"Then the people were terrified: there was yet a river for Bran to pass,and they broke down the bridge which crossed it, but Bran laid himselfdown and said, "Who will be a chief, let him be a bridge." Then his menlaid hurdles on his back, and the whole army crossed over; and that sayingof his became afterwards a proverb. Then the Irish resolved, in order toappease the mighty visitor, to build him a house, because he had neverbefore had one that would hold him; and they decided to make the houselarge enough to contain the two armies, one on each side. They accordinglybuilt this house, and there were a hundred pillars, and the builderstreacherously hung a leathern bag on each side of each pillar and put anarmed man inside of each, so that they could all rise by night and killthe sleepers. But Bran's brother, who was a suspicious man, asked thebuilders what was in the first bag. "Meal, good soul," they answered; andhe, putting his hand in, felt a man's head and crushed it with his mightyfingers, and so with the next and the next and with the whole two hundred.After this it did not take long to bring on a quarrel between the twoarmies, and they fought all day.After this great fight between the men of Ireland and the men of theIsles of the Mighty there were but seven of these last who escaped,besides their king Bran, who was wounded in the foot with a poisoned dart.
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