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Electric Scotland News
In Scotland we have 124.894 people officially listed as unemployed but a staggering 755,000 officially listed as "economically Inactive" which represents 22.5 per cent of the 16-64 year-olds of the working population.
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Given the riots in England and Northern Ireland it seems that Canadians also fear this may happen to them due to the influx of immigrants into Canada. Like the UK Canada also has a housing crisis.
It seems to me that when a person decides to become a politician and actually wins a seat their brains go to mush. They seem incapable of achieving anything that will benefit their constituents or their country. I think we need to impose minimum standards of education and work experience before people can run for election. Perhaps they should even sit for an exam to test their knowledge?
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I am also concerned about the main stream media. While I do still read some of it I usually don't read their political content as they have their own agenda most of the time and they do lie to us or are just so incompetent that they never check the articles they put out. This also applies to newspapers and TV. I note that like in the UK with the BBC, Canada is calling to remove funding from the CBC. I used to watch CNN but I stopped some years ago as they were and are clearly biased.
I'd be interested to learn about any TV news channel that you think is honest and truthful and also any news outlet on social media that you think is worth listening to. I am personally happy to read the CapX articles but I'm a right of centre guy and do believe that we were right to leave the EU and happy to support Brexit. I am against Scottish Independence as I just don't think we have the political leaders we need to run the country the way it needs to be run. So I am biased myself and I recognise that with my news coverage in this newsletter.
Scottish News from this weeks newspapers
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 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 is what caught my eye this week...
J R R Tolkien
In a 1968 interview, the BBC spoke to author JRR Tolkien about his experiences during World War One, how they had a profound effect and influenced his epic fantasy novel, Lord of the Rings.
Read more at:
https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/...d-of-the-rings
Why the EU is Not the Answer to Britain’s Growth Challenge
A new briefing paper released today by leading economist and CPS Research Fellow Dr Gerard Lyons calls on the government to resist rejoining the Single Market or Customs Union in its bid to improve UK-EU relations. Brexit is not to blame for our growth woes, Lyons argues, and the solutions lie outside the EU.
Read this paper at:
https://electricscotland.com/indepen...the-answer.pdf
There is a 'second story' to the 'horrific' UK riots
Writer and Broadcaster Esther Krakue discusses the horrific riots sweeping the UK.
You can watch this at:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B8LF1bxlVXM
Can 24-hour drinking zones transform a city?
Following in the footsteps of Berlin and Tokyo, venues in a new all-night district in Montreal's city centre will be licensed to remain open, and serve alcohol, throughout the night.
Read more at:
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ckdgqpy0lyeo
Conrad Black: The Olympics' disgraceful assault on Christianity
The haters of faith are going to have to learn to tolerate it.
Read more at:
https://archive.is/MwvOu
Hundreds of students across Scottish universities caught using AI to cheat
Four in five institutions across the UK have reprimanded students in the past two years for turning to banned bots such as ChatGPT to plagiarise content and pass it off as their own work, Freedom of Information (FOI) requests reveal.
Read more at:
https://www.sundaypost.com/fp/hundre...g-ai-to-cheat/
270,000 Scots pensioners will have winter fuel payment scrapped
890,000 Scots receiving the state pension will no longer get the payment if the Scottish Government follows Labour’s decision to remove it from those ineligible for pension credit or another benefit in England and Wales.
Read more at:
https://www.sundaypost.com/fp/astoni...ment-scrapped/
The American-Scottish Foundation's Annual Dinner
The Amerian-Scottish Foundation's 2024 Wallace Award is presented to Sir Jim Walker, CBE, for his outstanding contribution to transatlantic relationships and to Scotland’s world of food and drink.
Read more at:
https://www.americanscottishfoundati...ace-Award.html
Elon Musk Fan Zone
Here, at the Elon Musk Fan Zone channel, we transform the original content from shows, podcasts, and key-notes with Mr. Elon Musk to provide the viewers with a more immersive experience. We hope to educate as many people as possible through this channel.
Watch this at:
https://youtu.be/-qDZKHSoudU?si=A-vLYR1HwgcTbqz_
Steps to reviving conservatism in Scotland
IN A RECENT YouTube video, historian David Starkey (pictured) delivered a blistering critique of modern British conservatism, drawing stark parallels between the political landscapes of the 1970s and today.
Read more at:
https://thinkscotland.org/2024/08/st...m-in-scotland/
"Left is Wrong & Right is Right!" David Starkey
David Starkey Talks
Watch this at:
https://youtu.be/HikjNGAvHJo?si=ead3KAk9g7UIsvnG
David Starkey Talks
How to Save Britain
Watch this at:
https://youtu.be/bOLPHY-Cwps?si=rLa1diPq6mLHMTi4
David Starkey: Mass migration has destroyed the Britain I knew
Historian David Starkey reacts to the latest protests and riots across Britain. Mr Starkey slammed Keir Starmer over his reaction to the protests, saying Labour has lost the white working class forever. The historian also described the safe and peaceful England he grew up in, saying that it has now been destroyed by Tony Blair and New Labour who forced a multi-ethnic society on unwilling Britons.
Watch this at:
https://youtu.be/bwD3zn5nA5I?si=e81zR-aC85fdDREA
China’s Real Economic Crisis
Why Beijing Won’t Give Up on a Failing Model
Read more at:
https://www.foreignaffairs.com/china...conomic-crisis
Electric Canadian
Western Wanderings
Or, A pleasure tour in the Canadas by William H. G. Kingston, in two volumes (1855)
The reader must not expect to find, in the following pages, any profoundly philosophical or otherwise learned research into the origin, history, institutions, or manners, of the people of America. My book is the result of a visit made to that continent by myself and my wife when (I see no valid reason to disguise the fact) we were on our wedding-tour. During it we kept our eyes and ears open, and I have attempted little more than to note down what we saw and heard.
Perhaps, as was to be expected, we looked at things generally through rose-coloured spectacles; and as they are, I opine, under all circumstances of life, more agreeable to use than a yellow or smoke-tinted lens, I shall be truly glad if the reader glances at our sketches through the same pleasant medium.
You can read this at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/life...wanderings.htm
Sketches of a Summer Trip to New York and the Canadas
BY David Wilkie (1837) (pdf)
You can read this at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/life...r00davgoog.pdf
Views in the Canadas
New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia drawn from nature by Lieut.-Col. Bouchette and his sons Messrs Joseph; R. S. M.; and J. F. Bouchette (1832) (pdf)
You can read this book at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/life...Lande01596.pdf
Royal Military College of Canada
Added the 1958 edition which you can read at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/forc...arycollege.htm
The Canadas as they at present commend themselves to the Enterprize of Emigrant, Colonists and Capitalists
By John Galt (1832) (pdf)
You can read this at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/pion...tp00pick_0.pdf
Algonquian Indian names of places in Northern Canada
by Joseph Burr Tyrrell (1915) (pdf) Note: This is a corrected link to this book.
You can read this at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/hist...dian00tyrr.pdf
Thoughts on a Sunday Morning - the 4th day of August 2024 - Roots & Joys
By the Rev. Nola Crewe
Interesting homily covering the Pioneers in Canada which you can watch at:
http://www.electricscotland.org/foru...024-roots-joys
The Beaver Magazine
Added Volume 1 No. 7 (1921) (pdf)
You can read this at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/tran...vol1issue7.pdf
Canada Can’t Defend Itself
A discussion with Jordon Paterson, a video which I've added to the foot of our Armed Forces page which you can watch at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/forces/index.htm
Electric Scotland
Callum Stevenson
A video of the painting of Nicola Benedetti, Scottish Italian violinist by Callum Stevenson which I added to our Art and Artists page
You can watch this at:
https://youtu.be/T0gMYqKGGeg?si=5HI6eYdi7K69L0fd
Neil Gow
Scottish musician where I've added a pdf file of some of his music to the foot of his page.
You can get to this at:
https://electricscotland.com/history/other/gow_neil.htm
Knitting in Scotland
An article about Scottish Knitting which you can read at:
https://electricscotland.com/lifesty...inscotland.htm
The Story of the Tyneside Scottish
By Brigadier-General Trevor Ternan, C.B., C.M.G., D.S.O. (1919) (pdf)
You can read about them at:
https://electricscotland.com/history...tishTernan.pdf
The Uist Collection
The Poems and Songs of John Mac Codrum, Archibald MacDonald, and some of the minor Uist Bards, edited with Introduction and notes by the Rev. Archibald MacDonald, Kiltarlity (1894) (pdf)
You can read this at:
https://electricscotland.com/gaelic/...onpo00macd.pdf
War! A Fight to the Finish
A Martial Call to the Scots by Lord Rosebery, Eneas Mackay Stirling (pdf)
You can read this at:
https://electricscotland.com/history...inis00rose.pdf
William Melrose in China 1845-1855
The letters of a Scottish Tea Merchant edited by Hoh-cheung Mui, ma, phd and Lorna H. Mui, ma (1973)
William Melrose and his father Andrew were among the few British wholesale tea dealers engaged in the China trade to any large extent. Their activities throw new light on the import, sale and distribution of tea in Britain during the early years of free trade. In contrast to the majority of importers whose purchases were financed by profits from opium or the sale of British manufactured goods, the Melroses dealt exclusively in tea. In order to benefit from his vastly superior knowledge of the domestic market, Andrew needed as a complement to his own activities in Britain a personal agent in China who was both well-trained and attentive to the requirements of his principals. William supplied an indispensable link in what proved to be a highly successful trading chain. The record of his activities, unlike most accounts of Sino-British commerce which focus their view on China, gives a particularly well-rounded picture of all aspects of the tea trade. At the same time the letters document the social life and family relations of a mid-Victorian business man who felt equally at home in Scotland, England or China.
You can read this at:
https://electricscotland.com/business/melrose.htm
The Woodhouselee MS
A narrative of events in Edinburgh and district during the Jacobite occupation, September to November 1745, printed from Original Papers in the possession of C. E. S. Chambers, Edinburgh edited by A. Francis Steuart (1907) (pdf)
You can read this at:
https://electricscotland.com/history...00chamiala.pdf
Castles and Historic Homes of the Border
Their Traditions and Romance by Alexander Eddington (1926) (pdf)
You can read this book at:
https://electricscotland.com/history...ch0000alex.pdf
Records of the Family of Gregory
By Sir Philip Spencer Gregory (1886) (pdf)
You can read this at:
https://electricscotland.com/history...ilyo00greg.pdf
The House of Gregory
by Vere Richard Trench Gregory (1943) (pdf)
You can read this at:
https://electricscotland.com/history...ryby00greg.pdf
George Albert Gregory
Pioneer Educator by Annadora Foss Gregory (1961) (pdf)
You can read about him at:
https://electricscotland.com/history...greg00greg.pdf
After 104 Years At Sea Tall Ship sv Alvei
A very special ship has arrived in port for a short visit, a ship that carries even more significance if you are from Montrose. Enjoy the video which is the second last one on the page just before the section on "Transactions of Institution of Engineers and Shipbuilders of Scotland" at: https://electricscotland.com/history...ipbuilding.htm
Why the EU is Not the Answer to Britain’s Growth Challenge
A new briefing paper released 5th August 2024 by leading economist and CPS Research Fellow Dr Gerard Lyons calls on the government to resist rejoining the Single Market or Customs Union in its bid to improve UK-EU relations. Brexit is not to blame for our growth woes, Lyons argues, and the solutions lie outside the EU (pdf)
You can read this paper at:
https://electricscotland.com/indepen...the-answer.pdf
Digital readiness "critical" towards coping with the next Digital Pandemic
Scotland, of course, could not possibly avoid the recent global IT outage along with the rest of the planet. Trouble is, another one could be coming round the digital horizon. It is clear organisations, of all sizes and in the sectors in which they operate, must conduct a digital readiness check as a matter of urgency. Apparently none more so than the public sector.
An article by Bill Magee which you can read at:
https://electricscotland.com/magee/article0014.htm
Peter Buchan
Some additional information on Peter Buchan which you can read at:
https://electricscotland.com/poetry/...eterbuchan.htm
William Lithgow
Added three books about him to the foot of his page at:
https://electricscotland.com/history...ow_william.htm
A bakery crowded with regular customers
I added this video to our Japan page as my mouth was watering just looking at all the goods they were baking.
You can watch this at:
https://electricscotland.com/history/japan/index.htm
Story
AMONG THE FARTHEST HEBRIDES
We had left Tobermory sleeping quietly in a bath of sunshine, its well-wooded bay looked cool and green, reminding one of Isola Bella, so transparent is the atmosphere and so brilliant the summer light in the western islands. High overhead a Marconigram receiver—if that be the proper scientific term—casts its reflection on the smooth waters, beneath which divers are zealously seeking the treasures of the Armada, thus strangely do the centuries jostle each other. Over against us are the dark hills of Morven with their sweet reminiscences of a Highland Parish, where a family of famous Scottish preachers spent their happy boyhood. Bugged Ardnamurchan stands boldly forth, the type of the happy warrior steadfastly battling against storm and oppression—a cloud of spume by day, a warning beacon by night to warn and direct the erring mariner. Our antiquated little cargo steamer doggedly thrusts her blunt nose through the great green waves, and puffs and pants on her nine-knot course with the plodding determination of struggling talent. After passing the low-lying islands of Coll and Tiree, there arise to the north the weirdly-shaped outlines of Eigg, Muck, Bum and Canna, with the blue hills of Skye in the distance. We are out of the track of commercial shipping, so there are no giant liners, no picturesque “windjammers,” nothing but a row of blue-pointed hills showing up against the western skyline, like the smokestacks of giant warships sailing hull down. These are the distant Hebrides,—rightly considered, a range of mountains raising their rocky heads above the green twilight of the sea to offer a precarious foothold to a few hardy humans, and a peaceful abode to countless myriads of sea-fowl. The solid land we are slowly approaching is Barra, the chief of a little group of islands, one of which, Muldoanich, guards the entrance to Castlebay and is uninhabited save by flocks of those hardy sheep whose fleece provides the famous Harris tweed.
Another little island,
VATERSAY,
lying to the south of Barra, has recently been invaded by a few starving crofters, who have dared to seek here the smiling tillage which the larger island denied. Standing in the middle of the bay of Castlebay, is a little rocky islet surmounted by an ancient keep, in whose shadow the seal and the sea-mew listlessly enjoy the pleasures of digestion, and in the waters around are moored fishing-boats of every type to be met with near our shores. Rising almost from the water’s edge is Mount Heaval, whose cone of a thousand odd feet looks more imposing and majestic than many a peak of greater altitude situated in a hilly country. The strong odour of fish offal proclaims this to be no gilt-edged abode of touristry, yet it is an interesting land well worth our closest scrutiny and observation.
The traveller who finds his way to the rocky island of Barra has many surprises awaiting him. At first he fancies himself in Galway, with its primitive cabins and emerald fields of immature oats. The inhabitants, too, are Irish in appearance and Roman Catholic in religion, only a few families being Protestant. Again, the wiry hill-ponies with pack-saddles and fish-creels filled with stores remind one of the Pyrenees and the Spanish muleteer. These ponies, sure-footed as goats, are well adapted for climbing the rocky pathways of an island where there is but one well-made road. The cows watched by some aged dame or tethered to a little patch of pasture no bigger than a parlour floor, recall similar scenes among the fiords of Norway, and the Norwegian character is further emphasised by the wooden fish-curing sheds planted along the shores of Castlebay.
THE STUDENT OF FOLKLORE,
if he be acquainted with Gaelic, will learn from the people many a quaint legend of brownie and kelpie, and the antiquary may here observe the ancient implements of husbandry in vogue more than a century ago on the mainland, when the sickle and the flail, the spindle and distaff, were important and necessary adjuncts of household life.
Words are powerless to describe the exceeding poverty of the soil. Green grow the rashes everywhere, a sure token of insufficient drainage or of sour bogland. The sole crops are oats and potatoes, these latter being grown in trenches called “lazy beds,” a mode of culture that obtains where the depth of soil is such that the spade instead of the plough must be employed. Fields of rye and barley are to be met with in the west, where the wind-blown sand, mixing with the soil, offers a suitable habitat for these cereals. Old and young climb the hills to dig the turf which forms their fuel, or to cut the wild mountain grasses for their only cow, whose existence must be as exiguous as that of her human owners. The bed-rock crops out everywhere, forming islands of desolation in the midst of very tiny lakes of scanty tillage. On this stony ground the grain springs up as rapidly as that spoken of in the Evangile, and is as soon withered up by the fervent heat of the sun. Fields of golden marigold are beautiful to the aesthetic observer, but are less satisfying to the hungry crofter. No pleasant
WAYSIDE BLOSSOMS
charm the sight or woo the imagination, none but the ill-weeds that grow apace to vex the weary husbandman, the burdock, dead-nettle, dodder, and all manner of tares fit only to be bound into bundles and cast into the fire. There are no trees except in tiny glens, where attempts at afforestation have proved abortive. Every available foot of ground is tilled, but there are still many waste places gay with sparse heather, bog asphodel, and snowy canna.
To compensate for the poverty of the soil, Providence sends annually to these shores, shoals of the finest herring. What gold is to Klondyke, the herring is to Barra, and especially to Castlebay, the chief centre of population in the south of the island. These large and beautiful fish are too dear for home consumption, but, when cured, are shipped to Russia and Germany, where they are almost as expensive as caviare. It is somewhat surprising to hear the inhabitants of this wind-swept island speak as fluently of marks and roubles as we might of shillings and sixpences. The fishing begins about the first week of May and lasts through the summer, for July marks the close of the harvest. The prices of the herring vary according to the quality of the fish and the abundance or scarcity of the catch, but, when we observe that the high-water mark is something over £4 per cran, it will be understood at once that the consumers are not moujiks. Fishermen from all parts of the kingdom congregate like gulls to collect these shoals of silvery beauties, and disappear as mysteriously when the waters cease to yield their harvest, so that naturally much of the wealth returns with the strangers, and the island is not greatly benefited thereby.
Although the geographical names undoubtedly point to an epoch when this was the home of
FIERCE NORWEGIAN JARLS,
there is very little trace of Teutonic admixture in the Celtic inhabitants of to-day. The people, though poor, are bright and hospitable, and are endowed with a large share of that charm of manner which seems to be the birthright of all Celtic races. They appear very tenacious of their mother tongue, for one seldom hears English except among the strangers whom trade has brought to the island. During the winter the women and children are left to guard the tiny garth, while husbands and stalwart sons migrate to the shipbuilding towns on the Clyde, or earn a living as sailors on the large liners, but they never forget the stone cabin, for they always endeavour to send some of their small economies home to keep away the ever-baying wolf. It is no unusual thing to enter into conversation with the simple-minded peasant and find that, having seen all the world’s famous beauty spots he prefers to end his days in the surroundings in which he first saw the light, and for which he experiences a heart-hunger we city-bred people wot not of.
The western shores of the island are very beautiful, with the jade waters of the Atlantic dashing in constant fury or murmurous fret on sandy creek or everlasting rock, but the winter storms have raised up dunes of sand, which threaten to overwhelm what little remains for man to cultivate. The artist will find this a dreamland of fairy-mist and divine colour, and the social reformer will find here many a moral wherewith to adorn his platform oratory.
Glasgow.
J. P. Park.
END
Weekend is almost here and hope it's a good one for you.
Alastair
In Scotland we have 124.894 people officially listed as unemployed but a staggering 755,000 officially listed as "economically Inactive" which represents 22.5 per cent of the 16-64 year-olds of the working population.
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Given the riots in England and Northern Ireland it seems that Canadians also fear this may happen to them due to the influx of immigrants into Canada. Like the UK Canada also has a housing crisis.
It seems to me that when a person decides to become a politician and actually wins a seat their brains go to mush. They seem incapable of achieving anything that will benefit their constituents or their country. I think we need to impose minimum standards of education and work experience before people can run for election. Perhaps they should even sit for an exam to test their knowledge?
--------
I am also concerned about the main stream media. While I do still read some of it I usually don't read their political content as they have their own agenda most of the time and they do lie to us or are just so incompetent that they never check the articles they put out. This also applies to newspapers and TV. I note that like in the UK with the BBC, Canada is calling to remove funding from the CBC. I used to watch CNN but I stopped some years ago as they were and are clearly biased.
I'd be interested to learn about any TV news channel that you think is honest and truthful and also any news outlet on social media that you think is worth listening to. I am personally happy to read the CapX articles but I'm a right of centre guy and do believe that we were right to leave the EU and happy to support Brexit. I am against Scottish Independence as I just don't think we have the political leaders we need to run the country the way it needs to be run. So I am biased myself and I recognise that with my news coverage in this newsletter.
Scottish News from this weeks newspapers
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 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 is what caught my eye this week...
J R R Tolkien
In a 1968 interview, the BBC spoke to author JRR Tolkien about his experiences during World War One, how they had a profound effect and influenced his epic fantasy novel, Lord of the Rings.
Read more at:
https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/...d-of-the-rings
Why the EU is Not the Answer to Britain’s Growth Challenge
A new briefing paper released today by leading economist and CPS Research Fellow Dr Gerard Lyons calls on the government to resist rejoining the Single Market or Customs Union in its bid to improve UK-EU relations. Brexit is not to blame for our growth woes, Lyons argues, and the solutions lie outside the EU.
Read this paper at:
https://electricscotland.com/indepen...the-answer.pdf
There is a 'second story' to the 'horrific' UK riots
Writer and Broadcaster Esther Krakue discusses the horrific riots sweeping the UK.
You can watch this at:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B8LF1bxlVXM
Can 24-hour drinking zones transform a city?
Following in the footsteps of Berlin and Tokyo, venues in a new all-night district in Montreal's city centre will be licensed to remain open, and serve alcohol, throughout the night.
Read more at:
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/ckdgqpy0lyeo
Conrad Black: The Olympics' disgraceful assault on Christianity
The haters of faith are going to have to learn to tolerate it.
Read more at:
https://archive.is/MwvOu
Hundreds of students across Scottish universities caught using AI to cheat
Four in five institutions across the UK have reprimanded students in the past two years for turning to banned bots such as ChatGPT to plagiarise content and pass it off as their own work, Freedom of Information (FOI) requests reveal.
Read more at:
https://www.sundaypost.com/fp/hundre...g-ai-to-cheat/
270,000 Scots pensioners will have winter fuel payment scrapped
890,000 Scots receiving the state pension will no longer get the payment if the Scottish Government follows Labour’s decision to remove it from those ineligible for pension credit or another benefit in England and Wales.
Read more at:
https://www.sundaypost.com/fp/astoni...ment-scrapped/
The American-Scottish Foundation's Annual Dinner
The Amerian-Scottish Foundation's 2024 Wallace Award is presented to Sir Jim Walker, CBE, for his outstanding contribution to transatlantic relationships and to Scotland’s world of food and drink.
Read more at:
https://www.americanscottishfoundati...ace-Award.html
Elon Musk Fan Zone
Here, at the Elon Musk Fan Zone channel, we transform the original content from shows, podcasts, and key-notes with Mr. Elon Musk to provide the viewers with a more immersive experience. We hope to educate as many people as possible through this channel.
Watch this at:
https://youtu.be/-qDZKHSoudU?si=A-vLYR1HwgcTbqz_
Steps to reviving conservatism in Scotland
IN A RECENT YouTube video, historian David Starkey (pictured) delivered a blistering critique of modern British conservatism, drawing stark parallels between the political landscapes of the 1970s and today.
Read more at:
https://thinkscotland.org/2024/08/st...m-in-scotland/
"Left is Wrong & Right is Right!" David Starkey
David Starkey Talks
Watch this at:
https://youtu.be/HikjNGAvHJo?si=ead3KAk9g7UIsvnG
David Starkey Talks
How to Save Britain
Watch this at:
https://youtu.be/bOLPHY-Cwps?si=rLa1diPq6mLHMTi4
David Starkey: Mass migration has destroyed the Britain I knew
Historian David Starkey reacts to the latest protests and riots across Britain. Mr Starkey slammed Keir Starmer over his reaction to the protests, saying Labour has lost the white working class forever. The historian also described the safe and peaceful England he grew up in, saying that it has now been destroyed by Tony Blair and New Labour who forced a multi-ethnic society on unwilling Britons.
Watch this at:
https://youtu.be/bwD3zn5nA5I?si=e81zR-aC85fdDREA
China’s Real Economic Crisis
Why Beijing Won’t Give Up on a Failing Model
Read more at:
https://www.foreignaffairs.com/china...conomic-crisis
Electric Canadian
Western Wanderings
Or, A pleasure tour in the Canadas by William H. G. Kingston, in two volumes (1855)
The reader must not expect to find, in the following pages, any profoundly philosophical or otherwise learned research into the origin, history, institutions, or manners, of the people of America. My book is the result of a visit made to that continent by myself and my wife when (I see no valid reason to disguise the fact) we were on our wedding-tour. During it we kept our eyes and ears open, and I have attempted little more than to note down what we saw and heard.
Perhaps, as was to be expected, we looked at things generally through rose-coloured spectacles; and as they are, I opine, under all circumstances of life, more agreeable to use than a yellow or smoke-tinted lens, I shall be truly glad if the reader glances at our sketches through the same pleasant medium.
You can read this at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/life...wanderings.htm
Sketches of a Summer Trip to New York and the Canadas
BY David Wilkie (1837) (pdf)
You can read this at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/life...r00davgoog.pdf
Views in the Canadas
New Brunswick, and Nova Scotia drawn from nature by Lieut.-Col. Bouchette and his sons Messrs Joseph; R. S. M.; and J. F. Bouchette (1832) (pdf)
You can read this book at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/life...Lande01596.pdf
Royal Military College of Canada
Added the 1958 edition which you can read at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/forc...arycollege.htm
The Canadas as they at present commend themselves to the Enterprize of Emigrant, Colonists and Capitalists
By John Galt (1832) (pdf)
You can read this at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/pion...tp00pick_0.pdf
Algonquian Indian names of places in Northern Canada
by Joseph Burr Tyrrell (1915) (pdf) Note: This is a corrected link to this book.
You can read this at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/hist...dian00tyrr.pdf
Thoughts on a Sunday Morning - the 4th day of August 2024 - Roots & Joys
By the Rev. Nola Crewe
Interesting homily covering the Pioneers in Canada which you can watch at:
http://www.electricscotland.org/foru...024-roots-joys
The Beaver Magazine
Added Volume 1 No. 7 (1921) (pdf)
You can read this at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/tran...vol1issue7.pdf
Canada Can’t Defend Itself
A discussion with Jordon Paterson, a video which I've added to the foot of our Armed Forces page which you can watch at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/forces/index.htm
Electric Scotland
Callum Stevenson
A video of the painting of Nicola Benedetti, Scottish Italian violinist by Callum Stevenson which I added to our Art and Artists page
You can watch this at:
https://youtu.be/T0gMYqKGGeg?si=5HI6eYdi7K69L0fd
Neil Gow
Scottish musician where I've added a pdf file of some of his music to the foot of his page.
You can get to this at:
https://electricscotland.com/history/other/gow_neil.htm
Knitting in Scotland
An article about Scottish Knitting which you can read at:
https://electricscotland.com/lifesty...inscotland.htm
The Story of the Tyneside Scottish
By Brigadier-General Trevor Ternan, C.B., C.M.G., D.S.O. (1919) (pdf)
You can read about them at:
https://electricscotland.com/history...tishTernan.pdf
The Uist Collection
The Poems and Songs of John Mac Codrum, Archibald MacDonald, and some of the minor Uist Bards, edited with Introduction and notes by the Rev. Archibald MacDonald, Kiltarlity (1894) (pdf)
You can read this at:
https://electricscotland.com/gaelic/...onpo00macd.pdf
War! A Fight to the Finish
A Martial Call to the Scots by Lord Rosebery, Eneas Mackay Stirling (pdf)
You can read this at:
https://electricscotland.com/history...inis00rose.pdf
William Melrose in China 1845-1855
The letters of a Scottish Tea Merchant edited by Hoh-cheung Mui, ma, phd and Lorna H. Mui, ma (1973)
William Melrose and his father Andrew were among the few British wholesale tea dealers engaged in the China trade to any large extent. Their activities throw new light on the import, sale and distribution of tea in Britain during the early years of free trade. In contrast to the majority of importers whose purchases were financed by profits from opium or the sale of British manufactured goods, the Melroses dealt exclusively in tea. In order to benefit from his vastly superior knowledge of the domestic market, Andrew needed as a complement to his own activities in Britain a personal agent in China who was both well-trained and attentive to the requirements of his principals. William supplied an indispensable link in what proved to be a highly successful trading chain. The record of his activities, unlike most accounts of Sino-British commerce which focus their view on China, gives a particularly well-rounded picture of all aspects of the tea trade. At the same time the letters document the social life and family relations of a mid-Victorian business man who felt equally at home in Scotland, England or China.
You can read this at:
https://electricscotland.com/business/melrose.htm
The Woodhouselee MS
A narrative of events in Edinburgh and district during the Jacobite occupation, September to November 1745, printed from Original Papers in the possession of C. E. S. Chambers, Edinburgh edited by A. Francis Steuart (1907) (pdf)
You can read this at:
https://electricscotland.com/history...00chamiala.pdf
Castles and Historic Homes of the Border
Their Traditions and Romance by Alexander Eddington (1926) (pdf)
You can read this book at:
https://electricscotland.com/history...ch0000alex.pdf
Records of the Family of Gregory
By Sir Philip Spencer Gregory (1886) (pdf)
You can read this at:
https://electricscotland.com/history...ilyo00greg.pdf
The House of Gregory
by Vere Richard Trench Gregory (1943) (pdf)
You can read this at:
https://electricscotland.com/history...ryby00greg.pdf
George Albert Gregory
Pioneer Educator by Annadora Foss Gregory (1961) (pdf)
You can read about him at:
https://electricscotland.com/history...greg00greg.pdf
After 104 Years At Sea Tall Ship sv Alvei
A very special ship has arrived in port for a short visit, a ship that carries even more significance if you are from Montrose. Enjoy the video which is the second last one on the page just before the section on "Transactions of Institution of Engineers and Shipbuilders of Scotland" at: https://electricscotland.com/history...ipbuilding.htm
Why the EU is Not the Answer to Britain’s Growth Challenge
A new briefing paper released 5th August 2024 by leading economist and CPS Research Fellow Dr Gerard Lyons calls on the government to resist rejoining the Single Market or Customs Union in its bid to improve UK-EU relations. Brexit is not to blame for our growth woes, Lyons argues, and the solutions lie outside the EU (pdf)
You can read this paper at:
https://electricscotland.com/indepen...the-answer.pdf
Digital readiness "critical" towards coping with the next Digital Pandemic
Scotland, of course, could not possibly avoid the recent global IT outage along with the rest of the planet. Trouble is, another one could be coming round the digital horizon. It is clear organisations, of all sizes and in the sectors in which they operate, must conduct a digital readiness check as a matter of urgency. Apparently none more so than the public sector.
An article by Bill Magee which you can read at:
https://electricscotland.com/magee/article0014.htm
Peter Buchan
Some additional information on Peter Buchan which you can read at:
https://electricscotland.com/poetry/...eterbuchan.htm
William Lithgow
Added three books about him to the foot of his page at:
https://electricscotland.com/history...ow_william.htm
A bakery crowded with regular customers
I added this video to our Japan page as my mouth was watering just looking at all the goods they were baking.
You can watch this at:
https://electricscotland.com/history/japan/index.htm
Story
AMONG THE FARTHEST HEBRIDES
We had left Tobermory sleeping quietly in a bath of sunshine, its well-wooded bay looked cool and green, reminding one of Isola Bella, so transparent is the atmosphere and so brilliant the summer light in the western islands. High overhead a Marconigram receiver—if that be the proper scientific term—casts its reflection on the smooth waters, beneath which divers are zealously seeking the treasures of the Armada, thus strangely do the centuries jostle each other. Over against us are the dark hills of Morven with their sweet reminiscences of a Highland Parish, where a family of famous Scottish preachers spent their happy boyhood. Bugged Ardnamurchan stands boldly forth, the type of the happy warrior steadfastly battling against storm and oppression—a cloud of spume by day, a warning beacon by night to warn and direct the erring mariner. Our antiquated little cargo steamer doggedly thrusts her blunt nose through the great green waves, and puffs and pants on her nine-knot course with the plodding determination of struggling talent. After passing the low-lying islands of Coll and Tiree, there arise to the north the weirdly-shaped outlines of Eigg, Muck, Bum and Canna, with the blue hills of Skye in the distance. We are out of the track of commercial shipping, so there are no giant liners, no picturesque “windjammers,” nothing but a row of blue-pointed hills showing up against the western skyline, like the smokestacks of giant warships sailing hull down. These are the distant Hebrides,—rightly considered, a range of mountains raising their rocky heads above the green twilight of the sea to offer a precarious foothold to a few hardy humans, and a peaceful abode to countless myriads of sea-fowl. The solid land we are slowly approaching is Barra, the chief of a little group of islands, one of which, Muldoanich, guards the entrance to Castlebay and is uninhabited save by flocks of those hardy sheep whose fleece provides the famous Harris tweed.
Another little island,
VATERSAY,
lying to the south of Barra, has recently been invaded by a few starving crofters, who have dared to seek here the smiling tillage which the larger island denied. Standing in the middle of the bay of Castlebay, is a little rocky islet surmounted by an ancient keep, in whose shadow the seal and the sea-mew listlessly enjoy the pleasures of digestion, and in the waters around are moored fishing-boats of every type to be met with near our shores. Rising almost from the water’s edge is Mount Heaval, whose cone of a thousand odd feet looks more imposing and majestic than many a peak of greater altitude situated in a hilly country. The strong odour of fish offal proclaims this to be no gilt-edged abode of touristry, yet it is an interesting land well worth our closest scrutiny and observation.
The traveller who finds his way to the rocky island of Barra has many surprises awaiting him. At first he fancies himself in Galway, with its primitive cabins and emerald fields of immature oats. The inhabitants, too, are Irish in appearance and Roman Catholic in religion, only a few families being Protestant. Again, the wiry hill-ponies with pack-saddles and fish-creels filled with stores remind one of the Pyrenees and the Spanish muleteer. These ponies, sure-footed as goats, are well adapted for climbing the rocky pathways of an island where there is but one well-made road. The cows watched by some aged dame or tethered to a little patch of pasture no bigger than a parlour floor, recall similar scenes among the fiords of Norway, and the Norwegian character is further emphasised by the wooden fish-curing sheds planted along the shores of Castlebay.
THE STUDENT OF FOLKLORE,
if he be acquainted with Gaelic, will learn from the people many a quaint legend of brownie and kelpie, and the antiquary may here observe the ancient implements of husbandry in vogue more than a century ago on the mainland, when the sickle and the flail, the spindle and distaff, were important and necessary adjuncts of household life.
Words are powerless to describe the exceeding poverty of the soil. Green grow the rashes everywhere, a sure token of insufficient drainage or of sour bogland. The sole crops are oats and potatoes, these latter being grown in trenches called “lazy beds,” a mode of culture that obtains where the depth of soil is such that the spade instead of the plough must be employed. Fields of rye and barley are to be met with in the west, where the wind-blown sand, mixing with the soil, offers a suitable habitat for these cereals. Old and young climb the hills to dig the turf which forms their fuel, or to cut the wild mountain grasses for their only cow, whose existence must be as exiguous as that of her human owners. The bed-rock crops out everywhere, forming islands of desolation in the midst of very tiny lakes of scanty tillage. On this stony ground the grain springs up as rapidly as that spoken of in the Evangile, and is as soon withered up by the fervent heat of the sun. Fields of golden marigold are beautiful to the aesthetic observer, but are less satisfying to the hungry crofter. No pleasant
WAYSIDE BLOSSOMS
charm the sight or woo the imagination, none but the ill-weeds that grow apace to vex the weary husbandman, the burdock, dead-nettle, dodder, and all manner of tares fit only to be bound into bundles and cast into the fire. There are no trees except in tiny glens, where attempts at afforestation have proved abortive. Every available foot of ground is tilled, but there are still many waste places gay with sparse heather, bog asphodel, and snowy canna.
To compensate for the poverty of the soil, Providence sends annually to these shores, shoals of the finest herring. What gold is to Klondyke, the herring is to Barra, and especially to Castlebay, the chief centre of population in the south of the island. These large and beautiful fish are too dear for home consumption, but, when cured, are shipped to Russia and Germany, where they are almost as expensive as caviare. It is somewhat surprising to hear the inhabitants of this wind-swept island speak as fluently of marks and roubles as we might of shillings and sixpences. The fishing begins about the first week of May and lasts through the summer, for July marks the close of the harvest. The prices of the herring vary according to the quality of the fish and the abundance or scarcity of the catch, but, when we observe that the high-water mark is something over £4 per cran, it will be understood at once that the consumers are not moujiks. Fishermen from all parts of the kingdom congregate like gulls to collect these shoals of silvery beauties, and disappear as mysteriously when the waters cease to yield their harvest, so that naturally much of the wealth returns with the strangers, and the island is not greatly benefited thereby.
Although the geographical names undoubtedly point to an epoch when this was the home of
FIERCE NORWEGIAN JARLS,
there is very little trace of Teutonic admixture in the Celtic inhabitants of to-day. The people, though poor, are bright and hospitable, and are endowed with a large share of that charm of manner which seems to be the birthright of all Celtic races. They appear very tenacious of their mother tongue, for one seldom hears English except among the strangers whom trade has brought to the island. During the winter the women and children are left to guard the tiny garth, while husbands and stalwart sons migrate to the shipbuilding towns on the Clyde, or earn a living as sailors on the large liners, but they never forget the stone cabin, for they always endeavour to send some of their small economies home to keep away the ever-baying wolf. It is no unusual thing to enter into conversation with the simple-minded peasant and find that, having seen all the world’s famous beauty spots he prefers to end his days in the surroundings in which he first saw the light, and for which he experiences a heart-hunger we city-bred people wot not of.
The western shores of the island are very beautiful, with the jade waters of the Atlantic dashing in constant fury or murmurous fret on sandy creek or everlasting rock, but the winter storms have raised up dunes of sand, which threaten to overwhelm what little remains for man to cultivate. The artist will find this a dreamland of fairy-mist and divine colour, and the social reformer will find here many a moral wherewith to adorn his platform oratory.
Glasgow.
J. P. Park.
END
Weekend is almost here and hope it's a good one for you.
Alastair