CHAP. IV.] CABBAGES. 235 



England. All the foolish country sayings about 

 Friday being an unlucky day to begin any 

 thing fresh upon ; about the noise of Geese 

 foreboding bad weather ; about the signs of the 

 stars; about the influence of the moon on 

 animals : these, and scores of others, equally 

 ridiculous and equally injurious to true philo 

 sophy and religion, came from the Romans, 

 and are inculcated in those books, which 

 pedants call " classical" and which are taught 

 to " young gentlemen" at the universities and in 

 academies. Hence, too, the foolish notions of 

 sailors about Friday, which notions very often 

 retard the operations of commerce. I have 

 known many a farmer, when his wheat was 

 dead ripe, put off the beginning of harvest from 

 Thursday to Saturday, in order to avoid Fri 

 day. The stars save hundreds of thousands of 

 lambs and pigs from sexual degradation at so 

 early an age as the operation would otherwise 

 be performed upon them. These heathen 

 notions still prevail even in America as far as 

 relates to this matter. A neighbour of mine in 

 Long Island, who was to operate on some pigs 

 and lambs for me, begged me to put the thing 

 off for a while ; for, that the Almanac told him, 

 that the signs were, just then, as unfavourable 

 as possible. I begged him to proceed, for that 

 I set all stars at defiance. He very kindly 



