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The Heroic and Ossianic Literature. 205
Wo givo tho incidents of the Fionn Cycle in this tubulated form,
placing side by side the Fionn of history and the Fionn of popular
fimcy:
Histoi-y,
I. In marriage (?), postlmmously.
1 1. Muirnc, daiightcrof Chief Druid
III. Cumal, leader of Militia.
IV. Tadg, Druid, knows he
be ejected by hero.
\'. Driven to an aunt's house.
VI.
VII. By his mother or aunt (?)
VIII.
IX.
IXa.
IXn.
X.
XI.
xn.
XIII.
XIV.
XV.
XVI.
will
Forces Tadg to abandon Almu.
Gets headship of Fein5.
Slain by a fisherman for sake
of fame.
Trculif'ton.
Out of marriage, posthumously, and
one of twins.
Muirnc (?), daughter of a smith.
Lives with her father.
King Cumhal : is passing house.
Greatness foretold by a prophet, and
known
throne.
to be rightful heir to
Into the wilderness.
Nourished by fat and marrow in a
hole made in a tree.
By his nurse, Luas Lurgann.
Drowns the schoolboys, or overcomes
them at shinty, or both.
his nurse's death.
Causes
Serves as house steward.
to Fionn, the Druid.]
[Scholar
Slays the boar Beo; kills lake monsters
(biastaj.
Eats of the magic Salmon.
Wanders backwards and forwards
over Erin.
Kills father's murderer. Overcomes
Cairbre and gets thiMne.
Builds forts, dunes, &c.; founds a
great kingdom.
Dies, mysteriously slain in jumping
lake.
A candid examination of these tabulated results must convince
one that the historic account is merely the myth in a respectable
and rationalised form. The historic account of Fionn
and his men is poor and shadowy. In fact, outside the " birth"
incidents of Fionn himself, there are only three historical facts,
such as they are : (1) The Fein6 were an Irish militia (!) in the
thud century; (2) They were overthrown in the battle of Gabhra,
where also King (Jairbre, a real personage without a doubt, fell in
284 ; (3) Fionn himself mai-ried Cormac's daughter, and Cailte
killed Cairbre's successor, Fothaidh Airgtheach, in 285. Evidently
some difficulty was found in fitting the heroes of the mythic tales
into history, a difficulty which also exists in Arthur's case. He,
like Fionn, is not a king in history— there is no place for him—