School: Taplach (roll number 5114)

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1. Taking Butter off Churns

   

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   Some years ago the practice of taking butter off churns was very common -- and whenever the butter failed to appear in reasonable time -- witchcraft was suspected. In those days it not frequently happened that a witch would change herself into a hare. In this shape the hare would go into the byre and by some magical means take the milk from the cows. Once a man in Clonavogy met one of these hares coming out of his byre. On the following day he lay in hiding near the byre and when the hare emerged from the byre, as usual, he struck the hare with a long whip and gave her such a savage blow that he cut her face & knocked out an eye. He went to a neighbour's house on the following day and found that the woman of the house had her cheek badly cut and had her eye out. He had no doubt then in his mind who the hare was -- and who was responsible for taking the milk off his cows.

   Some years ago it was customary for such witches to go through pasture fields where cows would be grazing especially on May morning. The witches would go equipped with a hank of yarn and each would say, -
   "Gather far, gather near,
   Gather all the milk and butter here."

   

   Transcribed by a member of our volunteer transcription project.

   History Edit

   Topics

   1. activities
      1. economic activities
         1. agriculture (~2,659)
            1. butter and churns (~3,280)

   Language

   English

   Collector

   Mary Woods

   Gender

   Female

   Age

   13

   Address

   Clonavogy, Co. Monaghan