The golden spears, and other fairy tales

THE GOLDEN SPEARS

And Other Fairy Tales

BY

EDMUND

LEAMY .

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ILLUSTRATIONS BY yCOEINNE TUUNER

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EXLIBRIS-

AURORA HPMGIRALDA

FOIST HISTORIAN O^ LJTBRARV CALrPOW

TITLE CONrgRRCU BV'CALIFORNIA

LEaiStATHtje, Al>RrL 1919

SAN FRAN«lsm», CAUPORNIA

New York

Desmond FitzGerald, Inc.

• • • » • • •

• • • •. • • «

• • • • • '

Copyright, 1911
By Desmond FitzGerald, Inc.

All Eights Reserved

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CONTENTS

PAGE

Preface vii

Introductory Note ...... x

The Golden Spears 1

The House in the Lake ..... 23

The Enchanted Cave ..... 49

The Huntsman's Son 16

The Fairy Tree of Dooros .... 101

The Little White Cat 123

Princess Finola and the Dwarf . , .149

Notes IVO

ILLUSTRATIONS

"She beckoned the chihlren to her" . Frontisjnece

FACING PAGE

"'I have mourned you as dead, my darling,'

said he" 39

"The queen wished to know if he would join

them" 58

"Fergus knew it was the Pooka, the wild horse of

the mountains" 81

"He was very sad, and tired " . . . .106

"At the sight of him the prince remembered

everything" 137

"Standing before him was the little princess" . 169

PREFACE

It comes to me as a very welcome piece of
news, and yet a piece of news which I have
been long expecting, that a special American
edition of Edmund Leamy's Irish fairy tales is
about to be published. This, then, will be the
third issue of the little book. I venture to
predict that it will not be the last ; and I fancy
the American publisher who has had the judg-
ment to take the matter up will soon be rewarded
for his enterprise. For I believe the book to be
a little classic in its way, and that it will go on
making for itself a place in the libraries of those
who understand children, and will hold that
place permanently.

This is the verdict of competent literary judges.
I am spared the necessity of attempting a dis-
cussion of the grounds- on which so strong an
opinion of Leamy's fairy tales is based by the fact
that this is already done in Mr. T. P. Gill's In-
troductory Note. Mr. Gill, though he was, like
myself, one of Leamy's intimate friends, is a con-
scientious critic, and to his analysis not merely
of the " Tales," but of that attractive personality

iz

X PEEFACE

which Leamy infused into all he said or wrote I
can safely refer the reader. I think no one of
taste and judgment who reads these Tales will
fail to agree with the view which is expressed in
that Note and which I here, with some confidence,
venture to reiterate.

My chief hope with regard to this American
edition is that when it has made its mark with
the general public, as it is sure to do, it will be
taken note of by those who are specially con-
cerned with education. Leamy, while a public
man, a patriot steeped in the lore of Ireland's
past and ever weaving generous visions for her
future, was before all things else a child-lover.
That was his own, his peculiar endowment. He
had an exquisite gift with children and seemed
always able to speak directly with the higher
parts of their nature. It is this, I think, which is
evident in every page of these Tales, and which
gives the book its unique character. One to
whose judgment on an educational matter I at-
tach the greatest value writes to me these words :
" For refining influence, for power to stimulate
the sense of beauty, the tenderness, the sentiment
of nobleness of the child-soul, I can imagine no
volume more worthy of a place on the book-shelf
of the people's schools." Having myself often
witnessed this influence at work, I can em-
phatically indorse this opinion. I say I hope

PREFACE xi

American educators may agree with it, for if they
do our educators here at home will follow so dis-
tinguished a lead.

Of Edmund Leamy, in his personal aspect, I
have already said something in my preface to the
Dublin edition. I need only add here that this
true-hearted Irishman had many friends on the
American continent, and that to them this little
flower of his genius will be a vivid and abiding
souvenir of one of the most lovable of men.

If this book have the success in America which
it deserves — and I hope that success may be ex-
tended to Canada and the Australias — I believe
a charming and ennobling boon will have been
conferred upon the child-life of these great com-
munities ; and it will be a source of gratification
to those who were the author's friends and col-
leagues to think that that gift came from one by
whose side we had the honor to serve in Ireland's
struggles.

J. E. Redmond.

AuGHAVANNAGH, June, 1911.

(

I

INTRODUCTORY NOTE

I THINK one may fairly claim some respect from this
later day for a writer who seventeen years ago, of
his own motion, with scarce a word of encourage-
ment save from his wife and a friend or two — per-
haps only one friend — turned to our Gaelic past and
strove to give to Irish children something which
would implant in them a love for the beauty and
dignity of their country's traditions.

The modest author would never have claimed for
these little tales the interest which I think they
deserve. He wrote them for children, for he loved
children, and one can detect the presence of the
child listener at nearly every line. He was not
thinking of a literary audience; the child at his
knee was enough. This is why we hear (occa-
sionally) a certain naive accent which will not, per-
haps, please the contemporary critic; but (as there
are many who again find pleasure in early Vic-
torian furniture) it may please others; I confess it
pleases me. And the absence of literary self-con-
sciousness is itself pleasant; indeed, much of the
charm of these stories is the charm of their un-
premeditated art. But, though he did not write for
the critics, Leamy was in spite of himself a man of
letters. He was so genuinely an artist that he could
not do the thing ill. Any one of these stories will
prove his capacity : for instance, about that princess
on the " bare, brown, lonely moor " who was " as
sweet and as fresh as an opening rosebud, and her
voice was as musical as the whisper of a stream in

xiii

xiv INTRODUCTORY NOTE

the woods in the hot days of summer." There is
not a flaw in it. It is so filled with simple beauty
and tenderness, and there is so much of the genuine
word-magic in its language, that one is carried away
as by the spell of natural oratory. It has, too, that
intimate sympathy with nature which is another
racial note in these stories. The enchanted moor,
with its silence, where no sound is heard — the
wind which shouted beyond the mountains, "when
it sped across the moor it lost its voice, and passed
as silently as the dead "—is affected by the fortune
of the tale equally with its human and its elfin per-
sonages. When the knight arrives at last, " wher-
ever his horse's hoofs struck the ground, grass and
flowers sprang up, and great trees with leafy
branches rose on every side. ... As they rode on
beneath the leafy trees from every tree the birds
sang out, for the spell of silence over the lonely
moor was broken for ever." This unpretentious
story, a child's story, is as engaging as a gem. And
so, I think, are the most of the others.

It may not be amiss to add a word about the
author other than as he appears in this book.
These stories exhibit only one aspect of his gifts.
They happen to be one of the things he wrote
down. Most of the coinage of his mind, and I
think the best of it, came forth in a form which
does not permit of its being recalled, the form
of the spoken and unrecorded word. He was by
nature an improviser. In the inclusive sense of the
term, the sense which includes poetry, story-telling,
description as well as pleading and exhortation, he
was a born orator; and he was at his best when in
the glow of pure improvisation. It thus happened
that it was often a group of friends around a fire-
side, or a casual audience, who were the witnesses
of the most brilliant play of his genius. He had

INTRODUCTORY NOTE xv

a most observant and seeing eye. A walk in the
street was fraught with surprise, and he would come
back delighted with his adventures. Every little
common incident — three little boys with their backs
to a wall looking up at a church tower: he would
catch snatches of their talk, speculations about
deep things and strange; he w^ould note that an old
Irish apple-woman in a grimy English tow^n left her
basket, with all her stock in trade, outside in the
street while she went into a church to commune
with her heavenly friends ; the conversation between
a sapient publican, a friendly constable and a group
of dubious bona fide travelers — such things were
materials for his insight or his fancy or his delight-
ful humor. Often when he returned in the even-
ing, full of his day's observations, one wished
there had been a shorthand-writer present to take
down what fell from his lips. And just as it fell it
would have been literature. He w^as urged to write
these things. But Leamy had not readily the will
or the power to compel his spirit when the favored
moment had passed. He was mostly passive, like an
Jilolian harp, under the visitation. Ill-health, too,
extreme and distressing, burdened him. He bore his
trials cheerfully, and strove manfully to write, es-
pecially in his later days when the powder and the
will seemed to come to him just as illness tightened
its hold. But he was sustained by the most precious
of blessings — a wife with a brave and bright soul,
who appreciated him, and had a heart as romantic
as his own. Their love, indeed, was an idyll, un-
touched by a shadow, through illness and pain and
hardship, to the hour of his death.

One ventures to wish that this little book may
make his kindly Irish spirit friends among a wider
circle, and especially amongst the children.

T. P. Gill.

THE GOLDEN SPEARS

ONCE upon a timg there liYefi-in. a* little
house under a hill a Htile old 'woman and
her two children, whose names were
Connla and Nora. Right in front of the door of
the little house lay a pleasantmeadow,andbeyond
the meadow rose up to the skies a mountain whose
top was sharp-pointed like a spear. For more
than halfway up it was clad with heather, and
when the heather was in bloom it looked like a
purple robe falling from the shoulders of the
mountain down to its feet. Above the heather it
was bare and gray, but when the sun was sinking
in the sea, its last rays rested on the bare moun-
tain top and made it gleam like a spear of gold,
and so the children always called it the " Golden
Spear."

In summer days they gamboled in the meadow,
plucking the sweet wild grasses — and often and
often they clambered up the mountain side, knee
deep in the heather, searching for frechans and

2 FAIRY TALES

wild honey, and sometimes they found a bird's
nest — but they only peeped into it, they never
touched the eggs or allowed their breath to fall
upon them, for next to their little mother they
loved the' moiintailB, : and next to the moun-
tain they loved the wild birds who made the
spiing and summer weather musical with their
songs.

Sometimes the soft white mist would steal
through the glen, and creeping up the mountain
would cover it with a veil so dense that the chil-
dren could not see it, and then they would say
to each other : " Our mountain is gone away from
us." But when the mist would lift and float off
into the skies, the children would clap their
hands, and say : " Oh, there's our mountain back
again."

In the long nights of winter they babbled of the
spring and summertime to come, when the birds
would once more sing for them, and never a day
passed that they didn't fling crumbs outside their
door, and on the borders of the wood that
stretched away towards the glen.

When the spring days came they awoke with
the first light of the morning, and they knew the

THE GOLDEN SPEARS 3

very minute wlien the lark would begin to sing,
and when the thrush and the blackbird would
pour out their liquid notes, and w^hen the robin
would make the soft, green, tender leaves trem-
ulous at his song.

It chanced one day that when they were resting
in the noontide heat, under the perfumed shade
of a hawthorn in bloom, they saw on the edge of
the meadow, spread out before them, a speckled
thrush cowering in the grass.

" Oh, Connla ! Connla ! Look at the thrush —
and, look, look up in the sky, there is a hawk ! '^
cried Nora.

Connla looked up, and he saw the hawk with
quivering wings, and he kncAV that in a second it
would pounce down on the frightened thrush.
He jumped to his feet, fixed a stone in his sling,
and before the whir of the stone shooting
through the air was silent, the stricken hawk
tumbled headlong in the grass.

The thrush, shaking its wings, rose joyously in
the air, and perching upon an elm-tree in sight of
the children, he sang a song so sweet that they
left the hawthorn shade and walked along to-
gether until they stood under the branches of the

4 FAIRY TALES

elm; and they listened and listened to the
thrush's song, and at last Nora said :

" Oh, Connla ! did you ever hear a song so sweet
as this? "

" No," said Connla, " and I do believe sweeter
music was never heard before."

" Ah," said the thrush, " that's because you
never heard the nine little pipers playing. And
now, Connla and Nora, you saved my life to-
day."

" It was Nora saved it," said Connla, " for she
pointed you out to me, and also pointed out the
hawk which was about to pounce on you."

" It was Connla saved you," said Nora, " for he
slew the hawk with his sling."

" I owe my life to both of you," said the thrush.
" You like my song, and you say you have never
heard anything so sweet; but wait till you hear
the nine little pipers placing."

"And when shall we hear them?" said the
children.

" Well," said the thrush, " sit outside your
door to-morrow evening, and wait and watch un-
til the shadows have crept up the heather, and
then, when the mountain top is gleaming like a

THE GOLDEN SPEARS 5

golden spear, look at the line wliere the shadow
on the heather meets the sunshine, and you shall
see what you shall see."

And having said this, the thrush sang another
song sweeter than the first, and then saying
" good-by," he flew away into the woods.

The children went home, and all night long
they were dreaming of the thrush and the nine
little pipers; and when the birds sang in the
morning, they got up and went out into the
meadow to watch the mountain.

The sun Avas shining in a cloudless sky, and no
shadows lay on the mountain, and all day long
they watched and waited, and at last, when the
birds were singing their farewell song to the
evening star, the children saw the shadows
marching from the glen, trooping up the moun-
tain side and dimming the purple of the heather.

And when the mountain top gleamed like a
golden spear, they fixed their eyes on the line
between the shadow and the sunshine.

" Now," said Connla, " the time has come."

" Oh, look ! look ! " said Nora, and as she spoke,
just above the line of shadow a door opened out,
and through its portals came a little piper

6 FAIRY TALES

dressed in green and gold. He stepped down,
followed by another and another, until they were
nine in all, and then the door slung back again.
Down through the heather marched the pipers in
single file, and all the time they played a music so
sweet that the birds, who had gone to sleep in
their nests, came out upon the branches to listen
to them, and then they crossed the meadow, and
they went on and on until they disappeared in the
leafy woods.

While they were passing the children were
spellbound, and couldn't speak, but when the
music had died away in the woods, they said:

" The thrush is right, that is the sweetest music
that was ever heard in all the world."

And when the children went to bed that night
the fairy music came to them in their dreams.
But when the morning broke, and they looked out
upon their mountain and could see no trace of
the door above the heather, they asked each other
whether they had really seen the little pipers, or
only dreamt of them.

That day they went out into the woods, and
they sat beside a stream that pattered along be-
neath the trees, and through the leaves tossing in

THE GOLDEN SPEAKS 7

the breeze the sun flashed down upon the stream-
let, and shadow and sunshine danced upon it.
As the children watched the water sparkling
where the sunlight fell, Nora said:

" Oh, Connla, did you ever see anything so
bright and clear and glancing as that? "

" No," said Connla, " I never did."

" That's because you never saw the crystal hall
of the fairy of the mountains," said a voice above
the heads of the children; ^

And when they looked up, who should they see
perched on a branch but the thrush.

" And where is the crystal hall of the fairy? "
said Connla.

" Oh, it is where it always was, and where it
always will be," said the thrush. " And you can
see it if you like."

" We would like to see it," said the children.

" Well, then," said the thrush, " if you would,
all you have to do is to follow the nine
little pipers w^hen they come down through
the heather, and cross the meadow to-morrow
evening."

And the thrush having said this, flew away.

Connla and Nora went home, and that night

8 FAIRY TALES

they fell asleep talking of tlie thrush and the
fairy and the crystal hall.

All the next day they counted the minutes, un-
til they saw the shadows thronging from the glen
and scaling the mountain side. And, at last,
they saw the door springing open, and the nine
little pipers marching down.

They waited until the pipers had crossed the
meadow and were about to enter the wood. And
then they followed them, the pipers marching on
before them and playing all the time. It was not
long until they had passed through the wood, and
then, what should the children see rising up be-
fore them but another mountain, smaller than
their own, but, like their own, clad more than
half way up with purple heather, and whose top
was bare and sharp-pointed, and gleaming like a
golden spear.

Up through the heather climbed the pipers, up
through the heather the children clambered after
them, and the moment the pipers passed the
heather a door opened and they marched in, the
children following, and the door closed behind
them.

Connla and Nora were so dazzled by the light

THE GOLDEN SPEARS 9

that liit their eyes, when they had crossed the
threshold, that they had to shade them with their
hands; but, after a moment or two, they became
able to bear the splendor, and when they looked
around they saw that they were in a noble hall,
whose crystal roof was supported by two rows of
crystal pillars rising from a crystal floor ; and the
walls were of crystal, and along the walls were
crystal couches, with coverings and cushions of
sapphire silk with silver tassels.

Over the crystal floor the little pipers marched ;
over the crystal floor the children followed, and
when a door at the end of the hall was opened to
let the pipers pass, a crowd of colors came rush-
ing in, and floor, and ceiling, and stately pillars,
and glancing couches, and shining walls, were
stained with a thousand dazzling hues.

Out through the door the pipers marched ; out
through the door the children followed, and when
they crossed the threshold they were treading on
clouds of amber, of purple, and of gold.

" Oh, Connla," said Nora, " we have walked
into the sunset! "

And around and about them everywhere were
soft, fleecy clouds, and over their heads was the

10 FAIRY TALES

glowing sky, and the stars were shining through
it, as a lady's eyes shine through a veil of gossa-
mer. And the sky and stars seemed so near that
Connla thought he could almost touch them with
his hand.

When they had gone some distance, the pipers
disappeared, and when Connla and Nora came up
to the spot where they had seen the last of them,
they found themselves at the head of a ladder, all
the steps of which were formed of purple and
amber clouds that descended to what appeared
to be a vast and shining plain, streaked with pur-
ple and gold. In the spaces between the streaks
of gold and purple they saw soft, milk-white
stars. And the children thought that the great
plain, so far below them, also belonged to cloud-
land.

They could not see the little pipers, but up the
steps was borne by the cool, sweet air the fairy
music ; and lured on by it step by step they trav-
eled down the fleecy stairway. When they were
little more than halfway down there came
mingled with the music a sound almost as sweet
— the sound of waters toying in the still air with
pebbles on a shelving beach, and with the sound

THE GOLDEN SPEARS 11

came the odorous brine of the ocean. And then
the children knew that what they thought was a
plain in the realms of cloudlaud was the sleep-
ing sea unstirred by wind or tide, dreaming
of the purple clouds and stars of the sunset
sky above it.

When Connla and Nora reached the strand
they saw the nine little pipers marching out
towards the sea, and they wondered where they
were going to. And they could hardly believe
their eyes when they saw them stepping out upon
the level ocean as if they were walking upon the
land; and away the nine little pipers marched,
treading the golden line cast upon the waters by
the setting sun. And as the music became
fainter and fainter as the pipers passed into the
glowing distance, the children began to wonder
what was to become of themselves. Just at that
very moment they saw coming towards them
from the sinking sun a little white horse, with
flowing mane and tail and golden hoofs. On the
horse's back was a little man dressed in shining
green silk. When the horse galloped on to the
strand the little man doffed his hat, and said to
the children :

12 FAIRY TALES

" Would you like to follow the nine little
pipers? " The children said, " yes."

" Well, then,-' said the little man, " come up
here behind me; you, Nora, first, and Connla
after."

Connla helped up Nora, and then climbed on to
the little steed himself ; and as soon as they were
properly seated the little man said " swish," and
away went the steed, galloping over the sea with-
out wetting hair or hoof. But fast as he gal-
loped the nine little pipers were always ahead
of him, although they seemed to be going only
at a walking pace. When at last he came up
rather close to the hindmost of them the nine
little pipers disappeared, but the children heard
the music playing beneath the waters. The
white steed pulled up suddenly, and wouldn't
move a step further.

" Now," said the little man to the children,
" clasp me tight, Nora, and do you, Connla,
cling on to Nora, and both of you shut your
eyes."

The children did as they were bidden, and the
little man cried :

" Swish ! swash ! "

THE GOLDEN SPEAKS 13

And the steed went down and down until at
last his feet struck the bottom.

" Now open your eyes/' said the little man.

And when the children did so they saw beneath
the horse's feet a golden strand, and above their
heads the sea like a transparent cloud between
them and the sky. And once more they heard the
fairy music, and marching on the strand before
them were the nine little pipers.

" You must get off now," said the little man,
" I can go no farther with you."

The children scrambled down, and the little
man cried " swish," and himself and the steed
shot up through the sea, and they saw him no
more. Then they set out after the nine little
pipers, and it wasn't long until they saw rising
up from the golden strand and pushing their
heads up into the sea above, a mass of dark gray
rocks. And as they were gazing at them they
saw the rocks opening, and the nine little pipers
disappearing through them.

The children hurried on, and when they came
up close to the rocks they saw sitting on a flat
and polished stone a mermaid combing her golden
hair, and sinoino- a strange sweet song that

14 FAIRY TALES

brought the tears to their eyes, and by the mer-
maid's side was a little sleek brown otter.

When the mermaid saw them she flung her
golden tresses back over her snow-white shoul-
ders, and she beckoned the children to her. Her
large eyes were full of sadness; but there was a
look so tender upon her face that the children
moved towards her without any fear.

" Come to me, little one," she said to Nora,
" come and kiss me," and in a second her arms
were around the child. The mermaid kissed her
again and again ; as the tears rushed to her eyes,
she said :

" Oh, Nora, mavourneen, your breath is as
sweet as the wild rose that blooms in the green
fields of Erin, and happy are you, my children,
who have come so lately from the pleasant land.
Oh, Connla ! Connla ! I get the scent of the dew of
the Irish grasses and of the purple heather from
your feet. And you both can soon return to Erin
of the Streams, but I shall not see it till three
hundred years have passed away, for I am Liban
the Mermaid, daughter of a line of kings. But I
may not keep you here. The Fairy Queen is
waiting for you in her snow-white palace and her

THE GOLDEN SPEARS 15

fragrant bowers. And now kiss me once more,
Nora, and kiss me, Connla. May luck and joy go
with you, and all gentleness be upon you both.'' ^

Then the children said good-by to the mer-
maid, and the rocks opened for them and they
passed through, and soon they found themselves
in a meadow starred with flowers, and through
the meadow sped a sunlit stream. They followed
the stream until it led them into a garden of
roses, and beyond the garden, standing on a gen-
tle hill, was a palace white as snow. Before the
palace was a crowd of fairy maidens pelting each
other with rose-leaves. But when they saw the
children they gave over their play, and came
trooping towards them.

" Our queen is waiting for you," they said ; and
then they led the children to the palace door.
The children entered, and after passing through
a long corridor they found themselves in a crystal
hall so like the one they had seen in the mountain
of the golden spear that they thought it was the
same. But on all the crystal couches fairies,
dressed in silken robes of many colors, were sit-
ting, and at the end of the hall, on a crystal
throne, was seated the fairy queen, looking love-

/ t^* n < <^ "^

16 FAIRY TALES

lier than the evening star. The queen descended
from her throne to meet the children, and taking
them by the hands, she led them up the shining
steps. Then, sitting down, she made them sit be-
side her, Connla on her right hand and Nora on
her left.

Then she ordered the nine little pipers to come
before her, and she said to them :

" So far you have done your duty faithfully,
and now play one more sweet air and your task is
done."

And the little pipers played, and from the
couches at the first sound of the music all the
fairies rose, and forming partners, they danced
over the crystal floor as lightly as the young
leaves dancing in the wind.

Listening to the fairy music, and watching the
wavy motion of the dancing fairies, the children
fell asleep. AVhen they awoke next morning and
rose from their silken beds they were no longer
children. Nora was a graceful and stately
maiden, and Connla a handsome and gallant
youth. They looked at each other for a moment
in surprise, and then Connla said:

" Oh, Nora, how tall and beautiful you are! "

THE GOLDEN SPEARS 17

" Oh, not so tall and handsome as you are,
Connla," said Nora, as she flung her white arms
round his neck and kissed her brother's lips.

Then they drew back to get a better look of
each other, and who should step between them
but the fairy queen.

" Oh, Nora, Nora," said she, " I am not as high
as your knee, and as for you, Connla, you look as
straight and as tall as one of the round towers of
Erin."

" And how did we grow so tall in one night? "
said Connla.

" In one night! " said the fairy queen. " One
i night, indeed ! Why, you have been fast asleep,
the two of you, for the last seven years ! "

"And where was the little mother all that
time? " said Connla and Nora together.

" Oh, the little mother was all right. She knew
where you were; but she is expecting you to-
day, and so you must go off to see her, although
I would like to keep you — if I had my way — all
to myself here in the fairyland under the sea.
And you will see her to-day; but before you go
here is a necklace for you, Nora; it is formed out
of the drops of the ocean spray, sparkling in the

18 FAIRY TALES

sunshine. They were caught by my fairy nymphs,
for you, as they skimmed the sunlit billows under
the shape of sea-birds, and no queen or princess
in the world can match their luster with the dia-
monds won with toil from the caves of earth. As
for you, Connla, see here's a helmet of shining
gold fit for a king of Eriui — and a king of Erin
you will be yet; and here's a spear that will pierce
any shield, and here's a shield that no spear can
pierce and no sword can cleave as long as you
fasten your warrior cloak with this brooch of
gold."

And as she spoke she flung round Connla's
shoulders a flowing mantle of yellow silk, and
pinned it at his neck with a red gold brooch.

" And now, my children, you must go away
from me. You, Nora, will be a warrior's bride in
Erin of the Streams. And you, Connla, will be
king yet over the loveliest province in all the land
of Erin; but you will have to fight for your
crown, and days of battle are before you. They
will not come for a long time after you have left
the fairyland under the sea, and until they come
lay aside your helmet, shield, and spear, and war-
rior's cloak and golden brooch. But when the

THE GOLDEN SPEARS 19

time comes when you will be called to battle, en-
ter not upon it without the golden brooch I give
you fastened in your cloak, for if you do harm
will come to you. Now, kiss me, children ; your
little mother is waiting for you at the foot of the
golden spear, but do not forget to say good-by
to Liban the Mermaid, exiled from the land she
loves, and pining in sadness beneath the sea."

Connla and Nora kissed the fairy queen, and
Connla, wearing his golden helmet and silken
cloak, and carrying his shield and spear, led Nora
with him. They passed from the palace through
the garden of roses, through the flowery meadow,
through the dark gray rocks, until they reached
the golden strand ; and there, sitting and singing
the strange, sweet song, was Liban the Mermaid.

" And so you are going up to Erin," she said,
" up through the covering waters. Kiss me, chil-
dren, once again; and when you are in Erin of
the Streams, sometimes think of the exile from
Erin beneath the sea."

And the children kissed the mermaid, and with
sad hearts, bidding her good-by, they walked
along the golden strand. When they had gone
what seemed to them a long way, they began to

20 FAIRY TALES

feel weary; and just then they saw coming
towards them a little man in a red jacket leading
a coal-black steed.

When they met the little man, he said:
" Connla, put Nora up on this steed; then jump
up before her."

Connla did as he was told, and when both of
them were mounted —

" Now, Connla," said the little man, " catch
the bridle in your hands, and you, Nora,
clasp Connla round the waist, and close your
eyes."

They did as they were bidden, and then the
little man said, " Swash, swish ! " and the steed
shot up from the strand like a lark from the
grass, and pierced the covering sea, and went
bounding on over the level waters ; and when his
hoofs struck the hard ground, Connla and Nora
opened their eyes, and they saw that they were
galloping towards a shady wood.

,0n went the steed, and soon he was galloping
beneath the branches that almost touched Conn-
la's head. And on they went until they had
passed through the wood, and then they saw
rising up before them the " Golden Spear."

THE GOLDEN SPEARS 21

" Oh, Connla," said Nora, " we are at home at
last."

" Yes," said Connla, " but where is the little
house under the hill?"

And no little house was there ; but in its stead
was standing a lime-white mansion.

" What can this mean? " said Nora,

But before Connla could reply, the steed had
galloped up to the door of the mansion, and, in
the twinkling of an eye, Connla and Nora were
standing on the ground outside the door, and the
steed had vanished.

Before they could recover from their surprise
the little mother came rushing out to them, and
flung her arms around their necks, and kissed
them both again and again.

" Oh, children ! children ! You are welcome
home to me; for though I knew it was all
for the best, my heart was lonely without
you."

And Connla and Nora caught up the little
mother in their arms, and they carried her into
the hall and set her down on the floor.

" Oh, Nora ! " said the little mother, " you are
a head over me ; and as for you, Connla, you look

22 FAIRY TALES

almost as tall as one of the round towers of
Erin."

" That's what the fairy queen said, mother,"
said Nora.

" Blessings on the fairy queen," said the little
mother. " Turn round, Connla, till I look at you."

Connla turned round, and the little mother
said:

" Oh, Connla, with your golden helmet and
your spear, and your glancing shield, and your
silken cloak, you look like a king. But take them
off, my boy, beautiful as they are. Your little
mother would like to see you, her own brave boy,
without any fairy finery."

And Connla laid aside his spear and shield, and
took off his golden helmet and his silken cloak.
Then he caught the little mother and kissed her,
and lifted her up until she was as high as his
head. And said he:

" Don't you know, little mother, I'd rather
have you than all the world."

And that night, when they were sitting down
by the fire together, you may be sure that in the
whole world no people were half as happy as
Nora, Connla, and the little mother.

J-

THE HOUSE IN THE LAKE ^

ALONG, long time ago there lived in a little
hut, in the midst of one of the inland lakes
of Erin, an old fisherman and his son. The
hut was built on stakes driven into the bed of the
lake, and was so high above the waters that even
when they were stirred into waves by the wind
coming down from the mountains they did not
reach the threshold of the door. Around, out-
side the hut, on a level with the floor, was a little
wicker-work platform, and under the platform,
close to the steps leading up to it from the water,
the fisherman's curragh, made of willows, cov-
ered with skins, was moored, and it was only by
means of the curragh that he and his son, Enda,
could leave their lake dwelling.

On many a summer evening Enda lay stretched
on the platform, watching the sunset fading from
the mountain-tops, and the twilight creeping over
the waters of the lake, and it chanced that once
when he was so engaged he heard a rustle in a

23

24 FAIRY TALES

clump of sedge that grew close to one side of the
hut. He turned to where the sound came from,
and what should he see but an otter swimming
towards him, with a little trout in his mouth.
When the otter came up to where Enda was lying,
he lifted his head and half his body from the
water, and flung the trout on the platform, al-
most at Enda's feet, and then disappeared.

Enda took the little panting trout in his hand ;
but as he did so he heard, quite close to him, in
the lake, a sound like that of water plashing upon
water, and he saw the widening circles caused by
a trout which had just risen to a fly; and he said
to the little trout he held in his hand :

" I won't keep you, poor thing! Perhaps that
was a little comrade come to look for j^ou, and so
I'll send you back to him."

And saying this, he dropped the little trout
into the lake.

Well, when the next evening came, again Enda
was lying stretched outside the hut, and once
more he heard the rustle in the sedge, and once
more the otter came and flung the little trout
almost into his hands.

Enda, more surprised than ever, did not know

THE HOUSE IN THE LAKE 25

what to do. He saw that it was the same little
trout the otter had brought him the night before,
and he said :

" Well, I gave you a chance last night. I'll
give you another, if only to see what will come
of it."

And he dropped the trout into the lake ; but no
sooner had it touched the waters than it was
changed into a beautiful, milk-white swan. And
Enda could hardly believe his eyes, as he saw
it sailing across the lake, uutil it was lost in the
rTS^dges growing by the shore.

All that night he lay awake, thinking of what
he had seen, and as soon as the morning stood
on the hill-tops, and cast its shafts of golden light
across the lake, Enda rose and got into his cur-
ragh.

He rowed all round the shores, beating the
sedges with his oar, in pursuit of the swan ; but
all in vain ; he could not catch a glimpse of her
white plumage anywhere. Day after day he
rowed about the lake in search of her, and every
evening he lay outside the hut watching the
waters. At long last, one night, when the full
moon, rising above the mountains, flooded the

26 FAIRY TALES

whole lake with light, he saw the swan coming
swiftly towards him, shining brighter than the
moonbeams. The swan came on until it was al-
most within a boat's length of the hut ; and what
should Enda hear but the swan speaking to him
in his own lang-uage :

" Get into your curragh, Enda, and follow me,"
said she, and, saying this, she turned round and
sailed away.

Enda jumped into the curragh, and soon the
water, dripping from his oar, was flashing like
diamonds in the moonlight. And he rowed after
the swan, who glided on before him, until she
came to where the shadows of the mountains lay
deepest on the lake. Then the swan rested, and
when Enda came up to her :

" Enda," said she, " I have brought you where
none may hear what I wish to say to you. I am
Mave, the daughter of the king of Erin. By the
magic arts of my cruel stepmother I was changed
into a trout, and cast into this lake a year and a
day before the evening when you restored me to
the waters the second time. If you had not done
so the first night the otter brought me to you I
should have been changed into a hooting owl ; if

THE HOUSE IN THE LAKE 27

you had not done so the second night, I should
have been changed into a croaking raven. But,
thanks to you, Enda, I am now a snow-white
swan, and for one hour on the first night of every
full moon the power of speech is and will be given
to me as long as I remain a swan. And a swan I
must always remain, unless you are willing to
break the spell of enchantment that is over me;
and you alone can break it."

" I'll do anything I can for you, O princess ! "
said Enda. " But how can I break the spell? "

" You can do so," said the swan, " only by pour-
ing upon my plumage the perfumed water that
fills the golden bowl that is in the inmost room
of the palace of the fairy queen, beneath the
lake."

" And how can I get that? " said Enda.

" Well," said the swan, " you must dive be-
neath the lake, and walk along its bed, until you
come to where the lake dragon guards the en-
trance of the fairy queen's dominions."

" I can dive like a fish," said Enda; " but how
can I walk beneath the waters? "

" You can do it easily enough," said the swan,
" if you get the water-dress of Brian, one of the

28 FAIRY TALES

three sons of Turenn, and his helmet of trans-
parent crystal, by the aid of which he was able to
walk under the green salt sea." ^

" And where shall I find them? "

" They are in the water-palace of Angus of the
Boyne," said the swan; " but you should set out
at once, for if the spell be not broken before the
moon is full again, it cannot be broken for a year
and a day."

" I'll set out in the first ray of the morning,"
said Enda.

" May luck and joy go with you," said the
swan. " And now the hours of silence are com-
ing upon me, and I have only time to warn you
that dangers you little dream of will lie before
you in your quest for the golden cup."
' " I am willing to face all dangers for your sake,
O princess," said Enda.

" Blessings be upon you, Enda," said the swan,
and she sailed away from the shadow out into the
light across the lake to the sedgy banks. And
Enda saw her no more.

He rowed his curragh home, and he lay on his
bed without taking off his clothes. And as the
first faint glimmer of the morning came slanting

THE HOUSE IN THE LAKE 29

down the mountains, he stepped into his cnrragh
and pulled across the lake, and took the road
towards the water-palace of Angus of the
Boyne.

When he reached the banks of the glancing
river a little woman, dressed in red, was standing
there before him.

" You are welcome, Enda," said she. " And
glad am I to see the day that brings you here to
help the winsome Princess Mave. And now wait
a second, and the water-dress and crystal helmet
will be ready for you."

And, having said this, the little woman plucked
a handful of wild grasses, and she breathed upon
i them three times and then flung them on the
river, and a dozen fairy nymphs came springing
up through the water, bearing the water-dress
I and crj^stal helmet and a shining spear. And
they laid them down upon the bank at Enda's
feet, and then disappeared.

" Now, Enda," said the fairy woman, " take
these ; by the aid of the dress and the helmet you
can walk beneath the waters. You will need the
spear to enable you to meet the dangers that lie
before you. But with that spear, if you only

30 FAIRY TALES

have courage, you can overcome everything and
everyone that may attempt to bar your way."

Having said this, she bid good-by to Enda, and
stepping off the bank, she floated out upon the
river as lightly as a red poppy leaf. And when
she came to the middle of the stream she disap-
peared beneath the waters.

Enda took the helmet, dress, and spear, and it
was not long until he came to the sedgy banks
where his little boat was waiting for him. As he
stepped into the curragh the moon was rising
above the mountains. lie rowed on until he
came to the hut, and having moored the boat to
the door, he put on the water-dress and the crys-
tal helmet, and taking the spear in his hand, he
leaped over the side of the curragh, and sank down
and down until he touched the bottom. Then he
walked along without minding where he was go-
ing, and the only light he had was the shimmer-
ing moonlight, which descended as faintly
through the waters as if it came through muffled
glass. He had not gone very far wlien he heard
a horrible hissing, and straight before him he
saw what he thought were two flaming coals.
After a few more steps he found himself face to

THE HOUSE IN THE LAKE 31

face with the dragon of the lake, the guardian
of the palace of the fairy queen. Before he had
time to raise his spear, the dragon had wound
its coils around him, and he heard its horrible
teeth crunching against the side of his crystal
helmet, and he felt the pressure of its coils
around his side, and the breath almost left his
body; but the dragon, unable to pierce the
helmet, unwound his coils, and soon Enda's
hands were free, and before the dragon could
attempt to seize him again, he drove his spoar
through one of its fiery eyes, and, writhing with
pain, the hissing dragon darted through a cave
behind him. Enda, gaining courage from the
dragon's flight, marched on until he came to a
door of dull brass set in the rocks. He tried to
push it in before him, but he might as well have
tried to push away the rocks. While he was
wondering what he should do, he heard again the
fierce hissing of the dragon, and saw the red glare
of his fiery eye dimly in the water.

Lifting his spear and hastily turning round to
meet the furious monster, Enda accidentally
touched the door with the point of the spear, and
the door flew open. Enda passed through, and

32 FAIRY TALES

the door closet! behind him with a grating sound,
and he marched along through a rocky pass
which led to a sandy plain.

As he stepped from the pass into the plain the
sands began to move, as if they were alive. In a
second a thousand hideous serpents, almost the
color of the sand, rose hissing up, and with their
forked tongues made a horrible, poisonous hedge
in front of him. For a second he stood dismayed,
but then, leveling his spear, he rushed against
the hedge of serpents, and they, shooting poison
at him, sank beneath the sand. But the poison
did not harm him, because of his water-dress and
crystal helmet.

When he had passed over the sandy plain, he
had to climb a great steep, jagged rock. When he
got to the top of the rock he saw spread out be-
fore him a stony waste without a tuft or blade of
grass. At some dist^ince in front of him he no-
ticed a large dark object, which he took to be a
rock, but on looking at it more closely he saw that
it was a huge, misshapen, swollen mass, appar-
ently alive. And it was growing bigger and big-
ger every moment. Enda stood amazed at the
sight, and before he knew where he was the loath-

THE HOUSE IN THE LAKE 35

they had left it behind them Enda saw on a green
hill before him the snow-white palace of the
fairy queen.

As the queen approached the steps that led up
to the open door, a band of tiny fairies, dressed in
rose-colored silk, came out, carrying baskets of
flowers, which they flung down on the steps to
make a fragrant carpet for her. They were fol-
lowed by a band of harpers dressed in yellow
silken robes, who ranged themselves on each side
of the steps and played their sweetest music as
the queen ascended.

When the queen, followed by Enda, entered the
palace, they passed through a crystal hall that led
to a banquet-room. The room was lighted
by a single star, large as a battle-shield. It
was fixed against the wall above a diamond
throne.

The queen seated herself upon the throne, and
the pages, advancing towards her, and bending
low, as they approached the steps, handed her a
golden wand.

The queen waved the wand three times, and a
table laden with all kinds of delicacies appeared
upon the floor. Then she beckoned Enda to her,

3G FAIRY TALES

and when he stood beside her the fairy table was
no higher than his knee.

" I am afraid I must make you smaller, Enda,"
said the queen, " or you will never be able to seat
yourself at my fairy table."

And having said this, she touched Enda with
the golden wand, and at once he became as small
as her tallest page. Then she struck the steps
of her throne, and all the nobles of her court,
headed by her bards, took their places at the
festive board.

The feast went on right merrily, and when the
tiny jeweled drinking-cups were placed upon
the table, the queen ordered the harpers to play.

And the little harpers struck the chords, and
as Enda listened to the music it seemed to him
as if he was being slowly lifted from his seat,
and when the music ended the fairies vanished,
the shining star went out, and Enda was in per-
fect darkness.

The air blew keenly in his face, and he knew
not where he was. At last he saw a faint gray
light, and soon this light grew broader and
brighter, and as the shadows fled before it, he
could hardly believe his eyes when he found him-

THE HOUSE IN THE LAKE 37

self in his curragli on the lake, and the moonlight
streaming clown from the mountain-tops.

For a moment he thought he must have been
dreaming ; but there in the boat before him were
the crystal helmet, and the water-dress, and the
gleaming spear, and the golden bowl of perfumed
water that was to remove the spell of enchant-
ment from the Vv^hite swan of the lake, and sailing
towards him from the sedgy bank came the snow-
white swan; and when she touched the boat,
Enda put out his hands and lifted her in, and
then over her plumage he poured the perfumed
water from the golden bowl, and the Princess
Mave in all her maiden beauty stood before him.

" Take your oar, Enda," she said, " and row
to the southern bank."

Enda seized his oar, and the curragh sped
across the waters swifter than a swallow in its
flight. When the boat touched the shore Enda
jumped out, and lifted the princess on to the
bank.

" Send your boat adrift, Enda," she said ; " but
first take out your shining spear ; the water-dress
and the crystal helmet will take care of them-
selves."

38 FAIRY TALES

Encla took out the spear, and then pushed the
boat from the bank. It sped on towards the hut
in the middle of the lake; but before it had
reached halfway six nymphs sprang up from the
water and seizing the helmet and dress, sank
with them beneath the tide, and the boat went on
until it pushed its prow against the steps of the
little hut, where it remained.

Then Enda and the princess turned towards
the south, and it was not long until they came
to a deep forest, that was folding up its shadows
and spreading out its mossy glades before the
glancing footsteps of the morning. They had
not gone far through the forest when they heard
the music of hounds and the cries of huntsmen,
and crashing towards them through the low
branches they saw a fierce wild boar. Enda,
gently pushing the princess behind him, leveled
his spear, and when the boar came close to him
he drove it into his throat. The brute fell dead
at his feet, and the dogs rushing up began to
tear it to pieces. The princess fainted at the
sight, and while Enda was endeavoring to restore
her, the king of Erin, followed by his huntsmen,
appeared, and when the king saw the princess he

I have mourned you as dead, my darling,'
said he" Page 39

THE HOUSE IN THE LAKE 39

started in amazement, as he recognized the
features of his daughter Mave.

At that moment the princess came to herself,
and her father, lifting her tenderly in his arms,
kissed her again and again.

" I have mourned you as dead, my darling,"
said he, " and now you are restored to me more
lovely than ever. I would gladly have given up
my throne for this. But say who is the cham-
pion who has brought you hither, and who has
slain the wild boar we have hunted so many
years in vain? "

The princess blushed like a rose as she
said:

" His name is Enda, father ; it is he has
brought me back to you."

Then the king embraced Enda and said :

" Forgive me, Enda, for asking any questions
about you before you have shared the hospitality
of my court. My palace lies beyond the forest,
and we shall reach it soon."

Then the king ordered his huntsman to sound
the bugle-horn, and all his nobles galloped up in
answer to it, and when they saw the Princess
Mave they were so dazzled by her beauty that

40 FAIRY TALES

they scarcely gave a thouglit to the death of the
wild boar.

" It is my daughter, Mave, come back to me,"
said the king.

And all the nobles lowered their lances, and
bowed in homage to the lady.

"And there stands the champion who has
brought her home," said the king, pointing to
Enda.

The nobles looked at Enda, and bowed cour-
teously, but in their hearts they were jealous of
the champion, for they saw he was already a
favorite of the king's.

Then the pages came up, leading milk-white
steeds with golden bridles, and the king, ordering
Enda to mount one of them, lifted Mave on to his
own, and mounted behind her. The pages, car-
rying the boar's head on a hollow shield, pre-
ceded by the huntsmen sounding their horns, set
out towards the palace, and the royal party fol-
lowed them.

As the procession approached the palace
crowds came rushing out to see the trophies of
the chase, and through the snow-white door the
queen, Mave's cruel stepmother, attended by her

THE HOUSE IN THE LAKE 41

maids-of-honor and the royal bards, came forth
to greet the king. But when she saw seated be-
fore him the Princess Mave, who she thought
was at the bottom of the lake under a spell of
enchantment, she uttered a loud cry, and fell
senseless to the ground.

The king jumped from his horse, and rushing
to the queen, lifted her up and carried her in his
arms to her apartments, for he had no sus-
picion of the wickedness of which she had been
guilty.

And the court leeches were summoned to at-
tend her, but she died that very night, and it
was not until a green mound, worthy of a queen
of Erin, had been raised over her grave that the
Princess Mave told her father of the wickedness
of her stepmother. And when she told him the
whole story of how Enda had broken the spell
of enchantment, and of the dangers which he
had faced for her sake, the king summoned an
assembly of all his nobles, and seated on his
throne, wearing his golden helmet, the bards
upon his right hand and the Druids upon his left,
and the nobles in ranks before him with gleam-
ing helmets and flashing spears, he told them

42 FAIRY TALES

the story of the princess, and of the service which
Enda had rendered to her.

" And now," said the king, " if the princess is
willing to take her deliverer for her husband, I
am willing that she shall be his bride; and if you,
my subjects, bards and Druids and nobles and
chiefs of Erin, have anything to say against this
union, speak. But first, Mave," said the king, as
he drew^ the blushing princess to him, " speak, .
darling, as becomes the daughter of a king —
speak in the presence of the nobles of Erin, and
say if it is your wish to become Enda's
bride."

The princess flung her white arms around her
father's neck, as she murmured:

" Father, it was Enda brought me back to you,
and before all the princes and nobles of Erin I
am willing to be his bride."

And she buried her head upon the king's
breast, and as he stroked her silken hair falling
to her feet, the bards struck their golden harps,
but the sound of the joyous music could hardly
drown the murmurs of the jealous nobles.

When the music ceased the king beckoned
Enda to him, and was about to place his hand

THE HOUSE IN THE LAKE 43

in Mave's when a Druid, whose white beard al-
most touched the ground, and who had been a
favorite of the dead stepmother, and hated Mave
for her sake, stepped forward and said :

" O king of Erin, never yet has the daughter
of a king been freely given in marriage to any
save a battle champion ; and that stripling there
has never struck his spear against a warrior's
shield." '

A murmur of approbation rose from the jeal-
ous princes, and Congal, the bravest of them all,
stepped out from the ranks, and said:

" The Druid speaks the truth, O king ! That
stripling has never faced a battle champion yet,
and, speaking for all the nobles of your land, I
challenge him to fight any one of us ; and as he
is young and unused to arms, we are willing that
the youngest and least experienced amongst us
should be set against him."

When Congal had spoken, the nobles, in ap-
proval of his words, struck their shields with
their swords, and the brazen sound ascended to
the skies.

The face of the princess, blushing a moment
before like a rose, became as white as a lily ; but

44 FAIEY TALES

the color returned to her cheeks when she heard
Enda's voice ringing loud and clear.

" It is true, O king ! " said he, " that I have
never used my spear in battle yet. The Prince
Congal has challenged me to meet the youngest
and least experienced of the chiefs of Erin. I
have risked my life already for your daughter's
sake. I would face death a thousand times for
the chance of winning her for my bride; but I
would scorn to claim her hand if I dared not
meet the boldest battle champion of the nobles of
Erin, and here before you, O king, and bards,
Druids, and nobles, and chiefs of Erin, and
here, in the presence of the Lady Mave, I chal-
lenge the boldest of them all."

The king's eyes flashed with joy as he listened
to the brave words of Enda.

" It is well," said the king ; " the contest shall
take place to-morrow on the lawn outside our
palace gates ; but before our assembly dissolves I
call on you, nobles and chiefs of Erin, to name
your boldest champion."

Loud cries of " Congal ! Congal ! " answered
the king's speech.

"Are you willing, Congal?" asked the king.

THE HOUSE IN THE LAKE 45

" Willing, O king! " answered Congal.

" It is well," said the king. " We shall all
meet again to-night in our banquet-hall."

And the king, with the Princess Mave on his
arm, attended by his bards and Druids, entered
the palace, and the chiefs and nobles went their
several ways.

At the feast that night the princess sat beside
the king, and Enda beside the princess, and the
bards and Druids, nobles and chiefs, took their
places in due order. And the bards sang songs
of love and battle, and never merrier hours were
spent than those which passed away that night
in the banquet-hall of Erin's king.

When the feast was over Enda retired to his
apartment to spend the night dreaming of the
Princess Mave, and Congal went to his quarters ;
but not to sleep or dream, for the Druid who had
provoked the contest came to him bringing his
golden wand, and all night long the Druid was
weaving spells to charm the shield and spear and
helmet of Congal, to make them invulnerable in
the battle of the morrow.

But while Enda lay dreaming of the Princess
Mave, the little faii'y woman who gave him the

4G FAIRY TALES

water-dress, and crystal helmet, and shining
spear on the banks of the Boyne, slid into his
room, and she placed beside his conch a silver
helmet and a silver shield. And she rubbed the
helmet, and the shield, and the blue blade and
haft of his spear with the juice of the red rowan
berries, and she let a drop fall upon his face and
hands, and then she slid out as silently as she
came.

When the morning broke, Enda sprang from
his couch, and he could hardly believe his eyes
when he saw the silver shield and helmet. At
the sight of them he longed for the hour of battle,
and he watched with eager gaze the sun climb-
ing the sky; and, after hours of suspense, he
heard the trumpet's sound and the clangor of
the hollow shields, struck by the hard-pointed
spears.

Putting on the helmet, and fastening the shield
upon his left arm, and taking the spear in his
right hand, he stepped out bravely to the fight.
The edge of the lawn before the palace gates
was ringed by the princes, nobles, and chiefs of
Erin. And the palace walls were thronged by
all the beauties of the Court and all the noble

THE HOUSE IN THE LAKE 47

ladies of the land. And on Lis throne, sur-
rounded by his Druids, his brehons, and his
bards, was the king of Erin, and at his feet sat
the lovely Lady Mave.

As Enda stepped out upon the lawn, he saw
Congal advancing from the ranks of the nobles,
and the two champions approached each other
until they met right in front of the throne.

Then both turned towards the throne, and
bowed to the king and the Princess Mave; and
then facing each other again, they retired a
space, and when their spears were poised, ready
for battle, the king gave the signal, which was
answered by the clang of stricken shields, and
Congal and Enda launched their gleaming
spears. They flashed like lightning in the sun-
lit air, and in a second CongaFs had broken
against Enda's shield ; but Enda's, piercing Con-
gal's helmet, hurled him senseless on the plain.

The nobles and chiefs could hardly realize that
in that single second their boldest champion was
overthrown; but when they saw him stretched
motionless on the grassy sward, from out their
ranks six warriors advanced to where the chief-
tain lay, and sadly they bore him away upon

48 FAIRY TALES

their battle-sliields, and Enda remained victor
upon the field.

And then the king's voice rang ont clear as the
sound of a trumpet in the still morning :

" Bards and brehons, princes and nobles, and
chiefs of Erin, Enda has proved himself a battle
champion, and who amongst you now will dare
gainsay his right to claim my daughter for his
bride? "

And no answer came.

But when he summoned Enda to his throne,
and placed the lady's hand in his, a cheer arose
from the great assembly, that proved that jeal-
ousy was extinguished in all hearts, and that all |
believed that Enda was worthy of the winsome
bride ; and never since that day, although a thou-
sand years have passed, was there in all the
world a brighter and gayer wedding than the
wedding of Enda and the Princess Mave.

THE ENCHANTED CAVE

ALONG, long time ago, Prince Cuglas,*
master of the hounds to the high King of
Erin, set out from Tara to the chase. As
he Avas leaving the palace the light mists were
drifting away from the hill-tops, and the rays of
the morning sun were falling aslant on the
grinan or sunny bower of the Princess Ailinn.
Glancing towards it the prince doffed his plumed
and jeweled hunting-cap, and the princess an-
swered his salute by a wave of her little hand,
that was as white as a wild rose in the hedges in
June, and leaning from her bower, she watched
the huntsman until his tossing plumes were hid-
den by the green waving branches of the woods.
The Princess Ailinn was over head and ears in
love with Cuglas, and Cuglas was over head and
ears in love with the Princess Ailinn, and he be-
lieved that never was summer morning half as
bright, or as sweet, or as fair as she. The
glimpse which he had just caught of her filled his

49

50 FAIRY TALES

heart with delight, and almost put all thought of
hunting out of his head, when suddenly the tune-
ful cries of the hounds, answered by a hundred
echoes from the groves, broke upon his ear.

The dogs had started a dappled deer that
bounded away through the forest. The prince,
spurring his gallant steed, pushed on in eager
pursuit.

On through the forest sped the deer, through
soft, green, secret ways and flowery dells, then
out from the forest, up heathery hills, and over
long stretches of moorland, and across brown
rushing streams, sometimes in yiew of the
hounds, sometimes lost to sight, but alwaysv,
ahead of them.

All day long the chase continued, and at last,
when the sun was sinking, the dogs were close
upon the panting deer, and the prince believed he
was about to secure his game, when the deer sud-
denly disappeared through the mouth of a cave
which opened before him. The dogs followed at
his heels, and the prince endeavored to rein in his
steed, but the impetuous animal bore him on,
and soon was clattering over the stony floor of
the cave in perfect darkness. Cuglas could

THE ENCHANTED CAVE 51

hear ahead of him the cries of the hounds grow-
ing fainter and fainter, as they increased the
distance between them and him. Then the cries
ceased altogether, and the only sound the prince
heard was the noise of his horse's hoofs sound-
ing in the hollow cave. Once more he en-
deavored to check his career, but the reins broke
in his hands, and in that instant the prince felt
the horse had taken a plunge into a gulf, and
was sinking down and down, as a stone cast
from tlie summit of a cliff sinks down to the
sea. At last the horse struck the ground again,
and the prince was almost thrown out of his
saddle, but he succeeded in regaining his seat.
Then on through the darkness galloped the steed,
and when he came into the light the prince's eyes
were for some time unable to bear it. But when
he got used to the brightness he saw he was gal-
loping over a grassy plain, and in the distance
he perceived the hounds rushing towards a wood
faintly visible through a luminous summer haze.
The prince galloped on, and as he approached
the wood he saw coming towards him a comely
champion, wearing a shining brown cloak, fas-
tened by a bright bronze spear-like brooch, and

52 FAIEY TALES

bearing a white hazel wand in one hand, and a
single-edged sword with a hilt made from the
tooth of a sea-horse in the other ; '^ and the prince
knew by the dress of the champion, and by his
wand and sword, that ke was a royal herald. As
the herald came close to him the prince's steed
stopped of his own accord.

" You are welcome, Cuglas," said the herald,
" and I have been sent by the Princess Crede to
greet you and to lead you to her court, where you
have been so long expected."

" I know not how this may be," said Cuglas.

" How it has come about I shall tell you as we
go along," said the herald. " The Princess
Crede is the Queen of the Floating Island. And
it chanced, once upon a day, when she was visit-
ing her fairy kinsmen, who dwell in one of the
pleasant hills that lie near Tara, she saw you
with the high king and princes and nobles of
Erin following the chase. And seeing you her
heart went out to you, and wishing to bring you
to her court, she sent one of her nymphs, in the
form of a deer, to lure you on through the cave,
which is the entrance to this land."

" I am deeply honored by the preference shown

THE ENCHANTED CAVE 53

me by the princess/' said Cuglas, " but I may not
tarry in her court ; for above in Erin there is the
Lady Ailinn, the loveliest of all the ladies who
grace the royal palace, and before the princes
and chiefs of Erin she has promised to be my
bride."

" Of that I know not," said the herald ; " but
a true champion, like you, cannot, I know, re-
fuse to come with me to the court of the Princess
Crede."

As the herald had said these words the prince
and he were on the verge of the wood, and they
entered upon a mossy pathway that broadened
out as they advanced until it was as wide as one
of the great roads of Erin. Before they had
gone very far the prince heard the tinkling of
silver bells in the distance, and almost as soon
as he heard them he saw coming up towards him
a troop of warriors on coal black steeds. All the
warriors wore helmets of shining silver, and
cloaks of blue silk. And on the horses' breasts
were crescents of silver, on which were hung tiny
silver bells, shaking out music with the motion of
the horses. As the prince approached the cham-
pions they lowered their spears, and dividing in

54 FAIRY TALES

two lines the prince and the herald passed be-
tween the ranks, and the champions, forming
again, followed on behind the prince.

At last they passed through the wood, and they
found themselves on a green plain, speckled with
flowers, and they had not gone far when the
prince saw coming towards him a hundred cham-
pions on snow-white steeds, and around the
breast of the steeds were crescents of gold, from
which were hanging little golden bells.^ The
warriors all wore golden helmets, and the shafts
of their shining spears were of gold, and golden
sandals on their feet, and yellow silken mantles
fell down over their shoulders. And when the
prince came near them they lowered their lances,
and then they turned their horses' heads around
and marched before him. And it was not long
until above the pleasant jingle of the bells the
prince heard the measured strains of music, and
he saw coming towards him a band of harpers,
dressed in green and gold, and when the harpers
had saluted the prince they marched in front of
the cavalcade, playing all the time, and it was
not long until they came to a stream that ran
like a blue riband around the foot of a green hill.

THE ENCHANTED CAVE 55

on the top of which was a sparkling palace ; the
stream was crossed by a golden bridge, so narrow
that the horsemen had to go two-by-two. The
herald asked the prince to halt and to allow all
the champions to go before him; and the caval-
cade ascended the hill, the sunlight brightly
glancing on helmet and on lance, and when it
reached the palace the horsemen filed around the
walls.

When at length the prince and herald crossed
the bridge and began to climb the hill, the prince
thought he felt the ground moving under them,
and on looking back he could see no sign of the
golden bridge, and the blue stream had already
become as wide as a great river, and was becom-
ing wider every second.

" You are on the floating island now," said the
herald, "and before you is the palace of the
Princess Crede."

At that moment the queen came out through
the palace door, and the prince was so dazzled by
her beauty, that only for the golden bracelet he
wore upon his right arm, under the sleeve of his
silken tunic, he might almost have forgotten the
Princess Ailinn. This bracelet was made by the

56 FAIEY TALES

dwarfs who dwell in the heart of the Scandina-
vian Mountains, and was sent with other costly
presents by the King of Scandinavia to the King
of Erin, and he gave it to the i)rincess, and it was
the virtue of this bracelet, that whoever was
wearing it could not forget the person who gave
it to him, and it could never be loosened from the
arm by any art or magic spell ; but if the wearer,
even for a single moment, liked anyone better
than the person who gave it to him, that very mo-
ment the bracelet fell off from the arm and could
never again be fastened on. And when the
princess promised her hand in marriage to the
Prince Cuglas, she closed the bracelet on his arm.

The fairy queen knew nothing about the brace-
let, and she hof>ed that before the prince was long
in the floating island he would forget all about
the princess.

" You are welcome, Cuglas," said the queen,
as she held out her hand, and Cuglas, having
thanked her for her welcome, they entered the
palace together.

" You must be weary after your long jour-
ney," said the queen. " My page will lead you to
your apartments, where a bath of the cool blue

THE ENCHANTED CAVE 57

waters of the lake lias been made ready for you,
and when you have taken your bath the pages
will lead you to the banquet hall, where the feast
is spread."

At the feast the prince was seated beside the
queen, and she talked to him of all the x^leasures
that were in store for him in fairyland, where
pain, and sickness, and sorrow, and old age, are
unknown, and where every rosy hour that flies
is brighter than the one that has fled before it.
And when the feast was ended the queen opened
the dance with the prince, and it was not until
the moon was high above the floating island that
the prince retired to rest.

He was so tired after his journey and the
dancing that he fell into a sound sleep. When
he awoke the next morning the sun was shining
brightly, and he heard outside the palace the
jingle of bells and the music of baying hounds,
and his heart was stirred by memories of the
many pleasant days on which he had led the
chase over the plains and through the green
woods of Tara.

He looked out through the window, and he saw
all the fairy champions mounted on their steeds

58 FAIRY TALES

ready for the chase, and at their head the fairy
queen. And at that moment the pages came to
say the queen wished to know if he would join
them, and the ijrince went out and found his
steed ready saddled and bridled, and they spent
the day hunting in the forest that stretched away
for miles behind the palace, and the night in
feasting and dancing.

When the prince awoke the following morning
he was summoned by the pages to the presence of
the queen. The prince found the queen on the
lawn outside the palace surrounded by her court.

" We shall go on the lake to-day, Cuglas," said
the queen, and taking his arm she led him along
the water's edge, all the courtiers following.

When she was close to the water she waved her
wand, and in a second a thousand boats, shining
like glass, shot up from beneath the lake and set
their bows against the bank. The queen and
Cuglas stepped into one, and when they were
seated two fairy harpers took their places in the
prow. All the other boats were soon thronged
by fairies, and then the queen waved her wand
again, and an awning of purple silk rose over the
boat, and silken awnings of various colors over

r

The queen wished to know if he would join

them'

. Page 58

THE ENCHANTED CAVE 59

the others, and the royal boat moved off from the
bank followed by all the rest, and in every boat
sat a harper with a golden harp, and when the
queen waved her wand for the third time, the
harpers struck the trembling chords, and to
the sound of the delightful music the boats glided
over the sunlit lake. And on they went until
they approached the mouth of a gentle river slid-
ing down between banks clad with trees. Up
the river, close to the bank and under the droop-
ing trees, they sailed, and when they came to a
bend in the river, from which the lake could be
no longer seen, they pushed their prows in
against the bank, and the queen and Cuglas, and
all the party, left the boats and went on under
the trees until they came to a mossy glade.

Then the queen waved her wand, and silken
couches were spread under the trees, and she and
Cuglas sat on one apart from the others, and the
courtiers took their places in proper order.

And the queen waved her wand again, and
wind shook the trees above them, and the most
luscious fruit that was ever tasted fell down into
their hands; and when the feast was over there
was dancing in the glades to the music of the

60 FAIRY TALES

harps, and when they were tired dancing they set
out for the boats, and the moon was rising above
the trees as they sailed away over the lake, and
it was not long until they reached the bank below
the fairy palace.

Well, between hunting in the forest, and sail-
ing over the lake, and dancing in the greenwood
glade and in the banquet hall, the days passed,
but all the time the prince was thinking of the
Princess Ailinn, and one moonlit night, when
he was lying awake on his couch thinking of her,
a shadow was suddenly cast on the floor.

The prince looked towards the window, and
what should he see sitting on the sill outside but
a little woman tapping the pane with a golden
bodkin.

The prince jumped from his couch and opened
the window, and the little woman floated on the
moonbeams into the room and sat down on the
floor.

" You are thinking of the Princess Ailinn,"
said the little woman.

" I never think of anj^one else," said the prince.

" I know that," said the little woman, " and
it's because of your love for each other, and be-

THE ENCHANTED CAVE 61

cause her mother was a friend to me iii the days
gone by, that I have come here to try and help
you ; but there is not much time for talking, the
nidit advances. At the bank below a boat
awaits you. Step into it and it will lead you to
the mainland, and when you reach it you will
iind before you a path that will take you to the
green fields of Erin and the plains of Tara. I
know you will have to face danger. I know not
what kind of danger ; but whatever it may be do
not draw your sword before you tread upon the
mainland, for if you do you shall never reach
it, and the boat will come back again to the float-
ing island; and now go and may luck go with
you ; " and saying this the little woman climbed
up the moonbeams and disappeared.

The prince left the palace and descended to the
lake, and there before him he saw a glistening
boat; he stepped into it, and the boat went on
and on beneath the moon, and at last he saw the
mainland, and he could trace a winding path-
way going away from the shore. The sight filled
his heart with joy, but suddenly the milk-white
moonshine died away, and looking up to the sky
he saw the moon turning fiery red, and the waters

62 FAIRY TALES

of the lake, shining like silver a moment before,
took a blood-red hue, and a wind arose that
stirred the waters, and they leaped up against
the little boat, tossing it from side to side. While
Cuglas was wondering at the change, he heard
a strange, unearthly noise ahead of him, and a
bristling monster, lifting its claws above the
water, in a moment was beside the boat and stuck
one of his claws in the left arm of the prince, and
pierced the flesh to the bone. Maddened by the
pain the prince drew his sword and chopped off
the monster's claw. The monster disappeared
beneath the lake, and, as it did so, the color of the
water changed, and the silver moonlight shone
down from the sky again, but the boat no longer
went on towards the mainland, but sped back
towards the floating island, while forth from
the island came a fleet of fairy boats to meet it,
led by the shallop of the fairy queen. The queen
greeted the prince as if she knew not of his at-
tempted flight, and to the music of the harps the
fleet returned to the palace.

The next day passed and the night came, and
again the prince was lying on the couch, thinking
of the Princess Ailinn, and again he saw the

THE ENCHANTED CAVE 63

shadow on the floor and heard the tapping
against the window.

And when he opened it the little woman slid
into the room.

" You failed last night," she said, " but I come
to give you another chance. To-morrow the
queen must set out on a visit to her fairy kins-
men, who dwell in the green hill near the plain
of Tara ; she cannot take you with her, for if your
feet once touched the green grass that grows in
the fruitful fields of Erin, she could never bring
you back again. And so, when j^ou find she has

^ left the palace, go at once into the banquet hall
and look behind the throne, and you will see a
small door let down into the ground. Pull this
up and descend the steps which you will see.
Where they lead to I cannot tell. What dangers

, may be before you I do not know; but this I

j know, if you accept anything, no matter what it
is, from anyone you may meet on your way, you
shall not set foot on the soil of Erin."
And having said this the little woman, rising

i from the floor, floated out through the window.
The prince returned to his couch, and the next

j morning, as soon as he heard the queen had left

64 FAIRY TALES

the palace, he hastened to the banquet hall. He
discovered the door and descended the steps, and
he found himself in a gloomy and lonesome val-
ley. Jagged mountains, black as night, rose on
either side, and huge rocks seemed ready to
topple down upon him at every step. Through
broken clouds a watery moon shed a faint, fit-
ful light, that came and went as the clouds,
driven by a moaning wind, passed over the
valley.

Cuglas, nothing daunted, pushed on boldly
until a bank of cloud shut out completely the
struggling moon, and closing over the valley cov-
ered it like a pall, leaving him in perfect dark-
ness. At the same moment the moaning wind
died away, and with it died away all sound. The
darkness and the deathlike silence sent an icy
chill to the heart of Cuglas. He held his hand
close to his eyes, but he saw it not. He shouted
that he might hear the sound of his own voice,
but he heard it not. He stamped his foot on the
rocky ground, but no sound was returned to him.
He rattled his sword in its brazen scabbard, but
it gave no answer back to him. His heart grew
colder and colder, when suddenly the cloud above

THE ENCHANTED CAVE 65

him was rent in a dozen places, and lightning
flashed through the valley, and the thunder
rolled over the echoing mountains. In the lurid
glare of the lightning Cuglas saw a hundred
ghostly forms sweeping towards him, uttering as
they came nearer and nearer shrieks so terrible
that the silence of death could more easily be
borne. Cuglas turned to escape, but they
hemmed him round, and pressed their clammy
hands upon his face.

With a yell of horror he drew his sword and
slashed about him, and that very moment the
forms vanished, the thunder ceased, the dark
cloud passed, and the sun shone out as bright as
on a summer day, and then Cuglas knew the
forms he had seen were those of the wild people
of the glen.^

With renewed courage he pursued his way
through the valley, and after three or four wind-
ings it took him out upon a sandy desert. He
had no sooner set foot upon the desert than he
heard behind him a crashing sound louder than
thunder. He looked around, and he saw that
the walls of mountain through which he had just
passed had fallen into the valley, and filled it up

66 FAIRY TALES

so that he could no longer tell where it had
been.

The sun was beating fiercely on the desert, and
the sands were almost as hot as burning cinders ;
and as Cuglas advanced over them his body be-
came dried up, and his tongue clove to the roof
of his mouth, and when his thirst was at its
height a fountain of sparkling water sprang up
in the burning plain a few paces in front of him ;
but when he came up quite close to it and
stretched out his parched hands to cool them in
the limi)id waters, the fountain vanished as sud-
denly as it appeared. With great pain, and al-
most choking with heat and thirst, he struggled
on, and again the fountain sprang up in front
of him and moved before him, almost within his
reach. At last he came to the end of the desert,
and he saw a green hill up which a pathway
climbed; but as he came to the foot of the hill,
there, sitting right in his way, was a beautiful}
fairy holding out towards him a crystal cup, over
the rim of which flowed water as clear as crystal.
Unable to resist the temptation, the prince seized
the cold, bright goblet, and drank the water.
When he did so his thirst vanished, but the fair}'.

THE ENCHANTED CAVE 67

and the green hill, and the burning desert disap-
peared, and he was standing in the forest behind
the palace of the fairy queen.

That evening the queen returned, and at the
feast she talked as gaily to the prince as if she
knew not of his attempt to leave the Floating
Island, and the prince spoke as gaily as he could
to her, although in his heart there was sadness
when he remembered that if he had only dashed
away the crystal cup, he would be at that mo-
ment in the royal banquet hall of Tara, sitting
beside the Princess Ailinn.

And he thought the feast would never end ; but
it was over at last, and the prince returned to
his apartments. And that night, as he lay on
his couch, he kept his eyes fixed upon the win-
dow; but hours passed, and there was no sign
of anyone. At long last, and when he had given
up all hope of seeing her, he heard a tapping at
the window, and he got up and opened it, and the
little woman came in.

" You failed again to-day," said she — " failed
just at the very moment when you were about to
step on the green hills of Erin. I can give you
only one chance more. It will be your last.

68 FAIRY TALES

The queen will go liimting in the morning. Join
the hunt, and Avhen you are separated from the
rest of the party in the wood throw your reins
upon your horse's neck and he will lead you to
the edge of the lake. Then cast this golden bod-
kin into the lake in the direction of the main-
land, and a golden bridge will be thrown across,
over which you can pass safely to the fields of
Erin ; but take care and do not draw your sword,
for if you do your steed will bear you back again
to the Floating Island, and here you must re-
main forever." Then handing the bodkin to the
prince, and saying good-by, the little woman dis-
appeared.

The next morning the queen and the prince
and all the court went out to hunt, and a fleet
white deer started out before them, and the royal
party pressed after him in pursuit. The prince's
steed outstripped the others, and when he was
alone the prince flung the reins upon his horse's
neck, and before long he came to the edge of the
lake.

Then the prince cast the bodlvin on to the
water, and a golden bridge was thrown across
to the mainland, and the horse galloped on to it,

THE ENCHANTED CAVE 69

and when the prince was more than halfway he
saw riding towards him a champion wearing a
silver helmet, and carrying on his left arm a sil-
ver shield, and holding in his right hand a gleam-
ing sword. As he came nearer he struck his
shield with his sword and challenged the prince
to battle. The prince's sword almost leaped out
of its scabbard at the martial sound, and, like a
true knight of Tara, he dashed against his foe,
and swinging his sword above his head, with one
blow he clove the silver helmet, and the strange
warrior reeled from his horse and fell upon the
golden bridge. The prince, content with this
achievement, spurred his horse to pass the fallen
champion, but the horse refused to stir, and the
bridge broke in two almost at his feet, and the
part of it between him and the mainland disap-
peared beneath the lake, carrying with it the
horse and the body of the champion, and before
the prince could recover from his surprise, his
steed wheeled round and was galloping back, and
when he reached the land he rushed through the
forest, and the prince was not able to pull him
up until he came to the palace door.

All that night the prince lay awake on his

70 FAIRY TALES

couch with his eyes fixed upon the window, but
no shadow fell upon the floor, and there was no
tapping at the pane, and with a heavy heart he
joined the hunting party in the morning. And
day folloTv'ed day, and his heart was sadder and
sadder, and found no pleasure in the joys and
delights of fairyland. And when all in the pal-
ace were at rest he used to roam through the
forest, always thinking of the Princess Ailinn,
and hoping against hope that the little woman
would come again to Jiim, but at last he began to
despair of ever seeing her. It chanced one night
he rambled so far that he found himself on the
verge of the lake, at the very spot from which
the golden bridge had been thrown across the
waters, and as he gazed wistfully upon them a
boat shot up and came swiftly to the bank, and
who should he see sitting in the stern but the lit-
tle woman.

" Ah, Cuglas, Cuglas," she said, " I gave you
three chances, and you failed in all of them."

" I should have borne the pain inflicted by the
monster's claw," said Cuglas. " I should have
borne the thirst on the sandy desert, and dashed
the crystal cup untasted from the fairy's hand;

THE ENCHANTED CAVE 71

but I could never have faced the nobles and
chiefs of Erin if I had refused to meet the chal-
lenge of the battle champion on the golden
bridge."

" And you would have been no true knight of
Erin, and you would not have been worthy of the
wee girl who loves you, the bonny Princess
Ailinn, if you had refused to meet it," said the
little woman ; " but for all that you can never
return to the fair hills of Erin. But cheer up,
Cuglas, there are mossy ways and forest paths
and nestling bowers in fairyland. Lonely they
are, I know, in your eyes now," said the little
woman ; " but maybe," she added, with a laugh
as musical as the ripple on a streamlet when
summer is in the air, " maybe you won't always
think them so lonely."

" You think I'll forget Ailinn for the fairy
queen," said Cuglas, with a sigh.

" I don't think anything of the kind," said she.

" Then what do jou mean? " said the prince.

" Oh, I mean what I mean," said the little
woman. " But I can't stop here all night talk-
ing to you: and, indeed, it is in your bed you
ought to be yourself. So now" good-night; and

72 • FAIRY TALES

I have no more to say, except that perhaps, if you
happen to be here this night week at this very
hour, when the moon will be on the waters, you

will see But no matter what you will see,"'

said she ; " I must be off."

And before the prince could say another word
the boat sped away from the bank, and he was
alone. He went back to the palace, and he fell
asleep that night only to dream of the Princess
Ailinn.

As for the princess, she was pining away in the
palace of Tara, the color had fled from her
cheeks, and her eyes, which had been once so
bright they would have lighted darkness like a
star, lost nearly all their luster, and the king's
leeches could do nothing for her, and at last they
gave up all hope, and the king and queen of Erin
and the ladies of the court watched her couch
by night and by day sadly waiting for her last
hour.

At length one day, when the sun was shining
brightly over Tara's plain, and its light, softened
by the intervening curtains, was falling in the
sick chamber, the royal watchers noticed a sweet
change coming over the face of the princess ; the

THE ENCHANTED CAVE 73

bloom of love and youth were fliisliiug on her
cheeks, and from her eyes shone out the old, soft,
tender light, and they began to hope she was
about to be restored to them, when suddenly the
room was in darkness as if the night had swept
across the sky, and blotted out the sun. Then
they heard the sound of fairy music, and over the
couch where the princess lay they beheld a gleam
of golden light, but only for a moment; and
again there was perfect darkness, and the fairy
music ceased. Then, as suddenly as it came the
darkness vanished, the softened sunlight once
more filled the chamber, and rested ui)on the
couch; but the couch was empty, and the royal
watchers, looking at each other, said in whis-
pers : " The fairies have carried away the
Princess Ailinn to fairyland."

Well, that very day the prince roamed by him-
self through the forest, counting the hours until
the day would fade in the sky and the moon come
climbing up, and at last, when it was shining full
above the waters, he went down to the verge of
the lake, and he looked out over the gleaming
surface watching for the vision promised by the
little woman. But he could see nothing, and

74 FAIRY TALES

was about to turn away when he heard the faint
sound of fairy music. He listened and listened,
and the sound came nearer and clearer, and
away in the distance, like drops of glistening
water breaking the level of the lake, he saw a
fleet of fairy boats, and he thought it was the
fairy queen sailing in the moonlight. And it
was the fairy queen, and soon he was able to
recognize the royal shallop leading the others,
and as it came close to the bank he saw the little
woman sitting in the prow between the little
harpers, and at the stern was the fairy queen,
and by her side the lady of his heart, the Princess
Ailinn. In a second the boat was against the
bank, and the princess in his arms. And he
kissed her again and again.

" And have you never a kiss for me? " said the
little woman, tapping his hand with the little
gold bodkin.

"A kiss and a dozen," said Cuglas, as he
caught the little fairy up in his arms.

" Oh, fie, Cuglas," said the queen.

" Oh, the princess isn't one bit jealous," said
the little woman. " Are you, Ailinn? "

" Indeed I am not," said Ailinn.

THE ENCHANTED CAVE 75

" And you should not be," said the fairy queen,
" for never lady yet had truer knight than Cug-
las. I loved him, and I love him dearly. I lured
him here hoping that in the delights of fairyland
he might forget you. It was all in vain. I
know now that there is one thing no fairy power
above or below the stars, or beneath the waters,
can ever subdue, and that is love. And here
together forever shall you and Cuglas dwell,
where old age shall never come upon you, and
where pain or sorrow or sickness is unknown."

And Cuglas never returned to the fair hills of
Erin, and ages passed away since the morning he
followed the hounds into the fatal cave, but his
story was remembered by the firesides, and some-
times, even yet, the heiniboy watching his cattle
in the fields hears the tuneful cry of hounds, and
follows it till it leads him to a darksome cave,
and as fearfully he listens to the sound becoming
fainter and fainter he heai's the clatter of hoofs
over the stony floor, and to this day the cave
bears the name of the prince who entered it never
to return,*

* Uaimh Benla'h Conglais, the cave of the road of Cuglas — now
Baltinglass— in the County Wicklow.

THE HUNTSMAN'S SON

ALONG, long time ago there lived in a little
hut on the borders of a great forest a
huntsman and his wife and son. From
his earliest years the boy, whose name was Fer-
gus, used to hunt with his father in the forest,
and he grew up strong and active, sure and swift-
footed as a deer, and as free and fearless as the
wind. He was tall and handsome ; as supple as
a mountain ash, his lips were as red as its ber-
ries ; his eyes were as blue as the skies in spring ;
and his hair fell down over his shoulders like a
shower of gold. His heart was as light as a
bird's, and no bird was fonder of green woods
and Avaving branches. He had lived since his
birth in the hut in the forest, and had never
wished to leave it, until one winter night a wan-
dering minstrel sought shelter there, and paid
for his night's lodging with songs of love and
battle. Ever since that night Fergus pined for
another life. He no longer found joy in the

76

THE HUNTSMAN'S SON 77

music of tlie hounds or in the cries of the hunts-
men in forest glacles. He yearned for the chance
of battle, and the clang of shields, and the fierce
shouts of fighting warriors, and he spent all his
spare hours practicing on the harp and learning
the use of arms, for in those days the bravest
warriors were also bards. In this way the
spring and summer and autumn passed; and
when the winter came again it chanced that on a
stormy night, when thunder was rattling through
the forest, smiting the huge oaks and hurling
them crashing to the earth, Fergus lay awake
thinking of his present lot, and wondering what
the future might have in store for him. The
lightning was playing around the hut, and
every now and then a flash brightened up the
interior.

After a peal, louder than any which had pre-
ceded it, Fergus heard three loud knocks at the
door. He called out to his parents that some-
one was knocking.

" If that is so," said his father, " open at once;
this is no night to keep a poor wanderer outside
our door."

Fergus did as he was bidden, and as he opened

78 FAIRY TALES

the door a flash of lightning showed him, stand-
ing at the threshold, a little wizened old man
with a small harp under his arm.

" Come in, and welcome," said Fergus, and
the little man stepped into the room.

" It is a wild night, neighbors," said he.

" It is, indeed, a wild night," said the hunts-
man and his wife, who had got up and dressed
themselves ; " and sorry we are we have no bet-
ter shelter or better fare to offer you, but we give
you the best we have."

" A king cannot do more than his best," said
the little man.

The huntsman's wife lit the fire, and soon the
pine logs flashed up into a blaze, and made
the hut bright and warm. She then brought
forth a peggin of milk and a cake of barley-
bread.

" You must be hungry, sir," she said.

" Hungry I am," said he ; " but I wouldn't ask
for better fare than this if I were in the king's
palace."

" Thank you kindly, sir," said she, " and I
hope you will eat enough, and that it will do you
good."

THE HUNTSMAN'S SON 79

" And while you are eating your supper," said
the huntsman, " I'll make you a bed of fresh
rushes."

" Don't put 3'ourself to that trouble," said the
little man. " When I have done my supper I'll
lie down here by the fire, if it is pleasing to you,
and I'll sleep like a top until morning. And
now go back to your beds and leave me to myself,
and maybe some time when you won't be exj)ect-
ing it I'll do a good turn for your kindness to the
poor wayfarer."

" Oh, it's no kindness at all," said the hunts-
man's wife. " It would be a queer thing if an
Irish cabin would not give shelter and welcome
in a wild night like this. So good night, now,
and we hope you will sleep well.''

" Good night," said the little man, " and may
you and yours never sup sorrow until your djdng
day."

The huntsman and his wife and Fergus then
went back to their beds, and the little man, hav-
ing finished his supper, curled himself up by the
fire, and was soon fast asleep.

About an hour after a loud clap of thunder
awakened Fergus, and before it had died away

80 FAIRY TxiLES

lie heard three knocks at the door. He aroused
his parents and told them.

" Get up at once," said his mother, "■ this is no
night to keep a stranger outside our door."

Fergus rose and opened the door, and a flash of
lightning showed him a little old woman, with a
shuttle in her hand, standing outside.

" Come in, and welcome," said he, and the lit-
tle old woman stepped into the room.

" Blessings be on them who give welcome to a
wanderer on a wild night like this," said the old
woman.

" And who wouldn't give welcome on a night
like this? " said the huntsman's wife, coming
forward with a peggin of milk and a barley cake
in her hand, " and sorry we are we have not bet-
ter fare to offer you."

" Enough is as good as a feast," said the little
woman, " and now go back to your beds and
leave me to myself."

" Not till I shake down a bed of rushes for
you," said the huntsman's wife.

" Don't mind the rushes," said the little
woman ; " go back to your beds. I'll sleep here
by the fire."

Fergus knew it was the Pooka, the wild horse of

the mountjiins" .... Page 81

THE HUNTSMAN'S SON 81

The huntsman's wife went to bed, and the lit-
tle old woman, having eaten her supper, lay down
by the fire, and was soon fast asleep.

About an hour later another clap of thunder
startled Fergus. Again he heard three knocks
at the door. He roused his parents, but he did
not wait for orders from them. He opened the
door, and a flash of lightning showed him outside
the threshold a low-sized, shaggy, wild-looking
horse. And Fergus knew it was the Pooka, the
wild horse of the mountains. Bold as Fergus
was, his heart beat quickly as he saw fire issuing
from the Pooka's nostrils. But, banishing fear,
he cried out :

" Come in, and welcome."

" Welcome you are," said the huntsman, " and
sorry we are that we have not better shelter or
fare to offer you."

" I couldn't wish a better welcome," said the
Pooka, as he came over near the fire and sat down
on his haunches.

" Maybe you would like a little bit of this,
Master Pooka," said the huntsman's wife, as she
offered him a barley cake.

" I never tasted anything sweeter in my life,"

82 FAIRY TALES

said the Pooka, crunching it between his teeth,
" and now if you can give me a sup of milk, I'll
want for nothing."

The huntsman's wife brought him a peggin of
milk. When he had drunk it, " Now," says the
Pooka, " go back to your beds, and I'll curl my-
self up by the fire and sleep like a top till morn-
ing.'^

And soon everybody in the hut was fast
asleep.

When the morning came the storm had gone,
and the sun was shining through the windows of
the hut. At the song of the lark Fergus got up,
and no one in the world was ever more surprised
than he when he saw no sign of the little old man,
or the little old woman, or the wild horse of the
mountains. His parents were also surprised,
and they all thought that they must have been
dreaming until they saw the empty peggins
around the fire and some pieces of broken bread ;
and they did not know what to think of it all.

From that day forward the desire grew
stronger in the heart of Fergus for a change of
life; and one day he told his parents that he was
resolved to seek his fortune. He said he wished

THE HUNTSMAN'S SON 83

to be a soldier, and that he would set out for the
king's palace, and try to join the ranks of the
Feni.

About a week afterwards he took leave of his
parents, and having; received their blessing he
struck out for the road that led to the palace of
the High King of Erin. He arrived there just at
the time when the gi'eat captain of the Fenian
host was recruiting his battalions, which had
been thinned in recent battle.

The manly figure of Fergus, his gallant bear-
ing, and handsome face, all told in his favor.
But before he could be received into the Fenian
ranks he had to prove that he could play the
harp like a bard, that he could contend with staff
and shield against nine Fenian warriors, that
he could run with plaited hair through the
tangled forest without loosening a single hair,
and that in his course he could jump over trees
as high as his head, and stoop under trees as low
as his knee, and that he could run so lightly that
the rotten twigs should not break under his feet.
Fergus proved equal to all the tests, thanks to
the wandering minstrel who taught him the use
of the harp, to his own brave heart, and to his

84 FAIEY TALES

forest training. He was enrolled in the second
battalion of the Feni, and before long he was its
bravest and ablest champion.

At that very time it happened that the niece of
the High King of Erin was staying with the king
and queen in their palace at Tara. The princess
was the loveliest lady in all the land. She was
as proud as she was beautiful. The princes and
chieftains of Erin in vain sought her hand in
marriage. From Alba and Spain, and the far-
off isles of Greece, kings came to woo her. From
the northern lands came vikings in stately gal-
leys with brazen prows, whose oarsmen tore the
.white foam from the emerald seas as they swept
towards the Irish coasts. But the lady had
vowed she would wed with no one except a battle
champion who could excel in music the chief
bard of the High King of Erin; who could out-
strip on his steed in the great race of Tara the
white steed of the plains; and who could give
her as a wedding robe a garment of all the colors
of the rainbow, so finely spun that when folded
up it would fit in the palm of her small white
hand. To fulfill these three conditions was im-
possible for all her suitors, and it seemed as if

THE HUNTSMAN'S SON 85

the loveliest lady of the land would go unmar-
ried to her grave.

It chanced that once, on a day when the Fenian
battalions were engaged in a hurling-match, Fer-
gus beheld the lady watching the match from her
sunny bower. He no sooner saw her than he
fell over head and ears in love with her, and he
thought of her by night, and he thought of her
by day, and believing that his love was hopeless,
he often wished he had never left his forest-
home.

The great fair of Tara ^ was coming on, and
all the Feni were busy from morning till night
practicing feats of arms and games, in qrder to
take part in the contests to be held during the
fair. And Fergus, knowing that the princess
would be present, determined to do his best to
win the prizes which were to be contended for
before the ladies' eyes.

The fair began on the 1st of August, but for a
whole week before the five great roads of Erin
were thronged with people of all sorts. Princes
and warriors on their steeds, battle champions
in their chariots, harpers in hundreds, smiths
with gleaming spears and shields and harness

86 FAIEY TALES

for battle steeds and chariots ; troops of men and
boys leading racehorses; jewelers with gold
drinking-horns, and brooches, and pins, and ear-
rings, and costly gems of all kinds, and chess-
boards of silver and gold, and golden and silver
chessmen in bags of woven brass; dyers wdth
their many-colored fabrics; bands of jugglers;
drovers goading on herds of cattle; shepherds
driving their sheep ; huntsmen with spoils of the
chase; dwellers in the lakes or by the fish-
abounding rivers with salmon and speckled
trout; and countless numbers of peasants on
horseback and on foot, all wending their way tt)
the great meeting-place by the mound, which a
thousand years before had been raised over the
grave of the great queen. For there the fair was
to be held.

On the opening day the High King, attended
by the four kings of Erin, set out from the palace,
and with them went the queen and the ladies of
the court in sparkling chariots. The princess
rode in the chariot with the High Queen, under
an awning made of the wings of birds, to protect
them from the rays of the sun. Following the
queen were the court ladies in other chariots,

THE HUNTSMAN'S SON 87

under awnings of purple or of yellow silk. Then
came the brehons, the great judges of the land,
and the chief bards of the high court of Tara,
and the Druids, crowned with oak leaves, and
carrying wands of divination in their hands.

When the royal party reached the ground it
took its place in inclosures right up against the
monumental mound. The High King sat with
the four kings of Erin, all wearing their golden
helmets, for thev wore their diadems in battle
only. In an inclosure next the king's sat the
queen and the princess and all the ladies of the
court. At either side of the royal pavilions were
others for the dames and ladies and nobles and
chiefs of different degrees, forming part of a
circle on the plain, and the stands and benches
for the people were so arranged as to complete
the circle, and in the round green space within
it, so that all might hear and see, the contests
were to take place.

At a signal from the king, who was greeted
with a thunderous cheer, the heralds rode round
the circle, and having struck their sounding
shields three times with their swords, they made
a solemn proclamation of peace. Then was sung

88 FAIRY TALES

by all the assembled bards^ to the accompani-
ment of their harj^s, the chant in honor of the
mighty dead. When this was ended, again the
heralds struck their shields, and the contests be-
gan. The first contest was the contest of spear-
throwing between the champions of the seven
battalions of the Feni. When the seven cham-
pions took their places in front of the royal in-
closure, everyone, even the proud princess, was
struck by the manly beauty and noble bearing of
Fergus.

The champions poised their spears, and at a
stroke from the heralds upon their shields the
seven spears sped flashing through the air. They
all struck the ground, shafts up, and it was seen
that two were standing side by side in advance
of the rest, one belonged to Fergus, the other
to the great chief, Oscar. The contest for the
prize then lay between Oscar and Fergus, and
when they stood in front of the king, holding
their spears aloft, every heart was throbbing
with excitement. Once more the heralds struck
their shields, and, swifter than the lightning's
flash, forth went the spears, and when Fergus's
spear was seen shivering in the ground a full

THE HUNTSMAN'S SON 89

length ahead of the great chief Oscar's, the air
was shaken by a wild cheer that was heard far
beyond the plains of Tara. And as Fergus ap-
proached the high king to receive the prize the
cheers were renewed. But Fergus thought more
of the winsome glance of the princess than he
did of the prize or the sounding cheers. And
Princess Maureen was almost sorry for her vow,
for her heart was touched by the beauty of the
Fenian champion.

Other contests followed, and the day passed,
and the night fell, and while the Fenian warriors
were reveling in their camps the heart of Fer-
gus, victor as he was, was sad and low. He
escaped from his companions, and stole away
to his native forest, for —

" When the heart is sick and sorest,
There is balsam in the forest —
There is balsam in the forest

For its pain. "

And as he lay under the spreading branches,
watching the stars glancing through the leaves,
and listening to the slumb'rous murmur of the
waters, a strange peace came over him.

But in the camp which he had left, and in the

90 FAIRY TALES

vast multitude on the plains of Tara, there was
stir and revelry, and babbling speculation as to
the contest of to-morrow — the contest which was
to decide whether the chief bard of Erin was to
hold his own against all comers, or yield the
palm. For rumor said that a great Skald had
come from the northern lands to compete with
the Irish bard.

At last, over the Fenian camp, and over the
great plain and the multitude that thronged it,
sleep fell, clothing them with a silence as deep as
that which dwelt in the forest, where, dreaming
of the princess, Fergus lay. He awoke at the
first notes of the birds, but though he felt he
ought to go back to his companions and be wit-
ness of the contest which might determine
whether the princess was to be another's bride,
his great love and his utter despair of winning
her so oppressed him that he lay as motionless as
a broken reed. He scarcelj^ heard the music of
the birds, and paid no heed to the murmur of the
brook rushing by his feet. The crackling of
branches near him barelj^ disturbed him, but
when a shadow fell across his eyes he looked up
gloomil}^, and saw, or thought he saw, someone

THE HUNTSMAN'S SON 91

standing before him. He started up, and who
should he see but the little wizened old man
who found shelter in his father's hut on the
stormy night.

" This is a nice place for a battle cham]3ion to
be. This is a nice place for you to be on the day
which is to decide who will be the successful
suitor of the princess."

" What is it to me." said Fergus, " who is to
win her since I cannot? "

" I told you," said the little man, " the night
you opened the door for me, that the time might
come when I might be able to do a good turn for
you and yours. The time has come. Take this
harp, and my luck go with you, and in the contest
of the bards to-day you'll reap the reward of
the kindness you did when you opened your
door to the poor old wayfarer in the midnight
storm."

The little man handed his harp to Fergus and
disappeared as swiftly as the wind that passes
through the leaves.

Fergus, concealing the harp under his silken
cloak, reached the camp before his comrades had
aroused themselves from sleep.

92 FAIRY TALES

At length the hour arrived when the great con-
test was to take place.

The king gave the signal, and as the chief bard
of Erin was seen ascending the mound in front
of the royal inclosures he was greeted with a
roar of cheers, but at the first note of his harp
silence like that of night fell on the mighty
gathering.

As he moved his fingers softly over the strings
every heart was hushed, filled with a sense of
balmy rest. The lark soaring and singing above
his head paused mute and motionless in the still
air, and no sound was heard over the spacious
plain save the dreamy music. Then the bard
struck another key, and a gentle sorrow pos-
sessed the hearts of his hearers, and unbidden
tears gathered to their eyes. Then, with bolder
hand, he swept his fingers across his lyre, and all
hearts were moved to joy and pleasant laughter,
and eyes that had been dimmed by tears sparkled
as brightly as running waters dancing in the sun.
When the last notes had died away a cheer arose,
loud as the voice of the storm in the glen when
the live thunder is reveling on the mountain
tops. As soon as the bard had descended the

THE HUNTSMAN'S SON 93

mound the Skald from the northern lands took
his place, greeted by cries of welcome from a
hundred thousand throats. He touched his
harp, and in the perfect silence was heard the
strain of the mermaid's song, and through it
the pleasant ripple of summer waters on the
pebbly beach. Then the theme was changed, and
on the air was borne the measured sweep of
countless oars and the swish of waters around
the prows of contending galleys, and the breezy
voices of the sailors and the sea-bird's cry. Then
his theme was changed to the mirth and laugh-
ter of the banquet-hall, the clang of meeting
drinking-horns, and songs of battle. When the
last strain ended, from the mighty host a great
shout went up, loud as the roar of winter billows
breaking in the hollows of the shore; and men
knew not whom to declare the victor, the chief
bard of Erin or the Skald of the northern lands.

In the height of the debate the cry arose that
another competitor had ascended the mound, and
there standing in view of all was Fergus, the
huntsman's son. All eyes Avere fastened upon
him, but no one looked so eagerly as the princess.

He touched his harp with gentle fingers, and a

94 FAIRY TALES

sound low and soft as a faint summer breeze
passing tlirougli forest trees stole out, and then
was heard the rustle of birds through the
branches, and the dreamy murmur of waters lost
in deepest woods, and all the fairy echoes whis-
pering when the leaves are motionless in the
noonday heat; then followed notes cool and soft
as the drip of summer showers on the parched
grass, and then the song of the blackbird, sound-
ing as clearly as it sounds in long silent spaces
of the evening, and then in one sweet jocund
burst the multitudinous voices that ^hail the
breaking of the morn. And the lark, singing
and soaring above the minstrel, sank mute and
motionless upon his shoulder, and from all the
leafy woods the birds came thronging out and
formed a fluttering canopy above his head.

When the bard ceased playing no shout arose
from the mighty multitude, for the strains of his
harp, long after its chords were stilled, held their
hearts spellbound.

And when he had passed away from the mound
of contest all knew there was no need to declare
the victor.^ And all were glad the comely
Fenian champion had maintained the supremacy

THE HUNTSMAN'S SON 95

of the bards of Erin. But there was one heart
sad, the heart of the princess; and now she
wished more than ever that she had never made
her hateful vow.

Other contests went on, but Fergus took no
interest in them ; and once more he stole away to
the forest glade. His heart was sorrowful, for
he thought of the great race of the morning,
and he knew that he could not hope to compete
with the rider of the white steed of the plains.
I And as he lay beneath the spreading branches
during the whole night long his thoughts were
not of the victory he had won, but of the princess,
who was as far away from him as ever. He
passed the night without sleep, and when the
morning came he rose and walked aimlessly
through the woods.

A deer starting from a thicket reminded him
of the happy days of his boyhood, and once more
the wish came back to him that he had never left
his forest home. As his eyes followed the deer
wistfully, suddenly he started in amazement.
The deer vanished from view, and in his stead
was the wild horse of the mountains.

" I told you I'd do you a good turn," said the

96 FAIRY TALES

Pooka, " for tlie kindness you and yours did me
on that wild winter's night. The day is passing.
You have no time to lose. The white steed of the
plains is coming to the starting-post. Jump on
my back, and remember, ' Faint heart never won
fair lady,' "

In half a second Fergus was bestride the
Pooka, whose coat of shaggy hair became at once
as glossy as silk, and just at the very moment
when the king was about to declare there was no
steed to compete with the white steed of the
plains, the Pooka, with Fergus upon his back,
galloped up in front of the royal inclosure.
When the people saw the champion a thun-
derous shout rose up that startled the birds in
the skies, and sent them flying to the groves.

And in the ladies' inclosure was a rustle of
many-colored scarves wa^dng in the air. At the
striking of the shields the contending steeds
rushed from the post with the swiftness of a
swallow's flight. But before the white steed of
the plains had gone halfway round, Fergus and
the wild horse of the mountains had passed thi^
winning post, greeted by such cheers as had
never before been heard on the plains of Tara.

THE HUNTSMAN'S SON 97

Fergus heard the cheers, but scarcely heeded
them, for his heart went out through his eyes
that were fastened on the princess, and a wild
hope stirred him that his glance was not ungrate-
ful to the loveliest lady of the land.

And the princess was sad and sorry for her
vow, for she believed that it was beyond the
power of Fergus to bring her a robe of all the
colors of the rainbow, so subtly woven as to fit
in the palm of her soft, white hand.

That night also Fergus went to the forest, not
too sad, because there was a vague hope in his
heart that had never been there before. He lay
down under the branches, Avith his feet towards
the rustling waters, and the smiles of the
princess gilded his slumbers, as the rays of the
rising sun gild the glades of the forest ; and when
the morning came he was scarcely surprised
when before him appeared the little old woman
with the shuttle he had welcomed on the win-
ter's night.

" You think you have won her already," said
the little woman. " And so you have, too ; her
heart is all your own, and I'm half inclined to
think that my trouble will be thrown away, for

98 FAIRY TALES

if you had never a wedding robe to give her, she'd
rather have you this minute than all the kings
of Erin, or than all the other princes and kings
and chieftains in the whole world. But you and
your father and mother were kind to me on a
wild winter's night, and I'd never see your
mother's son without a wedding robe fit for the
greatest princess that ever set nations to battle
for her beauty. So go and pluck me a handful
of wild forest flowers, and I'll weave out of thein
a wedding robe with all the colors of the rain-
bow, and one that will be as sweet and as fra-
grant as the ripe, red lips of the princess herself."

Fergus, with joyous heart, culled the flowers,
and brought them to the little old woman.

In the twinkling of an eye she wove with her
little shuttle a wedding robe, with all the colors
of the rainbow, as light as the fairy dew, as soft !
as the hand of the princess, as fragrant as herj
little red mouth, and so small that it would pass
through the eye of a needle.

" Go now, Fergus," said she, " and may luck
go with you; but, in the days of your greatness
and of the glory which will come to you when
you are wedded to the princess, be as kind, and

THE HUNTSMAN'S SON 99

have as open a lieart and as open a door for the
poor as you had when you were only a poor
huntsman's son."

Fergus took the robe and went towards Tara.
It was the last day of the fair, and all the con-
tests were over, and the bards were about to
chant the farewell strains to the memory of the
great queen. But before the chief bard could
ascend the mound, Fergus, attended by a troop
of Fenian warriors on their steeds, galloped into
the inclosure, and rode up in front of the queen's
pavilion. Holding up the glancing and many-
colored robe, he said :

" O Queen and King of Erin ! I claim the
princess for my bride. You, O king, have de-
cided that I have won the prize in the contest of
the bards ; that I have won the prize in the race
against the white steed of the plains; it is for
the princess to say if the robe which I give
her will fit in the hollow of her small white
hand."

" Yes," said the king. " You are victor in the
contests; let the princess declare if you have
fulfilled the last condition."

The princess took the robe from Fergus, closed

100 FAIRY TALES

her fingers over it, so that no vestige of it was
seen.

" Yes, O king ! " said she, " he has fulfilled the
last condition ; but before ever he had fulfilled a
single one of them, my heart went out to the
comely champion of the Feni. I ',vas willing
then, I am ready now, to become the bride of
the huntsman-s son."

THE FAIRY TREE OF DOOROS ^°

ONCE upon a time the fainess of t.lie;west,
goiug home from a htirliiig-mateh with
the fairies of th'i lales, rest.k( 'in 'a^Goros
Wood for three days and three nights. They
spent the days feasting and the nights dancing
in the light of the moon, and they danced so hard
that they wore the shoes off their feet, and for a
whole week after the leprechauns, the fairies'
shoemakers, were working night and day mak-
ing new ones, and the rip, rap, tap, tap of their
little hammers were heard in all the hedgerows.

The food on which the fairies feasted was
little red berries, which were so like those that
grow on the rowan tree that if you only looked
at them you might mistake one for the other ; but
the fairy berries grow only in fairyland, and are
sweeter than any fruit that grows here in this
world, and if an old man, bent and gray, ate one
of them, he became young and active and strong
again; and if an old woman, withered and

101

102 FAIRY TALES

wrinkled, ate one of them, she became young and
bright and fair ; and if a little maiden who was
not handsome ate of them, she became lovelier
than the flower of beauty.

The fairies guarded the berries as carefully as
a miser guards his gold, and whenever they were
about to leave fa.3ry:;a,Tid they had to promise in
the 'Presence '.of the kiiig and queen that they
would not give a single berry to mortal man, nor
allow one to fall upon the earth ; for if a single
berry fell upon the earth a slender tree of many
branches, bearing clusters of berries, would at
once spring up, and mortal men might eat of
them.

But it chanced that this time they were in
Dooros Wood they kept up the feasting and
dancing so long, and were so full of joy because
of their victory over the lake fairies, that one lit-
tle, weeny fairy, not much bigger than my finger,
lost his head, and dropped a berry in the wood.

When the feast was ended the fairies went
back to fairyland, and were at home for more
than a week before they knew of the little fel-
low's fault, and this is how they came to know
of it.

THE FAIRY TREE OP DOOROS 103

A great wedding was about to come off, and
the queen of the fairies sent six of her pages to
Dooros Wood to catch fifty butterflies with
golden spots on their purple wings, and fifty
white without speck or spot, and fifty golden,
yellow as the cowslip, to make a dress for her-
self, and a hundred white, without speck or spot,
to make dresses for the bride and bridesmaids.

When the pages came near the wood they
heard the most wonderful music, and the sky
above them became quite dark, as if a cloud had
shut out the sun. They looked up, and saw that
the cloud was formed of bees, who in a great
swarm were flying towards the wood and hum-
ming as they flew. Seeing this they were sore
afraid until they saw the bees settling on a single
S-ee, and on looking closely at the tree they saw
it was covered with fairy berries.

The bees took no notice of the fairies, and so
they were no longer afraid, and they hunted the
butterflies until tbey had captured the full num-
ber of various colors. Then they returned to
fairyland, and they told the queen about the bees
and the berries, and the queen told the king.

The king was very angry, and he sent his

104 FAIRY TALES

heralds to the four corners of fairyland to sum-
mon all his subjects to his presence that he
might find out without delay who was the
culprit.

They all came except the little weeny fellow
who dropped the berry, and of course everyone
said that it was fear that kept him away, and
that he must be guilty.

/ The heralds were at once sent in search of
him, and after a while they found him hiding in
a cluster of ferns, and brought him before the
king.

The poor little fellow was so frightened that at
first he could scarcely speak a word, but after a
time he told how he never missed the berry until
he had returned to fairyland, and that he was
afraid to say anything to anyone about it.

The king, who would hear of no excuse,
sentenced the little culprit to be banished into
the land of giants bej^ond the mountains, to stay
there for ever and a day unless he could find a
giant willing to go to Dooros Wood and guard
the fairy tree. When the king had pronounced
sentence everyone was very sorry, because the
little fellow was a favorite with them all. No

THE FAIRY TREE OF DOOROS 105

fairy harper upon his harp, or piper upon his
pipe, or fiddler upon his fiddle, could play half
so sweetly as he could play upon an ivy leaf;
and when they remembered all the pleasant
moonlit nights on which they had danced to his
music, and thought thut they should never hear
or dance to it any more, their little hearts were
filled with sorrow. The queen was as sad as
any of her subjects, but the king's word should
be obeyed.

When the time came for the little fellow to set
out into exile the queen sent her luad page to
him with a handful of berries. Theso the queen
said he was to offer to the giants, and say at the
same time that the giant who wa^ willing to
guard the tree could feast on berries just as
sweet from morn till night.

As the little fellow went on his a\ ay nearly all
the fairies followed him to the borders of the
land, and when they saw him go up the mountain
towards the land of the giants, they all took off
their little red caps and waved them until he
was out of sight.

On he went walking all day and night, and
when the sun rose on the morrow he was on the

106 FAIRY TALES

top of the mountain, and he could see the land
of the giants in the valley stretched far below
him. Before beginning his descent he turned
round for a last glimpse of fairyland; but he
could see nothing, for a thick, dark cloud shut it
out from view. He was very sad, and tired, and
footsore, and as he struggled down the rough
mountain side, he could not help thinking of the
soft, green woods and mossy pathways of the
pleasant land he had left behind him.

When he awoke the ground was trembling, and
a noise that sounded like thunder fell on his
ears. He looked up and saw coming towards
him a terrible giant, with one eye that burned
like a live coal in the middle of his forehead ; his
mouth stretched from ear to ear, his teeth were
long and crooked, the skin of his face was as
black as night, and his arms and chest were all
covered with black, shaggy hair ; round his body
was an iron band, and hanging from this by a
chain was a great club with iron spikes. With
one blow of this club he could break a rock into
splinters, and fire could not burn him, and water
could not drown him, and weapons could not
wound him, and there was no way to kill him but

r^

i_j

'He was very sad, and tired,'

Page 106

THE FAIRY TREE OF DOOROS 107

by giving liim three blows of his own club. And
he was so bad-tempered that the other giants
called him Sharvan the Surlj. When the giant
spied the red cap of the little fairy he gave the
shout that sounded like thunder. The poor
fairy was shaking from head to foot.

" What brought you here? " said the giant.

" Please, Mr. Giant/' said the fairy, " the king
of the fairies banished me here, and here I must
stay for ever and a day, unless you come and
guard the fairy tree in Dooros Wood."

" Unless what? " roared the giant, and he gave
the fairy a touch of his foot that sent the little
fellow rolling down head over heels.

The poor fairy lay as if he were dead, and then
the giant, feeling sorry for what he had done,
took him uj) gently between his finger and
thumb.

" Don't be frightened, little man," said he,
" and now, tell me all about the tree."

" It is the tree of the fairy berry that grows
in the Wood of Dooros," said the fairy, " and I
have some of the berries with me."

" Oh, you have, have you? " said the giant.
" Let me see them."

108 FAIRY TALES

The fairy took three berries from the pocket of
his little green coat, and gave them to the giant.

The giant looked at them for a second. He
then swallowed the three together, and when he
had done so, he felt so happy that he began to
shout and dance for joy.

"More, you little thief!" said he. "More,,
you little what's ;four name? " said the giant.

"Pinkeen, please, Mr. Giant," said the fairy,
as he gave up all the berries.

The giant shouted louder than before, and his
shouts were heard by all the other giants, who
came running towards him.

When Sharyau saw them coming, he caught up
Pinkeen, and put him in his pocket, that they
shouldn't see him.

" What were you shouting for? " said the
giants.

" Because," said Sharvan, " that rock there
fell down on my big toe."

" You did not shout like a man that was hurt,"
said they.

"What is it to jou what way I shouted?"
said he.

" You might give a civil answer to a civil ques-

THE FAIRY TREE OF DOOROS 109

tion," said they; "but sure you were always
Sliarvan the Surly; " and they went away.

When the giants were out of sight, Sharvan
took Pinkeen out of his wallet.

" Some more berries, you little thief — I mean
little Pinkeen," said he.

" I have not any more," said Pinkeen ; " but if
you will guard the tree in Dooros Wood you can
feast on them from morn till night."

" I'll guard every tree in the wood, if I may
do that," said the giant.

" You'll have to guard only one," said Pinkeen.

" How am I to get to it? " said Sharvan.

" You must first come with me towards fairy-
land," said the fairy.

" Very well," said Sharvan ; " let us go." And
he took up the fairy and put him into his wallet,
and before very long they were on the top of the
mountain. Then the giant looked around
towards the giants' land ; but a black cloud shut
it out from view, while the sun was shining on
the valley that lay before him, and he could see
away in the distance the green woods and
shining waters of fairyland.

It was not long until he reached its borders,

110 FAIRY TALES

but when he tried to cross them his feet stuck to
the ground and he could not move a step. Shar-
van gave three loud shouts that were heard all
over fairyland, and made the trees in the woods
tremble, as if the wind of a storm was sweeping
over them.

" Oh, please, Mr. Giant, let me out," said
Pinkeen.w Sharvan took out the little fellow,
who, as soon as he saw he was on the borders
of fairyland ran as fast as his legs could carry
him, and before he had gone very far he met
all the little fairies who, hearing the shouts of
the giant, came trooping out from the ferns to
see what was the matter. Pinkeen told them it
was the giant who was to guard the tree, shout-
ing because he was stuck fast on the borders,
and they need have no fear of him. The fairies
were so delighted to have Pinkeen back again,
that they took him up on their shoulders and car-
ried him to the king's palace, and all the harpers
and pipers and fiddlers marched before him play-
ing the most jocund music that w^as ever heard.
The king and queen were on the lawn in front of
the palace when the gay procession came up and
halted before them. The queen's eyes glistened

THE FAIRY TEEE OF DOOROS 111

with pleasure when she saw the little favorite,
and the king was also glad at heart, but he
looked very grave as he said :

" Why have you returned, sirrah? "

Then Pinkeen told his majesty that he had
brought with him a giant who was willing to
guard the fairy tree.

" And who is he and where is he? " asked the
king.

" The other giants called him Sharvan the
Surly," said Pinkeen, " and he is stuck fast out-
side the borders of fairyland."

" It is well," said the king, " you are par-
doned."

When the fairies heard this they tossed their
little red caps in the air, and cheered so loudly
that a bee who was clinging to a rose-bud fell
senseless to the ground.

Then the king ordered one of his pages to take
a handful of berries, and to go to Sharvan and
show him the way to Dooros W^ood. The page,
taking the berries w4th him, went off to Shar-
van, whose roaring nearly frightened the poor
little fellow to death. But as soon as the giant
tasted the berries he got into good humor, and

112 FAIRY TALES

he asked the page if he could remove the spell of
enchantment from him.

" I can," said the page, " and I will if you
promise me that you will not try to cross the
borders of fairyland."

" I promise that, with all my heart," said the
giant. " But hurry on, my little man, for there
are pins and needles in my legs."

The page plucked a cowslip, and picking out
the five little crimson spots in the cup of it, he
flung one to the north, and one to the south, and
one to the east, and one to the west, and one up
into the sky, and the spell was broken, and the
giant's limbs were free. Then Sharvan and the
fairy page set off for Dooros Wood, and it was
not long until they came within view of the fairy
tree. When Sharvan saw the berries glistening
in the sun, he gave a shout so loud and strong
that the wind of it blew the little fairy back to
fairyland. But he had to return to the wood
to tell the giant that he was to stay all day at
the foot of the tree ready to do battle with any-
one who might come to steal the berries, and that
during the night he was to sleep amongst the
branches.

THE FAIRY TREE OF DOOROS 113

" All right/' said the giant, who could scarcely
speak, as his mouth was full of berries.

Well, the fame of the fairy-tree spread far and
wide, and every day some adventurer came to try
if he could carry away some of the berries; but
the giant, true to his word, was always on the
watch, and not a single day passed on which he
did not fight and slay a daring champion, and
the giant never received a wound, for fire could
not burn him, nor water drown him, nor weapon
wound him.

Now, at this time, when Sharvan was keeping
watch and ward over the tree, a cruel king was
reigning over the lands that looked towards the
rising sun. He had slain the rightful king by
foul means, and his subjects, loving their mur-
dered sovereign, hated the usurper ; but much as
they hated him they feared him more, for he was
brave and masterful, and he was armed with a
helmet and shield Avhich no weapon made by
mortal hands could pierce, and he carried always
with him two javelins that never missed their
mark, and were so fatal that they were called
" the shafts of death." The murdered king had
two children — a boy, whose name was Niall, and

114 FAIRY TALES

a girl, who was called Rosaleen — that is, little
Rose ; but no rose that ever bloomed was half as
sweet or fresh or fair as she. Cruel as the tyrant
king was, he was too afraid of the people to kill
the children. He sent the boy adrift on the sea in
an open boat, hoping the waves would swallow
it; and he got an old witch to cast the spell of
deformity over Rosaleen, and under the spell her
beauty faded, until at last she became so ugly |
and wasted that scarcely anyone would speak to
her. And, shunned by everyone, she spent her
days in the out-houses with the cattle, and every
night she cried herself to sleep.

One day, when she was very lonely, a little
robin came to pick the crumbs that had fallen
about her feet. He appeared so tame that she
offered him the bread from her hand, and when
he took it she cried with joy at finding that there
was one living thing that did not shun her.
After this the robin came every day, and he sang
so sweetly for her that she almost forgot her
loneliness and misery. But once while the robin
was -with her the tyrant king's daughter, wlio
was very beautiful, passed with her maids of
honor, and, seeing Rosaleen, the princess said:

THE FAIKY TREE OF DOOROS 115

" Oil, there is that horrid ugly thing."

The maids laughed and giggled, and said they
had never seen such a fright.

Poor Rosaleen felt as if her heart would break,
and when the princess and her maids were out of
sight she almost cried her eyes out. When the
robin saw her crying he perched on her shoulder
and rubbed his little head against her neck and
chirruped softly in her ear, and Rosaleen was
comforted, for she felt she had at least one friend
in the world, although it was only a little robin.
But the robin could do more for her than she
could dream of. He heard the remark made by
the princess, and he saw Rosaleen's tears, and
he knew now why she was shunned by every-
body, and why she was so unhappy. And that
very evening he flew off to Dooros Wood, and
called on a cousin of his and told him all about
Rosaleen.

" And you want some of the fairy berries, I
suppose," said his cousin, Robin of the Wood.

" I do," said Rosaleen's little friend.

" Ah," said Robin of the Wood, " times have
changed since you were here last. The tree is
L guarded now all the day long by a surly giant.

116 FAIRY TALES

He sleeps in the brandies during the night, and
he breathes upon them and around them every
morning, and his breath is poison to bird and
bee. There is only one chance open, and if you
try that it may cost you your life."

" Then tell me what it is, for I would give a
hundred lives for Eosaleen," said her own little
robin.

" Well," said Robin of the Wood, " every day
a champion comes to battle with the giant, and
the giant, before he begins the fight, puts a
branch of berries in the iron belt that's around
his waist, so that when he feels tired or thirsty
he can refresh himself, and there is just a bare
chance, while he is fighting, of picking one of the
berries from the branch ; but if his breath fall on
you it is certain death."

" I will take the chance," said Rosaleen's
robin.

" Very well," said the other. And the two
birds flew through the wood until they came
within sight of the fairy tree. The giant was
lying stretched at the foot of it, eating the ber-
ries; but it was not long until a warrior came,
who challenged him to battle. The giant

THE FAIRY TREE OF DOOROS 117

jumped up, and plucking a branch from the tree
stuck it in his belt, and swinging his iron club
above his head strode towards the warrior, and
the fight began. The robin perched on a tree
behind the giant, and watched and waited for his
chance; but it was a long time coming, for the
berries were in front of the giant's belt. At last
the giant, with one great blow, struck the war-
rior down, but as he did so he stumbled and fell
upon him, and before he had time to recover him-
self the little robin darted towards him like a
flash and picked off one of the berries, and then,
as fast as wings could carry him, he flew towards
home, and on his way he passed over a troop of
warriors on snow-white steeds. All the horse-
men except one wore silver helmets and shining
mantles of green silk, fastened by brooches of
red gold, but the chief, who rode at the head of
the troop, wore a golden helmet, and his mantle
was of yellow silk, and he looked by far the
noblest of them all. When the robin had left
the horsemen far behind him he spied Rosaleen
sitting outside the palace gates bemoaning her
fate. The robin perched upon her shoulder, and
almost before she knew he was there he put the

118 FAIRY TALES

berry between her lips, and the taste was so deli-
cious that Rosaleen ate it at once, and that very
moment the witch's withering spell passed away
from her, and she became as lovely as the flower
of beauty. Just then the warriors on the snow-
white steeds came up, and the chief with the
mantle of yellow silk and the golden helmet
leaped from his horse, and bending his knee be-
fore her, said :

" Fairest of all fair maidens, you are surely
the daughter of the king of these realms, even
though you are without the palace gates, unat-
tended, and wear not rojal robes. I am the
Prince of the Sunny Valleys."

" Daughter of a king I am," said Rosaleen,
" but not of the king who rules these realms."

And saying this she fled, leaving the prince
wondering who she could be. The prince then
ordered his trumpeters to give notice of his pres-
ence outside the palace, and in a few moments
the king and all his nobles came out to greet the
prince and his warriors, and give them welcome.
That night a great feast was spread in the ban-
quet hall, and the Prince of the Sunny Valleys
sat by the king, and beside the prince sat the

THE FAIRY TREE OP DOOROS 119

king's beautiful daughter, and then in due order
sat the nobles of the court and the warriors
who had come with the prince, and on the wall
behind each noble and warrior his shield and
helmet were suspended, flashing radiance
through the room. During the feast the prince
spoke most graciously to the lovely lady at his
side, but all the time he was thinking of the un-
known beauty he had met outside the palace
gates, and his heart longed for another glimpse
of her. When the feast was ended, and the
jeweled drinking-cups had gone merrily around
the table, the bards sang, to the accompaniment
of harps, the " Courtship of the Lady Eimer,-'
and as they pictured her radiant beauty outshin-
ing that of all her maidens, the prince thought
that fair as Lady Eimer was there was one still
fairer.

When the feast was ended the king asked the
prince what brought him into his realms.

" I come," said the prince, " to look for a bride,
for it was foretold to me in my own country that
here only I should find the lady who is destined
to share my throne, and fame reported that in
your kingdom are to be found the loveliest maid-

120 FAIKY TALES

ens in all the world, and I can well believe that,"
added the prince, " after what I have seen to-
day."

When the king's daughter heard this she hung
down her head and blushed like a rose, for, of
course, she thought the prince was alluding only
to herself, as she did not know that he had seen
Rosaleen, and she had not heard of the restora-
tion of her beauty.

Before another word could be spoken a great
noise and the clang of arms were heard outside
the palace. The king and his guests started
from their seats and drew their swords, and the
bards raised the song of battle; but their voices
were stilled and their harps silenced when they
saw at the threshold of the banquet hall a battle
chami)ion, in whose face they recognized the
features of their murdered king.

" 'Tis Niall come back to claim his father's
throne," said the chief bard. " Long live
Mall!"

" Long live Niall ! " answered all the others.

The king, white Avith rage and amazement,
turned to the chiefs and nobles of his court, and
cried out :

THE FAIRY TEEE OP DOOROS 121

" Is there none loyal enough to drive that in-
truder from the banquet hall? "

But no one stirred, and no answer was given.
Then the king rushed forward alone, but before
he could reach the spot where Niall Avas stand-
ing he was seized by a dozen chiefs and at once
disarmed.

During this scene the king's daughter had fled
frightened ; but Rosaleen, attracted by the noise,
and hearing her brother's name and the cheers
which greeted it, had entered the banquet hall
unperceived by anj^one. But when her presence
was discovered every eye was dazzled with her
beauty. Niall looked at her for a second, won-
dering if the radiant maiden before him could
be the little sister he had been separated from
for so many years. In another second she was
clasped in his arms.

Then the feast was spread again, and Niall
told the story of his adventures; and when the
Prince of the Sunny Valley asked for the hand
of Rosaleen, Niall told his lovely sister to speak
for herself. With downcast eyes and smiling
lips she said, " yes," and that very day was
the gayest and brightest wedding that ever

122 FAIRY TALES

took place, and Rosaleen became the prince's
bride.

In her happiness she did not forget the little
robin, who was her friend in sorrow. She took
him home with her to Sunny Valleys, and every
day she fed him with her own hands, and every
day he sang for her the sweetest songs that were
ever heard in lady's bower.

A

THE LITTLE WHITE CAT.

LONG, long time ago, in a valley far away,
the giant Trencoss lived in a great castle,
surrounded by trees that were always
green. The castle had a hundred doors, and
every door was guarded by a huge, shaggy hound,
with tongue of fire and claws of iron, who tore
to pieces anyone who went to the castle without
the giant's leave. Trencoss had made war on the
King of the Torrents, and, having killed the king,
and slain his people, and burned his palace, he
carried off his only daughter, the Princess
Eileen, to the castle in the valley. Here he pro-
vided her with beautiful rooms, and appointed a
hundred dwarfs, dressed in blue and yellow satin,
to wait upon her, and harpers to play sweet
music for her, and he gave her diamonds without
number, brighter than the sun ; but he would not
allow her to go outside the castle, and told her if
she went one step beyond its doors, the hounds,

with tongues of fire and claws of iron, would

123

124 FAIEY TALES

tear her to pieces. A week after her arrival, war
broke out between the giant and the King of the
Islands, and before he set out for battle, the giant
sent for the princess, and informed her that on
his return he would make her his wdfe. When
the princess heard this she began to cry, for she
would rather die than marry the giant who had
slain her father.

" Crying will only spoil your bright eyes, my
little princess,'' said Trencoss, " and you will
have to marry me whether vou like it or no,"

He then bade her go back to her room, and he
ordered the dwarfs to give her everything she
asked for while he was away, and the harpers
to play the sweetest music for her. When the
princess gained her room she cried as if her
heart would break. The long day passed slowly,
and the night came, but brought no sleep to
Eileen, and in the gray light of the morning she
rose and opened the window, and looked about in
every direction to see if there were any chance of
escape. But the window was ever so high above
the ground, and below were the hungry and ever
watchful hounds. \<\\h a heavy heart she was
about to close the window when she thought she

THE LITTLE WHITE CAT 125

saw the branches of the tree that was nearest
to it moving. She looked again, and she saw
a little white cat creeping along one of the
branches.

" Mew ! '' cried the cat.

" Poor little pussy/' said the princess. " Come
to me, pussy."

" Stand back from the window," said the cat,
" and I will."

The princess stepped back, and the little
white cat jumped into the room. The princess
took the little cat on her lap and stroked him
with her hand, and the cat raised up its back and
began to purr.

" Where do you come from, and what is your
name? " asked the princess.

" No matter where I come from or what's my
name," said the cat. " I am a friend of yours,
and I come to help you? "

" I never wanted help worse," said the
princess.

" I know that," said the cat; " and now listen
to me. When the giant comes back from battle
and asks you to marry him, say to him you will
marry him."

126 FAIRY TALES

" But I will never marry him," said tlie
princess.

" Do what I tell you," said the cat. " When
he asks you to marry him, say to him you
will if his dwarfs will wind for you three balls
from the fairy dew that lies on the bushes on a
misty morning as big as these," said the cat,
putting his right forefoot into his ear and taking
out three balls — one yellow, one red, and one
blue.

" They are very small," said the prin-
cess. '^ They are not much bigger than peas,
and the dwarfs will not be long at their
work."

"Won't they," said the cat. "It will take
them a month and a day to make one, so that it
will take three months and three days before the
balls are wound; but the giant, like you, will
think they can be made in a few days, and so
he will readily promise to do what you ask. He
will soon find out his mistake, but he will keep
his word, and will not press you to marry him
until the balls are wound."

"When will the giant come back?" asked
Eileen.

THE LITTLE WHITE CAT 127

" He will return to-morrow afternoon," said
the cat.

"Will you stay with me until then?" said
the princess. " I am very lonely."

" I cannot stay," said the cat. " I have to go
away to my palace on the island on which no
man ever placed his foot, and where no man but
one shall ever come."

'' And where is that island? " asked the
princess, " and who is the man? "

" The island is in the far-off seas where vessel
never sailed; the man you will see before many
days are over; and if all goes well, he will one
day slay the giant Trencoss, and free you from
his power."

" Ah ! " sighed the princess, " that can never
be, for no weapon can wound the hundred hounds
that guard the castle, and no sword can kill the
giant Trencoss."

" There is a sword that will kill him," said
the cat ; " but I must go now. Kemember what
you are to say to the giant when he comes home,
and every morning watch the tree on which you
saw me, and if you see in the branches anyone
you like better than yourself," said the cat, wink-

128 FAIRY TALES

ing at the princess, " tlirow him these three balls
and leave the rest to me; but take care not to
speak a single word to him, for if you do all will
be lost."

" Shall I ever see you again? " asked the
princess.

" Time will tell/' answered the cat, and, with-
out saying so much as good-by, he jumped
through the window on to the tree, and in a sec-
ond was out of sight.

The morrow afternoon came, and the giant
Trencoss returned from battle. Eileen knew of
his coming by the furious barking of the hounds,
and her heart sank, for she knew that in a few
moments she would be summoned to his presence.
Indeed, he had hardly entered the castle when he
sent for her, and told her to get ready for the
wedding. The princess tried to look cheerful, as
she answered:

" I will be ready as soon as you wish ; but you
must first promise me something."

" Ask anything you like, little princess," said
Trencoss.

" Well, then," said Eileen, " before I marry
you, you must make your dwarfs wind three balls

THE LITTLE WHITE CAT 129

as big as these from the fairy dew that lies on
the bushes on a misty morning in summer."'

"Is that all?" said Treneoss, laughing. "I
shall give the dwarfs orders at once, and by this
time to-morrow the balls will be wound, and our
wedding can take place in the evening."

" And will you leave me to myself until then? "

" I will," said Treneoss.

" On your honor as a giant? " said Eileen.

" On my honor as a giant," replied Treneoss.

The princess returned to her rooms, and the
giant summoned all his dwarfs, and he ordered
them to go forth in the dawning of the morn and
to gather all the fairy dew lying on the bushes,
and to wind tliree balls — one yellow, one red, and
one blue. The next morning, and the next, and
the next,the dwarfs went out into the fields and
searched all the hedgerows, but they could gather
only as much fairy dew as would make a thread
as long as a wee girl's eyelash ; and so they had
to go out morning after morning, and the giant
fumed and threatened, but all to no purpose. He
was very angry with the princess, and he was
vexed with himself that she was so much clev-
erer than he was, and, moreover, he saw now that

130 FAIRY TALES

the wedding could not take place as soon as he
expected.

When the little white cat went away from the
castle he ran as fast as he could up hill and
down dale, and never stopped until he came to
the Prince of the Silver Eiver. The prince was
alone, and very sad and sorrowful he was, for he
was thinking of the Princess Eileen, and wonder-
ing where she could be.

" Mew," said the cat, as he sprang softly into
the room; but the prince did not heed him.
" Mew," again said the cat; but again the prince
did not heed him. " Mew," said the cat the third
time, and he jumped up on the prince's knee.

" Where do you come from, and what do you
want? " asked the prince.

" I come from where you would like to be,"
said the cat.

" And where is that? " said the prince.

" Oh, where is that, indeed ! as if I didn't know
what you are thinking of, and of whom you are
thinking," said the cat; "and it would be far
better for you to try and save her."

" I would give my life a thousand times over
for her," said the prince.

THE LITTLE WHITE CAT 131

" For whom? " said the cat, with a wink. " I
named no name, your highness," said he.

" You know very well who she is," said the
prince, " if you knew what I was thinking of ;
but do you know Vv'here she is? "

" She is in danger," said the cat. " She is in
the castle of the giant Trencoss, in the valley
beyond the mountains."

" I will set out there at once," said the prince,
" and I will challenge the giant to battle, and
will slay him."

" Easier said than done," said the cat. " There
is no sword made by the hands of man can kill
him, and even if you could kill him, his hundred
hounds, with tongues of fire and claws of iron,
would tear you to pieces."

'' Then, what am I to do? " asked the prince.

" Be said by me," said the cat. " Go to the
wood that surrounds the giant's castle, and climb
the high tree that's nearest to the window that
looks towards the sunset, and shake the branches,
and you will see what you will see. Then hold
out your hat with the silver plumes, and three
balls — one yellow, one red, and one blue — will be
thrown into it. And then come back here as fast

132 FAIRY TALES

as you can ; but speak no word, for if you utter a
single word the liounds will hear you, and you
shall be torn to pieces."

Well, the prince set off at once, and after two
days' journey he came to the wood around the
castle, and he climbed the tree that was nearest
to the window that looked towards the sunset, and
he shook the branches. As soon as he did so, the
window opened and he saw the Princess Eileen,
looking lovelier than ever. He was going to call
out her name, but she placed her fingers on her
lips, and he remembered what the cat had told
him, that he was to speak no word. In silence he
held out the hat with the silver plumes, and the
princess threw into it the three balls, one after
another, and, blowing him a kiss, she shut the
window. And well it was she did so, for at that
very moment she heard the voice of the giant,
who was coming back from hunting.

The prince waited until the giant had entered
the castle before he descended the tree. He set
off as fast as he could. He went up hill and
down dale, and never stopped until he arrived
at his own palace, and there waiting for him was
the little white eat.

THE LITTLE WHITE CAT 133

" Have you brought the three balls? " said he.

" I have," said the prince.

" Then follow me," said the cat.

On they went until they left the palace far
behind and came to the edge of the sea.

" Now," said the cat, " unravel a thread of the
red ball, hold the thread in your right hand,
drop the ball into the water, and you shall see
what you shall see."

The prince did as he was told, and the ball
floated out to sea, unraveling as it went, and it
went on until it was out of sight.

" Pull now," said the cat.

The prince pulled, and, as he did, he saw far
away something on the sea shining like silver.
It came nearer and nearer, and he saw it was
a little silver boat. At last it touched the
strand.

" Now," said the cat, " step into this boat and
it will bear you to the palace on the island on
which no man has ever placed his foot — the
island in the unknown seas that were never
sailed by vessels made of human hands. In that
palace there is a sword with a diamond hilt, and
by that sword alone the giant Trencoss can be

134 FAIRY TALES

killed. There also are a hundred cakes, and it
is only on eating these the hundred hounds can
die. But mind what I say to you : if you eat or
drink until you reach the palace of the little cat
in the island in the unknown seas, you will for-
get the Princess Eileen."

" I will forget myself first," said the prince, as
he stepped into the silver boat, which floated
away so quickly that it was soon out of sight of
land.

The day passed and the night fell, and the
stars shone down upon the waters, but the boat
never stopped. On she went for two whole days
and nights, and on the third morning the prince
saw an island in the distance, and very glad he
was; for he thought it was his journey's end, and
he was almost fainting with thirst and hunger.
But the day passed and the island was still be-
fore him.

At long last, on the following day, he saw by
the first ligat of the morning that he was quite
close to it, and that trees laden with fruit of
every kind were bending down over the water.
The boat sailed round and round the island, go-
ing closer and closer every round, until, at last.

THE LITTLE WHITE CAT 135

the drooping branches almost touched it. The
sight of the fruit within his reach made the
prince hungrier and thirstier than he was before,
and forgetting his promise to the little cat — ^not
to eat anything until he entered the palace in
the unknown seas — he caught one of the
branches, and, in a moment, was in the tree eat-
ing the delicious fruit. While he was doing so
the boat floated out to sea and soon was lost to
sight; but the prince, having eaten, forgot all
about it, and, worse still, forgot all about the
princess in the giant's castle. When he had
eaten enough he descended the tree, and, turning
his back on the sea, set out straight before him.
He had not gone far when he heard the sound of
music, and soon after he saw a number of maid-
ens playing on silver harps coming towards him.
When they saw him they ceased playing, and
cried out :

" Welcome ! welcome ! Prince of the Silver
River, welcome to the island of fruits and
flowers. Our king and queen saw you coming
over the sea, and they sent us to bring you to the
palace."

The prince went with them, and at the palace

136 FAIRY TALES

gates the king and queen and their daughter
Kathleen received him, and gave him welcome.
He hardly saw the king and queen, for his eyes
were fixed on the Princess Kathleen, who looked
more beautiful than a flower. He thought he
had never seen anyone so lovely, for, of course,
he had forgotten all about poor Eileen pining
away in her castle prison in the lonely valley.
When the king and queen had given welcome to
the prince a great feast was spread, and all the
lords and ladies of the court sat down to it, and
the prince sat between the queen and the Princess
Kathleen, and long before the feast was finished
he was over head and ears in love with her.
When the feast was ended the queen ordered the
ballroom to be made ready, and when night fell
the dancing began, and was kept up until the
morning star, and the prince danced all night
with the princess, falling deeper and deeper in
love with her every minute. Between dancing
by night and feasting by day weeks went by. All
the time poor Eileen in the giant's castle was
counting the hours, and all this time the dwarfs
were winding the balls, and a ball and a half
were already wound. At last the prince asked

I

V5

At the sight of him the prince remembered

eyery thing" .... Page 137

THE LITTLE WHITE CAT 137

the king- and queen for their daughter in mar-
riage, and they were delighted to be able to say
yes, and the day was fixed for the wedding. But
on the evening before the day on which it was to
take place the prince was in his room, getting
ready for a dance, when he felt something rub-
bing against his leg, and, looking down, who
should he see but the little white cat. At
the sight of him the prince remembered every-
thing, and sad and sorry he was when he
thought of Eileen watching and waiting and
counting the days until he returned to save
her. But he was very fond of the Princess
Kathleen, and so he did not know what
to do.

" You can't do anything to-night," said the cat,
for he knew what the prince was thinking of,
" but when morning comes go down to the sea,
and look not to the right or the left, and let no
living thing touch you, for if you do you shall
never leave the island. Drop the second ball
into the water, as you did the first, and when the
boat comes step in at once. Then you may look
behind you, and you shall see what you shall see,
and you'll know which you love best, the Princess

138 FAIRY TALES

Eileen or the Princess Kathleen, and you can
either go or stay."

The prince didn't sleep a wink that night, and
at the first glimpse of the morning he stole from
the palace. When he reached the sea he threw
out the ball, and when it had floated out of sight,
he saw the little boat sparkling on the horizon
like a ncAvly-risen star. The prince had scarcely
passed through the palace doors when he was
missed, and the king and queen and the princess,
and all the lords and ladies of the court, went in
search of him, taking the quickest way to the sea.
While the maidens with the silver harps played
sweetest music, the princess, whose voice was
sweeter than any music, called on the prince by
his name, and so moved his heart that he was
about to look behind, when he remembered how
the cat had told him he should not do so until he
was in the boat. Just as it touched the shore the
princess put out her hand and almost caught the
prince's arm, but he stepped into the boat in
time to save himself, and it sped away like a re-
ceding wave. A loud scream caused the prince
to look round suddenly, and when he did he saw
no sign of king or queen, or princess, or lords

THE LITTLE WHITE CAT 139

or ladies, but only big green serpents, with red
eyes and tongues, that hissed out fire and poison
as they writhed in a hundred horrible coils.

The prince, having escaped from the enchanted
island, sailed away for three days and three
nights, and every night he hoped the coming
morning would show him the island he was in
search of. He was faint with hunger and be-
ginning to despair, when on the fourth morning
he saw in the distance an island that, in the first
rays of the sun, gleamed like fire. On coming
closer to it he saw that it was clad with trees, so
covered with bright red berries that hardly a leaf
was to be seen. Soon the boat was almost within
a stone's cast of the island, and it began to sail
round and round until it w^as well under the
bending branches. The scent of the berries was
so sweet that it sharpened the prince's hunger,
and he longed to pluck them; but, remembering
what had happened to him on the enchanted
island, he w^as afraid to touch them. But the
boat kept on sailing round and round, and at
last a great wind rose from the sea and shook
the branches, and the bright, sweet berries fell
into the boat until it was filled with them, and

140 FAIRY TALES

they fell upon the prince's hands, and he took up
some to look at them, and as he looked the desire
to eat them grew stronger, and he said to himself
it would be no harm to taste one; but when he
tasted it the flavor was so delicious he swallowed
it, and, of course, at once he forgot all about
Eileen, and the boat drifted away from him and
left him standing in the water.

He climbed on to the island, and ha"sdng eaten
enough of the berries, he set out to see what
might be before him, and it was not long until he
heard a great noise, and a huge iron ball knocked
down one of the trees in front of him, and before
he knew where he was a hundred giants came
running after it. When they saw the prince they
turned towards him, and one of them caught him
up in his hand and held him up that all might see
him. The prince was nearly squeezed to death,
and seeing this the giant put him on the ground
again.

"Who are you, my little man?" asked the
giant.

" I am a prince," replied the prince.

" Oh, you are a prince, are you? " said the
giant. " And what are you good for? " said he.

THE LITTLE WHITE CAT Un

The prince did not know, for nobody had
asked him that question before.

" I know what he's good for," said an okl
giantess, with one eye in her forehead and one in
her chin. " I know what he's good for. He's
good to eat."

When the giants heard this they laughed so
loud that the prince was frightened almost to
death.

" Why," said one, " he wouldn't make a mouth-
ful." "'^

" Oh, leave him to me," said the giantess,
" and I'll fatten him up ; and when he is cooked
and dressed he will be a nice dainty dish for the
king."

The giants, on this, gave the prince into the
hands of the old giantess. She took him home
with her to the kitchen, and fed him on sugar and
spice and all things nice, so that he should be a
sweet morsel for the king of the giants when he
returned to the island. The poor prince would
not eat anything at first, but the giantess held
him over the fire until his feet were scorched, and
then he said to himself it was better to eat than
to be burnt alive.

142 FAIRY TALES

Well, day after day passed, and the prince
grew sadder and sadder, thinking that he would
soon be cooked and dressed for the king ; but sad
as the prince was, he was not half as sad as the
Princess Eileen in the giant's castle, watching
and waiting for the prince to return and save her.

And the dwarfs had wound two balls, and
were winding a third.

At last the prince heard from the old giantess
that the king of the giants was to return on the
following day, and she said to him :

" As this is the last night you have to live, tell
me if you wish for anything, for if you do your
wish will be granted."

" I don't wish for anything," said the prince,
whose heart was dead within him.

"Well, I'll come back again," said the
giantess, and she went away.

The prince sat down in a corner, thinking and
thinking, until he heard close to his ear a sound
like " purr, purr ! " He looked around, and there
before him was the little white cat.

" I ought not to come to you," said the cat ;
" but, indeed, it is not for your sake I come. I
come for the sake of the Princess Eileen. Of

THE LITTLE WHITE CAT 1-13

course, you forgot all about her, and, of course,
she is always thinking of you. It's always the
way—

" ' Favored lovers may forget.
Slighted lovers never yet. '"

The prince blushed with shame when he heard
the name of the princess.

" 'Tis you that ought to blush," said the cat;
"but listen to me now, and remember, if you
don't obey my directions this time you'll never
see me again, and you'll never set your eyes on
the Princess Eileen. When the old giantess
comes back tell her you wish, when the morning
comes, to go down to the sea to look at it for the
last time. Wlien you reach the sea you will
know what to do. But I must go now, as
I hear the giantess coming." And the cat
jumped out of the window and disappeared.

" Well," said the giantess, when she came in,
" is there anything you wish? "

" Is it true I must die to-morrow? " asked the
prince.

" It is."

" Then," said he, " I should like to go down to
the sea to look at it for the last time."

h

144 FAIRY TALES

" You may do tliat/' said the giantess, " if you
get up early."

" I'll be up with the lark in the light of the
morning/' said the prince.

" Very well," said the giantess, and, saying
" good night," she went away.

The prince thought the night would never
pass, but at last it faded away before the gray
light of the dawn, and he sped down to the sea.
He threw out thg third ball, and before long he
saw the little boat coming towards him swifter
than the wind. He threw himself into it the mo-
ment it touched the shore. Swifter than the
wind it bore him out to sea, and before he had
time to look behind him the island of the giantess
was like a faint red speck in the distance. The
day passed and the night fell, and the stars
looked down, and the boat sailed on, and just as
the sun rose above the sea it pushed its silver
prow on the golden strand of an island greener
than the leaves in summer. The prince jumped
out, and Avent on and on until he entered a pleas-
ant valley, at the head of which he saw a palace
white as snow.

As he approached the central door it opened

THE LITTLE WHITE CAT 145

for him. On entering the hall he passed into
several rooms without meeting with anyone;
but, when he reached the principal apartment, he
found himself in a circular room, in which were
a thousand pillars, and every pillar was of
marble, and on every pillar save one, which stood
in the centre of the room, was a little white cat
with black eyes. Ranged round the wall, from
one door-jamb to the other, were three rows of
precious jewels. The first was a row of brooches
of gold and silver, with their pins fixed in the
wall and their heads outwards; the second a row
of torques of gold and silver ; and the third a row
of great swords, with hilts of gold and silver.
And on many tables was food of all kinds, and
drinking horns filled with foaming ale.^^

While the prince was looking about him the
cats kept on jumping from pillar to pillar; but
seeing that none of them jumped on to the pillar
in the centre of the room, he began to wonder
why this was so, when, all of a sudden, and be-
fore he could guess how it came about, there
right before him on the center pillar was the lit-
tle white cat.

" Don't you know me? " said he.

146 FAIEY TALES

" I do/' said the prince.

" All, but you don't know who I am. This is
the palace of the Little White Cat, and I am the
King of the Cats. But you must be hungry, and
the feast is spread."

Well, when the feast was ended, the King of the
Cats called for the sword that would kill the
giant Trencoss, and the hundred cakes for the
hundred watch-dogs.

The cats brought the sword and the cakes and
laid them before the king.

"Now," said the king, "take these; you have
no time to lose. To-morrow the dwarfs will
wind the last ball, and to-morrow the giant will
claim the princess for his bride. So you should
go at once ; but before you go take this from me
to your little girl."

And the king gave him a brooch lovelier than
any on the palace walls.

The king and the prince, followed by the cats,
went down to the strand, and vviien the prince
stepped into the boat all the cats " mewed " three
times for good luck, and the prince waved his
hat three times, and the little boat sped over the
waters all through the night as brightly and as

THE LITTLE WHITE CAT 147

swiftly as a shooting star. In the first flush of
the morning it touched the strand. The prince
jumped out and went on and on, up hill and
down dale, until he came to the giant's castle.
When the hounds saw him they barked furiously,
and bounded towards him to tear him to pieces.
The prince flung the cakes to them, and as each
hound swallowed his cake he fell dead. The
prince then struck his shield three times with the
sword which he had brought from the palace of
the little white cat.

When the giant heard the sound he cried out :

" Who comes to challenge me on my wedding-
day? "

The dwarfs went out to see, and, returning,
told him it was a prince who challenged him to
battle.

The giant, foaming with rage, seized his
heaviest iron club, and rushed out to the fight.
The fight lasted the whole day, and when the
sun went down the giant said:

".We have had enough of fighting for the day.
We can begin at sunrise to-morrow."

"Not so," said the prince. "Now or never;
win or die."

148 FAIRY TALES

" Tlien take this," cried the giant, as he aimed
a blow with all his force at the prince's head;
but the prince, darting forward like a flash of
lightning, drove his sword into the giant's heart,
and, with a groan, he fell over the bodies of the
poisoned hounds.

When the dwarfs saw the giant dead they be-
gan to cry and tear their hair. But the prince
told them they had nothing to fear, and he bade
them go and tell the Princess Eileen he wished
to speak with her. But the princess had watched
the battle from her window, and when she saw
the giant fall she rushed out to greet the prince,
and that very night he and she and all the
dwarfs and harpers set out for the Palace of
the Silver River, which they reached the next
morning, and from that day to this there never
has been a gayer wedding than the wedding of
the Prince of the Silver River and the Princess
Eileen ; and though she had diamonds and pearls
to spare, the only jewel she wore on her w^edding-
day was the brooch which the prince had brought
her from the Palace of the Little White Cat in
the far-off seas.

PRINCESS FINOLA AND THE DWARF

ALONG, long time ago there lived in a little
hut in the midst of a bare, brown, lonely
moor an old woman and a young girl. The
old woman was withered, sour-tempered, and
dumb. The young girl was as sweet and as fresh
as an opening rosebud, and her voice was as
musical as the whisper of a stream in the woods
in the hot days of summer. The little hut, made
of branches woven closely together, Avas shaped
like a beehive. In the center of the hut a fire
burned night and day from year's end to year's
end, thougli it was never touched or tended by
human hand. In the cold days and nights of
winter it gave out light and heat that made the
hut cozy and warm, but in the summer nights
and days it gave out light only. With their
heads to the wall of the hut and their feet
towards the fire were two sleeping-couches — one
of plain woodwork, in which slept the old
woman ; the other was Finola's. It was of bog-

149

150 FAIKY TALES

oak, polished as a looking-glass, and on it were
carved flowers and birds of all kinds, that
gleamed and shone in the light of the fire. This
couch was fit for a princess, and a princess Fi-
nola was, though she did not know it herself.

Outside the hut the bare, brown, lonely moor
stretched for miles on every side, but towards
the east it was bounded by a range of mountains
that looked to Finola blue in the daytime, but
which put on a hundred changing colors as the
sun went down. Nowhere was a house to be
seen, nor a tree, nor a flower, nor sign of any
living thing. From morning till night, nor hum
of bee, nor song of bird, nor voice of man, nor
any sound fell on Finola's ear. When the storm
was in the air the great waves thundered on the
shore beyond the mountains, and the wind
shouted in the glens ; but when it sped across the
moor it lost its voice, and passed as silently as
the dead. At first the silence frightened Finola,
but she got used to it after a time, and often
broke it by talking to herself and singing.

The only other person beside the old woman
Finola ever saw was a dumb dwarf who, mounted
on a broken-down horse, came once a month to

PRINCESS AND DWARF 151

the hut, bringing with him a sack of corn for the
okl woman and Finola. Although he couldn't
speak to her, Finola was always glad to see the
dwarf and his old horse, and she used to give
them cake made with her own white hands. As
for the dwarf he would have died for the little
princess, he was so much in love with her, and
often and often his heart was heavy and sad as
he thought of her pining away in the lonely
moor.

It chanced that he came one day, and she did
not, as usual, come out to greet him. He made
signs to the old woman, but she took up a stick
and struck him, and beat his horse and drove him
away ; but as he was leaving he caught a glimijse
of Finola at the door of the hut, and saw that she
was crying. This sight made him so very miser-
able that he could think of nothing else but her
sad face that he had always seen so bright, and
he allowed the old horse to go on without
minding where he was going. Suddenl}^ he
heard a voice saying :^ " It is time for you to
come."

The dwarf looked, and right before him, at the
foot of a green hill, was a little man not half as

152 FAIRY TALES

big as himself, dressed in a green jacket with
brass buttons, and a red cap and tassel.

" It is time for you to come," he said the sec-
ond time ; " but you are ^Yelcome, anyhow. Get
off your horse and come in with me, that I may
touch your lips with the wand of speech, that we
may have a talk together."

The dwarf got off his horse and followed the
little man through a hole in the side of a green
hill. The hole was so small that he had to go on
his hands and knees to pass through it, and when
he was able to stand he was only the same height
as the little fairyman. After walking three or
four steps they were in a splendid room, as
bright as day. Diamonds sparkled in the roof
as stars sparkle in the sky when the night is
without a cloud. The roof rested on golden pil-
lars, and between the pillars were silver lamps,
but their light was dimmed by that of the dia-
monds. In the middle of the room was a table,
on which were two golden plates and two
silver knives and forks, and a brass bell as
big as a hazelnut, and beside the table were
two little chairs covered with blue silk and
satin.

PRINCESS AND DWARF 153

" Take a chair," said the fairy, " and I will
ring for the wand of speech."

The dwarf sat down, and the fairyman rang
the little brass bell, and in came a little weeny
dwarf no bigger than your hand.

" Bring me the wand of speech," said the
fairy, and the weeny dwarf bowed three times
and walked out backwards, and in a minute he
returned, carrying a little black wand with a
red berry at the top of it, and, giving it to the
fairy, he bowed three times and walked out back-
Avards as he had done before.

The little man waved the rod three times over
the dwarf, and struck him once on the right
shoulder and once on the left shoulder, and then
touched his lips with the red berry, and said:
"Speak!"

The dwarf spoke, and he was so rejoiced at
hearing the sound of his own voice that he
danced about the room.

" Who are you at all, at all? " said he to the
fairy.

"Who is yourself?" said the fairy. "But
come, before we have any talk let us have some-
thing to eat, for I am sure you are hungry."

154 FAIRY TALES

Then they sat down to table, and the fairy rang
the little brass bell twice, and the weeny dwarf
brought in two boiled snails in their shells, and
when they had eaten the snails he brought in a
dormouse, and when they had eaten the dor-
mouse he brought in two wrens, and when they
had eaten the wrens he brought in two nuts full
of wine, and they became very merry, and the
fairyman sang " Cooleen dhas," and the dwarf
sang " The little blackbird of the glen."

" Did you ever hear the ' Foggy Dew '? " said
the fairy.

" No," said the dwarf.

" Well, then, I'll give it to you ; but we must
have some more wine."

And the wine was brought, and he sang the
" Foggy Dew," and the dwarf said it was the
sweetest song he had ever heard, and that the
fairyman 's voice would coax the birds off the
bushes.

" You asked me who I am? " said the fairy.

" I did," said the dwarf.

" And I asked you who is yourself? "

" You did," said the dwarf.

" And who are you, then? "

PRINCESS AND DWARF 155

" Well, to tell the truth, I don't know," said
the dwarf, and he blushed like a rose.

" Well, tell me what you know about your-
self."

" I remember nothing at all," said the dwarf,
^' before the day I found myself going along with
a crowd of all sorts of people to the great fair of
the Liffey. We had to pass by the king's palace
on our way, and as we were passing the king sent
for a band of jugglers to come and show their
tricks before him. I followed the jugglers to
look on, and when the play was over the king
called me to him, and asked me who I was and
where I came from. I was dumb then, and
couldn't answer; but even if I could speak I
could not tell him what he wanted to know, for
I remembered nothing of myself before that day.
Then the king asked the jugglers, but they knew
nothing about me, and no one knew anything,
and then the king said he would take me into his
service; and the only work I have to do is to go
once a month with a bag of corn to the hut in the
lonely moor."

" And there you fell in loi^e with the little
princess," said the fairy, winking at the dwarf.

156 FAIRY TALES

The poor dwarf blushed twice as much as he
had done before.

'^ You need not blush," said the fairy; " it is a
good man's case. And now tell me, truly, do you
love the princess, and what would you give to
free her from the spell of enchantment that is
over her? "

" I would give my life," said the dwarf.

" Well, then, listen to me," said the fairy.
" The Princess Finola was banished to the lonely
moor by the king, your master. He killed her
father, who was the rightful king, and would
have killed Finola, only he was told by an old
sorceress that if he killed her he would die him-
self on the same day, and she advised him to
banish her to the lonely moor, and she said she
would fling a spell of enchantment over it, and
that until the spell was broken Finola could not
leave the moor. And the sorceress also prom-
ised that she would send an old woman to watch
over the princess by night and by day, so that no
harm should come to her; but she told the king
that he himself should select a messenger to take
food to the hut, and that he should look out for
someone who had never seen or heard of the

PRINCESS AND DWARF 157

princess, and whom lie could trust never to tell
anyone anything about her; and that is the rea-
son he selected you/'

" Since you know so much," said the dwarf,
" can you tell me who I am, and where I came
from? "

" You will know that time enough," said the
fairy. " I have given you back your speech. It
will depend solely on yourself whether you will
get back your memory of who and what you were
before the day you entered the king's service.
But are you really willing to try and break the
spell of enchantment and free the princess? "

" I am," said the dwarf.

" WhateA^er it will cost you? "

" Yes, if it cost me my life," said the dwarf ;
" but tell me, how can the spell be broken? "

'' Oh, it is easy enough to break the spell if you
have the weapons," said the fairy.

" And what are they, and where are they? "
said the dwarf.

" The spear of the shining haft and the dark
blue blade and the silver shield," said the fairy.
" They are on the farther bank of the Mystic
Lake in the Island of the Western Seas. They

158 FAIRY TALES

are there for the man who is bold enough to seek
them. If you are the man who will bring them
back to the lonely moor you will only have to
strike the shield three times with the haft, and
three times with the blade of the spear, and the
silence of the moor will be broken for ever, the
spell of enchantment will be removed, and the
princess will be free."

" I will set out at once," said the dwarf, jump-
ing from his chair.

"And whatever it cost you," said the fairy,
" will you pay the price? "

" I will," said the dwarf.

" Well, then, mount your horse, give him his
head, and he will take you to the shore opposite
the Island of the Mystic Lake. You must cross
to the island on his back, and make your way
through the water-steeds that swim around the
island night and day to guard it ; but woe betide
you if you attempt to cross without paying the
price, for if you do the angry water-steeds will
rend you and your horse to pieces. And when
you come to the Mystic Lake you must wait until
the waters are as red as wine, and then swim
your horse across it, and on the farther side you

PRINCESS AND DWAEF 159

will find the spear and shield; but woe betide
you if you attempt to cross the lake before you
pay the price, for if you do, the black Cormorants
of the Western Seas will pick the flesh from your
bones."

" What is the price? " said the dwarf.

" You will know that time enough," said the
fairy ; " but now go, and good luck go with you."

The dwarf thanked the fairy, and said good-by.
He then threw the reins on his horse's neck, and
started up the hill, that seemed to grow bigger
and bigger as he ascended, and the dwarf soon
found that what he took for a hill was a great
mountain. After traveling all the day, toiling
up by steep crags and heathery passes, he reached
the top as the sun was setting in the ocean, and
he saw far below him out in the waters the island
of the Mystic Lake.

He began his descent to the shore, but long
before he reached it the sun had set, and dark-
ness, unpierced by a single star, dropped upon
the sea. The old horse, worn out by his long and
painful journey, sank beneath him, and the
dwarf was so tired that he rolled off his back
and fell asleep by his side.

160 FAIRY TALES

He awoke at the breaking of tlie morning, and
saw that he was almost at the water's edge. He
looked out to sea, and saw the island, but no-
where could he see the water-steeds, and he be- [J
gan to fear he must have taken a wrong course in
the night, and that the island before him was not
the one he was in search of. But even while
he was so thinking he heard fierce and angry
snortings, and, coming swiftly from the island
to the shore, he saw the swimming and prancing
steeds. Sometimes their heads and manes only
were visible, and sometimes, rearing, they rose
half out of the water, and, striking it with their
hoofs, churned it into foam, and tossed the white
spray to the skies. As they approached nearer
and nearer their snortings became more terrible,
and their nostrils shot forth clouds of vapor.
The dwarf trembled at the sight and sound, and
his old horse, quivering in every limb, moaned
piteously, as if in pain. On came the steeds^
until they almost touched the shore, then rear-
ing, they seemed about to spring on to it. The
frightened dwarf turned his head to fly, and as
he did so he heard the twang of a golden harp,
and right before him who should he see but the

PKINCESS AND DWARF 161

little man of the hills, holding a harp in one
hand and striking the strings with the other.

" Are you ready to pay the price? " said he,
nodding gayly to the dwarf.

As he asked the question, the listening water-
steeds snorted more furiously than ever.

" Are you ready to pay the price? " said the
little man a second time.

A shower of spray, tossed on shore by the
angry steeds, drenched the dwarf to the skin,
and sent a cold shiver to his bones, and he was
so terrified that he could not answer.

" For the third and last time, are you ready to
pay the price? " asked the fairy, as he flung the
harp behind him and turned to depart.

When the dwarf saw him going he thought of
the little princess in the lonely moor, and his
courage came back, and he answered bravely :

" Yes, I am ready."

The water-steeds, hearing his answer, and
snorting with rage, struck the shore with their
pounding hoofs.

" Back to your waves ! " cried the little harper;
and as he ran his fingers across his lyre, the
frightened steeds drew back into the waters.

162 FAIRY TALES

" What is the price? " asked the dwarf.

"Your right eye," said the fairy; and before
the dwarf could say a word, the fairy scooped out
the eye with his finger, and put it into his pocket.

The dwarf suffered most terrible agony ; but he
resolved to bear it for the sake of the little
princess. Then the fairy sat down on a rock at
the edge of the sea, and, after striking a few
notes, he began to play the " Strains of Slum-
ber."

The sound crept along the waters, and the
steeds, so ferocious a moment before, became per-
fectly still. They had no longer any motion of
their own, and they floated on the top of the tide
like foam before a breeze.

" Now," said the fairy, as he led the dwarf's
horse to the edge of the tide.

The dwarf urged the horse into the water, and
once out of his depth, the old horse struck out
boldly for the island. The sleeping water-steeds
drifted helplessly against him, and in a short
time he reached the island safely, and he neighed
joyously as his hoofs touched solid ground.

The dwarf rode on and on, until he came to a
bridle-path, and following this, it led him up

PEINCESS AND DWARF 163

throngli winding lanes, bordered with golden
furze that filled the air with fragrance, and
brought him to the summit of the green hills that
girdled and looked down on the Mystic Lake.
Here the horse stopped of his own accord, and
the dwarf's heart beat quickly as his eye rested
on the lake, that, clipped round by the ring of
hills, seemed in the breezeless and sunlit air —

"As still as death.
And as bright as life can be."

After gazing at it for a long time, he dis-
mounted, and lay at his ease in the pleasant
grass. Hour after hour passed, but no change
came over the face of the waters, and when
the night fell sleep closed the eyelids of the
dwarf.

The song of the lark awoke him in the early
morning, and, starting up, he looked at the lake,
but its waters were as bright as they had been
tlie day before.

Towards midday he beheld what he thought
was a black cloud sailing across the sky from
east to west. It seemed to grow larger as it
came nearer and nearer, and when it was high

164 FAIRY TALES

above the lake he saw it was a huge bird, the
shadow of whose outstretched wings darkened
the waters of the lake; and the dwarf knew it
was one of the Cormorants of the Western Seas.
As it descended slowly, he saw that it held in one
of its claws a branch of a tree larger than a
full-grown oak, and laden with clusters of ripe
red berries. It alighted at some distance from
the dwarf, and, after resting for a time, it began
to eat the berries and to throw the stones into
the lake, and wherever a stone fell a bright red
stain appeared in the water. As he looked more
closely at the bird the dwarf saw that it had all
the signs of old age, and he could not help won-
dering how it was able to carry such a heavy
tree.

Later in the day, two other birds, as large as
the first, but younger, came up from the west and
settled down beside him. They also ate the ber-
ries, and throwing the stones into the lake it was
soon as red as wine.

When they had eaten all the berries, the young
birds began to pick the decayed feathers off the
old bird and to smooth his plumage. As soon as
they had completed their task, he rose slowly

PRINCESS AND DWARF 165

from the hill and sailed out over the lake, and
dropping down on the waters, dived beneath
them. In a moment he came to the surface, and
shot up into the air with a joyous cry, and flew
off to the west in all the vigor of renewed youth,
followed by the other birds.

When they had gone so far that they were like
specks in the sky, the dwarf mounted his horse
and descended towards the lake.

He was almost at the margin, and in another
minute would have plunged in, when he heard a
fierce screaming in the air, and before he had
time to look up, the three birds were hovering
over the lake.

The dwarf drew back frightened.

The birds wheeled over his head, and then,
swooping down, they flew close to the water,
covering it with their wings, and uttering harsh
cries.

Then, rising to a great height, they folded their
wings and dropped headlong, like three rocks, on
the lake, crashing its surface, and scattering a
wine-red shower upon the hills. ^"

Then the dwarf remembered what the fairy
told him, that if he attempted to swim the lake,

166 FAIKY TALES

without paying the price, the three Cormorants
of the Western Seas would pick the flesh off his
bones. He knew not what to do, and was about
to turn away, w hen he heard once more the twang
of the golden harp, and the little fairy of the hills
stood before him.

" Faint heart never won fair lady," said the
little harper. " Are you ready to pay the price?
The spear and shield are on the opposite bank,
and the Princess Finola is crying this moment
in the lonely moor.-'

At the mention of Finola's name the dwarf's
heart grew strong.

" Yes," he said ; " I am ready — win or die.
What is the price? "

" Your left eye," said the fairy. And as soon
as said he scooped out the eye, and put it in his
pocket.

The poor blind dwarf almost fainted with
pain.

" It's your last trial," said the fairy, " and now
do what I tell you. Twist your horse's mane
round your right hand, and I will lead him to
the water. Plunge in, and fear not. I gave you
back your speech. When you reach the opposite

PEINCESS AND DWARF 167

bank you will get back your memory, and you
will know who and whiit you are."

Then the fairy led the horse to the margin of
the lake.

" In with you now, and good luck go with
you," said the fairy.

The dwarf urged the horse. He plunged into
the lake, and went down and down until his feet
struck the bottom. Then he began to ascend,
and as he came near the surface of the water the
dwarf thought he saw a glimmering light, and
when he rose above the water he saw the bright
sun shining and the green hills before him, and
he shouted with joy at finding his sight restored.

But he saw more. Instead of the old horse he
had ridden into the lake he was bestride a noble
steed, and as the steed swam to the bank the
dwarf felt a change coming over himself, and an
unknown vigor in his limbs.

When the steed touched the shore he galloped
up the hillside, and on the top of the hill was a
silver shield, bright as the sun, resting against
a spear standing upright in the ground.

The dwarf jumped off, and, running towards
the shield, he saw himself as in a looking-glass.

168 FAIRY TALES

He was no longer a dwarf, but a gallant
knight. At that moment his memory came back
to him, and he knew he was Conal, one of the
Knights of the Red Branch, and he remembered
now that the spell of dumbness and deformity
had been cast upon him by the Witch of the Pal-
ace of the Quicken Trees.

Slinging his shield upon his left arm, he
plucked the spear from the ground and leaped on
to his horse. With a light heart he swam back
over the lake, and nowhere could he see the black
Cormorants of the Western Seas, but three w^hite
swans floating abreast followed him to the bank.
When he reached the bank he galloped down to
the sea, and crossed to the shore.

Then he flung the reins upon his horse's neck,
and swifter than the wind the gallant horse
swept on and on, and it was not long until he was
bounding over the enchanted moor. Wherever
his hoofs struck the ground, grass and flowers
sprang up, and great trees with leafy branches
rose on every side.

At last the knight reached the little hut.
Three times he struck the shield with the haft
and three times with the blade of his spear. At

I

r^

^-/

'Standing before him was the little princess" Page 169

PRINCESS AND DWARF 169

the last blow the hut disappeared, and standing
before him was the little princess.

The knight took her in his arms and kissed
her ; then he lifted her on to the horse, and, leap-
ing up before her, he turned towards the north,
to the palace of the Red Branch Knights, and as
they rode on beneath the leafy trees from every
tree the birds sang out, for the spell of silence
over the lonely moor was broken for ever.

NOTES
I

Lihan the Mermaid

LiBAN was the daughter of Ecca, son of Mario,
King of Mimster. Ecca, having conquered the lord-
ship of the half of Ulster, settled down with his peo-
ple in the plain of the Gray Copse, which is now cov-
ered by the waters of Lough Necca, now Lough
Neagh. A magic well had sprung up in the plain,
and not being properl}^ looked after by the woman
in charge of it, its waters burst forth over the plain,
drowning Ecca and nearly all his family. Liban,
although swept away like the others, was not
drowned. She lived for a whole year, with her lap-
dog, in a chamber beneath the lake, and God pro-
tected her from the water. At the end of that time
she was weary, and when she saw the speckled
salmon swimming and playing all round her, she
prayed to be changed into a salmon that she might
swim with the others through the green, salt sea.
Her prayer was granted; she took the shape of a

170

NOTES 171

salmon, except her face and breast, which did not
change. And her lap-dog was changed into an otter,
and attended her afterwards whithersoever she went
as long as she lived in the sea.

It is nearly eight hnndred years ago since the
story was transcribed from some old authority into
the " Book of the Dun Cow," the oldest manuscript
of Gaelic literature we possess. — Joyce's " Old
Celtic Romances," p. 97.

II

The House in the Lake

In the Irish annals lake dwellings, which were
formerly common in Ireland, are called crannogs,
from crann, a tree, either because of the timber
framework of which the island w^as formed or of
the wooden huts erected thereon.

Some crannogs appear to have been veritable
islands, the only means of communication with the
land being canoes. Remains of these have been fre-
quently found near the dwelling, in some instances
alongside the. landing stage, as if sunk at their
moorings.

" Favorite sites for crannogs were marshes, small

172 FAIRY TALES

loughs surrounded by woods and large sheets of
water. As proYiding good fishing grounds the en-
trance to or exit of a stream from a lake was eagerly
selected." — " Lake Dwellings of Ireland," Col. Wood
Martin, M.R.I.A.

Ill

Brian's Water-dress

Brian, Ur, and TJrcar, the three sons of Turenn,
were Dedanaan chiefs. They slew Kian, the father
of Luga of the Long Arms, who was grandson of
Balor of the Evil Eye. Luga imposed an extraor-
dinary eric fine on the sons of Turenn, part of which
was " the cooking-spit of the women of Fincara."
For a quarter of a year Brian and his brothers sailed
hither and thither over the wide ocean, landing on
many shores, seeking tidings of the Island of Fin-
cara. At last they met a very old man, who told
them that the island lay deep down in the waters,
having been sunk beneath the waves by a spell in
times long past.

Then Brian put on his water-dress, with his
helmet of transparent crystal on his head, telling
his brothers to wait his return. He leaped over the

NOTES 173

side of the ship, and sank at once out of sight. He
walked about for a fortnight down in the green salt
sea, seeking for the Island of Fincara, and at last
he found it.

His brothers waited for him in the same spot the
whole time, and when he came not they began to
fear he would return no more. At last they were
about to leave the place, when they saw the glitter
of his crystal helmet deep down in the water, and
immediately after he came to the surface with the
cooking-spit in his hand. — " Old Celtic Romances "
(Joyce), p. 87.

IV

Prince Cuglas

In the list of the historic tales mentioned in the
Book of Leinster, and which is given in O'Curry's
appendix to his "■ Lectures on the MSS. Materials of
Ancient Irish History," " The Cave of the Road of
Cuglas " finds place. O'Curry has the following
note : —

" Cuglas was the son of Donn Desa, King of
Leinster, and master of the hounds to the monarch
Conaire Mor. Having one day followed the chase

174 FAIRY TALES

from Tara to this road, the chase siiddenh' disap-
peared in a cave, into which he followed, and was
never seen after. Hence the cave was called Uaimh
Bealach Conglais, or the cave of the road of Cuglas
(now Baltinglass, in the Connty of Wicklow). It
is about this cave, nevertheless, that so many of onr
pretended Irish antiquarians have written so much
nonsense in connection with some imaginary pagan
worship to which they gravely assure the world,
on et3auological authorit}', the spot was devoted.
The authority for the legend of Cuglas is the Din-
uoemi Chus on the place Bealach Cowjlais (Book
of Lecain). The full tale has not come down to
us."

The Herald

" Here comes a single champion towards us, O
Cuchiilain,'' said Laegh (Cuchulain's charioteer).
"What sort of a champion is he?" said Cuchulain.
" A brown-haired, broad-faced, beautiful youth ; a
splendid brown cloak on him ; a bright bronze spear-
like brooch fastening his cloak. A full and well-
fitting shirt to his skin. Two firm shoes between
his two feet and the ground. A hand-staff of white

NOTES 175

hazel in one hand of his ; a single-edged sword with
a sea-horse hilt in his other hand." " Good, my
lad," said Cuchulain; " these are the tokens of a
herald." — Description of the herald MacRoath in
the story of The Tain ho Chuailgne. — O'Curry's
" Manners and Customs of the Ancient Irish," Vol.
II., p. 301.

VI

Golden Bells

In O'Curry's " Lectures on the Manners and Cus-
toms of the Ancient Irish " are several dazzling de-
scriptions of cavalcades taken from the old tales.
Silver and golden bells are frequently mentioned as
part of the horse furniture.

VII

The Wild People of the Glen

" And then he put on his helmet of battle and of
combat and of fighting, from every recess and from
every angle of which issued the shout as it were of

176 FAIRY TALES

an hundred warriors; because it was alike that
woman of the valley (de lananaig), and hobgoblins
(bacaiiaig), and wild people of the glen {geinti
glindi), and demons of the air (demna acoir),
shouted in front of it, and in rear of it, and over it,
and around it, wherever he went, at the spurting of
blood, and of heroes upon it."

Description of Cuchulain's helmet in the story of
The Tain bo Chwailgne. — O'Curry's " Manners and
Customs of the Ancient Irish," Vol. II., p. 301.

VIII

Tlie Fair of Tar a

" The great fairs anciently held in Ireland were
not like their modern representatives, mere markets,
but were assemblies of the people to celebrate funeral
games, and other religious rites ; during pagan times
to hold parliaments, promulgate laws, listen to the
recitation of tales and poems, engage in or witness
contests in feats of arms, horse-racing, and other
popular games. They were analogous in many ways
to the Olympian and other celebrated games of an-
cient Greece.

" These assemblies were regulated by a strict by-

NOTES 177

law, a breach of which was punishable by death.
Women were especially protected, a certain place
being set apart for their exclusive use, as a place
was set apart at one side of the lists of mediaeval
tournaments for the Queen of Beauty and the other
ladies.

" At the opening of the assembly there was always
a solemn proclamation of peace, and the king who
held the fair awarded prizes to the most successful
poets, musicians, and professors and masters of
every art." — See Dr. Sullivan's " Introduction to
O'Curry's Lectures."

IX

The Contest of the Bards

" The three musical feats of the Daghda, a cele-
brated Dedanann chief and Druid, were the Suan-
traighe, which from its deep murmuring caused
sleep. The Goltraighe, which from its meltive
plaintiveness caused weeping, and the Goltraighe,
which from its merriment caused laughter.

" Bose, the great Norse harper, could give on his
harp the Gyarslager, or stroke of the sea gods, which
produced mermaids' music." — O'Curry's Lectures.

178 FAIRY TALES

Tlie Fairy Tree of Dooros

The forest of Dooros was in the district of Hy
Fiera of the Moy (now the barony of Tireragh, in
Sligo) .

On a certain occasion the Dedanns, returning
from a hurling match with the Feni, passed through
the forest, carrying with them for food during the
journey crimson nuts, and arbutus apijles, and
scarlet quicken-berries, which they had brought from
the Land of Promise. One of the quicken-berries
dropped on the earth, and the Dedanns passed on
not heeding.

From this berry a great quicken-tree sprang up,
which had the virtues of the quicken-trees that grow
in fairyland. Its berries had the taste of honey,
and those who ate of them felt a cheerful glow, as if
they had drunk of wine or old mead, and if a man
were even a hundred years old he returned to the
age of thirty as soon as he had eaten three of them.

The Dedanns having heard of this tree, and not
wishing that anyone should eat of the berries but
themselves, sent a giant of their own people to guard
it, namely, Sharvan the Surly of Lochlann. — "The

KOTES 179

Pursuit of Diarmuid and Grania," " Old Celtic Eo-
mances," p. 313 (Joyce).

XI

The Palace of the Little Cat

The description of the rows of jewels ranged
round the wall of the palace of the Little Cat is
taken from "The Voyage of Maildun." — See Note
XII.

XII

The Birds of the Mystic Lake

The incident of the birds coming to the mystic
lake is taken from "The Voyage of Maildun," a
translation of which is given in Joyce's " Old Celtic
Romances." The operations of the birds were wit-
nessed by Maildun and his companions, who, in the
course of their wanderings, had arrived at the Isle
of the Mystic Lake. One of Maildun's companions,
Diuran, on seeing the wonder, said to the others:
"Let us bathe in the lake, and we shall obtain a
renewal of our youth like the birds."

180 FAIEY TALES

But they said : " Not so, for the bird has left the
poison of his old age and decay in the water."

Diuran, however, plunged in, and swam about for
some time ; after which he took a little of the water
and mixed it in his mouth, and in the end he swal-
lowed a small quantity. He then came out per-
fectly sound and whole, and remained so ever after
as long as he lived. But none of the others ven-
tured in.

The return of the birds in the character of the
cormorants of the western seas and guardians of the
lake does not occur in the old tale. The oldest copy
of the voyage is in the " Book of the Dun Cow "
(about the year 1100). O'Curry says the voyage
was undertaken about the year 700. It was made
by Maildun in search of pirates who had slain his
father. The story is full of fancy.

y

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