of battle and fight and combat:  He put his silken, glossy trews with its border of speckled gold, next to his white skin.  Over this, outside, he put his brown-leathern, well-sewed kilt.  Outside of this he put a huge, goodly flag, the size of a millstone, [4]the shallow (?) stone of adamant which he had brought from Africa and which neither points nor edges could pierce.[4] He put his solid, very deep, iron kilt of twice molten iron over the huge, goodly flag as large as a millstone, through [W.3730.] fear and dread of the Gae Bulga on that day.  About his head he put his crested war-cap of battle and fight and combat, whereon were forty carbuncle-gems beautifully adorning it and studded with red-enamel and crystal and rubies and with [1]shining stones[1] of the Eastern world.  His angry, fierce-striking spear he seized in his right hand.  On his left side he hung his curved battle-falchion, [2]which would cut a hair against the stream with its keenness and sharpness,[2] with its golden pommel and its rounded hilt of red gold.  On the arch-slope of his back he slung his massive, fine-buffalo shield [3]of a warrior,[3] whereon were fifty bosses, wherein a boar could be shown in each of its bosses, apart from the great central boss of red gold.  Ferdiad performed divers, brilliant, manifold, marvellous feats on high that day, unlearned from any one before, neither from foster-mother nor from foster-father, neither from Scathach nor from Uathach nor from Aife, but he found them of himself that day in the face of Cuchulain.

    [3-3] Eg. 106.

    [4-4] Eg. 209.

    [1-1] Reading with Egerton 106, which gives better sense than LL.’s
    ‘brilliant plants.’

    [2-2] Eg. 209.

    [3-3] Stowe and Eg. 209.

Cuchulain likewise came to the ford, and he beheld the various, brilliant, manifold, wonderful feats that Ferdiad performed on high.  “Thou seest yonder, O Laeg my master, the divers, bright, numerous, marvellous feats that Ferdiad performs on high, and I shall receive yon feats one after the other, and, therefore, [4]O Laeg,” cried Cuchulain,[4] “if defeat be my lot this day, do thou prick me on and taunt me and speak evil to me, so that the more my spirit and anger shall rise in me.  If, however, before me his defeat takes place, say thou so to me and praise me and speak me fair, to the end that the greater may be my courage!” “It shall surely be done so, if need be, O Cucuc,” Laeg answered.

    [4-4] Stowe.

Then Cuchulain, too, girded his war-harness of battle and [W.3757.] fight and combat about him, and performed all kinds of splendid, manifold, marvellous feats on high that day which he had not learned from any one before, neither with Scathach nor with Uathach nor with Aife.