School: Conaithe an Aonaigh

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1. Hidden Treasure

   

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   Once upon a time there lived in Conna, a woman named Mrs. Conway. One day as she was walking through a field called "Pairc an Aonaig" she met a dwarf riding on a white horse. On going nearer to him she was getting frightened, but she showed no signs of alarm. To draw her attention from him he shouted out loud "Murder, Murder, your house is on fire!" But she kept looking at him. He tried many other means to make her look at something else, but she still kept her eye on him. Then he told he to dig a hole under the white-thorn tree in the centre of the field, and that she would find a treasure there. Then the dwarf disappeared, and left Mrs. Conway to recover from her dream.
   That night, however, Mrs. Conway with a couple of boys form the village, went to the spot where the dwarf said the treasure was hidden. When they began to dig, something frightened them so they ran home, as fast as their legs could carry them. They tried to get at it again the following night, but with no better success. On the next night she took some holy water with her, and in this way frightened away the spirits that were guarding it. Then they started digging, and after making a hole some feet deep they observed a peculiar looking vessel which seemed damaged by old age. A few minutes later, they had a peculiar looking earthen-ware crock full of gold on the edge of the hole.
   That night, there was great rejoicing at Mrs. Conways home. She gave a great feast to all the friends and neighbours, and

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   Transcribed by a member of our volunteer transcription project.

   History Edit

   Topics

   1. genre
      1. belief (~391)
         1. folk belief (~2,535)
            1. treasure legends (~7,411)

   Language

   English

   Collector

   Jerry Mellerick

   Gender

   Male

   Address

   Conna, Co. Cork

   Informant

   Miss Hannah O Brien

   Gender

   Female

   Address

   Conna, Co. Cork