# XX: Watching the Cows explained — Lud-in-the-Mist > Chapter companion for Lud-in-the-Mist by Hope Mirrlees. ## What happens Luke, increasingly anxious after sending a letter to Master Nathaniel with no reply, struggles to control Ranulph, who is determined to join the local children in watching the widow's cows on the last night of October. Despite Luke's protests and Hazel's silent support, the widow Gibberty goads Ranulph into going, and Luke reluctantly accompanies him. During the night, the children reveal that they wear fennel to protect against the Silent People, and they disclose that they have seen the widow and Dr. Leer with baskets of fairy fruit, implicating them in smuggling. Ranulph, restless and defiant, asks about Fairyland and nearly runs off into the darkness. ## Themes in this chapter ### Fear of the Unknown The children's fear of the Silent People and the protective use of fennel highlight the community's anxiety about supernatural forces and the unknown. ### Tradition vs. Progress The contrast between Lud-in-the-Mist's lack of fennel tradition and the western practice underscores the tension between urban modernity and rural customs. ## Character check-ins ### Ranulph Chanticleer Grows sunburned and gay, then wilts; spoiled and defiant, he insists on watching the cows despite Luke's objections, and later asks about Fairyland, nearly running off. ### Luke An undergardener not yet eighteen, feeling forlorn and burdened by responsibility; he tries to protect Ranulph but is overruled by the widow, and later learns of the fairy fruit smuggling. ### Clementina Gibberty The widow, strong-willed and jeering, encourages Ranulph to go watch the cows and is implicated in smuggling fairy fruit with Dr. Leer. ### Hazel Silently supports Luke, gives him fennel sprigs for protection, and is described as being treated like an old maid by the widow. ### Endymion Leer Revealed through the children's story to have been seen with the widow Gibberty handling baskets of fairy fruit, implicating him in smuggling. ### Toby The eldest of the little herdsmen, he explains the tradition of wearing fennel and recounts seeing the widow and Dr. Leer with fairy fruit. ## Key lines > In the interval between his two letters—the one to Hempie, and the one to Master Nathaniel—Luke decided that his suspicions had been groundless, for the days at the farm were buzzing by with a soothing hum like that of summer insects, and Ranulph was growing gay and sunburned. Between writing to Hempie and Master Nathaniel, Luke dismissed his earlier fears because life at the farm seemed peaceful and Ranulph appeared happy and healthy. _Luke's initial relief contrasts with the growing tension later in the chapter._ > Why don’t you go tonight with the little herdsmen? You wanted to when you first came here, and the Doctor said it would do you no harm. The widow challenges Ranulph to join the cow-watching, reminding him of his earlier interest and the doctor's approval. _The widow uses Ranulph's desire to annoy Luke, setting the stage for the night's events._ > Always on this night of the year, said the children. And as Luke looked puzzled, Toby cried in surprise, Don’t you wear fennel in Lud on the last night of October? The children explain that wearing fennel on Halloween is a local tradition to protect against the dead, shocking Luke who is unfamiliar with the custom. _Highlights the cultural divide between Lud and the western countryside._ > It was wicker baskets all full of fairy fruit, I know, because Cornflower had torn off the top of one of them. Peter reveals that the widow and Dr. Leer had baskets of fairy fruit, which a cow named Cornflower discovered and ate. _This disclosure implicates the widow and Dr. Leer in smuggling fairy fruit._ > How far is it from here to Fairyland? Ranulph asks about the distance to Fairyland, showing his growing fascination and defiance. _Ranulph's question foreshadows his later actions and the theme of the unknown._ ## Links - HTML: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/lud_in_the_mist_se/chapters/xx-watching-the-cows - Book: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/lud_in_the_mist_se - All chapters: https://www.betterreads.online/discover/lud_in_the_mist_se/chapters