Page:West Irish folk-tales and romances - William Larminie.djvu/135

 Rh bleeding greatly. Down she came with a slap. She put the poison spot through his heart. She got the claw fixed in his heart. She drew out his heart on his side. When the man was falling, the cat opened her mouth as wide as she could with the rage that was on her; and when he saw her mouth open, and he falling, he thrust his hand into her mouth and pulled out her heart. The two fell dead. They were lying dead then.

The king knight of the black castle was troubled that he let his brother go to fight in his place. He went on his track to see how he was doing. He went forward in the camp. He found the three hundred men killed. He went forward farther in the camp. He found the one-legged hag killed. He went still forward in the camp. He found the three hundred cats killed. He went still forward in the camp. He found the Wether of Fuerish Fwee-erë killed. He went on and found his brother and his stepmother killed. Then he did not know what to do. He was afraid lest he might put the cat's heart into the man; for the evil temper of the cat might drive the man mad and kill him. The lump of mist came. It spoke to him: “Is it not easy for you to distinguish between the big heart of the man and the little heart of the cat?”

He took up the big heart. He washed it and fixed it in his brother. He found the bottle of the