Fairy Treasures Seen By A Man Near Ogwen Lake
: FAIRY MOTHERS AND HUMAN MIDWIVES.Another tale, similar to the preceding one, is told by my friend, Mr.
Hugh Derfel Hughes, in his Hynafiaethau Llandegai a Llanllechid, pp. 35,
36. The following is a translation of Mr. Hughes's story:--
It is said that a servant man penetrated into the recesses of the
mountains in the neighbourhood of Ogwen Lake, and that he there
discovered a cave within which there was a large quantity of brazen
vessel
good fortune, he seized one of the vessels, with the intention of
carrying it away with him, as an earnest that the rest likewise were his.
But, alas, it was too heavy for any man to move. Therefore, with the
intention of returning the following morning to the cave with a friend to
assist him in carrying the vessels away, he closed its month with stones,
and thus he securely hid from view the entrance to the cave. When he had
done this it flashed upon his mind that he had heard of people who had
accidentally come across caves, just as he had, but that they, poor
things, had afterwards lost all traces of them. And lest a similar
misfortune should befall him, he determined to place a mark on the mouth
of the cave, which would enable him to come upon it again, and also he
bethought himself that it would be necessary, for further security, to
indicate by some marks the way from his house to the cave. He had
however nothing at hand to enable him to carry out this latter design,
but his walking stick. This he began to chip with his knife, and he
placed the chips at certain distances all along the way homewards. In
this way he cut up his staff, and he was satisfied with what he had done,
for he hoped to find the cave by means of the chips. Early the next
morning he and a friend started for the mountain in the fond hope of
securing the treasures, but when they arrived at the spot where the
chip-marked pathway ought to begin, they failed to discover a single
chip, because, as it was reported--They had been gathered up by the
Fairies. And thus this vision was in vain.
The author adds to the tale these words:--But, reader, things are not
always to be so. There is a tradition in the Nant, that a Gwyddel is to
have these treasures and this is how it will come to pass. A Gwyddel
Shepherd will come to live in the neighbourhood, and on one of his
journeys to the mountain to shepherd his sheep, when fate shall see fit
to bring it about, there will run before him into the cave a black sheep
with a speckled head, and the Gwyddel shepherd will follow it into the
cave to catch it, and on entering, to his great astonishment, he will
discover the treasures and take possession of them. And in this way it
will come to pass, in some future age, that the property of the Gwyddelod
will return to them.
More
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The words Cwn Annwn are variously translated as Dogs of Hell, Dogs of Elfinland. In some parts of Wales they are called Cwn Wybir, Dogs of the Sky, and in other places Cwn Bendith Y Mamau. We have seen that Bendith y Mamau is a name given to the... Cyhyraeth Death Sound
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I will quote from Bye-Gones, vol. iii., p. 211, an account of this Spirit. There was an old Welsh tradition in vogue some fifty years ago, that one David Salisbury, son of Harri Goch of Llanrhaiadr, near Denbigh, and grandson to Tho... Death Watch
This is a sound, like the ticking of a watch, made by a small insect. It is considered a sign of death, and hence its name, Death Watch. A working man's wife, whose uncle was ill in bed, told the writer, that she had no hopes of his recovery, b... Denbighshire Version Of A Fairy Mother And Human Midwife
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Ryw dro yr oedd brodor o Nefyn yn dyfod adref o ffair Pwllheli, ac wrth yr Efail Newydd gwelai Inn fawreddog, a chan ei fod yn gwybod nad oedd yr un gwesty i fod yno, gofynodd i un o'r gweision os oedd ganddynt ystabl iddo roddi ei farch. Atebwyd... Fairy Knockers Or Coblynau
The Coblynau or Knockers were supposed to be a species of Fairies who had their abode in the rocks, and whose province it was to indicate by knocks, and other sounds, the presence of ore in mines. It would seem that many people had dim tradition... Fairy Ladies Marrying Mortals
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Another tale, similar to the preceding one, is told by my friend, Mr. Hugh Derfel Hughes, in his Hynafiaethau Llandegai a Llanllechid, pp. 35, 36. The following is a translation of Mr. Hughes's story:-- It is said that a servant man penetrated ... Fairy Tricks With Mortals
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Yr oedd gwraig Garth Uchaf, yn Llanuwchllyn, un tro wedi myned allan i gweirio gwair, a gadael ei baban yn y cryd; ond fel bu'r anffawd, ni roddodd yr efail yn groes ar wyneb y cryd, ac o ganlyniad, ffeiriwyd ei baban gan y Tylwyth Teg, ac erbyn i... Gay Describes The Ceremony:--
Two hazel nuts I throw into the flame And to each nut I give a sweetheart's name; This with the loudest bounce me sore amazed, That in a flame of brightest-colour blazed; As blazed the nut, so may thy passions grow, For 'tw... Ghost Raising
If the possibility of Ghost Laying was believed in, so also was the possibility of raising Evil Spirits. This faith dates from olden times. Shakespeare, to this, as to most other popular notions, has given a place in his immortal plays. Speaking... Ghosts Or Spirits
Ghosts, or Spirits, were supposed to be the shades of departed human beings who, for certain reasons, were permitted to visit either nightly, or periodically, this upper world. The hour that Spirits came to the earth was mid-night, and they rema... Goose Or Hen Laying A Small Egg
This event also was thought to be a very bad omen, if not a sign of death. ... Gwrach Y Rhibyn Or Hag Of The Mist
Another supernatural being associated with water was the Gwrach y Rhibyn. She was supposed to reside in the dripping fog, but was seldom, if ever seen. It was believed that her shriek foretold misfortune, if not death, to the hearer, and some ev... Gwyddelwern Version
The following tale was told by Mr. Evan Roberts, Ffridd Agored, a farmer in the parish of Llanfwrog. Roberts heard the story when he was a youth in the parish of Gwyddelwern. It is as follows:-- A man went from his house for peat to the stack ... Gwyll
According to Richards, and Dr. Owen Pughe, is a Fairy, a goblin, etc. The plural of Gwyll would be Gwylliaid, or Gwyllion, but this latter word Dr. Pughe defines as ghosts, hobgoblins, etc. Formerly, there was in Merionethshire a red haired family... Haddock
The haddock has a dark spot on each side its gills, and superstition ascribes these marks to the impression of S. Peter's thumb and finger, when he took the tribute money out of the mouth of a fish of the same species in the sea of Galilee. ... Hairs Of A Lover Found Under A Holly Tree
This test is to be carried out on All Hallow Eve. The young person walks backwards to a holly tree, takes a handful of grass from underneath it, and then carries the leaves to the light, and she then sees among the grass several hairs of her true... Hare
Caesar, bk. v., ch. xii., states that the Celts do not regard it lawful to eat the hare, the cock, and the goose; they, however, breed them for amusement and pleasure. This gives a respectable age to the superstitions respecting these animals. ... Heather
Should any person bring heather into a house, he brought death to one or other of the family by so doing. ... Hedgehog
It was believed that hedgehogs sucked cows, and so firmly were the people convinced of this fact, that this useful little animal was doomed to death, and I have seen in many Churchwardens' accounts entries to the effect that they had paid sums of ... Hemp Seed Sowing
A young married woman, a native of Denbighshire, told me that if a young woman sowed hemp seed, the figure of her lover would appear and follow her. This was to be done by night on Hallow Eve. I find from English Folk-Lore, p. 15, that this divi... Hen Laying Two Eggs In The Same Day
Should a hen lay two eggs in the same day, it was considered a sign of death. I have been told that a hen belonging to a person who lived in Henllan, near Denbigh, laid an egg early in the morning, and another about seven o'clock p.m. in the same... Horse
A white horse figures in the superstition of school children. When the writer was a lad in school at Llanidloes, it was believed that if a white horse were met in the morning it was considered lucky, and should the boy who first saw the horse spi... Huw Llwyd And His Magical Books
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As the coming of a strange swarm of bees is indicative of good luck to the person to whom they come, so the decamping of a swarm shows that misfortune is about to visit the person whom they leave. ... Lady Jeffrey's Spirit
This lady could not rest in her grave because of her misdeeds, and she troubled people dreadfully; at last she was persuaded or enticed to contract her dimensions, and enter into a bottle. She did so, after appearing in a good many hideous forms;... Lady-bird
This pretty spotted little beetle was used formerly in the neighbourhood of Llanidloes as a prognosticator of the weather. First of all the lady-bird was placed in the palm of the left hand, or right; I do not think it made any difference which h... Llanddona Witches
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A mother took her child to the gleaning field, and left it sleeping under the sheaves of wheat whilst she was busily engaged gleaning. The Fairies came to the field and carried off her pretty baby, leaving in its place one of their own infants. ... Lledrith Spectre Of A Person
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