Who knows? It's Celtic. (standard:fairy tales, 2165 words)
Author: Bait	Added: Sep 20 2000	Views/Reads: 4120/2324	Story vote: 0.00 (0 votes)
Some sort of Celtic story.

Click here to read the first 75 lines of the story


Off they went together and they came to Donald’s door.  Donald had
finished making his fiftieth pile of ten gold pieces, but there was 
only nine in the last one. 

In they walked without so much as a ‘By your leave’, and all they could
do was stand aghast and watch. 

‘Good evening Hudden; Good evening Dudden.  Ah! You thought you had
played me a fine trick but you never did me a turn better in all our 
lives together!  When I found poor Daisy dead I thought to myself that 
hide may fetch a bit of money, and it did.  Hides are worth their 
weight in gold at the moment.’ 

Hudden nudged Dudden, and Dudden winked at Hudden. 

‘Good bye Donald’ 

‘Good bye dear friends.’ 

The next day all of Hudden’s and all of Dudden’s cows and calves hides
were travelling to the fair in Hudden’s biggest cart, being pulled by 
Dudden’s strongest horses. 

When they came to the fair, each one took a hid over his arm and there
they were, walking through the fair, bawling out at the top of their 
voices ‘Hides to sell!  Hides to sell!’ 

Out came the tanner; 

‘How much for your hides my good men?’ 

‘Only their weight in gold.’ 

‘It’s a little early in the day to get pissed.’  And that was all the
tanner said as he walked back into his yard. 

‘Hides to sell!  Fine fresh hides to sell!’ 

Out came the cobbler; 

‘How much for your hides, my men?’ 

‘Their weight in gold.’ 

‘Is it making a game of me ye are?  Take that for my pains!’ And the
cobbler dealt Hudden a blow that made him stagger. 

Up the people came running from one end of the fair to the other.
‘What’s a matter?’  ‘What’s a matter?’ Cried they. 

‘Here are a couple of vagabonds selling hides at their weight in gold,’
said the cobbler. 

‘Hold ‘em fast!  Hold ‘em fast!’ bawled the innkeeper, who was last to
come up he was so fat.  ‘I’ll wager it’s one of those rogues who 
tricked me out of my 500 gold pieces yesterday for a useless hide!’ 

It was more kicks than halfpence Hudden and Dudden got before they were
well on their way home again, and they didn’t run the slower because 
all the dogs of the town were at their heels. 

Well as you may fancy, if they loved Donald little before, they loved
him less now. 

‘What’s the matter?’ Said he as he saw them tearing along, their hat’s
knocked in, and their coats torn off and their faces black and blue.  
‘Is it fighting you’ve been?  Or mayhap you met the Garda, ill luck to 
them?’ 

‘We’ll Garda you, you vagabond!   It’s mighty smart you thought
yourself, deluding us with you lying tales.’ 

‘Who deluded you?  Didn’t you see the gold with your own two eyes?’ 

But it was no use talking, pay for it he must and should.  There was a
meal sack handy, and into it Hudden and Dudden popped Donald O’Leary, 
tied him up tight, ran a pole through the knot, and off they started 
for the brown lake of the bog, each with a pole end on his shoulder and 
Donald O’Leary between. 

But the brown lake was far and the road was dusty, Hudden and Dudden
were sore and weary, and parched with thirst.  There was an inn by the 
roadside. 

‘Let’s go in’ said Dudden, ‘I ‘m dead beat, it’s heavy he is for the
little he had to eat.’ 

If Hudden was willing so was Dudden. As for Donald, you may be sure his
leave wasn’t asked, but he was lumped down at the inn door for all the 
world to see as if he was a sack of potatoes. 

‘Sit still you vagabond.’ Said Dudden; ‘If we don’t mind waiting, you
needn’t.’ 

Donald held his peace, but after a while he heard the glasses clink and
Hudden singing at the top of his voice. 

‘I won’t have her!  I won’t have her!’  Said Donald. But nobody heeded
what he said 

‘I won’t have her I tell you!  I won’t have her!  And this time he said
it much louder, but still nobody heeded what he said. 

‘I won’t have her I tell you!  I won’t have her!’  And this time he said
it as loudly as he could. 

‘And who won’t you have may I be so bold as to ask?’  Said a farmer, who
had just come up with a drove of cattle and was turning in for a glass. 


‘It’s the king’s daughter, they are bothering the life out of me to
marry her.’ 

‘You’re the lucky fellow.  I’d give something to be in you shoes.’ 

‘Do you see that now!  Wouldn’t it be a fine thing for a farmer to
marrying a princess all dressed in gold and diamonds!’ 

‘Diamonds do you say?  Ah now, couldn’t you take me with you?’ 

‘Well you’re an honest fellow, and as I don’t care for the king’s
daughter, though she’s as beautiful as the day, and is covered with 
jewels from top to toe, you shall have her!  Just undo the cord and let 
me out.  They tied me up tight as they knew I’d run away from her.’ 

Out crawled Donald; in crept the farmer. 

‘Now lie still and don’t mind the shaking.  It’s only rumbling over the
palace steps you’ll be.  And maybe they’ll abuse you for a vagabond, 
who won’t have the king’s daughter.  But you needn’t mind that.  Ah! 
It’s a deal I’m giving up for you, sure as it is that I don’t care for 
the princess.’ 

‘Take my cattle in exchange.’  Said the farmer, and it wasn’t long
before Donald was driving them home at their tales. 

Out came Hudden and Dudden, and one took one end of the pole, and the
other took the other. 

‘I’m thinking he’s heavier.’  Said Hudden. 

‘Ah never mind.’  Said Dudden, ‘It’s only a step now to the brown lake.’


‘I ‘ll have her now!  I ‘ll have her now!’  Bawled the farmer from the
inside of the sack. 

‘I ‘ll have her!  I ‘ll have her!  Bawled the farmer, louder than ever. 

‘Well hear you are.’  Said Dudden, for they had now come to the brown
lake. And unslinging the sack, they pitched it plump into the lake. 

‘You’ll not be playing your tricks on us any longer.’  Said Hudden. 

‘True for you’ said Dudden.  ‘Ah Donald, it was an ill day for you when
you borrowed my scales.’ 

Off they went with a light heart and an easy step, and when they neared
home who should they see but Donald O’Leary?  And all around him the 
cows were grazing and the calves were kicking up the grass and butting 
their heads together. 

‘Is it you Donald?’ Dudden said.  ‘Faith, you’ve been quicker than we
have!’ 

‘True for you Dudden, and let me thank you kindly, the turn of good if
the will was ill.  You’ll have heard, like me, that the brown lake 
leads to the land of promise.  I always put it down as lies, but it is 
just as true as my words.  Look at the cattle.’ 

Hudden stared and Dudden gaped and they couldn’t get over the cattle. 
Fine fat cattle they were too. 

‘It’s only the worst I could bring up with me.’  Said Donald, ‘The
others were so fat, there was no driving them.  Faith, too.  It’s 
little wonder they didn’t care to leave.  With grass as far as you 
could see and as sweet an juicy as fresh butter.’ 

‘Ah now Donald, we haven’t always been friends’  said Dudden  ‘But as I
was just saying, you were ver the decent lad and you’ll show us the way 
won’t you?’ 

‘I don’t see that I’m called upon to do that, there is a power more
cattle down there.  Why shouldn’t I have them all to myself?’ 

‘Faith they may well say, the richer you get the harder the heart.  You
always were a neighbourly lad Donald.  Surely you wouldn’t wish to keep 
them all to yourself?’ 

‘True for you Hudden, though ‘tis a bad example you have set me.  But
I’ll not be thinking of old times, there is plenty there for all to 
share.  Come along with me.’ 

Off they trudged with a light heart and an eager step.  When they came
to brown lake, the sky was full of little white clouds, and if the sky 
was full, the lake was full! 

‘Ah! Now look, there they are!’  Cried Donald as he pointed to the
clouds in the lake. 

‘Where?  Where?’  Cried Dudden.  And ‘Don’t be greedy!’  cried Hudden,
as he jumped his hardest to be up first with the fat cattle.  But if he 
jumped first, Dudden wasn’t far behind.  They never came back, maybe 
they got too fat or maybe they drowned, as for Donald, he has as much 
cattle and sheep to last his life content. And enough land to keep them 
on. 


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