Aradia

Gospel Of The Witches

began to beg him not to persevere in his intention. For thou knowest well, Gianni, she said, that the lady will have none of thee; thou art a terror to her. Do but go home and look in the glass, and it will seem to thee that thou art looking on a mortal sin in human form.

Then Gianni in a roaring rage cried, I will have my way and my will, thou old wife of the

devil, if I must kill thee and the girl too! Saying which, he rushed up the ladder; but before he had opened or could enter the window, and was at the top, he found himself as it were turned to wood or stone, unable to move.

Then he was overwhelmed with shame, and said, Ere long the whole town will be here to

witness my defeat. However, I will make one last appeal. So he cried, Oh, vecchia! thou who

didst mean me more kindly than I knew, pardon me, I beg thee, and rescue me from this trouble!

And if, as I well ween, thou art a witch, and if I, by becoming a wizard, may be freed from my

trials and troubles, then I pray thee teach me how it may be done, so that I may win the young lady, since I now see that she is of thy kind, and that I must be of it to be worthy of her.

Then Gianni saw the old woman sweep like a flash of light from a lantern up from the

ground, and, touching him, bore him away from the ladder, when lo! the light was a cat, who had been anon the witch, and she said, Thou wilt soon set forth on a long journey, and in thy way wilt find a wretched worn out horse, when thou must say -

Fairy Diana! Fairy Diana! Fairy Diana!

I conjure thee to do some little good

To this poor beast.

Then thou wilt find

A great goat

A true he-goat

And thou shalt say,

Good evening, fair goat!

And he will reply,

Good evening, fair sir!

I am so weary

That I can go no farther

And thou shalt reply as usual,

Fairy Diana, I conjure thee

To give to this goat relief and peace!

Then will we enter in a great hall where thou wilt see many beautiful ladies who will try to

fascinate thee; but let thy answer ever be, She whom I love is her of Monteroni.

And now Gianni, to horse; mount and away! So he mounted the cat, which flew as

quick as thought, and found the mare, and having pronounced over it the incantation, it became a woman and said -

In the name of the Fairy Diana!

Mayest thou hereby become

A beautiful young man,

Red and white in hue,

Like to milk and blood!

After this he found the goat and conjured it in like manner, and it replied -

In the name of the Fairy Diana!

Be thou attired more richly than a prince!

So he passed to the hall, where he was wooed by beautiful ladies, but his answer to them

all was that his love was at Monterone.

Then he saw or knew no more, but on awakening found himself in Monterone, and so

changed to a handsome youth that no one knew him. So he married his beautiful lady, and all lived the hidden life of witches and wizards from that day, and are now in fairy land.

NOTES

As a curious illustration of the fact that the faith in Diana and the other deities of the

Roman mythology, as connected with divination, still survives among the Italians of the people, I may mention that after this work went to press, I purchased for two soldi or one penny, a small chapbook in which is shown how, by a process of conjuration or evocation and numbers, not only Diana, but 39 other deities may be made to give answers to certain questions. The work is probably taken from some old manuscript, as it is declared to have been discovered and translated by P.P. Francesco di Villanova Monteleone. It is divided into two parts, one entitled Circe and the other Medea.

As such works must have pictures, Circe is set forth by a page cut of a very ugly old

woman in the most modern costume of shawl and mob cap with ribbons. She is holding an

ordinary candlestick. It is quite the ideal of a common fortune teller, and it is probably that the words Maga Circe suggested nothing more or less than such a person to him who made up the book. That of Medea is, however, quite correct, even artistic, representing the sorceress as conjuring the magic bath, and was probably taken from some work on mythology. It is ever so in Italy, where the most grotesque and modern conceptions of classic subjects are mingled with much

that is accurate and beautiful - of which indeed this work supplies many examples.