Sunbury American. [volume] (Sunbury, Pa.) 1848-1879, 1871-05-13
SaIss ) ghstebes.
HOW WE HUNG THE OMAN BIAS,
KETS.
BY C. A. STEPHENS.


Of all the Merry old Saxon sports our
sturdy great-grahdiathers brought over
tn them from Merry England when
hos; hose Of Of MSsywhols year could compare with
NJ. M seot,ngs, the ribboned '.Maygbo.u,s
and the pretty, hower-crowned May. queen
and last, but not least Tin our own times, ]
the May baskets, those frolicsome hit
tlngs III the gathering dusk
Perhaps some of our town readers never
hunS a May-baskGt,-po possibly never heard
OF such thing Sorry for them They've
lost deal OF lun and for their benefit I,ll
Try 10 explain little.
a May-basket is-wcll, / hardly know
how 10 describe it; but It's son,ething to be
hung on door. Made of paper generally,
it contains almost. anything, by way OF
small presents, you have a mind to put
into 1t, together with your respects, bsst
wishes,-loNe, perhaps. 1t is hung after
dalk at the door of anybody the hqnger
hncles. Which done, the said hanger
knocks and scampers. If a boy, it's Il
great disgrace To get caught by a girl.
Snch failure implies Il lack of masculine
spunk. On the other hand, if .he hanger
be II girl why, she rather ought to be caught.
Ii disSraces the boy again not To- catch her.
And the reward ot catching, as I've always
understood ii from boys stand-point,)
IS, II the parties can thus agree, a KISS III
the dark, and the young lady's society
hUmeward
Right sorry am I that ali these jolly Gus
toms are passing away. They are thought
not quite genlcel enough Tor the young
people of this generation, too rOmpish and
bouncing. And are We happier in our
sets with our cold mods aud airs Of III
difference, than when whole village joined
hands around its May-pole Well, hope
We are.
But | still know little rustic neighbor-
hood, away back among the mountains,
where as yet the boys and girls never
dreamed that The dear Old May games,
with baskets in the veSper, are not the
very pink of gentility. There l love to so
back TOR il used TO be my home, aud when
May nights comes round get out "A certain
boy friend OF mine, aud race, aud run and
sCrlmmupU' up and down, with trOup oi
merry girls hard behind us,-girls Mh" "
duubt Ia vugut to toll it) will g,t over u
liye-rali fence quicker than you can say
Jack Robinson. sometimes, despite AL our
doubling and dodging, We bring up on a
brush-heap, and ara caught in wueiul plight
aud then We are pOked aud pinched and
laughed at, OR, what Is stall more rare, by
dlut OF hard scampcring We catch, actually
AAAAtlf AilA hEltt niAAAA" asAAAtAH wa hAA'AA Aa
And then the huuuWard walk Ia the warm
May evening, with the broad red moon
peepns up over the dnrF, spIuceclad rid
gcs lruggy voices ia the swamp below,
and the whippoOrWill chanting nom the
VIII L. hedges up in the shrubby pasture
quite ronaulic, when done according to
Programme,
sumct,mes, though, il was anything but
romantic, All 1 slW rcmrmhrr May
Night when the samu f0m Edwards aud
we're lads or boys (which Is lt a fellow u
Wh,u hos eleyen and twelve n II makes
ur shrus tu think Ot ltye,, | wuunder II
tWa httlu ciitls ever did Fet into such a
scraps aud r4ith % 30 btiur
A. usual therr WAS bus one house Ia Tho
urlIhbIhuud where We really carrd "a
Laug baskvls. We hung thrm ,lapN hrFe
uut 90 lfieud.inrss but thoae going % ih'
lSughss Wyrv munr cartlulIy prepared ihau
lhr r,sl. iuf theirs WAs tai and Jysa and
. L,p ga, esl, eialli loWsie Perhaps Iun
auull hAsr eaid especially Jrss,
hui, bhss luu 4 u Nas abDut a. much AZ
a silo9 = ee.s ~a' worth ~ g '''e "''l
~, ", lAfy kepi a gTfai saunl dos, r.
Oid scpsv, ui hrallui mrmurY NaAAt
glad hen lhs d. ias eaRig and eul hlil
M IA llis nidsi ~ bic inlqulliss Anl ih'
Oh ssns.sasaa hsaa " shs iAlallJ saa ~ess'
sglll
o.a Jsss Lyssl, ss his uslsAsa" ssliss