SC - Carlin peas and other questions

[Cindy M. Renfrow]

>From "Traditional Food East and West of the Pennines", ed. by C. Anne
Wilson (Edinburgh U. Press, 1991, part of the Food and Society Series), p.
95:

"Carling Sunday, fifth in Lent
Carlins or "Little Godmothers" were grey peas which had been soaked in
water, drained, and fried in butter or fat.  In some districts the cooked
peas were usually offered to visitors, while in others the raw peas were
carried in the pockets to throw at friends and acquaintances.  By 1878,
William Dickinson commented that this custom was seldom practised in the
region.." (Endnote ref to Sullivan (1857), p. 164; J. Murray, Handbook to
Westmorland, Cumberland and the Lakes (London 1869); R. Ferguson, Northmen
(London, 1856), p. 208.)

and on p. 129:

"Black or Carlin peas used to be sold at fairs and from street barrows.
When vinegar is added to a bowl of peas, the cooking liquid turns milky,
forming 'gutter slush'. According to legend, during a cotton famine a
boat-load of peas arrived and saved the workers from starvation.  The event
was commemorated on Carlin Sunday, the Sunday before Palm Sunday."

HTH,

Cindy