The Fairy Mythology: Illustrative of the Romance and Superstition of Various CountriesKeightley, Thomas
General
The Fairy Mythology: Illustrative of the Romance and Superstition of Various Countries
Keightley, Thomas
Fairies; Fairy tales; Folk literature; Folklore
"In the year 1633-4 (says Aubrey[340]) soon after I had entered into
my grammar, at the Latin schoole of Yatton-Keynel, [near Chippenham,
Wilts,] our curate, Mr. Hart, was annoyed one night by these elves or
fayeries. Comming over the downes, it being neere darke, and
approaching one of the faiery dances, as the common people call them
in these parts, viz. the greene circles made by those sprites on the
grasse, he all at once saw an innumerable quantitie of pigmies, or
very small people, dancing rounde and rounde, and singing and making
all maner of small odd noyses. He, being very greatly amazed, and yet
not being able, as he says, to run away from them, being, as he
supposes, kept there in a kinde of enchantment, they no sooner
perceave him but they surround him on all sides, and what betwixte
feare and amazement he fell down, scarcely knowing what he did; and
thereupon these little creatures pinched him all over, and made a
quick humming noyse all the tyme; but at length they left him, and
when the sun rose he found himself exactly in the midst of one of
these faiery dances. This relation I had from him myselfe a few days
after he was so tormented; but when I and my bed-fellow, Stump, wente
soon afterwards, at night time, to the dances on the downes, we sawe
none of the elves or faieries. But, indeed, it is saide they seldom
appeare to any persons who go to seeke for them."
The next account, in order of time, that occurs, is what Sir Walter
Scott calls the Cock Lane narrative of Anne Jefferies, who was born in
1626, in the parish of St. Teath, in Cornwall, and whose wonderful
adventures with the fairies were, in 1696, communicated by Mr. Moses
Pitt, her master's son, to Dr. Fowler, bishop of Gloucester.[341]
According to this account, Anne described the Fairies, who she said came
to her, as "six small people, all in green clothes." They taught her to
perform numerous surprising cures; they fed her from harvest-time till
Christmas; they always appeared in even numbers. When seen dancing in
the orchard among the trees, she said she was dancing with the fairies.
These fairies scorned the imputation of being evil spirits, and referred
those who termed them such to Scripture.
The following "relation of the apparition of Fairies, their seeming to
keep a fair, and what happened to a certain man that endeavoured to
put himself in amongst them," is given by Bovet.[342]
_The Fairy-Fair._
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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