Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1912-04-28

NsO~-~A $1,000
and his band
The morris dancers. who gave a dance
preserved today in the Spanish fandango.
and the hobby-horse made Of pasteboard
and ridden by q man Enthusiastically
dressed. and passing among the specta-
tors collecting contributions received by
a ladle in the horses mouth, were two
of the greatest diversions of the day.
Another very popular diversion was the
milkmaids' dance. ION the 1st of May
and the five and six days following" re-
lates Mission in his rTravels in Eng
land ''all the pretty young country
themselves up very neatly and borrow
abundance of silver plate, whereof they
make a pyramid. which they adorn with
ribbands and flowers. and carry upon
their heads instead Of their common milk
pals. In this equipage, accompanied by
some of their fellow milkmaids and a
bagpipe or fiddle, they go from door to
door. dancing before the houses Of their
customers. in the midst of boys and girls
that follow them in troops. and every
body gives them something
In certain places 1t was the custom, in
stead of the pyramid. to lead about a
COW with gilded horns and adorned all
over with flowers, green branches and
ribbons.
In the evening when the great bonfires
We're aglow the rule of the May queen
was at an end. Then the king of the
May began his reign. and the revels
often lasted through the whole night.
These gatherings were not for the low
ly classes alone. All the people, all ranks
and all ages, sought to do honor to-
fields. While the celebration was at it's
helght OF popularity real kings and
queens did not hesitate to go a-Maying.
Henry VIII was particularly fond of the
pleasure. There is faithful account of
his adventure on one of these May-day
mornings. 1t is said that as the king and
queen accompanied by many lords and
ladies, rode toward the high ground of
Shooters hill to take the early morning
air they met Robin Hood and his COM
panions in festive array and carrying
bows and arrows. The bold robber in
vited the king and queen to come into
the woods with them and see how the
outlaw lived.
Helen Patten. in 1.-THE Years Festl-
walls" has given us a faithful copy OF
their quaint old speech. '"rhe kynge de-
maunded OF We quene and her ladyes. y
1t reads. '1f they burst adventure to 20
into the wood with SO many outlaws.
Then the quene sayde, that If it pleased
MIN, she was content: then the hornes
blewe tyl they came to the wood under
shoters hil and there was an arber made
Oh DooWes with a hal, and a great chamber
and an inner chamber very well made.
and covered with noures and swete
herbe, whiche the kynge muche rraysed
Then said Robyn Hood, Sir Outlaw
brekefastes is venyson. and therefore you
must be content with such fare as we
use Then the kynge and quene sat
downe. and were served with venyson
and wyne by Robyn Hood and his men,
to their great condemnation"
ceremonies as things of the past Some
OF them still survive in all their glory.
and In England. and America especially
there has been q recent tendency to re-
instate more than one
In remote sections of the Scottish high
lands there is May day custom that
originated many ages ago. Like one or
two others of the present day, 1t lacks
the sylvan beauty of the old observances
and is more barbarous than we would
wish to have it. The first of May all the
village youths gather on the moor and
cut an altar or round table in the sod.
Ihen the company arrange themselves in
the newly made trench surrounding the
inquire, k1ndle fire, make milk and
egg custard. knead an oatmeal cake and
bake 1t on the embers. After eating the
custard they divide the cake into the
same number of pieces that there are
blackened with charcoal, and <then all are
tossed into a bonnet, whereupon each
person is blindfolded ana required to
draw one out. The person drawing the
niack DIT must leap three times through
the flaming bonfire. In the ancient cere-
mony the person was actually sacrificed
in the superstitious effort to insure pro-
ductive crops during the following au-
tumn.
X i
The Phoenician custom of driving cat
tie between lighted fires is still retainad
in Ireland, and sometimes fathers jump
through the flames with child in their
arms.
May day games are still the fashion In
certain rural localities of England, and
May dolls which were once popular
through all England are still paraded in
Devonshire and in portions of Cornwall
and OF Wales. The May doll comes from
Two sources: The images of the Roman
Flora, goddess of fruit and flowers, and
OF the Catholic figures Of the Virgin and
her Son. In Edlesborough, Buckingham
shire, they carry the doll bedecked with
flowers and ribbons in a chair. In Bright
walton. Berkshire. they carry the Virgin
and child about in the guise of the May
queen with doll in basket. In many
Cornish towns May dolls are borne by the
children.
Walsh in Popular Customs" calls our
in Once Week." of a Cornish May day
practice called dipping
early on May morning every one re-
pairs to the country to pluck a sprig from
the 'narrow-leaf' elm tree This is worn
in some conspicuous. part of the dress,
TT TD,@r TIT