ne as a sort of charm
against the bewitching of milk-produce. The Beltane customs seem to have
been the same as elsewhere. Every fire was put out and a large one lit
on the top of the hill, and the cattle driven round it sunwards
(_dessil_), to keep off murrain all the year. Each man would take home
fire wherewith to kindle his own."[379]

[Beltane fires and cakes in Wales.]

In Wales also the custom of lighting Beltane fires at the beginning of
May used to be observed, but the day on which they were kindled varied
from the Eve of May Day to the third of May. The flame was sometimes
elicited by the friction of two pieces of oak, as appears from the
following description. "The fire was done in this way. Nine men would
turn their pockets inside out, and see that every piece of money and all
metals were off their persons. Then the men went into the nearest woods,
and collected sticks of nine different kinds of trees. These were
carried to the spot where the fire had to be built. There a circle was
cut in the sod, and the sticks were set crosswise. All around the circle
the people stood and watched the proceedings. One of the men would then
take two bits of oak, and rub them together until a flame was kindled.
This was applied to the sticks, and soon a large fire was made.
Sometimes two fires were set up side by side. These fires, whether one
or two, were called _coelcerth_ or bonfire. Round cakes of oatmeal and
brown meal were split in four, and placed in a small flour-bag, and
everybody present had to pick out a portion. The last bit in the bag
fell to the lot of the bag-holder. Each person who chanced to pick up a
piece of brown-meal cake was compelled to leap three times over the
flames, or to run thrice between the two fires, by which means the
people thought they were sure of a plentiful harvest. Shouts and screams
of those who had to face the ordeal could be heard ever so far, and
those who chanced to pick the oatmeal portions sang and danced and
clapped their hands in approval, as the holders of the brown bits leaped
three times over the flames, or ran three times between the two fires.
As a rule, no danger attended these curious celebrations, but
occasionally somebody's clothes caught fire, which was quickly put out.
The greatest fire of the year was the eve of May, or May first, second,
or third. The Midsummer Eve fire was more for the harvest. Very often a
fire was built on the eve of November. The high ground n