Page:Folk-lore - A Quarterly Review. Volume 9, 1898.djvu/309

Rh resolved upon as being the most likely step to prove effectual in the salvation of the cattle. They did not know that the advent of Pasteur and Koch was written in the book of fate, and they did what they knew.

"A branch was cut off a tree in a neighbouring wood, the bark was stripped off, and it was carried to a small island, which I know well, in the Houstry Burn. The pure limpid water was flowing round it on all sides, and cut the island off from the impurities, and from all the transactions of common life. Every fire in the district was quenched, the life of the community, with all its doings and responsibilities, was symbolically quenched with it. The community repaired to the neighbourhood of the island. Fire was produced by the friction of pieces of wood, and from this sacred fire the fires of the houses were kindled, and life was entered upon anew.

"The photograph which I send along with this represents one of the pieces of wood which were used for the production of the fire on this occasion, and only the part on which the marks of the fire were to be seen is in existence now. The stick as originally used would be ten or twelve feet long. There are three burnt holes on the stick which are distinctly marked on the photograph, and the left end of the stick, as shown in the photograph, has a mark which was made by an iron tool, but which shows no mark of fire.

"Evidently this was the modus operandi: a slight depression was made in the big stick, with the corner of an axe, then a small stick was put standing into this depression, and turned rapidly round as one would turn an augur in holing wood. Perhaps a cross bar was put on to facilitate the production of this kind of motion, but I don't know. I am not learned in these matters. The circumference of this stick is 13½ inches, and its length now is 18¾ inches."



The following is a somewhat fuller account of the custom referred to on p. 193, taken from The Daily News of Wednesday, April 20th:— 