ry 1, the Roman date. "In Wales this must
have been decidedly helped by the influence of Roman rule and Roman
ideas; but even there the adjuncts of the Winter Calends have never
been wholly transferred to the Calends of January."{4}

[87] In Burne and Jackson's "Shropshire Folk-Lore" (p. 305 f.) there are
details about cakes and other doles given to the poor at funerals.
These probably had the same origin as the November "soul-cakes."

[88] Cf. pp. 191-2 and 235-6 of this volume.

[89] The prominence of "Eves" in festival customs is a point specially
to be noticed; it is often to them rather than to the actual feast
days that old practices cling. This is perhaps connected with the
ancient Celtic and Teutonic habit of reckoning by nights instead of
days--a trace of this is left in our word "fortnight"--but it must
be remembered that the Church encouraged the same tendency by her
solemn services on the Eves of festivals, and that the Jewish
Sabbath begins on Friday evening.

[90] Attempts are being made to suppress the November carnival at
Hampstead, and perhaps the 1911 celebration may prove to have been
the last.

[91] "Raise the glass at Martinmas, drink wine all through the year."

[92] It is interesting to note that in the Italian province of Venetia,
as well as in more northerly regions, Martinmas is especially a
children's feast. In the sweetshops are sold little sugar images of
the saint on horseback with a long sword, and in Venice itself
children go about singing, playing on tambourines, and begging for
money.{93}

[93] "At St. Andrew's Mass winter is certain."

[94] This custom may be compared with the Scotch eating of sowans in bed
on Christmas morning (see Chapter XII.).

[95] In a legend of the saint she is said to have plucked out her own
eyes when their beauty caused a prince to seek to ravish her away
from her convent.{54}

[96] The bath-house in the old-fashioned Swedish farm is a separate
building to which everyone repairs on Christmas Eve, but which is,
or was, seldom used except on this one night of the year.{23}

[97] Sometimes Christmas is reckoned as one of the Twelve Days,
sometimes not. In the former case, of course, the Epiphany is the
thirteenth day. In England we call the Epiphany Twelfth Day, in
Germany it is g