The Warner weekly sun. (Warner, Brown Co., Dakota [S.D.]) 1883-1885, 1884-08-08
"Torth countrie" superstitioas.

North Countrie" Superstitions.
Medora Clark in Chicago Current
There are many superstitions in Eng
land, especially in the northern part,
which have not obtained largely in this
country. The observance of holidays
is regarded with an amount of awe and
superstitious Importance which would
seem childish and absurd to most
Americans, from whom, as a class, rev.
erence for old customs seem to be fast
falling away.
New Years day in the north Of Eng
land is especially favored by the super
s~titious as the time when gods of fate
need the most precipitation to insure their
smiling indulgence for the ensuing year.
It is deemed most disastrous to the
happiness Of q household to have
its threshold first crossed on
that day by any female. A woman is
sure to bring death. Anyone having
red hair, cross eyes, bow legs (and there
are many ofthese in the north, bumped
back, idiocy or any brain trouble, brings
calamity of some sort, and if the NAMED
one be a female as we'll she bodies ILL
ness, death and perhaps financial diff
culties. To avert any such catastro-
phe, boys in full possession Of all fac
ulties, straight-eyed, strong limbed,
with hair not verging on the "Titian"
in brightness of hue, go about, just as
the bell tolls the hour of midnight, and
rap at the door. 1t is considered heresy
not to let them in. When the door is
open, they o the threshold and re-
cite the following rhyme:
We've Tome to wish you a Happy New Year,
A pocket full of money and a cellar full Of beer,
An apple and 9 pear, q plum and a cherry,
For making of good ale forto make a man merry.
God bless the mister Of this house, the missus
also,
Likewise the little children that round the
board go.
We come not to your house to beg or to borrow
We come, good folks, TO drive away sorrow.
They expect pennies, which they re-
ceive with q quick, ierky bow, and start
off again for the other houses on the
street. The little boys who go about
thus are called waits" and are the
most heartily welcomed guests of the
whole year. A Yorkshire woman of
considerable intelligence told me, with
every appearance Of credulity, of the
sudden death of her son which was oc-
casioned by the m-omened entrance on
New Years morningo of aneighbor's girl,
who had rushed In precipitatcly before
the waits to summon aid to her dy-
ing mother. 1.-THE girl wasn't to blame,
poor thing, y she added, with great mag
nanimity; "she little thought what sor-
row she was pouring on to our house,
but our George Frederick Arthur lay
cold in his coffin before the next July
came in.o
In some parts Of Lancashire and Linz
colnshire the same omens apply to
Christmas morning.
On Shroye Tuesday the cooking and
eating ~ofpancakes insures q full larder
the coming year, and if ON the same day
the children play almost continuously
at battledore and shuttlecock the gem
eral prosperity of the family is hoped
to be secured. Youths and maidens
play as well, and wen adults may join
in the innocent amusement Of this one
day Of the year.
The superstition that il is unlucky 10
go under q leaning ladder" originated
Ia Yorkshire, as did also the idea that
whoever reads epitaphs loses his mem
ory."
One day In the suburbs Of Manchester
I was walking with o young lady when
We heard q dog bark in o not far dis
tant kennel.
4How, dismally that sounds I said.
"Wait a moment and / Will put q
stop toit,n said the fair Lancashire lass,
and bending down she unbuttoned her
low walking shoe, and taking it off spit
in it, then slipping It on again we re-
sumed Jul walk while she laughed mer-
rily at my amazement.
"What does that dog" I asked.
"Why, don't you see, he hasn't
growled since / did it2 Any dog will
stop at once if you spit In your shoe. .
For some. reason, or for no reason at
all, the dog ceased 70 make day hideous
with his uncanny noises, at least until
we were outot hearing.
On Guy Fawkes day, in November,
q ssguy" Is constructed from straw and
rags, wearing a mask face, and is
burned in the streets to insure pleasant
dreams to the people Of the different
neiyhborhoods, while 4 great exhibition
Of fireworks is kept up until very late,
very much after the manner Of our
Fourth Of July celebrations.
Whole chapters Of these superstitions
might be recorded acme Of them utter
ly ~senseless, others having 0 slight foun-
dation in some dimly realized Scientific
fact,