"It is an article of faith with the Finns that there dwell under
the altar in every church little misshapen beings which they call
Kirkonwaki, i.e., Church-folk. When the wives of these little people have
a difficult labour, they are relieved if a Christian woman visits them and
lays her hand upon them. Such service is always rewarded by a gift of gold
and silver."[A] These folk evidently correspond to the Kirkgrims of
Scandinavian countries, and the traditions respecting both are probably
referable to the practice of foundation sacrifices.
[Footnote A: Grimm ap. Keightley, p. 488.]
IV.
The subject of Pigmy races and fairy tales cannot be considered to have
been in any sense fully treated without some consideration of a theory
which, put forward by various writers and in connection with the legends
of diverse countries, has recently been formulated by Mr. MacRitchie in a
number of most interesting and suggestive books and papers. An early
statement of this theory is to be found in a paper by Mr.
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