The following are the contributions of the Davis family of Boggaun attending Masterson National School, Manorhamilton, taken from The Schools’ Collection. They were brought to the school, probably as homework, from October 1937 to December 1938.
Phyllis Davis, Fairy Fort
There is a fairy fort in a field beside my land. A man called Peter MacManus owns it, and it is in the townland of Buggawn. It is a round fort and is fenced round with a hedge there is a big stone in the middle of it where the fairies used to sit all night when they came out to play. There is a hole under the big stone for them to go out and in, but the people who own the field never heard of anyone going down into this fort. The owners of the field never disturbs the fort when ploughing or moving. Lights have often been seen at the fort, and there was also music heard in it.
Ena Davis, Fairy Fort
About two miles from our house there is a fairy fort in Peter Clarken’s field. It is called Gortamone fort and is in the townland of Gortamone. This fort is round and there are Whitehorns growing round it. No one ever cuts bushes in a fort because it would be very unlucky. Through this fort there is a big tunnel and there is a roof of flags on the tunnel. It is supposed that the present owner’s father got a piece of a spinning wheel in the passage. At one side there are steps going down into it, and at the other side there are none. It is supposed that this tunnel goes from one fort to another about half a mile off in the same townland. Old people tell stories of lights that were seen in this fort going round in a ring, and they also heard the noise of music and dancing.
Ena or Phyllis from their Uncle Alex Davis, 69.
Bawn is a townland near Dromahaire. Alec Davis Buggawn , 69 yrs gave this song to his niece. He says it was sung in that district 100 years ago.
Come all ye loyal heroes
Wherever that ye be
Don’t hire with your master
Till you know what your work will be.
For you must rise up early
From the clear daylight till dawn
And I fear you won’t be able
To plough the rocks of Bawn
Come rise
up lovely Sweeney.
And give your horse some hay
And give to him a feed of oats
Before you go away.
Don’t feed him on soft turnips,
Take him down to your green lawn.
And then you might be able,
To plough the rocks of Bawn.
My curse attend young Sweeney,
you have me nearly robbed,
You are sitting by the fireside With a pipe stuck in your gob.
You’re sitting by the fireside
From the clear daylight till dawn
And I fear you won’t be able
To plough the rocks of Bawn.
I wish the king of England,
Would write for me in time
And place me in some regiment
All in my youth and prime.
To fight for Ireland’s glory,
From the clear daylight till dawn
and I never would return back
To plough the rocks of Bawn.
Ena or Phyllis told by James Davis, Buggaun (1833-1909) to his son Richard Davis, Buggaun, told to daughter. (James was their grandfather and Richard their father)
A Great Jumper
About 80 years ago there was a big dinner in O’Donnell’s of Larkfield
(These O’Donnells were direct descendants of Red Hugh). When the gentlemen were
sitting in the drawing room they were all boasting of their men and what they
could do. Old O’Donnell said he would bet a five pound note with any of them
that he had a man who would do what none of these men could do. A great big
table was set in the dining room with all the deep decanters, and glasses on
it. He sent for his man who lived in Larkfield and was called Lawrence
Gallagher. When he came he jumped the big table in his bare feet and Mr
O’Donnell won his five pounds as none of the other men could jump it.
End
Ena Davis from Mr Patrick Lonegan, almost 80yrs
Riddles
A poker and tongs are worth sixpence what will an ass load of turf come to?
Ans: Ashes
The king of Morocco say in a ship
An’ in that ship his daughter sat
An’ I’d be blamed if I told her name
An’ that’s three times I’ve told it.
Ans: Ann.
How would you spell the red thief of the world in three letters. Ans: Fox
What never was and never will be.
Look at your hand and you will plainly see.
Ans: Your five fingers the same length.
Spell a broken down ditch in three letters
Ans: Gap
Hairy in Hairy out and Hairy into Hairy’s
mouth.What is it?
Ans: A man putting on his woolly socks.
What hangs in the air and never blossoms?
Ans: A Crook.
A small wee thing smaller than a mouse.
But it has more windows than the king’s house.
Ans: A thimble.
In comes two legs carrying one leg which he lays down on three legs. Back comes two legs, snatches up three legs, and throws it after four legs to get back one leg.
In comes two legs carrying the one leg and lays it down on three legs
In runs four legs snatches up the one leg
Back comes two legs snatches up the three legs
Throws it after four legs to get back the one leg.
What is it? (My revision SMCW).
Answer. A man comes in with a leg of mutton which he lays on a three-legged
stool. A dog runs off with the leg of mutton. The man returns and throws the
stool at the dog to make him drop the leg of mutton.
A Story from Mr Lonegan.
About eighty years ago a man named Ferguson lived at the foot of Benbo and he was very fond of playing cards. One night as he was coming home from card playing he saw a light before him on the roads and as he came nearer he saw a man sitting on the roads and as he came nearer he saw a man sitting on the road side. He had a table two chairs and a pack of cards on the table. The man told Ferguson to sit down and play and they were not long playing till a card fell and Ferguson stooped to lift it up saw the man had a cloven hoof. The man finished the game and went home as quickly as he could and went to bed and as the story is told never got up again from he fright he got that night.
Ena Davis from her Grandfather James Davis (similary from Mr Lonegan.)
Weather lore
If the soot falls from the chimney it is a
sign of rain.
When the sky is red in the evening it is a sign of frost.
When seaweed is dry and hard it is the sign of dry weather but if it gets damp
it is the sign of rain.
Ena Davis from her Grandmother Mrs Gillmor, Boihy, aged 70yrs.
A man named Johnston lived in Benbo, and a neighbor of his was a weaver. Johnston used to sell the cloth for him in Enniskillen. He used to walk there and back and was home next morning before his neighbours were out of bed.
Cecil Davis from his Uncle, Alec Davis 70 yrs.
Praise the young and they will come to you.
Hills are green far away.
A stitch in time saves nine.
Phyllis Davis from her Uncle, Alec Davis – Cures
To cure a child with measles boil young
nettles and give the water off them to the child.
A cure for warts is to rub Castor oil on them.
Any time you pass by a stone with a hallow in it and water in the hallow, dip
your finger in the water three times in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy
Ghost and the warts will disappear.
Melt cobbler’s wax and put it up to a thorn in your finger, and it will draw it
out.
A cure for a sore throat was to take the stocking that you were wearing all day
and tie it round your neck at night.
To cure a cut and stop it bleeding people used to put a cobweb on it.
Another cure for a cut was to get a dog to lick it.
A cure for sore eyes was to bathe them in cold tea.
Phyllis Davis from her Uncle, Alec Davis – Superstitions
If you get two spoons in your cup you are
going to a christening.
If you get two knives on your plateyou will beasked to a marriage.
If the dish cloth falls out of your hand it is the sign of a visitor
If you hear the magpies chirping canly in the morning it is a sign that you are
getting a letter from a distance.
If you see two hens fighting some say it is a sign of a storm others say a
visitor is coming.
If sparks fly out of the fire money is coming to you.
If a smoking coal falls out of the fire you may expect a visitor who is a
smoker.
It is unlucky to meet a red haired woman when you are going on a journey.
If two wash in the same water, spit in it for fear of a fight.
On Easter morning when the sun rises some
people say that it dances because it is glad that our Lord has risen from the
dead.
On May morning if a stranger goes to your well first he will take away the luck
of your butter for the year.
A story
Creevelea Abbey at Dromahair was built by the O’Rourkes about the year 1860. One summer’s day as the masons were building it a woman carrying two pairs of milk chanced to pass the way. The day was so warm that one of the masons grew very thirsty and he asked the woman for a drink, but she refused. He asked her the second time and she again refused the mason was so vexed that he cut the woman’s image in a stone with her mouth open and her tongue out. It is said that her image is still to be seen in the building. On every wet day it is remarked that a drop of water comes from her mouth.
The landlord
The local landlord was Mr. Montgomery who lived near Belhavel Lake. He was a very wealthy man for some time but it is said he died very poor. This man cared nothing for the poor although he never interfered with many of his tenants. It is said that his castle was built of cut stone and marble. The doors of his castle were ornamented with gold. This man lived about 60 years ago and at the same time his brother-in-law Mr. O’Donnell lived in Larkfield. One day Micheal Mc Loughlin who was coachman for Mr. O’Donnell was sent with a message to Mr. Montgomery. He was after arriving at the landlord’s castle when a man dressed in black clothes came to the castle and asked for alms. The landlord told him to be off. The stranger paid no heed to his talk, but at last the landlord ordered his coachman to loose his dog. Then the coachman told the stranger that he was better to be off for that he had to obey his master’s command. Immediately the dog when loosened began to play with the stranger instead of tearing him as the landlord thought he would. The landlord rushed out to attack the stranger but was not able to touch him. The man told the landlord that in a very short time there would be nettles so high as himself growing on the very ground he was standing on, that the stones of his castle would build the bridges, and the stables, and houses in the district. The stranger stranger departed and all his words came to pass and that landlord died in the workhouse, and the stones of his have built bridges and houses in the district.
Hundreds of years ago when giants first came to Ireland, it is supposed that a
giant threw a stone from the top of Benbo to the top of O’Donnell’s Rock. The
track of his five fingers are in the stone, and the stone is there on the rock
for anyone to see it. There is also a bigger shore to be seen at Carrick on
Shannon and the track of his fingers are also to be seen on the stone.
Phyllis Davis from Mr Lonegan
If the wind
blows from the South on Hollow Eve it will blow the same way for twelve months.
If a cat sits with her back to the fire it is the sign of a storm, and if she
scrapes wood it is the sign of wind.
If the sun goes down red it is the sign of good weather
If the stars are glittering in the sky at night it is the sign of frost
If there is a ring round the moon it is the sign of a storm.
When it thunders on all fools’ day it brings good crops of corn + hay
A swarm of bees in may is worth a load of hay.
If
there’s ice in November that will bear a duck in December there will be nothing
but slush and muck.
A swarm of bees in June is worth a silver spoon.
If snails come out in February they will stay at home in March.
If apple trees bloom in March you may search for apples
If a cold August follows a hot July it betokens a hard winter. A warm dry
August betokens a snowy winter.
Phyllis Davis from Local cures from Mr Gallagher, 50 years, Boggaun
Cure for sore eyes: Gather snow off an
evergreen bush and bathe the eyes with it.
Cure for sore eyes: Eat nine gooseberry thorns and point them at the sore part
of the eye and throw them over the left shoulder.
Cure for warts: Bleed the warts and put the blood of them into a piece of cloth
and make it up as a parcel, and leave it on the roadside, and whoever gets it
gets the warts, which immediately disappear from the person who left the
parcel.
Phyllis Davis from Patrick Lonegan, 76 yrs
Marriages were most frequent just before Lent. May is an unlucky in which to get married, and Friday is also unlucky. People need to give the brides cattle when they were getting married, and sometimes money. On the wedding night they had a feast and dance in the bride’s house, and the straw boys used to come in and dance. They were dressed in big straw hats, ad had a fiddle with them, they played and danced.
Phyllis Davis from her Uncle, Alec Davis, 69
Superstitions
If you get two spoons in your cup you are
going to a christening.
If you get two knives on your plateyou will beasked to a marriage.
If the dish cloth falls out of your hand it is the sign of a visitor
If you hear the magpies chirping canly in the morning it is a sign that you are
getting a letter from a distance.
If you see two hens fighting some say it is a sign of a storm others say a
visitor is coming.
If sparks fly out of the fire money is coming to you.
If a smoking coal falls out of the fire you may expect a visitor who is a
smoker.
It is unlucky to meet a red haired woman when you are going on a journey.
If two was in the same water, spit in it for fear of a fight.
If the heart of your hand itches you will get
money.
If the pot jumps on the crook it is a sign that a stranger is coming.
On Easter morning when the sun rises some
people say that it dances because it is glad that our Lord has risen from the
dead.
On May morning if a stranger goes to your well first he will take away the luck
of your butter for the year.
Phyllis Davis from Peter McManus, Boggaun
Riddles
Niddy Noddy round body, three feet and a metal
hat.
Answer – a pot.
One half dead, the other half living, and a tail wagging.
Answer – A dog with its head in a pot.
What sleeps with its finger in its eye
Answer – The crook
Spell blackwater in 3 letters? Answer – Ink
What is neither inside the house nor outside but yet is on the house? Answer – Windows.
What is a herring worth when it is half eaten Answer – worth turning.
The leaper of ditches, the clipper of thorns, the little bracked cow with the leather horns.
Answer – a hare.
What has a mouth and no head?
Answer – A river.
What lights and never burns.
Answer – a bird
The Curlew's Call 