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 JEREMIAH 
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 HERO-TALES OF IRELAND 
 
THE SHORT DUN CHAMPION WENT WITH ONE LEAP FROM 
 
 THE DECK OF THE SHIP TO THE STRAND. 
 
 FRONTISPIECE. See page 87. 
 
HEROmES 
 IREMND 
 
 JEREMIAH CURTIN 
 
 Jltustrations^ 
 MAURICE DAY 
 
 EDUC.> 
 PSVCH, 
 UBRMir 
 
 /' 
 
 BOSTON 
 LITTLE. BEOWN.€r COMPANY 
 

 BBUC 
 UBRAiiiV 
 
 Copyright, i8g4. 
 By Jeremiah Curtin. 
 
 Copyright, ig2i, 
 By Little, Brown, and Company. 
 
 A II rights reserved. 
 
 Printed in the United States of America 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 Page 
 Elin Gow, the Swordsmith from Erin, and the 
 
 Cow Glas Gainach i 
 
 Mor's Sons and the Herder from Under the Sea . 35 
 Saudan Og and the Daughter of the King of 
 
 Spain ; Young Conal and the Yellow King's 
 
 Daughter 58 
 
 The Black Thief and King Conal's Three Horses 93 
 The King's Son from Erin, the Sprisawn, and the 
 
 Dark King 114 
 
 The Amadan Mor and the Gruagach of the 
 
 Castle of Gold 140 
 
 The King's Son and the White-Bearded Scolog . 163 
 
 914SG3 
 
vi Contents. 
 
 Page 
 
 Dyeermud Ulta and the King in South Erin . . 182 
 
 Cud, Cad, and Micad, Three Sons of the King of 
 
 Urhu 198 
 
 Cahal, Son of King Conor, in Erin, and Bloom of 
 
 Youth, Daughter of the King of Hathony . . 223 
 
 Coldfeet and the Queen of Lonesome Land . . . 242 
 
 Lawn Dyarrig, Son of the King of Erin, and the 
 
 Knight of Terrible Valley 262 
 
ILLUSTRATIONS. 
 
 The Short Dun Champion went with one leap 
 from the deck of the ship to the strand . . 
 
 He brought the cow every day, till he had the 
 seven years spent 
 
 He hurried through the door and disappeared . 
 
 They began to talk as Micky moved forward . . 
 
 With one blast from both nostrils, he sent the 
 old hag up into the sky 
 
 It was not long till his legs as well as his feet 
 were out of the house 
 
 Frontispiece 
 Page 
 
 10 
 
 44 
 147 
 
 193 
 
 243 
 
■» ' 1 > %• » > ,» 
 
 HERO-TALES OF IRELAND. 
 
 ELIN GOW, THE SWORDSMITH FROM 
 
 ERIN, AND THE COW GLAS 
 
 GAINACH. 
 
 ONCE King Under the Wave went on a visit 
 to the King of Spain, for the two were 
 great friends. The King of Spain was com- 
 plaining, and very sorry that he had not butter 
 enough. He had a great herd of cows; but for 
 all that, he had not what butter he wanted. He 
 said that he 'd be the richest man in the world 
 if he had butter in plenty for himself and his 
 people. 
 
 "Do not trouble your mind," said King Under 
 the Wave. "I will give you Glas Gainach, — a 
 cow that is better than a thousand cows, and her 
 milk is nearly all butter." 
 
 The King of Spain thanked his guest for the 
 promise, and was very glad. King Under the 
 Wave kept his word ; he sent Glas Gainach, and 
 
^ .. ^ Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 o« • ^^ * • • • • • ' ' 
 
 a messenger with instructions how to care for 
 the cow, and said that if she was angered in any 
 way she would not stay out at pasture. So the 
 king took great care of her; and the report went 
 through all nations that the King of Spain had 
 the cow called Glas Gainach. 
 
 The King of Spain had an only daughter, and 
 he was to give the cow with the daughter; and 
 the cow was a great fortune, the best dower in 
 the world at that time. The king said that the 
 man who would do what he put on him would get 
 the daughter and the cow. 
 
 Champions came from every part of the world, 
 each man to try his fortune. In a short time 
 hundreds and thousands of men lost their heads 
 in combat. The king agreed then that any man 
 who would serve seven years, and bring the cow 
 safe and sound every day of that time to the 
 castle, would have her. 
 
 In minding the cow, the man had to follow her 
 always, never go before her, or stop her, or hold 
 her. If he did, she would run home to the castle. 
 The man must stop with her when she wanted to 
 get a bite or a drink. She never travelled less 
 than sixty miles a day, eating a good bite here 
 and a good bite there, and going hither and 
 over. 
 
 The King of Spain never told men how to 
 
Elin Gow and the Cow Glas Gainach. 3 
 
 mind the cow; he wanted them to lose their 
 heads, for then he got their work without wages. 
 
 One man would mind her for a day; another 
 would follow her to the castle for two days; a 
 third might go with her for a week, and some- 
 times a man could not come home with her the 
 first day. The man should be loose and swift 
 to keep up with Glas Gainach. The day she 
 walked least she walked sixty miles; some days 
 she walked much more. 
 
 It was known in Erin that there was such a 
 cow, and there was a smith in Cluainte above 
 here, three miles north of Fintra, and his name 
 was Elin Gow. He was the best man in Erin to 
 make a sword or any weapon of combat. From 
 all parts of Erin, and from other lands also, 
 young princes who were going to seek their for- 
 tunes came to him to have him make swords for 
 them. Now what should happen but this.? It 
 came to him in a dream three nights in succes- 
 sion that he was to go for Glas Gainach, the 
 wonderful cow. At last he said, " I will go and 
 knock a trial out of her; I will go toward her." 
 
 He went to Tramor, where there were some 
 vessels. It was to the King of Munster that 
 he went, and asked would he lend him a vessel. 
 Elin Gow had made many swords for the king. 
 The king said that he would lend the vessel with 
 
Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 willingness, and that if he could do more for him 
 he would do it. Elin Gow got the vessel, and 
 put stores in it for a day and a year. He turned 
 its prow then to sea and its stern to land, and 
 was ploughing the main ocean till he steered 
 into the kingdom of Spain as well as if he had 
 had three pilots, and there was no one but him- 
 self in it. He let the wind guide the ship, and 
 she came into the very harbor of the province 
 where the king's castle was. 
 
 When Elin Gow came in, he cast two anchors 
 at the ocean side and one at the shore side, and 
 settled the ship in such a way that there was not 
 a wave to strike her, nor a wind to rock her, nor 
 a crow to drop on her; and he left her so that 
 nothing would disturb her, and a fine, smooth 
 strand before her : he left her fixed for a day and 
 a year, though he might not be absent an hour. 
 
 He left the vessel about midday, and went his 
 way walking, not knowing where was he or in 
 what kingdom. He met no man or beast in the 
 place. Late in the evening he saw, on a broad 
 green field at a distance, a beautiful castle, the 
 grandest he had ever set eyes on. 
 
 When he drew near the castle, the first house 
 he found was a cottage at the wayside ; and when 
 he was passing, v/ho should see him but a very 
 old man inside in the cottage. The old man 
 
Elin Gow and t^e Cow Glas Gainach. 5 
 
 rose up, and putting his two hands on the jambs 
 of the door, reached out his head and hailed him. 
 Elin Gow turned on his heel; then the old man 
 beckoned to him to enter. 
 
 There were four men in front of the castle, 
 champions of valor, practising feats of arms. 
 Flashes of light came from their swords. These 
 men were so trained that they would not let a 
 sword-stroke touch any part of their bodies. 
 
 "Come in," said the old man; ** maybe you 
 would like to have dinner. You have eaten 
 nothing on the way." 
 
 "That was a mistake of my own," said Elin 
 Gow; "for in my ship are provisions of all kinds 
 in plenty." 
 
 "Never mind," said the old man; "you will 
 not need them in this place;" and going to a 
 chest, he took out a cloth which he spread on a 
 table, and that moment there came on it food for 
 a king or a champion. Elin Gow had never 
 seen a better dinner in Erin. 
 
 " What is your name and from what place are 
 you ? " asked the old man of his guest. 
 
 "From Erin," said he, "and my name is Elin 
 Gow. What country is this, and what castle is 
 that out before us.?" 
 
 " Have you ever heard talk of the kingdom of 
 Spain } " asked the old man. 
 
Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 " I have, and 't is to find it that I left home. " 
 
 "Well, this is the kingdom of Spain, and that 
 building beyond is the castle of the king." 
 
 "And is it here that Glas Gainach is?" 
 
 "It is," said the old man. "And is it for her 
 that you left Erin > " 
 
 "It is then," said Elin Gow. 
 
 "I pity you," said the old man; "it would be 
 fitter for you to stop at home and mind some- 
 thing else than to come hither for that cow. 
 'T is not hundreds but thousands of men that 
 have lost their heads for her, and I am in dread 
 that you '11 meet the same luck." 
 
 "Well, I will try my fortune," said Elin Gow. 
 " 'T is through dreams that I came." 
 
 "I pity you," said the old man, "and more- 
 over because you are from Erin. I am half of 
 your country, for my mother was from Erin. Do 
 you know now how this cow will be got.** " 
 
 "I do not," said Elin Gow; "I know nothing 
 in the world about it." 
 
 "You will not be long," said the old man, 
 "without knowledge. I '11 tell you about her, 
 and what conditions will be put on you by the 
 king. He will bind you for the term of seven 
 years to bring the cow home safe and sound to 
 his castle every evening. If you fail to bring 
 her, your head will be cut off that same evening. 
 
Elin Gow and the Cow Glas Gainach. 7 
 
 That is one way by which many kings' sons and 
 champions that came from every part of the 
 world were destroyed. There are spikes all 
 around behind the castle, and a head on each 
 spike of them. You will see for yourself to- 
 morrow when you go to the castle, and a dread- 
 ful sight it is, for you will not be able to count 
 the heads that are there on the spikes. I will 
 give you now an advice that I have never given 
 any man before this, but I have heard of you 
 from my mother. You would be a loss to the 
 country you came from. You are a great man 
 to make swords and all kinds of weapons for 
 champions. 
 
 *' The king will not tell you what to do, but I '11 
 tell you: you '11 be as swift as you can when you 
 go with the cow; keep up with her always. The 
 day she moves least she will travel thirty miles 
 going and thirty miles coming, and you will have 
 rest only while she'll be feeding, and she will 
 take only a few minutes here and a few minutes 
 there; wherever she sees the best place she'll 
 take a bite; and do not disturb her wherever she 
 turns or walks, and do not go before her or drive 
 her. If you do what I say, there will be no fear 
 of you, if you can be so swift as to keep up with 
 the cow." 
 
 "I am not in dread of falling back," said Elin 
 Gow. 
 
8 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 "Then there will be no fear of you at all," said 
 the old man. 
 
 Elin Gow remained in the cottage that night. 
 In the morning the old man spread his cloth on 
 the table ; food and drink for a king or a cham- 
 pion were on it that moment. Elin Gow ate and 
 drank heartily, left good health with the old 
 man, and went to the castle. The king had a 
 man called the Tongue-speaker, who met and 
 announced every stranger. "Who are you or 
 why do you come to the castle.'* " asked this man 
 of Elin Gow. 
 
 "I wish to speak to the king about Glas 
 Gainach." 
 
 ** Oh," said the speaker, "you are badly wanted, 
 for it is three days since the last man that was 
 after her lost his head. Come, and I will show 
 it to you on the spike, and I am in dread your 
 own head will be in a like place." 
 
 "Never mind," said Elin Gow; "misfortune 
 cannot be avoided. We will do our best." 
 
 The Tongue-speaker went to the king then, and 
 said, "There is a man outside who has come for 
 Glas Gainach." 
 
 The king went out, and asked Elin Gow what 
 he wanted or what brought him. He told him, 
 as he told the speaker, that it was for the cow he 
 had come. 
 
Elin Gow and the Cow Glas Gainach. 9 
 
 "And is it in combat or in peace that you want 
 to get her?" 
 
 "'Tis in peace," said Elin Gow. 
 
 "You can try with swords or with herding, 
 whichever you wish." 
 
 "We will choose the herding," said Elin Gow. 
 
 "Well," said the king, "this is how we will 
 bind ourselves. You are to bring Glas Gainach 
 here to me every evening safe and sound during 
 seven years, and, if you fail, *t is your head that 
 you will lose. Do you see those heads on the 
 spikes there behind .!* 'Tis on account of Glas 
 Gainach they are there. If you come home with 
 the cow every night, she will be yours when seven 
 years are spent, — I bind myself to that," said 
 the king. 
 
 "Well," said Elin Gow, "I am satisfied with 
 the conditions." 
 
 Next morning Glas Gainach was let out, and 
 both went together all day, she and Elin Gow. 
 She went so swiftly that he threw his cap from 
 him ; he could not carry it half the day. All the 
 rest he had was while she was feeding in any 
 place. He was after her then till she came 
 home, and he brought her back as safe and sound 
 as in the morning. The king came out and wel- 
 comed him, saying, " You 've taken good care of 
 her; many a man went after her that did not 
 bring her home the first day." 
 
lo Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 "Life is sweet," said Elin Gow; **I did the 
 best hand I could. I know what I have to get 
 if I fail to bring her.'* 
 
 The king gave Elin Gow good food and drink, 
 so that he was more improving than failing in 
 strength, and made his way and brought the cow 
 every day till he had the seven years spent ; then 
 he said to the king, "My time is up; will I get 
 the cow.?" 
 
 "Oh, why not.?" said the king. "You will: 
 you have earned her well; you have done more 
 than any man who walked the way before. See 
 now how many have lost their heads; count 
 them. You are better than any of them. I 
 would not deny or break my word or agreement. 
 You were bound to bring her, and I am bound to 
 give her. Now she is yours and not mine, but 
 if she comes back here again, don't have any eye 
 after her; you '11 not get her." 
 
 "That will do," said Elin Gow. "I will take 
 good care not to let her come to you. I minded 
 her the last seven years." 
 
 "Well," said the king, "I don't doubt you." 
 
 They gave the cow food that morning inside; 
 did not let her out at all. Elin Gow bound the 
 cow in every way he wished, to bring her to the 
 vessel. He used all his strength, raised the two 
 anchors on the ocean side, pulled in the vessel 
 
HE BROUGHT THE COW EVERY DAY TILL HE HAD THE 
 SEVEN Y'EARS SPENT. Page 10. 
 
Elin Gow and the Cow Glas Gainach, 1 1 
 
 to put the cow on board. When Elin Gow was 
 on board, he turned the stem of the ship toward 
 the sea, and the stern toward land. He was sail- 
 ing across the wide ocean till he came to Tramor, 
 the port in Erin from which he had started when 
 going to Spain. Elin Gow brought Glas Gainach 
 on shore, took her to Cluainte, and was minding 
 her as carefully as when he was with the King 
 of Spain. 
 
 Elin Gow was the best man in Erin to make 
 swords and all weapons for champions; his name 
 was in all lands. The King of Munster had four 
 sons, and the third from the oldest was Cian. He 
 was neither dreaming nor thinking of anything 
 night or day but feats of valor; his grandfather, 
 Art Mac Cuin, had been a great champion, and 
 was very fond of Cian. He used to say, " Kind 
 father and grandfather for him; he is not like 
 his three brothers." 
 
 When twenty years old, Cian said, " I will go 
 to try my fortune. My father has heirs enough. 
 I would try other kingdoms if I had a sword." 
 
 "You may have my sword," said the father. 
 
 Cian gave the sword a trial, and at the first 
 turn he broke it. "No sword will please me," 
 said Cian, "unless, while grasping the hilt with 
 the blade pointed forward, I can bend the blade 
 till its point touches my elbow on the upper 
 
12 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 side, then let it spring back and bend it again 
 till the point touches my elbow on the under 
 side." 
 
 "There is not a man in Erin who could make 
 a sword like that," said the father, "but Elin 
 Gow, and I am full sure that he will not make it 
 at this time, for he is minding Glas Gainach. 
 He earned her well, and he will guard her; seven 
 years did he travel bareheaded without hat or 
 cap, — a thing which no man could do before 
 him. It would be useless to go to him, for he has 
 never worked a stroke in the forge since he 
 brought Glas Gainach to Erin, and he would not 
 let her go. He would make the sword but for 
 that. It's many a sword hQ made for me." 
 
 ** Well, I will try him," said Cian. "I will ask 
 him to make the sword." 
 
 Cian started, and never stopped till he stood 
 before Elin Gow at Cluainte, and told him who 
 he was. 
 
 Elin Gow welcomed the son of the king, and 
 said, "Your father and I were good friends in 
 our young years. It was often I made swords 
 and other weapons for him. And what is it that 
 brought you to-day } " 
 
 " It is a sword I want. I wish to go and seek 
 my fortune in some foreign land. I want a good 
 sword, and my father says you are the best man 
 in Erin to make one." 
 
Elin Gow and the Cow Glas Gainach, 1 3 
 
 "I was," said Elin Gow; "and I am sorry 
 that I cannot make you one now. I am engaged 
 in minding Glas Gainach ; and I would not trust 
 any one after her but myself, and I have enough 
 to do to mind her." 
 
 Cian told how the sword was to be made. 
 
 "Oh," said Elin Gow, "I would make it in 
 any way you like but for the cow, and I would 
 not wish to let your father's son go away with- 
 out a sword. I will direct you to five or six 
 smiths that are making swords now, in place of 
 me since I went for Glas Gainach." 
 
 He gave the names, and the king's son went 
 away. 
 
 None of them could make the sword in the 
 way Cian wanted. He came back to Elin Gow. 
 
 "You have your round made.^" said Elin 
 Gow. 
 
 "I have," said Cian, "but in vain; for none 
 of them would make the sword in the way asked 
 of him." 
 
 "Well, I do not wish to let you go. I will 
 take the risk." 
 
 "Very well," said Cian; "I will go after Glas 
 Gainach to-morrow, while you are making the 
 sword, and if I don't bring her, you may have 
 my head in the evening." 
 
 "Well," said Elin Gow, "I am afraid to trust 
 
14 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 you, for many a champion lost his head on ac- 
 count of her before; but I'll run the risk. I 
 must make the sword for you." 
 
 The king's son stopped that night with Elin 
 Gow, who gave him the best food and drink he 
 had, and let out Glas Gainach before him next 
 morning, and told him not to come in front of her 
 in any place where she might want to feed or 
 drink. He advised him in every way how to 
 take care of her. Away went Cian with the cow, 
 and he was doing the right thing all day. She 
 moved on always, and went as far as Caorha, 
 southwest of Tralee, the best spot of land in 
 Kerry for grass. When she had eaten enough, 
 she turned toward home, and Cian was at her tail 
 all the day. When he and Glas Gainach were 
 five miles this side of Tralee, near the water at 
 Derrymor, where she used to drink, Cian saw 
 her going close to deep water; he came before 
 her, and turned her back; and what did she do 
 but jump through the air like a bird, and then 
 she went out through the sea and left him. He 
 walked home sad and mournful, and came to Elin 
 Gow's house. The smith asked him had he the 
 cow, and he said, "I have not. I was doing 
 well till I came to Derrymor, and she went so 
 near deep water that I was afraid she would go 
 from me. I stopped her, and what did she do 
 
Elin Gow and the Cow Glas Gainach, 1 5 
 
 but fly away like a bird, and go out through the 
 sea. " 
 
 "God help us," said Elin Gow, "but the mis- 
 fortune cannot be helped." 
 
 "I am the cause," said Cian; "you may have 
 my head." 
 
 "What is done, is done. I would never take 
 the head off you, but she is a great loss to me. " 
 
 "I am willing and satisfied to give you my 
 head," said Cian. "Have you the sword made.? " 
 
 "I have," said Elin Gow. 
 
 Cian took the blade, tested it in every way, and 
 found that he had the sword he wanted. 
 
 He swore an oath then to Elin Gow that he 
 would not delay day or night, nor rest anywhere, 
 till he had lost his head or brought back Glas 
 Gainach. 
 
 "I am afraid your labor will be useless," said 
 Elin Gow, "and that you will never be able to 
 bring her back. I could not have brought her 
 myself but for the advice of an old man that I 
 met before I saw the King of Spain." 
 
 Cian went home to his father's castle. The 
 king saw him coming with the sword. "I see 
 that Elin Gow did not refuse you." 
 
 "He did not," said Cian. "He made the 
 sword, and it is a sore piece of work for him. 
 He has parted with Glas Gainach. I promised 
 
1 6 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 to give my head if I did not bring her home to 
 him in safety while he was making the sword. 
 I minded her well all day till she came to a place 
 where she used to drink water. I did not know 
 that; but it was my duty to know it, for he 
 directed me in every way needful how to mind 
 her. I was bringing her home in safety till I 
 brought her to Derrymor River; and I went be- 
 fore her to turn her back, — and that was foolish, 
 for he told me not to turn her while I was with 
 her, — and she did nothing but spring like a bird 
 and out to sea and away. I promised Elin Gow 
 in the morning if I did not bring the cow to give 
 him my head ; and I offered it when I came, as I 
 had not the cow, but he said, 'I will never take 
 the head off a son of your father, even for a 
 greater loss. ' And for this reason I will never 
 rest nor delay till I go for Glas Gainach and 
 bring her back to Elin Gow, or lose my head; so 
 make ready your best ship." 
 
 **The best ship," said the king, "is the one 
 that Elin Gow took." 
 
 The king's son put provisions for a day and a 
 year in the vessel. He set sail alone and away 
 with him through the main ocean, and he never 
 stopped till he reached the same place to which 
 Elin Gow had sailed before. He cast two 
 anchors on the ocean side, and one next the 
 
Elin Gow and the Cow Glas Gainach, 1 7 
 
 shore, and left the ship where there was no wind 
 to blow on her, no waves of the ocean to touch 
 her, no crows of the air to drop on her. He 
 went his way then, and was walking always till 
 evening, when he saw at a distance the finest 
 castle he had ever set eyes on. He went toward 
 it ; and when he was near, he saw four champions 
 at exercise near the castle. He was going on 
 the very same road that Elin Gow had taken, 
 and was passing the same cottage, when the old 
 man saw him and hailed him. He turned toward 
 the cottage. 
 
 "Come to my house and rest," said the old 
 man. **From what country are you, and what 
 brought you.^ " 
 
 ** I am a son of the King of Munster in Erin; 
 and now will you tell me what place is 
 this.?" 
 
 "You are in Spain, and the building beyond 
 there is the king's castle." 
 
 " Very well and good. It was to see the king 
 that I left Erin," said Cian. 
 
 " It is for Glas Gainach that you are here, I sup- 
 pose," said the old man. *' It is useless for you to 
 try; you never can bring her from the king. It 
 was a hundred times easier when Elin Gow 
 brought her ; it is not that way now, but by force 
 and bravery she is to be taken. It is a pity to 
 
1 8 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 have you lose your head, like so many kings and 
 champions." 
 
 "I must try," said Cian; "for it was through 
 me that Elin Gow lost Glas Gainach. I wanted 
 a sword to try my fortune, and there was not a 
 smith in Erin who could make it as I wanted 
 except Elin Gow; he refused. I told him that I 
 would give my head if I did not bring the cow 
 home to him in safety. I followed her well till, 
 on the way home, she went to drink near the sea, 
 and I went before her; that moment she sprang 
 away like a bird, and went out through the 
 water." 
 
 "I am afraid," said the old man, "that to get 
 her is more than you can do. You see those four 
 men } You must fight and conquer them before 
 you get Glas Gainach." 
 
 The old man spread out the table-cloth, and 
 they ate. 
 
 "I care not," said the king's son, "what comes. 
 I am willing to lose my head unless I can bring 
 back the cow." 
 
 *' Well," said the old man, *'you can try." 
 
 Next morning breakfast was ready for Cian; 
 he rose, washed his hands and face, prayed for 
 mercy and strength, ate, and going to the pole 
 of combat gave the greatest blow ever given 
 before on it. 
 
Elin Gow and the Cow Glas Gainach. 1 9 
 
 *'Run out," said the king to the Tongue- 
 speaker; *'see who is abroad." 
 
 "What do you want?" asked the Tongue- 
 speaker of Cian. 
 
 "The king's daughter and Glas Gainach," said 
 Cian. 
 
 The speaker hurried in and told the king. 
 The king went out and asked, " Are you the man 
 who wants my daughter and Glas Gainach.!* " 
 
 "I am," answered Cian. 
 
 "You will get them if you earn them," said 
 the king. 
 
 "If I do not earn them, I want neither the 
 daughter nor the cow," replied Cian. 
 
 The king ordered out then the four knights of 
 valor to kill Cian. He was as well trained as 
 they, for he had been practising from his twelfth 
 year, and he was more active. They were at 
 him all day, and he at them : he did not let one 
 blow from them touch his body; and if a man 
 were to go from the Eastern to the Western World 
 to see champions, 't is at them he would have 
 to look. At last, when Cian was hungry, and 
 late evening near, he sprang with the strength 
 of his limbs out of the joints of his bones, and 
 rose above them, and swept the heads of the 
 four before he touched ground. 
 
 The young champion was tired after the day. 
 
20 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 and went to the old man. The old man asked, 
 " What have you done ? " 
 
 "I have knocked the heads off the four cham- 
 pions of valor. " 
 
 The old man was delighted that the first day 
 had thriven in that way with Cian. He looked 
 at the sword. *'Oh, there is no danger," cried 
 he ; " you have the best sword I have ever seen, 
 and you'll need it, for you'll have more forces 
 against you to-morrow." 
 
 The old man and Cian spent the night in three 
 parts, — the first part in eating and drinking, the 
 second in telling tales and singing songs, the 
 third in sound sleep. 
 
 The old man told how he had been the cham- 
 pion of Spain, and at last when he grew old the 
 king gave him that house. 
 
 Next morning Cian washed his face and hands, 
 prayed for help and mercy, ate breakfast with the 
 old man, went to the pole of combat, and gave a 
 greater blow still than before. 
 
 *'What do you want this day.?" asked the 
 Tongue-speaker. 
 
 " I want three hundred men on my right hand, 
 three hundred on my left, three hundred after 
 my poll, three hundred out in front of me. " The 
 king sent the men out four deep through four 
 gates. Cian went at them, and as they came he 
 
Elin Gow and the Cow Glas Gainach. 2 1 
 
 struck the heads off them; and though they 
 fought bravely, in the evening he had the heads 
 off the twelve hundred. Cian then left the field, 
 and went to the old man. • 
 
 "What have you done after the day?" asked 
 the old man. 
 
 "I have stretched the king's forces." 
 
 "You '11 do well," said the old man. 
 
 The old champion put the cloth on the table, 
 and there was food for a king or a champion. 
 They made three parts of that night, — the first 
 for eating and drinking, the second for telling 
 tales and singing songs, the third for sleep and 
 sound rest. 
 
 Next morning, Cian gave such a blow on the 
 pole of combat that the king in his chamber was 
 frightened. 
 
 "What do you want this time.?" asked the 
 Tongue-speaker. 
 
 " I want the same number of men as yesterday." 
 
 The king sent the men out ; and the same fate 
 befell them as the other twelve hundred, and Cian 
 went home to the old man untouched. Next 
 morning Cian made small bits of the king's pole 
 of combat. 
 
 " Well, what do you want t " asked the Tongue- 
 speaker. 
 
 "Whatever I want, I don't want to be losing 
 time. Let out all your forces against me at once. " 
 
22 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 The king sent out all the forces he wished that 
 morning. The battle was more terrible than all 
 the others put together; but Cian went through 
 the king's forces, and at sunset not a man of 
 them was living, and he let no one nearer than 
 the point of his sword. 
 
 "How did the day thrive with you.?" asked 
 the old man when Cian came in. 
 
 "I have killed all the king's champions." 
 
 "I think," said the old man, "that you have 
 the last of his forces down now; but what you 
 have done is nothing to what is before you. The 
 king will come out and say to-morrow that you 
 will not get the daughter with Glas Gainach till 
 you eat on one biscuit what butter there is in 
 his storehouses, and they are all full ; you are to 
 do this in the space of four hours. He will give 
 you the biscuit. Take this biscuit from me, and 
 do you hide the one that he will give you, — 
 never mind it ; put as much as you will eat on 
 this, and there'll be no tidings of what butter 
 there is in the king's stores within one hour, — 
 it will vanish and disappear." 
 
 Cian was very glad when the old man told him 
 what to do. They spent that night as they had 
 the nights before. Next morning Cian break- 
 fasted, and went to the castle. The king saw 
 him coming, and was out before him. 
 
Elin Gow and the Cow Glas Gainack. 23 
 
 "What do you want this morning?" asked the 
 king. 
 
 " I want your daughter and Glas Gainach," said 
 Cian. 
 
 "Well," said the king, "you will not get my 
 daughter and Glas Gainach unless within four 
 hours you eat on this biscuit what butter there 
 is in all my storehouses in Spain ; and if you do 
 not eat the butter, your head will be on a spike 
 this evening." 
 
 The king gave him the biscuit. Cian went to 
 the first storehouse, dropped the king's biscuit 
 into his pocket, took out the one the old man 
 had given him, buttered it, and began to eat. 
 He went his way then, and in one hour there was 
 neither sign nor trace of butter in any storehouse 
 the king had. 
 
 That night Cian and the old man passed the 
 time in three parts as usual. "You will have 
 hard work to-morrow," said the old man, "but I 
 will tell you how to do it. The king will say 
 that you cannot have his daughter and Glas 
 Gainach unless within four hours you tan all the 
 hides in Spain, dry and green, and tan them as 
 well as a hand's breadth of leather that he will 
 give you. Here is a piece of leather like the 
 piece the king will give. Clap this on the first 
 hide you come to; and all the hides in Spain 
 
24 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 will be tanned in one hour, and be as soft and 
 smooth as the king's piece." 
 
 Next morning the king saw Cian coming, and 
 was out before him. "What do you want now? " 
 asked the king. 
 
 "Your daughter and Glas Gainach," said Cian. 
 
 "You are not to get my daughter and Glas 
 Gainach unless within four hours you tan all the 
 dry and green hides in Spain to be as soft and 
 smooth as this piece; and if you do not tan them, 
 your head will be on one of the spikes there 
 behind my castle this evening." 
 
 Cian took the leather, dropped it into his 
 pocket, and, taking the old man's piece, placed 
 it on the first hide that he touched. In one hour 
 all the hides in Spain were tanned, and they were 
 as soft and fine as the piece which the king gave 
 to Cian. 
 
 The old man and Cian spent this night as they 
 had the others. 
 
 "You will have the hardest task of all to- 
 morrow," said the old man. 
 
 "What is that.? " asked the young champion. 
 
 **The king's daughter will come to a window in 
 the highest chamber of the castle with a ball in 
 her hand: she will throw the ball through the 
 window, and you must catch it on your hurley, 
 and keep it up during two hours and a half; 
 
Elin Gow and the Cow Glas Gainach, 25 
 
 never let it touch the ground. There will be a 
 hundred champions striving to take the ball from 
 you, but follow my advice. The champions, not 
 knowing where the ball will come down when the 
 king's daughter throws it, will gather near the 
 front of the castle; and if either of them should 
 get the ball, he might keep it and spoil you. Do 
 you stand far outside; you will have the best 
 chance. I don't know, though, what you are to 
 do, as you have no hurley, but wait. In my 
 youth I was great to play at hurley, and I never 
 met a man that could match me. The hurley I 
 had then must be in this house somewhere." 
 
 The old man searched the house through, and 
 where did he find the hurley but up in the loft, 
 and it full of dust; he brought it down. Cian 
 swung it, knocked the dust from the hurley, and 
 it was as clean as when made. 
 
 "It is glad I am to find this, for any other 
 hurley in the kingdom would not do you, but only 
 this very one. This hurley has the virtue in it, 
 and only for that it would not do. " 
 
 Both were very glad, and made three parts of 
 that night, as they had of the nights before. Next 
 morning Cian rose, washed his hands and face, 
 and begged mercy and help of God for that day. 
 
 After breakfast he went to the king's castle, 
 and soon many champions came around him. 
 
26 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 The king was outside before him, and asked what 
 he wanted that day. 
 
 "I want your daughter and Glas Gainach." 
 
 "You will not get my daughter and Glas 
 Gainach till you do the work I '11 give, and I '11 
 give you the toughest task ever put before you. 
 At midday, my daughter will throw out a ball 
 through the window, and you must keep that ball 
 in the air for two hours and a half : it must never 
 touch ground in that time, and when the two 
 hours and a half are spent, you must drive it in 
 through the same window through which it went 
 out; if not, I will have your head on a spike this 
 evening. " 
 
 "God help us! " said Cian. 
 
 All the champions were together to see which 
 man would get the ball first; but Cian, thinking 
 of the old man's advice, stood outside them all. 
 At midday the king's daughter sent out the ball 
 through the highest window; and to whom should 
 it go but to Cian, and he had the luck of getting 
 it first. He drove the ball with his hurley, and 
 for two hours and a half he kept it in the air, and 
 did not let another man touch it. Then he gave 
 it a directing blow, and sent it in through the 
 window to the king's daughter. 
 
 The king watched the ball closely; and when 
 it went in, he ran to Cian, shook his hand warmly. 
 
Elin Gow and the Cow Glas Gainach. 27 
 
 and never stopped till he took him to his daugh- 
 ter's high chamber. She kissed him with joy 
 and great gladness. He had done a thing that 
 no other had ever done. 
 
 " I have won the daughter and Glas Gainach 
 from you now," said Cian. 
 
 "You have," said the king; "and they are both 
 yours. I give them with all my heart. You 
 have earned them well, and done what no other 
 man could do. I will give you one-half of the 
 kingdom till my death, and all of it from that 
 out." 
 
 Cian and the king's daughter were married. 
 A great feast was made, and a command given 
 out that all people of the kingdom must come to 
 the wedding. Every one came; and the wedding 
 lasted seven days and nights, to the pleasure of 
 all, and the greatest delight of the king. Cian 
 remained with the king; and after a time his wife 
 had a son, the finest and fairest child ever born 
 in Spain, and he was increasing so that what of 
 him did n't grow in the day grew in the night, 
 and what did not grow in the night grew in the 
 day, and if the sun shone on any child, it shone 
 on that one. The boy was called Cormac after 
 Cian's father, Cormac Mac Art. 
 
 Cian remained with the King of Spain till 
 Cormac' s age was a year and a half. Then he 
 
28 Hero- Tales of Ireland. 
 
 remembered his promise to Elin Gow to bring 
 back Glas Gainach. 
 
 Cian put stores in the vessel in which he had 
 come, and placed Glas Gainach inside, firmly 
 fettered. He gave then the stem of his ship to 
 the ocean, the stern to land, raised the limber 
 sails; and there was the work of a hundred men 
 on each side, though Cian did the work all alone. 
 He sailed through the main ocean with safety- 
 till he came to Tramor, — the best landing-place 
 in Erin at that time. Glas Gainach was brought 
 to shore carefully, and Cian went on his way 
 with her to go to Elin Gow's house at Cluainte. 
 
 There was no highway from Tramor but the 
 one ; and on that one were three brothers, three 
 robbers, the worst at that time in Erin. These 
 men knew all kinds of magic, and had a rod of 
 enchantment. Cian had brought much gold with 
 him on the way, coming as a present to his father. 
 
 The three brothers stopped Cian, saluted him, 
 and asked would he play a game. He said that 
 he would. They played, and toward evening the 
 robbers had the gold won ; then they said to 
 Cian, "Now bet the cow against the gold you 
 have lost, and we will put twice as much with it." 
 He laid the cow as a wager, and lost her. 
 
 One of the three robber brothers struck Cian 
 with the rod of enchantment, and made a stone 
 
Elin Gow and the Cow Glas Gainach. 29 
 
 pillar of him, and made an earth mound of Glas 
 Gainach with another blow. The two remained 
 there, the man and the cow, by the roadside. 
 
 Cian's son Cormac was growing to manhood in 
 Spain, and heard his mother and grandfather talk 
 of his father, and he thought to himself, "There 
 was no man on earth that could fight with my 
 father; and I promise now to travel and be walk- 
 ing always till I find out the place where he 
 is, living or dead." 
 
 As Cormac had heard that his father was from 
 Erin, to Erin he faced, first of all. The mother 
 was grieved, and advised him not to go wander- 
 ing. " Your father must be dead, or on the prom- 
 ise he made me he'd be here long ago." 
 
 "There is no use in talking; the world will 
 not stop me till I know what has happened to 
 my father," said Cormac. 
 
 The mother could not stop him; she gave her 
 consent. He turned then to his grandfather. 
 "Make ready for me the best vessel you have," 
 said he. The vessel was soon ready with provi- 
 sions for a day and a year, and gold two thousand 
 pieces. He embarked, and went through the 
 main ocean faster than his father had gone till 
 he sailed into Tramor. He was on his way walk- 
 ing till he came to the robbers about midday. 
 
 They saluted him kindly, thinking he had gold, 
 and asked, "Will you play a game with us.? " 
 
30 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 "I will," said Cormac; "I have never refused." 
 
 They played. The robbers gained, and let 
 him gain; they were at him the best of the day, 
 till they won the last piece of gold of his two 
 thousand pieces. 
 
 When he had lost what he had, he was like a 
 wild man, and knew not what to do for a while. 
 At last Cormac said to himself, " It is an old 
 saying never contradicted that strength will get 
 the upper hand of enchantment." He jumped 
 then, and caught two of the three robbers, one 
 in each hand, and set them under his two knees. 
 The third was coming to help the two; but 
 Cormac caught that one with his hand and held 
 the three, kept them there, and said, "I will 
 knock the heads off every man of you." 
 
 "Do not do that," begged the three. "Who 
 are you.? We will do what you ask of us." 
 
 " I am seeking my father, Cian Mac Cormac, 
 who left Spain eighteen years ago with Glas 
 Gainach." 
 
 "Spare us," said the three brothers ; "we will 
 give back your gold and raise up your father with 
 Glas Gainach." 
 
 "How can ye do that," asked Cormac, "or 
 where is my father .!*" 
 
 " He is that pillar there opposite " 
 
 "And where is Glas Gainach.?" 
 
Elin Gow and the Cow Glas Gainach. 31 
 
 They showed him the earth mound. 
 
 "How can ye bring them back to their own 
 shapes ? " asked Cormac. 
 
 "We have a rod of enchantment," said the 
 brothers; and they told where the rod was. 
 When Cormac had a true account of the rod, 
 what he did was to draw out his sword and cut 
 the heads off the three brothers, saying, "Ye 
 will never again rob any man who walks this 
 way." Cormac then found the rod of enchant- 
 ment, went to the pillar, gave it a blow, and 
 his father came forth as well and healthy as 
 ever. 
 
 "Who are you? " asked Cian of Cormac. 
 
 "I am your son Cormac." 
 
 "Oh, my dear son, how old are you.?" 
 
 "I'm in my twentieth year," said Cormac. 
 "I heard my mother and grandfather talk of your 
 bravery, and I made up my mind to go in search 
 of you, and be walking always till I found you. 
 I said I 'd face Erin first, for 't was there you 
 went with Glas Gainach. I landed this morning, 
 met these three robbers ; they won all my gold. 
 I was like a wild man. I caught them, and swore 
 I would kill them. They asked who was I; I 
 told them. They said you were the stone pillar; 
 that they had a rod that would raise you up with 
 Glas Gainach. They told where the rod was. I 
 
32 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 took the heads off them, and raised you with the 
 rod." 
 
 Now Cormac struck the earth mound, and Glas 
 Gainach rose up as well as before. Everything 
 was now in its own place, and they were glad. 
 Cian would not stop till he brought Glas Gainach 
 to Elin Gow, so he was walking night and day 
 till he came here behind to Cluainte, where 
 Elin Gow was living. He screeched out Elin 
 Gow's name, told him to come. He came out; 
 and when he saw Cian and Glas Gainach he 
 came near fainting from joy. Cian put Glas 
 Gainach's horn in his hand, and said, " I wished 
 to keep the promise I made when you spared 
 my head ; and it was gentle of you to spare it, 
 for great was the loss that I caused you ; " and 
 he told all that had happened, — how he had 
 won and lost Glas Gainach, and lost her through 
 the robbers. 
 
 "Who is this brave youthful champion with 
 you.? "asked Elin Gow. 
 
 " This is my son, and but for him I *d be for- 
 ever where the three robbers put me. I was 
 eighteen years where they left me; but for that, 
 the cow would have been with you long ago. 
 What were you doing all this time.?" asked 
 Cian of Elin Gow. 
 
 " Making swords and weapons, but I could not 
 have lived without the support of your father." 
 
Elin Gow and the Cow Glas Gainach. 33 
 
 "He promised me that," said Cian, "before I 
 left Erin. I knew that he would help you.'* 
 
 "Oh, he did! " said Elin Gow. 
 
 The father and son left good health with Elin 
 Gow, and never stopped nor stayed till they 
 reached the castle of Cian's father. The old 
 king had thought that Cian was dead, as he had 
 received no account of him for so many years. 
 Great was his joy and gladness, and great was the 
 feast that he made. 
 
 Cian remained for a month, and then went to 
 the house of the robbers, took out all its treas- 
 ures, locked up the place in the way that no man 
 could open it; then he gave one-half his wealth 
 to his father. He took the rest to Spain with 
 his son, and lived there. 
 
 Elin Gow had grown old, and he was in dread 
 that he had not the strength to follow Glas 
 Gainach, and sent a message to Caol na Crua, 
 the fleetest champion in Kerry. Caol came. 
 Elin Gow agreed to pay him his price for mind- 
 ing the cow, and was glad to get him. He told 
 Caol carefully how to herd the cow. She 
 travelled as before, and was always at home 
 before nightfall. 
 
 Glas Gainach had milk for all; and when any 
 one came to milk her she would stop, and there 
 never was a vessel that she did not fill. One 
 
 3 
 
34 Hero- Tales of Ireland. 
 
 woman heard this; and once when Glas Gainach 
 was near a river, the woman brought a sieve 
 and began to milk. She milked a long time. 
 At last the cow saw the river white with milk; 
 then she raised her leg, gave the woman a kick 
 on the forehead, and killed her. 
 
 Caol na Crua was doing well, minding the 
 cow all the time, till one evening Glas Gainach 
 walked between the two pillars where she used 
 to scratch herself; when she was full, her sides 
 would touch both pillars. This evening she 
 bellowed, and Elin Gow heard her. Instead of 
 going home then, she went down to a place 
 northwest of Cluainte, near a ruin; she used to 
 drink there at times, but not often. Caol na 
 Crua did not know this. He thought she was 
 going into the sea, and caught her tail to hold 
 her back. With that, instead of drinking, she 
 went straight toward the water. Caol tried to 
 hold her. She swept him along and went 
 through the ocean, he keeping the grip he had, 
 and she going with such swiftness that he was 
 lying flat on the sea behind her; and she took 
 him with her to Spain and went to the king, and 
 very joyful was the king, for they were in great 
 distress for butter while Glas Gainach was gone. 
 
MOR'S SONS AND THE HERDER FROM 
 UNDER THE SEA. 
 
 IN old times, there was a great woman in the 
 southwest of Erin, and she was called Mor. 
 This woman lived at Dun Quin; and when she 
 came to that place the first time with her hus- 
 band Lear, she was very poor. People say that it 
 was by the water she came to Dan Quin. What- 
 ever road she took, all she had came by the sea, 
 and went the same way. 
 
 She built a small house, and their property was 
 increasing little by little. After a while she 
 had three sons, and these grew to be very fine 
 boys and then strong young men. 
 
 The two elder sons set out to try their for- 
 tunes; they got a vessel, sailed away on the sea, 
 and never stopped nor halted till they came to 
 the Kingdom of the White Strand, in the eastern 
 world. There they stayed for seven years, goal- 
 ing and sporting with the people. 
 
 The king of that country wished to keep them 
 forever, because they were strong men, and had 
 risen to be great champions. 
 
36 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 The youngest son remained at home all the 
 time, growing to be as good a man as his 
 brothers. One day he went out to look at a 
 large field of wheat which his mother had, and 
 found it much injured. 
 
 "Well, mother," said he when he came in, "all 
 our field is destroyed by something. I don't 
 know for the world what is it. Something comes 
 in, tramples the grain and eats it. " 
 
 "Watch the field to-night, my son, and see 
 what is devouring our grain." 
 
 "Well, mother, boil something for me to eat 
 to give me strength and good luck for the 
 night." 
 
 Mor baked a loaf, and boiled some meat for her 
 son, and told him to watch well till the hour of 
 night, when perhaps the cattle would be before 
 him. 
 
 He was watching and looking there, till all at 
 once, a little after midnight, he saw the field 
 full of cattle of different colors, — beautiful col- 
 ors, blue, and red, and white. He was looking at 
 them for a long time, they were so beautiful. 
 The young man wanted to drive the beasts home 
 with him, to show his mother the cattle that were 
 spoiling the grain. He had them out of the field 
 on the road when a herder stood before him, and 
 said, "Leave the cattle behind you." 
 
Mors Sons and the Herder, 37 
 
 "I will not," said Mor's son; "I will drive 
 them home to my mother. " 
 
 "I will not let them with you," said the 
 herder. 
 
 "I'll carry them in spite of you," replied 
 Mor's son. 
 
 He had a good strong green stick, and so had 
 the herder; the two faced each other, and began 
 to fight. The herder was too strong for Mor's 
 son, and he drove off the cattle into the sea. 
 
 "Oh," said the herder, as he was going, "your 
 mother did not boil your meat or bake your loaf 
 rightly last night; she gave too much fire to the 
 loaf and the meat, took the strength out of them. 
 You might do something if your mother knew 
 how to cook." 
 
 When Mor's son went home, his mother asked, 
 " Did you see any cattle, my son ? " 
 
 " I did, mother; the field was full of them. And 
 when I was bringing the herd home with me to 
 show you, a man stood there on the road to take 
 the beasts from me; we fought, and when he 
 beat me and was driving the cattle into the sea, 
 what did he say but that you boiled the meat and 
 baked the loaf too much last night. To-night, 
 when you boil my meat, do not give it half the 
 fire; leave all the strength in the meat and the 
 loaf." 
 
38 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 "I will," said the mother. 
 
 When night came, the dinner was ready. The 
 young man ate twice as much of the meat and 
 the loaf as the evening before. About the same 
 hour, just after midnight, he went to the field, 
 for he knew now what time the cattle would be 
 in it. The field was full of the same cattle of 
 beautiful colors. 
 
 Mor's son drove the beasts out, and was going 
 to drive them home, when the herder, who was 
 not visible hitherto, came before him and said, 
 "I will not let the cattle with you." 
 
 "I will take them in spite of you," replied 
 Mor's son. 
 
 The two began to fight, and Mor's son was 
 stronger this time. 
 
 "Why do you not keep your cattle out of my 
 wheat ? " asked he of the herder. 
 
 "Because I know very well that you are not 
 able to take them with you." 
 
 " If I am not able to take the cattle, you may 
 have them and the wheat as well," said Mor's 
 son. 
 
 The herder was driving the cattle one way, and 
 Mor's son was driving them the opposite way; 
 and after they had done that for a while, they 
 faced each other and began to fight again. 
 
 Mor's son was doubly angry at the herder this 
 
Mors Sons and the Herder, 39 
 
 night for the short answers that he gave. They 
 fought two hours; then the herder got the upper 
 hand. Mor's son was sorry; and the herder, as 
 he drove the cattle to the sea, called out, " Your 
 mother gave too much fire to the meat and the 
 loaf; still you are stronger to-night than you were 
 last night." 
 
 Mor's son went home. 
 
 "Well, my son," asked the mother, "have you 
 any news of the cattle and the herder.? " 
 
 "I have seen them, mother." 
 
 "And what did the herder do.? " 
 
 " He was too strong for me a second time, and 
 drove the cattle into the sea." 
 
 " What are we to do now t " asked the mother. 
 "If he keeps on in this way, we '11 soon be poor, 
 and must leave the country altogether. " 
 
 " The herder said, as he drove the cattle away, 
 * Your mother gave too much fire to the meat and 
 the loaf; still you are stronger to-night than you 
 were last night. ' Well, mother, if you gave too 
 much fire to my dinner last night, give but little 
 to-night, and I will leave my life outside or have 
 the cattle home with me this time. If I do not 
 beat him, he may have the wheat as well as the 
 cattle after to-night." 
 
 Mor prepared the dinner; and this time she 
 barely let the water on the meat begin to bubble, 
 and to the bread she gave but one roast. 
 
40 Hero- Tales of Ireland, 
 
 He ate and drank twice as much as the day 
 before. The dinner gave him such strength that 
 he said, "I '11 bring the cattle to-night." 
 
 He went to the field, and soon after midnight 
 it was full of cattle of the same beautiful colors; 
 the grain was spoiled altogether. He drove the 
 cattle to the road, and thought he had them. He 
 got no sight of the herder till every beast was 
 outside the field, and he ready to drive them 
 home to his mother. Then the herder stood 
 before him, and began to drive the cattle toward 
 the sea. 
 
 "You '11 not take them this time," said Mor's 
 son. 
 
 "I will," said the herder. 
 
 They began to fight, caught each other, 
 dragged, and struggled long, and in the heel of 
 the battle Mor's son was getting the better of 
 the herder. 
 
 "I think that you '11 have the upper hand of 
 me this time," said the herder; "and 'tis my 
 own advice I blame for it. You '11 take the 
 cattle to-night in spite of me. Let me go now, 
 and take them away with you." 
 
 "I will," said Mor's son. "I will take them 
 to the house, and please my mother." 
 
 He drove the cattle home, and said to his 
 mother, *' I have the cattle here now for you, 
 and do whatever you wish with them." 
 
Mors Sons and the Herder. 41 
 
 The herder followed Mor's son to the house. 
 
 "Why did you destroy all my grain with your 
 cattle ? " asked Mor. 
 
 "Let the cattle go with me now, and I promise 
 that after to-night your field of wheat will be the 
 best in the country." 
 
 "What are we to do? " asked Mor of the son. 
 "Is it to let the cattle go with him for the 
 promise he gives ? " 
 
 " I will do what you say, mother. '* 
 
 "We will give him the cattle," said Mor. 
 
 "Well," said the son to the herder, "my 
 mother is going to give you the cattle for the 
 promise that our grain will be the best in the 
 country when 't is reaped. We ought to be 
 friends after the fighting; and now take your 
 cattle home with you, though you vexed and 
 hurt me badly." 
 
 "I am very grateful to you," said the herder 
 to Mor's son, "and for your kindness you will 
 have plenty of cattle and plenty of wheat before 
 you die, and seeing that you are such a good man 
 I will give you a chance before I leave you. 
 The King of Mayo has an only daughter; the 
 fairies will take her from him to-morrow. They 
 will bring her through Daingean, on the shoul- 
 ders of four men, to the fairy fort at Cnoc na 
 Hown. Be at the cross-roads about two o'clock 
 
42 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 to-morrow night. Jump up quickly, put your 
 shoulder under the coffin, the four men will 
 disappear and leave the coffin on the road; do 
 you bring what's in the coffin home with you." 
 
 Mor's son followed the herder's directions. 
 He went toward Daingean in the night, for he 
 knew the road very well. After midnight, he 
 was at the cross-roads, waiting and hidden. 
 Soon he saw the coffin coming out against him, 
 and the four men carrying it on their shoulders. 
 
 The young man put his shoulder under the 
 coffin; the four dropped it that minute, and 
 disappeared. Mor's son took the lid off the 
 coffin; and what did he find lying inside but a 
 beautiful woman, warm and ruddy, sleeping as if 
 at home in her bed. He took out the young 
 woman, knowing well that she was alive, and 
 placing her on his back, left the coffin behind 
 at the wayside. 
 
 The woman could neither walk nor speak, and 
 he brought her home to his mother. Mor opened 
 the door, and he put the young woman down in 
 the corner. 
 
 "What's this you brought me.? What do I 
 want with the like of her in the house.?" 
 
 "Never mind, mother; it may be our luck that 
 will come with her." 
 
 They gave her every kind of drink and nourish- 
 
Mors Sons and the Herder, 43 
 
 ing food, for she was very weak; when daylight 
 came, she was growing stronger, and could speak. 
 The first words she said were, " I am no good to 
 you in the way that I am now ; but if you are a 
 brave man, you will meet with your luck to-mor- 
 row night. All the fairies will be gathered at a 
 feast in the fort at Cnoc na Hown ; there will be 
 a horn of drink on the table. If you bring that 
 horn, and I get three sips from it (if you have the 
 heart of a brave man you will go to the fort, seize 
 the horn, and bring it here), I shall be as well 
 and strong as ever, and you will be as rich your- 
 self as any king in Erin." 
 
 " I have stood in great danger before from the 
 like of them," replied Mor's son. "I will make 
 a trial of this work, too. " 
 
 "Between one and two o'clock in the night 
 you must go to the fort," said the young woman, 
 "and you must carry a stick of green rowan wood 
 in your hand." 
 
 The young man went to the fairy fort, keeping 
 the stick carefully and firmly in his hand. At 
 parting, the young woman warned him, saying, 
 "They can do you no harm in the world while 
 you have the stick, but without the stick there 
 is no telling what they might do." 
 
 When Mor's son came to Cnoc na Hown, and 
 went in through the gate of the fairy fort, he saw 
 
44 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 a house and saw many lights flashing in different 
 places. In the kitchen was a great table with all 
 sorts of food and drink, and around it a crowd of 
 small men. When he was making toward the 
 table, he heard one of the men say, — 
 
 "Very little good will the girl be to Mor's 
 son. He may keep her in the corner by his 
 mother. There will be neither health nor 
 strength in her; but if she had three drinks out 
 of this horn on the table here, she would be as 
 well as ever." 
 
 He faced them then, and, catching the horn, 
 said, " She will not be long without the drink ! " 
 
 All the little men looked at one another as he 
 hurried through the door and disappeared. He 
 had the stick, and they could not help themselves ; 
 but all began to scold one another for not having 
 the courage to seize him and take the horn from 
 him. 
 
 Mor's son reached home with the horn. 
 "Well, mother," said he, "we have the cure 
 now;" and he didn't put the horn down till the 
 young woman had taken three drinks out of it, 
 and then she said, — 
 
 " You are the best champion ever born in Erin, 
 and now take the horn back to Cnoc na Hown ; 
 I am as well and hearty as ever. " 
 
 He took the horn back to the fairy fort, placed 
 
HE HURRIED THROUGH THE DOOR AND DISAPPEARED. 
 Page 44. 
 
Mors Sons and the Herder. 45 
 
 it on the table, and hurried home. The fairies 
 looked at one another, but not a thing could they 
 do, for the stick was in his hand yet. 
 
 "The woman is as well as ever now," said one 
 of the fairies when Mor's son had gone, "and we 
 have lost her;" and they began to scold one 
 another for letting the horn go with him. But 
 that was all the good it did them; the young 
 woman was cured. 
 
 Next day the young woman said to Mor's son, 
 " I am well now, and I will give you a token to 
 take to my father and mother in Mayo." 
 
 " I will not take the token," said he; "I will go 
 and seek out your father, and bring back some 
 token to you first." 
 
 He went away, searched and inquired till he 
 made out the king's castle; and when he was 
 there, he went around all the cattle and went 
 away home to his mother at Tivorye with every 
 four-footed beast that belonged to the king. 
 
 "Well, mother," said he, "it is the luck we 
 have now; and we '11 have the whole parish under 
 stock from this out. " 
 
 The young woman was not satisfied yet, and 
 said, "You must go and carry a token to my 
 father and mother." 
 
 "Wait awhile, and be quiet," answered Mor's 
 son. " Your father will send herders to hunt for 
 
46 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 the stock, and these men will have token enough 
 when they come." 
 
 Well, sure enough, the king's men hunted over 
 hills and valleys, found that the cattle had been 
 one day in such a place and another day in 
 another place; and they followed on till at length 
 and at last they came near Mor's house, and 
 there they saw the cattle grazing above on the 
 mountain. 
 
 There was no house in Dun Quin at that time 
 but Mor's house, and there was not another in 
 it for many a year after. 
 
 "We will send a man down to that house," 
 said the herders, "to know can we get any 
 account of what great champion it was that 
 brought the cattle all this distance." 
 
 What did the man see when he came near the 
 house but his own king's daughter. He knew 
 the young woman, and was struck dumb when he 
 saw her, and she buried two months before at her 
 father's castle in Mayo. He had no power to 
 say a word, he forgot where he was, or why he 
 was sent. At last he turned, ran up to the men 
 above on the mountain, and said, "The king's 
 daughter is living below in that house." 
 
 The herders would not believe a word he said, 
 but at last three other men went down to see for 
 themselves. They knew the king's daughter, and 
 
Mors Sons and the Herder. 47 
 
 were frightened; but they had more courage, and 
 after a while asked, "Where is the man that 
 brought the cattle? " 
 
 "He is sleeping," said the king's daughter. 
 "He is tired after the long journey; if you wish, 
 I will wake him." 
 
 She woke Mor's son, and he came out. 
 
 "What brought you here?" asked he of the 
 men. 
 
 "We came looking for our master's cattle; 
 they are above on the mountain, driven to this 
 place by you, as it seems. We have travelled 
 hither and over till we found them." 
 
 "Go and tell your master," said Mor's son, 
 "that I brought the cattle; that Lear is my 
 father, and Mor is my mother, and that I have 
 his daughter here with me." 
 
 "There is no use in sending them with that 
 message," said the young woman; "my father 
 would not believe them." 
 
 "Tell your master," said Mor's son, "that it 
 is I who brought the cattle, and that I have his 
 daughter here in good health, and 't is by my 
 bravery that I saved her." 
 
 " If they go to my father with that message, he 
 will kill them. I will give them a token foi 
 him." 
 
 "What token will you give?" 
 
48 Hero-Tales 0/ Ireland. 
 
 " I will give them this ring with my name and 
 my father's name and my mother's name written 
 inside on it. Do not give the ring," said she to 
 the men, "till ye tell my father all ye have seen; 
 if he will not believe you, then give the ring." 
 
 Away went the men, and not a foot of the 
 cattle did they take; and if all the men in Mayo 
 had come, Mor's son would not have let the 
 cattle go with them, for he had risen to be the 
 best champion in Erin. The men went home by 
 the straightest roads; and they were not half the 
 time going to the king's castle that they were in 
 finding the cattle. 
 
 On the way home, one man said to the others, 
 " It is a great story we have and good news to 
 tell; the king will make rich men of us for the 
 tidings we are taking him." 
 
 When they reached the king's castle, there was 
 a welcome before them. 
 
 " Have ye any news for me after the long 
 journey.?" asked the king. 
 
 "We found your daughter with a man in 
 Tivorye in the southwest of Erin, and all your 
 cattle are with the same man." 
 
 •' Ye may have found my cattle, but ye could 
 not get a sight of my daughter." 
 
 " If you do not believe us in this way, you will 
 in another. We may as well tell you all./' 
 
Mors Sons and the Herder, 49 
 
 "Ye may as well keep silent. I'll not be- 
 lieve a word of what ye say about my daughter." 
 
 "I will give you a token from your daughter," 
 said one of the men, pulling out a purse. He 
 had the purse rolled carefully in linen. (And he 
 did well, for the fairies cannot touch linen, and 
 it is the best guard in the world against them. 
 Linen thread, too, is strong against the fairies. 
 A man might travel all the fairy forts of the 
 world if he had a skein of flax thread around his 
 neck, and a steel knife with a black handle in 
 his pocket.) He took out the ring, and gave it 
 to the king. The king sent for the queen. She 
 came. He put the ring in her hand and said, 
 " Look at this, and see do you know it. " 
 
 "I do indeed," said she; "and how did you 
 come by this ring? " 
 
 The king told the whole story that the men 
 had brought. 
 
 "This is our daughter's ring. It was on her 
 finger when we buried her," said the queen. 
 
 "It was," said the king, "and what the men 
 say must be true." He would have killed them 
 but for the ring. 
 
 On the following morning, the king and queen 
 set out with horses, and never stopped till they 
 came to Tivorye (Mor's house). The king knew 
 the cattle the moment he saw them above on the 
 
 4 
 
50 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 mountain, and then he was sure of the rest. 
 They were sorry to find the daughter in such a 
 small cabin, but glad that she was alive. The 
 guide was sent to the house to say the king and 
 queen were coming. 
 
 ''Your father and mother are coming," said he 
 to the king's daughter. 
 
 She made ready, and was standing in the door 
 before them. The father and mother felt weak 
 and faint when they looked at her; but she ran 
 out, took them by the hands, and said, "Have 
 courage; I am alive and well, no ghost, and ye 
 ought to thank the man who brought me away 
 from my enemies." 
 
 "Bring him to us," said they; "we wish to see 
 him." 
 
 "He is asleep, but I will wake him." 
 
 "Wake him," said the father, "for he is the 
 man we wish to see now." 
 
 The king's daughter roused Mor's son, and 
 said, "My father and mother are above in the 
 kitchen. Go quickly, and welcome them." 
 
 He welcomed them heartily, and he was ten 
 times gladder to see them than they were to 
 see him. They inquired then how he got the 
 daughter, and she buried at home two months 
 before. And he told the whole story from first 
 to last : How the herder from the sea had told 
 
Mors Sons and the Herder. 51 
 
 him, and how he had saved her at Cnoc na Hown. 
 They had a joyful night in the cabin after the 
 long journey, and anything that would be in any 
 king's castle they had in Mor's house that night, 
 for the king had plenty of everything with him 
 from the castle. Next morning the king and 
 queen were for taking the daughter home with 
 them ; but she refused firmly, and said, — 
 
 "I will never leave the man who saved me 
 from such straits. I '11 never marry any man but 
 him, for I 'm sure that he is the best hero ever 
 reared in Erin, after the courage that he has 
 shown. " 
 
 " We will never carry you away, since you like 
 him so well; and we will send him twice as many 
 cattle, and money besides." 
 
 They brought in the priest of whatever religion 
 was in it at the time (to be sure, it was not 
 Catholic priests were in Erin in those days), and 
 Mor's son and the king's daughter were married. 
 The father and mother left her behind in Tivorye, 
 and enjoyed themselves on the way home, they 
 were that glad after finding the daughter alive. 
 
 When Mor's son was strong and rich, he could 
 not be satisfied till he found his two brothers, 
 who had left home years before, and were in the 
 kingdom of the White Strand, though he did not 
 know it. He made up a fine ship then, and got 
 
52 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 provisions for a day and a year, went into it, set 
 sail, and went on over the wide ocean till he 
 came to the chief port of the King of the White 
 Strand. He was seven days on the water; and 
 when he came in on the strand, the king saw him, 
 and thought that he must be a brave man to 
 come alone on a ship to that kingdom. 
 
 "That must be a great hero," said he to his 
 men. " Let some of the best of you go down 
 and knock a trial out of him before he comes to 
 the castle." 
 
 The king was so in dread of the stranger that 
 out of all the men he selected Mor's two elder 
 sons. They were the best and strongest men he 
 had, and he sent them to know what activity was 
 in the new-comer. They took two hurleys for 
 themselves and one for the stranger, and a ball. 
 
 The second brother challenged the stranger to 
 play. When the day was closing, the stranger 
 was getting the upper hand. They invited him 
 to the king's castle for the night, and the elder 
 brother challenged him to play a game on the 
 following day. 
 
 "How did the trial turn out.? '* asked the king 
 of the elder brother. 
 
 " I sent my brother to try him, and it was the 
 strange champion that got the upper hand. " 
 
 Mor's son remained at the castle that night. 
 
Mors Sons and the Herder, 53 
 
 and found good welcome and cheer. He ate 
 breakfast next morning, and a good breakfast it 
 was. They took three hurleys then and a ball, 
 and went to the strand. Said the eldest brother 
 to the second, "Stop here and look at us, and 
 see what the trial will be between us." 
 
 They gave the stranger a choice of the hurleys, 
 and the game began. It couldn't be told who 
 was the better of the two brothers. The king 
 was in dread that the stranger would injure him- 
 self and his men. In the middle of the day, 
 when it could not be determined who was the 
 better man, the elder brother said, " We will try 
 wrestling now, to know which of us can win that 
 way. " 
 
 "I 'm well satisfied," said Mor's son. 
 
 They began to wrestle. The elder brother 
 gave Mor's son several knocks, and he made 
 several turns on the elder. 
 
 "Well, if I live," said the elder, "you are my 
 brother; for when we used to wrestle at home, I 
 had the knocks, and you had the turns. You are 
 my younger brother, for no man was able to 
 wrestle with me when I was at Tivorye but 
 you." 
 
 They knew each other then, and embraced. 
 Each told his story. 
 
 "Come home with me now," said the youngest 
 
54 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 brother, "and see our mother. I am as rich as 
 any king, and can give you good entertainment." 
 
 The three went to the King of the White 
 Strand, and told him everything. The eldest 
 and second brother asked leave of him to go 
 home to see their father and mother. The king 
 gave them leave, and filled their vessel with 
 every kind of good food, and the two promised 
 to come back. 
 
 The three brothers set sail then, and after 
 seven days came in on the strand near Tivorye. 
 The two found their brother richer than any king 
 in any country. They were enjoying themselves 
 at home for a long time, having everything that 
 their hearts could wish, when one day above 
 another they saw a vessel passing Dun Quin, 
 and it drew up at the quay in Daingean harbor. 
 Next day people went to the ship; but if they did, 
 not a man went on board, for no man was allowed 
 to go. 
 
 There was a green cat on deck. The cat was 
 master of the vessel, and would not let a soul 
 come near it. A report went out through the 
 town that the green cat would allow no one to 
 go near the ship, and for three weeks this report 
 was spreading. No one was seen on the vessel 
 but the cat, and he the size of a big man. 
 
 Mor's sons heard of the ship and the green cat 
 
Mors Sons and the Herder, 55 
 
 at Daingean, and they said, " Let us have a 
 day's pleasure, and go to the ship and see the 
 cat." 
 
 Mor bade them stay at home. "Don't mind 
 the ship or the cat," said she, "and follow my 
 advice." But the sons would not follow her 
 advice, nor be said by her, and away they went, 
 in spite of all she could do. 
 
 When the cat saw them coming, he knew very 
 well who were in it. He jumped out on the 
 shore, stood on two legs, and shook hands with 
 the three brothers. He was as tall himself as 
 the largest man, and as friendly as he could be. 
 The three brothers were glad to receive an honor 
 which no one else could get. 
 
 " Come down now to the cabin and have a trial 
 of my cooking," said the cat. 
 
 He brought them to the cabin, and the finest 
 dinner was on the table before them, — meat and 
 drink as good as ever they tasted either in 
 Tivorye or the kingdom of the White Strand. 
 
 When the cat had them below in the cabin, 
 and they eating and drinking with great pleas- 
 ure and delight, he went on deck, screwed down 
 the hatches, raised the sails, and away went the 
 vessel sailing out of the harbor; and before the 
 three brothers knew where they were, the ship 
 was miles out on the ocean, and they thought 
 
56 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 they were eating dinner at the side of the quay 
 in Daingean. 
 
 "We '11 go up now," said they when their din- 
 ner was eaten, " thank the cat, and go on shore 
 for ourselves. " 
 
 When on deck, they saw water on all sides, and 
 did not know in the world where they were. 
 The cat never stopped till he sailed to his own 
 kingdom, which was the kingdom of the White 
 Strand, for who should the cat be but the King 
 of the White Strand. He had come for the two 
 brothers himself, for he knew that they would 
 never come of their own will, and he could not 
 trust another to go for them. The king needed 
 them, for they were the best men he had. In 
 getting back the two, he took the third, and Mor 
 was left without any son. 
 
 Mor heard in the evening that the ship was 
 gone, and her own three sons inside in it. 
 
 "This is my misfortune," cried she. "After 
 rearing my three sons, they are gone from me in 
 this way. " She began to cry and lament then, 
 and to screech wonderfully. 
 
 Mor never knew who the cat was, or what 
 became of her sons. The wife of Mor's youngest 
 son went away to her father in Mayo, and every- 
 thing she had went with her. Mor's husband, 
 Lear, had died long before, and was buried at 
 
Mors Sons and the Herder, 57 
 
 Dunmore Head. His grave is there to this day. 
 Mor became half demented, and died soon after. 
 
 If women are scolding at the present time, it 
 happens often that one says to another, "May 
 your children go from you as Mor's sons went 
 with the enchanted catl'* 
 
SAUDAN OG AND THE DAUGHTER 
 OF THE KING OF SPAIN; YOUNG 
 CONAL AND THE YELLOW KING'S 
 DAUGHTER. 
 
 TD I NA DURKACH (the King of the Turks) 
 lived many years in Erin, where he had 
 one son, Saudan Og. When this son grew up 
 to be twenty years old, he was a prince whose 
 equal was hard to be found. 
 
 The old king was anxious to find a king's 
 daughter as wife for his son, and began to inquire 
 of all wayfarers, rich and poor, high and low, 
 where was there a king's daughter fit for his 
 son, but no one could tell him. 
 
 At last the king called his old druid. "Do 
 you know," asked he, "where to find a king's 
 daughter for Saudan Og.'*" 
 
 "I do not," said the druid; "but do you order 
 your guards to stop all people passing your castle, 
 and inquire of them where such a woman may 
 be." 
 
 As the druid advised, the king commanded ; but 
 no man made him a bit the wiser. 
 
Saudan Og and Young ConaL 59 
 
 A year later, an old ship captain walked the 
 way, and the guards brought him to the king. 
 
 " Do you know where a fitting wife for my son 
 might be found ? " asked the king. 
 
 "I do," said the captain; "but my advice to 
 you, and it may be a good one, is to seek a wife 
 for your son in the land where he was born, and 
 not go abroad for her. You can find plenty of 
 good women in Erin." 
 
 "Well," said the king, "tell me first who is 
 the woman you have in mind." 
 
 "If you must know," said the old captain, "the 
 daughter of the King of Spain is the woman." 
 
 Straightway the king had a notice put up on 
 the high-road to bring no more tidings to the 
 castle, as he had no need of them. 
 
 When Saudan Og saw this notice, he knew that 
 his father had the tidings, but would not give 
 them. Next morning he went to the father and 
 begged him to tell. "I know," said he, "that 
 the old captain told you." 
 
 The king would say nothing, for he feared that 
 his son might fall into trouble. 
 
 "I will start to-morrow," said Saudan Og at 
 last, " in search of the woman ; and if I do not 
 find her, I will never come back to you, so it is 
 better to tell me at once." 
 
 "The daughter of the King of Spain is the 
 
6o Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 woman," said the father; "but if you take my 
 advice, you'll stay at home." 
 
 On the following day, Saudan Og dressed him- 
 self splendidly, mounted a white steed, and rode 
 away, overtaking the wind before him; but the 
 wind behind could not overtake him. He trav- 
 elled all that was dry of Erin, and came to the 
 seashore; so he had nowhere else to travel on 
 land, unless he went back to his father. He 
 turned toward a wood then, and saw a great ash- 
 tree : he grasped the tree, and tore it out with its 
 roots ; and, stripping the earth from the roots, he 
 threw the great ash into the sea. Leaving the 
 steed behind him, he sat on the tree, and never 
 stopped nor stayed till he came to Spain. When 
 he landed, he sent word to the king that Saudan 
 Og wished to see him. 
 
 The answer that Saudan got was not to come 
 till the king had his castle prepared to receive 
 such a great champion. 
 
 When the castle was ready, the King of Spain 
 sent a bellman to give notice that every man, 
 woman, or child found asleep within seven days 
 and nights would lose their heads, for all must 
 sing, dance, and enjoy themselves in honor of 
 the high guest. 
 
 The king feasted Saudan Og for seven days 
 and nights, and never asked him where was he 
 
Saudan Og and Young Conal. 6i 
 
 going or what was his business. On the even- 
 ing of the seventh day, Saudan said to the king, 
 " You do not ask me what brought me this way, 
 or what is my business. " 
 
 "Were you to stay twenty years I would not 
 ask. I 'm not surprised that a prince of your 
 blood and in full youthful beauty should travel 
 the world to see what is in it." 
 
 "It was not to see the world that I came," said 
 Saudan Og, " but hearing that you have a beauti- 
 ful daughter, I wished her for wife; and if I do 
 not get her with your consent, I will take her in 
 spite of you." 
 
 " You would get my daughter with a hundred 
 thousand welcomes," said the king; "but as you 
 have boasted, you must show action." 
 
 The king then sent a messenger to three kings 
 — to Ri Fohin, Ri Laian,and Conal Gulban — to 
 help him. "If you will not come," said he, "I 
 am destroyed, for Saudan Og will take my 
 daughter in spite of me." 
 
 The kings made ready to sail for Spain. When 
 Conal Gulban was going, he called up his three 
 sons and said, "Stay here and care for the 
 kingdom while I am gone." 
 
 "I will not stay," said the eldest son. "You 
 are old and feeble: I am young and strong; let 
 me go in place of you." 
 
62 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 The second son gave a like answer. The 
 youngest had his father's name, Conal, and the 
 king said to him, " Stay here at home and care 
 for the kingdom while I am gone, since your 
 brothers will not obey me." 
 
 "I will do what you bid me," said Conal. 
 
 "Now I am going," said the old king; "and if 
 I and your brothers never return, be not bribed 
 by the rich to injure the poor. Do justice to all, 
 so that rich and poor may love you as they loved 
 your father before you." 
 
 He left young Conal twelve advisers, and said, 
 " If we do not return in a day and a year, be sure 
 that we are killed; you may then do as you like 
 in the kingdom. If your twelve advisers tell 
 you to marry a king's daughter of wealth and 
 high rank, it will be of help to you in defending 
 the kingdom. You will be two powers instead 
 of one." 
 
 The day and the year passed, and no tidings 
 came of Conal' s two brothers and father. At 
 the end of the day and the year, the twelve told 
 him they had chosen a king's daughter for him, 
 a very beautiful maiden. When the twelve spoke 
 of marriage, Conal let three screeches out of 
 him, that drove stones from the walls of old 
 buildings for miles around the castle. 
 
 Now an old druid that his father had twenty 
 
Saudan Og and Young ConaL 63 
 
 years before heard the three screeches, and said, 
 "Young Conal is in great trouble. I will go 
 to him to know can I help him." 
 
 The druid cleared a mountain at a leap, a 
 valley at a hop, twelve miles at a running leap, 
 so that he passed hills, dales, and valleys ; and in 
 the evening of the same day, he struck his back 
 against the kitchen door of Conal's castle just as 
 the sun was setting. 
 
 When the druid came to the castle, young 
 Conal was out in the garden thinking to himself, 
 "My father and brothers are in Spain; perhaps 
 they are killed." The dew was beginning to fall, 
 so he turned to go, and saw the old man at the 
 door. The druid was the first to speak ; but not 
 knowing Conal, he said, — 
 
 "Who are you coming here to trouble the 
 child ? It would be fitter for you to stay in your 
 own place than to be trying to wake young Conal 
 with your screeches. " 
 
 "Are you," asked Conal, "the druid that my 
 father had here years ago?" 
 
 "I am that old druid; but are you little 
 Conal.?" 
 
 "I am," said Conal, and he gave the druid a 
 hundred thousand welcomes. 
 
 "I was in the north of Erin," said the druid, 
 "when I heard the three screeches, and I knew 
 
64 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 that some one was troubling you, and your father 
 in a foreign land. My heart was grieved, and 
 I came hither in haste. I hear that your twelve 
 advisers have chosen a princess, and that you are 
 to marry to-morrow. Put out of your head the 
 thought of that princess; she is not your equal 
 in rank or power. Be advised by me, as your 
 father was. The right wife for you is the 
 daughter of the Yellow King, Haughty and 
 Strong. If the king will not give her, take her 
 by force, as your fathers before you took their 
 queens. " 
 
 Conal was roused on the following morning by 
 his advisers, who said, " Make ready and go with 
 us to the king's daughter we have chosen." 
 
 He mounted his steed, and rode away with 
 the twelve till they came to a cross-road. The 
 twelve wished to turn to one side; and when 
 Conal saw this, he put spurs to his horse, took 
 the straight road, and never stopped till he put 
 seven miles between himself and the twelve. 
 Then he turned, hurried back to the cross-road, 
 came up to the adviser whom he liked best, and, 
 giving him the keys of the castle, said, — 
 
 "Go back and rule till I or my father or 
 brothers return. I give you the advice that I 
 myself got: Never let the poor blame you for 
 taking bribes from the rich; live justly, and do 
 
Saudan Og and Young Conal. 65 
 
 good to the poor, that the rich and the poor may 
 like you. If you twelve had not advised me 
 to marry, I might be going around with a ball 
 and a hurley, as befits my age; but now I will 
 go out in the world and seek my own fortune. " 
 
 He took farewell of them then, and set his face 
 toward the Yellow King's castle. A long time 
 before it was prophesied that young Conal, son 
 of Gulban, would cut the head off the Yellow 
 King, so seven great walls had been built around 
 the castle, and a gate to each wall. At the first 
 gate, there were seven hundred blind men to 
 obstruct the entrance; at the second, seven hun- 
 dred deaf men; at the third, seven hundred 
 cripples; at the fourth, seven hundred sensible 
 women; at the fifth, seven hundred idiots; at the 
 sixth, seven hundred people of small account ; at 
 the seventh, the seven hundred best champions 
 that the Yellow King had in his service. 
 
 All these walls and defenders were there to 
 prevent any man from taking the Yellow King's 
 daughter; for it had been predicted that the man 
 who would marry the daughter would take the 
 king's head, and that this man would be Conal, 
 son of Conal Gulban. 
 
 The only sleep that the guards at the seven 
 gates had was half an hour before sunrise and 
 half an hour after sunset. During these two 
 
 5 
 
66 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 half hours, a plover stood on the top of each gate ; 
 and if any one came, the bird would scream, and 
 wake all the people in one instant. 
 
 The Yellow King's daughter was in the highest 
 story of the castle, and twelve waiting-maids 
 serving her. She was so closely confined that 
 she looked on herself as a prisoner; so one morn- 
 ing early she said to the twelve maids, "I am 
 confined here as a criminal, — I am never free even 
 to walk in the garden ; and I wish in my heart 
 that some powerful young king's son would come 
 the way to me. I would fly off with him, and no 
 blood would be shed for me. " 
 
 It was about this time that young Conal came, 
 and, seeing all asleep, put spurs to his steed, and 
 cleared the walls at a bound. If the birds called 
 out, he had the gates cleared and was in before 
 the champions were roused ; and when he was 
 inside, they did not attack him. 
 
 He let his horse out to graze near the castle, 
 where he saw three poles, and on each one of 
 two of them a skull. 
 
 "These are the heads of two king's sons who 
 came to win the Yellow King's daughter," 
 thought Conal, "and I suppose mine will be the 
 third head; but if I die, I shall have company." 
 
 At this time the twelve waiting-maids cast lots 
 to know who was to walk in the yard, and see if a 
 
Saudan Og and Young Conal. 67 
 
 champion had come who was worthy of the prin- 
 cess. The maid on whom the lot fell came back 
 in a hurry, saying, " I have seen the finest man 
 that I ever laid eyes on. He is beautiful, but 
 slender and young yet. If there is a man born 
 for you, it is that one." 
 
 **Go again," said the Yellow King's daughter, 
 "and face him. Do not speak to him for your 
 life till he speaks to you; say then that I sent 
 you, and that he is to come under my window." 
 
 The maid went and crossed Conal's path three 
 times, but he spoke not; she crossed a fourth 
 time, and he said, " I suppose it is not for good 
 that you cross my path so early } " 
 
 (It is thought unlucky to meet a woman first 
 in the morning.) 
 
 "My mistress wishes you to go under her 
 window." 
 
 Conal went under the window; and the king's 
 daughter, looking down, fell deeply in love with 
 him. "I am too high, and you are too low," 
 said the Yellow King's daughter. "If we speak, 
 people will hear us all over the castle; but I '11 
 take some golden cord, and try can I draw you up 
 to me, that we may speak a few words to each 
 other." 
 
 "It would be a poor case for me," said young 
 Conal, " to wait till you could tie strings together 
 
68 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 to raise me." He stuck his sword in the earth 
 then, and, making one bound, went in at the 
 window. The princess embraced him and kissed 
 him; she knew not what to give him to eat or 
 to drink, or what would please him most. 
 
 "Have you seen the people at the seven 
 gates .^" asked the Yellow King's daughter. 
 
 "I have," answered Conal. 
 
 " They are all awake now, and I will go down 
 and walk through the gates with you; seeing me, 
 the guards will not stop us." 
 
 " I will not do that. It will never be said of 
 young Conal of Erin that he stole his wife from 
 her father. I will win you with strength, or not 
 have you." 
 
 "I'm afraid there is too much against you," 
 said the Yellow King's daughter. 
 
 These words enraged Conal, and, making one 
 bound through the window, he went to the pole 
 of combat, and struck a blow that roused the old 
 hag in the eastern world, and shook the castle 
 with all the land around it. The Yellow King 
 was sleeping at the time; the shake that he got 
 threw him out of his bed. He fell to the floor 
 with such force that a great lump came out on 
 his forehead; he was so frightened that he said 
 to the old druid who ran in to help him, " Many 
 a year have I lived without hearing the like of 
 
Saudan Og and Young Conal. 69 
 
 that blow. There must be a great champion 
 outside the castle." 
 
 The guard was sent to see if any one was left 
 alive near the castle. "For," said the king, 
 " such a champion must have killed all the people 
 at the gates. " The guard went, saw no one dead, 
 but every one living, and a champion walking 
 around, sword in hand. 
 
 The guard hurried back, and said to the king, 
 "There is a champion in front of the castle, 
 handsome, but slender and young." 
 
 "Go to him," said the king, "and ask how 
 many men does he want for the combat." The 
 guard went out and asked. 
 
 " I want seven hundred at my right hand, seven 
 hundred at my left, seven hundred behind me, 
 and as many as all these out in front of me. Let 
 them come four deep through the gates : do you 
 take no part in this battle; if I am victorious, 
 I will see you rewarded." 
 
 The guard told the king how many men the 
 champion demanded. Before the king opened 
 the gates for his men, he said to the chief of 
 them, " This youth must be mad, or a very great 
 champion. Before I let my men out, I must see 
 him." 
 
 The king walked out to young Conal, and 
 saluted him. Conal returned the salute. "Are 
 
70 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 you the champion who ordered out all these men 
 of mine? " asked the king. 
 
 "I am," said young Conal. 
 
 ** There is not one among them who would not 
 kill a dozen like you," said the king. "Your 
 bones are soft and young. It is better for you 
 to go out as you came in." 
 
 "You need not mind what will happen me," 
 answered Conal. " Let out the men ; the more 
 the men, the quicker the work. If one man 
 would kill me in a short time, many will do it in 
 less time." 
 
 The men were let out, and Conal went through 
 them as a hawk goes through a flock of birds ; and 
 when one man fell before him, he knocked the 
 next man, and had his head off. At sunset 
 every head was cut from its body. Next he 
 made a heap of the bodies, a heap of the heads, 
 and a heap of the weapons. Young Conal then 
 stretched himself on the grass, cut and bruised, 
 his clothes in small pieces from the blows that 
 had struck him. 
 
 "It is a hard thing," said Conal, "for me to 
 have fought such a battle, and to lie here dying 
 without one glimpse of the woman I love; could 
 I see her even once, I would be satisfied." 
 
 Crawling on his hands and knees, he dragged 
 himself to the window to tell her it was for her 
 
Saudan Og and Young ConaL 71 
 
 he was dying. The princess saw him, and told 
 him to lie there till she could draw him up to her 
 and care for him. 
 
 "It is a hard thing if I have to wait here till 
 strings and cords are fastened together to raise 
 me," said he, and, making one bound from where 
 he was lying on the flat of his back, he went up 
 to her window; she snatched at him, and pulled 
 him into the chamber. 
 
 There was a magic well in the castle; the 
 Yellow King's daughter bathed him in the water 
 of it, and he was made whole and sound as before 
 he went to battle. "Now," said she, "you must 
 fly with me from this castle." 
 
 "I will not go while there is anything that 
 may be cast on my honor in time to come," 
 answered Conal. 
 
 Next day he struck the pole of combat with 
 double the force of the first time, so that the 
 king got a staggering fit from the shock that it 
 gave him. 
 
 The Yellow King had no forces now but the 
 deaf, the blind, the cripples, the sensible women, 
 the idiots, and the people of small account. So 
 out went the king in his own person. He and 
 young Conal made the hills, dales, and valleys 
 tremble, and clear spring wells to rise out of 
 hard, gravelly places. Thus they fought for 
 
72 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 three days and two nights. On the evening of 
 the third day, the king asked Conal for a time to 
 rest and take food and drink. 
 
 "I have never begun any work," said Conal, 
 "without finishing it. Fight to the end, then 
 you can rest as long as you like." 
 
 So they went at it again, and fought seven 
 days and seven nights without food, drink, or 
 rest, and each trying to get the advantage of the 
 other. On the seventh evening, Conal swept the 
 head off the king with one blow. 
 
 " 'T is your own skull that will be on the pole 
 in place of mine, and I '11 have the daughter," 
 said Conal. 
 
 The Yellow King's daughter came down and 
 asked, "Will you go with me now, or will you 
 take the kingdom } " 
 
 "I will go," answered Conal. 
 
 "You did not go to the battle .?" asked Conal 
 of the guard. 
 
 "I did not." 
 
 "Well for you that you did not. Now," said 
 Conal to the princess, "whomever of the maids 
 you like best, the guard may marry, and they 
 will care for this kingdom till we return." 
 
 The guard and maid were married, and put in 
 charge of the kingdom. The following morning 
 young Conal got his steed ready and set out for 
 
Saudan Og and Young Conal. 73 
 
 home with the princess. As they were riding 
 along near the foot of a mountain, Conal grew 
 very sleepy, and said to the princess, "I'll go 
 down now and take a sleep." 
 
 The place was lonely, — hardly two houses in 
 twenty miles. The Yellow King's daughter 
 advised Conal: **Take me to some habitation 
 and sleep there; this place is too wild." 
 
 " I cannot wait, — I'm too drowsy and weary 
 after the long battle; but if I might sleep a little, 
 I could fight for seven days and seven nights 
 again." He dismounted, and she sat on a green 
 mossy bank. Putting his head on her lap, he 
 fell asleep, and his steed went away on the moun- 
 tain side grazing. 
 
 Conal had slept for three days and two nights 
 with his head in the lap of the Yellow King's 
 daughter, when on the evening of the third day 
 the princess saw the largest man she had ever 
 set eyes on, walking toward her through the sea 
 and a basket on his back. The sea did not 
 reach to his knees; a shield could not pass be- 
 tween his head and the sky. This was the High 
 King of the World. This big man faced up to 
 where Conal and his bride were; and, taking the 
 tips of her fingers, he kissed her three times. 
 "Bad luck to me," said the King of the World, 
 " if the young woman I am going for were beyond 
 
74 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 the ditch there I would not go to her. You are 
 fairer and better than she. " 
 
 "Where were you going? " asked the princess. 
 "Don't mind me, but go on." 
 
 "I was going for the Yellow King's daughter, 
 but will not go a step further now that I see 
 you." 
 
 " Go your way to her, for she is the finest prin- 
 cess on earth ; I am a simple woman, and another 
 man's wife." 
 
 "Well, pain and torments to me if I go beyond 
 this without taking you with me! " 
 
 "If this man here were awake," said the 
 Yellow King's daughter, "he would put a stop 
 to you." She was trying all this time to rouse 
 Conal. 
 
 "It is better for him to be as he is," said the 
 High King; "if he were awake, it's harm he'd 
 get from me, and that would vex you. " 
 
 When she saw that he would take her surely, 
 she bound him not to make her his wife for a day 
 and a year. 
 
 "This is the worst promise that ever I have 
 made," said the High King, "but I will keep it." 
 
 " If this man here were awake, he would stop 
 you," said the princess. 
 
 The High King of the World thrust the tip 
 of his forefinger under the sword-belt of Conal, 
 
Saudan Og and Young ConaL 75 
 
 and hurled him up five miles in the air. When 
 Conal came down, he let out three waves of blood 
 from his mouth. 
 
 "Do you think that is enough.?" asked the 
 king of the princess. 
 
 "Throw him a second time," said the Yellow 
 King's daughter. 
 
 He threw him still higher, and Conal put out 
 three greater waves. " Is that enough } " 
 
 "Try him a third time." He threw him still 
 higher this time. Conal put out three greater 
 waves, but waked not. 
 
 While the High King was throwing up Conal, 
 the princess was writing a letter telling all, — that 
 she knew not whither she was going, that she 
 had bound the High King of the World not to 
 make her his wife for a day and a year, " and, " said 
 she, "I'm sure that you will find me in that 
 time." 
 
 The king took her in his arms, and away he 
 went walking in the sea, throwing fish into his 
 basket as he travelled through the water. 
 
 Conal slept a hero's sleep of seven days and 
 nights, and woke four days after his bride had 
 been stolen. He rubbed his eyes, and, glancing 
 toward the mountain side, saw neither steed nor 
 wife, and said, "No wonder that I cannot see 
 wife nor horse when I 'm so sleepy; what am I 
 to do.?" 
 
76 Hero-Tales of Irelaitd, 
 
 Not far away were some small boys, and they 
 herding cows. The boys began to make sport of 
 Conal for sleeping seven days and nights. "I 
 do not blame you for laughing," said Conal (ever 
 since, when there is a great sleeper, people say 
 that he sleeps like Conal on the side of Beann 
 Edain), "but have you tidings of my wife and 
 my steed ; where are they, or has any man taken 
 them.?" 
 
 A boy older and wiser than the others said, 
 "Your horse is on the mountain side feeding; 
 and every day he came hither and sniffed you, and 
 you sleeping, and then went away grazing for 
 himself. Four days ago the greatest giant ever 
 seen by the eye of man walked in through the 
 ocean; he tossed you three times in the air. 
 Every time we thought you 'd be broken to dust; 
 and the lady you had, wrote something and put it 
 under your belt." 
 
 Conal read the letter, and knew that, in spite 
 of her, the Yellow King's daughter had been 
 carried away. He then preferred battle to peace, 
 and asked the boys was there a ship that could 
 take him to sea. 
 
 "There is no right ship in the place, but there 
 is an old vessel wrecked in a cove there beyond," 
 said the oldest boy. 
 
 The boys went with Conal, and showed him the 
 vessel. 
 
Saudan Og and Young Conal. 77 
 
 "Put your backs to her now, and help me," said 
 Conal. 
 
 The boys laughed, thinking that two hundred 
 men could not move such a vessel. Conal 
 scowled, and then they were in dread of him, 
 and with one shove they and Conal put the ship 
 in the sea; but the water was going in and out 
 through her. Conal knew not at first what to 
 do, as there was no timber near by, but he killed 
 seven cows, fastened the hides on the ship, and 
 made it proof against water. When the boys 
 saw the cows slaughtered, they began to cry, 
 saying, " How can we go home now, and our 
 cows killed } " 
 
 "There is not a cow killed," said Conal, "but 
 you will get two cows in place of her. " He gave 
 two prices for each cow of the seven, and said 
 to the boys, " Go home now, and tell what has 
 happened. " 
 
 Conal sailed away for himself; and when his 
 ship was in the ocean, he let her go with the 
 wind. On the third afternoon, he saw three 
 islands, and on the middle island a fine open 
 strand, with a great crowd of people. He threw 
 out three anchors, two at the ocean side and one 
 at the shore side, so that the ship would not stir, 
 no matter what wind blew, and, planting his 
 sword in the deck, he gave one bound and went 
 
yS Hero- Tales of Ireland. 
 
 out on the strand seven miles distant. He 
 saluted a good-looking man, and asked, " Why are 
 so many people here? What is their business? " 
 
 " Where do you live ? Of what nation are you 
 that you ask such a question ? " 
 
 "I am a stranger," said Conal, "just come to 
 this island." 
 
 The islander showed Conal a man sitting on 
 the beach as large as twelve of the big men of 
 the island. " Do you see him ? " 
 
 "I do," said Conal. 
 
 " There are three brothers of us on these three 
 islands; that man is our youngest brother, and 
 he has grown so strong and terrible that we are 
 in dread he will drive us from our share of the 
 islands, and that is why we are here to-day. My 
 eldest brother and I have come with what men 
 we have to this middle island, which belongs to 
 our youngest brother. We are to play ball 
 against all his forces; if we beat them, we shall 
 think ourselves safe. Now, which side will you 
 take, young champion ? " 
 
 " If I go on your side, some may say that I fear 
 your men ; and if I go with your younger brother, 
 you and your elder brother may say that I fear 
 your strong brother's forces. Bring all the men 
 of the three islands. I will play against them." 
 
 "Well," asked the stranger, "what wager will 
 you lay ? " 
 
Saudan Og and Young ConaL 79 
 
 "I'll wager," said Conal, "those two islands 
 out there on the ocean side." 
 
 "They are ours already," said the man. 
 
 "Bad luck to you! Why claim everything?" 
 said Conal. "Well, I '11 lay another wager. 
 If I lose, I '11 stand in the middle of the strand, 
 and every man of the three islands may give 
 me a blow of the hurley; and if I win, I am to 
 have a blow on every man who played against 
 me. But first, I must have my choice of the 
 hurleys; all must be thrown in a heap. I will 
 take the one I like best." 
 
 This was done, and Conal took the largest and 
 strongest hurley he could find. The ball was 
 struck about the middle of the strand; and there 
 was a goal at each end of it, and these goals were 
 fourteen miles apart. Conal took the ball with 
 hurley, hand and foot, and never let it touch 
 ground till he put it through the goal. " Is that a 
 fair inning? " asked he of the other side. 
 
 Some said it was foul, for he kept the ball in 
 the air all the time. 
 
 "Well, I '11 make a second trial; I will put it 
 through the opposite goal." He struck the ball 
 in the middle of the strand, and sent it toward the 
 other goal with such force that whoever tipped it 
 never drew breath again, and every man whom it 
 passed was driven sixty feet to one side or the 
 
8o Hero- Tales of Ireland, 
 
 other. Conal was always within a few yards of 
 the ball, and he put it through the goal seven 
 miles distant from the middle of the strand with 
 two blows. 
 
 " Is that a fair inning ? " asked Conal. 
 
 "It would be hard to say that it is not," said 
 one man, and no man gainsaid him. 
 
 "Let all stand now in ranks two deep, till I 
 get my blow on each man of you. " 
 
 All the men were arranged two deep; and when 
 Conal came up, the foremost man sprang behind 
 the one in the rear of him, and that one behind 
 the man at his side, and so on throughout. None 
 would stand to receive Conal's blow. 
 
 Away rushed every man, woman, and child, 
 and never stopped till they were inside in their 
 houses. First of all, ran the brothers of the 
 islands. 
 
 When they reached the castle, they began to 
 lament because they had insulted the champion, 
 and knew not who he was or whence he had come. 
 
 The three brothers had one sister; and when 
 she saw them lamenting and grieving, she asked: 
 " What trouble is on you } " 
 
 "We fled from the champion, and the people 
 followed us." 
 
 "None of you invited the champion to the 
 castle," said the sister; "now he will fall into 
 
Saudan Og and Young ConaL 8i 
 
 such a rage on the strand that in one hour he 
 will not leave a person alive on the islands. If 
 I had some one to go with me, I would invite 
 him, and the people would be spared." 
 
 " I will go with you," said her chief maid. 
 
 Away they went, walking toward the strand; 
 and when they had come near, they threw them- 
 selves on their knees before Conal. He asked 
 who they were and what brought them. 
 
 " My brothers sent me to beg pardon for them, 
 and invite you to the castle." 
 
 "I will go," said Conal; "and if you had not 
 come, I would not have left a man alive on the 
 three islands." Conal went with the princess, 
 and saw at the castle a very old and large man ; 
 and the old man rose up before him and said, 
 "A hundred thousand welcomes to you, young 
 Conal from Erin." 
 
 "Who are you who know me, and I never 
 before on this island .!*" asked Conal. 
 
 "My name is Donach the Druid, from Erin. 
 I was often in your father's house, and it was a 
 good place for rich or poor to visit, for they were 
 alike there; and now I hope you will take me 
 home to be buried among my own people. It 
 was God who drove you hither to this island to 
 take me home." 
 
 "And I will do that," said Conal, "if I go 
 6 
 
82 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 there myself. Tell me now how you came to 
 this place." 
 
 "I was taken," said Donach, "out on the wild 
 arm of the wind, and was thrown in on this island. 
 I am here ever since. I am old now, and I wish 
 to be home in my own place in Erin." 
 
 Now young Conal, the sister, and three 
 brothers sat down to dinner. When dinner was 
 over, and they had eaten and drunk, they were 
 as happy as if they had lived a thousand years 
 together. The three brothers asked Conal where 
 was he going, and what was his business. Conal 
 did not say that he was in search of his wife, but 
 he said that he was going to his own castle and 
 kingdom. The old druid, two of the brothers, 
 and the sister said, " We will go with you, and 
 serve you till you come to your kingdom." 
 
 They got a boat and took him to the ship. He 
 weighed anchor, and sailed away. For two or 
 three days they saw nothing wonderful. The 
 fourth day they came to a great island ; and as 
 they neared it, they saw three champions inside, 
 and the three fighting with swords and spears. 
 Young Conal was surprised to see three fighting 
 at the same time. 
 
 "Well," said he, "it is nothing to see two 
 champions in combat, but 't is strange to see 
 three. I will go in and see why they are fight- 
 
Saudan Og and Young Conal. ^^i 
 
 ing. " He threw out his chains, and made his 
 ship fast ; then he made a rush from the stern of 
 the vessel to the bow, and as he ran, he caught 
 Donach the Druid and carried him, and with one 
 leap was in on the strand, seven miles from the 
 ship. 
 
 Young Conal faced the champions, and, salut- 
 ing the one he thought best, asked the cause of 
 their battle. The champion sat down, and 
 began. "I will tell you the reason," said he. 
 "Seven miles from this place there stands a 
 castle; in that castle is the most beautiful woman 
 that the eye of man has ever seen, and the three 
 of us are in love with her. She says she will 
 take only the best man ; and we are striving to 
 know who is best, but no man of us three can 
 get the upper hand of another. We can kill every 
 man who comes to the island, but no man of us 
 can kill another of the three." 
 
 When Conal heard this he sprang up, and told 
 the champions to face him and he would see what 
 they could do. The three faced him, and went at 
 him. Soon he swept the heads off two of them, 
 but the third man was pressing hard on Conal. 
 His name was the Short Dun Champion; but in 
 the end Conal knocked him with a blow, and no 
 sooner had he him knocked than Donach the 
 Druid had him tied with strong cords and strings 
 
84 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 of enchantment. Then young Conal spoke to 
 Donach the Druid and said, "Come to this 
 champion's breastbone and split it, take out his 
 heart and his liver, and give them to my young 
 hound to eat;" and turning to the Short Dun 
 Champion, he asked, "Have you ever been so 
 near a fearful death as you are at this moment ? " 
 
 "'Tis hard for me to answer you," said he, 
 "for 't is firmly I am bound by your Druid, bad 
 luck to him. " 
 
 "Unbind the champion," said Conal, "till he 
 tells us at his ease was he ever nearer a fearful 
 death than he is at this moment." 
 
 "I was," said the champion to Conal. "Sit 
 down there on that stool. I will sit here and 
 tell you. I did not think much of your torture, 
 for I knew that when my heart and liver were 
 taken, I should be gone in that moment. Once 
 I had a longer torture to suffer. Not many 
 months ago, I was sailing on my ship in mid- 
 ocean when I saw the biggest man ever seen on 
 earth, and he with a beautiful woman in his 
 hand. The moment I saw that woman I was in 
 love with her, and I sailed toward the High King 
 of the World, for it was he that was in it ; but if 
 I did, he let my ship go out in full sail between 
 his two legs, and travelled on in another direc- 
 tion. I turned the ship again, and went after 
 
Saudan Og and Young Conal 85 
 
 him. I climbed to the topmast, and stood there. 
 I came up to the King of the World, for wind 
 and wave were with me, and, being almost as 
 high as the woman in his hand, I made a grasp 
 at her; he let my ship out between his legs, 
 but if he did, I took the woman with me and 
 kissed her three times. This enraged the High 
 King. He came to my ship, bound and tied me 
 with strong hempen cords, then, putting a finger 
 under me, he tossed me out on the sea and 
 let my ship drift with the wind. I had some 
 enchantment of my own, and the sea did not 
 drown me. When little fish came my way, I 
 swallowed them, and thus I got food. I was in 
 this state for many days, and the hempen cords 
 began to rot and weaken. Through good luck or 
 ill, I was thrown in on this island. I pulled the 
 cords, and struggled with them till one hand was 
 free; then I unbound myself. I came to shore 
 where the island is wildest. A bird called Nails 
 of Daring had a nest in a high, rugged cliff. 
 This bird came down, and, seizing me, rose in the 
 air. Then she dropped me. I fell like a ball, and 
 struck the sea close to land. I feigned death 
 well, and was up and down with the waves that 
 she might not seize me a second time, but soon 
 she swooped down and placed her ear near me to 
 know was I living. I held my breath, and she, 
 
86 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 thinking me dead, flew away. I rose up, and ran 
 with all speed to the first house I found. Now, 
 was I not nearer a worse death than the one to 
 which you condemned me.? Nails of Daring 
 would have given me a frightful and slow death, 
 and you wished to give me a quick one." 
 
 "Short Dun Champion," said Conal, "the 
 woman you saw with the High King was my 
 wife. It was luck that brought me in your way, 
 and it was luck that Donach the Druid tied you 
 in such a fashion. Now you must guide me to 
 the castle of the High King." 
 
 "Come, now, druid, bind my hands and feet, 
 take my heart and liver and give them to young 
 Conal's hound whelp, rather than take me to that 
 king. I got dread enough before from him." 
 
 " Believe me, all I want of you now is to guide 
 my ship; you will come back in safety and 
 health," said young Conal. 
 
 "I will go with you and guide you, if you 
 put me beneath your ship's ballast when you 
 see him nearing us, for fear he will get a glimpse 
 of me." 
 
 "I will do that," said Conal. 
 
 Now they went out to the ship, and steered 
 away, with the Short Dun Champion as pilot. 
 They were the fifth day at sea when he steered 
 the ship toward the castle of the High King. 
 
Saudan Og and Young Conal. 87 
 
 "That," said the Short Dun Champion, pointing 
 to a great building on an island, " is the castle 
 of the High King of the World; but as good a 
 champion as you are, you cannot free your wife 
 from it. That castle revolves; and as it goes 
 around it throws out poison, and if one drop of 
 that poison were to fall on you the flesh would 
 melt from your bones. But the King of the 
 World is not at home now, for to-morrow the 
 day and the year will be up since he stole 
 the wife from you. I have some power of en- 
 chantment and I will bring the woman to you in 
 the ship." 
 
 The Short Dun Champion went with one leap 
 from the deck of the ship to the strand, and, 
 caring for no man, walked straight to the castle 
 where the Yellow King's daughter was held. 
 The castle had an opening underneath, and the 
 Short Dun Champion, keeping the poison away 
 by his power, passed in, found the princess, and 
 wrapping her in the skirt of an enchanted cloak 
 that he had, took her out, and running to the 
 strand was in on the deck of the ship with one 
 bound. 
 
 The moment the princess set eyes on Conal, 
 she gave such a scream that the High King heard 
 her, and he off in the Western World inviting 
 all the great people to his wedding. He started 
 
88 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 that minute for the castle, and did not wait to 
 throw fish in his basket as he went through the 
 sea. When he came home, the princess was not 
 there before him. " Where has my bride gone, 
 or has some one stolen her.? " asked he. 
 
 **A man who has a ship in the harbor came 
 and stole the lady." 
 
 " A thousand deaths ! What shall I do, and all 
 the high people on the way to the wedding } " 
 
 He seized a great club and killed half his ser- 
 vants, then rushed to the strand, and seeing the 
 ship still at anchor, shouted for battle. 
 
 When the Short Dun Champion heard the 
 king's voice, he screamed to be put under the 
 ballast. He was put there and hidden from 
 sight. "If I whistle with my fingers," asked 
 young Conal, "will you come to me.?" 
 
 "I will, if I were to die the next moment," 
 said the Short Dun Champion. 
 
 Conal told Donach the Druid to stand at the 
 bows of the ship, then, walking to the stern, he 
 was so glad at having his wife on the vessel, and 
 •he going to fight with the High King, that he 
 made a run, seized the druid, and carried him 
 with one leap to the strand, eleven miles distant. 
 
 The High King demanded his wife. 
 
 "She is not your wife, but mine," said young 
 Conal. "I won her with my sword, and you 
 
Saudan Og and Young ConaL 89 
 
 stole her away like a thief, and I sleeping. 
 Though she is mine, I did not flee when I took 
 her away from you." 
 
 "It is time for battle," said the king, and the 
 two closed in combat. The king, being so tall, 
 had the advantage. " I might as well make him 
 shorter," thought Conal, and with one blow he 
 cut the two legs off the king at the knee joints. 
 The king fell. No sooner was he down than the 
 druid had him tied with hard cords of enchant- 
 ment. Conal whistled through his finger. The 
 Short Dun Champion, hearing the whistle, 
 screamed to be freed from the ballast. The men 
 took him out. He went in on the strand with 
 one bound, and when he came up to where the 
 High King was lying, Conal said, "Cut this man 
 at the breast-bone, take out his heart with his 
 liver, and give them as food to my hound whelp. " 
 
 "He is well bound by your druid; but firmly 
 as he is bound, I am in dread to go near him to 
 do this. " 
 
 Conal then drew his own sword, and with a 
 blow swept the head off the High King. Then 
 Conal, Donach the Druid, and the Short Dun 
 Champion went to the ship and sailed homeward. 
 On their way, where should they sail but along 
 the coast of Spain .^ While they were sailing, 
 Conal espied three great castles, and not far 
 from them a herd of cattle grazing. 
 
90 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 "Will one of you go and inquire why these 
 three castles are built near together?" asked 
 Conal of the two island brothers. 
 
 "I will go," said the elder. 
 
 He went on shore to the herdsman and asked, 
 "Why are those three castles so near one 
 another ? " 
 
 "I will tell you," said the herdsman; "but you 
 must come first and touch my finger-tips. " 
 
 No sooner had the champion done this, than 
 the man drew a rod of enchantment, struck him 
 a blow, and turned him to stone. 
 
 Conal saw this from the ship, and asked, " Who 
 will go in now? " 
 
 "I will go," said the second brother. "I have 
 the best right." He went and met the same fate 
 as his brother. 
 
 "I will go this time," said Conal. 
 
 The Yellow King's daughter, Donach the 
 Druid, and the Short Dun Champion seized 
 Conal to keep him from going. 
 
 " If I do not live but a moment, I must go and 
 knock satisfaction out of the herdsman for what 
 he has done to my men," cried out Conal. So he 
 went, and walking up to the herdsman, asked the 
 same questions as the two brothers. 
 
 "Come here and touch my finger tips." 
 
 Conal walked up to the herdsman, caught his 
 
Saudan Og and Young Conal. 91 
 
 fingers, then ran under the rod and seized the 
 herdsman ; but if he did, the herdsman had him 
 that moment on the flat of his back. But Conal 
 was up, and had the herdsman down, and, drawing 
 his sword, said, "I '11 have your head now unless 
 you tell me why these three castles are here close 
 together. " 
 
 " I will tell you, but do you remember, young 
 Conal, when in our father's castle how I used to 
 get the first blow on you? " 
 
 "Are you my brother.? " asked Conal. 
 
 "I am," said the herdsman. 
 
 " Why did you kill my men } " 
 
 " If I killed them, I can raise them ; " and going 
 to the two brothers, he struck each a blow, and 
 they rose up as well and strong as ever. 
 
 "Well," said the brother to Conal, "Saudan 
 Og arrived in Spain the day before we did, and 
 he had one-third of the kingdom taken before 
 us. We went against him the following day, and 
 kept him inside that third, and we have neither 
 gained nor lost since. The King of Spain had 
 a castle here; my father and the King of Leinster 
 built a second castle near that; Saudan Og built 
 the third near the two, for himself and his men, 
 and that is why the three castles are here. We 
 are ever since in battle; Saudan has the one- 
 third, and we the rest of Spain." 
 
92 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 ^ Conal arrayed himself as a champion next 
 morning, and went to Saudan's castle. He struck 
 a blow on the pole of combat that shook the 
 whole kingdom, and that day he killed Saudan 
 and every man of his forces. 
 
 Conal's eldest brother married the daughter of 
 the King of Spain. He took the second brother 
 with him, married him to the sister of the two 
 island brothers, and gave him the three islands. 
 He went home then, gave the kingdom of the 
 Yellow King to the Short Dun Champion, and 
 had the two island brothers well married to king's 
 daughters in Erin. All lived happily and well; 
 if they did not, may we! 
 
THE BLACK THIEF AND KING CONAL'S 
 THREE HORSES. 
 
 T^HERE was a king once in Erin who had a 
 -*- beautiful queen, and the queen's heart was 
 as good as her looks. Every one loved her, but, 
 above all, the poor people. There wasn't a 
 needy man or woman within a day's journey of 
 the castle who was not blessing the beautiful 
 queen. On a time this queen fell ill suddenly, 
 and said to the king, "If I die and you marry a 
 second wife, leave not my three sons to a strange 
 woman's rule. Send them away to be reared till 
 they come to age and maturity.'' 
 
 The queen died soon after. The king mourned 
 for her one year and a second; then his chief 
 men and counsellors urged him to seek out a new 
 queen. 
 
 The king built a castle in a distant part of 
 his kingdom, and put his three sons there with 
 teachers and servants to care for them. He married 
 a second wife then; and the two lived on happily 
 till the new wife had a son. The young queen 
 never knew that the king had other children than 
 
94 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 her son, or that there was a queen in the king- 
 dom before her. 
 
 On a day when the king was out hunting in 
 the mountains, the queen went to walk near the 
 castle, and as she was passing the cottage of a 
 greedy old henwife, she stumbled and fell. 
 
 " May the like of that meet you always ! " said 
 the henwife. 
 
 " Why do you say that } " asked the queen, who 
 overheard her. 
 
 " It is all one to you what I say. It is little 
 you care for me or the like of me. It was n't 
 the same with the queen that was here before 
 you. There was n't a week that she did not 
 give support to poor people, and she showed kind- 
 ness to every one always." 
 
 " Had the king a wife before me } " asked the 
 queen. 
 
 *'He had, indeed; and I could tell enough to 
 keep you thinking for a day and a year, if you 
 would pay me." 
 
 " I will pay you well if you tell all about the 
 queen that was in it before me. " 
 
 " If you give me one hundred speckled goats, 
 one hundred sheep, and one hundred cows I will 
 tell you." 
 
 "I will give you all those," said the queen, 
 "if you tell everything." 
 
Black Thief and King ConaVs Horses. 95 
 
 "The queen that was here at first had three 
 sons; and before the king married you, he pre- 
 pared a great castle, and the sons are in that 
 castle now with teachers and men taking care of 
 them. When the three are of age, your son 
 will be without a place for his head." 
 
 " What am I to do to keep my son in the king- 
 dom } " asked the queen. 
 
 " Persuade the king to bring his three sons to 
 the castle, then play chess with them. I will give 
 you a board with which you can win. When you 
 have won of the three young men, put them under 
 bonds to go for the three steeds of King Conal 
 for you to ride three times around all the boun- 
 daries of the kingdom. Many and many is the 
 champion and hero who went for King Conal's 
 horses; but not a man of them was seen again, 
 and so it will be with these three. Your son 
 will be safe at home, and will be king himself 
 when his time comes." 
 
 The queen went home to the castle, and if ever 
 she had a head full of plans it was that time. 
 She began the same night with the king. 
 
 " Is n't it a shame for you to keep your children 
 away from me, and I waiting this long time for 
 you to bring them home to us } " 
 
 "How am I keeping my children from you.?" 
 asked the king. " Have n't you your own son 
 and mine with you always } " 
 
96 Hero-Tales of Irelana. 
 
 " You have three sons of your own. You were 
 married before you saw me. Bring your children 
 home. I will be as fond of them as you are." 
 
 No matter what the king said, the queen kept 
 up her complaining with sweet words and 
 promises, and never stopped till the king brought 
 his sons to the castle. 
 
 The king gave a great feast in honor of the 
 young men. After the feast the queen played 
 chess for a sentence with the eldest. She played 
 twice; won a game and lost one. Next day she 
 played one game with the second son. On the 
 third day, she played with the youngest; won one 
 game and lost one. 
 
 On the fourth day, the three were in the queen's 
 company. 
 
 "What sentence do you put on me and my 
 brothers.? " asked the eldest. 
 
 " I put you and your brothers under sentence 
 not to sleep two nights in the same house, nor 
 to eat twice off the same table, till you bring me 
 the three steeds of King Conal, so that I may 
 ride three times around the kingdom." 
 
 "Will you tell me," asked the eldest son, 
 "where to find King Conal.'*" 
 
 "There are four quarters in the world; I am 
 sure it is in one of these that he lives," said 
 the queen. 
 
Black Thief and King ConaVs Horses, 97 
 
 "I might as well give you sentence now," said 
 the eldest brother. " I put you under bonds of 
 enchantment to stand on the top of the castle 
 and stay there without coming down, and watch 
 for us till we come back with the horses." 
 
 " Remove from me your sentence ; I will remove 
 mine," said the queen. 
 
 "If a young man is relieved of the first sen- 
 tence put on him, he will never do anything 
 good," said the king's son. "We will go for the 
 horses." 
 
 Next day the three brothers set out for the 
 castle of King Conal. They travelled one day 
 after another, stopping one night in one place 
 and the next in another, and they were that way 
 walking till one evening, when whom should 
 they meet but a limping man in a black cap. 
 The man saluted them, and they returned the 
 salute. 
 
 "What brought you this road, and where are 
 you going.!* '• asked the stranger. 
 
 "We are going to the castle of King Conal to 
 know can we bring his three horses home with 
 us." 
 
 "Well," said the man, "my house is nearby, 
 and the dark night is coming; stay with me till 
 morning, and perhaps I can help you." 
 
 The young men went with the stranger, and 
 7 
 
98 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 soon came to his house. After supper the man 
 said, "It is the most difficult feat in the world 
 to steal King Conal's three horses. Many a 
 good man went for them, and never came back. 
 Why do you go for those horses t " 
 
 " Our father is a king in Erin, and he married 
 a second time. Our stepmother bound us to 
 bring the three horses, so she may ride three 
 times around our father's kingdom." 
 
 "I will go with you," said the man. "Without 
 me, you would lose your lives; together, we may 
 bring the horses." 
 
 Next morning the four set out, and went their 
 way, walking one day after another, till at long 
 last they reached the castle of King Conal at 
 nightfall. 
 
 On that night, whatever the reason was, the 
 guards fell asleep at the stables. The stranger 
 and the three young men made their way to the 
 horses; but if they did, the moment they touched 
 them the horses let three screeches out of them 
 that shook the whole castle and woke every man 
 in the country around it. 
 
 The guards seized the young men with the 
 stranger, and took the four to King Conal. 
 
 The king was in a great room on the ground- 
 floor of his castle. In front of him was an awfully 
 big pot full of oil, and it boiling. 
 
Black Thief and King ConaVs Horses. 99 
 
 "Well," said the king when he saw the stranger 
 before him, "only that the Black Thief is dead, 
 I 'd say you were that man." 
 
 "I am the Black Thief," said the stranger. 
 
 "We will know that in time," said the king; 
 "and who are these three young men? " 
 
 "Three sons of a king in Erin." 
 
 "We '11 begin with the youngest. But stir up 
 the fire there, one of you," said King Conal to the 
 attendants; "the oil is not hot enough." -And 
 turning to the Black Thief, he asked, " Is n't that 
 young man very near his death at this moment .? " 
 
 "I was nearer death than he is, and I escaped," 
 said the Black Thief. 
 
 "Tell me the story," said the king. "If you 
 were nearer death than he is, I will give his 
 life to that young man." 
 
 "When I was young," said the Black Thief, 
 " I lived on my land with ease and plenty, till 
 three witches came the way, and destroyed all 
 my property. I took to the roads and deep 
 forests then, and became the most famous thief 
 that ever lived in Erin. This is the story of the 
 witches who robbed and tried to kill me : — 
 
 "There was a king not long ago in Erin, and 
 he had three beautiful daughters. When they 
 grew up to be old enough for marriage, they were 
 enchanted in the way that the three became 
 
lOO Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 brazen-faced, old-looking, venomous hags every 
 night, and were three beautiful, harmless young 
 women every day, as before. 
 
 **I was living for myself on my land, and 
 had laid in turf enough for seven years, and I 
 thought it the size of a mountain. I went out at 
 midnight, and what did I see but the hags at 
 my reek; and they never stopped till they put 
 every sod of the turf into three creels on their 
 backs, and made off with it. 
 
 "The following season I brought turf for 
 another seven years, and the next midnight the 
 witches stole it all from me; but this time I 
 followed them. They went about five miles, and 
 disappeared in a broad hole twenty fathoms deep. 
 I waited, then looked down, and saw a great fire 
 under a pot with a whole bullock in it. There 
 was a round stone at the mouth of the hole. I 
 used all my strength, rolled it down, broke the 
 pot, and spoiled the broth on the witches. 
 
 "Away I ran then, but was not long on the 
 road when I saw the three racing after me. I 
 climbed a tree to escape from them. The 
 witches came in a rage, stopped under the tree, 
 and looked up at me. The eldest rested awhile, 
 then made a sharp axe of the second, and a 
 venomous hound of the third, to destroy me. 
 She took the axe herself then, gave one blow 
 
Black Thief and King Conal 's I/orses. i o i 
 
 of it, and cut one-third of the tree ; she gave a 
 second blow, and cut another third ; she had the 
 axe raised a third time when a cock crowed, and 
 there before my eyes the axe turned into a beau- 
 tiful woman, the hag who had raised it into a 
 second, and the venomous hound into a third. 
 The three walked away then, harmless and inno- 
 cent as any young women in Erin. Was n't I 
 nearer death that time than this young man.? " 
 
 "Oh, you were," said the king; "I give him 
 his life, and it *s his brother that *s near death 
 now. He has but ten minutes to live." 
 
 "Well, I was nearer death than that young 
 man," said the Black Thief. 
 
 "Tell how it was. If you convince me, I '11 
 give him his life, too. " 
 
 " After I broke their pot, the witches destroyed 
 my property night after night, and I had to leave 
 that place and find my support on the roads and 
 in forests. I was faring well enough till a year 
 of hunger and want came. I went out once into 
 a great wood, walked up and down to know could 
 I find any food to take home to my wife and 
 my children. 
 
 " I found an old white horse and a cow without 
 horns. I tied the tails of the two to each other, 
 and was driving them home for myself with great 
 labor; for when the white horse pulled backward, 
 
I02 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 the cow would pull forward, and when the horse 
 tried to go on, the cow would n't go with him. 
 They were that way in disagreement till they 
 drew the night on themselves and on me. I had 
 a bit of flint in my pocket, and put down a fire. 
 I could not make my way out of the wood in the 
 night-time, and sat down by the fire. I was not 
 long sitting when thirteen cats, wild and enor- 
 mous, stood out before me. Of these, twelve were 
 each the bulk of a man; the thirteenth, a red 
 one, the master of the twelve, was much larger. 
 They began to purr on the opposite side of the 
 fire, and make a noise like the rumbling of thun- 
 der. At last the big red cat lifted his head, 
 opened his wide eyes, and said to me, *I '11 be 
 this way no longer; give me something to eat.* " 
 
 " I have nothing to give you," said I, ''unless 
 you take that white horse below there and kill 
 him." 
 
 " He went down then, and made two halves of 
 the horse, left half to the twelve, and ate the 
 other half himself. They picked every bone, and 
 were not long at it. 
 
 " The thirteen came up again, sat opposite me 
 at the fire, and were purring. The big red cat 
 soon spoke a second time, 'I'll not be long 
 this way. Give me more food to satisfy my 
 hunger. * 
 
Black Thief and King ConaV s Horses, 103 
 
 " * I have nothing to give unless you take the 
 cow without horns,' replied I. 
 
 " He made two halves of the cow, ate one-half 
 himself, and left the other to the twelve. While 
 they were eating the cow, I took off my coat, for 
 I knew what was coming, wrapped it around a 
 block which I made like myself, and then climbed 
 a tree quickly. The red cat came up to the fire a 
 third time, opened his great eyes, looked toward 
 my coat, and said, * I '11 not be long this way; 
 give me more food. * 
 
 " My coat gave no answer. The big cat sprang 
 at it, struck the block with his tail, and found 
 it was wood. 
 
 "'Ah,' said he, 'you are gone; but whether 
 above ground or under ground, we will find you. ' 
 
 " He put six cats above and six under ground 
 to find me. The twelve cats were gone in a 
 breath. The big red cat sat there waiting; and 
 when the other twelve had run through all Erin, 
 above ground and under ground, and come back 
 to the fire, he looked up, saw me, and cried, 
 * Ah, there you are, you deceiver. You thought 
 to escape, but you will not. Come, now,' said 
 he to the cats, * and gnaw down this tree.' 
 
 "The twelve sprang at the tree under me, and 
 they were not long cutting it through. Before 
 it fell, I escaped to another tree near by, and they 
 
I04 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 attacked that, gnawing it down. I sprang to a 
 third. We were that way, I escaping and they 
 cutting, till near daybreak, when I was on the 
 last tree next the open country. When the tree 
 was half cut, what should come the way but thir- 
 teen terrible wolves, — twelve, and a thirteenth 
 above them, their master. They fell upon the 
 cats, and fought desperately a good while. At 
 length the twelve on each side were stretched, 
 but the two chiefs were fighting each other yet. 
 At last the wolf nearly took the head off the cat 
 with one snap; the cat whirled in falling, struck 
 the wolf with the sharp hook in his tail, made 
 two halves of his skull, and the two fell dead, 
 side by side. 
 
 "I slipped down then, but the tree shook in 
 the way that I was in dread it would tumble 
 beneath me, but it didn't. Now, wasn't I 
 nearer death that time than this young man.!*" 
 
 "Oh, you were," said King Conal. "He's 
 not near death at all, for I give his life to him; 
 but if the two have escaped, we '11 put the third 
 man in the pot ; and have you ever seen any one 
 nearer death than he is } " 
 
 "I was nearer myself," said the Black Thief. 
 
 "If you were, I will give his life to this young 
 man as well as his brothers." 
 
 "I had apprentices in my time," said the Black 
 
Black Thief and King ConaVs Horses. 105 
 
 Thief. " Among them was one, a young man of 
 great wit, and he pleased me. I gave no real 
 learning to any but this one; and in the heel 
 of the story he was a greater man than myself, — 
 in his own mind. There was a giant in the other 
 end of the kingdom; he lived in a mountain den, 
 and had great wealth gathered in there. I made 
 up my mind to go with the apprentice, and take 
 that giant's treasures. We travelled many days 
 till we reached the mountain den. We hid, and 
 watched the ways of the giant. He went out 
 every day, brought back many things, but often 
 men's bodies. At last we went to the place in 
 his absence. There was only one entrance, from 
 the top. I was lowering the young man with 
 a rope, but when halfway to the bottom he called 
 out as if in pain. I drew him up. * I am in 
 dread, * said he, * to go down in that place. Go 
 yourself. I will do the work here for you. ' 
 
 " I went down, found gold and precious things 
 in plenty, and sent up what one man could carry. 
 * I will go out of this now, ' thought I, * before 
 the giant comes on me.' I called to the appren- 
 tice; no answer. I called again; not a word 
 from him. At last he looked down and said, — 
 
 " * You gave me good learning, and I am grate- 
 ful; I will gain my own living from this out. I 
 hope you '11 spend a pleasant night with the 
 giant. ' 
 
io6 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 "With that, he made off with himself, and 
 carried the treasure. Oh, but I was in trouble 
 then! How was I to bring my life home with 
 me? How was I to escape from the giant? I 
 looked, but found no way of escape. In one 
 corner of the giant's kitchen were bodies brought 
 in from time to time. I lay down with these, 
 and seemed dead. I was watching. After a 
 while I heard a great noise at the entrance, and 
 soon the giant came in carrying three bodies; 
 these he threw aside with the others. He put 
 down a great fire then, and placed a pot on it : he 
 brought a basket to the bodies, and began to fill 
 it; me he threw in first, and put six bodies on the 
 top of me. He turned the basket bottom upward 
 over the pot, and six bodies fell in. I held firmly 
 to my place. The giant put the basket aside 
 in a corner bottom upward, — I was saved that 
 time. When the supper was ready, the giant ate 
 the six bodies, and then lay down and slept 
 soundly. I crept from under the basket, went 
 to the entrance; a tree trunk, standing upright in 
 the wall at one end of it, was turned around. 
 There were steps in its side from bottom to top; 
 this was the giant's ladder. Whenever the giant 
 wished to go up, he turned the tree till the steps 
 came outside; and when on top, he turned it till 
 the smooth side was out in the way no one could 
 
Black Thief and King Conal 's Horses, 1 07 
 
 go down in his absence. When he wished to 
 go down, he turned the steps out ; and when at 
 the bottom, he turned them in again in the way 
 no one could follow him. This time he forgot 
 to turn the tree, and that gave me the ladder. 
 I went up without trouble ; and, by my hand, I 
 was glad, for I was much nearer death at the giant's 
 pot than this man at yours." 
 
 "You were, indeed, very near death," said 
 King Conal, "and I give his life to the third 
 man. The turn is on you now; the three young 
 men are safe, and it 's you that will go into the 
 pot." 
 
 "Must I die.? " asked the Black Thief. 
 
 "You must, indeed," said King Conal, "and 
 you are very near death." 
 
 "Near as I am," said the Black Thief, "I was 
 nearer. " 
 
 "Tell me the story; and if you were ever 
 nearer death than you are at this minute, I will 
 give your life to you." 
 
 "I set out another day," said the Black Thief, 
 "and travelled far. I came at last to a house, 
 and went into it. Inside was a woman with a 
 child on her knee, a knife in her hand, and she 
 crying. Twice she made an offer of the knife 
 at the child to kill it. The beautiful child 
 laughed, and held out its hands to her. 
 
io8 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 *" Why do you raise the knife on the child, * 
 asked I, * and why are you crying? ' 
 
 " ' I was at a fair, ' said the woman, * last year 
 with my father and mother; and while the people 
 were busy each with his own work, three giants 
 came in on a sudden. The man who had a bite 
 of bread in his hand did not put the bread to his 
 mouth, and the man who had a bite in his mouth 
 did not swallow it. The giants robbed this one 
 and that, took me from my father and mother, 
 and brought me to this place. I bound them, 
 and they promised that none of the three would 
 marry me before I was eighteen years of age. 
 I '11 be that in a few days, and there is no escape 
 for me now unless I raise hands on myself. 
 
 "* Yesterday the giants brought this child; 
 they said it was the son of some king, and told 
 me to have it cooked and prepared in a pie for 
 their supper this evening. ' 
 
 "' Spare the child,' said I. ' I have a young 
 pig that I brought to roast for myself on the 
 road; take that, and prepare it instead of the 
 child.' 
 
 " * The giants would know the pig, and kill me, ' 
 said the woman. 
 
 "'They would not,' said I; * there is only a 
 small difference between the flesh of a young 
 pig and a child. We will cut off the first joint 
 
Black Thief and King Conal 's Horses. 1 09 
 
 of the left little finger. If they make a remark, 
 show them that. ' 
 
 " She cooked the pie, and I watched outside 
 for the giants. At last I saw the three coming. 
 She hid the child in a safe place aside; and I 
 went to the cellar, where I found many dead 
 bodies. I lay down among them, and waited. 
 When the giants came home, the eldest ate the 
 pie, and called to the woman, 'That would be 
 very good if we had enough of it.' Then he 
 turned to his second brother, and sent him down 
 to the cellar to bring a slice from one of the 
 bodies. The brother came down, took hold of 
 one body, then another, and, catching me, cut a 
 slice from the end of my back, and went up with 
 it. He was not long gone when he came down 
 again, raised me on his back, and turned to take 
 me with him. He had not gone many steps when 
 I sent my knife to his heart, and there he fell 
 on his face under me. I went back, and lay in 
 my old place. 
 
 " The chief giant, who had tasted my flesh and 
 was anxious for more of it, now sent the youngest 
 brother. He came, saw the middle brother lying 
 there, and cried out, — 
 
 "*0h, but you are the lazy messenger, to be 
 sleeping when sent on an errand ! ' 
 
 ** With that, he raised me on his back, and was 
 
no Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 going, when I stabbed him and stretched him on 
 the ground not far from his brother. 
 
 " The big giant waited and waited, grew angry, 
 took his great iron club with nine lumps and 
 nine hooks on it. He hurried down to the cellar, 
 saw his two brothers, shook them, found them 
 dead. I had no chance of life but to fight for it ; 
 I rose and stood a fair distance in front of the 
 giant. He ran toward me, raised the club, and 
 brought it down with what strength there was in 
 him. I stepped aside quickly; the club sank in 
 the earth to the depth of a common man's knee. 
 While the giant was drawing the club with both 
 hands, I stabbed him three times in the stomach, 
 and sprang away to some distance. He ran for- 
 ward a second time, and came very near hitting 
 me; again the club sank in the ground, and I 
 stabbed him four times, for he was weaker from 
 blood loss, and was a longer time freeing the 
 club. The third time the club grazed me, and 
 tore my whole side with a sharp iron hook. The 
 giant fell to his knees, but could neither rise 
 nor make a cast of the club at me ; soon he was 
 on his elbow, gnashing his teeth and raging. I 
 was growing weaker, and knew that I was lost 
 unless some one assisted me. The young woman 
 had come down, and was present at the struggle. 
 * Run now,' said I to her, * for the giant's sword, 
 
Black Thief and King Conal 's Horses, 1 1 1 
 
 and take the head off him.' She ran quickly, 
 brought the sword, and as brave as a man took 
 the head off the giant. 
 
 " * Death is not far from me now, ' said I. 
 
 "*I will carry you quickly to the giant's 
 caldron of cure, and give you life,' said the 
 woman. 
 
 " With that, she raised me on her back, and 
 hurried out of the cellar. When she had me 
 on the edge of the caldron, the death faint was 
 on me, I was dying; but I was not long in the 
 pot when I revived, and soon was as well as 
 ever. 
 
 " We searched the whole house of the giants, 
 found all their treasures. I gave some to the 
 woman, kept some myself, and hid the remainder. 
 I took the woman home to her father and mother. 
 She kept the child, which was well but for the tip 
 of its little finger. Now was n't T nearer death 
 that time than I was when I began this story? " 
 
 "You were, indeed," said King Conal; "and 
 even if you were not, I would not put you in the 
 pot, for if you had not been in the house of the 
 three giants that day there would be no sign of me 
 now in this castle. I was that child. Look here 
 at my left little finger. My father searched for 
 you, and so did I when I grew up, but we could 
 not find you. We made out only one thing, that 
 
1 1 2 Hero- Tales of Ireland. 
 
 it was the Black Thief who saved me. Men told 
 me that the Black Thief was dead, and I never 
 hoped to see you. A hundred thousand wel- 
 comes! Now we'll have a feast. The three 
 young men will get the three horses for your 
 sake, and take them home after we have feasted 
 together. You will stay with me now for the 
 rest of your life." 
 
 " I must go with the young men as far as my 
 own house," said the Black Thief; **then I'll 
 come back to you." 
 
 King Conal made a feast the like of which had 
 never been in his kingdom. When the feast was 
 over, he gave the three horses to the young men, 
 and said at parting, "When you have done the 
 work with the horses, let them go, and they will 
 run home to me; no man could stop them." 
 
 "We will do that," said the brothers. 
 
 They set out then with them, stopped one 
 night with the Black Thief at his house, and 
 after that travelled home to their father, and 
 stood in front of the castle. The stepmother 
 was above, watching for them. She was glad 
 when she saw them, and said, "Ye brought the 
 horses, and I am to have them." 
 
 "If we were bound to bring the horses," said 
 the elder brother, "we were not bound to give 
 them to you." 
 
Black Thief and King Conal 's Horses. 1 1 3 
 
 With that, he turned the horses' heads from 
 the castle, and let them go. They ran home to 
 King Conal. 
 
 "I will go down now," said the queen, "and it 
 is time for me." 
 
 "You will not go yet," said the youngest; "I 
 have a sentence which I had no time to give 
 when we were going. I put you under sentence 
 to stay where you are till you find three sons of 
 a king to go again to King Conal for the horses." 
 
 When she heard that sentence, she dropped 
 dead from the castle. 
 
THE KING'S SON FROM ERIN, THE 
 SPRISAWN, AND THE DARK KING. 
 
 THERE was a king in Erin long ago who 
 was called King of Lochlinn, and his wife 
 died. He had two sons. The elder of the two 
 was Miach Lay; the second was Manus. Miach 
 Lay was a fine champion, and trained in every 
 art that befitted a king's son. 
 
 One day the father called Miach Lay to his 
 presence, and said, " It is time for you to marry, 
 and I have chosen for you a maiden of great 
 beauty and high birth." 
 
 "I am willing to marry," said Miach Lay. 
 
 The king and his son then left the castle, and 
 went to the house of the young woman's father, 
 and there they spent seven days and seven 
 nights. On their way home, the king said to 
 his son, "How do you like the young lady.? " 
 
 **I like her well, but I '11 not marry her." 
 
 " Oh, my shame ! " said the father. " How can 
 I ever face those people a second time? ** 
 
 "I cannot help that," said Miach Lay. 
 
Kings Son, Sprisawn, and Dark King, 1 1 5 
 
 The king was greatly confused. After another 
 while he said to his son, " I have another maiden 
 chosen for you, and it is well for us to go to her 
 father's, and settle the match." 
 
 "I am willing," said Miach Lay. 
 
 They went away together, and never stopped 
 nor stayed till they reached the house of the 
 young lady's father. They were welcomed there 
 warmly, and spent seven days and seven nights, 
 and were better attended each day than the day 
 before. 
 
 "Well, my son," asked the father, "how do 
 you like this match } " 
 
 "Well, and very well," said Miach Lay; "but I 
 will not marry this lady either. She is ten times 
 better than the first; and if I had married the 
 first, I could not marry this one, and so I will 
 not marry the second any more than the first 
 lady." 
 
 " Oh, my shame ! " said the father. " I can 
 never show my face to these people again." 
 
 After another while the king told Miach Lay 
 that he had a better lady than ever selected, 
 and asked him to go with him to arrange the 
 marriage. 
 
 "I am willing," answered the son. 
 
 The two went to the father of the maiden; 
 they spent seven days and seven nights at his 
 
ii6 Hero-Tales of IreCancr, 
 
 house, and were fully satisfied with everything. 
 They were on the way home a third time. 
 "Well," said the king, "you have no reason to 
 refuse this time." 
 
 "Well, and very well, do I like the match," 
 said Miach Lay; "but I will not marry this lady. 
 If I had married the first lady, I should have had 
 no chance of getting the second, and the second 
 is ten times better than the first; if I had mar- 
 ried the second lady, I should have had no chance 
 of this one, and she is twenty times better than 
 the second." 
 
 "I have lost all patience with you," said the 
 king, "and I turn the back of my hand to you 
 from this out." 
 
 "I *m fully satisfied," said Miach Lay, so they 
 came home, and passed that night without con- 
 versation. The following morning, when Miach 
 Lay rose, he said to his father, " I am for leav- 
 ing the house now; will you prepare for me the 
 best ship that you have, and put in it a good 
 store of provisions for a long voyage.^" 
 
 The vessel was prepared, and fully provisioned 
 for a day and a year. The king's son went on 
 board, sailed out of the harbor, and off to sea. 
 He never stopped sailing till he entered a harbor 
 in the kingdom of Greece. There was a guard 
 there on watch at the harbor with a keen eye 
 
Kings Son, Sprisawn, and Dark King, 1 1 7 
 
 on all ships that were passing or coming. The 
 King of Greece was at war in that time with the 
 King of Spain, and knew not what moment his 
 kingdom would be invaded. 
 
 The guard saw the vessel coming when she 
 was so small to the eye that he could not tell 
 was it a bird or a vessel that he was looking at. 
 He took quick tidings to the castle; and the 
 king ordered him to go a second time and bring 
 tidings. When he reached the sea, the ship 
 was inside, in the harbor. 
 
 *' Oh," said the king, when the guard ran to him 
 a second time, "that is a wonderful vessel that 
 was so far away a few minutes ago as not to be 
 told from a bird, and is now sailing into harbor." 
 
 "There is but one man to be seen on board," 
 said the guard. 
 
 In front of the king's castle was the landing- 
 place, the only one of the harbor; and even there 
 no one went beyond the shore without passing 
 through a gate where every man had to give an 
 account of himself. There was a chosen cham- 
 pion guarding the gate, who spoke to Miach 
 Lay, and asked, "Who are you, and from what 
 country?" 
 
 " It is not the custom for a man of my people to 
 answer a question like that till he is told first what 
 country he is in, and who asks the question. " 
 
1 1 8 Hero- Tales of Ireland. 
 
 **It was I asked the question," said the cham- 
 pion; "and you must tell me who you are, first 
 of all." 
 
 "I will not tell you," said Miach Lay. With 
 that, he drew his ship nearer land till it grounded ; 
 then, taking an oar, he put the blade end in the 
 sand, and sprang to shore. He asked then the 
 champion at the gate to let him pass, but the 
 champion refused. Miach Lay raised his hand, 
 gave him a blow on the ear, and sent him back- 
 ward spinning like a top, till he struck the pillar 
 of the gate and broke his skull. As Miach Lay 
 had no thought to kill the man, he was grieved, 
 and, delaying a short time, went to the castle of 
 the king, not knowing what country he was in or 
 what city. 
 
 When he came to the castle, he knelt down in 
 front of it. The people in the castle saw a 
 young champion with bared head outside; the 
 king came out, and asked what trouble was on 
 him. Miach Lay told of all that had happened 
 at the harbor, and how he had killed the cham- 
 pion at the gate without wishing it. 
 
 "Never mind that," said the king. 
 
 "I did not intend to kill or harm him at all," 
 said Miach Lay; "he wanted to know who I was, 
 and from what country. By the custom of my 
 land, I cannot tell that till I know where I am. 
 
Kings Son, Sprisawn, and Dark King. 119 
 
 and who are the people among whom I am 
 travelling." 
 
 " Do you know now where you are ? " 
 "I do not," answered Miach Lay. 
 " You are in front of the castle of the King of 
 Greece, and I am that king. " 
 
 " I am the son of the King of Lochlinn from 
 Erin," said Miach Lay, "and have come this way 
 to seek my fortune." 
 
 The King of Greece welcomed him then, took 
 the young champion by the hand, and did not 
 stop till he brought him to where all the princes 
 and nobles were assembled ; he was rejoiced at 
 his coming, for, being at war, he expected aid 
 from this champion. 
 
 "Will you remain with me for a day and a 
 year," asked the king, "and perform what ser- 
 vice I ask of you.? " 
 "I will," said Miach Lay. 
 Manus, the second son of the King of Loch- 
 linn, stopped going to school when Miach Lay, 
 his elder brother, left home, and, after a time, 
 the father wished him to marry. As the elder 
 son had acted, so did the second; he refused to 
 marry each of the three maidens whom the king 
 had chosen, and left his father at last. 
 
 Manus was watching when his brother sailed 
 away, and noticed the course of the vessel, so 
 now he sailed the same way. 
 
120 Hero- Tales of Ireland, 
 
 Miach Lay was gaining favor continually; and 
 just as the day and the year of his service were 
 out to a month, the king's guard saw a vessel 
 sailing in swiftly. He ran with tidings to the 
 king, and added, "There is only one man on 
 board." 
 
 The king and the nobles said it was best not 
 to let him land till he gave an account of him- 
 self. Miach Lay was sent to the landing-place 
 to get account of him. 
 
 He was not long at the landing-place when the 
 vessel came within hailing, and Miach Lay asked 
 the one man on board who was he and from what 
 land he came. The man would not tell, as it 
 was not the custom in his country. "But," said 
 he, "I want something to eat." 
 
 "There is plenty here," said Miach Lay; "but 
 if there is, you will get none of it, — you would 
 better be sailing away." 
 
 "I have enough of the sea; I '11 come in." 
 
 He put down the blade of his oar, and sprang 
 ashore. No sooner had he touched land than he 
 was grappled by Miach Lay. As neither man 
 knew the other, they were in hand grips all day. 
 They were nearly equal in strength, but at last 
 Miach Lay was getting the worst of it. He 
 asked Manus for a truce. 
 
 "I will grant you that," said Manus; "but you 
 do not deserve it, for you began the battle." 
 
Kings Son, Sprisawn, and Dark King. 1 2 1 
 
 They sat apart then, and Miach Lay asked, 
 "How long can you hold out? " 
 
 "It is getting stronger and braver I am," 
 replied Manus. 
 
 "Not so with me. I could not hold out five 
 minutes longer," said Miach Lay. "My bones 
 were all falling asunder, and I thought the earth 
 was trembling beneath me. Till this day I 
 thought to myself, * There is no champion I 
 cannot conquer. ' Now tell me your name and 
 your country." 
 
 "I am from Erin and a son of the King of 
 Lochlinn," said Manus. 
 
 "Oh," said Miach Lay, "you are my brother." 
 
 "Are you Miach Lay.? " inquired Manus. 
 
 "lam." 
 
 They embraced each other, and sat down then 
 to eat. Miach Lay was so tired that he could 
 taste nothing, but Manus ate his fill. Then they 
 went arm in arm to the castle. The king and all 
 the nobles of Greece had seen the combat from 
 the castle, and were surprised to see the men 
 coming toward them in such friendliness, and all 
 went out to know the reason. The king asked 
 Miach Lay, " How is all this.? " 
 
 "This man is my brother," said Miach Lay. 
 "I left him at home in Erin, and did not know 
 him at the harbor till after the combat." 
 
122 Hero-Tales of Ireland^ 
 
 The king was well pleased that he had another 
 champion. The following day Manus saw the 
 king's daughter, and fell in love with her and 
 she with him. Then the daughter told the king 
 if she did not get Manus as husband, the life 
 would leave her. 
 
 The king called Miach Lay to his presence, 
 and asked, " Will you let your brother marry my 
 daughter? " 
 
 " If Manus wishes to marry her, I am willing 
 and satisfied," answered Miach Lay. He asked 
 his brother, and Manus said he would marry the 
 king's daughter. 
 
 The marriage was celebrated without delay, and 
 there was a wedding feast for three days and 
 three nights ; and the third night, when they were 
 going to their own chamber, the king said, "This 
 is the third husband married to my daughter, and 
 after the first night no tidings could be had of 
 the other two, and from that time to this no one 
 knows where they are. " 
 
 Miach Lay was greatly enraged that the king 
 had permitted the marriage without mentioning 
 this matter first. 
 
 "I will do to-night," said the king, "what has 
 never been done hitherto; I will place sentries 
 all around the grounds, and my daughter and 
 Manus will not lodge in the castle at all, but in 
 one of the houses apart from it. " 
 
Kings Son, Sprisawn, and Dark King, 123 
 
 "I '11 watch myself," said Miach Lay; "and if 
 it is the devil that is taking the husbands, I '11 
 not let him take my brother." 
 
 Sentries were stationed in all parts; a house 
 was prepared in the courtyard. Miach Lay stood 
 on guard at the entrance all the time. Soon 
 after midnight a gust of wind blew through the 
 yard; it blew Miach Lay to the ground, and he 
 fainted. When he recovered, he rushed to search 
 for his brother, but he was not in his chamber. 
 He then roused the king's daughter, and asked, 
 " Where is my brother t " 
 
 "I cannot tell where he is," said she: "it is 
 you who were on guard; it is you who should 
 know where to find him." 
 
 " I will have your head, wicked woman, unless 
 you give tidings of my brother." 
 
 "Do not take my head; it would not serve 
 you. I have no account of what happened to 
 your brother." 
 
 Miach Lay then refrained from touching her, 
 and waited till morning. The king came in the 
 morning to see was Manus well; and when Miach 
 Lay saw him, he ran at him to destroy him, but 
 the king fled away. After a while, when the 
 household was roused, the king's daughter was 
 brought in and asked where was her husband, or 
 could she give any account of him. 
 
124 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 "I cannot tell," replied she; "but one day 
 before I was married the first time, something 
 came to my chamber window in the form of a 
 black bee, and asked would I let it in. I said 
 that I would not. The bee remained outside all 
 the day, watching to see could it enter my cham- 
 ber. I did not let it come in ; before going away 
 in the evening, the black bee said, * Well, I will 
 worry the heart in you yet. ' " 
 
 The king's old druid, who was present, slapped 
 his knee with his hand, and said, "I know the 
 story now; that was Ri Doracha (the Dark King). 
 He is a mighty magician, and it is he who has 
 taken the husbands." 
 
 "I will travel the world till I find my lost 
 brother," said Miach Lay. 
 
 "I will go with you, and take all my forces," 
 said Red Bow, the son of the King of Greece. 
 
 "I need no assistance," said Miach Lay. "If 
 I myself cannot find him, I think that no man 
 can; but if you wish to come, you are welcome." 
 
 Miach Lay went to his vessel; and Red Bow 
 chose the best ship from all that his father had, 
 and went on board of it. The two ships sailed 
 away together. In time they neared land; and 
 on reaching the mouth of the harbor, they saw a 
 third ship sailing toward them as swiftly as the 
 wind blew, and it was not long till it came along- 
 
Kings Son^ Sprisawn, and Dark King. 125 
 
 side. There was only one man on board; he 
 hailed Miach Lay, and asked, "Where are you 
 going?" 
 
 " It would not be the custom of my country for 
 me to tell you what you ask till you tell me who 
 you are yourself, and where your own journey 
 lies." 
 
 "I know myself," said the warrior, "where 
 you are going; you are in search of the Dark 
 King, and I myself would like to see him." 
 
 With that, he took a bundle of branches he had 
 on deck, and blew them overboard. Then every 
 rod and twig of the bundle became an enormous 
 log of wood, so that the harbor was covered with 
 one raft of timber, and then he sailed away with- 
 out waiting. 
 
 After much struggling with the logs, shoving 
 them hither and over, Miach Lay was able by 
 pushing with oars to make room for his vessel, 
 and at last came to land. Red Bow and his men 
 were cast into deep sleep by the man on the 
 vessel that had sailed away. 
 
 After Miach Lay landed, he passed through 
 a great stretch of wild country, and, drawing 
 near a large forest, saw rising up a small, slen- 
 der smoke far in among trees. He made for 
 the place where the smoke was, and there he 
 discovered a large, splendid castle in the depth 
 
126 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 of the forest, but could find no sign of an 
 entrance. 
 
 When Miach Lay had stood outside some 
 time, a young woman looked through the win- 
 dow, hailed him, and said, "You are a stran- 
 ger, and will find no lodgings in these parts; 
 but if I could at all, I would let you come in 
 here." 
 
 *' Open the window if you are able," said Miach 
 Lay. 
 
 The window had hinges, and she opened it in 
 the middle; he stepped backward nine yards, and 
 went in at one bound to the chamber. 
 
 "You are welcome," said she, and soon she had 
 dinner prepared for him. When he had eaten, 
 she inquired who was he, from what place had he 
 come, and what brought him that way. 
 
 He told her all that had happened to him from 
 the first; and when he had finished, he said, "I 
 know not where to find my brother. " 
 
 "You are not far from him now," said she; 
 " 't is in this country he is living, and the land 
 he is in bounds our land." 
 
 When they had talked long, she said, " You are 
 tired and need rest, so sleep in this chamber." 
 She went then to her own place. The following 
 morning his breakfast was ready before him ; and 
 after he had eaten, the young woman said, "I 
 
Kings Son, Sprisawn, and Dark King, 1 2 7 
 
 suppose you will be thankful if I tell you where 
 to find the castle of the Dark King." 
 
 " I shall, indeed," said he. Then she gave him 
 full directions how to go. He took his sword 
 then, and sprang out as he had sprung in, in the 
 evening, and went in the direction which she 
 told him to take. About midday he met a man, 
 who hailed him, and asked, "Who are you, and 
 from what country } " 
 
 " 'T is not the custom for a man of my country 
 to answer that question till told where he is, 
 and to whom he is speaking." 
 
 "I know who you are and whither you are 
 going. You are going to the castle of the Dark 
 King, and here he is before you ; now show your 
 daring." 
 
 They made at each other; and if they did, they 
 made soft ground hard and hard ground soft, 
 they made high places low and low places high, 
 they brought cold spring water through dry, 
 gravelly places, and if any one were to come from 
 the Eastern to the Western World, it is to look 
 at these two he should come. 
 
 They were this way till evening, and neither 
 had the better of the other. Miach Lay was 
 equal to the Dark King; but the Dark King, 
 having magic, blew a gust of wind at Miach Lay 
 which knocked him flat on the earth, and left 
 
128 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 him half dead. Then the Dark King took Miach 
 Lay's sword, and went away. When he recovered, 
 Miach Lay regretted his sword more than all else, 
 and went back to the castle where he had spent 
 the night before. He was barely able to go in 
 at the window. 
 
 "How have you fared this day.-*" asked the 
 young woman. 
 
 He told her of all that had happened. 
 
 "Be not grieved; you will meet him another 
 time," said the young woman. 
 
 "What is the use.-* I have no sword now." 
 
 "If 't is a sword you need, I will bring you a 
 blade far better than the one which the Dark 
 King took from you." 
 
 After breakfast next morning she brought him 
 her father's sword, which he grasped in his hand, 
 and shook. Miach Lay bade farewell to the 
 young woman, and sprang out through the window. 
 Knowing the way better this time, he hastened 
 forward, and met the Dark King just where he 
 met him before. 
 
 " Did not yesterday tire you 1 " asked the king. 
 
 "No," said Miach Lay. 
 
 "Your journey is useless," said the king. 
 
 "We shall see, "answered Miach Lay, and they 
 made at each other; and terrible as the battle 
 was on the first day, it was more terrible on the 
 
Kings Son, Sprisawn, and Dark King, 129 
 
 second; but when the Dark King thought it 
 time to go home, he blew a gust of wind which 
 threw Miach Lay to the earth, and left him sense- 
 less. The Dark King did not take the sword 
 this time. 
 
 After the Dark King had gone, another man 
 came the way, who was called Sprisawn Wooden 
 Leg.^ 
 
 "Well, my good man, you are nearly dead," 
 said the Sprisawn. 
 
 "I am," said Miach Lay, rousing up. 
 
 "You are his equal but for the magic. I 
 watched the combat these two days, and you 
 would have overcome him but for his magic; he 
 will finish you to-night if he finds you. He has 
 three magic tricksters who are leaving his house 
 at this moment. They have a spear which the 
 rear man of the three hurls forward, the trickster 
 in front catches the spear in the heel of his foot, 
 and in turn hurls it with all his force forward; 
 those behind rush ahead of the front man, and 
 in turn catch the spear in their heels. No matter 
 how far nor how often the spear is thrown for- 
 ward, there is always a man there before it to 
 catch it. They are rushing hither a longdistance 
 apart." 
 
 1 sprisawn, in Gaelic spriosan, a small twig, and, figuratively, a 
 poor little creature, a sorry little fellow. 
 
 9 
 
130 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 The Sprisawn saw the tricksters approach, and 
 told Miach Lay that they were coming. When 
 they came within a spear-cast, one of them hurled 
 the spear at Miach Lay; it went through his 
 heart, passed out through his body, and killed 
 him. 
 
 When the Sprisawn saw Miach Lay lying dead, 
 he fell to weeping and wailing; and so loud was 
 his wail that every one heard it throughout the 
 whole kingdom. Red Bow was sleeping yet in 
 the harbor; but so loud was the wail of the 
 mourning Sprisawn that it roused him from the 
 slumber which the Dark King had put on him. 
 He landed at once with his forces, and made on 
 toward the wailing. When they came to the 
 place, and saw Miach Lay lying dead, they them- 
 selves began to wail ; they asked the Sprisawn 
 then, "Are there any means by which we might 
 raise him to life } " 
 
 "There are," replied the Sprisawn. "The 
 Dark King is rejoicing now in his castle with 
 the King of Mangling, and the Gruagach of 
 Shields. They are drinking each other's health 
 from a horn, and the Dark King is telling the 
 other two that Miach Lay was the best man that 
 ever stood in front of him ; and if he could drink 
 from that horn, he would rise up as well as he 
 ever was. " 
 
Kings Son, Sprisawn, and Dark King. 1 3 1 
 
 "I with my men will go for that horn," said 
 Red Bow. 
 
 "Not you nor all the men like you living 
 on earth could bring that horn from the castle 
 of the Dark King," replied the Sprisawn. "That 
 castle is surrounded by three walls. Each wall 
 is four feet in thickness and twenty feet high. 
 Each wall has a gate as high and as thick as the 
 wall is itself. How could you pass through those 
 walls.-* Remain here and watch over this body; 
 I will bring the horn hither myself." 
 
 Off went the Sprisawn, and he had more control 
 over magic than even the Dark King. When he 
 arrived at the castle, he struck the gate with the 
 heel of his wooden foot and it opened before 
 him; the second and third gate opened too, in 
 like manner, when he struck them. In he 
 went to the room where the king and his two 
 friends were drinking. There he found them 
 raising toasts to each other. He was himself 
 invisible. As soon as they rested the horn on 
 the table, he snatched it and made off for the 
 place where Miach Lay was lying dead. Then 
 Red Bow and his men raised up the dead man, 
 and poured down his throat some of the wine or 
 whatever liquor was held in the horn. 
 
 After a time Miach Lay opened his eyes, and 
 yawned. They were all so delighted that they 
 raised three shouts of joy. 
 
132 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 "Come on with me now," said the Sprisawn, 
 "to the castle of the Dark King. We will have a 
 trial of strength with him. I will take the Dark 
 King in hand myself. Do you, Miach Lay, take 
 the King of Mangling, and you, Red Bow, take 
 the Gruagach of Shields." 
 
 "This will be very good for us to keep," said 
 Red Bow, when he saw the virtue of the horn. 
 
 "No," said the Sprisawn; "it is good for the 
 man who owns it, and I will return it." 
 
 The Sprisawn, who could travel as swiftly as 
 his own thought, vanished with the horn, placed 
 it on the table from which he had snatched it, 
 and came back to the others. No one had missed 
 the horn ; when they turned to use it, it was there 
 on the table before them, in the chamber of the 
 Dark King. Miach Lay and his friends went 
 on together, and never stopped till they stood 
 in the chamber where the Dark King was sitting 
 with his friends. The gates had remained open 
 since the Sprisawn opened them. When the 
 Dark King saw the dead man alive, standing in 
 his chamber before him, he said, " Never a wel- 
 come to you, you miserable creature with the 
 wooden foot. What brought you hither, or how 
 did you come.? " 
 
 "I have come to you with combat," said the 
 Sprisawn; "and now do you choose the manner 
 of fighting." 
 
Kings Son, Sprisawn, and Dark King, 1 33 
 
 In the castle were three chambers, in each 
 chamber a cross-beam as high from the floor 
 as a man's throat; in the middle of each cross- 
 beam was a hole, through this hole passed a 
 chain, at each end of the chain was an iron loop; 
 above the hole and lengthwise with the beam 
 was a sword with a keen edge on it. Each pair 
 of champions was to take one room of the three, 
 and each man of them was to place a loop on his 
 own neck; each then was to pull the other to the 
 hole if he could, and then pull till the sword cut 
 his head off. 
 
 The Sprisawn and the Dark King took one 
 room, Miach Lay and the King of Mangling 
 another, Red Bow and the Gruagach of Shields 
 took the third. 
 
 The first pair were not long at each other, as 
 the Sprisawn was greatly anxious for the other 
 two, and with the second pull that he gave he 
 had the head off the Dark King. He ran then 
 to see how it fared with Miach Lay. Miach Lay 
 was tired and nearly beaten. 
 
 "Come out of that for me," said the Sprisawn. 
 "What playing is it you have with him.? " 
 
 "Fully satisfied am I to give this place to 
 you," said Miach Lay, raising the loop; and the 
 Sprisawn put it quickly on his own neck. 
 
 With the first pull the Sprisawn gave he had 
 
134 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 the head off the King of Mangling. They ran 
 then to Red Bow, whose head was within two 
 feet of the sword. 
 
 "Go on out of this," said the Sprisawn, putting 
 the loop on his own neck. The Gruagach, by 
 reason of having Red Bow so near the beam, was 
 himself at a distance, but at the first pull which 
 the Sprisawn gave he drew the Gruagach within 
 a foot of the beam. Fearing that if he killed 
 the third man there would be no one to give an 
 account of those carried off by the Dark King, 
 the Sprisawn offered the Gruagach his life if he 
 told him where Manus and the other two hus- 
 bands of the king's daughter were. 
 
 "If I tell you that," said the Gruagach, "the 
 Dark King will knock the head off me." 
 
 " If you saw the head of the Dark King would 
 you tell me.? " 
 
 "I would." 
 
 The Sprisawn sent Miach Lay for the head of 
 the Dark King; he brought it. 
 
 " Is that his head } " asked the Sprisawn. 
 
 "It is," said the Gruagach. 
 
 "Well, tell me now." 
 
 "Were I to tell you," said the Gruagach, "the 
 King of Mangling would knock the head off 
 me." 
 
 " If you saw his head would you tell me ? " 
 
Kings SoUy Sprisawn, and Dark King, 135 
 
 "I would." 
 
 The head of the King of Mangling was brought. 
 
 "Is this the head?" 
 
 "It is." 
 
 "Well, tell me, or you '11 lose your own head." 
 
 "Near this castle is a lake," said the Grua- 
 gach, "and under its water is an enchanted 
 steel tower, with high walls three feet in thick- 
 ness; around that tower on the outside a long 
 serpent has wound herself closely from the bottom 
 to the top. This serpent is called the Worm of 
 Nine Eyes. Inside in the tower are the three 
 men." 
 
 "And how can we come at them.? " asked the 
 Sprisawn. 
 
 "Whoever wants to free them," said the 
 Gruagach, " must stand on the shore of the lake 
 and shout to the serpent, calling her the Worm 
 of Nine Eyes. Hearing this, the serpent will 
 unwind, and with lashing will drive all the water 
 of the lake in showers through the country and 
 flood the whole land. The basin of the lake will 
 be dry then, and the serpent will rush at the man 
 who uttered the insult and try to devour him. 
 The serpent must be killed, and the champion 
 must run to the tower; if he can break in, he 
 will rescue the three men." 
 
 " Is tUt all } " asked the Sprisawn. 
 
136 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 " It is," said the Gruagach. " I have no further 
 account of the matter; that is all I know." 
 
 "Then you'll lose your head, too," said the 
 Sprisawn; and with one pull of the chain he 
 swept the head off the Gruagach. The three 
 champions went to the lake then. Miach Lay 
 and Red Bow wished to help the Sprisawn, but he 
 forced them to remain behind, saying that they 
 would be swept away by the waters if they went. 
 
 The Sprisawn, coming to the bank of the lake, 
 shouted: "Worm of Nine Eyes!" No sooner 
 did the serpent hear the name than she uncoiled 
 from the tower, lashed the lake, and sent the 
 water over the country. When the lake bed was 
 dry the serpent rushed toward the Sprisawn with 
 open mouth. When the Sprisawn saw the ser- 
 pent he took his sword in both hands and held 
 it crosswise in front of his face, and when the 
 serpent was coming to swallow him so great was 
 the force with which she rushed forward and 
 sucked the air to draw him in, that the Sprisawn 
 split her in two from the mouth to the tail, 
 dividing the back from the belly, and the two 
 pieces fell apart like the two halves of a split 
 log of timber. 
 
 Miach Lay and Red Bow came then to the 
 Sprisawn and went to the tower, but if they did, 
 they could not go in. 
 
Kings Son, Sprisawn, and Dark King. 137 
 
 "Oh," said the Sprisawn, "if you had all the 
 arms in the world you could not break through 
 that tower." He went himself to the door then, 
 and striking it slightly with his wooden foot, for 
 fear of killing the men inside by too hard a blow, 
 he burst in the door. The three men inside 
 came out, and Miach Lay embraced his own 
 brother. All were glad, and all started for home, 
 but had not gone far when the other two men 
 began to dispute whose would the king's daugh- 
 ter be. The first husband said his claim was 
 strongest; the second said his was. The Spris- 
 awn tried to settle the quarrel, but could not. 
 "I would advise you," said he, "to leave the 
 matter to the first man you meet." 
 
 All agreed to do this. 
 
 The Sprisawn now left them and vanished as 
 if he had never been with them. They had not 
 gone far when they met a man. "Well met," 
 said they; "we are glad to see you." 
 
 " What is the trouble that is on you } " asked 
 the man. 
 
 "So and so," said they, telling him the whole 
 story; "and now you are to be our judge." 
 
 "I will do my best," said the man, "if each 
 one will be satisfied with my decision." 
 
 "We will," said they. 
 
1 38 Hero- Tales of Ireland. 
 
 "Now let each man tell his story.'* 
 
 Each man told his story to the end. 
 
 "Who rescued you? " asked he. 
 
 "Miach Lay and his forces," said they. 
 
 "Had not this man and his forces come, you 
 would have been there till this time.? " 
 
 "We should," said the three. 
 
 "If so," said the man, "my decision is that 
 the first and second husband should each be 
 thankful, go to his own people, and get another 
 wife for himself; and that the daughter of the 
 King of Greece belongs to the brother of the 
 man who rescued all three." 
 
 The two princes went away toward their own 
 homes, and the man remained, and who was he 
 when he took his own form again but the 
 Sprisawn. They went then to the castle where 
 the young lady had entertained Miach Lay, and 
 whose castle was it but the Sprisawn's; the 
 young woman was his daughter. After resting 
 there for some days, the Sprisawn asked Miach 
 Lay would he marry his daughter. Miach Lay 
 was willing and glad, and remained there. 
 
 Manus and Red Bow returned to the King of 
 Greece. Manus lived in Greece happily, and so 
 did his children. 
 
 The two brothers did well not to marry any 
 
Kings Son, Sprisawn, and Dark King, 1 39 
 
 woman their father found for them, for they 
 would not have had the grand ladies that they 
 had in the end, and Miach Lay had the domin- 
 ions of the Dark King, as well as those of the 
 Sprisawn, and they were very rich kingdoms. 
 
THE AMADAN MOR AND THE GRUA- 
 GACH OF THE CASTLE OF GOLD. 
 
 /^N a time in Erin the King of Leinster 
 ^^^ resolved to make war on the King of 
 Munster, and sent him a message to be ready for 
 battle on a day mentioned. They raised flags 
 for combat when the day came, and stood face 
 to face. The forces closed in battle, and were 
 at one another then till the King of Leinster 
 and his men killed all the warriors of the King 
 of Munster and the king himself. 
 
 After the King of Munster and all his cham- 
 pions were slain, the King of Leinster thought 
 it better to live in Munster than in his own 
 kingdom, so he took possession of Munster and 
 went to live in the king's castle. 
 
 The wife of the King of Munster fled in haste 
 to a forest, a thing easily done, for all Erin was 
 under forests in that time. The queen had a 
 son in the forest, and after a time she had no 
 clothes for herself or the child. Hair came out 
 on them as on wild beasts of the wilderness. 
 The child was thriving and growing; what of 
 
The Amadan Mor and the Gruagach, 141 
 
 him did not grow in the day grew threefold at 
 night, till at last there was no knowing what 
 size was he. 
 
 The queen was seven years without leaving the 
 place around her hut in the forest. In the eighth 
 year she went forth from the forest and saw her 
 husband's castle and open kingdom, and began 
 to weep and lament. There was a great crowd 
 of people around the castle where she had herself 
 lived in past years. She went to see what was 
 happening. It was a summer of great want, and 
 the king was giving out doles of meal to people 
 daily, and the man who was giving the meal gave 
 her a dole also. He was greatly surprised when 
 he saw her, and in the evening he was telling the 
 king that he had never seen such a sight in his 
 life; she was all covered with hair like a beast 
 of the forest. 
 
 "She will come again to-morrow," said the 
 king; "then do you inquire what sort is she, 
 and where is her place of abode." 
 
 She went next day to the castle; the man in 
 charge gave her meal. After she had gone he 
 followed her, and when he was coming near she 
 sat down at the roadside from shame. 
 
 "Fear me not," said the man. "I wish to 
 know if you are of the dead or the living, and 
 what sort are you." 
 
142 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 " I am a living person, though I may seem like 
 one from the dead.'* 
 
 " Where do you live ? ** 
 
 " I have no house or home save a small hut in 
 the forest, and I have the look of a beast because 
 I eat fruits and leaves of trees and grass of the 
 earth. " 
 
 The man told the king, and the king said, 
 " Tell the woman to-morrow that I will give her 
 a house of some kind to live in." 
 
 The king gave the strange woman a house, and 
 she went to live with her son in it. The son 
 was seven years old at that time, and not able 
 to walk or speak, although he was larger than 
 any giant. His mother had called him Micky, 
 and soon he was known as Micky Mor (Big 
 Micky). 
 
 She was there for awhile in the house with 
 her son, and she taking doles of food like any 
 poor person. One fine summer day she was 
 sitting at the doorstep, and she began to weep 
 and lament. 
 
 " What is the cause of your crying } " asked 
 the boy, who had never spoken before till that 
 moment. 
 
 "God's help be with us," said the mother. 
 " It is time for you to get speech. Thank God 
 you are able to talk now." 
 
The Amadan Mor and the Gruagach. 143 
 
 "It is never too late, mother." 
 
 "That is right, my child," said she, "it is 
 better late than never." 
 
 "Tell me, mother, why do you cry in this way 
 and lament } " 
 
 "It is no use for me to tell you, my child; 
 three men have just gone back to the strand, 
 and once I was able to give the like of them a 
 good warm dinner." 
 
 "Well, mother, you must go and invite them 
 to dinner this time." 
 
 "What have I to give them to eat, my poor 
 child } " 
 
 " If you have nothing to give them but only 
 to be talking till morning, you will have to go 
 and invite them." 
 
 When she was ready he said : " Mother, before 
 you go tie my two hands to the beam that is here 
 in the house above the hearth, that I may not fall 
 in the fire while you are absent." 
 
 Before the mother went out she passed a rope 
 under his arms, tied him to the cross-beam, and 
 put a stool under his feet. He kicked the stool 
 away; he had to pull and drag himself to swing, 
 the fire was catching his feet, the beam was 
 cracking from his weight and the swinging. 
 The sinews of his legs stretched, he got his 
 footing then, and walked to the door. 
 
144 He7'o-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 "Thanks be to God," said the mother, when 
 she came back. "It is curious how your talk 
 and your walk came to you on the one day. " 
 
 " It is nearly always the case that 't is together 
 talk and walk come to a child; but now it is time 
 for us to be providing something for the friends 
 that are coming to-night." 
 
 He went away then and asked the man who 
 brought turf out of the reeks to the king's cas- 
 tle to give him as much as would make fire for 
 himself and his mother for the night. 
 
 "Go away," said the man; "I will not give 
 you a sod of turf. Go to the king and get an 
 order; then I will give you turf in plenty." 
 
 "I would not be tiring myself going for an 
 order, but I will have plenty in spite of you. " 
 
 Micky took away then a great basket of turf 
 and no thanks to the man. 
 
 "Well, mother," said he, "here is turf enough 
 for you, and make down a good fire." 
 
 He went to the mill and said to the miller: 
 " My mother sent me for flour. There will be 
 three at the house to-night, and what will not be 
 used will be brought to you in the morning." 
 
 " You stump of a fool, why should I give you 
 flour.? Go to my master, the king; if he gives 
 an order, I will give you flour in plenty." 
 
 Micky caught the miller. "I will put yon," 
 
The Amadan Mor and the Gruagach. 145 
 
 said he, "in one of the hoppers of the mill 
 unless you make away with yourself out of 
 this." 
 
 The miller ran away in dread that Micky would 
 kill him. Micky laid hold of a strong, weighty 
 chain, and tied a great sack of flour and put it 
 on his back. When the sack was across his back 
 he could not pass through the doorway, and knew 
 not what to do. 
 
 "It would be a shame for me to say of the 
 first load I put on my back that I left that same 
 after me." He stepped backward some paces and 
 made such a rush that he carried out the frame of 
 the door with him. 
 
 "Well, mother," said he, "we have fire and 
 flour enough now, and let you be making loaves 
 for the visitors." 
 
 He went next to the woman in charge of the 
 milk-house. " It is hither my mother sent me 
 for a firkin of butter. There are three strangers 
 above in our house. What will be left of the 
 butter I will bring back in the morning, and all 
 my own help and assistance to you for a week 
 to come." 
 
 "Be out of my milk-house, you stump of a 
 fool," said the woman. "What assistance can 
 you give to pay for my milk and butter.? " 
 
 "Let you be out of this, my good woman," 
 10 
 
[46 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 said Micky, "or I will not leave much life in you 
 from this day out." 
 
 She went away in a hurry, and he carried a 
 firkin of butter home on his shoulder. 
 
 "Now, mother," said he, *'you have bread, 
 fire, butter, and all things you need. If we had 
 a bit of meat, that would be all that we care 
 for." 
 
 He went away then and never stopped nor 
 stayed till he reached the place where all the 
 king's fine fat sheep were. He caught up one 
 and brought it home on his shoulder. 
 
 Next day the turf-keeper, the miller, the dairy- 
 woman, and the shepherd went to complain to 
 the king of what Micky had done. 
 
 " It is not luck we asked for the first day we 
 drew him on us," said the king. 
 
 The king started and never stopped nor stayed 
 till he went to his old druid. "Such a man as 
 we have brought on us," said the king. "Tell 
 me now how to put an end to him." 
 
 "There is," said the druid, "a black mad hound 
 in a wood beyond the mountain. Tell Micky 
 that you lost that hound one day in the hunt, 
 and to bring her and he will be well paid for 
 his trouble." 
 
 The king sent for Micky, and told him all as 
 the druid advised. 
 
THEY BEGAN TO TALK AS MICKY MOVED FORWARD. 
 
 Parie 147. 
 
The A mad an Mor and the Gruagach. 14J 
 
 "Will you send any man with me to show me 
 the road ? " 
 
 "I will," said the king. 
 
 Micky and the man were soon travelling along 
 the road toward the mountain. When Micky 
 thought it too slow the man was walking, he 
 asked, " Have you any walk better than that ? " 
 
 "Why, then, I have not," said the man, "and 
 I am tired, and it is because I have such a good 
 walk that I was sent with you." 
 
 Micky took up his guide, put him under his 
 arm, with the man's head near his own breast, 
 and they began to talk as Micky moved forward. 
 When they came near the wood, the man said, 
 "Put me down, and beware of the hound. Be 
 not rash with her, or she may harm you. " 
 
 "If she is a hound belonging to a king or a 
 man of high degree, it must be that she has 
 training and will come with me quietly. If she 
 will not come gently, I will make her come in 
 spite of her." 
 
 When he went into the wood the hound smelt 
 him and rushed at his throat to tear him to 
 pieces. He hurled her off quickly, and then she 
 made a second drive at him, and a fierce one. 
 
 "Indeed," said Micky, "you are an impudent 
 hound to belong to a king; " and, taking a long, 
 strong tree branch, he gave her a blow on the 
 flank that raised her high in the air. 
 
148 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 After that blow the hound ran away as fast as 
 her legs could carry her, and Micky made after 
 her with all the speed of his own legs to catch 
 her. On account of the blow she was losing 
 breath fast, and he was coming nearer and nearer, 
 till at length he ran before her and drove her 
 in against the ditch. When she tried to go one 
 way he shook the branch before her, and when 
 she tried to rush off in another direction, he 
 shook it there too, till he forced her into the 
 road, and then she was mild and quiet and came 
 with him as gently as any dog. 
 
 When he was near home some one saw Micky 
 and the mad hound with him. A messenger ran 
 and told the king he was coming and the mad 
 hound walking with him. The king gave orders 
 to close every door in the castle. He was in 
 dread that the hound would devour every one 
 living. 
 
 When the hound was brought before the closed 
 door of the castle the king put his head out the 
 window and said, " That hound has been so long 
 astray that she is of no use to me now; take her 
 to your mother, and she will mind the house for 
 her." 
 
 Micky took the hound home, and she was that 
 tame and watchful that not a hen, nor a duck, 
 nor a goose belonging to the king's castle could 
 come near the house. 
 
I 
 
 The Amadan Mor and the Gruagach. 149 
 
 The king went to the druid a second time, and 
 asked, " What can I do to kill Micky Mor? " 
 
 "There is a raging wild boar in the woods 
 there beyond that will tear him to pieces," said 
 the druid. "Tell Micky Mor that one of the 
 servants, when coming from the town, lost a 
 young pig, that the pig is in that wood, and to 
 bring him." 
 
 The king sent for the boy, and said, " One of 
 my men lost a young pig while coming from the 
 town; it is in that wood there beyond. If you '11 
 go to the wood and bring the pig hither, I '11 pay 
 you well when you come. " 
 
 "I will go," said the boy, "if you will send 
 some one to show me the wood where the pig is." 
 
 The king sent a man, but not the man who 
 went the first time with Micky Mor, for that man 
 said, "I am tired, and haven't the strength to 
 go." They went on then, walking toward the 
 wood. This guide grew tired like the first man, 
 for the wood was far distant from the castle of 
 the king. When he was tired, the boy put him 
 under his arm, and the two began to chat away 
 as they journeyed. When near the wood, the 
 man begged and said, "Micky Mor, put me 
 down now: it is a mad boar that is in the 
 wood; and if you are not careful, he will tear 
 you to pieces." 
 
150 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 "God help you!" said Micky; "'tis the inno- 
 cent man you are to let such a small thing put 
 dread on you. " 
 
 "I will leave you," said the guide: "I cannot 
 help you; you are able to fight the battle 
 yourself." 
 
 Away went the man; and when Micky Mor 
 entered the wood, the wild boar was facing him, 
 and the beast foaming from both sides of the 
 mouth. As the guide had warned him to be on 
 his guard, Micky gave one spring out of his body, 
 and came to the boar with such a kick that his 
 leg went right into the mouth of the beast, and 
 split his jaw back to the breast. The wild boar 
 dropped lifeless, and the boy was going home, 
 leaving the great beast behind him. He stopped 
 then, and said to himself, " If I go back with- 
 out the boar, the king will not believe that I 
 met him at all." He turned back, caught the 
 wild boar by the hind legs, and threw him across 
 his shoulders. 
 
 The king thought, "As he brought the mad 
 hound the first day, he may bring the wild boar 
 to me this time." He placed guards on all roads 
 leading to the castle. 
 
 The guards saw Micky coming with the boar 
 on his back. Thinking the boar alive, they ran 
 hither and over, closed every door, window, hole. 
 
The Amadan Mor and the Gruagach. 1 5 1 
 
 or place that a mouse might pass through, for 
 fear the wild boar would tear them to pieces. 
 
 The youth went up to the castle, and struck the 
 door; the king put his head out the window, and 
 asked, " Can it be that you have the wild boar ? " 
 
 "I have him; but if I have, he is dead." 
 
 "As he is dead, you might take him home to 
 your mother; and, believe me, he will keep you 
 in meat for a long while." 
 
 The king went to the druid again. 
 
 "I have no advice for you this time," said the 
 druid, "but one: he is of as good blood as your- 
 self; and the best thing you can do is to give him 
 your daughter to marry." 
 
 This daughter was the king's only child, and 
 her name was Eilin Og. The king sent for the 
 youth then, and said, "I will give you my 
 daughter to marry. " 
 
 "It is well," said Micky Mor; "if you give her 
 in friendship, I will take her." 
 
 Micky Mor made himself ready; they gave 
 him fine clothes, and he seemed fit to marry any 
 king's daughter. After the marriage he was a 
 full week without going to see his own mother. 
 
 When he went to her at the end of the week, 
 she cried out, " What is keeping you away from 
 me a whole week.? " 
 
 "Dear mother," said he, "it is I that have 
 
152 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 met with the luck. I got the king's daughter 
 to marry." 
 
 "Go away out of my sight, and never come 
 near me again ! " 
 
 " Why so, mother, what ails you } Could I get 
 a better wife than a king's daughter.? " 
 
 "My dear son, if she is a king's daughter, you 
 are a king's son, so you are as high as she." 
 
 "If I am a king's son, why have you and I 
 been so poor > " 
 
 She told him then that the king had killed his 
 father and all his forces, and that the whole 
 castle and kingdom had belonged to his father. 
 
 "Why did you not tell me that long ago.!* " 
 
 "I would never have told you," said she, "but 
 that you have married the murderer's daughter." 
 
 Away went the son when he heard what his 
 mother said, and the eyes going out of his head 
 with wild rage, and he saying that he would kill 
 every one living about the king's castle. The 
 people in the castle saw him coming, and thought 
 from his looks that his mother had said some 
 strong words to him, and they closed every door 
 and window against him. The young man put 
 his shoulder to the door of the castle, and it flew 
 in before him. He never stopped nor stayed till 
 he went to the highest chamber of the castle to 
 the king and queen, killing every one that came 
 
The Amadan Mor and the Gruagach. 153 
 
 in his way. ** Pardon me ! Spare me ! " cried the 
 king. 
 
 "I will never kill you between my own two 
 hands; but I '11 give you the chance that you 
 gave my own father while the spear was going 
 from the hand to his breast." With that, he 
 caught the king, and threw him out through the 
 window. When he had all killed who did not 
 flee before him, he could find no sight of his own 
 wife, though he looked for her everywhere. 
 
 "Well, mother," said he when he went home, 
 " I have all killed before me, but I cannot find 
 my own wife. " 
 
 The mother went with him to search for the 
 wife, and they found her in a box. When they 
 opened the box, she screamed wildly. 
 
 " Su'-e, you know well that I did not marry you 
 to kill you; have no fear." 
 
 She was glad to have her life. Micky Mor 
 then moved into the castle, and had his father's 
 kingdom and property back again. After awhile 
 he went to walk one day with his wife, Eilin Og. 
 While he was walking for himself, the sky grew 
 so dark that it seemed like night, and he knew 
 not where to go; but he went on till he came at 
 last to a roomy dark glen. When he was inside 
 in the glen, the greatest drowsiness that ever 
 came over a man came over him. 
 
154 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 "Eilin Og/' said he, "come quickly under my 
 head, for sleep is coming on me." 
 
 "It is not sleep that is troubling you, but 
 something in this great gloomy glen, where you 
 were never before in your life." 
 
 "Oh, Eilin Og, come quickly under my head." 
 
 She came under his head, and he got a short 
 nap of sleep. When he woke, hunger and thirst 
 came on him greater than ever came upon any 
 man ever born. Then a vessel came to him filled 
 with food, and one with drink. 
 
 "Taste not the drink, take not a bite of the 
 food, in this dark glen, till you know what kind 
 of a place is it." 
 
 "Eilin Og, I must take one drink. I '11 drink 
 it whomsoever it vexes." 
 
 He took a draught hard and strong from the 
 vessel ; and that moment the two legs dropped off 
 Micky Mor from the knees down. 
 
 When Eilin Og saw this, she fell to wailing 
 and weeping. 
 
 "Hold, hold, Eilin Og! silence your grief; a 
 head or a leg will not be in the country unless 
 I get my two legs again." 
 
 The fog now dispersed, and the sky became 
 clear. When he saw the sky clear, he knew 
 where to go; and he put his knife and spear 
 and wife on the point of his shoulder. Then his 
 
The Amadan Mor and the Gruagach. 155 
 
 strength and activity were greater, and he was 
 swifter on his two knees than nine times nine 
 other men that had the use of their whole legs. 
 
 While he was going on, he saw huntsmen com- 
 ing toward him. A deer passed him. He threw 
 the spear that he had in his hand; it went through 
 the deer, in one side and out through the other. 
 A white dog rushed straightway after the deer. 
 Micky Mor caught the deer and the dog, and kept 
 them. 
 
 Now a young Gruagach, light and loose, was 
 the first of the huntsmen to follow the white dog. 
 "Micky Mor," said he, "give me the white dog 
 and the deer." 
 
 "I will not," said Micky. "For it is myself 
 that did the slaughter, strong and fierce, that 
 threw the spear out of my right hand and put it 
 through the two sides of the deer; and whoever 
 it be, you or I, who has the strongest hand, let 
 him have the white dog and the deer." 
 
 "Micky Mor," said Eilin Og, "yield up the 
 white dog and the deer." 
 
 "I will," said he, "and more if you ask; for 
 had I obeyed you in the glen, the two legs from 
 the knees down would not have gone from me." 
 
 The hunter, who was the Gruagach of Dun an 
 Oir, was so glad to get his white dog and deer 
 that he said, " Come with me, Micky Mor, to my 
 castle to dinner." 
 
156 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 The three were then passing along by the 
 strand of Ard na Conye to the Gruagach's castle, 
 when whom should they meet but a champion who 
 began to talk with the men; but, seeing Eilin 
 Og, he stopped on a sudden and asked Micky 
 Mor, "Who is this woman with you? I think 
 there is not another of such beauty in all the 
 great world." 
 
 "That is my wife, Eilin Og," said Micky Mor. 
 
 ** It is to find her that I am here, and to take 
 her in spite of herself or her father," said the 
 champion. 
 
 " If you take her, you will take her in spite of 
 me," said Micky Mor; "but what champion are 
 you with such words .^ " 
 
 "I am Maragach of the Green Gloves from 
 Great Island. I have travelled the world twice, 
 and have met no man to match me. No weapons 
 have hurt my skin yet or my body. Where are 
 your arms of defence in this great world, Micky 
 Mor.?" 
 
 " I have never wished for a weapon but my own 
 two fists that were born with me." 
 
 " I name you now and forever," said Maragach, 
 "the Big Fool (Amadan Mor)." 
 
 "Not talk of the mouth performs deeds of 
 valor, but active, strong bones. Let us draw 
 back now, and close with each other. We shall 
 
The Amadan Mor and the Gruagach. 157 
 
 know then who is the best man ; and if there is 
 valor in you, as you say, you dirty little Mara- 
 gach, I will give you a blow with strength that 
 will open your mouth to the bone." 
 
 They went toward each other then threaten- 
 ingly, and closed like two striking Balors or two 
 wild boars in the days of the Fenians, or two 
 hawks of Cold Cliff, or two otters of Blue Pool. 
 They met in close, mighty struggle, with more 
 screeching than comes from a thousand. They 
 made high places low, and low places high. 
 The clods that were shot away by them, as they 
 wrestled, struck out the eye of the hag in the 
 Eastern World, and she spinning thread at her 
 wheel. 
 
 Now Maragach drew his sword strong, keen- 
 edged, and flawless ; this sword always took with 
 the second blow what it did not cut with the 
 first; but there was no blow of it that time which 
 the Big Fool did not dodge, and when the sun 
 was yellow at setting, the sword was in small 
 bits, save what remained in the hand of the 
 champion. That moment the Fool struck the 
 champion a blow 'twixt neck and skull, and took 
 the head off his body. 
 
 The three went on then to the castle of Dun 
 an Oir (Castle of Gold), and had a fine dinner. 
 During the dinner they were discoursing and 
 
158 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 telling tales; and the Gruagach's wife took 
 greatly to heart the looks that her husband was 
 giving Eilin Og, and asked, "Which is it that 
 you will have, Negil Og's daughter or the wife 
 of the Big Fool?" 
 
 Said Eilin Og to the Gruagach's wife, "This 
 man's name is not the Big Fool in truth or in 
 justice, for he is a hero strong and active ; he is 
 master of all alive and of every place. All the 
 world is under his command, and I with the 
 rest." 
 
 " If he is all this, why did he let the legs go 
 from him.? " asked the Gruagach's wife. 
 
 Eilin Og answered, "I have said that he has 
 high virtues and powers ; and only for the drink 
 that was brought him in the dark lonely glen, 
 he would not have let the legs go from him." 
 
 The Gruagach was in dread that the Big Fool 
 might grow angry over their talks, and that 
 enchantment would not get the upper hand of 
 strength, and said, "Give no heed to woman's 
 talk, Micky Mor, but guard my castle, my prop- 
 erty, and my wife, while I go to the Dun of the 
 Hunt and return." 
 
 "If any man comes in in spite of me," said 
 Micky Mor, "while you are absent, believe me, he 
 will not go out in spite of me till you return." 
 
 The Gruagach went off then, and with the 
 
The Amadan Mor and the Gruagach, 159 
 
 power of his enchantment put a heavy sleep on 
 Micky Mor. 
 
 "Eilin Og," said he, "come quickly under my 
 head, for over-strong sleep has come on me." 
 
 Eilin Og came under his head, and he got a 
 short nap of sleep. The Gruagach returned soon 
 in a different form altogether, and he took a kiss 
 from his own wife. 
 
 "Oh," said Eilin Og to her husband, "you 
 are in your sleep, and it is to my grief that you 
 are in it, and not at the right time." 
 
 Micky Mor heard her, and he, between sleep- 
 ing and waking, gave one leap from his body 
 when he heard Eilin Og's words, and stopped at 
 the door. It would have been a greater task to 
 break any anvil or block made by blacksmith 
 or wood-worker, than to force the Big Fool from 
 the door. 
 
 "Micky Mor," said the Gruagach, disguised, 
 "let me out." 
 
 "I will not let you out till the Gruagach of 
 Dun an Oir comes home, and then you will pay 
 for the kiss that you took from his wife." 
 
 " I will give you a leg swift and strong as your 
 own was ; it is a leg I took from the Knight of 
 the Cross when he was entering his ship." 
 
 "If you give me one of my legs swift and 
 strong as ever, perhaps I may let you go out." 
 
i6o Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 That moment the Fool got the leg. He 
 jumped up then, and said, "This is my own leg, 
 as strong and as active as ever. 
 
 " The other leg now, or your head ! " said 
 Micky Mor. 
 
 The Gruagach gave him the other leg, blew it 
 under him with power of enchantment. Micky 
 Mor jumped up. "These are my own legs in 
 strength and activity. You '11 not go out of this 
 now till the Gruagach comes, and you pay for the 
 kiss you took from his wife." 
 
 "I have no wish to knock a trial out of you," 
 said the Gruagach, and he changed himself into 
 his own form again. "You see who I am; and I 
 am the huntsman who took your legs with the 
 drink that you got from the cup, and I am your 
 own brother born and bred. " 
 
 "Where were you," asked the Big Fool, "when 
 my father was killed with all his men ? " 
 
 "I was in the Eastern World at that time, 
 learning enchantment and magic." 
 
 "If you are my brother," said the Big Fool, 
 "we will go with each other forevermore. Come 
 with me now to such a wood. We will fight 
 there four giants who are doing great harm to our 
 people these many years." 
 
 "Dear brother," said the Gruagach, "there is 
 no use for us to go against the four giants ; they 
 
The Amadan Mor and the Gruagach. i6i 
 
 are too powerful and strong for us, they will kill 
 us." 
 
 "Let me fight with three of them," said Micky 
 Mor, "and I *11 not leave a foot or a hand of them 
 living on earth; you can settle one." 
 
 The Gruagach had his great stallion of the 
 road brought from the stable for himself and his 
 brother to ride. When they led him out, the 
 stallion gave three neighs, — a neigh of lamenta- 
 tion, a neigh of loyalty, and a neigh of gladness. 
 
 This stallion had the three qualities of Fin 
 Mac Cool's slim bay steed, — a keen rush against 
 a hill, a swift run on the level, a high running 
 leap; three qualities of the fox, — the gait of a 
 fox gay and proud, a look straight ahead taking 
 in both sides and turning to no side, neat in his 
 tread on the road; three qualities of a bull, — a 
 full eye, a thick neck, a bold forehead. 
 
 They rode to the forest of the giants; and the 
 moment they entered, the giants sniffed them, 
 and one of them cried out, " I find the smell of 
 men from Erin, their livers and lights for my 
 supper of nights, their blood for my morning 
 dram, their jawbones for stepping-stones, and 
 their shins for hurleys. We think you are too 
 big for one bite and too small for two bites, and 
 sooner or later we *11 have you out of the way." 
 
 The Big Fool and three of the giants made at 
 II 
 
1 62 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 one another then; and he didn't leave a hand 
 nor a foot of the three alive. He stood looking 
 then at his brother and the other giant. The 
 young Gruagach was getting too much from the 
 giant; and he called out, "Dear born brother, 
 give me some aid, or the giant will put me out 
 of the world." 
 
 "I will give him," said the Big Fool, "a blow 
 of my fist that will drive his head through the 
 air." 
 
 He ran to him then, gave the giant one blow 
 under the jawbone, and sent his head through 
 the air. It is not known to man, woman, 
 or child to this day where the head stopped, 
 or did it stop in any place. 
 
THE KING'S SON AND THE WHITE- 
 BEARDED SCOLOG. 
 
 TVrOT in our time, nor the time of our fathers, 
 but long ago, there lived an old king in 
 Erin. This king had but the one son, and the 
 son had risen up to be a fine strong hero; no 
 man in the kingdom could stand before him in 
 combat. 
 
 The queen was dead, and the king was gloomy 
 and bitter in himself because old age was on 
 him. The strength had gone from his limbs, 
 and gladness from his heart. No matter what 
 people said, they could not drive sorrow from 
 him. 
 
 One day the king called up his son, and this is 
 what he said to him, " You are of age to marry. 
 We cannot tell how long I '11 be here, and it 
 would cheer and delight me to see your wife; 
 she might be a daughter to me in my last days." 
 
 "I am willing to obey you," said the son; "but 
 I know no woman that I care for. I have never 
 seen any one that I would marry." 
 
164 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 With that, the old king sent for a druid, and 
 said, " You must tell where my son can find the 
 right bride for himself. You must tell us what 
 woman he should marry. " 
 
 "There is but one woman," said the druid, 
 " who can be the right wife for your son, and she 
 is the youngest daughter of the white-bearded 
 scolog; she is the wisest young woman in the 
 world, and has the most power." 
 
 "Where does her father live, and how are we to 
 settle it? " asked the king of the druid. 
 
 " I have no knowledge of the place where that 
 scolog lives," said the druid, "and there is no 
 one here who knows. Your son must go himself, 
 and walk the world till he finds the young 
 woman. If he finds her and gets her, he '11 have 
 the best bride that ever came to a king's son." 
 
 "I am willing to go in search of the scolog's 
 daughter," said the young man, "and I'll never 
 stop till I find her." 
 
 With that, he left his father and the druid, and 
 never stopped till he went to his foster-mother 
 and told her the whole story, — told her the wish 
 of his father, and the advice the old druid had 
 given him. 
 
 " My three brothers live on the road you must 
 travel," said the foster-mother; "and the eldest 
 one knows how to find that scolog, but without 
 
King s Son and White-bearded Scolog, 165 
 
 the friendship of all of them, you '11 not be able 
 to make the journey, I'll give you something 
 that will gain their good-will for you." 
 
 With that, she went to an inner room, and made 
 three cakes of flour and baked them. When the 
 three were ready, she brought them out, and gave 
 them to the young man. 
 
 "When you come to my youngest brother's 
 castle," said she, "he will rush at you to kill 
 you, but do you strike him on the breast with 
 one of the cakes; that minute he '11 be friendly, 
 and give you good entertainment. The second 
 brother and the eldest will meet you like the 
 youngest." 
 
 On the following morning, the king's son left 
 a blessing with his foster-mother, took one for 
 the road from her, and went away carrying the 
 three cakes with him. He travelled that day 
 with great swiftness over hills and through 
 valleys, past great towns and small villages, and 
 never stopped nor stayed till he came in the 
 evening to a very large castle. In he went, and 
 inside was a woman before him. 
 
 "God save you! " said he to the woman. 
 
 "God save yourself!" said she; "and will you 
 tell me what brought you the way, and where are 
 you going .^ " 
 
 "I came here," said the king's son, "to see 
 the giant of this castle, and to speak with him." 
 
1 66 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 "Be said by me," replied the woman, "and go 
 away out of this without waiting for the giant." 
 
 "I will not go without seeing him," said the 
 king's son. " I have never set eyes on a giant, 
 and I '11 see this one." 
 
 "I pity you," said the woman; "your time is 
 short in this life. You '11 not be long without 
 seeing the giant, and it *s not much you '11 see 
 in this world after setting eyes on him; and it 
 would be better for you to take a drink of wine 
 to give you strength before he comes." 
 
 The king's son had barely swallowed the wine 
 when he heard a great noise beyond the castle. 
 
 " Fee, faw, fob ! " roared some one, in a thun- 
 dering voice. 
 
 The king's son looked out; and what should 
 he see but the giant with a shaggy goat going 
 out in front of him and another coming on be- 
 hind, a dead hag above on his shoulder, a great 
 hog of a wild boar under his left arm, and a yel- 
 low flea on the club which he held in his right 
 hand before him. 
 
 " I don't know will I blow you into the air or 
 put my foot on you," said the giant, when he 
 set eyes on the king's son. With that, he threw 
 his load to the ground, and was making at his 
 visitor to kill him when the young man struck 
 the giant on the breast with one of the three 
 cakes which he had from the foster-mother. 
 
Kings Son and White-bearded Scolog. 167 
 
 That minute the giant knew who was before 
 him, and called out, " Is n't it the fine welcome 
 I was giving my sister's son from Erin? " 
 
 With that, he changed entirely, and was so 
 glad to see the king's son that he did n't know 
 what to do for him or where to put him. He 
 made a great feast that evening; the two ate 
 and drank with contentment and delight. The 
 giant was so pleased with the king's son that 
 he took him to his own bed. He was n't three 
 minutes in the bed when he was sound asleep 
 and snoring. With every breath that the giant 
 took in, he drew the king's son into his mouth 
 and as far as the butt of his tongue; with every 
 breath that he sent out, he drove him to the 
 rafters of the castle, and the king's son was that 
 way going up and down between the bed and the 
 roof until daybreak, when the giant let a breath 
 out of him, and closed his mouth; next moment 
 the king's son was down on his lips. 
 
 "What are you doing to me? " cried the giant. 
 
 "Nothing," said the king's son; "but you 
 did n't let me close an eye all the night. With 
 every breath you let out of you, you drove me 
 up to the rafters ; and with every breath you took 
 in, you drew me into your mouth and as far as 
 the butt of your tongue." 
 
 "Why did n't you wake me? " 
 
1 68 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 " How could I wake you when time failed me 
 to do it ? " 
 
 "Oh, then, sister's son from Erin," said the 
 giant, "it's the poor night's rest I gave you; 
 but if you had a bad bed, you must have a good 
 breakfast. " 
 
 With that, the giant rose, and the two ate the 
 best breakfast that could be had out of Erin. 
 
 After breakfast, the king's son took the giant's 
 blessing with him, and left his own behind. He 
 travelled all that day with great speed and with- 
 out halt or rest, till he came in the evening to the 
 castle of the second giant. In front of the door 
 was a pavement of sharp razors, edges upward, 
 a pavement which no man could walk on. Long, 
 poisonous needles, set as thickly as bristles in a 
 brush, were fixed, points downward, under the 
 lintel of the door, and the door was low. 
 
 The king's son went in with one start over 
 the razors and under the needles, without grazing 
 his head or cutting his feet. When inside, he 
 saw a woman before him. 
 
 " God save you ! " said the king's son. 
 
 "God save yourself! " said the woman. 
 
 The same conversation passed between them 
 then as passed between himself and the woman 
 in the first castle. 
 
 "God help you!" said the woman, when she 
 
Kings Son a7id White-bearded Scolog. 169 
 
 heard his story. " 'T is not long you '11 be alive 
 after the giant comes. Here 's a drink of wine 
 to strengthen you." 
 
 Barely had he the wine swallowed when there 
 was a great noise behind the castle, and the next 
 moment the giant came in with a thundering and 
 rattling. 
 
 "Who is this that I see.? " asked he, and with 
 that, he sprang at the stranger to put the life out 
 of him; but the king's son struck him on the 
 breast with the second cake which he got from 
 his foster-mother. That moment the giant knew 
 him, and called out, " A strange welcome I had 
 for you, sister's son from Erin, but you '11 get 
 good treatment from me now." 
 
 The giant and the king's son made three parts 
 of that night. One part they spent in telling 
 tales, the second in eating and drinking, and the 
 third in sound, sweet slumber. 
 
 Next morning the young man went away after 
 breakfast, and never stopped till he came to the 
 castle of the third giant; and a beautiful castle 
 it was, thatched with the down of cotton grass, 
 the roof was as white as milk, beautiful to look 
 at from afar or near by. The third giant was 
 as angry at meeting him as the other two; but 
 when he was struck in the breast with the third 
 cake, he was as kind as the best man could be. 
 
1 70 Hero- Tales of Ireland. 
 
 When they had taken supper together, the 
 giant said to his sister's son, "Will you tell me 
 what journey you are on ? " 
 
 "I will, indeed," said the king's son; and he 
 told his whole story from beginning to end. 
 
 "It is well that you told me," said the giant, 
 "for I can help you; and if you do what I tell, 
 you '11 finish your journey in safety. At midday 
 to-morrow you'll come to a lake; hide in the 
 rushes that are growing at one side of the water. 
 You '11 not be long there when twelve swans will 
 alight near the rushes and take the crests from 
 their heads; with that, the swan skins will fall 
 from them, and they will rise up the most beau- 
 tiful women that you have ever set eyes on. 
 When they go in to bathe, take the crest of the 
 youngest, put it in your bosom next the skin, 
 take the eleven others and hold them in your 
 hand. When the young women come out, give 
 the eleven crests to their owners ; but when the 
 twelfth comes, you '11 not give her the crest 
 unless she carries you to her father's castle in 
 Ardilawn Dreeachta (High Island of Enchant- 
 ment). She will refuse, and say that strength 
 fails her to carry you, and she will beg for the 
 crest. Be firm, and keep it in your bosom ; never 
 give it up till she promises to take you. She will 
 do that when she sees there is no help for it. " 
 
Kings Son and White-bearded Scolog, 1 7 1 
 
 Next morning the king's son set out after 
 breakfast, and at midday he was hidden in the 
 rushes. He was barely there when the swans 
 came. Everything happened as the giant had 
 said, and the king's son followed his counsels. 
 
 When the twelve swans came out of the lake, 
 he gave the eleven crests to the older ones, but 
 kept the twelfth, the crest of the youngest, and 
 gave it only when she promised to carry him to 
 her father's. The moment she put the crest on 
 her head, she was in love with the king's son. 
 When she came in sight of the island, however 
 much she loved him when they started from the 
 lakeside, she loved him twice as much now. She 
 came to the ground at some distance from the 
 castle, and said to the young man at parting, — 
 
 "Thousands of kings' sons and champions have 
 come to give greeting to my father at the door of 
 his castle, but every man of them perished. You 
 will be saved if you obey me. Stand with your 
 right foot inside the threshold and your left foot 
 outside; put your head under the lintel. If your 
 head is inside, my father will cut it from your 
 shoulders ; if it is outside, he will cut it off also. 
 If it is under the lintel when you cry 'God save 
 you ! ' he '11 let you go in safety." 
 
 They parted there ; she went to her own place 
 and he went to the scolog's castle, put his right 
 
172 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 foot inside the threshold, his left foot outside, 
 and his head under the lintel. "God save you! " 
 called he to the scolog. 
 
 "A blessing on you!" cried the scolog, "but 
 my curse on your teacher. I '11 give you lodg- 
 ings to-night, and I '11 come to you myself in the 
 morning; " and with that he sent a servant with 
 the king's son to a building outside. The ser- 
 vant took a bundle of straw with some turf and 
 potatoes, and, putting these down inside the door, 
 said, " Here are bed, supper, and fire for you. " 
 
 The king's son made no use of food or bed, 
 and he had no need of them, for the scolog's 
 daughter came soon after, spread a cloth, took 
 a small bundle from her pocket, and opened it. 
 That moment the finest food and drink were there 
 before them. 
 
 The king's son ate and drank with relish, and 
 good reason he had after the long journey. 
 When supper was over, the young woman whittled 
 a small shaving from a staff which she brought 
 with her; and that moment the finest bed that 
 any man could have was there in the room. 
 
 "I will leave you now," said she; "my father 
 will come early in the morning to give you a 
 task. Before he comes, turn the bed over; 'twill 
 be a shaving again, and then you can throw 
 it into the fire. I will make you a new bed 
 to-morrow." 
 
Kings Son and White-bearded Scolog. 1 73 
 
 With that, she went away, and the young man 
 slept till daybreak. Up he sprang, then turned 
 the bed over, made a shaving of it, and burned 
 it. It was not long till the scolog came, and 
 this is what he said to the king's son, *' I have a 
 task for you to-day, and I hope you will be able 
 to do it. There is a lake on my land not far 
 from this, and a swamp at one side of it. You 
 are to drain that lake and dry the swamp for me, 
 and have the work finished this evening; if not, 
 I will take the head from you at sunset. To 
 drain the lake, you are to dig through a neck of 
 land two miles in width; here is a good spade, 
 and I'll show you the place where you're to 
 use it." 
 
 The king's son went with the scolog, who 
 showed the ground, and then left him. 
 
 "What am I to do.^" said the king's son. 
 " Sure, a thousand men could n't dig that land out 
 in ten years, and they working night and day; 
 how am I to do it between this and sunset.? " 
 
 However it was, he began to dig; but if he did, 
 for every sod he threw out, seven sods came in, 
 and soon he saw that, in place of mending his 
 trouble, 'twas making it worse he was. He cast 
 aside the spade then, sat down on the sod heap, 
 and began to lament. He was n't long there 
 when the scolog's daughter came with a cloth 
 in her hand and the small bundle in her pocket. 
 
174 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 "Why are you lamenting there like a child? " 
 asked she of the king's son. 
 
 "Why should n't I lament when the head will 
 be taken from me at sunset ? " 
 
 " 'T is a long time from this to sunset. Eat 
 your breakfast first of all; see what will happen 
 then," said she. Taking out the little bundle, 
 she put down before him the best breakfast a 
 man could have. While he was eating, she took 
 the spade, cut out one sod, and threw it away. 
 When she did that, every spadeful of earth in 
 the neck of land followed the first spadeful ; the 
 whole neck of land was gone, and before midday 
 there was n't a spoonful of water in the lake or 
 the swamp, — the whole place was dry. 
 
 "You have your head saved to-day, whatever 
 you '11 do to-morrow," said she, and she left 
 him. 
 
 Toward evening the scolog came, and, meeting 
 the king's son, cried out, "You are the best man 
 that ever came the way, or that ever I expected 
 to look at." 
 
 The king's son went to his lodging. In the 
 evening the scolog' s daughter came with supper, 
 and made a bed for him as good as the first one. 
 Next morning the king's son rose at daybreak, 
 destroyed his bed, and waited to see what would 
 happen. 
 
Kings Son and White-bearded Scolog, 175 
 
 The scolog came early, and said, " I have a 
 field outside, a mile long and a mile wide, with 
 a very tall tree in the middle of it. Here are 
 two wedges, a sharp axe, and a fine new draw- 
 ing knife. You are to cut down the tree, and 
 make from it barrels to cover the whole field. 
 You are to make the barrels and fill them with 
 water before sunset, or the head will be taken 
 from you." 
 
 The king's son went to the field, faced the 
 tree, and gave it a blow with his axe ; but if he 
 did, the axe bounded back from the trunk, struck 
 him on the forehead, stretched him on the flat 
 of his back, and raised a lump on the place where 
 it hit him. He gave three blows, was served 
 each time in the same way, and had three lumps 
 on his forehead. He was rising from the third 
 blow, the life almost gone from him, and he 
 crying bitterly, when the scolog's daughter came 
 with his breakfast. While he was eating the 
 breakfast, she struck one little chip from the tree; 
 that chip became a barrel, and then the whole 
 tree turned into barrels, which took their places 
 in rows, and covered the field. Between the rows 
 there was just room for a man to walk. Not a 
 barrel but was filled with water. From a chip 
 she had in her hand, the young woman made a 
 wooden dipper, from another chip she made a 
 pail, and said to the king's son, -^ 
 
176 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 "You '11 have these in your two hands, and be 
 walking up and down between the rows of bar- 
 rels, putting a little water into this and a little 
 into that barrel. When my father comes, he will 
 see you at the work and invite you to the castle 
 to-night, but you are not to go with him. You 
 will say that you are content to lodge to-night 
 where you lodged the other nights." With that, 
 she went away, and the king's son was going 
 around among the barrels pouring a little water 
 into one and another of them, when the scolog 
 came. 
 
 "You have the work done," said he, "and you 
 must come to the castle for the night." 
 
 " I am well satisfied to lodge where I am, and 
 to sleep as I slept since I came here," said the 
 young man, and the scolog left him. 
 
 The young woman brought the supper, and gave 
 a fresh bed. Next morning the scolog came the 
 third time, and said, "Come with me now; I have 
 a third task for you." With that, the two went 
 to a quarry. 
 
 "Here are tools," said the scolog, pointing to 
 a crowbar, a pickaxe, a trowel, and every im- 
 plement used in quarrying and building. "You 
 are to quarry stones to-day, and build between 
 this and sunset the finest and largest castle 
 in the world, with outhouses and stables, with 
 cellars and kitchens. There must be cooks. 
 
King s Son and White-bearded Scolog. 177 
 
 with men and women to serve; there must be 
 dishes and utensils of every kind and furniture 
 of every description; not a thing is to be lack- 
 ing, or the head will go from you this evening 
 at sunset." 
 
 The scolog went home; and the king's son 
 began to quarry with crowbar and pickaxe, and 
 though he worked hard, the morning was far gone 
 when he had three small pieces of stone quarried. 
 He sat down to lament. 
 
 ** Why are you lamenting this morning? " asked 
 the scolog' s daughter, who came now with his 
 breakfast. 
 
 "Why shouldn't I lament when the head will 
 be gone from me this evening.? I am to quarry 
 stones, and build the finest castle in the world 
 before sunset. Ten thousand men couldn't do 
 the work in ten years." 
 
 "Take your breakfast," said the young woman; 
 "you .'11 see what to do after that." 
 
 While he was eating, she quarried one stone; 
 and the next moment every stone in the quarry that 
 was needed took its place in the finest and largest 
 castle ever built, with outhouses and cellars and 
 kitchens. A moment later, all the people were 
 there, men and women, with utensils of all 
 kinds. Everything was finished but a small spot 
 at the principal fireplace. 
 
 12 
 
1 78 Hero- Tales of Ireland, 
 
 "The castle is ready/' said the scolog's daugh- 
 ter; "your head will stay with you to-day, and 
 there are no more tasks before you at present. 
 Here is a trowel and mortar; you will be 
 finishing this small spot at the fire when my 
 father comes. He will invite you to his castle 
 to-night, and you are to go with him this time. 
 After dinner, he will seat you at a table, and 
 throw red wheat on it from his pocket. I have 
 two sisters older than I am; they and I will fly 
 in and alight on the table in the form of three 
 pigeons, and we'll be eating the wheat; my 
 father will tell you to choose one of his three 
 daughters to marry. You'll know me by this: 
 there will be a black quill in one of my wings. 
 I '11 show it; choose me." 
 
 All happened as the scolog's daughter said; 
 and when the king's son was told to make his 
 choice in the evening, he chose the pigeon that 
 he wanted. The three sprang from the table, and 
 when they touched the floor, they were three 
 beautiful women. A dish priest and a wooden 
 clerk were brought to the castle, and the two 
 were married that evening. 
 
 A month passed in peace and enjoyment; but 
 the king's son wished to go back now to Erin 
 to his father. He told the wife what he wanted ; 
 and this is what she said to him, "My father will 
 
Kings Son and White-bearded Scolog. 1 79 
 
 refuse you nothing. He will tell you to go, 
 though he does n't wish to part with you. He 
 will give you his blessing; but this is all pre- 
 tence, for he will follow us to kill us. You 
 must have a horse for the journey, and the right 
 horse. He will send a man with you to three 
 fields. In the first field are the finest horses 
 that you have ever laid eyes on ; take none of 
 them. In the second field are splendid horses, 
 but not so fine as in the first field ; take none of 
 these either. In the third field, in the farthest 
 corner, near the river, is a long-haired, shaggy, 
 poor little old mare; take that one. The old 
 mare is my mother. She has great power, but 
 not so much as my father, who made her what 
 she is, because she opposed him. I will meet 
 you beyond the hill, and we shall not be seen 
 from the castle." 
 
 The king's son brought the mare; and when 
 they mounted her, wings came from her sides, 
 and she was the grandest steed ever seen. Away 
 she flew over mountains, hills, and valleys, till 
 they came to the seashore, and then they flew 
 over the sea. 
 
 When the servant man went home, and the 
 scolog knew what horse they had chosen, he 
 turned himself and his two daughters into red 
 fire, and shot after the couple. No matter how 
 
i8o Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 swiftly the mare moved, the scolog travelled 
 faster, and was coming up. When the three 
 reached the opposite shore of the sea, the daugh- 
 ter saw her father coming, and turned the mare 
 into a small boat, the king's son into a fisher- 
 man, and made a fishing-rod of herself. Soon 
 the scolog came, and his two daughters with him. 
 
 " Have you seen a man and a woman passing 
 the way riding on a mare.?" asked he of the 
 fisherman. 
 
 "I have," said the fisherman. "You*ll soon 
 overtake them. '* 
 
 On went the scolog; and he never stopped till 
 he raced around the whole world, and came back 
 to his own castle. 
 
 *'0h, then, we were the fools," said the scolog 
 to his daughters. " Sure, they were the fisher- 
 man, the boat, and the rod." 
 
 Off they went a second time in three balls of 
 red fire; and they were coming near again when 
 the scolog's youngest daughter made a spinning- 
 wheel of her mother, a bundle of flax of herself, 
 and an old woman of her husband. Up rushed 
 the scolog, and spoke to the spinner, " Have you 
 seen a mare pass the way and two on her back.? " 
 asked he. 
 
 "I have, indeed," said the old woman; "and 
 she is not far ahead of you." 
 
Kings Son and White-bearded Scolog, 1 8 1 
 
 Away rushed the scolog; and he never stopped 
 till he raced around the whole world, and came 
 back to his own castle a second time. 
 
 " Oh, but! we were the fools ! " said the scolog. 
 " Sure, they were the old woman with the spin- 
 ning-wheel and the flax, and they are gone from 
 us now ; for they are in Erin, and we cannot take 
 our power over the border, nor work against them 
 unless they are outside of Erin. There is no use 
 in our following them; we might as well stay 
 where we are." 
 
 The scolog and his daughters remained in the 
 castle at Ardilawn of Enchantment; but the 
 king's son rode home on the winged mare, with 
 his wife on a pillion behind him. 
 
 When near the castle of the old king in Erin, 
 the couple dismounted, and the mare took her 
 own form of a woman. She could do that in 
 Erin. The three never stopped till they went 
 to the old king. Great was the welcome before 
 them ; and if ever there was joy in a castle, there 
 was joy then in that one. 
 
DYEERMUD ULTA AND THE KING IN 
 SOUTH ERIN. 
 
 THERE was a king in South Erin once, and 
 he had an only daughter of great beauty. 
 The daughter said that she would marry no man 
 but the man who would sail to her father's castle 
 in a three-masted ship, and the castle was twenty 
 miles from deep water. The father said that 
 even if the daughter was willing, he 'd never give 
 her to any man but the man who would come in 
 a ship. 
 
 Dyeermud Ulta was the grandson of a great 
 man from Spain who had settled in Erin, and 
 he lived near Kilcar. Dyeermud heard of the 
 daughter of the king in South Erin, and fixed 
 in his mind to provide such a ship and go to the 
 castle of the king. 
 
 Dyeermud left home one day, and was walking 
 toward Killybegs, thinking how to find such a 
 ship, or the man who would make it. When he 
 had gone as far as Buttermilk Cliff, he saw a red 
 champion coming against him in a ship that was 
 
Dyeermud Ulta and the King, 183 
 
 sailing along over the country like any ship on 
 the sea. 
 
 ** What journey are you on ? " asked the red 
 champion of Dyeermud; "and where are you 
 going?" 
 
 "I am going," answered Dyeermud, "to the 
 castle of a king in South Erin to know will he 
 give me his daughter in marriage, and to know 
 if the daughter herself is willing to marry me. 
 The daughter will have no husband unless a man 
 who brings a ship to her father's castle, and the 
 king will give her to no other." 
 
 "Come with me," said the red man. "Take 
 me as comrade, and what will you give me." 
 
 " I will give you what is right," said Dyeermud. 
 
 "What will you give me.-* " 
 
 "I will give you the worth of your trouble." 
 
 Dyeermud went in the ship, and they sailed on 
 till they came to Conlun, a mile above Killybegs. 
 There they saw twelve men cutting sods, and a 
 thirteenth eating every sod that they cut. 
 
 " You must be a strange man to eat what sods 
 twelve others can cut for you," said Dyeermud; 
 " what is your name ? " 
 
 "Sod-eater." 
 
 "We are going," said the red man, "to the 
 castle of a king in South Erin. Will you come 
 with us .? " 
 
184 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 " What wages will you give me ? " 
 
 "Five gold-pieces," said the red man. 
 
 "I will go with you." 
 
 The three sailed on till they came to the river 
 Kinvara, one mile below Killybegs, and saw a 
 man with one foot on each bank, with his back 
 toward the sea and his face to the current. The 
 man did not let one drop of water in the river 
 pass him, but drank every drop of it. 
 
 "Oh," said the red man, "what a thirst there 
 is on you to drink a whole river ! How are you 
 so thirsty } " 
 
 " When I was a boy, my mother used to send 
 me to school, and I did not wish to go there. She 
 flogged and beat me every day, and I cried and 
 lamented so much that a black spot rose on my 
 heart from the beating; that is why there is such 
 thirst on me now." 
 
 " What is your name, and will you go with us } " 
 
 "My name is Gulping-a-River. I will go with 
 you if you give me wages." 
 
 "I will give you five gold-pieces," said the red 
 man. 
 
 "I will go with you," said Gulping-a-River. 
 
 They sailed on then to Howling River, within 
 one mile of Dun Kinealy. There they saw a 
 man blowing up stream with one nostril, and the 
 other stopped with a plug. 
 
Dyeermud Ulta and the King. 185 
 
 " Why blow with one nostril ? " asked the red 
 man. 
 
 "If I were to blow with the two," replied the 
 stranger, " I would send you with your ship and 
 all that are in it up into the sky and so far away 
 that you would never come back again. " 
 
 " Who are you, and will you take service with 
 me.?" 
 
 ** My name is Greedy-of-Blowing, and I will go 
 with you for wages. " 
 
 "You will have five gold-pieces." 
 
 "I am your man," said Greedy-of-Blowing. 
 
 They sailed away after that to Bunlaky, a place 
 one mile beyond Dun Kinealy; and there they 
 found a man crushing stones with the end of his 
 back, by sitting down on them suddenly. 
 
 "What are you doing there.?" asked the red 
 man. 
 
 " My name is Ironback," answered the stranger. 
 " I am breaking stones with the end of my back 
 to make a mill, a bridge, and a road." 
 
 " Will you come with us } " asked the red 
 man. 
 
 "I will for just wages," said Ironback. 
 
 "You will get five gold-pieces." 
 
 "I will go in your company," said Ironback. 
 
 They went on sailing, and were a half a mile 
 l^^low Mount Charles when they saw a man run- 
 
1 86 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 ning up against them faster than any wind, and 
 one leg tied to his shoulder. 
 
 "Where are you going, and what is your hurry? 
 Why are you travelling on one leg?" asked the 
 red man. 
 
 "I am running to find a master," said the 
 other. " If I were to go on my two legs, no man 
 could see me or set eyes on me." 
 
 "What can you do? I may take you in 
 service." 
 
 "I am a very good messenger. My name is 
 Foot-on-Shoulder. " 
 
 " I will give you five gold -pieces." 
 
 "I will go with you," said the other. 
 
 The ship moved on now, and never stopped till 
 within one mile of Donegal they saw, at a place 
 called Kilemard, a man lying in a grass field with 
 his cheek to the earth. 
 
 "What are you doing there?" asked the red 
 man. 
 
 " Holding my ear to the ground, and hearing 
 the grass grow." 
 
 "You must have good ears. What is your 
 name; and will you take service with me? " 
 
 "My name is Hearing Ear. I will go with 
 you for good wages. " 
 
 "You will have five gold-pieces." 
 
 "I am your man," said Hearing Ear. 
 
Dyeermud Ulta and the King, 187 
 
 They went next to Laihy, where they found 
 a man named Fis Wacfis (Wise man, Son of 
 Knowledge), and he sitting at the roadside chew- 
 ing his thumb. 
 
 "What are you doing there?" asked the red 
 man. 
 
 "I am learning whatever I wish to know by 
 chewing my thumb." 
 
 "Take service with me, and come on the ship." 
 
 He went on the same terms as the others, and 
 they never stopped nor halted till they came to 
 the castle of the king. They were outside the 
 walls three days and three nights before any man 
 spoke a word to them. At last the king sent a 
 messenger to ask who were they and what 
 brought them. 
 
 " I have come in a ship for your daughter, and 
 my name is Dyeermud Ulta," was the answer the 
 king got. 
 
 The king was frightened at the answer, though 
 he knew himself well enough that it was for the 
 daughter Dyeermud had come in the ship, and 
 was greatly in dread that she would be taken 
 from him. He went then to an old henwife that 
 lived near the castle to know could he save the 
 daughter, and how could he save her. 
 
 "If you'll be said by me," said the henwife, 
 "you '11 bid them all come to a feast in the 
 
1 88 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 castle. Before they come, let your men put 
 sharp poisoned spikes under the cushions of the 
 seats set apart for the company. They will sit 
 on the spikes, swell up to the size of a horse, and 
 die before the day is out, every man of them." 
 
 Hearing Ear was listening, heard all the 
 talk between the king and the henwife, and 
 told it. 
 
 "Now," said Fis Wacfis to Dyeermud, "the 
 king will invite us all to a feast to-morrow, and 
 you will go there and take us. It is better to 
 send Ironback to try our seats, and sit on them, 
 for under the cushion of each one will be poisoned 
 spikes to kill us." 
 
 That day the king sent a message to Dyeer- 
 mud. "Will you come," said he, "with your 
 men, to a feast in my castle to-morrow.? I am 
 glad to have such guests, and you are welcome." 
 
 "Very thankful am I," said Dyeermud. We 
 will come to the feast." 
 
 Before the company came, Ironback went into 
 the hall of feasting, looked at everything, sat 
 down on each place, and made splinters of the 
 seats. 
 
 "Those seats are of no use," said Ironback; 
 "they are no better than so many cabbage 
 stalks." 
 
 The king had iron seats brought in, strong 
 
Dyeermud Ulta and the King. 189 
 
 ones. There was no harm to Dyeermud and his 
 company from that feast. 
 
 Away went the king to the henwife, and told 
 how the seats had been broken. " What am I to 
 do now ? " asked he. 
 
 " Say that to get your daughter they must eat 
 what food is in your castle at one meal." 
 
 Next day Dyeermud went to the castle, and 
 asked, " Am I to have your daughter now } " 
 
 "You are not," said the king, "unless your 
 company will eat what food is in my castle at 
 one meal." 
 
 "Very well," said Dyeermud; "have the meal 
 ready. " 
 
 The king gave command to bring out the hun- 
 dred and fifty tons of provisions in the castle all 
 prepared and ready for eating. 
 
 Dyeermud came with his men, and Sod-eater 
 began ; and it was as much as all the king's ser- 
 vants could do to bring food as fast as he ate it, 
 and he never stopped till there was n't a pound 
 of the hundred and fifty tons left. 
 
 " Is this all you have to give me } " asked Sod- 
 eater. "I could eat three times as much." 
 
 "Oh, we have no more," said the servants. 
 
 "Where is our dinner.? " asked Dyeermud. 
 
 The king had nothing for the others, and he 
 had nothing for himself. All had to go away 
 
190 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 hungry, and there was great dissatisfaction in 
 the castle, and complaining. 
 
 The king had nothing to do now but to go 
 to the henwife a third time for advice in his 
 trouble. 
 
 "You have," said she, "three hundred and fifty 
 pipes of wine. If his company cannot drink 
 every drop of the wine, don't give him the 
 daughter. " 
 
 Next day Dyeermud went to the castle. " Am 
 I to have the daughter now.?" asked he of the 
 king. 
 
 "I will not give my daughter," said the king, 
 "unless you and your company will drink the 
 three hundred and fifty pipes of wine that are in 
 my castle." 
 
 "Bring out the wine," said Dyeermud; "we'll 
 come to-morrow, and do the best we can to drink 
 it." 
 
 Dyeermud and his men went next day to where 
 the wine was. Gulping-a-River was the man for 
 drinking, and they let him at it. After he got 
 a taste, he was that anxious that he broke in 
 the head of one pipe after another, and drank 
 till there wasn't a drop left in the three hundred 
 and fifty pipes. All the wine did was to put 
 thirst on Gulping-a-River; and he was that mad 
 with thirst that he drank up the spring well at the 
 
Dyeermud Ulta and the King, 1 9 1 
 
 castle, and all the springs in the neighborhood, 
 and a loch three miles distant, so that in the 
 evening there was n't a drop of water for man 
 or beast in the whole place. 
 
 What did the king do but go to the henwife 
 the fourth time. 
 
 **0h," said she, "there is no use in trying to 
 get rid of him this way; you can make no hand 
 of Dyeermud by eating or drinking. Do you 
 send him now to the Eastern World to get the 
 bottle of cure from the three sons of Sean [pro- 
 nounced Shawn, — John] Mac Glinn, and to have 
 it at the castle before noon to-morrow." 
 
 " Am I to get the daughter now } " asked 
 Dyeermud of the king. 
 
 "You '11 not get my daughter," said the king, 
 "unless you have for me here to-morrow the 
 bottle of cure which the three sons of Sean Mac 
 Glinn have in the Eastern World." 
 
 Dyeermud went to his ship with the king's 
 answer. 
 
 "Let me go," said Foot-on-Shoulder. "I will 
 bring you the bottle in season." 
 
 "You may go," said Dyeermud. 
 
 Away went Foot-on-Shoulder, and was at the 
 sea in a minute. He made a ship of his cap, a 
 mast of his stick, a sail of his shirt, and away 
 with him sailing over the sea, never stopping nor 
 halting till he reached the Eastern World. 
 
192 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 In five hours, he came to a castle where the 
 walls of defence were sixty-six feet high and 
 fifty-five feet thick. Sean Mac Glinn's three 
 sons were playing football on the top of the 
 wall. 
 
 "Send down the bottle of cure to me," said 
 Foot-on-Shoulder, "or I '11 have your lives." 
 
 "We will not give you the bottle of cure; and 
 if you come up, it will be as hard to find your 
 brains five minutes after as to find the clay of a 
 cabin broken down a hundred years ago. " 
 
 Foot-on-Shoulder made one spring, and rose six 
 feet above the wall. They were so frightened at 
 the sight of what he did, and were so in dread 
 of him that they cried, "You'll get what you 
 want, only spare us, — leave us our lives. You 
 are the best man that we have ever seen coming 
 from any part ; you have done what no man could 
 ever do before this. You '11 get the bottle of 
 cure; but will you send it back again .'*" 
 
 "I will not promise that," said Foot-on- 
 Shoulder; "I may send it, and I may not." 
 
 They gave him the bottle, he went his way to 
 his ship, and sailed home to Erin. Next morn- 
 ing the henwife dressed herself up as a piper, 
 and, taking a rod of enchantment with her, went 
 away, piping on a hill which Foot-on-Shoulder 
 had to cross in coming to the castle. She 
 
WITH ONE BLAST FROM BOTH NOSTRILS, HE SENT THE 
 OLD HAG UP INTO THE SKY. Page 193. 
 
e>. » * v> ' t-o jj 
 en a o «» ». j- 
 
 t' -i* a'<^ 
 
Dyeermud Ulta and the King, 193 
 
 thought he would stop to listen to the music she 
 was making, and then she would strike him with 
 the rod, and make a stone of him. She was 
 piping away for herself on the hill like any poor 
 piper making his living. Hearing Ear heard the 
 music, and told Dyeermud. Fis Wacfis chewed 
 his thumb at Dyeermud's command, and found 
 out that the piper was the king's henwife, and 
 discovered her plans. 
 
 "Oh," said Fis Wacfis to Dyeermud, "unless 
 you take her out of that, she will make trouble 
 for us. " 
 
 " Greedy of-Blowing, can you make away with 
 that old woman on the hill } " asked Dyeermud. 
 
 "I can indeed," said Greedy-of -Blowing. 
 
 With that, he ran to the foot of the hill ; and 
 with one blast from both nostrils, he sent the 
 old hag up into the sky, and away she went sail 
 ing so that neither tale nor word of her ever 
 came back. 
 
 Foot-on- Shoulder was at the ship outside the 
 castle walls half an hour before noon, and gave 
 the bottle of cure to Dyeermud. Dyeermud 
 went that minute to the castle, and stood before 
 the king. 
 
 " Here is the bottle of cure which I got from 
 the three sons of Sean Mac Glinn in the Eastern 
 World. Am I to get the daughter now ? " 
 
 13 
 
194 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 "I'll send you my answer to the ship," said 
 the king. 
 
 Where should the king go now in his trouble 
 but to find the henwife. She was not at home. 
 He sent men to look for the old woman; no tid- 
 ings of her that day. They waited till the next 
 day; not a sight of her. The following morning 
 the king sent servants and messengers to look 
 for the henwife. They searched the whole neigh- 
 borhood ; could not find her. He sent all his war- 
 riors and forces. They looked up and down, 
 searched the whole kingdom, searched for nine 
 days and nights, but found no trace of the 
 henwife. 
 
 The king consented at last to give the daughter 
 to Dyeermud, and he had to consent, and no 
 thanks to him, for he couldn't help himself. 
 The daughter was glad and willing; she loved 
 Dyeermud from the first, but the father would 
 not part with her. 
 
 The wedding lasted a day and a year, and when 
 that time was over, Dyeermud went home on the 
 ship to Kilcar, and there he paid all his men 
 their wages, and they went each to his own 
 place. 
 
 The red man stayed sometime in the neighbor- 
 hood, and what should he do one day but seize 
 Dyeermud's wife, put her in the ship, and sail 
 
Dyeermud Ulta and the King. 1 95 
 
 away with her. When going, she put him under 
 injunction not to marry her for a day and a year. 
 
 Now Dyeermud, who was hunting when the 
 red man stole his wife, was in great grief and 
 misery, for he knew not where the red man lived 
 nor where he should travel to find him. At last 
 he sent a message of inquiry to the King of 
 Spain; and the king's answer was, "Only two 
 persons in the whole world know where that man 
 lives. Great Limper, King of Light, and Black 
 Thorn of Darkness. I have written to these two, 
 and told them to go to you." 
 
 The two men came in their own ship through 
 the air to Kilcar, to Dyeermud, and talked and 
 took counsel. 
 
 "I do not know where the red man can be," 
 said Black Thorn, ** unless in Kilchroti; let us 
 go to that place," 
 
 They sailed away in their ship, and it went 
 straight to the place they wanted. They had 
 more power than the red man, and could send 
 their ship anywhere. 
 
 In five days and nights they were at Kilchroti. 
 They went straight to the house, and no one in 
 the world could see the red man's house there 
 but these two. Black Thorn struck the door, 
 and it flew open. The red man, who was inside, 
 took their hands, welcomed them heartily, and 
 
196 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 said, "I hope it is not to do me harm that ye 
 are here." 
 
 " It is not to harm you or any one that we are 
 here," replied they. "We are here only to get 
 what is right and just, but without that, we will 
 not go from this." 
 
 "What is the right and just that ye are here 
 for.^ " asked the red man. 
 
 "Dyeermud's wife," replied Black Thorn, "and 
 it was wrong in you to take her; you must give 
 her up." 
 
 "I will fight rather than give her," said the red 
 man. 
 
 "Fighting will not serve you," said Black 
 Thorn, " it is better for you to give her to us." 
 
 "Ye will not get her without seven tons of 
 gold," said the red man. "If ye bring me the 
 gold, I will give her to you. If ye come without 
 it, ye '11 get fight from me." 
 
 "We will give you the gold," said Great 
 Limper, "within seven days." 
 
 "Agreed," said the red man. 
 
 "Come to the ship," said Great Limper to 
 Black Thorn. 
 
 They went on board, and sailed away. 
 
 " I was once on a ship which was wrecked on 
 the coast of Spain with forty-five tons of gold. 
 I know where that gold is; we will get it," said 
 Great Limper. 
 
Dyeermud Ulta and the King, 197 
 
 The two sailed to where the gold was, took 
 seven tons of it, and on the sixth day they had 
 it in Kilchroti, in front of the red man's house. 
 They weighed out the gold to him. They went 
 then to find Dyeermud's wife. She was behind 
 nine doors; each door was nine planks in thick- 
 ness, and bolted with nine bars of iron. The 
 red man opened the doors; all went in, and 
 looked at the chamber. The woman went out 
 first, next the red man ; and, seizing the door, he 
 thought to close it on Great Limper and Black 
 Thorn, but Black Thorn was too quick for him, 
 and before the red man could close the door he shot 
 him, first with a gold and then with a silver bullet. 
 
 The red man fell dead on the threshold. 
 
 "I knew he was preparing some treachery," 
 said Black Thorn. " When we weighed the gold 
 to him, he let such a loud laugh of delight out of 
 him." 
 
 They took the woman and the gold to Dyeer- 
 mud; they stayed nine days and nights with him 
 in Kilcar, eating, drinking, and making merry. 
 They drank to the King of Spain, to all Erin, 
 to themselves, and to their well-wishers. You 
 see, I had great work to keep up with them 
 these nine days and nights. I hope they will 
 do well hereafter. 
 
CUD, CAD, AND MICAD, THREE SONS 
 OF THE KING OF URHU. 
 
 'T^HERE was a king once in Urhu, and he 
 •^ had three sons. The eldest was three, the 
 second two, the youngest one year old. Their 
 names were Cud, Cad, and Micad. The three 
 brothers were playing one day near the castle, 
 which was hard by the seashore ; and Cud ran in 
 to his father, and said, " I hope you will give me 
 what I ask." 
 
 "Anything you ask that I can give you will 
 get," said the father. 
 
 " 'T is all I ask," said Cud, "that you will give 
 me and my brothers one of your ships to sail in 
 till evening." 
 
 " I will give you that and welcome, but I think 
 you and they are too weak to go on a ship." 
 
 " Let us be as we are; we '11 never go younger," 
 said Cud. 
 
 The king gave the ship. Cud hurried out, and, 
 catching Cad and Micad, one under each of his 
 arms, went with one spring to the best ship in 
 the roadstead. They raised the sails then, and 
 
Cud, Cad, and Micad, 199 
 
 the three brothers did as good work as the best 
 and largest crew. They left the harbor with the 
 fairest wind a ship ever had. The wind blew in 
 a way that not a cable was left without stretch- 
 ing, an oar without breaking, nor a helm without 
 cracking with all the speed the ship had. The 
 water rose in three terrible ridges, so that the 
 rough gravel of the bottom was brought to the top, 
 and the froth of the top was driven down to the 
 bottom of the sea. The sight of the kingdom 
 of the world soon sank from the eyes of the 
 brothers; and when they saw nothing but blue 
 sea around them, a calm fell on the water. 
 
 Cud was going back and forth on the deck, 
 sorry for what was done ; and a good right he had 
 to be sorry, but he was not sorry long. He saw 
 a small currachan (boat) a mile away, and went 
 with one spring from his ship to the currachan. 
 The finest woman in the world was sleeping in 
 the bottom of the boat. He put a finger under 
 her girdle, and went back with a spring to the 
 ship. When he touched his own deck, she woke. 
 
 " I put you under bonds and the misfortune of 
 the world," cried she, ** to leave me where you 
 saw me first, and to be going ever and always till 
 you find me again." 
 
 "What name am I to call you when I go in 
 search of you t " 
 
200 HerO'Tales of Ireland. 
 
 "The Cat of Fermalye, or the Swan of Endless 
 Tales," said the woman. 
 
 He took her with one spring to the little boat, 
 and with another spring went back to his own 
 ship. Whatever good wind they had coming, 
 they had it twice better going home. In the 
 evening the ship was anchored among the others 
 again. The brothers went ashore in a boat. 
 When Cud came in, his father put out a chair 
 for him, and gave him great welcome. Cud sat 
 down; but as he did, he broke three rungs in the 
 chair, two ribs in himself, and a rafter in the 
 roof of the castle. 
 
 "You were put under bonds to-day," said the 
 father. 
 
 "I was," said Cud. 
 
 "What bonds.?" 
 
 "To be going ever and always till I find 
 the Cat of Fermalye, or the Swan of Endless 
 Tales." 
 
 Himself and his father spent that night 
 together, and they were very sad and down- 
 hearted. As early as the dawn came, Cud rose 
 and ate his breakfast. 
 
 " Stay with me; I '11 give you half my kingdom 
 now, and all when I die," said the father. 
 
 " I cannot stay under bonds; I must go," replied 
 Cud. 
 
Cud^ Cad, and Micad, 201 
 
 Cud took the ship he liked best, and put sup- 
 plies for a day and seven years in her. 
 
 "Now," said the father, "ask for something 
 else; anything in the world I can give, I will 
 give you." 
 
 "I want nothing but my two brothers to go 
 with me." 
 
 " I care not where they go if yourself leaves 
 me," said the king. 
 
 The three brothers went aboard the ship; and 
 if the wind was good the first day, it was better 
 this time. They never stopped nor rested till 
 they sailed to Fermalye. The three went on 
 shore, and were walking the kingdom. They 
 had walked only a short piece of it when they 
 saw a grand castle. They went to the gate; Cud 
 was just opening it when a cat came out. The 
 cat looked at Cud, bowed to him, and went her 
 way. They saw neither beast nor man in the 
 castle, or near it; only a woman at the highest 
 window, and she sewing. 
 
 "We'll not stop till we go as far as the 
 woman," said Cud. 
 
 The woman welcomed them when they came 
 to her, put out a gold chair to Cud and a wooden 
 chair to each of his brothers. 
 
 **'Tis strange," said Micad, "to show so much 
 greater respect to one than the other two." 
 
 "No cause for wonder in that," said the 
 
202 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 woman. "I show respect to this one, for he is 
 my brother-in-law." 
 
 "We do not wonder now, but where is his 
 wife.?" 
 
 " She went out a cat when ye came in." 
 
 " Oh, was that she t " cried Cud. 
 
 They spent the night with good cheer and 
 plenty of food, the taste of honey in every bit 
 they ate, and no bit dry. As early as the day 
 dawned, the three rose, and the sister-in-law had 
 their breakfast before them. 
 
 "Grief and sorrow, I 'm in dread 't is bad cook- 
 ing ye have on the ship. Take me with you; 
 you'll have better food." 
 
 "Welcome," said Cud. "Come with us." 
 
 Each of the others welcomed her more than 
 Cud. The four went on board; the brothers 
 raised sails, and were five days going when they 
 saw a ship shining like gold and coming from 
 Western waters. 
 
 "That ship has no good appearance," said Cud. 
 "We must keep out of danger;" and he took 
 another course. Whatever course he took, the 
 other ship was before him always, and crossing 
 him. 
 
 " Is n't it narrow the ocean is, that you must be 
 crossing me always.? " shouted Cud. 
 
 "Do not wonder," cried a man from the other 
 ship; "we heard that the three sons of the King 
 
Cud, Cad, and Micad. 203 
 
 of Urhu were sailing on the sea, and if we find 
 them, it 's not long they '11 be before us." 
 
 The three strangers were the three sons of the 
 King of Hadone. 
 
 "If it is for these you are looking," said Cud, 
 "you need go no farther." 
 
 "It is to find you that we are here," said the 
 man on the shining ship, "to take you on a visit 
 to our own kingdom for a day and seven years. 
 After that, we will go for the same length of time 
 to your kingdom." 
 
 "You will get that and welcome," said 
 Cud. 
 
 "Come on board my ship," said the eldest son 
 of the King of Hadone: "we'll make one com- 
 pany; your ship is not much to look at." 
 
 "Of the food that our father gave us," said 
 Cud, "there is no bit dry, and we have plenty on 
 board. If it is dry food that you have in that big 
 ship, leave it and come to us." 
 
 The sons of the King of Hadone went to the 
 small ship, and let the big one go with the wind. 
 When Cud saw that they let their own ship go, 
 he made great friends of them. 
 
 " Have you been on sea ever before } " asked 
 he of the eldest of the strangers. 
 
 " I am on sea since I was of an age to walk by 
 myself," replied he. 
 
 "This is my first voyage," said Cud. "Now 
 
204 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 as we are brothers and friends, and as you are 
 taking us to visit your kingdom, I '11 give you 
 command of my ship." 
 
 The king's son took this from Cud willingly, 
 and steered home in a straight course. 
 
 When the sons of the King of Hadone were 
 leaving home, they commanded all in the king- 
 dom, big and little, small and great, weak and 
 strong, to be at the port before them when they 
 came back with the sons of the King of Urhu. 
 "These," said they, "must never be let out alive 
 on the shore." 
 
 In the first harbor the ship entered, the shore 
 was black and white with people. 
 
 "Why are all those people assembled .!* " asked 
 Cud. 
 
 " I have no knowledge of that," said the king's 
 son; "but if you '11 let your two brothers go with 
 me and my brothers, we '11 find out the reason." 
 
 They anchored the ship, put down a long-boat, 
 and Cad and Micad went into it with the three 
 sons of the King of Hadone. Cud and his sister- 
 in-law stayed behind on the ship. Cud never 
 took his eyes off his brothers as they sat in the 
 boat. He watched them when near the shore, 
 and saw them both killed. With one bound he 
 sprang from the bowsprit to land, and went 
 through all there as a hawk through small birds. 
 Two hours had not passed when the head was off 
 
Cud^ Cad, and Micad. 205 
 
 every man in the kingdom. Whatever trouble 
 he had in taking the heads, he had twice as 
 much in finding his brothers. When he had the 
 brothers found, it failed him to know how to bury 
 them. At last he saw on the beach an old ship 
 with three masts. He pulled out the masts, drew 
 the ship further on land, and said to himself, " I 
 will have my brothers under this ship turned 
 bottom upward, and come back to take them 
 whenever I can." 
 
 He put the bodies on the ground, turned the 
 ship over them, and went his way. 
 
 The woman saw all the slaughter. "Never 
 am I to see Cud alive," thought she, and fell 
 dead from sorrow. 
 
 Cud took the woman to shore, and put her 
 under the ship with his brothers. He went to 
 his ship then, sailed away alone, and never 
 stopped till he came to the kingdom where lived 
 Mucan Mor Mac Ri na Sorach. Cud went 
 ashore, and while walking and looking for him- 
 self, he came to a castle. He was wondering at 
 the pole of combat, such a terribly big one, and 
 he gave a small blow to it. The messenger 
 came out, and looked up and down to know could 
 he find the man who gave the blow. Not a 
 soul could he see but a white-haired young child 
 standing near the pole. He went into the castle 
 again. 
 
2o6 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 "Who struck the pole? " asked Mucan Mor. 
 
 "I saw no one but a small child with white 
 hair; there is no danger from him." 
 
 Cud gave a harder blow. 
 
 "That blow is harder," said Mucan Mor, "than 
 any child can give. Go and see who is in it." 
 
 The man searched high and low, and it failed 
 him to find any one but the child. 
 
 " It would be a wonder if you are the one, you 
 little child, that struck the blow." 
 
 "What harm," said the little child, "if I gave 
 the pole a touch.? " 
 
 "Mucan Mor is going to dinner soon," said 
 the messenger; "and if you vex him again, 'tis 
 yourself that he '11 eat in place of the dinner." 
 
 "Is dinner ready.'* " asked Cud. 
 
 "It is going to be left down," was the answer 
 he got. 
 
 When the man went in. Cud gave the pole a 
 hard blow, and did n't leave calf, foal, lamb, kid, 
 or child awaiting its birth, or a bag of poor oats 
 or rye, that didn't turn five times to the left, 
 and five to the right with the fright that it got. 
 He made such a noise and crash that dishes were 
 broken, knives hurled around, and the castle 
 shaken to its bottom stone. Mucan Mor himself 
 was turned five times to the left and five to the 
 right before he could put the soles of his feet 
 
Cud, Cad, and Micad. 207 
 
 under him. When he went out, and saw the 
 small child, he asked, "Was it you that struck 
 the pole? " 
 
 "I gave it a little tip," said Cud. 
 
 "You are a child of no sense to be lying so, 
 and it is yourself that I '11 eat for my supper." 
 
 He thought he had only to take Cud into the 
 castle, and roast him on the spit. He went to 
 catch the child; but if he did, the child faced 
 him, and soon they were fighting like two bulls 
 in high grass. When it was very late in the day, 
 Mucan Mor rose up in a lump of fog, and Cud 
 didn't know where he had gone. 
 
 All Cud had to do was to go to the forest, and 
 gather twigs for a fire to keep himself warm 
 until morning. It wasn't many twigs he had 
 gathered when twelve swans came near him. 
 
 "Love me!" said he. "I believe ye are the 
 blessed birds that came from my father's king- 
 dom to be food to relieve me in need." 
 
 " Sorry am I that I have ever looked on you 
 or you on me," said one of the swans; and the 
 twelve rose and flew away. 
 
 Cud gathered the twigs for the fire, and dried 
 the blood in his wounds. In the morning, Mucan 
 Mor struck his own pole of combat. He and 
 Cud faced each other, and fought till late in the 
 day, when Mucan Mor rose as a lump of fog in 
 
2o8 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 the air. Cud went to the forest as before to 
 gather twigs. It was few he had gathered when 
 the twelve swans came again. 
 
 " Are ye the blessed birds from my own king- 
 dom ? " asked he. 
 
 "No," said one of the swans; "but I put you 
 under bonds not to turn me away as you did last 
 night." 
 
 "As you put me under bonds," said Cud, "I 
 will not turn you away. " 
 
 The twelve began to gather twigs, and it was n't 
 long till they had a great fire made. One of the 
 twelve sat at the fire then with Cud, and said, 
 "There is nothing in the world to kill Mucan 
 Mor but a certain apple. For the last three days 
 I have been looking for that apple. I found it 
 to-day, and have it here for you. To-morrow 
 you '11 be getting the upper hand of Mucan Mor 
 earlier than other days. He has no power to 
 rise as a fog until a given hour. When the time 
 comes, he '11 raise his two hands and be striving 
 to go in the air. If you strike him then in the 
 right side in the ribs with the apple, you '11 make 
 a green stone of him. If you do not, he '11 come 
 down and make a green stone of you." 
 
 Cud took the apple, and had great thanks for 
 the swan. She left down the best food then 
 before him. She had the food with her always. 
 
Cud, Cad, and Micad, 209 
 
 Glad was he, for he was greatly in want of it after 
 the fast of two days. She put her own wing and 
 head over his head and sheltered him till day- 
 break. There wasn't a wound on him next 
 morning that wasn't cured. As early as the day 
 dawned she roused him. 
 
 "Be up now," said she, "and have the soles of 
 your feet under you. " 
 
 He went first to the pole and struck a blow 
 that took three turns out of the stomach of Mucan 
 Mor and three more out of his brain, before he 
 could stand on the soles of his feet, so great was 
 the dread that came on him. 
 
 They fought the third day, and it wasn't very 
 late when Cud was getting the upper hand. 
 Mucan Mor raised his two arms toward the sky, 
 striving to escape in a fog from his enemy. Cud 
 struck him then with the apple, and made a green 
 stone of him. Hardly had he Mucan Mor killed 
 when he saw an old hag racing up; she took one 
 hill at a step and two at a leap. 
 
 "Your face and your health to you," said the 
 hag, when she stood before Cud. " I am looking 
 at you for three days, fighting without food or 
 drink. I hope that you '11 come with me now." 
 
 " It 's long that you were thinking of asking 
 me," said he. 
 
 "I hope you 'II not refuse me," said the hag. 
 14 
 
2IO Hero- Tales of Ireland, 
 
 "I will not," replied Cud. 
 
 "Give me your hand," said the hag, "and I '11 
 help you to walk." 
 
 He took the hag's hand. There wasn't a 
 jump that she gave while she had a grip of his 
 hand but he thought she was dragging the arm 
 from him. 
 
 "Curses on you for an old hag! Is it little I 
 have gone through that you treat me in this 
 way.?" 
 
 " I have a cloth about my shoulders. Go into 
 that, and I will carry you," said the hag. 
 
 There was n*t a joint in the hag's back that 
 wasn't three inches long When she had him 
 on her back there was n't a leap that she gave 
 that the joints of her backbone were not going 
 into Cud's body. 
 
 " Hard luck to you for a hag, after all I have 
 gone through to have me killed at last." 
 
 "You have not far to go now," said she; and 
 after a few leaps she was at the end of her jour- 
 ney. She took him into a grand castle. The 
 best table of food that he had ever set eyes on 
 was left down there before him. 
 
 "Sit there, now, son of the King of Urhu; eat 
 and drink." 
 
 "I have never taken food without company," 
 said Cud, "and I will not take it this time." 
 
Cud, Cad, and Micad. 2 1 1 
 
 "Will you eat with me?" 
 
 "Bad luck to you for a hag, I will not." 
 
 She opened a door and let in twelve pigs, and 
 one pig, the thirteenth, without a head. 
 
 "Will you take food with these, son of the 
 King of Urhu.? " 
 
 "Indeed, then, old hag, bad as you are your- 
 self, I 'd rather eat with you than with these, and 
 I '11 not eat with you." 
 
 She put them back, opened another door and 
 let out twelve of the rustiest, foulest, ugliest old 
 hags that man could set eyes on. 
 
 "Will you take food with these .^ " asked she. 
 
 "Indeed, then, I will not." 
 
 She hurried them back, opened a door, and 
 brought out twelve beautiful young women. 
 
 "Will you take food with these.? " 
 
 "These are fit to take food with any one," said 
 Cud. 
 
 They sat down and ate with good-will and 
 pleasure. When they had the dinner eaten the 
 hag opened the door, and the twelve went back 
 to their own chamber. 
 
 "I'll get great blame," said the old hag, "for 
 all the delay I 've had. I '11 be going now." 
 
 "What trouble is on you that you '11 be blamed 
 for your delay .? " 
 
 "Those twelve pigs that you saw," said the hag. 
 
212 Hero- Tales of Ireland, 
 
 "are twelve sons of mine, and the pig without a 
 head is my husband. Those twelve foul, yellow 
 hags that you saw are my twelve daughters. The 
 twelve beautiful women who ate with you are my 
 daughters* attendants." 
 
 "Why are your twelve sons and your husband 
 pigs, and your twelve daughters yellow old 
 hags.?" 
 
 "The Awus in that house there beyond has 
 them enchanted and held in subjection. There 
 is n't a night but I must go with a gold apple to 
 him." 
 
 " I will go with you tonight," said Cud. 
 
 "There is no use in going," said the hag. 
 
 They were talking a long time before she 
 would let him go. She went first, and he fol- 
 lowed. She knocked, and they opened the door. 
 Cud was in with her that instant. One Awus 
 rose and put seven bolts and seven locks on the 
 door. Cud rose and put on seven locks and 
 seven bolts more. All began to laugh when 
 they saw Cud doing this. The old chief, who 
 was standing at the hearth, let such a roar out of 
 him that Cud saw the heart inside in his body. 
 
 "Why are you laughing.? " asked Cud. 
 
 "We think you a nice bit of meat to roast on 
 the spit. Rise up," said he to a small attendant, 
 "and tie that fellow." 
 
Cud, Cad, and Micad. 213 
 
 The attendant rose and tried to tie Cud, but 
 soon Cud had him down and tied. 
 
 "Bad luck to you, 'tis sorry I am that I ever 
 lost food on the like of you," said the old chief 
 to the small attendant. "Rise up," said he to a 
 big attendant, "and tie him." 
 
 The big one rose up, and whatever time the 
 small one lasted, the big one didn't last half that 
 length. Cud drew strings from his pocket and 
 began tying the Awuses. He caught the old 
 Awus by the shins, dragged him down, and put 
 his knee on him. 
 
 "You are the best champion ever I have seen," 
 said the old Awus. "Give me quarter for my 
 soul; there is never a place where you need it 
 but my help will attend you with bravery. I'll 
 give you also my sword of light that shines in 
 the dark, my pot of cure that makes the dead 
 alive, and the rod of enchantment to help the 
 pot of cure." 
 
 "Where can I find them? " asked Cud. 
 
 " In a hole in the floor under the post of my 
 bed. You cannot get them without help." 
 
 " It cannot be but I can do anything that has 
 been done ever in your house," said Cud. 
 
 With that he went to the bed, and whatever 
 work he had in his life he never found a harder 
 task than to move the post of the bed; but he 
 
214 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 found the sword of light, the pot of cure, and 
 the rod of enchantment. He came to the Awus 
 with the sword in one hand, and the two other 
 things in the other hand. 
 
 "The head off you now if you don't take this 
 hag and her family from under enchantment. 
 Make men and women of her sons and daughters, 
 a king of her husband, and a queen of herself in 
 this kingdom, while water is running, and grass 
 is growing, and you are to go to them with a 
 gold apple every evening and morning as long 
 as you live or any one lives who comes after you 
 to the end of all ages." 
 
 "I will do that," said the Awus. 
 
 He gave the word, and the hag was as fine a 
 queen as she was before. She and Cud went 
 back to the castle. The twelve pigs were twelve 
 young men, and the thirteenth without a head 
 was the king. She opened the chamber of the 
 twelve yellow hags, and they were as beautiful 
 as ever. All were very grateful to Cud for the 
 good turn he had done them. 
 
 "I had one son," said the queen; "while he 
 was here he gave the old Awus enough to do." 
 
 "Where is he now.?" inquired Cud. 
 
 "In the Eastern World, in a field seven miles 
 in length, and seven in width, and there isn't a 
 yard of that field in which a spike is not standing 
 
Cud, Cad, and Micad. 215 
 
 taller than a man. There is not a spike, except 
 one, without a king's son or a champion on it, 
 impaled through his chin." 
 
 "What name had your son.? " 
 
 "Gold Boot." 
 
 " I promise to bring Gold Boot here to you, or 
 leave my own head on the spike." 
 
 As early as the day rose Cud was ready, and 
 away he went walking, and very little food had 
 he with him. About mid-day he was at the 
 enchanted field, in the Eastern World. He was 
 walking till he came to Gold Boot. When he 
 touched the body, the foot gave him a kick that 
 sent him seven acres and seven ridges away, and 
 put three bunches of the blood of his heart out 
 of him. 
 
 " I believe what your mother said, that when 
 you were living you were strong, and the strength 
 you have now to be in you." 
 
 "Don't think we are dead," said Gold Boot; 
 "we are not. It is how we are enchanted and 
 unable to rise out of this." 
 
 "What put you in it.? " asked Cud. 
 
 "A man will come out by and by with pipes, 
 making music, and he '11 bring so much sleep on 
 you that he '11 put you on that empty spike, and 
 the field will be full. If you take my advice you 
 will not wait for him." 
 
2i6 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 " My grief and my sorrow ! I will never stir till 
 I see all that is here," replied Cud. 
 
 It wasn't long he was waiting when the piper 
 came out, and the very first sound that he heard 
 Cud ran and caught the pipes; whatever music the 
 man was making, Cud played seven times better. 
 
 When Cud took the pipes, the piper ran crying 
 into the castle where the wizard was. 
 
 " What is on you ? " asked the wizard. 
 
 "A man caught my pipes, and he is a twice 
 better player than what I am." 
 
 "Nevermind that, take these with you; these 
 are the pipes that won't be long in putting sleep 
 on him." 
 
 When Cud heard the first note of these pipes, 
 he struck the old ones against a stone, and ran 
 and caught the new pipes. The piper rushed to 
 the wizard ; the old man went out, threw himself 
 on his knees, and begged mercy. 
 
 "Never give him mercy," said Gold Boot, "till 
 he burns the hill that is standing out opposite 
 him." 
 
 " You have no pardon to get till you set that 
 hill there on fire," answered Cud. 
 
 "That is as bad for me as to lose my head," 
 said the wizard. 
 
 " That same is not far from you unless you do 
 what I bid," replied Cud. 
 
Cud, Cad, and Micad, 217 
 
 Sooner than lose his head he lighted the hill. 
 When the hill began to burn, all the men except 
 Gold Boot came from under enchantment as sound 
 as ever, and rose off the spikes. Every one was 
 making away, and no one asking who let him 
 out. The hill was on fire except one spot in 
 the middle of it. Gold Boot was not stirring. 
 "Why did you not make him set all the hill on 
 fire } " asked he. 
 
 "Why did you not set the whole hill on fire.? " 
 demanded Cud of the wizard. 
 
 "Is it not all on fire.?" 
 
 "Do you see the centre is not burning yet.? " 
 
 "To see that bit on fire," said the wizard, "is 
 as bad for me as to lose the head itself." 
 
 "That same is not far from you," said Cud. 
 
 "Sooner than lose the head I will light it." 
 
 That moment he lighted the hill, and Cud saw 
 the very woman he saw the first day sleeping in the 
 little boat come toward him from the hill. He for- 
 got that he had seen Gold Boot or the enchanted 
 hag and her sons. The wizard, seeing this, 
 stopped the centre fire, and Gold Boot was left 
 on the spike. Cud and the woman embraced 
 till they smothered each other with kisses and 
 drowned each other with tears. After that they 
 neither stopped nor stayed till they reached his 
 little ship and sailed away on it; they never 
 
2i8 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 delayed till they came to where his two brothers 
 and sister-in-law were under the boat. Cud took 
 out the three bodies, put a drop of the cure on 
 each one, and gave each a blow of the rod. They 
 rose up in good health and sound vigor. All 
 entered the ship and sailed toward Urhu. 
 
 They had only the sailing of one day before 
 them, when Cud recollected his promise to bring 
 Gold Boot to his mother. 
 
 "Take the wife to Fermalye," said he to his 
 brothers. "I must go for Gold Boot; the king 
 will give you food till I come. If you were to 
 go to our own father he'd think that it is dead 
 I am." 
 
 Cud drew out his knife, cut a slip from a stick; 
 this he threw into the sea. It became a ship, 
 and away he sailed in that ship, and never 
 stopped till he entered the harbor next the 
 enchanted field. When he came to Gold Boot 
 he gave him a drop of cure and a blow of the 
 rod. He rose from the spike, well and strong. 
 The two embraced then, went to the ship, and 
 sailed away. They had not gone far when such 
 a calm came that they cast anchor near shore, 
 and Gold Boot began to get dinner. It wasn't 
 long he was at it when they saw food at the foot 
 of a tree on the shore. 
 
 "Who would be getting trouble with cooking, 
 
Cud, Cad, and Mtcad. 219 
 
 and such food as that on the shore?" said Gold 
 Boot. 
 
 "Don't mind that food," replied Cud. 
 
 "Whatever I think of I do," said Gold Boot. 
 
 He went to shore with one jump, caught the 
 food, sprang back, and laid it down for himself 
 and Cud. When this was done there was food 
 seven times better on the land again. 
 
 "Who would taste of this, and that table over 
 there .? " cried Gold Boot. 
 
 "Never mind it," said Cud. "If the man who 
 owns this table was sleeping when you took it, 
 he is not sleeping now." 
 
 "Whatever I think of I must do," replied Gold 
 Boot. 
 
 "If you did that before, I will do it now," said 
 Cud, and he sprang to land. He looked up in 
 the tree, and there he saw a man ready to take 
 the life from him. 
 
 " Grief and sorrow ! " said the man. '*! thought 
 it was Gold Boot again. Take this table, with 
 welcome, but I hope you '11 invite me to dinner." 
 
 "I will, indeed," said Cud; "and what name 
 am I to give you .'' " 
 
 "The Wet Mantle Champion." 
 
 Cud took one end of the table and the champion 
 the other. Out they went to the ship with one 
 bound. They sat down then together with Gold 
 
2 20 Hero-Tales of Ireland* 
 
 Boot at the table. When dinner was over, the 
 wind rose, and they sailed on, never delaying till 
 they came to the castle of Gold Boot's father, 
 where there was a great welcome before them, 
 and thanks beyond estimate. 
 
 **I will give you half my kingdom while I live 
 and all of it when I die," said the king, "and the 
 choice of my twelve daughters." 
 
 "Many thanks to you," replied Cud; "the 
 promise of marriage is on me already, but per- 
 haps Wet Mantle is not married or promised." 
 
 " I am not," said Wet Mantle. 
 
 "You must have my chance," said Cud. 
 
 Wet Mantle took Cud's place, and the king 
 sent for a big dish priest, and a great wooden 
 clerk. They came, and the couple were married. 
 When the three days' wedding was over. Cud 
 went away alone. While sailing near land he 
 saw a castle by the sea, and as he drew near he 
 wondered more and more. A raven was going 
 in and out at the uppermost window, and each 
 time bringing out something white. Cud landed, 
 walked up from the strand, and went to the top 
 of the castle. He saw a woman there, and the 
 whole room full of white pigeons. She was 
 throwing them one by one from a loft to the 
 raven. 
 
 " Why do you throw those to the raven ? " asked 
 Cud of the woman. 
 
Cud, Cad, and Micad. 221 
 
 "The raven is an enchanted brother of mine, 
 who comes to this castle once in seven years. 
 I can see him only while I am throwing him 
 pigeons. I get as many pigeons as possible, to 
 keep him with me while I can." 
 
 "Keep him for a while yet," said Cud. 
 
 He rushed to the ship, took his rod, and ran 
 to the loft where the woman was. " Entice him 
 in further," said Cud. 
 
 Cud struck the raven a blow, and he rose up 
 as fine a champion as ever was seen. 
 
 "Your blow on me was good," said the cham- 
 pion, "and 'tis work you have now before you. 
 Your two brothers are killed and under seven 
 feet of earth in Fermalye. Your wife and her 
 sister are to their knees in foul water and filth 
 in the stable, and are getting two mouthfuls of 
 water,and two of bread in the day till they die." 
 
 Cud did not wait to hear more of the story. 
 Away he went, and never stopped till he came 
 to Fermalye. When he was coming to the castle 
 all the children he met he was throwing at each 
 other, he was so vexed. He took the wife and 
 sister out of the stable, then dug up the brothers 
 and brought them to life with the rod. The five 
 made no delay after that, but went to the ship 
 and sailed to Urhu. When near land he raised 
 white flags on every mast. 
 
222 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 "A ship is coming!" cried a messenger, run- 
 ning to the king. " I am thinking it is Cud that 
 is in it." 
 
 "That's what I will never believe," said the 
 king, "till he puts his hand into my hand." 
 
 Since Cud left home, the father and mother 
 had never risen from the fireside, but were sitting 
 there always and crying. When the ship was 
 three miles from land, Cud ran from the stern to 
 the stem, sprang to land, ran into the castle, 
 gave one hand to his mother, and the other to 
 his father. 
 
 It was n't one boat, but boats, that went out to 
 the ship for the brothers and the women. When 
 they came, all spent the night with great pleasure 
 in the castle. Next day the king sent seven 
 score of ships and one ship to sea to bring sup- 
 plies for the wedding. When the ships came 
 back laden from foreign parts, he sent messen- 
 gers to invite all the people in the kingdom. 
 They were coming till they blackened the hills 
 and spotted the valleys. I was there myself, and 
 we spent nine nights and nine days in great glee 
 and pleasure. 
 
CAHAL, SON OF KING CONOR, IN ERIN, 
 AND BLOOM OF YOUTH, DAUGHTER OF 
 THE KING OF HATHONY. 
 
 THERE was a king in Hathony long ago who 
 had an old castle by the sea. This king 
 went out walking one day along the clean, 
 smooth strand, and, while walking, the thought 
 rose in him to take a sail near the shore. He 
 stepped into his boat with attendants and men, 
 and was sailing about in enjoyment and pleasure, 
 when a wind came with a mist of enchantment, 
 and drove the boat away through the sea with the 
 king and his men. 
 
 They were going before the wind, without a 
 sight of sky or sea; no man in the boat could see 
 the man who sat next to him. They were that way 
 moving in the mist without knowledge of where 
 they were, or where they were going, and the boat 
 never stopped till it sailed into a narrow harbor 
 in a lonely place without house or habitation. 
 
 The king left the boat well fastened at the 
 shore, and went his way, walking till he came to 
 a castle, and what castle should it be but the 
 castle of King Conor, in Erin. 
 
2 24 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 King Conor received the King of Hathony 
 with great hospitality and welcome. 
 
 When the two had spent some days in com- 
 pany, they became great friends, and made a 
 match between their two children. The King 
 of Hathony had a daughter called Bloom of 
 Youth, who was nine years of age, and King 
 Conor had a son ten years old, named Cahal. 
 
 When the King of Hathony wished to go back 
 to his own land. King Conor of Erin gave a ship 
 to him, and the king sailed away with good 
 wishes and with supplies for a day and a year. 
 
 Bloom of Youth grew up in such beauty that 
 she had not her equal in Hathony or in other 
 lands, and Cahal, King Conor's son, became 
 such a hero that no man knew was the like 
 of him in any place. 
 
 On a day Cahal said to his father, " Make up 
 some treasure for me and stores for my ship. I 
 must leave home now and be travelling through 
 the world till I know is there a better man than 
 myself in it." 
 
 "It is, indeed, time for you to be going," said 
 King Conor, "for in three years you are to marry 
 Bloom of Youth, the daughter of the King of 
 Hathony, and you should be making out the 
 place now where her father lives." 
 
 Next morning Cahal took what treasures his 
 
Cahal and Bloom of Youth, 225 
 
 father gave him, and provisions, went to his ship 
 and raised sails. Away he went on his voyage, 
 sailing over the sea in one way and another, in 
 this direction and that. He sailed one year and 
 three-quarters of a second year, but found no man 
 to give tale or tidings of the King of Hathony. 
 
 Once on a gloomy day he was sailing along 
 through the waves, when a strong north wind 
 rose, and blew with such force that he let his 
 ship go with it. 
 
 Three days and nights the ship went before 
 the north wind, and on the fourth day, in the 
 morning, it was thrown in on a rocky coast. 
 
 Cahal saved his life and his sword, and went 
 away walking through the country. On the 
 evening of the fifth day he came to an old castle 
 near the seashore, and said to himself, " I will 
 not go in here to ask for lodgings like any poor 
 traveller." With that he walked up and put a 
 blow on the pole of combat that made the whole 
 castle tremble. 
 
 Out rushed the messenger. "What brought 
 you here, and what do you want.?" asked he of 
 King Conor's son. 
 
 "I want men to meet me in combat, seven 
 hundred champions on my right hand, seven 
 hundred on my left, seven hundred behind me, 
 and the same number in front of me."' 
 
 IS 
 
226 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 The man ran in and gave the message to the 
 king. 
 
 "Oh," said the King of Hathony, "that is my 
 son-in-law from Erin; " and out he went. 
 
 "Are you the son of King Conor? " asked the 
 king. 
 
 "I am," said Cahal. 
 
 "A hundred thousand welcomes to you," said 
 the king. 
 
 " Thankful am I for the welcomes, and glad to 
 receive them," said Cahal. "I had great trouble 
 in coming; it is not easy to find you." 
 
 "It is not easy to find any man unless you 
 know the road to his house," said the king. 
 
 There was great feasting that night and enter- 
 tainment for Cahal. Next day the king said, 
 "Your bride, my daughter, is gone these two 
 months. Striker, son of the King of Tricks, 
 came to my castle and stole her away from me. " 
 
 " My word for it, he will not keep her unless 
 he is a better man than I am," said Cahal. 
 
 "I am sure of that," said the king, "and I said 
 so." 
 
 " My own ship was wrecked on your coast, and 
 now you must give me another in place of it," 
 said Cahal. 
 
 "I will," said the king, "and a good one; but 
 you can do nothing on sea against Striker." 
 
Cahal and Bloom of Youth, 227 
 
 " I am more used to the sea now than to land, 
 I am so long on it," answered Cahal. 
 
 " If you were born on the water and had lived 
 every day of your life on it, you could do nothing 
 at sea against Striker. There is not a man living 
 who can face him at sea." 
 
 Nothing would satisfy Cahal but to go against 
 Striker by sea; so he took the ship which the 
 king gave and sailed away, sailed week after 
 week till he was within a day's journey of 
 Striker's castle. Striker thrust his head up 
 through the top of the castle then, and let a 
 blast out through his mouth that sent Cabal's 
 ship back twice the distance it had come. 
 
 King Conor's son sailed forward again, and 
 again Striker blew him back as far as he had 
 the first time. 
 
 Cahal sailed now to the castle of the King of 
 Hathony. 
 
 "I said that you could do nothing against 
 Striker on sea. If you wish to get the upper 
 hand of him I will tell you what to do. Take 
 this bridle and shake it behind the castle; what- 
 ever beast comes to you take that one, and ride 
 away against Striker." 
 
 When Cahal shook the bridle, out came the 
 smallest and ugliest beast in the stables, a lean, 
 shaggy mare. 
 
228 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 "Oh, then, bad luck to you for coming," said 
 the king's son, "and so many fine steeds in the 
 stables." 
 
 " That is the pony my daughter used to ride, 
 that is the best horse in the stables ; take her. 
 She is not easy to ride though, for she is full 
 of tricks and enchantment, but if you are the 
 right man she'll not throw you. She goes on 
 water as well as land, and you will be at your 
 enemy's castle to-day." 
 
 Cabal mounted, and away went the mare. She 
 crossed one hill at the first leap, three at the 
 second, then twelve hills and valleys at the third 
 leap ; went over land and sea, and never stopped 
 till she was in front of Striker's castle, two hours 
 before sunset. 
 
 Cabal sprang from the mare, and struck the 
 pole of combat. 
 
 "What do you want?" asked the attendant, 
 running out. 
 
 "I want seven hundred champions in combat 
 at my right side, seven hundred at my left, seven 
 hundred behind me, and seven hundred out before 
 my face. " 
 
 The attendant went in, and out came the 
 twenty-eight hundred against Cabal. 
 
 He went at the champions, and before sunset 
 he had them in three heaps, a heap of their 
 
Cahal and Bloom of Youth, 229 
 
 bodies, a heap of their heads, and a heap of their 
 weapons. 
 
 Next morning Cahal struck the pole again. 
 
 "What do you want this time.^" asked the 
 attendant. 
 
 "Seven thousand champions against me for 
 every hundred that I had yesterday." 
 
 Out came the champions in thousands. As 
 they were coming Cahal was going through them, 
 and before the day was ended he had them in 
 three heaps without leaving a man, a heap of 
 their heads, a heap of their bodies, and a heap 
 of their weapons. 
 
 He struck the pole on the third morning, and 
 before the attendant had time to open his mouth, 
 Cahal shouted, "Send out every man in the 
 place. I may as well spend one day on them 
 all as to be calling for champions occasion- 
 ally." 
 
 The forces of Striker, son of the King of 
 Tricks, were coming as fast as ever they could 
 make their way through the gates. They were 
 rushing at Cahal like showers of hail on a stormy 
 day, but they could neither kill him nor get the 
 upper hand. They could neither defend them- 
 selves nor hurt him, and Cahal never stopped till 
 he had them all in a heap at one side. 
 
 Cahal struck the pole on the fourth day. 
 
230 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 "What do you want now?" asked the atten- 
 dant. 
 
 " Striker, son of the King of Tricks, in combat 
 before me. " 
 
 Out came Striker, and fell upon Cahal. The 
 two fought seven days and six nights without 
 stopping or resting, then Striker called for a 
 truce and got it. He went into his castle, healed 
 himself in his caldron of cure, ate enough, slept, 
 and was as fresh as ever next morning. They 
 spent three days and two nights in combat after 
 that without rest. 
 
 Striker called for cessation a second time and 
 got it. On the eleventh morning a goldfinch 
 perched opposite Cahal and said, " Bad luck to 
 you for a foolish young man to be giving your 
 enemy rest, time to eat, drink, and cure himself, 
 and you lying outside at the foot of the wall in 
 hunger and cold. Keep him working till he 
 yields. Give him no rest till you snatch from 
 his breast the pin which he has in the left side 
 of it." 
 
 They were struggling four days and nights 
 without rest or cessation till the fifth morning, 
 when Cahal snatched the pin from the bosom of 
 Striker. 
 
 "Oh, spare my life! " cried Striker. "I '11 be 
 your servant in every place, only spare me. " 
 
Cahal and Bloom of Youth, 231 
 
 "I want nothing of you," said Cahal, "but 
 this: Send out my bride to me; you took her 
 from her father, the King of Hathony, and she 
 was to be my wife soon when you took her. Send 
 her to me, and put no fog or enchantment on us 
 while we are on the way home." 
 
 "You ask more than I can give," said Striker, 
 "for Wet Mantle, the hero, took that maiden 
 from me two months ago. When going, she put 
 him under bonds not to molest her for two days 
 and two years." 
 
 "Where can I find Wet Mantle.?" 
 
 "That is more than I can tell; but put your 
 nose before you and follow it." 
 
 "That 's a short answer, and I would take your 
 life for three straws on account of it; but I'll 
 let some other man have his chance to take the 
 head off you." 
 
 Cahal mounted his mare then, and was travel- 
 ling over seas and dry land, — travelling a long 
 time till he came at last to Wet Mantle's castle. 
 He struck the pole of combat, and out came the 
 messenger. 
 
 " Who are you, and what do you want t " 
 
 " Seven hundred at my right hand, seven hun 
 dred at my left, seven hundred behind me, and 
 seven hundred before my face." 
 
 "That 's more men than you can find in this 
 
232 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 place," said the messenger. "Wet Mantle lives 
 here in his own way, without forces or company; 
 he keeps no man but me, and is very well 
 satisfied." 
 
 "Go then," said Cahal, "and tell him to come 
 out himself to me." 
 
 Wet Mantle came out, and the two fought seven 
 days and six nights. Wet Mantle called for a 
 truce then and got it. The hero went to his 
 castle, cured himself, and was as fresh the eighth 
 morning as the first. They began to fight, and 
 the struggle continued three days and two nights. 
 Wet Mantle called for a truce, and received it the 
 second time. On the eleventh morning he was 
 well again, and ready for the struggle. 
 
 "Oh, then, it is foolish and simple you are, 
 and small good in your travelling the world," 
 cried a goldfinch to Cahal. "Why are you out 
 here in hunger and cold, and he cured and fresh 
 in his castle.? Give him no rest the next time, 
 but fight till you tire him and take the mantle 
 from him. He'll be as weak as a common man 
 then, for it is in the mantle his strength is." 
 
 On the eleventh morning they began for the 
 third time and fought fiercely all day. In the 
 evening Wet Mantle called for a rest. 
 
 "No," said Cahal, "you '11 get no rest. There 
 is no rest for either of us. You must fight till 
 you or I yield." 
 
Cahal and Bloom of Youth. 233 
 
 They fought on till the following evening. 
 Wet Mantle called for rest a second time. 
 
 "No rest till this battle is ended," cried 
 Cahal. 
 
 They held on all that night venomously, and 
 were fighting at noon of the following day. 
 Then Cahal closed on his enemy, and tore the 
 mantle from his body. 
 
 The hero without his mantle had no more 
 strength than a common man. 
 
 " You are the best champion that ever I have 
 met," said he to Cahal. ** I will give you all that 
 you ask, but don't kill me." 
 
 " I have no wish to kill or to hurt you, though 
 good treatment is not what you deserve from me. 
 You caused me great trouble and hardship search- 
 ing and travelling, not knowing where to find 
 you. I want nothing of you but my bride, and 
 your promise not to put fog or magic on us or 
 harm us until we reach Erin in safety." 
 
 "That is more than I can promise," said Wet 
 Mantle. 
 
 "Why so.?" asked Cahal. 
 
 "The gruagach, Long Sweeper, took that 
 maiden from me, and she put him under bonds 
 not to molest her, or come near her for three 
 days and three years. " 
 
 "Where can I find Long Sweeper.?" 
 
234 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 "That is more than I can tell," said Wet 
 Mantle. "The world is wide, you have free pas- 
 sage through it, and you can be going this way 
 and that till you find him; he lives in a very 
 high castle, and he is a tall man himself; he has 
 a very long broom, and when he likes he sweeps 
 the sky with that broom three times in the morn- 
 ing, and the day that he sweeps, there is no man 
 in the world that can contradict him or conquer 
 him." 
 
 Cahal went riding his pony from the north to 
 the south, from the east to the west, and west to 
 east, three years and two days. At daylight of 
 the third day he saw a tall castle in the ocean 
 before him. So tall was the castle that he could 
 not tell the height of it, and a man on the sum- 
 mit twice as tall as the castle itself, and he with 
 a broom sweeping the sky. 
 
 "Ah," said Cahal to himself, ** I have you at 
 last" 
 
 He rode forward then to the castle, and struck 
 the pole of combat. 
 
 " What do you want } " asked the messenger. 
 
 "I want men to meet me in combat." 
 
 "Well, that is what you'll not get in this 
 place. There is no man living on this island but 
 Long Sweeper and myself. The Black Horse- 
 man came from the Western World three months 
 
Cahal and Bloom of Youth. 235 
 
 ago, and killed every man, gave Long Sweeper 
 great hardship and trouble, and after terrible 
 fighting got the upper hand of him." 
 
 "Well, if he has no men, let him come out 
 himself, for I '11 never leave the spot till I knock 
 satisfaction out of Long Sweeper for the trouble 
 he gave me before I could find him." 
 
 Long Sweeper came out, and they began to 
 fight; they fought for seven days and six nights. 
 Toward evening of the seventh day Long Sweeper 
 called for rest and got it. He went into his high 
 castle, ate, drank, healed himself in his caldron 
 of cure, and slept well and soundly, while Cahal 
 had to rest as best he was able on the ground 
 beyond the wall. The eighth morning Long 
 Sweeper went up on his castle and swept the sky 
 back and forth three times, and got such strength 
 that no man on earth could overcome him that 
 day. 
 
 They fought three days and two nights, and 
 fought all the time without rest. Long Sweeper 
 called for rest then and got it, and was cured and 
 refreshed as before. Next morning he mounted 
 the castle, swept the sky three times with his 
 broom, and was ready for combat. 
 
 Before Long Sweeper came, the goldfinch 
 perched in front of Cahal and said, " Misfortune 
 to you, son of King Conor in Erin; 't is to a bad 
 
236 Hero- Tales of Ireland. 
 
 place you came with your life to lose it, and 
 is n't it foolish of you to give your enemy rest, 
 while yourself has nothing to lie on but the 
 earth, and nothing to put in your mouth but cold 
 air? Give neither rest nor truce to your enemy. 
 He will be losing strength till three days from 
 now. If he gets no chance to sweep the sky, 
 he '11 be no better than a common man." 
 
 That evening Long Sweeper called for rest. 
 
 "No," said Cahal, "you'll get no rest from 
 me. We must fight till either one or the other 
 yields." 
 
 "That 's not fair fighting." 
 
 " It is not, indeed. I am ten days and nights 
 without food, drink, or rest, while you have had 
 them twice. We have not fought fairly so far, 
 but we will hereafter. You must remain as you 
 are now till one of us is conquered." 
 
 They were fighting till noon, the thirteenth 
 day. "I am beaten," said Long Sweeper. 
 " Whatever I have I am willing to give you, but 
 spare my life, for if there is a good hero in the 
 world you are he. " 
 
 "I want nothing of you," said Cahal, "but to 
 send out to me my bride. Bloom of Youth, 
 daughter of the King of Hathony, the maiden 
 you took from Wet Mantle. You have caused 
 me great hardship and trouble, but I '11 let some 
 
Cahal and Bloom of Youth, 237 
 
 one else take your life, or may you live as you 
 are." 
 
 "I cannot send out your bride," said Long 
 Sweeper, "for she is not in my castle. The 
 Black Horseman took her from me three months 
 ago." 
 
 " Where am I to find that man ? " 
 
 " I might tell you to put your nose before you 
 and walk after it, but I will not; I will give 
 you a guide. Here is a rod; whichever way the 
 rod turns, follow it till you come to the Western 
 World, where the Black Horseman lives." 
 
 Cahal mounted his mare, made off with the 
 rod in his hand, and rode straight to the Black 
 Horseman's castle. The messenger was in front 
 of the castle before him. 
 
 "Tell your master to send out champions 
 against me, or to come himself," said Cahal. 
 
 That moment the Black Horseman himself was 
 on the threshold. "I am here all alone," said 
 he to Cahal. " I have lost all my wealth, all my 
 men, all my magic. I am now in a poor state, 
 though I was living pleasantly and in greatness 
 after the conflict in which I got the better of 
 Long Sweeper. It 's rich and strong I was after 
 parting with that man, and I was waiting here 
 to marry when White Beard from the Western 
 World came, made war on me, and continued it 
 
238 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 for a day and a year ; then he left me poor and 
 lonely, as I am at this moment." 
 
 "Well," said Cahal, "you have caused me 
 great labor and hardship; but I ask nothing of 
 you except to send out my bride, Bloom of 
 Youth, to me, and not to bring fog or magic on 
 her or on me till we reach home in safety." 
 
 "White Beard took your bride from me, and 
 he cannot marry her for four days and four years, 
 for she put him under bond not to do so. I will 
 tell you now how to find her. Do you see that 
 broad river in front of us.** It flows from the 
 Northern to the Southern World, and there is 
 no way to cross it unless a good hero does so by 
 springing from one bank to the other. When 
 White Beard took the maiden from me, they 
 walked to the brink of the river; he placed the 
 woman then on his shoulder and sprang over the 
 river to the west. * Let me down, now,' said 
 the woman. * I will not,' replied White Beard, 
 * I have such regard for you that I will show you 
 every place on the road.' He did not let her 
 down till he showed her everything between the 
 river and the castle. 'You may come down,' 
 said he, when they entered the castle (she could 
 see everything from his shoulder, but nothing 
 from the ground). When coming down she 
 thrust a sleeping pin that she had in the head 
 
Cahal and Bloom of Youth, 239 
 
 of the old man, and he fell fast asleep standing 
 there. She has whatever she wishes to eat or 
 to drink in the castle. All is in a mist of 
 enchantment. She can see nothing outside the 
 castle, but everything within. That was my 
 home at one time. I was born and reared in that 
 castle, and lived in it till White Beard drove me 
 away with magic and violence. I came to this 
 place and lived here a time without trouble, till 
 I took Bloom of Youth from Long Sweeper. 
 I was waiting to marry her, when White Beard 
 came, destroyed all my forces, took away my 
 enchantment, carried off Bloom of Youth, and 
 left me here without strength or defence. But 
 one thing is left me, and that I will give you. 
 Here is a torch. When you cross the river, light 
 it. You '11 find the road, and no one has found 
 it since I was there. When you light the torch 
 follow the road to an old cottage, at one side 
 from the castle. In this cottage is a henwife, 
 who has lived there since my childhood. She 
 will show the way to the castle and back to her 
 cottage. From there you may journey homeward 
 in safety, by lighting the torch a second time, 
 and keeping it till you ride out of the castle's 
 enchantment. This is all I have to tell you." 
 
 Cahal rode briskly to the river, rode across, 
 lighted his torch on the other side, saw a narrow 
 
240 Hero- Tales of Ireland, 
 
 bright road, but nothing on either side. The 
 road was a long one, but he came to the end of 
 it at the door of the henwife's old cottage. Cahal 
 greeted the henwife. 
 
 "A hundred thousand welcomes," said the old 
 woman. "You are here from my master, the 
 Black Horseman, or you could not be in it. Can 
 I help you in any way } " 
 
 "I want nothing of you but to show me the 
 way to the castle of White Beard, where my bride 
 is, and then bring me back to this place." 
 
 "Follow me," said the henwife, "and leave 
 your horse here." 
 
 She took Cahal by the hand and went forward 
 till she came to the castle and entered it. There 
 Cahal saw the finest woman that ever he had met 
 in the world. "Well," said he to himself, "I 
 am not sorry, after all my troubles and hardships, 
 if you are the woman I am to marry." 
 
 "A greeting to you, young hero," said the 
 woman. "Who are you who have been able to 
 come to this castle, and why are you here.? " 
 
 "My name is Cahal, son of King Conor, in 
 Erin. I am long travelling and fighting to find 
 and to rescue my bride. Bloom of Youth, daugh- 
 ter of the King of Hathony. Who are you, fair 
 lady } " asked Cahal. 
 
 " I am the daughter of the King of Hathony. 
 
Cahal and Bloom of Youth, 241 
 
 The day before I was taken by Striker, son of 
 the King of Tricks, my father told me that the 
 son of King Conor, in Erin, was betrothed to 
 me. You, I suppose, are that man ? " 
 
 "I am," said Cahal. "Come with me now, I 
 will free you; but what are we to do with White 
 Beard.?" 
 
 "Leave him as he is. There is no knowing 
 what he would do should we rouse him." 
 
 The two went with the henwife to her cottage. 
 Cahal lighted the torch a second time, mounted 
 the mare, put Bloom of Youth in front, rode first 
 to Hathony, and then home to Erin. 
 
 King Conor made a great feast of welcome for 
 Cahal and his bride. There were seven hundred 
 guests at the short table, eight hundred at the 
 long table, nine hundred at the round table, and 
 a thousand in the grand hall. I was there and 
 heard the whole story, but got no present except 
 shoes of paper and stockings of buttermilk, and 
 these a herder stole from me in crossing the 
 mountains. 
 
COLDFEET AND THE QUEEN OF 
 LONESOME ISLAND. 
 
 /^NCE upon a time, and a long time ago it 
 ^■^^ was, there lived an old woman in Erin. 
 This old woman's house was at the northeast 
 corner of Mount Brandon. Of all the friends 
 and relatives that ever she had in the world 
 there was but one left, her only son, Sean,^ 
 nicknamed Fuarcosa (Coldfeet). 
 
 The reason that people called the boy Coldfeet 
 was this : When a child he was growing always ; 
 what of him did not grow one hour grew an- 
 other; what did not grow in the day grew in the 
 night; what did not grow in the night grew 
 in the day; and he grew that fast that when 
 seven years old he could not find room enough 
 in his mother's house. When night came and 
 he was sleeping, whatever corner of the house 
 his head was in, it was out of doors that his 
 feet were, and, of course, they were cold, espe- 
 cially in winter. 
 
 1 Pronounce Shawn, — John. 
 
IT WAS NOT LONG TILL HIS LEGS AS WELL AS HIS FEET 
 WERE OUT OF THE HOUSE. Page 24S. 
 
Coldfeet and Queen of Lonesome Island. 243 
 
 It was not long till his legs as well as his feet 
 were out of the house, first to the knees, and 
 then to the body. When fifteen years old it 
 was all that he could do to put his head in, and 
 he lived outdoors entirely. What the mother 
 could gather in a year would not support the son 
 for a day, he was that large and had such an 
 appetite. 
 
 Coldfeet had to find his own food, and he had 
 no means of living but to bring home sheep and 
 bullocks from whatever place he met them. 
 
 He was going on in this way, faring rather 
 ill than well, when one day above another he 
 said, "I think I must go into the great world, 
 mother. I am half starving in this place. I can 
 do little good for myself as I am, and no good 
 at all for you." 
 
 He rose early next morning, washed his face 
 and hands, asked assistance and protection of 
 God, and if he did not, may we. He left good, 
 health with his mother at parting, and away he 
 went, crossing high hills, passing low dales, and 
 kept on his way without halt or rest, the clear 
 day going and the dark night coming, taking 
 lodgings each evening wherever he found them, 
 till at last he came to a high roomy castle. 
 
 He entered the castle without delaying out- 
 side, and when he went in, the owner asked was 
 he a servant in search of a master. 
 
244 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 "I am in search of a master," said Coldfeet. 
 
 He engaged to herd cows for small hire and 
 his keeping, and the time of his service was a 
 day and a year. 
 
 Next morning, when Coldfeet was driving the 
 cattle to pasture, his master was outside in the 
 field before him, and said, " You must take good 
 care of yourself, for of all the herders who took 
 service with me never a man but was killed by 
 one or another of four giants who live next to my 
 pastures. One of these giants has four, the next 
 six, the third eight, and the fourth twelve heads 
 on him." 
 
 " By my hand ! " said Coldfeet, " I did not come 
 here to be killed by the like of them. They will 
 not hurt me, never fear." 
 
 Coldfeet went on with the cattle, and when he 
 came to the boundary he put them on the land 
 of the giants. The cows were not long grazing 
 when one of the giants at his castle caught the 
 odor of the strange herder and rushed out. 
 When coming at a distance he shouted, "I smell 
 the blood of a man from Erin; his liver and 
 lights for my supper to-night, his blood for my 
 morning dram, his jawbones for stepping-stones, 
 his shins for hurleys ! " 
 
 When the giant came up he cried, "Ah, that 
 is you, Coldfeet, and was n't it the impudence 
 
Coldfeet and Queen of Lonesome Island. 245 
 
 in you to come here from the butt of Brandon 
 Mountain and put cattle on my land to annoy 
 me?" 
 
 " It is n't to give satisfaction to you that I am 
 here, but to knock satisfaction out of your bones," 
 said Coldfeet. 
 
 With that the giant faced the herder, and the 
 two went at each other and fought till near 
 evening. They broke old trees and bent young 
 ones ; they made hard places soft and soft places 
 hard ; they made high places low and low places 
 high; they made spring wells dry, and brought 
 water through hard, gray rocks till near sunset, 
 when Coldfeet took the heads off the giant and 
 put the four skulls in muddy gaps to make a dry, 
 solid road for the cows. 
 
 Coldfeet drove out his master's cattle on a 
 second, third, and fourth morning; each day he 
 killed a giant, each day the battle was fiercer, 
 but on the fourth evening the fourth giant was 
 dead. 
 
 On the fifth day Coldfeet was not long on the 
 land of the dead giants when a dreadful enchanted 
 old hag came out against him, and she raging 
 with anger. She had nails of steel on her 
 fingers and toes, each nail of them weighing 
 seven pounds. 
 
 "Oh, you insolent, bloodthirsty villain," 
 
246 Hero- Tales of Ireland, 
 
 screamed she, "to come all the way from Bran- 
 don Mountain to kill my young sons, and, poor 
 boys, only that timber is dear in this country 
 it 's in their cradles they 'd be to-day instead of 
 being murdered by you." 
 
 "It isn't to give satisfaction to you that I 'm 
 here, you old witch, but to knock it out of your 
 wicked old bones," said Coldfeet. 
 
 "Glad would I be to tear you to pieces," said 
 the hag; "but 'tis better to get some good of 
 you first. I put you under spells of heavy 
 enchantment that you cannot escape, not to eat 
 two meals off the one table nor to sleep two 
 nights in the one house till you go to the Queen 
 of Lonesome Island, and bring the sword of light 
 that never fails, the loaf of bread that is never 
 eaten, and the bottle of water that is never 
 drained. " 
 
 " Where is Lonesome Island } " asked Coldfeet. 
 
 "Follow your nose, and make out the place 
 with your own wit," said the hag. 
 
 Coldfeet drove the cows home in the evening, 
 and said to his master, "The giants will never 
 harm you again; all their heads are in the muddy 
 gaps from this to the end of the pasture, and 
 there are good roads now for your cattle. I 
 have been with you only five days, but another 
 would not do my work in a day and a year; pay 
 
Coldfeet and Queen of Lonesome Island, 247 
 
 me my wages. You '11 never have trouble again 
 in finding men to mind cattle." 
 
 The man paid Coldfeet his wages, gave him a 
 good suit of clothes for the journey, and his 
 blessing. 
 
 Away went Coldfeet now on the long road, 
 and by my word it was a strange road to him. 
 He went across high hills and low dales, passing 
 each night where he found it, till the evening of 
 the third day, when he came to a house where 
 a little old man was living. The old man had 
 lived in that house without leaving it for seven 
 hundred years, and had not seen a living soul in 
 that time. 
 
 Coldfeet gave good health to the old man, and 
 received a hundred thousand welcomes in return, 
 
 "Will you give me a night's lodging?" asked 
 Coldfeet. 
 
 "I will indeed," said the old man, "and is It 
 any harm to ask, where are you going? " 
 
 "What harm in a plain question? I am going 
 to Lonesome Island if I can find it." 
 
 "You will travel to-morrow, and if you are 
 loose and lively on the road you '11 come at night 
 to a house, and inside in it an old man like 
 myself, only older. He will give you lodgings, 
 and tell where to go the day after." 
 
 Coldfeet rose very early next morning, ate his 
 
248 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 breakfast, asked aid of God, and if he did n't he 
 let it alone. He left good health with the old 
 man, and received his blessing. Away with him 
 then over high hills and low dales, and if any one 
 wished to see a great walker Coldfeet was the 
 man to look at. He overtook the hare in the wind 
 that was before him, and the hare in the wind 
 behind could not overtake him; he went at that 
 gait without halt or rest till he came in the heel 
 of the evening to a small house, and went in. 
 Inside in the house was a little old man sitting 
 by the fire. 
 
 Coldfeet gave good health to the old man, and 
 got a hundred thousand welcomes with a night's 
 lodging. 
 
 "Why did you come, and where are you 
 going?" asked the old man. ** Fourteen hundred 
 years am I in this house alone, and not a living 
 soul came in to see me till yourself came this 
 evening." 
 
 "I am going to Lonesome Island, if I can find 
 it." 
 
 " I have no knowledge of that place, but if you 
 are a swift walker you will come to-morrow even- 
 ing to an old man like myself, only older; he 
 will tell you all that you need, and show you the 
 way to the island." 
 
 Next morning early Coldfeet went away after 
 
Coldfeet and Queen of Lonesome Island, 249 
 
 breakfast, leaving good health behind him and 
 taking good wishes for the road. He travelled 
 this day as on the other two days, only more 
 swiftly, and at nightfall gave a greeting to the 
 third old man. 
 
 **A hundred thousand welcomes," said the 
 old man. " I am living alone in this house 
 twenty-one hundred years, and not a living 
 soul walked the way in that time. You are the 
 first man I see in this house. Is it to stay with 
 me that you are here ? " 
 
 "It is not," said Coldfeet, "for I must be 
 moving. I cannot spend two nights in the one 
 house till I go to Lonesome Island, and I have 
 no knowledge of where that place is." 
 
 "Oh, then, it 's the long road between this and 
 Lonesome Island, but I'll tell where the place 
 is, and how you are to go, if you go there. The 
 road lies straight from my door to the sea. From 
 the shore to the island no man has gone unless 
 the queen brought him, but you may go if the 
 strength and the courage are in you. I will give 
 you this staff; it may help you. When you reach 
 the sea throw the staff in the water, and you '11 
 have a boat that will take you without sail or 
 oar straight to the island. When you touch 
 shore pull up the boat on the strand; it will 
 turn into a staff and be again what it now is. 
 
250 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 The queen's castle goes whirling around always. 
 It has only one door, and that on the roof of it. 
 If you lean on the staff you can rise with one 
 spring to the roof, go in at the door, and to the 
 queen's chamber. 
 
 " The queen sleeps but one day in each year, 
 and she will be sleeping to-morrow. The sword 
 of light will be hanging at the head of her bed, 
 the loaf and the bottle of water on the table near 
 by. Seize the sword with the loaf and the 
 bottle, and away with you, for the journey must 
 be made in a day, and you must be on this side 
 of those hills before nightfall. Do you think 
 you can do that } " 
 
 "I will do it, or die in the trial," said 
 Coldfeet. 
 
 " If you make that journey you will do what no 
 man has done yet," said the old man. "Before 
 I came to live in this house champions and hun- 
 dreds of king's sons tried to go to Lonesome 
 Island, but not a man of them had the strength 
 and the swiftness to go as far as the seashore, 
 and that is but one part of the journey. All 
 perished, and if their skulls are not crumbled, 
 you'll see them to-morrow. The country is 
 open and safe in the daytime, but when night 
 falls the Queen of Lonesome Island sends her 
 wild beasts to destroy every man they can find 
 
Coldfeet and Queen of Lonesome Island, 251 
 
 until daybreak. You must be in Lonesome 
 Island to-morrow before noon, leave the place 
 very soon after mid-day, and be on this side of 
 those hills before nightfall, or perish." 
 
 Next morning Coldfeet rose early, ate his 
 breakfast, and started at daybreak. Away he 
 went swiftly over hills, dales, and level places, 
 through a land where the wind never blows and 
 the cock never crows, and though he went 
 quickly the day before, he went five times more 
 quickly that day, for the staff added speed to 
 whatever man had it. 
 
 Coldfeet came to the sea, threw the staff into 
 the water, and a boat was before him. Away he 
 went in the boat, and before noon was in the 
 chamber of the Queen of Lonesome Island. He 
 found everything there as the old man had told 
 him. Seizing the sword of light quickly and 
 taking the bottle and loaf, he went toward the 
 door; but there he halted, turned back, stopped 
 a while with the queen. It was very near he was 
 then to forgetting himself; but he sprang up, 
 took one of the queen's golden garters, and away 
 with him. 
 
 If Coldfeet strove to move swiftly when com- 
 ing, he strove more in going back. On he raced 
 over hills, dales, and flat places where the wind 
 never blows and the cock never crows ; he nevei 
 
252 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 stopped nor halted. When the sun was near 
 setting he saw the last line of hills, and remem- 
 bering that death was behind and not far from 
 him, he used his last strength and was over the 
 hilltops at nightfall. 
 
 The whole country behind him was filled with 
 wild beasts. 
 
 "Oh," said the old man, "but you are the hero, 
 and I was in dread that you 'd lose your life on 
 the journey, and by my hand you had no time to 
 spare. " 
 
 "I had not, indeed," answered Coldfeet. 
 "Here is your staff, and many thanks for it." 
 
 The two spent a pleasant evening together. 
 Next morning Coldfeet left his blessing with the 
 old man and went on, spent a night with each 
 of the other old men, and never stopped after 
 that till he reached the hag's castle. She was 
 outside before him with the steel nails on her 
 toes and fingers. 
 
 "Have you the sword, the bottle, and the 
 loaf } " asked she. 
 
 "I have," said Coldfeet; "here they are." 
 
 "Give them to me," said the hag. 
 
 "If I was bound to bring the three things," 
 said Coldfeet, " I was not bound to give them to 
 you; I will keep them." 
 
 "Give them here! " screamed the hag, raising 
 her nails to rush at him. 
 
Coldfeet and Queen of Lonesome Island, 253 
 
 With that Coldfeet drew the sword of light, 
 and sent her head spinning through the sky in 
 the way that 't is not known in what part of the 
 world it fell or did it fall in any place. He 
 burned her body then, scattered the ashes, and 
 went his way farther. 
 
 "I will go to my mother first of all," thought 
 he, and he travelled till evening. When his feet 
 struck small stones on the road, the stones never 
 stopped till they knocked wool off the spinning- 
 wheels of old hags in the Eastern World. In the 
 evening he came to a house and asked lodgings. 
 
 "I will give you lodgings, and welcome," said 
 the man of the house; *'but I have no food for 
 you." 
 
 "I have enough for us both," said Coldfeet, 
 *'and for twenty more if they were in it;" and 
 he put the loaf on the table. 
 
 The man called his whole family. All had 
 their fill, and left the loaf as large as it was 
 before supper. The woman of the house made 
 a loaf in the night like the one they had eaten 
 from, and while Coldfeet was sleeping took his 
 bread and left her own in the place of it. Away 
 went Coldfeet next morning with the wrong loaf, 
 and if he travelled differently from the day before 
 it was because he travelled faster. In the even- 
 ing he came to a house, and asked would they 
 give him a night's lodging. 
 
254 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 "We will, indeed," said the woman, "but we 
 have no water to cook supper for you ; the water 
 is far away entirely, and no one to go for it. " 
 
 "I have water here in plenty," said Coldfeet, 
 putting his bottle on the table. 
 
 The woman took the bottle, poured water from 
 it, filled one pot and then another, filled every 
 vessel in the kitchen, and not a drop less in the 
 bottle. What wonder, when no man or woman 
 ever born could drain the bottle in a lifetime. 
 
 Said the woman to her husband that night, 
 "If we had the bottle, we needn't be killing 
 ourselves running for Water." 
 
 "We need not," said the man. 
 
 What did the woman do in the night, when 
 Coldfeet was asleep, but take a bottle, fill it with 
 water from one of the pots, and put that false 
 bottle in place of the true one. Away went 
 Coldfeet next morning, without knowledge of 
 the harm done, and that day he travelled in the 
 way that when he fell in running he had not time 
 to rise, but rolled on till the speed that was under 
 him brought him to his feet again. At sunset 
 he was in sight of a house, and at dusk he was 
 in it. 
 
 Coldfeet found welcome in the house, with food 
 and lodgings. 
 
 "It is great darkness we are in," said the man 
 to Coldfeet; "we have neither oil nor rushes." 
 
Coldfeet and Queen of Lonesome Island. 255 
 
 "I can give you light," said Coldfeet, and he 
 unsheathed the sword from Lonesome Island; it 
 was clear inside the house as on a hilltop in 
 sunlight. 
 
 When the people had gone to bed Coldfeet put 
 the sword into its sheath, and all was dark again. 
 
 "Oh," said the woman to her husband that 
 night, "if we had the sword we'd have light in 
 the house always. You have an old sword above 
 on the loft. Rise out of the bed now and put it 
 in the place of that bright one." 
 
 The man rose, took the two swords out doors, 
 put the old blade in Coldfeet's sheath, and hid 
 away Coldfeet's sword in the loft. Next morn- 
 ing Coldfeet went away, and never stopped till 
 he came to his mother's cabin at the foot of 
 Mount Brandon. The poor old woman was cry- 
 ing and lamenting every day. She felt sure that 
 it was killed her son was, for she had never got 
 tale or tidings of him. Many is the welcome 
 she had for him, but if she had welcomes she 
 had little to eat. 
 
 "Oh, then, mother, you needn't be complain- 
 ing," said Coldfeet, "we have as much bread 
 now as will do us a lifetime;" with that he put 
 the loaf on the table, cut a slice for the mother, 
 and began to eat himself. He was hungry, and 
 the next thing he knew the loaf was gone. 
 
256 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 "There is a little meal in the house," said the 
 mother. " I '11 go for water and make stirabout." 
 
 "I have water here in plenty," said Coldfeet. 
 "Bring a pot." 
 
 The bottle was empty in a breath, and they 
 hadn't what water would make stirabout nor half 
 of it. 
 
 "Oh, then," said Coldfeet, "the old hag 
 enchanted the three things before I killed her 
 and knocked the strength out of every one of 
 them. " With that he drew the sword, and it had 
 no more light than any rusty old blade. 
 
 The mother and son had to live in the old 
 way again ; but as Coldfeet was far stronger than 
 the first time, he didn't go hungry himself, and 
 the mother had plenty. There were cattle in the 
 country, and all the men in it couldn't keep 
 them from Coldfeet or stop him. The old 
 woman and the son had beef and mutton, and 
 lived on for themselves at the foot of Brandon 
 Mountain. 
 
 In three-quarters of a year the Queen of Lone- 
 some Island had a son, the finest child that sun 
 or moon could shine on, and he grew in the way 
 that what of him didn't grow in the day grew in 
 the night following, and what didn't grow that 
 night grew the next day, and when he was two 
 years old he was very large entirely. 
 
Coldfeet and Queen of Lonesome Island. 257 
 
 The queen was grieving always for the loaf 
 and the bottle, and there was no light in her 
 chamber from the day the sword was gone. All 
 at once she thought, " The father of the boy took 
 the three things. I will never sleep two nights 
 in the one house till I find him." 
 
 Away she went then with the boy, — went over 
 the sea, went through the land where wind never 
 blows and where cock never crows, came to the 
 house of the oldest old man, stopped one night 
 there, then stopped with the middle and the 
 youngest old man. Where should she go next 
 night but to the woman who stole the loaf from 
 Coldfeet. When the queen sat down to supper 
 the woman brought the loaf, cut slice after slice; 
 the loaf was no smaller. 
 
 " Where did you get that loaf t " asked the 
 queen. 
 
 "I baked it myself." 
 
 "That is my loaf," thought the queen. 
 
 The following evening she came to a house and 
 found lodgings. At supper the woman poured 
 water from a bottle, but the bottle was full 
 always. 
 
 "Where did you get that bottle.? '* 
 
 "It was left to us," said the woman; "my 
 grandfather had it." 
 
 "That is my bottle," thought the queen. 
 17 
 
258 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 The next night she stopped at a house where 
 a sword filled the whole place with light. 
 
 " Where did you find that beautiful sword ? " 
 asked the queen. 
 
 "My grandfather left it to me," said the man. 
 " We have it hanging here always. " 
 
 "That is my sword," said the queen to herself. 
 
 Next day the queen set out early, travelled 
 quickly, and never stopped till she came near 
 Brandon Mountain. At a distance she saw a 
 man coming down hill with a fat bullock under 
 each arm. He was carrying the beasts as easily 
 as another would carry two geese. The man put 
 the bullocks in a pen near a house at the foot of 
 the mountain, came out toward the queen, and 
 never stopped till he saluted her. When the 
 man stopped, the boy broke away from the mother 
 and ran to the stranger. 
 
 "How is this.?" asked the queen; "the child 
 knows you. " She tried to take the boy, but he 
 would not go to her. 
 
 " Have you lived always in this place } " asked 
 the queen. 
 
 " I was born in that house beyond, and reared 
 at the foot of that mountain before you. I went 
 away from home once and killed four giants, 
 the first with four, the second with six, the third 
 with eight, and the fourth with twelve heads on 
 
Coldfeet and Queen of Lonesome Island, 259 
 
 him. When I had the giants killed, their mother 
 came out against me, and she raging with ven- 
 geance. She wanted to kill me at first, but she 
 did not. She put me under bonds of enchant- 
 ment to go to the castle of the Queen of Lone- 
 some Island, and bring the sword of light that 
 can never fail to cut or give light, the loaf of 
 bread that can never be eaten, and the bottle of 
 water that can never be drained." 
 
 " Did you go.? " asked the queen. 
 
 "I did." 
 
 " How could you go to Lonesome Island } " 
 
 "I journeyed and travelled, inquiring for the 
 island, stopping one night at one place, and the 
 next night at another, till I came to the house of 
 a little man seven hundred years old. He sent 
 me to a second man twice as old as himself, and 
 the second to a third three times as old as the 
 first man. 
 
 "The third old man showed me the road to 
 Lonesome Island, and gave me a staff to assist 
 me. When I reached the sea I made a boat of 
 the staff, and it took me to the island. On the 
 island the boat was a staff again. 
 
 "I sprang to the top of the queen's turning 
 castle, went down and entered the chamber where 
 she was sleeping, took the sword of light, with 
 the loaf and the bottle, and was coming away 
 
26o Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 again. I looked at the queen. The heart 
 softened within me at sight of her beauty. I 
 turned back and came near forgetting my life 
 with her. I brought her gold garter with me, 
 took the three things, sprang down from the 
 castle, ran to the water, made a boat of the 
 staff again, came quickly to mainland, and from 
 that hour till darkness I ran with what strength 
 I could draw from each bit of my body. Hardly 
 had I crossed the hilltop and was before the door 
 of the oldest old man when the country behind 
 me was covered with wild beasts. I escaped 
 death by one moment. I brought the three 
 things to the hag who had sent me, but I did 
 not give them. I struck the head from her, but 
 before dying she destroyed them, for when I 
 came home they were useless." 
 
 "Have you the golden garter.? " 
 
 "Here it is," said the young man. 
 
 "What is your name? " asked the queen. 
 
 "Coldfeet," said the stranger. 
 
 "You are the man," said the queen. "Long 
 ago it was prophesied that a hero named Cold- 
 feet would come to Lonesome Island without my 
 request or assistance, and that our son would 
 cover the whole world with his power. Come 
 with me now to Lonesome Island." 
 
 The queen gave Coldfeet's old mother good 
 clothing, and said, "You will live in my castle. " 
 
Coldfeet and Queen of Lonesome Island. 261 
 
 They all left Brandon Mountain and journeyed 
 on toward Lonesome Island till they reached 
 the house where the sword of light was. It was 
 night when they came and dark outside, but 
 bright as day in the house from the sword, which 
 was hanging on the wall. 
 
 "Where did you find this blade? " asked Cold- 
 feet, catching the hilt of the sword. 
 
 "My grandfather had it," said the woman. 
 
 "He had not," said Coldfeet, "and I ought to 
 take the head off your husband for stealing it 
 when I was here last." 
 
 Coldfeet put the sword in his scabbard and 
 kept it. Next day they reached the house where 
 the bottle was, and Coldfeet took that. The 
 following night he found the loaf and recovered 
 it. All the old men were glad to see Coldfeet, 
 especially the oldest, who loved him. 
 
 The queen with her son and Coldfeet with his 
 mother arrived safely in Lonesome Island. They 
 lived on in happiness; there is no account of 
 their death, and they may be in it yet for aught 
 we know. 
 
LAWN DYARRIG, SON OF THE KING 
 OF ERIN, AND THE KNIGHT OF 
 TERRIBLE VALLEY. 
 
 'TPHERE was a king in his own time in Erin, 
 and he went hunting one day. The king 
 met a man whose head was out through his cap, 
 whose elbows and knees were out through his 
 clothing, and whose toes were out through his 
 shoes. 
 
 The man went up to the king, gave him a 
 blow on the face, and drove three teeth from his 
 mouth. The same blow put the king's head in 
 the dirt. When he rose from the earth the king 
 went back to his castle, and lay down sick and 
 sorrowful. 
 
 The king had three sons, and their names were 
 Ur, Arthur, and Lawn Dyarrig. The three were 
 at school that day and came home in the evening. 
 The father sighed when the sons were coming in. 
 
 "What is wrong with our father.?" asked the 
 eldest. 
 
 "Your father is sick on his bed," said the 
 mother. 
 
Lawn Dyarrig and the Knight, 263 
 
 The three sons went to their father and asked 
 what was on him. 
 
 "A strong man that I met to-day gave me a 
 blow in the face, put my head in the dirt, and 
 knocked three teeth from my mouth. What 
 would you do to him if you met him?" asked 
 the father of the eldest son. 
 
 "If I met that man," replied Ur, "I would 
 make four parts of him between four horses." 
 
 "You are my son," said the king. "What 
 would you do if you met him } " asked he then, 
 as he turned to the second son. 
 
 " If I had a grip on that man I would burn him 
 between four fires." 
 
 " You, too, are my son. What would you do } " 
 asked the king of Lawn Dyarrig. 
 
 " If I met that man I would do my best against 
 him, and he might not stand long before me." 
 
 " You are not my son. I would not lose lands 
 or property on you," said the father. "You 
 must go from me, and leave this to-morrow." 
 
 On the following morning the three brothers 
 rose with the dawn ; the order was given Lawn 
 Dyarrig to leave the castle, and make his own 
 way for himself. The other two brothers were 
 going to travel the world to know could they find 
 the man who had injured their father. Lawn 
 Dyarrig lingered outside till he saw the two, and 
 they going off by themselves. 
 
264 Hero- Tales of Ireland. 
 
 "It is a strange thing," said he, "for two 
 men of high degree to go travelling without a 
 servant." 
 
 "We need no one," said Ur. 
 
 "Company wouldn't harm us," said Arthur. 
 
 The two let Lawn Dyarrig go with them then 
 as a serving-boy, and set out to find the man who 
 had struck down their father. They spent all 
 that day walking, and came late to a house where 
 one woman was living. She shook hands with Ur 
 and Arthur, and greeted them. Lawn Dyarrig 
 she kissed and welcomed, called him son of the 
 King of Erin. 
 
 " 'T is a strange thing to shake hands with the 
 elder and kiss the younger," said Ur. 
 
 "This is a story to tell," said the woman; "the 
 same as if your death were in it. " 
 
 They made three parts of that night. The 
 first part they spent in conversation, the second 
 in telling tales, the third in eating and drinking, 
 with sound sleep and sweet slumber. As early 
 as the day dawned next morning, the old woman 
 was up and had food for the young men. When 
 the three had eaten she spoke to Ur, and this is 
 what she asked of him, " What was it that drove 
 you from home, and what brought you to this 
 place.? " 
 
 " A champion met my father, took three teeth 
 
Lawn Dyarrig and the Knight. 265 
 
 from him, and put his head in the dirt. I am 
 looking for that man to find him alive or dead. " 
 
 "That was the Green Knight from Terrible 
 Valley. He is the man who took the three teeth 
 from your father. I am three hundred years 
 living in this place, and there is not a year of 
 the three hundred in which three hundred heroes 
 fresh, young, and noble have not passed on the 
 way to Terrible Valley, and never have I seen 
 one coming back, and each of them had the look 
 of a man better than you. And now, where are 
 you going, Arthur? " 
 
 "I am on the same journey with my brother." 
 "Where are you going, Lawn Dyarrig.'* " 
 "I am going with these as a servant," said 
 Lawn Dyarrig. 
 
 "God's help to you, it's bad clothing that's 
 on your body," said the woman; "and now I 
 will speak to Ur. A day and a year since a 
 champion passed this way; he wore a suit as good 
 as was ever above ground. I had a daughter 
 sewing there in the open window. He came out- 
 side, put a finger under her girdle, and took her 
 with him. Her father followed straightway to 
 save her, but I have never seen daughter or father 
 from that day to this. That man was the Green 
 Knight of Terrible Valley. He is better than 
 all the men that could stand on a field a mile in 
 
266 Hero- Tales of Ireland, 
 
 length and a mile in breadth. If you take my 
 advice you '11 turn back and go home to your 
 father." 
 
 'T is how she vexed Ur with this talk, and he 
 made a vow to himself to go on. When Ur did 
 not agree to turn home, the woman said to Lawn 
 Dyarrig, " Go back to my chamber, you '11 find in 
 it the apparel of a hero." 
 
 He went back, and there was not a bit of the 
 apparel that he did not go into with a spring. 
 
 "You may be able to do something now," said 
 the woman, when Lawn Dyarrig came to the 
 front. " Go back to my chamber and search 
 through all the old swords. You will find one 
 at the bottom; take that." 
 
 He found the old sword, and at the first shake 
 that he gave he knocked seven barrels of rust out 
 of it; after the second shake, it was as bright as 
 when made. 
 
 "You may be able to do well with that," said 
 the woman. " Go out now to that stable abroad, 
 and take the slim white steed that is in it. 
 That one will never stop nor halt in any place 
 till he brings you to the Eastern World. If you 
 like, take these two men behind you; if not, let 
 them walk. But I think it is useless for you to 
 have them at all with you. " 
 
 Lawn Dyarrig went out to the stable, took the 
 
Lawn Dyarrig and the Knight. 267 
 
 slim white steed, mounted, rode to the front, 
 and catching the two brothers, planted them on 
 the horse behind him. 
 
 "Now, Lawn Dyarrig," said the woman, "this 
 horse will never stop till he stands on the little 
 white meadow in the Eastern World. When he 
 stops, you '11 come down and cut the turf under 
 his beautiful right front foot." 
 
 The horse started from the door, and at every 
 leap he crossed seven hills and valleys, seven 
 castles with villages, acres, roods, and odd 
 perches. He could overtake the whirlwind before 
 him seven hundred times before the whirlwind 
 behind could overtake him once. Early in the 
 afternoon of the next day he was in the Eastern 
 World. When he dismounted. Lawn Dyarrig cut 
 the sod from under the foot of the slim white 
 steed in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy 
 Ghost, and Terrible Valley was down under him 
 there. What he did next was to tighten the 
 reins on the neck of the steed and let him go 
 home. 
 
 " Now," said Lawn Dyarrig to the brothers, 
 "which would ye rather be doing, making a 
 basket or twisting gads (withes) } " 
 
 "We would rather be making a basket; our 
 help is among ourselves," answered they. 
 
 Ur and Arthur went at the basket and Lawn 
 
268 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 Dyarrig at twisting the gads. When Lawn 
 Dyarrig came to the opening with the gads, all 
 twisted and made into one, they hadn't the ribs 
 of the basket in the ground yet. 
 
 "Oh, then, haven't ye anything done but 
 that.?" 
 
 "Stop your mouth," said Ur, "or we '11 make 
 a mortar of your head on the next stone." 
 
 "To be kind to one another is the best for us," 
 said Lawn Dyarrig. "I '11 make the basket." 
 
 While they 'd be putting one rod in the basket 
 he had the basket finished. 
 
 "Oh, brother," said they, "you are a quick 
 workman." 
 
 They had not called him brother since they left 
 home till that moment. 
 
 "Who will go in the basket now.?" asked 
 Lawn Dyarrig, when it was finished, and the gad 
 tied to it. 
 
 " Who but me } " said Ur. " I am sure, 
 brothers, if I see anything to frighten me ye '11 
 draw me up." 
 
 "We will," said the other two. 
 
 He went in, but had not gone far when he 
 cried to pull him up again. 
 
 "By my father and the tooth of my father, and 
 by all that is in Erin dead or alive, I would not 
 give one other sight on Terrible Valley ! " cried 
 he, when he stepped out of the basket. 
 
Lawn Dyarrig and the Knight. 269 
 
 "Who will go now?" asked Lawn Dyarrig. 
 
 "Who will go but me? " answered Arthur. 
 
 Whatever length Ur went, Arthur did n't go 
 the half of it. 
 
 " By my father and the tooth of my father, I 
 would n't give another look at Terrible Valley 
 for all that's in Erin dead or alive!" 
 
 "I will go now," said Lawn Dyarrig, "and as 
 I put no foul play on you, I hope ye '11 not put 
 foul play on me." 
 
 "We will not, indeed," said they. 
 
 Whatever length the other two went, Lawn 
 Dyarrig did n't go the half of it till he stepped 
 out of the basket and went down on his own feet. 
 It was not far he had travelled in Terrible Val- 
 ley when he met seven hundred heroes guarding 
 the country. 
 
 "In what place here has the Green Knight his 
 castle? " asked he of the seven hundred. 
 
 " What sort of a sprisawn goat or sheep from 
 Erin are you ? " asked they. 
 
 " If we had a hold of you, that 's a question 
 you would not put the second time; but if we 
 haven't you, we'll not be so long." 
 
 They faced Lawn Dyarrig then and attacked 
 him ; but he went through them like a hawk or 
 a raven through small birds. He made a heap 
 of their feet, a heap of their heads, and a castle 
 of their arms. 
 
270 Hero-Tales of Ireland, 
 
 After that he went his way walking, and had 
 not gone far when he came to a spring. "I'll 
 have a drink before I go farther," thought he. 
 With that he stooped down and took a drink of 
 the water. When he had drunk he lay on the 
 ground and fell asleep. 
 
 Now there wasn't a morning that the lady in 
 the Green Knight's castle did n't wash in the 
 water of that spring, and she sent a maid for 
 the water each time. Whatever part of the day 
 it was when Lawn Dyarrig fell asleep, he was 
 sleeping in the morning when the girl came. 
 She thought it was dead the man was, and she was 
 so in dread of him that she would not come near 
 the spring for a long time. At last she saw he 
 was asleep, and then she took the water. Her 
 mistress was complaining of her for being so 
 long. 
 
 "Do not blame me," said the maid. "lam 
 sure that if it was yourself that was in my place 
 you 'd not come back so soon." 
 
 " How so } " asked the lady. 
 
 "The finest hero that a woman ever laid eyes 
 on is sleeping at the spring." 
 
 "That's a thing that cannot be till Lawn 
 Dyarrig comes to the age of a hero. When 
 that time comes he '11 be sleeping at the 
 spring." 
 
Lawn Dyarrig and the Knight. 271 
 
 "He is in it now," said the girl. 
 
 The lady did not stay to get any drop of the 
 water on herself, but ran quickly from the castle. 
 When she came to the spring she roused Lawn 
 Dyarrig. If she found him lying, she left him 
 standing. She smothered him with kisses, 
 drowned him with tears, dried him with gar- 
 ments of fine silk, and with her own hair. Her- 
 self and himself locked arms and walked into the 
 castle of the Green Knight. After that they 
 were inviting each other with the best food and 
 entertainment till the middle of the following 
 day. Then the lady said, — 
 
 "When the Green Knight bore me away from 
 my father and mother, he brought me straight 
 to this castle, but I put him under bonds not to 
 marry me for seven years and a day, and he 
 cannot; still I must serve him. When he goes 
 fowling he spends three days away, and the next 
 three days at home. This is the day for him 
 to come back, and for me to prepare his dinner. 
 There is no stir that you or I have made here 
 to-day but that brass head beyond there will tell 
 of it." 
 
 "It is equal to you what it tells," said Lawn 
 Dyarrig, " only make ready a clean, long chamber 
 for me." 
 
 She did so, and he went back into it. Herself 
 
272 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 rose up then to prepare dinner for the Green 
 Knight. When he came she welcomed him as 
 every day. She left down his food before him, 
 and he sat to take his dinner. He was sitting 
 with knife and fork in hand when the brass head 
 spoke. " I thought when I saw you taking food 
 and drink with your wife that you had the blood 
 of a man in you. If you could see that sprisawn 
 of a goat or sheep out of Erin taking meat and 
 drink with her all day, what would you do } " 
 
 " Oh, my suffering and sorrow ! " cried the 
 knight. "I'll never take another bite or sup 
 till I eat some of his liver and heart. Let three 
 hundred heroes fresh and young go back and 
 bring his heart to me, with the liver and lights, 
 till I eat them." 
 
 The three hundred heroes went, and hardly 
 were they behind in the chamber when Lawn 
 Dyarrig had them all dead in one heap. 
 
 " He must have some exercise to delay my 
 men, they are so long away," said the knight. 
 " Let three hundred more heroes go for his heart, 
 with the liver and lights, and bring them here 
 to me." 
 
 The second three hundred went, and as they 
 were entering the chamber. Lawn Dyarrig was 
 making a heap of them, till the last one was 
 inside, where there were two heaps. 
 
Lawn Dyarrig and the Knight, 273 
 
 " He has some way of coaxing my men to delay," 
 said the knight. "Do you go now, three hun- 
 dred of my savage hirelings, and bring him. " 
 
 The three hundred savage hirelings went, and 
 Lawn Dyarrig let every man of them enter 
 before he raised a hand, then he caught the 
 bulkiest of them all by the two ankles and began 
 to wallop the others with him, and he walloped 
 them till he drove the life out of the two hun- 
 dred and ninety-nine. The bulkiest one was 
 worn to the shin bones that Lawn Dyarrig held 
 in his two hands. The Green Knight, who 
 thought Lawn Dyarrig was coaxing the men, 
 called out then, " Come down, my men, and take 
 dinner!" 
 
 "I '11 be with you," said Lawn Dyarrig, "and 
 have the best food in the house, and I '11 have 
 the best bed in the house. God not be good to 
 you for it, either. '* 
 
 He went down to the Green Knight and took 
 the food from before him and put it before him- 
 self. Then he took the lady, set her on his own 
 knee, and he and she went on eating. After 
 dinner he put his finger under her girdle, took 
 her to the best chamber in the castle, and re- 
 mained there till morning. Before dawn the 
 lady said to Lawn Dyarrig, — 
 
 " If the Green Knight strikes the pole of com- 
 18 
 
274 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 bat first, he'll win the day; if you strike first, 
 you '11 win, if you do what I tell you. The 
 Green Knight has so much enchantment that if 
 he sees it is going against him the battle is, he '11 
 rise like a fog in the air, come down in the same 
 form, strike you, and make a green stone of 
 you. When yourself and himself are going out 
 to fight in the morning, cut a sod a perch long 
 in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost; 
 you '11 leave the sod on the next little hillock 
 you meet. When the Green Knight is coming 
 down and is ready to strike, give him a blow 
 with the sod; you '11 make a green stone of 
 him." 
 
 As early as the dawn Lawn Dyarrig rose and 
 struck the pole of combat. The blow that he 
 gave did not leave calf, foal, lamb, kid, or child 
 waiting for birth, without turning them five 
 times to the left and five times to the right. 
 
 "What do you want.? " asked the knight. 
 
 "All that 's in your kingdom to be against me 
 the first quarter of the day, and yourself the 
 second quarter." 
 
 "You have not left in the kingdom now but 
 myself, and it is early enough for you that I '11 
 be at you." 
 
 The knight faced him, and they went at each 
 other and fought till late in the day. The battle 
 
Lawn Dyarrig and the Knight, 275 
 
 was strong against Lawn Dyarrig when the lady 
 stood in the door of the castle. 
 
 " Increase on your blows and increase on your 
 courage," cried she. "There is no woman here 
 but myself to wail over you, or to stretch you 
 before burial." 
 
 When the knight heard the voice, he rose in 
 the air like a lump of fog. As he was coming 
 down, Lawn Dyarrig struck him with the sod on 
 the right side of his breast, and made a green 
 stone of him. 
 
 The lady rushed out then, and whatever wel- 
 come she had for Lawn Dyarrig the first time, 
 she had twice as much now. Herself and him- 
 self went into the castle and spent that night 
 very comfortably. In the morning they rose 
 early, and collected all the gold, utensils, and 
 treasures. Lawn Dyarrig found the three teeth 
 of his father in a pocket of the Green Knight, 
 and took them. He and the lady brought all 
 the riches to where the basket was. " If I send 
 up this beautiful lady," thought Lawn Dyarrig, 
 "she may be taken from me by my brothers; if 
 I remain below with her, she may be taken from 
 me by people here. " He put her in the basket, 
 and she gave him a ring so that they might know 
 each other it they met. He shook the gad, and 
 she rose in the basket. 
 
276 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 When Ur saw the basket he thought, "What 's 
 above let it be above, and what 's below let it 
 stay where it is." 
 
 "I'll have you as wife forever for myself," 
 said he to the lady. 
 
 "I put you under bonds,'' said she, "not to lay 
 a hand on me for a day and three years. " 
 
 " That itself would not be long even if twice 
 the time," said Ur. 
 
 The two brothers started home with the lady; 
 on the way Ur found the head of an old horse 
 with teeth in it and took them, saying, "These 
 will be my father's three teeth." 
 
 They travelled on, and reached home at last. 
 Ur would not have left a tooth in his father's 
 mouth, trying to put in the three that he had 
 brought; but the father stopped him. 
 
 Lawn Dyarrig, left in Terrible Valley, began 
 to walk around for himself. He had been walk- 
 ing but one day when whom should he meet but 
 the lad Shortclothes, and he saluted him. "By 
 what way can I leave Terrible Valley.?" asked 
 Lawn Dyarrig. 
 
 "If I had a grip on you that's what you 
 wouldn't ask of me a second time," said Short- 
 clothes. 
 
 " If you have not touched me you will before 
 you are much older." 
 
Lawn Dyarrig and the Knight. 277 
 
 " If I do, you will not treat me as you did all 
 my people and my master." 
 
 " I '11 do worse to you than I did to them," said 
 Lawn Dyarrig. 
 
 They caught each other then, one grip under 
 the arm and one grip on the shoulder. *T is not 
 long they were wrestling when Lawn Dyarrig 
 had Shortclothes on the earth, and he gave him 
 the five thin tyings dear and tight. 
 
 "You are the best hero I have ever met," said 
 Shortclothes; "give me quarter for my soul, — 
 spare me. When I did not tell you of my own 
 will, I must tell in spite of myself." 
 
 " It is as easy for me to loosen you as to tie 
 you," said Lawn Dyarrig, and he freed him. 
 The moment he was free, Shortclothes said, — 
 
 " I put you under bonds, and the misfortune of 
 the year to be walking and going always till you 
 go to the northeast point of the world, and get 
 the heart and liver of the serpent which is seven 
 years asleep and seven years awake." 
 
 Lawn Dyarrig went away then, and never 
 stopped till he was in the northeast of the world, 
 where he found the serpent asleep. 
 
 " I will not go unawares on you while you are 
 asleep," said Lawn Dyarrig, and he turned to go. 
 When he was going, the serpent drew him down 
 her throat with one breath. 
 
275 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 Inside he found three men playing cards in her 
 belly. Each laughed when he looked at Lawn 
 Dyarrig. 
 
 " What reason have you for laughing ? " asked 
 he. 
 
 "We are laughing with glee to have another 
 partner to fill out our number." 
 
 Lawn Dyarrig did not sit down to play. He 
 drew his sword, and was searching and looking 
 till he found the heart and liver of the serpent. 
 He took a part of each, and cut out a way for him- 
 self between two ribs. The three card-players 
 followed when they saw the chance of escape. 
 
 Lawn Dyarrig, free of the serpent, never 
 stopped till he came to Shortclothes, and he was 
 a day and three years on the journey, and doing 
 the work. 
 
 "Since you are not dead now," said Short- 
 clothes, "there is no death allotted to you. I '11 
 find a way for you to leave Terrible Valley. Go 
 and take that old bridle hanging there beyond 
 and shake it; whatever beast comes and puts its 
 head into the bridle will carry you." 
 
 Lawn Dyarrig shook the bridle, and a dirty, 
 shaggy little foal came and put head in the 
 bridle. Lawn Dyarrig mounted, dropped the 
 reins on the foal's neck, and let him take his own 
 choice of roads. The foal brought Lawn Dyarrig 
 
Lawn Dyarrig and the Knight. 279 
 
 out by another way to the upper world, and took 
 him to Erin. Lawn Dyarrig stopped some dis- 
 tance from his father's castle, and knocked at the 
 house of an old weaver. 
 
 " Who are you ? " asked the old man. 
 
 "I am a weaver," said Lawn Dyarrig. 
 
 "What can you do.? " 
 
 " I can spin for twelve and twist for twelve." 
 
 *'This is a very good man," said the old weaver 
 to his sons. "Let us try him." 
 
 The work they would be doing for a year he 
 had done in one hour. When dinner was over 
 the old man began to wash and shave, and his 
 two sons began to do the same. 
 
 "Why is this.? " asked Lawn Dyarrig. 
 
 "Haven't you heard that Ur, son of the king, 
 is to marry to-night the woman that he took 
 from the Green Knight of Terrible Valley.? " 
 
 "I have not," said Lawn Dyarrig; "but as all 
 are going to the wedding, I suppose I may go 
 without offence." 
 
 "Oh, you may," said the weaver. "There will 
 be a hundred thousand welcomes before you." 
 
 "Are there any linen sheets within.? " 
 
 "There are," said the weaver. 
 
 " It is well to have bags ready for yourself and 
 two sons. " 
 
 The weaver made bags for the three very 
 
28o Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 quickly. They went to the wedding. Lawn 
 Dyarrig put what dinner was on the first table 
 into the weaver's bag, and sent the old man 
 home with it. The food of the second table he 
 put in the eldest son's bag, filled the second 
 son's bag from the third table, and sent the two 
 home. 
 
 The complaint went to Ur that an impudent 
 stranger was taking all the food. 
 
 "It is not right to turn any man away," said 
 the bridegroom; "but if that stranger does not 
 mind he will be thrown out of the castle." 
 
 "Let me look at the face of the disturber," 
 said the bride. 
 
 " Go and bring the fellow who is troubling the 
 guests," said Ur, to the servants. 
 
 Lawn Dyarrig was brought right away, and 
 stood before the bride, who filled a glass with 
 wine and gave it to him. Lawn Dyarrig drank 
 half the wine, and dropped in the ring which the 
 lady had given him in Terrible Valley. 
 
 When the bride took the glass again the ring 
 went of itself with one leap to her finger. She 
 knew then who was standing before her. 
 
 "This is the man who conquered the Green 
 Knight, and saved me from Terrible Valley," 
 said she to the King of Erin; "this is Lawn 
 Dyarrig, your son." 
 
Lazvn Dyarrig and the Knight. 281 
 
 Lawn Dyarrig took out the three teeth, and 
 put them in his father's mouth. They fitted 
 there perfectly, and grew into their old place. 
 The king was satisfied; and as the lady would 
 marry no man but Lawn Dyarrig he was the 
 bridegroom. 
 
 "I must give you a present," said the bride to 
 the queen. " Here is a beautiful scarf which you 
 are to wear as a girdle this evening." 
 
 The queen put the scarf around her waist. 
 
 "Tell me now," said the bride to the queen, 
 "who was Ur's father.? " 
 
 " What father could he have but his own father, 
 the King of Erin?" 
 
 "Tighten, scarf," said the bride. 
 
 That moment the queen thought that her head 
 was in the sky, and the lower half of her body 
 down deep in the earth. 
 
 " Oh, my grief and my woe ! " cried the queen. 
 
 "Answer my question in truth, and the scarf 
 will stop squeezing you. Who was Ur's father .!* " 
 
 "The gardener," said the queen. 
 
 "Whose son is Arthur.? " 
 
 "The king's son." 
 
 "Tighten, scarf," said the bride. 
 
 If the queen suffered before, she suffered twice 
 as much this time, and screamed for help. 
 
 "Answer me truly, and you '11 be without pain; 
 
282 Hero-Tales of Ireland. 
 
 if not, death will be on you this minute. Whose 
 son is Arthur? " 
 
 "The swineherd's." 
 
 "Who is the king's son? " 
 
 "The king has no son but Lawn Dyarrig." 
 
 "Tighten, scarf." 
 
 The scarf did not tighten, and if the bride had 
 been commanding it for a day and a year it 
 would not have tightened, for the queen told the 
 truth that time. When the wedding was over, 
 the king gave Lawn Dyarrig half his kingdom, 
 and made Ur and Arthur his servants. 
 
Fairy Tales from Old Worlds Across the Seas 
 
 TALES OF FOLK 
 AND FAIRIES 
 
 By KATHARINE PYLE 
 
 Author of 
 "Wonder Tales Retold,*' "In the Green Forest," etc. 
 
 With Illustrations by the author. 
 
 From the old worlds across the seas come these fairy tales, — 
 from Scotland and Scandinavia, from the Cossacks and the 
 Russians and the Serbians, from Persia and India and Arabia 
 and Bengal. There are stories of enchanted princes and be- 
 witched princesses, of brave deeds and clever ones, of won- 
 derful things like talking eggs and a magic pipe and a carpet 
 that flew and a turban that made its wearer invisible. There 
 are tales for boys, like that one of the brave lad who killed 
 the "Stoorworm"; there are stories for girls, as that one 
 about the wise girl who could guess the hardest riddle the 
 King could ask. And there are stories about animals and 
 birds for both boys and girls, such as "The Jackal and the 
 Alligator" and the story of the beautiful black horse that be- 
 friended the widow's son. 
 
 They have all been translated directly from the folk-lore 
 of these far-away countries and tell of the wonderful things 
 that used to happen there commonly enough when the world 
 was young and people had not lost their faith in witches and 
 enchantments. American children will enjoy them quite as 
 much as do their little cousins across the water. 
 
 LITTLE, BROWN & CO., Publishers 
 34 Beacon Stbeet, Boston 
 
Thrilling and unusual stories of magic and mystery about the 
 people who lived in Ancient Egypt 
 
 EGYPTIAN TALES 
 OF MAGIC 
 
 By ELEANORE MYERS JEWETT 
 
 Author of 
 WoNDBB Tales from Tibet 
 
 With illustrations in color by Mam-ice Day 
 12mo. Cloth. 257 pages 
 
 These stories that were told by the dark people who lived on the 
 banks of the Nile, long, long ago, are probably the oldest stories 
 in the world. The tale of the Vanished Isle, for instance, was 
 probably written some two thousand years before Christ. Perhaps 
 "King Kliufu and the Magicians" was set down upon a long 
 papyrus roll at that time. King Seneferu, who figures in the 
 account of the lost amulet, lived probably three thousand years 
 before Christ. And the stories of Isis, Ra and Osiris embody 
 myths which go back into the dim ages of prehistoric times, 
 though the form in which we know them is comparatively modern. 
 
 In Egypt, in the olden days, wonder-working magicians were as 
 thick as dandelions in the spring! Almost anybody knew enough 
 to turn a bit of wax into a live and fearsome crocodile; and the 
 scribes who gave their lives to the study of the occult art could 
 literally move mountains, divide the sea or come to life again 
 after they had been accidentally cut to pieces. Thrilling and 
 unusual, these ancient tales of magic will interest modern boys 
 and girls and make the long-dead kings and princes, boys and 
 damsels, sailors, priests and peasants of Ancient Egypt come alive 
 again before their eyes. 
 
 Boston LITTLE, BROWN & COMPANY Publishbrs 
 
\nr 
 
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