Traditions and Hearthside Stories of West Cornwall, Vol. 2, by William Bottrell, [1873], at sacred-texts.com
Charms.
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Charm for a scald, wild-fire, burn, or any other inflammatory disease.
The person to be charmed gathers nine bramble leaves, which are put into a vessel of spring water; then each leaf is passed
over and from the diseased part, whilst repeating three times to each leaf as follows:—
One with fire and two with frost;
Out with thee fire, and in with thee frost,
In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost."
A stick of fire is then taken from the hearth -and passed over and around the diseased part whilst the above is repeated nine times.
Charm for a pack of a thorn, boils, kennels, &c.
The thorns did bleed but did not rot,
No more shall thy finger (or whatever part it may be),
In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost."
Charm for staunching blood.
Baptised in the river Jordan;
There he digg’d a well.
And turn’d the water against the hill,
So shall thy blood stand still.
In the name, &c."
Charm for a tetter.
God bless the flesh and preserve the bone,
Perish thou tetter and be thou gone,
In the name, &c."
"Tetter, tetter, thou hast eight sisters.
God bless the flesh and preserve the bone,
Perish thou tetter and be thou gone,
In the name, &c."
The charm is thus continued until it comes to the last, which is:—
God bless the flesh and preserve the bone,
Perish thou tatter and be thou gone.
In the name, &c."
Charm for toothache.
Saw his brother lying on the floor.
'What aileth thee, brother?
Pain in thy teeth?
Thy teeth shall pain thee no more.'
In the name, &c."
The charmer places his or her thumb on the diseased part in all but the first charm.
Divination with a Bible and key; seeking a response to doubts from the first words the eye may glance on in letting a Bible fall open; and various other superstitious practices, common to all England, are well known here and need not be described.
