164 LAKE OF BEER IN IRELAND. 



of tlie men who formed my escort from Glengariff, " that lake there 

 beyond, was full of as good beer as ever was brewed in Cork 

 town. In good old Catholic times long ago, ere Protestants, 

 saving your presence, came into our land, Denis O'Donohoe 

 lived in a valley in these mountains, and he was a great freind to 

 the good people^ and their king and queen used to come and 

 dance imder the moonshine, in the meadow which lay before 

 Denis's house ; and one evening as Denis was a driving home 

 half a dozen goats that had gone astray across the hills, he met 

 the king of the goorf people sitting on a musheroone that grew large 

 and round under the shelter of the high rock that rises to the north 

 side of the meadow. *' Denis," says the wee bit of a king, " have 

 you any thing at home to give me to drink, for I am as dry as a 

 whistle, after dancing my round about that ring yonder." " Och 

 then," says Denis, "what could a poor crathur the likes of me 

 give your honour and glory, but a drop of goat's milk ; as for 

 water, I suppose as why you know where to get it yourself." 

 "Ah then, it 's little I value your goat's milk," said the fairy — 

 " have you no beer, Denis ?" " Beer, a cushla machre, where 

 would the likes of me get beer in this place ?" (bye the bye, your 

 honour, poteen was not invented in them days.) " No, but King 

 honey, please you, and all yom good people, if you will just be 

 after putting up for this night with a drop of goat's milk, why at 

 break of day to-morrow I will slip over to Bantry and get a quart 

 of as good beer as Felix O'Sullivan has in his whole cellar, and 

 though it be fifteen miles off, I will be back before night." *' Why 

 then now, Denis," says the King, " you are nothing else but a 

 good-natured fellow, and it 's a thousand pities that you and 

 your's should have nothing better to drink than goat's whey, to 

 wash down your pratie, Come along with me, Denis, and I will 

 (provided you promise upon your oath not to tell the priest,) put 

 you in the way of never drinking worse than the best of beer, all 

 the days of your life, and all your kiff and kin to boot." 



" Now, your honour, there was not a man in all the barony of 

 Bear, that loved strong beer better than Denis, and it was a great 

 while to Easther,when he must needs confess to Father Florence ; 

 so he thanked the fairy very civilly, and said he was at his sarvice 

 to command. So the little man desiring him to leave his goats 

 there, and to follow him, off they set in the moonshine over rock 

 and glen, until they came to a hill side, where ^xew very large 

 heath, the biggest yoa ever saw. " Now, Denis," says the king, 

 '* pull your arm full of these plants, its long and many a day 



