ring of considerable size, within which a black hen and chickens are
occasionally seen at nightfall.

The vicar of a certain Devonshire parish was a distinguished student of
the black art, and possessed a large collection of mysterious books and
manuscripts. During his absence at church, one of his servants visited
his study, and finding a large volume open on the desk, imprudently
began to read it aloud. He had scarcely read half a page when the sky
became dark, and a great wind shook the house violently; still he read
on; and in the midst of the storm the door flew open, and a black hen
and chickens came into the room. They were of the ordinary size when
they first appeared, but gradually became larger and larger, until the
hen was of the bigness of a good sized ox. At this point the vicar
suddenly closed his discourse, and dismissed his congregation, saying he
was wanted at home, and hoped he might arrive there in time. When he
entered the chamber the hen was already touching the ceiling. But he
threw down a bag of rice, which stood ready in the corner; and whilst
the hen and chickens were busily picking up the grains, he had time to
reverse the spell.--(Ceridwer takes the form of a hen in the _Hanes
Taliesin_.) I believe a hen and chickens is sometimes found on the
bosses of early church roofs. A sow and pigs certainly are. A black sow
and pigs haunt many cross roads in Devonshire.

* * * * *

The _Dewerstone_ is a lofty mass of rock rising above the bed of the
Plym, on the southern edge of Dartmoor. During a deep snow, the traces
of a naked human foot and of a cloven hoof were found ascending to the
highest point. The valley below is haunted by a black headless dog.
Query, is it Dewerstone, Tiwes-tun, or Tiwes-stan?--(Kemble's _Saxons_,