OF CONAIRE'S MAJORDOMO

"There I saw a room with one man in it. Rough cropt hair upon him.
Though a sack of crab-apples should be flung on his head, not one of
them would fall on the floor, but every apple would stick on his hair.
His fleecy mantle was over him in the house. Every quarrel therein about
seat or bed comes to his decision. Should a needle drop in the house,
its fall would be heard when he speaks. Above him is a huge black tree,
like a millshaft, with its paddles and its cap and its spike. Liken thou
him, O Fer rogain!"

"Easy for me is this. Tuidle of Ulaid is he, the steward of Conaire's
household. 'Tis needful to hearken to the decision of that man, the man
that rules seat and bed and food for each. 'Tis his household staff that
is above him. That man will fight with you. I swear what my tribe
swears, the dead at the Destruction slain by him will be more numerous
than the living. Thrice his number will fall by him, and he himself will
fall there. Woe to him who shall wreak the Destruction!" etc.

"Ye cannot," says Ingcel. "Clouds of weakness come upon you. What sawest
thou there after that?"

THE ROOM OF MAC CECHT, CONAIRE'S BATTLE-SOLDIER

There I beheld another room with a trio in it, three half-furious
nobles: the biggest of them in the middle, very noisy ... rock-bodied,
angry, smiting, dealing strong blows, who beats nine hundred in
battle-conflict. A wooden shield, dark, covered with iron, he bears,
with a hard ... rim, a shield whereon would fit the proper litter of
four troops of ten weaklings on its ... of ... leather. A ... boss
thereon, the depth of a caldron, fit to cook four oxen, a hollow maw, a
great boiling, with four swine in its mid-maw great.... At his two
smooth sides are two five-thwarted boats fit for three parties of ten in
each of his two strong fleets.

A spear he hath, blue-red, hand-fitting, on its puissant shaft. It
stretches along the wall on the roof and rests on the ground. An iron
point upon it, dark-red, dripping. Four amply-measured feet between the
two points of its edge.

Thirty amply-measured feet in his deadly-striking sword from dark point
to iron hilt. It shews forth fiery sparks which illumine the Mid-court
House from roof to ground.

'Tis a strong countenance that I see. A swoon from horror almost befell
me while staring at those three. There is nothing stranger.

Two bare hills were there by the man with hair. Two loughs by a mountain
of the ... of a