TEUTONIC MYTHOLOGY. - Centrostudirpinia.it

412 WISE WOMEN.
Brezeliande, by the fontaine de Barendon, dames fae es in white
apparel shew themselves, and begift a child, but one is spiteful
and bestows calamity (San Marte, Leg. of Arthur p. 157-8. 160).
At Olger s birth six wise women appear, and endow ; the last is
named Morgue. In the Children of Limburg (Mones anzeiger
1835, 169), when Ectrites falls asleep in a meadow beside a fountain
and a lime-tree, three wayfaring wives approach, and foretell the
future. The OFr. romance of Guillaume au court nez describes
how Eenoart falls asleep in a boat, and three fays come and carry
him off. In Burchard of Worms they are still spoken of as three
sisters or parcae, for whom the people of the house spread the
table with three plates and three knives conf . the ; praeparare
mensas cum lapidibus vel epulis in domo . In the watches of
the night the fatuae come to children, wash them and lay them
down by the fire (see SuppL). In most of the tales there appear
three fays, as well as three norns and three parcae; occasionally
seven and thirteen ; but they also come singly, like that weirdlady
of the wood/ and with proper names of their own. 1 French
1 La fata in Guerino meschino p. m. 223. 2348 ; Morganda fatata,fata
Morgana, Morghe la fee (Nouv. Eenart <diu 4810); frouwe de la rosche Mse
(black rock), die gesach nieman, er schiede dan vro, riche unde wise, whom
none saw but he went away glad, rich and wise, Ben. 144. MsH. 1, 118a .
Monnier s Culte des esprits dans la Sequanie tells of a fee Arie in Franche-
comte, who appears at country (esp. harvest) feasts, and rewards diligent
spinners ; she makes the fruit fall off the trees for good children, and
distributes nuts and cakes to them at Christmas, just like Holda and Berhta.
I believe her to be identical with the Welsh Arianrod, daughter of Don and
sister of Gwydion (Woden), in Croker 3, 195 ; her name contains arian
(argentum), so that she is a shining one, and it is also used of the milky way.
A jeu composed in the latter half of the 13th century by Adam de la Halle of
Arras (publ. in Theatre franc, au moyen age, Paris 1839, p. 55 seq.) gives a
pretty full account of dame Morgue et sa compaignie. They
are beautiful
women (beles dames parees), who at a fixed time of the year seek a night s
lodging at a house, where dishes are set on the table for them ; men that look
on must not speak a word. Beside Morgue la sage there appear (p. 76-7) two
other fays, Arsile and Maglore., and (the last, on sitting down, notices that no
knife has been laid for her, while the others praise the beauty of theirs.
Maglore cries out in anger :
*
Suije li pire ? peu me prisa qui estavli, ni avisa
que toute seule a coutel faille . Arsile tries to pacify her, and says, it is fitting
that we give a present to those who have arranged this place so prettily.
Morgue endows one with riches, Arsile with the poetic art, but :
Maglore says
De mi certes naront il nient :
bien doivent falir a don bel,
puisque jai fall a coutel
honni soit qui riens leur donra !
Morgue however insisting on a gift, Maglore bestows on one fellow a bald
head, and on the other a calamitous journey :