Page:Cornish feasts and folk-lore.djvu/147

 Superstitions. 1 3 5 on Childermas-day, nor allow a piece of spar-stone (quartz) to be carried on board a vessel : that would ensure her striking on a rock. Of course, they neither whistle when there, nor speak of hares, two most unlucky things ; and should they meet one of these animals on their way to the place of embarkation they think it far wiser to turn back home, and put oif sailing for a tide. Hares (as already noticed) play a great part in Cornish folk-lore. The following amusing story I had from a friend: — "Jimmy Treglown, a noted poacher living in a village of West Cornwall, became converted at a revival meeting; he was tempted on his way to class-meeting one Sunday morning soon after by the devil in the form of a beautiful hare. Jimmy said, ' There thee art, my dear ; but I waan't tooch thee on a Sunday — nor yet on a weeky day, for that matter.' He went briskly on his way for a few paces, and then, like Lot's wife, he was tempted to look behind him. Alas ! in Jimmy's own words, 'There she was in her seat, looking lovely. I tooked up a stone, and dabbed at her. Away she runned, and fare-ee well, religion. Mine runned away with her. I went home, and never went to class no more.* You see it was the devil, and ' simmen to me ' (seeming) I heard 'un laugh and say, ' Ah ! ah ! Jimmy, boy, I had thee on the hip then. Thee must confess thee'st had a fair fall.' So I gave in, and never went nigh the 'people' (Wesleyans) no more. Nobody should fire at hares of this sort, except with a silver bullet ; they often appear as white, but the devil knowed I couldn't be fooled with a white 'un.'" Nothing is too ridiculous to be told of hares. Another old man from St. Just (still living) once recited this anecdote in our kitchen, and from his grave manner evidently expected it to be believed : — " I was out walking (he said) one Sunday morning, when I saw a hare in a field which I longed to have ; so I shied a bit of ' codgy wax' (cobbler's wax), the only thing I had in my pocket, at 'un, when he ran away. What was my surprise on getting over a stile to see two hares in the next field face to face, the ' codgy wax ' had stuck to the nose of the first, and he in his fright had runned do it, no, never no more."
 * The illiterate Cornish often double their negatiyes : " I don't know, not I ;" " I'll neyer