THE ANGLO-SAXON HERBALS 35 



Out little spear, in be not spear ! 



If herein there hide flake of iron hard, 



Of a witch the work, it shall melt away. 



Wert thou shot into the skin, or shot into the flesh, 



Wert thou shot into the blood, or shot into the bone, 



Wert thou shot into the limb — never more thy life be teased ! 



If it were the shot of Esa, or it were of elves the shot 



Or it were of hags the shot ; help I bring to thee. 



This to boot for Esa-shot, this to boot for elfin-shot, 



This to boot for shot of hags ! Help I bring to thee. 



Flee witch to the wild hill top 



But thou — be thou hale, and help thee the Lord." 



Who were these six smiths and who were the witches ? One 

 thinks of that mighty Smith Weyland in the palace of Nidad 

 king of the Niars, of the queen's fear of his flashing eyes and the 

 maiming of him by her cruel orders, and of the cups he made 

 from the skulls of her sons and gems from their eyes. We 

 think of these as old tales, but instinct tells us that they are 

 horribly real. We may not know how that semi-divine smith 

 made himself wings, but that he flew over the palace and never 

 returned we do not doubt for an instant. To the fairy stories 

 which embody such myths children of unnumbered generations 

 have listened, and they demand them over and over again 

 because they, too, are sure that they are real. 



Nor is the mystery of numbers lacking in these herbal 

 prescriptions, particularly the numbers three and nine. In the 

 alliterative lay of the nine healing herbs this is very conspicuous. 

 Woden, we are told, smote the serpent with nine magic twigs, 

 the serpent was broken into nine parts, from which the wind 

 blew the nine flying venoms. There are numerous instances 

 of the patient being directed to take nine of each of the ingre- 

 dients or to take the herb potion itself for three or nine days. 

 Or it is directed that an incantation is to be said or sung three 

 or nine times, or that three or nine masses are to be sung over 

 the herbs. This mystic use of three and nine is conspicuous in 

 the following prescription : — 



" Against dysentery, a bramble of which both ends are in 



