19. p. 293.)
to be prevalent in the south-eastern counties of England, is also used
by the lower orders in the county of Kilkenny, and perhaps other parts
of Ireland. I have often heard the charm: it commences, "Peter sat
upon a stone; Jesus said, 'What aileth thee, Peter?'" and so on, as
in the English form.
_To cure Warts_, the following charm is used:--A wedding-ring is
procured, and the wart touched or pricked with a gooseberry thorn
through the ring.
_To cure Epilepsy_, take three drops of sow's milk.
_To cure Blisters_ in a cow's mouth, cut the blisters; then slit the
upper part of the tail, insert a clove of garlic, and tie a piece of
_red cloth_ round the wound.
_To cure the Murrain in Cows_.--This disease is supposed to be
caused by the cow having been stung about the mouth while feeding, in
consequence of contact with some of the larger larvae of the moth (as
of the Death's-head Sphynx, &c.), which have a soft fleshy horn on
their tails, erroneously believed to be a sting. If a farmer is so
lucky as to procure one of these rare larvae, he is to bore a hole in
an _ash tree_, and plug up the unlucky caterpillar alive in it.
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