"A small piece of money is usually bestowed on them, and the evening concludes in merrymaking with the money thus collected."

CHAPTER XXVII
St. John's Day—Legend of the Saint—Carols for the Day—Holy Innocents—Whipping Children—Boy Bishops—Ceremonies connected therewith—The King of Cockney's Unlucky Day—Anecdote thereon—Carol for the Day.

The 27th December is set apart by the Church to commemorate St. John the Evangelist. Googe, in his translation of Naogeorgus, says:—

Next John the sonne of Zebedee hath his appoynted day,
Who once by cruell tyraunts will, constrayned was, they say,
Strong poyson up to drinke, therefore the Papistes doe beleeve
That whoso puts their trust in him, no poyson them can greeue.
The wine beside that hallowed is, in worship of his name,
The priestes doe giue the people that bring money for the same.
And, after, with the selfe same wine are little manchets made,
Agaynst the boystrous winter stormes, and sundrie such like trade.
The men upon this solemne day do take this holy wine,
To make them strong, so do the maydes, to make them faire and fine.

In explanation of this I may quote from Mrs. Jameson's Sacred and Legendary Art (ed. 1857, p. 159): "He (St. John) bears in his hand the sacramental cup, from which a serpent is seen to issue. St. Isidore relates that at Rome an attempt was made to poison St. John in the cup of the sacrament; he drank of the same, and administered it to the communicants without injury, the poison having, by a miracle, issued from the cup in the form of a serpent, while the hired assassin fell down dead at his feet. According to another version of this story the poisoned cup was administered by order of the Emperor Domitian. According to a third version, Aristodemus, the high priest of Diana at Ephesus, defied him to drink of the poisoned chalice, as a test of the truth of his mission. St. John drank unharmed—the priest fell dead."

Wright gives two very pretty carols for St. John's day.

To almyghty God pray for pees.

Amice Christi Johannes.

O glorius Johan Evangelyste,
Best belovyd with Jhesu Cryst,
In Cena Domini upon hys bryst
Ejus vidisti archana.
Chosen thou art to Cryst Jhesu,
Thy mynd was never cast frome vertu;
Thi doctryne of God thou dydest renu,
Per ejus vestigia.
Cryst on the rod, in hys swet passyon,
Toke the hys moder as to hyr sone;
For owr synnes gett grace and pardon,
Per tua sancta merita.
O most nobble of evangelystes all,
Grace to owr maker for us thou call,
And off swetenesse celestyall,
Prebe nobis pocula.
And aftur the cowrs of mortalite,
In heven with aungels for to be,
Sayyng Ozanna to the Trinitye.
Per seculorum secula.