School: Davidstown (roll number 9682)
- Location:
- Davidstown, Co. Wexford
- Teacher: Marion G. Brennan
Archival Reference
The Schools’ Collection, Volume 0901, Page 281
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- I was once in a house from which a corpse had just gone to be buried. An old lady (Mrs Mgt Dempsey (76) Ballygillistown) insisted on opening all the windows to "let out the Soul". At another, the mother of the dead man, jumped up as the coffin went out and ordered that "all the fixtures be pulled down at once, lest we'd have another wake before the new moon". All attention to see what was to come down, I saw her daughters pull down the sheets with which the small wake room had been completely draped, & also take off the cloth covering the table on which the coffin had rested, & throw all of them on the ground. (This old lady Mrs. Mary O'Leary, Ballygillistown (80) is still living.
When a person dies in this locality, a male member of the family goes to acquaint the relatives, the priest &c, but he never goes alone, but always accompanied by another man. Neither does any messenger leaving a wake house go unaccompanied.
The day after the funeral two women come to wash the sheets, table cloth, counterpane. & I know several old ladies who would not allow these to be sent to the laundry.
Three or five wax candles burn always at a wake - never two or four. A request to the priest to pray for the deceased on Sunday is always accompanied by a set of six candles for the altar.
Before the lid is put on the coffin each member of the deceased person's family comes to leave "farewell" with him.(continues on next page)
