78® N E W. 
^the name of Jlretia. However this may be, the Romans on 
that day celebrated a feftival in honour of Janus, and paid 
their refpefrs at the fame time to Juno; but they did not 
pafs it in idlenefs, left they fhould become indolent during 
the reft of the year. They fent prefents to one another 
of figs, dates, honey, &c. to fhow their friends that they 
wifhed for a happy and agreeable life. Clients; that is to 
, fay, thofe who were under the prote&ion of the great, 
carried prefents of this kind to their patrons, adding to 
them a piece of filver. Under Auguftus, the fenate, the 
knights, and the people, prefented fuch gifts to him, and 
in his abfence depofited them in the capitol. Of the fuc- 
ceeding princes, fome adopted this cuftom and others 
abolifhedit; but it always continued among the people. 
The early Chriftians condemned it, becaufe it appeared 
to be a relic of Paganifm and a fpecies of fuperftition; but, 
when it began to have no other objeCt than that of being 
a mark of veneration and efteem, the church ceafed to 
difapprove of it. 
The celebration of new-year’s day, obferves Mr. Huts- 
chinfon (Hift. of Northumberland), is preferved in this 
county as a rural feftival. Gifts are made to children, 
fervants, and dependants, called new-year’s gifts. Stil- 
lingfleet fays, that among the Saxons and the northern 
nations the feaft of the new year was obferved with more 
than ordinary jollity ; and, from Hofpinian, fays, it was 
an ancient cuftom of the Heathens, and afterwards prac- 
tifed by the Chriftians. Servants were exempt from their 
labour, and partook of the feaft and rural fports with 
their mafters: they were prefented with tokens of appro¬ 
bation and favour. On certain feftivals the Romans gave 
pieces of money to travellers and ftrangers who were pre- 
fent at the facrifice. “ On our day of feftivity, mirth is 
excited by a ruftic mafquerading and playing tricks in 
difguife : the hide of the ox flain for the winter-cheer, is 
often put on ; and the perfon thus attired, attempts to 
fhow the charader of the devil, by every horrible device 
in his power. All the winter-fports feem to exprefs a 
ftrong opinion of the ancients, that genii of very contrary 
natures prevailed on earth ; that the one was conftantly 
concomitant to light, as the other was to darknefs; and 
this image of the devil, which is frequently permitted to 
expel the inhabitants and take poftfelfion of the houfe, is 
typical of the power of the evil genius, in the feafon when 
the fun is longeft abfent from our hemifphere. This cor- 
refponds with the lamentation ufed by thofe who held 
the Elfeuftnian myfteries, and mourned for Adonis. It is 
very difficult to make any probable determination to what 
people we owe thefe cuftoms.” 
The ancient cuftom of going about with the wajjail, a 
bowl of fpiced ale, is yet retained in many places. The 
compofttion was ale, nutmeg, fugar, toaft, and roafted 
crabs or apples ; and was called lamb's wool. 
In France, particularly in the fouth, early in the morn¬ 
ing of new-year’s day, a round of vifits is commenced to 
relations and friends, to wiftt them a happy newyear, and to 
prefent them with bonbons (fweetmeats). The relations 
are firft vifited, beginning with thofe neareft in affinity, 
then thofe that are further removed, and laftly come the 
friends and acquaintance. It is aconteft of politenefs on 
this occafion which ffiall ftart firft, and anticipate the call 
of a relation or friend. The fltops of the confectioners 
are drefted up on the day before with looking-glafles, in¬ 
termixed with feftoons of filk or muflin, and branches of 
ribands or flowers. The counters are covered over with 
a nice table-cloth, and fet out with cakes, fweetmeats, 
dried fruits, and bonbons, made up into pyramids, caftles, 
columns, or any form which the tafte of the decorator 
may fuggeft; and, in the evening, they are illuminated 
for the reception of company, who come to buy their 
bonbons for the next day. Endlefs are the devices for 
things in which they are to be inclofed ; there are little 
boxes or bafkets, made of fatin, ornamented with gold, 
slver, or foil; balloons, books, fruit, fuch as apples, pears, 
oranges, &c. or vegetables, fuch as cauliflower, a root of 
celery, an onion; any thing, in fhort, which can be made 
with a hollow within to hold the bonbons; but the moll 
prevailing device is what is called a comet, that is, a little 
cone ornamented in different ways with a bag to draw 
over the large end and clofe it up. In thefe things, the 
prices of which vary from one franc (ten pence) to fifty, 
the bonbons are prefented by thofe who choofe to be at the 
expenfe of them ; and by thofe who do not, they are only 
wrapped in a piece of paper; but bonbons in fome way or 
other muft be prefented. In thefe vifits to friends, and 
in goffipping at the confectioners’ fhops, which are the 
great lounge for the occafion, the morning of new-year’s 
day is parted ; a dinner is given by fome member of the 
family to all the reft; and the evening concludes, like 
Chriftmas-day, with cards, dancing, or any other amufe- 
ment that may be preferred. Mifs Plumtree's Refidence in 
France, vol. ii. Time's Telejcope, 1815. 
NEW YEAR HAR'BOUR, a good harbour on the 
north coaft of the ifland of Staten Ifland. Lat. 54. 50. S.. 
Ion. 64. 25. W. 
NEW YEAR’S I'SLANDS, a group of fmall iflands 
in the South Pacific Ocean, on the north coaft of Staten 
Land; on the molt eafterly, Capt. Cook landed, on the 
31ft of December, 1774, and killed a great number of 
feals and birds. Thefe iflands, fays Cook, are in general 
fo unlike Staten Land, efpecially the one on which we 
landed, that it deferves a particular defcription. “ It 
ffiows a furface of equal height, and elevated about thirty 
or forty feet above the fea, from which it is defended by 
a rocky coaft. The inner part of the ille is covered with 
a fort of fward-grafs, very green, and of a great length. 
It grows on little hillocks of two or three feet in diameter, 
and as many or more in height, in large tufts, which 
feemed to be compofed of the roots of the plant matted 
together. Among thefe hillocks are a vaft number of 
paths, made by fea-bears and penguins, by which they re¬ 
tire into the centre of the ifle. It is neverthelefs exceed¬ 
ingly bad travelling; for thefe paths are fo dirty, that 
one is fometimes up to one’s knees in mire. Befides this 
plant, there are a few other graffes ; a kind of heath, and 
fome celery. The whole furface is moift and wet; and on 
the coaft are feveral fmall ftreams of water. The animals 
found on this little fpot are fea-lions, fea-bears, with a 
variety of oceanic and fome land birds. The fea-lions are 
not of that kind defcribed under the fame name by lord 
Anfon ; but, for aught I know, thefe would more pro¬ 
perly deferve that appellation ; the long hair with which 
the back of the head, the neck, and fhoulders, are covered, 
giving them greatly the air and appearance of the lion j 
the other part of the body is covered with ffiort hair, little 
longer than that of a cow or a horfe, and the whole is of 
a dark brown. The female is not half fo big as the male, 
and is'covered with a fhort hair of an afli or light dun- 
colour. They live as it were in herds, on the rocks near 
the fea-fhore. The fea-bears are notfo large by far as the 
lions, but are ratherlarger than the common feal. They 
have none of that long hair which diftinguiffies the lion ; 
theirs is all of an equal length, and finer than that of the 
lion, fomething like an otter’s, and the general colour is 
that of an iron-grey; this is the kind which the French 
call J'ea-wolves, and the Engliih/ea/s; they are, however, 
different from the feals of Europe and North America. 
The lions may too, without any great impropriety, be 
called over-grown feals 5 for they are all of the fame 
fpecies,” 
A remarkable harmony was obferved among the ani¬ 
mals we have mentioned to abound in thefe defolate re¬ 
gions. The fea-lions occupy the greateft part of the fea- 
coaft; the bears occupy the ifland ; the fhags are ported 
in the higheft cliffs ; the penguins in fuch places as have 
the beft accefs to and from the fea;_ and the other birds 
choole more retired places. Occafionally, however, all 
thefe animals were feen to mix together like domeftic 
cattle and poultry in a farm-yard, v/ithout one attempt¬ 
ing to hurt the other in the ieaft. Even the eagles and 
vulture* 
