Good-Friday It is now Good Friday, and a general fast must be kept among all Christians, in remembrance of Christ's Passion. Flesh and fish must be banished all stomachs strong or weak. Now begins the farewell to thin fare, and the fishmongers may shut up their shops till the holy-days be past. The butchers now must wash their boards, make clean their aprons, sharpen their knives, and sort their pricks, and cut out their meat for Easter-Eve market. Now must the poulterers make ready their rabbits and their fowl, the cooks have their ovens clean, and all for pies and tarts against the merry feast. Now the maids bestir them about their houses, the launders about their linen, the tailors about apparel, and all for this holy time. Now young lambs, young rabbits, and young chickens die for fine appetites, and now the minstrel tunes his instruments, to have them ready for the young people. But with the aged and the religious, there is nothing but sorrow and mourning, confession, contrition, and absolution, and I know not what. Few that are merry, but children that break up school, and wenches that are upon the marriage. In sum, it is such an odd day by itself, that I will only make this conclusion of it: it is the bridle of nature, and the examiner of reason. NICHOLAS BRETON, Fantastickes 1626 It is now Easter, and Jack of Lent is turned out of doors. The fishermen now hang up their nets to dry, while the calf and the lamb walk toward the kitchen and the pastry. The velvet heads of the forests fall at the loose of the cross-bow. The salmon-trout plays with the fly, and the March rabbit runs dead into the dish. The Indian commodities pay the merchant's adventure: and Barbary sugar puts honey out of countenance. The holy feast is kept for the faithful, and a known Jew hath no place among Christians. The earth now begins to paint her upper garment, and the trees put out their young buds. The little kids chew their cuds, and the swallow feeds on the flies in the air. The stork cleanseth the brooks of the frogs, and the spar-hawk prepares her wing for the partridge. The little fawn is stolen from the doe, and the male deer begin to herd. The spirit of youth is inclined to mirth, and the conscionable scholar will not break a holy-day. The minstrel calls the maid from her dinner, and the lover's eyes do troll like tennis balls. There is mirth and joy, when there is health and liberty: and he that hath money will be no mean man in his mansion. The air is wholesome and the sky comfortable, the flowers odoriferous and the fruits pleasant. I conclude, it is a day of much delightfulness: the sun's dancing day, and the earth's holy-day. NICHOLAS BRETON, Fantastickes 1626 May-day (a puritan view) They rose up early to observe The rite of May. A Midsummer Night's Dream, IV. i. 138-139 Against May, Whitsunday, or some other time of the year, every parish, town and village assemble themselves together, both men, women and children, old and young, even all indifferently; and either going all together or dividing themselves into companies,, they go some to the woods and groves, some to the hills and mountains, some to one place and some to another, where they spend all the night in pleasant pastimes; and in the morning they return, bringing with them birch boughs and branches of trees, to deck their assemblies withal. And no marvel, for there is a great lord present amongst them, as superintendent and lord over their pastimes and sports, namely Sathan, prince of hell. But their chiefest jewel they bring from thence is their May-pole, which they bring home with great veneration, as thus. They have twenty or forty yoke of oxen, every ox having a sweet nose-gay of flowers placed on the tip of his horns; and these oxen draw home this May-pole (this stinking idol, rather) which is covered all over with flowers and herbs, bound round about with strings from the top to the bottom, and sometime painted with variable colours, with two or three hundred men, women and children following it with great devotion. And thus being reared up with handkerchiefs and flags streaming on the top, they straw the ground about, bind green boughs about it, set up summer-halls, bowers, and arbours hard by it; and then they fall to banquet and feast, to leap and dance about it, as the heathen people did at the dedication of their idols, whereof this is a perfect pattern, or rather the thing itself. PHILIP STUBBES, The Anatomie of Abuses 1583 (2nd ed.) Robin Hood I came once myself to a place, riding on a journey homeward from London, and I sent word over night into the town that I would preach there in the morning because it was holy day, and methought it was an holy day's work. The church stood in my way, and I took my horse, and my company, and went thither. I thought I should have found a great company in the church, and when I came there, the church door was fast locked. I tarried there half an hour and more, at last the key was found, and one of the parish comes to me and says: "Sir this is a busy day with us, we cannot hear you, it is Robin Hood's day. The parish are gone abroad to gather for Robin Hood. I pray you let them not." I was fain there to give place to Robin Hood; I thought my rochet should have been regarded, though I were not, but it would not serve, it was fain to give place to Robin Hood's men. It is no laughing matter my friends, it is a weeping matter, a heavy matter, under the pretence for gathering for Robin Hood, a traitor, and a thief, to put out a preacher, to have his office less esteemed, to prefer Robin Hood before the ministration of God's word, and all this hath come of unpreaching prelates. This realm hath been ill provided for, that it hath had such corrupt judgments in it, to prefer Robin Hood to God's word BISHOP HUGH LATIMER, Sermon preached before Edward VI, April 12, 1549 The Lord of Misrule (a puritan view) The name, indeed, is odious both to God and good men, and such as the very heathen people would have blushed at, once to have named amongst them. And if the name importeth some evil, then what may the thing itself be, judge you? But because you desire to know the manner of them, I will show you as I have seen them practised myself. First, all the wildheads of the parish, conventing together, choose them a GrandCaptain (of all mischief) whom they ennoble with the title of my Lord of Misrule, and him they crown with great solemnity, and adopt for their king. This king annointed, chooseth forth twenty, forty, threescore or a hundred lusty guts, like to himself, to wait upon his lordly majesty, and to guard his noble person. Then, every one of these his men, he investeth with his liveries of green, yellow, or some other light wanton colour; and as though they were not (bawdy) gaudy enough I should say, they bedeck themselves with scarfs, ribbons and laces hanged all over with gold rings, precious stones, and other jewels: this done, they tie about either leg twenty or forty bells, with rich handkerchiefs in their hands, and sometimes laid across over their shoulders and necks, borrowed for the most part of their pretty Mopsies and loving Bessies, for bussing them in the dark. Thus all things set in order, then have they their hobby-horses, dragons and other antics, together with their bawdy pipers and thundering drummers to strike up the devil's dance withal. Then march these heathen company towards the church and church-yard, their pipers piping, their drummers thundering, their stumps dancing, their bells jingling, their handkerchiefs swinging about their heads like madmen, their hobby-horses and other monsters skirmishing amongst the throng: and in this sort they go to the church (I say) and into the church, (though the minister be at prayer or preaching), dancing and swinging their handkerchiefs, over their heads in the church, like devils incarnate, with such a confused noise, that no man can hear his own voice. Then, the foolish people they look, they stare, they laugh, they fleer, and mount upon forms and pews to see these goodly pageants solemnized in this sort. Then, after this, about the church they go again and again, and so forth into the church-yard, where they have commonly their summer-halls, their bowers, arbours, and banquetting houses set up, wherein they feast, banquet and dance all that day and (peradventure) all the night too. And thus these terrestrial furies spend the Sabbath day. They have also certain papers, wherein is painted some babblery or other of imagery work, and these they call 'my Lord of Misrule's badges: these they give to every one that will give money for them to maintain them in their heathenry, devilry, whoredom, drunkenness, pride, and what not. And who will not show himself buxom to them, and give them money for these the devil's cognizances, they shall be mocked and flouted at shamefully. And so assotted are some, that they not only give them money to maintain their abomination withal, but also 4 wear their badges and cognizances in their hats or caps openly. But let them take heed; for these are the badges, seals, brands, and cognizances of the devil, whereby he knoweth his servants and clients from the children of God, and so long as they wear them, Sub vexillo diaboli militant contra Dominum et legem suam: they fight under the banner and standard of the devil against Christ Jesus, and all his laws. Another sort of fantastical fools bring to these hell-hounds (the Lord of Misrule and his complices) some bread, some good ale, some new cheese, some old cheese, some custards, and cakes, some flawns, some tarts, some cream, some meat, some one thing, some another; but if they knew that as often as they bring anything to the maintainance of these execrable pastimes, they offer sacrifice to the devil and Sathanas, they would repent and withdraw their hands; which God grant they may! PHILIP STUBBES, The Anatomie of Abuses, 1583 (2nd ed.) The Country in Spring I When daisies pied and violets blue Do paint the meadows with delight, Mocks married men; for thus sings he, Cuckoo ; Cuckoo, cuckoo: O word of fear, II When shepherds pipe on oaten straws, Cuckoo, cuckoo: O word of fear, |