Don't Touch the Dead

Sometimes called "Don't Sleep When You're Sick", "Don't Touch the Dead" is a children's story about the dreaded Night Plague that swept through Eterlania in 1203. Included in the terrifying and sorrowful story is a haunting song sung by the protagonist after her family dies.

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Summary

The tale opens in the countryside of the Eterlanian country Everlian. News from a nearby city arrives, telling the villagers that a deadly plague has erupted and no one knows how far it will spread. The messengers are soon followed by delegates from local nobles, demanding that all of the Healers accompany them to the cities to protect the wealthy. As the Healers are taken away, a young girl named Cara watches from her window, a chill filling her bones.
A few days later, several of those who spoke with the messengers fall ill and are confined to their beds. Worried, the villagers send pigeons to the city for a Healer to return. Their messages are not answered and the sickness spreads. Soon almost half of the town is infected. Cara's family is safe at first, but one day her sister is asked to watch the children of a neighbor. Though Cara's parents beg her not to, she does. The day after, the sister begins complaining of a headache.

Coughing soon begins, and breathing gets harder, although not impossible. About two days after black appears, the victim will begin to cough up blood This is one of the final symptoms.

— from The Night Plague

Cara and her family do all they can to soothe her sister, but the girl only weakens further. Cara's mother prevents the rest of the children from seeing her and takes care of her, but Cara watches as her sister grows steadily sicker. One day, she sees that her sister's veins are black. Her mother still refuses to give up, spending all her time in the room. Cara's sister still gets weaker, coughing up blood, and is barely able to breathe.

Only a few days after her sister fell ill, Cara is awakened early in the morning by her mother's screams of grief. She rushes into the room and finds her mother cradling the girl, sobbing and begging her to wake up. The rest of the family appears and says their goodbyes to their daughter and sister before Cara's father and oldest brother leave to bury the body. At dinner that night, Cara's mother cannot get out of bed. She has fallen ill.
Over the next few days, Cara's mother slowly dies and her father and brother begin to weaken. Cara tries to protect her younger siblings, entertaining and comforting them, but she is losing hope. When her mother dies, her father is too weak to bury her, so her brother must do it. Cara continues to care for her siblings even though she knows that her father and brother are doomed. There are no Healers coming.

Just days after her mother is buried, her father follows. Cara's brother is too weak to bury him, so Cara readies herself to do so. Before she can, a knock comes on the door. A neighbor is there to take the body. They have found that the dead are still contagious and wish to protect anyone who isn't sick. They take her father away and promise to return when her brother is dead.
Alone with her siblings, Cara tries to be strong. When her brother dies and his body is taken, she looks at her younger sister and realizes that the little girl's wrist veins are black.
Both of Cara's younger siblings become sick. Despite everything she does, she cannot help them get better. All she can do is comfort them as they die, staying by their sides as they cry and scream, sleep and wake up worse, and watch as they waste away. When both of them die, Cara wraps their bodies in fabric, writes in her journal, and then calls the men to take them all to the graveyard.

Her arms around me, telling me I'm loved.
He nods and everything is alright.
Her fingers holding needles and her smile gleaming bright.
His laugh in the summer air as he looks up from the street.
She holds onto my skirt with tiny hands.
His little eyes gazing into mine.
Mamma, Papa, sister, brother, sister, brother.
Gone because of this.
Gone because of death.
Lost from me forever, until I follow them.
Until I too am wrapped and laid, in the hollow earth.
Farewell.

— Cara's song, Don't Touch the Dead

Cara buries the last of her family alone, demanding that if the men remain, they only watch. When their graves are covered, she kneels beside the dirt and sings a haunting song to her family and to everyone else, warning them not to touch those who have died and not to fall asleep if they are ill. The men leave her as she continues to cry and sing, heading home to their families to pray for an end to the tragedy.
Cara does not return to her home that night. In the morning, when the latest bodies are delivered, the villagers find her slumped on the ground, never to wake again.

by Lilliana Casper

Date of First Recording

Approximately 1216 to 1218

Date of Setting

1203 during the worst of the Night Plague

Historical Basis

The Night Plague was a true event, and the situation described in this story is one that happened to many during that time. As for the actual characters, those from where it originated believe that it was based on Carlyn Jardice, a poor girl who documented her family's experience of the plague in her journal. Like the story's Cara, Carlyn had two brothers and two sisters, with one brother and sister older than her and the other two younger than her. Carlyn's connection to the story has become gradually more well-known, and newer versions of Don't Touch the Dead have changed the names used in the story to those of Carlyn and her family.

Father is dead now too. David will follow soon. I cannot help him. I must take care of the younger ones.

— The diary of Carlyn Jardice, entry dated July 8th

Variations & Mutation

The basis of the story remains the same no matter where it is being told, but words are often substituted and names are sometimes changed. Many versions call Cara’s sister Mary, but others switch the girls’ names. A few recordings use the names of Carlyn Jardice’s family, assuming the tale was based on her. The name of the village changes often depending on where the story is being told.

by Lilliana Casper

Cultural Reception

For those affected by the Night Plague, Don't Touch the Dead was a harsh reminder of everything they went through and a way to remind their children to be careful. For those who did not experience it, the story showed the true terror and pain that haunted everyone who lived during it, rather than the simple statistics.