Newsletter 13th February 2015

[Alastair]

For the latest news from Scotland see our ScotNews feed at:
http://www.electricscotland.com/

Electric Scotland News

Joan Morris kindly sent me in this article on copyright in the USA...

The Majority of Books Published Before 1964 Are Free of Copyrights

Over and over, genealogists have been told that the copyright has expired for all works published in the United States before 1923. In other words, if the work was published in the U.S. before January 1, 1923, anyone is free to republish excerpts or even the entire book without obtaining permission. That statement remains correct today. However, many genealogists are not aware that the overwhelming majority of all books published prior to 1964 are also free of copyright. That’s “the overwhelming majority of all books” but not all of them.Between 1923 and 1964, a renewal registration was required to prevent the expiration of copyright. If a work was first published before January 1, 1964, the owner had to file a renewal with the Copyright Office during the 28th year after publication. No renewal meant a loss of copyright. In other words, for all books published prior to 1964, the copyrights expired before January 11, 1992 IF THE COPYRIGHT WAS NOT RENEWED.

However, a 1961 report from the U.S. Copyright Office estimates that 85% of the books never had the copyrights renewed. (See http://www.copyright.gov/history/studies/study31.pdf, page 187.) Therefore, those books are now public domain.Major corporations generally had employees who monitored copyrights and made sure they were renewed before expiration. For instance, if you have a Disney comic book published during the 1940s, it probably is still under copyright because the Disney Corporation protected the company’s copyrights and made sure the copyrights were renewed on time. However, the overwhelming majority of genealogy books that were self-published by individual genealogists probably did not have the copyrights renewed. The key word in that sentence is PROBABLY.The laws changed for books published after January 1, 1964 and we can assume that all of those books are still under copyright today unless they were explicitly released to the public domain, according to U.S. copyright laws. The laws vary widely in other countries, however.Determining whether or not a work’s copyright registration has been renewed is a challenge but is not impossible. Renewals received by the Copyright Office after 1977 are searchable in an online database, but renewals received between 1950 and 1977 were announced and distributed only in a semi-annual print publication. The Copyright Office does not have a machine-searchable source for this renewal information, and the only public access is through the card catalog in the Copyright Office’s D.C. offices.In order to make these renewal records more accessible, Stanford University has created a Copyright Renewal Database. The database at http://collections.stanford.edu/copyrightrenewals/bin/page?forward=home covers only renewals, not original registrations, and is limited to books (Class A registrations) published in the U.S. As a result, the Copyright Renewal Database is a big help but is not the definitive answer to all copyright questions concerning books published prior to 1964.If you plan on using a work that was published after 1922, but before 1964, you should research the records of the Copyright Office to determine if a renewal was filed. You can research in person at the Copyright Office in Washington, D.C., or pay the Copyright Office to do a search for you $200.00 per hour (see http://www.copyright.gov/forms/search_estimate.html); or pay someone to perform the search for you.You can read more about these copyright issues at http://copyright.gov/circs/circ15.pdf, http://www.publicdomainsherpa.com/copyright-renewal.html, http://collections.stanford.edu/copyrightrenewals/bin/page?forward=home,http://onlinebooks.library.upenn.edu/renewals.html, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Copyright_renewal, and probably at a few dozen other web sites as well.

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Got a communication in this week that the Caledonian Society of Dubai has been closed down by the authorities there. This is because any unauthorised "association" in the UAE is against the law. I'm trying to find out more about this and should I get more information will keep you posted.

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The Scottish Review for February 2015 is now out and I see they published a letter I wrote to them and they have posted it under the title "Dumb Scots". See: http://www.scottishreview.net/index.html

I got an email in as a result which said...

Alastair,

that was a splendid and very relevant article in Scottish Review

I hope that at last, some of Scotland's leaders will take note.

I have a friend like you whose experience is similar, - Stuart Ballantyne a Scot based in Australia who was recently given an honorary PhD by Strathclyde University. Stuart designs ships for yards all over SE Asia and the Far East. He wanted to help revitalise Scottish yards and get them big contracts, through his contacts. While he was across getting the doctorate, he approached the Scottish Government and surprise, surprise, they showed absolutely no interest whatsoever!!!

Cést la vie! sadly

David

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The American-Scottish Foundation is honored to have been invited to join the Landmarks 50 project and to develop the project THE SCOTS WHO BUILT NEW YORK'S LANDMARKS, celebrating the contribution of Scottish Americans to the building of New York.

THE SCOTS WHO BUILT NEW YORK'S LANDMARKS charts the impact of Design, Development and Building of New York by leading Scottish architects & philanthropists. A series of talks is underway, the first given in October was on Charles McKim, and now we invite you to join us for the second talk which is on John McComb, Jr. and will take place on Monday February 23rd at the University Club, New York.

Further talks are planned, leading to an exhibit which later this year. The exhibit is in honor of the 50th Anniversary of Landmarks Preservation Law in 2015.

On February 23rd, we will explores the life and impact of John McComb, Jr., noted New York architect and stonemason of Scottish descent who was responsible for many of New York City's most iconic buildings.

Following the talk and reception is followed by the opportunity to continue talking over dinner. ASF Members please note special pricing when reserving.

For ticket information please visit their website at:
http://www.americanscottishfoundatio...ome/index.html

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Society of Antiquaries of Scotland

"Operation Nightingale, archaeology as a recovery tool for injured service personnel"
Lecture by Richard Osgood, Senior Historic Advisor, Ministry of Defence

Since 2011 military personnel have been engaged on archaeological projects across the UK and overseas as part of their recovery process following operational tours of Iraq and Afghanistan. This work has included examination of sites as diverse as a Saxon cemetery, an Iron Age midden and the crash site of a Battle of Britain Spitfire. Many of the participants have continued to find cultural heritage to be of great value in their lives - three individuals leaving the army to pursue a career in archaeology and others undertaking degree courses at University. This talk examines the sites, the discoveries and the teamwork of the projects collectively known as 'Operation Nightingale'

Monday 16 February 6.00pm, Royal Society of Edinburgh, 22-26 George Street, Edinburgh, EH2 2PQ
Tuesday 17 February 7.30pm, Regent Building Lecture Theatre, Regent Walk, Aberdeen, AB24 3FX
On a SURE footing: The National Trust for Scotland Sites and Monument Record now online
Fellow Stefan Sagrott, NTS Archaeological Data Officer, has been involved in a project to make the archaeological and built heritage data collected by the NTS over the past twenty years into an electronic resource http://canmore.rcahms.gov.uk/. Using the SURE system (Specialist User Recording Environment) system, 11,336 entries have been made available with more to come.

You can read more about this at http://www.socantscot.org/article.asp?aid=2474

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Family Tree DNA
New developments have made this offer even more attractive. Last week, MyHeritage has completed adding 900 million more international historical records, which it can match automatically with your family tree to find those relevant to your ancestors, saving you a huge amount of time on manual searches. The historical data store on MyHeritage has become even better and includes many exclusive records that cannot be found anywhere else. See http://tinyurl.com/o7lbf44 for details.

Electric Canadian

International Appalachian Trail (IAT)
Put up an article on the trail in Nova Scotia and some information on the whole trail as well which you can read at :http://www.electriccanadian.com/hist...appalaches.htm

Quebec
Added this wee booklet which gives the background to why the official language of Quebec is French. You can read this at http://www.electriccanadian.com/hist...nch_Quebec.pdf

The Flag in the Wind
It's been around 15 years since I started work with this publication. I have been rather vocal over the past few years that they needed to change to reflect the progress being made and other online Scottish Independence publications that have made much more progress than the Flag.

I was informed this week that they are at last going to do something new and so we will no longer be hosting the site as they really need local management, So this week sees the final edition we'll be hosting.

We wish them every success for the future.

Electric Scotland

Kincardinshire
By George H. Kinnear, F.E.I.S. (1921).

We've now completed this book.

You can view the final chapters at http://www.electricscotland.com/hist...hire/index.htm

Christopher North, A Memoir of John Wilson
By His Daughter Mrs Gordon (1863).

We've now completed this book but am adding several volumes of his contributions to Blackwood's Magazine in two collections which provides a lot of reading. The first collection is in 5 volumes called "The Noctes Ambrosianae" and the second collection is in 3 volumes called "Recreations of Christopher North:.

You can read all this at http://www.electricscotland.com/history/north/

George Douglas, Eighth Duke of Argyll K.G., K.T. (1823 - 1900)
Autobiography and Memoirs edited by the Dowager Duchess of Argyll with Portraits and Illustrations in two volumes. A new book we're starting.

PREFACE

The Autobiography of the Duke of Argyll was begun in the year 1897, but, unhappily, it was left unfinished.

The time that had been devoted to it meant to the writer some pleasant hours, and he was working at it in his leisure moments to the very end. Life had been to him so spacious, and all Nature so rich in interest and in beauty, that he had great pleasure in that form of literary art in which memory was invoked to bring back from the storehouse of the past all that had especially impressed him—matters of high consequence to great States, talks with famous men long since dead, how such a bird flew or dived on such a day, how some new truth was welcomed, or some vital belief was again confirmed. There was no bitterness in retrospect to one who could look back as fearlessly as he could on a long career of public service, of private duty, and of literary work; and set it down, having nothing equivocal to explain away, no change to justify or extenuate, no pronouncement of principle to retract. The completion of the work was left by the Duke in the hands of his wife, at whose earnest desire the Autobiography was undertaken, and who knew his thoughts and wishes concerning it. In taking up the broken thread of the narrative, the design has been to continue the history of his life, as far as possible, in the Duke’s own words, giving his thoughts and opinions through the medium of letters to friends, and quotations from his speeches and writings.

The Editor owes a debt of gratitude to all who have most kindly rendered important assistance in the carrying out of the work, by searching for letters from the Duke, often a laborious task when they were not of recent date, and especially when it so happened that these letters were amongst the still untouched papers of those who are gone. Permission has been kindly granted in many cases for the use and publication of valuable correspondence, and the kind and helpful sympathy shown in connection with the responsible work of editing these volumes has been deeply felt and appreciated.

Her Majesty Queen Victoria graciously granted permission to the Duke to publish in this work some of her letters, and those of the Prince Consort.

To the Earl of Mayo grateful thanks are due for his kindness in lending the correspondence of the Duke with the late Lord Mayo, who was Viceroy of India during a portion of the time when the Duke held the office of Secretary of State for India. The late Earl of Northbrook, who Succeeded Lord Mayo as Viceroy, also most kindly placed his correspondence with the Duke at the disposal of the Editor.

Grateful acknowledgment is due to the Duke of Devonshire; the Marquis of Salisbury; Mr. Henry Gladstone, with regard to the extensive correspondence with his father; Viscount Peel; Lord Tennyson; the Hon. Hollo Russell; Lord Stanmore; the Marchioness of Dufferin and Ava; Countess Granville; Lady Lilford; Miss Palgrave; the Earl of Halsbury; Earl Spencer; Mr. Bernard Mallet; the Hon. Evelyn Ashley; Mr. Charles Francis Adams; Lord Avebury; the Earl of Selbome; the Right Hon. Joseph Chamberlain; Lord Playfair; Mr. John Bright; Mr. Cree; Mr. Bosworth Smith; Professor Mackintosh; Professor Knight; Professor Butcher; Mr. Foreman; Sir Arthur Mitchell; the Archbishop of Canterbury; the Bishop of Bipon; Canon MacColl; the Very Rev. Donald Macleod; Sir Edmond Vemey; the Rev. J. Howson; Herr Prelat von Schmidt; and to Lady Vernon Harcourt, for permission to publish the letters of her father, Mr. Motley.

With regard to scientific papers, special thanks are due to Mr. Fletcher, head of the mineralogical department of the British Museum; Sir George Darwin; Sir Leonard Lyell; Lord Kelvin; Sir John Murray; Mr. Harvie Brown; Lady Flower; Mrs. Tyndall; Mrs. Max Muller; to Mrs. Owen, in connection with the letters of Sir Richard Owen; and to the trustees of Mr. Herbert Spencer.

Only deep regret can be felt for the irreparable loss entailed by the Autobiography having been left unfinished; but the pages which follow may not be wholly unworthy of his memory, if they have been made to show even a vague image of that intrepid and magnanimous spirit which remains so clear and so living to those who knew him.

INA ARGYLL.

You can read this book as get it up at: http://www.electricscotland.com/hist.../argyllndx.htm

Robert Burns Lives!
Edited by Frank Shaw

This is what I would call a scoop! I asked and she responded - affirmatively - if she would write an article on her recent delivery of the Immortal Memory at an all-male Burns club, one that was actually founded by Robert Burns, his brother Gilbert and a few of their acquaintances. Her “yes” reply was immortal to me. You see, I have a lot of pull in her home beginning with son Gregor who has had his own Immortal Memory published on Robert Burns Lives! for several years now and is the youngest person to ever present an Immortal Memory on RBL! Her daughter Dora and husband David are my friends as well, wonderful people. More importantly, or at least just as important, their loving dog Winnie is on my side too! Who could I be talking about other than the first woman to ever address an Immortal Memory at the famous, or infamous, Tarbolton Bachelor’s Club. There has been much publicity in the press on her the last couple of weeks and, hopefully, we will be able to entice her to speak to my own Burns Club in Atlanta one day. This talented speaker is also a singer and musician with enough academic degrees to make a lot of would-be Burnsian scholars blush. Allow me to introduce my good friend, Dr. Kirsteen McCue of Glasgow University and its Centre for Robert Burns Studies, and Sunday lunch chef extraordinaire!

Kirsteen has given many interviews on radio and television regarding her Tarbolton experience, but this is the first article by her personally. That is where the scoop comes in and I am extremely proud that her views are expressed on Robert Burns LivesI I look forward to smoking a Boston butt for six or seven on the grill for this delightful young family when they visit us in the States, hopefully sooner rather than later. My deepest thanks to her for sharing her thoughts with us.

Next week I look forward to bringing you various newspaper accounts of Kirsteen’s time at Tarbolton. (FRS: 2.10.15)

You can read this article, "Burns and the Bachelors" by Kirsteen McCue, University of Glasgow athttp://www.electricscotland.com/fami...s_lives211.htm

Angus McLean, Governor of North Carolina
Added a biography of him on our MacLean page.

I actually got hooked on reading this book as it contains his presentations to the General Assembly of North Carolina which I found quite fascinating. Here is the brief biography to read here...

ANGUS WILTON McLEAN
By WILLIAM H. RICHARDSON

I wish to carry to the office of governor sound business experience that will render an efficient, profitable administration; keen analytical judgment of the trend of wholesome social and political forces in the State; and an earnest desire to be of personal service to every one of the States citizens. It is a great task, and one fraught with grave responsibility. But the testimony of personal confidence shown by the people is too fine and noble to be disregarded.

I am proud of the testimonial and sensible of the trust. I shall try accurately to appraise the hopes and desires of the average citizen, the normal capacity of our industrial organizations. I shall try always to remember that the real greatness of any commonwealth, like that of any individual, rests upon two inherent forces, the one material, the other spiritual. But I do not want to forget, nor do I want you to let me forget, that the greater of these is spiritual.

With these words, Angus Wilton McLean, on January 14, 1925, concluded his inaugural address and immediately became governor of North Carolina. Four years later, after serving faithfully in the high office to which the people of the State had elected him, he retired to private life.

What of the man and his solemn resolve? What service did he render his State, and what powerful, subtle forces—social and economic—seemed to prosper most under his direction?

It is idle to say that this governor or that one was a “good business governor,” as if to imply that he merely served his time, taking little thought of his tomorrow, and in a perfunctory, dull sort of way passed into history. A renewal of our existence by economic means is such an everyday necessity that we are prone to think of this supreme need as a commonplace and dismiss it with a polite but careless gesture. Ideas born, nurtured, and developed must have economic sustenance. Similarly any civilization must be predicated upon a firm industrial structure; yet any civilization with this alone, with no inspiriting ideals, soon, like the body, weakens and disintegrates. The two, the material and the spiritual, are somehow blessedly dependent one on the other.

To appraise Governor McLean’s administration then, we must look at the man—his ancestral roots; his words—as contained in this volume; and his works—as briefly outlined in this sketch.

First, as to the man. What were his inherent qualifications for the highest office in the State? Governor McLean came from pioneer Scotch stock. He grew up on a farm, tasted of adversity in its harsher aspect and developed human sympathies; knew hard work and formed a strong character and a sturdy physique. His family was one of the oldest and most highly respected in the entire Highland Scotch settlement; but though heritage could give him pride and courage, it could offer him nothing in the grim struggle for economic independence. When the war ended in 1865, his forbears, weakened financially as were all the other old Southern families, had to start over again. Young McLean had to begin at the bottom. Whatever material success he has achieved has come largely from his own efforts. In this very real and very admirable sense, Governor McLean is a self-made man.

Governor McLean was born in Robeson County, April 20, 1870. His father, Archibald Alexander McLean, was a native of the same county, a planter, Confederate soldier, and for many years treasurer of the county. His paternal grandfather, Dr. Angus D. McLean, was a physician and planter in Robeson County and married Mary Jane McEachin, daughter of Colonel Archibald and Sallie (MacQueen) McEachin, the latter being a daughter of Colonel James MacQueen, who came to North Carolina in 1765, and the former a son of Patrick McEachin, who came from the highlands of Scotland the same year. Governor McLean’s great grandfather was John McLean, who came from the Isle of Mull, Scotland, in 1792.

Prior to her marriage, Governor McLean’s mother was Caroline A. Purcell. She was a daughter of Alexander Torrey and Harriet (MacIntyre) Purcell, the former a son of John Purcell and grandson of Malcolm Purcell, who came from County Ulster, Ireland, to North Carolina about 1750 and was shot to death by the Tories in the Cape Fear River, just below Cross Creek, now Fayetteville, in 1775, because of his active support of the cause of the colonists. Harriet Purcell was a daughter of the Reverend John MacIntyre, a native of Argyle-shire, Scotland, and one of the most distinguished among the early Presbyterian preachers in North Carolina.

As he inherited that form of culture which has always distinguished North Carolina’s best stock, young McLean was given a thorough academic education. He attended the McMillan Military School from which he was graduated in 1884. From 1885 to 1889 he attended high school and a few years later entered the University of North Carolina from which institution he was graduated in law receiving the degree of B.L. in 1892. While he was governor his alma mater conferred upon him the degree of LL.D.

Although an attorney of marked ability as shown by his election to the presidency of the State Bar Association in 1917, Governor McLean has devoted much time to business pursuits. After his graduation in the law, he returned to Lumberton. For a time he was associated in practice with Judge Thomas A. McNeill and Colonel Neill Archibald McLean, later becoming senior member of the law firm of McLean, Varser, and McLean.

At the age of twenty-six he organized the Bank of Lumberton and served as its president from 1897 to 1914. He then became president of its successor, The National Bank of Lumberton. He also built and was for several years president of the Virginia and Carolina Southern Railway, the Robeson Development Company and the McLean Trust Company; and vice president of the Lumberton Cotton Mills, the Dresden Cotton Mills, and the Jennings Cotton Mills. He is a large landowner and farmer and is well versed in practical agriculture.

While business and politics have claimed much of his time, Angus Wilton McLean has never made his home life second to anything. On April 14, 1904, he was married to Miss Margaret French, of Lumberton, who graced the Executive Mansion at Raleigh as the First Lady of the State during the four years he served as governor. There, as everywhere, she displayed those fine qualities which mark noble womanhood, radiating a spirit of true North Carolina hospitality. In the family group, besides, the parents, there are three children: Angus Wilton, Jr., Margaret French, and Hector. One of the most conspicuous facts that impressed itself upon the visitor to the Executive Mansion was the governor’s devotion to the members of his family. Even when given over entirely to the consideration of serious matters of state, he was never too busy to acknowledge tokens of affection from his children, to hear them relate their childish experiences, or to minister to their wants. He maintained an office at the mansion, in addition to that at the capitol, but the fact that he was busy was never a barrier between him and any member of the family group.

A lifelong Presbyterian, Governor McLean is active in the affairs of that denomination. His wife is a Baptist. Because of this and the fact that he has always been a frequent attendant upon Baptist services, he has continued to maintain a very friendly relationship with members of this as well as other communions. He has served as president of the board of trustees of Flora Macdonald College and has been a member of the board of trustees of the Union Theological Seminary, Richmond, since 1920. In 1912 he was elected a member of the board of trustees of the University of North Carolina. Becoming governor automatically made him chairman, but he was reelected a member of the board upon the expiration of his term. These and numerous other affiliations have marked his long career of public usefulness. He is also a member of the Cape Fear Club at Wilmington; the Carolina Country Club at Raleigh; Chevy Chase, and the National Press and Racquet Clubs at Washington..

His political career began in 1892, the year in which he took up the practice of law in his native county, when he was made chairman of the Robeson County Democratic Executive Committee. In 1904 he was delegate-at-large to the National Democratic Convention, being assigned to membership on the committee on rules. In 1912 he became a member of the committee on permanent organization. He was State chairman of the presidential campaign committee of his party in 1912 and in 1916, and a member of the National Democratic Executive Committee from 1916 to 1924, when his people called him to the governorship by the largest majority ever given a candidate up to that time.

During the World War Governor McLean rendered such conspicuous service that it was personally and officially acknowledged by Woodrow Wilson. He stood squarely behind the President in the conduct of the war and rendered every possible assistance. From 1918 to 1922 he was a director of the War Finance Corporation, and from 1920 to 1921 he was its managing director, being at the same time an Assistant Secretary of the Treasury and chairman of the Railway Loan Advisory Commission. At the outbreak of the war he was made a member of the Selective Service Advisory Commission and general counsel in North Carolina for the Alien Property Custodian. He was chairman of the Robeson County Liberty Loan Association and organizer of the Robeson County Chapter of the American Red Cross.

On January 14, 1925, before an audience that filled the old Raleigh auditorium, Angus Wilton McLean became governor of North Carolina. With the pledge which serves as a fitting introduction to this sketch, he became successor to a long line of distinguished North Carolinians who had occupied the governor’s, chair. In his public papers, published in this volume, one finds a summary of the things he sought to accomplish. They speak better than any person can of what he did and what he sought, to do. The history of his administration, when fully written, and appraised, will show that many of the hopes he expressed, in these papers became living realities during the years that followed.

So much for the man and his qualifications—his ancestral roots, his training, and his predilections. What of his four years* in office?

Governor McLean, to use his own words, began the task of bringing about what he conceived to be needed changes in the State’s policies with no thought of reflection on his precedessors. He made this entirely clear and emphasized the fact that he was, not seeking reformation but readjustment to meet new and changing conditions. His chief aim was to coordinate and conserve past gains, to carry on the fight for progressive measures and so to shape the State’s fiscal affairs that North Carolina could always make an accurate appraisal of its revenues and its liabilities. Former general assemblies had made liberal appropriations for permanent improvements and other needs. Governor McLean felt it his duty so to organize the State’s fiscal structure as to guarantee a dollar’s return for every dollar spent. He was happy in the knowledge that the money appropriated had been honestly and wisely spent, and it was to insure a perpetuation of this record that he set in motion the processes of fiscal control and operation which could not fail to meet the ends for which they were designed.

One of the most effective steps in this direction was the inauguration of the executive budget system, at the emphatic request of the governor. This paved the way for and made effective subsequent legislation designed to strengthen North Carolina’s fiscal structure. Its operation proved so highly satisfactory that his successor gave it his endorsement and secured legislation strengthening its provisions. Its establishment meant that each department and each agency of the state government, as well as the State as a whole, must set up a working plan, directed toward a definite goal—living within its income. The executive budget system, as inaugurated by Governor McLean, brought all state agencies together under executive supervision and correlated their efforts as is done in any large and successful business enterprise.

Another fiscal reform, closely allied with the executive budget system, was the enactment of legislation centralizing responsibility for the collection of state funds in the State Department of Revenue. This was done upon the recommendation of Governor McLean, who also secured the passage of what is known as the daily deposit act, calling for the daily depositing of all state funds to the credit of the state treasurer. This was done to eliminate the necessity of borrowing money in anticipation of revenue and effected a considerable saving in interest. Supplementing the executive budget act, this legislation brought about a complete system of fiscal administration and control. The legislation calling for the collection of all funds by the Department of Revenue not only centralized responsibility but eliminated duplication of effort. The daily deposit act provided means whereby the treasurer could give an accurate account of the State’s financial standing upon short notice.

The establishment of a State Sinking Fund Commission may also be termed auxiliary or supplementary legislation, closely associated with the executive budget act, as this commission’s duty is to keep the sinking fund inviolate. It is composed of the governor, the state auditor, and the state treasurer.

For the purpose of correcting certain inequalities in the pay and classification of state employes, Governor McLean, in a special message to the General Assembly of I925 requested the passage of a bill providing for the appointment of a Salary and Wage Commission. This was done, and the commission subsequently named by the governor made a comprehensive survey and adopted rules and regulations governing state employees classification, pay, and hours of work, reestablishing also the schedule of holidays.

The General Assembly of 1925, at Governor McLean’s request, enacted thirty measures designed to improve methods of government administration. The new executive’s chief ambition was that the state government should be brought to the point where it could operate on a sound business basis. Not only did this General Assembly react favorably to the governor’s requests but also the next assembly which sat in 1927. County government acts constituted some of the outstanding measures enacted at this latter session. Through them machinery was set up which was designed to bring about more economical and businesslike administration of county affairs. While all the details of the new system were not put into effect during the McLean administration, a marked improvement could be noted at the time he retired from office. Closer attention had also been given the management of state institutions, including the state prison, where a rapidly increasing population had brought about new conditions. During the four-year period the State’s prison not only became self-supporting but showed a profit, being one of only five in the country showing this positive result.

Governor McLean’s administration was marked by the creation of the State Department of Conservation and Development, which was an outgrowth and enlargement of the old Geological and Economic Survey. For the first time a state-wide game law was passed and its operation placed with this department, as well as the interests and care of the fisheries of the State. Manufacturers, sportsmen, and the public generally have rallied to the support of this administrative branch of government, which now functions with a personnel of specialists designed to carry out the purposes for which it was established. One of the aims of Governor McLean was the further development of the State’s natural and industrial resources and the adoption of laws designed to promote a proper conservation of the assets of the State. This led him to recommend the new department which was created in 1925. Protection of both game and fish was deemed necessary, and this has been brought about in a most satisfactory manner.

Continuous study of the State’s needs was in progress during Governor McLean’s administration. Much attention was given the taxing system as well as the capacity of taxable sources to pay. Freight rates were made a subject of special investigation, with a view of working out much-needed reforms; and legislation was enacted to safeguard citizens against the sale of fraudulent securities.

With the sanction of Governor McLean, North Carolina provided an exhibit at the sesquicentennial held in Philadelphia in 1926.

With the help of the State’s representatives in Congress, he was also able to consummate a settlement of old claims whereby North Carolina received a balance of $118,000 from the national government.

Included in the public improvements fostered by Governor McLean was the adoption of complete plans calling for the enlarging and beautifying the grounds around the state capitol at Raleigh. A part of this work has already been done, and ultimately it is hoped to have the entire scheme completed.

Legislation enacted at Governor McLean’s request lightened to a marked degree much of the perplexing work that had hitherto fallen upon the chief executive’s shoulders, taking his time from other and equally important duties. At his request, the General Assembly of 1925 created the office of Pardon Commissioner, whose duty it is to pass upon all applications for pardons, make thorough investigations, and report the findings to the governor for final action. Later, under Governor McLean’s successor, the duties of this office were enlarged and a law passed providing for an executive counselor. Another notable reform was the passage of legislation making it no longer necessary for the governor to fix the death dates of capital felons who had lost their appeals in the Supreme Court. Under the terms of this bill the date is automatically fixed by statute, following final judgment.

The foregoing acts were, in the main, the more tangible and material achievements of Governor McLean’s administration. They form, however, merely the ground work for the intangible but no less real movements that sweep an individual or a state to higher distinction and to permanent service. As the newly-elected governor said in his inaugural (quoted in the beginning of this article) he did not want to forget that with sound economic strength came finer spiritual living and thinking. It can be said in all sincerity and emphasis that Governor McLean strove for this higher aim. Although he carried out his announced determination to practice rigid economy, he did not do this at the expense of the State’s progressive development. During his term of office North Carolina not only provided $50,000,000 additional funds to expand its highway system, but more than $11,000,000 was voted for educational, charitable, correctional institutions, public buildings, and other permanent improvements—all with the approval of the governor. During the first biennium of his administration $5,125,000 was spent in this manner, and during the second biennium $5,707,000. Of this total amount $6,550,000 went to the State’s educational institutions, $2,675,000 to charitable and correctional institutions, and $1,607,000 for various permanent improvements.

With Governor McLean’s full endorsement, an industrial farm colony for women was established; and it was largely through his constructive effort that North Carolina passed in 1927 legislation necessary to the establishment of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. He also secured an appropriation of $50,000 for the erection of a monument to commemorate the deeds of North Carolinians on the battlefield at Gettysburg, the dedication of which monument he made to the national government some time after his term of governor had expired.

In addition to his interest in education, public welfare, and other matters tending to bring the State to a fuller development of its humanitarian and aesthetic development, he pledged himself to the task of combatting lawlessness at the beginning of his administration. When he became governor, he declared that there should not be a lynching in North Carolina during his term if he could prevent it. He fulfilled this pledge to the people who were solidly behind him in this matter. It was his policy to see that any situation which threatened violence should be taken in hand at once in order that there be no blight on the State’s good name. On several occasions he dispatched troops to localities where it appeared as though trouble were brewing; and there were instances when it was necessary for prisoners charged with grave offenses to be tried under military guard. As drastic as was this course, he did not let it influence him in extending clemency when he believed justice demanded it. This was notably true in the case of a Negro who was tried at Asheville, convicted, and sentenced to electrocution. Later he was apprised of facts which created serious doubt in his mind as to the prisoner’s guilt and, as a result, he commuted the sentence to life imprisonment. Several years later, this prisoner was given a full pardon by Governor Gardner who was thoroughly convinced of his innocence.

Although Governor McLean went into office pledged to a business administration, the foregoing facts show that he did not neglect the higher calling of Christian statesmanship. Back of a disposition that may have appeared austere at times lay the rockbed of sympathy and human kindness. That was a part of his heredity and his early life. Back of his training as a business man was an unfailing desire to give the State not only a good business administration but to make it his business to see to it that citizens became healthier, happier, and more intelligent. That was after all his genuine growing and permanent repayment to the faithful citizenry who made him governor. A careful reading of the pages that follow will bear out this statement better than dull facts or fulsome praise.

You can read this book at http://www.electricscotland.com/webclans/m/maclean.html

I also added a link to that page for the pdf book on the "Lumber River Scots" which also contains good information on the MacLean's and other families.

Enigma Machine
Added puzzle 97 which you can get to at http://www.electriccanadian.com/life.../enigma097.htm

Prize Essays and Transactions of the Highland Society of Scotland
Found volumes 4 and 8 and have added them to our Agricultural page at:
http://www.electricscotland.com/agriculture/index.htm

Recollections of Rifleman Harris
Edited by Henry Curling (1848)

This is another book I found which tells the story of the British Army from a rifleman's point of view. I added it our Scottish Regiments page and it can be downloaded from:
http://www.electricscotland.com/hist...sofr00harr.pdf

Records of Aboyne 1230 to 1681
This pdf book is about the Gordons and can be downloaded from:
http://www.electricscotland.com/webc...ynem00news.pdf

Reminiscences of the Life and Labours of Dugald Buchanan
Found this book about him and added it to his page in our Significant Scots section. This will add much more information about him than the short bio we had on the site.

You can download this from http://www.electricscotland.com/hist...nan_dugald.htm

Rose Douglas, Sketches of a Country Parish
Being the Autobiography of a Scotch Minister's Daughter in two volumes (1851)

I've made these 2 volumes available at http://www.electricscotland.com/bible/rose.htm

A Scotch Trader
Old letters from friends in America to their Scotch friends at home written in Colonial times.

You can download this at http://www.electricscotland.com/hist...ica/scotch.pdf

THE STORY

I thought I'd give you a change this week based on our pages of Scottish Street Poetry. We have 5 pages of them and here is Page 1...

These are some poems that we've been reminiscing about on our Electric Scotland webboard.

From Bruce Logan

My grandfather use to take his fingers in the palm of your hand and run them up to your arm pit while saying:

(I can't speak Scots never mind spell it)

Roon about
roon about
goes the wee mouse,
uppity,
uppity
in the wee house.

Thomas Snee said..
In response to Bruce Logan's contribution; my Grandfather, born in Aberdeenshire in 1880, had this version:

Roond and roond the merket danced the kittley bear.
(he would be walking his fingers around the palm of the child's hand)

One step, a two step,
(At this point he would be walking with his fingers up the arm of the hand where he had been going around with the first line of the verse)

A kittley under there.
(There was the arm pit, or in middle English and "Braid Scots" the oxter)

Another "game" he would play was as follows:

Chap at the doorie.
(Knocking on the child's forehead)

Keek in;
(Lift the childs eye lids)

Lift the latch,
(Pull the childs nose up with the side of his finger)

Wipe your feet,
(wipe under the child's nose with the side of your pointer finger)

And walk in
( Poke your fingers gently in the child's mouth as if walking in)

Another one that sent us into paroxysms of delight was the following:

There was an old man who peed in the sea.
The sea was too wide, so he peed in the tide,
And all the wee fishies crawled up his backside.

Another:

Captain Cook was making soup,
His wife was making jelly.
Captain Cook fell in the soup
And burned his rubber belly

From Elda Quinton & Sharon McNeill

Three craws sat upon a wa',
Sat upon a wa'
Sat upon a wa'
On a cold and frosty morning
The first craw, he couldnae flee at a'
couldn'ae flee at a'
couldn'ae flee at a'
on a cold and frosty morning

The second wee craw, he fell and broke his jaw
fell and broke his jaw
fell and broke his jaw
on a cold and frosty morning

The third craw wis greetin fur his maw
greetin fur his maw
greetin fur his maw
on a cold and frosty morning
Jen said we were missing a verse and sent it in...
The fourth craw wisnae there at a
wisnae there at a, wisnae there at a
The fourth craw wisnae there at a
On a cold and frosty morning
Gary Robinson said we were missing a verse of the above and sent it in...
Thats aw a ken aboot the craws
Ken aboot the craws
Ken aboot the craws
Thats aw a ken aboot the craws
On a cauld and frosty mornin.

Elda also offered

Wee chooky birdie, trow low low
Laid an egg oan the windie sow
The windie sow began tae crack
Wee chooky birdie, quack quack quack

Fiona Hawke came up with this one from her father, Stuart Wotherspoon

You canna shove your granny off a bus,
You canna shove your granny off a bus
You canna shove your granny,
Because she's your mammies mammy,
You canna shove your granny off a bus.

Michael McLaren found another verse for this one...

You canna shove your granny off a bus,
You canna shove your granny off a bus
You canna shove your granny,
Cause she makes your mince n tatties,
Oh, you cannae shove your granny off the bus.

and Charlotte Bleh provided the second verse

Oh, ye can shove your OTHER Granny aff a bus,
Ye can shove your OTHER Granny aff a bus.
Ye can shove your other Granny,
Cause she's yer DADDY'S mammy,
Ye can shove yer other Granny aff a bus.

Carolyn Carnduff contributed...

Oh you cannae thro' a sanny oot a 20 story flat,
700 hungry wanes 'll testify tae that,
if its butter cheese or jeely,
if the breed is plain or pan,
the odds ag'in it reachin earth
are ninety nine tae wan.

Ranald McIntyre contributed..

Yin twa three
A mother catched a flea
we roasted it
and toasted it
and had it fur wur tea

Thomas Snee added another verse to the above...

Oh dear me mah granny caught a flea,
She satted it an peppered it and had it for her tea.
She didn't like it she gave it to her son.
He didn't like it; he threw it up the lum.
The lum gave a crack,
The hoose gave a shak,
And doon came granny we her shirt ah black.

Then Scott Gelatly remembered..

Oh Clellys got a bunion,
a face like a pickled onion,
a nose like a squashed tomato,
and feet like a hen.

Then Fiona Hawks father got back on the phone with these ones...

To the tune of "The British Grenadiers"-

Oh the bonnie wee barra is mine,
It dis'na belong to O'Hara,
The fly wee bloke,
He stuck to my rock
So I'm going to stick to his barra.

and

Paddy on the Railway,
Breaking up the stanes
Along came the engine
And brak poor Paddy's banes.

Oh! says Paddy,
That's no fair,
Oh! says the engine driver,
You should'na been there!

Frank Roselli not be outdone contributed...

Skinny Malinky Longlegs
Big Banana feet
went tae the pictures
and couldnae find a seat
when the picture started
Skinny Malinky farted
Skinny Malinky longlegs
Big Banana feet

Sharon McNeill came back with these sayings..

"any mair o yur lip an ah'll take ma haun aff yur face"
"aw that wis puir dead brilliant so it wis"
"am no jokin, ah wis black affrontit so ah wis"
"oh in the name o the wee man"

Joan Green produced a few more one liners...
"Did yiz iver see onythin like it?"
"Whit a commoshum. It wiz wurse thin the murdir o' daft Jimmy."
"Yir no too big fir a guid hidin and a clip on the jaw fir yir cheek"
"Ah'll rattle yir lugs till yi hear bells clangin."
"Ye gie me a raer showin up, so ye dae."
"Ahve spent the hael day cookin it, so ye'll damn well eat it, an ye'll sit there till yiz dae."

Kate Currie Forbes contributed some more one liners...

"Get back fae the fire ..ye'll get tartan legs"
"Think it's ootside yer in?"
" She's hingin' fur sumphin .been snottury aw week"
"Yer gaun tae a home ..aye wi' yer lip trimmlin'"
"Get aff ma flerr .ah jist washed it"
"Ah gaun BEEEERRRSSSERK!" Stoap it right noo!"
"don't look it me wi' thon eyes"
"if ah hiv tae get up tae you"
"Ye'll poke sumbiddy's eye oot wi that"
"YEUPYIT?"
"Get tae yer bliddy bed noooooooooo"
"Jist you wait tae yer faithur gets hame"
"Well that's it fur noo"

Katie Mackay also remembered this collection...

I'm a little Brownie dressed in brown,
See my knickers hanging down,
I can dance and I can sing
And I can play on the violin.

and

I'm a Girl Guide dressed in blue
See all the actions I can do
Salute to the King and bow to the Queen
And turn your back to the man in green.

and

Monday nights the Band of Hope
Tuesday night we pull the rope
Wednesday night the minister comes in..
(a new person would take there turn)
And out goes....(whoever)

and

Ding dong my castle bell,
Farewell to my master,
Bury me in the old churchyard
Beside my dear old mother.
Six white angels by my side ,
Two to watch and two to pray
And two to carry my soul away.

Of course those rhymes were for skipping but the following were for counting out who was het at a game.

Oor wee Jeannie had oan a nice clean peenie,
guess what colour it was.
R-E-D spells red (or other colour chosen)
and red you must have on.

and

Eetle ottle black bottle,
Eetle ottle out,
If you want a piece and jam,
Just march right out.

and

Eeny meeny miny moe,
Sit the baby on the po,
When its done wipe its bum,
eeny meeny miny moe.

Margaret send in this version of the above...

Eeny Meeny miny mo
Pit the bairn on the po'
When it's done, wipe it's bum
An' throw the paper up the lum.

Katie Mackay comes up with another one and a few one liners :-)

Here is another daft one my mammie used tae sing tae us weans efter oor baths oan a Friday nicht.

Ah went in tae the bakers fer somethin tae eat,
Cause a felt awfu hungry fey ma heid tae ma feet,
An ah lifted a doughnut and started tae eat
And ah haunded the man a penny.
Oh he looked at the penny then he lookes at me,
And he sez bonny lassie ah kin plainly see,
There's a hole in this penny, aye a hole richt thru,
Och sez ah, but there's a hole in yer doughnut tae.

and here are the one liners...

Haw you, ur you howkin fur totties up there (if you were picking your nose) or "wave when ye git ower the brig" for the same reason.
Yer jist layin aroon like a big store dug.
This hoose is like a midden so it is.
Git yer hauns oot a there ye clarty wee beesom.
Git it et up afore a stoup it ben yer thrapple.
Dinnae git yer knickers in a twist.
She's jist a wee tattie boaggle.
Ye kin sit there tae the coos cum hame.
Ur you tryin tae take a lend ay me.
There's pan loaf folk sure bit yer jist plain breid.
Whits fur ye wull no go past ye.
Yons is as black as the earl ay hells weskit.
Its aw tapsle teery
Its aw squeehouke.
Awa an dinnae talk a load o rubbish.
Ah, l twist yer trams an buckle yer een if ye dinnae behave the noo.

Elda Quinton finally came up with the complete poem of...

The wee cock sparra sat oan a barra
The wee cock sparra sat oan a barra
The wee cock sparra sat oan a barra
Chirpin' awa' as blythe as could be

Alang came a boay wae a bow and an arra
Alang came a boay wae a bow and an arra
Alang came a boay wae a bow and an arra
And he said "Ah'll get you, ye wee cock sparra"

The boay wae the arra let fly at the sparra
The boay wae the arra let fly at the sparra
The boay wae the arra let fly at the sparra
And he hit a man that wis hurling a barra.

The man wae the barra came ower wae the arra
The man wae the barra came ower wae the arra
The man wae the barra came ower wae the arra
And said "ye tak me fur a wee cock sparra?"

The man hit the boay though he wisnae his farra
The man hit the boay though he wisnae his farra
The man hit the boay though he wisnae his farra
And the boay stood and glowered, he wis hurt tae the marra

And a' this time, the wee cock sparra
And a' this time, the wee cock sparra
And a' this time, the wee cock sparra
Wis chirping away oan the shaft o' the barra.

You can read the other 4 pages in this collection at:
http://www.electricscotland.com/hist...at/spoetry.htm

I might add that if you can add anything to this collection I'd be happy to hear from you and you can email me with them atalastairi@electricscotland.com

That's it for this week and as the weekend is almost here hope it's a good one for you.

Alastair