144 DORSET WEATHER LORE. 



The former expression would appear to be at 

 least as old as Chaucer. See the Knighte's Tale, 681 

 (Skeat's edition), " Selde is the Friday al the wyke 

 i-lyke." This is referred to in a note by Miss C. S. 

 Burne in her " Shropshire Folk-lore," p. 261. 



MOON WEATHER LORE. 



The various phases of the moon in most counties bear a 

 large part in their weather lore, and amongst these the time 

 of the new moon is predominant. 



(i.) In 1874 I sent to " Notes and Queries " (5th S., 

 i., 48) an illustration of this from a Dorset source, 

 wherein I stated that I had been informed by an 

 old Dorset shepherd that " a Saturday's new moon 

 " once in seven years was once too often for sailors," 

 meaning thereby that sailors have a special dread of 

 a new moon falling upon that day of the week. 

 And I mentioned in illustration of this that the new 

 moon for the previous August had fallen upon a 

 Saturday, and that both the weather and sea had 

 been unusually rough for that time of year, 

 (ii.) Hence the proverb : "A Saturday's moon is the 



sailor's dread." 



(iii.) This is intensified should the full moon also fall 

 on a Sunday, as is shown by the following couplet : 



'' A Saturday's moon and Sunday's full 

 Never did good and never wull." 



(iv.) A variant of this from West Dorset was sent in 

 1856 to " Notes and Queries " (2nd S., ii., 516) by 

 Clericus Rusticus (Rev. H. Rawlinson, Rector of 

 Symondsbury) : 



" A Saturday's change and a Sunday's full 



Comes too soon whenever it wool." 



(v.) When the moon is " cupped " (i.e., has her horns 

 turned directly upwards), it is popularly supposed 



