"By night and by day
We will dance and play
With our noble captain,
Tarraway! Tarraway!"
Mr. Robert Hunt in his Romances and Drolls of Old Cornwall has a
variation of this play, in which the devil sings--
"Duffy my lady, you'll never know--what?
That my name is Ferry-top, Ferry-top--top."
These "goose-dancers" became such a terror to the respectable
inhabitants of Penzance that the Corporation put them down about ten
years since, and every Christmas-eve a notice is posted in conspicuous
places forbidding their appearance in the streets, but they still
perambulate the streets of St. Ives. Guise-dancing wit must have
very much deteriorated since the beginning of the present century,
as writers before that time speak of the mirth it afforded; and the
saying, "as good as a Christmas-play," is commonly used to describe
a very witty or funny thing.
It was the custom in Scilly eighty years ago for girls to go to
church on Christmas morning dressed all in white, verifying the old
proverb--"pride is never a-cold."
"On Porthminster Beach on Christmas-day, as seen from the Malakoff,
St. Ives, at nine o'clock in the morning the boys began to assemble
on the beach with their bats and balls. As soon as twelve youths
arrived a game commenced, called 'Rounders.' The first thing to be
done was to right up the 'bickens.' This accomplished, the sides
were chosen in the following manner:--Two of the best players,
whom we will call Matthew and Phillip, went aside and selected two
objects--the new and old pier. The old pier was Matthew and the new
pier was Phillip. After this was arranged the 'mopper' selected the
old pier, which meant he would rather have Matthew his side than
Phillip. Then Phillip selected some one for his side; and so it went
on until the whole twelve were elected one side or the other. Then
they tossed up for the first innings. Phillip's side won the toss,
and it was their luck to go in first. While they are taking off their
jackets and getting ready to go in I will briefly describe the game.
"The bickens, four in number, were piles of sand thrown up; each one
being about ten yards from one another, and arranged so as to form
a square. In the centre of the square the bowler was placed with
ball in hand. Behind the batsman stands the 'tip,' while the other
four were off a long way waiting for the long hits. The coats off, in
went the first batsman. The ball was thrown towards him and he tipped
it. The tip instantly took the ball and threw it at the batsman, and
hit him before he arrived at the first bicken, and he was consequently
out. The second batsman had better luck; for on the ball being thrown
to him he sent it out to sea, and by that means he ran a rounder,
or in other words he ran around the four bickens without being hit by
the ball. The next batsman went in. The ball was thrown to him, when,
lo! it went whizzing into the bowler's hands and was caught. This
unlucky hit and lucky catch got the whole side out, before three of
them had a chance to show their skill. The other side then went in,
laughing at the discomfiture of their opponents. The tables, however,
were very soon turned; for the very first hit was caught, and this
produced a row, and the game was broken up!
"I then went to the next lot: They were playing 'catchers.' There is
only one bicken required in this game, and at this stood a lad called
Watty, with bat and ball in hand. At last he hit the ball, and up it
went flying in the air, descended, and passed through the hands of a
boy named Peters. Peters took the ball from the sand and asked Watty,
'How many?' Watty replied--
'Two a good scat, [2]
Try for the bat.'
"Peters threw the ball to the bicken, but it stopped about
three lengths short. Watty took the ball up and again sent it a
great way. The question was again asked, and Watty gave the same
answer. Again the ball was thrown to the bicken, but this time with
better success; for it stopped at the distance of the length of the
bat and so was within the distance named. Williams then went in. He
was a strong lusty fellow, and the ball was sent spinning along the
sand. It was picked up by Curnow, who asked, 'How many?'
'Three a good scat,
Try for the bat.'
"The ball was thrown home and rolled about three bats from the
bicken. This point, however, was the breaking-up of the game,
for Williams said it was more than three bats off, whilst Curnow
maintained that it was not three bats off, and there being no chance
of a compromise being arrived at the game was broken up.
"The next party was one of young men. They were playing rounders
with a wooden ball, instead of an india-rubber one, as is generally
used. They were twelve each side, and the bickens were about 20 yards
distant. By this time the tide was out a great way, so that there was
no fear of the ball being knocked to sea, as was the case with the
other boys. When I got there they had been playing for about an hour,
and the side that was in had been in about half of that time. The
first hit I saw was 'a beauty!' The ball was sent about 75 yards,
and the result was a rounder. Two or three other persons went in and
did the same thing, and so the game went on for about an hour longer,
when one of the fellows knocked up a catcher and was caught. This
side had stayed in for about one hour and a half. The other side went
in at about a quarter to three, and after playing about another hour
they went home to tea.
"I went to tea also, but was soon up in the Malakoff again. It was so
dark that the play was stopped for the time. At about seven o'clock the
older part of the town began to congregate, and about a quarter-past
seven they began to play 'Thursa.' This game is too well known to
need description, and I need only say that it was played about one
hour, when they began to form a ring with the intention, I supposed,
of playing that best of all games, 'Kiss-in-the-Ring'."--(Cornishman,
1881.)
On St. Stephen's-day, 26th December, before the days of gun-licences,
every man or boy who could by any means get a gun went out shooting,
and it was dangerous to walk the lanes. The custom is said to have had
its origin in the legend of one of St. Stephen's guards being awakened
by a bird just as his prisoner was going to escape. A similar practice
prevailed in the neighbourhood of Penzance on "feasten Monday," the
day after Advent Sunday; but on that day I have never heard of any
religious idea connected with it.
In the week after Christmas-day a fair is held at Launceston (and
also at Okehampton in Devonshire), called "giglet fair" (a "giglet or
giglot" is a giddy young woman). It is principally attended by young
people. "At this 'giglet market,' or wife-market, the rustic swain was
privileged with self-introduction to any of the nymphs around him,
so that he had a good opportunity of choosing a suitable partner if
tired of a single life."--(Britton and Brayley's Devon and Cornwall.)
It is unlucky to begin a voyage on Childermas (Innocents'-day),
also to wash clothes, or to do any but necessary household work.
On New Year's-eve in the villages of East Cornwall, soon after dusk,
parties of men, from four to six in a party, carrying a small bowl
in their hands, went from house to house begging money to make a
feast. They opened the doors without knocking, called out Warsail,
and sang,--
"These poor jolly Warsail boys
Come travelling through the mire."
This custom was common fifty years since, and may still be observed
in remote rural districts. There is one saint whose name is familiar
to all in Cornwall, but whose sex is unknown. This saint has much to
answer for; promises made, but never intended to be kept, are all
to be fulfilled on next St. Tibbs's-eve, a day that some folks say
"falls between the old and new year;" others describe it as one that
comes "neither before nor after Christmas."
Parties are general in Cornwall on New Year's-eve to watch in the New
Year and wish friends health and happiness; but I know of no peculiar
customs, except that before retiring to rest the old women opened their
Bibles at hap-hazard to find out their luck for the coming year. The
text on which the fore-finger of the right hand rested was supposed to
foretell the future. And money, generally a piece of silver, was placed
on the threshold, to be brought in the first thing on the following
day, that there might be no lack of it for the year. Nothing was ever
lent on New Year's-day, as little as possible taken out, but all that
could be brought into the house. "I have even known the dust of the
floor swept inwards."--(T. Q. Couch, W. Antiquary, September, 1883.)
Door-steps on New Year's-day were formerly sanded for good luck,
because I suppose people coming into the house were sure to bring
some of it in with them sticking to their feet.
Many elderly people at the beginning of the present century still kept
to the "old style," and held their Christmas-day on Epiphany. On the
eve of that day they said "the cattle in the fields and stalls never
lay down, but at midnight turned their faces to the east and fell on
their knees."
Twelfth-day (old Christmas-day) was a time of general feasting
and merriment. Into the Twelfth-day cake were put a wedding-ring,
a sixpence, and a thimble. It was cut into as many portions as there
were guests; the person who found the wedding-ring in his (or her)
portion would be married before the year was out; the holder of the
thimble would never be married, and the one who got the sixpence would
die rich. After candlelight many games were played around the open
fires. I will describe one:--"Robin's alight." A piece of stick was
set on fire, and whirled rapidly in the hands of the first player,
who repeated the words--
"Robin's alight, and if he go out I'll saddle your back."
It was then passed on, and the person who let the spark die had to
pay a forfeit.--(West Cornwall.)