12 Transactions. 



shepherd-author, toLl me that when ho was young many persons in 

 contributing to a raffle wrote against their suliscription the word 

 " Friday," expecting thereby better luck from the dice. It is not 

 well to change situations on Saturday. " Saturday's enter is a 

 short residenter." I quote the following rhyme from a native of 

 the district : 



" Gang and see the swallow flee, 

 Sit and hear the gowk, 

 The foal before its minnie's e'e, 

 And all that year ye've luck." 



If a hare cross your path to the left it is of evil omen, but not if 

 it cross to the right. If a person eats the brains of a hare he 

 will be ill-tempered afterwards. This Tynron saying is something 

 like La Fontaine's estimate of the hare, whose flesh produced 

 melancholy. In Swift's " Polite Conversation" hare-flesh is called 

 " melancholy meat." 



" The robin and the wren are at God's right hand. 



The yeldrock and the sparrow are the Devil's bow-and-arrow. " 

 " The robin and the wren made their porridge in a pan, 



Ere the robin got a spoon, the wren had them all done." 



A daii'yman once asked me for the scientific name of the " worm 

 that first breaks through the coffin lid." He also informed me 

 that the bat and dormouse and the hedgehog were three of the 

 seven sleepers. To rub shoulders with a bride or bridegroom 

 augurs a speedy marriage. If a girl eat a herring before going to 

 bed she has a chance to dream of her sweetheart. A rainy 

 wedding-day goes with a greeting bride. It is the correct thing 

 to dance in stocking soles at the marriage of a sister or brother 

 younger than yourself, the sister at the sister's, the brother at the 

 brother's. It bodes not well to make a present to your sweet- 

 heart of a knife or other sharp article, lest it should cut love. It 

 was a custom at Hallowe'en to wind a clue in a kiln-pot with the 

 expectation that your future partner in life might be seen holding 

 the other end of it. Should a girl scoop a hole where three or 

 more roads meet and apply her ear to it, she may hear a whisper 

 telling her the trade of her future lover. If your palm tickle it is 

 a sign that you shall soon shake hands with the rich or obtain 

 money. Sitting down to meat causes the invited guests to arrive. 

 The tongs falling head foremost into the ash-pit is a sign that a 

 stranger is coming. An itching palm is a sign of change of 

 weather. If your right car Ije warm or tingle it is a sign that 



