Page:Folk-lore - A Quarterly Review. Volume 11, 1900.djvu/153

 Charm against the CJiild stealing Witch. 143

also E. Legrand, Bibliotheqiie grecque vulgaire II., Paris, 1 88 1, p. xviii.) two versions of an absolutely similar legend, of which one is fragmentary, inasmuch as the beginning is missing. In this occurs a peculiar child- stealing spirit, which goes by the name of Gelu or Geloo. The book being extremely scarce and the Greek texts of great importance for the history of this charm; 1 publish here the translation in full.

"... that he (viz. the Evil Spirit) should not get into the tower and swallow my child as he has done not very long ago- But the saints of the Lord, Sisynios and Synidores, when they saw their sister crying, they wept bitterly, and they at once bent their knees and asked God to give them the power and the strength to catch the accursed Gylo. When they got this power from God they saddled their horses and began to follow Gylo and searched the road, asking whomever they met. Coming to the willow, they asked it whether it had seen the accursed Gylo passing that way ? The tree denied having seen her, and the saints cursed it, saying, ' Thou shalt never yield any fruit, and man shall never eat any coming from thee.' The saints then again took up quickly their walk and found the bramble, and they asked it whether it had seen the accursed Gylo flying by it. The bramble (briar) denied also having seen her, and the saints cursed it similarly, saying, ' Thy top shall be where the roots usually are, and the roots where the top is, and thy fruit shall be useless, and no man shall live by it.' The saints again took up their way and came to the blessed olive-tree. They asked it whether it had seen the accursed Gylo fiying by, and the tree replied, ' Ye saints of the Lord, continue your journey, for it has gone to the shore of the sea.' Then the Saints Sisynios and Synidores blessed it, and said, ' May thy fruit be rich, saints be lit up by it, and kings and poor