Elias Owen

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Elias Owen

Elias Owen - Writings

Welsh Folk-Lore a Collection of the Folk-Tales and Legends of North Wales

THE FAIRIES.

Origin Of The Fairies

Names Given To The Fairies

Fairy Ladies Marrying Mortals

WELSH LEGENDS OF FAIRY LADIES MARRYING MEN.

1. The Pentrevoelas Legend

2. The Ystrad Legend

3. The Llanfrothen Legend

4. The Myddvai Legend

5. The Cambro-Briton version of the Myddvai Legend

MEN CAPTURED BY FAIRIES.

In the preceding legends, we have accounts of men capturing female Fairies, and marrying them. It would be strange if the kidnapping were confined to one of the two races, but Folk-Lore tells us that the Fair Family were not innocent of actions similar to those of mortals, for many a man was snatched away by them, and carried off to their subterranean abodes, who, in course of time, married the fair daughters of the Tylwyth Têg. Men captured Fairy ladies, but the Fairies captured handsome men.

The oldest written legend of this class is to be found in the pages of Giraldus Cambrensis, pp. 390-92, Bohn’s edition. The Archdeacon made the tour of Wales in 1188; the legend therefore which he records can boast of a good old age, but the tale itself is older than The Itinerary through Wales, for the writer informs us that the priest Elidorus, who affirmed that he had been in the country of the Fairies, talked in his old age to David II., bishop of St. David, of the event. Now David II. was promoted to the see of St. David in 1147, or, according to others, in 1149, and died A.D. 1176; therefore the legend had its origin before the last-mentioned date, and, if the priest were a very old man when he died, his tale would belong to the eleventh century.

With these prefatory remarks, I will give the legend as recorded by Giraldus.

1. Elidorus and the Fairies

2. A Bryneglwys Man inveigled by the Fairies

3. Story of a man who spent twelve months in Fairyland

4. A man who spent twelve months and a day with the Fairies

5. The Son of Llech y Derwydd and the Fairies

6. A young man marries a Fairy Lady in Fairy Land, and brings her to live with him among his own people

7. A Boy taken to Fairy Land

8. A Man Refusing the Solicitations of the Fairies

FAIRY CHANGELINGS.

1. The Egg Shell Pottage

2. Corwrion Changeling Legend

3. Llanfwrog Changeling Legend

4. The Gore Goch Changeling Legend

5. Another Version of the Gors Goch Legend

6. Garth Uchaf, Llanuwchllyn, Changeling Legend

FAIRY MOTHERS AND HUMAN MIDWIVES.

Fairies are represented in Wales as possessing all the passions, appetites, and wants of human beings. There are many tales current of their soliciting help and favours in their need from men and women. Just as uncivilized nations acknowledge the superiority of Europeans in medicine, so did the Fairies resort in perplexing cases to man for aid. There is a class of tales which has reached our days in which the Fairy lady, who is about to become a mother, obtains from amongst men a midwife, whom she rewards with rich presents for her services. Variants of this story are found in many parts of Wales, and in many continental countries. I will relate a few of these legends.

1. Denbighshire Version of a Fairy Mother and Human Midwife

2. Merionethshire Version of the Fairy Mother and Human Midwife

3. The Corwrion Version

4. The Nanhwynan Version

FAIRY VISITS TO HUMAN ABODES.

1. A Fairy Borrowing a Gridiron

2. Fairy Riches and Gifts

3. The Fairies Placing Money on the Ground for a Poor Man

4. The Fairies and their Chest of Gold

5. The Fairy Shilling

6. The Hidden Golden Chair

7. Fairy treasures seen by a Man near Ogwen Lake

8. The Fairies giving Money to a Man for joining them in their Dance

9. The Fairies rewarding a Woman for taking care of their Dog

FAIRY MONEY TURNED TO DROSS.

Fairies’ treasure was of uncertain value, and depended for its very existence on Fairy intentions. Often and again, when they had lavishly bestowed money on this or that person, it was discovered to be only leaves or some equally worthless substance; but people said that the recipients of the money richly deserved the deception that had been played upon them by the Fairies.

In this chapter a few tales shall be given of this trait of Fairy mythology.

1. A Cruel Man and a Fairy Dog

2. Dick the Fiddler and the Fairy Crown-Piece

FAIRIES WORKING FOR MEN.

FAIRY DANCES.

1. A Man who found himself on a Heap of Ferns after joining in a Fairy Dance

2. The Fairies threw dust into a Man’s Eyes who Saw them Dance

3. A Man Dancing with the Fairies for Three Days

4. A Harper and the Fairies

5. A Three Hours Fairy Dance seeming as a Few Minutes

6. The Elf Dancers of Cae Caled

FAIRY TRICKS WITH MORTALS.

1. A Man Carried Through the Air by the Fairies

FAIRY ILLUSIONS.

FAIRY MEN CAPTURED.

There are many tales current of wee Fairy men having been captured. These tales are, however, evidently variants of the same story. The dwarfs are generally spoken of as having been caught by a trapper in his net, or bag, and the hunter, quite unconscious of the fact that a Fairy is in his bag, proceeds homewards, supposing that he has captured a badger, or some other kind of vermin, but, all at once, he hears the being in the bag speak, and throwing the bag down he runs away in a terrible fright. Such in short is the tale. I will proceed to give several versions of this story.

1. Gwyddelwern Version

2. The Llandrillo Version

3. The Snowdon Version

4. The Llanfair Dyffryn Clwyd Version

FAIRIES IN MARKETS AND FAIRS.

NAMES OF THINGS ATTRIBUTED TO THE FAIRIES.

Many small stone utensils found in the ground, the use, or the origin, of which was unknown to the finders, were formerly attributed to the Fairies. Thus, flint arrow-heads were called elf shots, from the belief that they once belonged to Elves or Fairies. And celts, and other stone implements, were, by the peasants of Wales and other places, ascribed to the same small folk. Very small clay pipes were also attributed to the same people. All this is curious evidence of a pre-existing race, which the Celts supplanted, and from whom, in many respects, they differed. Although we cannot derive much positive knowledge from an enumeration of the articles popularly associated with the Fairies, still, such a list, though an imperfect one, will not be void of interest. I will, therefore, describe certain pre-historic remains, which have been attributed to the aboriginal people of Britain.

Fairy Pipes

Fairy Whetstone

Fairy Hammer and Fairy or Elf Stones

Ymenyn y Tylwyth Têg, or Fairy Butter

Bwyd Ellyllon, or Goblins’ Food

Menyg y Tylwyth Têg, Or Fairy Gloves

Yr Ellyll Dân, or Goblin Fire

Rhaffau’r Tylwyth Têg, or the Ropes of the Fairies

FAIRY KNOCKERS, OR COBLYNAU.

The Pwka, or Pwca

FAIRY, OR MYTHIC ANIMALS.

From the Myddvai Legend it would appear that the Fairies possessed sheep, cattle, goats, and horses, and from other tales we see that they had dogs, etc. Their stock, therefore, was much like that of ordinary farmers in our days. But Fairy animals, like their owners, have, in the course of ages, been endowed with supernatural powers. In this chapter shall be given a short history of these mythical animals.

Cwn Annwn, or Dogs of the Abyss

The Fairy Cow

Y Fuwch Frech. The Freckled Cow

The Legend of Llyn y ddau ychain

Y Fuwch Gyfeiliorn. The Stray Cow

Ceffyl y Dwfr. The Water Horse

The Torrent Spectre

Gwrach y Rhibyn, or Hag of the Mist

Mermaids and Mermen

CONJURORS.

1. It was formerly believed that men could sell themselves to the devil, and thus become the possessors of supernatural power. These men were looked upon as malicious conjurors.

2. Another species of conjurors practised magical arts, having obtained their knowledge from the study of books. These were accounted able to thwart the designs of evil workers of every description.

3. There was another class of men supposed to have obtained strange power from their ancestors. They were looked upon as charmers and conjurors by descent.

1. Those who belonged to the first-mentioned class were not in communion with the Church, and the first step taken by them to obtain their object was to unbaptize themselves. The process was as follows:—The person who wished to sell himself to the devil went to a Holy Well, took water therefrom three times into his mouth, and spurted it out in a derisive manner, and thus having relieved himself, as it was thought, of his baptismal vow, he was ready and fit to make a contract with the evil one.

2. The second kind of conjurors obtained their knowledge of the occult science from the study of books. Generally learned men were by the ignorant supposed to possess uncanny power. When the writer lived in Carnarvonshire he was informed that Owen Williams, Waenfawr, had magical books kept in a box under lock and key, and that he never permitted anyone to see them. Poor Owen Williams, I wonder whether he knew of the popular rumour!

The following tale of Huw Llwyd’s books I obtained from the Rev. R. Jones, rector of Llanycil.

Huw Llwyd and his Magical Books

The Magician’s Glass

A Conjuror and Robbers

A Conjuror’s Punishment of an Innkeeper for his exorbitant charges

The Conjuror and the Cattle

Stolen property discovered through fear of applying to the Llanbrynmair Conjuror

Reclaiming stolen property through fear of the Conjuror

A Conjuror’s Collusion exposed

The Conjuror’s Dress

CHARMS.

The cure of diseases by charms is generally supposed to be a kind of superstition antagonistic to common sense, and yet there are undoubted cases of complete cures through the instrumentality of charms. Warts are, undoubtedly, removed by the faith of those persons who suffer from them in the power of the charmer and his charms. The writer has had innumerable instances of the efficacy of wart charms, but it is not his intention to endeavour to trace the effect of charms on highly sensitive people, but only to record those charms that he has seen or heard of as having been used.

Swyno’r ’Ryri (Charming the Shingles)

A Charm for the Shingles

Toothache charms

Rosemary Charm for Toothache

Whooping Cough Charm

Charm for Fits

Charm for Cocks about to fight

Charm for Asthma

Charms for Warts

Charm for removing a Stye from the eye

Charms for Quinsy

Charming the Wild Wart

Charm for Rheumatism

Charm for removing the Ringworm

Cattle Charms

Charm against Foot and Mouth Disease

Another Cattle Charm Spell

A Charm for Calves

A Charm for Stopping Bleeding

Charm to make a Servant reliable

Charms performed with Snake’s Skin

The Charms performed with Rosemary

Charm for Clefyd y Galon, or Heart Disease

Clefyd yr Ede Wlan or Yarn Sickness

RHAMANTA, OR OMEN SEEKING

Coel Ede Wlan, or the Yarn Test

Divination with the Twca or Knife

The Washing Test

Troi Crysau or Clothes Drying Test

Hemp Seed Sowing

Pullet’s Egg Divination

The Candle and Pin Divination

The Apple Pip Trial of Lovers

To ascertain the condition of the Person whom you are to Marry

Water in Basin Divination

Hairs of a Lover found under a Holly Tree

The Bible and Key Divination

Testing a Lover’s Love by Cracking of Nuts

SPIRITUALISM.

The next subject I shall treat of is curious, and partakes of the nature of spiritualism. I hardly know by what other word to describe it, therefore I will give particulars, so as to make the matter intelligible to the reader, and call it “Spiritualism.”

It was believed that it was possible for the spirit to leave the body, and then, after an absence of some time, to return again and re-enter it. The form the spirit assumed when it quitted the body was a bluish light like that of a candle, but somewhat longer. This light left the body through the mouth, and re-entered the same way.

The writer was informed by a certain female friend at Llandegla that she had seen a bluish light leave the mouth of a person who was sick, light which she thought was the life, or spirit of that person, but the person did not immediately die.

For another tale of this kind I am indebted to Mr. R. Roberts, who lives in the village of Clocaenog, near Ruthin. He was not himself a witness of the occurrence, but vouches for the accuracy of the report. It is as follows:—

A Spirit leaving and re-entering the body

A Spiritualistic Story from Wales

A Doctor called from his bed by a Voice

Another Tale of a Doctor