562 



Proceedings of the Roijal Irish Acadetni/. 



there ? " " We know that," he is auswered, " that is Cuchulaiu attempting to 

 come to the battle, he being exhausted with the length of his lying in Fert 

 Sciach under bows and hooks and strings " (i.e. bandages and fastenings), "and 

 the Ultonians do not allow him to go into the fight on account of his wounds 

 and hurts, for he is not capable of battle or combat after the fight with Fer 

 Diad." 



" That was true for Fergus ; it was Cucludain tired out with the length of 

 his lying sick in Fert Sciath under bows and hooks and strings." 



The Stowe MS. reads, " The Fert of Sciach, daughter of Deagad," and in 

 the second paragraph it reads, " Sceth, daughter of Deagadh." The MS. which 

 is called H. by Windisch reads, " The Fert of Sciach, daughter of Deghaidh," 

 and in the second paragraph, " The Fert of Sere (evidently a wrong extension 

 of the contraction), daughter of Deghadh." 



Scale irt 



Fig. 1. — Fort Sciach. 



Now in the course of my inquiries in that neighbourhood as to the course 

 of the ramparts attributed to the Black Pig, I was told of a great rock with 

 two marks on it made by the magical pig " when he journeyed from the north 

 to the west," called Carrick-na-muie, the pig's rock. Now if a straight line 

 be drawn on the map from Slane Mor hill to Ballymore village it will inter- 

 sect the road which leads from Mulliugar to Ballymahon near Eathconrath 

 village, and not far from this is " the Hill of Skeagh," on the right hand 

 side of the road, and on its top is the great rock visited by the magical pig. 

 The townland of Skeagh comprises about 390 acres in its bounds, and its 



