The boggart is a relative; some might say the evil twin, of the far friendlier brownie. Brownies appear in English folktales as household helpers who take great personal responsibility for the house in which they live and bring good luck to the homeowner. The y clean up messes, complete unfinished chores, make bread, harvest grain, herd sheep, and mend broken tools and clothes. In return for their labors, they are entitled each evening to a bowl of milk or cream and a piece of cake. A offer of any greater reward is taken as an insult, and brownies are easily offended and angered. When offence occurs, a boggart may appear to take the brownie's place.
Household boggarts are said to be dark, hairy, and ugly, with overlarge hands and feet. To complete the look, they dress in rags. In centuries past, when a house was thought to be infested with a boggart the owner usually made a great effort to get rid of it. But boggarts were stubborn, and sometimes a family might be forced to move to another town to escape one. Even that did not always work: One story tells about a farmer who was just leaving his house when a neighbour asked if he was leaving. The farmer went to reply (probably going to tell about the troublesome boggart) when a voice from inside his suitcase said "Yes, we're leaving!"
By: Yolonda Potter