ST. PAUL'S DAY. JANUARY 25. I Do not find that any one has even hazarded a conjecture why prognostications of the weather, &c., for the whole year, are to be drawn from the appearance of this day.1 دو Lloyd, in his Diall of Daies, observes on St. Paul's, that "of this day the husbandmen prognosticate the whole year: if it be a fair day, it will be a pleasant year; if it be windy, there will be wars; if it be cloudy, it doth foreshow the plague that year." In the ancient calendar quoted below,2 I find an observation on the thirteenth of December, "That on this day prognostications of the months were drawn for the whole year. Prognostica mensium per totum annum." In the Shepherd's Almanack for 1676, among the observations on the month of January we find the following: "Some say that, if on the 12th of January the sun shines, it foreshows much wind. Others predict by St. Paul's Day; saying, if the sun shine, it betokens a good year; if it rain or snow, indifferent; if misty, it predicts great dearth; if it thunder, great winds and death of people that year." Hospinian, also, tells us that it is a critical day with the vulgar, indicating, if it be clear, abundance of fruits; if windy, foretelling wars; if cloudy, the pestilence; if rainy or snowy, it prognosticates dearness and scarcity: according to the old Latin verses, thus translated in Bourne's Antiquities of the Common People: 1 In an ancient calendar of the Church of Rome, which will frequently be quoted in the course of this work, it is called Dies Egyptiacus. 2 [This curious calen daralso contains the following very singular notice for the 24th of January, the vigil of St. Paul's Day, Viri cum uxoribus non cubant.] 3 Thomas Lodge, in his most rare work, entitled Wit's Miserie, and the World's Madnesse, discovering the Devils Incarnat of this Age,' 4to. Lond. 1596, glances in the following quaint manner at the superstitions of this and St. Peter's Day, p. 12," And by S. Peter and S. Paule the fool rideth him." "If St. Paul's Day be fair and clear, If blustering winds do blow aloft, Then wars will trouble our realm full oft; Then will be dear all sorts of grain." The Latin is given differently in Hearne's edition of Robert of Avesbury's History of Edward III., p. 266: "Clara dies Pauli bona tempora denotat anni. Se fiant nebulæ, morientur bestia quæque. Thus translated (ibid.) under the title of "The Saying of Erra Pater to the Husbandman :" "If the day of St. Paule be cleere, Warres shall vex this realme full oft: And if the cloudes make dark the skie, Both neate and fowle this yeare shall die."? And in a MS. Register of Spalding, transcribed in Cole's MSS., vol. 44, Brit. Mus. "Clara dies Pauli bona tempora denotat anni; Si fiant nebulæ, periant animalia quæque." 2 Among Bagford's fragments of books preserved with the Harleian MSS. in the British Museum, No. 5937, are several pieces of an almanack in French, printed at Basle, in 1672. These lines occur in one upon St. Paul's Day : "De Sainct Paul la claire journée Nous denote une bonne année; "Some Willsford, in his Nature's Secrets, p. 145, tells us, observe the 25th day of January, celebrated for the conversion of St. Paul; if fair and clear, plenty; if cloudy or misty, much cattle will die: if rain or snow fall that day, it presages a dearth; and if windy, wars; as old wives do dream." He gives the verses as follow: "If St. Paul's Day be fair and clear, It does betide a happy year; But if it chance to snow or rain, If clouds or mists do dark the skie, Great store of birds and beasts shall die; Then wars shall vex the kingdome oft." He farther informs us, that "Others observe the twelve days of Christmas, to foreshow the weather in all the twelve succeeding moneths respectively." A pleasant writer in the World, No. 10 (I believe the late Lord Orford), speaking on the alteration of the style, observes, "Who that hears the following verses, but must grieve for the shepherd and husbandman, who may have all their prognostics confounded, and be at a loss to know beforehand the fate of their markets? Antient sages sung "If St. Paul be fair and clear,' &c." Bishop Hall, in his Characters of Virtues and Vices, speaking of the superstitious man, observes that "Saint Paules Day and Saint Swithines, with the Twelve, are his oracles, which he dares believe against the almanacke." The prognostications on St. Paul's Day are thus elegantly modernized by Gay, in his Trivia :— "All superstition from thy breast repel, Let cred'lous boys and prattling nurses tell He concludes, "Let no such vulgar tales debase thy mind, Nor Paul nor Swithin rule the clouds and wind." [The following notices are taken from the Book of Knowedge, 1703::- "If, on New Year's Day, the clouds in the morning be red, it shall be an angry year, with much war and great tempests. If the sun shine on the 22nd of January, there shall be much wind. If it shine on St. Paul's Day, it shall be a fruitful year; and if it rain and snow, it shall be between both. If it be very misty, it betokeneth great dearth. If it thunder that day, it betokeneth great winds, and great death, especially amongst rich men, that year."] Schenkius, in his treatise on Images, chap. xiii., says, it is a custom in many parts of Germany to drag the images of St. Paul and St. Urban to the river, if, on the day of their feast, it happens to be foul weather. Bourne observes, upon St. Paul's Day, "How it came to have this particular knack of foretelling the good or ill fortune of the following year, is no easy matter to find out. The monks, who were undoubtedly the first who made this wonderful observation, have taken care it should be handed down to posterity, but why or for what reason this observation was to stand good they have taken care to conceal. St. Paul did indeed labour more abundantly than all the apostles; but never, that I heard, in the science of astrology. And why his day should therefore be a standing almanack to the world rather than the day of any other saint will be pretty hard to find out." 1" [Clara dies Pauli bonitatem denotat anni; Quando sunt nebulæ, pereunt animalia quæque ; Fevrier de tous les mois, Le plus court et moins courtois. En Mars me lie, en Mars me taille, Je rends prou quand on m'y travaille.”—MS. Harl. 4043.] CANDLEMAS DAY. FEBRUARY 2. THE PURIFICATION OF THE VIRGIN MARY. THIS is called in the north of England the Wives' Feast Day. The name of Candlemas is evidently derived from the lights which were then distributed and carried about in procession.I In the first volume of Proclamations, &c., folio, remaining in the Archives of the Society of Antiquaries of London, is preserved, p. 138, an original one, printed in black letter, and dated 26th February, 30 Hen. VIII., "concernyng rites and ceremonies to be used in due fourme in the Churche of Englande," in which we read as follows:- "On Candelmas Daye it shall be declared that the bearynge of candels is done in the memorie of Christe, the spirituall lyghte, when Simeon dyd prophecye, as it is redde in the churche that daye." The same had been declared by a decree of Convocation. See Fuller's Church History, p. 222. In Herbert's Country Parson, 12mo. Lond. 1675, third impression, p. 157, he tells us, "Another old custom (he had been speaking of processions) there is, of saying, when light is brought in, God sends us the light of Heaven; and the parson likes this very well. Light is a great blessing, and as great as food, for which we give thanks: and those that think this superstitious, neither know superstition nor themselves." This appears to be at this time totally forgotten. In the ancient calendar of the Romish Church, before cited, 1 Mr. Douce's MS. Notes say, "This feast is called by the Greeks лажаντα, which signifies a meeting, because Simeon and Anna the prophetess met in the temple at the presentation of our Saviour." L'Estrange's Alliances of Divine Offices, p. 147. See Luke ii.-At the celebration of the Feast of Corpus Christi, at Aix, in Provence, there is a procession of Saints, among whom St. Simeon is represented with a mitre and cap, carrying in his left hand a basket of eggs. Hist. de la Fête Dieu, p. 100. "To beare their candels soberly, and to offer them to the saintes, not of God's makynge, but the carvers and paynters," is mentioned among the Roman Catholic customs censured by John Bale in his 'Declaration of Bonner's Articles,' 1554, signat. D. 4 b; as is ibid., fol. 18 b. "to conjure candels." |