Page:Fairy tales, now first collected by Joseph Ritson.djvu/66

which had been raised by Diccon the bedlam, and, being asked by Gammer,

——"But, Hodge, had he no horns to push?"

replies:

"As long as your two arms. Saw ye never fryer rushe,Painted on a cloth, with a side-long cowes tayle,And crooked cloven feet, and many a hoked nayle.For al the world (if I schuld judg) chould reckon him his brother;Loke even what face frier Rush had, the devil had such another."

The fairies frequented many parts of the bishopric of Durham. There is a hillock, or tumulus, near Bishopton, and a large hill near Billingham, both which used, in former time, to be "haunted by fairies." Even Ferry-hill, a well-known stage between Darlington and Durham, is evidently a corruption of Fairy-hill. When seen, by accident or favour, they are described as of the smallest size, and uniformly habited in green. They could, however, occasionally, assume a different size and appearance; as a woman, who had been admitted into their society, challenged one of the guests, whom she espied, in the market, selling fairy-butter.^[1] This freedom was deeply resented,

1. This is well known, and frequently found on old trees, gate-posts, &c.