THOMAS P. O'NEILL, JR 
 
 LIBRARY 
 
 BOSTON COLLEGE 
 
 Ex Libris 
 
 Heinz Bluhm 
 1907-1993 
 
CUCHULAIN OF MUIRTHEMNE 
 
First Edition . . . April 1902 
 Second Edition . . . August 1903 
 
CUCHULAIN OF MUIRTHEMNE : 
 THE STORY OF THE MEN OF 
 THE RED BRANCH OF ULSTER 
 ARRANGED AND PUT INTO 
 ENGLISH BY LADY GREGORY 
 WITH A PREFACE BY W. B. YEATS 
 
 NEW YORK 
 
 CHARLES SCRIBNER'S SONS 
 
 153-157 FIFTH AVENUE 
 
 1903 
 
"t)ei|\im -An rh6iT) too beip mo rhuitinci|i," a^ CO- 
 CtJl-Ain, ''50 mbeit) cp^Cc ^suf iom|A^*6 pOf ^fi mo 
 jniomxjkftxMb-fe x^me^fs n^ n-^l^-o-jniorh -oo tiinne n^ 
 5Air5i"6i5 If ct^eine." 
 
 *'l SWEAR BY THE OATH OF MY PEOPLE," SAID CUCHULPIN, *' I 
 WILL MAKE MY DOINGS BE SPOKEN OF AMONG THE GREAT DOINGS 
 OF HEROES IN THEIR STRENGTH." 
 
 .r>* 
 
 Printed in Great Britain, 
 
DEDICATION OF THE IRISH EDITION 
 TO THE PEOPLE OF KILTARTAN 
 
 My Dear Friends, 
 
 When I began to gather these stories 
 together, it is of you I was thinking, that you would 
 like to have them and to be reading them. For 
 although you have not to go far to get stories of 
 Finn and Goll and Oisin from any old person in the 
 place, there is very little of the history of Cuchulain 
 and his friends left in the memory of the people, but 
 only that they were brave men and good fighters, 
 and that Deirdre was beautiful. 
 
 When I went looking for the stories in the old 
 writings, I found that the Irish in them is too hard 
 for any person to read that has not made a long study 
 of it. Some scholars have worked well at them. Irish- 
 men and Germans and Frenchmen, but they have 
 printed them in the old cramped Irish, with translations 
 into German or French or English, and these are not 
 easy for you to get, or to understand, and the stories 
 themselves are confused, every one giving a different 
 account from the others in some small thing, the way 
 there is not much pleasure in reading them. It is what 
 
vi DEDICATION 
 
 I have tried to do, to take the best of the stories, or what- 
 ever parts of each will fit best to one another, and in that 
 way to give a fair account of Cuchulain's life and death. 
 I left out a good deal I thought you would not care 
 about for one reason or another, but I put in nothing 
 of my own that could be helped, only a sentence or 
 so now and again to link the different parts together. 
 I have told the whole story in plain and simple 
 words, in the same way my old nurse Mary Sheridan 
 used to be telling stories from the Irish long ago, and 
 I a child at Roxborough. 
 
 And indeed if there was more respect for Irish things 
 among the learned men that live in the college at 
 Dublin, where so many of these old writings are stored, 
 this work would not have been left to a woman of 
 the house, that has to be minding the place, and 
 listening to complaints, and dividing her share of food. 
 
 My friend and your friend the Craoibhin Aoibhin 
 has put Irish of to-day on some of these stories that 
 I have set in order, for I am sure you will like to have 
 the history of the heroes of Ireland told in the language 
 of Ireland. And I am very glad to have something 
 that is worth offering you, for you have been very 
 kind to me ever since I came over to you from 
 Kilchriest, two-and-twenty years ago. 
 
 AUGUSTA GREGORY. 
 
 March 1902. 
 
PREFACE 
 
 I 
 
 T THINK this book is the best that has come out of 
 Ireland in my time. Perhaps I should say that it 
 is the best book that has ever come out of Ireland ; 
 for the stories which it tells are a chief part of Ireland's 
 gift to the imagination of the world — and it tells them 
 perfectly for the first time. Translators from the Irish 
 have hitherto retold one story or the other from some 
 one version, and not often with any fine understanding 
 of English, of those changes of rhythm for instance 
 that are changes of the sense. They have translated 
 the best and fullest manuscripts they knew, as accurately 
 as they could, and that is all we have the right to 
 expect from the first translators of a difficult and 
 old literature. But few of the stories really begin 
 to exist as great works of imagination until somebody 
 has taken the best bits out of many manuscripts. 
 Sometimes, as in Lady Gregory's version of Deirdre, 
 a dozen manuscripts have to give their best before 
 the beads are ready for the necklace. It has been 
 as necessary also to leave out as to add, for 
 generations of copyists, who had often but little 
 sympathy with the stones they copied, have mixed 
 versions together in a clumsy fashion, often repeating 
 
viii PREFACE 
 
 one incident several times, and every century has 
 ornamented what was once a simple story with its own 
 often extravagant ornament. One does not perhaps 
 exaggerate when one says that no story has come down 
 to us in the form it had when the story-teller told it in 
 the winter evenings. Lady Gregory has done her work 
 of compression and selection at once so firmly and so 
 reverently that I cannot believe that anybody, except 
 now and then for a scientific purpose, will need another 
 text than this, or than the version of it the Gaelic 
 League is about to publish in Modern Irish. When 
 she has added her translations from other cycles, she 
 will have given Ireland its Mabinogion, its Morte 
 D'Arthur, its Nibelungenlied. She has already put a 
 great mass of stories, in which the ancient heart of 
 Ireland still lives, into a shape at once harmonious 
 and characteristic ; and without writing more than a 
 very few sentences of her own to link together incidents 
 or thoughts taken from different manuscripts, without 
 adding more indeed than the story-teller must often 
 have added to amend the hesitation of a moment. 
 Perhaps more than all she had discovered a fitting 
 dialect to tell them in. Some years ago I wrote some 
 stories of mediaeval Irish life, and as I wrote I was 
 sometimes made wretched by the thought that I knew 
 of no kind of English that fitted them as the language 
 of Morris' prose stories — the most beautiful language 
 I had ever read — fitted his journeys to woods and 
 wells beyond the world. I knew of no language to 
 write about Ireland in but raw modern English ; but now 
 Lady Gregory has discovered a speech as beautiful as 
 that of Morris, and a living speech into the bargain. 
 
PREFACE ix 
 
 As she moved about among her people she learned to 
 love the beautiful speech of those who think in Irish, and 
 to understand that it is as true a dialect of English as the 
 dialect that Burns wrote in. It is some hundreds of years 
 old, and age gives a language authority. One finds in it 
 the vocabulary of the translators of the Bible, joined to 
 an idiom which makes it tender, compassionate, and 
 complaisant, like the Irish language itself. It is certainly 
 well suited to clothe a literature which never ceased to 
 be folk-lore even when it was recited in the Courts of 
 Kings. 
 
 II 
 
 Lady Gregory could with less trouble have made a 
 book that would have better pleased the hasty reader. 
 She could have plucked away details, smoothed out 
 characteristics till she had left nothing but the bare 
 stories ; but a book of that kind would never have 
 called up the past, or stirred the imagination of a painter 
 or a poet, and would be as little thought of in a few 
 years as if it had been a popular novel. 
 
 The abundance of what may seem at first irrelevant 
 invention in a story like the death of Conaire, is 
 essential if we are to recall a time when people were in 
 love with a story, and gave themselves up to imagination 
 as if to a lover. One may think there are too many 
 lyrical outbursts, or too many enigmatical symbols 
 here and there in some other story, but delight will 
 always overtake one in the end. One comes to accept 
 without reserve an art that is half epical, half lyrical, 
 
X PREFACE 
 
 like that of the historical parts of the Bible, the art of a 
 time when perhaps men passed more readily than they 
 do now from one mood to another, and found it harder 
 than we do to keep to the mood in which one tots up 
 figures or banters a friend. 
 
 Ill 
 
 The Church when it was most powerful created an 
 imaginative unity, for it taught learned and unlearned 
 to climb, as it were, to the great moral realities through 
 hierarchies of Cherubim and Seraphim, through clouds 
 of Saints and Angels who had all their precise duties 
 and privileges. The story-tellers of Ireland, perhaps of 
 every primitive country, created a like unity, only it was 
 to the great aesthetic realities that they taught people to 
 climb. They created for learned and unlearned alike, 
 a communion of heroes, a cloud of stalwart witnesses ; 
 but because they were as much excited as a monk over 
 his prayers, they did not think sufficiently about the 
 shape of the poem and the story. One has to get a 
 little weary or a little distrustful of one's subject, 
 perhaps, before one can lie awake thinking how one 
 will make the most of it. They were more anxious 
 to describe energetic characters, and to invent beautiful 
 stories, than to express themselves with perfect dramatic 
 logic or in perfectly-ordered words. They shared 
 their characters and their stories, their very images, 
 with one another, and handed them down from genera- 
 tion to generation ; for nobody, even when he had 
 
PREFACE xi 
 
 added some new trait, or some new incident, thought of 
 claiming for himself what so obviously lived its own 
 merry or mournful life. The wood-carver who first put 
 a sword into St Michael's hand would have as soon 
 claimed as his own a thought which was perhaps put 
 into his mind by St Michael himself. The Irish poets 
 had also, it may be, what seemed a supernatural sanction, 
 for a chief poet had to understand not only innumerable 
 kinds of poetry, but how to keep himself for nine days 
 in a trance. They certainly believed in the historical 
 reality of even their wildest imaginations. And so soon 
 as Christianity made their hearers desire a chronology 
 that would run side by side with that of the Bible, they 
 delighted in arranging their Kings and Queens, the 
 shadows of forgotten mythologies, in long lines that 
 ascended to Adam and his Garden. Those who 
 listened to them must have felt as if the living were 
 like rabbits digging their burrows under walls that had 
 been built by Gods and Giants, or like swallows building 
 their nests in the stone mouths of immense images, 
 carved by nobody knows who. It is no wonder that 
 one sometimes hears about men who saw in a vision ivy- 
 leaves that were greater than shields, and blackbirds 
 whose thighs were like the thighs of oxen. The fruit of 
 all those stories, unless indeed the finest activities of the 
 mind are but a pastime, is the quick intelligence, the 
 abundant imagination, the courtly manners of the Irish 
 country people. 
 
xii PREFACE 
 
 IV 
 
 William Morris came to Dublin when I was a boy, 
 and I had some talk with him about these old stories. 
 He had intended to lecture upon them, but " the ladies 
 and gentlemen " — he put a communistic fervour of hatred 
 into the phrase — knew nothing about them. He spoke 
 of the Irish account of the battle of Clontarf, and of 
 the Norse account, and said, that one saw the Norse 
 and Irish tempers in the two accounts. The Norseman 
 was interested in the way things are done, but the 
 Irishman turned aside, evidently well pleased to be out 
 of so dull a business, to describe beautiful supernatural 
 events. He was thinking, I suppose, of the young man 
 who came from Aoibhell of the Grey Rock, giving up 
 immortal love and youth, that he might fight and die by 
 Murrugh's side. He said that the Norseman had the 
 dramatic temper, and the Irishman had the lyrical. I 
 think I should have said epical and romantic rather 
 than dramatic and lyrical, but his words, which have so 
 much greater authority than mine, mark the distinction 
 very well, and not only between Irish and Norse, but 
 between Irish and other un-Celtic literatures. The Irish 
 story-teller could not interest himself with an unbroken 
 interest in the way men like himself burned a house, 
 or won wives no more wonderful than themselves. His 
 mind constantly escaped out of daily circumstance, as 
 a bough that has been held down by a weak hand 
 suddenly straightens itself out. His imagination was 
 always running oflf to Tir-nan-oge, to the Land of 
 
PREFACE xiil 
 
 Promise, which is as near to the country-people of 
 to-day, as it was to Cuchulain and his companions. 
 His behef in its nearness, cherished in its turn the 
 lyrical temper, which is always athirst for an emotion, 
 a beauty which cannot be found in its perfection upon 
 earth, or only for a moment. His imagination, which 
 had not been able to believe in Cuchulain's greatness, 
 until it had brought the Great Queen, the red eye-browed 
 goddess to woo him upon the battlefield, could not be 
 satisfied with a friendship less romantic and lyrical than 
 that of Cuchulain and Ferdiad, who kissed one another 
 after the day's fighting, or with a love less romantic 
 and lyrical than that of Baile and Aillinn, who died at 
 the report of one another's deaths, and married in 
 Tir-nan-oge. His art, too, is often at its greatest when 
 it is most extravagant, for he only feels himself among 
 solid things, among things with fixed laws and satis- 
 fying purposes, when he has reshaped the world 
 according to his heart's desire. He understands as well 
 as Blake that the ruins of time build mansions in 
 eternity, and he never allows anything, that we can 
 see and handle, to remain long unchanged. The 
 characters must remain the same, but the strength of 
 Fergus may change so greatly, that he, who a moment 
 before was merely a strong man among many, becomes 
 the master of Three Blows that would destroy an army, 
 did they not cut off the heads of three little hills 
 instead, and his sword, which a fool had been able to 
 steal out of its sheath, has of a sudden the likeness of 
 a rainbow. A wandering lyric moon must knead and 
 kindle perpetually that moving world of cloaks made 
 put of the fleeces of Manannan ; of armed men who 
 
xiv PREFACE 
 
 change themselves into sea-birds ; of goddesses who 
 become crows ; of trees that bare fruit and flower at 
 the same time. The great emotions of love, terror, and 
 friendship must alone remain untroubled by the moon 
 in that world, which is still the world of the Irish 
 country-people, who do not open their eyes very wide 
 at the most miraculous change, at the most sudden 
 enchantment. Its events, and things, and people are 
 wild, and are like unbroken horses, that are so much 
 more beautiful than horses that have learned to run 
 between shafts. One thinks of actual life, when one 
 reads those Norse stories, which were already in 
 decadence, so necessary were the proportions of actual 
 life to their efforts, when a dying man remembered his 
 heroism enough to look down at his wound and say, 
 " Those broad spears are coming into fashion " ; but 
 the Irish stories make one understand why the Greeks 
 call myths the activities of the daemons. The great 
 virtues, the great joys, the great privations come in the 
 myths, and, as it were, take mankind between their 
 naked arms, and without putting off their divinity. 
 Poets have taken their themes more often from stories 
 that are all, or half, mythological, than from history or 
 stories that give one the sensation of history, under- 
 standing, as I think, that the imagination which 
 remembers the proportions of life is but a long 
 wooing, and that it has to forget them before it 
 becomes the torch and the marriage-bed. 
 
PREFACE XV 
 
 One finds, as one expects, in the work of men who 
 were not troubled about any probabilities or necessities 
 but those of emotion itself, an immense variety of 
 incident and character and of ways of expressing 
 emotion. Cuchulain fights man after man during the 
 quest of the Brown Bull, and not one of those fights is like 
 another, and not one is lacking in emotion or strangeness ; 
 and when one thinks imagination can do no more, the 
 storyof the Two Bulls,emblematic of all contests,suddenly 
 lifts romance into prophecy. The characters too have a 
 distinctness one does not find among the people of the 
 Mabinogion, perhaps not even among the people of the 
 Morte D' Arthur. One knows one will be long forgetting 
 Cuchulain, whose life is vehement and full of pleasure, as 
 though he always remembered that it was to be soon 
 over ; or the dreamy Fergus who betrays the sons of 
 Usnach for a feast, without ceasing to be noble ; or Conall 
 who is fierce and friendly and trustworthy, but has not 
 the sap of divinity that makes Cuchulain mysterious to 
 men, and beloved of women. Women indeed, with their 
 lamentations for lovers and husbands and sons, and for 
 fallen rooftrees and lost wealth, give the stories their 
 most beautiful sentences ; and, after Cuchulain, one thinks 
 most of certain great queens — of angry, amorous Maeve, 
 with her long pale face ; of Findabair, her daughter, who 
 dies of shame and of pity ; of Deirdre who might be some 
 mild modern housewife but for her prophetic wisdom. 
 If one does not set Deirdre's lamentations among the 
 
xvi PREFACE 
 
 greatest lyric poems of the world, I think one may be 
 certain that the wine-press of the poets has been trodden 
 for one in vain ; and yet I think it may be proud Emer, 
 Cuchulain's fitting wife, who will linger longest in the 
 memory. What a pure flame burns in her always, 
 whether she is the newly-married wife fighting for pre- 
 cedence, fierce as some beautiful bird, or the confident 
 housewife, who would awaken her husband from his 
 magic sleep with mocking words ; or the great queen 
 who would get him out of the tightening net of his 
 doom, by sending him into the Valley of the Deaf, with 
 Niamh, his mistress, because he will be more obedient to 
 her ; or the woman whom sorrow has sent with Helen and 
 seult and Brunnhilda, and Deirdre, to share their 
 immortality in the rosary of the poets. 
 
 " ' And oh ! my love ! ' she said, ' we were often in 
 one another's company, and it was happy for us ; for if 
 the world had been searched from the rising of the sun to 
 sunset, the like would never have been found in one 
 place, of the Black Sainglain and the Grey of Macha, 
 and Laeg the chariot-driver, and myself and Cuchulain.' 
 
 " And after that Emer bade Conall to make a wide, 
 very deep grave for Cuchulain ; and she laid herself 
 down beside her gentle comrade, and she put her mouth 
 to his mouth, and she said : ' Love of my life, my friend, 
 my sweetheart, my one choice of the men of the earth, 
 many is the women, wed or unwed, envied me until 
 to-day ; and now I will not stay living after you.' " 
 
PREFACE xvii 
 
 VI 
 
 We Irish should keep these personages much in 
 our hearts, for they lived in the places where we 
 ride and go marketing, and sometimes they have met 
 one another on the hills that cast their shadows upon 
 our doors at evening. If we will but tell these stories 
 to our children the Land will begin again to be a Holy 
 Land, as it was before men gave their hearts to Greece 
 and Rome and Judea. When I was a child I had only 
 to climb the hill behind the house to see long, blue, 
 ragged hills flowing along the southern horizon. What 
 beauty was lost to me, what depth of emotion is still 
 perhaps lacking in me, because nobody told me, not 
 even the merchant captains who knew everything, that 
 Cruachan of the Enchantments lay behind those long, 
 blue, ragged hills ! 
 
 W. B. YEATS. 
 
 March 1902. 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 PAGE 
 
 BIRTH OF CUCHULAIN I 
 
 BOY DEEDS OF CUCHULAIN 7 
 
 THE COURTING OF EMER 21 
 
 BRICRIU'S FEAST, AND THE WAR OF WORDS OF THE 
 
 WOMEN OF ULSTER .48 
 
 THE CHAMPIONSHIP OF ULSTER 62 
 
 THE HIGH KING OF IRELAND 82 
 
 FATE OF THE CHILDREN OF USNACH I04 
 
 THE DREAM OF ANGUS I43 
 
 CRUACHAN 148 
 
 THE WEDDING OF MAINE MORGOR 159 
 
 THE WAR FOR THE BULL OF CUAILGNE . . . .175 
 
 THE AWAKENING OF ULSTER 245 
 
 THE TWO BULLS 268 
 
 THE ONLY JEALOUSY OF EMER 276 
 
 ADVICE TO A PRINCE 294 
 
 THE SONS OF DOEL DERMAIT 297 
 
 BATTLE OF ROSNAREE 302 
 
 THE ONLY SON OF AOIFE 313 
 
 THE GREAT GATHERING OF MUIRTHEMNE . . . . 320 
 
 DEATH OF CUCHULAIN 334 
 
CUCHULAIN OF MUIRTHEMNE 
 
 BIRTH OF CUCHULAIN 
 
 TN the time long ago, Conchubar, son of Ness, was 
 King of Ulster, and he held his court in the palace 
 of Emain Macha. And this is the way he came to be 
 king. He was but a young lad, and his father was not 
 living, and Fergus, son of Rogh, who was at that time 
 King of Ulster, asked his mother Ness in marriage. 
 
 Now Ness, that was at one time the quietest and 
 kindest of the women of Ireland, had got to be un- 
 kind and treacherous because of an unkindness that had 
 been done to her, and she planned to get the kingdom 
 away from Fergus for her own son. So she said to 
 Fergus : " Let Conchubar hold the kingdom for a year, 
 so that his children after him may be called the children 
 of a king ; and that is the marriage portion I will ask 
 of you." 
 
 " You may do that," the men of Ulster said to him ; 
 " for even though Conchubar gets the name of being 
 king, it is yourself that will be our king all the time." 
 So Fergus agreed to it, and he took Ness as his 
 wife, and her son Conchubar was made king in his 
 place, 
 
 A 
 
2 BIRTH OF CUCHULAIN 
 
 But all through the year, Ness was working to keep 
 the kingdom for him, and she gave great presents to the 
 chief men of Ulster to get them on her side. And 
 though Conchubar was but a young lad at that time, 
 he was wise in his judgments, and brave in battle, and 
 good in shape and in form, and they liked him well. 
 And at the end of the year, when Fergus asked to 
 have the kingship back again, they consulted together ; 
 and it is what they agreed, that Conchubar was to keep 
 it. And they said : " It is little Fergus thinks about us, 
 when he was so ready to give up his rule over us for a 
 year ; and let Conchubar keep the kingship," they said, 
 " and let Fergus keep the wife he has got." 
 
 Now it happened one day that Conchubar was 
 making a feast at Emain Macha for the marriage of 
 his sister Dechtire with Sualtim son of Roig. And 
 at the feast Dechtire was thirsty, and they gave her a 
 cup of wine, and as she was drinking it, a mayfly flew 
 into the cup, and she drank it down with the wine. And 
 presently she went into her sunny parlour, and her fifty 
 maidens along with her, and she fell into a deep sleep. 
 And in her sleep, Lugh of the Long Hand appeared to 
 her, and he said : " It is I myself was the mayfly that 
 came to you in the cup, and it is with me you must come 
 away now, and your fifty maidens along with you." And 
 he put on them the appearance of a flock of birds, and 
 they went with him southward till they came to Brugh 
 na Boinne, the dwelling-place of the Sidhe. And no 
 one at Emain Macha could get tale or tidings of them, or 
 know where they had gone, or what had happened them. 
 
 It was about a year after that time, there was another 
 feast in Emain, and Conchubar and his chief men were 
 sitting at the feast. And suddenly they saw from the 
 window a great flock of birds, that lit on the ground 
 and began to eat up everything before them, so that not 
 so much as a blade of grass was left. 
 
THE FLIGHT OF THE BIRDS 3 
 
 The men of Ulster were vexed when they saw the 
 birds destroying all before them, and they yoked nine of 
 their chariots to follow after them. Conchubar was in 
 his own chariot, and there were following with him 
 Fergus son of Rogh, and Laegaire Buadach, the Battle- 
 Winner, and Celthair son of Uithecar, and many others, 
 and Bricriu of the bitter tongue was along with them. 
 
 They followed after the birds across the whole country 
 southward, across Slieve Fuad, by Ath Lethan, by Ath 
 Garach and Magh Gossa, between Fir Rois and Fir 
 Ardae ; and the birds before them always. They were 
 the most beautiful that had ever been seen ; nine flocks 
 of them there were, linked together two and two with a 
 chain of silver, and at the head of every flock there were 
 two birds of different colours, linked together with a 
 chain of gold ; and there were three birds that flew by 
 themselves, and they all went before the chariots, to the 
 far end of the country, until the fall of night, and then 
 there was no more seen of them. 
 
 And when the dark night was coming on, Conchubar 
 said to his people : " It is best for us to unyoke the 
 chariots now, and to look for some place where we can 
 spend the night." 
 
 Then Fergus went forward to look for some place, 
 and what he came to was a very small poor-looking 
 house. A man and a woman were in it, and when they 
 saw him they said : " Bring your companions here along 
 with you, and they will be welcome." Fergus went 
 back to his companions and told them what he had seen. 
 But Bricriu said : " Where is the use of going into a 
 house like that, with neither room nor provisions nor 
 coverings in it ; it is not worth our while to be going 
 there." 
 
 Then Bricriu went on himself to the place where 
 the house was. But when he came to it, what 
 he saw was a grand, new, well-lighted house ; and at 
 
4 BIRTH OF CUCHULAIN 
 
 the door there was a young man wearing armour, 
 very tall and handsome and shining. And he said : 
 " Come into the house, Bricriu ; why are you looking 
 about you ? " And there was a young woman beside 
 him, fine and noble, and with curled hair, and she said : 
 " Surely there is a welcome before you from me." " Why 
 does she welcome me ? " said Bricriu. " It is on account 
 of her that I myself welcome you," said the young man. 
 " And is there no one missing from you at Emain ? " he 
 said. " There is surely," said Bricriu. " We are missing 
 fifty young girls for the length of a year." " Would you 
 know them again if you saw them ? " said the young 
 man. " If I would not know them," said Bricriu, " it is 
 because a year might make a change in them, so that I 
 would not be sure." " Try and know them again," said 
 the man, " for the fifty young girls are in this house, and 
 this woman beside me is their mistress, Dechtire. It was 
 they themselves, changed into birds, that went to Emain 
 Macha to bring you here." Then Dechtire gave Bricriu 
 a purple cloak with gold fringes ; and he went back to 
 find his companions. But while he was going he thought 
 to himself: " Conchubar would give great treasure to find 
 these fifty young girls again, and his sister along with 
 them. I will not tell him I have found them. I will 
 only say I have found a house with beautiful women in 
 it, and no more than that." 
 
 When Conchubar saw Bricriu, he asked news of him. 
 " What news do you bring back with you, Bricriu ? " he 
 said. " I came to a fine well-lighted house," said Bricriu ; 
 " I saw a queen, noble, kind, with royal looks, with curled 
 hair ; I saw a troop of women, beautiful, well-dressed ; I 
 saw the man of the house, tall and open-handed and 
 shining." " Let us go there for the night," said Con- 
 chubar. So they brought their chariots and their horses 
 and their arms ; and they were hardly in the house when 
 every sort of food and of drink, some they knew and 
 
BIRTH OF CUCHULAIN 5 
 
 some they did not know, was put before them, so that 
 they never spent a better night. And when they had 
 eaten and drunk and began to be satisfied, Conchubar 
 said to the young man : " Where is the mistress of the 
 house that she does not come to bid us welcome ? " 
 " You cannot see her to-night," said he, " for she is in the 
 pains of childbirth." 
 
 So they rested there that night, and in the morning 
 Conchubar was the first to rise up ; but he saw no more 
 of the man of the house, and what he heard was the cry 
 of a child. And he went to the room it came from, 
 and there he saw Dechtire, and her maidens about her, 
 and a young child beside her. And she bade Conchubar 
 welcome, and she told him all that had happened her, 
 and that she had called him there to bring herself and 
 the child back to Emain Macha. And Conchubar said : 
 "It is well you have done by me, Dechtire ; you gave 
 shelter to me and to my chariots ; you kept the cold from 
 my horses ; you gave food to me and my people, and 
 now you have given us this good gift. And let our 
 sister, Finchoem, bring up the child," he said. " No, it 
 is not for her to bring him up, it is for me," said Sencha 
 son of Ailell, chief judge and chief poet of Ulster. " For 
 I am skilled ; I am good in disputes ; I am not forgetful ; 
 I speak before any one at all in the presence of the king ; 
 I watch over what he says ; I give judgment in the 
 quarrels of kings ; I am judge of the men of Ulster ; no one 
 has a right to dispute my claim, but only Conchubar." 
 
 "If the child is given to me to bring up," said Blai, 
 the distributer, "he will not suffer from want of care 
 or from forgetfulness. It is my messages that do the 
 will of Conchubar; I call up the fighting men from 
 all Ireland ; I am well able to provide for them for a 
 week, or even for ten days ; I settle their business and 
 their disputes ; I support their honour ; 1 get satisfac- 
 tion for their insults." 
 
6 BIRTH OF CUCHULAIN 
 
 " You think too much of yourself," said Fergus. " It 
 is I that will bring up the child ; I am strong ; I have 
 knowledge ; I am the king's messenger ; no one can stand 
 up against me in honour or riches ; I am hardened to war 
 and battles ; I am a good craftsman ; I am worthy to 
 bring up a child. I am the protector of all the unhappy ; 
 the strong are afraid of me ; I am the helper of the 
 weak." 
 
 " If you will listen to me at last, now you are quiet," 
 said Amergin, " I am able to bring up a child like 
 a king. The people praise my honour, my bravery, 
 my courage, my wisdom ; they praise my good luck, 
 my age, my speaking, my name, my courage, and 
 my race. Though I am a fighter, I am a poet ; I am 
 worthy of the king's favour ; I overcome all the men 
 who fight from their chariots ; I owe thanks to no one 
 except Conchubar ; I obey no one but the king." 
 
 Then Sencha said : " Let Finchoem keep the child 
 until we come to Emain, and Morann, the judge, will 
 settle the question when we are there " 
 
 So the men of Ulster set out for Emain, Finchoem 
 having the child with her. And when they came there 
 Morann gave his judgment. " It is for Conchubar," he 
 said, " to help the child to a good name, for he is next 
 of kin to him ; let Sencha teach him words and speak- 
 ing ; let Fergus hold him on his knees ; let Amergin be 
 his tutor." And he said : " This child will be praised by 
 all, by chariot drivers and fighters, by kings and by wise 
 men ; he shall be loved by many men ; he will avenge 
 all your wrongs ; he will defend your fords ; he will 
 fight all your battles." 
 
 And so it was settled. And the child was left until 
 he should come to sensible years, with his mother 
 Dechtire and with her husband Sualtim. And they 
 brought him up upon the plain of Muirthemne, and the 
 name he was known by was Setanta, son of Sualtim. 
 
II 
 
 BOY DEEDS OF CUCHULAIN 
 
 TT chanced one day, when Setanta was about seven 
 years old, that he heard some of the people of his 
 mother's house talking about King Conchubar's court 
 at Emain Macha, and of the sons of kings and nobles 
 that lived there, and that spent a great part of their time 
 at games and at hurling. " Let me go and play with them 
 there," he said to his mother. " It is too soon for you to 
 do that," she said, " but wait till such time as you are 
 able to travel so far, and till I can put you in charge 
 of some one going to the court, that will put you under 
 Conchubar's protection." " It would be too long for me 
 to wait for that," he said, " but I will go there by myself 
 if you will tell me the road." " It is too far for you," said 
 Dechtire, " for it is beyond Slieve Fuad, Emain Macha 
 is." " Is it east or west of Slieve Fuad ? " he asked. 
 And when she had answered him that, he set out 
 there and then, and nothing with him but his hurling 
 stick, and his silver ball, and his little dart and spear ; 
 and to shorten the road for himself he would give a blow 
 to the ball and drive it from him, and then he would 
 throw his hurling stick after it, and the dart after that 
 again, and then he would make a run and catch them 
 all in his hand before one of them would have reached 
 the ground. 
 
 So he went on until he came to the lawn at Emain 
 
 7 
 
8 BOY DEEDS OF CUCHULAIN 
 
 Macha, and there he saw three fifties of king's sons 
 hurling and learning feats of war. He went in among 
 them, and when the ball came near him he got it 
 between his feet, and drove it along in spite of them till 
 he had sent it beyond the goal. There was great 
 surprise and anger on them when they saw what he had 
 done, and Follaman, King Conchubar's son, that was 
 chief among them, cried out to them to come together 
 and drive out this stranger and make an end of him. 
 " For he has no right," he said, " to come into our game 
 without asking leave, and without putting his life under 
 our protection. And you may be sure," he said, " that 
 he is the son of some common fighting man, and it is 
 not for him to come into our game at all." With that 
 they all made an attack on him, and began to throw 
 their hurling sticks at him, and their balls and darts, but 
 he escaped them all, and then he rushed at them, and 
 began to throw some of them to the ground. Fergus 
 came out just then from the palace, and when he saw 
 what a good defence the little lad was making, he 
 brought him in to where Conchubar was playing chess, 
 and told him all that had happened. " This is no gentle 
 game you have been playing," he said. " It is on them- 
 selves the fault is," said the boy ; " I came as a stranger, 
 and I did not get a stranger's welcome." " You did not 
 know then," said Conchubar, " that no one can play 
 among the boy troop of Emain unless he gets their leave 
 and their protection." " I did not know that, or I would 
 have asked it of them," he said. " What is your name 
 and your family ? " said Conchubar. My name is 
 Setanta, son of Sualtim and of Dechtire," he said. 
 When Conchubar knew that he was his sister's son, he 
 gave him a great welcome, and he bade the boy troop to 
 let him go safe among them. " We will do that," they 
 said. But when they went out to play, Setanta began 
 to break through them, and to overthrow them, so that 
 
THE SMITH'S FEAST 9 
 
 they could not stand against him. "What are you 
 wanting of them now ? " said Conchubar. " I swear by 
 the gods my people swear by," said the boy, " I will not 
 lighten my hand off them till they have come under my 
 protection the same way I have come under theirs." 
 Then they all agreed to give in to this ; and Setanta 
 stayed in the king's house at Emain Macha, and all the 
 chief men of Ulster had a hand in bringing him up. 
 
 There was a great smith in Ulster of the name of 
 Culain, who made a feast at that time for Conchubar and 
 for his people. When Conchubar was setting out to the 
 feast, he passed by the lawn where the boy troop were 
 at their games, and he watched them awhile, and he saw 
 how the son of Dechtire was winning the goal from them 
 all. " That little lad will serve Ulster yet," said Con- 
 chubar ; " and call him to me now," he said, " and let 
 him come with me to the smith's feast." " I cannot go 
 with you now," said Setanta, when they had called to 
 him, " for these boys have not had enough of play yet." 
 "It would be too long for me to wait for you," said the 
 king. " There is no need for you to wait ; I will follow 
 the track of the chariots," said Setanta. 
 
 So Conchubar went on to the smith's house, and there 
 was a welcome before him, and fresh rushes were laid 
 down, and there were poems and songs and recitals 
 of laws, and the feast was brought in, and they began 
 to be merry. And then Culain said to the king : " Will 
 there be any one else of your people coming after you 
 to-night?" "There will not," said Conchubar, for he 
 forgot that he had told the little lad to follow him. 
 " But why do you ask me that ? " he said. " I have a 
 great fierce hound," said the smith, "and when I take 
 the chain off him, he lets no one come into the one 
 district with himself, and he will obey no one but myself, 
 and he has in him the strength of a hundred." " Loose 
 him out," said Conchubar, " until he keeps a watch on 
 
10 BOY DEEDS OF CUCHULAIN 
 
 the place." So Culain loosed him out, and the dog 
 made a course round the whole district, and then he 
 came back to the place where he was used to lie and 
 to watch the house, and every one was in dread of 
 him, he was so fierce and so cruel and so savage. 
 
 Now, as to the boys at Emain, when they were done 
 playing, every one went to his father's house, or to who- 
 ever was in charge of him. But Setanta set out on the 
 track of the chariots, shortening the way for himself as 
 he was used to do with his hurling stick and his ball. 
 When he came to the lawn before the smith's house, 
 the hound heard him coming, and began such a fierce 
 yelling that he might have been heard through all 
 Ulster, and he sprang at him as if he had a mind not 
 to stop and tear him up at all, but to swallow him at 
 the one mouthful. The little fellow had no weapon but 
 his stick and his ball, but when he saw the hound coming 
 at him, he struck the ball with such force that it went 
 down his throat, and through his body. Then he seized 
 him by the hind legs and dashed him against a rock 
 until there was no life left in him. 
 
 When the men feasting within heard the outcry of the 
 hound, Conchubar started up and said : " It is no good 
 luck brought us on this journey, for that is surely my 
 sister's son that was coming after me, and that has got 
 his death by the hound." On that all the men rushed 
 out, not waiting to go through the door, but over walls 
 and barriers as they could. But Fergus was the first 
 to get to where the boy was, and he took him up and lifted 
 him on his shoulder, and brought him in safe and sound 
 to Conchubar, and there was great joy on them all. 
 
 But Culain the smith went out with them, and when 
 he saw his great hound lying dead and broken there 
 was great grief in his heart, and he came in and said 
 to Setanta : " There is no good welcome for you here." 
 " What have you against the little lad ? " said Conchubar. 
 
THE HOUND OF CULAIN ii 
 
 " It was no good luck that brought him here, or that 
 made me prepare this feast for yourself, King," he said ; 
 " for from this out, my hound being gone, my substance 
 will be wasted, and my way of living will be gone astray. 
 And, little boy," he said, " that was a good member of 
 my family you took from me, for he was the protector 
 of my goods and my flocks and my herds and of all 
 that I had." "Do not be vexed on account of that," 
 said the boy, " and I myself will make up to you for 
 what I have done." " How will you do that ? " said 
 Conchubar. " This is how I will do it : if there is a 
 whelp of the same breed to be had in Ireland, I will rear 
 him and train him until he is as good a hound as the 
 one killed ; and until that time, Culain," he said, " I 
 myself will be your watch-dog, to guard your goods and 
 your cattle and your house." " You have made a fair 
 offer," said Conchubar. " I could have given no better 
 award myself," said Cathbad the Druid. " And from 
 this out," he said, "your name will be Cuchulain, the 
 Hound of Culain." " I am better pleased with my own 
 name of Setanta, son of Sualtim," said the boy. " Do 
 not say that," said Cathbad, " for all the men in the 
 whole world will some day have the name of Cuchulain 
 in their mouths." " If that is so, I am content to 
 keep it," said the boy. And this is how he came by the 
 name Cuchulain. 
 
 It was a good while after that, Cathbad the Druid was 
 one day teaching the pupils in his house to the north- 
 east of Emain. There were eight boys along with him 
 that day, and one of them asked him : " Do your signs 
 tell of any special thing this day is favourable to ? " "If 
 any young man should take arms to-day," said Cathbad, 
 "his name will be greater than any other name in 
 Ireland. But his span of life will be short," he said. 
 
 Cuchulain was outside at play, but he heard what 
 Cathbad said, and there and then he put off his playing 
 
12 BOY DEEDS OF CUCHULAIN 
 
 suit, and he went straight to Conchubar's sleeping-room 
 and said : " All good be with you, King ! " " What is it 
 you are wanting ? " said Conchubar. " What I want is 
 to take arms to-day." " Who put that into your head ? " 
 " Cathbad the Druid," said Cuchulain. " If that is so, I 
 will not deny you," said Conchubar. Then he gave him 
 his choice of arms, and the boy tried his strength on 
 them, and there were none that pleased him or that 
 were strong enough for him but Conchubar's own. So 
 he gave him his own two spears, and his sword and his 
 shield. 
 
 Just then Cathbad the Druid came in, and there was 
 wonder on him, and he said : '' Is it taking arms this 
 young boy is ? " " He is indeed," said the king. "It 
 is sorry I would be to see his mother's son take arms 
 on this day," said Cathbad. " Was it not yourself bade 
 him do it ? " said the king. " I did not surely," he said. 
 "Then you have lied to me, boy," said Conchubar. " I 
 told no lie. King," said Cuchulain, " for it was he indeed 
 put it in my mind when he was teaching the others, for 
 when one of them asked him if there was any special 
 virtue in this day, he said that whoever would for the 
 first time take arms to-day, his name would be greater 
 than any other in Ireland, and he did not say any harm 
 would come on him, but that his life would be short." 
 " And what I said is true," said Cathbad, " there will be 
 fame on you and a great name, but your lifetime will 
 not be long." " It is little I would care," said Cuchulain, 
 " if my life were to last one day and one night only, so 
 long as my name and the story of what I had done would 
 live after me." Then Cathbad said : " Well, get into a 
 chariot now, and let us see if it was the truth I spoke." 
 
 Then Cuchulain got into a chariot and tried its 
 strength, and broke it to pieces, and he broke in the 
 same way the seventeen chariots that Conchubar kept 
 for the boy troop at Emain, and he said : " These chariots 
 
THE TAKING OF ARMS 13 
 
 are no use, Conchubar, they are not worthy of me." 
 " Where is Jubair, son of Riangabra ? " said Conchubar. 
 " Here I am," he answered. " Make ready my own 
 chariot, and yoke my own horses to it for this boy to 
 try," said Conchubar. So he tried the king's chariot 
 and shook it and strained it, and it bore him. " This is 
 the chariot that suits me," he said. " Now, Httle one," 
 said Jubair, " let us take out the horses and turn them 
 out to graze." " It is too early for that, Jubair ; let us 
 drive on to where the boy troop are, that they may 
 wish me good luck on the day of my taking arms." So 
 they drove on, and all the lads shouted when they saw 
 him — " Have you taken arms ? " "I have indeed," said 
 Cuchulain. " That you may do well in wounding and 
 in first killing and in spoil-winning," they said ; " but 
 it is a pity for us, you to have left playing." 
 
 " Let the horses go graze now," said Jubair. " It is too 
 soon yet," said Cuchulain, " and tell me where does that 
 great road that goes by Emain lead to ? " " It leads to 
 Ath-an-Foraire, the watchers' ford in Slieve Fuad," said 
 Jubair. " Why is it called the watchers' ford ? " " It is 
 easy to tell that ; it is because some choice champion of 
 the men of Ulster keeps watch there every day to do 
 battle for the province with any stranger that m.ight 
 come to the boundary with a challenge." " Do you 
 know who is in it to-day ? " said Cuchulain. " I know 
 well it is Conall Cearnach, the Victorious, the chief 
 champion of the young men of Ulster and of all 
 Ireland." " We will go on then to the ford," said 
 Cuchulain. So they went on across the plain, and at the 
 water's edge they found Conall, and he said : " And are 
 those arms you have taken to-day, little boy ? " " They 
 are indeed," Jubair said for him. " May they bring him 
 triumph and victory and shedding of first blood," said 
 Conall. " But I think, little Hound," he said, " that you 
 are too ready to take them ; for you are not fit as yet 
 
i4 BOY DEEDS OF CUCHULAIN 
 
 to do a champion's work." " What is it you are doing 
 here, Conall ? " said the boy. " I am keeping watch and 
 guard for the province." " Rise out of it, Conall," he said, 
 " and for this one day let me keep the watch." " Do not 
 ask that, little one," said Conall ; " for you are not able 
 yet to stand against trained fighting men." " Then I 
 will go down to the shallows of Lough Echtra and see if 
 I can redden my arms on either friend or enemy." 
 " Then I will go with you myself," said Conall, " to take 
 care of you and to protect you, that no harm may 
 happen you." " Do not," said Cuchulain. " I will 
 indeed," said Conall, " for if I let you go into a strange 
 country alone, all Ulster would avenge it on me." 
 
 So Conall's horses were yoked to his chariot, and he 
 set out to follow Cuchulain, for he had waited for no 
 leave, but had set out by himself When Cuchulain 
 saw Conall coming up with him he thought to himself, 
 " If I get a chance of doing some great thing, Conall 
 will never let me do it." So he picked up a stone, the 
 size of his fist, from the ground, and made a good cast at 
 the yoke of Conall's chariot, so that he broke it, and the 
 chariot came down, and Conall himself was thrown to 
 the ground sideways. " What did you do that for ? " he 
 said. " It was to see could I throw straight, and if there 
 was the making of a good champion in me." " Bad luck 
 on your throwing and on yourself," said Conall. " And 
 any one that likes may strike your head off now, for I 
 will go with you no farther." " That is just what I 
 wanted," said Cuchulain. And with that, Conall went 
 back to his place at the ford. 
 
 As for the lad, he went on towards Lough Echtra in 
 the south. Then Jubair said : " If you will listen to me, 
 little one, I would like that we would go back now to 
 Emain ; for at this time the carving of the food is 
 beginning there, and it is all very well for you that have 
 your place kept for you between Conchubar's knees, 
 
THE DUN OF NECHTAN'S SONS 15 
 
 But as to myself," he said, "it is among the chariot- 
 drivers and the jesters and the messengers I am, and I 
 must find a place and fight for myself where I can." 
 "What is that mountain before us?" said Cuchulain. 
 "That is Slieve Mourne, and that is Finncairn, the 
 white cairn, on its top." " Let us go to it," said 
 Cuchulain. " We would be too long going there," said 
 Jubair. " You are a lazy fellow," said Cuchulain ; " and 
 this my first adventure, and the first journey you have 
 made with me." " And that it may be my last," said 
 Jubair, "if ever I get back to Emain again." They went 
 on then to the cairn. " Good Jubair," said the boy, 
 " show me now all that we can see of Ulster, for I do 
 not know my way about the country yet." So Jubair 
 showed him from the cairn all there was to see of Ulster, 
 the hills and the plains and the duns on every side. 
 "What is that sloping square plain before us to the 
 south?" "That is Magh Breagh, the fine meadow." 
 " Show me the duns and strong places of that plain." 
 So Jubair showed him Teamhair and Tailte, Cleathra 
 and Cnobhach and the Brugh of Angus on the Boyne, 
 and the dun of Nechtan Sceine's sons. " Are those the 
 sons of Nechtan that say in their boasting they have 
 killed as many Ulstermen as there are living in Ulster 
 to-day ? " " They are the same," said Jubair. " On with 
 us then to that dun," said Cuchulain. "No good will 
 come to you through saying that," said Jubair; "and 
 whoever may go there I will not go," he said. " Alive 
 or dead, you must go there for all that," said Cuchulain. 
 " Then if so, it is alive I will go there," said Jubair, " and 
 it is dead I will be before I leave it." 
 
 They went on then to the dun of Nechtan's sons, 
 and when they came to the green lawn, Cuchulain got out 
 of the chariot, and there was a pillar-stone on the lawn, 
 and an iron collar about it, and there was Ogham writing 
 on it that said no man that came there, and he carrying 
 
r6 BOY DEEDS OF CUCHULAIN 
 
 arms, should leave the place without giving a challenge 
 to some one of the people of the dun. When Cuchulain 
 had read the Ogham, he put his arms around the stone 
 and threw it into the water that was there at hand. 
 " I don't see it is any better there than where it 
 was before," said Jubair ; " and it is likely this time 
 you will get what you are looking for, and that is a 
 quick death." " Good Jubair," said the boy, " spread 
 out the coverings of the chariot now for me, until I sleep 
 for a while." " It is no good thing you are going to do," 
 said Jubair, "to be going to sleep in an enemy's 
 country." He put out the coverings then, and Cuchu- 
 lain lay down and fell asleep. 
 
 It was just at that time, Foill, son of Nechtan Sceine, 
 came out, and when he saw the chariot, he called out to 
 Jubair, " Let you not unyoke those horses." " I was not 
 going to unyoke them," said Jubair; "the reins are in 
 my hands yet." " What horses are they ? " " They are 
 Conchubar's two speckled horses." " So I thought 
 when I saw them," said Foill. " And who is it has 
 brought them across our boundaries ? " "A young little 
 lad," said Jubair, " that has taken arms to-day for luck, 
 and it is to show himself off he has come across Magh 
 Breagh." " May he never have good luck," said Foill, 
 " and if he were a fighting man, it is not alive but dead 
 he would go back to Emain to-day." " Indeed he is 
 not able to fight, or it could not be expected of him," 
 said Jubair, "and he but a child that should be in his 
 father's house." At that the boy lifted his head from 
 the ground, and it is red his face was, and his whole 
 body, at hearing so great an insult put on him, and he 
 said : " I am indeed well able to fight." But Foill said : 
 " I am more inclined to think you are not." " You will 
 soon know what to think," said the boy, " and let us go 
 down now to the ford. But go first and get your 
 armour," he said, " for I would not like to kill an un- 
 
NECHTAN'S SONS 17 
 
 armed man." There was anger on Foill then, and he 
 went running to get his arms. " You must have a care 
 now," said Jubair, " for that is Foill, son of Nechtan, and 
 neither point of spear or edge of sword can harm him." 
 " That suits me very well," said the boy. With that 
 out came Foill again, and Cuchulain stood up to him, 
 and took his iron ball in his hand, and hurled it at his 
 head, and it went through the forehead and out at the 
 back of his head, and his brains along with it, so that 
 the air could pass through the hole it made. And 
 then Cuchulain struck off his head. 
 
 Then Tuachel, the second son of Nechtan, came out 
 on the lawn. " It is likely you are making a great 
 boast of what you are after doing," he said. " I see 
 nothing to boast of in that," said Cuchulain, " a single 
 man to have fallen by me." " You will not have long to 
 boast of it," said Tuachel, " for I myself am going to 
 make an end of you on the moment." " Then go back 
 and bring your arms," said Cuchulain, " for it is only a 
 coward would come out without arms." He went back 
 into the house then, and Jubair said : " You must have a 
 care now, for that is Tuachel, son of Nechtan, and if he 
 is not killed by the first stroke, or the first cast, or the 
 first thrust, he cannot be killed at all, tor there is no way 
 of getting at him after that." " You need not be telling 
 me that, Jubair," said Cuchulain, " for it is Conchubar's 
 great spear, the Venomous, I will take in my hand, and 
 that is the last thrust that will be made at him, for after 
 that, there is no physician will heal his wounds for ever." 
 
 Then Tuachel came out on the lawn, and Cuchulain 
 took hold of the great spear, and made a cast at him, 
 that went through his shield and broke three of his ribs, 
 and made a hole through his heart. And then he struck 
 his head off, before the body reached the ground. 
 
 Then Fainnle, the youngest of the three sons of 
 Nechtan, came out. " Those were foolish fellows," he 
 
 B 
 
i8 BOY DEEDS OF CUCHULAIN 
 
 said, " to come at you the way they did. But come out 
 now, after me," he said, "into the water where your 
 feet will not touch the bottom," and with that he made a 
 plunge into the water. " Mind yourself well now," said 
 Jubair, " for that is Fainnle, the Swallow, and it is why 
 that name was put on him, he travels across water with 
 the swiftness of a swallow, and there is not one of the 
 swimmers of the whole world can come near him." " It 
 is not to me you should be saying that," said Cuchulain, 
 " for you know the river Callan that runs through 
 Emain, and it is what I used to do," he said, " when the 
 boy troop would break off from their games and plunge 
 into the river to swim, I used to take a boy of them on 
 each shoulder and a boy on each hand, and I would 
 bring them through the river without so much as to wet 
 my back." With that he made a leap into the water, 
 where it was very deep, and himself and Fainnle 
 wrestled together, and then he got a grip of him, and 
 gave him a blow of Conchubar's sword, and struck his 
 head off, and he let his body go away down the stream. 
 
 Then he and Jubair went into the house and destroyed 
 what was in it, and they set fire to it, and left it burning, 
 and turned back towards Slieve Fuad, and they brought 
 the heads of the three sons of Nechtan along with them. 
 
 Presently they saw a herd of wild deer before them. 
 " What sort of cattle are those ? " said the boy. " They 
 are not cattle, but the wild deer of the dark places of 
 Slieve Fuad." " Make the horses go faster," said Cuchu- 
 lain, " until we can see them better." But with all their 
 galloping the horses could not come up with the wild 
 deer. Then Cuchulain got down from the chariot and 
 raced and ran after them until two stags lay moaning 
 and panting from the hardness of their run through the 
 wet bog, and he bound them to the back of the chariot 
 with the thongs of it. Then they went on till they came 
 to the plain of Emain, and there they saw a flock of white 
 
THE RETURN TO EMAIN 19 
 
 swans that were whiter than the swans of Conchubar's 
 lake, and Cuchulain asked where they came from. " They 
 are wild swans," said Jubair, " that are come from the 
 rocks and the islands of the great sea to feed on the low 
 levels of the country." " Would it be best to take them 
 alive or to kill them ? " " It would be best to take them 
 alive," said Jubair, " for many a one kills them, and many 
 a one makes casts at them, but you would hardly find 
 any one at all would bring them in alive." With that, 
 Cuchulain put a little stone in his sling and made a cast, 
 and brought down eight birds of them, and then he put 
 a bigger stone in, and with it he brought down sixteen 
 more. " Get out now, Jubair," he said, " and bring me 
 the birds here." " I will not," said Jubair, " for it would 
 not be easy to stop the horses the way they are going 
 now, and if I leap out, the iron wheels of the chariot will 
 cut through me, or the horns of the stags will make a 
 hole in me." " You are no good of a warrior, Jubair ; 
 but give me the reins and I will quiet the horses and the 
 stags." So then Jubair went and brought in the swans, 
 and tied them, and they alive, to the chariot and to the 
 harness. And it is like that they went on till they came 
 to Emain. 
 
 It was Levarcham, daughter of Aedh, the conversation 
 woman and messenger to the king, that was there at that 
 time, and was sometimes away in the hills, was the first 
 to see them coming. " There is a chariot-fighter coming, 
 Conchubar," she said, " and he is coming in anger. He 
 has the bleeding heads of his enemies with him in the 
 chariot, and wild stags are bound to it, and white birds 
 are bearing him company. By the oath of my people ! " 
 she said, " if he comes on us with his anger still upon 
 him, the best of the men of Ulster will fall by his hand." 
 " I know that chariot-fighter," said Conchubar. " It is 
 the young lad, the son of Dechtire, that went over the 
 boundaries this very day. He has surely reddened his 
 
20 BOY DEEDS OF CUCHULAIN 
 
 hand, and if his anger cannot be cooled, the young men 
 of Emain will be in danger from him," he said. 
 
 Then they all consulted together, and it is what they 
 agreed, to send out three fifties of the women of Emain 
 to meet him, and they uncovered. When the boy saw 
 the women coming, there was shame on him, and he 
 leaned down his head into the cushions of the chariot, 
 and hid his face from them. And the wildness went out of 
 him, and his feasting clothes were brought, and water 
 for washing ; and there was a great welcome before him. 
 
 This is the story of the boy deeds of Cuchulain, as it 
 was told by Fergus to Ailell and to Maeve at the time 
 of the war for the Brown Bull of Cuailgne. 
 
Ill 
 
 THE COURTING OF EMER 
 
 TIT' HEN Cuchulain was growing out of his boyhood 
 ^ ^ at Emain Macha, all the women of Ulster loved 
 him for his skill in feats, for the lightness of his leap, for 
 the weight of his wisdom, for the sweetness of his speech, 
 for the beauty of his face, for the loveliness of his looks, 
 for all his gifts. He had the gift of caution in fighting, 
 until such time as his anger would come on him, and the 
 hero light would shine about his head ; the gift of feats, 
 the gift of chess-playing, the gift of draught-playing, the 
 gift of counting, the gift of divining, the gift of right 
 judgment, the gift of beauty. And all the faults they 
 could find in him were three, that he was too young and 
 smooth-faced, so that young men who did not know 
 him would be laughing at him, that he was too daring, 
 and that he was too beautiful. 
 
 The men of Ulster took counsel together then about 
 Cuchulain, for their women and their maidens loved him 
 greatly, and it is what they settled among themselves, 
 that they would seek out a young girl that would be a 
 fitting wife for him, the way that their own wives and 
 their daughters would not be making so much of him. 
 And besides that they were afraid he might die young,, 
 and leave no heir after him. 
 
 So Conchubar sent out nine men into each of the 
 provinces of Ireland to look for a wife for Cuchulain, to 
 see if in any dun or in any chief place, they could find the 
 
 21 
 
22 THE COURTING OF EMER 
 
 daughter of a king or of an owner of land or a house- 
 holder, who would be pleasing to him, that he might 
 ask her in marriage. 
 
 All the messengers came back at the end of a year, 
 but not one of them had found a young girl that would 
 please Cuchulain. And then he himself went out to 
 court a young girl he knew in Luglochta Loga, the 
 Garden of Lugh, Emer, the daughter of Forgall Manach, 
 the Wily. 
 
 He set out in his chariot, that all the chariots of 
 Ulster could not follow by reason of its swiftness, and of 
 the chariot chief who sat in it. And he found the 
 young girl on her playing field, with her companions 
 about her, daughters of the landowners that lived 
 near Forgall's dun, and they learning needlework and 
 fine embroidery from Emer. And of all the young 
 girls of Ireland, she was the one Cuchulain thought 
 worth courting ; for she had the six gifts — the gift of 
 beauty, the gift of voice, the gift of sweet speech, the 
 gift of needlework, the gift of wisdom, the gift of 
 chastity. And Cuchulain had said that no woman 
 should marry him but one that was his equal in age, in 
 appearance, and in race, in skill and handiness ; and one 
 who was the best worker with her needle of the young 
 girls of Ireland, for that would be the only one would 
 be a fitting wife for him. And that is why it was Emer 
 he went to ask above all others. 
 
 And it was in his rich clothes he went out that day, his 
 crimson five-folded tunic, and his brooch of inlaid gold, 
 and his white hooded shirt, that was embroidered with 
 red gold. And as the young girls were sitting together 
 on their bench on the lawn, they heard coming towards 
 them the clatter of hoofs, the creaking of a chariot, the 
 cracking of straps, the grating of wheels, the rushing 
 of horses, the clanking of arms. " Let one of you see," 
 said Emer, " what is it that is coming towards us." And 
 
CUCHULAIN'S RIDDLES 23 
 
 Fiall, daughter of Forgall, went out and met him, and he 
 came with her to the place where Emer and her com- 
 panions were, and he wished a blessing to them. Then 
 Emer lifted up her lovely face and saw Cuchulain, and she 
 said, " May the gods make smooth the path before you." 
 " And you," he said, " may you be safe from every harm." 
 " Where are you come from ? " she asked him. And 
 he answered her in riddles, that her companions might 
 not understand him, and he said, " From Intide Emna." 
 " Where did you sleep ? " " We slept," he said, " in the 
 house of the man that tends the cattle of the plain of 
 Tethra." " What was your food there ? " " The ruin of 
 a chariot was cooked for us," he said. " Which way did 
 you come ? " " Between the two mountains of the wood." 
 " Which way did you take after that ? " " That is not 
 hard to tell," he said. " From the Cover of the Sea, 
 over the Great Secret of the Tuatha De Danaan, and 
 the Foam of the horses of Emain, over the Morrigu's 
 Garden, and the Great Sow's back ; over the Valley of 
 the Great Dam, between the God and his Druid ; over 
 the Marrow of the Woman, between the Boar and his 
 Dam ; over the Washing-place of the horses of Dea ; 
 between the King of Ana and his servant, to Mandchuile 
 of the Four Corners of the World ; over Great Crime and 
 the Remnants of the Great Feast ; between the Vat and 
 the Little Vat, to the Gardens of Lugh, to the daughters of 
 Tethra, the nephew of the King of the Fomor." " And 
 what account have you to give of yourself?" said Emer. 
 " I am the nephew of the man that disappears in another 
 in the wood of Badb," said Cuchulain. 
 
 " And now, maiden," he said, " what account have you 
 to give of yourself?" "That is not hard to tell," said 
 Emer, " for what should a maiden be but Teamhair upon 
 the hills, a watcher that sees no one, an eel hiding in the 
 water, a rush out of reach. The daughter of a king 
 should be a flame of hospitality, a road that cannot be 
 
24 THE COURTING OF EMER 
 
 entered. And I have champions that follow me," she 
 said, "to keep me from whoever would bring me away 
 against their will, and against the will and the know- 
 ledge of Forgall, the dark king." 
 
 " Who are the champions that follow you, maiden ? " 
 said Cuchulain. 
 
 "It is not hard to tell you that," said Emer. " Two 
 of the name of Lui ; two Luaths ; Luath and Lath Goible, 
 sons of Tethra ; Triath and Trescath ; Brion and Bolor ; 
 Bas, son of Omnach ; the eight Condla, and Cond, son of 
 Forgall. Every man of them has the strength of a 
 hundred and the feats of nine. And it would be hard 
 for me," she said, " to tell of all the many powers Forgall 
 has himself He is stronger than any labouring man, 
 more learned than any Druid, more quick of mind than 
 any poet. You will have more than your games to do 
 when you fight against Forgall, for many have told of 
 his power and of the strength of his doings." 
 
 " Why do you not count me as a strong man as good 
 as those others ? " said Cuchulain. " Why would I not 
 indeed, if your doings had been spoken of like theirs ? " 
 she said. " I swear by the oath of my people," said 
 Cuchulain, " I will make my doings be spoken of 
 among the great doings of heroes in their strength." 
 " What is your strength, then ? " said Emer. " That is 
 easily told ; when my strength in fighting is weakest I 
 defend twenty ; a third part of my strength is enough 
 for thirty ; in my full strength I fight alone against forty ; 
 and a hundred are safe under my protection. For dread 
 of me, fighting men avoid fords and battles ; armies and 
 armed men go backward from the fear of my face." 
 
 " That is a good account for a young boy," said Emer, 
 " but you have not reached yet to the strength of chariot 
 chiefs." " But, indeed," said Cuchulain, " it is well I have 
 been reared by Conchubar, my dear foster-father. It is 
 not as a countryman strives to bring up his children. 
 
HIS TEACHERS 25 
 
 between the flags and the kneading trough, between the 
 fire and the wall, on the floor of the one room, that 
 Conchubar has brought me up ; but it is among chariot 
 chiefs and heroes, among jesters and Druids, among poets 
 and learned men, among landowners and farmers of 
 Ulster I have been reared, so that I have all their 
 manners and their gifts." 
 
 '' Who are these men, then, that have brought you up 
 to do the things you are boasting of?" said Emer. 
 
 " That is easily told," he said. " Fair-speaking Sencha 
 taught me wisdom and right judgment ; Blai, lord of 
 lands, my kinsman, took me to his house, so that I 
 have entertained the men of Conchubar's province ; 
 Fergus brought me up to fights and to battles, so 
 that I am able to use my strength. I stood by the 
 knee of Amergin the poet, he was my tutor, so that 
 I can stand up to any man, I can make praises for 
 the doings of a king. Finchoem helped to rear me, so 
 that Conall Cearnach is my foster-brother. Cathbad of 
 the Gentle Face taught me, for the sake of Dechtire, so 
 that I understand the arts of the Druids, and I have 
 learned all the goodness of knowledge. All the men 
 of Ulster have had a hand in bringing me up, chariot- 
 drivers and chiefs of chariots, kings and chief poets, so 
 that I am the darling of the whole army, so that I 
 fight for the honour of all alike. And as to yourself, 
 Emer," he said, "what way have you been reared in 
 the Garden of Lugh?" 
 
 " It is easy to tell you that," said Emer. " I was 
 brought up," she said, " in ancient virtues, in lawful 
 behaviour, in the keeping of chastity, in stateliness of 
 form, in the rank of a queen, in all noble ways among 
 the women of Ireland." " These are good virtues 
 indeed," said Cuchulain. " And why, then, would it 
 not be right for us two to become one ? For up to 
 this time," he said, " I have never found a young girl 
 
26 THE COURTING OF EMER 
 
 able to hold talk with me the way you have done." 
 " Have you no wife already ? " said Emer. " I have 
 not, indeed." " I may not marry before my sister 
 is married," she said then, " for she is older than 
 myself." " Truly, it is not with your sister, but with 
 yourself, I have fallen in love," said Cuchulain. 
 
 While they were talking like this, Cuchulain saw 
 the breasts of the maiden over the bosom of her dress, 
 and he said : " Fair is this plain, the plain of the noble 
 yoke." And Emer said, " No one comes to this plain 
 who does not overcome as many as a hundred on each 
 ford, from the ford at Ailbine to Banchuig Arcait." 
 
 " Fair is the plain, the plain of the noble yoke," said 
 Cuchulain. " No one comes to this plain," said she, 
 " who does not go out in safety from Samhain to Oilmell, 
 and from Oilmell to Beltaine, and again from Beltaine 
 to Bron Trogain." 
 
 " Everything you have commanded, so it will be done 
 by me," said Cuchulain. 
 
 " And the offer you have made me, it is accepted, it 
 is taken, it is granted," said Emer. 
 
 With that Cuchulain left the place, and they talked 
 no more with one another on that day. 
 
 When he was driving across the plain of Bregia, Laeg, 
 his chariot-driver, asked him, " What, now, was the 
 meaning of the words you and the maiden Emer were 
 speaking together ? " " Do you not know," said Cuchu- 
 lain, " that I came to court Emer ? And it is for this 
 reason we put a cloak on our words, that the young girls 
 with her might not understand what I had come for. 
 For if Forgall knew it, he would not consent to it, but to 
 you, Laeg," he said, " I will tell the meaning of our talk. 
 
 " ' Where did you come from,' said she. ' From Intide 
 Emna,' said I, and I meant by that, from Emain Macha. 
 For it took its name from Macha, daughter of Aed the 
 Red, one of the three kings of Ireland. When he died 
 
THE MEANING OF THE RIDDLES 27 
 
 Macha asked for the kingship, but the sons of Dithorba 
 said they would not give kingship to a woman. So 
 she fought against them and routed them, and they 
 went as exiles to the wild places of Connaught. And 
 after a while she went in search of them, and she took 
 them by treachery, and brought them all in one chain 
 to Ulster. The men of Ulster wanted to kill them, but 
 she said, ' No, for that would be a disgrace on my good 
 government. But let them be my servants,' she said, 
 ' and let them dig a rath for me, that shall be the chief 
 seat of Ulster for ever.' Then she marked out the rath 
 for them with the gold pin on her neck, and its name 
 came from that ; a brooch in the neck of Macha. 
 
 " The man, in whose house we slept, is Ronca, the 
 fisherman of Conchubar. 'A man that tends cattle,' 
 I said. For he catches fish on his line under the sea, and 
 the fish are the cattle of the sea, and the sea is the plain 
 of Tethra, a king of the kings of the Fomor. 
 
 " ' Our food was the ruin of a chariot,' I said. For a 
 foal was cooked for us on the hearth, and it is the 
 horse that holds up the chariot. 
 
 " ' Between the two mountains of the wood,' I said. 
 These are the two mountains between which we came, 
 Slieve Fuad to the west, and Slieve Cuilinn to the 
 east of us, and we were in Oircil between them, the 
 wood that is between the two. 
 
 " * The road,' I said, ' from the Cover of the Sea.' That 
 is from the plain of Muirthemne. And it is from this it 
 got its name ; there was at one time a magic sea on it, 
 with a sea turtle in it that was used to suck men down, 
 until the Dagda came with his club of anger and sang 
 these words, so that it ebbed away on the moment : — 
 
 ' Silence on your hollow head ; 
 Silence on your dark body ; 
 Silence on your dark brow.' 
 
 " ' Over the Great Secret of the men of Dea,' I said. That 
 
28 THE COURTING OF EMER 
 
 is a wonderful secret and a wonderful whisper, because 
 it was there that the gathering to the battle of Magh 
 Tuireadh was first whispered of bytheTuatha De Danaan. 
 
 " ' Over the horses of Emain/ I said. When Ema 
 Nemed, son of Nama, reigned over the Gael, he had his 
 two horses reared for him in Sidhe Ercman of the Tuatha 
 De Danaan, and when those horses were let loose from 
 the Sidhe, a bright stream burst out after them, and the 
 foam spread over the land for a great length of time, 
 and was there to the end of a year, so that the water 
 was called Uanib, that is, foam on the water, and it is 
 Uanib to-day. 
 
 "'The Back of the Great Sow,' I said. That is 
 Drimne Breg, the Ridge of Bregin. For the shape of 
 a sow appeared to the sons of Milid on every hill and on 
 every height in Ireland, when they came over the sea, 
 and wanted to land by force, after a spell had been cast 
 on it by the Tuatha De Danaan. 
 
 " ' The Valley of the Great Dam,' I said, ' between the 
 God and his Druid.' That is, between Angus Og of the 
 Sidhe of the Brugh and his Druid, to the west of the 
 Brugh, and between them was the one woman, the wife 
 of the Smith. That is the way I went, between the hill 
 of the Sidhe of the Brugh where Angus is, and the Sidhe 
 of Bresal, the Druid. 
 
 " ' Over the Marrow of the Woman/ I said. That 
 is the Boinne, and it gets its name from Boann, the 
 wife of Nechtan, son of Labraid. She went down 
 to the hidden well at the bottom of the dun with the 
 three cup-bearers of Nechtan, Flex and Lex and Luam. 
 No one came back from that well without blemish un- 
 less the three cup-bearers went with him. But the 
 queen went out of pride and overbearing to the well, 
 and it is what she said, that nothing would spoil her 
 shape or put a blemish on her. She passed left-hand- 
 wise round the well, to mock at its powers. Then three 
 
THE MEANING OF THE RIDDLES 29 
 
 waves broke over her and bruised her two knees and her 
 right hand and one of her eyes, and she ran out of the 
 dun to escape until she came to the sea, and wherever 
 she ran, the water followed after her. Segain was its 
 name on the dun ; the River Segsa from the dun to the 
 Pool of Mochua ; the hand of the wife of Nechtan and 
 the knee of the wife of Nechtan after that ; the Boinne in 
 Meath ; Arcait it is called from the Finda to the Troma ; 
 the Marrow of the Woman from the Troma to the sea. 
 
 " ' The Boar,' I said, ' and his Dam.' That is, between 
 Cleitech and Fessi. For Cleitech is the name for a 
 boar, but it is also the name for a king, the leader of 
 great hosts, and Fessi is the name for the great sow of 
 a farmer's house. 
 
 " ' The King of Ana,' I said, ' and his servant' That is 
 Cerna, through which we passed, and that is its name 
 since Enna Aignech put Cerna, king of Ana, to death 
 on that hill, and he put his steward to death in the east 
 of that place. 
 
 " ' The Washing of the Horses of Dea,' I said. That 
 is Ange, for in it the men of Dea washed their horses 
 when they came from the battle of Magh Tuireadh. 
 And it was called Ange, because the Tuatha De Danaan 
 washed their horses in it. 
 
 "'The Four-cornered Mandchuile,' I said. That is 
 Muincille. It is there Mann, the farmer, was, and there 
 he made spells in his great four-cornered chambers 
 underground, to keep off the plague from the cattle 
 of Ireland in the time of Bresel Brec, king of Leinster. 
 
 " * Great Crime,' I said. That is Ailbine. There was 
 a king here in Ireland, Ruad, son of Rigdond of Munster. 
 He had an appointment of meeting with foreigners, and 
 he set out for the meeting round the south of Alban with 
 three ships, and thirty men were in each ship. But 
 the ships were stopped, and were held from below in 
 the middle of the sea, and throwing jewels and precious 
 
30 THE COURTING OF EMER 
 
 things into the sea did not get them off. Then lots 
 were cast among them who should go into the sea 
 and find out what was holding them. The lot fell on 
 the king himself, Ruad, son of Rigdond, and he leaped 
 into the sea, and it closed over him. He lit upon a 
 large plain, where nine beautiful women met him, and 
 they confessed that it was they themselves had stopped 
 the ships, the way that he might come to them. And 
 he stopped with them nine days, and they gave him 
 nine vessels of gold ; and through the length of that 
 time his men were not able to go on, through the 
 power of the women. When he was going away, a 
 woman of them said she would bear him a son, and 
 that he must come back to them and bring away his 
 son, when he would be coming from the east. 
 
 " Then he joined his men, and they went on their 
 voyage, and they stopped away seven years, and then 
 they came back by a different way, and they did not 
 go near the same spot. They landed in the bay, and 
 the sea-women came up to them there, and the men 
 heard them playing music in their brazen ship. And 
 then the women came to the shore, and they put the 
 boy out of the ship on the land where the men were. 
 And the harbour was stony and rocky, and the boy 
 slipped and fell on one of the rocks, so that he died 
 there. And the women saw it, and they cried all to- 
 gether, ' Olbine, Olbine,' that is ' Great Crime.' And 
 it is from that it is called Ailbine. 
 
 " ' The Remnants of the Great Feast,' I said. That is 
 Tailne. It was there the great feast was given to Lugh, 
 son of Ethlenn, to comfort him after the battle of Magh 
 Tuireadh, for that was his wedding feast of kingship. 
 
 " ' In the Garden of Lugh, to the daughters of Tethra's 
 nephew,' I said ; for Forgall Manach is sister's son of 
 Tethra, king of the Fomor. 
 
 "As to the account of myself I gave her, there are 
 
THE MEANING OF THE RIDDLES 31 
 
 two rivers in the land of Ross ; Conchubar is the name 
 of one of them, and it mixes with the other ; and I am 
 the nephew of Conchubar ; and as to the plague that 
 comes on dogs, it is wild fierceness, and truly I am a 
 strong fighter of that plague, for I am wild and fierce in 
 battles and in fights. And the Wood of Badb, that is 
 the land of Ross, the Wood of the Morrigu, the Battle 
 Crow, the Goddess of Battle. 
 
 " And when she said that no man should come to the 
 plain of her breasts until he had killed three times nine 
 men with one blow, and yet had saved one man from 
 each nine, it is what she meant, that three brothers of 
 her own will be guarding her, Ibur and Seibur and Catt, 
 and a company of nine with each of them. And it is 
 what I must do, I must strike a blow on each nine, from 
 which eight will die, but no stroke will reach any of her 
 brothers among them ; and I must carry her and her 
 foster-sister, with their share of gold and silver, out of 
 the dun of Forgall. 
 
 "'Go out from Samhain to Oimell,' she said. That 
 is, that I shall fight without harm to myself from 
 Samhain, the end of summer, to Oimell, the beginning 
 of spring ; and from the beginning of spring to Beltaine, 
 and from that to Bron Trogain. For Oi, in the 
 language of poetry, is a name for sheep, and Oimell is 
 the time v/hen the sheep come out and are milked, and 
 Suain is a gentle sound, and it is at Samhain that gentle 
 voices sound ; and Beltaine is a favouring fire ; for it is 
 at that time the Druids used to make fires with spells 
 and to drive the cattle between them against the plagues 
 every year. And Bron Trogain, that is the beginning 
 of autumn, for it is then the earth is in labour, that is, the 
 earth under fruit, Bron Trogain, the trouble of the earth." 
 
 Then Cuchulain went on his way, and he slept that 
 night in Emain Macha. 
 
32 THE COURTING OF EMER 
 
 When Forgall came back to his dun, and his lords 
 of land with him, their daughters were telling them of 
 the young man that had come in a splendid chariot, 
 and how himself and Emer had been talking together, 
 and they could not understand their talk with one 
 another. The lords of land told this to Forgall, and it 
 is what he said, " You may be sure it is the mad boy 
 from Emain Macha has been here, and he and the girl 
 have fallen in love with one another. But they will 
 gain nothing by that," he said ; " for it is I will hinder 
 them." 
 
 With that Forgall went out to Emain, with the 
 appearance of a foreigner on him, and he gave out that 
 he was sent by the king of the Gall, to speak with 
 Conchubar, and to bring him a present of golden 
 treasures, and wine of the Gall, and many other things. 
 And he brought some of his men with him, and there 
 was a great welcome before them. 
 
 And on the third day, Cuchulain and Conall and 
 other chariot chiefs of Ulster were praised before him, 
 and he said it was right for them to be praised, and 
 that they did wonderful feats, and Cuchulain above 
 them all. But he said that if Cuchulain would go to 
 Scathach, the woman-warrior that lived in the east of 
 Alban, his skill would be more wonderful still, for he 
 could not have perfect knowledge of the feats of a 
 warrior without that. 
 
 But his reason for saying this was that he thought if 
 Cuchulain set out, he would never come back again, 
 through the dangers he would put around him on the 
 journey, and through the wildness and the fierceness 
 of the people about Scathach. 
 
 So then Forgall v/ent home, and Cuchulain rose up 
 in the morning, and made ready to set out for Alban, and 
 Laegaire Buadach, the Battle Winner, and Conall Cear- 
 nach said they would go with him. But first Cuchulain 
 
CUCHULAIN'S JOURNEY 33 
 
 went across the plain of Bregia to visit Emer, and to talk 
 with her before going in the ship. And she told him 
 how it was Forgall had gone to Emain, and had advised 
 him to go and learn warriors' feats, the way they two 
 might not meet again. Then each of them promised to 
 be true to the other till they would meet again, unless 
 death should come between them, and they said farewell 
 to one another, and Cuchulain turned towards Alban. 
 
 When they came there, they stopped for a while at 
 the forge of Donall, the smith, and then they set out to 
 go to the east of Alban. But before they had gone far, 
 a vision came before their eyes of Emain Macha, and 
 Laegaire and Conall were not able to pass by it, and 
 they turned back. It was Forgall raised that vision, to 
 draw them away from Cuchulain, that he might be in 
 the more danger, being alone. Then Cuchulain went 
 on by himself on a strange road, and he was sad and 
 tired and down-hearted for the loss of his comrades, but 
 he held to his word that he would not go back to Emain 
 without finding Scathach, even if he should die in the 
 attempt. 
 
 But now he was astray and ignorant, and not know- 
 ing which way to take, and he saw a terrible grqat beast 
 like a lion coming towards him, and it watching him, 
 but it did not try to harm him. Whatever way he 
 went, the beast went before him, and then it stopped 
 and turned its side to him. So he made a leap and 
 was on its back, and he did not guide it, but went what- 
 ever way it chose. They travelled like that through 
 four days, till they came to the end of the bounds of 
 men, and to an island where lads were rowing in a 
 small loch ; and the lads began to laugh when they 
 saw a beast of that sort, and a man riding it. And 
 then Cuchulain leaped off, and the beast left him, and 
 he bade it farewell. 
 
 He passed on till he came to a large house in a deep 
 
 C 
 
34 THE COURTING OF EMER 
 
 valley, and a comely young girl in it, and she spoke to 
 
 him, and bade him welcome. " A welcome before you, 
 
 Cuchulain," she said. He asked her how did she know 
 
 him, and she said, " I was a foster-child of Wulfkin, the 
 
 Saxon, the time you came there to learn sweet speech 
 
 from him." And she gave him meat and drink, and he 
 
 went away from her. Then he met with a young man, 
 
 and he gave him the same welcome, and he said his 
 
 name was Eochu, and they talked together, and 
 
 Cuchulain asked him what was the way to Scathach's 
 
 dun. The young man told him the way, across the 
 
 Plain of Ill-Luck, that lay before him, and he said that 
 
 on the near side of the plain the feet of men would stick 
 
 fast, and on the far side every blade of grass would rise 
 
 and hold them fast on its points. And he gave him a 
 
 wheel, and bade him to follow its track across the one 
 
 half of the plain. And he gave him an apple along 
 
 with that, and bade him to throw it, and to follow the 
 
 way it went, till he would reach the end of the plain. 
 
 And he told him many other things that would happen 
 
 him, and how he would win a great name at the last. 
 
 And then each of them wished a blessing to the other, 
 
 and Cuchulain did as he bade him, and so he got across 
 
 the plain and went on his journey. And then, as the 
 
 young man had told him, he came to a valley, and it 
 
 full of monsters, sent there by Forgall to destroy him, 
 
 and only one narrow path through it, but he went 
 
 through it safely. And after that his road led through 
 
 a terrible, wild mountain. Then he came to the place 
 
 where Scathach's scholars were, and among them he 
 
 saw Ferdiad, son of Daman, and Naoise, Ainnle, and 
 
 Ardan, the three sons of Usnach, and when they knew 
 
 that he was from Ireland they welcomed him with 
 
 kisses, and asked for news of their own country. He 
 
 asked them where was Scathach. " In that island 
 
 beyond," they said, " What way must I take to reach 
 
CROSSING THE BRIDGE 35 
 
 her ? " he asked. " By the bridge of the cliff," they said, 
 " and no man can cross it till he has proved himself a 
 champion, and many a king's son has got his death 
 there." 
 
 And this is the way the bridge was : the two ends of 
 it were low, and the middle was high, and whenever 
 any one would leap on it, the first time it would narrow 
 till it was as narrow as the hair of a man's head, and the 
 second time it would shorten till it was as short as an 
 inch, and the third time it would get slippery till it was 
 as slippery as an eel of the river, and the fourth time 
 it would rise up on high against you till it was as tall as 
 the mast of a ship. 
 
 All the warriors and people on the lawn came down 
 to see Cuchulain making his attempt to cross the bridge, 
 and he tried three times to do it, and he could not, and 
 the others were laughing at him, that he should think 
 he could cross it, and he so young. Then his anger 
 came on him, and the hero light shone round his head, 
 and it was not the appearance of a man that was on 
 him, but the appearance of a god ; and he leaped upon 
 the end of the bridge and made the hero's salmon leap, 
 so that he landed on the middle of it, and he reached the 
 other end of the bridge before it could raise itself fully 
 up, and threw himself from it, and was on the ground of 
 the island where Scathach's sunny house was, and it 
 having seven great doors, and seven great windows 
 between every two doors, and three times fifty couches 
 between every two windows, and three times fifty young 
 girls, with scarlet cloaks and beautiful blue clothing on 
 them, waiting on Scathach. 
 
 And Scathach's daughter, Uacthach, was sitting by a 
 window, and when she saw the young man, and he a 
 stranger, and comeliest of the men of Ireland, making 
 his attempt to cross the bridge, she loved him, and her 
 face and her colour began to change continually, so 
 
36 THE COURTING OF EMER 
 
 that now she would be as white as a Httle flower, and 
 then again she would grow crimson red. And in her 
 needlework that she was doing, she would put the gold 
 thread where the silver thread should be, and the silver 
 thread in the place where the gold thread should be. 
 And when Scathach saw that, she said : " I think this 
 young man has pleased you." And Uacthach said : 
 " There would be great grief on me indeed, were he not 
 to return alive to his own people, in whatever part of the 
 world they may be, for I know there is surely some one 
 to whom it would be great anguish to know the way he 
 is now." 
 
 Then, when Cuchulain had crossed the bridge, he 
 went up to the house, and struck the door with the 
 shaft of his spear, so that it went through it. And 
 when Scathach was told that, she said, " Truly this 
 must be some one who has finished his training in some 
 other place." Then Uacthach opened the door for 
 him, and he asked for Scathach, and Uacthach told 
 him where she was, and what he had best do when he 
 found her. So he went out to the place where she was 
 teaching her two sons. Guar and Cett, under the great 
 yew-tree ; and he took his sword and put its point 
 between her breasts, and he threatened her with a 
 dreadful death if she would not take him as her pupil, 
 and if she would not teach him all her own skill in 
 arms. So she promised him she would do that. 
 
 Now it was while Cuchulain was with Scathach that 
 a great king in Munster, Lugaid, son of Ros, went 
 northward with twelve chariot chiefs to look for a wife 
 among the daughters of the men of Mac Rossa, but 
 they had all been promised before. 
 
 And when Forgall Manach heard this, he went to 
 Emain, and he told Lugaid that the best of the maidens 
 of Ireland, both as to form and behaviour and handi- 
 work^ was in his house unwed. Lugaid said he was 
 
THE WARWITH AOIFE 37 
 
 well pleased to hear that, and Forgall promised him his 
 daughter Emer in marriage. And to the twelve chariot 
 chiefs that were with him, he promised twelve daughters 
 of twelve lords of land in Bregia, and Lugaid went back 
 with him to his dun for the wedding. 
 
 But whem Emer was brought to Lugaid to sit by his 
 side, she laid one of her hands on each side of his face, 
 and she said on the truth of her good name and of her 
 life, that it was Cuchulain she loved, although her father 
 was against him, and that no one that was an honour- 
 able man should force her to be his wife. 
 
 Then Lugaid did not dare take her, for he was in 
 dread of Cuchulain, and so he returned home again. 
 
 As to Cuchulain, after he had been a good time with 
 Scathach, a war began between herself and Aoife, 
 queen of the tribes that were round about. The 
 armies were going out to fight, but Cuchulain was not 
 with them, for Scathach had given him a sleeping- 
 drink that would keep him safe and quiet till the fight 
 would be over, for she was afraid some harm would 
 come to him if he met Aoife, for she was the greatest 
 woman-warrior in the world, and she understood en- 
 chantments and witchcraft. But after one hour, Cuchu- 
 lain started up out of his sleep, for the sleeping-drink 
 that would have held any other man for a day and a 
 night, held him for only that length of time. And he 
 followed after the army, and he met with the two sons 
 of Scathach, and they three went against the three sons 
 of Ilsuanach, three of the best warriors of Aoife, and it 
 was by Cuchulain they were killed, one after the other. 
 
 On the morning of the morrow the fight was begun 
 again, and the two sons of Scathach were going up the 
 path of feats to fight against three others of the best 
 champions of Aoife, Cire, Bire, and Blaicne, sons of 
 Ess Enchenn. When Scathach saw them going up 
 she gave a sigh, for she was afraid for her two sons, 
 
38 THE COURTING OF EM ER 
 
 but just then Cuchulain came up with them, and he 
 leaped before them on to the path of feats, and met 
 the three champions, and all three fell by him. 
 
 When Aoife saw that her best champions were after 
 being killed, she challenged Scathach to fight against 
 herself, but Cuchulain went out in her place. And 
 before he went, he asked Scathach, " What things does 
 Aoife think most of in all the world ? " " Her two horses 
 and her chariot and her chariot-driver," said Scathach. 
 
 So then Cuchulain and Aoife attacked one another 
 and began a fierce fight, and she broke Cuchulain's 
 spear in pieces, and his sword she broke off at the 
 hilt. Then Cuchulain called out, '* Look, the chariot 
 and the horses and the driver of Aoife are fallen 
 down into the valley and are lost ! " At that Aoife 
 looked about her, and Cuchulain took a sudden [hold 
 of her, and lifted her on his shoulders, and brought 
 her down to where the army was, and laid her on 
 the ground, and held his sword to her breast, and she 
 begged for her life, and he gave it to her. And after 
 that she made peace with Scathach, and bound her- 
 self by sureties not to go against her again. And she 
 gave her love to Cuchulain ; and out of that love great 
 sorrow came afterwards. 
 
 And as Cuchulain was going home by the narrow 
 path, he met an old hag, and she blind of the left eye. 
 She asked him to leave room for her to pass by, but 
 he said there was no room on that path, unless he 
 would throw himself down the great sea-cliff that was 
 on the one side of it. But she asked him again to 
 leave the road to her, and he would not refuse, and 
 he dropped down the cliff, with only his one hand 
 keeping a hold of the path. Then she came up, and as 
 she passed him, she gave a hit of her foot at his hand, 
 the way he would leave his hold and drop into the 
 sea. But at that, he gave a leap up again on the 
 
DEVORGILL 39 
 
 path, and struck off the hag's head. For she was 
 Ess Enchenn, the mother of the last three warriors that 
 had fallen by him, and it was to destroy him she had 
 come out to meet him, for she knew that under his 
 rules of championship, he would make way for her 
 when she asked it. 
 
 After that, he stayed for another while with Scathach, 
 until he had learned all the arts of war and all the feats 
 of a champion ; and then a message came to him to 
 come back to his own country, and he bade her fare- 
 well. And Scathach told him what would happen him 
 in the time to come, for she had the Druid gift ; and she 
 told him there were great dangers before him, and that 
 he would have to fight against great armies, and he 
 alone; and that he would scatter his enemies, so that 
 his name would come again to Alban ; but that his life 
 would not be long, for he would die in his full strength. 
 
 Then Cuchulain went on board his ship to set out for 
 Ireland, and in the same ship with him were Lugaid 
 and Luan, the two sons of Loch, and Ferbaeth and 
 Larin and Ferdiad, and Durst, son of Derb. 
 
 On the night of Samhain they came to the island of 
 Rechrainn, and Cuchulain left his ship and came to 
 the strand. And there he heard a sound of crying, 
 and he saw a beautiful young girl, and she sitting 
 there alone. He asked her who was she, and what 
 ailed her, and she said she was Devorgill, daughter of 
 the king of Rechrainn, and that every year he was 
 forced to pay a heavy tax to the Fomor, and this 
 year, when he could not pay it, they made him leave 
 her there near the sea, till they would come and bring 
 her away in place of it. 
 
 " Where do these men come from ? " said Cuchulain. 
 " From that far country over there," she said, " and let 
 you not stop here or they will see you when they come." 
 But Cuchulain would not leave her, and presently three 
 
40 THE COURTING OF EMER 
 
 fierce men of the Fomor landed in the bay, and made 
 straight for the spot where the girl was. But before they 
 had time to lay a hand on her, Cuchulain leaped on them 
 and he killed the three of them, one after the other. 
 The last man wounded him in the arm, and the girl tore 
 a strip from her dress, and gave it to him to bind round 
 the wound. And then she ran to her father's house and 
 told him all that had happened. After that Cuchulain 
 came to the king's house, like any other guest, and his 
 companions with him, and Conall Cearnach and Laegaire 
 Buadach were there before them, where they had been 
 sent from Emain Macha to collect tribute. For at that 
 time a tribute was paid to Ulster from the islands of 
 the Gall. 
 
 And they were all talking about the escape Devorgill 
 had, and some were boasting that it was they themselves 
 had saved her, for she could not be sure who it was had 
 come to her, because of the dusk of the evening. Then 
 there was water brought for them all to wash before they 
 would go to the feast ; and when it came to Cuchulain's 
 turn to bare his arms, she knew by the strip of her dress 
 that was bound about it, that it was he had saved her. 
 " I will give the girl to you as your wife," said the king, 
 " and I myself will pay her wedding portion." *' Not so," 
 said Cuchulain, " for I must make no delay in going back 
 to Ireland." 
 
 So then he made his way back to Emain Macha, and 
 he told his whole story and all that had happened him. 
 And as soon as he had rested from the journey, he set 
 out to look for Emer at her father's house. But Forgall 
 and his sons had heard he was come home again, and 
 they had made the place so strong, and they kept so 
 good a watch round it, that for the whole length of a 
 year he could not get so much as a sight of her. 
 
 It was one day at that time he went down to the 
 shore of Lough Cuan with Laeg, his chariot-driver, and 
 
THEFIGHTFOREMER 41 
 
 with Lugaid. And when they were there, they saw two 
 birds coming over the sea. Cuchulain put a stone in his 
 sling, and made a cast at the birds, and hit one of them. 
 And when they came to where the birds were, they 
 found in their place two women, and one of them the 
 most beautiful in the world, and they were Devorgill, 
 daughter of the king of Rechrainn, that had come from 
 her own country to find Cuchulain, and her serving-maid 
 along with her ; and it was Devorgill that Cuchulain had 
 hit with the stone. " It is a bad thing you have done, 
 Cuchulain,'\she said, "for it was to find you I came, 
 and now you have wounded me." Then Cuchulain put 
 his mouth to the wound and sucked out the stone and 
 the blood along with it. And he said, " You cannot be 
 my wife, for I have drunk your blood. But I will give 
 you to my comrade," he said, " to Lugaid of the Red 
 Stripes." And so it was done, and Lugaid gave her 
 his love all through her life, and when she died he died 
 of the grief that was on him after her. 
 
 After that, Cuchulain got his scythe chariot made 
 ready, and he set out again for Forgall's dun. And 
 when he got there, he leaped with his hero leap over the 
 three walls, so that he was inside the court, and there he 
 made three attacks, so that eight men fell from each 
 attack, but one escaped in every troop of nine ; that is the 
 three brothers of Emer, Seiburand Ibur and Catt. And 
 Forgall made a leap from the wall of the court to escape 
 Cuchulain, and he fell in the leap and got his death from 
 the fall. 
 
 And then Cuchulain went out again, and brought 
 Emer with him and her foster-sister, and their two 
 loads of gold and silver. 
 
 And then they heard cries all around them, and 
 Scenmend, Forgall's sister, came following them with 
 her men, and came up with them at the ford ; and 
 Cuchulain killed her in the fight, and it is from that 
 
42 THE COURTING OF EMER 
 
 it is called the Ford of Scenmend. And her men came 
 up with them again at the next ford, and he killed a 
 hundred of them there. " It is a great thing you have 
 done," said Emer. " You have killed a hundred 
 strong armed men ; and Glondath, the Ford of Deeds, 
 is the name that shall be on it for ever." Then they 
 came to Racban, the white field, and he gave three great 
 angry blows to his enemies there, so that streams of 
 blood went over it on every side. " This white hill is a 
 hill of red sods to-day, through your work, Cuchulain," 
 said Emer. And from that time it has been called the 
 Ford of the Sods. 
 
 Then they were overtaken again at another ford on 
 the Boinne, and Emer quitted the chariot, and 
 Cuchulain followed his enemies along the banks, so that 
 the sods were flying from the feet of ^the horses across 
 the ford northward ; and then he turned and followed 
 them northward, so that the sods flew over the ford 
 southward. And from that it is called Ath na Imfuait, 
 the Ford of the Two Clods. And at each of these fords 
 Cuchulain killed a hundred, and so he kept his word to 
 Emer, and he came safely out of it all, and they came 
 to Emain Macha, toward the fall of night. 
 
 And then Cuchulain was given the headship of the 
 young men of Ulster, of the warriors, the poets, the 
 trumpeters, the musicians, the three pipers, the three 
 jesters to say sharp words ; the three distributers of 
 fame. It is of them the poet spoke, and set out their 
 names, and it is what he said : — '' The young men of 
 Ireland, when they were in the Red Branch, it is they 
 were the fairest of all hosts." And of Cuchulain he said, 
 " He is as hard as steel and as bright, Cuchulain, the 
 victorious son of Dcchtire." 
 
 And then Cuchulain took Emer for his wife, after that 
 long courting, and all the hardships he had gone through. 
 And he brought her into the House of the Red Branch, 
 
EMAINMACHA 43 
 
 and Conchubar and all the chief men of Ulster gave her 
 a great welcome. 
 
 It was at Emain Macha, that was sometimes called 
 Macha of the Spears, Conchubar, the High King, had the 
 Eachrais Uladh, the Assembly House of Ulster, and it 
 was there he had his chief palace. 
 
 A fine palace it was, having three houses in it, 
 the Royal House, and the Speckled House, and the 
 House of the Red Branch. 
 
 In the Royal House there were three times fifty 
 rooms, and the walls were made of red yew, with copper 
 rivets. And Conchubar's own room was on the ground, 
 and the walls of it faced with bronze, and silver up 
 above, with gold birds on it, and their heads set with 
 shining carbuncles ; and there were nine partitions from 
 the fire to the wall, and thirty feet the height of each 
 partition. And there was a silver rod before Conchubar 
 with three golden apples on it, and when he shook the 
 rod or struck it, all in the house would be silent. 
 
 It was in the House of the Red Branch were kept the 
 heads and the weapons of beaten enemies, and in the 
 Speckled House were kept the swords and the shields 
 and the spears of the heroes of Ulster. And it was 
 called the Speckled House because of the brightness and 
 the colours of the hilts of the swords, and the bright 
 spears, green or grey, with rings and bands of silver 
 and gold about them, and the gold and silver that were 
 on the rims and the bosses of the shields, and the 
 brightness of the drinking-cups and the horns. 
 
 It was the custom with the men of the Red Branch, 
 if one of them heard a word of insult, to get satisfaction 
 for it on the moment. He would get up in the feasting 
 hall itself, and make his attack ; and it was to prevent 
 that, the arms were kept together in one place. Con- 
 chubar's shield, the Ochain, that is the Moaning One, 
 was hanging there ; whenever Conchubar would be in 
 
44 THE COURTING OF EMER 
 
 danger, it would moan, and all the shields of Ulster 
 would moan in answer to it. And Conall Cearnach's 
 Lam-tapaid, the Quick Hand, was in it. And Fergus's 
 Leochain, and Dubthach's Uathach, and Laegaire's 
 Nithach ; and Sencha's Sciath-arglan and Celthair's 
 Comla Catha, the Gate of Battle, and a great many- 
 others along with these. 
 
 And Cuchulain's shield was there, and the way he 
 got it was this. 
 
 There was a law made by the men of the Red Branch 
 that the carved device on every shield should be different 
 from every other. And the name of the man that used 
 to make the shields was Mac Enge. Cuchulain went 
 to him after coming back from Scathach, and bade him 
 make him a shield, and put some new device on it. " I 
 cannot do that," iaid Mac Enge, " for all I can do I have 
 done already on the shields of the men of Ulster." 
 There was anger on Cuchulain then, and he threatened 
 Mac Enge with death, was he, or was he not, under 
 Conchubar's protection. 
 
 Mac Enge was greatly put out at what had happened, 
 and he was thinking what was best for him to do, when 
 he saw a man coming towards him. "There is some 
 trouble on you," he said. " There is, indeed," said the 
 shield-maker, " for I am in danger of death unless I 
 make a shield for Cuchulain." " Clear out your work- 
 shop," said the strange man, " and spread ashes a foot 
 deep on the floor." 
 
 And when this was done, Mac Enge saw the man 
 coming over the outer wall to him again, and a fork 
 in his hand, and it having two prongs. And he put one 
 of the prongs in the ashes, and with the other he made 
 the pattern that was to be cut on Cuchulain's shield. 
 And so Cuchulain got it, and the name it had was 
 Dubhan, the Black One. 
 
 And as to Cuchulain's sword that was hanging along 
 
THEGAEBULG 45 
 
 with the shield, its name was the Cruaidin Cailid- 
 cheann ; that is, the Hard, Hard Headed. And it had 
 a hilt of gold with ornaments of silver, and if the point 
 of the sword would be bent back to its hilt, it would 
 come as straight as a rod back again. It would cut 
 a hair on the water, or it would cut a hair off the head 
 without touching the skin, or it would cut a man in 
 two, and the one half of him would not miss the other 
 for some time after. 
 
 And as to Cuchulain's spear, the Gae Bulg, whether 
 it was or was not kept in the Speckled House, this is 
 the way he came by it. There were two monsters 
 fighting in the sea one time, the Curruid and the 
 Coinchenn their names were, and at the last the 
 Coinchenn made for the strand to escape, but the 
 other followed him and killed him there. 
 
 Then Bolg, son of Buan, a champion of the eastern 
 part of the world, found the bones of the Coinchenn 
 on the strand, and he made a spear with them. And 
 he gave it to a great fighting man, the son of Jubar, 
 and it went from one to another till it came to the 
 woman - champion, Aoife. And Aoife gave it to 
 Cuchulain, and he brought it to Ireland. And it 
 was with it he killed his own son, and his friend 
 Ferdiad afterwards. 
 
 There were three hundred and sixty-five men belong- 
 ing to Conchubar's household ; and one among them 
 served the supper every night, and when the year came 
 round, he would take his turn again. And it is not a 
 small thing that supper was : beef and pork and beer 
 for every man. But the three days before and the three 
 days after Samhain, the chief men of Ulster used to 
 come together, and to eat together in Conchubar's 
 palace, and Conchubar himself took charge of the 
 supper at that feast ; for every man that did not 
 come on Samhain night, his wits would go from 
 
46 THE COURTING OF EMER 
 
 him, and it was as well to make his grave and to put 
 his memorial stone over him the next day. 
 
 And there were a great many poets and learned men 
 used to come to Conchubar's court, for they were made 
 welcome there when they were driven out of other 
 places. Cathbad, the Druid, was among them, and his 
 son, bright-faced Geanann, and Sencha, and Ferceirtne, 
 that was very learned, and Morann, that could not give 
 a wrong judgment, for if he did, the collar round his 
 neck would tighten ; and many others. 
 
 Adhna was the chief poet there at one time, and 
 after he died Athairne was made chief poet of Ulster 
 in his place. But Neidhe, Adhna's son, came back from 
 Alban, expecting to be made chief poet. And it was 
 the waves of the sea, breaking on the strand where 
 he was, that told him of his father's death. And when 
 he got to Emain, he went into the palace and sat down 
 in the chief poet's chair, that he found empty, and put 
 the chief poet's cloak about him, that was lying there, 
 and that was ornamented with beautiful birds' feathers. 
 And then Athairne came in and found him there, and 
 they began an argument with one another in the 
 language of poetry, and Conchubar and all the chief 
 men of Ulster came in to listen to them, and some 
 of the other poets joined in the argument. 
 
 And Neidhe proved himself to be the best, but if he 
 did, as soon as it was given in his favour, he came 
 down from the chair, and took off the cloak and put 
 it about Athairne, and said that, his father being dead, 
 he would take him for his master. 
 
 So Athairne was chief poet, but no one had any 
 great liking for him, for he was too fond of riches, 
 and was no way hospitable or open-handed. It was 
 he went to Midhir, and brought away secretly his 
 three cranes of churlishness and denial, the way none 
 of the men of Ireland would get a good reception if 
 
THEREDBRANCH 47 
 
 they would come to ask anything at his house. " Do 
 not come, do not come," the first crane would say. 
 " Get away, get away," the second would say. " Go 
 past the house, past the house," the third would say 
 to any one that came near it. 
 
 It was after that argument between Athairne and 
 Neidhe, king Conchubar made a change in the laws. 
 For it had been a law that no one that was not a poet 
 could be a judge. But the language of the poets was 
 hard to understand, and the king was vexed when he 
 could understand but a small part of their argument. 
 So he said that from that time out, any fitting man might 
 be made judge, was he or was he not a poet. And all 
 the people agreed to that, and the new law turned out 
 very well in the end. 
 
 And the twelve chief heroes of Conchubar's Red 
 Branch were these : Fergus, son of Rogh ; Conall 
 Cearnach, the Victorious ; Laegaire Buadach, the Battle- 
 Winner ; Cuchulain, son of Sualtim ; Eoghan, son of 
 Durthact, chief of Fernmaige ; Celthair, son of 
 Uthecar; Dubthach Doel Uladh, the Beetle of 
 Ulster ; Muinremar, son of Geirgind ; Cethern, son 
 of Findtain ; and Naoise, Ainnle, and Ardan, the three 
 sons of Usnach. 
 
IV 
 
 BRICRIU'S FEAST, AND THE WAR OF WORDS 
 OF THE WOMEN OF ULSTER 
 
 DRICRIU of the Bitter Tongue made a great feast one 
 time for Conchubar, son of Ness, and for all the 
 chief men of Ulster. He was the length of a year 
 getting the feast ready, and he built a great house to 
 hold it in at Dun-Rudraige. He built it in the likeness 
 of the House of the Red Branch in Emain, but it was 
 entirely beyond all the buildings of that time in shape 
 and in substance, in plan and in ornament, in pillars and 
 in facings, in doors and in carvings, so that it was spoken 
 of in all parts. It was on the plan of the drinking-hall 
 at Emain it was made inside, and it having nine divisions 
 from hearth to wall, and every division faced with bronze 
 that was overlaid with gold, thirty feet high. In the 
 front part of the hall there was a royal seat made for 
 Conchubar, high above all the other seats of the house. 
 It was set with carbuncles and other precious stones of 
 all colours, that shone like gold and silver, so that they 
 made the night the same as the day ; and round about 
 it were the twelve seats of the twelve heroes of Ulster. 
 
 Good as the material was, the work done on it was as 
 good. It took six horses to bring home every beam, 
 and the strength of six men to fix every pole, and 
 thirty of the best skilled men in Ireland were ordering 
 it and directing it, 
 
 48 
 
BRICRIU'S INVITATION 49 
 
 Then Bricriu made a sunny parlour for himself, on a 
 level with Conchubar's seat and the seats of the heroes 
 of valour, and it had every sort of ornament, and windows 
 of glass were put on every side of it, the way he could 
 see the hall from his seat, for he knew the men of Ulster 
 would not let him stop inside. 
 
 When he had finished building the hall and the sunny 
 parlour, and had furnished them with quilts and coverings, 
 beds and pillows, and with a full supply of meat and 
 drink, so that nothing was wanting, he set out for Emain 
 Macha to see Conchubar and the chief men of Ulster. 
 
 It happened that day they were all gathered together 
 at Emain Macha, and they made him welcome, and they 
 put him to sit beside Conchubar, and he said to Conchu- 
 bar and to them all, " Come with me to a feast I have 
 made ready." " I am willing to go," said Conchubar, 
 " if the men of Ulster are willing." 
 
 But Fergus, son of Rogh, and the others, said : " We 
 will not go, for if we do, our dead will be more than 
 our living, after Bricriu has set us to quarrel with one 
 another." " It will be worse for you if you do not 
 come," said Bricriu. "What will you do if they do 
 not go with you ? " said Conchubar. " I will stir up 
 strife," said Bricriu, " between the kings and the leaders, 
 and the heroes of valour, and the swordsmen, till every 
 one makes an end of the other, if they will not come 
 with me to use my feast." " We will not go for the sake 
 of pleasing you," said Conchubar. " I will stir up anger 
 between father and son, so that they will be the death 
 of one another," said Bricriu ; " if I fail in doing that, I 
 will make a quarrel between mother and daughter ; if 
 that fails, I will put the two breasts of every woman of 
 Ulster striking one against the other, and destroying 
 one another." " It is better for us to go," said Fergus. 
 " Let us consult with the chief men of Ulster," said 
 Sencha, son of Ailell. "Some harm will come of it," 
 
 D 
 
50 BRICRIU'S FEAST 
 
 said Conchubar, " if we do not consult together against 
 this man." 
 
 On that, all the chief men met together in council, and 
 it is what Sencha advised : " It is best for you to get 
 securities from Bricriu, as you have to go along with 
 him ; and put eight swordsmen around him, to make 
 him leave the house as soon as he has laid out the feast 
 for you." So Ferbenn Ferbeson, son of Conchubar, 
 brought the answer to Bricriu. " I am satisfied to do 
 that," said Bricriu. With that the men of Ulster set 
 out from Emain, host, troop, and company under king, 
 chief, and leader, and it was a good march they all made 
 together to Dun-Rudraige. 
 
 Then Bricriu set himself to think how with the securi- 
 ties that were given for him, he could best manage to set 
 the men of Ulster one against the other. After he had 
 been thinking a while, he went over to Laegaire Buadach, 
 son of Connad, son of Iliath. " All good be with you, 
 Laegaire, Winner of Battles, you mighty mallet of 
 Bregia, you hot hammer of Meath, you flame-red 
 thunderbolt, what hinders you from getting the 
 championship of Ireland for ever?" "If I want it 
 I can get it," said Laegaire. " You will be head of 
 all the champions of Ireland," said Bricriu, "if you 
 do as I advise." " I will do that, indeed," said 
 Laegaire. 
 
 " Well," said Bricriu, " if you can get the Champion's 
 Portion at the feast in my house, the championship of 
 Ireland will be yours for ever. And the Champion's 
 Portion of my house is worth fighting for," he said, '' for 
 it is not the portion of a fool's house. There goes with it 
 a vat of good wine, with room enough in it to hold three 
 of the brave men of Ulster ; with that a seven-year-old 
 boar, that has been fed since it was born on no other 
 thing but fresh milk, and fine meal in spring-time, curds 
 and sweet milk in summer, the kernel of nuts and wheat 
 
BRICRIU'S TREACHERY 51 
 
 in harvest, beef and broth in the winter ; with that a 
 seven-year-old bullock that never had in its mouth, since 
 it was a sucking calf, either heather or twig tops, but only 
 sweet milk and herbs, meadow hay and corn ; along 
 with that, five-score wheaten cakes made with honey. 
 That is the Champion's Portion of my house. And since 
 you are yourself the best hero among the men of Ulster," 
 he said, " it is but right to give it to you ; and that is my 
 wish, you to get it. And at the end of the day, when 
 the feast is spread out, let your chariot-driver rise up, 
 and it is to him the Champion's Portion will be given." 
 " There will be dead men if that is not done," said Laegaire. 
 Then Bricriu laughed, for he liked to hear that. 
 
 When he had done stirring up Laegaire Buadach, he 
 went on till he met with Conall Cearnach. " May good 
 be with you, Conall," he said. " It is you are the hero 
 of fights and of battles ; it is many victories you have 
 won up to this over the heroes of Ulster. By the time 
 the men of Ulster cross the boundary of a strange 
 country, it is three days and three nights in advance of 
 them you are, over many a ford and river ; it is you who 
 protect their rear coming back again, so that no enemy 
 can get past you or through you, or over you. What 
 would hinder you from being given the Champion's 
 Portion of Emain to hold for ever ? " Great as was his 
 treachery with Laegaire, he showed twice as much in 
 what he said to Conall Cearnach. 
 
 When he had satisfied himself that Conall was stirred 
 up to a quarrel, he went on to Cuchulain. " May all 
 good be with you, Cuchulain, conqueror of Bregia, bright 
 banner of the Life, darling of Emain, beloved by wives 
 and by maidens, Cuchulain is no nickname for you 
 to-day, for you are the champion of the men of Ulster ; 
 it is you keep off their great quarrels and disputes ; it is 
 you get justice for every man of them ; it is you have 
 what all the men of Ulster are wanting in ; all the men 
 
52 BRICRIU'S FEAST 
 
 of Ulster acknowledge that your bravery, your valour, 
 and your deeds are beyond their own. Why, then, 
 would you leave the Champion's Portion for some other 
 one of the men of Ulster, when not one of them would 
 be able to keep it from you ? " 
 
 " By the god of my people," said Cuchulain, " whoever 
 comes to try and keep it from me will lose his head." 
 With that Bricriu left them and followed after the army, 
 as if he had done nothing to stir up a quarrel at all. 
 
 After that they came to the feasting-houses and went 
 in, and every one took his place, king, prince, landowner, 
 swordsman, and young fighting man. One half of the 
 house was set apart for Conchubar and his following, and 
 the other half was kept for the wives of the heroes of 
 Ulster. 
 
 And there were attending on Conchubar in the front 
 part of the house Fergus, son of Rogh ; Celthair, son of 
 Uthecar ; Eoghan, son of Durthact ; the two sons of the 
 king, Fiacha and Fiachaig ; Fergus, son of Leti ; 
 Cuscraid, the Stutterer of Macha ; Sencha, son of Ailell ; 
 the three sons of Fiachach, that is Rus and Dare and 
 Imchad ; Muinremar, son of Geirgind ; Errge Echbel ; 
 Amergin, son of Ecit ; Mend, son of Salchah ; Dubthach 
 Doel Uladh, the Beetle of Ulster ; Feradach Find 
 Fectnach ; Fedelmid, son of Hair Cheting ; Furbaide 
 Ferbend ; Rochad, son of Fathemon ; Laegaire Buadach ; 
 Conall Cearnach ; Cuchulain ; Conrad, son of Mornai ; 
 Ere, son of Fedelmid ; lollan, son of Fergus ; Fintan, son 
 of Nial ; Cethern, son of Fintan ; Factna, son of Sencad ; 
 Conla the False ; Ailell the Honey-Tongued ; the chief 
 men of Ulster, with the young men and the song- 
 makers. 
 
 While the feast was being spread out, the musicians 
 and players made music for them. As soon as Bricriu 
 had spread the feast with its well-tasting, savoury meats, 
 he was ordered by his sureties to leave the hall on the 
 
THE CHAMPION'S PORTION 53 
 
 moment ; and they rose up with their drawn swords in 
 their hands to put him out. So he and his followers 
 went out, and when he was on the threshold of the 
 house he turned and called out : " The Champion's 
 Portion of my house is not the portion of a fool's 
 house ; let it be given to whoever you think the best 
 hero of Ulster." And with that he left them. 
 
 Then the distributers rose up to divide the food, and 
 the chariot-driver of Laegaire Buadach, Sedlang, son of 
 Riangabra, rose up and said to them, " Let you give 
 the Champion's Portion to Laegaire, for he has the best 
 right to it of all the young heroes of Ulster." 
 
 Then Id, son of Riangabra, chariot-driver to Conall 
 Cearnach, rose up, and bade them to give it to his master. 
 But Laeg, son of Riangabra, said, " It is to Cuchulain 
 it must be brought ; and it is no disgrace for all the men 
 of Ulster to give it to him, for it is he is the bravest of 
 you all." " That is not true," said Conall, and Laegaire 
 said the same. 
 
 With that they got up upon the floor, and put on 
 their shields and took hold of their swords, and they 
 attacked and struck at one another till the one half of 
 the hall was as if on fire with the clashing of swords and 
 spears, and the other half was as white as chalk with the 
 whiteness of the shields. There was fear on the whole 
 gathering ; all the men were put from their places, and 
 there was great anger on Conchubar himself and on 
 Fergus, son of Rogh, to see the injustice and the hard- 
 ship of two men fighting against one, Conall and 
 Laegaire both together attacking Cuchulain ; but there 
 was no one among the men of Ulster dared part them 
 till Sencha spoke to Conchubar. " It is time for you to 
 part these men," he said. 
 
 With that, Conchubar and Fergus came between 
 them, and the fighters let their hands drop to their 
 sides. " Will you do as 1 advise ? " said Sencha. 
 
54 BRICRIU'S FEAST 
 
 " We will do it," they said. " Then my advice is," 
 said Sencha, " for this night to divide the Champion's 
 Portion among the whole gathering, and after that to 
 let it be settled according to the judgment of Ailell, 
 king of Connaught, for it will be better for the men of 
 Ulster, this business to be settled in Cruachan." 
 
 So with that they sat down to the feast again, 
 and gathered round the fire and drank and made 
 merry. 
 
 All this time Bricriu and his wife were in their upper 
 room, and from there he had seen how things were 
 going on in the great hall. And he began to search 
 his mind how he could best stir up the women to 
 quarrel with one another as he had stirred up the men. 
 When he had done searching his mind, it just chanced 
 as he could have wished, that Fedelm of the Fresh Heart 
 came from the hall with fifty women after her, laughing 
 and merry. Bricriu went to meet her. " All good be 
 with you to-night, wife of Laegaire Buadach. Fedelm 
 of the Fresh Heart is no nickname for you, with respect 
 to your appearance and your wisdom and your family. 
 Conchubar, king of Ulster, is of your kindred ; Laegaire 
 Buadach is your husband. I would not think well of it 
 that any of the women of Ulster should go before you 
 into the hall, for it is at your heel that all the other 
 women of Ulster should walk. If you go first into 
 the hall to-night, you will be queen over them all 
 for ever and ever." 
 
 Fedelm went on after that, the length of three 
 ridges from the hall. 
 
 After that there came out Lendabair, the Favourite, 
 daughter of Eoghan, son of Durthact, wife of Conall 
 Cearnach. 
 
 Bricriu came over to her, and he said, " Good be with 
 you, Lendabair ; and that is no nickname, for you 
 are the favourite and the darling of the men of the 
 
THE RACE OF THE WOMEN 55 
 
 whole world, because of the brightness of your beauty. 
 As far as your husband is beyond the whole world 
 in bravery and in comeliness, so far are you before 
 the women of Ulster." Great as his deceit was in 
 what he said to Fedelm, it was twice as great in what 
 he said to Lendabair. 
 
 Then Emer came out and fifty women after her. 
 " Health be with you, Emer, daughter of Forgall 
 Manach, wife of the best man in Ireland ! Emer of the 
 Beautiful Hair is no nickname for you ; the kings and 
 princes of Ireland are quarrelling with one another 
 about you. So far as the sun outshines the stars 
 of heaven, so far do you outshine the women of the 
 whole world in form, and shape, and birth, in youth, 
 and beauty, and nicety, in good name, and wisdom, 
 and speech." However great his deceit was towards 
 the other women, it was twice as much towards Emer. 
 
 The three women went on then till they met at one 
 spot, three ridges from the house, but none of them knew 
 that Bricriu had been speaking to the other. They set 
 out then to go back to the house. Their walk was even 
 and quiet and easy on the first ridge ; hardly did one 
 of them put her foot before the other. But on the next 
 ridge their steps were closer and quicker ; and when 
 they came to the ridge next the house, it was hardly 
 one of them could keep up with the other, so that 
 they took up their skirts nearly to their knees, each 
 one trying to get first into the hall, because of what 
 Bricriu had said to them, that whoever would be 
 first to enter the house, would be queen of the whole 
 province. And such was the noise they made in 
 their race, that it was like the noise of forty chariots 
 coming. The whole palace shook, and all the men 
 started up for their arms, striking against one another. 
 
 " Stop," said Sencha, " it is not enemies that are 
 coming, it is Bricriu has set the women quarrelling 
 
56 BRICRIU'S FEAST 
 
 By the god of my people ! " he said, " unless the hall 
 is shut against them, those that are dead among us 
 will be more than those that are living." With that 
 the doorkeepers shut the doors. But Emer was quicker 
 than the other women, and outran them, and put her 
 back against the door, and called to the doorkeepers 
 before the other women came up, so that the men 
 rose up, each of them to open the door before his 
 own wife, so that she might be the first to come 
 within. 
 
 " It is a bad night this will be," said Conchubar ; and 
 he struck the silver rod he had in his hand against the 
 bronze post of the hall, and they all sat down. " Quiet 
 yourselves," said Sencha ; " it is not a war of arms we 
 are going to have here, it is a war of words." Each 
 woman then put herself under the protection of her 
 husband outside, and then there followed the war of 
 words of the women of Ulster. 
 
 Fedelm of the Fresh Heart was the first to speak, and 
 it is what she said : 
 
 " The mother who bore me was free, noble, equal to 
 my father in rank and in race ; the blood that is in me 
 is royal ; I was brought up like one of royal blood. I 
 am counted beautiful in form and in shape and in 
 appearance ; I was brought up to good behaviour, to 
 courage, to mannerly ways. Look at Lacgaire, my 
 husband, and what his red hand does for Ulster. It 
 was by himself alone its boundaries were kept from 
 the enemies that were as strong as all Ulster put 
 together ; he is a defence and a protection against 
 wounds ; he is beyond all the heroes ; his victories 
 are greater than their victories. Why should not I, 
 Fedelm, the beautiful, the lovely, the joyful, be the 
 first to step into the drinking-hall to-night?" 
 
 Then Lendabair spoke, and it is what she said : 
 
 " I myself have beauty too, and good sense and good 
 
THE WAR OF WORDS 57 
 
 carnage ; it is I should walk into the hall with free, even 
 steps before all the women of Ulster. 
 
 " For my husband is pleasant Conall of the great 
 shield, the Victorious ; he is proud, going with brave 
 steps up to the spears of the fight ; he is proud coming 
 back to me after it, with the heads of his enemies in his 
 hands. 
 
 " He brings his hard sword into the battle for Ulster ; 
 he defends every ford or he destroys it to keep out the 
 enemy ; he is a hero will have a stone raised over 
 him. 
 
 " The son of noble Amergin, who can speak against 
 his courage or his deeds? It is Conall who leads the 
 heroes. 
 
 " All eyes look on the glory of Lendabair ; why 
 would she not go first into the hall of the king?" 
 
 Then Emer spoke, and it is what she said : 
 
 "There is no woman comes up to me in appearance, 
 in shape, in wisdom ; there is no one comes up to me 
 for goodness of form, or brightness of eye, or good sense, 
 or kindness, or good behaviour. 
 
 " No one has the joy of loving or the strength of 
 loving that I have ; all Ulster desires me ; surely I am 
 a nut of the heart. If I were a light woman, there would 
 not be a husband left to any of you to-morrow. 
 
 " And my husband is Cuchulain. It is he is not a 
 hound that is weak ; there is blood on his spear, there 
 is blood on his sword, his white body is black with 
 blood, his soft skin is furrowed with sword cuts, there 
 are many wounds on his thigh. 
 
 " But the flame of his eyes is turned westward ; he 
 is the strong protector ; his chariot is red, its cushions 
 are red ; he fights from over the ears of horses, from 
 over the breath of men ; he leaps in the air like a salmon 
 when he makes his hero leap ; he does strange feats, 
 the dark feat, the blind feat, the feat of nine ; he breaks 
 
58 BRICRIU'S FEAST 
 
 down armies in the hard fight ; he saves the life of 
 proud armies ; he finds joy in the terror of the 
 ignorant. 
 
 " Your fine heroes of Ulster are not worth a stalk of 
 grass compared with my husband, Cuchulain, letting 
 on to have a woman's sickness on them ; he is like 
 the clear red blood, they are like the scum and the 
 leavings, worth no more than a stalk of grass. 
 
 "Your fine women of Ulster, they are shaped like 
 cows and led like cows, when they are put beside the 
 wife of Cuchulain." 
 
 "When the men in the hall heard what the women 
 said, Laegaire and Conall made a rush at the wall, 
 and broke a plank out of it at their own height, to 
 let their own wives in. But Cuchulain raised up that 
 part of the house that was opposite to his place, so 
 that the stars and the sky could be seen through the 
 wall. By that opening Emer came in with the fifty 
 women that waited on her, and with them the women 
 that waited on the other two. None of the other 
 women could be compared at all with Emer, and no 
 one at all could be compared with her husband. And 
 then Cuchulain let the wall he had lifted fall suddenly 
 again, so that seven feet of it went into the ground, 
 and the whole house shook, and Bricriu's upper room 
 was laid flat in such a way that Bricriu himself and 
 his wife were thrown into the dirt among the dogs. 
 " My grief," cried Bricriu, " enemies are come in ! " 
 And he got up quickly and took a turn round, and 
 he saw that the hall was now crooked and leaning 
 entirely to one side. He clapped his hands together 
 and went inside, but he was so covered with dirt that 
 none of the Ulster people could know him, it was 
 only by his way of speaking they made out who he was. 
 
 Then he said, from the middle of the floor, " It is 
 a pity I ever made a feast for you, men of Ulster. 
 
THE CROOKED WALL 59 
 
 My house is more to me than everything else I have. 
 I put geasa^ that is, bonds, on you, not to drink or 
 to eat or to sleep till you leave my house the same 
 way as you found it." At that, all the men of 
 Ulster went out and tried to pull the house straight, 
 but they did not raise it by so much as a hand's 
 breadth. 
 
 " What are we to do ? " they said. " There is nothing 
 for you to do," said Sencha, "but to ask the man 
 that pulled it crooked to set it straight again." 
 
 Upon that they bid Cuchulain to put the wall up 
 straight again, and Bricriu said, "O king of the 
 heroes of Ireland, unless you can set it up straight, 
 there is no man in the world can do it." And all the 
 men of Ulster begged and prayed of Cuchulain to 
 settle the matter. And that they might not have to 
 go without food or drink, Cuchulain rose up and tried 
 to lift the house with a tug, and he failed. Anger came 
 on him then, and the hero light shone about him, and 
 he put out all his strength, and strained himself till a 
 man's foot could find place between each of his ribs, 
 and he lifted the house up till it was as straight as it 
 was before. After that they enjoyed the feast, with 
 the chief men on the one side round about Conchubar, 
 High King of Ulster, and their wives on the other 
 side — Fedelm of the Nine Shapes (nine shapes she could 
 take on, and each shape more beautiful than the 
 other), and Findchoem, daughter of Cathbad, wife of 
 Amergin of the Iron Jaw, and Devorgill, wife of Lugaid 
 of the Red Stripes, besides Emer, and Fedelm of the 
 Fresh Heart, and Lendabair ; and it would be too long 
 to count and to tell of all the other noble women 
 besides. 
 
 There was soon a buzzing of words in the hall again, 
 with the women praising their men, as if to stir up 
 another quarrel between them. Then Sencha, son of 
 
6o BRICRIU'S FEAST 
 
 Ailell, got up and shook his bell branch, and they all 
 stopped to listen to him, and then to quiet the women 
 he said : 
 
 " Have done with this word-fighting, lest you drive 
 the men of Ulster to grow white-faced in the anger 
 and the pride of battle with one another. 
 
 " It is through the fault of women the shields of 
 men are broken, heroes go out to fight and struggle 
 with one another in their anger. 
 
 " It is the folly of women brings men to do these 
 things, to bruise what they cannot bind up again, to 
 strike down what they cannot raise up again. Wives 
 of heroes, keep yourself from this." 
 
 But Emer answered him, and it is what she said : 
 
 "It is right for me to speak, Sencha, and I the wife 
 of the comely, pleasant hero, who is beyond all others 
 in beauty, in wisdom, in speaking, since the learning 
 that was easy to him is done with. 
 
 '■ No one can do his feats, the over-breath feat, the 
 apple feat, the ghost feat, the screw feat, the cat feat, 
 the red-whirling feat, the barbed-spear feat, the quick 
 stroke, the fire of the mouth, the hero's cry, the wheel 
 feat, the sword-edge feat ; no one can throw himself 
 against hard-spiked places the way he does. 
 
 " There is no one is his equal in youth, in form, in 
 brightness, in birth, in mind, in voice, in bravery, in 
 boldness, in fire, in skill ; no one is his equal in hunt- 
 ing, in running, in strength, in victories, in greatness. 
 There is no man to be found who can be put beside 
 Cuchulain." 
 
 " If it is truth you are speaking, Emer," said Conall 
 Cearnach, " let this lad of feats stand up, that we may 
 see them." 
 
 " I will not," said Cuchulain. " I am tired and broken 
 to-day, I will do no more till after I have had food 
 and sleep." It was true what he said, for it was on 
 
THE GREY OF MACHA 6i 
 
 that morning he had met with the Grey of Macha by 
 the side of the grey lake at Slieve Fuad. When it 
 came out of the lake, Cuchulain slipped his hands round 
 the neck of the horse, and the two of them struggled 
 and wrestled with one another, and in that way they 
 went all round Ireland, till late in the day he brought 
 the horse home to Emain. It was in the same way he 
 got the Black Sainglain from the black lake of Sainglen. 
 
 And Cuchulain said : " To-day myself and the Grey 
 of Macha have gone through the great plains of Ireland, 
 Bregia of Meath, the seashore marsh of Muirthemne 
 Macha, through Moy Medba, Currech Cleitech Cerna, 
 Lia of Linn Locharn, Per Femen Fergna, Curros Dom- 
 nand, Ros Roigne, and Eo. And now I would sooner 
 eat and sleep than do any other thing. But I swear 
 by the gods my people swear by," he said, " I would be 
 ready to fight with any man of you if I had but my 
 fill of food and of sleep." " Well," said Bricriu, " this 
 has gone on long enough. Let food and drink be 
 brought, and let the women's war be put a stop to 
 till the feast is done." 
 
 They did so, and it was a pleasant time they had till 
 the end of three days and three nights. 
 
THE CHAMPIONSHIP OF ULSTER 
 
 A FTER they were gone back to Emain after Bricriu's 
 feast, a quarrel began between Conall and 
 Lacgaire and Cuchulain about the Champion's Portion, 
 and Conchubar and the chief men of Ulster came 
 between them to settle it. And Conchubar bade them 
 to go to Cruachan in Connaught, to have the matter 
 judged by Ailell and by Maeve. " And if that fails 
 you," he said, " what you have to do is to go to Curoi, 
 son of Daire, at Slieve Mis, in Munster. And it is a 
 true judgment he will give, for he is just and fair- 
 minded, his house is open to guests, his hand is good 
 in battle, in leading he is a king. He will give you a 
 right judgment, but it is only a brave man will ask 
 it from him, for he is wise in all sorts of enchantments, 
 and can do things that no other man can do." 
 
 " We will go first to Cruachan," said Cuchulain. " I 
 agree to that," said Laegaire. " Let us go then," said 
 Conall Cearnach. " Let horses be brought, and your 
 chariot yoked, Conall," said Cuchulain ; " and go on the 
 first." " I would not like that," said Conall. " That is 
 no wonder," said Cuchulain, " for every one knows the 
 awkwardness of your horses, and the unsteadiness of 
 your chariot ; it is so heavy that each of the wheels 
 raises the sod on each side wherever it goes, the way 
 
 62 
 
CUCHULAIN AND THE WOMEN 63 
 
 that for the length of a year it is easy for the men of 
 Ulster to know the track it has left after it." 
 
 " Do you hear that, Laegaire ? " said Conall. " It is 
 for you to go first." " Do not begin to mock at me," 
 said Laegaire, " for I am good at crossing fords, and I 
 am ready to go up and face a storm of spears before 
 any man. But do not put me beside chariot kings till 
 I practise going through hard and narrow places, and 
 racing against single chariots, till the champion of a 
 single chariot will be afraid to pass me." 
 
 With that Laegaire had his chariot yoked, and leaped 
 into it. He drove over Magh da Gabal, the Plain of 
 the Two Forks, over Bernaid na Foraire, the Gap of the 
 Watch, over the Ford of Carpat Fergus, over the Ford 
 of the Morrigu, to Caerthund Cluana da Dam, the Rowan 
 Meadow of the Two Oxen, in the Fews of Firbuide ; 
 by the four ways, past Dundealgan, across Magh Slicech, 
 the Peeled Plain, westward by Bregia. And it was not 
 long till Conall Cearnach followed after him, and many 
 of the chief men of Ulster with them. 
 
 But Cuchulain stayed behind the others, amusing the 
 women of Ulster with his feats. He did nine feats with 
 apples, nine with spears, and nine with knives, without 
 ever letting one touch the other. And he took three 
 times fifty needles from the women, and threw them up, 
 one after the other, so that each needle went into the 
 eye of the other, and in that way they were all joined 
 together. Then he gave every woman her needle back 
 into her own hand. 
 
 But Laeg, son of Riangabra, went to look for him, 
 and reproached him, and said : " You pitiful squinter, 
 your couragehas gone from you ! The Champion's Portion 
 is lost to you, the men of Ulster have got to Cruachan 
 before this." " I never thought of it, my Laeg," said 
 Cuchulain ; " but yoke the chariot for me now." So 
 Laeg yoked it, and they set out on their journey. By 
 
64 CHAMPIONSHIP OF ULSTER 
 
 that time the men of Ulster were come to Magh Breagh, 
 the Fine Meadow ; but Cuchulain, after he was roused 
 up by Laeg, travelled so fast, and the Grey of Macha 
 and the Black Sainglain went racing in such a way 
 with his chariot across the whole province of Conchubar, 
 across Slieve Fuad and the plain of Bregia, that he came 
 up with the others before they came to Cruachan. 
 
 The noise the whole troop made was so great, going 
 at such speed as they did, that a great shaking came on 
 Cruachan, and the arms fell from the racks to the 
 ground, and the whole of the dun began to shake, so 
 that every man was trembling like a rush in a stream. 
 On that Maeve said : " Since the day I first came to 
 Cruachan I never before heard thunder, there being no 
 clouds in the sky." Then Findabair of the Fair Eye- 
 brows, daughter of Ailell and of Maeve, went up, for she 
 had a bird's sight, to her sunny parlour over the great 
 door of the fort, to tell them what was coming. " Dear 
 mother," she said, " I see a chariot coming over the 
 plain." " Tell me what is its appearance," said Maeve, 
 " and the colour of its horses, and the appearance of the 
 man that sits in it." " I see well," said Findabair, " the 
 two horses that are in the chariot. Two fiery dappled 
 greys, of the one colour, shape, and goodness, having 
 the one speed, keeping the one pace ; their ears pricked, 
 their heads high, their nostrils broad, foreheads broad, 
 manes and tails curled, thin-sided, wide-chested, gallop- 
 ing together. The chariot is made of fine wood with 
 wicker-work newly polished, the yoke curved, with silver 
 ornaments on it ; it has two black wheels, soft looped 
 yellow reins. I see in the chariot a big stout man, with 
 reddish yellow hair, with long forked beard. He has a 
 soft purple coat about him, and it striped with bright 
 gold. His bronze shield is edged with gold ; there is a 
 five-pronged javelin at his wrist, a cover of strange birds' 
 feathers over his head." 
 
CONALLCEARNACH 65 
 
 " I know well who that man is," said Maeve, and it 
 is what she said : " A companion of kings, an old be- 
 stower of victories, a storm of war, a flame of judgment, 
 a long knife of victory that will cut us to pieces, mighty 
 Laegaire of the Red Hand. His sword cuts through 
 men as a knife cuts through a leek ; his stroke is the 
 back stroke of the wave to the land. And I swear by 
 the gods my people swear by," she said, " if it is in 
 anger and for fighting Laegaire Buadach is coming at 
 us, that as leeks are cut close to the ground with a 
 sharp knife, the same way we will be cut down, as 
 many of us as are in Cruachan, unless v/e smooth down 
 his anger by giving in to everything he asks." 
 
 " Good mother," said Findabair, " I see another 
 chariot as good as the first coming over the plain." 
 " Tell me what is its appearance," said Maeve. 
 
 " I see," she said, " yoked to the chariot, on the one 
 side a red horse, taking strong, high strides across fords 
 and splashes, over banks and gaps, over plains and 
 hollows, with the quickness of birds that the quick 
 eye loses in following. On the other side a bay horse 
 of great strength ; it is at full speed he races over the 
 plain, between stones and hard places ; he finds no 
 hindrance in the land of oaks, hurrying on his way. 
 A chariot of fine wood with wicker-work, on two wheels 
 of bright bronze ; its pole bright with silver, its frame 
 very high and creaking, having a curved, firm yoke, 
 with looped yellow reins. 
 
 " In the chariot a fair man, with wavy, hanging hair ; 
 his face white and red, his vest clean and white, his 
 cloak blue and crimson, his shield brown with yellow 
 bosses, its edge worked with bronze. In his hand a 
 bright spear ; a cover of the feathers of strange birds 
 over the wicker frame of his chariot." 
 
 " I know who that man is," said Maeve, and she said 
 then : " The growling of a lion ; a flame that can cut 
 
66 CHAMPIONSHIP OF ULSTER 
 
 like a sharpened stone ; he heaps head on head, battle on 
 battle. As a trout is cut upon red sandstone, so would 
 the son of Finchoem cut us if he came on us in anger. 
 
 " For, by the oath of my people," she said, " as a 
 speckled fish is beaten upon a shining red stone with 
 iron rods, so would we be broken by Conall Cearnach, 
 if he came against us." 
 
 " I see another chariot coming over the plain," said 
 Findabair. " Tell me what its appearance is," said 
 Maeve. " I see two horses of the one size and beauty, 
 the one fierceness and speed, with ears pricked, heads 
 high, spirited and powerful, with fine nostrils, wide fore- 
 heads, mane and tail curled, leaping together. The one 
 grey, handsome, with broad thighs, eager, leaping, 
 thundering, and trampling. As he goes, his fierce 
 hoofs throw up sods of earth like a flock of swift birds 
 after him. As he gallops on his way, he breathes out 
 a blast of hot breath, a fire comes from his curbed jaws. 
 The other, dark, small-headed, well-shaped, broad- 
 hoofed, thin-sided, high-couraged, broad-backed, sure- 
 footed, spirited ; he takes long strides in the race ; 
 he leaps over streams, he throws off heaviness, he 
 crosses the plains of the middle valley. They come 
 together with fast, joyful steps, moving over the plain 
 like a swift mountain mist, or like the speed of a hill 
 hind, or like a hare on level ground, or like the rushing 
 of a loud wind in winter. 
 
 ''The chariot is of fine wood with wicker-work, 
 having two iron wheels, a bright silver pole with 
 bronze ornaments, a frame very high and creaking 
 strengthened with iron, a curved yoke overlaid with 
 gold, two soft looped yellow reins. 
 
 " I see in the chariot a dark, sad man, comeliest of 
 the men of Ireland. A pleated crimson tunic about 
 him, fastened at the breast with a brooch of inlaid gold ; 
 a long-sleeved linen cloak on him with a white hood 
 
CUCHULAIN AND LAEG 67 
 
 embroidered with flame-red gold. His eyebrows as 
 black as the blackness of a spit, seven lights in his 
 eyes, seven colours about his head, love and fire in 
 his look. Across his knees there lies a gold-hilted 
 sword, there is a blood-red spear ready to his hand, a 
 sharp- tempered blade with a shaft of wood. Over his 
 shoulders a crimson shield with a rim of silver, overlaid 
 with shapes of beasts in gold. 
 
 " There is before him in the chariot a driver, a very 
 thin, tall, freckled man ; very bright red hair, kept 
 back from his face with a golden thread, a cup of gold 
 at each side of his head. A short cloak about him with 
 sleeves opening at the two elbows ; in his hand a goad 
 of red gold to guide his horses." 
 
 " That is truly a drop before a downpour," said Maeve. 
 " I know well who that man is." And it is what she 
 said : " Like the sound of an angry sea, like a great 
 moving wave, with the madness of a wild beast that is 
 vexed, he leaps through his enemies in the crash of 
 battle, they hear their death in his shout. He heaps 
 deed upon deed, head upon head ; his is a name to be 
 put in songs. As fresh malt is ground in the mill, so 
 shall we be ground by Cuchulain. 
 
 " For I swear by the oath of my people," she said, 
 " that as a mill of ten spokes grinds very hard malt, so 
 he, with only himself, would grind us to dust and to 
 gravel, if we had the whole province with us, unless his 
 anger and his heat go down. 
 
 "And what way are the rest of the men of Ulster 
 coming ? " she said. And Findabair answered her, and 
 it is what she said : " Hand to hand, arm to arm, side 
 to side, shoulder to shoulder, wheel to wheel, axle to 
 axle, that is the way they are coming. Their horses are 
 coming on us like thunder on the roof, like heavy waves 
 stirred by the storm ; the trampling of their feet makes 
 the earth sh^ke under them," 
 
68 CHAMPIONSHIP OF ULSTER 
 
 And Maeve said, " Let our women be ready before 
 them with vats of cold water ; let the beds be made 
 ready, bring the best of food, the best of ale. Open the 
 courtyard, have a welcome before them, and surely they 
 will not harm us." 
 
 Then Maeve went out by the high door of the dun 
 into the courtyard, and three times fifty young girls 
 attending her, with three vats of cold water to cool the 
 heat of the three heroes in front of the rest. And she 
 gave them their choice, would each man have a house 
 for himself, or would they have one house for the three ? 
 " A house for each to himself," said Cuchulain. And 
 when the rest of the men of Ulster came, Ailell and 
 Maeve with their whole household went out and bade 
 them welcome. "We are well pleased with the wel- 
 come," said Sencha for them. 
 
 After that, they all came into the fort and into the 
 palace. They went round from one door to the other, 
 and there was room for them all, and the musicians were 
 playing music while everything was being made ready. 
 And Conchubar, and Fergus, son of Rogh, were in 
 Ailell's division, with nine others along with them, and 
 there was a great feast made ready then, and they 
 stopped there the length of three days and three nights. 
 
 At the end of that time Ailell asked Conchubar what 
 was the business that had brought them there. And 
 Sencha told him the whole story, about the quarrel of 
 the women as to who should walk first, and the quarrel 
 of their husbands for the Champion's Portion. " And 
 they were not satisfied to be judged by any one but 
 yourself," he said. Ailell did not seem to be well pleased 
 at that. " Indeed, it was no friend of mine that left this 
 judgment on me," he said. "There is no better judge 
 than yourself," said Sencha. "Well," said Ailell, "you 
 must give me time to think upon it." " Do not make 
 too much delay," said Sencha, " for we cannot spare 
 
THETHREECATS 69 
 
 our heroes long from us." " Three days and three 
 nights will be enough for me," said Ailell. " That much 
 will not break friendship," said Sencha. 
 
 With that the men of Ulster went home to Emain, 
 leaving Laegaire and Conall and Cuchulain to be 
 judged by Ailell, and they left their blessing with 
 Ailell and with Maeve, and their curse with Bricriu, 
 because it was he had first started the quarrel. 
 
 That night the three heroes were given as good a 
 feast as before, but they were put to eat it in a room 
 by themselves. When night came on, three enchanted 
 monsters, with the shape of cats, were let out from the 
 cave that was in the hill of the Sidhe at Cruachan, to 
 attack them. When Conall and Laegaire saw them, 
 they got up into the rafters, leaving their food after 
 them, and there they stayed till morning. Cuchulain 
 did not leave his place, but when one of the monsters 
 came to attack him, he gave a blow of his sword at its 
 head ; but the sword slipped off as if from a stone. 
 Then the monster stayed quiet, and Cuchulain sat there 
 through the night watching it. With the break of day 
 the cats were gone, and Ailell came in and saw what 
 way the three heroes were. " Are you not satisfied to 
 give the Championship to Cuchulain, after this ? " he said. 
 " We are not," said Conall and Laegaire ; " it is not 
 against beasts we are used to fight, but against men." 
 
 Then Maeve said to them, " Go and spend the night 
 with my foster-father, Ercol, and his wife Garmna." So 
 they went, but first they were given their choice of food 
 for their horses. Conall and Laegaire chose oats two 
 years old for theirs, but Cuchulain chose barley grain 
 for his. Then they set out, racing all the way, and 
 Cuchulain winning the race. 
 
 Ercol and Garmna bade them welcome, and they 
 knew it was to try them they had been sent there, so 
 
JO CHAMPIONSHIP OF ULSTER 
 
 they sent them out that night, one after the other, to 
 fight with the witches of the valley. 
 
 Laegaire went first, but he could not stand against 
 them, and he came back, and left his arms and his 
 clothes with them. 
 
 Then Conall went, and he was driven back, and left 
 his spear with them, but he brought his sword that was 
 his best weapon away with him. 
 
 Then Cuchulain went down into the valley and the 
 witches screamed at him and attacked him, and he and 
 they fought together till his spear was in splinters, his 
 shield broken and his ^clothes torn off him. The witches 
 were beating him and getting the better of him, but 
 Laeg saw it, and he called out. " O Cuchulain," he said^ 
 " you poor coward, you squinting clown ! Your courage 
 is gone from you, witches to be beating you ! " Then 
 great anger came on Cuchulain, and he turned on the 
 witches and cut and gashed them till the valley was 
 filled with their blood, and he brought away their cloaks 
 of battle with him, and went back to the house where 
 his comrades were. And Garmna and her daughter 
 Buan made much of him and bade him welcome. 
 
 They slept there that night, and the next day Ercol 
 challenged them to come one by one, each man with his 
 horse, to fight against himself and his horse. Laegaire 
 was the first to go against him, and his horse was killed 
 by Ercol's horse, and he himself was overcome by Ercol, 
 so that he took to flight, and did not stop till he got 
 back to Cruachan, and he brought the story there that 
 both his companions had been killed by Ercol. Conall 
 was the next to run away, after his horse being 
 killed by Ercol's horse ; and his servant Rathand was 
 drowned in the river as he ran, and it takes its name 
 after him, Snam Rathand, from that day. 
 
 But the Grey of Macha killed Ercol's horse, and 
 Cuchulain put down Ercol and tied him behind his 
 
MAEVE'S TREACHERY 71 
 
 chariot and set out for Cruachan. And Buan, Garmna's 
 daughter, ran out after the chariot for love of Cuchulain 
 to follow him. And she knew the track of his chariot, 
 for it was no roundabout track it used to take, but to 
 be breaking through gaps or going over them ; and in 
 following it at last she gave a great leap and fell, and 
 her forehead struck against a rock, and she died ; and 
 it is from this the place was given the name of Buan's 
 Grave. 
 
 And when Conall and Cuchulain got back to 
 Cruachan, they found the people of the dun keening 
 them, for by the report Laegaire brought, they were sure 
 they had been killed. 
 
 Then Ailell went to his inner room, and leaned his 
 back against the wall, for he was not quiet in his mind, 
 and he knew there was danger in whatever judgment 
 he might give ; and he had not eaten or slept for three 
 days and three nights. Then Maeve said to him, " It is 
 a coward you are, and if you do not settle this matter I 
 will settle it myself" " It is hard for me to give judg- 
 ment," said Ailell, " it is a misfortune for any one to have 
 to do it." " It is easy enough," said Maeve, " for Laegaire 
 and Conall Cearnach are as different as bronze and 
 silver, and Conall Cearnach and Cuchulain are as 
 different as silver and red gold." 
 
 After a while, when Maeve had searched her mind, 
 Laegaire Buadach was called to her. " Welcome, Laegaire 
 Buadach," she said, " it is right for you to have the Cham- 
 pion's Portion. We give you the headship of the heroes 
 of Ireland from this out, and the Champion's Portion, 
 and along with that this cup of bronze, having a bird 
 in raised silver on the bottom. Take it with you as a 
 token of the judgment, but let no one see it till you 
 come to Conchubar and his Red Branch at the end of 
 the day. When the Champion's Portion is set out, then 
 bring out your cup in the presence of all the great men 
 
72 CHAMPIONSHIP OF ULSTER 
 
 of Ulster, and not one of them will dispute it with you 
 any more, for they will know by this token that the 
 Championship has been given to you." With that, the 
 cup was given to him with its full of rich wine, and he 
 drank it off at a draught. " Now you have the Champion- 
 ship," said Maeve ; " and I wish you may enjoy it a 
 hundred years at the head of all Ulster." 
 
 So Laegaire left her, and Conall Cearnach was called 
 up to the queen. " Welcome, Conall Cearnach," she said ; 
 " it is right for us to give you the Champion's Portion, 
 and a silver cup along with it, having a bird on the 
 bottom in raised gold." And she said the same to him 
 as she had said to Laegaire before. 
 
 Then Conall went away, and a messenger was sent to 
 bring Cuchulain. " Come up to speak with the king and 
 queen," said the messenger. 
 
 Cuchulain was playing chess at the time with Laeg, 
 his chariot-driver. " I am not a fool to be mocked at," 
 he said, and he hurled one of the chessmen at the 
 messenger, and hit him between the eyes, so that it is 
 hardly he could get back to Ailell and Maeve. 
 
 " By my word," said Maeve, " this Cuchulain is hard 
 to deal with." And then she came down herself to 
 Cuchulain, and put her two arms round his neck. " Give 
 your flattery to some other one," said Cuchulain. 
 
 But Maeve said, "Great son of Ulster, flame of the 
 heroes of Ireland, there is no flattery in our mind when 
 it is you we have to do with. P'or if all the heroes of 
 Ireland should come here, it is to you we would give 
 the Champion's Portion, for as to bravery and a great 
 name, and as to youth and great deeds, it is well-known 
 that you are far beyond all the men of Ireland." 
 
 Cuchulain rose up then, and went with Maeve into 
 the palace, and Ailell gave him a great welcome. And 
 he was given a gold cup full of wine, and it having on 
 the bottom of it a bird in precious stones. " Now, you 
 
THETHREECUPS 73 
 
 have the Championship," said Maeve, " and it is my wish 
 you may enjoy it a hundred years at the head of all the 
 heroes of Ulster." "And besides that," Ailell and 
 Maeve said, " it is our judgment, that as much as you 
 are beyond the heroes of Ulster, so far is your wife 
 beyond their wives. And we think it right that she 
 should walk before all the women of Ulster when they 
 go together into the drinking-hall." 
 
 Then Cuchulain drank at one draught the full of the 
 cup, and bade farewell to the king and the queen and 
 the whole household. And he went till he came to 
 Emain Macha at the end of the day. And there was 
 no one among the men of Ulster would venture to ask 
 news of any of the three until the time came to eat and 
 to drink in the great hall. 
 
 When the feast was laid out, they all stopped thqir 
 arguing and their talking, and gave themselves up to 
 eating and to enjoyment. It was Sualtim, son of Roig, 
 father of Cuchulain, was attending the feast that night, 
 and Conchubar's great vat had been filled for it. The 
 distributers began serving out the meat, but at first they 
 kept back the Champion's Portion. Then Dubthach 
 of the Chafer Tongue said, " Why is not the Champion's 
 Portion given to one of these three heroes that are come 
 back from Cruachan ? They must surely have brought 
 some token with them, that we may know which one 
 is to have it." 
 
 Upon that, Laegaire Buadach rose up and held out the 
 bronze cup with the silver bird on it. " The Champion's 
 Portion is mine," he said, "and no one can dispute it 
 with me." 
 
 " That is not so," said Conall Cearnach ; " here is my 
 token. Yours is a bronze cup but mine is a silver cup. 
 You see by the difference in them it is to me the 
 Champion's Portion belongs." 
 
 " It belongs to neither of you," said Cuchulain, and 
 
74 CHAMPIONSHIP OF ULSTER 
 
 he rose up and he said, " It was only to deceive you 
 and to keep up the quarrel between us, the king and 
 queen we went to gave you those. It is to me the 
 Champion's Portion belongs, for you see my token, that 
 it is far above the others." 
 
 With that he lifted high up the cup of red gold, with 
 the bird on it of precious stones, and all the men in the 
 feasting-hall saw it. " It is I myself that will get the 
 Championship," he said, " if I get fair play." " It is yours 
 indeed," said Conchubar, and Fergus, and all the chief 
 men. " It is yours by the judgment of Ailell and 
 Maeve." " I swear by the oath of my people," said 
 Laegaire, " that the cup you have with you was not 
 given to you, but bought. You gave riches and 
 treasures for it to Ailell and Maeve, the way the 
 Championship would not go to any other person ; but 
 by my hand of valour," he said, "that judgment shall 
 not stand." 
 
 Then, with their swords drawn, they sprang at one 
 another, but Conchubar went between them, and then 
 they let down their hands and sheathed their swords. 
 "It is best," said Sencha, "for you to go to Curoi for 
 judgment." " We agree to that," said they. 
 
 So on the morning of the morrow, the three — Cuchu- 
 lain, Conall, and Laegaire — set out for Curoi's dun. At 
 the gate of the dun they unyoked their chariots, and 
 they went into the courtyard, and Blanad, daughter of 
 Mind, Curoi's wife, gave them a good welcome. Curoi 
 was not at home that night, but knowing, by his en- 
 chantments, they would come, he had left instructions 
 with his wife how to entertain them ; and she did ac- 
 cording to his wish, giving them water for washing, and 
 drinks for refreshing, and beds of the best, so that they 
 were well satisfied. 
 
 When bedtime came, Blanad told them they were 
 each to take a night to watch the fort, till Curoi would 
 
THE GREAT SHADOW 75 
 
 come back. " And it is what he said, that you should 
 take your turn according to age." 
 
 Now in whatever part of the world Curoi was, he 
 made a spell every night over the dun, so that it went 
 round like a mill, and no entrance could be found in 
 it after the setting of the sun. 
 
 The first night Laegaire Buadach took the watch, for 
 he was the oldest of the three. As he was keeping 
 watch, towards the end of the night he saw a great 
 shadow coming towards him from the sea westward. 
 Very huge and ugly and terrible he thought it, and it 
 took the shape of a giant and reached up to the sky, 
 and the shining of the sea could be seen between its 
 legs. It is how it came, its hands full of what had the 
 appearance of stripped oaks, and each of them enough 
 for a load for six horses ; and he hurled one of them at 
 Laegaire, but it went past him. He did this two or 
 three times, but the beam did not reach either the skin 
 or the shield of Laegaire. Then Laegaire hurled a 
 spear at him, and it did not hit him. 
 
 He stretched out his hand then to Laegaire, and the 
 length of it reached across the three ridges that were 
 between them while they were throwing at one another, 
 and he gripped hold of him. Big and strong as Laegaire 
 was, he fitted like a child of a year old into his hand. 
 The giant turned him round between his two palms as 
 a chessman is turned in a groove, and then he threw 
 him half dead over the wall of the fort, into a heap of 
 mud. There was no opening there, and the people 
 inside the dun thought he had leaped over from outside, 
 as a challenge to the others to do the same. 
 
 There they stayed until the end of the day, and at the 
 fall of night Conall went out to take the watch, as he 
 was older than Cuchulain. Everything happened as it 
 did to Laegaire the first night. And when the third 
 night came, Cuchulain went into the seat of the watch. 
 
76 CHAMPIONSHIP OF ULSTER 
 
 When midnight was come he heard a noise, and by 
 the light of the cold moon he saw nine grey shapes coming 
 towards him over the marsh. " Stop," said Cuchulain, 
 "who is there? If they are friends, let them not stir; 
 if they are enemies, let them come on." Then they 
 raised a great shout at him, and Cuchulain rushed at 
 them and attacked them, so that the nine fell dead to 
 the ground, and he cut their heads off and made a heap 
 of them, and sat down again to keep the watch. An- 
 other nine and then another shouted at him, but 
 he made an end of the three nines, and made one heap 
 of their heads and their arms. 
 
 While he was watching on through the night, tired 
 and down-hearted, he heard a sound rising from the lake, 
 like the sound of a very heavy sea. However tired he 
 was, his mind would not let him keep quiet, without 
 going to see what was the cause of that great noise he 
 heard. Then he saw a great worm coming up from the 
 lake, and it raised itself into the air over him and made 
 for the dun, and opened its mouth, and it seemed to him 
 that one of the houses would fit into its gullet. 
 
 Then Cuchulain with one leap reached its head and 
 put his arm round its neck, and stretched his hand across 
 its gullet, and tore the monster's heart out and threw it 
 to the ground. Then the beast fell down, and Cuchulain 
 hacked it with his sword, and made little bits of it, and 
 brought the head along with him to the heap of skulls. 
 
 He was sitting there, towards the break of day, worn 
 out and discouraged, and he saw the great shadow 
 shaped like a giant coming to him westward from the 
 sea. " This is a bad night," he said. "It will be worse for 
 you yet," said Cuchulain. Then he threw one of the 
 beams at Cuchulain, but it passed by him, and he did 
 that two or three times, but it did not reach either his 
 shield or his skin. Then he stretched out his hand to 
 grip Cuchulain as he did the others, but Cuchulain 
 
CUCHULAIN'S LEAP yj 
 
 leaped his salmon leap at the head of the monster, with 
 his drawn sword, and broug^ht him down. '' Life for 
 life, Cuchulain," he said, and with that he vanished and 
 was no more seen. 
 
 Then Cuchulain wondered to himself how his fellows 
 had made their leap over the fort, for the wall was big 
 and broad and high, and twice he tried it and failed. 
 Then anger came on him, and he went a good way back 
 and made a run, and with the dint of the anger that was 
 on him, and the courage of his heart and of his mind, he 
 hardly took the dew off the tips of the grass in the run, 
 and he made one leap over the wall, and lit in the 
 middle, at the door of the house. Then he went in 
 through the door and gave a sigh. And Blanad, wife of 
 Curoi, said, " That is not the sigh of a beaten man, but a 
 conqueror's sigh of triumph." For the daughter of the 
 King of the Isle of the Men of Falga knew well all 
 Cuchulain had gone through that night. 
 
 " The Champion's Portion must go now to Cuchulain," 
 she said to the others ; " for you see by this that you 
 are not equal to him." " We do not agree to that," said 
 they ; " for we know it was one of his friends among 
 the Sidhe came to put us down and to put us out of the 
 Championship. We will not give up for that," they 
 said. 
 
 Then she gave them a message she had from Curoi, 
 that the three champions were to go back to Emain, 
 until he would bring his judgment there himself So 
 they bade her farewell, and went back to the Red 
 Branch. 
 
 It was a good while after this, as the men of Ulster 
 were in Emain* tired after the gathering and the games, 
 Conchubar and Fergus, son of Rogh, with the chief men, 
 went from the field of sports outside, and sat down in 
 the house of the Red Branch ; but Cuchulain was not 
 
7S CHAMPIONSHIP OF ULSTER 
 
 there that night, or Conall Cearnach, but all the rest of 
 the chief heroes were in it. 
 
 As they were sitting there towards evening, and the 
 day wearing to its close, they saw a big awkward 
 fellow, very ugly, coming to them into the hall. It 
 seemed to them as if none of the men of Ulster could 
 reach to half his height. He was frightful to look at ; 
 next his skin he had an old cow's hide, and a grey cloak 
 around him, and over him he had a great spreading 
 branch the size of a winter shed under which thirty 
 cattle could find shelter. Ravenous yellow eyes he had, 
 and in his right hand an axe weighing fifty cauldrons of 
 melted metal, its sharpness such that it would cut 
 through hairs, if the wind would blow them against its 
 edge. 
 
 He went over and leaned against the branched beam 
 that was beside the fire. 
 
 " Who are you at all ? " said Dubthach of the Chafer 
 Tongue. " Is there no other place for you in the hall 
 that you come up here ? Is it to be candlestick to the 
 house you want, or is it to set the house on fire you 
 want ? " 
 
 " Uath, the Stranger, is my name," said he ; " and 
 neither of those things is the thing I want. The thing 
 I want is the thing I cannot find, and I after going 
 through the world of Ireland and the whole world look- 
 ing for it, and that is a man that will keep his word and 
 will hold to his agreement with me." 
 
 " What agreement is that ? " said Fergus. " Here is 
 this axe," he said, " and the man into whose hands it is 
 put is to cut off my head to-day, I to cut his head off 
 to-morrow. And as you men of Ulster have a name 
 beyond the men of all other countries for strength and 
 skill, for courage, for greatness, for highmindedness, 
 for behaviour, for truth and generosity, for worthiness, 
 let you find one among you that will hold to bis word 
 
UATH, THE STRANGER 79 
 
 and keep to his bargain. Conchubar I put aside 
 because of his kingship, and Fergus, son of Rogh, for 
 the same reason. But outside these two, come, which- 
 ever of you will venture, he to cut off my head to-night, 
 I to cut off his head to-morrow night." 
 
 " It is not right for dishonour to be put on a whole 
 province," said Fergus, " for the want of one man that 
 will keep his word." " Sure there is no champion here 
 after these two are left out," said Dubthach. " By my 
 word, there will be one this moment," said Laegaire, 
 and he leaped out on the floor of the hall. " Stoop 
 down, clown, that I may cut off your head to-night, 
 you to cut off mine to-morrow night." " By the oath 
 of my people," said Dubthach, " it is no good prospect 
 you have if the man killed to-night comes to kill you 
 to-morrow." 
 
 Then Uath put spells on the edge of the axe and 
 laid his neck down on a block, and Laegaire struck a 
 blow across it with the axe, till it went into the block 
 underneath, and the head fell on the floor and the 
 house was filled with the blood. But presently Uath 
 rose up and gathered his head and his axe to his 
 breast and went out from the hall, his neck streaming 
 with blood, so that there was terror on all the people 
 in the house. 
 
 " I swear," said Dubthach, " if this stranger, being 
 killed, comes back to-morrow night, he will not leave a 
 man alive in Ulster." 
 
 Back he came the next night to have his agreement 
 kept. But Laegaire's heart failed him, and he was 
 nowhere to be found. But Conall Cearnach was in the 
 hall, and he said he would make a new agreement 
 with him. So all happened the same as the night 
 before, but when Uath came the next day, it was the 
 same with Conall as with Laegaire, his heart failed 
 hinrj when it came to the keeping of his bargain. 
 
8o CHAMPIONSHIP OF ULSTER 
 
 Cuchulain was there that night when Uath came in 
 and began to reproach and to mock at them all. " As 
 for you, men of Ulster," he said, " all your courage and 
 your daring is gone from you ; you covet a great name, 
 but you are not able to earn it. Where is that poor 
 squinting fellow that is called Cuchulain," he said, " till 
 I see if his word is any better than the word of the 
 others ? " "I will keep my word without any agree- 
 ment," said Cuchulain. " That is likely, you miserable 
 fly, it is in great fear of death you are." 
 
 On that, Cuchulain made a leap towards him and 
 gave him a blow with the axe, and hurled his head to 
 the top rafter of the hall, so that the whole house 
 shook. 
 
 On the morrow the men of Ulster were watching 
 Cuchulain to see if he would break his word to the 
 stranger, as the others had done. As Cuchulain sat 
 there waiting for him, they saw that he was very 
 down - hearted, and they made sure his life was at 
 its end, and that they might as well begin keening 
 him. And then Cuchulain said to Conchubar, and 
 there was hanging of the head on him, " Do not go 
 from this till my agreement is fulfilled, for death is 
 coming to me, but I would sooner meet with death 
 than break my word," 
 
 They were there till the close of day, and then 
 they saw Uath coming. " Where is Cuchulain ? " he 
 said. " Here I am," he answered. "It is dull your 
 speech is to-night," saicl the stranger ; " it is in great 
 fear of death you are. But however great your fear, 
 you have not failed me." 
 
 Then Cuchulain went to him and laid his head on 
 the block. " Stretch out your head better," said he. 
 " You are keeping me in torment," said Cuchulain ; 
 " put an end to me quickly. For last night," he said, 
 " by my oath, I made no delay with you." Then he 
 
CUROrS DECISION 8i 
 
 stretched out his neck, and Uath raised his axe till 
 it reached the rafters of the hall, and the creaking of 
 the old hide that was about him, and the crashing of 
 the axe through the rafters, was like the loud noise of 
 a wood in a stormy night. But when the axe came 
 down, it was with its blunt side, and it was the floor 
 it struck, so that Cuchulain was not touched at all. 
 And all the chief men of Ulster were standing around 
 looking on, and they saw on the moment that it 
 was no strange clown was in it, but Curoi, son of 
 Daire, that had come to try the heroes through his 
 enchantments. 
 
 " Rise up, Cuchulain," he said. " Of all the heroes 
 of Ulster, whatever may be their daring, there is not one 
 to compare with you in courage and in bravery and in 
 truth. The Championship of the heroes of Ireland is 
 yours from this out, and the Champion's Portion with 
 it, and to your wife the first place among all the 
 women of Ulster. And whoever tries to put himself 
 before you after this," he said, " I swear by the oath 
 my people swear by, his own life will be in danger." 
 
 With that he left them. And this was the end of 
 the Women's War of Words, and of the quarrel among 
 the heroes for the Championship of Ulster. 
 
VI 
 
 THE HIGH KING OF IRELAND 
 
 'T^HERE was a king over Ireland before this time 
 ^ whose name was Eochaid Feidlech, and it is he 
 was grandfather to Conaire the Great. 
 
 He was going one time over the fair green of Bri 
 Leith, and he saw at the side of a well a woman, with 
 a bright comb of silver and gold, and she washing in a 
 silver basin, having four golden birds on it, and little 
 bright purple stones set in the rim of the basin. A 
 beautiful purple cloak she had, and silver fringes to it, 
 and a gold brooch ; and she had on her a dress of green 
 silk with a long hood embroidered in red gold, and 
 wonderful clasps of gold and silver on her breasts and 
 on her shoulders. The sunlight was falling on her, so 
 that the gold and the green silk were shining out. Two 
 plaits of hair she had, four locks in each plait, and a 
 bead at the point of every lock, and the colour of her 
 hair was like yellow flags in summer, or like red gold 
 after it is rubbed. 
 
 There she was, letting down her hair to wash it, and 
 her arms out through the sleeve-holes of her shift. Her 
 soft hands were as white as the snow of a single night, 
 and her eyes as blue as any blue flower, and her lips as 
 red as the berries of the rowan-tree, and her body as 
 white as the foam of a wave. The bright light of the 
 moon was in her face, the highness of pride in her 
 
 82 
 
ETA IN 83 
 
 eyebrows, a dimple of delight in each of her cheeks, 
 the light of wooing in her eyes, and when she walked 
 she had a step that was steady and even, like the walk 
 of a queen. 
 
 Of all the women of the world she was the best and 
 the nicest and the most beautiful that had ever been 
 seen, and it is what King Eochaid and his people 
 thought, that she was from the hills of the Sidhe. It is 
 of her it was said, " All are dear and all are shapely till 
 they are put beside Etain." 
 
 Then Eochaid sent his people to bring her to him, 
 and when she came, he said, " Who are you yourself, 
 and where do you come from ? " " It is easy to say 
 that," she said ; " I am Etain, daughter of Etar, king of 
 the Riders of the Sidhe. And I have been in this place 
 ever since I was born, twenty years ago, in a hill of the 
 Sidhe, and kings and great men among them have been 
 asking my love, but they got nothing from me, for since 
 the time I could first speak I have loved yourself, and 
 given you a child's love, because of the great talk I 
 heard of your grandeur. And when I saw you now 
 I knew you by all I had heard of you ; and so I have 
 reached to you at last." 
 
 " It is no bad friend you have been looking for," said 
 Eochaid, " but there will be a welcome before you, and 
 I will leave every other woman for you, and it is with 
 yourself I will live from this out, so long as you keep 
 good behaviour." 
 
 Then he gave her the bride price, and she lived with 
 him till he died. But one time she was brought away 
 from him by Midhir, and Eochaid brought her back 
 by force, and the Sidhe had no good will towards him 
 after that, but brought a revenge on his house, and on 
 his grandson, Conaire. 
 
 They had one daughter, that was called by the same 
 name as her mother, Etain, and that was married to 
 
84 HIGH KING OF IRELAND 
 
 Cormac, king of Ulster. And, like her mother, she had 
 but the one daughter, and there was vexation on 
 Cormac when she had no son, and he bade two of his 
 serving-men to bring the child away out of his sight, 
 and to do away with her. So they brought her to a 
 pit, but when they were putting her in, she smiled a 
 laughing smile at them, and they had not the heart to 
 harm her. So they brought her to a calf-shed belong- 
 ing to the herds that minded the cattle of Eterscel, 
 great-grandson of lar, king of Teamhair ; and they 
 cared her well there, and there was not a king's 
 daughter in Ireland was nicer than herself. And they 
 made a little house of wicker-work for her, with no door, 
 but only a window high up in it. 
 
 King Eterscel's people thought it was provisions the 
 herds used to keep in that house. But one day a man 
 of them got up and looked in through the window, and 
 what he saw was the nicest and the most beautiful 
 young girl of the whole world. 
 
 When King Eterscel heard that, he sent his people 
 to break into the house and to bring her away, and ask 
 no leave of the cowherds. For he had no child, and 
 it is what his Druids had foretold, that it was a woman 
 of unknown race would bear him a son ; and he was 
 sure this was the woman that had been foretold for 
 him. 
 
 But before the king's messengers reached the house 
 in the morning, Etain saw a bird coming in at the 
 window. And when it came in, it left its birdskin on 
 the floor, and what she saw was a man before her. And 
 he said, " The king is sending messengers to bring you 
 to him, that he may have a son. But it is to me you 
 will bear a son, and no bird must ever be killed by him. 
 And his name will be Conaire, son of Mess Buachall, 
 that is, son of the cowherd's foster-child." 
 
 Then she was brought away to the king, and the herds 
 
THEBULLFEAST 85 
 
 that had fostered her went with her, and they all got good 
 treatment. And it is what she asked, when her son 
 Conaire was born, that he might be brought up between 
 three households, the household of her own fosterers, 
 and of the two honey-worded Maines, and her own. 
 And she said that if any of the men of Ireland had a 
 mind to give help in his bringing up, they should give 
 it to those three households. 
 
 So it was like that the boy was reared, and there were 
 five other boys reared along with him, Ferger, Fergel, 
 Ferogain, Ferobain, and Lomna Druth the Fool, of the 
 house of Dond Dessa, the champion of the army from 
 Muclesi. And they all used the same food, and their 
 clothing and their armour and the colour of their horses 
 were the same. 
 
 And after a while King Eterscel died, and there was 
 a bull feast made ready at Teamhair, as the custom 
 was, to find out by it the best man for the kingship. 
 
 It is this way the bull feast was made. A white bull 
 was killed, and one man would eat his fill of the meat 
 and of the broth, and in his sleep after that meal, a 
 charm of truth would be said over him by four Druids. 
 And whoever he would see in his sleep would be king, 
 and he would tell them his appearance ; and if he told 
 what was not true, his lips would perish. And what 
 the dreamer saw in his sleep this time was a young man, 
 and he naked, and having a stone in his sling, passing 
 the road to Teamhair. 
 
 Now just at that time Conaire was out playing games 
 near the Life River with his foster-brothers, and the 
 cowherds that had reared him came and bid him go up 
 to Teamhair to attend the bull feast that was going on 
 there. 
 
 So he left his foster-brothers at their games, and 
 turned his chariot and went on till he came to Ath 
 Cliath. And there he saw great white speckled birds, 
 
86 HIGH KING OF IRELAND 
 
 the best in size and appearance he had ever seen, and 
 he followed after them till his horses were tired, but he 
 could not come up with them, for they always kept just 
 out of his reach. Then he got down from his chariot and 
 took his sling and followed them to the strand, and they 
 went into the sea and were swimming on the waves, 
 and he went after them to take hold of them. Then 
 they left their birdskins, and it was men he saw 
 before him, and they turning to face him with spears 
 and swords. 
 
 But one of them took him under his protection and 
 said, " I am Nemglan, king of your father's birds, and 
 there was a command put on you never to make a cast 
 at birds, for there is not one here but should be dear 
 to you." " I never knew of that command till this day," 
 said Conaire. Then Nemglan said, " What you have 
 to do is to go to Teamhair to-night, to the bull feast, 
 and it is through it you will be made king, for it is a 
 man that will go naked, and having a sling and a stone 
 in his hand, along one of the roads to Teamhair, towards 
 the end of the night, that will be king. 
 
 " And your bird reign will be great," he said. " But 
 there is geasa^ that is a bond, on you not to do these 
 things : 
 
 " Do not go righthandwise round Teamhair, and 
 lefthandwise round Bregia ; do not hunt the evil 
 beasts of Cerna ; do not go out beyond Teamhair 
 every ninth night ; do not settle the quarrel of two 
 of your own people ; let no robbery be done in your 
 reign ; do not sleep in a house you can see the firelight 
 shining from after sunset ; do not let one woman or 
 one man come into the house where you are after 
 sunset ; do not let three Reds go before you to the 
 House of Red." 
 
 Then Conaire set out for Teamhair, naked, and 
 having a stone in his sling. And on every one of 
 
CONA I RE'S REIGN 87 
 
 the four roads to Teamhair there were three kings 
 waiting, and having clothing with them, for the king 
 that was foretold. And when the three kings on 
 Conaire's road saw him coming, they met him, and 
 put royal clothes on him, and brought him in a 
 chariot to Teamhair. But the people of Teamhair 
 said when they saw him : " Our bull feast and our 
 charm of truth were not worth much, when it is only 
 a young, beardless lad they have brought us ! " 
 
 " That is no matter," said Conaire, " for it is no dis- 
 grace for you to have a young king, when my father 
 and my grandfather held the same place." "That is 
 true," they all said then, and they gave him the king- 
 ship, and he said, " I will learn of wise men, that I 
 myself may be wise." 
 
 Now there was great plenty in Ireland through his 
 reign ; seven ships coming at the one time to Inver 
 Colptha, and corn and nuts up to the knees in every 
 harvest, and the trees bending from the weight of fruit, 
 and the Buais and the Boinne full of fish every summer, 
 and that much law and peace and good-will among the 
 people, that each one thought the other's voice as sweet 
 as the strings of harps. And the wolves themselves were 
 held by hostages not to kill more than one calf in every pen. 
 There was no thunder or storm in his reign, and from 
 spring to harvest there was not as much wind as would 
 stir a cow's tail, and the cattle were without keepers 
 because of the greatness of peace. And in his reign 
 there were the three crowns in Ireland, the crown of 
 flowers, the crown of acorns, and the crown of 
 wheatears. 
 
 But after a while there began to be discontent on the 
 sons of Donn Dessa, because they were hindered from 
 the robbery and killing there used to be in the old 
 time. And to' vex the king, and to see what would he 
 do, they stole three things, a pig and a bullock and a 
 
88 HIGH KING OF IRELAND 
 
 cow, from the same man every year for three years. 
 And every year the countryman would come to the 
 king to make his complaint, and every year the king 
 would say, " It is to the sons of Donn Dessa you 
 should go, for it is they took the beasts." But when- 
 ever he would go and speak to them, they would go 
 near to kill him, and he would not go back to the king 
 for fear he might be vexed. 
 
 So the sons of Donn Dessa went on with their 
 robbery, and three times fifty other young men joined 
 with them, sons of the great men of Ireland. 
 
 But one time they went doing their bad work in 
 Connaught, and they followed a swineherd that ran 
 from them, and he called out for help, and the people 
 gathered to him, and the robbers were taken and 
 brought back to Teamhair. 
 
 King Conaire was asked to give judgment then, and 
 it is what he said, " Let every father of a robber put his 
 own son to death, but let my foster-brothers be spared." 
 " Give us leave," said all the people, " and we will put 
 them to death for you." " I will not consent to that, 
 indeed," said Conaire. '' Their life must be spared. 
 But if they must do robbery," he said, " let them go 
 across the sea, and do it on the men of Alban." 
 
 So the sons of Donn Dessa and their men were 
 driven out of the country, and some of the Maines went 
 with them, the sons of Ailell and Maeve, and three 
 great fighting men of Leinster, that were called the 
 Three Red Hounds of Cualu, and they brought a troop 
 of wild restless men with them. 
 
 They set out then in their ships, and when they were 
 out on the rough sea, they met with the ship of Ingcel, 
 the One-Eyed, grandson of Cormac of Britain. They 
 were going to make an attack on him, but Ingcel said, 
 " It would be best for us to come to an agreement 
 together, for you have been driven out of Ireland, and I 
 
CONAIRE BREAKS HIS BONDS 89 
 
 myself have been driven out from Britain. Let us make 
 this agreement," he said. " Let you come and spoil the 
 people of my country, and then I will go back with 
 you and spoil the people of your country." 
 
 So they agreed to that, and they cast lots as to where 
 they would go first, and it is how the lot fell, that they 
 should go first to Britain with Ingcel. And when they 
 got there it chanced that the father and mother and the 
 seven brothers of Ingcel had been sent for to the house 
 of the king of the district, and Ingcel and his comrades 
 made an attack on them, and killed them all in the one 
 night. 
 
 Then they made for Alban, and there they did every 
 sort of destruction and robbery. And at last they 
 turned back again to Ireland, that Ingcel might spoil 
 their people the same way as they had spoiled his. 
 
 Now just at that time peace was after being broken 
 in Ireland by the two Carbres that were at war with 
 one another in Tuathmumain of Munster, and no one 
 was able to put an end to their quarrel till Conaire 
 himself went there to make peace. And he did that, 
 although by doing it he broke two of the bonds put on 
 him by the Man of the Waves. And on his way back 
 to Teamhair, when he was passing Usnach in Meath, 
 he and his people thought they saw fighting from east 
 to west, and from north to south, and armies of naked 
 men, and the country of the Ua Neills like a cloud of 
 fire around them. 
 
 " What is that ? " said Conaire. " It is easy to know 
 that," said his people. " The king's law has broken 
 down, and the country is on fire." " What way had we 
 best go ? " said Conaire. " To the north-west," said his 
 people. 
 
 So then they went righthandways round Teamhair, 
 and lefthandways round Bregia, and that was another 
 breaking of his bonds, and they met with beasts and 
 
90 HIGH KING OF IRELAND 
 
 hunted them, and he did not know till afterwards that 
 they were the evil beasts of Cerna. 
 
 And it was the Sidhe had made that Druid mist of 
 smoke about him, because he had begun to break his 
 bonds. 
 
 Great fear came on Conaire then, and he did not 
 know what way would be best to go, and they went 
 on by the sea-coast, towards the south by the road of 
 Cualu. And then Conaire said, " Where shall we go to 
 spend the night ? " 
 
 " I can say this truly," said Mac Cecht, one of his 
 fighting men, he that kept three of the Fomor as hostages 
 at the king's court, the way their people would not spoil 
 corn or milk in Ireland through his reign ; " it is oftener 
 the men of Ireland have been quarrelling to have you 
 in the house, than you have been straying about, look- 
 ing for a lodging." " I have a friend not far from this," 
 said Conaire, " if we but knew the way to his house." 
 " What is his name ? " said Mac Cecht. " Da Derga of 
 Leinster, that keeps the great Inn," said Conaire. " He 
 came to ask a gift of me, and it is not a refusal he met 
 with. I gave him a hundred head of cattle, I gave him 
 a hundred fat swine, I gave him a hundred cloaks of 
 fine cloth, I gave him a hundred swords and spears, I 
 gave him a hundred red-gilded brooches, I gave him 
 ten vats of good brown ale, I gave him three times 
 nine white hounds in silver chains, I gave him a 
 hundred swift horses. I would give him the same if 
 he would come again. He will make a return to me 
 to-night, for it would be a strange thing, he to begrudge 
 me anything when I come to his house." 
 
 " When I knew his house," said Mac Cecht, " the 
 road we are in now led straight to it. Seven doorways 
 there are in it, and seven sleeping-rooms between every 
 two doorways." " We will go to the house with all our 
 people," said Conaire. "If that is so," said Mac Cecht, 
 
THETHREEREDMEN 91 
 
 " I will go on first till I light a fire in the house before 
 you." 
 
 They went on then towards Ath Cliath, and pre- 
 sently a man with hair cut short, with a dreadful 
 appearance, with but one hand and one foot and one 
 eye, overtook them. A forked pole of black iron he had 
 in his hand, and on his back a black-bristled singed 
 pig, and it squealing ; and there was a woman coming 
 after him, ugly and big-mouthed. " Welcome to you, 
 my master, Conaire," he said. " It is long we have 
 known of your coming." " Who gives that welcome ? " 
 said Conaire. " Fer Coille, the Man of the Wood," he 
 said, " and his black pig with him, that you may not be 
 fasting to-night, for you are the best king that ever came 
 into the world." " Leave me for to-night," said Conaire, 
 "and I will go to you any other night that pleases 
 you." " We will not," said he ; " but we will go to the 
 place you will be in to-night, O fair little master, 
 Conaire." 
 
 So he went on towards the Inn, and his wife behind 
 him, and his black pig squealing on his back. 
 
 After that Conaire saw before him three horsemen 
 going towards the Inn. Red cloaks they had, and red 
 shields, and red spears in their hands, and they riding 
 on red horses. 
 
 "What men are these before me?" said Conaire. "It 
 is in my bonds not to let them go before me ; three 
 Reds to the House of Red, that is, of Derga. Who will 
 follow them and bid them to come back and to follow 
 after me ? " "I will follow them," said Lefriflaith, 
 Conaire's son. 
 
 So he struck his horse and went after them, but he 
 could not come up with them. So he called to them 
 to turn back, and not to go on before the king. And 
 he did this three times, and the third time one of the 
 three men turned his head and said, " There is great 
 
92 HIGH KING OF IRELAND 
 
 news before us, my son ; wetting of swords, destroying 
 of life, shields with broken bosses, after the fall of night. 
 Our horses are tired ; we are riding the horses of the 
 Sidhe ; although we are alive we are dead." And with 
 that they went from him, and he went back to his 
 father. 
 
 " You did not keep back the men," said Conaire. " It 
 was not my fault, indeed," said Lefriflaith. Then he 
 told the answer they had given him, and Conaire and 
 his people were not well pleased to hear that, and 
 uneasiness came on them. " All my bonds are ended 
 to-night," said Conaire, " and those three Reds before 
 me are sent by the Sidhe." 
 
 Now while he and his people were in the road of 
 Cualu going towards the Inn, Ingcel and the outlaws 
 of Ireland were come in their ships to the coast of 
 Bregia against Etair. And the sons of Donn Dessa 
 said, " Strike the sails now, and let some light-footed 
 messenger go on shore and see can we keep our 
 bargain with Ingcel, and give him a spoil for the spoil 
 he gave us." " Let some man go," said Ingcel, " that 
 has the gift of hearing and of far sight and of 
 judgment." 
 
 " I have the gift of hearing," said Maine Milscothach. 
 " I have the gift of far sight and of judgment," said 
 Maine Andoe. " It is as well for you to go, so," said 
 the others. 
 
 So they landed and went on till they came to Beinn 
 Etair, and they stopped there to try what they might 
 see and hear. " Be quiet now," said Maine Milscothach, 
 " and listen." " What do you hear ? " said Maine 
 Andoe. " I hear the coming of a king," he said, 
 " and look now and tell me what you see." " I see," 
 he said, " a great company of men, travelling over 
 hills and rivers. Clothes of every colour they have, 
 and grey spears over their chariots, and swords with 
 
THELONEWOMAN 93 
 
 ivory hilts beside them, and silver shields ; and I swear 
 by the oath my people swear by," he said, "the horses 
 they have with them are the horses of some good lord. 
 And it is my opinion that it is Conaire, son of Eterscel, 
 and a good share of the men of Ireland with him, that 
 is travelling the road." 
 
 With that they went back and told their comrades 
 what they had heard and seen. And when they 
 heard it they brought the boats to shore and landed 
 on the strand of Furbuithe. And it was just at the 
 same moment Mac Cecht was striking a spark to kindle 
 a fire at the Inn before the High King. 
 
 Then Conaire came to the lawn of the Inn, and he 
 went in, and his people, and they took their seats, 
 and the three Red Men sat down along with them, and 
 the Man of the Wood that was a swineherd of the Sidhe 
 with his squealing pig. 
 
 And Da Derga came to them with three times fifty 
 fighting men, every one of them having a long head 
 of hair and a short cloak and a great blackthorn stick 
 with bands of iron in his hand. " Welcome, my master, 
 Conaire," said Da Derga, " and if you were to bring 
 the whole of the men of Ireland with you, there would 
 be a welcome before them all." 
 
 After the fall of evening they saw a lone woman 
 coming to the door of the Inn ; long hair she had, and 
 a grey woollen cloak, and her mouth was drawn to 
 one side of her head. She came and leaned up against 
 the doorpost, and she threw an evil eye on the king 
 and the young men about him. "Well, woman," said 
 Conaire, " if you have the Druid sight, what is it you 
 see for us ? " " It is what I see for you," she said, 
 " that nothing of your skin or of your flesh will escape 
 from the place you are in, except what the birds will 
 bring away in their claws. And let me come into the 
 house now," she said. " There are bonds on me," said 
 
94 HIGH KING OF IRELAND 
 
 Conaire, " not to let one woman come by herself into 
 the house after the setting of the sun. And bring her 
 out," he said, " a good share of food from my own 
 table, but let her stop for the night in some other place." 
 
 "If the king's hospitality is gone from him," she 
 said, " and if it is the way with him not to have room in 
 his house for one lone woman to be fed and lodged, 
 I will go and get food and lodging from some better 
 man." " Let her in, in spite of my bonds," said Conaire, 
 when he heard that. So they let her in, but none of 
 them felt easy in their minds after what she had said. 
 
 Now all this time the outlaws were on their way 
 to the Inn, and they stopped at Leccaibcend Slebe. 
 And when they saw the great light that was shining 
 from the Inn through the wheels of the chariots that 
 were outside the doors, Ingcel said to Ferogain, " What 
 is that great light beyond?" "It is what I think," 
 said Ferogain, " that it is the fire of Conaire, the High 
 King. And I would be glad he not to be there to- 
 night, for it would be a pity if harm would come on 
 him, or his life be shortened, for he is a branch in its 
 blossom." 
 
 " It is good luck for me," said Ingcel, "if he is there. 
 Spoil for spoil. It is no worse for you than it was for 
 me when I gave up my father and mother and my 
 seven brothers and the king of my country into your 
 hands." " That is true, that is true," said all the others. 
 
 Then every man of them brought up a stone from 
 the strand to make a cairn, as they were used to do 
 before they would make an attack on any place, to 
 know by it afterwards how many men they had lost. 
 For every man that would come from the fight would 
 take his stone from the cairn, and the stones of all 
 that would be killed would be left there. 
 
 After that they held a council, and it is what they 
 agreed, that one man should go and spy out what way 
 
INGCEL'S REPORT 95 
 
 things were at the Inn. And it was Ingcel himself 
 went to do that, and he was a good while looking in 
 by the seven doors of the house, but at last some one 
 of the men inside caught sight of him, and he made 
 his way back to his comrades, where they were all 
 sitting down, and their leaders in the middle, waiting 
 to hear his news. 
 
 " Did you see the house, Ingcel ? " said Ferogain. " I 
 did see it," said Ingcel ; " and whether or not there is a 
 king in it, it is a royal house, and I will take it as my 
 share when the time comes." " You may do that," said 
 Conaire's foster-brothers. " But we will not go against 
 it before we know who is in it." 
 
 "The first I saw," said Ingcel, "was a large man, of 
 good race, with bright eyes, with hair like flax ; his face 
 open, wide above and narrow below ; with modest looks, 
 and having no beard. A five-barbed spear in his hand, 
 and a shield with five gold circles on it. Nine men he 
 had about him, all beautiful and all alike, so that you 
 would think they had the one father and mother. Who 
 were those men, Ferogain ? " he said. 
 
 " It is easy to say that," said Ferogain. " That was 
 Cormac Conloingeas, son of Conchubar, the best fighter 
 behind a shield in all Ireland, but he is modest with all 
 that. And those were his nine comrades about him ; 
 they have never put men to death because of their 
 poverty, or spared them because of their riches. He is 
 a good leader they have with them. I swear by the 
 gods my people swear by, it is no small slaughter they 
 will make before the Inn to-night." 
 
 " It is a pity for him that will make the attack," said 
 Lomna Druth, the Fool, "because of that man only, 
 Cormac Conloingeas. And if I had my way," he said, 
 " the attack would not be made, for the sake of that man 
 alone and his beauty and his goodness." 
 
 "You will not be able to hinder it, Lomna," said 
 
96 HIGH KING OF IRELAND 
 
 Ingcel. '• You are no go-^a. of a fighter ; I know you 
 weii, there are clouds of weakness coming on yoiL Xo 
 one, whether old man or stoiy-teiler, vi-ill be able to say 
 I drew back from this fight before I had gone through 
 with it" 
 
 " It is well enough for you, Ingcel," said Lomna ; 
 " you will escape after the fight, and you will bring away 
 the head of a strange king v^-ith you, but as for myself,** 
 he said, " it is my head will be the first to be tossed to 
 and fro to-night" 
 
 " What did you see after that ? " said Ferogain. 
 
 " I saw a room with three soft young boys in it 
 and they wearing cloaks of silk with gold brooches. 
 Long jellow hair they had, as curly as a ram's head ; a 
 golden shield and a candle of a king's house over each 
 of them, and ever\- one in the house humours them- 
 Who were those, Ferogain ? " he said 
 
 But Ferogain was cr>'ing tears down, so that the front 
 of his cloak ^-as wet, and it was a long time before he 
 could bring out his voice, '* O little ones,*' he said then, 
 " I have good reason for crying. Those are the three 
 sons of the king, Oball and Obline and Corpre 
 Findmor." 
 
 " There is grief on us if that story is true," said the 
 other sons of Donn Dessa ; " for it is good those three 
 are. They are as mannerl}- as young girls, and they have 
 the hearts of brothers, and the courage of lions. Who- 
 ever has been \^-ith them and parts from them, it is little 
 he sleeps or eats till the end of nine days, fretting after 
 their company. It is a pit>' for him that will destroy 
 them." 
 
 " I saw after that," said Ingcel, " a very fair man, 
 ha\-ing a golden bush of hair, the size of a reaping 
 basket A long, hea\y three-edged sword in his hand, 
 a red shield speckled with rivets of white bronze between 
 plates of gold." 
 
CELTHAIR'S SPEAR 97 
 
 " That man is known to all the men of Ireland," said 
 Ferogain. " It is Conall Cearnach, son of Amergin, and 
 he is the man Conaire thinks most of in the world ; and 
 that shield in his hand is the Lam-tapaid. There are 
 seven doorways in that inn, and when the attack is 
 made, Conall Cearnach will be at every one of them. 
 What did you see after that, Ingcel ? " he said. 
 
 " I saw," he said, " a brown big man, with short brown 
 hair and a red speckled cloak, and a black shield with 
 clasps of gold ; and with him two chief men, in their 
 first greyness, and black swords at their sides. And one 
 of them had in his hand a great spear, with fifty rivets 
 through it, and he shook it over his head, and struck the 
 haft against the palm of his hand three times, and then he 
 plunged it into a great pot that stood before them, with 
 some black thing in it, and when he was putting it in 
 there were flames on the shaft. Who were those men, 
 Ferogain ? " 
 
 " That brown man is Muinremar, son of Geirgind, 
 one of the champions of the Red Branch. And another 
 is Sencha, the beautiful son of Ailell ; and the man with 
 the spear is Dubthach, the Beetle of Ulster, and the 
 spear in his hand is Celthair's Luin, that was in the 
 battle of Magh Tuireadh, and that was brought from 
 the east by the three children of Tuireann, and when a 
 battle is coming near, it flames up of itself, and it must 
 be kept quenched in a vessel, or it will go through who- 
 ever has it in his hand." 
 
 " I saw after that," said Ingcel, " a room with nine 
 men in it, fair-haired and beautiful, with speckled cloaks, 
 and above them were nine bagpipes, and light was 
 shining from the ornaments that were on them." 
 
 " Those are the nine pipers that came to Conaire out 
 of the hill of the Sidhe at Bregia," said Ferogain, " because 
 of the great stories about him. The best pipers they are 
 in the whole world. And they are good fighters, but to 
 
 G 
 
98 HIGH KING OF IRELAND 
 
 fight with them is to fight with a shadow, for they kill 
 but cannot be killed, because they are from the Sidhe." 
 
 " I saw after that," said Ingcel, " three very big men, 
 with terrible looks. A dress of rough hair they had, 
 and a club of iron with chains on it in every man's 
 hand. There was sadness on them, and they standing 
 alone, and every one in the house avoiding them. Who 
 were those, Ferogain ? " 
 
 Ferogain was silent for a while, and he said then, 
 " I do not know of any such men in the world, unless 
 they might be the three giants Cuchulain spared, the 
 time he took them from the men of Falga, he would 
 not let them be killed because of their strangeness ; 
 Conaire bought them from Cuchulain after that, so it is 
 along with him they are." 
 
 " I saw nine men in the north side of the house," said 
 Ingcel, " having very yellow manes of hair, and short 
 linen dresses, and purple cloaks without brooches ; 
 broad spears, and red curved shields." 
 
 " I know those men," said Ferogain ; " three royal 
 princes of Britain that are with the king, Oswald and 
 his two foster-brothers, Osbrit of the Long Hand and 
 his two foster-brothers, Lindas and his two foster- 
 brothers." 
 
 "Three red men I saw after that," said Ingcel; "red 
 shields above them, red spears in their hands, their 
 three red horses in their bridles in front of the Inn." 
 
 " Those are the three champions that did deceit and 
 falsehood among the Sidhe," said Ferogain, " and it is* the 
 punishment was put on them by the king of the Sidhe, 
 to be three times destroyed by the King of Teamhair ; 
 and Conaire is the last king through whom they will 
 be destroyed ; yet they will not be killed, nor will they 
 kill any one. It is to work out their own destruction 
 they are come." 
 
 " I saw after that," said Ingcel, " a big man, and his 
 
CONAIRE THE KING 99 
 
 hair white, and the shame of baldness on him, and gold 
 earrings in his ears. Nine swords he had in his hand, 
 and nine silver shields, and nine golden apples. He 
 was throwing each of them upwards, and not one would 
 fall on the ground, but each of them rising and falling 
 past each other like bees on a sunny day. But as I 
 looked at him, he let all fall to the ground, and the 
 people about him cried out, and the king that was 
 sitting there said to him, 'We have been together 
 since I was a little boy, and your tricks never failed 
 till to-night' 
 
 "< My grief!' he said. 'Fair master, Conaire, I have 
 good cause for it ; an unfriendly eye looked at me ; 
 there is some bad thing in front of the Inn.' 
 
 " And when the king heard that, it is what he said : 
 * I had a dream in my sleep a while ago, of the howl- 
 ing of my dog Ossar, of wounded men, of a wind of 
 terror, of keening that overcame laughter.' " 
 
 " That was Taulchinne, Conaire's juggler," said 
 Ferogain. " And tell me now," he said, " what was 
 the appearance of the king?" 
 
 " Of all the men I ever saw in the world," said Ingcel, 
 " he is the best in shape, and the most beautiful ; young 
 he is, and wise and kinglike. The colour of his hair 
 was like the shining of purified gold ; the cloak about 
 him was like the mist of a May morning, changing from 
 colour to colour, every colour more beautiful than 
 another ; a wheel brooch of gold reaching from his 
 chin to his waist ; his golden-hilted sword within his 
 reach." 
 
 "That was Conaire, the High King, indeed," said 
 Ferogain ; " and it is he is the greatest and the best 
 and the comeliest of the kings of the whole world, 
 and there is no fault in him, either as to wisdom or 
 bravery or knowledge or words or worthiness. Tender 
 he is, a sleepy, simple man, till he chances on some 
 
loo HIGH KING OF IRELAND 
 
 brave thing to do, but when his anger is awaked, the 
 champions of Ireland and of Scotland will not win 
 their battle so long as he is against them. And I 
 swear by the oath my people swear by, unless drink 
 should fail him, or the like, that man alone would hold 
 the Inn till help would gather to him from the Wave of 
 Cliodna in the south, to the Wave of Essruadh in the 
 north." 
 
 "It is time for us to rise up," said Ingcel then, "and 
 to get on to the house." 
 
 So with that the outlaws rose up and went on to 
 the Inn, and the noise of their voices was heard about it. 
 
 " Be quiet now and listen," said Conaire. " What is 
 that we hear ? " 
 
 " Fighting men about the house," said Conall Cearnach. 
 " There are fighting men to meet them here," said 
 Conaire. " They will be wanted to-night," said Conall. 
 
 Then Lomna Druth, the Fool, broke in first to the 
 house, and the doorkeepers struck off his head, and it 
 was tossed three times in and out of the Inn, just as 
 he himself had foretold. 
 
 Then they all attacked one another,and Conaire himself 
 went out with his people and killed a great many of the 
 outlaws outside. And three times the Inn was set on 
 fire, and three times it was put out again. And Conaire 
 got to his arms then, for he had not got them in the 
 first attack, and he went out again and made a great 
 slaughter, so that the outlaws were driven back. " I 
 told you," said Ferogain, "that all the men of Ireland 
 and of Alban could not take the house till Conaire's rage 
 would be quenched." " It is short his time will be," said 
 the Druids that were along with the outlaws. And what 
 they put on him by their enchantments was a great 
 thirst, so that he went back to the house and called 
 for a drink. '' A drink to me, Mac Cecht," he said. 
 " That is not the order you are used to give me," said 
 
CONAIRE'S DEATH loi 
 
 Mac Cecht. " What I have to do is to keep you from 
 the men that are attacking you all round the house ; 
 ask a drink of your steward and of your cup-bearers," he 
 said. 
 
 Then Conaire called to his cup-bearers for a drink. 
 " There is none," they said, " for every drop in the house 
 was thrown on the fire to put it out." " Get me a drink, 
 Mac Cecht," he said again then ; " for if I am to die, 
 it is all the same to me by what death I die." 
 
 Then Mac Cecht gave a choice to the champions of 
 Ireland that were in the house, would they go out and 
 look for a drink for Conaire, or would they stop in the 
 house and defend him. And Conall Cearnach called 
 out : " Leave the defence of the king to us, and go 
 you and look for the drink, for it was of you it was 
 asked." And he was vexed with Mac Cecht for putting 
 the choice to them, and there was never a very friendly 
 feeling between them afterwards. 
 
 Then Mac Cecht went to look for a drink, and he 
 brought Conaire's great golden cup with him, and an 
 iron spit, the cauldron spit, in his other hand. 
 
 He burst out on the outlaws, and attacked them with 
 blows of the spit, so that many got their death ; and 
 then he took his shield and made a round with his sword 
 above his head, and cut down all before him, and got 
 through the whole band. 
 
 And it would be too long to tell, and it would tire the 
 hearers, all that happened after that ; the people of the 
 Inn coming out and making attacks, and some of them 
 getting their death, and the most part making their 
 escape. And at last there were none left in the Inn 
 with Conaire but Conall, and Sencha, and Dubthach. 
 
 Now from the rage that was on Conaire, and the 
 greatness of the fight he had fought, a great drouth 
 came on him again, and such a fever of thirst, and no 
 drink to get, that he died of it in the end. 
 
102 HIGH KING OF IRELAND 
 
 Then the other three, when they saw the High King 
 was dead, went out and cut their way through their 
 enemies, and got away with their lives, but if they did, 
 they were wounded, and hurt, and broken. 
 
 And Conall Cearnach, after he got away, went on to 
 his father's house, and but half his shield left in his 
 hand, and a few bits left of his two spears. And he 
 found Amergin, his father, out before his dun in 
 Tailltin. 
 
 "Those are fierce wolves that have hunted you, my 
 son," said he. "It was not wolves that wounded me, 
 but a sharp fight with fighting-men," said Conall. 
 " Have you news from Da Derga's Inn ? " said Amergin. 
 " Is your lord living ? " " He is not living," said Conall. 
 " I swear b}' the gods the great tribes of Ulster swear 
 by, the man is a coward that came out alive, leaving 
 his lord dead among his enemies," said Amergin. " My 
 own wounds are not white, old hero," said Conall. And 
 with that he showed him his right arm, that was full 
 of wounds. " That arm fought there, my son," said 
 Amergin. "That is true," said Conall. "There are 
 many in front of the Inn now it gave drinks of death 
 to last night" 
 
 Now, as to Mac Cecht, after he got away from the 
 Inn, he went on to the well of Casair, that was near 
 him in Crith Cualann, but he could not find so much 
 as the full of the cup of water in it. Then he went on 
 through the night, from lake to lake, and from river to 
 river, but he could not find the full of the cup of water in 
 any one of them. But at last he came to Uaran Garad 
 on Magh Ai, and it could not hide itself from him, and 
 he filled the cup, and went back again, and reached 
 Da Dergas Inn before morning. And when he got 
 there, he saw two men, and they striking oflf Conaire's 
 head ; and Mac Cecht struck oflf the head of one of 
 them, and then the other man was going away with 
 
THE END OF CONAIRE 103 
 
 the king's head, and he took up a stone and threw it at 
 him, that it broke his back. 
 
 Then Mac Cecht stooped down and poured the water 
 into Conaire's mouth and his throat. And when the 
 water was poured in, the head spoke and it said : " A 
 good man Mac Cecht is, a good man, a good champion 
 without and within. He gives drink, he saves a king, 
 he does a deed ; it is well he fought at the door, it is 
 well he made an end of fighting men. It is good I 
 would be, and I alive, to Mac Cecht of the great name." 
 
 And it was after that, Mac Cecht brought the body of 
 the High King on his back to Teamhair, and buried 
 him there as some say. And he himself went to his 
 own country, into Connaught. And the place he 
 stopped in was called, from his sharp grief, Magh 
 Bron-gear. 
 
 And there was no High King chosen to rule over 
 Ireland for a good many years after that. 
 
VII 
 FATE OF THE SONS OF USNACH 
 
 "\TO\V it was one Fcdlimid, son of Doll, was harper 
 '^ to King Conchubar, and he had but one child, 
 
 and this is the story of her birth. 
 
 Cathbad, the Druid, was at Fedlimid's house one day. 
 " Have you got knowledge of the future ? " said 
 Fedlimid. " I have a little," said Cathbad. " What is 
 it you are wanting to know?" "I was not asking to 
 know anything," said Fedlimid, " but if you know of 
 anything that may be going to happen me, it is as 
 well for you to tell me." 
 
 Cathbad went out of the house for a while, and 
 when he came back he said : " Had you ever any 
 children?" "I never had," said Fedlimid, "and the 
 wife I have had none, and we have no hope ever to 
 have any ; there is no one with us but only myself 
 and my wife." " That puts wonder on me," said 
 Cathbad, " for I see by Druid signs that it is on account 
 of a daughter belonging to you, that more blood will 
 be shed than ever was shed in Ireland since time and 
 race began. And great heroes and bright candles of 
 the Gael will lose their lives because of her." " Is that 
 the foretelling you have made for me ? " said Fedlimid, 
 and there was anger on him, for he thought the Druid 
 was mocking him ; " if that is all you can say, you can 
 keep it for yourself; it is little I think of your share 
 
 104 
 
BIRTH OF DEIRDRE 105 
 
 of knowledge." " For all that/' said Cathbad, " I am 
 certain of its truth, for I can see it all clearly in my 
 own mind." 
 
 The Druid went away, but he was not long gone 
 when Fedlimid's wife was found to be with child. And 
 as her time went on, his vexation went on growing, that 
 he had not asked more questions of Cathbad, at the time 
 he was talking to him, and he was under a smoulder- 
 ing care by day and by night, for it is what he was 
 thinking, that neither his own sense and understanding, 
 or the share of friends he had, would be able to save 
 him, or to make a back against the world, if this mis- 
 fortune should come upon him, that would bring such 
 great shedding of blood upon the earth ; and it is the 
 thought that came, that if this child should be born, 
 what he had to do was to put her far away, where no 
 eye would see her, and no ear hear word of her. 
 
 The time of the delivery of Fedlimid's wife came on, 
 and it was a girl-child she gave birth to. Fedlimid did 
 not allow any living person to come to the house or to 
 see his wife, but himself alone. 
 
 But just after the child was born, Cathbad, the Druid, 
 came in again, and there was shame on Fedlimid when 
 he saw him, and when he remembered how he would 
 not believe his words. But the Druid looked at the 
 child and he said : " Let Deirdre be her name ; harm will 
 come through her. 
 
 " She will be fair, comely, bright-haired ; heroes will 
 fight for her, and kings go seeking for her." 
 
 And then he took the child in his arms, and it is what 
 he said : " O Deirdre, on whose account many shall weep, 
 on whose account many women shall be envious, there 
 will be trouble on Ulster for your sake, O fair daughter 
 of Fedlimid. 
 
 "Many will be jealous of your face, O flame of 
 beauty ; for your sake heroes shall go to exile. For 
 
io6 FATE OF THE SONS OF USNACH 
 
 your sake deeds of anger shall be done in Emain ; 
 there is harm in your face, for it will bring banishment 
 and death on the sons of kings. 
 
 " In your fate, O beautiful child, are wounds, and ill- 
 doings, and shedding of blood. 
 
 "You will have a little grave apart to yourself; you 
 will be a tale of wonder for ever, Deirdre." 
 
 Cathbad went away then, and he sent Levarcham, 
 daughter of Aedh, to the house ; and Fedlimid asked 
 her would she take the venture of bringing up the 
 child, far away where no eye would see her, and no 
 ear hear of her. Levarcham said she would do that, 
 and that she would do her best to keep her the way he 
 wished. 
 
 So Fedlimid got his men, and brought them away 
 with him to a mountain, wide and waste, and there he 
 bade them to make a little house, by the side of a round 
 green hillock, and to make a garden of apple-trees 
 behind it, with a wall about it. And he bade them put 
 a roof of green sods over the house, the way a little 
 company might live in it, without notice being taken of 
 them. 
 
 Then he sent Levarcham and the child there, that no 
 eye might see, and no ear hear of Deirdre. He put 
 all in good order before them, and he gave them pro- 
 visions, and he told Levarcham that food and all she 
 wanted would be sent from year to year as long as she 
 lived. 
 
 And so Deirdre and her foster-mother lived in the 
 lonely place among the hills without the knowledge 
 or the notice of any strange person, until Deirdre was 
 fourteen years of age. And Deirdre grew straight and 
 clean like a rush on the bog, and she was comely 
 beyond comparison of all the women of the world, and 
 her movements were like the swan on the wave, or the 
 deer on the hill. She was the young girl of the 
 
THE HUNTER'S DREAM 107 
 
 greatest beauty and of the gentlest nature of all the 
 women of Ireland. 
 
 Levarcham, that had charge of her, used to be giving 
 Deirdre every knowledge and skill that she had herself 
 There was not a blade of grass growing from root, or a 
 bird singing in the wood, or a star shining from heaven, 
 but Deirdre had the name of it. But there was one 
 thing she would not have her know, she would not let 
 her have friendship with any living person of the rest of 
 the world outside their own house. 
 
 But one dark night of winter, with black clouds over- 
 head, a hunter came walking the hills, and it is what 
 happened, he missed the track of the hunt, and lost his 
 way and his comrades. 
 
 And a heaviness came upon him, and he lay down on 
 the side of the green hillock by Deirdre's house. He 
 was weak with hunger and going, and perished with cold, 
 and a deep sleep came upon him. While he was lying 
 there a dream came to the hunter, and he thought that 
 he was near the warmth of a house of the Sidhe, and 
 the Sidhe inside making music, and he called out in his 
 dream, " If there is any one inside, let them bring me in, 
 in the name of the Sun and the Moon." Deirdre heard 
 the voice, and she said to Levarcham, " Mother, mother, 
 what is that ? " But Levarcham said, " It is nothing 
 that matters ; it is the birds of the air gone astray, and 
 trying to find one another. But let them go back to the 
 branches of the wood." Another troubled dream came 
 on the hunter, and he cried out a second time. " What is 
 that ? " asked Deirdre again. " It is nothing that matters," 
 said Levarcham. " The birds of the air are looking for 
 one another ; let them go past to the branches of the 
 wood." Then a third dream came to the hunter, and 
 he cried out a third time, if there was any one in the hill 
 to let him in for the sake of the Elements, for he was 
 perished with cold and overcome with hunger. " Oh ! 
 
io8 FATE OFTHE SONS OF USNACH 
 
 what is that, Levarcham ? " said Deirdre. " There is 
 nothing there for you to see, my child, but only the birds 
 of the air, and they lost to one another, but let them go 
 past us to the branches of the wood. There is no place 
 or shelter for them here to-night." " Oh, mother," said 
 Deirdre, " the bird asked to come in for the sake of the 
 Sun and the Moon, and it is what you yourself told me, 
 that anything that is asked like that, it is right for us to 
 give it. If you will not let in the bird that is perished 
 with cold and overcome with hunger, I myself will let it 
 in." So Deirdre rose up and drew the bolt from the 
 leaf of the door, and let in the hunter. She put a seat 
 in the place for sitting, food in the place for eating, and 
 drink in the place for drinking, for the man who had 
 come into the house. " Come now and eat food, for you 
 are in want of it," said Deirdre. " Indeed it is I was in 
 want of food and drink and warmth when I came into 
 this house ; but by my word, I have forgotten that since 
 I saw yourself," said the hunter. " How little you are 
 able to curb your tongue," said Levarcham. " It is not 
 a great thing for you to keep your tongue quiet when 
 you get the shelter of a house and the warmth of a 
 hearth on a dark winter night." " That is so," said the 
 hunter, " I may do that much, to keep my mouth shut ; 
 but I swear by the oath my people swear by, if some 
 others of the people of the world saw this great beauty 
 that is hidden away here, they would not leave her long 
 with you." " What people are those ? " said Deirdre. " I 
 will tell you that," said the hunter ; " they are Naoise, 
 son of Usnach, and Ainnle and Ardan, his two brothers." 
 " What is the appearance of these men, if we should ever 
 see them ? " said Deirdre. " This is the appearance that 
 is on those three men," said the hunter : *' the colour of 
 the raven is on their hair, their skin is like the swan on 
 the wave, their cheeks like the blood of the speckled 
 red calf, and their swiftness and their leap are like the 
 
CONCHUBAR HEARS OF DEIRDRE 109 
 
 salmon of the stream and like the deer of the grey 
 mountain ; and the head and shoulders of Naoise are 
 above all the other men of Ireland." " However they 
 may be," said Levarcham, " get you out from here, and 
 take another road ; and by my word, Httle is my thank- 
 fulness to yourself, or to her that let you in." " You need 
 not send him out for telling me that," said Deirdre, 
 " for as to those three men, I myself saw them last night 
 in a dream, and they hunting upon a hill." 
 
 The hunter went away, but in a little time after he 
 began to think to himself how Conchubar, High King of 
 Ulster, was used to lie down at night and to rise up in 
 the morning by himself, without a wife or any one to 
 speak to ; and that if he could see this great beauty it 
 was likely he would bring her home to Emain, and that 
 he himself would get the good-will of the king for 
 telling him there was such a queen to be found on the 
 face of the world. 
 
 So he went straight to King Conchubar at Emain 
 Macha, and he sent word in to the king that he had 
 news for him, if he would hear it. The king sent for 
 him to come in. " What is the reason of your journey ? " 
 he said. " It is what I have to tell you, King," said the 
 hunter, " that I have seen the greatest beauty that ever 
 was born in Ireland, and I am come to tell you of it." 
 
 " Who is this great beauty, and in what place is she to 
 be seen, when she was never seen before you saw her, 
 if you did see her ? " "I did see her, indeed," said the 
 hunter, " but no other man can see her, unless he knows 
 from me the place where she is living." "Will you 
 bring me to the place where she is, and you will have 
 a good reward ? " said the king. " I will bring you 
 there," said the hunter. " Let you stay with my house- 
 hold to-night," said Conchubar, "and I myself and my 
 people will go with you early on the morning of to- 
 morrow/' " I will stay," said the hunter, and he 
 
no FATE OF THE SONS OF USNACH 
 
 stayed that night in the household of King Con- 
 chubar. 
 
 Then Conchubar sent to Fergus and to the other 
 chief men of Ulster, and he told them of what he was 
 about to do. Though it was early when the songs and 
 the music of the birds began in the woods, it was earlier 
 yet when Conchubar, king of Ulster, rose up with his 
 little company of near friends, in the fresh spring morn- 
 ing of the fresh and pleasant month of May, and the 
 dew was heavy on every bush and flower as they went 
 out towards the green hill where Deirdre was living 
 
 But many a young man of them that had a light 
 glad, leaping step when they set out, had but a tired, 
 slow, failing step before the end, because of the length 
 and the roughness of the way. " It is down there 
 below," said the hunter, " in the house in that valley, 
 the woman is living, but I myself will not go nearer it 
 than this. 
 
 Conchubar and his troop went down then to the 
 green hillock where Deirdre was, and they knocked 
 at the door of the house. Levarcham called out that 
 neither answer nor opening would be given to any one 
 at all, and that she did not want disturbance put on 
 herself or her house. " Open," said Conchubar, " in 
 the name of the High King of Ulster." When Levar- 
 cham heard Conchubar's voice, she knew there was no 
 use trying to keep Deirdre out of sight any longer, and 
 she rose up in haste and let in the king, and as many 
 of his people as could follow him. 
 
 When the king saw Deirdre before him, he thought 
 in himself that he never saw in the course of the day, 
 or in the dreams of the night, a creature so beautiful, 
 and he gave her his full heart's weight of love there and 
 then. It is what he did ; he put Deirdre up on the 
 shoulders of his men, and she herself and Levarcham 
 were brought away to Emain Macha. 
 
DEIRDRE SEES NAOISE in 
 
 With the love that Conchubar had for Deirdre, he 
 wanted to marry her with no delay, but when her 
 leave was asked, she would not give it, for she was 
 young yet, and she had no knowledge of the duties of 
 a wife, or the ways of a king's house. And when 
 Conchubar was pressing her hard, she asked him to 
 give her a delay of a year and a day. He said he 
 would give her that, though it was hard for him, if she 
 would give him her certain promise to marry him at 
 the year's end. She did that, and Conchubar got a 
 woman teacher for her, and nice, fine, pleasant, modest 
 maidens to be with her at her lying down and at her 
 rising up, to be companions to her. And Deirdre grew 
 wise in the works of a young girl, and in the understand- 
 ing of a woman ; and if any one at all looked at her 
 face, whatever colour she was before that, she would 
 blush crimson red. And it is what Conchubar thought, 
 that he never saw with the eyes of his body a creature 
 that pleased him so well. 
 
 One day Deirdre and her companions were out on a 
 hill near Emain Macha, looking around them in the 
 pleasant sunshine, and they saw three men walking 
 together. Deirdre was looking at the men and wonder- 
 ing at them, and when they came near, she remembered 
 the talk of the hunter, and the three men she saw in 
 her dream, and she thought to herself that these were 
 the three sons of Usnach, and that this was Naoise, 
 that had his head and shoulders above all the men of 
 Ireland. The three brothers went by without turning 
 their eyes at all upon the young girls on the hillside, and 
 they were singing as they went, and whoever heard the 
 low singing of the sons of Usnach, it was enchantment 
 and music to them, and every cow that was being 
 milked and heard it, gave two-thirds more of milk. 
 And it is what happened, that love for Naoise came 
 into the heart of Deirdre, so that she could not but 
 
112 FATE OF THE SONS OF USNACH 
 
 follow him. She gathered up her skirt and went after 
 the three men that had gone past the foot of the hill, 
 leaving her companions there after her. 
 
 But Ainnle and Ardan had heard talk of the young 
 girl that was at Conchubar's Court, and it is what they 
 thought, that if Naoise their brother would see her, it 
 is for himself he would have her, for she was not yet 
 married to the king. So when they saw Deirdre coming 
 after them, they said to one another to hasten their steps, 
 for they had a long road to travel, and the dusk of night 
 coming on. They did so, and Deirdre saw it, and she 
 cried out after them, " Naoise, son of Usnach, are you 
 going to leave me ? " " What cry was that came to my 
 ears, that it is not well for me to answer, and not easy for 
 me to refuse?" said Naoise. " It was nothing but the 
 cry of Conchubar's wild ducks," said his brothers ; " but 
 let us quicken our steps and hasten our feet, for we 
 have a long road to travel, and the dusk of the evening 
 coming on." They did so, and they were widening the 
 distance between themselves and her. Then Deirdre 
 cried, " Naoise ! Naoise ! son of Usnach, are you going 
 to leave me?" "What cry was it that came to my 
 ears and struck my heart, that it is not well for me to 
 answer, or easy for me to refuse ? " said Naoise- 
 " Nothing but the cry of Conchubar's wild geese," said 
 his brothers ; " but let us quicken our steps and hasten 
 our feet, the darkness of night is coming on." They 
 did so, and were widening the distance between them- 
 selves and her. Then Deirdre cried the third time, 
 " Naoise ! Naoise ! Naoise ! son of Usnach, are you going 
 to leave me ? " " What sharp, clear cry was that, the 
 sweetest that ever came to my ears, and the sharpest 
 that ever struck my heart, of all the cries I ever heard," 
 said Naoise. " What is it but the scream of Conchubar's 
 lake swans," said his brothers. " That was the third 
 cry of some person beyond there," said Naoise, " and I 
 
FLIGHT OF DEIRDRE 113 
 
 swear by my hand of valour," he said, " I will go no 
 further until I see where the cry comes from." So 
 Naoise turned back and met Deirdre, and Deirdre and 
 Naoise kissed one another three times, and she gave 
 a kiss to each of his brothers. And with the confusion 
 that was on her, a blaze of red fire came upon her, and 
 her colour came and went as quickly as the aspen by 
 the stream. And it is what Naoise thought to himself, 
 that he never saw a woman so beautiful in his life ; and 
 he gave Deirdre, there and then, the love that he never 
 gave to living thing, to vision, or to creature, but to 
 herself alone. 
 
 Then he lifted her high on his shoulder, and he said 
 to his brothers to hasten their steps ; and they hastened 
 them. 
 
 " Harm will come of this," said the young men. 
 " Although there should harm come," said Naoise, " I 
 am willing to be in disgrace while I live. We will 
 go with her to another province, and there is not 
 in Ireland a king who will not give us a welcome." 
 So they called their people, and that night they set 
 out with three times fifty men, and three times fifty 
 women, and three times fifty greyhounds, and Deirdre 
 in their midst. 
 
 They were a long time after that shifting from one 
 place to another all around Ireland, from Essruadh in the 
 south, to Beinn Etair in the east again, and it is often 
 they were in danger of being destroyed by Conchubar's 
 devices. And one time the Druids raised a wood 
 before them, but Naoise and his brothers cut their way 
 through it. But at last they got out of Ulster and 
 sailed to the country of Alban, and settled in a lonely 
 place ; and when hunting on the mountains failed them, 
 they fell upon the cattle of the men of Alban, so that 
 these gathered together to make an end of them. But 
 the sons of Usnach called to the king of Scotland, and 
 
 H 
 
114 FATEOFTHESONSOFUSNACH 
 
 he took them into his friendship, and they gave him 
 their help when he went out into battles or to war. 
 
 But all this time they had never spoken to the king 
 of Deirdre, and they kept her with themselves, not to 
 let any one see her, for they were afraid they might get 
 their death on account of her, she being so beautiful. 
 
 But it chanced very early one morning, the king's 
 steward came to visit them, and he found his way into 
 the house where Naoise and Deirdre were, and there 
 he saw them asleep beside one another. He went 
 back then to the king, and he said : " Up to this time 
 there has never been found a woman that would be a 
 fitting wife for you ; but there is a woman on the shore 
 of Loch Ness now, is well worthy of you, king of the 
 East. And what you have to do is to make an end 
 of Naoise, for it is of his wife I am speaking." " I will 
 not do that," said the king ; " but go to her," he said, 
 "and bid her to come and see me secretly." The 
 steward brought her that message, but Deirdre sent 
 him away, and all that he had said to her, she told it to 
 Naoise afterwards. Then when she would not come to 
 him, the king sent the sons of Usnach into every hard 
 fight, hoping they would get their death, but they won 
 every battle, and came back safe again. And after a 
 while they went to Loch Eitche, near the sea, and they 
 were left to themselves there for a while in peace and 
 quietness. And they settled and made a dwelling 
 house for themselves by the side of Loch Ness, and 
 they could kill the salmon of the stream from out their 
 own door, and the deer of the grey hills from out their 
 window. But when Naoise went to the court of the 
 king, his clothes were splendid among the great men 
 of the army of Scotland, a cloak of bright purple, 
 rightly shaped, with a fringe of bright gold ; a coat of 
 satin with fifty hooks of silver ; a brooch on which 
 were a hundred polished gems ; a gold-hilted sword in 
 
CONCHUBAR'S FEAST 115 
 
 his hand, two blue-green spears of bright points, a 
 dagger with the colour of yellow gold on it, and a hilt 
 of silver. But the two children they had, Gaiar and 
 Aebgreine, they gave into the care of Manannan, Son of 
 the Sea. And he cared them well in Emhain of the 
 Apple Trees, and he brought Bobaras the poet to give 
 learning to Gaiar. And Aebgreine of the Sunny Face 
 he gave in marriage afterwards to Rinn, son of Eochaidh 
 Juil of the Land of Promise. 
 
 Now it happened after a time that a very great 
 feast was made by Conchubar, in Emain Macha, for 
 all the great among his nobles, so that the whole 
 company were easy and pleasant together. The 
 musicians stood up to play their songs and to give 
 poems, and they gave out the branches of relationship 
 and of kindred. These are the names of the poets 
 that were in Emain at the time, Cathbad, the Druid, 
 son of Conall, son of Rudraige ; Geanann of the 
 Bright Face, son of Cathbad ; Ferceirtne, and Geanann 
 Black-Knee, and many others, and Sencha, son of 
 Ailell. 
 
 They were all drinking and making merry until 
 Conchubar, the king, raised his voice and spoke aloud, 
 and it is what he said : " I desire to know from you, did 
 you ever see a better house than this house of Emain, 
 or a hearth better than my hearth in any place you 
 were ever in ? " " We did not," they said. " If that is 
 so," said Conchubar, " do you know of anything at all 
 that is wanting to you ? " " We know of nothing," said 
 they. " That is not so with me," said Conchubar. " I 
 know of a great want that is on you, the want of the 
 three best candles of the Gael, the three noble sons 
 of Usnach, that ought not to be away from us for the 
 sake of any woman in the world, Naoise, Ainnle, and 
 Ardan ; for surely they are the sons of a king, and 
 
ii6 FATEOFTHESONSOFUSNACH 
 
 they would defend the High Kingship against the best 
 men of Ireland." "If we had dared," said they, "it is 
 long ago we would have said it, and more than that, 
 the province of Ulster would be equal to any other 
 province in Ireland, if there was no Ulsterman in it 
 but those three alone, for it is lions they are in hardness 
 and in bravery." " If that is so," said Conchubar, " let 
 us send word by a messenger to Alban, and to the 
 dwelling-place of the sons of Usnach, to ask them 
 back again." " Who will go there with the message ? " 
 said they all. " I cannot know that," said Conchubar, 
 " for there is geasa, that is bonds, on Naoise not to 
 come back with any man only one of the three, Conall 
 Cearnach, or Fergus, or Cuchulain, and I will know 
 now," said he, " which one of those three loves me 
 best." Then he called Conall to one side, and he 
 asked him, " What would you do with me if I should 
 send you for the sons of Usnach, and if they were 
 destroyed through me — a thing I do not mean to do ? " 
 " As I am not going to undertake it," said Conall, " I 
 will say that it is not one alone I would kill, but any 
 Ulsterman I would lay hold of that had harmed them 
 would get shortening of life from me and the sorrow 
 of death." "I see well," said Conchubar, "you are no 
 friend of mine," and he put Conall away from him- 
 Then he called Cuchulain to him, and asked him the 
 same as he did the other. " I give my word, as I am 
 not going," said Cuchulain, " if you want that of me, 
 and that you think to kill them when they come, it is 
 not one person alone that would die for it, but every 
 Ulsterman I could lay hold of would get shortening of 
 life from me and the sorrow of death." " I see well," 
 said Conchubar, " that you are no friend of mine." And 
 he put Cuchulain from him. And then he called 
 Fergus to him, and asked him the same question, and 
 Fergus said, " Whatever may happen, I promise your 
 
THE MESSENGER 117 
 
 blood will be safe from me, but besides yourself there 
 is no Ulsterman that would try to harm them, and that 
 I would lay hold of, but I would give him shortening of 
 life and the sorrow of death." " I see well," said 
 Conchubar, " it is yourself must go for them, and it is 
 to-morrow you must set out, for it is with you they will 
 come, and when you are coming back to us westward, 
 I put you under bonds to go first to the fort of Borach, 
 son of Cainte, and give me your word now that as 
 soon as you get there, you will send on the sons of 
 Usnach to Emain, whether it be day or night at the 
 time." After that the two of them went in together, 
 and Fergus told all the company how it was under his 
 charge they were to be put. 
 
 Then Conchubar went to Borach and asked had he 
 a feast ready prepared for him. " I have," said Borach, 
 " but although I was able to make it ready, I was not 
 able to bring it to Emain." " If that is so," said 
 Conchubar, " give it to Fergus when he comes back to 
 Ireland, for it is geasa on him not to refuse your feast." 
 Borach promised he would do that, and so they wore 
 away that night. 
 
 So Fergus set out in the morning, and he brought no 
 guard nor helpers with him, but himself and his two 
 sons, Fair-Haired lollan, and Rough-Red Buinne, and 
 Cuillean, the shield-bearer, and the shield itself They 
 went on till they got to the dwelling-place of the sons 
 of Usnach, and to Loch Eitche in Alba. It is how the 
 sons of Usnach lived; they had three houses, and the 
 house where they made ready the food, it is not there 
 they would eat it, and the house where they would eat 
 it, it is not there they would sleep. 
 
 When Fergus came to the harbour he let a great 
 shout out of him. And it is how Naoise and Deirdre 
 were, they had a chessboard between them, and they 
 playing on it. Naoise heard the shout, and he said, 
 
ii8 FATEOFTHESONSOFUSNACH 
 
 " That is the shout of a man of Ireland." " It is not, but 
 the cry of a man of Alban," said Deirdre. She knew at 
 the first it was Fergus gave the shout, but she denied 
 it. Then Fergus let another shout out of him. " That 
 is an Irish shout," said Naoise again. " It is not, 
 indeed," said Deirdre, " let us go on playing." Then 
 Fergus gave the third shout, and the sons of Usnach 
 knew this time it was the shout of Fergus, and 
 Naoise said to Ardan to go out and meet him. Then 
 Deirdre told him that she herself knew at the first shout 
 that it was Fergus. " Why did you deny it, then. 
 Queen ? " said Naoise. " Because of a vision I saw 
 last night," said Deirdre. " Three birds I saw coming 
 to us from Emain Macha, and three drops of honey 
 in their mouths, and they left them with us, and three 
 drops of our blood they brought away with them." 
 "What meaning do you put on that. Queen?" said 
 Naoise. " It is," said Deirdre, " Fergus that is coming 
 to us with a message of peace from Conchubar, for 
 honey is not sweeter than a message of peace sent 
 by a lying man." " Let that pass," said Naoise. " Is 
 there anything in it but troubled sleep and the 
 melancholy of woman ? And it is a long time Fergus 
 is in the harbour. Rise up, Ardan, to be before him, and 
 bring him with you here." And Ardan went down to 
 meet him, and gave a fond kiss to himself and to his 
 two sons. And it is what he said : " My love to 
 you, dear comrades." After that he asked news of 
 Ireland, and they gave it to him, and then they came 
 to where Naoise and Ainnle and Deirdre were, and 
 they kissed Fergus and his two sons, and they asked 
 news of Ireland from them. "It is the best news I 
 have for you," said Fergus, " that Conchubar, king of 
 Ulster, has sworn by the earth beneath him, by the 
 high heaven above him, and by the sun that travels to 
 the west, that he will have no rest by day nor sleep by 
 
DEIRDRE'S DREAMS 119 
 
 night, if the sons of Usnach, his own foster-brothers, 
 will not come back to the land of their home and the 
 country of their birth ; and he has sent us to ask you 
 there." " It is better for them to stop here," said 
 Deirdre, " for they have a greater sway in Scotland 
 than Conchubar himself has in Ireland." " One's own 
 country is better than any other thing," said Fergus, 
 " for no man can have any pleasure, however great his 
 good luck and his way of living, if he does not see his 
 own country every day." " That is true," said Naoise, 
 " for Ireland is dearer to myself than Alban, though I 
 would get more in Alban than in Ireland." " It will be 
 safe for you to come with me," said Fergus. " It will 
 be safe indeed," said Naoise, " and we will go with you 
 to Ireland ; and though there were no trouble beneath 
 the sun, but a man to be far from his own land, there is 
 little delight in peace and a long sleep to a man that 
 is an exile. It is a pity for the man that is an exile ; 
 it is little his honour, it is great his grief, for it is he will 
 have his share of wandering." 
 
 It was not with Deirdre's will Naoise said that, and 
 she was greatly against going with Fergus. And she 
 said : " I had a dream last night of the three sons of 
 Usnach, and they bound and put in the grave by Con- 
 chubar of the Red Branch." But Naoise said : " Lay 
 down your dream, Deirdre, on the heights of the hills, 
 lay down your dream on the sailors of the sea, lay 
 down your dream on the rough grey stones, for we will 
 give peace and we will get it from the king of the 
 world and from Conchubar." But Deirdre spoke again, 
 and it is what she said : " There is the howling of dogs 
 in my ears ; a vision of the night is before my eyes, I 
 see Fergus away from us, I see Conchubar without 
 mercy in his dun ; I see Naoise without strength in 
 battle ; I see Ainnle without his loud-sounding shield ; 
 I see Ardan without shield or breastplate, and the Hill 
 
I20 FATE OF THE SONS OF USNACH 
 
 of Atha without delight. I see Conchubar asking for 
 blood ; I see Fergus caught with hidden lies ; I see 
 Deirdre crying with tears, I see Deirdre crying with 
 tears." 
 
 " A thing that is unpleasing to me, and that I would 
 never give in to," said Fergus, " is to listen to the howling 
 of dogs, and to the dreams of women ; and since Con- 
 chubar, the High King, has sent a message of friendship, 
 it would not be right for you to refuse it." "It would 
 not be right, indeed," said Naoise, " and we will go with 
 you to-morrow." And Fergus gave his word, and he 
 said, " If all the men of Ireland were against you, it 
 would not profit them, for neither shield nor sword or a 
 helmet itself would be any help or protection to them 
 against you, and I myself to be with you." " That is 
 true," said Naoise, "and we will go with you to 
 Ireland." 
 
 They spent the night there until morning, and then 
 they went where the ships were, and they went on the 
 sea, and a good many of their people with them, and 
 Deirdre looked back on the land of Alban, and it is 
 what she said : " My love to you, O land to the east, 
 and it goes ill with me to leave you ; for it is pleasant 
 are your bays and your harbours and your wide flowery 
 plains and your green-sided hills ; and little need was 
 there for us to leave you." And she made this com- 
 plaint : " Dear to me is that land, that land to the east, 
 Alban, with its wonders ; I would not have come from it 
 hither but that I came with Naoise. 
 
 " Dear to me, Dun Fiodhaigh and Dun Fionn ; dear is 
 the dun above them ; dear to me Inis Droignach, dear to 
 me Dun Suibhne. 
 
 " O Coin Cuan ! Ochone ! Coil Cuan ! where Ainnle 
 used to come. My grief! it was short I thought his 
 stay there with Naoise in Western Alban. Glen Laoi, 
 O Glen Laoi, where I used to sleep under soft coverings ; 
 
BORACH'S FEAST 121 
 
 fish and venison and badger's flesh, that was my portion 
 in Glen Laoi. 
 
 "Glen Masan, my grief! Glen Masan ! high its hart's- 
 tongue, bright its stalks ; we were rocked to pleasant 
 sleep over the wooded harbour of Masan. 
 
 "Glen Archan, my grief! Glen Archan, the straight 
 valley of the pleasant ridge ; never was there a young 
 man more light-hearted than my Naoise used to be in 
 Glen Archan. 
 
 "Glen Eitche, my grief! Glen Eitche, it was there 
 I built my first house ; beautiful were the woods on 
 our rising ; the home of the sun is Glen Eitche. 
 
 " Glen-da-Rua, my grief! Glen-da- Rua, my love to 
 every man that belongs to it ; sweet is the voice of the 
 cuckoo on the bending branch on the hill above Glen- 
 da-Rua. 
 
 " Dear to me is Droighin over the fierce strand, dear 
 are its waters over the clean sand ; I would never have 
 come out from it at all but that I came with my 
 beloved ! " 
 
 After she had made that complaint they came to Dun 
 Borach, and Borach gave three fond kisses to Fergus 
 and to the sons of Usnach along with him. It was then 
 Borach said he had a feast laid out for Fergus, and that 
 it was geasa for him to leave it until he would have 
 eaten it. But Fergus reddened with anger from head to 
 foot, and it is what he said : " It is a bad thing you have 
 done, Borach, laying out a feast for me, and Conchubar 
 to have made me give my word that as soon as I would 
 come to Ireland, whether it would be by day or in the 
 night-time, I would send on the sens of Usnach to Emain 
 Macha." "I hold you under bonds," said Borach, "to 
 stop and use the feast." 
 
 Then Fergus asked Naoise what should he do about 
 the feast. " You must choose," said Deirdre, " whether 
 you will forsake the children of Usnach or the feast, and 
 
122 FATE OF THE SONS OF USNACH 
 
 it would be better for you to refuse the feast than to 
 forsake the sons of Usnach." " I will not forsake them," 
 said he, "for I will send my two sons, Fair-Haired 
 lollan and Rough-Red Buinne, with them, to Emain 
 Macha." " On my word," said Naoise, " that is a great 
 deal to do for us ; for up to this no other person 
 ever protected us but ourselves." And he went out 
 of the place in great anger; and Ainnle, and Ardan, 
 and Deirdre, and the two sons of Fergus followed him, 
 and they left Fergus dark and sorrowful after them. 
 But for all that, Fergus was full sure that if all the 
 provinces of Ireland would go into one council, they 
 would not consent to break the pledge he had given. 
 As for the sons of Usnach, they went on their way 
 by every short road, and Deirdre said to them, " I 
 will give you a good advice, Sons of Usnach, though 
 you may not follow it." " What is that advice, Queen ? " 
 said Naoise. " It is," said she, " to go to Rechrainn, 
 between Ireland and Scotland, and to wait there until 
 Fergus has done with the feast ; and that will be the 
 keeping of his word to Fergus, and it will be the 
 lengthening of your lives to you." " We will not follow 
 that advice," said Naoise ; and the children of Fergus 
 said it was little trust she had in them, when she 
 thought they would not protect her, though their hands 
 might not be so strong as the hands of the sons of 
 Usnach ; and besides that, Fergus had given them his 
 word. " Alas ! it is sorrow came on us with the word 
 of Fergus," said Deirdre, " and he to forsake us for a 
 feast," and she made this complaint : " It is grief to 
 me that ever I came from the east on the word of the 
 unthinking son of Rogh. It is only lamentations I will 
 make. Och ! it is very sorrowful my heart is ! 
 
 " My heart is heaped up with sorrow ; it is to-night 
 my great hurt is. My grief! my dear companions, the 
 end of your days is come." 
 
DEIRDRE'S VISION 123 
 
 And it is what Naoise answed her : " Do not say 
 that in your haste, Deirdre, more beautiful than the 
 sun. Fergus would never have come for us eastward 
 to bring us back to be destroyed." 
 
 And Deirdre said, *' My grief! I think it too far for 
 you, beautiful sons of Usnach, to have come from Alban 
 of the rough grass ; it is lasting will be its life-long 
 sorrow." 
 
 After that they went forward to Finncairn of the 
 watch-tower on sharp-peaked Slieve Fuad, and Deirdre 
 stayed after them in the valley, and sleep fell on her 
 there. 
 
 When Naoise saw that Deirdre was left after them, 
 he turned back as she was rising out of her sleep, and 
 he said, "What made you wait after us, Queen?" 
 " Sleep that was on me," said Deirdre ; " and I saw a 
 vision in it." "What vision was that?" said Naoise. 
 " It was," she said, " Fair-Haired lollan that I saw with- 
 out his head on him, and Rough-Red Buinne with his 
 head on him ; and it is without help of Rough-Red 
 Buinne you were, and it is with the help of Fair- Haired 
 lollan you were." And she made this complaint : 
 
 " It is a sad vision has been shown to me, of my four 
 tall, fair, bright companions ; the head of each has been 
 taken from him, and no help to be had one from 
 another." 
 
 But when Naoise heard this he reproached her, and 
 said, " O fair, beautiful woman, nothing does your mouth 
 speak but evil. Do not let the sharpness and the 
 great misfortune that come from it fall on your 
 friends." And Deirdre answered him with kind, gentle 
 words, and it is what she said : " It would be better to 
 me to see harm come on any other person than upon 
 any one of you three, with whom I have travelled over 
 the seas and over the wide plains ; but when I look on 
 you, it is only Buinne I can see safe and whole, and 
 
124 FATE OFTHE SONS OF USNACH 
 
 I know by that his. Hfe will be longest among you ; and 
 indeed it is I that am sorrowful to-night." 
 
 After that they came forward to the high willows, 
 and it was then Deirdre said, " I see a cloud in the 
 air, and it is a cloud of blood ; and I would give you 
 a good advice, sons of Usnach," she said. " What is 
 that advice ? " said Naoise. " To go to Dundealgan 
 where Cuchulain is, until Fergus has done with the 
 feast, and to be under the protection of Cuchulain, for 
 fear of the treachery of Conchubar." " Since there is 
 no fear on us, we will not follow that advice," said 
 Naoise. And Deirdre complained, and it is what she 
 said : " O Naoise, look at the cloud I see above us 
 in the air ; I see a cloud over green Macha, cold and 
 deep red like blood. I am startled by the cloud that 
 I see here in the air ; a thin, dreadful cloud that is like 
 a clot of blood. I give a right advice to the beautiful 
 sons of Usnach not to go to Emain to-night, because 
 of the danger that is over them. 
 
 "We will go to Dundealgan, where the Hound of 
 the Smith is ; we will come to-morrow from the south 
 along with the Hound, Cuchulain." 
 
 But Naoise said in his anger to Deirdre, " Since there 
 is no fear on us, we will not follow your advice." And 
 Deirdre turned to the grandsons of Rogh, and it is what 
 she said : " It is seldom until now, Naoise, that yourself 
 and myself were not of the one mind. And I say to 
 you, Naoise, that you would not have gone against me 
 like this, the day Manannan gave me the cup in the 
 time of his great victory." 
 
 After that they went on to Emain Macha. " Sons of 
 Usnach," said Deirdre, " I have a sign by which you will 
 know if Conchubar is going to do treachery on you." 
 "What sign is that?" said Naoise. "If you are let 
 come into the house where Conchubar is, and the nobles 
 of Ulster, then Conchubar is not going to do treachery 
 
THE RETURN TO EMAIN 125 
 
 on you. But if it is in the House of the Red Branch you 
 are put, then he is going to do treachery on you." 
 
 After that they came to Emain Macha, and they took 
 the handwood and struck the door, and the doorkeeper 
 asked who was there. They told him that it was the 
 sons of Usnach, and Deirdre, and the two sons of 
 Fergus were there. 
 
 When Conchubar heard that, he called his stewards 
 and serving men to him, and he asked them how was 
 the House of the Red Branch for food and for drink. 
 They said that if all the seven armies of Ulster would 
 come there, they would find what would satisfy them. 
 " If that is so," said Conchubar, " bring the sons of 
 Usnach into it." 
 
 It was then Deirdre said, "It would have been better 
 for you to follow my advice, and never to have come 
 to Emain, and it would be right for you to leave it, even 
 at this time." " We will not," said Fair-Haired loUan, 
 '' for it is not fear or cowardliness was ever seen on us, 
 but we will go to the house." So they went on to the 
 House of the Red Branch, and the stewards and the 
 serving-men with them, and well-tasting food was 
 served to them, and pleasant drinks, till they were 
 all glad and merry, except only Deirdre and the sons 
 of Usnach ; for they did not use much food or drink, 
 because of the length and the greatness of their journey 
 from Dun Borach to Emain Macha. Then Naoise said, 
 " Give the chessboard to us till we go playing." So 
 they gave them the chessboard and they began to play. 
 
 It was just at that time Conchubar was asking, 
 " Who will I send that will bring me word of Deirdre, 
 and that will tell me if she has the same appearance 
 and the same shape she had before, for if she has, there 
 is not a woman in the world has a more beautiful shape 
 or appearance than she has, and I will bring her out 
 with edge of blade and point of sword in spite of the 
 
126 FATE OF THE SONS OF USN AC H 
 
 sons of Usnach. sfood thoucrh thev be. But if not, let 
 Naoise have her for himself." '' I myself will go there," 
 said Levarcham, *' and I will bring you word of that." 
 x\nd it is how it was, Deirdre was dearer to her than 
 any other person in the world ; for it was often she 
 went through the world looking for Deirdre and bring- 
 ing news to her and from her. So Levarcham went 
 over to the House of the Red Branch, and near it she 
 saw a great troop of armed men, and she spoke to 
 them, but they made her no answer, and she knew by 
 that it was none of the men of Ulster were in it, but 
 men from some strange country that Conchubar's 
 messengers had brought to Emain. 
 
 And then she went in where Naoise and Deirdre 
 were, and it is how she found them, the polished 
 chessboard between them, and they playing on it ; 
 and she gave them fond kisses, and she said : " You 
 are not doing well to be playing ; and it is to bring 
 Conchubar word if Deirdre has the same shape and 
 appearance she used to have that he sent me here 
 now ; and there is grief on me for the deed that will 
 be done in Emain to-night, treacher)- that will be done, 
 and the killing of kindred, and the three bright candles 
 of the Gael to be quenched, and Emain will not be the 
 better of it to the end of life and time," and she made 
 this complaint sadly and wearily : 
 
 " My heart is hea\y for the treachery that is being 
 done in Emain this night ; on account of this treachery, 
 Emain will never be at peace from this out. 
 
 '' The three that are most king-like to-day under the 
 sun ; the three best of all that live on the earth, it is 
 grief to me to-night they to die for the sake of any 
 woman. Naoise and Ainnle whose deeds are known, 
 and Ardan, their brother ; treachery is to be done on 
 the young, bright-faced three ; it is not I that am not 
 sorrowful to-night." 
 
GELBAN 127 
 
 When she had made this complaint, Levarcham said 
 to the sons of Usnach and to the children of Fergus to 
 shut close the doors and the windows of the house and 
 to do bravery. " And oh, sons of Fergus," she said, 
 " defend your charge and your care bravely till Fergus 
 comes, and you will have praise and a blessing for it." 
 And she cried with many tears, and she went back to 
 where Conchubar was, and he asked news of Deirdre 
 of her. And Levarcham said, " It is good news and 
 bad news I have for you." " What news is that ? " 
 said Conchubar. " It is the good news," she said, " the 
 three sons of Usnach to have come to you and to be 
 over there, and they are the three that are bravest and 
 mightiest in form and in looks and in countenance, of 
 all in the world ; and Ireland will be yours from this 
 out, since the sons of Usnach are with you ; and the 
 new^s that is worst with me is, the woman that was best 
 of the women of the world in form and in looks, going 
 out of Emain, is without the form and without the 
 appearance she used to have." 
 
 When Conchubar heard that, much of his jealousy 
 went backward, and he was drinking and making merry 
 for a while, until he thought on Deirdre again the 
 second time, and on that he asked, "Who will I get 
 to bring me word of Deirdre ? " But he did not find 
 any one would go there. And then he said to Gelban, 
 the merry, pleasant son of the king of Lochlann : " Go 
 over and bring me word if Deirdre has the same shape 
 and the same appearance she used to have, for if she has, 
 there is not on the ricige of the world or on the waves 
 of the earth, a woman more beautiful than herself" 
 
 So Gelban went to the House of the Red Branch, 
 and he found the doors and the windows of the fort 
 shut, and fear came on him. And it is what he said : 
 " It is not an easy road for any one that would get to 
 the sons of Usnach, for I think there is very great 
 
128 FATE OF THE SONS OF USNACH 
 
 anger on them." And after that he found a window 
 that was left open by forgetfulness in the house, and 
 he was looking in. Then Deirdre saw him through 
 the window, and when she saw him looking at her, she 
 went into a red blaze of blushes, and Naoise knew that 
 some one was looking at her from the window, and she 
 told him that she saw a young man looking in at them. 
 It is how Naoise was at that time, with a man of the 
 chessmen in his hand, and he made a fair throw over his 
 shoulder at the young man, that put the eye out of his 
 head. The young man went back to where Conchubar 
 was. " You were merry and pleasant going out," said 
 Conchubar, " but you are sad and cheerless coming 
 back." And then Gelban told him the story from 
 beginning to end. " I see well," said Conchubar, " the 
 man that made that throw will be king of the world, 
 unless he has his life shortened. And what appearance 
 is there on Deirdre ? " he said. " It is this," said Gelban, 
 " although Naoise put out my eye, I would have wished 
 to stay there looking at her with the other eye, but for 
 the haste you put on me ; for there is not in the world 
 a woman is better of shape or of form than herself." 
 
 When Conchubar heard that, he was filled with 
 jealousy and with envy, and he bade the men of his 
 army that were with him, and that had been drink- 
 ing at the feast, to go and attack the place were 
 the sons of Usnach were. So they went forward to 
 the House of the Red Branch, and they gave three 
 great shouts around it, and they put fires and red 
 flames to it. When the sons of Usnach heard the 
 shouts, they asked who those men were that were 
 about the house. " Conchubar and the men of Ulster," 
 they all said together. " Is it the pledge of Fergus you 
 would break ? " said Fair-Haired loUan. " On my word," 
 said Conchubar, "there will be sorrow on the sons of 
 Usnach, Deirdre to be with them." "That is true," 
 
FAIR-HAIRED lOLLAN 129 
 
 said Deirdre, " Fergus had deceived you." " By my 
 oath," said Rough-Red Buinne, " if he betrayed, we 
 will not betray." It was then Buinne went out and 
 killed three-fifths of the fighting men outside, and put 
 great disturbance on the rest ; and Conchubar asked 
 who was there, and who was doing destruction on his 
 men like that. " It is I, myself, Rough-Red Buinne, 
 son of Fergus," said he. " I will give you a good gift 
 if you will leave off," said Conchubar. "What gift is 
 that ? " said Rough-Red Buinne. " A hundred of land," 
 said Conchubar. " What besides ? " said Rough-Red 
 Buinne. " My own friendship and my counsel," said 
 Conchubar. " I will take that," said Rough-Red Buinne. 
 It was a good mountain that was given him as a 
 reward, but it turned barren in the same night, and 
 no green grew on it again for ever, and it used to be 
 called the Mountain of the Share of Buinne. 
 
 Deirdre heard what they were saying. " By my 
 word," she said, " Rough-Red Buinne has forsaken 
 you, and in my opinion, it is like the father the son 
 is." "I give my word," says Fair-Haired lollan, "that 
 is not so with me ; as long as this narrow, straight 
 sword stays in my hand, I will not forsake the sons 
 of Usnach." 
 
 After that, Fair-Haired lollan went out, and made 
 three courses around the house, and killed three-fifths 
 of heroes outside, and he came in again where Naoise 
 was, and he playing chess, and Ainnle with him. So 
 lollan went out the second time, and made three other 
 courses round the fort, and he brought a lighted torch 
 with him on the lawn, and he went destroying the 
 hosts, so that they dared not come to attack the 
 house. And he was a good son, Fair-Haired lollan, 
 for he never refused any person on the ridge of the 
 world anything that he had, and he never took wages 
 from any person but only Fergus. 
 
 I 
 
130 FATE OFTHE SONS OF USNACH 
 
 It was then Conchubar said : '•' What place is my own 
 son, Fiacra the Fair?" "I am here, High Prince," 
 said Fiacra. " By my word," said Conchubar, " it is 
 on the one night yourself and lollan were born, and 
 as it is the arms of his father he has with him, let 
 you take my arms with you, that is, my shield, the 
 Ochain, my two spears, and my great sword, the Gorm 
 Glas, the Blue Green — and do bravery and great deeds 
 with them." 
 
 Then Fiacra took Conchubar's arms, and he and 
 Fair-Haired lollan attacked one another, and they 
 made a stout fight, one against the other. But 
 however it was. Fair- Haired lollan put down Fiacra, 
 so that he made him lie under the shelter of his shield, 
 till it roared for the greatness of the strait he was in ; 
 for it was the way with the Ochain, the shield of Con- 
 chubar, to roar when the person on whom it would be 
 was in danger ; and the three chief waves of Ireland, 
 the Wave of Tuagh, the Wave of Cliodna, and the Wave 
 of Rudraige, roared in answer to it. 
 
 It was at that time Conall Cearnach was at Dun 
 Sobairce, and he heard the Wave of Tuagh. " True it 
 is," said Conall, '* Conchubar is in some danger, and it 
 is not right for me to be here listening to him." 
 
 Conall rose up on that, and he put his arms and his 
 armour on him, and came forward to where Conchubar 
 was at Emain Macha, and he found the fight going on 
 on the lawn, and Fiacra, the son of Conchubar, greatly 
 pressed by Fair-Haired lollan, and neither the king of 
 Ulster nor any other person dared to go between 
 them. But Conall went aside, behind Fair-Haired lollan 
 and thrust his sword through him. " Who is it has 
 wounded me behind my back ? " said Fair-Haired lollan. 
 •' Whoever did it, by my hand of valour, he would have 
 got a fair fight, face to face, from myself" '' Who are 
 you yourself?" said Conall. "I am lollan, son of 
 
THE APPEAL TO CONCHUBAR 131 
 
 Fergus, and are you yourself Conall ? " " It is I/' said 
 Conall. " It is evil and it is heavy the work you have 
 done," said lollan, " and the sons of Usnach under my 
 protection." "Is that true?" said Conall. " It is true, 
 indeed," said lollan. " By my hand of valour," said 
 Conall, " Conchubar will not get his own son alive 
 from me to avenge it," and he gave a stroke of the 
 sword to Fiacra, so that he struck his head off, and he 
 left them so. The clouds of death came upon Fair- 
 Haired lollan then, and he threw his arms towards 
 the fortress, and called out to Naoise to do bravery, 
 and after that he died. 
 
 It is then Conchubar himself came out and nineteen 
 hundred men with him, and Conall said to him : " Go 
 up now to the doorway of the fort, and see where your 
 sister's children are lying on a bed of trouble." And 
 when Conchubar saw them he said : " You are not 
 sister's children to me ; it is not the deed of sister's 
 children you have done me, but you have done harm 
 to me with treachery in the sight of all the men of 
 Ireland." i\nd it is what Ainnle said to him : " Although 
 we took well-shaped, soft-handed Deirdre from you, yet 
 we did a little kindness to you at another time, and 
 this is the time to remember it. That day your ship 
 was breaking up on the sea, and it full of gold and 
 silver, we gave you up our own ship, and ourselves 
 went swimming to the harbour." But Conchubar said : 
 " If you did fifty good deeds to me, surely this would 
 be my thanks ; I would not give you peace, and you in 
 distress, but every great want I could put on you." 
 
 And then Ardan said : '' We did another little kind- 
 ness to you, and this is the time to remember it ; the 
 day the speckled horse failed you on the green of 
 Dundealgan, it was we gave you the grey horse that 
 would bring you fast on your road." 
 
 But Conchubar said : " If you had done fifty good 
 
132 FATEOFTHESONSOFUSNACH 
 
 deeds to me, surely this would be my thanks ; I would 
 not give you peace, and you in distress, but every great 
 want I could put on you." 
 
 And then Naoise said : " We did you another good 
 deed, and this is the time to remember it ; we have put 
 you under many benefits ; it is strong our right is to 
 your protection. 
 
 " The time when Murcael, son of Brian, fought the 
 seven battles at Beinn Etair, we brought you, without 
 fail, the heads of the sons of the king of the South- 
 East." 
 
 But Conchubar said : " If you had done me fifty good 
 deeds, surely this is my thanks ; I would not give you 
 peace in your distress, but every great want I could put 
 upon you. 
 
 " Your death is not a death to me now, young sons of 
 Usnach, since he that was innocent fell by you, the 
 third best of the horsemen of Ireland." 
 
 Then Deirdre said : " Rise up, Naoise, take your sword, 
 good son of a king, mind yourself well, for it is not long 
 that life will be left in your fair body." 
 
 It is then all Conchubar's men came about the house, 
 and they put fires and burning to it. Ardan went out 
 then, and his men, and put out the fires and killed three 
 hundred men. And Ainnle went out in the third part 
 of the night, and he killed three hundred, and did 
 slaughter and destruction on them. 
 
 And Naoise went out in the last quarter of the night, 
 and drove away all the army from the house. 
 
 He came into the house after that, and it is then 
 Deirdre rose up and said to him : " By my word, it is 
 well you won your way ; and do bravery and valour 
 from this out, and it was bad advice you took when you 
 ever trusted Conchubar." 
 
 As for the sons of Usnach, after that they made a good 
 protection with their shields, and they put Deirdre in the 
 
THE DRUID SEA 133 
 
 middle and linked the shields around her, and they gave 
 three leaps out over the walls of Emain, and they killed 
 three hundred men in that sally. 
 
 When Conchubar saw that, he went to Cathbad, the 
 Druid, and said to him : " Go, Cathbad, to the sons of 
 Usnach, and work enchantment on them ; for unless 
 they are hindered they will destroy the men of Ulster 
 for ever if they go away in spite of them ; and I give the 
 word of a true hero, they will get no harm from me, but 
 let them only make agreement with me." When Cath- 
 bad heard that, he agreed, believing him, and he went 
 to the end of his arts and his knowledge to hinder the 
 sons of Usnach, and he worked enchantment on them, so 
 that he put the likeness of a dark sea about them, with 
 hindering waves. And when Naoise saw the waves 
 rising he put up Deirdre on his shoulder, and it is 
 how the sons of Usnach were, swimming on the ground 
 as they were going out of Emain ; yet the men of Ulster 
 did not dare to come near them until their swords had 
 fallen from their hands. But after their swords fell from 
 their hands, the sons of Usnach were taken. And when 
 they were taken, Conchubar asked of the children of 
 Durthacht to kill them. But the children of Durthacht 
 said they would not do that. There was a young man 
 with Conchubar whose name was Maine, and his surname 
 Rough-Hand, son of the king of the fair Norwegians, and 
 it is Naoise had killed his father and his two brothers ; 
 Athrac and Triathrach were their names. And he said 
 he himself would kill the sons of Usnach. " If that is 
 so," said Ardan, " kill me the first, for I am younger 
 than my brothers, so that I will not see my brothers 
 killed." " Let him not be killed but myself," said Ainnle. 
 " Let that not be done," said Naoise, " for I have a 
 sword that Manannan, son of Lir, gave me, and the 
 stroke of it leaves nothing after it, track nor trace ; and 
 strike the three of us together, and we will die at the 
 
134 FATEOFTHESONSOFUSNACH 
 
 one time." '' That is well," said they all, " and let you 
 lay down your heads," they said. They did that, and 
 Maine gave a strong quick blow of the sword on the 
 three necks together on the block, and struck the three 
 heads off them with one stroke ; and the men of Ulster 
 gave three loud sorrowful shouts, and cried aloud about 
 them there. 
 
 As for Deirdre, she cried pitifully, wearily, and tore 
 her fair hair, and she was talking on the sons of Usnach 
 and on Alban, and it is what she said : 
 
 " A blessing eastward to Alban from me ; good is 
 the sight of her bays and valleys, pleasant was it to 
 sit on the slopes of her hills, where the sons of Usnach 
 used to be hunting. 
 
 " One day, when the nobles of Scotland were drinking 
 with the sons of Usnach, to whom they owed their 
 affection, Naoise gave a kiss secretly to the daughter 
 of the lord of Duntreon. He sent her a frightened 
 deer, wild, and a fawn at its foot ; and he went to 
 visit her coming home from the host of Inverness, 
 When myself heard that, my head filled full of jealousy ; 
 I put my boat on the waves, it was the same to me to 
 live or to die. They followed me swimming, Ainnle 
 and Ardan, that never said a lie ; they turned me back 
 again, two that would give battle to a hundred ; Naoise 
 gave me his true word, he swore three times with his 
 arms as witness, he would never put vexation on me 
 again, until he would go from me to the hosts of the 
 dead. 
 
 " Och ! if she knew to-night, Naoise to be under a 
 covering of clay, it is she would cry her fill, and it is I 
 would cry along with her." 
 
 After she had made this complaint, seeing they were 
 all taken up with one another, Deirdre came forward 
 on the lawn, and she was running round and round, 
 up and down, from one to another, and Cuchulain met 
 
DEIRDRE'S LAMENT 135 
 
 her, and she told him the story from first to last, how 
 it had happened to the sons of Usnach. It is sorrow- 
 ful Cuchulain was for that, for there was not in the 
 world a man was dearer to him than Naoise. And 
 he asked who killed him. " Maine Rough- Hand," said 
 Deirdre. Then Cuchulain went away, sad and sorrow- 
 ful, to Dundealgan. 
 
 After that Deirdre lay down by the grave, and 
 they were digging earth from it, and she made this 
 lament after the sons of Usnach : 
 
 " Long is the day without the sons of Usnach ; it 
 was never wearisome to be in their company ; sons of 
 a king that entertained exiles ; three lions of the Hill of 
 the Cave. 
 
 " Three darlings of the women of Britain ; three 
 hawks of Slieve Cuilenn ; sons of a king served by 
 valour, to whom warriors did obedience. The three 
 mighty bears ; three lions of the fort of Conrach ; 
 three sons of a king who thought well of their praise ; 
 three nurslings of the men of Ulster. 
 
 " Three heroes not good at homage ; their fall is a 
 cause of sorrow ; three sons of the sister of a king ; 
 three props of the army of Cuailgne. 
 
 " Three dragons of Dun Monad, the three valiant 
 men from the Red Branch ; I myself will not be living 
 after them, the three that broke hard battles. 
 
 " Three that were brought up by Aoife, to whom 
 lands were under tribute ; three pillars in the breach 
 of battle ; three pupils that were with Scathach. 
 
 " Three pupils that were with Uathach ; three 
 champions that were lasting in might ; three shin- 
 ing sons of Usnach ; it is weariness to be without 
 them. 
 
 " The High King of Ulster, my first betrothed, I 
 forsook for love of Naoise ; short my life will be after 
 him ; I will make keening at their burial. 
 
136 FATEOFTHESONSOFUSNACH 
 
 "That I would live after Naoise let no one think 
 on the earth ; I will not go on living after Ainnle and 
 after Ardan. 
 
 " After them I myself will not live ; three that 
 would leap through the midst of battle ; since my be- 
 loved is gone from me I will cry my fill over his 
 grave. 
 
 " O young man, digging the new grave, do not 
 make the grave narrow ; I will be along with them in 
 the grave, making lamentation and ochones ! 
 
 " Many the hardship I met with along with the three 
 heroes ; I suffered want of house, want of fire, it is 
 myself that used not to be troubled. 
 
 " Their three shields and their spears made a bed 
 for me often. O young man, put their three swords 
 close over their grave. 
 
 " Their three hounds, their three hawks, will be from 
 this time without huntsmen ; three helpers of every 
 battle ; three pupils of Conall Cearnach. 
 
 " The three leashes of those three hounds have 
 brought a sigh from my heart ; it is I had the care of 
 them, the sight of them is a cause of grief 
 
 " I was never one day alone to the day of the making 
 of this grave, though it is often that myself and your- 
 selves were in loneliness. 
 
 " My sight is gone from me with looking at the grave of 
 Naoise ; it is short till my life will leave me, and those 
 who would have keened me do not live. 
 
 " Since it is through me they were betrayed I will be 
 tired out with sorrow ; it is a pity I was not in the 
 earth before the sons of Usnach were killed. 
 
 " Sorrowful was my journey with Fergus, betraying 
 me to the Red Branch ; we were deceived all together 
 with his sweet, flowery words. I left the delights of 
 Ulster for the three heroes that were bravest ; my life 
 will not be long, I myself am alone after them. 
 
CONCHUBAR'S MESSAGE 137 
 
 " I am Deirdre without gladness, and I at the end of 
 my life ; since it is grief to be without them, I myself 
 will not be long after them." 
 
 After that complaint Deirdre loosed out her hair, and 
 threw herself on the body of Naoise before it was put 
 in the grave and gave three kisses to him, and when her 
 mouth touched his blood, the colour of burning sods 
 came into her cheeks, and she rose up like one that had 
 lost her wits, and she went on through the night till she 
 came to where the waves were breaking on the strand. 
 And a fisherman was there and his wife, and they 
 brought her into their cabin and sheltered her, and she 
 neither smiled nor laughed, nor took food, drink, or 
 sleep, nor raised her head from her knees, but crying 
 always after the sons of Usnach. 
 
 But when she could not be found at Emain, 
 Conchubar sent Levarcham to look for her, and to 
 bring her back to his palace, that he might make her 
 his wife. And Levarcham found her in the fisherman's 
 cabin, and she bade her come back to Emain, where she 
 would have protection and riches and all that she would 
 ask. And she gave her this message she brought from 
 Conchubar : " Come up to my house, O branch with 
 the dark eye-lashes, and there need be no fear on your 
 fair face, of hatred or of jealousy or of reproach." And 
 Deirdre said : " I will not go up to his house, for it is 
 not land or earth or food I am wanting, or gold or 
 silver or horses, but leave to go to the grave where the 
 sons of Usnach are lying, till I give the three honey 
 kisses to their three white, beautiful bodies." And she 
 made this complaint : 
 
 " Make keening for the heroes that were killed on 
 their coming to Ireland ; stately they used to be, coming 
 to the house, the three great sons of Usnach. 
 
 "The sons of Usnach fell in the fight like three 
 branches that were growing straight and nice, and they 
 
138 FATE OF THE SONS OF US XACH 
 
 destroyed in a heavy storm that left neither bud nor 
 twig of them. 
 
 '' Xaoise, my gentle, well-learned comrade, make no 
 delay in crying him with me ; cry for Ardan that 
 killed the wild boars, cry for Ainnle whose stength 
 was great 
 
 " It was Naoise that would kiss my lips, my first 
 man and my first sweetheart ; it was Ainnle would 
 pour out my drink, and it was Ardan would lay my 
 pillow. 
 
 " Though sweet to you is the mead that is drunk by 
 the soft-living son of Ness, the food of the sons of 
 Usnach was sweeter to me all through my lifetime. 
 
 " Whenever Naoise would go out to hunt through the 
 woods or the wide plains, all the meat he would bring 
 back was better to me than honey. 
 
 " Though sweet to you are the sounds of pipes and 
 of trumpets, it is truly I say to the king, I have heard 
 music that is sweeter. 
 
 " Delightful to Conchubar, the king, are pipes and 
 trumpets ; but the singing of the sons of Usnach was 
 more delightful to me. 
 
 "It was Naoise had the deep sound of the waves in 
 his voice ; it was the song of Ardan that was good, and 
 the voice of Ainnle towards their green dwelling-place. 
 
 " Their birth was beautiful and their blossoming, as 
 they grew to the strength of manhood ; sad is the 
 end to-day, the sons of Usnach to be cut down. 
 
 " Dear were their pleasant words, dear their young, 
 high strength ; in their going through the plains of 
 Ireland there was a welcome before the coming of 
 their strength. 
 
 " Dear their grey eyes that were loved by women, 
 many looked on them as they went ; when they went 
 freely searching through the woods, their steps were 
 pleasant on the dark mountain. 
 
DEIRDRE'S DEATH 139 
 
 " I do not sleep at any time, and the colour is gone 
 from my face ; there is no sound can give me delight 
 since the sons of Usnach do not come. 
 
 " I do not sleep through the night ; my senses are 
 scattered away from me, I do not care for food or 
 drink. I have no welcome to-day for the pleasant 
 drink of nobles, or ease, or comfort, or delight, or a 
 great house, or the palace of a king. 
 
 •' Do not break the strings of my heart as you took 
 hold of my young youth, Conchubar ; though my 
 darling is dead, my love is strong to live. What is 
 country to me, or land, or lordship? What are swift 
 horses? What are jewels and gold? Och ! it is I 
 will be lying to-night on the strand like the beautiful 
 sons of Usnach." 
 
 So Levarcham went back to Conchubar to tell him 
 what way Deirdre was, and that she would not come 
 with her to Emain Macha. 
 
 And when she was gone, Deirdre went out on the 
 strand, and she found a carpenter making an oar 
 for a boat, and making a mast for it, clean and 
 straight, to put up a sail to the wind. And when 
 she saw him making it, she said : " It is a sharp knife 
 you have, to cut the oar so clean and so straight, and 
 if you will give it to me," she said, " I will give you 
 a ring of the best gold in Ireland for it, the ring that 
 belonged to Naoise, and that was with him through 
 the battle and through the fight ; he thought much 
 of it in his lifetime ; it is pure gold, through and 
 through." So the carpenter took the ring in his hand, 
 and the knife in the other hand, and he looked at them 
 together, and he gave her the knife for the ring, and 
 for her asking and her tears. Then Deirdre went close 
 to the waves, and she said : " Since the other is not with 
 me now, I will spend no more of my lifetime without 
 him." And with that she drove the black knife into 
 
140 FATEOFTHESONSOFUSXACH 
 
 her side, but she drew it out again and threw it in the 
 sea to her right hand, the way no one would be blamed 
 for her death. 
 
 Then Conchubar came down to the strand and five 
 hundred men along with him, to bring Deirdre away to 
 Emain Macha, but all he found before him was her 
 white body on the ground, and it without life. And it 
 is what he said : 
 
 "A thousand deaths on the time I brought death on 
 my sister's children ; now I am myself without Deirdre, 
 and they themselves are without life. 
 
 " They were my sister's children, the three brothers 
 I vexed with blows, Naoise, and Ainnle, and Ardan ; 
 they have died along with Deirdre." 
 
 And they took her white, beautiful body, and laid 
 it in a grave, and a flagstone was raised over her grave, 
 and over the grave of the sons of Usnach, and their 
 names were written in Ogham, and keening was made 
 for their burial. 
 
 And as to Fergus, son of Rogh, he came on the day 
 after the children of Usnach were killed, to Emain 
 Macha. And when he found they had been killed 
 and his pledge to them broken, he himself, and Cormac 
 Conloingeas, Conchubar's own son, and Dubthach, the 
 Beetle of Ulster, with their men, made an attack on 
 Conchubar's house and men, and a great many were 
 killed by them, and Emain Macha was burned and 
 destroyed. 
 
 And after doing that, they went into Connaught, to 
 Ailell and to Maeve at Cruachan, and they were made 
 welcome there, and they took service with them and 
 fought with them against Ulster because of the treachery 
 that was done by Conchubar. And that is the way 
 Fergus and the others came to be on the side of the 
 men of Connaught in the war for the Brown Bull of 
 Cuailgne. 
 
CATHEAD'S CURSE 141 
 
 And Cathbad laid a curse on Emain Macha, on 
 account of that great wrong. And it is what he said, 
 that none of the race of Conchubar should have the 
 kingdom, to the end of life and time. 
 
 And that came true, for the most of Conchubar's sons 
 died in his own lifetime, and when he was near his 
 death, he bade the men of Ulster bring back Cormac 
 Conloingeas out of Cruachan, and give him the 
 kingdom. 
 
 So they sent messengers to Cormac, and he set out 
 and his three troops of men with him, and he left his 
 blessing with Ailell and with Maeve, and he promised 
 them a good return for all the kind treatment they had 
 given him. And they crossed the river at Athluain, 
 and there they saw a red woman at the edge of the 
 ford, and she washing her chariot and her harness. And 
 after that they met a young girl coming towards them, 
 and a light green cloak about her, and a brooch of 
 precious stones at her breast. And Cormac asked her 
 was she coming with them, and she said she was not, 
 and it would be better for himself to turn back, for the 
 ruin of his life was come. 
 
 And he stopped for the night at the House of the Two 
 Smiths on the hill ofBruighean Mor, the great dwelling- 
 place. 
 
 But a troop of the men of Connaught came about the 
 house in the night, for they were on the way home after 
 destroying and robbing a district of Ulster, and they 
 thought to make an end of Cormac before he would get 
 to Emain. 
 
 And it chanced there was a great harper, Craiftine, 
 living close by, and his wife, Sceanb, daughter of 
 Scethern, a Druid of Connaught, loved Cormac Con- 
 loingeas, and three times she had gone to meet him at 
 Athluain, and she planted three trees there — Grief, 
 and Dark, and Dumbness. 
 
142 FATE OFTHE SONS OF USNACH 
 
 And there was great hatred and jealousy of Cormac 
 on Craiftine, so when he knew the men of Connaught 
 were going to make an attack on him, he went outside 
 the house with his harp, and played a soft sleepy tune to 
 him, the way he had not the strength to rouse himself 
 up, and himself and the most of his people were killed. 
 And Amergin, that had gone with the message to him, 
 made his grave and his mound, and the place is called 
 Cluain Duma, the Lawn of the Mound. 
 
VIII 
 
 THE DREAM OF ANGUS OG 
 
 A NGUS, son of the Dagda, was asleep in his bed one 
 '^^ night, and he saw what he thought was a young 
 girl standing near him at the top of the bed, and she the 
 most beautiful he had ever seen in Ireland. He put out 
 his hand to take her hand, but she vanished on the 
 moment, and in the morning when he awoke there were 
 no trace or tidings of her. 
 
 He got no rest that day thinking of her, and that she 
 had gone away before he could speak to her. And the 
 next night he saw her again, and this time she brought 
 a little harp in her hand, the sweetest he ever heard, and 
 she played a song to him, so that he fell asleep and slept 
 till morning. And the same thing happened every night 
 for a year. She would come to his bedside and be playing 
 on the harp to him, but she would be gone before he 
 could speak with her. And at the end of the year she came 
 no more, and Angus began to pine away with love of her 
 and with fretting after her ; and he would take no food, 
 but lay upon the bed, and no one knew what it was ailed 
 him. And all the physicians of Ireland came together, 
 but they could not put a name on his sickness or find 
 any cure for him. 
 
 But at last Fergne, the physician of Conn, was brought 
 to him, and as soon as he looked at him he knew it was 
 not on his body the sickness was, but on his mind. And 
 
 U3 
 
144 THE DREAM OF ANGUS OG 
 
 he sent every one away out of the room, and he said : " I 
 think it is for the love of some woman that you are 
 wasting away like this." " That is true, indeed," said 
 Angus ; " and it is my sickness has betrayed me." And 
 then he told him how the woman with the most beautiful 
 appearance of any woman in Ireland, used to come and 
 to be playing the harp to him through the night, and 
 how she had vanished away. 
 
 Then Fergne went and spoke with Boann, Angus's 
 mother, and he told her all that happened, and he 
 bade her to send and search all through Ireland if she 
 could find a young girl of the same appearance as the 
 one Angus had seen in his sleep. And then he left 
 him in his mother's care, and she had all Ireland 
 searched for a year, but no young girl of that appear- 
 ance could be found. 
 
 At the end of the year, Boann sent for Fergne to 
 come again, and she said : " We have not got any help 
 from our search up to this." And Fergne said : " Send 
 for the Dagda, that he may come and speak to his son." 
 So they sent for the Dagda, and when he came, he said : 
 " What have I been called for ? " " To give an advice 
 to your son," said Fergne, " and to help him, for he is 
 lying sick on account of a young girl that appeared to 
 him in his sleep, and that cannot be found ; and it 
 would be a pity for him to die." " What use will it be, 
 I to speak to him ? " said the Dagda, " for my knowledge 
 is no higher than your own." " By my word," said 
 Fergne, "you are the king of all the Sidhe of Ireland, 
 and what you have to do is to go to Bodb, the king of the 
 Sidhe of Munster, for he has a name for knowledge all 
 through Ireland." So messengers were sent to Bodb, 
 at his house in Sidhe Femain, and he bade them 
 welcome. " A welcome before you, messenger of the 
 Dagda," he said, "and what is the message you have 
 brought ? " " This is the message," they said, " Angus 
 
CAER 145 
 
 Og, son of the Dagda, is wasting away these two years 
 with love of a woman he saw in his dreams, and we 
 have not been able to find her in any place. And this 
 is an order to you," they said, " from the Dagda, to 
 search out through Ireland a young girl of the same 
 form and appearance as the one he saw." " The search 
 will be made," said Bodb, " if it lasts me a year." 
 
 And at the end of a year he sent messengers to the 
 Dagda. " Is it a good message you have brought ? " 
 said the Dagda. " It is, indeed," they said ; " and this 
 is the message Bodb bade us give you, ' I have searched 
 all Ireland until I found the young girl with the same 
 form and appearance that you said, at Loch Beul 
 Draguin, at the Harp of Cliach.' And now," they said, 
 " he bids Angus to come with us, till he sees if it is the 
 same woman that appeared to him in his dream." 
 
 So Angus set out in his chariot to Sidhe Femain, 
 and Bodb bade him welcome, and made a great feast 
 for him, that lasted three days and three nights. And 
 at the end of that time he said : " Come out now 
 with me, and see if this is the same woman that came 
 to you." 
 
 So they set out together till they came to the sea, 
 and there they saw three times fifty young girls, and 
 the one they were looking for among them ; and she 
 was far beyond them all. And there was a silver chain 
 between every two of them, but about her own neck 
 there was a necklace of shining gold. And Bodb said : 
 " Do you see that woman you were looking for ? " "I 
 see her, indeed," said Angus. " But tell me who is she, 
 and what her name is." '* Her name is Caer Ormaith, 
 daughter of Ethal Anbual, from Sidhe Uaman, in the 
 province of Connaught. But you cannot bring her 
 away with you this time," said Bodb. 
 
 Then Angus went to visit his father, the Dagda, 
 and his mother, Boann, at Brugh na Boinne ; and Bodb 
 
 K 
 
146 THE DREAM OF ANGUS OG 
 
 went with him, and they told how they had seen the 
 girl, and they had heard her own name, and her father's 
 name. " What had we best do now ? " said the Dagda. 
 " The best thing for you to do," said Bodb, " is to go 
 to Ailell and Maeve, for it is in their district she lives, 
 and you had best ask their help." 
 
 So the Dagda set out until he came into the province 
 of Connaught, and sixty chariots with him ; and Ailell 
 and Maeve made a great feast for him. And after 
 they had been feasting and drinking for the length 
 of a week, Ailell asked the reason of their journey. 
 And the Dagda said : " It is by reason of a young girl 
 in your district, for my son has sickness upon him on 
 account of her, and I am come to ask if you will give 
 her to him." " Who is she ? " said Ailell. " She is Caer 
 Ormaith, daughter of Ethal Anbual." "We have no 
 power over her that we could give her to him," said 
 Ailell and Maeve. " The best thing for you to do," 
 said the Dagda, " would be to call her father here to 
 you." 
 
 So Ailell sent his steward to Ethal Anbual, and he 
 said : " I am come to bid you to go and speak with 
 Ailell and with Maeve." " I will not go," he said ; " I 
 will not give my daughter to the son of the Dagda." 
 So the steward went back and told this to Ailell. " He 
 will not come," he said, " and he knows the reason you 
 want him for." 
 
 Then there was anger an Ailell and on the Dagda, 
 and they went out, and their armed men with them, 
 and they destroyed the whole place of Ethal Anbual, 
 and he was brought before them. And Ailell said to 
 him : " Give your daughter now to the son of the 
 Dagda." "That is what I cannot do," he said, "for 
 there is a power over her that is greater than mine." 
 " What power is that ? " said Ailell. " It is an enchant- 
 ment," he said, " that is on her, she to be in the shape 
 
THE TWO SWANS 147 
 
 of a bird for one year, and in her own shape the next 
 year," "Which shape is on her at this time?" said 
 Ailell. " I would not like to say that," said her father. 
 " Your head from you if you will not tell it," said Ailell. 
 
 " Well," said he, " I will tell you this much ; she will 
 be in the shape of a swan next month at Loch Beul 
 Draguin, and three fifties of beautiful birds will be 
 along with her, and if you will go there, you will see 
 her." 
 
 So then Ethal was set free, and he made friends 
 again with Ailell and Maeve; and the Dagda went 
 home and told Angus all that had happened, and he 
 said : " Go next summer to Loch Beul Draguin, and 
 call her to you there." 
 
 So when the time came, Angus Og went to the loch, 
 and he saw the three times fifty white birds there, with 
 their silver chains about their necks. And Angus stood 
 in a man's shape at the edge of the loch, and he called 
 to the girl : " Come and speak with me, O Caer ! " 
 " Who is calling me ? " said Caer. " Angus calls you," 
 he said, " and if you come, I swear by my word, I will 
 not hinder you from going into the loch again." " I 
 will come," she said. So she came to him, and he laid 
 his two hands on her, and then, to hold to his word, he 
 took the shape of a swan on himself, and they went into 
 the loch together, and they went around it three times. 
 And then they spread their wings and rose up from 
 the loch, and went in that shape till they were at 
 Brugh na Boinne. And as they were going, the music 
 they made was so sweet that all the people that heard 
 it fell asleep for three days and three nights. 
 
 And Caer stopped there with him ever afterwards, 
 and from that time there was friendship between Angus 
 Og and Ailell and Maeve. And it was on account of 
 that friendship, Angus gave them his help at the time of 
 the war for the Brown Bull of Cuailgne. 
 
IX 
 
 CRUACHAN 
 
 "VTOW as to Cruachan, the home of Ailell and of 
 Maeve, it is on the plain of IMagh Ai it was, in 
 the province of Connaught. 
 
 And this is the way the plain came by its name. In 
 the time long ago, there was a king whose name was 
 Conn, that had the Druid power, so that when the Sidhe 
 themselves came against him, he was able to defend 
 himself with enchantments as good as their own. And 
 one time he went out against them, and broke up their 
 houses, and carried away their cattle, and then, to 
 hinder them from following after him, he covered the 
 whole province with a deep snow. 
 
 The Sidhe went then to consult with Dalach, the 
 king's brother, that had the Druid knowledge even 
 better than himself; and it is what he told them to 
 do, to kill three hundred white cows with red ears, 
 and to spread out their livers on a certain plain. And 
 when they had done this, he made spells on them, and 
 the heat the livers gave out melted the snow over the 
 whole plain and the whole province, and after that the 
 plain was given the name of Magh Ai, the Plain of the 
 Livers. 
 
 Ailell was son of Ross Ruadh, king of Leinster, and 
 Maeve was daughter of Eochaid, king of Ireland, and her 
 brothers were the Three Fair Twins that rose up against 
 
 14S 
 
THE ROYAL HOUSE 149 
 
 their father, and fought against him at Druim Criadh. 
 And they were beaten in the fight, and went back over 
 the Sionnan, and they were overtaken and their heads 
 were cut off, and brought back to their father, and he 
 fretted after them to the end of his Hfe. 
 
 Seven sons Ailell and Maeve had, and the name of 
 every one of them was Maine. There was Maine 
 Mathremail, Hke his mother, and Maine Athremail, 
 like his father, and Maine Mo Epert, the Talker, and 
 Maine Milscothach, the Honey-Worded, and Maine 
 Andoe the Quick, and Maine Mingor, the Gently 
 Dutiful, and Maine Morgor, the Very Dutiful. Their 
 own people they had, and their own place of living. 
 
 This now was the appearance of Cruachan, the Royal 
 house of Ailell and of Maeve, that some called Cruachan 
 of the poets ; there were seven divisions in the house, 
 with couches in them, from the hearth to the wall ; a 
 front of bronze to every division, and of red yew with 
 carvings on it ; and there were seven strips of bronze 
 from the foundation to the roof of the house. The 
 house was made of oak, and the roof was covered with 
 oak shingles ; sixteen windows with glass there were, 
 and shutters of bronze on them, and a bar of bronze across 
 every shutter. There was a raised place in the middle 
 of the house for Ailell and Maeve, with silver fronts 
 and strips of bronze around it, and four bronze pillars 
 on it, and a silver rod beside it, the way Ailell and 
 Maeve could strike the middle beam and check their 
 people. 
 
 And outside the royal house was the dun, with the 
 walls about it that were built by Brocc, son of Blar, and 
 the great gate ; and it is there the houses were for 
 strangers to be lodged. 
 
 And besides this, there was at Cruachan the Hill of 
 the Sidhe, or, as some called it, the Cave of Cruachan, It 
 was there Midhir brought Etain one time, and it is there 
 
150 CRUACHAN 
 
 the people of the Sidhe lived ; but it is seldom any 
 living person had the power to see them. 
 
 It is out of that hill a flock of white birds came one 
 time, and everything they touched in all Ireland 
 withered up, until at last the men of Ulster killed them 
 with their slings. And another time enchanted pigs 
 came out of the hill, and in every place they trod, neither 
 corn nor grass nor leaf would sprout before the end of 
 seven years, and no sort of weapon would wound them. 
 But if they were counted in any place, or if the people 
 so much as tried to count them, they would not stop in 
 that place, but they would go on to another. But how- 
 ever often the people of the country tried to count 
 them, no two people could ever make out the one 
 number, and one man would call out, " There are three 
 pigs in it," and another, " No, but there are seven," and 
 another that it was eleven were in it, or thirteen, and so 
 the count would be lost. One time Maeve and Ailell 
 themselves tried to count them on the plain, but while 
 they were doing it, one of the pigs made a leap over 
 Maeve's chariot, and she in it. Every one called out, 
 "A pig has gone over you, Maeve I" " It has not," she 
 said, and with that she caught hold of the pig by the 
 shank, but if she did, its skin opened at the head, and it 
 made its escape. And it is from that the place was 
 called Magh-mucrimha, the Plain of Swine-counting. 
 
 Another time Fraech, son of Idath, of the men of 
 Connaught, that was son of Boann's sister, Befind, from 
 the Sidhe, came to Cruachan. He was the most beauti- 
 ful of the men of Ireland or of Alban, but his life was not 
 long. It was to ask Findabair for his wife he came, and 
 before he set out his people said : " Send a message to 
 your mother's people, the way they will send you cloth- 
 ing of the Sidhe." So he went to Boann, that was at 
 Magh Breagh, and he brought away fifty blue cloaks with 
 four black ears on each cloak, and a brooch of red gold 
 
FRAECH AT CRUACHAN 151 
 
 with each, and pale white shirts with looped beasts of 
 gold around them ; and fifty silver shields with edges, 
 and a candle of a king's house in the hand of each of 
 the men, knobs of carbuncle under them, and their 
 points of precious stones. They used to light up the 
 night as if they were sun's rays. 
 
 And he had with him seven trumpeters with gold and 
 silver trumpets, with many coloured clothing, with golden, 
 silken, heads of hair, with coloured cloaks ; and three 
 harpers with the appearance of a king on each of them, 
 every harper having the white skin of a deer about him 
 and a cloak of white linen, and a harp-bag of the skins 
 of water-dogs. 
 
 The watchman saw them from the dun when they had 
 come into the Plain of Cruachan. " I see a great crowd," 
 he said, " coming towards us. Since Ailell was king and 
 Maeve was queen, there never came and there never 
 will come a grander or more beautiful crowd than this 
 one. It is like as if I had my head in a vat of wine, with 
 the breeze that goes over them." 
 
 Then Fraech's people let out their hounds, and the 
 hounds found seven deer and seven foxes and seven 
 hares and seven wild boars, and hunted them to Rath 
 Cruachan, and there they were killed on the lawn of the 
 dun. 
 
 Then Ailell and Maeve gave them a welcome, and 
 they were brought into the house, and while food was 
 being made ready, Maeve sat down to play a game of 
 chess with Fraech. It was a beautiful chess-board 
 they had, all of white bronze, and the chessmen of gold 
 and silver, and a candle of precious stones lighting them. 
 
 Then Ailell said : " Let your harpers play for us while 
 the feast is being made ready." " Let them play, in- 
 deed," said Fraech. 
 
 So the harpers began to play, and it was much that 
 the people of the house did not die with crying and 
 
152 CRUACHAN 
 
 with sadness. And the music they played was the Three 
 Cries of Uaithne. It was Uaithne, the harp of the 
 Dagda, that first played those cries the time Boann's 
 sons were born. The first was a song of sorrow for 
 the hardness of her pains, and the second was a song 
 of smiling and joy for the birth of her sons, and the 
 third was a sleeping song after the birth. 
 
 And with the music of the harpers, and with the 
 light that shone from the precious stones in the house, 
 they did not know the night was on them, till at last 
 Maeve started up, and she said : " We have done a 
 great deed to keep these young men without food." 
 " It is more you think of chess-playing than of providing 
 for them," said Ailell ; " and now, let them stop from 
 the music," he said, "till the food is given out." 
 
 Then the food was divided. It was Lothar used to 
 be sitting on the floor of the house, dividing the food 
 with his cleaver, and he not eating himself, and from 
 the time he began dividing, food never failed under 
 his hand. 
 
 After that, Fraech was brought into the conversation- 
 house, and they asked him what was it he wanted. 
 
 " A visit to yourselves," he said, but he said nothing 
 of Findabair. So they told him he was welcome, and 
 he stopped with them for a while, and every day they 
 went out hunting, and all the people of Connaught 
 used to come and to be looking at them. 
 
 But all this time Fraech got no chance of speaking 
 with Findabair, until one morning at daybreak, he 
 went down to the river for washing, and Findabair and 
 her young girls had gone there before him. And he 
 took her hand, and he said : " Stay here and talk with 
 me, for it is for your sake I am come, and would you 
 go away with me secretly ? " "I will not go secretly," 
 she said, " for I am the daughter of a king and of 
 a queen." 
 
AILELL'S TREACHERY 153 
 
 So she went from him then, but she left him a ring 
 to remember her by. It was a ring her mother had 
 given her. 
 
 Then Fraech went to the conversation-house to Ailell 
 and to Maeve. " Will you give your daughter to me ? " 
 he said. " We will give her if you will give the marriage 
 portion we ask," said Ailell, " and that is, sixty black- 
 grey horses with golden bits, and twelve milch cows, 
 and a white red-eared calf with each of them ; and you 
 to come with us with all your strength and all your 
 musicians at whatever time we go to war in Ulster." 
 " I swear by my shield and my sword, I would not give 
 that for Maeve herself," he said ; and he went away out 
 of the house. 
 
 But Ailell had taken notice of Findabair's ring with 
 Fraech, and he said to Maeve : " If he brings our 
 daughter away with him, we will lose the help of many 
 of the kings of Ireland. Let us go after him and 
 make an end of him before he has time to harm us." 
 " That would be a pity," said Maeve. " and it would be 
 a reproach on us." " It will be no reproach on us, the 
 way I will manage it," said he. And Maeve agreed to 
 it, for there was vexation on her that it was Findabair 
 that Fraech wanted, and not herself So they went 
 into the palace, and Ailell said : " Let us go and see 
 the hounds hunting until mid-day." So they did so, 
 and at mid-day they were tired, and they all went to 
 bathe in the river. And Fraech was swimming in the 
 river, and Ailell said to him : " Do not come back till 
 you bring me a branch of the rowan-tree there beyond, 
 with the beautiful berries." For he knew there was a 
 prophecy that it was in a river Fraech would get his 
 death. 
 
 So he went and broke a branch off the tree and 
 brought it back over the water, and it is beautiful he 
 looked over the black water, his body without fault, 
 
154 CRUACHAN 
 
 and his face so nice, and his eyes very grey, and the 
 branch with the red berries between the throat and 
 the white face. And then he threw the branch to 
 them out of the water. " It is ripe and beautiful the 
 berries are," said Ailell ; " bring us more of them." 
 
 So he went off again to the tree, and the water- worm 
 that guarded the tree caught a hold of him. " Let me 
 have a sword," he called out, but there was not a man 
 on the land would dare to give it to him, through fear of 
 Ailell and of Maeve. But Findabair made a leap to go 
 into the water with a gold knife she had in her hand, but 
 Ailell threw a sharp-pointed spear from above, through 
 her plaited hair, that held her ; but she threw the knife 
 to Fraech, and he cut off the head of the monster, and 
 brought it with him to the land, but he himself had got 
 a deep wound. Then Ailell and Maeve went back to 
 the house. " It is a great deed we have done," said 
 Maeve. "It is a pity, indeed, what we have done to 
 the man," said Ailell. " And let a healing-bath be 
 made for him now," he said, " of the marrow of pigs 
 and of a heifer." Fraech was put in the bath then, 
 and pleasant music was played by the trumpeters, and 
 a bed was made for him. 
 
 Then a sorrowful crying was heard on Cruachan, and 
 they saw three times fifty women with purple gowns, 
 with green head-dresses, and pins of silver on their 
 wrists, and a messenger went and asked them who 
 was it they were crying for. " For Fraech, son of 
 Idath," they said, " boy darling of the king of the Sidhe 
 of Ireland." 
 
 Then Fraech heard their crying, and he said : " Lift me 
 out of this, for that is the cry of my mother, and of the 
 women of Boann." So they lifted him out, and the 
 women came round him and brought him away into the 
 Hill of Cruachan. 
 
 And the next day he came out, and he whole and 
 
NERA'S ADVENTURE 155 
 
 sound, and fifty women with him, and they with the 
 appearance of women of the Sidhe. And at the door 
 of the dun they left him, and they gave out their cry 
 again, so that all the people that heard it could not but 
 feel sorrowful. It is from this the musicians of Ireland 
 learned the sorrowful cry of the women of the Sidhe. 
 
 And when he went into the house, the whole house- 
 hold rose up before him and bade him welcome, as if it 
 was from another world he was come. And there was 
 shame and repentance on Ailell and on Maeve for 
 trying to harm him, and peace was made, and he went 
 away to his own place. 
 
 And it was after that he came to help Ailell and 
 Maeve, and that he got his death in a river as was 
 foretold, at the beginning of the war for the Brown Bull 
 of Cuailgne. 
 
 And one time the Hill was robbed by the men of 
 Cruachan, and this is the way it happened. 
 
 One night at Samhain, Ailell and Maeve were in 
 Cruachan with their whole household, and the food was 
 being made ready. 
 
 Two prisoners had been hanged by them the day 
 before, and Ailell said : " Whoever will put a gad round 
 the foot of either of the two men on the gallows, will 
 get a prize from me." 
 
 It was a very dark night, and bad things would always 
 appear on that night of Samhain, and every man that 
 went out to try came back very quickly into the house. 
 " I will go if I will get a prize," said Nera, then. " I 
 will give you this gold-hilted sword," said Ailell. 
 
 So Nera went out and he put a gad round the foot of 
 one of the men that had been hanged. Then the man 
 spoke to him. " It is good courage you have," he said, 
 "and bring me with you where I can get a drink, for 
 I was very thirsty when I was hanged." So Nera 
 brought him where he would get a drink, and then he 
 
IS6 CRUACHAN 
 
 put him on the gallows again, and went back to 
 Cruachan. 
 
 But what he saw was the whole of the palace as if 
 on fire before him, and the heads of the people of it 
 lying on the ground, and then he thought he saw an 
 army going into the Hill of Cruachan, and he followed 
 after the army. " There is a man on our track," the 
 last man said. " The track is the heavier," said the 
 next to him, and each said that word to the other from 
 the last to the first. Then they went into the Hill of 
 Cruachan. And they said to their king : " What shall 
 be done to the man that is come in ? " '' Let him come 
 here till I speak with him," said the king. So Nera 
 came, and the king asked him who it was had brought 
 him in. " I came in with your army," said Nera. " Go 
 to that house beyond," said the king : " there is a woman 
 there will make you welcome. Tell her it is I myself 
 sent you to her. And come every day," he said, " to 
 this house with a load of firing." 
 
 So Nera went where he was told, and the woman said : 
 " A welcome before you, if it is the king sent you." So 
 he stopped there, and took the woman for his wife. 
 And every day for three days he brought a load of firing 
 to the king's house, and on each day he saw a blind 
 man, and a lame man on his back, coming out of the 
 house before him. They would go on till they were at the 
 brink of a well before the Hill. " Is it there ? " the blind 
 man would say. " It is, indeed," the lame man would 
 say. " Let us go away," the lame man would say then. 
 
 And at the end of three days, as he thought, Nera 
 asked the woman about this. " Why do the blind man 
 and the lame man go every day to the well ? " he said. 
 " They go to know is the crown safe that is in the well. 
 It is there the king's crown is kept." "Why do these 
 two go ? " said Nera. " It is easy to tell that," she said ; 
 " they are trusted by the king to visit the crown, and 
 
THE HILL OF THE SIDHE 157 
 
 one of them was blinded by him, and the other was 
 lamed. And another thing," she said, "go now and 
 give a warning to your people to mind themselves next 
 Samhain night, unless they will come to attack the hill, 
 for it is only at Samhain," she said, " the army of the 
 Sidhe can go out, for it is at that time all the hills of the 
 Sidhe of Ireland are opened. But if they will come, I 
 will promise them this, the crown of Briun to be carried 
 off by Ailell and by Maeve." 
 
 " How can I give them that message," said Nera, 
 "when I saw the whole dun of Cruachan burned and 
 destroyed, and all the people destroyed with it ? " " You 
 did not see that, indeed," she said. " It was the host of 
 the Sidhe came and put that appearance before your 
 eyes. And go back to them now," she said, " and you 
 will find them sitting round the same great pot, and the 
 meat has not yet been taken off the fire." 
 
 " How will it be believed that I have gone into the 
 Hill ? " said Nera, " Bring flowers of summer with 
 you," said the woman. So he brought wild garlic with 
 him, and primroses and golden fern. 
 
 So he went back to the palace, and he found his people 
 round the same great pot, and he told them all that 
 had happened him, and the sword was given to him, and 
 he stopped with his people to the end of a year. 
 
 At the end of the year Ailell said to Nera : " We are 
 going now against the Hill of the Sidhe, and let you go 
 back," he said, " if you have anything to bring out of it." 
 So he went back to see the woman, and she bade him 
 welcome. " Go now," she said, " and bring in a load of 
 firing to the king, for I went in myself every day for 
 the last year with the load on my back, and I said there 
 was sickness on you." So he did that. 
 
 Then the men of Connaught and the black host of the 
 exiles of Ulster went into the Hill and robbed it and 
 brought away the crown of Briun, son of Smetra, that 
 
158 CRUACHAN 
 
 was made by the smith of Angus, son of Umor, and that 
 was kept in the well at Cruachan, to save it from the 
 Morrigu. And Nera was left with his people in the 
 hill, and he has not come out till now, and he will not 
 come out till the end of life and time. 
 
 Now one time the Morrigu brought away a cow from 
 the Hill of Cruachan to the Brown Bull of Cuailgne, 
 and after she brought it back again its calf v/as born. 
 And one day it went out of the Hill, and it bellowed three 
 times. At that time Ailell and Fergus were playing 
 draughts, for it was after Fergus had come as an exile 
 from Ulster, because of the death of the sons of Usnach, 
 and they heard the bellowing of the bull-calf in the plain. 
 Then Fergus said : " I do not like the sound of the calf 
 bellowing. There will be calves without cows," he said, 
 " when the king goes on his march." 
 
 But now Ailell's bull, Finbanach, the White- Horned, 
 met the calf in the plain of Cruachan, and they fought 
 together, and the calf was beaten and it bellowed. 
 *' What did the calf bellow ? " Maeve asked her cow-herd 
 Buaigle. " I know that, my master, Fergus," said Bricriu. 
 " It is the song that you were singing a while ago." On 
 that Fergus turned and struck with his fist at his head, 
 so that the five men of the chessmen that were in his 
 hand went into Bricriu's head, and it was a lasting hurt 
 to him. " Tell me now, Buaigle, what did the calf 
 bellow?" said Maeve. "It said indeed," said Buaigle, 
 " that if its father the Brown of Cuailgne would come to 
 fight with the White-Horned, he would not be seen any 
 more in Ai, he would be beaten through the whole plain 
 of Ai on every side." And it is what Maeve said : " I 
 swear by the gods my people swear by, I will not lie 
 down on feathers, or drink red or white ale, till I see 
 those two bulls fighting before my face." 
 
X 
 
 THE WEDDING OF MAINE MORGOR 
 
 ■\ 1 rHEN Maine Morgor, the Very Dutiful, the son of 
 Ailell and of Maeve, set out for his wedding with 
 Ferb, daughter of Gerg of Rath Ini, in Ulster, he brought 
 three troops of young men with him, and fifty men in 
 each troop, and this is the appearance that was on 
 the first two troops. Shining white shirts they had, 
 striped with purple down the sides ; gold shields on 
 their backs with borders of white silver, with figures 
 engraved on them, and with edges of white bronze as 
 sharp as knives. Great two-edged swords with silver 
 hilts at their belts ; chains of white silver round their 
 necks. And there were neither helmets on their heads, 
 or shoes on their feet. 
 
 And as to the third troop, the one Maine himself 
 was in, there were fifty reddish-brown horses in it, and 
 fifty white horses with red ears, with long manes and 
 tails coloured purple, and bridles on them, with a ball 
 of red gold on the one side, and a ball of white silver 
 on the other side, and a gold or a silver bit to every 
 one of them. A collar of gold with bells from it on 
 the neck of every horse, and when the horses would 
 be moving, the sound of these bells would be as sweet 
 as the strings of a harp when the player strikes it with 
 his hand. There was a chariot of white bronze ribbed 
 with gold and silver to every two of the horses ; 
 
i6o WEDDING OF MAINE MORGOR 
 
 purple cushions sewed with gold bound to every chariot ; 
 fifty fair slender young men in these fifty chariots, and 
 not one among them but was the son of a king and 
 a queen, and was a hero and a brave man of Connaught, 
 and they wearing purple cloaks about them, that had 
 borders ornamented with gold and silver, and a clasp 
 of pure red gold to every cloak ; fine silk coats fastened 
 with hooks of gold close to their white bodies ; fifty 
 silver shields on their backs with gold rims studded 
 with carbuncles and other precious stones of ever}- 
 colour ; two candles of valour were the two shining 
 spears on the hand of every man of them ; fifty rivets 
 of bronze and of gold in every spear, and if any man 
 of them had a debt of a bushel of silver or gold, one 
 rivet from his spear would pay it. And there were 
 precious stones on their spears that would flame in 
 the night like the rays of the sun. At their belts they 
 had long, gold-hilted swords with silver sheaths ; goads 
 in their hands of white bronze with silver crooks. And 
 as to the young men themselves, they were very hand- 
 some and stately, and large and shining ; curled yellow 
 hair on them, hanging down on their shoulders ; proud, 
 clear, blue eyes ; their cheeks like the flowers of the 
 woods in May, or like the foxglove of the mountains. 
 There were seven greyhounds following Maine's chariot 
 in chains of silver, and apples of gold on every chain. 
 There were seven trumpeters with gold and silver 
 trumpets, wearing clothes of many colours, and having 
 all of them light yellow hair. And three Druids went 
 in front of them, and they having bands of silver on 
 their heads, and speckled cloaks on them, and carrying 
 shields of bronze with ornaments of red copper. And 
 there were three harpers with them, that had the appear- 
 ance of kings. 
 
 It is like that they gathered at the royal house of 
 Cruachan, and they went three times round the lawn 
 
THE ARRIVAL AT RATH INI i6i 
 
 before the house. And they said farewell to Maeve 
 and to Ailell, and then they set out for Rath Ini. 
 
 " It is a fine setting out you are having," said Bricriu ; 
 " but maybe the coming back will not be so fine." " It 
 is a journey that will be heard of in every place," said 
 Maine. " I suppose," said Bricriu, " it is but a day visit 
 you will make there, for you will hardly stop to feast 
 through the night in a district that is under Conchubar." 
 " I give my word," said Maine, " we will not turn back 
 to Cruachan till we have feasted three days and three 
 nights in Gerg's house." He did not waste any more 
 time talking, but set out on the journey. 
 
 When the messengers they sent before them came to 
 Gerg's house at Rath Ini, the people there began to 
 make all ready before them, and they laid down green- 
 leaved birch branches and fresh green rushes in the 
 house. Then Ferb sent her foster-sister, Findchoem, 
 daughter of Erg, and bade her go a part of the way 
 with the messengers, and bring her back word what 
 appearance was on Maine and on his companions. She 
 was not long away, and as soon as she came back she 
 went with her report to the sunny parlour where Ferb 
 was, and it is what she said : " I never saw since Con- 
 chubar was in Emain, and I never will see till the end 
 of life and time, a finer, or grander, or a more beautiful 
 troop, than the troop that is coming now over the 
 plain. It was the same as if I was in a sweet apple- 
 garden, from the sweetness that came to me when 
 the light wind passed over them and stirred their 
 clothes." 
 
 With that, the men of Connaught came to the dun, 
 and the people within pressed upon one another to look 
 at them. And the gates were set open, and their 
 chariots unyoked, and baths of pure water were made 
 ready for them. And then they were brought into the 
 hall of heroes in the middle of the house, and they were 
 
 L 
 
i62 WEDDING OF MAINE MORG OR 
 
 given every sort of food and of drink that is to be 
 found on the whole ridge of the world. 
 
 But as they were using the feast and making merry, 
 there came a sudden blast of wind that shook the whole 
 place, so that the hall they were in trembled, and the 
 shields fell from their hooks, and the spears from their 
 places, and the tables fell like leaves in an oak wood. 
 All the young men were astonished, and Gerg asked 
 Maine's Druids what meaning they could put on that 
 blast. And Ollgaeth, Maine's chief Druid, said : " I think 
 it is no good sign for those who are come to-night to 
 this wedding. A blast of wind," he said ; " a sorrowful 
 sound ; it is the man that will conquer. 
 
 " A shield struck out of a white hand ; the bodies of 
 dead men laid under stones ; a high stone over stiff 
 bodies ; the story is sorrowful ! 
 
 " And if you will take my advice," he said, " you will 
 quit this feast this very night." 
 
 But he got a sharp rebuke from Maine for saying 
 that, and Gerg said : " There is no cause for any un- 
 easiness, for the men of Ulster are not gathered at 
 Emain at this time. And if they were itself," he said, 
 " I and my two sons would be ready to go out and fight 
 against Conchubar along with you." 
 
 They hung up their arms then again, and gave no 
 more heed to what the Druid had said. 
 
 Now on the mornihg of this very day, when 
 Conchubar was lying in his sleep at Emain, he saw 
 in a dream a beautiful woman coming to his bedside, 
 and she having the appearance of a queen. Yellow 
 plaited hair she had, and folds of silk over her white 
 skin, and a cloak of green silk from her shoulders, and 
 two sandals of white bronze between her soft feet 
 and the ground. " All good be with you, Conchubar," 
 she said. " What is the reason of your coming ? " said 
 Conchubar. " It is not long from this time," she said, 
 
CONCHUBAR'S VISION 163 
 
 " that Ulster will be attacked and will be robbed, and 
 the Brown Bull of Cuailgne will be driven away. And 
 the son of the man that will do this thing," she said, 
 " Maine Morgor, son of Ailell and of Maeve, is coming 
 this very night to his wedding with Ferb, daughter of 
 Gerg of Rath Ini, and three times fifty young men with 
 him. Rise up now," she said, " there are but three times 
 fifty men against you, and the victory will be with 
 you." 
 
 Then Conchubar sprang up, and sent for Cathbad, the 
 Druid, and told him his vision. " It is likely enough," 
 he said, " that it is meant to warn us against the men 
 of Connaught. And you may be sure," he said, " that 
 if we stop here quietly, they will be doing their robbery. 
 And let me have the truth from you now, and tell me 
 what is best to do, for there is not the like of you 
 among the Druids." 
 
 And Cathbad said : " It is what your vision means, 
 that many men will get their death, and Maine of 
 Connaught, he that is above all disgrace, along with 
 them ; and he and his companions will never go back 
 again to beautiful Cruachan. But you yourself will come 
 back safe," he said, '' with fame and victory." 
 
 Then Conchubar set out, and there went with him 
 Cathrach Catuchenn, a queen with a great name, that 
 had come to Emain from the country of Spain for love 
 of Cuchulain ; and she went out now with Conchubar's 
 army. And there went with him as well, the three 
 outlaws of the race of the Fomor, Siabarcha, son of 
 Suilremar, and Berngal Brec, and Buri of the Rough 
 Word. And Facen, son of Dublongsech of the old 
 stock of Ulster came, and Fabric Fiacail from Great 
 Asia, and Forais Fingalach from the Isle of Man. 
 So Conchubar set out, and three times fifty men with 
 him, but he brought none of the men of Ulster with 
 him, but himself and his chariot-driver Brod, and 
 
i64 WEDDING OF MAINE MORGOR 
 
 Imrinn the Druid, Cathbad's son. And none of them 
 brought a servant with him, except only Conchubar, 
 but their shields on their backs, and their bright green 
 spears in their hands, and their heavy swords in their 
 belts. And if they were not many in number, the pride 
 of their minds was great. 
 
 When they were come within sight of Rath Ini, they 
 saw a great heavy cloud over it, the one end of it black 
 and the middle red, and the other end green. And 
 Conchubar asked Imrinn the Druid, " What is this cloud 
 over the house a token of? " " I know well," said Imrinn, 
 " it is a sign there will be fighting to-night, and the sorrow 
 of death will be on the house like a cloud, and it is for a 
 young man the death darkness is made ready." 
 
 Then Conchubar went on towards the dun, and just 
 at that time the great vat that belonged to the house, 
 and that got afterwards the name of the Ol Guala, was 
 brought into the feasting hall, and it full of wine. But 
 whoever went to draw it let the silver vessel fall into 
 the vat, so that the wine flowed over the edges in three 
 waves. " My grief! " said OUgaeth the Druid, " it is not 
 long before these vessels will be with strangers. He is 
 not a happy son born of a mother that is in this house 
 to-night." 
 
 Then Conchubar came to the door, and the strangers 
 that were with him gave their shout of attack around 
 the dun, as their custom was. At that Gerg rose up, and 
 his two sons with him. Conn Coscorach and Cobthach 
 Cnesgel, and they took hold of their arms. And Gerg 
 said to Maine : " Let this be fought out now between us 
 men of Ulster till you see which of us are the bravest. 
 And we are all answerable for you, and it is best for you 
 that we should fight together. But if we fall, then let 
 you hold the place if you can." 
 
 And then Gerg went out and his two sons along with 
 him and their people. And they held the place, and 
 
DEATHOFGERG 165 
 
 fought Conchubar outside ; and for a long time they did 
 not let any one go past them. And Gerg stood outside 
 the door, and a hewing and cutting was aimed at him on 
 every side, and five men of the Fomor fell by him, and 
 Imrinn the Druid, along with them, and he cut his head 
 off and brought it to the door with him. 
 
 Then Cathrach Catuchenn came between him and the 
 door, and she made a sharp attack on him, and Gerg 
 struck her head off, and brought it back with him into 
 the house, for he had got a hard wound. And he threw 
 the heads down before Maine, and he sat down on a 
 bed, and gave a heavy sigh and asked for a drink. And 
 then Conchubar and his people came up to the wall, and 
 they were holding their shields over their heads with 
 their left hands, and tearing down the wall with their 
 right hands, till they were able to make their way 
 through it. 
 
 Then Brod, Conchubar's chariot-driver, threw one of 
 the spears he had in his hand into the house, and it went 
 through Gerg's body, and through the body of Airisdech 
 his servant that was behind him, so that the two of them 
 fell together. And Conchubar attacked Gerg's people 
 in the house, so that thirty of them fell, and he killed 
 Conn, Gerg's son, by his own hand, and many of his own 
 people got their death as well. 
 
 Then Nuagal, Gerg's wife, rose up, and she gave three 
 great angry cries of grief, and she took the head of her 
 husband into her bosom. " By my word," she said, " it 
 is a fine servant's deed, Brod to have killed Gerg in his 
 own house. But there are many," she said, " that will 
 keen you, and as you have fallen on account of your 
 daughter, many women shall have sorrow on account of 
 you." And she made this complaint : 
 
 " It is a good fight Gerg made, that is lying here now, 
 the fair-haired champion with the red sword ; he that 
 was proud, open-handed, brave, wise, beautiful. 
 
i66 WEDDIXG OF MAIXE MORGOR 
 
 '• Where is there a better hero than Gerg ? Where is 
 the man that has not anger on him. Where is the army 
 that does not keen for your death ? 
 
 " It is grief to me to see you on your bed of death, 
 O beautiful fair-haired Gerg ! It is a pit)' for me, you 
 to be dead. 
 
 " Before you here in Rath Ini, and at Loch Ane and 
 at Irard, and in the valleys of the south, there were 
 many women that gave you their love. 
 
 " You were the friend of even- armv ; even- one crave 
 you full obedience ; your friendl)' word was dear to 
 ever)' one ; surely it is you v^-ere the good adviser. 
 
 "It is great indeed your deeds were, it is stately your 
 assemblies were ; you were a king among great lords. 
 
 "Your house was great, it was well-known, the house 
 within which harm came to you ; it was there Brod 
 killed you in the hall of kings. 
 
 "It was a great harm and a great curse Brod put on 
 us, he to kill a king of Ireland before his time ; he has 
 killed him ; he has killed all of us along with him." 
 
 Then Gerg's two sons said they would hold the place, 
 and they were not without killing many in the fight 
 Then Maine could not hold in his strength any longer, 
 and he went out to avenge his father-in-law. And his 
 three times fifty companions rose up along with him, and 
 it was not easy to stand against them. There was great 
 pride in the mind, and great courage in the heart of 
 ever>- one of them, and there was great desire and longing 
 on them to do high deeds. 
 
 And as to Maine, the king's son, he was stately, kind, 
 mannerly, and although he was hardly out of his 
 bo}'hood, he was braver in the fight than any other. 
 He w^as gentle in the drinking-house, and he was hard 
 in battle, and he was mindful of his enemies, and he was 
 pitiful in wounding, and a sp)ender of treasure, and a 
 stone of anger, and a wave of justice ; and he was the 
 
THE FIGHT AT RATH INI 167 
 
 head in the gatherings of the three Connaughts, and 
 their hand in spending, and their fitting king. 
 
 He thought it would be dishonour on him, ever to 
 be overcome in equal fight by any men in the world, 
 or the place to be taken that he was defending. And 
 he went out and drove the Fomor away from the 
 house, and it is not a hand of healing Maine had that 
 time ; and nine of the Fomor fell by his first attack. 
 Then the outlaw of Great Asia, Fabric Fiacail, came 
 up to the threshold, and began destroying the men 
 before him, and no one stood against him till he came 
 to the place where Maine was. And then they two 
 set their shields one against the other, and they were 
 fighting together till after midnight ; and Fabric gave 
 Maine three deep wounds, and when they were tired 
 out with the fight, Maine struck off his head. Then 
 Conchubar came, and thirty of Gerg's men were killed 
 by him, and the two armies fell upon one another, and 
 it is much that even the toes of their feet did not 
 make an attack of their own. And the blood that 
 was in the dun was as high as a man's knees, and in 
 all the district round nothing could be heard but the 
 striking of blows on shields, and the clinking of spears, 
 and the clash of swords against one another, and the 
 roar of beaten men. 
 
 And Maine, when he had overcome the Fomor, came 
 where Facen, son of Dublongsech was, and they fought 
 together a good while, and then Facen was killed. Then 
 Maine and Cobthach were driven up into the house 
 after their people were put down, and they held it 
 bravely till morning, and no one was able to make a 
 way in. 
 
 In this same night, the same woman that had brought 
 news to Conchubar, went to where Maeve was lying in 
 her sleep at Cruachan, and said to her : " If you had 
 the Druid sight, Maeve," she said, " you would not be 
 
i68 WEDDING OF MAINE MORGOR 
 
 in your sleep now." " What has happened ? " said 
 Maeve. " Conchubar is at this very moment," said the 
 strange woman, "getting the upper hand of Maine, and 
 he is on the point of putting him to death. Rise up 
 now, and gather your men together," she said, "and 
 go out and avenge him." 
 
 With that Maeve wakened out of her sleep, and she 
 called to Ailell and told him the vision, and told it 
 to her people as well. "There is no truth in it," said 
 Bricriu. 
 
 But when Fiannamail, the innkeeper's son at Cruachan, 
 heard it, he waited for no one and made no delay, but 
 set out for the place where Maine was, for Maine 
 was his foster-brother. And Maeve chose out seven 
 hundred armed men, the best that were to be found in 
 Cruachan at that time. And then Donall Dearg came, 
 that was the best fighter in the province, and that was 
 another of Maine's foster-brothers. And he set out in 
 the same way, before the others, and thirty fighting men 
 with him, and the name of every one of them was Donall. 
 And then Maeve set out after them on her journey. 
 
 But as to Maine, he held the house till the bright 
 rising of the sun on the morrow, and it was not pleasant 
 rest this night brought to either side. When they could 
 see each other by the light of day, each remembered the 
 other to his hurt, and Conchubar began to rouse up his 
 people. " If it was the men of Ulster I had with me 
 now," he said, " they would not be dragging on with 
 this battle, the way the Fomor are doing." When the 
 Fomor heard that sharp reproach, their courage rose 
 up in them, and they pressed on hard in the fight, and 
 never left off till they were through the door of the 
 house. The house they came into had a great name 
 for grandeur, but it was bad work that was done in it 
 now. There were a hundred tables of white silver in it, 
 and three hundred of brass, and three hundred of white 
 
DEATHOFMAINE 169 
 
 bronze. And there were thirty vessels with pure silver 
 from Spain on their rims, and two hundred cowhorns 
 ornamented with gold or silver, and thirty silver cups, 
 and thirty brass cups, and on the walls there were 
 hangings of white linen with wonderful figures worked 
 on them. 
 
 Then the two armies met one another in the middle 
 of the house, and a great many were killed there. And 
 Cobthach, Gerg's son, after he had killed many of the 
 Fomor, came to where Berngal Brec was hewing the 
 heads off the men of Connaught, and they fought to- 
 gether, and Berngal was worsted in the end. 
 
 And as to Maine, he killed Buri of the Rough Word, 
 and after that he went mad and raging through the house, 
 and thirty other men fell by him. But when Conchubar 
 saw the madness that was on Maine, he turned to him, 
 and Maine waited for him, and they fought a long 
 while, and Maine threw his casting spear so strong 
 and straight, that it went through Conchubar's body ; 
 and while Conchubar was striving to draW out that 
 spear, Maine wounded him with the long spear that 
 was in his hand. Then Brod came to help Conchubar, 
 and Maine gave him three heavy wounds, so that he 
 was able to fight no more. But then Conchubar attacked 
 him with blows on every side, until he laid him dead 
 before him. 
 
 And after he had killed Maine, he began to attack 
 the crowd about him, so that they fell, foot to foot, and 
 neck to neck, all through the house. And at the end, 
 there was not one of Maine's people left living ; and of 
 the three times fifty men that came with Conchubar, 
 there was not one left living but himself and Brod, and 
 if they were itself, they did not come whole out of it. 
 
 Then Conchubar drove Cobthach, Gerg's son, out of the 
 house ; and while he was following him over the plain, 
 Ferb came with her foster-sister to the place where Maine 
 
I70 WEDDING OF MAINE MORGOR 
 
 was lying, and she cried and lamented over him, and 
 she said : " My grief! you are alone now, you that spent 
 so many nights in company." And she made this 
 complaint : — 
 
 " O young man, it is red your bed is ! It is bad the 
 signs were, and you coming into the house, a foretelling 
 of tears to all your people. 
 
 " O son of Maeve ! O branch of high honour ! O son 
 of Ailell who is not weak ! It is a pity it is for my heart 
 and my body, you to be lying there for ever ! 
 
 " O young man, the best I ever saw ; a rod of gold 
 and you lying on the pillow ; whenever you and an 
 enemy met together, that was the last meeting there 
 was between you. 
 
 " There is grief on me, you to be lying there, young 
 man, son of Maeve ; your face was ruddy, your hand was 
 rough in battle ; it is grief has been put into my heart 
 that was waiting for you. 
 
 " It is seldom you were without arms up to this, until 
 you were struck down, lying dead. The shining spear 
 pierced you, the hard sword wounded you, till blood was 
 dropping down on your cheeks. 
 
 " Och ! What were you to me, and I not to have seen 
 your death ; my darling, my choice among men, he that 
 was worth good treasure. 
 
 " He is my husband for all my days, great Maine, 
 Ailell's son ; I will die for the want of him, and he not 
 able to come and care me. 
 
 " His purple cloak is grief to me, and himself lying 
 there on the floor of the house, and his hand that was 
 struck off after he fell, and his head in the hand of 
 Conchubar ; 
 
 " And his sword that was strong, heavy in striking, 
 Conchubar has carried it far away ; and his shield there 
 where he fell, and he defending his people 
 
 " He himself a hero, and no lie in it ; it is he divided 
 
THE INNKEEPER'S SON 171 
 
 much riches ; it is not a Httle thing he did to die Hke 
 that, and he defending his people. 
 
 " The fair young man of Connaught to be lying there 
 cold, and the best of his troop along with him ; it is a pity 
 for his people that died defending him ; it is a pity for 
 me, his unmarried wife. 
 
 " There is nothing I can do for you, Maine ; it is on 
 myself the hurt is come ; my heart is broken with it, and 
 I looking at you, Maine." 
 
 Then Fiannamail, the innkeeper's son from Cruachan, 
 came to the house, and Ferb saw him, and she said : 
 " Here is Fiannamail come to visit us, but whatever 
 companions he has left at home, he will find none before 
 him here." " That is rough news you are giving me, 
 Ferb," said Fiannamail ; " and indeed I am parted from 
 my companions if it is they that are lying here," he said. 
 " They are your companions indeed," said Ferb ; " they 
 overcame others, and now they are overcome them- 
 selves." 
 
 And Fiannamail said : " And Maine, is he living ? my 
 comrade, my dear friend, my prince at home ! " And 
 Ferb said : " It is bitter to me, you to ask this, for I know 
 you did not think it was Maine's last bed you would find 
 here." 
 
 And then she told Fiannamail all that had happened. 
 And Fiannamail said ; " When this news of the thing the 
 people of Ulster have done goes out, they will be 
 attacked in the west and in the east as long as there is a 
 man living in Connaught." But Ferb said : " There are 
 not left of the army of Ulster but Conchubar himself 
 and Brod his chariot-driver, and the both of them were 
 wounded by Mainebefore Conchubar killed him at the last." 
 
 Then Fiannamail went out to follow after Conchubar, 
 to get satisfaction for Maine's death. And he met with 
 Niall of the Fair Head, Conchubar's son, and a hundred 
 men with him, and they looking for Conchubar ; and 
 
172 WEDDING OF MAINE M ORG OR 
 
 for all they were so many, he fought a hot battle with 
 them, till he fell dead. 
 
 And after he left Ferb, she was looking at the young 
 men of Connaught, and she made this complaint : 
 
 " A pity it is, young men of Connaught, that there is 
 not soft down in your pillows under you ; you that took 
 the defence and would not give it up. What troop was 
 there better than yourselves, and now you are lying like 
 a loosened thread. 
 
 " It is a heavy hand was laid on your eyes ; you were 
 given the sour drink of beaten men ; your story is hard, 
 it will be a cause of battles ; it will be a foretelling of 
 many tears. 
 
 " It is a pity there is no help for me to bring you, but 
 only to be keening and crying over you ; it would be 
 better for me to go with you, and my ashes to be 
 scattered abroad. 
 
 " You were the best of the armies of Ireland, young 
 men of Connaught, and I keening you ; many women 
 will cry Och ! Och ! after your proud ways. 
 
 " It is proud you were coming into the house ; it is not 
 common men you had for your fathers. O beautiful 
 young men of Connaught, it is a pity it is the way 
 you are now ! " 
 
 Then Donall Dearg came to the lawn before the dun- 
 And Ferb's foster-sister saw him, and she said : " It is a 
 pity he was not here and Maine living, for he would have 
 given him good help." And when Ferb heard he was there, 
 she went out to him and she said : " Well, Donall, hawk 
 of valour, here is a thing for you to do, to avenge your 
 foster-brother that has got his death." And it is what 
 Donall said : " If Maine has fallen, the man has fallen 
 that was above all his companions, in courage, in wisdom, 
 and in gentleness." And Ferb said : " It is not the 
 work of a hero, you to be sighing and keening and 
 crying Ochone ! But since Maine will not come back for 
 
FERB'S LAMENTS i73 
 
 that, it is better for you to go out against his enemies." 
 And Donall said : " I will go ; I will destroy Conchubar, 
 I will destroy his two sons in revenge for Maine." And 
 Ferb said : " If it had been yourself, Donall Dearg, that 
 had got your death from the men of Ulster on account of 
 me, the story of the great vengeance Maine did for it 
 would be told in every place." Then Donall said : 
 " And as it is Maine Morgor himself has got his death, 
 I will never go home westward so long as there is a man 
 left living in Ulster. 
 
 So Donall went out, and he had not long to wait till 
 he saw a great troop coming towards him, and Feradach 
 of the Long Hand, Conchubar's son, with them. And 
 Donall and his men attacked them, but they were out- 
 numbered, and all his men fell. And he himself 
 wounded Feradach twice, but then his men came at him, 
 and Feradach struck his head off, and let out his shout 
 of victory, and his people shouted along with him. 
 
 And Ferb was gone into the house again, and she was 
 looking at Maine. " There is no good appearance on 
 you now, the way you are, Maine," she said ; " and my 
 father got his death through you, and my father's son ; 
 but even so, I will die with the fret of losing you." And 
 it is what she said : " There are many women and many 
 young girls will be lonely after you, you to be the only 
 one to fail them. 
 
 " It is beautiful you were up to this, proud and tall, 
 going out with your young hounds to the hunting ; it 
 is spoiled your body is now, it is pale your hands are. 
 
 " It is bad the news is that will travel westward to 
 Findabair of the Fair Eyebrows ; the story of her 
 brother that failed Ferb ; it is not I that have not my 
 fill of sorrow." 
 
 Then Maeve and her men came up to where 
 Conchubar was, and his two sons that had joined him, 
 and they faced one another, and the fight began ; and 
 
174 WEDDING OF MAINE M ORG OR 
 
 Maeve broke through the army of Ulster to get satisfac- 
 tion for her son and for her people, and she killed 
 Conchubar's two sons. But Conchubar stood out and 
 faced her in spite of his wounds, and in spite of being tired 
 out ; for his hurts were healed by the greatness of his 
 anger after his two sons being kiiled. 
 
 Then Maeve was driven back and lost the battle ; 
 and the Druids brought her away as was their custom ; 
 and Conchubar followed after them till they had passed 
 Magh Ini. And then he turned back to spoil Gerg's 
 dun, and he carried away with him all he could find of 
 treasures ; and he took away the great brass vat that 
 was in the house, and brought it to Emain. And when 
 it was filled with beer, all the province of Ulster used to 
 drink from it ; and it got the name of the Champion's 
 Drinking Vat. 
 
 And Ferb died with grief for Maine, and Nuagal died 
 with grief for her husband and for her two sons. And a 
 grave was made for them, and a stone put over it, and 
 their names were written in Ogham ; and Rath Ini got 
 the name of Duma Ferb, Ferb's Mound, after that. 
 
 And this was the first blood shed in Ulster on the 
 account of the Brown Bull of Cuailgne. 
 
XI 
 
 THE WAR FOR THE BULL OF CUAILGNE 
 
 TT happened one time when Maeve and Ailell rose up 
 ^ from their royal bed in Cruachan, they began to 
 talk with one another. "It is what I am thinking," said 
 "^Ailell, " it is a true saying, ' Good is the wife of a good 
 man.' " " A true saying, indeed," said Maeve, " but why 
 do you bring it to mind at this time ? " "I bring it to 
 mind now because you are better to-day than the day I 
 married you." " I was good before I ever had to do 
 with you," said Maeve. " How well we never heard of 
 that and never knew it until now," said Ailell, " but 
 only that you stopped at home like any other woman, 
 while the enemies at your boundaries were slaughtering 
 and destroying and driving all before them, and you not 
 able to hinder them." " That is not the way it was at 
 all," said Maeve, " but of the six daughters of my father 
 Eochaid, King of Ireland, I was the best and the one 
 that was thought most of. As to dividing gifts and 
 giving wages, I was the best of them, and as to battle 
 feats and arms and fighting, I was the best of them. 
 It was I had fifteen hundred paid soldiers, and fifteen 
 hundred more that were the sons of chief men. And 
 I had these," she said, " for my own household ; and 
 along with that my father gave me one of the provinces 
 of Ireland, the province of Cruachan ; so that Maeve of 
 Cruachan is the name that was given to me. 
 
 176 
 
176 WARFORBULLOFCUAILGNE 
 
 " And as to being asked in marriage," she said, 
 " messengers came to me from your own brother, Finn, 
 son of Ross Ruadh, king of Leinster, and I gave him 
 a refusal ; and after that there came messengers from 
 Cairbre Niafer, son of Rossa, king of Teamhair ; and 
 from Conchubar, son of Ness, king of Ulster ; and after 
 that again from Eochu Beag, son of Luchta, and I refused 
 them all. For it is not a common marriage portion would 
 have satisfied me, the same as is asked by the other 
 women of Ireland," she said ; " but it is what I asked as 
 a marriage portion, a man without stinginess, without 
 jealousy, without fear. For it would not be fitting for 
 me to be with a man that would be close-handed, for 
 my own hand is open in wage-paying and in free-giving ; 
 and it would be a reproach on my husband, I to be a 
 better wage-payer than himself And it would not be 
 fitting for me to be with a man that would be cowardly, 
 for I myself go into struggles and fights and battles and 
 gain the victory ; and it would be a reproach to my 
 husband, his wife to be braver than himself And it 
 would not be fitting for me to be with a husband that 
 would be jealous, for I would never hold myself to be 
 bound to one man only. Now I have got such a 
 husband as I looked for in yourself, Ailell, son of Ross 
 Ruadh, king of Leinster, for you are not close-handed or 
 jealous or cowardly. And I gave you good wedding 
 gifts," she said, " suits of clothing enough for twelve men ; 
 a chariot that was worth three times seven serving-maids ; 
 the width of your face in red gold, the round of your arm 
 in a bracelet of white bronze. And the fine or the 
 tribute you can ask of your enemies is no more than the 
 fine or the tribute I have a right to ask, for you are 
 nothing of yourself, but it is in the pay of a woman you 
 are," she said. " That is not so," said Ailell, " for I am a 
 king's son, and I have two brothers that are kings, Finn, 
 king of Leinster, and Cairbre, king of Teamhair, and I 
 
QUARREL OF MAEVE AND AILELL 177 
 
 would have been king in their places but that they are 
 older than myself. And as to giving of wages and 
 dividing of gifts," he said, " you are no better than my- 
 self ; and if this province is under the rule of a woman, 
 it is the only province in Ireland that is so : and it is 
 not through your right I took the kingship of it, but 
 through the right of my mother, Mata of Murrisk, 
 daughter of Magach. And if I took the daughter of the 
 chief king of Ireland for my wife, it was because I 
 thought she was a fitting wife for me." " You know 
 well," said Maeve, " the riches that belong to me are 
 greater than the riches that belong to you." " There is 
 no truth in that," said Ailell, " for there is no one in 
 Ireland has a better store of jewels and riches and 
 treasure than myself, and you know well there is not." 
 
 " Let our goods and our riches be put beside one 
 another, and let a value be put on them," said Maeve, 
 " and you will know which of us owns most." " I am 
 content to do that," said Ailell. 
 
 With that, orders were given to their people to bring 
 out their goods and to count them, and to put a value on 
 them. They did so, and the first things they brought 
 out were their drinking vessels, their vats, their iron 
 vessels, and all the things belonging to their households, 
 and they were found to be equal. Then their rings were 
 brought out, and their bracelets and chains and brooches, 
 their clothing of crimson and blue and black and green 
 and yellow and saffron and speckled silks, and these 
 were found to be equal. Then their great flocks of 
 sheep were driven from the green plains of the open 
 country and were counted, and they were found to be 
 equal ; and if there was a ram among Maeve's flocks 
 that was the equal of a serving-maid in value, Ailell had 
 one that was as good. And their horses were brought 
 in from the meadows, and their herds of swine out of the 
 woods and the valleys, and they were equal one to 
 
 M 
 
178 WAR FOR BULL OF CUAILGNE 
 
 another. And the last thing that was done was to 
 bring in the herds of cattle from the forest and the wild 
 places of the province, and when they were put beside 
 one another they were found to be equal, but for one 
 thing only. It happened a bull had been calved in 
 Maeve's herd, and his name was Fionnbanach, the 
 White-horned. But he would not stop in jMaeve's herds, 
 for he did not think it fitting to be under the rule 
 of a woman, and he had gone into Ailell's herds and 
 stopped there ; and now he was the best bull in the whole 
 province of Connaught. And when Maeve saw him, 
 and knew he was better than any bull of her own, there 
 was great vexation on her, and it was as bad to her as if 
 she did not own one head of cattle at all. So she called 
 Mac Roth, the herald, to her, and bade him to find out 
 where there was a bull as good as the White-horned to 
 be got in any province of the provinces of Ireland. 
 
 " You know that well yourself," said Mac Roth, " for 
 there is a bull that is twice as good as himself at the 
 house of Daire, son of Fachtna, in the district of 
 Cuailgne, and that is Donn Cuailgne, the Brown Bull 
 of Cuailgne." " Rise up, then," said Maeve, " and make 
 no delay, but go to Daire from me, and ask the loan 
 of that bull for a year, and I will return him at the end 
 of the year, and fifty heifers along with him, as fee for 
 the loan. And there is another thing for you to say, 
 Mac Roth ; if the people of Daire's district and country 
 think bad of him for sending away that wonderful jewel 
 the Donn of Cuailgne, let Daire himself come along with 
 him, and I will give him the equal of his own lands on 
 the smooth plain of Ai, and a chariot that is worth three 
 times seven serving-maids, and my own close friendship 
 along with that." 
 
 So Mac Roth set out on his journey, and nine 
 men along with him, and when they came to Daire's 
 house there was a good welcome before them, as there 
 
DA IRE'S FEAST 179 
 
 should be, for Mac Roth was the chief herald of all 
 Ireland. 
 
 Daire asked him then what was the reason of his 
 journey, and Mac Roth told him the whole story of the 
 quarrel between Maeve and Ailell and of the counting 
 of their herds, and of the great rewards Maeve offered 
 him if he would give her the loan for one year of the 
 Brown Bull of Cuailgne. Daire was so well pleased 
 when he heard this, that he started up and said : " By my 
 hand of valour, I will send him to Maeve into 
 Connaught, with no delay, whether the men of Ulster 
 like it or do not like it." Mac Roth was well content 
 with what he said, and then he and his men were 
 attended to, and fresh rushes were spread, and a feast 
 was put before them, with every sort of food and of 
 drink, so that after a while they were not so clear in their 
 wits as they were before. 
 
 Two of them began talking to one another then, and 
 one said : " This is a good man in whose house we are." 
 " He is good indeed," said the other. " Is there any man 
 in Ulster better than himself? " said the first. " There is, 
 surely," said the other, "for Conchubarthe High King is 
 a better man, and it is no shame for all the men of 
 Ulster to gather to him." " It is a wonder," said the 
 first, " Daire to have given up to us what it would have 
 taken the strength of the four provinces of Ireland to 
 bring away by force." " That I may see the mouth that 
 spoke those words filled with blood," said another of the 
 men ; " for if Daire had refused to give it willingly, the 
 strength of Ailell and of Maeve, and the knowledge of 
 Fergus, son of Rogh, would have brought it from him 
 against his will." 
 
 Just as they were talking, the chief steward of Daire's 
 house came in, and servants along with him bringing 
 meat and drink ; and he heard what the men of 
 Connaught said and great anger came on him, and he 
 
i8o WAR FOR BULL OF CUAILGNE 
 
 bade the servants put down the food for them, but he 
 never told them to use it or not to use it, but he went to 
 where Daire was and said : " Was it you, Daire, promised 
 the Brown Bull of Cuailgne to these messengers ? " " It 
 was myself indeed," said Daire. " Then what they have 
 said is true?" "What is that?" said Daire. "They 
 say that you knew if you did not give him willingly 
 you would have had to give him against your will by 
 the strength of Ailell and Maeve and by the guidance 
 of Fergus, son of Rogh." "If they say that," said 
 Daire, " I swear by the gods my people swear by, that 
 they will not take him away till they take him by 
 force." 
 
 On the morning of the morrow the messengers rose 
 up and went into the house where Daire was. " Show 
 us now," they said, " the place where the bull is." " I 
 will not indeed," said Daire ; " but if it was a habit with 
 me," he said, " to do treachery to messengers or to 
 travellers or to men on their road, not one of you would 
 go back alive to Cruachan." " What reason have you 
 for this change ? " said Mac Roth. " I have a good reason 
 for it, for you were saying last night that if I did not 
 give the bull willingly, I would be forced to give it 
 against my will by Ailell and by Maeve and by Fergus." 
 " If that was said, it was the talk of common messengers, 
 and they after eating and drinking," said Mac Roth, 
 " and it is not fitting for you to take notice of a thing 
 like that." 
 
 " It may be so " said Daire ; " but for all that," he said 
 " I will not give the bull this time." 
 
 They went back then to Cruachan, and Maeve asked 
 news of them, and Mac Roth told her the whole story, 
 how Daire gave them the promise of the bull at first, and 
 refused it afterwards. " What was the reason of that ? " 
 she asked. And when it was told her she said : " This 
 riddle is not hard to guess ; they did not intend to let 
 
THE CAMP AT CRUACHAN i8i 
 
 us get the bull at all ; but now we will take him from 
 them by force," she said. 
 
 And this was the cause of the great war for the Brown 
 Bull of Cuailgne. 
 
 Then Maeve sent messengers to the six Maines, her 
 sons, to come to Cruachan, the brothers of Maine Morgor 
 that got his death at Dun Gerg. And she sent mes- 
 sengers to the sons of Magach ; and they came, with 
 thirty hundred armed men, and to Cormac Conloingeas, 
 son of King Conchubar, and to Fergus, son of Rogh ; 
 and they came, and thirty hundred armed men with 
 them. 
 
 This is the appearance that was on the first troop. 
 Black heads of hair they had, and green cloaks about 
 them, held with silver brooches, and on their bodies 
 shirts of gold thread, embroidered with red gold, and 
 they had swords with white sheaths and hilts of 
 silver. 
 
 As to the second troop, they had short-cut hair, and 
 grey cloaks about them, and on their bodies pure white 
 shirts ; and they had swords with knobbed hilts of gold, 
 and sheaths of silver. Every one asked : " Is that 
 Cormac among them ? " " It is not indeed," said 
 Maeve. 
 
 As to the last troop, they had gold-yellow hair, falling 
 loose like manes, and crimson cloaks, well ornamented, 
 about them, and gold brooches with jewels at their 
 breasts, and long silk shirts coming down to their ankles. 
 And as they walked they lifted up their feet and put 
 them down again all together. "Is that Cormac 
 among them ? " every one asked. " It is, surely," said 
 Maeve. 
 
 So they made their camp there, and between the four 
 fords of Ai, Athmaga, Athslisen, Athberena, and Ath- 
 coltna, there were red fires blazing through the night. 
 
i82 WAR FOR BULL OFCUAILGNE 
 
 And they stopped a fortnight there at Cruachan, eating 
 drinking, and resting themselves, that they might be 
 the better able for the journey and the marching. 
 
 Then Maeve bade her chariot-driver to yoke her 
 horses, that she might go and consult with her Druid 
 and ask a prophecy from him, to foretell for her if the 
 army she was bringing out would get the victory, and 
 would come back safely. And she said to the Druid : 
 " There are many that will part here to-day from their 
 companions and their friends, from their country and 
 their lands, from their father and their mother. And if 
 it happens that the whole of them do not come back 
 again safe and sound, it is on me the complaints and 
 the curses will fall. And besides that," she said, " there 
 is no one that goes out or that stops behind, that is 
 dearer to us than we are to ourselves. So find out for 
 us now whether we shall return, or not return." And 
 the Druid said : " Whoever returns or does not return, 
 you yourself will return." 
 
 Her chariot was turned then, and she went back again 
 homeward. But presently she saw a thing she wondered 
 at, a woman sitting on the shaft of the chariot, facing 
 her, and this is how she was : a sword of white bronze 
 in her hand, with seven rings of red gold on it and she 
 seemed to be weaving a web with it ; a speckled green 
 cloak about her, fastened at the breast with a brooch 
 of red gold ; a ruddy, pleasant face she had, her eyes 
 grey, and her mouth like red berries, and when she 
 spoke her voice was sweeter than the strings of a curved 
 harp, and her skin showed through her clothes like the 
 snow of a single night. Long feet she had, very white, 
 and the nails on them pink and even ; her hair gold- 
 yellow, three locks of it wound about her head, and 
 another that fell down loose below her knee. 
 
 Maeve looked at her, and she said : " What are you 
 doing here, young girl ?" " It is looking into the future 
 
FEDELM'S FORETELLING 183 
 
 for you I am," she said, " to see what will be your 
 chances and your fortunes, now you are gathering the 
 provinces of Ireland to the war for the Brown Bull of 
 Cuailgne." " And why would you be doing this for me ? " 
 said Maeve. " There is good reason for it," she said, 
 " for I am a serving-maid of your own people." " Which 
 of my people do you belong to ? " said Maeve. " I am 
 Fedelm of the Sidhe, of Rath Cruachan." " It is well, 
 Fedelm of the Sidhe ; tell me what way you see our 
 hosts." " I see crimson on them, I see red." " Yet 
 Conchubar is lying in his weakness at Emain ; my 
 messengers are come back from there, and we need not 
 be in dread of anything from Ulster," said Maeve. " But 
 look again, Fedelm of the Sidhe, and tell me the truth 
 of the matter." " I see crimson on them, I see red," 
 said the girl. " Yet Eoghan, son of Durthacht, is in his 
 weakness at Rathairthir ; my messengers are come back 
 from him ; we need not be afraid of anything from Ulster. 
 Look again, Fedelm of the Sidhe ; how do you see our 
 hosts ? " "I see them all crimson, I see them all red." 
 " Celtchair, son of Uthecar, is lying in his weakness 
 within his fort ; my messengers are come back from him. 
 Tell me again, Fedelm of the Sidhe, how do you see our 
 hosts ? " "I see crimson on them, I see red." " There 
 may be no harm in what you see," said Maeve, " for 
 when all the men of Ireland are gathered together in one 
 place, there will surely be quarrels and fights among 
 them, about going first or last over fords and rivers, or 
 about the first wounding of some stag or boar, or such 
 like. Tell me truly now, Fedelm of the Sidhe, what 
 way do you see our hosts ? " "I see crimson on them, 
 I see red. And I see," she said, " a low-sized man doing 
 many deeds of arms ; there are many wounds on his 
 smooth skin ; there is a light about his head, there is 
 victory on his forehead ; he is young and beautiful, and 
 modest towards women ; but he is like a dragon in the 
 
i84 WAR FOR BULL OF CUAILGNE 
 
 battle. His appearance and his courage are like the 
 appearance and the courage of Cuchulain of Muirthemne ; 
 and who that Hound from Muirthemne may be I do 
 not know ; but I know this much well, that all this host 
 will be reddened by him. He is setting out for the 
 battle ; he will make your dead lie thickly, the memory 
 of the blood shed by him will be lasting ; women 
 will be keening over the bodies brought low by the 
 Hound of the Forge that I see before me." 
 
 This is the foretelling that was made for Maeve by 
 Fedelm of the Sidhe, before the setting out of the hosts 
 at Cruachan for Ulster. 
 
 Now, when Maeve told Fedelm of the Sidhe that 
 there need be no fear of the men of Ulster coming out 
 to attack the army, for they were lying in their weak- 
 ness, she meant that they were under the curse and the 
 enchantment that was put on them one time by a 
 woman they had ill-treated. And the story of it is 
 this :— 
 
 There was a man of the name of Crunden, son of 
 Agnoman, that lived in a lonely part of Ulster, among 
 the mountains, and he had a good way of living ; but his 
 wife had died, and he had the care of all his children on 
 him. One day he was sitting in the house, and he saw 
 a woman come in at the door, tall and handsome, and 
 with good clothes on her, and she did not say a word, 
 but she sat down by the hearth and began to make up 
 the fire. And then she went to where the meal was, 
 and took it out and mixed it, and baked a cake. And 
 when the evening was drawing on, she took a vessel and 
 went out and milked the cows, but all the time she 
 never spoke a word. Then she came back into the 
 house, and took a turn to the right, and was the last to 
 stop up and to cover over the fire. 
 
 She stayed on there, and Crunden, the man of the 
 
CRUNDEN'S WIFE 185 
 
 house, married her, and she tended him and his sons, 
 and everything he had prospered. 
 
 It happened, one day, there was to be a great gather- 
 ing of the men of Ulster, for games and races and all 
 sorts of amusements, and all that could go, both of men 
 and women, used to go to that gathering. " I will go 
 there to-day," said Crunden, " the same as every other 
 man is going." " Do not," said his wife, " for if you 
 so much as say my name there at the fair," she said, " I 
 will be lost to you for ever." " Then indeed I will not 
 speak of you at all," said Crunden. So he set out with 
 the others to the fair, and there was every sort of amuse- 
 ment there, and all the people of the country were 
 at it. 
 
 At the ninth hour, the royal chariot was brought on 
 the ground, and the king's horses won the day. Then the 
 bards and poets, and the Druids, and the servants of the 
 king, and the whole gathering, began to praise the king 
 and the queen and their horses, and they cried out : 
 " There were never seen such horses as these ; there are 
 no better runners in all Ireland." " My wife is a better 
 runner than those two horses," said Crunden. When 
 the king was told of that he said : " Take hold of the man, 
 and keep him until his wife can be brought to try her 
 chance and to run against the horses." 
 
 So they took hold of him, and kept him, and 
 messengers were sent from the king to the woman. 
 She bade the messengers welcome, and asked what 
 brought them. "We are come by the king's order," 
 they said, "to bring you to the fair, to see if you will run 
 faster than the king's horses ; for your husband boasted 
 that you would, and he is kept prisoner now until you 
 will come and release him." " It is foolish my husband 
 was to speak like that," she said ; " and as for myself, I 
 am not fit to go, for I am soon going to give birth to a 
 child." " That is a pity," said the messengers, " for if you 
 
i86 WAR FOR BULL OF CUAILGNE 
 
 do not come, your husband will be put to death." " If 
 that is so, I must go, whatever happens," she said. 
 
 So with that she set out for the gathering, and when 
 she got there all the people were crowding about her to 
 see her. " It is not fitting to be looking at me, and I the 
 way I am," she said ; " and what have I been brought 
 here for ? " " To run against the two horses of the king," 
 the people called out. " Ochone ! " she said, " do not ask me, 
 for I am close upon my hour." " Take out your swords 
 and put the man to death," said the king. " Give me 
 your help," she said to the people, " for every one of you 
 has been born of a mother." And then she said to the 
 king : " Give me even a delay until my child is born." 
 " I will give no delay," said the king. " Then the shame 
 that is on you will be greater than the shame that is on 
 me," she said. " And because you have showed no pity 
 and no respect to me," she said, " it is a heavier punish- 
 ment will fall on you than has fallen upon me. And 
 bring out the horses beside me now." Then they started, 
 and the woman outran the horses and gained the race ; 
 and at the goal the pains of childbirth came on her, and 
 she bore two children, a boy and a girl, and she gave a 
 great cry in her pain. 
 
 And a weakness came suddenly on all that heard the 
 cry, so that they had no more strength than the woman 
 as she lay there. And it is what she said : " From this 
 out, and till the ninth generation, the shame that you have 
 put on me will fall on you ; and at whatever time you most 
 want your strength, at the time your enemies are closing 
 on you, that is the time the weakness of a woman in 
 childbirth will come upon all the men of the province of 
 Ulster." 
 
 And so it happened; and of all the men of Ulster 
 that were born after that day, there was no one 
 escaped that curse and that enchantment but only 
 Cuchulain. 
 
THE GAILIANA 187 
 
 When the men of Connaught set out from Cruachan 
 for the north they stopped towards evening at Cuilsilinne, 
 and there they made their encampment for the night 
 Ailell took his place in the middle of the camp, and on 
 his right was Fergus, son of Rogh, and Cormac Con- 
 loingeas next to him again, and their people on the 
 same side ; and on Ailell's left there was a place made for 
 Maeve and Findabair her daughter. But Maeve stopped 
 behind until the whole of the army had come up, and 
 then she went in her chariot to see if all was in order, 
 and after that she came and took her seat at Ailell's 
 right hand. " Which of the troops do you think the 
 best ? " said Ailell. " None of them are any good at all," 
 said Maeve, " compared with the men of Leinster, the 
 Gailiana." " What have they done beyond all the others 
 that you praise them so much ? " said Ailell. " There is 
 reason for praising them," said Maeve ; " for while the 
 others were choosing a place for themselves, the Gailiana 
 had their huts and their shelters made, and while the 
 others were making their shelters, they had their share 
 of food and drink cooked and set out, and while the 
 others were making ready their food they had theirs 
 eaten, and while the others were eating, they were laid 
 down and sleeping. And as their servants have been 
 better than the servants of the men of Ireland," she said, 
 "so will their young men and their fighting men be 
 better than the young men of Ireland on this march." 
 " I am well pleased to hear that," said Ailell, " for 
 it was with me they came, and they are of my own 
 province." "Then you need not be so well pleased," 
 said Maeve, " for they shall march no further with you, 
 for I will not have them boasted of, before me or to me." 
 " Let them stop in this camp, then," said Ailell. " They 
 shall not do that either," said Maeve. " What must they 
 do, then ? " said Findabair, " if they are neither to go on 
 nor to stop in the camp ? " " They will get death and 
 
i88 WAR FOR BULL OF CUAILGNE 
 
 destruction from myself," said Maeve. " It is a pity you 
 to say that," said Ailell, "and they only just after joining 
 us." "If you think to harm them," said Fergus, "you 
 will have to fight with me as well as with them ; for by 
 the oath of my people," he said, " it is only over my 
 body and the bodies of the men of Ulster that are with 
 me, you can come at their death." " Do not speak that 
 way, Fergus," said Maeve ; " for if you were to join with 
 these strangers against me, I would have the six Maines 
 and their men on my side, and the sons of Magach and 
 their men, and my own troops along with them. And 
 I think we would be well able for you," she said. " It is 
 not right for you to say that," said Fergus, " for there 
 are no men in Ireland better than the young men of 
 Ulster that came to Connaught with me, and they have 
 been a good help to you up to this. But I will tell you 
 another thing to do," he said : " let the men of Leinster 
 be divided through all the other troops of the men of 
 Ireland, the way there will not be more than five of them 
 together in any one place." " I will agree to that," said 
 Maeve, " for I know there would be nothing but fighting 
 and jealousy if they were left together the way they are 
 now." 
 
 On the morning of the morrow, they made ready to 
 set out again, but the chief men among them consulted 
 together first, what way they could best keep the peace 
 between so many troops and tribes and families ; and it 
 is what they settled, to put every troop under its own 
 leader, and to let it, great or small, take a road of its 
 own. And besides that, they consulted who would be 
 the best man to put over the whole army, to lead them 
 and to show them the way. And they all said Fergus 
 would be the best, for he had been king of Ulster 
 seventeen years, until Conchubar put him out of the 
 kingship, and he had stopped on in Ulster after that until 
 the time Conchubar killed the sons of Usnach in spite 
 of the guarantee he had given them. 
 
SUALTIM AND CUCHULAIN 189 
 
 So Fergus was made leader of the whole army ; but 
 as they went on, a great love for his own province and 
 his home came on him, and instead of going on north- 
 wards he turned to the south. And while he was delay- 
 ing the army like that, he sent messsengers into Ulster 
 to give warning and news of their coming. But Maeve 
 was keeping a watch on him, and when she saw what 
 had happened, she went to him and said : " Why is it, 
 Fergus, that we have turned again to the south ? " Then 
 Fergus knew it was no use to try and deceive her, and 
 they turned again, but they did not go far, but only to 
 the place they had left in the morning, Cuilsilinne. 
 
 Then Fergus called to mind that they were coming 
 near the borders of Ulster, and that it was likely it 
 would not be long before they would meet with 
 Cuchulain ; and he gave a warning to the army and 
 bade them mind themselves well, lest the Hound of 
 Muirthemne should fall on them and destroy them. 
 
 And then the men of Connaught set out again east- 
 ward, and when they came to Monecolthan, they saw 
 before them eight-score deer, in the one herd, and the 
 whole army surrounded them, and all the deer were 
 killed ; but if they were, it was the Gailiana, scattered 
 as they were, that killed all the deer but five, and those 
 five were all that were killed by the rest of the men of 
 Ireland. 
 
 It was on that same day Cuchulain and his father, 
 Sualtim, came to the pillar-stone at Ardcullin, for they 
 had got the warning Fergus had sent, and there they 
 let their horses graze, and Sualtim's horses cropped 
 the grass to the north of the pillar-stone to the earth, 
 but Cuchulain's horses, at the south side, cropped it 
 to the bare flags. 
 
 " It is in my mind, Sualtim," said Cuchulain, " that 
 the army of Connaught is not far away from us now. 
 Go now, then," he said, "and bring a warning to the 
 
I90 WAR FOR BULL OF CUAILGNE 
 
 men of Ulster, and tell them not to stop in the open 
 plains, but to go into the woods and the valleys of the 
 province, that the men of Ireland may not come upon 
 them." " And you yourself, little son, what will you 
 do?" said Sualtim. "I must go," said Cuchulain, 
 "southward to Teamhair, for I promised to go there 
 to-day, to see a young girl of the household of Fedelm 
 of the Fair Shape, Laegaire's wife." " It is a pity for you 
 to go for a thing like that," said Sualtim, " and you 
 leaving Ulster under the feet of enemies and strangers." 
 " I must go, indeed," said Cuchulain, " for if I break 
 my word to a woman, it will be said from this out that 
 a woman's word is better than a man's." 
 
 So Sualtim set out then, to give a warning to the 
 men of Ulster, and Cuchulain went into the oak woods 
 and cut down an oak sapling, and twisted it into a ring, 
 and cut a message on it in Ogham. And then he forced 
 the ring over the top of the pillar-stone, and down to the 
 thick part of it. And then he went on to keep his 
 appointment at Teamhair. 
 
 As to the men of Ireland, they went on till they came 
 to ArdcuUin, and the whole country of Ulster lay there 
 before them. And then they saw the pillar-stone and 
 the oak ring that was on it ; and Ailell took it off, and 
 gave it to Fergus, and bade him read the Ogham. And 
 what he read on it was Cuchulain's name, and the warn- 
 ing on it that the men of Ulster should not pass the 
 pillar-stone that night, for if they did, he would do a great 
 revenge on them at the sunrise of the morrow. 
 
 " It would be a pity," said Maeve, " that the first blood 
 to be shed after going into the province should be the 
 blood of our own people : it would be best for us to 
 draw blood first on the people of Ulster." " I agree to 
 that," said Ailell, " for I am loth to go against this ring 
 or the man that twisted it ; but let us go into the wood 
 and make our camp there for the night." So they went 
 
THE BORDER PASSED 191 
 
 into the wood, and cut a way for the chariots with their 
 swords as they went, and it is from that the place is 
 called Sleact na Gearbat, the Cut Way of the Chariots, 
 until this time. And a great snow fell that night, so 
 that it made one plain of the five provinces of Ireland, 
 and they could make no shelter or prepare food, and 
 none of the men in the camp knew through the whole 
 night was it friend or enemy was near him, until the 
 clear light of the sun fell on the snow in the morning. 
 And then they left that place, and went on into Ulster. 
 
 As to Cuchulain, he did not rise very early that morn- 
 ing, and when he did, there was food made ready for 
 him, and a bath of pure water. Then he bade Laeg to 
 make his chariot ready, and they set out ; and after a 
 while they came to the track of the army of Ireland 
 where it had gone over the border into Ulster. " Well, 
 Laeg," said Cuchulain, " I have not much luck out of my 
 appointment that I kept last night ; for it is expected 
 of one that is watching the borders that the least he 
 should do is to raise a cry or give a warning of the 
 enemy that is coming, and I have missed doing this, so 
 that the men of Ireland have slipped by without news or 
 notice into Ulster." " I told you, Cuchulain," said Laeg, 
 "that if you kept to your meeting last night, some 
 vexation like this would fall on you." "Well, Laeg," 
 said Cuchulain, " let you follow their track now, and 
 count them, and see what number of the men of Ireland 
 are come over the border." Laeg did this, and he came 
 back and told their number, as he had counted them. 
 "There is a mistake in your counting," said Cuchulain. 
 " I will count them myself this time." Then he told 
 their number. " It is with yourself the mistake is, 
 Cuchulain," said Laeg. " It is not," he said, " but there 
 are eighteen divisions have passed the border, but the 
 eighteenth is broken up and distributed among the 
 others, so that no sure reckoning can be made of it." 
 
192 WAR FOR BULL OF CUAILGNE 
 
 This, now, was one of the three best estimates ever 
 made in Ireland, and the other two were made by 
 Lugh of the Long Hand, and by Angus at Brugh na 
 Boinne. 
 
 " But now, Laeg," he said, " turn the chariot towards 
 the army, and hurry on the horses ; for unless I can 
 make an end of some of them to-day," he said, " I will 
 not live through the night myself." 
 
 So they went on to the place that is called now 
 Athgowla, northward from Knowth. 
 
 There they met with the two young men, the sons of 
 Neara, that were sent out in front of Maeve's army, to 
 see was there any hindrance before it, and Cuchulain 
 struck off their heads and the heads of their chariot- 
 drivers. 
 
 And he cut down a tree with his sword, and it having 
 four branches, and he lopped them short, and cleared 
 the tree ; and he stood up in his chariot, and with one 
 cast he drove the tree into the ground that it stood deep 
 and firm, and he set the four heads he had struck off on 
 the four lopped branches of it. And then he turned 
 back their horses in their chariots towards the army. 
 
 Now it is the way Maeve used to be going, she in 
 a chariot by herself, and two chariots on each side of 
 her, and behind her and before her, the way no sod from 
 the feet of the horses of the army, or foam from their 
 mouths, would touch her clothing. And when she saw 
 the two chariots coming back, and the bodies in them 
 without heads, she stopped to see what had happened. 
 " What are these ? " she said. " They are the chariots 
 and the bodies of the two sons of Neara that went on 
 before us," said her chariot-driver. 
 
 Then she held a council with her chief men, and it is 
 what they agreed, that it must be some part of the army 
 of Ulster was there before them at the ford they 
 were drawing near, and that it was best to send out 
 
FERGUS AND THE POLE 193 
 
 Cormac Conloingeas and his men to see who was in it. 
 for the men of Ulster would not be willing to harm the 
 son of their High King. 
 
 So Cormac and his troop went on to the ford, but 
 when he got there all he saw was a lopped tree and four 
 heads on it, and the blood dripping down from them, 
 and the track of one chariot only, going eastward out of 
 the ford. Then the rest of the army came with the other 
 chief men. " There is wonder on me," said Ailell ; " our 
 four men to have been made an end of so easily as this." 
 " You may wonder as well," said Fergus, " at the way 
 this pole was driven into the ground by one man, and it 
 will be hard for you to find a man of your army will 
 drag it out again." " Do it yourself, Fergus," said Maeve, 
 " for you are of my army." So Fergus called for a 
 chariot, and stood up in it, and gave such a strong pull at 
 the pole, that the chariot broke under him. " Give me 
 another chariot," he said. And when he had broken 
 seventeen of the war-chariots of Connaught one after 
 another, and had not so much as loosened the pole, 
 Maeve said : " Leave off now, Fergus, from breaking my 
 people's chariots ; and if you yourself had not been with 
 us on this march," she said, " we would have been up 
 with the men of Ulster before now, and we would have 
 taken men and cattle. And I know well why you did 
 this ; it was to give the men of Ulster time to get over 
 their weakness and their pains, and to come out against 
 us to defend their bull and their cattle." " Give me my 
 own chariot, then," said Fergus. So they gave him his 
 own chariot, and he got up in it and gave a great pull at 
 the pole ; and neither the frame nor the wheels of his 
 chariot started or strained like the others, and he pulled 
 up the pole and gave it into Ailell's hand, and Ailell 
 looked at it and said : " There is dread on me, of the 
 man that set that pole there ; do you think, Fergus," 
 he said, "was it Conchubar the High King that did 
 
 N 
 
194 WAR FOR BULL OF CUAILGNE 
 
 it ? " ^' It was not," said Fergus, " for if Conchubar 
 had come here, his army would have come along with 
 him, and all the men of Ulster, and he would not 
 have been so near to you without offering you battle, 
 and by this time whichever got the better would be 
 boasting of it." " Do you think was it Cuscraid, 
 Conchubar's son ? " said Ailell ; " or Eoghan, son of 
 Durthacht, king of Fernmaighe ; or Celthair, son of 
 Uthecar?" "I do not," said Fergus, "but it is what 
 I think, that it was my own foster-son and Conchubar's 
 that was here, Cuchulain, son of Sualtim." " We heard 
 you often talking at Cruachan about that young man, 
 and what is his age at this time?" " His age is of no 
 great matter," said Fergus, " for he did great deeds, 
 when he was but a soft child." " He is young enough 
 yet," said Maeve, " and I think it will not be hard to find 
 some one of our own men that will get the better of this 
 wild Hound, for he has but the one body to wound or to 
 put to flight." " You will get no one," said Fergus, 
 " among your fighting men and your young men and 
 your champions that will be able to put down 
 Cuchulain " 
 
 They stopped there then and made their camp, and 
 rested that night, with food and with music. 
 
 And it was in that night Fergus gave Maeve and 
 Ailell the whole story of the boy deeds of Cuchulain, 
 and how he used to have a stone for a pillow, and no 
 one dared wake him, lest he might chance to give them 
 a blow of the stone in his anger. And he told of one 
 night when he was asleep, and Conchubar was attacked 
 and was beaten by Eoghan, son of Durthacht. 
 And Cuchulain was awakened by the cries of the 
 beaten men that were running away, and he went out 
 in the darkness of the night to look for Conchubar; 
 and where the battle had been, he saw a man with the 
 half of a man's body on his back, and he called to 
 
DEATH OF FRAECH 195 
 
 Cuchulain to help him, and threw the half-body to him, 
 and Cuchulain threw it back again, and they fought, 
 and he struck off the man's head. And then he found 
 Conchubar lying in a grave, and he dug him out of 
 that, and as they went home, they met Cuscraid that 
 was wounded, and Cuchulain brought him home to 
 Emain on his back. And another time he went into 
 a wood and saw a terrible-looking man having a wild 
 boar in one hand, and his weapon in the other hand, and 
 he killed him, and brought home the boar. And another 
 time when the men of Ulster were in their weakness, 
 three times nine sea-robbers came to Emain, and the 
 women ran shrieking to the palace when they saw them, 
 and when the boys that were at play on the lawn knew 
 what they were running from, they ran along with them. 
 But Cuchulain went out and killed nine of the sea- 
 robbers and wounded the rest of them, so that he drove 
 them all back. And he told them many other stories 
 of his doings beside these. 
 
 The next day, the army marched on eastward beyond 
 the mountain. But there was a narrow place they had 
 to pass through, and Cuchulain cut down a great oak 
 tree, and laid it across the gap, and wrote an Ogham on 
 it ; and when the men of Ireland came up to it, it 
 hindered them, and they could not move it, and they 
 made their camp there that night. And early in the 
 morning they sent the young man Fraech, son of 
 Idath, to get the hindrance cleared away. But Fraech 
 went on beyond it, till he came to a river, and there he 
 found Cuchulain bathing. And they attacked one 
 another in the water, and Fraech was beaten, and 
 Cuchulain went away and left his body on the bank. 
 
 And when the men of Ireland found his body they 
 began to keen him. And then they saw a great band 
 of women of the Sidhe, with green dresses on them, 
 
196 WAR FOR BULL OF CUAILGNE 
 
 coming for his body, and they gave out a great cry 
 over him and brought him away to a hill of the Sidhe. 
 And Findabair cried after him, and went to see the 
 green bank where he was lying. 
 
 And they knew that Cuchulain was not far from them, 
 for presently Maeve's little dog, Baiscne, got his death 
 by a stone from a sling. There was anger on Maeve 
 then, and she urged her men to follow after Cuchulain, 
 so that they broke the poles of their chariots in their 
 hurry. 
 
 The next day Cuchulain was going through the 
 wood, and he heard the sound of blows on the trees. 
 
 " It is too bold the men of Ulster are, Laeg," he said, 
 " to be cutting down trees like this, with the men of 
 Ireland coming on them ; and stop here," he said, " till 
 I find out who is it that is in the wood." 
 
 He went on till he met with a young man of 
 Connaught, that was chariot-driver to Orlam, son of 
 Maeve and Ailell. " What is it you are doing there, 
 young man ? " he asked. " I am cutting holly poles," said 
 the young man, " for we have broken our chariots hunting 
 that notable deer, Cuchulain. And now, good friend," 
 he said, " lend me a hand with these poles, lest that 
 same notable Cuchulain should come upon me here." 
 " Your choice, boy ; shall I cut the holly poles, or shall 
 I trim them for you ? " " Let you do the trimming," said 
 he. So Cuchulain took them and trimmed them 
 straight and smooth, that a fly could not have kept his 
 footing on them. The chariot-driver looked at the poles, 
 and he said : " I am thinking this is not the work you 
 have a right to be put to. And who are you at all ? " 
 he said. " I am that notable Cuchulain you were speak- 
 ing of just now." "That is bad news for me," said the 
 driver, " for surely I am a dead man." " There need be 
 no fear on you," said Cuchulain, "for I do not fight 
 against drivers or messengers or unarmed men. But 
 
THE HARPERS OF CAINBILE 197 
 
 where is your master ? " he said. " He is out before 
 you on the plain." " Go to him, then, and give him 
 this warning, that I am here, and that if we meet, he 
 will surely get his death from me." With that the 
 young man went to look for his master, but quick as he 
 went, Cuchulain was quicker, and as soon as he came 
 up with Orlam he struck off his head, and held it up 
 and shook it before the men of Ireland. 
 
 After that, the three sons of Garach came out and 
 made an attack on him, but he overcame them, and 
 struck off their heads, and he killed their chariot- 
 drivers as well, that they had armed against him. 
 And Lethan and his chariot-driver came against him, 
 and he killed them in the same way. 
 
 At that time the harpers of Cainbile came to Maeve's 
 camp, and played on their magic harps ; but the men of 
 Ireland thought it might be as spies they came, and they 
 drove them out of the camp, and followed after them 
 till they came to the great stone of Lecmore. But when 
 they thought to overtake them there, the harpers took 
 on themselves the shape of wild deer, and went away. 
 And it was on the same day that Cuchulain, with two 
 casts of a sling stone, killed the squirrel and the pet bird 
 that were sitting on Maeve's two shoulders. 
 
 Then the men of Ireland came into Magh Breagh and 
 Muirthemne, and carried off and destroyed all before 
 them. And Fergus warned them that Cuchulain was 
 not far off, and that he would do a great vengeance on 
 them, since they had spoiled Muirthemne. And it was 
 at that time Lugaid, son of Nois, that had gone into 
 Connaught with Fergus, went secretly to Cuchulain and 
 told him of all that was going on in the camp, and of the 
 dread of him that was on all the men of Ireland, so that 
 they did not dare to stir out alone, and that he himself 
 was true to him yet. 
 
 And now that the army was coming so near to 
 
198 WAR FOR BULL OF CUAILGNE 
 
 Cuailgne, the War-goddess, the Battle Crow, the Morrigu, 
 came and sat on a pillar-stone at Teamhair, and gave a 
 warning to the Brown Bull of Cuailgne, and it is what 
 she said : " Have a care, and keep a good watch, my poor 
 bull, or the men of Ireland will come on you and will 
 drive you away to their camp." And when the bull 
 heard the warning, he brought fifty of his heifers with 
 him, and went away to a valley of Slieve Cuilinn. 
 
 And the men of Ireland came on, bringing the herds 
 of cattle they took on the way, where there was no one 
 to defend them. And they stopped for the night at 
 Conaille Muirthemne, and there Maeve bade one of her 
 women go down to the stream for water. And the 
 woman was wearing Maeve's golden covering on her 
 head, and Cuchulain saw her, and he thought it was 
 Maeve herself that was in it, and he made a cast of a 
 stone that killed her, and the gold covering was broken 
 in pieces. 
 
 And they were delayed there for a while, for the river 
 was in flood, and when they tried to cross it, the chariots 
 that went in were swept away to the sea ; and one of 
 Maeve's best men, Uala, that she sent to try the depth of 
 it, was swept away along with them. And while they 
 were stopping there, Cuchulain killed Raen and Rae, 
 that were come to tell the story of the war, and a hundred 
 men along with them. 
 
 Then Maeve said : " Some man of you must go out and 
 stand against Cuchulain to save the army." " It is not I 
 that will go," said one of them. " It is not I," said all the 
 others, " for Cuchulain is no easy man to stand against." 
 Then when none of them would go out, Maeve made 
 them cut a way through the mountain before them, that 
 it might be left as a lasting disgrace to Ulster. So they 
 did this, and it is called Berna Ulaid, the Gap of Ulster, 
 to this day. 
 
 Now, when they were setting out to cross the moun- 
 
FERLOGA 199 
 
 tain, Maeve gave orders that the army was to be 
 divided in two parts, each with its own share of cattle, 
 and of all other things, and she said that she herself 
 and Fergus would go with the one part, by the Gap of 
 Ulster, and that Ailell should go with the other part, 
 by the road of Midluachair. 
 
 So Ailell set out, and his chariot-driver, Ferloga, with 
 him, and that was the same Ferloga that made a bargain 
 with Conchubar, the High King, one time ; and this is 
 the way it happened. It was at the time Mac Datho of 
 Leinster had stirred up a fight between the men of 
 Ulster and the men of Connaught, about the dividing 
 of a pig at a feast he made, the same way Bricriu had 
 stirred up a fight about the Championship, and 
 Conchubar was following after the men of Connaught 
 over the plain ofFearbile; and all of a sudden Ferloga, 
 that had been left behind by Ailell, and that was 
 hiding himself, made a leap to the back of Conchubar's 
 chariot, and took a hold of his neck between his two 
 hands. " What will you give me to let you loose, king ? " 
 he said. " What is it you are asking ? " said Conchubar. 
 " Indeed it is no great gift I am asking," said Ferloga, 
 "but only you to bring me along with you to Emain 
 Macha, and the young women and the young girls of 
 Ulster to sing a song around me every evening, and 
 every one of them to say, ' Ferloga is my favourite.' " 
 Conchubar agreed to that, and Ferloga went with him 
 to Emain ; but at the end of a year they sent him back, 
 and presents with him, to Ailell and to Maeve. 
 
 At that time, a suspicion came on Ailell, that there 
 was some understanding between Maeve and Fergus, 
 and he bade Ferloga to keep a watch on them. After a 
 while, Ferloga saw that Maeve and Fergus had stopped 
 in a wood behind the rest of the army, and he followed 
 after them quietly, the way they would not hear him, 
 and there he found Fergus's sword lying on the ground. 
 
200 WAR FOR BULL OF CUAILGNE 
 
 So he took the sword out of the sheath, and he cut a 
 wooden sword and shaped it, and put it into the sheath 
 in its place, and he brought Fergus's sword back to 
 Ailell, and told him how he had found it, and Ailell bade 
 him hide it in his chariot. When Fergus saw that his 
 sword was gone and a wooden sword was put in its 
 place, there was great confusion on him ; but Ailell said 
 nothing of it when they met, but asked him to come 
 and play a game of chess with him. And at the game 
 they quarrelled, and Ailell said sharp words of blame to 
 Fergus and to Maeve, and they answered him back, and 
 Fergus bade him give him up his sword. But Ailell said 
 he would never give it to him until the day of the great 
 battle would come, between the men of Ireland and the 
 men of Ulster. 
 
 Then Cuchulain came there and stood on a height 
 and shook his spears and his sword before them, so that 
 great dread came on them. 
 
 After that, Maeve sent Fiacha, son of Flraba, to talk 
 with Cuchulain, and to try could he win him over. 
 " What will you offer him ? " said Fiacha. " I will give 
 him full payment for all that has been spoiled of his 
 goods, and a good place for himself in Cruachan Ai, 
 and my own protection and Ailell's, if he will give up 
 Conchubar's service and come into ours. And indeed 
 that would be better for him," she said, " than to stop 
 under a little king like Conchubar." 
 
 So Fiacha went to speak with Cuchulain, and he gave 
 him a good welcome. And Fiacha told him the message 
 he had brought from Maeve, and the offer she had made 
 if he would quit Conchubar's service. " I will not do 
 that," said Cuchulain; "I will not betray my mother's 
 brother for the sake of any strange king. But I will 
 consent to go myself to-morrow," he said, " to speak with 
 Maeve and Ailell and with Fergus." So Fiacha bade 
 him farewell, and went back to the army. 
 
MAC ROTH THE HERALD 201 
 
 On the morning of the morrow Cuchulain went to 
 Glen Ochain, and Maeve and Fergus came to meet him ; 
 and Maeve looked at him and she said : " Is this the same 
 Cuchulain you put such a great name on, Fergus ? I see 
 that he has not yet grown out of his boyhood." Then she 
 spoke with Cuchulain and made her offer again, and he 
 refused it, and they left the place with great anger on 
 them one against the other. And that night, and the 
 two nights after it, the men of Ireland were afraid either 
 to eat or to sleep or to make music ; for Cuchulain killed 
 so many of their men before the clear light of every 
 morning, that it was as if the whole army was melting 
 away. " Some one must go and make him another offer," 
 said Maeve, and this time she sent Mac Roth, the herald. 
 " Where will I find him ? " said Mac Roth. " It is likely," 
 said Fergus, "he will be between Ochain and the sea, 
 letting the sun shine and the wind blow upon him after 
 so many nights spent without sleep." 
 
 It was there he found him sure enough, and Laeg 
 keeping a watch a good way off " There is an armed 
 man coming towards us, Cuchulain," said Laeg. " What 
 sort of a man is he ? " said Cuchulain. " A brown-haired, 
 broad-faced, handsome young man ; a fine brown cloak on 
 him ; a bright bronze spear-like brooch fastening his 
 cloak ; a well-fitting shirt next his skin ; two strong shoes 
 between his feet and the ground. There is a white hazel 
 rod in one hand, and a sword with a sea-horse tooth for a 
 hilt in the other." " Well, Laeg," said Cuchulain, " let 
 him come, for these are the tokens of a herald." 
 
 Mac Roth came up to him then and asked : " Who 
 are you serving under, young man ? " " We are serving 
 under Conchubar, High King of Ulster." " Can you tell 
 me where can I find Cuchulain, that has killed so many 
 of the men of Ireland ? " " Whatever you would say to 
 him, you may say it to me," said Cuchulain. Then Mac 
 Roth told him all the new offers he had brought from 
 
202 WAR FOR BULL OF CUAILGNE 
 
 Maeve, and Cuchulain said : " I am Cuchulain that you 
 are looking for, and I refuse all your offers." So Mac 
 Roth went back to the camp. " Did you find Cuchulain ? " 
 said Maeve. " I found," he said, " an angry boy between 
 Ochain and the sea, and I do not know if it was Cuchulain." 
 " Did he take your offer ? " said Maeve. " He did not," 
 said Mac Roth. " It is Cuchulain he was talking to," said 
 Fergus. " You must go to him again," said Maeve, " and 
 make new offers." So Mac Roth went out again to 
 make some terms with Cuchulain, but he refused all his 
 offers. " And another thing," he said, " I would never 
 consent to give in to a woman, or to be under a woman's 
 rule." "Is there any bargain you would make?" said 
 Mac Roth. "If there is," said Cuchulain, "you must 
 find it out for yourselves, and there is one in the camp 
 can tell you of it," he said ; " and if he himself comes 
 to me, I will speak with him, but if any other man comes 
 to me again with offers, that will be the last day of his 
 life." 
 
 So Mac Roth went back again and told all this to 
 Maeve. " And I will not go near him again, myself," 
 he said, " for all that any king in Ireland could give 
 me." Then Maeve said to Fergus : " Have you any 
 knowledge of the terms Cuchulain would take?" 
 " I have not," said Fergus. But after she had 
 questioned him a while, he said : " It is what he wants, 
 that one man of the men of Ireland should meet him 
 and fight alone with him every day. And while that 
 fight is going on, he will put no hindrance on the rest of 
 the army, but it may march on. But so soon as he has 
 killed the man set against him, the army must stop, 
 and make its camp until the morning of the morrow." 
 " I will agree to that," said Maeve, " for it is better to 
 lose one man every day than a hundred every night. 
 And who will go and make this agreement with him ? " 
 " Fergus must go," they all said. " I will not go," 
 
FERGUS'S VISIT 203 
 
 said Fergus. " Why so ? " said Ailell. " I will not go," 
 he said, " unless you bind yourselves on your oath to 
 keep to your agreement with him." " We will do that," 
 they said ; and so Fergus bound them on their oath, and 
 his horses were yoked to his chariot. 
 
 Then a young lad, Etarcomal by name, foster-son of 
 Maeve and of Ailell, made ready his own chariot. 
 " What side are you going, Etarcomal ? " said Fergus. 
 "jl am going with you," he said, " the way I will get a 
 sight of Cuchulain." " If you take my advice, you will 
 not make that journey," said Fergus. " Why so ? " 
 " Because if your pride and his pride meet together, some 
 misfortune will surely happen." " I give my word not 
 to anger him in any way," said Etarcomal. 
 
 They went on then to where Cuchulain was, between 
 Ochain and the sea, and himself and Laeg were play- 
 ing a game with their casting spears. " There is an 
 armed man coming to us," said Laeg. " What sort of 
 man is he ? " said Cuchulain. " He is large and proud, 
 and he standing in a high chariot, and the waving 
 yellow hair about his head gives him the appearance 
 of the top of a tall tree that stands on a green lawn," 
 said Laeg. " He has a crimson cloak about him with a 
 deep border of gold thread, and an inlaid gold brooch in 
 the cloak ; a broad green spear in his hand ; a shield 
 with a boss of red gold over him ; a long sword in a 
 toothed sheath across his knees." "It is Fergus that is 
 in it," said Cuchulain. Then Fergus came where he was 
 and got out of his chariot, and Cuchulain gave him a 
 great welcome. " Do you welcome me indeed ? " said 
 Fergus. " I do surely," said Cuchulain ; " but if it is to 
 look for a feast from me you are come, the white birds 
 are on the side of the cliffs, and the fish are in the 
 stream, and the wild deer on the hiils." " It is not to 
 look for a feast I am come," said Fergus, " for I know 
 well it is not easy for you to get your own share of food. 
 
204 WAR FOR BULL OF CUAILGNE 
 
 But I am come for the men of Ireland, to agree to your 
 conditions. And from this out they will send one of 
 their best men to fight with you alone every day." " I 
 agree to keep to my part of the bargain," said Cuchulain, 
 " and let us not stop talking here any more," he said, 
 " or the men of Ireland will be thinking you are doing 
 some treachery on them." 
 
 So Fergus went back to the camp, but Etarcomal 
 stopped for a while looking at Cuchulain. " What are you 
 looking at ? " said Cuchulain. " I am looking at your- 
 self," he said. " Then take your eyes off me, and go after 
 Fergus ; and maybe you think yourself a better fighting 
 man than the one you are looking at," said Cuchulain. 
 " You look to me as good a fighter as I ever saw for one 
 of your age," said Etarcomal, "but you would not be 
 thought much of among trained fighters and grown 
 men." " It is well for you," said Cuchulain, " it is under 
 Fergus's protection you came, or I swear, by the gods 
 my people swear by, you would not go back safe and 
 sound to the camp." " You have no right to say that," 
 said Etarcomal ; " and what you want of the men of 
 Ireland, I will give it to you," he said, " for you ask for 
 one champion at a time to fight with, and I myself will 
 be the first to come to you to-morrow." " Come, then," 
 said Cuchulain, " and however early you may come in 
 the morning, you will find me here before you." 
 
 So Etarcomal set out, and he began to tell his chariot- 
 driver all he had said, and how he had promised to go 
 out and fight with Cuchulain on the morrow. " Did you 
 make that promise?" said his driver. "I did," said 
 Etarcomal, " and I have given my word I will go ; and I 
 do not know," he said, " would it be better for me to wait 
 till to-morrow, or to go back and fight with him to-day." 
 " You will not get the better of him to-morrow," said his 
 driver, " and it would be just as well for you to be beaten 
 to-night." " Turn the chariot and let us go back," said 
 
ETARCOMAL'S FOLLY 205 
 
 Etarcomal, " for I swear by the oath of my people, I will 
 not go back to the camp without bringing Cuchulain's 
 head in my hand." So they turned back again towards 
 the sea. 
 
 Then Laeg said : " That chariot that was here a while 
 ago has turned back again to us, Cuchulain." " It is 
 Etarcomal coming back to challenge me, and it is not I 
 that will fall in this fight," said Cuchulain. " But bring 
 me my arms," he said, " for it would not be right for me 
 not to be ready to meet him." So he went to meet him, 
 and took his sword out of the sheath, and said : " What are 
 you come back for?" " I am come to fight with you." 
 " I am loth to fight with you," said Cuchulain, " for it 
 was under the protection of Fergus you came here." 
 
 And with that he gave a blow of his sword that cut 
 the sod clean away from under the soles of Etarcomal's 
 feet, so that he fell on his back. " Go back now," he said, 
 " for you have had a warning." " I will not go back until I 
 have fought with you." Then Cuchulain gave another 
 stroke with the edge of his sword that cut the hair close 
 off his head, but drew no blood. " You may go back 
 now, at least," he said. " I will not go," said Etarcomal, 
 " until I have made an end of you, or you have made an 
 end of me." "Well," said Cuchulain, "if you are set 
 upon that, it is I must make an end of you." With that 
 he made a cross blow at him that cut him through and 
 through, so that he fell dead. 
 
 Fergus, now, had seen nothing of all this, for it was 
 his custom, when he was travelling, never to look back, 
 but always to be looking before him ; and presently, 
 Etarcomal's chariot-driver came up with him, and he 
 said : " Where have you left your master ? " " Cuchulain 
 is after attacking and making an end of him on the 
 plain," said the man. " It was not right of him to do 
 that," said Fergus, "to any one that came under my 
 protection. Turn my chariot about now" he said, 
 
2o6 WAR FOR BULL OF CUAILGNE 
 
 " until I go back and talk with him." And when he 
 came to where Cuchulain was, he said : " It was not right 
 of you, my own foster-son, to kill one that came under 
 my protection." " Ask his chariot-driver," said 
 Cuchulain, " on which of us the blame should be laid." 
 Then the chariot-driver told the whole story, and when 
 Fergus heard it, he said : " There is no blame on you, 
 Cuchulain." Then he bound the body of Etarcomal to 
 his chariot, so that it was dragged after it along the 
 road and through the camp to the door of Ailell and 
 Maeve. " There is the young man you sent out," he 
 said, " and this is the treatment Cuchulain will give to 
 every other man that goes out against him." And 
 Maeve came out of the door and spoke high, angry, 
 loud words : " I had put great hopes in that young man," 
 she said, " and I did not think it was under bad 
 protection he was going, when he went under the pro- 
 tection of Fergus." And Fergus said : " What business 
 had he going out at all, to meddle with Cuchulain ? 
 And if I went there myself," he said, " it is well pleased 
 I was to get back again safely." 
 
 The next day, the men of Ireland consulted together 
 as to who should go against Cuchulain, and they agreed 
 that it was best to send Natchrantal, that was a great 
 fighting man. 
 
 So he set out, but he would bring no arms with him 
 but three times nine holly rods, and they having 
 hardened points. 
 
 Cuchulain was at that time following after a flock of wild 
 birds, to bring some of them down for the evening's 
 food, and he took no notice of Natchrantal, but went on 
 following after the birds. But Natchrantal thought it 
 was afraid of him he was, and he went back to the door 
 of Maeve's tent and gave a loud shout, and he said : " That 
 great Cuchulain there is so much talk about, is running 
 away now after the challenge I gave him." *' I would 
 
cue HULA I N'S ANGER 207 
 
 hardly believe that," said Maeve, "for he has stood 
 against many good fighting men before now, and why 
 would he not stand against you ? " Fergus heard what 
 was said, and it vexed him, any man to say Cuchulain 
 had run before him ; and he sent Fiacha, son of 
 Firaba, to reproach him, for letting such a thing be said, 
 and Cuchulain bade him welcome. " I am come from 
 Fergus," said Fiacha, " and it is what he says, that it 
 would have been more fitting for you to spill the blood 
 of the man that was sent against you, than to run from 
 him." " Who did I run from ? " said Cuchulain. " Tell 
 me who makes that boast." " It is Natchrantal," said 
 Fiacha. " What would Fergus have me do ? " said 
 Cuchulain ; '' would he have me kill an unarmed man ? 
 For he brought nothing with him but wooden rods, and 
 it is not my custom to wound chariot-drivers or 
 messengers or unarmed men. But let him come out 
 armed to meet me," he said, " on the morning of to- 
 morrow." 
 
 So Fiacha went back to the camp, and the day seemed 
 long to Natchrantal till he could meet Cuchulain. But 
 when he went out in the morning and came to the 
 plain he said to Cormac Conloingeas : " Where is 
 Cuchulain ? " " He is there before you," said he. " That 
 is not the appearance that was on him yesterday," said 
 Natchrantal ; for Cuchulain's anger had come on him 
 so that the appearance he had was changed, and he was 
 leaning against a pillar-stone, and in the strength of his 
 anger, as he was throwing his cloak about him, he broke 
 off the pillar-stone, and he never noticed that it was 
 wrapped between the cloak and himself ; and Natchrantal 
 threw his sword at him, and it broke to pieces against 
 the pillar-stone, and then Cuchulain gave him a blow 
 over the top of his shield that struck off his head. 
 
 While this fight was going on, Maeve, having a 
 third part of the army with her, set out Northward 
 
2o8 WAR FOR BULL OF CUAILGXE 
 
 to Dun-Sobairce, to look for the Brown Bull. And 
 Cuchulain followed after her for a while ; but then he 
 turned back to defend his own countr}\ And he saw 
 before him Buac, son of Bainblai, that was the man 
 Maeve trusted better than any other, and twent)--four 
 men along with him, and they dri\-ing the Bro\\'n Bull 
 before them and fifteen of his heifers, that they had 
 brought out of Glen-na-masc in Slieve Cuilinn. " Where 
 are you bringing these cattle from ? " said Cuchulain. 
 " Out of that mountain beyond." " What is your name ? " 
 he said. * If I tell it, it is not either through love of 
 \-ou or through fear of you," he said. " I am Buac, son of 
 Bainblai, from Ailell's countr}- and Maeve's." "Take 
 this from me, then," said Cuchulain, and with that he 
 threw his spear at him so that it went through his body, 
 and he fell dead. But while he was doing this, the rest 
 of the men drove away the Bull with great haste to the 
 camp of the men of Ireland ; and this was the greatest 
 affront that was put on Cuchulain through the whole of 
 the war for the Brown Bull of Cuailgne. 
 
 Then the men of Ireland began saying to one another 
 that Cuchulain would not have the mastery over them 
 but for the bronze spear he had, and that there must be 
 enchantment on it, for none of them could stand against 
 it. And they said to Maeve that she should send Rae, 
 the satirist, to ask it of him, for he could not refuse a 
 satirist ; so Rae went and asked it of him. " Give me 
 your spear," he said. " I will not give you that indeed," 
 said Cuchulain, '• but I will give you other things." " I 
 will not take any other thing," said Rae, " and I will 
 put a bad name on you, if you refuse me the spear." 
 " Take it, then," said Cuchulain, and with that he threw 
 it with all his force at his head. "That is a weighty 
 present," said the satirist, and he dropped dead. 
 
 Then Cur, son of Daltach, was sent out, for the men of 
 Ireland thought he would be able ro rid them of 
 
A BLOOD-BOND 209 
 
 Cuchulain. But it was hard to persuade Cur, because 
 he thought it was not worth his while to go and fight 
 with a young beardless boy. And when he went out in 
 the morning, Cuchulain was practising all his feats that 
 he had learned, and Cur was for a while trying to get 
 near enough to come at him with his weapons, but he 
 could not ; and Cuchulain was so taken up with doing 
 his feats that he never noticed him at all. Then Laeg 
 saw him and said : " Have a care, Cuchulain ; there is an 
 armed man making ready to attack you." Cuchulain 
 was doing his apple feat at that time, keeping nine 
 apples, and his shield, and his sword in the air, that none 
 of them fell to the ground. And when he saw Cur, he 
 threw the apple that was in his hand straight at his 
 forehead, and it went through, and brought out a share 
 of his brains the size of itself, at the other side. 
 
 And after that, other fighting men were sent out every 
 day through a week, and he killed them all. And one 
 day he said : " Go, Laeg, to the camp, to my friend 
 Lugaid, and say you are come from me, and ask him 
 which of the men of Ireland is to be sent against me 
 to-morrow." So Laeg went, and when he came back he 
 said : " It is your own comrade and fellow-pupil with 
 Scathach, Ferbaeth, your blood-friend, is coming against 
 you ; for he has only lately joined the army, and he has 
 brought four-fifths of his men with him, and Maeve has 
 promised him her daughter Findabair, and he has drunk 
 from her cup, and been fed by her hand." " I am sorry 
 to hear that," said Cuchulain, " for I think worse of a 
 comrade of my own coming against me, than of any 
 other man." And when Ferbaeth came out to fight 
 against him in the morning, Cuchulain did his best to 
 make him give up the fight, for the sake of the old 
 friendship between them, but Ferbaeth would not listen 
 to him. Cuchulain turned from him then in anger, and 
 to loosen the blood-bond between them, he struck the 
 
 O 
 
2IO WAR FOR BULL OF CUAILGNE 
 
 sole of his own foot with a spear, that it drew blood, and 
 then he threw his spear at Ferbaeth, but he did not look 
 to see did it hit him or not. But the spear went through 
 his head and out of his mouth, and this is the way 
 Ferbaeth came to his death. 
 
 Then Ailell made up a plan by which he thought to 
 make Cuchulain give up the stand he was making 
 against the army, and his plan was to offer Findabair to 
 him if he would give his word to leave off attacking the 
 men of Ireland, and he sent Lugaid to make the offer to 
 him. Cuchulain was not very well pleased with the 
 message, and he thought there might be some treachery 
 in it, but he agreed that he would meet Ailell and 
 Findabair, and speak with them. But when the time 
 came, Ailell made his fool put on his clothes, and wear 
 his gold circle on his head, and go with Findabair ; and 
 he bade him stop as far back as he could, the way 
 Cuchulain would not know it was not the king that was 
 in it ; and then Findabair was to bind him over to their 
 side, not to fight any more against the men of Ireland, 
 and when that was done, she herself and the fool were 
 to hurry back to the camp together. But when Cuchulain 
 saw them, he knew the fool, and he sent a stone out of 
 his sling and killed him. And because Findabair had 
 taken a share in the treachery, he cut off her two plaits 
 of hair and took them away. And after a while Ailell 
 and Maeve came to see what had happened them, and 
 there they found Findabair beside the dead body of the 
 fool. And they brought her home and said nothing of 
 it, but all the same the story was talked of in the camp. 
 
 Then Cuchulain sent Laeg into the camp again to 
 ask news of Lugaid. And it is what Lugaid told him 
 that the next to be sent against him was his own brother 
 Larine, that Maeve had persuaded with wine, and with 
 the promise of Findabair, to go against him. " And it 
 is what they think," said Lugaid, "that if Cuchulain 
 
THE MORRIGU 211 
 
 should kill my brother, I myself would have to go and 
 get satisfaction for his death ; and tell Cuchulain," he 
 said, " not to make an end of Larine, but only to give 
 him some punishment he will not forget." So when 
 Larine came out, at the breaking of the day, Cuchulain 
 came to meet him without any weapons ; but he took him 
 in his two hands and shook him, and left him there with 
 the life still in him. But he was never the better of the 
 shaking he got to the end of his life. 
 
 As Cuchulain lay in his sleep one night a great cry 
 from the North came to him, so that he started up and 
 fell from his bed to the ground like a sack. He went 
 out of his tent, and there he saw Laeg yoking the horses 
 to the chariot. " Why are you doing that ? " he said. 
 " Because of a great cry I heard from the plain to the 
 north-west," said Laeg. "Let us go there then," said 
 Cuchulain. So they went on till they met with a 
 chariot, and a red horse yoked to it, and a woman 
 sitting in it, with red eyebrows, and a red dress on her, 
 and a long red cloak that fell on to the ground between 
 the two wheels of the chariot, and on her back she had a 
 grey spear. " What is your name, and what is it you are 
 wanting ? " said Cuchulain. " I am the daughter of King 
 Buan," she said, " and what I am come for is to find you 
 and to offer you my love, for I have heard of all the 
 great deeds you have done." " It is a bad time you have 
 chosen for coming," said Cuchulain, " for I am wasted 
 and worn out with the hardship of the war, and I have 
 no mind to be speaking with women." " You will have 
 my help in everything you do," she said, "and it is 
 protecting you I was up to this, and I will protect you 
 from this out." " It is not trusting to a woman's pro- 
 tection I am in this work I have in my hands," said 
 Cuchulain. " Then if you will not take my help." she said, 
 " I will turn it against you ; and at the time when you 
 will be fighting with some man as good as yourself, I will 
 
212 WAR FOR BULL OF CUAILGNE 
 
 come against you in all shapes, by water and by land, 
 till you are beaten." There was anger on Cuchulain 
 then, and he took his sword, and made a leap at the 
 chariot. But on the moment, the chariot and the horse 
 and the woman had disappeared, and all he saw was a 
 black crow, and it sitting on a branch ; and by that he 
 knew it was the Morrigu had been talking with him. 
 
 After that, Loch, son of Mofebis, was sent for to 
 Maeve, and she asked him would he go out to the next 
 day's fight. " I will not go," he said, " for it would not 
 be fitting for me to go out against a young boy, whose 
 beard is not grown ; but I have one to meet him," he 
 said, " and that is my brother Long, son of Emonis, and 
 you can make an agreement with him." So then Long 
 was sent for, and Maeve promised him a great reward, 
 suits of armour for twelve men, and a chariot, and 
 Findabair for a wife, and the right of coming to every 
 feast at Cruachan. Then Long went out to the fight, 
 but Cuchulain killed him. 
 
 Then Maeve said to her women : " Go now to 
 Cuchulain, and tell him to put some likeness of a beard 
 on himself, and say to him there is no good warrior in 
 the camp thinks it fitting to go out and fight him, he 
 being young and beardless." 
 
 When Cuchulain heard that, he took blackberries and 
 smeared the juice on his face, the way he would have the 
 appearance of a beard, and then he came out on the hill 
 and showed himself to the men of Ireland. When Loch, 
 son of Mofebis, saw him, he said : " Is that a beard on 
 Cuchulain ? " " That is certainly what I see," said 
 Maeve. " Then I will go out and meet him," said Loch. 
 So they met beside the ford, where Long had got his 
 death. " Come to the ford that is higher up," said 
 Loch, for he would not fight at the ford where his 
 brother died. So they fought at the upper ford, and 
 while they were fighting, the Morrigu came against 
 
CUCHULAIN'S LONELINESS 213 
 
 Cuchulain with the appearance of a white, red-eared 
 heifer, and fifty other heifers along with her, and a chain 
 of white bronze between every two of them, and they 
 made a rush into the ford. But Cuchulain made a cast 
 at her, and wounded one of her eyes. Then she came 
 down the stream in the shape of a black eel, and wound 
 herself about Cuchulain's legs in the water ; and while he 
 was getting himself free of her, and bruising her against 
 a green stone of the ford, Loch wounded his body. 
 Then she took the appearance of a grey wolf, and took 
 hold of his right arm, and while he was getting free of 
 her. Loch wounded him again. Then great anger came 
 on him, and he took the spear Aoife had given him, 
 the Gae Bulg, and gave him a deadly wound. " I ask 
 one thing for the sake of your great name, Cuchulain," 
 he called out. " What thing is that ? " " It is not to 
 spare my life I am asking you," said Loch, " but let me 
 rise up, the way I may fall on my face, and not back- 
 wards towards the men of Ireland, so that none of them 
 can say it was in running away or in going backward I 
 fell." " I will surely give that leave," said Cuchulain, 
 " for the thing you ask is a right gift for a fighting man." 
 And after that he went back to his own camping-place. 
 
 Now, on that day above any other, a very downhearted 
 feeling came on Cuchulain, he to be fighting alone 
 against the four provinces of Ireland. And he bade 
 Laeg to go to Conchubar and to the men of Ulster, and 
 to say to them that he, the son of Dechtire, was tired 
 with fighting every day, and with the wounds he had 
 got, and not one of his people or his friends coming to 
 help him. 
 
 After that Maeve sent out six all together against 
 him, three men and three women that understood en- 
 chantments ; but he destroyed them all. And now that 
 Maeve had broken her agreement with him, not to send 
 more than one against him at a time, he did not spare 
 
214 WAR FOR BULL OF CUAILGNE 
 
 her men any longer, but from where he was he used his 
 sling so well that in the whole army there was neither 
 dog, horse, or man, that dared turn his face towards 
 Cuchulain. 
 
 It was one day at that time the Morrigu came to try 
 and get healing of her wounds from him, for it was only 
 by his own hand the wounds he gave could be healed. 
 She took the appearance of an old woman on her, and 
 she milking a cow with three teats. Cuchulain was 
 passing by, and there was thirst on him, and he asked a 
 drink, and she gave him the milk of one teat. " May 
 this be to the good of the giver," he said, and with that 
 her eye that was wounded was healed. Then she gave 
 him milk from another teat, and he said the same words ; 
 then she gave him the milk from the third teat. " The 
 full blessing of the gods, and of the people of the plough, 
 on you," he said. And with that, all the wounds of the 
 Great Queen were healed. 
 
 Then the men of the four great provinces of Ireland 
 made their camp, and put up walls at the place called 
 the Great Breach, on the plain of Muirthemne ; but they 
 sent the cattle they had with them southward. And 
 Cuchulain took his place on a hill ; and in the evening 
 Laeg made a fire for him there, and the flame flashed 
 on the bright shining weapons of the men of Ireland. 
 And when Cuchulain saw so many of them, and they so 
 near him, great anger came on him, and he took his 
 spears and his shield and his sword and shook them, and 
 he gave out his loud hero cry, and it was such a great 
 cry he gave that the Bocanachs and Bananachs and the 
 witches of the valley answered it from all parts. 
 
 And when the men in the camp heard these great 
 cries, they thought it was an attack that was being made 
 upon them, and they ran against one another, and fought 
 one another in their fright, so that a hundred of them 
 were killed in that night. 
 
LUGH OF THE LONG HAND 215 
 
 Then Laeg saw a man coming through the camp from 
 the north-east. " There is a man coming towards us, Httle 
 Hound," he said. " What is the appearance on him ? " 
 said Cuchulain. " He is very tall and handsome 
 and shining, and he has a green cloak about him, 
 fastened with a silver brooch ; a shirt of silk that is 
 embroidered with red gold, falling to his knees ; a black 
 shield in his hand, with a border of white bronze, and a 
 spear with five prongs. And it is a strange thing," he said, 
 " that no one in the whole camp seems to see him or to 
 take any heed of him." " That is so," said Cuchulain ; 
 " and the men of Ireland take no heed of him because 
 they cannot see him ; and I know well it is one of my 
 friends among the Sidhe that is coming to give me help 
 and relief; for they know it is hard for me to be standing 
 alone against the four provinces of Ireland." 
 
 Then the man of the Sidhe, that was Lugh of the Long 
 Hand, came and spoke with Cuchulain, and it is what he 
 said, that he knew he was tired out and in want of sleep. 
 " And sleep now, Cuchulain," he said, " by the grave in 
 the Lerga, and I myself will keep watch over you till the 
 end of three days and three nights. So Cuchulain fell 
 asleep there and then by the grave that is in the Lerga, 
 and no wonder in that, for he had been fighting since 
 before the feast of Samhain without sleep, but all the 
 while killing and attacking and destroying the men of 
 Ireland — unless he might sleep a little while beside his 
 spear in the middle of the day, his head on his hand, 
 and his hand on his spear, and his spear on his knee. 
 And while he was lying in his heavy sleep, the man of 
 the Sidhe put Druid herbs on his wounds, so that they 
 were all healed. So he slept for three days and three 
 nights, and at the end of that time he rose up and passed 
 his hand over his face, and he blushed red from head to 
 foot with the strengthening of his courage that he felt in 
 him, and he would have been ready to go there and then 
 
2i6 WAR FOR BULL OF CUAILGNE 
 
 into any great gathering or feasting hall in all Ireland. 
 " How long have I been in my sleep ? " he asked the 
 man. " Three days and three nights." " Then you have 
 done me a bad turn indeed," he said, "for the men of 
 Ireland have been left in quiet all that time." " They 
 were not indeed," said the man. " Who was it stood up to 
 them then ? " said Cuchulain. " It was the boy troop 
 came from the North, from Emain Macha," he said ; 
 " three times fifty sons of the chief men of Ulster, and 
 they attacked the army three times, and they killed three 
 times their own number, but they themselves were all 
 killed in the end. And Follaman, son of Conchubar, was 
 leading them, and he had made a boast that he would 
 never go home again unless he could bring Ailell's head 
 along with him, and the gold crown that was on it. But 
 two foster-sons of Ailell, the two sons of Betchach, son of 
 Baen, fell on him and wounded him, so that he got his 
 death." " My grief, and oh ! my grief that I was not 
 there," said Cuchulain ; " for if I had been in it, the boy 
 troop would never have been destroyed, and Conchubar's 
 son would not have come to his death." " Do not be 
 fretting, little Hound, " said the strange man ; " there is no 
 reproach on your name by it." " Stop here with me 
 to-night," said Cuchulain, " and the two of us together 
 will avenge the boy troop." " I will not indeed," said he ; 
 " but let you yourself play the game out now with the 
 men of Ireland, for it is not they that have power over 
 your life at this time." 
 
 With that he went away, and Cuchulain said to Laeg, 
 " Yoke the scythed chariot for me now, if you have the 
 things belonging to it." Then Laeg rose up and got 
 ready the chariot, and he put on his light dress of deer- 
 skins, that was spotted and striped and close-fitting, so 
 that his arms were left free. And over that he put his 
 raven-black cloak, and his shining helmet on his head ; 
 and on his forehead he put the narrow band of gold that 
 
DUBTHACH'S JEALOUSY 217 
 
 chariot-drivers were used to wear. And then he threw 
 over the horses the cloths that covered them all over, 
 and that were studded with little blades, and spikes, 
 and points, so that every time the chariot moved, it 
 brought some sharp point against those that were near 
 it, the way every point and every head of the chariot 
 would cut its sure path ; and he gathered the reins in 
 his hand, and the goad, and the long whip. 
 
 And then Cuchulain put on his armour, and took his 
 spears, and his sword, and his shield that had a rim so 
 sharp it would cut a hair against the stream, and his 
 cloak that was made of the precious fleeces of the land 
 of the Sidhe, that had been brought to him by Manannan 
 from the King of Sorcha. He went out then against 
 the men of Ireland, and attacked them, and his anger 
 came on him, so that it was not his own appearance he 
 had on him, but the appearance of a god. And after that 
 he turned back and left them, and there was no wound 
 on himself, or on the horses, or on Laeg that day. And 
 he made a round of the whole army, mowing men down 
 on every side, in revenge for the boy troop of Emain. 
 
 But the next day he was standing on the hill, young, 
 and comely, and shining, and the cloud of his anger had 
 gone from him. Then the women and the young girls 
 in the camp, and the poets and the singers, came out to 
 look at him ; but Maeve hid her face behind a shelter of 
 shields, thinking he might make a cast at her with his 
 sling. And there was wonder on these women to see 
 him so quiet and so gentle to-day, and he such a terror 
 to the whole army yesterday; and they bade the men 
 lift them up on their shields to the height of their 
 shoulders, the way they could have a good sight of him. 
 
 But Dubthach, the Beetle of Ulster, saw his own wife 
 climbing up with the other women to look at Cuchulain, 
 and great anger and jealousy came on him ; and he said 
 to the chief men of the army that it would be best for 
 
2i8 WAR FOR BULL OF CUAILGNE 
 
 them to surround Cuchulain secretly on all sides, and 
 then to let on to be fighting among themselves, so as to 
 lead him down where he could not escape them. But 
 when Fergus was told this, he gave a great kick of his 
 foot to Dubthach, that sent him from where he was. 
 And he spoke angr>^ words against Dubthach, and he 
 told him he would be well paid for the harm he had 
 planned, whenever the men of Ulster would get up from 
 their weakness, and come out to help Cuchulain. 
 
 And that night the army of Ireland made their camp 
 at the great stone in the country of Ross ; and then 
 Maeve asked which of them would go out and fight with 
 Cuchulain on the morrow. But every one of the men of 
 Ireland said : " It is not I that will go." " It is not one 
 of my family that should be sent to his death." Then 
 Maeve asked Fergus to go out and fight him. " It is 
 not right for you," said Fergus, " to ask me to go against 
 a young boy, and he my own pupil and my foster-son." 
 But Maeve pressed him so hard that he could not but 
 take the work in hand ; and early in the morning he went 
 out to the ford of fighting where Cuchulain was. When 
 Cuchulain saw him coming he said : " Truly, my master, 
 it is not safe for you to come and fight, and you without 
 a sword," for Ailell had not given him back his own 
 sword yet. " It is no matter," he said, "for if I had a 
 sword in my sheath, it is not on you I would use it. 
 And now, Cuchulain," he said, " for the sake of all I did 
 for you, and all Conchubar and the whole of Ulster did 
 for you in your bringing-up, let you give way before me 
 to-day, in the sight of the men of Ireland." "Indeed I 
 am loth to give way before any man in this war," said 
 Cuchulain. "You need not mind that," said Fergus, 
 " for I will do the same for you when the great last 
 battle of this war is fought ; it is then I will turn and run 
 before you, when you are covered with wounds and with 
 blood. And if I run then," he said, " all the men of 
 
THE OUTLAWS 219 
 
 Ireland will run along with me." So Cuchulain agreed 
 to do that, because it would be for the profit of Ulster. 
 And he bade Laeg make ready his chariot ; and 
 presently, as if he had been beaten by Fergus, he gave 
 way to him in the sight of the men of Ireland. When 
 they saw it, they called out : " He is running before you, 
 Fergus." And Maeve called out : " Follow him, Fergus — 
 make haste, the way he will not escape you." " I will 
 not indeed," said Fergus, " I will follow him no farther ; 
 and if you think I did not make him run far enough," 
 he said, " I did more than all the rest of the men that 
 went against him up to this ; and I will make no other 
 attack on him," he said, " until all the men of Ireland 
 have fought with him, one by one." 
 
 So that was the end of the fight between Fergus and 
 Cuchulain. 
 
 There was a man of Connaught at that time whose 
 name was Ferchu, and he had been at war with Ailell 
 and Maeve from the time they got the kingdom, and 
 he used to be robbing the country and destroying it, so 
 that he was made an outlaw. And some of his men 
 heard that the whole army of Connaught was being 
 vexed and hindered by one man ; and when they told it 
 to Ferchu, he said : " It would be a good chance for us 
 to go and attack that man, and to bring his head with 
 us to Ailell and Maeve, for if we do that," he said, 
 " they will forgive us all the harm we have done their 
 country." 
 
 So he himself and his twelve men went forward to 
 where Cuchulain was, and they attacked him all 
 together. But Cuchulain was not long in making an 
 end of them, and he struck off their heads, and put them 
 on twelve stones ; and he put Ferchu's head on a stone 
 by itself. 
 
 Then the men of Ireland consulted together again 
 who they would send out to fight on the next day ; and 
 
220 WAR FOR BULL OF CUAILGNE 
 
 it is what they all said, that it was Calatin and his 
 twenty-seven sons and his sister's son, Glas, son of 
 Delga, should go out. Now it is the way they were, 
 every man of them had poison in himself and in his 
 weapons ; and there was not one of them ever made a 
 cast of a spear or a stone that missed, and there was no 
 one that would be wounded by them but he would die, 
 either on the spot or within the week. So great rewards 
 were promised them, if they would go out against 
 Cuchulain. And Fergus was there at the time the 
 business was knotted. " And surely," every one said, 
 " they are only one man, for they are all members of 
 Calatin's body." After that, Fergus went into his tent, 
 to his people, and he gave a deep groan of trouble, and 
 he said : " My grief for the thing that is to be done to- 
 morrow." " What thing is that ? " said they all. 
 '' Cuchulain to be killed," he said. " Who would kill 
 him ? " said they. " Calatin and his sons," he said, " and 
 if there is any one of you would go and watch the fight 
 and bring me word what happens, I would give him a 
 good reward, and my blessing." " I will go," said 
 Fiacha, son of Firaba. 
 
 So in the morning Calatin, with his sons and his 
 sister's son, rose up and went to where Cuchulain was, 
 and Fiacha, son of Firaba, went along with them. And 
 as soon as they came near him, they threw their twenty- 
 nine spears at him all together, in one cast, and not one 
 of them drew blood, for he caught them all on his 
 shield. Then Cuchulain drew his sword from the sheath 
 to hack off the spears and to lighten his shield ; but 
 while he was doing that, they all ran at him as one man 
 and put their twenty-nine right hands on his head, and 
 forced his face down to the gravel and the sand of the 
 ford. And he gave out his great hero cry, and the cry 
 of a man in unequal fight, and there was not a man in 
 the camp, and he not dead or asleep, but heard it. 
 
FIACHA, A DEBT 221 
 
 Then Fiacha, son of Firaba, came up, and when he 
 saw what had happened, the love of his own countryman 
 came over him, and he pulled out his sword and hit the 
 nine-and-twenty hands off Calatin and his sons, with 
 one blow. Cuchulain raised up his head then, and gave 
 a deep sigh of relief, and he saw who it was had come 
 to his help. " That was done quiet and easy, my good 
 comrade," he said. " You may think it is quiet and 
 easy I was," said Fiacha, " but if what I did is heard of 
 in the camp, the reward that will fall on me will not be 
 quiet and easy. For if the men of the children of 
 Rudraige should hear of the stroke I made for you, it is 
 with sword and spear my reward will be paid." " I give 
 you my word," said Cuchulain, " that now I have lifted 
 my head and got my breath again, unless you tell tales 
 on yourself, none of these men will tell tales on you." 
 
 With that he made an attack on Calatin and his sons, 
 and he began to hack and to cut at them till there was 
 nothing left of them but limbs and little pieces eastward 
 and westward over the whole face of the ford. Only 
 one man of them, Glas, son of Delga, got away and ran, 
 but Cuchulain rushed after him and gave him a great 
 blow. But he got as far as Ailell and Maeve's tent, and 
 all he could say was, " Fiacha ! Fiacha ! " before he fell 
 dead. 
 
 Fergus and Maeve said : " What debts are those he 
 called out about ? " — for Fiacha is the word for a debt in 
 Irish. " I do not know indeed," said Fergus, " unless 
 it might be that some one in the camp owed him a debt, 
 and that it was on his mind." " That must have been 
 so," said Ailell. " By my word," said Fergus, " however 
 it was, all his debts are paid now." 
 
 And at the ford where Calatin and his sons got their 
 death, there is a stone with the marks of their sword- 
 hilts, and the butt-ends of their spears on it to this day. 
 
 Then it was settled by the men of Ireland that it was 
 
222 WAR FOR BULL OF CUAILGNE 
 
 Ferdiad, son of Daire, the great champion of the men 
 of Domnand, should go out and meet Cuchulain the 
 next day. For they had the same way of fighting, and 
 it was with the same teachers they had learned the 
 knowledge of arms, with Scathach and with Uathach 
 and with Aoife ; and neither of them had an advantage 
 over the other, except that Cuchulain had the feat of 
 the Gae Bulg. But Ferdiad had good armour to pro- 
 tect him against any man he would fight with. 
 
 So they sent messengers to bring Ferdiad, but he 
 refused and would not come, for he knew it was what 
 they wanted of him, to fight against his friend, his 
 companion and his fellow pupil, Cuchulain. 
 
 Then Maeve sent the Druids and the satirists to him, 
 that they might make three hurtful satires and three hill- 
 top satires on him, if he would not come with them, that 
 would raise three blisters on his face. Shame and Blemish 
 and Reproach, so that if he did not die on the moment, 
 he would be dead before the end of nine days. 
 
 Then Ferdiad came with them for the sake of his 
 good name, for he thought it better to fall by spears 
 than by satires. And when he came he was received 
 with honour and attendance, and he was served with 
 pleasant drinks, so that he grew merry, and his mind 
 was confused. And great rewards were offered him if 
 he would go out against Cuchulain ; clothes of all 
 colours for his men, and speckled satins, and silver 
 and gold, and the equal of his own lands of the level 
 plains of Magh Ai, without rent or disturbance, secure 
 to his son and to his grandson and to their children to 
 the end of life and time. 
 
 And it is what Maeve said : " It is a great reward I am 
 giving you, Ferdiad, and why would you not accept it ? " 
 And Ferdiad was making excuses. " I will not take 
 your reward without good pledges," he said, " for it is a 
 heavy fight is before me ; he that has the name of 
 
MAEVE AND FERDIAD 223 
 
 Cuchulain is surely a good Hound." " I will give you 
 a champion's pledge," said Maeve ; " you will not be 
 bound to come to our gatherings, you will get horses 
 and bridles ; I will call you my friend above all other 
 men." " I will not go to this fight," said Ferdiad, 
 " without some other securities, for this is a fight will 
 be heard of till the end of life and time." " Take all 
 you want," said Maeve. " There is no delay except with 
 yourself Bind us till you are satisfied by the right 
 hand of kings and of princes ; there is nothing I will 
 refuse you." " I must have six securities and no less," 
 said Ferdiad, " before I will go out and be destroyed by 
 Cuchulain, and all the whole army looking on." " I will 
 give you whatever securities you want," said Maeve, 
 " however hard it may be to come at them ; Domnall 
 in his chariot ; Niaman of the Slaughter, both of them 
 protectors of bards ; bind Morann if you want sure 
 payment ; bind Carpre Min of Manand, he that has a 
 string of knowledge in his harp ; bind our own two 
 sons." " O Maeve, it is a bitter woman you are," said 
 Ferdiad. " And it is not a gentle wife to a husband you 
 are, but it is a fit queen you are for Cruachan of the 
 Swords, with your high talk and your fierce strength. 
 But in spite of all the words you are stirring me up 
 with," he said, "if you would offer me the land and 
 the sea, I would not take them, without the sun and the 
 moon along with them." "You need not wait longer 
 than to-day and to-morrow," said Maeve, " before you 
 will get your fill of all sorts of the jewels of the 
 earth. And here is my brooch with its hooked pin," 
 she said ; " and more than all that, Ferdiad, so soon as 
 you have killed this Hound of feats, I will give you 
 Findabair of the champions, queen of the west of 
 Elga." ^ 
 
 Ferdiad gave in to her then, and he bound her on the 
 sureties of the aforesaid six for the fulfilment of her 
 
224 WAR FOR BULL OF CUAILGNE 
 
 promises of the reward ; and she bound him to fight 
 with Cuchulain on the morrow. 
 
 Then Fergus got his horses harnessed and his chariot 
 yoked, and he went out to where Cuchulain was, to tell 
 him of all that had happened. " My welcome before 
 you, my master Fergus," said Cuchulain. " I am glad 
 of that welcome, my pupil," said Fergus. " But what I 
 am come for is to tell you who it is that is coming to 
 fight at the early hour of the morning of to-morrow." 
 " I will listen to that," said Cuchulain. " Your own 
 friend and companion, and fellow-pupil, the man that 
 learned the use of arms with you, Ferdiad, son of Daire, 
 the hero of the men of Domnand." " I give my word," 
 said Cuchulain, " it is not my wish, my friend to come 
 out against me." " And now," said Fergus, " you must 
 be careful and ready more than any other time, for there 
 was not the like of Ferdiad among any of the men who 
 have fought you up to this." " I am here," said 
 Cuchulain, " hindering and delaying the four great 
 provinces of Ireland, from the beginning of the winter 
 to the beginning of spring, and I have not drawn back 
 one foot before any man in that time, and I think it 
 likely I will not draw back before him." " Neither has 
 Ferdiad any fear on him before you, now his anger is 
 stirred up," said Fergus, " and besides that, he has good 
 armour to protect him." " Be quiet now, Fergus, and 
 do not let me hear any more of that story," said 
 Cuchulain. " I was always well able to stand against 
 him in any place, or on any ground." "It is not easy to 
 get the better of him," said Fergus, " for he is fierce in 
 fighting, and he has the strength of a hundred." " There 
 will be a sharp fight when myself and Ferdiad come to 
 the ford," said Cuchulain ; " it will not be without being 
 told in stories." " O Cuchulain of the red sword," said 
 Fergus, " it would be better to me than a great reward, 
 you to carry proud Ferdiad's purple cloak eastward." 
 
FERDIAD AND HIS DRIVER 225 
 
 " I give my word and my oath," said Cuchulain, " it is I 
 myself will get the victory over Ferdiad." Then Fergus 
 went back to the encampment. 
 
 At the same time Ferdiad went to his tent and to his 
 people, and told them how he was bound by Maeve to 
 fight with Cuchulain on the morrow, and he told how he 
 had bound Maeve by six sureties for the fulfilment of 
 her promises, if Cuchulain should fall by him. 
 
 It is not happy in their minds the people of Ferdiad's 
 tent were that night, but gloomy and heavy-hearted ; for 
 they were sure that wherever Cuchulain and Ferdiad 
 would meet, it was there one of them would get his 
 death, and they were sure that one would be their own 
 master ; for no one at all had been able to stand against 
 Cuchulain since the beginning of the war. 
 
 Ferdiad slept through the early part of the night very 
 heavily, and when the latter end of the night came, his 
 sleep went from him, and his drunkenness had passed 
 away, and the thought of the fight was pressing on him. 
 And he bade his driver to harness the horses, and to 
 yoke his chariot. But the driver tried to turn him from it. 
 " It would be better for you to stop here than to go," he 
 said, " for my liking of it is not more than my disliking." 
 
 " Be silent, boy," said Ferdiad, " for I will not be 
 turned from this journey by any young lad ; but I will 
 go to the ford, a ford the ravens will be croaking over ; 
 I will fight with Cuchulain till I wound his strong body, 
 till I crush the courage out of him the way that he will 
 die." 
 
 " It would be better for you to stop here," said the 
 driver, " for it is not gentle your threats are ; your parting 
 will be sorrowful ; there is one to whom it will be a 
 sickness ; grief will come of that meeting with Cuchulain ; 
 it is long it will be remembered ; it is a pity for him who 
 goes that journey." " It is not right what you are 
 saying," said Ferdiad ; " it is not for a brave man to 
 
 P 
 
226 WAR FOR BULL OF CUAILGNE 
 
 refuse — it is not in our race. I will delay no longer, 
 courage is better than fear ; let us set out now to the 
 ford." 
 
 Then Ferdiad's horses were harnessed, and his chariot 
 was yoked, and he went forward to the ford, and the day 
 with its full light came upon him there. " Now, boy," 
 he said, " spread out the skins and the cushions of my 
 chariot under me here, until I get some sleep and rest, 
 for I got no sleep at the end of the night, with the care 
 of the fight upon me." 
 
 So his servant unharnessed the horses, and settled the 
 skins and cushions of the chariot under him, and the 
 hea\y rest of sleep came upon him. 
 
 But as to Cuchulain, he did not rise up at all till the 
 day had come with its full light, the way the men of 
 Ireland would not say it was fear that was on him that 
 made him rise. And when the day came : " It would be 
 as well, Laeg," he said, " to yoke the chariot, for it is an 
 early-rising man that is coming to meet us to-day." 
 
 " The horses are harnessed, and the chariot is yoked," 
 said Laeg ; " let you get into it, and there will be no 
 hindrance to your courage." 
 
 With that the ready-handed, battle-winning son of 
 Sualtim leaped into the chariot, and there shouted 
 around him the Bocanachs and Bananachs, and witches 
 of the valley. For the Sidhe were used to set up their 
 shouts around him, the way the fear and the wonder 
 would be great before him in every fight he would go 
 into. 
 
 And it was not long until Ferdiad's driver heard the 
 noise coming near, the straining of the harness, the 
 creaking of the chariot, the ringing of the armour and 
 of the shield, the trampling of the horses, the joyful 
 coming of Cuchulain to the ford. 
 
 The driver came and laid his hand on his master. 
 " Good Ferdiad," he said, " rise up ; here they are coming. 
 
THE COMING OF CUCHULAIN 227 
 
 " For I hear," he said, " the creaking of a chariot ; it 
 has come over Breg Ross, over Braine ; it has come over 
 the highway by the foot of Baile-in-Bile ; he is a mighty 
 Hound that urges it ; he is a good driver that yokes it ; 
 he is a free hawk that hurries his horses towards the 
 south. It is not he that will be slow in the fight. It is 
 a pity for him that is on the height waiting for the 
 Hound of valour. It is a year ago I foretold there would 
 come a Hound, the Hound of Emain, a Hound with all 
 colours about him — the Hound of Ulster, the Hound of 
 Battle ; I hear him — I have heard him coming." 
 
 " Good servant," said Ferdiad, " why is it you have 
 been praising that man ever since you came out from 
 the house ? It is likely you are not without wages for 
 your great praise of him. Yet it has been foretold to me 
 by Ailell and by Maeve, it is he that will fall by me. 
 And it is a time to help me," he said ; " and let you be 
 silent, and give up praising him, that your foretelling 
 may not come true. It is not for you to give up on the 
 brink of the fight ; surely I will soon have the reward." 
 
 And the driver said : " He is coming, not slowly, but 
 quick as the wind, or as water from a high cliff, or like 
 swift thunder." " Surely you have taken wages for these 
 great praises you put upon him," said Ferdiad ; " it is not 
 against him you are, but praising him, and putting a 
 great name on him." 
 
 It was not long then until Ferdiad saw Cuchulain 
 coming towards him in his chariot, and it is how his two 
 horses were going, like a hawk sweeping from a cliff on 
 a day of hard wind, or like a sweeping gust of the spring 
 wind on a March day over a smooth plain, or like the swift- 
 ness of a wild stag when he is first started by the hounds 
 in his first field ; as if they were on fiery flagstones, so that 
 the earth was shaking and trembling with the quickness 
 of their going. 
 
 So Cuchulain reached the ford, and Ferdiad came to 
 
228 WAR FOR BULL OF CUAILGNE 
 
 the south side, and Cuchulain drew up on the north side, 
 and Ferdiad bade Cuchulain welcome. " I am happy at 
 your coming, Cuchulain," he said. " I would have been 
 glad of that welcome up to this time," said Cuchulain, 
 " but to-day I do not take it as the welcome of a friend. 
 And Ferdiad," he said, " it would be fitter for me to 
 welcome you than for you to welcome me, for it is you 
 have come to me in the country and province where I 
 am, and it is not right for you to come to fight with me, 
 but it is I should go to fight with you, for it is out before 
 you are the women and the children, the young men and 
 the horses, the flocks, the herds, and the cattle of the 
 province of Ulster." 
 
 "Good Cuchulain," said Ferdiad, " what has brought 
 you to fight with me at all ? For when we were with 
 Scathach and with Uathach and with Aoife, you were 
 my serving-boy, to tie up my spears and to make ready 
 my bed." " That is true indeed," said Cuchulain ; " but 
 it was as less in age than you I was used to do so ; but 
 that is not the story that will be told of us after this day, 
 for there is not a man in the whole world I would not 
 fight to-day." 
 
 And it is then each of them spoke sharp, unfriendly 
 words against the other ; and it is what Ferdiad said : 
 " What has brought you, O Hound, to fight with a strong 
 fighter? It is red your blood will be, flowing over the 
 harness of your horses ; it is a pity for your journey ; it 
 is long it will be spoken of; you will be in much want of 
 healing if you ever get back to your own house," he said. 
 
 " I have fought with heroes, with chiefs of armies, with 
 troops, with hundreds before now," said Cuchulain, 
 " and what I have to do to-day is to make an end of you, 
 to bring you down in our first path of battle." 
 
 " You have met now with a man that will put re- 
 proach on you," said Ferdiad, " for it is I myself will do 
 that. It is well the loss of the men of Ulster will be 
 
BEFORE THE FIGHT 229 
 
 remembered," he said, " their champion to be put down, 
 and they looking on." 
 
 " What way shall we meet one another ? " said 
 Cuchulain. " Is it in our chariots we had best fight, or 
 is it with my sword and spear I am to overthrow you, if 
 the time has come ? " And Ferdiad said : " Before the 
 setting of the sun to-night, you will be fighting as if with 
 a mountain, and it is not white that battle will be. The 
 men of Ulster will be shouting for you," he said, " till you 
 grow overbold ; but it is sorrowful they will be, when your 
 ghost passes over them and through them." " You are 
 fallen into the gap of danger, Ferdiad," said Cuchulain ; 
 " the end of your life has come, not by treachery, but by 
 sharp weapons. You may think much of yourself till 
 we meet one another, but you will never fight in a battle 
 again, from this day to the end of time." " Leave off 
 now from your boastings," said Ferdiad ; " it is you are 
 the greatest boaster in the world. I know well you are 
 no fighter at all, you heart of a bird in a cage ; you are 
 but a giggling fellow, without courage, without strength." 
 But Cuchulain said : " When we were together with 
 Scathach, we used to be practising together, we used to 
 go to every battle together, because of our bravery that 
 was equal. You were my heart companion, you were 
 my people, you were my family — I never found one was 
 dearer ; it is sorrowful your death would be to me." 
 
 " Where is the use of all this talk ? " said Ferdiad ; " your 
 great name will be lost, your head will be on a stake 
 before the crowing of the cock. Madness and grief are 
 taking hold of you, Cuchulain," he said, " and it is bad 
 treatment you will get from me, because it is on your- 
 self the fault is." 
 
 " Good Ferdiad," Cuchulain said then, " it was not right 
 for you to come out against me, through the stirring up 
 and the meddling of Ailell and of Maeve ; and none of 
 those who came before you got victory or success, but 
 
230 WAR FOR BULL OF CUAILGNE 
 
 they all fell by me, and you will fall along with them. 
 And, O Ferdiad, strong fighter," he said, "do not 
 come against me ; the meeting will bring sorrow to 
 many, and what is worse than sorrow to you. Have 
 you not been bought with many presents ? A purple 
 belt, a suit of armour ? But, Ferdiad," he said, " the 
 woman for whom you are come to this fight, Findabair, 
 daughter of Maeve, however comely she may be, will 
 never be given to you ; for she has been offered to many 
 before you," he said, " and many like you have been 
 wounded for her sake. 
 
 " Do not break your oath not to fight with me ; do not 
 break friendship. Do not break the word you gave me, 
 do not come against me. 
 
 " The woman has been promised to fifty others ; it 
 was a heavy gift for them ; it is by me they were sent 
 to their grave ; it is by me they got the end that was 
 fitting for them. 
 
 " Though Ferbaeth was boastful, he who had a house- 
 ful of brave men, it is short the time was till I quieted 
 his rage ; I killed him by the one cast. 
 
 " The striking down of Srub Daire's courage was 
 bitter to him ; it is he held the secrets of a hundred 
 women ; he had a great name at one time ; it is not 
 silver thread but gold thread was in his clothes. 
 
 " If it were to me the woman was promised on whom 
 the kings of the fair province smile, I would not bring 
 the red blood on your body for it, south or north, east 
 or west. 
 
 " And good Ferdiad," he said, " this is why it is not 
 right for you to come to this fight. When we were with 
 Scathach, it is together we used to go to every battle, 
 to every wild place, through every darkness and every 
 hardship. We were heart companions ; we were com- 
 rades in gatherings ; we shared the one bed where we 
 used to sleep sound sleep. We used to practise to- 
 
THE FIGHT WITH FERDIAD 231 
 
 gether, in many far countries ; we used to go to hard 
 fights ; we used to go through every forest together." 
 
 " O Cuchulain of the wonderful feats," said Ferdiad, 
 " although we learned knowledge together, and although 
 I know the bonds friendship put upon us, it is I that 
 will give you your first wounds ; do not be remembering 
 our companionship, for it will not protect you. And it 
 is too long we are delaying like this," he said ; " and 
 what arms shall we use to-day, Cuchulain ? " 
 
 " It is you have the choice of arms to-day," said 
 Cuchulain, " for it is you were the first to reach the 
 ford." "Do you remember at all," said Ferdiad, "the 
 casting spears we used to practise with Scathach and 
 with Uacthach and with Aoife ? " "I remember them 
 indeed," said Cuchulain. " If you remember, let us 
 begin with them," said Ferdiad. 
 
 So they began with their casting weapons, and they 
 took their protecting shields, and their round-handled 
 spears, and their little quill spears, and their ivory- 
 hilted knives, and their ivory-hafted spears, eight of 
 each of them they had. And these were flying from 
 them and to them like bees on the wing on a fine 
 summer day ; there was no cast that did not hit, and 
 each one went on shooting at the other with those 
 weapons from the twilight of the early morning to the 
 full midday, until all their weapons were blunted against 
 the faces and the bosses of the shields. And as good 
 as the throwing was, the defence was so good that neither 
 of them drew blood from the other through that time. 
 
 " Let us leave these weapons now, Cuchulain," said 
 Ferdiad, " for it is not by the like of them our fight will 
 be settled." " Let us leave them indeed if the time is 
 come," said Cuchulain. 
 
 They stopped then, and threw their darts into the 
 hands of their chariot-drivers. " What weapons shall 
 we use now, Cuchulain ? " said Ferdiad. " The choice of 
 
232 WARFORBULLOFCUAILGNE 
 
 weapons is yours till night," said Cuchulain. " Let us, 
 then," said Ferdiad, " take to our straight spears, with 
 the flaxen strings in them." " Let us now indeed," said 
 Cuchulain. And then they took two stout shields, and 
 they took to their spears. 
 
 Each of them went on throwing at the other with 
 the spears from the middle of mid-day until the fall of 
 evening. And good as the defence was, yet the 
 throwing was so good that each of them wounded the 
 other in that time. 
 
 " Let us leave this now," said Ferdiad. " Let us leave 
 it indeed if the time has come," said Cuchulain. 
 
 So they left off, and they threw their spears away 
 from them into the hands of their chariot-drivers. Each 
 of them came to the other then, and each put his hands 
 round the neck of the other, and gave him three kisses. 
 Their horses were in the one enclosure that night, and 
 their chariot-drivers at the one fire ; and their chariot- 
 drivers spread beds of green rushes for them, with 
 wounded men's pillows on them. The men that had 
 knowledge of healing came then, and put herbs of heal- 
 ing to their wounds. And of every herb and plant that 
 was put to Cuchulain's wounds, he would send an equal 
 share from him westward over the ford to Ferdiad, the 
 way the men of Ireland might not say if Ferdiad should 
 fall by him, that it was by better means of cure he was 
 able to overcome him. 
 
 And of every kind of food and of drink that was sent 
 by the men of Ireland to Ferdiad, he would send a fair 
 share over the ford northward to Cuchulain ; because the 
 providers of Ferdiad were more than the providers of 
 Cuchulain. All the men of Ireland were providers to 
 Ferdiad for beating off Cuchulain from them, but only 
 the Bregians were providers to Cuchulain. They used 
 to come and to be talking with him at the dusk of every 
 night. 
 
THESECONDDAY 233 
 
 They rested there that night, and they rose up early 
 on the morrow, and came forward to the ford of battle. 
 
 " What weapons shall we use to-day, Ferdiad ? " 
 said Cuchulain. " It is you have the choice of weapons 
 until night," said Ferdiad, "because I had my choice 
 of them the last day." " Let us then," said Cuchulain, 
 " take to our great broad spears to-day ; for we shall be 
 nearer to the end of our battle by the thrusting to-day 
 than we were by the throwing yesterday." 
 
 Each of them continued to cut, and to wound, and to 
 redden the other, from the twilight of the early morning 
 till the fall of the evening. If it were the custom for 
 birds in their flight to pass through the bodies of men, 
 they could have passed through their bodies on that 
 day, and they could have carried pieces of flesh and 
 blood through their stabs and cuts, into the clouds and 
 the sky all around. And when the fall of evening came, 
 their horses were tired, and their chariot-drivers were 
 down-hearted, and they were tired themselves as well. 
 
 " Let us stop from this now, Ferdiad," said Cuchulain, 
 "for our horses are tired, and our chariot-drivers are 
 down-hearted ; and when they are tired, why would not 
 we be tired as well ? And we are not bound to go on 
 for ever," he said, " as is the custom with the Fomor. 
 Let us put the quarrel away for a while, now the noise 
 of the fighting is over." " Let us leave off indeed if the 
 time is come," said Ferdiad. 
 
 They threw their spears from them then into the 
 hands of their chariot-drivers, and each of them came 
 towards the other. Each of them put his hand round 
 the neck of the other and gave him three kisses. Their 
 horses were in the one enclosure that night, and their 
 chariot-drivers at the one fire. 
 
 Their chariot-drivers made beds of green rushes for 
 them, with wounded men's pillows on them, and the men 
 that had knowledge of healing came to examine them 
 
234 WAR FOR BULL OF CUAILGNE 
 
 that night, but they could do nothing more for them, 
 because of the deepness of their many wounds, but to 
 use charms and spells on them, to staunch their 
 blood. Every charm and every spell that was used 
 on the wounds of Cuchulain, he sent a full share of 
 them over the ford westward to Ferdiad. And of every 
 sort of food and of drink that was sent to Ferdiad, he 
 sent a share of them over the ford northward to 
 Cuchulain. 
 
 They rested there that night, and they rose up early 
 on the morrow, and they came forward to the ford of 
 battle. Cuchulain saw a sort of a dark look on Ferdiad 
 that day. " It is bad you are looking to-day, Ferdiad," 
 he said ; " there is a darkness on your face, and a heavi- 
 ness on your eyes, and your own appearance is gone 
 from you." " It is not from fear or dread of you I am 
 like this to-day," said Ferdiad ; " for there is not a 
 champion in Ireland to-day I could not put down." 
 And Cuchulain was fretted to see him that way, and 
 it is what he said : " O Ferdiad, if it is you yourself, I am 
 sure you are a miserable man, to have come at the 
 bidding of a woman to fight against your own com- 
 panion." But Ferdiad said : " O Cuchulain, giver of 
 wounds, true hero, every man must come in the end to 
 the sod where his last grave shall be." 
 
 " As to Findabair, daughter of Maeve," said Cuchulain, 
 " whatever her beauty may be, it is not for love of you 
 she was given to you, but only for the sake of your great 
 strength." " O Hound of the gentle sway," said Ferdiad, 
 " it is long ago my strength was tried ; but I never heard 
 of any man braver in fight than yourself; I never met so 
 brave a man until to-day." " It is your own fault what 
 has happened," said Cuchulain ; " you to have come at 
 the bidding of a woman to try your sword against your 
 fellow." "If I had gone back," said Ferdiad, "without 
 doing battle with you, it is little my name and my 
 
THE THIRD DAY 235 
 
 word would be thought of by Ailell and by Maeve of 
 Cruachan." " No one has ever put food to his lips," said 
 Cuchulain, " and no one has ever been born in honour of 
 a king or queen, for whose sake I would have harmed 
 you." " O Cuchulain, winner of battles," said Ferdiad ; 
 " it was not you but Maeve that betrayed me ; let you 
 take the victory and the fame, for it is not on you the 
 blame is." 
 
 And Cuchulain said : " My faithful heart is like a clot 
 of blood ; my life is nearly gone from me ; I have no 
 strength for high deeds, fighting with you, Ferdiad." 
 " Much as you are complaining over me now," said 
 Ferdiad, " what arms shall we use to-day ? " " It is you 
 have the choice to-day," said Cuchulain, " because it was 
 I had it yesterday." " Let us then," said Ferdiad, " take 
 to our swords to-day, for we will be nearer the end of 
 our battle by the hewing to-day, than we were by the 
 thrusting yesterday." " Let us do so indeed," said 
 Cuchulain. 
 
 And then they put two long wide shields on them, 
 and they took to their swords, and each of them 
 continued to hack at the other, from the dawn of the 
 early morning till the time of the fall of evening. " Let 
 us leave off from this now," said Cuchulain. So they 
 left off. 
 
 They threw their swords from them into the hands of 
 their chariot-drivers, and it was the parting, mournful, 
 sorrowful, downhearted, of two men that night. 
 
 Their horses were not in the one enclosure that night, 
 their chariot-drivers were not at the one fire. They 
 rested that night there. 
 
 And Ferdiad rose up early next morning, and went 
 forward by himself to the ford. For he knew that day 
 would decide the fight, and he knew one of them would 
 fall on that day there, or they would both fall. 
 
 And then he put on his battle suit, before the coming 
 
236 WAR FOR BULL OF CUAILGNE 
 
 of Cuchulain to him. He put on his shirt of striped 
 silk, with its border of speckled gold, next his white 
 skin. He put on his coat of brown leather, well sewed, 
 over the outside. He put on his apron of purified iron, 
 through dread of the Gae Bulg that day. He put his 
 crested helmet of battle on his head, on which were 
 forty gems, carbuncles, in each division, and it was 
 studded with crystal and with shining rubies of the 
 eastern world. He took his strong spear into his right 
 hand, and his curved sword upon his left side, with its 
 golden hilt, and its knobs of red gold, and his great, 
 large, bossed shield on his back. 
 
 And then he began to show off many changing, wonder- 
 ful feats, that he had never learned with any other person, 
 neither with nurse or with tutor, or with Scathach or with 
 Uacthach, or with Aoife, but that were made up that day 
 by himself against Cuchulain. 
 
 Then Cuchulain came to the ford, and when he saw 
 all Ferdiad was doing : " I see, my friend Laeg," he said, 
 " all those feats will be tried on me one after another ; 
 and because of that," he said, " if it is I that begin to 
 give in to-day, it is for you to reproach me, and to speak 
 hard words to me, the way that the strength of my 
 anger may grow the more on me. But if I am getting 
 the better of him, then you are to praise me, and make 
 much of me, that my courage may be the greater." " I 
 will do that indeed, my master Cuchulain," said Laeg. 
 
 And then Cuchulain put on his battle suit, and he 
 said : " What arms shall we take to-day, Ferdiad ? " 
 " The choice is yours to-day," said F'erdiad. " Let us 
 try the ford feat then," said Cuchulain. " Let us in- 
 deed," said Ferdiad. But though Ferdiad agreed to it, 
 it is sorry he was to say those words, for he knew 
 Cuchulain was used to put an end to every fighter that 
 was against him in the feat of the ford. 
 
 It was great work, now, that was done on that day at 
 
LAEG'S TAUNTS 237 
 
 the ford ; the two champions of western Europe, the 
 two gift-giving and wage-giving hands of the north- 
 west of the world ; the two pillars and the two keys of 
 the courage of the Gael ; to be brought from far off, to 
 fight one against the other, through the stirring up and 
 the meddling of Aileli and Maeve. Each of them began 
 to throw his weapons at the other, from the dawn of 
 early morning to the middle of mid-day. And when 
 mid-day came, the anger of the men grew hotter, and 
 each of them drew nearer to the other. And then it 
 was that Cuchulain leaped on to the boss of Ferdiad's 
 shield, to strike at his head over the rim of the shield. 
 But Ferdiad gave the shield a blow of the left elbow, and 
 threw Cuchulain from him like a bird on the brink of 
 the ford. Cuchulain leaped up again to the boss of the 
 shield, but Ferdiad gave it a stroke of his left knee, and 
 threw Cuchulain from him like a little child. 
 
 Laeg saw that done. " My grief indeed," he said, 
 " the fighter that is against you, Cuchulain, casts you 
 away as a light woman would cast her child. He throws 
 you as foam is thrown by the river ; he grinds you as a 
 mill would grind fresh malt ; he cuts through you as the 
 axe cuts through the oak ; he binds you as the woodbine 
 binds the tree ; he darts on you as the hawk darts on 
 little birds ; and from this out, you have no call nor claim 
 to courage or a brave name to the end of life and time, 
 you little fairy fighter," said Laeg. 
 
 It is then Cuchulain leaped up with the quickness of 
 the wind, and with the readiness of the swallow, and 
 with the fierceness of the lion, towards the troubled 
 clouds of the air the third time, until he lit on the boss 
 of Ferdiad's shield, to strike at his head from above. 
 And Ferdiad gave his shield a shake and cast Cuchulain 
 from him, the same as if he had never been cast off 
 before at all. 
 
 And it is then Cuchulain's anger came on him, and 
 
238 WAR FOR BULL OF CUAILGNE 
 
 the flames of the hero light began to shine about his 
 head, hke a red-thorn bush in a gap, or like the sparks 
 of a fire, and he lost the appearance of a man, and what 
 was on him was the appearance of a god. 
 
 So close was the fight they made now, that their heads 
 met above and their feet below, and their hands in the 
 middle, over the rims and bosses of their shields. So 
 close was the fight, that they broke and loosened their 
 shields from the rim to the middle. So close was the 
 fight, that they turned and bent and shattered their 
 spears from the points to the hilts. So close was the 
 fight, that the Bocanachs and Bananachs and the witches 
 of the valley screamed from the rims of their shields and 
 from the hilts of their swords, and from the handles of 
 their spears. So close was the fight, that they drove the 
 river out of its bed and out of its course, so that it might 
 have been a place for a king or a queen to rest in, so 
 that there was not a drop of water in it, unless it dropped 
 into it by the trampling and the hewing the two 
 champions made in the middle of the ford. 
 
 So great was the fight, that the horses of the men of 
 Ireland broke away in fright and shyness, with fury and 
 madness, breaking their chains and their yokes, their 
 ropes and their traces ; and the women and the young 
 lads and the children and the followers of the men of 
 Ireland broke out of the camp to the south-west. 
 
 They were using the edge of their swords through 
 that time ; and it was then Ferdiad found a time when 
 Cuchulain was off his guard, and he gave him a stroke of 
 the sword, and hid it in his body, and the ford was red- 
 dened with Cuchulain's blood, and Ferdiad kept on 
 making great strokes at him. And Cuchulain could not 
 bear with this, and he called to Laeg for the Gae Bulg, 
 and it was sent down the stream to him, and he caught 
 it with his foot. And when Ferdiad heard the name of 
 the Gae Bulg, he made a stroke of his shield down to 
 
FERDIAD'S DEATH 239 
 
 protect his body. But Cuchulain made a straight cast of 
 the spear, the Gae Bulg, off the middle of his hand, over 
 the rim of the shield, and it passed through his armour 
 and went out through his body, so that its sharp end 
 could be seen. 
 
 Ferdiad gave a stroke of his shield up to protect the 
 upper part of his body, though it was " the relief after 
 danger," as the saying is. " That is enough," said 
 Ferdiad ; " I die by that. And I may say, indeed, you 
 have left me sick after you, and it was not right that 
 I should fall by your hand. O Hound of the beautiful 
 feats, it was not right, you to kill me ; the fault of my 
 death is yours, it is on you my blood is. A foolish man 
 does not escape when he goes into the gap of danger ; 
 my grief! I am going away, my end is come. My ribs 
 will not hold my heart, my heart is all turned to blood. 
 I have not done well in the battle ; you have killed me, 
 Cuchulain." 
 
 Cuchulain ran towards him after that, and put his 
 two arms about him, and lifted him across the ford 
 northwards, so that his body should be by the ford on 
 the north, and not on the west of the ford with the men 
 of Ireland. 
 
 He laid him down then, and a cloud and a weakness 
 came on him as he stood over Ferdiad. Laeg saw that, 
 and he saw that all the men of Ireland were rising up to 
 come towards him. " Good Cuchulain," said Laeg, " rise 
 up now, for the men of Ireland are coming towards us, 
 and it is not one man they will put to fight against us, 
 now that Ferdiad has fallen by you." " What use is it 
 to me to rise up now, and he after falling by me ? " said 
 Cuchulain. But Laeg said : " Rise up, O chained Hound 
 of Emain ; it is glad and shouting you have a right to 
 be now, since Ferdiad of the hosts has fallen by you." 
 " What are joy and shouting to me now ? " said Cuchulain ; 
 " it is to madness and to grief I am driven after 
 
240 WAR FOR BULL OF CUAILGNE 
 
 the thing I have done, and the body I wounded so 
 hard." " It is not right for }-ou to be lamenting him," 
 said Laeg. '' It is making rejoicings over him you 
 should be. It was at you he aimed his spears." But 
 Cuchulain said : " Even if he had cut one arm and one 
 leg from me, it is my grief Ferdiad not to be riding 
 his horses through the long days of his lifetime." And 
 Laeg said : " It is better pleased the women of the Red 
 Branch will be, he to have died and you to be living. 
 They know it is not few but many you have sent away 
 for ever ; for from the day you came out of Cuailgne to 
 meet Maeve of the great name, it is a grief to her all you 
 have killed of her people and of her fighting men. You 
 have not taken quiet sleep since the spoiling of your 
 country began ; though there were few along with you, 
 many were the mornings you rose up early." 
 
 Then Cuchulain began to keen and to lament for 
 Ferdiad there, and it is what he said : " Well, Ferdiad, 
 it is a pity for you it was not one of the men that knew 
 my courage you asked an advice of before }'ou came to 
 meet me in the fight that was too hard for you. It is a 
 pity it was not Laeg, son of Riangabra, you asked how 
 we stood one to another. It is a pity you did not ask 
 a true advice of Fergus. It is a pity it was not pleasant 
 comely Conall you asked which of us would put down 
 the other. 
 
 " And these men know well," he said, " there will 
 never be born one among the men of Connaught who 
 will do deeds equal to yours, to the end of life and time. 
 And they know that if they looked among the places, 
 the gatherings, the swearings, the false promises of the 
 fair-haired women of Connaught, or in the playing with 
 targets and shields, the playing with shields and swords, 
 the playing backgammon and chess, the playing with 
 horses and chariots, there will not be found the hand of 
 a man that will wound like Ferdiad's hand, or a man to 
 
CUCHULAIN'S LAMENTS 241 
 
 bring the red-mouthed birds croaking over the speckled 
 battle, nor one that will fight for Cruachan, that will be 
 your equal to the end of life and time, O red-cheeked 
 son of Daman." And then he rose up and stood over 
 Ferdiad. " Well, Ferdiad," he said, " it is great wrong 
 and treachery was played on you by the men of Ireland, 
 to bring you out to fight with me. For it has not been 
 easy to stand against me in the war for the Bull of 
 Cuailgne." And he made this complaint : — 
 
 " O Ferdiad, you were betrayed to your death ; your 
 last end was sorrowful ; you to die, I to be living ; our 
 parting for ever is a grief for ever. 
 
 " When we were far away, with Scathach the 
 victorious, we gave our word that to the end of time 
 we would never go against one another. 
 
 " Dear to me was your beautiful ruddiness ; dear to 
 me your comely form ; dear to me your clear grey eye ; 
 dear to me your wisdom and your talk. 
 
 " There has not come to the battle, there has not been 
 made angry in the fight, there has not held up shield 
 on the field of spears, the like of you, O red son of 
 Daman. 
 
 " Findabair, the daughter of Maeve, with all her great 
 beauty, it was putting a gad on the sand, or on the sun, 
 for you to think to get her, Ferdiad." 
 
 Then Cuchulain was still looking down on Ferdiad, 
 " Well, my friend Laeg," he said, " strip Ferdiad now, 
 and take his armour and his clothes off him, until I 
 see the brooch for the sake of which he undertook the 
 
 fight." 
 
 Laeg stripped Ferdiad then, and when Cuchulain saw 
 the brooch, he began to lament and complain over him 
 again, and it is what he said : 
 
 " My grief, O gold brooch ! O Ferdiad of the poets, 
 O strong striker of many blows, it is brave your arm 
 was. 
 
 Q 
 
242 WAR FOR BULL OF CUAILGNE 
 
 " Your yellow hair, curled, well-loved ; your soft, leaf- 
 like belt about you until death. 
 
 " Dear was our fellowship, dear the brightness of 
 your eyes ; your shield with its rim of gold ; your 
 chessboard that was worth riches. 
 
 "It was not right, you to fall by my hand ; it was 
 not a friendly ending. My grief, O gold brooch, my 
 grief! 
 
 " Well, my friend Laeg," he said then, " come now and 
 take the Gae Bulg out of him, for I cannot afford to be 
 without my spear." So Laeg took the Gae Bulg out of 
 him, and when Cuchulain saw his reddened spear lying 
 beside Ferdiad, he said : " O Ferdiad, it is a sorrowful 
 story to me, that I should see you so red and so pale, I 
 with my spear reddened, and you in a bed of blood. 
 
 " When we were over in the east with Scathach, there 
 would not have been angry words between us, or destroy- 
 ing weapons. 
 
 " Scathach spoke fiery words to us, ' Go all of you to 
 the battle that will be fought by Germain the terrible.' 
 
 " I said to Ferdiad and to Lugaid, the always generous, 
 and to the son of Baetan the fair, ' Let us all go against 
 Germain.' 
 
 " We all of us came to the battle-ground on the shore 
 of the lake of Lind Formait ; we brought four hundred 
 out with us from the islands of the Athisech. 
 
 " As I and brave Ferdiad were together in the door of 
 Germain's dun, I killed Rind, the son of Niul, I killed 
 Ruad, son of Finnial. 
 
 " Ferdiad killed upon the shore Blath, son of Calba of 
 the red swords. Lugaid killed Mugarne of the Torrian 
 Sea, a surly, fierce man. 
 
 " We spoiled the dun of Germain the crafty ; we 
 brought him with us alive over the wide sea of speckled 
 waters ; we brought him to Scathach of the broad 
 shield. 
 
CUCHULAIN'S LAMENTS 243 
 
 " She, our teacher, whose name was well known, bound 
 us to friendship together, the way our anger would not 
 turn against one another among the fair tribes of 
 Elga. 
 
 " Sorrowful the morning when the strength was taken 
 from the son of Daman. My grief! I loved the friend 
 to whom I have given a drink of red blood. 
 
 " It is a sorrowful thing has happened to us the pupils 
 of Scathach — I myself red and wounded ; you yourself 
 not driving your chariot. 
 
 " It is a sorrowful thing has happened to us the pupils 
 of Scathach — I myself hard with blood ; you yourself 
 entirely dead. 
 
 " It is a sorrowful thing has happened to us the pupils 
 of Scathach — yourself to have died, myself to be alive 
 and strong ; it is angry we were in the battle." 
 
 " Good Cuchulain," said Laeg, " let us leave this ford 
 now ; it is too long we are here." " Let us leave it now 
 indeed, my friend Laeg," said Cuchulain. " But every 
 other fight I ever made was as a game and a sport 
 beside the fight with Ferdiad." And it is what he 
 said : 
 
 " Each fight was a game, each one was a sport, until 
 Ferdiad came to the ford ; we got the same teaching, we 
 got the same rewards ; our teacher was kind to us both 
 alike, setting us both above all the others. 
 
 " Each was as a game, each was as a sport, until 
 Ferdiad came to the ford ; we had the same ways, 
 we used to do the same deeds ; it was at the one 
 time Scathach gave a shield to me, and a shield to 
 Ferdiad. 
 
 " Each was a game, each was a sport, until Ferdiad 
 came to the ford ; dear to me was the pillar of gold that 
 I broke down on the ford ; he who, when he attacked 
 the tribes, was braver than any other. 
 
 " Each was a game, each was a sport, until Ferdiad 
 
244 WAR FOR BULL OF CUAILGNE 
 
 came to the ford, like a proud swelling wave, threaten- 
 ing to destroy all before him. 
 
 " Each was a game, each was a sport, until Ferdiad 
 came to the ford ; this thing will hang over me for ever. 
 Yesterday he was larger than a mountain ; to-day there 
 is nothing of him but a shadow." 
 
XII 
 
 THE AWAKENING OF ULSTER 
 
 TTHEN some of the men of Ulster came to comfort 
 Cuchulain, and among them were Senoll Uathach 
 and the two sons of Gege, Muredach and Cotreb. They 
 brought him away to the five streams of Conaille 
 Muirthemne, to wash his hurts in them. And the 
 Sidhe threw all sorts of herbs and plants into the streams 
 for his healing, so that they were all strewed over with 
 green leaves. 
 
 Then when Ailell and Maeve heard there were men 
 beginning to come from Ulster, they sent Mac Roth, the 
 herald, to watch at Slieve Fuad, and to warn them if he 
 could see any one coming. And after a while he came 
 back, and Ailell asked news of him. " I saw," he said, 
 " one chariot only, to the north of Slieve Fuad, and it 
 coming straight on, and the man that was in it naked, 
 and without armour or weapons, but only an iron spit in 
 his hand, and he goading on the horses as if he would 
 never get to the army alive." " Who do you think 
 was that man, Fergus ? " said Ailell. " I think," said 
 Fergus, " it was Cethern, son of Fintan, from the North, 
 and he will soon be upon us." With that, Cethern 
 came bursting into the camp, and he attacked every- 
 one he met with his spit, and he himself got many 
 wounds back again, so that he had to hold up the board 
 of the chariot to his body to keep his bowels from falling 
 
 245 
 
246 THE AWAKENING OF ULSTER 
 
 out ; and at last he made his escape, and came to the 
 place where Cuchulain was lying. Then Cuchulain 
 said to Laeg : " Rise up now, and go into the camp, 
 and bring some of Ailell's physicians to cure Cethern ; 
 for I give my word, if they do not come before this 
 time to-morrow, I will bring death and destruction on 
 them."' So Laeg went, and he brought back the 
 physicians with him, and it was only the dread of 
 Cuchulain that made them come. Then Cethern 
 showed the first one of them his wounds, and it is 
 what he said, that he could not be cured. Then 
 Cethern gave him a blow that sent him out of the 
 house. And the same thing happened with all the 
 rest, fifteen there were of them altogether. Then he 
 asked Cuchulain would he get him another physician, 
 for those of the men of Ireland had done him no good. 
 " Rise up, Laeg," said Cuchulain ; " go to Slieve Fuad, 
 to Fingan, the Druid physician of Conchubar, and bid 
 him to come here and to heal Cethern." Now, Fingan 
 was the greatest physician in all Ireland, and it was 
 said of him that he could tell what a person's sickness 
 was by looking at the smoke of the house he was in ; 
 and he knew by looking at a wound what sort the 
 person was that gave it Then he came, and Cethern 
 showed him his wounds. " Look at this wound for 
 me, good Fingan," he said. ".There came at me two 
 young men, with clear noble looks, with strange foreign 
 clothes on them, and each of them threw a spear into 
 me, and I threw my spear into each of them. " I 
 know those two very well," said Cuchulain; "they are 
 two choice men of Norway, and they were sent against 
 you by Ailell and ]\Iaeve." " Look at this wound for 
 me, Fingan," said Cethern. Fingan looked at it 
 " That is the work of two brothers," he said. '' That 
 is true indeed," said Cethern. " Two young men came at 
 me, and they were like one another ; but one had curling 
 
MAEVE'S APPEARANCE 247 
 
 brown hair, and the other had curHng yellow hair. 
 Two green cloaks about them, with brooches of bright 
 silver ; two soft shirts of yellow silk ; bright swords in 
 their belts they had, and shields with bright silver 
 fastenings, and spears with veins of silver on their 
 handles." " I know those two very well," said Cuchulain ; 
 " they are Maine Athremail and Maine Mathremail, two 
 sons of Ailell and Maeve." 
 
 " Look at this wound for me, good Fingan," said 
 Cethern. Fingan looked at the wound, and he said : " It 
 was a father and a son made that together." " That is 
 true," said Cethern ; " there came at me two large men 
 with flaming eyes, and they having gold bands on their 
 heads, and the dress of kings, and gold swords at their 
 sides." " I know those two very well," said Cuchulain ; 
 " it was Ailell and his son Maine Andoe that gave you 
 that wound." " Look at this wound, good Fingan," said 
 Cethern. Fingan looked at the wound. " That is the 
 work of a proud woman," he said. " That is true," said 
 Cethern ; " there came at me a beautiful, pale, long-faced 
 woman, with long, flowing yellow hair on her, a crimson 
 cloak with a brooch of gold over her breast, and a 
 straight spear shining red in her hand. It was she gave 
 me that wound, and she got a little wound from me." 
 *' I know that woman well," said Cuchulain. " She is 
 Maeve, daughter of the High King of Ireland, and Queen 
 of Connaught. She would have thought it a great 
 victory and a great triumph, you to have fallen by her 
 hand." " Good Fingan," said Cethern then, " tell me 
 now, what do you think of the way I am, and what can 
 you do for me ? " " It is what I think," said Fingan, 
 "you will hardly see the calves that are following 
 your cows at this time grow to be yearlings ; or if you 
 do itself," he said, " it will not be much use your life will 
 be to you." " That is what all the others said to me," 
 said Cethern, " and it is not much profit or credit they got 
 
248 THE AWAKENING OF ULSTER 
 
 by it, and it is not much you yourself will get " ; and 
 with that he made a kick at him, to drive him out of the 
 house. But in spite of that treatment, Fingan gave him 
 his choice of two things : the first to be a long time on 
 his bed, so that he would see the men of Ulster coming 
 in the end to avenge him ; or to be made well enough at 
 the end of three days to go out himself and spend what 
 he had of strength on his enemies. 
 
 " I will choose that," he said, " for I would not like to 
 leave my enemies after me ; and who is there better than 
 myself to get satisfaction from them ? " So then Fingan 
 bade Cuchulain to make a healing bath that would ease 
 Cethern. So Cuchulain went down to the camp, and he 
 brought away with him all that he met of the cattle of the 
 men of Ireland. Then their flesh was cut up with their 
 bones and their skins to make a Druid bath, and Cethern 
 was put in it for the length of three days and three 
 nights. And at the end of that time he rose up and 
 got into his chariot, to do vengeance on the men of 
 Ireland. And his wife londa, daughter of Eochaid, 
 came to him from the North, and brought him his sword 
 that he had forgotten in his hurry at his first setting 
 out. 
 
 But it happened that one of the physicians he had 
 driven out with a blow had fallen down outside the 
 tent, and lay there, not able to stir from that. But when 
 Cethern was making ready to set out, he rose up and 
 made his way back to the camp, and he said to the men 
 of Ireland : " Cethern is after being cured by Fingan, the 
 Druid, and he is coming at you now, and do you lay 
 some trap for him." So it is what they did : they took 
 Ailell's cloak and his shirt, and they put them about the 
 pillar-stone, at the boundary of Ross, and his crown on 
 top of it, and left them there. Cethern came rushing on 
 them, and when he saw the pillar-stone, he thought it 
 was Ailell was standing there, and he made at it, and 
 
FI ND ABA I R'S SECRET 249 
 
 gave a great blow of his sword, that it broke in pieces 
 against the stone. 
 
 Then he saw what it was, and he said : " This is some 
 trick they have played on me. And by the oath of my 
 people," he said, " I will not stop my hand from killing, 
 until such time as I have killed some man having a 
 dress like this." 
 
 When Maine Andoe heard that, he put on his father's 
 armour, and came out to meet him. And Cethern saw 
 him, and made for him, and threw his shield at him, so 
 that he was cut through and through the body by the 
 rim of the shield. 
 
 And when the men of Ireland saw that, they pressed 
 on Cethern from all sides and made an end of him. 
 And his wife londa, daughter of Eochaid, came and cried 
 over him there. 
 
 And then Fintan, Cethern's father, came with three 
 times fifty men to get satisfaction for his son, and he 
 made three attacks on the army, and killed a great 
 many of Ailell's men ; but Fintan lost a good many of 
 his own men, and his son Crimthan was made prisoner. 
 And the men of Ireland were afraid their army would 
 be too much weakened by little fights of this sort before 
 the great last battle that was foretold would come, and 
 they made an agreement with Fintan to give him back 
 his son, and to fall back themselves a day's march ; and he 
 gave his word not to vex them again until the time of the 
 last battle. And they found, where the fight had been, 
 one of Fintan's men and one of Ailell's men lying dead 
 together, and they with their teeth fixed into one another. 
 And it is from this the fight was given the name of 
 Fintan's Tooth-fight. 
 
 Then Rochad, son of Fatheman, came to help 
 Cuchulain, and three times fifty men with him. Now 
 Findabair loved him, and when she heard he was coming, 
 she told her secret, and she said to her mother : " That is 
 
250 THE AWAKENING OF ULSTER 
 
 my love and my choice out of all the men of Ireland." 
 And when Maeve heard that, sht made a plan to draw 
 him ofi^ and she said to Findabair : *^ Go now and meet 
 him secretly, and bid him to go back with his men unto 
 the day of the great battle, and I give you my leave to 
 be his wife." So Findabair went and gave him the 
 message, and g^ve herself to him, and -he went back to 
 the North- But this was heard of in the camp, and the 
 ti^elve kings of Munster that were in Maeve's army 
 began speaking with one another ; and it is what they 
 all said, that Maeve had secretly promised Findabair 
 as a ^^i{e to each one of them as a reward, if he would 
 join in the war. " And the best thing we can do now," 
 they said, "^is to go and avenge ourselves on Maeve's 
 men, and on Rochad, for the treacherj^ that was done 
 on us.*' 
 
 So they went out and made an attack on them, and 
 Ailcll and Maeve's men and Rochad made ready to 
 defend themselves ; but Fergus went out and tried to 
 make them leave off, and to make peace betw^een them, 
 and before he could do that seven hundred men had got 
 their death. 
 
 And it was told to Findabair how these seven hundred 
 men had got their death on account of her, and how 
 Maeve had promised her in marriage to every one of 
 the twelve kings of Munster. And when she heard 
 that, her heart broke wnth the shame and the pity that 
 came on her, and she fell dead there and then, and they 
 buried her. 
 
 Now at that time Iliach, son of Cas, of the race of 
 Rudraige, was living in the North with his son's son, 
 Laegaire Buadach. And it was told him how the four 
 provinces of Ireland were plimdering and destroj-ing 
 the people of Ulster since the day before Samhain, and 
 driving off their cattle and their goods, and all that they 
 had. So he consulted \i-ith his people, and it is what he 
 
ILIACH'S STONE FIGHT 251 
 
 said, that he would go out himself and make an attack 
 on the men of Ireland, and let loose his strength on 
 them, and destroy what he could of them, and do what 
 he could for Ulster. " For as to myself," he said, " if 
 I come out of it, or do not come out of it, is all one to 
 me." Then his two old spent horses, that had been let 
 loose for life, were brought from where they were on the 
 shore by the dun, and yoked to his old chariot, that had 
 neither cushions nor skins in it. And he took his rough, 
 dark, iron shield, with its hard rim of silver, over his 
 shoulder, and his rough, grey, heavy sword at his left 
 side. And he put in the chariot his two rusty, blunt 
 spears, and his people gave him a store of stones and 
 bits of rocks in a heap about him ; and that is the way he 
 went out against the army, and no armour on him at all. 
 
 When the men of Ireland saw him coming that way, 
 they began mocking and laughing at him, but it is what 
 Maeve said : " I would be glad indeed all the men of 
 Ulster to come and meet us like that." Then Doche, 
 son of Magach, chanced to meet him, and bade him 
 welcome. " Who is it bids me welcome ? " said Iliach. 
 " The comrade and friend of Laegaire Buadach," said he ; 
 " Doche, son of Magach." " I am glad of that welcome," 
 said Iliach, " and for the sake of it, let you come to me 
 when I have spent my rage on the army, and when my 
 strength is going, and when my hand is tired, and let 
 you, and no other of the men of Ireland, make an end of 
 me. And keep my sword," he said, " for your friend, 
 Laegaire Buadach." 
 
 Then he made an attack on the men of Ireland, and 
 when his spears were all broken in pieces, he began 
 hitting and throwing with the stones he had. And when 
 they were out, he attacked the men that were near him 
 with the strength of his own hands, so that he made an 
 end of some of them. And when all he could do was 
 done, he saw Doche, son of Magach, near him, and he 
 
252 THE AWAKENING OF ULSTER 
 
 said : '' Come to me now, Doche, and strike my head off, 
 and take charge of my sword for Laegaire Buadach." 
 And Doche did as he bade him, but he brought his 
 head to Ailell and to Maeve. 
 
 At this time Sualtim, son of Roig, was told that 
 Cuchulain had fought with Calatin and his sons, and 
 with Ferdiad, and of the hard fight he had made, and 
 the wounds he had got. And it is what Sualtim said : 
 " Is it the sky bursting I hear, or is it the sea going 
 backward, or the earth breaking up, or is it the groaning 
 of my son in his weakness ? " With that he set out to 
 visit him, and he found him covered with hurts and 
 wounds, and he began to cry over him. But that did 
 not please Cuchulain, and he knew Sualtim would do 
 no good by stopping there, for he was not the man to 
 avenge him, for he was no great hero ; not that he was a 
 coward, but just like any other good fighting man. And 
 Cuchulain said to him : " Well, Sualtim, stop your crying 
 over me, and rise up and go to Emain, and tell the men 
 of Ulster they must come themselves and follow on with 
 the war from this out, for I am not able to defend them 
 any more ; for after all I went through, not one of them 
 comes to help me or to comfort me. And tell them," he 
 said, " what way you found me, that I cannot bear to 
 have my clothing next my skin, but it is with crooks of 
 hazel I have to hold it off me, and it is grass that is laid 
 over my wounds ; for there is not the place of the point 
 of a needle on me from head to foot but has some hurt 
 on it, except my left hand that was holding my shield ; 
 and tell them to make no delay in coming," he said. 
 
 Then Sualtim set out on the Grey of IMacha to give 
 his message ; and when he got close to Emain he called 
 out : '' Men are being killed, women brought away, cattle 
 driven off in Ulster," but he got no word of answer. 
 Then he went up to the very wall, and he cried again : 
 " Men are being killed, women brought away, cattle 
 
SUALTIM'S MESSAGE 253 
 
 brought away in Ulster " ; but the second time he got 
 no answer. Then he went on to the Stone of the 
 Hostages at Emain, and he called out the same words 
 the third time. Then Cathbad, the Druid, asked : " Who 
 are taken, and who is it is taking them ? " " It is Ailell 
 and Maeve that are robbing you and destroying you," 
 said Sualtim ; " they are bringing away your women, 
 your little boys, your cattle and your horses, and there 
 is only Cuchulain to delay and to hinder the four great 
 provinces of Ireland in the gaps and the passes of 
 Conaille Muirthemne." But Cathbad was vexed at 
 being waked out of his sleep, and he said : " Any man 
 that comes to scold at the king this way has a right to 
 be put to death." But Conchubar, the king, said : " It is 
 true what Sualtim is saying." *' It is true indeed," said 
 all the men of Ulster. 
 
 Then anger came on Sualtim that he got no better 
 answer than that, and he turned sharply, and the Grey 
 of Macha reared up, the way the sharp edge of Sualtim's 
 shield came against his own head, and cut it clean off. 
 Then the Grey turned again to Emain, and the shield 
 dragged after him by its thongs, and Sualtim's head in 
 the hollow of it, and the head said the same words as 
 before : " Men are being killed, women brought away, 
 cattle brought away in Ulster." Then Conchubar said : 
 " The sky is over our heads, the earth is under our feet, 
 the sea is round about us ; and unless the sky with all 
 its shower of stars comes down on earth, or the earth 
 breaks open under our feet, or the blue sea goes over the 
 whole face of the world, I swear that I will bring back 
 every cow to its own shed, and every woman to her own 
 dwelling-house." 
 
 Then he called to one of his messengers, Finnched 
 son of Troiglethan, that chanced to be there, and he 
 bade him to go and to call out the men of Ulster. But 
 with the sleep that was on him still, and the weakness, 
 
254 THE AWAKENING OF ULSTER 
 
 he bade him go and call those of his people that were 
 dead, as well as those that were living. 
 
 It was easy work Finn died had to do now, for the 
 men of Ulster were rising from out of their weakness, and 
 they all made ready to come out with Conchubar, and 
 as for those that were to the south and to the west of 
 Emain, they did not wait for Conchubar at all, but set 
 out on the track of the army of Ireland. 
 
 Then Conchubar and his men set out from Emain, 
 and the first day they went as far as Irard Cuillenn, and 
 there they made a halt. " What are we stopping here 
 for ? " said Conchubar. " We are waiting for your own 
 two sons," his men said, " Fiachna and Fiacha, that are 
 gone to meet your grandson Ere, son of Fedelm, and 
 of Cairbre, king of Teamhair, to bring him with us." 
 " By my word," said Conchubar, " I will not make any 
 more delay here, for fear the men of Ireland might hear 
 I am risen from my weakness ; for they do not know it 
 up to this," he said, " or even if I am alive at all." 
 
 So he himself and Celthair, and thirty hundred fierce 
 chariot-fighters, went on, and it was not long before 
 they came on eight times twenty strong men belonging 
 to Ailell and to Maeve, and each of them bringing away 
 a woman of the women of Ulster with him. And 
 Conchubar and Celthair struck their heads off, and set 
 the women free ; and then they went back to Irard 
 Cuillenn. 
 
 Now, as to the men of Ireland, they spent that night at 
 Sleamhain of Meath. And in the night Cormac Conloin- 
 geas started up out of his sleep, and he called out that 
 there had a warning dream come to him, and that there 
 was a terrible battle before them. And after a while 
 Dubthach, the Beetle of Ulster, started up out of his sleep, 
 and called out the same thing, that there had a warning 
 dream come to him, and that it would not be long till 
 there would be a great clashing of shields. And with 
 
MARCH OF MEN OF ULSTER 255 
 
 these dreams and foretellings, great fear came on the 
 men of Ireland, and it was an uneasy night they spent 
 at Sleamhain that time. 
 
 And in the morning Ailell said : " We have been harry- 
 ing Ulster and Cuailgne this long time, and we have 
 taken the women and the cattle and the goods of the 
 men of Ulster, and we have cut down hills behind us ; 
 and now," he said, " it is time for us to turn back to 
 Magh Ai, and they can follow us and fight with us there 
 if they have a mind to. But before that," he said, " I will 
 send a messenger to look out across the great plain of 
 Meath, to see if any of them are coming against us ; and 
 if they are," he said, " I will not go from this without 
 giving battle to them, for he would not be a good king 
 that would be good at running away." 
 
 So he sent out Mac Roth, the herald. And he had not 
 long to wait before he heard a noise that was like the 
 falling of the sky, or the breaking in of the sea over the 
 land, or the falling of trees on one another in a great 
 storm. And he saw the plain covered with wild creatures 
 that had broken away out of the woods. Then he went 
 back to Ailell and to Maeve, and told them his story, and 
 they asked him what had he seen ; and he said : " I 
 thought I saw a grey mist far away across the plain, and 
 then I saw something like falling snow, and then through 
 the mist I saw something shining like sparks from a fire, 
 or like the stars on a very frosty night." " What was it 
 he saw, Fergus ? " said Ailell. And Fergus said : " The 
 mist he saw was the dust that went up from the march 
 of the men of Ulster, and the flakes of snow were the 
 foam flakes from the bits of their horses ; and what he 
 saw shining like sparks from the fire, or like stars on a 
 frosty night, was the angry light of their eyes shining 
 under their helmets." 
 
 " It is little I care for that," said Maeve ; " we have 
 good fighting men to meet them." " It is a pity for you 
 
256 THE AWAKEN I XG OF ULSTER 
 
 to think that," said Fergus ; " for there is neither in Alban 
 nor in Ireland an army that can put down the men of 
 Ulster when once their weakness is gone from them and 
 their anger is kindled." 
 
 That night the men of Ireland made their camp in 
 Clartha, and they put Mac Roth and another man to 
 keep a good watch, the way the men of Ulster would 
 not fall on them without warning. Now Conchubar and 
 Celtchair, with their thirty hundred men, had followed 
 them to Slieve Sleamhain, and when they found them 
 gone from there they followed on to Clartha, for they 
 thought to get the start of the rest of Ulster in red- 
 dening their hands upon the men of Ireland. So Mac 
 Roth was not long waiting when he saw men and horses 
 coming from the north-east, and he went back into 
 the camp. " Well, Mac Roth," said Ailell, " have }'ou seen 
 any of the men of Ulster on our track ? " "I saw men 
 and horses coming," he said. What is the number of 
 them ? " said Ailell. " Not less than thirty hundred 
 chariots." " Those are the men of Ulster coming with 
 Conchubar," said Ailell ; " and what did you mean a while 
 ago, Fergus, threatening us with the dust of a great army 
 in the plain, when a little troop like that is all that can 
 be brought against us ? " " You are too quick in 
 complaining of that," said Fergus, " and you will soon 
 know what their number is." 
 
 " Let us make some good plan now," said Maeve, " for 
 I am sure it is that hot, rude man, Conchubar, king of 
 Ulster, that is coming to attack us. Let us make a pen 
 before him," she said, " of all the army standing round 
 on three sides, and thirty hundred men ready to shut 
 the mouth of it on him when he comes in. For we must 
 take these fellows alive and not kill them, for it would 
 be unworthy of our name to do more than make 
 prisoners of them, and they so few." Now this was one 
 of the most laughable things that was said in the whole 
 
MAEVE'S PEN 257 
 
 course of the war, Conchubar and his thirty hundred of 
 the best men of Ulster to be taken ah've. And when 
 Conchubar's son, Cormac Conloingeas, heard this, there 
 was great anger on him, and it is what he thought : " If I 
 do not get satisfaction now at once from Maeve for this 
 boast of hers, 1 will never get it again." So he rose up 
 with his three thousand men to make an attack on her, 
 and on Ailell ; and they rose up as well, and their sons 
 the Maines along with them, and the sons of Magach. 
 But then the Gailiana, and the men of Munster, and of 
 Teamhair, came between them, and made peace, and 
 persuaded them to lay down their arms. But for all 
 that, Maeve did make a pen of the army of Ireland to 
 shut up Conchubar, and she had men ready to close it 
 up when once he would be in. But it is what Conchubar 
 did, he never so much as looked for an opening, but 
 when he saw the army before him, he went straight 
 through it, and he broke open a gap of two hundred on 
 the right hand, and a gap of two hundred on the left, 
 and went through them all, and cut them down in the 
 very middle, so that eight hundred men of them were 
 killed. 
 
 And then he went away from them, back to Slieve 
 Sleamhain, to join the army of Ulster. 
 
 Then the men of Ulster began to gather upon the 
 plain in their full strength, and when Ailell heard it, he 
 said : " Let some one go up and watch them coming, and 
 bring us a report of the appearance that is on them, and 
 of the chief men that are leading them." " Let Mac Roth 
 go," said Fergus. 
 
 So Mac Roth went out and took a post on the plain 
 from the early light of the morning till the fall of 
 evening, and through all that time the men of Ulster 
 were coming, so that the ground was not naked under 
 them, every division under its own chief man, and every 
 troop under its own lord, and each one of them apart 
 
 R 
 
258 THE AWAKENING OF ULSTER 
 
 from the others, and they came on till they had covered 
 the Hill of Sleamhain. 
 
 And when evening came, Mac Roth came back to 
 Ailell and to Maeve, and they questioned him and said : 
 " What sort were the men of Ulster as they came across 
 the plain ? " And Mac Roth said : " The first troop I saw 
 coming had three thousand men in it, and as soon as 
 they got to the hill, they took their armour off, and they 
 began to dig and to make a seat of sods and of earth on 
 the highest part of the hill, for their leader to sit on until 
 the rest of the army would come. 
 
 " He had the appearance of a tall, proud man, used to 
 giving orders ; and he had yellow, curling hair on him, 
 aud a yellow forked beard, and a red, pleasant face, and 
 blue eyes you would be afraid of. A five-folded crimson 
 cloak he had on him, and a gold pin over his breast, and 
 a white shirt with threads of gold woven into it next his 
 body." " Who was that man, Fergus ? " said Ailell. 
 " He was Conchubar, son of Fachtna and of Ness, High- 
 King of Ulster." " There was a man stood beside him," 
 said Mac Roth, " with scattered white hair, and a purple 
 cloak, and a shield with bosses of red brass, and a long 
 iron sword of foreign make. And he looked up to the 
 sky, and threw his hand upwards, and with that the 
 clouds seemed like as if they were rushing at one 
 another, and fire came from them towards the men of 
 Ireland." " That was Cathbad the Druid," said Fergus, 
 " and he trying by his enchantments to know how the 
 battle would go to-morrow. 
 
 " I saw another man with Conchubar," said Mac 
 Roth, " and he having a smooth, dark face, and white 
 eyes in his head ; a long bronze rod in his hand, and a 
 little bell beside him, and when he touched it with his 
 rod, all the people near him began to laugh." " Who is 
 that man ? " said Ailell. " It is easy to know that," said 
 Fergus ; " that is Rocmid, the king's fool. There was 
 
MAC ROTH'S REPORT 259 
 
 never trouble or tiredness on any man of Ulster that he 
 would not forget if he saw Rocmid." "There came 
 another troop then," said Mac Roth, "and it is what I 
 thought, that the leader they had was the handsomest 
 and the most comely of all the men of Ireland, tall and 
 well formed. Deep red-yellow hair he had, his face 
 wide at the top and narrow below; thin, red lips, and 
 grey eyes that were laughing. A red and white cloak 
 on him, that the wind stirred as he walked, a white 
 shield with gold fastenings at his shoulder, a long, dark 
 green spear in his hand." " Who was that man, Fergus ? " 
 said Ailell. " That man is himself half an army, 
 Rochad, son of Fatheman, from Rachlainn, in the 
 North," said Fergus. Now this was the same Rochad 
 that Findabair had loved. "There was another troop 
 came then," said Mac Roth, "and a quiet, grey-haired 
 man at the head of it. A dark-green, long-woolled cloak 
 he had about him, and a white shirt, and a silver belt 
 around his waist, and a bell branch at his shoulder. He 
 sat before King Conchubar when he came to the hill, 
 and his whole company sat about him. And the sound 
 of his voice when he spoke before the king, and when 
 he was advising him, was sweeter than a three-cornered 
 harp in the player's hand." "Who was that man, 
 Fergus ? " said Ailell. " That was Sencha, the orator, 
 the best-spoken of all the men of the whole world, and 
 the peace-maker of the army of Ulster," said Fergus ; 
 " and the whole of the men of the world, from the rising 
 to the setting of the sun, he would pacify with his three 
 fair words. But by my word, it is no cowardly or no 
 peaceful counsel that man will give his king to-day, but 
 counsel of courage, and of strength, and of battle." 
 
 " There came another troop," said Mac Roth, " and 
 a man at the head of them, and it would not be easy 
 to find a man with a better appearance, or with hair 
 more like gold than what he has. There was a sword 
 
26o THE AWAKENING OF ULSTER 
 
 with an ivory hilt in his hand, and he throwing it up 
 and catching it in his hand again, just when it was 
 coming on the heads of the people near him." " That 
 is Aithirne, the poet and satirist," said Fergus. " Covet- 
 ous he is, and it is said of him that he would ask the 
 one-eyed man for his one eye, and that the rivers and 
 the lakes go back before him when he makes a satire 
 on them, and rise when he praises them. And one 
 time when the men of Ulster were fighting to protect 
 him against the men of Leinster, that he had stirred up, 
 and were shut up in Beinn Etair, he had plenty of cows 
 himself in the fort, but he would not give a drop of 
 milk to man or boy, or to a wounded man itself, but 
 left them without food and without drink, unless they 
 would eat the clay or drink the salt water of the sea." 
 
 " I saw another troop coming," said Mac Roth, " wild- 
 looking, and in the middle of it a young little lad, red 
 and freckled. He had a silk shirt on him with a border of 
 red gold, and a shield faced with gold, with a golden rim, 
 and a little bright gold sword at his side." " Who is 
 that, Fergus?" said Ailell. " I do not remember leaving 
 any such boy as that when I left Ulster," said Fergus ; 
 " but it is likely it may be Ere, son of Cairbre, that has 
 come without leave of his father to help his grandfather, 
 Conchubar ; and the men of Teamhair with him. And 
 if what I think is true," he said, "you will find that 
 troop to be a drowning sea, and it is by that troop and 
 by that little boy the battle will be won against you." 
 
 Now that was the same Ere that fought afterwards 
 in the last battle against Cuchulain at Muirthemne, and 
 some said it was he that made an end of Cuchulain, but 
 others said it was only the Grey of Macha he made an 
 end of. And Conall Cearnach killed him afterwards 
 in his red vengeance ; and his sister Acaill came to 
 Teamhair where he was buried, and cried for him 
 through nine days, till her heart broke like a nut inside 
 
MAC ROTH'S REPORT 261 
 
 her, and she desired that her grave and her mound 
 should be made in a place where the grave and the 
 mound of Ere could be seen from it. And it was made 
 in the place that used to be called the place of the poet 
 Maine, but that is called now the place of Acaill. 
 
 " I saw another company," said Mac Roth, " having 
 at its head a tall, large man, with high looks, with soft 
 brown hair in thin smooth locks on his forehead ; a 
 deep grey cloak wrapped around him, having a silver 
 brooch in it ; a soft white shirt next his skin." " I 
 know that man," said Fergus ; " he is Eoghan, son of 
 Durthact, king of Fernmaige, one of the twelve chief 
 heroes of the Red Branch." 
 
 " I saw another company coming," said Mac Roth, 
 " and a great many in it ; and they red with the fire of 
 their anger, strong and eager and destroying. At their 
 head an angry man, dreadful to look at, long-nosed, 
 large-eared, with coarse grey hair ; a striped cloak on 
 him, an iron skewer in place of a brooch, a coarse 
 striped shirt next his skin, a great spear in his hand." 
 
 " I know that man," said Fergus ; " Celthair, son of 
 Uthecar ; a head of battle in Ulster. And the spear 
 in his hand is the great spear, the Luin, that was 
 brought back from the East by the three sons of 
 Tuireann." 
 
 " I saw the troop that came last," said Mac Roth, 
 "and it without a leader. There were thirty hundred in 
 it, of proud, clean, ruddy men ; long fair hair they had, 
 and shining eyes, and long shining cloaks with good 
 brooches, blue shining spears, good coverings on their 
 heads, and shirts of striped silk. But they seemed to 
 have some great trouble on them, and to be very 
 down-hearted." " What men are those, Fergus ? " said 
 Ailell. " I know them well," said Fergus. " It is well 
 for those on whose side they are, and it is a pity for 
 those they are against ; for they are able by themselves," 
 
262 THE AWAKENING OF ULSTER 
 
 he said, "to fight the whole army of Ireland ; for they 
 are Cuchulain's men from Muirthemne." 
 
 Now all this time Cuchulain was lying on his bed, 
 with the dint of his wounds. But when he knew by the 
 noise on the plain that the men of Ulster were gathering 
 for the battle, he used all his strength and tried to rise 
 up ; and he gave a great shout, that all his own troop 
 heard it, and all the whole army. But his people that 
 were about him laid him down on the bed again by 
 force, and put ropes and fastenings over him, the way 
 he could not move from it to open his wounds again. 
 And as he was lying there, two mocking women came 
 from Ailell's camp, and stood beside his bed, and let on 
 to be crying and lamenting ; and it is what they told 
 him, that the men of Ulster were beaten, and that 
 Conchubar was killed, and that Fergus was killed 
 along with him. And in the night the Morrigu came 
 like a lean, grey-haired hag, shrieking from the one 
 army to the other, hopping over the points of their 
 weapons, to stir up anger between them, and she called 
 out that ravens would be picking men's necks on the 
 morrow. And with all this outcry, Cuchulain could not 
 sleep, and when the day began to break he said to 
 Laeg : " Look out now, and bring me word of every- 
 thing that happens on this day." So Laeg looked out, 
 and he said : " I see a little herd of cattle breaking out 
 from the west of Ailell's camp, and there are lads 
 following after them and trying to bring them back ; and 
 I see more lads coming out from the army of Ulster 
 to attack them." " That little herd on the plain is the 
 beginning of a great battle," said Cuchulain, " for it is 
 the Brown Bull of Cuailgne and his heifers are in it, and 
 now the young men of the east and of the west will 
 come out against one another. And go now, Laeg," 
 he said, " for I cannot go out myself, and call to the 
 
THE GREAT BATTLE 263 
 
 men of Ulster, and stir them up to the battle." So 
 Laeg went out and called to them in Cuchulain's name 
 to get themselves ready and to come out to the 
 battle. 
 
 When the men of Ulster heard that message from 
 Cuchulain, they rose up, and rushed out without 
 stopping to put on their clothing, but only taking 
 their weapons in their hands ; and such of them as 
 had the door of their tents facing eastwards did not 
 wait to go through it, but broke out to the west. 
 
 But Conchubar was not in such haste to bring his 
 own men out, but he said to Sencha : " Keep them back 
 till the right time will have come, when the sun will 
 have lighted all the valleys and the hills." 
 
 Then Laeg went to look out again, and he saw the 
 army of Ireland coming out to meet the men of Ulster, 
 and there began a great fight between them, and it went 
 on a good while without one side getting the better of 
 the other. And when Cuchulain heard it he said : " My 
 grief! I not to be able to go among them ! " 
 
 Now as to Maeve, she was sending out her men, the 
 three Conaires from Slieve Lis, the three red Luachras, 
 the three nimble Suibhnes, the three sky-like Eochaids, 
 the three bards from Lough Riach, the three Fachtnas 
 from the woods of Navan, the three sad-faced Murroughs, 
 the three boiling Laegaires, the three dove-like Conalls, 
 the three sons of Driscoll that fought together, the three 
 Fintans from beside the sea. And some say that besides 
 these there were three young men of the Sidhe in 
 shining armour, that mixed through the army to stir up 
 courage, and that none of the men of the army could 
 see among them, Delbhaeth, son of Eithlin, and Cermat 
 Honey-mouth, and Angus Og, son of the Dagda. 
 
 But when Maeve saw the battle going on, and neither 
 side getting the victory, she called to Fergus, and she 
 said : " It is time for you, Fergus, to go out and avenge 
 
264 THE AWAKENING OF ULSTER 
 
 yourself on your enemy Conchubar ; and besides that," 
 she said, " it is right for you to go and to fight for us 
 now, after all the good treatment you got from us in 
 Connaught." " I would go out willingly," said Fergus, 
 " if I had my own sword again, the Caladcholg, the 
 sword that Leite brought from the country of the 
 Sidhe." Then Ailell said to his chariot - driver, 
 Ferloga : " Go now and bring Fergus's sword that I 
 bade you to hide away." So Ferloga brought the 
 sword, and put it in Fergus's hand, and Fergus gave it 
 a great welcome. " Come out now into the battle, 
 Fergus," said Maeve, •' and spare no one to-day, unless 
 it might be some very dear friend." 
 
 Then Fergus and Maeve and Ailell went out into the 
 battle, and three times they made the army of Ulster go 
 back before them. And when Conchubar heard his 
 people were being driven back, he called out to the 
 household of the Red Branch : " Let you hold the place I 
 am in now, till I go see who has turned back our men 
 against us three times on the north side." 
 
 And the men of the Red Branch called back to him : 
 " We will do that, and unless the sky should fall on us, 
 or the earth give way under us, we will not give up one 
 inch of ground before the men of Ireland till you come 
 to us again, or till we get our death." 
 
 Then Conchubar went to see who it v/as that was 
 driving back his army, and it was Fergus he found before 
 him ; and Fergus struck three great blows on Conchubar's 
 shield, the Ochain, so that the shield screamed out loud, 
 and all the shields of the army of Ulster screamed with 
 it, and the three great waves of Ireland answered it. 
 
 Then Fergus said : " Who is it is holding his shield 
 against me ? " And Conchubar knew then who was 
 before him, and he cried out : " It is the man, Fergus, that 
 is greater and more comely and younger and better than 
 yourself, the man whose father and mother were better 
 
FERGUS'S THREE BLOWS 265 
 
 than your own ; the man that put to death the three 
 great candles of the valour of the Gael, the three pros- 
 perous sons of Usnach, in spite of your guarantee and 
 your protection ; the man that banished you out of your 
 own country ; the man that made your house a dwelling- 
 place for deer and foxes ; the man that never left you so 
 much as the breadth of your foot of land in Ulster ; the 
 man that drove you to the entertainment of a woman ; 
 and the man that will drive you back to-day in the 
 presence of the men of Ireland, Conchubar, son of 
 Fachtna Fathach, High King of Ulster, the High King 
 of Ireland." 
 
 When Fergus heard that, he took his sword, the 
 Caladcholg, in his two hands, and he was swinging it over 
 his head, that it seemed to have the size and appearance 
 of a rainbow, and he was about to give his three great 
 strokes on the men of Ulster. 
 
 But Conchubar's son, Cormac Conloingeas, saw what he 
 was doing, and he made a rush at Fergus, and put his arms 
 about his knees, and he said : " Do not put out your great 
 strength, my master Fergus, to destroy the whole army 
 of Ulster." " Let me go," said Fergus, " for I will not 
 live through the day unless I strike my three blows on 
 the men of Ulster." But Cormac Conloingeas would not 
 leave off from asking him, and then he said : " Tell 
 Conchubar to go back to his own place in the battle, 
 and I will spare the army." So Conchubar went back, 
 and then Fergus struck his three blows on three little 
 hills that were near him, and cut their tops off, and they 
 are called "the three bare hills of Meath" to this day. 
 
 But when Cuchulain heard the scream of Conchubar's 
 shield the time Fergus struck it, he called out to Laeg : 
 "Who has dared to strike those three blows upon the 
 Ochain, and I still living?" " It is Fergus, son of Rogh, 
 struck them," said Laeg. " Where is the battle going on 
 now ? " said Cuchulain. " The armies are come as far 
 
266 THE AWAKENING OF ULSTER 
 
 as Gairech," said Laeg. " By my hand of valour," said 
 Cuchulain, "they will not have reached to Ilgairech be- 
 fore I will be with them." With that he put out all his 
 strength, and he broke the ropes that were about him, 
 and threw them off, and he scattered the grass that was 
 on his wounds into the high air. And the two mocking 
 women were there yet, and he dashed them one against 
 the other, and left them there on the ground. And he 
 looked for his arms, but he could see none of them ; but 
 only his chariot, that was broken, was lying there. And 
 he took hold of a shaft of it, and rushed, with all his 
 wounds, straight into the battle, till he found Fergus, 
 and he called to him to go back before him now, as he 
 had promised he would do. But Fergus gave him no 
 answer. Then Cuchulain said : " Go back, now, Fergus, 
 or by the oath of my people," he said, " I will grind you 
 to pieces as a mill grinds the malt." Then Fergus said : 
 " Do not be giving out threats to me, for my army is 
 well able for the army of Ulster." " You gave me your 
 promise, Fergus," said Cuchulain, " to go back before me 
 when we would meet in the great battle, and when I 
 would be covered with wounds. You bound yourself to 
 that the time I went back before you, and you without 
 your sword." 
 
 Then Fergus, when he heard that, went back three 
 steps, and then he turned, and his men with him, and 
 gave way before Cuchulain. And all the men of Ireland 
 turned when they saw that, and broke out of their ranks, 
 and ran over the hill westward, and Cuchulain and the 
 men of Ulster followed after them, making a great 
 slaughter. And Cuchulain came up with Maeve, and 
 she called out : " A gift to me, Cuchulain." " What is it 
 you are asking of me ? " he said. " Take what is left of 
 my army under your protection, and let it pass over the 
 great ford westward." So he agreed to do that, and 
 what was left of the army of Ireland went over the great 
 
THEENDOFTHEWAR 267 
 
 ford of the Sionnan at Athluain, and Maeve and Ailell 
 and Fergus, and the Maines, and the sons of Magach 
 stopped to the last, and drew their shields of protection 
 behind the men of Ireland, till they had got back to 
 Cruachan in Connaught, the place they set out from. 
 
 It was mid-day when Cuchulain came into the battle, 
 and the sun was setting when the last of them went over 
 the ford. And then Cuchulain took his sword that Laeg 
 had brought him, for he had but a few splinters left of 
 the shaft of the chariot he had used in the fight, and he 
 made three blows at three rocks, and cut the tops off 
 them, for an insult to Connaught for ever, the way if 
 any one should speak of the three bare hills of Meath, 
 the three bare rocks of Athluain would be there to give 
 the answer. 
 
 And Fergus was watching the army of Ireland going 
 back over the ford, and it is what he said : " This army is 
 swept away to-day ; it is wandering and going astray 
 like a mare among her foals that goes astray in a strange 
 place, not knowing what path to take. And it is follow- 
 ing the lead of a woman," he said, " has brought it into 
 this distress." 
 
 This then was the end of the battle of Gairech and 
 Ilgairech, and the end of the war for the Brown Bull of 
 Cuailgne. 
 
XIII 
 
 THE TWO BULLS 
 
 'T'HIS, now, is the story of the two bulls, the Brown of 
 Cuailgne, and the White-horned of Cruachan Ai, 
 and this is the way it was with them — for they were not 
 right bulls, but there was enchantment on them. In 
 the time long- ag-o Bodb was king- of the Sidhe of 
 Munster, and it is in Femen, of Slieve-na-man he was, and 
 Ochall Ochne was king of the Sidhe of Connaught, and 
 it is in Cruachan he used to be. They used at one time 
 to be fighting one against the other, but afterwards they 
 made peace, and were good friends. Now Bodb had a 
 swineherd, whose name was Friuch, and Ochall had a 
 swineherd whose name was Rucht, and they were 
 friendly with one another the same as their masters. 
 And they had the knowledge of enchantments, and could 
 turn themselves to every shape. And when there was a 
 great plenty of mast in Munster, the swineherd from 
 Connaught would bring his lean swine to the south, and 
 in the same way, when mast was plentiful in Connaught, 
 the swineherd would bring his swine northward, and 
 would bring them home again fat. 
 
 But after a while some bad feeling rose up between 
 the two, for the men of Connaught and the men of 
 Munster began to set them one against the other. So 
 one year when there was great mast in Munster, and 
 Rucht brought his herd from Connaught, so soon as his 
 comrade Friuch had bade him welcome, he said : '* The 
 
THE TWO SWINEHERDS 269 
 
 people are all saying your power is greater than mine." 
 " It is no less any way," said Ochall's herd. " We will 
 soon know that," said Friuch. " I will put an enchant- 
 ment on your swine, and even though they eat their 
 share of mast, they will not be fat, like mine will be." 
 And so it happened, he put an enchantment on the 
 Connaught swine, and when Rucht went home with 
 them they could hardly walk at all, they were so thin 
 and so weak, and all the people were laughing at the 
 state they were in. *' It was a bad day for you, you went 
 to the South," they said, " for your comrade has greater 
 power than what you have." " That is not so," said he. 
 " Wait till it is our turn to have mast, and I will play 
 the same trick on him." 
 
 So the next year he did as he had said, and the 
 Munster swine pined away, so that every one said their 
 power was the same. And when Bodb's swineherd 
 went back home to Munster with his lean swine, his 
 master put him out of the place. And Ochall put his 
 herd out of his place as well, because of the swine 
 coming back in so bad a state from Munster. 
 
 One day, two full years after that, the men of Munster 
 were gathered together near Femen, and they took 
 notice of two ravens that were making a great cawing. 
 " What a noise those birds have been making all through 
 the year ! " they said. " They never stop scolding at one 
 another." Just then Findell, Ochall's steward from 
 Cruachan, came towards them on the hill, and they bade 
 him welcome. " What a noise those birds are making ! " 
 he said ; " any one would think them to be the same 
 two birds we had in Cruachan last year." With that, 
 they saw the two ravens change into the shape of men, 
 and they knew them to be the two swineherds, and 
 they bade them welcome. " It is not right you to 
 welcome us," said Bodb's swineherd, " for there will be 
 many dead bodies of friends, and much crying on 
 
270 THETWOBULLS 
 
 account of us two." What has happened you all 
 through this time ? " they asked. " Nothing good," he said. 
 " Since we went from you we have been all the time in 
 the shape of birds, and you saw the way we were scold- 
 ing at one another all through this year. And we were 
 quarrelling in the same way the whole of last year at 
 Cruachan, and the men of the North and of the South 
 have seen what our power is. And now," he said, " we 
 will go into the shape of water beasts, and be under the 
 water for the length of two years." And with that one 
 of them went into the Sionnan, and the other into the 
 Suir, and they were seen for a year in the Suir, and for 
 a year in the Sionnan, and they devouring one another. 
 And one day the men of Connaught had a great 
 gathering at Ednecha, on the Sionnan, and they saw these 
 two beasts in the river ; each one of them looked to be 
 as big as the top of a hill, and they made such a furious 
 attack on one another that fiery swords seemed to be 
 coming from their jaws, and the people came round 
 them on every side. They came out of the Sionnan 
 then, and as soon as they touched the shore, they 
 changed again into the shape of the two swineherds. 
 Ochall bade them welcome. " Where have you been 
 wandering?" he asked them. "Indeed it is tired we 
 are with our wanderings," they said. " You saw what we 
 were doing before your eyes, and that is what we were 
 doing through these two years, under seas and waters. 
 And now we must take new shapes on us, till we try 
 one another's strength again." And with that they 
 went away. 
 
 It happened a good while after that there was a great 
 gathering of the men of Connaught at Loch Riach, for 
 Bodb was coming on a friendly visit to Ochall. And 
 Bodb brought a great troop with him, the most splendid 
 ever seen ; speckled horses they had, and green cloaks 
 with silver brooches, and shoes with clasps of red bronze. 
 
THE TWO CHAMPIONS 271 
 
 and every one of them had a collar of gold, with a stone 
 worth a newly-calved cow set in it. When Ochall saw 
 what grand clothes and horses they had, he called to his 
 people secretly, and asked could they match Bodb's 
 people in dress and in horses and arms, and they said 
 they could not. Then Ochall said : " That is a pity, and 
 our great name is lost." But just then a troop of men 
 were seen coming from the North, and black horses with 
 them, that you would think had been cast up by the sea, 
 and bridle-bits of gold in their mouths. And the men 
 had black-grey cloaks, and a gold brooch at the breast of 
 each, and a white tunic with crimson stripes, and fifty 
 coils of bright gold round every man. And every man 
 of them had black hair, as smooth as if a cow had licked 
 it. And they stopped a little way off, and then the men 
 of Connaught stood up and gave up their place to them. 
 There was a Druid from Britain there, and when he saw 
 them make way he said : " From this out, to the end of 
 life and time, the Connaught men will be under the 
 yoke, attending on hounds and on sons of kings and 
 queens for ever." 
 
 Then after they had been feasting for a while, Bodb 
 asked could any Connaught man be found that would 
 fight against his champion Rinn, that was with him, and 
 that had a great name, but no one knew where he came 
 from. And at first there could no one be found, but 
 then a strange champion came out from among the men 
 of Connaught, and he said, " I will go against him." 
 " That is no welcome news," said Rinn. Then they 
 fought against one another for three days and three 
 nights, and before the end of that time the two armies 
 began to join into the fight, and a troop came from 
 Leinster and joined with Bodb, and another troop 
 came from Meath and joined with Ochall. And four 
 kings were killed there, and Ochall among them, and 
 then Bodb went back to Slieve-na-man. But as to the 
 
272 THETWOBULLS 
 
 two champions, they were seen no more, and it was 
 known they were the two swineherds. After that they 
 were for two years with the appearance of shadows, 
 threatening one another, the way that many people died 
 of fright after seeing them. 
 
 And after that, they were in the shape of eels, and 
 one went into the river Cruind, in Cuailgne ; and after a 
 while a cow belonging to Daire, son of Fachna, drank it 
 down. And the other went into the Spring of Uaran 
 Garad, in Connaught ; and one day Maeve went out to 
 the spring, and a small bronze vessel in her hand, and 
 she dipped it in the water, and the little eel went into it, 
 and every colour was to be seen on him. And she was 
 a long time looking at him, she thought the colours 
 so beautiful. Then the water went away, and the eel 
 was alone in the vessel. " It is a pity you cannot speak 
 to me," said Maeve. " What is it you want to know ? " 
 said the eel. " I would like to know what way it is with 
 you in that shape of a beast," she said ; " and I would like 
 to know what will happen me after I get the sway 
 over Connaught." " Indeed it is a tormented beast I 
 am," he said, " and it is in many shapes I have been. 
 And as to yourself," he said, " handsome as you are, you 
 should take a good man to be with you in your sway." 
 " I have no wish," said Maeve, " to let a man of 
 Connaught get the upper hand over me," and with 
 that she went home again. 
 
 But she married Ailell after that, and as for the eel, 
 he was swallowed down by one of Maeve's cows that 
 came to drink at the spring. 
 
 And it was from that cow, and from the cow that 
 belonged to Daire, son of Fachna, the two bulls were 
 born, the White-horned and the Brown. They were the 
 finest ever seen in Ireland, and gold and silver were put 
 on their horns by the men of Ulster and Connaught. 
 In Connaught no bull dared bellow before the White- 
 
THE MEETING OF THE BULLS 273 
 
 horned, and in Ulster no bull dared bellow before the 
 Brown. 
 
 As to the Brown, he that had been Friuch, the Munster 
 swineherd, his lowing when he would be coming home 
 every evening to his yard was good music to the people 
 of the whole of Cuailgne. And wherever he was, 
 neither Bocanachs nor Bananachs nor witches of the 
 valley, could come into the one place with him. And 
 it was on account of him the great war broke out. 
 
 Now, when Maeve saw at Ilgaireth that the battle 
 was going against her, she sent eight of her own 
 messengers to bring away the Brown Bull, and his 
 heifers. " For whoever goes back or does not go back," 
 she said, " the Brown Bull must go to Cruachan." 
 
 Now when the Brown Bull came into Connaught, and 
 saw the beautiful trackless country before him, he let 
 three great loud bellowings out of him. As soon as the 
 White-horned heard that, he set out for the place those 
 bellowings came from, with his head high in the air. 
 
 Then Maeve said that the men of her army must not 
 go to their homes till they would see the fight between 
 the two bulls. 
 
 And they all said some one must be put to watch the 
 fight, and to give a fair report of it afterwards. And 
 it is what they agreed, that Bricriu should be sent to 
 watch it, because he had not taken any side in the 
 war ; for he had been through the whole length of it 
 under care of physicians at Cruachan, with the dint of 
 the wound he got the day he vexed Fergus, and that 
 Fergus drove the chess-men into his head. " I will go 
 willingly," said Bricriu. So he went out and took his 
 place in a gap, where he could have a good view of 
 the fight. 
 
 As soon as the bulls caught sight of one another 
 they pawed the earth so furiously that they sent the 
 sods flying, and their eyes were like balls of fire in 
 
 S 
 
2/4 THETWOBULLS 
 
 their heads ; they locked their horns together, and they 
 ploughed up the ground under them and trampled it, 
 and they were trying to crush and to destroy one 
 another through the whole length of the day. 
 
 And once the White-horned went back a little way 
 and made a rush at the Brown, and got his horn into 
 his side, and he gave out a great bellow, and they 
 rushed both together through the gap where Bricriu 
 was, the way he was trodden into the earth under 
 their feet. And that is how Bricriu of the bitter 
 tongue, son of Cairbre, got his death. 
 
 Then when the night was coming on, Cormac 
 Conloingeas took hold of a spear-shaft, and he laid 
 three great strokes on the Brown Bull from head to 
 tail, and he said : " This is a great treasure to be boast- 
 ing of, that cannot get the better of a calf of his own 
 age." When the Brown Bull heard that insult, great 
 fury came on him, and he turned on the White-horned 
 again. And all through the night the men of Ireland 
 were listening to the sound of their bellowing, and they 
 going here and there, all through the country. 
 
 On the morrow, they saw the Brown Bull coming 
 over Cruachan from the west, and he carrying what 
 was left of the White-horned on his horns. Then 
 Maeve's sons, the Maines, rose up to make an attack 
 on him on account of the Connaught bull he had de- 
 stroyed. " Where are those men going : " said Fergus. 
 *' They are going to kill the Brown Bull of Cuailgne." 
 " By the oath of my people," said Fergus, " if you do 
 not let the Brown Bull go back to his own country in 
 safety, all he has done to the White-horned is little to 
 what I will do now to you." 
 
 Then the Brown Bull bellowed three times, and set 
 out on his way. And when he came to the great ford 
 of the Sionnan he stopped to drink, and the two loins of 
 the White-horned fell from his horns into the water. 
 
DEATH OF THE BROWN BULL 275 
 
 And that place is called Ath-luain, the ford of the loin, 
 to this day. And its liver fell in the same way into a 
 river of Meath, and it is called Ath-Truim, the ford of 
 the liver, to this day. 
 
 Then he went on till he came to the top of Slieve 
 Breagh, and when he looked from it he saw his own 
 home, the hills of Cuailgne ; and at the sight of his 
 own country, a great spirit rose up in him, and madness 
 and fury came on him, and he rushed on, killing every- 
 one that came in his way. 
 
 And when he got to his own place, he turned his back 
 to a hill and he gave out a loud bellowing of victory. 
 And with that his heart broke in his body, and blood 
 came bursting from his mouth, and he died. 
 
XIV 
 
 THE ONLY JEALOUSY OF EMER 
 
 TT happened one time, near to the day of Samhain, 
 the men of Ulster came together for games and 
 for feasting upon the plain of Muirthemne. 
 
 And they were all of them there but Conall Cearnach 
 and Lugaid of the Red Stripes. " Let the feast be 
 begun," they said. " It shall not be begun," said 
 Cuchulain, " till Conall and Lugaid are here." 
 
 Sencha, the poet, said then : " Let us play chess while 
 we are waiting, and let poems be sung for us, and let 
 games be played." And they agreed to that. 
 
 While they were doing these things, a flock of birds 
 came down on the lake before them, and in all Ireland 
 there were not birds to be seen that were more beautiful. 
 
 A great longing came on the women that were there 
 to have the birds that were on the lake, and they began 
 to quarrel with one another as to who should have them. 
 
 King Conchubar's wife said : " I must have a bird of 
 these birds on each of my two shoulders." " We must 
 all have the same," said the other women. "If any one 
 is to get them, it is I that must first get them," said 
 Eithne Inguba, who loved Cuchulain. " What shall we 
 do ? " said the women. " It is I will tell you that," said 
 Levarcham, " for I will go to Cuchulain from you to ask 
 him to get them." 
 
 So she went to Cuchulain and said : " The women of 
 
 276 
 
THETWOBIRDS 277 
 
 Ulster desire that you will get these birds for them." 
 Cuchulain put his hand upon his sword as if to strike 
 her, and he said : " Have the idle women of Ulster 
 nothing better to do than to send me catching birds to- 
 day ? " " It is not for you," said Levarcham, " to be 
 angry with the women of Ulster ; for there are many 
 of them are half blind to-day with looking at you, from 
 the greatness of their love for you." 
 
 Then Cuchulain told Laeg to yoke his chariot for him, 
 and he went in it to the lake, and he gave the birds a 
 side stroke of his sword, so that their feet and their 
 wings could not rise from the water. 
 
 They caught them all then, and divided them among 
 the women, so that there was not a woman among them 
 who did not get two birds, but Eithne Inguba only. 
 Cuchulain came last to her. " It is vexed you seem to 
 be," he said. " Is it because I have given the birds to 
 the other women ? " " You have good reason for that," 
 she said, " for there is not a woman of them but would 
 share her love and her friendship with you ; while, as to 
 me, no person shares my love but you alone." 
 
 " Do not be vexed then," said Cuchulain ; " for what- 
 ever birds may come to the plain of Muirthemne, or to 
 the Boinne, from this out, you shall have the two most 
 beautiful among them." 
 
 It was not long after that, two other birds came on 
 the lake, and they linked together with a chain of red 
 gold, and they were singing soft music that went near 
 to put sleep on the whole gathering. 
 
 Cuchulain went over towards the birds, but Laeg said 
 to him not to go, and Eithne said : " If you would take 
 our advice, you would not go near them, for there is 
 enchantment behind these birds ; let some other birds be 
 got for me besides these." 
 
 " Do you think you can put me from what I have a 
 mind to do ? " said Cuchulain. And he said to Laeg : 
 
278 ONLY JEALOUSY OF EMER 
 
 '' Put a stone into that sling." Laeg took a stone and 
 put it in a sling, and Cuchulain made a cast, but it 
 missed. " My grief ! " he said. Then he took another 
 stone, and made another cast, and it passed by them. 
 " I am good for nothing," he said, " for since I first took 
 arms I never made a bad cast till this day." Then he 
 threw his heavy spear, and it went through the flying 
 wing of one of the birds, and the two of them dived 
 down under the water. 
 
 Cuchulain went away then with vexation on him, and 
 he lay down with his head against a rock, and sleep 
 came on him. And he saw two women coming towards 
 him, one of them having a green cloak about her, and 
 the other a five-folded crimson cloak. 
 
 The woman with the green cloak went up to him, and 
 smiled at him, and she gave him a stroke of a rod. The 
 other went up to him then, and smiled at him, and gave 
 him a stroke in the same way ; and they went on doing 
 this for a long time, each of them striking him in turn, 
 till he was more dead than alive. And then they went 
 away and left him there. 
 
 All the men of Ulster saw that something had 
 happened, and they asked if they would awaken him. 
 " Do not," said Conall ; " do not move him before night." 
 
 After that Cuchulain stood up in his sleep, and the 
 men of Ulster asked him who was it had used him like 
 that, but he could not speak with them. But after a 
 while he said : " Bring me and lay me on my bed, not to 
 Dundealgan, but to the Speckled House at Emain." 
 " Let him be brought to Dundealgan, where Emer his 
 wife is," said Laeg. " Not so," said Cuchulain, "■ but 
 bring me to the Speckled House." So he was brought 
 there, and he stopped to the end of a year in that place 
 without speaking to any person. 
 
 One day before the next feast of Samhain, at the end 
 of the year, Conchubar and the men of Ulster were 
 
ANGUS 279 
 
 around him in the house ; that is, Laegaire between him 
 and the wall, and Conall Cearnach between him and the 
 door, Lugaid of the Red Stripes beside his pillow, and 
 Eithne Inguba at his feet. 
 
 As they were sitting like this, one who had the 
 appearance of a man came into the house to them, and 
 sat down on the side of the bed where Cuchulain was 
 lying. 
 
 " What has brought you here ? " said Conall. " I will 
 tell you that," said he. " It is to speak with the man 
 lying here on the bed I am come. And if the man 
 lying here were in his health, he would be a protection 
 to all the men of Ulster ; but as he is, under great sick- 
 ness and weakness, he is a better protection to them." 
 And he stood up then, and it is what he said : 
 
 " If Cuchulain, son of Sualtim, would take my friend- 
 ship to-day, all he has seen in his sleep would be hiS) 
 with no help from his army. 
 
 " Liban, she who sits at the right hand of Labraid of 
 the quick sword, has said that the coming of Cuchu- 
 lain would bring great joy to the heart of Fand her 
 sister. 
 
 " O Cuchulain, it is not long your sickness would be 
 on you if they would come, the two daughters of Aedh 
 Abrat. Here to the south, to the plain of Muirthemne, 
 I will send Liban to cure your sickness, Cuchulain." 
 
 "Who are you yourself?" they said to him then. 
 
 " I am Angus," he said, and with that he went out ; 
 and they did not know where he came from, or where he 
 went. And then Cuchulain sat up and spoke to them. 
 " It is time indeed," said the men of Ulster, " for you to 
 tell us all that has happened you." " I saw," he said, " a 
 vision about this time last year " : and then he told them 
 all he had seen, and of the women that had come and 
 had struck him with their rods. " And what is to be 
 done now, my master, Conchubar?" he said. "This 
 
28o ONLY JEALOUSY OF E M E R 
 
 must be done," said Conchubar : " you must go back 
 till you come to the same rock." 
 
 So then Cuchulain set out, and came to the same 
 rock, and there he saw the same woman with the green 
 cloak coming towards him. " That is well, Cuchulain," 
 said she. " It is not well indeed ; and tell me what did 
 you want with me when you came last year?" said 
 Cuchulain. 
 
 "It was not to harm you, indeed, we came," said the 
 woman, " but to ask your love ; and I am come now to 
 speak to you," she said, " from Fand, daughter of Aedh 
 Abrat ; for Manannan, Son of the Sea, has left her, and 
 her love has fallen on you ; and my own name is Liban, 
 wife of Labraid of the quick sword. And I have a 
 message for you from him," she said, ''that he will give 
 all you can wish for, if you will give him one day's help 
 against Senach of the crooked body, and against 
 Eochaid Juil, and against Eoghan of Inver, that is 
 Eoghan of the River's Mouth." 
 
 " My weakness is on me yet," said Cuchulain, " and I 
 could not go out fighting against men to-day." "You 
 will not be long so," said Liban ; " you will be healed, 
 and what is lost of your strength will be given back to 
 you again ; and you ought to do this much for Labraid," 
 she said, "because he is the best of the heroes of the 
 world." 
 
 "In what place is he?" said Cuchulain. "He is in 
 Magh Mell, the Happy Plain," she said. " I will not go," 
 said Cuchulain, " until I see Emer, my wife. And you 
 are to go for me, Laeg," he said, " to where she is, and 
 tell her it was the women of the Sidhe came to me from 
 the hills and struck me ; and tell her I am getting better 
 now, and bid her come and visit me." 
 
 So Laeg went to Emer, and he told her what way 
 Cuchulain was. And Emer said : " It is a bad servant 
 you are, Laeg, you that are coming and going by the 
 
EMER'S REPROACHES 281 
 
 hills, and that cannot find a cure for your master ; and 
 it is a pity for the men of Ulster," she said, " that they 
 do not find a certain cure for him. If it had been 
 Conchubar that was in bonds, or Fergus that could not 
 sleep, or Conall Cearnach that had wounds on him, it is 
 Cuchulain that would give them relief." And it is what 
 she said : 
 
 "My grief! son of Riangabra, you who go early and 
 late among the hills, you are not early but late in 
 bringing a cure for the beautiful son of Dechtire. 
 
 " It is a pity for the brave men of Ulster, with all the 
 knowledgeable men and the learners among them, that 
 they have not searched the whole face of the world for 
 a cure for their friend Cuchulain. 
 
 "If it was Fergus had lost his sleep, and that any 
 enchantment could cure him, it is the son of Dechtire 
 would not sleep at home till he had found a Druid 
 to do it. 
 
 " If it were Conall in the same way was suffering 
 from wounds and from sores, it is the Hound would 
 search the wide world till he would find one that would 
 cure him. 
 
 "If it was Laegaire of many gifts was wounded in 
 battle, Cuchulain would have searched through all 
 Ireland to cure the grandson of Iliach. 
 
 " If it were on Celthair the revengeful sleep had 
 fallen and long sickness, night and day would see the 
 journeys of Setanta am.ong the hills. 
 
 " If it had been Furbaigh, chief of fighters, that lay 
 wasting in his bed, he would have searched the ridge 
 of the world until he had found what would save him. 
 
 " The host of the hill of Truin has killed him ; they 
 have taken from him his great courage ; the Hound of 
 Muirthemne is no better than any other hound since 
 the sleep of the hill of Bruagh came on him. 
 
 " My grief! sickness has laid hold of me for the Hound 
 
282 ONLY JEALOUSY OF EMER 
 
 of the smith of Conchubar ; it will be sickness to my 
 heart and my body, I to fail in bringing him a cure. 
 
 "My grief! It hurts my heart, sickness to be on 
 the rider of the plain, so that he could not come here, 
 to the gathering at the plain of Muirthemne. 
 
 " It is why he does not come from Emain, the 
 appearance he had is gone from him ; my voice is weak 
 and dead because of the way he is. A month and a 
 quarter and a year without sleep, that is the way I 
 am, and without hearing any one speak pleasant words, 
 son of Riangabra, O son of Riangabra." 
 
 After she had made this complaint, Emer went 
 forward to Emain Macha to attend on Cuchulain, and 
 she sat on the side of the bed where he was, and it is 
 what she was saying : 
 
 " Rise up, champion of Ulster, awake from your 
 sleep, in health and happiness. Look at the well- 
 shaped king of Macha ; he will not allow your long 
 sleep. Look at his shoulder, smooth like crystal ; 
 look at his drinking-horns and battle spoils ; look at 
 his chariots that sweep the valleys ; look at the 
 movements of his chess-men. 
 
 " Think on his heroes in their strength ; think on his 
 high, fine women ; think on his kings of brave doings ; 
 think on their high noble queens. 
 
 " Think on the beginning of clear winter ; think on 
 its wonders in their turn ; think in yourself of what it 
 brings forth — its cold, its length, its want of beauty. 
 This stupor, it is not good wholesome sleep ; it is 
 idleness and the fear of battle ; long sleep is the same 
 as drunkenness ; weakness is only second to death. 
 
 " Awake from the sleep of the Sidhe you have drunk ; 
 cast it off with all your great strength. You have had your 
 fill of sweet flowery words ; rise up, O hero of Ulster." 
 
 Cuchulain rose up then, and he drew his hand across 
 his face, and he put his stupor and his heaviness off 
 
LABRAID'S COUNTRY 283 
 
 him. Then Laeg said : " It is great idleness for a hero 
 to give in to the sleep of a sick-bed because women 
 from Magh Mell have appeared to you, who overcame 
 you, who bound you, who put you within the power 
 of idle women. Rise up out of death, you who are 
 wounded by women of the Sidhe, for your strength 
 has come, the strength of a hero among heroes ; rise 
 up till you go to the place of fighting men, till you do 
 great deeds, where Labraid of the quick hand leads 
 his men. Rise up that you may be great, and leave 
 this idleness." 
 
 Then Cuchulain went again to the rock, and he saw 
 Liban coming towards him, and she asked him again 
 to go with her to her country. " What place is Labraid 
 in at this time ? " said Cuchulain. " I will tell you that," 
 said Liban, and it is what she said : 
 
 " Labraid is at this time upon a clear lake, where 
 companies of women come to. It is not tired you 
 would be coming to his country, if you would but visit 
 Labraid of the quick sword. 
 
 " A happy house ordered by a kind woman ; a 
 hundred men in it that are masters of learning; the 
 beauty of redness is on the cheek of Labraid. 
 
 " He shakes a wolfs head before his thin red sword ; 
 he bruises the armour of rushing hosts ; he breaks the 
 shields of heroes. 
 
 " His appearance in the fight is the delight of the 
 eye ; he does his brave deeds at all points ; it is he is 
 worth more than any other man. 
 
 " The greatest of fighters, the one told of in stories, 
 has reached the country of Eochaid Juil ; his hair is 
 like rings of gold upon him ; his coming is like the 
 smell of wine. 
 
 " A man of many strange deeds, Labraid of the quick 
 hand at sword ; he does not strike till he is forced ; he 
 keeps his people in quietness. 
 
284 ONLY JEALOUSY OF EMER 
 
 "There are bridles and collars of red gold on his 
 horses, and this is not all his riches ; the house he lives 
 in is supported by pillars of silver and of crystal." 
 
 " I will not go on a woman's asking," said Cuchulain. 
 " Let Laeg come with me then," said Liban, " to see 
 and to know everything." '' Let him go then," said 
 Cuchulain. 
 
 Then Laeg went along with the women, and they 
 went past Magh Luada, the Racing Plain, and past the 
 Bile Buada, the Tree of Victory, and past Oenach 
 Emna, the gathering-place of Emain, and to Oenach 
 Fidhga, the gathering-place of the woods ; and it was 
 there Aedh Abrat used to be with his daughters. And 
 Liban caught Laeg by the shoulder : " You will not 
 escape to-day, Laeg," she said, " unless you are 
 protected by a woman." " That is not what we were 
 much used to up to this," said Laeg, "to be under 
 women protection." " My grief for ever, Cuchulain not 
 to be in your place now ! " said Liban. " I would be glad 
 indeed he to be here," said Laeg. 
 
 They went away then towards the Island of Labraid, 
 and when they came to the lake they saw a little 
 copper ship upon the water before them. Then they 
 went into the ship, and they came to the island, and 
 there they went to the door of a house. And they saw 
 a man coming towards them, and Liban said to 
 him : " Where is Labraid of the quick sword ? " And 
 the man said : " Labraid is putting courage into the 
 people, and he is gathering them for battle. There 
 will be great slaughter made there, that will fill the 
 plain of Fidgha," 
 
 Then they went up to the house, and Laeg thought 
 he had seen it before, and yet it was strange. And in it 
 were beds, crimson, green, white and gold ; and the great 
 candle there was a bright precious stone. And at the 
 western door, where the sun goes down, there was a 
 
FAND 285 
 
 stud of horses with grey speckled manes, and others of 
 red-brown. And at the eastern door were three tall 
 trees of pure crimson, with lasting flowers, and birds 
 singing from them for the young men of the king's 
 rath. And there was a tree at the door of the court 
 that there was not the like of for beauty, a silver tree, 
 and when the sun was shining on it, it was like gold. 
 And there were three times twenty other trees there, 
 and the top of every one meeting the other, and three 
 hundred could be fed from every tree with fruit that is 
 different, that is always ripe. And there was a fountain 
 in the great court, and three times fifty striped cloaks, 
 and a shining gold pin in the ear of every cloak. And 
 there was a vat of merry mead for dividing among the 
 household ; it is a lasting custom that it is always full, 
 ever and always. And in the house were three times 
 fifty women, and they all bade welcome to Laeg, and 
 it is what they all said to him : " There is a welcome 
 before you, Laeg, for the sake of the woman with whom 
 you come, and for the sake of him from whom you 
 come, and for your own sake." 
 
 " What will you do now, Laeg ? " said Liban. " Will 
 you go first and speak with Fand ? " "I will, if I know 
 the place she is in," said Laeg. " I will tell you that, 
 for she is apart in a room by herself," said Liban. So 
 they went to speak with her, and she bade Laeg 
 welcome in the same way as the others. And the 
 meaning of the name Fand is a tear that passes over 
 the fire of the eye. It was for her purity she was 
 called that, and for her beauty ; for there was nothing 
 in life with which she could be compared besides it. 
 
 And when she had bade Laeg welcome, she said : 
 " For what reason did Cuchulain not come ? " " He 
 had no mind to come on a woman's asking," said 
 Laeg. " And besides that," he said, " he did not know 
 if it was from yourself the message came." " It was 
 
286 ONLY JEALOUSY OF EMER 
 
 from myself indeed," she said, " and let him not be long in 
 coming, for it is on this day the battle is to be fought." 
 
 While they were there together, they heard the sound 
 of Labraid's chariot coming to the island. " It is 
 troubled Labraid's mind is to-day," said Liban. " Let 
 us go out before him." So they went out, and Liban 
 bade him welcome, and it is what she said : 
 
 " Welcome, Labraid of the quick hand at sword, 
 yourself an army, a destroyer of heroes ; welcome, 
 welcome, Labraid." 
 
 Labraid made no answer, and Liban spoke again : 
 
 " Welcome, Labraid of the quick hand at sword ; his 
 hand is open to all ; his word is faithful ; his justice is 
 right ; kind his sway ; strong his right arm ; gentle to 
 his horses ; welcome, welcome, Labraid ! " 
 
 Still Labraid did not answer, and she spoke again, 
 and it is what she said : 
 
 " Welcome, Labraid of the quick sword ; lifter up of 
 the weak ; subduer of the strong ; welcome, Labraid ; 
 welcome, Labraid ! " 
 
 Then Labraid said : " Leave your praises, woman, for 
 it is not pride or happiness or high thoughts of myself I 
 have in my mind to-day. A battle is near, and the 
 striking of swords in right and left hands ; the one 
 heart of Eochaid Juil is equal to many. It is not 
 a time for pride." 
 
 " There is good news before you," said Liban then. 
 " Laeg, the chariot-driver of Cuchulain, is here, and he 
 has brought a message from him that he will go into 
 the battle with you." Then Labraid bade him welcome 
 as the women had done, and he said : " Go back home 
 now, and tell Cuchulain to make no delay in coming, 
 for it is to-day the battle is to be fought." 
 
 So Laeg went away then to Emain Macha, and 
 told his story to Cuchulain, and to all the rest, and it is 
 what he said : 
 
FAND WELCOMES CUCHULAIN 287 
 
 " Labraid is a king of great armies. I saw his 
 country, bright, free, where no lies are spoken, and no 
 bad thing. I saw the masters of music within, giving 
 deh'ght to the daughters of Aedh. If I had not 
 come away quickly, they would have taken my 
 strength from me. 
 
 " I saw all this at the hill of the Sidhe. The women 
 there are beautiful, their gifts are beyond counting; as 
 to Fand, the daughter of Aedh Abrat, no one could 
 reach her beauty but the queens of the kings. 
 
 " Eithne Inguba is a beautiful woman, but the 
 woman I am speaking of now takes away the wits 
 from whole armies. 
 
 " It is a pity, Cuchulain, you did not go a while ago, 
 and every one asking you to do it, that you might see 
 the way it is in the great house I have seen. 
 
 " If all Ireland were mine, and I king over the happy 
 hills, I would give it, and that would be no small thing, 
 to live for ever in the place I have been in." 
 
 " That is good," said Cuchulain. " It is good," said 
 Laeg, " and it is right to go to reach it, and everything 
 in that country is good." 
 
 Then Cuchulain rose up, and he passed his hand over 
 his face, and he spoke pleasantly with Laeg, and he felt 
 that the things the young man was telling him were a 
 strengthening to his mind. And Laeg said : " It is time 
 to come, for the battle is being fought to-day." 
 
 Cuchulain went along with him then to that country, 
 and took his chariot with him till they reached the 
 island. Labraid bade them welcome, and all the women ; 
 and Fand bade Cuchulain her own welcome. 
 
 "What is to be done here now?" said Cuchulain. 
 
 " This is what we have to do," said Labraid ; " to go 
 and take a turn round the army that is against us." 
 
 They went forward then till they reached the gather- 
 ing-place of the armies, and till they cast an eye over 
 
288 ONLY JEALOUSY OF EMER 
 
 them, and it seemed as if there was no end to them. 
 " Go you away for a while," said Cuchulain to Labraid. 
 So Labraid went away then, and Cuchulain stayed before 
 the armies. Then two black ravens croaked, and all the 
 armies laughed. ''It is likely," they said, " the rav'ens 
 are telling of the coming of the angry man from 
 IMuirthemne." And they hunted them away. 
 
 After that Eochaid Juil went to wash his hands at 
 the spring, and Cuchulain saw his bare shoulder through 
 the shirt, and he threw a spear at him, and it passed 
 through him ; and then he attacked the army alone, and 
 killed a great many. Then he was attacked by Senach 
 Siabartha the Unearthly, and they fought very hard, 
 and Cuchulain overcame him in the end. And Labraid 
 came then, and broke the armies before him. and he 
 called to Cuchulain to leave off from killing. But Laeg 
 said : " I am in dread he will spend his rage on us, since 
 he has not had enough of fighting. And let your people 
 go," he said, " and let them make ready three vats of 
 water to put out his heat. The first vat he will go into 
 will boil over ; the second vat, no person could bear its 
 heat ; but the heat of the third vat will be fit to bear." 
 
 When the women saw Cuchulain coming back, it was 
 then Fand sang before him : " Stately is the man that 
 comes in his chariot ; young he is, and without a beard ; 
 his course is splendid across the plain at evening, at 
 Senach Fidhga, the gathering-place of the woods. 
 
 " It is not the music of the Sidhe would keep him in 
 a bed ; it is the red colour of blood that is upon him ; I 
 stand looking at the horses of his chariot ; their like is 
 not known, they are as fast as the winds of spring. 
 
 " It is Cuchulain that is coming, the young hero from 
 Muirthemne ; it is a pity for the man against whom he 
 is angered." 
 
 Then Liban asked him what he had done in the fight 
 And Cuchulain said : " Fair, ruddy-faced men attacked 
 
EMER'S ANGER 289 
 
 me on every side from the back of horses, the people of 
 Manannan, Son of the Sea, called there by Eochaid of 
 Inver ; I gave them wound for wound. I threw my spear 
 at Eochaid Juil ; it was not with the uncertain cast 
 of a man among mists I threw it. I heard his groan, and 
 its sound was friendly to me ; if those who have spoken 
 have told the truth, it was that throw won the battle." 
 
 It was to the son, now, of this Eochaid Juil of the 
 Land of Promise, that Aebgreine, the daughter of 
 Naoise and Deirdre was given afterwards in marriage 
 by Manannan. 
 
 After that, Cuchulain stopped a month in that country 
 with Fand, and at the end of the month he bade her 
 farewell, and she said to him : " In whatever place you 
 tell me to go and meet you, I will go there." And the 
 place they settled to meet at was at Ibar Cinn Tracta, 
 the yew at the head of Baile's strand. 
 
 But when all this was told to Emer, there was great 
 anger on her, and she had knives made ready to kill the 
 woman with ; and she came, and fifty young girls with 
 her, to the place where they had settled to meet. 
 
 Cuchulain and Laeg were playing chess there, and they 
 did not see the women coming. It was Fand saw them 
 first, and she said to Laeg : " Look, Laeg, at what I see." 
 " What is that ? " said Laeg. Then he looked, and it is 
 what Fand said : " Look behind you, Laeg ; there are 
 women listening to you, wise, with sharp, green knives in 
 their right hands, with gold at their well-shaped breasts ; 
 they move as brave men do, going through a battle of 
 chariots. Well does Emer, daughter of Forgall, change 
 colour in her anger." 
 
 " No harm shall be done to you by her," said Cuchulain ; 
 " and she shall not reach to you at all. Come into the 
 sunny seat of the chariot, opposite myself, for I will 
 defend you against all the many women of the four 
 points of Ulster ; for though Forgall's daughter may 
 
 T 
 
290 ONLY JEALOUSY OF EMER 
 
 threaten," he said, " on the strength of her companions, 
 to do some daring thing, it is surely not against me she 
 will dare it." 
 
 Then Cuchulain said to Emer : " It is little I mind you, 
 woman, in spite of my affection for you, more than any 
 other man minds a woman. The spear in your shaking 
 hand does not wound me, nor your weak, thin knife, 
 nor your vain, gathered anger ; for it would be a pity 
 my strength to be put down by a woman's strength." 
 
 " I ask then," said Emer, " what was it led you, 
 Cuchulain, to dishonour me before all the women of 
 the province, and before all the women of Ireland, and 
 before all honourable people in the same way? For 
 it was under your shelter I came, and on the strength 
 of your faithfulness ; for although you threaten a great 
 quarrel in your pride, it is certain, Cuchulain, you cannot 
 put me away, even if you would try to do it." 
 
 " I ask you, Emer," said Cuchulain, " why I may not 
 have my turn in the company of this woman ; for in the 
 first place she is well-behaved, comely, well-mannered, 
 worthy of a king, this woman from beyond the waves of 
 the great sea ; with form and countenance and high 
 descent ; with embroidery and handiness, with sense and 
 quickness ; for there is not anything under the skies her 
 husband could ask, but she would do it, even if she had 
 not given her promise. And O Emer," he said, "you 
 will never find any brave, comely man so good as 
 myself" 
 
 " It is certain," said Emer, " that I will not refuse this 
 woman if you follow her. But all the same, everything 
 red is beautiful, everything new is fair, everything high 
 is lovely, everything common is bitter, everything we 
 are without is thought much of; everything we know 
 is thought little of, till all knowledge is known. And 
 O Cuchulain," she said, " I was at one time in esteem with 
 you and I would be so again, if it were pleasing to you," 
 
FAND'S COMPLAINT 291 
 
 And grief came upon her, and overcame her. " By 
 my word, now," said Cuchulain, " you are pleasing to me, 
 and will be pleasing as long as I live." 
 
 " Let me be given up," said Fand. " It is better for 
 me to be given up," said Emer. " Not so," said Fand, 
 " it is I that will be given up in the end, and it is I that 
 have been in danger of it all this time." 
 
 And great grief and trouble of mind came on 
 Fand, because she was ashamed to be given up, 
 and to have to go back to her home there and then ; 
 and the great love she had given Cuchulain troubled 
 her ; and so she was lamenting, and she made this com- 
 plaint : 
 
 " It is I will go on the journey ; I agree to it with great 
 sorrow ; though my father has so great a name, I would 
 sooner stay with Cuchulain. It would be better for 
 me to be here, to be under your rule without grief, than 
 to go, though you may wonder at it, to the sunny house 
 of Aedh Abrat. 
 
 " O Emer, the man is yours, and well may you wear 
 him, for you are worthy ; what my arm cannot reach, 
 that at least I may wish well to. 
 
 " Many were the men asking for me, in the court and 
 in country places; I never went to meet one of them, for 
 it is myself was of right behaviour. 
 
 " A pity it is to give love to a man, and he to take no 
 heed to it. It is better to be turned away, if you are 
 not loved as you love. 
 
 " It was not right of you, Emer of the yellow hair, to 
 take hold of Fand, to kill her in her misery." 
 
 Now all this was told to Manannan, that Fand, 
 daughter of Aedh Abrat was fighting alone against the 
 women of Ulster, and that Cuchulain was putting her 
 away. Manannan came then from the east in search of 
 her, and he was near them, and no one of them saw 
 him but only Fand, And then great fear and trouble of 
 
292 ONLY JEALOUSY OF EMER 
 
 mind came on her at seeing Manannan, and it is what 
 she said : 
 
 " Look on the great son of the sea, from the plains 
 of Eoghan of Inver ; Manannan, lord of the fair hills of 
 the world ; there was a time when he was dear to me. 
 
 " He may even to-day be constant ; my mind is no 
 friend to jealousy. There is a road love leads us in. 
 
 " The time I and the friend of Lugh were in the sunny 
 palace of Dun Inver, we thought, without a doubt, that 
 we should never be parted from one another. 
 
 " When Manannan the great married me, I was a wife 
 worthy of him ; he gave me a bracelet of heavy gold, as 
 the price of my beauty. 
 
 " I see, coming over the sea, no earthly person sees 
 him, the crested horseman of the high-maned waves ; he 
 has no need of long ships. 
 
 " As for me myself, because there is foolishness in the 
 minds of women, the man I loved exceedingly has left 
 me here astray. 
 
 " Farewell to you, beautiful Cuchulain ; I go away 
 from you with a kind heart. Though I do not come back 
 again, let me have your good will ; all things are good in 
 comparison with a parting. 
 
 " It is time for me to go away ; there is one to whom 
 it is not grief, but for all that, it is a great disgrace to 
 me, O Laeg, son of Riangabra. 
 
 " It is with my own husband I will go, because he will 
 do as I desire. Look now at my going, that it may not 
 be said I went away secretly." 
 
 Then Fand went over to Manannan, and Manannan 
 bade her welcome, and he said : " Well, woman, is it after 
 Cuchulain you will be going from this time, or is it with 
 me you will go ? " " By my word now," said she, " there 
 is one of you I would sooner follow than the other ; but 
 it is along with you I will go and I will not wait on 
 Cuchulain, because he has left me. And another thing," 
 
MANANNAN'S CLOAK 293 
 
 she said, " you have not a queen that is fitting for you, 
 and that is what Cuchulain has." 
 
 But when Cuchulain saw the woman going away from 
 him with Manannan, he said to Laeg : " What is that ? " 
 " It is Fand," said Laeg, " that is going to Manannan, 
 Son of the Sea, because she was not pleasing to you." 
 
 It is then there was great anger on Cuchulain, and he 
 went with great leaps southward to Luachair, the place 
 of rushes ; and he stopped for a long while without 
 drink, without food, among the mountains, and where he 
 slept every night, was on the road of Midluachan. 
 
 And when Emer heard that, she went to visit 
 Conchubar in Emain Macha, and she told him the way 
 Cuchulain was. 
 
 Then Conchubar sent the poets and the skilled men 
 and the Druids of Ulster to visit him, that they might 
 lay hold of him, and bring him to Emain Macha along 
 with them. But when they came to him, he would have 
 killed them, but the Druids did enchantment on him, 
 until they had laid hold of him, and until his wits began 
 to come back to him. Then he asked them for a drink, 
 and the Druids gave him a drink of forgetfulness. From 
 the moment he drank that drink, he did not remember 
 Fand, and all the things he had done. And they gave 
 a drink of forgetfulness to Emer as well, that she might 
 forget her jealousy, for the state she was in was no better 
 than his own. 
 
 And after that, Manannan shook his cloak between 
 Cuchulain and Fand, the way they should never meet 
 one another again. 
 
XV 
 
 ADVICE TO A PRINCE 
 
 'T^HERE was a meeting of the three provinces of 
 Ireland held about this time in Teamhair, to try 
 could they find some person to give the High Kingship of 
 Ireland to ; for they thought it a pity the Hill of the 
 Lordship of Ireland, that is Teamhair, to be without the 
 rule of a king on it, and the tribes to be without a 
 king's government to judge their houses. For the men 
 of Ireland had been without the government of a High 
 King over them since the death of Conaire at Da 
 Derga's Inn. 
 
 And the kings that met now at the court of Cairbre 
 Niafer were Ailell and Maeve of Connaught, and Curoi, 
 and Tigernach, son of Luchta, king of Tuathmumain, 
 and Finn, son of Ross, king of Leinster. But they 
 would not ask the men of Ulster to help them in 
 choosing a king, for they were all of them against the 
 men of Ulster. 
 
 There was a bull-feast made ready then, the same 
 way as the time Conaire was chosen, to find out who was 
 the best man to get the kingship. 
 
 After a while the dreamer screamed out in his sleep, 
 and told what he saw to the kings. And what he saw 
 this time, was a young strong man, with high looks, and 
 with two red stripes on his body, and he sitting over the 
 pillow of a man that was wasting away in Emain 
 Macha. 
 
 291 
 
CUCHULAIN'S ADVICE 295 
 
 A message was sent then with this account to Emain 
 Macha. The men of Ulster were gathered at that time 
 about Cuchulain, that was on his sick-bed. The 
 messenger told his story to Conchubar and to the chief 
 men of Ulster. 
 
 " There is a young man of good race and good birth 
 with us now that answers to that account," said 
 Conchubar ; " that is Lugaid of the Red Stripes, son 
 of Clothru, daughter of Eochaid Feidlech, the pupil 
 of Cuchulain ; and he is sitting by his pillow within, 
 caring him, for he is on his sick-bed." 
 
 And when it was told Cuchulain that messengers 
 were come for Lugaid, to make him King in Teamhair, 
 he rose up and began to advise him, and it is what 
 he said : 
 
 " Do not be a frightened man in a battle ; do not be 
 light-minded, hard to reach, or proud. Do not be 
 ungentle, or hasty, or passionate ; do not be overcome 
 with the drunkenness of great riches, like a flea that is 
 drowned in the ale of a king's house. Do not scatter 
 many feasts to strangers ; do not visit mean people that 
 cannot receive you as a king. Do not let wrongful 
 possession stand because it has lasted long ; but let 
 witnesses be searched to know who is the right owner 
 of land. Let the tellers of history tell truth before you ; 
 let the lands of brothers and their increase be set down 
 in their lifetime ; if a family has increased in its branches, 
 is it not from the one stem they are come ? Let them 
 be called up, let the old claims be established by oaths ; 
 let the heir be left in lawful possession of the place his 
 fathers lived in ; let strangers be driven off it by force. 
 
 " Do not use too many words. Do not speak noisily ; 
 do not mock, do not give insults, do not make little of 
 old people. Do not think ill of any one ; do not ask 
 what is hard to give. Let you have a law of lending, a 
 law of oppression, a law of pledging. Be obedient to 
 
296 ADVICE TO A PRINCE 
 
 the advice of the wise ; keep in mind the advice of the 
 old. Be a follower of the rules of your fathers. Do not 
 be cold-hearted to friends ; be strong towards your 
 enemies ; do not give evil for evil in your battles. Do 
 not be given to too much talking. Do not speak any 
 harm of others. Do not waste, do not scatter, do not 
 do away with what is your own. When you do wrong, 
 take the blame of it ; do not give up the truth for any 
 man. Do not be trying to be first, the way you will not 
 be jealous ; do not be an idler, that you may not be weak ; 
 do not ask too much, that you may not be thought little 
 of. Are you willing to follow this advice, my son ? " 
 
 Then Lugaid answered Cuchulain, and it is what he 
 said : " As long as all goes well, I will keep to your words, 
 and every one will know that there is nothing wanting 
 in me ; all will be done that can be done." 
 
 Then Lugaid went away with the messengers to 
 Teamhair, and he was made king, and he slept in 
 Teamhair that night. And after that all the people 
 that had gathered there went to their own homes. 
 
XVI 
 
 THE SONS OF DOEL DERMAIT 
 
 /^NE time Cuchulain was gone west to Carraige, in 
 ^""^ the province of Connaught, and Lugaid of the Red 
 Stripes with him, and Laeg. And one day they saw a 
 young girl standing on the burial-hill of Tetach. " What 
 is it you are wanting ? " said Lugaid. " I want Cuchulain, 
 son of Sualtim," she said, " for I have set my love on him 
 on account of his great deeds that I have heard of." 
 "There he is, beyond," said Lugaid. Then she went 
 over to him, and put her arms about his neck, and kissed 
 him ; and she told him she was Finnchoem, daughter of 
 Eocho Rond, king of Hy Maine. 
 
 Then Cuchulain took her into his keeping, and they 
 travelled northward through the night, towards Emain. 
 And one time in the darkness of the night, towards Fid 
 Manach, they saw three fires in a wood before them, and 
 nine men at every fire ; outlaws they were, that were 
 robbing the country. And Cuchulain killed three of 
 them at every fire. 
 
 And in the morning they saw a troop of men coming 
 towards them on the plain, and Finnchoem's father, 
 the king of Hy Maine, leading them, and he having on 
 him a four-folded crimson cloak, with four borders of 
 gold, and a shield with eight borders of white bronze, 
 and a gold-hilted sword at his side. And he had light 
 yellow hair falling down on each side to the flanks of his 
 grey-black horse ; and there was a gold chain of the 
 
 2»7 
 
298 THE SONS OF DOEL DERMAIT . 
 
 weight of seven ounces hanging from his hair, and it was 
 from that he took his name, Eocho Rond, that is, 
 Eocho of the gold chain. And as soon as he saw 
 Cuchulain, he threw his spear at him. But Cuchulain 
 caught the spear and threw it back again, and it struck 
 the horse in the neck, so that he reared up and threw his 
 master. And Cuchulain lifted Eocho in his arms, and 
 carried him as far as Cruachan, that they were near at 
 the time, to leave him with Ailell and with Maeve. 
 And there was great shame on the king of Hy Maine at 
 what had happened. 
 
 And when Cuchulain was leaving him he said : " May 
 you never have rest in sitting, or in lying down, until 
 you find out what it was brought away the three sons of 
 Doel Dermait, the Beetle of Forgetfulness, out of their 
 own country." 
 
 And Cuchulain went on to Emain. But when he sat 
 down in his place, it seemed to him the walls of the house 
 and the ground under him to be on fire. Then he said 
 to his people : " I think what Eocho Rond threatened me 
 with is coming on me, and I will get my death if I do 
 not do as he bade me." 
 
 Then he went back to his own place, Dundealgan, and 
 out westward to Baile's strand. And there he saw a boat 
 coming, and the king of Alban's son in it, and his people, 
 and they bringing presents for king Conchubar, of purple, 
 and of golden drinking-cups. And when they saw the 
 three men on the strand, Cuchulain and Lugaid and 
 Laeg, they said to them : " It is likely if the king knew 
 we were here, he would send us food and drink by 
 you." "Is it a steward you would make of me?" said 
 Cuchulain, and anger came on him, and he took the 
 sword in his hand to strike them. " Give us our life, 
 Cuchulain, for we did not know you," said the king's son. 
 
 " Do you know what was it drove the three sons of 
 Doel Dermait from their own country ? " said Cuchulain. 
 
THE SILVER-WALLED ISLAND 299 
 
 " I do not know that," said the king's son. " But I have 
 a sea charm, and I will set it for you, and I will give it to 
 you, and you will find the knowledge you are looking for." 
 Then Cuchulain gave him his little spear, and scratched 
 an Ogham on it, and said to him : " Set out now, and go 
 and take my seat at Emain Macha." 
 
 Then they took the things out of the boat, and 
 Cuchulain got in, and Lugaid of the Red Stripes, and 
 Laeg ; and they put up the sail, and went on for a day 
 and a night until they came to an island. It was a fine, 
 large, beautiful island, having a silver wall about it, and 
 a paling of bronze. 
 
 Then Cuchulain landed, and he saw a house with 
 pillars of white bronze, and three times fifty beds in the 
 house, and a chessboard, and a draughtboard, and a harp 
 hanging over every bed. And he saw a grey king and 
 queen in the house, with purple cloaks on them, 
 worked with dark-coloured gold, and three young girls 
 of the one age, having a dress worked with gold thread 
 on each of them. 
 
 And the king gave them a friendly welcome, and he 
 said : " Cuchulain is welcome to us for Lugaid's sake, 
 and Laeg is welcome for his father and his mother's 
 sake." 
 
 Then Cuchulain asked him did he know what was it 
 drove the three sons of Doel Dermait out of their own 
 country. " You will soon know that," he said, " for their 
 sister and their sister's husband are in that island there 
 to the south." 
 
 Then three pieces of iron were put in the fire, and 
 when they were red-hot, the three young girls took them 
 out, and put them in three vats, and Cuchulain and 
 Lugaid and Laeg bathed in the vats. And they were 
 brought cups of mead. And then they heard a noise of 
 arms and of trumpets, and they saw fifty armed men 
 coming to the house, and every two of them bringing a 
 
300 THESONSOFDOELDERMAIT 
 
 pig and an ox, and every one a cup of mead of hazel 
 nuts. And then every man of them came again, and a 
 load of firing on his back ; and then the oxen and the 
 pigs were cooked, and a feast for hundreds was given to 
 Cuchulain and his comrades. 
 
 And the next day they went on to the island where 
 the daughter of Doel Dermait was, and the boat went 
 on, steering itself, to the island. And Condla, son-in-law 
 of Doel Dermait, was lying on the strand, and his head 
 against a pillar at the east of the island, and his feet at 
 the west of the island, and every time he breathed, he 
 made a wave in the sea that turned the boat back. But 
 then he called out to Cuchulain : '' Come to land, for 
 there is no fear of you on us ; for however great your 
 anger may be, it is not in the prophecy that it is by you 
 this island will be destroyed." Then Cuchulain came to 
 land, and Condla and his wife bade him welcome. And 
 Cuchulain asked if they knew what it was had driven 
 the three sons of Doel Dermait from their own country. 
 " I know it," said the woman, " and I will show you 
 where they are, for it is foretold that their healing is to 
 come by you ; and it is glad my true, warm heart would 
 be, they to be healed." And then she said : " Go to 
 where that wall is, and you will find Cairpre Cundail, 
 and he will bring you to the valley where they are kept 
 by Eocho Glas, the strong man." 
 
 So they went on to the wall, and they saw two 
 women that were cutting rushes, and Cuchulain said 
 to one of them : " What is the name of this country 
 I have come to ? " And the woman rose up, and it 
 is what she said : " There are seven princes in this 
 country, and every one of them has had seven victories ; 
 and there are seven women in this country, every one of 
 them having a king under her feet. And every one of 
 them has seven armies ; and when a thief comes to this 
 place, he does not go back again to tell the story of it." 
 
THE PRISONERS HEALED 301 
 
 Then Cuchulain struck her down with his hand, and 
 the other woman went away to tell Cairpre Cundail 
 what had happened. 
 
 Cairpre Cundail came out then, and he and Cuchulain 
 fought through the day, and neither got the better of 
 the other. But at night Cairpre said : " That is enough, 
 Cuchulain." And they left off for the night. And next 
 morning Cairpre brought Cuchulain to the valley where 
 Eocho Glas was, that he himself was always at war 
 with. And Eocho Glas called out : " Is any one there of 
 your miserable fighters ? " " There is some one here," 
 said Cuchulain. At that Eocho said : " That is not a 
 voice that pleases me, for it is the voice of the angry 
 man from Muirthemne." 
 
 Then he came out, and they fought together in the 
 valley, and then they fought beside the sea. And in 
 the end Cuchulain took the Gae Bulg and put it 
 through him, and he fell, and Cuchulain struck his 
 head off. 
 
 Then the prisoners of Eocho Glas came running from 
 the hills on every side, east and west, and bathed them- 
 selves in his blood, for he had been doing them every 
 sort of hurt and harm, and they all got healing. 
 
 And the three sons of Doel Dermait came with them, 
 and were healed along with them, and they told their 
 whole story to Cuchulain. And then they set out for 
 their own country. 
 
 And Cuchulain went back the same way as he came ; 
 and he brought wonderful presents with him from 
 Cairpre Cundail. 
 
 And when he got back to Ulster, he went on to 
 Emain Macha, and his share of food and drink were 
 waiting there for him yet. And he told his whole story 
 to Conchubar and to the heroes of the Red Branch, and 
 to Eocho Rond, king of Hy Maine ; and that is the way 
 he made his peace with him, 
 
XVII 
 
 BATTLE OF ROSNAREE 
 
 npHERE was a time, now, after the war for the Bull 
 '*' of Cuailgne, when King Conchubar got someway 
 down-hearted, and there was a heaviness on his mind. 
 
 And the men of Ulster thought it might be lonesome 
 he was, and fretting after Deirdre yet, and they searched 
 about through the whole province for a wife for him. 
 
 And at last they found a beautiful young girl of good 
 race, whose name was Luain, and they brought her to 
 Emain Macha, and a great wedding was made, and great 
 feasting ; and the king grew to be quiet and happy in his 
 mind. But among the men that came to the wedding 
 were the two sons of the poet Aithirne, that had such 
 a bad name for covetousness and for cruelty. 
 
 The two sons were poets as well, Cuingedach and 
 Abhartach, and when they saw Luain, Conchubar's 
 queen, and she so beautiful, the two of them fell in 
 love with her there and then. And they stopped at 
 Emain, and after a while each of them tried to gain her 
 secret love. But there was great anger and displeasure 
 on Luain at that, and she drove them from her. 
 
 They went home then to their father, Aithirne, and the 
 three of them, to avenge themselves on Luain, made 
 satires on her, that brought blotches out on her face. 
 And when her face that was so beautiful was spoiled 
 like that, she went back and hid herself in her father's 
 
 302 
 
CONCHUBAR'S SICKNESS 303 
 
 house, and with the shame and the sorrow that were on 
 her, she died there. 
 
 Then great anger and rage came on Conchubar, and 
 he sent the men of Ulster to Aithirne's house, and they 
 killed himself and his two sons, and they pulled his house 
 down to the ground. 
 
 But the rest of the poets of Ulster were not well 
 pleased that Conchubar should put such disrespect on 
 one of themselves and do such a great vengeance on him, 
 and they gathered together and gave Aithirne a great 
 burial and keened him, and it was Amergin that made a 
 lament over his grave. 
 
 And then Conchubar stopped in Emain Macha, and 
 the cloud of trouble came on him again, and he used to 
 be thinking of the war for the Bull of Cuailgne, and of 
 all that Maeve's army did when he was in his weakness ; 
 and he did not sleep in the night, and there was no food 
 that pleased him. 
 
 And then the men of Ulster bid Cathbad, the Druid, go 
 to Conchubar, and rouse him out of his sickness. 
 
 So Cathbad went to him, and he cried tears down when 
 he saw him, and he said : " Tell me, Conchubar, what 
 wound it is or what sickness has weakened you and 
 has made your face so pale ? " " It is no wonder sick- 
 ness to be on me," said Conchubar, "when I think of 
 the way the four provinces of Ireland came and destroyed 
 my forts and my duns and my walled towns and the 
 houses of my people, and when I think how Maeve 
 brought away cattle and gold and silver, and how she 
 came as far as Dun Sescind and Dun Sobairce, and 
 brought away Daire's bull out of my own province. 
 And it is what vexes me, Maeve herself to have got away 
 safe from the battle ; and it is time for me to go and 
 avenge that time on the men of Ireland," he said. 
 " That is no right thing you are saying," said Cathbad, 
 "for the men of Ulster did a good vengeance on the 
 
304 BATTLE OF ROSNAREE 
 
 men of Ireland the time they gained the battle of 
 Ilgaireth." " I do not count any battle to be a battle," 
 said Conchubar, " unless a king or a queen has fallen in 
 it ; and I swear by the oath of my people, Cathbad," he 
 said, " that kings and great men will be brought to their 
 death by me, or else I myself will go to my death." 
 
 " This is my advice to you," said Cathbad, " not to set 
 out till the winter is gone by ; for at this time the winds 
 are rough, and the roads are heavy, and the rivers are full 
 and flooded, and every windy gap is cold. It is best to 
 wait for the summer," he said, " till the fords are shallow 
 and the roads are smooth, till the thick leaves on the 
 bushes will be shelters, till every sod of grass will be a 
 pillow, till our colts will be strong, till the nights will be 
 short for keeping watch against an enemy. It is best to 
 wait," he said, " till you can gather together the men of 
 Ulster, and till you can send messengers to your friends 
 among the Gall." " I am willing to do that," said 
 Conchubar, " but I give my word," he said, " let them 
 come, or let them not come, I will go myself to Teamhair 
 to get satisfaction from Cairbre Niafer, my own son-in- 
 law, that did not come to help me at the gathering at 
 Ilgaireth, and to Lugaid, son of Curoi, and to Eocha, son 
 of Luchta, and to Maeve, and to Ailell, till I throw 
 down the stones over the graves of their chief men, till I 
 destroy and lay waste their country, the same way as 
 the men of Ireland destroyed my province." 
 
 So then Conchubar sent out messengers to Conall 
 Cearnach, that was raising his tribute in the islands of 
 Leodus, and of Cadd, and of Ore, and to the countries 
 of the Gall, to Olaib, grandson of the king of Norway, 
 and to Baire of the Scigger islands, and to Siugraid Soga, 
 king of Sudiam ; to the seven sons of Romra, and to the 
 son of the king of Alban, and to the king of the island of 
 Ore. 
 
 And the first to answer the messengers, and to set out 
 
BAILEANDAILLINN 305 
 
 for Ulster was Conall Cearnach, for there was great 
 anger on him when he heard of all that had happened in 
 Ulster in the war for the Bull of Cuailgne, and he not in 
 it. " And if I had been in it," he said, " the men of 
 Connaught would not have taken spoil from Ulster, 
 without an equal vengeance being measured to them 
 again." And Olaib, grandson of the king of Norway, 
 came with him, and Baire, of the Scigger islands, and their 
 men with them in their ships ; and they came through 
 the green waves, and the seals and the sword-fishes rising 
 about them, towards Dundealgan, and the place where 
 they landed was at the Strand of Baile, son of Buan. 
 
 This, now, is the story of Baile that was buried at that 
 strand. 
 
 He was of the race of Rudraige, and although he had 
 but little land belonging to him, he was the heir of 
 Ulster, and every one that saw him loved him, both man 
 and woman, because he was so sweet-spoken ; and they 
 called him Baile of the Honey-Mouth. And the one 
 that loved him best was Aillinn, daughter of Lugaidh, 
 the King of Leinster's son. And one time she herself 
 and Baile settled to meet one another near Dundealgan, 
 beside the sea. Baile was the first to set out, and he 
 came from Emain Macha, over Slieve Fuad, over Muir- 
 themne, to the strand where they were to meet ; and he 
 stopped there, and his chariots were unyoked, and his 
 horses were let out to graze. And while he and his people 
 were waiting there they saw a strange, wild-looking 
 man, coming towards them from the South, as fast as 
 a hawk that darts from a cliff or as the wind that blows 
 from off the green sea. " Go and meet him," said Baile 
 to his people, " and ask him news of where he is going 
 and where he comes from, and what is the reason of his 
 haste." So they asked news of him, and he said : " I am 
 going back now to Tuagh Inbhir, from Slieve Suidhe 
 Laighen, and this is all the news I have, that Aillinn 
 
 U 
 
3o6 BATTLE OF ROSN A REE 
 
 daughter of Lugaidh, was on her way to meet Baile, son 
 of Buan, that she loved. And the young men of 
 Leinster overtook her, and kept her back from going to 
 him, and she died of the heartbreak there and then. 
 For it was foretold by Druids that were friendly to them 
 that they would not come together in their lifetime, but 
 that after their death they would meet, and be happy 
 for ever after." And with that he left them, and was 
 gone again like a blast of wind, and they were not able 
 to hinder him. 
 
 And when Baile heard that news, his life went out 
 from him, and he fell dead there on the strand. 
 
 And at that time the young girl Aillinn was in her 
 sunny parlour to the south, for she had not set out yet. 
 And the same strange man came in to her, and she 
 asked him where he came from. " I come from the 
 North," he said, " from Tuagh Inver, and I am going 
 past this place to Slieve Suidhe Laighen. And all the 
 news I have," he said, " is that I saw the men of Ulster 
 gathered together on the strand near Dundealgan, and 
 they raising a stone, and writing on it the name of Baile, 
 son of Buan, that died there when he was on his way 
 to meet the woman he had given his love to ; for it was 
 not meant for them ever to reach one another alive, or 
 that one of them should see the other alive." And when 
 he had said that he vanished away, and as to Aillinn, 
 her life went from her, and she died the same way that 
 Baile had died. 
 
 And an apple-tree grew out of her grave, and a yew- 
 tree out of Baile's grave. And it was near that yew-tree 
 Conall Cearnach landed, and Baire, and the grandson 
 of the king of Norway. And Cuchulain had made 
 ready a great feast for them, and for Conchubar that 
 had come to meet them, at bright-faced Dundealgan. 
 
 And the Hound bade them a kind, loving welcome, 
 and he said : " Welcome to those I know, and those I do 
 
THE OLD FIGHTING MEN 307 
 
 not know, to the good and the bad, the young and the 
 old among you." And they stopped there a week, and 
 Conchubar was well pleased to see the whole strand 
 full of his friends that were come in their ships. And 
 then he bade farewell to Emer, daughter of Forgall, and 
 he said to Cuchulain : " Go now to the three fifties of old 
 fighting men, that are resting in their age, under 
 Irgalach, son of Macclach, and say to them to come 
 with me to this gathering and to this war, the way I will 
 have their help and their advice." " Let them go to it if 
 they have a mind," said Cuchulain ; " but it is not I 
 that will go and ask it of them." 
 
 So then Conchubar himself went to the great house, 
 where the old fighting men used to be living that had 
 laid by their arms. And when he came in, they raised 
 their heads from their places to look at the great king. 
 And then they leaped up, and they said : " What has 
 brought you to us to day, our chief and our lord ? " 
 " Did you get no word," he said, " of the way the four 
 provinces of Ireland came against us, and how they 
 burned down our forts and our houses, and how they 
 brought their makers of poems and of stories along with 
 them, that their deeds might be told, and our disgrace 
 might be the greater. And I am going out against 
 them now," he said, " to get satisfaction from them ; and 
 let you come with me, and I will have your advice." 
 Then the hearts of the old men rose in them, and they 
 caught their old horses and yoked their old chariots. 
 And they went on with the king to the mouth of the 
 Water of Luachann that night. 
 
 And the next day Conchubar set out with his own 
 men and his friends from beyond the sea, to Slieve 
 Breagh, that is near Rosnaree on the Boinne. And they 
 made their camp at Cuanglas, the green harbour, and 
 lighted their fires, and music and merry songs were 
 made for them. But Cuchulain stopped behind in 
 
308 BATTLE OF ROSNAREE 
 
 Dundealgan to gather his own people, and to make 
 provision for them on the march. 
 
 Now news had been brought to Cairbre Niafer at 
 Teamhair, that Conchubar was gathering his men to get 
 satisfaction for all that had been done to Ulster in the 
 war for the Bull of Cuailgne, and that it was likely he 
 himself would be the first he would come against. 
 
 For there was some bad feeling between Cairbre and 
 the men of Ulster, since the time he drove the sons of 
 Umor into Connaught, with the heavy rent he put on 
 them, and that after Conall Cearnach and Cuchulain 
 giving their own security for their good behaviour. 
 They turned on their securities after that, and fought 
 with them, and Conall Cool, the son of their chief, fell ; 
 and Cuchulain, and his father, and his friends, raised the 
 heap of stones over him that is called Carn Chonaill, in 
 the province of Connaught. 
 
 And Cairbre sent a message to Cruachan, to say to 
 Ailell and to Maeve : " If it is towards us Conchubar 
 and the men of Ulster are coming, let you come to 
 our help ; but if it is past us they go, into the fair- 
 headed province of Connaught, we will go to your 
 help." So when Conchubar came to Cuanglas, at 
 Rosnaree, there was a good army gathered there to 
 make a stand against him ; the three troops of the 
 children of Deagha, and a great troop of the Collam- 
 nachs, and of the men of Bregia, and of the Gailiana. 
 And he rose up early in the morning, and he could see 
 the moving of men and the shining of spears, and he 
 heard the noise of a great army, and he said : " We will 
 send some one of our men to bring us word about them." 
 
 And he sent out Feic, son of Follaman. And Feic 
 went up to a hill beside the Boinne, and he began to look 
 at the army and to count it, and it vexed him to see 
 how many were in it. " If I go back now and tell this," 
 he said, " the men of Ulster will come and will begin the 
 
DAIREOFCUAILGNE 309 
 
 battle, and there will be no better chance for me to get 
 a great name and do great deeds than for any other 
 man. And why would I not go and begin a fight now 
 by myself?" And with that he crossed the river. 
 
 But the men that were in front caught sight of him, 
 and the whole army began shouting around him, and he 
 had not courage to go against them, but he turned to 
 cross the river again. But he gave a false leap, just 
 where the water was deepest, and a wave laughed over 
 him, and he died. 
 
 It seemed a long time to Conchubar that he was 
 away, and he said to the men of Ulster : " What is 
 your advice to us about this battle ? " " It is what we 
 advise," they said, " to wait till our strong fighters and 
 our chief men are come. And they had not long to 
 wait before they saw troops coming, Cathbad with 
 twelve hundred men, and Am.ergin with twelve hundred 
 men, and Eoghan, king of Fernmaighe, and Laegaire 
 Buadach, and the three sons of Conall Buide. 
 
 And then they saw another troop coming, and in the 
 front of it a fierce, brown man. Rough, dark hair he 
 had, and a big nose and hollow cheeks, and his talk 
 was quick and hurried. A blue cloak about him, and 
 a brooch of silver as white as a bird, a heavy sword, 
 and a shield with iron rims. And this is who he was, 
 Daire of Cuailgne, that was come to get satisfaction for 
 his bull and for his herds on the men of Ireland. 
 " What is delaying you here," he said to Conchubar. 
 " I have good reason for delaying," said Conchubar, 
 " for there is a great army under Cairbre Niafer before 
 us at Rosnaree, and there are not enough of us to go 
 against them. And it is not refusing a battle we are, 
 but waiting till we get our full number." " By my 
 word," said Daire, " if you do not go out against them, 
 it is I will go against them by myself" 
 
 Then Conchubar put on his armour, and took his 
 
310 BATTLE OF ROSNAREE 
 
 many-coloured shield, and his sword, the Ochain. And 
 all the men of Ulster gathered around him, and they 
 raised their spears and their shields, and it was like a 
 great river breaking from the side of a mountain, and 
 breaking what it meets of stones and trees before it, that 
 they went to meet the men of Leinster at Rosnaree on 
 the Boinne. 
 
 And when Cairbre Niafer and his friends and his 
 men saw them coming, they made ready for them, and 
 came towards the river. 
 
 And the men of Ulster crossed the river, and the two 
 armies met, and each of them took to hacking and 
 destroying the other. And the Gailiana pressed heavily 
 on the men of Ulster, and came in to the middle of 
 them, and cut them down like trees are cut in a wood. 
 And as for Conchubar he did not give back, where he 
 was, and Celthair on his right hand, and Amergin the 
 poet on his right hand again, and Eoghan, king of 
 Fernmaighe, on his left, and Daire of Cuailgne near him. 
 These few stood against the Gailiana, and fought 
 against them, stout and proud. But as to the young 
 men and those that were never in a fight before, they 
 turned round and burst through the battle northwards. 
 
 It was just then Conall Cearnach was coming in 
 his chariot, and when the young men of Ulster saw 
 the face of Conall, they came to a stop, and Conall 
 saw that they were beaten and running from the battle, 
 and he called out sharp words to them, for there was 
 anger on him, they to have left the fight, and with no 
 sign of blood or of wounds upon them. 
 
 But they were ashamed then, and content to go back 
 to the battle, when they had Conall's hand to help them ; 
 and each one of them tore a green branch off the oak 
 trees that were near them, and held it up, and they went 
 with him ; for they knew there would be no running 
 away in any place where Conall's face would be seen. 
 
CONALL'S SWORD 311 
 
 And it happened just at that time Conchubar, the High 
 King, was taking three backward steps out of the battle 
 northward, but when he saw the face of Conall coming 
 towards him, he called to him to stop the army from fall- 
 ing back. " I give my word," said Conall, " I think it easier 
 to fight the battle by myself than to stop the rout now." 
 And just then the three royal poets of the king of 
 Teamhair came to give him their help, Eochaid the 
 Learned, and Diarment of the Songs, and Forgel the 
 Just, and they went into the fight against Conall. And 
 Conall looked at them and he said : " I give my true 
 word," he said, " if you were not poets and men of learn- 
 ing, you would have got your death by me before this ; 
 and now that you are come fighting with your master," he 
 said, " where is there any reason for sparing you ? " And 
 with that he made a blow at them with a heavy stick 
 that was in his hand, that struck the three heads off them. 
 Then Conall drew his sword out of its sheath, and he 
 played the music of his sword on the armies of Leinster, 
 and the sound of it was heard on every side ; and when 
 the men near him heard it their faces whitened, and each 
 one of them went back to his place in the battle. And 
 at that time Cuchulain came into the battle, and the men 
 of the Gailiana gave wild shouts at him, and anger came 
 on him and he scattered them. 
 
 And strength came again into the hearts of the men of 
 Ulster, and their anger rose, and the earth shook under 
 their feet, and there was clashing of swords on both sides, 
 and the shouting of young men, and the screams of old 
 men, and the groaning of chariot-fighters, and the crying 
 of ravens. And there were many lying in cold pools, the 
 white soles of their feet close together, and the red lips turn- 
 ing grey, and the bright faces very pale, and darkness com- 
 ing on their grey eyes, and confusion on their clear wits. 
 It is then Cuchulain met with Cairbre Niafer, and he 
 went against him, and put his shield against his shield 
 
312 BATTLE OF ROSNAREE 
 
 and there they were face to face. And Cairbre said words 
 of insult to Cuchulain, and Cuchulain answered him back 
 and said : " It is all I ask of you, to fight with me now 
 alone." " I will do that," said Cairbre Niafer, " for I am 
 a king in my way of living, and a champion in battles." 
 Then each attacked the other, and it was hard for them 
 to hold their feet firm, or to strike with their hands, in 
 the closeness of the fight. And Cairbre broke all his 
 weapons, but nine of his men came and kept up the fight 
 against Cuchulain till more weapons could be brought to 
 him. And then Cuchulain's weapons were broken, and 
 Cairbre and nine of his men came and held up their 
 shields before him till Laeg could bring him his own right 
 weapons, the Dubach, the grim one, his spear, and the 
 Cruaidin, his sword. And then they took to hitting at 
 one another again, and at last Cuchulain took his spear 
 into his left hand, and struck at Cairbre with it, and he 
 lowered his shield to protect his body. And then Cuchu- 
 lain changed it to his right hand, and struck at him over 
 the rim of his shield, and it went through his heart ; and 
 before his body could reach the ground, Cuchulain made 
 a spring and struck his head off. And then he held up 
 the head, and shook it before the two armies. 
 
 Then Sencha, son of Ailell, rose up and shook the 
 branch of peace, and the men of Ulster stood still. As to 
 the men of Leinster, when they saw their king was 
 killed, they fell back ; but Iriel of the Great Knees, the 
 son of Conall Cearnach, followed after them, and did a 
 great slaughter on the Gailiana and on the rest of the 
 army till they reached to the Rye of Leinster. 
 
 And then the men of Ulster went back to their homes. 
 And as to Conchubar, he went back to Emain, and it was 
 not till a good while after that he got the wound in his 
 head that Fintan sewed up with gold thread, to match 
 the colour of his hair, and that brought him to his death 
 in the end. 
 
XVIII 
 
 THE ONLY SON OF AOIFE 
 
 'T^HE time Cuchulain came back from Alban, after he 
 had learned the use of arms under Scathach, 
 he left Aoife, the queen he had overcome in battle, with 
 child. 
 
 And when he was leaving her, he told her what name 
 to give the child, and he gave her a gold ring, and bade 
 her keep it safe till the child grew to be a lad, and till his 
 thumb would fill it ; and he bade her to give it to him 
 then, and to send him to Ireland, and he would know he 
 was his son by that token. She promised to do so, and 
 with that Cuchulain went back to Ireland. 
 
 It was not long after the child was born, word came 
 to Aoife that Cuchulain had taken Emer to be his wife 
 in Ireland. When she heard that, great jealousy came 
 on her, and great anger, and her love for Cuchulain was 
 turned to hatred ; and she remembered her three cham- 
 pions that he had killed, and how he had overcome 
 herself, and she determined in her mind that when her 
 son would come to have the strength of a man, she 
 would get her revenge through him. She told Conlaoch 
 her son nothing of this, but brought him up like any 
 king's son ; and when he was come to sensible years, she 
 put him under the teaching of Scathach, to be taught 
 the use of arms and the art of war. He turned out as 
 apt a scholar as his father, and it was not long before he 
 had learnt all Scathach had to teach. 
 
 313 
 
314 THE ONLY SON OF AOIFE 
 
 Then Aoife gave him the arms of a champion, and 
 bade him go to Ireland, but first she laid three 
 commands on him : the first never to give way to any- 
 living person, but to die sooner than be made turn back ; 
 the second, not to refuse a challenge from the greatest 
 champion alive, but to fight him at all risks, even if he 
 was sure to lose his life ; the third, not to tell his name 
 on any account, though he might be threatened with 
 death for hiding it. She put him under geasa, that is, 
 under bonds, not to do these things. 
 
 Then the young man, Conlaoch, set out, and it was 
 not long before his ship brought him to Ireland, and 
 the place he landed at was Baile's Strand, near 
 Dundealgan. 
 
 It chanced that at that time Conchubar, the High 
 King, was holding his court there, for it was a con- 
 venient gathering-place for his chief men, and they were 
 settling some business that belonged to the government 
 of that district. 
 
 When word was brought to Conchubar that there was 
 a ship come to the strand, and a young lad in it armed 
 as if for fighting, and armed men with him, he sent one 
 of the chief men of his household to ask his name, and 
 on what business he was come. 
 
 The messenger's name was Cuinaire, and he went 
 down to the strand, and when he saw the young man he 
 said : " A welcome to you, young hero from the east, 
 with the merry face. It is likely, seeing you come 
 armed as if for fighting, you are gone astray on your 
 journey ; but as you are come to Ireland, tell me your 
 name and what your deeds have been, and your victories 
 in the eastern bounds of the world." 
 
 " A: to my name," said Conlaoch, " it is of no great 
 account ; but whatever it is, I am under bonds not to 
 tell it to the stoutest man living." 
 
 "It is best for you to tell it at the king's desire," said 
 
CUCHULAIN AND CONLAOCH 315 
 
 Cuinaire, " before you get your death through refusing 
 it, as many a champion from Alban and from Britain 
 has done before now." "If that is the order you put on 
 us when we land here, it is I will break it," said 
 Conlaoch, "and no one will obey it any longer from 
 this out." 
 
 So Cunaire went back and told the king what the 
 young lad had said. Then Conchubar said to his 
 people : " Who will go out into the field, and drag the 
 name and the story out of this young man ? " "I will 
 go," said Conall, for his hand was never slow in fighting. 
 And he went out, and found the lad angry and destroying, 
 handling his arms, and they attacked one another with 
 a great noise of swords and shouts, and they were 
 gripped together, and fought for a while, and then Conall 
 was overcome, and the great name and the praise that 
 was on Conall, it was on the head of Conlaoch it was 
 now. 
 
 Word was sent then to where Cuchulain was, in 
 pleasant, bright-faced Dundealgan. And the messenger 
 told him the whole story, and he said : " Conall is lying 
 humbled, and it is slow the help is in coming ; it is a 
 welcome there would be before the Hound." 
 
 Cuchulain rose up then and went to where Conlaoch 
 was, and he still handling his arms. And Cuchulain 
 asked him his name and said : " It would be well for you, 
 young hero of unknown name, to loosen yourself from 
 this knot, and not to bring down my hand upon you, for 
 it will be hard for you to escape death." But Conlaoch 
 said : "If I put you down in the fight, the way I put 
 down your comrade, there will be a great name on me ; 
 but if I draw back now, there will be mockery on me, 
 and it will be said I was afraid of the fight. I will never 
 give in to any man to tell the name, or to give an 
 account of myself. But if I was not held with a com- 
 mand," he said, "there is no man in the world I would 
 
3i6 THE ONLY SON OF AOIFE 
 
 sooner give it to than to yourself, since I saw your face. 
 But do not think, brave champion of Ireland, that I will 
 let you take away the fame I have won, for nothing." 
 
 With that they fought together, and it is seldom such 
 a battle was seen, and all wondered that the young lad 
 could stand so well against Cuchulain. 
 
 So they fought a long while, neither getting the 
 better of the other, but at last Cuchulain was charged 
 so hotly by the lad that he was forced to give way, 
 and although he had fought so many good fights, and 
 killed so many great champions, and understood the 
 use of arms better than any man living, he was pressed 
 very hard. 
 
 And he called for the Gae Bulg, and his anger came 
 on him, and the flames of the hero-light began to shine 
 about his head, and by that sign Conlaoch knew him to 
 be Cuchulain, his father. And just at that time he was 
 aiming his spear at him, and when he knew it was 
 Cuchulain, he threw his spear crooked that it might 
 pass beside him. But Cuchulain threw his spear, the 
 Gae Bulg, at him with all his might, and it struck the 
 lad in the side and went into his body, so that he fell to 
 the ground. 
 
 And Cuchulain said : " Now, boy, tell your name and 
 what you are, for it is short your life will be, for you will 
 not live after that wound." 
 
 And Conlaoch showed the ring that was on his 
 hand, and he said : " Come here where I am lying 
 on the field, let my men from the east come round me. 
 I am suffering for revenge. I am Conlaoch, son of the 
 Hound, heir of dear Dundealgan ; I was bound to this 
 secret in Dun Scathach, the secret in which 1 have found 
 my grief" 
 
 And Cuchulain said : " It is a pity your mother not 
 to be here to see you brought down. She might have 
 stretched out her hand to stop the spear that wounded 
 
CUCHULAIN'S COMPLAINT 317 
 
 you." And Conlaoch said : " My curse be on my 
 mother, for it was she put me under bonds ; it was she 
 sent me here to try my strength against yours." And 
 Cuchulain said : " My curse be on your mother, the 
 woman that is full of treachery ; it is through her harm- 
 ful thoughts these tears have been brought on us." 
 And Conlaoch said : " My name was never forced from 
 my mouth till now ; I never gave an account of myself 
 to any man under the sun. But, O Cuchulain of the 
 sharp sword, it was a pity you not to know me the time 
 I threw the slanting spear behind you in the fight." 
 
 And then the sorrow of death came upon Conlaoch, 
 and Cuchulain took his sword and put it through him, 
 sooner than leave him in the pain and the punishment 
 he was in. 
 
 And then great trouble and anguish came on 
 Cuchulain, and he made this complaint : 
 
 " It is a pity it is, O son of Aoife, that ever you came 
 into the province of Ulster, that you ever met with the 
 Hound of Cuailgne. 
 
 "If I and my fair Conlaoch were doing feats of 
 war on the one side, the men of Ireland from sea to sea 
 would not be equal to us together. It is no wonder I 
 to be under grief when I see the shield and the arms of 
 Conlaoch. A pity it is there is no one at all, a pity 
 there are not hundreds of men on whom I could get 
 satisfaction for his death. 
 
 " If it was the king himself had hurt your fair body, it 
 is I would have shortened his days. 
 
 " It is well for the House of the Red Branch, and for 
 the heads of its fair army of heroes, it was not they that 
 killed my only son. 
 
 " It is well for Laegaire of Victories it is not from him 
 you got your heavy pain. 
 
 " It is well for the heroes of Conall they did not join 
 in the killing of you ; it is well that travelling across 
 
3i8 THE ONLY SON OF AOIFE 
 
 the plain of Macha they did not fall in with me after 
 such a fight. 
 
 " It is well for the tall, well-shaped Forbuide ; well for 
 Dubthach, your Black Beetle of Ulster. 
 
 "It is well for you, Cormac Conloingeas, your share 
 of arms gave no help, that it is not from your weapons 
 he got his wound, the hard-skinned shield or the blade. 
 
 " It is a pity it was not one on the plains of Munster, 
 or in Leinster of the sharp blades, or at Cruachan 
 of the rough fighters, that struck down my comely 
 Conlaoch. 
 
 " It is a pity it was not in the country of the Cruithne, 
 of the fierce Fians, you fell in a heavy quarrel, or in 
 the country of the Greeks, or in some other place of the 
 world, you died, and I could avenge you. 
 
 " Or in Spain, or in Sorcha, or in the country of the 
 Saxons of the free armies ; there would not then be this 
 death in my heart. 
 
 "It is very well for the men of Alban it was not 
 they that destroyed your fame ; and it is well for the 
 men of the Gall. 
 
 " Och ! It is bad that it happened ; my grief! it is on 
 me is the misfortune, O Conlaoch of the Red Spear, I 
 myself to have spilled your blood, 
 
 " I to be under defeat, without strength. It is a pity 
 Aoife never taught you to know the power of my 
 strength in the fight. 
 
 " It is no wonder I to be blinded after such a fight and 
 such a defeat. 
 
 " It is no wonder I to be tired out, and without the 
 sons of Usnach beside me. 
 
 " Without a son, without a brother, with none to come 
 after me ; without Conlaoch, without a name to keep 
 my strength. 
 
 " To be without Naoise, without Ainnle, without 
 Ardan ; is it not with me is my fill of trouble ? 
 
CUCHULAIN AND THE WAVES 319 
 
 " I am the father that killed his son, the fine green 
 branch ; there is no hand or shelter to help me. 
 
 " I am a raven that has no home ; I am a boat going 
 from wave to wave ; I am a ship that has lost its 
 rudder ; I am the apple left on the tree ; it is little 
 I thought of falling from it ; grief and sorrow will be 
 with me from this time." 
 
 Then Cuchulain stood up and faced all the men 
 of Ulster. " There is trouble on Cuchulain," said 
 Conchubar ; " he is after killing his own son, and if I 
 and all my men were to go against him, by the end 
 of the day he would destroy every man of us. Go 
 now," he said to Cathbad, the Druid, "and bind him 
 to go down to Baile's Strand, and to give three days 
 fighting against the waves of the sea, rather than to 
 kill us all." 
 
 So Cathbad put an enchantment on him, and bound 
 him to go down. And when he came to the strand, 
 there was a great white stone before him, and he took 
 his sword in his right hand, and he said : " If I had the 
 head of the woman that sent her son to his death, I 
 would split it as I split this stone." And he made four 
 quarters of the stone. 
 
 Then he fought with the waves three days and three 
 nights, till he fell from hunger and weakness, so that 
 some men said he got his death there. But it was not 
 there he got his death, but on the plain of Muirthemne. 
 
XIX 
 THE GREAT GATHERING AT MUIRTHEMNE 
 
 IVTOW after all the battles Cuchulain had fought, and 
 all the men he had killed, it is no wonder he had 
 a good share of enemies watching to get the upper hand 
 of him. And besides Maeve, those that had their minds 
 most set against him were Ere, son of Cairbre Niafer, 
 that he had killed at Rosnaree, and Lugaid, son of 
 Curoi, that he had killed at his own house in Munster, 
 and the three daughters of Calatin. 
 
 This, now, was the way it happened that Curoi got 
 his death by him. He met with Blanad one time, a 
 good while after Curoi had given him the championship 
 of Ulster, and it is what she told him that there was not 
 a man on the face of the earth she loved more than him- 
 self. And she bade him come, near Samhain time, 
 to Curoi's dun at Finglas, and his men with him, and to 
 bring her away by force. 
 
 So when the time came, Cuchulain set out, and his 
 men with him, and they came to a wood near the dun, 
 that had a stream running through it, and he sent word 
 to Blanad he was waiting there. And Blanad sent him 
 back word to come and bring her away at whatever time 
 he would see the stream in the wood turning white. And 
 when what she thought to be a good time came, when 
 all the men of the place were sent out looking for stones 
 to build a great new dun, she milked the three white 
 
 320 
 
BLANAD 321 
 
 cows with red ears Curoi had brought away by force 
 from her father, Midhir, into the cauldron he had 
 brought away with them, and she poured a great vessel 
 of new milk into the stream, where it ran by the dun. 
 And when Cuchulain saw the stream turning white, he 
 went up to the dun. But he found Curoi there before 
 him, and they fought, and Curoi was killed, the son of 
 Daire, lord of the southern sea, that had a great name 
 and great praise on him before Blanad was his wife. 
 
 Then Cuchulain brought Blanad away with him to 
 Ulster. But Curoi's poet, Feirceirtne, followed after 
 them to avenge his master's death. And when they 
 were come as far as the headland of Cian Beara, he 
 saw Blanad standing on the edge of a high rock, and 
 she alone. And he went up to her, and took her in his 
 arms, and threw her, and himself along with her, over 
 the rock, and they both got their death by the fall on 
 the moment. 
 
 And as to the children of Calatin, this is the way it 
 was with them. At the time Cuchulain made an end of 
 Calatin at the ford, and of all his sons with him, Calatin's 
 wife was with child. And when her time came, there 
 were three daughters born at the one birth, and they de- 
 formed, and each of them having but one eye. 
 
 Then Maeve came from Cruachan to visit them, and 
 she brought away the children with her, and took the 
 charge of them. And when they were come to sensible 
 years, she came to see them, and she said : " Do you know 
 who it was killed your father ? " " We know well," they 
 said, " it was Cuchulain, son of Sualtim, killed him." 
 *' That is so," said Maeve, " and let you make a journey 
 now," she said, " through the whole world, to get know- 
 ledge of spells and enchantments from them that have it, 
 the way you will be able to avenge your father when the 
 time comes." 
 
 When the three one-eyed daughters of Calatin heard 
 
 X 
 
322 GATHERING AT MUIRTHEMNE 
 
 that, they went out into Alban, and to every other country, 
 from the rising to the setting of the sun, and they were 
 learning every sort of enchantment and of witchcraft. 
 And at the end they came back to Cruachan. 
 
 And as to Maeve, she went up one morning to her 
 sunny parlour, and from there she saw the three daughters 
 of Calatin sitting outside on the lawn. So she took her 
 cloak, that had beautiful embroidery on it, and put it 
 about her, and she went out on the lawn and bade them 
 welcome, and she sat down before them, and asked news 
 of all they had done since they left Ireland. And they 
 told her all they had learned. " Do you remember it 
 all ? " said Maeve. " We remember it well," they said, 
 " and we can do many things, and we can make the 
 appearance of terrible battles by secret words." 
 
 Maeve brought them then into the royal house, 
 and they were attended on, and they were given every 
 sort of food and of drink, and of good treatment. 
 
 And then Maeve sent word to Lugaid, and he came to 
 Cruachan, and himself and Maeve began to talk together. 
 " Do you remember," she said, " who it was killed Curoi 
 your father ? " "I remember it well," he said ; " it was 
 Cuchulain killed him." Then Ere came to her, and she 
 asked him the same question about his father Cairbre 
 Niafer, and he made the same answer. " What you say 
 is true," Maeve said then, " and the children of Calatin 
 are come back to me now, after going through the whole 
 world, to fight against Cuchulain with their enchantments. 
 And there is no king or chief man, or fighting man in 
 the four provinces of Ireland, but lost his friend or his 
 comrade, his father or his brother, by him in the war for 
 the Bull of Cuailgne, or at some other time. And now," 
 she said, " it is best for us to gather together a great army 
 of the men of Ireland to make an attack on him, for the 
 men of Ulster have their weakness coming on them, and 
 it is likely they will not be able to help him." 
 
LEVARCHAM'S MESSAGE 323 
 
 With that, Lugaid went away southward to the king 
 of Munster, to bid him come, and bring his men with 
 him ; and Ere went and called to the chief men of 
 Leinster in the same way. 
 
 Then all the provinces gathered together to Cruachan, 
 and they stopped there with feasting and merriment 
 for three days and three nights. And at the end of that 
 time they went out of Cruachan. But Maeve did not 
 bring Fergus with them this time, for she was sure the 
 men of Ireland would never be able to make an end of 
 Cuchulain if Fergus was along with them. 
 
 And this is the way they went, beyond Magh Finn to 
 Athluain, and they rested there that night. 
 
 And the next day they went on their road till they 
 came to Glean-na-loin, and from that to Glean-mor, and 
 from that to Tailtin, and they stopped the night there ; 
 and then they went on by the borders of Magh Breagh, 
 and Midhe, and Treathfa, and Cuailgne. 
 
 It is then Conchubar, King of Ulster, got word that 
 the borders of his province were being robbed and 
 destroyed by the men of Munster and Leinster, and of 
 Con naught. 
 
 " Where is Levarcham ? " said Conchubar. " I am 
 here," she said. "Go out for me now," said Con- 
 chubar, " and bring Cuchulain here to Emain ; for it is 
 against him this army we have news of is gathered. Bid 
 him to make no delay, but to leave Dundealgan and Muir- 
 themne and to come here to advise with myself, and with 
 Cathbad and Amergin, and all the knowledgeable men. 
 For if he can put off this battle till I myself, and Conall, 
 and all the men of Ulster, will be ready to go out with 
 him, we will give them a great defeat, the way they will 
 not come into my province again. For there are many 
 bear him ill-will," he said, " on account of all he killed. 
 Finn, son of Ross, Fraoch, son of Idath, and Dearg, 
 son of Conroi, and many of the best men of Ulster ; and 
 
324 GATHERING AT MUIRTHEMNE 
 
 Cairbre Niafer at the battle of Rosnaree ; and Curoi, son 
 of Daire, High King of Munster, and many of the men of 
 Munster besides him ; Fircearna, and Fiamain, and Niall, 
 and Laoc Leathbuine, and many more along with them." 
 
 Levarcham went quickly then with that message, and 
 it is where she found Cuchulain, between sea and land, 
 on Baile's Strand, and he trying to bring down sea-birds 
 with his sling ; but with all the birds that were flying 
 over him and past him, he could not bring one down, 
 but they all escaped him. 
 
 And there was heaviness on him, not to be able to hit 
 them, for he knew it had some bad meaning. And in- 
 deed he had never been very happy in his mind since the 
 death of the blossomed branch, Aoife's son, there on that 
 strand. Then he saw Levarcham coming, and he bade 
 her welcome. " I am glad of that welcome," said 
 Levarcham, "and it with news from Conchubar I am 
 come to you." " What is your news ? " said Cuchulain. 
 " I have news indeed," she said. And then she told him 
 all that Conchubar had said, from beginning to end. 
 " And it is what all are asking of you," she said : ''chief 
 men and fighting men, poets and learned men, women 
 and young girls, to keep aside from the men of Ireland 
 that are coming here to Muirthemne, and not to go out 
 alone against that great army." " I would sooner stop 
 here and defend my own place," said Cuchulain. " It is 
 best for you to go to Emain," said Laeg. So after a while 
 he gave in to them, and they went back to Dundealgan, 
 and Emer came out on the lawn to meet them, and they 
 gave her the same advice, to go to Emain Macha where 
 Conchubar and his chief men were gathered together. 
 Then Emer got her chariot, and she sent her servants 
 and the herds, and the cattle to Slieve Cuilenn in the 
 North, and herself and Cuchulain set out for Emain. 
 And that was the first time Dundealgan was emptied 
 since Cuchulain had the sway over it. 
 
CUCHULAINATEMAIN 325 
 
 And when Cuchulain came to Emain Macha, they 
 brought him to the bright, sunny house. And when the 
 women of the place heard he was there, they came and 
 spoke sweet words, and the poets and the harpers came, 
 and the skilled men, and they all made music, and 
 feasting, and pleasant talk round about Cuchulain, in 
 the wide, white, sunny house of the Red Branch ; for 
 what always quieted Cuchulain best was the singing of 
 songs and rhymes before him. It is that way Scumac, 
 the story-teller, quieted him one time he was vexed, 
 and had a mind to set fire to Emain, because Conchubar 
 had gone to a feast given by Conall, son of Gleo Glas, in 
 Cuailgne, and had left no word for him to follow. 
 
 And Conchubar bade Cathbad, and the learned men, 
 and the women, to keep a good watch on Cuchulain, and 
 to mind him well. " For I leave the charge of him on 
 you," he said, " to save him from the plans Maeve has 
 made against him, and from the power of the children of 
 Calatin. For if he should fall," he said, " it is certain 
 the safety and the prosperity of Ulster will fall with him 
 for ever." "That is true," said Cathbad, and all the 
 others said the same. 
 
 " Well," said Geanann, Cathbad's son, " I will go now 
 and see him." He went then to the place Cuchulain and 
 Emer were, and the poets, and the women, and the 
 learned men with them, and a feast laid out on the table, 
 and all of them at drinking and pleasantness and games. 
 
 Now as to the men of Ireland, they came to the plain of 
 Muirthemne, and they made their camp there, and they 
 began to destroy and to take all they could find there, 
 and in Macaire Conall ; and when they knew Cuchulain 
 had left Dundealgan, it is then the three daughters of 
 Calatin went with the lightness and the quickness of 
 the wind to Emain Macha. And they sat down on the 
 lawn outside the house where Cuchulain was, and they 
 began to tear up the earth and the grass, and by means 
 
326 GATHERING AT MUIRTHEMNE 
 
 of their witchcraft they put the appearance of troops of 
 men and of armies on stalks and coloured oak-leaves, 
 and little fuzz-balls ; and the sounds of fighting and strik- 
 ing, and the shouting of a great army were heard on 
 every side, as if there was an attack being made on the 
 dun. 
 
 It was bright-faced Geanann, son of Cathbad, was 
 keeping a watch on Cuchulain that day, and he saw 
 him sit up and look out on the lawn, and redness and 
 shame came on his face, when he saw, as he thought, 
 two armies fighting one another, and he put out his 
 hand as if to take his sword, but Geanann threw his two 
 arms about him and hindered him, and told him there 
 was nothing before him but witchcraft and enchantment, 
 and the appearance of fighting made up by the children 
 of Calatin to bring him out to his death. And Cathbad 
 and all the learned men came then and told him the 
 same thing. But after all that, it was hardly they were 
 able to hold him back and to persuade him. 
 
 The next day Cathbad himself came to keep a watch 
 on him with the rest, and after a while the noise of 
 shouting began again, and for all they could do, Cuchu- 
 lain went and looked out at the window. And the first 
 thing he thought he saw was the army of Ireland stand- 
 ing there upon the plain. And then he thought he saw 
 Gradh, son of Lir, standing there ; and after that he 
 thought he heard the harp of the son of Meardha playing 
 the sweet music of the Sidhe, and he knew when he 
 heard those sounds that his time was come, and that his 
 courage and his strength would soon be made an end 
 of. And then one of the daughters of Calatin took the 
 appearance of a crow, and came flying over him and 
 saying mocking words, and she bade him go out and 
 save his own house and his lands from the enemies that 
 were destroying them. And though Cuchulain knew 
 well by this time it was witchcraft was being worked 
 
N I A M H 327 
 
 against him, he was as ready as before to rush out when 
 he heard the sounds and the shouting of battle ; and 
 there came trouble and confusion on his mind with the 
 noise of striking and of fighting, and with the sweet 
 sounds of the harp of the Sidhe. But Cathbad did his 
 best with him, and it is what he told him, that if he 
 would but stop quiet for another three days in Emain, 
 the power of the enchantments would be broken, and 
 Conall Cearnach would have come to his help, and he 
 could go out again, and the whole world would be 
 full of his name and of his lasting victories. 
 
 And the women of Emain and the musicians closed 
 round him, and they sang sweet songs, and led away 
 his mind from what he had heard, until the day drew 
 to a close. 
 
 And on the morning of the morrow, Conchubar called 
 for Cathbad and Bright-Faced Geanann, and the rest 
 of the Druids. And Emer came along with them, and 
 Celthair's daughter, Niamh, that Cuchulain loved, and 
 the rest of the women of the House of the Red Branch. 
 And Conchubar asked them in what way they could 
 best keep a watch on Cuchulain through the day. " We 
 do not know that," they said. " I will tell you what is 
 best to do," said Conchubar then. " Bring him away 
 with you to Glean-na-Bodhar, the Deaf Valley. For 
 if all the men of Ireland were letting out shouts and 
 cries of war around it, no one that would be in that valley 
 would hear any sound at all. Bring Cuchulain there, 
 then," he said, " and keep him there with you till their 
 enchantments will be spent, and till Conall Cearnach 
 will come to his help out of the island of Leodus." 
 " King," said Niamh, " we were asking him and persuading 
 him all through yesterday to go to that valley, but he 
 would not go there, for all I myself or the rest of the 
 women of Ireland could say. And let you yourself go to 
 him now," she said, " with Cathbad, and Geanann, and the 
 
328 GATHERING AT MUIRTHEMNE 
 
 poets, and with Emer, and let you bring him into that 
 valley, and let there be music and pleasantness made 
 about him there, the way he will not hear the shouts and 
 the mocking words of the children of Calatin." It is 
 not I will go with him," said Emer, " but let Niamh go, 
 and my blessing with her, for it will be hard for him to 
 refuse her." So they agreed to that, and they went to 
 where Cuchulain was, and Conchubar's harper, Cobhtach, 
 went along with them, making sweet music. Then 
 Cathbad went out to Cuchulain where he was lying on 
 the bed, and he began to ask him and to persuade him. 
 " Dear son," he said, " come with me to-day to use the 
 feast I am making, and all the women and the poets 
 will come with us. And there are bonds on you not to 
 refuse my feast." " My grief for that," said Cuchulain. 
 " This is no fit time for me to be feasting and making 
 merry, and the four provinces of Ireland burning and 
 destroying Ulster, and the men of Ulster in their weak- 
 ness, and Conall away, and the men of Ireland putting 
 insults on me and reproaches, and saying I have run 
 away before them. And but for yourself and Con- 
 chubar," he said, " and for Geanann and Amergin, I would 
 fall on them and scatter them, that their dead would 
 be more than their living." Then all the women per- 
 suaded him, and Emer spoke to him, and it is what 
 she said : " Little Hound, I never hindered you until 
 this hour from any deed or any adventure you had a 
 mind for. So now, for my sake, my choice sweetheart, 
 my first love and first darling of the men of the world, 
 go with Cathbad and with Geanann, with Niamh and 
 with the poets, to share Cathbad's feast." 
 
 Then Niamh went over to him and gave him three 
 fond, loving kisses ; and then they all rose up, and he 
 rose along with them, heavy and sorrowful, and in that 
 way he went in their company into Glean-na-Bodhar. 
 And when they came into it, he said : " My grief! I ever 
 
THE DEAF VALLEY 329 
 
 to have come here, and I never came to any place I 
 liked less than this : for now the men of Ireland will be 
 saying it was to escape them I came here." " You gave 
 me your word," said Niamh, " you would not go out to 
 meet the men of Ireland without leave from me." If I 
 gave it," said Cuchulain, " it is right for me to hold to it." 
 
 Their chariots were unyoked then, and the Grey of 
 Macha and the Black Sainglain were let loose to graze 
 in the valley, and they all went to the house Cathbad 
 had made ready. And there was a great feast laid out, 
 and Cuchulain was put in the chief place, and to his 
 right hand were Cathbad and Geanann and the poets, and 
 on the left was Niamh, daughter of Celthair, with the 
 women. And opposite them were the musicians and the 
 reciters. And then they all took to feasting and drink- 
 ing and to games, and they made a great show of mirth 
 and pleasantness before Cuchulain. 
 
 But as to the three deformed, one-eyed children of 
 Calatin, they came quickly and lightly, the way they had 
 come on the other days, to the lawn at Emain, to the 
 place where they had got sight of Cuchulain in the house. 
 And when they did not see him there, they searched 
 through the whole of Emain, but when they did not find 
 him with Conchubar, or with the men of the Red Branch, 
 there was great wonder on them. And then they began 
 to think it was Cathbad was hiding him from them, and 
 they rose up high in the air, on a blast of moaning wind 
 they made by their enchantments, and on it they went 
 over the whole province, searching out every wood and 
 valley, every cave and secret path. But they fou nd nothing, 
 till at last they came over Glean-na-Bodhar, and there 
 in the middle of the valley they saw the Grey of Macha 
 and the Black Sainglain and Laeg, son of Riangabra, 
 beside them. 
 
 They knew then that Cuchulain must be in the valley, 
 and presently they heard the sounds of music and of 
 
330 GATHERING AT MUIRTHEMNE 
 
 laughter and of women's voices, where all the people in 
 the feasting-house were trying their best to raise the 
 cloud and the heaviness off Cuchulain's mind. 
 
 Then the children of Calatin came down into the 
 valley, and the same way as before they took thistle- 
 stalks and little fuzz-balls and withered leaves, and put on 
 them the appearance of troops of armed men, so that 
 there seemed to be no hill or no place outside the whole 
 valley but was filled with battalions, coming hundred by 
 hundred. And the air w^as all filled with sounds of 
 battle and shouts, and of trumpets and dreadful laughter, 
 and the cries of wounded men. And there seemed to be 
 fires in the country about, and a noise of the crying of 
 women. And great dread came on all that heard that 
 outcry, both men and women, and dogs of every kind. 
 
 But when the women that were with Cuchulain heard 
 those shouts, they shouted back again and raised their 
 voices, but with all they could do, they did not keep the 
 outcry from reaching to Cuchulain, " My grief ! " he said, 
 " I hear the shouts of the men of Ireland that are spoiling 
 the whole of the province ; my fame is at an end, my 
 great name is gone from me, Ulster is put down for ever." 
 " Let the noise pass by," said Cathbad ; " it is only the 
 noise made by the children of Calatin, that want to 
 draw you out from where you are, to make an end of 
 you. Stop here with us now, and put the trouble off 
 your mind." 
 
 Cuchulain stayed quiet then, but the children of 
 Calatin went on a long time filling the air with battle 
 noises. But they tired of it at last, for they saw that 
 Cathbad and the women were too much for them. 
 
 Then anger came on Badb, one of Calatin's daughters, 
 and she said: "Go on now, makingsounds of fighting in the 
 air, and I myself will go into the valley ; for even if I get 
 my death by it, I will speak with Cuchulain." 
 
 With that, she went on in the madness of her anger 
 
CUCHULAIN GOES OUT 331 
 
 to the very house where the feast was going on, and 
 there she took the appearance of a woman of Niamh's 
 women, and she beckoned Niamh out to speak with her. 
 
 So Niamh came out, thinking she had news to give 
 her, and a good many of the other women of Emain with 
 her, and Badb bade them follow her. And she led them 
 a long way down the valley, and then by her enchant- 
 ments she raised a thick mist between them and the 
 house, so that they could not find their way, but were 
 astray in the valley, not knowing where they were. 
 
 Then she went back to the feasting-house, and she 
 put on herself the appearance of Niamh, and she came 
 in to where Cuchulain was and called out : " Rise up, 
 Cuchulain ; Dundealgan is burned, Muirthemne is 
 destroyed, and Conaille Muirthemne. The whole pro- 
 vince is trampled down by the men of Ireland. And it 
 is on myself the blame will be laid," she said, " and all 
 Ulster will say that I hindered you, and kept you back 
 from going out to check the army, and to get satisfaction 
 from the men of Ireland. And it is from Conchubar 
 himself I will get my death on account of that," she said. 
 For she knew Cuchulain had given Niamh his promise 
 that without leave from her, he would not go out to face 
 the men of Ireland. 
 
 " My grief!" said Cuchulain then, " it is hard to trust 
 in women. For I thought," he said, "that you would 
 not have given me that leave for the whole riches of 
 the world. But since you yourself give me leave to go 
 out and face the men of Ireland, I will do it." And with 
 that he rose up to go out. And as he rose up, he threw 
 his cloak about him, and his foot caught in the cloak, 
 and the gold brooch that was in the cloak fell on his 
 foot and pierced it. " Truly the brooch is a friend that 
 gives me a warning," said Cuchulain. 
 
 He went out then, and he bade Laeg to yoke the 
 horses and to make ready the chariot. And Cathbad, 
 
332 GATHERING AT MUIRTHEMNE 
 
 and Geanann, and the women followed him out, and took 
 hold of him, but they were not able to stop him. For 
 the cries of battle were still in the air, and he thought he 
 saw a great army standing on the lawn at Emain, and 
 the whole plain filled up and crowded with troops and 
 bands of men, with horses and arms and armour, and he 
 thought he heard great shouts, and that he saw all 
 Conchubar's city burning, and all the hills round about 
 Emain full of things brought away, and he thought he 
 saw Emer's sunny house thrown down, and the House of 
 the Red Branch in one blaze, and all Emain under fire 
 and smoke. And Cathbad tried to quiet him. " Dear 
 son," he said, " for this day only, follow my advice, and 
 do not go out against the men of Ireland, and I will be 
 able to save you from all the enchantments of the 
 children of Calatin." But Cuchulain said : " Dear master, 
 there is no reason for me to care for my life from this 
 out, for my time is at an end, and Niamh has given me 
 leave to go and face the men of Ireland." And then 
 Niamh herself came up to him and said: "My grief! 
 my little Hound, I would never have given you that 
 leave for all the riches of the world ; and it was not I 
 that gave you leave, but Badb, the daughter of Calatin, 
 that took my shape on her. And stay with me now," she 
 said, " my friend, my darling." But Cuchulain would not 
 believe her, and he bade Laeg yoke the chariot, and put 
 his arms in order. Laeg went to do that, but indeed 
 that time above all others he had no mind for the work. 
 And when he shook the bridles towards the horses as he 
 was used to do, they went away from him ; and the Grey 
 of Macha would not let him come near him at all. 
 " Truly," said Laeg, " this is a warning of some bad 
 thing. And indeed, my life," he said to the Grey, " it 
 is seldom you would not come to meet the bridle and 
 to meet myself, up to this day." Then he went to 
 Cuchulain and said : " I swear by the gods my people 
 
THE GREY OF MACHA 333 
 
 swear by, that if all the men in the province of Ulster 
 were round about the Grey of Macha, they would not 
 be able to bring him as far as the chariot, and I never 
 refused you up to this," he said, " and come out now and 
 speak to the Grey yourself." 
 
 So Cuchulain went out, and the horse turned his left 
 side three times to his master. Then he reproached the 
 horse. " You were not used," he said, " to behave like 
 that to me." Then the Grey of Macha came up to him 
 and he let big, round tears of blood fall on Cuchulain's 
 feet. 
 
 Then the chariot was yoked ; and it was the Morrigu 
 had unyoked it and had broken it the night before, for she 
 did not like Cuchulain to go out and to get his death in 
 the battle. And Cuchulain set out and came to Emain, 
 and to the house where Emer was, and she came out and 
 bade him come down from his chariot. " I will not," he 
 said, " until I go first to Muirthemne, to attack the four 
 great provinces of Ireland, and to avenge all the hurts 
 and the insults they have put on me, and on Ulster, for 
 I have seen their gatherings and their armies." " Those 
 were made up by enchantments," said Emer. " I tell 
 you, woman," he said, " and I swear by my word, I will 
 never come back here until I have made an attack upon 
 them in their camp." 
 
 Then he turned his chariot towards the south, by the 
 road of Meadhon Luachair, and Levarcham cried out 
 after him, and the three times fifty queens that were in 
 Emain Macha, and that loved him, cried out upon him 
 miserably, and struck their hands together, for they knew 
 he would not come back to them again. 
 
XX 
 
 DEATH OF CUCHULAIN 
 
 /^UCHULAIN went on then to the house of his 
 ^^ mother, Dechtire, to bid her farewell. And she 
 came out on the lawn to meet him, for she knew well he 
 was going out to face the men of Ireland, and she brought 
 out wine in a vessel to him, as her custom was when he 
 passed that way. But when he took the vessel in his 
 hand, it was red blood that was in it. " My grief!" he 
 said, " my mother Dechtire, it is no wonder others to 
 forsake me, when you yourself offer me a drink of 
 blood." Then she filled the vessel a second, and a 
 third time, and each time when she gave it to him, 
 there was nothing in it but blood. 
 
 Then anger came on Cuchulain, and he dashed the 
 vessel against a rock, and broke it, and he said : " The 
 fault is not in yourself, my mother Dechtire, but my 
 luck is turned against me, and my life is near its end, 
 and I will not come back alive this time from facing the 
 men of Ireland." Then Dechtire tried hard to persuade 
 him to go back and to wait till he would have the help 
 of Conall. " I will not wait," he said, " for anything you 
 can say ; for I would not give up my great name and 
 my courage for all the riches of the world. And from 
 the day I first took arms till this day, I have never 
 drawn back from a fight or a battle. And it is not now 
 I will begin to draw back," he said, " for a great name 
 outlasts life." 
 
 334 
 
THE WASHER AT THE FORD 335 
 
 Then he went on his way, and Cathbad, that had 
 followed him, went with him. And presently they came 
 to a ford, and there they saw a young girl, thin and 
 white-skinned and having yellow hair, washing and 
 ever washing, and wringing out clothing that was 
 stained crimson red, and she crying and keening all 
 the time. "Little Hound," said Cathbad, "do you 
 see what it is that young girl is doing? It is your 
 red clothes she is washing, and crying as she washes, 
 because she knows you are going to your death against 
 Maeve's great army. And take the warning now and 
 turn back again." " Dear master," said Cuchulain, " you 
 have followed me far enough ; for I will not turn back 
 from my vengeance on the men of Ireland that are 
 come to burn and to destroy my house and my 
 country. And what is it to me, the woman of the 
 Sidhe to be washing red clothing for me ? It is not 
 long till there will be clothing enough, and armour 
 and arms, lying soaked in pools of blood, by my own 
 sword and my spear. And if you are sorry and loth 
 to let me go into the fight, I am glad and ready enough 
 myself to go into it, though I know as well as you 
 yourself I must fall in it. Do not be hindering me 
 any more, then," he said, " for, if I stay or if I go, death 
 will meet me all the same. But go now to Emain, to 
 Conchubar and to Emer, and bring them life and health 
 from me, for I will never go back to meet them again. 
 It is my grief and my wound, I to part from them ! And 
 O Laeg ! " he said, " we are going away under trouble and 
 under darkness from Emer now, as it is often we came 
 back to her with gladness out of strange places and far 
 countries." 
 
 Then Cathbad left him, and he went on his way. 
 And after a while he saw three hags, and they blind of 
 the left eye, before him in the road, and they having a 
 venomous hound they were cooking with charms on rods 
 
336 DEATH OF CUCHULAIN 
 
 of the rowan tree. And he was going by them, for he 
 knew it was not for his good they were there. 
 
 But one of the hags called to him : " Stop a while with 
 us, Cuchulain." " I will not stop with you," said Cuchu- 
 lain. " That is because we have nothing better than a 
 dog to give you," said the hag. " If we had a grand, big 
 cooking-hearth, you would stop and visit us ; but because 
 it is only a little we have to offer you, you will not stop. 
 But he that will not show respect for the small, though 
 he is great, he will get no respect himself." 
 
 Then he went over to her, and she gave him the 
 shoulder-blade of the hound out of her left hand, and 
 he ate it out of his left hand. And he put it down on 
 his left thigh, and the hand that took it was struck down, 
 and the thigh he put it on was struck through and 
 through, so that the strength that was in them before 
 left them. 
 
 Then he went down the road of Meadhon-Luachair, by 
 Slieve Fuad, and his enemy, Ere, son of Cairbre, saw 
 him in the chariot, and his sword shining red in his hand, 
 and the light of his courage plain upon him, and his hair 
 spread out like threads of gold that change their colour 
 on the edge of the anvil under the smith's hand, and the 
 Crow of Battle in the air over his head. 
 
 " Cuchulain is coming at us," said Ere to the men of 
 Ireland, " and let us be ready for him." So they made 
 a fence of shields linked together, and Ere put a couple 
 of the men that were strongest here and there, to let on 
 to be fighting one another, that they might call Cuchulain 
 to them ; and he put a Druid with every couple of them, 
 and he bid the Druid to ask Cuchulain's spears of him, 
 for it would be hard for him to refuse a Druid. For it 
 was in the prophecy of the children of Calatin that a king 
 would be killed by each one of those spears in that battle. 
 
 And he bid the men of Ireland to give out shouts, and 
 Cuchulain came against them in his chariot, doing his 
 
DEATHOFLAEG 337 
 
 three thunder feats, and he used his spear and his sword 
 in such a way, that their heads, and their hands, and their 
 feet, and their bones, were scattered through the plain of 
 Muirthemne, like the sands on the shore, like the stars 
 in the sky, like the dew in May, like snow-flakes and 
 hailstones, like leaves of the trees, like buttercups in a 
 meadow, like grass under the feet of cattle on a fine 
 summer day. It is red that plain was with the slaughter 
 Cuchulain made when he came crashing over it. 
 
 Then he saw one of the men that was put to quarrel 
 with the other, and the Druid called to him to come and 
 hinder them, and Cuchulain leaped towards them. 
 " Your spear to me," cried the Druid. " I swear by the 
 oath of my people," said Cuchulain, "you are not so 
 much in want of it as I am in want of it myself The 
 men of Ireland are upon me," he said, "and I am upon 
 them." " I will put a bad name on you if you refuse it 
 to me," said the Druid. " There was never a bad name 
 put on me yet, on account of any refusal of mine," said 
 Cuchulain, and with that he threw the spear at him, and 
 it went through his head, and it killed the men that 
 were on the other side of him. 
 
 Then Cuchulain drove through the host, and Lugaid, 
 son of Curoi, got the spear. " Who is it will fall by this 
 spear, children of Calatin ? " said Lugaid. " A king 
 will fall by it," said they. Then Lugaid threw the spear 
 at Cuchulain's chariot, and it went through and hit the 
 driver, Laeg, son of Riangabra, and he fell back, and his 
 bowels came out on the cushions of the chariot. " My 
 grief!" said Laeg, "it is hard I am wounded." Then 
 Cuchulain drew the spear out, and Laeg said his farewell 
 to him, and Cuchulain said : " To-day I will be a fighter 
 and a chariot-driver as well." 
 
 Then he saw the other two men that were put to 
 quarrel with one another, and one of them called out 
 it would be a great shame for him not to give him his 
 
 Y 
 
338 DEATH OF CUCHULAIN 
 
 help. Then Cuchulain leaped towards them. "Your 
 spear to me, Cuchulain," said the Druid. " I swear 
 by the oath my people swear by," said he, " you are 
 not in such want of the spear as I am myself, for 
 it is by my courage, and by my arms, that I have to 
 drive out the four provinces of Ireland that are sweeping 
 over Muirthemne to-day." " I will put a bad name upon 
 you," said the Druid. '* I am not bound to give more 
 than one gift in the day, and I have paid what is due to 
 my name already," said Cuchulain. Then the Druid 
 said : " I will put a bad name on the province of Ulster, 
 because of your refusal." 
 
 " Ulster was never dispraised yet for any refusal of 
 mine," said Cuchulain, " or for anything I did unworthily. 
 Though little of my life should be left to me, Ulster will 
 not be reproached for me to-day." With that he threw 
 his spear at him, and it went through his head, and 
 through the heads of the]nine men that were behind him, 
 and Cuchulain went through the host as he did before. 
 
 Then Ere, son of Cairbre Niafer, took up his spear. 
 " Who will fall by this ? " he asked the children of Calatin. 
 " A king will fall by it," they said. " I heard you say the 
 same thing of the spear that Lugaid threw a while ago," 
 said Ere. " That is true," said they, " and the king of the 
 chariot-drivers of Ireland fell by it, Cuchulain's driver 
 Laeg, son of Riangabra." 
 
 With that. Ere threw the spear, and it went through 
 the Grey of Macha. Cuchulain drew the spear out, and 
 they said farewell to one another. And then the Grey 
 went away from him, with half his harness hanging from 
 his neck, and he went into Glas-linn, the grey pool in 
 Slieve Fuad. 
 
 Then Cuchulain drove through the host, and he saw 
 the third couple disputing together, and he went between 
 them as he did before. And the Druid asked his spear 
 of him, but he refused him, " I will put a bad name on 
 
CUCHULAIN LEFT ALONE 339 
 
 you," said the Druid. " I have paid what is due to my 
 name to-day," said he ; " my honour does not bind me to 
 give more than one request in a day." " I will put a 
 bad name upon Ulster because of your refusal." " I have 
 paid what is due for the honour of Ulster," said Cuchulain. 
 "Then I will put a bad name on your kindred," said 
 the Druid. " The news that I have been given a bad 
 name shall never go back to that place I am never to 
 go back to myself ; for it is little of my life that is left 
 to me," said Cuchulain. With that he threw the spear at 
 him, and it went through him, and through the heads 
 of the men that were along with him. 
 
 " You do your kindness unkindly, Cuchulain," said the 
 Druid, as he fell. Then Cuchulain drove for the last time 
 through the host, and Lugaid took the spear, and he said : 
 " Who will fall by this spear, children of Calatin ? " "A 
 king will fall by it," said they. " I heard you saying that 
 a king would fall by the spear Ere threw a while ago." 
 " That is true," they said, " and the Grey of Macha fell 
 by it, that was the king of the horses of Ireland." 
 
 Then Lugaid threw the spear, and it went through 
 and through Cuchulain's body, and he knew he had got 
 his deadly wound ; and his bowels came out on the 
 cushions of the chariot, and his only horse went away 
 from him, the Black Sainglain, with half the harness 
 hanging from his neck, and left his master, the king of the 
 heroes of Ireland, to die upon the plain of Muirthemne. 
 
 Then Cuchulain said : " There is great desire on me to 
 go to that lake beyond, and to get a drink from it." 
 
 "We will give you leave to do that," they said, "if 
 you will come back to us after." 
 
 " I will bid you come for me if I am not able to come 
 back myself," said Cuchulain. 
 
 Then he gathered up his bowels into his body, and 
 he went down to the lake. He drank a drink, and 
 he washed himself, and he turned back again to his 
 
340 DEATH OF CUCHULAIN 
 
 death, and he called to his enemies to come and meet 
 him. 
 
 There was a pillar-stone west of the lake, and his eye 
 lit on it, and he went to the pillar-stone, and he tied 
 himself to it with his breast-belt, the way he would not 
 meet his death lying down, but would meet it standing 
 up. Then his enemies came round about him, but they 
 were in dread of going close to him, for they were not 
 sure but he might be still alive. 
 
 " It is a great shame for you," said Ere, son of Cairbre, 
 " not to strike the head off that man, in revenge for 
 his striking the head off my father." 
 
 Then the Grey of Macha came back to defend 
 Cuchulain as long as there was life in him, and the hero- 
 light was shining above him. And the Grey of Macha 
 made three attacks against them, and he killed fifty 
 men with his teeth, and thirty with each of his hoofs. 
 So there is a saying : " It is not sharper work than this 
 was done by the Grey of Macha, the time of Cuchulain's 
 death." 
 
 Then a bird came and settled on his shoulder. " It is 
 not on that pillar birds were used to settle," said Ere. 
 
 Then Lugaid came and lifted up Cuchulain's hair 
 from his shoulders, and struck his head off, and the 
 men of Ireland gave three great heavy shouts, and the 
 sword fell from Cuchulain's hand, and as it fell, it struck 
 off Lugaid's right hand, so that it fell to the ground. 
 Then they cut off Cuchulain's hand, in satisfaction for it, 
 and then the light faded away from about Cuchulain's 
 head, and left it as pale as the snow of a single night. 
 Then all the men of Ireland said that as it was Maeve 
 had gathered the army, it would be right for her to bring 
 away the head to Cruachan. " I will not bring it with 
 me ; it is for Lugaid that struck it off to bring it with 
 him," said Maeve. And then Lugaid and his men went 
 away, and they brought away Cuchulain's head and his 
 
LUGAID AT THE RIVER 341 
 
 right hand with them, and they went south, towards the 
 Life river. 
 
 At that time the army of Ulster was gathering to 
 attack its enemies, and Conall was out before them, 
 and he met the Grey of Macha, and his share of blood 
 dripping from him. And then he knew that Cuchulain 
 was dead, and himself and the Grey of Macha went 
 looking for Cuchulain's body. And when they saw his 
 body at the pillar-stone, the Grey of Macha went and 
 laid his head in Cuchulain's breast : " That body is a 
 heavy care to the Grey of Macha," said Conall. 
 
 Then Conall went after the army, thinking in his own 
 mind what way he could get satisfaction for Cuchulain's 
 death. For it was a promise between himself and 
 Cuchulain that whichever of them would be killed the 
 first, the other would get satisfaction for his death. 
 
 " And if I am the first that is killed," said Cuchulain 
 at that time, " how long will it be before you get satis- 
 faction for me ? " 
 
 " Before the evening of the same day," said Conall, " I 
 will have got satisfaction for you. And if it is I that 
 will die before you," he said, " how long will it be before 
 you get satisfaction for me ? " 
 
 " Your share of blood will not be cold on the ground," 
 said Cuchulain, " when I will have got satisfaction for 
 you." 
 
 So Conall followed after Lugaid to the river Life. 
 
 Lugaid was going down to bathe in the water, but he 
 said to his chariot-driver : " Look out there over the 
 plain, for fear would any one come at us unknown." 
 
 The chariot-driver looked around him. " There is a 
 man coming on us," he said, "and it is in a great 
 hurry he is coming ; and you would think he has all the 
 ravens in Ireland flying over his head, and there are 
 flakes of snow speckling the ground before him." 
 
 " It is not in friendship the man comes that is coming 
 
342 DEATH OF CUCHULAIN 
 
 like that," said Lugaid. " It is Conall Cearnach it is, 
 with Dub-dearg, and the birds that you see after 
 him, they are the sods the horse has scattered in the air 
 from his hoofs, and the flakes of snow that are speckHng 
 the ground before him, they are the froth that he scatters 
 from his mouth and from the bit of his bridle. Look 
 again," said Lugaid, " and see what way is he coming." 
 "It is to the ford he is coming, the same way the army 
 passed over," said the chariot-driver. " Let him pass by 
 us," said Lugaid, " for I have no mind to fight with him." 
 But when Conall came to the middle of the ford, he 
 saw Lugaid and his chariot-driver, and he went over to 
 them. " Welcome is the sight of a debtor's face," said 
 Conall. " The man you owe a debt to is asking payment 
 of you now, and I myself am that man," he said, " for 
 the sake of my comrade, Cuchulain, that you killed. 
 And I am standing here now, to get that debt paid." 
 
 They agreed then to fight it out on the plain of Magh 
 Argetnas, and in the fight Conall wounded Lugaid with 
 his spear. From that they went to a place called Ferta 
 Lugdac. " I would like that you would give me fair 
 play," said Lugaid. " What fair play ? " said Conall 
 Cearnach. 
 
 " That you and I should fight with one hand," said he, 
 " for I have the use of but one hand." 
 
 " I will do that," said Conall. Then Conall's hand 
 was bound to his side with a cord, and then they fought 
 for a long time, and one did not get the better of the 
 other. And when Conall was not gaining on him, his 
 horse, Dub-dearg, that was near by, came up to Lugaid, 
 and took a bite out of his side. 
 
 " Misfortune on me," said Lugaid, " it is not right or 
 fair that is of you, Conall." 
 
 " It was for myself I promised to do what is right and 
 fair," said Conall. " I made no promise for a beast, that 
 is without training and without sense." 
 
THENEWSATEMAIN 343 
 
 " It is well I know you will not leave me till you 
 take my head, as I took Cuchulain's head from him," 
 said Lugaid. " Take it, then, along with your own head. 
 Put my kingdom with your kingdom, and my courage 
 with your courage ; for I would like that you would be 
 the best champion in Ireland." 
 
 Then Conall made an end of him, and he went back, 
 bringing Cuchulain's head along with him to the pillar- 
 stone where his body was. 
 
 And by that time Emer had got word of all that had 
 happened, and that her husband had got his death by 
 the men of Ireland, and by the powers of the children 
 of Calatin. And it was Levarcham brought her the story, 
 for Conall Cearnach had met her on his way, and had 
 bade her go and bring the news to Emain Macha ; and 
 there she found Emer, and she sitting in her upper 
 room, looking over the plain for some word from the 
 battle. 
 
 And all the women came out to meet Levarcham, 
 and when they heard her story, they made an outcry 
 of grief and sharp cries, with loud weeping and burning 
 tears ; and there were long dismal sounds going through 
 Emain, and the whole country round was filled with 
 crying. And Emer and her women went to the place 
 where Cuchulain's body was, and they gathered round 
 it there, and gave themselves to crying and keening. 
 
 And when Conall came back to the place, he laid the 
 head with the body of Cuchulain, and he began to 
 lament along with them, and it is what he said : " It 
 is Cuchulain had prosperity on him, a root of valour 
 from the time he was but a soft child ; there never fell a 
 better hero than the hero that fell by Lugaid of the 
 Lands. And there are many are in want of you," he 
 said, " and until all the chief men of Ireland have fallen 
 by me, it is not fitting there should ever be peace. 
 
 "It is grief to me, he to have gone into the battle 
 
344 DEATH OF CUCHULAIN 
 
 without Conall being at his side; it was a pity for him 
 to go there without my body beside his body. Och ! 
 it is he was my foster-son, and now the ravens are 
 drinking his blood ; there will not be either laughter or 
 mirth, since the Hound has gone astray from us." 
 
 " Let us bury Cuchulain now," said Emer. " It is not 
 right to do that," said Conall, "until I have avenged 
 him on the men of Ireland. And it is a great shouting 
 I hear about the plain of Muirthemne, and it is full the 
 country is of crying after Cuchulain ; and it is good at 
 keeping the country and watching the boundaries the 
 man was that is here before me, a cross-hacked body in 
 a pool of blood. And it is well it pleased Lugaid, son of 
 Curoi, to be at the killing of Cuchulain, for it was Cuchu- 
 lain killed the chiefs and the children of Deaguid round 
 Famain, son of Foraoi, and round Curoi, son of Daire 
 himself. And this shouting has taken away my wits 
 and my memory from me," he said, " and it is hard for 
 me, Cuchulain not to answer these cries, and I to be 
 without him now ; for there is not a champion in Ireland 
 that was not in dread of the sword in his hand. And it is 
 broken in halves my heart is for my brother, and I will 
 bring my revenge through Ireland now, and I will not 
 leave a tribe without wounding, or true blood without 
 spilling, and the whole world will be told of my rout to 
 the end of life and time, until the men of Munster and 
 Connaught and Leinster will be crying for the rising 
 they made against him. And without the spells of 
 the children of Calatin, the whole of them would not 
 have been able to do him to death." 
 
 After that complaint, rage and madness came on 
 Conall, and he went forward in his chariot to follow after 
 the rest of the men of Ireland, the same way as he had 
 followed after Lugaid. 
 
 And Emer took the head of Cuchulain in her hands, 
 and she washed it clean, and put a silk cloth about it. 
 
EMER'S COMPLAINT 345 
 
 and she held it to her breast ; and she began to cry heavily 
 over it, and it is what she said : 
 
 " Ochone ! " said she, " it is good the beauty of this 
 head was, though it is low this day, and it is many of 
 the kings and princes of the world would be keening it 
 if they knew the way it is now, and the poets and the 
 Druids of Ireland and of Alban ; and many were the 
 goods and the jewels and the rents and the tributes 
 that you brought home to me from the countries of 
 the world, with the courage and the strength of your 
 hands ! " 
 
 And she made this complaint : 
 
 " Och, head ! Ochone, O head ! you gave death to 
 great heroes, to many hundreds ; my head will lie in 
 the same grave, the one stone will be made for both 
 of us 
 
 " Och, hand ! Ochone, hand that was once gentle. 
 It is often it was put under my head ; it is dear that 
 hand was to me ! 
 
 " Dear mouth i Ochone, kind mouth that was sweet- 
 voiced telling stories ; since the time love first came 
 on your face, you never refused either weak or strong ! 
 
 " Dear the man, dear the man, that would kill the 
 whole of a great host; dear his cold bright hair, and 
 dear his bright cheeks ! 
 
 " Dear the king, dear the king, that never gave a 
 refusal to any ; thirty days it is to-night since my body 
 lay beside your body. 
 
 " Och, two spears ! Ochone, two spears ! Och, shield ! 
 Och, deadly sword ! Let them be given to Conall 
 of the battles ; there was never any wage given like 
 that. 
 
 " I am glad, I am glad, Cuchulain of Muirthemne, 
 I never brought red shame on your face, for any un- 
 faithfulness against you. 
 
 " Happy arc they, happy are they, who will never 
 
346 DEATH OF CUCHULAIN 
 
 hear the cuckoo again for ever, now that the Hound 
 has died from us. 
 
 " I am carried away like a branch on the stream ; I 
 will not bind up my hair to-day. From this day I have 
 nothing to say that is better than Ochone ! " 
 
 And then she said : "It is long that it was showed 
 to me in a vision of the night, that Cuchulain would 
 fall by the men of Ireland, and it appeared to me 
 Dundealgan to be falling to the ground, and his shield 
 to be split from lip to border, and his sword and his 
 spears broken in the middle, and I saw Conall doing 
 deeds of death before me, and myself and yourself in 
 the one death. And oh ! my love," she said, " we were 
 often in one another's company, and it was happy for 
 us ; for if the world had been searched from the rising 
 of the sun to sunset, the like would never have been 
 found in one place, of the Black Sainglain and the Grey 
 of Macha, and Laeg the chariot-driver, and myself and 
 Cuchulain. And it is breaking my heart is in my body, 
 to be listening to the pity and the sorrowing of women 
 and men, and the harsh crying of the young men of 
 Ulster keening Cuchulain, and Ulster to be in its 
 weakness, and without strength to revenge itself upon 
 the men of Ireland." 
 
 And after she had made that complaint, she brought 
 Cuchulain's body to Dundealgan ; and they all cried and 
 keened about him until such time as Conall Cearnach 
 came back from making his red rout through the army 
 of the men of Ireland. 
 
 For he was not satisfied to make a slaughter of the 
 men of Munster and Connaught, without reddening 
 his hand in the blood of the men of Leinster as 
 well. 
 
 And when he had done that, he came to Dundealgan, 
 and his men along with him, but they made no rejoicing 
 when they went back that time. And he brought the 
 
LAY OF THE HEADS 347 
 
 heads of the men of Ireland along with him in a gad, 
 and he laid them out on the green lawn, and the people of 
 the house gave three great shouts when they saw the heads. 
 And Emer came out, and when she saw Conall 
 Cearnach, she said : " My great esteem and my wel- 
 come before you, king of heroes, and may your many 
 wounds not be your death ; for you have avenged the 
 treachery done on Ulster, and now what you have to 
 do is to make our grave, and to lay us together in the 
 grave, for I will not live after Cuchulain. 
 
 " And tell me, Conall," she said, " whose are those 
 heads all around on the lawn, and which of the great 
 men of Ireland did they belong to ? " 
 
 And she was asking, and Conall was answering, and it 
 is what she said : 
 
 " Tell me, Conall, whose are those heads, for surely 
 you have reddened your arms with them. Tell me the 
 names of the men whose heads are there upon the 
 ground." 
 
 And Conall said : " Daughter of Forgall of the 
 Horses, young Emer of the sweet words, it is in 
 revenge for the Hound of Feats I brought these heads 
 here from the south." 
 
 " Whose is the great black head, with the smooth cheek 
 redder than a rose ; it is at the far end, on the left side, 
 the head that has not changed its colour ? " 
 
 " It is the head of the king of Meath, Ere, son of 
 Cairbre of Swift Horses ; I brought his head with me 
 from far off, in revenge for my own foster-son." 
 
 " Whose is that head there before me, with soft hair, 
 with smooth eyebrows, its eyes like ice, its teeth like 
 blossoms ; that head is more beautiful in shape than the 
 others ? " 
 
 " A son of Maeve ; a destroyer of harbours, yellow- 
 haired Maine, man of horses ; I left his body without 
 a head ; all his people fell by my hand." 
 
348 DEATH OF CUCHULAIN 
 
 "O great Conall, who did not fail us, whose head is 
 this you hold in your hand ? Since the Hound of Feats 
 is not living, what do you bring in satisfaction for his 
 head ? " 
 
 " The head of the son of Fergus of the Horses, a 
 destroyer in every battle-field, my sister's son of the 
 narrow tower ; I have struck his head from his body." 
 
 " Whose is that head to the west, with fair hair, the 
 head that is spoiled with grief? I used to know his 
 voice ; I was for a while his friend." 
 
 " That is he that struck down the Hound, Lugaid, son 
 of Curoi of the Rhymes. His body was laid out straight 
 and fair, I struck his head off afterwards." 
 
 " Whose are those two heads farther out, great Conall 
 of good judgment ? For the sake of your friendship, 
 do not hide the names of the men put down by your 
 arms." 
 
 " The heads of Laigaire and Clar Cuilt, two men that 
 fell by my wounds. It was they wounded faithful Cuchu- 
 lain ; I made my weapons red in their blood." 
 
 "Whose are those heads farther to the east, great 
 Conall of bright deeds? The hair of the two is of 
 the one colour ; their cheeks are redder than a calf's 
 blood." 
 
 " Brave Cullain and hardy Cunlaid, two that were 
 used to overcome in their anger. There to the east, 
 Emer, are their heads ; I left their bodies in a red 
 pool." 
 
 " Whose are those three heads with evil looks I see 
 before me to the north ? Their faces blue, their hair 
 black ; even hard Conall's eye turns from them." 
 
 " Three of the enemies of the Hound, daughters of 
 Calatin, wise in enchantments ; they are the three witches 
 killed by me, their weapons in their hands." 
 
 ' O great Conall, father of kings, whose is that head 
 that would overcome in the battle ? His bushy hair is 
 
DEATHOFEMER 349 
 
 gold-yellow ; his head-dress is smooth and white like 
 silver." 
 
 " It is the head of the son of Red-Haired Ross, son 
 of Necht Min, that died by my strength. This, Emer, 
 is his head ; the high king of Leinster of Speckled 
 Swords." 
 
 " O great Conall, change the story. How many of 
 the men that harmed him fell by your hand that does 
 not fail, in satisfaction for the head of Cuchulain?" 
 
 " It is what I say, ten and seven scores of hundreds is 
 the number that fell, back to back, by the anger of 
 my hard sword and of my people." 
 
 " O Conall, what way are they, the women of Ireland, 
 after the Hound ? Are they mourning the son of 
 Sualtim ? are they showing respect through their grief? " 
 
 "O Emer, what shall I do without my Cuchulain, 
 my fine nurseling, going in and out from me, to- 
 night ? " 
 
 " O Conall, lift me to the grave. Raise my stone 
 over the grave of the Hound ; since it is through grief 
 for him I go to death, lay my mouth to the mouth of 
 Cuchulain. 
 
 " I am Emer of the Fair Form ; there is no more 
 vengeance for me to find ; I have no love for any man. 
 It is sorrowful my stay is after the Hound." 
 
 And after that Emer bade Conall to make a wide, 
 very deep grave for Cuchulain ; and she laid herself 
 down beside her gentle comrade, and she put her 
 mouth to his mouth, and she said : " Love of my life, 
 my friend, my sweetheart, my one choice of the men of 
 the earth, many is the woman, wed or unwed, envied 
 me till to-day : and now I will not stay living after 
 you." 
 
 And her life went out from her, and she herself and 
 Cuchulain were laid in the one grave by Conall. And he 
 raised the one stone over them, and he wrote their 
 
350 DEATH OF CUCHULAIN 
 
 names in Ogham, and he himself and all the men of 
 Ulster keened them. 
 
 But the three times fifty queens that loved Cuchulain 
 saw him appear in his Druid chariot, going through 
 Emain Macha ; and they could hear him singing the 
 music of the Sidhe. 
 
 THE END 
 
NOTE BY W. B. YEATS ON THE CONVER- 
 SATION OF CUCHULAIN AND EMER. 
 
 (Page 23). 
 
 This conversation, so full of strange mythological information, 
 is an example of the poet speech of ancient Ireland. One comes 
 upon this speech here and there in other stories and poems. One 
 finds it in the poem attributed to Ailbhe, daughter of Cormac Mac 
 Art, and quoted by O'Curry in " MS. Materials,' of which one 
 verse is an illusion to a story given in Lady Gregory's book : 
 
 '*The apple tree of high Aillinn, 
 The yew of Baile of little land, 
 Though they are put into lays, 
 Rough people do not understand them." 
 
 One finds it too in the poems which Brian, Son of Tuireann, 
 chanted when he did not wish to be wholly understood. " That is 
 a good poem, but I do not understand a word of its meaning," 
 said the kings before whom he chanted ; but his obscurity was 
 more in a roundabout way of speaking than in mythological 
 allusions. There is a description of a banquet, quoted by Professor 
 Kuno Meyer, where hens' eggs are spoken of as " gravel of Glenn 
 Ai," and leek, as " a tear of a fair woman," and some eatable sea- 
 weed, dulse, perhaps, as a "net of the plains of Rein" — that is to 
 say, of the sea — and so on. He quotes also a poem that calls the 
 sallow, " the strength of bees," and the hawthorn " the barking of 
 hounds," and the gooseberry bush " the sweetest of trees," and the 
 yew, "the oldest of trees." 
 
 This poet speech somewhat resembles the Icelandic court 
 
 poetry, as it is called, which certainly required alike for the writing 
 
 and understanding of it a great traditional culture. Its descriptions 
 
 of shields and tapestry, and its praises of Kings, that were first 
 
 written, it seems, about the tenth century, depended for their effects 
 
 on just this heaping up of mythological allusions, and the "Eddas" 
 
 ?5l 
 
352 NOTES 
 
 were written to be a granary for the makers of such poems. But 
 by the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries they have come to be as 
 irritating to the new Christian poets and writers who stood outside 
 their tradition, as are the more esoteric kinds of modern verse to 
 unlettered readers. They were called " obscure," and " speaking 
 in riddles," and the like. 
 
 It has sometimes been thought that the Irish poet speech was 
 indeed but a copy of this court poetry, but Professor York Powell 
 contradicts this, and thinks it is not unlikely that the Irish poems 
 influenced the Icelandic, and made them more mythological and 
 obscure. 
 
 I am not scholar enough to judge the Scandinavian verse, but 
 the Irish poet speech seems to me at worst an over-abundance 
 of the esoterism which is an essential element in all admirable 
 literature, and I think it a folly to make light of it, as a recent 
 writer has done. Even now, verse no less full of symbol and myth 
 seems to me as legitimate as, let us say, a religious picture full 
 of symbolic detail, or the symbolic ornament of a Cathedral. 
 
 Nash's— 
 
 " Brightness falls from the air. 
 Queens have died young and fair, 
 Dust hath closed Helen's eye " — 
 
 must seem as empty as a Scald's song, or the talk of Cuchulain 
 and Emer, to one who has never heard of Helen, or even to one 
 who did not fall in love with her when he was a young man. And 
 if we were not accustomed to be stirred by Greek myth, even with- 
 out remembering it very fully, "Berenice's ever burning hair' would 
 not stir the blood, and especially if it were put into some foreign 
 tongue, losing those resounding " b's " on the way. 
 
 The mythological events Cuchulain speaks of give mystery to 
 the scenery of the tales, and when they are connected with the 
 battle of Magh Tuireadh, the most tremendous of mythological 
 battles, or anything else we know much about, they are full of 
 poetic meaning or historical interest. The hills that had the shape 
 of a sow's back at the coming of the Children of Miled, remind 
 one of Borlase's conviction that the pig was the symbol of the 
 mythological ancestry of the Firbolg, which the Children of Miled 
 were to bring into subjection, and of his suggestion that the 
 magical pigs that Maeve numbered were some Firbolg tribe that 
 Maeve put down in war. And everywhere that esoteric speech 
 brings the odour of the wild woods into our nostrils. 
 
 The earlier we get, the more copious does this traditional and 
 symbolical element in literature become. Till Greece and Rome 
 
NOTES 353 
 
 created a new culture, a sense of the importance of man, all that we 
 understand by humanism, nobody wrote history, nobody described 
 anything as we understand description. One called up the image 
 of a thing by comparing it with something else, and partly 
 because one was less interested in man, who did not seem to be 
 important, than in divine revelations, in changes among the 
 heavens and the gods, which can hardly be expressed at all, and 
 only by myth, by symbol, by enigma. One was always losing 
 oneself in the unknown, and rushing to the limits of the world. 
 Imagination was all in all. Is not poetry, when all is said, but 
 a little of this habit of mind caught as in the beryl stone of a 
 Wizard ? 
 
NOTES 
 
 The Irish text, from which the greater number of the stories in 
 this book have been taken, has been published either in Irische 
 Texte or the Revue Celtiqiie^ or by O'Curry in Atlantis and else- 
 where, and I have worked from this text, comparing it with the 
 translations that have been already made. In some cases, as in the 
 greater part of " The War for the Bull of Cuailgne," a very small 
 part of the Irish text has as yet been printed, and I have had to 
 work by comparing and piecing together various translations. 
 
 I have had to put a connecting sentence of my own here and 
 there, and I have condensed many passages, and I have sometimes 
 tried to give the meaning of a formula that has lost its old meaning. 
 Thus I have exchanged for the grotesque accounts of Cuchulain's 
 distortion — whicn no doubt merely meant that in time of great 
 strain or anger he had more than human strength — the more simple 
 formula that his appearance changed to the appearance of a god. 
 In the same way, I have left out Levarcham's distortion, which was 
 the recognised way of saying she was a swift messenger. 
 
 As to the date of the stories, I cannot do better than quote from 
 Mr Alfred Nutt's " Cuchulain, the Irish Achilles" :— 
 
 " It suffices to say that we possess a MS. literature of which 
 Cuchulain and his contemporaries are the subject, the extent of 
 which may be roughly reckoned at 2000 8vo pages. The great 
 bulk of this is contained in MSS. which are older than the twelfth 
 century, or which demonstrably are copied from pre-twelfth- 
 century MSS. ; where post-twelfth-century versions alone remain, 
 the story itself is nearly always known from earlier sources ; in 
 fact, there is hardly a single scene or incident in the whole cycle 
 which has reached us only in MSS. of the thirteenth and following 
 centuries. At the same time a not inconsiderable portion of the 
 cycle comes before us altered in language, and to some extent 
 in content, style of narrative, and characterisation, showing that 
 the saga as a whole remained a living element of Irish culture and 
 participated in the accidents of its evolution. 
 
356 NOTES 
 
 " The great bulk of this literature is, as I have said, certainly 
 older than the twelfth century ; but we can carry it back much 
 farther, apart from any considerations based upon the subject- 
 matter. Arguments of a nature purely philological, based upon 
 the language of the texts, or critical, based upon the relations of 
 the various MSS. to each other, not only allow, but compel us 
 to date the redaction of the principal Cuchulain stories, substan- 
 tially in the form under which they have survived, back to the 
 seventh to ninth centuries. Whether or no they are older yet, is 
 a question that cannot be answered without preHminary examina- 
 tion of the subject-matter. In the meantime it is something to 
 know that the Cuchulain stories were put into permanent literary 
 form at about the same date as Beowulf, some loo to 250 years 
 before the Scandinavian mythology crystallised into its present 
 form, at least 200 years before the oldest Charlemagne romances, 
 and probably 300 years before the earliest draft of the Nibe- 
 lungenlied. Irish is the most ancient vernacular literature of 
 modern Europe, a fact which of itself commends it to the attention 
 of the student." 
 
 A critical account of this and the other Irish cycles is also given 
 in Dr Douglas Hyde's " Literary History of Ireland." 
 
 The Tuatha de Danaan, or the Sidhe, so often mentioned, were 
 the divine race, the people of the Gods of Dana, who conquered 
 the Fomor, the powers of darkness and their helpers the Firbolgs, 
 in the battle of Magh Tuireadh, and possessed Ireland until they 
 were in their turn conquered by the children of the Gael, under the 
 leadership of the Sons of Miled. Then they became invisible, and 
 made their home in hills and raths. 
 
 The Morrigu was their goddess of battle, and Angus Og, Son of 
 the Dagda, their god of youth and love, and Lugh, the Master of 
 many Arts, their Hermes, their Apollo, and Manannan, Son of Lir, 
 their Sea-God, or, as some say, the sea itself. 
 
 The spelling of Irish names for English readers is always a 
 difficulty. I have not gone by any fixed rule, but have taken the 
 spelling of names from various good authorities. As to pronuncia- 
 tion, the modern is generally used, but we know so little what the 
 ancient pronunciation was, that we are left some freedom, and 
 some words have taken a shape from English-speaking generations, 
 that it is hard to change. Teamhair, for instance, has become Tara 
 through a mistaken use of the genitive ; Muirthemne is called by 
 Irish speakers " Mur-hev-na," but others call it Muir'them-rae, 
 
NOTES 
 
 357 
 
 and I am inclined to prefer this for the charm of its sound, and I 
 do not see any stronger reason against using it than against 
 sounding as we do the "s" in Paris. After all, it has not yet been 
 definitely settled whether Trafalgar is to be spoken in the Spanish 
 or the English way ; English poets have given it one or the other 
 emphasis. This is the approximate pronunciation of some of the 
 more difficult names : — 
 
 Aedh 
 
 Aoife 
 
 Badb 
 
 Bodb 
 
 Cliodna 
 
 Cobhthach . 
 
 Conchubar . 
 
 Cuailgne 
 
 Cuchulain . 
 
 Dun Sobairce 
 
 Emain 
 
 Eochaid 
 
 Eocho 
 
 Eoghan 
 
 Fernmaighe 
 
 Glen na (m) Bodhar 
 
 Inbhir 
 
 Lugh 
 
 Magh Tuireadh 
 
 Muirthemne 
 
 Niamh 
 
 Rudraige . 
 
 Sidhe 
 
 Slieve Suidhe Laig 
 
 Suibnes 
 
 Teamhair . 
 
 Tuathmumain 
 
 hen 
 
 Ae (rhyming to " day "). 
 
 Eefa. 
 
 Bibe (as "jibe"). 
 
 Bove. 
 
 Cleevna. 
 
 Cowhach. 
 
 Conachoor. 
 
 Cooley. 
 
 Cuhoolin, or Cu-huUin. 
 
 Dom Severka. 
 
 A win. 
 
 Yohee. 
 
 Yucho. 
 
 Owen. 
 
 Farney. 
 
 Glen na Mower (as ** bower"). 
 
 Inver. 
 
 Loo. 
 
 Moytirra. 
 
 Mvir-hev-na. 
 
 Nee-av. 
 
 Rury. 
 
 Shee. 
 
 Slieve see lihon. 
 
 Sivness. 
 
 T'yower. 
 
 Too-moon. 
 
 I give below some names of places that can still be identified- 
 
 Ard Inver . 
 Argatros 
 Ath Cliath . 
 Ath Firdiadh 
 Ath Truim . 
 Beinn Edair 
 Boinne River 
 Bregia 
 
 Mouth of the Avoca, Co. Wicklow. 
 
 On the Nore, Co. Kilkenny. 
 
 Dublin. 
 
 (Ferdiad's Ford) Ardee. 
 
 Trim. 
 
 Howth. 
 
 The Boyne. 
 
 Bray. 
 
358 
 
 NOTES 
 
 Bri Leith . 
 Brug na Boinne 
 Carraige 
 
 Cerna 
 
 Clarthe 
 Cleitech 
 
 Conaille-Muirthemne 
 
 Cniachan . 
 Cuailgne 
 Cuilsilinne . 
 Drium Criadh 
 Dundealgan 
 Dun Rudraige 
 Dun Scathach 
 Dun Sobairce 
 
 Emain Macha 
 
 Esro 
 
 Fearbile 
 
 Fenien 
 
 Gairech and Ilgaireth 
 
 Hill of Brughean Mor 
 
 Hy Maine . 
 
 Inver Colptha 
 
 Loch Cuan . 
 
 Loch Riach 
 
 Leodus, Cadd, and Ork 
 
 Magh Ai 
 
 Magh Breagh 
 
 Magh Mucrime 
 
 Magh Slecht 
 
 Muirthemne 
 
 Road of Midluachair 
 
 Sionnan 
 
 Sleamhain of Meath 
 Slieve Breagh 
 Slieve Cuilinn 
 Slieve Fuad 
 
 In Co. Longford. 
 
 On the Boyne. 
 
 Kerry. 
 /Probably River Muilchean, Co. 
 \ Limerick. 
 
 Clara, near Mullingar. 
 
 On the Boyne. 
 /Between the Cooley Mountains 
 \ and the Boyne. 
 
 In Co. Roscommon. 
 
 Cooley, Co. Louth. 
 
 South-west of Kells. 
 
 Drumcree, Co. Westmeath. 
 
 Dundalk. 
 
 Dundrum, Co. Down. 
 
 Isle of Skye. 
 
 Dunseveiick, Co. Antrim. 
 
 Navan fort, near Armagh. A 
 description and plan of Emain 
 Macha are given by D'Arbois 
 de Jubainville in Revue 
 Celtique, vol. xvi. 
 
 Ballyshannon. 
 
 In Co. Westmeath. 
 
 At Slieve na Man, Co. Tipperary. 
 
 Two hills near Mullingar. 
 /In Parish of Drumany, Co, 
 \^ Westmeath. 
 
 /A part of Roscommon, bordering 
 (^ Sligo and Mayo. 
 
 Estuary of the Boyne. 
 
 Strangford Loch. 
 
 In Co. Galway. 
 
 Lewis, Shetland, and Orkney. 
 
 In Co. Roscommon. 
 
 In East Meath. 
 
 Near Athenry, Co. Galway. 
 
 Near Ballymagauran, Co. Cavan. 
 fThe part of Co. Louth bordering 
 -! the sea, between the Boyne 
 1^ and Dundalk. 
 
 /The north-eastern road from 
 \ Teamhair. 
 
 The Shannon. 
 
 Near Mullingar. 
 
 Co. Louth. 
 
 Co. Londonderry. 
 
 Co. Armagh. 
 
NOTES 359 
 
 Slieve Mis . 
 
 Slieve Suidhe Laighen 
 
 Scigger Isles 
 
 Sudiam 
 
 Tailltin 
 
 Teamhair . 
 
 Tuathmumain 
 
 Uaran Garad 
 
 Usnech 
 
 Wave of Assaroe . 
 Wave of Cliodna . 
 Wave of Inbhir 
 
 Co. Kerry. 
 
 Mount Leinster. 
 
 Faroe Isles. 
 
 Sweden. 
 
 Telltown. 
 
 Tara, Co. Meath. 
 
 Thomond. 
 
 River Cruind. 
 /The Hill of Usnogh in West 
 V Meath. 
 
 At Ballyshannon. 
 
 At Glandore, Co. Cork. 
 
 Mouth of the Bann. 
 
 The following is a list of the authorities I have been chiefly 
 helped by in putting these stories together. But I cannot make 
 it quite accurate, for I have sometimes transferred a mere phrase, 
 sometimes a whole passage from one story to another, where it 
 seemed to fit better. I have occasionally used Scottish Gaelic 
 versions, as in the account of Deirdre's birth, and the manner of 
 her death, and in a part of "The Only Son of Aoife." " O'Curry " 
 stands for his two books, "The Manners and Customs of Ancient 
 Ireland," and "MS. Materials for Ancient Irish History," and his 
 contributions to Atlantis. 
 
 Birth of Cuchulain.— O'Curry ; De Jubainville, Epopee Celtiqtie ; 
 Nutt, Voj/a^e of Bran ; Kuno Meyer, Revtte Celtiqtie ; Duvau, 
 Revue Celtique ; Windisch, Irische Texte ; Stokes, Irische Texte. 
 
 Boy Deeds of Cuchlain.— Same as "War for the Bull of Cuailgne." 
 
 Courting of Emer. — Kuno Meyer, Revue Celtique; Kuno Meyer, 
 Archceological Review ; Dr Douglas Hyde, Literary History of 
 Ireland ; De Jubainville, Epopie Celtique ; O'Curry. 
 
 Bricriu's Feast, and The Championship of Ulster. — Text, with 
 Henderson's translation, published by Irish Texts Society ; De 
 Jubainville, Epopee Celtique ; O'Curry ; Windisch, Irische Texte. 
 
 The High King of Ireland. — Whitley Stokes, Revue Celtique; 
 O'Curry ; Zimmer, Keltische Studien. 
 
 Fate of the Children of Usnech, — Text and Translations published 
 by the Society for the Preservation of the Irish Language ; Hyde, 
 Literary History of Ireland ; Hyde, Zeitschrift Celt. Philologie; 
 O'Curry ; Whitley Stokes, Irische Texte ; Windisch, Irische Texte; 
 Cameron, Reliquae Celticae ; O'Flanagan, Transactions of Gaelic 
 
36o NOTES 
 
 Society ; O'Flanagan, Reltquae Celticae ; Carmichael, Transactions 
 of Gaelic Society ; Ultonian Ballads ; De Jubainville, Epopie 
 Celtiqtie ; Dottin, Revue Celtiqiie. 
 
 The Dream of Angus. — Miiller, Revue Celtique. 
 
 Cruachan. — Kuno Meyer, Revue Celtique ; O'Beirne Crowe, Proceedings 
 of Royal Irish Academy ; O' Curry ; Rhys, Celtic Heathendoju. 
 
 Wedding of Maine Morgor. — Windisch, Irische Texte. 
 
 War for the Bull of Cuailgne, and Awakening of Ulster. — MS. 
 translations by O'Daly in Royal Irish Academy; MS. translation 
 by O'Looney in Royal Irish Academy ; O'Curry ; Standish Hayes 
 O'Grady's S>Tiopsis in Miss Hull's Cuchtilain Saga ; Zimmer, 
 Synopsis in Zeitschrift fiir Vergleichende Sprachforschung. 
 
 The jTwo Bulls. — Windisch, Irische Texte; Nutt, Voyage of Bran ; 
 O'Curr}'. 
 
 The Only Jealousy of Emer, and Instruction to a Prince. — 
 O'Curry, Atlantis ; De Jubainville, Epopie Celtique. 
 
 The Sons of Doel Dermait. — Windisch, Irische Texte ; Rhys, Hibbert 
 Lectures. 
 
 Battle of Rosnaree. — Text with Father Hogan's translation; Todd 
 Lecture Series; O'Curry; Kuno Meyer, Revue Celtique. 
 
 Only Son of Aoife. — Keating's History of Ireland ; Miss Brooke's 
 Reliques ; Curtain's Folk Tales ; Some Gaelic Ballads. 
 
 Gathering at Muirthemne, and Death of Cuchulain. — " Brislech 
 Mor Magh Muirthemne," and "Deargruatar Conaill Cearnaig" — 
 published in Gaelic Journal^ 1901 ; S. Hayes O'Grady in Miss 
 Hull's Cuchulain Saga; Whitley Stokes, Revue Celtique; an 
 unpublished MS. in Dr Hyde's possession. 
 
 We must be grateful to all these scholars, workers, or compilers, 
 those who have passed away, and those who are living. And 
 I am personally grateful to my friend Douglas Hyde for patient 
 answering of many questions ; and to my friend and critic, W. 
 B. Yeats, for his kindness and for his severity. 
 
 A. G. 
 
THE OLD STORIES OF IRELAND. 
 
 TWO WORKS TREATING OF GAELIC LEGENDS. 
 Edited and Translated by LADY GREGORY. 
 
 Poets and Dreamers. 
 
 STUDIES AND TRANSLATIONS FROM THE IRISH. 
 
 Crown Svo. 6s. 
 
 " Lady Gregory has written the most charming book that has come out of Ireland for 
 many a long day. It consists of original sketches and of translations from the Irish, and 
 from beginning to end the atmosphere, which is delightful, is the same. ... It has 
 charm, and there is everywhere a felicity of simple phrase that is infinitely refreshing. 
 . . . We are grateful to Lady Gregory for some hours that could not have been more 
 pleasant if they had been spent in the country in actual converse with poets and 
 dreamers." — Morning Post. 
 
 " In this book the Irish peasant is for the first time allowed to speak for himself. In 
 ' Cuchulain of Muirthemne ' Lady Gregory had already invented a new form of English : 
 the first really faithful transcript of the speech of the Irish peasant, as he thinks in Irish 
 and speaks in English. Here, in these folk-tales collected from old men and women on 
 the roads, and from the cabins of poor people, and from the workhouses, and in these 
 songs, ballads, and plays translated from Irish we have a grave, quaint, simple, and 
 sinewy language, which is not a consciously naive or experimental thing, but a living 
 speech, which the present writer has heard spoken, in exactly this form and with just 
 these subtly indicated cadences, in Galway, in Sligo, and on the islands of Aran. ... It 
 is perhaps in the translations of the poems and plays of Dr Hyde that the English reader 
 will find the most interesting part of an exceptionally and variously interesting book." — 
 Athenceiitn. 
 
 " In this book of simple and beautiful prose Lady Gregory has preserved much old 
 Irish tradition, and much old lore and folk-lore, that has gone in waif words among the 
 cottars for many generations. ... In Ireland, where folk have never forgotten that their 
 ancestors were kings and heroes, and that the ancient gods walked upon the hills they 
 plough, there is a great bcdy of tradition, and much beautiful lore, which is warmth and 
 sweetness to many poor souls, and a comfort to many dreamers whose hearts have been 
 too filled with vision to find peace in that land or in these times. . . . This book takes 
 the reader to the passionate green heart of Ireland." — The Speaker. 
 
 " Lady Gregory's touch is an excellent one, and her fashion of interpreting and bring- 
 ing before us the local talk is pleasant and individual to a high degree. . . . The first, 
 also on the whole the most delightful, of these essays or chapters is the one that deals 
 with the poet Raftery, a Connaught bard. . . . The chapters dealing with her own 
 people and neighbours are all touched in with the same light, sure hand. ' Moun- 
 tain Theology ' and ' Workhouse Dreams' especially, are full of charm, fresh, clear, and 
 penetrating . . . her book is one to which all lovers of Ireland and Irish literature will 
 turn with keen enjoyment, and that more than once." — The Times. 
 
 " A fascinating group of studies and translations from the Irish. . . . Erudition and 
 tireless research reveal a new world of unimagined charm." — Outlook. 
 
 " It is agreed upon all hands that this writer's English version of the story of the Red 
 Branch of Ulster is the best thing in a literary way that has come out of Ireland for 
 some years. The present miscellany of translated poems and stories follows up the 
 success of that work in a book no less attractive." — Scotsman. 
 
 Gods and Fighting Men. 
 
 THE STORY OF THE TUATHA DE DANAAN AND OF THE 
 
 FIANNA OF IRELAND. 
 
 Large Crown Svo. 
 
 London: JOHN MURRAY, ALBEMARLE STREET, W. 
 
THE LATEST SIX SHILLING NOVELS. 
 
 THE PINCH OF PROSPERITY. By Horack Annesley 
 Vachell, Author of "The Shadowy Tliird," "John Charity." 
 
 " We have nothing but praise for this book. Wc have read every word of it, and can 
 
 conwiieotiouiJy rccomiaend xl.' —LadUi Held. 
 
 THE WIND IN THE ROSE BUSH. By Mary E. Wilkins, 
 AolhrjT of "The Heart's Highway." 
 
 " Here we have the be»t and ino^t le^timatc kind of gbo&t Uory — the kind which is 
 thrilliog io effect and ingenious in incident, yet eatcotially sober in its method." — 
 Wutmuutrr Gm^ttt. 
 
 DANNY. By Alfred Oi.i.ivant, Author of " Owd liob." 
 
 . . The work is notable for the fir.cne:,' <A \\\ sympathy and the delicacy of its 
 tiatural art, as well a» new io its kiri'! A s'-y real story, of real httmour, real 
 
 pathfj*, and real chara'.t^r. — Timet. 
 
 MOTH AND RUST w.th Geoffrey! Wife and the 
 
 Pitfall. 1-y Maj V < i :i i:v, .A-.thor of •• kc«i Tottxi^e." 
 
 I; - ■ 
 
 ) »r.. »,.t:. • . I ..Uh 
 
 ' • nan character. . . . We 
 
 >ji m wtvtj wljlCii, hr%]'ir\ f^tng well put 
 
 TALES FROM A FAk RIDING By Oliver <;mo.ns, Author of 
 
 IK' ( winplcat Barhclor." 
 
 "... dearly coocaivcd aad pow«rfiiUy told . . . thtf am «BoeU«Bt is tb«r peculur 
 • v«ak apot aaoac ckcfls."— TAf CtMn^VML 
 
 THE TRIAL OP If AN. An Allegorical RooMnce. 
 
 li i> a Ikac ojttccpuoA, cm^hiiiy tbovclM emtmad natimi wick ■• Mnall literary skill 
 . . . (or iu sioooity, the bcMity of such a4 iu thoaglM, aad iu mmqtf subjca, the 
 work oartainly mtnu aumtiom."" Thg Tumi. 
 
 LESLIE FARQUHAR. By Ko&alihe Mascon, Author of "In 
 
 f JMi Town. 
 
 " It IS a pUaMie to take up sodi a caraiaJ iniibid work. . . . Decidedly ' I>e - 
 Fwqabar ' is a book to be read."— JiMiAnwa. 
 
 THE CAVALIER By G. W. Cable. 
 
 "A >ivid ar.d faviinatiBg M.'jnt, wherein style aod wbetanor alike driind aad reward 
 Lbc readily ol every \ku<."—J'aJi AfeUJ (,MutU 
 
 THE VALLEY OF DECISION. By Luith Wharton, Author of 
 
 " ( r.' : .! Inktanccx," etc. 
 
 . . . d le^Iiy (>rwlianc work. It is v*ty lon^, but tbe six bufkdred a/td fifty pageik do 
 not weary or*e. ... As we read we are remiti'lcd of Vernon Lee, of ' John Int^ks^nt,' c4 
 IV^txacoo, knd, in of<e lA the txKAt fttxikiiiK pbssaces «/f the story, uf Cayli'.A(rik.' — /'A^ 
 
 TRISTRAM OF BLENT. By Akthowy Hope, Author of "The 
 
 I'f. :.• ; / /■ ■ '.I. «.tC- 
 
 "Tbere J. vr.;;ir ii > v* - ^r.tructioo, of ckaractcr, and of dialogue . . c/ten rpitcraui- 
 oAea paraiioxkal, but »(iU mm% «Aca rtiBjlMfally buincrt^ous."— 7A« Viitui. 
 
 London : JOHN MURRAY, ALBEMARLE STREET, W. 
 
PRINTED AT Till-: lODlNlUilUJI I'llESS, 
 1) AND 11 YOUNU 8THEET. 
 
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