Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1877-08-29
NO. 80.


y rlch lady sat up late one night
carding and preparing wool, while all
the family and servants were asleep.
Suddenly 4 knock was given at the
door and voice called '-Open, OPEN"
''WhO is there:" said the woman of the
house. Il am the Witch of the One
Horn was answered. The mistress.
supposing that one of her neighbors had
called and required assistance, opened
the door, and a woman entered, having
in her hand pair of wool carders, and
bearing horn on her forehead, as if
growing there. She sat down BY the
fire in silence, and began To card the
wool with violent haste Suddenly she
paused, and said aloud: Where are
the women: They delay too long"
/ Then a second knock came to the door,
and voice called a. before, "Open,
| OPEN" The mistress felt herself con-
strained To rise and open to the call,
and Immediately Il second witch entered.
having two horns on her forehead, ami
in her hand Il wheel for spinning the
wool. GIVE me place" she said; Il
am the Witch of the Two Horns" and
she began TO spin a quick aS lightning.
| And so the knocks went on, and the
call was heard. and the witches entered,
until at last twelve women sat around
the fire-the first with one horn, thr
| last with twelve horns. And they
| cIr,led the thread, and turned their
/ Spinning-wheels,a and wound and woyr,
all singing together an ancient rhyme,
but no word did they speak to the
mistress of the house. Strange to hear
and frightful to look upon We're these
twelve women. with their horns and
their wheels; and their mistress felt
near To death, and she tried To rise that
she might call for help, but could not
move, nor could she utter Il word or cry.
I for the spell of the witches was upon
her. Then one of them called 10 her
i'm Irish, and said: Rise. woman. and
make us Il cake" Then the mistress
searched for vessel 10 bring water
from the well that she might mix with
the meal and make the cake, but she
could find none. And they said to her:
Take sieve and bring water in it,
And she took the .ieve, and went TO the
well; but the water poured from il. and
she could fetch none for the cake AMI
she sat down by the well and wept.
Then voice came by her, and said
Take yellow clay and moss, and bind
them together, and plaster the sieve -
-.
the sieve held the water for the cake.
And the voice said again: Return,
and when thou comest to the north an
gle of the house cry aloud three times.
and say, The mountain of the Fcnian
women and the sky over il i all on
fire And she did 50. When the
witches inside heard the call, great
and terrible cry broke from their lips,
and they rushed forth with wild lamen-
tatiOnS and Shriek>, and He'd away to
Sleive-namOn, where was their chief
abode. But the Spirit of the Well badc
the mistress of the house to enter and
prepare her home against the enchant-
ments of the witches if they returned
again. And first. to break their spells,
she sprinkled the water in which she
had washed her child, feet the feet
water outside the door of the threshold:
secondly, she took the cake which the
witches had made in her absence OF
meal mixed with the blood drawn from
the sleeping family. And she broke the
cake i'm bits, and placed bit in the
mouth of each sleeper, and they We're re
stored. and she took the cloth the witches
had woven and placed il half in and half
out OF the chest with the paddock: and.
lastly. she secured the door with q great
croSs-bcam fastened in the jambs, -
that they could not enter. And having
done these things she waited. Not
long were the witches in coming back.
and they ragged and called for vengeance
"Open open :" they screamed. open.
feet-water:" Il can not" said the
fect-watcr. Il am scattered on the
ground, and my path i down 10 the
LOugh.' Open, open, wood and tree
and beam" they cried To the door. Il
can not, >" said the door, for the beam
i, fixed in the iambs, and | have no
power to move" Open, open, cake
that We have made and mingled with
blood" they cried again Il can not,
said the cake, ''for / am broken and
bruised, and my blood i on the lips of
the sleeping children" Then the
witches rushed through the air with
great cries, and fled back to Sileve-na-
mon. Uttering strange curses on the
Spirit OF the Well, who had wished
their ruin, but the woman and the
house We're left in peace, and mantle
dropped by one of the witches in her
flight was hung up by the mistress as 4
sign of the nights awful contest, and
this mantle was in possession of the
same family from generation to sener-
alton for 800 year~ after.-Drbi.A TEi-
cefSif4 NdgoziRe.