashire, that at midnight on Christmas Eve the -cows fall on their knees, and the bees hum the Hundredth Psalm. I am -unwilling to destroy the poetry of these old superstitions; but their -origin can, I think, be accounted for. Cows, it is well known, on rising -from the ground, get up on their knees first; and a person going into -the shippon at midnight would, no doubt, disturb the occupants, and by -the time he looked around, they would all be rising on their knees. The -buzzing of the bees, too, might easily be formed into a tune, and, with -the Hundredth Psalm running in the head of the listener, fancy would -supply the rest.[179] - - -CHRISTMAS MUMMING. - -Mr. J. O. Halliwell, in his _Nursery Rhymes of England_, relates the -following as a Christmas custom in Lancashire:--The boys dress -themselves up with ribands, and perform various pantomimes, after which -one of them, who has a blackened face, a rough skin coat, and a broom in -his hand, sings as follows:-- - - Here come I, - Little David Doubt; - If you don't give me money, - I'll sweep you all out. - Money I want, - Money I crave; - If you don't give me money, - I'll sweep you all to the grave. - - -THE HOBBY HORSE, OR OLD BALL. - -In an old painted window at Betley, Staffordshire, exhibiting in twelve -diamond-octagon panes, the mummers and morris-dancers of May-day, the -centre pane below the May-pole represents the old hobby-horse, supposed -to have once been the King of the May, though now a mere buffoon. The -hobby (of this window) is a spirited horse of pasteboard, in which the -master dances and displays tricks of legerdemain, &c. In the horse's -mouth is stuck a ladle, ornamented with a ribbon; its use being to -receive the spectators' pecuniary donations. In Lancashire the old -custom seems to have so far changed, that it is the head of a dead horse -that is carried about at Christmas, as described amongst the Easter -customs. "Old Ball" bites everybody it can lay hold of, and holds its -victims till they buy their release with a few pence. - - -CHRISTMAS CUSTOMS IN THE FYLDE. - -The Rev. W. Thornber[180] describes the Christmas gambols and customs in -the Fylde nearly a century ago, as having been kept up with great -spirit. The midnight carols of the church-singers[181]--the penny laid -on the hob by the fireside, the prize of him who came first to the outer -door, to "let Christmas in,"--the regular round of visits--the treat of -mince pies[182]--in turn engrossed their attention. Each farm-house and -hut possessed a pack of cards, which were obtained as an alms from the -rich, if poverty forbade the purchase. Night after night of Christmas -was consumed in poring over these dirty and obscured cards. Nor were the -youngsters excluded from a share in the amusements of this festal -season. Early, long before dawn, on Christmas morning, young voices -echoed through streets and lanes, in the words of the old song-- - - Get up old wives, - And bake your pies, - 'Tis Christmas-day in the morning; - The bells shall ring, - The birds shall sing, - Tis Christmas-day in the morning. - -Many an evening was beguiled with snap-dragon, bobbing for apples, -jack-stone, blind-man's buff, forfeits, hot cockles, hunting the -slipper, hide lose my supper, London Bridge, turning the trencher, and -other games now little played. Fortune-telling by cards, &c., must not -be omitted. In the bright frost and moonshine, out-door sports were -eagerly pursued, guns were in great request, to shoot the shore-birds, -and many found pleasure in "watching the fleet;" others played at -foot-ball in the lanes or streets; or engaged in the games of -prison-bars, tee-touch-wood, thread-my-needle, horse-shoe, leap-frog, -black-thorn, cad, bandy, honey-pot, hop-scotch, hammer and block, bang -about and shedding copies. Cymbling for larks[183] was a very common -pastime; now it is scarcely known by name, and few have retained any of -the implements or instruments requisite to practise the art. Tradesmen -presented their customers with the Yule-loaf,[184] or two mould candles -for the church, or some other Christmas-box. The churches and -house-windows were decked with evergreens; a superstition derived -probably from the Druids, who decked their temples and houses with -evergreens in December, that the Sylvan Spirits might avoid the chilly -frosts and storms of winter, by settling in their branches. For some -weeks before Christmas, a band of young men called "Mutes," roused at -early morn the slumbering to their devotions, or to activity in their -domestic duties. The beggar at the door, craving an _awmas_ [? alms] or -_saumas_ [soul-mass] cake, reminded the inmates that charity should be a -characteristic of the season. The Eve of Christmas Day was named "Flesh -Day," from the country people flocking to Poulton to buy beef, &c., -sufficient to supply the needs of the coming year. On the morning of -Christmas Day the usual breakfast was of black puddings, with jannock, -&c. - - -CELEBRATION OF CHRISTMAS AT WYCOLLER HALL. - -At Wycoller Hall, the family usually kept open house the twelve days at -Christmas. The entertainment was [in] a large hall of curious ashlar -work, [on] a long table, plenty of _frumenty_, like new milk, in a -morning, made of husked wheat boiled, roasted beef, with a fat goose and -a pudding, with plenty of good beer for dinner. A round-about -fire-place, surrounded with stone benches, where the young folks sat and -cracked nuts, and diverted themselves; and in this manner the sons and -daughters got matching, without going much from home.[185] - - -CAROLS, &c. - -"Carol" is supposed to be derived from _cantare_ to sing, and _rola_, an -interjection of joy. Amongst our Christmas customs that of carol-singing -prevails over a great part of Lancashire. It is the old custom of -celebrating with song the birth of the Saviour, even as the angels are -said to have sung "Glory to God in the highest," &c., at this great -event. Almost every European nation has its carols. Our earliest -Christian forefathers had theirs; one or two Anglo-Norman carols have -been preserved, and some of every century from the thirteenth to the -eighteenth. Numerous books containing carols have been printed (one by -Wynkin de Worde), and it would occupy too much space to insert even the -most popular of these carols here. A verse of one common to Lancashire -and Yorkshire must suffice:-- - - God rest you all, merry gentlemen, - Let nothing you dismay; - Remember Christ our Saviour - Was born on Christmas-day. - -The town or the village waitts go about after midnight, waking many a -sleeper with their homely music, which sounds all the sweeter for being -heard in the stilly night. Various items of payment to the Manchester -waitts occur in the Church Leet Books of that manor. A dance tune called -"The Warrington Waitts" occurs in a printed Tune-Book of 1732. Hand-bell -ringing, a favourite Lancashire diversion, is much practised about -Christmas. - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[143] Hermentrude, in _Notes and Queries_, 3rd ser., vol. ii. p. 484. - -[144] Prestoniensis, in _Notes and Queries_, 2nd ser., vol. ii. p. 326. - -[145] Hampson's _Medii AEvi Kalendarium_, vol. i. p. 98. - -[146] Prestoniensis, in _Notes and Queries_, 2nd series, vol. iii. p. -50. - -[147] Halliwell's _Archaic and Provincial Dictionary_. - -[148] Pasquil's _Palinodia_. - -[149] _Ploughman's Feasting Days_, stanza 3. - -[150] _Pictorial History of Lancashire._ - -[151] See Rev. W. Thornber's _History of Blackpool_. - -[152] See also, under BELLS, the Pancake Bell. - -[153] _Notes and Queries_, 2nd ser., V. - -[154] For the Simnel cakes of Shrewsbury, &c., see _Book of Days_, I. -336. - -[155] Baines's _History of Lancashire_. - -[156] _History of Manchester_, II. 265. - -[157] Baines's _History of Lancashire_. - -[158] H. T. Riley, in _Notes and Queries_, 2nd ser., ii. 320. - -[159] _Pictorial History of Lancashire._ - -[160] Hone's _Every-Day Book_, ii. 450; Brand's _Popular Antiquities, -&c._ - -[161] _Pictorial History of Lancashire._ - -[162] Baines's _History of Lancashire_. - -[163] _Pictorial History of Lancashire._ - -[164] _History of Blackpool_, p. 92. - -[165] _Browis_ or _brewis_ is broth or pottage; _frumenty_, is hulled -wheat boiled in milk, and flavoured with cinnamon, sugar, allspice; and -_jannocks_, oaten bread in large, coarse loaves; _throdkins_, a cake -made of oatmeal and bacon. - -[166] Rev. W. Thornber's _History of Blackpool_. - -[167] Hone's _Every-Day Book_, ii. 597. - -[168] For the words of these songs, see Harland's _Ballads and Songs of -Lancashire_, p. 116; and for words and music, Chambers's _Book of Days_, -i. 546. - -[169] A. B., Liverpool, in _Notes and Queries_, v. 581. - -[170] Baines's _History of Lancashire_. - -[171] These boughs, says Mr. Thornber, in his _History of Blackpool_, -were emblematical of the character of the maiden thus conspicuously -distinguished; an elder-bough for a scold, one of ash for a swearer, &c. - -[172] _Pictorial History of Lancashire._ - -[173] Dugdale's _Monast. Anglic._, vol. vi. p. 906. - -[174] _Farington Papers_, p. 128. - -[175] _Gent. Mag._, vol. liii., for July, 1783, p. 578. - -[176] M. F., in _Notes and Queries_, 3rd series, ii. 397. - -[177] Aquinas, in _Notes and Queries_, 3rd series, v., April 2., 1864. - -[178] Ed. _Notes and Queries_. - -[179] Wellbank, in _Notes and Queries_, 2nd series, viii. 242. - -[180] See _History of Blackpool_. - -[181] Here is the specimen of one sung from house to house during -Christmas:-- - - We're nather cum to yare hase to beg nor to borrow, - But we're cum to yare hase to drive away o sorrow; - A suop o' drink, as yau may think, for we're varra droy, - We'll tell yau what we're cum for--a piece o' Christmas poye. - -[182] The mince-pie, made of a compound of Eastern productions, -represented the offerings of the wise men who came from far to worship -the Saviour, bringing spices. Its old English coffin-shape was in -imitation of the manger in which the infant Jesus was laid. - -[183] We have not been able to find any account of this mode of catching -larks, at least, under the name here given. - -[184] The baker formerly gave his customers a baby of paste; and in my -own recollection a cake, decorated with the head of a lamb, named "the -Ewe loaf," was the Christmas present of bakers at Poulton. On Christmas -Eve the houses were illuminated with candles of an enormous size.--W. T. - -[185] From a family MS. of the Cunliffes, quoted in Baines's -_Lancashire_, iii. 244. - - - - -EATING AND DRINKING CUSTOMS. - - -In many instances of particular Church Festivals, and of popular -celebrations, we have already enumerated various viands appropriated to -special occasions, as the turkey to New Year's Day; the pancake to -Shrove-Tuesday; the simnel, carlins, bragot, and fig-pie to Mid-Lent -Sunday; the goose to Michaelmas; frumenty, mince-pies, &c., to -Christmas. A few remain, however, for notice here:--Eccles cakes, -Ormskirk gingerbread, Everton toffy, and other sweet cakes have "all -seasons for their own." The two rival shops in Eccles, on opposite sides -of Church-street, the one called "The genuine Eccles cake shop, from -over the way," and the other "The real Eccles cake shop, never removed," -so much puzzle the stranger and visitor, that purchases are often made -at both in order to secure the real, genuine, original article. - - -THE HAVERCAKE LADS. - -Formerly the bread eaten by the labouring classes in the parish of -Rochdale and others in the east of Lancashire was oat-cake, which was -also pretty generally in use in the west of Yorkshire. A regiment of -soldiers raised in these two adjoining districts at the beginning of the -last war took the name of the "Havercake Lads," assuming as their badge -an oat cake [oats are called havers], which was placed (for the purpose -of attracting recruits) on the point of the recruiting sergeant's sword. -Oat bread is still eaten in various manufacturing and hilly districts of -Lancashire, but not nearly so generally as half a century ago.[186] - - -WOODEN SHOES AND OATEN BREAD OR JANNOCKS. - -Both these are said to have been introduced by the Flemish immigrant -weavers about the year 1567. Their sabots, however, were made entirely -of wood, lined with a little lamb's skin, to protect the top of the -foot; while the _clogs_ of the present day have strong leather tops -[often brass clasps] and thick wooden soles. The kind of bread -introduced by the Flemings into Bolton and other manufacturing districts -of Lancashire was made of oatmeal in the form of a loaf, and called -_jannock_; but the gradual change in manners and improvement in social -condition have almost banished this food, and wheaten-bread and -oat-cakes have almost altogether taken its place. - -In the _Shepherd's Play_, performed at Chester in 1577, in honour of the -visit to that city of the Earl of Derby, the third Shepherd says:-- - - And brave ale of Halton I have, - And what meat I had to my hire; - A pudding may no man deprave, - And a _jannock_ of Lancaster-shire. - -Jannock is now used in Leigh more commonly than in most other parts of -Lancashire. Warrington ale was no less celebrated than Halton ale, and a -song in praise of the former is printed in Harland's _Lancashire -Ballads_.[187] - - -PORK PASTIES. - -In West Houghton, at the annual feast or wakes, there is a singular -local custom of making large flat pasties of pork, which are eaten in -great quantities on the Wakes Sunday, with a liberal accompaniment of -ale; and people resort to the village from all places for miles round, -on this Sunday, just as they rush into Bury on Mid-Lent or Mothering -Sunday to eat simnels and drink bragot ale. - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[186] Baines's _Lancashire_. - -[187] P. 199. - - - - -BIRTH AND BAPTISMAL CUSTOMS. - - -Many of the customs attending child-bearing, churching, and christening -are not peculiar to Lancashire, but common nearly all over England. The -term "the lady in the straw," merely meant the lady confined to her bed, -as all beds were anciently stuffed with straw. It was formerly the -custom in Lancashire, as elsewhere, for the husband against the birth of -the child to provide a large cheese and a cake. These were called "the -groaning" cheese and cake; and throughout the north of England the first -cut of the sick wife's cheese, or groaning cheese, is taken and laid -under the pillows of young women to cause them to dream of their lovers. -Amongst customs now obsolete was the giving a large entertainment at the -churching. Now it is usually given at the christening. - - -PRESENTS TO WOMEN IN CHILDBED. - -In a note on an entry of _Nicholls's Assheton's Journal_, Dr. Whitaker -and its Editor, the Rev. Canon Raines, say that the custom of making -presents to women in childbed, is yet called "pr[=e]s[)e]nting" in -Craven. It is now quite obsolete in South Lancashire, although it -continued to be observed to the middle of the eighteenth century. In a -MS. journal of 1706 is an entry "John Leigh brought my wife a -groaning-cake: gave him 6_d._" Other entries in the same journal show -that money gifts ranged from 1_s._ 6_d._ to 5_s._ (the last being to the -minister's wife); besides smaller gifts to maids and midwives, and -bottles of wine, syrup of ginger, and other creature comforts to the -person confined. - - -TEA-DRINKING AFTER CHILDBIRTH. - -In some parts of North Lancashire it is customary to have a tea-drinking -after the recovery from childbirth. All the neighbours and friends are -invited--sometimes many more than can be comfortably accommodated--and -both tea and rum are plentifully distributed. After tea, each visitor -pays a shilling towards the expense of the birth feast; and the evening -is spent in the usual gossip. - - -TURNING THE BED AFTER CHILDBIRTH. - -An attendant was making a bed occupied by the mother of a child born a -few days previously. When she attempted to turn it over, to give it a -better shaking, the nurse energetically interfered, peremptorily -forbidding her doing so till a month after the confinement, on the -ground that it was decidedly unlucky; and said that she never allowed it -to be done till then, on any account whatever.[188] - - -AN UNBAPTIZED CHILD CANNOT DIE. - -The _Morning Herald_ of the 18th June, 1860, notices a case of attempted -infanticide near Liverpool. The wretched mother, having gained access to -a gentleman's grounds, laid her child on the ground and covered it with -sods. The child was happily discovered and its life saved. The mother -was apprehended and charged with having attempted to murder her child. -She confessed that she was guilty, and added ["the tender mercies of the -wicked are cruel"] that she had previously succeeded in getting the -child baptized, as she believed it could not otherwise have died. This -is a strange bit of folk-lore.[189] - - -GIFTS TO INFANTS. - -It is a custom in some parts of Lancashire, as well as in Yorkshire, -Northumberland, and other counties, that when an infant first goes out -of the house, in the arms of the mother or the nurse, in some cases the -first family visited, in others every neighbour receiving the call, -presents to or for the infant an egg, some salt, some bread, and in some -cases a small piece of money. These gifts are to ensure, as the gossips -avow, that the child shall never want bread, meat, or salt to it, or -money, throughout life. The old custom of sponsors giving the child -twelve tea-spoons, called "Apostle Spoons," is now obsolete. The gift of -a coral with bells, is supposed to have had its origin in a very ancient -superstition. Coral, according to Pliny, was deemed an amulet against -fascination; and it was thought to preserve and fasten the teeth. The -coral-bells (especially if blest by the priest) would scare away evil -spirits from the child. - - -CHANGELINGS. - -There is even yet in some parts of Lancashire a strong dread of the -fairies or witches coming secretly and exchanging their own ill-favoured -imps, for the newly born infant; and various charms are used to prevent -the child from being thus stolen away. - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[188] A. B., Liverpool, in _Notes and Queries_, vi. 432. - -[189] W. S. Simpson, in _Notes and Queries_, 2nd series, x. p. 184. - - - - -BETROTHING AND BRIDAL OR WEDDING CUSTOMS. - - -BETROTHING CUSTOMS. - -The common custom of breaking a piece of silver or gold (if it be -crooked, so much the luckier) between lovers of the humbler classes, -especially when the man is going to a distance, is believed to have had -its origin in a sort of betrothal or promise of marriage, much practised -amongst the ancient Danes, called _Hand-festing_, which is mentioned by -Ray in his Collection or Glossary of Northumbrian Words. It means -hand-fastening or binding. In betrothal it was also the custom to change -rings, formed of two links or hoops, called gemmel rings, from -_gemelli_, twins. - - -CURIOUS WEDDING CUSTOM. - -An ancient custom at weddings of the poorer classes in Lancashire, and -in some parts of Cumberland, is thus described:--The Lord of the Manor, -in whose jurisdiction the marriage takes place, allowed the parties a -piece of ground for a house and garden. All their friends assembled on -the wedding-day, and the bridegroom having provided a dinner and drink, -they set to work and constructed a dwelling for the young couple, of -clay and wood, what is called post and petrel, or wattle and daub. Many -of these "clay biggins" still remain in the Fylde district and the -northern parts of Lancashire. The relatives of the pair supplied the -most necessary part of the furniture, and thus they were enabled to -"start fair" in the world.[190] - - -COURTING AND WEDDING CUSTOMS IN THE FYLDE. - -On the occasion of a marriage, a christening, or a churching, each guest -either sent or presented some offering of money or food; thus providing -a sufficient stock of provisions for the entertainment without much, if -any, cost to the host. The preliminaries before marriage, the addresses -paid by the swain to his sweetheart after the day's labour was done, -were styled "the sitting-up," the night being the time allotted to -courtship, by the kitchen fire, after the other members of the family -had retired to rest. This "sitting-up" was regularly observed every -Saturday night if the lover was faithful; if otherwise, the price of the -"lant" (?) of the forsaken fair was transmitted by her to the rival -preferred by her inconstant swain. On the wedding-day, when a bride and -her "groom" left the house to have the marriage rites solemnized, some -relative or servant threw at or after the smiling pair a "shuffle" -(_Pantoufle_, an old shoe or slipper)--a custom in its origin said to be -Jewish--as a preventive of future unhappiness, an omen of good-luck and -prosperity. At the church-door an idle crowd was always ready for the -"perry,"--that is, to contest for the dole of scattered half-pence, or -if disappointed, to deprive the bride of her shawl or shoes, till some -largess was bestowed. The day was spent in the company of a merry party -of friends, who, after the ceremony of "throwing the stocking" over the -bed of the wedded pair was performed, retired to their homes.[191] - - -ANCIENT BRIDAL CUSTOM.--THE BRIDE'S CHAIR AND THE FAIRY HOLE. - -On the lower declivity of Warton Crag, in the parish of Warton (which -abuts on Morecambe Bay and the Westmorland border), commanding a -beautiful and extended prospect of the bay, a seat called "The Bride's -Chair" was resorted to on the day of marriage by the brides of the -village; and in this seat they were enthroned with due solemnity by -their friends; but the origin and the object of the custom, which has -now fallen in disuse, are unknown. Not far from Warton Crag are three -rocking-stones placed in a line, about forty feet asunder, the largest -stone lying in the middle. A cave is also mentioned by Lucas, named "The -Fairy Hole," where dwarf spirits called Elves or Fairies, were wont to -resort.[192] - - -BURNLEY. - -An ancient custom prevails at Burnley Grammar School, by which all -persons married at St. Peter's Church in that town are fined by the -boys. As soon as a wedding is fixed the parish clerk informs the boys, -and on the day appointed they depute two of their number to wait upon -the groomsman and demand a fee. There is no fixed sum named; but enough -is got to purchase books and maintain a tolerable library for the use of -the pupils. Former pupils always pay a liberal fine. - - -MARRIAGES AT MANCHESTER PARISH CHURCH. - -"Th'owd Church," as the collegiate church of Manchester was provincially -designated before it attained the dignity of a cathedral, was known and -celebrated far and wide over the extensive parish. Its altar has -witnessed the joining together of thousands of happy [and unhappy] -couples. The fees here being less than those demanded at other churches, -which had to pay tribute to it, it was of course the most popular -sanctuary in the whole parish for the solemnization of matrimony. At the -expiration of Lent (during which the marriage fees are doubled) crowds -of candidates for nuptial honours present themselves; indeed so numerous -are they that the ceremony is performed by wholesale on Easter Monday. A -chaplain of facetious memory [the Rev. Joshua Brookes] is said to have -on one of these occasions accidentally united the wrong parties. When -the occurrence was represented to him, his ready reply was, "Pair as you -go out; you're all married; pair as you go out." This verbal certificate -appeared to give general satisfaction, and each bridegroom soon found -his right bride. Sir George Head, in his _Home Tour through the -Manufacturing Districts, in the summer of 1835_, thus describes what he -saw of these wholesale Monday marriages:--"I attended the Old Church at -Manchester one Monday morning, in order to witness the solemnization of -several marriages, which I had reason to suppose were then and there to -take place. I had heard on the preceding Sunday the banns proclaimed as -follows:--'For the first time of asking, 65; for the second time, 72; -for the third time, 60. Total, 197.' Having been informed that it would -be expedient to be on the spot at eight in the morning I repaired -thither at that hour. Operations, however, did not commence before ten. -The latter is the usual time of proceeding to business, although in -cases of persons married by licence 8 o'clock is the hour. When all was -ready and the church doors opened, the clergyman and clerk betook -themselves to the vestry; and the people who were about to be married, -and their friends, seated themselves in the body of the church opposite -the communion table, on benches which were placed there for the purpose. -Not less than fifty persons were assembled, among whom I took my seat -quietly, without being noticed. A party who had arrived in a narrow _vis -a vis_ fly, most exclusively paraded in the meantime up and down (as if -unwilling to identify themselves with the humbler candidates of -matrimony) in another part of the church. The people at first took their -seats in solemn silence, each one inquisitively surveying his neighbour; -but as the clergyman and clerk were some time in preparation, the men -first began to whisper one to another and the women to titter, till by -degrees they all threw off their reserve, and made audible remarks on -the new comers. There was little _mauvaise honte_ among the women, but -of the men, poor fellows! some were seriously abashed; while among the -hymeneal throng there seemed to prevail a sentiment that obtains pretty -generally among their betters, namely, inclination to put shy people out -of conceit with themselves. Thus, at the advance of a sheepish-looking -bridegroom, he was immediately assailed on all sides with 'Come in, man; -what art thou afraid of? Nobody 'll hurt thee!' And then a general laugh -went round in a repressed tone, but quite sufficient to confound and -subdue the new comer. Presently a sudden buzz broke out, 'The -clergyman's coming;' and all was perfectly silent. About twelve couples -were to be married; the rest were friends and attendants. The former -were called upon to arrange themselves all together around the altar. -The clerk was an adept in his business, and performed the duties of his -office in a mode admirably calculated to set the people at their ease -and direct the proceedings. In appointing them to their proper places, -he addressed each in an intonation of voice perfectly soft and soothing, -and which carried with it more of encouragement as he made use of no -appellative but the Christian name of the person spoken to. Thus he -proceeded:--'Daniel and Ph[oe]be; this way, Daniel, take off your -gloves, Daniel. William and Anne; no, Anne; here, Anne; t'other side, -William. John and Mary; here, John; oh! John.' And then addressing them -all together, 'Now, all of you give your hats to some person to hold.' -Although the marriage service appeared to me (adds Sir George) to be -generally addressed to the whole party, the clergyman was scrupulously -exact in obtaining the accurate responses from each individual." - - * * * * * - -Many wedding customs, as the bridesmaids and best men, the wedding-ring, -the nuptial kiss in the church, the bouquet borne in the hand of the -bride, &c., the scattering of flowers in her path, the throwing of an -old shoe after her for luck, the giving gloves, &c., are of ancient -origin, and are the relics of Anglo-Saxon or Danish usages. - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[190] Hampson's _Medii AEvi Kalend._ i. 289. - -[191] See Rev. W. Thornber's _History of Blackpool_. - -[192] Baines's _History of Lancashire_. - - - - -DYING, DEATH-BED, AND FUNERAL CUSTOMS. - - -DYING HARDLY. - -Persons are said to "die hardly," as the phrase is, meaning to be -unable to expire, when there are pigeons' feathers in the bed. Some will -not allow dying persons to lie on a feather-bed, because they hold that -it very much increases their pain and suffering, and actually retards -their departure. On the other hand, there is a superstitious feeling -that it is a great misfortune, nay, even a _judgment_, not to die in a -bed. - - -BURYING IN WOOLLEN. - -By a statute of 30 Car. II., stat. I, cap. 3 (1678), entitled "An act -for the lessening the importation of linen from beyond the seas, and the -encouragement of the woollen and paper manufactures of the kingdom," it -is enacted that the curate of every parish shall keep a register, to be -provided at the charge of the parish, wherein to enter all burials and -affidavits of persons being buried in woollen; the affidavit to be taken -by any justice of the peace, mayor, or such like chief officer, in the -parish where the body was interred; and if there be no officer, then by -any curate within the city where the corpse was buried (except him in -whose parish the corpse was buried), who must administer the oath and -set his hand gratis. No affidavit to be necessary for a person dying of -the plague. It imposes a fine of L5 for every infringement; one half to -go to the informer, and the other half to the poor of the parish. This -act was repealed by the 54 Geo. III. cap. 108 (1814). In the parish of -Prestwich, the first entry in the book provided for such purposes was in -August, 1678; and there is no entry later than 1681, which appears also -to be the limit of the act's observance in the adjacent parish of -Radcliffe; where the entries immediately follow the record of the burial -itself in the registers, and not in a separate book as at Prestwich. -Under the year 1679, is the following entry in the parish register of -Radcliffe:-- - -"An orphan of Ralph Mather's, of Radcliffe, was buried the 9th day of -April, and certified to be wound up in woollen only, under the hand of -Mr. William Hulme." - -In the churchwardens' accounts of Prestwich, for the year 1681, is the -following item of receipt:-- - -"Received a fine of James Crompton, for burying his son, and not -bringing in an affidavit, according to the act for burying in woollen, -L2 10_s._"[193] - - -FUNERAL DOLE AND ARVAL CAKE. - -In Lancashire, the funeral was formerly celebrated with great profusion -in meats and drinks, to which was added in those of the richer sort, -what was called a penny dole, or promiscuous distribution of that sum, -anciently delivered in silver to the poor. The effect of this custom, -says Lucas (as quoted by Dr. Whitaker[194]) was such, that he had seen -many "who would rather go seven or eight miles to a penny dole, than -earn sixpence in the same time by laudable industry." This custom of -distributing a small money alms or dole at funerals still existed in -parts of Lancashire within the last fifty years. One sexagenarian -informant told the writer that, when a lad, he went to the funeral of a -Mr. D., in the hamlet of Swinton, parish of Eccles, and there was what -he called "a _dow_, gi'en to every lad and every wench [boy or girl] as -went, far and near,--a penny a-piece; and them as carrit a choilt -[carried a child] had tuppence." Usually at country funerals, after the -interment, the relations first, and next their attendants, threw into -the grave sprigs of bay, rosemary, or other odoriferous evergreens, -which had been previously distributed amongst them. In some cases, a -messenger went round the neighbourhood, "bidding" parties to the -funeral, and at each house where he gave the invitation, he left a sprig -of rosemary, &c. After the rites at the grave, the company adjourned to -a neighbouring public-house, where they were severally presented with a -cake and ale, which was called an _arval_. This word seems to have -greatly puzzled Dr. Whitaker. It is the Sueo-Gothic _arfoel_, which is a -compound of _arf_, inheritance, and _oel_, ale,--expressive of a feast -given by the heir, at the funeral, on succeeding to the estate. The -feast and its name were imparted to us by the Danes, whose _arfwoel_ is -described by Olaus Wormius as a solemn banquet, celebrated by kings and -nobles, in honour of deceased relations, whom they are succeeding. - - -DALTON-IN-FURNESS. - -The most singular mode of conducting funerals prevails at this place. A -full meal of bread and cheese and ale is provided at the funeral house; -and, after the corpse is interred the parish clerk proclaims, at the -grave-side, that the company must repair to some appointed public-house. -Arrived there, they sit down by fours together, and each four is served -with two quarts of ale.[195] One half of this is paid for by the -conductor of the funeral, and the other half by the company. While they -are drinking the ale, the waiter goes round with cakes, serving out one -to each guest, which he is expected to carry home.[196] - - -OLD FUNERAL CUSTOMS AT WARTON. - -A singular practice, which was growing obsolete in the time of Lucas -(says Dr. Whitaker) once prevailed in the parish of Warton; which was, -that most householders were furnished with a kind of family pall, or -finely wrought coverlet, to be laid over the bier when the corpse was -carried to church. Amongst other funeral customs at Warton, were the -great feasting and drinking; the funeral dole, distributed to the poor; -the casting of odoriferous herbs into the grave; and the cake and -_arval_-ale, already described, pp. 270, 271, _supra_.[197] - - -FUNERAL CUSTOMS IN THE FYLDE. - -When the last offices of respect to a departed friend or neighbour were -to be rendered, a whole district, called "their side" of the country, -was "bidden" or invited to assist in carrying the remains to their -narrow home. At a stated hour the crowd assembled, not to mourn with -widowed wife or weeping children, but to consume ale and tobacco, and to -talk over their farms or trade till all was in readiness to depart for -the completion of the obsequies. A particular order was observed. From -the door of his former home, and into, and out of, the church, the -corpse was carried on the shoulders of four of his relatives--his -nearest kinsman, the chief mourner, walking in front with the clergyman. -At the close of the ceremony, after the sprigs of box or rosemary had -been deposited on the coffin, each person also adding a sprinkling of -dust, the rough voice of the parish clerk was heard grating harshly in -that solemn moment, inviting the "bidden" to show further their respect -to the deceased by partaking of a dinner provided at the village inn. -How the day terminated may be supposed, and indeed was a matter of sad -notoriety. Indeed, it was not very unusual to see those who were to -convey the dead to the sepulchre, tottering from intoxication under -their sad burden. The best features of these old-time funerals were that -doles in money were distributed to the aged and the very young; the poor -were fed, and sometimes warm cloaks or other useful articles of attire -were given, to be worn in memory of the departed.[198] Fifty-five years -ago, says Mr. Thornber, writing in 1837, the more respectable portion of -the inhabitants of Poulton were buried by candle-light--a custom long -observed by some of the oldest families in the town. It was regarded as -a sacred duty to expose a lighted candle in the window of every house as -the corpse passed through the streets towards the church for interment; -and he was poor indeed who did not pay this tribute of respect to the -dead. So late as 1813 this church was strewed with rushes. - - -MODE OF BURIAL OF A WIDOW WHO HAD TAKEN RELIGIOUS VOWS. - -A daughter of William Balderstone, of Balderstone, in her widowhood, -makes a will of which the following is the commencement:--"Seventh day -of January, 1497. I, Dame Jane Pilkington, widow, make and ordain this -my last will and testament: First, I bequeath my bodye to be buried in -y^e Nunnes Quire of Monketon, in my habit, holding my hand upon my -breast, with my ring upon my finger, having taken in my resolves the -mantel and the ring," &c.[199] - - -FUNERAL CUSTOMS IN EAST LANCASHIRE. - -In _Nicholas Assheton's Journal_, he mentions that the corpse of a Mrs. -Starkie was carried to church by four relatives; there was a sermon, and -afterwards dinner, forty messes being provided for. On this, Dr. -Whitaker remarks:--"An ancient usage. The nearest relations always took -up the corpse at the door; and once more, if the distance was -considerable, at the church gates. By forty messes, I suppose are to be -understood so many dishes of meat." The editor (the Rev. Canon Raines) -adds:--"This custom, which appears to be quite patriarchal, is still -prevalent in some of the country parishes in South Lancashire. The -custom of preaching funeral sermons on the day of the burial is now -exploded, although so recently as 1776 the vicar of one of the largest -parishes in Lancashire (Rev. John White, B.A., of Blackburn), objected -to the building of a church in his parish unless he had 'some -compensation made for the funeral sermons to be preached in it.'[200] I -should rather understand the forty messes to be dinners provided for -forty persons, although funerals in Lancashire at this period were -conducted on a scale of prodigality scarcely to be conceived." [_The -House and Farm Accounts of the Shuttleworths_ give examples of three -burial customs--that of a dole to the poor; at one place 40_s._ 7_d._, -at another 57_s._ 4_d._, at a third 47_s._ 8_d._ (?) a penny to each -person; that of payment to the clergyman for a funeral sermon, in one -case 5_s._; and that of providing dinners for the mourners, chiefly for -those from a distance, in one case twenty-four messes of meat cost -58_s._ 8_d._; in another instance seventy dined at 6_d._ the mess or -meal, seventy-six and sixty-five at 5_d._; in all 211 persons attending -one funeral.--EDS.] - - -BIDDING TO FUNERALS. - -Previously to the formation of cemeteries, and the employment of -omnibus-hearses, it was customary to invite large numbers to attend -funerals. Guests were invited by _dozens_; and as each entered the house -where the deceased lay, he was met at the door by a female attendant -habited in black, and wearing a white apron, who offered him spiced -liquor from a silver tankard. In the house each person was presented -with a bun and a slice of currant bread. When the time for closing up -the coffin arrived, each took his last look at the corpse and presented -a shilling, or more, to the nearest relative of the deceased; who always -sat at the head of the coffin for this purpose. In the neighbourhoods of -Little Hulton, Peel Yate, Walkden Moor, &c., it was till of late years -the custom for two persons to be nominated as "bidders" of guests to a -funeral. These went to the various houses of the persons to be invited, -and presented to each a sprig of rosemary; which the guest wore or -carried in the hand at the funeral. This inviting or "bidding" was -usually called "lating" or "lathing;" from the A.-S. verb _Lathian_, to -invite, bid, or send for. - - -SITUATION AND DIRECTION OF GRAVES. - -As churches are built to stand about East and West, the greatest spaces -in the churchyard are the North and South sides of the church. -Throughout Lancashire and the North of England there is a universal -superstition that the south side of the church is the holiest or most -consecrated ground, and it may be observed that that side of the -graveyard is generally crowded with grave-stones, or green hillocks of -turf, while the north side has but few. This is an old superstition, -which held that the north side of the church was really unhallowed -ground, fit only to be the last resting place of still-born infants and -suicides. Then almost all graves are ranged east and west; and in a rare -tract of the Marprelate series, called "_Martin's Month's Mind_" (1589) -it is stated that "he would not be laid east and west (for he ever went -against the hair), but north and south: I think because 'Ab aquilone -omne malum' (from the north comes all evil), and the south wind ever -brings corruption with it." The celebrated antiquary Thomas Hearne, left -orders for his grave to be made straight by a compass, due east and -west. Sir Thomas Browne[201] observes that "the Persians were buried -lying north and south; the Megarians and Ph[oe]nicians placed their -heads to the east; the Athenians, some think, towards the west, which -Christians still retain; and Bede will have it to be the posture of our -Saviour." One "Article of Inquiry" in a visitation of the Bishop of Ely -in 1662, was--"When graves are digged, are they made six feet deep (at -the least), and east and west?" - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[193] Rev. John Booker, Prestwich, in _Notes and Queries_, v. 543. - -[194] _Richmondshire_, ii. 298. - -[195] In many instances, in social feasts, four persons were regarded as -a "mess." - -[196] The Rev. Mr. Hodgson's _Description of Westmorland_. - -[197] Baines's _History of Lancashire_. - -[198] Rev. W. Thornber's _History of Blackpool_. - -[199] Dr. Whitaker's _Whalley_, addenda. - -[200] _Lancashire MSS.--Letters._ - -[201] In his _Urn Burial_. - - - - -CUSTOMS OF MANORS. - - -This subject would require extensive notice, if the materials requisite -for its elucidation were more numerous and accessible. All prescriptive -customs of manors have existed beyond what is termed "legal -memory"--_i.e._, from the reign of Richard I. (1189-1199). Many others, -relating to the military and other free tenures of the chief tenants of -manors, and to the socage and inferior or servile tenures, with the -boons of the cottagers, &c., and the various services attached to these -different tenures, would make a very curious piece of history of customs -and usages; but these are usually recorded only in private grants, -charters, and other deeds, or in copy-rolls and other records of manors, -not generally accessible. The following are some examples:-- - - -THE HONOUR OF KNIGHTHOOD. - -In the early ages of our history, the honour of knighthood, with the -military services to which it was incident under the feudal system, was -often forced upon the subject. In the year 1278, a writ to the Sheriff -of Lancashire commanded him to distrain upon all persons seised of land -of the value of L20 yearly, whether held of the King _in capite_, or of -any other lords who ought to be knights and were not; and all such were -ordered forthwith to take out their patent of knighthood. Fourteen years -after this, a writ was issued, wherein the qualification was raised to -double the amount; and a writ, dated 6th February, 1292, was issued to -the Sheriff of Lancashire (with others), proclaiming that all persons -holding lands in fee, or of inheritance, of the value of L40 per annum, -must take the order of knighthood before Christmas in that year. The -crown might relax or vary these services: hence a writ to the Sheriff of -Lancashire recites "that the commonalty of England, having performed -good services against the Welsh, the king excuses persons not holding -lands of the value of L100 yearly from taking the order of knighthood;" -but all holding above that amount, and not taking the order before the -Nativity of the Virgin (Sept. 8), were to be distrained upon. -Subsequently, injunctions were addressed to the Sheriff, commanding him -to make extents of the lands of those refusing to take the order of -knighthood, and to hold them for the king until further orders. Another -writ to the Sheriff of Lancashire, of 6th April, 1305, directs him to -proclaim that all who should become knights, and are not, must repair to -London before the following Whit Sunday to receive that distinction, if -properly qualified.[202] - - -MARITAGIUM. - -On the marriage of the Princess Alianora (sister of Edward III.) with -the Earl of Guelders, an order was issued to the abbot of Furness, and -to the priors of Burscough, Up-Holland, and Hornby, as well as to the -abbot of Whalley, and to the priors of Cartmell and Coningshead, -requesting them to levy the subsidy on their respective houses, towards -the _Maritagium_, an impost of early times, which ceased with the feudal -system.[203] This order the priests were slow to obey, in consequence of -which another letter was issued by the king from Pontefract, reminding -them of their neglect, and ordering them to communicate their intention -to the proper authority. No further documents appear on the subject; and -it may be presumed that this second application produced the desired -effect.[204] - - -PECULIAR SERVICES AND TENURES. - -The following are entries in the "Testa de Nevill," a book supposed to -have been compiled towards the close of the reign of Edward II. or the -beginning of that of Edward III., and consequently to exhibit the -services and tenures existing about the beginning of the 12th -century:--Thomas and Alicia de Gersingham, by keeping the king's -[John's] hawks in Lonsdale, till they became strong, when they were to -be committed to the Sheriff of Lancashire. Luke Pierpoint, by keeping an -aery; Adam de Hemelesdale, by constabulary at Crosby. Quenilda de -Kirkdale, by conducting royal treasure. Richard Fitz Ralph, by -constabulary at Singleton. John de Oxeclive, by being carpenter at -Lancaster Castle. Adam Fitz Gilmighel, by being the king's carpenter. -Roger the carpenter, by being carpenter in Lancaster Castle. Ralph Barun -or Babrun, by being mason in Lancaster Castle. Walter, son of Walter -Smith, by forging iron instruments. Roger Gernet, by being chief -forester. William Gernet, by the service of meeting the king on the -borders of the city, with his horse and white rod, and conducting him -into and out of the city. William and Benedict de Gersingham, by the -sergeantry of keeping the king's aeries of hawks. Gilbert Fitz Orm, by -paying yearly 3_d._ or some spurs to Benedict Gernet, the heir of Roger -de Heton, in thanage. Roger de Leycester, by paying 8_s._ and two arrows -yearly. A great number of persons in thanage: others in drengage. John -de Thoroldesholme, by larderery; Roger de Skerton, by provostry. Roger -Fitz John, by making irons for the king's ploughs. Others, by gardenry, -and by masonry, or the service of finding pot-herbs and leeks for -Lancaster castle, smith's work, and carpentry; the burgesses of -Lancaster, by free-burgage and by royal charter. Peter de Mundevill, by -service of one brachet [a sort of hound] of one colour. The prior of -Wingal, by he knows not what service. Lady Hillaria Trussebut, by no -service, and she knows not by what warrant. Henry de Waleton, by being -head sergeant or bailiff of the Hundred of Derbyshire [_i.e._, West -Derby]. Galfridus Balistarius [Geoffrey Balistur] by presenting two -cross-bows to the king. William Fitz William, by presenting one brachet, -one _velosa_ [? a piece of velvet] and two _lintheamina_ [pieces of -linen cloth]. Roger Fitz Vivian holds the sergeantry of Heysham, by -blowing the horn before the king at his entrance into and exit from the -city of Lancaster. Thomas Gernet, in Heysham, by sounding the horn on -meeting the king on his arrival in those parts. William Gresle, by -presenting a bow without string, a quiver, 12 arrows, and a _buzon_ [? -possibly a quiver or arrow-case]. William Fitz Waukelin, by presenting -one soar-hawk. Hervi Gorge, by presenting one plough, one _linthola_ -[piece of linen cloth], one _velosa_ [piece of velvet], and one -_auricular_ [? a veil for the confessional]. Roger and Hugh de -Auberville, by keeping one hawk. Several religious houses held in pure -and free and perpetual alms, or what the Normans styled -"Frank-almoigne." A large number of persons held by donation, in -consideration of yearly rents, and some of these were nominal, as "a -pepper-corn, if demanded," "a clove," "a red rose on St. John the -Baptist's Day" (24th June), "a pair of white gloves or a peny," a -"Manchester knife," &c. - -SMITHELLS.--The mesne manor of Smithells in Sharples, near Bolton, is -dependent upon the superior manor of Sharples, the lord of which claims -from the owner of Smithells a pair of gilt spurs annually; and, by a -very singular and inconvenient custom, the unlimited use of the cellars -at Smithells Hall for a week in every year.[205] - -It does not appear, however, that the lord of Smithells was bound to the -quantity or to the quality of the liquors with which his cellars were at -that time to be stored. This feudal claim seems now nearly abandoned, as -it has not been enforced within the present century.[206] - - -MANOR OF COCKERHAM.--REGULATIONS FOR THE SALE OF ALE. - -The customs' dues of this manor appear to have been originally ordained -by Brother William Geryn, cellarer of the Abbey of Cokersand, in 1326, -and were confirmed by John the Abbot in 1st Richard III. (1483-4). The -confirmation is in the English of the period; and among other curious -ordinances, contains the following regulation as to the price, &c., of -ale (the spelling is modernised):--"There shall no brewer let no tenant -for to have ale for their silver out of their house, and such [may] have -four gallons within their house, so that they bring a vessel with them. -Ye shall not sell a gallon of ale above a halfpenny when ye may buy a -quarter of good oats for 2_d._ Ye shall give ale-founders [manorial -officers also called ale-tasters] a founding-gallon, or else a taste of -each vessel, and your charge, on pain [penalty] of grievous -amerciaments."[207] - - -MANORIAL CUSTOMS IN FURNESS. - -KIRKBY IRELETH.--In this manor the widow is entitled during her -widowhood to the moiety of the estate whereof her husband died seised; -but forfeits her right thereto upon re-marriage or breach of chastity. -Every tenant, upon being admitted to a tenement, pays to the lord of the -manor 20 years' quit-rent for a fine. Every entire tenement was formerly -obliged to keep one horse and harness, for the king's service, on the -borders or elsewhere. These were called "summer [? sumpter] nags," of -which 30 were kept in Kirkby. The tenant was also to furnish a boon -plough and a boon-harrow, that is, a day's ploughing and harrowing; and -no one is to let his land for any time exceeding 7 years, without -licence. Tenements in this manor are forfeited to the lord by treason or -felony. A tenant convicted of wilful perjury forfeits to the lord 20 -years' rent, and for petty larceny, 10 years' rent. - -PENNINGTON.--Pennington is the smallest parish in the county, and -contains fewer streams than any other parish in North Lonsdale. Some -feudal customs, obsolete in most places, are still observed in the manor -of Pennington. A tenant on admission pays a fine of 16 years' quit-rent. -On the death of the lord and on every change of the lord by descent, the -tenant pays a further fine of 6 years' quit-rent; and a running-fine, -town-term, or _gressom_, is payable every 7th year. The heir, where -there is a widow, pays a heriot. Every tenant must plant two trees of -the same kind for every one that he fells. Formerly every tenant was -obliged to carry a horse-load once a year to Manchester and half a -horse-load to Lancaster. In 1318 a dispute between the Pennington family -and the Abbot of Furness, as to boon services, was thus decided:--"That -the manor of Pennington was held by the service of 30_s._, and of -finding yearly, for one day in autumn, a man and woman, sufficient to -mow at the Grange of Lindale, for every house with a court-yard except -Sir William de Pennington's capital messuage; the convent to find the -daily refreshment of each mower while employed, according to ancient -custom; and Sir William granting that all the tenants of the manor, who -had or might have ploughs, should plough half an acre of the Abbot's -Grange at Lindale."[208] - -MUCHLAND.--Immediately after the Conquest Aldingham was granted to -Michael Flandrensis or le Fleming, and his land was called Michael's -land, to distinguish it from that of the abbey of Furness; spelled often -Mychel-land and Mychelande, till it got corrupted into Muchland. In the -manor of Muchland, the tenant on being admitted to his tenement pays to -the lord of the manor two years' rent over and above the usual annual -rent. Every tenant paying 40_s._ rent was formerly obliged to find a -horse and harness for the King's service, on the borders or elsewhere. -Every tenant who paid 20_s._ a year rent, was to furnish a man harnessed -for the King's service. Every old tenant paid a _gressom_ of one year's -rent on the death of the lord, and every new tenant pays two years' rent -to the next heir. The widow has one-third of the tenement during her -chaste widowhood. If a tenement is not presented within a year and a day -after the death of the tenant, or if it be sold, set, or let without -paying the fine, or _gressom_, for a year and a day, then the lord, if -there be not good distress upon the grounds, may seize such tenement -into his hands as a forfeiture, &c. - -LOWICK.--Here the customs are much the same as in Kirkby Ireleth, except -as to forfeitures. The running _gressom_, or town term, is a year's rent -every seventh year, paid to the lord. There are four house-lookers -annually appointed for reviewing and assigning timber for necessary -repairs. - -NEVIL HALL.--The admittance fine is two years' rent, over and above the -accustomed yearly rent. The heriot, on the change of lord, is half a -year's rent. The running _gressom_, or town-term, is half a year's rent -every seventh year. Every tenant paying 20_s._ rent was formerly to keep -a horse harnessed in readiness for the King's service. The widow in this -manor, if the first wife, to have half the tenement; but if she be a -latter wife, then only one-third the tenement. A tenant may, whenever he -pleases, give his tenement to any of his sons; and in default of sons to -any of his daughters, as he thinks fit. A tenant may let, or mortgage, -any tenement or part of it for a year, without a licence; and may sell -his whole tenant-right, or any part of it, with licence from the lord. -The rents mentioned above are old and immutable rents.[209] - -MUCH-URSWICK.--These customs include a fine of 20_d._ to the lord of the -manor on every change of tenancy, or on the death of the lord; except -one large house, which paying 4_s._ rent, paid a fine of five times the -lord's rent, or 5_d._ on the death of the lord, or a change of tenancy. -The tenant's widow had half the estate during chaste widowhood. The -tenants were obliged to carry a single horse-load, anciently fish, once -a year to Mowbreck Hall, near Kirkham; but this service was commuted for -a small rent called carriage rent. Tenements in this manor, on treason -or felony by the tenant are forfeited to the lord. A tenant convicted of -wilful perjury, forfeits to the lord twenty years' rent, and for petty -larceny, ten years' rent.[210] - -THE ROYAL MANOR OF WARTON.--These customs are similar in many respects -to those of the duchy manors in Furness. In the reign of Elizabeth a -commission of survey, and a jury of twenty-four, from the neighbouring -manors, made a return of the customs, which were confirmed by the Court -of Exchequer. These manorial bye-laws are applicable to customary -tenants, and relate to the subjects of heirships, performance of suit -and service, the powers of the steward, the enrolling of tenants, the -payment of rents, amounts of fines, &c. A fine of two years' rent is to -be imposed on changes of tenantry; all tenants paying above 20_s._ rent -were required to maintain a horse and man with armour, tenants paying -under 20_s._ being commanded to serve in person: these services to be -strictly and fully executed in cases of need. Each tenant is directed to -repair his own homestead. In case of the death of a married tenant, -one-half of the tenement is assigned to the widow, to be held during her -chaste widowhood, and the other half to the heir or heirs. The crime of -fornication to be punished with forfeiture. Tenants not to set, let, or -mortgage for above three years without licence; not to encroach on the -common without permission. The manor court to have jurisdiction in cases -of tithe and tenant right; the tenants to be at liberty to take ash -wood. The tenants are not to be abated in their rents for any loss they -may suffer in their several proportions of turbary, marsh and common. -These manorial regulations are now but seldom enforced, and the Court -Baron of Warton assembles only on rare occasions, not uncommonly after -intervals of years.[211] - -FEUDAL PRIVILEGES OF THE HONOUR AND MANOR OF HORNBY.--These ancient -privileges comprised free warren, subject to a fine of 10_l._ on -encroachments on the King's forests; right of market and fair at -Arkholme and at Hornby; court of view of frank-pledge; sheriff's turn; -free court of all pleas; assize of bread; soc, sac, tol, and them; -infangetheof and utfangetheof; hamsocn; leyrwite; murder; acquittance of -shires and hundreds, lestage [or lastage], aids of sheriffs and their -bailiffs, and amercements; wardships, and works and enclosures of -castles, parks, and bridges; and of passage, frontage, stallage, toll, -paiage, and money given for murder; and right to pontage, stallage, -hidage, and pickage. All these feudal customs were confirmed in the 12th -Charles I. (1636) to Henry Parker, Lord Morley and Monteagle.[212] - -A number of the above terms require explanation. "Money given for -murder," implied the fines levied on a district in which a murder had -been committed, and the criminal not discovered; "the privilege of -murder" was the power to levy such fines; thus the town or hundred which -suffered an Englishman, who had killed a Dane there to escape, was to be -amerced sixty-six marks [44_l._] to the King. _Hamsocn_, is the -privilege or liberty of a man's own house, its violation is burglary. -_Leyr_ or _lecher wite_, is the privilege of punishing adultery and -fornication. Passage is a toll for passing over water, as at a ford or -ferry; pontage is bridge toll; stallage, a toll for stalls in a market; -paiage or pavage, is a paving toll. _Sac_, the right of a lord to hold -pleas in his court, in causes of trespass among his tenants; _soc_, the -right to administer justice and execute laws; _toll_, the right to levy -tolls on tenants; _them_, the right to hear, restrain, and judge bondmen -and villeins, with their children, goods and chattels, &c. -_Infangetheof_, the lord's privilege to judge any thief taken within his -fee. _Outfangtheof_, the right of the lord to call men dwelling within -his manor, and taken for felony outside his fee, to judgment in the -lord's own court. - - -THE LORD'S YULE FEAST AT ASHTON. - -Among the customs of the Manor of Ashton-under-Lyne, as described by the -late Dr. Hibbert-Ware, was the making of so-called "presents" by the -tenants-at-will to the lord of the manor, for the sake of partaking in -the annual feast at the great hall. In the rental of Sir John de -Assheton, made in November 1422, these presents are claimed as an -obligatory service from the tenants-at-will, in the following -terms:--"That they shall give their presents at Yole [Christmas]; every -present to such a value as is written and set in the rental; and the -lord shall feed all his said tenants, and their wifes, upon Yole-day at -the dinner, if they like for to come; but the said tenants and their -wifes, though it be for their ease not to come, they shall send neither -man nor woman in their name,--but if [unless] they be their son or their -daughter dwelling with them,--unto the dinner; for the lord is not -bounden to feed them all, only the good man and the good wife." In some -manor-houses of Lancashire, once dedicated to these annual scenes of -festivity, may be observed an elevation of the floor [or _dais_] at the -extremity of the great hall, or, in the place of it, a gallery which -stretches along one side of the room [many halls have both _dais_ and -gallery] to accommodate the lord and his family, so that they might not -be annoyed by the coarse rustic freedoms which the tenants would be too -apt to take during the hours of their conviviality. In a hall, then, of -this kind in the manor-house at Assheton, we may imagine the large Yule -fire to be kindled; while in a gallery or raised floor Sir John of -Assheton, his lady, and family, together with his kinsmen, Elland of -Brighouse, and Sir John the Byron, are feasting apart, yet attentive to -the frolics or old songs of the company below. It was on these occasions -that peg-tankards were used, and horns that bore the names of the Saxons -and Danes, whom the Normans had ousted out of their possessions. Of the -description of ale that flowed merrily on these occasions we know -little; but there can be no doubt that it was like King Henry the -Eighth's ale, which contained neither hops nor brimstone. We may -suppose, then, that on annual festivals like these, the wooden bowl or -horn would pass freely through the hands of Sir John of Assheton's -tenants-at-will; among whom were such personages as Hobbe Adamson, Hobbe -of the Leghes, William the arrow-smith, Roger the baxter, Roger le -smith, Jack the spencer, Jack the hind, Elyn Wilkyn daughter, Elyn the -rose, and the widows Mergot of Staley, Peryn's wife, and Nan of the -Windy Bank,--all clad in their best hoods, and brown woollen jackets and -petticoats. The ancient musical instruments used in Lancashire were a -kind of fiddle, not of the present form, and a stringed instrument -called the virginals. The provincial songs of that period, few of which -were less than half-an-hour in length, rehearsed the deeds of Launcelot -du Lake, and his conquest of the giant Tarquin, at the castle of -Manchester; Ranulph of Chester, and his wars in the Holy Land; or the -warlike feats and amorous prowess of the renowned Cheshire hero, Roger -de Calverley. In order to preserve, as much as possible, the degree of -decorum that was necessary at such meetings, there was firstly -introduced a diminutive pair of stone stocks, of about eighteen inches -in length, for confining within them the fingers of the unruly. This -instrument was entrusted to the general prefect of manorial festivities -named the King of Misrule, whose office it was to punish all who -exceeded his royal notions of decency. Accordingly such a character -appears among the list of Sir John of Assheton's tenants, under the name -of Hobbe the king. From these entertainments being supported by the -contributions of the tenants, they were derisively called _Drink-leans_. -[_Laen_, A.-S. a loan, a gift, a reward; _Laene_, adj., lean, slender, -fragile.][213] - - -RIDING THE BLACK LAD AT ASHTON-UNDER-LYNE. - -In the rental of Sir John Assheton, knight, of his Manor of -Ashton-under-Lyne, A.D. 1422, it is stated that two of his sons, Rauf of -Assheton, and Robyn of Assheton, by grants to them, "have the sour carr -guld rode and stane rynges for the term of their lives." This donation -(says Dr. Hibbert-Ware) evidently alludes to the privilege of -_Guld-riding_, a custom that in Scotland at least is of great antiquity, -having been intended to prevent lands from being over-run with the -weeds, which, from their yellow colour, were named _gools_ or _gulds_, -_i.e._, the corn-marigold, or _Chrysanthemum Segetum_ of Linn. Boethius -(lib. 10) mentions a law of king Kenneth (probably rather of Alexander -II.) to prevent the growth of _manaleta_ or _guld_, and to impose a fine -of oxen on proof of its infraction. The Rev. J. P. Bannerman, in a -statistical account of the parish of Cargill, in Perthshire, states that -with a view of extirpating this weed, "after allowing a reasonable time -for procuring clean seed from other grounds, an act of the Baron Court -was passed, enforcing an old Act of Parliament to the same effect, -imposing a fine of 3_s._ 4_d._, or a wether sheep, on the tenants for -every stock of _gool_ that should be found growing in their corn at a -particular day; and certain persons styled _gool-riders_ were appointed -to ride through the fields, search for _gool_, and carry the law into -execution when they discovered it. Though the fine of a wether sheep is -now commuted and reduced to a penny, the practice of _gool-riding_ is -still kept up, and the fine rigidly exacted." To this origin Dr. -Hibbert-Ware attributes the custom peculiar to Ashton-under-Lyne of -"Riding the Black Lad." He states that in the days of Sir John of -Assheton (A.D. 1422) a large portion of low wet land in the vicinity of -Assheton was named the Sour Carr (carr being synonymous with the Scotch -word _carse_, and the well-known term _sour_ implying an impoverished -state of the carr). It had been over-run with corn-marigolds or -carr-gulds, which were so destructive to the corn that the lord of the -manor enforced some rigorous measures for their extirpation, similar to -the carr-guld riding in Perthshire. Ralph of Assheton, Sir John's son by -a second marriage, and Robin, his brother, were on a certain day in the -spring [Easter-Monday] invested with the power of riding over the lands -of the carr, named the _Carr Guld Rode_, of levying fines for all -_carr-gulds_ that were found among the corn, and, until the penalties -were paid, of punishing transgressors by putting them into the [finger] -_stocks_ or _stone rings_, or by incarceration. Ralph Assheton, by his -alliance with a rich heiress, became the lord of the neighbouring manor -of Middleton, and soon afterwards received the honour of knighthood; -being at the same time entrusted with the office of Vice-Constable of -the kingdom; and it is added, of Lieutenant of the Tower. Invested with -such authorities, he committed violent excesses in this part of the -kingdom. Retaining for life the privilege granted him in Ashton of -Guld-riding, he, on a certain day in spring, made his appearance in the -manor, clad in black armour (whence his name of the Black Lad or Black -Boy) mounted on a charger, and attended with a numerous train of his own -followers, in order to levy the penalty arising from the neglect of -clearing the land from carr-gulds. The interference of so powerful a -knight belonging to another township could not but be regarded by the -tenants of Assheton as the tyrannical intrusion of a stranger; and as -Sir Ralph, sanctioned by the political power given him by Henry VI., -exercised his privilege with the utmost severity, the name of the Black -Lad is still regarded with sentiments of horror. Tradition has, indeed, -perpetuated the prayer that was fervently ejaculated for a deliverance -from his tyranny:-- - - Sweet Jesu! for thy mercy's sake, - And for thy bitter passion, - Save us from the axe of the Tower, - And from Sir Ralph of Ashton. - -Upon the death of the Black Knight, Sir John's heir and successor -abolished the usage for ever, reserving for the estate a small sum of -money for the purpose of perpetuating, in an annual ceremony, the -dreaded annual visits of the Black Boy. This is still kept up. An effigy -is made of a man in armour; and since Sir Ralph was the son of a second -marriage (which, for this reason, had been esteemed by the heir of Sir -John as an unfortunate match) the image is deridingly emblazoned with -some emblem of the occupation of the first couple that are linked -together in the course of the year. [Mr. Edwin Butterworth says with the -initials of their names.] The Black Boy is then fixed on horseback, and, -after being led in procession round the town, is dismounted, made to -supply the place of a shooting-butt, and, all fire-arms being in -requisition for the occasion, he is put to an ignominious death. [The -origin of Riding the Black Lad, here suggested, is exceedingly -ingenious; but it seems questionable whether any real data for it are -given in the single passage cited from the rental of 1422. "The Sour -Carr Guld Rode and the Stane Ringes" taken as they stand, may mean the -Guld-ruyding, or ridding, as a piece of land cleared of stumps, &c., was -called; _ex. gr._ Hunt-royd, Orme-rod, Blake-rod, &c. The Stone Rings -may be a piece of land so-called. There is no mention of the power to -levy penalties, nor even of any official riding, but only the -_rode_,--not road, as it has been interpreted, but ridded land, perhaps -cleared from gulds and weeds, no less than from stubs, stumps, and -stones.--EDS.][214] - -Mr. Roby, from the above materials, has written a tale of Sir Ralph's -cruel seizure of a widow's only cow, as the heriot due to him as lord of -the manor, on the death of her husband. Her half-witted son is said to -have told Sir Ralph that on his death his master the devil would claim a -heriot, and that Sir Ralph himself would be given up. On this Sir Ralph -took fright, and sent back the heriot cow to the poor widow. Another -tradition exists as to the origin of the custom of "Riding the Black -Lad," which Mr. Roby thinks may have been fabricated merely to throw off -the odium attached to the name of Sir Ralph. In the reign of Edward III. -one Thomas Assheton fought under Queen Philippa in the battle of -Neville's Cross. Riding through the ranks of the enemy, he bore away the -royal standard from the Scotch king's tent, who himself was afterwards -taken prisoner. King Edward, on his return from France, conferred on -Thomas the honour of knighthood, with the title of "Sir Thomas Assheton -of Assheton-under-Lyne." To commemorate this singular display of valour, -Sir Thomas instituted the custom of "Riding the Black Knight or Lad" at -Assheton, on Easter-Monday; leaving 10_s._ yearly to support it, -together with his own suit of black velvet, and a coat of mail. Which of -these accounts of the origin of the custom is correct, there is now no -evidence to determine. - - -BOON SHEARING. - -In the manor of Ashton-under-Lyne, every tenant-at-will was thus -commanded:--"He that plough has, shall plough two days. He that half -plough has, shall plough a day, whenever the lord be liever [more -willing], in wheet-seeding, or in lenton-seeding; and every tenant -harrow a day with their harrow, in seeding time, when they bin charged. -And they should cart, every tenant ten cartful of turve from Doneam Moss -to Assheton, and shere four days in harvest, and cart a day corn." This -service, so profitable to the lord, was familiarly called boon-work. -Hence an old adage still retained in the North of England, when a man is -supposed to be working for nothing, that "he has been served like a -boon-shearer."[215] - - -THE PRINCIPAL OR HERIOT. - -One of the services of Sir John Assheton's tenants-at-will, in the manor -of Ashton-under-Lyne, in the fifteenth century, as appears by his rental -of 1422, was that "they should pay a principal at their death, to wit, -the best beast they have." This was evidently a heriot. As of a military -vassal, or tenant by knight-service, his horse was the heriot due to his -lord at death; so the custom became extended to that class of dependents -who were retained in the lord's employ to perform the busier services of -the manor. As their property consisted of cattle, or of implements of -husbandry, the heriot due to the lord was the best beast, cow, or horse, -of which the tenant might die possessed. This condition being fulfilled, -every further claim upon the goods of the deceased was remitted. At -times this expressive relic of ancient military subjection was found -exceedingly galling. In the manor of Assheton there are many traditional -stories still remaining on the subject of such principals or heriots. A -tenant's boy, on the death of his father, was driving an only cow to the -manor-house of the adjoining demesnes of Dukinfield. He was met by the -lord of the place, with whose person and rank he was unacquainted, who -questioned him whither he was taking his beast. "I am driving it as far -as Dukinfield for the heriot," replied the boy. "My father is dead--we -are many children--and we have no cow but this. Don't you think the -devil will take Sir Robert for a heriot, when he dies?" The lad was -fortunately addressing a humane landlord. "Take the cow back to thy -mother; I know Sir Robert,--I am going to Dukinfield myself, and will -make up the matter with him."[216] - - -DENTON RENT-BOONS. - -The lands of the Denton estates of the Hollands were held in 1780 by -seventeen tenants, subject to a rent of 294_l._ 6_s._ 8_d._ The entire -property was held by lease of lives, and this rental was exclusive of -fines paid on the renewal of leases. By the terms of their respective -leases the tenants were also pledged to the payment of certain -rent-boons, consisting of a dog and a cock, or (at the landlord's -option) of their equivalent in money--for the dog 10_s._, for the cock -1_s._; the landlord thus providing for his amusement in hunting and -cock-fighting in a manner least onerous to himself.[217] - - -A SAXON CONSTABLEWICK. - -Until within these few years a relic of Saxon polity more ancient than -the Domesday Survey existed in the Constablewick of Garstang, which -continued to our own days, the _freo borh_, _friborg_, or Saxon manor, -in a very perfect state. The free-burgh consisted of 11 townships, -surrounding the original lordship to which all but one were subject. The -reason for establishing this institution is stated in a Saxon law. The -_Wita_, or counsellors, having considered the impunity with which -trespasses against neighbours were committed, appointed over every ten -friborgs, justiciaries whom they denominated _tien heofod_ or "head of -ten." These (says Dr. Keuerden) handled smaller causes between townsmen -and neighbours, and according to the degree of the trespass, awarded -satisfaction; made agreements respecting pastures, meadows and -corn-lands, and reconciled differences among neighbours. The -constablewick of Garstang comprised the township of Garstang and ten -other townships, all of which are styled hamlets in the books of the -court, and were divided into three portions. Two constables were -annually elected for this district, and were alternately taken from each -third portion of the constablewick. The jury were nominated in a similar -manner. The jury were accustomed to adjourn from the court to an -eminence called Constable hillock, adjoining the river Wyre, where they -made choice of the constables by inscribing their names upon slips of -wood. These officers were empowered to collect the county-rates, and -serve for all the hamlets. The court was held annually, by direction of -a steward of the Duke of Hamilton, the superior lord of the wick, till -1816, when it fell into neglect, and its powers are now exercised in -such of the townships only as are the property of the Duke. The -adjournment of the court to the hillock is obviously the remnant of a -custom far more ancient than the institution of the friborg itself.[218] - - -TALLIAGE OR TALLAGE. - -This was a kind of occasional property tax, levied by order of the -monarch in emergencies, and throughout the kingdom. In the charter -granted by Randle, Earl of Chester, to the burgesses of Stafford, about -A.D. 1231, is a clause reserving to him and his heirs reasonable -tallage, when the King makes or takes tallage of his burgesses -throughout England. A precisely similar clause is found in Thomas -Greslet's charter to his burgesses of Mamecestre in 1301. In the 11th -Henry III. (1226-27) a still earlier talliage was made in Lancashire, -which enables us to measure the relative importance of the principal -towns in the county early in the thirteenth century. The impost was -assessed by Master Alexander de Dorsete and Simon de Hal; and the -payments were for the towns of Lancaster thirteen marks (L8 13_s._ -4_d._); Liverpool, eleven marks, 7_s._ 8_d._ (L7 14_s._ 4_d._); West -Derby, seven marks, 7_s._ 8_d._ (L5 1_s._); Preston, fifteen marks, -6_d._ (L10 0_s._ 6_d._). The tenants in thanage paid ten marks (L6 -13_s._ 4_d._) to have respite, that they might not be talliaged. Baines -deems it remarkable that Manchester, Stafford, and Wigan were not -included; but in these old manors it was the lord of the manor who had -the right to levy talliage within his manor. In 1332 a tallage of -one-fifteenth was levied by Edward III., to enable him to carry on the -war against Scotland.[219] - - -ROCHDALE TITHE, EASTER-DUES, MORTUARIES, ETC. - -The following is a literal copy of a small hand-bill in possession of -the writer, which appears to have been printed for distribution among -the farmers and the parishioners generally, with the purpose of -supplying information as to the various payments to be made to the -vicar, or at all events to the parish church:-- - - An EXTRACT out of the _Parliament Survey_, - Taken the 10th of _January_ 1620. - - The Parish of _Rochdale_ is divided into four Divisions, viz. - _Hundersfield_, _Spotland_, _Castleton_, and _Butterworth_. There is - also belonging to the Rectory of _Rochdale_, the Parish Chapel of - _Saddleworth_, in the County of _York_; and certain Parcels of Glebe - Lands, lying in _Saddleworth_. - - [*3] There is no Tythe Hay paid within the Parish, but a Penny a - Year every one payeth that holdeth any Lands within the Parish. - - No Tythe paid for Eggs, Apples, Hemp, or Flax. - - The Manner of receiving the _Easter-Role_ and Mortuarys are - thus--each Horse payeth a Penny; for every married Man or Widow at - the Offering, a Penny; every Plough a Penny; every Swarm of Bees a - Penny; every Cow one Penny; and every Colt, and every Calf, one - Halfpenny. - - For Mortuarys--Every one buried in the Chancel payeth 6_s._ 8_d._ - every one that dieth worth twenty Nobles, in moveable Goods, over - and above his Debts, payeth 3_s._ 4_d._ if worth 30_l._ payeth - 6_s._ 8_d._ if worth 40_l._ or upwards, 10_s._--Stat. 21. Hen. 8. - Chap. 6. - - N.B. That House or Smoke, and Garden, hath been substituted in the - Room of Horse and Plough. - - In Closes where there are more than ten Stacks of Corn (or even - tens) in one Close, _the odd Stacks shall not be tythed_; the - Land-Owner setting up the Corn in Stacks, may be a good - Consideration for the same; because of Common Right the Tytheman is - to take the Corn Tythe in the Sheaf, but when the same is stacked, - as is customary in many places, the Tytheman may not break any odd - Stack, for he cannot tythe both by the Stack and Sheaf. And this - was the Opinion of Serjeants _Poole_ and _Kenyan_, and of Lawyer - _Wilson_. - - No Complaint concerning any small Tythes, &c. shall be determined - by Justices of Peace, unless the Complaint be made within two Years - after the same Tythes, &c. become due. Stat. 7. and 8. William 3. - Chap. 6. - - -FARM AND AGRICULTURAL CELEBRATIONS IN THE FYLDE. - -In the olden times almost every great agricultural operation had its -peculiar festivities; now almost everywhere obsolete. The harvest home, -its procession and feast, still linger the last of these rural -celebrations, but shorn of much of its old ceremonial and jollity. -"Shutting of marling" had also its gala-day. Then a "lord" and a "lady" -presided at the feast; having been previously drawn out of the marl-pit -by a strong team of horses, gaily decorated with ribbons, mounted by -their drivers, who were trimmed out in their best. The procession -paraded through the village lanes and streets, some of its members -shaking tin boxes, and soliciting contributions from the bystanders. The -money collected was expended in good cheer at the feast. Again, -"Cob-seeding" was a time when mirth and good-nature prevailed. Like the -"bee" of our American cousins, it was an occasion when all helped every -one else in turn,--collecting, threshing, winnowing the crop on the -field; "housing" the seed ready prepared for the market; and when all -the work of the day was finished, partaking of a substantial supper, and -closing the evening with many a merry dance on the barn's clay -floor.[220] - - -DALTON-IN-FURNESS. - -Among the ancient customs of Dalton, is the practice of hiring reapers -on Sundays in time of harvest. Endeavours have been made to abolish it; -but by the statute of 27 Henry VI. cap. 5, for suppressing -Sabbath-breaking, four Sundays in harvest time are excepted from the -prohibition against holding markets and fairs on holydays, and the -people of Dalton have construed it to the hiring of such servants. Till -of late years there was at Dalton an annual festival called "The Dalton -Hunt," in which the gentlemen of the district partook of the sports of -the field by day, and joined the ladies in the ball-room at night. A -suite of rooms was erected in the town, and handsomely fitted-up for -this annual jubilee, which existed as early as the year 1703, as appears -from the columns of the _London Gazette_, in which it is styled "the -Dalton Route," and the pen of an elegant contributor to the _Tatler_ has -imparted to it additional celebrity. To the regret of the beaux and -belles of the neighbourhood the "route" was discontinued in 1789, and -has never since been revived.[221] - - -LETTING SHEEP FARMS IN BOWLAND. - -One custom, in letting the great sheep-farms in the higher parts of -Bowland, deserves to be mentioned, as I do not know that it prevails -anywhere else. It is this: That the flock, often consisting of 2000 -sheep, or more, is the property of the lord, and delivered to the tenant -by a schedule, subject to the condition of delivering up an equal number -of the same quality at the expiration of the term. Thus the tenant is -merely usufructuary of his own stock. The practice was familiar to the -Roman law, and seems to have arisen from the difficulty of procuring -tenants who were able to stock farms of such extent.[222] - - -MEDIAEVAL LATIN LAW TERMS. - -The old charters and deeds of Manchester, Warrington, and other -Lancashire towns, contain various words now obsolete, and amongst others -the words _namare_ and _namium_, which it is not easy to render -accurately. The first may be translated to seize in pledge, to arrest, -to distrain; the second is a pledge, or a distress, what is seized by -distraint. In connexion with the substantive _namium_, the following -anecdote of the great Sir Thomas More may be told, as illustrative of -the obscurity of some of these ancient law terms. It is said that Sir -Thomas, when travelling, arrived at Padua just as a boasting Professor -had placarded the walls of that University with a challenge to all the -world to dispute with him on any subject or in any art, and that Sir -Thomas accepted the challenge, and proposed for his subject this -question:-- - - "AN AVERIA CARUCAE CAPTA IN VETITO NAMIO SINT IRREPLEGIBILIA?" - -which, it is almost needless to add, proved such a stumbling-block to -the challenger, who did not know even the very terms of the question, -that he surrendered at discretion, and acknowledged himself -vanquished.[223] - -Perhaps the best way to English the puzzling question, would be to -render it thus:--"Whether plough-cattle, taken in illegal distress, are -irrepleviable?" But several of the words are susceptible of two -meanings. Thus _averia_ means goods, as well as cattle; _caruca_, a -cart, as well as a plough; _namium_, a pledge, as well as a distress. It -is not to be wondered at that the continental Professor found himself -unable even to comprehend the terms of this perplexing question. - - -CUSTOMS [DUES] AT WARRINGTON. - -Amongst the Tower records are three royal charters bearing date -respectively 3 Edward II., 15 Edward II., and 12 Edward III. (1309-10, -1321-2, 1338), and granting, for the purpose of effecting repairs in the -bridges and pavements, certain temporary customs on articles brought -into Warrington for sale. In the two first of these charters, a custom -of one farthing is imposed on every 100 faggots and every 1000 turves; -and of one halfpenny on every cart-load of wood or wind-blown timber. -The last of the charters imposes a custom of one penny on every 1000 -faggots, one farthing on every 10,000 turves, one penny on every -ship-load of turves, and one halfpenny weekly on every cart-load of wood -and coals [_carbonum_, ? charcoal]. Amongst other articles, a custom was -imposed on salt, on bacon, on cheese (probably from Cheshire), on -butter, on lampreys, on salmon, on pelts of sheep, goats, stags, hinds, -deer, does, hares, rabbits, foxes, cats, and squirrels; on cloths in the -entire piece; on grice work (_i.e._, fur of the skins of blue weasels); -on Cordovan leather, on oil in flasks (_lagenas olei_); on hemp, on -linen webs; on Aylesbury webs and linen; on canvas, Irish cloths, -Galways and worsteds; on silks, diapered with gold (_de Samite_) and -tissue; on silks within gold; on sendal [or _cendal_, a kind of silk]; -on cloth of baudekin [silk cloth, interwoven with threads of gold]; on -gads of maple, and on Aberdeen gads; on every tun of wine (_et -cinerum_--the ashes of burnt wine lees); on honey; on wool in sacks; on -tin, brass, copper, iron, and lead; on alum, copperas, argil, and -verdigris; on onions and garlic; and on stock-fish, salt mullet, -herrings, and sea-fish, amongst a number of other articles.[224] - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[202] Baines's _Lancashire_. - -[203] Claus., 7 Edward III., 1333, p. 1, m. 23. - -[204] Baines's _Lancashire_. - -[205] Dr. Whitaker's _Whalley_. - -[206] Baines's _History of Lancashire_. - -[207] Baines's _History of Lancashire_. - -[208] Baines's _Lancashire_. - -[209] West's _History of Furness_. - -[210] Baines's _History of Lancashire_. - -[211] Baines's _History of Lancashire_. - -[212] Baines's _Lancashire_. - -[213] _Illustration of the Customs of a Manor in the North of England._ - -[214] Dr. Hibbert-Ware's _Illustration of the Customs of a Manor in the -North of England_. - -[215] Dr. Hibbert-Ware's _Illustration of the Customs of a Manor in the -North of England_. - -[216] _Illustration of the Customs of a Manor in the North of England_, -by Dr. Hibbert-Ware. - -[217] Rev. J. Booker's _Chapel of Denton_. - -[218] Baines's _Lancashire_. - -[219] Baines's _Lancashire_. - -[220] Rev. W. Thornber's _History of Blackpool_. - -[221] Baines's _Lancashire_. - -[222] Dr. Whitaker's _Whalley_. - -[223] Mr. Beamont's _Warrington in the Thirteenth Century_. - -[224] Mr. W. Beamont, in _Warrington in 1465_. - - - - -INDEX. - - - Agricultural and Farm Celebrations in the Fylde, 298 - - Alchemists, 23; - two Lancashire, 30 - - Alchemy, 23 - - Ale, price of, 281; - of Halton, 259; - Warrington, 259; - Cockerham, 281 - - Ale Founders, 281 - - All-Souls Night, 49 - - " Day, 251 - - Apostle Spoons, 262 - - Arrowsmith, Father, his execution and the dead hand, 158-163 - - Arval, cake and ale, 270-272 - - Ascension Day, or Holy Thursday, 249 - - Ash-Wednesday, 221 - - Ashton, (Sir Thomas), of Ashton, 30 - - Ashton-under-Lyne, manorial customs of, 286, 289, 292, 293; - the Lord's Yule Feast at, 286; - Riding the Black Lad at, 289 - - Assheton (Sir John de), 287 - - " (Sir Ralph de), 290-292 - - Astrologers, Lancashire, 33 - - Astrology, 33 - - Auld Wife Hakes, 216 - - Averia (cattle, goods), 300, 301 - - Aylesbury webs and linen, 302 - - - Baal Worship, 3-45 - - Bacon, Customs' dues on, 301 - - Ball, or "Old Ball," 234, 235 - - Baptismal Customs, 260 - - Barguest, bar- or barn-ghaist, 91 - - Barnacle Geese, 116-121 - - Bel, Belus, or Baal, 45 - - Belisama, the River Ribble, 4 - - Bells, church, 41, 42; - passing and funeral, 41, 42; - pancake, 44; - curfew, 44; - submarine, 44; - verses, 42 - - Beltane or Beltein fires, 3, 45, 47, 48 - - Betrothing and bridal customs, 263 - - Bible, for direction, divination, and dreams, 20 - - Bible and key, 103 - - Bidding to funerals, 274 - - Birth and baptismal customs, 260 - - Black Lad, at Ashton, 289 - - Bleeding, charms to stop, 77 - - Boggart, or bogle, 16; - the name, 49; - the flitting, 58 - - Boggart Hole Clough, 50 - - Boggarts, ghosts, and haunted places, 49; - various, 58; - in old halls, 51; - in the nineteenth century, 61 - - Bones of St. Lawrence at Chorley, 157 - - Booker (John), of Manchester, astrologer, 34-38 - - _Books of Fate_, 145 - - Boon rents at Denton, 294 - - Boon shearing at Ashton, 292, 293 - - Bothe (Thomas del) his will, 241 - - Bowland, letting sheep, &c., 300 - - Bragot-Sunday, 225, 258 - - Bridal bouquet, 268; - flowers, _ib._ - - Bride's chair at Warton, 265 - - Brindle Church, footprint at, 134 - - Bromley (Sir Edward), judge, 189 - - Brownies or _lares_, 16 - - Bryn Hall, the Gerards, and the dead man's hand, 158-163 - - Bungerley stepping-stones, 90 - - Burial by candle light, 273; - of a widow in vows, _ib._ - - Burnley, the church, 89; - a witch near, 209; - wedding customs at, 265 - - Burying in woollen, 269 - - - Cards, 140 - - Carlins, 258 - - Carnaval, 217 - - Carols, Christmas, 257 - - Carr Gulds, 290 - - Cartmel Church, Legend of, 137 - - Cattle Diseases, Charms for, 79 - - Celebrations, Farm and Agricultural, in the Fylde, 298 - - Changelings, 263 - - Charles I., King, 200, 240 - - Charm, a, in cypher, 63 - - Charms and spells, 62; - against evil beings, _ib._; - against sickness, wounds, &c., 74; - crow, lady-bird, 70-71; - to get drink, 72-74; - against danger by night, 74; - wounds, 74; - toothache, 75; - rheumatism and cramp, 75; - ague, 80; - nettle stings, _ib._; - jaundice, _ib._; - to get sleep, _ib._ - - "Chattox, Old," a witch, 186-189 - - Child, unbaptized, cannot die, 262 - - Childbed presents, 260 - - Childbirth, tea-drinking, 261 - - " turning the bed after, 261 - - Children, gifts to, 262 - - Christianizing of pagan gods and festivals, 14 - - Christmas, 252; - mumming at, 253; - carols, 254; - games, 255; - mutes, 256 - - Christmas at Wycoller Hall, 256 - - " Carols, 254; - rhymes, 253 - - Christmas customs in the Fylde, 254; - games there, 255 - - Christmas-day, old and new, 20; - breakfast in the Fylde, 256 - - Christmas Eve, creatures worshipping, 253; - called "Flesh-day," 256 - - " Evergreens, &c., 256 - - Christmas Frumenty, 252, 256 - - Christmas hobby-horse, 254 - - Christmas or Yule Feast, at Ashton-under-Lyne, 286 - - Church Festivals, 212, _et seq._ - - Churches and Churchyards, north and south sides of, 275 - - Cinderella and her slipper, 5 - - Clayton Hall Boggart, 52 - - Clegg Hall Boggart, 52 - - Cleworth, Demoniacs in 1594, 92 - - Clock-house Boggart, 52 - - Cob-seeding, 298 - - Cock-penny, at Clitheroe, 220 - - Cock-throwing and Cock-fighting, 218; - about Blackburn, 220; - at Burnley, _ib._ - - Cockerham Manor, 281; - ale in, _ib._ - - Cokersand Abbey, 281; - abbot of, _ib._ - - Collop Monday, 217 - - Constablewick, a Saxon, 295 - - Corals with bells, 262 - - Corpse, carrying the, 272, 274 - - Courting and Wedding Customs in the Fylde, 264 - - Cousell and Clarke, conjurors, 86 - - Cramp Rings, 75 - - Creed and Little Creed, at Eccles, 114 - - Cross-buns on Good Friday, 226 - - Crow Charm, 70 - - Curfew Bell, 44 - - Customs of Manors, 276; - in Furness, 281; - Ashton, 286, 289 - - Customs' dues at Warrington, 301 - - "Cuthbert, Old mother," and her daughters, 177 - - - Dalton-in-Furness, funerals at, 271; - manor, 299; - hunt and rout, _ib._ - - Dalton-in-Furness, hiring reapers on Sunday, 299 - - Danish Traditions, &c., 4, 5 - - Darrell's (Rev. John) _Narrative_, &c. 93, 96; - his punishment, 97 - - Dead and Dying, the, 7 - - " man's hand, 158, 163 - - " raising the, 128 - - Deasil, or Widersinnis, 151 - - Death tick or Death watch, 152 - - Dee (Dr. John), 25 - - " charged with Witchcraft, 178 - - Deities and demi-gods, 12 - - "Demdike, Old," a witch, 186; - "Young Demdike," _ib._ - - Demon and Goblin Superstitions, 88 - - Demon Pig, 89 - - Demoniacal possession in 1594, 92; - in 1686, 98 - - Demoniacs, 87; - dispossessing a, 92; - at Morzine, 88 - - Demonology, 86 - - Denton Rent-boons, 294 - - Derby (Edward 3rd) Earl of, charged with keeping a Conjuror, 129 - - Device, Elizabeth and Alizon, witches, 186, 189 - - Devil, the 16; - his names, 84-86; - a card-player, 81; - raised, 17, 81; - exorcised, 17, 81 - - Devil, at Burnley, 83 - - " and the Tailor of Chatburn, 82; - and the Dun horse, _ib._; - and the schoolmaster at Cockerham, 83 - - Devil, sacrifices to, 82; - appearances of, _ib._ - - "Devils of Morzine," (demoniacs) 88 - - Dispossession of Devils, 93-98 - - Divination, ancient, 7; - Lancashire, _ib._ - - " 102; - at marriages, 103; - by Bible and key, _ib._; - Lancashire form of, 104; - by the dying, _ib._; - second-sight, 105; - spirits of the dying and dead, _ib._; - by lots, 106 - - Doles at Weddings, 264; - at funerals, 270; - at Swinton, _ib._ - - Downham, King and Queen at, 248 - - Dreams, 6, 19, 140, 145-149 - - Drink-leans, 288 - - Druidical Rock basins, 106-110 - - Dugdale, the Surey demoniac, 98 - - Dukinfield (Sir Robert), and the heriot, 294 - - Dying, Death-bed, and Funeral Customs, 268 - - Dying hardly, 268 - - - Easter, _Eostre_, 8, 226, 227 - - " Customs, 227-237; - Fylde, 236 - - " Day, 227 - - " Eggs, 227, 228 - - " Monday, 233, 237 - - " "Lifting or heaving," 233; - game of the ring, 234; - Sports, 231 - - Easter sports at the Manchester Free Grammar School, 231 - - Eating and Drinking Customs, 258 - - Eccles, ignorance in, 113-115 - - Eccles cakes, 258 - - Edward I., King, 27; - his gift for "lifting," 233 - - Edward III., King, 28; - his letter for alms, 133 - - Edward IV., King, 32 - - Edward VI., King, 34 - - Eggs, Pace, Pasche, or Easter, 217, 228; - in Blackburn, 228, 229; - in East Lancashire, 231; - bought for Easter, 229; - papal prayer, blessing eggs, 229 - - "Elias, the Prophet," a fanatic, 138 - - Elizabeth, Queen, 35 - - Ellen's (St.) Well, in Brindle, 172 - - Elves and Fairies, 110-113 - - Everton toffy, 258 - - Evil Eye, the, 69 - - Ewe Loaf, the, 256 - - Exorcism of demons by godly ministers, 95, 98-101 - - - Fag-pie (or Fig-pie) Sunday, 226, 258 - - Fairies, 53; - and Elves, 106-110 - - Fairy, a, on Mellor Moor, 111 - - " Hole, at Warton, 265 - - " Queen, 16 - - " Tales, Lancashire, 112, 113 - - Familiar Spirit, Transfer of a, 210 - - _Famous History of Witches_, 176 - - Feeorin (fairies), 53 - - Fern Seed, 10 - - Festivals, Church and Season, 212 - - Finger Stocks of Stone, 288 - - Flemings' Wooden Shoes and Oaten Bread, 259 - - "Flesh-Day" (Christmas Eve), 256 - - Folk-Lore, Eastern, 2-6; - Greek and Roman, 5, 6; - Scandinavian, 4, 5; - various, 113; - of Eccles and neighbourhood, 113 - - Footprints at Brindle Church, 134; - at Smithells Hall, 135 - - Fortune-Telling, 121-126; - Story of, 122; - "Owd Rollison," 123 - - Frumenty, 262, 256, 258 - - Funeral Biddings, 274; - gifts, 275; - bay, rosemary, &c., 270, 272, 275 - - Funeral Customs, 268; - in East Lancashire, 273; - at Dalton-in-Furness, 271; - at Warton, 271; - Fylde, 272 - - Funeral Doles, 270; - at Swinton, _ib._; - various, 274 - - Funeral Sermons, 274; - dinners and drinkings, 272 - - Furness, Manorial Customs, 281, 285 - - Fylde, The (in Lancashire), _passim_. - - " Easter Customs in, 236, 242, 243 - - " Farm and Agricultural Celebrations in, 298 - - " Harvest Home, 298; - "shutting of marling," _ib._; - cob-seeding, _ib._ - - - Gabriel Ratchets, 89, 167 - - "Gang-Days," or Rogation Days, 248 - - Garstang, a Saxon Constablewick, 295 - - Geese, hatched from sea-shells, 116 - - Gemmel Rings, 263 - - Gerard (Sir Thomas), 131 - - " (Sir John), 162 - - Gerards of Bryn, 158-162 - - Gifts to Infants, 262 - - Gloucester (Eleanor), Duchess of, and Witchcraft, 174 - - Gloves, Wedding, 268 - - Goblin, Gobelinus, Kobold, Khobalus, &c., 16 - - Goblin Builders, 89 - - " Superstitions, 88 - - Good Friday, 226; - viands, 226, 237 - - "Goose-Intentos," 250 - - Graves, Situation and Direction of, 275 - - Greek Traditions and Superstitions, 5, 6, 13; - Mythology, 13 - - Grendels, The, 17 - - Grislehurst Boggart, 61 - - Groaning Cheese and Cake, 260 - - Guld-Riding, 289 - - Gunpowder Plot, 251 - - Guy Fawkes, 251 - - - Hackensall Hall Boggart, 59 - - Haever or Hiver, 149 - - Hakes, Auld Wife, 216 - - Hallowe'en, 3 - - Halton Ale, 259 - - Hand-bell Ringing, 258 - - Hand-festing, 263 - - Hartlay (John), a Conjuror, 93-96 - - Harvest Home, 298 - - Havercake Lads, 258 - - Helen's (St.) Well in Brindle, 172; - near Sefton, 173 - - Henry IV., King, 20 - - Henry VI., King, 28, 29, 31; - miracles at his tomb, 132 - - Henry VII., King, his embassy to Pope Julius II., 132 - - Henry VIII., King, 87; - his ale, 287 - - Heriot or Principal, at Ashton-under-Lyne, 292, 293; - story of, 294 - - "Hobbe, the King," at Ashton, 288 - - Hobby-horse at Christmas, 254 - - Hornby, Honour and Manor of, 285 - - " Park Mistress and Margaret Brackin, 59 - - Horwich Moor, 48 - - Hothershall Hall, 5 - - House Boggarts, 56 - - Household bewitched, 184 - - Hunchback, story of the, 5 - - Huntingdon's, Earl of, letter, 130 - - Hydrocephalus in Cattle, to cure, 79 - - - Ignagning, 236 - - Imps, or Changelings, 263 - - Ince Hall, 52 - - Ince Manor House, 52 - - " Oatmeal Charity at, 249 - - Indo-European origin of superstitions, 2 - - Infants, gifts to, 262 - - Invocation at bedtime, 68, 69 - - - Jack and the Bean-Stalk, 5 - - Jack the Giant-Killer, 5 - - James I., King, his _Daemonologie_, 185 - - Jannocks, 259 - - Johnson's (Margaret), confession, 198 - - Jolly Lads, 236 - - Jourdain (Margery), witch of Eye, 174 - - - Kelly (Edward), the Seer, 25, 126 - - Killing a witch, 208 - - King and Queen at Downham, 248 - - King of the May, 254 - - " of Misrule, 288 - - King's Evil, touching for, 77 - - Kirkby Ireleth, Manor of, 281 - - Knighthood, honour of, 277; - compulsory in 1278, 1292, and 1305, _ib._ - - Knives, &c., 18; - Manchester, 280 - - - Labouring Goblins, 56 - - Lady in the straw, 260 - - Lady-bird charm, 70, 71 - - Lancashire musical instruments, 288 - - " Witches, verses on, 179 - - Lancaster (Thomas), Earl of, a saint, 133, 134 - - Lating or Leeting Witches, 210 - - Law Terms, mediaeval Latin, 300 - - Lawrence, St., his bones at Chorley, 157 - - Leadbetter (Charles), a Lancashire astrologer, 40 - - Legend of Cartmel Church, 137 - - Lent, 221 - - Local customs and usages at various seasons, 212, _et seq._ - - Lord's Day conjuration, 67 - - Lostock May-pole, 243 - - Lots, casting or drawing, 106 - - Lowick, Manor of, 283 - - Lubber Fiend, 59, 89 - - - Magic and Magicians, 126 - - Magpies, 143-145 - - Malkin Tower, in Pendle Forest, 186, 189, 204, 211 - - Manchester knife, a, 289 - - " Church, weddings at, 265 - - Manorial franchises, &c., 285 - - Manors, customs of, 276; - in Furness, 281; - Ashton-under-Lyne, 286, 289; - Smithells, 280; - Cockerham, 281; - Kirkby Ireleth, _ib._; - Pennington, 282; - Muchland, _ib._; - Lowick, 283; - Nevill Hall, _ib._; - Much Urswick, 284; - Warton, _ib._; - Hornby, 285; - Ashton-under-Lyne, 286, 289 - - Maritagium, custom of, 278 - - Marsh (Geo.), the martyr, 135-137 - - Martins, "shifting of," 143 - - Mary Queen of Scots, 131 - - May-day Eve, 46, 47, 239 - - " Customs, 238-246; - in Spotland, 242; - in Manchester, 245 - - May-day Games, decay of, 241; - at Burnley (1579), 244 - - May-Poles, 240-243; - Parliamentary ordinance against, 241 - - May King and Queen, 246 - - " Songs, 239 - - Mermaid of Marton Mere, 90 - - "Messes" at dinners, &c., 271, 274 - - Michaelmas Day, 250; - goose, _ib._, 258 - - Mid-Lent Sunday, or Mothering Sunday, 222, 225 - - Mince Pies, 255, 258 - - Miracles, or Miraculous Stories, 131 - - " of a dead Duke of Lancaster (King Henry VI.), 132-134 - - Miraculous cures by a dead man's hand, 158-163 - - Miraculous footprints in Brindle Church, 134; - in Smithells Hall, 135 - - "Mischief Night," 239 - - Mistletoe, 252 - - Money gift at funerals, 275 - - Moon, the, 70; - omens from, 149; - names for autumn moons, 250 - - More (Sir Thomas), Story of, 300 - - "Mothering Sunday," 222, 225 - - Mountain Ash, 72 - - Muchland, Manor of, 282 - - Much-Urswick, Manor of, 284 - - Mutes at Christmas, 256 - - Mythology of Greece and Rome, 13; - Oriental, _ib._; - Northern, _ib._ - - - Naiades, Nixies, Nisses, 16 - - Nails, cutting, 68 - - Nevill Hall, Manor of, 283 - - New Year's-Day, weather omens, 151; - Festival, 214; - and Old Christmas-Day, 212 - - New-Year's turkey, 258 - - " Eve, fire on, 214 - - New-Year's Luck, 214; - first caller, 215; - gifts and wishes, 216 - - Nicholas, St., 85 - - "Nick, Old" (the devil), 84-86 - - Night-mare, 89 - - Northumbrian Superstitions, 9 - - November 1, All Souls' Day, 251 - - November 5, Gunpowder Plot, 251 - - Numbers, odd, 4; - "3" and "7," _ib._ - - Nutter (Alice), a wealthy witch, 193 - - - Oat Cake, 258; - Jannocks, 259 - - Oatmeal charity at Ince, 249 - - "Old Nick" (the devil), 84-86 - - "Old Scrat," or Skrat, 90 - - Omens and Predications, 138, 139 - - Omens, Dreams, Withershins, Cards, Teacups, &c., 140 - - Omens--Cats, 141; - Dogs, Lambs, Birds, 142; - Swallows, Magpies, _ib._ - Deasil, or Widersinnis, 151; - weather for New Year's-Day, 151; - Death tick, or watch, 152 - - Ormskirk gingerbread, 258 - - - Pace or Pasche-egging, 128; - in Blackburn, _ib._; - East Lanc., 231 - - Pagan gods, festivals and temples, changed into Christian saints, - feasts and churches, 14 - - Pancake Bell, 44; - Tuesday, 218 - - Passing Bell, 44 - - Paternoster, White, &c., at Eccles, 115 - - Peel of Fouldrey and Tree-Geese, 116 - - Peggy's Well, Legend of, 171 - - Pendle, Forest and Hill of, 202, 204 - - Pendleton and Pendlebury, May-pole and games, 240, 241 - - Pentecost, 16th Sunday after, 250 - - Pentecost (See Whitsuntide). - - Persons bewitched, sixteen, 192 - - Philosopher's Mercury, 23 - - " Stone, 23 - - Pigeons' Feathers in beds, 268 - - Pilkington (Dame Jane), 273 - - Pimpernel, 71 - - Pork Pasties, 260 - - Prayer and Blessing on Eggs, 229 - - Prayer in Verse against Sir Ralph Ashton, 291 - - Predications (see Omens). - - Presents to Women in Childbed, 260 - - " to Infants, 262 - - Prestwich, Burying in Woollen at, 269 - - Principal or heriot at Ashton, 293 - - Prophet Elias, a fanatic, 138 - - - Queen of the May, 246 - - - Radcliffe, Burying in Woollen, 269 - - Radcliffe Tower, 51 - - Raising the Dead, 128; - the Devil, 17, 81 - - Rent-boons at Denton, 294 - - Rents, Nominal, 280 - - Rheumatism, charms to cure, 75 - - Riding the Black Lad at Ashton, 289 - - Rings, betrothal or gemmel, 263; - Wedding, 268 - - Robins and Wrens, 142 - - Robinson, Edmund, 195, 201 - - Rochdale Church, 89 - - " Tithe, Easter Dues, &c., 297 - - Rogation Days or Gang Days, 248 - - Rolleston, Mr., 131 - - "Rollison, Owd," 123-125 - - Roman Traditions and Superstitions, 5, 6, 18; - Mythology, 13 - - - Saint Cuthbert's Beads, 15 - - " John's Eve, 8, 46, 47 - - " Vitus's Dance, 87 - - Samlesbury Witches, 194 - - "Scrat, Old" (or Skrat), 90 - - Second-sight in Lancashire, 105 - - Services and Tenures, peculiar, 278 - - Sheep and Farms in Bowland, 300 - - Shoes, Old, for luck, 264, 268 - - Shrew Tree in Carnforth, 79 - - Shrovetide, 217; - Tuesday, 218; - Pancakes, _ib._, 258; - Sports, 219; - customs in the Fylde, 221 - - Sickness, charms to cure, 74 - - Simnel Cakes, 223; - at Bury, 224, 258 - - Sitting-up Courtship, 264 - - Skriker, 91 - - Smithells Hall, 51; - Marsh the Martyr, 135 - - Smithells, Manor of, custom, 280 - - Sneezing, 6, 68 - - Songs, Lancashire, about 1422, 288 - - Sparrows, 142 - - Spell, description of a, 177 - - Spirits of the dying and dead, 105 - - Spitting on money, &c., 69, 70 - - Stocks for the fingers, 283 - - Superstitions in Manchester in the 16th century, 168 - - Superstitions of Pendle Forest, 164; - of East Lancashire, 165 - - Superstitions, popular, 153-157; - Nineteenth Century, 164 - - Superstitious beliefs, and practices, 1; - fears and cruelties, 167 - - Superstitious fear of Witchcraft, 182 - - - Talliage or Tallage, 296; - of Lancashire towns, &c., _ib._ - - Teacups, Omens from, 140 - - Teanlay, or All Souls' Night, 49 - - Tenants of Ashton-under-Lyne, 288 - - Tenures and Services, peculiar, 278 - - Thackergate Boggart, 52 - - Throwing the Stocking, 264 - - Toothache, charms to cure, 75 - - Touching for King's Evil, 77 - - Towneley, ghost and tradition, 57 - - Trash or Skriker, 91 - - Tree Barnacles, or Tree Geese, 116 - - Turning Bed after Childbirth, 261 - - - Unbaptized Child, cannot die, 262 - - Urswick Much, Manor of, 284 - - Utley, hanged for witchcraft, 195 - - - Vervain, to cure wounds, a rhyming charm, 76, 115; - against blasts, 115 - - Victor Penny, 219 - - Vitus's (St.), Dance, 87 - - - Waddow Hall, 171 - - Waitts, the, 257; - of Manchester, 257; - of Warrington, 258 - - Walton-le-Dale, raising the dead, 128 - - Warcock Hill, 17 - - Warrington Ale, 259 - - Warton, Royal Manor of, 284; - wedding customs at, 265 - - Warts, cures for, 78; - caused by washing in egg-water, 121 - - Water Sprites, 89 - - Weather Omens, 141-145, 149-152 - - Wedding Customs, 263; - in the Fylde, 264; - at Warton, 265; - at Burnley, 265; - various, 268 - - Weddings at Manchester Church, 265 - - Well at Wavertree, 169 - - Well, Peggy's, 170; - Legend of, 171 - - Well, St. Helen's, in Brindle, 172; - near Sefton, 173 - - Wells and Springs, dedicated to saints, 169 - - West Houghton Wakes, 260 - - Whitsuntide, 246; - Fair, 246; - 16th Sunday after, 250 - - Whitsuntide Ales, 246 - - " Tuesday, 248 - - " week, 247 - - Whooping Cough, 10 - - Wicken or Wiggen Tree (the mountain ash), 72 - - Widersinnis, or Deasil, 151; - Withershins, 140, 151 - - Widow, Burial of a, 273 - - Widows, manorial customs, 281-285 - - Wilder Lads, 48 - - Will-o'-th'-Wisp, 53 - - Winwick Church, 89 - - Wise Men and Cunning Women, 121 - - Wizards, 87; - Swimming a, _ib._ - - Wooden Shoes and Oaten Bread, 259 - - Woollen, burying in, 269 - - Wounds, to cure, 74; - Vervain, 76 - - Wycoller Hall, Christmas at, 256 - - - Yule Loaf, 256 - - - - - - -End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Lancashire Folk-lore, by -John Harland and T. 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