Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1879-01-03
New Tears In Scotland.

SOME CURIOUS CUSTOMS.
From some reason or other, possibly con-
nected with the faith of the Coyenanters
and their dislike of the customs Of the E.
tabiished Church, the festivities of Christ
mas IN Scotland seem to have been passed
over to New Years. That Christmas was
formerly celebrated there rather to tho ex-
clusion Of New Years, except in some nlaces
where local obseryances are still held with
great formality. seems evident from the old
| verses.
''Yu.r's coma and Jules game,
| And We haze toasted weel
Sac Jock maun 20 his fail again,
| Ana Jenny TO her wheel"
But to-day in Scotland New Years is the
great national festival, and it is kept with
such eZuberant gayety that the season used
to be known as the Daft Days :" and it is
still everywhere there anticipated with only
less relish than the Handsel- Monday follow
| ing, when gifts are distributed The eve of
| New Years Is known in Scotland hy tine
| specific II not euphonious name OF Hogma-
maya name possibly Of old Saxon and por-
| cine derivation, and possibly, as other ar
ch@ologists hold, derived and tremendously
corrupted from the Greek, or the Spanish or
the dialects of Toursine or Normandy, &C.
cording to the fancy of the deriver. who
may prefer, in the first instance 1.-THE Creek
to consider it as indicating the Holy Month,
and in the Others as abiding to the mistle.
toe; the prettiest derivation of all, how
ever, being that which makes .out Of the
old catch that the children sing, "Hogman-
ay, trollals," the words "Homme est ne
trOis rois Ia "a man is born-three kings
are there). Hogmanay, or the night before
| New Year SHAT is, the last night Of the
| yesr-whstever be its derivation, is not
particularly unique festival, being honored
very much as the festival last before it,
| by mummers and 'guisers, but still more
now by bands of beggars who go about
| from door to door claiming what they call
their hogmanay. Sometimes these beggars
are the elder peasantry. who sing curious
songs at the gate, and are admitted at every
house to a feast prepared and laid for them
at long table. till they are thoroughly
gorged. part of their chorus being:
''we houp your ale Is stark and stout
For .hen to drink the old year out.
ieken the weathers shaw and sleet-
Stir up the fire to warm our feet;
Our shOon's made o. mares skin
Come, open tho door and lot US in"
The house that is not called upon by these
gay marauders, in the regions where the
call is customary, feels itself grievously
sighted. Sometimes the callers are only
children, furnished with a huge apron.
who are collecting cheese and oaten cake,
singing outside:
Get up, goodwife, and shake your feathers.
Auc dnna think that we are beggars;
FOR we are BARNS come out to play
Get up and ge's our hogmsnayi"
although sometimes the claim is not urged
in any such barefaced and defiant way, but
with a more pItiful refrain,
"My feet's cauld, my shoon's thin
Clos my cakes, and let me rim"
being milder form of the stand-and-deliyer
argument.
This il certainly carry ing out the custom
OF calling which prevails with US and whose
primitive old Knckerbocker entertainment
consisted of i" cookies, to its last result
but the custom in its potter form has long
been prevalent among the ladies and gem
tlemen of the larger cities of the Old World