Page:Folk-lore - A Quarterly Review Volumes 32 and 33.djvu/624

314 (14) The story of a judgment on a mocking woman is as follows:—

Two sisters lived in the island, both married, but one rich and the other poor. The poor sister had a child and the rich sister came to visit her. Looking at the child, she said mockingly, "Mouth with food," meaning, I suppose, that a mouth should be sent where there was food to put into it. Shortly after the rich sister also had a child, but in punishment for the cruel mocking of her less fortunate sister her child was born without a mouth.

The want of Gaelic sometimes handicapped me in a story of this kind, because the sense is so subtle that it will hardly bear translating.

(1) An old woman one day saw a young man, who, in the full vigour of youth, was plainly visible to her working in a field near at hand, lying dead at her feet in his shroud. She was so overcome by the vision that she nearly fainted. The young man died within a week after the vision. This old woman saw this sort of vision many times, and she dreaded her power very much. It always made her feel ill and miserable.

(2) An old woman had one evening been out at a "Ceilidh" at a neighbour's house at the end of the township furthest from her own house and was returning home late. She was suddenly aware of the measured tramp of feet. To her terror she found herself in the midst of a shadowy funeral procession, which was taking its way to a path which led to the sea. This path was used only by funerals, and it led to a landing where the mourners and their sad burden were in the habit of taking boat for an island on which was the burial-place of the township. About a week after the old woman had this experience an inhabitant of the township, in the midst of perfect health, was struck down and was buried in that way on the island in question.

(3) Two or three women and a young man, walking home late from the village to Woodend, were startled by one of their number suddenly bidding them step aside, as a funeral was coming. One or two paid no attention to the warning and they