over the harbour
through the night?" he said. "I will," said Oisin, "with the same number
that was fighting along with me to-day; for it is not too much for you
to fight for the Fianna of Ireland through a day and a night," he said.

So they went down to the harbour, and it was just at that time the King
of the World was saying, "It seems to me, men of the World, that our
luck of battle was not good to-day. And let a share of you rise up now,"
he said, "and make an attack on the Fianna of Ireland." Then there rose
up the nine sons of Garb, King of the Sea of Icht, that were smiths, and
sixteen hundred of their people along with them, and they all went on
shore but Dolar Durba that was the eldest of them. And the sons of
Baiscne were ready for them, and they fought a great battle till the
early light of the morrow. And not one of them was left alive on either
side that could hold a weapon but only Oisin and one of the sons of
Garb. And they made rushes at one another, and threw their swords out of
their hands, and closed their arms about one another, and wrestled
together, so that it was worth coming from the east to the west of the
world to see the fight of those two. Then the foreigner gave a sudden
great fall to Oisin, to bring him into the sea, for he was a great
swimmer, and he thought to get the better of him there. And Oisin
thought it would not be worthy of him to refuse any man his place of
fighting. So they went into the water together, and they were trying to
drown one another till they came to the sand and the gravel of the clear
sea. And it was a torment to the heart of the Fianna, Oisin to be in
that strait. "Rise up, Fergus of the Sweet Lips," said Finn then, "and
go praise my son and encourage him." So Fergus went down to the edge of
the sea, and he said: "It is a good fight you are making, Oisin, and
there are many to see it, for the armies of the whole world are looking
at you, and the Fianna of Ireland. And show now," he said, "your ways
and your greatness, for you never went into any place but some woman of
high beauty or some king's daughter set her love on you." Then Oisin's
courage increased, and anger came on him and he linked his hands behind
the back of the foreigner and put him down on the sand under the sea
with his face upwards, and did not let him rise till the life was gone
from him. And he brought the body to shore then, and struck off his head
and brought it to the Fianna.

But there wa