Aradia

Gospel Of The Witches

Boston proof reader, who in a book of mine changed the spelling of many citations from Chaucer, Spenser, and others into the purest, or impurest, Webster; he being under the impression that I was extremely ignorant of orthography. As for the writing in or injuring books, which always belong partly to posterity, it is a sin of vulgarity as well as morality, and indicates what people are more than they dream.

Only a cad as low as a thief

Would write in a book or turn down a leaf,

Since tis thievery, as well is know,

To make free with that which is not our own.

CHAPTER XIII

DIANA AND THE CHILDREN

There was in Florence in the oldest time a noble family, but grown so poor that their feast

days were few and far between. However, they dwelt in their old palace (which was in the street now called La Via Cittadella), which was a fine old building, and so they kept up a brave show before the world, when many a day they hardly had anything to eat.

Round this palace was a large garden, in which stood an ancient marble statue of Diana,

like a beautiful woman who seemed to be running with a dog by her side. She held in her hand a bow, and on her forehead was a small moon. And it was said that by night, when all was still, the statue became like life and fled, and did not return till the moon set or the sun rose.

The father of the family had two children, who were good and intelligent. On day they

came home with many flowers that had been given to them, and the little girl said to the brother, The beautiful lady with the bow ought to have some of these!

Saying this, they laid flowers before the statue and made a wreath, which the boy placed

on her head.

Just then the great poet and magician Virgil, who knew everything about the god and

fairies, entered the garden and said, smiling, You have made the offering of flowers to the

goddess quite correctly, as they did of old; all that remains is to pronounce the prayer properly, and it is this:

So he repeated the invocation of Diana:

Lovely Goddess of the bow!

Lovely Goddess of the arrows!

Of all hounds and of all hunting

Thou who wakest in starry heaven

When the sun is sunk in slumber

Thou with moon upon thy forehead,

Who the chase by night preferrest

Unto hunting in the daylight,

With thy nymphs unto the music

Of the horn - thyself the huntress,

And most powerful: I pray thee

Think, although but for an instant,

Upon us who pray unto thee!

Then Virgil taught them also the spell to be uttered when good fortune or aught is specially required -

Fair goddess of the rainbow,

Of the stars and of the moon!

The queen most powerful

Of hunters and the night!

We beg of thee thy aid,

That thou mayst give to us

The best of fortune ever!

If thou heedst our evocation

And wilt give good fortune to us,

Then in proof give us a token!

And having taught them this, Virgil departed.

Then the children ran to tell their parents all that had happened, and the latter impressed it on them to keep it a secret, nor breathe a word or hint thereof to any one. But what was their amazement when they found early the next morning before the statue a deer freshly killed, which gave them good dinners for many a day; nor did they want thereafter at any time game of all kinds, when the prayer had been devoutly pronounced.

There was a neighbor of this family, a priest, who held in hate all the ways and worship of

the gods of the old time, and whatever did not belong to his religion, and he, passing the garden one day, beheld the statue of Diana crowned with roses and other flowers. And being in a rage, and seeing in the street a decayed cabbage, he rolled it in the mud, and threw it all dripping at the face of the goddess, saying, Behold, thou vile beast of idolatry, this is the worship which thou has from me, and the devil do the rest for thee!

Then the priest heard a voice in the gloom where the leaves were dense, and it said, It is

well! I give thee warning, since thou hast made thy offering, some of the game to thee Ill bring; thoult have thy share in the morning.

All that night the priest suffered from horrible dreams and dread, and when at last, just

before three oclock, he fell asleep, he suddenly awoke from a nightmare in which it seemed as if something heavy rested on his chest. And something indeed fell from him and rolled on the floor.