THE HAWTHORN. 



187 



destruction did not go mipnnished: "And he was 

 well serv'd for his blind Zeale, who going to cut 

 doune an ancient white Hauthorne-Tree^ which, 

 because she budded before others, might be an oc- 

 casion of Superstition^ had some of the prickles 

 flew in to his eye, and made him Monocular."* 



There are, however, still in existence two trees 

 of the same description, evidently much above a 



* In Ireland, to the present day, it is the popular belief that " no 

 one will thrive after rooting up an old Thorn." Some years since a 

 gentleman residing in Carrickfergus, co. Antrim, employed as his gar- 

 dener an old artiller}'man, named Peter S***^ who had been invalided 

 in consequence of wounds received in battle, and passed among his 

 comrades as a brave soldier. One day Peter received directions to 

 uproot a "reverend Hawthorn,'' which, together with the hedge in 

 which it stood, was to make way for some improvements in the garden. 

 He immediately set to work, and soon cleared the hedge of all that 

 grew in it except the Thorn, the roots -of which had penetrated deeply 

 into the ground, and Avhich remained untouched. Next day, the 

 gentleman asked him why the tree had not been removed as he de- 

 sired. Peter answered, " that it was hardly possible — that it would 

 be dangerous to attempt it." His master remonstrated with him, ex- 

 plaining why it was necessary that the Thorn should be included in 

 the order for removal, and left him with a strict injunction to set 

 about the task immediately, which he, very reluctantly, then prepared 

 to do. Next day, however, to his surprise, he found the devoted tree 

 still maintaining its ground, erect and uninjured. On sharply question- 

 ing the offender why he had not followed his directions, poor Peter, 

 with the utmost solemnity, assured him that " he had commenced the 

 work, but at the moment his pick-axe struck the root of the tree 

 he received a violent blow from sonie invisible hand that made him 

 stagger and almost fall to the ground — moreover, that on going home, 

 he found that just at the same hour, and he had no doubt, at the very 

 same instant, his wife had experienced a similar blow.'' After this his 

 master did not urge him further in the matter, but got some other 

 person to extirpate the mysterious tree, and the task was accomplished 

 without any further evil result. Crofton Croker, who is most 

 learned in the superstitions of Ireland, remarks that, according to 

 the popular belief, " On May-eve the evil Elves seem to be particu- 

 larly active and powerful : to those to whom they are inimical they 

 give a blotu u?iperceived^ the consequence of which is lameness." There 

 can be little doubt that these two superstitions are connected in their 

 origin with that recorded in the text respecting the Glastonbury 

 Thorn. 



