than this world, because incomparably more vast and varied in its possibilities.”  This may be added as a fourth theory to account for the existence of fairies, and it may be further stated here that the Irish popular belief in ghosts attributes to some of their departed spirits much of the same violence and malice with which fairies are credited.  Mr. Jeremiah Curtin gives striking instances of this kind in his book, the Folk Lore of West Kerry.

It became necessary, therefore, for the Gaels who believed in the preternatural powers of the fairies for good and ill to propitiate them as far as possible.  On May eve, accordingly, cattle were driven into raths and bled there, some of the blood being tasted, the rest poured out in sacrifice.  Men and women were also bled on these occasions.  The seekers for buried treasure, over which fairies were supposed to have influence, immolated a black cock or a black cat to propitiate them.  Again, a cow, suffering from sickness believed to be due to fairy malice, was bled and then devoted to St. Martin.  If it recovered, it was never sold or killed.  The first new milk of a cow was poured out on the ground to propitiate the fairies, and especially on the ground within a fairy rath.  The first drop of any drink is also thrown out by old Irish people.  If a child spills milk, the mother says, “that’s for the fairies, leave it to them and welcome.”  Slops should never be thrown out of doors without the warning, “Take care of water!” lest fairies should be passing invisibly and get soiled by the discharge.  Eddies of dust upon the road are supposed to be caused by the fairies, and tufts of grass, sticks, and pebbles are thrown into the centre of the eddy to propitiate the unseen beings.  Some fairies of life size, who live within the green hills or under the raths, are supposed to carry off healthy babes to be made fairy children, their abstractors leaving weak changelings in their place.  Similarly, nursing mothers are sometimes supposed to be carried off to give the breast to fairy babes, and handsome young men are spirited away to become bridegrooms to fairy brides.  Again, folk suffering from falling sickness are supposed to be in that condition owing to the fatigue caused by nocturnal rides through the air with the fairies, whose steeds are bewitched rushes, blades of grass, straws, fern roots, and cabbage stalks.  The latter, to be serviceable for the purpose, should be cut into the rude shapes of horses before the metamorphosis can take place.

Iron of every kind keeps away malignant fairies:  thus, a horseshoe nailed to the bottom of the churn prevents butter from being bewitched.  Here is a form of charm against the fairies who have bewitched the butter:  “Every window should be barred, a great turf fire should be lit upon which nine irons should be placed, the bystanders chanting twice over in Irish, ’Come, butter, come; Peter stands at the gate waiting for a buttered cake.’  As the irons become heated the witch will try to break in, asking the people to take the irons, which are burning her, off the fire.  On their refusing, she will go and bring back the butter to the churn.  The irons may then be removed from the fire and all will go well.”