, 1874-09-05
Of tho Dunes and Baxons NAV DO encn
also among tic Norman onalgna III tho
u!yeux tapestry, an1 with tho Bcaudinayinnu
IT was tho usllNl HylnhQl Of alguRhtor,

turing Plus with those baloful yghts and sounds
tltas H., attnnded tho birth of Richard III.
thfalIv I gaid tbot Or tz century t. was
would more willingly SOC tic dov,, whn
bodies no moro ill-ll,cl than 1o brinCs, than. =
maRrie perchtng In . anoighboring troo i: and At
has not wholly dispolled thia gloomy auporsti-
tion. Hondoraon, ih: bis entertaining work on
ihs Folk Lore OF tho Northern, Countios Of In.
gland. etc., desortbes hia astontRlmont, vllilo
boyhood to.soo her anatcl, III roins Oft Of i h;s
| handa md suddenly bring tho pony to d Atnnt}
Tho object which had excited her alhrm wng Il
mngplo crossing tho road, upon Which aho ,was
ga2lng with intcuso interest: After d slort
pause she exclaimed, with BlEh, "Oh, tho nasty
blrll
TURN, nAoK, TunN nAoKl"
And bacls thcy went, tho old lady repeating to
lttm,on the wny home the following lines illus
traslng tho superstition:
Ono ia SORROW, two mirth,
| TIlree welding, fosir.a brth,
Eivo heaven, six hell
Seven tho della ain set.
Tho first couplct, with Hotno. variations, ia
prevalent, III nreat Britain. Tho evil; onon
conveyed by this bird is generally limited to, its
appearance singly. md tho superstitioua dread
OF 1t ID not confined to tho poor andignorant. A
IN 1926 willie ridlnK York to deposit his ronts
iii bank, turned buck on secing,a magpio ly
across hH. path. md tho failuro Of tho, bank Oh
tue following: day. was supposed TO have boon
forebodod BY tho appearance Of tho bird.
oomnlunieations iu Notes and Queries
women Of o1cellcnt education aud poai-
ton, ohioay Of the, old school, aro: in
ss;, aee Z Hmagpie to avert tho evil consequence
Which tlloy boliovo' will otl1orwiso' ensuo, and
these statements arc confirmed Try reeont works
on on English folk lore. The n1olos Of diapollng
tonolro ase st,,. vaf'eus Some persons content
while others moro devout, mako tho sign OF
tho cross on their breasts, in the air.. or on
t1' the ground, W The custom OF crossing, tho
nnGs Tor tts pntnoso ia said to DO confined to
Yorkshire. uho elderly gentleman there not
only orosHos his thumbs, but, to make ASSURANCE
doubly sure; spits ovor thom. In tits he follows
time-honoroa usage, for splitting ~ n charm
against oyll was rracticcd i'y tue most cultivated
nations Of antiquity. tt ia. adyorted to by clas
sic poets, philosophers. aud satirists, and was
condemned by some Of tho Christian fathers,
Splitting, being sign Of contempt Or aversion,
wau defiance OF tho omen.
Tho rcason givon by servant in the north Of
England to her master, a clergyman, for tho evil
reputation Of tho magpe, certainly Justified ncr
III opinion. though 1t may not DO equally con-
Tlnclng to biblical scholars. sho' said ''it'waa
Noah +; t Iikcd botter to cit! outade. jabboring
oycr. tho drowned world" The thieving
proponaitiHs Of tho mngpio aro vol known.
lime has NOT CURED him, or hia cousin,
ao1a tie jashISAM,; y,;o of the habit of steans
der Of PIiny aud furnished such felictous illus
ttations to Ovid npd Cicero, to say nothing of
modern nuthors. The superstitions belief TINT
the treaH.1res purloinoa by the magpie are, when
found, porloua ns witches money, may afford |
homo consolation to the owncr OF such property.
GROWING HENS
are birds OF ill-omon According to Northamp-
tonsllro proyorb,
4 whistlIug woman and Growing hen
Are CT for ncither God nor men.
Similar prorerbB arc current in Normandy and |
Cornwall. All along tho border bo.ween En-
glaud and Scotland growing hen is regarded as
q pottes!t Of death. 4 fow years ago gu old
woman in tho parish Of East Kilbride hoard ono
toned tho circumstance to q noighbor. saying
that no good would como Of it. Not long
afterwarda hor husband diod: A. month
passed by, aud onco moro sho heard the
BY tsdlngs Of the death or her only son. A week
Inter tile hen crowod agaiu and tho eldest daugl1-
Ter died. The old woman could stand this no
longer. III llor desperation she sclzcd tho uu-
The iiro- Wiaor peopla hnvo burned mon and
women with loss Bhow OF reason. The follow
nF question was proposed many years ago by
Nritor in tho British Apolio:
When my hens do crow,
Tell mo II It 10 ominoua or no7.
This was answered by another contributor,
whose reason il better than his rhyme:
with growing Of your lions We will not tw1s sc,
Thence thought no omen.
Besides tho aforementioned birds, which
,ayo generally boon regarded as ominous OF
vii, there aro others tint OIL particular occa-
ions OF in cortalu places.
ARE or ILL-FAME.
thus, IN England it IL thought to be an untucky |
Ign to hnvo no money IN ones pocket OH hear
tlg the cuckoo for tho first time IN d uonBou | ,