tween the brother founders of the two families that when Conal Gulban was killed in 464 by a clan of the Firbolgs, on the Plain of Magh Slecht, in the present county of Cavan, his brother, Eogan, within a year after, died of grief.

As was mentioned before, even the kingship of Connaught did not fall to Niall's half-brother, Brian,* the favourite of MongFionn. That overlordship went to Fiachra, and was continued to his posterity thenceforward to the 12th century.

Now on the death of Niall, his brother Fiachra's son, Dathi, became Ard-Righ—and followed in Niall's footsteps, leading his armies abroad for foreign conquest, and for the bringing home of foreign spoils. He set out on his career of conquest at the age of seventeen-after a Druid at Tara had told him that he would be conqueror of Alba and impress his power on other foreign lands. He first brought Alba to submission-fighting and overcoming Feredach Finn, King of the Picts. (Conal Gulban, son of Niall, seized hold of that king and killed him against a pillar stone.) Then, as Niall had followed upon the heels of Maximus in his evacuation of Britain, Dathi followed up and hastened the later retreat of Constantine with his Roman legions from that kingdom. He followed them into Gaul-where he was killed by lightning. If it be true, as recorded by the ancient historian, that it was at the foot of the Alps he met his death, we must conclude that Dathi was both a bold and powerful prince."

Dathi's body, too, was borne home over land and sea and was buried in the great cemetery of the Connaught kings, at Cruachan.

From Niall's day onward to the 11th century, this Dathi and his son, Ailill Molt, were the only Ard-Righs that Connaught gave to Tara and Ireland. All the other kings of Tara, for the space of 600 years, were of the family of Niall-usually taken alternately from the Northern Ui Neill and the Southern Ui Neill.

The final cancelling of Connaught's claim to the throne of Tara came in the last quarter of the 5th century in about the 20th year of the reign of the aforesaid Ailill Molt-when Lugaid, the son of Laegaire and grandson of Niall, aided by Murchertach Mac

* Brian is ancestor of the Connaught O'Conors, the O'Reillys, O'Rorkes, O'Flahertys, MacDermotts, and MacDonoughs. Fiachra is the ancestor of the O'Dowds, O'Kevans, O'Hynes, O'Shaughnessys, O'Clerys.

5 The Abbe MacGeoghegan, chaplain to the Irish brigade in the service of France, and noted Irish historian, says that in his day there still existed in Piedmont a tradition of the invading Irish king being there, and of his having spent a night at the castle of Sales-which latter fact, the Abbe says, was recorded in an ancient registry in the archives of the House of Sales.

Erca of the Northern Ui Neill, and by the King of Ulad and the King of Leinster, completely overthrew Ailill Molt and the Connaught forces, at the great battle of Ocha. And henceforth, for long centuries the paramount lords of the land were of the family of the great Niall of the Nine Hostages.

CHAPTER XVI

IRISH INVASIONS OF BRITAIN

In spite of their apparently isolated position the Irish, from the earliest times. seem to have kept up a fair intercourse with foreign countries-being intimate with Alba (Scotland) and Britain, and somewhat less intimate with France, and with other Continental countries. The ancient traditions of all lands naturally reflect the true manners and customs of those countries, and echo truly the old-time happenings. The ancient Irish tales bristle with references to the aforementioned intercourse, and with evidence that foreigners of diverse races were frequently entertained in Irish courts, foreign mercenaries sometimes employed in Irish wars, and foreign matrimonial alliances occasionally contracted by Irish royal families.

Labraid Loingseach in very distant, pre-Christian days, was said to have brought back from his exile in France two thousand Gallish soldiers, by whom he avenged his grandfather's murder, and put himself upon the throne. The very ancient poetical account of the Battle of Ross-na-ri says that Conor MacNessa (who reigned in Ulster at the beginning of the Christian Era) sent an embassy to some foreign country, and that Cano, a foreigner, went as pilot, to teach them their way over the surface of the sea. The Táin tells us that Queen Maeve (Conor's contemporary) had a number of Gallish mercenaries in her army when she went against Ulster.

British and Pictish visitors are frequent in the old tales-and even the Northmen-these latter almost always as enemies. Saxo Grammaticus says that the Northmen besieged Dublin-or some great fort that stood there-in the first century. Cuchullain, in the old tale, is made to fight a Scandinavian, Swaran, the son of Starno. And the Fianna in the legends had many an encounter with the Northmen. At the battle of Magh Mochruime (in the final years of the second century), we are told that MacCon had in the army which he led against Art the Lonely many foreigners whom he had gathered with him on his travels-Franks, Saxons,

Britons, and Albans. That great old tale, the Bruidean da Dearga, shows Saxons at the court of Conari Mor (in the century before Christ).

Although the Irish were not a sea-going people-in this respect bearing not the remotest comparison with the Northmen-and probably because, unlike the Northmen, their country was so rich and fruitful as not to make sea-going a necessity-yet they seem to have been moderately well equipped for sea-travel and moderately expert in the art. They certainly sailed as far as France, and several of the stories would indicate that they sailed to Spain. But this is highly doubtful. Yet the Book of Rights (said to have been first compiled in the early third century, under direction of Cormac MacArt) informs us that ten ships with beds was part of the yearly tribute paid from the king of Cashel to the Ard-Righ. Part of the Book of Acaill (also said to have been compiled by Cormac MacArt) contains Muir-Brethra, Sea-laws, and defines the rights and duties of foreign trading vessels.

The Annals of Tighernach tell us that in the year 222 Cormac's fleet sailed over the sea for three years. We are told that Niall took his fleet with him when he invaded Britain; that he had it sail around the British Coast, and then convey his army to France. And Cormac's Glossary says that Breccan, grandson of Niall, had a trade fleet of 50 currachs sailing between Ireland and Scotland -which were swallowed up by the whirlpool off Rathlin Island— ever since called Coire-Breccain after him who met disaster there.

There is a tale of how Conal Cearnach, once, at the instigation of Fraech, went over the sea eastward into Britain, over the Muir Nicht to the Continent, over Saxony to the North of Lombardy till he reached the Alps-to recover plunder.1

In Patrick's time we find the slave-boy, quitting his slavery, arrive at the sea just in time to catch a ship about to sail for foreign lands. And a little later still, when that troublesome Irish agitator and denouncer of royal vice, Columbanus, is ordered to be deported from France to his own country, they readily find a ship at Nantes, just about to sail for Ireland. These historic happenings imply that there must then have been fairly intimate intercourse between Ireland and other lands.

Of course in the pre-Christian days practically all Irish foreign military expeditions were into Alba and Britain.

The Romans, though they valued and held Britain a long time,

1 It is scarcely necessary to repeat that the evidential points taken from tales are not set down as facts-but as the probable or possible echoes of facts.

and even penetrated deep into Alba, never once ventured into Ireland-though it is recorded that at one time they were collecting their forces in the Northeast of Britain, to attempt the Irish conquest. And the Roman general, Agricola, who, in the year 80 A. D. finished the conquest of Britain, evidently considered the conquering of Ireland. His historian son-in-law, Tacitus, mentions how he frequently talked with Agricola on that subject; that Agricola had had an Irish prince (an exile, or a prisoner) from whose talk he concluded that the conquest of Ireland might be accomplished by one Roman legion, and a small number of auxiliary troops. Undoubtedly he formed this conclusion from learning that Ireland (as an ancient Latin historian puts it) contained "sixteen different nations"-by which he meant different tribes. Having successfully won the rule of Britain, by assaulting separately the many tribes of that country, it was a natural conclusion that tribal Ireland should as easily fall into the Roman net. And his conjecture was probably correct. The want of a strong and permanent autocratic central authority in Ireland, commanding the respect and obedience of the various sub-kingdoms and unifying Ireland's power, always left the nation open to the great danger of foreign conquest. Tacitus says that two tribes of the Britons could rarely be got together against the foreign foe. The selfsame was always the weakness of Ireland and of all tribal nations.

Yet the Romans never launched their attack against Ireland's independence; though oftentimes they must have been sorely provoked so to do, because of the frequent harassing attacks of the Irish upon their territories in Britain. Their discovery of the fierceness of Irish fighters may have played a part in dissuading them from the Irish venture. The recklessness and persistency of Irish fighting taught them to respect Irish fighters, and Irish commanders. Continental records show that the Romans recruited, anyhow one, and possibly many, Irish regiments, for Continental service. Latin inscriptions have been found on the Rhine front showing that the "Primi Scotti" (First Scots) regiments safeguarded the Roman Empire there. The Emperor Diocletian appointed as Commander in Gaul an Irishman of distinguished ability. This was Carausius, who had charge of the defence of the maritime parts. Eventually they broke with him-and broke him -because, they say, of his greed of gold. However, considering himself as good as his masters, he went into Britain, and set up opposition to them there. He assumed the kingship of the Britons, and as he was an able statesman as well as fine fighter, ruled Britain well for the space of seven years. Carausius was native of an