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GRACE AT MEAT.

The table was considered by the ancient Greeks as the altar of friendship, and held sacred; and they would not partake of any meat till they had offered part of it as the first-fruits to their gods. The ancient Jews offered up prayers always before meat, and from their example the primitive Christians did the same.

GOOSE ON MICHAELMAS DAY.

There is a current, but erroneous report, assigning to Queen Elizabeth the origin of this custom.

The joyful tidings of the defeat of the Spanish armada arrived on Michaelmas day, and were communicated to Queen Elizabeth whilst at dinner partaking of a goose; but there is evidence to prove that this custom was practised long before the destruction of the Spanish armada. Brand, in his "Popular Antiquities," traces it as far back as the tenth year of the reign of King Edward IV.

WELSH LEEK AS A BADGE OF HONOUR. Upon the first of March King Cadwallo met a Saxon army in the field. In order to distinguish his men from their enemies, he, from an adjoining field of leeks, placed one in each of their hats; and having gained a signal and decisive victory over the Saxons,

the leek became the future badge of honour among the Welsh, and particularly worn on the 1st of March, or St. David's Day.

SHAMROCK, THE IRISH BADGE OF HONOUR.

The wild trefoil was very highly regarded in the superstitions of the ancient Druids, and has still medicinal virtues of a particular kind accredited to it by the more remote Highlanders of Scotland, where it is culled according to the ancient rites.

"In the list of plants," says a Scotch statistical writer, "must be reckoned the seamrog, or the wild trefoil, in great estimation of old by the Druids. It is still considered as an anodyne in the diseases of cattle; from this circumstance it has derived its name, seimh, in the Gaelic, signifying pacific or soothing. When gathered, it is plucked with the left hand. The person thus employed must be silent, and never look back till the business be finished."

This is the seamrog, or shamrog, worn by Irishmen in their hats, as O'Brien says, "by way of a cross on St. Patrick's day in memory of this great saint." It is said, that when St. Patrick landed near Wicklow to convert the Irish in 433, the Pagan inhabitants were ready to stone him; he requested to be heard, and endeavoured to explain God to them as the Trinity in Unity, but they could not understand him; till, plucking a trefoil, or shamrog, from the

ground, he said, "Is it not as possible for the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, as for these three leaves, to grow upon a single stalk?" "Then," says Brand, "the Irish were immediately convinced, and became converts to Christianity; and in memory of which event, the Irish have ever since worn the shamrog, or shamrock, as a badge of honour."

THE SCOTTISH THISTLE.

The origin of the national badge is thus handed down by tradition :-When the Danes invaded Scotland, it was deemed unwarlike to attack an enemy in the darkness of night, instead of a pitched battle by day; but, on one occasion, the invaders resolved to avail themselves of stratagem, and, in order to prevent their tramp from being heard, they marched barefooted. They had thus neared the Scottish force unobserved, when a Dane unluckily stepped with his foot upon a superbly prickled thistle, and uttered a cry of pain, which discovered the assailants to the Scots, who ran to their arms, and defeated the foe with great slaughter. The thistle was immediately adopted as the insignia of Scotland.

ELECTION RIBBONS.

These party emblems were first introduced March 14th, 1681.-The "Protestant Intelligencer" states,

after mentioning the Parliament that was held at Oxford this year, "on which occasion the representatives of the city of London assembled at Guildhall on the 17th of March, for the purpose of commencing their journey. Many of the citizens met them there, intending to accompany them part of their way, together with others who were deputed to go to Oxford as a sort of Council to the city members. Some of our ingenious London weavers had against this day contrived a very fine fancy, that is, a blue satin ribbon, having these words plainly and legibly wrought upon it, 'No Popery,' 'No Slavery,' which, being tied up in knots, were worn in the hats of the horsemen who accompanied our members." Such was the origin of wearing ribbons on electioneering

occasions.

PERAMBULATING PARISHES ON ASCENSION DAY.

This custom is of considerable antiquity. Spelman thinks it was derived from the heathens, and that it is an imitation of the feast called Terminalia, which was observed in the month of February, in honour of the god Terminius, who was supposed to preside over bounds and limits, and to punish all unlawful usurpations of land.

According to other authorities, it was derived from an ancient custom among the Romans, called Termi

nalia and Ambarvalia, which were festivals in honour of the god Terminius and the goddess Ceres. It was early adopted by the Christian Church, and was appointed to be observed on one of the Rogation days, which were the three days preceding Ascension Day. These days were so called from having been set apart by Manerius, Bishop of Vienna, for special prayer and fasting, on account of the frequent earthquakes which had destroyed, or greatly injured, vegetation. Before the Reformation the parochial perambulations were conducted with great ceremony. The lord of the manor, with a large banner, priests in surplices and with crosses, and other persons with hand-bells, banners and staves, followed by a large number of the parishioners, walked round the parish, stopping at crosses, forming crosses on the ground, saying or singing gospels to the corn, and allowing drinkings and good cheer. At the Reformation the custom, shorn of superstitious ceremonies, was retained. A homily was prepared, and injunctions issued, that

the people should once in the year, at the time accustomed, with the rector, vicar, or curate, and the substantial men of the parish, walk about the parishes as they were accustomed, and at their return to the church make common prayer. And the curate, in their said common perambulations, was at certain convenient places to admonish the people to give thanks to God (while beholding of his benefits), and

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