Legendary fictions of the Irish Celts

Household Stories. 3
early risers were passing next morning, they found two
long clefts in the stone, where it was after burning itself
an opening downwards, nobody could tell how far. But
a messenger came in at noon, and said that the Danes
were so frightened when they heard of the flail coming
into Dublin, that they got into their ships, and sailed
away.
Well, I suppose, before they were married, Gilla got
some man, like Pat Mara of Tomenine, to larn him the
" principles of politeness," fluxions, gunnery and fortifi-
cation, decimal fractions, practice, and the rule of three
direct, the way he'd be able to keep up a conversation
with the royal family. Whether he ever lost his time
laming them sciences, I'm not sure, but it's as sure as fate
that his mother never more saw any want till the end of
her days.
Let not the present compiler be censured for putting
this catalogue of learned branches into the mouth of an
uneducated boy. We have seen Reddy, and half the
congregation of Rathnure Chapel, swallowing with eyes,
mouths, and ears, the enunciation of the master's as-
sumed stock of knowledge, ornamented with flourishes,
gamboge, verdigris, and vermilion, and set forth in the
very order observed in the text.
In the Volksiimrchen (People's Stories), Hans (the
diminutive of Johannes) performs the greater part of the
exploits. His namesake Jack is the hero of the house-
hold stories of the more English counties of Ireland.
The following is a fair specimen of the class :
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