SOCIETY OF THE UNIVERSITY" OF ABERDEEN. 45 



treasure known to another person ; in the Isle of Man sprigs of rowan are 



cut on May eve, but neither steel nor iron must be used in cutting them 



they are to be nailed up as crosses on the doors ; again on this day no fire 

 is to be given away ; when a brownie or other fairy has done work for a 

 human being, no payment must be offered; in numerous stories a garment 

 is left for him, and is sometimes taken, but whether he takes it or not, he 

 never returns ; again the fairy wife of the tales must never be touched 

 with iron or struck three times " without a cause ; " and in Brittany no 

 one who has been present at the fairies' Sabbath or festival must tell of it 

 afterwards. 



The numbers seven and three and the period of " a Year and a Day " 

 constantly recur as magic numbers and periods in the tales. Thus, the 

 Enchanted Island off the coast of Ireland is seen only once in seven years ; 

 in Lough Gur a human being is drowned in the lake once in every seven 

 years, being taken by the white lady of the lake, its fairy inhabitant ; in 

 Scotland it is said that a seventh son in a family is able to see the fairies, 

 &c. Other magical observances or practices are common. For instance, it 

 frequently happens that a man or woman taken by the fairies to their 

 dwelling is warned not to put his finger into the water they use ; he does 

 so accidentally, and rubs his eyes with it ; the result is that he can see fairies 

 afterwards. In such a case the fairies remove the faculty by blowing on the 

 eyes of the person, or by giving him a green leaf to put in his mouth, &c. 

 In Scotland they can do all manner of magic turn water into wine, a 

 spider's web into a tartan plaid, keep the meal-kist of one of their favourites 

 perpetually filled, turn the cattle ill or well, &c., &c. 



Apart from the special cases mentioned, the conditions of seeing fairies 

 appear to be very varied. Some of the sick, for example, are said to see 

 and speak with them. Again, at special places like the ancient monuments 

 of New Grange and Dowth, places which, according to one reporter, are 

 " naturally charged with psychical forces," they are more visible than else- 

 where. Anyone placing his foot on a fairy ring, the ring of grass on which 

 they are said to dance, or touching a man whose foot is in the ring, will 

 see them for the time ; but generally speaking the reporters describe the 

 effect of education as destroying the power to see this supernatural world, 

 although not everyone gives the same reason for this supposed effect. 



