1730 Christmas poem

This poem about Christmas coming contains flowing bowls, minced pies, capon, goose, brawn, sturgeon, a Christmas box of sweet plumb cakes and then, to the Christmas Ball.  The book has a delightfully long descriptive title with "fiddle faddle stuff" and pranks...

Food excerpts and dancing from Round about our Coal Fire, or Christmas entertainments -

Prologue

You merry, merry Souls,

Christmas is a coming,

We shall have flowing Bowls,

Dancing, piping, drumming.

Delicate Minced Pies,

To feast every Virgin,

Capon and Goose likewise,

Brawn and a Dish of Sturgeon.

Then for your Christmas Box.

Sweet Plumb Cakes and Money,

Delicate Holland Smocks,

Kisses sweet as Honey.

Hey for the Christmas Ball,

Where we shall be jolly,

Jigging short and tall,

Kate, Dick, Ralph, and Molly.

Then to the Hop we'll go,

Where we'll jig and caper,

Maidens all-a-row,

Will shall pay the Scraper.

Hodge shall dance with Prue,

Keeping Time with Kisses.

Will have a jovial Crew,

Of sweet smirking Misses.

Round about our Coal Fire, or Christmas entertainments: wherein is described abundance of Fiddle-Faddle-Stuff, Raw-heads, Bloody-bones, Buggybows, and such like Horrible Bodies; Eating, Drinking, Kissing, & other Diversions; Witches, Wizards, Conjurers, and their merry Pranks; Fairies, Spectres, Ghosts, & Apparitions; A Right Merrie Tale:— The Story of Jack Spriggins and the Enchanted Bean; Curious Memoirs of Old Father Christmas.   London: 1740  (poem and image)

Earlier printings 1730, 1734

©2016 Patricia Bixler Reber
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