Legendary fictions of the Irish Celts

326 Fictions of the Irish Celts.
on lifting the staff, he found the spike driven into the floor,
through the instep of the king. " My son," said he, sorrowfully,
" why did you give no notice when you found your
foot pierced through % " " Father," said the king, " though
the torture was great, I strove to endure it. I looked on
what you did as a necessary part of the rite." Patrick,
stooping, and making the sign of the cross on the wound,
the blood ceased to flow, and the sufferer was relieved of
pain. He was then gladdened by these words addressed
to him by the saint :— " For your piety and faith it shall
be allowed to ten monarchs of your line to wear your
crown in succession ; and, one excepted, all shall be
blessed with prosperous reigns."
THE DECISION OF THE CHARIOT.
St. Fiech, when a Druid at the court of the Ard Righ,
was one of the two who stood up to receive the saint.
He assisted him aftenvards in his apostolic labours, and,
becoming infirm, was indulged with a chariot. St.
Sechnal, or St. Secundus, from whom the old town ot
Dunshaughlin received its name, and who was another of
the saint's coadjutors, considered himself as well entitled
to the privilege as his brother Fiech. " We shall," said
St. Patrick, " leave the decision to the beasts themselves,
or rather to Providence, whose favours are shown even
to the dumb animals." Next morning the two beasts
were yoked and put on the highway, and on they went
at their ease till evening. Being then near St. Sechnal's
home, they turned into his bawn, ate the provender
offered them, but would suffer no one to unyoke them.
When dayliglit came, they resumed their journey, entered
another bishop's bawn in the evening, took supper, and
again objected to being unharnessed. The third evening
found them in St. Fiech's bawn, and most eager to be
rid of their trappings. St. Sechnal humbled himself, and
no one afterwards grudged St. Fiech his hard-seated,
block-wheeled car, unprovided with springs, for such