Wednesday you must go to Church and pray;
Thursday is half-holiday;

On Friday it is too late to begin to spin

The Saturday is half-holiday agen."

Holy-days, writes Hooker, were set apart to be the landmarks to distinguish times.

THE

THE BORROWED DAYS.

'HERE is a singular old proverb preserved in Ray's Collection : "April borrows three days of March, and they are ill;" April being pronounced with an emphasis on the last syllable, so as to make a kind of jingling rhyme with "ill," the last word in the line. In the ancient Calendar of the Church of Rome are the following observations on the 31st of March

"The rustic fable concerning the nature of the month. The rustic names of six days which shall follow in April, or may be the last in March."

There is no doubt but that these observations in the ancient Calendar, and our proverb, are derived from one common origin.

The Borrowing Days, as they are called, occur in The Complaynt of Scotland (1801): "There eftir i entrit in ane grene forest, to contempil the tendir zong frutes of grene treis, because the borial blastis of the thre borouing dais of Marche hed chaissit the fragrant flureise of evyrie frut-tree far athourt the feildis." The Glossary (in verbo) explains "Borrouing days, the three last days of March;" and adds: "Concerning the origin of the term, the following popular rhyme is often repeated

"March borrowit fra Averill
Three days, and they were ill."

Also the following

"March said to Aperill,

I see three hogs upon a hill;
But lend your three first days to me,
And I'll be bound to gar them die.
The first, it sall be wind and weet;
The next, it sall be snaw and sleet;
The third, it sall be sic a freeze
Sall gar the birds stick to the trees.
But when the Borrowed Days were gane
The three silly hogs came hirplin hame."

In the Statistical Account of Scotland (1791), the minister of the parish of Kirkmichael, mentioning an old man of the age of 103 years, says: "His account of himself is that he was born in the Borrowing Days of the year that King William came in ;" a note adding: "that is, on one of the three last days of March 1688."

In The Country Almanack for 1676, among the remarks upon April occur

"No blust'ring blasts from March needs April borrow :
His own oft proves enow to breed us sorrow.

Yet if he weep (with us to simpathize)

His trickling tears will make us wipe our eyes."

In the British Apollo, to the inquiry as to the meaning of the old poetical saying

"March borrows of April

Three days, and they are ill;
April returns them back again,
Three days, and they are rain; "

the answer is, that it is more seasonable for the end of March and the beginning of April to be fair, but often

"March does from April gain
Three days, and they're in rain;
Return'd by April in's bad kind,
Three days, and they're in wind."

A clergyman in Devonshire informed the author that the old farmers in his parish called the three first days of March" Blind Days,” which were anciently considered as unlucky ones, and upon which no farmer would sow any seed. This superstition, however, is now wearing out apace.

These days had not escaped the observation of the learned author of the Vulgar Errors; who, however, seems to have been in the dark concerning them; for he barely tells us: It is usual to ascribe unto March certain Borrowed Daies from April."

66

Jamieson, in his Etymological Dictionary of the Scottish Language, says: "These days being generally stormy, our forefathers have endeavoured to account for this circumstance by pretending that March borrowed them from April, that he might extend his power so much longer." "Those," he adds, "who are much addicted to superstition, will neither borrow nor lend on any of these days. If any one should propose to borrow of them, they would consider it as an evidence that the person wished to employ the article borrowed for the purposes of witchcraft against the lenders.

Some of the vulgar imagine that these days received their desig. nation from the conduct of the Israelites in borrowing the property of the Egyptians. This extravagant idea must have originated partly from the name, and partly from the circumstances of these days nearly corresponding to the time when the Israelites left Egypt, which was on the fourteenth day of the month Abib, or Nisan, including part of our March and April. I know not whether our Western Magi suppose that the inclemency of the Borrowing Days has any relation to the storm which proved so fatal to the Egyptians."

RE

DAYS LUCKY OR UNLUCKY.

EFERRING to the heathen superstition of regarding one day as good, and another as bad, Bourne observes: "Some were Dies atri, and some Dies albi. The Atri were pointed out in their Calendar with a black character, the Albi with a white. The former to denote it a Day of bad success, the latter a Day of good. Thus have the Monks, in the dark and unlearned ages of Popery, copy'd after the Heathens, and dream'd themselves into the like Superstitions, esteeming one Day more successful than another." He also tells us that St Austin, upon the passage of St Paul to the Galatians against observing days, and months, and times, and years, explains it to have this meaning: "The persons the Apostle blames are those who say, I will not set forward on my journey because it is the next day after such a time, or because the moon is so; or I'll set forward, that I may have luck, because such is just now the position of the stars; or I will not traffick this month, because such a star presides; or I will because it does; or I shall plant no vines this year, because it is Leap Year."

Googe's version of Naogeorgus runs

"And first, betwixt the Dayes they make no little difference,
For all be not of vertue like, nor like preheminence.

But some of them Egyptian are, and full of ieopardee,

And some againe, beside the rest, both good and luckie bee.
Like diffrence of the Nights they make, as if th' Almightie King,
That made them all, not gracious were to them in every thing.'

The following curious passage is taken from Melton's Astrologaster : "Those observers of time are to be laught at that will not goe out of their house before they have had counsell of their Almanacke, and will rather have the house fall on their heads than stirre if they note some natural effect about the motion of the aire, which they suppose will varie the lucky blasts of the Starres, that will not marry, or traffique, or doe the like, but under some constellation. These, sure, are no Christians: because faithfull men ought not to doubt that the Divine Providence from any part of the world, or from any time whatsoever, is absent. Therefore we should not impute any secular businesse to the power of the Starres, but to know that all things are disposed by the arbitrement of the King of kings. The Christian faith is violated when, so like a pagan and apostate, any man doth observe those days which are called Egyptiaci, or the calends of Januarie, or any moneth, or day, or time, or yeere, eyther to travell, marry, or to doe any thing in."

Lodge, in his Incarnate Devils (1596), glances at the superstitious observer of lucky and unlucky times: "He will not eat his dinner before he hath lookt in his Almanacke."

Mason, in The Anatomie of Sorcerie (1612), enumerates among the superstitious of that age "Regarders of times, as they are which will have one time more lucky then another: to be borne at one hower

more unfortunate then at another: to take a journey or any other enterprize in hand, to be more dangerous or prosperous at one time then at another: as likewise if such a festivall day fall upon such a day of the weeke, or such like, we shall have such a yeare following: and many other such like vaine speculations, set downe by our Astrologians, having neither footing in God's Word, nor yet natural reason to support them; but being grounded onely upon the superstitious imagination of man's braine."

In Newton's Tryall of a Man's own Selfe (1602), under the head of "sinnes externall and outward" against the first commandment, he inquires, "Whether, for the procuring of any thing either good or bad, thou hast used any unlawful meanes, or superstitious and damnable helps. Of which sort bee the observation and choise of DAYES, of planetarie houres, of motions and courses of starres, mumbling of prophane praiers, consisting of words both strange and senselesse, adjurations, sacrifices, consecrations, and hallowings of divers thinges, rytes and ceremonies unknowne to the Church of God, toyish characters and figures, demanding of questions and aunsweares of the dead, dealing with damned spirits, or with any instruments of phanaticall divination, as basons, rings, cristalls, glasses, roddes, prickes, numbers, dreames, lots, fortune-tellings, oracles, soothsayings, horoscoping, or marking the houres of nativities, witchcraftes, enchauntments, and all such superstitious trumperie :-the enclosing or binding of spirits to certaine instruments, and such like devises of Sathan the Devill."

Under the same head he asks "Whether the apothecarie have superstitiously observed or fondly stayed for CHOISE DAYES or houres, or any other ceremonious rites in gathering his herbs and other simples for the making of drougs and receipts.'

At the end of an ancient MS. mentioned in the Duke de la Valiere's Catalogue, there is part of a calendar in which the following unlucky days are noticed

"Januar. iiii. Non. [10th] Dies ater et nefastus.

viii. Id.

Mar.
Jan.

vi. Non.

iiii. Kal.

[25th] Dies ater et nefastus.

[10th] non est bonum nugere. [9. nubere?] 2d ĺ Dies ater."

In the Book of Knowledge (1658), we have an Account of the perillous Dayes of every Month

În March, 6 July, 3 or 13. November, 5

"In the change of every moon be two Dayes, in the which what thing soever is begun, late or never, it shall come to no good end, and the dayes be full perillous for many things. In January, when the moon is three or four dayes old. In February, 5 or 7. or 7. In April, 5 or 8. May, 8 or 9. June, 5 or 15. August, 8 or 13. September, 8 or 13. October, 5 or 12. or 9. In December, 3 or 13. "Astronomers say that six Dayes in the year are perillous of death; and therefore they forbid men to let blood on them, or take any drink that is to say, January the 3d, July the 1st, October the 2d, the last of April, August the first, the last day going out of December. These six Daves with great diligence ought to be kept, but manely the

:

latter three, for all the veins are then full. For then, whether man o beast be knit in them within seven dayes, or certainly within fourteen dayes, he shall die. And if they take any drinks within fifteene dayes, they shall die; and, if they eat any goose in these three Dayes, within forty dayes they shall die; and, if any child be born in these three latter Dayes, they shall die a wicked death.

"Astronomers and Astrologers say that in the beginning of March, the seventh Night, or the fourteenth Day, let thee bloud of the right arm; and in the beginning of April, the eleventh Day, of the left arm; and in the end of May, third or fifth Day, on whether arm thou wilt; and thus, of all that year, thou shalt orderly be kept from the fever, the falling gout, the sister gout, and losse of thy sight."

Grose tells us that many persons have certain days of the week and month on which they are particularly fortunate, and certain others on which they are uniformly unlucky. These days vary with different persons; and Aubrey has given several instances of both classes. Some days, however, are commonly deemed unlucky. Among others, Friday labours under that opprobrium; and it is pretty generally held that no new work or enterprise should commence on that day. Respecting the weather also there is this proverb

In the calendar prefixed to Grafton's Abridgment of his Chronicle (1565), the unlucky days according to the opinion of the astronomers are thus enumerated: "January 1, 2, 4, 5, 10, 15, 17, 29, very unlucky. February 26, 27, 28, unlucky; 8, 10, 17, very unlucky. March 16, 17, 20, very unlucky. April 7, 8, 10, 20, unlucky; 16, 21, very unlucky. May 3, 6, unlucky; 7, 15, 20, very unlucky. June 10, 22, unlucky; 4, 8, very unlucky. July 15, 21, very unlucky. August 1, 29, 30, unlucky; 19, 20, very unlucky. September 3, 4, 21, 23, unlucky; 6, 7, very unlucky. October 4, 16, 24, unlucky; 6, very unlucky. November 5, 6, 29, 30, unlucky; 15, 20, very unlucky. December 15, 22, unlucky; 6, 7, 9, very unlucky." *

In Lord Burghley's Preceptes to his Sonne (1636), we read: "Though I thinke no day amisse to undertake any good enterprize or businesse in hande, yet have I observed some, and no meane clerks, very cautionarie to forbear these three Mundayes in the yeare, which I leave to thine owne consideration, either to use or refuse; viz. 1. The first Munday in April, which Day Caine was born, and his brother Abel slaine. 2. The second Munday in August, which Day Sodome and Gomorrah were destroyed. 3. The last Munday in December, which Day Judas was born, that betrayed our Saviour Christ."

Bishop Hall, in his Characters of Virtues and Vices, discoursing of the superstitious man, observes: "If his journey began unawares on the dismal Day, he feares a mischiefe."

In the ancient Romish Calendar we find an observation on the 13th

* In the Prognostication of Erra Pater (1565), printed by Colwell, the unlucky days vary from these of Grafton. See more on this subject in Aubrey's Miscellanies.