177. If two girls on sleeping together for the first time tie their waists together with string or thread, and the thread gets broken in the night, the first man who puts his arm round the waist of either will have the first name of the man whom that girl will marry, whether that man is the one or not.
Province of Quebec.
178. After getting ready for bed in silence, take a ball of string and wind about the wrist, repeating,—
I wind, I wind,
This night to find,
Who my true love’s to be;
The color of his eyes,
The color of his hair,
And the night he’ll be married to me.
Chestertown, Md.
179. Name the bed-posts for four different men. The one you dream about you will marry.
General.
180. The first time you sleep in a room name the corners each with a different (man’s) name. The first corner you face on waking indicates whom you will marry. (New England.) The same thing is done with the bed-posts in Ohio.
181. Put four names of boys on four slips of paper and take one blank slip. Intermingle them, and then without looking at them put one under each leg of the bed and one under the pillow. The name of the last will be that of your future husband.
Franklin, Mass.
182. Rub the four bed-posts with a lemon and carry the lemon in the pocket the next day, and the first man you speak to you will marry.