·
There is a lake that is known as the Lake of the
Bearded One
o
The lake has black waters, and it would appear
that there are no fish in the lake
o
Birds also fly high above the lake in an attempt
to avoid it
·
In the area surrounding the lake, there was a
band of elfin ladies
o
They were occasionally seen at dusk in the
summer
o
They wore all green and seen with their hounds
and “comely milk-white kine”
·
An old farmer managed to catch one of the kine
that had fallen in love with the cattle in the farmer’s herd
·
The elfin cow brought great fortune to the
farmer
o
It produced incredible calves, milk, butter, and
cheese, which brought the farmer great fame in the land
·
The once poor farmer became very rich and expanded
his flock and herd
·
The wealth made the farmer crazy
·
He thought that she would grow too old to be
profitably, so he thought to fatten her up for the market
·
Once the day came for the cow to be slaughtered,
the farmer counted his earnings and the cow looked about with pleading eyes
·
Just as the butcher was about to bring down the
bludgeon to finish her, a cry was heard from the hills, and it paralyzed the
butcher and stopped him
·
The shriek came from a female dressed in green
o
She commanded the elfin cow to return home with
her progeny
·
The farmer ran after the cows, but he was unable
to catch up
·
He saw them descend into the lake, and only a
yellow waterlily remained to mark the spot where they disappeared into the lake
·
The farmer lost his wealth, and very few pitied
him because he had demonstrated how ungrateful he was to try to slay the cow that
brought him his fortune
The Welsh Fairy Book by W. Jenkyn Thomas with illustrations by Willy Pogány (1908).
Bibliography: This story can be found here. Story source: The Welsh Fairy Book by W. Jenkyn Thomas with illustrations by Willy Pogány (1908).
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