Afterwards, when they became blended with other
races less advanced, they acquired fresh material to work on. We have in
Ireland an instance to hand, of which a brief discussion may help to
illustrate the whole race theory.
"The larger Irish legendary literature divides itself into three
cycles--the divine, the heroic, the Fenian. Of these three the last is
so well-known orally in Scotland that it has been a matter of dispute to
which country it really belongs. It belongs, in fact, to both. Here,
however, comes in a strange contrast with the other cycles. The first
is, so far as I am aware, wholly unknown in Scotland, the second
comparatively unknown. What is the explanation? Professor Zimmer not
having established his late-historical view as regards Finn, and the
general opinion among scholars having tended of recent years towards the
mythical view, we want to know why there is so much more community in
one case than in the other. Mr O'Grady long since seeing this
difficulty, and then believing Finn to be historical, was induced to
place the latter in point of time before Cuchulain and his compeers. But
this view is of course inadmissible when Finn is seen not to be
historical at all. There remains but one explanation. The various bodies
of legend in question are, so far as Ireland is concerned, only earlier
or later, as they came into the island with the various races to which
they belonged. The wider prevalence, then, of the Finn Saga would
indicate that it belonged to an early race occupying both Ireland and
Scotland.
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