permission,
and Niam said:--

"I will give consent, though I feel sorrow in my heart, for I fear
much you will never return to me."

I replied that I would surely return, and that she need not feel any
doubt or dread, for that the white steed knew the way, and would bring
me back in safety. Then she addressed me in these words, which seemed
very strange to me:--

"I will not refuse this request, though your journey afflicts me with
great grief and fear. Erin is not now as it was when you left it. The
great king Finn and his Feni are all gone; and you will find, instead
of them, a holy father and hosts of priests and saints. Now, think
well on what I say to you, and keep my words in your mind. If once you
alight from the white steed, you will never come back to me. Again I
warn you, if you place your feet on the green sod in Erin, you will
never return to this lovely land. A third time, O Oisin, my beloved
husband, a third time I say to you, if you alight from the white steed
you will never see me again."

I promised that I would faithfully attend to her words, and that I
would not alight from the white steed. Then as I looked into her
gentle face and marked her grief, my heart was weighed down with
sadness, and my tears flowed plentifully; but even so, my mind was
bent on coming back to Erin.

When I had mounted the white steed, he galloped straight toward the
shore. We moved as swiftly as before over the clear sea. The wind
overtook the waves and we overtook the wind, so that we straightway
left the Land of Youth behind; and we passed by many islands and
cities till at length we landed on the green shores of Erin.

As I traveled on through the country, I looked closely around me; but
I scarcely knew the old places, for everything seemed strangely
altered. I saw no sign of Finn and his host, and I began to dread that
Niam's saying was coming true. At length I espied at a distance a
company of little men and women,[A] all mounted on horses as small
as themselves; and when I came near, they greeted me kindly and
courteously. They looked at me with wonder and curiosity, and they
marveled much at my great size and at the beauty and majesty of my
person.

[A] The gigantic race of the Feni had all passed away, and
Erin was now inhabited by people who looked very small in
Oisin's eyes.

I asked them about Finn and the Feni; whether they were still living,
or if any sudden disaster had swept them away. A