Corpus of Electronic Texts Edition
The Irish ordeals, Cormac's adventure in the Land of Promise, and the decision as to Cormac's sword (Author: Unknown)
section 5
The nobles of the men of Erin declared that every man should be arranged according to what was due to himself, both kings and ollaves and fools and landholders and soldiers, and every class besides. For they were sure that the arrangement made in Erin at that meeting by the men of Fodla2 would be that which would abide therein for ever. For poets alone had judicature from the time that Amairgen Whiteknee the poet delivered the first judgment in Erin till the dialogue, in Emain Macha, of the two Sages, even Fercertne the Poet and Nede son of Adna, concerning the ollave's robe of office. Obscure to every one seemed the speech which the poets uttered in that discussion, and the legal decision which they delivered was not clcar to the kings and to the (other) poets. ‘These men alone’,
p.205
say the kings, ‘have their judgment and skill3 and knowledge. In the first place, we do not understand what they say’. ‘Well then’, says Conor, ‘every one shall have his share therein from today forever. But the judgment which is proper to them out of it shall not pass away (?). Every one shall take their shares of it’. So the poets were then deprived of their judicial power save only what was proper to them; and each of the men of Erin took his share of the judicature: as there are the Judgments of Echaid son of Luchta, and the Judgments of Fachtna son of Senchaid, and the Wrong Judgments of Carat-nia Tesctha, and the Judgments of Morann Mac Main, and the Judgments of Eogan son of Durthacht, and the Judgments of Doet Nemthenn, and the Judgments of Brig Ambae, and Diancecht's Judgments concerning Leeches.