Page:Folk-lore - A Quarterly Review. Volume 25, 1914.djvu/129

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door, and they didn't come in till morning, and the two small fairies went away into the corner, and never more were seen and " no more about them for ever." ^

8. The Mysterious Disappearance of Butter at Kiltnurran, and how the Butter Tliief tuas tnastered.

There was a man called William Power who lived down in the country place called Kilmurran. Well, he could not make any butter, for there was an evil spirit as took the milk out o' his cows and all the water out o' his well, so that he could not make the butter. Well, he had a fine lot o' cows, but they were not any good to him, and he had a fine big well, but the devil a drop o' water would it give. So he tried everything. He brought priests, and he brought everyone to know could they stop the thing. So he was directed to go to a woman, who was a neighbour o' his and had a great mastery entirely over evil spirits, and to know from her was there any good to be done, and if she didn't know of anything, then there was nothing as could be done. Well, the woman came and told him to put up a churn the night before the first of May, (which is a lucky day), and that, if the thieving spirit was disappointed that night, it wouldn't be able to do any more mischief during the following twelve months. So she sent the farmer out to the spring well to watch that no water was stolen from the well, and she sent his boy out into the field to watch the cows to see that the mischievious little fairy did not take any milk from the cows. Well the farmer saw nothing, but he was certain sure that there was something like a bird, {which must have been the evil spirit), hovering and fluttering around o' him all night, and the same fluttering was heard by the boy watching the cows. Well, after that, the cows gave plenty o' milk, and the well began giving any amount o' water. And so they had plenty o' butter. And the dirty little divilish little spirit was no more seen.^

9. Another Disappeara7ice of Butter.

There was a man dying, and his son went to fetch the priest to anoint him. And the priest returning from the man's house on

^^^ Nd sefnisalha inis agunt." 'Cf. vol. xxii., pp. 339-40 [Clare).