THE FAIRY OF THE DELL.

In olden times fairies were sent to oppose the evil-doings of
witches, and to destroy their power. About three hundred years ago a
band of fairies, sixty in number, with their queen, called Queen of
the Dell, came to Mona to oppose the evil works of a celebrated
witch. The fairies settled by a spring, in a valley. After having
blessed the spring, or "well", as they called it, they built a bower
just above the spring for the queen, placing a throne therein. Near
by they built a large bower for themselves to live in.

After that, the queen drew three circles, one within the other, on a
nice flat grassy place by the well. When they were comfortably
settled, the queen sent the fairies about the country to gather
tidings of the people. They went from house to house, and everywhere
heard great complaints against an old witch; how she had made some
blind, others lame, and deformed others by causing a horn to grow
out of their foreheads. When they got back to the well and told the
queen, she said:

"I must do something for these old people, and though the witch is
very powerful, we must break her power." So the next day the queen
fairy sent word to all the bewitched to congregate upon a fixed day
at the sacred well, just before noon.

When the day came, several ailing people collected at the well. The