School: Béal Átha Lúibe, Cahir (roll number 9856)

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1. Festival Customs (continued)

   

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   241

   farmers by wicked neighbours who were skilled in some form of witchcraft.

   Several stories are told of this practice.

   A farmer in this locality walking through his fields on May eve saw a person hurridly leaving the place where his cattle were accustomed to drink on going to the spot the farmer saw a piece of rope. He picked it up and brought it home and threw it into a ston or open barrell hoping to make use of it at some future time. On going to the barrell some months later he was surprised to find the barrell almost full of butter. He concluded that the person who left the rope behind was taking his butter when he was caught in the act.

   On one occasion some people were making a churn (butter). After many hours churning they failed in making the butter. They then took the coulter of a plough, put behind the door to break the spell, and put it into the fire. When it got red they heard a loud shriek and saw the neighbour, whom they suspected of the evil practice running from the house. They then made the butter without further difficulty.

   If a person came to the house while butter was being made, they were supposed to help

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   Transcribed by a member of our volunteer transcription project.

   History Edit

   Topics

   1. events
      1. events (by time of year) (~11,476)

   Language

   English

   Collector

   Peggy Keating

   Gender

   Female

   Address

   Ballylooby, Co. Tipperary