SCHOOL: Blessington | ADDRESS: Blessington, Co. Wicklow
Not far from Blessington there is place called Ballyknocken where two brothers lived about 60 years ago named John and Joe who worked in a quarry. They were industrious hardworking men, who toiled early and late and had a little land on which they grazed a few sheep.
One morning very early before starting for work one of the brothers went out to count his sheep, as he was walking along through the hills he saw a tiny little object hopping about in the grass which he took to be a very large frog with a red head, but on coming closer found the object was in human form, the tiniest little man dressed in green with a red cap.
He stopped to look at him and as he was smoking his pipe the little man asked for a smoke. At first the man felt very frightened as he had heard so much of fairies but he asked what he would give him for a smoke, he told him he would give him nothing but he would make him wise.
He then handed his pipe to the tiny man and as he was smoking the man took his red cap. He handed back the pipe and begged for his cap.
He told him he would give him his cap if he would tell him where the money was.
The tiny man said there was a crock of gold on his own land in a certain quarry and he showed him where it was.
The man went home and told his brother the whole tale and they agreed they would go on a certain date and search for it.
They went out one bright moonight night and in the exact spot the tiny mantled him they found a large crock of gold. It was so heavy that they were unable to lift it for a few days as they did not want their neighbours to know about it.
They decided to take the horse and cart one morning early ere everyone was about. After much labour of an and horse they succeeded in removing the crock to their home. The joy of being in possession of such an amount of money nearly killed them, they were unable to rise from bed next day and the brother who had been in conversation with the little man was unable to leave his bed for seven years.
The other man bought out estates and quarries which are working to this present day. He married and reared a large family who are still living in the locality in very good positions with the fairy gold still in circulation.
Bibliography
“The Schools’ Collection, Volume 0913, Page 144” by Dúchas © National Folklore Collection, UCD is licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0.