Chapter V

§ 29. Once more the hall became a babel of words, the women laudingtheir men. Then essayed Conall and Loigaire and Cuchulainn to stir updissension. Sencha, son of Ailill, got up and shook his sceptre. To him theUltonians gave ear, and then to restrain the ladies he made speech:—“I restrain ye, ladies of Ulster, noble in name and in glory;Cease ye your words of contention, lest the mien of men folk be paler,In keenness of conflict striving, amid vainglorious combat;Through guile of women, meseemeth, men’s shields are wont to besplintered,In frays the hosts of the heroes are oft contending in anger;To woman’s whims it is owing this use and wont among men folk—They bruise what there’s no upbinding, and attack what they havenot attained to:Heroines gallant and glorious, and noble ones, I restrain ye.”§ 30. Then Emer spake and made answer:—“Fitting for me, meseemeth, to speak as the wife of a heroWho combineth in natural union graces of mind and of body,Since ever his teaching was finished and learning to him came easy. [8].................None will be found who will equal his age, his growth, and his splendour:Of a line that is long descended, he speaketh with grace and with order;A brave and a valiant hero, like a fury he fights in the tumult,Dexterous of aim and so agile, and quick and sure at the hunting;And find ye a man among men folk, a mould that may match withCuchulainn!”§ 31. “Sooth, lady,” quoth Conall the Victorious, “let that famousfellow (lit. gillie of feats) come here that we may inquire of him.” “No,”quoth Cuchulainn. “I am to-day weary and done up. I will not hold aduel till after I have had food and sleep.” In sooth that was really so,inasmuch as it was the day on which he had fallen in with [his steed] theGrey of Macha by the side of the Grey Linn at Sliav Fuait. On its havingcome out of the loch, Cuchulainn crept up to it and put his two handsaround the steed’s neck till they twain got a-wrestling, and on that wisethey made a circuit of Erin, until on that night Cuchulainn came chasingwith his steed (lit. driving horse) to Emain. He got the Black Sainglenn inlike wise from Lough Dubh Sainglenn.§ 32. It was then Cuchulainn spake thus: “To-day have the Grey and Ivisited the great plains of Erin, namely, Bregia of Meath, the seashoremarsh of Muirthemne Macha, Moy Medba, Currech Cleitech Cerna, Liaof Linn Locharn, Fea Femen Fergna, Urros Domnand, Ros Roigne (? ...)Eô. And to sleep and to eat it liketh me better than everything. By thegod of my folk I swear ’twould be but fun and frolic for me to fight aduel had I my fill of food and of sleep.” [“Well,” quoth Bricriu, “this haslasted long enough. The Feast of Bricriu has to be celebrated; let meatand drink (lit. food and ale) be got at once, and let the women’s warfarebe put a stop to till the feast be over.” This was done, and it was apleasant (time) for them till the end of three days and three nights.][9]