School: Ardrahan, Mainistir Ó dTórna (roll number 13167)
- Location:
- Ardrahan, Co. Kerry
- Teacher: Bean Uí Dhonnabháin
Archival Reference
The Schools’ Collection, Volume 0412, Page 161
Image and data © National Folklore Collection, UCD.
See copyright details.
DownloadOpen data
Available under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
- XML School: Ardrahan, Mainistir Ó dTórna
- XML Page 161
- XML “Riddles”
Note: We will soon deprecate our XML Application Programming Interface and a new, comprehensive JSON API will be made available. Keep an eye on our website for further details.
On this page
- Long ago an Irishman was charged with some offense of which he could not be found guilty. The judge before whom he was tried was very fond of riddles. And before lunch time he said to the prisoner - that if after lunch he would give him a riddle he couldn't solve he would let him free but if not he should go to jail for six months.
The prisoner went out and was hard put to make up a riddle - He had given up and was almost in despair when he saw a horse's skull in a corner of the yard. He gave it a kick and immediately out of it flew a wren leaving six young birds after her. He almost jumped for joy and went back into the court.
Well said the judge have you a riddle. I have said the prisoner.
"As I went out and before I came in
Out of the dead the life did spring.
If that isn't it that this may be,
That the six may bring the seventh free".I have a little house and a mouse couldn't fit in it and all the men in town couldn't count all the windows in it. A thimble. As I went up a slippery gap I met my uncle(continues on next page)
- Collector
- Brendan Sugrue
- Gender
- Male
- Address
- Kilgulbin East, Co. Kerry
