That a child could be cured of disease by being passed through an aperture in one of the sacred stones that had formed part of a dolmen is shown in the case of a stone of this kind preserved in the church of Villers-Saint-Sépulcre, dept. Oise, France. There is another such stone in the same department, at Trie, used in a like way for the cure of feeble children or those suffering from rachitis. This reveals in a striking way the persistence of superstitious beliefs which were already condemned in 567 A.D. by the council of Tours, which prescribed that the eucharist should be refused to those who venerated these so-called sacred stones, and at a still earlier date, in 443 A.D., a council decree pronounced those bishops guilty of sacrilege who permitted the making of vows over these stones or the deposition of offerings thereon.[[62]]
Some of the stones of the druidic dolmens were called by the French peasants of a later age pierres tourniresses, or “whirling stones,” for it was solemnly asseverated that at midnight on Christmas Eve these stones gyrated on their base. A still stranger fancy was that some other stones of this class became fearfully thirsty at times, once every hundred days, or perhaps only once in a century, and then rolled off to the nearest stream to slake their thirst. Under others, again, it was believed that a hidden treasure reposed, watchfully guarded by a terrible dragon. However, on one night in the year, while the clock was striking twelve, he snatched a moment’s sleep, and whoever was clever enough and quick enough to make use of this chance could acquire untold riches.[[63]]
A strange belief prevails in and about Dourges (dept. Aube), France. On the top of a hill near this place is a chapel built in honor of St. Estapin, and in close proximity to this chapel are rocks with many irregular hollows of such varying shapes and forms that almost any part of the human body can be thrust into the openings. On the 6th of August in each year, those from the neighborhood suffering from illness or disability of any kind come hither, and, after having made their way as best they can nine times around the chapel, proceed to the platform whereon are the wonder-working stones, and introduce the afflicted part of their body into the appropriate opening in one of the rocks. The result is said to be an immediate cure of the trouble, however serious this may be, one experiment being sufficient.[[64]]
Stones of peculiar shape or marked color are those to which popular fancy has most often attributed a certain sanctity or power. Instances of this may be found in the Scottish isles. Thus, on the island of Arran in the Firth of Clyde, a green stone of approximately spherical form had acquired great repute for its healing virtue, especially for those having pains in the side. When this stone was laid upon the seat of the trouble, the pain would disappear. This, however, was not the only use to which it was put, for oaths were taken upon it, proving the presence of a certain animistic belief in the islanders’ minds, as though some spirit dwelt in or animated the stone and would take vengeance on a perjuror. A still better proof of this was the idea that the green stone of Arran would bring victory to a leader if he bore it with him and cast it into the enemies’ ranks at the decisive moment of a conflict, as is said to have been done by the Lord of the Isles. Alongside of this green stone may be placed a blue stone credited in the Scotch island of Fladda with the possession of like healing power, and on which also oaths were taken.[[65]]
A large, flat stone in St. Andrew’s on the isle of Guernsey is stated to have borne a somewhat humorously misleading French inscription. This ran: “Celui qui me tournera, Son temps point ne perdra,” which has been freely rendered:
To him who turns me up I say
His labor won’t be thrown away.
This tempting promise, interpreted as a sign that some buried treasure was hidden in the ground beneath the stone, finally induced some one to devote much toil and time to the difficult task of turning the stone over. What, however, was his chagrin and disgust when the under side presented the words: “Tourner je voulais, Car lassée j’étais” (I longed to turn, because I was so tired). Whether the practical joker who originated the inscription was present to enjoy the success of his joke is not revealed.[[66]]
To a mass of quartz at Jerbourg, Guernsey Island, local fancy has attached a wild legend, which finds expression in the strange designation of the stone as “The Devil’s Claw.” The old Chronique de Normandie, which, although written much earlier, was first printed in 1576 at Rouen, recounts under date of 797 A.D. that Duke Richard, when on his way from one of his strongholds to a manor where dwelt a damsel of surpassing beauty, was assailed by the Evil One; but, like a second St. Michael, Duke Richard overcame his dangerous antagonist. Seeing that he could not prevail by force, the Devil had recourse to one of his most perilous wiles, and changed himself into a beautiful, richly attired maiden. In this disguise he lured Duke Richard to the seashore and induced him to enter a boat and put out to sea. He thus spirited the duke away to the lonely isle of Guernsey, and at the landing spot, where the Devil finally seized his too-confiding prey, stands this mass of quartz, a deep black splash running right across, indicating in popular fancy the mark left by the devil’s claws.[[67]]
A solitary boulder standing on a heath in North Germany is the subject of a curious legend illustrating the superstitious reverence inspired by the thunder. Once upon a time a bridal procession was traversing the heath when a violent thunder-storm broke out. Taking no heed of this, the musicians who accompanied the procession continued to play their gay and festive music, and as a punishment for this lack of respect the God of Thunder changed the whole party into an immense rock.[[68]]