DOMESTIC FOLK-LORE.
BY
REV. T. F. THISELTON DYER, M.A., Oxon.,
Author of "British Popular Customs" and "EnglishFolk-lore."
Cassell, Petter, Galpin & Co.:
LONDON, PARIS & NEW YORK.
[ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.]
PREFACE.
For the name "Folk-lore" in its present signification,embracing the Popular Traditions, ProverbialSayings, Superstitions, and Customs of the people, weare in a great measure indebted to the late editor ofNotes and Queries—Mr. W. J. Thoms—who, in ananonymous contribution to the Athenæum of 22ndAugust, 1846, very aptly suggested this comprehensiveterm, which has since been adopted as the recognisedtitle of what has now become an important branch ofantiquarian research.
The study of Folk-lore is year by year receivinggreater attention, its object being to collect,classify, and preserve survivals of popular belief,and to trace them as far as possible to theiroriginal source. This task is no easy one, as school-boardsand railways are fast sweeping away everyvestige of the old beliefs and customs which, in daysgone by, held such a prominent place in social anddomestic life. The Folk-lorist has, also, to deal withremote periods, and to examine the history of tales[iv]and traditions which have been handed down fromthe distant past and have lost much of their meaningin the lapse of years. But, as a writer in theStandard has pointed out, Folk-lore students treadon no man's toes. "They take up points of historywhich the historian despises, and deal with monumentsmore intangible but infinitely more ancient than thoseabout which Sir John Lubbock is so solicitous. Theyprosper and are happy on the crumbs dropped fromthe tables of the learned, and grow scientifically richon the refuse which less skilful craftsmen toss aside asuseless. The tales with which the nurse wiles hercharge asleep provide for the Folk-lore student asucculent banquet—for he knows that there is scarcelya child's story or a vain thought that may not betraced back to the boyhood of the world, and to thoseprimitive races from which so many polished nationshave sprung."
The field of research, too, in which the Folk-loristis engaged is a most extensive one, supplying materialsfor investigation of a widespread character. Thushe recognises and, as far as he possibly can, explainsthe smallest item of superstition wherever found, notlimiting his inquiries to any one subject. This, therefore,whilst enhancing the value of Folk-lore as a study,in the same degree increases its interest, since with aperfect impartiality it lays bare superstition as it exists[v]among all classes of society. Whilst condemning, itmay be, the uneducated peasant who places credencein the village fortune-teller or "cunning man," weare apt to forget how oftentimes persons belonging tothe higher classes are found consulting with equalfaith some clairvoyant or spirit-medium.
Hence, however reluctant the intelligent part ofthe community may be to own the fact, it must beadmitted that superstition, in one form or another,dwells beneath the surface of most human hearts,although it may frequently display itself in the mostdisguised or refined form. Among the lower orders,as a writer has observed, "it wears its old fashions,in