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Electric Scotland News
On 31st January 2025 I'm 74. I only mention this as I got a birthday card in which on the cover states...
The 3 Keys to a Long Life
1. Strict exercise regime
2. Low-fat, Low-sugar, Low-salt diet
3. Very minimal alcohol intake
and then on the inside it says...
No wonder old people are so cranky!
Happy Birthday
I confess I am not cranky... but I don't do exercise, I don't do diet but as it happens I do have a minimal alcohol intake.
--------
Very impressed with Donald Trumps first week in office although not a fan on his tariffs.
I did add a couple of videos to our News section on Canada's reaction to his tariff threats to Canada.
-------
In the story this week I note there is a mention of how the MacLeod's were tall people with one at 6ft 7in which is likely where Barron Trump gets his height from as Donald Trumps mother was a MacLeod.
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...
The Brexiteers have been vindicated
The EU is in disarray. Annual GDP per capita growth is disappearing, ageing populations are weighing down the economies of member states and regulation is becoming ever more stifling. While the UK is not at its best right now, a new book lays out why things would be so much worse had we decided to remain in 2016.
Read more at:
https://capx.co/by-voting-to-leave-t...-terrible-fate
Conrad Black: Carney isn't an outsider - he's a dyed-in-the-wool liberal like Trudeau
The former central bank governor is a tired tribune of failed attitudes and misdirected political reflexes
Read more at:
https://archive.is/iYGBy
The history of haggis in Scotland and why our national dish is eaten on Burns Night
With Burns Night just around the corner, the Daily Record has taken a look into the history of haggis and why it is traditionally served on January 25 in honour of the bard.
Read more at:
https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/scotla...-dish-34532553
Huge moment for Nigel Farage as Reform ahead of Labour in poll for first time
Labour continues to struggle in the polls as the Southport killings and October's divisive Budget pile more pressure on Keir Starmer.
Read more at:
https://www.express.co.uk/news/polit...l-keir-starmer
King Charles wears tartan kilt in new image released to mark Burns Night
The kilt includes green, red and blue stripes and is made from King Charles III tartan
View the picture at:
https://news.stv.tv/world/king-charl...rk-burns-night
Storm Eowyn: 20,000 without power and train lines closed amid 'difficult' clear up
The storm brought the most intense weather in recent history, with record-breaking wind speeds of up to 100mph.
Read more at:
https://news.stv.tv/scotland/storm-e...icult-clear-up
Trump Humiliates The LA Mayor And She Crumbles On Live TV
Watch this interesting press conference at:
https://youtu.be/nnpOsMCVcek?si=qvDvF8H2nffB2rdY
Charlie Angus explains why Canada will not be bullied
A YouTube short viideo
Watch this at:
https://youtube.com/shorts/bKqnkSDEE...Nn0fwWOD1g7-eB
Canada Made Tough Decision Against US: Trump Didn’t Expect This Much!
Discover how Donald Trump's trade fight could reshape the global economy! Explore tensions between the US, Canada and Mexico as tariffs threaten to disrupt vital trade networks. What happens if Canada cuts oil exports or Mexico retaliates with tariffs on its agricultural and automotive sectors? Examine the ripple effects of protectionist policies on employment, prices and international relations
Watch this at:
https://youtu.be/yOvrir6lK3o?si=Vg8oLgM0xu6SQUbo
How Reform can now say Vote Tory - get SNP.
By Linda Holt
Read more at:
https://thinkscotland.org/2025/01/ho...-tory-get-snp/
After Trump’s OECD bombshell, the UK must slash corporate tax
The Treasury is already feeling the impact of Donald Trump's return. By shattering OECD plans to create a corporate tax cartel, Trump has left the UK in a quandary. Rachel Reeves must choose between losing £2.8bn in revenue, or the risk of a trade war with the US. A radical rethink of our tax policy could be the only way out.
Read more at:
https://capx.co/after-trumps-oecd-bo...-corporate-tax
Why America Can't USE The Oil it DRILLS
This might be crazy to think about, but the U.S. exports a lot of the oil we drill and produce, and then turn around and import oil we actually refine, from other countries. This is one of those counter-intuitive situations that deserves a deeper dive. So today we'll figure out what's happened for this to be the case, and what the future of oil looks like. Let's
Go!
Watch this at:
https://youtu.be/_l1cj_AyR1E?si=4DuwdOL1xB0ooVKv
Conrad Black: The insidious BDS campaign trying to undermine our universities
Unions are using racist lies to push Ontario's University Pension Plan to divest from any company that does business in Israel
Read more at:
https://archive.is/9YIES
Alarming diets of Scottish children revealed in first study in 15 years
Food high in fats, sugar and salt are accounting for an unhealthy amount of children's diets across Scotland, the food watchdog found.
Read more at:
https://news.stv.tv/scotland/alarmin...dy-in-15-years
Why Chinese AI has stunned the world
DeepSeek’s models are much cheaper and almost as good as American rivals
Read more at:
https://archive.is/eyzTP
The Home Office is losing public trust
How do you create a low-trust society? Hire an administrative class which treats the views of ordinary people with contempt. The recommendations of a leaked counter-extremism report include labelling concerns over two-tier policing as a 'right-wing extremist narrative'. Heads should roll at the Home Office – but they won't.
Read more at:
https://archive.is/Ifoz7
John Kennedy Defends Trump Federal Grants Pause
On the Senate floor, Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA) defended President Trump's pause on federal grants.
Watch this at:
https://youtu.be/-ashtwp2B9c?si=Hs7ADq2iUjkRxuBl
Canada Just Did the Unthinkable US Trade on the Brink of Collapse?
For decades, Canada and the United States have enjoyed one of the world’s most stable trade relationships. But now, everything is about to change. Behind closed doors, Canada is planning bold, unprecedented actions in response to US trade policies and the ripple effects could disrupt the global economy.
Watch this at:
https://youtu.be/uWalHUuJi-8?si=l2_ub0ZCVTYBzAWQ
Electric Canadian
James Fitzgibbon
The Life or James Fitzgibbon by Mary Agnes Fitzgibbon (1894)
A Scots Irish tale of an amazing man that did so much good for Canada during the war of 1812 and also the defence of Toronto and other deeds. Highly recommend this book which you can read at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/make...fitzgibbon.htm
The Anglo-American Magazine
Added Volume 2 and the first article is about the war between Great Britain and the United States in 1812, 1813 and 1814.
You can read this at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/maga...loamerican.htm
Thoughts on a Sunday Morning - the 26th day of January 2024 - The Ripple Effect
By the Rev. Nola Crewe
You can watch this at:
http://www.electricscotland.org/foru...-ripple-effect
Archibald MacDonald
Colonial administrator, author, fur trader, justice of the peace, and surveyor
You can read about him at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/make...-macdonald.htm
Tom Thomson
The story of a man who looked for beauty and for truth in the Wilderness by Blodwen Davies, forewood by A. Y Jackson, R.C.A., Sketches by Arthur Lismer, R.C.A. (1967) (pdf)
You can read about him at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/life...weindavies.pdf
The Beaver Magazine
Added Volume 4 No. 2 (pdf)
You can read this issue at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/tran...vember1923.pdf
Electric Scotland
The National Covenant
The 1763 edition and other information.
You can read this at:
https://electricscotland.com/bible/n...-covenaant.htm
The Life of Edwin Forrest
The American Tragedian by William Rounseville Alger in two volumes (1877)
You can read more about this Scots descendant at:
https://electricscotland.com/history...in-forrest.htm
The Gospel of Wealth
By Andrew Carnegie (1906) (pdf)
You can read this article at:
https://electricscotland.com/history...ealth-1906.pdf
Calum I. Maclean's Fieldwork Diaries in Arisaig, Morar, and Moidart, 1954
Part one to eleven (pdf). This is an update to add part 11.
You can read this update at:
https://electricscotland.com/history...ARIES_IN_A.pdf
Scottish Artificial Islands or "Crannogs"
By John Stuart, FSAScot, From the Proceedings of the Society, March 1865. (pdf)
You can read this article at:
https://electricscotland.com/history...5id1398194.pdf
The Spottiswoode Miscellany
Original papers and tracts on the Civil and Ecclesiastical History of Scotland in two volumes
You can read these volumes at:
https://electricscotland.com/history/spotiswoode.htm
The Story of the Fourth Army in the Battles of the Hundred Days
August 8th to November 11th, 1918 by Major-General Sir Archibald Montgomery, K.C.M.G., C.B., General Staff, Fourth Army With a Foreword by General Lord Rawlinson G.C.B., G.C.V.O., K.C.M.G., A.D.C. (1919) (pdf)
You can red this book at:
https://electricscotland.com/history...harm01mont.pdf
Stories of Scotland
And its adjacent Islands by Mrs. Thomas Geldart (1851) (pdf)
You can read this book at:
https://electricscotland.com/books/p...tlan00geld.pdf
Speeches of Thomas Lord Erskine
Reprinted from the five volume octavo edition of 1810 with a Memoir of his Life by Edward Walford, M.A. in two volumes (1870). Added a link to these two volumes to the foot of the page.
You can read these volumes at:
https://electricscotland.com/history/nation/erskine.htm
Harsh Reality of Double-Edged Digital Era
"Digital was supposed to release each and every one of us from the daily grind of work carrying with it increased leisure all round. The reality is somewhat different." An article by Bill Magee.
You can read this article at:
https://electricscotland.com/magee/article0024.pdf
US presidents of Scottish descent
Added video histories to this page which you can get to at:
https://electricscotland.com/history...presidents.htm
When Scotland Made Its Own Gas
A video presentation on the history of Scottish Gas
You can learn more at:
https://electricscotland.com/business/gas.htm
Faith and the family
By Elizabeth Ritchie (2021) (pdf)
You can read this book at:
https://electricscotland.com/bible/F..._SHR_final.pdf
The General Armory of England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales
Comprising a register of Armorial Bearings from the earliest to the present time by Sir Bernard Burke, C.B., LL.D., Ulster King of Arms (1884) (pdf)
You can read this book at:
https://electricscotland.com/heraldr...fe0000unse.pdf
Story
THE MACLEODS OF MORVEN.
By Fionn
The name of the Macleods of Morven has been closely associated with the Church of Scotland for over a century, and the family has given to that Church some of its most powerful and eloquent preachers and model pastors.
The Morven family came from Skye, that isle of romance and chivalry, though its real progenitor was Torquail Macleod of Assynt, Sutherlandshire. Torquail’s son, Donald, settled as tacksman at Swordale, Skye, close to Dunvegan Castle. The eldest son of the “gentleman tacksman” of Swordale was the Rev. Norman Macleod, whom we may designate Norman I. of Morven. He was born in the memorable ’45, and was admitted minister of Morven at the age of thirty. To prevent confusion it may be well here to give a chronological tree of the family, as owing to the frequency of the family name of Norman, a good deal of misunderstanding exists as to the relationship of the various distinguished bearers of his name.
The Macleods of Morven have always been men of powerful physique, commanding presence and graceful men, with a kindly courtesy which secured the true reverence and respect of high and low. We are told that Norman I. of Morven was upwards of six feet in height, with a noble countenance, which age only made nobler. In 1777 he married Jane Morrison, daughter of John Morrison (Achnaba) whose wife, Jessie, was the daughter of John Campbell (Barnacarry) and Grace Macneill of Colonsay. They were blessed with a family of seventeen (of whom four were sons), but only three daughters survived to middle or old age, and two of the sons, Norman and John. When the minister of Morven entered on his charge the stipend was £40, which was afterwards raised to £80, to which, however, must be added a good glebe and a very moderately rented farm. His charge was scattered over 130 square miles with a seaboard of 100 miles. For close on half a century he ministered to the spiritual wants of some 2000 souls, and before he passed away, in 1824 he had the joy of seeing his youngest son, John, appointed as his assistant and successor. This Norman I. of Morven was a man of literary tastes, and some of his Gaelic compositions will be found in Ronald Macdonald’s collection of Gaelic songs, 1776.
NORMAN II.—CARAID NAN GAIDHEAL.
The eldest son of the Manse, Norman, was born at Fiunary, Morven, on the 2nd December 1783. He was tutored at home, and about the close of the century entered the Glasgow University, where he finished his “Arts” in 1803-4, and entered the Divinity Hall of Edinburgh University in 1804. He completed his course of study for the ministry in 1807-8, was licensed by the Presbytery of Mull, and was shortly afterwards appointed assistant in the parish of Kilbrandon, Argyllshire. In June 1808 he was ordained to the first charge of Campbeltown, Argyll, where he continued until 1825, when he was translated to the parish of Campsie, near Glasgow. During his incumbency in Campbeltown he took an active part in the work of the Church Courts, being specially interested in Highland Education, making powerful appeals in toe General Assembly on behalf of his Highland fellow-countrymen. He had Gaelic schools established throughout the Highlands, and prepared admirable Gaelic school books for the children. Although resident in the Lowland parish of Campsie, his heart was ever in the Highlands, and he devoted much of his time devising schemes for the benefit of the Gaelic-speaking people. He started in 1829 a Gaelic monthly magazine called “An Teachdaire Gaelach ”—The Gaelic Messenger—which lived for several years, and which was in point of talent, interest, usefulness, and genius the most precious literary boon ever conferred on the Highlands. Along with Principal Dewar, Aberdeen, he prepared a Gaelic Dictionary, which was published in 1831, and which still holds the field.
From Campsie he paid a visit in 1833 to the Celts of the north of Ireland, and preached to them in the Gaelic tongue. Finding the Presbyterians there without a manual of praise he, along with an Irish gentleman, Mr. Thaddeus Connellan, adapted the Scottish Gaelic version of the psalms to the use of the Celts of Ireland. The work was completed in 1836, and dedicated to King William IV., who graciously accepted a copy for the Royal Library. His ministry in Campsie was most successful, and there was great regret in the parish when, in 1836, he accepted the call to the Gaelic Chapel, Glasgow, afterwards known as St. Columba Church. That same year he was chosen Moderator of the General Assembly, and his “Alma Mater” conferred upon him the degree of D.D. He was also appointed Dean of the Chapel Royal and one of the Queen’s Chaplains, in which capacity he preached before the late Queen and the Prince Consort at Blair Atholl during their visit to Scotland in 1842.
Dr. Macleod took a leading place in the Church Courts during the ten years’ controversy which ended in the Disruption of 1843. It is a remarkable fact that while in the northern Highlands especially the bulk of the Gaelic speaking people followed the Free Church, Dr. Macleod’s congregation was not the least affected, showing that the ties which bound pastor and people together were of a peculiar kind.
During the famine of 1836-37 he visited England and addressed numerous meetings for the purpose of securing support for his famishing fellow-countrymen. In 1847, when another famine was raging on account of the failure of the potato crop, he visited the Highlands, and did much for the suffering people. It was for these and other like services that he secured for himself the enviable sobriquet of “Caraid nan Gaidheal”—The Highlander’s friend. Dr. Macleod married, in 1811, Agnes, daughter of James Maxwell, Aros, Mull, Chamberlain to the Duke of Argyll. Of their eleven children four sons and three daughters reached maturity. Dr. Macleod died at Glasgow on 25th November, 1862, in the eightieth year of his age and fifty-seventh of his ministry. We have already referred to the Gaelic school books prepared by Dr. Macleod and his painstaking secretaries, Macfarlane, father and son. The first was entitled u Co-chruinneachadh air a chur ri cheile air iarrtus Comuinn Ardsheanadh Eaglais na h-Alba; airson an sgoilean, air feadh Tirmor ague Eileana na Gaeltachd, 1828.” This was followed by “Leabhar nan Cnoc” in 1834. His contributions to the “Teachdaire,” “An Cuairtear,” and “Fear Tathaich nan Beann,” were published in a collected form in 1867, edited by Dr. Clerk of Kilmallie, and called “Caraid nan Gaidheal" Dr. Macleod is known as the author of the song “Farewell to Fiunary,” which is equally popular in Gaelic as in English, in which it was composed.
DR. JOHN OF MORVEN.
The first Norman Macleod of Morven was succeeded by his younger son, Rev. John Macleod, who was born at Fiunary on 31st March, 1801. He was licensed by the Presbytery of Mull in November, 1823, and succeeded his father as minister of Morven in September, 1824. In 1845 the University of Glasgow, his “Alma Mater,” conferred upon him the degree of D.D. In 1851 he was elected Moderator of the General Assembly, and appointed Dean of the Most Noble Order of the Thistle and Dean of the Chapel Royal. He married in 1834 Margaret, daughter of Daniel Maclean of Boreray and Drimnin, a grand-daughter of Donald Macleod of Bernera, many of whose family attained to great distinction, with issue Rev. Norman Macleod, D.D., late of Inverness, and the late Rev. John Macleod, D.D., Govan, and two daughters who died in childhood. Dr. John Macleod (Iain Mor na Morairne) possessed the physique of the Macleods in an eminent degree. He was six feet seven in height, with a powerful athletic frame, which caused him to be facetiously referred to as the “High Priest of Morven.” He spoke Gaelic with great freedom and with a grace of idiom seldom equalled, and contributed extensively to his brother Norman’s Gaelic periodicals, writing also several Gaelic poems and hymns. He received many calls to greater parishes, but he preferred to remain amid the scenes of his youth in woody Morven on the shores of the Sound of Mull. The Rev. Dr. John Macleod died at Fiunary in 1882, the combined ministry of the father and son in that one parish having extended over the extraordinary period of 105 years.
CARAID NAN GAIDHEAL’S FAMILY.
Of the family of Norman II. (Caraid nan Gaidheal) little need be said, as their life and history must be well known to my readers. Norman of the Barony was born at Campbeltown in June, 1821. He was minister at Loudon, Dalkeith, and finally in the Barony, Glasgow. He was a pastor, a poet, a preacher, an editor, an orator, a novelist. The Celtic side of his character is best seen in his most attractive work—“Reminisences of a Highland Parish.” He died at Glasgow in 1872. The other sons are Colonel John N. Macleod of Glensaddell, Kintyre; the late Sir George H. B. Macleod, who was born in 1828, and died at Glasgow in 1887; Dr. Donald Macleod of Park Parish, Glasgow, the editor of “Good Words.”
Dr. Norman Macleod, late of Inverness, is the only surviving son of Dr. John Macleod of Morven. He was for a time minister of St. Columba Church, Glasgow, and afterwards at Blair-Atholl and Edinburgh. His brother, Dr. John Macleod of Govan was born at Fiunary in 1848, and died at Govan in 1898. Through all the Macleods of Morven a rich view of robust vital poetry can be traced, and on a future occasion we may deal with the poetry of the family.
END.
Weekend is almost here and hope it's a good one for you.
Alastair
PS Our newsletter archives can always be found at:
https://electricscotland.com/newsletter/index.htm
On 31st January 2025 I'm 74. I only mention this as I got a birthday card in which on the cover states...
The 3 Keys to a Long Life
1. Strict exercise regime
2. Low-fat, Low-sugar, Low-salt diet
3. Very minimal alcohol intake
and then on the inside it says...
No wonder old people are so cranky!
Happy Birthday
I confess I am not cranky... but I don't do exercise, I don't do diet but as it happens I do have a minimal alcohol intake.
--------
Very impressed with Donald Trumps first week in office although not a fan on his tariffs.
I did add a couple of videos to our News section on Canada's reaction to his tariff threats to Canada.
-------
In the story this week I note there is a mention of how the MacLeod's were tall people with one at 6ft 7in which is likely where Barron Trump gets his height from as Donald Trumps mother was a MacLeod.
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...
The Brexiteers have been vindicated
The EU is in disarray. Annual GDP per capita growth is disappearing, ageing populations are weighing down the economies of member states and regulation is becoming ever more stifling. While the UK is not at its best right now, a new book lays out why things would be so much worse had we decided to remain in 2016.
Read more at:
https://capx.co/by-voting-to-leave-t...-terrible-fate
Conrad Black: Carney isn't an outsider - he's a dyed-in-the-wool liberal like Trudeau
The former central bank governor is a tired tribune of failed attitudes and misdirected political reflexes
Read more at:
https://archive.is/iYGBy
The history of haggis in Scotland and why our national dish is eaten on Burns Night
With Burns Night just around the corner, the Daily Record has taken a look into the history of haggis and why it is traditionally served on January 25 in honour of the bard.
Read more at:
https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/scotla...-dish-34532553
Huge moment for Nigel Farage as Reform ahead of Labour in poll for first time
Labour continues to struggle in the polls as the Southport killings and October's divisive Budget pile more pressure on Keir Starmer.
Read more at:
https://www.express.co.uk/news/polit...l-keir-starmer
King Charles wears tartan kilt in new image released to mark Burns Night
The kilt includes green, red and blue stripes and is made from King Charles III tartan
View the picture at:
https://news.stv.tv/world/king-charl...rk-burns-night
Storm Eowyn: 20,000 without power and train lines closed amid 'difficult' clear up
The storm brought the most intense weather in recent history, with record-breaking wind speeds of up to 100mph.
Read more at:
https://news.stv.tv/scotland/storm-e...icult-clear-up
Trump Humiliates The LA Mayor And She Crumbles On Live TV
Watch this interesting press conference at:
https://youtu.be/nnpOsMCVcek?si=qvDvF8H2nffB2rdY
Charlie Angus explains why Canada will not be bullied
A YouTube short viideo
Watch this at:
https://youtube.com/shorts/bKqnkSDEE...Nn0fwWOD1g7-eB
Canada Made Tough Decision Against US: Trump Didn’t Expect This Much!
Discover how Donald Trump's trade fight could reshape the global economy! Explore tensions between the US, Canada and Mexico as tariffs threaten to disrupt vital trade networks. What happens if Canada cuts oil exports or Mexico retaliates with tariffs on its agricultural and automotive sectors? Examine the ripple effects of protectionist policies on employment, prices and international relations
Watch this at:
https://youtu.be/yOvrir6lK3o?si=Vg8oLgM0xu6SQUbo
How Reform can now say Vote Tory - get SNP.
By Linda Holt
Read more at:
https://thinkscotland.org/2025/01/ho...-tory-get-snp/
After Trump’s OECD bombshell, the UK must slash corporate tax
The Treasury is already feeling the impact of Donald Trump's return. By shattering OECD plans to create a corporate tax cartel, Trump has left the UK in a quandary. Rachel Reeves must choose between losing £2.8bn in revenue, or the risk of a trade war with the US. A radical rethink of our tax policy could be the only way out.
Read more at:
https://capx.co/after-trumps-oecd-bo...-corporate-tax
Why America Can't USE The Oil it DRILLS
This might be crazy to think about, but the U.S. exports a lot of the oil we drill and produce, and then turn around and import oil we actually refine, from other countries. This is one of those counter-intuitive situations that deserves a deeper dive. So today we'll figure out what's happened for this to be the case, and what the future of oil looks like. Let's
Go!
Watch this at:
https://youtu.be/_l1cj_AyR1E?si=4DuwdOL1xB0ooVKv
Conrad Black: The insidious BDS campaign trying to undermine our universities
Unions are using racist lies to push Ontario's University Pension Plan to divest from any company that does business in Israel
Read more at:
https://archive.is/9YIES
Alarming diets of Scottish children revealed in first study in 15 years
Food high in fats, sugar and salt are accounting for an unhealthy amount of children's diets across Scotland, the food watchdog found.
Read more at:
https://news.stv.tv/scotland/alarmin...dy-in-15-years
Why Chinese AI has stunned the world
DeepSeek’s models are much cheaper and almost as good as American rivals
Read more at:
https://archive.is/eyzTP
The Home Office is losing public trust
How do you create a low-trust society? Hire an administrative class which treats the views of ordinary people with contempt. The recommendations of a leaked counter-extremism report include labelling concerns over two-tier policing as a 'right-wing extremist narrative'. Heads should roll at the Home Office – but they won't.
Read more at:
https://archive.is/Ifoz7
John Kennedy Defends Trump Federal Grants Pause
On the Senate floor, Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA) defended President Trump's pause on federal grants.
Watch this at:
https://youtu.be/-ashtwp2B9c?si=Hs7ADq2iUjkRxuBl
Canada Just Did the Unthinkable US Trade on the Brink of Collapse?
For decades, Canada and the United States have enjoyed one of the world’s most stable trade relationships. But now, everything is about to change. Behind closed doors, Canada is planning bold, unprecedented actions in response to US trade policies and the ripple effects could disrupt the global economy.
Watch this at:
https://youtu.be/uWalHUuJi-8?si=l2_ub0ZCVTYBzAWQ
Electric Canadian
James Fitzgibbon
The Life or James Fitzgibbon by Mary Agnes Fitzgibbon (1894)
A Scots Irish tale of an amazing man that did so much good for Canada during the war of 1812 and also the defence of Toronto and other deeds. Highly recommend this book which you can read at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/make...fitzgibbon.htm
The Anglo-American Magazine
Added Volume 2 and the first article is about the war between Great Britain and the United States in 1812, 1813 and 1814.
You can read this at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/maga...loamerican.htm
Thoughts on a Sunday Morning - the 26th day of January 2024 - The Ripple Effect
By the Rev. Nola Crewe
You can watch this at:
http://www.electricscotland.org/foru...-ripple-effect
Archibald MacDonald
Colonial administrator, author, fur trader, justice of the peace, and surveyor
You can read about him at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/make...-macdonald.htm
Tom Thomson
The story of a man who looked for beauty and for truth in the Wilderness by Blodwen Davies, forewood by A. Y Jackson, R.C.A., Sketches by Arthur Lismer, R.C.A. (1967) (pdf)
You can read about him at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/life...weindavies.pdf
The Beaver Magazine
Added Volume 4 No. 2 (pdf)
You can read this issue at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/tran...vember1923.pdf
Electric Scotland
The National Covenant
The 1763 edition and other information.
You can read this at:
https://electricscotland.com/bible/n...-covenaant.htm
The Life of Edwin Forrest
The American Tragedian by William Rounseville Alger in two volumes (1877)
You can read more about this Scots descendant at:
https://electricscotland.com/history...in-forrest.htm
The Gospel of Wealth
By Andrew Carnegie (1906) (pdf)
You can read this article at:
https://electricscotland.com/history...ealth-1906.pdf
Calum I. Maclean's Fieldwork Diaries in Arisaig, Morar, and Moidart, 1954
Part one to eleven (pdf). This is an update to add part 11.
You can read this update at:
https://electricscotland.com/history...ARIES_IN_A.pdf
Scottish Artificial Islands or "Crannogs"
By John Stuart, FSAScot, From the Proceedings of the Society, March 1865. (pdf)
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https://electricscotland.com/history...5id1398194.pdf
The Spottiswoode Miscellany
Original papers and tracts on the Civil and Ecclesiastical History of Scotland in two volumes
You can read these volumes at:
https://electricscotland.com/history/spotiswoode.htm
The Story of the Fourth Army in the Battles of the Hundred Days
August 8th to November 11th, 1918 by Major-General Sir Archibald Montgomery, K.C.M.G., C.B., General Staff, Fourth Army With a Foreword by General Lord Rawlinson G.C.B., G.C.V.O., K.C.M.G., A.D.C. (1919) (pdf)
You can red this book at:
https://electricscotland.com/history...harm01mont.pdf
Stories of Scotland
And its adjacent Islands by Mrs. Thomas Geldart (1851) (pdf)
You can read this book at:
https://electricscotland.com/books/p...tlan00geld.pdf
Speeches of Thomas Lord Erskine
Reprinted from the five volume octavo edition of 1810 with a Memoir of his Life by Edward Walford, M.A. in two volumes (1870). Added a link to these two volumes to the foot of the page.
You can read these volumes at:
https://electricscotland.com/history/nation/erskine.htm
Harsh Reality of Double-Edged Digital Era
"Digital was supposed to release each and every one of us from the daily grind of work carrying with it increased leisure all round. The reality is somewhat different." An article by Bill Magee.
You can read this article at:
https://electricscotland.com/magee/article0024.pdf
US presidents of Scottish descent
Added video histories to this page which you can get to at:
https://electricscotland.com/history...presidents.htm
When Scotland Made Its Own Gas
A video presentation on the history of Scottish Gas
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https://electricscotland.com/business/gas.htm
Faith and the family
By Elizabeth Ritchie (2021) (pdf)
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https://electricscotland.com/bible/F..._SHR_final.pdf
The General Armory of England, Scotland, Ireland and Wales
Comprising a register of Armorial Bearings from the earliest to the present time by Sir Bernard Burke, C.B., LL.D., Ulster King of Arms (1884) (pdf)
You can read this book at:
https://electricscotland.com/heraldr...fe0000unse.pdf
Story
THE MACLEODS OF MORVEN.
By Fionn
The name of the Macleods of Morven has been closely associated with the Church of Scotland for over a century, and the family has given to that Church some of its most powerful and eloquent preachers and model pastors.
The Morven family came from Skye, that isle of romance and chivalry, though its real progenitor was Torquail Macleod of Assynt, Sutherlandshire. Torquail’s son, Donald, settled as tacksman at Swordale, Skye, close to Dunvegan Castle. The eldest son of the “gentleman tacksman” of Swordale was the Rev. Norman Macleod, whom we may designate Norman I. of Morven. He was born in the memorable ’45, and was admitted minister of Morven at the age of thirty. To prevent confusion it may be well here to give a chronological tree of the family, as owing to the frequency of the family name of Norman, a good deal of misunderstanding exists as to the relationship of the various distinguished bearers of his name.
The Macleods of Morven have always been men of powerful physique, commanding presence and graceful men, with a kindly courtesy which secured the true reverence and respect of high and low. We are told that Norman I. of Morven was upwards of six feet in height, with a noble countenance, which age only made nobler. In 1777 he married Jane Morrison, daughter of John Morrison (Achnaba) whose wife, Jessie, was the daughter of John Campbell (Barnacarry) and Grace Macneill of Colonsay. They were blessed with a family of seventeen (of whom four were sons), but only three daughters survived to middle or old age, and two of the sons, Norman and John. When the minister of Morven entered on his charge the stipend was £40, which was afterwards raised to £80, to which, however, must be added a good glebe and a very moderately rented farm. His charge was scattered over 130 square miles with a seaboard of 100 miles. For close on half a century he ministered to the spiritual wants of some 2000 souls, and before he passed away, in 1824 he had the joy of seeing his youngest son, John, appointed as his assistant and successor. This Norman I. of Morven was a man of literary tastes, and some of his Gaelic compositions will be found in Ronald Macdonald’s collection of Gaelic songs, 1776.
NORMAN II.—CARAID NAN GAIDHEAL.
The eldest son of the Manse, Norman, was born at Fiunary, Morven, on the 2nd December 1783. He was tutored at home, and about the close of the century entered the Glasgow University, where he finished his “Arts” in 1803-4, and entered the Divinity Hall of Edinburgh University in 1804. He completed his course of study for the ministry in 1807-8, was licensed by the Presbytery of Mull, and was shortly afterwards appointed assistant in the parish of Kilbrandon, Argyllshire. In June 1808 he was ordained to the first charge of Campbeltown, Argyll, where he continued until 1825, when he was translated to the parish of Campsie, near Glasgow. During his incumbency in Campbeltown he took an active part in the work of the Church Courts, being specially interested in Highland Education, making powerful appeals in toe General Assembly on behalf of his Highland fellow-countrymen. He had Gaelic schools established throughout the Highlands, and prepared admirable Gaelic school books for the children. Although resident in the Lowland parish of Campsie, his heart was ever in the Highlands, and he devoted much of his time devising schemes for the benefit of the Gaelic-speaking people. He started in 1829 a Gaelic monthly magazine called “An Teachdaire Gaelach ”—The Gaelic Messenger—which lived for several years, and which was in point of talent, interest, usefulness, and genius the most precious literary boon ever conferred on the Highlands. Along with Principal Dewar, Aberdeen, he prepared a Gaelic Dictionary, which was published in 1831, and which still holds the field.
From Campsie he paid a visit in 1833 to the Celts of the north of Ireland, and preached to them in the Gaelic tongue. Finding the Presbyterians there without a manual of praise he, along with an Irish gentleman, Mr. Thaddeus Connellan, adapted the Scottish Gaelic version of the psalms to the use of the Celts of Ireland. The work was completed in 1836, and dedicated to King William IV., who graciously accepted a copy for the Royal Library. His ministry in Campsie was most successful, and there was great regret in the parish when, in 1836, he accepted the call to the Gaelic Chapel, Glasgow, afterwards known as St. Columba Church. That same year he was chosen Moderator of the General Assembly, and his “Alma Mater” conferred upon him the degree of D.D. He was also appointed Dean of the Chapel Royal and one of the Queen’s Chaplains, in which capacity he preached before the late Queen and the Prince Consort at Blair Atholl during their visit to Scotland in 1842.
Dr. Macleod took a leading place in the Church Courts during the ten years’ controversy which ended in the Disruption of 1843. It is a remarkable fact that while in the northern Highlands especially the bulk of the Gaelic speaking people followed the Free Church, Dr. Macleod’s congregation was not the least affected, showing that the ties which bound pastor and people together were of a peculiar kind.
During the famine of 1836-37 he visited England and addressed numerous meetings for the purpose of securing support for his famishing fellow-countrymen. In 1847, when another famine was raging on account of the failure of the potato crop, he visited the Highlands, and did much for the suffering people. It was for these and other like services that he secured for himself the enviable sobriquet of “Caraid nan Gaidheal”—The Highlander’s friend. Dr. Macleod married, in 1811, Agnes, daughter of James Maxwell, Aros, Mull, Chamberlain to the Duke of Argyll. Of their eleven children four sons and three daughters reached maturity. Dr. Macleod died at Glasgow on 25th November, 1862, in the eightieth year of his age and fifty-seventh of his ministry. We have already referred to the Gaelic school books prepared by Dr. Macleod and his painstaking secretaries, Macfarlane, father and son. The first was entitled u Co-chruinneachadh air a chur ri cheile air iarrtus Comuinn Ardsheanadh Eaglais na h-Alba; airson an sgoilean, air feadh Tirmor ague Eileana na Gaeltachd, 1828.” This was followed by “Leabhar nan Cnoc” in 1834. His contributions to the “Teachdaire,” “An Cuairtear,” and “Fear Tathaich nan Beann,” were published in a collected form in 1867, edited by Dr. Clerk of Kilmallie, and called “Caraid nan Gaidheal" Dr. Macleod is known as the author of the song “Farewell to Fiunary,” which is equally popular in Gaelic as in English, in which it was composed.
DR. JOHN OF MORVEN.
The first Norman Macleod of Morven was succeeded by his younger son, Rev. John Macleod, who was born at Fiunary on 31st March, 1801. He was licensed by the Presbytery of Mull in November, 1823, and succeeded his father as minister of Morven in September, 1824. In 1845 the University of Glasgow, his “Alma Mater,” conferred upon him the degree of D.D. In 1851 he was elected Moderator of the General Assembly, and appointed Dean of the Most Noble Order of the Thistle and Dean of the Chapel Royal. He married in 1834 Margaret, daughter of Daniel Maclean of Boreray and Drimnin, a grand-daughter of Donald Macleod of Bernera, many of whose family attained to great distinction, with issue Rev. Norman Macleod, D.D., late of Inverness, and the late Rev. John Macleod, D.D., Govan, and two daughters who died in childhood. Dr. John Macleod (Iain Mor na Morairne) possessed the physique of the Macleods in an eminent degree. He was six feet seven in height, with a powerful athletic frame, which caused him to be facetiously referred to as the “High Priest of Morven.” He spoke Gaelic with great freedom and with a grace of idiom seldom equalled, and contributed extensively to his brother Norman’s Gaelic periodicals, writing also several Gaelic poems and hymns. He received many calls to greater parishes, but he preferred to remain amid the scenes of his youth in woody Morven on the shores of the Sound of Mull. The Rev. Dr. John Macleod died at Fiunary in 1882, the combined ministry of the father and son in that one parish having extended over the extraordinary period of 105 years.
CARAID NAN GAIDHEAL’S FAMILY.
Of the family of Norman II. (Caraid nan Gaidheal) little need be said, as their life and history must be well known to my readers. Norman of the Barony was born at Campbeltown in June, 1821. He was minister at Loudon, Dalkeith, and finally in the Barony, Glasgow. He was a pastor, a poet, a preacher, an editor, an orator, a novelist. The Celtic side of his character is best seen in his most attractive work—“Reminisences of a Highland Parish.” He died at Glasgow in 1872. The other sons are Colonel John N. Macleod of Glensaddell, Kintyre; the late Sir George H. B. Macleod, who was born in 1828, and died at Glasgow in 1887; Dr. Donald Macleod of Park Parish, Glasgow, the editor of “Good Words.”
Dr. Norman Macleod, late of Inverness, is the only surviving son of Dr. John Macleod of Morven. He was for a time minister of St. Columba Church, Glasgow, and afterwards at Blair-Atholl and Edinburgh. His brother, Dr. John Macleod of Govan was born at Fiunary in 1848, and died at Govan in 1898. Through all the Macleods of Morven a rich view of robust vital poetry can be traced, and on a future occasion we may deal with the poetry of the family.
END.
Weekend is almost here and hope it's a good one for you.
Alastair
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