One of the old men told me a story in Irish—­another translating it as he went on; for my ear was not practised enough to follow it well:—­’There was a farmer one time had one son only, and the son died, and the father wouldn’t go to the funeral, where he had had some dispute with him.

’And, after a while, a neighbour died, and he went to his funeral.  And a while after that he was in the churchyard looking at the grave.  And he took up a skull that was lying there—­one of four—­and he said:  “It’s a handsome man you may have been when you were young; and I’d like to know something about you,” he said.  And the skull spoke, and it is what it said:  “I’ll go spend to-morrow night with you, if you’ll come and spend another night with me.”  “I will do that,” said the farmer.

’And on the way home he met with the priest, and he told him what had happened.  “I would never believe that a skull spoke,” said the priest.  “Come to my house to-morrow night, and you’ll hear him speak,” said the farmer.

’So the next night they were sitting together in the house, and they had dinner set out on the table.  And after a while they heard something come to the door; and the skull came in, and it got up on the table, and it ate all the dinner that was there; and after that it went out again.  “Why didn’t you speak to it?” said the farmer to the priest.  “Why didn’t you speak to it yourself?” said the priest.  “What will it do to me at all when I go to see it to-morrow night?” said the farmer; “but I must hold to my promise when it came here first.”

’So the next evening he set out for the churchyard, and he could see nothing at all in it.  And then he went down three steps that were beside the church; and presently he was in a field, and it full of men fighting one against the other with spades and reaping-hooks.  “Is it looking for a head you are?” they said; “it’s gone into that field beyond.”

’So he went on into the other field; and it was full of men and women, all of them fighting one against the other.  “Are you looking for a head?” they said; “it’s after going into that field beyond.”

’So he went into the third field; and there he saw a big house, and he went into it.  And he saw a fire on the hearth, and a lady in the room, and a serving-girl.  And the lady was walking up and down the room; and whenever she would go near to the fire to warm herself, the serving-girl would put her away from it.

’Then they said:  “If it’s for a head you’re looking, it’s within in the room.”

’So he went into the room; and the head was there before him, and it asked him would he have some dinner; and he said he would, and it brought him into a kitchen; and there were three women in it, and the head bade one of them to give the man his dinner; and what she put before him was a bit of brown bread and a jug of water, and he did not think it worth his while to eat that; and then the head bade the second woman to give him his dinner, and she gave him a worse dinner again; and then the third woman was told to give it to him, and she spread a nice table, and put the best of everything on it, and he ate and drank; and then he asked the head what was the meaning of all he saw.