Page:Folk-lore - A Quarterly Review. Volume 5, 1894.djvu/187

Rh people" seems fairly general. Besides the forts, "lone bushes" are declared to be specially under their protection, and in many fields is to be seen a small blackthorn bush, which it would be most unlucky to cut down. The children tell you that when the Danes left Ireland they hid their treasure and planted a bush over each pot of gold, so that in the event of their return they would know where to look for it.

I have collected a few more stories of the fairies and their doings. That of the "Football Players" seems to be a wide-spread tale in one form or another; here is the Kiltubbrid version, by Barney Whelan of Driny:—

There was a man returning home one evening, when, as he was crossing a field, there met him a man on horseback. "Will you come with me for a couple of hours?" said he. "I will," says the first; but how will I come back?" "Oh, I'll leave you back," said the man; so he up on the horse behind the stranger, and away with them.

"Now what I want you to do is this: we've got a football match on, and you must kick for us."

"Well, I will," says he; and on that they were in the football field and the game began, and Jack wasn't long before he kicked the ball before him and kicked a goal. There was great joy among the little people, and they all set off to the big house for refreshment. Then the man who had brought Jack came and said, "You must take no refreshment here, nor take any notice of anything." So he watched them in the hall, and they had great eating and drinking.

To his great surprise, the first girl that brought in a dish was a sister he had lost three years before, but she passed without noticing him, and disappeared. After a while the man who had brought him came, and they mounted his horse and soon were back at the field whence they came. Then before he went, the horseman asked Jack what could N2