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Winter's white shrowd doth cover all the grounde,
And Caecias blows his bitter blaste of woe;
The ponds and pooles, and streams in ice are bounde,
And famished birds are shivering in the snowe.
Still round about the house they flitting goe,
And at the windows seek for scraps of foode
Which Charity with hand profuse doth throwe,
Right weeting that in need of it they stoode,
For Charity is shown by working creatures' goode.

The sparrowe pert, the chaffinche gay and cleane,
The redbreast welcome to the cotter's house,
The livelie blue tomtit, the oxeye greene,

The dingie dunnock, and the swart colemouse;
The titmouse of the marsh, the nimble wrenne,
The bullfinch and the goldspinck, with the king
Of birds the goldcrest. The thrush, now and then,
The blackbird, wont to whistle in the spring,

Like Christians seek the heavenlie foode St. Paul doth bring.

NATURALISTS' CALENDAR.
Mean Temperature ... 36. 60.

January 25.

Conversion of St. Paul.* This Romish festival was first adopted by the church of England in the year 1662, during the reign of Charles II. ST. PAUL'S DAY.

Buck and Doe in St. Paul's Cathedral. Formerly a buck's head was carried in procession at St. Paul's Cathedral. This by some antiquaries is presumed to have been the continuation of a ceremony in more ancient times when, according to certain accounts, a heathen temple existed on that site. It is remarkable that this notion as to the usage is repeated by writers whose experience in other respects has obtained them well-earned regard:

Seç vol. i. p. 175,

the origin of this custom, is stated by Stow to the following purport.

Mentioning the opinion already noticed, which, strange to tell, has been urged ever since his time, he says in its refutation, "But true it is I have read an ancient deed to this effect," and the "effect" is, that in 1274, the dean and chapter of St. Paul's granted twenty-two acres of land, part of their manor of Westley, in Essex, to sir William Baud, knt., for the purpose of being enclosed by him within his park of Curingham; in consideration whereof he undertook to bring to them on the feast day of the Conversion of St. Paul, in winter, a good doe, seasonable and sweet; and upon the feast of the commemoration of St. Paul in summer, a good buck, and offer the same to be spent (or divided) among the canons resident; the doe to be brought by one man at the hour of procession, and through the procession to the high altar, and the bringer to have nothing; the buck to be brought by all his men in like manner, and they to be

paid twelve pence only, by the chamberlain of the church, and no more to be required. For the performance of this annual present of venison, he charged his lands and bound his heirs; and twenty seven years afterwards, his son, sir Walter, confirmed the grant.

The observance of this ceremony, as to the buck, was very curious, and in this manner. On the aforesaid feast-day of the commemoration, the buck being brought up to the steps of the high altar in St. Paul's church at the hour of procession, and the dean and chapter being apparelled in their copes and vestments, with garlands of roses on their heads, they sent the body of the buck to be baked; and having fixed the head on a pole, caused it to be borne before the cross in their procession within the church, until they issued out of the west door. There the keeper that brought it blew "the death of the buck," and then the horners that were about the city answered him in like manner. For this the dean and chapter gave each man fourpence in money and his dinner, and the keeper that brought it was allowed during his abode there, meat, drink and lodging, at the dean and chapter's charges, and five shillings in money at his going away, together with a Joaf of bread, with the picture of St. Paul on it. It appears also that the granters of the venison presented to St. Paul's cathedral two special suits of vestments, to be worn by the clergy on those two days; the one being embroidered with bucks, and the other with does.

The translator of Dupre's work on the "Conformity between modern and ancient ceremonies," also misled by other authorities, presumed that the "bringing up a fat buck to the altar of St. Paul's with hunters, horns blowing, &c. in the middle of divine service," was of heathen derivation, whereas we see it was only a provision for a venison feast by the Romish clergy, in return for some waste land of one of their manors.

NATURALIST'S CALENDAR. Mean Temperatare. . .35 · 10.

January 26.

"St. George he was for England.”. So says a well-known old ballad, and we are acquainted, by the following communication, that our patron saint still

"appears in England, through his personal representatives, at this season of the year.

To the Editor of the Every-Day Book.

Sir,

I send you an account of the Christ mas drama of "St. George," as acted in Cornwall, subscribing also my name and address, which you properly deem an indispensable requisite. I thereby vouch for the authenticity of what I send you. Having many friends and relations in the west, at whose houses I have had frequent opportunities of seeing the festivities and mixing in the sports of their farm, and other work-people, at the joyous times of harvest home, finishing the barley mow, (of which more hereafter if agreeable,) Christmas, &c. In some of the latter it is still customary for the master of the house and his guests to join at the beginning of the evening, though this practice, I am sorry to say, is gradually wearing out, and now confined to a few places. I have "footed it" away in sir Roger de Coverley, the hemp-dressers, &c. (not omitting even the cushion dance,) with more glee than I ever slided through the chaine anglaise, or demi-queue de chat, and have formed acquaintance with the master of the revels, or leader of the parish choir, (generally a shrewd fellow, well versed in song,) in most of the western parishes in Cornwall; and from them have picked up much information on those points, which personal observation alone had not supplied to my satisfaction.

You may be sure that "St. George" with his attendants were personages too remarkable not to attract much of my attention, and I have had their adventures represented frequently; from different versions so obtained, I am enabled to state that the performances in different parishes vary only in a slight degree from each other.

St. George and the other tragic performers are dressed out somewhat in the style of morris-dancers, in their shirtsleeves, and white trowsers much decorated with ribands and handkerchiefs, each carrying a drawn sword in his hand, if they can be procured, otherwise a cudgel. They wear high caps of pasteboard, adorned with beads, small pieces of looking-glass, coloured paper, &c.; several long strips of pith generally hang down from the top, with small pieces

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The doctor, who is generally the merryandrew of the piece, is dressed in any ridiculous way, with a wig, three-cornered hat, and painted face.

The other comic characters are dressed according to fancy.

The female, where there is one, is usually in the dress worn half a century ago.

The hobby-horse, which is a character sometimes introduced, wears a represent ation of a horse's hide.

Besides the regular drama of "St. George," many parties of mummers go about in fancy dresses of every sort, most commonly the males in female attire, and vice versa.

This Christmas play, it appears, is, or was in vogue also in the north of England as well as in Scotland. A correspondent of yours (Mr. Reddock) has already given an interesting account of that in Scotland, and a copy of that acted at Newcastle, printed there some thirty or forty years since, is longer than any I have seen in the west. By some the play is considered to have reference to the time of the crusades, and to have been introduced on the return of the ad

venturers from the Holy-Land, as typifying their battles. Before proceeding with our drama in the west, I have merely to observe that the old fashion was to continue many of the Christmas festivities till Candlemas-day, (February 2,) and then "throw cards and candlesticks away."

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I was born in a rocky country, where there was no wood to make me a cradle; I was rocked in a stouring bowl, which made me round shouldered then, and I am round shouldered still.

[He then frisks about the room, until he thinks he has sufficiently amused the spectators, when he makes his exit with this speech,

Who went to the orchard, to steal apples to make gooseberry pies against Christmas?

[These prose speeches, you may suppose, depend much upon the imagination of the actor.

Enter Turkish Knight. Here comes I, a Turkish knight, Come from the Turkish land to fight, And if St. George do meet me here I'll try his courage without fear.

Enter St. George.

Here comes I, St. George;
that worthy champion bold,
And, with my sword and spear,
I won three crowns of gold.
I fought the dragon bold,

and brought him to the slaughter,
By that I gained fair Sabra,

the king of Egypt's daughter. T. K. Saint George, I pray be not too bold,

If thy blood is hot, I'll soon make it cold.

St. G. Thou Turkish knight, I pray

I'll make thee dread my sword and spear. forbear,

[They fight until the T. knight falls. St. G. I have a little bottle, which goes by the name of Elicumpane, If the man is alive let him rise and fight again.

[The knight here rises on one knee, and endeavours to continue the fight, but is again struck down.

T. K. Oh! pardon me, St. George, oh! pardon me I crave.

Oh! pardon me this once, and I will be thy slave.

St. G. I'll never pardon a Turkish
Knight,

Therefore arise, and try thy might.
[The knight gets up, and they again
fight, till the knight receives a heavy
blow, and then drops on the ground
as dead.

St. G. Is there a doctor to be found, To cure a deep and deadly wound?

Enter Doctor.

Oh! yes, there is a doctor to be found,
To cure a deep and deadly wound.
St. G. What can you cure?
Doctor. I can cure the itch, the palsy,
and gout,

If the devil's in him, I'll pull him out.
[The Doctor here performs the cure with

sundry grimaces, and St. George and the Knight again fight, when the latter is knocked down, and left for dead.

[Then another performer enters, and on seeing the dead body, says,

Ashes to ashes, dust to dust,

If uncle Tom Pearce won't have him, Aunt Molly must.

[The hobby-horse here capers in, and

takes off the body.

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WEIGHTS AND MEASURES.

1826. The alteration of the standard this year, in order to its uniformity throughout the kingdom, however inconvenient to individuals in its first application, will be ultimately of the highest

public advantage. The difference between beer, wine, corn, and coal measure, and

the difference of measures of the same denomination in different counties, were occasions of fraud and grievance without remedy until the present act of parliament commenced to operate. In the twelfth year of Henry VII. a standard was established, and the table was kept in the treasury of the king's exchequer, with drawings on it, commemorative of the regulation, and illustrating its principles. The original document passed into the collection of the liberal Harley, earl of Oxford, and there being a print of it with some of its pictorial representations, an engraving is here given of the mode of trial which it exhibits as having been used in the exchequer at that period.

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