On one
occasion the plague was raging in this neighbourhood; the people ascribed
it to the cold blast emanating from the cave; so they hung shirts before
the mouth of the cave and the plague ceased.
[Footnote A: Jones and Kropf, _Folk Tales of the Magyars_, pp. xxxvi. _et
seq_.]
In a widely distant part of the world, the Battaks-Karo,[A] of the high
ground north of Lake Toba in Sumatra, believe in three classes of
mysterious beings, one of which closely corresponds with the fairies of
Europe. The first group are called Hantous; they are giants and dead
Begous (i.e. definitely dead souls), who inhabit Mount Sampouran together
with the second group. These are called Omangs; they are dwarfs who marry
and reproduce their species, live generally in mountains, and have their
feet placed transversely. They must be propitiated, and those making the
ascent of Mount Sebayak sacrifice a white hen to them, or otherwise the
Omangs would throw stones at them. They carry off men and women, and often
keep them for years.
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