verbal charms in british medicine

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Verbal Charms in British Folk Medicine

Author(s): Thomas R. ForbesSource: Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society, Vol. 115, No. 4 (Aug. 20, 1971), pp.293-316Published by: American Philosophical SocietyStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/986091

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VERBAL CHARMS IN BRITISH FOLK MEDICINE'THOMAS R. FORBES

Professor of Anatomy, Yale University(Read November13, 1970)

INTRODUCTIONMIEDICALHISTORIANS have not often con-cerned themselves with folk medicine. It was,after all, the product of superstition, hearsay,ignorance, and, at best, crude empiricism, andits development was usually far removed fromthe intellectual main stream of medical history.However, it must be remembered that duringthe Middle Ages and until the eighteenth centuryat least, good medical care as it was then under-stood was not available to great numbers of

people. Because of poverty, tradition, and ashortage of trained practitioners, the commonman very often depended on folk medicinepracticed by laymen. However, the commonman made up most of the population, and thestory of his illnesses and injuries and the "treat-ment," if any, that he received is profoundlyimportant to the social history of medicine.The "cures" offered by folk medicine fre-quently depended on dubious mixtures forexternal application or internal consumption,on crude surgery, or on charms. The latterwere selected from a great armamentarium ofobjects, procedures, and incantations. Our con-cern will be with word charms, which ordinarilywere in the form of a rhyme, a prayer, a narrativeor simply a line or two gibberish. This reviewis limited to verbal charms in English and Latinthat were used in England and Scotland. Notincluded are charms in Cymric (Welsh), Gaelic,and Celtic. There are several excellent studiesof Anglo-Saxon (Old English) medical charms(15, 24, 38, 68, 107, 129, 132, 139).2 I shalldeal only with charms still in use in the MiddleEnglish period and later, that is, from about1300 on.Sometimes it has been difficult to draw adividing line between true word charms on theone hand and objects and procedures used as

1This research was supported by a grant from thePenrose Fund of the American Philosophical Society.2 Numbers for referenceswill be enclosedin parentheses;numbers or charms,in squarebrackets.

charms on the other. For example, how doesone classify a charm spoken while a magicalplant is pulled from the ground? Arbitrarydecisions had to be made. For this as well asother reasons, some readers will find my seriesof charms to be incomplete. However, sincethere appears to be no published attempt at acomprehensive collection of the later Latin andEnglish prophylactic and therapeutic verbalcharms used in Britain, this review may, I hope,be useful.Scholars have shown that many charms wereonce components of early pagan religions andthat, with the advent of Christianity, the namesof the heathen gods who had been invoked inthese incantations were simply replaced by thoseof Biblical figures and saints (24, 66, 83, 84, 86,108). According to Grattan and Singer (66),"Of all cultural expressions, magic passes mostrapidly from people to people." Religion andmagic often are not far removed, and indeedmay be mingled. Belief in religion and beliefin magic are largely dependent on faith. TheChurch naturally frowned on pagan charms, butduring the Middle Ages it permitted the use ofthose invoking Christ and the saints (64, 91).Later, organized religion condemned all charms.Francis Hutchinson makes this clear in An His-torical Essay Concerning Witchcraft (88), pub-lished in 1718.Jur. What do you say concerningCharms?Clerg.It is both a great Sin and a great Folly touse them.Jur. But are there any strange Curesor Wonderswrought by them?Clerg.CredulousSuperstitiousPeoplewillout-faceyou with foolish Old-Wives Tales. ....Most physicians, as was to be expected, hadlittle use for verbal charms. Richard Tomlin-son, a London apothecary, wrote in 1657 (140)that

Those Remedies that are Periammata,Periapta,andAmuleta,that is, tryed and suspendedMedicaments,appertainto such as cure Diseases by an occult fac-ulty: and they are of two kinds; one sort consistsPROCEEDINGS OF THE AMERICAN PHILOSOPHICAL SOCIETY, VOL. 115, NO. 4, AUGUST 1971

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THOMAS R. FORBESsolely of characters and words, another of simpleMedicaments hanged about the neck, or any othermember of the body. Physicians laugh at theformer, and reject it as a thing fabulous, delusive,uncertain, and incredulous ....

But through the centuries the common manknew better, or thought he did. In Bale'sA Newe Comedye (14), a sixteenth-century play,a character speaking as a midwife endorsedpopular beliefs (91) when she boasted:

Yonge chyldren can I charme:With whysperynges and whychyngesWith crossynges and with kyssyngesWith blasynges and with blessyngesThat sprytes do them no harme.Again, another character remarks aboutmidwife,

the

She can by sayenge her Ave marye,And by other charmes of sorceryeEase men of toth ake by and byeAnd helpe men of the ague and poxeSo they brynge moneye to the boxe,Whan they to her make mone.VARIETIES OF VERBAL CHARMS

Verbal charms may conveniently be classifiedaccording to their construction.

I. Directed to the disease itself.A. Adjuration or appeal.B. Transferential to animal or inanimate

object.C. Diminishing ("counting out").

II. Directed to the Devil or an evil spirit.A. Appeal.B. Exorcism.

III. Directed to God, a saint, etc.A. Appeal1. Lord's Prayer, Credo, verses fromScripture, religious sentiment, etc.2. Invocation of names of God.

3. Special prayers.B. Religious narrative.

IV. Word squares.V. Gibberish; corrupt Latin.

VI. Combinations of above types.In addition, charms may be classified accord-

ing to the diseases or other conditions they wereintended to prevent or alleviate, as charms forthe falling evil, burns, toothache, and so on.

In this paper, charms will be grouped accordingto the latter system but will also be describedin terms of their construction. We shall findthat the texts of the charms often are corrupt(see V, above), but this is inevitable when groupsof words have been passed on from one personto another on endless occasions through thecenturies.Finally, it should be mentioned that verbalcharms were used by the charmer and the patientin various ways. Just as a doctor writing a pre-scription has for centuries included the "sig-nature," his directions for how and when amedicine should be taken, so with the charmcame instructions, written or oral, that the versewas to be said nine times, or written on a pieceof bread and eaten, or worn on a string aroundthe neck. The old books listing various ac-cepted prescriptions for medicines often in-cluded testimonials to their value-for example,probatum (excellent). Similarly, as we shall see,the description of a charm sometimes carried aguarantee of its infallibility.Let us now turn to the charms themselves.Each will be numbered for reference.

AGUE AND OTHER FEVERSCharms for these ills were numerous, andillustrate most of the ways in which verbal

charms were constructed. Thorndike (139)gives a thirteenth-century adjuration to fevers.[1] In nomine domini crucifixi sub Pontio PilatosignumX t fugitefebrescottidiane et] bi[duani et]tridii et recediteab hocfamulo di N. et omnis chorusangelorumpersequitur os [In the name of the Lordcrucifiedunder Pontius Pilate, the sign of the crosst flee quotidian and biduan and tertian fevers andleave this servent called N. (name) and the wholechorusof angels pursuesyou].The term biduan is discussed in connection withcharm 33.

In Pitcairn's Ancient Criminal Trials in Scot-land (114) one may read the official transcriptof the trial in May, 1662, in Edinburgh ofIsobel Gowdie for witchcraft. She spoke freelyabout her profession, to which she admitted.For fevers, she explained,[2] we say thrise over, "I FORBID the qwaking-feavers,the sea feaveris, the land-feaveris,and all thefeaveris that ewirGodordained,owt of the head,owtof the heart, owt of the bak, owt of the sydis, owt ofthe kneyis [knees]. owt of the thieghes [thighs],fra the pointis of the fingeristo the neves [nibs, ex-

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VOL. 115, NO. 4, 1971] VERBAL CHARMS IN BRITISH FOLK MEDICINEtremities] of the toes; owt sall the feaveris goe,[some] to the hill, some to the hap [meaning uncer-tain], some to the stone, some to the stok. In SaintPeiteris nam, Saint Paullis nam, and all the Saintisof Hevin: In the name of THE FATHER, THESONE, and of THE HALIE GOST!"Pitcairn remarks:It appears very singular to us who live in the Nine-teenth Century, that Satan should have taught hisservants to invoke THE SAINTS, and even THEHOLY TRINITY. The charms recited by his dis-ciples are usually fragments of ancient Monkishrhymes . . .We shall see other examples. Isobel Gowdie'scharm is directed both to the fevers and to thepowers of evil. It also contains an element oftransference, that is, the fevers shall leave thepatient and move into hill, hap, stone, and stock,thus reflecting the ancient idea that a diseaseis an evil spirit that has entered its victim. Onerecalls, in this connection, the Biblical storyof how devils were cast out of two "possessed"men and into a herd of swine (Matt. 8: 28-32)and other, similar incidents in Scripture.A second cure for ague was for the oldestfemale member of a family to say up the chimney(136):[3] Tremble and go!First day shiver and burn:Tremble and quake!Second day shiver and learn:Tremble and die!Third day never return.This charm could only be used on St. Agnes'sEve (20 January). A possibly related form fromLincolnshire in the seventeenth century ran:[4] Ague, ague, I thee defy, Three days shiver,Three days shake, Make me well for Jesus' sake;pass on the disease by means of this charm:I tie my hair to the aspen-tree,Dither and shake instead of me.The charm, written on a triangular piece ofpaper, was to be worn around the neck untilthe paper fell away (150). Note the appro-priateness of the aspen, the leaves of whichshake in a breeze like a man with a chill.Some adjurations for ague were shorter. Apriest, early in the nineteenth century in Staf-fordshire, reproached a young woman for herfolly in wearing a charm. Opened, it read:[5] Ague, farewell,Till we meet in hell (19, 73).

Others ran:[6] Good dear DevilShake not Nell here;But when you get her to Hell,Shake her well there (19).[7] Good morrow, old one,I give thee cold; Good morrow, old one.This last was to be recited after tying threeknots in a branch of an old willow tree (138).The familiar expressicn, Abracadabra, wasonce a charm, to be written thus:

AB RACADAB RAA B R A C A DA B RAB RACADABAB RACA DAAB R A C A DAB RACAAB RACA B RAAB RABA

The paper on which Abracadabra was writtenwas to be rolled up and hung around the neckfor nine days. The spell, said to be of ancientHebrew origin, was alleged to have cured hun-dreds of the ague (8, 10, 18, 125, 140). Ninewas also the number of the planet Mars, whichin astrology was believed to control fevers (106).Defoe refers to this charm in his A Journal ofthe Plague Year (50), first published in 1722.A similar charm was[9] KALEN DENTAKA LEN D EN TKALE N DENEtc.This and Abracadabra are good examples ofdiminishing charms. According to the com-monplace book of a Berkshire surgeon, datingfrom 1788-1789, the Kalendenta formula was tobe written on a piece of bread. The first linewas cut off and eaten by the sick man or womanon day one, the next line on day two, and so onuntil day ten, when the last K was fed to a dog(8). The idea was that the fever would diminishjust as the formula did and would disappearfinally from the patient when it was transferredinto the animal.Reginald Scot (1538?-1599), best known forhis rational attack on superstitions aboutwitchcraft, recommended "The first chapter ofS. Johns gospell in small letters consecrated at amasse, and hanged about ones necke" [10]

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THOMAS R. FORBESas an "incomparable" cure for the ague and pro-tection from "all witchcrafts and divelishpractises" (125).An ague charm from the second half of thefourteenth century was as follows.3[11] Take a sage leaf and write thereon, "Christustonat [Christ speaks forth]" and let the sick man eatit the first day, and say a Pater Noster, Ave Maria,and a Credo. The second day write on another leaf,"Angelus nuntiat [the angel announces]," and letthe sick [man] eat it and say two Pater Nosters, andtwo Ave Marias, and two Credos. The third daywrite on the third leaf, "Johannes predicat [Johnproclaims]" and let the sick [man] eat it and saythree Pater N?osters,three Aves, and three Credos.And when he is whole, that he do say three masses,one of the Holy Ghost, the second of Saint Michael,the third of Saint John Baptist, and when he heareth[the] name [of] the fever, bless him saying an AveMaria (85. 131).

Three similar charms follow. The first is inMiddle English (80); the others are from asixteenth -century source (125).[12] Take three obleys [wafers] and write on thatone: pater alpha and omega [the Father is Alpha andOmega] and make a point, and let the sick [person]eat that the first day. The second day write on thatother: filius est vita [the Son is the life], and maketwo points, and give [to] the sick to eat; and on thethird write, spiritus sanctus est remedium [the HolySpirit is the means of cure] and make three points,and give the sick to eat it; and the first day let thesick say a Paternoster ere he eat it, and the secondday two Paternosters, and the third day three Pater-nosters and Credoin deum patrem [I believe in Godthe Father].[13] Take three consecrated massecakes [wafersfor mass], and write upon the first: Qualis est patertalis est sanctus [Like as the Son, so is the HolyGhost]: o . the second Qualis est filius, talis est sanc-tus [Like as the Son, so is the Holy Spirit]: on thethird Qualis est spiritus tale est remedium [Like as theSpirit, so is the means of cure.] Then give them tothe sicke man, enjoining him to eate none otherthing that daie wherein he eateth anie of them, noryet drinke: and let him saie fifteene Pater nosters,and as manie Aves, in the honour and praise of theTrinitie.[14] Cut an apple in three peeces, and write uponone; The father is uncreated: upon the other; Thefather is incomprehensible: upon the third: Thefather is eternall.

Three additional ague charms were muchsimpler. Two from the sixteenth century (125):[15] Wash with the partie, and privilie saie this

3 I have partly modernized the language of this and theother Middle English charms that are quoted.

psalme, Exaltabo te Deus meus, rex &c. [I will extolthee, my God, my King-Psalm 145].[16] Take the partie by the hand, and saie: Aequefacilis sit tibi haec febris, atque Mariae virgini Christipartus [Let this fever be as easy for thee as was thebirth of Christ for the Virgin Mary].The other is from the seventeenth century (140).[17] Sancti Petre & Paule stultum hunc persanate[St. Peter and St. Paul, cure this fool].

There was a Lincolnshire charm (86, 101)for which one nailed three used horseshoesto the foot of the patient's bed. A hammerwas placed across them. A sick boy's mothertold him that when he began to shake with chills,he should hold the hammer with his left handand tap the horse shoes, saying,[18] Feyther, Son and Holy Ghost,Nail the davil to the poast;Throice I stroikes with holy crook,One for God, and one for Wod,and one for Lok.Although the verse speaks of a crook, the suf-ferer strikes the horseshoes with the hammerof Thor. Wod means Wodin and Lok, Loki.Here is a Norse charm adapted for Christianuse. It is also significant that the hammer washeld in the left or sinister hand, as befitted anapproach to the Evil One, even though the charmbegan with an invocation of the Trinity.

Reginald Scot (125) records this sixteenth-century charm:[19] Lead the sicke man on a fridaie before sunnerising towards the east, and let him hold up his handstowards the sunne, and saie: This is the daie, whereinthe Lord God came to the crosse. But as the crosseshall never more come to him: so let never the hot orcold fit of this ague come anie more unto this man.In nomine patris, t & filii, & spiritus t sancti t.Then saie seven and twentie Pater nosters, and asmanie Aves, and use this three daies togither.

Some charms that were not actually addressedto God or the saints instead invoked some oftheir names. Awesome names of unknownorigin and meaning were added further to im-press the credulous (68, 83). An early incanta-tion to protect against fevers and many otherevils began (139):[20] Dominus t deus t genitus t unigenitust pater t creator[Lord t God t Begotten t OnlyBegotten t Father t Creator].A medieval charm was to be written on threewafers from the mass, which were then to be



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VOL. 115, NO. 4, 1971] VERBAL CHARMS IN BRITISH FOLK MEDICINEeaten on three successive days (80). Thenumber three of course symbolized the Trinity.[21] t El t elye t Sabaotht Adonay t Alpha t Omega Messiast Pastor t agnus t fons.Eli means My God; Sabaoth, armies; Adonay,Lord; Pastor, shepherd. Agnus is part of thefamiliar Agnus Dei, Lamb of God, and fonsmeans fountain or source. So here is an ag-gregation of religious names and attributes,potent because incomprehensible, and derivedfrom scraps of scripture and liturgy.Another charm for fever, this from the four-teenth century (79), directed:[22] Wryt thys Wordys on a lorell lef t Ysmaelt Ysmaelt adjurovosperAngelumut soporetursteHomoN. and ley this lef underhys head that he wete[wot, know] not thereof. . . .Ysmael, the Biblical Ishmael, is from the He-brew Yishma'e'l, God hears. The Latin com-ponent means, I adjure you by the Angel[presumably a name once appeared here] thatthis man N. [Name] shall be put to sleep.Probably the charm was originally intendedto be soporific.Scot (125) gives two other charms for ague.[23]. Write upona massecakecut in threepeeces; 0ague to be worshipped:on the second; 0 sickness tobe ascribed to health and joies: on the third; Paxt max t fax andlet it be eaten fasting.[24] Paint upon three like peeces of a massecake,Peterpax t Adonai t filius vita t sabbaoths spir-itus sanctust Tetragrammaton and eate it, as isafore said.

The influence of the ritual of the Mass is clearenough. The first charm is partly directedto the sickness itself. Pax, peace, is followedby rhyming gibberish. Tetragrammaton, fromthe Greek for four letters, stands for the fourHebrew letters of a name of God, transliteratedas Yahweh. Because the Jews decided somecenturies before Christ that this word was toosacred to pronounce, they read for it Adonai,My Lord, or Elohim, God.Several religious narratives were used as fevercharms.[25] Feverwasgreatof [in] PeterswyffsmotherAnd burntherfullsore,Christ t rebukt,andaway it wentAnd vext herno more (131).[26] Petrusautem acebatsuper petrammarmoream;inueniens ill/um ihesus dixit: petre, quid hic jaces

t Respondit petrus t domine, iaceo hic defebre mala;dixit ihesus: surge dimitte illam. surrexit dimisit, &'dixit petrus: domine rogo ut quicunque hec verbasuperse portauerit scripta, quodnon noceant ei febres frigide,nec calide, cotidiane t 3ne [tertiane] nec iiijne [qua-terne] & ait ihesus petro: Fiat tibi sicut petisti t Innomine meo fiat, amen t In t manus t tuas t do-mine t commendo t spiritum t meum t Redemistit me t domine t deus t veritatis t amen t In[nomine] patris t & filii t & spiritus t sanctit amen [Moreover, Peter was sitting on a marblerock. Jesus, coming upon him, said, "Peter, whyare you sitting here?" t Peter answered, "t Lord,I am sitting here because of an evil fever." Jesussaid, "Arise and cast it forth." He arose, and cast itout, and Peter said, "Lord, I ask that whosoevershall carry these words in writing on his person shallnot be harmed by cold fevers or hot, quotidian,tertian, or quartan." And Jesus said to Peter, "Letit be as you have asked. t In My Name, so be it.Amen." t Into t Thy t hands, t 0 Lord, t Icommend t my t spirit. t Thou has redeemedt me, 0 Lord t God t of truth. t Amen.t In the name of the Father, t and of the Son,t and of the Holy Spirit. t Amen] (80, 139).This medieval account of an apocryphalincident is an example of a very common narra-tive charm that appeared in many variations

(102) and in both English and (bad) Latin, andwas intended for the cure of several diseases.The charm is reinforced by adding sentencesfrom the liturgy. One of the variations forfever begins, "Ad portum Galylee iacebat Petrus"(Peter sat at the gate of Galilee; cf. charm 26).The rest of the narrative is similar to that above.Then the charm continues,[27] Sint medicyna mei pia crux et passio Christi,vulnera quinque dei sint medycyna mei !Virginis et lacrime mihi sint medicamina trina, thec mihi portanti succurrant febricitanti! Amen.t A t g t I t a t Jaspar t Melchysar t Baptizar[May the holy cross and passion of Christ be mymedicines;May the five wounds of God be my medicines!And may the tears of the Virgin be my three medi-cations,May they succor me, suffering from fever. Amen]

(85).Agla was an acronym for athah gabor leolam,adonai, Hebrew words meaning, Thou art power-ful and eternal, 0 Lord (35, 148). Othervariations of the charm began, [28] "Beforethe gates of Jerusalem our Savior Jesus Christcalled Peter unto him," etc. and [29] "AndPeeter sat at the gate of Jerusalem and prayed,"etc. (93, 102).One narrative charm turned up repeatedlyin Cornwall, Kent, Shropshire, Herefordshire,

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THOMAS R. FORBESNorfolk, Lincolnshire, and northern Englandin the seventeenth to nineteenth centuries (23,32, 37, 43, 76, 81, 93, 109, 111, 142, 149). Aftera Norfolk vicar died in 1709, a small silk bagwas found to be tied around his neck. In thebag was a version of the charm in a simpletransposition cipher. The inscription, deci-phered by a contemporary, read (49):[30] When Christsaw the cross whereonehe was tobe crusifiedthe Jew asked him, "Art thou hafraid orhast thou an ague?" Jesus said, "I am not afraidnor have not an ague." Whoesoever wears thesewords shall never be troubledwith an ague. Amen.Amen. Sweet Jesus.

Another charm for ague (149) was encoun-tered more often as a cure for burns (see below).[31] There came two Angelsfromthe East,

The one broughtFire,The otherbroughtFrost,In theNameof theFather,Son, and Holy Ghost,Out Frost, in Fire.The last line of course, seeks to remove the chillsof ague.One of the rarest and most interesting formsof verbal charms is the word square. Of allof these ingenious constructions, probably themost famous is the SATOR formula.C32] SATO RAREPOTENETOPERAROTASThe square was written, sometimes incorrectly,on a piece of paper and hung around the neckas a protection against ague (8) and otherdiseases. In this square the same five wordsappear whether the lines are read from left orright, top or bottom. The square has a fascinat-ing story, too long to be repeated here (seeForbes (61) for a detailed explanation anddiscussion).At the other extreme from the elegance of theSATOR square are some lines, mostly of gib-berish, that were also used as an ague charm(125).[33] Fecana,cageti,daphnes,gebdre, eddco,Gebali tant,sed nonstantphebas,hecas,& hedas.Everie one of these words must be written upon apeece of bread, and must be given in order one daieafter another to the sicke bodie, and so must he becured.Perhaps all of the charm was once in Latin;it may well have been derived from the liturgy.

\Iost of the words are now too corrupt forrecognition. Grendon (68) reminds us thatThe "hocuspocus"of the mountebank's ormula wassimply a degenerate form of the sacred "Hoc estcorpus"chanted by the priest at mass.

Finally we can consider two fever charms con-structed from several diverse elements. Thefirst incantation (85, 131) comes from the secondhalf of the fourteenth century. (I have ex-panded the Latin contractions into completewords.)[34] t In nomine t patris t etfilii t et spiritussancti. Amen t In monteSelyonet ciuitateEphesonrequiescunt eptumdormientes:Malcus, Maximinus,Martinus, Dyonisius, Johannes, Serapyon, Constan-tinus. t Omnipotens eus,quieos a manibus yrannisementeet ab ydolorumculturaliberaredignatus est,ipse te dignetur,amulumtuumvel amulumtuam N.,liberarea febribus rigidis et callidis, cotidianis,bidu-anis, tercianis, quarttanis, diurnis seu nocturnys!t Ad portumgalelye acebatpetrus . .The remainder is as in charm 25.We see that this incantation begins with a lineof liturgy. Then there is reference to thefamous seven sleepers of Ephesus, heroes of anearly Christian legend. Next is the prayer:OmnipotentGod, who deigns to free these from thehands of a [meaning is uncertain] tyrant and fromthe worshipof idols, wilt thou deign to free this thyservant [male] or this thy servant [female] N. fromcold fevers and hot, from quotidian,biduan, tertian,quartan, diurnal, or nocturnal fevers. t At thegate of Galilee sat Peter ....

The identification of fevers as quotidian,biduan, tertian, or quartan is confusing. It ispossible that the unknown author of this charmintended it for the cure of malaria, which wasrecognized in its various forms by Hippocratesand which was endemic in England in formercenturies (75). But malaria does not have a"biduan" form. Indeed, the correct Latinterm would be febris bidua, not biduana. Theadjective means, continuing for two days.What we call tertian malaria lasts for aboutforty-eight hours, which may involve threesuccessive days.The charm next includes a religious narrative,then an invocation in rhyme, and finally, forgood measure, Agla and the names of the threeMagi (cf. charm 27). What fever could resistsuch an incantation! It reminds one of a broad-spectrum antibiotic.Another encyclopedic charm, too long to quotein full, from England in the Middle Ages (80)



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VOL. 115, NO. 4, 1971] VERBAL CHARMS IN BRITISH FOLK MEDICINEconsists of the following elements:[35] In nomine patris, etc.A modification of the four line rhyme alreadyquoted in 27.t Jhesus t nazarenus t rex ivdeorum t fili deit miserere mei, amen [ t Jesus t of Nazaretht King of the Jews t Son of God t have mercyon me. Amen].A variation of the narrative about Peter sick withfever (charm 26).t A t g t I t a t marcus t Matheus t lucast joh[ann]es t mi N. succurre & defende ab omnimaligna febre amen [t A t g t I t a t Markt Matthew t Luke t John t succor and defendme N. from every evil fever. Amen].The patient is also directed to say five pater-nosters, five aves, and five credos.

BITE OF A MAD DOG[36] Each of these charms contains gibberish. Tobe written on an apple or a piece of fine white bread:0 King of Glory, come in peace,Pax, Max, and MaxHax, Max, Adinax, opera chudor.To be swallowed three mornings fasting (13, 72, 81,140).[37] 0 rex gloriae Jesu Christe, veni cum pace: Innomine patris max, in nomine filii max, in nominespiritus sancti prax: Gasper, Melchior, Balthasart prax t max t Deus I max t (125).[38] Write upon a peece of bread, Irioni, khiriora,esser, khuder, feres, and let it be eaten by the partiebitten (59, 72, 125, 140).[39] Rebus Rubus Epitepscum (10, 11).[40] Habay t habar t heber (125).[41] Fuary, gary, nary,Gary, nary, fuary,Nary, fuary, gary.Write this on a piece of cheese, and give it to the Dog(93).

A final charm, also to be written on a bit ofpaper or cheese and fed to the dog, is in mangledLatin (116).[42] Oribus diebus, vivas, vives, minas mines, a popu-lus quarae.

BITE OF A SCORPION[43] Saie to an asse secretlie, and as it were whisper-ing in his eare; I am bitten with a Scorpion (125).

BITE OF A SNAKETwo charms for snake bite were popular inCornwall. One of them consisted simply inrepeating the first two verses of the 68th Psalm

[44] (76), which does not seem particularlyrelevant. The other, transcribed from a manu-script volume kept by a charmer (33), was asfollows:[45] "Bradgty, bradgty, bradgty, under the ashingleef," to be repeated three times, and strike yourhand with the growing of the hare. "Bradgty,bradgty, bradgty," to be repeated three times ninebefore eight, eight before seven . . . [down to] twobefore one, and one before every one, three times forthe bite of an ader.Bradgty is said to mean mottled (150).In a variation of this charm, a cross of hazelwood was laid on the injury while the charmersaid three times (138):[46] Underneath this hazel in moteThere's a braggoty worm with speckled throat.Nine double is he; now from 9 double to8 double; and from 8 double to 7 doubleand so on-a diminishing charm.

BLEEDINGCharms to control the hemorrhage from a

wound, a bloody flux, and other kinds of bleedingwere very numerous and illustrate several typicalcharm constructions. The Middle English med-ical text analyzed by Heinrich (80) gives anadjuration:[47] Te per eum exiuit quo perfidus occidit anguis, &sanguis cuius precium seculi fuit huius, adiuro cessa,nunc vena valequerepressa [O Thou from whom flowedthe blood by which the treacherous serpent dies, &whose blood was the ransom of that generation, Iadjure thee, now cease, 0 vein, and, restrained, bewell]. Sey this three times, & c.

Another adjuration was well known in York-shire, the West of England, and the Isle of Man(22, 70, 87, 99, 125).[48] Sanguis mane in te,Sicut Christusfuit in se,

Sanguis mane in tua vena,Sicut Christus in sua pena [poena]Sanguis mane fixusSicut Christus quando crucifixus.Pepys (147) quotes this in his diary (31 Decem-ber-1 January, 1664-1665), although withoutcomment. An approximate translation wasalso used (22).[49] Stand fast; lie as Christ didWhen he was crucified upon the tree.Blood remain up in the veins,As Christ did in all his pains.

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THOMAS R. FORBESSimilar adjurations were:[50] In the bloud of Adam death was taken tIn the bloud of Christ it was all too shaken tAnd by the same bloud I doo thee charge,That thou doo runne no longer at large (30,125).[51] Blood abide in this vein as Christ abideth in theChurch, and hide in thee as Christ hidethfrom himself (150).[52] Write upon the patients forhead with the sameblood: Consummatum est [It is finished](125).In the last example, the power of the Biblicalphrase (John 19: 30) was obviously expected toend the flow of blood.[53] Another charm relied on familiar prayers.Put thy nameless finger in the wound, and maketherwith three crosses upon the wound, and saiefive Pater nosters, five Aves, and one Credo, in thehonour of the five wounds (125).The nameless finger was the digitus infamis,the middle finger.Special prayers were also used. The firstdates from the beginning of the fourteenthcentury (22, 44).[54] For staunching bleeding from the nostrils, orfrom the wounds, an approved remedy-O God, bethou merciful to this Thy servant N., nor allow toflow from his body more than one drop of blood. Somay it please the Son of God. So his mother Mary.In the name of the Father, stop 0 Blood! In thename of the Son stop, 0 Blood! In the name of theHoly Ghost, stop 0 Blood! In the Name of theHoly Trinity!

A variation of this prayer was quoted by Johnof Mirfield, or Mirfeld, a fourteenth-centurycleric-physician (41). It ended:[55] Christ Jesus put to flight the pains and hemor-rhage of thy servant (name), in the name of theFather and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Reginald Scot (125) also recommended:[56] Take a cup of cold water, and let fall thereintothree drops of the same bloud, and betweene eachdrop saie a Pater noster, and an Ave, then drinke tothe patient, and saie: Who shall helpe you? Thepatient must answer S. Marie. Then saie you; S.Marie stop the issue of bloud.

The word Tetragrammaton (charm 24) on ascrap of parchment, worn on the body, was saidin the days of James I to be an infallible cure(126).Several religious narratives were thought tohave hemostatic powers. From Devon and

Cornwall came a charm that required the readingof Ezekiel 16: 9 -[57] "Then washed I theewith water: yea, I thoroughly washed awaythy blood from thee, and I anointed thee withoil." If the sufferer were a male, a womanmust say the charm, and vice versa (2, 121).A famous old incantation told the story of thesoldier Longinus, or Longius (80).[58] Longius miles latus t domini nostri t ihesut christi lancea perforauit, & continuo exiuit sanguis& aqua in redempcionemnostram. Adiuro te sanguisper ihesum t christum t, per latus eius, per sangui-nem eius, sta t, sta t, sta. Christus & Johannesdescenderunt in flumen jordanis. Aqua obstipuit &stetit; sic faciat sanguis istius corporis in christi no-mine t sancti johannis bapthiste. Amen. Dicaturter pater noster [The soldier Longius pierced the sideof Our Lord Jesus t Christ with a lance, and im-mediately blood and water flowed out for our re-demption. I adjure thee, blood, by Jesus t Christt. by His side, by His blood, stand t, stand t,stand. Christ and John descended into the RiverJordan. The water came together and stood; somay the blood of this body do in the name of Christt and St. John the Baptist. Say a paternosterthree times].Payne (107) says that the charm appears in theCompendium medicinae of Gilbert the English-man (fl. 1245). An English form of the incanta-tion was also used.[59] Longeys let our lord Jesum Crist blod, whicheblod was holy and god. Throw that iche blod thatis holy and good, I comawnde thee, Jon or Wi, thatthow blede no more (131).I have found five English variations of this text(5, 22, 44, 63, 82, 85, 131).A short Latin version (125) was:[60] Touch that part and saie, De latere ejus exivitsanguis & aqua [From his side flowed blood andwater].

In another series of Latin and English varia-tions, the incident of the baptism in the Jordanwas emphasized (44, 80, 85, 120, 125, 131).Eventually the narrative was made into verse,of which the following is an example (5, 20, 22,25, 27, 37, 42, 43, 81, 87, 93, 134, 142):[61] Christ was born in Bethlehem, baptized withthe water of the River of Jordan.The water was wild and rude,The child was meek and good;God spake, and the water stoodAnd so shall thy blood.In the Name, etc.This charm was found all over England.



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VOL. 115, NO. 4, 1971] VERBAL CHARMS IN BRITISH FOLK MEDICINEProbably related to this series were two othercharms. One was from the Orkneys (54).

[62] Three virgins came over Jordan's land,Each with a bloody knife in her hand;Stem, blood, stem-Letherly [lethargically?]stand!Bloody nose (or mouth) in God's name mend.The other has been reported from the northerncounties of England (81).[63] Three wise men can from the East, Christ,Peter, and Paul-Christ bleeding crucified,Mary on her knees at the foot of the cross.And Christ drew a cross over the three womenthat were crossing the waters.One said, "Stop,"One said, "Stand,"One said, "I will stop the blood of [name]."In the name, & c.

There were several examples in Latin, gib-berish, or both. The first of these is from thethirteenth century (139).[64] Contrafluxum sanguinis scribe in tribus oblatisnomina ista. In una Ovium. In altera covium. Intertia Cor covium et utere sic oblatis contrafebrem ter-cian um tribus diebus [Against a flow of blood writeyour names on three things provided. On one,Ovium. On another, covium. On the third, Corcovium, and on one of the two so provided againsttertian fever for three days].E65] That thou mayst stay bleeding, touch the partwith thy ring-finger, and repeat these words, Socnon,Socnon, twenty seven times, or as oft as thou wilt,till the issue cease; it is good, and much profitable,if you rightly consider it (140).[66] Sepa t sepaga t sepagoga t sta sanguis innomine patris t podendi t & filii t podera t &spiritus sancti t pandorica t pax tecum, Amen (125).[67] In nomine patris t & filii t & spiritus sanctit & c. Chimrat, chara, sarite, confirma, consona,Imohalite (125, 140).

BREAST DISEASESThis charm was used in the Hebrides bynursing mothers (65).

[68] Look Thou, 0 Christ, at the breast,How painful it is.Tell it to gentle Mary,Since it was she who bore the son.Whole may the breast be,Small may the swelling be,Run away, 0 (name of disease).BURNS, SCALDS

Some of these charms give the impression thatthey were intended more to relieve pain than to

heal. For example:[69] Mary mild has burnt hur child by the sparklingof the fire out fire in frost in the name of the fatherson and Holeygost Amen Amen Amen.This is an early nineteenth-century charm fromShropshire (37) and Herefordshire (93). An-other, similar charm, also of the religious nar-rative type, existed in numerous variationsthroughout much of Britain.[70] An angel came from the north,And he brought cold and frost;An angel came from the south,And he brought heat and fire;The angel came from the northPut out the fireIn the name of the Father, and of the Son, andof the Holy Ghost (22, 136).In the variations, all three angels came from thewest, or from the north, or there were threeladies (or virgins) who came from the east,etc. (2, 6, 17, 25, 27, 33, 42, 76, 81, 87, 92, 98,134, 135, 150). This example is very similarto charm 31, used to cure ague, except that inthe latter the last line reads, "Out Frost, inFire." Another form of this burn charm ran,[71] As I passed over the river Jordan, I met withChrist.He said, what aileth thee? Oh Lord, myflesh doth burn.The Lord said unto me, Two angels, & c.

(22, 42).In Sussex, an old charmer crossed his fingersover the burn, said the Lord's Prayer over it,blew on it, and concluded, [72], "In the nameof the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, I hope itmay do well" (92). Shropshire charmers laida hand on the injury and repeated,

[73] Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John;Make well the place my hand is onuntil the pain disappeared (30).[74] A more elaborate prayer was used in the WyeValley (53). Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, great Godabove, send all things right, bone to bone, marrowto marrow, blood to blood, and flesh to flesh, in thisright arm of James Reynolds. Send all things rightin the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

Three charms, used in England and Scotland,apparently were intended to invoke the assist-ance of spirits of the dead.[75] A dead wife out of the grave arose,And through the sea she swimmed,Through the water wade to the cradle,

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THOMAS R. FORBESGod save the bairn-burnt sair.Het fire, cool soon in God's name (54).

[76] Here come I to cure a burnt sore;If the dead knew what the living endure,The burnt sore would burn no more (9, 52, 81).[77] Coutha Cold under the Clay Trembleing isthere any here that would Learn of the Dead to Curethe sores of Burning in the Name of God And in thename of God be it Amen (44, 45).

CHILDBIRTHA relatively simple fourteenth-century charmfor a speedy delivery was the repetition of theAthanasian creed (5, 82).

[78] Say quicumque uult thris over hir and scho[she] sail have sone [soon] childe if it be hir tyme.Another from this period:[79] Christianum ?] age sursumerumpeet explicamoras [Christian, move! Come forth on high andexplain the delay]. Write this charme and bynd itto ye ryght kne wythin and als sone as scho es de-lyverd do it oway (5, 82).It was directed that this brisk exhortation befastened to the knee of the woman in laborbecause of a belief that a charm could actuallyhelp to draw the baby out of its mother's body(61).A third late medieval charm when translatedfrom the Latin reads:[80] Blessed Ann bore Holy Mary mother of OurLordJesus Christ. And Holy Marybore ChristtheSon of God, foretold by the Angel Gabriel. By hisbirth I believe becauseevery Christiancan be freedfrom death and every peril. May Holy MaryMotherof God and all the holy apostles and all theholy martyrsand all the holy confessorsall the holyvirgins intercede for this servant of God N. Amen(5, 82).

Another charm for protection in childbirthand in many other hazards consisted mostlyof a succession of sacred names and attributes.This invocation was supposed to have beenbrought by an angel from heaven as a letter toPope Leo IV, who in turn gave it to Charle-magne. It is reminiscent of the Himmelsbriefe,or heavenly letters, once widely circulated ascharms in Germany (61). The charm wasusually worn on the person, but the printed textof an apparently related invocation consistingof alleged correspondence between Christ andKing Agbar has been seen hanging framed on thewalls of Shropshire cottages (8, 22, 60, 95, 103,105, 125).

[81] Trinitas t Messias t Agios [holy] t Iskyros[strong] t Otheos[God] t Emanuel t Sabaotht Adonay t Athanatos [immortal] t Kyros [Lord]t Theon [God] t Panton Craton [ruler of all]t Ysus [Jesus] t Sapiencia [wisdom] t Virtus[excellence] t Tetragrammaton t Anamsapta tOleo [oil] t Caritas [charity] t David t Danielt Ego sum alpha et omega [I am Alpha and Omega]t Paracletus [intercessor] t Mediator t Angnus[Agnus, lamb] t Ovis [sheep] t Vitulus [calf]t Serpens [serpent] t Aries [ram] t Leo [lion]t Vermis [worm] t Patris puritatis [Father ofpurity] t Flos mundi [flower of the world] t Imago[picture] t Janua [entrance] t Viua lux [haillight] t Splendor t Princeps [chief] t Oliva [olivetree] t Sol pacis [sun of peace] t Dominus t Deust Pater t Filius t Spiritus sanctus t Primogenitust veritas t Summus [highest] t Bonus [good]t Totus [all] Amen t Iheus, fili virginis, misereremei peccatoris [Jesus, Son of the Virgin, have mercyon me, a sinner] t Amen.This extraordinary assemblage of terms in-cludes attributive names of God, scraps fromthe liturgy, names of zodiacal and other crea-tures, and names of various Christian virtues.Variant forms, one very much longer, of thecharm included in addition the names of the

Magi, of the Four Apostles, etc. The termAnamsapta, or Ananisapta, according to Collinde Plancy (40), when written on virgin parch-ment was considered to be a charm againstdisease. The word is said to be an acronym forAntidotum Nazareni Auferat Necem Intoxica-tionis; Sanctificet Alimenta Poculaque TrinitasAlma, which may be translated, May the anti-dote of the Nazarene prevent violent death bypoison; may the gracious Trinity bless this foodand drink. It sounds like a charm for use attable as a protection against poison.The SATOR word square (charm 32) wasoften employed in childbirth (61). The lattercould be a perilous experience in the absence,as was often the case, of skilled assistance. Itis no wonder that some of the incantationsintended to protect the mother and her babyand to insure a speedy delivery were unusuallyelaborate. One of the charms recorded in aMiddle English work on medicine (80) andelsewhere (7, 79, 139) was supposed, like charm79, to be bound to the right leg of the woman inlabor.[82] In nomine patris t et filii t et spiritus sanctit amen. Per virtutem dei t sint medicina mei piacrux et passio christi t vulnera quinque dei sint medi-cina mei [cf. charm 27]. Sancta maria peperitchristum t, sancta anna t peperit mariam t, sanc-ta elizabeth t peperit Iohannem t, sancta cecilia



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VOL. 115, NO. 4, 1971] VERBAL CHARMS IN BRITISH FOLK MEDICINEpeperit remigium t [St. Mary bore Christ t, St.Ann t bore Mary t , St. Elizabeth t bore John t,St. Cecilia t bore Remigius t ]. Arepo t tenett opera t rotas t [cf. 32]. Christus vincit t ,christus regnat t , christus imperat t , christus tevocat t, mundus te gaudet t, lex te desiderat t.[Christ conquers t , Christ reigns t , Christ rules t,Christ calls thee, the world delights in thee, t thelaw desires thee t ]. Christus dixit t , lazare veniforas t, deus vicionum t, dominus t deus vicionumt, libera famulam tuam N. t dextera domini tfecit vertutem t [Christ said, "t Lazarus, comeforth t ;" God of vengeance t, Lord God of ven-geance t , free thy servant N. t; the right handof the Lord wrought excellence t ]. A t g t It a t Alpha et omega t. Anna peperit mariam,t elizabeth t precursorem t, Maria t dominumt nostrum t ihesum t christum t sine dolore ettristitia t . [Ann bore Mary, t Elizabeth the fore-runner t, Mary t Our t Lord t Jesus t Christt without pain and sorrow t ]. 0 infans, siueviuus, siue mortuus, exi foras quia christus tevocat ad lucem t [O child, whether alive or dead,come forth because Christ calls thee to the light t ].Agyos t agyos t christus vincit t , christus imperatt , christus regnat. Sanctus t , sanctus t , sanctust . Dominus t deus omnipotens t, qui es t , quieras t , qui venturus es t , amen [Lord God omni-potent, who art, who wert, who art to come tamen]. Bhurnon t bhurnu t blutano t . Christus,nazarenus t rex iudeorum t, fili dei t , miserere mei,amen t .Note that much of this charm is an adjurationto the unborn infant. Bhurnon bhurnu blutanois gibberish.

Two other charms for childbirth come fromthe fourteenth century and also contain gib-berish.[83] Boro berto briore t Vulnera quinque dei sintmedicina mei! [cf. 27]. Tahebal t t ghether t tt guthman t t t t t Purld cramper t C[h]ris-tus t factus t est t pro t nobis t obediens t vsquet ad t mortem t autem t crucis [Christ was bornfor us, submissive even unto death on the cross].t Defructu ventris tui ponam super sedemtuam, quodfructum suum dabit in tempore suo [I shall place thefruit of thy womb above thy throne, because he willgive his fruit in his season]. Anna peperit Mariam,Maria peperit Christum. Infans Christus te vocat utnascaris [The infant Christ calls thee that thou beborn]. In nomine patris et filii et spiritus sancti(85).[84] Arcus forcium super nos sedebit. Virgo marianatabit hic et hora sedule sedebit,ruborrebusrarantibusnatus nator natoribus saxo scik memor esto ut sic puervel puella eius exit foras. Ante christe natus eiusnullum dolorem passus est. Venit homo. Fugit dolor,christus adiutor. A diuro te virga per patrem etfiliumet spiriturmsanctum ut habeas potestatem coniugendi(5, 82).This last charm is in garbled Latin and gib-

berish. It includes an exhortationto be born, an invocation againstpromise of continuing fertility.to the babypain, and a

CORNSIn Cornwall a credulous person who wishedto cure a corn would point first to the groundand then to the moon while repeating ninetimes, [85] "Corns come down here! Nocorns up there !" (43).

DISLOCATIONS, FRACTURESAt the trial, already referred to, of IsobelGowdie for witchcraft, she also revealed a charmfor fractures (114):

[86] Quhan [When] we wold heall ony sor, orbrokin limb, we say thryse ower,

He pat [put] the blood to the blood, Till all vpstood;The lith [joint, limb] to the lith, Tull all tookwith;Owr Ladie charmed hir deirlie Sone, With hirtooth and hir townge,And hir ten fingeris-In the name of THE FATHER, THE SON,and THE HALIE GAIST!Pitcairn comments on this and some othercharms heard at the trial (114):. . . a great proportion of the charms, in use to berepeated by these unhappy women, were actuallyparaphrases of portions of the Mass-Book ....Others were taken from ancient popular rhymes andsongs . . .

In the Wye Valley, charm 72 was used totreat dislocations (53).DRAW OUT ARROW HEAD OR QUARREL

The removal of an arrow head or of a quarrel(a bolt discharged by a crossbow) could presenta serious problem If surgery were not availableor successful, a charm might be used. Scot(125) recommended[87] A notable charme or medicine to pull out an ar-rowhead, or anie such thing that sticketh in theflesh orbones, and cannot otherwise be had out.Saie three severall times kneeling; Oremus,praeceptis salutaribus moniti [Let us, being admon-ished, pray for healing counsel], Pater noster, aveMaria. Then make a crosse saieng: The Hebrewknight strake our Lord Jesu Christ, and I beseechthee, 0 Lord Jesu Christ t by the same iron, speare,bloud and water, to pull out this iron: In nominepatris t & filii t [&] spiritus sancti t.

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THOMAS R. FORBESThe "Hebrew knight" was undoubtedly Longi-nus (cf. charm 58). A fifteenth-century textfor removing a quarrel also refers to him (79, 80).

Translated, the charm reads:[88] The Hebrew soldier Longinus struck the sideof Our Lord Jesus Christ. Thereupon blood gushedfrom his side. He drew the lance to him. t tetra-grammaton t Messias t Sother t Emanuel t Sab-aoth t Adonay t. Whence just as these wordswere the words of Christ, so may this iron or quarrelcome out of this Christian. Amen. And say thischarm five times in the worship of the five wounds ofGod.

EXORCISMIn the Middle Ages it was firmly believed thatan evil spirit or even Satan himself could enterthe body of a human being. Persons who be-haved and spoke in strange and irrational

ways-they would now be considered mentallyill-were often considered to be possessed. Atleast as late as the seventeenth century it wasthought that the victim of possession could berelieved if his devil were cast out, ordinarilyby religious methods. After all, several Bib-lical victims had been cured in just this way(68). Sometimes attendance at mass wasenough, as proposed in the following charms(125).[89] A prettie charme or conclusion for one possessed.The possessed bodie must go upon his or hirknees to the church, how farre so ever it be off fromtheir lodging; and so must crepe without going outof the waie, being the common high waie, in thatsort, how fowle and durtie soever the same be; orwhatsoever lie in the wait, not shun ing anie thingwhatsoever, untill he come to the church, where hemust heare masse devoutlie, and then followethrecoverie.

A somewhat similar procedure involved[90] the saieng of five Pater nosters, and five Aves;the first to be said in the name of the partie possessed,or bewitched. . . . Then must the sicke bodie hearemasse eight daies together, standing in the placewhere the gospell is said . . .

In a third method,[91] the sicke man must fast three daies, and thenhe with his parents must come to church, upon anembering fridaie, and must heare the masse for thatdaie appointed, and so likewise the saturdaie andsundaie following. And the preest must read uponthe sicke mans head, that gospell which is read inSeptember, and in grape harvest, after the feast ofholie crosse In diebus quatuor temporum, in emberdales: then let him write it and carrie it about hisnecke, and he shall be cured (125).

Ember days were days set aside for prayer andfasting during the four seasons of the year.The difficulty in exorcising a well-concealedSatan was recognized in another incantation(125).[92] And least that the divell should lie hid in somesecret part of the bodie, everie part thereof is named:Obsecrote Jesu Christ, &c: that is: I beseech the 0Lord Jesus Christ, that thou pull out of everie mem-ber of this man all infirmities, from his head, fromhis haire, from his braine, from his forhead, from hiseies, from his nose, from his eares, from his mouth,from his toong, from his teeth, from his jawes, fromhis throte, from his necke, from his backe, from hisbrest, from his paps, from his heart, from his stom-ach, from his sides, from his flesh, frcm his bloud,from his bones, from his legs, from his feete, from hisfingers, from the soles of his feete, from his marrowe,from his sinews, from his skin, and from everie jointof his members, &c.

One fourteenth-century exorcism was in rhyme(131).[93] Jesus of Nazaret, thy presence forstThe foule spirits fro feare to cry:Thou them rebukt, their mouth shott up,Commanding them out to hy.So in the power of Jesus whom I professCommand I this spirit to depart,And never to vex this party agayne.

EYE PROBLEMSA Middle English charm for a sty, or hordeo-lum, consisted of the following elements:

[94] In nomine patris, etc.I coniure the hawe [sty] in the name of the fader,and the sone, and the holy goost, that fro this tymeforwarde, thow never greve more this eye of thisman N. t Oure lorde ihesu cryst, ef hit be thy wylle,drawe out this hawe, & clense this ye of P. thi ser-vante, as veraly and as sothely, as thou clensedestthe ye of tobye.Agyos t agyos t agyos t sanctus t sanctus tsanctus.Christus vincit, etc. [cf. charm 82].In nomine patris, etc.The written charm and a lotion were both to beapplied to the eye (80).

FALLING EVILThere were a number of incantations for the

falling evil, or epilepsy. A charm employed byan eighteenth-century healer (47, 48) includedan adjuration "In ye name of ye Father," etc.to the "elfe or elfes, spirits, or ffevers, devilsor witches" in the body of the sufferer to



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VOL. 115, NO. 4, 1971] VERBAL CHARMS IN BRITISH FOLK MEDICINE[95] avoid from him and anoy him no more, nor nomember that unto his belongeth . . . upon pain ofever damnation: in dors night nor day, eating nordrinking, sleeping nor waking, standing nor sitting,at home nor from home, in going nor coming.The above charm apparently was intended as akind of exorcism, and, indeed, the falling evilwas sometimes ascribed to possession.[96] Take the sick person by the hand, and whisperin his ear these words softly: "I conjure thee by theSun, Moon, and by the Gospel for the day deliveredby God unto Hubert, Giles, Cornelius and John, thatthou arise and fall no more" (8, 125).Conjuration by the sun and moon would seemto be a remnant of pre-Christian superstition.[97] Sey this word ananzaptus [cf. charm 81] in hysere when he is fallyn doun in the ewyll, and also in awomanys ere anamzapta, and they schall nevere moreaftir fele that ewyll (85, 125, 131).

Peter Levens' A Right Profitable Booke for AllDisseases, published in 1582 (94), recommended[98] For all maner of faulling evills.Take the bloud of his litle finger that is sicke, andwrite these 3. verses followinge, and hange it abouthis necke, lasper fert mirram, thus melchior balthazaraurum, hec quicum secum porta tria nomina regum,solviter a morbo, domini pietate caduca, and it shallhelpe the party so greved [grieved] (22, 119, 125).The Latin portion of the charm was freelyrendered in English (8):Gaspar with his myrhh began these presents to un-fold,Then Melchior brought in frankincense, Balthasarbrought in gold.Now he that of these holy Kings, these names aboutshall bear,The Falling Il by grace of Christ shall never need tofear.

The Three Wise Men were also invoked in thefollowing charm.[99] Sancti tres Reges

Gaspar, Melchior, BalthasarOratepro nobis nunc Let] in horaMortis nostrae.[O three holy kings,Caspar, Melchior, Balthasar,Pray for us now and in the hourOf our death].This charm was found in a linen purse on thebody of one William Jackson, who died inJanuary, 1749, at Chichester while undersentence of death for murder (22, 112).Charm 81 was also used for the falling sickness.

GENERAL CURESAs might be expected, a number of charmswere devised to be used as treatments for anydisease. Agnes Sampson, hanged for witch-craft and high treason in Scotland in 1591,

supplied at her trial two charms that she em-ployed as general cures (114). One was arhymed version of the Apostle's Creed.[100] I trow [believe] in Almychtie God thatwrocht,Baith heavin and erth and all of nocht,In to his deare sone Chryst Jesu,In to that anaplie [sincere] lord, I trow, etc.

The other was a "prayer and conjuration forheiling of seik folkis." It began[101] All kindis of illis that ewir may be,In Crystis name, I coniure ye;

I coniure ye, baith mair and les,With all the vertewis of the mess ....A woman was "presented" to the Bishop ofLincoln in 1538 for using the following charmto heal sick children (108).

[102] In the worshipe of the father the sone and theholy goste and god and the trynytie, send this childhelth and boot [relief] and it be Xpistes [Christes]will, for senct charyte [holy charity] Three bytteshave yet bytten with hert and tong and eye.A sixteenth-century panacea in Lincolnshireran (108):

[103] t Jesus t Job t habuit t vermes [hadworms] t Job t patitur t vermes [suffered fromworms] t in t nomine t Patris t et t Filii t ett Spiritus Sancti t Amen t lama zabacthani t .The last two words, Hebrew for "Why hastthou forsaken me" (Matt. 27: 46), probablywere included simply because of the powerbelieved to reside in strange terms.I have not attempted to review counter-charmsdirected against persons believed to inflict illnesson others through witchcraft, but an examplemay be of interest in passing. In June, 1876,an elderly quack was tried in southern Englandfor obtaining money under false pretenses (12).A young woman had consulted him about theillness of her mother. He gave the daughtera bottle containing water, thorns, and a writtencharm, telling her to bury it upside down in hergarden so as to counteract the influence of aneighbor who, the old man said, was causingthe sickness. The charm stated,[104] As long as the paper and thorns remain in thebottle I hope Satan, the angel of darkness, will pour

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VOL. 115, NO. 4, 1971] VERBAL CHARMS IN BRITISH FOLK MEDICINE[117] Nulla salus est in domo,Nisi cruce munit homoSuperliminaria.Neque sentit gladium,Nec amisit filium,Quisquis egit talia.Scot renders this in English:

No health within the house dooth dwell,Except a man doo crosse him well, at everiedoor or frame,He never feeleth the swords point,Nor his sonne shall loose a joint, that doothperforme the same.Nec amisitfilium would be more accurately trans-lated, "Nor has he lost a son," but this spoils therhyme.[118] Omnipotens t Dominus t Christus t Mes-sias t with 34. names more, & as many crosses, &then proceeds in this wise; Ista nomina me protegantab omni adversitate, plaga, & infirmitate corporis &aanimae, plene liberent, & assistent in auxilium istanomina regum, Gasper, &c: &' 12 apostoli (videlicet)Petrus, &c.: & 4 evangelistae (videlicet) Matthaeus, &c:mihi assistent in omnibus necessitatibus meis ac me de-fendant &'liberentab omnibus [p]ericulis & corporis &animae, &' omnibus malis praeteritis, praesentibus, &'futuris, &c. [May these names protect me fromevery adversity, plague, & infirmity of body andmind; may these names free me completely and in-crease the power of the kings Gasper, &c., and maythe twelve apostles, namely Peter, &c., and fourevangelists, namely Matthew, &c. help me in all myneeds, and defend and free me from all perils both ofbody and mind and from all evils past, present, andto come, &c].

Another, somewhat similar preservative, evenmore lengthy, began, "In the name of the al-mighty and everlasting Father of Heaven"and invoked the protection of the Trinity againstvarious evils and[119] this sickness and Rageing Ayrian.Finally the signs of the zodiac were written. Thenature of the "Rageing Ayrian" remains amystery (145).A Lancashire preservative charm is bothastrological and religious (145).[120] I Naphumphytor Tetragramatan [then fol-low the astronomical signs for the Sun, Moon, Mars,Mercury, Jupiter, Venus, and Saturn] and desireyou all by your powers to Gard A.B. from all evilspirits and from bad washers [wishers?], faires[fairies], and night-mare, and from all desorders,fits, cramp, and all other desorders, and give himgood elth and store of wealth all his days.-O Lord,Amen.

This was the text of an omnibus preservativesaid to have been found on the wound in Christ'sside when His body was removed from the cross(96):[121] Fons alpha et Omega figa t figalis t Sab-baoth t Emanuel t Adonay t o t Neray Ela tIhe t Rentone Negert Sahe t Pangetont Com-men t a t g t I t a t Mattheus t Marcus tLucas t Johannes t t t titulus triumphatustJesus t NazarenusRexJudaeorumt eccedominicaecrucis signum [Behold the sign of the Dominicancross] t fugite partes adversae, vicit leo de tribuJudae, radix David [flee, ye opposingforces, the lionof the tribe of Judah conquers, root of David], ale-luijah, Kyrie elleson, Christeelleson, Pater Noster,AveMaria,et ne nos, etveniatsupernossalutare uum.Oremus, tc.Obviously this charm contains portions ofcharms 21, 27, 81, etc. as well as corrupt Latin,gibberish, and some new elements.[122] Another mixtureof Latin and gibberish(11):Dec docodiablo decterramJuno esta place rodrononcolpellovivecatisagratis Jubo non deco Vox delibromThomat estotempop' me.

At least four additional charms already quoted,24, 81, 99, and 101, were also used as preserva-tives.RHEUMATISM

Queen Elizabeth I, it is reported, sufferedfrom rheumatism. Dr. John Dee, the courtphysician and a famous mathematician andastrologer, had an elaborate curative bracelet,inscribed with charms, made for the queen.She is said to have worn it, but we do not knowwhether her rheumatism improved. The brace-let passed into the hands of the Earls of Peter-borough and then to other owners, among themHorace Walpole. Eventually it was acquiredby Constance, Lady Russell, of Swallowfield,near Reading (21, 57, 96, 122). Through thecourtesy of Sir Arthur and Lady Russell, mywife and I were privileged to examine thiscurious ornament in the summer of 1961.The bracelet proper consists of two widesemicircular silver straps joined by a hinge;the clasp is missing. Too small for any but awoman's or child's wrist, the bracelet has fourpendant attachments. One is a basket of silverwire loops; we were told that the basket containsthe dried remains of a nutmeg. The secondpendant consists of three silver straps enclosinga polished, light-brown flint stone 13 inches indiameter. The third pendant consists of a

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THOMAS R. FORBEScircular silver frame. A large, flat polished flintis set into one side of the frame, while threesmaller flints are fastened in the other. Thestones are a dull grayish brown. The fourthpendant is an empty silver setting with aserrated edge.The outer surface of each half of the braceletproper bears an inscription in niello, a kind ofblack enamel. One side reads:[123] t IONA t IHOAT t LONA t HELOIt YSSARAY tt MEPHENOIPHETON t AGLA tACHEDION t YANAThe other side reads:

BACHIONODONAVALIZ or 3] ILIOR tBACHIONODONAVALIZ[or 3] ACH t.Most of this is unintelligible, but we do recognizeAGLA.

SCIATICAAn old name for what we call sciatica wasboneshaw or boneshave. Isobel Gowdie, towhose trial for witchcraft reference has alreadybeen made, gave the following charm for thismalady (114).

[124] For the BEAN-SHAW, or pain in the heance[haunch],-Wee ar heir thrie Maidens charming forthe bean-straw; the man of the Midle-earth, blewbeaver, land-feaver, maneris of stooris, the Lordfleigged [affrighted, terrified] the Feind with hisholy candles and yeird foot stone1-Thair she sittis,and heirshe is gon!-Let her nevir com heiragain!

In Devonshire and Cornwall the cure was forthe sufferer to lie down beside a stream or brookwith a straight stick between him and the water.Then this was said (136, 150):[125] Bone-shave right,Bone-shave straight,As the water runs by the stave,Good for the bone-shave.This is clearly a transference charm.

SEXUAL PROBLEMSThorndike (139) gives a thirteenth-centurycharm for amenorrhea.

[126] L'ssur l'srurl'sfuit l'arterep: :m: :m pertresp rr et in qualibus[?] et scribevii : -: m et tribussuicibete . d si primumd ta cessaverit rv al *. aspartes.Another for the same period is from GilbertusAnglicus. It was a charm to cure male anld

female sterility and was to be written with aspecial plant juice (77).[127] Dixit dominuscrescite The Lordsaid, Arise]t Uthihotht multiplicamini [be fruitful] t tha-hechayt et replete erram[and replenishthe earth]t amath.

The Latin is an incomplete quotation of Gen.9:1.SKIN DISEASES

Tetter was an old name for various vesicularskin diseases including herpes, eczema, andpsoriasis. In Cornwall a diminishing charmwas used to treat these afflictions (87).[128] Tetter, tetter, thou hast nine sisters.Godblessthe fleshandpreserve he bone,Perishthou tetter and be thou gone,In the name, &c.Tetter, tetter, thou haseight sisters,Etc.

Three somewhat similar adjurations to ring-worm are recorded, the first of them from theShetlands (52, 138).[129] Ringworm! Ringwormred!Never mayst thou spreador speed,But aye grow less and less,And dieawayamongthe ase [ashes].[130] Ringworm,ringworm,don't spring or spreadAnymore;go thee ways down to the dirt.[131] Ringwormwhite,Ringwormred,I command thou wilt not spread.I divide thee to the east and westOrthe north and to the south.Arise in the name of the Father, Son, andHoly Ghost.

Barngum was an English dialect name forskin eruptions in general and specifically forshingles, although the latter of course is morethan a skin disease. A Somerset charm (83)involved nine strands of wool dipped in creamand laid over the lesion while these words weresaid:[132] We three maidensCome out of divers landsTo cure thee of this Barngum,The red Barngum, the white Barngum, thefiery Barngum,the aching Barngum,The black Barngum,and all sortsof Barngum,And St. Anthony's Fire among.In the Name of the Father, Son, and HolyGhost.The similarity to charms 62 and 116 is evident:62 was also used for skin diseases (25).



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VERBAL CHARMS IN BRITISH FOLK MEDICINECharm 132 refers to St. Anthony's fire. Thisname and wildfire were designations for whathas also long been known as erysipelas. Therewere other charms for its cure. One was to besaid at bedtime or when arising, by a woman

if the sick person were a man, and vice versa(56, 81).[133] A Recetor the CeronsepelsAs our blessed Lady sat at her bowery Dower[door],With hir dear Daughteron her nee,Wating on the snock showls [blotches] andthe WilfierAnd the Ceroncepelcomingin at the town endBy the name of the Lord I medisenthee.

From Devonshire comes a quaint prayer (2),[134] Now come ye unto the Lord of the land,Barney Fine, Barney Gout shall die away under ablackthorn,with red cow's milk and black wool, inthe name of the Father, and of the Son, and of theHoly Ghost. Amen, Amen, Amen.

Two other charms for erysipelas are alsoCornish. For one (43), the charmer spat threetimes and breathed three times on the inflamedarea, saying,[135] In the name of the Father, Son, and HolyGhost I bid thee be gone.The other charm is of the religious narrativevariety (22, 42).[136] Christ he walketh over the land,Carriedthe wild firein his hand,He rebuked the fire and bid it stand,Stand, wildfire,stand.In the name, &c.

SPRAIN, STRAIN, BRUISEA widely used charm for sprains, bruises, andthe like appeared in several major variations,some of them descended from Anglo-Saxontimes and even earlier (22, 28, 52, 54, 68, 100,

132, 134, 137).[137] OurLord forth rade [rode],His foal's foot slade [slid],OurLord down lighted,His foal's foot righted.Saying, Flesh to flesh, blood to blood, andbane to bane.In our Lord His Name.[138] As OurBlessedLordand SaviourJesus Christwas riding into Jerusalem, His horse tripped andsprained his leg. Our Blessed Lord and Saviourblessed it, and said,

"Bone to bone, and vein to vein,O vein, turn to thy rest again !"N., so shall thine, in the name, etc.Or the incident occurred "As Christ was ridingover Colley Bridge" (22, 132).[139] Our Saviour Jesus Crist roate on a marbelStone Senow Joint to Joint Bone to Bone he Roatthes wordes everey one. In the Name of the FatherSone and Holey Gost Amen Swet Jesus Amen SwetJesus Amen (37, 93, 132).[140] Christ rode over the bridge,Christ rode under the bridge;Vein to vein, strain to strain,I hope God will take it back again (43).

STITCH, CRAMPSamuel Taylor Coleridge (39) tells of twoverbal charms he used as a small boy at thefamous "Blue-Coat School" (Christ's Hospital)in London.

[141] Foot! foot! foot! is fast asleep!Thumb! thumb! thumb! in spittle we steep:Crosses three we make to ease us,Two for the thieves, and one for Christ Jesus tFor a cramp in the leg, the school boys substi-tuted for the first two lines:[142] The devil is tying a knot in my leg!

Mark, Luke, and John, unloose it I beg!Crosses three, etc.Coleridge adds that by the time he had com-pleted the required movements, "I can safelyaffirm that I do not remember an instance inwhich the cramp did not go away in a fewseconds."Samuel Pepys (147) also had favorite charmfor cramp.[143] Cramp be thou faintless,As our Lady was sinlessWhen she bare Jesus.

Another charm goes back to the fourteenthcentury and John of Arderne (118, 119).[144] In nominepatris t et ilii t etSpiritus sanctit Amen. t Thebal t Enthe t Enthanay t InNomine Patris t et Filii t et Spiritus sancti tAmen. t Ihesu Nazarenus t Maria t lohannes tMichael t Gabriel Raphaelt Verbum aro actumest [The Wordwas madeflesh].

Charms 58 and 120 were also used for crampor stitch (22, 31, 132, 145, 146).

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THOMAS R. FORBESSTOMACH ACHE

Charm 26 was believed to relieve stomachache (113).ST. VITUS' DANCE

St. Vitus' dance, or chorea, in Devonshire wastreated with a variation (19) of charm 6.THORN AND NETTLE WOUNDS

Several jingles with numerous variations wereintended to cure injuries from a nettle or thorn.The verses occurred in many counties of En-gland. A line in Chaucer (130) runs:[145] Netle in, dokke out, now this, now that,Pandare. . .Rubbing the sore spot with a leaf of dock wassupposed to help (3, 22, 30).[146] Nettle out, dock in,Dock remove the nettle sting.[147] Out nettle, in dock,Dock shall have a new smock.

Even more numerous were charms referringto the wounding of Christ by thorns.[148] When Christ was upon the middle earth, theJews pricked him, his blood sprung up into heaven,his flesh never rotted nor fustered [festered], nomore I hope will not thine. In the name, etc. (42,76, 93, 97, 123).[149] Our Saviour was of a virgin born,His head was crowned with a crown of thorn;It never canker'd nor fester'd at all,And I hope in Christ Jesus this never shaul(22, 25, 33, 42, 69, 76, 87, 92, 124, 147).[150] Christ met his disciples and asked where theywere going. They said they were going into thegarden to gather the precious herb for the prick of athorn. Christ said it should neither wrink norfester. In the name, etc. (16).[151] Then came Jesus forth whering the crown ofthorns and the purpel robe and pilat said write [?unto] them behold the man Amen Amen Amen-to be said 9 times and the Lordes praier before andhafter hold your midil finger on the place and goround it each time and marck it thus t (37).

St. Blaise, whose aid was invoked to drawa bone out of the throat and to cure other afflic-tions of the throat (charm 115) was also expectedto draw out thorns (125). The formula was,[152] Call upon God, and remember S. Blaze.

THRUSHThrush, a mouth infection occurring mostcommonly in children, was treated in Devon-shire by reading Psalm 8 over the youngsterthree times. Sometimes he was taken to a

running stream and a straw was drawn throughhis mouth while the verse,[153] Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings(Psa. 8:2) was repeated, a striking example bothof a transference charm and of the literal use ofa Biblical phrase (62, 133, 136).

TOOTHACHEMankind's frequent attacks of toothache-this affliction must have been even more com-

mon in past centuries-are reflected in a largenumber of toothache charms, some of themused all over England and Scotland. Scot (125)gives an amusing formula:[154] Strigiles falcesq[ue]; dentatae, dentium dolorempersanate; 0 horssecombs and sickles that have somany teeth, come heale me now of my toothach.(Sickle blades in former times often had teeth.)Or, he suggested, "At saccaring [consecrating?]of masse hold your teeth togither and sayOs non comminuetis ex eo." Scot translates this,[155] You shall not breake or diminish a bone ofhim.

St. Appolonia was the patron of sufferers fromtoothache, and of course prayers were addressedto her. A parchment book from Northumber-land, dating perhaps from 1373, contains thefollowing (104):[156] t Jesus. In nomine Patris t et filii t etSpiritus sancti t Amen. Sancta Edelina fuit virgocujus dentes per a[dversarios] domini nostri JhesuChristi fuerunt extracti et deprecata est nostrum dom-inum Jhesum Christum ut quicunque nomine suosuper se protaverit [sic] a dolore dencium liberetur.0 gutta sive vermis destruat te Pater t destruat tefilius t destruat te Spiritus Sanctus t ut non habeaspotestatem nocere huic famulo dei neque die nequenocte eum perturbare. Amen [t Jesus. In theName of the Father t and of the Son t and of theHoly Spirit t Amen. Saint Edelina was a virginwhose teeth were drawn by the enemies of our LordJesus Christ, and she prayed of our Lord Jesus Christthat whosoever in her name shall call upon Himshould be relieved of toothache. 0 spot or worm,may the Father destroy thee, may the Son destroythee, may the Holy Spirit destroy thee, that thoumayest have no power to harm this servant of theLord nor to disturb him by day or by night. Amen].



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VOL. 115, NO. 4, 1971] VERBAL CHARMS IN BRITISH FOLK MEDICINEEdelina is believed to be a corruption of Appo-lonia. Several variants of this charm are known(80, 85, 131); all are very old. Some of themalso invoke the martyr, St. Lawrence. Tooth-ache was one of several ills (see below) oftenascribed to a worm, as in Shakespeare's MuchAdo About Nothing (46).D. Pedro, What! Sigh for the toothache?Leon. Where is but a humor or a worm [Act III,Scene 2].

The most widely known toothache charm wasin the form of Latin and English variations ofthe familiar formula, "Peter sat weeping on amarble stone" (cf. charms 26, 27, 28). Petercomplains of the toothache and, for example,is told by the Lord,[157] Go thy way, thy tooth shall ache no more(22, 26, 29, 30, 34, 54, 81, 89, 90, 92, 107, 110,115, 121, 128, 132, 136, 141, 142, 144, 150).More than a century ago, according to an entryin Notes and Queries, a parson persuaded an oldlady to reveal this charm to him. She did so,adding that it was a verse from Scripture. "Well,but Dame Grey," he said, "I think I know myBible, and I don't find any such verse in it."The old lady, unperturbed, responded, "Yes,your reverence, that is just the charm. It's inthe Bible, but you can't find it!" (127).

In variations of the formula, Peter was sittingby the River Jordan (120), or was in the gardenof Gethsemane (90, 134), or Jerusalem (17),or the victim was St. John (143), or the Virgin(55, 58, 90), or Christ's brother (22, 25, 43, 68,90, 107), or a certain Bortron or Bertron (51, 90),or even plain Eliza Gittins (1). The wormwas again mentioned as the cause of the pain(104).In a more complex charm of Anglo-Saxonorigin, after Peter complains to Christ abouttoothache, the latter says (80, 90, 146):[158] Adiuro te, migranea [migrans?] gutta male-dicta, per patrem,et filium, et spiritum sanctum,perduodecim postulos,per iiij ebangelistas, Marchumt lucam t matheum t Johannem, et per centumquadraginta uatuormilia Innocentes,et per mariam,matremdomininostriiesu christi,qui filium portauit,per quemmundusredemptus st, ut non habeaspotes-tatem n istum nominumN., neque n dente,neque ncapite, nequein vllo loco corporissui nocere valeas.adiurote per illum qui passus est pro nobis in cruce.Amen. [I adjure you, 0 accursed wanderingspot,by the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, by the twelveapostles, by the four evangelists, t Mark t Luke

t Matthew t John, and by the hundred and forty-four thousand Innocents, and by Mary, mother ofOur Lord Jesus Christ, who bore that Son throughWhom the world is redeemed, that you have nopower to work evil in this man N., neither in thetooth, nor the head, nor in any place in his body. Iadjure you by Him who suffered for us on the cross.Amen].Another narrative charm (30) ran:

[159; cf. 30] In the name of God when Jesus saw thecroos on wich he was to be crucified all is bones beganto shiver. Peter standing by said Jesus Christ cureall Deseces Jesues Christ cure they tooth-ake.The Longinus narrative (charm 58) turns upin a fifteenth-century incantation for toothache(151).

[160] Say the charme thris, to it be sayd ix. tymes,and ay thris at a charemynge.I conjoure the, laythely [loathly] beste, withthat ilke [same] spere,That Longyous in his hand gane bere,And also with any hatte of thorne,That one [on] my Lordis hede was borne,With alle the wordis mare and lesse,With the Office of the Messe,With my Lorde and his xii. postilles,With oure Lady and her x. maydenys,Saynt Margrete, the haly quene,Saynt Katerin, the haly virgyne,ix. tymes Goddis forbott, thou wikkydeworme,Thet ever thou make any restynge,Bot away mot [must] thou wende,To the erde [earth] and the stane!There were toothache charms largely com-

pounded from Latin or gibberish or both. Johnof Gaddesden recommended in the Rosa me-dicinae (36), written about 1314 (152), that thefollowing words be written on the jaw of thesufferer:[161] In the name of the Father, the Son and theHoly Ghost, Amen. t Rex t Pax t Nax t inChristo Filio, and the pain will cease at once as Ihave often seen.[162] Mars, hur,abursa,aburse.Jesu Christ for Mary's sake,Take away this Tooth-Ach (10, 125).[163] Galbes galbat, galdes galdat (125).

Charms 8, 35, 72, and 83 were also used fortoothache (8, 53, 131).WARTS

These five charms for warts are all of the trans-ferential variety. For one, each wart was

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THOMAS R. FORBESpricked with a pin. Then the pin was stuckin the bark of a tree, and these words wererepeated (137):[164] Ashen tree, ashen tree,Pray buy these warts of me.Or the individual with warts, if he lived innorthern Scotland, might go to a crossroads,pick up a stone, rub his warts with dust fromunder the stone, and say (67):[165] A'm ane, the wart's twa,The first ane it comes byTaks the warts awa.Or the wart could be rubbed with a bean "swad"or pod. Then this was thrown away whilerepeating (78):[166] As this bean-shell rots away,

So my warts shall soon decay.A Cornishman might pretend to wash hishands in the moon's rays directed into a drymetal basin and recite these lines (42):[167] I wash my hands in this thy dish,Oh man in the moon, do grant my wish,And come and take away this.

Still another method was for a charmer tomake the sign of the cross over the warts andorder them in God's name to leave and troublethe victim no longer (71). Then the charmergave his client a piece of paper upon which waswritten,[168] Jesus Christe that died upon the cross putmy warts away.The paper was "to be dropped by the road-sidein God's name. As it wasted, so would herwarts."

Charm 135 was also used for warts (43).WORMS

As previously mentioned, worms were oncebelieved to cause toothache and a variety ofother illnesses. Sometimes a curative incanta-tion was directed at the worm itself, as in thisKentish charm, taken from a manuscript datingfrom about 1400 (82, 131).[169] This charme brouth aungyl gabriel to sanctusWilliam, for to charme cristen [Christian] men froworm, fro venom, fro goute, fro festye, or fro rankyl.-Furst do sey a messe of ye holy gost; thanne seythus, t In nomine patris et filii et spiritus sancti, asveryly as ihu [Jesus] crist was god, is and schal be,and as verily that dede was wel do [deed was well

done], and as verily as he took flesch and blood of yevirgine mary, and as verily as he sufferyd 5 woundysin hys body to bye [buy, redeem] alle synnes, and asverily as he sufferyd fro to be don [put] on the holycross, and on everyside was hanged a thef; and hysryth syde smetyn [smitten] wit a spere, and hyshandys and hys feet were perschyd [pierced] withnaylys, and hys hed crownyd with a crowne ofthoryns; and as verily as hys holy body restyd inholy sepulcyr; and as verily as he brast [burst] hellegatys, and his holy sowleys [souls] thene he leed toioye; and as verily as he roos the thrydde day froded, to lyue and sethyn [afterwards] stey up toheven, and sytteth on hys Faderys rygth hond; andas verily as he on domysday schal come, and reyseevery man and woman in flesch and blood, in the ageof thetty wyntyr [thirty winters]; and as verily asthat is owre lord schal deme all at hys plezaunce[pleasure]; and as verily as alle this that i have seydis trewe and leve it trewe, and is trewe and schal betrewe. Ryth [right] so as verily this man or thiswoman now be hool [whole, well] of the gout or ofthe sciatyk, or of the gout erraunt, or of the goutardaunt [ardent, burning], or of the gout festred; orof al maneer of gout or of worm or of cankyr. Dedis the gout; ded is the sciatyk; ded is the festyr; dedis the worm; ded is the cankyr; ded it is, and ded itnow be, if it be goddis plesyng of this man or of thiswoman.The charm was to be said three times on eachof three successive Sundays. Obviously muchof it is based on the Apostle's Creed.A Middle English charm against worms issomewhat similar (80). Translated from theLatin, it reads:[170] Charm for a worm that has entered the heador another place in the body.I conjure thee, little worm, by the Father t, andSon t , and Holy Spirit t, and by the victory ofChrist's passion t, and by the sevenfold HolySpirit, and by the grace and virtue of this nameJesus t, that you have no further power to linger inthis servant of God N., nor may you have leave topenetrate or destroy any of his members, but that bythe grace of our Lord Jesus t Christ t, and ofMary the most glorious Mother of God, and of theholy martyrs of Nicasius and Cassius you, being in-wardly confused and exhausted, do contritely departfrom him. Amen.

A lengthy charm dating from 1430-1440(152) ends with these lines:[171] And Goddis forbott, thou wikkyde worme,That ever thou make any risynge,Bot away mote [must] thou wende to theerthe and the stane.

A thirteenth-century charm (139) ran:[172] Angarus bangarus sal Balpus MarcellusAbiuro vos vermes in nomine [I adjure you,worms, in the name]. . . .



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VOL. 115, NO. 4, 1971] VERBAL CHARMS IN BRITISH FOLK MIEDICINEWOUNDS

All of the wound charms quoted below arefrom the fifteenth century or earlier.[173] I coniure the wounde blyue [blithe?] by thevertu of the woundes fyue [five] t of ihesu cryst,bothe god and man wyth ryght he vs from hellewonne and by the pappes c f Seynt marye clene maydewyth oute folye that the wounde ne ake, ne swelle nerancle, ne festre, ne blede no more ne [than] dede[did] the woundes gode [got?] of t ihesu, whan heheng on the rode [rood] but from the grounde up-ward be as hole [whole] as weren t ihesu woundesevery dol [sorrow?]. t In the name of the fader ofmygtes [might] most of the sone and of the holy gostand sey thys thre tymes and thryes pater noster andave (80).The unknown author of this charm has distortedthe word order so as to achieve rhymes of a sort.Another charm was an adjuration to thewound (85, 131). The charm required that alarge rectangular plate of lead be made and bestamped in its center and four corners with across, thereby symbolizing the five wounds ofChrist,[174] and vpon iche crosse seye a pater noster anda ave with this same charme:"Oure lord Jesus Crist, as thou sufferdyst vwoundys on the crosse for vs synfull men, so helethis man or woman of this sor evyll [evil] and ofalle maner ewelys. Amen, per charite!"And thanne wasch the wounde and the leed withhoot watir and loke that the plate towche nogt theerthe, and seye in this wyse:

"I coniure thee, sor, by the wertu of this crosse andhis passyoun that schedde his blood on the c[r]osse,that this sor grewe [grieve] nogt this man nor thiswoman nor non other sore, ne in no lym of his bodi!"And it is to vndirstonden [be understood], thatthis charme schall ben sed over every c[r]osse. Andover the fyfte crosse that is in the myddis [midst,middle], thou schalt seyn this same charme:"I coniure the, sor, for the thre hayll[es] thatCrist suffrid with passioun and deth on the crosseand warischid [washed] vs of oure synnys, soo di-lyuer thi serwaunt N., be it man or woman! Amen,per charite!"And warne the seke man, that he do no folye in themene tyme!There were at least three versions of anotherold wound charm (80, 81). One of them, intranslation, was as follows:

[175] Three good brothers were going down thesame road, and Jesus t stood in their way [and]said to them, "Three good brothers, where are yougoing?" "Lord, we are going to the Mount of Olivesto gather the herbs of salvation and health." "Threegood brothers, follow me, and swear to me by the

milk of the Blessed Virgin that you will not disap-pear, nor will you speak of disappearing, nor will youaccept profit, and go to the Mount of Olives andtake black sheared wool and olive oil," afterwardsaying thus, "Just as Longius the soldier pierced theside of our Lord Jesus with his lance" Ecf.charm 58],and that wound was not painful by day ....There is a good deal more of this rather light-hearted charm.A variation of charm 148 was also used forwounds (37).

DISCUSSIONIn a review of a large number of charms in theBritish 1\useum, Gifford and Blair (64) con-cluded that the charms were used most com-

monly for bleeding, toothache, fevers, and child-birth. Certainly the first three categories arethe largest as far as my study is concerned.Charms in rhyme seem to have been popular,possibly because they were more easily re-membered than prose. Cliarms could be ofalmost any length; some of them almost seemdesigned by sheer mass of words to overwhelma disease. Charms were sometimes addressedto an illness as though the latter were a livingentity, reflecting the primitive idea that a sickman was possessed by an evil spirit. Fewcharms were directed at inanimate objects, andonly then when the object was to receive anillness by transference.Gifford and Blair (64) comment that "Briefly,a charm is a prayer. . . ." This would, I think,be true of a good many but not all of the charmswe have reviewed. Certainly a great manyof them are syncretic, either extending magicaland pagan elements into the Christian religion,or appropriating elements of Christian beliefand liturgy for magical purposes, or both.Indeed, as has often been remarked, magic andreligion clearly overlap, and it becomes verydifficult to draw a line between them. This ispartly because both depend for their real orapparent success, and hence for their supportand continuation, on faith. Purely magicalcharms often seemed to help

verbal charms in british medicine

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