By the Rev. A. C. Smith. 55 
And so of August, following the same strain, though negatively :— 
“Dry August and warm 
Doth harvest no harm.”* 
Then we have :— 
‘¢ September blow soft, 
Till the fruit’s in the loft.” 









Of the remaining three months the approach of winter is the chief 
burden of the people’s song. There is a saying that “ If in the fall 
of the leaf in October, many leaves wither on the bough, and hang 
there, it betokens a frosty winter and much snow.” ?! 
There is another saying, of questionable morality :— 
‘¢ Dry your barley in October,t 
Or you'll always be sober; ” 
meaning, if this is not done, there will be no malt! 
Again :— 
‘¢ At St. Simon and St. Jude ft 
Water may be viewed ;” 
signifying that winter now comes in. * 

* There is an old English saying ‘‘ After Lammas (August 1st) corn ripens as much by night, as 
by day.” While in France asserting the same conviction of the value of a dry season, at this period 
of the year, is the proverb :— 
** Quand il pleut le premier Aodt 
O’est signe qu ’il n’y aura pas de regain”’ (aftermath), 
180 the German proverb runs, ‘‘ Sitzt das Laub in Oktober noch fest auf den 
Baiimen, so deutet das auf einen strengen Winter.” 
+ Very often in the middle of October, a few fine days occur, and the warm weather of this 
season is almost universally known as summer. 
Tn England it is called “‘ St. Luke’s little summer ”’ (October 18th ; 0.S. October 30th). 
In France, “‘ L’été de Saint Denis’ (October 9th; O.S. October 2lst). 
In Germany, the “‘ Altweiber sommer,” or the “‘summer of St, Gall” (October 16th ; 0,8. October 
28th), or ‘of St. Martin’’ (October 11th ; 0.8. October 23). 
In Belgium, “ St. Michael’s summer” (September Qoth ; O.S. October 11th). 
In Bohemia, ‘‘ The summer of St. Wenceslaus’’ (September 28th; O.S. October 10th), 
In Lombardy, ‘‘ L’esta de’ Santa Teresa’’ (October 15th ; 0.S. October 27th), 
In Sweden, ‘* St. Bridget’s summer ” (October 8th ; O.S. October 20th). 
In America, “‘ The Indian snmmer.”’ 
4 3 October 28th; 0.S. November 9th. 
2The feast of SS. Simon and Jude is by many considered to be the first day 
of winter. Thus there is an old English saying, ‘‘On SS. Simon and Jude 
“winter approaches at a gentle trot.” 
