CHAPTER VII THE SCOTTISH COLLECTION OF CELTIC MSS. Cabinet in Advocates’ Library—Curious assortment of vernacular literature—Number and character—Origin of the collection—Highland Society and Kilbride MSS.—Subsidiary additions—Work for the expert—Fate of some luckless documents—Value of MSS. XL., LIII., and LVI.—Three literary monuments of the Western Highlands: (1) The Book of the Dean of Lismore—History, description, value, contents, extracts, names of contributors; (2) The Fernaig MS.—Characteristics—Interesting details of supposed author; (3) The Book of Clanranald—Quaint relic—Two MSS., the Red and the Black—History and contents, with specimen prose-poem and elegy 115 CHAPTER VIII THE MYTHOLOGICAL CYCLE A rich and abundant saga literature—Three leading periods or cycles—The myths and folk-tales—Problems to men of science—The philologists and anthropologists take opposite sides—Their theories—Attitude of the annalists and romancists of Ireland—Their craze for genealogy—Early settlers in Erin—Advent of the Milesians or Gaels—The Three Sorrows of Gaelic Storydom: (1) “The Tragedy of the Children of Tuireann”; (2) The fascinating “Aided of the Children of Lir”; (3) Story of “Deirdre and the Sons of Uisneach”—Extraordinary interest evinced in this saga—Marvellous output of texts and translations 134 CHAPTER IX THE HEROIC CYCLE The golden age of Gaelic romance—Number of the tales—Cuchulinn—His early adventures—The Wooing of Eimer—Training in Skye—The Bridge of the Cliffs—Tragedy of Conlaoch—Elopement—The “Táin Bó Chuailgné,” and exploits of Cuchulinn—Ferdia at the ford—The two champions of Western Europe—Cuchulinn in the Deaf Valley—Death—The Red Rout of Conall Cearnach—Instruction of Cuchulinn to a prince—His “Phantom Chariot”—Modern translations of these rare sagas 153 CHAPTER X THE OSSIANIC CYCLE The old order changes—Who were the Feinn?—Ossian, his name and relation to the bardic literature—The Ossianic tales and poems very numerous—Earliest references—First remarkable development—Original home of the Ossianic romance—The leading heroes—A famous tract—Legends, regarding Fionn, and curious details of his warrior-band—The literature divided into four classes—Most ancient poems of Ossian, and the Feinn—Quotations—“The Dialogue of the Ancients”—Ossian and Patrick—Story of Crede—Miscellaneous poems—Prose tales—“Pursuit of Diarmad and Grainne”—“Lay of Diarmad”—Norse Ballads—Dream figures, a remarkable Gaelic tradition 174 CHAPTER XI