A HANDBOOK

WEATHER FOLK-LORE

A HANDBOOK

WEATHER FOLK-LORE

A COLLECTION OF PROVERBIAL SAYINGS IN VARIOUS

LANGUAGES RELATING TO THE WEATHER, WITH

EXPLANATORY AND ILLUSTRATIVE NOTES

BY THE

REV. C. SWAINSON, M.A.

VICAR OF HIGH HURST WOOD

WILLIAM BLACKWOOD AND SONS

EDINBURGH AND LONDON

MDCCCLXXIII

PREFACE.

IT is well known that certain days have been,
in various countries, considered as ominous
of the ensuing weather. The popular sayings
attached to them are of great antiquity, and
therefore the alteration of the Calendar has
affected them in a material degree ; yet still
do the peasantry of the Continent consult re-
ligiously their critical days ; and if a * Volks-
kalender' of Germany, Switzerland, or Bo-
hemia were to discontinue giving its "Bauern-"
or " Wetter-regelen," there is no doubt that
its circulation would be sensibly diminished.
So, too, in our own land, each district has
its weather proverbs, some peculiar to itself,
some, it may be, shared in common with the
country folk of France, Germany, and Italy.
It is to the superstitious side of weather lore
that the reader is directed more particularly

vi PREFACE.

in the First Part of the present work ; and it
may be remarked that special attention has
been paid to the weather proverbs attached to
the various Saints' days throughout the year.

The Second Part contains sayings relating
to the sun, moon, stars, and atmospheric in-
fluences generally ; also many prognostics
drawn from the habits of animals, birds, in-
sects, &c.

To compile a Handbook of this kind would
have been impossible without the aid of pre-
vious publications, a list of which is given
below. The author is particularly indebted
to ' Notes and Queries,' Brand, and Chambers,
also to Professor Inwards' excellent book on
this subject, and to Mr Denham's curious
collection, which, however, contain but very
few foreign proverbs. Many of the latter not,
however, in their original language may be
found in Baron von Reinsberg-Diiringsfeld's
' Das Wetter im Sprichwort.'

LIST OF WORKS CONSULTED.

Almanacs : Poor Robin's, of various dates ; the Country ;

The Shepherd's; and many French, Belgian, German,

and Bohemian Volkskalenders.
Book of Knowledge, N.D.

BRAND'S Popular Antiquities ; Bohn's Edition : 3 vols. 1853.
BUCELINI, Historise Universalis auctarium. Augustae, 1658.
BUCHLERI (JOANN.), Gnomologia. Coloniae, 1662.
CHAMBERS (R.), Book of Days. 2 vols.
CHAMBERS (R.), Popular Rhymes of Scotland. Edinburgh,

1870.

COLLINS (JOHN), Dictionary of Spanish Proverbs. 1823.
CORBLET (J.), Glossaire etymologique du patois Picard.

Paris, 1851.
COREMANS, L'annee de 1'ancienne Belgique. Bruxelles,

1843.
DENHAM (M. A.), A collection of Proverbs and Popular

Sayings relating to the Seasons, the Weather, &c. : printed

for the Percy Society. 1846.
DIGGES (L.), Prognosticacion Everlausting of ryght goode

Effecte. London, 1596. B. L.
FORSTER (T.), Perennial Kalendar. London, 1824.
HAMPSON (R.. T.), Medii Aevi Kalendarium. 2 vols.

London, 1841.

viii LIST OF WORKS CONSULTED.

HONE'S Works. 4 vols. London.

HUSBANDMAN'S Practice, or Prognostication for ever. Lon-
don, N.D.

INWARDS (R.), Weather Lore. London, 1869.

JAMIESON (Dr J.), Etymological Dictionary of the Scottish
Language. 2 vols. Edinburgh, 1808.

Kalendrier perpetuel aux bons Laboureurs et Almanach pour
Pan de grace, 1678. Rouen.

KORTE (W.), Die Sprichworter der Deutschen. Leipzig,
1861.

LE Roux DE LINCY, Le livre des Proverbes Fra^ais. Paris,
1842.

LLOYD (L.), Diall of Daies. London, 1590.

Notes and Queries.

OIHENART (A.), Proverbes Basques. Bordeaux, 1847.

PASQUALIGO (CRISTOFORO), Raccolta di Proverbi Veneti.
Venezia, 1858.

PLUQUET (F.), Contes populaires, &c., de Tarrondissement
de Bayeux. Rouen, 1834.

Proverbes et dictons agricoles de France. Paris, 1872.

RAY'S Proverbs. Bohn's Edition, 1870.

REINSBERG-DURINGSFELD (BARON VON), Das Wetter im
Sprichwort. Leipzig, 1864.

ROSA (G.), Dialetti, costumi e tradizioni delle provincie di
Bergamo e da Brescia. Bergamo, 1857.

SAMARANI BONIFACIO, Prof., Proverbi Lombardi. Milano,
1870.

Shepherd's Kalendar, or Countryman's Companion. Lon-
don, N.D.

WILSFORD (THOS.), Nature's Secrets. London, 1665.

WORMU (OLAi), Fasti Danici. Hafniae, 1643.

WURZBACH(C), Die Sprichworter der Polen. Wien, 1852.

CONTENTS.

PAGE
PREFACE, ...... y

LIST OF WORKS CONSULTED, * . . vii

PART I.

VER]

3S RELATING TO THE YEAR,

H LEAP YEAR,

ii SEASONS, .

u JANUARY, .

ti FEBRUARY,

ii MARCH, .

11 LENT, EASTER, WHITSUN-

TIDE, ETC.,

"u APRIL,

u MAY,

u JUNE,

100

JULY,

it AUGUST, .

118

u SEPTEMBER,

126

n OCTOBER, .

134

u NOVEMBER,

141

u DECEMBER,

149

X CONTENTS.

WEATHER AND AGRICULTURAL RULES RELATING

TO DAYS THROUGHOUT THE YEAR, . .167

PROVERBS RELATING TO THE DAYS OF THE WEEK, 169

PART II.

PROVERBS RELATING TO THE SUN, . . 1 75

ti ii MOON, . . l82

M ii STARS AND METEORS, . IQ2

ii ii RAINBOW, . . . 194

ii ii MISTS AND FOGS, . 198

ii it . DEW, . . . 200

.1 ii CLOUDS, . . . 200

ii ii FROST, . . . 208

11 ii SNOW, . . . 209
ii n RAIN, . . .211

ii n THUNDER AND LIGHTNING, 214

,i ii WIND, . . . 2l8

PROGNOSTICS FROM ANIMALS, . . . 228

n n BIRDS, .... 234

it n FISH, .... 248

n n REPTILES, ETC., . . 250

ii .. INSECTS, ETC., . . 253

ii ii TREES, PLANTS, ETC., . . 257

PLANTS FLOWERING ON VARIOUS SAINTS' DAYS, . 262

PROGNOSTICS FROM VARIOUS OBJECTS, .. . 264

GENERAL PROGNOSTICS, .... 269

PART I.

A HANDBOOK

WEATHER FOLK-LORE.

"The Almanac-maker makes the Almanac, but God makes
the weather." Danish Proverb.

THE YEAR.

A good year is always welcome. Iceland.

The harvest depends more on the year than on the
field. Denmark.

Do not abuse the year till it has passed. Spain.
Das vorige Jahr war immer besser.
Zeit macht Heu.

The Crops,

Corn in good years is hay, in ill years straw is com.

After a famine in the stall
Comes a famine in the hall.

Another proverb to the same effect runs as follows,
Dearth always begins in the horse-manger :

2 THE YEAR.

" In opposition to the rack," says Ray; "for in dry years
when hay is dear, commonly corn is cheap : but when
oats (or indeed any one grain) is dear, the rest are seldom
cheap."

Corn and horn go together.

The French say,
Quand les betes mangent,
Les hommes jeunent. Drome.

And,
L'homme et le boeuf ne sont jamais bien ensemble.

Acorns.

Annee glanduleuse,
Annee chancreuse.

Anne'e de glands,

Annee de cher temps. Haute Marne.

So in Tuscany,
Anno ghiandoso,
Anno cancheroso.

And about Milan,
An de giand,

An pesant per tiice quant,
i.e., An acorn year is a bad year for everything.

Beans.

Annee de feves,

Anne'e de misere. Lot et Garonne.

Cherries.
A cherry year,
A merry year.

Cockchafers.

Annee hannetonneuse,
Annee pommeuse.

THE YEAR.

Grande hannetonne'e,

Petite vinee :

Grande hannetonnee,

Grande pomme'e. Disc.

Si Tannee a produit beaucoup de hannetons,

II y aura beaucoup de chataignes. Dordogne.

Currants.

Annee de groseilles,
Annee de bouteilles. Nievre.

Dry.

Whoso hath but a mouth
Will ne'er in England suffer drought.
Drought never bred dearth in England.
Annee seche n'appauvrit son maitre.

Annee de secheresse

A toujours fait richesse. Allier.

Longue secheresse, lac de vin. Lot.

Sonnjahr Wonnjahr.

But, on the other hand,
If there be neither snow nor rain
Then will be dear all kinds of grain.

And

Annee seche
Toujours peu reveche. ffatite Loire.

Frost.

Annee de gelee,
Anne'e de bid

Grass.
An de fein,
An de rein, i.e. (useless). Switzerland.

4 THE YEAR.

Ano de erba,
Ano de merda. Venetia.
Beaucoup de foin,
Beaucoup de rien.

Haws.

A haw year,

A snaw year. Scotland.

A haw year,

A braw year. North of Ireland.

Mushrooms.

Anne'e champignonniere,

Anne'e de misere. Hautes Pyrenees.

Anno fungato,

Anno tribolato. Tuscany.

Nuts.
A good nut year a good corn year.

Annee de noisette,

Annee de disette. Haute Marne.

Pears.

A pear year,
A dear year.

Plums.

A plum year,

A dumb year, (referring to the silence of death ? )
Kent.

In the year when plums flourish, all else fails.
Devon.

THE YEAR.

Radishes.

Annee de raves,

Anne'e de santd Ardeche.

Bain.

Anne'e de pluie,

Manque de fruits. Haute Loire.

Some rain, some rest,

Fine weather isn't always best.

Rime.

Annee de givre,

Annee de fruits. Eure et Loire.

Snow.

A snow year, a rich year.

Annee de neige,
Annee de bien. Lozere.

Annee neigeuse,
Annee fructueuse.

Anne'e neigeuse remplit le grenier :

Annee sans neige appauvrit le meunier. Lozlre.

Schnee Jahr reich Jahr.

An nevbs,

An friitubs. Milan.

Annata di nivi,

Annata di olivi. Venetia.

Anno di neve,
Anno di bene.

Uberis ipsa frequens anni praemmcia nix est.

6 LEAP YEAR.

Wind.

Annee venteuse,

Annee fruiteuse. Calvados.

Local.

Quando Guara tiene capa, y Moncayo chapiron,
buen ano para Castilla y mejor para Aragon :

i.e., When the mountains of Guara are tipped with snow, and
those of Moncayo with fogs, they indicate that the year
will be abundant. [See under Clouds.

LEAP YEAR.

Among the peasantry in Belgium there is a superstition that
in Leap Year the young of no domestic animal will thrive,
and that grafts and young shoots will never come to their
full growth. Thus they have a proverb

" In Leap Year the weather always changes on a
Friday,"

That being an unlucky day ; and the same prejudice exists in
North Italy, where they say,

An bisesti, o la mama o '1 bambi : -
i.e., When a child is born in leap year, either it or its mother
will die before the year is over ; and

An bisest no pianta vit, ne met inest,
A similar belief to that which has been mentioned as prevail-
ing in Belgium. So, too, in Tuscany,

Quando 1'anno vien bisesto,
Non por bachi e non far nesto.

And in "France we find,
Annee bissextile,
Anne'e infertile.

LEAP YEAR. 7

Quand 1'annado es dd bizd (bissextile)

Mefia bous (mefiez vous) de I'aanado avan et de

1'annado apres.

And,

Vo me senonge Bissetre Cote d'Or :
i.e., You wish me bad luck.

" Bissetre, en bourguignon, s'est dit dans la signifi-
cation de malheur, parceque la superstition a fait
croire anciennement, et fait croire encore, qu'il
y avait un mauvais sort attach d tant aux annees
bissextile qu'aux jours intercalates du bissexte
de fevrier. A Dijon, en ces sorts d'annees, le
vulgaire dit que 'bissettre cor.'" LAMMONOYE.
Noels bourguignon s : Glossaire, p. 28.
So too in the Eifel they say,

Schaltj ahr Kaltj ahr.
And in Russia,

If St Cassian (Feb. 29) looks on a cow, the cow
will die -j if he looks on a tree, it will wither.

In Scotland,
Leap year

Was never a good sheep year

is a common saying: whilst in Wormii Fast, Dan., p. 112,
occur the following lines :

Vulgus bissextum esse mali putat ominis annum,
Atque hominum varies infortunare labores :
Turn male depargi vites, male semina sulcis
Kara putant .credi, pecoris mala pignora nasci :
Semina pomorum pedibus conversa supinis :
Et capite in terrain memorant adolescere misso.

8 WINTER.

The Sicilians alone are of contrary opinion, saying,
Annata bisesta
Inchi ed assesta :
i.e.y In leap year set and graft (vines).

SUCCESSION OF THE SEASONS.

Dat Clemens (Nov. 23) hiemem : dat Petrus ver

cathedratus (Feb. 22) :
^Estuat Urbanus (May 23): autumnat Bartolomaeus

(Aug. 24).

DUCANGE, Gloss. Mediev. Lat.
The German version of which runs as follows :
Sanct Clemens uns den Winter bringt,
Sanct Petri Stuhl dem Friihling winkt,
Den Sommer bringt uns Sanct Urban,
Der Herbst fangt um Bartolomai an.

WINTER.
Early.

An air' winter,

A sair winter. Scotland.

Cold.

Bis die Hohlen dreimal mit Schnee geftillet sind,
Weht immer noch der Winter Wind.

Changeable.

Mony a frost and mony a thowe (thaw)
Soon maks mony a rotten yowe (ewe).

Mild.

One fair day in winter does not make birds merry.

WINTER.

A green winter makes a fat churchyard.

So the Germans say,
Griiner Winter macht den Kirchhof fett.

Thunder.

Tonnerre d'hiver tonnerre d'enfer.

Winter thunder,

Poor man's death, rich man's hunger :
Because it is good for fruit and bad for corn.

Donner in Winter Quartal
Bringt uns Kalte ohne Zahl.

Winter and Spring.
Hiver doux printemps sec :
Hiver rude printemps pluvieux. Nord.

Al inverno lluvioso

Verano abundoso Spain :

i.e., After a rainy winter follows a fruitful spring.

Spater Winter spates Friihjahr.

Winter and Summer.

Inverna slit (dry),
D'esta bon friit

Winter is summer's heir.

Wie es wintert, so sommert es.

But, on the other hand,
Hiver humide e'te sec. Nord.

Serein d'hiver, pluie d'ete,
Ne font jamais pauvrete.

Corresponding with the Italian proverb,
Sere d'inverna e bon aqua d'esta
Ne malatia, ne fam 1'a mai porta. Milan.

10 WINTER.

Se bel 1'e sta 1'inverna e free 1'esta
Gran raccolt no sta a spera. Milan.
Winter thunder and summer's flood
Never boded England any good.

Winter thunder,
Summer's hunger.

Winter finds out what summer lays up.

En hiver pair tout pleut,
En 6t6 la oil Dieu veut.

L'hiver nous fait plus de mal que Te'te' ne nous fait
du bien.

En hiver au lit ou aupres du feu,
Et en dte au soleil et au jeu.

General Proverbs. .

The Venetians say,
Inverno inferno :

the meaning of which may be guessed : nor are the Ger-
mans much more complimentary to this season in their
proverb
Der Winter ist ein unwerther Gast fiir alle Leute.

En hiver, eau ou bruine,

Vent neige ou grele pour voisine.

In winter a fire is better than a Muscat rose.
Persia.

The fire is winter's fruit. Arabia.

Winter never rots in the sky.
So the Italians say,

Ne caldo, ne gelo
Non resto mai in cielo.

SPRING. 1 1

L'tyver est dans un bissac,

S'il n'est pas dans un bout, il est dans I'autre.
Calvados.

L'hiver n'est pas batard :
S'il ne vient tot, il vient tard.

SPRING.

Late.

A late spring

Is a great blessing.

And the Italian proverb is almost identical,
Primavera tardida
Mai falida :
i.e., A late spring never deceives.

Better late ripe and bear than early blossom and
blast.

Cold.

A cold spring kills the roses. Arabia.

Cold weather in spring makes the ass shiver.
Sardinia.

Wet.

Jamais pluie au printemps
Ne passe pour mauvais temps.

A wet spring a dry harvest.
Fine.

The Russians say,

" A fine spring is good for everybody."

12 SPRING.

Thunder.

Thunder in spring
Cold will bring.

Shearing.

You may shear your sheep
When the elder blossoms peep.

Sowing,

Nae hurry wi' your corns,

Nae hurry wi' your harrows ;
Snaw lies ahint the dyke,

Mair may come and fill the furrows. Scotland.

Sow wheat in dirt and rye in dust.

Exactly corresponding with the French,
Seme les seigles dans la terre poudreuse,
Et les froments dans la terre bourbeuse. Rhone.

Sow thin shear thin.

But the French say,
Qui seme dru
Recolte menu. Moselle.

Sow beans in the mud

And they'll grow like a wood.

When the sloe tree is as white as a sheet,
Sow your barley whether it be dry or wet.

When the oak puts on his gosling grey,
Tis time to sow barley, night or day.

Cuckoo.

When the cuckoo comes to the bare thorn,
Sell your cow and buy your corn :

SPRING. 13

But when she comes to the full bit,
Sell your corn and buy your sheep :
i.e., A late spring is bad for cattle, and an early spring for
corn. RAY.

The French say,
Si lou coucou ve nud,
Belco de paillo, paou de gru Dordogne :
i.e.. If the cuckoo comes when the trees are bare, there will
be much straw but little grain.

The cuckoo comes in mid March
And cucks in mid April :
And goes away at Lammas tide,
When the corn begins to fill.

In April,

The cuckoo shows his bill ;

In May,

He sings all day :

In June,

He alters his tune :

In July,

He prepares to fly :

In August,

Go he must.

Heywood, in his epigram, "Of Use," 1587, alludes to the
Cuckoo's change of note in June, as follows :

In Aprill, the Koocoo can sing her song by rote,
In June, of tune, she cannot sing a note :
At first, koo-coo, koo-coo, sing still can she do,
At last, kooke, kooke, kooke; six kookes to one koo.

In England and Bohemia the I4th of April is called "Cuckoo
day/' in Germany, the I5th.

14 SPRING.

The Venetians say,

Ai oto de April el cuco ha da vegnir :

E se nol vien ai oto, di 'che Te preso o che 1'e morto :

E se nol vien ai diese,

L'e preso per le siese ;

E se nol vien ai vinti,

L'e preso in t'i forminti ;

E se nol vien ai trenta,

El pastor 1'ha magnk co la polenta :

i.e., The cuckoo ought to come on the 8th of April ; if he
does not come on the 8th, he has been either caught or is
dead : If he does not come on the loth, he has been
caught in the hedge ; if he does not come on the 2Oth, he
has been caught in the corn ; and if he does not come on
the 3Oth, the shepherd must have eaten him with polenta.

Swallow.

It is remarkable that most countries have a similar proverb
respecting the first appearance of the swallow. We say.
One swallow does not make a spring :

The Greeks,
fA/a 2gX/5wi> sag o(> <TTOISI :

The Romans,
Una hirundo non facit ver :

The French,
Une hirondelle ne fait pas le printemps :

The Germans,
Eine Schwalbe macht keinen Friihling :

The Dutch,
Een Swaluw maakt geen zomer :

The Swedes,
En Svala gor ingen sommar :

The Spanish,
Una golondrina no hace verano :

SUMMER. 15

The Italians,
Una rondine non fa primavera.

General Proverbs.

The spring is not always green.
Spring is both father and mother to us, he who
does not sow will not reap. Gallida.

Spring and Summer.

Printemps sec e'te pluvieuse.

Viel Nebel im Friihjahr viel Regen in Sommer.

Spring and Autumn.

In spring a tub of rain makes a spoonful of mud :
In autumn a spoonful of rain makes a tub of mud.

Bohemia.
Spring rain damps autumn rain soaks. Russia.

Spring and Winter.

If there's spring in winter, and winter in spring,
The year wont be good for any thing.

So the French say,
Quand en hiver est ete,
Et en e'te hiverne'e,
Jamais n'est bon annee.

SUMMER.
Dry.

A dry summer never made a dear peck.

Wet.

Sommerregen, gliicklich die Felder die ihn bekom-
men :
i.e., Happy are the fields that receive summer rain.

16 SUMMER.

Dry and Wet.

When the sand doth feed the clay

[Which is in a wet summer]
England woe and well a day !
But when the clay doth feed the sand

[Which is in a dry summer]
Then it is well with England :

" Because there is more clay than sandy ground in Eng-
land" RAY.

Summer, Autumn, and Winter.
Der Sommer giebt korn ;
Der Herbst leert sein Horn :
Das Winter verzehrt
Was die Beiden bescheert.

Wer in Heumonat nicht gabelt,
Im Kornschnitt nicht zabelt,
Im Herbst nicht friih aufsteht
Mag seh'n wie es ihm im Winter geht.

Summer and Winter.

L'ete' pluvieux 1'hiver rigoureux.

So the Italian proverb,
Ombra d'estat dolur d'enveren.

L'&e orageux 1'hiver pluvieux.

Heisse Sommer und kalte Winter bringen keine
bose Zeit.

" The time will come," say the Bohemians, "when
Winter will ask us, 'What were you doing all the
summer ? ' "

Der Sommer ist ein Nahrer,
Der Winter ein Bezehrer.

AUTUMN. I/

Summer comes with a bound : winter comes yawn-
ing. Finland.

General Proverbs.

Frosty nights and hot sunny days
Set the corn fields all in a blaze.

Chi dis mal de 1'estat, corpo de Diana

El dis mal de la Vergine sovran a Bergamo :

i.e., He who speaks ill of summer, by the body of Diana,

he speaks ill of the sovereign Virgin mother : because
L'esta 1'e la mader dei poveret :
i.e., Summer is the mother of the poor.

An English summer, two hot days and a thunder-
storm.

AUTUMN.

Fine.

1st der Herbst warm, hell und klar,

So ist zu hoffen ein fruchtbar Jahr. Palatinate.

Autumn and Spring.

Pluie abondante pendant 1'automne annonce prin-
temps sec.

Autumn and Winter.

La muger del vinadero buen otono y mal invierno

Spain :
i.e., The vintager's wife prefers autumn to winter.

Viel Nebel im Herbst viel Schnee im Winter.

Harvest.

A long harvest a little corn.

1 8 CHARACTERISTICS OF THE MONTHS.

Short harvests make short addlings (earnings).
Yorkshire.
Transplanting.

If you would fruit have,

You must bring the leaf to the grave :

i.e., You must transplant your trees just about the fall of the
leaf, neither sooner nor much later : not sooner, because
of the motion of the sap ; not later, that they may have
time to take root before the deep frosts. RAY.

CHARACTERISTICS OF THE MONTHS.

Janvier le fier, froid et frileux,

Fevrier le court et fievreux,

Mars poudreux, Avril pluvieux,

Mai joli, gai et venteux,

Denotent Tan fertile et plantureux. Cote d'Or.

Ol free de ZeneY, ol mal tep de Febrer.

I ventu de Marz, le pioisine d' Avril,

Ol sguas de Mas, ol bii racolt de Zogn,

Ol bat de Loi e i Sane aquaroi

Tone, Piero e Jacom,

E d'Agost la buna stagiu

I val pio del trono del re Salomu Bergamo ;

i.e., A cold January, a stormy February, a windy March, a
showery April, a dewy May, a good harvest in June,
threshing in July, the three Saints, Anthony (June 13),
Peter (June 29), and James (July 25) rainy, and a fine
August, are worth more than King Solomon's throne.

In Coar (Sept.-Oct.) the cold weather begins ; in
Cartic (Oct.-Nov.) it ends almost before it has

JANUARY. 19

begun. Ughun (Nov.-Dec.) just gives time for
the water to boil (because the days are so short) ;
Poss (Dec. -Jan.) finds us creeping into corners
(to get warm). In Magh (Jan.-Feb.) the days
lengthen little by little : in P'hagoon (Feb.-
March) we begin to stretch our limbs (which
were cramped from the cold and wet). With
Cheyt (March-April) Nature wakes, and he who
feels dirty can wash himself. Hindustan.

JANUARY.
Cold.

A kindly good Janiveer

Freezeth the pot by the feer (fire). TUSSER.

Jack Frost in Janiveer

Nips the nose of the nascent year.

The blackest month in all the year
Is the month of Janiveer.

Janvier a quatre bonnets.

Gerar el g' a i dent lungh. Brescia.

Gran fred de Genar
L'impieniss el granar. Bergamo.

In January a man spends a few minutes in the sun-
shine, but all the rest of the day in the chimney-
corner. Portugal.

Quien no tiene calzas en Enero
No fies del tu dinero Spain :

i.e., Do not lend money to a man who does not wear breeches
in January (the coldest month in the year).

2O JANUARY.

It is a general opinion that
As the day lengthens,
So the cold strengthens.

Thus we find,

a. Quand le jour croit
Aussi fait le froid.

b. Wachst der Tag wachst die Kalte.

c. Wann de Dage fangt an to langen

Fangt der Winter an to strengen. Platt Deutsch.

d. Cresce di, cresce'l freddo, dice il pescatore.

e. Luces crescentes faciunt decrescere sepes.

Mild.

If the grass grows in Janiveer,

It grows the worse for it all the year. RAY.

Exactly equivalent to the German proverb,
Wenn's Gras wachst in Januar
Wachst es schlecht durch's ganze Jahr.

Wenn in Januar die Frucht auf dem Felde wachst,
so wird sie theuer.

If you see grass in January,
Lock your grain in the granary.

So the Italians say,
Quando Jennajo mette erba
Se tu hai grano e tu lo serba.

Fleurs de Janvier,

Ne vont dans le panier. Ardeche.

January blossoms fill no man's cellars. Portugal.

A January spring
Is worth nothing.

JANUARY. 21

Januar warm
Das's Gott erbarm' !

So in Corsica,
Dio ti guard! di un buon Jennaro !

Tanzen in Januar die Mucken
Muss der Bauer nach dem Futter gucken. Switzer-
land.

Corresponding with the Milanese,
Quand de Genar ta vedet el moscon,
Tegn di ciint ogni bocon :

i.e., When you see midges in January, treasure up every bit
(of fodder).

And with the French,
Si les mouches dansent en Janvier,
Le cultivateur devra s'inquieter de ses furrages.
Haut Rhin.

II vaudrait mieux vcir un loup sur un fumier
Qu'un homme en chemise en Janvier. Jura.

1st der Januar gelind

Lenz und Sommer fruchtbar sind.

Dry.

Genar sech

Paisa rech. Bergamo.

Quand sec est le mois de Janvier,

Ne doit se plaindre le fermier. Rhone.

Quand il ne pleut pas en Janvier,

II faut etayer le grenier. Tarn-et-Garonne.

22 JANUARY.

And the Venetians say,

Genaro in polvere :

Fate '1 granaro de rovere.

i.e., If January be dusty, we shall have to make our grana-
ries of oak (because the weight they will have to sustain
will be great).

1st der Januar nicht nass
Fiillet sich des Winzer's Fass.

Wet.

A wet January is not so good for corn, but not so
bad for cattle. Portugal.

Pluie de Janvier cherte.

Im Januar viel Regen, wenig Schnee,

Thut Bergen Thalern und Baumen weh ! Eifel.

Misty.

Nebel im Januar
Macht ein nass Friihjahr.

Neplos de Janbie, mourtello malaoutio Lozere :
i.e., Brouillards de Janvier, maladie mortelle.

Thunder in January.

Thunder in January signifieth the same year great
winds, plentifull of corn and cattle, peradven-
ture. Book of Knowledge.

Quand il tonne en Janvier,

II tonne tous les mois de 1'annee. Vendee.

January foretelling the weather of the year.

Anfang und Ende vom Januar,
Zeigt das Wetter an fur's ganze Jahr.

JANUARY. 23

January and February.

Genar e Febrar,

In dii mesche van de par Milan :
i.e., January and February are two months of the same
temperature.

Quand Zinvier fait 1'Feverier
Feve'rier fait 1'Zinvier. Picardy.

Les beaux jours de Janvier
Trompent I'homme en Fevrier.

Loila esadila hoila, ondotic darraic barandaila

Basque provinces:
i.e., January, do not boast (of your fine weather), for

February is close at your heels.

January and February
Fill or empty the granary.

Janvier et Fevrier

Comblent ou vuident le grenier.

Gennar el fa i pont e Febrar el ie romp Bergamo :
i.e., January makes bridges (of ice) and February breaks
them.

Enero y Febrero comen mas que Madrid y Toledo.
i.e., January and February eat more than Madrid and

Toledo.
" Alluding to the herdsmen and others who deal in cattle,

to express the quantity they dispose of, and the scarcity

of pasture in those months." COLLINS.

January and March.

March in Janiveer,
Janiveer in March, I fear.

24 JANUARY.

So in Germany,

Den Marz furcht' ich in Januar,
Im Januar den Marz, fiirwahr.

January, March, and April.

In January should sun appear,
March and April pay full dear.

January and May.
Who in Janiveer sows oats,
Gets gold and groats :

Who sows in May,
Gets little that way.

Genar el fa i pecat e Mag l'e condanat Milan :
i.e., January commits the fault and May bears the blame.

General Proverbs (Fowls).

If one but knew how good it were

To eat a pullet in Janiveer,

If he had twenty in a flock,

He'd leave but one to go with cock. RAY.
The Spaniards say,

Polio di Enero sube con el padre al gallinero :

i.e., The January fowl follows the cock to roost, (as being the
favourite). " Fowls reared in January are supposed to be
stronger than those hatched in warm weather."

(Mole.)
Wirft der Maulwurf im Januar, so dauert der Winter

bis Mai.

(Woodpecker.)

Quando canta il pigozzo di Gennaio
Tieni a mano il pagliaio Venetia ;
i.e., When the Woodpecker sings in January, keep your

fodder till the morrow (for it is a sign of snow or rain).

DAYS IN JANUARY. 25

DAYS IN JANUARY.

1. Feast of the Circumcision.

The Feast of the Circumcision was very generally considered
by our forefathers as ominous, and as prognosticating the
weather of the ensuing year. So we read in Digges'
' Prognosticacion Everlasting of ryghte goode Effect,'
4to., Lond. 1596, page 12, the following curious direc-
tions :

" It is affirmed by some, when New Yeare's day fall-
eth on the Sunday, then a pleasant winter doth
ensue : a naturall summer : fruite sufficient :
harvest indifferent, yet some winde and raine :
many marriages : plentie of wine and honey :

. death of young men and cattell : robberies in
most places : newes of prelates, of kinges : and
cruell warres in the end.

" On Monday, a winter somewhat uncomfortable :
summer temperate : no plentie of fruite : many
fansies and fables opened : agues shall raigne :
kings and many others shall dye : marriages shall
be in most places : and a common fall of gentle-
men.

" On Tuesday, a stormie winter : a wet summer : a
divers harvest: corne and fruite indifferent, yet
hearbes in gardens shall not flourish : great
sicknesse of men, women, and young children.
Beasts shall hunger, starve and dye of the botch :
many shippes, gallies and hulkes shall be lost :
and the bloodie flixes shall kill many men : all
things deare, save corne.

26 DAYS IN JANUARY.

" On Wednesday, lo, a warme winter : in the end
snowe and frost : a cloudie summer, plentie of
fruite, corne, hay, wine, and honey : great paine
to women with childe, and death to infants :
good for sheepe : news of kinges : great warres :
battell, and slaughter towards the middell.

" On Thursday, winter and summer windie : a rainie
harveste : therefore wee shall have overflowings :
much fruite : plentie of honey : yet flesh shall
be deare : cattell in general shall die : great
trouble, warres, &c.; with a licencious life of
the feminine sexe.

" On Friday, winter stormie : summer scant and
pleasant : harvest indifferent : little store of
fruite, of wine and honey : corne deare : many
bleare eyes : youth shall dye : earthquakes are
perceived in many places : plentie of thunders,
lightnings, and tempestes : with a sudden death
of cattell.

" On Saturday, a mean winter : summer very hot :
a late harvest : good cheape garden hearbs :
much burning: plentie of hempe, flax, and
honey. Old folke shall dye in most places :
fevers and tercians shall grieve many people :
great muttering of warres : murthers shall be
suddenly committed in many places for light

There are also predictions not much varying from the above,
in the ' Shepherd's Kalendar : ' onlyjin the latter work the
compiler refers the reader, for authorities, to " the learned
and wise men of the Chaldeans, Arabians, Egyptians, and
many Europeans," with this judicious addition, "leaving

DAYS IN JANUARY. 27

the event to take effect, from your making remarks on
what has been hinted, as you find it come to pass."

In the South of France the first six days of January, called
"Les Calendes" (see on Jan. 25), are considered to fore-
tell the character of the weather which will prevail during
the first six months of the year.

In Banffshire, particular attention is paid to the three first
days of winter, and to the first night of January, which is
called "Oidhch' Choille," for "on the first night, they
observe, with anxious attention, the disposition of the
atmosphere. As it is calm or boisterous, as the wind
blows from the S. or the N., from the E. or the W.,
they prognosticate the nature of the weather till the con-
clusion of the year. The first night of the new year
when the wind blows from the W., they call " dar-na-
coille," i.e., the night of the fecundation of the trees.
P. KIRKMICHAEL : Statistic. Ace. xii. 458.

But in Belgium a north wind blowing on New Year's night is
considered to prognosticate a fruitful season.

If New Year's day in the morning open with red
dusky clouds, it denotes strife and debates
among great ones, and many robberies to hap-
pen during the year. Shepherd's Kalendar.
And so the German proverb,

Morgenroth am ersten Tag

Unwetter bringt und gross e Flag'.

If January Kalends be summerly gay,

'Twill be winterly weather to the Kalends of May.

Lengthening of the Days.

At New Year's tide
The days lengthen a cock's stride.
With which may be compared,

a. Um Neujahr hat der Tag einen Hahnenschritt
gewonnen.

28 DAYS IN JANUARY.

b. Przybylo dnia na kurza stope Polish :

i.e., At New Year's day the day has advanced a cock's stride.

c. A 1'an neuf

Les jours croissant le repas d' un boeuf.

At New Year's day a cock's stride :
At Candlemas an hour wide.

Till New Year, sweat :
Till May, no heat.

2. (St Macarius of Alexandria.)

There was an old superstition that the weather of the first
twelve days in January foretold the weather which
could prevail in the twelve months of the year. These
days are called in Brittany " Gourd e'siou, " i. e., Head or
chief days. That this belief was shared by our ancestors
is evident from the following extract from Lloyd's " Diall
of Daies," 4to, Lond. 1590, fol. B. 3.

" Jan. 2. This day sheweth the nature and state
of September."

"Thus the Germans say

" ' Wie das Wetter am Makarius war,
So wird's im September, triib oder klar.'

"Jan. 4. This day doth shew the nature and

state of November.
"Jan. 8. This day before noone declared the

nature of June, and after noone the nature of

May.
" Jan. 9. This daye openeth the nature of August

before noone, and after noone doth shew the

state of July, as in Practica Rusticorum is laid

down.

DAYS IN JANUARY. 2Q

"Jan. 10. This day sheweth the nature of

October before noone, and after noone the

nature of September.
"Jan. ii. Before noone, this day declareth the

nature of December, and after noone the nature

of November.
"Jan. 12. This day being the twelfe, doth fore-

shewe the nature and condition of the whole

year, and doth confirme the eleven daies going

before."

4. (St Pharailde.)

If the sun shine on this day, the Belgians consider it to prog-
nosticate pestilence. Hence the proverb,

De Sainte Pharailde la chaleur,
C'est sa colere et c'est not' malheur.

6. (The Epiphany.)
Si le soleil luit le jour des Rois,
II y aura deux hivers. Charente.

Considered by the Italians to be one of the coldest days.

Thus they say :
All' Epifania
El free 1'ismania. Bergamo.

And

D 'Epifania

El pii gran fred che mai ghe sia Milan :
i.t., At Epiphany is the greatest cold we can have.

In Dalmatia there is a proverb that
" If you were to ask a wolf when he felt the cold
most, he would say ' At the winter solstice '
(which is at Epiphany)."

30 DAYS IN JANUARY.

So, too, on the Rhine,
De hilgen drei Kiienige bugget (baut) 'ne Brugge,

oder tebreaket (zerbricht) eine :
i.e., The three holy kings build a bridge or break one :

meaning that either a hard frost or a thaw conies at this

season,

Second Sunday after the Epiphany ;

In the Roman Kalendar, this is the feast of the Holy Name of

Jesus.

An Jesu Namen so nah' als moglich dem Ofen :
i.e. , On the Feast of the Holy Name sit as close as you can to

the fire.
In the Kalendar of the English Church, the 7th of August is

dedicated to the name of our blessed Lord, according to

the use of Sarum.

12. "If the sun shines on this day, it foreshows
much wind." Husbandman 's Practice.

14. (St Hilary.)
The coldest day of the year. Yorkshire.

17. (St Antony the Hermit.)

Zent Tonnes brengt Is of brecht Is. Aix la
Chapelle.
i.e., St Antony brings ice or breaks it.

"With which may be compared,
Sant Anton e de Zener, se '1 g'a giazz el la ol desfa,

se nol la trou la ol fa :

i.e., St Antony in January to distinguish him from S.
Antony of Padua, whose festival is in June if he finds
ice, he melts it ; if he does not find it, he makes it. Milan.

Sant Antoni, mercant de nev. Milan.

DAYS IN JANUARY. 3!

Sant Antoni de la barba blanca,
Se no gh'e giazz, gh'e sposa blanca (i.e., snow).
Bergamo.

II barbuto, il frecciato, e il pettinato,

II freddo e andato Tuscany :

i.e., When the bearded saint (S. Antony), he who was
pierced with arrows (St Sebastian, Jan. 20), and the
comber (St Blasius, Feb. 4), have passed, then the cold
is over.

Sant Antone fa i punt e San Paol el ie romp Ber-
gamo :

i.e., St Antony makes bridges, and S. Paul (Jan. 25) breaks
them.

Alluding to the lengthening of the days, we find the following
proverbs:

a. A la Saint Antoine,

Les jours croissent le repas d'un moine. Nor-
mandy.

b. Sant Antoni n'ora bona Milan :
i.e., At St Antony's day, a good hour.

c. A San Antone.

Ol de se slunga ii passe de demone Bergamo :

i.e., At St Antony's tide

The days lengthen a demon's stride.

18. (St Peter's Chair at Rome.)
A la Saint Pierre,
I/'hiver s'en va ou il ressere.

Inde Cathed : S. Petri 40 dies rigidos et totidem
S. Matthias denunciant. Hie rumpere glaciem
dicitur (see on S. Matthias) et, nisi reperiat,
afferre. Bticelinus.

32 DAYS IN JANUARY.

Wenn's friert op Petri Stuhlfeier,

Friert es noch vierzehnmal heuer. Holstein.

In Petri Cathedra glacie si stringitur unda,
Non perit ante dies haec quater atque decem.

20. (SS. Fabian and Sebastian.)

In Germany this day seems to be considered as that on which
nature begins to awaken. Thus in Holstein there is a
saying

Fabian Sebastian

Lett den Saft in 't Holt gaen :

With which may be compared,
Dum Fabianus adest humorem percipit arbor,
Reddidit arboribus succus post festa Sebasti.

Buckler.

San Bastian
Co la viola in man :

Viola o no viola, de 1'inverno semo fora Venice :
i.e., St Sebastian, violet in hand : violet or no violet, we are
quit of winter.

A la Saint Sebastien

L'hiver reprend ou se casse les dents. Nord.

21. (St Agnes.)

St Agnes treibt die Lerchen aus der Stadt.

Sant Agnes

El fred 1'e per i ges Bergamo :

i.e., On St Agnes' day the cold comes through the chinks.

A Sant Agnes

La loserta fo d' la ses Bergamo :

i.e., On St Agnes' day the lizard comes out of the hedge.

DAYS IN JANUARY. 33

22. (SS. Vincent, Timotheus.)

The state of the weather on this day is supposed throughout
the Continent to have a great influence on the coming
vintage. So we find the old leonine verses,
Vincenti festo, si sol radiet, memor esto :
Para tuas cuppas, quia multas colliges uvas.

The French version of which runs as follows :
Prends garde an jour de Saint Vincent,
Car si ce jour tu vois et sens
Que le soleil soit clair et biau,
Nous erons plus de vin que d'eau. Cote d'Or.
Um Vinzenzen Sonnenschein
Fiillt die Fasser mit Wein.

The country people about Wurzburg say,
Vincentii Sonnenschein
Bringt viel Korn und Wein :
Bringt er aber Wasserflut,
Ist's fur beides nicht gut.
If the sun shine on the 22d of January, there shall

be much wind. Husbandman's Practice.
A la Saint Vincent
L'hyver se reprend,
Tout gele ou tout fend,
On se ro'mpt la dent. Calendrier des bons La-

boureurs.

A Saint Vincent
Les glaciers perdent leurs dents >
Ou les recouvrent pour long temps. Bouches-du-
Rhune.

A la Saint Vincent
L'hiver s'engrine, si 1'attens.
c

34 DAYS IN JANUARY.

A Sant Visenz la gran fredlira,

A Sant Lorenz (Aug. 10) la gran caldura. Brescia.

The Russians consider that on this day (the festival of St
Timothy in the calendar of the Greek Church) half of
winter has elapsed.

25. (Conversion of St Paul.)

" 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."
Brand's Pop. Antiq., vol i. p. 39. It is singular, also,
that this day was numbered among the "dies Egyptiaci,"
or unlucky days, by the old prognosticators ; of which
the Venerable Bede says that as Egypt in Greek signifies
darkness, the day of death is called an Egyptian day, and
that there are twenty-two days in the year in which an
hour is terrible to mortals.

The old historian, William of Newbury, thinks that they
were called "Egyptian days" from the authors of this
superstition (lib. iv. cap. I ) ; and this opinion is also
entertained by Wormius (Fast. Dan., p. 74), who says :
"Immo etiam deventum est ut dies omnes infausti ha-
biti, Egyptiaci vulgo dicantur ; quia Egyptii prae reliquis
huic superstition! dediti fuere : " and so Arnaud of Vil-
leneuve (de Regim : Sanitat : cap. 37): " De diebus
Egyptiacis scriptis in antique Calendario, dico quod non
est causa naturalis quare fuerunt maledicti, sed super-
naturalis : nee fuerunt maledicti apud omnes gentes, sed
apud illos de regno Pharaonis." See, too, Durandus de
Rat. Div. Off. Lib. viii. cap. 4.

But to discuss the question of lucky and unlucky days is
not the object of the compiler of this work : and, re-
turning to the weather proverbs peculiar to this festival,
it is to be observed that there are sayings similar to the
following old Latin verses, in the English, French,
Danish, Dutch, German, Flemish, and Italian lan-
guages.

DAYS IN JANUARY. 35

First, however, let it be remarked that of the Latin proverb
there are three versions, differing in a very slight degree,
viz. :

a. Clara dies Pauli bona tempora denotat anni :
Si nix vel pluvia, designat tempora cara :

Si fiant nebulae, morietur bestia quaeque :
Si fiant venti, praeliabunt prselia genti.

b. Clara dies Pauli bona tempora nunciat anni :
Si fuerint venti, comitantur praelia genti :

Si nix aut pluvia, designat tempora rara :
Si fuerint nebulas, pereunt animalia peste.

c. Clara dies Pauli bonitatem denotat anni :
Si fuerint venti, crudelia praelia genti :
Quando sunt nebulae, pereunt animalia quaeque :
Si nix aut pluvia, tune fiunt omnia cara.

The English saying is as follows :
If the day of St Paul be clere,
Then shall betide a happy yeere :
If it do chaunce to snow or raine,
Then shall be deare all kinds of graine :
But if the winde then bee alofte,
Warres shall vex this realm e full ofte :
And if the cloudes make dark the sky,
Both neate and fowle this yeere shall die.

Two others may be mentioned :

If the sun shines on this day, 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. Book of Know-
ledge.

36 DAYS IN JANUARY.

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 foreshadows the plague that year. Diall of
Dates.

The French proverb is thus given by Brand :
De Sainct Paule le claire journee
Nous denote une bonne amide.
S'il fait vent, nous aurons la guerre,
S'il neige ou pleut, cherte sur terre :
S'on voit fort epais les brouillars
Mortalite de toutes parts.

And thus in Notes and Queries, Series I., vol. ix. p.

307:

Si le jour Saint Paul le convers
Se trouve byaucob descouvert,
L'on aura pour celle sayson
Du bled et du foyn k foyson :
Et sy ce jour fait vant sur terre,
Ce nous synyfye guerre :
S'yl pleut ou nege, sans fallir.
Le chier tans nous doet asalir :
Si de nyelle faict, brunes ou brouillars,
Selon le dyt de nos vyellars,
Mortalitey nous est ouverte.

Compare the German proverbs :
Sanct Paulus klar
Bringt gutes Jahr :
So er bringt wind,
Regnet's geschwind.
Sanct Paulus klar mit Sonnenschein
Bringt Fruchtbarkeit dem Korn und Wein,

DAYS IN JANUARY. 37

In the north of Italy the country people carefully notice the
weather of the first twenty-four days of this month, which
they call "Zorni endegari," or "Calende," and from
them deduce prognostications for the whole year. They
begin with New Year's day, which is termed " Zenaro"
i.e., January and so proceed to the I2th, giving to each
day the name of the corresponding month, the weather
of which it is considered to foretell. On the I3th, re-
versing the order, they go on to the 24th, which they also
call January, whilst the I3th is December, the I4th, No-
vember, &c. Thus, if the 7th and i8th, the days corre-
sponding to July, should prove wet and stormy, the
weather of that month would be of the same character.
However, if the 25th, the day following these Calende,
be partly fine and partly wet, the whole prognostication
is considered to be uncertain. Bonifacio, Proverbi Lom-
bardi.

Hence the proverbs :
Se'l giorno de San Paol Pe sciiro,
De la ghirlande no me n'inciiro -Milan :
i.e., If St Paul's day be cloudy, I need not trouble myself
about the Ghirlanda.

San Paol de le Calende,
De le calenda no me n'inciiro,
Basta che a San Paol no fassa sciiro Milan :
i.e., St Paul of the Calende, with the Calende I don't trouble
myself, it is enough if St Paul's day is not cloudy.

Se San Paol Pe ciar e la Ceriola sciira,
De Pinverna no g'o pii paiira Milan :
i.e., If St Paul be clear and Candlemas cloudy, we have no
more cause to be afraid of winter.

Le jour Saint Paul

L'hiver se rompt le col. Calendrier des bons La-
boureurs.

38 FEBRUARY.

Pauli Bekehr

Der halbe Winter bin, der halbe her :
i.e., On St Paul's day, half of winter is past, and half has to
come.

In Alsace there is a common belief that on the evening of
this day a fierce contest takes place among the winds,
and that the wind which proves victorious at midnight
will be the prevailing wind throughout the year.

27. (St Julian.)
Saint Julien brise glace,

S'il ne la brise, il Pembrasse.

28. (St Charlemagne.)

Saint Charlemagne aime la vigne et les arbres frui-
tiers. Belgium.

FEBRUARY.

Cold.

Februeer

Doth cut and shear.

The country people in Picardy have a nursery rhyme in

which the thrush is represented as saying,
Fevrier Fevriot,
Si tu geles, t'engeleros mes t'chiots (my young

ones).

Mild.

When gnats dance in February, the husbandman

becomes a beggar.
Wenn im Februar tanzen die Miicken auf dem

Mist,
So verschliess dein Futter in die Kist. EifeL

FEBRUARY. 39

Wenn im Hornung die Miicken schwarmen
Muss man im Marz die Ohren warmen.

The Welshman had rather see his dam on the bier
Than see a fair Februeer.

The German version of which is,
Im Hornung sieht man lieber den Wolf, als einen

Bauern in Hemdsarmeln ;

and the French,

Vaut autant voir un loup dans un troupeau
Que le mois de Fevrier beau. Vaucluse.

All the months of the year
Curse a fair Februeer.

February singing
Never stints stinging.

Si he'oure non he sas he sas heouretats,
Touts es messes sou courrouQats Hautes Pyre-
nees :

i.e., Si Fevrier ne donne pas ses bourrasques,
Tous les mois sont courrouces.

Dry.

Si Fevrier n'a ni pluie ni giboule'e, tous les mois de
1'an seront ennuyeux. Gers.

If in February there be no rain,
'Tis neither good for hay nor grain.

Wet.

February, an ye be fair,

The hoggs '11 mend, and naething pair (lessen) :

February, an ye be foul,

The hoggs '11 die in ilka pool. Tweedside.

40 FEBRUARY.

Quando llueve en Hebrero
Todo el afio ha tempero Spain:

i.e., If it rains in February, it will be temperate throughout
the year.

Eau de Fevrier

Vaut jus de fumier. Manche.

Bon aqua de Febrar
Empieniss el granar. Milan.

Si FeVrier laisse les fosse's pleins

Les garniers deviendront pleins. Charente.

February fill dyke

With what thou dost like. Tusser.

Snow in February.

February fill ditch,

Black or white (*>., rain or snow), don't care which :

If it be white,

It's the better to like.

Neou (Neige) qud toumbo al me's de Febrio
Met'en bello humou (bel humeur) 1'usurio. Lozere.

Die weisse Gans (/>., snow) im Februar briitet
besser.

Neige qui donne Fevrier

Met peu de b\6 au grenier. Lot et Garonne.

Short.

Fevrier le court,
Le pire de tout.

So the Italian proverbs,
a. Febrar curt, peg de tut. Milan.

FEBRUARY. 41

b. L'e curt Febrar

Ma semper amar. Bergamo.

Februus est brevis et sociorum pessimus idem.
Febrar curt, malan lungh Milan :
i.e., February is short, its discomfort long.

Fevrier entre tous les mois

Le plus court et moins courtois.

So sagte der Bauer,

Ein kurzer Hornung sei ein Lauer.

Deceitful.

Frearzu facies facies Sardinia :
i.e., Double-faced February.

Thunder in February.

In February if thou hearest thunder,
Thou wilt see a summer's wonder.

S'il tonne en Fevrier,

II faut jeter les futes sur le fumier. Charente.

Thunder in February signifieth that same year
many rich men shall die in great sickness.
Book of Knowledge.

Wind.

Heftige Nordwinde am Ende Februar
Vermelden ein fruchtbares Jahr :
Wenn Nordwind aber im Februar nicht will,
So kommt er sicher in April.

Grain.

Belle avoine de Fevrier

Donne esperance au grenier. Calvados.

42 DAYS IN FEBRUARY.

Local Proverb.

The fair day of Auld Deer (3d Thursday in Feb-
ruary)
Is the warst day in a' the year. Aberdeen.

February and March.

February makes a bridge and March breaks it.

Si Fevrier ne fevrote (i.e., does not play its proper

part),
Mars vient qui le garrotte.

Se Febrar no'l febrareza,
Marz el verdeza. Milan.

Se Febrie non febrijo
Se Mars non marsejo,
Toute 1'annado malaoutejo Ariege:
i.e., If February and March do not play their proper part
(rain), there will be much rain throughout the year.

Fevrier doit remplir les fosses, Mars les doit rendre
seche.

February and Summer.

Aqua de Febrar,
Esta seren e ciar.

February and August.

1st der Februar kalt und trocken, so soil der August
heiss werden.

DAYS IN FEBRUARY.

2. (Purification of the Blessed Virgin.)

There is a general tradition," says Sir Thomas

DAYS IN FEBRUARY. 43

Browne in his ' Vulgar Errors,' " in most parts
of Europe, that inferreth the coldness of suc-
ceeding winter from the shining of the sun on
Candlemas - day, according to the proverbial
distich

Si Sol splendescat Maria purificante,
Major erit glades post festum quam fuit ante."

Another Latin rhyme is,
Imber si datur, Virgo dum purificatur,
Inde notatur quod hiems abinde fugatur :
Si Sol det radium, frigus erit nimium.

There are several English versions of these Latin sayings,
e.g.

a. When on the Purification sun hath shined,
The greater part of winter comes behind.

b. If Candlemas-day be dry and fair,

The half o' winter 's to come and mair :

If Candlemas be wet and foul,

The half o' winter 's gane at Yule. Scotland.

c. If Candlemas-day be fair and bright,
Winter will have another flight :

But if it be dark with clouds and rain,
Winter is gone and won't come again.

The French say :
La Chandeleur noire,
L'hiver a fait son devoir :
La Chandeleur trouble,
L'hiver redouble.

44 DAYS IN FEBRUARY.

The Germans :

a. Ist's zu Lichtmess hell und rein,
Wird ein langen Winter sein :
Wenn es stiirmt und schneit,

1st der Friihling nicht mehr weit. Rhenish
Palatinate. .

b. Scheint zu Lichtmess die Sonne heiss,
Kommt noch sehr viel Schnee und Eis.
The Italians :

Neve o nevischio dia la Candelaja
Poco vache 1'inverno non dispaja :
Ma se invece dia pioggia ovver sereno,
Altri quaranta di d'inverno Bergamo :
i.e., If on Candlemas-day there be snow or hail, we shall
soon have done with winter : but if there be rain or sun-
shine, winter will continue for 40 days.

The Basques have a proverb,
Ganderalu hoz,
Negua boz :
Ganderalu bero,
Negua Pascos guero :
i.e., If Candlemas be cold, the winter will be mild : but if

Candlemas be hot, winter will last till after Easter.

If Candlemas-day be fair and clear
There'll be two winters in the year.

Lichtmessen hell
Schindet den Buurn dat Fell :
Lichtmessen dunkel

Maakt den Buur torn Junker Platt Deutsch :
i.e., A clear Candlemas skins the peasant : a cloudy Candle-
mas makes him a nobleman.

DAYS IN FEBRUARY. 45

As far as the sun shines on Candlemas- day,
So far will the snow blow in afore old May.

On Candlemas-day if the sun shines clear,

The shepherd had rather see his wife on the bier.

Zu Lichtmess sieht der Bauer lieber den Wolf in
Schafstalle, denn die Sonne.

Foul weather is no news ; hail, rain, and snow
Are now expected and esteemed no woe :
Nay, 'tis an omen bright, the yeomen say,
If Phoebus hides his face the second day. Poor
Robin's Almanack.

When Candlemas-day is come and gone,
The snow won't lie on a hot stone.

If Candlemas-day be fine and clear,
Corn and fruits will then be dear.

The German version of which is,
Wenn um Lichtmessen die Sonne scheint, kommt

arges Wetter und Heunoth.

As long as the bird sings before Candlemas it will

greet after it.

So the French,

Autant 1'alouette chante avant la Chandeleur,
Autant elle se tait apres. Yonne.

And the German,
So lange die Lerche vor Lichtmess singt, so lange

schweigt sie nach Lichtmess still.

La veille du Chandeleur

L'hiver se passe ou prend vigueur.

46 DAYS IN FEBRUARY.

Cold.

At Candlemas
Cold comes to us.

So the Germans,
Lichtmess
Winter gewiss.

J'ouy le paresseux hyver,
Lequel disoit au laboureur :
Je ne manqueray d'arriver

Au plus tard a la Chandeleur. Cakndrier des bons
Labourenrs.

A la Chandeleur

Ou toutes betes sont en horreur.

A la Chandeleur

La grande douleur. Oise.

Si Thyver ne fait son devoir
En mois de Decembre et de Janvier,
Au plus tard il se era voir

Des la deuxieme FeVrier. Cakndrier des bons Lab-
oureurs.

The following French and German proverbs refer to animals
as connected with this day.

Bear.

Selon les anciens se dit :
Si le Soleil clarement luit,
A la Chandeleur vous verrez
Qu' encore un Hyver vous aurez :
Pourtant gardez bien votre foin,
Car il vous sera de besoin :

DAYS IN FEBRUARY. 47

Par cette regie se gouverne

L'ours, qui retourne en sa caverne. BRAND.

Si le deuxieme de FeVrier
~Le soleil apparait en tier,
L'ors, estonne a la lumiere,
Se va remettre en sa taniere :
Et 1'homme menager prend soin
De faire rasserer son foin :
Car Thyver, tout ainsi que Tours,
Sejourne aussi quarante jours.

A la Chandeleur

Grand froid, grande neige :

S'il fait beau, Tours sort de la taniere

Fait trois tours

Et rentre pour quarante jours.

Si fait beau et luit Chandeleur
Six semaines se cache Tours.

Sieht der Bar auf Lichtmess seinen Schatten, so
kriecht er wieder auf vierzig Tage in die Hohle.

De la Madona de la Ceriola
Da la tana Torso vien fora.

Badger.

Sonnt sich der Dachs in der Lichtmesswoche,
Geht auf vier Wochen er wieder zu Loche. Rhine.

Fox.

Scheint um Lichtmess die Sonne dem Pfaffen auf
den Altar, so muss der Fuchs wieder auf sechs
Wochen in's Loch.

48 DAYS IN FEBRUARY.

Der Fuchs ist weis' :

Nach Lichtmess geht er nicht uber's Eis.

Wind.

When the wind's in the east on Candlemas-day,
There it will stick to the second of May.

Lengthening of the Days.
A la fete de la Chandeleur
Les jours croissent de plus d'une heure,
Et le froid pique avec douleur.

You should on Candlemas-day
Throw candles and candlestick away.

Agricultural Sayings.

In Esthonia the country people make this day a date from
which to begin farming operations ; hence the proverb,

In seven weeks the swine (must be driven out) ; in
eight, the cow to the meadow ; in ten, the
plough (will be put into use).

A la Chandeleur, cesse de filer, mets ton rouet
derriere la porte, et tire la charrue. Haut Rhin.

On Candlemas-day if the thorns hang a drop,
You are sure of a good pea crop.

Sow beans in Candlemas Waddle :
i.e., Wane of the moon. Somerset.

The farmer should have on Candlemas-day
Half his straw and half his hay.

Candlemas and Easter.

Lichtmess in Klee
Ostern im Schnee.

DAYS IN FEBRUARY. 49

Custom in Belgium.

The people in the neighbourhood of Bruges believe that the
fertility or sterility of the year can be foretold in the
following manner. On Candlemas-day they drop the wax
of a taper that has been blessed into a bowl of water. If
it form little stars the year will be fruitful.

4. (St Blasius.)

A la fete de Saint Blaise
Le froid de 1'hiver s'apaise :
S'il redouble, et s'il reprend,
Bien long temps apres il se sent.

Per San Biag

On gran slavag Milan :

i.e., On St Blaise's day there are many puddles.

San Biasio

La tera va al so asio Venetia :

i.e., On St Blaise's day the ground becomes fit to cultivate.

5. (St Agatha.)

Rainy clouds on this day, say the Pyrenean peasants, foretell
hailstorms in the summer ; whence they are called " maire
des prigouls."

St Agatha is rich in snow. Esthenia.

A Sante Agate, si 1'aigue course dins la belierete
Lou lach couale dins la chadierette Basses Alpes :
i.e., A Sainte Agathe, si 1'eau court dans la ruisseau,
Le kit coule dans la chaudiere.

A Santo-Gateto,
Vai t'en a ta vigneto,

Si Ty vas par travailla ; i.e., pour travailler.
Vai te 1'y par gousta; *>., pour gouter. Hautes
Alpes.

5O DAYS IN FEBRUARY.

Seme des oignons le jour ed 'Sainte Agathe,
Id' viendront gros comme el cul d'eine gate.
Picardy.

Le lendemain Saint Blaise
Souvent 1'hiver s'apaise.

Prenez bien garde au lendemain
De Saint Blaise, s'il est serein,
Car sela presage une anne'e
Toute fertile et fortune'e,
S'il neige ou pleut, sera cherte*,
S'il fait brouillard, mortalite,
S'il fait vent, nous verrons que mars
Fera voler son dtendard. Calendrier des bons
Laboureurs.

6. (St Dorothea.)
Sanct Dorothee
Bringt den meisten Schnee.

8. (St John of Matha.)

In Belgium the few fine days which occur at this season are
called " L'ete de Saint Jean."

1Q. (St Scholastica.)

Fine weather on St Scholastica's day betokens a
fine spring. Carinthia.

If the eighteen last days of February be
Wet, and the first ten of March, you'll see
That the spring quarter and the summer too
Will prove too wet, and danger to ensue.

11. (St Severinus.)
Sanct Severin
Wirft den kalten Stein (ice) in dem Rhein :

DAYS IN FEBRUARY. 5 I

Sant Gertrude (March 17) mit der Maus
Holt ihn wieder heraus. Cologne.
See also St Catherine, November 25th.

12. (St Eulalia.)

Si le soleil rit le jour Sainte Eulalie
II y aura cidre et pomme a folie.

L'soleil, le jour Sainte Eulalie,
S'il fait le tour de vos pommis,
Ayant leur branchis bien fleuries ; i.e., covered with

snow:
II s' ra des pommes a pleine airie. Manche.

12, 13, 14.

Mrs Grant, in her ' Superstitions of the Highlanders,' vol. ii.
p. 17, says : "The Faoilteach, or three first days of
February, serve many poetical purposes in the Highlands.
They are said to have been borrowed for some purpose by
February from January, who was bribed by February
with three young sheep. These three days, by Highland
reckoning, occur between the nth and I5th of February;
and it is accounted a most favourable prognostic for the
ensuing year, that they should be as stormy as possible."
See also March 29, Borrowing Days.

14. (St Valentine.)

San Valentin girlanda (see S. Paul, January 25).
Cinquanta di'l comanda Venetia :
i.e., St Valentine's is a critical day it influences the fifty

following.

To St Valentine the spring is a neighbour.

Per San Valentin

L' inverna Pe al sd fin. Milan.

52 DAYS IN FEBRUARY.

Da San Valentin

El giazzo tien su un gardelin Venetia ;

i.e., On St Valentine's day the ice will only bear a finch.

But, on the other hand, they say in Friuli,
On St Valentine's day our mill-wheels are all

frozen.
St Valentine,

Set thy hopper i.e., seed-basket by mine.
De San Valentin

Incomincia avegh' clira de 1' ortin Milan :
i.e., On St Valentine's day begin to pay attention to the
garden.

20-28.

The nights of this part of February are called in Sweden
" Steel Nights," on account of their cutting severity.
Inwards.

21. (St Felix.)
Felix Bischof zeiget an

Was wir vierzig Tage fur Wetter ha'n. Holstein.

22. (St Peter's chair at Antioch.)

S'il gele le nuit avant la chaire de Saint Pierre, le
froid ne cessera pas avant quarante jours. -
Belgium.

S'il ne gele pas ce jour, il ne gelera plus du tout.

24. (St Matthias.)
Saint Mathias, le replatreur, sans neige ne pourrait

faire.

Sanct Mathias
Brikt das Ys :
Findt he keins
Maakt he eins. Platt Deutsch.

DAYS IN FEBRUARY. 53

Sanct Mathijs

Werpt eenen heeten Steen in 't Ijs. Limburg.

Saint Mathias
Casse les glaces.

On this day St Matthias either opens the ground (by thaw)
or locks it up (by frost). Styria.

" If St Matthias does not break the ice," the Bohemians say,
" he has lost his axe, and the ice will remain unbroken
till St Joseph comes (March 19.)"

San Matias

Marzo al quinto dia, (the day on which this festival
is kept in Spain)

Entra el sol por las umbrias

Y calienta las aguas frias.

i.e., On S. Matthias's day, the 5th of March, the sun pene-
trates shady places, and makes the icy water warm.

El vento de San Matia
Dura 'na quarantia. Venetia.

St Matthy

All the year goes by :

"Because in Leap Year the supernumerary days are then
intercalated. " RAY.

St Matthie

Sends sap into the tree.

St Matthias,

Sow both leaf and grass.

28. (St Romanus.)
Romanus hell und klar
Bedeut't ein gutes Jahr. Swabia.

54 MARCH.

Le dernier jour de FeVrier doit laisser le fosse
comble. Gers.

MARCH.
Changeable.

March many weathers.

The Italians have several proverbs relating to the uncertainty
of the weather in this month, e.g.

a. Marzu passu Sicily :
i.e., Foolish March.

b. Marz 1'a compra el tabar a so papa

E dop tri di el ghe 1'a impegna Milan :
i.e., March bought a cloak from his father, and pawned it
in three days after. (This proverb seems to have some
reference to "Borrowing days.")

c. Marz 1'e fio d'ona baltrocca,
Ora el piov, ora el fiocca,

Ora el tira vent, ora el fa bel temp :
i.e., March is nobody's child : he rains one day and snows
another ; has one day stormy and the next fine.

Eguzquia eta curia
Urri egural dia Basque :
i.e., Sun and rain is March's weather.

The Venetians use the word " marzeggiare " of weather con-
sisting of alternate rain and sunshine.

Cold.

March sun

Lets snow stand on a stone.

The sun in March raises but does not melt.

A March sun sticks like a lock of wool.

MARCH. 55

Hot.

March many weathers rained and blowed,
But March grass never did good.

So the Germans say,
Marzengriin
1st nicht schon.

In Illyria there is a proverb, " Better to be bitten by a
snake than to feel the sun in March."

Dry.

A peck of March dust is worth a king's ransom.

" A dry March makes the clay lands of England
bear abundant crops of corn : consequently, if
in this month the weather is such as to make
the highways dusty, the country will then be
benefited to the amount of ' a king's ransom.' "
Denham.

March dust to be sold,

Worth ransom of gold.

The German version of which is,

Ein Loth Marzen Staub ist einen Ducaten werth.

A dry March never begs its bread.

With which corresponds the French saying,
Mars sec ne cherche pas son pain. Somme.

A March without water
Dowers the hind's daughter.

So the French,
Mars halleux
Marie la fille du laboureux.

Wet.

A wet March makes a sad harvest.

56 MARCH.

Pluie de Mars ne profite ^zs.Bouches-du-Rhone.
Feuchter fauler Marz
1st der Bauern Schmerz.

March rain spoils more than clothes.

March water is worse than a stain in cloth ; so,

Eau du mois de Mars

Est pire que tache au drap. Basses Pyrenees.

Snow.

Neige de Mars

Vaut un pare. Haut Loire.

Wind.

March wind

Wakes the ether (i.e., adder) and blooms the whin.
Denham.

Compare 'Julius Caesar,' Act III., Scene I.
BRUTUS log. " It is the bright day that brings forth

the adder ;
And that craves wary walking."

March dust and March win'

Bleaches as well as simmer's sin. Scotland.

Thunder.

Si foete de 1'hernu en Mars

Os pouvons dire helas ! Picardy.

When it thunders in March it brings sorrow.

Thunder in March signifieth that same year great
winds, plenty of corne, and debate amongst
people. Book of Knowledge.

MARCH. 57

En Mars quand il tonne
Chacun s'en etonne.

When March thunders, tools and arms get rusty.
Quan in Mars tonno
L'annado es bono. Gard.

Marzendonner macht fruchtbar.

General.

March yeans the lammie

And buds the thorn :

And blows through the flint

Of an ox's horn. Northumberland.

March hack ham,

Comes in like a lion, goes out like a lamb.

Quind Mars inte comme un mouton
I wide comme un lion. Nord.

March comes in with an adder's head, but goes out
like a peacock's tail.

A la commencement ou a la fin
Mars a son venin.

So the German,
Zu Aufang oder zu End'
Der Marz seine Gifte send't.

Si le mois de Mars trouve les fossds pleins, il les

teche :
S'il les trouve vides, il faut qu'il les remplisse.

Brittany.

He who freely lops in March will get his lap full
of fruit.

$8 MARCH.

March birds are best.

Bonne eu mauvaise poirette
II faut que Mars la trouve faite.

In March kill crow, pie, and cadow (jackdaw),

Rook, buzzard, and raven :
Or else go desire them

To seek a new haven. Denham.

March, April, and May.

Marzenbluth ist nicht gut :
Aprilenbluth ist halb gut :
Maienbluth ist ganz gut :

March winds and April showers
Being forth May flowers,

So the French say,
Mars venteux, Avril pluvieux,
Font le Mai gai et gracieux.

The Germans,

Marzenwind und Aprilen Regen
Verheissen im Mai grossen Segen,

The Spanish,

Marzo ventoso y Abril aguanoso
Sacan a Mayo hermoso :
i.e., A windy March and a showery April make a fine May.

Rosee de Mai, gre'sil de Mars, et pluie d' Avril
valent mieux que le chariot David. Cote cTOr.

En Mai rosee, en Mars gre'sil,
Pluie abondante au mois d'Avril,
Le laboureur est content plus
Que ne feroit cinq cent ecus.

MARCH. 59

Mars aride, Avril humide,
Mai un peu froid et venteux
Denotent 1'an don et plantureux,

So the German proverb,

Trockner Marz, nasser April, kiihler Mai,
Fiillt Scheuer, Keller, und bringt viel Heu.

The Italian,

Marz polverent, Avril pioent, Mas la so sesu,
Empienes el car del re Salamu :

i.e., A dusty March, a showery April, and a seasonable May,
would fill King Solomon's chariot.

March and April.

Marz sot e April bagnat,

Beat el paisa che Fa seminat :

i.e., If March be dry and April showery, happy the husband-
man who has finished sowing.

A frosty winter and a dusty March, and a rain

about April,
Another about the Lammas time when the corn

begins to fill,
Is weel worth a pleuch (plough) o' gowd, and a' her

pins theretill.
"These lines are popularly understood to be the composition

of no less distinguished a person than George Buchanan.

He was once asked, so the story runs, what could buy a

plough of gold, and immediately answered as above."
Chambers^ Popular Rhymes of Scotland.

March flings, April fleyes :

The French equivalent of which is,
Mars martelle, Avril coutelle :

In allusion to the boisterous winds of March, and the cutting
blasts of April.

60 MARCH.

Hell und heiter der Marz ganz,
Der April am Schwanz :

i.e., If March be clear and warm throughout, April will be so
at its end.

Quand Mars fait Avril, Avril fait Mars.

Quant geldes en Mars, tant de roussees en Avril.

March and May.
March wind and May sun
Make clothes white and maids dun.

If they wad drink nettles in March

And eat muggins in May,

Sae many braw maidens

Wadna gang to the clay.

" The funeral of a young woman who had died of consump-
tion was passing along the highroad on the margin of the
Firth of Clyde, above Port Glasgow, when a mermaid
raised her head from the water, and in slow admonitory
tones uttered the above-quoted lines. As may be readily
surmised, muggons or mugwort (also called southernwood)
and a decoction of nettles, form a favourite prescription
for consumption among the common people." Popidar
Rhymes of Scotland.

A peck of March dust and a shower in May
Makes the corn green and the fields gay.

So many mists as in March you see,
So many frosts in May will be.

Se Marz no I'incodega

Mag no sega :

i.e., If March does not plant, May will not cut (or mow).

DAYS IN MARCH. 6l

March, Whitsunday, and August.
So viel thau in Marz, so viel Reif um Pfingsten, so
viel Neb el in August.

March and Summer.

So viel Nebel im Marz, so viel Regen im Sommer.

DAYS IN MARCH.

1. (SS. David, Albinus, Eudoxia.)
Upon St David's day
Put oats and barley in the clay.

On the first of March
The crows begin to search.

David and Chad (March 2d),
Sow peas, good or bad.

First comes David, then comes Chad,
And then comes Winnold (March 3) as though he
were mad :

In allusion to the prevalence of windy weather at this season.
A Norfolk correspondent writing to ' Hone's Every Day
Book,' vol. ii., sub March 3, says: "Whether St Win-
walce (Abbot of Landeveneck, near Brest) was remark-
able for the irascibility of his temper, I cannot say : yet
it rarely happens when the first few days of March are
not attended with such boisterous and tempestuous
weather, generally from the north, that he might not im-
properly be called ' the Norfolk Boreas.' "

Quand il pleut pour la Saint Aubin,
II n'y a ni paille ni foin. Charente.

62 DAYS IN MARCH.

A'la Saint Aubin

On tond d' ordinaire le mouton :

Mais si vous voulez m'en croire,

Tondez-le a la Saint Gregoire (March 12). Eure.

The quarter in which the wind lies on this day is especially
observed in Russia, hence the saying, " Wherever the
wind is on St Eudoxia's day, there it will remain during
the spring and summer."

10. (The Forty Martyrs of Sebaste.)
Wie's Wetter ist auf die vierzig Ritter, so bleibt es

vierzig Tage lang.
And so the Italian,

Se piov el de dei quaranta Marter.
Per quaranta de ga n'em ii sguater Bergamo :
i.e., If it rains on the day of the 40 Martyrs, it will rain for

40 days (and there is the same proverb in Belgium, Russia,

and Bohemia).

Wie die Vierzig, so Peterstag (June 29).

Mists or hoar-frosts on the zoth of March betoken

a plentiful year, but not without some diseases.

Shepherd's Kalendar.

12. (St Gregory the Great.)

In the Tyrol, on this day, the peasants climb trees and listen
to the wind. Should it go down, they say "We must
mend our gloves, for there will be cold weather. "

Se venta el di de San Gregorio, venta per quaranta

di.

Geht um Gregori der Wind,
Geht er, bis Sanct Jorgen (April 24) kimmt.
Sanct Gregor und das Kreuze (Sept. 14) macht.
Den Tag so lang gleich als die Nacht.

DAYS IN MARCH. 63

A San Gregorio Papa
La rundane le passa 1'acqua Bergamo :
i.e., On the day of St Gregory, the Pope, the swallow crosses
the water (arrives in Europe).

17. (St Gertrude of Nivelles.)
Gehen die Kiihe Sanct Gertrudis nicht in Klee,
So gehen sie noch in Schnee. EifeL

Gertrude niitzt dem Gartner fein,
Wenn sie zeigt mit Sonnenschein.

Sainte Gertrude, lorsqu'elle est eclaire'e par la pleine
lune, protege les ensemencements du jour.

19. St Joseph (husband of the B. V. M.)

St Joseph is supposed, as well as St Gertrude, to watch care-
fully over plants sown on his day.

In the north of Italy winter is now considered to be at an
end. Thus

Per San Giiisep

Le rundane le passa'l tec :

Passa o no passa, el fred el ne lassa Bergamo :

i.e., On St Joseph's day the swallows fly over the roofs : whe-
ther they fly or not, the cold weather has gone.

A San Giiisep

Se met via'l scoldalet Milan :

i.e., On St Joseph's day away with the warming-pan.

21. (St Benedict.)

St Benedick : sow thy peas or keep them in the
rick.

25. (Annunciation of the B. V. M.),

Called in Belgium "D'ons Lieve Vrouw Beklyving," i.e.,

64 DAYS IN MARCH.

Notre Dame de la prosperite : because anything trans-
planted on this day easily takes root, and seed sown
prospers. It is also believed that the year will be fruitful
if before sunrise the sky is clear and the stars shine
brightly.

S'il gele le 25 Mars

Les prairies diminuent d'un quart. Loir et Cher,

Se a la madona de Marz ven gio la brina,
No la fa altra ruina Milan :

*.<?., If there be hoar-frost on the morning of the Annunciation
it will do no harm.

S'il pleut le jour de la Bonne Dame, il pleut a
toutes ses fetes. Allier.

A Notre Dame de Mars,

Si le soleil fait le luzer i.e., is not bright

II y a quarante jours d'hiver. Dordogne.

Maria Verkundigung

Die Schwalben kommen wiederum.

Mariekchen pustet dat Licht uth, Michel steckt et

wedder an :
i.e., St Mary blows out the candle, St Michael (Sept. 29)

lights it again.
Farm-servants in Germany generally leave off candles in the

evening at Lady Day, and begin to use them again at

Michaelmas.

So, too, the Italian proverb,
A la Madona de Marz se scoven,
A la Madona de Setember se troven Milan :

i.e., At S. Mary's feast in March we put them (candles) on
one side : at her festival in September (Sept. 8, Nativity
B.V.M.) we take them up again.

DAYS IN MARCH. 6$

29, 30, 31, Borrowing Days.

The warst blast comes on the Borrowing Days.
Scotland.

a. March borrowed from April
Three days, and they were ill :

The one was sleet, the other was snow,
The third was the worst that e'er did blow.

b. March borrowed of April
Three days, and they were ill :

They killed three lambs that were playing on a hill.

c. March borrows of April
Three days, and they are ill :
April returns them back again,
Three days, and they are rain.
The Scotch version runs as follows ;

d. March said to Aperill,

" I see three hogs upon a hill ;
And if you'll lend me dayis three,
I'll find a way to gar them dee ! "
The first o' them was wind and weet ;
The second o' them was snaw and sleet ;
The third o' them was sic a freeze
It froze the bird's feet to the trees.
When the three days were past and gane,
The three silly hogs came hirplin hame.

Dr Jamieson, in his Etymological Dictionary of the Scottish
Language, Edin. 1808, vol. i., "Borrowing Days," remarks:
' ' These days being generally stormy, our forefathers have
endeavoured to account for this circumstance, by pretend-
ing that March borrowed them from April, that he might
extend his power so much longer. Those who are much
E

66 DAYS IN MARCH.

addicted to superstition will neither borrow nor lend on
any of these days. If any should propose to borrow from
them they would consider it as an evidence that the person
wished to employ the article borrowed for the purpose of
witchcraft against the lenders. Some of the vulgar ima-
gine that these days received their designation from the
conduct of the Israelites in borrowing the property of the
Egyptians. This extravagant idea must have originated,
partly from the name, and partly from the circumstance
of these days nearly corresponding to the time when the
Israelites left Egypt, which was on the I4th day of the
month Abib or Nisan, including part of our March and
April. I know not whether our Western Magi suppose
that the inclemency of the Borrowing Days has any re-
lation to the storm which proved so fatal to the Egyp-
tians."

Traces of the same superstition are to be found in Andalusia,
where there is a story among the country people to the
following effect : A shepherd once upon a time promised
March a lamb if he, *.<?., the month, would favour the
flock with propitious weather. March agreed, and con-
scientiously acted up to his part of the agreement. But
when, just before the end of the month, he asked for his
lamb, the shepherd bethinking himself that only three
days were left, and that his flock was in fine condition,
refused to stand by his promise. " You won't give me
my right, won't you?" said March ; " then know this, that
in the three days I have left, and in three more that my
gossip April will lend me, all your sheep shall die."
And accordingly such fearful weather ensued that the
whole flock perished. (Das Wetter im Sprichwort.)

So, too, in the south of France, the story is almost identical,

viz.

A rich man said on March 30,

" Mars et Marsilloun qu'e passat,

Ni braou, ni baque, nou m'en a coustat.

LENT, EASTER, WHITSUNTIDE, ETC. 67

Abriou, preste m'en un preste m'en dus, preste m'en,

tres, et un qu'en e que haran quonate',
Toutos 1'ac haram espernobate :
i.e., J'ai passe Mars et Marsillon,

Sans qu'il m'en ait coute ni vache ni taurillon.

(March heard this and said to April)

Avril prete-m'en un (jour), prete-m'en deux, prete-m'en

trois.
Et un que j'ai, qa. fera quatre, et nous mettrons tout son

betailaux abois. Hautes Pyrenees.

See also on February 11-15.
Ce que Mars couve on 1'sait toujours
Apres son trente-unieme jour. Manche.

LENT, EASTER, WHITSUNTIDE, ETC.

Shrove Tuesday.

As the weather is on Shrove Tuesday, so will it be

to the end of Lent.
S'il pleut le jour de carnaval, la terre est altere'e

toute 1'annee. Loire.

Quand il pleut pour le mardi gras, il y a de 1'huile
pour la salade.

Quand au carnaval la neige couvre la terre, a Paques
celle-ci sera couverte de verdure. Haut Rhin.

So much as the sun shineth on Shrove Tuesday, the
like will shine every day in Lent. Shepherd's
Kalendar.

1st die Fastnacht klar und hell

Fahrt man den Pflug auf'n Acker schnell.

68 LENT, EASTER, WHITSUNTIDE, ETC.

Thunder on Shrove Tuesday foretells wind, store
of fruit and plenty.

Lune quand tu verras
Nouvelle le mardi gras,
Force tonnerre tu entendras.

" If the wind blows on the night of Shrove Tues-
day, there will be deaths among the learned,
and many fish will die in the summer." Brand.

Whoever doth plant or sow on Shrove Tuesday, it
will always remain green.

Le soir du mardi gras, faut danser sur les fumiers
pour avoir des navets.

Lent and Ash Wednesday.

Salmon and sermon have their season in Lent.

De Careme haute,

D e froid n 'aura faute. Calendrier desbons Labour eurs.

Trockene fasten, gutes Jahr.

Wie das Wetter an Aschermittwoch ist, so soil's
die ganze Fasten sein.

Wenn's nach Fastnacht lange Eiszapfen giebt, wird
der Flachs schon lang.

Wenn's an Aschermittwoch schneit, schneit es in
demselben Jahr 40 Mai.

Wherever the wind is on Ash Wednesday, it con-
tinues there during the whole of Lent.

Le plus fort vent des jours de Bordes,
Le plus souvent tout Tan de'borde. Calendrier des
bons Laboureurs.

LENT, EASTER, WHITSUNTIDE, ETC. 69

Fifth Sunday in Lent : or Passion Sunday.

Ist's um Judica feucht,

Werden die Kornboden leicht Einsiedler Kalen-

~ der :

Passion Sunday is called "Judica," because of the Introit

used on that day from the 43d Psalm, "Judica me,

Deus," etc.

Le vent reste quarante jours ou il se trouve place*

le dimanche de la Passion. Cher.

Palm Sunday.

Quand il pleut le jour des Rameaux,
II pleut & la fenaison et a la moisson. Lot.
" If on Palm Sunday there be rain, that betokeneth

to goodness : if it thunder on that day, then it

signifieth a merry year and death of great men."

Husbandman's Practice.

But,

1st Palmsonntag hell und klar
So giebt's ein gut und fruchtbar Jahr.
Schneit's am Palmssonntag in die Palmen,
Schneit's spater in die Garben. Tyrol.
From whatever quarter the wind blows on Palm

Sunday, it will continue to blow from the same

quarter for the most part during the ensuing

summer.

This is a very prevalent belief in France. So we find,
Le vent qui souffle le jour des Rameaux est le vent

dominant de 1'anne'e.
Le vent qui mene la ban mere,
Mene la moissoniere Haute Loire;
i. e., The wind which blows on Palm Sunday will prevail
throughout the year.

7O LENT, EASTER, WHITSUNTIDE, ETC.

Si le jour des Rameaux

Le vent vient du Levant,

On dit qu'il vient des quatre boisseaux. Marne.

Si, pendant 1'office du jour des Rameaux, le vent
est has, c'est signe que le beurre ne sera pas
cher: s'il est haut, c'est signe que le prix en
sera eleve'. Sarthe.

Le jour des Rameaux, quand le coq est amant, anne'e
tendre.

Le propre jour des Rameaux
Seme oignons et porreaux.

Holy Week.

Semaine sainte mouillee'

Donne terre alteree. Ille et Vilaine.

Pilatus wandert nicht aus der Kirche, er richtet
zuvor einen Larm an.

Said of showery weather during this week.

Maundy -Thursday.

La gelee du Jeudi Saint
Gele le sarrasin,
La gelee du Vendredi Saint
Gele le pain et le vin. Aiti.

Good Friday.

If there be rain on Good Friday, every drop should
be scratched out of the ground. Limburg.

S'il pleut le Vendredi Saint, toute la pluie de
1'annee ne servira a rien.

LENT, EASTER, WHITSUNTIDE, ETC. /I

S'il pleut le Vendredi Saint, la gelee n'a plus de
pouvoir.

A wet Good Friday makes a thirsty year. Bo-
hemia.

S'il gele le Vendredi Saint, les autres gele'es de
1'annee sont sans effet.

Le vent qui souffle le Vendredi Saint durera toute
1'annee.

It is good, say the Belgians, to have an east wind
on this day, better still a north-east ; but a wind
from the south-east brings bad luck.

La terre ne doit point etre ouverte le Vendredi
Saint.

Pour que les rats ne mangent pas^le raisin

II faut tailler la treille le Vendredi Saint. Ain.

Easter Eve.

Le vent qui souffle pendant la benediction de 1'eau,
le samedi saint, durera six semaines. Pas de
Calais.

Regnet es em Tag vor Ostern, giebt es viel Regen
zwischen Ostern und Pfingsten.

Easter-day.

If the sun shine clear on Easter-day or Palm
Sunday, or both of them, there will be fine
weather, plenty of corn and other fruits of the
earth.

If the sun shines on Easter-day, . it will shine on
Whitsun-day.

72 LENT, EASTER, WHITSUNTIDE, ETC.

Wenn auf Ostertag die Sonn'hell scheint,

Der Bauer bei seinem Korn auf dem Speicher

weint :

1st Ostertag ahnlich der Nacht,
Er in die Fauste lacht. Eifel.

Regnet es auf Ostertag' eine Thran',

Dann wird das Korn bis in die Sichel vergeh'n.

A good deal of rain on Easter-day

Gives a crop of good corn, but little good hay.

Paques pluvieuses souvent fromenteuses. -
Ardennes.
But,

Osterregen bringt magere Kost,
Ostersonne, fette und reichliche. Austria.

Regnet's am Ostertag', so regnet's alle Sonntag'.

Depuis Paques au leu,
Depuis Noel au feu.

When Easter falls in our Lady's lap (March 25),
Then let England beware of a rap. See on
April 23.

Paques pluvieux Saint Jean (June 24) farineux.
Charente.

Entre Paques et la Pentecoste
La dessert n'est qu'une croute.

Paques en Avril

Rendent heureuses mouches et brebis. Ardennes.

But, on the other hand,
Paques en Avril,
Mort a femmes et a brebis. Nord.

LENT, EASTER, WHITSUNTIDE, ETC. 73

Rogation Days.

S'il fait beau aux Rogations,

Le premier jour il fera beau pour les fauchaisons,

Le deuxieme jour pour les moissons,

Le troisieme jour pour les vendanges. Morbihan.

S'il fait pleut aux Rogations,
Le premier jour il pleuvra pendant le fenaison,
Le deuxieme jour pendant la moisson,
Le troisieme jour pendant les vendanges. Haute
Saone.

Haricots de Rogations
Rendent a foison. Rhone.

Si Ton seme son chanvre pendant les Rogations,
On le recolte a grenouillons ; /.*., agenoux. Haute
Saone.

Ascension-day.

If it rain on Ascension-day ever so little, it fore-
tells scarcity and murrain : but if it be fair, then
the contrary, and fine weather to Michaelmas.

Ascensionis vel modicae pluvias pabuli inopiam,
serenitas copiam signant. Bucelinus.

Regen am Himmelfahrtstage zeigt schlechte
Heuernte an.

Se'l piov ol de del Assenziii
Tot Pe bel e gnent Pe bu Bergamo:
i.e.. If it rain on Ascension-day, everything looks well, but
is just the contrary.

S'il pleut le jour de P Ascension
C'est comme du poison. Indre.

74 LENT, EASTER, WHITSUNTIDE, ETC.

Pluie le jour de 1'Ascension,

Les bles deperissent jusqu'a la moisson. Morlnhan.

Se piove per 1'Ascensione
Va ogni cosa in perdizione Tuscany :
i.f., If it rains on Ascension-day, everything will go to rack
and ruin.

Wenn es am Himmelfahrtstage regnet, hor es

vierzig Tage lang nicht auf.

So the Italians say,
Se il piov ol de del Assenziu, per quaranta de no

se va senza.

A 1' Ascension

Le dernier frisson. Jura.

Der Bauer nach der alten Art
Tragt den Pelz bis Himmelfahrt :
Und thut ihm dann der Bauch noch weh,
So tragt er ihn bis Bartelme.

Fin al giorno dei Galilei

No te spogiar dei pani mei Venice :

i.e., Up to Ascension-day I shall not take off my clothes.

Eve of Whitsun-day.

Le vent reste six semaines ou il se trouve la veille
de la Pentecote, pendant 1'eau benite. Somme.

Whitsun-day.

If it happens to rain on Whitsun-day, much
thunder and lightning follow : blasts, mildews,
&c. : but, if it be fair, great plenty of corn.

Pentecoste pluvieuse

N'est pas avantageuse. Morbihan.

LENT, EASTER, WHITSUNTIDE, ETC. 7$

Pentecostis pluviae nil boni signant. Bucelinus.

Se piov el de d'la Pentecoste

Tote i entrade no ie noste Bergamo :

i.e., If it rains at Pentecost, we shall be losers.

But, on the other hand,
Pfingstregen
Reicher Weinsegen.

Nasse Pfingsten, fette Weihnachten ;
Helle Pfingsten, diirre Weihnachten.

Diou nous garde de las calous de Pentacousta
Et das ai'gaches (rose'es) de Saint Jan. Herault.

C'est, dit on, a la Pentecoste,

Que qui trop mange, cher lui coste.

Pentecoste frezes rouges ou les laboureurs eston-
nent.

A la Pentecoste roses sont,
A la Saint Jehan s'en vont.

Whitsun Monday.

Regnet's Pfingsten Montag
So regnet's sieben Sonntag.

Eve of Trinity Sunday.

Vent du bas la veille de la Trinite ;

II y est les deux tiers de Tannee. Aisne.

Trinity Sunday

S'il pleut le jour de la Trinite',

II pleut tous les dimanches de 1'annee. Doubs.

76 LENT, EASTER, WHITSUNTIDE, ETC.

Wenn's am heiligen Dreifaltigkeitssontag regnet, so
regnet's sechs oder zwolf Sonntag im Sommer.
Tyrol.

Quand il pleut a la Trinitd,

II pleut six semaines sans s'arreter.

S'il pleut a la Trinite,

II faut deux liens sur trois pour le ble. Haut
Rhin.

Pluie de la Trinite'
Fait deperir les bies
Jusqu'au grenier. Cote d?Or.

Feast of Corpus Christ! (the Thursday following
Trinity Sunday).

Wie Fronleichnam, so viele Tage nachher.

If the Holy Sacrament day of our Lord be fine,
then it is good, and causes fruit, plenty, and the
lambs to die. Husbandman's Practice.

1st es Corporis Christi Klar
Bringt es uns ein gutes Jahr.

Corporis Christi serenitas laudatur. Bucelinus.

S'il pleut sur la chapelle (Fete Dieu).
II pleut sur la javelle. Puy de Drome.

Tel sacre (Fete Dieu).
Tel battre. Mayenne.

Fallt auf die Fronleichnamsprozession Regen, reg-
nets vierzig Tage lang.

A la Saint Sacrement
L'epi au froment. Pluquet.

APRIL. 77

APRIL.

Changeable.

April weather,

Rain and sunshine, both together.

Avril le doux,

Quand il se fache, le pire des tous. Pluquet.

Avril

Thut was er will.

Cold.

A cold April
The barn will fill.

So the French,
Froid Avril donne pain et vin.

The Italian,
Brina d' Avril
Empienes la baril.

The Spanish,
Abril frio
Pan y vino

But they say in North Italy,
Se in April se giazza :
La vit la se strazza :
/.<?., If it freezes in April, the vines will be ruined.

And on the Rhine,
Heller Mondeschein im April schadet der Baum-

bliite :

i.e., A clear moon in April (a sign of cold nights) injures the
blossoms.

78 APRIL.

La granissarde d'Avril

Tue la brebis et 1'agneau

Et la bergere sans manteau. Dordogne.

A sharp April kills the pig.

April wears a white hat :

Or,
It is not April without a frosty crown.

With which may be compared,
I n'est si gentil moes d'Avri'
Qui n'aye sin capieu de gre'si'. Picardy.

L'ouaille (brebis) et 1'abeille
En Avril ont leur deuil.

Cold and Wet.

Aprilis kalt und nass
Fiillt Scheuer und Fass.

1st der April kalt und nass

Dann wachst das Gras. Westphalia.

Warm and Wet.

Warmer Aprilenregen
Grosser Segen.

Dry.

Ein trockner April

1st der Bauern Will'. Mimster.

Wet.

Der diirre April
1st nicht der Bauern Will',
Sondern das Prillenregen
1st ihnen gelegen.

APRIL. 79

April showers bring milk and meal.

In April pioa, pica,

Che farem grossa la coa Milan :

i.e., In April rain, rain, to make large sheaves.

Nasser April

Verspricht der Friichte viel.

Pluye d'Avril vaut le chard de David.

Avril a trente jours ;

S'il en pleuvait trente un

Cela ne ferait tort a aucun. Bouches-du-Rhone.

Exactly similar is the Italian,
Avril al na trenta, sel ne pioes trentii,
Nol fares mal a nisii.

In April Dove's flood
Is worth a king's good.

' ' Dove is a river parting Staffordshire and Derbyshire, which,
when it overflows its banks in April, is the Nilus of
Staffordshire, much battling the meadows thereof." RAY.

April showers

Bring summer flowers.

The bee doth love the sweetest flower,
So doth the blossom the April shower.

Abril

Aguas mil. Spain.

April, Aprilet,

Toe i de on sguazzet Bergamo :

i.e., April, April, drip drip, every day.

SO APRIL.

An April flood

Carries away the frog and his brood.

Answering to the German,
Aprilenflut
Fiihrt den Frosch weg mit seiner Brut.

Windy.

Avril venteux

Rend la labour eur joyeux. Hautes Alpes.

April with his hack and his bill
Plants a flower on every hill.

If April swell, ware swine !

Thunder.

Thunder in April signifieth that same year to be
fruitful and merry, with the death of wicked
men. Book of Knowledge.

When April blows his horn,
It's good for both hay and corn.

Because thunder in April is usually accompanied by rain.
But Mr Denham takes this proverb with reference to wind,

saying,
" When in this month winds prevail, it is good for

both meadow and tillage lands."

En Avril s'il tonne

C'est nouvelle bonne. Maine-et- Loire.

Quand il tonne en Avril
Le laboureur se rejouit

So es im April donnert, hat man keine Reife mehr
zu befurchten.

APRIL. 8 1

General.

Avril entrant comme un agneau,

S'en retourne comme un taureau. Disc.

Sweet as an April meadow.

April cling
Good for nothing.

Bourgeon qui pousse en Avril

Met peu de vins au baril. Cote d'Or.

As April is not generally a hot month, the Venetians call it,
April dal dolce dormir.

Which may be compared with the Spanish proverb,
Las mananicas de Abril buenas son de dormir :
i.e., The early mornings of April are good for sleeping.

And so the Milanese say,
In Aprilet

L'e 'on bel sta im let :
i.e., In April it is a fine time to lie in bed.

You must look for grass in April on the top of an
oak.

" Because the grass seldom springs well before the oak begins
to put forth." RAY.

S'il n'y avait ni seigneurs ni mois d' Avril sur terre,
II n'y auraitjamais ni famine ni guerre. Hautes
Alpes.

April, May, June, and July.

Auf trockenen April folgt ein nasser Juni oder Juli
und nasser Sommer.

82 APRIL.

April and May.

Abril plabigna

Mai ne cessa Gironde:

i.e., If it rains in April, it will rain incessantly in May.

An April shower and a May sun
Will make cloth white and maids dun.

April fa'l fior e Mag el g'a 1'onor :

i.e., April makes the flowers and May has the credit of it.

Betwixt April and May if there be rain,
7 Tis worth more than oxen or wain.

Exactly corresponding is the Spanish,
Mas vale un agua entre Abril y Mayo que los

buyes y el carro.

Entre Abril y Mayo

Haz harina para todo 'el ano :

i.e., Between April and May make flour for the whole year.

Avril pluvieux, Mai gai et venteux,
Annoncent an fecond et meme gracieux. Oise.

En Avril nuee, en Mai rosee. Haute Saone.

Avril et Mai de 1'annee

Font tous seuls la destinee. Aube.

April and May are the keys of the year.

So the Spanish
Abril y Mayo, Have de todo el ano.

And the Italian,
Abril e Magg in la ciav de tiit Tan.

Avril pleut aux hommes, Mai pleut aux betes.

Haute Saone.
Because rain in April is good for corn, in May for grass.

APRIL. 83

Pan para Mayo, lene para Abril :
i.e., Bread or corn for May, wood for April.

Wine.

Le vin d'Avril est un vin de Dieu :
Le vin de Mai est un vin de laquais. Dordogne.

Moon.

In France, the Moon which follows Easter is supposed to have
a great influence on the weather. It is called ' ' La lune
rousse," or "The Red Moon."

Quand la lune rousse est passee,

On ne craint plus la gelee. Charente.

La lune rousse est maligne comme les individus de
sa couleur. Nievre.

Tant que dure la lune rousse.

Les fruits sont sujets a fortune. Calvados.

Quand la lune rousse commence comme un lion,
Elle finit comme un mouton ;
Quand elle commence comme un mouton,
Elle finit comme un dragon. Jura.

Lune rousse sur la semence
D'ordinaire un grand influence ;
La lune rousse et le roux vent
Cassent les bouteilles souvent. Oise.

Recolte point n'est arrive'e

Que lune rousse ne soit passe. Haute Loire.

La lune rousse est la lune des abimes. Drome.

84 DAYS IN APRIL.

La lune rousse entrant un mercredi annonce une
annee de'sastreuse, surtout pour la vigne. -
ffirault.

La lune rousse ote tout ou donne tout. Jura.
See, too, on St Mark's Day (April 25).

DAYS IN APRIL.

1. If it thunders on All Fools' Day,
It brings good crops of corn and hay.

1, 2, 3. If the first three days of April be foggy,
there will be a flood in June.

Tre Aprilanti

Quaranta somiglianti Venice :

i. e. , As the weather is on the first three days of April, so
will it be for the next forty days.

3. (St Rosamond.)

Bringt Rosamunde Sturm und Wind,
So ist Sibylle (April 29) uns gelind.

The third of April comes with the cuckoo and the
nightingale.

4. (St Ambrose.)

J'ay entendu dire toujours,
Quand Saint Ambrose fait neiger,
Que nous sommes en grand danger,
D'avoir du froid plus de huit jours. Calendrier dcs
bons Laboureurs.

DAYS IN APRIL. 85

5. St Theodula (in the Calendar of the Greek
Church).

Theodula brings us spring breezes. Russia.

6. (Old Lady-day.)
On Lady-day the later,

The cold comes over the water.

10. (St Ezechiel.)

Sanct Ezechiel's Tag, der hunderste Tag nach
Neujahr, ist zurn Leinsaen der beste Tag, wie
auch der Tag Sanct Georg's (April 23).

23. (St George.)

Quand Sant Giorg el ven in Pasqua
Per el mond gh'e gran borasca Milan ;
i. e. , When Easter falls on St George's day, there will be

great trouble throughout the world.

Strangely enough, this happened in 1848, the year of revolu-
tions.

Hat vor Georgi der Regen gemangelt, Kommt
nachher desto mehr.

Aqua de San Giorg carestia de fich Lombardy :
i. <?., Rain on St George's day brings a lack of figs.

Hohes Korn zu Sanct Giirgen
Wird Giites verbiirgen. Austria.

Auf Sanct Giirgen

Soil man die Kuh von der Weide schiirgen.

Because now meadows are laid down for hay.

St George feeds the cow, St Nicholas (May 9) the
horse, St Elias (July 20) begins the harvest ;
the Blessed Mother of God (Sept. 8) ends it ;

86 DAYS IN APRIL.

and St Mary the Intercessor (Oct. i.) clears the
field. Russia.

A la Saint George

Couvre ton orge ;

A Saint Robert (April 29).

Qu'il soit couvert :

A Saint Marc (April 25).

II serait trop tard. Aveyron.

Georget, Marker, Croisset (May 3),Urbanet (May 24)
Sont quatre me'chants guerchonets (garQons) :
Et encore Philippet (St Philip of Neri, May 26)
S'il en meldit. Picardy.

Georget, Marquet, Phalet (St Vitalis, April 28)
Sont trois casseurs de gobelets Aube :
i.e., If it rain during these three days, there will be a bad
vintage.

S'il pleut a la Saint George

II n'y a guigne ni orge. Sarthe.

S. George cries " Goe ! "
S. Mark cries " Hoe ! "

Quand il gele les jours de Saint George, Saint Marc,
et Saint Robert, c'est signe que la recolte sera
mauvaise. Corrhe.

24. (Eve of St Mark.)

In sa vigilia de Sanctu Marcu si faghet abbitta,
Abbundantia de figu cabidannitta Sardinia :
i.e., If it drizzle on St Mark's Eve, there will be abundance

of figs.

MAY. 87

25. (St Mark.)

To smell of April and May

Black Cross Day.

S. Mark's Day was so called from the black covers of the
crosses and relics in the processions of the Great Litany,
used at Rome on this day, and instituted by St Gregory
the Great, A.D. 590, on occasion of a pestilence. It was
received in this country by the Council of Cloveshoe,
A.D. 747.

Quand il pleut le jour Saint Marc
II ne faut ni pouque ni sac.

So lange die Frosche vor Marti schrei'n
Miissen sie nachher stille sein. Rhine.

Les chevaliers de la lime rousse, helas !

Saint Marc, Saint Eutrope (April 30), Saint Philippe

(May i), Saint Nicolas (May 9)
Nous menent de vie a trepas :
Mais le chevalier S. Loup (Sept. i )

Gobe tout. Vienne.

28. (StVitalis.)
Friert es auf Sanct Vital
So geschieht's noch funfzehn Mai.

30. (St Eutropius.)

Saint Eutrope est un grand vendangeur. Charente-
Inferieur.

MAY.

Pleasant.

The merry month of May.

88 MAY.

So the Sardinians say,
Allegru que Maju.

Mag l'e el piii bel mas de Tan Milan :
i.e., May is the most charming month in the year.

Mag

No g'a parag Lombardy :

i.e., May has no equal.

Cold.

Wenn der Mai den Maien (the white thorn) bringet,
1st es besser als wenn er ihn findet.

Kiihler Mai

Giebt guten Wein und vieles Heu.

Mai freschent

Paja e forment Milan :

i.e., A cold May brings bread and corn.

Maiaza hoz

Vrtea boz Basque :

i.e., A cold May, a good year.

Otorde dabila maiaza su eske Basque :

i.e., The month of May seeks warmth to exchange for bread.

But cold weather in May is not universally desired, for
A cold May enriches no one.

Der Frost, der im Mai kommt, schadet dem Wein,
Dem Hopfer, den Baumen, dem Korn und dem
Lein.

L'e chi Mag con longi dent,
Pover paisan senza forment Milan :
i.e., Here is May with his long teeth, and the poor peasant
without corn.

MAY. 89

On account of the prevalence of east winds in May, we find
many proverbs warning us not to leave off warm clothing
till the end of the month e.g. :

a. Cast not a clout
Till May be out.

b. Who doffs his coat on a winter's day
Will gladly put it on in May. Scotland.

c. Hasta pasado Mayo

No te quites el sayo Spain :
i.e., Till May has passed do not leave off your overcoat.

d. Fin a quaranta de Mas

No lasa zo i stras North Italy :

i.e., Up to the fortieth of May, do not put away your winter
clothes.

e. Mag, Magion,

A ti la to rosa, a mi el peliscion.
i.e., May, dear May, you may have all the roses, if I may
have a warm coat.

Cold and Wind.
A cold May and a windy,
Makes a fat barn and a findy.

Mag fresch e ventos

Fa Tan bondanzios Milan :

i.e., A cool and windy May causes the year to be fruitful.

Hot.

Du mois de Mai la chaleur

De tout Tan fait la valeur. Manic.

A hot May makes a fat churchyard.

90 M

11* CM* cqptafa* to tte Geraon :

m May

NV: pxx-. MOM <,-.).

Ne cornbie le groiier.

Witt dor Mai ein Giitnor son,
Tiigt or nkht ID die Sdieoeni eio.

V,, s.-:.

Gra de per tot na&a:

Wet
Mai phmeux raid le laboweur joyeux.

Water in May is bread all the year.

Maiazeoiite,

Yrte ogoite Bmsyme :

K^d.^ck? nt *:xx:
When dipped in May flood

An mois de Mai

H dudnait qoH ne plut jamais. Wuuhat*

Maggk> ortolano

Ono poco e mica grano Grno .*

i* A nnqr May brings fittfc buicy and no whea*.

MAY. 91

A Hay flood
Never did good

Wet and Cold.
Mai kiihl tmd nass
Fiillt Scheuer tmd Fass.

Wet and Windy.
A wet May and a winnie,
Makes a fou stacky and a finnie. Scotland.

Windy.
A windy May makes a fair year.

Tempesta de Mag la raina aflace:
/.*., A storm in May brings mm with it.

Thunder in May signifieth that year, need, scarce-
ness and dearth of corn, and great hanger,

Book of Knowledge.

Qaand il tonne en Mai,

Les vaches ont du lait Haute Saone.

General
Fleur de Mai il faut s'y fier. Haute Loire.

En Mai

Bte et vinnaist

Be it weal or be it woe,

Beans should blow before May go.

Be sure of hay

Till the end of May.

92 MAY.

He who mows in May

Will have neither fruit nor hay.

He who sows oats in May
Gets little that way.

Are quien aro, que ya Mayo entro Spain :
i.e.. Let him plough who ploughed before, for now May has
come.

Shear your sheep in May
And you'll shear them away.

He that would live for aye
Must eat sage in May.

Come it early or come it late,

In May comes the cow-quake i.e., tremulous grass.

Another version of which proverb is,
May, come she early or come she late,
She'll make the cow to quake ;
Because of the cold winds which often prevail in this month.

May, June, and July.

En Mai, Juin, et Juillet,

La bouche baignee et fresche.

They who bathe in May
Will soon be laid in clay :
They who bathe in June
Will sing a merry tune :
They who bathe in July
Will dance like a fly. Yorkshire.

May and June.

May and June are twin sisters.

DAYS IN MAY. 93

Look at your corn in May,

And you'll come weeping away :

Look at the same in June,

And you'll come home in another tune.

Froid Mai et chaud Juin
Donnent pain et vin.

A dry May and a leaking June,
Bring all things into tune.

Mist in May and heat in June,
Make the harvest right soon.

A leaking May and a dry June,
Keep the poor man's head abune.

May and August.

Dieu nous garde de la poussiere de Mai
Et de la fange d'Aoust. Ariege.

DAYS IN MAY.

1. (SS. Philip and James, and St Walburga.)
First of May
Robin Hood's day.

Regen in die Walpurgisnacht.

Hat stets Tenn'und Keller vollgemacht.

S'il pleut le premier Mai

Le boeuf gagne et le cochon perd Gers :

Because the meadows will give more hay than the oaks acorns.

94 DAYS IN MAY.

Quand il pleut le premier jour de Mai

Les vaches perdent moitie'de leur lait. Haute-Saonc.

Quand i plut 1'nuit de Mai, ign'y a point de ch cr-
ises. Picardy.

S'il pleut le premier jour de Mai
Les coings Madame sont cuellies.

Quando, Jacobe, dies tuus est et Sancte Philippe,
Nil segeti duro frigore pejus erit.

3. (Invention of the Holy Cross.)
If dry be the buck's horn on Holyrood morn,

'Tis worth a kist of gold ;
But if wet be seen ere Holyrood e'en,

Bad harvest is foretold. Yorkshire.

If the hart and the hind meet dry and part dry on

Rood day fair,
For sax weeks of rain there'll be nae mair. Scotland.

So piov a Santa Crus

No fa cunt sora i to nus Bergamo :

i.e., If it rain on Holyrood day do not reckon on your nuts.

L'invention de la Saint Croix,
Saint Jean port Latine (May 6),
Saint Paul ermite (January 10),
Ces trois marchands de pain et de vin font la
de'bite. Eure et Loire.

Seme tes haricots a la Sainte Croix,
Tu en rdcolteras plus que pour toi :
Seme les a la Saint Gengoult (May 1 1),
Un t'en donnera beaucoup :

DAYS IN MAY. 95

Seme les a Saint Didier (May 23),
Pour un tu auras un millier. Cote d*Or.

Si la lune est pleine ou nouvelle
Le jour que Sainte Croix suivra,
Et s'il avient que lors il gele,
Le plus grant part des fruits mourra. Calendrier
des bons Laboureurs.

Regarde bien, si tu me crois,
Le lendemain de Sainte Croix :
Si nous avons le temps serain,
Car on assure pour certain
Que quand cela vient, Dieu nous donne
L'annee premierement bonne :
Mais si le temps est pluvieux
Nous aurons 1'an infructueux. Calendrier des bons
Laboureurs.

Lorsqu'il pleut le 5 Mai

II n'y a point de noix :

Lorsqu'il pleut le 15 Juin

II n'y a pas de raisin :

Lorsqu'il pleut a la Saint Barnabe,

II n'y a d'avoine partout ou on a seme. Morbihan.

6. (St John ante port : Lat :)

The Flemish rustics, who call this festival " Klein Jan voor
het waelsche porten," or, " Sint Jans in d'olie," believe
that an east wind blowing during the day presages fine
weather, and say,

96 DAYS IN MAY.

Klein Jan peut accorder six beaux jours aux pay-

sannes.

S'il pleut le jour de la Saint Jean chaude,
Les biens de la terre de'perissent jusqu'k Pautre

(June 24). Cher.

S'il pleut le jour de la petite Saint Jean,
Toute I'anne'e s'en ressent,

Et notamment jusqu'a la grande Saint Jean.
Nievre.

9. (Saint Nicolas.)
Da San Nicolb
Se erba'l bo Venetia :
i.e., On St Nicholas' day give the oxen grass (meaning the

new hay).

11. (S.S. Gengulphus and Mamertus ; S. Maieul
of Cluni : St Mokius, in Greek Kalendar.)

S'il pleut le jour Saint Gengoul
Les pores auront de glands leur seul.

Saint Mamert, Saint Pancrace (May 12), et Saint

Servais (May 13),
Sans froid ces saints de glace ne vont jamais.

Haute Loire.

Quand il pleut le jour de Saint Maieul

Le cerises tombent par la queue. Puy de Dome.

If the day of St Mokius be wet, the summer will

also be wet. JRussia:
" Mokry," in Russian, signifies "wet."

12. (St Pancratius or Pancras.)

There is a prevalent belief on the Continent that very cold

DAYS IN MAY. 97

weather, a second winter in fact, may be expected in the
middle of May. Besides the proverb just quoted (Saint
Mamert, Saint Pancrace, &c.), the French have another
to the same effect viz. :

A la mi-Mai

Queue d'hiver :

And in the north of Italy the peasants call this season
" L'inverno dei cavalieri." In France, as we have just
seen, the three saints, Mamertus, Pancratius, and Ser-
vatius, whose festivals fallen the nth, I2th, and I3th,
are termed "Ice saints;" and so a German proverb
says :

Pancraz, Servaz, und Bonifaz (May 14) sind drei
Eismanner. Rhine.

The Bohemians have made a special saint of their own,
whom they call Pan Serboni (a name composed of the
first syllables of Pancratius, Servatius, and Boniface), and
of whom they say that " Pan Serboni withers the trees
(with frost)."

But in Belgium, on the contrary, there is a proverb that
' ' Saint Pancratius said to St Servatius, ' After my festival
there will be no more night frosts.' "

In the Saalthal, near Naumburg, these three saints are called
" Weindiebe," i.e., Wine-stealers.

Pancraz und Urban (May 25) ohne Regen
Folgt ein grosser Weinsegen.

To the twelfth of July from the twelfth of May
All is day.

13. (St Servatius.)
Vor Servatius kein Sommer,
Nach Servatius kein Frost.

Kein Reif nach Servaz,
Kein Schnee nach Bonifaz.
G

98 DAYS IN MAY.

Wer seine Schafe scheert vor Servaz,

Dem ist die Woll' lieber als das Schaf. Eifel.

14. (St Boniface; St I sidor, in Greek Calendar.)
The Russians believe that the cold north winds cease on this
day ; hence they say

St Isidor is past, the north winds are over.

20. (St Bernardin of Siena.)
A Sant Bernardi
El fiores el li.

23. (St Desiderius.)
Plante un pois a la Saint Didter,
Tu recolteras un sender. Aube.

Quand on seme les haricots le jour de la Saint

Didier,

On les re'colte a la poigne'e :
Si on les seme a la Saint Claud (June 6)
Us rattrapent les autres.

25. (St Urban.)

The cold nights are believed to end with the festival of this
Saint. Thus we find :

Apres la Saint Urbain

Plus ne gelent vin ni pain. Rhone.

Que Saint Urbain ne soit passe

Le vigneron n'est pas assure. Hautes Alpes.

St Urban always drives his mother from the stove
Bohemia :

This saint is considered to be the patron and guardian of
vineyards : and in old times, if it rained on his day, the

DAYS IN MAY. 99

husbandmen in South Germany, fearing a bad season,
used unceremoniously to throw his image into the nearest
pool : hence the saying

Wenn Sanct Urban kein gut Wetter geit,
Wird er in die Pfutzen geleit.

Tel Saint Urbain, telles vendanges.

Urbinet,

Le pire de tous quand il s'y met,

Car il casse le robinet. Lot et Garonne.

Se'piov el di de Sant Urban
Ogni spica la perd on gran :

i.e.y If it rains on St Urban's day, every ear of corn loses a
grain.

Sanct Urban hell und rein
Segnet die Fasser ein.

Saint Urbain,

Dernier march and de vin. Meuse.

Apres la Saint Urbain

Ce qui reste appartient au vilain. Meuse.

26. (St Philip of Neri.)
Quand ol piov a San Felep
Ol poer no g'a bisogna del rech Bergamo :
i.e., If it rain on St Philip's day, the poor man has no need

to beg of the rich.

31. (St Petronilla.)

Quand il pleut le jour de Sainte Petronille,
C'est que la sainte mouille sa guenille. Yonne.

100 JUNE.

S'il pleut a la Sainte Petronille,
Les raisins deviennent grappiles,
Ou tombent en guenilles. Aube.

A Santa Petronela
La marenda la ve'n tera Bergamo :
i.e., By St Petronilla's day, the days get so long that lunch-
eon is necessary.

JUNE.

Cold and Wet.

Wenn kalt und nass der Juni war,
Verdirbt er meist das ganze Jahr.

Warm.

June, if sunny,
Brings harvests early.

C'est le mois de Juin
Qui fait le foin. Nievre.

Dry.

Juni, trocken mehr als nass,
Fiillt mit gutem Wein das Fass.

Wet.

A good leak in June
Sets all in tune.

Juin larmoyeux

Rend le laboureur joyeux. Hautes Alpes.

La pluie pendant le mois de Juin
Donne belle avoine et chetif foin. Benches du
Rhone.

DAYS IN JUNE. IOI

Pluie de Juin n'est que fume'e. Maine et Loire.

Ein diirrer Brachmonat bringt ein unfruchtbar Jahr :

So er allzu nass,

Leeret er Scheuern und Fass :

Hat er aber zuweilen Regen,

Dann giebt er reichen Segen. Palatinate.

Calm.

Calm weather in June
Sets corn in tune.

Thunder.

S'il tonne au mois de Juin

Annee de paille et de foin. Indre.

" Thunder in June signifieth that same year that
woods shall be overthrown with winds, and great
raging shall be of lions and wolves, and so like
of other harmful beasts." Book of Knowledge.

June and July.

Giugno, la falce in pugno,
Se non e in pugno bene,
Luglio ne viene.

DAYS IN JUNE.

1. (St Fortunatus.)

If St Fortunatus's day be fine, we may expect a
fruitful season. Bohemia.

6. (St Norbert.)

Les bains qui prend St Norbert inondent la terre.
Belgium.

102 DAYS IN JUNE.

8. (St Medard.)

This saint is held in high reputation throughout Europe as a
weather prophet : naturally, therefore, many proverbs are
found relating to his festival e.g. :

S'il pleut a la Saint Medard

La recolte diminue d'un quart :

S'il pleut a la Saint Barnabe' (June n),

Elle diminue de moitie :

Mais s'il fait beau a la Saint Barnabe,

Celui-ci lui coupe le bee ou le pied. Loire.

Quon plou lou jour de Saint Me'dar,

L'annado gagno ou per un car; i.e. t La recolte

augmente ou diminue d'un quart,
Et si Saint Barnabe 1'enduro,
La plejo (pluie) trente noou jours duro. Lozere.

Quand il pleut pour la Saint Me'dard
II pleut quarante jours plus tard.

Du jour Saint Me'dard en Juin
Le laboureur se donne soin,
Car les anciens disent s'il pleut
Que trente jours durer il peut,
Et s'il est beau, sois tout certain
_D 'avoir abon dance du grain. Calendrier des bons
Laboureurs.

S'il pleut le jour de Saint Me'dard,

Nous n'aurons ni vin ni lard. Haute Marne.

Quand il tombe de 1'eau le jour de Saint Me'dard,
Elle prend duble' pour remettre au Mars. Ardennes.

DAYS IN JUNE. IO3

Si le jour de Saint Medard il pleut sur les vaches,
elles n'ont pas de lait de 1'annee. Saone et Loire.
Was Sanct Medardus fiir Wetter halt,
Solch Wetter auch in die Ernte fallt.

Wie's wittert auf Medardustag

So bleibt sechs Wochen lang danach.

Sinte Medard
Ses weeken naer Ghent:

i.e., On S. Medard's day it rains six weeks before or six
weeks after.

The Bohemians say,
" St Medard's drops drop for 40 days."

Medardi 4 hebd : imitantur. Bucelinus.

If on the eighth of June it rain
It foretells a wet harvest, men sain.

9. (St Faustus.)

St Faustus said to St Medard : " Barnabas and
Vitus are my neighbours, and together we will
give the country folk a good washing till Frederick
the Hollander (July 18) comes and closes the
doors of heaven." Belgium.

10. (St Margaret of Scotland.)

In the Tyrol this Saint is called " Die Wetterfrau : "

And there is a saying,
Regnet es am Margretentage
Dauert der Regen vierzehn Tage.

11. (St Barnabas.)

In the Clog Almanacs the mark or sign of this saint was a
rake, denoting the beginning of hay harvest. Hence the
proverbs :

104 DAYS IN JUNE.

a. On St Barnabas,

Put the scythe to the grass.

b. A la Saint Barnabe
La faux au prd

c. Sant Barnabas nimmer die Sichel vergass,
Hat den langsten Tag und das langste Gras.

Barnaby bright,

The longest day and the shortest night.

Barn abac festo tempestas saepe oritur. Brand.

Regnet's auf Sanct Barnabas
Schwimmen die Trauben bis in's Fass.

Se piov la matina de San Barnaba

L'oa bianca tota la va,

E se'l piov de matina a sera,

La seguasta la bianca e po la nera Brescia ;

If it rains on the morning of St Barnabas, all the white
grapes will be destroyed ; and if it rains from morn to
night, the white and the black will both come to nothing.

Bles fleuris a la Saint Barnabe,

Presage d'abondance et de qualitd. Eure.

A la Saint Barnabe

Le seigle perd le pied. Tarn et Garonne.

15. (SS. Vitus and Cyr.)
If St Vitus's day be rainy weather,
It will rain for thirty days together.

And so the Latin,

Lux sacrata Vito si sit pluviosa, sequentes
Triginta facient omne madere solum. Buckler.

DAYS IN JUNE. 1 05

Wenn es am Sanct Veitstag regnet, so soil das

Jahr fruchtbar sein. Swabia.

But in Westphalia they say,
Wenn es am Vitus'tage regnet, gedeiht der Hafer

nicht.

Se piov el di de Sant Vit
El prodot de 1'iiga e mez fallit Milan :
i.e., If it rain on St Vitus's day, half of the grapes will be

destroyed.

Sunne Vit,

Dann annert sik de Tiet,
Dann gait dat Lauf in de Egge stahn,
Dann hebbt de Viigel't Leggen dahn Rhine :
i.e., St Vitus's day, then the season changes, then the leaves
are fully out, then have the birds finished laying.

The nightingale stops singing on St Vitus's day.
Poland.

Vit bringt die Fliegen mit.

S'il pleut le jour de Saint Cyr,

Le vin diminue jusqu'k la tire. A liter.

16. St Tychon (in the Greek Calendar).
The birds are silent on St Tychon's day. Russia:
Perhaps because " tichy" is the Russian word for " still, quiet. "

19. (St Gervasius.)
Quand il pleut \ la Saint Gervais
II pleut quarante jours apres. Pas de Calais.

S'il pleut la veille Saint Gervais
Pour les bleds c'est signe mauvais,
Car d'iceux la tierce partie
Est ordinairement perie,

IO6 DAYS IN JUNE.

A cause que par trente jours
Le temps humide aura son cours :
Que si tel jour estoit serain

Qu'on s'assure d'avoir du grain. Calendrier des
bans Laboureurs.

23. (Eve of St John the Baptist.)

If it rains on Midsummer Eve the filberts will be
spoiled.

La veglia de Sant Juan

El piov toe i an Brescia :

i.e., On the Eve of St John it rains every year.

24. (St John the Baptist)

Pluie de Saint Jean dure long temps. Mayenne.

Vor Johannis bet'um Regen,

Nach Johannis kommt er ungebeten :

Another form of which is,

Vor Johanni miissen die Priester um Regen bitten,
nach Johanni kann man's selber. Westphalia.

Regnet's am Johannistag, so regnet es noch vier
Wochen, und man hat eine schlechte Ernte zu
erwarten. Westphalia.

Orages avant la Saint Jean

Ne sont pas dangereux,

Apres ils sont violents. Vendee.

It seems a prevalent opinion that rain on this day is very
prejudicial to nuts. Thus we find :

a. If Midsummer Day be never so little rainy, the
hazel and walnut will be scarce : corn smitten

DAYS IN JUNE. IO?

in many places : but apples, pears, and plums
will not be hurt. Shepherd's Kalendar.

b. Du jour Saint Jean la pluie

Fait la noisette pourrie. Calendrier des bons
Laboureurs.

c. Regnet's auf Johannistag
1st der Haselniisse Flag.

d. Pluvias Sancti Johannis festo quadraginta dies

pluviae sequuntur, certa nucum pernicies.
Bucelinus.

Midsummer rain
Spoils hay and grain.

So the French,

Quand il pleut a la Saint Jean,
Les bles degenerent souvent. Eure et Loire.

Eau de Saint Jean ote le vin

Et ne donne point de pain. Meuse.

And the Latin,

Baptistae fuerit quum lux pluviosa Johannis
Ingrati messis plena laboris erit. Buchler.

Se piove'l di de San Zuane
Carestia de sorgo e anca de cane Venice :
i.e., If it rain on St John's day there will be a bad growth of
millet and reeds.

La not de San Giovan

Se forma el most nel gran. Milan.

Cut your thistles before St John
You will have two instead of one.

108 DAYS IN JUNE.

Montre-moi une olive a la Saint Jean,
Je t'en montrerai mille a la Toussaint. Benches
du Rhone.

Vor Johannistag

Man Gerst 'und Hafer nicht loben mag. Eiftf.

Hasta San Juan

Todo vino rabadan Andalusia :

i.e., Up to St John's day wine is fit only for peasants.

It is a saying in wine countries that wine of the
last year's vintage is not good till the following
Midsummer. See St Gallus, Oct. 16.

Wenn der Kukuk nach Johanni singt,
Einen nassen Herbsten er uns bringt. Eifel.

As many days as the cuckoo sings after St John,
so many warm days will there be after Michael-
mas. Carinthia.

Deshabillez vous pour la Saint Jean,

Et le lendemain

Reprenez vos vetements. Vancluse.

A la Saint Jean, verjus pendant,
Argent comptant. Vosges.

Saint Jean doit une averse ;

S'il ne la paye pas Saint Pierre la doit. Cote (TOr.

27. (The Seven Sleepers of Ephesus.)
Les sept dormans
Remettent le temps.

Regnet's am Tage der Siebenschlafer, regnet es
noch sieben Wochen.

DAYS IN JUNE. 109

Sind die Schlafertage nass
Nicht gut fur Scheuer und Fass.

28. (Eve of St Peter.)

Si'l pleut la veille de Saint Pierre,

La vinee est re'duite au tiers. Lot et Garonne.

29. (SS. Peter and Paul.)

Saint Pierre et Saint Paul pluvieux
Pour trente jours dangereux. Eure.

Saint Pierre et Saint Paul

Lavent les rues de Saint Martial. Dordogne.

Saint Pierre pleure toujours. Maine et Loire.

Aqua de San Peder

Aqua senza meder. Milan.

On craint le coq de la Saint Pierre : lorsqu'il
chante, il amene le mauvais temps.

Schon zu Sanct Paul

Fiillt Taschen und Maul. Austria.

De Saint Paul lou beau temps

Nour fare vioure contents. Hautes Alpes.

Cum recolit Petri Paulique Ecclesia sancta

Martyrium, radix frugibus emeritur.
Tune maturescunt segetes, noctesque diesque,

Approperatque cito messis arnica pede. Buckler.

Da Perrersdag (Peterstag),
Das heckt der Has,
Da jongt de Koh,

I 10 JULY.

Da lat (legt) dat Hoh (Huhn),

Da kryt de Husfrou vel ze doh (thun) Rhine :

i.e., On St Peter's day the hare brings forth her young, the

cow calves, the hen lays, the goodwife cries, " Well

done !"

An Peter und Pol

Lauft der Hase in'n Kohl. Hesse Darmstadt.

Quand che San Peter el ven,
O che 1'e paja, o che 1'e fen Milan :
i.e., When St Peter's day comes, we can tell whether we
shall have straw or hay.

JULY.
Hot.

Sul de Lui

El fa per dii Brescia :

i.e., July sun does for two.

In July take off your clothes, in December put on
the warmest that you have. Russia.

Wechselt im Juli stets Regen und Sonnenschein,
So wird im nachsten Jahr die Ernte reichlich sein.

Storms.

No tempest, good July,
Lest the corn look ruely.

Thunder.

Thunder in July signifieth the same year shall be
good corn, and loss of beasts : that is to say,
their strength shall perish. Book of Knowledge.

DAYS IN JULY. Ill

General.

Triulas triulado Sardinia :

i.e., Plaguy July : because in this month there is so much
work for the farmer.

In July

Shear your rye.

Au mois de Juliet

La faucille au poignet. Jura.

The Bohemians say,
" In July the quail calls to the reapers in the field,

* Come cut : come cut : here's five kreuzers, five

kreuzers for you.' "

July and August.
In July

Some reap rye :
In August,
If one will not, the other must.

In Hindustan, where Sawun corresponds with our month of

July, there is the proverb,
A dry Sawun, a dry B'hadun i. e., August and

September,

July and January.

Wie der Juli war,

Wird der Januar. Thuringia.

DAYS IN JULY.

1. (St Calais.)

Quand il pleut a la Saint Calais,
II pleut quarante jours apres. Sarthe.

112 DAYS IN JULY.

If the first of July be rainy weather

'Twill rain more or less for four weeks together.

2. (Visitation of B. V. M., SS. Processus and

Martinian.)
Wenn's zu Maria regnen mag,

50 regnet's noch manchen Tag. Austria.

If it rain on the second of July, such weather shall

be forty days after : day by day. Husbandman's

Practice.

And so the Latin saying,
Secundo die Julii pluvia 40 dies similes conducit

Bucelinus.

The Belgians say,

Quand Notre Dame dit, le jour de la Visitation h
S. Jean, nous ferons pleuvoir ! cela gate toute la
recolte.

The Danish peasants, according to Wormius (Fast. Dan. 115)
declare that if there be rain on this day, it will continue
to the day of S. Mary Magdalene, the 22d of this month :
and on the Rhine the 2d of July has such a watery repu-
tation, that it is called " Maria Eintropfentag " i. e. ,
Mary Drip Day ; thus the proverb :

Wann't op Mariendach en Driiopken riagent, dann
riagent, et (af un tau) vottich Dage derna :

i. e. , If it rain only a drop on St Mary's day, it will rain, off
and on, for forty days.
The Latin version of which is,

Alma Dei genitrix quo tempore Virgo Maria

Cognatam invisit plena pudore suam,

51 pluat, haud poteris ccelum sperare serenum,
Transivere aliquot ni prius ante dies. Buckler.

DAYS IN JULY. 113

Deux jours alors que Marie
L'on visite, s'il fait pluye,
Asseurez vous que les filles

Cueilleront bien peu de noisilles. Calendrier des
bons Laboureurs.

Si pluat in festo Processi et Martiniani,
Imber erit grandis et suffocatio grani. Brand.

Wie die Mutter Gottes iiber das Gebirge geht, so
kehrt sie wieder zuriick.

4. (Translation of St Martin. )
If the deer rise dry and lie down dry on Bullion's
day, there will be a good harvest.

Bullion's day, if ye be fair,

For forty days 'twill rain nae mair.

In Scotland this day is called St Martin of Bullion's day :
for what reason it is uncertain. Du Cange styles it,
" Festum Sancti Martini Bullientis, vulgo etiamnum
Saint Martin Bouillant : " ;'.<?., Hot, boiling; perhaps
from the heat of the season in which this festival falls.

And so we find in France :

S'il pleut le jour de la Saint Martin bouillant,
II pleut six semaines durant. Maine,

6. (St Godelieve.)

Rain on this day is dreaded in Belgium.

7. (St Benedict XL)

S'il pleut le jour de Saint Benoit,
II pleuvra trente sept jours plus trois. Seine-In-
ferieure.

114 DAYS IN JULY.

9. (St Kilian.)
Sanct Kilian

Stellt Schnitter an. Bavaria.

The Danes apply this proverb to St Knud's day, July 10 ;
and the Bohemians to St Margaret's, the I3th.

10. (St Felicitas and her seven sons.)

Wie das Wetter am Sieben-Briider-Tage ist, so soil
es sieben Wochen bleiben.

13. (St Margaret.)

If S. Margaret's day be dry, God will give us a fine
autumn. Gallida.

The Bohemians consider that harvest should begin on this

day, and say :
S. Margaret puts the sickle to the corn.

Siinte Margraite,
Latt us de Niiete genaiten.
Siinte Magdelene,
Jetet se alien e.

i.e., St Margareth

Lasst uns die Niisse geniessen ;
St Magdalene (July 22).
Isst sie allein. Westphalia.

An Margrethen Regen

Bringt den Niissen keinen Segen.

In the old Calendars, St Margaret's day was considered to be
the first of the Dog-days, whence the proverb :

Margaris os Canis est, caudam Laurentius (Aug.
10) addit.

DAYS IN JULY. 115

15. (StSwithin.)

If St Swithin weeps, the proverb says,
The weather will be foul for forty days. Country

Almanac, 1675.

St Swithin's day, if thou be fair,
'Twill rain for forty days nae mair :
St Swithin's day, if thou dost rain,
For forty days it will remain.

If on St Swithin's day it proves fair, a temperate
winter will follow : but if rainy, stormy, or
windy, then the contrary.

In some parts of England, says Hone, they have a proverb,
11 St Swithin is christening the apples," when it
rains on this day.

Mr Earle has completely exploded the old story about the
translation of the bones of this saint, and shown it to be
in every respect without foundation. So far from rain
and tempests bursting forth on that occasion, the weather
seems to have been most propitious. " How then," says
Chambers (Book of Days, vol. ii. p. 63) ' ' did the popular
notion about St Swithin's day arise ? Most probably, as
Mr Earle remarks, it was derived from some primeval
pagan belief regarding the meteorologically prophetic
character of some day about the same period of the year
as S. Swithin's. It is to be observed that (as the
reader of this work will doubtless have noticed) in
various countries of the European continent the same
belief prevails, though differences exist as to the period
of the particular day in question. Thus, in France, St
Medard (June 8) and SS. Gervase and Protasius (June
19) have a similar character assigned to them. In Belgium
they have a rainy saint, St Godelieve (July 6) ; whilst in
Germany, amongst others, a character of that description

Il6 DAYS IN JULY.

is ascribed to the day of the Seven Sleepers (June 27)."
In some parts of Poland St Harold (July 19) is considered
a weather prophet ; and for Denmark, see above on July
2d and July gth ; and for North Italy, July 26th.
The number forty plays a very prominent part in weather
proverbs, and it seems probable that it is to be referred
to the frequent occurrence of this period in Holy Scrip-
ture e.g., the rain fell on the earth for foi'ty days whilst
Noah \vas in the ark ; Moses was forty days in Mount
Sinai ; Elijah was forty days in the wilderness ; our
blessed Lord the same time. So, too, do persons coming
from infected places remain forty days either on shipboard
or in some building set apart for the purpose, before they
are permitted to have their freedom. The right of
sanctuary was also limited to the same period.

18. (St 'Philastrius.)
A Sant Filaster
Ne pio mei, ne pio polaster.

21. (SS. Daniel (Abbot) and Victor.)

In Belgium rain on this day is considered to prognosticate
fair weather.

Si plueu lou tyourt de Saint Victor

La recolto n'es pas d'or. Hautcs Alpes.

22. (St Mary Magdalene.)

Maria Magdalena weint um ihren Herrn,
D'rum regnet's an diesem Tage gern.

A la Madeleine

Les noix sont pleines.

So the Italians,

A Santa Maria Maddalena
Les nus le piena :

DAYS IN JULY. 1 1/

plena o d'empieni

1 nos scieg i la 61 dervi Brescia :

i.e., On St Mary Magdalene's day the nuts are full : full or
not, our children will open them.

24. SS. Boris and Gleb (in the Calendar of the
Greek Church).

There is a Russian proverb,
Boris and Gleb are bread-makers.
Bread in all Sclavonic dialects is called " chleb."

25. (St James the Greater.)

The Germans believe that as the weather is on this day, so
will it be on the festival of Christmas. Thus :

Jakobi klar und rein,

Wird Christfest kalt und frostig sein.
So also they say,

Der Vormittag vom Jakobstag

Das Wetter bis Weihnacht deuten mag.

This belief was shared by our ancestors, for in an old work
entitled "The Husbandman's Practice," is found the fol-
lowing :

" An old rule of the Husbandman.
" When it is fair three Sundays after St James his
day, it betokeneth that corn shall be very good :
but if it rain then the corn withereth : S. James's
day before noon betokeneth the winter time
before Christmas ; and after noon, it betokeneth
the time after Christmas. If it be so that the
sun shine on S. James his day, it is a token of
cold weather : but if it rain thereon, it is a token
of warm and moist weather : but if it is between
the two, that is a token of neither too warm nor
yet too cold."

Il8 AUGUST.

If there are white clouds in the sky at sunrise on this day the

Germans say that,
" Der Schnee bliiht fur nachsten Winter."

26. (S. Anne.)

Rain on this day is called in North Italy " St Anne's
dower ;" thus

Come I'd sana

La dota de Sant'Anna Milan :

i. e. , How healthful is the dower of St Anne !

Se piov el di de Sant'Anna
Piov on mes e ona setimana Milan :
i.e., If it rain on St Anne's day, it will rain for a month and
a week.

A Santa Anna

Sa madura 1'ulidna Venice :

i.e., On St Anne's day the July grape is ripe.

AUGUST.

Warm.

Dry August and warm,
Doth harvest no harm.

El su d'Agost

L'ingana la massera el pret e 1'ost Milan:
i.e., August sun disappoints the maid, the priest, and the
host (because it scorches up all the vegetables).

Wet.

Quand il pleut en Aoust,
II pleut miel et bon moust.

AUGUST. 119

So the Spaniards say,
Quando llueve en Agosto
Llueve miel y mosto.

And the Italians,
L'aqua d'Agost
L'e tota mel e tot most. Bergamo.

La prima acqua d'Agost

La rinfresca'l bosc Bergamo :

i.e., Rain early in August refreshes the trees.

La prim'aqua d'Agost
La porta via on sach de piires e de mosch :
i.e., Rain early in August carries off with it a sack of fleas
and one of flies.

A wet August never brings dearth.

Thunder.

Tonnerre au mois d'Aout,

Abondance de grappes et bon mout. Drome.

Thunder in August signineth the same year, sor-
row, wailing of many, for many shall be sick.
Book of Knowledge.

Wind.

Nordwinde im August bringen bestandiges Wetter.

General.

Ce sont faucilles apres Aout.

En moissonant se passe 1'Aout
En Aoust faict il bon glaner.

En Aout quiconque dormira
Sur midi s'en repentira. Oise.

120 DAYS IN AUGUST.

Qui dort en Aoust

Dort a son coust Cote dOr.

So the Italian proverb :
A dormi d'Agost
Se dorma a so mal cost. Bergamo.

August and September.

August ripens, September gathers in.

August bears the burden, September the fruit.

Agost el ciisina

E Setember Tempienss la cantina Brescia :

i.e., August fills the kitchen and September the cellar.

Ce qu'Aout n'aura cuit

Septembre ne le rotira. Hant Rhine.

And so the German,
Was der August nicht kocht, lasst der September

ungebraten.

August and March.

August is as much warmer than March, as Asia is
better than Africa. A Russian Proverb.

DAYS IN AUGUST.

1. (St Peter ad vincula : or Lammas-day.)
Quand il pleut le premier Aout,
C'est signe qu'il n'y aura pas de regain (aftermath).

( Coreze.

After Lammas corn ripens as much by night as by
day.

Because of the heavy night dews.

DAYS IN AUGUST. 121

1-12.

In Albania the country people believe that the
first twelve days of August foretell the character
of the weather during the ensuing twelve months.
See on Jan. 2 and 25.

6. (The Transfiguration of our Lord : St Sixtus.)
San Transfiguratio qual es el dia tal es el ano
Spain :

i.e., As the weather is on the day of the Transfiguration, so
will it be the rest of the year.

The Saviour is coming, get your gloves ready.
Russia.

In Sixti festo venti validi memor esto,

Si sit nulla quies, farra valere scies. Brand;

7. (St Cajetan.)
L'acqui di san Gaitanu
Arrifrescanu lu chianu :

L'acqui di 1'Assunzioni (August 15)
Pigghiatili ca su boni.

10. (St Laurence.)
A la Saint Laurent,
La faucille au froment.

Um Sanct Laurenti Sonnenschein
Bedeutet ein gutes Jahr von Wein.

Sanct Laurenz bringt eine Helle oder Spreng; i.e.,
rain. Eifel.

Regnet's an Laurentii Tag, giebt es viele Mause.

122 DAYS IN AUGUST.

Jaun done Laurent!

Escu bate-an-euria, beste-an-ilinti Basque :
i.f.y After St Laurence, on one day comes rain,, on the next
mildew.

De Sen Laoure'ns a Nostro Damo (August 15)
La plejo (la pluie) n'afligio pas Tamo. Lozere.

If it is fine on St Laurence's day and the day of
the Assumption, there will be a good vintage.
Illyria.

The two following French and Italian proverbs exactly cor-
respond, viz. :

Se ploou a San Laouren,
La plehjo ven ben at en :
Se ploou per Nostro Damo
Cadun encoro raimo :
Se ploou a San Bertoumiou
Boufo li aou kiou. Gard.

i.e. S'il pleut a la Saint Laurent
La pluie vient k temps :
Si elle vient a Notre Dame
Chacun encore 1'aime :
Si la pluie vient a Saint Barthelemy
Souffle lui au derriere.

Se'l piov per San Lorenz,

L'e on po tardi, ma 1'e a temp :

Se'l piov per la Madona,

Lassei di, che I'anmo bonna :

Ma se'l piov per San Bartolome (Aug. 24)

Te ghe podet boffagh adre Milan :

i.e., If it rain on St Laurence, it is rather late, but still in

DAYS IN AUGUST. 123

time : if it rain on the Assumption, it is, let me tell you,
also good : but if it rain on St Bartholomew, all you can
do is to give the saint a buffet.

S'il pleut a la Saint Laurent,
La pluie est encore a temps :
Mais a la Saint Barthe'lemy
Tout le monde en fait fi. Rhone.

Wie Laurenz und Bartholomai,
So dich zum Herbst gefreu.

Sanct Laurenz erste Herbstag.
Saint Laurent arrange les bles noirs.

15. (Assumption of B. V. M.)
If the sun do shine on the 1 5th of August, that is a
good token, and especially for wind. Husband-
man's Practice.

Himmelfahrt Maria Sonnenschein
Bringt guten Wein :

Of which the Latin version is,
Alma Dei genitrix qua luce assumpta putatur,
Promittit solis suavia vina jubar. Buckler.

A la Madonna
L'e anmb bonna :
De San Roch (August 16)
L'a spata trop Milan :

i.e., Rain on Our Lady's day is good, on St Roch it is too
late.

Assumptio augustior copiam notat. Bucdinus.

The holy queen of heaven gives us the first nuts.
Bohemia.

124 DAYS IN AUGUST.

Krutwigge brenget 'et Salt in de Appeln Munsteri
i.e., Cabbage Feast brings salt into the apples (if it rain on

this day).

In Germany this festival is called "Our Lady's cabbage
feast " (unserer Frauen Krauterweihe), because it is the
custom amongst the Roman Catholics on this day to bring
to church cabbages or ears of corn to be blessed, which
they keep as a safeguard against storms, sickness, evil
spirits, &c.

19. (SS. Louis and Sebald.)

Urn den Ludwigstag pflegt warmes Sommerwetter
gern in Regen umzusehlagen, der an acht Tage
dauert.

This is a good day for turnip-sowing, for St Sebald
(who, to oblige a poor man, turned icicles into
logs of wood) can cause each seed to produce a
fine root. Belgium.

24. (St Bartholomew.)
A'la Saint Barthelemy
La perche au noyer,
Le trident au fumier. Ain.

If this day be misty, the morning beginning with a
hoar-frost, the cold weather will soon come, and
a hard winter. Shepherd's Kalendar.

St Bartholomew
Brings the cold dew :
Because the nights now begin to be cold.

Um Bartima
Schaut der Schnee
Ueber's Joch \xx.-Tyrol.

DAYS IN AUGUST. 125

Bartelmies

Spart Botter onn Kies (Butter un Kas)

Lingen-Hosen und Struh-H6t. Platt-Deutsch.

If it rains on this day it rains for forty days. Book
of Knowledge.

Se ploou per Se-Berthoumiou,
Se t'e'n moques, noun foou pas iou; i.e., non pas
moi. Lozere.

Wie Sanct Bartholomaus sich verhalt,
So ist der ganze Herbst bestellt.

S'il pleut a la Saint Barthe'lemy,

II y aura assez de raves et de regain. Dordogne.

All the tears St Swithin can cry,

St Bartholomew's dusty mantle wipes dry.

If Bartlemy's day be fair and clear,

We may hope for a prosperous autumn that year.

Sancti Bartholomaei autumnus imitatur.

St Bartholomew shortens our afternoons. Poland.

26. (St Lissander.)

In the north of Italy the peasants believe that it always rains
on this day, and call the saint to whom it is dedicated
*' The Waterer, or Water-carrier j " hence the proverb,

San Lissander daquarol,

O che'l piov o che'l se dol.

28. (St Augustine.)
Sant Augustin, taca tacon Venetia :
i.e., On St Augustine's day darn your clothes (in preparation

'for winter).

126 SEPTEMBER.

SEPTEMBER.

Warm.

Quand la cigale chante en Septembre
N'achete pas de ble pour le revendre. Gard.

The Italian proverb is similar, viz. :
Se canta la sigala de Setember
No compra gra de vender. Milan.

Septembre est le mai d'automne. Aube.

Bain.

September Regen
Fur Saat und Reben
Dem Bauer gelegen.

Wind.

September, blow soft,
Till the fruit 's in the loft.

Thunder.

Thunder in September signifieth the same year
great wind, plenty of corn, and much falling out
between man and man. Book of Knowledge.

General.

Setember

Fosset semper Brescia :

i.e., Would it were ever September.

Lorsque beaucoup d'e'toiles filent en Septembre,
Les tonneaux sont alors trop petits en Novembre.
Haute Loire.

DAYS IN SEPTEMBER. 12?

O Setember el porta i pont,
O el siiga tilt de cap a fond Milan :
i.e., September either carries away bridges, or else dries up
everything high and low.

Fools grow fat in September Sardinia :
Because the wise husbandman has so much to do in this
month.

DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.

1. (SS. Giles and Lupus.)
S. Egidius serenus 4 hebd. serenat. Bucelinus.

Wie der Sanct Egidi'tag
So der ganze Monat mag. "

Wie der Hirsch in die Brunst tritt (on S. Giles's
day), so tritt er wieder heraus (on Michaelmas
day.)

In Venerem rapitur lascivo corpore cervus,
Egidi, quando lux tua, Sancte, fuit.
Turn quoque si Phoebus splendet, fit copia vini,
Et secum autumnus commoda multa trahit. -
Buckler.

1st zu Egidi ein heller Tag

Ich dir einen guten Herbst versag'.

About Aix la Chapelle the country people consider that cold
weather begins on this day ; and have a proverb,

Um Sanct Gillis geht Kaiser Karl nach dem
Winterquartier, um Christi Himmelfahrt kommt
er wieder heraus.

128 DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.

In Picardy they say', because the evenings become longer :
Al Saint Leu

El lampe och' cleu ; i.e., on the nail.
The Russians calls this day "The carrier-away of summer."

3. (St Gregory the Great.)
A la Saint Gre'goire
II faut tailler la vigne pour boire. Charente.

Os pouvons r'mercier Saint Gregoire,

Os avons du mau, os n'n'aurons coire. Picardy.

7. Au septieme Septembre seme ton ble,
Car ce jour vaut du fumier :

Seme tes ble's a la Saint Maurice (Sept. 22),

Tu en auras a ton caprice :

Seme a la Saint Denis (Oct. 9),

Tu contempleras tes semis. Cote d' Or.

8. (Nativity of B. V. M.)

Wie das Wetter an Maria Geburt, so soil es vier
WocKen bleiben. Swabia.

An Maria Geburt

Fliegen die Schwalben furt.

9. (St Gorgonius.)

Se fa bel el di de San Gorgon
Per quaranta di 1'e bel e bon Milan :
i.e., If it is fine on St Gorgonius's day it will continue fine
for forty days.

Se piove da San Gorgon
Sete brentane e un brentanon Venice:
" Brentana " means a flooding of the Brenta.

DAYS IN SEPTEMBER. 129

Se piove per San Gorgonio
Tutto Fottobre 1'e un demonio Tuscany :
i.e., If it rain on St Gorgonius's day, October will prove
a demon.

15. (StNicetas.)

On S. Nicetas the wild geese fly away (a sign of
the approach of winter). Russia.

"The weather," says Forster, "is at least six times out of
seven, fine on this day."

17. (St Lambert.)
Saint Lambert pluvieux
Neuf jours dangereux. Aisne.

Ch'est aujourd'hui Saint Lambert,
Qui quitte ess' plache el' perd. Nord.

21. (St Matthew.)
1st Matthai hell und klar,
Hoff du viel Wein auf s nachste Jahr. Palatinate.

Quand il pleut a la Saint Matthieu
Fais coucher tes vaches et tes bceufs. Haute
Loire.

Wenn Matthaus weint statt lacht,
Er aus dem Weine Essig macht.

Mathies

Macht die Weimer, i.e. grapes, siiss. Tyrol.

Tritt Matthaus sturmisch ein
Wird's bis Ostern Winter kein.

In Italy they consider the fine sunny weather to be now at
an end thus :

130 DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.

Dop el di de San Mate

Poch bei di te vedare Milan :

i.e., After St Matthew you will not see many fine days.

And so in England we say :
St Matthee,
Shut up the bee.

And the Germans :
An Matthai
Die Miitze liber die Ohren zieh

St Matthew,

Get candlesticks new.

22. (St Maurice.)

Wenn es an Mauritius klares Wetter ist, so sollen
im nachsten Winter viele Winde tosen. Suabia.

29. St Michael and all Angels : St Cyriacus (in

the Calendar of the Greek Church).
If Michaelmas-day be fine, the sun will shine much
in the winter, though the wind at north-east will
frequently reign long and be sharp and nipping.
Shepherd's Kalendar.

Quand le vent est au nord le jour de la Saint Michel,
Le mois d'Octobre est sec. Vendee.

A San Michel

El calor el va sii in ciel Milan :

i.e., On Michaelmas-day the heat ascends (leaves us).

Se 1'Arcangiol se bagna i al
El vor piov fina a Nadal :

i.e.. If the Archangel wet his wing, it will rain up to
Christmas.

DAYS IN SEPTEMBER. 131

Pluie de Saint Michel

Soit devant ou derriere, elle ne demeure au ciel.

Regen am Sanct Michaelistag lasst, ohne Gewitter,
einen milden Winter : mit Gewitter, viel Wind
erwarten.

Regnet's am Michaelis- und am Gallus-Tage (Oct.
1 6) nicht, so rechnet man auf ein trockenes
Friihjahr.

On St Cyriacus the cold begins; on St Mary's
day in the winter (Nov. 9) it has set in.
Russia.

A la Saint Michel on cueille chaque fruit.

A Michaelmas rot
Comes ne'er in the pot.

At Michaelmas time or a little before,

Half an apple goes to the core :

At Christmas time or a little after,

A crab in the hedge and thanks to the grafter.

Wenn der Wein vor Michaeli erfriert, soil er im
nachsten Mai wieder erfrieren.

Sanct Michaeliswein
Siisser Wein, Herrenwein.
See also on June 25 and Oct. 16.

Entre Saint Mitcheou et Saint Frances (Oct. 4)
Prend ta vendoumiou taou ques, t.e., telle qu'elle

est,
A Saint Denys pren la si ly. Hautes Alpes.

132 DAYS IN SEPTEMBER.

Der Michel keinen Tischwein schafft,
Wenn Felix (Jan. 14) nicht gluckhaft,
Wenn dieses nicht kann sein,
So bringt Gallus sauern Wein. Suabia.

Willst du sehen, wie das Jahr gerathen soil,

So merke folgende Lehre gar wohl :

Nimm wahr den Eichapfel um Michaelistag,

An welchem irian das Jahr erkennen mag :

Haben sie Spinnen, so folgt kein gutes Jahr ;

Haben sie Fliegen, so zeigt's ein Mitteljahr, fiir-

wahr :

Haben sie Maden, so wird das Jahr gut ;
1st nichts darin, so halt der Tod die Hut.
Sind die Eichapfel friih und sehr viel,
So schau, was der Winter verrichten will.
Mit vielem Schnee kommt er vor Weihnachten,
Darnach magst du grosse Kalt' betrachten.
Sind die Eichapfel ganz schon innerlich.
So folgt ein reicher schoner Sommer sicherlich :
Werden sie innerlich nass erfunden,
Thut einen nassen Sommer bekunden :
Sind sie mager, so wird der Sommer heiss,
Das sei dir gesagt mit allem Fleiss. Wurtemburg.

And we find in ' The Husbandman's Practice, or Prognosti-
cation for ever,' the following prognostication, almost
identical with the preceding :

" If thou wilt see and know how it will go that
year, then take heed of the Oak-apples about
S. Michael's day, for by them you shall know
how that year shall be : If the Apples of the

DAYS IN SEPTEMBER. 133

Oak-trees when they be cut be within full of
spiders, then followeth a naughty year; if the
Apples have within them Flies, that betokens a
meetly good year ; if they have Maggots in them,
then followeth a good year if there be nothing
in them, then followeth a great Dearth; if the
Apples be many, and early, ripe, so shall it be
an early Winter, and very much snow shall be
afore Christmas, and after that it shall be cold :
if the inner part or kernel be fair and clear, then
shall the Summer be fair/ and Corn good also ;
but if they be very moist, then shall the Summer
also be moist ; if they be lean, then shall there
be a hot and dry Summer."

So many days old the moon is on Michaelmas-
day, so many floods after.

The Michaelmas moon
Rises nine nights alike soon.

The nearest moon to the autumnal equinox is called "the
Harvest Moon," rising nearer to the same time each
succeeding night, at this time of year, than it does at any
other. It has received its cognomen in autumn only, on
account probably of its use to the farmers, when pressed
for time with the ingathering of the harvest.

In South Germany the country people believe that the wind
blowing on this day from six A. M. to six P. M. prognosti-
cates the character of the winds for the ensuing year, each
hour answering to a month : e.g., the wind in March would
be in the quarter in which it was between eight and
nine A. M.

134 OCTOBER.

OCTOBER.

In Lombardy the peasants always expect a few fine
days towards the middle of this month, which they
call "L'esta de Santa Teresa" i.e., St Teresa's
summer, because the festival of that saint falls
on the 1 5th; and the warm weather which we
so often experience at this season, is in almost
every European country known by the name of
summer. Thus the Germans call it the "Alt-
weiber Sommer," or the summer of St Gall (Oct.
1 6), or "of St Martin" (Nov. n) : the Swedes
give it the title of St Bridget's Summer (S.
Bridget's day being Oct. 8) : the Bohemians,
" the Summer of St Wenceslaus " (Sept. 28) ;
the Belgians, " St Michael's Summer : " our own
country people " St Luke's little Summer ; " and
the French, " L'&e' de Saint Denis" (Oct. 9.)
The Americans call it, "The Indian Summer."
The Friday before the ist of October is called in
Belgium " Koude Vrydag," cold Friday.

Cold.

Viel Frost und Schnee im Oktober deutet auf milde
Witterung im Winter.

Warm.

Ist der Weinmond warm und fein,
Kommt ein scharfer Winter hinterdrein.

Stormy.

The Poles and Bohemians, as well as the Germans, say
Gewitter im Oktober lassen einen unbestandigen
Winter envarten.

OCTOBER. 135

Wind,

Good October, a good blast

To blow the hogs acorns and mast.

Thunder.

Thunder in October signifieth the same year great
wind, and scantiness of corn, fruits, and trees.
Book of Knowledge.

General.

Der Oktober muss zwolf schone Tage aufweisen,
wie der Marz.

If foxes bark in October, they are calling up a great
fall of snow. Luxemburg.

If in the fall of the leaf in October, many leaves
wither on the boughs and hang there, it betokens
a frosty winter and much snow. Shepherd's
Kalendar.

Exactly corresponding with which is the German proverb
Sitzt das Laub im Oktober noch fest auf den
Baumen, so deutet das auf einen strengen Winter

Dry your barley in October,

Or you'll always be sober.

Because if this is not done there will be no malt.

Quand Octobre prend sa fin
La Toussaint est an matin.

October and February.

Warmer Oktober bringt kalten Februar.

136 DAYS IN OCTOBER.

DAYS IN OCTOBER.

1. (St Mary the Intercessor.)

On the feast of St Mary the Intercessor, expect the
first frosts. Russia.

2. (St Leodegarius.)
Fallt das Laub auf Leodegar,

50 ist der nachste ein fruchtbar Jahr. Palatinate.

4. (St Francis of Assisi.)
Seme le jour de Saint Francois,
Ton grain aura du poids.

6. (St Bruno.)

Le ble, seme' le jour de Saint Bruno, devient noir.
Calvados.

9. (St Denis, or Dionysius.)
Regarde bien auparavant
Et apres Saint Denis les jours,
Car si tu vois qu'il gele blanc
Les vieux assurent que toujours
Le semblable temps tu revois
Avant et apres Saint Croix. Calendrier des bons

Laboureiirs.

51 le temps est clair le jour de Saint Denis, 1'hiver
sera rigoureux. Cher.

Ou le vent couche a la Saint Denis, il y reste les
trois quarts de Fannee.

Le jour de Saint Denis

Le vent se marie a minuit. Calvados.

DAYS IN OCTOBER. 137

A la Saint Denis

La bonne semerie. Eure et Loire.

14. (St Calixtus.)

If St Calixtus's day be dry and windy, the winter
will be wet : but if it be rainy and still, the
harvest will be good. Sardinia.

15. (St Theresa.)
L'esta de Santa Teresa

A tanti rob el fa la spesa Milan :
See in "October."

Per Santa Teresa
Prepara la tesa. Bergamo.

At this season bird- snaring begins.

16. (St Callus.)
Am Sanct Gallustag

Den Nachsommer man erwarten mag :
But in some parts of Germany they say
Sanct Gall en
Lasst den Schnee fallen :

And

Nach Sanct Gall
Bleibt die Kuh im Stall.

Se fa bel la festa de San Gal,
El & bel fina a Nadal Bergamo :
i.e., If it is fine on St Gall's day, it will be fine up to Christ-
mas.

Ein trockener Sanct Gallustag verkiindet einen
trockenen Sommer.

138 DAYS IN OCTOBER.

De San Gal,

Goja i bo, e no fa fal.

i.e., On St Gall's day, be sure to yoke the oxen (for plough-
ing).

Sanct Galliwein Bauernwein :
See Sept. 29 and June 24.

Auf Sanct Gallitag

Muss jeder Apfel in seinen Sack. Suabia.

17. (St Cerbonius.)

Le jour de Saint Cerbonnet les pretres prennent le
camail et serrent le bonnet carre (because of the
cold).

18. (StLuke.)

Qu'on ploou per sen Luc a la sogno,
L'aigo es neou soubre la montagno Lozlre :
i.e., Lorsqu'il pleut dans le vallon le jour de Saint Luc,
L'eau qui tombe est neige sur la montagne.

Da San Luca

El ton va in zuca Brescia :

i.e., At St Luke's day the thunder goes into the gourds, i.e.
goes away.

A la Saint Lu

Seme dru

Ou ne seme plus. Picardy.

An Sanct Lucas spann die Ochsen an sei es nass
oder trocken.

Por San Lucas

Mata tus puercos y tapa tas cubas Spain :

i.e., At St Luke's day kill your pigs and bung up your

barrels.

DAYS IN OCTOBER. 139

Da San Luca

Chi no ga semena se speluca Venetia :
i.e., He who has not sown by St Luke's day, tears his hair
(for sorrow).

St Luke's little summer.

On St Luke's day
The oxen may play.

Up to St Luke's day put your hands where you
like : after it, keep them in your pockets.
Servia.

21. (St Ursula.)
Sanct Ursula's Beginn

Zeigt auf den Winter hin. Austria.

22. (StVallier.)
A la Saint Vallier

La charrue sous le poirier :

La Toussaint venue

Quitte la charrue. Cakndrier des bons Labour eurs.

28. (SS. Simon and Jude.)
Considered by many to be the first day of winter. Thus we

find

Sanct Simon eta Juda
Negua eldu da Basque :
i.e., On SS. Simon and Jude's day winter comes in.

On SS. Simon and Jude winter approaches at a
gentle trot. Gallicia.

On SS. Simon and Jude the clods become hard;

Poland.
Simeon und Juda
Hangt an die Stauden Schnee. Suabia.

140 DAYS IN OCTOBER.

Festa dies Judae prohibet te incedere nude,
Sed vult ut corpus vestibus omne tegas.

Festa dies Judae quum transiit atque Simonis
In foribus nostris esse putatur hiems Buckler :
And

Simonis Judae post festum vae tibi nude !

Tune inflant genti mala gaudia veste carenti.

This day was accounted rainy by our ancestors as
well as St Swithin's, for in the old play of the
Roaring Girls occurs the following passage, " As
well as I know 'twill rain upon Simon and Jude's
day." And again, " Now a continual Simon and
Jude's rain beat all your feathers as flat down
as pancakes." And we learn from Holinshed
that, in 1536, when a battle was appointed to
have been fought upon this day, between the
king's troops and the rebels, in Yorkshire, so great
a quantity of rain fell upon the eve thereof as to
prevent the battle from taking place. Brand.

Simon und Juda

1st kein Regen da,

Bringt ihn erst Cacilia (November 22). Suabia.

Per San Simon

Se cascia via el ceston :

/.<?., On St Simon's day we throw the sickle away.

A la Saint Simon

line mouche vaut un pigeon. Marne.

31.

Le vent soufflera les trois quarts de Tanne'e

comme il souffle la veille de la Toussaint.
Somme.

DAYS IN NOVEMBER. 141

NOVEMBER.

Cold.

If there's ice in November that will bear a duck,
There'll be nothing after but sludge and muck.

Thunder.

Thunder in November signifieth that same year to
be fruitful and merry, and cheapness of corn.
Book of Knowledge.

Quand en Novembre il a tonne
L'hiver est avorte. Calvados.

Donnert's im November, so giebt's in nachsten
Jahre viel Getreide.

General.

November, take flail,

Let ships no more sail. Tusser.

DAYS IN NOVEMBER.

1. (All Saints day.)

In some parts of Germany there is a proverb,
" All Saints day brings the second summer :"

While, as regards its length, they say that,
" All Saints summer lasts three hours, three days,

or three weeks : "
And in Sweden there is often about this time a continuance

of warm still weather which is called,
"The All Saint's rest."

142 DAYS IN NOVEMBER.

In Shakespeare's 1st King Henry IV. act I, scene 2, Prince
Henry, likening Falstaff with his old age and young
passions to this November summer, thus addresses him :

" Farewell, thou latter spring ; farewell, thou All
Hallow'n summer."

But still, in spite of the traditional mildness of this season,
there are many proverbs which speak of the near approach
of winter. Thus

a. On All Saints day there is snow on the ground.

b. Alle Heiligen sehen sich nach dem Winter um.

c. Aller Hilgen,

Sit de Winter up den Tilgen. Holstein.

d. A Agnissanti

Manicotto e guanti Tuscany :
i.e., At All Saints take muff and gloves.

Se i Sant i troa '1 temp rot, lur i le giosta :
Ma se i le troa bu, i le disgiosta :
i.e., If All Saints find the weather disturbed, they settle
it ; but if they find it fine they unsettle it.

On All Saints day, cut off some of the bark from a
beech-tree, and after that, a chip or a little piece
of wood : cut it : if it be dry, then the ensuing
winter will be dry, but pretty warm and temper-
ate ; if moist, a wet winter Shepherd 's Kalendar :
With which corresponds the old German saying,

Am Allerheiligentag' geh' in den Wald, und haue
einen Span aus einer Birke : ist er trocken, wird
der Winter kalt : ist er nass, so wird er feucht.

On the first of November, if the weather hold

clear,
An end of wheat-sowing do make for the year.

DAYS IN NOVEMBER. 143

A la Toussaint les ble's seme's

Et tous les fruits series. Enre et Loire.

All Saints and All Souls.
Se i Sant i le disgiosta,
I Mort sobet i le giosta Lombardy :
i.e., If All Saints unsettle the weather, All Souls set it to
rights again.

All Saints and Christmas.

Tel Toussaint tel Noel. Am.

Entre Toussaint et Noel ne peut trop pleuvoir ne
venter.

All Saints and Candlemas.

Set trees at All Hallo'ntide, and command them to
prosper : set them after Candlemas, and entreat
them to grow.

' ' This Dr Beal allegeth as an old English and Welch proverb
concerning apple and pear trees, oak and hawthorn
quicks : though he is of Mr Reed's opinion, that it is best
to remove fruit-trees in the spring, rather than the winter."
RAY.

2. (All Souls day.)
If it rain on this day the Dalmatians say,
" The dead are weeping."

8. St Michael the Archangel (in the Calendar

of the Greek Church).

If St Michael binds (with ice), St Nicholas (Dec.
6) will loose. Russia.

11. (St Martin.)
St Martin's little summer See on Oct. i :

So we find in 1st King Henry VI., act I, scene 2,
" Expect St Martin's summer, halcyon days."

144 DAYS IN NOVEMBER.

L'estat de San Marti

El dura tri de e'n pocheti Bergamo :

i.e., S. Martin's summer lasts three days and a bit.

II fait beau de semer son grain

Quand est beau I'e'te de la Saint Martin. Charente.

Se a San Martin el su va gib in bissacca

Vend el pan e tegn la vacca :

E se '1 va gib seren

Vend la vacca e tegnet el fen Milan :

i.e., If on St Martin's day the sun set behind clouds, sell

your bread and keep the cow : but if it set in a clear

sky, sell the cow and keep your hay.

With which may be compared,
Si sol clarus obit Martino, nunciat acrem
Atque molestam hiemem : si nubilus, aera mitem
Indicat hibermim : dant haec prognostica natis
Pastores ovium, quum seria fantur ad ignem.

Buckler.

La pleine lune a la Saint Martin donne abondance
de neige. Vosges.

Wenn auf Martini Nebel sind
So wird der Winter ganz gelind.

If the wind is in the south-west at Martinmas, it
remains there till after Candlemas.

Se gh'e vent a San Marti
Per tot Tan gh'e 'n pochi Bergamo :
i.e., If there is wind on St Martin's day, it may blow the
whole year and a bit more.

'Tween Martinmas and Yule,
Water's wine in every pool. Scotland.

DAYS IN NOVEMBER. 145

Young and old must go clad at Martinmas.

A San Martin

Met la legna siil camin Milan :

i.e., On St Martin's day lay wood on the hearth.

At S. Martin's day
Winter is on his way.

Compare the French proverb,
Si 1'hiver va droit son chemin,
Vous 1'aurez a Saint Martin :
S'il n'arrete tant ne quant

Vous 1'aurez a la Saint Clement (November 23) :
Et s'il trouve quelqu 5 encombree,
Vous 1'aurez a la Saint Andre (November 30) :
Mais s'il allait ce ne say, ne 1'ay,
Vous 1'aurez en Avril ou Mai. Calendrier des bons

Laboureurs.

Here comes St Martin on his white horse, i.e.
bringing snow. Bohemia.

Wenn das Brustbein an der gebratenen Martinsgans
braun ist, sol es mehr Schnee als Kalte bedeuten ;
wenn es aber weiss ist, mehr Kalte als Schnee.

The fatted goose which is eaten in England on Michaelmas
day always appears at tables on the Continent at Martin-
mas. Stukely, Iter. vi. 131, speaking of Martinsall Hill,
adds in a note : " St Martin's day, in the Norway Clogs,
is marked with a goose : for on that day they always
feasted with a roasted goose : they say that St Martin,
being elected to a bishopric, hid himself, but was dis-
covered by that animal."

" The festival of St Martin occurring when geese are in high
season, is always celebrated with a voracity the more
eager, as it happens on the eve of the ' petit careme, '
K

146 DAYS IN NOVEMBER.

when fowls could no longer be presented on the tables of
a religious age. A German monk, Martin Schock, has
made it a case of conscience whether, even on the eve of
the little Lent, it be allowable to eat goose : ' An liceat
Martinalibus anserem comedere.' " FORSTER. (It may
be observed that the casuist decides in the affirmative.)

In wine countries the new wines are first tasted on this day,
and the memory of the Saint is celebrated with carousing.
Hence the proverbs,

A la Saint Martin

Bois le bon vin,

Et laisse 1'eau pour le moulin. Tarn et Garonne^

Festum Martini propinat pocula vini.

Per San Martin,

Se spina la bote del bon vin. Milan.

Da San Martin

Se tasta '1 vin. Venetia.

A la Saint Martin
Faut gouter le vin :
Notre Dame apres

Pour boire il est pres. Calendrier des bons Labou-
reurs.

13. (St Homobonus.)

A Sant Omobu

Toe i strass i sa de bu. Bergamo :

i.e., At St Homobonus all rags are good for something (be-
cause of the cold).

23. (St Clement.)
L'inverna a San Clement
El cascia on dent :
i.e., On St Clement's day winter sheds a tooth (begins to

make itself felt).

DAYS IN NOVEMBER. 147

Passe la Saint Clement
Ne seme plus froment.

25. (St Catherine.)
" St Catherine," say the Belgians, "by showing a bright face,

often stops the long rains of autumn. " And they have an

old song,
Sinte Katelyne
Laet het zonnyken schynen,
Laet den Regen overgaen,
Dat myn Kinderkens schole gaen.
Wie zal him leeren ?
Onze Lieven heere !
Wie zal ze trouwen ?
Onze lieve Vrouwe !
Wie zal him te eten geven ?
Sinte Pieter de goede man,
Die alle kinderen geesselen kan.

But this saint often brings snow and cold weather, as the

French proverb says,
Saint Catherine vient blanc habille'e.

So, too, we find,

Katharinenwinter Plackwinter :
i.e., St Catherine's winter is a plaguy winter.

When St Catherine comes we have to toast our
shins before the fire. Wallachia.

Santa Catarina

La porta el sach de la farina Milan :

i.e., St Catherine carries the flour-bag (snow.)

Per Santa Catarina

La nev a la collina Tuscany :

i.e., On St Catherine's day the snow lies on the hills.

148 DAYS IN NOVEMBER.

A Sainte Catherine fais moudre ton ble. Hautes
Alpes.

Siinte Katherin

Smitt den ersten Sten innen Rhin ;
Siinte Gerderut

Tiiht 'ne wi' er herut Cologne :

i.e., Saint Catherine throws the first stone, i.e. freezes, into
the Rhine ; St Gertrude takes it out again.

Wie Sanct Kathrein

Wird's Neujahr sein. Austria.

A Sante Catherine, fai ta farine,
Sant Andre* viendra, tapara lou vala, i.e. qui arretera
le cours du canal.

A la Sainte Catherine
Tout bois prend racine.

30. (St Andrew.)
Andrehs

Brangk da kahle Frehs, i.e. brings the cold frosts.
Andreas Schnee
Thut dem Korn weh,
Er ist aber ein besserer Trost,
Als Regen und Blachfrost. Wurzburg.

Sunten Dresmisse
Es de Winter gevvisse,
Klasken derna

Siiht me'ne vor alien Duoren stan Westphalia :
i.e., On the feast of St Andrew it is winter, of a truth : after-
wards, on St Nicholas day, we see it before all our doors.

DECEMBER. 149

A Sant Andrea ol fred

Al s'fa conoss a i let Bergamo :

i.f., On St Andrew's day we feel the cold even in bed.

Andreas hell und klar
Bringt ein gutes Jahr.

If on St Andrew's day in the evening, much dew
or wet remains on the grass, it betokens a wet
season to follow : if dry, the contrary. Shep-
herd 's Kalendar.

On St Andrew's day

The night is twice as long as the day.

Saint Andre, Andrea,

Que n'es venu, que ne venas

A Toussaint, comme el' zautes Picardy :

In Belgium, as well as in Germany and Bohemia, a singular
custom prevails among the country people, by which they
profess to be able to foretell the weather of the ensuing
year. On the evening before St Andrew's day, they fill
a glass brimful with water and let it stand all night.
If any of the water has run over by morning, a wet year
is expected, but if, on the other hand, none has escaped,
a dry season is considered as certain to follow.

This mode of divination was also practised by our ancestors.
It is mentioned in a curious old work in my possession,
entitled * The Husbandman's Practice, or Prognostication
for ever,' p._86.

DECEMBER.

Cold.

Dezember Kalt, mit Schnee,
Giebt Korn auf jeder Hoh'.

ISO DECEMBER.

Decembre davanti te scalda e dadrio t'incende.
Venice.

December, gran torment,

Denanz te giazza e dedre '1 te offend Milan :

i.e., That torment December ! when he first comes, he

freezes us : and when he leaves us, he is still plaguing

us (with cold).

Thunder.

Si i tonne in Decembre

L'hiver est corrompu, i.e. manque. Nord.

Thunder in December presages fair weather.

Thunder in December signifieth that same year
cheapness of corn and wheat, with peace and
accord among the people. Book of Knowledge.

General.

December el to e nol rend Milan :
i.e., December takes away everything and returns nothing.
Because in this month much fodder is used, while. none is
produced.

Le mois de 1'Avent

Est de pluie et de vent. Aveyron.

December and January.

December's frost and January's flood
Never boded the husbandman's good.

Advent.

La neou des Abens
A longues ddns. Haute Garonne.

De T bruen dins ch's Avints,

Sene d' boco d' pins, i.e. pommes. Nord.

DAYS IN DECEMBER. 151

Dans 1'Avent, le temps chaud
Remplit caves et tonneaux. Am.

Quand les Avents sont sees, Tanne'e sera abondante.
Vosges.

Dins 1'Avints de Noue

I'n peut trop pluvoir ni vinter.

DAYS IN DECEMBER.

2. (St Bibiana.)
Se '1 piov a Santa Bibiana
El piov quaranta di e ona setimana Milan :
i.e., If it rain on St Bibiana's day, it will rain for forty days

and a week.

4. (St Barbara.)

On St Barbara's day put the scythe away for the
winter. Lithuania.

Barbara makes bridges (of ice) ; Sara (Dec. 5)
sharpens the nails, and Nicolas (Dec. 6) drives
them in. Russia.

6. (St Nicolas.)

Si yver estoit oultre la mer si viendra il a Saint
Nicolas parler.

St Nicolas washes the river-banks Bohemia :
Because wet weather often occurs at this season.

St Nicolas in winter sends the horses to the stable;
St Nicolas in spring (May 9) makes them fat.
Russia.

152 DAYS IN DECEMBER.

8. (Immaculate conception of B. V. M.)
Nostro Damo des Abens
Plexos et be'ns, i.e. pluie et vents,
Et bounetos sur les dens. Tarn.

11. (The fourteen Halcyon days (" Alcyonii
dies " in the Roman Calendar) began to-day.)
" The fact, on which they founded their existence, was the
calm weather which at this time of year on the shores
of the Mediterranean usually succeeds the blustering
winds of the end of autumn. The reason why these
days were called Halcyon or Alcyon requires some
further explanation. Alcyone was the daughter of
yEolus ; she was married to Ceyx, who was drowned
as he was going to Claros to consult the oracle. The
gods apprised Alcyone in a dream of her husband's fate ;
and when she found, on the morrow, his body washed
on the sea-shore, she threw herself into the sea, and was
with her husband changed into birds of the same name,
who keep the waters calm and serene, while they build
and sit on their nests on the surface of the sea, for the
space of seven, eleven, or fourteen days." FOR-
STER.

Non tepidi ad solem pennas in littore pandunt
Dilectae Thetidi alcyones. Georg., I. 339.
And see under " Kingfisher," in Prognostics from Birds.

13. (St Lucy.)

If St Lucy's day be bright, Christmas day will be
dark with snow ; but if the snow fall on St Lucy,
Christmas will be clear and sunny. Sardinia.

In the old Calendar this was the shortest day of the year.

Hence the proverbs,
Lucy Light,
The shortest day and the longest night.

DAYS IN DECEMBER. 153

Sanct Lucen

Macht den Tag stutzen.

Santa Lucia

La note piu longa che sia Veuetia :

i.e., St Lucy has the longest night.

Santa Lucia,

II piu corto di che sia Tuscany :

i.e., St Lucy has the shortest day.

Lengthening of the day.

Siinter Luzigge

Got dai Dage to digge Westphalia :

i.e., On St Lucy's day the days begin to lengthen.

A la Sainte Luce

Le jour croist le saut d'une puce.

Da Santa Liizia a Nadal

On pas d'iin gal :

E da Nadal a Pasqueta

I giornat cressen n'oreta Bergamo :

i.e., From St Lucy to Christmas the days lengthen by a

cock's stride ; and from Christmas to Epiphany by

nearly an hour.

A Santa Liizia

El fred el pia Milan :

i.e., On St Lucy's day the cold is biting.

" On this day," says Brand, "prognostications of the months
were drawn for the whole year."

13-24.

The twelve days which precede Christmas are called
in some parts of France "jours compteurs,"

154 DAYS IN DECEMBER.

because they are supposed to represent, month
by month, the weather of the ensuing year.

21. (St Thomas.)
St Thomas grey, St Thomas grey,
The longest night and shortest day.

If it freezes on the shortest day of the year, the
price of corn will fall ; if it be mild weather, it
will go up. Belgium.

A la Saint Thomas

Les jours sont au plus bas.

In Picardy there is a proverb, referring to the lengthening of
the days,

Al Saint Thomas
Du seuf d'un cat :

Au Noe
Du saut d'un beaudet :

Au bon an
D'un pas de sergent :

Aux Rois
On s'en appergoit :

Al candelee (Feb. 2)
A toute allee.

Da San Tomio

Le zornae torna indrio Venice :

i.e., After St Thomas's day the days begin to lengthen.

Sant Tomme,

Cresce il di quanto il gallo abza un pie Tuscany :
i.e., On St Thomas's day the day lengthens by as much as a
cock raises his foot.

Look at the weathercock on St Thomas's day at

DAYS IN DECEMBER. 155

1 2 o'clock, and see which way the wind is ;
there it will stick for the next three months.

24. (SS. Adam and Eve.)

Wie die Witterung an Adam und Eva, so bleibt sie
bis Ende des Monats, und auch wohl im nachsten
Jahr, nass oder trocken. Saxony.

25. (Christmas day.)
Cold.

Da Nadal,
Un fredo coral :
De la vecchia

Un fredo che se crepa Venetia :
i.e., At Christmas the cold is piercing : at Epiphany it is
perishing.

Wenn de hillige Christ en Briigge find't, so brickt
he se, um find't he keene, so maakt he eene
Holstein :

i.e., If the holy Christ finds a bridge (of ice), he breaks it; if
he does not find one, he makes one.

Warm.

A green Christmas makes a fat churchyard.
Wintert's vor Weihnachten nicht, so wintert's nach.

It is better to have the plague, than a south wind
on Christmas day. Servia.

Wet.

Le jour de Noel humide
Donne grenier et tonneau vides. Moselle.

Weihnachten nass,
Leere Speicher und Fass.

156 DAYS IN DECEMBER.

Bright Sun.

" If the sun shines clear and bright on Christmas
day, it promises a peaceful year, free from
clamours and strife, and foretells much plenty
to ensue ; but if the wind blow stormy towards
sunset, it betokens sickness in the spring and
autumn quarters." Shepherd's Kalendar.

If the sun shines through the apple-trees on Christ-
mas day, there will be an abundant crop the
following year.

Moon.

" When Christmas day cometh while the moon
waxeth, it shall be a very good year, and the
nearer it cometh to the new moon, the better
shall that year be. If it cometh when the
moon decreaseth, it shall be a hard year, and
the nearer the latter end thereof it cometh, the
worse and harder shall the year be." Husband-
man 's Practice.

" Le jour de Noel, si la lune luit pour aller a la
messe de minuit et pour en revenir, il y aura
pleine annee de pommes; si elle n'e'claire que
pour aller ou revenir, il y aura seulement demi-
annee ; il n'y aura rien si elle n'eclaire pas du
tout." Manche.

Cum Luna crescente redit natalis Jesu,
Annus consequitur fertilitate bonus ;

Sin redit ut minui patitur sibi cornua Luna,
Anno sunt mala non pauca ferenda novo.

DAYS IN DECEMBER. 157

Finstere heilige Nacht, lichte Heustadl : mond-
lichte heilige Nacht, dunkle Heustadl. Tyrol

1st die Christnacht hell und klar
Folgt ein hochst gesegnet Jahr.

God forbid that Christmas should be bright, and
S. George's night be dark. Servia.

A dark Christmas foretells that cows will give much
milk: a bright Christmas, that hens will lay
well. Russia ; Bohemia.

Weihnachten klar,
Gutes Weinjahr.

Noel sans lune

De cent brebis il n'en restera pas une.

But on the other hand,
A black Christmas, a heavy sheaf.

And

Quan Nadaou es a 1'escuragno
Forgo blat a la campagno :
Quan Nadaou ds a la claretat
Forgo garbo, paou de blat.

i.e., Quand Noel est dans Tobscurite
Beaucoup de ble dans les champs :
Quand Noel est e'claire
Beaucoup de paille et peu de ble.

General Prognostics.

Si pour la Noel a ton souper,

Le bout de la chandelle n'a pas courbe,

II y aura maigre recolte en ble. Vaucluse.

"The wise and cunning masters in astrology have found, that

158 DAYS IN DECEMBER.

men may see and mark the weather of the holy Christ-
mas night, how the whole year after shall be in his work-
ing and doing, and they shall speak on this wise :

" When on the Christmas night and evening it is
very fair and clear weather, and is without wind
and rain, then it is a token that this year will be
plenty of wine and fruite.

" But if the contrariwise, foul weather and windy,
so shall it be very scant of wine and fruite.

" But if the wind arise at the rising of the sun, then
it betokeneth great dearth among beasts and
cattle this year.

" But if the wind arise at the going down of the
same, then it signifieth death to come among
kings and other great lords." Husbandman's
Practice.

Christmas to Epiphany.

If it rain much during the twelve days after Christ-
mas, it will be a wet year.

Wenn's von Weihnacht bis heilige drei Konige
neblig und dunkel ist, werden viel Krankheiten
im Jahre sein. Rhine.

11 When on Christmas even at midnight, the wind
waxeth still, it betokeneth a fruitful year ; when
on the twelfth day afore day, it is somewhat
windy, that betokeneth great plenty of oil.

" When the sun on the twelfth day in the morning
doth shine, that betokeneth foul weather. In
the beginning it is never steadfast weather, for
the months go all one through another the same
day. If it be fair weather that day, it is happy

DAYS IN DECEMBER. 159

and fortunate. The sixth day after the first day, is
the last day, so that the first is last, and that in
the six days every day leaveth behind him two
months.

" Also that the second day leaveth February afore
noon, and January at the afternoon, and so forth
do all the other days." Husbandman 's Practice.

The interval between Christmas and Epiphany, comprising
twelve days, is called in some parts of France e.g., in
the department of Haute Saone " Les jours des lots."
During these twelve days the following steps are taken
to ascertain the weather of the coming year :

On Christmas day, twelve onions, each with a
pinch of salt on the top, are placed in a row :
the first in order, beginning on the left, repre-
senting the month of January, the second the
month of February, and so on.

On the Feast of Epiphany, which is the second of
the "jours des lots," the onions are examined.
If the salt on any one has melted, the month
with which it corresponds will be wet : where
the salt still remains, that month will be dry.

Les douze jours entre Noel et les Rois
Indiquent le temps des douze mois de 1'annee.

On the first day of the Lord's birth festivals, if the
sun shine, there shall be much joy among men
and abundance.

If the sun shines on the second day, then gold
shall be easy to get among the English.

If the sun shines on the third day, then shall be a

160 DAYS IN DECEMBER.

great fight among poor men, and abundant peace
between kings and powerful men.
If the sun shines on the fourth day, then the camels
shall bear off much gold from the emmets which
should guard the hoard of gold. (See Herodotus,

III. 102.)

If the sun shines on the fifth day, then shall be a

great bloom of fruit that year.
If the sun shines on the sixth day, the Lord shall

send much milk.
If the sun shines on the seventh day, then will be

a good crop on trees.
If the sun shines on the eighth day, then quicksilver

shall be easy to get.
If the sun shines on the ninth day, then God shall

send a great baptism that year.
If the sun shines on the tenth day, then shall the

sea and all rivers be well supplied with fish.
If the sun shines on the eleventh day, then shall

be a great trial of death among men.
If the sun shines on the twelfth day, men shall

be weak, and there shall be much quiet on

earth.

The above prognostications are from a MSS. Bib. Bodl.,
MS. Junius 23, fol. 148, A.D. 1120 ; quoted in *Leech-
doms, Wortcunning and Starcraft of Early England : '
edited by the Rev. O. Cockayne; and published under
direction of the Master of the Rolls.

Christmas and Epiphany.
Da Nadal,
Un fredo coral,

DAYS IN DECEMBER. l6l

De la veccia,

Un fredo che se erepa Venice :
i.e., At Christmas the cold is heart-piercing : at Epiphany-
tide it is perishing.
The Bergamese say,
A nadal
El fred fa mal,
A la Ecia
L'e 'n fred che sa crepa.

Christmas and Candlemas.

Entre Noel et la Chandeleur,

II vaut mieux voir un loup aux champs

Qu'un carton (knave) laboureur. Nord.

A windy Christmas and a calm Candlemas are
signs of a good year.

Christmas and Carnival.

Nadal nebius Carneal arius.

i.e., A cloudy Christmas a fine Carnival.

Christmas and Easter.

In weather-lore Christmas and Easter are almost inseparably

connected. Thus,
A warm Christmas a cold Easter.

A green Christmas a white Easter.
Sua, eguberris sump'urrequi ;
Pascos, aldis adarrequi Basque :
i.e., We must make up our fires at Christmas with logs, and
at Easter with branches.)

Grime Weihnacht weisse Ostern.

Weihnacht im Klee,
Ostern im Schnee.

1 62 DAYS IN DECEMBER.

Chresdag an der Diihr,
Ostern dm et Fur.

A Noel au balcon,
A Paques au tison.

A Noel les moucherons,
A Paques les glac,ons.

General Proverbs respecting Christmas.

Fina a Nadal ne fred ne fara :
De Nadal in la,
Fred e fam i se ne va :

i.e., Up to Christmas, neither cold nor hunger : after Christ-
mas, cold, hunger, and snow.

Up to Christmas, it is " Kraljewitsch Marko !" i.e.

song and dance.

After Christmas, it is " Alas, my mother ! " i.e.
weeping and sorrow. Herzegovina.

Apres grant joie vient grant ire (colere),
Et apres Noel vent bise.

Christmas day falling on the different days of
the week.

Quando Natale vien di Dominica,
Vendi la tonica per comprar la melica Tuscany :
i.e., When Christmas day falls on a Sunday, sell your coat
and buy maize (because the year will be unfruitful).

Si Noue toumbo un luns (lundi)
Qui a dous bous n'en tue'ni un ;
Si Noue es sen luno,

Qui a dous fies (brebis) n'en tueni uno. Hautes
Alpes.

DAYS IN DECEMBER. 163

Noel le jeudi c'est la famine. Gers.

The following very curious early poem (MS. Harl. 2252,

fol. 154) is given in Brand, i. 478 :
" Lordynges, I warne you ale beforne,

Yef that day that Cryste was borne

Falle uppon a Sunday,

That winter shalbe good, par fay,

But grete windes alofte shalbe,

The somer shalbe fayre and drye ;

By kynde skylle, wythowtyn lesse,

Throw all londes shalbe peas,

And good tyme all thynges to don

But he that stelythe, he shalbe fownde sone :

Whate chylde that day borne be,

A grete lorde he shalle ge, &c.

Yf Crystemas day on Monday be,

A grete wynter that year have shall ye,

And fulle of wyndes, lowde and stylle,

But the somer, trewly to telle,

Shalbe sterne wyndes also,

And fulle of tempeste all thereto ;

All batayle multiplye,

And grete plenty of beeve shall dye.

They that be borne that daye, I weene,

They shalbe stronge eche on and kene

And he that stelythe owghte :

Thow thowe be seke, thou dyeste not.

Yf Crystmas day on Tuysday be,
That year shall dyen wemen plente
And that wynter wex greter marvaylys :
Shyppys shalbe in grete perylles ;

1 64 DAYS IN DECEMBER.

That yere shall kynges and lordes be slayne,

And myche hothyr pepylle agayn heym.

A drye somer that yere shalbe ;

Alle that be borne there in may se,

They shalbe stronge and covethowse.

If thou stele awghte, thou lesyste the lyfe,

Thou shalte dye throwe swerde or knyfe ;

But and thow fall seke, sertayne,

Thou shalte turne to lyfe agayne.

Yf Crystmas day, the sothe to say,

Fall uppon a Wodnysday,

That yere shalbe an harde wynter and strong,

And many hydeus wyndes amonge :

The somer mery and good shalbe,

That year shalbe wete grete plente :

Young folke shall dye that year also,

And shyppes in the see shall have grete woo.

What childe that daye borne ys,

He shalbe dowghte and lyghte i-wysse,

And wyse and slyee also of dede,

And fynde many men mete and wede.

Yf Crystmas day on Thursday be,

A wyndy wynter see shalle yee,

Of wyndes and weders all weked.

And harde tempestes stronge and thycke.

The somer shalbe good and drye,

Cornys and bestes shall multiplye,

That yere ys good londes to tylthe,

And kynges and prynces shall dye by skylle :

What chylde that day borne bee,

Hee shalle have happe ryghte well to the,

DAYS IN DECEMBER. 165

Of dedes hee shalbe goode and stabylle,
Of speche and tonge wyse and reasonabylle :
Who so that day ony thefte abowte,
He shalbe shente wyth-owtyn dowte :
And yf sekenes on the that day betyde,
Hyt shall sone fro the glyde.
Yf Crystmas day on the Fryday be,
The fyrste of wynter harde shalbe,
With froste and snowe, and with flode,
But the laste ende thereof ys goode.
Agayn, the somer shalbe good also,
Folkes in hyr yere shall have grete woo :
Wemen wyth chyld, bestes wyth corne,
Shall multiplye, and none be borne :
The chylde that ys borne that daye,
Shall longe lyve and lecherowus be aye :
Who so stelythe awghte, he shalbe fownde,
And thow be seke, hyt lastythe not longe.
Yf Crystmas on the Saterday falle,
That wynter ys to be dredden alle,
Hyt shalbe so full of grete tempeste,
That hyt shall sle bothe man and beste,
Frute and corne shall fayle grete won,
And olde folke dyen many on :
Whate woman that day of chylde travayle,
They shalbe borne in grete perelle ;
And chyldren that be borne that day,
Within halfe a yere they shall dye, par fay ;
The somer then shall wete ryghte ylle :
If thou awghte stele, hyt shal the spylle :
Thou dyest yf sekenes take the."

1 66 DAYS IN DECEMBER.

Prognostications of the same character are to be found in
'The Book of Knowledge,' p. 2; and 'The Husband-
man's Practice,' p. 78.

26. (St Stephen.)

Blast der Wind am Stephanitag recht,

Wird der Wein auf s Jahr schlecht. Swabia.

27. (St John the Evangelist.)

1st der Johannistag dunkel, so folgt ein gutes

Jahr.

A la Saint Jean
Renouvelle 1'an.

28. (Innocents Day.)

If it be lowering or wet on Childermas Day, it
threatens scarcity and mortality among the
weaker sort of young people ; but if the day be
very fair, it promises plenty. Shepherd's Kalen-
dar.

30. (St David.)

In Belgium it is believed that a branch of elder,
placed in a jug of water on this day, will foretell
the weather of the ensuing summer and autumn.

If the buds "develop themselves and open freely, the
summer will be fruitful ; if the contrary happens,
a bad harvest is expected.

31. (St Silvester.)

Silvester Wind, friih Sonnenschein
Bringt selten einen guten Wein.

Le vent qui souffle a Tissue de la messe de minuit
sera le vent dominant de I'anne'e. Vosges.

WEATHER AND AGRICULTURAL RULES. 1 67

If New Year's Eve night wind blows south,

It betokeneth warmth and growth :

If west, much milk, and fish in the sea :

If north, much cold and storms there'll be :

If east, the trees will bear much fruit ;

If north-east, flee it man and brute Scotland:

"The Highlanders," says Pennant, Tour in Scotland, 1772,
Part II., p. 48, "form a sort of almanac, or presage of
the weather of the ensuing year, in the following manner :
They make observations on twelve days, beginning at the
last of December ; and hold as an infallible rule, that
whatsoever weather happens on each of those days, the
same will prove to agree on the corresponding months.
Thus, January is to answer to the weather of December
3 ist, February to that of January the ist, and so with the
rest. "

(See also on January the 2cl, January the 25th, and Christ-
mas Day.)

" If any wood be cut off in the last day of Decem-
ber, and on the first of January, it shall not rot
nor wither away, nor be full of worms, but always
wear harder, and in his age as hard as a stone."
Husbandman's Practice.

WEATHER AND AGRICULTURAL RULES,

RELATING TO DAYS THROUGHOUT THE YEAR.

Sae Korn Egidii, Hafer Gerste Benedicti,

Fur Flachs und Hanf, Urbani : Wicken, Ruben,

Kiliani :

Viti, Kraut : Erbsen, Gregori :
Linsen, Philippi Jacobi :

168 WEATHER AND AGRICULTURAL RULES.

Abdon und Senesi mache Ernt',

Denk' an Salzfleisch an Lambert.

Mach' Wiirst' um Martini,

Brat' Cans' an Oswaldi ;

Kauf Kase und grab' Ruben Vicula Petri :

Schneid' Kraut Simonis und Judai :

Fang' Wachteln Bartolomai :

Simonis und Juda

Voe tibi endi !

Heiz' warm Natali Domini.

Iss Lammsbraten Blasi,

Giiten Haring " Oculi mei."

Trink Wein circulum anni,

So kannst abgehen tempore anni Snabia :

i.e., Sow corn on St Giles (Sept. i), oats and barley on S.
Benedict (March 21), flax and hemp on S. Urban (May
25), vetches and rape on S. Kilian (July 8). On S.
Vitus (June 15) cabbage, on S. Gregory (March 12)
peas, lentils on SS. Philip and James (May i). On SS.
Abdon and Senesis (July 30) begin harvest ; remember
to put meat in pickle on S. Lambert (Sept. 17). Make
sausages on S. Martin (Nov. u), roast geese on S. Oswald
(Oct. 15), buy cheese and dig turnips at Lammas (Aug.
i), cut cabbage on SS. Simon and Jude (Oct. 28), catch
quails on S. Bartholomew (Aug. 24). On SS. Simon
and Jude, woe to you if badly clad ! Keep warm at
Christmas. Eat roast lamb on S. Blasius (Feb. 3), and
herrings on "Oculi mei" (the third Sunday in Lent).
Drink wine all the year round, and thus you will be
ready to die at any time.

DAYS OF THE WEEK. 169

PROVERBS RELATING TO DAYS OF
THE WEEK.

Sunday.

If it rains on the Sunday before mess (mass),
It will rain all the week, more or less. Fifeshire.
Compare the French proverbs,

a. Du Dimanche au matin la pluie
Bien souvent la semaine ennuie.

b. Quand il pleut le Dimanche entre deux messes,
il pleut toute la semaine.

And the German,

c. Regnet's Sonntag iiber das Messbuch,

So hat man die ganze Woch' genug. Eifel.

d. Es ist kein Sonntag so keck,

Dass er die Sonn' den ganzen Tag versteck'.
Tyrol.

e. Wenn's regnet auf den Kirchenpfad, ist's die
ganze Woche nass.

/. Wenn's an einem Sonntag regnet, an dem ein
griines Messkleid getragen wird, so regnet's neun
Sonntage hintereinander Tyrol :

This is equivalent to saying that most Sundays in the year
will be wet, as green is generally used throughout the
Western Church as the ferial and Sunday colour out of
Advent, Septuagesima, and Lent.

Monday.

Rauher Monntag glatter Woche.

So the French say,
Vilain Lundi, belle semaine. Manche.

I/O PAYS OF THE WEEK.

Montag's Wetter wird nicht Wochenalt. Bruns-
wick.

Montag's Wetter bis Mittag 1st Wochenwetter bis
Freitag.

Thursday.

Quando 1 sol va in saco de Zioba,
Avanti Domenega o vento o piova Venetia :
i.e., When on Thursday the sun sets in a sack (behind clouds),
there will be rain or wind before Sunday.

Friday.

Vendredi aimerait mieux causer

Qu'a son voisin ressembler. Haute Saone.

Because it is supposed to differ from the weather of the rest

of the week. So too they say in Westphalia,
Freitag hat sein apartes Wetter.

Die ganze Woche wunderlich,
Des Freitags ganz absunderlich.

Wenn's am Freitag regnet, regnet's erne ganze
Woche. Tyrol

S'il pleut le Vendredi

Jamais la terre trop ne se ramollit. Haute Saone.

Vendredi de la semaine est

Le plus beau ou le plus laid. Haute Loire.

Friday and Saturday.

Freitags wunderlich,
Samstags absunderlich. Eifel.

Friday and Sunday.

A rainy Friday a rainy Sunday :
A fair Friday a fair Sunday.

DAYS OF THE WEEK. i;i

So the French say,
Quel est Vendredi tel Dimanche.

And the Germans,
Freitagswetter Sonntagswetter.

Saturday.

The sun is supposed always to shine on Saturday (if not
throughout the day, at least during some portion of it) in
honour of the Virgin Mary, to whom this day is specially
dedicated. Thus in the Eifel they say,

Es 1st kein Samstag so triib',

Die Sonn' scheint der Mutter Gottes zulieb.

En hiver, comme en ete,

Jamais Samedi ne s'est passe,

Que le soleil n'y ait mis son nez. Haute Saone.

Le soleil par excellence

Au Samedi fait sa reverence. Calendrier des bons

Laboureurs.

II n'y a pas de Samedi sans soleil,
Ni de vielle sans conseil. Aveyron.
Ni Sabado sin sol, ni moza sin amor Spain :
i.e., No Saturday without sun, no girl without love.

Saturday and Sunday.

Soterdag natt vom Werken,
Un Sundag natt ut der Kerken,
Bediit eine reinke Weke Lippe :
i.e., If on Saturday it is too wet to work, and on Sunday too
wet to go to church, the week will be rainy.

Samstag in der Vesper tmd Sonntags in der Messe
ist das Wochenwetter gewiss Munster :

i.e., The weather during vespers on Saturday, and during
mass, i.e., early in the morning, on Sunday, foretells the
weather of the whole week.

PART II

PART II.

PROVERBS RELATING TO THE SUN.

Sol quoque et exoriens, et quum se condit in undas,
Signa dabit ; solem certissima signa sequuntur,
Et quae mane refert, et quas surgentibus astris.
Georgian, lib. I. 438-40.

Sunrise Bed.

If red the sun begins his race,
Be sure the rain will fall apace.

" A red morn, that ever yet betokened
Wreck to the seamen, tempest to the field,
Sorrow to shepherds, woe unto the birds,
Gust and foul flaws to herdsmen and to herds."
Shakespeare : Venus and Adonis.

Ross de matina, aquavisina Milan:
i.e., If the morn be red, rain is at hand.

Ross a la diana, aqua in la setimana Bergamo :
i.e., If the sky be red when the morning-star is shining, there
will be rain during the week.

Morgenroth Abendkoth. Tyrol.

PROVERBS RELATING TO THE SUN.

Morgenroth

Mit Regen droht.

Temps rouge au matin
Met la pluie en chemin.

Roujhe' de mati

Bagno soun versi Card:

*'.<?., A red morning wets the neighbour.

Aube rouge, vent ou pluie :

Exactly corresponding with the Italian saying,
Alba rossa o vent o gossa :

And the Spanish,

Aurora rubia, o viento o lluvia.
Rouge le matin
Fait tourner le moulin. Vosges.

Cloudy.

Hie ubi nascentem rnaculis variaverit ortunT
Conditus in nubem, medioque refugerit orbe :
Suspecti tibi sint imbres ; namque urget ab alto
Arboribusque satisque notus pecorique sinister.
Aut ubi sub lucem densa inter nubila sese
Diversi rumpent radii, aut ubi pallida surget
Tithoni croceum linquens Aurora cubile ;
Heu male turn mites defendet pampinus uvas
Tarn multa in tectis crepitans salit horrida grando.
Georgicon, lib. I. 441-49.

Grauer Morgen schoner Tag.

Matinee obscure journee sure. Drome.

Rother and brauner Morgen

1st des Wandrers Wunsch und Sorgen.

PROVERBS RELATING TO THE SUN. 177

Sunrise Clear.

Se '1 sol va a monte a ciel seren
El bon tempo se mantien Venice :
i.e., If the sky be clear and bright at sunrise we shall have
fine weather.

Nigoi ciar de matina

Bel temp se incamina Bergamo :

i.e., If the clouds are clear in the morning, fine weather is

setting in. But the Spaniards say,
Sol madruguero
No dura dia entero :
i.e., The sun, rising bright and clear, does not remain so

throughout the day,

Sunset Ked.

Hoc etiam, emenso quum jam decedet Olympo,
Profuerit meminisse magis ; nam saepe videmus
Ipsius in vultu varios errare colores ;
Caeruleus pluviam denuntiat, igneus euros.
Sin maculae incipient rutilo immiscerier igni,
Omnia tune pariter vento nimbisque videbis
Fervere : non ilia quisquam me nocte per altum
Ire, neque a terra moneat convellere funem.

Georgicon, lib. I. 450-57.
Ross de sera, bel temp se spera. Milan.
Abendroth Gutwetterbrot.
Le ciel rouge le soir,

Le lendemain beau se fait voir. Pyrenees.
Au coucher du soleil, si les nuages sont rouges au

levant,

Pour le lendemain c'estbeau temps. Eure et Loir.
Le ciel rouge au soleil couchant
Annonce la pluie ou le vent.

1^8 PROVERBS RELATING TO THE SUN.

Quind a ch' solau couque

L' timps est couleur ed' feu,

Chest du vin (vent) pour rindemain. Nord.

Le temps cuivreux au couchant
Annonce de la pluie surement. Vosges.

Cloudy.

When the sun sets in a bank

A westerly wind we shall not lack.

Quan lou soureil se coutcho dam b'un capet,
Anoungo qud lendouman sera pas bet Garonne:
i.e., When the sun sets with a hat on (in clouds), that fore-
tells wet weather for the morrow.

Pale.

If the sun goes pale to bed,
'Twill rain to-morrow, it is said.

Bright.

When the sun sets bright and clear
An easterly wind you need not fear.

Wet.

" The sun sets weeping in the lowly west,
Witnessing storms to come, woe and unrest."
Richard //., act ii. sc. iv.

At si, quum referetque diem condetque relatum,
Lucidus orbis erit ; frustra terrebere nimbis,
Et claro silvas cernes aquilone moveri. Georgicon,
lib. I. 458-60.

" When it is evening, ye say, It will be fair weather,
for the sky is red ; and in the morning, It will be

PROVERBS RELATING TO THE SUN. 179

foul weather to-day, for the sky is red and lowr-
ing." S. Matt. xvi. 2, 3.

Sky red in the morning
Is a sailor's sure warning
Sky red at night
Is the sailor's delight.

Sero rubens caelum eras indicat esse serenum :
At si mane rubet venturos indicat imbres.

Gois gorriac, dakarke vri,

Arrats gorriac, eguraldi Basque:

i.e., A red morning foretells rain ; a red evening, fine weather.

When in the morning the clouds are red on the side of
Navarre, the Basques say,

Gox gorri de Navarra

Remojar te ha la gamarra :

i.e., A red morning over Navarre will wet us ; but when in

the evening the clouds are red on the side of Castille,

they say,

Arras gorri de Castilla

Calentar te ha la costilla :

i.e., A red evening over Castille will warm our sides.

Rouge le matin

C'est de la pluie pour le voisin:

Rouge du couchant

Promet beau temps. Morbihan.

Rouge de soir,

Bon espoir:

Rouge du matin

Trompe le voisin. Basses Alpes.

I So PROVERBS RELATING TO THE SUN.

Les rougeurs du matin
Font tourner le moulin :
Les rougeurs du soir
Font secher les toits.fura.

Rougie du matin fait pleurer le pelerin :
Rougie du soir fait tarir la mer. Saone et Loire,

Abends roth ist Morgens gut,
Morgens roth thut selten gut. EifeL

Abendroth

Gut Wetter bot :

Morgenroth

Bringt Wind und Koth.

And so the Venetians say,
Nuvola rossa a sera,
Bon tempo se spera:
Nuvola rossa a matina
O vento o piovesina.

Abendroth ist got (gut),

Man Morgenroth gift Water in'n Slot (ditch).
Westphalia.

A red sunset and a red sunrise are not the same
thing. Denmark.

A red sunset says, Get your horse ready :
A red sunrise says, Bring him out of the field.
Malta.

But the Bohemians say,

A red sunrise betokens a fine day: a red sunset,
rain.

PROVERBS RELATING TO THE SUN. l8l

Evening grey and morning red,
Make the shepherd hang his head :

Or,

Evening red and morning grey,
Help the traveller on his way :
Evening grey and morning red,
Bring down rain upon his head.

Evening red and morning grey,
Two sure signs of a fine day.

If the evening is red and the morning grey,

It is the sign of a bonnie day :

If the evening's grey and the morning red,

The lamb and the ewe will go wet to bed.

Yarrow.

Rouge soiree et grise matinee
Sont signes de belle journee. Cote d* Or.

Rouge le soir, blanc le matin

C'est la journee du pelerin:

Blanc le soir, rouge le matin

Fait tourner la roue du moulin. Ardennes.

Rosso de sera,

Bon tempo se spera :

Bianco de matina,

Bon tempo se incamina. Venice.

Der Morgen grau, der Abend roth,
1st ein guter Wetterbot' :
Der Abend roth, der Morgen grau,
Bringt das schonste Tages blau.

Roth Abend- und weisse Morgenroth'
Macht, dass der Wand'rer freudig geht.

1 82 PROVERBS RELATING TO THE MOON.

Sera rosa e nigro matino
Allegra il pellegrino.

PROVERBS RELATING TO THE MOON.

Will das Wetter durchaus nicht stehen,
Wird's am Neu oder Vollmond geschehen.

Le laboureur lunier (who believes in the influence

of the moon)

Ne remplit pas son grenier. Haute Loire.
Qui lunatte
Folatte. Ain.

New Moon.

A new moon soon seen is long thought of.

" My lord, doe you see this change i' the moone ?
Sharp homes doe threaten windy weather. "-

Decker's Match Mee in London, act i. Lond.,

1631, 4to.

The Germans say, however,
Wenn die Mondhorner zwischen Neumond und

ersten Viertel klar spitz und deutlich erscheinen,

deutet's auf gutes Wetter : erscheinen sie triib'

und stumpf, hat man schlechtes veranderliches

Wetter zu erwarten.

When the new moon is in such a part of the ecliptic as to
appear turned much over upon her back, wet weather is
expected : thus,

The bonny moon is on her back,

Mend your shoon and sort your thack. Scotland.

To see the old moon in the arms of the new one,

PROVERBS RELATING TO THE MOON. 183

is reckoned a sign of fine weather ; and so is the
turning up of the horns of the new moon.
In this position it is supposed to retain the water which is
imagined to be in it. SUFFOLK.

II fait beau temps quand les comes de la lune sont
en haut, mauvais temps lorsqu'elles sont en bas.
Gcrs.

Lune quillarde (with its horns upwards)

Terre bagnarde :

Lune pendante

Terre fendante. Lot et Garonne.

Si les cornes de la lune sont tournees vers la mer,
il y aura des debordements dans Tannee.
Gers.

Gbba a ponent, lima cressent,

Goba a levant, liina calant Milan :

i. e. , When the convex side of the moon is towards the west,

the moon is on the increase ; when it is towards the east,

she is on the wane.

Observe de la lune

Les cent heures premieres :

S'il ne pleut pas dans aucune,

Belle sera la lune entiere. Cote (TOr.

Nouvelle lune par le beau

Au bout de trois jours donne de 1'eau :

Quand la lune prend dans Peau,

Le troisieme jour il fait beau. Meurthe.

(Misty.)

Les brouillards en lune jeune sontun signe de beau
temps.

1 84 PROVERBS RELATING TO THE MOON.

An old moon in a mist
Is worth gold in a kist :
But a new moon's mist
Will never lack thirst.

Another version is,
Auld moon mist
Ne'er died of thirst.

Luna revertentes quum primum colligit ignes,
Si nigrum obscuro comprenderit aera cornu,
Maximus agricolis pelagoque parabitur imber.
Georgian, lib. I., 427-29.

(Windy.)

Neumond mit Wind
1st zu Regen und Schnee gesinnt.

Change of Moon.

La lune est perilleuse au cinq,
Au quatre, six, huit, et vingt. Calendrier des bans
Laboureurs.

Prima et secunda, nihil,
Tertia aliquid :
Quarta quinta qualis,
Tota luna talis.

And so Virgil, Georg., I. 432-35 :
Sin ortu quarto, namque is certissimus auctor,
Pura neque obtusis per caelum cornibus ibit :
Totus et ille dies, et qui nascentur ab illo
Exactum ad mensem, pluvia ventisque carebunt.

The fourth day is also considered as critical in France and

Germany : thus,
Tel est le quatrieme jour de la lune, tel sera le

PROVERBS RELATING TO THE MOON. 185

temps de la lune entiere, a moins que le sixieme

n'apporte un changement Ain :
And,
Wie der Wind am 3, besonders aber um 4, und 5.

Tage nach dem Neumond ist, so weht er den

ganzen Mond hindurch.

In Belgium they say,
If the moon shines clear and bright on the fourth

day, there will be fine weather ; if it is clouded,

there will be rain ; and if on the sixth day it be

flame-coloured, there will be storm and tempest.

(Mist.)

Brouillard dans le croissant
Cest signe de beau temps :
Brouillard dans le decours
C'est de la pluie avant trois jours. Pas de Calais.

(Frost.)

Gelee blanche au croissant
Marque de beau temps ;
Gelee blanche au de'cours,
De la pluie sous trois jours. Calvados.

La lune changeant en bet (beau)
Pluie du huit au sept. Hautes Pyrenees.
In the wane of the moon
A cloudy morning bodes a fair afternoon.

(Wind.)
Le grand vent en vieille lune est un indice de beau

temps. Cher.

Full Moon.

The full moon eats clouds.
La^lune mange des nuages.

1 86 PROVERBS RELATING TO THE MOON.

La luna scoa via le nuvole Venice :

1 ' These proverbs have arisen from a supposed clearance of

clouds which is said to take place when the full moon

rises. " Inwards.

Two full moons in a calendar month bring on a
flood. Bedfordshire.

Halo round the Moon.

The halo or burr seen round the moon, being a consequence
of the humidity of the atmosphere, is considered very
generally to forebode wet weather. It is called in Scot-
land "brugh," the early Teutonic word for circle: the
same term which is applied to circular forts or hills.
Thus,

About the moon there is a brugh,

The weather will be cauld and rough.

The moon with a circle brings water in her beak.

Lune encerclee, pluie prochaine. Haut Rhin.

Quando la luna ga'l cercio, vol piover. Venice.

Cercle a la lune,

Matelot monte dans la hune. Pas de Calais.

Rond a Thine, pleuve in dte,

In hiver, pleuve ubin neice (ou neige). Nord.

Ein Hof oder Ring um Mond, deutet auf Regen
und Wind, oder auch auf anhaltende Trockniss :

The further the halo appears distant from the moon, the
nearer at hand is the coming rain. So we find,

Far burr, near rain.

Quand le rond est pres,
La pluie est loin. Yonne.

Sere visin, aqua lontan :

Sere lontan, aqua doman. Milan.

PROVERBS RELATING TO THE MOON. 187

Halo round Sun and Moon.

The circle of the moon never filled a pond :
The circle of the sun wets a shepherd.

Hof um den Mond, das soil wohl geh'n : aber Hof
urn die Sonne, da schreit des Schiffers Weib.

Aspects of the Moon.

Of the particular indications of the haze in the atmosphere,
the mere hazy or pale colour of the moon often forebodes
rain, while she is more brazen or copper- coloured before
wind. So the old adage,

Pallida luna pluit ; rubicunda flat : alba serenat :
This saying is found in almost every language.

Pale.

Luno pallo bespre ou mati
Aigo del nibou fai sourti. Lozere :
i.e., Lune pale le soir ou le matin
Fait tomber de 1'eau de la nue.

And we find in the Midsummer Night's Dream, act ii. sc. 2,
" Therefore the moon the governess of floods,
Pale in her anger, washes all the air,
That rheumatic diseases do abound."

Red.

At si virgin eum suffuderit ore ruborem,
Ventus erit : vento semper rubet aurea Phoebe.
Georgicon, lib. I., 430, 431.

Lune rouge, le vent souffle :

Lune rousse, il pleut ou souffle. B ouches du Rhone.

Luno roujo meno toujour

Aouro fouorto penden lou jour. Lozere:

i.e.y Lune rouge annonce toujours

Un grand vent pendant la journee.

1 88 PROVERBS RELATING TO THE MOON.

Clear.

If the moon show a silver shield,

Be not afraid to reap your field :

But if she rises haloed round,

Soon we'll tread on deluged ground.

Clear moon,

Frost soon.

Lune brillante et blanche en meme temps

Pour plusieurs jours nous promet le beau temps.

La lune argentive temps clair.

Moon causing rain.

' ' Hecate in Macbeth tells the witches

' Upon a corner of the moon

There hangs a vaporous drop profound,'

efficacious in the invocation of spirits. And in Newton's
Directions for Health, 1574, we are told that the moon is
'ladie of moysture :' and in Hamlet, act i. sc. I, she
is called 'the moist star.' Shakespeare, indeed, in the
Midsummer Night's Dream, appears to have imitated a
passage to this effect in Lydgate's Storie of Thebes,
' Of Lucina the moone, moist and pale,
That many showres fro heaven made availe.'"
Brand.

Influence of the Moon on agricultural operations.

The moon was supposed by our ancestors to exercise great
influence over agricultural operations, also over many ' ' of
the minor concerns of life, such as the gathering of herbs,
the killing of animals for the table, and other matters of a
like nature."

In Tusser's Five Hundred Points of Husbandry, are the fol-
lowing lines :

" Sowe peason and beans in the wane of the moone,

Who soweth them sooner, he soweth too soone :

PROVERBS RELATING TO THE MOON. 189

That they, with the planet, may rest and rise,
And flourish with bearing most plentiful wise."
Werenfels, in his Dissertation upon Superstition (transl. 8vo.
Lond., 1748), p. 6, speaking of a superstitious man, says :

" He will not commit his seed to the earth when
the soil, but when the moon, requires it. He
will have his hair cut when the moon is either
in Leo, that his locks may stare like the lion's
shag, or in Aries, that they may curl like a ram's
horn. Whatever he would have to grow, he sets
about it when she is on her increase (this is con-
trary to Tusser) ; but for what he would have
made less, he chooses her wane. When the
moon is in Taurus, he never can be persuaded
to take physic, lest that animal, which chews its
cud, should make him cast it up again. If at
any time he has a mind to be admitted into the
presence of a prince, he will wait till the moon
is in conjunction with the sun ; for 'tis then the
society of an inferior with a superior is salutary
and successful."

Butler, in Hudibras, part II., canto 3, 1. 239, says of a con-
juror,

" But with the moon was more familiar
Than e'er was almanac well-wilier ;
Her secrets understood so clear,
That some believed he had been there ;
Knew when she was in fittest mood
For cutting corns or letting blood ;
When for anointing scabs or itches,

And in what sign best cider's made ;

IQO PROVERBS RELATING TO THE MOON.

Whether the wane be, or increase,
Best to set garlic or sow pease :
Who first found out the man i' th' moon,
That to the ancients was unknown."

The French say,

Seme dans le ddclin,

Tu auras du grain. Pas de Calais.

Toute graine semee en nouvelle lune est moitie
perdue. Yonne.

La meilleure condition metereologique pour les
travaux agricoles est 1'epoque qui se rapproche
le plus de la pleine lune; la plus mauvaise celle
qui s'en eloigne le plus. Vienne.

Si vous voulez du bon bois d'oeuvre, il faut 1'abattre
a la lune vielle. Puy de Dome.

This corresponds with the Italian proverb,
Se te vo avegh del bon legnam
In liina piena no sta a tajal. Milan.

Quel che te somnet in liina piena
No '1 te da gnaca de sena. Bergamo.

And in the year 1870 an Italian Professor can write, with
reference to these two last proverbs,

" Questi ultimi proverbi si ritengono dalla maggior
parte ridicole credenze o pregiudizi : ma i risul-
tati di lunghissime e continuate osservazioni di
illustri scienziati, accennano alF influenza lunare
sui fenonemi della vita tellurica" !

See also the Husbandman's Practice, or Prognostication for
ever, pp. 109-10-11.

CHANGE OF THE MOON.

Virgil, Georg.^ I. 276-86, says,
Ipsa dies alios alio dedit ordine Luna
Felices operum. Quintain fuge ;

Septima post decimam felix, et ponere vitem,
Et prensos domitare boves, et licia telse
Addere. Nona fugse melior, contraria furtis.

CHANGE OF THE MOON
ON THE VARIOUS DAYS OF THE WEEK.

Sunday.

If the moon change on Sunday, there will be a
flood before the rhonth is out.

Lune du dimanche

L'eau passe la planche. Haute Saone.

Si la lune renouvelle un dimanche,
L'eau emporte ponts et planches.; Jura.

Monday.
Tout lundi vaut bonne lune.

Tuesday.

Prends du temps la regie commune

Au premier mardi de la lune. Calvados.

Wednesday.

Un mercredi si la lune est nouvelle,

En fait de beau n'attendez rien d'elle. Haute Loire.

Lune de mercredi et femme barbue,
De si loin que je te vois, je te salue.

STARS AND METEORS.

Luna de mercoHe,

La riiina '1 to e'l me. Bergamo.

Friday.

Lune qui commence un vendredi est pluvieuse pen-
dant toutes ses phases. Hatites Pyrenees.

Quan la luno tourno lou dibendres,
Baoupas uno bugado sans cendres. Lotet Garonne,
i.e., When the new moon begins on a Friday, it is not worth lye
made without ashes (meaning that it brings bad weather).

Saturday.
A Saturday's moon,
Come when it will, it comes too soon.

A Saturday's change brings the boat to the door,
But a Sunday's change brings it up on mid floor.

Saturday's change and Sunday's full
Never brought good and never wull.

A Saturday's change and a Sunday's full moon
Once in seven years is once too soon.

Saturday's change and Sunday's prime,
Ance is aneugh in seven years' time.

PROVERBS RELATING TO STARS AND
METEORS.

Stars Clouded.

Si Ton voit les etoiles entourees de brouillard,
Un vent tres froid ne peut etre en retard. Haute

Loire.

STARS AND METEORS. IQ3

Brilliant.

Ciel tres etoiM

N'est pas de longue duree. Moselle.

Etoiles plus brillantes que de coutume, pluie pro-
bable. Meurthe.

El temp no Pe pii quell,

Quand che grand e visin se ved i stell Milan :
i.e., When the stars seem larger and nearer to one another
than usual, there will be a change in the weather.

The Maltese say,
The stars twinkle : we cry " Wind."

Halo round Stars.

Sere ai stell,

El temp no 1'e pii bell. Milan.

Shooting-Stars.

Sternschnuppen bedeuten viel Wind.

So Virgil writes, Georg. I. 365-66.

Saepe etiam Stellas, vento impendente, videbis,
Praecipites coelo labi.

Electric Lights.

Last night I saw Saint Elmo's stars,

With their glittering lanterns all at play,
On the tops of the masts and the tips of the spars,
And I knew we should have foul weather that

day.

Brand (iii. 400) quotes from the Scottish Encyclopaedia, v.
Lights : " Dr Shaw tells us that in thick hazy weather he
has observed those luminous appearances which at sea
skip about the masts and yards of ships, and which the
sailors call ' corpusanse,' which is a corruption of the
Spanish ' cuerpo santo.' "

194 STARS AND METEORS.

In the same work, under Meteor, we are told : " Pliny, in
his second book of Natural History, calls these appear-
ances stars ; and tells us that they settled not only upon
the masts and other parts of ships, but also upon men's
heads. Two of these lights forebode good weather and
a prosperous voyage ; and drive away the single one,
which wears a threatening aspect. This the sailors call
' Helen ;' but the two they call ' Castor and Pollux,' and
invoke them as gods."

"These appearances are called by the French and Spaniards
inhabiting the coasts of the Mediterranean, St Helme's
or St Telme's fires ; by the Italians, the fires of St Peter
and St Nicholas."

In Cotgrave we read : "Feu d'Helene, Feu S. Herme, St
Helen's or St Herme's fire ; a meteor that often appears
at sea : looke Furole."

' ' Furole, a little blaze of fire appearing by night on the tops
of soldiers' lances, or at sea on the sayle yards, where it
whirles, and leaps in a moment from one place to another.
Some mariners call it St Herme's fire ; if it come double,
'tis held a signe of good lucke, if single, otherwise."

PROVERBS RELATING TO THE
RAINBOW.

The following are a few of the names given to the Rainbow in
various European countries :

By the old Norsemen it was called "Asbru," or
" The Bridge of the Gods." In Lithuania it is
styled "Laima's Girdle; the Weather rod, or
Heaven's bow." In Catalonia, " S. Martin's
bow." In Lorraine, "S. Leonard's belt, or S.
Bernard's crown." In Bavaria, " Heaven's ring,
or the Sun's ring." In Finland, " Heaven's
bow." In Croatia, "The God's seat." In

RAINBOW. 195

Servia and Poland, " The stave in the sky," or
simply " The stave." In Carniola, " The striped
cow." *(Das Wetter im Sprichwort^
Morning and Evening.

If there be a rainbow in the eve,

It will rain and leave :

But if there be a rainbow in the morrow,

It will neither lend nor borrow.

The rainbow in the marnin
Gives the shepherd warnin

To car' his gurt cwoat on his back :
The rainbow at night
Is the shepherd's delight,

For then no gurt cwoat will he lack. Wiltshire.

A rainbow at morning

Is the shepherd's warning :

A rainbow at night

Is the shepherd's delight.

Similar sayings are found in various countries. Thus,

a. In Germany,
Regenbogen am Morgen
Macht dem Schafer Sorgen ;
Regenbogen am Abend

1st dem Schafer labend.

b. In the Basque provinces,

Holc.adarraq ceruan arratgian dembora ouna iracus-

tendu :
i.e., A rainbow in the evening foretells fine weather.

* " In Bohemia the peasantry hold it unlucky to walk under
a rainbow ; and they say that the rain which descends through
the bow blights all it falls upon." White's Northumberland.
p. 348.

1 96 RAINBOW.

c. In Corsica,

Arco di mare, acqua a fontane :
Arco di sera, scalda costiera.

d. In North Italy,
Arco celeste de matina,
El mal tempo se avicina ;
Arco celeste de sera

El bon tempo se spera.

e. In the neighbourhood of Florence,
Arco da matina

Empie la mulina :
Arco da sera
Tempo rasserena.

/. In the Pas de Calais,
L'arc-en-ciel du matin
Donne a boire au voisin :
Et l'arc-en-ciel du soir
Au voisin donne espoir.

In the Vosges,
Arc-en-ciel du soir
Fait beau temps prevoir :
Arc-en-ciel du matinee
Du laboureur finit la journee.

But in some parts of France a contrary opinion prevails.

Thus we find in the Department of Ille-et-Vilaine,
Arc-en-ciel du matin,
Bonhomme, pousse ton chemin :
Arc-en-ciel du soir,
Rentre au manoir.

RAINBOW. 197

And,

Arc-en-ciel du matin

Bonne femme, mets les vaches en chemin :
Arc-en-ciel du soir
Tu verras pleuvoir.

Sir Humphry Davy, in his ' Salmonia, ' writes as follows :
" A rainbow can only occur when the clouds con-
taining or depositing the rain are opposite to the
sun ; and in the evening the rainbow is in the
east, and in the morning in the west ; and as our
heavy rains in this climate are usually brought by
the westerly wind, a rainbow in the west indicates
that the bad weather is on the road, by the wind
to us ; whereas the rainbow in the east proves
that the rain in these clouds is passing from
us."

In East and South.

So the French saying,
Arc-en-ciel du levant
Beau temps :
Arc-en-ciel du midi
Pluie.

On the other hand there is a Spanish proverb, that
" A rainbow in the east brings rain with all speed ;
but if you see it in the west, you may know
that it is closing the floodgates and will bring
wind/'

Colours.

Quando 1'arco celeste tra al rossin,
Poco formento e molto vin :

198 MISTS AND FOGS.

Sel tra al verde e al zalin

Assae ogio e poco vin Venice :

i.e., .When red preponderates in a rainbow, the harvest will

be bad, the vintage good : but when green or yellow,

there will be much oil and little wine.

PROVERBS RELATING TO MISTS
AND FOGS.

When the mist comes from the hill,
Then good weather it doth spill ;
When the mist comes from the sea,
Then good weather it will be.

On Mountains.

When the mist creeps up the hill,
Fisher, out and try your skill :
When the mist begins to nod,
Fisher, then put by your rod. Scotland.

Nebel auf Waldern und Bergspitzen zeigen Regen
an. Suabia.

Wenn der Nebel den Berg'rauf zieht, kommt er in
drei Tagen als Regen wieder.

Brouillard dans la vallee,

Bonhomme, va a ta journee ;

Brouillard sur le mont,

Bonhomme, reste a la maison. Pas de Calais.

If after sunset a mist hangs over brooks and meadows, the
German peasants consider it to prognosticate fine weather,
and say,
" The fox is brewing."

MISTS AND FOGS. 199

Si le brouillard s'eleve, signe de pluie ;
S'il tombe, signe de beau temps. Loiret.

BrouilJard qui s'eleve en automne presage le beau

temps :
Brouillard qui remonte en ete annonce la pluie.

Ardennes.

La nebia bassa,

Bel temp la lassa. Milan.

El caligo purga'l tempo. Venice.

Quando'l sol la nebia el lassa, la nebia lassa'l sol

Venice ;

i.t., When the sun leaves mist behind, the mist leaves the sun
behind meaning, that when mist rises in the evening
after sunset, it disperses the next morning at sunrise.

Dicker Nebel Abends zeigt oft an, dass es Nachts
regnen wird.

Tre calighi fa una piova : tre piove fa una brentana

Venice :

i.e., Three fogs make a fall of rain ; three falls of rain make
a flood.

Bruine obscure

Trois jours dure ;

Si elle poursuit

En dure huit. Calendrier des bons Laboureurs.

So the Milanese say,
Nebia sciira
Tri de la dura :
Se le cala tot in bot
La pol staga pio de 6t.

200 CLOUDS.

White mist in winter indicates frost :

Black mist indicates coming rain. Scotland.

Haze.

Hazy weather is thought to prognosticate frost in
winter, snow in spring, fair weather in summer,
and rain in autumn.

PROVERBS RELATING TO DEW.

Morning.

L'rouse.e du matin

N'empeche point Ppelerin. Nord.

Fallt gar kein Thau oder verschwindet er zeitig des
Morgens, so steht Regen mit Gewitter.

Evening.

The dews of the evening industriously shun,
They're the tears of the sky for the loss of the sun.

PROVERBS RELATING TO THE CLOUDS.

Black.

" A small fast-growing black cloud in violent motion
seen in the tropics, is called the Bull's-Eye, and
precedes the most terrible hurricanes.".
The Persians say,

Black clouds bring rain.

Triibe Wolken sind selten ohne Regen.

CLOUDS. 2OI

Compare Tempest, act ii. sc. 2,

" And another storm brewing ; I hear it sing i' the
wind, yond' same black cloud, yond' huge one,
looks like a foul bumbard that would shed his
liquor. . . . Yond' same cloud cannot chuse but
fall by pailfuls."

Green and Black.

Nivol verd, nivol sciiret,
In tempesta con saett Milan :

i.e., When the clouds are green and black, they forebode
storms and lightning.

White.

I nivol bianch, pizzen come can. Milan.

Bed.

Red clouds in the east, rain the next day.
Horizon rouge, signe de vent ou de pluie. Gers.
Nuvola roggia
O vent o pioggia.

Nigola rossa, la duma (the next day)
Se nol piov el pioera. Bergamo.

Woolly.

If woolly fleeces spread the heavenly way,
Be sure no rain disturbs the summer's day.

El ciel pecoun promete un bel matin.

But, on the other hand, Virgil (Georg. i. 397) considers it a

sign of rain if it should happen that,
Tenuia lanae per coelum vellera ferri.

And so in the neighbourhood of Pisa, they say,
Cielo a pecorelle,
Acqua a catinelle :

202 CLOUDS.

And in the North of Italy,
Quando le nuvole xe fate a lana
Se no piove ancuo piove sta setimana :

And in the Tyrol,
Sind Morgens Himmelschaflein, wird's Nachmit-

tags hageln oder schnei'n :

And in France,
Quan lou ceil perdigo
Se'non plaou non trigo Lot et Garonne :
i.e., When the sky is dappled, if it does not rain at once, it
will not be long in coming. And,

Temps pommele, fille fardee,
Ne sont pas de longue duree.

In the North.
Nigola de montagna
No bagna la campagna.

In the South-west.

" When scattered patches or streaks of nimbus come
driving up from the south-west, they are called
by the sailors ' Prophet Clouds/ and indicate
wind. " Inwards.

In the West.

A bank of clouds in the west indicates rain.
Surrey.

" When ye see a cloud rise out of the west, straight-
way ye say, There cometh a shower and so it is."
S. Luke, xii. 54.

Nigola de ponent
No la s'alza mai per gnent :

i.e., A cloud rising from the west, does not rise to no pur-
pose.

CLOUDS. 203

Castellated.

When clouds appear like rocks and towers,
The earth's refreshed with frequent showers.

Compare,

" Sometimes we see a cloud that's dragonish,
A vapour sometimes like a bear or lion,
A towered citadel, a pendant rock,
A forked mountain, a blue promontory
With trees upon't that nod unto the world
And mock our eyes with air.
That which is now a horse, even with a thought,
The rack dislimns and makes it indistinct
As water is in water." Shakespeare: Antony and
Cleopatra, act iv. sc. 12.

And so Aristophanes, Nub., 345 :

"H^Tj <xor avafcXe-^iag sJfcg vstp'tXqv Ksvraugw o/^o/av ;
"H -rac^aXs/, % Xi/xw, r\ rat^wj

See also Pliny's Natural History : Translated by Philemon
Holland, Book II. chap. 3 : also Byron's Voyage, p. 10.

Names of Clouds.

The cloud called goat's hair, or the grey mare's
tail, forebodes wind.

Hen-scarts and filly-tails

Make lofty ships wear low sails.

Certain light kinds of clouds, says Chambers, are thus de-
nominated, from their supposed resemblances to the
scratches of hens on the ground and the tails of young
mares.
Sailors have a proverb referring to the same cloud,

If clouds look as if scratched by a hen,

Get ready to reef your topsails then.

In Hungary these clouds are called " Sea-grass."

204 CLOUDS.

Fish-shaped.

The hake-shaped cloud, if pointing east and west,
indicates rain : if north and south, more fine
weather. Bedfordshire.

A long stripe of cloud, sometimes called a salmon,

sometimes a Noah's ark, when it stretches east

and west, is a sign of a storm ; but when north

and south, of fine weather.
So in the Eifel and also on the lower Rhine they say of a

cloud similar to that just mentioned, and which they call

a sea-ship, or cloud-ship, or Mary's ship,
" If the Meer-schiff turns its head to the south, rain

will soon follow."
Small well-defined roundish masses of cloud, increasing from

below, are called "A mackerel sky."
Mackerel sky
Neither long wet nor long dry.
These clouds are called in Buckinghamshire " packet boys,"

and are said to be packets of rain soon to be opened.
Conical heaps increasing upwards from a horizontal base are

called "wool-bags." Inwards.

A cloud called the Helm Cloud, hovering about
the hill-tops for a day or two, is said to presage
wind and rain. Yorkshire.

Clouds on Hill-Tops.

When the clouds are upon the hills
They'll come down by the mills.
Corresponding to the French saying,
Fun de pet
Boto-te ol let. Lot.

i.e., Fumee de pic (clouds on the hill -tops)
Mets toi au lit.

CLOUDS. 205

Hills and clouds are closely connected in weather-lore ; and
almost every district has rhymes or sayings on this sub-
ject, e.g. :

Bredon Hill.

When Eredon Hill puts on his hat,

Ye men of the vale beware of that. Worcester-
shire.

Cairns Muir.

When Cairns Muir wears a hat,

The Macher's Rills may laugh at that.

Cairnsmuir is N.N.E. of Macher's Rills, Wigtownshire.

Another version is,

When Cairnsmuir puts on his hat,
Palmuir and Skyreburn laugh at that ;

Palmuir and Skyreburn being mountain streams which
rise rapidly after rain.

Cheviot.

When Cheviot ye see put on his cap,
Of rain ye'll have a wee bit drap.

Cornsancone.

If Cornsancone put on his cap, and the Knipe be
clear, it will rain within twenty-four hours.

This is a sign which it is said never fails. Cornsancone Hill
is to the east, and the Knipe to the south-west of the New
Cumnock districts where the proverb is current.

Craighill.

There is a high wooded hill above Lochnaw

Castle,
Take care when Lady Craighill puts on her

mantle :

206 CLOUDS.

The Lady looks high and knows what is coming,
Delay not one moment to get under covering.
The hill lies to the north-west of the district where this
saying is quoted.

Criffel.

When Criffel wears a hap,
Skiddaw wots full well o' that.

Any stout exterior garment for protection against cold is
called in Scotland a " hap." CHAMBERS.

The rolling of clouds landward and their gathering
about the summit of Criffel, is regarded as a sign
of foul weather in Dumfries and Kirkpatrick-
Fleming, and intervening parishes.

Falkland Hill.

When Falkland Hill puts on his cap,
The Howe o' Fife will get a drap ;
And when the Bishop draws his cowl,
Look out for wind and weather foul.
Falkland Hill and Bishop Hill are two prominent conical
eminences in the Lomond range.

Halldown.

When Halldown has a hat,
Let Kenton beware of a skat. Devonshire.
A "skat " is a shower of rain.

Largo Law.

When Largo Law puts on his hat,
Let Kellie Law beware of that ;
When Kellie Law gets on his cap,
Largo Law may laugh at that.
Largo Law is to the south-west of Kellie Law.

CLOUDS. 207

Riving Pike.

If Riving Pike do wear a hood,

Be sure the day will ne'er be good. Lanca-
shire.

Roseberry Topping.

If Roseberry Topping wears a cap,
Let Cleveland then beware of a rap. North
Riding.

Ruberslaw.

When Ruberslaw puts on his cowl,

The Dunion on his hood,
Then a' the wives of Teviotside

Ken there will be a flood. Roxburghshire.

In Forfarshire, Craigowl and Collie Law, two eminences in
the Sidlaw range, are substituted for Ruberslaw and the
Dunion, and the " Lundy lads " for the wives o' Teviot-
side. CHAMBERS.

Skiddaw.

When Skiddaw hath a cap,
Criffell wots well of that.

Traprain.

When Traprain puts on his hat,
The Lothian lads may look to that. Haddington-
shire.

We meet with proverbs of a similar character in other
countries. Thus Schiller says in Wilhelm Tell ' :

Mythenstein.

Der Mythenstein zieht seine Haube an.

208 FROST.

Mount Pilate.

Quand Pilate a mis son chapeau
Le temps sera serein et beau.

Monte Summano.

Quando'l Suman ga'l capelo,

Se anco piove doman fa belo. Venetia.

Monte Venda.

Co'l monte Venda fa pan,

Se no piove anco, piove doman :

i.e., When Mount Venda is making bread (when the clouds

on its summit resemble smoke issuing from a chimney), if

it is not raining now, it will to-morrow.
Monte Venda is the highest of the Euganean hills.

Hills and Sea-Coast.

Wenn's Gebirge sich erhellt,
Iss und trink und geh'aufs Feld:
i.e., It will not rain.

Sieht die Kiiste heiter aus,
Iss und trink und geh' in's Haus :
i.e., It will rain.

Mer claire et montagne obscure
Annoncent la pluie sure. Herault.

PROVERBS RELATING TO FROST.

Quick thaw, long frost.

He that would have a bad day maun gang out in a
fog after a frost.

SNOW. 209

White Frost.
(Foreboding rain.)

Blanches gelees est de pluie messagere. Calend-
rier des bons Laboureurs.

Al ara sin cu lave Nord :

i.e., Elle (la gelee blanche) aura le cul lave.

Quand la gelade est blanque, la plouge li cante aii

cul.
i.e., When there is a hoar-frost, the rain is singing at its

rear.

(Foreboding snow.)
Bearded frost, forerunner of snow.

(Causing thaw.)
Starker Reif bricht den Frost. Suabia.

Hail and Frost.
Hail

Brings frost in the tail.
Hailstorm at day denotes frost at night.

La gelee ne fault au gre'sil

Non plus que le pere au fils. Calendrier des bons
Laboureurs.

PROVERBS RELATING TO SNOW.

(Beneficial to the ground.)
Soto la neve sta la farina. Venetia.

In Tuscany they say,

Sott'acqua fame, e sotto neve pane :
i.e., Under water dearth, and under snow bread.
O

210 SNOW.

La neve ingrassa la campagna.

Die weisse Gans (/.*., snow) briitet gut.

Eine gute Decke von Schnee,
Bringt das Winterkorn in die Hoh.

So hoch der Schnee, so hoch das Gras.
Per ona setimana, la nev la fa de mama :
Per de pu 1'e ona madregna,
E la deventa dop come ona tegna Milan :
i.e., For seven days snow is a mother, then it becomes a
stepmother, and then a scab (a nuisance).

So the French say,

Neige de huit jours est la mere de la terre,
Neige de plus de huit jours en est la maratre.

And the Basques,

Sorzi egunes ama ditu lurrac :
i.e., For eight days snow acts as a mother to the earth.
Neige au ble est tel benefice
Qu'au vieillard sa bonne pelisse. Vosges.

Corresponding with the Russian proverb,
Corn is as comfortable under the snow as an old
man in his fur coat.
Snow and Sun.
Se a la nev va'l sul adoss
Nev e nev, nev a brandoss :

i.e., If the sun falls on the snow, there will be snow, and
snow, and snow yet again.

Snow and Hail.

Plus il neige,

Moins il grele. Haut Marne.

Snow and Ice.
La neve non lascia mai ghiaccio dietro.

RAIN. 211

Fine Weather following Snow.

Dop la nevada

L'e bela la giornada.

Size of Flakes.

Schneit es fein und klein, kan man grosse, anhalt-
ende Kalte, schneit es mit grossen und breiten
Flocken, massige Kalte erwarten.

Consolation in Snowy Weather.
Bon vi, bon pa, la pas in ca,
Se ol fioca, lassa nock :
i.e., With good wine, good bread, and peace at home, if

snow does come, let it come.

PROVERBS RELATING TO RAIN.

Morning.

Rain before seven,
Fine before eleven.

So the Czechs and Poles say,
Morning rain and women's tears are soon over.

The Suabian peasants,
Morgenregen und Waiberwai,
Sind um Zehne nimmermai.

The French,
Pluie matinale
N'est pas journale.

And,

Plejo que toumbo lou mati,
Diou pas empacha de parti Lozere :
i.e., Rain in the morning will not hinder us from going out.

212 RAIN.

The Germans,

Friihregen und frtihe Betelleut'
Bleiben nicht bis man Zwolfe laut't.

And,
Friihregen und Friihgaste bleiben selten iiber

Nacht.

But in the north of Italy they fear early rain ;
Quand el piov su la rosada
Se ghe n'a per na zurnada Bergamo :
i.e., If the rain falls on the dew, it will continue to fall
throughout the day.

Midnight.

Midnight rains

Make drowned fens. Lincolnshire.

Rain and Wind.
Kleiner Regen
Macht grossen Wind legen.

Quand el piov e'l tria vent,
Sara 1'iis e tegnet dent :

i.e., When it rains and blows, shut up your house and stay
within.

Uncertain.
It rains by planets.

The peasant prays for rain, the traveller longs for
sunshine, but God gives each what is best.
Tartar Proverb.

Quand dio vol, in toe i temp el piov.

Small Rain.

Many drops make a shower.

RAIN. 213

Staubregen pflegt ein sicherer Vorbote guten
trockenen Wetters zu sein.

Appearance of Drops.

Qu'ind i pleut a zieux d'vaques,
Chest pou tros jours Nord ' :

i.e.. When the rain in falling makes cow's eyes, it will last
for three days.

Pluie qui fume en tombant

Doit durer longtemps. Calvados.

Rain from a particular quarter.
Quand la pluie vient d'amont
La terre trempe jusqu'au fond Seine et Oise :
i.e., When the rain comes from up the river, the earth is

thoroughly soaked.

Bain during Sunshine.

If it rain when the sun shines, it will surely rain
the next day about the same hour. Suffolk.

A sunshiny shower

Never lasts half an hour. Bedfordshire.

Sunshiny rain

Will soon go again. Devonshire.

The Poles say,

If it rain while the sun is shining, the witches are
making butter.

The Germans,
If it rain while the sun is shining, the devil is beat-

ing his grandmother :
He is laughing, and she is crying.

214 RAIN.

On the Rhine we find a proverb,

When it rains during sunshine, they are holding
their kermess (or feast) in hell.

Squalls.

The sudden storm lasts not three hours.

So in Richard II., act ii. sc. i.,
" Small showers last long, but sudden storms are

short."

The faster the rain, the quicker the hold up.
Norfolk.

After a storm comes a calm.

Nacht Regen Kommt Sonnenschein.

" Post nubila Phoebus."

PROVERBS RELATING TO THUNDER
AND LIGHTNING.

Silence before Thunder.

" We often see, against some storm,
A silence in the heavens, the rack stand still,
The bold wind speechless, and the orb below
As hush as death : anon the dreadful thunder
Doth rend the region." Hamlet ', act ii. sc. 2.

Repeated Thunder.

Quand il a tonne et encore tonne
La pluie approche et montre la corne.

Thunder and Rain.

Tant tonne qu'il pleut.

THUNDER. 215

Thunder at times of the day.

Thunder in y e morning signifies wynde, about
noone rayne, in y e evening great tempest.
Digges.

Les tonnerres du soir amenent Torage,

Ceux du matin le vent,

Ceux du midi la pluie. Calvados.

So they say in North Italy,
Tra a la matina, aria in cassina :
Tru a mesde, 1'aqua 1'e ai pe :
Trii a la bassura, temporal che fa pura :

Which has exactly the same meaning.

First Thunder of the year.

When the Esthonians hear thunder for the first
time in the year, they strike their heads thrice
with a stone, as a charm against its evil effects.

Vrienden, let weel op uw vee,
Den eersten donder baert veel wee Belgium :
i.e., Friends, take care of your cattle, the first thunder will
harm them much.

Thunder from South.

Se tra'l primo ton in 1'ostro
Slarga 1'ara e strenzi Porto.

South-west.

Quando'l ton tra da garbin,

Ghe xe pan e ghe xe vin Venetia :

i.e., If you hear the first thunder in the south, make your barn-
floor larger and your garden smaller. When you hear it
in the south-west, you may reckon on much bread and
wine.

216 THUNDER.

Another version runs as follows,

South.

Quando'l primo ton vien da Ferrara (south),
Strenzi 1'orto e slarga 1'ara :

North.

Quando'l ton vien da Bassan (north)
To'su'l cesto e va per pan :

South-east.

Quando'l ton vien da siroco (south-east)
To'l baston e va a 7 toco.

Thunder on Days of the Week.

Digges, in his ' Prognostication everlasting of ryghte good
effecte,' fol. 6, <5, says :

" Somme wryte (their ground I see not) that Son-
daye's thundre shoulde brynge the death of
learned men, judges, and others : Mondaye's
thundre, the death of women : Tuesdaye's thun-
dre, plentie of graine : Wednesdaye's thundre,
the deathe of harlottes, and other blodshede :
Thursdaye's thundre, plentie of shepe and come :
Fridaie's thundre, the slaughter of a great man,
and other horrible murders : Saturdaye's thundre,
a generall pestilent plague and great deathe."

Thunder and Bain.

After much thunder much rain :

And the Germans say,
Auf Donner folgt gern Regen.

Lightning.

Sheet-lightning, without thunder, during the night, having
a whitish colour, announces unsettled weather. In the

THUNDER AND LIGHTNING.

west of Scotland morning lightning is regarded as an
omen of bad weather.

In the West.
Co lampa in ponente,
No lampa per gnente :

In the North.

Co lampa in tramontana,
Xe segno de caldana Venetia :

i.e., When it lightens in the west, it does not lighten for no-
thing : when it lightens in the north, it is a sign of heat.

Willsford, in his 'Nature's Secrets,' p. 113, says :

In the North.

" Lightning from the north presages winds :

In the North-west.

" When it lightens only from the north-west, look
for rain the next day :

In the South and West.

" If from the south or the west it lightens, expect
both wind and rain from these parts :

Coloured.

" When the flashes of lightning appear very pale, it
argues the air to be full of waterish meteors ; and
if red and fiery, inclining to winds and tempests."

" At Borese de parte trucis quum fulminat, et quum
Eurique Zephyrique tonat domus : omnia plenis
Rura natant fossis, atque omnis navita ponto
Humida vela legit." Virg., Georg. /, 370-73.

218 WIND.

PROVERBS RELATING TO WIND.

Every wind has its weather.

Nae weather is ill
An the wind bide still.

De 1'arrivee du vent
Souvenez vous en.

Day and Night.

The winds of the daytime wrestle and fight
Longer and stronger than those of the night.

Vent du jour redouble a la nuit,

Vent du soir se calme au jour. Cotes du Nord,

Morning and Evening.

Aria de mati, 1'empieness el miili,
Aria de sera bel temp se spera :

i.e., Wind in the morning fills the mills; wind in the evening
foretells fine weather.

Morning.

Aria de mati,

Ol tep vol fa'l rabi :

i.e., Wind in the morning brings stormy weather.

Mid-day.

Se i venti spirara da mezzogiorno
Suto i indicara sicuro e longo Venetia :
i.e., If the wind is blowing at noon, it is a sure sign of con-
tinued dry weather.

Sunrise and Sunset.

Der Wind, der sich mit der Sonne erhebt und legt,
bringt selten Regen. Westphalia.

WIND. 219

Wind and Rain.

Jaincoaq nahidouen orduan, aisge gusclez eguitendu

uria Basque :
i.e. t When God wills, it rains with all winds.

No gh'e vento senza aqua :
i.e., Never is wind without rain.

Mai vent senz' aqua, ne aqua senza vent Ber-
gamo :
i.e., Never is there wind without rain, or rain without wind.

Grosser wind ist selten ohne Regen.

When rain comes before wind,
Halyards, sheets, and braces mind :

But,

When wind comes before rain,
Soon you may make sail again.

When the rain comes before the winds,
You may reef when it begins ;
But when the wind comes before the rain,
You may hoist your topsails up again.

If the rain comes before the wind,
Lower your topsails and take them in ;
If the wind comes before the rain,
Lower your topsails and hoist them again.

High Wind.

Jamais grand vent

N'a couru pour rent (rien). Jura.

Warm Wind.
Vent chaud a la queue blanche (is followed by snow)

Vaucluse.

22O WIND.

Winds preceding Fine Weather.
Dop el vent,
Tre di de bel temp. Milan.

Cold Wind.
Co xe vento,

Xe fredo d'ogni tempo Venetia :
i.e.. When there is wind, it is always cold.

Direction of the Wind.

In Selkirkshire and Peeblesshire they say,
When the wind's in the north,
Hail comes forth ;
When the wind's in the wast,
Look for a wat blast ;
When the wind's in the soud,
The weather will be fresh and gude ;
When the wind's in the east,
Cauld and snaw comes neist.

East and wast,
The sign of a blast ;
North and south,
The sign of drouth.

North winds send hail, south winds bring rain,
East winds we bewail, west winds blow amain :
North-east is too cold, south-east not too warm,
North-west is too bold, south-west doth no harm.
Tusser.

The west wind always brings wet weather :
The east wind cold and wet together :
The south wind surely brings us rain :
The north wind blows it back again :

WIND. 221

If the sun in red should set,
The next day surely will be wet :
If the sun should set in grey,
The next will be a rainy day.

North Wind.
A northern air
Brings weather fair.

The north wind drives away rain. Palestine.

Vent d' Albion

Vent de grelon. Rhone.

Sans le vent du nord

On labourerait avec des chevilles d'or. Tarn.

When the wind is in the north,
The skilful fisher goes not forth.

North-east Wind.

Quand il pleut a la bise

II pleut a sa guise. Haute Marne.

S'il pleut par la bise

II en tombe jusqu'a la chemise. Ain.

If it rains with a north-east wind (Cierzo), it rains
with a vengeance. Spain.

La tramontane

Ni bono ni sano. Gard.

A'bise directe point d'abri,

A'pauvre homme point d'ami. Vaucluse.

Si la bise ne s'arrete pas le troisieme jour, elle
court neuf jours. Ain.

222 WIND.

So the Venetians say,
Quando bora se move
O uno o tre o cinque o sete o nove.

La bise

Est la nourriciere de la Bresse. Am.

Annee de bise annee de prise. -Jura.

North-east and South.

Vein ke djalle, bise ke dedjalle et fenna ke pou

parle,

San tre tsouze kon ne vai guero Walloon :
i.e., A south wind that freezes, a north-east wind that thaws,

and a woman who says little, are three things not often

met with.

Quand lou Contal tiro,

L'aouto sello et brido,

Et lou plouxal

Monto o xobal Lot :

i.e., Quand le vent du Cantal (north-east) souffle,

Le vent d'autan (south) selle et bride (gets
ready to blow)

Et le vent pluvieux

Monte a cheval.

Les bles grainent plus par le vent du nord est que
par le vent du sud. Yonne.

North-west,

Do business with men when the wind is in the
north-west. Yorkshire.

This, bringing the finest weather, is said to improve men's
tempers.

WIND. 223

An honest man and a north-west wind generally go
to sleep together.
The north-west wind generally abates about sunset.

Vent d' Ardennes (north-west)

N'a jamais fait de bien en Lorraine. Vosges.

North and South.

On the north coast of Sicily, where the mountains are to the
south and the sea to the north, they say :

Quannu lu ventu veni di susu (*>., from above,

from the hills)

Vatti a' innlari 'ntra lu pirtusu :
Quannu lu ventu veni di mari (i.e., from the north)
Pigghia la truscia e vatinni a lavari.

Marin qui geale,
Aourou qui desgeale,
Fumou qui parlou latin
Fan maridou fin.
i.e., Vent du midi qui gele,

Vent du nord qui de'gele,

Femme qui parle latin,

Font mauvaise fin. Vauduse.

Vent du nord
Remplit le tre'sor ;
Vent du Midi
Le degarnit. Rhone.

Vent du nord tiede,
Vent du midi froid,
Mauvais presage. Vauchise.

224 WIND.

South.

(Hot.)
" When ye see the south wind blow, ye say, There

will be heat ; and it coraeth to pass." S. Luke,

xii. 55-
L'autal, qu'on dit le droit vent, de'gelle comme eau

brouillant.

The south wind is the father of the poor. Ragusa.
The south wind warms the aged. Russia.

(Foggy.)
" Like foggy south, puffing with wind and rain."-

As you like it, act iii. sc. 5.

(Wet.)

When the wind is in the south,
It is in the rain's mouth.
A southerly wind with showers of rain,
Will bring the wind from west again.

(Wet and Warm.)
When the wind is in the south,
It blows the bait into the fish's mouth.
When the wind comes from the Danube, the

Danube (i.e., floods of rain) comes behind it.

Bohemia.

(Boisterous.)
" The southern wind

Doth play a trumpet to his (i.e., to the sun's) pur-
poses,

And by his hollow whistling in the -leaves,
Foretells a tempest and a blustering day." Henry

IV., Part I., act v. sc. i.

WIND. 225

(Cold.)
Sudwind kalt
Wird selten drei Tage alt. Westphalia.

(In Spring and Autumn.)
L'autan du printemps
Derange le temps :
Celui de Fautomne
Un beau temps dorme. Artige.

Le vent marin, comme le gueux, porte toujours sa
gourde. Vaucluse.

South-east.

If a south-east wind bring rain, the latter is ex-
pected to last for some time. Scotland.

South-west.

La venessa o la spurca o la sneta Bergamo :
i.e., The south-west wind either clouds the sky or clears it.

Garbin garbin bardassa

Quelo che T trova el lassa Venetia ;

i.e., That rascal Garbin (the south-west wind), as he finds

us he leaves us.
That terrible Garbin stirs up the sea to its lowest

depths. Dalmatia.

On Lake Onega they say,

A south-west wind (Schelojnik) blowing on the
Onega is as bad as a highwayman.

" A south-west blow on ye

And blister ye all over." Tempest, act i. sc. 2.

"The southern wind," says Battman "upon Bar-
tholme, his booke ' De Proprietatibus rerum,' "
with which Shakespeare was well acquainted, " is

226 WIND.

hot and moyst. Southern winds corrupt ' and
destroy : they heat and make men fall into sick-
nesse." Lib. xi. c. 3.

South-west and South-east.
Se ti vol veder el tempo fin,
A la sera siroco e la matina garbin Venetia :
i.e., If you wish to see fine weather, there must be in the

evening a south-east wind blowing, and in the morning a

south-west.

South and East.
Le solaire (east wind)
Pluie en 1'air :
Le grand vent (south wind)
La repand. Haute Saone.

East.*

Le vent du levant
Annonce le beau temps. Marne.

(Cold.)

Giazz porta de levant,
El dura tant ma tant Milan :
i.e., If an east wind brings frost, the frost will last a long time.

When the wind is in the east,

It's neither good for man nor beast.

(Wet.)

An easterly wind's rain
Makes fools fain. North of Ireland.
Easterly winds and rain
Bring cockles here from Spain.

* In Wales the east wind is called "The wind of the dead
men's feet," because the dead are buried with their feet towards
the east, to meet their Lord at His second coming.

WIND. 227

When the rain is from the east,

It is for four-and-twenty hours at least.

Schwacher Ostwind begunstigt heitern Himmel,
wenn's aber bei Ostwind regnet, halt der Regen
gerne an.

(Clear.)

Everything looks large in the east wind. Scotland.

There are many local sayings in Scotland referring to the un-
usually clear appearance of certain mountains during an
east wind. It is said to indicate approaching rain.

East and West.

When the wind is in the east,
The fisher likes it least :
When the wind is in the west,
The fisher likes it best.

In Forfarshire, which lies on the east coast of Scotland,
with a long stretch of country intervening between its
borders and the opposite sea, they say,

When the carry (L e., the current of the cloucjs)
gaes west,

Guid weather is past :

When the carry gaes east,

Guid weather comes neist.

Wind vom Niedergang
1st Regens Aufgang :
Wind vom Aufgang
Schonen Wetters Aufgang.

West.

When the wind is in the west,
Then the weather's always best.

228 PROGNOSTICS FROM ANIMALS.

The west wind is a gentleman, and goes to bed
(i.e., drops in the evening).

(Wet.)

Wind west

Rains nest. Devonshire.

A western wind carries water in his hand.

Veering.

When the wind veers against the sun,
Trust it not, for back 'twill run.

A west wind north about
Never long holds out Northumberland :
That is, a wind which goes round from east to west, " wither-
shins," or contrary to the course of the sun, rarely con-
tinues.

If the wind follows the sun's course, expect fine
weather.

So the Germans say,

Wenn der Wind der Sonne folgt, so bleibt es einige
Tage gutes Wetter.

PROGNOSTICS FROM ANIMALS.

Asses.

Wenn der Esel beim Austreiben aus dem Stalle die
Nase in der Hohe streckt, und tiichtig die
Ohren schiittelt, so Sind Regen und Gewitter zu
ervvarten.

PROGNOSTICS FROM ANIMALS. 22Q

If asses hang their ears downward and forward, and
rub against walls, rain is approaching.

If asses bray more frequently than usual, it fore-
shows rain.

Hark ! I hear the asses bray.

We shall have some rain to-day. Rutland.

It is time to stack your hay and corn,
When the old donkey blows his horn.

Wenn oft die Esel schreien, kommt schlechtes
Wetter. Tyrol.

Quand che 1'asen 1'ascolta

El temp se volta :

Quand 1'asen el straniida

El temp se miida Bergamo :

i.e., When asses prick up their ears, it is a sign that there will

be a change in the weather : so also is it when they

sneeze.

Bats.

Bats, or flying mice, coming out of their holes
quickly after sunset, and sporting themselves
in the open air, premonstrates fair and calm
weather. Wilsford.

It will rain if bats cry much or fly into the house.

Bulls.

If the bull lead the van in going to pasture, rain
must be expected ; but if he is careless and allow
the cows to precede him, the weather will be
uncertain.

230 PROGNOSTICS FROM ANIMALS.

Cats.

When cats sneeze it is a sign of rain.

Cats are observed to scratch the wall or a post
before wind, and to wash their faces before a
thaw : they sit with their backs to the fire before
snow.

Quand le chat se frotte 1'oreille

C'est le temps vif qui se reveille. Herault.

Quand el gat se frega i orecc

Speta 1'aqua che vegn a secc Milan ;

i.e., When the cat scratches her ear it will rain very soon.

When cats wipe their jaws with their feet it is a
sign of rain.

Quand lou cat passe la patte sur la teste,
Benleon (bientot) fara tempeste. Basses Alpes.

In Southey's Travels in Spain, we read,
" The old woman promised him a fine day to-
morrow, because the cat's skin looked bright."

" Sailors, I am informed on the authority of a naval
officer, have a great dislike to see the cat, on
board ship, unusually playful and frolicsome :
such an event, they consider, prognosticates a
storm : and they have a saying on these occa-
sions that 'the cat has a gale of wind in her
tail.'" Brand, iii. 188.

Cows.

Kommen die Kuh' Abends lang nicht nach Haus,
kommt am folgenden Tag schlechtes Wetter.
Tyrol.

PROGNOSTICS FROM ANIMALS. 231

If cattle turn up their nostrils and sniff the air, or
if they lick their fore feet, or lie on their right
side, it will rain.
So the Venetians say,

Co la vaca tien su'l muso,

Bruto tempo salta suso.

Quand les betes a cornes rentrent a 1'etable la
queue en trompette, c'est signe d'orage: quand
elles agitent leurs pieds de derriere, c'est signe
de neige. Ariege.

If cattle or sheep crowd together, rain will follow.

Dogs.

When dogs eat grass it will be rainy.

If dogs roll on the ground, and scratch, or become
drowsy and stupid, it is a sign of rain.

In Robert! Keuchenii Crepundia,' p. 211, the following

lines occur :

" Praescia ventorum, se volvit odora canum vis :
Numine difflatur pulveris instar homo."

Chien qui se roule, annonce du vent :
S'il mange de 1'herbe, il pleuvra. Morbihan.
Wenn die Hunde den Mond anbellen, folgt strenge
Kalte.

Goats.

Goats leave the high grounds and seek shelter
before a storm. Scotland.

If goats and sheep quit their pastures with reluct-
ance, it will rain the next day.

232 PROGNOSTICS FROM ANIMALS.

Hares.

Hares take to the open country before a snow-storm.

Scotland.
Wenn der Hase im Herbst einen ungewohnlich

dicken Pelz hat, dann giebt es einen harten

Winter.

Hedgehog.

In Bodenham's Belvedere, or Garden of the Muses, 8vo,

Lond. 1600, p. 153, we read, ,
" As hedgehogs doe foresee ensuing stormes,
So wise men are for fortune still prepared."

And in Poor Robin's Almanack for 1733, occur the follow-
ing lines :
" Observe which way the hedgehog builds her

nest,

To front the north or south, or east or west :
For if 'tis true that common people say,
The wind will blow the quite contrary way;
If by some secret art the hedgehogs know,
So long before, which way the winds will blow,
She has an art to which many a person lacks,
That thinks himself fit to make almanacks."

Horses.

If horses stretch out their necks and sniff the air,
rain will ensue.

Mice.

If mice run about more than usual, wet weather
may be expected.

Wenn die Mause im Herbste hoch aufwerfen,
kommt ein schwerer Winter.

PROGNOSTICS FROM ANIMALS. 233

Moles.

Moles plying their works, in undermining the
earth, foreshows rain : but if they do foresake
their trenches and creep above ground, in sum-
mer time it is a sign of hot weather ; but when
on a suddain they doe forsake the valleys and
low grounds, it foreshows a flood neer at hand ;
but their coming into meddows presages fair
weather, and for certain no floods. Wilsford.

Wenn der Maulwurf die Erde aufwirt, wird
schlechtes Wetter.

Pigs.

Hogs crying and running unquietly up and down
with hay or litter in their mouths, foreshadows a
storm to be neer at hand. Wilsford.

Eats.
If rats are more restless than usual, rain is at hand.

Sheep.

If sheep gambol and fight, or retire to shelter, it
presages a change in the weather.

Si les moutons dan sent, signe de vent :

S'ils restent couches, signe de pluie. HautRfiin.

Old sheep are said to eat greedily before a storm,
and sparingly before a thaw; when they leave
the high grounds and bleat much in the evening
and during the night, severe weather is expected.
In winter, when they feed down the hill, a snow-
storm is looked for; when they feed up the burn,
wet weather is near. Scotland.

234 PROGNOSTICS FROM BIRDS.

Weasels.

If these animals are seen running about much in
the forenoon, it foretells rain in the after part of
the day. Scotland.

Wolves.

Heulen die Wolfe und bellen die Fuchse, so
kommt noch grossere Kalte. Saubia.

Cats, Dogs, and Hens.
D'hanen, katten en de honden
Zoo mein dikwils heeft gewonden,
Zeggen't weer van dag tot dag,
Beter als den Almanack. Flemish.

PROGNOSTICS FROM BIRDS.

iryoso&i rig ati ruv ogviQtov ^avrguo/Asyw wsgi rou
vuv] ,aj} crXsi, %si{Auv sffraf \>vvi crXfi, x'eedo$ sv

Aristophanes : Aves, 1. 597.

Bittern.
Wenn die Rohrdommel zeitig gehort wird, hofft

man auf eine gute Ernte.

Blackbirds.

When the voices of blackbirds are unusually shrill,
or when blackbirds- sing much in the morning,
rain will follow.

Cranes.

If cranes appear in autumn early, a severe winter is
expected.

" Cranes, soaring aloft and quietly in the air, fore-

PROGNOSTICS FROM BIRDS. 235

shows fair weather: but if they make much
noise, as consulting which way to go, it foreshows
a storm that's neer at hand." Wilsford, p. 133,
who seems to have taken this from ' Dialogue of
Dives and Pauper,' fol. 1493, first precepte,
46th chapter.

Wenn die Kraniche voriiberziehen, kommt Wind
oder Regen.

So the Italians say,
Co le grue passa o vento o aqua.

Cuckoo.

Hesiod mentions the singing of a bird which he
calls xuxxug, as foreboding three days' rain.

Si lou cougou cante a 1'ubac, pluie de man ouras :
Si cante a 1'adrech, beou temps aoures Basses

Alpes:
i.e., Si le coucou chante au nord, pluie au lende-

main :
S'il chante au midi, beau temps.

Wenn der Kukuk zu den Hausern fliegt, wird
schlechtes Wetter.

Dotterel.

When dotterel do first appear,

It showes that frost is very near :

But when that dotterel do go,

Then you may look for heavy snow. Wiltshire.

Ducks.

When ducks are driving through the burn,
That night the weather takes a turn. Scotland.

236 PROGNOSTICS FROM BIRDS.

If ducks fly backwards and forwards, and continu-
ally plunge in water and wash themselves in-
cessantly, wet weather will ensue.
So the French and Italian proverbs,

Quand les canards battent de Taile dans le ruis-
seau,

Bientot le laboureur aura de 1'eau. -Jura.

Se salten i anedot e vosen aqua,

Aqua, aqua, aqua, la ven siibet 1'aqua. Milan.

Finches.

Wenn die Finken sich ganz friith vor Sonnenauf-
gang horen lassen, verkiinden sich nahen Regen.

The plaintive note of the "shilfa" or "sheely " (chaffinch)
is interpreted as a sign of rain. When, therefore, the
boys hear it, they first imitate it, and then rhymingly
refer to the expected consequences :

Weet-weet !

Dreep-dreep !

Fowls (eating grass).

Wenn die Hennen Gras fressen, kommt Regen.
Tyrol.

(Rolling.)

If fowls roll in the sand,
Rain is at hand.

(Grubbing.)
If fowls grub in the dust, it indicates coming

rain.

So the Milanese say,
Se riispa pii del solit la gaina
No tarda Faqua pii de domatina.

PROGNOSTICS FROM BIRDS. 237

(Drooping feathers.)
If fowls' wings droop, rain is at hand.

So the German proverb,
Wenn die Hiihner die Schwanze hangen lassen,

giebt es viel Regen.

(Cock-crowing at unusual hours.)
If cocks crow late and early, clapping their wings
unusually, rain is expected.

So the German and Italian proverbs,
Wenn die Hahne in ungewohnlichen Stunden
krahen, und die Hiihner fruher Kakeln, wird's
Regen geben fur den Tag.

Quando'l galo canta in cortivo (fowl-yard),
El tempo, se 1'ebon, se fa cativo :
Quando'l galo canta a mason (hen-roost)
Se'l tempo 1'e cativo, el se fa bon. Venetia.

Quando il gallo canto al pollaio (poultry-yard),
Aspetta 1'aqua sotto il grondaio. Tuscany.

Se el gel canta de stresura (at unusual hours)

Se 1'esere el se snigola (grows cloudy). Bergamo.

Quannu canta lu gaddu fora ura,

A cangiari lu tempu 'un addimura. Sicily.

(Cock-crowing in the evening.)
If the cock goes crowing to bed,
He'll certainly rise with a watery head.

The French say,
Si le coq chante au soir
La pluie lui court au derriere. Gironde.

238 PROGNOSTICS FROM BIRDS.

The Tyrolese,
Wenn der Hahn noch Abends kraht, es gibt

Regen.

(Cock drinking in summer.)
Quand en este le haut coq boit
La pluie soudain vient et paroist.

Quand el gal el bev d'esta

Spetta on po che'l piovera. Milan.

(Pluming themselves.)
Quand i gai se vol becks,
El temp l'e sul cambiass. Bergamo.

(Straying from home.)

Wenn die Hennen weit vom Stalle sich entfernen,
naht schlechtes Wetter.

(Crowding into house.)

If a hen and chickens crowd into a house, it is a
sign of rain.

Si, quand il pleut, les poules vont a 1'abri,
Dites que la pluie s'en va finie :
Si elles restent dehors et se laissent mouiller,
Ne pensez pas que la pluie va cesser. Cote d'Or.

(Moulting.)

If the cock moult before the hen,
We shall have weather thick and thin :
But if the hen moult before the cock,
We shall have weather as hard as a block.

Fulmar.

Pennant in his Zoology informs us that if the ful-

PROGNOSTICS FROM BIRDS. 239

mar (Procellaria glacialis) seek land, it is a sign
to the inhabitants of St Kilda that the west wind
is far off.

Geese.

The quaint author of * A strange Metamorphosis of Man
transformed into a Wildernesse, deciphered in Characters,'
1634, I2mo, Lond., speaking of the goose, says

" She is no witch, or astrologer, to divine by the
starres, but yet hath a shrewd guesse of rainie
weather, being as good as an almanack to some
that believe in her."

" The offspring or alliance of the Capitolian guard,
when they do make a gaggling in the air more
than usual, or seem to fight, being over-greedy
at their meat, expect then cold and winterly
weather." Wilsford, p. 132.

Wenn die Ganse auf einem Fusse stehen, giebt's
Regen.

Guinea-fowl.

This bird is called the "comeback" in Norfolk,
and regarded as the invoker of rain. It often
continues clamorous throughout the whole of
rainy days.

Gulls.

Sea-gull, sea-gull, sit on the sand,
It's never good weather while you're on the land.
Scotland.

" In Forfarshire, when sea-gulls appear in the
fields, a storm from the south-east generally

240 PROGNOSTICS FROM BIRDS.

follows and when the storm begins to abate,
they fly back to the shore." Sir J. Sinclair's
Statistical Account of Scotland, iii. 478.

" During the whole year, the sea-gulls, commonly
called in this parish (Holywood, Dumfriesshire)
sea-maws, occasionally come from the Sol way
Frith to this part of the country : their arrival
seldom fails of being followed by a high wind
and heavy rain from the south-west within
twenty-four hours : and they return to the Frith
again as soon as the storm begins to abate."-
Ibid., i. 32.

When sea-gulls fly out early and far to seaward,
moderate winds and fair weather maybe expected.

" Sea-maws, early in the morning making a gaggling
more than ordinary, foretoken stormy and blus-
tering weather." Wilsford, p. 134.

Heron.

When the heron flies low, the air is gross and
thickening into showers.

" Herons in the evening flying up and down, as if
doubtful where to rest, presages some evill ap-
proaching weather." Wilsfordj p. 133.

Wenn der Fischreiber das Wasser aufpflugt, holt
er Wasser.

Jackdaw.

When three daws are seen on St Peter's vane to-
gether,
Then we're sure to have bad weather. Norwich.

PROGNOSTICS FROM BIRDS. 241

"Jackdaws, if they come late home from foraging,
presages some cold or ill weather neer at hand,
and likewise when they are seen much alone."
Wilsford, p. 133.

Kingfisher.

In Wild's ' Iter Boreale ' we read :
" The peaceful kingfishers are met together
About the decks, and prophesie calm weather."
See also on December 14.

Sir Thomas Browne, in his ' Vulgar Errors,' book iii.

chap. 10, declares

" That a kingfisher, hanged by the bill, showeth
us what quarter the wind is, by an occult and
secret propriety, converting the breast to that
point of the horizon from whence the blow, is a
received opinion, and very strange introducing
natural weathercocks, and extending magnetical
positions as far as animal natures ; a conceit
supported chiefly by present practice, yet not
made out by reason or experience."

Kites.

If kites fly high, fair weather is at hand.

Larks.
If larks fly high and sing long, expect fine weather.

So the Germans say,
Wenn die Lerche hoch fliegt und lange hoch oben

singt, so verkundigt sie schones Wetter.

Magpies.

Sir Humphry Davy in ' Salmonia ' says that
<{ For anglers in spring it is always unlucky to see
single magpies ; but two may always be regarded
Q

242 PROGNOSTICS FROM BIRDS.

as a favourable omen : and the reason is, that in
cold and stormy weather one magpie alone
leaves the nest in search of food, the other re-
maining sitting upon the eggs or the young ones ;
but when two go out together, it is only when
the weather is mild and warm, and favourable
for fishing."

Cant les agassos faou bas Hour niou,
Trouno souben penden lestiou Tarn:
i.e., Quand les pies font bas leur nid,
II tonne souvent pendant Fete.

Migratory Birds.

Siehst du fremde Wandervogel
So wird's kalt nach alter Regel.

When great abundance of winter migratory birds,
and particularly fieldfares, arrive early, they
usually forebode a hard winter : and the same
prognostic of severe weather is to be inferred
from the early or numerous migration of wild
geese, wild ducks, and other winter fowls.

Marsh Harriers.

It is said in Wiltshire that the marsh harriers or
dunpickles (Circus rufus) alight in great num-
bers on the downs before rain.

Owls.
If owls scream during bad weather, there will be a

change.

So the Italians say,
Quand la scigueta cria
El temp brut el scapa via.

PROGNOSTICS FROM BIRDS. 243

And the French,

Quand les chouettes chantent le soir, signe de beau
temps.

" Owls whooping after sunset, and in the night,
foreshows a fair day to ensue ; but if she names
herself in French (Huette), expect then fickle and
inconstant weather, but most usually rain."
Wilsf&rdy p. 134.

When owls whoop much at night, expect fair wea-
ther. Sussex.

Peacock.

When the peacock loudly bawls,
Soon we'll have both rain and squalls.

If peacocks cry in the night, there is rain to fall.

Petrel.

The stormy petrel presages bad weather, and gives
sailors notice of the approach of a tempest, by
collecting under the sterns of the ships.

Pigeons.

If pigeons return home slowly, the weather will be
wet.

Wenn die Tauben baden, bedeutet's Regen.

Ptarmigan.

The frequently repeated cry of the ptarmigan low
down on the mountains during frost and snow,
indicates more snow and continued cold.
Scotland.

244 PROGNOSTICS FROM BIRDS.

Quail.

Plus la cattle carcaille,

Plus chere est la semaille. Ille et Vilainc.

Autant de fois chante la caille a son retour,
Autant de francs vaudra la mesure de ble'. Nievre.

Raven.
If ravens croak three or four times and flap their

wings, fine weather is expected.

The Poles say,
If the raven croaks expect rain.

In Scotland it is believed that if the raven cries first in the
morning, it will be a good day ; if the rook, the reverse ;
hence the proverb :

The corbie said unto the craw,

" Johnnie, fling your plaid awa' : "

The craw says unto the corbie,

"Johnnie, fling your plaid about ye."

Robins.

If robins are seen near houses it is a sign of rain.

The familiar habits of the redbreast have occasioned
it to be distinguished by a peculiar name in
many countries : about Bornholm it is called
Tomi Liden ; in Norway, Peter Ronsmad ;
in Germany, Thomas Gierdet; and with us
Robin Redbreast or Ruddock.

Rooks.

Corvus aquat. Erasmus.

When rooks seem to drop in their flight, as if
pierced by a shot, it is considered to foretell
rain.

PROGNOSTICS FROM BIRDS. 245

The low flight of rooks indicates rain. If they feed
busily, and hurry over the ground in one direction,
and in a compact body, a storm will soon follow.
When they sit in rows on dykes and palings,
wind is looked for; when going home to roost,
if they fly high, the next day will be fair, and
vice versa. In autumn and winter, if after feed-
ing in the morning they return to the rookery
and hang about it, rain is to be expected.
Scotland.

Quand 1'agraule passe bas,

Debat Tale porte lou glas :

Quand passe haut,

Porte lou quant Gironde:

i.e., Quand le corbeau passe bas,

Sous 1'aile il porte la glace :

Quand il passe haut,

II porte la chaleur.

When rooks fly sporting high in air,
It shows that windy storms are near.

If rooks stay at home, or return in the middle of
the day, it will rain ; if they go far abroad, it
will be fine. Devonshire.

Snipes.

The drumming of the snipe in the air indicates dry
weather and frost at night to the shepherds of
Garrow. Scotland.

Sparrows.

If sparrows chirp a great deal, wet weather will ensue.

246 PROGNOSTICS FROM BIRDS.

Starlings.

If starlings and crows congregate together in large
numbers, expect rain.

Swallows.
If swallows touch the water as they fly, rain

approaches.

Identical are the French, Italian, and German sayings,

viz.,

Quind ches arondelles volent a tierre,
Adui la poussiere. Nord.

Le rundane die ula a bass
L'e segnal d'iin gran slaass.

Wenn die Schwalben niedrig fliegen, und hin und
her auf der Oberflache der Erde und des Wassers
hinfahren, so hat man Regen oder Gewitter zu
erwarten.

So Gay, in his first Pastoral, writes,
" When swallows fleet soar high and sport in air,
He told us that the welkin would be clear."

Swans,

In Sir John Sinclair's Statistical Account of Scotland, x.
14, parish of Wick, co. Caithness, the minister, speak-
ing of the swans which periodically visit the lochs
there, says,

"They are remarkable prognosticators of the
weather, and much relied on as such by the
farmer."

If the swan flies against the wind, it is a certain in-

PROGNOSTICS FROM BIRDS. 247

dication of a hurricane within twenty-four hours,
generally within twelve. Athenceum, iii. 229.

When the white swan visits the Orkneys, expect a
severe winter.

The Russians say,
" The swan brings snow on her beak."

Thrush.

Le chant de la grive annonce la neige. Ariege.

Quand on entend la grive chanter,
Cherche la maison pour t'abriter,
Ou du bois pour te chauffer. Dordogne.
The missel-thrush or storm-cock sings loud and
long before rain.

Titmouse.

" The titmouse foretells cold, if crying Pincher."
Wilsford, p. 132.

Wild Geese.

In Morayshire, they say,

Wild geese, wild geese, ganging to the sea,
Good weather it will be.
Wild geese, wild geese, ganging to the hill,
The weather it will spill.

Woodpecker.

"The woodpecker's cry denotes wet." "Wils-
ford.
The dirt-bird sings, and we shall have rain.

Lorsque le pivert crie

II annonce la pluie. Eure et Loire.

248 PROGNOSTICS FROM FISH.

Co'l pigozzo per aria'l cria,

La borasca ne vien via (/.&, is coming on us).
Venetia.

Quand el picozz picozza (taps)

O che 1'e vent, o che 1'e gozza (rain). Milan.

Wren.

" Manx .herring-fishers dare not go to sea without
one of these birds taken dead with them, for fear
of storms." Scottish Gallovidian Encyclopedia,
P- 157-

PROGNOSTICS FROM FISH.

Fishes rise more than usual at the approach of
a storm. In some parts of England they are
said not to bite so well before rain.

Quand i pes i noda a gala (swim at the top of the

water),
L'e che 1'aqua che no fala. Bergamo.

Carp.

Quando nel fosso salta la scardola, piova.
Corresponding with the previous proverb. Venice.

Cockles.

" Cockles and most shell-fish are observed against
a tempest to have gravil sticking hard unto their
shells, as a providence of nature to stay or poise
themselves, and to help weigh them down, if

\ raised from the bottome by the surges." Wils-
ford, p. 136.

PROGNOSTICS FROM FISH. 249

Cuttles.

" Cuttles with their many legs swimming on the top
of the water, and striving to be above the waves,
do presage a storm, offended with the meteor,
and the disturbed waters in the deep." Wilsford,
P- 135-

Dolphins.

" Dolphines in fair and calm weather persuing one
another, as one of their waterish pastimes, fore-
shows wind, and from that part whence they
fetch their frisks j but if they play thus when the
seas are rough and troubled, it is a sign of fair
and calm weather to ensue." Wilsford, p. 135.

Pike.

1st die Hechtsleber, nach dem Gallenblaschen zu,
breit, nach vorn zu aber spitzig, so gibt es einen
hart en langen Winter. Rhine.

Porpoises.

When porpoises swim to windward, foul weather
will ensue within twelve hours.

" Porpoises, or Sea- Hogs, when observed to sport,
and chase one another about ships, expect then
some stormy weather." Wilsford, p. 135.

In ' Canterbury Guests, or a Bargain Broken,' a comedy, by

Ravenscroft, 4to, p. 24, we read :
" My heart begins to leap, and play like a porpice

before a storm."

Sea-Urchins.

"Sea-urchins thrusting themselves into the mud,

250 PROGNOSTICS FROM REPTILES, ETC.

or striving to cover their bodies with sand, fore-
shows a storm ; for the windy exhalations disturb
the lowest waters first, in the bottome of the sea,
which makes the other fishes rise and trust in
their swimming ; and the Urchin unapt for that,
and fearing to be hurried away with the tumul-
tuous waves, gets neer the shore, and there stays
itself by creeping into the earth." Wilsford,
p. 136.

Trout.

Wenn die Forellen friih laichen, gibt es viel Schnee.

PROGNOSTICS FROM REPTILES, ETC.

Frogs.

Quando le rane canta, el tempo se cambia.
Venetia.

Quand les grenouilles chantent le soir, signe de beau
temps.

When frogs croak much it is a sign of rain.

Wenn die Laubfrosche knarren
Magst du auf Regen harren.

Co canta la rana

Piova e brentana. Venetia.

Quand les grenouilles coassent

Point de gelees ne menacent. Haute Saone.

If frogs make a noise in the time of cold rain,
warm dry weather will follow.

PROGNOSTICS FROM REPTILES, ETC. 25 1

If frogs, instead of yellow, appear russet-green, it
will presently rain.

When frogs spawn in the middle of the water it is
a sign of drought ; and when at the side, it fore-
tells a wet summer. Scotland.
So the Germans say,

Liegt der Froschlaich im Friihjahr im tiefen Wasser,
so folgt ein trockener warmer Sommer : liegt er
aber am Ufer oder nur wenig im Wasser, so
kommt ein nasser Sommer.

Glow-worm.

When the glow-worm lights her lamp,
The air is always damp.

If glow-worms shine much, it will rain :

But, on the contrary,
Wenn die Johannis-wiirmchen ungewohnlich leuch-

ten und glanzen, kann man sicher auf schones.

Wetter rechnen. Lassen siesich bis zum Johan-

nistage nicht sehen, so ist das ein Zeichen kalter

unfreundlicher Witterung.

Leech.

A leech confined in a bottle of water is always
agitated when a change of weather is about to
take place. Before high winds it moves about
with much celerity. Previous to slight rain or
snow it creeps to the top of the bottle, but soon
sinks j but, if the rain or wind is likely to be of
long duration, the leech remains a longer time at
the surface. If thunder approaches, the leech

252 PROGNOSTICS FROM REPTILES, ETC.

starts about in an agitated and convulsive
manner.

Snails.

When black snails cross your path,
Black clouds much moisture hath.

Wenn die Gartenschnecken, Schleimschnecken
haufig auf den Beeten und in den Wegen sich
finden, so deutet es auf Gewitterregen.

Wenn die Schnecke ein grimes Blatt mitftihrt,

Es gewiss gutes Wetter wird :

Beladet sie sich mit Grund,

Thut sie starken Regen kund. Eifel.

Snailie, snailie, shoot out your horn,

And tell us if it will be a bonny day the morn.

Snakes.

Rain is foretold by the appearance and activity of
snakes.

Toads.

If toads come out of their holes in great numbers,
rain will fall soon.

Saute crapaud,

Nous aurons de Teau. Haute Loire.

Quand che canta el sciat (toad)
El temp voi fa de mat Milan :
i.e.. The croaking of toads is a sign of rain.

Worms.

If many earth-worms appear, it presages rain.

PROGNOSTICS FROM INSECTS, ETC, 253

PROGNOSTICS FROM INSECTS, ETC.

Ants.

" The commonwealth of emmets, when busied with
their eggs, and in ordering their state affairs at
home, it presages a storm at hand, or some foul
weather ; but when Nature seems to stupifie their
little bodies, and disposes them to rest, causing
them to withdraw into their caverns, least their
industry should engage them by the inconveni-
ency of the season, expect then some foul and
winterly weather." Wilsford, p. 131.

Wenn die Ameisen sich verkriechen
Werden wir Regen kriegen. Palatinate.

Le formighe in processiu

Le promet tin aquariu. Bergamo.

Bees.

When many bees enter the hive and none leave it,
rain is near.

If bees stay at home,
Rain will soon come :
If they fly away,
Fine will be the day.

And so in Georgia iv. 191-194, we find the following lines :
" Nec vero a stabulis pluvia impendente recedunt

Longuis, aut credunt coelo adventantibus euris ;

Sed circum tutse sub moenibus urbis aquantur,

Excursusque breves ten tan t."

254 PROGNOSTICS FROM INSECTS, ETC.

A bee was never caught in a shower.

A swarm of bees in May
Is worth a load of hay :
A swarm of bees in June
Is worth a silver spoon :
A swarm in July
Is not worth a fly.
The Germans say,
Ein Bienenschwarm im Mai
1st werth ein Fuder Heu :
Aber ein Schwarm im Juni
Der lohnet kaum die Muhe.

Beetles.

Before rain beetles are more troublesome than
usual.

The clock-beetle, which flies about in the summer
evenings in a circular direction, with a loud
buzzing noise, is said to foretell a fine day. It
was consecrated by the Egyptians to the sun.

A long-bodied beetle is called in Bedfordshire the
rain-beetle, on account of its always appearing
before rain.

Crickets.

When crickets chirp unusually, rain is expected.

In White's ' Selborne,' that writer, speaking of crickets,

says,
" They are the housewife's barometer, foretelling

her when it will rain."

PROGNOSTICS FROM INSECTS, ETC. 255

Flies.

If flies cling much to the ceilings, or disappear,
rain may be expected.

" Flies in the spring or summer season," says Wils-
ford, " if they grow busier or blinder than at
other times, or that they are observed to shroud
themselves in warm places, expect then quickly
for to follow, either hail, cold storms of rain,
or very much wet weather; and if those little
creatures are noted early in autumn to repair
unto their winter quarters, it presages frosty
mornings, cold storms, with the approach of
hoary winter. Atoms, or little flies, swarming
together and sporting themselves in the sun-
beams, is a good omen of fair weather."

Gnats.

If gnats play up and down, it is a sign of heat; but
if in the shade, it presages mild showers : if they
collect in the evening before sunset and form a
vortex or column, fine weather will follow ; while
if they sting much, it is held to be an unfailing
indication of rain.

Wenn die Miicken tanzen, giebt's schon Wetter.
Tyrol.

Quand se sent a mord i mosch

I giornat se meten fosch Milan :

i.e., Gnats biting much indicate a change in the weather.

Ladybird.

Kaferl', Kaferl', Kaferl',

256 PROGNOSTICS FROM INSECTS, ETC.

Flieg nach Mariabrunn,

Und bring uns a schone Sun. Vienna.

With reference to this children's rhyme, Chambers says,

" Mariabrunn is a place about twelve English miles
from the Austrian capital, with a miracle-working
image of the Virgin, who often sends good
weather to the merry Viennese. The ladybird
is always connected with fine weather in Ger-
many." Popular Rhymes, p. 202.

Spiders.

Wenn grosseSpinnen herumkriechen, kommt binnen
drei Tagen Regen. Tyrol.

" Spiders creep out of their holes and narrow recep-
tacles against wind or rain; Minerva having
made them sensible of an approaching storm."-
Wilsford, p. 131.

If garden spiders forsake their cobwebs, rain is at
hand.

Quando i ragni destende la lissia, bon tempo.

Venetia.

When you see gossamer flying,
Be sure the air is drying.

" Multytute of spynners is token of moche reyne."
Bartolomaus, Deproprietatibus rerum : Lib. xviii.,
fol. 314-

Wasps.

" Wasps and hornets biting more eagerly than
they use to do, is a sign of rainy weather."-
Wilsford, p. 135.

PROGNOSTICS FROM TREES, ETC. 257

Larva of Cicada.

It is easy to foretell what sort of summer it would
be by the position in which the larva of Cicada
(Aphrophora) spumaria was found to lie in the
froth (cuckoo-spit) in which it is enveloped. If
the insect lay with its head upwards, it infallibly
denoted a dry summer : if downwards, a wet
one."

PROGNOSTICS FROM TREES, PLANTS, ETC.

Bramble.

Lorsque la ronce traverse le chemin (i.e., when its
luxuriant growth has been caused by rains), cela
annonce la misere. Lot et Garonne.

When the bramble blossoms early in June, an early
harvest is expected.

Broom.

"The broom," says Wilsford, p. 144, "having
plenty of blossoms, is a sign of a fruitful year of
corn."

Lorsque le genet fleurit bien,

II en est de meme au sarrasin. Vosges.

Chickweed.

Chickweed expands its leaves boldly and fully
when fine weather is to follow ; but if it should
shut up, then the traveller is to put on his great-
coat.

258 PROGNOSTICS FROM TREES, ETC.

Le mouron est le barometre du pauvre. Moselle.

Clover.

Clover contracts its leaves at the approach of a
storm.

" Trefoile or Clavergrasse against stormy and tem-
pestuous weather will seem rough, and the leaves
of it stare and rise up, as if it were afraid of an
assault." Wilsford, p. 136.

Coltsfoot.

Coles, in his Introduction to the Knowledge of Plants,

p. 38, says,

." If the down flyeth off colt's foot, dandelyon, and
thistles, when there is no winde, it is a signe of
rain."

Convolvulus.

The convolvulus folds up its petals at the approach
of rain.

Dandelion.

When the down of the dandelion contracts, it is a
sign of rain.

Fern.

When the fern is as high as a ladle,

You may sleep as long as you are able :

When the fern begins to look red,

Then milk is good with brown bread.

" It is observed," says Ray, " by good housewives,
that milk is thicker in the autumn than in the
summer, notwithstanding the grass must be more
hearty, the juice of it being better concocted by

PROGNOSTICS FROM TREES, ETC. 259

the heat of the sun in summer-time. ' I conceive
the reason to be, because the cattle drink water
abundantly by reason of their heat in summer,
which doth much dilute their milk."

Fir-Cones.

" Pine-apples hanging up in the house where they
freely may enjoy the air, will close themselves
against wet and cold weather, and open against
hot and dry times." Wilsford.

Hawthorn.

If many hawthorn - blossoms are seen, expect a
severe winter.

Quand le buisson blanc entre en fleurs,
Grains toujours quelques fraicheurs. Dordogne.

Marigold.

If the marigold do not open its petals by seven in
the morning, it will rain or thunder that day. It
also closes before a storm.

So also in France they say the same of this plant, which they
call "le souci pluvial."

Mushroom.

Quand en ete on voit des champignons sur le
fumier c'est signe de pluie. Cher.

Oak.

If the oak bear many acorns it foreshows a long

and hard winter.
Viel Eicheln lassen strengen Winter erwarten.

26O PROGNOSTICS FROM TREES, ETC.

Oak and Ash.

If the oak's before the ash,
Then you'll only get a splash :
If the ash's before the oak,
Then you may expect a soak.

Onion.

Onion's skin

Very thin,

Mild winter's coming in :

Onion's skin thick and rough,

Coming winter cold and rough.

So the French say,

Quand les oignons ont trois pelures,
Grande froidure. Disc.

Osier.

Si Tosier fleurit

Le raisin murit. Rhone.

Pear.

Sitzen die Birnen fest am Stiel,
Bringt der Winter Kalte viel.

Pear and Apple.

Quand la poire passe la pomme,
Garde ton vin, bonhomme :
Quand la pomme passe la poire,
II fait bon boire. - -Jura.

Pimpernel.

When this flower closes in the day-time, it is a sign
of rain ; on which account it is called the coun-
tryman's weather-glass.

PROGNOSTICS FROM TREES, ETC. 26l

Roses.

" When Roses flourish in Autumn, it is an evill
signe of an insuing plague the year following, or
some pestiferous disease : for much heat in this
season corrupteth the blood." Wilsford, p. 144.
But the Germans say,

Spate Rosen im Garten deuten auf schonen Herbst
und gelinden Winter.

Sea-weed.

A piece of kelp or sea-weed hung up will become
damp previous to rain.

Sensitive Plants.

Sensitive plants contract their leaves at the approach
of rain.

Siberian Sow-Thistle.

If the flowers keep open all night the weather will
be wet next day.

Teazle.

" Tezils, or Fuller's Thistle, being gathered and
hanged up in the house, where the air may come
freely to it, upon the alteration of cold and windy
weather will grow smoother, and against rain will
close up his prickles." Wilsford, p. 136, 137.

Walnuts, etc.
" Great store of walnuts and almonds presage a

plentiful year of corn, especially filberds."

Wilsford, p. 144.

So Virgil, Georg. I. 187-192,

Contemplator item, quum se nux plurima silvis
Induct in florem et ramos curvabit olentes :

262 PLANTS FLOWERING

Si superant fetus, pariter frumenta sequentur,
Magnaque cum magno veniet tritura calore :
At si luxuria foliorum exuberat umbra,
Nequidquam pingues palea teret area culmos.

Wood-Sorrel.

A species of wood-sorrel contracts its leaves at the
approach of rain.

Chaff, Leave?, etc.

Chaff, leaves, thistle-down, or such light things
whisking about and turning round, foreshews
tempestuous winds. Shepherd's Kalendar.

THE FOLLOWING LINES NOTICE THE PLANTS WHICH
ARE IN FLOWER ON THE VARIOUS FESTIVALS OF
THE ECCLESIASTICAL YEAR.

February 2.

The Snowdrop, in purest white arraie,
First rears her head on Candlemas Daie ;

February 14.

While the crocus hastens to the shrine
Of Primrose love on St Valentine.

March 25.

Then comes the Daffodil beside

Our Ladies' Smock at our Ladye Tyde ;

April 23.

Againste St George, when blue is worn,
The blue Harebells the fields adorn ;

ON VARIOUS SAINTS' DAYS. 263

May 3.

While on the day of the Holy Cross,
The Crowfoot gilds the flowerie grasse.

June 11.

When St Barnaby bright smiles night and day,
Poor Ragged Robin blooms in the hay.

June 24.

The scarlet Lychnis, the garden's pride,
Flames at St John the Baptist's tyde.

July 15.

Against St Swithin's hastie showres,

The Lily white reigns queen of the flowers ;

July 20.

And Poppies a sanguine mantle spread,

For the blood of the Dragon St Margaret shed.

July -22.

Then under the wanton Rose, agen,
That blushes for penitent Magdalen.

August 1.

Till Lammas Day called August's Wheel,
When the long Corn stinks of Camomile.

August 15.

When Mary left us here below,
The Virgin's Bower begins to blow ;

August 24.

And yet anon the full Sunflower blew,
And became a Star for Bartholomew.

264 PROGNOSTICS FROM

September 14.

The Passion-Flower long has blowed
To betoken us signs of the Holy Rood.

September 29.

The Michaelmas Daisy, amonge dead Weeds,
Blooms for St Michael's valorous deeds,

October 28.

And seems the last of flowers that stood
Till the Feast of St Simon and St Jude,

November 1.

Save Mushrooms and the Fungus race,
That grow as All-hallow-tide takes place.

November 25.

Soon the evergreen Laurel alone is seen,
When Catherine crowns all learned men.

December 25.

Then Ivy and Holy Berries are seen,
And Yule Clog and Wassail come round again.
Anthol. Austr. et Bor.

PROGNOSTICS DRAWN FROM VARIOUS
OBJECTS, ETC.

Chairs.

When chairs and tables creak it will rain.

Coals.
If the coals seem hotter than usual, or if the flame is

more agitated, though the weather be calm at the

VARIOUS OBJECTS. 265

time, it indicates wind : but when the flame burns

steady, and proceeds straight upwards, it is a

sign of fine weather.

The Milanese say,
Brasch liisent
Segnal de vent.
i.e., If the coals burn brightly, it is a sign of wind.

Corns.

If corns are more painful than usual, rain will fall

shortly.

In Gay's first Pastoral are the lines,
" He first that useful secret did explain,
Why pricking corns foretold the gathering rain."

Ditches.

The smell of ditches and drains is more offensive

before rain.

So the Italian proverb,
Odor in strada,
Vol piov in la zurnada.

" Ungrateful odours common shores diffuse,

Ere the tiles rattle with the smoking shower."
Gay's Trivia.

Doors.

Doors and windows are hard to shut in damp
weather.

Dust.

Dust rising in dry weather is a sign of approaching
change.

266 PROGNOSTICS FROM

If dust whirl round in eddies when being blown
about by the wind, it is a sign of rain.
The Germans say,

Wenn der Staub sich lang' in der Luft aufhalt,

Gewisslich auch bald Regen fallt.

Fungus.

During damp and windy weather, it often happens
that we find a foul excrescence or fungus about
the wicks of candles or lamps. Virgil represents
the women at work by lamp-light, as foreknowing
'the coming weather by these signs. Georg. I.
390,91,92.
So the Italian proverb,

Quand la 16m 1'empasta'l funs

Speta 1'aqua poch de luns. Bergamo.

And the following is from Roberti Keuchenii Crepundia,
p. 211.:

" Aeris humenti crepitans uligine fungus
Si quid habet flammis ominis, auster erit."

Lamp.

If the flame of a lamp crackles or flares, it indicates
rainy weather.

Rheumatism.
When rheumatic people complain of more than

ordinary pain in their joints, it will rain.

Thus also Butler, in his Hudibras, p. iii. c. ii. 1. 405 :
" As old sinners have all points
O' th' compass in their bones and joints
Can by their pangs and aches find
All turns and changes of the wind,

VARIOUS OBJECTS. 267

And, better than by Napier's bones,
Feel in their own the age of moons."

Salt.
Salt increases in weight before a shower.

Sea.

The murmuring noise of the waves of the sea,
their foaming, and green and black colour,
announce a storm.
In the Cambrian Register, 1 796, p. 430, we read :

" It cannot be denied that the Welsh have much
superstition amongst them, though it is wearing
off very fast. But the instance adduced here (by
the Gleaner), that of their predicting a storm by
the roaring of the sea, is a curious kind of proof
of their superstition."

Signboards.

" But when the swinging sign your ears offend
With creaking noise, then rainy floods impend :
Soon shall the kennels swell with rapid streams."-
Trivia.

Smoke.
If, during calm, smoke does not ascend readily,

expect rain.

So the Germans say,

Wenn der Rauch nicht aus dem Schornstein will,
So ist vorhanden Regens viel.

Soot.

If soot falls down the chimney, rain will come.

268 PROGNOSTICS FROM VARIOUS OBJECTS.

Sounds.

Sounds are heard with unusual clearness before a

storm.

So the Italian proverb,
Campari che se sent,
O aqua o vent.

Strings.

Strings of catgut or whipcord untwist and become
longer during a damp state of the air.

Toothache.

The Milanese say,
Quad el dent el fa de mat
Se Tesiit vor lass vagnat.

The Florentines,
Quando il tempo e molle,
II dente si fa folle.

Walls.

When walls are more than usually damp, rain is
expected.

So Gay, in his Trivia,

" Church monuments foretell the changing air ;
Then Niobe dissolves into a tear,
And sweats with secret grief; you'll hear the

sounds
Of whistling winds, ere kennels break their bounds."

"So lookes he like a marble toward rayne." Bishop
Hall's Virgidemiarum, Book vi. Sat. i.

GENERAL PROGNOSTICS. 269

GENERAL PROGNOSTICS.

Winds.

" The hollow winds begin to blow,

Clouds, Barometer.
The clouds look black, the glass is low ;

Soot, Dogs.
The soot falls down, the spaniels sleep,

Spiders.
And spiders from their cobwebs peep :

Sun.
Last night the sun went pale to bed,

Moon.

The moon in haloes hid her head ;
The boding shepherd heaves a sigh,

Rainbow.

For see ! a rainbow spans the sky :

Walls, Ditches.
The walls are damp, the ditches smell,

Pimpernel.
Closed is the pink-eyed pimpernel :

Chairs and Tables.

Hark how the chairs and tables crack !

Joints.
Old Betty's joints are on the rack :

Ducks.
Loud quack the ducks, the peacocks cry,

2/0 GENERAL PROGNOSTICS.

Hills.

The distant hills are looking nigh :

Swine.

How restless are the snorting swine !

Flies.

The busy flies disturb the kine :

Swallow.

Low o'er the grass the swallow wings ;

Cricket.

The cricket, too, how sharp he sings :

Cat.

Puss on the hearth, with velvet paws,
Sits wiping o'er her whiskered jaws :

Fish.

Through the clear stream the fishes rise,
And nimbly catch the incautious flies :

Glowworm.

The glowworms, numerous and bright,
Illumed the dewy dell last night :

Toad.

At dusk the squalid toad was seen
Hopping and crawling o'er the green :

Dust.

The whirling dust the wind obeys,
And in the rapid eddy plays :

Frog.

The frog has changed his yellow vest,
And in a russet coat is dressed :

GENERAL PROGNOSTICS. 271

Air.

Though June, the air is cold and still ;

Blackbird.
The mellow blackbird's voice is shrill :

Dog.

My dog, so altered in his taste,
Quits mutton-bones on grass to feast ;

Rooks.

And see yon rooks, how odd their flight !
They imitate the gliding kite,
And seem precipitate to fall,
As if they felt the piercing ball
'Twill surely rain I see with sorrow
Our jaunt must be put off to-morrow."

Dr JENNER.
Wind.
" For ere the rising winds begin to roar,

Sea.

The working seas advance to wash the shore ;

Trees.

Soft whispers run along the leafy woods,

Mountains.

And mountains whistle to the murmuring floods.

Waves.

E'en then the doubtful billows scarce abstain
From the tossed vessel on the troubled main ;

Cormorants.

When crying cormorants forsake the sea,
And, stretching to the covert, wing their way ;

2/2 GENERAL PROGNOSTICS.

Coots.

When sportful coots run skimming o'er the strand

Herons.

When watchful herons leave their watery strand,
And mounting upwards with erected flight,
Gain on the skies, and soar above the sight :

Meteors.

And oft, before tempestuous winds arise,
The seeming stars fall headlong from the skies,
And shooting through the darkness gild the night
With sweeping glories, and long trains of light ;

Chaff.
And chaff with eddy winds is whirled around,

Leaves.
And dancing leaves are lifted from the ground,

Feathers.
And floating feathers on the waters play :

Thunder.

But when the winged thunder takes his way
From the cold north, and east and west engage,
And at their frontiers meet with equal rage,
The clouds are crushed ; a glut of gathered rain
The hollow ditches fills, and floats the plain ;
And sailors furl their dripping sheets amain.

Bain.

Wet weather seldom hurts the most unwise ;
So plain the signs, such prophets are the skies.

Crane.

The wary crane foresees it first, and sails
Above the storm, and leaves the lowly vales :

GENERAL PROGNOSTICS. 273

Cow.

The cow looks up, and from afar can find

The change of heaven, and snuffs it in the wind :

Swallow.

The swallow skims the river's watery face :

Frogs.

The frogs renew the croaks of their loquacious race :

Ant.

The careful ant her secret cell forsakes,
And drags her eggs along the narrow tracks :

Rainbow.

At either horn the rainbow drinks the flood :

Rooks.

Huge flocks of rising rooks forsake their food,
And crying, seek the shelter of the wood.

Water-fowl.

Besides the several sorts of watery fowls

That swim the seas or haunt the standing pools,

Swans.

The swans that sail along the silvery flood,

And dive with stretching necks to search their

food,
Then lave their backs with sprinkling dews in

vain,
And stem the stream to meet the promised rain.

Crow.

The crow with clamorous cries the shower demands,
And single stalks along the desert sands.

274 GENERAL PROGNOSTICS.

Lamps.

The nightly virgin while her wheel she plies,
Foresees the storm impending in the skies,
When sparkling lamps their spluttering light

advance,
And in their sockets oily bubbles dance.

Fine Weather.

Then after showers it is easy to descry
Returning suns, and a serener sky :

Stars.
The stars shine smarter ; and the moon adorns,

Moon.
As with unborrowed beams, her sharpened horns.

Gossamer.
The filmy gossamer now flits no more,

Halcyons.

Nor halycons bask on the short sunny shore ;

Swine.
Their litter is not tossed by sows unclean ;

Mist.
But a blue droughty mist descends upon^the plain ;

Owls.

And owls that mark the setting sun declare
A starlight evening and a morning fair.

Hawk and Lark.

Towering aloft, avenging Nisus flies,
While dared below the guilty Scylla lies ;
Wherever frightened Scylla flies away,
Swift Nisus follows and pursues his prey ;

GENERAL PROGNOSTICS. 275

Where injured Nisus takes his airy course
Then trembling Scylla flies and shuns his force.
This punishment pursues the unhappy maid,
And thus the purple hair is dearly paid.

Ravens.

Then thrice the ravens rend the liquid air,

And croaking notes proclaim the settled fair.

Then round their airy palaces they fly

To greet the sun ; and seized with secret joy,

When storms are overblown, with food repair

To their forsaken nests and callow care.

Not that I think their breasts with heavenly souls

Inspired, as man who destiny controls,

But with the changeful temper of the skies,

As rains condense and sunshine rarifies,

So turn the species in their altered minds :

Composed by calms and discomposed by winds.

Birds.
From hence proceeds the birds' harmonious voice ;

Cows and Lambs.
From hence the cows exult, and frisking lambs

rejoice."

Georg. I. 356-423 ; Dryderis Translation.

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Poetical Works of Thomas Aird.

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The Odyssey and Iliad of Homer.

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The Odes, Epodes, and Satires of Horace,

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Hours of Christian Devotion.

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IN THE PRESS.

FABLES IN SONG.

[By EGBERT LORD LYTTON.

Author of 'Poems by Owen Meredith.'
Two vols. crown 8vo.

MR KINGLAKE'S
Fifth, or " Inkerman Volume," of

THE INVASION OF THE CRIMEA.
THE PHILOSOPHY OF HISTORY IN EUROPE

VOL. I., CONTAINING THE HISTORY OF THAT PHILOSOPHY IN

FRANCE AND GERMANY.
By ROBERT FLINT,

Professor of Moral Philosophy and Political Economy, University of
St Andrews.

. THE SECOND VOLUME OF MR HOSACK'S

MARY QUEEN OF SOOTS AND HER ACCUSERS.

EMBRACING A NARRATIVE or EVENTS FROM THE DEATH OP
JAMBS V. IN 1542, UNTIL THE DEATH OF

QUEEN MARY IN 1587.

Containing a Variety of Documents never before published.
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1 6 Messrs Blackwood 6 Sonf Recent Publications.

ANCIENT CLASSICS FOR ENGLISH READERS.

EDITED BY THE

REV. W. LUCAS COLLINS, M.A.
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13. Juvenal. By EDWARD WALFORD, M.A.

14. Aristophanes. By the EDITOR.

15. Hesiod and Theognis. By the Rev. J. DAVIS, M.A.

16. Plautus and Terence. By the EDITOR.

17. Tacitus. By W. B. DONNE.

18. Lucian. By the EDITOR.

A Volume will be published quarterly. 2s. 6d.

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