Evening star., 1951-02-01
SHERIDAN .glslIl'I
PANCAKE Day
A GROWING
TRADITION
Great A, ItttLe A
Today is Pancake Day
Toss the ball high,
ThroD the ball lotD
Those that come after


'Pancake Day, an ancient ira
dition, is gaining popularity in
all corners of the world. In
1850 Pancake Day was celebrated
in England, many countries in
Europe, Africa, South America,
Canada and here in the United
States, where the number Of
celebrations increased tenfold
over the previous year.
Pancake Day is always the day
before Ash Wednesday, the be-
ginning of Lent. The holiday
pancakes had their start as
"shriving cakes" At the tolling
of the bell, housewives in old
England rushed to prepare their
pancakes according to a pre-
scribed formula. The traditional
formula consisted of flour for
the staff of life, salt for whole
someness, eggs as proper Lent
en- dish and milk, for innocence.
After the pancakes were ready
they flocked to their churches
to be "shriven" or absolved of
their sins. Hence, the last day
before Lent became "Shrove
Tuesday," then, as the religious
significance dimmed, simply
Pancake Day"
AS the religious emphasis on
Pancake Day dwindled in Eng
land, the day took on the as
poets of a merry-making holi-
day. The day before Lent also
became a fun-filled celebration
time in many other parts Of the
world. The word Carnival"
which means farewell to meat"
was applied to pre-Lenten fes-
tivals in the Mediterranean
area. ''Mardi Gras" Qiterally,
"fat tuesday, is an annual event
In parts of Europe as well as in
New Orleans and Rio de Janeiro
where the current celebrations
are quite boisterous.
PANCAKE DAY GAMES AND
STUNTS
Football formerly was played
on Pancake Day in many parts
of Scotland. The married men
played the bachelors, and the
married women tackled the
spinsters. Modern football, as
compared to these old traditional
games, is strictly for sissies. The
goal lines for this football game
often were three miles apart
a distance which usually held
the score down to a couple of
goals per game. The game has
been supplanted by other Pam
cake Day sports in England and
most of the English women now
have traded the gridiron for the
griddle.
Boys at Westminster School
In London eagerly await Pancake
Day each year. At II am. the
headmaster solemnly emerges
from the school ldtchen followed
by the cook bearing a large pam
cake. In the school he throws
1t into the crowd of waiting boys,
who fight for possession of the
napjack. The lad who emerges
with the biggest chunk of the
pancake gets a sum of money
from the school funds.
The bearing Of "holly" and
"ivy" was one of the major pas
times on Pancake Day as early
as the 14th century. Boys from
the ages of five to eighteen con-
structed a lifelike effigy of holly,
while the girls of the same ages
made a dummy of ivy. Both
"holly" and "ivy" were hidden
earlier on Pancake Day and the
goal of each group was to find
the others dummy and burn it.
It Is believed that the custom
originated as symbol that the
Yuletide season of merrymaking
was ending. Old-fashioned Pam
cake Day bore much of the
prankish flavor of a small town
Halloween. Men, women and
children dressed in outlandish
costumes, carried their pranks
out all over the town.
As Pancake Day celebrations
became increasingly popular in
all parts of the world, they
ranged in tempo from the friend
ly celebrations in England to
such boisterous celebrations as
the "Mardi Gras." 1t is inter-
esting to note that the 1850 Ar
gentine "Mardi Gras" or Pam
cake Day celebration resulted in
4 toll Of over $500 injured.
Pancake Day celebrations,
which are becoming increasingly
popular in America, are typified
by pancake breakfasts, luncheons
and suppers conducted by civic,
social and church groups. Along
this line there are many COM
munities which are finding a
great deal of interest and profit
In holding community Pancake
Day celebration.
Our interest here at Sheridan
In Shrove Tuesday is very COM
mercial. We want to sell you
the following pancake makings: