Part 22

Many of those included in the following selection were narrated by the peasants, either in Irish, or in the expressive Irish-English, which still retains enough of the ancient idiom to make the language impressively touching and picturesque. The ancient charms which have come down by tradition from a remote antiquity are peculiarly interesting from their deep human pathos, blended with the sublime trust in the Divine invisible power, so characteristic of the Irish temperament in all ages. A faith that believes implicitly, trusts devoutly, and hopes infinitely; when the soul in its sorrow turns to heaven for the aid which cannot be found on earth, or given by earthly hands. The following charms from the Irish express much of this mingled spirit of faith and hope:—

AGAINST SORROW.

A charm set by Mary for her Son, before the fair man and the turbulent woman laid Him in the grave.

The charm of Michael with the shield; Of the palm-branch of Christ; Of Bridget with her veil.

The charm which God set for Himself when the divinity within Him was darkened.

A charm to be said by the cross when the night is black and the soul is heavy with sorrow.

A charm to be said at sunrise, with the hands on the breast, when the eyes are red with weeping, and the madness of grief is strong.

A charm that has no words, only the silent prayer.

TO WIN LOVE.

“O Christ, by your five wounds, by the nine orders of angels, if this woman is ordained for me, let me hold her hand now, and breathe her breath. O my love, I set a charm to the top of your head; to the sole of your foot; to each side of your breast, that you may not leave me nor forsake me. As a foal after the mare, as a child after the mother, may you follow and stay with me till death comes to part us asunder. AMEN.”

_Another._

A charm of most desperate love, to be written with a raven’s quill in the blood of the ring finger of the left hand.

“By the power that Christ brought from heaven, mayest thou love me, woman! As the sun follows its course, mayest thou follow me. As light to the eye, as bread to the hungry, as joy to the heart, may thy presence be with me, O woman that I love, till death comes to part us asunder.”

FOR THE NIGHT-FIRE (THE FEVER).

“God save thee, Michael, archangel! God save thee!”

“What aileth thee, O man?”

“A headache and a sickness and a weakness of the heart. O Michael, archangel, canst thou cure me, O angel of the Lord?”

“May three things cure thee, O man. May the shadow of Christ fall on thee! May the garment of Christ cover thee! May the breath of Christ breathe on thee! And when I come again thou wilt be healed.”

These words are said over the patient while his arms are lifted in the form of a cross, and water is sprinkled on his head.

FOR A PAIN IN THE SIDE.

“God save you, my three brothers, God save you! And how far have ye to go, my three brothers?”

“To the Mount of Olivet, to bring back gold for a cup to hold the tears of Christ.”

“Go, then. Gather the gold; and may the tears of Christ fall on it, and thou wilt be cured, both body and soul.”

These words must be said while a drink is given to the patient.

FOR THE MEASLES.

“‘The child has the measles,’ said John the Baptist.

“‘The time is short till he is well,’ said the Son of God.

“‘When?’ said John the Baptist.

“‘Sunday morning, before sunrise,’ said the Son of God.”

This is to be repeated three times, kneeling at a cross, for three mornings before sunrise, and the child will be cured by the Sunday following.

FOR THE MAD FEVER.

Three stones must be charmed by the hands of a wise fairy doctor, and cast by his hand, saying as he does so—

“The first stone I cast is for the head in the mad fever; the second stone I cast is for the heart in the mad fever; the third stone I cast is for the back in the mad fever.

“In the name of the Trinity, let peace come. AMEN.”

AGAINST ENEMIES.

Three things are of the Evil One—

An evil eye; An evil tongue; An evil mind.

Three things are of God; and these three are what Mary told to her Son, for she heard them in heaven—

The merciful word; The singing word; And the good word.

May the power of these three holy things be on all the men and women of Erin for evermore.

TO EXTRACT A THORN.

“The briar that spreads, the thorn that grows, the sharp spike that pierced the brow of Christ, give you power to draw this thorn from the flesh, or let it perish inside; in the name of the Trinity. AMEN.”

TO CAUSE HATRED BETWEEN LOVERS.

Take a handful of clay from a new-made grave, and shake it between them, saying—

“Hate ye one another! May ye be as hateful to each other as sin to Christ, as bread eaten without blessing is to God.”

FOR LOVE.

This is a charm I set for love; a woman’s charm of love and desire; a charm of God that none can break—

“You for me, and I for thee and for none else; your face to mine, and your head turned away from all others.”

This is to be repeated three times secretly, over a drink given to the one beloved.

HOW TO HAVE MONEY ALWAYS.

Kill a black cock, and go to the meeting of three cross-roads where a murderer is buried. Throw the dead bird over your left shoulder then and there, after nightfall, in the name of the devil, holding a piece of money in your hand all the while. And ever after, no matter what you spend, you will always find the same piece of money undiminished in your pocket.

FOR THE GREAT WORM.[8]

“I kill a hound. I kill a small hound. I kill a deceitful hound. I kill a worm, wherein there is terror; I kill all his wicked brood. Seven angels from Paradise will help me, that I may do valiantly, and give no more time to the worm to live than while I recite this prayer. AMEN.”

[8] The ancient serpent-idol was called in Irish, “The Great Worm.” St. Patrick destroyed it, and had it thrown into the sea. There are no serpents now to be found in Ireland, not even grass snakes or scorpions.

FOR SORE EYES.

“Take away the pain, O Mary, mother, and scatter the mist from the eyes. For all power is given to the mother of Christ to give light to the eyes, and to drive the red mist back to the billows whence it came.”

FOR PAINS IN THE BODY.

Rub the part affected with flax and tow, heated in the fire, repeating in Irish—

“In the name of a rough man and a mild woman, and of the Lamb of God, be healed from your pains and your sins. So be it. AMEN.”

This custom refers to the tradition that one day the Lord Christ, being weary, asked leave to rest in a house, but was refused by the master of the house, a rough, rude man. Then the wife, being a mild woman, had pity on the wayfarer, and brought Him in to rest, and gave Him a cup of water to drink, and spake kindly to Him. After which the man was suddenly taken with severe pains, and seemed like to die in his agony.

On this Christ called for some flax and tow, and, breathing on it, placed it on the part affected, by which means the man was quite healed. And then the Lord Christ went His way, but not before the man had humbly asked pardon for his rudeness to a stranger.

The tradition of this cure has remained ever since, and a hot plaster of flax and tow is used by the peasantry invariably for all sudden pains, and found to be most efficacious as a cure.

AGAINST DROWNING.

“May Christ and His saints stand between you and harm. Mary and her Son. St. Patrick with his staff. Martin with his mantle. Bridget with her veil. Michael with his shield. And God over all with His strong right hand.”

IN TIME OF BATTLE.

“O Mary, who had the victory over all women, give me victory now over my enemies, that they may fall to the ground, as wheat when it is mown.”

FOR THE RED RASH.

“Who will heal me from the red, thirsty, shivering cold disease that came from the foreigner, and kills people with its poisonous pain?” “The prayer of Mary to her Son, the prayer of Columbkill to God; these will heal thee. AMEN.”

_Another._

Say this oration three times over the patient, making the sign of the cross each time—

“Bridget, Patrick, Solomon, and the great Mary, banish this redness off you.”

Then take butter, breathe on it quite close, and give it to the person to chafe himself therewith.

To ascertain if he will recover, put a handful of yarrow in his hand while he is sleeping; if it is withered in the morning he will die; but if it remains fresh the disease will leave him.

TO TAME A HORSE.

Whisper the Creed in his right ear on a Friday, and again in his left ear on a Wednesday. Do this weekly till he is tamed; for so he will be.

A VERY ANCIENT CHARM AGAINST WOUNDS OR POISONS.

“The poison of a serpent, the venom of the dog, the sharpness of the spear, doth not well in man. The blood of one dog, the blood of many dogs, the blood of the hound of Fliethas—these I invoke. It is not a wart to which my spittle is applied. I strike disease; I strike wounds. I strike the disease of the dog that bites, of the thorn that wounds, of the iron that strikes. I invoke the three daughters of Fliethas against the serpent. Benediction on this body to be healed; benediction on the spittle; benediction on him who casts out the disease. In the name of God. AMEN.”

FOR A SORE BREAST.

To be said in Irish, while a piece of butter is rubbed over the breast—

“O Son, see how swelled is the breast of the woman! O, you that bore a Son, look at it yourself! O Mary! O King of Heaven, let this woman be healed! AMEN.”

FOR A WOUND.

Close the wound tightly with the two fingers, and repeat these words slowly—

“In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Mary. The wound was red, the cut was deep, and the flesh was sore; but there will be no more blood, and no more pain, till the blessed Virgin Mary bears a child again.”

FOR THE EVIL EYE.

This is a charm Mary gave to St. Bridget, and she wrote it down, and hid it in the hair of her head, without deceit—

“If a fairy, or a man, or a woman hath overlooked thee, there are three greater in heaven who will cast all evil from thee into the great and terrible sea. Pray to them, and to the seven angels of God, and they will watch over thee. AMEN.”

FOR ST. ANTHONY’S FIRE.

“The fire of earth is hot, and the fire of hell is hotter; but the love of Mary is above all. Who will quench the fire? Who will heal the sick? May the fire of God consume the Evil One! AMEN.”

HOW TO GO INVISIBLE.

Get a raven’s heart, split it open with a black-hafted knife; make three cuts and place a black bean in each cut. Then plant it, and when the beans sprout put one in your mouth and say—

“By virtue of Satan’s heart, And by strength of my great art, I desire to be invisible.”

And so it will be as long as the bean is kept in the mouth.

FOR PAINS.

“I kill the evil; I kill the worm in the flesh, the worm in the grass. I put a venomous charm in the murderous pain. The charm that was set by Peter and Paul; the charm that kills the worm in the flesh, in the tooth, in the body.”

This oration to be said three times, while the patient is rubbed with butter on the place of the pain.

_Another._

A happy mild charm, a charm which Christ discovered. The charm that kills the worm in the flesh.

“May Peter take, may Paul take, may Michael take, the pain away, the cruel pain that kills the back and the life, and darkens the eyes.”

This oration written, and tied to a hare’s foot, is always to be worn by the person afflicted, hung round the neck.

FOR A SPRAIN.

In the Western Isles the following charm is used for a sprain—

A strand of black wool is wound round and round the ankle, while the operator recites in a low voice—

“The Lord rade and the foal slade, He lighted and He righted; Set joint to joint and bone to bone, And sinew unto sinew. In the name of God and the Saints, Of Mary and her Son, Let this man be healed. AMEN.”

A similar charm was used in Germany in the tenth century, according to Jacob Grimm.

TO CAUSE LOVE.

Golden butter on a new-made dish, such as Mary set before Christ. This to be given in the presence of a mill, of a stream, and the presence of a tree; the lover saying softly—

“O woman, loved by me, mayest thou give me thy heart, thy soul and body. AMEN.”

FOR THE BITE OF A MAD DOG.

An oration which Colum-Cille set to a wound full of poison—“Arise, O Carmac, O Clunane, through Christ be thou healed. By the hand of Christ he thou healed in blood, in marrow, and in bone. AMEN.”

This oration to be pronounced over a man or a woman, a horse or a cow, but never over a hog or a dog. The wound to be rubbed with butter during the oration.

FOR TOOTHACHE.

Go to a graveyard; kneel upon any grave; say three paters and three aves for the soul of the dead lying beneath. Then take a handful of grass from the grave, chew it well, casting forth each bite without swallowing any portion. After this process the sufferer, were he to live a hundred years, will never have toothache any more.

_Another._

The patient must vow a vow to God, the Virgin, and the new moon, never to comb his hair on a Friday, in remembrance of relief should he be cured; and whenever or wherever he first sees the moon he must fall on his knees and say five prayers in gratitude for the cure, even if crossing a river at the time.

_Another._

Carry in your pocket the two jaw-bones of a haddock; for ever since the miracle of the loaves and fishes these bones are an infallible remedy against toothache, and the older they are the better, as nearer the time of the miracle.

Also this charm is to be sewn on the clothes—

“As Peter sat on a marble stone, The Lord came to him all alone, ‘Peter, Peter, what makes you shake?’ ‘O Lord and Master, it is the toothache.’ Then Christ said, ‘Take these for My sake, And never more you’ll have toothache.’”

To avoid toothache never shave on a Sunday.

FOR FRECKLES.

Anoint a freckled face with the blood of a bull, or of a hare, and it will put away the freckles and make the skin fair and clear. Also the distilled water of walnuts is good.

FOR A BURN.

There is a pretty secret to cure a burn without a scar: “Take sheep’s suet and the rind of the elder-tree, boil both together, and the ointment will cure a burn without leaving a mark.”

FOR THE MEMORY.

The whitest of frankincense beaten fine, and drunk in white wine, wonderfully assisteth the memory, and is profitable for the stomach also.

FOR THE FALLING SICKNESS.

Take a hank of grey yarn, a lock of the patient’s hair, some parings of his nails, and bury them deep in the earth, repeating, in Irish, as a burial service, “Let the great sickness lie there for ever. By the power of Mary and the soul of Paul, let the great sickness lie buried in the clay, and never more rise out of the ground. AMEN.”

If the patient, on awaking from sleep, calls out the name of the person who uttered these words, his recovery is certain.

If a person crosses over the patient while he is in a fit, or stands between him and the fire, then the sickness will cleave to him and depart from the other that was afflicted.

FOR CHIN-COUGH.

A griddle cake made of meal, to be given, not bought or made; but a cake _given_ of love or of charity, not for begging; a cake given freely, with a prayer and a blessing; and from the breakfast of a man and his wife who had the same name before marriage; this is the cure.

* * * * *

The touch of a piebald horse. Even a piebald horse pawing before the door helps the cure.

* * * * *

The child to be passed seven times under and over an ass while a red string is tied on the throat of the patient.

* * * * *

Nine hairs from the tail of a black cat, chopped up and soaked in water, which is then swallowed, and the cough will be relieved.

“One day when out snipe shooting,” a gentleman writes, “I saw a horrid-looking insect staring up at me. I called to a man close by, and asked him the name of it. He told me it was called the _Thordall_, and was reckoned a great cure for the _chin-cough_; for if any one got it safe in a bottle and kept it prisoner till it died, the disease would go away from the patient. It was just the time to try the cure, for my child was laid up with the epidemic. So I bottled my friend and daily examined the state of his health. It lasted for a fortnight, and at the end of that time the child had quite recovered, and the horrible-looking insect creature lay dead.”

FOR RHEUMATISM.

The operator makes passes, like the mesmerist, over the member affected by the rheumatic pain, never touching the part, but moving his hand slowly over it at some distance, while he mutters a form of words in a low voice.

FOR A STYE ON THE EYELID.

Point a gooseberry thorn at it nine times, saying, “Away, away, away!” and the stye will vanish presently and disappear.

TO CURE WARTS.

On meeting a funeral, take some of the clay from under the feet of the men who bear the coffin and apply it to the wart, wishing strongly at the same time that it may disappear; and so it will be.

FOR A STITCH IN THE SIDE.

Rub the part affected with unsalted butter, and make the sign of the cross seven times over the place.

FOR WEAK EYES.

A decoction of the flowers of daisies boiled down is an excellent wash, to be used constantly.

FOR WATER ON THE BRAIN.

Cover the head well with wool, then place oil-skin over, and the water will be drawn up out of the head. When the wool is quite saturated the brain will be free and the child cured.

FOR HIP DISEASE.

Take three green stones, gathered from a running brook, between midnight and morning, while no word is said. In silence it must be done. Then uncover the limb and rub each stone several times closely downwards from the hip to the toe, saying in Irish—

“Wear away, wear away, There you shall not stay, Cruel pain—away, away.”

FOR THE MUMPS.

Wrap the child in a blanket, take it to the pigsty, rub the child’s head to the back of a pig, and the mumps will leave it and pass from the child to the animal.

_Another._

Take nine black stones gathered before sunrise, and bring the patient with a rope round his neck to a holy well—not speaking all the while. Then cast in three stones in the name of God, three in the name of Christ, and three in the name of Mary. Repeat this process for three mornings and the disease will be cured.

FOR EPILEPSY.

Take nine pieces of young elder twig; run a thread of silk of three strands through the pieces, each piece being an inch long. Tie this round the patient’s neck next the skin. Should the thread break and the amulet fall, it must be buried deep in the earth and another amulet made like the first, for if once it touches the ground the charm is lost.

_Another._

Take nine pieces of a dead man’s skull, grind them to powder, and then mix with a decoction of wall rue. Give the patient a spoonful of this mixture every morning fasting, till the whole potion is swallowed. None must be left, or the dead man would come to look for the pieces of his skull.

FOR DEPRESSION OF HEART.

When a person becomes low and depressed and careless about everything, as if all vital strength and energy had gone, he is said to have got a fairy blast. And blast-water must be poured over him by the hands of a fairy doctor while saying, “In the name of the saint with the sword, who has strength before God and stands at His right hand.” Great care being taken that no portion of the water is profaned. Whatever is left after the operation, must be poured on the fire.

FOR THE FAIRY DART.

Fairy darts are generally aimed at the fingers, causing the joints to swell and grow red and inflamed. An eminent fairy-woman made the cure of fairy darts her speciality, and she was sent for by all the country round, and was generally successful. But she had no power unless _asked_ to make the cure, and she took no reward at the time; not till the patient was cured, and the dart extracted. The treatment included a great many prayers and much anointing with a salve, of which she only had the secret. Then she proceeded to extract the dart with great solemnity, working with a small instrument, on the point of which she finally produced the dart. This proved to be a bit of flax artfully laid under the skin by the malicious fairies, causing all the evil, and of course on seeing the flax no one could doubt the power of the operator, and the grateful patient paid his fee.

VARIOUS SUPERSTITIONS AND CURES.

There is a book, a little book, and the house which has it will never be burned; the ship that holds it will never founder; the woman who keeps it in her hand will be safe in childbirth. But none except a fairy man knows the name of the book, and he will not reveal it for love or money; only on his death-bed will he tell the secret of the name to the one person he selects.

The adepts and fairy doctors keep their mysteries very secret, and it is not easy to discover the word of a charm, for the operator loses his power if the words are said without the proper preliminaries, or if said by a profane person without faith, for the operator should not have uttered the mystery in the hearing of one who would mock, or treat the matter lightly; therefore he is punished.

Some years ago an old man lived in Mayo who had great knowledge of charms, and of certain love philtres that no woman could resist. But before his death he enclosed the written charms in a strong iron box, with directions that no one was to dare to open it except the eldest son of an eldest son in a direct line from himself.

Some people pretend that they have read the charms; and one of them has the strange power to make every one in the house begin to dance, and they can never cease dancing till another spell has been said over them.

But the guardian of the iron box is the only one who knows the magic secret of the spell, and he exacts a good price before he utters it, and so reveals or destroys the witchcraft of the dance.

* * * * *

The juice of deadly night-shade distilled, and given in a drink, will make the person who drinks believe whatever you will to tell him, and choose him to believe.

* * * * *

A bunch of mint tied round the wrist is a sure remedy for disorders of the stomach.

* * * * *

A sick person’s bed must be placed north and south, not cross ways.

* * * * *

Nettles gathered in a churchyard and boiled down for a drink have the power to cure dropsy.

* * * * *

The touch from the hand of a seventh son cures the bite of a mad dog. This is also an Italian superstition.

* * * * *

The hand of a dead man was a powerful incantation, but it was chiefly used by women. The most eminent fairy women always collected the mystic herbs for charms and cures by the light of a candle held by a dead man’s hand at midnight or by the full moon.

* * * * *