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)
conspire against thee, and then a battle will follow in which
many of thy men will fall and thou wilt be wounded almost to
death, and carried upon a shield to thy ship; yet, after seven
days, thou shalt be well of thy wounds, and immediately thou shalt
let thyself be baptised." Soon after Olaf went down to his ships,
where he met some mutineers and people who would destroy
him and his men. A fight took place, and the result was what
the hermit had predicted, that Olaf was wounded, and carried
upon a shield to his ship, and that his wound was healed in
seven days. Then Olaf perceived the man had spoken truth,—that
he was a true fortune-teller, and had the gift of prophecy.
Olaf went once more to the hermit, and asked particularly how
he came to have such wisdom in foreseeing things to be. The
hermit replied that the Christian's God himself let him know
all that he desired; and he brought before Olaf many great
proofs of the power of the Almighty. In consequence of this
encouragement Olaf agreed to let himself be baptised, and he
and all his followers were baptised forthwith. He remained
here a long time, took the true faith, and got with him priests
and other learned men."
It is worthy of remark that various accounts in this work, of
the marauding expeditions of northern vikings on the shores of
Bretland and Kauraland (Wales and Cornwall) confirm many
traditions still lingering in the West Country, about the Danes,
(all Northmen were called Danes) landing on Gwenvor Sands,
burning Escols, their defeat in a battle on Velan-druchar Moor,
and how their ships remained in Whitsand Bay till "birds
built in their rigging," &c.
Red-haired families are still often taunted with bearing on
their heads a sign that some ancestress must have welcomed a[277]
northern pirate to Kauraland with more warmth than discretion.
The "seer," or "fortune-teller," on the islands, was probably
one of a similar class to the Cornish "pellar," or "white-wizzard,"
of the present day.
King Olaf's priest, taken from Scilly, is one of the most
remarkable characters of the wonderful book.
St. Levan's Path.
Page 146.
"Aux lieux où la charrette et le saint ont passés,
Le froment pousse encor plus vert et plus pressé."
Brizeux.
We find a similar belief to that connected with the path St.
Levan trod, in the Breton legend of St. Cornély, from which the
above lines are quoted. "La Charrette" was the cart—drawn
by oxen—in which the saint rode when he and his people were
pursued by an invading host of pagans. St. Cornély, being hard
pressed, to prevent the Bretons being driven into the sea, turned
about, cursed the pursuers, and changed them all—in rank and
file as they stood—into the Menheers of Carnac.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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