She accordingly got the largest miscaun of butter she had--which might
be about the weight of a couple a dozen mill-stones, so that you may
easily judge of its size--and calling up to her sister, "Granua,"
said she, "are you ready? I'm going to throw you up a miscaun, so be
prepared to catch it."
"I will," said the other; "a good throw now, and take care it does not
fall short."
Oonagh threw it; but, in consequence of her anxiety about Fin and
Cucullin, she forgot to say the charm that was to send it up, so that,
instead of reaching Cullamore, as she expected, it fell about half-way
between the two hills, at the edge of the Broad Bog near Augher.
"My curse upon you!" she exclaimed; "you've disgraced me. I now change
you into a grey stone. Lie there as a testimony of what has happened;
and may evil betide the first living man that will ever attempt to
remove or injure you!"
And, sure enough, there it lies to this day, with the mark of the four
fingers and thumb imprinted in it, exactly as it came out of her hand.
"Never mind," said Granua, "I must only do the best I can with
Cucullin. If all fail, I'll give him a cast of heather broth to keep
the wind out of his stomach, or a panada of oak-bark to draw it in a
bit; but, above all things, think of some plan to get Fin out of the
scrape he's in, otherwise he's a lost man. You know you used to be
sharp and ready-witted; and my own opinion, Oonagh, is, that it will
go hard with you, or you'll outdo Cucullin yet."
She then made a high smoke on the top of the hill, after which she put
her finger in her mouth, and gave three whistles, and by that Cucullin
knew he was invited to Cullamore--for this was the way that the Irish
long ago gave a sign to all strangers and travellers, to let them know
they were welcome to come and take share of whatever was going.
In the meantime, Fin was very melancholy, and did not know what to do,
or how to act at all. Cucullin was an ugly customer, no doubt, to meet
with; and, moreover, the idea of the confounded "cake" aforesaid
flattened the very heart within him. What chance could he have,
strong and brave though he was, with a man who could, when put in a
passion, walk the country into earthquakes and knock thunderbolts into
pancakes? The thing was impossible; and Fin knew not on what hand to
turn him. Right or left--backward or forward--where to go he could
form no guess whatsoever.
"Oonagh," said he, "can you do nothing for me? Where's all your
invention? Am I to be skivered like a rabbit before your eyes, and to
have my name disgraced forever in the sight of all my tribe, and me
the best man among them? How am I to fight this man-mountain--this
huge cross between an earthquake and a thunderbolt?--with a pancake in
his pocket that was once----"
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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