at in 1133 Murtough "made a visitation of Tir Eoghain
[counties of Derry and Tyrone] and received his tribute of cows and
imparted his blessing" (_A.F.M._).

[400] September 17, 1134 (_A.F.M._). Sudden death is not suggested by
the Annals.

[401] St. Bernard puns on the Latin name by which he represents Niall.
It is a diminutive of _niger_, black.

[402] Josh. ix. 24 (vg.).

[403] The meaning of this somewhat difficult sentence is made clear by
the reference to the Gibeonites (Josh. ix). By their stratagem they
"made provision for their lives," that is, that they should continue
to live instead of being exterminated with the rest of the Canaanites.
In like manner Murtough provided that he should, as it were, live on
and pursue his evil course, in the person of Niall.

[404] He was Murtough's cousin, and Cellach's brother. See the table,
Additional Note B, p. 164.

[405] That the king was either Conor O'Brien or Cormac Mac Carthy is
highly probable. To them Cellach had confided the duty of seeing that
Malachy should be his successor (Sec. 19), and in this very year they
reached the border of the diocese of Armagh (p. 43, n. 5). See p. 53,
n. 5.

[406] Ps. xxii. 16.

[407] The narrative of this and the next section is illustrated by the
Annals under the year 1134. _A.F.M._, after recording the obit of
Murtough, proceed: "Niall, son of Aedh, was installed in the coarbate
of Patrick. A change of abbots in Armagh, _i.e._ Mael Maedoc Ua
Morgair in place of Niall." In _A.T._ we have the statement, "Mael
Maedog o Mongair ascended Patrick's chair. The Cinel Eoghain of Tulach
Og conspired against Mael Maedoc, and a flash of lightning consumed
twelve men of them on the spot where they conspired against him." Thus
it seems that the conspirators came from the place now known as
Tullaghoge, in the county of Tyrone, then, as now, in the diocese of
Armagh. It was the district inhabited by the sept of the O'Hagans, and
in it was the _lia na righ_, the inauguration chair of the O'Neills,
kings of Ulster. The confirmation which St. Bernard's story receives
from _A.T._ is the more important, because the two narratives are so
far different that they must have come from independent sources.

[408] Ps. lii. 1 (vg.).

[409] Cp. John xviii. 2 (vg.).

[410] Ps. x. 8.

[411] Matt. xxiii. 35, combined with Rev. vi. 10; xix. 2.

[412] Ps. xcvii. 2.

[413] Ps. xviii. 11.

[414] Amos v. 8 (vg.).

[415] Rev. iv. 5.

[416] Ps.