O'Looney — On the Book of Leinster anil its Contents. 371 



A variety of curious and important short tracts relating to Munster are also to be 

 found in the Book of Leinster, besides this last one, up to the middle of the eighth 

 century. 



This volume likewise contains a small fragment of Cormac's Glossary, copied, 

 perhaps, with many more of these pieces, from the veritable Saltair of Cashel 

 itself; also a fragment, unfortunately a very small one (the first folio only), 

 of the wars of the Danes and the Gaedhils (i.e. the Irish) ; a copy of the JDinn- 

 senchus, a celebrated ancient topographical tract, which was compiled at Tara 

 about the year 550 ; several ancient poems on universal geography, chronology, 

 history, and so forth ; pedigrees and genealogies of the great Milesian tribes and 

 families, particularly those of Leinster ; and lastly, an ample list of the early 

 saints of Erinn, with their pedigrees and affinities, and with copious references to 

 the situations of their churches. 



This is but an imperfect sketch of this invaluable MS., and I think I may 

 say with sorrow, that there is not in all Europe any nation but this of ours that 

 would not long since have made a national literary fortune out of such a volume, 

 had any other country in Europe been fortunate enough to possess such an heir- 

 loom of history. 



The volume forms, at present, part of the rich store of ancient Irish literature 

 preserved in the library of Trinity College, Dublin ; and if printed at length, the 

 Gaedhelic text of it would make 2000 pages of the Annals of the Four Masters. 



It will be observed that 0' Curry reserves for further notice the 

 important pieces relating to the heroic period of King Conchobar Mac 

 Nessa, and Queen Medb of Cruachan — an intention which he did 

 not live to carry out. A few of those compositions may here be 

 mentioned as of great interest for the history of the period to which 

 they refer, because of the picture they present of people and customs. 

 Of Conchobar MaclScssa, King of Ulster, and his times, we have the 

 following chain of interesting pieces in this manuscript : — 1. Parent- 

 age, birth, and name. 2. Expulsion of Fergus MacRogh from the 

 sovereignty of Ulster, and of the accession of Conchobar MacNessa to 

 the sovereignty. 3. Economy of the reign of King Conchobar, his 

 privileges and prohibitions among the Ultonians, and the arrangement 

 of his household. 4. The exile of the sons of Usnea and fate of Der- 

 dri. 5. The exile of Fergus MacRogh and the Ultonian warriors. 

 6. The fate and tragic end of Conchobar MacNessa. 



In these six stories we have a connected account of Conchobar 

 MacNessa from birth to death ; and of his times a history may be found, 

 if we add the following series, also contained in the Book of Leinster. 

 1. The story of the inebriety of the Ultonians. 2. Courtship of the 

 wife of Crund, whose imprecations are said to have caused the Cesnaoi- 

 dean Uladh, or the child-birth pains of the Ultonians. 3. Story of the 

 Ccsnaoidean Uladh, and the debility of the Ultonians which gave Queen 

 Medb of Cruachan an opportunity of invading and ravaging the pro- 

 vince of Ulster. It also contains the thirty-two episodes which com- 

 plete the story of the Tain Bo Cuailnge with its prefaces and pre- 

 tales (translations of which I had the honour to submit to the Academy 

 some time ago) ; and thus we have pictures of social and political life 

 in Erin during the reign of one of the most renowned kings of the 

 heroic period. 



There are similar stories of others of the same period, e.g., of Cu- 



SER. II., VOL. I., POL. LIT. & ANTIQ. 3 C 



