The Witches of Delnabo

A large farm at Delnabo had been split between three married tenants, each couple being allocated an equal share. Although they all seemed to work just as hard as each other, two of the allotments prospered greatly while the third lagged behind. Every day, the farmer worked until his body ached and his hands bled, but it seemed to make no difference.

The three farmer’s wives would often sit together as they worked their chores and the poor man’s partner complained to her friends about their troubles. She wished that there was something within her power to help improve her husband’s lot. The other two women glanced at each other with a smile, then asked if she would really be willing to do anything.

They told her to meet them again at that same spot long after dark, leaving her broom in the bed where she should be sleeping. There was no need to tell her husband, if he woke up then all he would see is his snoring wife lying next to him. The only other thing that the women would disclose was that their farming troubles would soon be over.

She wasn’t somebody who kept secrets from her husband though, so when the day’s work was over, she told him every word. The farmer knew without a doubt that the other men’s wives must be witches, trying to lure her into their coven. He wasn’t about to let that happen, dressing up in his wife’s clothes and hurrying out to play her part for the evening.

In the darkness, the excited women didn’t notice that their companion wasn’t whom they were expecting, simply handing over a new broom and a sieve. They led the way into the hills, climbing through heather and crossing small burns until they came to a deep pool. A hundred torches lit the scene, making the water look more like a fiery pit, full of witches speeding around in their sieves all shrieking and cackling.

Directly across from him, the farmer saw the Devil in form of an enormous black dog, grinning at his crowd of loyal minions. His companions told him to wait where he stood while they spoke to their master about performing the initiation. As a taste of what was to come, he could help speed them across in their sieve by shouting encouragement in the name of the unholy beast.

The two began rowing their sieve across the surface of the water, but the farmer had seen more than enough for one night. He shouted out loudly so that all could hear, “Go then, in the name of the Best” and at the sound of the name of God, the dark magic was broken. Every torch went out, the Devil disappeared and the unusual vessel holding his neighbours began to sink rapidly.

Escaping back home as quickly as possible, he shared the remarkable story with his wife. In the morning, he was forced to explain to the other farmers why they had woken to find brooms in their beds instead of their partners. Over the months that followed, with the devious spells broken, the third farm became far richer than his neighbours and none of them saw the Witches of Delnabo ever again.