Page:West Irish folk-tales and romances - William Larminie.djvu/155

 Rh “We went on another while, till we came to a river. There was a great flood in the river. The man went out. He went to the other side. I went out after him, so that I was all but lost. I said I was all but lost. ‘If you had your bridge with you, you would have had no fear of being lost.’ We went on another while. I said I was hungry. ‘Well,’ said the man, ‘if you had your mother with you from home, you would not have been hungry.’” The king was listening to him.

“Well,” said he, “when you called out that you were wet, that man had a top-coat on, that didn't let a drop in. When you called out you were all but lost on the river, if you had a nag you would not have been afraid. The other man had a good horse.”

“He had,” said the champion.

“As good as I ever saw,” said the king's daughter.

“How far was he with you?”

“He was with me to the end of the city.”

She arose standing. She went out, nor did she stop till she was in the city, in the place where was Kayleh-na-Bochtjinacht. She took a hold of him by the hand. She bade him welcome home. He got up and opened a travelling bag. He gave her a silk gown. He put it on her. He put silk clothes entirely on her. The two went till they came to the king's house. The king and the champion thought the bride was in a room inside.