The water of the sacred well must never be used for household
purposes—cooking, washing, or the like. But after the well was cursed
by the priest, and the tents were struck, and no pattern was held there
any longer, it lost all its sanctity, and was no longer held sacred by
the people, who began to fill their pails, and carry the water away
home for cooking and household use; while also they all washed their
clothes down at the well, just as if no sanctity had ever been in the
water.
However, one day a woman having put down a pot of water to boil, found
that no amount of fire would heat it. Still it remained ice-cold, as
if just drawn from the well. So she looked carefully into the pot, and
there beheld the Sacred Speckled Trout sailing round and round quite
contented and happy. On seeing this, she knew that the curse was lifted
from the well, and she ran and told the priest. His reverence having
seen the Sacred Trout with his own eyes, ordered it to be carried back
to the well, the water of which at once regained all its sacred powers
by the blessing of the priest; and he gave the people leave thenceforth
to hold their pattern there, so as they behaved themselves like decent,
God-fearing Christians for the future. But the water was not allowed to
be carried away any more to their houses for household purposes; the
desecration of the holy water of a sacred well being strictly forbidden
as dangerous and unlucky.