Gods and Fighting Men, Lady I. A Gregory [best e books to read TXT] 📗

men, they stopped in the House of the Two Birds

till they had taken hostages for Donn, son of Midhir, from the Tuatha de

Danaan. And on the last day of the Feast of Teamhair they came back to

their people again.

 

And from that time out the Fianna of Ireland had not more dealings with

the people living in houses than they had with the People of the Gods of

Dana.

 

CHAPTER IV. (THE HOSPITALITY OF CUANNA'S HOUSE)

It happened one day Finn and Oisin and Caoilte and Diarmuid and

Lugaidh's Son went up on the top of Cairn Feargall, and their five

hounds with them, Bran and Sceolan, Sear Dubh, Luath Luachar and

Adhnuall. And they were not long there till they saw a giant coming

towards them, very tall and rough and having an iron fork on his back

and a squealing pig between the prongs of the fork. And there was a

beautiful eager young girl behind the giant, shoving him on before her.

"Let some one go speak with those people," said Finn. So Diarmuid went

towards them, but they turned away before he came to them. Then Finn and

the rest rose up and went after them, but before they came to the giant

and the girl, a dark Druid mist rose up that hid the road. And when the

mist cleared away, Finn and the rest looked about them, and they saw a

good light-roofed house at the edge of a ford near at hand. They went on

to the house, and there was a green lawn before it, and in the lawn two

wells, and on the edge of one well there was a rough iron vessel, and on

the edge of the other a copper vessel. They went into the house then,

and they found there a very old white-haired man, standing to the right

hand of the door, and the beautiful young girl they saw before, sitting

near him, and the great rough giant beside the fire, and he boiling a

pig. And on the other side of the fire there was an old countryman,

having dark-grey hair and twelve eyes in his head, and his twelve eyes

were twelve sons of battle. And there was a ram in the house having a

white belly and a very black head, and dark-blue horns and green feet.

And there was a hag in the end of the house and a worn grey gown on her,

and there was no one in the house but those.

 

And the man at the door gave them a welcome, and then the five of them

sat down on the floor of the house, and their hounds along with them.

 

"Let great respect be shown to Finn, son of Cumhal, and to his people,"

said the man at the door. "It is the way I am," said the giant, "to be

asking always and getting nothing." But for all that he rose up and

showed respect to Finn.

 

Presently there came a great thirst on Finn, and no one took notice of

it but Caoilte, and he began complaining greatly. "Why are you

complaining, Caoilte?" said the man at the door; "you have but to go out

and get a drink for Finn at whichever of the wells you will choose."

Caoilte went out then, and he brought the full of the copper vessel to

Finn, and Finn took a drink from it, and there was the taste of honey on

it while he was drinking, and the taste of gall on it after, so that

fierce windy pains and signs of death came on him, and his appearance

changed, that he would hardly be known. And Caoilte made greater

complaints than he did before on account of the way he was, till the man

at the door bade him to go out and to bring him a drink from the other

well. So Caoilte did that, and brought in the full of the iron vessel.

And Finn never went through such great hardship in any battle as he did

drinking that draught, from the bitterness of it; but no sooner did he

drink it than his own colour and appearance came back to him and he was

as well as before, and his people were very glad when they saw that.

 

Then the man of the house asked was the pig ready that was in the

cauldron. "It is ready," said the giant; "and leave the dividing of it

to me," he said. "What way will you divide it?" said the man of the

house. "I will give one hind quarter to Finn and his dogs," said the

giant, "and the other hind quarter to Finn's four comrades; and the fore

quarter to myself, and the chine and the rump to the old man there by

the fire and the hag in the corner; and the entrails to yourself and to

the young girl that is beside you." "I give my word," said the man of

the house, "you have shared it well." "I give my word," said the ram,

"it is a bad division to me, for you have forgotten my share in it."

With that he took hold of the quarter that was before the Fianna, and

brought it into a corner and began to eat it. On that the four of them

attacked him with their swords, but with all the hard strokes they gave

they could not harm him at all, for the swords slipped from his back the

same as they would from a rock. "On my word it is a pity for any one

that has the like of you for comrades," said the man with the twelve

eyes, "and you letting a sheep bring away your food from you." With that

he went up to the ram and took him by the feet and threw him out from

the door that he fell on his back, and they saw him no more.

 

It was not long after that, the hag rose up and threw her pale grey gown

over Finn's four comrades, and they turned to four old men, weak and

withered, their heads hanging. When Finn saw that there came great dread

on him, and the man at the door saw it, and he bade him to come over to

him, and to put his head in his breast and to sleep. Finn did that, and

the hag took her covering off the four men, the way that when Finn awoke

they were in their own shape again, and it is well pleased he was to see

that.

 

"Is there wonder on you, Finn?" said the man at the door, "at the ways

of this house?" "I never wondered more at anything I ever saw," said

Finn. "I will tell you the meaning of them, so," said the man. "As to

the giant you saw first," he said, "having the squealing pig in the

prongs of his fork, Sluggishness is his name; and the girl here beside

me that was shoving him along is Liveliness, for liveliness pushes on

sluggishness, and liveliness goes farther in the winking of an eye than

the foot can travel in a year. The old man there beyond with the twelve

bright eyes betokens the World, and he is stronger than any other, and

he showed that when he made nothing of the ram. The ram you saw betokens

the Desires of Men. The hag is Old Age, and her gown withered up your

four comrades. And the two wells you drank the two draughts out of," he

said, "betoken Lying and Truth; for it is sweet to people to be telling

a lie, but it is bitter in the end. And as to myself," he said, "Cuanna

from Innistuil is my name, and it is not here I am used to be, but I

took a very great love for you, Finn, because of your wisdom and your

great name, and so I put these things in your way that I might see you.

And the hospitality of Cuanna's house to Finn will be the name of this

story to the end of the world. And let you and your men come together

now," he said, "and sleep till morning."

 

So they did that, and when they awoke in the morning, it is where they

were, on the top of Cairn Feargall, and their dogs and their arms beside

them.

 

CHAPTER V. (CAT-HEADS AND DOG-HEADS)

Nine of the Fianna set out one time, looking for a pup they wanted, and

they searched through many places before they found it. All through Magh

Leine they searched, and through the Valley of the Swords, and through

the storm of Druim Cleibh, and it is pleasant the Plain of the Life

looked after it; but not a pup could they find. Then they went searching

through Durlass of the generous men, and great Teamhair and Dun Dobhran

and Ceanntsaile, men and dogs searching the whole of Ireland, but not a

pup could they find.

 

And while they were going from place to place, and their people with

them, they saw the three armies of the sons of the King of Ruadhleath

coming towards them. Cat-headed one army was, and the one alongside of

it was Dog-headed, and the men of the third army were White-backed.

 

And when the Fianna saw them coming, Finn held up his shining spear, and

light-hearted Caoilte gave out a great shout that was heard in Almhuin,

and in Magh Leine, and in Teamhair, and in Dun Reithlein. And that shout

was answered by Goll, son of Morna, and by Faolan, Finn's son that was

with him, and by the Stutterers from Burren, and by the two sons of

Maith Breac, and by Iolunn of the Sharp Edge, and by Cael of the Sharp

Sword, that never gave his ear to tale-bearers.

 

It is pleasant the sound was then of the spears and the armies and of

the silken banners that were raised up in the gusty wind of the morning.

And as to the banners, Finn's banner, the Dealb-Greine, the Sun-Shape,

had the likeness of the sun on it; and Coil's banner was the Fulang

Duaraidh, that was the first and last to move in a battle; and Faolan's

banner was the Coinneal Catha, the Candle of Battle; and Oisin's banner

was the Donn Nimhe, the Dark Deadly One; and Caoilte's was the Lamh

Dearg, the Red Hand; and Osgar's was the Sguab Gabhaidh that had a Broom

of rowan branches on it, and the only thing asked when the fight was at

the hottest was where that Broom was; and merry Diarmuid's banner was

the Liath Loinneach, the Shining Grey; and the Craobh Fuileach, the

Bloody Branch, was the banner of Lugaidh's Son. And as to Conan, it is a

briar he had on his banner, because he was always for quarrels and for

trouble. And it used to be said of him he never saw a man frown without

striking him, or a door left open without going in through it.

 

And when the Fianna had raised their banners they attacked the three

armies; and first of all they killed the whole of the Cat-Heads, and

then they took