British Popular Customs, Present and Past. T. F. Thiselton-Dyer

forme of a flap-jack, which in our translation is call’d a pancake, which ominous incantation the ignorant people doe devoure very greedily—having for the most part well dined before—but they have no sooner swallowed that sweet candied baite, but straight their wits forsake them, and they runne starke mad, assembling in routs and throngs numberlesse of ungovernable numbers, with uncivill civil commotions.

      “Then Tim Tatters—a most valiant villaine—with an ensign made of a piece of a baker’s maukin fixed upon a broomstaffe, he displaies his dreadful colours, and calling the ragged regiment together, makes an illiterate oration, stuft with most plentiful want of discretion, the conclusion whereof is that somewhat they will doe, but what they know not; until at last comes marching up another troupe of tatterdemalions, proclayming wars against no matter who, so they may be doing. Then these youths arm’d with cudgels, stones, hammers, rules, trowels, and handsawse, put play-houses to the sacke, and * * * to the spoyle, in the quarrel breaking a thousand quarrels—of glasse, I mean—making ambitious brickbats breake their neckes, tumbling from the tops of lofty chimnies, terribly untyling houses, ripping up the bowels of feather beds, to the inriching of upholsters, the profit of plaisterers and dirt-dawbers, the gaine of glasiers, joyners, carpenters, tylers and bricklayers; and, what is worse, to the contempt of justice; for what avails it for a constable with an army of reverend rusty bill-men to command peace to these beastes? for they with their pockets, instead of pistols, well charged with stone-shot, discharge against the image of authority whole volleys as thicke as hayle, which robustious repulse puts the better sort to the worst part, making the band of unscowered halberdiers retyre faster than ever they come on, and show exceeding discretion in proving tall men of their heels. So much for Shrove Tuesday, Jacke-a-Lent’s gentleman usher; these have been his humours in former times, but I have some better hope of reformation in him hereafter, and indeed I wrote this before his coming this yeere, 1617, not knowing how hee would behave himselfe; but tottering betwixt despaire and hope I leave him.”

      In connection with the custom of eating pancakes on this day, Fosbroke in his Encyclopædia of Antiquities (vol. ii. p. 572) says that “Pancakes, the Norman Crispellæ, are taken from the Fornacalia, on Feb. 18th, in memory of the practice in use before the goddess Fornax invented ovens.”

      The Saxons called February “Solmonath,” which Dr. F. Sayers, in his Disquisitions, says is explained by Bede’s “Mensis Placentarum,” and rendered by Spelman, in an inedited MS., “Pancake month,” because in the course of it cakes were offered by the Pagan Saxons to the Sun.

      Our most usual name of this Tuesday, says Hampson (Med. Ævi Kalend. vol. i. p. 158), is originally Swedish: pankaka, an omelette; but, it has been absurdly derived from the Greek παν and κακοι, all bad, in reference to the penitents at confession.

      At one time Shrove Tuesday was the great holiday of the apprentices. Why it should have been so, says Hone (Every Day Book, 1826, vol. i. p. 258), is easy to imagine, on recollecting the sports that boys were allowed on that day at school. The indulgences of the ancient city apprentices were great, and their licentious disturbances stand recorded in the annals of many a fray. The old plays make us aware of a licence which they took on Shrove Tuesday to assail houses of dubious repute, and cart the unfortunate inmates through the city.—Book of Days, vol. i. p. 239; See Dekker’s Seven Deadly Sinnes, 1606, p. 35.

Cock-Fighting.

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      —Cock-fighting was a very general amusement up to the end of the last century. It entered into the occupations of the old and young. Schools had their cockfights. Travellers agreed with coachmen that they were to wait a night if there was a cock-fight in any town through which they passed. A battle between two cocks had five guineas staked upon it. Fifty guineas, about the year 1760, depended upon the main or odd battle. This made the decision of a “long-main” at cock-fighting an important matter. The church bells at times announced the winning of a “long-main.” Matches were sometimes so arranged as to last the week. When country gentlemen had sat long at table, and the conversation had turned upon the relative merits of their several birds, a cock-fight often resulted, as the birds in question were brought for the purpose into the dining-room.—Roberts, Social History of S. Counties of England, 1856, p. 421.

      Formerly cock-fighting was practised on Shrove Tuesday to a very great extent; and in the time of King Henry VII. this diversion seems to have been practised within the precincts of the court. In a royal household account, occurs the following:—“March 2, 7 Hen. VII. Item, to Master Bray for rewards to them that brought Cokkes at Shrovetide, at Westm^r. xx^s.”

      The earliest mention of cock-fighting in England is by FitzStephens, who died in 1191. He mentions it as one of the amusements of the Londoners, together with the game of foot-ball. He says; “Yearly at Shrove-tide the boys of every school bring fighting-cocks to their masters, and all the forenoon is spent at school, to see these cocks fight together. After dinner all the youth of the city goeth to play at the ball in the fields; the scholars of every study have their balls; the practisers also of the trades have everyone their ball in their hands. The ancienter sort, the fathers, and the wealthy citizens, come on horseback to see these youngsters contending at their sport, with whom, in a manner, they participate by motion; stirring their own natural heat in the view of the active youth, with whose mirth and liberty they seem to communicate.” Cock-fighting is now happily by law a misdemeanour, and punishable by penalty.

Throwing at Cocks.

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      —In days not very long gone by, the inhuman sport of throwing at cocks was practised at Shrovetide, and nowhere was it more certain to be seen than at the grammar-schools. The poor animal was tied to a stake by a short cord, and the unthinking men and boys who were to throw at it took their station at the distance of about twenty yards. Where the cock belonged to some one disposed to make it a matter of business, twopence was paid for three shies at it, the missile used being a broomstick. The sport was continued till the poor creature was killed outright by the blows. Such outrage and tumult attended this inhuman sport a century ago that it was sometimes dangerous to be near the place where it was practised.—Book of Days, 1863, vol. i. p. 238.

      The following extract is taken from the Daily London Advertiser, Wednesday, March 7th, 1759:—Yesterday, being Shrove Tuesday, the orders of the justices in the City and Liberty of Westminster were so well observed that few cocks were seen to be thrown at, so that it is hoped this barbarous custom will be left off.

      In Men-Miracles (by M. Lluellin, student of Christ Church, Oxon, 1679, p. 48), quoted by Brand, Pop. Antiq., 1849, vol. i. p. 78, is the following ironical song on cock-throwing:

      “Cocke a doodle doe, ’tis the bravest game,

       Take a cock from his dame,

       And bind him to a stake:

       How he struts, how he throwes,

       How he staggers, how he crowes,

       As if the day newly brake.

      “How his mistress cackles,

       Thus to find him in shackles.

       And tied to a packe-thread garter.

       Oh, the beares and the bulls

       Are but corpulent gulls

       To the valiant Shrove-tide martyr.”

Shying at Leaden Cocks.

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      —This was probably in imitation of the barbarous custom already described of “shying” or throwing