The Wilmington daily Republican., 1891-06-23
THE BELIEF In FAIRIES.
IT IS SAID TO STILL EXIST IN SOME
PARTS OF THE WORLD.

| In countries where good deal of Celtic
blood yet remains pure and untainted with
Teutonic or Scandinavian a lingering be-
lief in fairies may still be traced in remote
parts. A few years ago an old man in the
Isle OF Man solemnly assured traveller
there that he himself had one night beheld
the fairies at their revels in such multi
tudes that there was quite thickness
tremendous Of them." and no amount of
skeptical questioning could shake the old
man in his belief. At the present day, in
the wilder parts OF Cornwall, a quite
genuine belief in being "pisky led" pre-
walls. "Piskien pixie in Devonian) is the
common Cornish name for fairies, and cer-
tain mischievous sprites among them are
supposed to derive great pleasure in entic-
ing unwary travellers across the wild moors
and hills from the right paths and leading
them grievously astray. After landing
some unlucky wight in a bog burst of
merry laughter in the air generally informs
the traveller who his guide has been. The
| only way to circumvent these airy sprites
is to turn the coat inside out before ventur-
ing across desolate expanse. That they
have a certain command over the powers
! of nature is shown by their having the
! power to blind and bewilder the traveller
by throwing fog around him, SO that he
cannot trace his way.
WHAT AUNT JOAN" SAW.
The following account Of their personal
appearance is preserved in tale told by
| old wives in the neighborhood of Lamorna,
! beyond Penzance: An old woman called
Aunt Joan," when on visit to neighbor
popularly supposed to be white witch,
rubs little ointment she finds hidden
| under some fern upon one of her eyes, and
| the result is that when she opened her ewes
THE place was full Of sprites and spriggans.
In all the folds of the nets and sails hang
ing from the beams troops of small people
were cutting all sorts of capers. The little
creatures were tossing up their heels, wav-
ing their feathered caps and fms as they
launched up and down on the merest bits
OF sticks or green twigs. Numbers Of them
were swinging in the cobwebs that hung
from the rafters, or riding the mice in and
out through the holes in the thatch
II noted that all the little men were
dressed in green, pinked out with red, and
had feathered caps on their heads, high
riding boots, with silver spurs on their
heels Their ladies were all decked out in
the grand old fashion; their gowns were
OF green velvet with long trains, some
looped up with silver chains and bells or
tassels, others had their trains sweeping
behind them as they walked in grand state
up and down. They seemed to think there
was nobody in the house but themselves
prancing about in their high heeled shoes
sparkling with diamond buckles. The
| little women all wore high crowned steeple
hats like mine, with wreaths of the most
beautiful flowers of all colors around
them, sprigs and garlands on all the other
parts of their dress and in their hands as
well, flirting their fans in the faces of the
l WNAnN hlnRNFK H. II
tails l ever did see. What puzzled mo
most was to see so many sweet flowers
with them at that time of the year. l
spied some ugly spriggans seated in the
dark corner looking very gloomy, because
they are doomed to guard the treasures
and do irksome things the merry small
people are free from. A troop of the small
people entered, playing such sweet strains
on the pipes, flutes and other instruments
they had made with green reeds of tho
brook and shells of the shore"
Then follows an account of how the fairy
band approached the old dame Chenance
tthe white witch), and cast punches of the
herbs into her apron, with which she made
healing salves and lotions. AS soon as
these fairies retired others came forward,
bearing in their hands unopened flowers
of the foXglove, from which they poured
dress than it was changed into velvet;
others laid silver cord on the cuttings of
the petticoat, and decked the old dame ou,
in all manner and variety of flowers. The
house is covered with marvellous tapestries.
and the old dame so transformed with
her fairy attire that Aunt Joan gets fright
ened and hobbies off, but on glancing back
with her unanointed eye sees Dame Che
nance in her ordinary clothes sewing; but
on looking with the anointed eye the fairy
scene is again revealed.
LITTLE "BoBBY GRIGLANsn
Another story relates how man, cutting
furze on the heath finds among the bushes
tiny figure asleep. He was no bigger
than cat, and dressed in green coat,
sky blue breeches and diamond buckled
shoes. Uncle Billy takes him home to his
children, who make great friends with
him, and call him Bobby Griglans (grig-
lans is old Cornish for heath). He is a gay
little creature, who sings and dances for
hours together, with great abhorrence of
dirt or dust. He only drinks milk, and
eats black berries or hips and haws They
keep him few days, but among the furze
one day Bobby and the children meet a lit
tie man and woman, the man dressed lust
as Bobby, only wearing riding boots with
silver spurs The little woman wore q
green gown sprinkled all over with silver
stars. Her little steeple crowned hat was
wreathed with heather pcrched on her
golden curs, and the pretty soul was
wringing her hands a-crying, "oh my
dear and tender Skillywidden where ever
canst "a be gone to, my only joy2" Now
goe back" said Bobby to the children
"my dad and mann are come. Here l am,
nanny
By the time he said Here am" the
little man and woman and Skillywdden /
vanished, and were never more seen. The
children got good thrashing for letting
Skillywidden go, for if they had kept him
he would have shown their daddy where
crooks of gold are buried, and they would
all of them have been rich.
AL things pass away; even our children
now will scarcely deign to own belief in
one of the purest faneies that ever entered