SEED-TIME Aft© HARVEST 
Rural Sports of Old England. 
BY FRANK S. FINN. 
Chapter XII. 
Stern old winter came again and Decem¬ 
ber closed the year’s account; but to the 
ruralists of old England, it brought more 
of pleasure than discomfort, for they had 
»o many resources in the way of indoor 
pastimes, pleasures and amusements, and 
found so many keen enjoyments, and were 
•urrounded with such a vast amount of 
true hospitality and good cheer, that it 
often proved to be the merriest and cheer¬ 
iest season in all the year; and was far 
more longed for than dreaded. They 
never appeared to lack ways and means to 
“kill time,” and when I have heard of per¬ 
sons wishing to slaughter the hours, I have 
wondered, when time is so short, any one 
•hould wish to make it shorter. 
St. Nicholas—a name dear to every child, 
who know anything whatever about him— 
has his festival on December 6, and he 
* 
appears to be the children’s exclusive prop¬ 
erty as a saint, although I doubt if there 
are many who know why he is so. It is 
because he is said to have been so kind to 
the children thems Ives; as the following 
legend will show. “It is said that an 
Aeiatic gentleman sent his two sons to 
Athens for education, and ordered them to 
wait on the Bishop for his benediction. On 
arriving at Myra with their baggage, they 
took their lodging at an inn, proposing, as 
it was late in the day, to defer their visit 
till the morrow; but, in the meantime, the 
inn-keeper, to secure their effects to him¬ 
self, wickedly killed the boys, cut them 
into pieces, salted them and intended to 
sell them for pickled pork. Happily, St. 
Nicholas was favored with a sight of these 
proceedings in a vision, and in the morn¬ 
ing went to the inn and reproached the 
cruel landlord with his crime, who imme¬ 
diately confessed it, and entreated the 
saint to pray to heaven for his pardon. 
Then the Bishop, being moved by his con¬ 
fession, besought forgiveness for him, and 
supplicated restoration of life to the chil¬ 
dren; whereon the youths were re-animated 
by having the different parts of their bod¬ 
ies re-united; and, the re-animated youths,, 
stepping from the brine-tub, threw them¬ 
selves at the feet of St, Nicholas, who> 
raised them up, exhorted them to return 
thanks to God, alone, gave them good ad¬ 
vice for the future, bestowed his blessing 
on them and sent them to Athens with 
great joy, to prosecute their studies.” Sa 
much for the legend. In the olden times 
it would seem that the good St. Nick was 
accustomed to visit the houses on the vigil 
of his festival, and not, as is now the case, 
on Christmas eve, or Christmas night, and 
that he had the very good habit of throw¬ 
ing well-filled purses into windows, and 
running away before any one could catch 
him. This was before “the stockings were 
hung by the chimney with care,” and 
before Christmas trees were even thought 
of. 
The boys at College used to make the 
,most of this day. and had processions, plays, 
and festivities of almost every kind, al¬ 
though it must be acknowledged, some of 
their so-called sports were rude, rough and 
ungentlemanly: such as getting the clerk 
to read prayers, and then kicking and roll¬ 
ing him down hill. 
Our young friends, who dwell on farms;,, 
may be glad to learn of a custom partici¬ 
pated in by their cousins on the other side 
of the water, on the eve of St. Nicholos. 
It is called “Pig Alls,” and is described as 
follows: “It is now customary for boys to 
take their pigs by the hedgeways in the 
country to feed upon the “haws,” which in 
the west of England are called pegalls or 
pig alls. The boys go foremost with long 
poles, and beat the hedges, while the swine, 
after hearing where they fall, work most 
industriously for their provender till dark, 
when they are driven home till daylight. 
There were many holidays—religious and 
secular—that occured during December, but 
the sweetest and best of all was—and is, 
now—Christmas day and Christmas tide— 
that solemn festival which commemorates 
the day that gave “To man a saviour—free¬ 
dom to the slave.” 
“England was merry England when 
Old Christmas brought his sports again. 
’Twas Christmas broached the mightiest ale. 
v Twas Christmas told the merriest tale, 
