the Island of

    oods h, and her

    c to nurse, h a woman who

    lived in a  of mud and hin

    t the

    rocking the cradle, and pondering

    over ty of the child, and praying

    t t grant him wisdom

    equal to y. there came a knock

    at t up, not a little

    neighbours were

    in the high-King a mile away;

    and t e. ho is

    knocking? shin voice

    anshe

    grey he darkness

    of t error she drew

    back t, and a grey-clad woman, of

    a great age, and of a  more than

    ood by the head of

    t

    to take he

    woman, for she

    firelig the grey hawk

    were upon ead of

    t, and the

    one oo ignorant and too full

    of gaiety to know w a dreadful being

    stood ther voice,

    ~ for I am a crone of the grey hawk, and I

    c in the

    great he door

    again, though her fingers could scarce hold

    ts for trembling, and another grey

    less old ther, and

    ead of hair, came in

    and stood by t. In a little, came a

    ter h,

    and ther,

    until t heir immense

    forms. tood a long time in

    perfect silence and stillness, for they were

    of the sand

    roubled, but at last one muttered

    in a loers, I knew him

    far a under

    her spoke:

    Sisters, I knew

    fluttered like a bird under a net of silver

    cords; and took up the

    ers, I knew him because his

    sang like a bird t ten

    ter t they Bang

    toget rocking

    th long wrinkled fingers; and

    tender and caressing,

    nohe

    great heir song:

    Out of sig of mind:

    Long have man and woman-kind

    of mood,

    taken away our wen food,

    taken aar stone;

    hunder alone,

    And red s urn to grey,

    Are true till time gutter away.

    , the crone

    hing now

    remains but t a drop of our blood be

    mixed into ched

    of a spindle,

    wo

    a drop of blood, grey as the

    mist, fall upon the child; and

    passed out into the

    ot in silence one by one;

    and all t opened

    o dance,

    for too ignorant, and ther

    too full of gaiety to knohe

    beings   over a cradle.

    he nurse

    came to o

    t

    in t of t the

    Sher for good or evil she knew

    not,  over t night;

    and ts and men of law,

    and s men, and his cook, and his

    c o t and

    gat the cradle, and were as

    noisy as magpies, and t up and

    looked at them.

    the king

    died fig the Bag;

    and ts and the men of law ruled in

    t looked to see

    er himself before

    long, for no one had seen so wise a

    cales of ions

    about the

    making of t her and

    the

    poor. I~vcryt

    for a miracle t began to trouble all

    men; and all women, walked

    of it  ceasing. the

    grey o grohe childs

    them con-

    tinually, it needed but a little while and

    this

    been a matter of great moment,

    for miracles tle those

    days, but for an ancient la

    none who had any blemish of body could

    sit upon throne; and as a grey hawk

    he air which had

    never sat at tened to the

    songs of ts in t of the fire,

    it  possible to think of one in whose

    s feathan marred

    and blasted; nor could te

    from tion of t

    grew in  one of unhuman

    blood. Yet all  he

    shey had suffered much

    from foolisheir own disorders,

    and moreover to c

    tacle of his days; and no one had

    any ot t  wisdom

    mighe law, and call Eocha

    of towers, w a

    common mind, to reign in ead.

    he child was seven years old

    ts and the men of law were called

    toget, and all these

    matters weighe

    c t

    hey had

    told  too hers

    but  them because of a sin com-

    mitted by t

    ruth when he began

    to o try round about.

    After mucion they decreed a

    new law commanding every one upon pain

    of deato mingle by a subtlety of art the

    feato his hair;

    and t men s and slings,

    for as yet t invented, into

    tries round about to gather a suf-

    ficiency of feathey decreed also

    t any ruto the child

    so the sea.

    the child grew

    from co boyhood and from

    boyo manhood, and from being

    curious about all things he became busy

    range and subtle ts which

    came to h dis-

    tinctions bethe

    same and hings

    long . Multitudes came from

    oto sec o ask his

    counsel~ but t at the

    frontiers~ w came,

    to he grey hawk

    in tened to him

    o make all darkness

    ligs like music;

    but, alas, o their own

    lands

    too strange and

    subtle to o live out ty

    days. A number indeed did live differ-

    ently after their new life was

    less excellent the old: some among

    t

    heir

    labour, turned to their own lands

    to find hey had loved less lovable

    and ter in ttle, for

    augtle a hair

    divides true; others again,

    in

    peace their own households,

    whe meaning of

    ter and

    toil, for he had

    ser purposes; and numbers

    of they had heard him

    upon all tain

    became like a fire in their

    s, and made all kindly joys and traffic

    bet

    different  all into vague regret.

    he

    common tes about the

    mear of a territory, or about traying

    of cattle, or about ty of blood;

    urn to t him for

    advice; but to be from

    courtesy, for none kne tters

    were s and

    dreams t filled he

    marcer-marching of armies.

    Far less could any kno

    amid throngs of overcoming

    ts and dreams, s its

    oude.

    among to look at him

    and to listen to er of a

    little king w way off; and

    when he saw her he loved, for shc was

    beautiful~ range and pale beauty

    unlike t Dana,

    t mot

    t  as t of others, and

    he

    roubled h a

    great o him when

    told her of

    y, and praised her simply and

    frankly as the

    bards; and o give

    le in his

    dreams. Overwness,

    sed, and yet half refused,

    for so marry some warrior who

    could carry ain in his

    arms. Day by day the king gave her

    gifts; cups h ears of gold and find-

    rinny ant

    lands; clothough

    o her

    less beautiful t cloth woven

    in till she was

    ever between

    yielding and hholding. he laid down

    , and told he

    urn to the world

    and begin the

    kind and mirthful Children of Dana drove

    out the huge and gloomy and misshapen

    People from under the

    great Moods arc alonc immortal, and the;

    creators of mortal things; and how every

    Mood is a being t o mortal eyes,

    the shape of Fair-brows, who dwells, as a

    salmon, in the Dagda,

    wy; or of Lir,

    wers; or

    of Angus, wo

    birds; or of Len, th, from

    whose furnace break rainbows and fiery

    dehe children of

    ~)ana: and still sill

    believe t a

    beauty so much like wisdom could hide a

    common .

    ~ tall young man in the

    dun who had yellow hair, and was skilled

    in ling and in training of horses;

    and one day whe king walked in

    the foss

    and t, he heard his voice among

    ters

    of t said,  I

    e these

    dingy feato your beautiful hair, and

    all t throne

    may sleep easy o nighe

    low, musical voice he loved answered:

    My  beautiful like yours; and

    no I hers

    I  my , thus, and

    t casts no shadow of

    terror and darkness upon my . then

    t

    ten  understanding

    tful words of s and his

    men of las t he had reasoned

    aude; and he

    called to rembling

    voice. the salley

    bus

    and prayed for pardon, and ooped

    do of the

    urned away

    to a word. he

    strode into the hall of assembly, and

    s and his men

    of la ood upon the dais

    and spoke in a loud, clear voice:  Men

    of law, w

    the laws of Eri ? Men of verse, why did

    you make me sin against the sccrecy

    of wisdom, for law was made by man

    for t he

    gods have made, and no man shall live by

    its lig and the rain

    and t is deadly

    to mortal things. Men of law and men of

    verse, live according to your kind, and call

    Eocoo reign

    over you, for I set out to find my kindred.

    hem, and

    dre of t one and then

    anothe grey hawk,

    and, tered the rushes

    upon t, and none dared

    to follow him, for his eyes gleamed like

    the birds of prey; and no man

    saw him again or heard his voice. Some

    believed t ernal abode

    among t

    he dark and dreadful god-

    desses, he pools

    in t cellations

    rising and setting in te

    mirrors.