Isle of Man.
This festival, called by the islanders Sauin, was formerly observed in the Isle of Man by kindling of fires with all the accompanying ceremonies, to prevent the baneful influence of fairies and witches. The island was perambulated at night by young men who stuck up at the door of every dwelling-house, a rhyme in Manks, beginning:
“Noght oie howney hop-dy-naw,
This is Hollantide Eve,” &c.
On Hollantide Eve, boys go round the town shouting out a doggrel, of which the following is an extract:
“This is old Hollantide night,
The moon shines fair and bright;
I went to the well
And drank my fill;
On the way coming back
I met a pole-cat;
The cat began to grin
And I began to run;
Where did you run to?
I ran to Scotland;
What were they doing there?
Baking bannocks and roasting collops.
*******
If you are going to give us anything, give us it soon,
Or we’ll be away by the light of the moon!”
For some peculiar reason, potatoes, parsnips, and fish, pounded together and mixed with butter, form always the evening meal.—Train, History of the Isle of Man, 1845, vol. ii. p. 123.