Transcript

"Gabh isteach is tabhair corrán chugam," ar seisean.

Ghabh sé... Ghabh sí isteach is céard a thug sí chuige amach ach staic mhór dho scian a bhí chomh fada (le mo thaobh).

"Ó, bhuel," ar seisean, "ar ndóigh ní corrán é sin!"

Suas leis ar an teach is thosaigh sé ag baint an fhéir lena dhá lámh agus chomh luaith in Éirinn is bhí sé á bhaint bhí sé - chaithfeadh sé anuas é - bhí sé ití ag an mboin.

"Ó, bhuel," ar sise, "a Dhia is a Chríost, an aingeal as Flaitheas thú?"

"Sea," ar seisean.

"A, agus céard a thug anseo thú?"

"Tháinig mé dho chúnamh dhaoibhse," ar seisean, "nuair a chonaic mé an obair a bhí oraibh."

Bhí go maith is ní rabh go holc.

"Ara, an bhfaca tú Tadhg ann?" ar sise.

"Chonaic mé Tadhg," a deir sé.

"Ó, gabh coinne Mháire," ar sise. "Níl ann ach go bhfuil Tadhg cailltí le cupla lá," ar sise, "agus inseoidh tú dhaoithe go bhfaca tú é."

"Inseod," ar seisean.

Tháinig Máire ag reathaigh. "Á, cén chaoi a bhfuil Tadhg?"

"Á, níl ann ach go bhfuil sé réasúntaí."

"Bhuel, an dteastaíonn tobac uaidh?"

"Bhuel, teastaíonn. Tá sé cailltí, dúirt sé liom, gan tobac."

"Bhuel, tá dhá phunt anseo ón lá a cuireadh é. Tobac. Agus an dtabharfaidh tú aige é?"

"Tabharfad," ar seisean.

"Agus an dtabharfaidh tú aon bhlas ime aige?"

"Mh'anam, muise go dtabharfad," ar seisean, "gach a dtabharfaidh tú dhom."

"Bhuel, an dtabharfaidh... an dtabharfaidh tú an flainín atá anseo chuige le haghaidh cóta mór agus drár?"

"Tabharfad," a deir sé. "Ach le a bhfuil mé a fháil," a deir sé, "cén chaoi a n-iompróidh mé iad?"

"Óra, tabharfaidh mise an seanghearrán bán dhuit," arsa bean eilí, "atá thiar sa ngarraí ach ' ligfidh tú chugam aríst é."

"Ligfead," a deir sé. "Chomh luaith is a fheicfeas tú na dhá spota dubha atá thuas ansin ar an spéir... bí ag guibhe," a deir sé, "go bhfeice tú iad sin ag scarúint óna chéilí agus beidh an gearrán ansin a'd."

Bhuail sé leis chomh toibeann is d'fhéad sé agus an t-ualach ar an ngearrán go rabh sé in aice an tí agus gur chuir sé isteach faoi dhroichead i bhfolach iad. Agus nuair a chonaic muintir an tí ag tíocht iad (...) fáilte roimhe, nach rabhadar ag caoineadh ansin.

Bhí mise ansin nuair a chroch sé leis iad agus lig sé an gearrán 'un bailí. Agus bhí an gearrán ar an bpointe boise acu. Agus ansin é an áit a rabh an moladh ar an aingeal as Flaitheas.

Translation

"Go in and bring me a sickle," he said.

He went... She went in and what did she bring out to him but a big stump of a knife that was as long as my side.

"Oh, well," he said, "indeed and that is not a sickle!"

Up he went onto the house and he started to cut the grass with his two hands and as soon as he was cutting it - he would throw it down - it would be eaten by the cow.

"Oh, well," she said, "God and Christ, are you an angel from Heaven?"

"I am," he said.

"And what brought you here?"

"I came to help you," he said, "when I saw what you were up to."

All was well and good.

"Did you see Tadhg there?" she said.

"I saw Tadhg," he says.

"Oh, go to Máire," she said. "It's just that Tadhg is dead a few days," she said, "and you will tell her that you saw him."

"I will tell her," he said.

Máire came running. "Ah, how is Tadhg?"

"He is only so-so."

"Well, does he want tobacco?"

"Well, he does. He is lost, he told me, without tobacco."

"Well, there is two pounds here since the day he died. Tobacco. And will you bring it to him?"

"I will," he said.

"And will you bring any bit of butter to him?"

"Indeed," he said, "I'll bring him all that you give me."

"Well, will you bring him this flannel for a big coat and drawers?"

"I will," he says. "But with all that I am getting," he says, "how will I carry them?"

"Oh, I will give you the old white gelding," said another woman, "that is back in the field if you will return her to me."

"I will," he said. "As soon as you see the two black spots above there in the sky... pray," he says, "until you see them separating from each other and then you will have your white gelding."

He left as quickly as he could with the load on the gelding until he was near the house and he hid them under a bridge. And when the people of the house saw them coming (...) welcomed him, they weren't crying then (?).

I was there when he brought them with him and set the gelding home. And they had the gelding at the very moment. And that is where the angel from heaven was praised.

Commentary

Parts one and two of this story combine to form a plot that contains four international folktales. The narrative begins with ATU 1450 Clever Elise. This tale concerns a suitor who visits the family of a marriageable girl, and she and her family start to cry about the harm that might come to some potential future child. The story is extremely popular throughout Europe, the Middle East and the Americas. Another folktale in the narrative is ATU 1384 The husband hunts three persons as stupid as his wife, where the man becomes exasperated at his wife's stupidity, and seeks three persons more foolish than she, which he manages to achieve easily. Again, this is a very popular tale, known all over Europe, Russia, India, China and the U.S. It often serves as a frame story, against which more tales of fools are introduced. Thus the story contains two more folktales, ATU 1210 The cow is taken to the roof to graze, a tale popular throughout Eurasia, and ATU 1540 The student from paradise. This last story usually concerns a person who tells a fool he is from Paris, which she mistakes for Paradise, and she gives him clothes, food or money to take to a recently deceased relative. It first appeared in print in the fifteenth century, and has since become popular throughout all of Europe and much of Asia and Africa. See Hans Jorg Uther, The types of international folktales: a classification and bibliography (3 vols, Helsinki, 2004).

ATU 1450 is a relatively popular tale in Ireland, being found in all four provinces, with a mainly western distribution. ATU 1384 is a very popular tale, known all over the country. ATU 1540 was recorded in great frequency in Ireland, and also has a countrywide distribution. ATU 1210 too is immensely popular in Ireland, with a great number of examples having been recorded from all four provinces. See Seán Ó Súilleabháin and Rieder Th. Christiansen, The types of the Irish folktale (Helsinki, 1968).