186 
Ceithre snoice a Brosnadh bain, 
Di fheadoic cairrge dunain. 
Di eachtaigh 6 Echtge ard, 
Da smolach Leitre Lonngarg, 
Da dhrenn 6 Dhin Aifte, 
Di chainche na Corraibthe. 
Di chuirr in Choruinn chladhaigh, 
Da errfhiach Mhoighe fabhuir, 
Da iolar Chairrge na clog 
Da sheabhac Feadha Connach. 
Da Pheasan 6 Loch Meilge 
Da chire uisce a Loch Eirne 
Da chire fraich monad Mafa, 
Di ghairg diana Dubhlacha. 
Da chricharén a Chualainn 
Da mhiontan a Moigh Tualaing 
Da chaochaén a Gleann Gaibhle 
Da ghealbainn na Sinainne. 
12 The River Brosna.—tIn the King’s County, a tributary of the Shannon. It rises 
to the south-west of Mullingar, and passes through Loch Belvedere, the ancient Loch 
Ennel. The term snag is translated by O’Reilly, woodpecker, and svag-breac, the 
magpie; but the former is not an Irish bird, and the latter is of comparatively recent 
introduction. Moreover, woodpeckers do not frequent rivers, but woods, whereas the 
heron is still called a snag, and the term is applied to a tall, ill-made man. Inis- 
Snag, near Thomastown, in the county of Kilkenny, is sonamed from this bird. In the 
west the crane is now styled in Irish Cos crefog—foot in the mud—a very apposite 
expression, as most of our native terms are—as, for instance, the curlew is called Crz- 
thane, from the manner in which it walks, with its shoulders humped or elevated; the 
woodcock Oreadbar, or Cullugh Caech, on account of the uncertain, blind manner in 
which it first flies out of cover. 
13 Dunan.—Carrickdornan. The gray plover is still called the feadog, on account 
of its shrill whistle ; and the lapwing, the pillibeen. 
14 EHachtach is explained by O’Molloy “‘ copiosus in valore.” See note 14, 
15 Echtge—Slieve Aughty, on the borders of Clare and Galway, to the south of the 
town of Loughrea. From it rises the Abhainn-da-Loilgheach—i. e., the river of the 
two milch cows, now the Owendalulagh. ‘ The name of this stream is accounted for by 
a legend in the Dinnseanchus, which states that Sliabh Echtghe, the mountain in which 
it rises, derived its name from Echtghe Uathach, the daughter of Ursothach, son of 
Tinde, one of the Tuatha de Danaan colony. She married Fergus Lusca Mac Rindi, who 
held this mountain in right of his office of cupbearer to the King of Olnegmacht. He 
had no stock, but she had; and she came to him with her cows, according to the law 
entitled Slabhradh furiher fosadh, and he gave up the mountain to her. On this occa- 
sion, according to the legend, two cows were brought there of remarkable lactiferous- 
ness, and equally fruitful; but on their removal hither, it turned out that one of them, 
which was placed to graze on the north side of the mountain, did not yield one-third as 
much milk as the one placed on the south side. This river forms the boundary between 
the fertile and barren regions of Sliabh Echtghe, alluded to in this legend.” —Annals of 
the Four Masters, note by O’Donovan. From the foregoing legend it is not improbable 
that the Echtges of the poem were the peculiar cows or horned cattle of the vicinity. 
