THE PLAYERS ASK FOR A BLESSING ON THE PSALTERIES AND THEMSELVES.
Three Voices together Hurry to bless the hands that play, The mouths that speak, the notes and strings, O masters of the glittering town!
O! lay the shrilly trumpet down, Though drunken with the flags that sway Over the ramparts and the towers, And with the waving of your wings.
First Voice Maybe they linger by the way; One gathers up his purple gown; One leans and mutters by the wall; He dreads the weight of mortal hours.
Second Voice O no, O no, they hurry down Like plovers that have heard the call.
Third Voice O, kinsmen of the Three in One, O, kinsmen bless the hands that play.
The notes they waken shall live on When all this heavy history"s done.
Our hands, our hands must ebb away.
Three Voices together The proud and careless notes live on But bless our hands that ebb away.
THE RIDER FROM THE NORTH.
From the play of The Country of the Young.
There"s many a strong farmer Whose heart would break in two If he could see the townland That we are riding to; Boughs have their fruit and blossom, At all times of the year, Rivers are running over With red beer and brown beer.
An old man plays the bagpipes In a golden and silver wood, Queens, their eyes blue like the ice, Are dancing in a crowd.
The little fox he murmured, "O what is the world"s bane?"
The sun was laughing sweetly, The moon plucked at my rein; But the little red fox murmured, "O do not pluck at his rein, He is riding to the townland That is the world"s bane."
When their hearts are so high, That they would come to blows, They unhook their heavy swords From golden and silver boughs; But all that are killed in battle Awaken to life again; It is lucky that their story Is not known among men.
For O the strong farmers That would let the spade lie, For their hearts would be like a cup That somebody had drunk dry.
The little fox he murmured, "O what is the world"s bane?"
The sun was laughing sweetly, The moon plucked at my rein; But the little red fox murmured, "O do not pluck at his rein, He is riding to the townland That is the world"s bane."
Michael will unhook his trumpet From a bough overhead, And blow a little noise When the supper has been spread.
Gabriel will come from the water With a fish tail, and talk Of wonders that have happened On wet roads where men walk, And lift up an old horn Of hammered silver, and drink Till he has fallen asleep Upon the starry brink.
The little fox he murmured, "O what is the world"s bane?"
The sun was laughing sweetly, The moon plucked at my rein; But the little red fox murmured, "O do not pluck at his rein, He is riding to the townland, That is the world"s bane."
I made some of these poems walking about among the Seven Woods, before the big wind of nineteen hundred and three blew down so many trees, & troubled the wild creatures, & changed the look of things; and I thought out there a good part of the play which follows. The first shape of it came to me in a dream, but it changed much in the making, foreshadowing, it may be, a change that may bring a less dream-burdened will into my verses. I never re-wrote anything so many times; for at first I could not make these wills that stream into mere life poetical. But now I hope to do easily much more of the kind, and that our new Irish players will find the buskin and the sock.
ON BAILE"S STRAND: A PLAY.
THE PERSONS OF THE PLAY.
CUCHULLAIN, the King of Muirthemne.
CONCOBAR, the High King of Ullad.
DAIRE, a King.
FINTAIN, a blind man.
BARACH, a fool.
A Young Man.
Young Kings and Old Kings.
SCENE: A great hall by the sea close to Dundalgan. There are two great chairs on either side of the hall, each raised a little from the ground, and on the back of the one chair is carved and painted a woman with a fish"s tail, and on the back of the other a hound. There are smaller chairs and benches raised in tiers round the walls. There is a great ale vat at one side near a small door, & a large door at the back through which one can see the sea. Barach, a tall thin man with long ragged hair, dressed in skins, comes in at the side door. He is leading Fintain, a fat blind man, who is somewhat older.
BARACH.
I will shut the door, for this wind out of the sea gets into my bones, and if I leave but an inch for the wind there is one like a flake of sea-frost that might come into the house.
FINTAIN.
What is his name, fool?
BARACH.
It"s a woman from among the Riders of the Sidhe. It"s Boann herself from the river. She has left the Dagda"s bed, and gone through the salt of the sea & up here to the strand of Baile, and all for love of me. Let her keep her husband"s bed, for she"ll have none of me. n.o.body knows how lecherous these G.o.ddesses are. I see her in every kind of shape but oftener than not she"s in the wind and cries "give a kiss and put your arms about me." But no, she"ll have no more of me.
Yesterday when I put out my lips to kiss her, there was nothing there but the wind. She"s bad, Fintain. O, she"s bad. I had better shut the big door too. (He is going towards the big door but turns hearing Fintain"s voice.)
FINTAIN.
(Who has been feeling about with his stick.) What"s this and this?
BARACH.
They are chairs.
FINTAIN.
And this?
BARACH.
Why, that"s a bench.
FINTAIN.
And this?
BARACH.
A big chair.
FINTAIN.
(Feeling the back of the chair.) There is a sea-woman carved upon it.
BARACH.