The Encyclopedia Of Demons And Demonology

96 Gold-Finding Hen
nature, and instead of doing chores at night, they will
sometimes keep everyone awake by banging pots and
pans, moving furniture, knocking on walls and doors,
and snatching bedclothes off sleeping persons. Goblins
who become tiresome can be persuaded to leave by scattering
flaxseed on the floor. The sprites get tired of cleaning
it up every night.
Goblins have become associated with Halloween and
are said to roam the night when the veil between the world
of the living and the world of the dead is thinnest.
See BOGEY.
Gold-Finding Hen A ritual for finding gold involving
evocation of a DEMON. The Gold-Finding Hen ritual was
popular with alchemists in the 18th and 19th centuries.
The ritual tells how to hatch a magical hen, a black pullet,
that can be commanded to search out hidden gold
and other treasures. There are different versions of the
ritual in various GRIMOIRES, or magical handbooks.
The Red Dragon (1822) tells how to do it with a demon’s
help. Secure a black hen that has never mated and do so
without making the hen cackle. Take it to a CROSSROADS
at midnight and trace a magic circle around you with a
Demon torments a greedy treasure hunter. (AUTHOR’S
COLLECTION)
cypress rod. Say three times, “Eloim, Essaim, frugativi et
appellavi.” After making ritual movements, a demon will
appear in a scarlet overcoat, a yellow vest, and pale green
breeches. His head will be that of a dog, his ears those
of an ass; his head will have two horns, and he will have
the legs and hooves of a calf. The demon will ask for your
orders, which he must obey at all costs. You can direct the
demon to find treasures.
FURTHER READING:
Wright, Elbee. The Book of Magical Talismans/The Black Pullet.
Minneapolis: Marlar, 1984.
Goodman’s Ground (Guidman’s Grunde) In Scottish
lore, a portion of farmland that is left uncultivated and
ungrazed. The offering of Goodman’s Ground was
intended to avert misfortune, especially diseases among
cattle. Other names were the Halyman’s Rig, the Goodman’s
Fauld, the Gi’en Rig, the Deevil’s Craft, Clootie’s
Craft, the Black Faulie, and Given Ground.
Christian Church authorities considered this pagan
practice to be an offering to the DEVIL and levied heavy
fines on farmers who observed it. Belief in the power of
Goodman’s Ground was often strong enough for farmers
to resist the church and pay the fines, which were seen as
preferable to courting disaster and risking the death of
their cattle.
The Goodman’s Ground played a part in the witchcraft
trial of Jonet Wishert in Aberdeen in 1596. It was
testified that Wishert was seen in his Goodman’s Ground,
naked from the waist down, bending over to kiss the Devil’s
anus.
The last fields dedicated to the “Auld Goodman” were
finally ploughed at the beginning of the 19th century as a
result of economic pressure.
Goodwin Possessions (1688) Demonic POSSESSION of
children in Boston, exorcized by the Puritan minister
Cotton Mather. The possessions were blamed on a
woman accused of WITCHCRAFT. Mather wrote about this
case in his 1689 book Memorable Providences, which was
widely read and circulated through Puritan New England
and probably influenced public opinions in the
SALEM WITCHCRAFT HYSTERIA of 1692–93.
The possessions began in the home of John Goodwin,
a mason who lived in South Boston. Affected were four
children ranging in age from three to 13. In the summer
of 1688, the oldest child, Martha, went to fetch the family’s
laundry from their washerwoman, an Irish woman
named Goodwife Glover. The woman was not well liked;
her husband had even accused her of being a witch on his
deathbed. Martha thought some of the laundry was missing
and complained to Glover, who took offense at the
insinuation of theft. Immediately, Martha began suffering
fits and seizures. Within a few weeks, all four children
were afflicted with physical tortures. Doctors were summoned
but were baffled about the cause.