Leine river servant men and maids used to go silently on Easter night between the hours of eleven and twelve and silently draw water in buckets from the river; they mixed the water with the fodder and the drink of the cattle to make the animals thrive, and they imagined that to wash in it was good for human beings. Many were also of opinion that at the same mystic hour the water turned to wine as far as the crowing of a cock could be heard, and in this belief they laid themselves flat on their stomachs and kept their tongues in the water till the miraculous change occurred, when they took a great gulp of the transformed water. At Hildesheim, too, and the neighbouring villages fires used to blaze on all the heights on Easter Eve; and embers taken from the bonfires were dipped in the cattle troughs to benefit the beasts and were kept in the houses to avert lightning.[311] [New fire at Easter in Carinthia; consecration of fire and water by the Catholic Church at Easter.] In the Lesachthal, Carinthia, all the fires in the houses used to be extinguished on Easter Saturday, and rekindled with a fresh fire brought from the churchyard, where the priest had lit it by the friction of flint and steel and had bestowed his blessing on it.[312] Such customs were probably widespread. In a Latin poem of the sixteenth century, written by a certain Thomas Kirchmeyer and translated into English by Barnabe Googe, we read:-- "_On Easter Eve the fire all is quencht in every place, And fresh againe from out the flint is fetcht with solemne grace: The priest doth halow this against great daungers many one, A brande whereof doth every man with greedie mind take home, That when the fearefull storme appeares, or tempest black arise, By lighting this he safe may be from stroke of hurtful skies: A taper great, the Paschall namde, with musicke then they blesse, And franckensence herein they pricke, for greater holynesse: This burneth night and day as signe of Christ that conquerde hell, As if so be this foolish toye suffiseth this to tell. Then doth the Bishop or the Priest, the water halow straight, That for their baptisme is reservde: for now no more of waight Is that they usde the yeare before, nor can they any more, Yong children christen with the same, as they have done before. With wondrous pompe and furniture, amid the Church they go, With candles, crosses, banners, Chrisme, and oyle appoynted tho: Nine times about the font they marche, and on the saintes doe call, Then still at length they stande, and straight the Priest begins withall, And thrise the water doth he touche, and crosses thereon make, Here bigge and barbrous wordes he speakes, to make the devill quake: And holsome waters conjureth, and foolishly doth dresse, Supposing holyar that to make, which God before did blesse: And after this his candle than, he thrusteth in the floode, And thrise he breathes thereon with breath, that stinkes of former foode: