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
“Alsoe, whereas the Companye and occupation of the Sadlers within the
Cittie of Chester did yearely by custome, time out of memorie of man,
the same day, hour, and place, before the Mayor, offer upon a truncheon,
staffe or speare, a certaine homage to the Drapers of the cittie of
Chester, called the Sadler’s ball, profitable for few uses or purposes,
as it was, beinge a ball of silk of the bigness of a bowle, was torned
into a silver bell; weighing about two ozs., as is supposed, of silver:
the which saide silver bell was ordayned to be the rewarde for that
horse, which with speedy runninge, then should rune before all others,
and there presently should be given the daye and place. This alteration
was made the same time, and by the same mayor, like as the Shoemakers’
foote-ball was before exchanged into six silver gleaves.
“Also, whereas of an anchant custom whereof man’s memorie nowe livinge
cannot remember the original and beginninge, the same daye, hower and
place, before the mayor for the time beinge, every person which is
married within the liberties of the saide cittie, dwelling wheresoever
without, and all those that dwelle within the saide cittie, for one
yeare before, and marye elswhere, did offer likewise a homage to the
said Companye of Drapers before the Mayor, a ball of silke, of the like
bignesse of a bowle; the same mayor torned the same balls into silver
arrowes, the which arrowes they tooke order should be given to those
which did shoote the longest shoote, with divers kind of arrowes: this
exchange was made as before is mentioned of the Shoemakers’ foote-ball
and the Sadlers’ ball. In which exchange there appeared greate wisdom,
anchent and sage senators, whoe had great studye and regarde to torne
the foresaid thinges unto soe profitable uses and exercises; so that
there is three of the most commendable exercises and practices of
war-like feates, as running of men on foot, runninge of horses, and
shootinge of the broad arrowe, the flighte and the butt-shafte, in the
long-bowe, are yearely there used; which is done in a very few (if in
any) citties of England, soe far as I understand.”
CORNWALL.
It was customary at one time to tie fowls to stakes, and set them as
marks for boys to kill with bats.--Hitchins, _History of Cornwall_,
1824, vol. i. p. 723.
CUMBERLAND.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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