Ossian Collection > Poems of Ossian, the son of Fingal > Volume 2

TEMORA:
THE ARGUMENT.
Oesian, after a short address to the harp of Cona, describes thrar-
ranijcment of both armies on either side of the river Lubar, Fin-
gal give? the commantl to Fi'lan: but, at tlie same time, orders
Gaul, thei^oa of Morni, who had been woundtd in the hatid in the
preceding battle, to ast.sor ' ira v\'ith ibis counsel, the army of the
rirhr ig is commaned by i- ojdath. The general on.set is described.
The great actions of Fiilan. He kill«.Rot!>mar and Culniin. hut
wlien Fiilan conquers in one wing, Foidath presses heard en the c» i
ther. He wounds Dermid, the son nf Duthno, and puts the whole
wins to tlight. Permid deliberates with himself, and, at hst, re-
sulvas to put a stop to the progre«s of Foldath, by engaging him
in single combat. When the two chiefs were approachnig towards
one another, Fiilan camesuddenh to the relief of Dermid; engag-
ed Foldath, and kiiled him. The behaviour of Malthos towards
the fallen Foldath. Fiilan p'.its the whole army of the Firboig to
flight. The book closes with an address to Clatho, the mother of
that hero.
BOOK V.
THOU dweller between the shields that hang on high
in Ossian* s hall ! descend from thy place, O harp,
and let me hear thy voice ! Son of Alpin,. strike the
string-; tliou must awake the soul of the bard. The
murmur of Lora's ^ stream has rolled die tale away.
I stand in the cloud of years : few are its openings to-
wards the past ; and when the vision comes, it is but
dim and dark. I hear thee, harp of Cona ; my sonl
returns, like a breeze, which the sun brings back to the
vale, where dwelt the lazy mist.
Lubar a is bright before me, in the windings of its
z Lora is often mentioned ; it w^s a small and rapid stream in the
reighibourhood of Selma. There is no vestige of this name now re-
maining ; though i"- sppea rs from a very old song, which the transla-
tor has seen, that one of the small rivers on the north-west coast was
called Lora some cenfaries ago.
a From several pas.«ages in the poem, we m.ay form a distinct idea
of the scenic of the action ofTemora. At a small distance from on*
anotjier rose the hWs of Mora and I.ona : the f.Tst possessed byJingal,
O 3