Page:Folk-lore - A Quarterly Review. Volume 10, 1899.djvu/315

Rh to exchange visits during their illness, remarking: "It were easy knowing that something was coming upon us since the night at Hornary Stream." They died shortly after.

The eyes of Christ were grey, of Our Lady brown, of the Devil black; but the Evil Eye does not depend upon its colour, nor necessarily upon any desire of doing harm; and a person so unfortunate as to possess it may injure even his own children. The people who have skill in making snaithean (charms for turning away the effects) say they know, without being told, whether the eye was that of a man or a woman. Two women were pointed out as being the cause of many a swearing, for they, quite unwittingly, bring misfortune on any person they may meet who is going out to fish or hunt. One has dark hair and the other red.

To preserve against the Evil Eye one article of clothing should be put on wrong side out.

The Saint John's wort is called Lus Columcille, the armpit of Columcille. It is a lucky plant, and brings increase and protection from evil to one's store, be it cattle, or sheep, or grain. It is plucked with the formula:

The marsh-ragwort (caoibhreachan) is valuable against the torradh and Evil Eye generally.

Of all forms of evil influence none is more dreaded than this torradh, or the charming away of milk from cattle. The methods by which this is effected are various. There was in Eriskay a woman who had good cheese, but only one cow. A neighbour bought some of the cheese, but directly grace was said at table it disappeared. The cow always stood on the same place to be milked, and someone examined the place in hope of instruction. Nothing was to be seen on the surface; but on digging, a vessel was found containing hair from various other cows.

The furnishing of a house in the Hebrides is, as may be supposed, of the simplest. The beds are enclosed. There