"Quod bene forte se haberet si in Concilio Dei et Sanctorum ejus quando de Episcopo severior daretur sententia, ab eâ, pari posset acumine Senator liberari" ("De Hibernia Commentarius." Louvain, 1632).
[10] "Toties requisita studiorum Universitas ante annos aliquot erectum fuit decreto Reginæ (tametsi sumptibus Indigenarum) juxta civitatem Dubliniensem, capacissimum et splendidissimum collegium, in quo ordinatum est ut disciplinæ omnes liberales traderentur, sed ab hæreticis magistris, quales cùm Hibernia nequaquam subministraret ex Anglia submissi sunt. Qui pro sua etiam propaganda et confirmanda religione, insuper acceperunt, et munus prædicandi doctrinam suam Evangelicam in civitate Dublinensi et mandatum exigendi juramentum, supremæ potestatis Reginæ in rebus ecclesiasticis, ab adolescentibus quos in literis instituebant," etc.
These extracts show the light in which the native Irish regarded the foundation of Trinity College.
[11] The late Mr. Hennessy I believe discovered and made a transcript of a portion of this book, which is in the Royal Irish Academy, but I have been unable to lay my hands on it.
[12] It must be observed that no Irish family is traced to a Tuatha De Danann ancestry.
[13] O'Curry. MS. Mat. p. 224. For a very different estimate of the Gailiuns or Gaileóins, see above p. [323].
[14] It is a mere accident that this valuable work has survived. The only known copy of it is in the handwriting of Lughaidh's son Cucogry, and the book was unknown to O'Reilly when he compiled his "Irish Writers." It was handed down in the O'Clery family until it came to Patrick O'Clery who lent it to O'Reilly, the lexicographer, some time after 1817, and, O'Reilly dying, the book was sold at his auction in spite of the protests of poor O'Clery. It is now in the Royal Irish Academy and has been edited by the late Father Denis Murphy, S.J., in 1893, whose translation I have for the most part followed. The text of this biography would fill about 150 pages of this book.
[15] This interesting work, though drawn on by Father Meehan, seems to be unknown to Irish scholars. It contains 135 closely written pages. It was discovered in Colgan's cell at Louvain after his death, and is now amongst the uncatalogued manuscripts in the Franciscans' Monastery in Dublin, where it escaped the research of the late Sir John Gilbert, who catalogued their books for the Government, and of M. de Jubainville, who also spent some days in examining their MSS. I owe its discovery to the courtesy of the learned librarian, Father O'Reilly, who has permitted me to make a transcript of it for future publication.
[16] Here is a specimen of the language of this book: "Do rala ambasadoir rig Saxan sa geathraigh in tan sin. Bui ag dénomh a landithill aidhmhillte ocus urchoide do na maithip dia madh eidir leiss. Teid sin a ndimhaoineass ocus a mitharbha, oir ni thug in Ri audiens no eisteacht go feadh tri lá do acht ag dhol dfiadhach gach laithe."
[17] Here is a specimen of the language of this work which is much shorter than the account of O'Neill's and O'Donnell's wanderings; there is a fine copy of it made by O'Curry from the original in the Royal Irish Academy, which fills one hundred pages: "Fagbadh na croidheachta [what the English called creaghts] bochta, rugadar leo a ttoil féin diobh, an chuid do imthigh dona croidheachtaibh sios suas sair siar. Ann do marbhadh Cormac Ua Hagan mac Eoghain, oc oc as bocht! S do bhi Sior Feidhlinn a Cill Cainnigh an tan so. Do cuaidh cuid dinn don Breifni, cuid dinn go Conndae Arda Macha, co Conndae Tir Eoghain, co condae Luth," etc.