Christmas Mumming 81 



The children never forget St. Thomas's Day, which 

 ancient custom has consecrated to alms, and they wend 

 their way from farmhouse to farmhouse throughout the 

 parish ; it is usual to keep to the parish, for some of the 

 old local feeling still remains even in these cosmopolitan 

 times. At Christmas sometimes the children sing carols, 

 not with much success so far as melody goes, but other- 

 wise successfully enough ; for recollections of the past 

 soften the hearts of the crustiest. 



The young men for weeks previously have been prac- 

 tising for the mumming — a kind of rude drama requiring, 

 it would seem, as much rehearsal beforehand as the plays 

 at famous theatres. They dress in a fantastic manner, 

 with masks and coloured ribbons ; anything grotesque 

 answers, for there is little attempt at dressing in character. 

 They stroll round to each farmhouse in the parish, and 

 enact the play in the kitchen or brewhouse ; after which 

 the whole company are refreshed with ale, and, receiving 

 a few coins, go on to the next homestead. Mumming, 

 however, has much deteriorated, even in the last fifteen or 

 twenty years. On nights when the players were known 

 to be coming, in addition to the farmer's household and 

 visitors at that season, the cottagers residing near used to 

 assemble, so that there was quite an audience. Now it is 

 a chance whether they come round or not. 



A more popular pastime with the young men, and 

 perhaps more profitable, is the formation of a brass band. 

 They practise vigorously before Christmas, and sometimes 

 attain considerable proficiency. At the proper season they 

 visit the farms in the evening, and as the houses are far 

 apart, so that only a few can be called at in the hours 

 available after work, it takes them some time to perambu- 

 late the parish. So that for two or three weeks about the 



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