TE MOR A:

A N

EPIC POE M.

BOOK I.

THE blue waves of Erin roll in light. The mountains are covered with day. Trees fhake their dufky heads, in the breeze. Grey torrents pour their noify ftreams. Two green hills, with aged oaks, furround à narrow plain. The blue course of a stream is there. On its banks stood Cairbar* of Atha. His fpear fupports the king: the red eye of his fear is fad. Cormac rifes in his foul, with all his ghaftly wounds. The grey form of the youth appears in darkness. Blood pours from his airy fide. Cairbar thrice threw his fpear on earth. Thrice he ftroked his beard. His fteps are fhort. He often ftops. He toffes his finewy arms. He is like a cloud in the defart varying its form to every blast. The valleys are fad around, and fear, by turns, the fhower! The king, at length, refumed his foul. He took

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his

Cairbar, the fon of Borbar-duthul, was defcended lineally from Lathon the chief of the Firbolg, the first colony who settled in the fouth of Ireland. The Cael were in poffeffion of the northern coaft of that kingdom, and the first monarchs of Ireland were of their race. Hence arofe thofe differences between the two nations, which terminated, at laft, in the murder of Cormac, and the ufurpation of Cairbar, lord of Atha, who is mentioned in this place,

his pointed fpear. He turned his eye to Moi-lena. The fcouts of blue ocean came. They came with fteps of fear, and often looked behind. Cairbar knew that the mighty were near ! He called his gloomy chiefs.

The founding fteps of his warriors came. They drew, at once, their fwords. There Morlath * ftood with darkened face. Hidalla's long hair fighs in wind. Red-haired Cormar bends on his fpear, and rolls his fide-long-looking eyes. Wild is the look of Malthos from beneath two fhaggy brows. Foldath ftands, like an oozy rock, that covers its dark fides with foam. His fpear is like Slimora's fir, that meets the wind of heaven. His fhield is marked with the ftrokes of battle. His red eye defpifes danger. Thefe and a thousand other chiefs furrounded the king of Erin, when the fcout of ocean came, Mor-annal †, from streamy Moi-lena. His eyes hang forward from his face. His lips are trembling, pale!

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"Do the chiefs of Erin ftand," he faid, lent as the grove of evening? Stand they, like a filent wood, and Fingal on the coaft? Fingal, who is terrible in battle, the king of ftreamy Morven!" "Haft thou feen the warrior ?" faid Cairbar with a figh. "Are his heroes many on the coaft? Lifts he the fpear of battle? Or comes the king in peace ?"" In peace he comes not, king

Mór-lath, great in the day of battle. Hidalla', mildly looking bero. Cor-mar, expert at fea. Málth-os, flow to speak. Foldath, generous.

Foldath, who is here ftrongly marked, makes a great figure in the fequel of the poem. His fierce, uncomplying character is fuftained throughout. He feems, from a paffage in the second book, to have been Cairbar's greateft confident, and to have had a principal hand in the confpiracy against Cormac king of Ireland. His tribe was one of the moft confiderable of the race of the Fir-bolg.

+ Mór-annal, Arong breath ; a very proper name for a scout

king of Erin! I have seen his forward fpear *. It is a meteor of death. The blood of thousands is on its steel. He came firft to the fhore, ftrong in the grey hair of age. Full rofe his finewy limbs, as he ftrode in his might. That fword is by his fide, which gives no fecond + wound. His fhield is terrible, like the bloody moon, afcending through a ftorm. Then came Offian king of fongs. Then Morni's fon, the firft of men. Connal leaps forward on his fpear. Dermid fpreads his dark-brown locks. Fillan bends his bow, the young hunter of streamy Moruth. But who is that before them, like the terrible course of a ftream! It is the fon of Offian,. bright be tween his locks! His long hair falls on his back. His dark brows are half-inclosed in steel. His fword hangs loofe on his fide. His fpear glitters as he moves. I fled from his terrible eyes, king of high Temora !”

"Then fly, thou feeble man," faid Foldath's gloomy wrath. "Fly to the grey ftreams of thy land, fon of the little foul! Have not I feen that Ofcar? I beheld the chief in war. He is of the mighty in danger: but there are others who lift the fpear. Erin has many fons as brave, king of Temora of Groves! Let Foldath meet him in

Mor-annal here alludes to the particular appearance of Fingal's spear. If a man, upon his first landing in a strange country, kept the point of his fpear forward, it denoted in thofe days that he came in a hoftile manner, and accordingly he was treated as an enemy; if he kept the point behind him, it was a token of friendship, and he was immediately invited to the feaft, according to the hospitality of the times.

This was the famous fword of Fingal, made by Luno, a fmith of Lochlin, and after him poetically called the fon of Luno; it is faid of this fword, that it killed a man at every ftroke; and that Fingal never ufed it but in times of the greateft danger.

his ftrength. Let me ftop this mighty stream. My fpear is covered with blood. My fhield is like the wallof Tura !"

"Shall Foldath * alone meet the foe ?" replied the dark-browed Malthos. "Are they not on our coaft, like the waters of many ftreams ? Are not these the chiefs, who vanquished Swaran, when the fons of green Erin fled? Shall Foldath meet their braveft hero?. Foldath of the heart of pride! take the strength of the people! and let Malthos come. My fword is red with flaughter, but who has heard my words *?"

"Sons of green Erin," faid Hidalla †, "let not Fingal hear your words. The foe might rejoice, and his arm be strong in the land. Ye are brave, O warriors! Ye are tempefts in war. Ye are, like ftorms, which meet the rocks without fear, and overturn the woods. But let us move in our strength, flow as a gathered cloud! Then fhall the mighty tremble; the spear fhall fall from the hand of the valiant. We fee the cloud of death, they will fay, while fhadows fly over their face. Fingal will mourn in his age. He fhall behold his flying fame. The steps of his chiefs will ceafe in Morven. The mofs of years fhall grow

in Selma."

Cairbar heard their words, in filence, like the cloud of a fhower: it ftands dark on Cromla, till the lightning bursts its fide. The valley gleams with

*The oppofite characters of Foldath and Malthos are ftrongly marked in fubfequent parts of the poem. They appear always in oppofition. The feuds between their families, which were the fource of their hatred to one another, are mentioned in other poems.

That is, who has heard my vaunting? He intended the expreffion as a rebuke to the felf-praife of Foldath.

Hidalla was the chief of Clonra, a small district on the banks of the lake of Lego. The beauty of his perfon, his cloquence and genius for poetry are afterwards mentioned.

with heaven's flame; the fpirits of the storm re joice. So ftood the filent king of Temora; at length his words broke forth." Spread the feaft on Moi-lena. Let my hundred bards attend. Thou, red-haired Olla, take the harp of the king. Go to Ofcar chief of fwords. Bid Ofcar to our joy. To-day we feast and hear the fong: to-morrow break the fpears! Tell him that I have raised the tomb of Cathol* ; that bards gave his friend to the winds. Tell him that Cairbar has heard of his fame, at the ftream of refounding Carunt. Cathmor my brother is not here. He is not here with his thousands, and our arms are weak.Cathmor is a foe to ftrife at the feaft! His foul is bright

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Cathol the fon of Maronnan, or Moran, was murdered by Cairbar, for his attachment to the family of Cormac. He had attended Ofcar to the wars of Inis-thona, where they contracted a great friendship for one another. Ofcar, immedi ately after the death of Cathol, had sent a formal challenge to Cairbar, which he prudently declined, but conceived a fecret hatred against Oscar, and had beforehand contrived to kill him at the feaft, to which he hear invites him.

He alludes to the battle of Ofcar against Caros king of Ships; who is fuppofed to be the fame with Caraufius the ufurper.

Cathmor, great in battle, the son of Borbar-duthul, and brother of Cairbar king of Ireland, had, before the infurrection of the Firbolg, paffed over into Inis-huna, fuppofed to be a part of South Britain, to aflift Conmor king of that place against his enemies. Cathmor was fuccefsful in the war, but, in the course of it, Conmor was either killed, or died a natural death. Cairbar, upon intelligence of the de-figns of Fingal to dethrone him, had dispatched a meffenger for Cathmor, who returned into Ireland a few days before the opening of the poem.

Cairbar here takes advantage of his brother's absence, to perpetrate his ungenerous defigns against Ofcar; for the noble fpirit of Cathmor, had he been prefent, would not have permitted the laws of that hofpitality, for which he was fo renowned himself, to be violated. The brothers form a contraft: we do not deteft the mean foul of Cairbar more, than we admire the disinterested and generous mind of Cathmor.