420 FISHER WEDDINGS. [CHAP. x. 



In good time the little community will have its annals of births, 

 marriages, and deaths ; its chronicles of storms, its records of 

 disasters, and its glimpses of prosperity ; and in two hundred 

 years its origin may be lost, and the inhabitants of the original 

 village represented by descendants in the sixth generation. 

 At any rate, boats will increase, curers of herrings and 

 merchants who buy fish will visit the village and circulate 

 their money, and so the place will thrive. If a pier should be 

 built, and a railway branch out to it, who knows but it may 

 become a great port. 



I first became acquainted with the fisher-folk by assisting 

 at a fisherman's marriage. Marrying and giving in marriage 

 involves an occasional festival among the fisher-folks of New- 

 haven of drinking and dancing- and all the fisher-folks are 

 fond of the dance. In the more populous fishing towns there 

 are usually a dozen or two of marriages to celebrate at the close 

 of each herring season ; and as these weddings are what are 

 called in Scotland penny weddings i.e. weddings at which 

 each guest pays a small sum for his entertainment there is 

 no difficulty in obtaining admission to the ceremony and 

 customary rejoicings. Young men often wait till the close of 

 the annual fishing before they venture into the matrimonial 

 noose ; and I have seen at Newhaven as many as eight 

 marriages in one evening. It has been said that a "lucky" 

 day, or rather night, is usually chosen for the ceremony, 

 for " luck " is the ruling deity of the fishermen ; but as 

 regards the marriage customs of the fisher-class, it was ex- 

 plained to me that marriages were always held on a Friday 

 (usually thought to be an unlucky day), from no superstitious 

 feeling or notion, as was sometimes considered by strangers, 

 but simply that the fishermen might have the last day of the 

 week (Saturday) and the Sunday to enjoy themselves with 

 their friends and acquaintances, instead of, if their weddings 

 took place on Monday or Tuesday, breaking up the whole 



