CATTLE
Cattle were highly regarded by the Celts, being the most important animal for
their sustenance and welfare and also a basis for wealth and prestige. They were
also believed to have close ties with their human owners and to be aware of
human activities and festivals. In some areas it is thought that cattle should
be informed of any deaths in their owner's household, or the cows, sensing that
something was wrong, would sicken and probably die. During medieval times the
superstition arose that cattle would kneel at the stroke of midnight on
Christmas Eve; in some parts of Europe they were also believed to gain the
ability to speak on this night, although it was considered dangerous for any
human to hear their speech as misfortune would befall anyone who overheard them.
There are many English, Irish and Welsh tales of fairy cows who gave never-
ending milk until their generosity was abused by some greedy human, causing a
loss of the cow or her powers. A Lancashire tale tells of a dun cow that
appeared during a famine to save the people with her unending milk supply, until
one person tried to get more then her fair share by milking the cow through a
sieve, leading to the cow's death from exhaustion and sorrow at the trick. Fairy
cattle could be dun or red but were more usually white with red ears.
It was once considered unlucky if an offer were made to purchase cattle which
were not for sale, leading to their illness and perhaps death. In some districts
it was also considered unlucky to strike cattle with human hands; a stick should
be used to drive them from place to place, and should be thrown away once the
destination was reached. Cattle who stand close together on low ground, and feed
hard together, are said to be foretelling rain, but if they stand on high ground
the weather will be fair.
Cattle diseases were often attributed to the machinations of fairies, elves or
witches, and many charms were used to fend off these magical attacks. Horseshoes
or holed stones hung above the door of the byre, or crossed made of rowan wood
fixed over cattle-stalls, were believed to ward off evil influences. In the
sixteenth century wax from a Paschal Candle would be molded into a special
candle, and wax from it dripped between the ears and horns of the beasts; the
remaining wax was then set over the main door, or on the threshold, so that all
the cattle had to pass the spot. Written charms were also obtained from local
wise-women or cunning-men to ward off evil, and concealed in the roof or under
the floorboards.
It was traditional to drive cattle over the embers of the Beltane and Midsummer
fires, as a magickal protection against cattle plague and other diseases. As
recently as the nineteenth century, some farmers would sacrifice one healthy
calf or cow (sometimes burying it under the threshold of the byre with feet
pointing upwards) as a symbolic sacrifice that the herb might be spared from
cattle plague.
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