This is the way we ring out our clothes, ring out our clothes, ring out our clothes,
This is the way we ring out our clothes early on Tuesday morning.”
The washing operations proceed through the next three days of the week, with a verse to each day. Thus on Wednesday they hang up the clothes, on Thursday they mangle them, and on Friday iron them. Then on Saturday they scrub the floor, and on Sunday go to church.
With each verse the children dance hand in hand round the imaginary juniper bush, singing lustily, and illustrating the different actions of the washing operations. Finally, two and two and arm in arm, they promenade round, as if going to church, and generally prolong the walk while they sing the last verse a second time.
Another very favourite game is Slængkompas, which is perhaps best translated almost literally as Scatter-Compass. It is a rapid game, and full of excitement. The players grasp hands in a circle and gallop round, singing the refrain as they go:
“Those who would join in Slængkompas must be tolerably quick!
One—two—three—and four—and five.
So comes Slængkompas again.”
When the counting begins the players let go hands, and, clapping to the tune, spin round separately until the word “five” is reached, when they should be in position ready to join hands again and continue to gallop round in the original circle.
The aim of the game is to keep things going until the verse has been sung three times, but, of course, the players often become giddy and lose their places.