Transcript

Bhí bean fadó ann agus do bhí sí ag cailleadh a sláinte. Dúirt sí lena fear maidin lae dhá n-imíodh sé agus a ghoil 'na leithide seo dh'áit in Éirinn, buidéal a thabhairt aici[1], go mbeadh sí chomh maith agus a bhí sí riamh. Dhá bhfaghadh sí buidéal as an tobar a bhí ansin. D'imigh sé go humhal agus bhalaigh leis. Agus chaith sé an lá ag siúl go cruaidh. Nuair a bhí deireadh an lae ag tíocht casadh dhó fear ar an mbóthar agus d'fhiafraigh sé dhó cáit a bhí sé ag goil.

"Tá mé," a dúirt sé, "ag goil ag tóraíocht buidéal dho mo bhean atá ag cailleadh a sláinte le fada. Agus chuala mé dhá dtéinn go a leithid seo dho thobar agus buidéal a thabhairt aici go mbeadh sí go maith."

"Níl a leithide in Éirinn," a dúirt an fear. "Fill abhailí! Ag iarraidh do chur chun báis a bhí sí."

D'fhill sé abhailí (ar a sháil) (...) an bealach céannaí. Agus tráthnóna an lae chéannaí a bhí sé ag teacht abhailí tháinig fear bocht thart a bhí ag imeacht ag siúl, fear siúil. Tháinig sé ag an doras agus d'iarr sé a lóistín ar bhean an tí seo. Dúirt sí leis nach bhféadfadh sí an lóistín a thabhairt dó, go rabh fear an tí imithe. Agus do bhí fear eile ina shuidheadh ar chathaoir ar an taobh eile dhaoithe. Agus d'imigh sé... (d'iompaigh) sé amach agus chuaigh sé isteach ins an ngarraí agus tharraing sé góil fhéir as an gcoca agus luigh sé ann. Nuair a bhí sé tamall insa gcruaich fhéir d'éirigh sé amach aríst is chuaigh sé suas ar thaobh an tí. Ghearr sé poll lena scian isteach i dtaobh an tí go bhfeicfeadh sé céard a bhí ar siúl istigh. Agus bhí suipéar leagthaí anuas ag an mbean dhaoithe féin agus dhon fhear a bhí istigh. Bhí sé leagthaí anuas coileach francach ar an mbord agus iad á ithe. Is nuair a bhí siad sásta leag sí an coileach francach thart agus d'imigh sí agus fuair sí ceathrú chaorach a bhí róstaí. Leag sí anuas í agus nuair a bhí siad réidh dhon gceathrú chaorach d'imigh sí agus fuair sí buidéal chárt fuiscí agus d'ól siad a mian dó... a sáith dhó, agus d'imigh siad ansin agus fuaigh 'ach éinne a chodladh.

Is gearr a bhí an fear a bhí ar an (teach) (...) go dtáinig sé anuas sa ngarraí arís agus chuala sé fear an tí ag goil isteach ag an tsráid. D'éirigh sé agus chuaigh sé chuige amach.

"Le do thoil," a dúirt sé, "mise a ligean isteach in éineacht leat go maidin."

"Ligfead" a dúirt sé, "agus fáilte."

Chuaigh siad isteach agus bhí an bhean ins an leabaidh agus í ag éagaoineadh. Ach an fear a bhí istigh chuaigh sé faoi chnap tuí a bhí in éadan an tí is d'imíodh sé amach nuair a bheadh fear an tí ina chodladh. Nuair a tháinig siad isteach d'fhiafraigh fear an tí dhaoithe an rabh aon cheo le n-ithe. Dúirt sí go rabh fataí tura, nach rabh aon cheo leofa. Shuigh sé féin agus an fear ba-... siúil síos ag an mbord agus nuair a shuíodar síos tharraing an fear siúil páipéar as a phóca.

"Is aisteach an rud," a dúirt sé, "atá scríofaí ar a thaobh seo."

"Céard é?" a dúirt fear an tí.

"Go bhfuil coileach francach róstaí in áit eicínt sa teach agus cuide dhó ití."

"Má tá," a dúirt fear an tí, a dúirt sé, "is meabhrach an duine thú."

D'éirigh sé agus chuaigh sé ag tóraíocht agus fuair sé é. Agus nuair a d'itheadar a sáith dhó tharraing sé an páipéar amach arís.

"Tá rud aisteach eilí," a dúirt sé, "ar an taobh eile dhon pháipéar seo."

"Céard é?" a dúirt fear an tí.

"Go bhfuil ceathrú chaorach róstaí in áit eile dhon teach agus cuide (dhaoithe) ití."

"Má tá," a dúirt sé, "is tú an fear is meabhraí a tháinig ar an saol ariamh."

D'éirigh sé agus fuair sé í agus d'itheadar a sáith dhaoithe sin. Tharraing sé an páipéar amach aríst agus d'fhéach sé ar choirnéal eile dhó.

"Is aisteach an ní," a dúirt sé, "atá ar choirnéal eile dhon pháipéar seo. Go bhfuil buidéal chárt fuiscí istigh agus cuid dhó óltaí."

"Má tá," a dúirt fear an tí, a dúirt sé, "is tú an fear is fearr a chonaic mise ariamh."

D'éirigh sé agus fuair sé an buidéal fuiscí agus d'óladar a sáith dhó.

"Bhuel, is aisteach an rud," a dúirt an fear siúil, "atá ar choirnéal eilí dhon pháipéar."

"Céard é?" a dúirt fear an tí.

"Go bhfuil an Diabhal," a dúirt sé, "istigh. Agus éiríomuid suas! Caithfidh muid a chur amach."

D'éirigh siad 'na seasamh agus tharraing an fear siúil súiste ó chúl an (raca) agus thug sé anuas é. D'oscail sé an doras agus thug sé píce dho dh'fhear[2] an tí.

"Anois," a dúirt sé le fear an tí, "seas anseo le béal an doiris. Agus nuair a dhúiseos mise é cuir thusa an píce ann."

Chuaigh an fear siúil suas agus súiste aige. Agus an áit a cheap sé a rabh sé sin a shíneadh bhuail sé dhon tsúiste é. Agus d'éirigh sé dho spring 'na sheasamh. Agus nuair a bhí sé ag éirí ag rith amach thit an píce ó fhear an tí agus thit sé i lagar. Agus bhalaigh an fear eile leis.

Translation

There was a woman long ago and her health was failing. She said to her husband one morning that if he left and went to a certain place in Ireland, and brought a bottle [back] to her, that she would be as good as she ever was. If she got a bottle from the well that was there. He left humbly and went away. And he spent the day on a difficult walk. When the end of the day was near he met a man on the road and [the man] asked him where he was going.

"I am," he said, "going in search of a bottle for my wife whose health has been failing for a long time. And I heard that if I went to a certain well and brought her a bottle that she would be well."

"There is no such well in Ireland," said the man. "Return home! She was trying to kill you."

He turned on his heel (?) and returned home the same way. And on the same evening that he was coming home a poor wandering man, an itinerant, came by. He came to the door and asked the woman of this house for lodgings. She said that she couldn't give him lodgings, that the man of the house was gone. And there was another man sitting on a chair on the other side of her. And he went... he turned around (?) and he went into the field and pulled a handfull of hay from the cock and lay there. After he was in the rick of hay for a while he got up again and went up to the side of the house. He cut a hole in the side of the house with his knife so that he could see what was happening inside. And the woman had served supper for herself and for the man who was inside. A turkey-cock had been served and they were eating it. And when they were satisfied she put the turkey-cock aside and went and got a sheep's haunch that had been roasted. She served that and when they were finished with the sheep's haunch she went and got a quart bottle of whiskey and they drank their desire... their fill of it, and they went then and everyone went to sleep.

Soon the man who was on the (...) house so that he came down into the field again and he heard the man of the house approaching the outside of the house. He got up and went to him.

"Please," he said, "let me in with you until morning."

"I will" he said, "and gladly."

They went in and the woman was in the bed moaning. But the man who was inside he went under a heap of hay which was up against the house [wall] and he would go out when the man of the house was asleep. When they came in the man of the house asked her if there was anything to eat. She said that there were dry potatoes, and that there was nothing to go with them. Himself and the itinerant sat at the table and when they sat down the itinerant pulled a piece of paper from his pocket.

"There is a strange thing," he said, "written on one side of this."

"What is it?" said the man of the house.

"That there is a roasted turkey-cock somewhere in the house with a piece of it eaten."

"If there is," said the man of the house, said he, "you are a wise person."

He got up and went looking and found it. And when they had eaten their fill of it he pulled out the paper again.

"There is another strange thing," he said, "on the other side of this paper."

"What is it?" said the man of the house.

"That there is a roasted sheep's haunch somewhere else in the house with a piece of it eaten."

"If there is," he said, "you are the wisest man who was ever born."

He got up and he found it and they ate their fill of it. He pulled out the paper again and he looked at another corner of it.

"There is a strange thing," he said, "on another corner of this paper. That there is a quart of whiskey in the house with some of it drunk."

"If there is," said the man of the house, said he, "you are the best man I have ever seen."

He got up and he found the bottle of whiskey and they drank their fill of it.

"Well, there is a strange thing," said the itinerant, "on another corner of this paper."

"What is it?" said the man of the house.

"That the Devil," he said, "is in the house. And let's get up! We have to put him out."

They stood up and the itinerant pulled a flail from the back of the settle(?) and he brought it down. He opened the door and gave a pike to the man of the house.

"Now," he said to the man of the house, "stand here beside the door. And when I wake him you put the pike into him."

The itinerant went up with the flail. And where he thought the other man was lying, he hit it with the flail. And he stood up like a spring. And when he was running out the man of the house dropped the pike and fainted. And the other man took off.

Footnotes

Commentary

This is a clear example of an international folktale, ATU 1358C Trickster discovers adultery: food goes to husband instead of lover. It is an extremely widespread tale, with versions coming from all over Europe, as far east as China and Japan, and from the east coast of Africa. See Hans Jorg Uther, The types of international folktales: a classification and bibliography (3 vols, Helsinki, 2004). Only a single example of the story appears, without provenance, in Seán Ó Súilleabháin and Rieder Th. Christiansen's The types of the Irish folktale (Helsinki, 1968). It also contains an international folk motif, K1571 Trickster discovers adultery: food goes to husband instead of paramour. See Stith Thompson, Motif-index of folk literature (rev. and enlarged ed., 6 vols, Bloomington, Ind., 1955-8).