Transcript

Bhí scoláire bocht fadó ann. Agus d'imigh sé agus a chuid leabhra faoina ascaill aige (ag imeacht go bhfaigheadh) farasbarr scoile. Bhíodh sé ag imeacht agus ag síorimeacht leis nó go bhfaca sé teach mór uaidh agus tharraing sé air. Nuair a tharraing sé air dúirt sé leis féin go rabh tart agus ocras air, go ngabhfadh sé isteach go dtí an teach mór seo go bhfeicfeadh sé an bhfaigheadh sé deoch agus greim le n-ithe. Tháinig sé go dtí an doras agus rapáil sé agus tháinig searbhón dho na searbhóntaí chuige.

"Céard tá tú a iarraidh?" a deir sí.

"Tá mé ag iarraidh," a deir sé, "deoch agus greim le n-ithe más é do thoil é."

"Gheobhfaidh tú sin," a deir sí, "agus fáilte. Gabh isteach."

Tháinig sé isteach agus thug sí sin dó deoch agus greim. Ghlac sé sin uaithi agus nuair a bhí sin faightí aige ghlac sé buíochas léi agus bhuail sé amach. Nuair a chuaigh sé amach taobh amuigh dhon doras dhearc sé uaidhe agus dúirt sé leis féin, "In mo shaol ariamh," a deir sé, "ní fhaca mé," a deir sé, "a leithide dh'áit. Dá mairfinn," a deir sé, "míle bliain (ó) inniu," a deir sé, "ní fheicfidh mé a leithide dh'áit choíche. Níl aon ní," a deir sé, "faoin domhan mór inniu," a deir sé, "ach grásta Dé," a deir sé, "nach bhfuil airgead in ann a dhéanamh. Tá airgead," a deir sé, "in ann 'ach uile shórt ní faoin domhan a dhéanamh ach grásta Dé. Tá sé in ann fear a mharú agus fear a dhéanamh beo, agus níl aon ní faoin domhan nach bhfuil sé in ann a cheannacht ach grásta Dé inniu."

D'imigh leis. Nuair a bhí sin déantaí aige bhuail sé bóthar. Nuair a bhí sé ag imeacht an bóthar dhó féin tháinig an rí abhailí. Bhí sé amuigh (ag aer). Agus d'fhiafraigh sé dhon chailín, "Cé a bhí anseo," a deir sé, "ó d'imigh mise?"

"Níor fhaca mé duine ná deoraí ann," a deir sí, "ach scoláire bocht a tháinig thart anseo. D'iarr sé deoch agus greim ormsa," a deir sí, "agus thug mé sin dó."

"Níl locht ar bith (air ansin)[1]," a deir sé. "Ach cén bóthar a thóg sé?"

"Sin rud nach bhfuil a fhios agam," ar seisean.

"Bhuel huga leat," a deir sé, "agus faigh ceathar fear," a deir sé, "agus cheithre cinn de chapaill domsa," a deir sé. "Caithfidh an fear sin a thíocht ar ais in mo láthairse," a deir sé, "roimhe... go bhfeicfidh mé é."

Fuair sé an ceathar fear agus ceathar capall agus d'imigh sé leis agus (...) (bhuaileadar) suas leis. Thugadar ina láthair é.

"An tusa an fear a scríobh é seo?" ar seisean.

"Is mé go cinntí," arsa an scoláire.

"Bhuel anois," ar seisean, "mura bhfuil tú in ann," a deir sé, "an méid sin a chruthú dhomsa a scríobh tú ar an mballa bainfidh mise do cheann agus do choiméad beatha dhaot. Tabharfaidh mé lá agus bliain dho spás duit. Tabharfaidh mé neart óir agus airgid duit. An oiread agus tá mé féin agus tú féin," a deir sé, "nach mbeadh... gcaithfidh muid go brách, tá sin," a deir sé, "agamsa. Agus níl aon lá a éireos ar do shúil go bhfuil in ann do phócaí a líonadh le ór agus le airgead. Agus mur bhfuil tú in ann a chruthú dhomsa," a deir sé, "go bhfuil an t-airgead in ann é a ceannacht," a deir sé, "bainfidh mé do cheann agus do choiméad beatha dhaot. Tá aon iníon amháin a'msa anois," a deir sé, "agus tá mé á cur isteach," a deir sé, "tá mé á cur as baile agus sé an áit a gcuirfidh mé í," a deir sé, "isteach ar oileán farraige. Isteach i ngrianán. Agus mur bhfuil tusa," a deir sé, "in ann," a deir sé, "í a fháil amach (ó istigh) le neart an airgid," deir sé, "fios cá bhfuil sí," a deir sé, "go dtí ceann lá agus bliain bainfidh mise do cheann agus do choiméad beatha dhaot."

"Dia sinn dár réiteach!" arsa an scoláire bocht.

D'imigh leis. Ar maidin lá arna mháireach chroch sé leis an iníon agus chuir sé (ar shiúl) í.

Bhí an scoláire bocht... Ghléas sé suas é féin ag imeacht ag fiach agus ag fionnscaradh dhó féin ar feadh ráithe. Agus nuair a bhí an ráithe thuas aige bhí sé ag glacadh drochmhisneach agus faitíos. Bhí píosa mór eangaigh... eanaigh lena ais agus sin é an áit a rabh sé ag goil 'ach uile lá, a chú agus a féin, ag fiach. Bhí trinse mór millteach ann agus an chéad am ar thosaigh sé ag goil ann bhí sé in ann a ghoil dho léim thar an trinse ach faoi cheann scaitheamh chaithfeadh sé a ghoil síos insa trinse agus siúl aníos as.

Translation

Long ago there was a poor scholar. And he went off with his books under his arm so he would get (?) a surplus of schooling. He was travelling and travelling until he saw a big house in the distance and he went towards it. When he came up to it he said to himself that he was hungry and thirsty, that he would go in to the big house to see if he would get a drink and a bite to eat. He came to the door and he knocked and one of the servants came to him.

"What do you want?" she said.

"I am looking for a drink and a bite to eat please," he said.

"You will get that," she said, "and you're welcome. Come in."

He came in and she gave him a drink and a bite. He took that from her and when he had got that from her he thanked her and went out. When he went outside the door he looked around him and he said to himself, "In my whole life," he said, "I never saw such a place. If I lived," he said, "a thousand years from(?) today," he said, "I will never see such a place. There is nothing in the wide world today," he said, "except the grace of God that money is not able to do. Money," he said, "is able to make everything in the whole world except the grace of God. It is able to kill a man and to make a man live, and there isn't a thing in the world today which it isn't able to buy except the grace of God."

Off he went. When he had done that he took to the road. When he was going along the road for himself the king came home. He was outside taking the air (?). And he asked the girl, "Who was here since I left?"

"I didn't see a soul," she said, "except for a poor scholar who came along. He asked me for a drink and a bite," she said, "and I gave him that."

"There is no fault with that," he said. "But which road did he take?"

"That I don't know," he said.

"Well off you go," he said, "and get four men," he said, "and four horses for me," he said. "That poor man must come back into my presence," he said, "before... so that I may see him."

He got the four men and the four horses and he went off and (...) they caught(?) up with him. They brought him to him.

"Are you the man who wrote this?" he said.

"I am indeed," said the scholar.

"Well now," he said, "if you are not able," he said, "to prove to me what you wrote on that wall I will take your head and your life from you. I will give you a year and a day. I will give you plenty of gold and silver. I have as much as you and I," he said, "wouldn't... ever spend. And there isn't a day which your eyes will open that your pockets will not be filled with gold and silver. And if you are not able to prove to me," he said, "that money is not able to buy it," he said, "I will cut off your head and your life. I have one daughter now," he said, "and I am sending her away from home and the place I am putting her is," he said, "into a sea island. Into a bright chamber. And if you are not able to get her out of it with the power of the money," he said, "and the knowledge of where she is (?)," he says, "by the end a year and a day I will cut the head and the life from you."

"God help us!" said the poor scholar.

Off he went. The next morning he got the daughter and sent her off.

The poor scholar was... He dressed himself and went hunting and rounding up game for himself for three months. And when he had spent the three months he was losing courage and becoming scared. There was a big piece of net... of marsh beside him and that was where he went hunting every day with his hound. There was a huge trench there and the first time he started going there he was able to jump over the trench but after a while he had to go down into the trench and walk up out of it.

Footnotes

Commentary

Parts one and two of this story combine to form a clear example of an international folktale, ATU 854 The golden ram. Standard versions recount a young man who writes a message on the wall of a king or rich man, which exclaims that money can buy anything. The king puts a challenge to the youth that he must find the king's hidden daughter. He will be given as much money as he needs, and has a year to find her, but he will be killed or imprisoned if he fails. The youth has a hollow statue built, and offers it to the king as a gift to be given to the princess. He hides inside, and thus is delivered to her, completing the challenge. The current example is very similar to versions from other countries, but features a coach instead of a statue. The story is well known throughout Europe, north Africa and as far east as Sri Lanka. The story is also particularly popular in Latin America. See Hans Jorg Uther, The types of international folktales: a classification and bibliography (3 vols, Helsinki, 2004). The story is not tremendously popular in Ireland, with relatively few examples having been recorded. It was told in Donegal, Galway and Mayo, and was somewhat common in county Kerry. See Seán Ó Súilleabháin and Rieder Th. Christiansen, The types of the Irish folktale (Helsinki, 1968). Some international motifs found in this story are K1341.1 Entrance to woman’s room in golden ram, H322 Suitor test: finding princess and H322.2 Suitor test: to get to imprisoned princess in a year’s time. The incident of concealment in a statue seems thematically related to the famous Greek story of the Trojan Horse, international motif K754.1 Trojan wooden horse. See Stith Thompson, Motif-index of folk literature (rev. and enlarged ed., 6 vols, Bloomington, Ind., 1955-8).