Beatty—The St. George f or Mummers’, Plays. 289 
Left us take an example from practices which still live. 
“In Little Russia it used to he the custom at Elastertide to 
celebrate the funeral of a, being called Kostrubonko, the deity 
of the spring. A circle was formed of singers, who moved 
slowly around a girl who lay on the ground as if dead, and as 
they went they sang: 
‘Dead, dead is our Kostrubonko! 
Dead, dead is our dear one V 
until the girl suddenly sprang up, on which the chorus joy¬ 
fully exclaimed: 
‘Come to life, come to life has our Kostrubonko! 
Oome to life, come to life has our dear one P m 
In some parts of Swabia some one pretends, to be killed and 
to come to life again. On Shrove Tuesday Dr. Ironbeard pro¬ 
fesses to bleed a sick man who thereupon falls as dead to the 
ground, but the doctor at last restores him to life by blowing 
air into him through a tube. * 2 
In Saxony and Thuringen there is a Whitsuntide ceremony, 
called “chasing the Wild Wan out of the bush,” or “fetching 
the Wild Wan out of the wood.” A young fellow enveloped 
in leaves or moss is called the Wild Wan. He hides in the 
wood and the other lads of the village go- out to seek him. 
They find him, lead him captive out of the wood, and fire at 
him with blank muskets. He falls as if dead to the ground, 
but a lad dressed as a doctor bleeds him, and he comes to life 
again. 3 In Dauphine, on the first of Way the young people 
clothe in leaves a youth whose bride or sweetheart has left him. 
He lies down on the ground and pretends, to. go to; sleep. Then 
a maiden who likes him, and is willing to marry him, comes, 
awakes him, raises him up, and offers him her arm and a 
banner. 4 In some ceremonies the resurrection is represented 
iW. R. S. Ralston, “Songs of the Russian People,” p. 221; E. V. 
Anichkov, “Spring Ceremonial Songs,” p. 340. 
2 F. J. Wiedemann, “Aus dem inneren und aus,seven Leben der Ehs- 
ten.” (In Frazer, vol. 1, p. 82.) 
3 Mannhardt, 1. c., vol. 1, pp. 335-336. 
4 Mannhardt, 1. c., vol. 1, p. 434 (Maibraut). 
2—S. & A. 
