Page:Folk-lore - A Quarterly Review. Volume 15, 1904.djvu/496

 464 Correspondence.

Through her instrumcntahty, I suppose ? — Yes, Sir." — Lindsey (5^ Lincolnshire Star, Oct. i, 1904.

The witness further explained that the landlord turned the woman out in consequence of something that she (witness) had told him, and that the child was bewitched in revenge. The medical evidence was that death was caused by convulsions, due to rickets, the result of improper feeding. A verdict accordingly

was returned.

Edward Peacock, F.S.A.

A Harvest Custom.

While stopping recently in East Kent I witnessed a curious harvest custom. Passing through the village one Saturday night about the time of sunset I heard sounds of cheering which, repeated in regular intervals, grew nearer as I approached a large rickyard about the middle of the village, and presently there appeared a wagon loaded with corn from the harvest-field ; on the top of the wagon was lying a man holding, and every now and then waving, a large bough of a tree, and shouting, " Hip ! hip ! hurray ! " The wagon entered the rickyard followed by a man who closed the gate after him ; the wagon came to a standstill and the shouting ceased. In the road were children and others, some of whom also cheered and laughed when the man on the top of the load cheered.

Upon making inquiries the following day as to what I had seen, I was informed that the ceremony was a usual one in that district when the last load of corn was carried from the last field of a farm, and that the last field would also be the biggest field, as it was usual to begin cutting the smallest field first and to end up with the biggest. The green bough carried by the shouting man on the top of the load was taken from the evergreen oak {Ilex) tree, the common oak, or an elder-tree. I was also informed that it was usual to burn the last sheaf of the harvest.

H. W. Underdown.

[Cf. " Bonnin' awd witch " in the East Riding of Yorkshire, vol. xiv., p. 92. — Ed.]