The commonwealth. (Greenwood, Miss.) 1896-1923, 1906-04-13
Caster Customs
Of Marlp SANDS
Quaint Practices Found Wherever
the Day Is Observed

<4+@ANY quaint and curious Gus
NM toms are In vogue at the Eas-
@&S ter season In many lands,
MANY Cd these customs date back to
centuries ago, and the legends of their
ordination are almost obscured In an
tiduity. Such, for example, Is the
practice of lifting from which our
present nursery game of making a
chair" by two children Clasping hands
for a third to sit upon was derived.
This was an old Easter custom in
which two persons lifted a third three
times,
If anyone refused to be lifted, he or
she must pay a slight forfeit, forielts
being applied to buy refreshments
after the village games, A kindred
custom was that which prevailed In
the Yorkshire villages, Of taking the
buckles from each others shoes and
demanding a forfeit for their return,
the earnings being applied to the same
end as those obtained In the lifting.
In Hungary, when Easter Sunday
comes everything Is gladness.
Wreaths of green leaves are hung in
the windows, and the young girls OF
the towns and villages, all dressed In
white, walk in a procession to the
church, carrying branches of the bud
ding spring leaves. 1t is a very pretty
sight. After the young girls the older
people walk in procession. The cler'
gy, in their robes, and acolytes, car
rying a large gilded cross, walk al
the head of the procession to the
church. There the people lay offering:
Of money at the feet of the holy image
Easter Monday is the fayorite wed,
! ding day among the Hungarians, as
it is thought that marriages made on
that day are sure to be fortunate, SO
the priests are kept very busy.
The custom called watering on
Easter Monday Is extremely odd, and
people who have travelled and studied
much say that it Is not to be found
in any other country save Hungary
Ane men take water in bottles and
pitchers and throw 1t over the girls
they meet In the street, whom they
know, or call at their houses and
throw 1t on the person who opens the
door, If 1t Is a woman The funny
part Is that the more drenched the vic
tins are the better they like 1t, as they
think 1t brings them good fortune for
the year. Everybody used to do this
but now the fashionable young meu
take spraying bottles of perfume. Or
Tuesday the young women retaliate
and the men often find themselves
preached, most Unexpectedly, from q
window or door or as they pass q
drinking place in the street.
lnstilled by nursery lore and very
ancient is the belief Of German chill.
dren that on Easter eve a snow-white
hare visits every household where the
the little folks have been good, ODE,
dent, truthful and kind to each 9th,
err" since the previous Easter. Timid
after the nature of its kind. 1t waits
until everybody Is asleep and ther
soft-footed 1t brings and secretes In
odd out-of-the-way places any mum,
Der of lovely, wonderful colored egg
that the children may find and enjoy
on Easter morning.
Many familiar pictures Of scenes in
the Tyrol are the representation of the
Easter custom. The men go about In
their picturesque costumes, their broad
brimmed hats trimmed with fresh
flowers, and sing the Easter hymns
to the accompaniment Of their guitars
The people come out to the doors Of
their houses and Join in the choruses
and treat the singers with hospitality
giving them eggs and wine. All day
they continue their ceremony, anG
when the night comes on children
accompany them, bearing lightec
torches.
In ancient days 1t was a practic'
among the preachers TO INTRODUCES
facetious stories into thsi- sermons OF
Easter, to set tie example Of the dis
persing Of the gloom OF the Lenter
season.