School: Bloomhill
- Location:
- Cloncraff or Bloomhill, Co. Offaly
- Teacher: C. Nic Annraoi
Archival Reference
The Schools’ Collection, Volume 0812, Page 449
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- XML School: Bloomhill
- XML Page 449
- XML “Feasts”
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- These are the principal feasts observed around here and the customs connected with them.
St Stephen's Day
On the previous evening the young boys and even the grown ups go to hunt the wren. If they get one they take him with them on St Stephen's Day and tie her to a holly stick. Of late years they rarely catch a wren because it is too troublesome but they pretend they have one. Sometimes they don't even mention the wren but go from door to door and play music or dance. The money collected is divided in the evening and the boys usually go to dance then. This is the rhyme they used to say: The wren then wren, The King of the birds, St Stephen's Day, She was caught in the firs.New Year's Day
The next feast is New Year's Day. This is almost as big as Christmas. It is called(continues on next page)
