File:Rush-bearing- an account of the old custom of strewing rushes; carrying rushes to church; the rush-cart; garlands in churches; morris-dancers; the wakes; the rush (1891) (14597303280).jpg

Identifier: rushbearingaccou00burt (find matches)
Title: Rush-bearing: an account of the old custom of strewing rushes; carrying rushes to church; the rush-cart; garlands in churches; morris-dancers; the wakes; the rush
Year: 1891 (1890s)
Authors: Burton, Alfred
Subjects: England -- Social life and customs
Publisher: Manchester : Brook & Chrystal
Contributing Library: University of California Libraries
Digitizing Sponsor: MSN

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Text Appearing Before Image:
They weregenerally made by children, in a small box set onwheels. This was filled up with rushes, grass, ordocks, but always covered at the top with rushes, laidlengthways, the ends being to the front and back.These were tied on with string, and in the top thusmade were stuck any kind of wild flowers that couldbe got, charlock, buttercups, daisies, meadow-sweet,etc. The childrens hats were dressed with flowers,rush-whips, and small thorn twigs, on the thorns ofwhich flowers were stuck, were carried in the hand, alarger branch being sometimes stuck in the centre ofthe cart. On one occasion I saw one of these carts onwhich sat astride a small child, just able to walk, itshat covered with flowers, a bunch of buttercups in onehand, and a stick of swaggering dick (with whichits face was smeared) in the other. The girls drawing * Skedlock, Kedlock, Keddledock, and Kettledock, is a name given in Lanca-shire to the common ragwort (Senecio Jacobcea), and also to charlock (s//ia/tsarvensis. f I
Text Appearing After Image:
THE RUSH-CART. 55 the cart had adorned their hats with flowers, whilst theboys improvised music out of tin whistles and old cans.These carts were not made at the rush-bearing only,but at any time during the summer when flowers couldbe got. In August, 1874, some children at Levenshulme hada small rush-cart, and its train of morris-dancers. Skedlock-carts are yet to be met with in the hilldistricts of South-East Lancashire, the children goinground with an imitation rush-cart in a small box orwheelbarrow, and collecting money to spend at thewakes. They were to be seen at Saddleworth thisyear (1890). The accompanying plate shows a sked-lock-cart made entirely by boys at Uppermill in 1879.It was very neatly built of rushes in a hand-cart, hadthe bolts adorned with flowers, and the sheet infront covered with tinsel and artificial flowers. Thelarger boys upheld the shafts, whilst a long ropeenabled the smaller ones to assist in drawing. Therewere the green boughs at the top, on which a boy r

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