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Preface
| chuechant y eirthau. | Six hundred to attack |
| a talei y ortinav. | Was his onslaught (?) worth. |
| Gueisson am buyint | The young men I have— |
| oet guell ban uitint. | It is well where they are |
| rac ricu emreis. | Before the kings of Emrys |
| gueleise · kei ar uris. | Have I seen Kei in haste. |
| Preitev gorthowis. | Leader of the harryings, |
| oet gur hir in ewnis. | Long would he be in his wrath; |
| Oet trum y dial. | Heavy was he in his vengeance; |
| oet tost y cynial. | Terrible in his fighting. |
| Pan yuei o wual | When from a horn he drank |
| yuei urth peduar | He drank as much as four men; |
| ygkad pan delhei. | When he came into battle |
| vrth cant id lathei. | He slew as would a hundred. |
| Ny bei duv ae digonhei. | Unless it should be God’s act[1] |
| Oet diheit aghev kei. | Kei’s death would be unachieved. |
| Kei guin a llachev. | Worthy Kei and Llacheu |
| digonint we kadev. | Used to fight battles, |
| kin gloes glas verev. | Before the pang of livid spears, |
| yguarthaw ystawingun. | On the top of Ystavingun |
| kei a guant nav guiton. | Kei slew nine witches.[2] |
| Kei win aaeth von | Worthy Kei went to Mona |
| y dilein lleuon. | To destroy lions. |
| y iscuid oet mymid | His shield was small |
| erbin cath paluc. | Against Palug’s Cat. |
| Pan gogiueirch tud. | When people shall ask |
| Puy guant cath paluc. | “Who slew Palug’s Cat?” |
| Nau ugein kinlluc. | Nine score… |
| a cuytei in y buyd. | Used to fall for her food |
| Nau ugein kinran | Nine score leaders |
| A… | Used to… |
The manuscript is imperfect, and it breaks off just where one should have heard more about Cath Paluc, or “Palug’s Cat,” a monster, said in the Red Book Triads to have been reared by
- ↑ With this sentiment compare the following passage put into the mouth of Llew in the Mabinogi of Math son of Mathonwy: Onym llad i auw hagen nyt hawd vy llad i. “Unless God slay me, however, it is not easy to slay me.” See the Red Book Mabinogion, p. 75, also Lady Charlotte Guest’s Mab. iii. 242, where she imparts to her translation a Christian tone not to be detected in the original, thus: “But until Heaven take me I shall not easily be slain.”
- ↑ This looks as if it might be the incident in which the story of Peredur makes that hero take a leading part; he encounters the witches of Caer Loyw at a castle on a mountain, and he together with Arthur and his Men afterwards kills them all at the end of the story: see the Red Book Mab., pp. 210–1, 242–3, and Guest’s Mab. i. 322–3, 369–70.
