M A Y. 
Tn the ground, leaving the turf in the middle; on that 
they make a fire of wood, whereon thev drefs a large 
caudle of eggs, butter, oatmeal, and milk ; and bring, 
befides the ingredients of the caudle, plenty of beer and 
whilky ; for each of the company mult contribute fome- 
thing-. The rites begin with fpilling fome of the caudle 
on the ground, byway of libation; on that, every one 
takes a cake of oatmeal, upon which are railed nine fquare 
knobs, each dedicated to fome particular being, the fup- 
pofed preferver of their flocks and herds, or to fome - par¬ 
ticular animal, the real deltroyer of them : each perfon 
then turns his face 'to the fire, breaks off a knob, and, 
flinging it over his (boulder, fays. This I give to thee, 
prelerve thou my horfes ; this I give to thee, preferve 
thou mf (beep ; and fo on. After that, they ufe the fame 
ceremony to the noxious animals: This 1 give to thee, O 
fox! fpare thou my lambs; this to thee, O hooded crow! 
this to thee, eagle ! When the ceremony is over, they 
dine on the caudle, &c.” 
Something of this kind is retained in Northumberland, 
in the fyllabub prepared for the May-feaff, which is made 
of warm milk from the cow, fweet cake, and wine; and 
a kind of divination is praftifed, by Hilling with a ladle 
for a wedding-ring, which is dropped into it for the pur- 
pofe of prognofficating who (hall be firft married. 
May-day i. (fill alfo obferved at Great Granfden, in 
Cambridgelhire. On the evening, or night, preceding 
May-day, the young men (farmers’ fervants) go and cut 
the may or hawthorn boughs, which they bring home in 
bundles, and leave fome at almolf every houfe, according 
to the number of young perfons in it, linging what they 
call the Night Song. On the evening of May-day, and 
the following evenings, they go round to every houfe 
where they left a bough, and ling the May Song. One is 
dreffed with a fhirt over his other clothes, and decorated 
with ribbands, and is called the May Lord.-, another, in 
girl’s clothes, is called the May Lady, or Mary, this ts 
evidently the remains of the Maid Marian of Shakefpeare’s 
time. One has a handkerchief on a pole or ftick as a flag, 
whofe bufinefs it is to keep off the crowd.’ The reft have 
ribbands in their hats. The May Song confifts of fixteea 
verfes, and is of a religious caff ; the poetry not very 
good. The money collected is fpent in a fealt of plum- 
cake, bread and cheefe, and tea. 
Thefe fports were greatly difliked by the puritans. 
Mr. Strutt gives us fome curious extracts from a pamphlet 
entitled “ Funebria Flora, or the Downfall of May-games, 
by Thomas Hall, B.D. 1660.” The author inveighs bit¬ 
terly againft the erecting and decorating of the may-poles. 
Among others, he ufes the following arguments: “ Molt 
of thefe may-poles are ftollen ; yet they give out that the 
poles are given to them ; when, upon thorow examination, 
’twill be found that raoft of them are ffollen. There were 
two may-poles fet up in ir.y pariffi ; the one was ffollen, 
and the other was given by a profell papiff. That which 
was ffollen was laid to be given ; when it was proved to 
their faces that it was ftollen, and they made to acknow¬ 
ledge their offence : this pole was rated at five fhillings. 
If all the poles, one with another, were fo rated which 
were ftollen this May, what a conlkiera-ble fum it would 
amount to!” He then arraigns'the goddefs Flora at the 
bar: “ Flora, bold up thy hand; thou art here indited by 
the name of Flora, of the city of Rome, in the county of 
Babylon, for that thou, contrary to the peace of our fove- 
reign lord, his erown’and dignity, haft brought in a pack 
of practical fanaticks; viz, ignorants, atheifts, papifts, 
drunkards, fwearers, fwalh-bucklers, maid-marrions, raor- 
rice-dancers, mafkers, mummers, may-pole dealers, health- 
drinkers, gamefters, lewd men, light women, contemners 
of magiftrates, affronters of tninilfers, rebellious to maf- 
ters, difobedient to parents, milpenders of time, and abu- 
fers of the creature, &c.” Strutt's Sports and PaJlimes. 
Brand's Obfervations on Bourne. Time's Tdejcope for 1815 
and 1816. 
The Jews commemorate the death of Samuel the pro¬ 
571 
phet, by a general mourning, on the iff of May. And 
the 2.5th is' -kept by them in ccnfeq uence of a tradition 
that the Egyptians, having made application to Alexander 
the Great, when at Jerufaleni, to become an arbitrator in 
refpeift to the charge brought againft the Jews, that at 
their departure from Egypt they had robbed the Egyp¬ 
tians of their jewels of lilver and gold ; Alexander then 
calling upon fome of the leading men of the Jews to an- 
fwer this accufation, they did it effectually, by faying, 
that, if the Egyptians would pay for the fervices of lix 
hundred thouland perfons for four hundred years, they 
would oblige themfeftves to pay what they pretended they 
had been robbed of. This anfwer confounding the Egyp¬ 
tians, the Jews were honourably acquitted, and eita- 
blilhed a feitival in its commemoration. T. T. for 1S16. 
MAY^y. The early or gay part of life ; 
Maids are May when they are maids, 
But the (ky changes when they are wives. Shahefpcare. 
I’ll prove it on his body, if he dare ; 
Defpight his nice fence, and his aiftive pra&ice, 
His May of youth, and bloom of luftihood. Shakcfpeare. 
A familiar name for.the bloffom of the Crataegus oxycan- 
tha, or white-thorn, which commonly flowers in May, 
though fometimes earlier and fometimes later. See Cra- 
T-ff.GUS, vol. v. p. 332. 
To MAY, v. n. To gather flowers on May morning : 
When merry May firft early calls the morn. 
With merry maids a -maying they do go. Sidney. 
MAY, auxiliary verb, preterite, might-, [magan, Sax. 
maghen, Dnt.J To be at liberty ; to be permitted ; to be 
allowed : as, You may do for me all you can..—He that is 
lent out to travel with the thoughts of a man, deligning 
to improve himfelf, may get into the converfation of per¬ 
fons of condition. Locke on Education. —To be poffible.—■ 
It may be, I (hall otherwile bethink me. Shakefpeare —To 
be by chance.—Be the workmen what they may be, let us 
fpeak of the work. Bacon's EJjays. 
How old may Phillis be, you alk, 
Whofe beauty thus all hearts engages ? 
To anfwer is no eafy talk, 
For (lie has really two ages. Prior. 
To have power.—This alfo tendeth to no more but what 
the king may do: for what he may do is of two kinds; what 
he may do as juft, and what he may do as poffible. Bacon. 
-—A word exp re fling defire.— May you live happily and 
long for the fervice of your country. Dryden's Dedication 
to the FEneis, 
MAY, adj. Belonging to the month of May ; pro¬ 
duced in the month of May. ‘ 
MAY, a town of China, of the third rank, in Chan-fi i 
twelve miles north-eaft of Sou-tcheou. 
MAY, a river of Chiampa, which runs into the Chi- 
nefe fea in lat. jo. 42. N. Ion. 107.14. E. 
MAY, a town of Psrfia, in the province of Farfiftan : 
120 miles fouth of Sciiiras. 
MAY, a town of France, in the department of the 
Maine and Loire : five miles north of Choilet, and four¬ 
teen weft of Vihiers. 
MAY, a river of South Carolina, which runs, into the 
Atlantic in lat. 32. 15. N. Ion. 80. 55. W. 
MAY, a river of Wales, which runs into the fea three 
miles fouth-weft of Crickhaeth. 
MAY (Ille of), a fmall ifland at the mouth of the frith 
of Forth, in Scotland, about a mile and a half in circum¬ 
ference, and feven miles from the coaft of Fife, alrr.oft op- 
pofite to the rock called the Bafs. It formerly belonged 
to the priory of Pittenweem; and was dedicated to St. 
Adrian, fuppofed to have been martyred in this place by 
the Danes; and hither, in times of popilh fuperlfition, 
barren women ufed to come and worlhip at his fnrine, in 
hopes of being cured of their fterility. Here is a tower 
and light-houle built by Mr. Cunningham of Barns, to 
3 whom 
