Chapter V: The Interpretation of the Fire-Festivals (5)

_ 690 Indiculus Superstitionum et Paganiarum_, No. XV., “De _igne fricato
de ligno_ _i.e._ nodfyr.” A convenient edition of the _Indiculus_
has been published with a commentary by H. A. Saupe (Leipsic, 1891).
As to the date of the work, see the editor’s introduction, pp. 4
_sq._

691 Karl Lynker, _Deutsche Sagen und Sitten in hessischen Gauen_2
(Cassel and Göttingen, 1860), pp. 252 _sq._, quoting a letter of the
mayor (_Schultheiss_) of Neustadt to the mayor of Marburg dated 12th
December 1605.

692 Bartholomäus Carrichter, _Der Teutschen Speisskammer_ (Strasburg,
1614), Fol. pag. 17 and 18, quoted by C. L. Rochholz, _Deutscher
Glaube und Brauch_ (Berlin, 1867), ii. 148 _sq._

M234 Method of kindling the need-fire.

693 Joh. Reiskius, _Untersuchung des Notfeuers_ (Frankfort and Leipsic,
1696), p. 51, quoted by J. Grimm, _Deutsche Mythologie_,4 i. 502
sq.; R. Andree, _Braunschweiger Volkskunde_ (Brunswick, 1896), p.
313.

M235 The mode of kindling the need-fire about Hildesheim.

694 J. Grimm, _Deutsche Mythologie_,4 i. 503 _sq._

695 J. Grimm, _op. cit._ i. 504.

M236 The mode of kindling the need-fire in the Mark.

696 Adalbert Kuhn, _Märkische Sagen und Märchen_ (Berlin, 1843), p. 369.

M237 The mode of kindling the need-fire in Mecklenburg.

697 Karl Bartsch, _Sagen, Märchen und Gebräuche aus Mecklenburg_
(Vienna, 1879-1880), ii. 149-151.

M238 The mode of kindling the need-fire in Hanover.

698 Carl und Theodor Colshorn, _Märchen und Sagen_ (Hanover, 1854), pp.
234-236, from the description of an eye-witness.

M239 The mode of kindling the need-fire in the Harz Mountains.

699 Heinrich Pröhle, _Harzbilder, Sitten und Gebräuche aus dem
Harzgebirge_ (Leipsic, 1855), pp. 74 _sq._ The date of this
need-fire is not given; probably it was about the middle of the
nineteenth century.

M240 The mode of kindling the need-fire in Brunswick.

700 R. Andree, _Braunschweiger Volkskunde_ (Brunswick, 1896), pp. 313
_sq._

701 R. Andree, _op. cit._ pp. 314 _sq._

702 Montanus, _Die deutschen Volksfeste, Volksbräuche und deutscher
Volksglaube_ (Iserlohn, N.D.), p. 127.

M241 The mode of kindling the need-fire in Silesia and Bohemia.

703 Paul Drechsler, _Sitte, Brauch und Volksglaube in Schlesien_
(Leipsic, 1903-1906), ii. 204.

704 Anton Peter, _Volksthümliches aus Österreichisch - Schlesien_
(Troppau, 1865-1867), ii. 250.

705 Alois John, _Sitte, Brauch und Volksglaube im deutschen Westböhmen_
(Prague, 1905), p. 209.

706 C. L. Rochholz, _Deutscher Glaube und Brauch_ (Berlin, 1867), ii.
149.

M242 The use of the need-fire in Switzerland.

707 E. Hoffmann-Krayer, “Fruchtbarkeitsriten im schweizerischen
Volksbrauch,” _Schweizerisches Archiv für Volkskunde_, xi. (1907)
pp. 244-246.

708 E. Hoffmann-Krayer, _op. cit._ p. 246.

M243 The mode of kindling the need-fire in Sweden and Norway. The
need-fire as a protection against witchcraft.

709 J. Grimm, _Deutsche Mythologie_,4 i. 505.

710 “Old-time Survivals in remote Norwegian Dales,” _Folk-lore_, xx.
(1909) pp. 314, 322 _sq._ This record of Norwegian folk-lore is
translated from a little work _Sundalen og Öksendalens Beskrivelse_
written by Pastor Chr. Glükstad and published at Christiania “about
twenty years ago.”

M244 The need-fire among the Slavonic peoples.

711 Prof. Vl. Titelbach, “Das heilige Feuer bei den Balkanslaven,”
_Internationales Archiv für Ethnographie_, xiii. (1900) pp. 2 _sq._
We have seen (above, p. 220) that in Russia the need-fire is, or
used to be, annually kindled on the eighteenth of August. As to the
need fire in Bulgaria see also below, pp. 284 _sq._

712 F. S. Krauss, “Altslavische Feuergewinnung,” _Globus_, lix. (1891)
p. 318, quoting P. Ljiebenov, _Baba Ega_ (Trnovo, 1887), p. 44.

M245 The need-fire in Russia, Poland, and Slavonia..

713 F. S. Krauss, _op. cit._ p. 319, quoting _Wisla_, vol. iv. pp. 1,
244 _sqq._

714 F. S. Krauss, _op. cit._ p. 318, quoting Oskar Kolberg, in
_Mazowsze_, vol. iv. p. 138.

715 F. S. Krauss, “Slavische Feuerbohrer,” _Globus_, lix. (1891) p. 140.
The evidence quoted by Dr. Krauss is that of his father, who often
told of his experience to his son.

M246 The need-fire in Servia.

716 Prof. Vl. Titelbach, “Das heilige Feuer bei den Balkanslaven,”
_Internationales Archiv für Ethnographie_, xiii. (1900) p. 3.

717 See below, vol. ii. pp. 168 _sqq._

M247 The need-fire in Bulgaria.

718 Adolf Strausz, _Die Bulgaren_ (Leipsic, 1898), pp. 194-199.

M248 The need-fire in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

_ 719 Wissenschaftliche Mittheilungen aus Bosnien und der Hercegovina_,
redigirt von Moriz Hoernes, iii. (Vienna, 1895) pp. 574 _sq._

M249 The need-fire in England, in Yorkshire.

720 “_Pro fidei divinae integritate servanda recolat lector quod, cum
hoc anno in Laodonia pestis grassaretur in pecudes armenti, quam
vocant usitate Lungessouth, quidam bestiales, habitu claustrales non
animo, docebant idiotas patriae ignem confrictione de lignis educere
et simulachrum Priapi statuere, et per haec bestiis succurrere_,”
quoted by J. M. Kemble, _The Saxons in England_ (London, 1849), i.
358 _sq._; A. Kuhn, _Die Herabkunft des Feuers und des
Güttertranks_2 (Gütersloh, 1886), p. 43; Ulrich Jahn, _Die deutschen
Opfergebräuche bei Ackerbau und Viehzucht_ (Breslau, 1884) p. 31.

721 W. G. M. Jones Barker, _The Three Days of Wensleydale_ (London,
1854), pp. 90 _sq._; _County Folk-lore_, vol. ii., _North Riding of
Yorkshire, York and the Ainsty_, collected and edited by Mrs. Gutch
(London, 1901), p. 181.

_ 722 The Denham Tracts, a Collection of Folklore by Michael Aislabie
Denham_, edited by Dr. James Hardy (London, 1892-1895), ii. 50.

723 Harry Speight, _Tramps and Drives in the Craven Highlands_ (London,
1895), p. 162. Compare, _id._, _The Craven and North-West Yorkshire
Highlands_ (London, 1892), pp. 206 _sq._

724 J. M. Kemble, _The Saxons in England_ (London, 1849), i. 361 note.

M250 The need-fire in Northumberland.

725 E. Mackenzie, _An Historical, Topographical and Descriptive View of
the County of Northumberland_, Second Edition (Newcastle, 1825), i.
218, quoted in _County Folk-lore_, vol. iv. _Northumberland_,
collected by M. C. Balfour (London, 1904), p. 45. Compare J. T.
Brockett, _Glossary of North Country Words_, p. 147, quoted by Mrs.
M. C. Balfour, _l.c._: “_Need-fire_ ... an ignition produced by the
friction of two pieces of dried wood. The vulgar opinion is, that an
angel strikes a tree, and that the fire is thereby obtained.
Need-fire, I am told, is still employed in the case of cattle
infected with the murrain. They were formerly driven through the
smoke of a fire made of straw, etc.” The first edition of Brockett’s
_Glossary_ was published in 1825.

726 W. Henderson, _Notes on the Folk-lore of the Northern Counties of
England and the Borders_ (London, 1879), pp. 167 _sq._ Compare
_County Folk-lore_, vol. iv. _Northumberland_, collected by M. C.
Balfour (London, 1904), p. 45. Stamfordham is in Northumberland. The
vicar’s testimony seems to have referred to the first half of the
nineteenth century.

M251 Martin’s account of the need-fire in the Highlands of Scotland.

727 M. Martin, “Description of the Western Islands of Scotland,” in J.
Pinkerton’s _General Collection of Voyages and Travels_, iii.
(London, 1809), p. 611. The second edition of Martin’s book, which
Pinkerton reprints, was published at London in 1716. For John
Ramsay’s account of the need-fire, see above, pp. 147 _sq._

M252 The need-fire in the island of Mull. Sacrifice of a heifer.

728 J. Grimm, _Deutsche Mythologie_,4 i. 506, referring to Miss Austin
as his authority.

729 As to the custom of sacrificing one of a plague-stricken herd or
flock for the purpose of saving the rest, see below, pp. 300 _sqq._

M253 The need-fire in Caithness.

730 John Jamieson, _Etymological Dictionary of the Scottish Language_,
New Edition, revised by J. Longmuir and D. Donaldson, iii. (Paisley,
1880) pp. 349 _sq._, referring to “Agr. Surv. Caithn., pp. 200,
201.”

M254 The need-fire in Caithness.

731 R. C. Maclagan, “Sacred Fire,” _Folk-lore_, ix. (1898) pp. 280 _sq._
As to the fire-drill see _The Magic Art and the Evolution of Kings_,
ii. 207 _sqq._

M255 Another account of the need-fire in the Highlands.

732 W. Grant Stewart, _The Popular Superstitions and Festive Amusements
of the Highlanders of Scotland_ (Edinburgh, 1823), pp. 214-216;
Walter K. Kelly, _Curiosities of Indo-European Tradition and
Folk-lore_ (London, 1863), pp. 53 _sq._

M256 Alexander Carmichael’s account of the need-fire in the Highlands of Scotland during the nineteenth century. M257 The need-fire in Arran. M258 The need-fire in North Uist. M259 The need-fire in Reay, Sutherland.

733 Alexander Carmichael, _Carmina Gadelica_ (Edinburgh, 1900), ii. 340
_sq._

M260 The Beltane fires a precaution against witchcraft.

734 See above, pp. 154, 156, 157, 159 _sq._

_ 735 Census of India, 1911_, vol. xiv. _Punjab_, Part i. _Report_, by
Pandit Harikishan Kaul (Lahore, 1912), p. 302. So in the north-east
of Scotland “those who were born with their feet first possessed
great power to heal all kinds of sprains, lumbago, and rheumatism,
either by rubbing the affected part, or by trampling on it. The
chief virtue lay in the feet. Those who came into the world in this
fashion often exercised their power to their own profit.” See Rev.
Walter Gregor, _Notes on the Folk-lore of the North-East of
Scotland_ (London, 1881), pp. 45 _sq._

M261 The need-fire in Aberdeenshire.

736 Rev. Walter Gregor, _Notes on the Folk-lore of the North-East of
Scotland_ (London, 1881), p. 186. The fumigation of the byres with
juniper is a charm against witchcraft. See J. G. Campbell,
_Witchcraft and Second Sight in the Highlands and Islands of
Scotland_ (Glasgow, 1902), p. 11. The “quarter-ill” is a disease of
cattle, which affects the animals only in one limb or quarter. “A
very gross superstition is observed by some people in Angus, as an
antidote against this ill. A piece is cut out of the thigh of one of
the cattle that has died of it. This they hang up within the
chimney, in order to preserve the rest of the cattle from being
infected. It is believed that as long as it hangs there, it will
prevent the disease from approaching the place. It is therefore
carefully preserved; and in case of the family removing, transported
to the new farm, as one of their valuable effects. It is handed down
from one generation to another” (J. Jamieson, _Etymological
Dictionary of the Scottish Language_, revised by J. Longmuir and D.
Donaldson, iii. 575, _s.v._ “Quarter-ill”). See further Rev. W.
Gregor, _op. cit._ pp. 186 _sq._: “The fore-legs of one of the
animals that had died were cut off a little above the knee, and hung
over the fire-place in the kitchen. It was thought sufficient by
some if they were placed over the door of the byre, in the ‘crap o’
the wa’.’ Sometimes the heart and part of the liver and lungs were
cut out, and hung over the fireplace instead of the fore-feet.
Boiling them was at times substituted for hanging them over the
hearth.” Compare W. Henderson, _Notes on the Folk-lore of the
Northern Counties of England and the Borders_ (London, 1879), p.
167: “A curious aid to the rearing of cattle came lately to the
knowledge of Mr. George Walker, a gentleman of the city of Durham.
During an excursion of a few miles into the country, he observed a
sort of rigging attached to the chimney of a farmhouse well known to
him, and asked what it meant. The good wife told him that they had
experienced great difficulty that year in rearing their calves; the
poor little creatures all died off, so they had taken the leg and
thigh of one of the dead calves, and hung it in a chimney by a rope,
since which they had not lost another calf.” In the light of facts
cited below (pp. 315 _sqq._) we may conjecture that the intention of
cutting off the legs or cutting out the heart, liver, and lungs of
the animals and hanging them up or boiling them, is by means of
homoeopathic magic to inflict corresponding injuries on the witch
who cast the fatal spell on the cattle.

M262 The need-fire in Perthshire.

_ 737 The Mirror_, 24th June, 1826, quoted by J. M. Kemble, _The Saxons
in England_ (London, 1849), i. 360 note 2.

M263 The need-fire in Ireland.

738 Leland L. Duncan, “Fairy Beliefs and other Folklore Notes from
County Leitrim,” _Folk-lore_, vii. (1896) pp. 181 _sq._

M264 The use of the need-fire a relic of a time when all fires were
kindled by the friction of wood.

739 (Sir) Edward B. Tylor, _Researches into the Early History of
Mankind_, Third Edition (London, 1878), pp. 237 _sqq._; _The Magic
Art and the Evolution of Kings_, ii. 207 _sqq._

M265 The belief that the need-fire cannot kindle if any other fire
remains alight in the neighbourhood.

740 For some examples of such extinctions, see _The Magic Art and the
Evolution of Kings_, ii. 261 _sqq._, 267 _sq._; _Spirits of the Corn
and of the Wild_, i. 311, ii. 73 _sq._; and above, pp. 124 _sq._,
132-139. The reasons for extinguishing fires ceremonially appear to
vary with the occasion. Sometimes the motive seems to be a fear of
burning or at least singeing a ghost, who is hovering invisible in
the air; sometimes it is apparently an idea that a fire is old and
tired with burning so long, and that it must be relieved of the
fatiguing duty by a young and vigorous flame.

741 Above, pp. 147, 154. The same custom appears to have been observed
in Ireland. See above, p. 158.

M266 The need-fire among the Iroquois of North America.

742 J. N. B. Hewitt, “New Fire among the Iroquois,” _The American
Anthropologist_, ii. (1889) p. 319.

M267 The burnt sacrifice of a calf in England and Wales. Burnt sacrifice
of a pig in Scotland.

743 J. Grimm, _Deutsche Mythologie_,4 i. 507.

744 See above, p. 290.

745 William Hone, _Every-day Book_ (London, preface dated 1827), i.
coll. 853 _sq._ (June 24th), quoting Hitchin’s _History of
Cornwall_.

746 Hunt, _Romances and Drolls of the West of England_, 1st series, p.
237, quoted by W. Henderson, _Notes on the Folk-lore of the Northern
Counties of England and the Borders_ (London, 1879), p. 149. Compare
J. G. Dalyell, _The Darker Superstitions of Scotland_ (Edinburgh,
1834), p. 184: “Here also may be found a solution of that recent
expedient so ignorantly practised in the neighbouring kingdom, where
one having lost many of his herd by witchcraft, as he concluded,
burnt a living calf to break the spell and preserve the remainder.”

747 Marie Trevelyan, _Folk-lore and Folk-stories of Wales_ (London,
1909), p. 23.

748 W. Henderson, _op. cit._ pp. 148 _sq._

749 Rev. Walter Gregor, _Notes on the Folk-lore of the North-East of
Scotland_ (London, 1881), p. 186.

750 R. N. Worth, _History of Devonshire_, Second Edition (London, 1886),
p. 339. The diabolical nature of the toad probably explains why
people in Herefordshire think that if you wear a toad’s heart
concealed about your person you can steal to your heart’s content
without being found out. A suspected thief was overheard boasting,
“They never catches _me_: and they never ooll neither. I allus wears
a toad’s heart round my neck, _I_ does.” See Mrs. Ella M. Leather,
in _Folk-lore_, xxiv. (1913) p. 238.

M268 The calf is burnt in order to break a spell which has been cast on
the herd.

751 Above, p. 301.

752 Robert Hunt, _Popular Romances of the West of England_, Third
Edition (London, 1881), p. 320. The writer does not say where this
took place; probably it was in Cornwall or Devonshire.

753 Rev. Walter Gregor, _Notes on the Folk-lore of the North-East of
Scotland_ (London, 1881), p. 184.

M269 Mode in which the burning of a bewitched animal is supposed to break
the spell.

_ 754 County Folk-lore, Printed Extracts, No. 2, Suffolk_, collected and
edited by the Lady Eveline Camilla Gurdon (London, 1893), pp. 190
_sq._, quoting _Some Materials for the History of Wherstead_ by F.
Barham Zincke (Ipswich, 1887), p. 168.

_ 755 County Folk-lore, Printed Extracts, No. 2, Suffolk_, p. 191,
referring to Murray’s _Handbook for Essex, Suffolk_, etc., p. 109.

M270 In burning the bewitched animal you burn the witch herself. M271 Practice of burning cattle and sheep as sacrifices in the Isle of Man.

756 (Sir) John Rhys, “Manx Folk-lore and Superstitions,” _Folk-lore_,
ii. (1891) pp. 300-302; repeated in his _Celtic Folk-lore, Welsh and
Manx_ (Oxford, 1901), i. 306 _sq._ Sir John Rhys does not doubt that
the old woman saw, as she said, a live sheep being burnt on old
May-day; but he doubts whether it was done as a sacrifice. He adds:
“I have failed to find anybody else in Andreas or Bride, or indeed
in the whole island, who will now confess to having ever heard of
the sheep sacrifice on old May-day.” However, the evidence I have
adduced of a custom of burnt sacrifice among English rustics tends
to confirm the old woman’s statement, that the burning of the live
sheep which she witnessed was not an act of wanton cruelty but a
sacrifice performed for the public good.

M272 By burning a bewitched animal you compel the witch to appear.

757 (Sir) John Rhys, “Manx Folk-lore and Superstitions,” _Folk-lore_,
ii. (1891) pp. 299 _sq._; _id._, _Celtic Folk-lore, Welsh and Manx_
(Oxford, 1901), i. 304 _sq._ We have seen that by burning the blood
of a bewitched bullock a farmer expected to compel the witch to
appear. See above, p. 303.

M273 Magic sympathy between the witch and the bewitched animal.
M274 Parallel belief in magic sympathy between the animal shape of a
were-wolf and his or her ordinary human shape: by wounding the wolf
you simultaneously wound the man or woman.

758 Olaus Magnus, _Historia de Gentium Septentrionalium Conditionibus_,
lib xviii. cap. 47, p. 713 (ed. Bâle, 1567).

759 Collin de Plancy, _Dictionnaire Infernal_ (Paris, 1825-1826), iii.
473 _sq._, referring to Boguet.

760 Collin de Plancy, _op. cit._ iii. 473.

761 Felix Chapiseau, _Le Folk-lore de la Beauce et du Perche_ (Paris,
1902), i. 239 _sq._ The same story is told in Upper Brittany. See
Paul Sébillot, _Traditions et Superstitions de la Haute-Bretagne_
(Paris, 1882), i. 292. It is a common belief that a man who has once
been transformed into a were-wolf must remain a were-wolf for seven
years unless blood is drawn from him in his animal shape, upon which
he at once recovers his human form and is delivered from the bondage
and misery of being a were-wolf. See F. Chapiseau, _op. cit._ i.
218-220; Amélie Bosquet, _La Normandie Romanesque et Merveilleuse_
(Paris and Rouen, 1845), p. 233. On belief in were-wolves in
general, see W. Hertz, _Der Werwolf_ (Stuttgart, 1862); J. Grimm,
_Deutsche Mythologie_,4 i. 915 _sqq._; (Sir) Edward B. Tylor,
_Primitive Culture_2 (London, 1873), i. 308 _sqq._; R. Andree,
_Ethnographische Parallelen und Vergleiche_ (Stuttgart, 1878), pp.
62-80. In North Germany it is believed that a man can turn himself
into a wolf by girding himself with a strap made out of a wolf’s
hide. Some say that the strap must have nine, others say twelve,
holes and a buckle; and that according to the number of the hole
through which the man inserts the tongue of the buckle will be the
length of time of his transformation. For example, if he puts the
tongue of the buckle through the first hole, he will be a wolf for
one hour; if he puts it through the second, he will be a wolf for
two days; and so on, up to the last hole, which entails a
transformation for a full year. But by putting off the girdle the
man can resume his human form. The time when were-wolves are most
about is the period of the Twelve Nights between Christmas and
Epiphany; hence cautious German farmers will not remove the dung
from the cattle-stalls at that season for fear of attracting the
were-wolves to the cattle. See Adalbert Kuhn, _Märkische Sagen und
Märchen_ (Berlin, 1843), p. 375; Ulrich Jahn, _Volkssagen aus
Pommern und Rügen_ (Stettin, 1886), pp. 384, 386, Nos. 491, 495.
Down to the time of Elizabeth it was reported that in the county of
Tipperary certain men were annually turned into wolves. See W.
Camden, _Britain_, translated into English by Philemon Holland
(London, 1610), “Ireland,” p. 83.

M275 Were-wolves in China.

762 J. J. M. de Groot, _The Religious System of China_, v. (Leyden,
1907) P. 548.

M276 Were-wolves among the Toradjas of Central Celebes. The were-wolf in
human shape.

763 A. C. Kruijt, “De weerwolf bij de Toradja’s van Midden-Celebes,”
_Tijdschrift voor Indische Taal- Land- en Volkenkunde_, xli. (1899)
pp. 548-551, 557-560.

764 A. C. Kruijt, _op. cit._ pp. 552 _sq._

765 A. C. Kruijt, _op. cit._ pp. 553. For more evidence of the belief in
were-wolves, or rather in were-animals of various sorts,
particularly were-tigers, in the East Indies, see J. J. M. de Groot,
“De Weertijger in onze Kolonien en op het oostaziatische Vasteland,”
_Bijdragen tot de Taal- Land- en Volkenkunde van
Nederlandsch-Indië_, xlix. (1898) pp. 549-585; G. P. Rouffaer,
“Matjan Gadoengan,” _Bijdragen tot de Taal- Land- en Volkenkunde van
Nederlandsch-Indië_, l. (1899) pp. 67-75; J. Knebel, “De Weertijger
op Midden-Java, den Javaan naverteld,” _Tijdschrift voor Indische
Taal- Land- en Volkenkunde_, xli. (1899) pp. 568-587; L. M. F.
Plate, “Bijdrage tot de kennis van de lykanthropie bij de Sasaksche
bevolking in Oost-Lombok,” _Tijdschrift voor Indische Taal- Land- en
Volkenkunde_, liv. (1912) pp. 458-469; G. A. Wilken, “Het animisme
bij de volken van den Indischen Archipel,” _Verspreide Geschriften_
(The Hague, 1912), iii. 25-30.

M277 Were-wolves in the Egyptian Sudan.

766 Ernst Marno, _Reisen im Gebiete des blauen und weissen Nil_ (Vienna,
1874), pp. 239 _sq._

M278 The were-wolf story in Petronius.

767 Petronius, _Sat._ 61 _sq._ (pp. 40 _sq._, ed. Fr. Buecheler,3
Berlin, 1882). The Latin word for a were-wolf (_versipellis_) is
expressive: it means literally “skin-shifter,” and is equally
appropriate whatever the particular animal may be into which the
wizard transforms himself. It is to be regretted that we have no
such general term in English.

The bright moonlight which figures in some of these were-wolf
stories is perhaps not a mere embellishment of the tale but has its
own significance; for in some places it is believed that the
transformation of were-wolves into their bestial shape takes place
particularly at full moon. See A. de Nore, _Coutumes, Mythes et
Traditions des Provinces de France_ (Paris and Lyons, 1846), pp. 99,
157; J. L. M. Noguès, _Les Mœurs d’autrefois en Saintonge et en
Aunis_ (Saintes, 1891), p. 141.

M279 Witches like were-wolves can temporarily transform themselves into
animals.

768 J. G. Campbell, _Witchcraft and Second Sight in the Highlands and
Islands of Scotland_ (Glasgow, 1902), p. 6: “In carrying out their
unhallowed cantrips, witches assumed various shapes. They became
gulls, cormorants, ravens, rats, mice, black sheep, swelling waves,
whales, and very frequently cats and hares.” To this list of animals
into which witches can turn themselves may be added horses, dogs,
wolves, foxes, pigs, owls, magpies, wild geese, ducks, serpents,
toads, lizards, flies, wasps, and butterflies. See A. Wuttke, _Der
deutsche Volksaberglaube_2 (Berlin, 1869), p. 150 § 217; L.
Strackerjan, _Aberglaube und Sagen aus dem Herzogthum Oldenburg_
(Oldenburg, 1867), i. 327 § 220; Ulrich Jahn, _Hexenwesen und
Zauberei in Pommern_ (Breslau, 1886), p. 7. In his _Topography of
Ireland_ (chap. 19), a work completed in 1187 A.D., Giraldus
Cambrensis records that “it has also been a frequent complaint, from
old times as well as in the present, that certain hags in Wales, as
well as in Ireland and Scotland, changed themselves into the shape
of hares, that, sucking teats under this counterfeit form, they
might stealthily rob other people’s milk.” See _The Historical Works
of Giraldus Cambrensis_, revised and edited by Thomas Wright
(London, 1887), p. 83.

_ 769 The Folk-lore Journal_, iv. (1886) p. 266; Collin de Plancy,
_Dictionnaire Infernal_ (Paris, 1825-1826), iii. 475; J. L. M.
Noguès, _Les Mœurs d’autrefois en Saintonge et en Aunis_ (Saintes,
1891), p. 141. In Scotland the cut was known as “scoring above the
breath.” It consisted of two incisions made crosswise on the witch’s
forehead, and was “confided in all throughout Scotland as the most
powerful counter-charm.” See Sir Walter Scott, _Letters on
Demonology and Witchcraft_ (London, 1884), p. 272; J. G. Dalyell,
_The Darker Superstitions of Scotland_ (Edinburgh, 1834), pp. 531
_sq._; M. M. Banks, “Scoring a Witch above the Breath,” _Folk-lore_,
xxiii. (1912) p. 490.

770 J. L. M. Noguès, _l.c._; L. F. Sauvé, _Le Folk-lore des
Hautes-Vosges_ (Paris, 1889), p. 187.

771 M. Abeghian, _Der armenische Volksglaube_ (Leipsic, 1899), p. 117.
The wolf-skin is supposed to fall down from heaven and to return to
heaven after seven years, if the were-wolf has not been delivered
from her unhappy state in the meantime by the burning of the skin.

772 J. G. Campbell, _Witchcraft and Second Sight in the Highlands and
Islands of Scotland_ (Glasgow, 1902), p. 8; compare A. Wuttke, _Der
deutsche Volksaberglaube_2 (Berlin, 1869), p. 150 § 217. Some think
that the sixpence should be crooked. See Rev. W. Gregor, _Notes on
the Folk-lore of the North-East of Scotland_ (London, 1881), pp. 71
_sq._, 128; _County Folk-lore_, vol. v. _Lincolnshire_, collected by
Mrs. Gutch and Mabel Peacock (London, 1908), p. 75.

773 J. G. Campbell, _op. cit._ p. 30.

M280 Wounds inflicted on an animal into which a witch has transformed
herself are inflicted on the witch herself.

774 J. G. Campbell, _op. cit._ p. 33.

775 (Sir) Edward B. Tylor, _Primitive Culture_2 (London, 1873), i. 314.

776 Joseph Glanvil, _Saducismus Triumphatus or Full and Plain Evidence
concerning Witches and Apparitions_ (London, 1681), Part ii. p. 205.

777 Rev. J. C. Atkinson, _Forty Years in a Moorland Parish_ (London,
1891), pp. 82-84.

_ 778 County Folk-lore_, vol. v. _Lincolnshire_, collected by Mrs. Gutch
and Mabel Peacock (London, 1908), pp. 79, 80.

779 Leland L. Duncan, “Folk-lore Gleanings from County Leitrim,”
_Folk-lore_, iv. (1893) pp. 183 _sq._

M281 Wounded witches in the Vosges.

780 L. F. Sauvé, _Le Folk-lore des Hautes-Vosges_ (Paris, 1889), p. 176.

781 L. F. Sauvé, _op. cit._ pp. 176 _sq._

M282 Wounded witches in Swabia.

782 Ernst Meier, _Deutsche Sagen, Sitten und Gebräuche aus Schwaben_
(Stuttgart, 1852), pp. 184 _sq._, No. 203.

783 E. Meier, _op. cit._ pp. 191 _sq._, No. 215. A similar story of the
shoeing of a woman in the shape of a horse is reported from Silesia.
See R. Kühnau, _Schlesische Sagen_ (Berlin, 1910-1913), iii. pp. 27
_sq._, No. 1380.

M283 The miller’s wife and the two grey cats.

784 R. Kühnau, _Schlesische Sagen_ (Berlin, 1910-1913), iii. pp. 23
_sq._, No. 1375. Compare _id._, iii. pp. 28 _sq._, No. 1381.

M284 The analogy of were-wolves confirms the view that the reason for
burning bewitched animals is either to burn the witch or to compel
her to appear.

785 See for example L. Strackerjan, _Aberglaube und Sagen aus dem
Herzogthum Oldenburg_ (Oldenburg, 1867), i. pp. 328, 329, 334, 339;
W. von Schulenburg, _Wendische Volkssagen und Gebräuche aus dem
Spreewald_ (Leipsic, 1880), pp. 164, 165 _sq._; H. Pröhle,
_Harzsagen_ (Leipsic, 1859), i. 100 _sq._ The belief in such things
is said to be universal among the ignorant and superstitious in
Germany. See A. Wuttke, _Der deutsche Volksaberglaube_2 (Berlin,
1869), p. 150, § 217. In Wales, also, “the possibility of injuring
or marking the witch in her assumed shape so deeply that the bruise
remained a mark on her in her natural form was a common belief” (J.
Ceredig Davies, _Folk-lore of West and Mid-Wales_, Aberystwyth,
1911, p. 243). For Welsh stories of this sort, see J. Ceredig
Davies, _l.c._; Rev. Elias Owen, _Welsh Folk-lore_ (Oswestry and
Wrexham, N.D., preface dated 1896), pp. 228 _sq._; M. Trevelyan,
_Folk-lore and Folk-stories of Wales_ (London, 1909), p. 214.

786 L. Strackerjan, _Aberglaube und Sagen aus dem Herzogthum Oldenburg_
(Oldenburg, 1867), i. p. 361, § 239.

M285 There is the same reason for burning bewitched things.

787 Marie Trevelyan, _Folk-lore and Folk-stories of Wales_ (London,
1909), p. 210.

788 L. Strackerjan, _Aberglaube und Sagen aus dem Herzogthum Oldenburg_
(Oldenburg, 1867), i. p. 358, § 238.

789 L. Strackerjan, _op. cit._ i. p. 360, § 238e.

M286 Similarly by burning alive a person whose form a witch has assumed,
you compel the witch to disclose herself. The burning alive of a
supposed witch in Ireland in 1895.

790 “The ‘Witch-burning’ at Clonmell,” _Folk-lore_, vi. (1895) pp.
373-384. The account there printed is based on the reports of the
judicial proceedings before the magistrates and the judge, which
were published in _The Irish Times_ for March 26th, 27th, and 28th,
April 2nd, 3rd, 6th, and 8th, and July 6th, 1895.

M287 Sometimes bewitched animals are buried alive instead of being
burned.

791 John Graham Dalyell, _The Darker Superstitions of Scotland_
(Edinburgh, 1834), p. 185. In this passage “quick” is used in the
old sense of “living,” as in the phrase “the quick and the dead.”
_Nois_ is “nose,” _hoill_ is “hole,” _quhilk_ (_whilk_) is “which,”
and _be_ is “by.”

792 J. G. Dalyell, _op. cit._ p. 186. _Bestiall_ = animals; _seik_ =
sick; _calling_ = driving; _guidis_ = cattle.

793 John Ramsay, of Ochtertyre, _Scotland and Scotsmen in the Eighteenth
Century_, edited by Alexander Allardyce (Edinburgh and London,
1888), ii. 446 _sq._ As to the custom of cutting off the leg of a
diseased animal and hanging it up in the house, see above, p. 296,
note 1.

794 (Sir) Arthur Mitchell, A.M., M.D., _On Various Superstitions in the
North-West Highlands and Islands of Scotland_ (Edinburgh, 1862), p.
12 (reprinted from the _Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of
Scotland_, vol. iv.).

M288 Calves killed and buried to save the rest of the herd.

_ 795 County Folk-lore_, vol. v. _Lincolnshire_, collected by Mrs. Gutch
and Mabel Peacock (London, 1908), p. 75, quoting Rev. R. M. Heanley,
“The Vikings: traces of their Folklore in Marshland,” a paper read
before the Viking Club, London, and printed in its _Saga-Book_, vol.
iii. Part i. Jan. 1902. The wicken-tree is the mountain-ash or rowan
tree, which is a very efficient, or at all events a very popular
protective against witchcraft. See _County Folk-lore_, vol. v.
_Lincolnshire_, pp. 26 _sq._, 98 _sq._; Mabel Peacock, “The Folklore
of Lincolnshire,” _Folk-lore_, xii. (1901) p. 175; J. G. Campbell,
_Witchcraft and Second Sight in the Highlands and Islands of
Scotland_ (Glasgow, 1902), pp. 11 _sq._; Rev. Walter Gregor, _Notes
on the Folk-lore of the North-East of Scotland_ (London, 1881), p.
188. See further _The Scapegoat_, pp. 266 _sq._

M289 General resemblance of the European fire-festivals to each other.

796 Above, pp. 116 _sq._, 119, 143, 165, 166, 168 _sq._, 172.

797 Above, pp. 116, 117 _sq._, 119, 141, 143, 161, 162 _sq._, 163 _sq._,
166, 173, 191, 201.

M290 Two explanations suggested of the fire-festivals. According to W.
Mannhardt, they are charms to secure a supply of sunshine; according
to Dr. E. Westermarck they are purificatory, being intended to burn
and destroy all harmful influences.

798 W. Mannhardt, _Der Baumkultus der Germanen und ihrer Nachbarstämme_
(Berlin, 1875), pp. 521 _sqq._

799 E. Westermarck, “Midsummer Customs in Morocco,” _Folk-lore_, xvi.
(1905) pp. 44 _sqq._; _id._, _The Origin and Development of the
Moral Ideas_ (London, 1906-1908), i. 56; _id._, _Ceremonies and
Beliefs connected with Agriculture, certain Dates of the Solar Year,
and the Weather in Morocco_ (Helsingfors, 1913), pp. 93-102.

800 E. Mogk, “Sitten und Gebräuche im Kreislauf des Jahres,” in R.
Wuttke’s _Sächsische Volkskunde_2 (Dresden, 1901), pp. 310 _sq._

M291 The two explanations are perhaps not mutually exclusive.

_ 801 The Golden Bough_, Second Edition (London, 1900), iii. 312: “The
custom of leaping over the fire and driving cattle through it may be
intended, on the one hand, to secure for man and beast a share of
the vital energy of the sun, and, on the other hand, to purge them
of all evil influences; for to the primitive mind fire is the most
powerful of all purificatory agents”; and again, _id._ iii. 314: “It
is quite possible that in these customs the idea of the quickening
power of fire may be combined with the conception of it as a
purgative agent for the expulsion or destruction of evil beings,
such as witches and the vermin that destroy the fruits of the earth.
Certainly the fires are often interpreted in the latter way by the
persons who light them; and this purgative use of the element comes
out very prominently, as we have seen, in the general expulsion of
demons from towns and villages. But in the present class of cases
this aspect of fire may be secondary, if indeed it is more than a
later misinterpretation of the custom.”

M292 Theory that the fire-festivals are charms to ensure a supply of
sunshine.

_ 802 The Magic Art and the Evolution of Kings_, i. 311 _sqq._

M293 Coincidence of two of the festivals with the solstices.

803 See _Adonis, Attis, Osiris_, Second Edition, pp. 254 _sqq._

M294 Attempt of the Bushmen to warm up the fire of Sirius in midwinter by
kindling sticks.

804 Manilius, _Astronom._ v. 206 _sqq._:

“_Cum vero in vastos surget Nemeaeus hiatus,_
_ Exoriturque Canis, latratque Canicula flammas_
_ Et rabit igne suo geminatque incendia solis,_
_ Qua subdente facem terris radiosque movente_,” etc.

Pliny, _Naturalis Historia_, xviii. 269 _sq._: “_Exoritur dein post
triduum fere ubique confessum inter omnes sidus ingens quod canis
ortum vocamus, sole partem primam leonis ingresso. Hoc fit post
solstitium XXIII. die. Sentiunt id maria et terrae, multae vero et
ferae, ut suis locis diximus. Neque est minor ei veneratio quam
descriptis in deos stellis, accenditque solem et magnam aestus
obtinet causam._”

_ 805 Specimens of Bushman Folklore_, collected by the late W. H. I.
Bleek, Ph.D., and L. C. Lloyd (London, 1911), pp. 339, 341. In
quoting the passage I have omitted the brackets which the editors
print for the purpose of indicating the words which are implied, but
not expressed, in the original Bushman text.

806 “The sun is a little warm, when this star appears in winter”
(Editors of _Specimens of Bushman Folklore_).

807 “With the stick that he had held in the fire, moving it up and down
quickly” (Editors).

808 “They take one arm out of the kaross, thereby exposing one shoulder
blade to the sun” (Editors).

M295 The burning wheels and discs of the fire-festivals may be direct
imitations of the sun.

809 See above, pp. 161, 162 _sq._ On the wheel as an emblem of the sun,
see J. Grimm, _Deutsche Mythologie_,4 ii. 585; A. Kuhn, _Die
Herabkunft des Feuers und des Göttertranks_2 (Gütersloh, 1886), pp.
45 _sqq._; H. Gaidoz, “Le dieu gaulois du soleil et le symbolisme de
la roue,” _Revue Archéologique_, iii. Série, iv. (1884) pp. 14
_sqq._; William Simpson, _The Buddhist Praying Wheel_ (London,
1896), pp. 87 _sqq._ It is a popular Armenian idea that “the body of
the sun has the shape of the wheel of a water-mill; it revolves and
moves forward. As drops of water sputter from the mill-wheel, so
sunbeams shoot out from the spokes of the sun-wheel” (M. Abeghian,
_Der armenische Volksglaube_, Leipsic, 1899, p. 41). In the old
Mexican picture-books the usual representation of the sun is “a
wheel, often brilliant with many colours, the rays of which are so
many blood-stained tongues, by means of which the Sun receives his
nourishment” (E. J. Payne, _History of the New World called
America_, Oxford, 1892, i. 521).

810 Above, p. 169.

811 Ernst Meier, _Deutsche Sagen, Sitten und Gebräuche aus Schwaben_
(Stuttgart, 1852), p. 225; F. Panzer, _Beitrag zur deutschen
Mythologie_ (Munich, 1848-1855), ii. 240; Anton Birlinger,
_Volksthümliches aus Schwaben_ (Freiburg im Breisgau, 1861-1862),
ii. 57, 97; W. Mannhardt, _Baumkultus_, p. 510.

M296 The wheel sometimes used to kindle the fire by friction may also be
an imitation of the sun.

812 Compare J. Grimm, _Deutsche Mythologie_,4 i. 521; J. W. Wolf,
_Beiträge zur deutschen Mythologie_ (Göttingen und Leipsic,
1852-1857), ii. 389; Adalbert Kuhn, _Die Herabkunft des Feuers und
des Göttertranks_2 (Gütersloh, 1886), pp. 41 _sq._, 47; W.
Mannhardt, _Baumkultus_, p. 521. Lindenbrog in his Glossary on the
Capitularies (quoted by J. Grimm, _Deutsche Mythologie_,4 i. 502)
expressly says: “The rustics in many parts of Germany, particularly
on the festival of St. John the Baptist, wrench a stake from a
fence, wind a rope round it, and pull it to and fro till it catches
fire. This fire they carefully feed with straw and dry sticks and
scatter the ashes over the vegetable gardens, foolishly and
superstitiously imagining that in this way the caterpillar can be
kept off. They call such a fire _nodfeur_ or _nodfyr_, that is to
say need-fire.”

813 Above, pp. 144 _sq._, 147 _sq._, 155, 169 _sq._, 175, 177, 179.

814 J. Grimm, _Deutsche Mythologie_,4 i. 509; J. W. Wolf, _Beiträge zur
deutschen Mythologie_, i. 117; A. Kuhn, _Die Herabkunft des
Feuers_,2 pp. 47 _sq._; W. Mannhardt, _Baumkultus_, p. 521; W. E.
Kelly, _Curiosities of Indo-European Tradition and Folk-lore_
(London, 1863), p. 49.

815 A. Kuhn, _Die Herabkunft des Feuers und des Göttertranks_2
(Gütersloh, 1886), p. 47.

816 Above, p. 179.

817 F. Panzer, _Beitrag zur deutschen Mythologie_ (Munich, 1848-1855),
ii. 240, § 443.

818 Above, p. 177.

M297 The influence which the fires are supposed to exert on the weather
and vegetation may be thought to be due to an increase of solar heat
produced by the fires.

819 Above, pp. 187 _sq._

820 Above, pp. 279 _sq._

821 Above, p. 188.

822 Above, p. 159.

823 Above, p. 116.

824 Above, p. 201.

825 L. Decle, _Three Years in Savage Africa_ (London, 1898), pp. 160
_sq._

826 Rev. J. Shooter, _The Kafirs of Natal and the Zulu Country_ (London,
1857), p. 18.

827 Above, pp. 140, 142.

828 Above, pp. 119, 165, 166, 173, 203.

829 Above, p. 140.

830 Above, p. 121.

831 Above, pp. 141, 170, 190, 203, 248, 250, 264.

832 Above, p. 251.

833 Above, pp. 119, 165, 166, 168, 173, 174.

834 Above, pp. 118, 163 _sq._

835 Above, p. 201.

M298 The effect which the bonfires are supposed to have in fertilizing
cattle and women may also be attributed to an increase of solar heat
produced by the fires.

836 Above, p. 203.

837 Above, p. 250.

838 Above, pp. 251, 262, 263, 264.

839 Above, p. 112.

840 Above, p. 141.

841 Above, p. 214.

842 Above, p. 204.

843 Above, p. 194.

844 Above, pp. 185, 189; compare p. 174.

845 Above, p. 166.

846 Above, pp. 249, 250.

847 Above, pp. 107, 109, 111, 119; compare pp. 116, 192, 193.

848 Above, p. 115.

849 Above, p. 180.

M299 The custom of carrying lighted torches about the country at the
festivals may be explained as an attempt to diffuse the sun’s heat.

850 Above, pp. 113, 142, 170, 233. The torches of Demeter, which figure
so largely in her myth and on her monuments, are perhaps to be
explained by this custom. See _Spirits of the Corn and of the Wild_,
i. 57. W. Mannhardt thought (_Baumkultus_, p. 536) that the torches
in the modern European customs are imitations of lightning. At some
of their ceremonies the Indians of North-West America imitate
lightning by means of pitch-wood torches which are flashed through
the roof of the house. See J. G. Swan, quoted by Franz Boas, “The
Social Organization and the Secret Societies of the Kwakiutl
Indians,” _Report of the United States National Museum for 1895_
(Washington, 1897), p. 639.

851 Above, p. 203.

852 Amélie Bosquet, _La Normandie Romanesque et Merveilleuse_ (Paris and
Rouen, 1845), pp. 295 _sq._; Jules Lecœur, _Esquisses du Bocage
Normand_ (Condé-sur-Noireau, 1883-1887), ii. 126-129. See _The
Scapegoat_, pp. 316 _sq._

853 Br. Jelínek, “Materialen zur Vorgeschichte und Volkskunde Böhmens,”
_Mittheilungen der anthropolog. Gesellschaft in Wien_, xxi. (1891)
p. 13 note.

854 Mrs. Bishop, _Korea and her Neighbours_ (London, 1898), ii. 56 _sq._

855 Above, pp. 190 _sq._

856 Above, pp. 178, 205, 206.

M300 Theory that the fires at the festivals are purificatory, being
intended to burn up all harmful things.
M301 The purificatory or destructive effect of the fires is often alleged
by the people who light them. The great evil against which the fire
at the festivals is directed appears to be witchcraft.

857 See _The Magic Art and the Evolution of Kings_, i. 311 _sqq._

858 Above, pp. 108, 109, 116, 118 _sq._, 121, 148, 154, 156, 157, 159,
160, 170, 171, 174, 175, 176, 180, 183, 185, 188, 232 _sq._, 245,
252, 253, 280, 292, 293, 295, 297. For more evidence of the use of
fire to burn or expel witches on certain days of the year, see _The
Scapegoat_, pp. 158 _sqq._ Less often the fires are thought to burn
or repel evil spirits and vampyres. See above, pp. 146, 170, 172,
202, 252, 282, 285. Sometimes the purpose of the fires is to drive
away dragons (above, pp. 161, 195).

859 Above, pp. 107, 116, 118 _sq._, 159.

860 “In short, of all the ills incident to the life of man, none are so
formidable as witchcraft, before the combined influence of which, to
use the language of an honest man who had himself severely suffered
from its effects, the great laird of Grant himself could not stand
them if they should fairly yoke upon him” (W. Grant Stewart, _The
Popular Superstitions and Festive Amusements of the Highlanders of
Scotland_, Edinburgh, 1823, pp. 202 _sq._). “Every misfortune and
calamity that took place in the parish, such as ill-health, the
death of friends, the loss of stock, and the failure of crops; yea
to such a length did they carry their superstition, that even the
inclemency of the seasons, were attributed to the influence of
certain old women who were supposed to be in league, and had
dealings with the Devil. These the common people thought had the
power and too often the inclination to injure their property, and
torment their persons” (_County Folk-lore_, vol. v. _Lincolnshire_,
collected by Mrs. Gutch and Mabel Peacock, London, 1908, p. 76).
“The county of Salop is no exception to the rule of superstition.
The late vicar of a parish on the Clee Hills, startled to find that
his parishioners still believed in witchcraft, once proposed to
preach a sermon against it, but he was dissuaded from doing so by
the parish schoolmaster, who assured him that the belief was so
deeply rooted in the people’s minds that he would be more likely to
alienate them from the Church than to weaken their faith in
witchcraft” (Miss C. F. Burne and Miss G. F. Jackson, _Shropshire
Folk-lore_, London, 1883, p. 145). “Wherever a man or any living
creature falls sick, or a misfortune of any kind happens, without
any natural cause being discoverable or rather lying on the surface,
there in all probability witchcraft is at work. The sudden stiffness
in the small of the back, which few people can account for at the
time, is therefore called a ‘witch-shot’ and is really ascribed to
witchcraft” (L. Strackerjan, _Aberglaube und Sagen aus dem
Herzogthum Oldenburg_, Oldenburg, 1867, i. p. 298, § 209). What Sir
Walter Scott said less than a hundred years ago is probably still
true: “The remains of the superstition sometimes occur; there can be
no doubt that the vulgar are still addicted to the custom of scoring
above the breath (as it is termed), and other counter-spells,
evincing that the belief in witchcraft is only asleep, and might in
remote corners be again awakened to deeds of blood” (_Letters on
Demonology and Witchcraft_, London, 1884, p. 272). Compare L.
Strackerjan, _op. cit._ i. p. 340, § 221: “The great power, the
malicious wickedness of the witches, cause them to be feared and
hated by everybody. The hatred goes so far that still at the present
day you may hear it said right out that it is a pity burning has
gone out of fashion, for the evil crew deserve nothing else. Perhaps
the hatred might find vent yet more openly, if the fear were not so
great.”

M302 Amongst the evils for which the fire-festivals are deemed remedies
the fore-most is cattle-disease, and cattle-disease is often
supposed to be an effect of witchcraft.

861 For some evidence, see _The Magic Art and the Evolution of Kings_,
ii. 52-55, 330 _sqq._ It is a popular belief, universally diffused
in Germany, that cattle-plagues are caused by witches (A. Wuttke,
_Der deutsche Volksaberglaube_,2 Berlin, 1869, p. 149 § 216). The
Scotch Highlanders thought that a witch could destroy the whole of a
farmer’s live stock by hiding a small bag, stuffed with charms, in a
cleft of the stable or byre (W. Grant Stewart, _The Popular
Superstitions and Festive Amusements of the Highlanders of
Scotland_, Edinburgh, 1823, pp. 201 _sq._).

_ 862 The Magic Art and the Evolution of Kings_, ii. 330 _sqq._

863 Above, pp. 282, 284 _sq._

M303 Again, the bonfires are thought to avert hail, thunder, lightning,
and other maladies, all of which are attributed to the maleficent
arts of witches.

864 Above, pp. 118, 121, 144, 145, 176.

865 Above, pp. 121, 122, 124, 140 _sq._, 145, 146, 174, 176, 183, 184,
187, 188, 190, 191, 192, 249, 250, 252, 253, 254, 258.

866 J. Grimm, _Deutsche Mythologie_,4 ii. 908 _sqq._; J. V. Grohmann,
_Aberglauben und. Gebräuche aus Böhmen und Mähren_ (Prague and
Leipsic, 1864), p. 32 § 182; A. Wuttke, _Der deutsche
Volksaberglaube_2 (Berlin, 1869), pp. 149 _sq._, § 216; J. Ceredig
Davies, _Folk-lore of West and Mid-Wales_ (Aberystwyth, 1911), p.
230; Alois John, _Sitte, Brauch und Volksglaube im deutschen
Westböhmen_ (Prague, 1905), p. 202.

867 Above, pp. 108, 121, 140, 146, 165, 183, 188, 196, 250, 255, 256,
258.

868 Above, pp. 107, 195 _sq._

869 Above, pp. 162, 163, 166, 171, 174.

870 A. Wuttke, _Der deutsche Volksaberglaube_2 (Berlin, 1869), p. 351, §
395.

871 Above, pp. 165, 168, 189, compare 190.

872 A. Wuttke, _Der deutsche Volksaberglaube_2 (Berlin, 1869), p. 351, §
395; L. Strackerjan, _Aberglaube und Sagen aus dem Herzogthum
Oldenburg_ (Oldenburg, 1867), i. p. 298, § 209. See above, p. 343
note.

M304 The burning wheels rolled down hills and the burning discs and
brooms thrown into the air may be intended to burn the invisible
witches.

873 In the Ammerland, a district of Oldenburg, you may sometimes see an
old cart-wheel fixed over the principal door or on the gable of a
house; it serves as a charm against witchcraft and is especially
intended to protect the cattle as they are driven out and in. See L.
Strackerjan, _Aberglaube und Sagen aus dem Herzogthum Oldenburg_
(Oldenburg, 1867), i. p. 357, § 236. Can this use of a wheel as a
talisman against witchcraft be derived from the practice of rolling
fiery wheels down hill for a similar purpose?

874 F. S. Krauss, _Volksglaube und religiöser Brauch der Südslaven_
(Münster i. W., 1890), pp. 118 _sq._

M305 On this view the fertility supposed to follow the use of fire
results indirectly from breaking the spells of witches.

875 In German such spells are called _Nestelknüpfen_; in French, _nouer
l’aiguilette_. See J. Grimm, _Deutsche Mythologie_,4 ii. 897, 983;
A. Wuttke, _Der deutsche Volksaberglaube_2 (Berlin, 1869), p. 252 §
396; E. Doutté, _Magie et Religion dans l’Afrique du Nord_ (Algiers,
1908), pp. 87 _sq._, 294 _sqq._; J.L.M. Noguès, _Les Mœurs
d’autrefois en Saintonge et en Aunis_ (Saintes, 1891), pp. 171 _sq._

M306 On the whole the theory of the purificatory or destructive intention
of the fire-festivals seems the more probable.