Believing now that they could no longer defend the Red Branch, Naisi
took council with his brothers; and what they resolved on was this:--To
sally forth with all their men and fight their way to a place of safety.
Then making a close firm fence of shields and spears round Deirdre, they
marched out in solid ranks and attacked the hireling battalions and slew
three hundred in that onslaught.
Concobar, seeing the rout of his men, and being now sure that it was not
possible to subdue the Sons of Usna in open fight, cast about if he
might take them by falsehood and craft. And sending for Caffa the druid,
who loved them, he said:--
"These sons of Usna are brave men, and it is our pleasure to receive
them back into our service. Go now unto them, for thou art their loved
friend; and say to them that if they lay down their arms and submit to
me, I will restore them to favour and give them their places among the
Red Branch Knights. And I pledge thee my kingly word and my troth as a
true knight, that no harm shall befal them."
Caffa, by no means distrusting him, went to the Sons of Usna and told
them all the king had said. And they, suspecting neither guile nor
treachery joyfully threw their swords and spears aside, and went towards
the king to make submission. But now, while they stood defenceless, the
king caused them to be seized and bound. Then, turning aside he sought
for some one to put them to death; but he found no man of the Ultonians
willing to do so.
Among his followers was a foreigner named Maini of the Rough Hand, whose
father and two brothers had fallen in battle by Naisi: and this man
undertook to kill the Sons of Usna.
When they were brought forth to their doom, Ardan said:--"I am the
youngest: let me be slain first that I may not see the death of my
brothers." And Ainnli earnestly pleaded for the same thing for himself,
saying that he was born before Ardan and should die before him.
But Naisi said:--"Lo, I have a sword, the gift of Mannanan Mac Lir,
which leaves no remnant unfinished after a blow: let us be struck with
it, all three together, and we shall die at the same moment."
This was agreed to: and the sword was brought forth, and they laid their
heads close together, and Maini swept off all three with one blow of the
mighty sword. And when it became known that the Sons of Usna were dead,
the men of Ulaid sent forth three great cries of grief and lamentation.
As for Deirdre, she cried aloud, and tore her golden hair, and became
like one distracted. And after a time, when her calmness had a little
returned, she uttered a lament:--
I.
"Three lions of the hill are dead, and I am left alone to weep for them.
The generous princes who made the stranger welcome have been guilefully
lured to their doom.
II.
"The three strong hawks of Slieve Cullinn,[82-1] a king's three sons,
strong and gentle: willing obedience was yielded to them by heroes who
had conquered many lands.
[82-1] Slieve Cullinn, now Slieve Gullion mountain in Armagh.
III.
"Three generous heroes of the Red Branch, who loved to praise the valour
of others: three props of the battalions of Quelna: their fall is the
cause of bitter grief.
IV.
"Ainnli and Ardan, haughty and fierce in battle, to me were ever loving
and gentle: Naisi, Naisi, beloved spouse of my choice, thou canst not
hear thy Deirdre lamenting thee.
V.
"When they brought down the fleet red deer in the chase, when they
speared the salmon skilfully in the clear water, joyful and proud were
they if I looked on.
VI.
"Often when my feeble feet grew weary wandering along the valleys, and
climbing the hills to view the chase, often would they bear me home
lightly on their linked shields and spears.
VII.
"It was gladness of heart to be with the Sons of Usna: long and weary is
the day without their company: short will be my span of life since they
have left me.
VIII.
"Sorrow and tears have dimmed my eyes, looking at the grave of Naisi: a
dark deadly sickness has seized my heart: I cannot, I cannot live after
Naisi.
IX.
"O, thou who diggest the new grave, make it deep and wide: let it be a
grave for four: for I will sleep for ever beside my beloved."
When she had spoken these words, she fell beside the body of Naisi and
died immediately. And a great cairn of stones was piled over their
grave, and their names were inscribed in Ogham, and their funeral rites
were performed.
This is the sorrowful tale of The Fate of the Sons of Usna.
XVII.
AVENGING AND BRIGHT.
Avenging and bright fall the swift sword of Erin,
On him, who the brave sons of Usna betray'd!
For ev'ry fond eye he hath waken'd a tear in,
A drop from his heart-wounds shall weep o'er her blade.
By the red cloud that hung over Connor's dark dwelling,
When Ulad's three champions lay sleeping in gore--
By the billows of war which, so often high swelling,
Have wafted these heroes to victory's shore?
We swear to revenge them!--no joy shall be tasted,
The harp shall be silent, the maiden unwed,
Our halls shall be mute, and our fields shall lie wasted,
Till vengeance is wreak'd on the murderer's head.
Yes, monarch! though sweet are our home recollections,
Though sweet are the tears that from tenderness fall;
Though sweet are our friendships, our hopes, our affections,
Revenge[85-1] on a tyrant is sweetest of all!
THOMAS MOORE.
[85-1] The Red Branch Knights were all pagans; and besides, what
they meant here by revenge was merely punishment for a
great crime.
XVIII.
THE WRATH OF FERGUS MAC ROY.
Barach's banquet was ended. Fergus, anxious and impatient, returned with
his people to Emain. And when he found that the sons of Usna had been
slain in violation of his pledge, and that his son, Illan the Fair, had
fallen while defending them, his grief and wrath knew no bounds. Caffa
the druid was none the less incensed; and he was in sore anguish: for he
it was, who, trusting in Concobar's deceitful promises, persuaded the
sons of Usna to give up their arms and yield. And he pronounced the doom
of Concobar's race, that neither he nor any of his descendants should
reign in Emain thenceforward for evermore.
And these two, Fergus and Caffa, collecting their men of valour, spoiled
and laid waste Concobar's territory; till at last a battle was fought
between them, in which the king was defeated, and three hundred of his
bravest Ultonians were slain, besides his son and many other illustrious
persons in his service. Fergus and Caffa then attacked Emain, and burned
and pillaged it, and slew those who defended it. And though the palace
was rebuilt in due time, and continued to be the residence of the kings
of Ulaid for more than three hundred years afterwards, none of
Concobar's descendants possessed it, as Caffa had foretold.
[Illustration: Bronze celts. A celt was a sort of battle axe; sometimes
made of bronze, sometimes of stone. The right hand figure shows how the
bronze head was fixed to the handle. Great numbers of these celts of
many different shapes, both stone and bronze, are preserved in the
National Museum, Dublin.]
After this, Fergus and other great champions of the Red Branch, with
three thousand warriors, marched into Connaught, where Ailell and
Maive, king and queen of that province, being at war with Concobar,
welcomed them and took them gladly into their service. And for seven
years they continued to send marauding parties to spoil and ravage the
province of Ulaid, so that many battles were fought, and many heroes
were slain. In the stories of this war we read much of the mighty
champion Cuculainn who was the chief defender of Ulaid against Ailell
and Maive's forces.
XIX.
ANCIENT IRISH PHYSICIANS: PART I.
Among most nations of old times there were great leeches or physicians,
who were considered so skilful that the people believed they could cure
wounds and ailments as if by magic. In some countries they became gods,
as among the Greeks.
The ancient Irish people, too, had their mighty leech, a Dedannan named
Dianket, who, as they believed, could heal all wounds and cure all
diseases; so that he became the Irish God of Medicine. He had a son,
Midac, and a daughter, Armedda, who were both as good as himself; and at
last Midac became so skilful that his father killed him in a fit of
jealousy. And, after some time, there grew up from the young doctor's
grave 365 herbs, each with virtue to cure some particular ailment. His
sister Armedda plucked up these herbs, and carefully sorting them,
wrapped them up in her mantle. But the jealous old Dianket came and
mixed them all up, so that no one could distinguish them: and but for
this--according to the legend--every physician would now be able to cure
all diseases without delay, by selecting and applying the proper herbs.
Leaving these shadowy old-world stories, let us come down to historic
times, when we shall, as it were, tread on solid ground. From the very
earliest times medicine and surgery were carefully studied in Ireland:
and there was a distinct class of professional medical doctors, who
underwent a course of education and practical training. A young man
usually learned to be a physician by apprenticeship, i.e. by living in
the house of a regular physician, and accompanying him on his visits to
patients to learn his methods of treatment.
A king or a great chief had always a physician as part of his household,
to attend to the health of his family. The usual remuneration of these
men was a residence and a tract of land in the neighbourhood, free of
all rent and taxes, together with certain allowances: and the medical
man might, if he chose, practise for fee outside the household. Some of
those in the service of great kings had castles, and lived in state like
princes. Those not so attached lived on their fees, like many doctors
of the present day: and the fees for the various operations or
attendances were laid down in the Brehon Law.[89-1]
[89-1] The Brehon Law: that is, the old law of Ireland.
Though medical doctors were looked up to with great respect, they had to
be very careful in exercising their profession. A leech who through
carelessness, or wilful neglect, or gross want of skill, failed to cure
a wound, might be brought before a brehon or judge, and if the case was
proved home against him, he had to pay the same fine to the patient, as
if he had inflicted the wound with his own hand.
XX.
ANCIENT IRISH PHYSICIANS: PART II.
Medicine, as a profession, like Law, History, &c., often ran in families
in Ireland, descending regularly from father to son; and several Irish
families were distinguished leeches for generations, such as the
O'Shiels, the O'Cassidys, the O'Hickeys, and the O'Lees.
Each medical family kept a book, which was handed down reverently from
father to son, and in which was written, in Irish or Latin, all the
medical knowledge derived either from other books or from the actual
experience of the various members of the family; and many of these old
volumes, all in beautiful handwriting, are still preserved in Dublin and
elsewhere. As showing the admirable spirit in which those good men
studied and practised their profession, and how much they loved it, it
is worth while to give a translation of the opening statement, a sort of
preface, in the Irish language, written at the beginning of one of these
books, in the year 1352.
"May the good God have mercy on us all. I have here collected practical
rules of medicine from several works, for the honour of God, for the
benefit of the Irish people, for the instruction of my pupils, and for
the love of my friends and of my kindred. I have translated many of them
into Gaelic from Latin books, containing the lore of the great leeches
of Greece and Rome. These are sweet and profitable things which have
been often tested by us and by our instructors.
"I pray God to bless those doctors who will use this book; and I lay it
as an injunction on their souls, that they extract knowledge from it not
by any means sparingly, and that they do not neglect the practical rules
herein contained. More especially I charge them that they do their duty
devotedly in cases where they receive no payment on account of the
poverty of their patients.
"Let every physician, before he begins his treatment, offer up a secret
prayer for the sick person, and implore the heavenly Father, the
Physician and Balm-giver of all mankind, to prosper the work he is
entering upon, and to save himself and his patient from failure."
There is good reason to believe that the noble sentiments here expressed
were generally those of the physicians of the time; from which we may
see that the old Irish medical doctors were quite as devoted to their
profession, as eager for knowledge, and as anxious about their patients
as those of the present day.
The fame of the Irish physicians reached the continent. Even at a
comparatively late time, about three hundred years ago, when medicine
had been successfully studied and practised in Ireland for more than a
thousand years, a well-known and distinguished physician of
Brussels,[91-1] in a book written by him in Latin on medical subjects,
praises the Irish doctors, and describes them correctly as follows:--
[91-1] Van Helmont.
"In the household of every great lord in Ireland there is a physician
who has a tract of land for his support, and who is appointed to his
post, not on account of the great amount of learning he brings away in
his head from colleges, but because he is able to cure diseases. His
knowledge of the healing art is derived from books left him by his
forefathers, which describe very exactly the marks and signs by which
the various diseases are known, and lay down the proper remedies for
each. These remedies, [which are mostly herbs], are all produced in that
country. Accordingly, the Irish people are much better managed in
sickness than the Italians, who have a physician in every village."
It is pleasant to know that the Irish physicians of our time who, it is
generally agreed, are equal to those of any other country in the world,
can look back with respect, and not without some feeling of pride, to
their Irish predecessors of the times of old.
XXI.
THE FENA OF ERIN.
In the third century of the Christian era lived the Fena[92-1] of Erin,
a famous body of warriors something like the Red Branch Knights of an
older time. Their most renowned commander was Finn Mac Cumaill [Cool],
King Cormac Mac Art's son-in-law, who of all the heroes of ancient
Ireland is at the present day best remembered in tradition by the
people.
[92-1] Fena, spelled _Fianna_ in Irish, and pronounced _Feena_.
Finn had his chief residence on the Hill of Allen, a remarkable
flat-topped hill lying about four miles to the right of the railway as
you pass from Newbridge towards Kildare, which will be at once
recognised by a tall pillar erected fifty or sixty years ago on the
top, on the very site of Finn's palace. There are now very little
remains of the palace-fort, which, there is good reason to believe, was
at no time very large. Whatever remained of it has been cleared away,
partly to make room for the pillar, and partly by cultivation, for the
land has been tilled and cropped to the very summit. The whole
neighbourhood however still teems with living traditions of the heroes;
and the people all round the hill tell many stories of Finn and the
Fena, and point out the several spots they frequented. As in the case of
the Red Branch Knights, there were Fena in all the provinces, each
provincial troop under a leader. The Fena of Erin flourished for many
generations; but they reached their greatest glory under Finn in the
time of Cormac Mac Art, who was king of Ireland from A.D. 254 to 277.
No man was admitted to their ranks till he had proved his strength and
activity by passing severe tests in leaping, running, and defending
himself from attack against great odds. They should be educated in the
sort of learning in vogue at the time, and especially they should be
able to repeat many verses and stories recounting the great deeds of the
times of old, so that they might learn to admire all that was brave and
noble, and that in time of peace they might be bright and entertaining
at banquets and other festive gatherings. They were all mighty men in
fight, brave, and strong, and swift of foot: and they were above all
things bound to be honourable and truthful in their dealings, and to
protect the weak--particularly women and children--from oppression and
wrong.
The Fena loved open-air games and exercises of all kinds, especially the
chase. They had a breed of enormous dogs of which they were very fond,
gentle and affectionate at home, but fierce and terrible in the chase;
and from Beltane (1st of May) to Samin (1st November) they hunted deer,
wild boars, and other game through the forests, and over the hills,
glens, and plains. Though the chief men among them rode on horseback
when travelling long distances from one district to another, they always
hunted on foot, never using horses in the chase. During hunting time
they camped out at night, living on the flesh of the animals they
brought down and on the wild fruit and herbs of the forest.
At midday, whatever game they had killed during the morning they sent by
their attendants to the place appointed for the evening meal, which was
always chosen near a wood and beside a stream or lake. The attendants
roasted one part on hazel spits before immense fires of wood, and baked
the rest on hot stones in a pit dug in the earth. The stones were heated
in the fires. At the bottom of the pit the men placed a layer of these
hot stones: then a layer of meat-joints wrapped in sedge to keep them
from being burned: next another layer of hot stones: down on that more
meat; and so on till the whole was disposed of. When the hunters
returned, their first care was to bathe, so as to remove the sweat and
mire of the chase. Then they attended to their hair: for they wore the
hair long, and were very particular about combing, dressing, and
plaiting it. By the time their preparations were completed, the meat was
ready: and the hungry hunters sat down to their smoking-hot savoury
meal.
[Illustration: Ancient Irish ornamented comb in the National Museum,
Dublin.]
[Illustration: Ancient Irish gold earring, one of a pair found in Co.
Roscommon]
After the meal they set up their tents, and each man prepared his bed.
He first put down a thick layer of brushwood from the surrounding
forest; on that he spread a quantity of moss; and on that again a layer
of fresh rushes, on which he slept soundly after his day of joyous,
healthful toil. In the old tales these three materials--brushwood, moss,
and rushes--are called the "Three beddings of the Fena."[95-1]
[95-1] The above account of how the Fena hunted, cooked, ate, and
slept is from Keating, who took it from old Irish books.
The Fena were in the service of the kings, and their main duties were to
uphold justice and put down oppression and wrong, to suppress robbers
and other evil-doers, to exact fines and tributes for the king, and to
guard the harbours of the country against pirates and invaders. For
these services they received a fixed pay: during the six months hunting
season, their pay was merely the animals they killed, of which they used
the flesh for food and sold the skins.
An Irish poet of our day has written of the Milesian people in general,
including those Fena of Erin and the Red Branch Knights:--
"Long, long ago, beyond the misty space
Of twice a thousand years,
In Erin old there dwelt a mighty race
Taller than Roman spears;
Like oaks and towers they had a giant grace,
Were fleet as deers,
With winds and wave they made their biding place,
Those western shepherd seers.
Great were their deeds, their passions, and their sports.
With clay and stone,
They piled on strath and shore those mystic forts,
Not yet o'erthrown:
On cairn-crowned hills they held their council-courts;
While youths alone,
With giant dogs explored the elk resorts
And brought them down."
[Illustration: Cairn, on Carns Hill near Sligo: a "cairn-crowned hill."]
In many modern stories, Finn is spoken of as a giant; but this is a
vulgar notion. The old romantic tales describe him as a tall, strong
man, though not a giant; with much keen wit, sound sense, and great
judgment: and though he was a mighty champion, he ruled his men more by
wisdom, kindness, and justice, than by strength. When quite a young man
his hair became white like silver: how this happened will be told in the
next story. Oisin [Isheen] or Ossian, the renowned hero-poet of the
Fena, was his son. Oscar the son of Ossian was youthful, comely,
kind-hearted, and valiant. Dermot O'Dyna was the handsomest of all these
heroes. He was unconquerably brave, of untarnished honour, generous, and
self-denying, ever ready to take the post of danger, always giving
credit to others, and never in the least boasting of his own deeds. He
is the finest character of all the Fena; and it would be hard to find
his equal in the ancient tales of any country. We have a vast number of
beautiful stories in the Irish language about Finn and the other heroes
of the Fena, a few of which are translated in this book.
XXII.
THE CHASE OF SLIEVE CULLINN.
IN WHICH OSSIAN RELATES HOW FINN'S HAIR WAS CHANGED IN ONE DAY FROM THE
COLOUR OF GOLD TO SILVERY GREY.
On a morning in summer, Finn happened to be walking alone on the lawn
before the palace of Allen, when a doe sprang out from a thicket, and,
passing quite close to him, bounded past like the wind. Without a
moment's delay, he signalled for his companions and dogs; but none heard
except his two hounds, Bran and Skolan. He instantly gave chase,
accompanied only by his two dogs; and before the Fena knew of his
absence, he had left Allen of the green slopes far behind.
The chase turned northwards; and though the hounds kept close to the
doe, the chief kept quite as close to the hounds the whole way. And so
they continued without rest or pause, till they reached Slieve Cullinn,
far in the north.
Here the doe made a sudden turn and disappeared; and Finn never caught
sight of her after. And he marvelled much that any doe in the world
should be able to lead Bran and Skolan so long a chase, and escape from
them in the end. Meantime they kept searching, Finn taking one side of
the hill and the dogs another, so that he was at last left quite alone.
While he was wandering about the hill and whistling for his hounds, he
heard the plaintive cry of a woman at no great distance; and, turning
his steps towards the place, he saw a beautiful young lady sitting on
the brink of a little lake, weeping as if her heart would break. Finn
accosted her; and, seeing that she ceased her weeping for a moment, he
asked her had she seen his two hounds pass that way.
"I have not seen thy hounds," she replied, "nor have I been at all
concerned in the chase; for, alas, there is something that troubles me
more nearly. I had a precious gold bracelet on my hand, which I prized
beyond anything in the world; and it has fallen from me into the water.
I saw it roll down the steep slope at the bottom, till it went quite out
of my sight. This is the cause of my sorrow, and thou canst remedy the
mishap if thou wilt. The Fena are sworn never to refuse help to a woman
in distress; and I now put it on thee to search for this bracelet, and
cease not till thou find it and restore it to me."
Finn plunged in without a moment's hesitation; and after swimming three
times round the lake, diving and searching into every nook and cranny at
the bottom, he found the bracelet at last; and approaching the lady, he
handed it to her from the water. The moment she had got it she sprang
into the lake before his eyes, and, diving down, disappeared in an
instant.
[Illustration: Irish bracelet or armlet of solid gold, now in the
National Museum, Dublin. It is double the size of the picture, of
beautiful shape and workmanship, and weighs 3-3/4 oz.]