“And there came out after that a hundred beautiful young girls, having cloaks of silk worked with gold, and they gave me a welcome to their own country.  And after that there came a great shining army, and with it a strong beautiful king, having a shirt of yellow silk and a golden cloak over it, and a very bright crown on his head.  And there was following after him a young queen, and fifty young girls along with her.

“And when all were come to the one spot, the king took me by the hand, and he said out before them all:  ’A hundred thousand welcomes before you, Oisin, son of Finn.  And as to this country you are come to,’ he said, ’I will tell you news of it without a lie.  It is long and lasting your life will be in it, and you yourself will be young for ever.  And there is no delight the heart ever thought of,’ he said, ’but it is here against your coming.  And you can believe my words, Oisin,’ he said, ’for I myself am the King of the Country of the Young, and this is its comely queen, and it was golden-headed Niamh our daughter that went over the sea looking for you to be her husband for ever.’  I gave thanks to him then, and I stooped myself down before the queen, and we went forward to the royal house, and all the high nobles came out to meet us, both men and women, and there was a great feast made there through the length of ten days and ten nights.

“And that is the way I married Niamh of the Golden Hair, and that is the way I went to the Country of the Young, although it is sorrowful to me to be telling it now, O Patrick from Rome,” said Oisin.

“Follow on with your story, Oisin of the destroying arms,” said Patrick, “and tell me what way did you leave the Country of the Young, for it is long to me till I hear that; and tell us now had you any children by Niamh, and was it long you were in that place.”

“Two beautiful children I had by Niamh,” said Oisin, “two young sons and a comely daughter.  And Niamh gave the two sons the name of Finn and of Osgar, and the name I gave to the daughter was The Flower.

“And I did not feel the time passing, and it was a long time I stopped there,” he said, “till the desire came on me to see Finn and my comrades again.  And I asked leave of the king and of Niamh to go back to Ireland.  ‘You will get leave from me,’ said Niamh; ‘but for all that,’ she said, ’it is bad news you are giving me, for I am in dread you will never come back here again through the length of your days.’  But I bade her have no fear, since the white horse would bring me safe back again from Ireland.  ‘Bear this in mind, Oisin,’ she said then, ’if you once get off the horse while you are away, or if you once put your foot to ground, you will never come back here again.  And O Oisin,’ she said, ’I tell it to you now for the third time, if you once get down from the horse, you will be an old man, blind and withered, without liveliness, without mirth, without running, without leaping.  And it is a grief to me, Oisin,’ she said, ’you ever to go back to green Ireland; and it is not now as it used to be, and you will not see Finn and his people, for there is not now in the whole of Ireland but a Father of Orders and armies of saints; and here is my kiss for you, pleasant Oisin,’ she said, ’for you will never come back any more to the Country of the Young.’