that it would be the door of the city afterwards; and this thing was even fulfilled. At supper-time1 each man in turn of the apostles2 used to grind his quern. An angel of the God of heaven, however, that used to grind in place of Colum Cille. That was the honour the Lord used to give to him, because of his nobility above all. A vision appeared another time to Finden, viz., two moons ascended from Cluain-Eraird, to wit, a golden moon, and another, a silvery moon. [The golden moon went to the north of the island, so that Eriu and Alba were illumined by it.] The silvery moon went and rested over 4 the Shannon, so that Eriu in the centre was illumined by it. Colum5 Cille, moreover, with his grace, and with his good actions, and with the gold of his nobility and wisdom, was the golden moon. Ciaran, son of the carpenter, with the splendour of his virtues and good actions, was the silver moon. Colum Cille afterwards bade farewell to Finden, and went to Glaisnoiden, for there were fifty persons learning in that place with Mobii, including Cainnech, and Comgall, and Ciaran. Their bothies, moreover, were at the west side of the water. One night there and the bell was struck for matins. Colum Cille went to the church. There was a great flood that night in the river. Colum Cille, nevertheless, went through it with his clothes on. 'Bravely dost thou come there to-night, descendant of Niall,' said Ciaran and said Mobii. 'God is able,' said Colum Cille, 'to ward off the labour from us.' As they were coming out of the church, they saw the bothies at the east side of the water, in the vicinity of the church. 1 Supper-time. Feis aidche; lit. 'night-feast.' 2 Apostles. are meant. Finden's disciples 3 Island; i.e. Ireland. The orig. of this sentence is not in A. L. Rested over. The orig. has rogab imon Sinaind, which would actually mean took up about the Shannon.' 5 Colum. This sentence is fuller in A. L. than in L. and L. B., which have merely the clause, with the gold of his nobility and wisdom.' 6 Son of the carpenter. Mac in t-sair; om. in A. L. and L. St. Ciaran of Clonmacnois, on the Shannon, is the person meant. 7 Glaisnoiden. Glasnevin, near Dublin. 8 Water. The river at Glasnevin. Fri usci aniar, translated above 'at the west side of the water,' literally means towards the water from the west.' 9 Said Ciaran. Ar Ciaran. Not in L. B. or L. One time there a large church was built by Mobii, and the clerics were considering what each of them would like to have the church full of.1 'I should like,' said Ciaran, 'its full of "sons of the church," who frequent the canonical hours.'2 'I should like,' said Cainnech, 'its full of books, to be used by "sons of life." 'I should like,' said Comgall, 'its full of sickness and diseases to be in my own body, to my subjugation and chastisement.' Colum Cille, however, chose 3 its full of gold and silver, to make reliquaries and monasteries therewith. Mobii said that it should not be so; but that Colum Cille's community would be richer than every community, both in Eriu and Alba. 4 Mobii told his protégés to leave the place in which they were, for that an unknown 5 plague would come there, viz., the Buid Chonaill, and he further said to Colum Cille that he should not receive land until permitted by him (Mobii). Each of them went his way afterwards. Colum Cille proceeded to Cenel-Conaill. The way he went was across the river, the name of which is Biur." There he said, 'Bir against fochainne,' 8 and the plague did not therefore reach 1 Full of. The expression in the orig., literally translated, is 'what full each of them would like to have in the church.' 2 Canonical hours. Na trath. Trath properly signifies 'time,' or " season;' but in ecclesiastical tracts it is used to express the canonical hours. 3 Chose. Do rega. The text in A. L. is robad maith leam fain ar C. C., 'I should like myself,' said C. C., etc. Both in. Etir; lit. between' (= Lat. inter). 5 Unknown. Anaichnid; i.e. 'unprecedented,' in a secondary sense. 6 Buidhe Chonaill. See Reeves's Adamnan, p. 182, note a, for an account of this plague, which was also called Crom Chonaill. The first appearance of the plague occurred in A.D. 550, according to Tighernach's Annals and the Chronicon Scotorum. Dr. Todd supposed that it was called Buidhe Chonaill, from some eminent VOL. II. person named Conall, who died of it, but of whose memory no other record now remains. -(Obits and Martyrology of Christ Church, pref. p. lxxv.) But the old form of the name being Buidhe Chonnaill, it is more likely that it was derived from Connall (glossed 'stipula' in the MS. quoted in Nigra's Reliq. Celt., p. 38); and that the plague was so called from the hue (Buide Chonnaill, strawyellow') which its victims exhibited. 7 Biur. Dr. Reeves states (Adamnan, p. 52, note d) that is, the river in Tyrone, now called the Moyola, which flows into the N.-W. arm of Lough Neagh. 86 Bir against fochainne.' There is apparently a play on words here. Fochainne is the Irish name of the river now called the Faughan, which rises somewhat to the N.-W. of the Moyola, and flows into Lough Foyle. The expression might also signify 'Bir against "diseases (fochainne; lit. 'causes'). 2 H beyond that. And this is still a lasting miracle, for every plague that is carried over it does not go beyond that, according to the 'word' of Colum Cille. Colum Cille went afterwards to Daire,1 viz., the royal dun of Aedh, son of Ainmire. He was king of Eriu at that time. The king offered that dun to Colum Cille; and he refused it, because of Mobii's command. As he was coming out of the dun, however, he met with two of Mobii's people; and they had Mobii's girdle for him, and permission for him to possess land, after the death of Mobii; ut dixit Colum Cille : Mobii's girdle2 Was not as rushes round hair;3 It was not opened before satiety, 4 Colum Cille settled after that in the fort of Aedh, and founded a church there, besides working many miracles in it. [Colum5 Cille burned the place, after receiving it from the king, with everything that was in it. That is foolish,' said the king, for if you had not burned it, there would be no want of drink or food in it.' 'No one shall be a night fasting there against his will,' said Colum Cille. But the fire spread to the extent that it was like to burn the whole wood," until Colum Cille uttered the rann, to protect the wood, viz.— Dant in duile geir. 6 Calgaig, the 'wood of Calgach,'or the 8 Dant. This line is very obscure in A. L.; and the reading here is unreliable. A translation has not therefore been attempted. And this is sung against every fire, and against every thunder, from that time to this. And if any one recites it at lying down and at getting up, it will protect him from lightning, and it will protect the nine he wishes simul.] One time he sent his monks into the wood, to cut wattles,1 to make a church for himself in Derry. Where the wattles were cut was in the land of a certain young man who lived contiguous to the recles.2 It was annoying to him that the timber should be cut in his land without his own permission. 3 When Colum Cille, therefore, heard this thing, he said to his people: Take him,' said he, 'the value of his timber of barley grain, and let him put it in the ground.' It had then passed beyond the middle of summer. The grain was subsequently taken to the young man, and he put it in the ground; and it grew so that it was ripe about Lammas afterwards. But One time as he was in Derry a little child was brought to him to be baptized. There was no water then near him. he made the sign of the cross over the rock that was before him, so that a fountain of water burst out of it, and the child was baptized from it afterwards. Another time, also, he was in Derry, and he meditated going to Rome and to Jerusalem. He went another time from Derry to Tor-inis of Martin, and brought away the gospel that had been on Martin's bosom 100 years in the earth; and he left it in Derry. Great were the prodigies and miracles, truly, God wrought for Colum Cille in Derry. He (Colum Cille) loved that city very much, moreover; as he said, 1 Wattles. The reason why I love Derry is, Coelach. Wattles, fidh, 'in the place where the wood twigs, or osiers; from coel, 'slender.' This is curious, as showing the material used in building churches at the time. 2 Recles. Thus in L. B. But A. L. and L. read eclais, the church. In the ground. Isin talam, L.B. A. L. has isin inad ar boinged an was cut.' Tor-inis. Tours, in France. The form of the name in the text, Torinis, would in Irish signify towerisland' (from tor, a tower, and inis, an island); but this form is probably an attempt of the scribe or translator to represent Turonensis, the Latin for Tours. 5 For. The orig. has for ( upon'). For 'tis full of angels white, Colum Cille afterwards founded Rath-Both. There he resuscitated the carpenter from death, after he had been drowned in the mill pool. In Rath-Both, also, a ploughshare was wanting to his people; but he blessed the hands of the little boy who was in his company, whose name was Fergna, so that he made the ploughshare; and he was skilful in smith-craft from that time forth, through his (Colum Cille's) blessing. He went afterwards on a visit of instruction2 to the king of Tethba, whose name was Aedh, son of Brenand, who gave him the place in which Dermach is to-day, so that a recles was built by him there. 4 In Dermach, moreover, sour apples were given to him; but he blessed them, so that they were sweet. And it was from Dermach that a sword that had been blessed was sent by him to Colman Mòr, son of Diarmait. The virtue that attached to the sword was, that no one could die in its presence. A certain man who was in sickness, therefore, requested it, and the sword was given to him, so that he had it. A year, moreover, the sword was in his possession, and he was neither dead nor alive during that time; but when the sword was afterwards taken away from him, he died immediately. After that, therefore, he blessed Dermach, and left a custodian of his people there, viz., Cormac Ua Liathain.7 8 He went subsequently to Aedh Slane, son of Diarmait. He arrived at the place in which to-day is Cenandas, viz., it was the 1 Rath-Both. Raphoe, Co. Done gal. 2 Visit of instruction. Cuairt procepta (circuitus præcepti'). This corrupt Irish form of the Lat. præceptum (sometimes written procecht) is also used to express 'preaching.' 3 Tethba. Teffia; the ancient name of a large territory, including part of the present counties of King's, Westmeath, and Longford. ▲ Dermach. Durrow, barony of Ballycowan, King's County. 5 Colman Mòr. The death of this man is entered in the Chron. Scotorum at A.D. 553. 6 Virtue. The literal translation of the orig. is 'the luck that was on the sword.' 7 Cormac Ua Liathain. See Reeves's Adamnan, p. 166, note a. 8 Aedh Slane (pron. Slaw-ney). King of Ireland, 592-604. 9 Cenandas. Kells, Co. Meath. The oldest written form of the name is Cennannas (Leb. na hUidhre, 58a). In the Book of Leinster it is written cenn-arus, 'head abode;' from which |