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The Devon spelling of the word Pixy differs from the Cornish and obviously the stories differ but the basic facts about the 'little people' remain the same.
The Enchanted Garden
Near Tavistock there lived an old woman who was very proud of her lovely garden. Every summer the flowers would bloom and there was always a bed of the most exquisite tulips. The pixies became so fond of this garden that they would bring their babies to visit and sing them lullabies in the twilight. When the fairy babies dropped off to sleep the older pixies would dance in the neighbouring field until dawn. In the morning all that was left of their visit were large rings of lush grass where they had danced. The pixies loved the tulips so much that they wove a spell around them to keep them fresh and beautiful for much longer than usual and made them smell so much sweeter. The old woman didn't mind this at all and wouldn't allow anybody to pick even a single flower. Eventually she died and the relative who inherited the cottage destroyed the flowerbed and planted parsley in it. This infuriated the pixies so much that they cast a spell on the garden ensuring that the parsley withered and nothing else would grow there.
However the grave of the old woman was always green and free from weeds with flowers springing up all around it, even though human hands never tended it. At certain times in the spring and summer, soft music could be heard coming from the place where she was buried. The pixies never forgot her.
The Fairy Birth
More recently (1750ish) in Tavistock a local woman, who acted as nurse and midwife, was called upon late one night by an ugly old man who ordered her to come with him at once as his wife was about to give birth. Although she didn't want to go, for some reason she felt compelled to and in no time she was upon his black horse clinging to him tightly. Very soon they arrived at a neat little cottage and was led into a tidy bedroom where the stranger's wife was in bed with two children standing beside her. After the baby was born the mother told the midwife to rub some ointment into the bay's eye which she did. Thinking that if it would do a child good it might benefit her she rubbed some into her right eye also. Immediately she saw changes in the room. The woman in bed was a beautiful fairy and the baby was wrapped in silver coloured clothes of the finest quality. Terrified, the nurse ran out of the house and the ugly little man sat her on his horse and took her home.
A few days later the nurse was at the market when she saw the man stealing items from the various stalls, right under the noses of the vendors. Thinking that he was nothing more than a rogue she went up to him and asked how his wife and baby were. Surprised, the man asked if she could see him, and when she replied in the affirmative he asked her with which eye. As she said her right eye he struck her lightly in it saying that she had no right to meddle with things not meant for her. From that moment she was blind in that eye and for the rest of her life she regretted being so curious.
The Magic Cask
Most of the stories about pixies come from Dartmoor and Exmoor but they did seem to travel further. In Topsham, near Exeter, lived a family named Sokespitch one of who did a favour for a pixy and was rewarded with a spell that ensured that a barrel of ale in the cellar never ran dry. This barrel was passed from generation to generation and became a family heirloom until a nosy servant went to draw a jug of ale. Knowing the reputation of this barrel but not believing it she opened the top to see where the ale came from. On looking inside she found it dry and full of cobwebs. In a panic she slammed the lid down and turned on the tap but no ale was forthcoming. Since that day the barrel became just like any other because the fairies were offended at her curiosity and removed the spell.
