A Righte Merrie Christmasse Part 12

That word was not so soon said, That word in that hall, The Capon crew, _Christus natus est_!

Among the lords, all.

Riseth up my tormentors, By two, and all by one, And leadeth Stephen out of this town And stoneth him with stone.

Tooken they Stephen And stoned him in the way, And therefore is his even, On Christ his own day.

[Footnote 47: Mad.]

[Footnote 48: Beginnest to upbraid.]

[Footnote 49: Dress.]

There are several minor legends of animals and Christ-tide--for instance, at this time the bees are said to hum the Old Hundredth Psalm, but this is mild to what Olaus Magnus tells us _Of the Fiercenesse of Men, who by Charms are turned into Wolves_:--"In the Feast of Christ's Nativity, in the night, at a certain place, that they are resolved upon amongst themselves, there is gathered together such a huge mult.i.tude of Wolves changed from men, that dwell in divers places, which afterwards, the same night, doth so rage with wonderfull fiercenesse, both against mankind, and other creatures that are not fierce by nature, that the Inhabitants of that country suffer more hurt from them than ever they do from the true natural Wolves. For, as it is proved, they sit upon the houses of men that are in the Woods, with wonderfull fiercenesse, and labour to break down the doors, whereby they may destroy both men and other creatures that remain there.

"They go into the Beer-Cellars, and there they drink out some Tuns of Beer or Mede, and they heap al the empty vessels one upon another in the midst of the Cellar, and so leave them; wherin they differ from the natural and true Wolves. But the place, where, by chance they stayed that night, the Inhabitants of those Countries think to be prophetical; Because, if any ill successe befall a Man in that place; as if his Cart overturn, and he be thrown down in the Snow, they are fully persuaded that man must die that year, as they have, for many years, proved it by experience. Between _Lituania_, _Samogetia_ and _Curonia_, there is a certain wall left, of a Castle that was thrown down; to this, at a set time, some thousands of them come together, that each of them may try his nimblenesse in leaping. He that cannot leap over this wall, as commonly the fat ones cannot, are beaten with whips by their Captains."

There is a story told of another Magnus, only in this case it was a Saint of that name. On Christmas eve, in the year 1012, a party of about thirty-three young men and women were merrily dancing in the churchyard of a certain church, dedicated to St. Magnus. A priest was at his devotions inside the church, and was so much disturbed by their merriment that he sent to them, asking them to desist for a while. But of this they took no heed, although the message was more than once repeated. Thereupon, waxing indignant, the holy man prayed his patron saint, St. Magnus, to visit the offenders with condign punishment. His prayer was heard, and the result was that the festive crew could not leave off dancing. For twelve whole months they continued dancing; night and day, winter and summer, through suns.h.i.+ne or storm, they had to prance. They knew no weariness, they needed no rest, nor did their clothes or boots wear out; but they wore away the surface of the earth so much that at the end of the twelvemonths they were in a hole up to their middles. The legend goes on to say, that on the expiration of their Terpsich.o.r.ean punishment they slept continuously for three days and nights.

There are some curious legends of underground bells which sound only at Christmas. A writer in _Notes and Queries_ (5 series, ii. 509) says--"Near Raleigh, Notts, there is a valley said to have been caused by an earthquake several hundred years ago, which swallowed up a whole village, together with the Church. Formerly, it was a custom of the people to a.s.semble in this valley every Christmas Day morning to listen to the ringing of the bells of the Church beneath them. This, it was positively stated, might be heard by placing the ear to the ground, and hearkening attentively. As late as 1827 it was usual on this morning for old men and women to tell their children and young friends to go to the valley, stoop down, and hear the bells ring merrily. The villagers heard the ringing of the bells of a neighbouring church, the sound of which was communicated by the surface of the ground. A similar belief exists, or did, a short time ago, at Preston, Lancas.h.i.+re."

This legend is not peculiar to England, for there is the same told of a place in the Netherlands, named Been, near Zoutleeuw, now engulphed in the ocean. It was a lovely and a stately city, but foul with sin, when our Lord descended to earth upon a Christmas night to visit it.

All the houses were flaming with lights, and filled with luxury and debauchery; and, as our Lord, in the guise of a beggar, pa.s.sed from door to door, there was not found a single person who would afford Him the slightest relief. Then, in His wrath, He spoke one word, and the waves of the sea rushed over the wicked city, and it was never seen more; but the place where it was immersed is known by the sound of the church bells coming up through the waters on a Christmas night.

In spite of Shakespeare's dictum that "no spirit dares stir abroad,"

the rule would not seem to obtain in the Isle of Man--for there is a legend there, how a fiddler, having agreed with a stranger to play, during the twelve days of Christmas, to whatever company he should bring him, was astonished at seeing his new master vanish into the earth as soon as the bargain had been made. Terrified at the thought of having agreed to work for such a mysterious personage, he quickly resorted to the clergyman, who ordered him to fulfil his engagement, but to play nothing but psalms. Accordingly, as soon as Christ-tide arrived, the weird stranger made his appearance, and beckoned the fiddler to a spot where some company was a.s.sembled. On reaching his destination, he at once struck up a psalm tune, which so enraged his audience that they instantly vanished, but not without so violently bruising him that it was with difficulty that he reached home to tell his novel Christmas experience.

CHAPTER XIV

The Glas...o...b..ry Thorn, its Legend--Cuttings from it--Oaks coming into leaf on Christmas day--Folk-lore--Forecast, according to the days of the week on which Christmas falls--Other Folk-lore thereon.

Even the vegetable world contributed to the wonders of Christmas, for was there not the famous Glas...o...b..ry Thorn which blossomed on old Christmas day? Legend says that this was the walking staff of Joseph of Arimathaea, who, after Christ's death, came over to England and settled at Glas...o...b..ry, where, having planted his staff in the ground, it put forth leaves, and miraculously flowered on the festival of the Nativity; and it is a matter of popular belief, not always followed out by practice, that it does so to this day. The fact is that this thorn, the _Crataegus praec.o.x_, will, in a mild and suitable season, blossom before Christmas. It is not a particularly rare plant. Aubrey thus speaks of it in his _Natural History of Wilts.h.i.+re_.

"Mr. Anthony Hinton, one of the Officers of the Earle of Pembroke, did inoculate, not long before the late civill warres (ten yeares or more), a bud of Glas...o...b..ry Thorne, on a thorne, at his farm house, at Wilton, which blossoms at Christmas, as the other did. My mother has had branches of them for a flower-pott, several Christma.s.ses, which I have seen. Elias Ashmole, Esq., in his notes upon _Theatrum Chymic.u.m_, saies that in the churchyard of Glas...o...b..ry grew a walnutt tree that did putt out young leaves at Christmas, as doth the King's Oake in the New Forest. In Parham Park, in Suffolk (Mr. Boutele's), is a pretty ancient thorne, that blossomes like that at Glas...o...b..ry; the people flock hither to see it on Christmas Day. But in the rode that leades from Worcester to Droitwiche is a black thorne hedge at Clayes, half a mile long or more, that blossoms about Christmas day, for a week or more together. Dr. Ezerel Tong sayd that about Rumly-Marsh, in Kent, are thornes naturally like that near Glas...o...b..ry. The Soldiers did cutt downe that near Glas...o...b..ry; the stump remaines."

Several trees which are descended by cuttings from the Holy Thorn still exist in and about Glas...o...b..ry. One of them, of somewhat scanty and straggling growth, occupies the site of the original thorn, on the summit of Weary-all Hill. Another, a much finer tree, compact and healthy, stands on private premises, near the entrance of a house that faces the abbot's kitchen. These descendants of the Holy Thorn inherit the famous peculiarity of that tree.

The _Gentleman's Magazine_ for 1753, has the following in its "Historical Chronicle" for January. "_Quainton in Buckinghams.h.i.+re, Dec. 24._ Above 2000 people came here this night, with lanthorns and candles, to view a black thorn which grows in the neighbourhood, and which was remembered (this year only) to be a slip from the famous _Glas...o...b..ry_ Thorn, that it always budded on the 24th, was full blown the next day, and went all off at night; but the people, finding no appearance of a bud, 'twas agreed by all that Decemb. 25, N.S., could not be the right _Christmas Day_,[50] and, accordingly, refused going to Church, and treating their friends on that day, as usual: at length the affair became so serious that the ministers of the neighbouring villages, in order to appease the people, thought it prudent to give notice that the old _Christmas Day_ should be kept holy as before.

[Footnote 50: This was the first Christmas day, New Style: the change taking place Sept. 2, 1752, which became Sept. 14.]

"_Glas...o...b..ry._ A vast concourse of people attended the noted thorns on _Christmas Eve_, New Stile; but, to their great disappointment, there was no appearance of its blowing, which made them watch it narrowly the 5th of _Jan._, the _Christmas-day_, Old Stile, when it blow'd as usual."

A writer in _Notes and Queries_ (3 series ix. 33) says, "A friend of mine met a girl on Old Christmas Day, in a village of North Somerset, who told him that she was going to see the Christmas Thorn in blossom. He accompanied her to an orchard, where he found a tree, propagated from the celebrated Glas...o...b..ry Thorn, and gathered from it several sprigs in blossom. Afterwards, the girl's mother informed him that it had, formerly, been the custom for the youth of both s.e.xes to a.s.semble under the tree at midnight, on Christmas Eve, in order to hear the bursting of the buds into flower; and, she added, 'As they com'd out, you could hear 'em haffer.'"[51]

[Footnote 51: Crackle.]

This celebration of Christ-tide was not confined to this thorn--some oaks put forth leaves on Christmas day. Aubrey says that an oak in the New Forest "putteth forth young leaves on Christmas-day, for about a week at that time of the yeare. Old Mr. Hastings, of Woodlands, was wont to send a basket full of them to King Charles I. I have seen of them several Christma.s.ses brought to my father. But Mr. Perkins, who lives in the New Forest, sayes that there are two other oakes besides that, which breed green buddes after Christmas day (pollards also), but not constantly."

There is yet another bit of Folk-lore anent flowers and Christ-tide which may be found in _The Connoisseur_, No. 56, Feb. 20, 1755. "Our maid, Betty, tells me that, if I go backwards, without speaking a word, into the garden, upon Midsummer Eve, and gather a Rose, and keep it in a clean sheet of paper, without looking at it, 'till Christmas day, it will be as fresh as in June; and, if I then stick it in my bosom, he that is to be my husband will come and take it out."

It is perhaps as well to know what will happen to us if the Feast of the Nativity falls on a particular day in the week--as, according to the proverb, "forewarned is fore armed."

Nowe takethe heed, euery man, That englisshe vnderstonde can, If that Crystma.s.se day falle Vpon Sonday, wittethe weel alle, That wynter saysoun shal been esy, Save gret wyndes on lofft shal flye.

The somer affter al-so bee drye, And right saysounable, I seye.

Beestis and sheepe shal threue right weel, But other vytayle shal fayle, mooste deel.[52]

Be kynde shal, with-outen lees, Alle landes thanne shal haue pees.

But offt-tymes, for synne that is doone, Grace is wyth-drawen from many oone And goode tyme alle thinges for to do; But who-so feelethe, is sone for-do.

What chylde that day is borne, Gret and ryche he shal be of Corne.

If Cristma.s.se day on Monday bee, Gret wynter that yeer shal ghee see, And ful of wynde lowde and scille;[53]

But the somer, truwly to telle, Shal bee sterne with wynde also, Ful of tempeste eeke ther-too; And vitayles shal soo multeplye, And gret moryne of bestes shal hye.

They that bee borne, with-outen weene, Shoulle be strong men and kene.

If Crystma.s.se day on Tuysday be, Wymmen shal dye gret plentee.

That wynter shal shewe gret merveylle s.h.i.+ppes shal bee in gret parayle; That yeer shal kynges and lordes bee sleyne, In lande, of werre gret woone,[54] certayne.

A drye somer shal be that yeere; Alle that been borne that day in-feere, They been stronge and coveytous, But theyre ende shal be petous;[55]

They shal dye with swerd or knyff.

If thou stele ought, hit leesethe thy lyfe; But if thou falle seeke, certayne, Thou shalt tourne to lyf ageyne.

If that the Cristma.s.se day Falle vpon a Weddensday, That yeere shal be hardee and strong, And many huge wyndes amonge.

The somer goode and mury shal be, And that yeere shal be plentee.

Yonge folkes shal dye alsoo; s.h.i.+ppes in the see, tempest and woo.

What chylde that day is borne is his Fortune to be doughty and wys, Discrete al-so and sleeghe of deede, To fynde feel[56] folkes mete and weede.[57]

If Cristma.s.se day on therusday bee, A wonder wynter yee shoule see, Of wyndes, and of weders wicke,[58]

Tempestes eeke many and thicke.

The somer shal bee strong and drye, Corne and beestes shal multeplye, Ther as the lande is goode of tilthe; But kynges and lordes shal dye by filthe What chylde that day eborne bee, He shal no dowte Right weel ethee,[59]

Of deedes that been good and stable.

Of speeche ful wyse and Raysonable.

Who-so that day bee thefft aboute, He shall bee shent,[60] with-outen doute; But if seeknesse that day thee felle, Hit may not long with thee dwelle.

If Cristma.s.se day on fryday be, The frost of wynter harde shal be, The frost, snowe and the floode; But at the eende hit shal bee goode.

The somer goode and feyre alsoo, Folke in eerthe shal haue gret woo.

Wymmen with chylde, beestes and corne, Shal multeplye, and noon be lorne.[61]

The children that been borne that day, Shoule longe lyve, and lechcherous ay.

If Cristma.s.se day on sat.u.r.day falle, That wynter wee most dreeden alle.

Hit shal bee ful of foule tempest, That hit shal slee bothe man and beest.

Fruytes and corne shal fayle, gret woone, And eelde folk dye many oon.

What woman that of chylde travayle, They shoule bee boothe in gret parayle.

And children that been borne that day, With June half yeere shal dy, no nay.