236 EDIBLE BRITISH MOLLUSC A. 



succeed, by the way, in catching a snail by the horns, 

 and throwing it over their shoulder, it is an omen of 

 good luck ; and if it is placed on a slate, then likewise 

 it will describe, by its turning, the initials of their future 

 husband's name." It is said that if on leaving the house 

 you see a black snail (slug ?) seize it boldly by one of 

 its horns, and throw it over your left shoulder ; you 

 may then go on your way prosperously; but if you 

 fling it over the right shoulder, you will draw down ill 

 luck. This practice is said to extend as far a south as 

 Lancashire.* 



In Piedmont, to induce the snail to put out its horns, 

 children are accustomed to sing to it 



" Limassa, limassa, 

 Tira fora, i to corn, 

 Dass no, i vad dal barbe 

 E ti tje fass taie." 



In Sicily, children terrify the snail by informing it 

 that their mother is coming to burn its horns with a 

 candle ; and in Tuscany, they threaten the white snail 

 (la marinella) telling it to thrust out its little horns to 

 save itself from kicks and blows. f This reminds us of 

 the English children, who used to sing ; 



" Snail, snail, come out of your hole, 

 Else we shall beat you as black as a coal ! " 



According to the ' Archasologia Cambrensis,' in the 

 parish of St. Clear's, Carmarthenshire, small portions 

 of lands were formerly gambled away by means of snail 

 races. The rival snails were placed at the foot of a 

 post, and the one that first reached the top, won the 

 land for its master. In the Isle of Wight, the fishermen 



* ■ Folklore of the Northern Counties of England.' 

 t ' Zoological Mythology,' vol. ii. pp. 74, 75. 



