Transcript

Bhí mé lá amháin ag fear na comharsan ag cur tuí ar a theach. Agus tháinig (duine íneach chugham) agus scéala (go rabh na...) go rabh scadáin marbh sna Cealla an oíche roimhe sin. Agus chuaigh muid ar siúl soir[1] 'un na gCeall an oíche sin. Agus chuir muid ár gcuid eangachaí ann. Agus bhí muid ann curtha go rabh deich a chlog ins an oíche ann. Thóg muid na heangachaí agus ní bhfuair muid iasc ar bith agus chuaigh muid isteach 'na gCeall go maidin. Agus d'fhan muid ag an chéidh go maidin.

Bhí muid ag fágáil na céabha[2] ar maidin go luath agus tháinig fear as an áit s'aghainn féin a bhí ann (anuas chughainn)[3]. Agus dúirt sé linn go rabh muid in am go leor corrú go fóill, nach rabh cumadh ró-mhaith ar an mhaidin agus muid an bricfeasta a dhéanamh. Agus ghlac muid a chomhairle agus rinn muid an bricfeasta. Nuair a bhí an bricfeasta déanta chuaigh muid i gcionn an lae a oibriú 'na[4] bhaile. Agus bhí an ghaoth inár n-éadan. B'éigean[5] dúinn a (ghoil ar a leithead cúrsaí leis) amach a fhad le talamh ar thaobh an chuain a bhfuil (Port Trócaire) air. Tháinig muid anuas ansin ar an bhord sin, anuas go dtáinig muid anuas go Tóin an Rualaigh. Agus thuit an lá marbh orainn. D'imigh an ghaoth agus ní rabh (a'inn) ach a ghoil a dh'iomradh le ár gcuid maidí rámha. Chuaigh muid amach ar an dóigh sin go rabh muid amach ó Chionn Mhucrois. Agus chruinnigh cnap dubh ó thuaidh agus dúirt fear leis an fhear eile go rabh cith ag teacht.

"Is fearr daoibh," arsa mise, "cuid den tseol a ísliú sulma mbuailfidh an cith sibh[6], ná b'fhéidir go mbeadh barraíocht gaoithe leis."

Lig muid anuas an seol agus thóg muid dhá chúrsa. Agus ní rabh an dá chúrsa ach tógtha a'inn nuair a tháinig sé comh tréan agus go mb'éigean dúinn beirt eile a thógáil. Agus chuaigh muid siar ar an dóigh sin go dtí áit a bhfuil Béal Thor na nImeann air. Agus nuair a bhí muid thiar leis an bhád a leagan aniar ar an chuan b'éigean dúinn cúrsa eile a thógáil ar an taobh cúil 'en chrann.

Tháinig muid aniar ar an dóigh sin ag tarraingt ar an chuan agus d'fhiafraigh mo dheartháir domhsa ar an bhealach, "Bhfuil eagla ort?"

"Goidé a bheadh orm," arsa mise, "gan eagla a bheith orm?"

"Bhuel, mur dtáinig sé (...) (dár gcailleadh) tiocfaidh muid fríd."

Chuaigh muid aniar 'na chuain ansin agus chuaigh muid anonn trasna an (Chúil), an áit a bhfuil Tor Pholl an (Chúil) air go Tor an tSasanaigh. Tháinig muid thart thall agus tháinig muid anall ar an lorg chéanna a dteachaigh[7] muid anonn air. Agus chuaigh muid anonn ar aist[8] agus tháinig muid thart thall ar an lorg chéanna.

"Níl aon ghar daoibh ann," arsa mise, "ní rachaidh an bád suas an cuan."

"Goidé atá muid ag goil a dhéanamh?" arsa an chuid eile. "Is fearr dúinn pilleadh ar na Cealla ar ais."

"Ní phillfidh muid," arsa mise, "ar na Cealla. Ní (fheicfeamuid) dadaí romhainn go rabh muid mall agus rachaidh muid suas ar an talamh."

"Agus goidé a dhéanfas muid (ann)?"

"Rachaidh muid," arsa mise, "isteach 'na Tamhnaí ins an áit[9] atá an... a bhfuil an Gobán Liath air. Agus gheobhaidh muid foscadh ansin eadar an dá ghaoth ann."

Fuaigh muid isteach 'na Tamhnaí ar an chomhairle sin. Agus dúirt cuid eile ansin ar an bhealach ag goil isteach dúinn go mb'fhearr dúinn iarraidh a thabhairt ar an chéidh, go mb'fhéidir go n-athróchadh an ghaoithe agus go rachadh sí in olcas agus go gcaithfeadh sí sinn féin as an bhád. Agus thug muid iarraidh ar an chéidh agus bhuail an bád orainn ar an bhealach sulma[10] dteachaigh sí 'na céabha. Bhí aon le fiche astoigh inti ansin gan bhia, gan aon dath eile, nó gur thuit an taoilleadh orainn, gur imigh an taoille.

Translation

One day I was with a neighbouring man thatching his house. And someone came to me (?) with news that herring had been caught in Killybegs(?) the night before. And we went off east to Killybegs that night. And we set our nets there. And we were there [with them] set until ten o'clock at night. We hauled the nets and we didn't get any fish and we went into Killybegs till morning. And we stayed at the pier until morning.

We were leaving the pier early in the morning and a man from our locality who was there came down to us. And he told us that we had plenty of time to move yet, that the morning didn't look too good and that we should make some breakfast. And we heeded his advice and we made breakfast. When breakfast was finished we set about our day, heading towards home. And the wind was against us. We had to go (...) out to land on the side of the harbour which is called Port Trócaire. We then came down on that tack, down as far as Tóin an Rualaigh. And the day died on us. The wind went and we could do nothing but start rowing with our oars. We went out in that way until we were off Muckros Head. And a black mass gathered to the north and one man said to the other that there was a shower coming.

"You had better," I said, "lower some of the sail before the shower hits you, because there might be a lot of wind with it."

We let the sail down and took two reefs. And we had only taken the two reefs when it came so strongly that we had to take two more. And we went back in that way to a place called Béal Thor na nImeann (Toranimma Opening). And when we were to the west, in order to set the boat easterly (?) to the harbour, we had to take another reef to the back of the mast.

We came back in that manner towards the harbour and my brother asked me on the way, "Are you afraid?"

"What would I be," I said, "if I wasn't afraid?"

"Well, if it didn't come (...) we will come through it."

We went east to the harbour then and crossed An Cúl/Caol(?), a place called Tor Pholl an Chúil/Chaoil(?) to Tor an tSasanaigh. We came about over there and we returned the same way we had gone over. And we went back over and we came about beyond in the same way.

"There's no use in it," I said, "the boat won't go up the harbour."

"What are we to do?" said the rest of them. "We had better return to Killybegs again."

"We won't go back," I said, "to Killybegs. We won't see anything before us till its late and we will go up on land (?)."

"And what will we do there?"

"We'll go," I said, "into Towney(?) in the place called An Gobán Liath. And we will find shelter there between the two inlets."

We went into Towney(?) on that advice. And some others said as we went in that we had better try to make the pier, that the wind might change and that it would get worse and that it would throw us from the boat. And we headed for the pier and the boat grounded on the way before she reached the pier. There was twenty one in her then without food, without anything else, until the tide fell from us, until the tide went.

Footnotes

Commentary

This narrative does not seem to contain any particular folk motifs or be based on any legend or folktale, and is likely to be a chronicate, or personal anecdote, based on the author's experience. A version of this story from the same speaker appears in An tUltach 10:6 (1933), 1-2.