A MAN, hin brown hair and a pale
face, he road
t o town
of the Shelly River. Many called him Cum-
he son of Cormac, and many called
, ild horse; and he was
a glee man, and parti-
coloured doublet, and ed shoes,
and a bulging . Also he
blood of th-place
ing and
sleeping places he four provinces of
Eri, and upon
trayed
from toe Friars
and totlements to a row of
crosses against the sky
upon a tle to the
town, and , and shook
it at they were
not empty, for ttering
36
about t how, as like
as not, just sucher vagabond as
hem; and
tered; If it were hanging or bow-
stringing, or stoning or be would
be bad enoug to he birds
pecking your eyes and ting
your feet ! I the red wind
of thered in his cradle
t the
tree of deat of barbarous lands, or
t tning, e Dathi
at t of tain, ten
his grave had been dug
by toothed
merro ts of the deep
sea.
hile he spoke, he shivered from head
to foot, and t came out upon
why, for
he had looked upon many crosses. he
passed over tle-
ment Ed gate, and t-
27
udded nails, and , her
wer, and of him he asked
a place in t-he lay
brotook a glourf on a shovel,
and led to a big and naked out-
rey rushes; and
t ligwo
of tones of t the glow-
ing turf upon th and gave him
two unligraw,
and s hanging from a
nail, and a sh a loaf of bread and
a jug of er, and a tub in a far
corner. t him
and back to he door.
And Cumhe son of Cormac began
to blourf, t he
mig the wisp
of stra ed him
notraw were
damp. So ook off ed shoes,
and dreub out of th
t of he
; but ter was
so dirty t see ttom
eaten
all t day; so e much
anger upon tub, but took up the black
Ioaf, and bit into it, and t out the
bite, for the bread was hard and mouldy.
Still give o h, for
drunken these many hours;
his
days end, tasted,
to make ful.
Noo he
flung it from raighe
er ter and ill-smelling. then
it broke
against te wall, and ook
do to about him for
t. But no sooner did ouc
t
th anger, he rushed
to t- the lay
brotomed to such
outcries, on tside; so
Cumied tub and began to
beat t, till ther
carne to t ailed
of sleep.
ails me ! sed Cumhal, are
not t as the sands of
t the
fleas in t as many as the waves
of t the
bread as of a lay brother
the
er in tter and as ill-smelling
as t-er the
colour t shall be upon him when he has
been che
lay brot t, and
back to oo
sleepy to talk . And Cum-
on beating at the door, and
presently
once more, and cried out at him, ~ O
coyrannous race of friars, per-
secutors of ters
of life and joy ! O race t does not draw
tell truth ! O race
t melts th
co !
Gleeman, said ther, I also
make r
in my nico
he friars.
Brotherefore I
make knoo you t it is the head of
tery, our gracious Coarb, who
orders all the lodging of
travellers.
You may sleep, said Cumhal, ~ I will
sing a bards curse on the Coarb. And
tub upside doh~
ood upon it, and began to
sing in a very loud voice. the singing
a up in bed
and bleil the lay
broto get a
noise, said the
Coarb. is happening ?
It is a glee man, said ther,
whe bread,
of ter in t-er,
and of t. And now he is singing
a bards curse upon you, O brother Coarb,
and upon your father,
and your grandfather and your grand-
motions.
Is he cursing in rhyme ?
h
two assonances in every line of his
curse.
t-cap off and
crumpled it in he circular
broche middle of his
bald he
midst of a pond, for in Connaughey
yet abandoned t ton sure
for tyle to use. If we
do not somew, each
o treet, and
t to the
robbers on tain of Gulben.
Sher, and
give er
in a jug, clean foot-er, and a new
blanket, and make he
blessed St. Benign us, and by the sun and
moon, t no bond be lacking, not to tell
o treet,
and t the doors, and
tain of Gulben ?
Neitron nor the sun
and t all, said the
Coarb: for to-morro day
to curse would come upon him,
or a pride in those rhymes would move
eaco the
che robbers.
Or else ell anot
-house, and he
in urn o curse, and my
name here is no
steadfastness of purpose upon the roads,
but only under roofs, and between four
herefore I bid you go and awaken
Brother
Little olf, Brotrick, Brother
Bald Brandon, Brother
Peter. And take the man, and
43
bind he
river t o sing. And in
t t make him curse
the louder, we will crucify him.
the lay
brother.
t make another cross. If
make an end of her
will, for w and sleep in peace
he
world ? Ill sand before blessed
St. Benign us, and sour would be his face
t
Day, o spare an enemy of his
whumb !
Brothe glee men are
an evil race, ever cursing and ever stirring
up the people, and immoral and im-
moderate in all then in
ts, aler the Son
of Lir, and Angus, and Bridget, and the
Dagda, and Dana the
false gods of the old days; always making
poems in praise of those kings and queens
44
of the hill in
the hill of
the ave, and
Eiveen of they
call Don of ts of the Sea; and
railing against God and C and the
blessed Saints. hile he was speaking
he crossed himself, and when he had
finiscap over his
ears, to s out the noise, and closed
o
sleep.
ther Kevin,
Brottle olf, Brother
Bald Patrick, Brother Bald Brandon,
Broter sitting
up in bed, and up.
they
dragged o they dipped
at terwards
called Buckleys Ford.
Gleeman, said they
led o t-house, why do
you ever use t which God has given
45
you to make blaspales
and verses ? For suche way of your
craft. I ales and
verses well nige, and so I know
t I speak true ! And why do you praise
hose demons, Finvaragh, Red
Aodoo,
am a man of great and learning, but
I ever glo.rify our gracious Coarb, and
Benignus our Patron, and the princes of
t and
orderly, but yours is like the wind among
t I could for
you, being also a man of many ts,
but who could help such a one as you ?
My soul, friend, anshe glee man,
is indeed like t blows me
to and fro, and up and dos
many to my mind and out of my
mind, and t,
ild horse. And he spoke no more
t nigeettering
he cold.
to him
46
in t ready to
be crucified, and led of t-
ill stood upon the
step a flock of great grass-barnacles passed
h clanking cries. he
lifted o t
grass-barnacles, tarry a little, and may hap
my soul ravel o te
places of to the ungovern- 1
able sea ! At te a crowd of beggars
gat to
beg from any traveller or pilgrim who
mig t in t-
he friars led
to a place in t
some distance, young
trees hey made him
cut one doo t
lengtood round them
in a ring, talking and gesticulating. the
Coarb t off another and
ser piece of upon
t. So there was his cross for him;
and t it upon his shoulder, for
47
o be on top of the
hers were. A half-mile
on to stop and
see hem: for he knew,
ricks of Angus the
Subtle-ed. the old friars were for
pressing on, but the young friars would
see him: so he did many wonders for
to t
of after a wurned
on ricks were dull and
a s the cross on his
she
op and hear
for them, for he knew, he said, all
ts of Conan the Bald, upon whose
back a she young
friars, wales,
again bade ake up
i ll became to listen to such follies.
Anothe way, he asked
to stop and ory
of e-Breasted Deirdre, and how she
endured many sorrows, and he sons
of Usna died to serve he young
friars o when he
him
for ten longings in their
s. So t the cross upon his
back, and o the hill.
o top, took
to dig a hole
to stand it in, whered
round, and talked among themselves. ~ I
ask a favour before I die, says Cum hal.
e you no more delays, says
the Coarb.
I ask no more delays, for I have drawn
told truth, and lived my
vision, and am content.
ould you then confess ?
By sun and moon, not l; I ask but to
6e let eat t.
I carry food in my whenever I go
upon a journey, but I do not taste of it
unless I am well-nigarved. I have
not eaten nowo days.
You may eat, the Coarb,
ùIq E
and urned to he
hole.
took a loaf and some strips
of cold fried bacon out of and laid
tithe
to t a tenth
part from the bacon. ho
among you is t ? And there-
upon clam our, for the beggars
began tory of their
poverty, and their yellow faces swayed like
the floods have filled
it er from the bogs.
ened for a little, and, says he,
I am myself t, for I have
travel led tter-ing footsteps of tattered
doublet of particoloured cloth upon my
back and torn pointed shoes upon my
feet he
toy full of noble raiment *hich
was in my . And I he more
alone upon the sea, be-
cause I tling of
the rose-bordered dress of her who is more
subtle tle-ed,
and more full of ty of laughan
Conan the wisdom
of tears te-Breasted Deirdre, and
more lovely ting dao them
t are lost in therefore, I l
aito myself; but yet, because
I am done unto you.
So rips of
bacon among t
il t scrap was
eaten. But meanwhe
glee man to it upright in
t the
foot, and trampled it level and hard. So
t a tared
on, sitting round t whe
sun up to go, for
tting chilly. And as soon as
ttle he wolves, who
he edge
of a neighbouring coppice, came nearer,
and the birds wheeled closer and closer.
5 1
Stay, outcasts, yet a little whe cruci-
fied one called in a o the beg-
gars, and keep ts and the birds
from me. But the beggars were angry
because casts, so
tones and mud at him, and
thered
at t of the birds flew
loly the birds
lig once upon his head and arms
and so peck at him,
and to eat . Out-
casts, urned
against tcast ?