The Horse Shoe: The True Legend of St. Dunstan and the Devil, Showing How the Horse-Shoe Came to Be a Charm Against Witchcraft

Before horse-shoes hung above doorways as mere decoration, there was a blacksmith saint and a very bad day for the devil. This whimsical Victorian narrative poem tells the legend of St. Dunstan of Glastonbury, a cheerful smith whose forge becomes the site of an absurd celestial showdown. When the devil arrives to cause trouble, Dunstan doesn't pray him away, he grabs a red-hot horseshoe and nails it directly to the infernal hoof. The result: a tormented devil who vows to avoid any home bearing this humble iron charm, and a superstition that has lingered for over a century. Edward G. Flight writes with vivid, irreverent humor, finding genuine charm in this absurd tale of a saint who fights fire with fire (or at least with hot metal). The poem captures something delightful about Victorian folklore: the desire to explain our customs through stories that are equal parts sacred and ridiculous. For readers who enjoy a bit of nonsense wrapped in tradition, this is a quirky artifact that proves even the devil has weaknesses, and they're often shaped like horseshoes.