KiRKBEAN Folklore. 47 



Not unfamiliar to many is the not uncommon custom of 

 putting- a piece of money into the pocket of a child's new garment 

 to " hansel " it. It was only lately, however, I learned that it 

 was a common thing a good many years ago for a boy who had 

 become the happy wearer of a suit of new clothes to go the round 

 of the village to show them to the neighbours, who generally 

 " hanselled " them by giving him a half-penny or a penny. 



It seems that there was a custom years ago, and may still be, 

 to put a coin under the mast of a vessel. This I heard of about 

 two years ago when the masts were taken out of an old vessel 

 which was in course of undergoing repair. It was generally 

 silver coins, but in this case they were of the baser metal. I am 

 in possession of a half-penny which was under the foremast of this 

 vessel, the coin under the mainmast being a penny. 



The late Mr Dudgeon, in the paper to which I have already 

 referred, speaks of the belief that it was unlucky to buy or sell bees, 

 or rather to let money pass between the old and the new owner. 

 I have heard this said, and that the bees were taken away, and a 

 sum of mone}', generally £1, left on the stand on which the hive 

 had been placed. In the same paper it is said, " An old man I 

 have heard of in Kirkbean, who died about thirty years ago, 

 always maintained that the bees sang a hymn on Christmas day. 

 This pretty superstition has, I fear, quite died out." I have made 

 enquiry regarding this, but cannot hear anything about it, and I 

 have been equally unsuccessful in discovering- any other remains 

 of bee superstitions. 



In my paper on " Plant Superstitions," which appears in this 

 Society's Transactions for the session of 1892-93, I included 

 several superstitions which were believed in in Kirkbean. I fear 

 to repeat these would unduly extend this paper, and I have heard 

 of little to add to this part of the subject. Here is, however, an 

 instance of the way in which the supposed properties of the rowan 

 tree were applied. An old woman residing in one of the villages 

 in the parish gave a boy a twig of a rowan tree and said, " Pit 

 that aboon the byre door ; an' the coo'l be nane the waur o't." 

 Few will question the truth of her statement. 



I have endeavoured to find out if anything- lay behind the 

 custom of young or unmarried women generally carrying- a small 

 piece of Southernwood, or " Lad's Love," when going- to church. 



