Chapter 4 :

The Charm of the Stones Consecrated to Godess Diana :

To find a stone with a hole in it is a special sign of the favour of Diana. He who does so shall take it in his hand and repeat the following, having observed the ceremony as enjoined:--

Invocation to the Holy-Stone.

I have found

A holy-stone upon the ground.

O Fate! I thank thee for the happy find,

Also the spirit who upon this road

Hath given it to me;

And may it prove to be for my true good

And my good fortune!

I rise in the morning by the earliest dawn,

And I go forth to walk through (pleasant) vales,

All in the mountains or the meadows fair,

Seeking for luck while onward still I roam,

Seeking for rue and vervain scented sweet,

Because they bring good fortune unto all.

I keep them safely guarded in my bosom,

That none may know it--'tis a secret thing,

And sacred too, and thus I speak the spell:

"O vervain! ever be a benefit,

And may thy blessing be upon the witch

Or on the fairy who did give thee to me!"

It was Diana who did come to me,

All in the night in a dream, and said to me:

"If thou would'st keep all evil folk afar,

Then ever keep the vervain and the rue

Safely beside thee!"

Great Diana! thou

Who art the queen of heaven and of earth,

And of the infernal lands--yea, thou who art

Protectress of all men unfortunate,

Of thieves and murderers, and of women too

Who lead an evil life, and yet hast known

That their nature was not evil, thou, Diana,

Hast still conferred on them some joy in life.

Or I may truly at another time

So conjure thee that thou shalt have no peace

Or happiness, for thou shalt ever be

In suffering until thou grantest that

Which I require in strictest faith from thee!

The Spell or Conjuration of the Round Stone.

The finding a round stone, be it great or small, is a good sign , but it should never be given away, because the receiver will then get the good luck, and some disaster befall the giver.

On finding a round stone, raise the eyes to heaven, and throw the stone up three times (catching it every time), and say:--

The Conjuration.

Spirit of good omen,

Who art come to aid me,

Believe I had great need of thee.

Spirit of the Red Goblin,

Since thou hast come to aid me in my need,

I pray of thee do not abandon me:

I beg of thee to enter now this stone,

That in my pocket I may carry thee,

And so when anything is needed by me,

I can call unto thee: be what it may,

Do not abandon me by night or day.

Should I lend money unto any man

Who will not pay when due, I pray of thee,

Thou the Red Goblin, make him pay his debt!

And if he will not and is obstinate,

Go at him with thy cry of "Brié--brié!"

And if he sleeps, awake him with a twitch,

And pull the covering off and frighten him!

And follow him about where'er he goes.

So teach him with thy ceaseless "Brié--brié!"

That he who obligation e'er forgets

Shall be in trouble till he pays his debts.

And so my debtor on the following day

Shall either bring the money which he owes,

Or send it promptly: so I pray of thee,

O my Red Goblin, come unto my aid!

Or should I quarrel with her whom I love,

Then, spirit of good luck, I pray thee go

To her while sleeping--pull her by the hair,

And bear her through the night unto my bed!

And in the morning, when all spirits go

To their repose, do thou, ere thou return'st

Into thy stone, carry her home again,

And leave her there asleep. Therefore, O Sprite!

I beg thee in this pebble make thy home!

Obey in every way all I command.

So in my pocket thou shalt ever be,

And thou and I will ne'er part company!