The customs of "hunting the wren" is still carried out in this district. Sometime it is only men and boys and children go to ". They hunt the wren". On St. Stephen's Day the men go to hunt the wren. The boys dress up in all-coloured clothes when they are going to hunt it and they carry a holly bush with coloured ribbons out of it. They bring sticks with them. They go to Garranstackle bogs to hunt it. If they find any wrens they beat them but they do not kill them. When they are done they go home. The rhyme that is said is. "The wren, the wren, the king of all birds, On St Stephen's Day he was caught in the furze."
This rhyme is said while hunting is going on.

When the seagulls are screaming and making noise over the river it is the sign of a storm. When they fly in from the sea it is a Sign of Rough weather. It is said the cuckoo builds no nest because she would not have the young ones able to fly before she would be leaving to go again to a warm country. The hawk has one long leg to catch the other small birds to kill them. It is said if you rob a wren's nest you would be unlucky. The wren is King of the Birds because one time long ago the Birds had a row to see which of them would fly the highest. The wren hid on the eagles back and when the eagle had flown the highest the wren flew up a little higher and was thus proclaimed the King of the Birds.
An attempt to drown the wren with tears was frustated by the silly owl overturning the dish. The wren is still hunted by boys on St Stephen's Day, and when killed is carried about on a bush.

In this district, many customs are observed in a special manner, as they occur each year, one of them being the procession of the Wren Boys on St. Stephen's Day.
The procession consists of about six or seven grown-up boys and young men. They disguise themselves by blackening their faces with soot and dressing in some peculiar clothes and bright colours, mostly of a rag nature. They wear bright colours to attract attention. They carry with them musical instruments, which they play on their journey. Before they start on their journey they pick a furze bush, which they decorate, and on top of it they put a dead wren.
They go from house to house singing the wren song and playing the mouth-organs, melodeons, and fiddles. There is usually a good dancer in the party and he dances to the music, which the other members of the party play. The words of the wren song are:
"The wren, the wren, the king of all birds,

In olden times it was the custom for boys to go around with the wren dressed up. The wren boys are also disguised and go from door to door singing the song of the wren.

An old St Stephen's day custom here which is dying out now in this :-

colours. Another collects the money because after singing the song the woman of the house gives them money.

On St. Stephen's Day a number of boys gather together and catch a wren. They put her in a box and go around from house to singing the wren-song and saying the rhyme.
"The wren the wren the King of all birds on St. Stephen's Day she was caught in the furze." Then they get money from the people of the house.
When they are finished up in the evening they divide the money between them and spend it as they wish.
On Easter Sunday night a crowd of boys gather and go round from house to house gathering eggs. When they have a good many gathered they go to a certain house and boil the eggs and eat them.

The Robin.
The robin is a small bird with brown and red feathers. There is a tradition that the robin got its red breast when our Lord was on the cross with the Crown of Thorns on His Head a robin tried to pull it off and the Blood came on its breast. The robin lays from five to seven eggs and hatches them for three weeks then the young birds come out and after a while they get wings and fly away and get food.

saved them from sickness throughout the year. This is also the day for hunting the wren. A crowd of fellows called the "Wren Boys" go around with a dead wren suspended from a holly bush wearing quaint costumes and with blackened faces. They move from house to house playing music and singing songs about the wren. Sometimes they collect money with which they provide a feast for themselves that night.

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It is said that if one robs a swallow's nest the cows will milk blood.
"The wren, the wren, the king of all birds,
St. Stephen's day she was caught in the furze.
Tho' she is little, her family is great,
Landlady get up & give us a treat."
This is the version of the wren song in this district, tho' the custom of hunting the wren is unknown.
As snug as a thrush. As complete as a wren, as scarce as white blackbirds. As cute as a magpie. As full as a pigeon. As bold as a jack-daw. If one split sixpence on a magpie's tongue, she could be made to talk! The hooded crow was a the sign of a death.
If anyone even laid his hand on a stonechat's young ones, the old one would choke them.
When crows are noisy it is a sign of rain. When they go wheeling around aimlessly it is said to be the sign of a storm. Seagulls come inland before a storm.
Crows when raiding a corn or turnip field in flocks, always leave one in a high tree on sentry. He gives a warning cry when anyone is approaching. The blackbird & the thrush utter warning cries. The wail of a bird whose nest has been robbed is unmistakeable. When a cock crows at night it is a sign of ill-luck. If it has been raining & the cock begins to crow, it is a sign that the rain will soon be over.

wren's tail. They go to lanes and fields and woods and bogs. If they caught a wren they would bring it home. It is put in a cage for a week or a day and sometimes only one evening then they would let it go; they would feed it first before they would let it off.
Sometimes the party would go home and more ties would go to other houses. They would dance and sing and play music. They bring the dogs with them because if they caught no wren they would go look for rabbits instead.

On St Stephen's day it is an old custom with the young boys of this county to go around wth the wren.
The wren is usually a bunch of feathers tied together in a match box. They call from door to door singing;
"The wren, the wren, the king of all birds,
On St Stephens day he was caught in the furze,
Although he is small his family is great,
So rise up good people and give us a treat,
Up with the kettle and down with the pan,
Give me a penny to buy the wren,
Although he was small his family was big,
Up with the kettle and give us a jig,
We followed the wren three miles and more,
Over ditches and hedges till our shins were sore,
With your pocket full of money and your belly full of beer,
I wish you all a Merry Christmas and a happy New Year,
Up with the kettle and down with the pan give us our answer and let us be gone."

On St Stephen's Day boys go around from house to house with a wren on a bush, these are called Wren Boys.
They usually recite a piece of poem about the wren such as this :-
The Wren, the wren, the king of all birds,
St Stephen's Day she was caught in the furze,
Although she is small her honour is great,
Cheer up old lady and give us a treat.
Then the people of the house usually give the Captain of the boys some money. When all the money is gathered, the Captain divides the money equally among them but he is allowed to get more than the rest.
On St Patrick's day every one wears a sprig of Shamrock to honour him.
It is the custom to make pancakes on Shrove Tuesday
On Easter Sunday it is the custom to go around gathering eggs.
On Hallowe'en eve the children put a number of apples in a tub and try to catch them with their mouths.

21th-11-1938

The black bird, the thrush, the tomtit, the sky lark, the blue birdien, the crow, the robin and the wren stay with us all the year around. The cuckoo and the swallow come to Ireland in the summer and when the weather is getting cold they go back to a warmer country.

of both sexes always hired and always kept it as a holiday and went to the nearest town to celebrate.
St. Martin's Day. It was a custom when St. Martin's day came to kill a cock and sprinkle the blood on the dorstep to prevent the people of the house from a tragic death.
St. Bridget's Day. Special charity was given to the poor on St. Bridgets Day.
St Stephen's Day. The boys and men dressed theirselves in ragged clothes and went out to hunt the wren singing "The wren, the wren, the king of all birds, on St. Stephens day he was caught in the furze, although he is small his honour is great get out old lady and give us a treat. Up with the kettle and down with the pan a penny or twopence will do us to bury the wren."
New Year's Day. The children went from house selling the daisy.
St. John's Day. It was a custom for the people to light bonfires and dance on the crossroads.
Hallowe'en. The people cracked and hung apples out of the roof to try and catch them while they were going around.
Whit Sunday. The people visited all the cemetries and prayed over their relatives and dressed their graves.

builds her nest with a bunch of moss and feathers. The wren lays eight or twelve eggs.

Sometimes people go out "hunting the wren" but most of the people who used to "hunt the wren" are dead. Very few people hunt it nowadays because would rather play cards. Most of the people are boys and children. They go on St Stephen's Day at three o' clock in the evening. They all dress in ordinary clothes.
They bring dogs and salt to throw on the

On Saint Stephen's day it is a custom in the country to put a dead wren on a hawthorn Bush because it is said that the wren gave a signal to the Danes that the Irish were on the shore waiting to make battle on them. The boys wear masks and go around playing mouth-organ's and they go to house asking for money. When they have collected enough money they buy sweets and fruit. This custom has died out now in the town. Lots of people do not eat meat on St Stephen's Days because they believe they will not have any sickness the whole year through. On St Stephen's day there are plays and pictures and the grown ups go to the coursing match to celebrate the day.