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diff --git a/old/40275.txt b/old/40275.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 0375429..0000000 --- a/old/40275.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,2410 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of The Celtic Magazine, Vol. I No. V, by Various - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with -almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included -with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org - - -Title: The Celtic Magazine, Vol. I No. V - A Monthly Periodical Devoted to the Literature, History, - Antiquities, Folk Lore, Traditions, and the Social and - Material Interests of the Celt at Home and Abroad - -Author: Various - -Editor: Alexander Mackenzie - Alexander Macgregor - Alexander Macbain - -Release Date: July 19, 2012 [EBook #40275] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ASCII - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE CELTIC MAGAZINE, VOL. I NO. V *** - - - - -Produced by Tamise Totterdell, Margo von Romberg and the -Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net -(This file was produced from images generously made -available by The Internet Archive/Canadian Libraries) - - - - - - - - - -THE CELTIC MAGAZINE. - -No. V. MARCH 1876. - - - - -THE MASSACRE OF GLENCOE. - - -VERY interesting and instructive, though very sad it is to chronicle -certain undeniable and not unfrequent facts in the history of human -nature, outbursts, as Carlyle calls them, of the feral nature, that -element which man holds in common with the brutes, and which, when it -breaks forth in him, assumes, by contrast, a more hideous and savage -character than in them, even as fire seems more terrible in a civilized -city than amidst a howling wilderness; among palaces and bowers than -among heathery moorlands or masses of foliage, and even as the madness -of a man is more fearful than that of a beast. It is recorded of Bishop -Butler that one day walking in his garden along with his Chaplain -immersed in silent thought, he suddenly paused and turning round asked -him if he thought that nations might go mad as well as individuals. What -reply the Chaplain gave we are not informed; but fifty years after the -French Revolution with its thunder-throat answered the Bishop's -question. Nay--it had been answered on a less scale before by Sicilian -Vespers--Massacres of Bartholomew, and the Massacre of Glencoe, and has -been answered since, apart from France, in Jamaica, India, and -elsewhere. God has made of one blood all nations that dwell on the face -of the earth. Yet alas, that blood when possessed by the spirit of -wrath, of revenge, of fierce patriotism, or of profound religious zeal, -and heated sevenfold, becomes an element only inferior in intensity to -what we can conceive of the passions of hell, such as Dante has painted -in his Ugolino in the Inferno, gnawing his enemy's skull for evermore; -such as Michael Angelo has sculptured on the roof of the Sistine Chapel, -in eyes burning with everlasting fury, and fists knotted to discharge -blows, the least of which were death, but which hang there arrested as -if for ever on the walls, and such as Milton has represented in Moloch's -unappeaseable malignity, and in Satan's inexorable hate. - -It is to one of these frightful outcomes of human ferocity, an event with -which even after a period of 200 years that all Scotland, and especially -all the Highlands, rings from side to side, and which unborn generations -shall shudder at, that we propose to turn the attention of the readers of -the _Celtic Magazine_. We do so partly, no doubt, from the extreme -interest of the subject, and partly also, because important lessons of -humanity, of forgiveness, of hatred at wrong and oppression, of the -benefits of civilization, of the gratitude we feel for the extinction of -clan quarrels and feuds, and the thousand other irregularities and -inhumanities which once defaced the grandest of landscapes, and marred a -noble and a manly race of men; because such lessons may be, if not -formally drawn, yet may pervade and penetrate the whole story as with a -living moral. - -The occasion of the Massacre of Glencoe was as follows:--Although the -Lowlands, since the date of the Revolution, were now quiet, it was far -different with the Highlands. There, indeed, the wind was down, but -still the sea ran high. The Highlanders were at that time very poor, -very discontented, and very pugnacious. To subdue them seemed a long and -difficult process. To allow them to exterminate one another, and -re-enact on a much larger scale, the policy of the battle between the -clans on the North Inch of Perth seemed as unwise as it was cruel. There -was a third course proposed and determined on, that of buying them up, -bribing them in short, applying that golden spur which has, in all ages, -made the laziest horse to go, and the most restive to be obedient. The -Government of King William resolved to apply to this purpose a sum -variously estimated at L12,000 and L20,000. This sum was committed to -John, Earl of Breadalbane, the head of a powerful branch of the great -Clan Campbell. He was one of the most unprincipled men of that day; had -turned his coat, and would have turned his skin had it been possible and -worth while; and is described by a contemporary as "Grave as a Spaniard, -cunning as a fox, wiry as a serpent, and slippery as an eel." He was the -worst of persons to have the charge of pacifying the Highlands committed -to him, being distrusted by both parties, and hated by the Jacobites -with a deadly hatred. Nevertheless the negotiations went on, although -slowly. Breadalbane lived at Kilchurn Castle, which, now a fine old -ruin, stands on the verge of the magnificent Loch Awe, looks up to the -gigantic Ben Cruachan, and which Wordsworth has glorified in one of his -finest minor poems. To that romantic castle, now silent in its age, but -then resounding with the music and revelry of the clans, were to be seen -some of the leading Jacobite chieftains crossing the mighty mountains to -the northwest, and holding conferences with the crafty head of the -Campbells; and on the 30th of January 1690 a large assembly met at -Achallaster in Glenorchy, to arrange matters between the Earl and the -Highlanders, but in vain. There was mutual distrust. The chiefs were -willing to come to terms, but they suspected that Breadalbane meant to -deceive them and to keep a portion of the cash in his own Sporran. He, -on the other hand--ill-doers being usually ill-dreaders--thought that -they were playing a double game. More than a year passed in fruitless -negotiations, and the autumn of 1691 saw the matter unsettled. At last -Lord Stair and the other advisers of the King resolved to try the effect -of threats as well as bribes; and in August they issued a proclamation -promising an indemnity to every rebel who should swear the oath of -allegiance in the presence of a Civil Magistrate before the 1st January -1692, and threatening with dire penalties, letters of fire and sword, as -they were called, all who delayed beyond that day. The proclamation was -drawn up by Stair in conjunction with Breadalbane. He had wished to form -a Highland Regiment in favour of Government, and to get, if possible, -all the Highland chiefs to transfer their allegiance from King James to -the New Dynasty. This he found very difficult. The chiefs were fond -enough of the money, but fonder at heart of the Stewarts. Many of them, -including the Macdonalds stood out for more favourable terms. The -negotiations were broken off, and the fatal proclamation was issued. -Stair's letters show to a certainty that he and King William's -Government cherished the hope that the chiefs would not submit at all, -or at least that they would hold on beyond the prescribed time. Like -Hyder Ali, as described by Burke, he had determined, in the gloomy -recesses of a mind capacious of such things, to make the broad Highlands -a monument of his vengeance. - -The great object, let it be remembered, of the Government was to get the -troops employed in the Highlands disengaged and free for service in -other places. To serve this purpose they were willing to pay a certain -sum, but if this proved ineffectual they were still more willing to -inflict summary punishment on the principal offenders. Hence Stair had -collected troops at Inverlochy, had resolved to take advantage of the -winter when the passes would be probably stopped with snow, and when the -Highlanders, not expecting the attack, would be likely to fall an easy -prey. And thus, not like an injured and infuriated Hyder Ali, but like a -tiger on the edge of his jungle, did this inhuman lawyer lie eagerly -biding his time. Hear his own language illustrating a character whom -Macaulay elaborately defends. "If the rest are willing, as crows do, to -pull down Glengarry's nest so as the King be not hindered from drawing -four regiments from Scotland, in that case the destroying him and his -clan will be to the full as acceptable as his coming in." What a fiend -in the form of one pretending to worship equity and distribute justice! - -It is generally thought that the chiefs got information of the designs -of their enemies, probably by communication from King James. At all -events, in the end of the year to the profound mortification of Stair, -the principal of them, Lochiel, Glengarry, Clanranald, Keppoch, and -others came forward and took the oath of allegiance, all save one, -MacIan, or Macdonald of Glencoe. Stair, as chief after chief took the -oath, had been more and more chagrined and desirous that some one or -other of the clans should refuse and become the victim of his vengeance. -And one such tribe did at last fall into his vindictive and quivering -jaws. It was the tribe of the Macdonalds, inhabiting, as a munition of -rocks, the Valley of Glencoe. - -Glencoe is well known to the lovers of the picturesque as one of the -very grandest scenes in Scotland. We have seen some of the sublimest -scenes in Switzerland and in Norway, but none of them, not Chamouni nor -the Romsdale Valley have obliterated the memory or lessened the -admiration of that awful glen which we have often thought of as a -softened Sinai--a smaller but scarcely gentler similitude of the Mount -that might be touched. There are, of course, many diversities. Through -the valley of Glencoe winds a stream called the Cona--a name of perfect -music, soft as Italian, and which seems the very echo of the pathetic -and perpetual wail of a lonely river. No such stream laves the foot of -Sinai's savage hill. Then there lies below one of the boldest hills of -the pass, a lovely little sheet of water, being the Cona dispread into -a small lake looking up with childlike, trustful, untrembling, eye to -the lowering summits above, and here and there a fine verdure creeps up -the precipices and green pastures, and still waters encompass hills on -which Aaron might have waited for death, or Moses ascended to meet God. -But the mural aspect of many of the precipices, the rounded shape of -some of the mountains contrasted with the sharp razor-like ridges of -others, the deep and horrid clefts and ravines which yawn here and -there, the extent, dreariness, solitude, and grandeur of the mountain -range above--the summits you see, but scarcely see behind their nearer -brethren, as though retiring like proud and lonely spirits into their -own inaccessible hermitages, the appearance of convulsion and tearing in -pieces and rending in twain, and unappeasable unreconciliation which -insulates as it were, and lifts on end the whole region are those of -Horeb, as we have seen it in picture or in dream, and the beholder -might, on a cloudy and dark day, or on an evening which has set all the -hills on fire, become awestruck and silent, as if waiting for another -Avatar of the Ancient One on the thundersplit and shaggy peaks. In other -moods, and when seen from a distance while sailing from Fort-William, -its mountains have suggested the image of the last survivors of the -giants on the eve of their defeat by Jove, collected together into one -grim knot of mortal defiance with grim-scathed faces, and brows riven by -lightning, retorting hatred and scorn on their triumphant foes. And when -you plunge into its recesses and see far up among its cliffy rocks spots -of snow unmelted amid the blaze of June, the cataracts, which after -rain, descend from its sides in thousands; its solitary and gloomy -aspect which the sunshine of summer is not entirely able to remove, and -which assumes a darker hue and deepens into dread sublimity, when the -thunder cloud stoops his wing over the valley, and the lightning runs -among the quaking rocks, you feel inclined to call Glencoe, in -comparison with the other glens of Scotland, the "Only One," the -secluded, self-involved, solemn, silent valley. Green covers the lower -parts of the hills, but it seems the green of the grave, its sounds are -in league with silence, its light is the ally of darkness. The feeling, -however, finally produced is not so much terror as pensiveness, and if -the valley be, as it has been called, the valley of the Shadow of Death, -it is death without his sting--the everlasting slumber there; but the -ghastliness and the horror fled. Yet at times there passes over the mind -as you pass this lonely valley, the recollection of what occurred 200 -years ago, and a whisper seems to pierce your ear, "Here! blood basely -shed by treachery stained the spotless snow. These austere cliffs, where -now soars and screams the eagle, once listened to the shriek of murdered -men, women, and children; and on this spot where peaceful tourists now -walk admiring the unparalleled grandeur, and feeling the spirit of the -very solitary place bathing them in quiet reverie and dream-like bliss -was transacted a scene of cruelty and cold-blooded murder which all ages -shall arise and call accursed!" - -As the clime is, so the heart of man. The Macdonalds were worthy of -their savage scenery, and more savage weather. True children of the mist -were they, strong, fearless, living principally on plunder, at feud with -the adjacent Campbells to which clan Breadalbane belonged, and often had -the blood of the race of Dermid smoked on their swords. MacIan, their -chieftain, was a noble specimen of the Highland character. He was a man -of distinguished courage and sagacity, of a venerable and majestic -appearance, was stately in bearing, and moved among his neighbouring -chieftains like a demigod. He had fought at Killiecrankie and was a -marked man by Government. He had had a meeting with Breadalbane on the -subject of the proclamation and their mutual differences, but they had -come to a rupture, and MacIan went away with the impression that -Breadalbane would do him an injury if he could. And yet, with a strange -inconsistency amounting almost to infatuation, he delayed taking the -oath, and thereby securing his own safety, till the appointed period was -nearly expired. In vain is the net set in the sight of any bird. But -Stair had set the net before the eyes of Macdonald, and had openly -expressed a hope that he would fall into it, and still the old man -lingered. - -A few days, however, before the first of January, Colonel Hill is -sitting in his room at Fort-William when some strangers claim an -audience. There enter several Highlanders, all clad in the Macdonald -tartan--one towering in stature over the rest, and of a dignified -bearing--all armed, but all in an attitude of submission. They are -MacIan and the leaders of his tribe, who have come at the eleventh hour -to swear the oath of allegiance to King William. The Colonel, a scholar -and a gentlemen, is glad and yet grieved to see them; for, alas! being a -military and not a civil officer, he has no power to receive their -oaths. He tells them so, and the old chieftain at first remonstrates, -and at last, in his agony, weeps--perhaps his first tears since infancy, -like the waters of the Cona, breaking over the channels of their rocky -bed! The tears of a brave patriarch are the most affecting of all tears; -and Colonel Hill, moved to the heart, writes out a letter to Sir Colin -Campbell, Sheriff of Argyleshire, requesting him, although legally too -late, to stretch a point and receive the submission of the chief; and -with this letter in his Sporranmollach, away he hied in haste from -Fort-William to Inverary. The road lay within a mile of his dwelling, -but such was his speed that he did not even turn aside to salute his -family. The roads were horrible; the very elements seemed to have joined -in the conspiracy against the doomed Macdonalds; a heavy snow-storm had -fallen, and in spite of all the efforts he could make, he reached -Inverary too late--the first of January was past. Worse still, he found -the Sheriff absent, and had to wait three days for his return. He told -him his story, and he being a sensible and a humane man, after a little -hesitation, moved by the old man's tears, and the letter of Colonel -Hill, consented to administer to him the oath, and sent off at the same -time a message to the Privy Council relating the facts of the case, and -explaining all the reasons of his conduct. He also wrote to Colonel -Hill, requesting him to take care that his soldiers should not molest -the Macdonalds till the pleasure of the Privy Council in the matter was -made known. - - GEO. GILFILLAN. - - (_To be Continued._) - - - - -THE HIGHLAND CEILIDH. - -BY ALASTAIR OG. - -[CONTINUED.] - - -During the relation of the first part of the legend--that which -described the atrocious conduct of _Allan Dubh_ and his associates, the -members gave evident signs of disapprobation. Norman was constantly -interrupted with such exclamations as "_Ubh ubh_," "_Oh na traillean_," -"_Na bruidean_," "_Na murtairean_," and various others of the same -complimentary nature ("Oh the servile wretches," "The brutes," "The -murderers"), but as the story proceeded, and the tide turned in favour -of the revenging Mackenzies, although their own means of retaliation -were almost equally inhuman, the tone of the circle gradually changed; -and when Norman finished there was a general chorus of satisfaction at -the final result, the only expression of regret being the death of the -young and brave leader of the Mackenzies, and the escape of _Allan Dubh -Mac Ranuil_ from the clutches of his pursuers. - -"A capital story and well told" says _Ian a Bhuidhe_ (John Buidhe). "I -heard it before somewhere, but my version of it was not near so full as -yours, and it differed in various particulars. According to mine there -was a chief of Glengarry in the early part of the 17th century whose -name was Angus Macdonnel, and who held a small property called Strome, -in the centre of the lands belonging to the Mackenzies, in the -neighbourhood of Lochalsh. The Mackenzies were most anxious to get rid -of their neighbour, and finding it impossible to dispossess him of -Strome by lawful means, they, during the night, seized, and, in cold -blood, murdered the Master of Glengarry, who was at the time indisposed -and unable to escape. - -"A few survivors of the Master's adherents returned to Glengarry and -informed the old Chief of the death of his eldest son and heir, through -the perfidy of the Mackenzies. Angus became frantic with rage and -regret, and sat silent and moody, exhibiting only 'the unconquerable -will, the study of revenge, immortal hate!' On the following day he sent -a messenger to Ardachy to the _Gille Maol Dubh_, informing him that he -had to perform a sacred duty to his Chief and kindred, and that for its -effectual and complete discharge one possessing the four following -qualifications was indispensably necessary--namely, '_Misneachd, -scoltachd, treubhantas, agus maisealachd_' (courage, cunning, bravery, -and beauty). The _Gille Maol Dubh_ said he knew the very man, and sent -to his chief, Ronald Macranuil, whom he guaranteed to possess all the -necessary qualifications. Glengarry was much pleased with Ronald's -appearance and fierce disposition, and having informed him of his son's -violent and untimely death said, 'I want you to revenge it, and your -reward shall depend on the extent of your service. Go then, gather your -followers, and heedless of place or time destroy all who bear the -hateful name of Mackenzie.' - -"_Macranuil_ selected the flower of the clan, marched during the night -and arrived at the Chapel of Cilliechriost on the Sabbath morning, where -they massacred the unsuspecting inmates as described in your version of -the legend far more graphically than in mine, but they are on all fours, -regarding the facts and incidents except that in mine, the Mackenzies -overtook and routed the Macdonalds at _Lon na fola_ or the 'Bog of -Blood,' near Mealfuarvonie, and that it was at _Ault a Ghiuthais_, -across a chasm four hundred feet high, with a fearful and foaming -cataract beneath, that Lundi made his celebrated leap, and not in -_Ault-Sigh_ as in yours. I am, however, disposed to think your version -is the most correct of the two." - -We shall now give the following poem composed by Andrew Fraser of -Inverness, and inscribed to Sir Kenneth S. Mackenzie, Baronet of Gairloch, -during his minority, to whom we are indebted for the manuscript. It -corroborates Norman's version of the Raid of Cilliechriost in almost -every particular, and has considerable merit of its own as an original -composition:-- - - -THE RAID OF MACRANUIL--BURNING OF CILLIECHRIOST. - -_Most respectfully inscribed to the Heir of Gairloch, &c., &c._ - - Gathered are Glengarrie's pride - On Lochlundie's mossy side, - The Crantara they obey, - They are met they know not why, - But they bind the broadsword on; - And the studded buckler shone - As the evening's sunny rays - Burnt in summer's orient blaze - Through the silent sombre wood - That lines the margin of the flood. - Mark, O mark that eagle crest, - Towering lordly o'er the rest, - Like the tall and monarch pine - Which waves its head in dark Glenlyne, - When the stormy cloud is cast - Above that region of the blast. - Mark that forehead's fitful glow, - Mark that grey and shaggy brow, - Mark, O mark that dreadful eye - Which glistens but on misery. - Now rolling in revengeful mood - O'er the thoughts of coming blood, - Then casting to the glorious sky - A glance of hopeless agony. - - Warrior of the savage breast, - Fell Macranuil 'twas thy crest, - 'Twas the banner of thy race - Which the wondering eye might trace, - As it wound by wood and brake, - Rolling stream and stilly lake, - As it fluttered for a while - On the brow of dark Torgoil, - Or descended the rough side - Of the Moristone's wild tide. - - Silent is Macranuil's tread - And his followers' stealthy speed, - As they cross the lovely glen - Where Urquhart's waters, flow between - Hillocks where the zephyrs dwell, - In the blue and fragrant bell: - Groves where echo answers ever - The low murmurs of the river; - And the mountain top is seen - Snow-speck'd in the distant scene. - - Mhicranuil! why that softened pace? - Thou seek'st not now the wary chase? - Why do'st thou and thy warriors keen - So fold your plaids that nought is seen - Of arms or armour, even the lance - Whereon your pendant used to glance - Its blazoned "Lamh dhearg" 'mid the rays - Of solar light, or battle blaze, - Has disappeared, and each wild look - Scowls at the music of the brook, - As if sweet nature seemed to scan - The inmost heart of guilty man? - Oh! can you in a scene so loved - By all that's holy stand unmoved? - Can vengeance in that heart be found - Which vibrates on this blessed ground? - Can that lone deep cathedral bell - Cast all around its sacred spell? - - And yet on ruthless murder bent, - Its voice to thee in vain be sent? - Mhicranuil? raise thy haggard eye, - And say beneath the glowing sky - Is there a spot where man may rest - More beautiful, more truly blest - Than where the Beauly pours its stream - Through nature's all-romantic Dream,[A] - Down to that ridge which bounds the south - Of Nephia's salmon-spangled mouth? - - The voice of praise was heard to peal - From Cillechriost's low holy aisle, - And on the Sabbath's stilly air - Arose the hopeful soul of pray'r: - When on the pastor's thoughtful face - Played something like a radiant grace; - Still was each thought to heaven sent, - Still was each knee in prayer bent; - Still did each heart in wonder rise - To something far beyond the skies, - When burst, as an electric cloud - Had wrapt them in a flaming shroud, - The roof above, the sides around, - The altar--nay the very ground - Seemed burning, mingled with the air - In one wild universal flare! - - Hark, heaven! through the lurid air - Sprung the wild scream of mad despair, - Those that so late did breath but love, - Whose kindred hearts were interwove, - Now tore away strong nature's ties - Amidst her stronger agonies; - Affection, frantic, burst the band - That linked them often hand to hand, - And rushed along the maddening tide - Which rolled in flames from side to side. - Eager the crowded porch to gain - In hopes of safety. Ah! how vain? - The demon ministers of death. - From stern Glengarrie's land of heath - Stood bristled round the burning fane - Like hells last hopeless, hideous chain, - That even the infant might not die - Beneath a brighter, cooler sky, - Whilst in their savageness of joy - The war-pipe screams their victory. - - -PIOBREACHD CILLECHRIOST. - - Ho! Clanchonich? mark the blaze - Reddening all your kindred skies, - Hear ye not your children's cries - Welcoming Macranuil? - Hear ye not the eagle scream - O'er the curling, crackling flame - Which flies to heaven with the name - Of glorious Clandonuil? - - Ho! horo? the war-note swell, - Burst aloud Clanchonich's wail! - Hark! it is their wild farewell - To Allan-du-Macranuil! - Never yet did victor smile - On a nobler funeral pile, - Than rushes from this holy aisle - In memory of Clandonuil! - - Never shall pale sorrow's tear - Blanch the cheek that slumbers here, - They have pressed a warmer bier - For Allan-du-Macranuil! - Never shall a footstep roam - From their dreary voiceless home - They have slept in one red tomb - For grateful Clandonuil! - - The house of prayer in embers lay, - The crowded meeting wore away; - The quieted herdboy saw them go - With downcast look, serene and slow; - But never by the wonted path - That wound so smoothly through the heath - And led to many a cottage door - By meadow-stream, and flow'ry moor, - Came back a human voice to say - How that meeting sped away. - - The Conon lends the ready ford, - The Conon glitters back the sword, - The Conon casts the echo wide, - "Arise Clanchonich! to the raid; - Pursue the monsters to their lair, - Pursue them hell, and earth, and air; - Pursue them till the page of time - Forgets their name, forgets their crime." - - The sun had sunk in the far sea, - But the moon rose bright and merrily, - And by the sparkling midnight beam - That fell upon the gladdened stream; - The wild deer might be seen to look - On his dark shadow in the brook, - Whilst the more timorous hind lay by - Enamoured of the lovely sky. - Bright heaven! 'twas a glorious scene, - The sparry rock, the vale between, - The light arch'd cataract afar - Swift springing like a falling star - From point to point till lost to view, - It fades in deep ethereal blue. - So lone the hour, so fair the night, - The scene, the green and woody height, - Which rises o'er Glenconvent's vale - Like beauty in a fairy tale. - Here where the heavenward soul might stray, - The red remorseless spoiler lay, - Where holy praise was wont to rise - Like incense to the opening skies: - In broken and unhallowed dreams - He laughs amid the roar of flames. - Ha! see he starts, afar is heard - The war-cry wild of "Tullach Ard." - Away Mhicranuil! with thy band, - Away, Clanchonich is at hand, - Scale rock and ravine, hill, and dale, - Plunge through the depths of Urquhart's vale, - And spread thy followers one by one, - 'Tis meet that thou should'st be alone. - - It boots not for the jerkin red, - Fit emblem of the man of blood, - Is singled still, and still pursued - Through open moor and tangled wood. - High bounding as the hunted stag - He scales the wild and broken crag, - And with one desperate look behind - Again his steps are on the wind. - Why does he pause? means he to yield? - He casts aside his ponderous shield, - His plaid is flung upon the heath, - More firm he grasps the blade of death, - And springing wildly through the air - The dark gulf of Altsigh is clear! - Unhesitating, bold, and young, - Across the gulf Mackenzie sprung; - But ah! too short one fatal step, - He clears, but barely clears the leap, - When slipping on the further side - He hung suspended o'er the tide; - A tender twig sustained his weight, - Above the wild and horrid height. - One fearful moment whilst he strove - To grasp the stronger boughs above. - But all too late, Macranuil turns - With fiendish joy his bosom burns, - "Go, I have given you much," he said, - "The twig is cut--the debt is paid." - - F. - - "Notwithstanding the hideousness of this double crime of sacrilege - and murder, which certainly in magnitude of atrocity was rarely, if - ever, equalled in this quarter; it is strange that many will be - found at no great distance from the scene of horror referred to in - the poem who are not only ignorant of the cause of the fearful - catastrophe, but even of the perpetrators of it. It is, therefore, - the intention of the author to accompany the printed copy[B] with a - copious note. - - "INVERNESS, 4th Dec. 1839." - - - - -"Ah," says _Domhnull a Bhuidhe_, another of the bard's sons, "these men -of Glengarry were a fine race. For real courage and bravery few in the -Highlands could excel them. I remember once hearing a story of young -'Glen,' in which, perhaps, is exhibited the finest example of daring -ever recorded in the annals of our country. Once upon a time Old -Glengarry was very unpopular with all the northern chiefs in consequence -of his many raids and spoliations among the surrounding tribes; but -although he was now advanced in years and unable to lead his clan in -person none of the neighbouring chiefs could muster courage to beard him -in his den single-handed. There was never much love lost between him and -the chief of the Mackenzies, and about this time some special offence -was given to the latter by the Macdonnels, which the chief of -_Eilean-donnan_ swore would have to be revenged; and the insult must be -wiped out at whatever cost. His clan was at the time very much -subdivided, and he felt himself quite unable to cope with Glengarry in -arms. Mackenzie, however, far excelled his enemy in ready invention, and -possessed a degree of subtlety which usually more than made up for his -enemy's superior physical power. - -"'Kintail' managed to impress his neighbouring chiefs with the belief -that Glengarry purposed, and was making arrangements to take them all by -surprise and annihilate them by one fell swoop, and that in these -circumstances it was imperative for their mutual safety to make -arrangements forthwith by which the danger would be obviated and the -hateful author of such a diabolical scheme extinguished root and branch. -By this means he managed to produce the most bitter prejudice against -Glengarry and his clan; but all of them being convinced of the folly and -futility of meeting the 'Black Raven,' as he was called, man to man and -clan to clan, Mackenzie invited them to meet him at a great council in -Eilean-donnan Castle the following week to discuss the best means of -protecting their mutual interests, and to enter into a solemn league, -and swear on the 'raven's cross' to exterminate the hated Glengarry and -his race, and to raze, burn, and plunder everything belonging to them. - -"Old Glengarry, whom the ravages of war had already reduced to one son -out of several, and he, only a youth of immature years, heard of the -confederacy formed against him with great and serious concern. He well -knew the impossibility of holding out against the combined influence and -power of the Western Chiefs. His whole affections were concentrated on -his only surviving son, and, on realizing the common danger, he bedewed -him with tears, and strongly urged upon him the dire necessity of -fleeing from the land of his fathers to some foreign land until the -danger had passed away. He, at the same time, called his clan together, -absolved them from their allegiance, and implored them also to save -themselves by flight; and to their honour be it said, one and all -spurned the idea of leaving their chief, in his old age, alone to his -fate, exclaiming--'that death itself was preferable to shame and -dishonour.' To the surprise of all, however, the son, dressed in -his best garb, and armed to the teeth, after taking a formal and -affectionate farewell of his father, took to the hills amidst the -contemptuous sneers of his brave retainers. But he was no sooner out of -sight than he directed his course to Lochduich, determined to attend the -great council at Eilean-donnan Castle, at which his father's fate was to -be sealed. He arrived in the district on the appointed day and carefully -habilitating himself in a fine Mackenzie tartan plaid with which he had -provided himself, he made for the stronghold and passed the outer gate -with the usual salutation--'Who is welcome here?' and passed by -unheeded, the guard replying in the most unsuspicious manner--'Any, any -but a Macdonnell.' On being admitted to the great hall he carefully -scanned the brilliant assembly. The Mackenzie plaid put the company -completely off their guard; for in those days no one would ever dream of -wearing the tartan of any but that of his own leader. The chiefs had -already, as they entered the great hall, drawn their dirks and stuck -them in the tables before them as an earnest of their unswerving -resolution to rid the world of their hated enemy. The brave and intrepid -stranger coolly walked up to the head of the table where the Chief of -Kintail presided over the great council, threw off his disguise, seized -Mackenzie by the throat, drew out his glittering dagger, held it against -his enemy's heart, and exclaimed with a voice and a determination which -struck terror into every breast--'Mackenzie, if you or any of your -assembled guests make the slightest movement, as I live, by the great -Creator of the universe I will instantly pierce you to the heart.' -Mackenzie well knew by the appearance of the youth, and the commanding -tone of his voice, that the threat would be instantly executed if any -movement was made, and tremulously exclaimed--'My friends, for the -love of God stir not lest I perish at the hands of my inveterate foe -at my own table.' The appeal was hardly necessary, for all were -terror-stricken and confused, sitting with open mouths, gazing vacantly, -at each other. 'Now,' said the young hero, 'lift up your hands to heaven -and swear by the _Long, am Bradan, agus an Lamh Dhearg_ (the ship, the -salmon, and the bloody hand) that you will never again molest my father -or any of his clan.' 'I do now swear as you request,' answered the -confused chief. 'Swear now,' continued the dauntless youth, 'you, and -all ye round this table, that I will depart from here and be permitted -to go home unmolested by you or any of your retainers.' All with -uplifted hands repeated the oath. Young Glengarry released his hold on -Mackenzie's throat, sheathed his dirk and prepared to take his -departure, but was, extraordinary to relate, prevailed upon to remain at -the feast and spend the night with the sworn enemies of his race and -kindred, and the following morning they parted the best of friends. And -thus, by the daring of a stripling, was Glengarry saved the fearful doom -that awaited him. The youth ultimately became famous as one of the most -courageous warriors of his race. He fought many a single combat with -powerful combatants, and invariably came off victorious. He invaded and -laid waste Glenmoriston, Urquhart, and Caithness. His life had been one -scene of varied havoc, victory, ruin, and bloodshed. He entered into a -fierce encounter with one of the Munros of Fowlis, but ultimately met -the same fate at the hands of the 'grim tyrant' as the greatest coward -in the land, and his body lies buried in the churchyard of -_Tuiteam-tarbhach_." - - ALASTAIR OG. - - (_To be Continued._) - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[A] The Dream is a scene on the River Beauly, whose picturesque -properties realizes this term in its utmost limits. - -[B] This is the only _printed_ copy that ever saw the light, and if the -"copious note" was ever written we were unable to procure it. - - A. O. - - - - - THE GAELIC SOCIETY OF INVERNESS.--The following are the newly - elected office-bearers for 1876:--Chief--Professor Blackie; - Chieftains--Mr Charles Mackay, builder; Mr Alexander Fraser, - accountant; and Bailie Noble, Inverness; Honorary Secretary--Mr Wm. - Mackay, solicitor; Secretary--Mr William Mackenzie, _Free Press_ - Office, Inverness; Treasurer--Mr Evan Mackenzie, solicitor, - Inverness; Council--Mr Alexander Mackenzie, of the _Celtic - Magazine_; Councillor Huntly Fraser; Mr James H. Mackenzie, - bookseller; Mr James Fraser, C.E.; and Mr Lachlan Macbean; - Librarian--Mr Lachlan Macbean; Bard--Mrs Mary Mackellar; and - Piper--Pipe-Major Maclennan, Inverness. The following members have - been elected since the beginning of the year:--Mr A. R. Munro, 57 - Camphill, Birmingham; Councillor D. Macpherson, Inverness; Mr W. A. - Mackay, bird-stuffer, do.; Mr Jonathan Nicolson, Birmingham; Major - William Grant, factor for the Earl of Seafield, honorary; Mr Donald - Macleod, painter, Church Street, Inverness; Mr Hugh Shaw, tinsmith, - Castle Street, Inverness; Rev. Lachlan Maclachlan, Gaelic Church, - Inverness; Mr Archibald Macmillan, Kaituna, Havelock, Marlborough, - New Zealand; Mr William Douglas, Aberdeen Town and County Bank, - Inverness; Mr Donald Macdonald, farmer, Culcraggie, Alness; Mr - Andrew Mackenzie, ironmonger, Alness; Mr Hugh Mackenzie, postmaster, - Alness; Mr William Mackenzie, factor, Ardross; Mr W. Mackenzie, - solicitor, Dingwall; Captain Alex. Matheson, Dornie, Lochalsh; Mr - Christopher Murdoch, gamekeeper, Kyleakin, Skye; Mr Norman M'Raild, - Caledonian Canal, Laggan, Fort-Augustus; Mr James Hunter, Bobbin - Works, Glengarry; Mr Fergusson, schoolmaster, Guisachan; Mr Maclean, - schoolmaster, Abriachan; Mr D. Dott, Caledonian Bank, Inverness; and - Dr Farquhar Matheson, Soho Square, London. Mr Alex. Mackenzie, of - the _Celtic Magazine_, on the 17th February, resigned his connection - with the Society's Publishing Committee, as convener of which he - edited, last year, vols. III. and IV. of the Society's - "Transactions." - - - DICTIONARY OF THE WELSH LANGUAGE.--We are glad to learn that a - Dictionary of the Welsh language is in preparation, compiled from - original sources by D. Silvan Evans, B.D., Professor of Welsh at - University College, Aberystwyth, Wales, and late Editor of the - "Archaeologia Cambrensis." Professor Evans is a Celtic scholar of - high repute, and his work will, we are assured, prove a great - acquisition to the student of Philological Science. - - - - -THE SCOTTISH HIGHLANDERS GOING TO CAROLINA. - - -THE sunny plains of Carolina was the first emigration field taken -advantage of by the Scottish Highlander. And there is no denying that -his temporal interests required a change for the better. Oppressed with -poverty in his own wild glens, in the endeavour to eke out an existence -from the returns of a soil the reverse of fertile, or from the produce -of a small flock of trifling value, or from the precarious productions -of stormy lochs, the honest Gael becomes gradually convinced that his -condition might be much improved in the genial climes recently opened -up. With this in view he gives a willing ear to the kindly suggestions -of those who sought to promote his welfare; and he resolves at length, -in acting upon these suggestions, to rupture the ties that bound him to -his home, and to face a voyage which was then regarded as the highest -test of courage, but which can now be accomplished in as little time, -and with as little concern as a voyage in those days from Mull or Skye -to the banks of the Clyde. - -It has often been said that the Highlander is wanting in a spirit of -adventure, and that in consequence there is still a great amount of -poverty and wretchedness at home, which might easily be remedied by a -little more pluck in taking advantage of the rich soil of colonial -fields. This phenomenon, which is only too true, has its explanation in -a strange mystic spell of attachment to the native heath with all its -associations. This is proverbially true of the Highlander in distinction -from all other nationalities, and it cannot be ignored by those who wish -to see him emigrate to countries where he can soon raise himself, by a -little industry, to a position of affluence and independence which he -never dreamed of in his native country. - -Even the physical aspect of his native scenery has a charm for the Gael -which can never be lost. His very heath in autumnal bloom spread out -like a gorgeous carpet, towering summits, wild cascades, birch and -rowans, verdant hill sides, browsing flocks, bounding deer, soaring -eagles, and the vast expanse of land and water--all form an enchanting -panorama which indelibly instamps itself on the mountaineer's mental -vision. Add to this the social aspect of his nature, and you have a -still stronger chain of attachment to his barren home. He feels himself -as an individual member of a large family or confederacy, with common -interests, common language and traditions. The huge mountain barriers -which prevent the inhabitants of a glen from general communication with -others, and completely isolate them, tends to generate this feeling of -clannishness. They work in a great measure together, tending their -flocks, cultivating their crofts, capturing their fish. And especially -is their social nature developed in their long winter evening gatherings -from house to house, in rehearsing their traditionary folk-lore, and -cultivating the poetic muse in every variety of verse and style of -chorus. Nor does the holy day of rest interrupt their gregarious -proclivities. They meet at the same kirk, they survey with becoming -emotion the last resting place of those who were content to have their -remains repose in their native valley, they hear proclamations of -plighted affection between parties who have no higher ambition than to -share each other's future lot on the scantiest fare, they join "their -artless notes" together in grateful thanksgiving to the Sovereign of all -lands for such temporal gifts as others might think "small mercies," and -more especially do they hear, in their own expressive vernacular, -impressive lessons upon time and its manifold labours, its constant -changes and solemn issues. - -All this constitutes a sacred tie of affection to the native spot, -lasting as the hills, and which no other can understand like the -Scottish Gael. It must, therefore, be duly recognised and weighed by all -benefactors of the race, if they would loosen its hold upon the -individual without outraging his feelings, and loosening "the brittle -thread of life." Of this strong attachment many instances might be -given. We have been told by a venerable divine of a Highland parish how -repeatedly he had witnessed the fond affection of his parishioners in -taking their departure, how they approached the sacred edifice, ever -dear to them, by the most hallowed associations, and with tears in their -eyes kissed its very walls, how they made an emphatic pause in losing -sight of the romantic scenes of their childhood, with its kirks and -cots, and thousand memories, and as if taking a formal and lasting -adieu, uncovered their heads and waved their bonnets three times towards -the scene, and then with heavy steps and aching hearts resumed their -pilgrimage towards new scenes in distant climes. - -But in thus quitting his native land the Highlander did not leave his -loyalty and patriotism behind. The country to which he was steering his -course was under the colonial away of George the Second; and to that -region he transferred his loyalty and clannishness, and all those traits -of character which distinguish him from other races. Unless, indeed, -these peculiarities were taken advantage of, the foreign field for -emigration, with its various inducements, might have appealed in vain. -As a clannish being, and accustomed throughout his whole historical life -to follow the direction of chiefs and leaders, the Scottish Gael is now -invited to resign himself to the same leadership with the view of -crossing the great Atlantic. Accordingly emigration leaders were found -who made it their business to attend to the interests of their -countrymen, and accompany their footsteps to their new homes. The first -of these leading benefactors who broke the ice of emigration to Carolina -was a Neil M'Neill of Kintyre, who succeeded in leading a whole shipload -of his countrymen to that colony and settled them on the banks of the -Cape Fear River, where he himself also made his permanent home, and -where his name is still perpetuated by a numerous and respectable -offspring to the present day. - -Here at the head of navigation, and at a distance of more than a hundred -miles from the sea coast, the immigrants literally pitched their camp, for -the country was then almost an unbroken wilderness and few human abodes to -offer shelter, the chief occupants of the soil being droves of wild -horses, wild cattle, deer, turkeys, wolves, raccoons, oppossums, and last -but not least, huge rattlesnakes in hideous coils, ready to oppose the -disturbers of their marshy tranquillity. Fortunately for the homeless -pioneers the climate was genial and favourable, and all that could be -expected from its southern latitude of 35 degrees. The only protection, -therefore, absolutely necessary for health and comfort was some temporary -shelter from the heavy autumnal dews of that region; and this they could -speedily extemporise or discover already at hand in the arching canopy of -stately hickories, mulberries, and walnut trees, where in patriarchal -fashion, "each one under his own vine and fig tree" they could while away -days and weeks without any serious discomfort or detriment to health. But -they soon set about the work of improvement in their new domains. They -construct more permanent abodes in the shape of log cottages, neat, clean, -and tidy, and two for a family, according to subsequent use and wont in -that warm country. They begin to fell the primeval forest, to grub, drain, -and clear the rich alluvial swamps bordering on that stream, to reduce to -ashes in a thousand conflagrations the most valuable timber of every -variety and sort, and to supersede this primeval growth by the more -precious production of rice, cotton, maize, melons, pumpkins, peaches, -grapes, and other endless varieties for comfort and luxury. All this is -accomplished, be it known, by ways and means of which, in the case of the -new settler, stern necessity is the inventing mother. And may we not here -suggest the reflection how much the residuary occupants of our glens are -interested in these bush clearances. In receiving in regular supplies from -that very district, the famous "Carolina Rice," chief of its class, not to -speak of other products, is there not awakened a feeling of interest and -grateful thanks to the memory of our hardy kinsman in the days of yore. - -But progression and improvement is the rule in every colony and growing -community. By the increase of population and settlement of a country the -laws of society imperatively demand a different mode of life. The -abundant supply of the necessities of life soon creates a desire for its -comforts, and these in turn for its conveniences and luxuries. This -progressive change is distinctly marked in the case before us. Very soon -the nucleus of a town is seen in the centre of the settlement, where the -products of industry could be bartered and sold, and where the usual -system of commerce could afford facilities for supplying the growing -demands of a prosperous community. The name of Campbelton is given to -this hamlet, thus identifying the national origin of its patriotic -founders, and when by subsequent emigrations it grew to a large and -commercial importance, rivalling and soon surpassing its namesake in the -Fatherland, and becoming the seat of justice and general centre of -traffic for that whole Highland district, the names of its commercial -firms, of its civic officials, judges, and barristers, unmistakeably -declared that the name of the town was well chosen. And although the -course of events afterwards changed its original designation to that of -La Fayette or Fayetteville, which it still retains, yet it will always -be remembered with a lively interest by Scottish Highlanders as the -abode of their brave countrywoman, the renowned heroine Flora Macdonald, -whose memory is still cherished in the country of her sojourn, and whose -name is preserved from oblivion by the gay and gallant little steamer -"Flora Macdonald," which plies up and down the unruffled waters of the -Cape Fear. - -As already remarked, this was the beginning of the tide of emigration to -Carolina, and at a period now buried in the annals of well nigh a -century and a half. The ice being thus broken, and the pioneers of the -flock giving good accounts of the new pasture, others soon eagerly began -to follow their footsteps in large numbers. There was, in fact, a -Carolina mania at that time, and which did not fairly subside until -within the last half century. It is here necessary to note the great -event which gave such a special impetus to the movement. That was the -disastrous results which followed the memorable rebellion of '45. The -collapsing of the romantic scheme which enlisted so many brave -mountaineers, and unsheathed so many claymores, proved ruinous to the -whole race of Scottish Celts. There was no discrimination made in the -exercise of punishment between those "who were out" for Charlie, and -those who followed _Maccallan Mor_ and others in defence of the reigning -dynasty. All were alike nationally persecuted, so that the whole system -of clanship was completely and for ever broken up. The golden chain of -patriarchal respect and affection to the chief, cemented by law or -immemorial usage, was now severed. No military service or vassalage -could any more be exacted by a feudal superior, and no support or -protection could henceforth be expected by the vassal. All was now at an -end; and the ghostly idea of chieftainship, which still hovers in our -mists, is only entertained as a harmless sentiment or a pleasant -burlesque. The Highlander was totally disarmed. Those weapons, as -naturally associated with the mountaineer's life as the implements of -husbandry to the farmer, were wrested from him, and heavy fines and -transportation enforced in case of disobedience. Nay more, his very garb -was proscribed. A romantic costume, suggestive of the well-known dirk -and other weapons of military warfare, and of prowess, bravery, and -skill, in the use of them, falls under the ban of the state. What must -have been the Gael's feelings, from this state of things, we can easily -imagine. Dispirited, insulted, outlawed, without chief or protector, -with such a complete revolution in his social life, he has no -alternative but to quit his native haunts and try to find peace and rest -in the unbroken forests of Carolina. Accordingly the flame of enthusiasm -for foreign adventure passes like wild fire through the Highland glens -and islands at the period to which we refer. It pervades all classes, -from the poorest crofter to the well-to-do farmer, and in some cases men -of easy competence, who were, according to the appropriate song of the -day, "_dol a dh'iarruidh an fhortain do North Carolina_," (i.e., -_sequenturi fortunam usque Carolinam_). - -Within a short time great crowds had left the country. Large ocean -crafts, from several of the Western Lochs, laden with hundreds of -passengers, sailed direct for the far west, and this continuous tide -kept rolling westwards from year to year, until at the era of the -Colonial Revolution, the Highland settlers in Carolina could be numbered -by many thousands. And there you find their worthy sons at the present -day, occupying a large area of the state, no less than five counties in -a body, all preserving the genuine names and sterling qualities of their -sires; and with their known enterprise and patient industry, exerting -more than their numerical share of political influence in that country. -They constitute doubtless the largest Gaelic community out of Scotland, -tenaciously holding the religion of their fathers, and preserving, to -some extent, their language and customs. And be it known to our "Brither -Scots" of Saxon origin, that these are known by their neighbours as -pre-eminently "the Scotch," and their tongue "the Scotch language," so -that a native of Auld Reeky or Dumfries, without a knowledge of the -Celtic tongue, could hardly pass muster among them for being a genuine -son of Scotia. - -But the clans were not long settled in the land of their adoption before -having their national character put to the test. The occasion was -furnished by the unfortunate revolt of the North American Colonists, -arising from causes useless to dilate upon at this time of day, but -which might have been obviated at the time by wise imperial policy, and -thus retained under the imperial aegis an enormous territory which has -since then become an independent and powerful rival. Of course the -Carolina Highlander was not a disinterested spectator of the rising -struggle. Nor was it with him a question for a moment upon which side -his claymore should be unsheathed. Naturally Conservative, and ever -loyal to constituted authorities, he at once enlisted under the banner -of King George the Third, and resolved with devoted loyalty and wonted -military prowess to exert his utmost endeavours to perpetuate the -British sway and quell the great rebellion. At the call of his leaders, -and to the martial strains of his national pipes, he readily obeys; and -with such alacrity as if summoned by the fiery cross of old, he musters -to the central place of rendezvous, band after band, day after day, -until a whole regiment of active volunteers are enrolled and ready for -action. This was called the "Highland Regiment of Carolina," a body of -men, let us remark, less known in history than it deserves; for in -resolute courage, strength of nerve and muscle, intrepid bravery and -unshaken fidelity, few instances could be found of superior excellence -within the annals of the empire. The officers of the regiment were taken -from influential leaders among the emigrants, and it need hardly be -said, were of the same sterling metal. When we mention the name of Capt. -Macdonald of Kingsborough, the husband of the famous Flora, and another -officer of the same clan, as also the names of Macleod and M'Arthur, all -of whom were the ruling chiefs of the "Royalists," it will at once -appear how homogeneous was the body, and how naturally they were all -animated by a kindred spirit with the view of achieving the same great -end. Thus marshalled under the royal standard, they rush into the -contest, with the sole determination, be the issue what it might, of -discharging their conscientious duty to their king and country, and -resolved with true Highland courage to conquer or to die. But, alas, -this latter was, in substance, the inevitable alternative to which they -had to succumb. The odds against them was overpowering. For even -supposing them to have had the advantages of regular military -discipline, they were not able to withstand the immense numbers by which -they were assailed. Almost the whole colonies were in a state of revolt, -and the imperial forces, from well-known causes, were few and far -between. There was, therefore, no help for the royal cause. After long -and fatiguing marches by night and day, through creeks and swamps, in -arid sand and scorching sun, and after several desperate encounters with -the numerous foe, meeting them at various points, they had finally to -disperse, and thus for ever surrender a cause which it was hopeless to -have undertaken. Their leaders had to flee for life and find their way -through swamp and forest to the far distant sea-board, as their only -hope of safety. This they made out, and then found the means of transit, -though by a circuitous voyage, across the ocean to their native land. -The perils and hardships endured by these in their several routes could -not be narrated in the space at our disposal. But we cannot take leave -without briefly relating the daring exploit of one of their leaders -after being captured and imprisoned. This, however, must be reserved for -a subsequent number. - - JOHN DARROCH, M.A. - - - - -GENERAL SIR ALAN CAMERON, K.C.B., COLONEL 79TH CAMERON HIGHLANDERS. - -[CONTINUED]. - - -CHAPTER VI. - -TWO years before Alan's return from America, the Highland Society of -London was instituted for "Promoting objects of advantage to the -Highlands generally; and good fellowship with social union, among such -of its natives as inhabited the more southern part of the island." To -the foregoing summary were also added several specific objects, such as -the restoration of the Highland dress; the preservation of the music; -and cultivation of the Celtic language, &c., &c. An institution for the -support of these objects would have particular attraction for Alan; and -now that he was not otherwise specially employed, he could give some -attention to their promotion. The members of the society were composed -of almost all the men of rank and position belonging to, or connected -with, Scotland. In the list Alan appears to have been elected at a -meeting on 21st January 1782, and with the names of other gentlemen on -the same occasion that of John Home (Author of _Douglas_) is included. - -The Act of Parliament which enacted the suppression of the Highland -dress was in force in Scotland during Alan's childhood, and up to the -time of his departure from it, after the encounter with _Morsheirlich_, -so that he had never worn the garb of his ancestors until he had joined -his regiment in America. Its use was still (1782) prohibited in the old -country. Alan and many of his friends became the most active members for -promoting the objects of the society. Having found that one of these was -the restoration of the Highland dress, they formed a committee to -co-operate with a member of the Legislature to have that obnoxious Act -obliterated from the Statute Book. Of that committee the following were -the Executive, and being the authors of the extirpation of this national -stigma, they are entitled to be remembered, by Highlanders especially, -with admiration and everlasting gratitude. They were--Hon. General -Fraser of Lovat (President); Lord Chief Baron Macdonald; Lord Adam -Gordon; Earl of Seaforth; Colonel Macpherson of Cluny; Captain Alan -Cameron (Erracht); and John Mackenzie (Temple), Honorary Secretary. - -Fortunately for the committee, the Marquis of Graham, one of the members -of the society, had a seat in the House of Commons, and to this nobleman -they entrusted a Bill for the repeal of the Act passed in 1747, commonly -known as the _Unclothing Act_. The noble Marquis took charge of the -bill, which he introduced to the House in May 1782, with so much -earnestness that it passed through the various stages in both Houses of -Parliament with unusual rapidity. Indeed, within a few months after this -date, the legal restriction placed on the dress of a people for the past -thirty-five years, was obliterated for ever. "The thanks of the Society -were given to his Lordship for his exertions in procuring a law so -acceptable to all Highlanders."[C] Addresses in prose and poetry were -presented to the Marquis from all the Highland parishes, while at the -same time the contemporary Gaelic bards were profuse with patriotic -songs of praise, notably among them, that by Duncan M'Intyre -(_Donnachadh Ban_) commencing-- - - Fhuair mi naidheachd as ur - Tha taitinn ri run mo chridh - Gu faigheamaid fasan na dutch - A chleachd sinn an tus ur tim, - O'n tha sinn le glaineachan lan, - A bruidhinn air maran binn, - So i deoch slainte Mhontrois - A sheasamh a choir so dhuinn. - -The next action of national importance which engaged the attention of -the Society was the publication of the Poems of Ossian in the original -Gaelic. In the prosecution of this project Alan Cameron was also -zealous, but before it was completed he was called away to duties of a -sterner nature. About the same time the controversy respecting the -authenticity of the poems was continuing to run its rancour unabated. -During the few days of Alan's sojourn as a fugitive in Mr Bond's house, -they had conversed on the merits of Ossian's poems, the latter gentleman -informed Alan that he had such evidence in favour of their ancient -existence that he was convinced of their being the genuine remains of -poetry of a very remote period, adding that he owed his intimacy with -Ossian to the acquaintance of the Rev. Colin M'Farquhar (a native of one -of the Hebrides), at this time minister in Newhaven of Pennsylvannia. It -occurred to Alan that it would be desirable to get the testimony of the -reverend gentleman respecting the poems, therefore he decided to address -himself to his kind friend in Philadelphia on the subject. In due time -Mr Bond replied with a communication from Mr M'Farquhar, dated, -"Newhaven, Penn., January 1806," stating as follows:--"It is perfectly -within my recollection when I was living in the Highlands of Scotland, -that Mr James Macpherson was there collecting as many as he could find -of the Poems of Ossian. Among those applied to was a co-presbyter of -mine, who knew that a man of distinguished celebrity had resided in my -congregation, and he requested the favour of me to have an interview -with him and take down in writing some of these poems from his lips for -Mr Macpherson, which I did, but cannot recollect at this distance of -time the names of the poems, though I well remember they were both -lengthy and irksome to write, on account of the many mute letters -contained in almost every word. Indeed, it would be difficult to find -one among ten thousand of the Highlanders of the present day who could -or would submit to the task of committing one of them to writing or -memory, though in former ages they made the repetition of the poems a -considerable part of their enjoyment at festive and convivial -entertainments. Well do I remember the time when I myself lent a willing -ear to the stories of Fingal, Oscar, Ossian, and other heroes of the -Highland bard. I cannot, therefore, forbear calling that man an ignorant -sceptic, and totally unacquainted with the customs of the history of the -Highlanders, and the usages prevailing amongst them; who can once doubt -in his mind their being the composition of Ossian? And as to being the -production of Macpherson or any of his companions, I have no more doubt -than I have of the compositions of Horace or Virgil to be the works of -these celebrated authors." - -The Secretary laid Mr Bond's letter and its inclosure with the foregoing -statement of the Reverend Mr M'Farquhar before the Highland Society, -which they considered so important as to have adopted it in Sir John -Sinclair's "Additional Proofs of the Authenticity of the Poems of -Ossian." While on this subject, another reference must be made to Mr -Bond. The Highland Society in acknowledging the receipt of his -communications, alluded to the service he had rendered to their -fellow-countryman (Erracht) when in distress. The Marquis of Huntly, who -was President, moved that the Society's Gold Medal be conferred on Mr -Bond; also that he be elected an _Honorary_ member of the Society.[D] -The propositions were unanimously approved, and thus his friendship to -the benighted prisoner was not forgotten by the members of this noble -and patriotic Society. - - -CHAPTER VII. - -ALAN, although now (1792) surrounded by a young family, and in -circumstances independent of the emoluments of his profession, was not, -however, disposed to live a life of idleness. Nor had he relinquished -the intention to enter again on active service. This was most difficult -of accomplishment, on account principally, of the reduction of the army -on the termination of the American War; and that no additions wore made -to it for the last five or six years. - -Britain was for the moment at peace with all nations; but the state of -affairs in India was causing so much concern that the home government -decided on increasing the military force in each of its Presidencies; -and to enable that intention to be effected, an augmentation of the army -of five battalions was ordered, commencing with the 74th Regiment. Two -of these were to be raised in Scotland and three in England. Into one of -the new corps, Alan hoped to be transferred from the "provincial list." -In this, however, he was disappointed owing to other applicants being -his seniors in the service; notwithstanding that the Marquis of -Cornwallis, whoso friendship he had gained in America, had previously -recommended him to the Commander-in-Chief. - -After remaining a few years longer at home, an event impended, which was -to shake Europe to its foundation. This was the French Revolution. To -trace the causes, or detail the scenes, which followed this revolution, -is beyond the limits of our subject, except simply to refer to its -excesses in burning, plundering, and confiscating property of every -description, to which was finally added the execution of the King and -Queen on the scaffold. These iniquitous acts were execrated by -reasonable people of all countries, but were shortly followed by the -Republican Assembly offering aid to other nations to rid themselves of -their monarchical rulers. The incitement to extend rebellion to their -neighbours drew upon them the animosity of all governments, of whom the -continentals were the first to take offence. - -To demonstrate their earnestness, the French took immediate action by -advancing three armies towards their northern frontiers; the total -strength being not under half a million soldiers, under the command of -their ablest generals--Jourdan, Moreau, and Pichequr. Simultaneously -with this offensive demonstration, war was declared against Holland, -Spain, and Britain. The manufactures of the latter country were strictly -prohibited in France, and it was, moreover, ordered that all British -subjects in whatever part of the Republic should be arrested, and their -properties seized. - -The whole powers of the Continent were now arrayed against the French, yet -the vigour of their measures enabled them to disconcert the dilatory -schemes of their allied opponents. This same year (1793) the insurrection -at Toulon also broke out, and it was on this occasion that first appeared -the extraordinary man, who was to wield for a considerable period the -destinies of Europe. Napoleon Bonaparte, then _Chef de bataillon_, was -dispatched by the Convention as second in command of the artillery, where -he displayed a genius in the art of war, which soon afterwards gained him -the direction of the _Corps d'armee_ in Italy. - -The British Government now became alarmed, and resolved on sending the -Duke of York to Flanders with 10,000 troops. Among the evils of the -Hanoverian succession was, that it dragged Britain into the vortex of -continental politics, and often made her subservient to the King's views -in favour of his electorate. The present was one of the instances. This -decision of co-operation may be said to have committed this country to a -line of policy which engaged its army and navy, more or less persistently -for upwards of twenty years, and terminated only in varying success, with -the crowning victory of Waterloo, and the occupation of Paris in the -summer of 1815. - - -CHAPTER VIII. - -THE force sent to Flanders (1793) was a serious drain on the strength of -the army, which must be made good without delay. The Government viewed -it in that light, and ordered commissions to be issued forthwith for the -enrolment of twenty-two regiments for general service (from the 79th to -the 100th), sixteen of which were subsequently made permanent, and added -to the establishment. Other bodies were also raised for home services, -known as "Fencibles." Now was the time for Alan to bestir himself. -Applicants, with influence and claims on the War Office, were greatly in -excess of the number required. Lord Cornwallis' previous recommendation -in his favour was found of advantage in support of Alan's present -application, inasmuch that the "Letter of Service" granted in his favour -was among the first of the batch gazetted on the 17th of Aug. 1793. -Although Major-Commandant Cameron (he will be now named by his -successive ranks in the army) had reason to be satisfied with the -success of his application for the "Letters," yet the terms and -conditions embodied were not only illiberal, but even exacting, a -circumstance he had an opportunity some time afterwards of pointing out -to one of His Majesty's sons (the Duke of York). The document is too -long and not sufficiently interesting to be quoted, and an extract -or two from it must suffice. "All the officers--the ensigns and -staff-officers excepted--are to be appointed from the half-pay list, -according to their present rank, taking care, however, that the former -only are recommended who have not taken any difference in their being -placed on half-pay. The men are to be engaged without limitation as to -the period of their service, and without any allowance of levy money, -_but they are not to be drafted into any other regiments_." On receipt -of this official communication from the War Office, Major Cameron had an -intimation from his father-in-law--Squire Philips--that money to the -extent of his requirements for the expenses of attaining his ambition, -would be placed at his disposal. This act of generosity relieved the -Major from one of his difficulties. The next consideration was how far -it might be prudent to make the recruiting ground his own native -district of Lochaber, when it is remembered that he left that country as -a fugitive from the vengeance of a considerable portion of its -inhabitants. The terms of his "Letters of Service" restricted him in the -disposal of the commissions which might have been offered them as a -means of pacification, but the few left in his power he decided at once -to confer on those sons of families who might be in influential -positions and otherwise eligible for the appointments. With this view he -despatched several copies of the _London Gazette_ containing the -"authority to raise a Highland Regiment" to his brother Ewan (known in -later years as _Eoghann Mor an Earrachd_) with a letter, both of which -he was enjoined to make as widely and as publicly known as possible. The -letter is, if somewhat plausible, frank enough, and characteristic of -his conduct throughout his varied career in life. In it he states that, -"having been favoured with the honour of embodying a Highland Regiment -for His Majesty's service; where could I go to obey that order but to my -own native Lochaber; and with that desire I have decided on appealing to -their forgiveness of byegone events, and their loyalty to the sovereign -in his present exigencies. The few commissions at my disposal shall be -offered first to the relatives of the gentleman whose life, -unfortunately, was sacrificed by my hand." - -The printing press, even of the capital of the County of Inverness was -not so advanced in those days, as to have circulars printed of the -foregoing proclamation. Therefore, the brother had to transcribe copies -as best he could, which he did to some effect, inasmuch that before Alan -arrived in Lochaber, on his mission, Ewan had already engaged the -complement of a company to start with, all of whom he retained on his -farm at Earrachd till the arrival of the Major. Thus the credit of -gathering the nucleus of the now famous 79th is due to _Eoghann Mor_, -for which service the Major procured him a commission as captain and -recruiting officer, for his regiment, in that district. - - (_To be Continued._) - - -FOOTNOTES: - -[C] Minutes of the Highland Society of London, 1782. - -[D] Minute Highland Society of London 1806. - - - - -THE FIRST PRINTED GAELIC BOOK. - - -It is to be regretted, since the art of printing has existed for so many -centuries, that nothing in the Gaelic was ever produced in the form of a -printed book until the year 1567. No doubt many valuable documents, -poems, and charters were written on parchment and paper in that -venerable language previous to that date, but the first Gaelic book was -Bishop Carsewell's Translation of Knox's Liturgy, which was printed in -the above year. Forms of prayer, the Administration of the Sacraments, -and the Catechism of the Reformed Church of Scotland were composed by -Knox, and published in a small volume. Carsewell was an earnest and -zealous man, and in the discharge of his pastoral duties in districts -where the Gaelic was the vernacular tongue, he could not fail to see the -benefit to be derived from a manual in that language for the instruction -of the people, and hence the translation and printing of the volume just -alluded to. It was in the duodecimo form, and consisted of about three -hundred pages. The printer was Robert Lekprevik who was remarkable in -his day for the successful manner in which he executed black-letter -printing. It was he who produced from his press "The Reasoning betwixt -the Abbot of Crossraguel and John Knox," to which book were attached the -words:--"Imprinted at Edinburgh by Robert Lekprevik, and are to be solde -at his hous at the Netherbow, 1563." - -It would appear that about that time this notable printer removed from -Edinburgh to St Andrews, where printing of different kinds was carried on, -to what was then considered a great extent. It was while in that town that -he printed "Davidson's Metrical Version of Knox's History and Doctrines," -in a volume of considerable size. The work was entitled:--"Ane brief -commendation of Uprichtness."--"Imprentit at Sanctandrois be Robert -Lekprevik, anno 1573." - -It is a matter of no small regret to the lovers of the Celtic tongue, as -well as to philologists in general, that the very interesting -translation of Bishop Carsewell is now hardly to be had anywhere. It is -said that the Duke of Argyle has a copy of it in his library at -Inveraray Castle; and it is well known that another copy, and a very -complete one, was in the possession of a well-known Gaelic scholar, and -excellent Christian man, the late Mr John Rose, teacher at Aberarder, -parish of Dunlichity, near Inverness. It is not known what has become of -the copy of which Mr Rose was the owner, but it would be pleasing if it -were somewhere in safe-keeping, and still more pleasing if it would find -its way to the library shelves of the Gaelic Society of Inverness. The -rarity of the little work in question makes it the more valuable, and -while out of print it cannot be replaced. - -The language of this small volume differs a little in spelling from the -Gaelic of the present day, yet it is, upon the whole very plain, and -quite intelligible to any one acquainted with the pronunciation of it. -This may be seen, and better understood, by giving a small quotation -from the work--viz., the concluding declaration of the learned -translator, which runs as follows:--"Do chriochnvigheadh an leabhran -beag so, le Heasbug Indseadh gall, an, 24 la do Mhi. Aprile sa -seachtmhadh bliadhain tar thri fithid agas ar chuig ced, agas ar Mhile -bliadhain dandaladh ar Dtighearna Iosa Criosd. Sa geuigeadh bliadhain -tar fithid do Righe na Rioghna ro chumhachtaighe Marie Banrighan na -Halban." - -The printer has concluded this interesting but now rare volume, by the -words:--"Do Bvaileadh so agclo an Dvn Edin le Roibeart Lekprevik, 24 -Aprilis, 1567." - -John Carsewell, by all accounts, was a faithful servant of his Divine -Master. He not only preached the Word with earnestness and power, but -was always instant in season and out of season--"a workman that needeth -not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth." He was for some -years Rector of Kilmartin, a parish in the county of Argyle; but after -the Reformation he was made Bishop of the Western Isles. A certain -writer has said of the reverend gentleman that "he early joined the -reformed clergy, and when the Protestant doctrine was ratified by -Parliament in 1560, he was appointed Superintendent of Argyle." The -superintendents, it will be recollected, were ministers set over a large -district or diocese, in which they were appointed regularly to travel, -for the purpose of preaching the gospel, of planting churches, and of -inspecting the conduct of ministers, exhorters, and readers. They were, -in fact, Bishops, but (according to the Book of Discipline) they were -not "to be suffered to live idle, as the Bishops had done heretofore." -Bishop Carsewell was wealthy and lived in state at Carnassary Castle, -now in ruins, at the head of the Valley of Kilmartin. - -This volume of Bishop Carsewell, to which the attention of the readers -of the _Celtic Magazine_ is now called, is very interesting from another -point of view. In consequence of some incidental remarks made by the -learned bishop, it will be seen that in his day traditions existed in -the Highlands and Islands in regard to the Ossianic poetry. This is a -fact which ought to be of no small importance in the present day, when -such keen controversies exist as to the authenticity of the poetical -productions attributed to Ossian. It is surely unreasonable to suppose -if the poems in question had been the creation of James Macpherson, how -it became possible for Bishop Carsewell to allude to the traditions in -the Highlands and Islands regarding Fingal and his heroes upwards of two -hundred years before Macpherson's day! Such direct and legitimate -evidence as this ought to be allowed to have its full weight and force; -and no prejudice on the part of such as are ignorant of the elegance and -beauty of the Gaelic language ought to lead them away from a desire to -believe what is really the truth. Carsewell dedicated his interesting -volume to the Earl of Argyle, on whom he looked as his patron, and who, -by his power and influence, aided the good Bishop in his earnest -endeavours to promote the temporal and spiritual good of the population -of his estates, as well as of that of the Highlands and Islands at -large. - -In his somewhat lengthy dedication, the following passage appears, which -is here given as faithfully translated by the Committee of the Highland -Society in their report on the poems of Ossian. - -The passage in question runs as follows:--"But there is one great -disadvantage which we, the Gael of Scotland and Ireland, labour under, -beyond the rest of the world, that our Gaelic language has never yet -been printed, as the language of every other race of men has been; and -we labour under a disadvantage which is still greater than every other -disadvantage, that we have not the Holy Bible printed in Gaelic, as it -has been printed in Latin and English, and in every other language, and -also that we have never yet had any account printed of the antiquities -of our country, or of our ancestors; for though we have some accounts of -the Gael of Scotland and Ireland contained in manuscripts, and in the -genealogies of bards and historiographers, yet there is great labour in -writing them over with the hand, whereas the work which is printed, be -it ever so great, is speedily finished. And great is the blindness and -sinful darkness, and ignorance, and evil design of such as teach, and -write, and cultivate the Gaelic language, that, with the view of -obtaining for themselves the vain rewards of this world, they are more -desirous, and more accustomed to compose vain, tempting, lying, worldly -histories concerning the 'seann dain,' and concerning warriors and -champions, and Fingal, the son of Cumhail, with his heroes, and -concerning many others which I will not at present enumerate or mention, -in order to maintain or reprove, than to write and teach, and maintain -the faithful words of God, and of the perfect way of truth." - -It may be seen from this that the learned Bishop naturally complained of -the great disadvantage under which the Gael, both in Scotland and -Ireland, laboured in their not being possessed of any book whatever in -the Gaelic, as nothing hitherto had ever been printed in that language. -It would have been both interesting and instructive to have had the -annals of their country recorded in this manner, as they could not have -depended so much on the still more vague and uncertain narratives to -which were handed down from age to age by tradition. No doubt the bards -and _seanachies_ had their manuscripts and parchments in which many -important facts, and many ancient productions in poetry were recorded, -but these were at best but comparatively few, and could benefit the -community but to a small extent, compared with the productions of even -such printing-presses as were made use of by the renowned Lekprevik. The -want of the Holy Scriptures in the Gaelic language particularly in -districts where it was the only spoken language, was a disadvantage -which the good Bishop deeply deplored; and that want was no doubt the -chief cause of his publishing his "Forms of Prayer, &c.," to facilitate -his ministerial labours among the Highlanders. Had the Bishop been a -prophet in a sense, and had he been able to have foreseen the keen -controversies that were to take place two centuries after his time, -relative to the poems that told of Fingal and his warriors, he would -have given a more detailed account of the Ossianic poetry which was no -rare thing in his day. Posterity would have felt very grateful to the -learned gentleman if he had enlarged somewhat on the songs and tales of -olden times, as he had every opportunity of hearing them rehearsed by -the family bards of chieftains, as well as by the clan _seanachies_ who -made such things their sole employment. Carswell seemed to think (as -many clergymen have thought in latter times) that the Highlanders, -among whom he laboured, paid too much attention to their songs and -tales about warriors and Fingalian battles, and thereby neglected the -more important preparations for a future world. In all probability he -directed his eloquent addresses against such practices, although by no -means successful in extinguishing them. For two centuries they descended -from age to age, and were communicated from sire to son, until -ultimately stamped out by the effects of adverse changes, and of the -altered economy in the management of the Highlands and Islands. - - SGIATHANACH. - - - - - KILMUIR, SKYE, IN 1842--OSSIAN AND WITCHCRAFT.--There is no medical - practitioner nearer than the village of Portree, upwards of twenty - miles distant, and the consequence is that he is never sent for but - in cases of extreme danger. Three or four individuals lately died at - the age of 100. In the district of Steinscholl a man died about - twelve years ago, named John Nicolson, or _Maccormaic_, at the very - advanced age of 105. There is one circumstance connected with this - old man's history worthy of notice, which is, that he could repeat - the most of Ossian's Fingal, Temora, &c., with great fluency and - precision. The writer of this heard him say that he committed these - beautiful poems to memory from hearing them repeated, when a boy, by - his grandfather. If this fact be not sufficient to establish the - authenticity of these unparalleled poems, it must surely establish - the truth, that they existed before the time of Macpherson, who - attempted to translate them into the English language. The silly - allegation by some that Ossian's poems were Macpherson's own - production is palpably confuted by _Mac Cormaic_ and others, who - could repeat them before Macpherson was born. But should that not - have been the case, and should none have been found who could - rehearse them before Macpherson's time, the allegation that they - were either by Macpherson, or by any other in the age in which he - lived, appears ridiculous in the sight of such as know the - construction and beauty of the Celtic language.... Some time ago the - natives firmly believed in the existence of the "Gruagach," a female - spectre of the class of Brownies, to whom the dairy-maids made - frequent libations of milk. The "Gruagach" was said to be an - innocent supernatural visitor, who frisked and gambolled about the - pens and folds. She was armed only with a pliable reed, with which - she switched any who would annoy her, either by uttering obscene - language or by neglecting to leave for her a share of the dairy - production. Even so late as 1770, the dairy-maids, who attended a - herd of cattle in the Island of Trodda, were in the habit of pouring - daily a quantity of milk in a hollow stone for the "Gruagach." - Should they neglect to do so they were sure of feeling the effects - of Miss Brownie's wand next day. It is said that the Rev. Donald - Macqueen, then minister of this parish, went purposely to Trodda to - check that gross superstition. He might then have succeeded for a - time in doing so, but it is known that many believed in the - "Gruagach's" existence long after that reverend gentleman's death. - Besides the votaries of this ridiculous superstition, there are - others who confidently believe in the existence of a malignant look - or evil eye, by which cattle and all kinds of property are said to - suffer injury. The glance of an evil eye is consequently very much - dreaded. No doubts are entertained that it deprives cows of their - milk, and milk of its nutritive qualities so as to render it unfit - for the various preparations made from it. This superstition can - certainly lay claim to great antiquity. - - "_Nescio quis teneros oculus mihi fascinat agnos._"--Virg. - - --_New Statistical Account of Kilmuir, Skye, "drawn up by Mr - Alexander Macgregor, M.A., Licentiate of the Church of Scotland, and - son of the Incumbent._" - - - - -FLORA, STAR OF ARMADALE. - - - Grey Blavin in grandeur gold-crested appears, - As swift sinks the sun in the west, - Whose gleams of departure, as love-guarding spears, - Skim over the blue ocean's breast: - The lav'rock pours sweetly his ev'ning joy song, - Lone cushats croon soft in each vale, - Pale gloaming's low melodies linger among - The beauties of loved Armadale: - - It is the hour when raptures reign, - It is the hour when joys prevail, - I'll hie away to meet again - My Flora, Star of Armadale; - Armadale! Armadale! - Flora, Star of Armadale: - - The dim robe of night over Knoydart's brown hills, - Comes weirdly with dark-shading lour, - Slow-stealing it shrouds the repose it full fills - With calm's hallowed, heart-clinging, pow'r: - It tells of a maiden whose heart I have got, - It whispers the love-longing tale, - It bids me away to yon heather-thatched cot, - Snug nestling by sweet Armadale: - - It is the hour of Nature's peace, - It is the hour when smiles unveil - The beauty which bids love increase - For Flora, Star of Armadale; - Armadale! Armadale! - Flora, Star of Armadale: - - Her eyes are as dark as the gloom of Loch Hourn, - Yet soft as the gaze of a fawn, - Still darker the tresses that crown to adorn - A brow like a light-mellowed dawn. - Her voice is a fountain of summer's dream-song, - Her smiles can the budding rose pale, - O! rare are the graces which humbly belong - To Flora of dear Armadale: - - It is the hour of love's alarms, - It is the hour when throbs assail - This heart which glows beneath the charms - Of Flora, Star of Armadale; - Armadale! Armadale! - Flora, Star of Armadale. - - WM. ALLAN. - - SUNDERLAND. - - - - -LITERATURE. - - _OSSIAN AND THE CLYDE, FINGAL IN IRELAND, OSCAR IN ICELAND, OR - OSSIAN HISTORICAL AND AUTHENTIC, by_ P. HATELY WADDELL, LL.D., - _Minister of the Gospel, Editor and Biographer of Robert Burns, - Translator of the Psalms into Scottish, &c._ Glasgow: JAMES - MACLEHOSE, Publisher to the University, 1875. - - -WE cannot, after careful study of this book, assign to it any but the -first place in Ossianic literature. In style of composition it is pure, -dignified and eloquent; in substance and matter it surpasses beyond -reach of comparison any book hitherto written on the same subject. It -can scarcely be doubted, indeed, that this great work has rescued a -discussion which even in the highest hands seemed descending to mere -verbal quibbles and party abuse from such a degradation, and has raised -it to a position, which if it ever held before, it was rapidly losing. -The subject is now made universal; it enters on a new life, strengthened -with a new element which will never now be overlooked. A culminating -point has been reached for all preceding criticism, and a sure -foundation has been laid for a new school of investigation, other and -higher than the dogmatism of Johnson, Laing, or Macaulay. We know not -how far these men were able to comprehend and appreciate such pure and -unique creations as those of Ossian, but it is to be attributed neither -to their refined and cultivated taste, to their critical discernment, -nor yet to their historical and literary knowledge that they despised -and abandoned, as mere myths of savage tribes or wholesale fabrications -of a modern literateur, the poetic annals of their own land and the -grand historical epics where the actions of Norsemen, Scots, and Romans -alike, are pourtrayed and immortalised. Now, however, these works stand -on a new footing; comprehensible, beautiful, and historical every one, -deserving more than ever the enthusiastic admiration with which all -nations have received them, for now it can be based on reason and -knowledge. - -The historical and critical value of this book, and the change it will -effect not only on the Ossianic literature, but on the poems themselves, -may easily be seen in three ways at least. First, the importance of the -question discussed, the universal character of the poems, and the -historical results depending on the decision of their authenticity are -now clearly set forth. It has been the prevalent, if not the only way of -examining these works, to regard them merely as interesting literary -productions, relics of ancient poetry or modern frauds, and to determine -their truth or falsity, as the case might be, by such tests as the -character of the translator, the means of preserving and collecting such -poems, and especially the form of the language found in them. These were -the only grounds of criticism. Nor did even their most ardent supporters -seem to see much higher results involved than the recognition of some -early national songs and ballads, or the preservation of the oldest -Celtic literature of the country. To them it was an interesting and -important discussion in this light only; the history contained in these -songs they either did not understand, or entirely neglected. It has been -reserved for the author of this book to shew, beyond dispute or doubt, -that the poems of Ossian are not on the one side merely grand romances -or national myths, or on the other only curious literary deceptions; -they are tales of history, grand and romantic certainly, but unreal or -deceptive never; annals of war and songs of love for Scotland, Ireland, -Iceland, and Denmark; lives of these countries' heroes, pictures of -their lands. And though more may yet be discovered, and stranger things -be proved, this at least--the early history of these nations with their -lawgivers, kings, and emperors, Scotch and Roman, Celt and Saxon; with -their wars and works, their public acts and private life, their -religion, their customs, their trade; their moors and glens and streams, -their Roman walls and battlefields--this, and nothing less than this, is -Ossian; in interest and importance coming close beside Homer, both as -historian and poet, and leaving Junius, Chatterton, the German -"Epistolae," &c., far, far behind:-- - - O, Johnson, Pinkerton, Macaulay, and the rest--to say that this was - all bombast and a lie! But you knew nothing of Arran: you never - traversed the vale of Shisken, nor surveyed its monuments, nor - considered its geography; nor heard the rustle of the winds, in your - imagination, among its prostrate woods; nor glanced on the surge of - its departed lake, nor compared its traditions with the text of - Ossian; yet neither did Macpherson, whom you have accused of - falsehood and forgery; he was equally ignorant of it all. How - strange you now look confronted with him thus; how strange he - himself looks, in the bewilderment of unexpected victory at the - grave of Oscar and by the tomb of Malvina; with the ghosts of - fifteen hundred years ago, awoke from the dead, to enlighten and - convict you--yourselves now ghosts, like them--in the pride of your - unbelief!... Even the possibility of reply is foreclosed, by the - verdict of the whole landscape around you. The earth, the water, the - wind and very clouds are agreed about it. The sunbeam from the east, - beyond the grave at Glenree there, glances golden rebuke on your - dull culumnies, and the ebbing fiord of Sliddery carries your - vaunted authority to sea. The fine-drawn light which shimmers thus, - through so many centuries, on fallen forests, wasted lakes, and - mouldering dead dispels the last obstruction of your scorn--and our - controversy with you is ended. - -But still further, these poems assume a new form, and a peculiar -interest in being now by Dr Waddell harmonized and united into one grand -series, linked together in a continuous chain. They are no longer -detached fragments, doubtful and incomprehensible myths, unknown and -unanalysable; they have unity now, the unity which belongs to the works -of one universal poet, as well the unity of history. Such an analysis -and conception of these works has never before been attempted. A critic -here and there has examined and partially explained one or two pieces, -as separate poems, but always imperfectly and with hesitation; afraid -evidently of his conclusions, not yet having discovered the clue to this -labyrinth of song. Nor can we wonder that critics and commentators -should hesitate to tread upon ground where the translator himself was at -fault; for, however faithfully he compared and considered, he did not -understand the geography of Ossian. He gathered the poems as fragments, -and fragments they remained to him; for though he might strive hard to -explain and connect them, yet while he had little idea of the places -described it was impossible he could succeed; they are all descriptive -poems, and require to be localised. This formerly confused mass of -Highland and Irish tradition and geography Dr Waddell has fearlessly -attacked and completely mastered, the unexplored land has all been -surveyed and cleared up, and the truth and harmony of the Ossianic -poems demonstrated. And by whom? By a Southern Scot--an actual "Son of -the Stranger"--who examined, and who discusses, the question purely on -its merits; and who is proof against the charges of narrow Highland -bigotry and prejudice, which would have been so effectively hurled -against a native of "_Tir nam beann nan gleann's nan gaisgeach_" by -other Southerners who never expended a single moment in a personal study -of the question, but accepted their opinions and conclusions second -hand. - -The most important matter however, in this volume, and which alone -rendered the foregoing results possible, is the method pursued. It is -upon this that all else is based, and without which Ossian would still -have remained the inexplicable enigma he not long ago really was; for -not all the criticism which has been lavished on this ancient and -immortal bard by professors, philologists, and philosophers, has -rendered him one whit more clear or perspicuous, but has certainly -raised discussion and animosity enough between the opposing combatants. -And the reason is, that no man yet has got farther in his analysis than -the mere words and letters of the text, their various spelling or -combinations, their ancient or modern use, their Celtic or Saxon origin, -their gender, number, and case. Philology is, has been, and will always -be a useful and most important science beyond many others; but philology -may be, and has often been, shamefully abused and mocked. The "dry -light" of truth and certainty for which everybody is toiling and -labouring in art, religion, philosophy, and literature, is concealed by -more than the darkness of printers' types in mere verbal criticism--the -most popular, but perhaps the most pernicious habit of the day. The form -of the poetry in Ossian, apart from all its spirit and substance, has -long been analysed, investigated, discussed, destroyed, and built up -again; yielding all the fruit it seems likely ever to yield, more doubt -and more discussion; tense-endings and inflections have been tried and -found wanting. - -The method we now speak of has abandoned all such criticism, or, at -least, made it entirely subservient to a higher and more comprehensive -one; and has brought into the darkness of the Ossianic controversy a -revelation bright as noonday. The spirit of the poems has been taken -instead of the letter, the contents instead of the words, the geography -of Scotland as it stands instead of inflections, and the history of our -own and of other nations has been substituted for emendations and -various readings. And by this means a work has been done for the -Highlands, for Scotland and for Europe, which can scarcely be realised; -the history of Scotland, and with it the history of a great part of -Europe in some of its darkest ages, has been revealed, and the -literature of our country saved. Nor does the man who has done this need -thanks, although, at the hands of all, and especially of Highlanders, he -certainly deserves them. The work is its own reward. - -We shall now come more to details and give some examples of the way in -which Dr Waddell conducts his investigations, and of the discoveries -which follow from them in the region of geography alone. For the -convincing identification, however, of the places named, we must refer -the reader to the book itself. - -Dr Waddell seems to have been a believer, from his youth, in the -authenticity of Ossian by what he calls moral instinct, founded merely -on the characteristics of Macpherson's text--its simplicity, sublimity, -and coherence. Judging of it by these attributes alone, he could never -doubt it; and from this, the next step was easy and indeed necessary--if -Ossian in his opinion was thus authentically true, Ossian ought also to -be historically and geographically true; and therefore the whole, or at -least the principal, object of his investigation has been to declare -that truth by demonstrating the actual correspondence of nature to the -letter of the translation, even where Macpherson himself had never seen -it. And this undeniable fact, the ignorance of the translator as to the -whereabouts of the places accurately described in his own text, is one -of the strongest proofs he makes use of. This interesting method seems -to have been suggested to him first by discoveries in the island of -Arran, where the tomb of Ossian, and the graves of Fingal, Oscar, and -Malvina were pointed out to him by the people, and authenticated by -tradition. On examining all the allusions in the translation, they were -found exactly to confirm the identity of these places; yet Macpherson -never was in Arran. Next, Dr Waddell proceeded to examine the whole -Frith of Clyde, where equally distinct proofs awaited him. He shews that -the Clyde must have been a fiord to Rutherglen and Bothwell in Ossian's -day, and that Balclutha must have been identical with Castlemilk, or -some other ruined fortress near Rutherglen, and not as commonly -supposed, with Dunglass or Dumbarton. The Kelvin, both in name and -character is the Colavain of Ossian, and was a fiord up to Kilsyth; near -which he discovers the actual scene of Comala's death, and of the -triumph of Oscar over Carausius, a little to the east. Here too, -Macpherson was completely at fault. In the north of Ireland, from -the descriptive text of _Fingal_ and _Temora_, the valley of the -Six-Mile-Water is found to correspond in the most minute particulars -with the scenes of these poems, whereas Macpherson by mere guess-work -placed them much farther south and west. In the Orkney Islands, by a -similar process of minute verification, he finds Carricthura at Castle -Thuroe in Hoy; and the celebrated scene of Fingal's encounter with Loda, -near the well-known Dwarfie Stone on the west coast of that island. In -Iceland, by a most irrefragable demonstration, he identifies the -dried-up fountain at Reikum with the "fount of the mossy stones," and -the plain of Thingvalla with the plain of the pestiferous Lano--both in -the _War of Inisthona_. - -Now the only, and to many the great, difficulty in the way of accepting -such proof in its entirety, is the boldness of the author's assumption -that the Frith of Clyde must have been from seventy to eighty feet -higher in Ossian's era--that is, in the time of the Romans--than it now -is; but if this be proved it adds another conclusive proof to the -authenticity of Ossian, for Macpherson was ignorant likewise of this. -The possibility of such a fact has already been loudly challenged by a -scientific reviewer in the _Scotsman_, whose objections, however, have -been conclusively answered by Dr Waddell in the same paper, and in the -last three numbers of the _Celtic Magazine_; indeed the exquisite -photographic views in the work of the actual marine formations on the -Clyde, and the sectional views of the coast at other points, leave no -room for serious doubt on the subject. - -Besides all this, Dr Waddell adds a critical dissertation on -Macpherson's text, to shew the impossibility of his having tampered with -the original, illustrating this part of his argument by references to -_Berrathon_, _Croma_, and _Conlath_ and _Cuthona_. He has also -introduced an interesting statistical summary, gathered from Ossian, of -the manners, customs, religious observances, and scientific knowledge of -the age; which may be studied with much benefit. In the appendix we have -a curious history of the Irish people from the earliest traditional -dates down to the time of Ossian, compiled from reliable chronicles, -hitherto, we suspect, very little known; the whole book being -illustrated by many beautiful wood-cuts and original maps. The exquisite -little poem which completes the work we cannot omit:-- - - -TO GOATFELL, ARRAN: - -ON FIRST SEEING IT FROM THE SHORE. - -[AT BRODICK.] - - Born of earthquakes, lonely giant, - Sphinx and eagle couched on high; - Dumb, defiant, self-reliant, - Breast on earth and beak in sky: - - Built in chaos, burnt out beacon, - Long extinguished, dark, and bare, - Ere life's friendly ray could break on - Shelvy shore or islet fair: - - Dwarf to atlas, child to Etna, - Stepping-stone to huge Mont Blanc; - Cairn to cloudy Chimborazo, - Higher glories round thee hang! - - Baal-tein hearth, for friend and foeman; - Warden of the mazy Clyde; - In thy shadow, Celt and Roman, - Proudly galley'd, swept the tide! - - Scottish Sinai, God's out-rider, - When he wields his lightning wand; - From thy flanks, a king and spider - Taught, and saved, and ruled the land! - - Smoking void and planet rending, - Island rise and ocean fall, - Frith unfolding, field extending-- - Thou hast seen and felt them all. - - Armies routed, navies flouted, - Tyrants fallen, people free; - Cities built and empires clouted, - Like the world, are known to thee. - - Science shining, love enshrining, - Truth and patience conquering hell; - Miracles beyond divining, - Could'st thou speak, thy tongue would tell. - - Rest awhile, the nations gather, - Sick of folly, lies, and sin, - To kneel to the eternal Father-- - Then the kingdom shall begin! - - Rest awhile, some late convulsion, - Time enough shall shake thy bed: - Rest awhile, at Death's expulsion, - Living green shall clothe thy head! - - -WE are glad to find that the Queen's Book--"Leaves from the Journal of -our Life in the Highlands"--will soon appear in Gaelic. The translation -is by the Rev. John Patrick St Clair, St Stephen's, Perth, who is an -excellent scholar, with a deep-rooted love for his Gaelic vernacular. -This news cannot but be gratifying to the patriotic Highlander all over -the world, who has ever been loyal to Her Majesty, as a descendant of -the Stuarts; and especially should a work be welcome, in our native -language, in which the highest in the realm describes the Highlander as -"one of a race of peculiar independence and elevated feeling." What has -become of the Highland Society's Translation entrusted to the late Mr -Macpherson? - - - - -QUERIES AND ANSWERS. - - -SECRETARY GAELIC SOCIETY OF SYDNEY.--Letter received and sentiments -reciprocated. Great success to your Society. Your instructions are -attended to. - -D. O. CAMERON, NOKOMAI, NEW ZEALAND.--Letter received and contents -noted. The Publishers of the _Celtic Magazine_ and the Publisher of -"Knockie's Highland Music" are not the same. - -WM. KENNEDY, BURMAH.--Letter and P.O.O. received. Your suggestions will -be duly considered. - -THE HIGHLAND CEILIDH.--The answer to the many enquiries and complaints -regarding its non-appearance last month is, that it was unavoidably -crushed out for want of space. - -THE PROPHECIES OF COINNEACH ODHAR FIOSAICHE.--The Brahan Seer, by Alex -Mackenzie of the _Celtic Magazine_.--We regret no more copies can be -supplied as it is out of print. Mr Noble, bookseller, Castle Street, to -whom we refer R. M'L. and P. M'R., has a few copies left. - -GAELIC TEACHING IN HIGHLAND SCHOOLS.--An article on the subject will -appear in the next--the April--number. It is impossible to please -everybody all at once, and it is just as well that we delayed discussing -such an important question until the _Celtic Magazine_ had secured an -acknowledged position as a representative mirror of moderate and -intelligent Highland opinion. - -IN answer to "A. R.'s" query in No. III., asking which is the "best -standard for Gaelic orthography?" permit me to say that I do not know of -any standard upon which any two writers of Gaelic absolutely agree; but, -on the whole, I think the orthography of the Gaelic Bible is now, with -very slight modification, adopted generally by the best writers, so much -so, that it may now be considered the best and safest standard of Gaelic -orthography to follow. Most of those who read and write Gaelic learnt to -read it first out of the Gaelic Scriptures, so that they are more -acquainted with their orthography, and naturally prefer to read and -write it.--_Deer's Grass._ - -"MACAOIDH" wishes to get information regarding the famous pipers--the -Mackays of Gairloch--the most celebrated of whom was John, or "_Iain -Dall_." John's father--_Ruairidh Dall_--came to Gairloch from Lord -Reay's country; and, no doubt, belonged to that sept--the chief branch -of the Mackays. I am not aware of the cause which led _Ruairidh Dall_ to -leave his own country, but it is well known that his son often visited -the country of his ancestors, and that Lord Reay was one of his patrons. -On one occasion, when on his way to visit his lordship, the "Blind -Piper" was informed at Tongue of the death of his patron, when he at -once composed that magnificent poem "_Coire 'n-Easain_," than which -there is nothing more truly beautiful in the Gaelic language, and which -would, by itself, immortalize the fame of any man. There are some of his -descendants, on the female side, still living in Gairloch, but none of -them ever gave any signs of possessing in the slightest degree the -musical or poetical talents of their progenitors. I am told some of the -family are still living in America, who continue to inherit the musical -genius of the "Blind Pipers" of Gairloch, and will be glad, in common -with "Macaoidh," if some of your North British American readers will -supply any information regarding them.--_Cailleach a Mhuillear._ - -THE REV. MR LACHLAN MACKENZIE OF LOCHCARRON, AND "ALASTAIR BUIDHE," THE -GAIRLOCH BARD.--It is well known that these good and distinguished men -(each in his own way) were great friends, and both composed poems of -considerable merit. I heard it stated that, on one occasion, during one -of _Alastair's_ visits to his friend "Mr Lachlan," the famous divine -requested the bard to compose a poem on the "Resurrection of Christ." To -this he demurred and told Mr Lachlan in Gaelic that "he knew more about -such matters himself, and should try his own hand on such an elevated -theme." "_Hud a dhuine_," says Mr. Lachlan, "_cha'n fhaod gun tig eadar -cairdean mar sin. Ni mise 'n deilbh 's dean thusa 'n fhighidh._ (Hut -man, friends must not cast out in that manner, I'll do the warping but -you must do the weaving.) The poem--a very fine one I am told--was -composed by the bard and approved by the divine; and I would esteem it a -great favour if some of your readers would supply a copy of it. It has -never been published as far as I know. Indeed, the only pieces of -_Alastair Buidhe's_, although he composed many, besides having a hand in -several of Wm. Ross', which were ever published, are "_Tigh Dige na Fir -Eachannach_" and "_Clann Domhnuill mhor nan Eileanan_" (the latter -unacknowledged by the publisher), and his elegy on Bailie Hector of -Dingwall, given in a recent number of the _Celtic Magazine_ in the -"Highland Ceilidh."--_Lochcarron from Home._ - - - * * * * * - -TRANSCRIBER'S NOTES - -The following amendments to the text have been made: - -p. 133 "of" changed to "off"; - "similtude" changed to "similitude"; - -p. 137 "Cilliechroist" changed to "Cilliechriost"; - -p. 139 "annhilate" changed to "annihilate"; - -p. 140 comma added after "you request"; - -p. 142 comma replaced by full stop after "clannishness"; - -p. 143 "waived" changed to "waved"; - -p. 147 "numer" changed to "number"; - -p. 148 quotation marks before "Fhuair mi" deleted; - -p. 153 quotation marks have been tentatively added after "Superintendent -of Argyle"; - -p. 155 "superstitution" changed to "superstition"; - -p. 156 colon changed to full stop at end of last line of "Flora, Star of -Armadale"; - -p. 159 "everbody" changed to "everybody"; - -p. 162 full stop added after "Fiosaiche". - - -The spellings "CILLECHRIOST" and "CILLIECHRIOST", "Inverary" and -"Inveraray" appear in this text. - -The word "bell" in the line "In the blue and fragrant bell" on p. 137 -should possibly be "dell" but has been left unchanged. - -"Pichequr" on p. 150 should probably be "Pichegru" but has been left -unchanged. - - - - - -End of Project Gutenberg's The Celtic Magazine, Vol. I No. V, by Various - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE CELTIC MAGAZINE, VOL. 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