School: Rockwood, Béal Átha an Dá Chab
- Location:
- Derreennaclogh, Co. Cork
- Teacher: Eibhlín Ní Chorcora
Archival Reference
The Schools’ Collection, Volume 0288, Page 383
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- It is a custom for the boys to go from house to house gathering money on St. Stephen's Day. For weeks before Christmas they prepare for the day. They get ready all sorts of funny clothes. Some get ragged trousers, jackets, broken boots and paper hats. Others get skirts, aprons and women's blouses and they decorate hats with holly ribbons and feathers. They cut a holly bush and ornament it with ribbons. They hunt the wren. If they succeed in killing him they tie him on to the holly bush with ribbons. The wren is very hard to catch, but sometimes they succeed in killing her at night. She flies about from bush to bush and they strike her with a stick. If they cannot procure a wren they get coloured cloth or paper and shape it like a wren and tie it on to the holly bush.
On St. Stephen's morning they get up early and dress up in their funny clothes. Sometimes there are as many as ten in each group of wren - boys. One boy carries the holly bush on his shoulder and another carries the tin for the money. The wren(continues on next page)
