DALL MHACCUARTA.

Ciar' bh'é Dall MacCuarta? File óir-
dhearc árd-chlúiteach dob' eadh é dar dhúthaig

Cuailgne i g-Contae Lughmhaighe. Ba chara
agus ba chompánach é do Thoirdhealbhach
O Cearbhalláin .i. an file ba mhó cáil agus
clú i d-tosach na h-aoise seo chuaidh thorainn.
Ní thugthaoi Dall air ar d-tús. Dob' ainm
díleas do Séamus MhacCuarta, agus níor
chaill sé amharc a shúl no gur imthigh air an
tionóisg ar a n-déantar trácht geárr gann
annso.

Dob' é seo ádhbhar fá'r cheap sé an dán
so: Lá dá raibh sé féin agus a cháirde agus
a choigéilidh le chéile d'éirigh imreasán coimh-
mheasta agus comórtais eatorra agus ag
so é .i. cia aca in a meas dob' fheárr léim
agus lúth. Chum deiridh do chur leis, do
cinneadh aca fá dheoigh gach aon díobh do
léimnigh trasna puill mhóir mhóna bhí in aice
leo, agus mar sin de, do bhain gach duine
aca a chuid bróg de, chor go m-beidís éad-
trom gan ualach, agus iad ag léimnigh
trasna an phuill. Chum an sgéil do ghior-
rughadh, an uair do thug an file iarracht ar
léim do thabhairt go d-tí an taobh thall de'n
pholl, mar do chlis sé air leithead a dhá bhonn
do ghabháil dí, is eadh d'éirigh dhó é féin do
thuitim isteach ina cheartlár súd, agus
'nuair do tógbhadh amach é, is amhlaidh frith é,
agus é Dall gan amharc ar bith aige i
g-ceachtar dhá shúilibh. Sud é an t-ádhbhar fá
d-tugthaoi Dall air 'n-a dhiaidh sin, ionnus
gur beag nach n-déantar dearmad agus
díochuimhne anois ar a ainm díleas. I
bh-fochair na n-daoineadh an tráth sin do bhí
girseach óg álainn sgiamhach dar bh'ainm
Rós, agus thug sí a bhróga chuige. Do thaith-
nigh so go mór leis an bh-filidh, agus bhí sé
fíor-bhuidheach dí, agus adeirthear fós go
d-tug searc agus síor-ghrádh dhi ó'n uair sin,
do bhrigh go bh-facaidh sé nár dhuine í mar
chách. Is í an duais agus an deagh-thabhartas
do bhronn sé dhí an dréacht deas-fhuaimneach
so do cheapadh lom-láthaireach 'ga sár-
mholadh i n-díol a cinealtais.

Is follus go leor go bh-fuil beagán lín-
teadh ins an dán so, as nach féidir mórán
céille do bhaint, de dheasgadh iad a bheith
truaillighthe. Ní fuláir dúinn cuimhne bheith
againn air seo, go bh-frith an dán ó shean-
mhnaoi gan foghlaim gan foroideas do
chualaidh ó dhuine eile é, agus mar sin do i
m-béalaibh daoineadh eile fós siar go h-aim-
sir an fhileadh féin, timchioll dá cheud
bliadhain ó shoin. Ní cóir dúinn, ar an
ádhbhar sin, iongantas do dhéanamh de bheagán de
líntibh truaillighthe d'fhághail 'san dán,
mar nár bh'fhurus do dhaoinibh gan foghlaim
a chongbháil gan truailliughadh.

Níor cuireadh i g-clódh riamh roimhe seo
acht aon dréacht amháin do chum Dall Mhac-
Cuarta .i. an “Fháilte do Chearbhallán,” atá
i Leabhar Hardiman (LL. 4, 6, de'n cheud
imleabhar). Is iomdha dán do rinne sé atá
ar fághail i láimh-sgríbhinnibh, agus dob' fhíor
do Hardiman a rádh gur maith thuillid siad
a g-cur i g-clódh. B'fhéidir go bh-fuil an
ceann so i láimh-sgríbhinn éigin díobh súd,
acht má's fíor sin, ní tháinig leis an sgribh-
neoir a fhághail i láimhsgríbhinn ar bith do
casadh leis. B'fhéidir gur fíor cheana do'n
leith eile nár sgríobhadh síos riamh é roimhe
seo, agus má bhudh ceart é seo, béidh lúth-
gháir mhór agus gáirdeachas ar an sgribhneoir
go ráinig leis dán dar bh'ughdar file óir-
dhearc iomráidhteach do shaoradh ó'n m-bás
agus ó'n m-buain-eug do bhéidheadh i n-dán
dó, muna n-déanfaidhe é do sgríobhadh síos
sul a rachadh sé ar ceal uainn. Is ó'n sean-
mhnaoi chéadna ag a raibh an t-abhrán úd,
Allaidh Níc Mhurchaid (I. na G. U. 44, L. 184),
do fuair an sgribhneoir féin an duan
beag so.

ROS BHÁN DHEAS.

DALL MHACCUARTA RO CHAN.

'Sí mo Rós bhán dheas
An naoidhe(1) is áille,
D'a bh-faca mé (2) go fóill,
'G-a bh-fuil naoi b-páille(3)
De chríoch na Páille
In a leacain mar an rós.

Tá a píob 's a bráighe(4)
Mar shíte páipeir(e), (5)
No mar an eala ar an mhóin;
Amar(muna) bh-fuighead(6) fásgadh
Le n-a caoin-bháin-chneas,(7)
('S le) n-a maoth-bhán-chrobh
Chan fhada (8) bheidheas mé beo!

'Sé do bheul blasda,
Agus do chiabh chasda,(9)
D'fhág pian thrasna
Tríd lár mo choim;
Gur mé an pearsa
Nach n-deunfadh breug leatsa,
Go g-cuirfeadh an t-eug creapall(10)
Ar cháil(11) de mo chaint.
'Sé mo leun deacair
Gan mé ar thaobh leaptha leat,
Agus mó lámh fai do chionn,(12)
Mar n-dúil,(13) a chéad-searc,
Go bh-fuighinn léagsa(14) fada ort,
Do léighisfeadh m'aicid,
Agus d'fhág tú mé tinn!

Is ag mo chaoin-Róise
Tá na naoi n-ór-bhall(15)
Ar a caoidh-chórnaibh,(16)
Agus a frasa go féar,
Agus gach dlaoigh ar ór dí
Ar lí an ómra,
Mar is díon dóbhtha,(17)
No fasgadh do chéad.
Tá gach aon órd aicí
De na naoi seodaibh ud(18)
Is deise 'ná an sgéimh.
Is í is ró-ghile
Píob óir-lile,
Cíocha cóir-chruinne,
Ar thaoibh a cuirp fhéin!

Do do chaoin-dhealbh(19)
Thug mé fíor-thaitneamh,(20)
Agus spéis do do ghreann,(21)
'G-a bh-fuil díon ceathrair
In gach dlaoigh chlannaigh
Ar fhás (síos) leatsa,(22)
A stóir, ó fhréimh go bonn.
'Sé do chíocha ganna,
Agus do chom cailce
Chlaoidh chreapaill
Gaedhail agus Goill,
Agus nach díth leatsa
Fear caoch caithte
Tuit i b-péin deacair,
A ghéaga, do do gheall?(23)

(1) Naoidhe properly an infant, but often used by the
bards of CUailgne in the sense of a young girl or maiden.
Cf. the similar use of báb by the Munster poets.

(2) Or bh-facas. Both dictated.

(3) The word páille is not in any Gaelic dictionary,
Irish or Scotch, and it may be a corruption. Perhaps it
is an abstract noun in e formed from the English adjective
pale, and so = paleness (in correct Irish báine). In the
5th line a play upon words may be intended, so that it
would signify both "paleness" and "the Pale," or old
English territory in Ireland. Lines 4, 5 and 6 might then
be translated, "in whose rosy cheek are nine (shades of)
paleness of the country of the Pale."

Cf. Sneachta geal gan aoluing go géar i g-cath
le dath an róis, bhí sneachta 'gus caor ag caismirt 'na
sgéimh, agus c. The meaning assigned to páille above above, is,
jowever, entirely conjectural. THe word is quite un-
known in the spoken Irish of Cuailgne. [Perhaps báille
= bailiwick, district. - E. O'G.]

(4) Pronounced braw-yĕ. The same form occurs in
Scotch Gaelic, The old Irish form is similar, bráge.

(5) Like a sheet of paper. Síte, a loan word from
English. Páipear, sf. 2 in Cuailgne, gen. páipeire.

(6) This synthetic form is now quite obsolete as regards
colloquial use in Cuailgne.

(7) Pronounced as if spelt chrios.

(8) It is worthy of note that while fada is pronounced
foddha, chan fhada is sounded hah naddha. This variation
is heard in Connaught too, e.g. fata (fottha), baint
fhataidh (atthee). When f is aspirated it changes the
vowel sound.

(9) Ciabh chasda, curled hair, O'R.

(10) Creapall = cosg. Creapall, fetters, binding;
Creapal, entangling, a retaining, withholding; Creap-
laim, I stop, stray, entangle, O'R. The past tense
occurs in 4th verse. Colloquially creapall also = a
cripple.

(11) Cáil (sf.), explained at the time by cuid dí, roinn
dí. This word is as common as cuid in Cuailgne, and is
used in much the same way. The following line occurs
in a song in MS. in the R.I.A. Budh leor dóibh a g-cáil
cnuasaigh where a g-cáil cnuasaigh = a g-cuid cnuasaigh
= a g-cnuasach. It appears to be known in Scotland,
too, though not in dicts. "'S ma dh'ol iad càl gun chuir
thu asd'e," Latha Inbher-Lochaidh le Ian Lom. The
sense "some of, part of, a good deal of" as cáil is used
above may have developed from that of "quality, kind"
given in the dicts,. and still in use in some localities.

(12) This old dative from has entirely supplanted ceann
in the nom. in Cuailgne. Neoch (old dative) is similarly
used for neach.

(13) Mar n-dúil = mar súil. Why does mar eclipse
here? Similarly tá dúil agam is said for tá súil agam.

(14) A lease.

(15) It is almost impossible to make any connected
sense out of the first half of 3rd verse, no doubt because
it is corrupted. Or-bhall may be a corruption of ór bhann,
which is given in the Scotch dicts., "a lace of gold, a hinge
or band of gold," H. Soc'x. dict.; "a lace of gold, a hinge
of gold," Armstrong. The latter part ball may, how-
ever, be an abbreviation of bachall, a ringlet.

(16) This line is very uncertain. If it were given
exactly as pronounced it would read air a chaoi chórnú.
The final word would appear to be either as above or
chórnadh, folding, plaiting, curling. Caoi may represent
either caoidh, decency, caobh, a branch, O'R. caodh, good
order, condition, Sh. or perhaps caomh (caoimh),. There
is certainly a word córn, a ringlet, a curl, though it is
not given in dicts. The following lines occur in another
poem of Courtney's : -

Bí a gruag fighte 'na chuachain péacach,
'N-a chórnaibh córnaighthe cópach craobhach,
'N-a n-dlaoighthibh daithte casta péarlach,
'N-a ngéagaibh dlútha go driúcht an fhéir síos.

In a MS. song this line occurs : -

Tá a cúl famainneach ór-bhuidhe ag sgabadh go bróig
's ag casadh mar chórnaidh' tiomchioll.

Curls or ringlets is the only meaning possible in both
passages. Moreover, the diminutive from córn, viz.,
cúirnín (cf. órd, gen. úird), is common enough.
M 'Curtin gives cúirnín as the Irish word for curl in his
dict., and it occurs in O'Daly's Munster Poetry.

(17) Mar is díon may perhaps be emended to mar
dhion. Dóbhtha, as in Connaught, for dóibh.

(18) Or seod in place of órd, and n-órdaibh for
seodaibh.

(19) Caoindealbh, a fine handsome form, O'R. Macaomh
óg caoin-dhealbhach, a young finely-shaped youth, Eachtra
Thoirdhealbhaigh mhic Stairn, p. 57.

(20) Taitneamh (thotthnoo). The central t is not aspi-
rated in this word in Ulster or Scotland.

(21) Greann, fair hair, greannach, long-haired, O'R.

(22) Sios has been inserted, as the assonance being de-
fective and the line too short, there was clear evidence of
its having dropped out. Cf. tá a cúirnín go cúl-bhuidhe
ag fás síos léí, Munster poem in MS.

(23) Geall, love, Coneys.

The following emendations have been made: - 1st
verse deacair emended to Leacain, maobh bán-chrobh to
maoth-bhán-chrobh, 3rd and 4th vs. chaoi to chíocha.

Críoch (v.i.), thaobh (v.ii.), and -dhealbh (v. iv.), are not
grammatically correct, as the dative case should be used.
Naoi b-páille and naoi n-ór-bhall may also be infringe-
ments of grammar. 'G-a bh-fuil is pronounced as if spelt
go bh-feil, and 'ná as if spelt nú (no).

Further to note (3), the following line occurs in another
of Courtney's songs, Nancy Smith:-

Táid líthe na g-caor 's na géise gile in eudan an
leinbh táirngthe.

Perhaps b-páille is a corruption of g-cáile or sgáile,
shades. There appears to be only one piece of poetry,
the metre and assonances of which resemble those of
Rós bhán dheas. This is the fragment (one verse), given
by Hardiman, vol. i., p. 345. It is very probable that
Courtney was the author of this also, as the words scaoth,
mín-ghlaca, bláthnaid (= spéir-bhean, grian-bhean),
taobh thana, frequently occur in poetry ascribed to him
without dispute.

S. H. L.