Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1877-03-29
Fourth Month Oulce.

The curious custom of joking on the hrst
OF April, sending the ignorant or the up-
wary on frutless errands, tor the sake of
making them feel foolish and having q
laugh AT them, prevails very widely 10 the
world. And whether you call the victim =
! Fourth month Ounce, AN April fool. " an
april fish as in France, or an April
gowh" as in Scotland, the object, to de-
ceive him aud laugh at him, is everywhere
the same.
| The custom ha, been traced back tor
| ages all through Europe, as far back AZ
the records 20. The Feast of Fools Is
mentioned as celebrated by the ancient Ro-
mans. In Asia the Hindoos have festI-
val, ending on the 3lst OF March, called
the Hull festival, in which they play the
same sort OF first Of April eranks-trsnsIa-
ted into Hindoo,-laugLing at the victim.
and making him Hull fool. II goes
back even to Persia, where it Is supposed
to have beginning, in very ancient times,
in the celebration Of spring, when their
New \ ear begins.
How it came 20 be what we everywhere
ind it, the wise men canuot agree. The
many authorities are 50 divided that | See
no way but for us to accept th8 custom As
we lind 1t, wherever We may happen to be,
and be careful not to abuse it.
some JOKES are peculiar 10 particular
places. In England, where It is called All
Fools Day, one fayorite joke is to send the
greenhorn to a bookseller to buy the Life
and Adventures of Ewes Grandmother, or
10 cobbler to buy few cents worth Of
strap oil, strap oil being in the language
OF the shoe-making brotherhood, person.
al application to the leather. The victim
usually gets good whipping with strap.
There was an old superstition in England
that prayers to the Virgin at eight O'Clock
on All Fools Day would be of wonderful
efficacy. and it Is seriously mentioned by
grave writer's of old DAYS.
la Scotland the first OF April fun is called
hunting the gowk, and consists most often
Of sending person to another long way
OF, with a note which says, Hunt ths
gowk another mile The recipient OF the
note gives him new miSsive TO still sp-
other, containing the same words: and 30
on, till the victim remembers the day OF
tie month and sis down TO rest aud think
about it,
ln France, where the custom Is very zu-
cient, the jokes are much the same; but
the victim Is called an April fish, because
he is easily caught. In Que part OF France
there is custom of eating q certain Kind
of peas which grow there, called pOis
ants to a certain convent to ask for those
peas, telling them that the fathers are OBJ
liged to give some 10 every one who COMES
on that day. The joke is as much on the
Monks as on the peasants, for there is oneR
perfect rush of applicants all day.
a more disagreeable custom prevails In
Lisbon Oh the first OF April, when the CREST
object Is to pour water on passers-by. or
failing 10 that, to throw powder In their
faces. If both can be done, the joker il
happy.
need not tell you the American styles
of joking; mailing piece OF silver to the
side walk; tying a string to purse. and
jerking |. away from greedy fingers; lesv-
ing tempting-looking packages, filled with
sand, on doOr-steps; frying doug ghnuts with
an interlinlng OF wool; putting salt In the
sugarbOwl, etc. You know too many sl-
ready.
But this custom, with others common in
coarser aud rougher times. is fast dying
out. Even now it is lett almost entirely 70
playful children and the uneducatsd classes
This sentiment, quoted from 40 Bnglish
almanac of hundred years ago, will, Fun
sure, meet the approva! Of 'growa-ups' Of
the nineteenth century:
But tits thing to be disputsd, ..
Which is the greatest fool reputed,
The one that innocently went,
Or he that him designedly SENT
H. N. NJ, st. Nicholas for April