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CHILDREN'S GAMES 493 |
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known. She is told by her companions to rise and make her choice. In some versions the marriage lines follow, in others the acceptance of the choice ends with the giving of a kiss.
Others of a similar kind are " Here stands a Young Man who wants a Sweetheart" (vol. i. p. 204), "Silly Old Man who wants a Wife" (vol. ii. 196-99). This is a simple announcement of the young man's need for a wife or sweet-•heart (probably originally intended to announce his having arrived at manhood, as expressed in the expression, "he ain't a man till he's got a sweetheart and gone a-courtin'"). These verses are followed by the marriage formula. Games of this kind are used for a kiss in the ring game, without the chasing and capturing. The ordinary kiss in the ring games are probably relics of older custom. These consist of one person going round the assembled circle with a handkerchief and choosing another of the opposite sex, after saying a nominy or form of set words. This was probably originally something in the shape of a "counting out" rhyme, to obtain sweethearts by "lot." A chase follows, and capture of the girl, and the giving and receiving of a kiss in the circle. This was a method of choosing sweethearts which prevailed until quite a late period at country festivals and fairs, but at an earlier period was a serious function. It is still customary on Easter and Whit-Monday for this game to be played on village greens, and the introduction thus afforded is held sufficient to warrant continued acquaintance between young people.
In connection with this class of games I must point out that a game such as " Hey, Wullie Wine" (vol. i. pp. 207-210), though it cannot be considered exactly a marriage game, points to the matter-of-fact way in which it was customary for young people to possess sweethearts. It seems to have been thought not only desirable, but necessary to their social standing. A slur is cast on the young man or young woman who has no lover, and so every facility is given them to make a choice from among their acquaintances. In the game "King William" is a remnant of the disguising of the bride among some of her girl friends and the bridegroom's test of recognition, |
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