without fear. They wound a wreath of daisies and put it on her
neck, and then they got on her back. The cow stretched out longer
and longer to make room for them until they were all on her back
except my grandsire. Then all of a sudden the dun cow rose up,
first on her hind legs, tipping the children all forward, and
then on her forelegs tipping them all back ward, yet no one fell
off at all, and when she was up on her feet, didn't she start
straight away for the deep waters of the loch? The children
screamed and tried to get off her back, but no matter how hard
they tried, there they stuck. My grandsire ran screaming toward
them, and put up his hand to pull them down, and his finger
touched the dun cow's back! Now never believe me, if his finger
didn't stick so he could not pull it away, and by that he knew
the dun heifer for a water cow and that she had bewitched the
children. He was being dragged along with them toward the water,
when all of a sudden he slipped out his knife and with one blow
chopped off his own finger and he was wanting that finger till
the day of his death."

"What became of the others?" gasped Alan, his black eyes glowing
like coals.

"They went on the dun cow's back into the lake, and the water
closed over them and they were never seen again," said the
Shepherd, "and that's the end of the tale."

While the Shepherd talked, the twilight had deepened into
darkness, the fire had died down, and the corners of the room
were filled with mysterious tricky shadows that danced with the
flickering flames on the hearth. Jean looked fearfully over her