Woods are wild places, waste and desolate, that many trees grow
in without fruit, and also few having fruit. In these woods there
are often wild beasts and fowl; herbs, grass, leas and pastures
grow here and medicinal herbs
are found in woods. In summer woods are beautied with boughs and branches,
with herbs and grass. But woods are also places of deceit and
hunting, for wild beasts
are hunted here, and watches
and deceits are ordained and set of hounds and hunters. They are also
places of hiding and lurking, for often thieves hide here and lay wait for
men to pass, whom they rob and often kill. And so for many various ways strangers
often take a wrong turn and find themselves on the wrong path, and come to
places
where thieves hide out, and not without peril. Therefore knots are often
made on trees and bushes, in boughs
and in branches of trees, in token and mark of the highway, to show the certain
and sure way to travellers; but thieves often turn and change these
knots to mislead them, and lead them off the right path by false tokens and
signs.
[Cited in Medieval Lore, ed. R. Steele (London, 1893), pp. 91-92
]
