Ossian Collection > Temora, an ancient epic poem, in eight books

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S U L - M A L L A of L U M O N :
eyes, two plealant flames, rolled between his wandering locks. —
I knew the king of Atha, and threw my Ipear on earth. — Dark, we
turned, and filent paffed to mix with other foes.
Not fo pafl'ed the llriving kings*. They mixed in echoing
fray ; like the meeting of ghofls, in the dark wing of winds.
Thro' either breall rudied the fpears ; nor yet lay the foes on earth.
A rock received their fall; and half-reclined they lay in death.
Each held the lock of his foe ; and grimly feemed to roll his eyes.
The ftream of the rock leapt on their Ihields, and mixed below with
blood.
The battle ceafed in I-thorno. The ftrangers met in peace :
Cathmor from Atha of ftreams, and Oflian, king of harps. We
placed the dead in earth. Our fteps were by Runar's bay. With
the bounding boat, afar, advanced a ridgy wave. Dark was the
rider of feas, but a beam of light was there, like the ray of the
fun, in Stromlo's rolling fmoak. It was the daughter -j- of Suran-
dronlo.
* Culgorm and Suran-dronlo, The
combat of the kings and their attitude in
death are highly piclurefque, and expref-
five of that ferocity of manners, which
diftinguiflied the northern nations. — The
wild melody of the verification of the
original, is inimitably beautiful, and very
difFirent from the reft of the works of
Oflian.
t Tradition has handed down the name
of this princefs. The bards call her Runo-
forlo, which has no other fort of title for
being genuine, but its not being of Gaiic
original ; a diftindion, which the bards
had not the art to preferve, when they
feigned names for foreigners. The high-
land fenachies, who very often endeavoured
to fupply the deficiency, they thought they
found in the tales of Oflian, have given
us the continuation of the ftory of the
daughter of Suran-dronlo. The cataftro-
phe is fo unnatural, and the circumftances
of it fo ridiculoufly pompous, that, for the
fake of the Inventors, I fhall conceal
them.
The wildly beautiful appearance of Ru-
no-forlo, made a deep impreflion on a
chief, fome ages ago, who was himfelf no
coo-