The peat-fire flame : folk-tales and traditions of the Highlands & Islands

FAERIES : THEIR PROPENSITIES AND ACTIVITIES
memory was the croon that she forgot neither its words
nor its melody. When the faery woman disappeared, the
nurse hfted the child from his cot wherein he had been
replaced ; and, having hurried with him down the stair that
still winds in the Faery Tower of Dunvegan, carried him
into the banqueting-hall, where, in splendour and elegance,
were assembled many members of the Clan. And great, to
be sure, was their consternation when they cast eyes upon
the magic banner, and listened to the strange story that the
nurse had to tell.
For a long, long time the MacLeods of Dunvegan insisted
that every nurse should be able to sing the Croon of the
Faery Woman, because they firmly believed it acted as a
semi or charm that would protect the infant chieftains from
all manner of evil.
In these times the Faery Flag was committed to the
charge of a family whose head acted as hereditary custodian
of it, and bore it into battle whenever the occasion
demanded. MacLeod maintained his diiin'-hratach or
standard-bearer on a freehold near Bracadale, in return for
his services in this connection.
But the more generally accepted theory of the Faery
Flag is that it came into the possession of a young MacLeod
warrior during his absence in the Land of the Infidel. This
crusader was none other than Mac a' Phearsan—to wit, the
Son of the Parson. During his wanderings in the Holy
Land, this knight-errant came to a broad river, where he
met the maighdean-sith—the faery maiden—who would not
permit him to cross until he had wrestled with her as Jacob
wrestled with the angel at Penuel. In the legendary
struggle that ensued, the MacLeod warrior overcame his
elfin adversary; and, while departing from her, he was
presented with the Faery Flag that she assured him, when
unfurled, would give the appearance of a great multitude of
armed men. Be it said, moreover, that the faery maiden
warned the crusader only to use the banner on three specific
occasions, and told him that, among other calamities, the
misuse of it would result in their being no young cattle nor
sheep in the territory of the MacLeods. No cow would
have a calf; and, likewise, every mare and ewe would
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