Traditions and Hearthside Stories of West Cornwall, Second SeriesBottrell, William
General
Traditions and Hearthside Stories of West Cornwall, Second Series
Bottrell, William
Cornwall (England : County) -- Social life and customs; Legends -- England -- Cornwall (County)
"What? Lucifer!" he exclaimed, more than ever enraged;
"you make me mad but to think that I should ever be taken for
one of such a mean tribe as Lucifer, who is no better than the[19]
other. As for me, I wouldn't be seen in their company. None
of their family were ever known or heard of in this country till
lately. Great indeed is your want of sense," continued he, with
a scornful air, "to take me for one of these upstarts. Yet,
forsooth, many fools—if one may judge by their fears—seem to
reverence them; nay almost to worship them. But crafty folks,
who profit by fools' fears, havn't a good word to say of these
new buccas behind their backs, nor yet of their country; for
that, they say, is full of burning brimstone, and one may well
believe it, for when any of the tribe come here they stink of
sulphur. But one like you—born and bred in Buryan Church-town—can't
have any notion of the antiquity and dignity of my
family! If you hadn't been the loveliest of Buryan ladies I
would never have condescended to spin for 'e. And now, for
the third and last time, I ask what is my name?" On the same
breath he added, "come! Give me your hand love, and let's
away, for you can never guess it."
Duffy didn't feel much reluctance to go with him, yet was
proud to outwit the devil and answered,
"Don't 'e be in such a hurry, old gentleman, Buryan people
mayn't be so ignorant as you think them; they live near enow
to St. Levan witches to know something of devils and their
dealings. You are Tarraway—you won't deny it!"
"No, by my tail," said he, almost speechless with surprise;
"I am too proud of my ancient name to disown it. I'm fairly
beaten; it's provoking though to be outwitted by a young thing
like you, and I can't think however you found it out. But true
as I'm a gentleman, if you don't go with me now, the time will
come when you'll wish you had, and one day you shall spin for
me yet."
Duffy shrunk back, and, in a moment, thick smoke gathered
around Tarraway; the room became dark; and he disappeared
amidst a blaze of lightning and a rattling peal of thunder, that
shook the house from end to end.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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