A lady had come in and seated herself beside the lord of the palace. She was asked to tell a true tale, and she said, "I own seven cows and seven sheep, and from my cows I draw enough milk to feed all the people of this land, and from my sheep I shear enough wool to clothe all of them." When she told this the man turned the pig and another quarter of it was cooked. "A true tale you have told," said the lord of the palace, and then he turned to the broad-shouldered man. "Tell how you came into possession of the log and the ax."
"One day," said the broad-shouldered man, "I found a strange cow grazing in a field of mine. I took her and tied her in the cattle-pound. Her owner came searching for her, and he offered me a reward for letting him take her out of the pound. I let him take the cow and he gave me this ax and this log of wood. No matter how long it burns the wood is never consumed, and when I strike the sticks with the back of the ax they become a whole log again." Then he turned what was roasting before the fire and, behold! the pig was cooked through and through. "A true tale you have told," said the lord of the palace.
And then to Cormac he said, "You know now what land you are in."
"It is the Land of Wonders," said Cormac.
"It is Tir Tairngire, the Land of Promise," said the lord of the palace.
The pig being cooked, the meat was laid on a dish and carried to the table. "You will eat now," said the lord of the palace to Cormac.
"By your favor," said Cormac, "but I never sit down to meat unless there is a company of fifty to share it with me." Then the lord of the palace called aloud, and straightaway a company came into the hall and seated themselves at the table. And when Cormac sat down, lo! there was his son on one side of him and his daughter on the other side, and his wife was seated across from him. Great joy came over him, but before he could speak or make a sign the lord of the palace had filled a golden cup and had passed it to him. And when King Cormac drank what was in the cup all the anxiety he had had went from him, and he only knew that his wife and daughter and son were with him, and that all was well with them and with him. |
