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A woman promised the Devil her son, but the boy and a priest...

Date
Track ID 22127
Part 1

Track Information

Original Track ID

SA1960.140.B8

Original Tape ID

SA1960.140

Summary

A woman promised the Devil her son, but the boy and a priest fought him off when the time came.

A woman with an illegitimate baby was thrown out of her home. She was sitting weeping by the roadside when a well-dressed man appeared. He made a bargain with her that she would want for nothing if she sold him her boy, whom the man would collect when he was fifteen. The woman and the boy lived in comfort until he was fifteen, when the man, who was really the Devil, reappeared. The boy fought him off twice. His mother told the priest her story and the priest fended the Devil off the third time. However the money that the woman had got from the Devil turned to oak leaves.

Recording Location

County - Aberdeenshire

Parish - Old Deer

Village/Place - Fetterangus

Language

Scots

Genre

Story

Collection

SoSS

Source Type

Reel to reel

Audio Quality

Good