Birds
Categories: PROJECTS185. When you see a turkey-buzzard flying alone, repeat,--
Hail! Hail! Lonely, lonesome turkey-buzzard:
Hail to the East, hail to the West,
Hail to the one that I love best.
Let me know by the flap of your wing
Whether he (or she) loves me or not.
Note the manner of the bird's flight: if he flaps his wings your lover is
true; if not, the lover is false.
Tennessee.
186. When the call of the first turtle-dove is heard, sit down and remove
the shoe and stocking from the left foot, turn the stocking inside out,
in the heel of which if a hair is found, it will be of the color of the
hair of the future husband or wife.
Tennessee.
In Mt. Desert, Maine, and Prince Edward Island the same project is tried
on hearing the first robin.
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1271. If a child in eating an apple merely girdles it and leaves the apple good at stem and below, it indicates that he will be a poor man; the saying is, a poor man's core. 1272. It is unlucky to turn back after starting to go anywhere. To avert ... Amulets
795. Green glass beads worn about the neck will prevent or cure erysipelas. Chestertown, Md. 796. Gold beads were formerly a protection against the King's Evil (scrofula), and nearly every maiden and matron wore ample strings of beauti... Animals
463. To dream of cod or caplin is a sign of rain[TN-3] Newfoundland. 464. To dream of a good catch of fish is a sign of rain. Heart's Content, N.F. 465. To dream of catching fish is good luck. Prince Edward Island... Apparel
1376. If you mend your apron or dress while on you, some one will lie about you. Maine and Alabama. 1377. As many stitches as you take (in mending a garment while wearing it), so many lies will be told about you. New Hampshir... Apple-seeds
166. When eating an apple, snap it with the fingers and name it for a person of the opposite sex. Count the fully developed seeds (all of the others are kisses), and the last one must correspond to the following formula:-- One's my love, ... Apples
164. Eat an apple at midnight before the glass, saying,-- Whoever my true love may be, Come and eat this apple with me, holding the lamp in the hand. The true love will appear. Winn, Me. 165. Throw a whole apple-paring ... Asseveration
60. A child to whom is told any story which he considers remarkable will usually reply by an expression of skepticism, such as: Really and truly? Honestly? Earnest, now? or, You are fooling. The first speaker answers by some formula or asseveration,... Attire Of The Bride
332. If you try on your wedding dress before the ceremony, you will not be happy. Cambridge, Mass. 333. The bride should wear a borrowed garter, and also a yellow garter. Boston, Mass. 334. If a bride wear a yellow garter t... Babies
174. Kiss the baby when nine days old, and the first gentleman you kiss afterward will be your future husband. New England. ... Babyhood
1. The bairn that is born on fair Sunday Is bonny and loving, and blithe and gay. Monday's bairn is fair in the face, Tuesday's bairn is full of grace, Wednesday's bairn is loving and giving, Thursday's bairn wor... Baptism
7. If a child cries during baptism, it is the devil going out of it. Niagara Falls, Ont. 8. It is lucky for the child to cry at baptism, but unlucky for the godmother to wear mourning. 9. If twins are brought to baptism at the same ti... Beauty
101. If a person is very handsome, it is a sign that he will have one of the infectious diseases of childhood (measles, whooping cough, etc.) more than once. Massachusetts. ... Bed
175. Go upstairs backward, into a chamber backward, and into bed backward. Drink some salt and water, and if you dream of some one bringing you drink it will be your future husband. Maine and Salem, Mass. 176. The first time two girls s... Bible
183. Read the third verse of the third chapter of Hosea, Joel, and Amos for three Sundays in succession, and the first gentleman you walk with you will marry. Nashua, N.H. 184. Put the end of a key in the Bible, on the verse of Solomon'... Birds
185. When you see a turkey-buzzard flying alone, repeat,-- Hail! Hail! Lonely, lonesome turkey-buzzard: Hail to the East, hail to the West, Hail to the one that I love best. Let me know by the flap of your wing Whet... Bodily Affections
1340. If the right cheek burns, some one is speaking well of you; if the left, they are speaking ill of you; if both, they speak well and ill at once. Moisten the finger in the mouth and touch it to the cheek, naming those whom you suspect; the one ... Buttons
187. The coming husband is determined by repeating the following words, touching each button of the coat, vest, or dress in order:-- Rich man, poor man, beggar man, thief. Doctor, lawyer, Indian chief. Or, Doctor, law... Cards
608. At cards, if your luck is poor, walk round your chair three times, lift it, sit down, and your luck is assured. General in the United States. 609. At cards, it is bad luck to play against the grain of the table. General i... Causes
872. Blood from the warts on a cow's bag coming in contact with a person's hands will cause warts to appear on them. New Hampshire. 873. Blood from a wart, especially if applied to the tongue, will cause warts to appear. New ... Challenge
To stump another boy to do a thing is considered as putting a certain obligation on him to perform the action indicated. The phrase is sometimes used, although the person giving the stump may not himself be able to accomplish the feat. 74. We use... Charm
816. To keep fire always burning on the hearth will prevent cholera among chickens. Alabama. 817. If a fish-hook pierces the hand, stick it three times into wood, in the name of the Trinity, to prevent festering or other evil consequenc... Cold
930. As the days begin to lengthen, So the cold begins to strengthen. Northeastern United States and Canada. 931. Fire spitting sparks means cold weather. Patten, Me. 932. If the fire burns well, it is coming cold we... Colors
494. To dream of white things is lucky (or sign of death?). Newfoundland. 495. Dreaming of white things is a sign of snow in summer. Labrador and Newfoundland. 496. Dreaming of working on white cloth is a sign of death. ... Counting
199. Count sixty white horses and one white mule, then you will marry the first man with whom you shake hands. Chestertown, Md. 200. Count a hundred white horses and two white mules, and the first person you shake hands with you'll marr... Courting And Wedding Signs
364. If your apron string becomes loosened, your true love is thinking of you. New York. 365. If your apron drops off, you'll lose your beau. The same is true if you lose your garter. Stevens Point, Wis. 366. If you sink a... Cures
883. To cure a wart, grease it with stolen bacon, and hide the latter. 884. Split a bean and put one half on the wart, one half in the ground, and at the end of the week dig up the latter; place on the wart with the other half; bury again, and thi... Cures
1151. In rubbing for rheumatism, etc., rub from left to right (sunwise). Concord, Mass. 1152. Ringworm may be killed by moistening the finger in the mouth and rubbing sunwise around the diseased spot. Central Maine. 1153. T... Customs
1402. Halloween cabbages are pulled and thrown against the owner's door as a reminder of his laziness. Southern Pennsylvania and Ohio. 1403. Shelled corn is thrown at every one--the significance not known. Southern Pennsylvani... Daisy Petals
211. Pull off the petals of a daisy one by one, naming a boy (or a girl as the case may be) at each one, thus, Jenny, Fanny, Jenny, Fanny, etc. The one named with the last petal is your sweetheart. The seeds which remain on the back of your hand aft... Days
612. It is unlucky to travel on Friday. New York and Pennsylvania. 613. Never begin a piece of work on Friday; it is bad luck. General in the United States. 614. Seafaring men will not sail on Friday. Somewhat gen... Days
1419. What you do on your birthday, you will do all the year. Salem, Mass. 1420. On cutting the finger-nails:-- Cut them on Monday, cut them for news, Cut them on Tuesday, a pair of new shoes, Cut them on Wednesday,... Days And Times
936. The first Tuesday after the new moon settles the weather for that quarter. Newfoundland. 937. If it is a fair sunset Friday night, it will rain before Monday. Massachusetts. 938. If it storms on a Friday, it will storm... Dead Persons
498. To dream of a dead father is lucky. Labrador. 499. To dream of a dead mother is unlucky; it brings sorrow. Labrador. 500. To dream of the dead is a sign of hearing from the living. Topsail and New Harbor, N.F...