cow 101 



" Mael-garb " — Tosacli mboair moir. The swollen throat is also a 

 disease prevalent among cattle and is called " clupaid " ; another 

 disease, the nature of which we have not been able to discover, 

 was called "Scaraach/' see Annals of Ulster and O'Davoren's 

 glossary. An old Gaelic word for milk is Ceo, also Melg, akin to 

 the modern Mealag, milt of a fish ; bainne lorn, skimmed milk ; 

 baiune goiri, sour milk; "eadradh" is time of folding or milking. 

 " Deasgainn " or "deas-gann" means "rennet," but see separate 

 list. Clotted milk was called hainne clabar, and bainne reamhar, lit. 

 fat milk ; gcal lacht in Irish means, unskimmed or " white " milk. 

 In Sussex, England, the first milk is called poad or pourd (? poured) 

 milk, in our language, Bainne-nos or nuis. In no case should milk 

 ever be given from a first churning. This has been seen strictly 

 enforced in Skye. For healing purposes generally, milk has 

 various powers, applied externally or internally, for one thing, to 

 this day it is esteemed a sovereign antidote against poison, and, in 

 the Chronicon Scotorum, we are told that, on the occasion of a 

 certain engagement between the British (or Britains — not English — 

 as they are called), and the Irish, the latter were rapidly losing 

 their men by being shot with poisoned arrows. Whereupon a 

 famous Druid (Pictish), named Trosdane, directed the Irish to fill 

 a hole with the milk of one hundred and fifty white-faced cows, 

 wherein, by his directions and advice, the wounded Irish bathed 

 and were cured. It is not stated whether the milk of white-faced 

 cows is better than that of others, the selection probably was 

 made from the Druid's love of mystery, or perhaps because he 

 noticed that there were more of that kind of cows available at the 

 time. Something similar occurred in the case of a famous Irish 

 warrior, named Cathan, who was immersed in a bath of cows' 

 marrow and cured of his wounds. The place where the bath 

 was prepared received the name of "Smiramoir," smior amar, 

 or the marrow bath ; it is to be found in County Lowth under 

 the modern corrupt name of Smarmore. 



A gentle ceremony practised in Aran (Ireland), is worth 

 noting. When one gets a drink of milk in a house, the recipient 

 expresses him or herself as follows : — Slan a mhaithreach, hail or 

 health to the mothering cow ; or Cumhdach De air a mhaithreach, 

 the power of God, etc. ; or go saoghluighidh Dia a mhaithreach^ may 

 God save, etc. ; or Slan maiihreachin a bhainne agus bean a roinnte, 

 hail or health to the motherie of milk and the good wife who 

 dispensed it, or an bhean ta os a chionn, the good wife over it, or 

 who manages it. In Kerry Slan a bho is often said in the same 

 way before drinking milk. Tha i tormach no a fas tormach, she is 

 increasing, is an expression used in reference to the appearance 

 presented by the udder of a cow before calving, either from being 

 rounded and protruding like a hillock, or from toradh, increase. 

 The last milk is the richest, and called "strippings." Milking- 

 time of old was called Etrud, and Eadarthrath, eadarshruth, and 



