We get them "down South" as well.
What their mothers are thinking of, letting them knock on strangers' doors, I don't know. Some mums actually do the rounds with the kids, and that sort of defeats the object of the exercise.
But, in some cases, it is more like "demanding money with menaces". Some of the little frankensteins can be quite cute and polite but others - usually the older ones - can be intimidating (or try to be). One year a while ago, when it was less common, I was taken by surprise and did not have any sweets to offer. "Oh, that's OK", the ringleader said, "Just give us a pound each". Needless to say, I did not.
But the following morning I found that the aerial on my car had been bent into a question mark! Coincidence? Mmmmm....
Little darlings.
