If the swine find the hole and root it up—as they will be tolerably certain to do owing to their fondness for salt and charcoal—they will not be stolen or run away.
The Urmen, or Fairies, are supposed to be very favourable to cattle, therefore children who torment cows are told “Urme tute ná bica somnakune pçábáy”—“The fairies will not send you any golden apples!” If the English gypsies had the word Urme (and it may be that it exists among them even yet), this would be, “I Urme ná bitcher tute sonnakai pábya!”
But the mighty charm of charms to protect cattle from theft is the following: Three drops of blood are made to fall from the finger of a little child on a piece of bread which is given to the animal to eat, with these words:—
“Dav tute trinen rátá
Ternes te láces ávná!
Ko tut čorel, ádáleske
Hin rát te más shutyárdye!
Káná rátá te rátá
Paltire per ávná,
Yákh te yákh te báre yákh