reparations over evening, when all men cry (as the manner is)
_the king drinketh_, chanting his Masse the next morning, fell asleep in
his Memento: and, when he awoke, added with a loud voice, _The king
drinketh_."{10}

One more French "king" custom may be mentioned, though it relates to
Christmas Day, not Epiphany. At Salers in the centre of France there were
formerly a king and queen whose function was to preside over the
festival, sit in a place of honour in church, and go first in the
procession. The kingship was not elective, but was sold by auction at the
church door, and it is said to have been so much coveted that worthy
citizens would sell their heritage in order to purchase it.{11}

It may be remarked that Epiphany kings and cakes similar to the French
can be traced in Holland and Germany,{12} and that the "King of the
Bean" is known in modern Italy, though there he may be an importation
from the north.{13}

How is this merry monarch to be accounted for? His resemblance to the
king of the _Saturnalia_, who presided over the fun of the feast in the
days of imperial Rome, is certainly striking, but it is impossible to say
whether he derives directly from that personage. No doubt his association
with the feast of the Three Kings has helped to maintain his rule. As for
the bean, it appears to have been a sacred vegetable in ancient times.
There is a story about the philosopher Pythagoras, how, when flying
before a host of rebels, he came upon a field of beans and refused to
pass through it for fear of crushing the plants, thus enabling his
pursuers to overtake him. Moreover, the _flamen dialis_ in Rome was
forbidden to eat or even name the vegetable, and the |341| name of the
Fabii, a Roman _gens_, suggests a totem tribe of the bean.{14}

In eastern Europe, though I know of no election of a king, there are New
Year customs with cakes, closely resembling some of the French practices
described a page or two back. "St. Basil's Cake" on New Year's Eve in
Macedonia is a kind of shortbread with a silver coin and a cross of green
twigs in it. When all are seated round the table the father and mother
take the cake, "and break it into two pieces, which are again subdivided
by the head of the family into shares. The first portion is destined for
St. Basil, the Holy Virgin, or the patron saint whose icon is in the
house. The second stands for the house itself. The third for the cattle
and domestic animals belonging theret