Page:Cornish feasts and folk-lore.djvu/124

 1 1 2 Legends of Parishes, etc. counting those, they are said to be a hundred and fifty. The largest is St. Mary's, and the dwellers on it are apt to look with contempt on the inhabitants of the other islands (the Off Islands). The word Scilly is sometinaes derived from Sull6h, rocks dedicated to the sun, and sometimes from Sillyas, a conger. This fish is very plentiful on these coasts, and a ridiculous rhyme says that Scilly fare consists of — " .Scads and 'tales, scads and 'tates. Scads, and 'tates, and conger. And those who can't eat scads and 'tates — Oh, they must die of hunger." Occasionally the saying runs : " Oh ! the Scillonians live on fish and 'taties every day, and conger-pie for Sundays." In the beginning of this century, before steam-boats were in- vented, when communication between Scilly and Penzance (the mainland) depended upon wind and weather, in winter its people were often reduced to great straits for want of provisions, which gave rise to the proverb, " There is always a feast or a fast in Scilly." This is, however, now far from being the truth, and it is one of the most prosperous parts of Great Britain ; its inhabitants, as a rule, are well educated, they are noted for their courteous manners ; and for its beautiful scenery Scilly is well worth a visit. The dialect of its poorer people, as also the tones of their voices (each island has its peculiarity), differ from those of the same class in West Cornwall. Their pronunciation rather resembles the Irish. Thread with them is tread, the th at the beginning of words being rarely sounded, pint is point, and point pint. Irreverent people declare that when Ireland was made some little bits of earth fell from the shovel and formed Scilly. Certain it is that when St. Patrick drove out all venomous reptiles from the former place he did the same kind service to the latter. The island of St. Agnes was particularly favoured, for until recently there was not a rat on it, they were introduced from a wrecked vessel. Small as St. Mary's is (about three miles long and nine around) it boasts of two capitals ; the modern one dates from the time of