Tweet
For the latest news from Scotland see our ScotNews feed at:
http://www.electricscotland.com/
Electric Scotland News
Is archaeology in Scotland interesting? Yes!
Welcome 2016 with a new purpose!
Advance into a community of learners actively pursuing the progress of archaeology in Scotland. Scot Scholars is an armchair tour of Scotland’s geography, geology, OS maps, and up-to-the-minute archaeological methods, specifically designed for North Americans.
View more than a hundred authentic images as you listen to the course. The Scot Scholars presentation is almost two hours in length. An outline summary follows each of the six units, so note-taking is not expected. There are no quizzes or tests. The pace is unpressured, but the content is compressed—short viewing sessions are best for most people. Surprise yourself with how much you will learn.
You will find the Scot Scholars course at ScotScholars.com on the internet.
Join us today! at: http://scotscholars.com/
The above is an advert but I have to say that it's one that is most interesting in my opinion. I have always enjoyed programs like Time Team but have to say that some of what they do is a touch beyond me as some of their technical work is not explained as well as it might be. I also get the Proceedings from the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland and again some of them are quite technical. This being the case this course will actually allow you to understand all this much better and so I'd highly recommend this course as one that will allow you to learn much more about the work carried out in Scotland. And once you've done this course you might then want to get involved in the DigIt program so you can actually participate in an actual dig in Scotland. Often these DigIt project will allow you to have a free holiday or a very cheap one in Scotland which is another advantage for which also see http://digit2015.com/
NYC Tartan Week
Plans are now in place for the 2016 event and for more information visit http://nyctartanweek.org/
Scottish Studies Foundation
They are gearing up for their Annual Scot of the Year Award dinner in Toronto where Alice Munro is the recipient for 2016. For more details visit http://www.scottishstudies.com/
News from the Scottish Press this week...
Scots scientists help to make gravitational waves discovery
SCOTTISH scientists have played a *crucial role in detecting *gravitational waves, a landmark event.
Read more at:
http://www.scotsman.com/news/scots-s...very-1-4027955
Priest attacks shameful failure of abuse inquiry
A CATHOLIC priest has attacked the Scottish Government for its shameful decision to exclude some child abuse survivors from a public inquiry
Read more at:
http://www.scotsman.com/news/priest-...uiry-1-4028074
Looking back: The massacre of Glencoe
Glencoe was the scence of one of the most infamous massacres in Scottish history, 324 years ago.
Read more at:
http://www.scotsman.com/heritage/peo...ncoe-1-4028753
Refugee doctors are a healthy boost for Scotland
Refugees and asylum-seekers provide a golden opportunity to increase Scotland’s working population and strengthen its economy
Read more at:
http://www.theguardian.com/commentis...cotland-asylum
New Shetland gas fields could supply whole of Scotland
New gas fields off Shetland could supply 100% of Scotland's gas needs, analysts say.
Read more at:
http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-...tland-35568837
Prestwick Airport will not show profit for at least TEN years
TAXPAYERS will have to wait at least a decade before there is any chance of a return on the nationalised Prestwick Airport.
Read more at:
https://www.sundaypost.com/news/scot...ks-until-2023/
Russian chronicles gifted to Edinburgh University
The newly-created copy of The Illustrated Chronicles of Ivan the Terrible was given to the university by the Russian Consul General.
Read more at:
http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-...-fife-35574414
Scots split on another indyref in five years
Almost half of Scots oppose holding another referendum on independence over the next five years, a new poll has found.
Read more at:
http://www.scotsman.com/news/politic...ears-1-4030774
Scientists hail unprecedented cancer therapy results
Early trials into a promising therapy that teaches the immune system to fight cancer have produced extraordinary results.
Read more at:
http://www.scotsman.com/news/scienti...ults-1-4031490
How business votes: from indyref to Brexit
No, I know - businesses don't get votes in a referendum. People do. But they can't avoid involvement in the campaigns.
Read more at:
http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-...iness-35594749
SNP membership jumps by 89,460 to over 115,000
The figures published by the party mean the nationalists are the largest party in Scotland and the third-biggest in the UK
Read more at:
http://www.scotsman.com/news/politic...-000-1-4033361
The battle cries of the Highland clans
Battlecries were used to undermine their opponents - and find each other on the battlefield
Read more at:
http://www.scotsman.com/heritage/peo...lans-1-4032911
The JK Rowling story
Before Harry Potter, before the novels, before the films, before the millions and millions of pounds, there was a little girl who liked to play witches and wizards.
Read more at:
http://www.scotsman.com/lifestyle/cu...story-1-652114
National Museum of Scotland to open 10 new galleries
Museum to get new fashion gallery and space for exhibits including Dunlop’s first pneumatic tyre and a tongue-scraper belonging to Napoleon’s sister
Read more at:
http://www.theguardian.com/artanddes...ajor-expansion
When foot-and-mouth disease stopped the UK in its tracks
Fifteen years ago foot-and-mouth disease led to the culling of millions of animals and the UK losing billions of pounds. Could it happen again?
Read more at:
http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-35581830
Oor Wullie bucket trail to raise charity cash
Artists have been invited to volunteer to illustrate 50 sculptures of one of Dundee's most famous fictional sons, Oor Wullie.
Read more at:
http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-35604260
Scots belief in the Second Sight
THE belief that some people have the power of a second sight is not extinct today.
Read more at:
http://www.scotsman.com/heritage/mor...tion-1-4034086
Six abandoned communities of Scotland
Their remains tell the story of the cutting - and sometimes brutal - change in Scotland’s social and industrial past.
Read more at:
http://www.scotsman.com/heritage/peo...land-1-4033907
The decline of Liver
Figures charting the UK's changing food-buying patterns since 1974 have been released.
Read more at:
http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-35595530
Electric Canadian
Erskine Dale, Pioneer
By John Fox, Jr
This is a novel about a white boy taken by the Indians who later escapes and then learns that he is intended to be chief of the Indian Tribe. You can read this book at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/pioneering/erskine.pdf
Dry Farming in Western Canada
By John Bracken (1921)
You can read this at: http://www.electriccanadian.com/tran...dryfarming.pdf
Electric Scotland
The Value of the Sabbath
By the Rev. Archibald Bennie, Minister of Lady Yester's Parish, Edinburgh.
I remember the time in Scotland when pubs couldn't be opened on Sundays and only come small corner stores were allowed to open. Big changes since then of course but this article looks at how the day was used as both a rest day as well as one where you went to church.
I am still very much in favour of having Sunday as a day of rest and family pursuits.
You can read this article at:
http://www.electricscotland.com/bible/sabbath.htm
The Life of John Paterson
Major-General in the Revolutionary Army by His Great-Grandson, Thomas Egleston, LL.D. (1898) (pdf) whose family came from Dumfriesshire, Scotland.
PREFACE TO THE SECOND EDITION
The discovery of over one hundred letters to and from General Paterson, more than half of which had never before been in print, in the correspondence of various generals of the Revolutionary War, notably of Generals Heath and Knox, and the finding of a large number of other interesting facts and documents, seem fully to have justified the second edition of his life. It is hoped that these additions may be of interest and that some of them may help to make plainer some of the difficult passages in the Revolutionary War. The defenses of the Hudson River and the efforts of both sides to obtain and retain possession of it, and General Paterson's part in its defense, are especially interesting. Six illustrations have been added to those of the former edition. In preparing this edition I am especially indebted to Professor H. P. Johnson for the discovery of the letters of Generals Heath and Knox, and also to many other persons, especially in Massachusetts, who have taken the trouble to search through the records of the various antiquarian and historical societies of that State. For the searches relating to General Paterson's landed property, I am indebted to Mr. R. C. Rockwell, of Pittsfield, Mass.
Thomas Egleston.
New York, July, 1898.
You can download this book at: http://www.electricscotland.com/hist...hnpaterson.pdf
Graham, Robert Bontine Cunninghame
Added two of his articles to his page where we've scanned in the pages as images and you can read these at:http://www.electricscotland.com/hist...ham_robert.htm
Vale of Bannock F.C.
Added page for this club to our Snippets from the Glasgow Herald archives. You can read this at:
http://www.electricscotland.com/hist...l/18861004.htm
Wild Geese
A story by Donna Flood which you can read at:
http://www.electricscotland.com/hist.../wildgeese.htm
Beth's Newfangled Family Tree
Got in the March 2016 issue section 2 which you can read at:
http://www.electricscotland.com/bnft/index.htm
Scotland - Rome's Final Frontier
A BBC Scotland documentary about the Roman Empire and Scotland which you can view at:
http://www.electricscotland.com/history/genhist/
Men of the Knotted Heart
A Recollection and Appreciation of Alexander Duncan Grant, and John Paterson Struthers by Thomas Cassels (1915)
The Introduction starts with...
TWO faces are in my memory, and shall be as long as life lasts. The one is the face of Alexander Duncan Grant, as he lay in death, satisfied. Yes, satisfied—that is the word. As if, after life's fever, having come to the Great Repose, he had found it more than he had ever dreamed. For it is written, "I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with Thy likeness." The other is the face of John Paterson Struthers, Grant's choice friend, seen the day Grant died. It is transfigured, shining—the face of one who whole-heartedly, unselfishly, rejoices in his friend's triumph: it is the face of "the friend of the bridegroom."
The look, the prayers, the words of Struthers in those days were shining indications of how a Christian will face that sorest of earthly sorrows, when death rolls its cold dark waters between his friend and him. For the friendship between those two was of a superlative quality. It was intense and spiritual like a flame. Their love for each other was very wonderful. They were David and Jonathan, and called each other so; for when of a morning Grant would say from his window Struthers's massive head appearing above the shrubbery,
"Here's David," he would say.
You can read this book at: http://www.electricscotland.com/bibl...ottedheart.pdf
Wanderings in the Western Highlands and Islands
Recounting Highland & Clan History, Traditions, Ecclcsiology, Archaeology, Romance, Literature, Humour, Folk-Lore, etc. by M. E. M. Donaldson, Second Edition (1923)
This is the second edition of this book and the Preface for the first edition starts...
To the Gael, the love of his country is in the nature of a personal friendship which can only be cultivated through a sympathetic and understanding intimacy of years. To him, whether at home or in exile, the Highlands call with many voices, and with none more insistently perhaps than that of which Ossian, true Scotland's national poet, speaks :
It is the voice of the years that are gone
They roll before me with all their deeds."
It is these deeds of the years that are gone and the famous doers of them that dictated the wanderings which these pages chronicle.
You can read this at: http://www.electricscotland.com/book...wanderings.pdf
Stewart A. Robertson
Added more of his poems to his page at:
http://www.electricscotland.com/hist...n/19330124.htm
Free Emigration Guides
Canada, New Zealand, Spain, USA, France & Australia.
I downloaded the Canadian Guide which has a ton of good information so if you'd like to know more about any of these countries you can get them at:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/expat/bef...at-guides.html
Entertainment
Added a section for Entertainment to our Snippets from the Glasgow Herald archives and have added information on the singer and film star Will Fyffe. At the foot of this page is a link to his page in our Famous Scots section where we also have links to a couple of his songs and a radio program about him.
You can read this at: http://www.electricscotland.com/hist...t/19471215.htm
THE STORY
Traditions of Lochaber
From the Transactions of the Gaelic Society of Inverness
Perhaps there is no part of the Western Highlands that has clung so tenaciously to the traditions of old, and the glory of the ancient heroes, as the district of Lochaber. This, however, is not to be much wondered at when it is remembered that although the West of Scotland has frequently been overrun by our enemies, they never obtained a firm footing in Lochaber. The Roman legions, in attempting to penetrate into the wilds of Lochaber, came to grief in the Moor of Rannoch, and Tacitus, the Roman historian, relates that the Romans in one campaign in Caledonia lost 60,000 men.. These are traditionally believed to have perished in the winter’s storms in the Moor of Rannoch in the attempt to penetrate into Lochaber. At a later period, we find the Lochaber men, under Sir Ewen Cameron of Lochiel, compelling the great Oliver Cromwell to make honourable terms of peace with them. It is perhaps to be regretted that the men who handed down the stories of the noted men of old, and their deeds of valour and daring, are fast dying out. A number of years ago many old men in Lochaber were able to give endless accounts of such men as Sir Ewen Cameron, Taillear Dubh na Tuaighe, Domhnuill Donn, and other popular heroes.
Most of the traditions of the district relate to prowess in war or the chase. A good many stories are told of the Lochaber men’s dexterity with the long-bow, and indeed it is possible there are some among us to this day who are fairly good at “drawing the long bow.” If the stories that are handed down to us regarding the feats of the Lochaber Archers are true, they would vie with the best archers of' Sherwood Forest. The favourite wood for the bow was the yew (Iubhair), and the arrows were winged with the Loch Treig eagle feather, thus distinguishing them from the grey goose shaft of “Merry England.” Among the famous huntsmen of old flourishes the name of Donald Macdonald, better known as Domhnuill MacFhuilaidh nandan, who belonged to the Braes of Lochaber. Besides being a huntsman and noted archer, he was no mean poet, although only one authentic poem of his has been handed down to posterity. This poem is known as “A’ chomhachag.” According to this man, the proper place to fix the arrow when hunting the-deer was in the stag’s ear. In a verse of the poem mentioned, in praise of a member of the Keppoch family, he says: — “’S trie a chur u do Shaighead an cruathas, An cluais an daimh Chabraich an sas.”
It is related of Domhnuill MacFhuilaidh that on one occasion he followed the chase outwith the bounds of Lochaber into Perthshire, and was captured by the Earl of Athole. Donald being so captured outwith his own territory was doomed to death by the imperious Earl. His fame, however, as an archer had spread far and wide, and the Earl of Athole resolved to put his dexterity to the test. For this purpose he brought him to a hillside in charge of a strong guard. On arriving there, the Earl pointed out to Donald a hind which was grazing, with its head away from them, showing only the hind quarters, and told him if he could pierce one of the hind’s eyes with an arrow his life would be spared. To any man, even the best rifle shot of the present day, this task might appear hopeless, but Donald rose to the occasion. He quietly took a blade of grass lengthways between his thumbs, and blowing through between them to make the blade of grass act as a reed, emitted a sound resembling the cry of a fawn. The hind, immediately on hearing the sound, turned its head in the direction whence it proceeded, and gave Donald his desired opportunity, of which he was not slow to take advantage. Promptly bending his bow, the shaft whistled through the air, and the hind fell dead, the arrow entering by an eye and piercing the brain. To the credit of the Athole men, it is said that Donald was forthwith set at liberty, and is believed to have died at a good old age in the Braes of Lochaber.
A story is told of a love-born Badenoch man who resolved to take a wife from Lochaber. He accordingly came to the district with twelve men, and before the lady’s relatives could save her, he carried her off, proceeding up Glen Spean on the north side of the river and towards Loch Laggan. The lady’s brother, however, armed himself with his bow and arrows, and started in pursuit of the kidnapper. He proceeded along the south bank of the river, and got in front of his enemies at a point between Fersit and Moy. He took up his position in a hollow on the south side of the river, and awaited the passing of the Badenoch men on the north side. While so waiting, he busied himself sharpening his arrows on a stone. In due time the kidnapping party appeared on the road leading to Kingussie. The leader, as a mark of distinction, wore a red cloak, and towards him the Lochaberian’s shaft was directed. The shaft found its mark, and the leader fell, but no sooner had he fallen than the next in rank donned the red cloak, and he immediately shared the fate of his leader. The remaining men successively donned the fateful red cloak, but they all fell by the unerring shafts of the Lochaber man. Having killed the thirteen men, he threw their bodies into a small pond near the River Spean, which is still pointed out to the visitor, and took the young lady home. The stone on which the arrows were sharpened is still pointed out, with the impression or groove made in it by the arrow heads. This stone was pointed out to the writer a few years ago. The distance between the stone and where the Badenoch men are said to have fallen is not less than two hundred yards, so that the old English statute prohibiting practice with the long-bow at a shorter distance than a furlong (220 yards) was amply justified.
Ian Beag a Bhuilg (Little John of the White Quiver— according to some, John Cameron of Inchree, but according to other McLachlan of Coruanan) was another famous archer. It is told of him that when the Ardnamurchan men under Mac Mliic Eoin invaded Ardgour, he formed one of the party that resisted the invasion. The invading chief was mounted and clad in complete steel, and when he rode in front of his host to view his enemies, the day being warm, he raised the visor of his helmet to wipe the sweat from his brow. While doing so a shaft from the bow of the redoubtable Ian Beag pinned his hand to his forehead, causing instant death to the chief, and dismay to his followers, who forthwith fled. Ian Beag is also credited with killing Cameron of Glen Nevis. Apparently there was bad blood between them, and Ian resolved to do away with the chief of this sept of the Clan Cameron. To achieve his purpose he induced Cameron’s dairymaid to inform him where and when he could see her master, without being seen. The dairymaid informed him that he could see the chief at the front of the house early in the morning, when she would give himself and his retainers their morning drink of warm milk. She further explained that the chief would be the first to receive the cuach or drinking cup. Ian accordingly hid himself in some brackens at a convenient distance from Glen Nevis House, which in those days was at Achan Lagan Bhig. The chief appeared in the morning as usual, and received the cuach from the dairymaid, and while raising it to his lips an arrow from Ian’s bow pierced the hand holding the cup and penetrated his breast. Some say this happened not at Acha’n Lagan Bhig but at Innis-nan-ceann, a place further up Glen Nevis, and that the man who was killed was in the act of drinking out of what is termed a “cuman,” a kind of wooden pail or bucket, and that the arrow pierced the “cuman” and penetrated the man’s head. The writer ventures no opinion as to which version is the authentic one.
Quite a halo of romance surrounds the memory of Domh-nuill Donn Mac-Fear Bhothuintinn. He was the son of MacDonald of Bohuntin, and lived about the beginning of the seventeenth century. Donald was a noted cattle-lifter, the district of Strathspey suffering much from his depredations. Although so frequently engaged in marauding expeditions, he found time to cultivate the muse, and was a bard of considerable merit. A verse from one of his songs shows the contempt in which he held the Grants of Strathspey. He thus refers to the Chief of that clan : —
On another occasion Domhnuill Donn made a raid into Glencoe (one of many), but met with indifferent success. Instead of coming home with cattle and horses as was his wont, he had to flee for his life, hotly pursued by the Glencoe men into the heart of Lochaber. "On arriving at Inverlochy he resolved, in order to elude his pursuers, to cross the Lochy to the north bank by a ford which then existed, about half a mile above the present suspension bridge. He successfully negotiated the ford, but on landing on the north bank one of the Glencoe men, an archer, appeared on the south bank. Bending his bow and letting fly an arrow at Donald, the Gloncoe man shouted “Sin agad. . . . ite firein Ghlinn Iubhair.” The arrow missed its mark, and Donald immediately returned the compliment with the remark—“Sin agad.... ite firein Locha Treig.” Donald’s aim was better than his adversaries, his arrow piercing the latter's heart.
Domhnuill Donn ultimately fell a victim to the wiles of a woman. He was decoyed to Inverness, and while there an attempt was made to capture him. He, however, escaped from the town, hotly pursued by a company of men—sixty-three according to himself. He had with him a matchlock or musket—a rare weapon in the Highlands at that time. It proved of no avail, having missed fire, and Donald was captured. He was tried at Inverness for horse-stealing and other offences, condemned, and sentenced to be beheaded, which sentence was duly carried out. While in prison under sentence of death he composed several songs, many of which are common in Lochaber at the present time. In one of these he regrets that he was captured without shedding a drop of his enemies’ blood; opens in a torrent of invective upon the useless matchlock, and bewails the* want of a trusty claymore. So highly was Domhnuill Donn esteemed even by the officials of the law, that it is believed in his native place to the present day, that if only a dozen of his countrymen had appeared at Inverness to demand his: release, even when under sentence of death, he would have been set at liberty. With reference to the Gaelic quotations in the foregoing pages, it is left to the members of the Gaelic Society to translate them, and also to fill in the blanks!
The battle of Mull Roy, which was fought between the Mackintoshes, supported by a company of regulars, and the MacDonells of Keppoch, is of course matter of history; but there are some traditions connected with the battle which have rarely appeared in print. One of these is to the effect that a man named Campbell, who attended cattle at Loch-treig, hearing that the fiery cross had been sent through the Braes of Lochaber, hied him to join the Keppoch standard. He arrived on the east bank of the River Roy as the opposing hosts were engaging in battle on the west bank, the Mackintoshes and their allies being drawn along the foot of the hill and near to the river. Apparently the worthy herd was distinguished by the Mackintoshes as a foeman, for before he could cross the river he was wounded by an arrow in the thigh. 'Extracting the weapon, with a contemptuous remark, he bandaged his wound, and then sprang across the river at a narrow gorge, new known as “The Mackintosh’s Leap,” from the fact of the standard-bearer of the latter having jumped across at the same place later in the day to save the standard. Being totally unarmed, this worthy son of Diarmid pulled down the branch of an ash tree, and swinging it round his head dashed at his enemies, attacking them in the rear, and, it is believed, causing such confusion in their ranks as materially contributed to their defeat. Be this as it may, it is said that when the fight was over, the herd was the proud possessor of a sword.
And that's it for this week and hope you all enjoy your weekend.
Alastair
http://www.electricscotland.com/
Electric Scotland News
Is archaeology in Scotland interesting? Yes!
Advance into a community of learners actively pursuing the progress of archaeology in Scotland. Scot Scholars is an armchair tour of Scotland’s geography, geology, OS maps, and up-to-the-minute archaeological methods, specifically designed for North Americans.
View more than a hundred authentic images as you listen to the course. The Scot Scholars presentation is almost two hours in length. An outline summary follows each of the six units, so note-taking is not expected. There are no quizzes or tests. The pace is unpressured, but the content is compressed—short viewing sessions are best for most people. Surprise yourself with how much you will learn.
You will find the Scot Scholars course at ScotScholars.com on the internet.
Join us today! at: http://scotscholars.com/
NYC Tartan Week
Plans are now in place for the 2016 event and for more information visit http://nyctartanweek.org/
Scottish Studies Foundation
They are gearing up for their Annual Scot of the Year Award dinner in Toronto where Alice Munro is the recipient for 2016. For more details visit http://www.scottishstudies.com/
News from the Scottish Press this week...
Scots scientists help to make gravitational waves discovery
SCOTTISH scientists have played a *crucial role in detecting *gravitational waves, a landmark event.
Read more at:
http://www.scotsman.com/news/scots-s...very-1-4027955
Priest attacks shameful failure of abuse inquiry
A CATHOLIC priest has attacked the Scottish Government for its shameful decision to exclude some child abuse survivors from a public inquiry
Read more at:
http://www.scotsman.com/news/priest-...uiry-1-4028074
Looking back: The massacre of Glencoe
Glencoe was the scence of one of the most infamous massacres in Scottish history, 324 years ago.
Read more at:
http://www.scotsman.com/heritage/peo...ncoe-1-4028753
Refugee doctors are a healthy boost for Scotland
Refugees and asylum-seekers provide a golden opportunity to increase Scotland’s working population and strengthen its economy
Read more at:
http://www.theguardian.com/commentis...cotland-asylum
New Shetland gas fields could supply whole of Scotland
New gas fields off Shetland could supply 100% of Scotland's gas needs, analysts say.
Read more at:
http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-...tland-35568837
Prestwick Airport will not show profit for at least TEN years
TAXPAYERS will have to wait at least a decade before there is any chance of a return on the nationalised Prestwick Airport.
Read more at:
https://www.sundaypost.com/news/scot...ks-until-2023/
Russian chronicles gifted to Edinburgh University
The newly-created copy of The Illustrated Chronicles of Ivan the Terrible was given to the university by the Russian Consul General.
Read more at:
http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-...-fife-35574414
Scots split on another indyref in five years
Almost half of Scots oppose holding another referendum on independence over the next five years, a new poll has found.
Read more at:
http://www.scotsman.com/news/politic...ears-1-4030774
Scientists hail unprecedented cancer therapy results
Early trials into a promising therapy that teaches the immune system to fight cancer have produced extraordinary results.
Read more at:
http://www.scotsman.com/news/scienti...ults-1-4031490
How business votes: from indyref to Brexit
No, I know - businesses don't get votes in a referendum. People do. But they can't avoid involvement in the campaigns.
Read more at:
http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-...iness-35594749
SNP membership jumps by 89,460 to over 115,000
The figures published by the party mean the nationalists are the largest party in Scotland and the third-biggest in the UK
Read more at:
http://www.scotsman.com/news/politic...-000-1-4033361
The battle cries of the Highland clans
Battlecries were used to undermine their opponents - and find each other on the battlefield
Read more at:
http://www.scotsman.com/heritage/peo...lans-1-4032911
The JK Rowling story
Before Harry Potter, before the novels, before the films, before the millions and millions of pounds, there was a little girl who liked to play witches and wizards.
Read more at:
http://www.scotsman.com/lifestyle/cu...story-1-652114
National Museum of Scotland to open 10 new galleries
Museum to get new fashion gallery and space for exhibits including Dunlop’s first pneumatic tyre and a tongue-scraper belonging to Napoleon’s sister
Read more at:
http://www.theguardian.com/artanddes...ajor-expansion
When foot-and-mouth disease stopped the UK in its tracks
Fifteen years ago foot-and-mouth disease led to the culling of millions of animals and the UK losing billions of pounds. Could it happen again?
Read more at:
http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-35581830
Oor Wullie bucket trail to raise charity cash
Artists have been invited to volunteer to illustrate 50 sculptures of one of Dundee's most famous fictional sons, Oor Wullie.
Read more at:
http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-35604260
Scots belief in the Second Sight
THE belief that some people have the power of a second sight is not extinct today.
Read more at:
http://www.scotsman.com/heritage/mor...tion-1-4034086
Six abandoned communities of Scotland
Their remains tell the story of the cutting - and sometimes brutal - change in Scotland’s social and industrial past.
Read more at:
http://www.scotsman.com/heritage/peo...land-1-4033907
The decline of Liver
Figures charting the UK's changing food-buying patterns since 1974 have been released.
Read more at:
http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine-35595530
Electric Canadian
Erskine Dale, Pioneer
By John Fox, Jr
This is a novel about a white boy taken by the Indians who later escapes and then learns that he is intended to be chief of the Indian Tribe. You can read this book at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/pioneering/erskine.pdf
Dry Farming in Western Canada
By John Bracken (1921)
You can read this at: http://www.electriccanadian.com/tran...dryfarming.pdf
Electric Scotland
The Value of the Sabbath
By the Rev. Archibald Bennie, Minister of Lady Yester's Parish, Edinburgh.
I remember the time in Scotland when pubs couldn't be opened on Sundays and only come small corner stores were allowed to open. Big changes since then of course but this article looks at how the day was used as both a rest day as well as one where you went to church.
I am still very much in favour of having Sunday as a day of rest and family pursuits.
You can read this article at:
http://www.electricscotland.com/bible/sabbath.htm
The Life of John Paterson
Major-General in the Revolutionary Army by His Great-Grandson, Thomas Egleston, LL.D. (1898) (pdf) whose family came from Dumfriesshire, Scotland.
PREFACE TO THE SECOND EDITION
The discovery of over one hundred letters to and from General Paterson, more than half of which had never before been in print, in the correspondence of various generals of the Revolutionary War, notably of Generals Heath and Knox, and the finding of a large number of other interesting facts and documents, seem fully to have justified the second edition of his life. It is hoped that these additions may be of interest and that some of them may help to make plainer some of the difficult passages in the Revolutionary War. The defenses of the Hudson River and the efforts of both sides to obtain and retain possession of it, and General Paterson's part in its defense, are especially interesting. Six illustrations have been added to those of the former edition. In preparing this edition I am especially indebted to Professor H. P. Johnson for the discovery of the letters of Generals Heath and Knox, and also to many other persons, especially in Massachusetts, who have taken the trouble to search through the records of the various antiquarian and historical societies of that State. For the searches relating to General Paterson's landed property, I am indebted to Mr. R. C. Rockwell, of Pittsfield, Mass.
Thomas Egleston.
New York, July, 1898.
You can download this book at: http://www.electricscotland.com/hist...hnpaterson.pdf
Graham, Robert Bontine Cunninghame
Added two of his articles to his page where we've scanned in the pages as images and you can read these at:http://www.electricscotland.com/hist...ham_robert.htm
Vale of Bannock F.C.
Added page for this club to our Snippets from the Glasgow Herald archives. You can read this at:
http://www.electricscotland.com/hist...l/18861004.htm
Wild Geese
A story by Donna Flood which you can read at:
http://www.electricscotland.com/hist.../wildgeese.htm
Beth's Newfangled Family Tree
Got in the March 2016 issue section 2 which you can read at:
http://www.electricscotland.com/bnft/index.htm
Scotland - Rome's Final Frontier
A BBC Scotland documentary about the Roman Empire and Scotland which you can view at:
http://www.electricscotland.com/history/genhist/
Men of the Knotted Heart
A Recollection and Appreciation of Alexander Duncan Grant, and John Paterson Struthers by Thomas Cassels (1915)
The Introduction starts with...
TWO faces are in my memory, and shall be as long as life lasts. The one is the face of Alexander Duncan Grant, as he lay in death, satisfied. Yes, satisfied—that is the word. As if, after life's fever, having come to the Great Repose, he had found it more than he had ever dreamed. For it is written, "I shall be satisfied, when I awake, with Thy likeness." The other is the face of John Paterson Struthers, Grant's choice friend, seen the day Grant died. It is transfigured, shining—the face of one who whole-heartedly, unselfishly, rejoices in his friend's triumph: it is the face of "the friend of the bridegroom."
The look, the prayers, the words of Struthers in those days were shining indications of how a Christian will face that sorest of earthly sorrows, when death rolls its cold dark waters between his friend and him. For the friendship between those two was of a superlative quality. It was intense and spiritual like a flame. Their love for each other was very wonderful. They were David and Jonathan, and called each other so; for when of a morning Grant would say from his window Struthers's massive head appearing above the shrubbery,
"Here's David," he would say.
You can read this book at: http://www.electricscotland.com/bibl...ottedheart.pdf
Wanderings in the Western Highlands and Islands
Recounting Highland & Clan History, Traditions, Ecclcsiology, Archaeology, Romance, Literature, Humour, Folk-Lore, etc. by M. E. M. Donaldson, Second Edition (1923)
This is the second edition of this book and the Preface for the first edition starts...
To the Gael, the love of his country is in the nature of a personal friendship which can only be cultivated through a sympathetic and understanding intimacy of years. To him, whether at home or in exile, the Highlands call with many voices, and with none more insistently perhaps than that of which Ossian, true Scotland's national poet, speaks :
It is the voice of the years that are gone
They roll before me with all their deeds."
It is these deeds of the years that are gone and the famous doers of them that dictated the wanderings which these pages chronicle.
You can read this at: http://www.electricscotland.com/book...wanderings.pdf
Stewart A. Robertson
Added more of his poems to his page at:
http://www.electricscotland.com/hist...n/19330124.htm
Free Emigration Guides
Canada, New Zealand, Spain, USA, France & Australia.
I downloaded the Canadian Guide which has a ton of good information so if you'd like to know more about any of these countries you can get them at:
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/expat/bef...at-guides.html
Entertainment
Added a section for Entertainment to our Snippets from the Glasgow Herald archives and have added information on the singer and film star Will Fyffe. At the foot of this page is a link to his page in our Famous Scots section where we also have links to a couple of his songs and a radio program about him.
You can read this at: http://www.electricscotland.com/hist...t/19471215.htm
THE STORY
Traditions of Lochaber
From the Transactions of the Gaelic Society of Inverness
Perhaps there is no part of the Western Highlands that has clung so tenaciously to the traditions of old, and the glory of the ancient heroes, as the district of Lochaber. This, however, is not to be much wondered at when it is remembered that although the West of Scotland has frequently been overrun by our enemies, they never obtained a firm footing in Lochaber. The Roman legions, in attempting to penetrate into the wilds of Lochaber, came to grief in the Moor of Rannoch, and Tacitus, the Roman historian, relates that the Romans in one campaign in Caledonia lost 60,000 men.. These are traditionally believed to have perished in the winter’s storms in the Moor of Rannoch in the attempt to penetrate into Lochaber. At a later period, we find the Lochaber men, under Sir Ewen Cameron of Lochiel, compelling the great Oliver Cromwell to make honourable terms of peace with them. It is perhaps to be regretted that the men who handed down the stories of the noted men of old, and their deeds of valour and daring, are fast dying out. A number of years ago many old men in Lochaber were able to give endless accounts of such men as Sir Ewen Cameron, Taillear Dubh na Tuaighe, Domhnuill Donn, and other popular heroes.
Most of the traditions of the district relate to prowess in war or the chase. A good many stories are told of the Lochaber men’s dexterity with the long-bow, and indeed it is possible there are some among us to this day who are fairly good at “drawing the long bow.” If the stories that are handed down to us regarding the feats of the Lochaber Archers are true, they would vie with the best archers of' Sherwood Forest. The favourite wood for the bow was the yew (Iubhair), and the arrows were winged with the Loch Treig eagle feather, thus distinguishing them from the grey goose shaft of “Merry England.” Among the famous huntsmen of old flourishes the name of Donald Macdonald, better known as Domhnuill MacFhuilaidh nandan, who belonged to the Braes of Lochaber. Besides being a huntsman and noted archer, he was no mean poet, although only one authentic poem of his has been handed down to posterity. This poem is known as “A’ chomhachag.” According to this man, the proper place to fix the arrow when hunting the-deer was in the stag’s ear. In a verse of the poem mentioned, in praise of a member of the Keppoch family, he says: — “’S trie a chur u do Shaighead an cruathas, An cluais an daimh Chabraich an sas.”
It is related of Domhnuill MacFhuilaidh that on one occasion he followed the chase outwith the bounds of Lochaber into Perthshire, and was captured by the Earl of Athole. Donald being so captured outwith his own territory was doomed to death by the imperious Earl. His fame, however, as an archer had spread far and wide, and the Earl of Athole resolved to put his dexterity to the test. For this purpose he brought him to a hillside in charge of a strong guard. On arriving there, the Earl pointed out to Donald a hind which was grazing, with its head away from them, showing only the hind quarters, and told him if he could pierce one of the hind’s eyes with an arrow his life would be spared. To any man, even the best rifle shot of the present day, this task might appear hopeless, but Donald rose to the occasion. He quietly took a blade of grass lengthways between his thumbs, and blowing through between them to make the blade of grass act as a reed, emitted a sound resembling the cry of a fawn. The hind, immediately on hearing the sound, turned its head in the direction whence it proceeded, and gave Donald his desired opportunity, of which he was not slow to take advantage. Promptly bending his bow, the shaft whistled through the air, and the hind fell dead, the arrow entering by an eye and piercing the brain. To the credit of the Athole men, it is said that Donald was forthwith set at liberty, and is believed to have died at a good old age in the Braes of Lochaber.
A story is told of a love-born Badenoch man who resolved to take a wife from Lochaber. He accordingly came to the district with twelve men, and before the lady’s relatives could save her, he carried her off, proceeding up Glen Spean on the north side of the river and towards Loch Laggan. The lady’s brother, however, armed himself with his bow and arrows, and started in pursuit of the kidnapper. He proceeded along the south bank of the river, and got in front of his enemies at a point between Fersit and Moy. He took up his position in a hollow on the south side of the river, and awaited the passing of the Badenoch men on the north side. While so waiting, he busied himself sharpening his arrows on a stone. In due time the kidnapping party appeared on the road leading to Kingussie. The leader, as a mark of distinction, wore a red cloak, and towards him the Lochaberian’s shaft was directed. The shaft found its mark, and the leader fell, but no sooner had he fallen than the next in rank donned the red cloak, and he immediately shared the fate of his leader. The remaining men successively donned the fateful red cloak, but they all fell by the unerring shafts of the Lochaber man. Having killed the thirteen men, he threw their bodies into a small pond near the River Spean, which is still pointed out to the visitor, and took the young lady home. The stone on which the arrows were sharpened is still pointed out, with the impression or groove made in it by the arrow heads. This stone was pointed out to the writer a few years ago. The distance between the stone and where the Badenoch men are said to have fallen is not less than two hundred yards, so that the old English statute prohibiting practice with the long-bow at a shorter distance than a furlong (220 yards) was amply justified.
Ian Beag a Bhuilg (Little John of the White Quiver— according to some, John Cameron of Inchree, but according to other McLachlan of Coruanan) was another famous archer. It is told of him that when the Ardnamurchan men under Mac Mliic Eoin invaded Ardgour, he formed one of the party that resisted the invasion. The invading chief was mounted and clad in complete steel, and when he rode in front of his host to view his enemies, the day being warm, he raised the visor of his helmet to wipe the sweat from his brow. While doing so a shaft from the bow of the redoubtable Ian Beag pinned his hand to his forehead, causing instant death to the chief, and dismay to his followers, who forthwith fled. Ian Beag is also credited with killing Cameron of Glen Nevis. Apparently there was bad blood between them, and Ian resolved to do away with the chief of this sept of the Clan Cameron. To achieve his purpose he induced Cameron’s dairymaid to inform him where and when he could see her master, without being seen. The dairymaid informed him that he could see the chief at the front of the house early in the morning, when she would give himself and his retainers their morning drink of warm milk. She further explained that the chief would be the first to receive the cuach or drinking cup. Ian accordingly hid himself in some brackens at a convenient distance from Glen Nevis House, which in those days was at Achan Lagan Bhig. The chief appeared in the morning as usual, and received the cuach from the dairymaid, and while raising it to his lips an arrow from Ian’s bow pierced the hand holding the cup and penetrated his breast. Some say this happened not at Acha’n Lagan Bhig but at Innis-nan-ceann, a place further up Glen Nevis, and that the man who was killed was in the act of drinking out of what is termed a “cuman,” a kind of wooden pail or bucket, and that the arrow pierced the “cuman” and penetrated the man’s head. The writer ventures no opinion as to which version is the authentic one.
Quite a halo of romance surrounds the memory of Domh-nuill Donn Mac-Fear Bhothuintinn. He was the son of MacDonald of Bohuntin, and lived about the beginning of the seventeenth century. Donald was a noted cattle-lifter, the district of Strathspey suffering much from his depredations. Although so frequently engaged in marauding expeditions, he found time to cultivate the muse, and was a bard of considerable merit. A verse from one of his songs shows the contempt in which he held the Grants of Strathspey. He thus refers to the Chief of that clan : —
“Ged is carrach leat mo cheann,
’S ged is cam leat mo chasan;
Thoginn creach ’o Tighearna Grannd
’S ghabhinn dram’s dol seachad.”
On one occasion he successfully lifted a creach in the North Country, and took the dairymaid with him to attend the cattle. On arriving with his spoil on the confines of Lochaber, and while resting for the night, he entrusted the dairymaid to the care of the lady of the house where he lodged,, upon whom he looked as a friend. This good lady, however, seems to have been of a sympathetic nature, and the dairymaid easily prevailed upon her to set her at liberty in the dead of night, while Domhnuill Donn was sound asleep. When thus set at liberty, the dairymaid called the cows, which, recognising her voice, immediately followed her, and when Domhnuill arose in the morning the maid and cattle-were “ower the hills and far awa’.”’S ged is cam leat mo chasan;
Thoginn creach ’o Tighearna Grannd
’S ghabhinn dram’s dol seachad.”
On another occasion Domhnuill Donn made a raid into Glencoe (one of many), but met with indifferent success. Instead of coming home with cattle and horses as was his wont, he had to flee for his life, hotly pursued by the Glencoe men into the heart of Lochaber. "On arriving at Inverlochy he resolved, in order to elude his pursuers, to cross the Lochy to the north bank by a ford which then existed, about half a mile above the present suspension bridge. He successfully negotiated the ford, but on landing on the north bank one of the Glencoe men, an archer, appeared on the south bank. Bending his bow and letting fly an arrow at Donald, the Gloncoe man shouted “Sin agad. . . . ite firein Ghlinn Iubhair.” The arrow missed its mark, and Donald immediately returned the compliment with the remark—“Sin agad.... ite firein Locha Treig.” Donald’s aim was better than his adversaries, his arrow piercing the latter's heart.
Domhnuill Donn ultimately fell a victim to the wiles of a woman. He was decoyed to Inverness, and while there an attempt was made to capture him. He, however, escaped from the town, hotly pursued by a company of men—sixty-three according to himself. He had with him a matchlock or musket—a rare weapon in the Highlands at that time. It proved of no avail, having missed fire, and Donald was captured. He was tried at Inverness for horse-stealing and other offences, condemned, and sentenced to be beheaded, which sentence was duly carried out. While in prison under sentence of death he composed several songs, many of which are common in Lochaber at the present time. In one of these he regrets that he was captured without shedding a drop of his enemies’ blood; opens in a torrent of invective upon the useless matchlock, and bewails the* want of a trusty claymore. So highly was Domhnuill Donn esteemed even by the officials of the law, that it is believed in his native place to the present day, that if only a dozen of his countrymen had appeared at Inverness to demand his: release, even when under sentence of death, he would have been set at liberty. With reference to the Gaelic quotations in the foregoing pages, it is left to the members of the Gaelic Society to translate them, and also to fill in the blanks!
The battle of Mull Roy, which was fought between the Mackintoshes, supported by a company of regulars, and the MacDonells of Keppoch, is of course matter of history; but there are some traditions connected with the battle which have rarely appeared in print. One of these is to the effect that a man named Campbell, who attended cattle at Loch-treig, hearing that the fiery cross had been sent through the Braes of Lochaber, hied him to join the Keppoch standard. He arrived on the east bank of the River Roy as the opposing hosts were engaging in battle on the west bank, the Mackintoshes and their allies being drawn along the foot of the hill and near to the river. Apparently the worthy herd was distinguished by the Mackintoshes as a foeman, for before he could cross the river he was wounded by an arrow in the thigh. 'Extracting the weapon, with a contemptuous remark, he bandaged his wound, and then sprang across the river at a narrow gorge, new known as “The Mackintosh’s Leap,” from the fact of the standard-bearer of the latter having jumped across at the same place later in the day to save the standard. Being totally unarmed, this worthy son of Diarmid pulled down the branch of an ash tree, and swinging it round his head dashed at his enemies, attacking them in the rear, and, it is believed, causing such confusion in their ranks as materially contributed to their defeat. Be this as it may, it is said that when the fight was over, the herd was the proud possessor of a sword.
And that's it for this week and hope you all enjoy your weekend.
Alastair
Comment