ANTIQUITY- 01 BELLS. 
253 
all ages and nations ; and it may be some entertainment to a philo- 
sophic mind to see the remains of it among the more unenlightene I 
in our own.” 
This ingenious author gives therefore the principal charms and 
spells of this night ; so big with prophecy to the peasantry in the 
west of Scotland. 
The rev. Mr. Shaw, in the History of the Province of Moray, seems 
to consider the festivity of this night as a kind of harvest-home 
rejoicing: “A solemnity was kept,” says he, “ on the eve of the 
first of November, as a thanksgiving for the safe in-gathering of the 
produce of the fields. This, I am told, but have not seen it, is observed 
in Buchan and other counties, by having “Hallow-Eve fire kindled 
on some rising ground.” 
Different places adopt different ceremonies : Martin tells us that the 
inhabitants of St. Kilda, on the festival of All-Saints, baked “ a large 
cake in form of a triangle, furrowed round, and which was to be all 
eaten that night.” The same, or a custom nearly similar, seems to 
have prevailed in different parts of England. 
I The same writer, speaking of the isle of Lewis, says ; “The in- 
habitants of this island had an ancient custom to sacrifice to a sea- 
god, called Shony, at Hallow tide, in the manner following: The 
inhabitants round the island came to the church of St. Mulvay, having 
each man his provision along with him ; every family furnished a 
peck of malt, and this was brewed into ale: one of their number 
lyas picked out, to wade into the sea up to the middle, and, carrying a 
cap of ale in his hand, standing still in that posture, cried out with 
a loud voice, saying, ‘ Shony, I give you this cup of ale, hoping that 
ypu’H be so kind as to send us plenty of sea-ware, for enriching our 
ground the ensuing year; and so threw the cup of ale into the sea.’ 
This was performed in the night-time. At his return to land, they 
all went to church, where there was a candle burning upon the 
altar ; and then standing silent for a little time, one of them gave a 
signal, at which the candle was put out, and immediately all of them 
went to the fields, where they fell a drinking their ale, and spent the 
remainder of the night in dancing and singing, &c.” He adds, “ The 
ministers in Lewis told me they spent several years before they could 
persuade the vulgar natives to abandon this ridiculous piece of super- 
stition. 
Antiquity of Bells. 
The use of bells is very ancient, as well as extensive. We find 
them among Jews, Greeks, Romans, Christians, and Heathens, 
variously applied, as, on the necks of men, beasts, birds, horses, and 
sheep, but chiefly being in buildings, either religious, as in churches, 
temples, and monasteries ; or civil, as in houses, markets, and baths ; 
or military, as in camps and frontier towns. Among the Jews it was 
ordained, that the lower part of the blue tunic, which the high priest 
wore when he performed religious ceremonies, should be adorned 
with pomegranates and gold bells, intermixed equally, and at equal 
distances. As to the number of the bells worn by the high priests^ 
