Westkopp — Assembly -Place of'Oenach Cairbre and Sid Asail, 369 



Now "France," "Spain," "^Greece," "Hinialt," and "Loclilann" often 

 replace less high-sounding names in later editions of early legends. 



Perhaps the Ernai, or Ivernians, became " Iberians " from the " little 

 learning " of the editor. We must note too that Concheiin, or Con^anchiiess, 

 son of Deda, avenged the death of Curoi himself, and was slain by CeUchair 

 near Down.' What, however, concerns us more is that we have a legend of 

 the earliest mythic cycle of the Eed Branch wliich dealt most minutely with 

 the place we describe. Crossing the country, we would naturally (were there 

 no roads) sweep eastward under Dromassell, and then, about a mile further, 

 near Fort Elizabeth, turn at right angles southward to the foixl, where the 

 bridge crosses the Cammoge, close to the Abbey. Below this is a shallow reach 

 extending to the mill, at any point of which the stream could be crossed. 

 The bend of the stream northward near the bridge presupposes that Fergus 

 halted near the conjoined rings, where the ground rose above the long 

 shallow reach of the Cammoge, too long to be defended by one hero. As 

 usual in Ireland, even in the most mythic tale, the minute topography is 

 most exact. 



The Legend of Asal's Cattle Spoil. — A legend in the Ancient Law 

 Code,^ probably of Leinster origin, is nebulous, and evidently reached the 

 redactor with variants. Possibly its heroes, Asal, son of Conn, and Mog mac 

 Nuadat, are really Asal, son of Umor, and Mog Nnadat, of the Munster 

 district, now Co. Limerick. 



Cairbre. — 'Oenach Cairbre may possibly be named from the Ui Cairbre 

 Aobda, but I must emphasize the fact that the name " Cairbre " meets us 

 (usually in a difterent setting) in nearly every outstanding legend connected 

 with eastern Co. Limerick. The name, to begin, is that of a divinity, 

 Coii-pre, or Cairbre, who was child of Etan, the poetess ; some said " he " was 

 her dnuf/htcr "Cairbre Aimet," who, like Etan's father Diancecht, was a 

 physician. There was also a god Cairbre, son of Tuar, sixth in descent from 

 MacGreine (son of the Sun) and Eriu (Ireland). In the Tain bo Cualngc we 

 find the " two Cairbres of Cliu," south-eastern Co. Limerick ; the Bruden Da 

 Bevija? tells of the two Cairbres of Tuad Mumhan (east Co. Limerick, not 



' Metr. Dind S., -x, p. 241. For the legend of the finding of the two pups of 

 Celtchair's dog " Dacl " in the victim's skull, see Rennes D. S., Rev. Celt, xvi, 

 p. 53. 



-Vol. i, pp. (J4, G8, 70, and 74. Asal's father is not named in te.\t, only in the 

 comment, which is very ennfu.sed. See "Three Irish Glossaries" (W. Stokes, 18(38), 

 p. 9. A significant story of a quarrel between St. Patrick and a later Mog niac Nuadat 

 (?a priest of Nuada) is found in Senchas Mor (i, p. 5). 



■'Rev. Celt., xxii, p. 31. 



