School: Acres (roll number 10827)

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1. Will O' the Wisp

   

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   Often in the Glen a light is seen at night, and my uncle said it was Will O' the Wisp. Will O' the Wisp is a spirit who could neither get into heaven or hell He is doomed to wander till the end, carrying in his hand a big light to show him the way. Will O' the Wisp was a blacksmith who sold himself to the devil for three years in order to get rich. The devil game him three years, and three wishes, and at the end of that time he was to come back, and take Will with him down to his kingdom. The first request Will asked was that anyone who got a hold of his sledge could never leave it down again until he allowed him to do so. The second was that anybody who sat in his chair he kept in the forge, couldn't get up, until he ordered him to; and the third, and last, was that any money Will ever put into his purse couldn't be taken out again by anyone except himself. The devil then went away saying he'd come back on that day three years. "All right," says Will, "I'll go with you."

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   Topics

   1. agents (~1)
      1. supernatural and legendary beings (~14,864)
         1. Will-o’-the-wisp (~74)

   Folktales index

   AT0330A: The Smith and the Devil (Death)

   Language

   English

   Collector

   Rose-Ann Ward

   Gender

   Female

   Age

   14

   Address

   Na hAcraí, Co. Donegal

   Informant

   James O' Donnell

   Gender

   Male

   Age

   41

   Address

   Leac Eidhneach, Co. Donegal