practice, causing a sudden alteration, yet the cause
thereof unperceivable at present; nor have they power (either they cannot
make use of their natural powers, or asked not the heavenly aid) to
escape the blow impendent. A man of the second sight perceived a person
standing by him (sound to other's view) wholly gored in blood, and he
(amazed like) bid him instantly flee. The whole man laughed at his
_airt_ [notice] and warning, since there was no appearance of danger. He
had scarce contracted his lips from laughter when unexpectedly his
enemies leaped in at his side and stabbed him with their weapons. They
also pierce cows or other animals, usually said to be Elf-shot, whose
purest substance (if they die) these subterraneans take to live on, viz.
the aerial and ethereal parts, the most spirituous matter for prolonging
of life, such as aquavitae (moderately taken) is amongst liquors, leaving
the terrestrial behind. The cure of such hurts is only for a man to find
out the hole with his finger, as if the spirits flowing from a man's warm
hand were antidote sufficient against their poisoned darts.

As birds, as beasts, whose bodies are much used to the change of the free
and open air, foresee storms, so those invisible people are more
sagacious to understand by the books of nature things to come, than we,
who are pestered with the grossest dregs of all elementary mixtures, and
have our purer spirits choked by them. The deer scents out a man and
powder (though a late invention) at a great distance; a hungry hunter,
bread; and the raven, a carrion; their brains, being long clarified by
the high and subtle air, will observe a very small change in a trice.
Thus a man of the second sight, perceiving the operations of these
forecasting invisible people among us (indulged through a stupendous
providence to give warnings of some remarkable events, either in the air,
earth, or waters), told he saw a winding shroud creeping on a walking
healthful person's leg till it came to the knee, and afterwards it came
up to the middle, then to the shoulders, and at last over the head, which
was visible to no other person. And by observing the spaces of time
betwixt the several stages, he easily guessed how long the man was to
live who wore the shroud; for when it approached the head, he told that
such a person was ripe for the grave.

There be many places called fairy-hills, which the mountain people think
impious and dangerous to peel