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

I ever heard;" for though

Conan was a good hand against an enemy, there never was a man had less

sense. "The music I like the best is to be talking with a woman," said

Diarmuid. "My music is the outcry of my hounds, and they putting a deer

to its last stand," said Lugaidh's Son. "The music of the woods is best

to me," said Oisin; "the sound of the wind and of the cuckoo and the

blackbird, and the sweet silence of the crane."

 

And then Osgar was asked, and he said: "The best music is the striking

of swords in a battle." And it is likely he took after Finn in that, for

in spite of all the sweet sounds he gave an account of the time he was

at Conan's house, at Ceann Slieve, it used to be said by the Fianna that

the music that was best with Finn was what happened.

 

This now is the way Osgar met with his wife.

 

One time Finn and his men came to Slieve Crot, and they saw a woman

waiting there before them, having a crimson fringed cloak, and a gold

brooch in it, and a band of yellow gold on her forehead. Finn asked her

name, and where she came from. "Etain of the Fair Hair is my name," she

said, "daughter of Aedh of the White Breast, of the hill of the Sidhe at

Beinn Edair, son of Angus Og." "What is it brought you here, girl?" said

Finn. "To ask a man of the Fianna of Ireland to run a race with me."

"What sort of a runner are you?" said Diarmuid. "I am a good runner,"

said the girl; "for it is the same to me if the ground is long or short

under my feet."

 

All of the Fianna that were there then set out to run with her, and they

ran to the height over Badhamair and on to Ath Cliath, and from that on

to the hill of the Sidhe at Beinn Edair.

 

And there was a good welcome before them, and they were brought meat and

wine for drinking, and water for washing their feet. And after a while

they saw a nice fair-haired girl in front of the vats, and a cup of

white silver in her hand, and she giving out drink to every one. "It

seems to me that is the girl came asking the Fianna to race against her

at Slieve Crot," said Finn. "It is not," said Aedh of the White Breast,

"for that is the slowest woman there is among us." "Who was it so?" said

Finn. "It was Be-mannair, daughter of Ainceol, woman-messenger of the

Tuatha de Danaan. And it is she that changes herself into all shapes;

and she will take the shape of a fly, and of a true lover, and every one

leaves their secret with her. And it was she outran you coming from the

east," he said, "and not this other girl that was drinking and making

merry here in the hall." "What is her name?" said Finn. "Etain of the

Fair Hair," he said; "a daughter of my own, and a darling of the Tuatha

de Danaan. And it is the way with her, she has a lover of the men of the

Fianna." "That is well," said Finn; "and who is that lover?" "It is

Osgar, son of Oisin," said Aedh; "and it is she herself sent her

messenger for you," he said, "in her own shape, to Slieve Crot in the

south. And the son of the High King of Ireland has offered a great

bride-price to the Men of Dea for her," he said, "three hundreds of the

land nearest to Bregia and to Midhe, and to put himself and his weight

of gold into a balance, and to give it all to her. But we did not take

it," he said, "since she had no mind or wish for it herself, and so we

made no dealing or agreement about her." "Well," said Finn, "and what

conditions will you ask of Osgar?" "Never to leave me for anything at

all but my own fault," said the girl. "I will make that agreement with

you indeed," said Osgar. "Give me sureties for it," said she; "give me

the sureties of Goll for the sons of Morna, and of Finn, son of Cumhal,

for the Fianna of Ireland."

 

So they gave those sureties, and the wedding-feast was made, and they

stopped there for twenty nights. And at the end of that time Osgar asked

Finn where would he bring his wife. "Bring her to wide Almhuin for the

first seven years," said Finn.

 

But a while after that, in a great battle at Beinn Edair, Osgar got so

heavy a wound that Finn and the Fianna were as if they had lost their

wits. And when Etain of the Fair Hair came to the bed where Osgar was

lying, and saw the way he was, and that the great kinglike shape he had

was gone from him, greyness and darkness came on her, and she raised

pitiful cries, and she went to her bed and her heart broke in her like a

nut; and she died of grief for her husband and her first love.

 

But it was not at that time Osgar got his death, but afterwards in the

battle of Gabhra.

 

BOOK SIX: DIARMUID. CHAPTER I. (BIRTH OF DIARMUID)

Diarmuid, now, was son of Bonn, son of Duibhne of the Fianna, and his

mother was Crochnuit, that was near in blood to Finn. And at the time he

was born, Bonn was banished from the Fianna because of some quarrel they

had with him, and Angus Og took the child from him to rear him up at

Brugh na Boinne.

 

And after a while Crochnuit bore another son to Roc Diocain, that was

Head Steward to Angus. Roc Diocain went then to Donn, and asked would he

rear up his son for him, the way Angus was rearing Donn's son. But Donn

said he would not take the son of a common man into his house, and it

would be best for Angus to take him. So Angus took the child into Brugh

na Boinne, and he and Diarmuid were reared up together.

 

And one day Finn was on the great Hill at Almhuin of Leinster, and no

one with him but Donn and a few of the poets and learned men of the

Fianna, and their hounds and dogs, and Bran Beag came in and asked did

he remember there were bonds on him, not to stop in Almhuin for ten

nights together. Finn asked the people about him then where would he go

and be entertained for that night, and Donn said: "I will bring you to

the house of Angus, son of the Dagda, where my young son is being

reared."

 

 

So they went together to the house of Angus at Brugh na Boinne, and the

child Diarmuid was there, and it is great love Angus had for him. And

the Steward's son was with him that night, and the people of the

household made as much of him as Angus made of Diarmuid; and there was

great vexation on Donn when he saw that. It chanced after a while a

great fight rose between two of Finn's hounds about some broken meat

that was thrown to them; and the women and the common people of the

place ran from them, and the others rose up to part them from one

another. And in running away, the Steward's child ran between the knees

of Donn, and Donn gave the child a strong squeeze between his two knees

that killed him on the moment, and he threw him under the feet of the

hounds. And when the Steward came after that and found his son dead, he

gave a long very pitiful cry, and he said to Finn: "There is not a man

in the house to-night has suffered more than myself from this uproar,

for I had but one son only, and he has been killed; and what

satisfaction will I get from you for that, Finn?" he said. "Try can you

find the mark of a tooth or of a nail of one of the hounds on him," said

Finn, "and if you can, I will give you satisfaction for him."

 

So they looked at the child, and there was no scratch or mark of a tooth

on him at all. Then the Steward put Finn under the destroying bonds of

the Druid cave of Cruachan, to give him knowledge of who it was killed

his son. And Finn asked for a chess-board, and for water to be brought

to him, in a basin of pale gold, and he searched, and it was shown to

him truly that it was Donn had killed the Steward's son between his two

knees. When Finn knew that, he said he would take the fine on himself;

but the Steward would not consent to that, but forced him to tell who

was it had done him the wrong. And when he knew it was Donn had killed

the child, he said: "There is no man in the house it is easier to get

satisfaction from than from him, for his own son is here, and I have but

to put him between my two knees, and if I let him go from me safe, I

will forgive the death of my son." Angus was vexed at what the Steward

said, and as to Donn, he thought to strike his head off till Finn put

him back from him. Then the Steward came again, having a Druid rod with

him, and he struck his own son with the rod, and he made of him a wild

boar, without bristle or ear or tail, and he said: "I put you under

bonds to bring Diarmuid, grandson of Duibhne, to his death; and your

own life will be no longer than his life," he said. With that the wild

boar rose up and ran out of the open door; and he was called afterwards

the Boar of Slieve Guillion, and it was by him Diarmuid came to his

death at the last.

 

And when Diarmuid came to his full strength he was given a place among

the Fianna of Ireland; and all women loved him, and he did many great

deeds, fighting with the enemies of the Fianna and of Ireland; and one

time he fought a wild ox through the length of seven days and seven

nights on the top of the Mountain of Happiness.

 

CHAPTER II. (HOW DIARMUID GOT HIS LOVE-SPOT)

Diarmuid and Conan and Goll and Osgar went one day hunting, and they

went so far they could not get home in the evening, and they spent the

first part of the night walking through the woods and pulling berries

and eating them. And when it was about midnight they saw a light, and

they went towards it, and they found a little house before them, and the

light shining from it. They went in then, and they saw an old man there,

and he bade them welcome, and he called them