Page:Folk-lore - A Quarterly Review. Volume 11, 1900.djvu/140

 130 Charfn against the Child-stealing Witch.

with a loud voice unto Heaven, and with tears dropping down upon the earth ? For I got up early and got ready, left the house, left the table, went on the road, on the path- way, strong and beautiful, pink and cheerful ; but when I was in the middle of the road, of the road of the pathway, I was met by the Windmaids and by the Beautiful, who smote me in the face, hurled me to the ground, made my countenance black, covered me with dust, put the Cataract into my eyes, and left me without sight." " Be silent George, and do not cry, with tears of blood. Do not lament, and do not raise your voice, for I will heal you." The Holy Virgin from the gates of Heaven let down a golden ladder and came down upon it. She stood before George, took him by the right hand, turned his face away from the sun, and started to walk on Adam's road, to the spring of the Jordan. She met three sisters of the Sun, with three brooms, with three rakes and three hoes, with three sleeves of white silk. And the Holy Virgin as she met them, as she beheld them, stretched out her skirts and stopped them in the road ; thus she asked and thus she spake. " Where are ye going, ye three sisters of the Sun ? " " We are going, we are travelling to the fountain of the Lord, to clean it from the reeds and from the mud." " Do not go and do not travel, ye "Ihree sisters of the Sun ; for the fountain of the Lord is clean, is limpid, as when made by God, but go and travel to clean away the blindness and the mist from the eyes of George. Clean the white cataract, the black cataract, the red cataract, the cataract of ninety- nine forms, the cataract of ninety-nine ways. Look for it in the seams of the head, in the face of the visage, look for it in the lids, round the eyes, and in the lights (the apple) of the eyes. Quickly, very quickly rake it with your rakes, cut it with your scissors, sweep it away with yo* brooms, peel it olT with your nails, drive it away from eyes, wipe it away with the sleeves, gather it in your carry it to the threshing-floor. The threshers shall f break it in a thousand pieces, shall throw it over t