Staunton spectator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1849-1896, 1852-10-27
MISCELL A N Y.
Rises of the Scottish Halloween.

The Scottish Halloween as held in the
solitary farmhouse and described by Burns,
differed considerably from the Halloween OF
our villages and smaller towns In the farm
house it was night of prediction only IN
our towns ara villages there were added
multitude of wild mischievous games, which
were tolerated at no other season-a cir
cumstance that serves TO identify the fes-
tival with those pauses of license peculiar
to the homage of civil government, in which
men are set free from the laws they are just
learning to respect ;-partIy. 1t would seem,
as a reward for the Difference which they
have paid them, partly to serve them as
kind OF breathing-SpaceS in which to recov-
er from the nnwonted fatigue OF being obe-
dent. After nightfall, the young fellows
of the town formed themselves into parties
of ten or dozen and breaking into the
gardens of the graver inhabitants, stole the
best and heaviest of their cabbages. Con-
verting these into bludgeons, by stripping
off the lower leaves, they next secured the
streets and lanes, humping at every door
as thew passed, until their uncouth weapons
were beaten to pieces. When dlsarmed in
this way, all the parties united INTO one'
and providing themselves with cart, drove
it before them with the rapidity of chaise-
and-four through the principal Streets
Woe to the inadvertent female whom they
encountered She was instantly laid hold
of, and placed alolt in the cart-brothers,
and cousins, and even sons, 1t is said, not
unfrequently assisted in the capture and
then dragging backward and forward over
the rough stones, amid shouts, and screams,
and roars OF laughter The younkers with
in doors were meanwhile engaged in man
ner somewhat less annoying, but not whit
less whimsically. The bent OF their !nge-
nuity for weeks before, had been turned to
the accumuating of little boards of apples
all lor this night; and now large tub
filed with water, was placed in the middle
of the floor of some clubhouse, carefully
dressed up for the occasion, and into the
tub every ore of the party flung an apple
They then approached it by turns, and pla-
cling their hands on the edges. plunged fol-
ward to fish for the fruit with their teeth.
| remember the main chance Of success was
to thrust the head fearlessly into the tub,
amid the booming of the water, taking es-
pecial care to press down one of the apples
in line With the mouth, and to seize it
when ammed against the bottom. When
the whole party, with their dripping locks
and shining faces, would seem metamor-
phosed into so many merma'ds, tins sport
usually gave place to another a small
beam of wood was suspended from the cell
ing by cord, and when fairly balanced,
an apple was fastened to the one end. and
a lighted candle to the other. 1t was then
whirIed round, and the boys in turn as be-
fore, leaped up and bit at the fruit not un-
frequently, however, merely to singe their
faces and han at the candle. Neither OF
these games were peculiar to the north OF
Scotland; we find it stated by Mr.. Pole
whele ia his Historical views OF Devon
shire that the Irish peasants assembled on
the eve of La samon uhe I'd November,)
to celebrate the festival of the sun, with
many rites derived from Paganism, among
which was the dipping for apples in a tub
of water, and the catching at all apple stuck
on one end of kind OF hanging beam.
There belonged to the north Of Scotland
two Halloween rite, Of augury which have
not been described by Burns and one of
these, an elegant and beautiful charm, is
not yet entirely out of repute. An ale
glass is filled with pure water, and into the
water ~ dropped the white of an egg. The
female whose future fortunes are to be dis
closed for the charm seems appropriated
exclusively by the better sex lays her hand