"The reason of the wisps and the fires on Saint John's Eve is that one
time long ago the Danes came and took the country and conquered it, and
they put a soldier to mind every house through the whole country. And at
last the people made up their mind that on one night they would kill its
soldiers. So they did as they said, and there wasn't one left, and that
is why they light the wisps ever since. It was Brian Boroihme was the
first to light them. There was not much of an army left to the Danes
that time, for he made a great scatter of them. A great man he was, and
his own son was as good, that is Murrough. It was the wife brought him
to his end, Gormleith. She was for war, and he was all for peace. And he
got to be very pious, too pious, and old and she got tired of that."