Today is Michaelmas Day. Perhaps it has mo longer the importance which it had in years gone by, but it is still a quarter day when rents have to be paid, and premises entered into or quitted. It is still the day upon which London elects its Lord Mayor for the ensuing year. It is also the day of St. Michael and All Angels, the saint of whom Milton wrote Go, Michael, of celestial armies prince, And thou, in military prowess next, Gabriel; lead forth to battle these my sons Invincible; lead forth my armed saints eoh and by millions ranged for That was the reference to the war in heaven when Michael and his angels fought against {fe dragon, and the dragon fought and his angels, and prevailed not. He was the leader of the forces of good against those of evil and finally he p as the good always will, and this is the third of his days which have occurred since the outbreak of the war with the wickedness of the Nazis, in itself something of the nature of an augury of the coming victory for the Allies.
Of course there are Michaelmas daisies, but there is also the Michaelmas goose. That bird is as closely connected with this day as young ducks and green peas are with dinner on Easter Sunday. Why: that should be so is not clear, but probably because geese always who died in 1577 refers, to the "Of geese at Michaelmas as a very custom:
Christmas a capon, at Michaelmas a-
Nh
ESE
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.