The Fulton County news. [volume] (McConnellsburg, Pa.) 1899-current, 1907-02-07
KISSING CUSTOMS.
At Hungerford. NewcastIe-oD-Tyne.
Maidenhead and HaImagcn.

1 -AuiN'Hhtdu anu ItNtfu0Rfms
The charming country town or
Hungerford, i'm Berkshire. has an an
nual kissing day each April. when ft
celebrates its Hocktide festival. Than.
certain duly appointed officials hold
court, collect the tithes and claim o
kiss from the woman OF each house
they have to visit during the cere-
mony. The two fortunate oficiaTp
thus appointed are known as ''tuttr
men" or 1.-THE men, and USUALLY
there is no small competition for the
honor among the eligibles of Hunger-
ford. The custom Is hundreds of
years old, and neither husband nor
wife, as rule, objects to the advent
OF the tutty men, with the inevitable
result
Once every five years the good
town of Newcastle-on-Tyne has been
In the habit of holding a festival
known as barge day" on which day
the Mayor and corporation go down
to the river in a fine State barge to
claim the rights of the town to cor-
tain dues at an appointed spot. Then
the procession returns up the river to
well known stone, where the Mayor
selects any woman he likes from the,
large crowd generally there and
kisses her before the assembled COM
pany, and---let it be said softly-b4-
fore the good Mayoress herself. Hfn
worship then gives the favored wonn-.
an a sovereign as present, while the
Mayoress, to show that there is no Ill
feeling, adds gift of her own, such
as a sachel. purse or other approprf-
ate article.
Not only is 1t the duty of thu
Mayor to do the kissing in this FASH
ion. but the appointed sheriff, not
willing to be left out in the cold ON
such occasions, also duly carries out
a similar privilege. He chooses an
other lady, and after saluting her
grayely, or otherwise, he also hands
to her useful present. This curious
ceremony, which is supposed to take
place quinquennially, was last per-
formed, l believe, in the year 1901.
But, of course. it always rests with
the Mayor, for the time being, wheth-
er it shall be performed.
When the pretty Thames town OF
Maidenhead takes it into its head to
have beating of the bounds" the
steward appointed for that purpose ia
always accompanied by large crowd
OF curious people. These help him.
or think they do. when he has to
climb over houses which stand in his
path, or to get through windows up-
der which the bounds pass. Also.
when the party meets any man by
chance during its progress, it pro-
ceeds gravely to bump" that individ-
ual, but If the person met should be
lady, she is given the choice as to
whether she Will be bumped" or
kissed.
Nor is our own country the only
one with such compulsory kissing
ceremonies. Halmagen, in Austria.
has an annual fair on st. Theodore'a
day, at which every man present has
the right to claim one lady and to
kiss her without her having any right
to object. This strange custom is the
outcome of a raid which was once
made on the town by Turkish brf-
gands, who carried off all the women
as captives. But band of men trav-
cling in the district chanced to meet
the captors and forced them to give
up their victims, who were then kind
ly escorted to their homes and friends.
In grateful remembrance of the day
the maidens OF Halmagen annually
offer their lips modestly and freely
to the strangers who frequent the
town during the fair of st. Theodore.
London Answers.