Page:Folk-lore - A Quarterly Review. Volume 2, 1891.djvu/84

 76 (g) Shells form common playthings for little children. When the infant's teeth begin to cause trouble, a piece of "casle tangle"—the stem of Laminavia digitata is given, instead of a teething ring.

(h) On market-days, and at Christmas, many had the custom of giving a penny or half-penny to each child of the family. This coin went by the name of "the market bawbee", and "the Yeel bawbee". It was sometimes given by the grandfather, or grandmother, or aunt; and the children regularly, as the occasion came round, went to get the "bawbee" from the kind donor (Macduff).

(i) To frighten the children from going to the sea, they are told that a sea-otter or water-kelpie (Macduff), or otters or "selchs" (seals) (Portessie, Rosehearty) will come and take them.

B. The Cradle.

(a) If a cradle was borrowed, a fiery peat was thrown into it at the door by the borrower (Pennan).

(b) A cradle, if borrowed, was never sent empty, neither was it returned empty.

(c) The cradle is always carried with its head foremost, that is, the opposite way a coffin is carried (Rosehearty, etc.)

(d) In Buckie and Portessie a small wooden bowl,—"a cap"—lay constantly in the cradle. It was called "the craidle cap". My informant told me that her mother made her a present of one, and told her to keep it always in the cradle when in use. She did so, and when there was no baby the "cap" was laid up carefully till the next baby came.

(e) The cradle was sometimes called by old folks (Pennan) "the life-boat", and they spoke of putting the child into the life-boat when they laid it in the cradle.

(f) It is a common notion that if a mother meets a boy as her "first fit", the first time she goes out after having a