,,essays  ,,by  ,,john1 ,,third         
,,marquess ,,of ,,bute4   ,,brendan',s  
,,fabulous ,,voyage4  ,a ,,lecture      
,,delivered ,,on ,,january #ai1 #ahic1  
,,before ,,the ,,scottish ,,society ,,of
 ,,literature ,,and ,,art4  ,new        
,edition4  #aiaa4     ,,ii4  ,it has    
been thought desirable to reprint the   
,essays and other short ,works of the   
late ,marquess of ,bute in an           
inexpensive form likely to be useful to 
the general reader1 and thereby to make 
them more widely known4 ,should this1   
the second of the proposed series1 prove
 acceptable1 it will be followed by     
others at short intervals4              
,,brendan',s ,,fabulous ,,voyage4  ,a   
,lecture delivered on ,january #ai1     
#ahic1 before the ,scottish ,society of 
,literature and ,art4   ,brendan1 the   
son of ,finnlogh ,o' ,alta1 was born at 
,tralee in ,kerry1 in the year #dha or  
#dhb4a ,he had a pedigree which         
connected him with the rulers of        
,ireland1 and thus perhaps secured for  

him a social prominence which he would  
not otherwise have enjoyed4 ,nature     
seems to have endowed him with an highly
 wrought and sensitive temperament4     
,putting aside altogether the idealism  
which caused him1 like so many others of
 his time and race1 to give himself to  
the ,church1 he displayed throughout    
life a restlessness which led him to    
constant journeys1 sometimes of the     
nature of migrations1 and the constant  
inception of projects to which he did   
not continue long to adhere2 and in the 
statements about him there are elements 
from which ,i conjecture that he was    
probably of the class of persons who    
furnish good subjects for hypnotic      
experiments4 ,when he was a year old he 
was handed over to the care of the nun  
,ita1 when she dwelt at the foot of     
,mount ,luachra4 ,with her he remained  
until he was seven years old1 when she  
sent him to ,bishop ,erc1 by whom he had
 been baptized1 but during the whole of 
her life1 which lasted nearly as long as

 his own1 he never ceased to regard and 
to treat her with all the affectionate  
reverence of a son4 ,his education was  
continued under ,erc1 until he grew     
towards manhood1 when he visited other  
parts of ,ireland for the sake of study1
 but it was to ,erc that he returned to 
be ordained to the ,presbyterate4 ,at   
that period there was a sort of passion 
among the ,celtic clergy for retiring   
into deserts after the manner of the    
monks and hermits of ,egypt1 and the    
islands of the ,western and ,northern   
ocean1 if they could show nothing like  
the burning sands of ,africa1 supplied  
deserts enough of a different sort4 ,it 
was only in accordance then with a      
common custom of his day1 that ,brendan1
 after his ordination1 set out by sea   
with a few companions1 to find a place  
where to found a monastery4 ,it is to be
 remarked also that this was just about 
the time of the migration of the ,royal 
,race of the ,dalriads to the country   
which has ultimately received from them 

the name of ,scotland1 and the project  
therefore bears a strong resemblance to 
that in which ,columba succeeded about  
#fj years later4 ,if ,brendan had not   
failed1 perhaps ,columba would not have 
come4 ,the wanderings or explorations of
 ,brendan and his companions appear to  
have lasted several years1 during which 
it may be presumed that they were in the
 habit of laying up somewhere for the   
winter4 ,it was doubtless partly owing  
to the restlessness which was a part of 
his nature1 that he finally settled     
nowhere1 and returned to ,ireland4      
,footnote #a3 ,reeve's ,adamnan1 #bba4  
,in ,ireland he did a good deal of work1
 but ,ita urged him to try and do good  
elsewhere1 and he went over with some of
 his friends to ,britain1 possibly in   
connection with movements affected by   
the career of the historic ,arthur1 who 
was killed at ,camlan or ,camelon in    
#ecg4 ,the ,christian ,irish at that    
time certainly made endeavours to assist
 the ,christian party among the         

,britons4 ,the nun ,edana was making her
 attempts1 either in person or by her   
disciples1 to found her girls' schools  
in the south of ,scotland1 and it is not
 impossible that ,ita thought that she  
might also accomplish some good by      
sending forth a male emissary4 ,in      
connection with ,brendan's sojourn in   
,britain1 there is a most curious       
mention of the use of a ,greek ,liturgy 
somewhere in the ,british ,church4      
,there is a statement that ,brendan was 
at the head of the celebrated ,welsh    
monastery of ,llancarfan4 ,he also went 
over to ,brittany to see ,gildas the    
,wise1 who was bewailing the woes of his
 native land on the shores of the       
,morbihan4 ,he ultimately returned to   
the ,western ,islands1 and there        
succeeded at last in founding two       
monastic settlements1 one in ,tiree1 at 
a place which the writers call ,bledua1 
and one in an island called ,ailech1    
which it seems to me may possibly mean  
,islay4 ,then he went back to ,ireland1 

and started another monastery in a      
desert island in ,loch ,oisbsen1 which  
was given to him by ,aedh1 the son of   
,ethdach4 ,hence1 however1 he again     
moved in #eei1 and founded the great    
monastery of ,clonfert1 an act which is 
the principal achievement of his life4  
,he was friendly with the principal     
persons of his own race1 time1 and      
class4 ,he seems1 as ,i have said1 to   
have possessed the peculiar temperament1
 which some call sensitive and others   
mediumistic1 and which leads to the     
phenomenon generally known as           
second-sight1 for1 putting aside all    
other records about him which point in  
the same direction1 it is recorded of   
him1 not only by ,adamnan1 but also by  
,cuimine the ,fair1 that on one occasion
 when he came over1 along with ,comgall 
of ,benchor1 ,kenneth of ,aghaboe1 and  
,cormac o' ,leathain of ,durrow1 to     
visit ,columba1 who was then staying in 
,himba 7,eilean na ,naoimh1 one of the  
,garveloch islands1 lying between       

,scarba and ,mull71 and ,columba at     
their request celebrated before them on 
the ,sunday1 he afterwards told ,comgall
 and ,kenneth that during part of the   
ceremony ,columba had seemed to him to  
be standing at the bottom of a pillar of
 fire streaming heavenwards4  ,he lived 
to an extreme old age1 and was in his   
#ifth year when the end came4 ,when he  
felt that it was at hand1 he went to see
 his sister ,briga1 and ,i quote the    
sentences which follow1 on account of   
the quaint naturalism which inspires    
them4 ',among other things1 he taught   
her concerning the place of her         
resurrection4 ,not here1 saith he unto  
her1 shalt thou rise again1 but in thine
 own land1 that is in ,tralee4          
,therefore1 go thou thither1 for that   
people will obtain the mercy of ,god by 
thy means4 ,this is a place of men1 not 
of women4 ,now is ,god calling me unto  
,himself out of the prison house of this
 body4 ,when she heard that1 she was    
grievously afflicted1 and said1 ,father 

beloved1 we shall all die at thy death4 
,for which of us could live when thou   
wast absent living8 ,much less1 when    
thou art dead4 ,brendan said farther1   
,on the third day hence1 ,i shall go the
 way of my fathers4 ,now that day was   
the ,lord's ,day4 ,thereon1 after the   
sacraments of the altar had been        
offered1 he saith to them that stood by1
 ,in your supplications1 commend my     
going forth4 ,and ,briga speaketh and   
saith1 ,father1 what fearest thou8 ,he  
saith1 ,i fear that ,i shall journey    
alone1 that the way will be dark--,i    
fear the unknown country1 the presence  
of the ,king1 the sentence of the       
,judge4 ,after these things he commanded
 the brethren to carry his body to the  
monastery of ,clonfert secretly1 lest1  
if they did it openly1 it should be kept
 by them among whom they should pass4   
,then when he had kissed them all one by
 one1 he saith unto holy ,briga1 ,salute
 my friends on my behalf1 and say unto  
them to beware of evil speaking1 even   

when it is true1 how much the more when 
it is false4 ,when he had so spoken and 
foretold how some things would be in    
time to come1 he passed into everlasting
 rest1 in the #ifth year of his age4'   
,he died1 ,may #af1 #egg4  ,by combining
 with all the collected and credible    
statements concerning him illustrative  
matter from the history of his times and
 the biographies of his contemporaries1 
it would no doubt be possible to write a
 life of ,brendan1 which would be both  
of considerable bulk and of considerable
 interest4 ,but there would be nothing  
particularly startling or striking about
 it4 ,apart from the interest of public 
events contemporary with his long       
career1 the monotonous variety produced 
by his vagabond nature1 and such        
psychical interest as might possibly    
attach to stories of his mediumistic    
temperament1 it would be rather         
hum-drum4 ,brendan1 however1 has had the
 ill luck to be selected by some unknown
 antient ,irish novelist as the hero of 

a romance of the wildest kind1 which has
 certainly spread his name1 if not his  
fame1 in quarters which in all his      
travels he could never have anticipated4
 ,even in the ,canary ,islands1 the     
natives apply the term ',isla de ,san   
,borondon' to a peculiar effect like    
mirage1 showing a shadowy presentiment  
of land1 which is sometimes seen off    
their coasts4 ,his character as an hero 
of romance1 somewhat of the type of     
,sinbad the ,sailor1 if not of that of  
,gulliver1 has even injured him as a    
subject of serious study4 ,there has    
been a sort of custom1 to which may be  
applied a celebrated phrase of ,newman1 
'aged but not venerable1' of confounding
 the hero of the romance with the real  
man4 ,it would be just as proper to     
identify the hero of the ,pickwick      
,papers with a certain ,mr4 ,pickwick1  
whom it was1 oddly enough1 the duty of  
one of ,dickens' sons to call as a      
witness in an ,english law-suit not many
 years ago4 ,even ,homer sometimes      

nods--at least according to the critics1
 of whose opinion ,lucian credits him   
with so low an estimation--and the great
 ,bollandists had their historical      
equanimity--much as experience must have
 already taught it to bear--so upset by 
the brilliancy of the fable that they   
have omitted to print the real life at  
all1 a life which is1 at the worst1 no  
more startling than a good many with    
which they have enriched their          
pages--e4g41 those of ,patrick1 ,brigid1
 and ,columba--and after a denunciation 
of what their authorities call the vana1
 fictaque vel apocrypha deliramenta1    
'the silly1 lying1 or apocryphal        
ravings1' simply proceed to give a      
compilation of isolated notices drawn   
from a variety of different sources4    
,prof4 ,o',curry1 in his ,lectures on   
the ,,ms4 ,material of ,ancient ,irish  
,history1 page #bhi1 mentions four      
ancient ,irish romances in the form of  
voyages1 of which the voyage of ,brendan
 is one4 ,he gives an epitome of that of

 the sons of ,ua ,corra1 which seems at 
least in parts to be almost equally     
wild4 ,but that of ,brendan has         
certainly been the most popular4 ,m4    
,achille ,jubinal1 who edited one ,latin
 and two ,french translations of it1    
says that it also exists in ,irish1     
,welsh1 ,spanish1 ,english1 and         
,anglo-,norman4 ,the ,spanish1 ,english1
 and ,anglo-,norman ,i have never read1 
and of the ,welsh ,i have never heard4  
,of the ,latin ,i once made a complete  
translation from the ,latin text        
published by ,jubinal1 but ,i have lost 
it1 and have had to do the work again so
 far as necessary for the present       
lecture4 ,i remember1 however1 that from
 several features1 ,i came to the       
conclusion that the ,latin text was a   
translation from ,irish1 and the ,irish 
text must present considerable variants1
 as ,dr4 ,todd in his book on ,st4      
,patrick1 ,apostle of ,ireland1 page    
#dfj1 cites from ',an ,irish ,life of   
,st4 ,brendan1' but which must evidently

 be the fabulous voyage1 four incidents1
 of which one is about the finding of a 
dead mermaid1 another about one of the  
voyagers being devoured alive by        
sea-cats1 and the third about an huge   
sea-cat as large as an ox which swam    
after them to destroy them1 until       
another sea-monster rose up and fought  
with the cat1 and both were drowned1    
none of which incidents occur in the    
,latin4 ,however1 to the ,latin version 
my defective knowledge must confine me1 
and there is enough of it for one       
lecture1 and to spare4 ,i may1 however1 
say that by the ,latin text ,i do not   
here mean only the text published by    
,jubinal4 ,the present ,bollandists were
 good enough1 some years ago1 to edit   
for me the ',codex ,salmanticensis1'    
which contains both the romance and the 
,life1 and ,i find in the romance       
serious divergences from the text given 
by ,jubinal2 they are of a kind which1  
in my judgment1 stamp it beyond all     
doubt as a later and corrupt edition1   

but ,i have largely compared the texts1 
although not word for word4  ,well1 ,i  
am now going to deal with the 'silly1   
lying1 or apocryphal ravings4' ,the     
romance relates that on one occasion    
when ,brendan was in a place called the 
,thicket1 there came to him a man called
 ,barint ,o',neil1 of the race of ,king 
,neil of ,,ix4 ,hostages4 ,this man told
 him that his disciple ,marnock had left
 him1 and founded an hermitage of his   
own in an island called ,delight some1  
whither he himself afterwards went to   
visit him4 ,while he was there1 they    
were one day together upon the shore1   
where there was a small boat1 and then1 
to translate the precise words1 'he said
 unto me1 ,father1 go up into the ship1 
and let us sail westward unto the island
 which is called the ,land of ,promise  
of the ,saints1 which ,god will give    
unto them that come after us in the     
latter time4 ,we went up into the ship  
therefore1 and clouds covered us all    
round about us1 so that hardly could we 

see the stern or the prow of the ship4  
,after the space1 as it were1 of one    
hour1 a great light shone round about   
us1 and there appeared a land wide and  
grassy1 and very fruitful4 ,and when the
 ship was come to land1 we went out1 and
 began to go about1 and to walk through 
that land for fifteen days1 and we could
 not find the end thereof4 ,we saw there
 no plant without a flower1 and no tree 
without fruit1 and all the stones       
thereof are precious stones4 ,and upon  
the fifteenth day we found a river      
running from the west eastward4 ,and    
when we considered all these things1 we 
doubted what we should do4 ,we were fain
 to pass over the river1 but we waited  
for counsel from ,god4 ,while we        
discussed thus between us1 of a sudden  
there appeared before us a man in great 
brightness1 who called us by our names  
and saluted us1 saying1 ,it is well     
done1 good brethren1 for the ,lord hath 
revealed unto you that land which ,he   
will give unto his ,saints4 ,for it is  

an half of the island up to this river2 
but unto you it is not given to pass    
over4 ,go back therefore whence ye are  
come4 ,when he said thus1 we asked him  
whence he was1 and by what name he was  
called4 ,and he said unto me1 ,why dost 
thou ask me whence ,i am8 and by what   
name ,i am called8 ,why dost thou not   
rather ask as to this island8 ,for even 
as thou seest it now1 so doth it remain 
since the beginning of the world4 ,hast 
thou any need of meat or drink8 ,hast   
thou been overcome of sleep1 or hath    
night covered thee8 ,know therefore of a
 surety3 there is always day here       
without blindness or shadow of darkness4
 ,for our ,lord ,jesus ,christ is the   
light thereof1 and if men had not done  
against the commandment of ,god1 they   
would have remained in the loveliness of
 this land4 ,when we heard it1 we were  
turned to weeping1 and when we were     
rested1 we straightway took our journey1
 and the man aforesaid came with us even
 to the shore where our ship was4 ,but  

when we got us up into the ship1 the man
 was taken away from our eyes1 and we   
came into the darkness aforesaid1 and   
until the ,isle of ,delight some4'      
,barint goes on to relate his           
conversation with ,marnock's disciples1 
and how they told him that they often   
knew by the fragrance of ,marnock's     
garments1 when he had been away from    
them for a while and returned1 that he  
had been in that garden of ,god1 where1 
as it is expressed1 'night gathereth    
not1 nor day endeth 444 for the angels  
of ,god keep it4'  ,incited by this     
narrative1 ,brendan proposed to some of 
his disciples to set out in search of   
the ,land of ,promise1 and after fasting
 for forty days for three days at a     
time1 they finally embarked from the    
neighbourhood of ,tralee4 ,there is a   
very curious description of the corach#b
 or skin-boat in which they embarked4   
,it was1 it is stated1 'very light1 with
 ribs and posts of wicker1 as the use is
 in those parts1 and they covered it    

with the hides of cattle1 dyed reddish  
in oak-bark1 and they smeared all the   
seams of the ship without2 and they took
 provisions for forty days1 and butter  
for dressing hides for the covering of  
the ship1 and the other things which are
 useful for the life of man4' ,two of   
the ,,mss4 add 7and are justified by    
subsequent passages73--',they set up a  
mast in the middle of the ship1 and a   
sail1 and the rest of the gear for      
steering4' ,the voyagers were fourteen  
in number besides ,brendan1 but at the  
last moment three other brethren came   
and entreated to be taken1 saying that  
if they were left where they were1 they 
would die of hunger and thirst4 ,brendan
 consents1 but predicts that while one  
of them would come to a good end1 two   
would come to a bad4  ,footnote #b3     
,after the manner of the antient ,celts1
 but which is not1 ,i believe1          
altogether extinct either in the        
,highlands or in ,ireland1 and of which 
,i remember having seen one once in     

actual use in ,wales4  ,they set off in 
the direction of the summer solstice1 by
 which must1 ,i think1 be meant the     
northerly western point where the sun   
sets in summer1 and are forty days at   
sea--it will be noticed that the periods
 in this story are nearly always of     
forty days4 ,at the end of this time    
they come to a very high and rocky      
island1 with streams falling down the   
cliffs into the sea4 ,they search for a 
landing-place for three days1 and then  
find a narrow harbour1 between steep    
walls of rock4 ,on landing1 they are met
 by a dog1 which they follow to a town  
or fort1 but see no inhabitants4 ,they  
go into a great hall set with couches   
and seats1 and find water prepared for  
washing the feet4 ,the walls are hung   
with vessels of divers kinds of metal1  
and bridles1 and horns mounted with     
silver4 ,brendan warns the brethren     
against theft1 especially the three who 
had come last4 ,they find a table laid1 
and spread with very white bread and    

fish4 ,they eat and lie down to sleep4  
,in the night ,brendan sees a fiend in  
the shape of an ,ethiopian child        
tempting one of the three last comers   
with a silver bridle4 ,in the morning   
they find the table again spread1 and so
 remain for three days and nights4 ,then
 they prepare to leave1 and ,brendan    
denounces one of the brethren as a      
thief4 ,on this the guilty brother draws
 the silver bridle out of his breast1   
and cries out1 ',father1 ,i have sinned3
 forgive it1 and pray for my soul that  
it perish not4' ,the devil is cast out1 
but the brother dies and is buried on   
the island4 ,as they are on the point of
 embarking1 a lad brings them a basket  
of bread and a vessel 7amphora7 of      
water1 which he gives to them with a    
blessing4  ,they start again upon the   
ocean1 and are carried hither and       
thither1 eating once every two days4 ,at
 last1 on ,maundy ,thursday1 they reach 
another island1 where are many abundant 
springs full of fish1 and flocks of     

white sheep as large as cattle1         
sometimes so thick as to conceal the    
earth4 ,there they remain until the     
morning of the ,eve of ,easter1 when    
they take1 and apparently kill and      
dress1 one sheep and one lamb without   
blemish4 ,the reference is evidently to 
an identity of custom with that which   
still prevails in all the southern      
countries of ,europe1 of preparing the  
flesh of a lamb on ,holy ,saturday1 in  
honour of the ,paschal ,lamb1 which     
flesh is blessed on the ,saturday1 and  
used to break the fast of ,lent on the  
next day4#c ,when all is ready there    
comes to them a man with a basket of    
bread baken on the coals--evidently     
meaning ,passover bread4 ,this man now  
becomes a regular although occasional   
feature in the narrative1 and is called 
their provider 7procurator74 ,he        
foretells their journey for some time1  
and how they will be until a week after 
,pentecost in a place which is called   
the ,eden of ,birds4  ,footnote #c3 ,in 

,italy at least1 in order as far as     
possible to combine the strict fast of  
the ,saturday with a fulfilment of the  
words of ,ex4 xii4 #h1 ',and they shall 
eat the flesh in that night4' ,it is    
usual to have an image of a lamb in     
sugar or other confectionary1 which is  
also blessed during the day1 and eaten  
at supper4  ,thus furnished1 they go to 
an island close by1 which he has pointed
 out to them as the place where they are
 to remain until the following noon4    
,this island is destitute of grass1 and 
with but scanty vegetation1 and there is
 no sand upon its shores4 ,all goes well
 until the next day1 when they light a  
fire to boil the pot1 whereupon the     
island becomes restive1 and finally     
sinks into the sea1 although they all   
manage to escape into the ship4         
',brethren1 saith ,brendan1 ye wonder at
 that which this island hath done4      
,father1 say they1 we wonder sorely1 and
 great dread hath taken hold upon us4   
,he said unto them1 ,little children1 be

 not afraid1 for ,god hath this night   
shown unto me the secret of this thing4 
,where we have been was not an island   
but the first fish of all that swim in  
the ocean1 and he seeketh ever to bring 
his tail unto his mouth1 but he cannot1 
because of his length4 ,jasconius is his
 name4'  ,this is the only incident in  
the whole romance which is actually     
grotesque4 ,but from the solemnity with 
which it is narrated1 it is evident that
 it did not appear to be grotesque to   
the author4 ,it seems to have taken the 
fancy of the early and medival public1  
and even of the iconographic public in a
 special degree4 ,the word whale has    
commonly been applied to the beast1 and 
as the same episode occurs in the story 
of ,sinbad the ,sailor1 ,jubinal has set
 himself to speculate how that story1 or
 the ,arabian ,nights in which it is    
incorporated1 came to be known in       
,ireland4 ,i confess ,i do not agree    
with him4 ,in the first place1 the      
notion is not particularly recondite1   

and it has at least this possible       
foundation in fact1 that1 as ,i have    
been told by sailors1 the back of a     
whale of advanced years1 when asleep at 
the surface1 may be and has been        
mistaken from some distance1 greatly    
owing to the accretions upon it1 for the
 top of a reef4 ,again1 a somewhat      
similar notion occurs in ,lucian's      
,traveller's ,tale1 which was much more 
likely to be known to the ,irish        
fabulist4 ,lastly1 ,i must observe that 
all this is gloss4 ,the word whale      
7cete7 is never applied to the animal   
but always fish 7piscis7 or monster     
7bellua7 or beast 7bestie71 and the     
whole thing1 with the notion of its vast
 size1 and the attempt to join the tail 
to the mouth1 which brings it into      
connection with the emblem of eternity1 
which is due1 ,i believe1 to the        
,phoenicians1 but which we ourselves so 
often use upon coffins and grave-stones1
 seems to bring it into connection      
rather with the idea of the             

,midgard-,worm1 the great under-lying   
world-serpent which figures so largely  
in the mythic cosmogony of the          
,scandinavians4 ,i suggest that this is 
the notion1 of which the romancer may   
have heard from ,scandinavian sources2  
and there is even a kind of indication  
that it was associated in his mind with 
the idea of paganism1 as ,brendan is    
made to speak elsewhere of ,god having  
made the most terrible 7immanissimam7 of
 beasts subject unto them4  ,on leaving 
the spot where the monster had sunk1    
they first returned to the provider's   
isle1 from the top of which they        
perceived another near at hand1 covered 
with grass and woods and full of        
flowers1 and thither they went4  ,on the
 south shore of this island they found a
 river a little broader than the ship1  
and up this they towed her for a mile1  
when they came to the fountain-head of  
the stream4 ,it was a wondrous fountain1
 and above it there was a tree          
marvellously beautiful1 spreading rather

 than high1 but all covered with white  
birds1 so covered that they hid its     
foliage and branches4 7,the notion is   
perhaps taken from a tree loaded with   
snow47 ',and when the man of ,god saw   
it1 he began to think in himself what or
 wherefore it should be1 that such a    
multitude of birds should be gathered   
together in one place4 ,and the thing   
distressed him so1 that he wept1 and    
fell down upon his knees1 and besought  
the ,lord1 saying1 ,o ,god1 ,who knowest
 the things which are unknown1 and      
makest manifest the things which are    
hidden1 ,thou knowest how that mine     
heart is straitened2 therefore ,i       
beseech ,thee that it may please ,thee  
to make manifest unto me1 ,thy sinful   
servant1 this mystery which now ,i do   
see with mine eyes4 ,and this ,i ask not
 for an desert of my worthiness1 but in 
respect of ,thy mercy4 ,when he had so  
spoken1 behold1 one of the birds flew   
from the tree4 ,from the ship1 where the
 man of ,god was sitting1 his wings     

sounded as with the sound of little     
bells4 ,he perched upon the top of the  
prow1 and began to spread his wings for 
joy1 and looked kindly upon the holy    
father ,brendan4 ,then the man of ,god1 
when he understood that the ,lord had   
had regard unto his prayer1 saith unto  
the bird1 ,if thou be the messenger of  
,god1 tell me whence be these birds1 and
 wherefore they be gathered here4 ,and  
it said1 ,we are of that great ruin of  
the old enemy2 but we have not fallen by
 sinning or consenting2 but we have been
 predestinated by the goodness and mercy
 of ,god1 for wherein we were created1  
hath our ruin come to pass1 through his 
fall and the fall of his crew4 ,but ,god
 the ,almighty1 ,who is righteous and   
true1 hath by ,his judgment sent us into
 this place4 ,pains we suffer not4 ,the 
presence of ,god in a sense we cannot   
see1 so far has ,he separated us from   
the company of them that stood firm4 ,we
 wander through the divers parts of this
 world1 of the sky1 and of the          

firmament1 and of the earths1 even as   
other spirits who are sent forth to     
minister4 ,but upon the holy days of the
 ,lord1 we take bodies such as ,thou    
seest1 and by the ordinance of ,god we  
dwell here1 and praise our ,maker4 ,as  
for thee1 thou and thy brethren are a   
year upon the way1 and yet there await  
you six4 ,and where this day thou hast  
kept the ,passover1 there shall ye keep 
it every year1 and afterwards shall thou
 find that which thou hast set in thine 
heart1 even the land promised unto the  
,saints4 ,and when the bird had so      
spoken1 it rose from the prow1 and      
returned unto the others4 ,and when the 
hour of evening came1 they all began to 
flap their wings1 and to sing as it were
 with one voice1 saying1 ,praise waiteth
 for ,thee1 ,o ,god1 in ,zion1 and unto 
,thee shall the vow be performed in     
,jerusalem1 through our ministry4 ,and  
they repeated that verse even for the   
space of an hour1 and the song and the  
sound of their wings was like harmony   

7carmen cantus7 for sweetness4 ,then    
holy ,brendan saith unto his brethren1  
,refresh your bodies1 since this day the
 ,lord hath satisfied your souls by ,his
 ,divine rising again4 ,and when supper 
was ended1 and the work of ,god done1   
the man of ,god and they that were with 
him gave their bodies unto rest until   
the third watch of the night4 ,and the  
man of ,god woke and roused the brethren
 for the watches of the night1 and he   
began holily to sing that verse1 ,o     
,lord1 open ,thou my lips4 ,and when the
 word of the man of ,god was finished1  
all the birds sang out with wings and   
voices1 saying1 ,praise ye the ,lord1   
all ,his ,angels1 praise ye ,him all    
,his hosts4 ,likewise at even for the   
space of an hour1 they sang ever1 and   
when the dawn glowed they began to sing1
 ,and let the beauty of the ,lord our   
,god be upon us1 with the same harmony  
and length of singing as in the ,morning
 ,praises3 likewise1 at the third hour  
that verse1 ,sing praises to our ,god1  

sing praises1 sing praises unto our     
,king1 sing ye praises with             
understanding3 at the sixth hour1 ,may  
the ,lord cause ,his face to shine upon 
us1 and be merciful unto us3 and at the 
ninth hour they sang1 ,behold1 how good 
and how pleasant it is for brethren to  
dwell together in unity4 ,so by day and 
by night these birds gave praise to     
,god4'  ,i have read this passage at    
length1 not only because of its         
intrinsic merit1 but also because of its
 evident meaning4 ,it is obvious that it
 is meant to propound doctrines similar 
to those which a distinguished writer   
has recently discussed under the title1 
,happiness in ,hell4 ,it is remarkable  
that the ,codex ,salmanticensis omits   
the whole passage in this sense4        
,possibly it did not suit the views of  
the transcriber4  ,in a week the        
provider came to them bringing more food
 and drink1 but warned them not to drink
 of the fountain1 as its waters were    
stupefying4 ,he returned again at       

,pentecost1 bringing more1 but bade them
 now provision the ship with water1 and 
with dried bread4 ,a week later they    
started4 ,when they were on the shore1  
one of the birds came and perched upon  
the prow and said1 ',ye have kept the   
holy day of the ,passover with us this  
year4 ,ye shall also keep the same day  
with us in the year to come4 ,and where 
ye have been in the last year at the    
,supper of the ,lord1 there shall ye be 
upon the said day in the year to come4  
,likewise shall ye keep the ,lord's     
night1 the ,passover ,supper1 where ye  
have kept it before1 that is1 upon the  
back of the monster ,jasconius4 ,and    
after eight months ye shall find the    
isle which is called ,ailbey4 ,there    
shall ye keep the birth of ,christ4'    
,and so he flew back1 and as the boat   
sailed away1 all the birds sang1        
',answer us1 ,o ,god of our salvation1  
,who art the confidence of all the ends 
of the earth1 and of them that are afar 
off upon the sea4'  ,they were wandering

 upon the sea for three months1 and     
afterwards came to the isle ,ailbey1    
where they stayed until the middle of   
,january4 ,there is here described a    
monastery with twenty-four monks1 who   
were fed on miraculously provided bread1
 and1 except the ,abbat1 never spoke4   
,there is rather a curious description  
of the church1 which was square1 with   
stalls round the walls4 ,it had three   
altars1 all of crystal1 as were all the 
altar vessels1 and seven lamps which    
were lit every evening by a fiery arrow 
which came in and went out at a window4 
,they left ,ailbey1 and were carried    
about on the sea until the beginning of 
,lent4 ,they then came to an island     
where there was abundant vegetation1    
roots1 and streams full of fish1 but    
some of the brethren became insensible  
from one1 two1 or three days1 from      
drinking the water4 ,i own that this and
 the remark about the water in the ,eden
 of ,birds seems to me to be very likely
 plagiarised from the wine-river in     

,lucian's ,traveller's ,tale4 ,hence    
they went north for three days1 were    
beating about for about twenty1 and then
 eastward for three more1 and then came 
back for ,maundy ,thursday to the isle  
of the provider1 who again met them4    
,all went on as before1 and a week after
 ,pentecost they started again from the 
,eden of the ,birds4  ,it will thus be  
observed that the real times of voyaging
 in each year are limited to the months 
of ,february and ,march1 and from about 
the early part of ,june to the middle of
 ,december4  ,forty days after starting 
in this new year they were much alarmed 
by a vast fish which seemed to be coming
 after them to devour them1 but it was  
killed by another monster1 breathing    
fire1 which appeared against it from the
 ,east1 and tore it into three pieces4  
,the next day they came to a large and  
grassy island1 where they found the tail
 portion of the monster fish4 ,on this  
island they beached the ship1 pitched   
the tent1 and stayed three months1      

during which the sea was too stormy for 
travel4 ,they lived for the three months
 on part of the monster1 the rest of    
which was devoured by beasts1 but       
another portion of a fish was afterwards
 washed up1 and they made a salt        
provision of it--though as to ,brendan  
himself1 it is remarked that he was a   
consistent vegetarian1 having never1    
since his ordination1 eaten anything    
wherein had been the breath of life4    
,three days after this1 the sea being   
stiller1 they set out again towards the 
,north4  ,one day they saw an island in 
the distance1 and ,brendan told them    
that there were three companies1 of     
children1 of young men1 and of elders1  
and that one of the three brethren last 
come was there to make his earthly      
pilgrimage4 ,they came to shore4 ,the   
island was so flat that it seemed level 
with the sea4 ,it had no trees nor      
anything that wind can shake4 ,it was   
vast1 and was covered with something    
which the ,latin text calls scalt--a    

word which ,i have failed to find in    
,ducange or in any other authority which
 ,i have been able to consult4 ,it is1  
however1 evidently1 from the context1   
some kind of ground fruit1 and may      
perhaps be the strawberry or the        
,blaeberry--although the ,latin for     
these seems to be generally fragum and  
bacca myrtilii4 ,this fruit was white or
 purpureus--wherein another difficulty  
arises as to the meaning of purpureus4  
,the individual berries were as big as  
large balls1 and tasted like honey4 ,in 
this island were the three companies1   
who seemed to be moving and standing in 
a kind of sacred dance1 two moving round
 while the one which had taken the      
farthest place stood still and sang1    
',the ,saints shall go from strength to 
strength3 the ,god of gods will appear  
in ,zion4' ,it is vexatious that here   
the question of colour again arises1 as 
something very picturesque is evidently 
intended to be described4 ,the company  
of children were clad in pure and       

glistering white1 but the ,latin1 which 
is verbally followed by the ,french1    
gives the colour of the young men's     
garments as hyacinthine1 and that of the
 elders' as purple4 ,i have consulted   
all the authorities upon the question   
that ,i can4 ,the result is that it is  
disputed whether hyacinthine means red  
or blue or both1 and whether the ,latin 
purple was red or plum-coloured4 ,i     
hazard the conjecture that there is here
 an attempt to symbolize innocence1     
vigour1 and ripeness1 and that as the   
first colour is certainly white1 the    
others may be red and what we call      
purple4  ,the voyagers landed at the    
fourth hour 7#aj ,a4,m47 and the dance  
went on until noon1 when the three      
companies sang together the lxvii41 the 
lxx41 and the cxvi4 ,psalms1 adding     
again1 'the ,god of gods will appear in 
,zion4' ,at #c ,p4,m4 they sang likewise
 ,psalms cxxx41 cxxxiii41 and what is   
called in the ,septuagint the cxlvii41  
viz41 the last nine verses of that so   

called in the ,a4,v4 ,at even they sang 
the lxv41 the civ41 the cxiii41 and then
 the whole #ae songs of degrees1 during 
which they sat4 ,when this was done1 a  
bright cloud overshadowed the island1 a 
cloud so bright that it blinded the     
sight of the voyagers1 but they could   
still hear the sacred song going on     
without ceasing until midnight 7vigilie 
matutin7 when they heard sung ,psalms   
cxlviii41 cxlix41 and cl41 and then what
 are called '#ab ,psalms according to   
the ,psalter1 up to ,the fool hath said 
in his heart1'--an apparent reference to
 the present ,roman ,breviary           
arrangement by which the xth is united  
7as in the ,septuagint7 with the ixth1  
and the vth transferred out of its      
order4 ,as day broke1 the cloud passed  
away from over the island and the       
companies sang ,psalms li41 xc41 and    
lxiii41 and at #i ,a4,m4 xlvii41 liv41  
and cxvi4 ,from what this peculiar      
arrangement of the ,psalms is taken1 ,i 
do not know4 ,it is not that of the     

,monastic ,breviary1 nor of the ,roman1 
nor of the ,greek ,church1 nor is it    
that of the ,mozarabic1 at least at     
present1 but from its excessive         
irregularity1 in which it resembles the 
,mozarabic1 ,i guess that it may belong 
to some ,ephesine rite1 as introduced by
 ,patrick into ,ireland1 and that it is 
here set down at length because it was  
becoming obsolete in the days of the    
writer4 ,then they went to ,communion4  
,after this1 two of the company of young
 men brought a basket full of the purple
 fruit1 and put it into the ship1       
saying1 ',take ye of the fruit of the   
strong men's isle1 and give us our      
brother and depart in peace4' ,then     
,brendan called the brother to him and  
said1 ',kiss thy brethren1 and go with  
them that call thee4 ,i tell thee1      
brother1 that in a good hour did thy    
mother conceive thee1 who hast earned to
 dwell with such a congregation4' ,so   
they bade him farewell with tears1 and  
when he came to the companies1 they     

sang1 ',behold1 how good and how        
pleasant it is for brethren to dwell    
together in unity1' and then the ,te    
,deum1 and the voyagers set out again   
upon their way4  ,the voyage now        
continues with two or three             
comparatively trivial adventures4 ,for  
twelve days they lived upon the juice of
 the scalt1 after which they fasted for 
three days4 ,then a bird brought them a 
branch of an unknown tree1 bearing a    
bunch of bright red grapes1 whereon they
 lived for four days1 and then fasted   
for three more4 ,on the last of these   
they sighted the island where grew the  
grapes4 ,it was thickly wooded1 with    
trees bending under the weight of the   
fruit1 filled with all manner of good   
vegetation1 and exhaling an odour like  
that of an house full of pomegranates   
7mala punica74 ,here they landed1       
pitched the tent1 and stayed for forty  
days4  ,after they left this island they
 were much alarmed by the sight of a    
griffin flying towards them1 but it was 

killed by another bird which fought it  
in the air1 and its body fell into the  
sea4 ,they reached the isle ,ailbey in  
safety1 and there passed the midwinter  
as usual4  ,the following years are     
passed over with merely the general     
statement that they went about much in  
the ocean1 and passed the usual seasons 
in the usual places4 ,it is mentioned   
that one midsummer the sea was so clear 
for about a week that they could see the
 marine animals lying at the bottom2 and
 when ,brendan sang1 these came up and  
swam round the ship4  ,it must be1 as   
far as the chronology of the romance can
 be said to be fixed1 intended to be    
represented as in the ,february of the  
seventh year1 that the narrative again  
becomes continuous4 ,they saw one day a 
pillar standing in the sea1 which       
appeared to be near them1 but which they
 did not reach for three days4 ,its top 
seemed to pierce the clouds4 ,at the    
distance of about a mile it was         
surrounded on every hand by a sort of   

network1 of a material like silver1 but 
harder than marble4 ,they drew in the   
oars and mast1 and passed through one of
 the interstices4 ,the sea within was as
 clear as glass1 so that they could see 
the bottom1 with the lower part of the  
pillar and the network resting upon it4 
,the pillar was of absolutely clear     
crystal1 so that the light and heat of  
the sun passed through it4 ,it was forty
 cubits broad on every side4 ,on the    
south side they found a chalice of the  
material of the network and a paten of  
the material of the pillar4 ,after      
passing again out of the network1 they  
sailed for eight days towards the       
,north1 and here begins what may be     
called the diabolical portion of the    
story4  ,they saw one day a wild and    
rocky island1 without grass or tree1 but
 full of smiths' forges4 ,the wind bore 
them past it at about a stone's throw1  
and they could hear bellows roaring with
 a sound like thunder1 and hammers      
striking upon anvils4 ,presently they   

saw one of the inhabitants come out of a
 cave4 ,he was shaggy and hideous1 burnt
 and dark4 ,when he saw the ship1 he ran
 back howling into his workshop4        
,brendan immediately bid hoist the sail 
and have out the oars4 ,while this was  
doing the creature appeared again with a
 glowing mass of fused metal 7massam    
igneam de scoria7 in pincers1 which he  
hurled at them4 ,where it struck the    
water about a furlong from them1 it made
 the sea boil and hiss4 ,they had only  
escaped about a mile when they saw      
beings swarming out upon the shore1     
throwing about molten masses1 some after
 them and some at one another1 and then 
all went back into the forges and set   
them blazing1 until the whole island    
seemed one mass of fire4 ,the sea boiled
 like a boiling cauldron1 and all day   
long the travellers heard an awful      
wailing4 ,even when they were out of    
sight of the island1 the howls still    
rang in their ears1 and the stench made 
their nostrils smart4 ',and ,brendan    

said1 ,o ye soldiers of ,christ1 make   
you strong in faith not feigned1 and in 
the armour of the spirit1 for we are    
upon the coasts of hell4 ,watch1        
therefore1 and play the man4'  ,the next
 day but one1 they found the wind       
bearing them down upon another mountain 
in the sea1 black as coal1 reaching     
steep down to the sea1 and whose top    
they could hardly see1 but yet wrapt in 
soft mists4 ,when they came near it1 the
 sole remaining of the three last come  
brethren jumped out of the ship and     
waded to shore4 ,suddenly he showed     
signs of terror1 and cried out that he  
was being carried away and could not    
return4 ,the brethren in horror pushed  
the ship away from land1 and started    
towards the ,south4 ,when they looked   
back they saw flames shooting up from   
the top of the mountain1 and then       
sinking in again1 and again surging up4 
,it is a phenomenon familiar to any one 
who has watched the top of a            
volcano--often even of iron-works--and  

which has been splendidly described in  
the account of the burning essence of   
life in ,she4 ,from this sight they fled
 and journeyed for seven days toward the
 ,south4  ,we now reach an incident     
founded upon that fact from the         
contemplation of which the human mind   
perhaps shrinks more than from any      
other4 ,but the literary treatment of it
 is so curious and striking1 and is     
rendered all the more so1 at least to   
me1 because ,i am aware of only one     
other attempt to grapple with it in the 
whole cycle of human invention1 and that
 in the very highest sphere of          
imaginative literature1 that ,i think   
that you will forgive me if ,i deal with
 it1 and give at any-rate a part of it  
in full4 ',and after these things1' says
 the novelist1 'the ,father ,brendan saw
 as it were a very thick mist1 and when 
they drew nigh thereto1 there appeared  
unto them a little shape as it had been 
the shape of a man sitting upon a stone1
 and before him a veil of the size of a 

bag hanging between two forks of iron1  
and thus the waves beat him about as it 
were a boat when it is in peril in a    
tempest4 ,and when the brethren saw it1 
some of them thought that it had been a 
bird1 and others thought that it had    
been a ship4 ,then the man of ,god      
answered them1 ,brethren1 let be this   
strife1 and turn the ship unto the      
place4 ,and when the man of ,god drew   
nigh thereto1 the waves round about     
stood still as though they had been     
frozen4 ,and they found sitting upon a  
stone a man shaggy and mis-shapen1 and  
from every side when the waves came upon
 him1 they smote him up to the crown of 
his head2 and when again they fell away 
from him then was seen the stone whereon
 the unhappy one sat4 ,and the wind     
moved about from time to time the cloth 
that was before him1 and it smote him   
upon the eyes and upon the forehead4    
,and when the blessed one asked him who 
he was1 and for what fault he was set   
there1 and how he had merited such      

punishment1 he said1 ,i am that most    
unhappy ,judas1 the worst of bargainers4
 ,neither for any desert of mine do ,i  
have this place1 but through the pardon 
and pity of the ,redeemer of the world1 
and in honour of ,his holy resurrection1
 have ,i this rest 7now1 it was the     
,lord's ,day71 and when ,i sit here it  
seemeth to me as though ,i were in the  
,garden of ,eden1 by reason of the      
torments which ,i shall have this even1 
for when ,i am in torment ,i am like a  
bit of lead molten in a crucible day and
 night4 ,in the midst of the mountain   
which ye have seen1 there is ,leviathan 
with his crew1 and ,i was there when it 
swallowed up your brother1 and therefore
 hell was glad1 and sent forth great    
flames1 and thus doth it ever when it   
devoureth the souls of the wicked4 ,but 
that ye may know the measureless        
goodness of ,god1 ,i will tell you of my
 rest4 ,i have here my rest every       
,lord's ,day from evening to evening--1'
 and then follow some words as to other 

days which are evidently corrupted both 
in ,jubinal's text and in that of the   
,salamanca ,,ms4 ,then it continues1    
',but the other days ,i am tormented    
with ,herod and ,pilate1 with ,annas and
 ,caiphas2 and therefore ,i beseech you 
for the sake of the ,redeemer of the    
world1 that ye be pleased to plead for  
me with the ,lord ,jesus that it be     
granted me to be here until to-morrow at
 the rising of the sun1 that at your    
coming the devils may not torment me nor
 carry me away unto that evil heritage  
which ,i have bought unto myself4' ,this
 is done4 ,there is some talk1 from     
which it appears that the cloth is one  
which ,judas once gave to a leper1 the  
forks some which he had given to        
,priests whereon to hang pots1 and the  
stone whereon he sits1 one with which he
 had once filled up an hole in a public 
highway4 ,the whole episode closes      
thus3--',at the breaking of the day1    
when the man of ,god began to take his  
journey1 behold1 an infinite multitude  

of devils covered the face of the deep1 
speaking with dreadful voices and       
saying1 ,o man of ,god1 cursed be thy   
coming in and thy going out1 for our    
prince hath scourged us this night with 
grievous stripes1 because we brought him
 not that accursed prisoner4 ,and the   
man of ,god saith unto them1 ,let that  
curse be not upon us but upon you1 for  
blessed is he whom ye curse1 and cursed 
is he whom ye bless4 ,the devils said1  
,that unhappy ,judas shall suffer double
 pains these six days1 because ye have  
shielded him this night4 ,the saint     
saith unto them1 ,ye have no power1     
neither your princes1 for power is of   
,god4 ,and he said1 ,in the name of the 
,lord1 ,i command you and your prince   
that ye put him to no greater torments  
than ye have been wont4 ,they answered  
him1 ,art thou the ,lord of all1 that we
 should obey thy words8 ,the man of ,god
 saith unto them1 ,i am the servant of  
the ,lord of all2 and whatsoever ,i     
command in ,his ,name1 it is done2 and  

,i have no ministry save of them whom he
 giveth me4 ,and so they followed him1  
continually blaspheming1 until he was   
borne away from ,judas2 and the devils  
went back and lifted up that most       
unhappy soul among them1 with a great   
rushing and shouting4'  ,this subject is
 one that ought not to be treated at    
all4 ,it ought to be left veiled in the 
unknown1 as it has been left for us by  
the ,infinite ,mercy from ,whose        
revelation we know all that we know     
about it4 ,as a matter of fact1 ,i am   
only aware1 as ,i have stated1 of one   
other writer besides this ,irish        
romancer1 who has treated it4 ,that     
writer is ,dante4 ,at the lowest depth  
of his ,inferno sits ,satan munching    
,brutus1 ,cassius1 and ,judas in his    
threefold mouth4 ,brutus and ,cassius   
have their heads and upper parts hanging
 outside the mouth4       ',quell' anima
 lass1 c' ha maggior pena1'      ,disse 
'l ,maestro1 ' ,giuda ,scariotto1       
,che 'l capo ha dentro1 e fuor le gambe 

mena4'  ,the traditional epithet which  
the world has justly attached to the    
name of ,dante ,alighieri is 'the       
,sublime'4 ,i am almost afraid to say   
it1 but we all know how proverbially    
short is the distance between the       
sublime and the ridiculous4 ,and ,i     
venture to submit to the private        
personal thought of each of you whether 
it be not merely the horror of the      
subject and of the conception1 and the  
almost stupefying grandeur of the       
poetry1 which separates this idea from  
the grotesque2 and whether1 if the thing
 be to be touched at all1 the old ,irish
 fabulist has not produced a conception 
both more tender and more truly tragic4 
,they then go for three days southward  
and find a small precipitous rocky      
island1 quite round1 and about one      
furlong in circumference4 ,here they    
find a narrow landing-place1 and        
dwelling on the summit an hermit aged   
one hundred and forty years1 of which he
 had passed ninety in the island4 ,he   

had no clothes except his own hair1     
which was long and white4 ,he was an    
,irishman named ,paul1 and had known    
,patrick4 ,for thirty years he had lived
 on fish brought him by a beast1        
presumably an otter1 in its fore-paws1  
along with fuel wherewith to cook it1   
and which he kindled by striking a      
flint1 and for sixty years upon the     
water of a spring4 ,he gave them of the 
water of the spring1 and bade them go   
their way1 telling them that in forty   
days they would keep the ,passover as   
usual1 and so also ,pentecost1 and      
thereafter would they find 'the land    
holier than all lands4'  ,they remained 
therefore on the open sea during all    
,lent1 living only on the water of the  
hermit's spring1 and passed ,easter and 
,pentecost in the usual places4 ,but    
this was the last time4 ,their provider 
came to them and said1 ',get ye up into 
the ship and fill your bottles with the 
water of this fountain4 ,i also now will
 be the companion and leader of your    

journey1 for without me ye cannot find  
the land which ye seek1 even the land   
which is promised unto the ,saints4' ,as
 they embarked1 all the white birds sang
 in chorus1 ',the ,god of our salvation 
make your way prosperous' 7,ps4 lxvii4  
#bj1 ,vulg474 ,they went to their       
provider's island and there took in     
provision for other forty days and set  
forth4 ,and now comes the discovery of  
the ,land of ,promise1 which ,i had     
better read in full3--  ',and when forty
 days were past1 and the evening was    
drawing on1 a great darkness covered    
them1 so that scarcely could one see    
another4 ,then the provider saith to    
holy ,brendan1 ,father1 knowest thou    
what is this darkness8 ,the ,saint      
saith1 ,brethren1 ,i know not4 ,then    
saith the other1 ,this darkness is round
 about that island which ye have sought 
for seven years4 ,behold1 ye see it2    
enter ye into it4 ,and after the space  
of an hour1 a great light shone round   
about them1 and the ship stood upon the 

shore4 ,when they went out of the ship1 
they saw a land1 broad1 and full of     
fruit-bearing trees1 as in the time of  
autumn4 ,they went round about that land
 as long as they were in it4 ,they had  
no night there1 but the light shone as  
the sun shineth in his season4 ,and so  
for forty days they went about through  
that land1 but they could not find the  
end thereof4 ,but upon a certain day    
they found a great river which they     
could not pass1 running through the     
midst of the island4 ,then saith the    
holy man unto the brethren1 ,we cannot  
pass over this river1 and we know not   
how large is this land4 ,while they     
thought upon these things1 behold1 there
 came to meet them a young man with     
glorious countenance and comely to look 
upon1 who kisseth them with great joy1  
and calleth them every one by his own   
name1 and saith1 ,o brethren1 peace be  
unto you1 and unto all who have followed
 after the peace of ,christ1 and after  
this he said1 moreover1 ,blessed are    

they that dwell in ,thine house1 ,o     
,lord3 they will be still praising      
,thee4 ,after these words1 he saith unto
 holy ,brendan1 ,behold the land which  
ye have sought of a long time4 ,but for 
this cause have ye not been able to find
 it since ye began to seek it1 because  
the ,lord ,christ hath willed to show   
unto thee divers of ,his hidden things  
in this great and wide sea4 ,return thou
 therefore unto the land of thy birth1  
and take with thee of these fruits1 and 
of precious stones as much as thy ship  
may hold4 ,for the days of thy          
pilgrimage are drawing near at hand1    
that thou mayest sleep with thine holy  
brethren4 ,but after many times this    
land shall be made known unto them that 
shall come after thee1 when it shall be 
helpful in the tribulation of the       
,christians4 ,the river which ye see    
divideth this island1 and even as now it
 appeareth unto you ripe in fruits1 so  
is it at every time without shadow or   
foulness4 ,for the light shineth in it  

without failing4 ,then holy ,brendan    
saith unto the young man1 ,lord father1 
tell me if this land shall be ever      
revealed unto men4 ,and he saith1 ,when 
the ,almighty ,creator shall have made  
all nations subject unto ,him1 then     
shall this land be made known unto all  
,his elect4 ,and after these things1    
,father ,brendan took a blessing from   
the young man1 and began to return by   
his way whereby he had come1 taking of  
the fruits of that land and of sorts of 
precious stones2 and when he had sent   
away the man that provided for them1 who
 had prepared meat for him and for the  
brethren season by season1 he went up   
into the ship with the brethren1 through
 the darkness1 whence he had begun to   
sail4 ,and when they had passed through 
it1 they came unto the ,isle ,delight   
some1 and when he had been entertained  
there for the space of three days1 he   
took a blessing from the father of the  
monastery1 and then under ,god's leading
 came straight to his own monastery4'   

,it remains to make some remark upon the
 character and possible sources of this 
curious composition4  ,in connection    
with fabulous voyages1 it is natural to 
think not only of ,lucian's ,traveller's
 ,true ,tale1 but also of ,gulliver's   
,travels1 but these are skits1          
satirizing with wild wit certain        
features of life which lay before the   
authors4 ,the gravity of ,brendan's     
,voyage renders it impossible to place  
it in any such category4 ,it can hardly 
be said to contain any grotesque        
adventure except that of the monster's  
back1 and from the way in which this is 
told1 it is evident that it did not     
appear grotesque to the narrator2 and   
the religious tone of the whole thing   
forbids any such explanation4  ,on the  
other hand1 ,i cannot perceive any      
hidden meaning in it which would assign 
it to the same class of allegorical     
romance of which ,bunyan's ,pilgrim's   
,progress is the most famous example4   
,it is impossible that it could ever    

have been intended to be believed4 ,some
 of the incidents are so obviously      
fabulous--for instance1 that of         
,judas1--that such an hypothesis would  
be simply to condemn the author as a    
profane forger1 and his tone is much too
 pious for that2 besides which1 there   
would have been no possible motive2 and 
again1 although this romance stands     
alone or nearly alone in the popularity 
which it has attained outside its own   
country1 as ,professor ,o',curry        
remarks1 it does not stand by any means 
alone within the native literature of   
that country1 albeit its literary merit 
may place it above all or nearly all the
 old ,irish compositions of its class4  
,it is1 however1 an extraordinary fact  
that it has actually been sometimes     
taken for sober truth4 ,this has not    
been1 ,i think1 so much the case in     
,ireland4 ,there are1 it is true1 one or
 two incidents in the ,life which may be
 remotely identified at bottom with     
incidents in the ,voyage1 there is even 

mention of the ,land of ,promise1 but ,i
 am more inclined to regard these as1   
more or less1 distorted legendary       
statements about ,brendan's real career1
 afterwards seized upon1 magnified1 and 
worked in by the romancer1 than as      
incidents of the romancer appropriated  
and nationalized into comparative       
possibility by the biographer4 ,thus the
 ,land of ,promise may have been a fond 
title for the imaginary site of a       
monastery for which he was seeking in   
the ,western ,isles4 ,but even in       
,ireland the son of ,finnlogh ,o' ,alta 
seemingly obtained a character for      
certain adventures which must have been 
taken from the fable1 and the           
,martyrology of ,donegal gravely refers 
to the ,voyage as well as to the ,life  
as an authority upon the subject1       
although ,i confess ,i can hardly       
believe that ,cuimin of ,condeire was   
not jesting when he wrote the verse--   
',brenainn loves constant piety1        
,according to the synod and             

congregation2      ,seven years on a    
whale's back he spent2      ,it was a   
difficult mode of piety4'  ,it was1     
however1 outside ,ireland1 in countries 
where less was known of the facts1 and  
the ,voyage was isolated from other     
works of its class1 that this romance   
was most largely accepted as serious    
matter of fact4 ,the possession of ,st4 
,brendan's ,isle whenever it should be  
discovered was1 according to ,m4        
,jubinal1 actually made the subject of  
,state documents1 and he names no less  
than four maritime expeditions which    
were despatched in search of it1 the    
last from ,santa ,cruz in ,tenerife in  
#agba1 at the instance of ,don ,juan de 
,mur1 ,governor of the ,canaries1 and   
under the command of ,caspar ,dominguez4
 ,i must1 however1 avow that ,i have    
great difficulty in believing that such 
an expedition as this could have been   
motived by any other hypothesis than    
that the romance was the legendary      
record of some really existing island in

 the ,atlantic4  ,the mention of such a 
belief brings me to the consideration of
 another and very different form of what
 ,i may call the naturalistic school of 
interpretation4 ,this theory throws     
overboard the whole of the elements of  
the class commonly called supernatural1 
and even treats the identity of the     
voyagers as a matter of comparative     
indifference1 but it sees in the wild   
narrative a distorted and legendary     
account of some actual voyage and some  
actual adventures and discoveries in the
 ,atlantic4 ,by some the ,canary        
,archipelago1 with perhaps ,madeira1 the
 ,cape de ,verde ,islands1 and some     
parts of the ,african coast1 if not even
 the ,azores1 have been supposed to be  
the original scene of the wanderings of 
some early navigators1 even if not of   
,brendan1 and the ,burning ,island with 
its savage inhabitants1 and the infernal
 volcano would of course be interpreted 
of the great volcano of ,tenerife4 ,but 
a more interesting interpretation is    

that which sees in the voyage of        
,brendan a distorted account of some    
ancient voyage by the ,western ,islands1
 the ,orkneys and ,shetlands1 the ,faroe
 ,isles1 ,iceland1 and finally to the   
coast of ,america4 ,i need not remind   
you that the earliest voyages to        
,america of which we have historical    
accounts are those of the ,norsemen1    
who1 as early as the year #ajja1        
proceeded so far ,south as to come into 
a land where the vine was growing wild1 
and which they consequently named       
,vineland4 ,it matters comparatively    
little to the naturalistic              
interpretation of this romance whether  
it be based upon mutilated and gossiping
 accounts of the voyages of the         
,norsemen1 or upon some still earlier   
adventures of which all truly historical
 record has perished4 ,the shores of    
,america here become the ,land of       
,promise1 the clouds which veil it are  
the fogs of the coasts of ,newfoundland 
or ,labrador1 the great and impassable  

river which divides it1 perhaps the ,st4
 ,lawrence3 the crystal column is an    
iceberg3 the rough and rocky island1 and
 the black1 cloud-piercing volcano1     
which burnt in the midst of the         
,northern ,ocean1 are ,iceland and its  
volcanoes2 the ,eden of white birds in  
some region1 perhaps the ,faroes1 where 
sea-fowl congregate in vast flocks3 and 
the minor isles are to be more or less  
identified with some of those of the    
several archipelagos1 many of which1 in 
the time of the romancer1 if not in that
 of ,brendan1 possessed halls1          
monasteries1 and hermits4 ,it may be    
urged as one of the main objections to  
this theory that it is almost outside   
the bounds of possibility that a corach 
could make such a voyage1 but it is     
perhaps only fair to remark that in the 
,life1 although not in the ,voyage1 it  
is stated that after the first five     
years of the wanderings ,brendan        
returned to ,ireland1 where1 among other
 things1 he went to see ,ita1 and the   

narrative then continues3 ',she received
 him with joy and honour1 and said1 ,o  
my beloved1 wherefore hast thou tried   
without my counsel8 ,thou wilt not gain 
the ,land of ,promise borne in the hides
 of dead beasts4 ,thou wilt find it with
 a ship made of boards4 ,so he went into
 ,connaught1 and embarked with #fj      
disciples in a ship skilfully made of   
boards1 and toiled in voyaging for two  
years2 and at length came to the island 
where he would be4' ,this island1       
however1 is only one with an old man    
dressed in feathers1 who calls it 'an   
holy land1 polluted by no blood1 open   
for the burial of no sinner1 444 a land 
like ,eden1' but this seems to be the   
only ,land of ,promise which was known  
to the biographer4  ,while1 however1 ,i 
willingly make a present of this passage
 to the naturalistic interpreters1 ,i do
 not accept their interpretation4 ,as ,i
 have said1 ,i look upon ,brendan's     
wanderings in the ,western ,isles soon  
after his ordination1 in search of a    

place wherein to found a monastery1 as  
the only scrap of historical basis1 at  
any rate as far as he was concerned1    
which the romance possesses4 ,the ,life 
says that he reached many islands1 but  
instances only two1 one of these being  
the so-called ,land of ,promise as      
above1 and the incidents are not of a   
very startling character4 ,no one on the
 other hand will deny that the ,voyage  
narrates a series of incidents of a very
 startling character indeed1 and it     
seems to me beyond possibility that some
 of them1 such as the ,judas episode1   
can have even a legendary basis1 or be  
anything but pure1 unmitigated1         
intentional1 avowed1 undisguised        
fiction1 like the incidents of any novel
 of the present day4 ,it seems to me    
that there is in the romance more       
resemblance to ,lucian's ,traveller's   
,true ,tale than is likely to be        
accidental1 and the ,land of ,promise   
indeed occupies a position somewhat     
similar to that held by the ,islands of 

the ,blest in that remarkable skit4     
,again ,i think that the ,burning       
,island with its forges1 and its        
monstrous inhabitants hurling rocks into
 the sea after the voyagers1 and the    
great black volcano piercing the clouds1
 is very suggestive of ,etna and the    
,cyclopes as described in the ,odyssey4 
,it must be remembered that ,greek      
scholarship was a good deal cultivated  
in antient ,ireland4 ,my own impression 
is that the author1 whoever he was1 was 
a very pious man1 who had read ,homer   
and ,lucian1 and to whom it occurred    
that it would be a nice thing to write  
an imaginary voyage which might unite   
similar elements of interest and        
excitement with the inculcation of      
,christian1 religious1 and moral        
sentiments4 ,for his own purposes he    
plagiarized them a little1 and ,i am    
very far from wishing to contend that it
 is impossible that he may also have    
worked in some vague accounts of the    
wonders of ,america1 which had reached  

his ears from the adventurous voyages of
 the ,norsemen1 if indeed his date were 
late enough1 possibly of even earlier   
navigators1 now to us unknown4 ,but as  
an whole1 ,i look upon the ,fabulous    
,voyage as a composition which is really
 only differentiated by the elements due
 to the time and place of birth from    
religious novels such as those which    
enrich the pages of the ,leisure ,hour  
or the ,sunday at ,home4  #bj ,,and #ba1
 ,,bedfordbury1 ,,strand1 ,,london1     
,w4,c4