The Ely miner. [volume] (Ely, Minn.) 1895-1986, 1930-04-25

there to rejoice their spirits with
the beauty and SAVIOUR of sweet flow
erS.''
AS already indicated, these May
pole affairs were obnoxious to the
Puritans. To them the jewellers were
only heathens. SO the May day OBJ
servances were forbidden by parlia-
ment in 1914, but same into favor once
more at Restoration.
A Maypole once set up might re-
main for many yes and annually be
made the focus Of popular amuse-
ments. The cities joined in the cele-
bration just as eagerly as the country
folk. Stow, in his History of Lon
don," mentions several Maypoles, one
of which stood at what is now st.
Mary-le-Strand, q crowded thorough
fare. In his day it was 100 feet high.
The last Maypole erected in London
was of cedar, 134 feet high. 1t was
set up by II British sailors under the
personal supervision of James III, then
duke of York and lord high admiral,
st. Mary's in the Strand. Half a CEN
fury later, it was removed to Wan
stead Park in Essex, where it was
used by Sir Isaac Newton as part of
the support of a large telescope which
had been presented the Royal society
by a French astronomer.
Another celebrated Maypole was
that from which st. Andrews Under
shaft in Leadenhall street in London
is supposed to have taken its name.
Stow says that it was due to ''high
or long shaft or Maypole higher than
the steeple (hence undershaft) which
used early in the morning of May day
the greatest spring festival of Mer-
ry England-to be set up and set with
flowers opposite the south door of st.
Andrews"
1t was in the Elizabethan days, how
ever, that the May day celebration
reached it's highest development.
What had previously been a simple,
spontaneous celebration became one
of much pomp and pageantry. If you
read Sir Walter SCOTS Wentworth"
you will learn what a colorful spec
tacle it was.
Enter six young men in leather
jenkins; follow on six young maids
leading sleek cow adorned with
flowers. Now struts Robin Hood in
Lincoln green, accompanied by Little
John, Will Scarlet and the others of
that famous outlaw band,' writes one
historian of this festival. "After these
walk demurely the pretty bride maid
ems escorting Maid Marian, the Queen
Of the May; follow other attending
girls. Comes a rumbling, creaking
sound-the oxen pull the great May
pole to it's place of honor, and after
the May come medley of person
ages the hobby horses. the dancers,
the testers and the crowd. All! The
pole is raised. Every one shouts.
The woodmen and the milkmaids dance
around it. The bagpipes play for
their steps the testers and the hobby
horse are busy with buffoonery; ri
bald Friar Tuck attracts attention.
Now there is contest with the low
bow; a prize of laurel and ribbons
is given to the winner, crown of ivy
to the second"
Finally the morris, or morrice, dane
ers come up to perform. These are
an energetic, talented crew. A Puri-
tan writer says of them: "They have
their hobby horses, their dragons. and
other antiques, together with their
handle pypers and laundering drum
mers, then march this heather COM
pany, their pypers pyping. their
stumpes a dancing. their bells ingling,
their handkerchiefs fluttering about
their heads like madde men,"
Morris dancing Is different thing
from the ordinary folk dancing done
by all at the May day fetes. Those
who did the morris dances were espe-
cially trained for 1t and were known