May Day.

Manawatu Herald, 1 May 1894, Page 3

May Day.

*r To-day, the first of the month of May, used to be held as a festival in the Old Country. It was supposed to hetald the opening of the season of flowers and fruit in Europe. Froro;fl.neai-ly period all ranks used to go out " niayjng." At the dawn of May day the lads and lassies left their/towns and villages and repaired j to. the woodlands with music and I singing. There they gathered the blossoms of the hawthorn, and decorated their dwellings and spent the rest of the day in sports, AH vewenKbei'the sweet song "Gall me early mother, for I am to be the Queen o 1 the May." There used to be dancing round a pole (the Maypole.) From the writings of Chau cer, Browne and others the customs of. May*<Uy were observed by royal and noble persons. In fact the day WM a glorious, holiday, does not gHakefpeare mention At it fell upon a day In the merry month of Hay ? Again referring to these customs in Shakespeare's Henry VIII we find " 'Tii as muoh impossible, Valesß we sweep 'em from the door with 6&nson>, To Matter 'eni, as 'tis make 'em sleep On May.day morning " i Jfun gradually died away and these pleasant customs fell into disuse, and the only followers became the chimney-sweepers who with their 11 Jaok»in-tbe;green," a man festooned with 4 green boughs and flowers accompanied with followers of both sexes who were presumed to play ftad sing. These went round and begged for money. It is said that the celebration of May-day pro--1 bably had its origin in the worship of Flora, who was supposed to be the goddess of flowers, and whose rites were solemnized at that season bythteanoientg. The earliest notice of the celebration of May-day in England was by the Druids, who used to light large fires on the summit*^ the hills in honour of the refltfnJpjf Spring.