Erce, Erce, Erce, of earth the mother, May he graciously grant thee, God Eternal, 60 To have fertile fields and fruitful harvests, Growing in profit and gaining in power; A host of products and harvests in plenty, Bright with the broad barley harvest; And heavy with the white harvest of wheat, 65 And all the harvest of the earth. May the Almighty Lord grant And all his saints who are seated in heaven, That against all of the enemies this earth may be guarded, Protected and made proof against the powers of evil, Against sorceries and spells dispersed through the land. 70 Now I pray to the Power who planned the creation That no woman of witchcraft, no worker of magic, May change or unspell the charm I have spoken. _Then drive forth the plow and turn the first furrow and say:_ 75 Hail to thee, Earth, of all men the mother, Be goodly thy growth in God's embrace, Filled with food as a favor to men. _Then take meal of every kind and bake a loaf as broad as it will lie between the two hands, kneading _80_ it with milk and with holy water, and lay it under the first furrow. Say then:_ Full be the field with food for mankind, Blossoming brightly. Blessed by thou By the holy name of Heaven's Creator, 85 And the maker of Earth, which men inhabit. May God who created the ground grant us growing gifts, That each kernel of corn may come to use. _Say then three times_, Crescite in nomine patris, sint benedicti. Amen _and_ Pater Noster _three times_. 30. Irregularities in the meter in the translations are imitations of similar irregularities in the original. 58. _Erce:_ probably the name of an old Teutonic deity, the Mother of Earth. This reference is all we have to preserve the name. 75. The conception of a goddess as Mother of Earth and of Earth as Mother of Men is entirely pagan. This charm is a peculiar complex of Christian and pagan ideas. II. Against a Sudden Stitch _Against a sudden stitch take feverfew, and the red nettle that grows through the house, and plantain. Boil in butter._