omesteads and turning off the disease. Fumigating
the byres with juniper was a method adopted to ward off disease. Such a
fire was called 'needfyre.' The kindling of it came under the censure of
the Presbytery at times."[736]

[The need-fire in Perthshire.]

In Perthshire the need-fire was kindled as a remedy for cattle-disease
as late as 1826. "A wealthy old farmer, having lost several of his
cattle by some disease very prevalent at present, and being able to
account for it in no way so rationally as by witchcraft, had recourse to
the following remedy, recommended to him by a weird sister in his
neighbourhood, as an effectual protection from the attacks of the foul
fiend. A few stones were piled together in the barnyard, and woodcoals
having been laid thereon, the fuel was ignited by _will-fire_, that is
fire obtained by friction; the neighbours having been called in to
witness the solemnity, the cattle were made to pass through the flames,
in the order of their dignity and age, commencing with the horses and
ending with the swine. The ceremony having been duly and decorously gone
through, a neighbouring farmer observed to the enlightened owner of the
herd, that he, along with his family, ought to have followed the example
of the cattle, and the sacrifice to Baal would have been complete."[737]

[The need-fire in Ireland.]

In County Leitrim, Ireland, in order to prevent fever from spreading,
"all the fires on the townland, and the two adjoining (one on each
side), would be put out. Then the men of the three townlands would come
to one house, and get two large blocks of wood. One would be set in the
ground, and the other one, fitted with two handles, placed on the top of
it. The men would then draw the upper block backwards and forwards over
the lower until fire was produced by friction, and from this the fires
would be lighted again. This would prevent the fever from
spreading,"[738]

[The use of the need-fire a relic of a time when all fires were kindled
by the friction of wood.]

Thus it appears that in many parts of Europe it has been customary to
kindle fire by the friction of wood for the purpose of curing or
preventing the spread of disease, particularly among cattle. The mode of
striking a light by rubbing two dry sticks against each other is the one
to which all over the world savages have most commonly resorted for the
sake of providing themselves with fire;[739] and we can scarcely doubt
that the prac