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For the latest news from Scotland see our ScotNews feed at:
https://electricscotland.com/scotnews.htm
Electric Scotland News
Sir William Alan Macpherson of Cluny
(1 April 1926 – 14 February 2021)
I am saddened to have to bear the news that our 27th Chief, Sir William Macpherson of Cluny and Blairgowrie – ‘Cluny’ to us all – died peacefully at home on the 14 February 2021, surrounded by his family.
We were fortunate to have had his guidance, support and leadership for an incredible 50 years and the world will have benefited from his 94 years on this earth.
His phrase “first amongst equals” doesn’t even start to mark the presence he had. Through his work in law (what better epitaph could someone wish for that the phrase used by a journalist “He made Britain a better place for me to live”) to his leadership at the after-ceilidh-ceilidh he was a man who left his mark on those he met.
To his son Jamie and daughter Annie, their families and Lady Hilary we offer our condolences and to him thanks for being part of his life. May he rest in peace.
Sir William is the 27th hereditary chief of the Clan Macpherson of Cluny (Cluny-Macpherson) and on the 18th of June 2019 he passed his 50th year as our Chief. He was educated at Summer Fields, Oxford; Wellington College, Berkshire; and Trinity College, Oxford. During the period 1944-1947, Sir William served in the Scots Guards, transferring to the 21st Special Air Service Regiment (Territorial Army) with whom he served until 1965. He has served as the Honorary Colonel of the 21st SAS since 1983.
In 1962 Sir William married Sheila McDonald Brodie. They have three children: Annie, the late Alan Thomas (younger of Cluny) and James Brodie (Tanistair of the House of Cluny-Macpherson). The family's home is Newton Castle, Blairgowrie, Perthshire. Blairgowrie has been the home of the Macphersons since 1787, when it was purchased by James "Ossian" Macpherson as the agent for Cluny's ancestor.
Sir William was a Judge of the High Court of England and Wales (Queen's Bench Division) where he served as Presiding Judge of the Northern Circuit until his retirement in April 1996. Before his appointment as a judge, Sir William was a Queen's Counsel practising in London and abroad.
Clan MacPherson
https://www.clan-macpherson.org/chief.html
The Herald
https://www.heraldscotland.com/news/...y-dies-age-94/
Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Willia...herson_(judge)
------- Did a video on "Update on the state of Scotland and the world as at 18th Feb 2021" which you can view at:
Scottish News from this weeks newspapers
Note that this is a selection and more can be read in our ScotNews feed on our index page where we list news from the past 1-2 weeks. I am partly doing this to build an archive of modern news from and about Scotland and world news stories that can affect Scotland and as all the newsletters are archived and also indexed on Google and other search engines it becomes a good resource. I might also add that in a number of newspapers you will find many comments which can be just as interesting as the news story itself and of course you can also add your own comments if you wish which I do myself from time to time.
Here we go! UK eyes ultra-lucrative deal with UAE fund to turbocharge industry
THE UK is in talks with a United Arab Emirates (UAE) sovereign wealth fund as part of ultra-lucrative plans worth hundreds of millions of pounds that would turbocharge the British life sciences industry.
Read more at:
https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/13...on-rishi-sunak
There’s no excusing it - the SNP lays waste in Scotland
By Max Young in Think Scotland
Read more at:
https://www.thinkscotland.org/thinkb...ead_full=14440
Scotland Matters
Scotland Matters is a non-party political campaign. We want Scotland to remain in the United Kingdom.
Read more at:
https://scotlandmatters.co.uk/about-us/
Boris Johnson sends strong signal as landmark £17bn trade deal now in force
BREXIT Britain is sending a strong signal to future investment in Asia with a £17billion trade deal now in force, a senior Singapore minister has said.
Read more at:
https://www.express.co.uk/news/polit...latest-finance
UK pension freeze: British pensioners living in Canada ask for injustice’ to end
MORE than 3,100 British pensioners living in Canada have signed a letter to Boris Johnson urging him to end an injustice so they will not be pushed into poverty.
Read more at:
https://www.express.co.uk/finance/pe...-Boris-Johnson
Why Canada is falling behind in Covid vaccinations
Canada's inoculation drive began 14 December, and the country has so far given just over 1.18 million doses. It currently stands at 40 in global rankings of doses per 100 people, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Read more at:
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-56035306
We need to talk about the British Empire
The legacies of empire are baked into our culture
Read more at:
https://capx.co/we-need-to-talk-abou...ritish-empire/
Biden’s Keystone Shutdown an Attack on the Rule of Law, South Dakota’s Johnson Says
Rep. Dusty Johnson (R-S.D.) has listened to story after story from local business owners who have been hurt badly as a result of the shutdown of the Keystone XL pipeline.
Read more at:
https://www.theepochtimes.com/bidens...s_3697558.html
Pandemic planning delays exposed by public spending watchdog
Audit Scotland identified failures to prepare for a health crisis which has now caused a major backlog of patients for the NHS.
Read more at:
https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/p...ublic-23515529
Trudeau loses patience with EU
Canada warns bloc to back off over vaccine supply row
Read more at:
https://www.express.co.uk/news/polit...yen-export-ban
Spain threatens to walk away from treaty as EU rebellion brews
SPAIN has threatened to break away from an international treaty as a huge new rebellion brews in Brussels.
Read more at:
https://www.express.co.uk/news/polit...iations-latest
EU crisis as one-third of UK shoppers stop buying EU exports since Brexit
MORE than a third of British consumers have stopped buying produce from EU countries since Brexit, a new survey has indicated.
Read more at:
https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/13...urvey-research
Sturgeon sent warning over string of errors - Fish rots from head down
NICOLA STURGEON is losing the support of the Scottish people, a writer has warned, with the SNP chief facing crisis after crisis as May's election looms.
Read more at:
https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/13...pendence-union
China overtakes US as EU's biggest trading partner
China is now the EU's biggest trading partner, overtaking the US in 2020.
Read more at:
https://www.bbc.com/news/business-56093378
Canadians turn on Justin Trudeau as bloc under fire over shipment dispute
THE EU was recently warned by the Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau not to interfere with coronavirus vaccine shipments travelling to the North American nation - but a new poll shows Canadians actually blame Mr Trudeau himself for Ottawa's sluggish rollout, not the bloc.
Read more at:
https://www.express.co.uk/news/world...-der-leyen-spt
Prosecution for what you say in your own home remains likely in Scotland
PRESUMABLY, when the SNP Government set out to toughen up the law in relation to hate crime, it wasn’t the intention to criminalise conversations over the dinner table. Just like it probably didn’t mean, in its quest to assign a named person for every child in Scotland, to propose extraordinary intrusions into the right to a private family life.
Read more at:
https://www.thinkscotland.org/thinkp...ead_full=14453
There’s something rotten in the state of Scotland. But can anyone do anything about it?
Two weeks ago, when we last checked in on the Alex Salmond affair, we led with the calls for an independent, judge-led inquiry into the whole thing as confidence that the Scottish Parliament could actually hold the Scottish Government to account. Well readers, it has got much, much worse since then.
Read more at:
https://www.conservativehome.com/the...-about-it.html
Scottish Government education bodies cannot be trusted, MSPs told
Education Scotland and the Scottish Qualification Authority (SQA) ‘cannot be trusted’ with ensuring Scotland’s education system recovers after the pandemic, MSPs have been told.
Read more at:
https://www.scotsman.com/news/politi...s-told-3138305
I’m Freezing Cold and Burning Mad in Texas
The state’s power outages have revealed the difference between performative governance and actually governing.
Read more at:
https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/ar...d-texas/618048
Electric Canadian
Successful Farming
A Ready Reference on All Phases of Agriculture for Farmers of the United States and Canada including Soils, Manures, Fertilizers, Lime, Drainage, Irrigation, Tillage, Field Crops, Crop Rotations, Plant Improvement, Meadows and Pastures, Weeds — Vegetables, Vegetable Forcing, Mushroom Culture, Medicinal Plants — Orcharding, Small Fruits, Nut Culture, Farm Woodlot, Floriculture—Livestock, Dairying, Feeds and Feeding, Animal Diseases — Farm Management, Records and Accounts, Markets and Marketing, Land Rental, Labor — Farm Buildings, Fences, Engines, Tractors, Machinery, Sanitation — Plant Diseases, Insects, Fungicides, Insecticides — Domestic Economy, Housing, Clothing, Education, Information — Useful Tables, Composition of Products, Feeding Standards, Weights, Measures. By Frank D. Gardner (1916) (pdf)
You can read this at: http://www.electriccanadian.com/tran...fulfarming.pdf
Children of the Forest
A Story of Indian Love By Egerton R. Young (1904) (pdf)
You can read this at: http://www.electriccanadian.com/hist...enofforest.pdf
Thoughts on a Sunday morning - 14th February 2021
By the Rev. Nola Crewe
You can view this at:
http://www.electricscotland.org/foru...-february-2021
Stock Farming in Canada
Correspondence Reprinted from the "Canadian News" (1864) (pdf)
You can read this at: http://www.electriccanadian.com/tran...ngincanada.pdf
On the Indian Trail
Stories of Missionary Work among Cree and Saulteaux Indians by Rev. Egerton Ryerson Young. (1897) (pdf)
You can read this at: http://www.electriccanadian.com/hist...ndiantrail.pdf
Electric Scotland
Transactions of the Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland
Fifth Series, Vol XI, 1899
Catch-Cropping in Scotland, Dairy-Buildings, State Model Forest for Scotland, The Past and Future of Scottish Agriculture, Agricultural Credit Banks, Reclamation of Bog-Land in Ayrshire, Insect Pests of Domesticated Animals, Pure Cultures for Cheddar Cheese-making, Lime and its Uses in Agriculture, The Bark-Beetles of the Ash, Pigs on the Farm, The Cereal and other Crops of Scotland for 1898, and Meteorology of the Year relative thereto.
You can read this at:
https://electricscotland.com/agricul...olXi(1899).pdf
Musings of a Tank Commander
Part 26 Briefings, de la Billiere, boardgames and body armour
You can read this at: https://electricscotland.com/history...tank/index.htm
The Historie of Scotland
Wrytten first in Latin by the most reverend and worthy Jhone Leslie, Bishop of Rosse and translated in Scottish by Father James Dalrymple, edited by the Rev. Father E. G. Cody, O.S.B. (1596) in two volumes.
Most of this is in the Scots Languge so might be a little hard to read.
You can read this at: https://electricscotland.com/history...ofscotland.htm
Beth's Newfangled Family Tree
Got in the March 2021 issue, section 2 which you can read at: https://electricscotland.com/bnft/index.htm
Added four videos to our page on The History of the Western Isles
You can view them at: https://electricscotland.com/history/western_isles.htm
Royal Warrant and Regulations for the Equipment of Her Majesty's Army
Serving elsewhere than in the Indian Empire including the Armaments of Works. War Office 1st September 1876 (pdf)
You can read this at: https://electricscotland.com/history...rrantand01.pdf
Regulations of the Medical Department of Her Majesty's Army
War Office 1885 (pdf)
You can read this at: https://electricscotland.com/history...formedical.pdf
Story
Nova Scotia Overseas Highland Brigade
Undoubtedly the most unique feature in the story of recruiting Canada's Overseas Forces was the organization of the NOVA SCOTIA HIGHLAND BRIGADE which had its inception in the 85th battalion. This unit was authorized September 14, 1915, with Lieut.-Col. Allison H. Borden in command. In less than a month the Battalion was over strength, and enthused by this success Col. Borden conceived the idea of raising another highland regiment in Nova Scotia, from which grew the larger ideal of the Nova Scotia Highland Brigade, and same was authorised on January 26th, 1916.
An energetic campaign was simultaneously started in almost every part of the province, and in less than three weeks the 185th, 193rd, and 219th Battalions were recruited over strength. This record is unsurpassed in any part of the Dominion, and the credit belongs to the Officers, N.C.O.'s and men of the 85th, which Battalion also to a great extent officered and organized the other three units of the Brigade.
Early in June the Brigade mobilised at Aldershot Camp, and the training of the unit commenced in earnest. Inspections were held at the camp during the summer by the Governor General, H.R.H. the Duke of Connaught: Premier Borden and Sir Sam Hughs, Minister of Militia, and all expressed the highest praise for the efficiency of the battalions and the manly character and bearing of the Officers and men. His Royal Highness the Governor General stated in his remarks to the Brigade that he had never before seen a finer body of men.
Shortly after encamping at Aldershot, Col. Borden obtained the co-operation of the Officers commanding the four Battalions in the work of having each officer and man of the Brigade photographed, primarily for the purpose of compiling a complete photographic record of the personnel of each unit, and ultimately to have the material for a Brigade edition. The work practically formed part of the daily routine of the battalions, and it was only at the end of the summer than the last of the men had been paraded to the studios erected for the purpose, in the grounds, and the complete set of photographs obtained, numbering approximately five thousand.
When it is realized that almost every home in Nova Scotia has a father, brother, husband or friend in the Brigade, the foresight and energy of the Officers commanding will be thoroughly appreciated by the people of the Province in making possible so complete a record of the heart and soul of Nova Scotia. The Brigade embarked for England on the OLYMPIC, which sailed out of Halifax at dusk on the 13th of October, 1916.
If you would like to read more about our Canadian Military History, please visit my website at http://www.electriccanadian.com/forces/index.htm
Dale (MacRae) Barry
Note: the author provides a link to his web site but it's no longer available.
END
And that's it for this week and hope you all have a great weekend.
Alastair
https://electricscotland.com/scotnews.htm
Electric Scotland News
Sir William Alan Macpherson of Cluny
(1 April 1926 – 14 February 2021)
I am saddened to have to bear the news that our 27th Chief, Sir William Macpherson of Cluny and Blairgowrie – ‘Cluny’ to us all – died peacefully at home on the 14 February 2021, surrounded by his family.
We were fortunate to have had his guidance, support and leadership for an incredible 50 years and the world will have benefited from his 94 years on this earth.
His phrase “first amongst equals” doesn’t even start to mark the presence he had. Through his work in law (what better epitaph could someone wish for that the phrase used by a journalist “He made Britain a better place for me to live”) to his leadership at the after-ceilidh-ceilidh he was a man who left his mark on those he met.
To his son Jamie and daughter Annie, their families and Lady Hilary we offer our condolences and to him thanks for being part of his life. May he rest in peace.
Sir William is the 27th hereditary chief of the Clan Macpherson of Cluny (Cluny-Macpherson) and on the 18th of June 2019 he passed his 50th year as our Chief. He was educated at Summer Fields, Oxford; Wellington College, Berkshire; and Trinity College, Oxford. During the period 1944-1947, Sir William served in the Scots Guards, transferring to the 21st Special Air Service Regiment (Territorial Army) with whom he served until 1965. He has served as the Honorary Colonel of the 21st SAS since 1983.
In 1962 Sir William married Sheila McDonald Brodie. They have three children: Annie, the late Alan Thomas (younger of Cluny) and James Brodie (Tanistair of the House of Cluny-Macpherson). The family's home is Newton Castle, Blairgowrie, Perthshire. Blairgowrie has been the home of the Macphersons since 1787, when it was purchased by James "Ossian" Macpherson as the agent for Cluny's ancestor.
Sir William was a Judge of the High Court of England and Wales (Queen's Bench Division) where he served as Presiding Judge of the Northern Circuit until his retirement in April 1996. Before his appointment as a judge, Sir William was a Queen's Counsel practising in London and abroad.
Clan MacPherson
https://www.clan-macpherson.org/chief.html
The Herald
https://www.heraldscotland.com/news/...y-dies-age-94/
Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Willia...herson_(judge)
------- Did a video on "Update on the state of Scotland and the world as at 18th Feb 2021" which you can view at:
Scottish News from this weeks newspapers
Note that this is a selection and more can be read in our ScotNews feed on our index page where we list news from the past 1-2 weeks. I am partly doing this to build an archive of modern news from and about Scotland and world news stories that can affect Scotland and as all the newsletters are archived and also indexed on Google and other search engines it becomes a good resource. I might also add that in a number of newspapers you will find many comments which can be just as interesting as the news story itself and of course you can also add your own comments if you wish which I do myself from time to time.
Here we go! UK eyes ultra-lucrative deal with UAE fund to turbocharge industry
THE UK is in talks with a United Arab Emirates (UAE) sovereign wealth fund as part of ultra-lucrative plans worth hundreds of millions of pounds that would turbocharge the British life sciences industry.
Read more at:
https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/13...on-rishi-sunak
There’s no excusing it - the SNP lays waste in Scotland
By Max Young in Think Scotland
Read more at:
https://www.thinkscotland.org/thinkb...ead_full=14440
Scotland Matters
Scotland Matters is a non-party political campaign. We want Scotland to remain in the United Kingdom.
Read more at:
https://scotlandmatters.co.uk/about-us/
Boris Johnson sends strong signal as landmark £17bn trade deal now in force
BREXIT Britain is sending a strong signal to future investment in Asia with a £17billion trade deal now in force, a senior Singapore minister has said.
Read more at:
https://www.express.co.uk/news/polit...latest-finance
UK pension freeze: British pensioners living in Canada ask for injustice’ to end
MORE than 3,100 British pensioners living in Canada have signed a letter to Boris Johnson urging him to end an injustice so they will not be pushed into poverty.
Read more at:
https://www.express.co.uk/finance/pe...-Boris-Johnson
Why Canada is falling behind in Covid vaccinations
Canada's inoculation drive began 14 December, and the country has so far given just over 1.18 million doses. It currently stands at 40 in global rankings of doses per 100 people, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Read more at:
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-us-canada-56035306
We need to talk about the British Empire
The legacies of empire are baked into our culture
Read more at:
https://capx.co/we-need-to-talk-abou...ritish-empire/
Biden’s Keystone Shutdown an Attack on the Rule of Law, South Dakota’s Johnson Says
Rep. Dusty Johnson (R-S.D.) has listened to story after story from local business owners who have been hurt badly as a result of the shutdown of the Keystone XL pipeline.
Read more at:
https://www.theepochtimes.com/bidens...s_3697558.html
Pandemic planning delays exposed by public spending watchdog
Audit Scotland identified failures to prepare for a health crisis which has now caused a major backlog of patients for the NHS.
Read more at:
https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/p...ublic-23515529
Trudeau loses patience with EU
Canada warns bloc to back off over vaccine supply row
Read more at:
https://www.express.co.uk/news/polit...yen-export-ban
Spain threatens to walk away from treaty as EU rebellion brews
SPAIN has threatened to break away from an international treaty as a huge new rebellion brews in Brussels.
Read more at:
https://www.express.co.uk/news/polit...iations-latest
EU crisis as one-third of UK shoppers stop buying EU exports since Brexit
MORE than a third of British consumers have stopped buying produce from EU countries since Brexit, a new survey has indicated.
Read more at:
https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/13...urvey-research
Sturgeon sent warning over string of errors - Fish rots from head down
NICOLA STURGEON is losing the support of the Scottish people, a writer has warned, with the SNP chief facing crisis after crisis as May's election looms.
Read more at:
https://www.express.co.uk/news/uk/13...pendence-union
China overtakes US as EU's biggest trading partner
China is now the EU's biggest trading partner, overtaking the US in 2020.
Read more at:
https://www.bbc.com/news/business-56093378
Canadians turn on Justin Trudeau as bloc under fire over shipment dispute
THE EU was recently warned by the Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau not to interfere with coronavirus vaccine shipments travelling to the North American nation - but a new poll shows Canadians actually blame Mr Trudeau himself for Ottawa's sluggish rollout, not the bloc.
Read more at:
https://www.express.co.uk/news/world...-der-leyen-spt
Prosecution for what you say in your own home remains likely in Scotland
PRESUMABLY, when the SNP Government set out to toughen up the law in relation to hate crime, it wasn’t the intention to criminalise conversations over the dinner table. Just like it probably didn’t mean, in its quest to assign a named person for every child in Scotland, to propose extraordinary intrusions into the right to a private family life.
Read more at:
https://www.thinkscotland.org/thinkp...ead_full=14453
There’s something rotten in the state of Scotland. But can anyone do anything about it?
Two weeks ago, when we last checked in on the Alex Salmond affair, we led with the calls for an independent, judge-led inquiry into the whole thing as confidence that the Scottish Parliament could actually hold the Scottish Government to account. Well readers, it has got much, much worse since then.
Read more at:
https://www.conservativehome.com/the...-about-it.html
Scottish Government education bodies cannot be trusted, MSPs told
Education Scotland and the Scottish Qualification Authority (SQA) ‘cannot be trusted’ with ensuring Scotland’s education system recovers after the pandemic, MSPs have been told.
Read more at:
https://www.scotsman.com/news/politi...s-told-3138305
I’m Freezing Cold and Burning Mad in Texas
The state’s power outages have revealed the difference between performative governance and actually governing.
Read more at:
https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/ar...d-texas/618048
Electric Canadian
Successful Farming
A Ready Reference on All Phases of Agriculture for Farmers of the United States and Canada including Soils, Manures, Fertilizers, Lime, Drainage, Irrigation, Tillage, Field Crops, Crop Rotations, Plant Improvement, Meadows and Pastures, Weeds — Vegetables, Vegetable Forcing, Mushroom Culture, Medicinal Plants — Orcharding, Small Fruits, Nut Culture, Farm Woodlot, Floriculture—Livestock, Dairying, Feeds and Feeding, Animal Diseases — Farm Management, Records and Accounts, Markets and Marketing, Land Rental, Labor — Farm Buildings, Fences, Engines, Tractors, Machinery, Sanitation — Plant Diseases, Insects, Fungicides, Insecticides — Domestic Economy, Housing, Clothing, Education, Information — Useful Tables, Composition of Products, Feeding Standards, Weights, Measures. By Frank D. Gardner (1916) (pdf)
You can read this at: http://www.electriccanadian.com/tran...fulfarming.pdf
Children of the Forest
A Story of Indian Love By Egerton R. Young (1904) (pdf)
You can read this at: http://www.electriccanadian.com/hist...enofforest.pdf
Thoughts on a Sunday morning - 14th February 2021
By the Rev. Nola Crewe
You can view this at:
http://www.electricscotland.org/foru...-february-2021
Stock Farming in Canada
Correspondence Reprinted from the "Canadian News" (1864) (pdf)
You can read this at: http://www.electriccanadian.com/tran...ngincanada.pdf
On the Indian Trail
Stories of Missionary Work among Cree and Saulteaux Indians by Rev. Egerton Ryerson Young. (1897) (pdf)
You can read this at: http://www.electriccanadian.com/hist...ndiantrail.pdf
Electric Scotland
Transactions of the Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland
Fifth Series, Vol XI, 1899
Catch-Cropping in Scotland, Dairy-Buildings, State Model Forest for Scotland, The Past and Future of Scottish Agriculture, Agricultural Credit Banks, Reclamation of Bog-Land in Ayrshire, Insect Pests of Domesticated Animals, Pure Cultures for Cheddar Cheese-making, Lime and its Uses in Agriculture, The Bark-Beetles of the Ash, Pigs on the Farm, The Cereal and other Crops of Scotland for 1898, and Meteorology of the Year relative thereto.
You can read this at:
https://electricscotland.com/agricul...olXi(1899).pdf
Musings of a Tank Commander
Part 26 Briefings, de la Billiere, boardgames and body armour
You can read this at: https://electricscotland.com/history...tank/index.htm
The Historie of Scotland
Wrytten first in Latin by the most reverend and worthy Jhone Leslie, Bishop of Rosse and translated in Scottish by Father James Dalrymple, edited by the Rev. Father E. G. Cody, O.S.B. (1596) in two volumes.
Most of this is in the Scots Languge so might be a little hard to read.
You can read this at: https://electricscotland.com/history...ofscotland.htm
Beth's Newfangled Family Tree
Got in the March 2021 issue, section 2 which you can read at: https://electricscotland.com/bnft/index.htm
Added four videos to our page on The History of the Western Isles
You can view them at: https://electricscotland.com/history/western_isles.htm
Royal Warrant and Regulations for the Equipment of Her Majesty's Army
Serving elsewhere than in the Indian Empire including the Armaments of Works. War Office 1st September 1876 (pdf)
You can read this at: https://electricscotland.com/history...rrantand01.pdf
Regulations of the Medical Department of Her Majesty's Army
War Office 1885 (pdf)
You can read this at: https://electricscotland.com/history...formedical.pdf
Story
Nova Scotia Overseas Highland Brigade
Undoubtedly the most unique feature in the story of recruiting Canada's Overseas Forces was the organization of the NOVA SCOTIA HIGHLAND BRIGADE which had its inception in the 85th battalion. This unit was authorized September 14, 1915, with Lieut.-Col. Allison H. Borden in command. In less than a month the Battalion was over strength, and enthused by this success Col. Borden conceived the idea of raising another highland regiment in Nova Scotia, from which grew the larger ideal of the Nova Scotia Highland Brigade, and same was authorised on January 26th, 1916.
An energetic campaign was simultaneously started in almost every part of the province, and in less than three weeks the 185th, 193rd, and 219th Battalions were recruited over strength. This record is unsurpassed in any part of the Dominion, and the credit belongs to the Officers, N.C.O.'s and men of the 85th, which Battalion also to a great extent officered and organized the other three units of the Brigade.
Early in June the Brigade mobilised at Aldershot Camp, and the training of the unit commenced in earnest. Inspections were held at the camp during the summer by the Governor General, H.R.H. the Duke of Connaught: Premier Borden and Sir Sam Hughs, Minister of Militia, and all expressed the highest praise for the efficiency of the battalions and the manly character and bearing of the Officers and men. His Royal Highness the Governor General stated in his remarks to the Brigade that he had never before seen a finer body of men.
Shortly after encamping at Aldershot, Col. Borden obtained the co-operation of the Officers commanding the four Battalions in the work of having each officer and man of the Brigade photographed, primarily for the purpose of compiling a complete photographic record of the personnel of each unit, and ultimately to have the material for a Brigade edition. The work practically formed part of the daily routine of the battalions, and it was only at the end of the summer than the last of the men had been paraded to the studios erected for the purpose, in the grounds, and the complete set of photographs obtained, numbering approximately five thousand.
When it is realized that almost every home in Nova Scotia has a father, brother, husband or friend in the Brigade, the foresight and energy of the Officers commanding will be thoroughly appreciated by the people of the Province in making possible so complete a record of the heart and soul of Nova Scotia. The Brigade embarked for England on the OLYMPIC, which sailed out of Halifax at dusk on the 13th of October, 1916.
If you would like to read more about our Canadian Military History, please visit my website at http://www.electriccanadian.com/forces/index.htm
Dale (MacRae) Barry
Note: the author provides a link to his web site but it's no longer available.
END
And that's it for this week and hope you all have a great weekend.
Alastair
Comment