Manx fishermen, that after a succession of days marked by poor fishing they began to nickname him "White Stone."55
An
oath taken on sacred stones was regarded by the ancient Scandinavians
as peculiarly binding upon him who took such an oath ; in the old Norse
annals it is stated that Gudrun Gjukesdatter offered King Atte that he
would take an oath on the "pure white stone." The hero Duthmaruno is
said to have sworn by "Loda's Stone of Power," which represented the
almighty divinity of the Norsemen.86
A
sacred well on the north side of Lough Neagh, Ireland, lends peculiar
sanctity to the yellow crystals found in great quantity near by. The
belief in their miraculous quality finds expression in the legend that
they grow up out of the ground on Midsummer Night, and whosoever wishes
to possess them as talismans must pronounce certain magic rhymes in
the act of collecting them. They then become luck-bringers of potent
virtue and ensure the prosperity of the household in which they are
guarded.57
The
stone, or rather rock, named catlinite, and popularly known as
"pipe-stone," was regarded by certain tribes as one of their most
valuable materials,58 and was extensively used for
pipe-bowls. In color it ranges from a deep red to an ashy tint ; the
chief quarry is situated some three hundred miles west of the Falls of
St. Anthony, on the dividing ridge between the Saint Peter's and
Missouri rivers. This region was visited in 1836 by George Catlin, to
whom we are indebted for the preservation of so much regarding Indian
folklore and customs, and after whom the substance
W. G. Wood-Martin, " Traces of the Elder Faiths of Ireland," London, 1902, vol. i, p. 331.
"Finn
Magnussen, "Forsog til Forklaring over nogle Steder af Osian"; Det
Skandinaviske Litteraturselskabs Skrifter, 1813, Pt. II, pp. 237, 251.
" W. G. Wood-Martin, " Traces of the Elder Faiths of Ireland," London, 1902, vol. i, p. 330.
" Kunz, " Gems and Precious Stones of North America," New York, 1890, pp.206-210.
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