A Fairy Story
6th May
Once upon a time a widow and her son were living in a little cottage. The man went out in a field scoring for potatoes. There was a bush in the middle of the field in his way and he dug it up.
He got very sick and he went home. He had to go to bed. His mother was very troubled and she sent for a doctor but it was no good.
At last an old begger-man came in. He asked the sick man did he cut any bush. He told the begger that he did. The woman then set the bush and her son got better again.
One night a woman was up late spinning. At about 12 o'clock a little red woman came in and asked for cards and a wheel and about twelve little women came in and asked for cards and wheels. One asked for a loom and in the morning they had the frieze spun and woven. The piece of frieze was above on the Altar in the old Church in Balla for many years.
“INFORMANT: Mary Mc Donnell Age, 76 Prison North, Co. Mayo”