Mr. Petrie on the History and Antiquities of Tara Hill. 83 



" Contigit vero in illo anno, idolatriae soUempnitatem quam gentiles incantationibus multis, et 

 magicis inventionibus, nonnuUis aliis idolatriee superstitionibus, congregatis etiam regibus, satrapis, 

 ducibus, principibus, et optimatibus populi, insuper et magis, incantatoribus, auruspicibus, et omnis 

 artis, omnisque doni [recte doli] inventoribus doctoribusve vocatis ad Loigaireum, velut quondam 

 ad Nabcodonossor regem, in Temoria istorum Babylone exercere consuerant, eadem nocte qua 

 Sanctus Patricius Pasca illi illam adorarent exercerentque festivitatem gentllem. 



" Erat quoque quidam mos apud illos per edictum omnibus intimatus, ut quicumque in cunctis 

 regionibus sive procul, sive juxta, in ilia nocte incendisset ignem, antequam in domu regia, id est, 

 in palatio Temorise, succenderetur, periret anima ejus de populo sue. 



" Sanctus ergo Patricius sanctum Pasca celebrans, incendit divinum ignem valde lucidum et 

 benedictum, qui in nocte reffulgens, a cunctis pene plani campi habitantibus vissus est. 



" Accidit ergo ut a Temoria videretur, vissoque eo conspexerunt omnes et mirati sunt : convo- 

 catisque senioribus et majoribus natu [' dixit ad eos Rex ; quid est hoc ? quis est, qui haec tanta ausus 

 est facere in regno meo ? pereat ille de populo suo. Respondentibus autem omnibus Senioribus, 

 et Majoribus natu* — Prohus,'] regi nesciisse ilium qui hoc fecerit ; Magi responderunt ; Rex in 

 sternum vive. Hie ignis quern videmus quique in hac nocte accensus est, antequam succenderetur 

 in domu tua, id est, in palatio Temorise, nissi extinctus fuerit in nocte hac qua accensus est, numquam 

 extinguetur in jeternum ; insuper et omnes ignes nostrse consuitudinis supergradietur ; et ille, qui 

 incendit, et regnum superveniens a quo incensus nocte in hac, superabit nos omnes, et te, et omnes 

 homines regni tui seducet ; et cadent ei omnia regna ; et ipsum inplebit omnia et regnabit in ssscula 

 saeculorum." — Book of Armagh^ fol. 3, p. 6. col. 1 & 2. 



Many other passages might be adduced to shew that this assembly at Tara 

 met for the celebration of a religious festival ; and the conclusion, therefore, is 

 unavoidable, that the word Feis, applied to this meeting in some of the lives of 

 Patrick, if not an error of interpolators, was only used in a general sense, as 

 applicable to a convention, feast, or festival of any kind. That this meeting, 

 moreover, was the Druidical festival of Bel-tine is apparent from the fact 

 stated in all the lives of Patrick, respecting the prohibition to light a fire 

 in the district until the sacred fire of the Druids had been first kindled at 

 Tara ; since, according to all the Irish histories, such a prohibition was always 

 either issued or understood on the occasion of the lighting of the Bel-tine in 

 every district in the country. This prohibition is thus distinctly referred to in 

 the original Irish of the Tripartite Life of St. Patrick, preserved in the Leahhar 

 Breac : 



Ceic pdrpaic lap pin cu Pepca pep peicc. Patrick goes afterwards to Fertafer Feic. A 



Qoanncap ceinio occa ip in inuo pm i pepcop fire was kindled by him at that place on Easter- 

 na Cape, pepjaichep toejaipe oc chi in eve. Laeghaire is enraged as he sees the fire, for 



12 



