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offered, when he tasted it he said the cows were bewitched, and 
for her kindness he would tell her what would break the spell, 
which was to put some ‘cowsherne’ into the mouths of the 
calves before they were allowed to suck. As the carle approached 
his house, when returning from his journey, he noticed a bright 
light in the hut of the old hag which had cursed him. Curiosity 
induced him to look in, when he saw a pot on the fire, into which 
she was stirring something and muttering incantations all the 
while till it boiled, when, instead of milk as she doubtless 
expected, nothing came up but ‘cowsherne.’ He told his wife 
what he had seen, and she told him what the pilgrim had 
told her to do, and which she had done, which left no doubt that 
it was the ungrateful old witch who had bewitched their cows. 
Next day, when she came expecting her usual dole, the carle’s 
wife caught hold of her before she had time to cast any cantrip, 
and scored her above the breath until she drew blood with a 
crooked nail from a worn horse shoe, which left her powerless to 
cast any farther spells. The cows now gave as rich a yield of 
milk as formerly, and the custom then began was continued long 
after witchcraft had ceased to be a power in the land.” Whether 
there are any who still continue the practice I am unable to tell, 
not having thought of making any inquiry. 
3. Notes of 30 Years’ Residence in T'ynron. 
By Mr James SuHaw. 
The parish of Tynron is hardly so pleasant to the eye of an 
artist as it was more than thirty years ago. At that period we 
had several fords crossing the highway. Sir Walter Scott, 
mounted on his pony, has been known to take a round-about to 
cross a ford, rather than a bridge ; it seemed to him so much 
more romantic. We had some of the finest Jarch trees in the 
county. The wind, more than the woodman’s axe, levelled them 
to the ground. The terrible storms of 1883-4 have left us only 
their unsightly roots, and the late storm—22nd December, 1894— 
uprooted or broke several thousand trees, some of them the finest 
in the parish. With the loss of the trees there has been a 
diminution of owls, so that the long nights are quieter with less 
of their screeching. On a few farms when I came the cattle 
were black Galloways. These have disappeared, and Ayrshires 
