"Rub the Bag", in Gaelic “Cumuil an mala” or “Cumail a' mháilín”, also known as "Ree Raw", is an Irish long or set dance in 6/8 time in C Major (Cole, Joyce, Robbins) or D Major (O'Neill). The parts are played AAB (Cole, Joyce), AABB (O'Neill/Krassen, Robbins) or AA'BB (O'Neill/1850 & 1001).
"Rub the Bag" is one of the classic set dances and set dance tunes in Irish repertory. Joyce notes the tune was well known in Cork and Limerick and that Petrie gives a Kilkenny version of this tune under the title “Ree Raw”.
Joyce notes:
I learned it when a boy (in the 1840's in Limerick) from fiddlers and pipers, who used to play it as a set dance. I remember seeing a man dance it one time on a table.
It was printed in Cole's 1000 Fiddle Tunes (1940), Joyce's Ancient Irish Music (1873/1890), Krassen's O'Neill's Music of Ireland (1976), O'Neill's Music of Ireland: 1850 Melodies (1903), O'Neill's Dance Music of Ireland: 1001 Gems (1907) and Robbins Music Corp.'s The Robbins collection of 200 jigs, reels and country dances (1933) and Ryan’s Mammoth Collection (1883) (categorized as a jig).