The Brownie of Blednoch

Long ago, on a cold, misty evening, a strange little fellow came walking into the village of Blednoch. He was small and brown and very hairy, with a big beard and a long nose. Instead of trousers, he wore a skirt made of green rushes. The dogs barked, the children hid behind their mothers, and the hens flew up onto the roofs.

The little fellow stopped in the middle of the village and spoke in a croaky voice. “My name is Aiken-drum, and I have come to work,” he said. “I do not want money, and I do not want new clothes.” “All I ask is a bowl of brose by the fire at night.” Brose is a warm porridge made of oats and water, and it is very good on a cold night.

The farmers looked at each other. “He does not ask for much,” said the oldest of the farmers’ wives. “Let us give him a try.” So that night, she left a bowl of warm brose by the kitchen fire.

The next morning, the whole village was amazed. All the barley was cut and stacked, and the oats were packed in neat sacks. The cows were milked, the butter was churned, and the floors were swept clean. Even the sheep had been brought down safely from the hills. And by the fire sat an empty bowl, licked clean.

After that, Aiken-drum worked for the people of Blednoch every single night. He never let anyone see him working, and he never asked for anything but his brose. The village grew happy and busy, and everyone had plenty to eat.

But one day, a kind young wife looked at his skirt of rushes and felt sorry for him. “The poor little brownie must be so cold,” she said. So she left a pair of her husband’s old trousers beside his bowl of brose.

That night, Aiken-drum found the trousers, and he was very upset. A brownie does not like to be paid for his work, not even with a gift. “Trousers for me? Then I cannot stay!” he cried. He hopped out of the door and ran off into the mist, and he was never seen in Blednoch again.

The people missed him very much, and they always remembered the busy little brownie. And to this day, they say it is best to thank a brownie with a smile and a warm bowl of brose, and nothing more.