Near the last-named well is the Bride’s Well, _Tober Breda_ (the
holy well of St. Bridget). There is a stone oratory here of fabulous
antiquity, with a doorway fashioned after the Egyptian model,
sloping towards the top; also an ancient white-thorn covered with
votive offerings, amongst which one may see many a long lock of the
splendid dark hair of the Irish southern women, who adopt this antique
traditional symbol of self-sacrifice to show their gratitude to the
patron saint.
St. Bridget took the name of the pagan goddess Brighita in order to
destroy and obliterate the idolatrous rites and transfer the devotion
of the people to the Christian ceremonies, and _Tober-Breda_ is now
considered of the highest sanctity, being under the special patronage
of St. Bridget.