y do not know.

By the way, many of the German peasantry in the more ignorant districts
still believe that to write Abracadabra on a slip of paper and keep it
with you, will protect you from wounds, and that if your house is on
fire, to throw this strip into it will put the fire out.

Many charms or incantations call on God, Christ or some saints, just as
the heathen ones call on a spirit. Here is one for epilepsy that seems
to appeal to both religions, as if with a queer proviso against any
possible mistake about either. Taking the epileptic by the hand, you
whisper in his ear "I adjure thee by the sun and the moon and the gospel
of to-day, that thou arise and no more fall to the ground; in the name
of the Father, Son and Holy Ghost."

A charm for the cramp found in vogue in some rustic regions is this:

"The devil is tying a knot in my leg,
Mark, Luke and John, unloose it, I beg,
Crosses three we make to ease us--
Two for the thieves, and one for Christ Jesus."

Here is another, often used in Ireland, which in the same spirit of
superstition and ignorant irreverence uses the name of the Savior for a
slight human occasion. It is to cure the toothache, and requires the
repeating of the following string of words:

"St. Peter sitting on a marble stone, our Savior passing by, asked him
what was the matter. 'Oh Lord, a toothache!' Stand up, Peter, and follow
me; and whoever keeps these words in memory of me, shall never be
troubled with a toothache, Amen."

The English astrologer Lilly, after the death of his wife, formerly
a Mrs. Wright, found in a scarlet bag which she wore under her arm a
pure gold "sigil" or round plate worth about ten dollars in gold,
which the former husband of the defunct had used to exorcise a
spirit that plagued him. In case any of my readers can afford
bullion enough, and would like to drive away any such visitor, let
them get such a plate and have engraved round the edge of one side,
"Vicit Leo de tribus Judae tetragrammaton [cross]." Inside this
engrave a "holy lamb." Round the edge of the other side engrave
"Annaphel" and three crosses, thus: [cross] [cross] [cross]; and in
the middle, "Sanctus Petrus Alpha et Omega."

The witches have always had incantations, which they have used to make a
broom-stick into a horse, to kill or to sicken animals and persons, etc.
Most of these are sufficiently stupid, and not half so wonderful as one
I know, which may be found in a certain myst