Vätters, according to the Northern belief, are creatures that live
under ground, but often appear above, and then in human form so perfect
that they have many times been mistaken for mankind. They live, as do
the Trolls and Giants, in mountains, but more often move from one to
another, and it is mostly during these journeys that they are seen.
When the parish of Ockilbo was first settled, the Vätters were so
plentiful that a peasant who fixed his abode near the Rönn Hills was
forced to build his windows high up near the eaves of his cottage to
escape seeing the troublesome multitude of these beings that
continually swarmed around.
Despite the disposition of the cottager to have nothing to do with the
Vätters, he could not avoid getting into complications with them at
times.
One evening, when the wife went to drive the goats into the goat house,
she saw among hers two strange goats, having horsehoofs instead of
cloven hoofs, as should be. Do her utmost, it was impossible to
separate them from the others. They pressed on, and were locked up with
the rest.
In the night she was awakened by a heavy pounding upon the walls, and a
voice from without called:
“Let us be neighborly, mother, and return my goats to me.”
The woman dressed herself and hastened to the goat house, where the
strange animals were making a dreadful uproar. Upon her opening the
door they sprang out and hurried to the forest, whence she heard the
Vätters shouting and calling them.
Thus a friendly feeling was forever established between the cottager
and the Vätters, and from that day there were no more disturbances.