by Irish Myths
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.
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295
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 of 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 Moma, 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.
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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.
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B o oK S i x :
DIARMUID
CHAPTER I.
BIRTH OF DIARMUID
Diarmuid, now, was son of Donn, 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, Donn 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 Roe Diocain,
that was Head Steward to Angus. Roe 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
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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. "
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 chessboard, 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
Guillion, and it was by him Diarmuid came to his death at the last.
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299
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 all by their names. And they saw no one in the house but the old man and a young girl and a cat. And
the old man bade the girl to make food ready for the Fianna of
Ireland, for there was great hunger on them.
And when the food was ready and put on the table, there came
a great wether that was fastened up in the back of the house, and
he rose up on the table where they were eating, and when they
saw that, they looked at one another. "Rise up, Conan," said Goll,
"and fasten that wether in the place it was before." Conan rose up
and took hold of it, but the wether gave itself a shake that threw
Conan under one of its feet. The rest were looking at that, and
Goll said: "Let you rise up, Diarmuid, and fasten up the wether. "
So Diarmuid rose up and took hold of it, but it gave itself a shake
the same way as before; and when Diarmuid was down it put one
of its feet on him. Goll and Osgar looked at one another then, and
shame came on them, a wether to have done so much as that.
And Osgar got up, but the wether put him down under one of his
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IRISH MYTHS AND LEGENDS
feet, so that it had now the three men under him. Then Goll rose
up and took hold of it and threw it down; but if he did, it rose up
again in spite of him, and put Goll under his fourth foot.
"It is a great shame," said the old man then, "the likes of that
to be done to the Fianna of Ireland. And rise up now, cat," he
said, "and tie the wether in the place where he was." The cat rose
up then and took hold of the wether, and brought it over and tied
it in its place at the end of the house.
The men rose up then, but they had no mind to go on eating,
for there was shame on them at what the wether had done to
them. "You may go on eating," said the old man; "and when you
are done I will show you that now you are the bravest men of the
world. " So they ate their fill then, and the old man spoke to them,
and it is what he said: "Goll," he said, "you are the bravest of all
the men of the world, for you have wrestled with the world and
you threw it down. The strength of the world is in the wether, but
death will come to the world itself; and that is death," he said,
showing them the cat.
They were talking together then, and they had their food
eaten, and the old man said their beds were ready for them that
they could go to sleep. The four of them went then into the one
room, and when they were in their beds the young girl came to
sleep in the same room with them, and the light of her beauty was
shining on the walls like as if it was the light of a candle.
And when Conan saw her he went over to the side of the bed
where she was.
Now, it was Youth the young girl was, and when she saw
Conan coming to her: "Go back to your bed, Conan," she said; "I
belonged to you once, and I will never belong to you again. "
Conan went back to his bed then, and Osgar had a mind to go
over where she was. Then she said to him: "Where are you
going?" "I am going over to yourself for a while," said he.
"Go back again, Osgar," she said; "I belonged to you once, and
I will never belong to you again."
Then Diarmuid rose up to go to her: "Where are you going,
DlARMUID
30 1
Diarmuid?" she said. "I am going over to yourself for a while,"
said he. "O Diarmuid," she said, "that cannot be; I belonged to
you once, and I can never belong to you again; but come over
here to me, Diarmuid," she said, "and I will put a love-spot on
you, that no woman will ever see without giving you her love." So
Diarmuid went over to her, and she put her hand on his forehead,
and she left the love-spot there, and no woman that ever saw him
after that was able to refuse him her love.
CHAPTER III.
THE DAUGHTER OF KING UNDER-WAVE
One snowy night of winter the Fianna were come into the house
after their hunting. And about midnight they heard a knocking at
the door, and there came in a woman very wild and ugly, and her
hair hanging to her heels. She went to the place Finn was lying,
and she asked him to let her in under the border of his covering.
But when he saw her so strange and so ugly and so wild-looking
he would not let her in. She gave a great cry then, and she went to
where Oisin was, and asked him to let her shelter under the border of his covering. But Oisin refused her the same way. Then she gave another great scream, and she went over where Diarmuid
was. "Let me in," she said, "under the border of your covering. "
Diarmuid looked at her, and he said: "You are strange-looking and
wild and ugly, and your hair is down to your heels. But come in
for all that," he said.
So she came in under the border of his covering.
"O Diarmuid," she said then, "I have been travelling over sea
and ocean through the length of seven years and in all that time I
never got shelter any might till this night. And let me to the
warmth of the fire now," she said. So Diarmuid brought her over
to the fire, and all the Fianna that were sitting there went away
from it seeing her so ugly and so dreadful to look at. And she was
not long at the frre when she said: "Let me go under the warmth
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IRISH MYTHS AND LEGENDS
of the covering with you now." "It is asking too much you are,"
said Diarmuid; "first it was to come under the border you asked,
and then to come to the fire, and now it is under the bed-covering
with me you want to be. But for all that you may come," he said.
So she came in under the covering, and he turned a fold of it
between them. But it was not long till he looked at her, and what
he saw was a beautiful young woman beside him, and she asleep.
He called to the others then to come over, and he said: "Is not this
the most beautiful woman that ever was seen? " "She is that," they
said, and they covered her up and did not awaken her.
But after a while she stirred, and she said: "Are you awake,
Diarmuid?" "I am awake," he said. "Where would you lik
e to see
the best house built that ever was built?" she said. "Up there on the
hillside, if I had my choice," said he, and with that he fell asleep.
And in the morning two men of the Fianna came in, and they
said they were after seeing a great house up on the hill, where
there was not a house before. " Rise up, Diarmuid," said the
strange woman then; "do not be lying there any longer, but go up
to your house, and look out now and see it," she said. So he
looked out and he saw the great house that was ready, and he
said: "I will go to it, if you will come along with me. " "I will do
that," she said, "if you will make me a promise not to say to me
three times what way I was when I came to you." "I will never say
it to you for ever," said Diarmuid.
They went up then to the house, and it was ready for them,
with food and servants; and everything they could wish for they
had it. They stopped there for three days, and when the three
days were ended, she said: "You are getting to be sorrowful
because you are away from your comrades of the Fianna. " "I am
not sorrowful indeed," said Diarmuid. "It will be best for you to
go to them; and your food and drink will be no worse when you
come back than they are now," said she. "Who will take care of
my greyhound bitch and her three pups if I go?" said Diarmuid.
"There is no fear for them," said she.
So when he heard that, he took leave of her and went back to
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303
the Fianna, and there was a great welcome before him. But for all
that they were not well pleased but were someway envious, Diarmuid to have got that grand house and her love from the woman they themselves had turned away.
Now as to the woman, she was outside the house for a while
after Diarmuid going away, and she saw Finn, son of Cumhal,
coming towards her, and she bade him welcome. "You are vexed
with me, Queen?" he said. "I am not indeed," she said; "and come
in now and take a drink of wine from me." "I will go in if I get my
request," said Finn. "What request is there that you would not
get? " said she. "It is what I am asking, one of the pups of Diarmuid's greyhound bitch. " "That is no great thing to ask," she said;
"and whichever one you choose of them you may bring it away. "
