Tradition: Czech Mythology
Alternative Names: Little Waterman
Category: River dweller
The Myth
Little watermen were said to walk among humans, but they could be recognised by water constantly dripping from one of their sleeves.
One day, a man spotted a little waterman at a cattle market and pointed him out to his companion, remarking that water was dripping from the creature’s left sleeve. Later, when the man was alone, the waterman approached him and declared that they had a score to settle because the man had exposed him. As the man passed a pond, the waterman attacked him from behind and pushed his head underwater until he drowned.
Another tale comes from Winterberg, where a little waterman entered a butcher’s shop hoping to buy a roast. He wore green clothes, and water dripped constantly from his right coat pocket. The arrogant butcher immediately recognised him and ordered him to point out the meat he wanted to purchase. When the waterman touched a piece of meat hanging on a hook, the butcher struck him with a cleaver and cut off one of his fingers.
The wounded waterman raised his bloody hand and threatened the butcher, declaring that he would drown. Believing he could avoid this fate, the butcher thereafter kept away from ponds and other bodies of water. However, one night, after returning home drunk from drinking beer, he could not find his door and fell asleep beneath the eaves of his house. During the night, heavy rain poured from the roof, and the butcher was found drowned beneath the eaves the following morning.
Sources
Sagen.at. (n.d.). Aquarius. https://www.sagen.at/texte/sagen/tschechien/watzlik/wassermaennlein.html