Part 47

DOGS.--A dog howling under a window indicates death.

Dogs begin in jest and end in earnest.

A dog, a woman, a walnut tree, The more you beat 'em, the better they be.

If a dog bark, go in: if a bitch, go out.

A dog will bark ere he bite.

HARES.--If a hare crosses your path, you may look out for a disappointment. If it runs past houses, there will soon be a fire in one of them.

In the Isle of Man, hares are believed to be the spirits of old women, and on that account are shunned as articles of food. In other parts, those who wish to look beautiful for a week make a point of eating hare.

BIRDS.--Robins are variously regarded in different parts of the country. Some people think them unlucky, possibly because of their association with the tragedy of the Babes in the Wood. But generally they are welcomed to a garden or house, which is supposed to be all the luckier for their coming. Robins that show signs of being friendly are considered to foretell a hard winter.

Woodpeckers and kingfishers are also lucky, and any suggestion of ill-luck is only possible when birds are deliberately killed after having built their nest and claimed the hospitality of a home.

The screech of a peacock is best unheard when luck is particularly wanted. The feathers of this bird, known to everyone by reason of their beautiful coloring, should never be taken indoors, as they are reckoned specially unlucky.

There is an old superstition regarding the cuckoo. Should a maiden, hearing its notes for the first time that season, kiss her hand to it and say:--

Cuckoo, cuckoo, Tell me true, When shall I be married?

she may tell the number of years which will elapse until her wedding by counting the number of times the bird cries "Cuckoo." She must reckon each cry as a year.

Another superstition relating to the cuckoo is that what you are doing when you hear its cries for the first time in any season is what you will spend most time at during the remainder of the year. Folk in the Channel Islands claim that they are sure to be fortunate if they jingle their purses and run a short distance when hearing the cuckoo for the first time in the year.

Owls, crows and magpies do not presage any good: in fact, many people would rather not meet them when anxiety is at hand. An old jingle says of magpies:--

One for anger, Two for mirth; Three for a wedding Four for a birth.

Ravens are supposed to bring luck to the house where they build their nests, so it is unlucky to kill one.

It is unlucky to touch a yellowhammer in May, since there is the devil's blood in it then.

For a white pigeon to single out a house and hover round it is a sure sign of an early marriage or engagement in that house.

A cock crowing during the night-time means a bad illness for someone close at hand: if it crows during the afternoon, a visitor will arrive.

Sailors are not over-fond of seagulls, believing them to be the spirits of their dead mates, yet they are most indignant if anyone tries to shoot or kill one of them.

OTHER ANIMALS.--A cricket singing within a house ensures good luck for all the household.

Kill a spider and it will surely rain.

See a moth on your clothes and you will get new ones.

A death's head moth indicates bereavement.

Pigs are unlucky creatures when seen singly.

To see a white horse and then, shortly after, a red-haired person, tells of approaching good fortune.

Moles are unlucky to find alive.