280 



THE MOUNTAIN ASH. 



after the introduction of Christianity; for Evehii 

 mentions, that, in Wales, where this tree is 

 reputed so sacred, there is not a churchyard with- 

 out one of them planted in it, so, on a cer- 

 tain day in the year, everybody religiously wears 

 a cross made of the w^ood." In the Isle of Man, 

 also, it is up to the present day invested by the 

 superstitious with a sacred character. On Good 

 Friday, when no iron of any kind must be put 

 into the fire, and even the tongs are laid aside, 

 lest any person should unfortunately forget the 

 custom, and stir the fire with them, a stick of the 

 Rowan-tree is used by w^ay of substitute.'^ 



The belief in the efiicacy of the Mountain Ash, 

 as a preservative against witchcraft, has led some 

 commentators on Shakspeare to substitute, for 

 the puzzling expression in Macbeth," Aroint 

 thee, witch!"' the words A Roan-tree, witch !" 

 The passage being thus uttered, the mention of 

 a tree so fatal to the power of the witch might 

 naturally excite her acrimony against the per- 

 son who applied the test. The authoress of 

 Sylvan Sketches quotes a stanza from a very 

 ancient song, which runs as follows : — 



" Their spells were vain ; the boj's returned 

 To the queen in sorrowful mood, 

 Crying, that ' witches have no power 

 "Where there is Roan-tree wood.' " 



In remote districts of England the superstition 

 has not even yet died away. Waterton, in his 

 Essays on Natural History^'' relates an anec- 

 dote which fell under his personal observation, 

 of a countrpnan in Yorkshire, who cut a bun- 



* Train's Historical Account oftlie Isle of Man^ 1846. 



