This is another short piece taken from Là.
Gnáthlá eile i saol an tsionnaigh--seilg ar feadh an lae, uaineoil i gcomhair bhéile an tráthnóna.
George Parkes, feirmeoir in aice le Log an Choire, Contae Ard Mhacha, bhí sé i ndiaidh (1) caora agus a huain úra a ghlasáil sa mhainnear thar oíche an tseachtain seo caite.
Is deacair lámh an uachtair a fháil ar an sionnach, ach nuair a d'fhill an feirmeoir ar maidin fuair sé roimhe rúndiamhair (2) a chuir seachr/an i bhfad ó shin ar shaineolaithe fiabheatha agus beostoic. (3)
Bh/i an chaora agus na huain sl/an beo ach bhí an sionnach bainneann ina luí marbh sa mhainnear.
Cad é a tharla?
Chonaic George brúnna ar chorp an tsionnaigh--is cosúil gur mharaigh an chaora í le soncanna agus í ag cosaint a rudaí óga. (4)
Go bhfios dúinn, ba seo an chéad uair riamh a mharaigh caora sionnach. (5)
Is minic cleas gan choinne ag an dúlra. (6)
[Lá, 10 Feabhra 1994]
(1) "bhí sé i ndiaidh . . ." literally "he was after locking up a ewe and her young lambs" i.e. "He had locked up a ewe and her young lambs." This is one of the ways that Gaelic has of rendering the English past perfect.
(2) "He found before him a mystery"
(3) literally "which long ago put a delusion on experts of wildlife and livestock" i.e. "in which experts of wildlife and livestock have long been mistaken"
(4) literally "an she (the ewe) at protecting her young" i.e. "while protecting her young" "agus" is commonly used to introduce a phrase describing the circumstance under which the action previously described took place.
(5) "this was the first time ever that a sheep had killed a fox."
(6) literally "an unexpected trikc is often at Nature" i.e "Nature often has an unexpected trick.