These lines from Hamlet, Act I scene I, upon seeing the ghost, are like a favorite ornament at this time of year;
Marcellus: Some say that ever ‘gainst that season comes
Wherein our Saviour’s birth is celebrated,
This bird of dawning singeth all night long;
And then, they say, no spirit dare stir abroad,
The nights are wholesome, then no planets strike,
No fairy takes, nor witch hath power to charm,
So hallow’d and so gracious is the time.
Horatio: So have I heard and do in part believe it.