Literal translation
to do Saint Michael's at candlelight
Meaning
to move house at night, sneaking away
Explanation
This expression describes moving house at night, secretly, in a hurry, to escape debts or unpaid rent. Saint Michael's day, on the twenty ninth of September, was traditionally a term day, when leases and rents were settled, which explains the presence of this saint's name, well attested in our dictionaries. To do Saint Michael's here thus means, by extension, to carry out a house move, a gesture normally tied to that legal date. The added detail at candlelight, carried by a word also attested meaning candle or, figuratively, a stalactite, adds the idea of discretion and darkness: the move happens at night, by the sole glow of a candle, so as not to be seen by neighbours or by the landlord to whom money is owed. The expression matches the popular French phrase to move out with a wooden bell, sharing the same idea of a silent flight. It is used to describe, with a certain amused indulgence, the cunning of someone thus escaping his creditors.