J. F. Campbell Collection > Popular tales of the West Highlands > Volume 2

3 I 4 WEST HIGHLAND TALES.
cut any longer ; and he paid the money, and he was
forced to be a while under the leeches, and he was a
dour man no longer.
After that Mac-a-Eusgaich was set to l)e servant to
a giant that was had to his servants.
Mac-a-Eusgaich reached the giant, and he said,
" Thy servant is come."
The giant said, " 1£ thou be servant to me, thou
must keep even work with me, or else I will break
thy bones as fine as meal."*
Said Mac-a-Eusgaich, "^Vhat if I beat thee ?"
"If thou beatest me," said the giant, "thou shalt
have hke wages."
" What are we going to do, then 1 " said Mac-a-
Eusgaich.
" It is (this)," said the giant ; " we will go to bring
home faggots."
And they Avent and they reached the wood, and the
giant began to gather every root that was thicker than
the rest, and ^lac-a-Eusgaich began to gather every
top that was slenderer than the others.
The giant looked and he said,
" What art thou doing so 1"
And Mac-a-Eusgaich said, " I am for that we
should take the whole wood with us instead of leaving
a part of it useless behind us."
Said the giant, " We are long enough at this work ;
we will take home these burdens, but we Avill get other
work again."
The next worlc they went to was to cut a swathe :
and the giant asked ]\Iac-a-Eusgaich to go first. Mac-
a-Eusgaich Avould mow the swathe, and he began and
he went round about short on the inner side, and the
giant had to go a longer round on the outside of him.
* Peonnoin, coarse, unsifted oatmeal ; poum.lings.