The Amorous Devil
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An alpine herdess had a refined lover, who mysteriously always kept his boots and his gloves on. She therefore carefully observed him in secret, and one day noticed that her beloved had claws. Now she also knew why he didn’t pull off his boots, for the Devil has a goat’s foot. Terrified, she ran to the priest. After a lengthy admonishment, he told her to put forked and maidenhair spleenwort into her bed. She did so. In the next, and in a few following nights, her infernal lover returned, but he stayed outside of the window and sniffled:
“Daurand and Widritod
Have taken my beloved!”
Note. Asplenium sepentrionale (forked spleenwort) and trichomanes (maidenhair spleenwort) are herbs that are called Daurand and Widertod245 ’ in the Gölsental valley246 (in this story: Widritod). In the Waldviertel,247 a different herb is substituted for Daurand. Compare with Grimm, Deutsche Sagen Nr. 65,248 Myth. 1015 (1164)f.,249 Nr. 358.250 Panzer II 59.,251 Z. f. M. III. 35f.,252 Kuhn, W. S. Nr. 320,253 Gebr. 78.254 Nr. Alpenburg, Alpensagen Nr. 8,255 Vernaleken, Alpensagen Nr. 79,256 Öst. Myth. u. Br. 225,257 Freisauff, Salzb. S. 529.258 Schwartz, Ursprung 252259 explains Orant (Daurand) as “lightning flower”. For Donar’s lightning is the terror of kobolds.