RABBITS AND HARES
It is believed to be unlucky to meet either a hare or a rabbit, one variant
stating that a rabbit which crosses one's path in front is a good omen and one
which crosses behind is a bad one. In some English counties it is considered
unwise to shoot a black rabbit, as it may be an ancestral spirit returning in
rabbit-form; in Suffolk it was believed that white rabbits were witches, which
was also unlucky to shoot. Rabbits and hares were never mentioned at sea, as
they were considered ill-omened words, and to meet one on the way to sea was a
very bad omen.
An old custom is to say "Rabbits" or "White Rabbits" either once or three times
on the first day of the month, as a good luck charm; it must be the first word
said that morning, otherwise the charm is not potent. A rabbit's foot is a well-
known lucky charm in most English-speaking countries, said to ensure success in
many fields. Actors may keep a rabbit's foot in their make-up cases for good
luck, and will meet with misfortune if the foot is lost. In Wales an old belief
is that a new-born child rubbed all over with a rabbit's foot will be lucky for
life.
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