School: Cnoc na Biolaraighe

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1. Stories of Watergrasshill and District from Old Inhabitants - A Charm

   

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   About sixty years ago, when my father was a boy he sprained his leg and it was very painful An old man who lived near persuaded him to go to one Mick Kennedy, who lived in Ballybrack, about two miles from Glenville, and who was famed in the district for the many cures he had worked. My father consented, and his old neighbour took him to Kennedy's house that evening in a donkey-cart. On the way the old man cut a briar and took it with him to Kennedy's house. When they reached the house Kennedy took the briar - about 18 inches long & split it - length ways - in two. The two parts he held about six inches apart and placed against his breast and the other ends he put - the same distance apart, - against my father's breast. (They were sitting opposite each other. Then Kennedy started praying and by degrees the two parts of the twig moved till they met again and joined. My father doesn't remember if he had to say any prayer before the operation began but he remembers that the parts of the twig joined without apparently any outside interference.
   On coming home another friend advised him to apply brown paper soaked in beef-pickle to the leg and he continued doing this for some days. The leg soon got well and he was unable to say to which "cure" he should attribute his speedy recovery.
   Sometimes a third person had to hold the twig: if this person were an illegitimate child the charm would not work.

   

   Transcribed by a member of our volunteer transcription project.

   History Edit

   Topics

   1. genre
      1. verbal arts (~1,483)
   2. activities
      1. medical practice
         1. folk medicine (~11,815)

   Language

   English

   Collector

   Mrs Hayes

   Gender

   Female

   Age

   46

   Occupation

   Assistant teacher

   Address

   Watergrasshill, Co. Cork

   Informant

   Thomas Manning

   Relation

   Parent

   Gender

   Male

   Age

   79