Port Tobacco times, and Charles County advertiser. (Port Tobacco, Md.) 1845-1898, 1846-03-26
WERE-WOLVES.

The ancient superstition respecting were
wolves, the mutation of men into wolves at
this season, is much too remarkable to be
admitted. CLAUS Magnus, Archbishop Of
Upsal, and metropolitan of Sweden, relates,
in his History Of the Goths, that, sat the fes-
tival ofChristmas, in the cold northern parts,
there is a strange conversion of men into
beasts, and that, at place previously fixed
among themselves, there is a gathering of a
hugh multitude of wolves which have been
changed from men, and which, during that
night, rage 18th such fierceness against man.
kind and other creatures not fierce by ma
ture, that the inhabitants of the country suf-
fer more hurt from them than they ever do
from natural wolves: for these human
wolves attack houses, break down the doors
in order that they may destroy the inmates,
descend into the cellars, where they drink
out whole tuns of beer or mead, leaving the
empty vessels heaped one upon another
If any man afterwards come to the place
where they have met, and his cart overturn,
or he fall down in the snow, it is believed
that he will die that year.'' The author re-
lates, that ''there is standing wall of GER
tain castle that was destroyed, to which, at
an appointed time, these unnatural wolves
come and endeavor 10 lean over ii, and that
those wolves which cannot leap over the
wall from fairness or otherwise, are whipped
by their leaders; and moreover, it is believ-
ed that among them are the great men and
chief nobility of the land This change Of
natural man into brute is effected by
muttering certain words and drinking a cup
of ale to a man-wolf, which, If he accepts
the same, renders the man-natural worthy
Of being admitted into the society of NEIL
wolves. He may then change himself into
the form of wolf by going into secret
cellar or private wood, and may put of, his
VOLTS form, and resume his own at plea
sure" The following instances of anec-
dotes are related i'll confirmation Of this
statement "a certain nobleman, while on
a Journey through the woods, was benight-
ed and hungry, and it SO fell out, that among
his servants, were some who had the facul-
ty of becoming wolves. One of these pro-
posed that the rest should be quiet while he
Withdrew, and that they should not be sur
prised to tumult by anything they saw in
his absence and, so saying, he went In a
thick wood, and there privily transformed
himself, and came out as a wolf, and fell
fercely ON flock Of sheep, and caught one
Of them, and brought it to his companions
who, knowing the bringer thereof, received
it gratefully, and he returned into the wood
as wolf would, and came back again in
his shape as the nobleman's servant" mo
many years since it happened, in Livonia
that nobleman's wife disputed with one o
her servants whether men could turn them
selves into wolves, and The lady said they
could not; but the servant said, with he
permission, he would presently show he
an example of that business; and forthwith
he went alone icto the cellar, and presently
after came forth in the form of wolf; anC
the dogs hunted him through the fields into
q wood, where he defended himself stoutly
but they bit ont one of his eyes, and tht
next day he came with only one eye to hi:
lady" ''It is yet fresh in the memory tina
the Duke of Prussia, though he paid atten
ton to stories of this kind, required per-
son who was reputed to be skilled in this
sorcery to give proof of his art. The man
accordingly transformed himselfin into wolf
The duke was satisfied, and caused the un-
lucky experimentalist to be burnedfor idola-
.''-HampSon' s. Dates and Charters.