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When the washers are issued, however, the port-wine rule is abandoned; and the washers are despatched to you, in defiance of all the laws of superstition and tradition, "widdershins," or counter-clockwise. No wonder articles thus jeopardised often fail to reach their destination!
She cut a flat space on it, carved magic characters, or runes, on the root, reddened them with her blood, and sang witch-words over them; then she walked backwards round it, and widdershins which means in a direction against the sun and thrust the log out to sea under many strong spells, in such wise that it should drive out to Drangey.
"It was ma luck, Sinclair, an' I couldna win by it." "Ha'vers! It was David Vedder's whiskey that turned ma boat tapsalteerie, Geordie Twatt." "Thou had better blame Hacon; he turned the boat Widdershins an' what fule doesna ken that it is evil luck to go contrarie to the sun?" "It is waur luck to have a drunken, superstitious pilot. Twatt, that Norse blood i' thy veins is o'er full o' freets.
And when they came to that part of the beach where strange things had been done in the ancient ages, lo! there was the crone, and she was dancing widdershins. "What makes you dance widdershins, old crone?" said the King's daughter; "here upon the bleak beach, between the waves and the dead leaves?" "I hear a sound in the wind that is like a sound of piping," quoth she.
"And in there is the king's daughter," he told himself, "and this is certainly 'the strangest thing that ever befell between two seas. And I have a great mind to look up the old woman of that tale who must certainly be hereabout, dancing 'widdershins."
She looked at the tree and bade them turn it over before her eyes, and on one side it was as if singed and rubbed; so there whereas it was rubbed she let cut a little flat space; and then she took her knife and cut runes on the root, and made them red with her blood, and sang witch-words over them; then she went backwards and widdershins round about the tree, and cast over it many a strong spell; thereafter she let thrust the tree forth into the sea, and spake in such wise over it, that it should drive out to Drangey, and that Grettir should have all hurt therefrom that might be.
And when they came to that part of the beach where strange things had been done in the ancient ages, lo, there was the crone, and she was dancing widdershins. "What makes you dance widdershins, old crone?" said the King's daughter; "here upon the bleak beach, between the waves and the dead leaves?" "I hear a sound in the wind that is like a sound of piping," quoth she.
Everything seems to be widdershins. Perhaps because it is St. Patrick's Day. I do believe that woman in the kitchen is at the bottom of it all. These stuffed eggs are positively uneatable! If I were not crippled with this lumbago I would go down and fire her out of the house." "Let me do it for you!" cried Blair, half rising from his seat. "Nonsense!
"It is but a little sound," said the King's daughter, "but yet is it sound enough for me." So they went down in the dusk to the doors of the house, and along the beach of the sea. And the waves beat upon the one hand, and upon the other the dead leaves ran; and the clouds raced in the sky, and the gulls flew widdershins.
And, lo! the nurse fell upon the beach as it were two handfuls of dead leaves, and the wind whirled them widdershins, and the sand lice hopped between. "It is true," said the King's daughter of Duntrine, "you are the comer, and you have power upon the hour. Come with me to my stone house."
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