Transcript

Bhí fear 'na chónaí i Leitir Ceanainn uair amháin arbh ainm dó Paidí Ó Lumhóg. Bhí sé féin agus a bhean maidin amháin agus ní rabh (luach bídh) acu agus d'imigh Paidí go haonach Leitir Ceanainn le bó (a dhíol). Tháinig ceannaí a fhad leis nuair a fuaigh sé 'un ao-... fuaigh sé isteach 'un aonaigh agus d'fhiafraigh sé dó, "Cé a dhíolfas an gabhar?"

"Ó," arsa Paidí, "a rascail, ná tabhair gabhar ar mo bhó (mhaith) bhainne-sa."

Tháinig an dara fear a fhad leis agus d'fhiafraigh sé an rud céanna dó agus thug Paidí an freagar céanna air. Tháinig an tríthú[1] fear agus dúirt sé an rud céanna.

"Bhuel", arsa Paidí sa deireadh, "ó tharla go dtug sibh uilig gabhar uirthi caithfidh sé gur gabhar atá inti."

Agus dhíol sé an bhó ar an deich is punta.

Nuair a tháinig sé 'na[2] bhaile bhí an bhean tó(gtha). Bhí sí ar mire leis.

Agus an dara lá aonaigh i Leitir Ceanainn d'imigh Paidí agus an deich is punta leis. (...) sé isteach go teach ólacháin. Thug sé deich scill(i)nge don mhnaoi agus dúirt sé, "Má thugaimsa triúr fear isteach anseo roimh an oíche fá choinne tréat[3], nuair a thógfas mise mo hata abair thusa liom a bheith ar shiúl, go bhfuil an scór díolta."

Fuaigh sé isteach go teach ósta agus dúirt sé an rud céanna. Agus fuaigh sé isteach go teach eile ólacháin agus dúirt sé an rud céanna.

Tháini' sé a fhad leis an triúr ceannaí agus d'fhiafraigh sé daofa, "Goidé mar a shásaigh an gabhar sibh?"

"Ó, shásaigh go han-mhaith," ar siadsan.

"Bhuel," arsa Paidí, "ar ól sibh dadaí go fóill?"

"Níor ól," arsa siadsan.

"Bhuel," arsa Paidí, "bígí ag teacht isteach."

Fuair sé tréataí (agus) nuair a bhí siad ag imeacht thóg Paidí a hata.

"Bí ar shiúl," arsa bean an tsiopa. "Tá sin díolta."

Fuaigh sé isteach go teach ósta leofa ina dhéidh sin agus rinn sé an rud céanna. Tráthnóna chuaigh sé isteach go teach ólacháin eile leofa agus rinn sé an rud céanna. Rinn siad amach go gceannóchadh siad an hata ó Phaidí agus thug siad cúig phunta dó (air).

Bhuel, bhí aonach an lá harna mhárach agus d'imigh an triúr agus an hata, agus bhí siad amach is isteach in gach uile shiopa. Ach ní rabh gar ann, ní rabh maith ar bith sa hata agus b'éigean daofa díol ar shon achan (seórt). Bhí fearg mhór orthu ansin agus rinn siad amach go rachadh siad agus go muirfeadh[4] siad Paidí. Mheas Paidí go dtiocfadh siad agus fuair sé greim ar dhá choinín. Thug sé ceann acu dona mhnaoi agus thug sé leis an cionn eile amach 'na chnoic. Arsa seisean lena mhnaoi, "Nuair a thiocfas triúr fear anseo roimh an oíche, (ach) cuir thusa amach an coinín sin (fá mo...) agus abair leis a ghoil fá mo choinne-sa."

Tháinig an triúr agus rinn an bhean mar d'iarr Paidí uirthi. Tháinig Paidí isteach agus an coinín leis.

"Ó," arsa... arsa na fir, "an dtéann an coinín sin amach fá do choinne-sa 'ach uile uair a bhíos tú amuigh?"

"Théann[5]," arsa Paidí, "agus rachaidh sé gach uile áit a n-iarrthar air."

Cheannaigh an triúr an coinín ó Phaidí agus d'imigh siad 'na bhaile leis. Chuir siad go banc Leitir Ceanainn é agus cúig phunta thart ar a mhuinéal astoigh i haincearsain agus d'iarr siad air briseadh a fháil ar na cúig phunta. Lean Paidí iad agus chonai' sé an coinín ag imeacht agus an haincearsain air. Fuaigh an coinín isteach i dtom aiteannaí. Rug Paidí air agus bhí na cúig phunta aige agus phill sé 'na bhaile.

Bhí an triúr ag dúil leis an choinín a theacht ar ais, ach dá mbeadh siad ansin ó shoin ní phillfeadh sé. Rinn siad amach ansin go rachadh siad agus go muirfeadh siad Paidí an iarraidh seo cinnte.

Mheas Paidí go dtiocfadh siad. Fuair sé gé mór agus mharbh sé é. Cheap sé an fhuil i mála agus dúirt sé lena mhnaoi sin a chur isteach faoina naprún. Nuair a tháinig an triúr fear rug siad greim ar Phaidí agus arsa siadsan, "Goidé na cleasannaí atá tusa a imirt orainne?"

"Ó," arsa Paidí, "sí an bhean sin sa choirneál is ciontaí leis an iomlán."

Agus rug sé ar scian[6] agus sháigh sé insa mhála na fola í agus thuit an fhuil ar an urlár, agus thuit an bhean siar agus lig uirthi go rabh sí marbh. Thúsaigh an triúr fear a dhéanamh buartha fríd an teach.

"Ó," arsa Paidí, "ná cuireadh sin a dhath a[7] bhuaireadh oraibh."

Agus rug sé ar adharc mhór a bhí in airde aige ar an bhalla agus shéid sé isteach i gcluas na mná í agus d'éirigh sise aniar ar ais.

"Sin adharc iontach atá agad, a Phaidí," arsa na fir agus cheannaigh siad uadh[8] í.

D'imigh siad leofa ansin agus lá harna mhárach chruinnigh siad cruinniú mór daoiní agus rinn siad réidh féasta. Agus nuair a bhí an féasta thart, d'éirigh fear acu agus dúirt sé, "Thig liomsa anois cleas iontach a thaiseáint[9] daoibh."

Rug sé ar scian agus sháigh sé ins an mhnaoi a bhí ina suí insa chlúdaigh. Thuit an bhean siar marbh. Rug sé ar an adharc ansin agus shéid sé ina cluais í (...).

Translation

One time there was a man living in Letterkenny whose name was Paddy Ó Lumhóg. One morning he and his wife had no money for food (?) and Paddy went to Letterkenny fair to sell a cow. A buyer came up to him when he went into the fair and he asked him, "Who will sell the goat?"

"Oh," said Paddy, "you rascal, don't call my fine(?) milking cow a goat."

Another man came up to him and asked him the same thing and Paddy gave him the same answer. A third man came and he said the same thing.

"Well", said Paddy in the end, "since all of you called her a goat she must be a goat."

And he sold the cow for one and ten.

When he came home the wife was raging with him.

And the next fair day in Letterkenny Paddy went with the one and ten. (...) into a drinking house. He gave ten shillings to the woman and said, "If I bring three men in here before nighttime for a treat, when I lift my hat you tell me to go away, that the score has been paid."

He went into an inn and he said the same thing. And he went into another drinking house and he said the same thing.

He came to the three buyers and he asked them, "How did you like the goat?"

"Oh, very much," they said.

"Well," said Paddy, "have you drunk anything yet?"

"We haven't," they said.

"Well," said Paddy, "come on in."

He treated them and when they were leaving Paddy lifted his hat.

"Go on," said the woman of the shop, "that's paid for."

He went into an inn with them after that and he did the same thing. In the evening he went into another drinking house with them and he did the same thing. They decided that they would buy the hat from Paddy and they gave him five pounds.

Well, there was a fair the following day and the three men went with the hat, and they were going in and out of every shop. But it was no use, the hat was no good and they had to pay for everything(?). They were very angry then, and they decided that they would go and kill Paddy. Paddy thought that they would come and he caught two rabbits. He gave one of them to his wife and he brought the other one out to the mountain. He said to his wife, "When three men come here before the night, you send out that rabbit and tell him to go to me."

The three men came and the wife did as Paddy had asked her. Paddy came in with the rabbit.

"Oh," said the men, "does that rabbit go out to you every time you are out?"

"It does," said Paddy, "and it will go everywhere it is asked."

The three men bought the rabbit from Paddy and they went home with it. They sent it to Letterkenny bank with five pounds around its neck in a handkerchief and they asked it to get change for the five pounds. Paddy followed them and he saw the rabbit going with the handkerchief on it. The rabbit went into a furze bush. Paddy caught it and he had the five pounds and he returned home.

The three men were waiting for the rabbit to return, but if they were there until now it wouldn't return. They decided then that they would go and kill Paddy for sure this time.

Paddy thought that they would come. He got a big goose and he killed it. He caught the blood in a bag and he told his wife to put it under her apron. When the three men came they caught Paddy and said, "What tricks are you playing on us?"

"Oh," said Paddy, "it is that woman in the corner who is guilty of it all."

And he grabbed a knife and stabbed it into the bag of blood and the blood spilt on the floor, and the wife fell back and pretended that she was dead. The three men started fretting around the house.

"Oh," said Paddy, "don't let that worry you at all."

And he caught a big horn which he had up on the wall and he blew it into the wife's ear and she got back up.

"That is a great horn you have, Paddy," said the men and they bought it from him.

They went off then and the following day they assembled a big crowd of people and they readied a feast. And when the feast was over, one of them got up and said, "I can now show you a fantastic trick."

He grabbed a knife and he stabbed the woman who was sitting in the corner. The woman fell back dead. He then caught the horn and he blew it into her ear (...).

Footnotes

Commentary

This is a clear example of an international folktale, ATU 1539 Cleverness and gullibility. It is an extremely popular tale, found all over the world, and because it often borrows elements from a related tale, ATU1535 The rich and poor farmer, it does not have well defined limits. A large number of examples have been collected from all over the country, as outlined in Seán Ó Súilleabháin and Rieder Th. Christiansen, The types of the Irish folktale (Helsinki, 1968). It contains many of the motifs that are found in international versions of the story, such as K132 Wolf sold as a goat (sheep), K113.7 Alleged resuscitating horn sold and K111.2 Alleged bill-paying hat sold. See Stith Thompson, Motif-index of folk literature (rev. and enlarged ed., 6 vols, Bloomington, Ind., 1955-8). The entire episode is related to another story in the Doegen collection, 'Bhí beirt fhear', as told by the same speaker, which is an example of ATU 1535.

A version of this story appears in Nollaig Mac Congáil and Ciarán Ó Duibhín, Glórtha ón tseanaimsir (Gleann an Iolair, 2009), 22-4, and in Seosamh Laoide, Cruach Chonaill (Dublin, 1913), 69-75.