434 



Cuchullain, in his quality of guardian of the border district, tries to 

 prevent her from proceeding; and after a great deal of argument, during 

 which Cuchullain seems not to know his opponent, the woman and 

 cow disappear, and Cuchullain observes birds on a tree, the badb and 

 her cow, apparently. Cuchullain, as soon as he becomes aware that he 

 had been contending with a supernatural being, confident in his own 

 might, boasts that, if he had known the character of his opponent, they 

 would not have separated as they did; whereupon the following exchange 

 of sentiments takes place : — 



" Cid andarignisiu, ol si, rodbia olc de. Ni cuma dam ol Cuchullain. 

 Cumcim eicin ol in ben; is ac \_do~\ diten do baissiu, atusa ocus biad, olsi. 

 Do fucus in mboinsea a sith Cruachav, condarodart in Dub Cuailnge 

 Urn i Cuailnge A. tarb Dairi mic Fiachna. Ised aired biasu imbeathaid 

 corop dartaig in laegh fil imbroind na bo so, ocus ise consaithbe Tain Bo 

 Cuailnge." 



" 1 What hast thou done?' asked she; 6 evil will ensue to thee 

 therefrom.' ' I care not,' said Cuchullain. ' But I do,' said the wo- 

 man (i. e. the bird or badb) ; it is protecting thee I was, am, and will 

 be,' said she. 1 1 brought this cow from Sidh-Cruachna, so that the 

 Dubh Cuailnge, i. e. Daire Mac Jiachna's bull, met her in Cuailnge. 

 The length of time you have to live is until the calf that is in this 

 cow's body will be a yearling ; and it is it that shall lead to 

 the Tain Bo Cuailnge.' " Lebor Buidhe Lecain, col. 648. Then the 

 Morrigan threatens to act to Cuchullain in the way detailed in the dia- 

 logue quoted in page 433; and, as the tale concludes, "the badb 

 afterwards goes away" ("laid ass in badb iarum v ). 



The Morrigan puts her threats into execution during Cuchullain' s 

 fight with Loch, son of Enonis. The narrative in Lebor na h Uidhre 

 describes the encounter in the following manner : — 



" 0 ro chomraicset iarom ind fir for sind dth, ocus 0 rogabsat oc 

 gliaid ocus oc imesorcain and, ocus 0 ro gab each dib for truastad a cheli 

 focheird in escongon triol {.i. tri curu) im chossa Conculaind comboi fden 

 fotarsnu isind dth ina ligu. Danautat {.i. buailis) Loch cosin chlaidiub 

 combu chroderg hit ath dia fuilriud .... Lasodain atraig, ocus 

 benaid in nescongain comebdatar a hasnai indi, ocus comboing in cethri 

 dars na sluaga sair ar ecin, combertatar a puple innan adarcaib lasa 

 torandcless darigensat in dd lathgdile isind ath. Tanautat som ind sod 

 mactire do imairg na bii fair star. Leicid som cloich as a taihn co mebaid 

 a suil ina cind. Teite irricht samaisce mdile derge muitte rias na buaib 

 forsna linni ocus na hdthu. Is and asbsrt som ni airciu (.i. ni rochim) 

 andthu la linni. Leicidsom cloich dont samaisc mail deirg comemaid a 

 gergara foV Lebor na hUidhre, fol. 37, a. I. 



" When the men met afterwards in the ford, and when they com- 

 menced fighting, and mutually contending, and when each man 'began 

 to strike the other, the escongon (eel) made a triple twist round 



