Page:Ancient and modern history of Buckhaven in Fife-shire.pdf/23

 or fish, or be çarted; and witches are the warst kind of devils, and make use of eats to ride upon; or kill kebbers and besoms, and sail over seas in cockle-shells, and witch lads and lasses, and disable bridegrooms. As for Willy and the Wisp, he is a fiery devil, and leads people off their road in order to drown them; for he sparks sometimes at our feet, and then goes before us with his candel, as if he were twa or three miles before us. Many a good boat has Spunkie drown'd; the boats coming to land in the night-time they observe a light off the land, and set in upon it, and are drowned. The Kelpy is a sly devil, he roars before a loss at sea, and frightens both young and old upon the shore. Fairies are terrible troublesome, they gang dancing round folks lums, and rin through the houses, they hunt and play odd tricks; and lift new-born bairns from their mothers, and none of them is safe to lie with their mothers, for a night or two after they are born, unless the mother gets a pair of men's breeches under her head the first three nights; the Fairies whip away the child, and leave an old stock with the woman. One tried to burn an old stock that the Fairies left in the cradle, but the old stock jumped upon a cat and flow up the lum. Maukens are most terrible! and have bad luck; none will go to sea that day they see a Mauken; or if any one put a Mauken's fit in their creel, they will not lift it that day, as it will be bad luck, either broken backs or legs, or arms, or hear bad accounts of the boats at sea. They are terrified for all sorts of boggles both by land and sea.