The Washington times., 1912-04-04
HOT CROSS BUNS TO
GRACE BOARDS Of
CAPITAL TOMORROW
Good Friday Brings Large
Demand for These
Delicacies.

Al o'clock tomorrow morning, before
Good Friday has hardly begun, the
scores of men in Washington who make
deliveries for bakeries will be on their
way delivering hot cross buns. the de-
mand for these delicacies at breakfast
being urgent. Not only does Good Fri
day and its accompanying hot cross bun
call forth the delivery man at an carly
hour, but 1t makes employment for
many extra bakers, and the regular r
hands, who ordinarily work only eight
hours. are paid for overtime.
Tie four or five largest bakeries in
Washington will each make about 1000
dozen hot CROSS buns. The smaller
bakers will make hundreds of the sweet
spiced buns. The baking Is regulated
largely by advance orders. Lovers of
hot cross buns put in their orders sew
eral days ahead, and the number baked
Is only slightly in excess of these orders.
8 AS matter of fact most persons,
including some etanch clurchmen, cat
their hot cross buns for breakfast.
The strictest .chu"chnen. who fast on
Good Friday. find the spiceG bread n
grateful part of the humble" meal
taken later in the lay.
Why Is a Bun.
Why is a hot cross bun? No one
seems to knoE, despite the efforts of
archaeoloSists Buns bearing a cross
were offered by the Egyptians to Isis,
and the Greeks offered similar Cunfec-
ton to Astarte. The cross on these
buns supposedly represented the horns
OF an OK, and one linguist sees in this
the origin of our word bun" "Bous"
is the Greek word for OK the accusa-
hAs.
: the word comes our word bun" ac-
cnrding To this linguIst.
Then, again, ut HerculsEeum there
was found n cross bun. buried for two
lillenniunrs beneath lava and ashes
The pagan s3aXons used similarly
marked loaf in connection with the
sprlng festival corresponding in time
;. That the cross bun. should be
hot Is no doubt modern innovation.
moreover, the hot cross bun fiourisnes
chiefly in England. There one can hear
OH Good Friday morning.
One a penny. buns.
Two a penny, buns.
one a penny, two penny,
Hot cross buns,
sung and Chanted sonorously b. street
vendors who carry the buns in large
baskets, carefully wrapping the bread
IN hannel to retain the heat of the oven
Ordinarily in southern England the VEN
oors keep up their sales until twilight.
Quaint Customs.
There are many quaint customs still
prevailing there. At the Church of All
Hallows the little boys OF the Blue Coat
BAhool still receive GO pennies, 90
packets of raisiDs and a hot cross bun
on Good Friday. provided for by the
will of Peter Symonds, who died in 1857.
In the more remote parts OF the island
the Good Friday bread is regarded as
Va sure charm against fire and a ce3-
Itain remedy for illness. The house in
which these buns hang will never be
Fdestroyed by fire, according to the SUI
-perstition, and few crumbs of the loaf,
dy, will cure illness If added to broths
and soups.
Probably the record market for hot
cross buns was the shop that once stood
in Chelsea. London The shop, erected
considerably more than century ago.
was once patronized by George III.
This gave it prestige and 1t is re-
lated that $1,000 people sometimes
swarmed in and out of the place on
Good Friday, the sales of buns amount
ing TO 100000 in the most prosperous
years.
One of the quaint old verses connect
ed with buns and Good Friday runs
this way:
"one a penny, two a penny, hot cross
buns:
II you have no daughters. give them to
But if YOU have none Of these merry
little elves,
Then You may keep them all for your
selves"