British Popular Customs, Present and Past: Illustrating the Social and Domestic Manners of the People. Arranged According to the Calendar of the Year.Thiselton-Dyer, T. F. (Thomas Firminger)
History
British Popular Customs, Present and Past: Illustrating the Social and Domestic Manners of the People. Arranged According to the Calendar of the Year.
Thiselton-Dyer, T. F. (Thomas Firminger)
Folklore -- Great Britain; Great Britain -- Social life and customs
In London on Twelfth Night, in former days, boys assembled round the
inviting shops of the pastrycooks, and dexterously nailed the coat-tails
of spectators who ventured near enough to the bottoms of the window
frames, or pinned them strongly together by their clothes. Sometimes
eight or ten persons found themselves thus connected. The dexterity and
force of the nail-driving was so quick and sure that a single blow
seldom failed of doing the business effectually.--Withdrawal of the nail
without a proper instrument was out of the question, and consequently,
the person nailed was forced either to leave part of his coat as a
cognisance of his attachment, or quit the spot with a hole in it. At
every nailing and pinning shouts of laughter arose from the
perpetrators, yet it often happened to one who turned and smiled at the
duress of another, that he also found himself nailed. Efforts at
extrication increased mirth; nor was the presence of a constable, who
was usually employed to attend and preserve free “ingress, egress, and
regress,” sufficiently awful to deter the offender.--_Every Day Book_,
vol. i. p. 50.
A curious custom of mediæval origin is observed at the Chapel Royal, St.
James’s Palace, on the festival of the Epiphany. After the reading of
the sentence at the offertory, “Let your light so shine before men,”
&c., while the organ plays, two members of her Majesty’s household,
wearing the royal livery, descend from the royal pew and advance to the
altar rails, preceded by the usher, where they present to one of the two
officiating clergymen a red bag, edged with gold lace or braid, which is
received in an offertory basin, and then reverently placed on the altar.
This bag or purse is understood to contain the Queen’s offering of gold,
frankincense, and myrrh, in commemoration of the gifts of the Magi to
the infant Saviour.--_Echo_, Jan. 7th, 1869.
In the _Lady’s Mag._ for 1760, is the following:
Sunday Jan. 6th, being Twelfth Day, and a collar and offering day at St.
James’, his Majesty, preceded by the heralds, pursuivants, &c., and the
knights of the Garter, Thistle, and Bath, in the collars of their
respective orders, went to the Royal Chapel at St. James’, and offered
gold, myrrh, and frankincense, in imitation of the Eastern Magi offering
to our Saviour.
ISLE OF MAN.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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