Page:Shetland Folk-Lore - Spence - 1899.pdf/119

 termed widdershins. The movements of witches were always made against the sun, and by whirling a wooden cap in water or a hand-mill on a bare looder (wooden bench on which the mill rested), they were supposed to be able to raise the wind like Furies, and toss the sea in wild commotion capable of destroying anything afloat, from a cock boat to an armada. But to return to the fishermen. Their chief subject of conversation was the weather forecasts. The older and more experienced men would read the sky and explain the various appearances, and there is little doubt that from keen observation they were able to foretell the weather with considerable accuracy. They possessed a stock of weather lore of which we, in these days of barometers and storm-signals, know little.

The movements and conduct of certain birds and animals were looked upon as prognostics of the weather. For example, to hear crows crying after sunset foretold