CONTENTS.
| PAGE | |
| Introductory Chapter | [7] |
Part First. | |
| The Christmas Season | [29] |
Mingled Origin of the Christmas Festival; Good Cheer of the Ancient Festival; Court Celebrations of Christmas; Celebrations at the Inns of Court; Lord of Misrule and Christmas Prince; Abbot of Unreason; Influence of the Festival on the Social Relations; Ben Jonson's Masque of Christmas; Father Christmas summoning his Spirits; Extinction of the Ancient Festival; Partial Revival; Summary of the Causes of its final Decline. | |
| Feelings of the Season | [134] |
Domestic Preparations; Mince Pie; Travellers on the Highways; coming Home from School; Norfolk Coach; Evergreens for Christmas Decoration; Kissing under the Mistletoe; Christmas Minstrelsy; Waits; Carol Singing; Christmas Carols; Annual Carol Sheets; London Carol Singers; Bellman. | |
Part Second. | |
| The Christmas Days | [223] |
| St. Thomas's Day | [225] |
Various Country Customs on this day; St. Thomas's Day in London; City Parochial Elections; Lumber Troop and other City Associations. | |
| Sports of this Season | [233] |
Ancient Jugglers; Galantee Show; Card Playing; Ancient Bards and Harpers; Modern Story-telling and Music; out-door Sports of the Season; Theatre and Pantomime; Mummers; Play of St. George. | |
| Christmas Eve | [267] |
London Markets on Christmas Eve; the Yule-clog; Christmas Candles; Wassail Bowl; Omens and Superstitions; Old Christmas Eve; Midnight Mass. | |
| Christmas Day | [285] |
Religious Services; Plum Pudding; Charities of the Season; Old English Gentleman; Ancient Baronial Hall; Bringing in the Boar's Head; Modern Christmas Dinner. | |
| St. Stephen's Day | [302] |
Boxing Day (origin of the name); Christmas-boxes; Christmas Pieces; Hunting the Wren (Isle of Man); Droleens, or Wren Boys (Ireland); Greek Songs of the Crow and Swallow. | |
| New Year's Eve | [315] |
Scottish Observances; Night of Omens; Hogmanay; Seeing-in the New Year. | |
| New Year's Day | [335] |
Morning Congratulations; New-Year's Gifts. | |
| Twelfth Day and Twelfth Night | [339] |
Observances on the Virgil of the Epiphany; Humors of the Street; Twelfth Night Party; Twelfth Cake; Drawing for Characters; Three Kings of Cologne. | |
| Saint Distaff's Day | [351] |
Rustic Sports. | |