100 Proceedings of the Royal Irish Academy. 



is another occasion of festixity, though not now of so uproarious a 

 nature as it was ia the earlier part of this century, when it was thus 

 described by a writer who was long resident in the district : — 

 " 'Dragging home ' is the bringing the bride to her husband's house. 

 An immense mob of relatives and clevines of ' both the houses ' are 

 collected on the occasion, and as an awful quantity of whiskey must 

 of necessity be distributed to the company, this high solemnity seldom 

 concludes without subjecting the host's person and property to demoli- 

 tion." 



The ceremonies and observances relating to deaths are very fully 

 kept up. Wakes are still held, but only in the case of old people, 

 the yoimg not being waked. Most of the old games and observances 

 are still kept up, but it is very difficult to obtain information respecting 

 them. The corpse is lifted on to the bier at the house, and off it at 

 the graveyard, by the relatives on the male side of the family at one 

 side, and by those of the female side at the other. It is considered 

 unlucky for the party whose side of the bier touches the ground first. 

 The coffin is always taken to the graveyard by the longest route. On 

 reaching the cemetery the coffin is carried to the place where it is to 

 be interred, and then the people all scatter to kneel and pray at the 

 graves of their own relatives. After this, new pipes and tobacco are 

 served out to those present, who sit down and smoke. ^ After the 

 pipes have been smoked, the weeds are cleared away and the grave is 

 dug. It may be worthy of remark here that a grave is not dug on a 

 Monday if possible, and if for any reason a burial has to be made on 

 that day, a sod is raised the day before. After the grave has been dug 

 and the coffin lowered into it, a band of women gather round it and 

 sing the caoine, which here has not degenerated into mere discordant 

 wailing, as it has in some other places, but is often really very musical 

 and plaintive. "When this has been done, the mourners are sprinkled 

 with holy water and then engage in prayer; after which the grave is 

 filled in, covered over with rough stones, often white in colour, and 

 the unused pipes placed upon it. ITntil the prayer is over, it is con- 

 sidered both bad taste and extremely unlucky to leave the graveyard. 

 To stumble in a cemetery is believed to indicate that the person who 

 does so will die within the month. 



Unbaptised or still-bom infants are buried at night in separate 

 burying grounds, by themselves. One of these infant cemeteries is 

 at Bunmore. 



' In some cases it is said that a small turf fire is lighted at •which the smokers 

 light their pipes, but I have not seen this personally in this district. 



