School: Berrings (Measctha) (roll number 4186)

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   “It is thought unlucky to 'remove' on Monday, Wednesday or Friday.”

   

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   Growing people should not open an umbrella over their heads in a house.
   Sometimes when people receive money, they spit on it for luck, and older people, who have passed away sometimes spat on young animals, fowls etc on seeing them for the first time, and would say, "God bless them for fear I'd overlook them".
   Such an expression is still commonly heard.
   About forty or fifty years ago it was a fairly general custom in this locality to keep the cock in the house by night, on a perch generally over the kitchen door, as he was looked upon as a protection from a supernatural point of view.
   If a cock is heard crowing at night, especially at mid-night, it is or was considered a bad omen, but that specially so if he gave three crows.
   The story is told of a man, who was harnessing his horse in the yard one night preparing to go by road to Cork. As he was doing so it is said the cock flew on the horses back several times, and tried to prevent the man from harnessing the horse, but the man took no notice and drove off the cock each time it came in his way.
   He set out for Cork, but was killed on his return journey home.
   People remark that on the occasion of a death or funeral in the locality, the cocks crow more than ordinarily.

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   Transcribed by a member of our volunteer transcription project.

   History Edit

   Topics

   1. genre
      1. belief (~391)
         1. folk belief (~2,535)

   Language

   English

   Collector

   Daniel O' Driscoll

   Gender

   Male

   Address

   Berrings, Co. Cork