188 



CuSall, by Morhia, daughter to the Druid Thady, of the family of O'Baisgne, the descendants 

 of Nuad the White, monarch of Ireland; he was generalissimo of the Irish militia, highly 

 distinguished for his jurisprudence, dissertations on which, written by him, are extant; for his 

 poetical compositions in his native language, and as some write, for his prophecies : he has, 

 on account of his noble mUitary exploits, afforded a vast field of panegyric and encomium 

 to the poets.''* 



The same annalist gives a detail of the grounds of dispute be- 

 tween the rival clans of Boisgne and Morna, in the reign of Carbry 

 Liffechar, and states that — 



"In the heat of the battle (of Gabhra,) Carbry and Osgar, the grandson of Finn, by 

 Ossin, came to single combat. The king, all covered with wounds, slew his antagonist, but 

 he was killed dealing death around him with undaunted bravery, by Simeon, the son of 

 Kirb, of the race of the Fotharts."t 



These are facts of x^^hich Macpherson could not be ignorant. 

 Neither could it be unknown to him that part of Argyleshire was 

 colonized by the Irish under Cairbre Riada,J that they took posses- 



ders for true history.— See the first note to the eighth book of Temora. Quis (am ferrets 

 ut teneat seP 



Our celebrated Irish beauty Deirdre, he has also metamorphosed into Darthula. 



" In the first publication of poems from the Erse, he calls his bard Oscian, and in the 

 latter translations, Ossian. This shews his little knowledge of the Gaelic, or Scottish lan- 

 guage. Oisin is the true reading, and so written in all our ancient manuscripts." — O'Conor's 

 Dissertations. 



* Ogygia, vol. ii. p. 242. Dublin, 1793. f Id. p. 246. 



1 " The Dalriedinians almost three hundred years after this Carbry, their progenitor, 

 being headed by generals of the same family, the sons of Eric, who was the son of Achy 

 Munreamhar, set sail from Dalrieda in Britain, to the north of the bay of Dunbritton, 

 contiguous to the boundaries of the ulterior Roman province, comprehending Kentire, Knap- 

 dal, Loma, Argyle, and Brun-alban, (or Braid-alban,) with the neighbouring islands. The 

 most eminent and distinguished of the sons of Eric, were the posterity of Fergus, who 

 tbunded a Scottish monarchy, from whom the most illustrious kings of Great Britain and 

 Ireland are descended. — Ogygia, ii. 221. 



