Popular Romances Of The West Of England, Second Series - free ebook by Robert Hunt

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Popular Romances Of The West Of England, Second Series

Robert Hunt

218 chapters

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218 chapters

LEGENDS OF THE SAINTS.

LEGENDS OF THE SAINTS.

The process through which a man, who has made himself remarkable to his ignorant fellow-men, is passed after death—first, into the hero performing fabulous exploits, and eventually into the giant—is not difficult to understand. The remembrance of great deeds, and the memory of virtues,—even in modern days, when the exaggerations of votaries are subdued by the influence of education,—ever tends to bring them out in strong contrast with the surrounding objects. The mass of men form the background,

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THE CROWZA STONES.

THE CROWZA STONES.

St Just, from his home in Penwith, being weary of having little to do, except offering prayers for the tinners and fishermen, went on a visit to the hospitable St Keverne, who had fixed his hermitage in a well-selected spot, not far from the Lizard headland. The holy brothers rejoiced together, and in full feeding and deep drinking they pleasantly passed the time. St Just gloried in the goodly chalice from which he drank the richest of wines, and envied St Keverne the possession of a cup of such

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THE LONGSTONE. THE GIANT’S HAT AND STAFF.

THE LONGSTONE. THE GIANT’S HAT AND STAFF.

Some say it was St Roach, others refer it to St Austell; but all agree in one thing, that the Longstone was once the staff of some holy man, and that its present state is owing to the malignant persecution of the demon of darkness. It happened after this manner. The good saint who had been engaged in some mission was returning to his cell across St Austell Downs. The night had been fine, the clearness of the sky and the brightness of the stars conduced to religious thoughts, and those of the sai

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ST SENNEN AND ST JUST.

ST SENNEN AND ST JUST.

These saints held rule over adjoining parishes; but, like neighbours, not unfrequently, they quarrelled. We know not the cause which made their angry passions rise; but no doubt the saints were occasionally exposed to the influences of the evil principle, which appears to be one of the ruling powers of the world. It is not often that we have instances of excess of passion in man or woman without some evidence of the evil resulting from it. Every tempest in the physical world leaves its mark on t

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LEGENDS OF ST LEVEN. I.—THE SAINT AND JOHANA.

LEGENDS OF ST LEVEN. I.—THE SAINT AND JOHANA.

The walls of what are supposed to be the hut of St Leven are still to be seen at Bodellen. If you walk from Bodellen to St Leven Church, on passing near the stile in Rospletha you will see a three-cornered garden. This belonged to a woman who is only known to us as Johana. Johana’s Garden is still the name of the place. One Sunday morning St Leven was passing over the stile to go as usual to his fishing-place below the church, to catch his dinner. Johana was in the garden picking pot-herbs at th

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II.—THE SAINT’S PATH.

II.—THE SAINT’S PATH.

The path along which St Leven was accustomed to walk from Bodellen, by Rospletha, on to St Leven’s Rocks, as they are still called, may be yet seen; the grass grows greener wherever the good priest trod than in any other part of the fields through which the footpath passes....

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III.—THE ST LEVEN STONE.

III.—THE ST LEVEN STONE.

On the south side of the church, to the east of the porch, is a rock known by the above name. It is broken in two, and the fissure is filled in with ferns and wild flowers, while the grass grows rank around it. On this rock St Leven often sat to rest after the fatigue of fishing; and desiring to leave some enduring memento of himself in connexion with this his rude but favourite seat, he one day gave it a blow with his fist and cracked it through. He prayed over the rock, and uttered the followi

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IV.—THE TWO BREAMS.

IV.—THE TWO BREAMS.

Although in common with many of the churches in the remote districts of Cornwall, “decay’s effacing fingers” have been allowed to do their work in St Leven Church, yet there still remains some of the ornamental work which once adorned it. Much of the carving is irremediably gone; but still the inquirer will find that it once told the story of important events in the life of the good St Leven. Two fishes on the same hook form the device, which appears at one time to have prevailed in this church.

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SAINT KEYNE.

SAINT KEYNE.

Braghan, or Brechan, was a king in Wales, and the builder of the town of Brecknock. This worthy old king and saint was the happy father of twenty-six children, or, as some say, twenty-four. Of these, fourteen or fifteen were sainted for their holiness, and their portraits are preserved within a fold of the kingly robe of the saint, their father, in the window at St Neot’s Church, bearing the inscription, “Sante Brechane, cum omnibus sanctis, ora pro nobis,” and known as the young women’s window.

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ST DENNIS’S BLOOD.

ST DENNIS’S BLOOD.

The patron saint of the parish church of St Dennis was born in the city of Athens, in the reign of Tiberius. His name and fame have full record in the “History of the Saints of the Church of Rome.” How his name was connected with this remote parish is not clearly made out. We learn, however, that the good man was beheaded at Montmartre, and that he walked after his execution, with his head under his arm, to the place in Paris which still bears his name. At the very time when the decapitation too

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ST KEA’S BOAT.

ST KEA’S BOAT.

St Kea, a young Irish saint, stood on the southern shores of Ireland and saw the Christian missionaries departing to carry the blessed Word to the heathens of Western England. He watched their barks fade beneath the horizon, and he felt that he was left to a solitude which was not fitted to one in the full energy of young life, and burning with zeal. The saint knelt on a boulder of granite lying on the shore, and he prayed with fervour that Heaven would order it so that he might diffuse his reli

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ST GERMAN’S WELL.

ST GERMAN’S WELL.

The good St German was, it would appear, sent into Cornwall in the reign of the Emperor Valentinian, mainly to suppress the Pelagian heresy. The inhabitants of the shores of the Tamar had long been schooled into the belief in original sin, and they would not endure its denial from the lips of a stranger. In this they were supported by the monks, who had already a firm footing in the land, and who taught the people implicit obedience to their religious instructors, faith in election, and that all

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HOW ST PIRAN REACHED CORNWALL.

HOW ST PIRAN REACHED CORNWALL.

Good men are frequently persecuted by those whom they have benefited the most. The righteous Piran had, by virtue of his sanctity, been enabled to feed ten Irish kings and their armies for ten days together with three cows. He brought to life by his prayers the dogs which had been killed while hunting the elk and the boar, and even restored to existence many of the warriors who had fallen on the battlefield. Notwithstanding this, and his incomparable goodness, some of these kings condemned him t

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ST PERRAN, THE MINERS’ SAINT.

ST PERRAN, THE MINERS’ SAINT.

St Piran, or St Perran, has sometimes gained the credit of discovering tin in Cornwall; yet Usher places the date of his birth about the year 352; and the merchants of Tyre are said to have traded with Cornwall for tin as early as the days of King Solomon. There are three places in Cornwall to which the name of Perran is given:— Perran-Aworthall— i.e. , Perran on the noted River . Perran-Uthno— i.e. , Perran the Little . Perran-Zabuloe— i.e. , Perran in the Sands . This sufficiently proves that

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THE DISCOVERY OF TIN.

THE DISCOVERY OF TIN.

St Piran, or St Perran, leading his lonely life on the plains which now bear his name, devoted himself to the study of the objects which presented themselves to his notice. The good saint decorated the altar in his church with the choicest flowers, and his cell was adorned with the crystals which he could collect from the neighbouring rocks. In his wanderings on the sea-shore, St Perran could not but observe the numerous mineral veins running through the slate rocks forming the beautiful cliffs

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ST NEOT, THE PIGMY.

ST NEOT, THE PIGMY.

Whence came the saint, or hermit, who has given his name to two churches in England, is not known. Tradition, however, informs us that he was remarkably small in stature, though exquisitely formed. He could not, according to all accounts, have been more than fifteen inches high. Yet, though so diminutive a man, he possessed a soul which was giant-like in the power of his faith. The Church of St Neot, which has been built on the ancient site of the hermit’s cell, is situated in a secluded valley,

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ST NEOT AND THE FOX.

ST NEOT AND THE FOX.

One day the holy hermit was standing in his bath chanting the Psalms, when he heard the sound of huntsmen approaching. Whether the saint feared ridicule or ill-treatment, we know not; but certainly he left some psalms unsung that day, and hastily gathering up his clothes, he fled to his cell. In his haste the goodman lost his shoe, and a hungry fox having escaped the hunters, came to the spring to drink. Having quenched the fever of thirst, and being hungry, he spied the saint’s shoe, and presen

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ST NEOT AND THE DOE.

ST NEOT AND THE DOE.

Again, on another day, when the hermit was in his fountain, a lovely doe, flying from the huntsmen, fell down on the edge of the well, imploring, with tearful eyes and anxious pantings, the aid of St Neot. The dogs followed in full chase, ready to pounce on the trembling doe, and eager to tear her in pieces. They saw the saint, and one look from his holy eyes sent them flying back into the woods, more speedily, if possible, than they rushed out of it. The huntsman too came on, ready to discharge

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ST NEOT AND THE THIEVES.

ST NEOT AND THE THIEVES.

When St Neot was abbot, some thieves came by night and stole the oxen belonging to the farm of the monastery. The weather was most uncertain,—the seed-time was passing away,—and a fine morning rendered it imperative that the ploughs should be quickly employed. There were no oxen. Great was the difficulty, and earnest were the abbot’s prayers. In answer to them, the wild stags came in from the forests, and tamely offered their necks to the yoke. When unyoked in the evening, they resorted to their

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ST NEOT AND THE FISHES.

ST NEOT AND THE FISHES.

On one occasion, when the saint was at his devotions, an angel appeared unto him, and shewing him three fishes in the well, he said, “These are for thee; take one each day for thy daily food, and the number shall never grow less: the choice of one of three fishes shall be thine all the days of thy life.” Long time passed by, and daily a fish was taken from the well, and three awaited his coming every morning. At length the saint, who shared in human suffering notwithstanding his piety, fell ill;

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PROBUS AND GRACE.

PROBUS AND GRACE.

Every one is acquainted with the beautiful tower of Probus Church. If they are not, they should lose no time in visiting it. Various are the stories in connexion with those two saints, who are curiously connected with the church, and one of the fairs held in the church-town. A safe tradition tells us that St Probus built the church, and failing in the means of adding a tower to his building, he petitioned St Grace to aid him. Grace was a wealthy lady, and she resolved at her own cost to build a

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ST NECTAN’S KIEVE AND THE LONELY SISTERS.

ST NECTAN’S KIEVE AND THE LONELY SISTERS.

Far up the deep and rocky vale of Trevillet, in the parish of Tintagel, [10] stands on a pile of rocks the little chapel of the good St Nectan. No holy man ever selected a more secluded, or a more lovely spot in which to pass a religious life. From the chapel rock you look over the deep valley full of trees. You see here and there the lovely trout-stream, running rapidly towards the sea; and, opening in the distance, there rolls the mighty ocean itself. Although this oratory is shut in amongst t

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THEODORE, KING OF CORNWALL.

THEODORE, KING OF CORNWALL.

Riviere, near Hayle, now called Rovier, was the palace of Theodore, the king, to whom Cornwall appears to have been indebted for many of its saints. This Christian king, when the pagan people sought to destroy the first missionaries, gave the saints shelter in his palace. St Breca, St Iva, St Burianna, and many others, are said to have made Riviere their residence. It is not a little curious to find traditions existing, as it were, in a state of suspension between opinions. I have heard it said

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WELL-WORSHIP.

WELL-WORSHIP.

A spring of water has always something about it which gives rise to holy feelings. From the dark earth there wells up a pellucid fluid, which in its apparent tranquil joyousness gives gladness to all around. The velvet mosses, the sword-like grasses, and the feathery ferns, grow with more of that light and vigorous nature which indicates a fulness of life, within the charmed influence of a spring of water, than they do elsewhere. The purity of the fluid impresses itself, through the eye, upon th

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THE WELL OF ST CONSTANTINE.

THE WELL OF ST CONSTANTINE.

In the parish of St Merran, or Meryn, near Padstow, are the remains of the Church of St Constantine, and the holy well of that saint. It had been an unusually hot and dry summer, and all the crops were perishing through want of water. The people inhabiting the parish had grown irreligious, and many of them sadly profane. The drought was a curse upon them for their wickedness. Their church was falling into ruin, their well was foul, and the arches over it were decayed and broken. In their distres

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THE WELL OF ST LUDGVAN.

THE WELL OF ST LUDGVAN.

St Ludgvan, an Irish missionary, had finished his work. On the hill-top, looking over the most beautiful of bays, the church stood with all its blessings. Yet the saint, knowing human nature, determined on associating with it some object of a miraculous character, which should draw people from all parts of the world to Ludgvan. The saint prayed over the dry earth, which was beneath him, as he knelt on the church stile. His prayer was for water, and presently a most beautiful crystal stream welle

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GULVAL WELL.

GULVAL WELL.

A young woman, with a child in her arms, stands by the side of Gulval Well, in Fosses Moor. There is an expression of extreme anxiety in her interesting face, which exhibits a considerable amount of intelligence. She appears to doubt, and yet be disposed to believe in, the virtues of this remarkable well. She pauses, looks at her babe, and sighs. She is longing to know something of the absent, but she fears the well may indicate the extreme of human sorrow. While she is hesitating, an old woman

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THE WELL OF ST KEYNE.

THE WELL OF ST KEYNE.

St Keyne came to this well about five hundred years before the Norman Conquest, and imparted a strange virtue to its waters—namely, that whichever of a newly-married couple should first drink thereof, was to enjoy the sweetness of domestic sovereignty ever after. Situated in a thickly-wooded district, the well of St Keyne presents a singularly picturesque appearance. “Four trees of divers kinds,” grow over the well, imparting a delightful shade, and its clear waters spread an emerald luxuriance

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MADDERN OR MADRON WELL.

MADDERN OR MADRON WELL.

Of the holy well at St Maddern, Carne [18] writes thus:— “It has been contended that a virgin was the patroness of this church—that she was buried at Minster—and that many miracles were performed at her grave. A learned commentator, however, is satisfied that it was St Motran, who was one of the large company that did come from Ireland with St Buriana, and he was slain at the mouth of the Hayle; the body was begged, and afterwards buried here. Near by was the miraculous Well of St Maddern, over

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THE WELL AT ALTAR-NUN. CURE OF INSANITY.

THE WELL AT ALTAR-NUN. CURE OF INSANITY.

Amongst the numerous holy wells which exist in Cornwall, that of Alternon, or Altar-Nun, is the only one, as far as I can learn, which possessed the virtue of curing the insane. We are told that Saint Nunne or Nuanita was the daughter of an Earl of Cornwall, and the mother of St David; that the holy well, which is situated about a mile from the cathedral of St David, was dedicated to her; and that she bestowed on the waters of the Cornish well those remarkable powers, which were not given to the

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ST GUNDRED’S WELL AT ROACH ROCK.

ST GUNDRED’S WELL AT ROACH ROCK.

Carew, in his “Survey of Cornwall,” p. 139, (p. 324, Lord Dunstanville’s edit.,) tells us, “near this rock there is another which, having a pit in it, containeth water which ebbs and flows as the sea does. I was thereupon very curious to inspect this matter, and found it was only a hole artificially cut in a stone, about twelve inches deep and six broad; wherein after rayne, a pool of water stands, which afterwards with fair weather vanisheth away, and is dried up; and then again, on the falling

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ST CUTHBERT’S OR CUBERT’S WELL.

ST CUTHBERT’S OR CUBERT’S WELL.

Hal thus describes this famous place:—“In this parish is that famous and well-known spring of water, called Holy-well, (so named, the inhabitants say, for that the virtues of this water was first discovered on All-Hallows day.) The same stands in a dark cavern of the seacliff rocks, beneath full seamark on spring-tides, from the top of which cavern falls down or distills continually drops of water from the white, blue, red, and green veins of those rocks. And accordingly, in the place where thos

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RICKETY CHILDREN.

RICKETY CHILDREN.

The practice of bathing rickety children on the first three Wednesdays in May is still far from uncommon in the outlying districts of Cornwall. The parents will walk many miles for the purpose of dipping the little sufferers in some well, from which the “healing virtue” has not entirely departed. Among these holy wells, Cubert, just named, is far-famed. To this well the peasantry still resort, firm in the faith that there, at this especial season, some mysterious virtue is communicated to its wa

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CHAPELL UNY.

CHAPELL UNY.

On the first three Wednesdays in May, children suffering from mesenteric diseases are dipped three times in this well, against the sun , and dragged three times around the well on the grass, in the same direction....

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PERRAN WELL.

PERRAN WELL.

Children were cured of several diseases by being bathed in this well. They were also carried to the sea-shore, and passed through a cleft in a rock on the shore at Perranzabalo. In the autumn of 1863 I sought for these holy waters. I was informed that some miners, in driving an adit, had tapped the spring and drained it. There is not, therefore, a trace of this once most celebrated well remaining. It was with difficulty that its site could be discovered. I have since learned that the cut stone-w

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REDRUTH WELL.

REDRUTH WELL.

No child christened in this well has ever been hanged. Saint Ruth, said to have been called Red Ruth, because she always wore a scarlet cloak, especially blessed, to this extent, those waters. I believe the population in this large parish cares but little now, whether their children be baptized with this well water or any other; but, half a century since, it was very different. Then, many a parent would insist on seeing the water taken from the well and carried to the font in the church....

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HOLY WELL AT LITTLE CONAN.

HOLY WELL AT LITTLE CONAN.

On Palm Sunday the people resorted to the well sacred to “Our Lady of Nant’s,” with a cross of palm, and after making the priest a present, they were allowed to throw the cross into the well; if it swam the thrower was to outlive the year, if it sank he was not. [23]...

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THE PRESERVATION OF HOLY WELLS.

THE PRESERVATION OF HOLY WELLS.

It is a very common notion amongst the peasantry, that a just retribution overtakes those who wilfully destroy monuments, such as stone circles, crosses, wells, and the like. Mr Blight writes me—“Whilst at Boscaswell, in St Just, a few weeks since, an old man told me, that a person who altered an old Holy Well there, was drowned the next day in sight of his home, and that a person who carried away the stones of an ancient chapel, had his house burned down that very night.” We hope the certainty

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ARTHUR LEGENDS.

ARTHUR LEGENDS.

The scarcity of traditions connected with King Arthur is not a little remarkable in Cornwall, where he is said to have been born, and where we believe him to have been killed. In the autumn of last year (1863) I visited Tintagel and Camelford. I sought with anxiety for some stories of the British king, but not one could be obtained. The man who has charge of the ruins of the castle—was very sorry that he had lent a book which he once had, and which contained many curious stories, but he had no s

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THE BATTLE OF VELLAN-DRUCHAR.[29]

THE BATTLE OF VELLAN-DRUCHAR.[29]

The Sea Kings, in their predatory wanderings, landed in Genvor Cove, and, as they had frequently done on previous occasions, they proceeded to pillage the little hamlet of Escols. On one occasion they landed in unusually large numbers, being resolved, as it appeared, to spoil many of the large and wealthy towns of Western Cornwall, which they were led to believe were unprotected. It fortunately happened that the heavy surf on the beach retarded their landing, so that the inhabitants had notice o

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ARTHUR AT THE LAND’S-END.

ARTHUR AT THE LAND’S-END.

Bolerium, or Bellerium , is the name given by the ancients to the Land’s-End. Diodorus writes, Belerium; Ptolemy, Bolerium. Milton adopts this name in his “Lycidas,” and leads his readers to infer that it was derived from the Giant Bellerus. It is quite possible that in Milton’s time the name of one of the numerous giants who appear to have made the Lands-End district their dwelling-place, might have still lived in the memories of men. Certain it is no such a giant is remembered now. [30] In a m

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TRADITIONS OF THE DANES IN CORNWALL.

TRADITIONS OF THE DANES IN CORNWALL.

The Danes are said to have landed in several places around the coast, and have made permanent settlements in some parts. We have already spoken of the battle of Vellan-druchar. In Sennen Cove there was for a long period a colony of red-haired people,—indeed, I am informed some of them still live on the spot,—with whom the other inhabitants of the district refused to marry. Up to a very recent period, in several of the outlying villages, a red-haired family was “looked down” upon. “Oh, he or she

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KING ARTHUR IN THE FORM OF A CHOUGH.

KING ARTHUR IN THE FORM OF A CHOUGH.

I quote the following as it stands:— [37] “In Jarvis’s translation of “Don Quixote,” book ii., chap. v., the following passage occurs:— “‘Have you not read, sir,’ answered Don Quixote, ‘the annals and histories of England, wherein are recorded the famous exploits of King Arthur, whom, in our Castilian tongue, we always call King Artus; of whom there goes an old tradition, and a common one all over that kingdom of Great Britain, that this king did not die, but that, by magic art, he was turned in

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THE CORNISH CHOUGH.

THE CORNISH CHOUGH.

The tradition relative to King Arthur and his transformation into a raven, is fixed very decidedly on the Cornish Chough, from the colour of its beak and talons. The— are said to mark the violent end to which this celebrated chieftain came....

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SLAUGHTER BRIDGE.

SLAUGHTER BRIDGE.

Historians and poets have made the world familiar with King Arthur. We know how Merlin deceived, by his magic, the beautiful Igerna, so that she received King Uter as her husband. We know also that Uter Pendragon died, and that his son, by Igerna, reigned King of Britain. How Arthur ruled, and how he slaughtered all the enemies of Britain, is told in the chronicles. But even at Tintagel [38] all is silent respecting the king or his celebrated Round Table. “In the days of King Arthur the Mount of

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CAMELFORD AND KING ARTHUR.

CAMELFORD AND KING ARTHUR.

At the head of this river Alan is seated Camelford, otherwise written Galleford, a small town. It was formerly called Kambton, according to Leland, who tells us that “Arthur, the British Hector,” was slain here, or in the valley near it. He adds, in support of this, that “pieces of armour, rings, and brass furniture for horses are sometimes digged up here by the countrymen; and after so many ages, the tradition of a bloody victory in this place is still preserved.” There are also extant some ver

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DAMELIOCK CASTLE.

DAMELIOCK CASTLE.

This ancient British castle once stood in savage grandeur a rival to Tintagel. Its ruins, which can scarcely be traced, are in the parish of St Tudy. Here Gothlois of the Purple Spear, Earl of Cornwall, fortified himself against Uter Pendragon’s soldiery, and here he was slain. Gothlois, or Gothlouis, was the husband of Igerna, who was so cruelly deceived by Uter, and who became the mother of Arthur....

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CARLIAN IN KEA.

CARLIAN IN KEA.

One of the most celebrated of Arthur’s knights, Sir Tristram, is said to have been born in this parish. A tradition of this is preserved in the parish, but it is probably derived from the verses of Thomas of Erceldoune, better known as Thomas the Rhymer....

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THE “CUNNING MAN.”

THE “CUNNING MAN.”

That a deep-rooted belief in the power of the witch still lingers in the remote districts of Cornwall cannot be denied. A gentleman, who has for many years been actively engaged in a public capacity, gives me, in reply to some questions which I put to him relative to a witch or conjurer, much information, which is embodied in this section. A “cunning man” was long resident in Bodmin, to whom the people from all parts of the country went to be relieved of spells, under the influence of which eith

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NOTES ON WITCHCRAFT.

NOTES ON WITCHCRAFT.

In confirmation of the melancholy facts related of the continuance of the belief in witchcraft, I would give the accompanying cuttings from the West Briton newspaper of a very recent date:— GROSS SUPERSTITION. “During the week ending Sunday last, a ‘wise man’ from Illogan has been engaged with about half-a-dozen witchcraft cases, one a young tradesman, and another a sea-captain. It appears that the ‘wise man’ was in the first place visited at his home by these deluded people at different times,

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ILL-WISHING.

ILL-WISHING.

I give the following notices as I receive them:—“I caant altogether exackly bleve in wiches at al,” said a good dame to us; “but this I can tell ee, our John’s wife quarrelled once with her next door neighbor’s wife, and when John come home, like a husband always should, he took up for his wife, ‘northin but nat’r’l chiel was a.’ Well, the woman took a nif, and for a long time never spoke to our John; at laast, after a bit, she used to speak to un, and like as if a was all over, and she used to

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THE “PELLER.”

THE “PELLER.”

A man who has resided at several places on the south coast was known by this name. He is said to be in possession of no end of charms, and to possess powers, of no common order, over this and the other world. “He is able,” writes a friend, “to put ghosts, hobgoblins, and, I believe, even Satan himself, to rest. I have known farmers, well informed in many other matters, and members of religious bodies, go to the ‘Peller’ to have the ‘spirits that possessed the calves’ driven out; for they, the ca

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BEWITCHED CATTLE.

BEWITCHED CATTLE.

A farmer, who possessed broad acres, and who was in many respects a sensible man, was greatly annoyed to find that his cattle became diseased in the spring. Nothing could satisfy him but that they were bewitched, and he was resolved to find out the person who had cast the evil eye on his oxen. According to an anciently-prescribed rule, the farmer took one of his bullocks and bled it to death, catching all the blood on bundles of straw. The bloody straw was then piled into a heap, and set on fire

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HOW TO BECOME A WITCH.

HOW TO BECOME A WITCH.

Touch a Logan stone nine times at midnight, and any woman will become a witch. A more certain plan is said to be—To get on the Giant’s Rock at Zennor Church-Town nine times without shaking it. Seeing that this rock was at one time a very sensitive Logan stone, the task was somewhat difficult....

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CORNISH SORCERERS.

CORNISH SORCERERS.

The powers of the sorcerer appear to have been passed on from father to son through a long succession of generations. There are many families—the descendants from the ancient Cornish people—who are even yet supposed to possess remarkable powers of one kind or another. Several families, which have become extinct, are more especially reputed by tradition to have had dealings with the bad spirits, and many of them to have made compacts with the Evil One himself. Amongst the most curious of the stor

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HOW PENGERSWICK BECAME A SORCERER.

HOW PENGERSWICK BECAME A SORCERER.

The first Pengerswick, by whom the castle, which still bears his name, was built, was a proud man, and desired to ally himself with some of the best families of Cornwall. He wished his son to wed a lady who was very much older than himself, who is said to have been connected with the Godolphin family. This elderly maiden had a violent desire either for the young man or the castle—it is not very clear which. The young Pengerswick gave her no return for the manifestations of love which she lavishe

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THE LORD OF PENGERSWICK AN ENCHANTER.

THE LORD OF PENGERSWICK AN ENCHANTER.

The Lord of Pengerswick came from some Eastern clime, bringing with him a foreign lady of great beauty. She was considered by all an “outlandish” woman; and by many declared to be a “Saracen.” [44] No one, beyond the selected servants, was ever allowed within the walls of Pengerswick Castle; and they, it was said, were bound by magic spells. No one dared tell of anything transacted within the walls; consequently all was conjecture amongst the neighbouring peasantry, miners, and fishermen. Certai

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THE WITCH OF FRADDAM AND THE ENCHANTER OF PENGERSWICK.

THE WITCH OF FRADDAM AND THE ENCHANTER OF PENGERSWICK.

Again and again had the Lord of Pengerswick reversed the spells of the Witch of Fraddam, who was reported to be the most powerful weird woman in the west country. She had been thwarted so many times by this “white witch,” that she resolved to destroy him by some magic more potent than anything yet heard of. It is said that she betook herself to Kynance Cove, and that there she raised the devil by her incantations, and that she pledged her soul to him in return for the aid he promised. The enchan

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TREWA, OR TREWE; THE HOME OF WITCHES.

TREWA, OR TREWE; THE HOME OF WITCHES.

As we walk from Nancledrea Bottoms towards Zennor we pass Trewa, (pronounced Truee ,) which is said to have been the place where at midsummer all the witches of the west met. Here are the remains of very ancient tin stream works, and these, I was informed, “were the remains of bals which had been worked before the deluge; there was nothing so old anywhere else in Cornwall.” Around us, on the hillsides and up the bottoms, huge boulders of granite are most fantastically scattered. All these rocks

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KENIDZHEK WITCH.

KENIDZHEK WITCH.

On the tract called the “Gump,” near Kenidzhek, is a beautiful well of clear water, not far from which was a miner’s cot, in which dwelt two miners with their sister. They told her never to go to the well after daylight; they would fetch the water for her. However, on one Saturday night she had forgotten to get in a supply for the morrow, so she went off to the well. Passing by a gap in a broken-down hedge (called a gurgo ) near the well, she saw an old woman sitting down, wrapped in a red shawl

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THE WITCHES OF THE LOGAN STONE.

THE WITCHES OF THE LOGAN STONE.

Who that has travelled into Cornwall but has visited the Logan Stone? Numerous Logan rocks exist on the granite hills of the county, but that remarkable mass which is poised on the cubical masses forming its Cyclopean support, at Trereen, is beyond all others “The Logan Stone.” A more sublime spot could not have been chosen by the Bardic priesthood for any ordeal connected with their worship; and even admitting that nature may have disposed the huge mass to wear away, so as to rest delicately po

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MADGY FIGGY’S CHAIR.

MADGY FIGGY’S CHAIR.

All those who have visited the fine piles of rocks in the vicinity of the so-called “St Levan,” Land’s-End, called Tol-pedden-Penwith,—and infinitely finer than anything immediately surrounding the most western promontory itself,—cannot have failed to notice the arrangement of cubical masses of granite piled one upon the other, known as the Chair Ladder . This remarkable pile presents to the beat of the Atlantic waves a sheer face of cliff of very considerable height, standing up like a huge bas

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OLD MADGE FIGGEY AND THE PIG.

OLD MADGE FIGGEY AND THE PIG.

Madge Figgey once lived in St Leven, but she removed to Burian Church-town. She had a neighbour, Tom Trenoweth, who had a very fine sow, and the old creature took it into her head to desire this sow. The pig was worth a pound of any man’s money, but Madge offered Tom five shillings for it. “No,” says Tom, “I shan’t sell the sow to you, nor to anybody else. I am going to put her in the house, and feed her for myself against winter.” “Well,” said old Madge, nodding her head, and shaking her finger

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MADAM NOY AND OLD JOAN.

MADAM NOY AND OLD JOAN.

They say that, a long time since, there lived an old witch down by Alsia Mill, called Joan. Everybody feared to offend the old woman, and gave her everything she looked for, except Madam Noy, who lived in Pendrea. Madam Noy had some beautiful hens of a new sort, with “cops” on their heads. One morning early, Joan comes up to Pendrea, so as to catch Madam Noy going out into the farmyard, with her basket of corn to feed the poultry, and to collect the eggs. Joan comes up nodding and curtsying ever

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THE WITCH OF TREVA.

THE WITCH OF TREVA.

Once on a time, long ago, there lived at Treva, a hamlet in Zennor, a wonderful old lady deeply skilled in necromancy. Her charms, spells, and dark incantations made her the terror of the neighbourhood. However, this old lady failed to impress her husband with any belief in her supernatural powers, nor did he fail to proclaim his unbelief aloud. One day this sceptic came home to dinner and found, being exceedingly hungry, to his bitter disappointment, that not only was there no dinner to eat, bu

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HOW MR LENINE GAVE UP COURTING.

HOW MR LENINE GAVE UP COURTING.

Mr Lenine had been, as was his wont, spending his evening hours with the lady of his love. He was a timid man, and always returned to Tregenebris early. Beyond this, as the lady was alone, she deemed it prudent to let the world know that Mr Lenine left her by daylight. One evening, it was scarcely yet dark, and our lover was returning home through Leah Lanes. His horse started at an old woman, who had crept under the hedge for shelter from a passing shower. As Mr Lenine saw a figure moving in th

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THE WITCH AND THE TOAD.

THE WITCH AND THE TOAD.

An old woman called Alsey—usually Aunt Alsey—occupied a small cottage in Anthony, one of a row which belonged to a tradesman living in Dock—as Devonport was then designated, to distinguish it from Plymouth. The old woman possessed a very violent temper, and this, more than anything else, fixed upon her the character of being a witch. Her landlord had frequently sought his rent, and as frequently he received nothing but abuse. He had, on the special occasion to which our narrative refers, crossed

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THE SAILOR WIZARD.

THE SAILOR WIZARD.

This appears to have been, and it may still be, a very common superstition. I have lately received from Mr T. Q. Couch of Bodmin the story of some sailors, who had reason to suspect that one of their body was a wizard. This was eventually proved to have been the case, by circumstances in every way resembling those of our old witch. There had been a quarrel, and revenge had been talked of. The sailors were all grouped together in the forepart of the ship, except the suspected one, and a toad fell

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TRADITIONS OF TINNERS.

TRADITIONS OF TINNERS.

There is scarcely a spot in Cornwall where tin is at present found, that has not been worked over by the “old men,” as the ancient miners are always called. Every valley has been “streamed”—that is, the deposits have been washed for tin; over every hill where now a tin mine appears, there are evidences, many of them most extensive, of actual mining operations having been carried on to as great a depth as was possible in the days when the appliances of science were unknown. Wherever the “streamer

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THE TINNER OF CHYANNOR.

THE TINNER OF CHYANNOR.

The village of Trereen, near the Logan Stone, was at one time an important market-town. Here came all the tin-streamers who worked from Penberth to the hills, and to protect the place and the valuable property which was accumulated here, Castle Trereen was built. Here came—or rather into the cove near it came—the Tyrian merchants. They were not allowed to advance beyond the shores, lest they should discover the country from which the tin was brought. But it is not of them that we have now to tel

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“WHO ARE THE KNOCKERS?”

“WHO ARE THE KNOCKERS?”

Charles Kingsley in his “Yeast: a Problem,” asks this question—Tregarra answers,— “They are the ghosts , the miners hold, of the old Jews that crucified our Lord, and were sent for slaves by the Roman emperors to work the mines : and we find their old smelting-houses, which we call Jews’ houses , and their blocks at the bottom of the great bogs, which we call Jews’ tin : and then a town among us too, which we call Market-Jew , but the old name was Marazion, that means the bitterness of Zion, the

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MINERS’ SUPERSTITIONS.

MINERS’ SUPERSTITIONS.

Miners say they often see little imps or demons underground. Their presence is considered favourable; they indicate the presence of lodes, about which they work during the absence of the miners. A miner told my informant that he had often seen them, sitting on pieces of timber, or tumbling about in curious attitudes, when he came to work. Miners do not like the form of the cross being made underground. A friend of my informant, going through some “levels” or “adits,” made a + by the side of one,

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CHRISTMAS-EVE IN THE MINES.

CHRISTMAS-EVE IN THE MINES.

On Christmas-eve, in former days, the small people, or the spriggans, would meet at the bottom of the deepest mines, and have a midnight mass. Then those who were in the mine would hear voices melodious beyond all earthly voices, singing, “Now well! now well;” [48] and the strains of some deep-toned organ would shake the rocks. Of the grandeur of those meetings, old stories could not find words sufficiently sonorous to speak; it was therefore left to the imagination. But this was certain, the te

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WARNINGS AND “TOKENS.”

WARNINGS AND “TOKENS.”

Amongst the mining population there is a deeply-rooted belief in warnings. The following, related by a very respectable man, formerly a miner, well illustrates this:— “My father, when a lad, worked with a companion (James or ‘Jim,’ as he was called) in Germo. They lived close by Old Wheal Grey in Breage. One evening, the daughter of the person with whom they lodged came in to her mother, crying, ‘Billy and Jim ben out theer for more than a hour, and I ben chasin them among the Kilyur banks, and

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THE GHOST ON HORSEBACK.

THE GHOST ON HORSEBACK.

Billy —— and John ——, working at Wheal Vor, were in the habit, early in the morning, of calling out a dog or two, kept by the occupier of an adjoining farm, and with them hunt over the Godolphin warren adjoining. One morning, while thus engaged, one of them gave the alarm that a man on horseback was coming down the road. “’Tisn’t possible,” said the other; “no horse can ever come over that road.” “There is a horse, and old Cap’n T. is upon it,” replied the first. “Hold thy tongue,” rejoined his

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THE BLACK DOGS.

THE BLACK DOGS.

About thirty years since, a man and a lad were engaged in sinking a shaft at Wheal Vor Mine, when the lad, through carelessness or accident, missed in charging a hole, so that a necessity arose for the dangerous operation of picking out the charge. This they proceeded to do, the man severely reprimanding the carelessness of his assistant. Several other miners at the time being about to change their core, were on the plat above, calling down and conversing occasionally with man and boy. Suddenly

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PITMEN’S OMENS AND GOBLINS.

PITMEN’S OMENS AND GOBLINS.

It is curious to notice the correspondence between the superstitions of the coal-miner and those employed in the metalliferous mines. The following comes very opportunely to our hand:— The superstitions of pitmen were once many and terrible; but so far from existing now-a-days, they are only matters of tradition among the old men. One class only of superstitions does exist among a few of the older and less-educated pitmen—namely, the class of omens, warnings, and signs. If one of these pitmen me

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THE DEAD HAND.

THE DEAD HAND.

“I’ve seen it—I’ve seen it!” exclaimed a young woman, pale with terror, approaching with much haste the door of a cottage, around which were gathered several of the miners’ wives inhabiting the adjoining dwellings. “God’s mercy be with the chield!” replied the oldest woman of the group, with very great seriousness. “Aunt Alice,” asked one of the youngest women, “and do ’e b’lieve any harm will come o’ seeing it?” “Mary Doble saw it and pined; Jinny Trestrail was never the same woman after she se

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DORCAS, THE SPIRIT OF POLBREEN MINE.

DORCAS, THE SPIRIT OF POLBREEN MINE.

Polbreen Mine is situated at the foot of the hill known as St Agnes Becon. In one of the small cottages which immediately adjoins the mine once lived a woman called Dorcas. Beyond this we know little of her life; but we are concerned chiefly with her death, which we are told was suicidal. From some cause, which is not related, Dorcas grew weary of life, and one unholy night she left her house and flung herself into one of the deep shafts of Polbreen Mine, at the bottom of which her dead and brok

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HINGSTON DOWNS.

HINGSTON DOWNS.

It may be worthy of consideration whether we have not evidence in this distich of the extent to which mining operations were carried on over this moorland and the adjoining country by the ancient Cornish miners. It is said that this moorland was originally Hengiston; and tradition affirms that the name preserves the memory of a severe contest, when the Welsh joined Egbright, a king of the West Saxons, and defeated the host of Danes, who had come over to “West Wales,” meaning thereby Cornwall. On

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THE PILOT’S GHOST STORY.

THE PILOT’S GHOST STORY.

I prefer giving this story in the words in which it was communicated. For its singular character, it is a ghost story well worth preserving:—“Just seventeen years since, I went down on the wharf from my house one night about twelve and one in the morning, to see whether there was any ‘hobble,’ and found a sloop, the Sally of St Ives, (the Sally was wrecked at St Ives one Saturday afternoon in the spring of 1862,) in the bay, bound for Hayle. When I got by the White Hart public-house, I saw a man

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THE PHANTOM SHIP.

THE PHANTOM SHIP.

Years long ago, one night, a gig’s crew was called to go off to a “hobble,” to the westwards of St Ives Head. No sooner was one boat launched than several others were put off from the shore, and a stiff chase was maintained, each one being eager to get to the ship, as she had the appearance of a foreign trader. The hull was clearly visible, she was a schooner-rigged vessel, with a light over her bows. Away they pulled, and the boat which had been first launched still kept ahead by dint of mechan

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JACK HARRY’S LIGHTS.

JACK HARRY’S LIGHTS.

The phantom lights are called, they tell me, “Jack Harry’s lights,” because he was the first man who was fooled by them. They are generally observed before a gale, and the ship seen is like the ship which is sure to be wrecked. The man who communicated this to me said, “What or how it is we can’t tell, but the fact of its being seen is too plain.” The following is another version, which I received from an old pilot:— “Some five years ago, on a Sunday night, the wind being strong, our crew heard

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THE PIRATE-WRECKER AND THE DEATH SHIP.

THE PIRATE-WRECKER AND THE DEATH SHIP.

One lovely evening in the autumn, a strange ship was seen at a short distance from Cape Cornwall. The little wind there was blew from the land, but she did not avail herself of it. She was evidently permitted to drift with the tide, which was flowing southward, and curving in round Whitesand Bay towards the Land’s-End. The vessel, from her peculiar rig, created no small amount of alarm amongst the fishermen, since it told them that she was manned by pirates; and a large body of men and women wat

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THE SPECTRE SHIP OF PORTHCURNO.

THE SPECTRE SHIP OF PORTHCURNO.

Porthcurno Cove is situated a little to the west of the Logan Stone. There, as in nearly all the coves around the coast, once existed a small chapel [51] or oratory, which appears to have been dedicated to St Leven. There exists now a little square enclosure about the size of a ( bougie ) sheep’s house, which is all that remains of this little holy place. Looking up the valley, (Bottom,) you may see a few trees, with the chimney-tops and part of the roof of an old-fashioned house. That place is

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THE LADY WITH THE LANTERN.

THE LADY WITH THE LANTERN.

The night was dark and the wind high. The heavy waves rolled round the point of “the Island” into St Ives Bay, as Atlantic waves only can roll. Everything bespoke a storm of no ordinary character. There were no ships in the bay—not a fishing-boat was afloat. The few small trading vessels had run into Hayle for shelter, or had nestled themselves within that very unquiet resting-place, St Ives pier. The fishing-boats were all high and dry on the sands. Moving over the rocks which run out into the

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THE DROWNED “HAILING THEIR NAMES.”

THE DROWNED “HAILING THEIR NAMES.”

The fishermen dread to walk at night near those parts of the shore where there may have been wrecks. The souls of the drowned sailors appear to haunt those spots, and the “calling of the dead” has frequently been heard. I have been told that, under certain circumstances, especially before the coming of storms, or at certain seasons, but always at night, these callings are common. Many a fisherman has declared he has heard the voices of dead sailors “hailing their own names.”...

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THE VOICE FROM THE SEA.

THE VOICE FROM THE SEA.

A fisherman or a pilot was walking one night on the sands at Porth-Towan, when all was still save the monotonous fall of the light waves upon the sand. He distinctly heard a voice from the sea exclaiming,— This was repeated three times when a black figure, like that of a man, appeared on the top of the hill. It paused for a moment, then rushed impetuously down the steep incline, over the sands, and was lost in the sea. In different forms this story is told all around the Cornish coast....

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THE SMUGGLER’S TOKEN.

THE SMUGGLER’S TOKEN.

Until about the time of the close of the last French war, a large portion of the inhabitants of the south-west coast of Cornwall were in some way or other connected with the practice of smuggling. The traffic with the opposite coast was carried on principally in boats or undecked vessels. The risks encountered by their crews produced a race of hardy, fearless men, a few of whom are still living, and it has been said that the Government of those days winked at the infraction of the law, from an u

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THE HOOPER, OR THE HOOTER, OF SENNEN COVE.

THE HOOPER, OR THE HOOTER, OF SENNEN COVE.

This was supposed to be a spirit which took the form of a band of misty vapour, stretching across the bay, so opaque that nothing could be seen through it. It was regarded as a kindly interposition of some ministering spirit, to warn the fishermen against venturing to sea. This appearance was always followed, and often suddenly, by a severe storm. It is seldom or ever seen now. One profane old fisherman would not be warned by the bank of fog. The weather was fine on the shore, and the waves fell

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HOW TO EAT PILCHARDS.

HOW TO EAT PILCHARDS.

It is unlucky to commence eating pilchards, or, indeed, any kind of fish, from the head downwards. I have often heard persons rebuked for committing such a grievous sin, which is “sure to turn the heads of the fish away from the coasts.” The legitimate process—mark this, all fish-eaters— is to eat the fish from the tail towards the head . This brings the fish to our shores, and secures good luck to the fishermen....

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PILCHARDS CRYING FOR MORE.

PILCHARDS CRYING FOR MORE.

When there is a large catch of fish, (pilchards,) they are preserved,—put in bulk, as the phrase is,—by being rubbed with salt, and placed in regular order, one on the other, head and tails alternately, forming regular walls of fish. The fish often, when so placed, make a squeaking noise; this is called “crying for more,” and is regarded as a most favourable sign. More fish may soon be expected to be brought to the same cellar. The noise which is heard is really produced by the bursting of the a

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THE PRESSING-STONES.

THE PRESSING-STONES.

Those who are not familiar with the process of “curing,” (salting) pilchards for the Italian markets, will require a little explanation to understand the accompanying story. The pilchards being caught in vast quantities, often, amounting to many thousand hogsheads at a time, in an enclosing net called a “seine,” are taken out of it—the larger net—in a smaller net, called the “tuck net,” and from it loaded into boats and taken to the shore. They are quickly transferred to the fish-sellers, and “p

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WHIPPING THE HAKE.

WHIPPING THE HAKE.

It is not improbable that the saying applied to the people of one of the Cornish fishing-towns, of “Who whipped the hake?” may be explained by the following:— “Lastly, they are persecuted by the hakes, who (not long sithence) haunted the coast in great abundance; but now being deprived of their wonted bait, are much diminished, verifying the proverb, ‘ What we lose in hake we shall have in herring .’”— Carew, Survey , p. 34. Annoyed with the hakes, the seiners may, in their ignorance, have actua

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THE DEATH-TOKEN OF THE VINGOES.

THE DEATH-TOKEN OF THE VINGOES.

When you cross the brook which divides St Leven from Sennen, you are on the estate of Treville. Tradition tells us that this estate was given to an old family who came with the Conqueror to this country. This ancestor is said to have been the Duke of Normandy’s wine-taster, and that he belonged to the ancient counts of Treville, hence the name of the estate. Certain it is the property has ever been held without poll deeds. For many generations the family has been declining, and the race is now n

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THE DEATH FETCH OF WILLIAM RUFUS.

THE DEATH FETCH OF WILLIAM RUFUS.

Robert, Earl of Moreton, in Normandy,—who always carried the standard of St Michael before him in battle,—was made Earl of Cornwall by William the Conqueror. He was remarkable for his valour and for his virtue, for the exercise of his power, and his benevolence to the priests. This was the Earl of Cornwall who gave the Mount in Cornwall to the monks of Mont St Michel in Normandy. He seized upon the priory of St Petroc at Bodmin, and converted all the lands to his own use. This Earl of Cornwall w

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SIR JOHN ARUNDELL.

SIR JOHN ARUNDELL.

In the first year of the reign of Edward IV., the brave Sir John Arundell dwelt on the north coast of Cornwall, at a place called Efford, on the coast near Stratton. He was a magistrate, and greatly esteemed amongst men for his honourable conduct. He had, however, in his official capacity, given offence to a wild shepherd, who had by some means acquired considerable influence over the minds of the people, under the impression of his possessing some supernatural powers. This man had been imprison

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PHANTOMS OF THE DYING.

PHANTOMS OF THE DYING.

A gay party were assembled one afternoon, in the latter days of January, in the best parlour of a farmhouse near the Land’s-End. The inhabitants of this district were, in many respects, peculiar. Nearly all the land was divided up between, comparatively, a few owners, and every owner lived on and farmed his own land. This circumstance, amongst others, led to a certain amount of style in many of the old farmhouses of the Land’s-End district; and even now, in some of them, from which, alas! the gl

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THE WHITE HARE.

THE WHITE HARE.

It is a very popular fancy that when a maiden, who has loved not wisely but too well, dies forsaken and broken-hearted, that she comes back to haunt her deceiver in the shape of a white hare. This phantom follows the false one everywhere, mostly invisible to all but him. It sometimes saves him from danger, but invariably the white hare causes the death of the betrayer in the end. The following story of the white hare is a modification of several tales of the same kind which have been told me. Ma

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THE HAND OF A SUICIDE.

THE HAND OF A SUICIDE.

Placing the hand of a man who has died by his own act is a cure for many diseases. The following is given me by a thinking man, living in one of the towns in the west of Cornwall:— “There is a young man in this town who had been afflicted with running tumours from his birth. When about seventeen years of age he had the hand of a man who had hanged himself passed over the wounds on his back, and, strange to say, he recovered from that time, and is now comparatively robust and hearty. This inciden

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THE NORTH SIDE OF A CHURCH.

THE NORTH SIDE OF A CHURCH.

A strong prejudice has long existed against burying on the northern side of the church. In many churchyards the southern side will be found full of graves, with scarcely any on the northern side. I have sought to discover, if possible, the origin of this prejudice, but I have not been able to trace it to any well-defined feeling. I have been answered, “Oh, we like to bury a corpse where the sun will shine on the grave;” and, “The northern graveyard is in the shadow, and cold;” but beyond this I

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POPULAR SUPERSTITIONS.

POPULAR SUPERSTITIONS.

It is, or rather was, believed, in nearly every part of the West of England, that death is retarded, and the dying kept in a state of suffering, by having any lock closed, or any bolt shot, in the dwelling of the dying person. A man cannot die easy on a bed made of fowls’ feathers, or the feathers of wild birds. Never carry a corpse to church by a new road. Whenever a guttering candle folds over its cooling grease, it is watched with much anxiety. If it curls upon itself it is said to form the “

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SANDING THE STEP ON NEW YEAR’S-DAY.

SANDING THE STEP ON NEW YEAR’S-DAY.

“They say, miracles are past, and we have our philosophical persons, to make modern and familiar things supernatural and causeless. Hence is it that we make trifles of terrors, ensconcing ourselves into seeming knowledge.”— All’s Well that Ends Well — Shakespeare . In the rural districts of Cornwall, it is thought to be unlucky if a female is the first to enter the house on new-year’s morning. To insure the contrary, it was customary to give boys some small reward for placing sand on the door-st

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MAY-DAY.

MAY-DAY.

The first of May is inaugurated with much uproar. As soon as the clock has told of midnight, a loud blast on tin trumpets proclaims the advent of May. This is long continued. At daybreak, with their “tintarrems,” they proceed to the country, and strip the sycamore-trees (called May-trees) of all their young branches, to make whistles. With these shrill musical instruments they return home. Young men and women devote May-day to junketing and pic-nics. It was a custom at Penzance, and probably at

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SHROVE TUESDAY AT ST IVES.

SHROVE TUESDAY AT ST IVES.

Formerly it was customary for the boys to tie stones to cords, and with these parade the town, slinging these stones against the doors, shouting aloud,— A genteel correspondent assures me “this is observed now in the lower parts of the town only.”...

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“THE FURRY”—HELSTONE.

“THE FURRY”—HELSTONE.

This ancient custom, which consists in dancing through the streets of the town, and entering the houses of rich and poor alike, is thus well described:— “On the 8th of May, at Helstone, in Cornwall, is held what is called ‘the Furry.’ The word is supposed by Mr Polwhele to have been derived from the old Cornish word fer , a fair or jubilee. The morning is ushered in by the music of drums and kettles, and other accompaniments of a song, a great part of which is inserted in Mr Polwhele’s history,

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MIDSUMMER SUPERSTITIOUS CUSTOMS.

MIDSUMMER SUPERSTITIOUS CUSTOMS.

If on midsummer-eve a young woman takes off the shift which she has been wearing, and, having washed it, turns it wrong side out, and hangs it in silence over the back of a chair, near the fire, she will see, about midnight, her future husband, who deliberately turns the garment. If a young lady will, on midsummer-eve, walk backwards into the garden and gather a rose, she has the means of knowing who is to be her husband. The rose must be cautiously sewn up in a paper bag, and put aside in a dar

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CRYING THE NECK.

CRYING THE NECK.

Owing to the uncertain character of the climate of Cornwall, the farmers have adopted the plan of gathering the sheaves of wheat, as speedily as possible, into “arish-mows.” These are solid cones from ten to twelve feet high, the heads of the stalks turned inwards, and the whole capped with a sheaf of corn inverted. Whence the term, I know not; but “arish” is commonly applied to a field of corn recently cut, as, “Turn the geese in upon the ‘arish’”—that is, the short stubble left in the ground.

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DRINKING TO THE APPLE-TREES ON TWELFTH NIGHT EVE.

DRINKING TO THE APPLE-TREES ON TWELFTH NIGHT EVE.

In the eastern part of Cornwall, and in western Devonshire, it was the custom to take a milk-panful of cider, into which roasted apples had been broken, into the orchard. This was placed as near the centre of the orchard as possible, and each person, taking a “clomben” cup of the drink, goes to different apple-trees, and addresses them as follows:— Drinking part of the contents of the cup, the remainder, with the fragments of the roasted apples, is thrown at the tree, all the company shouting al

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ALLHALLOWS-EVE AT ST IVES.

ALLHALLOWS-EVE AT ST IVES.

The ancient custom of providing children with a large apple on Allhallows-eve is still observed, to a great extent, at St Ives. “Allan-day,” as it is called, is the day of days to hundreds of children, who would deem it a great misfortune were they to go to bed on “Allan-night” without the time-honoured Allan apple to hide beneath their pillows. A quantity of large apples are thus disposed of, the sale of which is dignified by the term Allan Market....

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THE TWELFTH CAKE.

THE TWELFTH CAKE.

The custom, apparently a very ancient one, of putting certain articles into a rich cake, is still preserved in many districts. Usually, sixpence, a wedding-ring, and a silver thimble are employed. These are mixed up with the dough, and baked in the cake. At night the cake is divided. The person who secures the sixpence will not want money for that year; the one who has the ring will be the first married; and the possessor of the thimble will die an old maid....

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OXEN PRAY ON CHRISTMAS EVE.

OXEN PRAY ON CHRISTMAS EVE.

I remember, when a child, being told that all the oxen and cows kept at a farm, in the parish of St Germans, at which I was visiting with my aunt, would be found on their knees when the clock struck twelve. This is the only case within my own knowledge of this widespread superstition existing in Cornwall. Brand says, “A superstitious notion prevails in the western parts of Devonshire, that at twelve o’clock at night on Christmas-eve, the oxen in their stalls are always found on their knees, as i

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“ST GEORGE”—THE CHRISTMAS PLAYS.

“ST GEORGE”—THE CHRISTMAS PLAYS.

The Christmas play is a very ancient institution in Cornwall. At one time religious subjects were chosen, but those gave way to romantic plays. The arrangements were tolerably complete, and sometimes a considerable amount of dramatic skill was displayed. “ St George , and the other tragic performers, are dressed out somewhat in the style of morris-dancers, in their shirt sleeves and white trousers, much decorated with ribbons and handkerchiefs, each carrying a drawn sword in his hand, if they ca

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GEESE-DANCING—PLOUGH MONDAY.

GEESE-DANCING—PLOUGH MONDAY.

The first Monday after Twelfth-day is Plough Monday, and it is the ploughman’s holiday. At this season, in the Islands of Scilly, at St Ives, Penzance, and other places, the young people exercise a sort of gallantry called “geese-dancing.” The maidens are dressed up for young men, and the young men for maidens; and, thus disguised, they visit their neighbours in companies, where they dance, and make jokes upon what has happened during the year, and every one is humorously “told their own,” witho

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CHRISTMAS AT ST IVES.

CHRISTMAS AT ST IVES.

“THE GUISE-DANCING.” “We doubt if there is a spot in ‘merrie England’ where Christmas receives so hearty a welcome, and is ‘made so much of,’ as in the old-fashioned ‘antient borough of beloved St Ives.’ It is often said that ‘extremes meet;’ but as well might we expect the extremities of Britain—John o’Groat’s and Cape Cornwall—to meet, as that the frolic-loving descendants of Albion will ever imitate the cold, mountain-nurtured Caledonians in their observance of Christmas time. For months prev

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LADY LOVELL’S COURTSHIP.

LADY LOVELL’S COURTSHIP.

By the especial kindness of one who has a more abundant store of old Cornish stories than any man whom I have ever met, I am enabled to give some portion of one of the old Cornish plays, or guise-dances. Many parts are omitted, as they would, in our refined days, be considered coarse; but as preserving a true picture of a peculiar people, as they were a century and a half or two centuries since, I almost regret the omissions. Scene 1. — The Squire’s Kitchen—Duffy sitting on the chimney-stool—Jan

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THE GAME OF HURLING.

THE GAME OF HURLING.

The game of “Hurling” was, until a recent period, played in the parishes to the west of Penzance on the Sunday afternoon. The game was usually between two parishes, sometimes between Burian and Sancreed, or against St Leven and Sennen, or the higher side of the parish played against the lower side. The run was from Burian Cross in the Church-town, to the Pipers in Boloeit. All the gentry from the surrounding parishes would meet at Boloeit to see the ball brought in. “Hurling matches” are peculia

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SHAM MAYORS.

SHAM MAYORS.

There was a curious custom in the town of Penryn in Cornwall, which long outlived all modern innovations. On some particular day in September or October, (I forget the exact date,) about when the hazel-nuts are ripe, the festival of nutting-day is kept. The rabble of the town go into the country to gather nuts, returning in the evening with boughs of hazel in their hands, shouting and making a great noise. In the meantime the journeymen tailors of the town have proceeded to the adjoining village

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THE FACTION FIGHT AT CURY GREAT TREE.

THE FACTION FIGHT AT CURY GREAT TREE.

On a green knoll in the centre of the intersection of the roads from Helston to the Lizard, and Mawgan to Cury, flourished an ash-tree of magnificent dimensions. The peculiarity of its position, together with its unusual size, in the midst of a district singularly destitute of trees, rendered it famous throughout the surrounding neighbourhood; and in designating a special locality, reference was, and still continues to be, made to “Cury Great Tree,” as a position generally known. During the last

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TOWEDNACK CUCKOO FEAST.

TOWEDNACK CUCKOO FEAST.

The parish feast takes place on the nearest Sunday to the 28th of April. It happened in very early times, when winters extended further into the spring than they now do, that one of the old inhabitants resolved to be jovial notwithstanding the inclemency of the season; so he invited all his neighbours, and to warm his house he placed on the burning faggots the stump of a tree. It began to blaze, and, inspired by the warmth and light, they began to sing and drink; when, lo, with a whiz and a whir

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THE DUKE OF RESTORMEL.

THE DUKE OF RESTORMEL.

A very singular custom formerly prevailed at Lostwithiel, in Cornwall, on Easter Sunday. The freeholders of the town and manor having assembled together, either in person or by their deputies, one among them, each in his turn, gaily attired and gallantly mounted, with a sceptre in his hand, a crown on his head, and a sword borne before him, and respectfully attended by all the rest on horseback, rode through the principal street in solemn state to the church. At the churchyard stile, the curate,

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CHARMING, AND PROPHETIC POWER.

CHARMING, AND PROPHETIC POWER.

I cannot more appropriately preface this section, than by quoting the remarks of a medical gentleman in large practice, on the subject of charms:—“In common with most of the lower classes of the West of England, the miner is not free from many absurd superstitions, (though I am glad to observe, even in the last few years, a great change has taken place, and such follies are gradually declining.) Some think themselves endowed with a species of supernatural agency, and, like the Egyptian alluded t

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FORTUNE-TELLING, CHARMS, ETC.

FORTUNE-TELLING, CHARMS, ETC.

In relation to this subject, and confirming an opinion already expressed in the existence still of a belief in magic and charms, I print the following communication from a lady of considerable literary ability:— “Every country, it may be safely inferred, has its own individual, perhaps characteristic, Charm-record; and inquiry into it would more than probably recompense the labour, by the light it would let in on the still but little investigated philosophy of the human mind, and the growth of p

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THE ZENNOR CHARMERS.

THE ZENNOR CHARMERS.

Both men and women in this parish possessed this power to a remarkable degree. They could stop blood, however freely it might be flowing. “Even should a pig be sticked in the very place, if a charmer was present, and thought of his charm at the time, the pig would not bleed.” This statement, made by a Zennor-man, shews a tolerably large amount of faith in their power. The charmers are very cautious about communicating their charms. A man would not on any account tell his charm to a woman, or a w

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J—— H——, The Conjurer of St Colomb.

J—— H——, The Conjurer of St Colomb.

This old man was successful in persuading his dupes that he owed his powers over evil spirits to his superior learning and his unblemished life. This assumption of piety was well preserved, and to the outside world his sanctity was undoubted. The only practice which can be named as peculiar to H—— was that of lighting scores of candles and placing them around the meadow near his house. Of course such a display would attract much attention; and J—— succeeded in conveying an impression to the mind

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CURES FOR WARTS.

CURES FOR WARTS.

The vicar of Bodmin found, not long since, a bottle full of pins laid in a newly-made grave. I have heard of this as an unfailing remedy; each wart was touched with a new pin, and the pin then dropped into the bottle. I am not quite certain that it was necessary that the bottle should be placed in a newly-made grave; in many cases burying it in the earth, and especially at a “four cross-roads,” was quite sufficient. As the pins rust, the warts decay. A piece of string should be taken, and as man

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A CURE FOR PARALYSIS.

A CURE FOR PARALYSIS.

Margery Penwarne, a paralysed woman, about fifty years of age, though from her affliction looking some ten years older, sat in the church porch of St ——, and presented her outstretched withered arm and open palm to the congregation as they left the house of God after the morning service. Penny after penny fell into her hand, though Margery never opened her lips. All appeared to know the purpose, and thirty pennies were speedily collected. Presently the parson came with his family, and then she s

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A CURE FOR RHEUMATISM.

A CURE FOR RHEUMATISM.

Crawl under a bramble which has formed a second root in the ground. Or get a woman who has been delivered of a child, feet foremost, to tread the patient....

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SUNDRY CHARMS.

SUNDRY CHARMS.

The vicar of a large parish church informs me that a woman came to him some time since for water from the font after a christening; she required it to undo some spell. The vicar states, that all the fonts in the country were formerly locked, to prevent people from stealing the “holy water,” as they called it....

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CURE FOR COLIC IN TOWEDNACK.

CURE FOR COLIC IN TOWEDNACK.

To stand on one’s head for a quarter of an hour....

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FOR A SCALD OR BURN.

FOR A SCALD OR BURN.

Bramble-leaves, or sometimes the leaves of the common dock, wetted with spring water, are employed in this charm, as also in the following one....

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CHARMS FOR INFLAMMATORY DISEASES.

CHARMS FOR INFLAMMATORY DISEASES.

A similar incantation to that practised for a burn is used. Three angels are invoked to come from the East, and this form of words is repeated three times to each one of nine bramble-leaves immersed in spring water, making passes with the leaves from the diseased part....

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CHARMS FOR STANCHING OF BLOOD.

CHARMS FOR STANCHING OF BLOOD.

As this is repeated by ignorant old men or women, it becomes a confused jargon of unmeaning words, but it impresses the still more ignorant sufferer with awe, approaching to fear. The following is more common:—...

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CHARM FOR A TETTER.

CHARM FOR A TETTER.

Thus the verses are continued until tetter, having “no brother,” is imperatively ordered to begone....

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CHARM FOR THE STING OF A NETTLE.

CHARM FOR THE STING OF A NETTLE.

Many a time do I remember, when a child playing in the fields, having suffered from the stings of the nettle, and constantly seeking for the advantages of the charm of the dock-leaf. The cold leaf was placed on the inflamed spot, and the well-known rhyme three times repeated:—...

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CHARM FOR SERPENTS.

CHARM FOR SERPENTS.

The body of a dead serpent bruised on the wound it has occasioned, is said to be an infallible remedy for its bite. Common report is sufficient to warrant a poetical allusion:—...

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THE CURE OF BOILS.

THE CURE OF BOILS.

The sufferer is to pass nine times against the sun, under a bramble-bush growing at both ends. This is the same as the cure prescribed for rheumatism....

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RICKETS, OR A CRICK IN THE BACK.

RICKETS, OR A CRICK IN THE BACK.

The holed stone—Mên-an-tol—in Lanyon, is commonly called by the peasantry the crick-stone. Through this the sufferer was drawn nine times against the sun—or, if a man, he was to crawl through the hole nine times. Strumous children were not unfrequently treated after another fashion. A young ash-tree was cleft vertically, and the parts being drawn forcibly asunder, the child was passed “three times three times” against the sun through the tree. This ceremony having been performed, the tree was ca

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THE CLUB-MOSS, (LYCOPODIUM INUNDATUM.)

THE CLUB-MOSS, (LYCOPODIUM INUNDATUM.)

If this moss is properly gathered, it is “good against all diseases of the eyes.” The gathering is regarded as a mystery not to be lightly told; and if any man ventures to write the secret, the virtues of the moss avail him no more. I hope, therefore, my readers will fully value the sacrifice I make in giving them the formula by which they may be guided. On the third day of the moon—when the thin crescent is seen for the first time—shew it the knife with which the moss is to be cut, and repeat,—

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MOON SUPERSTITIONS.

MOON SUPERSTITIONS.

The following superstitions are still prevalent on the north coast of Cornwall:— “This root, (the sea-poppy,) so much valued for removing all pains in the breast, stomach, and intestines, is good also for disordered lungs, and is so much better here than in other places, that the apothecaries of Cornwall send hither for it; and some people plant them in their gardens in Cornwall, and will not part with them under sixpence a root. A very simple notion they have with regard to this root, which fal

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CURES FOR WHOOPING-COUGH.

CURES FOR WHOOPING-COUGH.

Gather nine spar stones from a running stream, taking care not to interrupt the free passage of the water in doing so. Then dip a quart of water from the stream, which must be taken in the direction in which the stream runs;—by no means must the vessel be dipped against the stream. Then make the nine stones red hot, and throw them into the quart of water. Bottle the prepared water, and give the afflicted child a wine-glass of this water for nine mornings following. If this will not cure the whoo

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CURE OF TOOTHACHE.

CURE OF TOOTHACHE.

One good man informed me that, though he had no faith in charming, yet this he knew, that he was underground one day, and had the toothache “awful bad, sure enough; and Uncle John ax’d me, ‘What’s the matter?’ says he. ‘The toothache,’ says I. ‘Shall I charm it?’ says he. ‘Ees,’ says I. ‘Very well,’ says he; and off he went to work in the next pitch. Ho! dedn’t my tooth ache, Lor’ bless ee; a just ded ye knaw; just as if the charm were tugging my very life out. At last Uncle John comed down to t

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THE CONVALESCENT’S WALK.

THE CONVALESCENT’S WALK.

If an invalid goes out for the first time and makes a circuit, this circuit must be with the sun; if against the sun, there will be a relapse....

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ADDERS, AND THE MILPREVE.

ADDERS, AND THE MILPREVE.

The country people around the Land’s-End say that in old times no one could live in the low grounds, which were then covered with thickets, and these swarming with adders. Even at a much later period, in the summer-time, it was not safe to venture amongst the furze on the Downs without a milpreve . (I have never seen a milpreve; but it is described to me as being about the size of a pigeon’s egg, and I am told that it is made by the adders when they get together in great numbers. Is it not proba

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SNAKES AVOID THE ASH-TREE.

SNAKES AVOID THE ASH-TREE.

It is said that no kind of snake is ever found near the “ashen-tree,” and that a branch of the ash-tree will prevent a snake from coming near a person. A child, who was in the habit of receiving its portion of bread and milk at the cottage door, was found to be in the habit of sharing its food with one of the poisonous adders. The reptile came regularly every morning, and the child, pleased with the beauty of his companion, encouraged the visits. The babe and adder were close friends. Eventually

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TO CHARM A SNAKE.

TO CHARM A SNAKE.

When an adder or snake is seen, a circle is to be rapidly drawn around it, and the sign of the cross made within it, while the two first verses of the 68th Psalm are repeated:— “Let God arise, let his enemies be scattered: let them also that hate him flee before him. “As smoke is driven away, so drive them away: as wax melteth before the fire, so let the wicked perish at the presence of God.” When a child, I well remember being shewn a snake, not yet dead, within a circle of this kind; the garde

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THE ASH-TREE.[64]

THE ASH-TREE.[64]

Weakly children—“children that wouldn’t goode,” or thrive—were sometimes drawn through the cleft ash-tree. I have seen the ceremony performed but in one case. The tree was young, and it was taken by the two forks,—bifurcation having taken place,—and by force rended longitudinally. The cleft was kept open, and the child, quite naked, was passed head first through the tree nine times. The tree was then closed and carefully tied together. If the severed parts reunited, the child and the tree recove

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A TEST OF INNOCENCY.

A TEST OF INNOCENCY.

A farmer in Towednack having been robbed of some property of no great value, was resolved, nevertheless, to employ a test which he had heard the “old people” resorted to for the purpose of catching the thief. He invited all his neighbours into his cottage, and when they were assembled, he placed a cock under the “brandice,” (an iron vessel formerly much employed by the peasantry in baking, when this process was carried out on the hearth, the fuel being furze and ferns.) Every one was directed to

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THE BONFIRE TEST.

THE BONFIRE TEST.

A bonfire is formed of faggots of furze, ferns, and the like. Men and maidens by locking hands form a circle, and commence a dance to some wild native song. At length, as the dancers become excited, they pull each other from side to side across the fire. If they succeed in treading out the fire without breaking the chain, none of the party will die during the year. If, however, the ring is broken before the fire is extinguished, “bad luck to the weak hands,” as my informant said....

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LIGHTS SEEN BY THE CONVERTED.

LIGHTS SEEN BY THE CONVERTED.

There is, in many parts of the county, a belief, derived no doubt from the recollection of St Paul’s conversion, that, when sinners are converted, they see shining lights about themselves. I have many times heard this, but every one seems to have his own particular mode of describing the phenomenon,—where they can be prevailed on to describe it at all,—and usually that is derived from some picture which has made an impression on their minds: such as, “exactly like the light shining round the ang

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THE MIGRATORY BIRDS

THE MIGRATORY BIRDS

I find a belief still prevalent amongst the people in the outlying districts of Cornwall, that such birds as the cuckoo and the swallow remain through the winter in deep caves, cracks in the earth, and in hollow trees; and instances have been cited of these birds having been found in a torpid state in the mines, and in hollow pieces of wood. This belief appears to be of some antiquity, for Carew writes in his “Survey of Cornwall” as follows:— “In the west parts of Cornwall, during the winter sea

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SHOOTING STARS.

SHOOTING STARS.

A mucilaginous substance is found on the damp ground near the granite quarries of Penryn, this is often very phosphorescent at night. The country people regard this as the substance of shooting stars. A tradesman of Penryn once brought me a bottle full of this substance for analysis, informing me that the men employed at the quarries, whenever they observed a shooting star, went to the spot near which they supposed it to fall, and they generally found a hat full of this mucus. It is curious that

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THE SUN NEVER SHINES ON THE PERJURED.

THE SUN NEVER SHINES ON THE PERJURED.

There appears to exist a very old superstition, to the effect that when a man has deeply perjured himself,—especially if by his perjury he has sacrificed the life of a friend,—he not merely loses the enjoyment of the sunshine, but he actually loses all consciousness of its light or its warmth. Howsoever bright the sun may shine, the weather appears to him gloomy, dark, and cold. I have recently been told of a man living in the western part of Cornwall, who is said to have sworn away the life of

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CHARACTERISTICS.

CHARACTERISTICS.

An esteemed and learned correspondent, himself a Cornishman, writing to me on the Cornish character, says:— “There are some adages in which beadledom receives various hard knocks—that abstraction mostly taking the shape of some unlucky mayor; and I have heard in Cornwall, but never elsewhere, that the greatest fool in the place for the time being is always made the mayor. “There is an adage of the Mayor of Calenich, (and yet I doubt if ever that hamlet had such an officer.) Calenich is one mile

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THE MUTTON FEAST.

THE MUTTON FEAST.

An old tradition—the particulars of which I have failed to recover—says that a flock of sheep were blown from the Gwithian Sands over into St Ives Bay, and that the St Ives fishermen caught them,—believing them to be a new variety of fish,—either in their nets, or with hook and line, and brought them ashore as their night’s catch. I learn that Mr Fortescue Hitchins, some fifty or sixty years since, wrote a “copy of verses” on this tradition, but I have never seen this production....

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THE FLOATING GRINDSTONE.

THE FLOATING GRINDSTONE.

I have already told of St Piran and his grindstone. I have, however, another and a more modern story, which is told with great glee at some of the social meetings of the fishermen. This is given merely to indicate the simplicity of this honest race. A party was got together on a promontory at the extremity of the bay which enclosed a fishing-town. They were gathered to see a wonder, a floating grindstone . Seeing that grindstones were grindstones in those days, and worth many pounds sterling, a

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CELTS—FLINT ARROW-HEADS, ETC.

CELTS—FLINT ARROW-HEADS, ETC.

The common people believe these to be produced by thunder, and thrown down from the clouds, and that they shew what weather will ensue by changing their colour. I have also found a belief prevailing in many districts, that Celts impart a virtue to water in which they have been soaked, and that diseases have been cured by drinking it....

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HORNS ON THE CHURCH TOWER.

HORNS ON THE CHURCH TOWER.

When the masons were building the tower of Towednack Church, the devil came every night and carried off the pinnacles and battlements. Again and again this work was renewed during the day, and as often was it removed during the night, until at length the builders gave up the work in despair, feeling that it was of no use to contend with the evil one. Thus it is that Towednack Church stands lonely, with its squat and odd-looking tower, a mark of the power of evil to the present day. Associated wi

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TEA-STALKS AND SMUT.

TEA-STALKS AND SMUT.

Stems of tea floating in that beverage indicate strangers. Flakes of smut hanging loose to the fire-bars do the same thing. The time of the stranger’s arrival may be known by placing the stem on the back of one hand, and smacking it with the other; the number of blows given before it is removed indicates the number of days before his arrival. The flake of carbon is blown upon, and according as it is removed by the first, second, or third blow, so is the time at the end of which the visitor may b

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AN OLD CORNISH RHYME.

AN OLD CORNISH RHYME.

The pilchard visits this coast in the early autumn. These are the “fish” par excellence of the Cornish, and they are thus distinguished....

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TO CHOOSE A WIFE.

TO CHOOSE A WIFE.

Ascertain the day of the young woman’s birth, and refer to the last chapter of Proverbs. Each verse from the 1st to the 31st is supposed to indicate, either directly or indirectly, the character, and to guide the searcher—the verse corresponding with her age indicating the woman’s character....

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THE ROBIN AND THE WREN.

THE ROBIN AND THE WREN.

This feeling is deeply impressed on every young mind; there are few, therefore, who would injure either of those birds. I remember that a boy in Redruth killed a robin: the dead robin was tied round his neck, and he was marched by the other boys through the town, all of them singing the above lines....

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TO SECURE GOOD LUCK FOR A CHILD.

TO SECURE GOOD LUCK FOR A CHILD.

Give the first person whom you meet between your own house and the church to which you are taking the infant to be christened, a piece of bread and salt....

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INNOCENCY.

INNOCENCY.

To wash the hands is an attestation of innocency. To call a man “dirty fingers,” is to accuse him of some foul or unjust deed....

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RAIN AT BRIDAL OR BURIAL.

RAIN AT BRIDAL OR BURIAL.

If it rains while a wedding party are on their way to the church, or on returning from it, it betokens a life of bickering and unhappiness. If the rain falls on a coffin, it is supposed to indicate that the soul of the departed has “arrived safe.”...

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CROWING HENS, ETC.

CROWING HENS, ETC.

A whistling maid and a crowing hen in one house, is a certain sign of a downfall to some one in it. I have known hens killed for crowing by night. The braying of an ass is a sign of fair weather; so is also the crowing of a cock. The quacking of ducks foretells rain....

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THE NEW MOON.

THE NEW MOON.

To see the new moon for the first time, through glass, is unlucky; you may be certain that you will break glass before that moon is out. I have known persons whose attention has been called to a clear new moon, hesitate. “Hev I seed her out a’ doors afore?” if not, they will go into the open air, and if possible shew the moon “a piece of gold,” or, at all events, turn their money....

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LOOKING-GLASSES.

LOOKING-GLASSES.

Breaking a looking-glass is certain to insure seven years of misfortune....

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THE MAGPIE.

THE MAGPIE.

A scolding woman is called a magpie. Whenever you see a magpie, take off your hat to it; this will turn away the anger....

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THE MONTH OF MAY UNLUCKY.

THE MONTH OF MAY UNLUCKY.

May is regarded by many as an unhealthy and unlucky month. Children born in the month of May are called “May chets,” and kittens cast in May are invariably destroyed, for— Another rhyme is—, meaning that funerals will be plenty....

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ITCHING EARS.

ITCHING EARS.

When the ears are red and itch, it is a sign that some one is talking of the suffering individual. If it is the left ear, they are being scandalised; if the right ear, they are being praised. Often have I heard, when the lower and middle class people have been indulging in some gossip of their neighbours or friends, “I’ll bet how their ears do itch.”...

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THE SPARK ON THE CANDLE.

THE SPARK ON THE CANDLE.

A bright spark on the candle-wick indicates a letter coming to the house. The person towards whom it shines will receive it. The time of its arrival is determined by striking the bottom of the candlestick on the table. If the spark comes off on the first blow, it will be received to-morrow; if two blows are required, on the second day, and so on....

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THE BLUE VEIN.

THE BLUE VEIN.

A fond mother was paying more than ordinary attention to a fine healthy-looking child, a boy about three years old. The poor woman’s breast was heaving with emotion, and she struggled to repress her sighs. Upon inquiring if anything was really wrong, she said “the old lady of the house had just told her that the child could not live long, because he had a blue vein across his nose .”...

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THE CROAKING OF THE RAVEN.

THE CROAKING OF THE RAVEN.

There is a common feeling that the croaking of a raven over the house bodes evil to some member of the family. The following incident, given to me by a really intelligent man, illustrates the feeling: [66] — “One day our family were much annoyed by the continued croaking of a raven over our house. Some of us believed it to be a token; others derided the idea; but one good lady, our next-door neighbour, said, ‘Just mark the day, and see if something does not come of it.’ The day and hour were car

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WHISTLING.

WHISTLING.

To whistle by night is one of the unpardonable sins amongst the fishermen of St Ives. My correspondent says, “I would no more dare go among a party of fishermen at night whistling a popular air than into a den of untamed tigers.” No miner will allow of whistling underground. I could never learn from the miners whether they regarded it as unlucky or not. I rather think they feel that whistling indicates thoughtlessness, and they know their labour is one of danger, requiring serious attention....

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MEETING ON THE STAIRS.

MEETING ON THE STAIRS.

It is considered unlucky to meet on the stairs, and often one will retire to his or her room rather than run the risk of giving or receiving ill luck. I find this superstition prevails also in the Midland counties....

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TREADING ON GRAVES.

TREADING ON GRAVES.

So sings Coleridge in his ballad of “The Three Graves.” Whenever a person shivers from a sensation of cold down the spine, it is said some one is walking over his or her grave. Persons believing this will give directions that they may be buried in some secluded corner of the churchyard, so that their corpse may not be disturbed by unholy footsteps....

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A LOOSE GARTER.

A LOOSE GARTER.

If an unmarried woman’s garter loosens when she is walking, her sweetheart is thinking of her....

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TO CURE THE HICCOUGH.

TO CURE THE HICCOUGH.

Wet the forefinger of the right hand with spittle, and cross the front of the left shoe or boot three times, repeating the Lord’s Prayer backwards....

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THE SLEEPING FOOT.

THE SLEEPING FOOT.

This irregularity in the circulation is at once removed by crossing the foot with saliva....

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THE HORSE-SHOE.

THE HORSE-SHOE.

To nail a horse-shoe, which has been cast on the road, over the door of any house, barn, or stable, is an effectual means of preventing the entrance of witches....

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THE BLACK CAT’S TAIL.

THE BLACK CAT’S TAIL.

Those little gatherings which occur on the eye-lids of children, locally called “wilks,” are cured by passing a black cat’s tail nine times over the place. If a ram cat, the cure is more certain....

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UNLUCKY THINGS.

UNLUCKY THINGS.

To put the loaf on the table upside down—to cut the butter at both ends—to place the bellows on the table—to upset the salt—to cross your knife and fork—to pour gravy out of a spoon backwards, (or back-handed,) is each unlucky, and leads to quarrels. To borrow or lend a bellows is most unlucky, and many would rather give than lend one. If you are going on an errand, never turn back to your house, it presages ill luck to do so. If, however, you are compelled to it, fail not to sit down. By doing

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THE LIMP CORPSE.

THE LIMP CORPSE.

If a corpse stiffens shortly after death, all is thought to proceed naturally; but if the limbs remain flexible, some one of the family is shortly to follow. If the eyes of a corpse are difficult to close, it is said “they are looking after a follower.” To find a louse on one’s linen, is a sign of sickness. To find two, indicates a severe illness. If three lice are so found within a month, it is a “token to prepare.” Talking backwards, or putting one word incorrectly before another,—“the cart be

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“BY HOOK OR BY CROOK.”

“BY HOOK OR BY CROOK.”

In the parish of Egles-Hayle are two crosses, known as “Peverell’s Crosses;” and near Mount Charles, also in this parish, is another “moorstone” cross, called the Prior’s Cross, whereon is cut the figure of a hook and a crook, in memory of the privileges granted by a prior, belonging to the family of the Peverells, who are said to have possessed lands in this parish since the time of Richard II. The poor of Bodmin were greatly distressed through the scarcity of fuel, the “turf,” or peat of the m

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WEATHER SIGNS.

WEATHER SIGNS.

The Weather Dog .—It frequently happens in unsettled weather that banks of rain-cloud gather around the horizon, and that, over isolated tracts, the rain falls. If these depositions from this low stratum of clouds occur opposite to the sun, the lower limb of a bow is formed, often appearing like a pillar of decomposed light; and sometimes two of these coloured bands will be seen, forming indeed the two extremities of the arch. These are “weather dogs,” and they are regarded as certain prognostic

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THE FIRST BUTTERFLY.

THE FIRST BUTTERFLY.

“One of the superstitions prevailing in Devonshire is, that any individual neglecting to kill the first butterfly he may see for the season, will have ill luck throughout the year.” [68] The following recent example is given by a young lady:—“The other Sunday, as we were walking to church, we met a man running at full speed, with his hat in one hand, and a stick in the other. As he passed us he exclaimed, ‘I shan’t hat ’en now, I b’lieve.’ He did not give us time to inquire what he was so eagerl

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PECULIAR WORDS AND PHRASES.

PECULIAR WORDS AND PHRASES.

“The people in the west,” writes a correspondent, “have adopted many words from the Danish invaders.” Tradition assures us that the sea-rovers of the North frequently landed at Witsand Bay, burned and pillaged the villages of Escols and Mayon, sometimes took off the women, but never made a settlement. Certain red-haired families are often referred to as Danes, and the dark-haired people will not marry with “a red-haired Dane.” He continues:—“If you were in Buryan Church-town this evening, you mi

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THE BELLS OF FORRABURY CHURCH.

THE BELLS OF FORRABURY CHURCH.

To this day the tower of Forrabury Church, or, as it is called by Mr Hawker, “the silent tower of Bottreaux,” remains without bells. “At Forrabury the chimes have never sounded for a marriage, the knell has never been heard for a funeral.”— Collins. In days long ago, the inhabitants of the parish of Forrabury—which does not cover a square mile, but which now includes the chief part of the town of Boscastle and its harbour—resolved to have a peal of bells which should rival those of the neighbour

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THE TOWER OF MINSTER CHURCH.

THE TOWER OF MINSTER CHURCH.

On a visit to this old church, which is allowed to perish under the influences of damp and the accompanying vegetable growth, in a way which is but little creditable to the parishioners, I was struck at the evidence that the tower had either been taken down or that it had fallen. Amidst the long grass of the churchyard I found many remains of carved stones, which clearly belonged at one time to the tower. I sought for some information, but I could obtain none. The officiating clergyman, and seve

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TEMPLE MOORS.

TEMPLE MOORS.

The parish of Temple in 1851 had a population of 24. Yet once the Knights Templars built a church here; and with the purpose of civilising the inhabitants of the moors in the midst of which it was founded, they secured for their temple some special privileges. “Many a bad marriage bargain,” says Tonkin, “is there yearly slubbered up, and grass widows with their fatlings put to lie-in and nurse here.” “Send her to Temple Moors,” implied that any female requiring seclusion might at one time secure

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THE LEGEND OF TAMARA.

THE LEGEND OF TAMARA.

The lovely nymph Tamara was born in a cavern. Although her parents were spirits of the earth, the child loved the light of day. Often had they chided her for yielding to her desires and visiting the upper world; and often had they warned her against the consequences which would probably arise from her neglect of their advice. The giants of the moors were to be feared; and it was from these that the earth spirits desired to protect their child. Tamara—beautiful, young, heedless—never lost an oppo

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THE CHURCH AND THE BARN.

THE CHURCH AND THE BARN.

The Daunays were great people in their day; but many of them bore indifferent characters. Sir John de Daunay was a strange mixture of ostentatious pride and penuriousness. His Lady Emelyn was as proud as her husband, but extravagant to a fault. The priests of St Germans persuaded Sir John to build a church on his lands at Sheviock. He commenced the work, and, notwithstanding his great wealth, his heart failed him and he curtailed the fair proportions on which he had at first decided. Emelyn was

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THE PENRYN TRAGEDY.

THE PENRYN TRAGEDY.

“News from Penryn, in Cornwall, of a most bloody and unexampled Murder.” Such was the title of a black-letter pamphlet of eight pages referred to by Lysons. This curious book does not appear to be in existence. Mr Davies Gilbert, who possessed much property in the parish of Gluvias, was especially interested in the farm of Bohelland, the place which has been rendered for ever notorious, as having been the scene of Lillo’s tragedy of “Fatal Curiosity.” From a work entitled “The Reign and Death of

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GOLDSITHNEY FAIR AND THE GLOVE.

GOLDSITHNEY FAIR AND THE GLOVE.

On the 5th of August, St James’s day, (old style,) a fair is held here, which was originally held in the Church-town of Sithney, near Helston. In olden time the good St Perran the Little gave to the wrestlers in his parish a glove as the prize, and the winner of the glove was permitted to collect the market toll on the day of the feast, and to appropriate the money to his own use. The winner of the glove lived in the Church-town of Sithney, and for long long years the right of holding the fair r

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THE HARLYN PIE.

THE HARLYN PIE.

“Adjoining the Church of Constantine, in the parish of St Merryn, was a cottage which a family of the name of Edwards held for generations, under the proprietors of Harlyn, by the annual render of a pie, made of limpets, raisins, and various herbs, on the eve of the festival in honour of the saint to whom the church was dedicated. The pie, as I have heard from my family, and from more ancient members of the family, and from old servants, was excellent. The Edwards had pursued for centuries the o

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PACKS OF WOOL THE FOUNDATION OF THE BRIDGE OF WADEBRIDGE.

PACKS OF WOOL THE FOUNDATION OF THE BRIDGE OF WADEBRIDGE.

Lovebone was the vicar of Wadebridge, and there was a ferry across the river. It was a frequent custom for the farmers to ride their horses and to drive their cattle across when the tide was low, and frequently men and beasts were lost in the quicksands formed on the rising of the tide. A sad accident of this kind happened, and Lovebone resolved on building a bridge; as Leland says in his “Itinerary,” “Then one Lovebone, vicar of Wadebridge, moved with pitie, began the bridge, and with great pai

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THE LAST WOLF IN ENGLAND.

THE LAST WOLF IN ENGLAND.

The extirpation of the wolves, which once existed in every part of these islands, is an oft-told story. But it is not generally known that the last native wolf lived in the forests of Ludgvan, near Penzance. The last of his race was a gigantic specimen, and terrible was the havoc made by him on the flocks. Tradition tells us that at last he carried off a child. This could not be endured, so the peasantry all turned out, and this famous wolf was captured at Rospeith, the name of a farm still exis

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CHURCHES BUILT IN PERFORMANCE OF VOWS.

CHURCHES BUILT IN PERFORMANCE OF VOWS.

There are several churches which, tradition tells us, owe their origin to vows made by terrified men that they would, if relieved from their dangers, build a temple to God. Amongst these may be named Brent Tor, thus spoken of by Mr Bray:— “The church of Brent Tor is dedicated to St Michael. And there is a tradition among the vulgar that its foundation was originally laid at the foot of the hill; but that the enemy of all angels, the Prince of Darkness, removed the stones by night from the base t

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BOLAIT, THE FIELD OF BLOOD.

BOLAIT, THE FIELD OF BLOOD.

Tradition asserts that it was on the spot, so called in the parish of Burian, that the last battle was fought between the Cornish Britons and Athelstan. This is in some measure confirmed by the discovery of flint arrow-heads, in considerable quantities, from time to time, in and near this “field of slaughter.” We have little beyond the evidence of tradition to guide us in regard to any of the triumphs of Athelstan in Cornwall. It appears tolerably certain that this Saxon king confined the Cornis

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WOEFUL MOOR, AND BODRIGAN’S LEAP.

WOEFUL MOOR, AND BODRIGAN’S LEAP.

The Bodrigans, from a very early period, were connected with the borough of Looe. Otto, or Otho de Bodrigan, was lord of the manor of Pendrim and Looe in the reign of Edward II. Another Otho de Bodrigan was Sheriff of Cornwall in the 3d of Richard II., A.D. 1400. Sir Henry Bodrigan was “attaynted for taking part with King Richard III. against Henry VII.; and, after flying into Ireland, Sir Richard Egecombe, father of Sir Pears Egecombe, had Bodrigan, and other parcels of Bodrigan’s lands; and Tr

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PENGERSWICK CASTLE.

PENGERSWICK CASTLE.

This castellated building—for it does not now admit of being called a castle, notwithstanding its embattled turrets and its machicolated gate—is situated in a hollow running down to Pengerswick Cove, in the Mount’s Bay, where there never could have been anything to defend; and certainly there is nothing to induce any one to incur the cost of such a building. Mr Milliton, in the reign of Henry VIII., slew in the streets of London a man in a drunken brawl. He fled, and went to sea. It is not known

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THE CLERKS OF CORNWALL.

THE CLERKS OF CORNWALL.

“In the last age there was a familiarity between the parson and the clerk and the people which our feelings of decorum would revolt at— e.g. , ‘I have seen the ungodly flourish like a green bay -tree.’ ‘How can that be, maister?’ said the clerk of St Clement’s. Of this I was myself an ear-witness.” “At Kenwyn, two dogs, one of which was the parson’s, were fighting at the west end of the church; the parson, who was then reading the second lesson, rushed out of the pew and went down and parted the

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A FAIRY CAUGHT.

A FAIRY CAUGHT.

The following, communicated to me on the 8th of August, is too good to be lost. I therefore give it in my correspondent’s own words:— “I heard last week of three fairies having been seen in Zennor very recently. A man who lived at the foot of Trendreen hill, in the valley of Treridge, I think, was cutting furze on the hill. Near the middle of the day he saw one of the small people, not more than a foot long, stretched at full length and fast asleep, on a bank of griglans, (heath,) surrounded by

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THE LIZARD PEOPLE.

THE LIZARD PEOPLE.

There is a tradition that the Lizard people were formerly a very inferior race. In fact it is said that they went on all fours, till the crew of a foreign vessel, wrecked on the coast, settled among them, and improved the race so much that they became as remarkable for their stature and physical development as they had been before for the reverse. At this time, as a whole, the Lizard folks certainly have among them a very large population of tall people, many of the men and women being over six

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PRUSSIA COVE AND SMUGGLERS’ HOLES.

PRUSSIA COVE AND SMUGGLERS’ HOLES.

Smugglers’ hiding-places (now, of course, unused) are numerous. On the banks of the Helford river are several, and two or three have lately been discovered on the coast about St Keverne by the falling in of their roofs. In a part of Penzance harbour, nine years ago, a hiding-place of this kind was discovered; it still contained one or two kegs, and the skeleton of a man, with his clothes in good preservation. It is presumed that the poor fellow while intoxicated was shut in, and the place never

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CORNISH TEENY-TINY.

CORNISH TEENY-TINY.

Mr Halliwell gives us, in his “Popular Rhymes and Nursery Tales,” the story of Teeny-tiny. In this a little old woman takes a bone from the churchyard to make soup. She goes to bed, and puts the bone in the cupboard. During the night some one comes demanding the bone, and at length the terrified old woman gives it up. A similar story is told in Cornwall. An old lady had been to the church in the sands of Perranzabuloe. She found, amidst the numerous remains of mortality, some very good teeth. Sh

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THE SPANIARD AT PENRYN.

THE SPANIARD AT PENRYN.

In the reign of James I. there happened to be upon our coast a Spanish vessel of war. Favoured by the mists of evening and the growing darkness, the ship entered Falmouth harbour unseen. The crew armed themselves, and taking to their boats, proceeded with great caution to the town of Penryn, situated at the head of the harbour. There they landed, formed themselves into proper order, and marched into the town, purposing to plunder the inhabitants and burn the town. With steady tramp they cautious

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BOYER, MAYOR OF BODMIN.

BOYER, MAYOR OF BODMIN.

In the reign of Edward VI., Boyer was the mayor of Bodmin, and he appears to have been suspected of aiding in an insurrection of the men of Devonshire and Cornwall. However this may be, Sir Anthony Kingston, provost-marshal of the king’s army, sent orders to Boyer to have a gibbet erected in the street opposite his own house by the next day at noon. He, at the same time, sent his compliments to the mayor, telling him that he should dine with him, in order to be present at the execution of some r

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THOMASINE BONAVENTURE.

THOMASINE BONAVENTURE.

In the reign of Henry VI., about the year 1450, in the parish of Week St Mary, on the northern coast of Cornwall, was born of humble parents a girl, to whom the name of Thomasine was given. This child was in no way distinguished from other Cornish children; they ever have been, and still are, remarkable for their healthful beauty, and Thomasine, like others, was beautiful. Her father was a small farmer, and the daughter was usually employed in minding the sheep upon Greenamore, or preventing the

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THE LAST OF THE KILLIGREWS.

THE LAST OF THE KILLIGREWS.

Lady Jane, the widow of Sir John Killigrew, sate in one of the windows of Arwenick House, looking out upon the troubled waters of Falmouth Harbour. A severe storm had prevailed for some days, and the Cornish coast was strewn with wrecks. The tempest had abated; the waves were subsiding, though they still beat heavily against the rocks. A light scud was driving over the sky, and a wild and gloomy aspect suffused all things. There was a sudden outcry amongst a group of men, retainers of the Killig

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SAINT GERENNIUS.

SAINT GERENNIUS.

This reached me at too late a period to be included with the legends of the saints:— “The beacon at Veryan stands on the highest ground in Roseland, at a short distance from the cliff which overlooks Pendower and Gerrans Bay. Dr Whitaker, in his ‘Cathedral of Cornwall,’ states it to be one of the largest tumuli in the kingdom. Its present height above the level of the field in which it stands is about twenty-eight feet, and its circumference at the base three hundred and fifty feet; but it must

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CORNISH DIALOGUE.

CORNISH DIALOGUE.

As the Cornish dialogue peculiarly illustrates a description of literary composition which has no resemblance to that of any other county, I think it advisable to give one specimen:— DIALOGUE BETWEEN MAL TRELOARE AND SAUNDRY KEMP. Keendle teening , candle lighting. Squarded hat , broken or cracked hat. Lem ma naw , let me know, tell me. Wheal Bog , wheal, or, correctly spelt, huel, is old Cornish, and signifies a mine or work. Doat figs , broad figs. A cobbe , a cobbler, a bungler. Bra tummills

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(A.) ST PIRAN—PERRAN ZABULOE.

(A.) ST PIRAN—PERRAN ZABULOE.

“It is rather a curious circumstance,” says Davies Gilbert, “that the word Zabuloe added to Perran, for the distinction of this parish, is not Celtic, but through the French sable , from sabulum , a word frequently used by Pliny, as indicative of sand or gravel. “The encroachments of the sand have caused no less than three churches to be built, after considerable intervals of time, in this parish. The last was commenced in 1804; and in this year, (1835,) a building has been discovered more ancie

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(B.) THE DISCOVERER OF TIN.

(B.) THE DISCOVERER OF TIN.

By an anachronism of fifteen hundred years or more, St Perran was considered as the person who first found tin; and this conviction induced the miners to celebrate his day, the 5th of March, with so much hilarity, that any one unable to guide himself along the road has received the appellation of a Perraner; and that, again, has been most unjustly reflected as a habit on the saint. “It may here be worthy of remark, that, as the miners impute the discovery of tin to St Perran, so they ascribe its

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(C.) ST NEOT.

(C.) ST NEOT.

The following account of this celebrated saint, as given by Mr Davies Gilbert, will not be without interest:— “Multitudes flocked to him from all parts. He founded a monastery, and repaired to Rome for a confirmation, and for blessing at the hands of the Pope; these were readily obtained. He returned to his monastery, where frequent visits were made to him by King Alfred, on which occasions he admonished and instructed the great founder of English liberty; and finally quitted this mortal life on

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(E.) MILLINGTON OF PENGERSWICK.

(E.) MILLINGTON OF PENGERSWICK.

In the reign of Henry VIII., one Militon, or Millington, appears to have purchased Pengerswick Castle. This Millington is said to have retired into the solitude of this place on account of a murder which he had committed. (Mr Wilkie Collins appears to have founded his novel of “Basil” on this tradition.) In all probability a very much older story is adapted to Mr Millington. So far from his being a recluse, we learn of his purchasing St Michael’s Mount, “whose six daughters and heirs invested th

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(F.) SARACEN.

(F.) SARACEN.

The term Saracen is always now supposed to apply to the Moors. This is not exactly correct. Percy, for example, in his “Essay on the Ancient Minstrels,” says, “The old metrical romance of ‘Horn Child,’ which, although from the mention of Saracens, &amp;c., it must have been written, at least, after the First Crusade, in 1096, yet, from its Anglo-Saxon language or idiom, can scarcely be dated later than within a century after the Conquest.” I think this ballad, and several others of an early

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