Connor was the best of all pipe players; and this is not a small thing. He knew how to play all sorts of songs and folk hymns without any difficulty. This would still be nothing, but there was a rumor among the people about him that he knew not only simple music, but also music that could make everyone around him dance. Not a single fair, not a single wedding, not a single parish holiday was complete without blind Connor and his pipe. The old mother led the unfortunate blind man by the hand from one place to another.
It happened that one day they came to Iveragh, a seaside town famous throughout Ireland for its rugged shores. That day there was a holiday in the city and all the residents were walking on the lawn, which stretches outside the city from the base of high and steep mountains to the sea. As soon as the blind piper appeared, everyone immediately surrounded him and forced him to play. The dancing has begun. The piper played for a long time, and everyone who listened to his music and danced to the beat of it constantly said: “This is music, this is music!” One hunchbacked and old dancing master admired her most of all. When Connor finally stopped to catch his breath, he couldn’t stand it, ran up to him and, hitting him on the shoulder in a friendly manner, said:
- You're playing well, my friend! Only the dry spoon hurts my mouth. Surely you won't refuse to drink?
“Well, of course,” replied Connor, “if only your grace will allow it.”
-What do you want?
- Yes, sir, I’m not picky. But if you are so kind as to inquire about my taste, then give me a glass of whiskey.
- What a glass! I'll order you to give me a whole bottle.
Connr, of course, did not refuse such a treat, but, on the contrary, thanking him very politely for it, soon drained the bottle and, putting it empty on the table, said very cheerfully:
– The whiskey was good!
He sat for several minutes in silence, then smiled and, turning to the dancing master, said:
- Well, friend, you amused me, now it’s my turn to amuse you! - and before anyone had time to understand the real meaning of these words, he suddenly grabbed his pipe and played the treasured magical tune, about which there were so many different rumors among the people.
Everything that was on the lawn: old people and young people, children and respectable mothers of families, tables and benches, mugs and bottles - everything danced and spun in the most frenzied impulse. Moreover, the sea became agitated, and, summoned by the wondrous music, all kinds of fish began to swim to the shore and dance and jump to the beat of the magical tune. Fat-bellied crabs and sharp-headed crayfish came out of the water and, intertwining their wide claws, formed the most hilarious round dances. Skinny lampreys and fat eels either curled into rings to the music, or crawled across the sand in whimsical and varied figures. Connor himself, finally, did not sit still and walked next to his old mother, shifting from foot to foot and jumping up and down amidst the wild general turmoil...
And suddenly a woman of wondrous beauty appeared from the waters. Her long, wonderful green hair, falling in a thick cover over her back and shoulders and down to her knees, was covered with a small pointed cap.
Two rows of pearly teeth peeked out from behind the coral sponges. Light eyes looked cheerfully from under thin eyebrows, and the slender body was covered in white, light clothing, decorated with corals, flowers and shells. As soon as she appeared above the water, she began to dance easily and gracefully to Connor's music and quickly approach the shore. So she came ashore, walked up, dancing, to Connor, who was doing the most frantic jumps and figures with his feet, patted him on the shoulder and said:
– I am a noble maiden of the underwater kingdom; I live at the bottom of the sea. Come with me, my friend Connor; be my husband. Nothing will be denied you, you will eat and drink on gold and silver, and by marrying me you will become king over all the fish.
Connor, in response to this, found her hand, kissed it and, continuing to play and dance, began to follow her to the sea. Everything around was still dancing in some strange and incomprehensible frenzy, completely not noticing either the sea maiden or the fact that Connor, taking her arm, was heading with her towards the sea. Only the old mother noticed with horror that the sea maiden was dragging her son into her underwater kingdom, and raised a terrible cry:
- My son, my son! Why are you listening to her? Why are you going to her? Who are you leaving me for? Just think about the fact that if you marry her, a pagan, my grandchildren will be fish, probably fish! Check on your mother, come back before it's too late!
Connor was already standing in knee-deep water and dancing, still leaning on the hand of the lovely sea maiden. When his mother’s voice reached his ears amid the general din and noise, he turned towards his mother and shouted to her:
“Don’t worry, mother: I’ll be better off there than on earth.” And to let you know that I am still alive, every year I will send you a burnt log over the waves to this place on the shore.
Then he played his pipe again and walked further along the water. A huge foamy wave slowly moved towards him. The sea maiden quickly covered him with her clothes, and they disappeared under the wave...
The old mother died soon out of grief for her son, without waiting for news from him. If you believe the old-timers of those places, then for more than a hundred years in a row, at the appointed time and to the appointed place, a large burnt log constantly floated, but only recently it stopped floating.”
Translated from Russian · original on wisdomlib.ru