Rón a labhair le hIascaire /
A Seal who spoke to a Fisherman
A Seal who spoke to a Fisherman
Informant: Seán Mac Sidheal
Age: 65
Address: An tArd Bán, Ros Goill, Co. Donegal
Collector: Seán Ó hEochaidh, National Folklore Collection, UCD
Date of Recording: January 1940
Reference:
NFC 694: 35- 37
Landscape in Ros Goill [Séamus Ó Duilearga, National Folklore Collection, UCD]
Rón a labhair le hIascaire
Char chuala mé mórán iomráidh ar rón a’ labhairt ariamh, amach ó scéal a chuala mé ag m’athair fad ó shoin fá fhuireann de na Sidheáil – cuid dá dhream fhéin a bhí lá amháin fá na cladaigh seo soir. Insan am sin bhí luach measartha ar chraiceann na rónta, agus ina chuideachta sin ní bheadh teacht a’ bith ’sa cheantar gan cúpla buidéal maith ola róin a bheith iontu fá choinne cuimilt ar chnámha loití’ nó leónta, nó daoine a mbéadh pian na gcnámh orthu.
Ach insan am a bhfuil mé a trácht air is cosúil nach raibh an iascaireacht an-trom agus rinn an foireann suas gur cheart díofa lá marú rónta a dhéanamh fá na cladaigh. D’imigh siad go léir a luathas ar maidin agus ba gairid a bhí siad ar siúl gur mharbh siad trí nó ceathair a’ cheannaibh. Fá dheireadh tháinig siad ’fhad le huaigh agus astoigh insan uaigh seo bhí rón mór liath ’na luí ar an gcladach. Thóg fear acu smaichtín a bhí leis leis an rón seo a cnagadh agus labhair an rón leis:
“Má mharann tú mise,” arsa seisean, “íocfaidh tú, íocfaidh tú, íocfaidh tú!”
Chá bhfaighfeadh an fear seo óna chroí an rón seo a mhara’ ansin agus bhí fear eile ar an fhoireann a dúirt go marbhódh seisean é. Tharraing sé an smaichtín ar an tseanrón bhocht agus mharbh sé é. Bhí a shliocht air, is daor a cheannaigh sé fhéin sin, nó bádh é an samhradh a bhí ’na dhiaidh sin.
Ba doiligh leis na seaniascairí insan cheantar mórán baint a bheith acu ariamh ‘na dhiaidh sin le marú na rónta, nó ba léir leofa gur daoine a bhí iontu a bhí faoi gheasa. Ach anois le scéal a’ bhlianta tá’n dream óg atá a fás aníos ag tosú á mara’ arís. Tá an oiread seo acu le fáil ar chloigeann gach ceann acu a maróidh siad.
A Seal who spoke to a Fisherman
I never heard much about a seal speaking, apart from one story I heard from my father long ago, about a team of men from the Sidheáil family – some of his own ancestors who were one day on the shore to the east. In those days, there was a fairly good price on sealskins and not only that, there wouldn’t be any house in the area without a couple of good bottles of seal oil to rub on injured bones or sprains, or for people who had pains in their bones.
But on the day I’m referring to it seemed that the fish were not plentiful and the team decided that they should take a day for killing seals on the shore. They all left early in the morning and they weren’t out long before they had killed three or four seals. They came up to a cave at last and in this cave there was a large grey seal lying on the shore. One of the men took out the club he had with him, so as to strike the seal, and the seal spoke to him;
“If you kill me,” he said, “you’ll pay, you’ll pay, you’ll pay!”
The man couldn’t find it in his heart to kill the seal then, and another man on the team said that he would kill it. He drew back the club over the poor seal and he killed it. The results of this were clear, he paid dearly for it, as he was drowned the following summer.
The old fishermen of the area were always reluctant to have anything to do with seals after that, as it was clear to them that they were people under enchantment. But as the years have passed, the younger generation that are growing up now are starting to kill them again. There is a certain amount to be gotten for every one they kill.