GUTH N A
BLIADHNA
VOLUME II .
1905.
Guth na Bliadhna
' LEABHAR II.]
AN GEAMHRADH, 1905.
[AIREAMH i.
THE IRISH (AND SCOTTISH)
UNIVERSITY QUESTION
THERE is at present no public question which is of more
importance to the Celtic people than that of education. The
question of education overlaps and controls all others
which are admittedly of the greatest moment to the Celtic
public. In Ireland a particularly acute phase of the
education movement is represented by the growing
agitation in behalf of a Catholic and Celtic (that is,
Nationalist) University. In Wales, where the national "conscience " has once more revolted against dominant
Anglicanism, the position of affairs is admittedly critical.
And in Scotland, although we have not at present any
education question in the sense in which that expression
would nowadays be understood in Ireland or Wales, yet we
have a very decided account—if only we knew it—in the
event of one at least of those truly national issues.
The question of a Catholic University for Ireland has
hitherto been treated as an exclusively Irish issue—a
question it may be for English votes and voters to settle
(which shows the irony, under the present ridiculous
system, of calling any great national question, save,
indeed, it happen to be an
2
The Irish {and Scottish) University Question
English one, by its correct appellation), but yet, so far as
Ireland alone is concerned, as an exclusively Irish issue.
In Catholic and Celtic Scotland the question has not yet
emerged from its academic stage. We have "views" on the
subject, it is true; but hitherto our sympathies with our
Irish co-religionists and kinsmen have not resulted in any
definite expression—much less have they produced any
corporate and definite action. The question of a
University for Ireland is felt by the majority of us to be an
essentially Irish issue—one that is to say which the Irish
must settle for themselves, though how and when they
are to do it, seeing that the public opinion of Protestant
England is bitterly opposed to them, we Scottish Catholics
have hitherto omitted to say. Speaking of Scotland as a
whole, the movement in Ireland, indeed, does not greatly
concern us as a nation. It is rarely alluded to on political
platforms in this country. The industrious and ubiquitous
"heckler" would not appear to have discovered it, or, at all
events, if he is cognisant of it—and he is generally a fairly
wide-awake fellow—its merits, from his own peculiar
point of view, are seemingly not to be compared with
those of others he knows of, and which bring more
substantial grist to his political mill. Besides, no one can
pretend to be in doubt as to what Protestant Scotland will
have to say on the subject, if ever, unfortunately, it be
asked to register its opinion on the same. The recent
"Church crisis"—we allude to the affair betwixt the
"Frees" and the "Wee Frees"—has rather intensified than
diminished religious bigotry, by means of drawing a
general attention to the case, of raising a spirit of
opposition to the recent judgment in the House of Lords,
and, consequently, of whipping up the flagging zeal of the
Protestant elect. Many Protestant Celts, it is true, are
probably theoretically in favour of a national .University
for Ireland; but, unfortunately, in such matters it is not
Highland but Lowland opinion that has to be consulted;
and not only consulted, but allowed to do all the shouting
and voting. Unfortunately, " Lowland " opinion (by which
we intend to draw, of course, a racial rather than a
geographical distinction) has hitherto led Scotland—by
the tail almost as much as by the nose—in all great questions of Church and State; so that in the event of this
question of a Catholic University for Ireland being
raised—or shall we not rather say degraded?— to the
level of political platforms in Scotland, our Irish
co-religionists and kinsmen may know exactly what to
expect.
The question of a Catholic University for Ireland is,
however, from our own point of view, on a totally different
footing. We have already observed that by the Catholics of
Scotland the subject is still treated academically. Every
Scottish Catholic hopes, of course, that Ireland may gain
her just end in the agitation on which she has embarked;
but, singular as it may seem, our attitude is strictly
limited by this pious opinion. Here and there, no doubt,
there are Scottish Catholics who recognise the gravity of
this question, so far as we ourselves are concerned, and
are prepared to act on the impulse which that knowledge
The Irish {and Scottish) University Question 3
imparts to them. But what we have affirmed above is
certainly true of the vast majority of Scots Catholics, who
treat this question, as we have said, academically. They
do not recognise its practical importance and gravity
from our point of view. Why should they? Our press
approaches the subject only from the
Irishman's standpoint. That there is possibly a Scottish
side to the question appears to have occurred to but few.
Now, in what respect, pray, is the Scots Catholic
better off (from the point of view of University education)
than his Irish co-religionist and kinsman ? Our
Universities here are all in the hands of Protestants.
The religious "atmosphere" of our Scottish Universities is
quite as inimical to the Scots Catholic's faith as (say) that
of Trinity College, Dublin, is to the religious convictions
of the Irish Catholic. The Scots Catholic here enjoys
neither greater nor fewer opportunities of bettering
himself, by means of a University education, than his
co-religionist does in Ireland : that is to say, the Scot and
the Irishman, being Catholics, are as one; inasmuch as
neither enjoys the opportunities or advantages above
spoken of. The Scots Catholic and the Irish Catholic
are, therefore, equally concerned in securing a proper
University training for themselves and their children.
The Scots Catholic, denied such advantages at home,
either emigrates where he and his can obtain them, or
—does without. A similar state of affairs obtains in
Ireland; but the Irish Catholic being numerically much
more powerful and politically more robust than his
Scottish co-religionist, the demand for a national
University which shall be Catholic is the natural
consequence of his educational disabilities.
But although the Scots Catholic is to the Irish
Catholic as one to five or even more, the hardship and
injustice involved by the total absence of all provision for
Catholic University training is, proportionately, just as
discouraging and severe in the case of the Scotsman as it
is in that of the
Irishman.
Unfortunately we are neither strong
enough nor numerous enough to raise a demand in this
country for a national Catholic University; and those
whose Universities are largely supported out of grants
and gifts made by the piety and generosity of our
Catholic forefathers, would throw up their hands in pious
and lively horror at the audaciousness of such an
amazing request. But although the Catholic Scot may
not hope to receive —at all events for many a long year to
come—his University training on Scottish soil, what is
there to prevent him from joining hands with his Irish
co-religionist and kinsman, and fighting for the right to
enjoy it on what is next best to it—on Irish soil? After
all, Celtic Scot and Celtic Irishman are, racially
considered, much the same thing; so that it would seem
an absurd thing to do to allow the accident of a few miles
of sea to come between the twain.
In former and
happier times, that circumstance formed no obstacle to
the friendly correspondence between Scottish Gael and
Irish Gael. Multitudes of Scots resorted to Ireland for
2
The Irish {and Scottish) University Question
educational purposes ; and it is no exaggeration to say
that the compliment was fully returned by the Irish, who
had at one time a very high opinion of our learning, and
the facilities offered in Alba for the cultivation of letters,
and the prosecution of the learned sciences.
A glance
through the pages of Bishop Healy's Ireland's Ancient
Schools and Scholars shows how powerful was the attraction which Inis nan Naomh, or to give her her
time-honoured Latin appellation, Insula Sanctorum et
Doctorum, had for the educated Scotsman, and for the
youth who wished to push his educational fortunes in that
justly celebrated centre of learning. Our best-known
historians, genealogists and poets
of a later age drew their principal inspiration, as
assuredly they did much of their art, from Irish sources.
Our MacVurichs, MacDonalds, and other hereditary
historians, who correspond in every respect with the Irish
MacFirbises, O'Flaherties, etc., probably studied in the
Irish Colleges. The influence of Irish literature on
Gaelic letters in Scotland is pronounced, and conclusive of
the intimate relations formerly subsisting between men of
Erin and the men of Alba.
Was not our own Colum
Cille—saint and scholar—an Irish Gael ? And when, led
no doubt by God to begin the evangelisation of the Picts,
he put forth from Ireland in his frail coracle, was he not
inaugurating a two-fold mission—a mission of religion
and a mission of learning ? St. Columba's love of letters
and veneration for scholarship stand on ample record ;
and to his influence must be ascribed the origin of that
movement which, in later years, was destined to draw so
many of our countrymen to Ireland as to a spring from
which they might quaff the pure and sparkling waters of
knowledge based on faith and therefore undefiled. To
Scotland came Maelrubha in the year 671, and it was he
who founded the famous monastery of Apurcrosan. St.
Adamnan was a native of Donegal. St. Comgan,
another Irish Gael, chose the country about Loch-alsh as
the scene of his religious labours. Hither, too, probably
at the invitation of St. Columba, came Comgall of Bangor,
Cainnech of Achaboc, Brendan of Clonfert, and Cormac,
all of whom, described by Adamnan as " holy founders of
monasteries," laboured for the conversion of souls and the
spread of learning in Alba. What a glorious company of
saints and scholars has crossed and re-crossed those
narrow seas which separate Scotland from Ireland! As
one looks back upon the centuries that have passed since
Colum Cille first lighted the twin lamps of Religion and
Learning in his sea-girt Scottish home, the spectator, as it
were, stands enraptured at the prospect of that narrow
track worn through the misty years by the busy feet of so
many saints and scholars, constantly passing and
repassing on their holy and enlightening mission!
We have said enough, at all events for the present, on
the historic aspect of this ancient correspondence. The
advantages of reviving it are, it seems to us, no less
susceptible to argument and proof. The cause of
Catholic learning in Scotland would be enormously
advanced by such a gain. Young and ambitious men,
The Irish {and Scottish) University Question 3
instead of being obliged to emigrate in quest of those
educational advantages denied them at home, would go
to Ireland, as to a congenial and appropriate sphere, for
that higher University training which all are agreed is
requisite to success in what is justly styled " the struggle
for existence ". In a national University on Irish soil,
the Scottish Catholic would be thoroughly at home.
There, surely, if anywhere, he would breathe the pure
and invigorating atmosphere of his holy faith. He
would enjoy the advantages of associating with
individuals belonging to a nation whose gallant fight in
behalf of religion and country is the admiration of the
civilised world. He would enjoy every facility of
acquiring a first-class University education at moderate
cost; for the essence of the Irish proposals (of which the
Irish hierarchy is the guarantor) is that the education
provided shall be thorough in every respect, and as
inexpensive as is consistent with efficiency. The Irish
scheme, as announced and approved by the Archbishops
and Bishops of Ireland, includes ample provision for the
cultivation of the Gaelic language in Ireland, and for the
study of the history and antiquities of that country ; and
we doubt not that, in the event of the University being
established, and a Scots correspondence effected, a
similar privilege in respect of the Gaelic language in
Scotland and the history and antiquities of this country 1
would be accorded to Scottish students resorting to Ireland for the purpose of securing a sound University
education.
Such are some—a few indeed—of those advantages,
moral and material, which would inevitably accrue to the
Catholics of Scotland by the establishment of a
national—that is, Catholic—University in Ireland. Their
name, indeed, is legion; but alas ! we have not sufficient
space at our disposal in which to deal with them at large.
It remains for us to make, by way of conclusion to this
paper, a few observations touching the means whereby
this great and glorious project might be realised.
Briefly, there are two ways open to the Irish nation in
which to accomplish their object. The one is by political
agitation; the second is by national endeavour minus
political agitation. Until recently, the first of these
methods, as being, perhaps, traditional in Ireland, was
infinitely the more popular of the two ways. Indeed, the
latter was scarce mentioned at all; but, lately, owing to
the apparent impossibility of persuading the " pre1 We are not aware that any such provision exists at this
moment in Scotland. The national college for the priesthood at
Blairs has certainly no such provision. A Gaelic professorship—
as supplying a much-felt want—was at one time under
consideration, we believe; but nothing has been heard of the
project of late.
•dominant partner " in the British Imperial Concern to
sanction (that is, to provide funds for) the erection of a
national University on Irish soil, the advocates of this
method have considerably lost heart. Mr. Dillon, who is
a member of Parliament, not unnaturally looks to
political agitation as the channel through which a
national University should be secured to his native land.
2
The Irish {and Scottish) University Question
The Archbishop of Tuam, and, if we mistake not, Cardinal
Logue himself, on the other hand, are no less firmly
convinced that " unless a miracle supervenes" the English
Government will never grant to Ireland the boon for
which she craves ; and this opinion, it is worthy -of note,
is fast gaining ground, not only in Ireland, but in every
country in which the question is wont to be canvassed. "
Is it likely," we quote from a recent article in An
Claidheamh Soluis, the official mouthpiece of the Gaelic
League, " that England will ever give to Ireland a
University which will satisfy the lofty ideal of Mr. Dillon,
and of us all— a University which shall be Irish and
National through and through; a centre and rallying point
for Irish nationality, an intellectual headquarters for our
race? We cannot think so." In an article, redolent with
despair, on the same subject, the London Tablet1 charged
Mr. Balfour and Mr. Wyndham with something more
than the usual want of courage touching their political
convictions which one is apt to associate with the average
English statesman, though, curiously enough, when, but a
1" We have no hesitation in saying that Mr. Wyndham's
■excuse is a disgrace to the man that used it. . . . How Mr. Balfour, holding the opinion he admittedly does on this question,
-can reconcile it with his own personal honour to remain Prime
Minister . . . is, we confess, for us an unsolved enigma" (10th
December, 1904).
week or two before, a respected Irish ecclesiastic said
similar unkind things about one or both of these twin
political mountebanks, the Tablet went out of its way to
raise its hands in lively and pious protest!
The hope, therefore, of forcing a successful issue of this
question by means of the somewhat threadbare device of
political agitation is beginning to lose ground in Ireland,
as, indeed, was bound to happen the more the obstinate
character of the English opposition to this eminently sane
and moderate demand became manifest. In no other
country in the world, probably, were the chances of
success by such means ever as highly rated as they were
in Ireland, whose habits of self-reliance and faculties of
self-development have been somewhat undermined by an
enervating and dangerous dependence upon the methods
and tactics favoured by the party politician. The more,
therefore, the people of Ireland look into this question and
study it, the more they come to understand the
irreconcilable character of the English opposition to their
demand, the more plainly will appear, we are convinced,
12
The Irish (and Scottish) University Question
neither its desire, nor perhaps its interest, to do?"
Our opinion is, then, that, sooner or later—and the
sooner the better—Irish Ireland will be obliged to set its
shoulder to the wheel, to itself create that truly national
University which is admittedly the most crying need of the
times, so far as the Gaels of Ireland are concerned. We
do not think that the Irish nation would ever have reason
to repent of its efforts to repair the past in so signal and
glorious a manner; and if the sacrifices involved in making
good so gigantic an enterprise should lead to a temporary "
shrinkage" in respect of the funds subscribed at home and
The Irish {and Scottish) University Question 3
the futility of appealing to England, and the consequent
necessity for independent national effort.
Now, the alternative to political agitation as a means
of securing this University, is, as we have already
remarked, the will of the people of Ireland themselves. In other
words, if the Irish nation wants a University it must set
its shoulder to the wheel, and itself create it. Is this an
impossible task ? Mr. Dillon, the spokesman of the
recognised channel, says that that attempt has already
been made, and has failed. Some of our readers may not
be aware that an effort was made " in the dark days
which immediately followed the famine," we quote again
from An Claidheamh Soluis, "when even political
nationalism was at a low ebb, and Irish Ireland was in
the misty future," to establish a Catholic University in
Ireland; and that after £200,000 had been spent on it, it
failed. Accordingly Mr. Dillon's argument would seem
to be that what has once failed must never be attempted
again, an argument which strikes harshly on Scottish
ears, accustomed from infancy to tales of the indomitable
Bruce and his no less persevering spider!
But apart
from the obvious unsoundness of such an opinion, and its
transparent absurdity in the case of a politician who
believes in Home Rule,1 we have every reason to believe
that satisfactory explanations touching the causes of that
failure, grievous though we admit it to be, are easily
found. As the official organ of the Gaelic League justly
observes, "neither the internal nor the external causes
which wrecked the Catholic University are likely to
re-occur in our day. And because an effort on (more or
less) right lines failed fifty years ago from causes which
are no longer likely to operate, are we to lose faith in the
policy of self-help, and continue to the end of the chapter
to beseech a foreign State to do for us what it is
1 Mr. Dillon's patriotism is, of course, above reproach; but
there are possibly some in Ireland, interested persons, who
would resent any such general diversion of funds as an appeal
to the Irish conscience at home and abroad would almost
necessarily involve. After all, have not the Irish spent too much
money on purely political agitation, judging that agitation, of
course, solely in the light of its effects ? Half the amount so
spent would have sufficed to create an Irish Ireland long ago.
Make your country thoroughly national, and Home Eule must
follow. To stake all on Home Eule whilst Irish Ireland
languishes for want of funds is equivalent in our opinion to
trying to put the cart before the horse.
abroad on behalf of the political agitation in favour of
Home Rule (although we do not say that such need
necessarily be the result of this unique appeal to the
conscience and to the purse of a gallant and generous
nation), we imagine that few Irishmen worthy the name
would grudge the expenditure, or suffer a sense of temporary personal inconvenience to interfere with the
well-being of the nation at large.
In their appeal to the world, we should like to see the
Irish people broadening their "platform" as much as
possible. By offering to Scots Catholics a recognised place
in their national University, and by providing for the study
of the Scots Gaelic language, as well as for the study of the
history and antiquities of this country, our Irish kinsmen
and co-religionists would be taking a practical step in the
direction of reviving that ancient correspondence between
the two countries of which we have spoken above ; and,
what is no less important, they would be considerably
enlarging the area to which the inevitable appeal for funds
to erect the University should be addressed.
We have
every
Seachd Mòr-mhaoir na h-Alba
13
reason to believe that Scots Catholics would joyfully
welcome any such proposal as our proposition invites; and
we have too high an opinion of our countrymen not to
believe that they would not liberally subscribe towards it,
either directly, or by way of donations to the general funds
of the University. We make no doubt, too, that the Scots of
Canada, who constitute so considerable and flourishing a
moiety of the Catholic population of that country, and who
are principally of Celtic blood, would cordially and
generously respond to this appeal. The account of all
Catholic Scots, whether at home or abroad, manifestly
consists in our proposals. Will not our Irish co-religionists
and kinsmen help us, therefore, to realise the prophesy
uttered by their countryman and our compatriot, Colum
Cille, and so by enlarging and strengthening Erin assist us
to raise Alba to the dawn of another and yet a brighter day
?
SEACHD MORMHAOIR NA H-ALBA
(Air a leantuinn)
BHA, uime sin, Seachd Mòr-mhaoir na h-Alba a tha air an
ainmeachadh anns an t-sean dearbh-sgriobhadh a fhuair
Sir Francis Palgrave 'nam fir-taoibh aig Bras. Bha
Mòr-mhaoir Mhàirr, Athuill, Leamhain agus Fhìofa uile
'nan ughdarras anns a Ghàidhealtachd; agus is ann mar
so, bha Mòr-mhaoir Aonghais, Rois, agus Shrath Earainn a
bha 'nam fir-taoibh aig Baliol. Cha bhuin Mòr-mhaor
Ghallaoibh, no Mòr-mhaor Chataoibh ris a' chomhstri a
rinn Brus, ged a bha iad, mar an ceudna, 'nan ughdarras
anns a' Ghàidhealtachd. Tha e cinnteach mar sin, gu'n
d'rinn Sir Francis, mearachd anns a' chuis. A thuilleadh
air sin, cha robh Mòr-mhaoir na h-Alba 'nan seachd fir a
mhàin. Tha e cinnteach, mar sin, gu'n robh am beachd a
bha aig Sir Francis air a bhunadh air an t-sean-sgeul mu
Chruithne agus a mhic. Thugamaid fainear a nis an
sean-sgeul sin.
Is e so bunadh nan Cruithneach a rèir an
eachdraidhean fèin:—
"Cruithne mac Cinge, mic Luchtai, mic Parr-thalan,
mic Agnoinn, mic Buain, mic Mais, mic Fathecht, mic
Iapeth, mic Noe. Ise athair Cruithneach, ocus cet bliadhna
do irrighe.
" Secht meic Cruithneach annso .i. Fib, Fidach Fodla,
Fortrend cathach, Cait, Ce, Cirigh. Et Secht randaibh ro
roindset in fearand, ut dixit Columcille, " ' Moirsheiser do
Cruithne clainn Raindset Albain i secht raind Cait, Ce,
Cirig, cethach clann Fib, Fidach, Fotla, Fortrenn'."1 Is e
cinnteach gu bheil an t-atharrachadh Eirinnach air an
t-sean-sgeul so ag eadar-dheal-achadh gu mòr an ni sin a
chaidh ainmeachadh mu thràth. Is e mar so:—
" A tir Traicia tra tangadar Cruithnigh .i. clanda
Gleoin mic Ercoil iad. Aganthirsi a n-anmanda. Seisiur
brathar tangadar toiseach .i. Solen, Ulfa, Nechtan,
Drostan, Aengus, Letend. Fatha a tiach-tana .i. Policornus
ri Traigia do rad gradh do si uir co ro triall a breth gan
tocra. Lodar iar sin tar Romanchu co Frangeu et cumtaigit
sit cathair ann .i. Pictavis a pictis .i. o n-armtaibh.2 Ocus
do rat
1 Leabhar
2 Ach
Baile an Mhota, Leabhar Lecain, agus a' chuid eile.
tha e air a ràdh 'san t-àit' eile :—
" Agantirsi a n-anmann
Am rand Erchtbhi 0
oearptardi a cuctli
Adbertar oid Pioti".
ri Frange gradh dia shiur Lodar for muir iar n-deg in
t-sheiseadh brathar .i. Leiteind. I cind da laa iar n-dul for
muir atbath a siur. Gabsat Cruithnigh inbher Slaine in
Uibh Ceindselaigh,"1 etc., etc.
Tha 'n t-atharrachadh eile air an t-sean-sgeul so an so.
"Do chuaidh o macaib Milead Cruithnechan mac Lochit
mac Ingi la Breatnu Foirtren do cha-thugud fri Saxain,
ocus ro chosain tir doib Cruith-entuaith ocus anais fen aco.
Acht ni badar mna leo ar bebais bandthrocht Alban. Do
luid iarum Cruithnechan for culu do cum mac Miled, ocus
ro gab neam, ocus talam, ocus grian, ocus esca, drucht ocus
daithi, muir ocus tir ba do maithriu flaith forro co brath,
ocus do bert da mna dec forcraidi badar oc macaib Milead
aro bate a fir is in fairrge tiar ar aen re Donn conad do
fearaib h-Erind flaith for Cruithnib o sin dogres."2
Tha 'n t-atharrachadh Breatunnach air an t-sean-sgeul
so mar a tha e air a sgrìobhadh 's na leabhraichean a
bhuineas do Eirinn, ged a bha na Breatunnach a' tagradh
gu'n d'thàinig na Cruithnich à Sythia. Thàinig Ruairidh
Rìgh nan Cruithneach à Sythia le cabhlach dh'ionnsuidh
Alba, agus thug e 'mach a' bhuaidh; ach a rèir an
t-sean-sgeul so, fhuair na Cruithnich am mnathan o
mhuinntir na h-Eirinn, do bhrigh nach b'àill le na Breatannaich am mnathan fèin a thoirt seachad do choigrich 's do
Ghoill. Tha so a' cur an cèill, gu dearbh, gu'n robh linn ann
an Eirinn an uair a bha athaireachd neo-chinnteach. Thug
sean mhuinntir na h-Eirinn gu minic ainmeannan a bha
air am mnathan d'an clann fèin, àbhaist a tha air a chuir
an cèill gu soilleir le ainmeannan mar so—Mac Cula, Mac
1 Leabhar
2 Leabhar
Baile an Mhota, Leabhar Lecain.
Lecain.
Lèmna, agus mòran eile. Tha Mac '111 Fhinnin1 ag
innseadh beul-aithris a bha aig na sean Ghreug-aich, agus
tha i ag ràdh, gu'n d'thug iad roimh linn Checrops (ma tha
an eachdraidhean fèin gu bhi air an creidsinn),
ainmeannan a bha aig am mnathan do'n clann-san. A
thuilleadh air sin, is e roinneadh an fhearainn an
cleachdadh a's cumanta anns na sean-sgeul so. Roinn
Amargin Glummar mac Mhilidh, Eirinn eadar mic Mhilidh
; agus thug e a' chuid sin dheth a bha fo'n talamh do
Thuatha de Danan, agus thug e a' chuid sin dheth a bha os
cionn na talamhainn d'a chlann fèin. Dh'fhalbh na Tuatha
de Danan an deigh sin " chum nam beann agus anns na
h-ionadan-sithe" na h-Eirinn, Ios gu'm labhair iad ri sithe
fo'n talamh gu bràth tuille.
Cha 'n 'eil an sean-sgeul so gu bhith air a
bheachd-smuaineachadh ach mar sgeulachd a mhàin.
Ghabh ar sinnsearan deigh ro mhòr air an àireamh
seachd- "an àireamh dhìomhair"—anns an sgeulachd agus
anns an sean eachdraidhean-sa :— " Cruithnigh ros
gabhsad (Alba) iarrtain Iar tliachtain a h-Eareann-mhuigh
X righ tri fichit righ ran Gabhsad diobh an Cruithean-chlar
". urrain domh mòran iomadh eisempleir a thoirt seachad
chum a' bhaigh a bha aig ar sinnsearan ris an àireamh so
a' dhearbhadh. Anns an t-sean-sgeul ris an abrar "Do
Cruithneachaibh Incipit," tha sinn a' leughadh gur e "
Cremhthand, ri Laighen," a bha 'cur fàilte is furan air na
Cruithnich, agus esan ag earbsa gu'n tilgeadh iad a
naimhdean a mach à Eirinn. Tha e air a ràdh gu'n
d'fhuiling Eirinn seachd bristidhean-a-stigh gu lèir, 's e sin
le Caesar, Partholan, Nemhidh, na Fir-bholg, na
1
Studies in Ancient History, tt. 101-1171 agus 176.
Tuatha de Danan, etc. Cuimhnichibh, cuideachd, seachd bà
bhana, a bha air am faicinn le Sioda, nighean Fhlainn. 1 A
rìs, nach robh ann Seachd Fir-cadail na h-Ephesius, mu'm
bheil e sgrìobhte le Aonghas Cèile Dè?
'! Taimne morfessiur cenèc
I . . . bhadan nibrec
Dorsat Ri Grèine folii
Tal inùaim slèibe Telii
Asecht nanmand mardacloss
Maximianus, Malcos
Constantius Martius
Marcianus Dionisius
Seràpen Iohannes oll
Ainm dessi dib cenimroll". Agus tha'm bàrd
Eirinneach d'am b'ainm Mac Lochain, a fhuair bàs anns a'
bhliadhna 1024, air a ràdh mar so mu Eirinn :—
" Seachd àrd-rìghrean do Eirinn nan cala ". Tha e coslach,
gu dearbh, gu'n robh bàigh ris an aireamh so air a
bhonntachadh air mheas a thaobh nan Sgriobtuir Naomha.
Tha 'n " àireamh dhìomhair" air a h-ainmeachadh gu minic
anns a' Bhiobull; agus am measg nan sean-sgeulan a
bhuineas do mhuinntir na h-Asia, tha mòran de
sgeulachdan agus de bheul aithris anns am bheil e.
Sgrìobh Naomh Eoin, " chunnaic mi uile-bheist a' teachd a
nuas as a' mhuir, aig an robh seachd cinn agus deich
adhaircean," etc. Agus chunnaic e a rìs " 'na laimh
dheis-san, a shuidh air a' chathair, leabhar air a
sgrìobhadh a mach 'sa stigh, agus air a sheuladh le seachd
seulan". "Agus an deigh sin coimhead mi, agus seall,
dh'fhosgladh teampull paillion an teisteanais air neamh ;
agus thàinig na seachd ainglean a mach as an teampull,
aig an
1
Càth Mhuighe Lèana.
B
robh na seachd plaighean, agus iad air an eideadh le anart
glan agus geal, agus crìoslaichte mu'n uchd le criosan òir,"
etc.
Tha na mic a bha aig Cruithne air an ainmeachadh
anns na h-eachdraidhean a's fearr againn mar so: Cait, Ce,
Cirig, Fib Fidach, Fotla, For-trenn, seachd mic gu lèir. Is e
Cait, Gallaobh; is e Ce, Marr; is e Cirig, Magh-Chircinn
(dùthaich ris an abrar Moern aig an là an diugh); is e Fib,
Fiofa; is e Fidach, Moiridh; is e Fotla, Athull; agus is e
Fortrenn, Menteith.
So againn ma tà " Seachd Boinnean na h-Alba," i s e
sin "Seachd Mòr-mhaòrachd na h-Alba" a rèir an Ollaimh
Scene agus mòran eile; agus tha mi 'dol a dhearbhadh a nis
nach 'eil an sean-sgeul sin gu bhi air a'
bheachd-smuaineachadh ach 'na fhaoin-sgeul a mhàin.
Roimh 'n deicheamh linn, thug na Romanaich " Britannia "
mar ainm air an dùthaich ris an abrar "Alba" an diugh.
Thug iad, cuideachd, " Scotia " mar ainm air an dùthaich
ris an abrar "Eirinn" aig an là an diugh. Dh'-athanaich
Alba gu mòr 'na criochan aice o linn gu linn; ach ma tha 'n
sean-sgeul a thaobh Chruithne agus a mhic gu bhith air
fheuchainn leinn, tha e ro chinnteach gu bheil feum againn
a bhith 'ga fheuchainn air solus shealbh-ghlacadh na
h-Alba le Cruithne agus a mhic. Is còir dhuinn, uime sin, a'
bhith a' beachd-smuaineachadh air—an sean-sgeul air an
d'thug Sir Francis Palgrave agus mòran eile am
beachd-san mu "Sheachd Mòr-mhaoir na h-Alba—ann an
solus roinn na h-Alba 'nuair a bha e fo chumhachd nan
Cruithneach,
is
e
sin
roimh
shealbh-ghlacadh
Earra-ghàidheal le Gàidheal na h-Eirinn. A nis, tha
eachdraidhean a's traithe againn ag innseadh dhuinn gu'n
robh Alba air fad fo chumhachd nan Cruithneach aig an
àm ud, is e sin Alba uile ach dùthaich bheag faisg air Dun
Bhreatuinn, a bhuineas do na Breatunnaich. Tha e ro
dhuilich a nis a' chur an cèill gu ceart criochan na
rioghachd aig àm cho fad air ais ; ach a rèir an t-sean-sgeul
so mu Cruithne agus a mhic, bha iad mar so.
Gallaobh
Marr
Moern (Magh-Chircinn)
Moiridh Athull Menteith
Fiofa
seachd roinnean gu lèir. Gun teagamh, b'iad so uile
roinnean na h-Alba a bhuineadh do na Cruithnich aig an
àm ud, ged a bha an tiolpadair anns an Edinburgh Review
ag ràdh nach robh riamh Mòr-mhaor Mhoerne ann an
Alba. Nach e Maol-peadar, Mòr-mhaor Mhoerne a mharbh
Donnachadh Mac Dhomhnuill, Rìgh na h-Alba, mar a tha
an t-eachdraiche ag ràdh ? " Douenald mac Dunchath prius
regnavit 7 mensibus, et postea expulsus est a regno, et
tunc Dunckach mac Malcolmi 6 mensibus regnauit et
interfectus est a Malpedir mac Loren comite de Meorne."1
Tha an eachdraidh a's tràithe againn a thaobh "
Sheachd Roinnean na h-Alba" le Giraldus Cam-brensis.
Sgrìobh e anns a' bhliadhna 1180; agus thug e De Situ
Albannice mar ainm air. Tha e air a ràdh ann gur e " aqua
optima que Scotticè vocata est" a tha a' cur dealachaidh
eadar " Regna Scot-torum et Anglorum " ; agus thubhairt e
" haec verra terra septem fratribus divisa fuit antiquitus in
sep-tem partes, quarum pars principalis est Enegus cum
Moerne, ab Enegus primogenito fratrum sic
1
Annais of the Piots and Scots.
nominata. Secunda autem pars est Adtheodle et Gouerin;
pars etiam tertia est Strathdeern cum Menteted ; quarta
pars partuim est Fife cum Foth-reve; quinta vero pars est
Marr cum Buchen; sexta autem est Murreff et Ros;
septima enim pars est Cathanesia citra montem et ultra
montem, quia mons Mound dividit Cathanesiam per
medium".
Chuir e mach, an deigh sin, dealbh eile 'thaobh "
Seachd Roinnean na h-Alba ". Thubhairt e gu'n d'fhuair e e
o'n Easbuig Aindrea, a bha 'na Easbuig ann an Gallaobh.
Is e mar so.
"Plurimum regnum fuit (sicut mihi versus relator
retulit, Andreas videlicet, vir venerabilis Katanensis
Episcopus nacione Scottus et Dun-fermlii Monachus) ab
ilia aqua optima quae Scotticè vocata est Forth,
Britannice, Werid, Romane vero Scotte-Wattre, i.e., aqua
Scottorum, quae regna Scottorum et Anglorum dividit, et
currit juxta oppidum de Strivelin, usque ad flumen aliud
nobile quod vocata est Tae.
" Secundum regnum ad Hilef, sicut mare circuit usque
ad montem aquilonali plaga de Strivelin qui vocatur
Athrin.
" Tertium regnum ad Hilef usque ad De; quar-tum
regnum ex De usque ad magnum et mirabile flumen quod
vocatur Spe, majorem et meliorem totius Scotise.
" Quintum regnum fuit Muref et Ros. Sep-timum
Regnum fuit Arregaithel."
A nis ma tha sinn a dol a dheanamh coimeas eadar an
t-aon chlàr-ainm agus am fear eile, chi sinn gu solleir gu
bheil sia as an t-seachd roinnean a tha air an ainmeachadh
ann, direach mar a tha iad nan dithis. Tha a' cheud
dhùthaich a co-fhreagradh ri Fiofa agus Fortrenn. Tha 'n
dara dùthaich a' co-fhreagradh ri Aonghas agus Moern.
Tha 'n ceathramh dùthaich a' co-fhreagradh ri Marr agus
Buchan. Tha 'n cuigeadh dùthaich a' co-fhreagradh ri
Athull. Tha 'n siathamh dùthaich a' co-fhreagradh ri
Moiridh agus Ros. Anns a' cheud chlàr-ainm is e
Gallaobh a tha 'na sheach-damh dùthaich; ach anns an
dara clàr-ainm is e Earra-ghàidheal a tha na sheachdamh
dùthaich. Tha e cinnteach, a rèir an Ollaimh Scene, nach d'
eirich na mi-chordaidhean so a suas o mhearachd sam bith
22
Seachd Mòr-mhaoir na h-Alba
anns an dà eachdraidh anns am bheil iad. Bha 'n t-Ollamh
Scene am beachd gu bheil an dà chlàr-ainm so a'
ciallachadh " Roinn Alba " aig dà linn air leth. Tha e
neo-chomasach am mi-chordadh a' dheanamh so-thuigsinn
an dòigh sam bith eile ; oir cha 'n urrainn duinn
fagail-a-mach Earra-ghàidheal no Ghallaobh a'
shoillseachadh ach 'san dòigh so. Tha'n diubhras so (ars'
esan) a' cur an cèill gu soilleir an dà linn air leth da'm buin
iad. " Tha a cheud chlàr-ainm a' fagail-a-mach
Earra-ghàidheal : tha'n dara clàr-ainm a' gabhail beachd
air Earra-ghàidheal, ach tha e a' fagail a mach Gallaobh.
Rinn an naothamh ceud linn na caochlaidhean sin ann an
Alba a chuir soilleireachadh air an diubhras so. Chuir a'
bhuaidh Ghàidhealach anns a' bhliadhna 843, Dail Riada
ri Alba; agus mu dheireadh na linne sin, thuit Gallaobh fo
smachd nan Loch Lannaich.
Tha 'n dara clàr-ainm,
uime sin, a' nochadh gu soilleir nan roinnean a bha aig
Rìgh na h-Alba an deigh an naothamh ceud linn. Tha a'
cheud chlàr-ainm a' deanamh deilbh a thaobh rioghachd
nan Cruithneach a tha ceart cho firinneach ris an fhear
eile, agus tha e roimh a' bhuaidh a thug Gàidheil na
h-Eirinn air an Earra-ghàidheal. Tha na Seachd Roinnean
air a' cheud chlàr-ainm a' nochdadh gu soilleir seilbhean
nan Cruithneach. Is i a' chuid a tha air a' fagail-a-mach gu
ceart a
chuid sin a bha aig na Dail Riadanaich. Agus tha so ro
chudthromach, oir tha e a' dearbhadh gu'n robh
pairteachadh air Na Seachd Roinnean " dual-ach do na
Chruithneachd agus gu'n robh e aig bun rioghachd na
h-Alba ",1
Tha Giraldus ag ràdh gu'n robh beul aithris ann, bha
ag innseadh gu'n d'eirich na Seachd Roinnean air lorg
pairteachaidh na h-Alba le seachd braithrean. Tha na
seachd braithrean so a' co-fhreagradh ri seachd mic
Cruithne, athair nan Cruithneach a tha air an
ainmeachadh anns an earrain a leanas. " Cruidne filius
Cinge, pater Pic-torum habitantium in hac insula, C.
annis regnavit; vii filios habuit. Hsec sunt nomina eorum
; Fiv, Fidach, Floclaid, Fortreim, Got, Ce, Circui."
An uair a thug Giraldus seachad a' cheud chlàr-ainm
a thaobh " Seachd Roinnean na h-Alba," tha e ag ràdh "
Inde est ut hi septem fratres prsedicti pro septem
regibus habebantur: septem regulos sub se habentes. Isti
septem fratres regnum Al-banise in septem regna
diviserunt, et unusquisque in tempore suo in suo
regnavit." Bha, uime sin Seachd "Reges" ann an Alba a
bhuineas do na Cruithnich a rèir beul-aithris; agus fo'n
uachdranachd aca, bha seachd 'Teguli" no righrean
beaga. So againn, uime sin, " Seachd Roinnean na
h-Alba," a rèir Giraldus, maille ri Seachd Roinnean a bha
fo uachdranachd dhoibh.
Athuill
\
Gabharaidh J
Aonghas
Magh-Chirchinn, no Moern Srath Earainn \
Menteith
J
Moiridh \ Ros
J
Gallaobh
\
" Citra montem et ultra montem " j
CIARAN MAC CHIARAIN.
1
The Highlanders of Scotland, le Scene t. 159.
Marr 1
Buchan J Fiofa
1 Fothreve J
(Ri leantuinn.)
POLAND'S STRUGGLE FOR
EXISTENCE
POLAND, a country formerly called, and not without
reason, the bulwark of Christendom, has since 1795, the
date of its third and final partition, ceased to exist as a
separate State. For 109 years, therefore, it has been
completely at the mercy of the three dividing Powers, who
have spared no means, fair or foul, to assimilate it. Yet
not only is it not assimilated at the present day, but it is
constantly growing in every element that constitutes the
strength of a nation, and in concentrated though quiet
resistance to the invaders ; as in the time of Kosciusko, so
now, these are only camped on the territory. The bush,
burning yet unconsumed, was a miracle; Poland, for a
century a prey to destruction yet undestroyed, though no
miracle, is so extraordinary a phenomenon that a few
words respecting the causes which have produced it may
be not without interest.
To Gaels, especially, this short and by no| means
exhaustive paper should be interesting. They too have a
nationality and a language of their own, and must
struggle to maintain them ; the conditions are widely
dissimilar, it is true, but] nevertheless there is a struggle;
and they must needs look with sympathy on the efforts of
Polands Struggle for Existence
a nation to hold her own, when they have to make
similar efforts themselves. And to Scotsmen in
general, the name of Poland should recall many a tie.
All know that Prince Charles Edward was a grandson of
the heroic Sobieski. This alone would be much ; but
there is more. I do not know whether any Scottish
family is of Polish extraction; but several Polish families
claim descent from Scottish ancestors. The members of
the now nearly extinct family of the Counts Mir (Mear,
Mar?), to give only one instance, assert that their first
ancestor came over from Scotland long before the
outbreak of Protestantism. Most of them, however,
spring from Scottish gentlemen who in the sixteenth and
seventeenth centuries fought under Polish banners
against Swedes, Muscovites and Turks. In his novel
entitled Pan Wolodyjowski (pr. Volodyoski), Sienkiewicz
gives us a characteristic and agreeable presentation of
one of these, Kettling of Elgin, who finally marries a
Polish girl, and settles in the country.
As protests against tyranny and oppression, the
three successive insurrections, in 1794, 1831 and 1863,
had their raison d'etre. But after the last had failed, each
failure being attended with more and more frightful
consequences, the nation at length took counsel with
itself. Another insurrection under present circumstances
would mean utter destruction: that was clear to all.
Setting aside therefore their ultimate aim—political
independence—as a dream not to be realised in the near
future, all parties, in different ways and with different
watchwords, devoted their energies merely to avert the
final calamity of annihilation with which they were
threatened; and for over thirty years they have with one
accord continued to work to that end. In this defensive
warfare both their past history and present conditions of
existence afford them many advantages; and they have
hitherto been so far successful that Polish nationality is
now, we may boldly say, an absolutely impregnable
fortress. Never, at any epoch in its history, was Poland
so united, so strong in adversity, so prudently
determined, so firm to resist attacks as it is now.
It is true that on entering the Polish provinces of
East Prussia we find the German language exclusively
taught in every school; German names given to Polish
towns; priests forbidden by the police to give children
Polish names at their baptisms ; the language prohibited
in public meetings ; tickets refused at railway stations, if
they are asked for in Polish ; and great tracts of land
bought up by the Government, to be sold only to German
settlers, and under the condition that they shall never
under any circumstance pass into the hands of a Pole.
And yet it is also true that the very school children
refuse to learn their catechism, when forced to learn it in
German. Polish, taught privately and furtively out of
school hours, is all the dearer to them for the additional
labour it has cost. For the student, the scientific
superiority of German education has no charm; the
young Pole who leaves college admits indeed the high
standard of the training he has gone through, but hates
it none the less. No one speaks German in the bosom
of his family, or to a stranger with whom he can converse
in any other language; and even settlers from Suabia or
Westphalia who, as often happens, have married Polish
women, learn to speak Polish, and with their children
swell the Polish ranks ; this is a fact which Prussian
ministers have stated publicly to justify their repressive
9
acts. But repression only creates greater bitterness ; it
cannot crush, it can only exasperate the feelings of the
people. To cite but one palpable proof of the vitality of
the language, it is in those very provinces that Polish
newspapers are most eagerly read by workmen and
peasants ; it is there that the ratio of subscribers to the
total population is highest.
Let us now cross the Russian frontier. The
characters of the Cyrillic alphabet are to be seen side by
side with Polish on every shop front in Warsaw; posters
must be in Russian, though Polish is tolerated; even a bill
announcing " Rooms to let" cannot be put up without its
Russian translation. But were the police to take away
its hand, where would those signs of Muscovite
domination be to-morrow ? Spies swarm on all sides,
carefully scenting out forbidden books; even the harmless
Messenger of the Sacred Heart, imported from Austrian
Poland, is among these, and recently a seminary for
priests was closed, merely because a few copies of it were
found there. Yet not only this, but many other forbidden
books find their way in by thousands, no one knows how ;
and the police are powerless to prevent their entrance.
One part of the population (the so-called Uniates) is considered by the Russian law to belong to their Established
Church, because three centuries ago their forefathers left
that Church to become Catholies! They are therefore
forbidden even to enter a Catholic place of worship, much
more to confess to a CathoUc priest, or receive
Communion at his hands, or the Sacrament of Matrimony;
severe penalties attend both priest and Uniate, if discovered in their transgression. Yet every year
multitudes of poor men pass the Austrian frontier in order
to obey the precepts of the Catholic Church. The Polish
clergy is indeed ruled with a rod of iron. Any infraction
of police regulations is punished by a fine often amounting
to a whole year's stipend on the first occasion ; a second or
a third would, if grave, entail the loss of the priest's
benefice, or even worse. All sermons (at least in large
towns) must be read, and read as they were written,
censored, and allowed to be preached. Without formal
leave obtained from the Governor, no priest may go to
Rome, or visit his bishop, or so much as call on another
clergyman in the next district, were he on his deathbed
and the other his confessor. It sounds incredible, but
every one who lives in Poland knows that it is true. Yet,
much as these and other harsh laws fetter the influence of
the clergy, it is still great; possibly greater than in
provinces where there is no persecution. They are
indeed unable to render spiritual assistance to the Uniates
without danger to themselves and therefore to their own
flock. But, to make up for their forced inaction, there
are missionaries from beyond the frontier who enter the
land in secret, with the threat of Siberian mines hanging
over their heads, if discovered by the police. They are
sent to comfort and instruct such of the Uniates as still
cling to their faith ; and they belong for the most part, if
not exclusively, to an order whose name need not be stated
here, but may easily be guessed. I myself know a Father
who was betrayed to the Russians by the Jewish
innkeeper at whose house he was staying, disguised as a
colporteur; and had not the Emperor of Austria interceded
for him, he would certainly have met his death long ago
beyond the Ural mountains. As it was, he spent five years
in prison.
Polands Struggle for Existence
All, however, are not so unfortunate, and it space
and due regard for the serious character of this article
permitted, I could relate many entertaining facts about
other missionaries, their presence of mind in danger,
their readiness of resource in outwitting the police, and
their adventures and embarrassments, often not without
a comical side, sometimes ending in a tragedy. Of
course their work is aided and abetted by the whole
population; not only by educated men, who—even such
as are indifferent where faith alone is in question—know
that Catholicism in Poland is the element which above
all sustains the vitality of the nation, and act
accordingly; but also by the lower classes and the
-peasants, now fully awakened to a sense of their
nationality by the proceedings of the Government itself.
They were at one time unconcerned and even somewhat
hostile to those whom they called the " Patriots " ; but
since the ark of religion has been touched and they are
molested because they are Catholics, they now feel that,
being Catholics, they are Poles.
It would be unjust, however, to pass over in silence a
most significant political fact which has just occurred,
and which seems to point to a hope of better days in store
for Poland. The new Minister of the Interior, Prince
Swiatopelk-Mirski, a man of liberal ideas, lately invited
a group of influential Poles to send him a memorial
containing their aspirations; a thing unheard of for many
a year, and, were it not for the late Japanese successes,
absolutely impossible even now. This memorial has
therefore been published, and as it sheds considerable
fight on the present condition of Russian Poland, it is as
well to give its substance in few words.
It commences by pointing out with plenty of proofs at
hand, that the system of " Russification " hitherto
employed, has been very far from attaining its end, and
that all it has done is to establish certain outward
appearances of submission at the cost of material and
moral ruin in many parts of the country. Such, I may
say here by the way, was the system, relentlessly
pursued for a long time, of removing all Poles even from
positions on private railways, and substituting Russians
in their stead, by means of constant pressure and
vexation on the part of the Government. The memorial
points out in detail the results of the system both in the
schools and in public life, the oppression of the Catholic
Church and persecution of the Uniates which I have
related above.
The kingdom of Poland, though
possessing its own ancient civilisation and culture, has
been deprived of the most essential social rights of
civilisation, and of every legal guarantee which makes
for progress. Not only so, but the exceptional and
repressive laws and edicts which have been issued
diminish yet further the sphere of individual freedom
and open the door to every abuse of an arbitrary
administration.
The memorial goes on to enumerate and discuss all
these laws and edicts, and after showing how Poles are
excluded from every Government institution, and even
from many companies that are not under direct
Government control; after pointing out the tyranny of
the censorship, the fetters laid on all attempts to found
societies and companies of any sort, and a great many
other similar abuses, it comes to the conclusion that "
for more than forty years Poland has been in a state of
war ",
10
The second part of the memorial deals with the
changes considered necessary by public opinion; and here
a great many Poles blame it as being far too moderate. But
the authors of the memorial no doubt considered that it is
better to ask for little, with the hope of getting it, than to
demand more, and get nothing.
In the first place, a series of laws and ukases, both
those general to the whole empire and specially
promulgated for Poland, are mentioned ; all of them
forming as it were the basis of the present Polish
demands, and a guarantee of equal treatment between
Poles and Russians ; they have been suspended for forty
years, but their suspension has always been considered by
the Tsars as provisional and temporary. Starting from this
principle, the memorial proceeds to claim:—
(1) That the Polish language be once more
taught in all schools, elementary, secondary and
higher, as the means of instruction (not separately,
twice a week, as a foreign language, explained by
Russian teachers in Russian); that it be also restored in the courts of law, in the local administrative bureaux, and in all public offices and
institutions.
(2) That Poles be admitted in future to every position,
in the Government service as well as in other institutions
of public utility.
(3) That autonomy be granted to each town and
country district, in such wise that all the population may
share in it; and that the "commune " (parish ?) be
recognised as the unit or basis upon which this autonomy
shall be founded.
(4) That an assurance be given to the United Greeks
(Uniates) of entire liberty of conscience as regards their
choice of a religion ; that full freedom be restored to the
Catholic clergy, both within the country, and as regards
their relations with the Head of the Church; and also that
the Catholic Academy, or Theological College, be allowed
to return to Warsaw (it has been transferred to St.
Petersburg ever since 1867).
The memorial closes by quoting the words of Alexander
II. in a rescript addressed in 1863 to the Grand Duke
Constantine, then Governor of Poland: " When order is
again restored, and it is possible to continue the work
begun by you ; when circumstances permit the working of
the institutions which I have granted to Poland, and most
ardently and sincerely desire to see at work, then you will
all, I trust, once more be able to share in the performance
of those things I have at heart, and to aid me by devoting
yourselves to my service ".
The principal defects in this memorial are said to be
those of omission. Not a word is said about the
constitutional movement in Russia; no demand is made for
a separate -constitutional government in Poland. But it is
a moot question whether, setting aside the uncertainty of
such a demand being considered at all by the Government,
the Russian public would view with pleasure such a
Separatist claim. And it is still more doubtful whether, if
Poland sent deputies to a possible Russian Parliament of
the future, this would not be yet more dangerous for her
national existence than the present state of open
oppression.
But there is one point which all parties agree to
praise: it is that which concerns the Catholic Church.
Neither the restoration of the Polish language to its
former position, nor autonomy granted either in the
Polands Struggle for Existence
modest way suggested by the memorial, or under the
far-reaching form of a Constitution granted to Poland,
could do so much for the nation as the freedom of the
Church. What' indeed could she not do when free, if now,
chained and fettered as she is, she does so much for the
nation ?
Catholicism thus asserts itself as a great preserving
and vital force; and the more it is persecuted, the more
do Poles cling to it. More especially do they cling to
such forms and ceremonies as are peculiar to the Polish
Church, and of these there are very many. The time
has of course gone by when noblemen hearing Mass, as
soon as the Sequentia sancti Evangelii resounded, would
draw their swords and hold them uplifted, as-knights of
the faith, whilst the Gospel was intoned. Such an act
would be rebellion, as would also be the old invocation, "
Queen of the Realm of Poland," formerly added to the
litany of Loretto. But on Christmas Eve, for instance, the
national custom, tolerated by the Government, is strictly
maintained in great numbers of families. Nothing is
eaten all day, till the first star appears. Then a solemn
banquet, comprising various sorts of fish, dressed after
the national fashion, begins; hay is placed under the
table-cloth and a sheaf of wheat stands in a corner of the
room; the servants sit down first to table, and the
masters, after breaking an altar-bread with each, and
exchanging good wishes, serve them at dinner, in
memory of t Master who came to serve. Afterwards, all
the company sit together, and with little wax candles of
different colours lighted in front of each guest, they sing
Kolenda (Christmas carols) until the time comes lor
midnight Mass. On Easter Sunday there is a still more
venerated family rite, of which the well-known "Easter
eggs" form only a part. These, together with a large
number of baked meats and cakes, are called the
Swiecone, or " The Consecrated Meal". It dates, I am
told, from the time of the pagan feasts in honour of the
Goddess of Spring, which were not abolished but
Christianised by the Church. On Holy Saturday a priest
goes round to every family and blesses the morrow's food
with a special paschal benediction; even the poorest have
a little meat and cake to be blessed.
Once I happened to be present at a very painful scene
in connection with this ceremony. The priest came to a
farmhouse where I was staying, but he was not allowed
by the gendarmes to bless the food of the peasantry that
had collected outside with bundles and baskets. The
reason given was that, there being some Ruthenians or
Uniates in the district, the people must show proof that
they were Poles before they could be suffered to share in
a Roman Catholic ceremony. As the poor folks had not
brought any certificates of baptism with them, they had
to return home with food unblessed, and the greatest
feast of the year was thus turned into mourning for
them. I cannot describe their misery and their
indignation, and surely it was just. By this prohibition
there was indeed no essential harm done to religion: but
the national feeling, the feeling that they were Poles, had
been cruelly wounded. That same year I was in a parish
where the priest had been forbidden to bury a certain
man whom the police chose to regard as a non-Catholic,
c because a name like his grandfather's had been found
in the Uniate register of baptisms. Hia widow buried him
in the Catholic graveyard with her own hands. She was
taken before a magistrate and severely questioned, not
11
so much with a view of punishing her as of implicating the
parish priest in her disobedience : but to no purpose.
Church services in Poland are distinguished by the
very great use of the Polish language at services in which
the vernacular is severely prohibited in other countries.
Rome has never, so far as I know, protested against this
custom, wisely thinking that such a privilege need not be
denied to such a nation. Yet any one acquainted with the
jealous care with which Rome excludes the popular
language from Benediction, Vespers and Mass, will be
surprised to learn that in many churches the whole of the
Benediction, from " 0 Salutaris " to " Tantum Ergo"
inclusively, is sung in Polish, only the Collect chanted by
the priest being in the Latin tongue. Vespers, at least in
the country and in small towns, are generally in Polish
likewise ; and even at High Mass I have always heard the
choir continue in the vernacular the chant of " Gloria " and
" Credo " intoned in Latin by the priest, while Polish
hymns and chants fill up other portions of the service.
This is a special privilege, highly valued and zealously
adhered to, which almost makes Polish the fourth of the
"sacred languages," and which inspires the people with
love and reverence for this inheritance of their ancestors.
The influence of the Church, however, as guardian of
the language, goes much further. It is a known fact that
the greater part of the book trade is done in prayer-books
and religious works and periodicals. I have already noticed
the Messenger of the Sacr
Heart; this publication is issued in over 150,000 copies; and
the circulation of other religious periodicals is in
proportion: this alone would prevent the language from
dying out, if the educated classes had become indifferent
to its existence. But they are the very reverse of
indifferent. These classes are not great readers, nor are
they nearly so well off as the corresponding social grades
in England, France, or Germany; they mostly know
French, German or Russian, and naturally are obliged to
purchase and read some books in these languages. But
here the spirit of patriotism asserts itself; many a Polish
book that can barely be afforded is bought simply for the
sake of the national cause, and in order to encourage good
literature. Translations from foreign languages abound
for the use of such as may happen to be ignorant of these.
Shakespeare and Byron are translated, I need hardly say,
and well translated; for the genius of the language is very
adaptable not only to poetry, but to the severest prose.
Spencer, Mill, and Bain exist in Polish versions; at least
some of their works do. I have seen Jevon's Primer of
Logic also in a Polish version. Naturally Scott and
Dickens, Dumas and a great many French writers are
almost as well known here as in their own countries.
Then there is the institution of feuiUetons in every
newspaper, which has the great advantage of seciiring a
place where native talent can be set forth and presented to
the public. Editors naturally give it the preference, when
they can; and when it fails it is always possible to fill the
place with contemporary fiction. This encouragement of
the press has been the means of forming a band of writers,
daily increasing in number.
Sienkiewicz (who began by a series of short sketches in the
Czas feuilleton) and his by no means servile imitators; the "
decadent" writers, whose very aberrations have increased
the riches of the national literature to no small extent; and
the authors of the naturalistic school, whose style and
language is elaborated with the care of a Maupassant or of
Polands Struggle for Existence
a Stevenson--all attest tha high literary possibilities of
their native tongue, and also the patriotism of those who
in spite of the cosmopolitan influences which surround
them, still prefer the writers of their own people, and
make literature not indeed a lucrative, but a possible
avocation.
And not only is Polish literature thus sustained by
the feeling that the life of the nation depends upon it, but
the same feeling tends instinctively to encourage (though
of course in a lower degree) all forms of strictly Polish
ornamental and decorative art. There is in Cracow a
museum devoted to these productions, which I have often
visited; it] is filled with original work taken from
patterns gleaned amongst the peasants with long and
patient toil, and carefully and tastefully chosen. I do
not here allude to the curious wood-carvings which are
made in many country places; these are ornamental
indeed, and every family that visits a watering-place in
the Carpathians takes home to Lithuania or Posen, or
the Ukraine, some souvenirs of dainty handiwork and
real artistical value : but] they are more or less of the
same type as those of other countries. The museum I
speak of contains large chests covered with sculptured
and painted patterns and arabesques, quaint both in
design and in colour; specimens of native pottery that in
the opinion of judges well qualified to decide, only lack
proper advertisement to command high prices, so
exquisitely are they tinted and shaped; rugs and
wall-hangings woven in native factories with designs
38
Poland's Struggle for Existence
Chancellor Biilow, who, in order to justify his up-pressive
measures, compared the Poles to rabbits. There was much
truth in his sneer.
Notwithstanding the thousands who
emigrate annually, never to return, driven away by
political persecution from some provinces, by sheer misery
from others; notwithstanding the backward state of
sanitation, and the ignorance of hygiene amongst the
people, whose families often number three children born
for one arrived at maturity—still the Polish race increases;
it increases so fast that the Germans already fear for their
predominance in the provinces seized, and the Russians
despair of ever Russianising Poland. The mere increase
in numbers would be worth little; but as I have shown,
there is a corresponding increase of intensity in the
national spirit; as education is more and more widespread,
even the lowest classes now become penetrated with the
reminiscences of their past—of Boleslaus the Great, of
Sigismund, of Sobieski—and with the knowledge and love
of Polish literature, both that of former times and that of
the present day. In presence of this movement, the
Germans talk of uprooting (ausrotten was the famous
expression used by Bismarck) all that is Polish. But is it
possible to do it? And are they even able to realise the
greatness of the task which they have set themselves ?
Hitherto, by their own confession, they have failed; but
this failure only gives them a feeling of surprise and
mortification, only makes them resolve to try again and
try harder to turn their three millions of Poles into
Germans.
I remember having once experienced a similar feeling.
When a very little boy, I was playing in a garden, where
was a shallow stream, not three
39
Cervantes
12
taken exclusively from those affected by the peasantry in
their apparel, bedding, etc., simply graceful, purely
national and with no admixture of foreign
embellishments; and various other articles of furniture,
each bearing the stamp of its Polish and peasant origin,
though brought to the level of middle-class exigencies and
refinement. It would be no hard matter to furnish
apartments almost exclusively in this style, from the
walls, covered with patterns such as the country girls cut
out of coloured paper and paste inside their whitewashed "
izbas "—a judicious selection has of course to be made
here—to the door-hangings and window-curtains, quaintly
fastened with broad peasants' girdles of red leather
studded with brass nail heads; and I am informed that
such furnishing produces an extremely original effect. But
the movement in this direction, though rapidly spreading,
is scarce past its starting-point as yet, and I have only met
with a few rugs, flower-pots, and similar objects, amongst
incongruous suites of furniture and rooms decorated
according to foreign tastes.
Without having exhausted the subject—indeed, this
article is but the merest sketch—I must now make a few
final remarks. I have at least pointed out some of the
channels into which Poland, thirty years ago dying and all
but dead, has since then turned all the forces which make
for her existence, with such success that her internal life
may now be regarded as assured. No small part of this
success is, it is true, due to the very great fecundity of the
race. We remember the sneer of the Prussian
feet wide. I conceived the idea of damming up the running
water, and setting quickly to work had soon filled the three
feet of its bed with clay and stones. What was my
amazement to see the stream widen on either side as I
worked ! I made the dam wider still; but soon the water
was pouring over the top. I built the dam higher, but now
the stream came round again to right and left; till at last,
worn out and completely beaten, I saw my work swept
away piece by piece. The forces of Nature were against me.
M. H. DZIEWICKI.
CERVANTES
RUGADH Don Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra ann an Alcala
de Henares, baile ann an Spàinn, anns a' bhliadhna 1547.
Bha 'athair 'na dhuin'-uasal o Ghalicia, agus bhuin a
mhàthair dha 'n duthaich cheudna.
Chaidh Cervantes àrach ann an Salamanca, agus 'na
dheigh sin, fhuair e fhoghlum ann am Madrid fo Lopez de
Hoyos, a bha 'na fhear-teagaisg snas-chainnt sgrìobhadh
anns an àrd-sgoil
aig an am ud.
An
uair
a
bha
Cervantes
mu
dhà-bhliadhn'-air-fhichead a dh'aois, fhuair e àite, car
tamhuil, mar ghille-seomair ann an tigh Chardinal Guilio
Aqua-viva ann an Roimhe. 'Na dheigh sin a rìs, chuir e, le
shaor-thoil fèin, e fèin fo'n cheannard ainmeil Marco
Antonio Colona, a bha 'na àrd-mharaiche air cabhlaich a'
Phàpa anns a' bhliadhna 1570; agus chog e gu smiorail,
misneachail, an aghaidh nan ana-creidmheach. Chaidh
a leòn gu trom aig blàr mara Lepanto, ach an deigh sin,
bha e breac-bìtheanta na chuireadh ann an camp' eile.
Ghlacadh e le cabhlach a thàinig o Africa, agus rinneadh
prìosanach dheth. Ach air dha 'bhith dà bhliadhna am
prìosan, leigear fa sgaoil e, anns a' bhliadhna 1580. Agus
air dha 'teachd air ais do'n Spàinn, dh'ath-choinnich e an
armailt a chuir an dara Rìgh Philip a mach 'ga thagairt
fèin o làimh nam Pàganach. Fhuair e cliù, mòr dha fèin
ann an turus naimhdeil a chuir an Rìgh ceudna an
aghaidh nan Azores.
Air dha 'teachd air ais a rìs do'n Spàinn, anns a'
bhliadhna 1584, dh'fhàg Cervantes an t-arm, agus chaidh
e a leth-taobh, Ios barrachd cothrom 'fhaotainn air
fèin-fhoghlum.
Anns a' bhliadhna 1584, chuir e mach ròlaista dùtcha
ris an abrar Galatea, agu sphòs e anns a' bhliadhna
cheudna. An sin, thoisich e ri sgrìobhadh air buird
tighe-cluiche, agus chuir e mach ann am beagan ùine cor
agus deich cleasan-cluiche thar fhichead.
Am feadh na bliadhna 1588, bha Cervantes a' gabhail
còmhnuidh ann an Seville, ach cha robh e, mo thruaighe !
ach glè bhochd. Anns a' bhliadhna 1605, nochd e e fèin a
rìs mar sgrìobhadair, agus sgaoil a nis a chliù feadh na
Spàinne gu lèir. Chaidh a' cheud earrain do'n leabhair
ainmeil d'an ainm Don Quixote a chuir a mach ann am
Madrid; ach cha do thaitinn e ris an t-shluagh an
toiseach, ged a bha 'n Roinn Eorp uile 'toirt chliù dha ann
an ùine bhig.
Ged a dh'fhàs an obair ainmeil so taitneach ris na
Spàinntich, cha d'rinn e duine beartach de Cher-vantes.
Ach, bochd agus mar a bha e, thug e a h-uile oidhirp air
'inbhe a leasachadh.
Air dha 'bhith 'na thosd fad beagan bhliadhnaichean,
chuir e mach a Dha Sgeulachd Ionmholta Dheug (Nowlas
Exemplares); agus anns a' bhliadhna 1614, chuir e a rìs
a mach a Thurus do Pharnassus ( Viaje al Parnaso); agus
air an ath bhliadhna chuir e mach ochd
cleasan-cluiche nuadha; ach, cha do ghabh an sluagh
gu caoimhneil riu idir.
Thacair, anns a bhliadhna 1614 gu'n do chuireadh a
mach earran-leanmhuinn bhreugach de Don Quiasote,, le
duin' àraidh d'am b'ainm Alonso Fernandez de Avellaneda,
anns an robh mòran de droch-chainnt mu thimchioll
Chervantes. Dh' fhuiling Cervantes gu mòr air taileamh
nan tuaileasan neo-onorach so; ach ghabh e a dhioghaltas
gu tur air dhòigh ro urramach; oir chuir e mach an fhìor
earran-leanmhuinn anns a' bhliadhna 1615.
An deireadh a làithean, fhuair Cervantes caraid d'am
b'ainm Conde de Lesmos, agus thug an t-Iarla comhnadh
dha, agus ghabh Cervantes còmhnuidh ann am Madrid.
Shiubhail e an sin anns a' bhliadhna 1616.
Air do'n tigh anns an a bh'aig Cervantes ann am
Madrid a' bhi air a thogail suas ùr anns a' bhliadhna 1835,
chuireadh
dealbh-creadha
Chervantes
leis
a'
ghabh-altaiche Don Antonio Sola air beulaobh an tighe,
mar chuimhneachan air.
Is ann mar sin a bha Cervantes ri bheò, agus is ann
mar sin a shiubhail e—duine ro chliùtach fad an t-saoghail
uile. Tha mòran sluaigh aig an àm so a'
comh-chruinneachadh ann an Spàinn, agus a' dol an sin o
dhùthaichean eile mar chuimhneachan air a bhàs; agus,
fìrinneach, tha e ceart agus fre-grach do Ghàidheal na
h-Alba agus do Ghàidheal na h-Eirinn maille ris na
cinnaich eile a bhi 'ga luaidh le meas agus le cliù.
An uair a rugadh Cervantes ann an Spàinn, bha Alba
is Eirinn fo dragh mòr air ait, agus gu'n robh fior
ghainnead muladach bhàrda agus eachdraichean unnta
air fad uile " fhearainn ghorm nan Gàidheal". Sgriobh
Keating, a bha 'mairean an uair, agus a bha 'ga fhallach,
ann an uamh air eagal nan Sasunnach, agus an uair a bha
a' chuid eile dhe na bàrda agus dhe na seannach-aidhean
Gàidhealach mar chaoiraich gun bhuach-aille. Sheinn bàrd
neo-ainmichte ann an Eirinn aig an àm mhuladach ud mar
so
" Ionann dam sliabh a's saile Eire a's iarthar Espàine Do
chuireas dunta go deas Geata dlùth ris an doilgheas ". Ach,
ged a dha Alba agus Eirinn anns a' gheur-leanmhuinn
mhòr aig an àm ud, bha mòran Sha-gartan na h-Alba agus
na h-Eirinn a' fuireach air allaban ann an Spàinn.
Ghabh muintir fhialaidh, fhiughantach na Spàinne ri
clann nan Gàidheal le aoidheach a bha nadurra dhaibh,
agus, gun teagamh* thug na Gàidheal meas mòr is cliù do
Chervantes, agus dha obairean iongantach. Bha
oil-thighean na Spàinne lom-làn do mhuinntir na
Gàidhealtachd, agus do mhuinntir na h-Eirinn ; agus 'nam
measg, gun teagamh, bha mòran a bha 'nam bàrda eireachdail, agus a bha 'nan fir-sgrìobhaidh sheolta. Ach ged
a bha muinntir na Spàinne agus clann nan Gàidheal cho
cairdeil ri chèile, a rèir coltais, cha do ghluais obairean
Chervantes inntinnean fir-sgrìobhaidh nan Gàidheal.
Tha e cinnteach nach 'eil sgrìobhadh againn an diugh is
urrainnear a shloinneadh air luchd-molaidh Chervantes.
Gn fìrinneach, cha 'n 'eil so cho neonach, an uair a bheir
sinn fainear (mar is còir dhuinn), gur e fìor-bheagan de na
sgrìobhaidhean a bha air an rinnea aig an àm ud a thàinig
a nuas gus an là diugh. Aig an àm ud agus rè mhòran
bhliadh naichean an deigh sin, lean foghlum na h-Alba
agus foghlum na h-Eirinn an dòigh ghnathaichte. Fhuair
sinn ar samhlaidhean air son sgrìobhaidh o na Romanaich,
agus o na Greugaich. Bha fir-sgrìobhaidh na h-Eirinn,
agus na h-Alba air a cumadh a rèir nan àrd-sgeulachdan
aosda. Bha Togail Throidh, agus sgeulachdan mu
thimchioll Alasdair mhòir nan Greugach, agus an Odessidh
(Merugud Oiluix) uile 'nan culaidh-sgrìobhaidh aig Gàidheal
na h-Eirinn agus na h-Alba. Dh'ullaich na
fir-sgrìobhaidh nach do ghabh ri cleachdadh na Romanach
agus nan Greugach iad fèin air son aobharan sgrìobhaidh
a thug a h-aon sam bith a stigh do'n dùthaich so.
Ach, ged nach do ghluais Cervantes ar fhoghlum fèin,
fhuair e, gu dearbh, mòran de fhir-molaidh agus de
leughadairean ro thuigseach am measg nan Gàidheal;
agus tha e freagarach agus ceart gu'n deanamaid
gàirdeachas aig an àm so maille ri muinntir uasal,
fhialaidh, na Spàinne.
Ach, mo thruaighe ! cha 'n 'eil eadar-theangachd
againn air Don Quixote anns a' chainnt bhinn nan Gàidheal.
Tha sinn an earbsa, co dhiùbh, gu'm be e 'nar comas a
ràdh aig an àm so an àth bhliadhna nach 'eil dìth
eadar-theangachd orinne a thaobh na h-obair ainmeil sin.
Tha e air a ràdh, gu'n d'rinn a h-aon do Shagairtan na
h-Alba Don Quixote a chuir ann an Gàidhlig. Is e so, gu
dearbh, an t-àm dha a chuir a mach. Thog Cervantes d'a
fèin :—
------ monumentum sere perennius
Regalique situ Pyramidum altius Quod non imber
edax, non Aquilo impotens Possuit diruere, aut
innumerabilis Annorum series, et fuga temporum.
THE "PUSHFUL" THEORY IN
SCOTTISH HISTORY
WE have already seen that the keynote of David's policy
with respect to Church and State was " compromise". He
was, if not by inclination, at all events by policy and
necessity, a "moderate" rei former. He was a plodding
pedestrian on the via media—that uninteresting
thoroughfare down which many a sovereign and
statesman has tramped to brilliant success. His
sympathies, there can be no doubt, were strongly English,
or rather Norman and feudal; and it must be allowed that
he acquitted himself in a difficult, even critical, position
with both address and courage.
We have already combated the view that David was a
great innovator—that he revolutionised his kingdom from
top to bottom. We have already seen that his reforms
with respect to the Church were limited to changes
affecting its external organisation, and in no wise
concerned the general personnel of the Church, whose Celtic
character the king was powerless to eradicate. A similar
tolerance, the obvious result of a wholesome respect for the
rights and opinions of his Celtic subjects and the
vehemence with which, if tampered with, they were wont
to be asserted, is observable in David's actions with regard
to the State. The " theory of displacement" which
Chalmers laboured abundantly, though vainly, to prove is
as untenable in the one case as it is in the other, and for
precisely the same reasons, namely, the King's inability to
displace, or to dispossess, a whole nation in order to
gratify his own prepossessions, and those of a handful of
foreign dependants. " The whole theory (of displacement),"
says Robertson,1 "is mythical. Such a measure would have
raised all Scotia to the Forth, all Lothian to the Tweed, in
one general blaze of insurrection."
It must be allowed that David's predilection for the
Normans was a little singular, and if it is to be accounted
for at all can only be explained by a paradox—his
lengthened residence at a Norman court. The more we
know of these Normans, the less will any self-respecting
individual pretend to admire them; and the more ignorant
and ridiculous will that notion appear whose unworthy
aim and object is the apotheosis of these unprepossessing
barbarians. " The Norman Conquest," says Dr. Murray,*
" . . . overthrew the old English learning and literary
culture. In literary culture the Normans were about as
far behind the people whom they conquered as the Romans
were when they made themselves masters of Greece; and
it was not till some two generations after the Conquest
that learning and literature regained in England
somewhat of the position which they had occupied two
centuries earlier."
David's partiality for these people, therefore, must
have been based on admiration for the system of
government with which, by a singular accident, their
Conquest of England has been associated; since it would
not be just to consider him as an enemy to politeness and
learning. The feudal system aggrandised the King at the
expense of his subjects—reason enough, surely, for a far
less ambitious sovereign than David was to espouse
Scotland under her Early Kings, vol. ii., p. 498. * The
Evolution of English Lexicography (Eomanes Lecture, 1900).
1
its cause, and call it, effusively, his own. The Celtic
system, with its limited royal prerogatives, its
well-ascertained and sharply-defined royal and semi-royal
rights, its nicely-balanced division of executive power, and
its somewhat socialistic system of land tenure, must have
been thoroughly odious to a man of David's political
temperament and views. His passion for feudalism (for
such, indeed, it amounted to) seems to have blinded him to
the striking inferiority of the " new " civilisation which he
introduced, and to its comparative rudeness and crudeness
in face of all that was best and most splendid in the system
which he designed to overthrow.
It must be
remembered that when David mounted the throne he was
practically a stranger in his own country. All his
principles, domestic and public, had been formed abroad.
Norman and English arms were largely responsible for his
triumph, and his notions of personal government were
almost necessarily such as were approved, and enforced,
by his foreign supporters. But David, in addition to his
training in a court in which the Sovereign was proclaimed
as the heaven-sent depositary of executive power, and as
the sole fount of honour, had a natural liking for
feudalism.
The constitutional forms identified with the
Celtic system were to him merely so many obstacles to the
possession of that measure of power which he evidently
considered as essential to the monarchy—obstacles which,
if he could not violently surmount, he must at all events
diplomatically circumvent. And this enforced
moderation of David—his seeming candour, and the
remarkable tenderness, even fatherliness—where the
interests and susceptibilities of his Celtic subjects were
concerned, which he frequently exhibited, supplies the key
not only to his public actions but to his private conduct.
David little loved Celticism and his Celtic subjects, we
have every reason to believe; but he was too wise a man,
too astute a Prince, not to see that he must, to a great
extent at all events, put up with them. Thus, and so
only, his seeming moderation is satisfactorily explained;
and we cease to wonder that a Sovereign who introduced
charters into Scotland should have retained Scottish
service side by side with that striking innovation. The
reign of David, as Skene and Robertson justly observe, was
a period of compromise. Content with introducing the
leaven which was subsequently to change the whole
complexion of his kingdom, David's common-sense made
him shrink from attempting that colossal task which
latter-day historians, neither discouraged by his
helplessness nor dismayed by his difficulties, have
successfully accomplished for him (on paper), namely,
the substitution of feudalism for Celticism in Scotland by
force of hand.
However inimical to the latter David may
have been, his sole chance of success—nay, his only chance
of retaining his throne—lay in dissembling his hostility
and in disguising his innovations in such a manner as
whilst it did not in the least degree jeopardise or impair
the political intention of his reforms, seemed effectually to
deprive them of their revolutionary character. In this
respect, it must be admitted, David was a highly successful
sovereign. His command of compromise, if I may so
express myself, amounted to genius, and will have its
appropriate reward in the unstinted admiration and the
enduring envy of the party politician in all ages to come.
So artfully were his innovations introduced, so skilfully
propagated, and upon so plausible pretexts and pretences,
that his Celtic subjects seem to have been scarce aware of
the species of political legerdemain to which they were being
subjected—in order to facilitate their eventual extinction.
Indeed, strange as it may seem, even a careful
consideration of David's actions, public and private, might
not unreasonably result in the verdict that this Prince's
innovations were by no means inconsistent with a desire to
perpetuate the best features of the Celtic polity; whilst
those to whom paradox is something more than stage
ornament, a narrative constructed out of the abundance of
material left us, and based on the contention that David
left his kingdom yet more Celtic than he found it, would
prove not only diverting but highly edifying reading.
The crop of fallacies connected with the reign of the
first David is, however, by no means exhausted by the
dissipation of such popular fables as his destruction of the
Celtic Church, or his suppression of the Celtic policy in
favour of feudalism. It is commonly believed that, in
company with his foreign Churchmen, David imported into
Scotland a multitude of Norman and English " barons "
who, in reward for their services in assisting David to
mount the throne, were given grants of the lands, titles,
offices, etc., formerly in the hands of the dispossessed
Scots. This " theory of displacement," as Eobertson styles
it, found its most industrious and, perhaps, its ablest
exponent and champion in the historian Chalmers; and
with that persistency and hardihood which characterises
exploded fables, it still holds its ground, at all events in
the popular imagination. Historical science, however, has
long since consigned it to its proper resting-place, which is
the limbo for all such historical rubbish; but in view of the
popular ignorance on the subject, and the obvious bearing
of such a theory upon the theme discussed in these papers,
I may perhaps be excused for venturing here to recur to it
at some length.
In the first place, the theory of displacement is
unscientific, though frequently resorted to in history in
order to reconcile apparently discordant facts, or to " round
off " some theory or other upon whose acceptance or
rejection the writer, like a reckless gambler, is prepared to
risk a single throw of the dice.
Thus, Keating in his
well-known History of Ireland destroys the Milesian plebs by
pestilence in order to make way for his nobles who were
essential to his genealogies. "But the theory," says
Robertson, "is scarcely less extravagant which supposes
ancient Scotia to have been filled with a population
unknown to history—for when did they (the Normans, etc.)
arrive 1 untraceable in topography—for where are their
vestiges ? and who, if they ever really existed in this
quarter, must have exhibited the unwonted spectacle of a
dominant people, strong enough to hold their ground
throughout the leading provinces of the kingdom, yet
submitting to the rule of a king and a nobility sprung from
the very race they are supposed to have driven from the
soil! Where was the strength of the ancient Gaelic
kingdom of Scotland, if it were not in this very quarter ? " 1
The theory of displacement is yet more strikingly confuted
by the names of the probi homines, that is, by the
composition of the juries which pronounced "the verdict of
the neighbourhood" in times subsequent to the reigns of
David and his successor, William the Lion. The local
notabilities
18oo(land
under her Early Kings, vol. ii., p. 485.
D
appearing in such essentially " lowland" districts as
Angus, and the eastern seaboard of Scotland generally, are
of Celtic origin; whilst in Renfrew, " when Patrick de
Blantyre was served heir to his ancestral barony, the jury
to a man were of Gaelic origin, and must have been ' his
peers,' barons or free-holders by charter. Renfrew had been
given as a barony to the Steward, but the probi horniim
seem to have been little affected by the grant."1
But the view of David's policy taken in these
papers—a policy which, according to Robertson, appears to
have been founded " on a principle diametrically opposed
to this theory of displacement" in Church and
State—receives its most striking confirmation in that
monarch's attitude towards his Norman and English
followers. In no single case, so far as is known, were the
services and fidelity of his foreign henchmen rewarded
with gifts of native honours, whether "dispossessed" or
otherwise. Bruce, FitzAlan, De Moreville and other
great Norman barons never appear as Scottish earls, but
only with "the rights and customs" of earls—a limitation of
authority and prestige which was strictly their due as
adventurers in a foreign land.
As Robertson justly
observes, " holding by Scottish service they would have
been powerless without a kindred ' following' ; whilst a
feudal tenure would have interfered with the proprietary
rights of the very class which formed the military strength
of the earldom ".2 An alien earl, holding by feudal
tenure, would have had to conquer his earldom from the
proprietary; which was doubtless the reason why David
and his immediate successors wisely did not endeavour to
Scotland under her Early Kings, vol. ii., p. 487, 3 Ibid.,
vol ii., p. 495.
1
"displace" or dispossess the native proprietary; but strove,
on the contrary, to retain them in their native provinces,
rendering them more or less responsible for all that
portion of their respective districts which was not placed
under the authority of the royal sheriffs or baillies. "In
Galloway, Argyll, and Ross," says Robertson, "the old races
were thus confirmed in authority and the result was
comparative peace."
In Moray, however, where the old
race was proscribed, not, be it remembered, in pursuance
of a deliberate policy, whose end was the violent
suppression of the Moray rulers, but in consequence of the
undying hostility of that family to the line of Atholl, and
its frequent and bloody attempts to wrest the crown from
the descendants of Malcolm II., feudal tenure was forcibly
introduced; " and the result was rebellion for a century".1
Elsewhere, adds Mr. Robertson, a similar policy " would
have unquestionably produced corresponding results".
Confiscation would have been followed by rebellion; and
rebellion by anarchy, in which the monarchy so far at all
events as David and his family were concerned must
inevitably have perished. "The Gaelic earls," says Mr.
Robertson, " were never ' pushed' out; and if the remaining
proprietary were dispossessed, where would have been the
use of legislating for thanes (toiseachs ?) and ogtierns in
the reign of Alexander II. ? "' " The whole theory (of
displacement) is mythical. Such a measure would have
raised all Scotia to the Forth, all Lothian to the Tweed in
one general blaze of insurrection."2 " I think it very
doubtful," adds Mr. Robertson, "if either earldom or
thanedom
Scotland under her Early Kings, vol. ii., p. 495. 'Ibid.,
vol. ii., p. 498.
1
were originally conferred upon baron or knight; or if
any earldom was held by feudal tenure until Brute gave
Moray to Randolph (1372), to be held by both knight
service and Scottish service."1
The glaring insufficiency, not to say absurdity, of
this theory of dispossession or displacement is plainly
discovered by a glance at the racial composition of the
Scottish nobility at the end of the reign of David I.
Additional refutation, if indeed any be needed, is
abundantly supplied by the names of the probi homines
appearing in the charters of that period; and, lastly, in
the various laws promulgated by that Prince and his
Celtic successors on the throne of Alba.2
The Nobility of Alba, shotving its Racial Compleosion
at the End of the Reign of David I. (1153) Angus, Gaelic.
Atholl, Gaelic. Fife, Gaelic. Marr, Gaelic. Strathearn, Gaelic.
Menteith, Gaelic. Lennox, Gaelic. Boss, Gaelic.
Moray, suppressed 1130, but said to have been conferred upon
Gillocher Earl of Marr, whose descendant, Donald, claimed
to represent the earldom at the end of the thirteenth
century.
Mearns, vacant, possibly suppressed after Malpeder. The relations between Moray and Mearns seem to have been of a
very intimate nature.
Buohan, Gaelic.
1 Scotland under her Early Kings,
2 The same observation applies
vol. ii., p. 498.
with equal force to the
Church. The names of ecclesiastics appearing in charters
whether as probi homines or otherwise are, with few exceptions,
Gaelic.
Kingdom of the Isles (Gaelic).
Caithness, Norse, originally Gaelic.
Argyll, Gaelic ["names like de Ergadia, de Insulis, de Atholia, de
Galloway speak for themselves," Robertson, vol. 11., p.
491. They indicate, of course, a Gaelic origin].
54
The "Pushful" Theory in Scottish History
making such an appeal, and over the whole faoe of Scotia
and the Lothians—over the whole of the well-affected
portion of the kingdom ! A measure so vast that not a
name of any note has come down to the present day that
can be traced to the old Bernician Angles ; whilst the
shattered remnants of the Gaelic proprietary sheltered
themselves amidst the Highlands and in Galloway! The
whole theory is mythical," etc. Alluding to the "
Perambulation of the lands of Balfeith," Mr. Innes says
(Sketches, p. 147, note 1): " This jury of Celtic gentlemen of
the low country of Angus and Mearns contrasts notably
with the list of burgesses of Dundee and Aberdeen of
Norman and Saxon names and Teutonic lineage, occurring
about the same time". "In the thirteenth century," says Mr.
Robertson, " the native proprietary were not yet eradicated.
When, then, were they displaced? As the bulk of the
population connected with the soil to the northward of the
Forth seem to have borne Celtic names, it may be
concluded that the majority of the rural population from
the earl downwards were of native (Gaelic) origin. The
burghers were originally almost invariably of alien
extraction; but a civic population never migrates into the
country, whilst there is always a constant stream of
population pouring from the rural districts into the towns.
What a tide has been pouring into Glasgow from the
mountains for many generations past! Yet how many of
the good citizens have emigrated into Argyllshire ? . . . So
far from the old Scottish race in these quarters being
driven into the Highlands, it would seem rather as if a vast
Truly, the theory of displacement is responsible for many absurdities, amongst which we must
not forget to reckon the old familiar nonsense (still
doing duty in many a humble newspaper and guidebook) touching the " Highland line " or " boundary"
—that imaginary erection which is popularly supposed to represent the racial barrier which separates Gael from Saxon, and Celt from Teuton.
Alluding to the displacement of the population
of the Lothians in the reign of David I. by settlers
from England—an equally fanciful measure—Dr.
Robertson observes, " beyond the river (Forth)
the Highlands form a convenient receptacle into
which all the dispossessed proprietary of native
Gaelic origin are supposed to have been ' pushed'
—such is the word sometimes used. It is not
specified, however, where the native proprietary of
Teutonic origin were ' pushed' out of the Lothians,
perhaps because it might be inconvenient to find a
place for them! When David laid down the enactment that if a man were disseized, or disposed of
his property, he was no longer to challenge the
aggressor, but to appeal to the verdict of the
neighbourhood, it may be gathered that there were
rights of property before his reign; and that the
loss of such rights in individual cases was resented
by an appeal to the sword. Yet are we called
upon to believe that whilst such was the legal
custom in individual
general measure of
disseisin was gradually carried out amongst a population
never backward, but rather over-ready in
number from the Highlands had been absorbed by the
civic population. The original Scots were no more driven
out of the Lowlands by the
Fionn Mac Cumhail
55
advance of the Teutons than have the
Franks been driven out of Salic France
encroachments of the Romans."
original
by the
^
FIONN MAC CUMHAIL
AIG sinn-sinnseanar Rìgh Eirinn bho'n chòigeamh glun 's
ann a lionsgair na Fiantaichean. 'S e dithis agus triuir a
bha iad a' faighinn a h-uile bliadhna de dhaoine mòra
agus boirionnaich anns an robh sia traidhean. Bhathas
'gam pòsadh sin ri chèile, agus an sliochd a bha 'tighinn
bhuapa bha miadachd mhòr mhòr unnta. 'Sann dhiubh so
a rinneadh rèiseamaid mhòr nam Fiantaichean. 'Sann air
son cur as do na Lochlannaich a chaidh an togail an
toiseach.
Ri ùine fhuair iad iad fhèin cho làidir 's gun do chuir
iad litir gu Rìgh Eirinn nach ruigeadh e leas dùil a bhith
aige ri 'n cuideachadh-sa ri 'bheò no ri 'bhàs. Rinn iad
Rìgh dhaibh fhèin an
sin air Cumhal.
'Se naoi naonan a bh'ann diubh an toiseach, ge b'e air
bith am barrachd a bh'ann nuair a rinneadh rìgh de
ChumhaL
'Nuair a bha Cumhal 'na rìgh orra, cha robh 'chrìdh' aig
duin' an tilleadh, ged a bha gu leòir air fheadh an
t-saoghail na bu treasa na iad.
Chuir Cumhal a mach lagh nach robh duine a dhianadh
cron nach sgaradh iad bhuapa. Bha aon fhear an sin, ciod e
56
Fionn Mac Cumhail
Chaidh e 'so gu peilis Rìgh Eirinn e fhèin 'sa bhean.
Chuir e bràth a stigh thun an rìgh gun robh gnothach
beag aige ris. Thàinig an Rìgh a mach agus mhuthaich e
dha, agus dh'fhoighneachd e dheth ciod e 'n duine
'bh'ann. Thuirt Area an sin gu'm b'esan fear dhe na
Fiantaichean.
" Nach tu," os an Rìgh, " a chaill do nàire nuair a
thàinig thu 'nam aodann an deis do'm shinn-sinnseanair
'ur cur cruinn agus sibh a dhealachadh, bhuam a rithisd, is
nach ruig sinn leas dùil a bhith againn cuideachadh
fhaighinn bhuaibh."
"'N ta," os Area, "'o chionn gur a mise 'bha 'g iarraidh
orra thus' a leantail chuir iad so mu'm amhaich mar
thàmailt, 's chuir iad bhuapa mi Thàinig mi far' robh sibh
fhèin gus sibh a thoirt dhomh cuideachadh."
"Cha 'n urrainn domhsa cuideachadh a thoirt dhuit, a
leithid de dhuine mòr," os an Rìgh.
" Cha 'n iarr mi ach iasgach na h-aibhne," os Area,
"agus cumaidh mi iasg ribh fhèin air 'ur braiciost."
"Gheibh thu sin agus innis dhomh ciamar a chuirear
Cumhal gu bàs," os an Rìgh.
" Cha do thog Cumhal shil ri gin riamh ach
boirionnach ro-bhriagh," os Area.
"'N ta," os an rìgh, "'sann agamsa a tha an aon bhoinne
fala a's àille 'tha fo'n ghrein. 'S còir dhuinn litir a chur 'ga
ionnsaidh."
Sgriobh Rìgh Eirinn litir an sin gu Cumhal e 'thighinn
far an robh e, gu'm faigheadh e maithte na rinn e 'na
aghaidh. Dh'fhalbh Cumhal an sin, agus chaidh e do'n
phoilis aig Rìgh Eirinn; 's nuair a ràinig e chuireadh
dinneir gu feum dhaibh. Shuidh iad aig bòrd, 's cha robh
Cumhal a' leagail a shùl bhar nighean Rìgh Eirinn.
" Cha chreid mi," os an rìgh, " nach 'eil thu air gaol a
ghabhail air an nighinn."
"An ta," osa Cumhal, "'s i 'n aon bhoinne fala a's docha
leam a chunnaic mi riamh."
" Ma sa h-i pòs thu fhèin's i fhèin ma tu."
Phòs iad an sin agus oidhche na bainnseadh aca
chuireadh Area Dubh 'n aon seomar riutha 'am falach.
Nuair a chunnaic Area 'sin an t-àm . . . thug e 'n ceann
bhar Chumhail le 'chlaidheamh fhèin Mac-an-luin. Bhuail
a bhean a basan. 'Nuair a chunnaic Bran Mac-an-luin aig
Area lean e Mac-an-luin agus Area.
BREITH FHINN
DH'FHÀS a bhean trom, 's chuir an righ a mach achd nam
b'e nighean a bhiodh ann gu'm biodh iad coma
mu'deighinn, nach togadh i tòrachd a h-athar, ach nam b'e
gille 'bhiodh ann gun reachadh a mharbhadh cho luath 's a
thigeadh e 'dh-ionnsuidh an t-saoghaiL
Ann an ceann nan tri ràidhean thuisleadh ise air
leanabh nighinn, agus le toileachadh 's le toilnntinne 'rinn
an righ cha robh duine 'bha mu'n champa nach robh
marbh leis an daoraich.
A bhean-ghliiin bu ghiorra dhith thuirt i rithe : " Seall
ciod e 'th'agam an dràsd ? "
"Tha agad an dràsd," os ise, "pàisde gille."
'rinn e ach. . . . Rug iad air agus chuir iad . . . mu
'amhaich, agus dh'fhuaigh iad e air chor's nach tugadh
duine sam bith as e. Chuir iad air falbh bhuapa buileach
e, agus cha chanadh iad facal ris ach Area Dubh.
57
Breith Fhinn
"Eirich thus'," os i fhèin, "agus falbh leis,
agus tog e."
" 'N ann," os ise, "'s mi air mo mhionnachadh nam b'e
gille 'bhiodh ann gun reachainn 'ga thoirt suas do'n rìgh
gur e gille 'bhiodh ann ? "
" Falbh thus' agus tog e; is cho fada 's is bonnach
dhomhs'e 's bonnach dhuits' e, na ni eile 'bhios agam 's
leat-sa do chuid dheth ach tog an gille."
58 Mar a Thogadh Fionn, 's Mar a Bhaisteadh e
Dh'fhalbh a bhanaltram—a bhean-ghlùine 's thog i
leatha'm pàisde, 's mach a ghabh i. Bha 'bràthair roimpe
'san rathad, 'se 'na shaor.
" Eirich! eirich ! " os ise, " cho luath 'sa rugadh tu.
Thoir a choill' ort, is dean bothag dhomhsa, 's mi air cron a
dheanamh air nighean an rìgh."
Dh'eirich esa, is mach a thug e. Thug e 'choill' air, 's
rinn e bothag dha phiuthair. 'Nuair a ràinig ise 'sin a
bhothag bha i ullamh aig a bràthair roimpe.
Dh'fhoighneachd e dhith: " Ciod e 'th'agad an sin?"
" Cha 'n 'eil ach ni 'thug mi bho nighean an rìgh," os
ise.
" O cha 'n e idir. 'Sann a th'ann Mac Chumhail. Thoir
dhomhs'e, 's gu'n cuir mi 'n ceann dheth leis an tuaigh."
" Ealbh a stigh," os ise, " is gearr an sprod ud 'tha 'san
fhordoruis m'um bi mo cheannsa 'bualadh ann a' tighinn a
mach no 'dol a stigh."
Chaidh e stigh, agus dh'ìrich ise do'n tobhtaidh ('sann
a muigh a bha iad air a chnoc) 'san tuagh aice. Air tighinn
a mach a bràthar air an doras, bhuail i faobhar na tuaighe
air ann am mullach a chinn, 's chuir i leth air gach
gualainn dhe ceann a bràthar. Chuir i 'sin a mach air an
loch e, 's chaidh i fhèin a stigh, 's bha i 'cumail a' ghille air
adhart cho math 'sa b' urra dhith.
MAR A THOGADH FIONN, 'S MAR A
BHAISTEADH E
NUAIR a thàinig an gille sin gu coiseachd, theirig am biadh
a thugadh bho thigh an rìgh, agus chaidh bhanaltram thun
a bhaile a choimhead màthair a
Mar a Thogadh Fionn, 's Mar a Bhaisteadh e 59
ghille. Fhuair i uiread 'sa b' urra dhith 'thoirt leatha de
bhiadh, agus 'nuair a bha i 'falbh de rinn mialchu a bha'n
tigh an Rìgh ach a leantail air fàileadh na feòla.
Bhiodh an gill' aice air fheadh an taighe, 's bha sguab
dhreathann aice 'g eirigh air mu na casan 'ga ionnsachadh
ri cruadal. Theirig am biadh a rithist di. Bha i 'dol a
dh'ionnsuidh a bhaile a bh'iarraidh millidh; 's nuair a
nochd i ris an dìtreamh far an robh nighean an rìgh,
smaointich i gu'n do dh'fhàg i 'mhialchu stigh, 's gu'n robh
'n gill' air ich' aice. Thill i cho luath 'sa b' urra dhith
dhachaidh do'n bhothaig. Bha 'n gille agus ceann a
mhialchoin aige 's an darna làimh agus an druim anns an
làimh eile an deaghaidh' cur a cnàimh na h-amhaich.
'Nuair a chunnaic i an t-euchd a rinn e, ghrad-thill i thun a
bhaile, is dh'inns' i do nighean an rìgh gu'n do chuir an
gille an dubh mhialchu a cnàimh na h-amhaich.
"Tog thus' e," os i fhèin, "is fhad 'sa bhios mise beò cha
chaill thus' air." Thill i dhachaidh do'n bhothaig. 'Nuair a
fhuair an gille e fhèin cho làidir dh'eireadh e air a chaillich
leis an sguabaidh 'chor 's nach d'fhàgadh lèobadh fèola no
fala air a casan. Reachadh i 'sin a mach air an loch leis,
gus an ruigeadh an t-uisge na ciochan aice 's greim aic* air
chul-cinn air 's air smigid, 'g ionnsachadh snàmh dha.
Bheireadh i air chùl-cinn air agus chuireadh i fo'n uisg' e,
's dh' eireadh e ann am miadhoin an locha thall.
Chaidh i do'n bhaile a dh'iarraidh tuilleadh
bidhe. Bha i 'ga thilleadh, ach cha ghabhadh e
tilleadh bhuaipe. 'Nuair a nochd i 'sin ri Colaisde
a bh'aig Easbuig ag ionnsachadh sgoilearan bha
uair a chluichd
bha iad ri snàmh a muigh
6o
Rebellion
Rebellion
air an loch. Mach esan le chuid aodaich 'nam measg.
Bheireadh e air chùl-cinn air feadhainn diubh's chuireadh
e fo 'n uisg' iad, 's bha e 'gam bàthadh mar sin. Co bha 'ga
choimhead a muigh romh 'n uinneig ach an t-Easbuig,
agus dh'eubh e 'sin " Co leis an gille mùgach fionn a tha
'bathadh mo chuid sgoilearan ? "
" Taing do'n àgh" os a' chailleach, " fhuair mi
baisteadh do'n ghille, 's tha 'dhiol uisge timchioll air."
" O fhuair," os an t-Easbuig, " Fionn Mac Cumhail."
Cha robh ach chuireadh saighdear bonn ri bonn
timchioll an locha gus a mharbhadh.
ALASDAIR RUADH.
REBELLION
A DEEP and innate respect for law and order is a necessary
corollary of man's intelligence. " United we stand, divided
we fall," is a truth he feels as much instinctively as he
apprehends it intellectually. Rousseau's figment of a social
compact, containing as it does but a grain of truth, is no
more than a convenient foundation on which to raise a
revolutionary philosophy. Man naturally is a social being,
nor can this state ever be to him a matter of choice or
indifference. Ranked no higher than " the superb animal "
which Huxley calls him, he is at least gregarious and
naturally loves order and method.
The common-sense of the world brands as absurd the
idea that in things of State every man can be a law to
himself.
There is one law; one supreme tribunal
representing the opinion of the whole or of the majority of
the social body, and to this court from which there is no
appeal, every man, whether he like it or not, is compelled
to submit. Otherwise there is not merely rebellion but
anarchy and the destruction of every form of social life.
This is readily apparent in all that pertains to the body
politic; so much so that in these islands the secular arm is
strong and indeed irresistible. Yet strange as it may seem,
in the higher and religious sphere the opposite and absurd
opinion is calmly acquiesced in. Here every man is a law
unto himself, with the consequent result that all is chaos
and inextricable confusion.
The kaleidoscopic
spirituality of Great Britain is the mirth of the unbeliever;
and sad to tell the ranks of these are constantly swelled by
the ever-increasing numbers of men disheartened and
disgusted by the wrangling clamours of those who should
be of one heart and mind. It is absurdly strange that
what cannot be tolerated in man's relations with his
fellow-man becomes with so many a fundamental principle
in their relations with their God.
The pet Protestant dictum—in religion every man a
law to himself—leads logically to rebellion, indifference, or
unbelief. This is no mere theory which can be made to look
convincing on paper. The short history of Protestantism
gives abundant examples in each of the three cases. I take
it for granted, apart altogether from experience, that such
a principle must of necessity make for disunion—must be
the starting-point of myriad sects and factions. If every
19
man be his own judge, unity is impossible where ambition,
wealth, or power are factors in the decision.
On this principle, rebellion, or the active resistance to
established law or government, very easily becomes a duty
binding on conscience. I do not allude to the many
strange cases of religious mania, when deluded men
banded themselves together to overthrow and cut off the
Amalacites, who were no other than their neighbours and
fellow-citizens of yesterday. And yet how little different
from such conduct was that of the " Lords of the Congregation" in Scotland. Their most lenient apologists do not
deny that they drew the sword and fought against the
troops of their sovereign in the field. They treated with
those who were then the enemies of the national freedom,
asking for and receiving subsidies of English soldiers and
English gold. Who denies for one moment that the "
reformation" bristled with treason and rebellion; and that
its agents from Murray and Knox were the creatures, tools
and pensioners of England ? And why not, if each and all
be free to deduce from the Word of God that their
sovereign is Jezebel or Agog, the Pope antichrist, and
Catholics the brood of vipers which must not escape from
the wrath of the just?
But it may be said that these are early and extreme
cases of which all are now ashamed Well, then, pass down
through three hundred years, historically no great length
of time, but filled with the wrangling war of Kirks, and
view Scotland and England as they are before our eyes
to-day. " Stands Scotland where she did ? " Exactly as we
might have expected; only that the wrangling is at this
moment at a stage specially acute. Two offshoots of the
Established Church are at war. Though spiritual bodies,
they have no powers to decide upon their grievances.
They are forced to enter the law courts, each claiming to
be recognised as what has been known as the Free Church
of Scotland for some fifty years. After much expense and
bitterness on both sides, a decision is given by the highest
tribunal in the land. And now for the spirit of rebellion.
The leaders of the defeated party who are supposed to
preach reverence for law and order, scour the country
denouncing both law and judges, and especially their
successful opponents. Place the scene back a couple of
hundred years and these inflammatory addresses must
have filled the country with civil war once more. Then
the state of the country was favourable to any band of
fanatics who dared to brave the civil power; and in such a
case as this the temptation would have been irresistible.
The whole squalid wrangle is over money—a fact not lost
upon the man in the street. The blind leaders of the
defeated party were not aware as to where they were
leading their people. In consequence both have fallen
into the ditch; but they loudly implore that Parliament
may extricate them and set them on their feet once more.
The whole spectacle would be sorry enough were the
division caused over any trivial matter, but the result is
disastrous to religion when the supreme court of law
declares that the majority has blindly wandered from the
very essentials of their constitution as a Church.
In England the spirit of rebellion is loudly in evidence.
"Passive resistors" are very actively defying the law of the
6o
Rebellion
20
Rebellion
land. They have the same rights and means of redress as
the rest of their fellow-citizens; yet they prefer to resist
the law. And why ? Denominationalists cannot approve of
the schools which please the passive resistors, and as little
can these approve of denominational schools.
Both
have in consequence their own schools, and in numbers
those of the denomination-alists are vastly in the majority.
How are the schools maintained?
The schools of the
passive resisters, that is, of the minority, are built,
equipped and maintained entirely out of public money, of
which the resisters contribute not one penny more than
the other ratepayers of the kingdom. The schools of the
denominationalists have been built and maintained by
themselves alone.
They have received nothing more
than a Government grant, based on the results of their
teaching, so that besides maintaining the schools of the
resisting minority— into which they conscientiously object
to send their own children—they have had to build and
maintain their own schools over and above. All this they
did with a patience that passes belief. Lately, however,
by substantial concessions, which almost take out of their
power the schools which they themselves have built, a
share of the rates has been obtained. This act of less than
bare justice has passed both Houses of Parliament,
received the royal assent, and become the law of the land.
But here again the spirit of rebellion fostered by a
spiritual system that panders to individual vanity, shows
itself in its true and intolerant colours. The " passive resisters" refuse to pay the rate, and, headed by clergymen
whose lawlessness is an outrage on religion, they have
appeared in court and posed as martyrs for doing to
denominationalists what these have for years been
compelled to do for them. It is incredible what harm is
done to the cause of education and religion
by the
loud-mouthed clamours of these self-styled passive
resisters. Martyrdom is too cheaply bought at a few
shillings a head to be an impressive spectacle to the most
ignorant. It has all been a glorious chance of
self-advertisement, and has been seized upon with an
eagerness that rouses the contempt of every sensible man.
If every law to which we object were to be so xesisted,
where would be the possibility of social life, or of any form
of representative institutions % If, instead of working for
a redress of our grievances by constitutional means, we
take the law into our own hands all government is impossible ; and there is transferred to the things of State the
monstrous confusion, hatred and division which so sadly
and inevitably blight the whole spiritual kingdom of
Protestantism.
The confines of the spiritual and
temporal domains have not always clearly defined
boundaries ; and he who is a law to himself in the spiritual
world easily transfers to temporal duties a spirit of
arrogance, resistance and rebellion. It is a sad spectacle
to see ministers of religion heading movements such as
this. They teach obedience to the State, and none can
equal them in singing "God save the King!" yet the State is
to be obeyed and the King to be honoured only in so far as
they have the good sense or fortune to pander to the spirit
of passive resistance. The "no popery" drum was beaten
once more, but it is interesting to note that the performers
were received with as broad a grin and stare as would
accommodate an Indian in his war paint were he to appear
in Piccadilly or the Strand
But I have said that besides this spirit of open and
suppressed rebellion, the pet Protestant theory leads to
indifference and unbelief. This is an assertion that may be
verified, by results at least, in every part of the country.
Never were such despairing cries of indifference,
non-churchgoing, want of divinity students and downright
unbelief. Hostility to religion, whether such hatred be real
or political, will have its passing phases everywhere; but
certain it is that the Protestant principle of private
judgment is suicidal to itself as a system. If I am free to
respect any single portion of Scripture, may I not respect
two, three, or even the whole thing? This is exactly where
the higher critics have landed the Protestant Churches.
Little wonder that students fear to come forward to preach
a Bible that has scarcely a canonical book left in it. Or,
rather, is it that more tempting careers are opening out in
other directions? In either case, the waning power of
Protestantism is apparent. The seal of death is upon it.
Hostility without and disintegrating forces within, it can
no more look for rejuvenation to the discredited means
and weapons of other days. With the Bible gone, it is
empty handed; and without the Bible its teaching is in no
ways different from the ethics and natural theology of the
recognised agnostic.
All this we say, as so many nominal Protestants say
around us, but though we write it from within the unity of
the Universal Church we do so with no gloating
satisfaction at the misfortunes of our neighbours. A strong
man stricken with a mortal malady is ever a saddening
spectacle. We also acknowledge that the losses of
Protestantism are not the measure of Catholic gain. The
winter of unbelief is long and cold, nor is the leaf and
blossom and flower of spring the work of a single night.
How we know not, but we can see the Church far off in
honour and place after many years. It is the vision of the
unfortunate Lammenais in which he compared the Church
to the figures seen clearly at the end of a long corridor. All
is darkness along the sides; but at the far end in a blaze of
light the Church is seen triumphant at last.
D. M.
IOBAIRT NA H-AIFRINN
THA 'n iobairt, 's an t-sacramaid so gu bhith 'san Eaglais
gu deireadh an t-saoghail, Ios bàs Chrìosta chur an cèill,
gus an tig e. Bha i air a bunachadh le Iosa e fèin; agus is i
gnìomh de dh'aoraidh a's àirde 'san Eaglais. "'S air dhaibh
a bhith ri'n suipeir, ghlac Iosa aran, agus bheannaich e,
agus bhrist e, agus thug e dha dheisciopuill, agus thubhairt e: ' Gabhaidh agus ithibh : is e so mo chorpsa'. 'Sa
'glacadh na cailis, thug e taing, agus thug e dhaibh ag
ràdh: ' Olaibh uile dhe so. Oir is i so m'fhuil-se an
Tiomnaidh Nuaidh, a dhoirtear air son mòran gu
mathanas pheacannan.'" Cha 'n 'eil Iosa ag ràdh ann is e
so samhla mo chuirp; ach is e so mo chorp. Cha mhua tha e
6o
Rebellion
'g ràdh, ann an so, no le so, tha mo chorp, ach, gu saor
soilleir, is e so mo chorp, briathran gun teagamh tha teagasg
pong a' bhrigh-atharrachaidh. Tha so 'na fhàisneachd air
an urram a bheireadh an Eaglais anns gach linn do'n
Iobairt Naomh. Sealladh Protastanaich ciod a' chuid a tha
acasan anns na briathran so.
A bhàrr air a bhith 'na gnìomh de dh'aoraidh a's àirde
'san Eaglais, tha 'n Aifrinn a' cur an cèill eachdraidh na
Pais. Tha ùrnaighean na h-Aifrinne air an cur 'san ordugh
a tha 'freagairt do dh'fhu-langas agus do bhàs ar Slànair;
oir tha e ro iom-chuidh gu'm biodh fios aig gach fear ciod a
tha h-uile h-earran de 'n Aifrinn Naoimh ag ciallachadh.
'An àm do 'n t-Sagart dol a dh'ionnsaidh na h-Altrach,
tha Iosa a' dol a stigh do Ghàradh Ghethsemanidh. Tha 'n
Altair ag ciallachadh Beinn Chalbharidh, air an do
chèusadh le tarcuis Iosa Grìosta, aon Mhac Dhè. Tha 'n
Altair cuideachd na 'samhladh air a' bhòrd de 'n d'ich ar
Slànair maille ri 'dheisciobuill a shuipeir dheireannach an
oidhche mu'n d'fhuilig e. Is ann air so a tha 'n t-Ostal Pòl
a' bruidhinn, Eabh. xiii. 10, far am beil e ag ràdh, " Tha
Altair againn, dhe nach 'eil comas acasan iche a tha 'an
seirbhis na pàillin ".
An uair a tha 'n Sagart a' tòiseachadh air an Aifrinn,
tha Iosa ri ùrnaigh anns a' ghàradh.
An uair a tha 'n Sagart a' lùbadh sios agus ag aideach
a pheacannan 'an làthair Dhè, agus cùirt fhlathanais, tha
Iosa a' tuiteam air 'aghaidh 's a' ghàradh. Tha peacannan
an t-saoghail 'nan sac, 's 'ga chur ann an spàirn cho
doruinneach's gu'm beil fallus-fala a' bruchdadh troimh
chorp naomh.
An uair a tha 'n sagart a' direadh suas a dh'ionnsaidh
na h-Altarach, agus 'ga pògadh, tha Iosa a dol 'an
coinnimh a nàimhdean, 's tha Iùdas] 'ga bhrath le pòig.
An uair a tha 'n Sagart a' dol gu oisinn na h-Altarach,
's a leughadh, tha Criosta air a ghla-cail, air a cheangal, 's
air a tharrainn gu Annas.
An uair a tha 'n Sagart ag ràdh " Kyrie Eleison," is e sin,
" A Thighearna, dean tròcair oirnn! " tha 'n t-Ostal Peadar
'an cùirt Chaiphais ag àicheadh Iosa.
7o
21
Rebellion
Iobairt na h-Aifrinn
tha iad a' cur na croise air guailnean Iosa. An uair a tha
'n Sagart ag ùrnaigh air son na h-Eaglaise le guth ìosal,
tha Iosa a' giulan na croise air a ghuailnean crèuchdach
gu Cnoc Chalbharidh, 'an geall air fulangas gus ar
sàbhaladh. Aig Memento Domine famulorum, tha 'n Sagart a
deanamh ùrnaigh an so air son na feadhnach is math leis
a chòmhnadh le 'achanaich, tha Iosa a' tionndadh mu'n
cuairt ris na mnathan, agus ag iarraidh orra, iad a bhi
'gal air an son fèin, agus air son an sliochd.
An uair a tha 'n Sagart a' cumail a làmhan os cionn
an arain agus an fhìona, tha làmhan is casan Iosa 'gan
tairneachadh ris a chrois. An uair a tha 'n Sagart a'
coisrigeadh an arain, agus a' togail suas na Sàcramaid,
tha Iosa air a thogail suas air a chrann-chèusaidh. An
uair a tha 'n Sagart a' coisrigeadh an fhìona, agus a'
togail suas na cailise, Ios gu'n toir am pobull aoradh do
Aig " Gloria in Excelsis Deo," tha sin a' deanamh aoibhneas
maille ris na h-ainglean a tha 'làthair gu Iosa a chobhair,
agus sòlas a' toirt dha air son àicheadh Pheadair. An uair
a tha 'n Sagart a tionndadh ris an
t-sluagh agus ag ràdh " Dominus vobiscum !" sheall Iosa le
bàigh air an Ostal Pheadar, agus thug e dha gràsan
aithreachas.
Aig leughadh na Litreach, tha Iosa, an deis mòran
tàire fhulang ann an cùirt Chaiphas air a thoirt 'an lathair
Philait.
Aig a' Ghraduel, no'n Tract, tha na h-àrd-shagairt, agus
na senairean ag iarraidh fianuise-brèige 'an aghaidh Iosa
gus a chur gu bàs; agus an uair a tha 'n Sagart ag ùrnaigh
aig miadhon na h-Altarach, tha Criosta air a thoirt 'an
lathair Heroid.
Aig leughadh an t-Soisgeul, tha Iosa 'ga chur air 'ais gu
Pilat; agus aig a' Chrèud, tha Criosta a togail testeanais
air an fhìrinn air bialaobh Philat.
An uan* a tha 'n Sagart a' tairgse suas an arain agus
an fhìona, tha Iosa 'ga thairgse fèin gu sgiùrsadh, 's 'fhuil
phrìseil 'ga dòrtadh.
Aig cuibhrigeadh na cailise, tha crùn dreathain 'ga
chur air Iosa; agus an uair a tha 'n Sagart a' nigheadh a
mhiar, tha Pilat ag glanadh a lamhan, 's ag innseadh gu
follaiseach gu'n robh Iosa neo-chiontach.
An uair a tha 'n Sagart 'ga chromadh fèin aig meadhon
na h-Altarach agus a' leughadh, tha Iosa 'g èisdeachd ris a'
phobull a' freagairt, "Biodh 'fhuil oirnne, 's air ar
cloinn-ne! "
Aig, Orate Fratres, tha Pilat a' fiachainn Iosa do'n
t-sluagh, agus ag èigheach, " Seall an duine! " Aig na
Secreta,1 tha Iosa air a dhiteadh gu bhi air a chèusadh. An
uair a tha 'n Sagart a' leughadh le guth àrd, agus an
clèireach a' seinn a' chluig,
Naomhaioh, guidhimid ort, A Thighearna ar Dia, as leth ur
gairm air d'ainm naomh, tobhartas na tairgse so; agus as a leth
dean sinne fèin na 'r toìdhlaic siormith dhutsa. Per Dominium
Oris tum nostrum."
1
Iobairt na h-Aifrinn
7*
dh'Fhuil phriseil Chrìosta, tha Fuil Chrìosta a' sruthadh
o 'lotan air a' chrois.
Aig Memento Domine, far am beil an Sagart a' guidhe
air son anmannan nan marbhchreideach, tha Iosa ag
ùrnaigh air son an t-sluaigh a bha 'ga chèusadh. An uair
a tha 'n Sagart a' bualadh 'uchd, agus ag ràdh, "Nobis
quoque peccatoribus," tha fear de na mèirlich a chaidh a
chèusadh maille ri Crìosta, a' tionndadh gu aithreachas.
Far am beil an Sagart ag ràdh " Urnaigh an Tighearna,"
tha sin a' ciallachadh nam facal mu dheireadh a labhair
Iosa air a' chrois.
Aig Agnus Dei, tha sinn ag ràdh, " Uain Dhè a tha
'toirt air falbh peacannan an t-saoghail, dean tròcair
oirnn! " agus aig Domine non sum dignus, tha sinn ag ràdh,
" A Thighearna, cha'n fhiach mise gu'n tigeadh tu stigh
fo'm fhàrdaich, ach abair am facal a mhàin, 's bithidh m'
anam sàbhailte ",
72
Iobairt na h-Aifrinn
An uair a tha 'n Sagart ag gabhail Sàcramaid Corp
agus Fuil Chrìosta, tha e ag cur an cuimhne dhuinn, gu'n
d'thug Iosa suas an deò air a' chrois, gus ar saoradh o'r
peacannan, a rèir briathran Phòil, "Cho tric 's a dh'itheas
sibh an t-aran so, 's a dh'òlas sibh a' chailis, taisbeanaidh
sibh bàs an Tighearna, gus an tig e " (1 Cor. xi. 26). An
uair a tha 'n Sagart ag cuibhrigeadh na cailise, tha Corp
Chrìosta, 'ga chur anns an uaigh, comhdaichte le
lìonanart. An uair a tha 'n Sagart a' tionndadh ris a'
phobull, agus ag ràdh Dominvs xobiscum, tha Iosa ag eiridh
o na mairbh, 's ga 'fhiachainn fèin do na deisciobuill. An
uair a tha 'n Sagart a' leughadh ùrnaigh dheireanach na
h-Aifrinne, tha Iosa rè dà fhichead latha ann an
cuideachda nan Ostal, agus nan deisciobul eile, 'gan
soilleireachadh anns gach nì a thaobh creidimh. An uair a
tha 'n Sagart a' deanamh comharradh na croise air a'
phobull, agus a' toirt a bheannachd dhaibh, tha Iosa a'
togail suas a làmhan, agus a' toirt a bheannachd do na
deisciobuill agus a dol suas do fhlathanas 'nam fianais.
Aig leughadh Soisgeul Naomh Eoin anns am beil
mòrachd is diadhachd Iosa Chrìosta gu sònraichte air an
dearbhadh, tha ar Tighearna Iosa Crìosta 'na shuidhe gu
glòr mhòr air deas làimh an Athar shìorraidh.
A nis, tha 'n Altair, 's gach ball a bhuineas dhi, a'
chulaidh-aifrinn, na modhannan a thathas ag cleachdadh
an àm na h-Iobairte, a' fiachainn dhuinn pais agus bàs
Mhic Dhè.
Tha na h-anartan a tha 'còmhdach na h-Altarach 'nan
comharradh air an lìonaodach leis an do phais-geadh
column phrìseil Chriosta 'nuair a chuireadh 'san uaigh e.
Tha na coinnlean laiste air an Altair a' ciallachadh solus
a' chreidimh air a thaisbeineadh do na h-Iùdhaich agus do
na Cinnich; agus a' cur an cèill dhuinn dealradh a'
chreidimh 's nan deagh-bheusan a tha riatanach
dhaibhsan a tha 'tairgsinn suas rùin-dhìomhair cho àrd,
urramach.
Tha 'n crann-cèusaidh a' cur an cèill dhuinn na
buaidhe a choisinn ar Slànair bèannaichte air a bhàs,
agus thathas 'ga thogail am meadhon na h-Altarach gus
ar cur an cuimhne air pais is bàs Iosa Chrìosta, cuis air
an còir smaoineachadh le dùrachd 's le cràbhadh cho tric
agus a thairgear an Iobairt Naomh so.
Tha a' chailis 'na samhladh air uaigh naoimh ar
Tighearna; agus am Paten, air a' chloich mhòir a
charaicheadh gu bial na h-uaghach.
Tha 'n t-anart a tha 'n Sagart a' cur air a cheann,
agus a' ceangal a rithisd mu 'amhaich, a' ciallachadh a'
bhrèid leis an do dhall na h-Iùdhaich Criosta ar Slànair,
's iad a' magadh air, an uair a bha iad 'ga bhualadh air a
leithcheann, 's ag ràdh. " Fàisnich dhuinn, Chrìosta, co e
a bhuail thu ? "
Tha 'n t-èideadh geal a' ciallachadh an trusgain ghil a
chuir Herod air Criosta, an deigh dha a chur suarach,
agus culaidh-mhagaidh a dheanamh dheth.
Tha 'n crios, am maniple, 's an stòl, mar shannV Iadh
air na cùird agus na ceanglaichean a chuir na h-Iùdhaich
air Criosta. Is samhladh an fhalluinn-uachdarach air an
trusgan dhearg-ghorm a chuir na saighdearan air Iosa
Criosta; agus tha a' chrois a th'air a dealbhadh air a
cùlaobh 'gar cur an cuimhne air a' chrois a ghiùlain
Criosta air a ghuaillnean bèannaichte gu Cnoc
Chalbharidh.
Daithean na Culaidh-Aifrinn an so: is comharradh an
Geal air aighir is toil-ìnntinn; agus le sin, 's e culaidh
gheal
a
fhreagras
do'n
Nollaig,
do
Dhiardaoin-deasghabhail, do dh'fhèilltean a bhuineas do
Mhoire, do dh'Ainglean, 's do Naomh nach 'eil nam
Martairean. Tha 'n Dearg 'na shuaich-eantas fala is
Iobairt na h-Aifrinn
22
dòruinne; agus air an aobhar sin, tha e ri 'chur suas air
fèilltean nam Martairean agus nar Ostal, a dh'fhuilig am
bàs air son Chrìosta, agus a dhath an trusgan 'am fuil an
Uain. -Is comharradh an t-Uaine air fàs agus
cin-neachadh, gus a thoirt dhuinn ri thuigsinn gu'm bu
chòir dhuinn a h-uile latha fàs na's diadhaidh, 's na's
fhèarr. Tha 'n Dearg-ghorm 'na shuaich-eantas air
aithreachas, agus mar sin air a chleachdadh an àm na
h-Aidbhein agus a' Charghuis. Is somhladh an Dubh air
bròn is mulad, a dh'fhiachainn dhuinn gur e mulad is
bròn a nigheas o'n pheacadh sinn. Tha 'n Eaglais a'
cleachdadh an duibh aig na h-Aifrionnan air son nam
marbh, a dh'fhiachainn na h-èiginn anns am beil iad (Iul
a' Chriostaidh, tt. 55, 56).
Is ann mar so, ann am beagan bhriathran, an
Aifrionn air a mineachadh. Bha i air a bunachadh le 'r
Tighearna, Iosa criosta a thubhairt, "Deanaibh so mar
chuimhneachan ormsa". Ach ged is cuimhneachan iad,
cha' 'n 'eil sin an seol air bith dol an aghaidh fuil is feoil
Chrìosta a bhith gu fìor a lathair f o riochd na sacramaid,
riochd a tha fiachuinn a bhàis. An àite sin, is e so cheart
dòigh a dh'àithn' e fèin a leanail, gus a bhàs a
chuimhneachadh agus a luidh, le bhith tairgse mar
iobairt, 's le bhith gabhail 'san t-sacra-maid na fala 'sna
feola sin leis an deach ar saoradh. Tha 'n Aifrionn a' cur
an cèill eachdraidh na Pais : tha 'n Eaglais 'ga deanamh
mar chuimhneachan air; agus easan aig a bheil cluasan
gu cluinntin, cluinneadh e.
IAIN MAC AN ABBA.
"—
74
Celtic Arts and Industries: Metal Work
CELTIC ARTS AND INDUSTRIES:
METAL WORK1
THE literature of an Art supplies the best introduction to
the exercise of the same. In our last number we promised
to present our readers with a series of papers on the
practical side of Celtic arts and industries; but before we
proceed to fulfil that promise, it may be proper to make a
few observations respecting the literature which the
consideration of their historical aspects has called into
being, more especially as the appearance of the work
before us would seem to suggest this as a peculiarly
seasonable and appropriate manner in which to
inaugurate the promised series.
Mr. Romilly Allen is evidently well qualified to treat
of the subject to which his talents, no less than his
avocation and opportunities, happily incline him. His
work, though in the nature of a handbook, is a
substantial well-printed volume of over 300 pages. The
type is clear, the paper good, and the numerous
illustrations wherewith the book is embellished are
admirably executed. A Celtic working jeweller or smith
would find it indispensable, both as a guide and as a
source of inspiration. The attempt to revive Celtic arts
—or rather the suggestion of their revival—has been
characterised as " Utopian ". The man who after seeing
and reading this book remains in that opinion must be a
fool.
Mr. Romilly Allen is a trifle ambitious. He
1 Celtic Art in Pagan and Christian Times, by J. Romilly
Allen, F.S.A. Methuen & Co., 36 Essex Street, London, W.C.
Celtic Arts and Industries : Metal Work
75
begins his admirable treatise with a brief sketch
touching the remote origines of the Celtic peoples, of
which we may say he is a skilful and interesting
summariBer of conflicting opinions. We are not quite so
sure that Mr. Allen is always as clear as he might, and,
doubtless, desires to be. " In Great Britain," says he (p.
4), "the once war-like Celt at last became so effete that he
fell an easy prey to the Picts, the Scots, the Angles and the
Saxons " ; which might be construed in a sense which Mr.
Allen would surely be the first to protest against. The
Picts and Scots were, of course, Celts; so the sentence
lacks perspicuity.
Mr. Allen's summary is, however, on the whole a
perfectly "safe" piece of work; and doubtless many will
read it with interest and edification who will not be
troubled with more detailed performances. Accurate
knowledge respecting the early history of our race is at
present very much confined to "expert" sources. What the
general public knows respecting our origines is little in
quantity and poor in quality. Any attempt, therefore, to
popularise that knowledge must be regarded with
sympathy, especially when, as happens in this case, the
benefactor is in a position to establish his claims to a
respectful hearing.
"Celtic Art," says Mr. Allen in his preface, " naturally
divides itself into two distinct periods, the Pagan and the
Christian. With regard to the latter, the remains have
been so fully investigated that it is hardly probable any
new facts will be brought to light which will seriously
alter the conclusions now arrived at. With regard to the
Pagan period the case is altogether different, as most of
the ' finds' hitherto made have been due to accident, and
until the large number of in-
76
Celtic Arts and Industries: Metal Work
habited and fortified sites belonging to this period are
systematically excavated our knowledge must necessarily
remain incomplete."
The cradle of Celtic Art was undoubtedly that
somewhat vague geographical entity which we are apt to
denominate "the East". The Celtic people were
themselves probably " Eastern " ; so there can be no great
harm in believing that their art also partook of that
character. Certainly the forms of Celtic Art approximate
to Eastern rather than to Western models. It is a
mistake, however, to imagine that the Celtic peoples ever
themselves originated a distinctive and peculiar form of
art. They were expert—almost sublime—imitators and
improvers ; but, so far as is known, their art was
borrowed. This truth is well expressed by Mr. Allen. "
The great difficulty in understanding the evolution of
Celtic Art," says he, " lies in the fact that although the
Celts never seem to have invented any new ideas, they
professed (possessed ?) an extraordinary aptitude for
picking up ideas from the different peoples with whom
war or commerce brought them into contact. And once
the Celt had borrowed an idea from his neighbour, he
was able to give it such a strong Celtic tinge that it soon
became something so different from what it was
originally as to be almost unrecognisable* It was,
therefore, the individuality of the Celtic peoples which
created Celtic Art; and, possessing much individuality as
a race, their genius necessarily impressed itself in
remarkable and unmistakable fashion upon their artistic
products. The reason why we have no Celtic Art at the
present moment is that we have no individuality as a
people. Individuality is essential to art, which, without it,
degenerates at once, and so passes out through
Celtic Arts and Industries: Metal Work 77
the draught of cosmopolitanism to the dung-hill of
vulgarity.
Great were the achievements of Pagan Celtic Art, but
they cannot be compared with those which distinguished
the early Christian period. Christian Celtic Art was
essentially symbolic ; and the great immortal truths of
religion necessarily supplied an artistic leverage, which,
before their introduction into these islands, was
necessarily lacking. As in Spain and Italy at a later date,
the impulse of religion was applied to the production of
the greatest masterpieces—of those marvellous works of
art which charm and stagger us by their invention and
almost superhuman execution. Mr. Romilly Allen states
that " early Christian Art in this country is essentially
decorative, and to a lesser extent symbolic". We beg to
differ from him here. We think that symbolism will be
found to supply the groundwork, as it were, of that art,
decorative purposes being subsidiary to it. Indeed, we are
inclined to think that even Celtic Pagan Art was more
symbolic than decorative. The Celtic mind rejoiced in
symbol, and the coming of Christianity rather increased
than diminished, in our opinion, that irresistible
tendency. Mr. Allen passes in rapid, though interesting,
review the best-known masterpieces of the Celtic artists.
" Early Christian Art in Great Britain," says he, " was
produced in the first instance by grafting the
Italo-Byzantine style upon the native style of the Iron
Age"; and in this opinion we quite agree with him. If we
could probe to the full the sources which conspire to
make Celtic Art, from its beginning down to its practical
extinction in the thirteenth century, we should probably
find that its history consists of a connected series or "
waves "
78
Celtic Arts and Industries: Metal Work
of " influences"—foreign for the most part—and that like
its own graceful and beautiful scroll-work, it represents
a continuous movement, seemingly without definite start
or finish.
Mr. Romilly Allen does well to insist on the
poverty—even crudeness—of much of the Celtic
figure-work as compared with the richness, beauty and
extraordinary degree of skill which characterises the
scrolls,
and
other
symbolic
and
decorative
ornamentation. The Celtic artists do not seem to have
acquired the art of chiselling or modelling a figure with
that nicety and precision which, judging by their
cleverness in other respects, we are apt to expect from
them. It may be, of course, that this defect arose from a
general incapacity to do better ; but we are more inclined
to think that figure-work was regarded by our Celtic
smiths as subsidiary to ornamentation, in which the
imaginative Celtic temperament loved best to declare
itself. Certainly, such past masters as were undoubtedly
our Celtic workers in gold, silver, and other metals were
capable of the highest achievements; and it is
consequently absurd to suppose that they could not
fashion a figure with the same skill as they employed in
the production of so many other beautiful and more
difficult objects.
Necessarily, perhaps, Mr. Allen's book is more
concerned with the origines of Celtic Art than with that
priceless legacy itself. The literary and purely
antiquarian aspects of that enchanting topic are evidently more to him than its practical and personal side.
We have thus no account of the celebrated artists of
antiquity, and we even miss many famous specimens of
their art, which, in a work of this kind, we might
reasonably expect to find mentioned.
Some account,
for instance, of that
Celtic Arts and Industries : Metal Work 79
truly exquisite piece of work known as the Cuthach or "
Battler" of St. Columba might have been.given; whilst
we should have been pleased to see some mention,
however brief, of the more famous of our artificers, a
numerous and a glorious progeny! From the introduction
of Christianity until those evil, dreary days when Celtic
arts and crafts ceased to be practised, how many men of
genius and piety have passed through the shadowy
portals of time! We know that St. Patrick had his
artificers and embroiderers, men and women who
devoted their talents to the glory of God, and to the
beautifying of His sacred mysteries. How pure and
unselfish was that impulse which seized the early
convert artificers, turning their genius from earthly to
heavenly things! St. Asicus of Elphin, Essa, Bite, and
Tassach, are not these names to conjure with ? Men,
as saints, were in earnest in those days. The balancing
heroes of today, who neither toil nor spin but ceaselessly
refine were as yet unborn; and Christianity was a power
appealing with irresistible force to the consciences of all.
Art was in those far-off happy days truly a " labour of
love ". The craftsman laboured primarily because he
was a Christian, and his heart was in his holy faith—not
because he was an hireling, however skilful, working at
so much per day or week in order to improve his
material circum-tances. The masterpieces of Christian
Celtic Art are, therefore, unique.
The spirit which, in
a later age, stirred up the Crusades and flung all
European Christendom at the throat of the infidel, was
just that spirit which animated our Christian craftsmen,
only it was probably more intense, certainly more
intellectual and spiritual.
The service of God seemed
to the Celtic artist the
8o
Celtic Arts and Industries: Metal Work
most appropriate and favourable sphere for the exercise
of his talent. Even saints and scholars passed through an
honourable apprenticeship of manual labour to those
spiritual honours to which their genius, no less than
their piety, aspired. Is it wonderful, therefore, given the
impulse of holy religion, and a people naturally
quick-witted and* resourceful, that Celtic Ireland and
Scotland should] have produced these exquisite works ?
The wonder rather had been had they not done so. So
much zeal and earnestness, joined to genius and piety,
were bound to find their artistic expression; and if the
fruit of the tree of that knowledge be beautiful beyond
compare, why should we ignorantly and foolishly marvell
There is surely something singularly fatuous in the
modern's patronising attitude in respect of the
masterpieces of antiquity—an attitude which seems to
say " 'tis really mighty well done: how on earth did the
fellowly manage to do it 1 " " You forget, shallow
worldling of to-day, that within that ancient was the
Spirit of the Christian religion. Go thou and do likewise —if
you can."
Mr. Allen's book is thus altogether too brief and
popular to go into the spiritual sources of Celtic
Christian Art. The ethics of his theme, if we may so
express ourselves, scarcely seem to interest him, though
it may be, of course, that the exigencies of series and of
space are unpropitiouSi. He is, as it were, a genealogist
rather than an historian. He is more concerned with
sources] than with principles, with methods rather than
with persons. Thus, he quotes with approval Dr. Hans
Hildebrand's assertion that " every work of human art,
higher as well as lower, has its shape determined by two
agents : the end which it is to
Celtic Arts and Industries: Metal Work
81
serve, and the taste of the people and the time of which it
is the fruit". " In other words," says Mr. Allen, " there is
an utilitarian as well as an ornamental side to almost
every object fashioned by man to satisfy his wants. The
form of an object must depend primarily upon the
practical use to which it is intended to be put, and the
decorative features generally follow afterwards in due
course. The function of the decorative features, however,
should be to add grace and beauty to the original form of
the object; but not to attempt to disguise the utilitarian
purpose it fulfils."
This is certainly " well and truly laid " from the
practical point of view, though it leaves something to be
desired in respect of the religious impulse or spiritual
influence which has been at work in the creation of so
many beautiful objects. In our opinion, it would require
almost a saint to do justice to that aspect of our theme;
for who but one that has passed through such an ordeal
in pursuit of perfection, for the s§,ke of the spiritual
delight which perfection commands, could hope to deal at
all adequately with the spiritual motives underlying
those priceless relics of antiquity ? We doubt if those
early Christian craftsmen paid much attention to the "
utilitarian purpose " of the objects evolved by their
genius and piety. Their art was rather the intense
expression of souls whose commune was with God alone.
Their marvellousness consists in this, that they
completely subordinated their art to religious influences.
They were almost as superhumans, working under the
spell of the Divine enchantment.
We cannot take our leave of this useful and charming
book without acquainting our readers with some of the
conclusions arrived at by its
82
Celtic Arts and Industries: Metal Work
talented author. " In conclusion," says he, " I wish to
emphasise the fact that the beauty and individuality of
the ornamental designs found in early Christian Art in
Great Britain and Ireland are due chiefly to the great
taste with which the different elements are combined,
and the exquisite finish lavished upon them. I cannot see
that it in the least detracts from the praise due to the
originators of the style if it can be shown that the ideas
underlying many of the patterns were suggested by a
preexisting native style or adapted from a foreign one.
Interlaced work, key-pattern spirals and zoomorphs are
to be found separately in the decorative art of many
races and many periods; but nowhere and at no time
have these different elements been used in combination
with such consummate skill, as in the early Christian
period in Great Britain and Ireland." Mr. Allen's
concluding observation is no less worthy of quotation. " I
consider," he says, " the so-called Celtic style to be a local
variety of the Lombardo-Byzantine style, from which the
figure subjects, the interlaced work, the scrolls of foliage,
and many of the strange real and fabulous creatures
were apparently borrowed. The Lombardo-Byzantine
style was introduced into England after the Saxons had
become Christians; and being grafted upon the Pagan
Art of the late Celtic period was developed in different
ways in different parts of Great Britain and Ireland.
However, it in no way detracts from the artistic capacity
of the Celt that he should have adopted certain
decorative motives belonging to a foreign style, instead
of evolving them out of his own inner consciousness. Although his materials may not all have been of native
origin, they were so skilfully made use of in combination
with native designs, and developed
Am Maraich agus an Fhairge
83
with such exquisite taste, that the result was to produce
an entirely original style, the like of which the world had
never seen before."
We cannot too strongly recommend this useful book,
whose modest price brings it within the compass of all. 1
It ought to be in the hands of every patriotic Celt at
home and abroad. Ignorance is sometimes excusable; but
it is no longer so when it is deliberate, or arises from a
frivolous or indifferent disposition. Faith and knowledge
have this in common, that the want of them is iniquitous
and contemptible on the part of such as, being offered,
will not put forth a hand to possess them.
AM MARAICH AGUS AN FHAIRGE
THA ioghnadh orm A chuain! gu'm biodh tu 'feuchainn ri
giulan a thoirt dhut fèin nach buin dhut. Tha thu 'teachd
thun a' chladaich mar gu'm biodh tu miodal ris, agus tha
do stuadhan beaga 'com-hartaich mar mhesan. Tha do
stuadhan beaga camlagach a tha nis coltach ris na
camlagan a bhios air cinn nan nigheanan òga, a ruith gu
cois na traghad ag atharrais air a chèile. An uair a
sheallar ort, cha saoileadh neach sam bith (cha
smaoinicheadh iad gu'm biodh e comasach) gu'm
bristeadh tu loingeas, no gu'n reubadh tu mar-aichean as
a chèile le d'fhiaclan geura, geala.
Cia fhad, m'aon bheag ghràdhach, o'n a bha do
mheoirean fada, caola a' teamachadh sgòrnain nam
maraichean aig an luing ud a chaidh a bhristeadh ?
84
Am Maraich agus an Fhairge
dhut a bhith 'feuchainn ris a' char a thoirt asamsa air
an dòigh so.
A chuain ! tha thu iongantach 'na d'neart, agus 'na
d'chumhachd; ach cha 'n 'eil barrachd tlachd agam dhiot
mar a tha thu nis na an uair a tha thu air a 'chaochladh
de dhòigh.
An uair a tha thu 'nad chadal, tha thu 'cor cait 'nam
chuimhne. Cha 'n 'eil crònan do stuaghannan dad na's
lugha mealladh na crònan a' chait, an uair a tha e 'na
leith-dhùsgadh. Bheir thu leum asad gu grad as do
chadal, agus tu gu h-acrach, borb; agus bidh lèir-sgrios
uamhasach 'nad dheigh.
Theid do bheucaich suas a dh'ionnsuidh nan speur,
agus le cop mu do bheul, le do spuirean an-iochdar
leumaidh tu ris na creagan.
A chuain! ged a tha mi 'bruidhinn ruit mar so, na
sgrios mo long.
Tha mi beag agus lag; am feadh's a tha thusa
cumhachdach agus mòr. Cha 'n fhiach dhut dragh a
chur air mo long bheag-sa, an uair a chaidh agad air
cabhlach mòr na h-Espàine a sgrios.
Cha 'n 'eil agam ris an t-saoghal ach i fèin; agus is
math a fhreagradh dhutsa fabhar sonraichte a
nochdadh dhomhsa. Tha thu na's neo-sheasmh-aiche na
boirionnach, agus na's an-iochdmhoise na cat. Ged a tha
fiamh gàire ort, agus tu 'gluasad gu mothar mail, cha
mheall thu mise; agus A chuain! cha'n 'eil earbsa sam
bith agam 'na do chrònan, agus 'na do ghuth ceòlmhor
binn.
Tha mi a' ruith fo d'dhìon, A Mhàthair Naomh Dhè !
Na diùlt m'iarrtas an àm mo fhèuma; ach saor mise
daonnan bho gach cunnart. 'Oigh glòrmhor agus
bheannaichte!
THE LEAGUE OF ST. COLUMBA
WE have already drawn attention in the pages of this
Beview to the lamentable scarcity in Scotland of
devotional literature in the Gaelic language ; and
although our observations on that subject have been
subjected to some criticism, we see no reason to depart
from our original statement. Our remarks on the
occasion referred to were designed with a view to
emphasise present-day requirements in this respect,
and were by no means intended as a sketch or account
of what has already been accomplished in that field; but
which, owing to neglect and indifference, is no longer of
any use to us. It is obvious that publications which are
out of print, or are only to be got by dint of protracted
search amongst second-hand booksellers' catalogues,
are in the nature, not of necessaries, but of luxuries ;
which the very poor, and those whose opportunities for
book-collecting are few, may be excused for neglecting.
To object that such and such a manual or prayer-book
was published thirty or forty years ago (but is now out
of print) supplies no adequate answer to our complaint,
whose gravity seems scarce to be realised. The
Highlands are badly in need of cheap devotional
literature in the Gaelic language, and we shall continue
So, so, aon ghòrach! cha'n 'eil feum sam bith
1
Seven shillings and sixpence net.
The League of St. Columba
85
to ventilate this grievance until the want we refer to has
been supplied.
With a view to discovering what is being done in
Ireland at the present moment in the direction
indicated by our remarks, the conductors of this
periodical recently put themselves in communication
with the body known as the " League of St.
umh a"; and, we are pleased to say, with the most
satisfactory results.
In response to our inquiries, the
secretary of the League, whose seat is at Maynooth
College, and whose members principally, if not
exclusively, consist of students attending the Irish
National Seminary for the priesthood, most courteously
communicated to us many interesting particulars
respecting his Society, together with a printed leaflet
which, as it seems to put the whole case for a revival of
Gaelic devotional literature in a nutshell, we propose to
do our readers and ourselves the pleasure of
reproducing in these pages. It should be stated that the
leaflet in question is in the form of a circular letter, "
openly" addressed to the clergy of Ireland, and is signed,
in behalf of the League, by its duly accredited
representatives or officers. It is in the following terms:—
THE COLUMBAN LEAGUE.
ST. MARY'S,
MAYNOOTH COLLEGE,
20th November, 1904.
VERT EEV. FATHER,
It must have already struck you that while Irish
Ireland is growing more productive every day in secular
literature, very little has yet been done to put religion before
the people in their own tongue. Up to this, com paratively
little preaching has been done in Irish, almos no catechising
has heen done in Irish, and the number o religious
publications in Irish is very small. Now, when we remember
that in the past our religion and language grew up side by
side, and that the spirit of the one became inseparably bound
up with that of the other, we canno help concluding that in the
future also, the one must go hand in hand with the other, if we
would have Irish Ireland also a thoroughly Catholic Ireland.
As custodians and teachers, therefore, of the Catholic religion,
it is the duty of the clergy to adapt themselves to the spirit of
their
own day, and give to the people a religious literature in their
own tongue. A task such as this we cannot put upon the
shoulders of the Gaelic League or Catholic Truth Society, for
the one is non-sectarian, and the other cannot be expected at
present to undertake the work of which we speak. The duty,
therefore, devolves upon the priesthood of the country.
We beg, Eev. Father, to submit the following project to your
consideration :—
Among the MSS. in our College Library there are hundreds
of sermons in the Irish Language, the very sermons that helped
to keep the Faith so strong in Ireland during the days of
persecution. If these could be given to the public in a suitable
form, a great work would be done for God and Erin. The
Columban League is anxious to undertake the publication of
such sermons, and of any religious MSS. to be found in the
Library. But, as we are weak in funds, we must rely upon the
generosity of past Columban Leaguers and the priests of
Ireland in general.
As to the question: Who is to take up the literary portion of
the work, there is no difficulty; for Dr. O'Hickey is only too
anxious to work with the most competent Irish scholars
amongst the students. At present there are about a dozen
gentlemen experts at manuscript reading ; and under the
tuition of Dr. O'Hickey they would have a respectable volume
ready for the Press in a very short time. We have no fear but
equal talent will be found in the college as the years go by. We
see no reason, therefore, apart from the question of funds, why
the Columban League should not, in the course of years, give to
the world the religious and literary treasures which have lain
hidden in the College Library for well-nigh half a century.
This very year we intend to make a beginning. Our Editors
are already at work; and it is to be hoped that, before this
academic year has run its course, the Columban League will
have its first work, a volume of Irish sermons, ready for the
Press. As we have already said, we lack the necessary funds,
and, therefore, we ask you to lend a helping band. We are
confident, Very Eev. Father, that you will not turn a deaf ear to
our appeal, but that you will give us, in addition to your
subscription, your advice on the above project.
We may add that this whole idea has not originated with
the students. It was first suggested by one of the professors,
and it seems to have the whole-hearted approval of the college
staff.
It has been, moreover, suggested that amongst the priests
an association be formed to provide funds for, and superintend
the publication of, the Maynooth MSS. At present we do not
know what to think of this idea. It might be possible to have
this whole question discussed at the next meeting of the
Maynooth Union.
The following list will give some indication of the nature
of the sermons we are about to publish.
In Murphy MS. 40, there are, amongst others, sermons in
Irish on the following subjects:—
Temptation; The Danger of Deferring Eepentance;
Avoiding the Occasions of Sin; Confession;
Examination of Conscience; Day of Judgment ;
Holy Communion; Sacrifice of the Mass, etc.
In Murphy MS. 43, there are, to name only a few, sermons
in Irish on the following subjects:—
Necessity and Efficacy of Penance; The Dangerous
State of the Sinner; Death; Swearing; Unworthy
Communion;
Advantages
and
Necessary
Conditions of Prayer; Love of our Enemies; Joys
of Heaven; Our Lord's Passion ; The Assumption
of the Blessed Virgin Mary, etc.
Besides sermons, there are a great many religious works,
which would be well worth either reprinting or editing. The
following will serve as a sample:—
Douay Catechism (translated into Irish); Denn's
Explanation of the Commandments; The
Spiritual Mirror; The Spiritual Physician, etc.
Writing of the foundation of the League, the
secretary remarks: " It is now about seven years since
the inception of our Society. Many can still recall the
state of the college, as regarded the Irish
Ireland movement, at that time. Here is an account
given by an eye-witness :—
" ' The Gaelic League was then young, and its influence
not generally felt through the country. The students of
Maynooth were not below the Anglicised portion of our
own people. Neither will it be contended that we were
very advanced Irish Irelanders. We admired Irish
music, as we knew it in a very few of the more
hackneyed of Moore's melodies. Irish was of course
taught as an obligatory subject to the junior classes,
which could count a few earnest workers, determined on
acquiring a mastery of the language as a spoken tongue.
A few enthusiasts attended the voluntary classes in the
senior division; perhaps half a dozen tried to read
Irisleabhar na Gaehdilge; but that was all. In fact the
spirit amongst us was anything but favourable to
national studies. There was very little idea then
amongst the students of an Irish "sgeulachd," an Irish
speech or recitation, of honest and serious study of Irish
history and the Irish language, of cultivating our own
music, or of the necessity of supporting home industries.
Our ideas were more cosmopolitan.
" ' Literary societies then existed in the college, and
it was a paper read at one of these that first aroused the
students to a sense of their position. The paper had for
its title, " The Anglicisation of Ireland," which in the
present state of Maynooth would be regarded as
commonplace; but then it was sensational. The paper
contained a simple statement of the abnormal condition
of the country, the priests' obligations in the face of such
a national decadence were not left untold, nor
minimised in the telling, and in conclusion a general
suggestion of an organisation, in which the priests of
Ireland might further the revival, was put forward for
consideration. The result was thoroughly satisfactory.
Thought was awakened, discussion aroused, and
sympathy in the national cause enlisted. On
consideration, however, it was felt that an organisation
among the clergy was not very practicable, seeing that
the Gaelic League was at the disposal of every priest.
Why should not the students themselves form an
organisation within the college, to do for the college
what the Gaelic League was doing for the rest of
Ireland, it was demanded? This suggestion was received
by the students with the greatest enthusiasm, and the
League of St. Columba was formally established with
the sanction of their Lordships the Bishops; and the
work of de-Anglicisation had begun.'
"The new League was to foster studies in the
national language, history and literature, with the
kindred subjects hagiology, archaeology, social manners
and customs, in order that its members might be more
zealous, and better qualified to labour in extending and
controlling movements connected with these objects;
and so perpetuate the truly religious and Catholic
nationality represented by and identified with them. In
one word, the Columban League has for its object the
realisation of an Irish Ireland in the fullest and
broadest sense. It is a conscious effort to resume the
well-nigh lost civilisation and culture of our forefathers.
It aims at making the Ireland of the future a worthy
continuation of the Ireland that has passed away,
realising to the full that as the national traits and
characteristics of the individual ought to a great extent
to determine the kind of his education, so the education
of a race ought to be, before all else, national. It works
for a self-supporting, self-reliant Ireland, an Ireland
animated by the spirit of the past, speaking her own
language, preserving her customs and traditions, and
developing from within along national lines. The underlying principles are identical with those of the Gaelic
League. The League of St. Columba is in fact the Gaelic
League adapted to Maynooth's circumstances, and in
this manner it determines Maynooth's position in the
great revival.
" To discover the character of that position, let us
take a glance at the objects of the revival; and first at
the language. The Gaelic League bases its hopes for the
revival of the national spirit on the language. It makes
the language the chief aim of its own existence. So does
the League of St. Columba. Possibly in the early years of
its existence the results achieved in each separate
department of Irish study may not have been very great;
for the same facilities were not within its reach as now.
Much of its attention had to be devoted to propagandist
work, to inspiring its members with its own ideal of
nationality; exhorting them to study the history and
language of their country, the language which St.
Columba, the patron of the League, loved in exile and
spoke in far-off Iona, to sing the old traditional songs, to
play the airs which Carolan and the other bards have
handed down to all succeeding generations of Irishmen
as the most precious of heirlooms.
"Frequently at the divisional and general meetings
papers were read on these and kindred subjects. These
appeals did an incalculable amount of good. One thing
certainly they achieved, inasmuch as they cleared the
air of many false notions of nationality, contracted
through long years of thoughtlessness and the
Anglicising influence of a system of intermediate
education, which, unfortu-^ nately, had the moulding of
the minds of many of our students. Year by year the
language loomed] larger and larger in the view of
Columban Leaguersi In addition to a more earnest
attendance at the obligatory classes under the
professor, voluntary classes sprung up under the
conduct of the students] themselves. This year the
number of such classes' is much in excess of previous
years, and the numbèn of earnest students attending
the classes has exceeded the wishes of even the most
enthusiastic.! Nor has the adage, 'Beatha teangadh 'si do
labh-\ airt '—the life of a tongue is to speak it—been fori
gotten. Mere desultory study of primers counts] for very
little. At present it is no uncommora thing to find
batches of students, brought together by a common love
for the national tongue, inter-j changing their ideas, as
they take their rounds of the grounds, with all the
facility of native speech:] And then there is the' Cuirt na
Gaodhal,' or Parliament, held weekly, where all who
have a sufficient mastery of the language meet and
debate in it inj true Irish style every conceivable topic
affecting] themselves and the League. Here plans for
futurei work are discussed, resolutions passed, and
entertainments organised. Before Christmas a truly!
Irish concert, with nothing but Irish entries on thej
programme, was given to the students by members] of
the League, and with the greatest success.
" Cultivation of the national music is also a part of
the League's programme; and very good work] has
already been achieved in this direction. The] character
of the entertainments given on college festivals has thus
been radically changed, in order, to satisfy the growing
demand for high-class music:' Another addition to the
college entertainments introduced by the Columban
League is the Irish drama. Within the past two years,
before delighted audiences, the students have staged
successfully jthree or four Irish plays, one of which was
written toy a member of the League. At the present moment another excellent little drama, written also by a
Leaguer, is being rehearsed, and will be played I within
the next month. - Thus, with the progress of the League,
there has sprung up a literary activity hitherto foreign
to the college. In fact [there has been a great
re-awakening in all the [departments of our intellectual
life, which is being
manifested not merely by an increased vitality, in Ithe
more successful working of already existing
societies amongst the students, in the founding and
propagation of new societies, but also in its effect
on individual students.
"The League issues a ' Record' at the close of
each academic year, giving details of the work done
in the course of the year, as well as specimens of
I
the papers read at the different meetings. For the .
past two years it has been printed for public circu-l
lation, and has met with a very favourable, in fact,
a truly flattering reception."
Such are some of the pious and patriotic objects
which the League of St. Columba has been established
to achieve. It must be patent to the meanest
[intelligence capable of grasping their religious and
political significance, that they are no less worthy
of prosecution elsewhere.
Immaculata
94
IMMACULATA
[Air a eadar-theangaichte o'n Bheurla le Uilleam
Wordsworth chum Gàidhlig.']
MATHAIR gun smal!
Agad-sa cridhe tha saor O'n
pheacadh a's lugha.
Is beannaicht' thu a bhean,
Am measg nam ban ! Is tu ar cuis-uaill-ne; A h-aon
chùis-uaill do'r nàdur truaillidh. Ni's soilleir na'n cop tha
thu, air fairge chèin, Ni's àllidh na'n speur tha thu, aig
beul an lath', Ni's maisich na'n speur le rosan sgaoilt'
tha thu, A ta ar eadar-ghuidhear ro-naomh a chaoidh.
Eoimh 'n eàrr-dhubh's tu th'ann. A neamh gun neul,
Tha thu 'teachd a nuas gu talamh an eideadh gorm. O
lùb an glùn : Innsibh gu ceart 'ur cliù Sibhse a ta gun
mhaitheadh, mar ri Cumachd mòr Anns am bheil
macantas—is gach cùis leat-sa, 'Thaobh gaol a 'mhàthar,
is fiòr-ghloin òigheil 'Thaobh àrd is ìosal, 'thaobh naomh
is saoghalta.
MOLUAG.
■
Là a'ghineadh gun Smal 1904.
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IMPORTANT NOTICES
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June, the Proprietors of Guth na Bliadhna have decided to
issue with the May impression of this Eeview a portrait or
drawing of the Saint, which, it is hoped, will be found suitable
for framing. Our May number, which will therefore be in a
manner dedicated to the memory of this illustrious Saint, will
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i
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Distinctly lively reading.—Glasgow Evening News. The Gaelic is very
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Cannot do without Guth na Bliadhna.—Montreal Gazette. Very
interesting. —Dundee Advertiser.
Redolent of Celtic buoyancy and vigour of style.—Catholic Herald.
Vigorous.—Northern Weekly.
Likely to do good service to the Church in Scotland.—Tablet. Noteworthy
articles.—Glasgow Evening Citizen. This interesting and courageous
publication.—Monitor. Well written and full of interest.—Glasgow Evening
Times. Characterised by vigour and style. A distinct addition TO
Scottish periodical literature.—Aberdeen Free Press.
As stimulating as a glass of Highland stingo on Ben MacdhuL
—Manchester Guardian.
-ft-. „ -j*
Guth na Bliadhna
LEABHAR II.]
at
AN T-EAEEACH, 1905.
[AIREAMH 2.
NAOMH COLUM CILLE
"THÀINIG Colum Cille gu Alba, air sgàth gaoil Dè ; cha 'n
ann a chionn gu'n do dh'fhuadaicheadh a Eirinn, e."
Thug sinn na briathran so mar ainm air ar dealbh ;
agus tha sinn an dòchas gu'm bi iad ro thaitneach d'ar
leughadairean. Is oidhearc an smuain duinn gu'n
d'thàinig Nh. Colum Cille gu Alba às leth gaoil Dè, agus
nach ann a chionn gu'n do fhuadaicheadh e.
Cha 'n 'eil e taitneach a bhi 'creidsinn gu'n
deachaidh 'fhuadach a Eirinn air lorg dha 'bhi 'gabhail
pàirt ann an comh-stri mhi-chliùitich anns an dùthaich
sin. Ach, gu sona 's gu fàbharach, cha 'n 'eil feum againn
a bhi 'creidsinn an sgeòil sin. Tha eachdraidhean a's
tràithe againn a tha ag innseadh dhuinn gu'n robh
Colum Cille 'n a dhuine 'bha ciùin is sèimh ; agus tha
iadsan a's ionnsaichte ann an eachdraidhean, agus a
tha beò aig an là an duigh am beachd nach 'eil focal de'n
fhaoin-sgeul so mu Cholum Cille fior. Thubhairt Nh.
Eunan gu'n d'thàinig Colum Cille gu Alba air sgàth
gaoil Dè. Cha d'thubhairt e gu'n do dh'fhuadaicheadh a
Eirinn gu Alba e, no gu'n d'thàinig e ann air son ni air
bith saor o so a mhàin—'s e sin ri ràdh, chum gu'n
searmonaicheadh e an Soisgeul
Naomh Colum Cille
98
Naomh Colum Cille
Naomh do mhuinntir na h-Alba. An toiseach, ciod tha
Aonghas Cèile Dè ag ràdh mu thimchioll Choluim Chille
? Tha e ag ràdh 'n a Fheillire fèin gu'n do ghoireadh
"Colum" mar ainm air Colum Cille air lorg a treibhireis
:—
" Colum pro simplicitate eius dictus est".
Agus a rìs,
" Ocus ise inColum Cille sin dorat gràd der-mair do
Christ asaaite".
Agus a rìs,
" Colam cain cruth cumachtach
Drech, derg lethan lainderda Corp
geal, clu cm imarba Folt cass, shil
glas chaindelta.
Son a gotha Coluim Cille Mòr
abinde uas cech clèir Cocend .u.c.
dec ceimend Aidbhe remend ead
barèill."
Thubhairt Nh. Eunan (Secunda Prefato): Hie anno
secundo post Culedrebinde bellum, aetatis vero suae xlii.,
de Scotia ad Britanniam pro Christo pere-grinari volens,
enavigavit.
Is ro ghrinn an smuain duinn gu'n d'thàinig Nh.
Colum Cille gu Alba air sgàth gaoil Dè a mhàin, agus a
chionn gu'n robh sin mar sin, bu mhòr 'fhuighantas, agus
b'fhior-ghlan an togradh agus am miann a bha aige. Is
priseil an smuain duinn gu'n do d'thugadh thairis fios
naomh air sith Dhè gus an dùthaich so le duine' a bha
dheth fèin ciùin, agus ann an gaol air sith. Gu dearbh,
bha Colum Cille 'n a Naomh da rireadh, agus mar sin,
bha 'n naomhachd a bh'aige air socrachadh gu siorraidh ;
ach ciod e a's taitneiche na 'bhi 'creidsinn gu'n d'thàinig e
gu Alba air sgàth gaoil Dè a mhàin, an àite a bhi de 'n
bharail gu'n thàinig e, no gu'n do dh'fhuadaicheadh e, an
so air lorg a' bhi 'gabhail pàirt ann an comh-stri
mhi-chliùitich, agus air a thruailleadh le fuil ?
Tha sinn a' deanamh an tuille gàirdeachais ann a bhi
'creidsinn gu'n d'thàinig Nh. Colum Cille gu Alba gun
tàir agus gun smal, agus as leth gaoil Dè a mhàin, do
bhrigh's gur e sin a' cheart choire a bha feadhainn a' cur
as a lethsan; ni a thàinig mar mhallachd air muinntir na
Gàidhealtachd o thoiseach an t-saoghail.
Thàinig Colum Cille le naigheachd nèamhaidh air
sith; ach, mo thruaighe ! cha 'n eisdeadh ris. Tha ar
eachdraidh fèin 'n a h-eachdraidh dhòrtaidh-fola, de
chomh-stri, de streupaig, agus de dh'aimh-reite. "Clann
nan Gàidheal an guaillibh a chèile!" Ach, mo thruaighe!
feuchaibh ciod e rinn an linn, no an t-àm, no an t-àite
anns do choimh-lionadh an gnàth-fhocal fiùghantach sin?
An uair a bha feum againn air a bhith còrdaidh agus
rèidh, bha sinn mar chaoraich sgapta, gun bhuaichaille,
no mar mhadaidh-alluidh a' sracadh agus a' reubadh a
chèile. Bhuanaich sinn ann ar comh-strithean
truaghanta agus brònach so, agus ann ar eud-mhorachd
shuarach eadhon gu ruig am blàr fèin. Bhuidhinn ar
naimhdean-ne air ar eas-aontachd air mille blàr; agus
uair is uair, thughadh buaidh air na Gàidheil a chionn 's
99
nach robh e comasach an teagasg furasda so thaobh
fèin-dhionaidh ionnsachadh dhoibh.
Eadhon air an àm so, is mòr an gaol a tha aig cuid
againn air cogadh. Tha baoghallan a' chlaidheimh
fathast 'n ar measg-ne; agus ged a tha e 'n a dheagh
shaighdear, gidheadh cha 'n urrainn da 'bhith 'n a
dheagh Ghàidheal. Tha e 'n a dheagh Ghàidheal gu
fior, a tha 'cuimhneachadh teagaisg Naoimh Choluim
Chille: cha 'n e esan a, tha 'trèigsinn a dhùthcha, agus a'
dol a' chogadh* air son nan Sasunnach. Bithibh
faicilleach, uime! sin, a thaobh nan daoine sin aig am
bheil focail tha caoimhneil, ach aig am bheil gnothach
'tha sgriosail. Ciod iad na daoine sin ì Tha iad a mhàin 'n
an ceannaird air dà shaighdear dheug, a tha dol a null 's
a nall agus a' togail shaighdearan. Thubhairt fear
dhiubh o chionn ghoirrid. " Tha mi 'cunrail suas na
Gàidhlig, a chionn gur taitneach leam oran} Gàidhlig
'eisdeachd"! An e so uile's urrainn do fhear-togail nan
saighdear a ràdh mu'n Ghàidhlig? Gun teagamh, is fearr
beagan no 'bhith gun ni sam: bith, ach, gu dearbh, is olc
an ni 'bhith falamh acffl beag! Tha ar càinnt fèin, ar
foghlum, agus ar cinneach tearuinte, ach cha 'n ann do
bhrigh 's gu'm bheil sin dheth fèin 'n a ni àraidh, ach do
bhrigh's gur taitneach le 'r duin'-uasal oran Gàidhlig
eisdeachd uairean! An do chumadh deagh aobhar riamh
suas air dhòigh cho lag agus chffl buileach aineolach ?
Tha sinn a' cur sin an: teagamh.
Gu dearbh, b'aill leinn a bhi 'creidsinn gu bheil na
daoine ud 'n an daoine a tha dileas da 'n cinneach fèin;
ach is e ar barail fèin gur ann mar each-spaisdearachd a
mhàin a tha iad a' moladh na Gàidhlig. Biodh sin mar a
bhitheas e, cha 'n 'eil sinn an teagamh nach robh am
buamasdair mar; mhallachd air a' Ghàidhealtachd anns
na làithean a chaidh seachad; agus gur e droch ni gu tur
an gaol so air cogadh a chumail a ghnàth air chuimhne,
agus a dheanamh mairsinn 'n ar measg. Am feadh is beò
sinn, cuiridh sinn gu dian an aghaidh a' bhuamasdair
agus a chairdean, co-dhiu a bhiodh iad 'n an
daoine-uaisle le cluasan mòra ri ainmean,no 'n an daoine
cumanta a tha fo ughdarras dhoibh. Tha an gnàth-fhocal
ag ràdh " claidheamh an làmh amadain, is slachdan an
làmh òinnsich ". Cha bhuin sinn an so ris an leth mu
dheireadh de 'n ghnàth-fhocal so; ach nach mòr an
fhirinn a tha anns a' cheud chuid! Tha an t-amadain, no
am buamasdair leis a' chlaidheamh 'n a aobhar troiblaid
duinn uile aig an àm so. Sgrios an claidheamh sinn fèin,
agus ar dùthaich; agus chuir e, mar an ceudna,
dealachadh eadarainn. Brosnaich righrean agus
comhairlich - rioghachd sinn gu cogadh an aghaidh a
chèile a chum's gu'n coisneadh iad fèin ni-èiginn troimh
ar n-aimhreite. Gu dearbh, thàinig an claidheamh mar
mhallachd air a' Ghàidhealtachd ; agus, gu fior, cha
mhòr a bhuannaich sinn ►leis; oir tha e ag àrach
spioraid dhiblidh agus mhi-^nhisneachail ann an
Gàidheil na h-Alba a thaobh an dùthcha; ach, a
dh'aindeoin sin uile, cha 'n 'eil ar càinnt no ar foghlum ni
ni 's fhaide air ais aig an àm so.
Ach ciod e 'bhuilich Sasunn oirnne gu'n
tar-ruingeadh sinn an claidheamh as a leth? Anns [na
bliadhnaichean a chaidh seachad, fhuair na miltean de
Ghàidheil na h-Alba bàs air a' bhlàr, a' cogadh air son
98
Naomh Colum Cille
Naomh Colum Cille
Shasuinn, agus an aghaidh a nàimhdean; ach ciod an
duais a fhuair ar dùthaich air sgàth na chaidh gu dith ?
Nach 'eil e fior, gu dearbh, gu'n d'fhuair sinn an duais
'bu lugha, ged ['tha e cinnteach agus fiosrach gu'n d'rinn
sinn a' chuid 'bu mhò ? Ciod am brosnachadh a tha sinn
a faotainn aig an àm so (no ciod e am brosnachadh là
fhuair sinn anns na làithean a chaidh seachad) thaobh
nan nithe sin a's ro ionmhainn leinn ? Nach 'eil e fior
gu'n do leigeadh sinn air di-chuimhne na 's mò na tha na
h-Eirinnich agus na h-Odhailtich ? Tha Gàidheil nan
dùthchannan sin 'n an daoine tuigseach, oir tha sar-fhios
aca ciod e tha iad ag iarraidh, agus, ni's luaithe no ni's
anmoiche, gheibh siad iad gun amharas. Tha Gàidheil na
h-Eirinn agus na h-Odhailt a' deanamh deagh-ùaill as an
càinntean fèin, agus ge b' air bith cho mòr 's a dh'fheudas
am fuath a tha aig na Sasunnaich do na càinntean sin a
bhith, cha 'n urrainn doibh bacadh a chur orra, a
chionn's gu bheil Gàidheil nan dùthchannan sin a cur
rompa gu'n glèidh iad an cànnain fèin a fhuair iad o
Dhia.
Uime sin, mar tha miann oirnn ar càinnt fèin a
ghlèidheadh, feumaidh sinn a dheanamh mar tha iad a'
deanamh—is e sin ri ràdh, gu bheil feum againn fèin
mosgladh às ar cadal, agus grad-ghluasad. Is èiginn
duinn a bhi beagan ni's seasmhaiche na tha sinn a nis ;
gun a bhi cho striochdail do 'n tim 's a tha sinn a nis ;
gun a bhi cho gealtach 's a tha sinn a nis a thaobh nan
nithe a tha comharrachadh a mach sluaigh; agus is
èiginn duinn a bhi mòran ni's ealaimhe gu dion ar
càinnt, ar beusan, ar cleachdaidhean, an uair a tha iad
air am bagradh, no an cunnart
" O ionnsuidh dhian ar nàmh "
na tha sinn a nis.
Ach, thug Nh. Colum Cille fios eile dhuinn, agus leig
sinn air dearmad e mar an ceudna. Thubhairt e, gu'n
robh feum againn air comh-chòrdadh am measg a chèile,
na'n robh miann oirnn soirbheachadh. "Is e aonachd
neart," a rèir an t-sean-fhocail; ach ciod tha sinn a' deanamh aig an là an diugh air chor's gu'n cuireamaid an cèill
an creidimh a tha againn anns na briathran so ? Gu
dearbh, tha mòran chomuinn Gàidhealach 'n ar
measg-ne; ach, mo thruaighe! 's e beagan diubh is fhiach
am brosnachadh, agus is e beagan diubh a tha
'cuideachadh a chèile gus ar càinnt fèin a chumail suas.
Cha 'n 'eil neart ni's mò no aonachd aig a' chuid eile
dhiubh. Eighidh gu leòir " Clann nan Gàidheal an
guaillibh a chèile! " cho tric agus cho sgreadach 's is àill
leibh ; ach ma dh'iarras sibh rud sam bith deantach
dhiubh, gu cinnteach cha 'n fhaigh sibh e le iarraidh.
Dearbhach an eud-san thaobh teanga is cinnich, agus
aithnichidh sibh gu luath gu bheil mòran iomairt an so
mu neoni
" Ghineadh iad, us rugadh iad, us thogadh iad,
'us dh'fhàs, Chaidh stràc de 'n
t-saoghal orr' 'S ma dheireadh fhuair
iad bàs."
" A m faigh a' Ghàidhlig b à s ? " Tha mòran sluaigh 'n
ar measg aig an àm so a tha deas gu leòir gus an t-oran
so a sheinn; ach cia meud diubh a tha cho deas gu an
99
làmh a chur 'n an sporain as leth ar càinnt ? Gu
cinnteach, ma thig ar cànain beò, cha 'n ann troimh na
daoine ud a tha 'mairean aig an là an duigh; ach bithidh
e (ma mhaireas e anns na làithean a tha ri teachd), d'am
beil an fhaisneachd agus teagasg Nh. Colum Cille mar
chumhachd beò agus lathaireach: gun teagamh is iadsan
na daoine 'tha 'gabhail curaim do'n chuis air dhòigh cho
eudmhor, agus is iadsan na daoine 'tha 'deanamh
oidhirp air ar cànain a ghlèidheadh ann an
Gàidhealtachd na h-Alba. Cuireamaid an cuimhne an
fhaisneachd a rinn Nh. Colum Cille e fèin mu thimchioll
ar dùthcha agus ar càinnt.
" I mo chridhe, I mo ghràidh 'An àite guth
Mhanach bidh gèum bà; Ach mu'n tig an saoghal
gu crich Bi'dh I mar a bha."
Mar so thubhairt an duine naomh so, agus, gu dearbh,
an uair a rinn e an fhaisneachd ud, labhair e mar neach
aig an robh cumhachd, agus cha 'n ann mar
bhruadaraiche a mhàin. Is ann mar sin a tha sinn a'
creidsinn a rinneadh i.
Uime sin, biodh an fhaisneachd so fa chomhair ar
sùilibh a ghnàth. Biodh e 'n ar sùilean-ne mar
mhisneachadh, agus mar f hurtachd a ghnàth. Biodh e
dhuinn mar chath-ghairm, agus os cionn gach ni mar
bhrosnachadh do Ghàidheil na h-Alba, ge b'e air bith
creud a tha aca, no ge b'air bith innleach-dan-riaghlaidh
a tha iad a' leantuinn.
A thuilleadh air sin, cumamaid an cuimhne an
t-achmhasan a fhuair na Corintianaich o Nh. Pòl, an
uair a tha e 'sgriobhadh da 'n ionnsuidh mar so. " Oir tha
eagal orm, an uair a thig mi, nach faigh mi sibh
theagamh mar bu mhath leam; agus gu'm faighear mi
leibh se mar nach bu mhath leibh; eagal ma dh'fhaoidte
connsachadh, farmad, gamhlas, aimhreit, cùlchainnt,
cogarsaich, prois, ùpraidean a' bhith 'n ur measg." Gu
dearbh, tha iad so 'n an briathran sòlaimte, agus is còir
dhuinne sinn fèin a' bhith 'g an cumail 'n ar cuimhne.
Oir thàinig Nh. Colum Cille gu Alba às leth gaoil Dè,
agus cha 'n ann a chionn's gu'n do dh'fhuad-aicheadh a
Eirinn e. Bha'm fios a thug e leis 'n a theachdaireachd
sithe. Thàinig e, cha 'n ann mar bhuamasdair, ach mar
fhear-deanamh na sithe.
Biodh cuimhne againn, uime sin, air na nithe-san a
chaoidh. Easan tha 'deanamh tàir, 's tha a' gabhail nàire
às a chànain, agus às a chinneach fèin, cha 'n airidh e
gu'n goirteadh duine dheth: mòran ni's lugha na sin gu'n
goirteadh Gàidheal deth.
ST. COLUMBA
A CORRESPONDENT, who must surely have been a Jesuit in
disguise, innocently asked not long ago to what
particular form of Christianity St. Columba would attach
himself, if he were to revisit the earth in corporal shape,
and received, at the hands of the editor of the Protestant
and Highland periodical to which he addressed his
enquiry, the answer that the Saint would certainly place
himself in communion with the Catholic Church though
he might not approve of everything he would find
therein. It is satisfactory to learn that the theory of "historical continuity" forms no part of the claims of the
Presbyterian Church of Scotland. The difference between
98
Naomh Colum Cille
Naomh Colum Cille
the religion professed by St. Columba and that of the
majority of Scotsmen at the present day is thus publicly
acknowledged; and we who live north of the Tweed ought
to congratulate ourselves on the fact that whatever the
outstanding differences between Catholic and Protestant
may be, the " appeal to history " does not constitute one
of them.
It is obvious that the greater the distinction between
Catholicism and Presbyterianism, the more clearly the
line of demarcation between the two is drawn, and the
io6
St. Columba
of demarcation between faith and heresy is in Scotland
far broader and more distinct than it is in England. If, as
we believe, Protestantism has been an unmitigated
failure in Scotland, morally and politically, it should be
far easier to convince the Scottish people of that fact
than it would be to persuade the English nation of a
similar failure in respect of their own country. The
Scottish Catholic propagandist is in a position to say "
look on this picture and on that. Swallow your
prejudices, dismiss your pre-conceived opinions, open
your eyes, and take your choice. The issue is plain, and
cannot be obscured." The English Catholic, on the other
hand, is apt to have his "appeal to reason" spoiled by the
High Churchman and the "Anglo-Catholic," who say,
" N o t so, my friend: you forget; part of that historical
picture is my work and belongs to me" ; and although the
Catholic knows that the claim is imposture and sheer
impudence, yet the unthinking public does not. It readily
accepts the Anglican at his own historical estimate.
On these accounts, therefore, we should naturally
expect to find Catholicism in a much more favourable
position, relatively to population, in Scotland than it is in
England. And this, indeed, is precisely the case. In
England, the Catholic population is, roughly speaking,
1,500,000. In Scotland, it is about 500,000 : it may be
rather more—it is certainly not less. Relatively,
therefore, to population, Scotland with its 500,000 of
Catholics and its 4,000,000 odd of inhabitants is much
more Catholic than is England, with its 32,500,000 of
inhabitants and its Catholic population of 1,500,000
only.
I quote these figures with no invidious intention in
view, but merely in order to strike a necessary
io8
St. Columba
" What would you have me to do ? " he cries. " Dofl you
expect me to go out into the highways and bye-ways, and
literally compel them to come in ? " IU must be confessed
that this sort of way of meeting a difficulty is only too apt
to be attended with temporary success. The critic feels
that he has] possibly said too much ; that perhaps, after
all, he has not fairly estimated the difficulties of an undoubtedly difficult situation ; whilst the person, or
persons, or institution criticised goes his way rejoicing
that he is just as other men are, if only in respect of
"appearances". It is only afterwards, on cool reflection
that both parties arrive at an uneasy suspicion that if St.
Columba came to life again he might not be entirely
99
less the question is obscured by collateral and subsidiary
issues, the easier it must be to strike the necessary
balance, and so to arrive at the required conclusion.
Obviously, simple questions are more easy to discuss and
to settle than complex ones. The Scottish Catholics are,
from the point of view of religious propaganda, far more
advantageously situated than are their coreligionists in
England. In regard to history, they have a clear field
before them. Moreover, the line
comparison. Clearly, Scotland is, relatively to population,
more Catholic than England : and the advantages which
the Catholic propagandist enjoys are here much greater
than they are in England. But the question is, however
satisfactory these facts may be, do we make the most of
them ? Is the "appeal to history," plus the vast difference
which exists between ourselves and our Presbyterian
fellow-countrymen, sufficiently exploited and worked, in
the interests of religion? It may be objected that bigotry
has a stronger hold of the Scottish masses than it has of
the English people ; and that the appeal to the purse
exercises in Scotland a greater restraining influence than
it does across the Border. Possibly this is the case. Every
Scottish priest has made the acquaintance of one or more
Scottish bigots—the sort of men that write ignorant
letters to the newspapers—and nearly every priest
knows one or more Presbyterian ministers who would
readily become Catholics were it not for the loaves and
fishes, or, to put the matter as they are wont to represent
it, were it not that they have "contracted ties" which bind
them to Presbyterianism, i.e., they have wives and
families to provide for. Still, in spite of some drawbacks
which are not to be gainsaid, the question is, do we do
our utmost to improve the advantages which we
undoubtedly possess ?
And here let me modestly take misconstruction and
misrepresentation by the fore-lock. When a man is
charged with not doing his utmost, he is apt to throw up
his hands in amazement and horror, and rapidly to
enumerate his difficulties. Another familiar manoeuvre,
under such circumstances, is to seek to divert suspicion
from himself by exaggerating his critic's implied
suggestions.
St. Columba
109
pleased and satisfied with everything that he would see
in Catholic Scotland.
An event has recently happened in Wales whichJ
cannot fail to be of the greatest interest to thej heirs and
successors of St. Columba in Alba—I mean the
establishment at Holywell of a Welsh Training College
for Priests. The undertaking is. thus referred to in the
Lenten Pastoral of his lordship the Bishop of Menevia : "
Remembering that our duty extends beyond those who
are actually in the fold, and that it is incumbent upon us
to preach and to explain the doctrines of the Church to
our fellow-countrymen who are not of our faith, we have
opened Welsh missions at Llanrust and at Pwllheli.
These two missions have been entrusted to some Oblate
Fathers from Brittany, who have, thoroughly mastered
the Welsh language, and who preach regularly every
Sunday in this tongue. Realising the importance of the
Welsh language-for priests who are to labour in Wales,
we have lately, thanks to the great generosity of Miss.
Sankey, been able to open St. Mary's College at Holywell,
where the students for the diocese will receive a thorough
training in the Welsh language, in addition to their other
studies." The following paragraph is from the Roman
correspondence of The Tablet, and appeared in that journal
on Saturday, 25th March:—
"This week the Holy Father learnt all about Wales
and its religious conditions and prospects from the
Bishop of Menevia. His lordship was received in private
audience last Monday, and His Holiness kept him a long
time, showing the keenest interest in the Bishop's
account. Pius X. was especially struck by the efforts
which are being made to appeal to the Welsh people
through the medium of their own tongue ; and when the
Bishop asked him for a special blessing for his new
Seminary in which Welsh is one of the obligatory subjects
for aspirants to the priesthood in Wales, he not only
granted it at once but recorded it in a precious autograph
which he presented there and then to Mgr. Mostyn: '
Venerabili fratri Episcopo Meneviensi et dilectis alumnis
seminarii Gallensis Apostolicam benedictionem ex animo
impertimus, 13 Martii, 1905.'—'From Our heart We
bestow the Apostolic Blessing on our Venerable Brother,
the Bishop of Menevia, and on the beloved pupils of the
Welsh seminary, March 13, 1905'. The Bishop had
brought with him a Latin copy of the prayer for the
conversion of Wales, and the Pope warmly approved of
the crusade of prayer, and once again took up his pen to
write at the foot of the copy presented to him an
indulgence of three hundred days to be gained once a day
to all who recite it—not only in the Principality but in
any part of the world. Finally, he warmly blessed the
Bishop himself and encouraged him to persevere in the
difficult but apostolic task of opening the eyes of his
countrymen to the true character and claims of the
Catholic Church."
The question for us to consider is, if St. Columba
came to our national seminary for the Scottish priesthood
at Blairs, and found no provision therein for the teaching
of his own tongue, would he be likely to approve of the
omission ? Does it not: seem strange that Blairs College
is now the only seminary for the priesthood on Celtic soil
in which a Celtic language is not taught ?
SAGART ALBANNACH.
________
MAR A GHLUAIS "OSSIAN"
MHUIRICH
FOGHLUM
ROINN-EORPA
MHIC
NA
CHUIREADH a mach ann an Lunnain o chionn ghoirrid a'
cheud leabhar do dh'eachdraidh nuadh na h-Eirinn. Tha
e air a sgriobhadh leis an Athair F. A. D'Alton. Bithidh
an obair so air a toirt gu crich ann an tri leabhraichean
gu lèir; agus tha e 'tabhairt mòran toil-inntinn duinn a
bhi a 'cur failt' is furain oirre aig an àm so. Cha deach'
aon eachdraidh Eirionnach a sgriobhadh fathast an
Gàidhlig no'm Beurla coltach rithe, ach is e ar barail-ne
gu bheil mòran de na leabhraichean so neo-fheumail a
nis, a chionn gu'm bheil iad sean agus a thaobh an dòigh
anns an deachaidh iad a sgriobhadh. Tha Alba gu math
air aghart a thaobh nan nithe so, ged nach urrain duinn
eachdraiche Albannach a thoirt a mach cho math ach
beag ri Ceitinn.
Air an làimh eile, cha 'n 'eil eachdraiche Eirionnach
cho math ri Robertson, ged a sgriobh am fear mu
dheireadh so anns a' Bheurla. Tha e duilich nach 'eil an
t-Athair D'Alton a' sgriobhadh 'eachdraidh-san na
h-Eirinn ann an Gàidhlig, a chionn gu bheil a' Ghaidhlig
aige; ach fàgaidh sinn a leisgeul aige fèin. Gu dearbh, tha
e aig a shaorsa eachdraidh a sgriobhadh ann an cànain
air bith a's àill leis.
Ach, cha d'thàinig sinn a dh'ionnsuidh so a mholadh
Chaesair, no a thiodhlaiceadh-sa. Cha 'n ann mar sin a
tha an gnothuch a ghabh sinn os. làimh aig an àm so ;
ach is e 'th'againn ri innseadh rud eigin mu thimchioll "
Ossian " Mhic Mhuirich, agus a thaobh a ghluasaid a
rinn e air foglum na Roinn-Eorpa.
A nis, anns an eachdraidh leis an Athair D'Alton, tha
beagan aige ri ràdh mu timchioll "Ossian" Mhic
Mhuirich. Tha e 'labhairt mu Ossian ann mar an cruth
a's mò ann am foghlum na h-Eirinn. Ars easan, " t h e
impudent claim of MacPherson to make him a
Scotchman, and to transfer the exploits of Fin and his
Fenians to Caledonia, has long since been rejected. It
could not survive the discovery of the forgeries which
gave it birth." Agus ann a bhi 'mineachadh na h-earrain
so tha e ag ràdh, " Dr. Johnson's opinion of Mac Pherson
is well known ".
A nis, is e ar barail, nach robh feum air bith anns an
dòigh labhairt a tha aig an Athair D'Alton mu thimchioll
Mhic Mhuirich. Chaidh an connsachadh so seachad o
chionn fada, agus cha dean, e deagh thùrn do neach sam
bith a bhi 'g ùrachadh na stri. Tha fios ro mhath aig na
h-uile dhaoine aig an àm so gu'n robh Ossian 'n a bhard
Eirionnach, agus, mar sin, gu'n robh a dhòigh bhàrdachd
air a toirt a steach do'n dùthaich so o Eirinn. Ach, nach
'eil muinntir na h-Eirinn agus muinntir na h-Alba 'n an
aon sliochd ? Tha ar foghlum-ne an t-aon ni; agus a
chionn gu'n robh Ossian 'n a Ghàidheal, tha e, mar sin,
'n a sheilbh chumanta d'ar siol-ne. Air ar son-ne, cha
toigh leinn na buillean ud, a tha cuid againn cho tric a'
deanamh] an aghaidh Mhic Mhuirich ; agus tha sinn a'
gabhail riu gu dona. Bha Mac Mhuirich 'n a dhuine mòr,
agus is mòr agus fhiach e am meas a tha aig Gàidheil na
h-Eirinn, 's aig Gàidheil na hAlba air. Bha e, gun
teagamh, 'n a fhear-deilbh feallsa; agus a thaobh an ni
sin, bha e 'n a chrochaire gun fhiù gu lèir; ach dona's
mar a bha e, cha 'n annt an dràsd' a tha sinn a dol a
labhairt mu 'bheusanH ach mu 'obair-san.
Bha Mac Mhuirich, gun teagamh, 'n a fhear-deilbh
feallsa, agus bha 'n eadar-theangachd a chaidh a chur a
mach air a dhàin Shasunnaich 'n a sheòrsa de cheilg.
Tha gach deagh sgoilear am measg nan Gàidheal air an
là an diugh, a dh'aon bharail a thaobh Mhic Mhuirich
agus 'obairean-sài mar tha an t-Ollamh Mac Bheathainn
ag ràdh. " I t is needless to enter upon the question of the
authenticity of Mac Pherson's "Ossian". Celtic scholars
are agreed that it is all Mac Pherson's own work, both
English and Gaelic. Indeed, the Gaelic was translated
from the English, and is for the most part very
ungrammatical and unidiomatic. These very faults,
showing its extremely modern character, have been
always regarded as marks of antiquity. Ordinary Gaelic
readers do not understand it at all. The English is better
done, because it is the original."
Gidheadh, b'àill leinn a ràdh, 's an dol seachad, gu
bheil cuid de luchd-diùltaidh a tha aig Mac
Mhuirich tuille is làn de gheur-rannsachadh air fèin,
agus air an obair a rinn e. Tha cuid de 'n rannsachadh so
ro dhòchasach, ann ar beachd-ne; agus tha cuid eile
dhiubh air a thaobh air dòigh tha soilleir gu leòr. Tha na
tiolpadairean a' cur as a leth gu 'n do chuir Mac Mhuirich
thar a chèile, air iomadh dòigh, na cuairtean-eachdraidh
a bh'air an gabhail a steach leis 'n a dhàin; ach tha e
comasach a' cheart choire sin a chur a leth iomadh
sean-sgriobhadh eile, a tha firinneach is ceart. A rìs, tha
sinn de 'n bheachd, gu'n robh mòran sean-sgriobhaidhean
aig Mac Mhuirich, agus gu'n d'rinn e 'n còrr feuma
dhiubh, agus sin ni bu dheònaich na rinn mòran. Tha
tuille 's a' chòir de shuaipe 'n a dhàin ri iomadh
sean-sgriobhadh 'thaobh an deilbh agus am brìgh; agus,
mar sin, cha 'n 'eil annta ach innleachd bhreugach a
mhàin.
Ach, ged a bha Mac Mhuirich 'n a fhear-deilbh feallsa,
tha Gàidheal na h-Eirinn agus Gàidheal na h-Alba fo
fhiachaibh dha. B'e a' cheud fhear a rinn an Roinn-Eorp
eòlach a thaobh inntinn nan Gàidheal anns na h-amanna
deireannach so. Aig an àm ud, an uair a bha Alba is
Eirinn fo dhragh mòr mu'n staid agus an suidheachaidh,
agus an uair a bha guth nan Gàidheal ach gu beag 'n a
thosd, dh'èirich Mac Mhuirich gu h-obann, agus sgaoil e
cliù nan Gàidheal air feadh an t-saoghail gu lèir, agus le
sin a' buannachadh cliù mòr dha fèin. Bha an t-lachd a
bh'aig daoine foghluimte beusach annainn fèin, agus ann
ar sgriobhaidhean air a dùsgadh a nis gu àirde mòr; agus
dh'fhas an Gàidheal agus a chainnt, air son a' cheud uair
0 cheann ro mhòran bhliadhnaichean, 'n an
culaidh-fharmaid do gach neach.
Gu dearbh, b'e Mac Mhuirich an ceud fhear a thoisich
an gluasad d'an goirear an Celtic RenaisB
sance aig an là an diugh. Chuir a dhàintean deine ro mhòr
ri foghlum nan Gàidheal; agus o sin suas, chaidh sin air
adhart gu buadhach, agus le toil Dè, ni sinn sin, agus
tuille, anns na bliadhnaichean a tha ri teachd; agus mar
sin gu cinnteach tha ni-eiginn àraidh agus priseil againn
air Mac Mhuirich, eadhon a thaobh an ni sin fèin.
Ach cia mar a ghluais " Ossian " Mac Mhuirich
foghlum na Roinn Eòrpa? B'e a' cheud fhear a bhuilich air
foghlum na Roinn Eòrpa an t-analach-adh - bàrdail sin
thaobh bròin a tha 'ruith mar shruth airgid troimh
thaobhan oibre Bhyroin agus Chateaubriand, agus mòran
eile. Thug Mata Arnold " Titanism" mar ainm air
analachadh-bhàrdail so, agus fhuair e 'mach gu'n robh an
ceud thoiseachadh aice ann an dànaibh Mhic Mhuirich.
" A famous book, thubhairt e, Mac Pherson's 'Ossian'
carried in the last (is e sin ri ràdh anns an ochdamh ceud
deug) century this vein like a flood of lava through
Europe." Agus ann an ait' eile, tha e ag ràdh, " make the
part of what is forged, modern, tawdry, spurious in the
book as large as you please ; strip Scotland, if you like, of
every feather of borrowed plumes which, on the strength
of MacPherson's ' Ossian,' she may have stolen from the
vetus et major Scotia, the true home of the Ossianic poetry,
Ireland—I make no objection. But there will still be left
in the book a residue with the very soul of the Celtic
genuis in it, and with the proud distinction of having
brought this soul of Celtic genius into contact with the
genius of the nations of modern Europe, and enriched all
our poetry by it."
Gu dearbh, ruith an inntinn a bha aig " Ossian " Mac
Mhuirich troimh 'n Roinn Eòrp mar shruth d e lava,
eadhon mar a thubhairt an sgriobhadair ainmeil
Sasunnach ud. Rinneadh gach dùthaich beartach leatha:
ghluaiseadh gach foghlum leatha.
Dh'eadar-theangaicheadh a dhàin chum gach càinnt
a tha beò 's an Roinn Eorp aig an là an diugh. Tha
eadar-theangachd air "Ossian" ann an cànain nan
dachannan so a leanas; an Spàinn, an Fhraing, a'
Ghearmailt, Sasunn, Lochluinn, an Olaind, an Eadailt,
an t-Suain, an Odhailt, a' Ghreig, agus eadhon, tha sinn
a' creidsinn, an teanga nan Tuirceach.
A thuilleadh air sin, bu mhòr an gluasad a bha aig
Mac Mhuirich air daoine mòr is ainmeil, a bha beò aig an
àm ud. Mar tha sar fhios againn, bu mhòr an spèis a bha
aig a' cheud Iompaire Napoleon do dhàin Mhic Mhuirich.
Tha e air a ràdh le feadhainn gu'n deach e 'gnath gu
cogadh le " Ossian " 'n a phòcaid; agus gu'n do leugh e na
dàin an uair a bhiodh e sgith, no trom-inntinneach.
Biodh sin mar a bhitheas e, tha e cinnteach gu'n robh
spèis mhòr aig Napoleon do'n obair so; agus cha ni beag
e, gu dearbh, cliù duine cho mòr agus cho ainmealach a
bhi aige.
Ghluaiseadh Goethe, mar an ceudna, le sgriobhadair
" Ossian " ; oir ged a bha am bàrd mòr so 'n a
Ghearmailteach an toiseach, agus anns an dara àite 'n a
Ghreugach do thaobh 'inntinn, bu mhòr an gluasad a
bha aig Mac Mhuirich air. Is mò an gluasad a chuir an
Gàidheal air Faust, ach feudaidh e bhith air a
chomharrachadh gu furasda ann am mòran eile de na
h-oibre a sgriobh Goethe. Mar so, cha 'n urrain do neach
sam bith a ràdh gu'n do chaith Mac Mhuirich a bheatha
an neo-bhrigh, no gu'n do chuir e seachad i ann an
diomhanas gu tur; agus ge b'e air leith cho mòr agus a
tha ar gràin dhe' bheusan, na biodh di-chuimhne againn
air 'inntinn, no air 'obair-san. Gu dearbh, saor o gu'n
do pheacaich e gu h-anabarrach a thaobh nan nithe sin a
sgriobh e, bha e 'n a fhior Ghàidheal, agus neach aig an
robh inntinn iongantach ; agus thug e onair mhòr d'ar
siol-ne air feadh an t-saoghail gu lèir.
Tha Mac Mhuirich marbh, agus tha 'n
deas-boireachd a bha mu thimchioll fèin, agus a dhàin,
mar sin, mar an ceudna; ach tha 'n inntinn a bha aige
'maireann gus an là an diugh ; agus air an aobhar sin, is
còir dhuinn a bhith ro thaingeil dha. As eugmhais Mhic
Mhuirich agus "Ossian"-sa, bhiodh mòran nithe de na
chaidh a dheanamh fathast gun deanamh. Uime sin,
thugamaid ceartas do'n marbh, agus thugamaid dha d e
dh'onoir a' mheud agus a tha 'n ar comas; oir rinn Mac
Mhuirich obair mhòr as leth Ghàidheal na h-Alba, agus
Ghàidheal na h-Eirinn; agus, gu dearbh, cha teid a chliù
air dith.
GAELIC EDUCATION
I AM glad to observe that this subject is at last beginning
to arouse the attention which its importance deserves. A
few years ago, it would have been impossible to excite
the faintest interest in it; and the few who were ashamed
of, and disgusted by, the public indifference, and raised
their voices in feeble protest, were laughed at for their
pains. The author of these observations was one of those
who saw the folly and danger of the system of education
then being pursued in respect of Gaelic, and wasted not
a little time and energy in kicking against the pricks;
and yet (it pleases me to think) my efforts were not
entirely thrown away, as recent events in the Highlands
have happily proved.
However stupid people may be, my experience is that
they will probably see sense in the long run. Prejudice
and ignorance abound in every community; but I have an
inextinguishable belief in the "verdict of posterity".
Tribulation may endure for a day, but joy come th with
the morrow, saith the Psalmist, who was not
over-sanguine at times; and however plentiful your crop
of blockheads, the time must come when they will begin
to languish and, presently, to fall away.
On the other hand, far be it from me to be understood
as wilfully over-rating the public intelligence. Many years
passed in trying to train up the " young idea" have not
left me with a particularly exalted notion of the human
understanding in the mass. The fact that for many scores
of years the so-called educationists of this country (or, to
be more accurate, of the other) have been vainly trying to
educate Gaelic-speaking children via English-speaking
teachers is one of those absurdities which tend to make a
man a cynic and a pessimist before his time.
Still, in this life, it is good policy to feign gratitude for
small mercies if not to make a determined effort really to
feel it. The mass of abuses which ought to be removed,
and the amount of reforms that ought to be undertaken,
are so formidable and altogether over-powering that the
prostrated mind catches as eagerly at the slightest
appearances of relief from their intolerable burden as the
drowning man does at the proverbial straw. Personally,
therefore, I welcome the change in public opinion in
respect of the teaching of Gaelic with a huge sigh of relief;
and if I were a youthful person, which I crave the reader's
permission to say that I am not, my bonnet would
probably be flying skyhigh at this very moment in token
of my joy and gratitude for certain recent " concessions ".
Two events have lately taken place in the Highlands
which deserve the thoughtful attention of every
individual interested in the progress of our race, and the
welfare of the Gaelic-speaking people. I mean the recent
conference at Inverness on the subject of Gaelic
education, and the complimentary dinner to Mr.
Robertson, Chief Inspector of Schools in the Highland
district. The latter function was a seasonable and
graceful recognition of the services of one who has not
spared himself in the effort to make education something
more than a name throughout the Highlands and Isles;
and I consider that every Scottish Gael owes a great debt
of gratitude to Mr. Robertson on that account. At a time
when even to mention the word Gaelic in connection with
education was enough to set all our pastors and masters
at Whitehall by the ears, that gentleman courageously
pleaded the cause of our language in the schools, thereby
exposing himself to not a little official, and officious,
displeasure. Let us, therefore, not be backward to render
honour where credit is due. No vice is more detestable (or
ridiculous) than ingratitude; and I, f o r one, should be
exceedingly sorry to see any differences of opinion which
there may be touching Mr. Robertson's methods, and
those which recommend themselves to others that I
know, standing in the way of a full and grateful
recognition of his claims to be considered (what the
Highland News appropriately enough recently styled him)
as yet another caraid nan Gaidheal.
No doubt Mr. Robertson is not so intrepid a reformer
as some of us could wish him to be. To adopt the
expressive, if barbarous, political phraseology of the day,
he is not a Gaelic " whole-hogger"; but please to
remember he is a paid government official, and was it not
an ex-statesman, who is himself by no means remarkable
for courage—I mean Lord Rosebery—who recently
assured us that governments (and their officials, by
consequence) are never "heroic". Certainly Mr.
Robertson's proposals touching Gaelic in schools seem not
destined to set the Ness on fire; and his somewhat too
cautious manner of handling the question is possibly
irritating to some ardent spirits, who, by the way, have
logic and reason, to say nothing of fashion, on their side.
But Mr. Robertson belongs, if I may put it so without
offence to one of the kindest and best friends that the
Gaels of Scotland have ever had, to an old school.
Moreover, he is a government official, and a loyal and
zealous functionary as well. He knows his employers'
prejudices—I feel sure that their abounding ignorance on
many points is as an open book to him—and, without
compromising his principles, he does the best he can to
render them as little injurious as possible, whilst, at the
same time, preserving their confidence and esteem.
Remember, too, that for twenty-five years Mr. Robertson
has been in harness as an Inspector of Schools; and if in
course of that long and honourable service his ideas
touching education, especially Gaelic education, have
become more or less stereotyped—the hyper-critical
might style them even old-fashioned without apparent
departure from strict truth—it is " t h e system," the
government, " temperament," anything else probably, in
short, that you may care to mention— save Mr.
Robertson himself—that is to blame. If I must pass
criticism—and, really, to do so after we have just been
lapped, as it were, in panegyric, seems unseasonable, if
not scurvy, conduct to in -J dulge in at this moment—I
should say that where Mr. Robertson fails, if he fails at
all, is not in respect of sympathy but breadth of view. He
is too old and cautious a bird—I say it with no wand of
respect—to be caught by the chaff (as doubtless] he
considers it, though many of us know it to be true golden
grain enough) of the Celtic Renaissance. Above all, he
has now been twenty-five] years an Inspector of Schools
and a government official. A combination of
employments so uncongenial and exacting tends to
knock the elasticity outj of a man. Let the individual
that doubts the truth! of this axiom put it to a practical
test—if he can.
In his speech—with most of which I agree] —at the
dinner which was given in his honour, Mr. Robertson
referred, with a pride which was not only pardonable but
infectious, to his work in connection with the recent
order respecting the trains ing of Gaelic pupil teachers.
If Mr. Robertson,, as a Highland educationist, had lived
in vain up to the time of the passing of that most
importantj and necessary measure (which those best
qualified1 to judge are aware is by no means the case),!
certainly the passing of that measure would not] only
have completely exonerated him from all previous blame,
but would entitle him to our abiding admiration and
gratitude as well. Fortunately, however, our gratitude
and admiration for Mr. Robertson are based upon a
consideration of his official career as a whole; and
however much the single isolated action referred to
above may redound to his credit, we recognise in it a
perfection of those counsels in which, throughout a long
and honourable service, he has consistently and
zealously indulged.
I was glad to observe by the newspaper accounts of
the conference that what the various readers spf papers
and speakers had most in mind was the (importance of
introducing Gaelic-speaking teachers unto schools where
the Gaelic language is the (prevailing speech of the
district. This is- a most [necessary reform, and a
measure of the simplest fcommon-sense, which is
possibly one reason why dt has long been so unpopular
with our English educationists at Whitehall. To try to
teach a lchild a foreign language through any other
medium |save his own tongue is sheer waste of time and
unjustifiable extravagance. It simply cannot be done, as
experience has proved time after time. I [notice that in
his speech at the dinner Mr. Robert-tson went somewhat
out of his way—at least, it [appeared so to me—to pat
English-speaking teachers [in the Highlands on the back.
No doubt many [of them are admirable men, and
excellent public servants in their way; but they have no
business fwhatever to be in Gaelic-speaking schools. "
Oh," [says Mr. Robertson, " we get the best men we can,
[and if the best man does not know Gaelic, it is a [pity,
perhaps, in some ways, but his qualifications (•in other
respects are too obvious to be overlooked." This, of course,
is very bad reasoning; and I am [surprised that one who
is usually so shrewd and [sound on educational questions
should hold such Manguage for a moment. The fact is
that given an Admirable Crichton, and a corresponding
measure ■of genius for imparting knowledge, your
Solomon fjs practically useless unless he can speak the
language cf the individuals he is required to instruct. Is not this
a self-evident fact \ Take the case of an English-speaking
boy who has to be prepared for life's ibattle in the
ordinary way. Do you attempt to
"cram" him through the medium of French, or German, or
any other foreign tongue that you may care to mention?
Pray, what would be thought of the " system," or of its
aiders and abettors, that should sanction or encourage so
monstrous and ridiculous a proceeding ? The mill-stone of
ridicule would promptly be tied about their necks, and
they would be cast into the sea of extinction, amidst the
plaudits of all. And yet, owing to the ignorance and
apathy of the Highland people, and the insane and
pettifogging prejudices of their educational rulers, this is
precisely what is being done at this, very day in a really
scandalous number of cases throughout the length and
breadth of the Highlands, and Isles! The educational
growth of thousands, upon thousands of promising
intelligent Gaelic-speaking children is thus being
mercilessly stunted, if not positively prevented, by this
iniquitous. " system ". Can anything more monstrous,
unjust, and ridiculous possibly be imagined ? But when
you have arrived at the fact that the perpetrators of this
outrage are English educationists, and the victims mere
miserable Highlanders good for nothing-but soldiering,
you will have indicated cause and effect as plainly as,
under these unpromising circumstances, it is necessary to
discover them.
For this altogether anomalous, discreditable and
ridiculous state of affairs I do not so much blame the
Highland people themselves, who, no doubt, in many
cases are stupid and short-sighted in no common degree,
as their accredited representatives, county councillors,
members of Parliament, and so forth. Pray, what are
these last about that they should tolerate so parlous a
condition of things? They may object, "The Highland
people, as a whole, has given us no mandate to press the
question of Gaelic in the schools, therefore we do not feel
justified in interfering". To which I reply, that mandate
or no mandate, it is the duty of the people's representatives to see to it that the children of their
constituents are not hopelessly handicapped in the
struggle for existence; and that if their constituents are
so ignorant as to be incapable of seeing the matter in
this, its true, light, then the sooner they set to work to
educate them up to it the better it will be for all
concerned.
The question of the future of Gaelic will be settled in
the schools—of that there can be no shadow of doubt. If
the Gaelic language is to live, it must forthwith be
introduced
into
the
schools,
not
tentatively,
half-heartedly
and
partially,
but
thoroughly,
uncompromisingly. It has been proved—the fact is
patent to every modern educationist—that the
possession of two languages —even though one of the
two be a non-commercial one—supplies a better
equipment than the possession of one only. The Gaels of
Scotland are in the fortunate position of being a
bi-lingual people. They should therefore bestir
themselves, and see to it that they are not deprived of
their remaining national possession—a most valuable
educational asset—by a similar process and by the
self-same agencies as have already despoiled them of so
much. If Gaelic could be wiped off the list of living
tongues to-morrow, then, indeed, sentiment apart, it
might become a debatable question whether, in the
interests of pure commercialism, it would not be better
to sign the warrant for its execution and burial; but as,
fortunately, for many reasons, in my opinion, it cannot
be so summarily disposed of, then the obvious thing to do
is to make it as useful as possible. To leave it to die a "
natural" death by neglect and starvation would be a
most heartless and improvident proceeding. The death
agony of our grand and venerable tongue would
necessarily be severe and protracted; and during its continuance thousands of promising children would be
subjected to a species of educational torture {and to
life-long educational disabilities) for absolutely no fault
of their own, and merely in order that a government
scheme of no " official recognition" as regards Gaelic
might be pushed to its logical limits. However unselfish
and "paternal" may be the attitude of the modern
Highlander touching posterity, and however subservient
his conduct to government, I scarcely think he is
prepared to sacrifice his immediate offspring in order to
confer a doubtful benefit upon generations which are yet
unborn. That being so, he will, if he is wise, insist on his
children being educated on common-sense lines—on
their being efficiently instructed always in Gaelic, that is
to say.
Hitherto I have dealt with the practical side of this
question—with the aspect that regards exclusively
Gaelic-speaking districts, that is to say. I propose to
make a few observations, in conclusion, on what is, more
or less, the sentimental side of the subject under discussion.
Personally I am a firm believer in the Celtic
Renaissance, which possibly may seem an odd thing for a
Scottish educationist to say; and I would willingly see
"the movement," as it is called, embracing the whole of
Celtic Scotland, or at all events as much of it as is left to
us. Now, as I have already said, the question of the
future of Gaelic rests with the schools—with the
educational authorities throughout the country, that is
to say. No amount of shouting at public meetings,
writing to sympathetic newspapers, wearing of kilts and
drinking of toasts, will save the language, if it is not
introduced into the schools. Now, of these last there are a
number in the Highlands in which the Gaelic language
forms no part of the curriculum, although the home
speech of many, perhaps the majority, of the children's
parents is the ancient language of Alba. These children
grow up with but a smattering of Gaelic—in too many
cases they do not acquire even that—and so the
language first languishes and then perishes.
It seems to me, therefore, that the Comunn
Gàidhealach and its allies have hardly yet realised the
great strategetic importance of the great glen of Scotland
(for it is in the countries bordering, east and west, on that
great thoroughfare that such mixed-speaking districts
are most numerous) from the language point of view. In
these countries —Grantown, Braemar, Tomintoul, etc.,
represent typical districts in which Gaelic is still the
home speech of great numbers of the natives—the tongue
of our ancestors is dying out with a rapidity which should
be alarming to every true friend of the Gael; and unless
126
Gaelic Education
Isles, and to a comparatively narrow strip of country
flanking the western sea-board of Scotland. Its utter
decay and extinction, under these circumstances, can
only be a question of a further slight extension of time.
What the Comunn Gàidhealach and its friends
should therefore now do is, obviously, to carry the war
into that part of the country which comprises the great
glen, and adjoins thereto, tohilst yet there is time. They
should at once seize, as it were, all the passes and
strategical points of that country, and hold them, for all
that they are worth, in the interests of the Gaelic
language and nationalism. The language is dying fast in
the great glen and neighbouring territories; but
sufficient remains to form a casus belli, as it were, and a
means whereby the Gaelic tongue might yet be
preserved to future generations of Highlanders. Mods
and conferences are all very well in their way, but unless
they bring their lessons home to the people at large, they
are bound to result, sooner or later, in merely so much
wasted effort. The people, especially the inhabitants of
the mixed-speaking districts, must forthwith be
informed and instructed, and the whole " movement "
brought into line with the principles of the "Welsh and
Irish language propaganda. Organisers must be sent
them, who should explain and expound the gospel of
nationalism; and, then, when public opinion is ripe for it,
the language itself must be introduced into the schools.
All this requires, of course, the sinews of war; and,
doubtless, the existing resources of the Comunn are
quite inadequate to cope with so great an effort. But
surely the opening of a national subscription list in Scotland (and wherever Scots congregate throughout the
world) in behalf of the Gaelic language is a measure
which lies well within the limits of the province and
capacity of our Celtic societies. Our Irish kinsmen collect
through this channel several thousands of pounds a year
to help them in their language crusade. I am loath to
believe that the Gaels of Scotland, Canada and
elsewhere would prove themselves one whit less
generous and patriotic, in the event of a similar appeal
being addressed to them.
A SCOTTISH EDUCATIONIST.
SEACHD MOR MHAOIR NA H-ALBA
(Air a leantainn)
So againn, uime sin, Seachd Roinnean na h-Alba, a rèir
Giraldus Cambrensis, maille ri Seachd Roinnean a bha
fo uachdrannachd dhoibh :
Athol
1
Gabharaidh J
Aonghas
\
something be done within the next few years, to check
the decay of the language, in no long space of time Gaelic
will have ceased to exist in those districts, and a large
and important part of Alba will cease to be truly
national. Once the great glen and the neighbouring
countries have been thoroughly Anglicised, it stands to
reason that we shall then be within measurable
distance-of a time when Gaelic will be confined to the
Seachd
Mòr-mhaoir
na
h-Alba
12
7
Magh-Chirchinn no Moern J
Srath Eirinn \
Menteith
J
Marr \
Buchan J
Fiofa
1
Fothreve J
Moiridh \
Ros
J
Gallaobh
\
Citra montem et Ultra montem ) Thugamaid
fainear, a nis, an clàr-ainm so. Tha e cinnteach gu'n
robh na roinnean so uile 'n am mòr-roinnean na h-Alba o
chionn fada. Tha Athol,
Aonghas, Fortrenn (is a sin Srath Eirinn is Men-teith),
Marr, Fiofa agus Moiridh air an ainmeachadh gu tric
anns na h-eachdraidhean Eirinneach; agus, tha
Mor-mhaoir nan roinnean so air an ainmeachadh gu
tric, mar an ceudna, anns na leabhraichean ud.
Beachdaichidh sinn air na roinnibh uile ann am beagan
bhriathran.
Cha 'n 'eil dad sam bith thaobh Ghabharaidh anns
na h-eachdraidhean Gàidhealach, ged a tha e comasach
gu'n robh an leithid sin do roinn ann, an uair a bha Alba
an seilbh nan Cruithneach. Tha sàr fhios agam, co dhiu,
nach 'eil iomradh air bith air Mor-mhaor Ghabharaidh
anns na h-eachdraidhean a bhuineas do na Gàidheil, no
anns na h-eachdraidhean a bhuineas do na Sasunnaich.
Bha Buchan, gun teagamh, 'n a aon do roinnibh na
h-Alba, ged nach 'eil iomradh air, no air a Mhòr-mhaoir
anns na h-eachdraidhean a bhuineas do na
h-Eirionnaich. Gidheadh, tha fios againn gu'n robh e, a
dh'aindeoin sin, 'n a roinn na h-Alba bho Leabhar nan
Deur, anns am beil mòran iomradh air, 's air na
Mòr-mhaoir a bha os a chionn.
A thaobh Fhorthreve, cha 'n 'eil iomradh air anns na
h - eachdraidhean Gàidhealach. Tha e comasach gu'n
robh a leithid sin do roinn, agus Mor-mhaor mar an
ceudna, ann ; ach cha 'n 'eil fios cinnteach sam bith
againn umpa.
Bha Ros, mar a bha Buchan, gun teagamh 'n a aon
de roinnibh na h-Alba, ged a b'e "Iarla" Uilleam a' cheud
Mhòr-mhaor a bha os cionn na dùthcha sin, a tha
aithnichte do dh'eachdraidh. Bha an t-Uilleam so ann
anns a' bhliadhna 1153.
A nis, ann am bheachd-sa, is e an ni a's neònaiche a
thaobh
a'
chlàr-ainm
so,
a
neo-iomlanachd.
Cuimhnichidh, guidheam oirbh, nach 'eil d'thubhairt an
t-Easbuig Aindrea (a bha 'n a Easbuig an Gallaobh) gu'n
robh Alba air a roinneadh mar sin 'n a làtha-sa, ach gu'n
robh e air a roinneadh mar a thubhairt e, còrr agus mile
bliadhna roimh sin.
Tha Scene ag ràdh, "is urrainn duinn a chur an cèill
coig as na seachd roinnean " ; ach cha 'n urrainn da, no
do neach sam bith eile innseadh dhuinn gu pongail an
cruth a bha air an dùthaich so 'nuair a bha i air a
roinneadh le Cruithne agus a mhic.
Anns na làithean
sin, bha priomh-mhuinntir na h-Alba ann an làn-seilbhe
air an dùthaich so air fad.
Bha Earraghaidheal agus
na h-Eileannan air an àiteachadh le Gàidheil; agus cha
d'thàinig na Pàganaich fhathast o Loch-linne gus an
dùthaich so an toir air creich, agus suil aca criochan
ceann tuath na h-Alba a chur fo smachd. Aig an àm
ud, bha Alba air fad aig na Gàidheil; agus, mar sin, ma
bha an dùthaich so air a roinneadh mar a thubhairt an
t-Easbuig Aindrea, na h-eachdraichean agus mòran eile,
nach e tha h-anabarrach iongantach gu bheil an
sean-sgeul so mu Chruithne agus a mhic ag innseadh
dhuinn dad sam bith thaobh Earraghaidheal agus nan
Eileannan? Na tha Scene ag ràdh anns an leabhar ris
an canar, The Highlanders of Scotland, nach 'eil sin gun
teagamh fior ? " Tha 'n diubhras so (ars esan, thoiribh
fainear gu'm beil e 'labhairt mu'n dà chlàr-ainm a bha
air an cur a mach le Giraldus Cambrensis), a' cur an
cèill gu solleir an dà linn air leth d'am buin iad. Tha a'
cheud chlàr-ainm a' fagail a mach Earraghaidheal: tha
'n dara clàr-ainm a' gabhail beachd air Earraghaidheal,
ach tha e 'fagail a mach Gallaobh. Rinn an naothamh
ceud linn na caochlaidhean sin ann an Alba a chuir
soilleireachadh air an diubhras so. Chuir a' bhuaidh
Ghàidhealach anns a' bhliadhna 843, Dail Riada ri Alba;
agus mu dheireadh na linne sin, thuit
Gallaobh fo smachd uan Lochlannaich. _ Tha 'n dara
clàr-ainm, uime sin, a nochadh gu soilleir nan roinnean
a bha aig Righ na h-Alba an deigh an naothamh ceud
linn. Tha a' cheud chlàr-ainm a' deanamh deilbh a
thaobh rioghachd nan Cruithneach a tha ceart cho
firinneach ris an fhear eile, agus tha e roimh a' bhuaidh
a thug Gàidheil na h-Eirinn air an Earraghaidheal. Tha
na Seachd Boinnean air a' cheud chlàr-ainm a' nochdadh
gu soilleir seilbhean nan Cruithneach. Is i a' chuid a tha
air a' fagail a mach gu ceart a' chuid sin a bha aig na
Dail Eiadianaich. Agus tha so ro chudthromach ; oir tha
e 'dearbhadh gu'n robh pairteachadh air na Seachd
Roinnean dualach do na Cruithneach, agus gu'n robh e
aig bun rioghachd na h-Alba."
Ach, mo thruaighe! air son na tha de fhirinn anns a'
bheachd so (a chur Scene a mach le leithid do stri),
bhuin pairteachadh na h-Alba, a tha air ainmeachadh
anns an t-sean sgeul mu Chruithne agus a mhic, do'n
choigeamh linn roimh Chriosd. Ach tha e so-fhaicinn, a
nis, gu'm buin an sean sgeul so do'n ochdamh, no do'n
naothamh ceud linn; oir cha 'n 'eil e a' gabhail beachd air
Alba, nuair a bha i air fad ann an seilbh nan
Cruithneach!
So againn ni eile thaobh an t-sean-sgeil so mu
Chruithne a tha cur an cèill a shuarrachas mar
eachdraidh fhirinnich. Cha 'n 'eil an clàr-ainm a chuir
Giraldus a mach a' gabhail beachd air Leamhainn,
Mòr-mhaorachd cho mòr agus cho aosda 's a bh'ann ann
an Alba gu lèir.
A rèir O'Flaithbheartaigh, bha a' Mhòr-mhaor-achd
so air a cur air cois le mac a bha aig Core, righ
Mhumhan ann an Eirinn; ach ge b'air bith ciod a
thubhairt easan, tha e cinnteach gu bheil an àrd-inbhe
so glè aosda. Bha i ann, gu cinnteach, an uair a bha
Cambrensis a' sgriobhadh, agus ma tha 'chuis mar sin,
carson nach d'rinn e iomradh oirre? Cha d'rinn e sin, rèir
na h-uile coslais, a chionn's nach b'urrainn da suim a'
gabhail dith, agus an sean-sgeul mu Chruithne agus a
sheachd mic a chur an cèill cuideachd. Cha b'urrainn da
an dà sgeulachd a dheanamh rèidh ri chèile.
Ach ged is maith a dh'fhaodas sinn teagamh
ghabhail a thaobh an t-sean-sgeoil so, cha 'n 'eil còir
duinn a bhi gabhail ris mar ni nach fiù, mar tha 'n
rannsachail- anns an Edinburgh Review a' deanamh. Tha
easan a gabhail ris mar ni aig nach 'eil bun sam bith.
Tha Bruce no na fir-taice a bh'aige ag ràdh gu soilleir,
gu'n robh '-les Seet Countes d'Escoce" ann an uair "il
avoit guerre entre le Roi de Engleterre et le Roi d'Escoce
. . . que les Seet Countes d'Escoce feussent tenus de
serment," etc., etc.
A nis, tha e cinnteach nach robh comas aig Bruce, no
aig na fir-taice a bh'aige sgeul bhreug de'n t-seòrsa so a
chur a mach. Tha iad a' labhairt mu thimchioll nan
"Seet Countes d'Escoce" air dòigh tha nàdurra gu leòir,
agus ge b'e air bith luach a th'air an eachdraidh a
sgriobh iad, tha e cinnteach gu'n robh iad a' labhairt mu
rud èiginn air an robh na h-uile fear fiosrach an uair a
bha iad a' labhairt mu thimchioll nan " Seet Countes
d'Escoce". Cha 'n 'eil Seachd Mòr-mhaoir na h-Alba, no
na "Seet Countes d'Escoce" air an cur air chois an uair
an connsachadh airson caithir-rioghail na h-Alba a' dol
air aghart, is e sin ri ràdh, air do Bhan-righ na h-Alba
bàs fhaotainn an uair a bha i air turas a dh'ionnsuidh
na h-Alba.
Anns a' bhliadhna 1250, an uair a bha corp Ban-righ
Mhairearaid air a ghluasad as an àite anns an robh e
gus an ionad-ciùil aig Dun Phàrlain,
132
Seachd Mòr-mhaoir na h-Alba
tha e air a ràdh gu'n robh an gnothuch sin air a ghabhail
os làimh an làthair nan "Septem Epis-coporum et
Septem Comitum Scotiae". Anns an ath bliadhna,
rinneadh casaid air Dorsair an Righ do bhrigh gu'n
d'fheuch e a bhean a chur suas mar bhan-oighre
dhligheach agus laghail na rioghachd, agus air an dòigh
sin a dheanamh greim air a' chathair-rioghail i fèin.
Rinneadh casaid air Rob Dhun Phàrlain aig an àm
cheudna a chionn gu'n d'rinn e oidhirp air a' chomh-run
so a chuideachadh. Air an aobhar sin, cha d'thugadh
seachad an Seul Mòr do Ghamelin, a bha 'n a mhorair
nan Seul a bha 'n a fhear-leantainn dha; ach bha e air a
bhriseadh 'n a bhloighdean an làthair nam flàithean a
bha an ceann a chèile aig an àm sin; oir chur iad Rob as
àite a chionn gu'n d'rinn e droch ghrèidheadh air an
t-seula.
Cha 'n 'eil fhios againn an robh a' chasaid so air a
bunadh gu math, no nach robh; ach na 'n d'fhuair
Dorsair an Righ ceartas a mhna air agradh, 's e an ath
cheum a ghabhadh e a bhi a' cur air aghart na còrach a
bha aig a nighean air crùn na h-Alba.
Gun teagamh, cha bhiodh comas no cead aige am
feasd air Morairean na h-Alba "a chur air chois air son a'
ghlacaidh eucoraich so "; ach, mar tha Robertson e fèin
ag ràdh gu math "cha 'n 'eil e do-chreidsinn gu'n
deanadh e oidhirp ' Cùirt Sheachd Mòr-mhaoir na h-Alba
'a thoirt air ais, no a chur air chois gus an glacadh
eucorach so a dhaingneachadh". Bha Seachd Mòr-mhaoir
air an suidheachadh an toiseach anns a' bhliadhna 1250,
agus anns a' cheart ath bhliadhna, rinneadh casaid an
aghaidh Dorsair an Righ. " Tha 'n comh-chordadh so,"
arsa Robertson, " eadar an aon chùis agus am fear eile
glè shonraichte, gu h-àraid ma
The Celt in Spain
r33
tha sinn a' beachd-smuaineachadh (mar bu chòir
dhuinn) gur e Bruce, aon de na fir-taice a bu mhò a bha
aig Dorsair an Righ; agus gur e easan a chur an cèill e
fèin, an deigh sin, mar aon de na luchd-leanmhuinn a
bha aig "Seachd Mòr-mhaoir na h-Alba."
Tha aobhar maith againn a bhi saoilsinn gu'n do
thagh muinntir na dùthcha so o chionn fhada an Righ air
son fèin, no, an àite sin gu'n do ghabh iad ris, air dha
'bhi air a chur air chois dhoibh le "Morairean na h-Alba".
Tha e comasach, gu dearbh, gu'n do thaghadh an Righ le
"Riaghladairean Sheachd Roinnean na h-Alba " aig
amannan na's traithe na sin; ach a thaobh eachdraidh
na h-Alba an deigh linn Chaluim a' Chinn-mhòir, cha 'n
'eil iomradh againn air comunn no còir sam bith de 'n
leithidibh sin.
CiARiAN MAC CHTARIAN. (Ri
leantainn.)
THE CELT IN SPAIN
THAT brilliant historian, Martin Hume, observes very
truly that each race, each civilisation, which in turn
reached the Spanish Peninsula, could get no farther, and
on that account was obliged, of necessity, there to stand,
fight, and finally to pass away before the social or racial
dispensation that supplanted it. The geographical
position of Spain sufficiently explains this just assertion;
for situated as it is at the extreme left of the European
continent, and nearly isolated by two seas and by the
steep barrier of the Pyrenees, it nevertheless constitutes
a central point to which successive immigrations were
propelled in the form of invading tides, drawn from all
quarters, from north, east, south, and, it is possible, even
from the west.
To a daring people, southward bound, the Spanish
promontory was the natural goal. Its Atlantic coasts
were constantly exposed to the roving incursions of the
primitive wanderers. The Gibraltar isthmus, which once
undoubtedly existed, connected in bygone ages the
African continent and the then marshy and sea-swept
islands which later came to be known as the Hesperia of
poetry. And when by incessant and mighty erosion that
link finally disappeared, the connexion with Africa was
destroyed and a formidable obstacle erected to the
progress of invasion from the South.
In spite, however, of that ancient link—the isthmus
formerly connecting the Peninsula and Africa— it has
been well said that Spain is one of the most highly
composite ethnographic groups that exist among the
western nations. And, certainly, prehistoric and historic
data account for no less than twelve principal invasions,
some of which have been subdivided into several
branches. There are traces on the Spanish soil of the
Neanderthal, or Canstadt, a man of low stature but
robust physique, who went from Central Europe to the
Peninsula. There are abundant proofs, also, of the
existence, within the same area, of the so-called North
African, a man strongly built, of great height and
dolichocephalic, who is believed to have entered Spain by
the isthmus of Gibraltar, and traces of whom survive
among the inhabitants of many localities, particularly
amongst those who presently inhabit the territory of
Andalusia. Moreover, sufficient evidence remains to
prove that a Turanian man of Asiatic origin reached
Spain after having over-run Syria, Phoenicia, Palestine
and Egypt,
Greece, a great part of Africa, the occidental coasts of
Europe, the British Isles and Sicily. History speaks of
yet another great invasion by a race akin to the Semite
(but its predecessor), which once about the fifteenth
century B.C. formed the vast Ibero-Lybian empire,
stretching from Asia and extending to both coasts of the
Mediterranean Sea down to the western end of the then
known world. And coming to historical times, we find
that the Phoenician plantation followed the Greek
establishment ; then came the Celtic conquest, the
Carthaginian occupation, the Roman dominion, the
various barbarian irruptions, and, last of all, the
Moorish subjugation.
Setting aside as of no practical account the pompous
theory of the existence in Europe of three sorts of
graduated beings, homo Europeus, homo Alpinus, and homo
Meditermneus—a theory invented, apparently, to flatter
the vanity of those who wish to be included in the first,
and, consequently, the superior group, we have instead
something less synthetic indeed, but a great deal more
intelligible and at the same time agreeable to fact,
namely, the opinion that out of all the different peoples
who from the beginning have occupied and possessed the
Spanish Peninsula, some have proved to be essentially
basic and some essentially dynamic. Some have proved
to be strata, amenable to fecundation by higher
civilisations, but impervious to despotism, absorption,
and, consequently, to destruction. Some indeed have
been conquered, the imperial sceptre has swayed over
their enslaved bodies—but it has been powerless, in
many cases, to subjugate their wills, or to exterminate in
them the consciousness of national honour and those fine
ideals touching liberty and ireedom which animate a
highly-strung independence-loving people. They may
have been temporarily depressed indeed; but their
subjection lasted so long only as the arm which kept
them down was possessed of its repressive force. They
seem to have had a strange recuperative power under
tyranny and misfortune, and have never been entirely
obliterated. They have always risen again after each
successive defeat, and asserted more strongly than ever
their peculiar traits. Why ? For what reason ? Let us
examine.
The two peoples which constitute the basis of the
Spanish nation are the Iberian and the Celt, who are
both of the same stock, although specialised during the
long period of their wanderings from their Asiatic
birthplace to their European home. They were brothers.
The Iberians, the elders, had been fertilised, as it were,
by reason of their long contact with the Egyptians, before
they came to the Peninsula, as is abundantly proved by
the evidence of their ceramic remains, which are
numerous in Spain. The Celts, the younger branch of the
same race, were already welded into a great empire in
the third century B.C. This empire comprised, to the
north, the territory now known as Germany, to the east,
the territory about the shores of the Danube and
Thracia, to the west it was bounded by the Atlantic
Ocean and the British Isles, and to the south it
comprised northern Italy, where the Celts came in close
contact and relation with some branches of the Iberians.
When both met in the Peninsula, the one as occupier of
the soil, the other as invader, neither of them was
greatly inferior to the other in respect of culture,
although the most advanced, generally speaking, were
those who had profited by the correspondence with
Egypt.
After warfare and considerable friction, they
amalgamated ; and, as anthropology expresses it, the
most energetic physically, invigorated the more ancient
race in different degrees, according to the proportions of
the numbers that became blended in the various regions
planted by the two peoples.
It is commonly said and believed, that the Celt came
into the Peninsula through the Pyrenees, not in one
particular invasion, but in a series of waves of
immigration—each successive invasion pushing the one
that had preceded it farther and farther into the heart of
the country, until at last almost the whole Peninsula
was laid under contribution by the Celtic immigrants.
When they were stopped they fought and conquered; and
then pushed on again, carrying with them their wives
and children, their cattle, sheep, and goods and chattels.
Where their numbers precluded conquest, they stayed as
friends, but only in a very few cases were they obliged to
withdraw altogether. Speaking generally, their numbers
thinned in proportion as they advanced from north to
south, the south and south-eastern parts of Spain being
those in which their influence was least felt; and as there
was necessarily to be a point at which the rival
influences of the two elements became neutralised, the
fable arose in due course of the existence of yet another
racial unit, to which the name of Celtiberians has been
given. But such was not really the case. There was no
essential difference between the social foundations on
which the two elements rested, which were then, as
always, substantially the same; and although it is
doubtless true that the two peoples presented many
points of difference, yet, as will be noted later on, their
sense of possessing a common origin (remote enough, it
is true) was never entirely eradicated from their minds.
The principal divisions of the Celts were : the Galaicos,
who were in possession of modern Galicia; the Astures,
inhabitants of Asturias; the Cantabros, who extended
from Villaviciosa to Castro-Urdiales; the Autrigones,
Vardulos
and
Vascones,
who
occupied
territory-corresponding to the Vasconian provinces,
Navarre, and part of Aragon; the Ilergones, Bargusios,
Lace-tanos, Suesetanos, Cerretanos and Indigetes, who were
planted from Huesca to Cataluna; the Edetwnos, who
established themselves in Valencia and part of Castellon
and Zaragoza; the Contestanos, residing in Alicante and
Murcia; the Twdetanos, who dominated the south of
Extremadura and the west of Andalusia; the Lusitanos,
holding nearly-all Portugal and part of Extremadura ;
the Vacceosr lords of Castilla la Vieja; the Celtiberos,
masters of part of Castilla la Neuva and Aragon; the
Vetones, who lived in the territory stretching between the
rivers Duero and the Guadiana, and were particularly
numerous in Extremadura, Salamanca, and Avila; the
Carpetanos, who settled in Toledo and part of Madrid and
Guadalajara; and the Oretanos, seated in Ciudad Eeal.
The Phoenicians and Greeks possessed as their own but
a narrow strip of the western sea-board of Spain, extending from Ampurias to Gibraltar. They had, also, another
small strip extending from thence to Cadiz. Segorbe, the
nearest Celtic possession, was no farther from the
Mediterranean than thirty ks.1 Càrtama, also Celtic, was
in the province of Malaga, and in the province of Cadiz
the Iberian stuck fast to his mountains.
There is no need of air-built theory in order to
1
About nineteen miles.
understand how it was that the Celtiberian successfully
resisted, throughout the ages, the various attempts that
were made either to destroy or to absorb him. It was his
lot to be chained to a great promontory, the approaches
and exits to and from which were most difficult to
negotiate. Even the very seas seemed to press together,
and to hedge in, as it were, the daring invaders, whose
acquaintance with the art of prolonged navigation was
but slender, and whose elementary knowledge of naval
warfare rendered them distrustful of the sea as a means
of escape from their precarious situation. Surrounded on
every side, and with no place to go to in the event of
attack, they had thus to conquer, or to suffer martyrdom
on the spot in which they had been born and bred.
Whilst in their infancy they resembled pilgrims. But
once they had definitely settled in the Spanish
Peninsula, they could not leave, closed in as they were by
obstacles on every side—obstacles to successfully
surmount which required far more art and address than
they were possessed of. But at the same time the
peculiar geographical conformation of the country
prevented them from being absorbed by new in-coming
peoples. When they were attacked they took refuge in
the hilly parts, which were admirably adapted for
defence. There they were safe, and at liberty to develop
their own character and social and political individuality.
A bird's-eye view of the Spanish Peninsula discovers
it to be a great promontory, which inclines from the
north to the south. In the centre is a table-land, now
made up of the Castiles and Extremadura, with slopes
falling abruptly eastwards and more gently westwards,
barred by huge mountains and further strengthened by
deep and intricate ravines. The highly civilised
Phoenicians who were established as merchants on the
coasts of Spain during the long period of over five
hundred years, undoubtedly imparted to the
Celt-iberians a considerable knowledge of agriculture
and the mining industry. From their establishments at
Erythia, Melkarteia, Malaka, Sexi, Abdera, Hispalis,
Gadei, Aibusos, Ituci, Olontigi and elsewhere, their
civilising and educational influence spread. But when
they attempted to penetrate into the interior, they found
themselves •confronted by the natives who united to
sweep down upon them from their mountain fastnesses
and secluded retreats. More sympathetic to the Greeks,
because these last were though less aggressive yet more
enlightened even than the Phoenicians, the Celtiberians
received from the Greek colonists political, religious and
moral teaching congenial to Celtiberian freedom of
thought and organisation. The Greeks never assumed
the ròic of conquerors, but played the part of friends and
helpers to the Celtiberian forces, and looked on
unconcerned whilst the great fight for the world's
mastership, initiated on Spanish soil, was being waged
between Roman and Carthaginian.
How these two great peoples battled, and how the
great Hannibal recognised and utilised the military
value of his Celtiberian allies, I do not propose to enter
upon here. Nor do I propose to discuss the Roman
victory, which after years of bloodshed and anarchy was
finally effected. Suffice it to say that the independence of
the natives was ultimately destroyed, and they were
obliged to pass beneath the Roman yoke. What is more to
my purpose, however, is to discover as much as possible
the causes that led to that defeat, and. to ascertain its
social and ethnological effects upon the conquered
people. Neither Phoenicians nor Greeks, it is clear, could
have made an enduring impression upon the Celtiberian
race, so far as the blood of that people was concerned.
The Phoenicians were discomfited as soon as ever they
tried to substitute the art of the warrior for the peaceful
employments of the merchant; and the Greeks
themselves inform us how careful they had to be to
guard against any appearance of hostility or any act
which might even indirectly seem to justify the suspicion
that they designed to dispossess the Celtiberian of his
lands and towns. More congenial to the natives than
either of these two races, the Carthaginians soon won a
way to their hearts by obliging themselves to respect
their laws and institutions, and by limiting their
demands to money and men in order to enable them to
carry on the war against the Romans ; and although they
brought from Africa vast numbers of soldiers and
labourers, they did not succeed in impressing their
peculiar and advanced civilisation upon the natives of
the Peninsula in general, although they undoubtedly
were successful in influencing the populations of
Andalusia. The Romans dominated Spain, as they did all
other countries that they subjected, by means of their
superior political insight.
The long centuries of bloody strife which they
imposed on Spain, prevented, no doubt, the free development of the primitive native institutions ; but the
Romans endowed the people with a purer and loftier
religion, and imparted to them the abstract idea of a
united nation, which was much superior to that
reflecting a state of society in which the
-cian system was the dominating, if not the only, social
and political factor; and as they had done all over the
world, in Spain also they subjugated and transformed in
the interests of civilisation and progress. What they were
powerless to effect, however, was to change the character
of the people they found in Spain. Inter-communication
was also difficult and frequently dangerous. And it was
in consequence of these disabilities that the political
growth of the Celtiberians gradually assumed the
character of an individualism which was modified only
by the pressing urgency of war and by the indispensable
intercourse of trade, for which latter purpose they used
to form themselves into confederacies. Although the
various degrees of civilisation in the Peninsula produced
-various types of society, the vast majority of the Spanish
people in those times used to live in small villages, as for
instance, the Lusitanos, the Celtici, the Galaicos and the
Astures. Where the population was more advanced, large
cities were built, as happened in the case of the
Turdetanos. These cities were intended primarily for
mutual protection and defence. But in every case, the
social foundation was the cian -the gentilitas of the
Romans— that is to say, groups of several families of the
same stock united and became bound by a common tie of
relationship, precisely as their kinsmen did in Ireland
and Scotland. Each cian, which was independent
politically, had its proper religion, its -own law and
government, which were wont to be regulated at the Mòd
or general appointed meeting-place of the cian. Various
clans used to band themselves together into a tribe or
mbr-tkuatha, precisely according to the ancient custom of
the -men of Eirinn and Alba. These large tribes were
essentially political organisations; and each was
provided with a capital, or fortified town, in which all the
people of the surrounding districts were wont to
congregate under the leadership of a chief controlled by
one or two assemblies —the Senatus and Concilium. The
various tribes, as I have already intimated, formed
together a federation, which was ruled by a chief or king
and by an assembly, and had its proper name. The
analogy between the state of society existing in Celtic
Spain and that which obtained in Ireland and Scotland
is thus practically complete.
Marriage amongst the Celtiberians was always
monogamous. The woman took a leading part in family
affairs ; and in many cases took as prominent a place in
the government of the town as the man himself. Society
was divided into the two " orders " —freeman and slave
or serf; and these again were subdivided into several
classes, as in Ireland and Scotland. The freemen
consisted of aristocrats and plebeians; but the
relationship existing between these two classes never
assumed a feudal character. The plebeian was
practically only a commoner, but his dependence was not
derived from a lord (as in Ireland and Scotland) but from
a city, where the aristocracy lived. Between chief and
follower there was the bond of a pact only ; and this pact
in the majority of cases was the Agermanamionto— that is
to say, an agreement by virtue of which the warrior
freely and unconditionally undertook to follow his leader,
to defend him at all hazards, and not to survive him in
warfare in the event of his chiefs falling in battle. Of the
strength of this1 connexion between lord and vassal—to
use convenient feudal expressions—we have abundant
proof in the eases of the two cities of Sagunto and
Numancia, whose inhabitants, after offering a lengthy
and heroic resistance to Romans and Carthaginians
respectively, voluntarily destroyed themselves, rather
than surrender at discretion to their enemies and
oppressors.
Martin Hume says, and says truly, in his Spanish
People that " notwithstanding the centralising
governmental conditions which the Roman system had
grafted upon the primitive town and village government
of the Celtiberians," it "had struck so little root in Spain
during six centuries, that long before the legionaries left
the country the centralised government had fallen away,
and the towns with their assemblies of all free citizens
survived with but little alteration from the pre-Roman
period.
No
centralising
governing
genius
of
Neo-Celtiberian blood continued the national traditions
introduced by the Romans, or endeavoured to employ
Roman methods to consolidate Spain into a civil
self-constituted nation; and by the time the Goths
appeared, all was clear for them to begin afresh on their
own lines." These lines, however, were at variance with
those of the Celtiberians, and here is the explanation of
the conspicuous fact to which the same accomplished
writer calls attention. " At first sight," he says, " it would
appear that such a system as this (the Gothic one) would
have been in entire accordance with the individualistic
instincts of the Spanish people; but this was not by any
means the case; and the permanent influence of Gothic
governmental traditions on Spain was comparatively
small. The individuality, so characteristic of the
Spaniard, arose out of a natural proud personal
independence and impatience of restraint by another
man; whereas the Gothic recognition of the individual
was in a great measure the outcome of the stage of civilisation the race had reached, and the peculiar road by
which it had reached it. The difference will be easily
appreciated by the readiness with which the Goth
accepted the Arian doctrine of predestination which
made the acts of the individual of no importance in his
spiritual evolution, while the Celtiberian from the first
fiercely asserted the individual responsibility and
rational independence of each creature towards his
Maker."
The Visigothic invasion had, in fact, very little
influence on Spanish culture. Inferior to their
predecessors, the Romans, in every respect, they
themselves adopted the Latin civilisation to the full
—preserving only their language—and soon came to be a
military aristocracy hateful to the Celtiberians. They
were unable to reshape their social structure by reason
of this fact; but the new intruders, if not directly, at all
events indirectly, reinforced the Celtic elements in the
Spanish population, which they did by two means, viz., by
the importation of great numbers of Celtic slaves from
Germany and the Danubian territories, and by a policy
of enforced segregation towards the greater part of the
old inhabitants—which latter policy they adopted in
order to break down the resistance of the natives. So
when the Goths, who gradually became absorbed into the
Spanish elements, settled themselves as a monarchy
which to a certain extent was national, they fell under
the influence of the native Concilium, in whose
constitution the prelate and the noble were the principal
governing factors. The monarch, it is true, was in every
case a Goth, and the military chiefs were also Gothic; but
it was precisely on this account that the Gothic rule was
eventually unsuccessful; for in the hour of trial and
danger, the appeal addressed to the subjugated people
met with little or no response, so far as their conquerors
were concerned.
There can be no other explanation of the rapidity of
the Mohammedan conquest. History records the fact that
the Arabs were invited, as a friendly party, to favour one
of the rival claimants to paramount political power. And
history also records the fact that at first the Arab
conquerors of the Peninsula respected the religion and
the national Customs of the vanquished. And so long as
the Moorish campaign assumed the specious character of
a kind of crusade in behalf of the re-establishment of the
royal prerogatives, and the restoration of the nobility to
their patrimonial properties, the progress of the invasion
was but slow; and the success which attended it but
partial. It was when the ambitions of the Arabs reached
the point of demanding unconditional submission on the
part of the Spanish people that the first real resistance
was offered, within the limits of what is to-day called
Castilla la Vieja .and Cantabria. Then Muza was obliged
to confirm what centuries before had been said by a
Roman consul touching the Spanish people : " They are
lions inside their fortresses and eagles on their horses.
They never lose the occasion, if favourable; and, defeated
and vanquished, far from finding dishonour in deserting
the battle-ground, climb up to their rough mountains
and fastnesses —there to recover themselves, and from
whence they swoop down again with renewed ardour,
and even greater bravery, for the fight." The eight
centuries during which the Peninsula was convulsed
more or less continuously, resulted in the consolidation
of Spanish nationality. To this end the Arabs
undoubtedly contributed through the channel of their
advanced culture and learning, especially during the
critical periods of the twelfth and thirteenth centuries.
From this time forward, the law and social life, with
but comparatively few relapses, began to revert to the
primitive national ideals. From that time forward began
to disappear the feudal system, which had never taken
strong root in Spanish soil, and in its place rose again
the town, the council and the count (the Gaelic
Mor-mhaor), which last was ever the true leader of the
people and the typically Spanish title. Then began that
great upheaval of the Spanish people, which was destined to sway a great part of Europe, and to carry the
principles and characteristics of our race to a new world
across the seas.
It is no easy matter to determine, theoretically even,
the psychology of a nation; but a few characteristics of
Spain and of the Spanish people may be postulated
without fear of error or exaggeration. The Spaniard of
to-day, as the Celtiberian of old, is a highly
individualised social unit. Individually, he has an
overwhelming sense of his own personality. He is
passionately attached to personal independence. He
resists strongly any form of discipline save that which
springs from his own innate sense of honour and
chivalry. He has a deep sense of his duties to his family,
his friends, his town, and his territorial region. He is
characterised by extraordinary endurance in the face of
hardship and adversity. He believes profoundly in the
equality of man -whatever the race, the colour, or people,
" we are all children of God," he says; and this is his
favourite sentiment. He is
Foghlum Naomh anns a Ghàidhealtachd 149
148
The Celt in Spain
also endowed with a high sense of courtesy, and of that
respect which he shows to others and expects others to
show to him.
As a social being, he is marked by a deep and
enduring affection for his family ; and the relations
between husband and wife are those of absolute equality.
In law, the common regimen is still the partnership, in
equal shares, of all profits accruing to husband and wife,
no regard being had to the actual or relative measure of
their respective properties. Thus the Celtic system is still
the foundation of Spanish law. Politically, the Spaniard
is characterised by his attachment to decentralisation—an extremely Celtic feature in his character
—and consequently by a certain disregard for the higher
solidarity of the nation. But this individualistic tendency
disappears in the face of a threatened national danger or
actual calamity, though in times past it must be allowed
that it operated very disastrously, plunging the country
into bloodshed and confusion as often as the higher ideal
was lost sight of, and the local divisions and dissensions
were allowed to be prosecuted in defiance of the common
danger. Fortunately, however, those days are over.
Purged and chastened by centuries of political despotism,
and sobered by the adversities which she has passed
through, the Spain of to-day would neither relish nor
tolerate any return to the ancient order of things. She
has now permanently founded the conception of Patria,
full of life and hope but purged of preposterous optimism,
illusion, and bravado, and is only anxious to be led into
the ways of peace and prosperity through the channel of
a wise and beneficent rule.
J. LABORDA.
150
Foghlum Naomh anns a' Ghàidhealtachd
Eachainn agus an Athair Grannda, an leabhar naomh
a's mò agus is feàrr a th'againn anns a' Ghàidhealtachd.
Bha an obair so air a cur a mach anns a' bhliadhna 1875
; agus tha mi 'n dùil nach 'eil an clòdh-bhualadh fathast
air a ruith a mach. Tha 'n eadar-theangachd so 'n a
deagh eadar-theangachd air an Sgrìobtur Naomh. Tha e
air a sgrìobhadh air dòigh a's ro thaithniche ann an
cainnt nan Gàidheal; agus, a bhàrr air sin, cha 'n 'eil
mearachdan clòdh-bhualaidh ann ach glè ainmig. Ach, a
nis, tha feum aig litreachadh na h-eadar-theangachd so a
bhi air a cheartachadh air chor 's gu'm bi i a rèir
litreachadh an là an duigh. A thuilleadh air sin, tha
feum aig na comharraidhean-fhocal a bhi air an
ceartachadh cuideachd. A rèir mo bheachd-sa, bha sùil
aig na h-eadar-theangairean ri nithibh àrda ; ach tha mi
'cur an teagamh ma rinn iad gu tur glic an uair a dh'fhàg
iad a mach na h-uibhir de chomharraidhean-fhocal, agus
an uair a cheadaich iad na h-uibhir de ghiorrachadh ann.
Bithidh fhios aig neach air bith air an ni a tha mi a'
ciallachadh leis na briathran so, ma ni e coimeas eadar
an da roinn a leanas, a thagh mise a thaobh tuairimeis
as an Sgrìobtur Naomh :—
N. Luc. xvi. CAIB.
19. Bha duine araid saibhir ann, a bha air eideadh
am purpur's an anart grinn, 's bha g-ithe gu soghail a
h-uile latha.
FOGHLUM NAOMH ANNS A'
GHAIDHEALTACHD
BHA ceasnachadh ann o chionn beagan mhiosan a
thaobh foghluim naoimh anns a' Ghàidhealtachd. Is e mo
bheachd-sa gu'n robh feum againn air, gu fior; oir tha a'
Ghàidhealtachd glè bhochd a thaobh nan nithe sin.
Bha e air a ràdh le cuid, gu'n robh mòran
leabhraichean naomha anns a' Ghàidhealtachd; ach tha
e 'cur mòran duilichinn orm ri ràdh gu'n deachaidh a'
chuid is mò de na leabhraichean so à clodh-bhualadh o
chionn fada.
Mur 'eil mi air mo mhealladh, cha 'n 'eil e comasach
do neach sam bith leabhar urnuigh Chaitliceach
'fhaotainn ann an Alba air an là an diugh. Tha e air a
ràdh le cuid nach 'eil iarrtas ann airson nan
leabhraichean so ; ach tha fios agam nach 'eil e mar tha
iad ag ràdh, agus gur mòran a tha ag iarraidh aig a'
cheart àm so nach biodh soirbheas sam bith aig na
leabhraichean so.
Thugamaid fainear a nis ciod a chaidh a dheanamh a
thaobh nan nithe so anns na h-àmannan a chaidh
seachad. Gun teagamh, bha roimh so, eud mòr ann
thaobh sgrìobhaidh ; agus bha mòran leabhraichean
naomh' air an cur a mach ann an Alba air son
Chaitliceaich na dùthcha so.
Cha 'n urrain domh ainmeannan nan leabhraichean
sin uile a thoirt seachad, a chionn 's nach 'eil iad aig mo
làimh an dràsda, agus tha iad ro ghann co-dhiù; ach
dh'ionnsuich mi cuid dhiubh air mo chridhe, agus mu'n
timchioll-san, bheir mi oidhirp air labhairt gu
h-aithgheàrr agus gu math.
Gun teagamh, is e an Tiomnadh Nuadh a bha air
eadar-theangachadh leis an Athair Mac
20. Agus bha diol-deirc ann dha 'm b'ainm Lasarus,
a bha 'na laidhe aig a' gheata lan dhreuchdan.
21. A miannachadh a bhith air a shasachadh leis
na criomagan a bha tuiteam bho bhord an duine
shaibhir, 's cha robh gin gan toirt dha; ach thainig na
coin, agus dh'imlich iad a chreuchdan.
22. Agus thachair gun d'fhuair an diol-deirc
Foghlum Naomh anns d Ghàidhealtachd 151
bàs, 's gun do ghiulaineadh e le ainglean gu uchd
Abrahaim. Us fhuair an duine saibhir e fhein bàs: agus
thiodhlaiceadh ann an iutharna e,
23. 'Sa togail suas a shuilean, nuair a bha e an
doruinn, chunnaic e Abraham fad as, agus Lasarus 'na
uchd.
24. Agus dh'eigh e, us thuirt e: Athair Abrahaim,
gabh truas dhiom, agus cuir Lasarus a thumadh barr a
mheoir an uisge gus mo theanga fhuarachadh, 's mi air
mo chràdh san lasair so.
25. Us thuirt Abraham ris : A mhic, cuimhnich gun
d'fhuair thusa nichean matha ri do bheo, agus Lasarus
mar an ceudna nichean olca ; ach tha e nis ann an sòlas,
us thusa an doruinn.
26. 'Sa bharrachd air so uile, eadar sinne agus
sibhse tha aibheis mhor air a suidheachadh, air nach
urrainn daibhsan dol thairis, a dh'iarras à so
h-ugaibhse, no tighinn a nall h-ugainn bhuaibhse.
27. Us thuirt e: Tha mi guidhe ort ma ta, Athair,
gun cuir thu e gu tigh m' athar :
28. Oir tha coignear bhraithrean agam, gus a thoirt
teisteanais dhaibh, eagal gun tig iadsan cuidheachd gu
àite na doruinne so.
29. Agus thuirt Abraham ris : Tha Maois 's na
faidhean aca: eisdeadh iad riusan.
30. Ach thuirt esan : Cha n-eadh, athair Abrahaim,
ach ma theid aon gan ionnsuidh bho na mairbh,
gabhaidh iad aithreachas.
31. Us thuirt e ris : Mur eisd iad ri Maois agus ris na
faidhean, cha mhua chreideas iad, ged a dh'eireadh
neach bho na mairbh.—An Tiomnadh Nuadh, 1875.
So againn a' cheart roinn cheudna mar is còir dha bhi
air a sgrìobhadh:—
19. Bha duine saoibhir àraidh ann, a bha air 'eideadh
le purpur, agus anart grinn, 'sa bha ag ithe gu soghail a
h-uile là.
152 Foghlum Naomh anns a Ghàidhea'ltffiM
20. Agus bha diol-deirc ann, d'am b'ainm Lasarus, a
bha 'n a laidhe aig a' gheata lan chreuchdan.
21. A miannachadh a bhi air a shàsachadh leis na
sbruileach a bha a' tuiteam o bhòrd an duine| shaoibhir,
agus cha robh gin 'gan toirt dha; ach! thainig eadhon na
coin, agus dh'imlich iad a chreuchan.
22. Agus thàrladh, gu'n d'fhuair an diol-deirc bàs ;
agus gu'n do ghiùlaineadh air falbh e le] ainglean do
uchd Abrahaim. Agus fhuair anj duine saoibhir bàs, mar
an ceudna, agus thiod-J laiceadh ann an iutharna e.
23. Agus ann an ifrinn, thog e suas a shuilean, agus
e an am piantan, agus chunnaic e Abrahamj fada as,
agus Lasarus 'n a uchd.
24. Agus ghlaodh e, agus thubhairt e, Athair
Abrahaim, gabh truas dhiom, agus cuir Lasanta Ios gu'n
tum e bàrr a mheoir ann an uisge, agus] gu'm fionnairich
e mo theangadh; oir tha mi ann] an doruinn anns an
lasair so.
25. Agus thubhairt Abraham ris. A mhic, cuimhnich
gu'n d'fhuair thusa nithean math rè] do bheò, agus
Lasarus, mar an ceudna droch nithean; ach a nis tha e
ann an sòlas, agus thusa ann an doruinn.
26. Agus a bhàrr air so uile, eadar sinne agus sibhse
tha doimhne mhòr air a suidheachadh airj chor agus
iadsan le am b'àill dol as à so do 'ur] n-ionnsuidh-se,
nach urrainn doibh ; agus nach mò] a dh'fhaodas aon air
bith tighinn thairis as a sin! d'ar n-ionnsuidh-ne.
27. Agus thubhairt e: Tha mi a' guidhe ort mata,
Athair, gu'n cuireadh tu e gu taigh, m'athar.]
28. Oir tha coignear bhràithrean agam, Ios gu'n toir
e teisteanais dhoibh, air eagal gu'n tig iadsan,ì mar an
ceudna, do àite na doruinne so.
Foghlum Naomh anns a' Ghàidhealtachd 153
29. Agus thubhairt Abraham : Tha Maois agus na
faidhean aca: eisdeadh iad riusan.
30. Ach thubhairt easan : Ni h-eadh, Athair
Abrahaim; ach ma thèid aon d'an ionnsuidh o na mairbh,
gabhaidh iad aithreachas.
31. Agus thubhairt e ris : Mur 'eisd iad ri Maois agus
ris na faidhean, cha mhò a chreideas iad, ged a dh'èireas
aon o na mairbh.
Dh'eadar - theangaich, mar an ceudna, an t-Athair
Mac Eachainn (a bha '11 a eadar-thean-gair air an
Sgrìobtur Naomh) An Cath Spioradail, le Scupoli. Bha an
obair so air a cur a mach ann am Peart, anns a'
bhliadhna 1835, ach chaidh e à clòdh-bhualadh o chionn
fada. Tha eiseamplairean an leabhair so ro dhuilich ri
fhaotainn aig an àm so. Chuir an Sagart easgaidh,
ionnsuichte, ceudna, eadar-theangachd a mach air De
Imitatio Cristi, le Tomas à Cempis, ann am Peart, anns a'
bhliadhna 1826. Mheal an leabhar, sin, mar an ceudna,
meas mòr o shluagh na Gàidhealtachd, ach, mo
thruaighe! tha e 'nis mar a tha iomadh leabhar math
eile air an là an duigh—is e sin ri ràdh chaidh e à
clòdh-bhualadh o chionn fada.
A bharrachd orra so, chuireadh a mach
Leabhar-Cheist ann an Inbhirnis anns a' bhliadhna 1869.
Chlòdh-bhualadh a rìs an obair so o chionn ghoirrid ;
agus is e an Leabhar-Cheist a tha 'san fhasan air feadh
dùthaich nan Gàidheal aig an là an diugh.
A thaobh Leabhraichean - Urnuigh, chaidh iomadh
seorsa a chur a mach anns a' Ghàidhealtachd 0 àm gu
àm; ach chaidh iad so uile, mar an ceudna, à
clòdh-bhualadh o chionn fada. Gun teagamh, is e an
Leabh-TJrnuigh, ris an goirear Iul a' Chrìostaidh, a
rinneadh leis an Easbuig Abareadhain, agus leis an
Easbuig
Earraghaidheal
*s
nan
Eilean,
an
Leabhar-Urnuigh a's feàrr a th'againn, ach tha
eiseamplairean na h-oibre so ro
154 Foghlum Naomh anns a' Ghàidhealtachd
dhuilich ri faotainn a nis. Chuireadh a mach
clòdh-bhualadh air an Leabhair-Urnuigh so ann an
Canada o chionn ghoirrid; ach tha e làn de mhearachdan
clòdh-bhualidh.
Chuireadh a mach Ordo Missce ann an Dun-eideann
anns a' bhliadhna 1877; agus chuireadh a mach air
feadh nan ceud bliadhna deireannach, beagan de
dh'oibrichean naomha ; ach mu thimchioll nan
leabhraichean so cha 'n 'eil feum againn 'innseadh gu
poncail an dràsda. Gideadh, tha feum agam ri
ainmeachadh an so an deadh Leabhar-Luaidh a chuir a
mach an t-Athair Mac Dhòmhnuill à Erisgaidh o chionn
ghoirrid.
Bha, air lorg sin, eud mòr ann, a thaobh nan nithe
sin, anns a' Ghàidhealtachd anns an àm a chaidh
seachad; ach, mo thruaighe! ciod tha sinn a' deanamh a
nis ? Tha e 'cur mòran dorain orm ri ràdh gur e beagan
gu fior a tha sinn a' deanamh anns a' ghinealach chum
foghlum naomh a' chumail fa chomhair muinntir
Caitliceach na Gàidhealtachd. Leugh sinn anns an
àireamh dheireannaich de Ghuth na Bhliadhna mu'n ni a
tha muinntir na h-Eirinn a' deanamh a thaobh nan
nithe so; agus is còir dhuinn gluasad agus car a chur
dhinn cuideachd.
Tha mòran oibrichean math againn, agus, ann mo
bheachd-sa, is math is fhiach a' chuid a's mò de na
leabhraichean so a bhi air an ath chlòdh-bhualadh, agus
air an cur a mach cho luath agus is urrainn duinn. Nach
'eil e 'n a nàire agus 'n a mhasladh gu'm biodh e
neo-chomasach do Gàidheal na h-Alba, a tha 'n a
Chaitliceach, Leabhar-Urnuigh fhaotainn ann an
Gàidhlig, anns an dùthaich so? Tha mise 'foighneach
oirbh, cia an dùthaich eile air feadh an t-saoghail gu
lèir, anns am fuiligeadh sluagh na nithe so ? Tha e air a
ràdh, agus sin gu math, gu bheil aobhar creidimh agus
aobhar dùtcha 'n an aon aobhar; agus nach 'eil e
comasach do
Tobar na Reil
neach sam bith fear dhiubh a dhearmad gun dearmad
ni's miosa a dheanamh air an fhear eile-Is e creidimh
agus cànain maoin dhligheach choitchionn nan Gàidheal;
agus is e an dòigh a's-feàrr a th'ann, agus a bu chòir a
bhi againn, an t-aon a' chumail suas le brosnachadh an
fhir eile.
IAIN MAC AN ABBA.
TOBAR NA REIL
RIGHT at the summit of the pass it lies, nothing; above it
but the sky. On every side the billowing heath-clad hills
engirdle it about. Flat stones encircle it, and on its
surface water spiders walk. Red persicaria, with wax-like
stalks and ragged leaves, grows by its edge. Below it
stretches out. a vast brown moss, honeycombed here and
there with black peat hags, and a dark lake spreads out,
ringed on one side with moss, and on the other set like a
jewel in a pine wood, with a white stretch of intervening
sand. On it are islands with great sycamores and
chestnuts, stag-headed but still vigorous, and round
their shores the bulrushes keep watch like sentinels.
Mists rise from moss and lake and creep about the
corries of the hills, blending the woods and rocks into a
steamy chaos, vast and unfathomable, through which a
little burn, unseen, but musical, runs tinkling through
the stones. So at the little bealach the well lies open to
the sky, too high for the lake mists to touch it, as it looks
up at the stars.
They say that on a certain day in midsummer,, a star
when at its zenith shines into the well. Which the star is,
if Rigel or Algol or Aldebàran with his russet fire, is
clean forgotten, for nowadays-tradition has scant place
in men's imagining. He who looks on the water at the
fateful hour, and sees the star reflected in the well,
acquires again the ancient universal tongue, by which in
ages past men and the animals held speech. For him the
language of the birds becomes intelligible. The trees that
groan or whisper in the breeze divulge their lore, and
disclose all that they have seen in their long peaceful
lives. Fish in the rivers and the lakes have no more
dread of him, and, rising to the surface of the linns, tell
him the marvels of the deep, whilst snakes and lizards,
with newts, the moles and bats, impart their troubles or
their joys, making their little secrets plain, by the
strange virtues of the mystic star transmitted through
the well.
There is no record of any one who, having drunk,
obtained the power and straightway got into
communication with all animals and things. No doubt if
at the appointed hour the fountain had turned all to
gold, a town would have arisen on the pass, and Baal's
Tobar na Reil
Tvell slept on, having for its one tragedy the fight
between the Grahams of Menteith, and Stuarts on a raid
from Appin, whose leader's head, struck by a sword-cut
from his body at a blow, rolled down the pass, calling out
imprecations even after death.
With the exception of this brief tragedy, history the
well has none. Its very name means nothing to the men
who now inhabit where once its namers dwelt. The
legend lives as a tradition, to be laughed or wondered at,
according to the attitude of mind of him who hears it, for
priesthood or an aristocracy would have reserved the
right to drink and gaze upon the well, and temples of
Algol or Alde-bàran would have sprung up as if by
magic from the hill. But man, who lives an outcast from
all living things, cut off by pride and want of sympathy
from beasts and birds, and careless of his own connexion
with the world except so far as it may bring him the
twin curses, wealth and power, which have combined to
make him vile, cared not for such a gift. So trees and
animals and beasts, with stones and streams, watched
vainly every recurring year throughout the centuries for
some adventurer who should break through the bonds
which held the self-crowned monarch of the world in
silence, condemned for ever to live dumb but to his own
kind's speech, whilst on all sides secrets he never
dreamed
Tobar na Reil
157
of were waiting to be heard. So as a Highlander went
past, driving his cattle from the low country in
Menteith, or in the summer evenings a group of men
wrapped in their plaids, with curly hazel shepherd's
sticks, and carrying long single-barrelled Spanish guns,
trotted along the steep and winding path, their deerskin
shoes making no sound upon the stones, the rabbits
sitting at their holes watched them expectantly. The
birds upon the branches turned their round heads and
looked towards the well. The trees and plants and
heather on the hill seemed to sigh softly in the summer
air, as if inviting them to halt until the mystic star
should rise, then drink and break the spell.
But they, absorbed in the affairs of life, which lead
men onward prisoners to the grave, discoursed of hogs
and pownie-beasts, of trysts and markets, and of the
price of hirsells and of queys. At times they stopped and
drank, but never lingered, scooping the water in their
palms or in their cuachan of birch-wood hooped with
silver, drawing their hands across their mouths, and
sometimes murmuring, "Aye, och aye, they say that
when a body drinks here, when the stars are up, he
learns a vast o' things, that's why they ca' it Tobar na
Reil, but I mind lying here aince o' a summer's nicht,
sleeping ye ken, after some awqua that I had doon by at
old McKurston's, and never learned a thing ".
And whilst they talked, the trees and stars,,
half-sleeping in the cold moon's light, listened but
drowsily, and all they heard was Angus answer Finlay, "
Och aye, McKurston just keeps the finest awqua that I
ever tasted no more, Finlay McLach-lan," and his
compeer and fellow-driver, looking up whilst kneeling by
the spring, would answer sapiently, "And neither did I
too". And so the
Tobar na Reil
159
education has new superstitions of its own, which have
expelled those of the older race. Who that to-day, when
all flee from responsibility as from the plague, who
would incur the burden of the sorrow of the trees, the
winds, the beasts ? for man aspires not to equality but to
command, by which, when he possesses it, he instantly
becomes an outcast from his kind.
Yet, had it been but for the pleasure of another
sorrow to his life, 'tis strange that no one quenched his
thirst, for joy is transient, whilst sorrow lives for ever,
and to prove sorrows yet unknown might have stirred
some one with imagination, had there been any such a
traveller on the road which winds by Glenny to the valley
of the Teith. And yet the district set with Sith-bhrughan
and with traditions of a fairy causeway in the lake, a
borderland of races in the past, a frontier where the
Lowland hob and Highland pixie met on neutral ground,
to dance up the green, seemed to invite experiment, and
call for its Columbus to explore a newer world than that
he saw in Guanahàni from his caravel.
A gentle world in which no hatred reigns; where envy
and all malice are unknown, where each one tells his
secret to his friend unwittingly, ^because the speech they
use is universal and without volition, and not as ours,
confined to persons and articulate. The speech that lives
in the clear water of the well, at the conjuncture of the
star, has no vocabulary, no rules, no difficulties, but he
who has it, speaks as does the wind, and saying nothing
in particular, is understood of all. Thus it can never lie, or
lead astray, and so is valueless to us, as valueless as gold
upon a desert island, with no one to enslave.
No one has claimed it since the first framers of the
legend paddled their coracles upon the lake; no one will
i6o
Tobar na Reil
Drink and admire, the motto says, upon the well in
far Marràkesh set among its palms. Above* the fountain,
built by some pious pilgrim, who! perhaps had felt the
desert's thirst and reared this] monument to the one
God—He who alone bringsi comfort in the sands—the
horse-shoe arch is blue! with pottery. Intricate patterns
marked in lus! trous tiles cross and recross each other,
and araa besques repeat some pious saw or play upon
God'sj name. Over the humble fountain on the pass.l
unknown to fame, the skies are canopy, and the] stars
set in them, celestial glow-worms of the] firmament,
which mark the hours the passers by! neglect. No pious
pilgrim there has hedged about! the spring with
masonry; no sculptured stone re-S lates its virtues, for it
serves but as a drinkina place for roe, who as they drink
admire and give] their thanks instinctively, wiser by far
than man.<j No one remembers the lone well among the
heath or cares for it, but to smile scornfully at the old!
simple legend of the past. In all the district] where it lies,
few know its bearings, and for the] name, refer to it "as a
sort o' Gaelic fash abootj a star; I mind my feyther kent
the meaning o' it,'t dismissing it at once as "juist a haver,
auncient but fair redeeklous, an auld wife's
clishmaclaver,"j beneath the notice of an " eddicated man
".
So it sleeps quietly upon the pass just where the road
descends to Vennachar and rises from* Menteith. Winds
sweep the bents and rustle in) the ling, setting the
cotton-grass a-quivering, bowing the heads of the bog
asphodel, and carrying, with them the sharp perfume of
the gale, sweeten and homelier than the spice of Araby.
In the dark mirror of the lake below, the priory, and
the castle hang head downwards, and on the] bulrushed
shore the wavelets break amongst the stones. The earl's
old pleasance, now neglected, is a park for cows, its few
surviving sycamores have withered at the top, and soon
will follow those who planted them into the misty region
of the past.
The well, the star, the scrubby oak copse on the hill,
the old Fingalian road, distinct in moonlight, or in the
morning after frost, for time itself appears unable to
efface the taint man's footsteps leave upon the ground,
claim it, or ever think but for an instant of the treasure
waiting to be grasped. Red-deer and roe and kyloes on
the hills are all born free of it, and swallows from the
south need no interpreter, but straightway tell their
travels to the birds who but a week ago have left the
pole, or to the weasels and the wrens who never
wandered more than a mile or two from where they saw
the light, and find themselves as much at home amongst
the scrubby copse, as they were, only a month ago, in
cane brakes and in palms.
But if the birds and beasts, the trees and grasses and
the stones, mourn the estrangement and the want of
faith of man, so does mankind feel vaguely its own
loneliness amongst created things with which it cannot
have communication, and before which it always must
be dumb. What tender idylls moss and lichens could
unfold, if only some one of the passers by throughout the
centuries had learned their speech, and taught his
children, taking them, as the most sacred duty in his
power, upon the star's appearance in its round, to drink
and learn, and thus transmit their knowledge to their
children, making them all hereditary dragomen by right
divine, betwixt their race and the creation of the beasts.
Gaelic Arts and Crafts
161
remain and call to the chance passer by to stop and
drink at the conjunction of the star. They call in vain,
and nature in the breeze still raises its lament,
uncomprehended by the ears of man, who, in his
self-forged fetters, fails to understand.
Fv. B. CUNNINGHAME GRAHAM.
I GAELIC ARTS AND CRAFTS
I. METAL WORK
'ON the subject of Celtic metal work a number of books
and articles have already been written, many of which
are deeply interesting and instructive. They are so
numerous, comprehensive and easily obtained that it
would be a waste of the reader's time to give more than
a few practical explanations of the technical side of this
art.
From numerous sources we know that far away ,in
the dim and distant past our forefathers possessed a
deep insight into and appreciation of the beautiful, as
well as a creative power of decoration that can hardly be
equalled, and certainly cannot be surpassed. And again,
when we read, no longer in those authors, but in the old
records left to us of their handiwork, of the different
materials they used as a medium for their art, our
admiration and wonder pass into reverence before this
display of careful and beautiful work. There is a
deep-souled patience about it all that is indescribable; it
becomes more than an art — it approximates religion!
But as I propose to consider our Celtic art from the
point of view of the craftsman only, I must needs limit
my remarks to the purely practical, and not indulge in
any lengthy panegyric on the period when Gaelic arts
flourished.
These old artists in the handling of their work teach
us a lesson which if we honestly learn it by heart will
surely abundantly repay us. They teach us the initial
principles of all good art, as applied to conventional
decoration—namely, proportion, exquisite spacing,
nicety of detail, and careful finish.
Of their marvellous imagination and originality,
their abundant and facile use of a prolific ornamentation,
we can have no adequate conception until after years of
careful and patient study. We may then begin dimly to
feel the endless subtleties which are so apparent in all
their work, the ease there, the slight stiffness here, the
unexpected movement of a line in another place—their
art is like a piece of exquisite music, or the meanderings
of a summer stream! To understand and interpret this
wonderful secret of their art becomes an enthusiasm. It
fills the student and craftsman with a passionate desire
to be able to reveal those secret beauties, and to
translate them into his own artistic productions. That
this love of the beautiful has not expired in the Gael I,
for one, am prepared to believe, though doubtless we owe
the survival of an artistic sentiment amongst us rather
to accident than to design.
When we examine our ancient missals, chalices,
brooches, etc., what impresses us most is the combination of qualities, essential to the highest class of
decoration, which they reveal —utility, beauty and
durability. The ancient Gaelic craftsmen worked
regardless of time, of everything, in fact, save the
immediate object on hand, and to this cause we must
ascribe the high level of excellence to which they
attained. Some of their brooches and shrines, in
particular, are of rare beauty and amazing originality.
Their creations were worthy to be handed down from one
generation to another, fitting testimonies to the skill and
patience shown in their execution.
How foreign to this spirit of enduring and passionate
attachment to their work are the slip-shod methods jf
to-day ! The contrast is truly melancholy Tawdry
jewellery, florid and vulgar designs, brooches of imitation
metal set with imitation stones, endless silver ware,
loaded with a meaningless entanglement of fruit, flowers
and scroll (all bearing the hideous impression of the
Brummagem or German die) meet us in every direction.
What a contrast between the serviceable and beautiful
ornaments of ancient times and the cheap and nasty
productions of to-day is here ! Of course, we still have
beautiful and well-executed work, but fashion exercises a
really wonderful influence over modern taste, and it is
the few who appreciate beautiful ornaments, or are able
to judge of the time and labour spent on their execution.
It behoves each and all of us, therefore, to protest against
the degradation of art, and to do what we can to revive
the old interest in and instinct for true beauty. And
this brings me
to the practical side of the question, touching which I
have been asked to make some suggestions, and to
tender some advice in the pages of this Review.
Now, practice is generally acknowledged to be worth
abundance of theory ; and beginners and all others whom
it may concern should bear this constantly in mind,
namely, that one good well-executed piece of work will
prove a better influence in the development of
self-culture and good taste than the mere reading of
dozens of manuals on the subject of art, or listening to
scores of lectures. To attain to a respectable proficiency
in metal work is not beyond any one's capacity provided
he has an instinct or liking for this branch of art and
possesses the necessary patience and perseverance to
bring to its cultivation.
There is no more fascinating occupation than that of
repousse work. Its advantages are obvious. It is a
permanent and easily handled medium, besides being
impervious to damp and rough usage, and the beginner
may apply himself to the clean flat sheet, just as it
comes from the dealer's store.
To go into every detail of practical metal work would
be superfluous when so many reliable and
well-illustrated text-books have been written by men
thoroughly conversant with the subject. Two of such
text-books I can cordially recommend— The Art of
Repousse by Gawthorp, costs Is., and Repousse and Metal
Chasing, by Charles Godfrey Leland (London: Dawbarn
and Ward, Ltd., 6 Farringdon Avenue, E.C.), costs 6d.
only. I find, however, that those experts overlook some
of the more simple difficulties that are apt to discourage
the beginner; and it is with a view to explaining away
some of those difficulties that I now give the following
hints.
Always work on a pitch board.
Procure a board about fifteen inches square. This is a
handy size to begin with. The wood should be about
three-quarters of an inch in thickness, with a one-inch
rim nailed round the sides, in order to prevent the pitch
when soft from running over the edges. The pitch, or
cement as it is usually called, can be made up at home,
or bought ready for use. If mixed at home the following
proportions will make a good cement: soft pitch 7 lb.,
tallow 1 lb., black resin 4 lb., bath-brick 6 lb. Mr.
Gawthorp, 16 Long Acre, London, or Mr. Davidson,
Repousse Craftsman, 93 Hope Street, Glasgow, will
supply pitch ready for use.
These preparations can be melted and mixed in an
old disused pot over the fire, care being taken not to let
it run over.
When the pitch is in a fluid state, pour it into the
board to the depth of three-fourths or seven-eighths of
an inch. Before it is quite set, and still soft at the
surface, lay the metal down on the pitch, previously
rubbing the under side with oil or fat of any kind. This
allows the metal, with the application of a little heat, to
be easily lifted. When laying down the metal on the
pitch press it from the centre outwards, in order to
exclude the air, and have a solid working surface. Let
the pitch run over the edges of the metal: this fixes it
down, prevents it rising when hammered, and saves the
trouble of nailing it down to the pitch board.
N.B.—Always allow a fair margin of metal over and
above the design you intend doing.
Work sitting at a strong low table ; and as the noise
of the hammering may be objectionable, the sounds can
be deadened by placing a bag half filled with sifted sand
under the board. For beginners, copper is preferable
to any other metal, having many of the qualities of
silver, and is softer and more sympathetic than brass. A
good working gauge is 22 B. W. G. A special art-copper is
now supplied by dealers.
This list of tools should be enough to begin with : a
repousse hammer, about one dozen assorted tracers,
punches and mats ; also a box-wood mallet for flattening
and raising the surfaces. Either Gawthorp or Davidson
would supply and select the tools. I may add here that
Mr. Davidson is not only a first-class craftsman, but an
excellent teacher. The beginner should start with a
simple design in order to gain experience and practice,
and with a small article such as a card tray or finger
plate. In this way experience is gained at little cost, and
one is not disheartened by mistakes, which always dog
the footsteps of the beginner. Your design being ready,
trace it and transfer it on to the metal with ordinary
carbon paper. Use an agate point for tracing, but a hard
pencil does just as well. Keep the tracing in its place by
a piece of modelling or soft bees-wax. Remember always
to make centre lines, both on the design and on the
metal; should your tracing shift, by this means you can
put it right at once. Another and more professional
method of transferring your design, if the drawing is
small and intricate, is to fix your drawing to the metal,
and then punch the outline through with a sharp point
using the hammer and making the dots strong enough to
mark the metal and close enough to reproduce the
design. Clean the metal with turpentine before beginning
to work.
What is most important is the correct holding of the
tools. Gawthorp's book has a diagram showing how the
hammer and tool should be held. On this depends a
distinct and steady line. With the hammer held in the
right hand, keep striking the tool rapidly and fairly, and
with the left make the tool slowly travel, producing an
even continuous line. These lines must not be made by
punching the tool into the metal and then lifting and
moving it before striking it again. A nice background is
obtained by tooling with mats.
When the novice makes his first attempt to work in
high relief, he finds some difficulty in knowing the part
he ought to repousse, and he, consequently, may strike
the wrong place. A simple method, showing how far the
work is advanced and what is still required, is obtained
by squeezing some modelling clay or modelling wax into
the depression, which on being carefully taken out at
once shows up all the relief, and the student sees exactly
what is wanted to complete the study. This process is a
very great help to the beginner. When your bit of relief is
ready for working on the face side, fill up the depressions
of the back with enough pitch to cover them. You can
take some from the board for this purpose ; then, holding
the metal with a pair of tongs over the gas or fire, heat it
until the pitch flows into all the hollows, and as soon as
it begins to set place it down on the pitch board again.
This is an easy way of obtaining a solid surface.
Many patent lamps are recommended to soften the
pitch. An ordinary fire does admirably, and, if an old mat
be laid on the hearth, to prevent a " mess " which, quite
unjustly, is always associated with the repousse
craftsman, this is perhaps the best and most convenient
way of heating your pitch.
If it be possible, obtain a few lessons from a practical
man; he will show you how to hold your tools, and how to
anneal, besides giving you many other useful hints.
Annealing is necessary when' the metal has been
hardened
and
made
brittle
by!
much
hammering—annealing brings it back to itsì original soft
pliable condition; in other words, the] metal is heated
and allowed to cool again.
In course of time enough confidence will be] acquired
to work in the precious metals. Re-: member that you can
make a brooch or buckle] from any of the old designs
whose beauty audi originality render them exceedingly
Gaelic Arts and Crafts
Our County Councils could do much to foster this
instinct among our young people in remote districts, by
supplying a teacher during the winter months who would
itinerate. A month's steady instruction would start those
who really are anxious to learn on the right lines, and for
those only would the instruction be of any permanent
use. It is a mere waste of time both for master and pupil
tempting toj the art metal-worker, especially to those
whosej ambition leads them to work in the more
precious] metals.
It seems strange that one should so often hear] the
question asked, " Where can we get designs ? 'j Celtic
designs, alas ! are neither taught nor undera stood in
our schools. Our schemes of decoration] often come to us
from the continent. I do nofl intend to comment upon or
to disparage any good] design, no matter where it be
obtained; but I dq earnestly wish to impress upon our
students that] at our very doors there is a wealth of
material foj designing purposes which any nation would
be] proud of, and would certainly use as a motif foe their
decorations. What could be more pleasing] than a simple
interlacing, relieved by bosses runl ning round the
border of a tray. Decorative panels] in endless variety
can be fashioned from the zoo4 morphic patterns found
in the old missals and on] the monuments, and from the
later foliaceoua patterns, of which we have so great a
wealth in] Scotland. The designs can be taken direct
from] the slabs by rubbings. The best way to make]
these rubbings is to place a piece of thin white] paper or
cheap cotton on the stone and rub over id with heel-ball.
This brings out the pattern in a wonderful manner,
often revealing what the eye cannot see.
Anderson's Scotland in Early Christian Times, Stewart's
Sculptured Stones of Scotland, Drummond's Sculptured
Monuments of Iona and the West High-elands, are full of
treasures to those who have not the opportunity of
drawing direct from the originals.
Our cities and populous districts have their 1
technical schools with competent masters, but our
scattered villages and lone shielings have no opportunity of obtaining regular instruction in the arts
and crafts. And it is in these remote places, and during
the long winter evenings, that there is plenty of leisure
to devote to a technical study. Apt and willing pupils
would find in the occupation a pleasant and absorbing
pastime, and the master, though he might not discover a
village Grindling Giddons, yet would be encouraged by
many a revelation of true talent and that peculiar
■aptitude and instinct for handling tools which has been
slumbering for centuries and seems to be inherent in our
race. I speak from experience, having been struck very
often with the true eye and nicety of touch which many
of our people possess, and which only require
opportunity and encouragement in order to bring
prosperity and happiness to the Highlands.
It is encouraging to hear of the start of industries
here and there amongst our Celtic neighbours. Their
establishment is a stepping-stone to the highest form of
craftsmanship. I have seen toys fashioned by the Lewis
children which are of very creditable workmanship—and
the children are taught by one of their own lads, hrho
has received a little training.
The Ideas of a Patriot Peer
17
j
if the latter does not earnestly wish to acquire skill in his
trade.
If those who have the means, and a love of the old art
of our country, would give a helping hand and encourage
the teaching and development of the crafts, then in our
stateliest homes, as in our humblest cottages,
machine-made ugly barbarous ornaments and utensils
would disappear, and in their place would be seen the
work of the hand again, the only true agent art ever
employs when her work is really beautiful.
Surely, a revival of the art of our country would not
be a passing phase—a whim of the moment? Our old
designs are so beautiful, so adapted to decorative
purposes, that if once they became popular they would
always remain so. The study of them would lead to the
turn of the tide; and our neighbours would come to us for
artistic schemes, instead of our going to them for ideas,
and thus before long would be silenced that monotonous
and melancholy cry, " Another industry gone ! " "
Another ancient art or craft the less !"— lost to us and to
posterity for ever, through apathy, and ignorance, and
criminal indifference.
A. R.
THE IDEAS OF A PATRIOT PEER1
Too often Biography is but superfluity, and posthumous
publications are but so many instances of blazing
indiscretion on the part of their well-meaning but
misguided projectors. At all times it is. extremely hard to
say what is worth preserving in respect of fugitive
essays, whose very character is sufficient indication of
their appropriate destination. The magazine article or
review possesses, as a rule, but a temporary interest. It
has served its turn, fulfilled its destiny, as it were, when
it Las temporarily arrested public attention, or pointed a
road to more serious and sustained investigation. To
republish it after the lapse of many years, to seek to
preserve it in more enduring and pompous form than
that in which it originally appeared, seems-to us both
superfluous and pedantic. Just as-comparatively few
men's lives are worth writing (though there is much in
the lives of even the most humble and obscure which is
interesting), so few men's fugitive writings are worth
republishing. Reprints, therefore, as Biography,
constitute a form of literary activity which, on
humanitarian grounds, should be severely discouraged.
They tend to develop and exaggerate in us that love of
publicity which, in the concrete form of book-making, is
the bane of the harassed reviewer's existence. What
might irreverently be styled Literary Resurrection Pie is
neither comfortable nor invigorating diet. Some good
folk, however, are apparently convinced that the best if
not the only way of preserving the memory of their
particular " star" is by republishing his fugitive pieces,
by submitting his literary
1 Essays on Home Subjects, by John Third Marquess of Bute,
K.T., LL.D. Paisley: Alexander Gardner, 1904.
remains, that is to say, to a process of gorgeous and
costly exhumation. Could these same well-meaning
persons be but persuaded to let well alone, to allow their
favourite author to go down to posterity in the form in
which he originally Appeared without further fuss and
trouble on their part, how much better and brighter and
pleasanter this world would be, particularly from our
(the reviewer's) point of view!
Obviously, however, there are exceptions. Some
authors are worth republishing (though their name is not
legion) down to their veriest trifles. They have an
ingratiating style ; a manner of stating their convictions
which is peculiarly their own, or they have improved or
inherited a habit of daring and original thought—such
gifts are enough for us, as for all reasonable men ; and we
cordially approve and welcome the inevitable limited
edition, the hand-made paper, wide margins, bold type,
and all the rest of it, with a feeling of gratitude, which,
though it may be quite unaccompanied with a sense of
favours to come, yet is not one jot or tittle the less
sincere.
We think that whoever is responsible for the
republication of these Essays—they originally appeared,
it seems, in the Scottish Review—has done wisely. The late
Lord Bute was an interesting figure, a scholar, and the
possessor of a by no means negligible pen. Moreover, he
was an attractive specimen of a class whose intellectual
extinction is now merely a matter of time, and on that
account alone, if on no other grounds, his appearance in
this form is justified. Considered merely as a Scots peer,
Lord Bute was, of course, an abounding prodigy; but
independently of his rank, his nationality, his wealth
and social position, we readily acknowledge him an
interesting and even in some respects a remarkable
figure. To-considerable reading he united experience, and
an acute, and for the most part accurate, observation.
Moreover, he had the literary quality in no common
degree. His prose, though nowise distinguished—much
less " precious "—is at all times easy and dignified, and
he had a wholesome horror of the commonplace and
contempt of certain familiar aspects of public opinion
which though they may have carried him too far at
times, yet are decidedly refreshing.
But it is principally as a peer -as a Scots
peer-especially—that Lord Bute deserves somewhat
more than a mere passing recognition. His scholarship,
after all, considerable though we allow it to be, was but a
drop in the vast ocean of European scientific thought;
and placed beside the greatest intellects of Christendom,
Lord Bute's light would have burned dimly indeed. But
set him on his proper pedestal, surround him with his
equals in birth, learning and accomplishments, and it
will at once be seen that Lord Bute's representation
constitutes a valuable and appropriate addition to that
distinguished and interesting gallery of portraiture of
which the list of royal and noble authors compiled by
Horace Walpole forms at once the nucleus and the
symbol.
These Essays are seven in number, and embrace a
considerable variety of topics. The first deals with the
subject of " Ancient Celtic Latin Hymns," and is a review
of the well-known Leabhar Imuiun, and the lesser known,
though
scarce
less
valuable-and
interesting,
Antiphonariwm Benchorense, a MS. belonging to the
Ambrosian Library at Milan. The contents of this essay
are principally descriptive, and do not call for any
particular remark. •Cuchuimne's (obiit circa 742) poem in
honour of our Blessed Lady should prove interesting
reading to] those Protestants who waste their time in
trying to collect material to bolster up an impossible
theory of "historical continuity" in support of their
peculiar religious standpoint, and supplies, as Lord Bute
justly remarks, "a proof of the feeling on the subject
entertained among the members of the ancient
Scoto-Irish Churches", j The next essay is one entitled "
The New Light upon St. Patrick," and like its forerunner
is a review of a book, in this case the Vita Sancti Pat-ricii,
edited by Father Hogan, S.J. We confess we find Lord
Bute's constant references to "Patrick M'Calphum "
somewhat irritating.
If Lord Bute's] design in so
stigmatising the Saint was merely to appear as a rigid
and unbending stickler for accuracy at all costs, he
should have taken the bull byl the horns and written the
appellation in Gaelicj " Patrick M'Calphum " is an
unnecessary piece of] affectation.
There is little in these two essays to excite remark.
They are interesting performances, andJ ■reveal Lord
Bute's learning in a favourable light,] though it cannot
be said that they constitute an] important addition to the
literature of the subj jects of which they treat. They are
rather in the] mature of pleasant excursions, whose
purely critical] intention and purpose are necessarily
primary] considerations with the author, whose faculty
of original and constructive work is here clearly seen]
operating in subordination to the exigencies of] :space.
We see more of the man himself, and lesa of the critic, in
the two following essays—"Tha Scottish Peerage " and "
Parliament in Scotland J
—and with these two papers we propose to deal at some
length.
The first of these essays is, in our opinion, the best.
Lord Bute was evidently well acquainted 'with his
subject when he sat down to write on ithe Scottish
Peerage, and being a thinker of considerable strength
and originality of view, his contribution to the literature
of that theme makes exceedingly interesting reading.
The subject, indeed, evidently possessed a melancholy
interest for Lord Bute, whose opinions on his order are
rendered additionally edifying by reason of the fact that
in politics he was a Nationalist. Thus, he deplores the
effects of the Union of 1707 upon the Scottish peerage,
and mournfully prognosticates [its total extinction at no
very distant date. " The Scotch peerage," says he, "cannot
be regarded as a body representing political power, any
more than Edinburgh Castle can be called a place of
military strength. They have both reached the point of
being almost purely historical monuments. . . . There is,
however, at least one respect in which the peerage of
Scotland differs widely from the ancient castle of her
metropolis. It is a monument which is rapidly crumbling
away." Lord Bute then proceeds to quote chapter and
verse for his statement; and considered in the light of
these depressing figures, we cannot but say that the
outlook seems gloomy enough. The nationality of the
peers—of the holders of existing peerages, that is to
say—is another subject which troubled Lord Bute. Some,
he finds, have been "victims of Hanoverian spite," of
which we do not in the least doubt; and somehow or
other have fallen away, in the persons of their
descendants, from the true salt of the earth. But Lord
Bute is evidently happy in finding one or two peers who
are (or were) genuine Scotsmen. For our parts, with the
exception of the late lord himself, we have not known or
met one such. Scottish peers, it seems to us, are no better
than Englishmen, which, indeed, is a disagreeable fact
which our author himself is obliged to acknowledge. "The
young peer very often indeed finds that his mother is an
Englishwoman, and she brings him up in her ways, ideas
and national tastes; then he is sent to England, and
educated in an intensely Anglican atmosphere, first at a
private school, then at a public school, then at an English
University ; then follows English society, probably
service in an English regiment [or in a ' Highland' one,
which is just the same thing], and when his own English
wife petitions for the small but elegant chapel [Lord Bute
is here referring more particularly to the religious
convictions of the peers], he is already 'an alien among
his mother's children'."
All this is trenchantly put, and we wish we could
gainsay it, but, alas! we cannot. The honour of one's
country occasionally compels the patriot to shut his eyes
to unpalatable or rather unsightly facts, at all events in
the presence of strangers; but here no amount of
sophistry or beating about the bush will avail us
anything. The peers of Scotland are Anglicised almost to
a man; and the best thing which we can wish ourselves
under these depressing circumstances is that they will
realise Lord Bute's delightful prediction as speedily as
possible and cease to exist. In Japan there is an
institution or custom known as hari-kari, or happy
despatch ; we cordially recommend it to the attention of
our " Scottish " peers at a loss for something useful to do.
In this essay Lord Bute has been at some pains to
probe into the origins of our Scottish peers with a view to
determining their racial complexion; and the conclusion
he has come to is that the Norman element is the most
prevalent in our aristocracy; and in this respect discovers
himself more a disciple of Chalmers than of Eobertson,
which is a pity; for the modern scientific view is nothing
if not destructive of the opinions of the former.
We
observe that Lord Bute adopts the " Campo bello" version
of the origin of the name Campbell, a version which is
now entirely discredited; and he seems to have been
misled by the fact that the great families of the
fourteenth and fifteenth centuries were essentially
feudal institutions into ascribing to them a Norman or
English origin.
The origins of the Douglases,
Hamiltons, etc., are not precisely known; but there
is nothing inherently improbable in the theory that these
families were of Celtic rather than of foreign growth.
Their attachment to feudal forms and ceremonies, and,
above all, the fact that they did not appear upon the
stage of history until the feudal system was thoroughly
established in Scotland, has caused them to be identified
with that system, and to so great an extent that it would
seem almost an impossible task successfully to connect
them, at all events by blood, with any other. But
beneath the feudalism of these great families, we see the
kinship feeling strongly surviving.
The Douglases
were surely a cian (in the Gaelic meaning of the word) if
ever there was one; and the tenacity with which they
stuck to one another, and promoted one another's
interests, by fair means or foul, against all-comers, not
even excepting the king himself, points to a
F
native rather than a foreign origin. We shrewdly suspect
that comparatively few of our Scottish peers are of
Norman or English extraction. Time was, of course, but
now is not, we are pleased to observe, in which to ascribe
to a great Scottish ruling house any origin save a foreign
one would have cost the conscientious genealogist almost
his life. We live in more enlightened times, however,
nowadays; and it is rather amusing to note the eagerness
with which the descendants of these " Normans" agitate
their claims to be considered as magnates of native
growth! Our peers may be Anglicised out of all semblance
to their original selves, as it were; but at least the Celtic
Renaissance has taught them one useful lesson—it has
taught them not to be ashamed of their Celtic ancestry.
Lord Bute's next essay is on the subject of "
Parliament in Scotland," and this, it appears to us, is one
of the best of these papers. Lord Bute, to hold the
political language of the day, was a "convinced Home
Ruler," and his essay makes interesting reading. We
have probably now no Home Rule peer in Scotland; for
since Lord Rosebery voluntarily cursed himself and his
career —if indeed it be no misnomer to characterise the
ragged remnants of his political prospects by so
grandiloquent an epithet—with the curse of central
government at Westminster we have had, to the best of
our knowledge and belief, no patriot peer in the ranks of
our aristocracy. With Lord Bute's historical views on this
subject we are not so much concerned. It is when he
steps down, as it were, into the arena of practical
politics, that he is principally interesting. The fact that
he could formulate a " scheme " of Home Rule without
losing his temper, or laying himself open to the true blue
suspicion of wishing to dismember that blessed thing
Empire—we assume for the sake of argument, that
blessed it is, since all (or nearly all) men unite in calling
it so—speaks as much for his tacfr and moderation as it
assuredly does, in our opinion at least, for his genius.
Needless to say, we are perfectly at one with Lord Bute
in his remarks on this subject; and we cordially
recommend his essays to our readers ; for, for the sake of
this paper alone, his book is well worth buying and
reading— yea, and marking and inwardly digesting.
Almost we think that Lord Bute has been at too
much pains to prove his countrymen blockheads. In no
other country in the world probably would the array of
facts and figures which he brings to bear against the
Union of 1707—one of the great causes of our decline in
Nationalism—require so much special pleading. Our
degraded position speaks, of course, for itself (for from a
kingdom we have sunk to a province); but in these pages
Lord Bute has taken compassion on the prejudiced ;ind
ignorant in our midst—and, alas ! they are the #"and
majority of this people—with a kindness and patience
which simply baffle description. We are really amazed at
the almost sugary reasonableness of his arguments and
contentions, and at the amiable manner in which Lord
Bute set out to unmask and expose a he which really
requires no refutation whatever. Nothing, for instance,
could exceed the patience and skill with which Lord Bute
demolishes the familiar argument that the Act of 1707
must stand for all time because it has been a source of
prosperity to Scotland. "This question/' says he, " was
very clearly, ably and moderately discussed in the article
aipon ' The Union of 1707, viewed financially,' which
appeared in the Scottish Review for October, 1887. That
article, as far as it goes, is unanswered and
unanswerable. Those whom it did not please were driven
at once to resort to the last refuge of impotence by
personal abuse of the anonymous author. It was a
striking instance of ' no case: abuse the defendant's solicitor'. Argument against it there could be none. It is
impossible by cursing to delete the printed figures from
the pages of blue-books. But there was certainly one
thing in which the well-known financier who wrote that
article was wrong. He greatly understated his own case.
With regard to a particular item, for instance, such a
phrase occurs as ' probably £500,000 would not overstate
it, but to keep well within the mark, we shall place it at
£300,000'. His weakest statement was probably that in
which the annual value of land in Scotland, assessed to
income tax, being about sevenl and a half millions
sterling, of which about three-sevenths belong to peers or
baronets, he proposed to name two millions as
representing the amount of income spent in London and
elsewhere in England. He left out of calculation any
incomes not derived from land, the fact that to a very
large number of Scottish proprietors their annual
sojourn in London occupies the greater and certainly constitutes by far the most costly portion of their year, and
that the two classes which he names certainly do not
form the half of those whose incomes are thus applied.
From the figures upon which he himself went, it is clear
that he ought to have set down the annual dead loss in
money which is entailed upon Scotland by the Union of
1707 at a sum of eight or ten millions, rather than four. . . .
Lastly, with regard to the purely monetary question, it is
a singular fact that an idea or belief does actually still
extensively prevail that the Union has been beneficial to
the material interests of the country. Even the pages of
the financial writer just cited are not free from some
lingering traces of this superstition, although with the
figures before him he is obliged to transfer the benefits of
the Union to some vague and undefined sphere. It is
curious to conjecture how a delusion so entirely opposed
to facts ever arose. It was one of the false prophesies of
the advocates of the Union at the time, and their
reputations became, of course, involved in the success of
their prediction. On the other hand, while the Union was
regarded as irrevocable, the notion that there was at
least some compensation of a material character, offered
a last consolation to despairing patriotism. The wish was
father to the thought on all sides. Hence comes all the
nonsense of this sort which Sir Walter Scott—although,
evidently, much against the grain—thought it necessary
to write. Perhaps the popularity of his works has
something to do with the survival of a mistake so
extraordinary. Anyhow, strange as it may seem in the
face of the inexorable logic of facts, it is not an
uncommon belief in Scotland even at the present day
that the Union has conferred great benefits upon the
country from a financial point of view. People do not
know that as a matter of fact the Union nearly beggared
the population for several generations, and that the
country is still bled annually at the rate of about £'J per
head of the population in deference to a totally extinct
dynastic question which happened to exist in the year
1704."
We have already somewhat exceeded the modest limit
which we proposed to ourselves when setting out to
review these Essays; but. really, the topics of which they
treat are so fascinating, are handled in so skilful and
edifying a manner, and, above all, are discussed by so
interesting a personality, that we must plead guilty to
having allowed our zeal, in this instance at least, to
exceed our sense of proportion. The pity of it is, that the
mind which inspired and the hand which wrote these
admirable papers are no more. It falls to comparatively
few men to die when they are like to be missed, for all
men are liars, and merit goes incognito; but Lord Bute
expired just when his country had most need of him; and
when the loss of so independent, original and
accomplished a thinker was most likely to be felt. He has
left a fragrant memory behind him, however, and though
pessimism may ridicule the suggestion, yet we venture to
indulge the hope that the author of these Essays will not
be the last of his order and race of whom patriotism and
learning will be obliged to take cognisance.
DÀIN NAOMHA EIREANNAICH
FHUAIR sinn na dàin mhaiseach naomha so a leanas o'n
Ollamh Hyde (An Craobhinn Aoibhinn). Tha sinn
cinnteach gu'm bi iad ro thaitneach d'ar luchd-leughaidh.
CUIMHNICH
Cuimhnich pais na sleagh, ma dh'fheudas tu, Cuir na
gàrtha an tràth fo na miltibh cumha, Cridhe glan,
crabhach, narach, deirceach, umhail, Nach mile (uair a's
fhearr) fearr le radh na beul air suibhal.
NACH IOMADH MARCACH
Nach iomadh marcach maith a leagadh, A's racham a nis
air muin an eich, Mar chaidh mise 'n leith (às) na slighe
Tàr, a Chriosd, a's tabhair Do bhreith.
IFEINN, FUAR, FLIUCH
Ifrinn, fuar, fliuch, Baile is seirbhe deoch,
Baile gun chill gun chrois, Ni rachaidh
mi-fein 'na chois, Ach mar's maith le Iosa
mi 'bhith.
Bu mhiann leam 'dol a nunn,
Mura bhiodh a lughad 'mbeil de lòn romham,
Is beag de mo bhàrr a bhos,
Is truagh nach thall do threabhar.
AN LAOCH DO CHEUSADH
An laogh do cheusadh Di'-haoine Do chuireadh an
ropaibh righinn (no righne) Do chuireadh e 'san uaigh
'na shireadh, Clocha mora clonnta ? claonta.
Ag faire a' leabuidh air feadh na h-oidhche 'Se
dubhairt seisean (easan le Nicedimus,)
Cuntamatar ? os a cionn sin,
Gur thugadur leo e o luchd na seacht line,
Bhi d' am braonadh le aolach,
D 'a 'n deargadh le (cimleach) geimhlibh
Aig na dreamannaibh fo phiantaibh.
Is minic trachtar (iomradh) th' air an Domhnaich
anns na h-urnuighean so ; agus is an-mhòr am meas do
bhi aig na sean-Ghaidheil air an là bheannaichte sin. Is
coitchionn 'nam measg an t-ainm do (airson)
Dhia " Righ an Domhnaich ". Anns an sgeul greann
namhail (thaitneach) sin, " Seaghan Tinncear"\ (Ceard)
innistear duinn mar chaidh Seaghan agì iarraidh cairdis
Ghriosta d' a mhac, agus mar a thachair Mac Dhe air,
agus thairg se e-fein do mar chairdeas Chriosta, ach
dhiult Seaghan e " ni fear comhthrom thu," a deir se, "
tugann tu a seacht saith (sàth) do dhaoinibh, agus ni
thugann tu a leath-shàith do dhaoinibh eile " Nuair
dh'imich Mac Dhe, thachair " Uigh an Domhnaich " air,
ach 'nuair a chuala Seaghan gur e bh'ann, ni leigeadh se
do bhith 'na chairdeas Chriosta d' a mhac, " Cha 'n 'eil
agad, ars easan acht aon là a mhàin 'san t-seachduinn,
agus cha 'n urrainn thu moran maith a dheanamh air an
là sin fein ! " Agus so mar fhuair mo charaid (chara) at
t-Athair O'Gramhna " Failte an Domhnaich " an Arainn.
FAILTE AN DOMHNAICH
Failte an Domhnaich
An deigh na seachuinn
Là breagh saoire
Dh'orduich Criost duinn
Le n-ar n-anam do dheanamh.
Caraich do chos gu moch chum aifrionn Caraich do bheul
air no briathraibh beannaichte Caraich (Corruigh) do
mheuran air slabhraidh na h-anama
Fosgail do chroidhe agus sgaoil am mi-run às
Breathnaich suas air Mac na Banaltra, 0' se fein is fearr
do cheannaich sinn.
Crann direach, duilleagach, glas As
chrochadh Criost fo na bhun,
Fillimid ort a nis, a chrois !
(Philleamaid ort a nis le fonn). .
Ta piosa eile aca dar b'ainm " Beannachd an
Domhnaich," acht ni thugaim ann so e, oir is beag nach
do-thuigsionach ar fada. An so piosa beag air a' chrois,
cosmhuil leis (ris) na lìntibh shuas, mar tha se aca 'n
Arainn agus 'n Conamara.
GU'M BEANNUICHEAR THU (DHUIT) A CHROIS
(CHROS)!
Gu'm beannuichear dhuit a chros A
bhuinneain ghlègil uir i Gu'm
beannuichear dhuit a chroinn Le'r
ceusadh Criosta, Gu'm beannuichear
dhuit, a Righ, Do sineadh air a' chrois,
Impidh cuirim ort
Gach smal peacaidh d'a 'bfeil (tha) air m'anan
A leagadh air a cholainn,
0 'si is mo rinne a' choir (no a rinn de choire).
An so piosa eile do sgriobh am fiòr-Ghaidheal sin an
Liathanach sios o bheul' mna à Beul-an-atha an Condae
Mhuigh Eo ; Dubhairt si gur gnathach a radh air faicinn
eaglaise (teampoill) uait.
GU'M BEANNUICHEAR DHUIT 0 ALTAIR!
Gu'm beannuichear dhuit, o altar, A Chrois bhreagh
dhuilleagach, ghlas, Nar leigidh tu m'anam thart, Gu'n
coimhideadh tu mi an deagh staid, Gu'm pillidh tu sinne
air ar leas, [Gu'm meudaichidh tu ar cridhe le gloir
d'fàghail [Gu'n lionaidh tu ar suil le deoraibh (deoiribh)
an aithreachais
[Gu'n tugadh tu ar cion duinn de gach aifrionn D'a
leightear anns an Roimh an diugh Agus air fad' an
domhain mhòir.
No mar chualaidh an t-athair O' Gramhna e o
oide-sgoile 'n Daibhi O Geallachain an Arainn Mhòir.
Gu'n tugadh dhuinn cion Criostaidh
De luaigheach Aifrinn an là an diugh
Agus de gach Aifrionn d'a leightear anns an Ròimh
Agus timchioll an domhain mhòir air fad.
An so urnuigh aluinn do chual(aidh) an t-athair O
Gramhna 'n Innis meadhon d'a radh le linn an Aifrinn
agus tar eis (an deigh) a' Choisrigidh.
MILE FAILTE ROMHAD, A CHUIRP AN
TIGHEARNA
Mile failte romhad a chuirp an Tighearna,
A Mhic (no shiolruigh) a rugadh o'n oigh is gile
agus is mine. 'Se do
bhas-sa. Air crann na
paise—
A dh'fhuasgail siol Eubha a's (bhàsguigh) a mhill eucoir,
O's peacach bochd mi ta a' deanamh ort. Na nocht orm a'
choir, Ged do thoill mi t'fhearg, a Iosa Criosta Pill ruim
agus foir.
Iosa a cheannaich sinn Iosa a bheannuich sinn
Iosa a' phaidrin phairteach Na dean sinn do
dhearmad— A nis no aig uair ar bàis.
O a Chriost do cheusadh (air) Di-h-aoine Do dhoirt do
chuid fola da'r maitheadh 'S d'ar saoradh,
Gràs an Spioraid Naoimh ann ar cridhe 'S ann ar
n'-inntinn,
Gach athchuinge a dh'iarramaid (biodh) Mac Dhe 'ga
reidhteach.
An so (tha) seorsa gniomh cridhe-bhrùite do •sgriobh
an Liathanach sios 0 bheul duine an Condae na
Gaillimhe.
CUIMHNE DE
Cuimhne Dhe os cionn mo chuimhne Leth mo
pheacaidh ni thig leam innseadh Gach air innis mi's
nar innis mi. Ta mi ag iarraidh parduin air Iosa
Criosta 'N lathair cathoire na faoisdine (h-aidmheil).
0 a Thighearna 'fhuair piantan, A's dh'fhulaing a'
phais do stialladh le h-iarunn mhullach gu bàrr, Na
dheigh sin fhuair thu tarcuis Agus na creuchta
(creuchdan) air do laimh 0 a Thighearna, is ag
iarraidh Do chomhnadh a tàim.
Fhuair mo charaid (chara) fior-mhaith nach
maireann an sgoilear (cliste) sgiobalta, Gaidhlige
Padraig 0 Laoghire na focail cheudna so, beag nach, an
oirthir Chondae Corcaighe. Dubhairt se gur labhaireadh
iad " air teachd duit do ghluinibh san t-seipeal.
A Thighearna 'fhuair pianta A's dh'fhulaing
a' phàis Do stialladh le h-iarunn 0 bhathais
gu tràcht (coise) ? Na dheigh san fhuair an
Tighearna Na croibthe [craobha] ann a làimh
A Dhe dhìt (dhileis) ag iarraidh Do chabhair
(choimirce) a taim !
Gach peacadh d'an dearnadh (i.e., a
rinneadh mi) O'n la' rugadh mi riamh,
Mac Mhuire nan gràs D'a radh leam, "
maithim duit iad ". An leanabh do chradhadh
Ta 'na dhuine's 'na Dhia D'ar seachaint gu
bràth Ar gharthaibh luchta na pian.
THE LOWLAND TRADITION
IN proportion as the Celtic movement grows its
influence extends we must naturally expect see its
demands increasing in proportion to strength and
activity. It is a natural, inevita law of political
physics that as a popular movem grows so its
demands extend. Many great mo ments have had
exceedingly small beginnings, i many great reformers
have been astonished their own moderation when
looking back tr their original proposals, and the
principles set before them when on but the thresholds
their political careers.
As few would recognise in the adult the fo and
features which in the infant they contempt few
probably of those who first set in motion e Celtic
Renaissance would recognise in the 'ting agitation the
modest proportions of the riginal propaganda—so
greatly has it grown and rospered since first it was
founded. And as time es on and the Renaissance
progresses, measures nd principles now scarce
dreamed of by those in hose hands the conduct of
affairs presently redes will undoubtedly be
incorporated therewith, "d many new demands
formulated and conquests hieved.
Every year
European scholarship is 'dening the field of Celtic
activities by bringing ore and more prominently
before the general ablic the supreme importance of
the Celtic nguages; the important place of the Celtic
pies in the racial and political cosmogony of pe, and
the debt which civilisation owes us respect of religion,
art, literature and music, t is hardly probable—nay,
it is impossible—that hen the Celtic peoples are
thoroughly aroused » a sense of their past importance
and present nd future potentialities they will rest
satisfied th their existing position.
The complete
eman-pation (political and social) of the Celtic
peoples thus only a matter of time. Personally, I
am ot much given to the form of rash speculation own
as prophecy, but if I were asked to me a limit, I
should feel tempted to reply that the present rate of
progression a century at ost should witness the
termination of the existing ler of things.
Leigim me-fein 'n iomall do ghràis Air
urlar do fhighe fein
Ag umhlachadh do'n teampoll Catoilcidhe (Chathrach)
Umhlm^him gun chealg a'm chridhe Mo gUùn deas le
taitneas do'n Aird-righ.
An dara glun le geill do Dhia An Triuir is beannaichte 'n
an aon-Dia, Am 'sheachainte air shluaightibh do bhròin,
A's gu'm buaidhtear m'anam do'n Trionoid.
Now the study of history is one of the most teresting
and profitable studies to which the mind f man can be
applied. History is particularly teresting to the
Celtic peoples, for apart from e fact that they have
played a great role in it,
it shows them their faults, discovers their blunders,
and teaches them what to avoid. But it is particularly
interesting to the Celtic people of Scotland at the
present conjuncture, inasmuch as it supplies, the key
to our future. In the history of Scotland] we may read
what we once were, what we accomplished, what we
lost (principally on account of our own dissensions and
weaknesses), and, more important than all, the ground
we must reconquer, if we are to regain our ancient
supremacy—our original rights and privileges.
Every schoolboy knows that this country was
named from its Celtic inhabitants, but that the Celtic
element in her population has long been subservient to
the anti-Celtic " fringe ". Whether, as will assuredly
happen in the case of Ireland, thisj country will ever
again become entirely Celtic1 is hard to say.
The
question, for the Gaels of Scotland at all events, is
naturally an exceedingly interesting one; but at the
present position of affairs I should prefer not to hazard
an opinion. I do not doubt, however, that Celtic
Scotland— which is an expression familiar to every
historical student, and therefore requires no
definition—will one day be re-established. Of this I
have not a shadow of doubt. The vigour of the
movement in Ireland is bound to re-act on the Gaels of
Scotland; and in proportion as that movement
progresses, the efforts of those who are in sympathy
with the Gael this side of the channel will flourish,
until, if not the whole mass, at all events the greater
part of it, is leavened in the Gaelic manner. The
Irish movement is bound to
1 Politically, linguistically, artistically, etc., even fo a
great extent ethnologically.
succeed, because it has a practically unanimous nation
behind it. The movement in Scotland, though not
nearly so strong, is nevertheless an increasing political
quantity. For very shame, it is unlikely that the Gaels
of Scotland will allow themselves to be left far behind
by their Irish kinsmen in the Tace for nationality. All
indications emphatically point to the conclusion that
Celtic Scotland is at last awakening. That process may
be comparatively slow, disagreeable and tedious in our
case; but that it has begun in earnest, and will
continue to extend, is a statement which no impartial
and intelligent observer of recent events will venture
to canvass.
Turning aside for a moment from the history of
Scotland, and referring to those of other European
countries, it is interesting and profitable to observe the
" set" or current of their political tendencies. In
Scotland we have been victims of the Lowland
tradition in our politics for many more years than the
self-respecting Gael will care to number. But in other
i88
The Lowland Tradition
countries we shall observe traces of precisely similar
influences, only, of course, under very different forms
and very different appellations. Each country, at
some time or other, has had a certain political
inclination or bias (both as regards domestic and as
regards foreign politics) to which its successive rulers
or governors have consciously 'or unconsciously
surrendered the destinies of their respective
countries. Thus, in the case of the Roman Empire,
there was the tradition of Rome itself, and the
tradition of the supremacy of the patrician order. In
the case of ancient Greece there was the tradition of
the Acropolis and the tradition of the IIokoL or people
as a ruling power. In mediaeval Spain there was
the tradition of the Escurial and the tradition of a
free and independent nobility (a tradition, by the
way, which was an inheritance from Celtic times). In
France there was the disastrous tradition of the
Capet dynasty and the tradition of the absolute
dependence of the people on their political masters.
In England for the past few centuries the outstanding
tradition has been that of the "balance of
power"—founded by Queen Elizabeth—and Protestant ascendancy.
In the German Empire the
iron rule of the Hapsburgs and the co-ordination of
political power with a view to the attainment of an
impossible union supplies the prevailing tradition.
In Russia, the one great tradition has been personal
government by the Tsar, though that tradition has
been frequently modified by the constant struggles
between the bureaucracy and the nobles.
In
ancient Ireland, the two great traditions were the
tradition of the supremacy of the Ard Righ, and the
tradition which grew out of the incessant struggles
connected with the imposition of the Borumha
tribute. Indeed, go where we may, turn to whatever
history and people are agreeable to us, and we shall
find that there exists or has existed at some period or
other in the history of that country or people some
great governing principle, some preponderating
influence or political bias, to which the successive
governors of that country or nation have consciously
or unconsciously surrendered the destinies of their
people.
In Scotland, it needs no great penetration to
•discover that from the reign of David I. to the
disastrous union of Scotland and England in 1707,
the prevailing tradition has been what I have
•ventured to describe as the Lowland tradition
Since 1707 we have had no tradition other than that
which our political pastors and masters may have
chosen to impose on us in common with the rest of
the so-called United Kingdom. Previous to that date,
however, we were governed, as I have said, by the
Lowland tradition; which was the government of our
country by, and in behalf of, the purely Lowland, that
is, the non-Celtic population. The spring of this policy
lay, of course, in the towns, and in the measures concerted by successive sovereigns of Scotland to enrich
and aggrandise the towns at the expense of the
country districts and the rural population. The
transference of the Court, too, from Scone to
Edinburgh, and the encouragement and entertain-
The Lowland Tradition
189
ment afforded to so many foreigners in Scotland, were
powerful contributing causes to the same melancholy
result. The introduction of the English language, of the
feudal system, and the alterations which the latter
wrought in the character of our law, have also to be
considered as important factors in the creation and
cultivation of the Lowland tradition.
Few persons, I apprehend, will venture to dispute
the accuracy of this statement, namely, that since the
death of the Maid of Norway political power in
Scotland has centred in the Lowlands. For many
hundreds of years the Celtic element in the population
of Scotland has occupied a position which cannot be
described otherwise than as vastly inferior to that held
by the non-Celtic jwpulation. With few exceptions, the
kings of Scotland pursued a deliberately anti-Celtic
policy, the Stuart sovereigns—with the honourable exception of James IV.—being some of the most unscrupulous and persistent oppressors that the Gaels
G
of Scotland have ever had. Upon one pretext on
another, but usually with the plausible pretence of
establishing " law and order " in Celtic Scotland j our
sovereigns and their rulers, having first artfulljfl
fomented disorder, were wont to step into the
Highlands with fire and sword, and all manner of]
barbarity, in order to convert the unfortunate Gael of
Scotland to the mild example of Lowland rule! Let us
approach this question impartially! and as men from
whose eyes the scales of ignorance! and prejudice have
miraculously fallen. Let usj acknowledge that,
undoubtedly, on many occasions] the Gaels of Scotland
acted a part which theid best friends must find it
impossible to defend.] Let us frankly acknowledge that
their internecine] feuds were contemptible, and no less
destructive! of the peace of the country than they were
disl astrous to themselves. Let us acknowledge tha» if
they received severe castigation, they certainlyi gave
great provocation. But after all is said and] done, and
the case against the Gael of Scotland! as law-breaker,
malcontent, and so forth, is rendered as long and as
black as it can possiblyfl be, we must remember these
things at least in his behalf—namely, that the country
now called Scotland was colonised by him, that he gave
it3 his name, that the ancient kings of Scotland wer&|
of his blood, that his, language was the ancienfej
language of the country, and that, in a word, fori many
hundreds of years Scotland was his and hej ruled it as
his own.
Under these circumstances the wonder had been,
surely, if the Gael of Scotland had not resisted the
efforts made to bring about his political subjugation.
We are accustomed to think that' every question has
its two sides; but really in
this case it is difficult to speak with calmness and
moderation of the policy of the aggressors; and it is
difficult to resist the suspicion that there has been
some sort of organised conspiracy on the part of
Lowland historians to falsify the facts and obscure the
issues as much as possible, when treating of the early
history of our country. Otherwise, surely, the opinion
that the Gael was a barbarian and a savage, whose
delight was in bloodshed, whose conduct was
systematically provocative, and whose extinction by
i88
The Lowland Tradition
fair means or foul was the legitimate aim of
successive Scottish sovereigns and statesmen,
would be far less common than, unfortunately, it
even now is. After all, the Gael, when he plundered
the Lowlands and revenged himself upon their
inhabitants, was merely combining the struggle for
existence with a perfectly intelligible desire to
possess himself of what he regarded as rightfully his
own, whilst at the same time striking terror into the
hearts of those who opposed his pretensions and
disputed his claims.
And when, owing to the state
of anarchy into which Celtic Scotland was plunged in
consequence of our rulers' attachment to the Lowland
tradition, the Gael became an outcast and a fugitive
in the land which was justly his own, at whose door,
pray, is the blame for so much misery, barbarity and
bloodshed rightly to be laid—at the door of the
unfortunate victim of innovation, or at that of those
whose deliberate design it was to filch the country
from its original possessors, and to oblige them to
pass beneath a yoke which they despised and
detested ? For my part, and I am disposed to think
that all fair-minded men will agree with me, I think
that the moral responsibility for so much anarchy
and
bloodshed rests entirely with the Lowland tradij tion,
and with those who, conscientiously, or fromi bad or
interested motives, supported it. It mayj be objected
that the conflict in Scotland between Teuton and Celt
was inevitable; and that tha struggle was conducted
against the losing party] with as little barbarity as
the times and the cir| cumstances permitted; and no
doubt those whg are of opinion that everything can be
justified] by success will find many to applaud this
pious opinion. But, granting, for the sake of argumen
that the Gael's subjection was justifiable because
inevitable, we shall yet find the situation gravely
compromised, so far as the Teuton is concerned] by
reason of the campaign of calumny and misre^
presentation which the Saxon, through the channel of
his accredited historians, has been carrying on
against the Gael, almost without interruption] since
the Lowland tradition came into being. Ifj ever there
was a case in which injury was aggra-j vated by
insult, the hard case of the Gael of Scot-J land and
his impudent and mendacious detract surely supplies
198
The Lowland Tradition
obliges us to endeavour. To this end, therefore, let us
address ourselves. On this noble ambition let us
concentrate all our faculties, and to it let us consecrate
all our talents. Every Gael can help, no matter how
humble his employment, slender his capacity, or obscure
his situation. Let us, indeed, at long last stand shoulder
to shoulder, as our own familiar maxim has been vainly
urging us to do these many hundreds of years past; and
when we have successfully negotiated the inevitable
period of danger, difficulty and trial, and the Gael of
Scotland is once more a free and independent agent in
the land which bears his name, then, perhaps, in turning
our backs upon the unlovely, ungrateful past, and taking
thought for the morrow, we shall surrender the destinies
The Lowland Tradition
189
it. To be robbed of what belo to one, to be violently
assaulted and despoiled] by one stronger than oneself,
is scurvy treatment! to meet with ; but to be insulted
and abused into] the bargain by an impudent
scoundrel who has rej lieved one of his watch, or other
valuables, is] ordinarily speaking, more than human
flesh and! blood can stand. For my own part, my sentia
ments when contemplating this shabby chapter] in our
national story are so indignant that I prefej not to give
a loose to them, lest by doing so I should seem to injure
by my violence the transparent reasonableness and
justice of the cause] which I have at heart.
But, fortunately, there is no need for the Gael of
Scotland to take a leaf from his detractor's book in
order to compass his just revenge. The Lowland
tradition has "landed" the nation where its [principles
and undertakers were bound to conduct it, sooner or
later, namely, to an incorporating lunion, whose end is
national extinction. The policy inaugurated by the first
David, and prosecuted—with but few exceptions—with
unflagging fzest and zeal by his successors upon the
throne of Scotland, down to the Union of 1707, has
resulted in the complete subjugation of our country.
The 'Lowland tradition may have been successful even
beyond intelligent anticipation in reducing the Celtic
population of Scotland to a condition of absolute
dependence upon the Teutonic inhabitants; but
inasmuch as it has undone us as a nation, icursed us
with the curse of central government, and brought
about almost the complete extinction ,of national pride
and sentiment in Scotland at a ruinous cost, it is not
too much to say that, in compassing these things, it
has virtually accomplished its own destruction.
The king is dead! Long live the king! The ILowland
tradition has been absorbed by the wider land stronger
tradition of the English people, and lives no longer as a
separate entity ; but the Celtic race survives its death,
and, with the birth of new ideas, new hopes and
aspirations, and with a spirit chastened and purged by
centuries of misfortune [and oppression, may we not
confidently look forward to realising, some day, some
of those great and good things, which the future should
have in 'store for us, as for the other races of mankind
? The resurrection of the Celt as a social and political
factor is what honour, no less than interest,
of our country, not to a foreign but to a truly native
tradition.
H. M.
Guth na Bliadhna
LEABHAR II.]
AN SAMHEADH, 1905.
[AIREAMH 3.
THE PASSING OF UNIONISM
If the war in the far East has produced its crop of
surprises, it must be confessed that the same
catastrophe has been attended with startling results in
Europe. The war in Manchuria has been characterised as
a " colonial war " so far as Russia is concerned; but the
inadequacy of that description is best illustrated by the
far-reaching consequences which it has produced in
Europe. The sentiment, which was generally voiced
before the outbreak of hostilities, that whatever
happened, peace, whenever it should come, would find
one at least of the combatants in much the same position
as she was in before war began is now seen to have been
a singularly fallacious one. The war has already
produced its crop of far Eastern problems, which seems
like to engage the attention of politicians all the world
over for many years to come, and upon whose discussion
we at all events are not prepared to embark at this
conjuncture. But in addition to these problems, this
Titanic struggle has had what is for the most part a
totally unexpected result, inasmuch as it has violently
agitated the political waters of Europe itself.
Now, with the view that the war between Japan
and Russia, if suffered to go on for any length of time,
must carry with it more than great risk of producing,
sooner or later, European "complications," we feel
constrained to acknowledge ourselves not in agreement.
That the existence of such a struggle is not unattended
with a certain amount of danger to the peace of the rest
of the world, is a proposition whose reasonableness and
justness we should be the last to dispute. But that
Russia
or
Japan
would
deliberately
embroil
non-belligerent Powers has always seemed to us a
negligible hypothesis. In the first place, we doubt exceedingly if any such Power would allow itself to be so
grossly exploited; in the second, we fail to see what
either party could hope to gain by so shocking an
eventuality as a general conflagration.
But though the danger of a war in which the Great
Powers of Europe should be simultaneously engaged has
always seemed to us more in the nature of a nightmare
than a solemn and canvassable probability, yet the
political consequences of the struggle between Russia
and Japan have already profoundly affected not only the
balance of power, but the actual cosmogony of Europe. In
the first place, the war is revolutionising Russia itself; in
the second place it is precipitating the question of the
future of the Balkan peninsula ; in the third place,] it
has produced the Morocco problem and its cognate
questions; in the fourth place, it has caused, or rather
given occasion to, the breach between Norway and
Sweden; in the fifth place, it has quickened the
differences between Austria and Hungary, and is about
also to precipitate the crisis between those two countries;
and lastly, it has produced a general feeling of political
unrest and uneasiness throughout the length and
breadth of
Europe—no inconsiderable crop of consequences it must
be allowed, if the state of Europe before, and, now, after
the outbreak of hostilities between Russia and Japan is
considered. What further surprises there may yet be in
store for us, it is impossible, of course, to say. That the
political condition of Europe, however, is eminently
favourable to the production of yet further radical
changes no candid and careful observer of recent events
will be prepared to deny.
It seems to us that, in view of these striking events,
there is both a lesson to deduct, and a meaning to
understand, therefrom. The lesson is, that things are not
always what they seem, especially in regard to empires
which figure abundantly upon paper. As to the meaning
or significance which underlies these recent changes,
what is still going on, and what must assuredly come to
pass, our view is, that you can no more hope to
tyrannise, in perpetuity, over nations, than you can
over men.
With regard to the first, we do not propose to speak
at any length on this occasion. The fact itself is
apparent; and what is more, history shows it to be
unavoidable. Every empire, like every dog, must enjoy
its day; and neither the one nor the other is immune
from the destructive verdict of time. With regard to the
second, interest, as well as occasion, bids us speak out.
It is a subject which necessarily appeals to us; and what
is more, it is of practical importance to our own country.
Of the events which have recently taken place in
Europe, the dissolution of the union between Norway
and Sweden, the growing estrangement between
Austria and Hungary, and the abolition of some of the
religious and political disabilities of the Russian Poles,
under pressure of the disoomfiture of Russia in the far
East, and dissension and dissatisfaction at home, are
those which naturj ally possess the greatest interest for
the Gaels Scotland and elsewhere. The dissolution of t
union between Norway and Sweden is of inter to us,
because Scotland is now united to England by a
legislative union. The approaching dissoluj tion of the
union between Austria and Hungary is! of interest to us
for precisely the same reason. Ourj sympathies are
naturally aroused when we hear that] the Russian Poles
have been promised some relief! from persecution in
respect of their religion and] language.
The first-mentioned event, however, is that which
excites our interest and curiosity—to say] nothing of our
admiration—in the highest degreeJ It has been
remarkable for two things: for the] quietness, dignity
and decorum with which it was! accomplished; and for
the unanimity with which] the demand for dissolution
was formulated by the] Norwegian people. It is safe to
say that nearly] every prophecy entered into by English
statesmen,! in regard to that union, have been falsified
by] events. The late Mr. Gladstone solemnly affirmed
that such a union never could, or would, be un-J done.
His opponents, on the other hand, as emj phatically
affirmed that disturbance and bloodshed! must
inevitably attend any attempt to dissever that] tie.
Every one knows that both these prophecies] have been
signally falsified.
It is unnecessary on our part to discuss the pros and
the cons of the recent dispute—now happily ac-a
commodated—between Sweden and Norway. The] event
itself is that which claims our attention; and,
incidentally, the infinitely solemn and deliber-j ate
manner in which it was accomplished.
Apart] from
the question of autonomy, Norway appears to have had
no outstanding differences with her ighbour Sweden.
Both peoples are of the same lood : the differences in
respect of their languages are not great, we believe.
Neither country was dissatisfied with the reigning
dynasty. Both are agreed that for purposes of mutual
defence any [resistance which they may offer must be
the fruit-of co-operation. No religious question has
caused them to be divided. And yet in the coolest, most
solemn, passionless, matter-of-fact manner imaginable
they have separated! Why ?
Our answer to this question must needs be
relatively brief. We believe that the dissolution of the
union between Norway and Sweden is due to a double
cause, and that here, as elsewhere, subjective, as well as
objective, forces have been at work. Norway has
separated from Sweden because she is of opinion that
she can do better without her; but tne disruption of the
union is also due to the spread of autonomous principles
throughout the globe, their manifestation in the
Scandinavian peninsula being but an isolated instance of
their growing prevalence and power.
The history of the crisis between Norway and Sweden
illustrates the increasing disposition there is to regard as
antiquated and cumbersome the principles and
machinery of political unionism. All [forms of
international political connexion which are not based
upon a voluntary principle, and which 1 do not provide
for autonomy, are merely so many survivals of an age
when might rather than right was the principal
consideration governing international arrangements.
The change from absolutism to constitutionalism, which
is so observable in the monarchies of Europe, is but
another manifestation of the growth of a similar
dissatisfaction] with the ancient order of things. The
pivot of] the political, as of the natural universe, is
change;] and nothing can be more absurd, dangerous
andj injurious than the disposition which is observable]
in some quarters to venerate a thing or institution]
merely because it happens to be old, and to seek to]
preserve it at all costs, for the same reason only! The
spirit underlying the penal laws, the sort of] fanaticism
that made it a criminal offence for a] man to worship his
Maker or to exercise the] franchise, not as his conscience,
but as the State] directed, is just that spirit which
animated thèj protagonists of international Unionism.
That this] political device for preserving the peace, and
for] tiding oyer temporary State difficulties, was suc-fl
cessful in some cases we are, for the sake OH argument,
prepared to admit; but our recogni-l tion of its usefulness
in times past by no means] blinds us to the view that
society has com-] pletely outgrown such antiquated,
extravagant, and] cumbersome expedients, and that,
consequently,! their retention nowadays can neither be
excused! nor justified for a moment. No self-respecting]
individual, presently subsisting, tolerates any inter-1
ference, on the part of the State, in the matter of J his
creed : the application of the same principle tol national
affairs—in other words, the substitution of] autonomy
for interference and dependence—is just] that rock on
which Unionism will suffer shipwreckl wherever it
obtains.
The extraordinary unanimity which characterised
the Norwegian demand for Home Eule is one of] the most
significant and interesting features of that! now historic
dispute. And here, one would think,] is abundant food
for reflection for Scotsmen. The
nation united to throw off the yoke of Unionism— to
claim for itself that perfect freedom and liberty which, in
the case of the individual, is nowadays but rarely denied.
We imagine that a shrewd, hard-headed nation such as
the Scots are reputed to be, will not lose sight of these
significant facts. There was no angry feeling against
Sweden: on the contrary the two peoples were, and
continue, very good friends—it was simply a case of one
nation wishing to set up house, as it were, entirely for
itself, being perfectly persuaded that itself and [itself
only could best understand its own interests, and provide
for them; and so, with one voice, the Union was undone.
Deliberately, calmly and dispassionately the sterling
common-sense of Norway spoke out. " The Union has
served its turn," said the nation, in effect. " Such
political devices are obsolete : we wish henceforth to
manage our own [affairs. We do not pretend that we
could manage yours as well as you yourselves can do;
and you must pardon us if we think that we are the best
judges of our own requirements. So far as we are
concerned, the Union is no more."
There is but one thing that prevents Scotland from
following in the footsteps of Norway; and that is the
party system of government which obtains in England.
Every patriotic Scotsman, whatever his creed or
politics, must admit that as a nation, we are every bit
as capable of taking \ our national concerns into our
own hands as the Norwegians are. Every Scotsman
knows that we must necessarily be in a better position
to judge as to what our country's requirements are than
are our neighbours of England, who have more than
enough to attend to in their own country. Every
Scotsman knows, or should know, that the Union is an
expensive affair, draining this country of an immense
sum of money every year. Every Scotsman knows, or
should know, that many necessary reforms are denied
to Scotland on account of the difficulty of passing them
through Parliament. Every Scotsman knows that the
voice of Scotland, even in respect of those things which
admittedly concern her alone, is apt to be drowned in
the clamour of English tongues; and that English votes
frequently prevent the just wishes and aspirations of
Scotland from being given effect to. Every one who has
had any experience of it can testify to the ruinous cost
and the irritating delays consequent on what is called
private bill legislation. And where is the Scotsman who
can doubt that if we had a Parliament of our own, our
national concerns would not receive more careful, more
sympathetic, more systematic and more frequent
attention than they now receive, or ever can, or will
receive, at Westminster ?
But alas ! the English party system blocks the way.
The question of autonomy for Scotland, instead of being
a national question as the Norwegians, to their
everlasting honour be it said, made the question of
national emancipation for Norway, is dragged at the tail
of English political factions. The question of questions is
a mere party question. By an irony of fate which is
almost without parallel in the annals of political action,
the party whose predecessors were most violently
opposed to Unionism has now become its most uncompromising supporter and defender; whilst the
descendants of the Whigs are those who are most
favourably disposed towards autonomous government !
If ever there was a measure which, on the face of it,
appealed to Conservative principles and sympathy, it is
surely the abrogation of the Union between Scotland
and England—the work of that party's political
enemies—yet so widely has that party in Scotland
departed from its original principles and conceptions,
and so completely has it passed under the yoke of
purely English political exigencies, that such a thing as
a National Scottish Conservative is nowadays
practically unknown. The English party system has
almost destroyed Scottish Nationalism. The best
interests of our country are being daily sacrificed to its
preservation, in order that the real or pretended
interests of the " predominant partner " may be
exclusively served. Indeed so high is this preposterous
humour accustomed to be carried, and so violent and
ignorant is the prejudice against autonomy excited
thereby, that the name of patriot is not infrequently
I
withheld from those Scotsmen who are unable to see eye
to eye with the vast majority of the English people in
this matter, and who think that Scotland was intended
to be governed, not by Englishmen, but by their own
countrymen.
Fortunately, however, the progress of humanity
cannot be arrested for long, nor can the future of peoples
and nations indefinitely remain the sport of political
factions. On every side we see a growing uneasiness
under and distrust of what is called Unionism, which is a
device to keep countries together savouring strongly of
political swaddling clothes, and such like primitive and
infantile haberdashery. The consciousness of possessing
a national individuality, which interest no less than
pride bids a people freely to exercise, renders society
increasingly impatient of all such artificial restraints.
The countries our sons have founded across the seas
enjoy the blessings of Home Rule.
Their example, joined to that of other nations and
peoples, has already profoundly affected political
thought. The change from Unionism to freedom cannot
now be long delayed. It is time for the Gael of Scotland,
who has everything to gain and nothing to lose by
autonomy, to be up and doing, lest, peradventure, he be
left behind in the race.
THE GAELIC LANGUAGE AND " SOCIETY"
ALTHOUGH it woujd be a mistake to affirm that the
future of the Gaelic language is assured so far as the
schools are concerned, yet we have reason enough to
congratulate ourselves on the undoubted progress that
has been made. State recognition of Gaelic, however
partial and grudging, is nevertheless an accomplished
fact. We have obliged " the-authorities " to recognise the
importance of Gaelic and to make some provision for its
admittance to the schools upon common-sense lines. It is
true that only a moiety of what must be accomplished
has actually been done, and that we are by no means yet
out of the wood. But the concession of the principle for
which we have been fighting marks an important step in
the history of the language campaign, and of that
general movement in behalf of the reassertion of our
national rights-and privileges which goes by the name of
the Celtic Renaissance. Undoubtedly we must not
remain content with the present position of the language
in the schools, which, in many respects, is unsatisfactory
in the extreme. Such concessions as we have succeeded
in extorting should be regarded not as a settlement of
the question, but as a channel through which yet greater
and more important victories must come. The fighting
policy, hitherto adopted with fairly successful results,
must be firmly persisted in, and reinforced. The
tendency
of
governmental
"departments"
is,
unfortunately, in the direction of procrastination and
half-measures ; and unless then good intentions be
quickened by a show of public interest, they are apt to
dissipate their energies in the mere contemplation of
activities.
The present position of the language, so far as the
schools are concerned, may, then, be safely compared to
that of a general who has successfully executed the
inevitable " turning movement," and is now
concentrating his forces for the delivery of those series of
decisive blows by which he calculates to effect his
victory. We have gained some undoubtedly strong
positions; but our success must be pushed home. This is,
emphatically, no time for pausing, or for " marking
time," as some unwisely advise, with a view to the
leisurely discovery of the probable consequences of the
damage which we have already inflicted upon the
enemies' defences. We have certainly succeeded in
creating an impression upon the forces of our
opponents; but victory is not yet by any means. Much,
indeed the most difficult and arduous portion of the
task that confronts us, remains to be accomplished; and
if we desire to complete the good work to which we have
neither lightly nor prematurely (but rather the
contrary) set our hands, we must straightway redouble
our efforts, trusting to Providence, our own energy and
skill, and to the transparent justness of our cause to
ensure us final success.
Our obvious duty, then, is not to allow this question
of Gaelic in the schools to sleep, or to become moribund
by reason of our own inaction; but on the contrary
neither to cease from troubling, nor ourselves to be at
rest. But what of Gaelic outside the region of the schools
? The school agitation must go on. It is essential to the
success of the Gaelic movement; but there are other
fields which must be gained if that campaign is to
achieve that composite success which alone can prove it
to be the movement, not of a class, but of a people. By
all means let us agitate the question of Gaelic in the
schools unceasingly and strenuously; but let us not
forget that we are a nation, and that, consequently, the
Gaelic leaven must be introduced and worked so that it
reaches the uttermost parts of the lump.
I think that in this agitation in behalf of our
language we are apt to lose sight of the fact that the
upper classes also must come under the spell of the
movement if, as I have ventured to put it, we are to
achieve not a partial but a composite success. The
common people, doubtless, should be taught Gaelic. But
what about their social superiors ? Whilst we are
labouring to educate one portion of our countrymen, we
must not forget the others. A nation does not consist of
a class, or yet of a conglomeration of classes; but is a
composite whole. The rich man, therefore, equally with
the poor, must be made to realise the importance of
preserving the Gaelic language, with a view-to our
rehabilitation as a nation. The Gaelic movement here,
as elsewhere, must permeate all classes, and sections,
and degrees, and ranks of society, if it is to achieve that
solid and enduring success by which alone it can be
intellectually and politically justified.
Let us pause to consider for a moment the past I
attitude of what is called "Society"- -I use the word here
in its more restricted sense—touching the Gaelic. Once
upon a time we know that our kings were Gaelic, and
that their courts and nobles spoke the Gaelic language.
In those days Gaelic was the official and social speech,
to the exclusion of any other tongue. Then came the
feudal system, and with it began that gradual
Anglicisation of our race, politically and socially,, which
has continued, with so melancholy results, down to this
day. But even after feudalism had been firmly
established, and the race of native sovereigns had been
superseded by stranger blood, we find that the Gaelic
language continued to be cultivated by at all events the
remnants of the ancient Gaelic nobility. Our chiefs and
chieftains knew Gaelic because without it they could not
have exercised any influence over their followers. It is
true that the attitude of the Scoto-Norman court was, as
regards our language, generally unfriendly, though
there is evidence to show, on the authority of a Spanish
Ambassador to the court of Holyrood, that one at least of
the Stuart sovereigns had acquired our tongue. The
Gaelic nobility, however, seem to have stuck to their
native speech with, on the whole, a general consent.
They seem indeed to have been considerably more
proficient in Gaelic than they were in English; and the
few Gaelic productions by persons of rank and social
standing that have come down to us compare very
favourably with the effusions of their compatriots and
equals who wrote in a different tongue.
The abolition of the hereditable jurisdictions,
following on the national disaster of the year 1746,
struck heavily, however, at the social prestige hitherto
enjoyed by the Gaelic language. The expatriation,
moreover, of thousands of well-to-do Gaels in
consequence of Culloden and the political troubles in
connexion therewith, was a further source of weakness
to our venerable and expressive tongue! By reason of
these and cognate calamities the " language of Eden "
began to decline, and in so much so that by the
beginning of the nineteenth century the Gaelic language
in Scotland had fallen from its former high estate to the
condition of a sort of peasants' patois, spoken by a few
half-starved rustics, and increasingly despised and
neglected even by them. It is true that the discoveries, or
rather forgeries, of MacPherson (in respect of whom my
countrymen have contracted a debt of everlasting
gratitude), inasmuch and in so far as they] tended to
open the eyes of the polite world touching the grandeur
and antiquity of the Gaelic language, contributed to the
rehabilitation thereof as a literary medium; but it is safe
to say that this favourable opinion was shared by but
comparatively few, and that by no means, in all
probability,! by those who were accustomed to look upon
themselves as the natural leaders of the Gaelic people.
There is certainly no evidence to show that
MacPherson's writings were the cause of a Gaelic revival
amongst the upper classes. The interest] of those
discoveries was almost purely antiquarian. Reams upon
reams of paper, and even more than the proverbial rivers
of ink, were expended—nowadays we should be tempted
to say wasted—in the endeavour to prove that
redoubtable author a] knave or the reverse. But so far
was the contro-j versy which raged round the exploiter of
Ossian from creating a practical interest in the Gaelic
language, or arousing any general desire for its preservation, that there is not the slightest proof of the
same. The Gaelic language continued to languish and
die; and the attitude of " Society"— of that portion of it at
all events which might have been expected to show some
bowels in the matter —continued to be profoundly
indifferent, if not openly hostile and sceptical. It is
worthy of note that the great mass of this famous
controversy was written in the English language
sufficient proof in itself of the parlous condition in which
the inauguration of that contest discovered the Gaelic.
No doubt, the publication of Ossian, and the incident of
the wordy warfare in connexion therewith, gave rise to a
literature in Gaelic; but the harvest was miserably out of
proportion to the promise of that spring which the
advent of MacPherson naturally created in all patriotic
minds. Peers with Gaelic names galore subscribed to
sumptuous impressions of the master's masterpieces (in
English), and, as is their wont, boasted their blood upon
a thousand noisy platforms; but they do not seem
themselves to have taken the practical trouble of
acquiring the Gaelic language, or of compassing the
lesser heroic of obliging their children and kinsfolk to
learn it instead of them.
But the good seed sown by MacPherson was
destined to bear fruit, after all. Hitherto no doubt it is
the poorer lands that have been most industriously
cultivated with a view to the raising of his delicate crop.
The richer lands, encumbered with the rank but
luxuriant growths of Anglicisa-tion, have hitherto
proved inimical to the appearance of the blade. To the
credit of the poor—of the rural population of the
Highlands and Isles, and of their sons and daughters
who have left the straths and glens to struggle for
existence in our cities and towns—must be placed
such measure of progress as we have already
achieved. The present agitationj which has for its
object the restoration of Gaelic ta the schools, is
the answer of the common people to the call of
MacPherson. It remains for their social superiors
to follow their patriotic and disinterested! lead.
It must be allowed, however, that the inclusion
of the upper classes in the Gaelic movement is a
measure fraught with considerable difficulty. IfJ
the case of the people themselves, a similar end ii
much easier of attainment. The common peoplei
are less subject to those influences which " make]
for" Anglicisation. Their requirements are morel
immediately under the eye of publicists than are]
those of their betters. There is more cohesion]
amongst them ; and the means of giving a
common] direction, and of imparting an
appearance of una! nimity, to their social and
political aspirations are] more numerous and
manageable than are those] which obtain
elsewhere.
The upper classes, on the other hand, are lessj
easily organised and influenced than are those
whol rank below them in the social scale. Their
material circumstances should render them more
independents as regards thought and action ; but,
unfortunately! experience shows that they are
generally far more] subservient to public opinion.
If fashion decree! a thing, he is a bold gentleman
who will set hil face against it; and alas! in this
matter of tha preservation of Gaelic, " fashion "
has hitherto been] strongly opposed to us. Added to
all which, there] is this to remember, namely, that
our Gaelic nobility] and gentry (or at all events
what remains of themH have contracted the
improvident and unpatriotiq habit of sending their
sons and daughters to
England in order to be educated. The result of such
a measure is easily perceived in the dearth of
private schools for the sons and daughters of
gentlemen which exists in Scotland, and more especially in Celtic Scotland, at this moment. With
the exception of an Anglican school at Glen
Almond in Perthshire, I do not believe that there
exists such a thing as a school for gentlemen's sons
throughout the length and breadth of the
Highlands; and at that solitary school I make bold
to say that probably the last thing the authorities
thereof Iwould dream (or be capable) of teaching
would be |he ancient language of the nobility and
gentry of this kingdom ! As for our universities,
apart from the fact that as patriotic centres they
leave a great deal to be desired, the upper classes
of Scotland 'have long ceased patronising them.
They send [their sons to Oxford and Cambridge
instead, which "turn them out," as the saying goes,
approved specimens of the results of the Anglicising
process, [indeed, but with scarce a thought in their
heads above boating and cricket.
No doubt this is but one aspect of the general
'impoverishment of our country in consequence of
the disastrous union of 1707. By impoverishment I
do not so much mean actual financial loss —though,
to be sure, that also can easily be proved, as the
late Lord Bute justly contended— as the withdrawal
and disappearance of all those [outward signs and
symbols which invariably characterise a nation "in
being". The stripping [Scotland of her private
schools and colleges, to which the best blood in her
was wont to resort, is an incontestible sign of the
country's degeneration inconsequence of 1707. A
country in which there is no local government, in
the national sense of the
B
word, and whose upper classes send their sons and
daughters elsewhere in order to be educated, may be a
glorified province, or a limb of empire indeed, but has
absolutely no pretensions worth considering to be
regarded as a nation.
With no schools, therefore, and a public opinion little
better than openly hostile, how can we reasonably expect
the upper classes in Celtic Scotland to come at all
heartily or generally into the Gaelic movement, or to
profit, educationally, by that agitation which, in the case
of their social inferiors, has already achieved so pleasing
and useful results? Fortunately, there are not wanting
signs tending to prove that the more conscionable
members of our Gaelic nobility and gentry have already
appreciated the matter. Paragraphs to the effect that the
young laird of so and so, or the proprietor of this or that
Highland estate has acquired, or is acquiring, the Gaelic
language are of no uncommon occurrence in the Gaelic
press. That some of our Gaelic nobles and gentry,
moreover, take a genuine interest in the Gaelic
movement, and ardently wish it success, is fortunately
also true enough. These signs, of course, are distinctly
encouraging; but if the language movement is to prosper
as it should, and as, emphatically, it deserves to do, by
reason of its outstanding merits, there must needs be a
further considerable awakening and searching of hearts
and consciences in this respect. I maintain that no Gaelic
proprietor is fit to hold his estate if he does not know the
Gaelic language. The sons and daughters of every Gaelic
proprietor—indeed of every one who prides himself upon
his Gaelic blood, irrespective of rank and station—should
be instructed in the Gaelic language.
It may be inquired at this conjuncture: " But how is this
to come to pass, seeing that there are admittedly scarce
any schools in Celtic Scotland to which the sons and
daughters of gentlefolk resort, much less any in which
the Gaelic language is taught ?" My answer to this
question is, that, doubtless, for some time to come the
Gaelic proprietary of Scotland will have to rely on
themselves, so far as instruction in the tongue of our
ancestors is concerned. The masses, in this respect at
least, are much better off than are their social superiors.
They have schools whose cwrriculi provides for Gaelic,
and teachers paid by Government to instruct their
children in their mother-tongue. The Gaelic nobility
and gentry, on the other hand, have no schools which
might justly be claimed as their own. The few whose
sons are educated at home send their children to
Lowland schools. It is clear, then, that self-help and
self-reliance must needs supply for some time to come
what patriotism demands. And, after all, is it not little
enough that Celtic Scotland expects? Thousands of
patriotic Irishmen and women of all ranks and classes
are this day engaged in acquiring the Gaelic language
in Ireland, not because it " pays " them to do so, but out
of that love which they bear to their native land, and
which we should generously strive to emulate. Many of
these disinterested individuals have had the greatest
difficulties to contend against in their commendable
endeavour to acquire the speech of their forefathers.
In many cases, perhaps in the vast majority, they have
been brought up not only without knowing a single
word of the language which, often in middle age, they
have set themselves to acquire, but in towns and
districts far removed from the sound of the Gaelic
tongue. Patriotism, however, at all events the Irish
Gaelic
brand of it, knows no obstacles; and what can be done in
Erin can be just as well accomplished in Alba. In the
vast majority of cases, the sons and daughters of the
upper classes of Celtic Scotland are brought up in
districts where the tongue of Ossian is habitually
spoken. These, therefore, should have no difficulty
whatever in acquiring the Gaelic language: nor should
their parents experience the slightest difficulty in
securing competent instructors to teach them. The
period of early youth, before ever the children are sent
to school, is that, after all, in which the Gaelic foundation should be laid, as it is that in which the mind is
most open to impression and most favourably disposed
to the reception of such knowledge. As for those who
are already grown up, even if they cannot themselves
find time, zeal and opportunity wherewith to acquire a
practical knowledge of the language, they can at least
encourage others to do so, and show their interest in the
campaign by subscribing to the funds of An Comunn
Gaidhealach, and by otherwise forwarding the aims and
objects of the movement. No doubt, as time goes on
and the Renaissance spreads, Celtic Scotland will
recover somewhat of its old estate, and with it, no
doubt, its old educational machinery.
National principles, however slowly they may
progress, are yet undoubtedly making some headway
amongst us. The example of other nations, and more
especially, perhaps, of our own colonies, who rightly
insist upon self-government, is bound, sooner or later, to
produce a general demand for Scottish autonomy. The
slow process of Government as presently conducted, the
expense and delay entailed by the legislative union with
Eng-, land, and the neglect of purely national business
which that connexion necessarily involves, must
inevitably lead to a radical rearrangement and readjustment of the legislative apparatus. Who can doubt
that, with a Scots Parliament sitting at Edinburgh, the
affairs of this country would be more economically,
more efficiently, more expeditiously transacted, and in a
manner infinitely more agreeable to our national spirit
and character, than ever they can hope to be by our
parliamentary managers at Westminster \ Home Rule
is necessary to Scotland as a whole: it is of vital
importance to the Highlands, which can only hope to
thrive by reason of that close and careful attention to
local and peculiar needs and requirements which
experience shows us to be necessary, which autonomy
alone can give, and in which consists the true science of
Government, as liberally and intelligently interpreted.
But what is the existing attitude of " Society "
regarding the Gaelic? I have no hesitation in saying that
it is a vastly improved quantity. As in the lower classes,
generally speaking, the old spirit of indifference has
fortunately given way to a juster appreciation of the
value and dignity of the Gaelic language, so in " Society"
the old feeling of contempt for Gaelic and everything
Gaelic is rapidly disappearing before more intelligent
sentiments. The extraordinary antiquity of the language,
its beauty, joined to its aristocratic past—fruits of
knowledge which are largely the gift of the middle
classes—are producing their inevitable results upon a
class which is naturally drawn to such things. Gaelic is
no longer unfashionable : indeed, at this moment it is
very much the reverse. An ever-increasing number of
well-born people is taking a practical interest in the
preservation of our tongue. I have already
alluded to the number of young men and women of good
social position and connected with Celtic Scotland who
are acquiring the language, or otherwise manifesting
their interest in its preservation. The bad old views that
a " Highlander" was necessarily a native of the
Highlands, that the dress made the man, and that his
language was scarce a thing to be named amongst polite,
intelligent people, are rapidly going the way of all such
unprofitable flesh. The spread of knowledge, especially of
Celtic knowledge, has proved the gross insufficiency of
this ancient order of things, with the pleasing result that
the Gael of Scotland is not only almost daily widening his
present and future political platform, but furthermore
those who but a few years ago were prepared to imitate
him in nothing save his dress are now desirous to be
identified with him in all things, even to the extent of
claiming his blood and acquiring his language.
It must be allowed, looking to the future welfare of
the movement, and the necessity which exists for a
composite success, that this is a highly, gratifying and
encouraging state of affairs. We wish to impose our
language not only on the peasant, but also on the peer,
and the middle classes. Remember, that whilst the
former gives its social " tone" to a nation or people, the
latter is largely responsible for its literature. The
spectacle of a Gaelic-speaking peasantry is no doubt
gratifying
enough;
but
the
prospect
of
the
re-nationalisation of their social superiors is one to be
thankful and to work for. Remember, a peasantry,
however patriotic, prosperous and virtuous does not
constitute a nation: if those who are socially above them
are yet cut off from them in all the essentials which
make for national homogeneity, the labours of those who
are endeavouring to rebuild the walls of Zion must needs
be in vain.
agus le do sgail chomhdaich thu treudan nan raontan.
Chunnacas leis a 'ghrein thu, agus rinn i aoibhneas.
Bu mhaiseach thu 'nad oige, a chraobh! Sgaoil thu do
ghairdeanan boillsgeach ris na speuraibh. Chrath thu
gu h-ardanach d' fhalt bòidheach sùm-aideach ris a'
ghaoith. Thanig gaothan nan neamhan agus thugaidh
air falbh e.
Bha thu subailte anns gach ball mar ghaisgeach òg.
Air do shon-sa bha gairdeachas air a' choille :
b'aoibhneach chridhe do mhathar an Talamh. Chunnaic
oighean maiseach na coille thu, agus ghabh! iad tlachd
annad : bha eagal air thùs chàich air dol shon-sa.
Bha thu, mar a bha mise, ro-shona am meadhon a'
chatha. Bhruchd gaothan borba a' gheamhraidh 'nad
aghaidh ; agus bhuail thusa sgiath chopanacfl do
gheugan, agus chuir thu ruaig orra. Ach a nisi mar a tha
Oisein.tha thu sean 'us gun fheum. 'Sa claidheamh na
gaoithe a bhuail gu làr thu!
CONAL CROBHI.
CUMHA OISEIN DO CHRAOIBH A BHA AIR
TUITEAM
[Air do'n aois a bhi air luidhe air a' Bhàrd, chaidh e
mach air feasgar àraidh, agus ghabh e ceum air a'
bheinn. Chunnaic e chraobh a bha air tuiteam, agus rinn
e cumha dhi.]
Cia mar a tha thu air tuiteam, a chraobh ? Bu
mhi-chaoimhneil a' ghaoth a bhuail gu làr thu! Tha thu
mar ghaisgeach, 's a latha seachad. Tha thu 'nad luidh
leat fèin air taobh na beinne. Os do cheann tha gaothan
nan neamhan a' bruchdadh; agus cha'n aithnichear thu
ni's mò leis an ionad a dharaich thu.
Bha thu miorbhuileach 'nad ardan, agus 'nad neart, a
chraobh! Thogadh leat do cheann sgiam-hach ris na
speuraibh. Annad dh' fhalaich eunlaith an athair an nid,
THE CAPTURE OF PERTH.
1715
IF Stirling was the military key to the Western]
Highlands, the same may be said of Perth witffl regard
to Central Scotland and the northern and] eastern
portions of the Gaelic territory. To a coml mander
marching south, or to one bound west on north-west,
that crook of the winding Forth in] which Stirling is
situated was a necessary objective.! He must first
capture or hold Stirling in hand,] otherwise he could not
be sure of his communical tions. Hence arose probably
the familiar saying] that a
"Crook of the Forth
Is worth an Earldom in the North," which I am
disposed to assign to military rather than] to other
considerations; for in former days whatever] store might
be set by beasts and corn, it is obvious] that pistols,
claymores, dirks and other ironmongery of war were
more esteemed, because more potent! than the mild
possessions of peace. So Stirling] prospered, at all events
from the military point on view, whilst Perth declined.
Deprived of the seat] of government, she seems to have
been left to shiftì pretty much for herself—her military
importance as the key to the eastern sea-board, and the
Central and Northern Highlands and the centre of a
great corn-producing country being scarce recognised.
Her hedges, in the shape of her ancient fortifications,
were broken down and her vineyard invaded and
despoiled by any chance marauder that had a mind to
replenish his empty garners at her expense. Her warlike
character gradually deserted her, so that by the
beginning of the eighteenth century we are not
altogether surprised to learn that Perth produced little
but ladies' gloves and " Scotch cloth " ; whilst -0 shrunk
was her social importance that she could '.but boast of a
couple of sedan chairs, wherein gentry and strangers
might take the not too salubrious town's air!
22o
The Gaelic Language and "Society"
It was unfortunate, indeed, for the Jacobite cause that
when Mar led his forces south in 1715, he found old St.
Johnstown completely unfortified. Perth did not then
possess even a bridge across the Tay. The old bridge had
been destroyed by a tremendous flood in the year 1641,
and local enterprise (or maybe the " troubles of the
times," which seem to have .kept men perennially lazy,
were adverse) had proved unequal to its reconstruction.
Communication with the north was supposed (by popular
fiction) to be effected by means of "an inconvenient and
frequently obstructed ferry," upon which, if report speaks
truly, a numerous and motley rascality, with a
considerable number of boats, were employed.1 Once the
northern shores of the Tay were gained, three great
roads invited the adventurous traveller —one leading to
Dundee by the Carse of Gowrie, one to " Cupar of Angus,"
and the other by Scone to Kinclaven.
1 No fewer than thirty boats were employed on this ferry r
as it was one of the most frequented in Scotland ".
What, precisely, the old fortifications consisted of we
have no means of knowing. In ancient days, Perth, as
befitted her importance as a civil and military centre,
was undoubtedly a place of considerable strength. Her
castle, however, was burnt by that bloody Saxon traitor
Cromwell, and at the Restoration (of Charles of merrie
memory) the fosse which surrounded the ancient
building was destroyed. Mar, as I have said, found Perth
" scarcely fortified at all".
And when he quitted it (in
1716) the pursuing Hanoverian rag-tag and bob-tail
encountered little in the shape of fortifications or
earthworks, to obstruct their entry. " No wonder,"
wrote a Whig sympathiser, " that the Jacobites left
Perth. There was no proper defence. Argyll's force entered on Wednesday morning at two, finding only some
little iron guns and wheeled carriages, the three brass
guns having been cast (through the ice) into the Tay."
His Grace of Mar himself spokej very contemptuously of
the town's defences, though he seems to have done little
during the long time] he wasted there to make good this
deficiency. Hia men, however, spent their money
lavishly, and tèj the presence of the Gaelic army,
Pennant, manyl years afterwards, attributed the town's
prosperity!
With regard to the internal aspect of the city in 1715,
it is we know for sure, at all events, that the] Town Cross
(built in 1688) was then standing, anòS that the ports of
Perth were five in number. Thern was a port at Bridge of
Tay, i.e., where the bridgj had formerly been ; one at
Castlegavil, one calleS High Gate, and ports to the South
and North Inches! The population of the town was about
8,000; i* was ill-lighted and drained—if drained at
all—and] Gowrie's house (built by a Countess of Huntly
circm 1520) was still standing.
When Mar crossed the Tay " with forty horse "" in the
early autumn of 1715, he forded the river a Ijouple of
miles below the town, at a place called the Ford of Arne.
The night previous to his journey to the north was passed
at Duplin, where he was joined by a number of
prominent Nationalists, as we should nowadays call
them. Leaving Duplin early in the morning of 17th
August, the party journeyed to the house of Paterson of
Craigie, a local Jacobite of a very warm complexion. With
Cumha Oisein do Chraoibh a bha air Tuiteam
221
Craigie and sundry of his friends, Mar appears to have
plotted the subsequent seizure of Perth, before setting
out with his attendant cavalcade for his own country in
the Braes of Mar. Such at all events is my not
unreasonable supposition, and the part which Craigie
and his sons subsequently played in that affair lends
every colour to the theory.
On the 6th of September following, the standard I of
King James VIII. was raised at the Castle town of Mar,
and a few days afterwards the Gaelic host-commenced
its southward march. Meanwhile, all had not been
prospering with the English cause in the fair city of
Perth. The citizens were divided. Some were in favour
of the dynasty made in Germany, whilst others
preferred a native sovereign and national rights.
Indeed, Mar, whose talents lay |Shat way, rather than
in the field, where his want of military knowledge
rendered him inconspicuous, had , plotted not in vain.
But on the appearance of considerable feeling in behalf
of the National cause, some of the magistrates had sided
with Hanoverian George, and had applied to the Duke of
Atholl for men to support them in that interest. In
response to these representations, his Grace had sent
down some 300 or 400 well-armed, but half-hearted
Gaels to help the magistrates. At the same time Lord
Rothes, a more zealous Whig than Atholl, advanced
towards Perth with 400 militia from Fife. Tha
officer in command of the Hanoverian forces was
General Wheetham, the same who figured somewhat
ingloriously at the Sherra Muir, if the grand old
ballad is to be believed—and it seems to be as good
history as it certainly is humour. Wheetham was
incompetent, if honest. He appears to have done
nothing to prepare the town against that surprise
which was now being actively hatched under his
very nose. Craigie and his friends were everywhere
.active, which should have sufficed to put him on
his guard ; but he seems to have had more than his
proper share of Saxon stupidity, and did little or |
nothing to justify his appointment.
j
On the 9th September, Mar, then in the Highlands,
issued his proclamation on behalf of the lawful king ;
and a day or two afterwards suspicious-looking parties—
suspicious, that is to say, from the Whig point of
view—began to appear in the neighbourhood of Perth.
Hay, afterwards governor of the city and Earl of
Inverness, was at the head of 50 to 100 horse ; whilst the
young and gallant Earl of Strathmore was on the move
with 200 men from Angus and the braes thereof. The
Fifeshire gentlemen and their retainers, who were good
Jacobites to a man, appeared in the neighbourhood to
the number of several hundred, as pretty and well
equipped a body of horsemen as ever Scotland saw.
Inside the town, too, affairs were fast coming to a head.
The rule of the Whig magistrates was generally
unpopular, and Craigie and his emissaries had -little
difficulty in aggravating the feeling against them and
the cause they represented. At last the attitude of the
townspeople became so threatening that the Whig
Provost (one Austin by name) drew
[out his loan of Gaels (from Atholl) in order to over AWE
the Jacobites; whereupon the Scots changed Bides; and
22o
The Gaelic Language and "Society"
declared for King James amidst the plaudits of the mob.
The defection of the military was a sore blow to the
Whigs who had hoped to Hefeat the conspiracy there was
on foot, amongst a powerful section of the citizens, to
hand over (Perth to the army of King James, with the aid
of ktholl's Gaels. Thus reinforced, the Jacobites of Perth,
headed by Mr. James Ramsay, factor to the ffiarl of
Kinnoul (who " was very active in the Rebellion") and the
redoubtable Craigie and his [friends soon sent the
unpopular Whigs about their business. But I am
anticipating somewhat. On THE 16th of September,
before the actual fall of JTHE city, that is to say, the
Jacobites inside the Rown "formed themselves into
different companies at different parts of the town, and
attacked the fourgher guard kept by order of the
magistrates, and [made themselves masters of the town,
and then teave intelligence to Colonel Hay and others,
with [whom they were in correspondence, and invited
[them to take possession of the town, and sent over jboats
to transport themselves and men; and after [they were
come over, they and the burgesses together seized the
persons of the Whig magistrates fend imprisoned them ".
Some days, however, be-[fore this successful èmeute took
place there had been [the usual premonitions of the
coming storm in the chape of unrest amongst the
populace, accompanied [with the customary drinking (by
night) of " dis-Doyal" toasts. Thus on the 9th, one John M
Arthur pnd six others, "armed with a gun charged with
EVE small balls, a pistol, sword and dirk" were lccused of
the heinous crime of drinking the true Bang 's health.
Bold bad Jacobites, too, appeared openly wearing the
white cockade, and in many other ways the nerves of
sensitive Whigs were set agog.
About this time, too, one "John Gourlay, a writer,"
arose, who made himself extremely unpleasant (to the
meek,
long-suffering
Whigs),
and
Craigie
above-mentioned went about 'listing recruits for a
shameless " rebel town company " that he had formed.
On the night previous to the 16th (the date on which the
town fell into the hands of the local royalists) Mr. Mark
Wood (?the future printer) sent a man to Scone where lay
Colonel Hay, doubtless to tell him that all was prepared.
Hay sent the messenger to Threipland (Sir David) of
Fingask, and the man subsequently returned to Perth,
which was in the hands of the local Jacobites, "about
eleven a.m." the following forenoon. The same afternoon
the express went post haste from Colonel Hay to
Kirkmichael, where the Earl of Mar then was, and
returned from thence the day after with a letter from
Mar to Hay, evidently appointing the latter military
governor of Perth.
Preliminary to the capture of the city, the Jacobites
took possession of the several ports of the town, and then
drew up in arms "on the street, without any magistrate
with them (depones Thomas Moncrieff who appears to
have been much shocked at the omission), till they sent
some of their number to the shore (of the Tay) and call
over the water the armed party (under Southesk : Hay
appears to have remained at Scone) who were on the
other side, whom they joined upon their landing in town,
and with whom they marched up the street". And " a
little after he (Moncrieff) saw the Provost and Baillie
Cumha Oisein do Chraoibh a bha air Tuiteam
221
Scot under confinement by the said party ". Another
account is to the effect that the party (in arms) " went up
to the guardhouse and disarmed the magistrates. One of
the number had a sash of tartan about him, which was
then the badge of that party " (the Nationalists).
On the capture of Perth the Whigs retired from the
city. Provost Austin declined to continue to serve as
chief magistrate, so " Hay of Cromlix, governor of
Perth," appointed Patrick Davidson, late Provost, to
serve in his room. The new magistrates soon testified
their zeal for the Jacobite cause by raising and
subsisting two companies of infantry {with forty men to
each company); but finding the charge not easy to be
borne, they petitioned the Earl of Mar to have them
provided for out of the regular establishment of the
army. The Provost commanded one company, and the
Dean of Guild the other. The former was present, I
believe, at the battle of the Sherra Muir. At all events he
declared his utmost willingness " to go with the army "
when at long last it moved out towards Dunblane.
The Whigs appear to have offered little resistance to
the seizure of Perth by the Jacobites. Provost Austin,
who seems to have been a person of some spirit, led out
the inhabitants to the number of 458 to resist the
Jacobite attack, but on the Gaels of Atholl changing
sides, the Whig resistance incontinently collapsed. " The
ordinary posts were stopped, all public money fell into
the hands of Mar, who granted receipts for it in the
King's name, and the different gentlemen were assessed
and obliged to comply on pain of military execution."
The capture of Perth was a most important advantage for Mar. It secured to him the whole of the
central Highlands and the eastern coast of Scotland.
Moreover, it made him master of a country well stocked
with beasts and grain.
The pity of it is, he did not
know how to improve his advantage. He made little or
no attempt to repair the town's, fortifications, but
appears rather to have busied himself about trifling
affairs.
Thus he selected texts for the episcopal
clergy to preach from on Sundays, and instead of
spending his time in military preparations or in actual
excursions, embarked on a wordy warfare with the
rebels through the medium of Wood's press. He seems,
however, to have insisted on the rough and ready justice
of the times being systematically done. Thus a woman
accused of theft was publicly whipped by the hangman
through the town by his orders, and a Presbyterian and
Whig minister whose horses were lifted by some
acquisitive Gaels, on complaining to Mar, received
abundant compensation.
During the Jacobite
occupation, the town's affairs were managed, and well
managed too, it appears, by a commission consisting of
five individuals, whose names were, Patrick Davidson,
Nathaniel Fife, James Smith, Mark Wood and Patrick
Glas. Patrick Hay, the Provost, did not long remain in
office, and on his retirement (for what reason I know
not) received the honour of knighthood.
Paterson of
Craigie was appointed chief magistrate in his stead.
Trade was regulated, the prices of various articles were
fixed, and certain things were forbidden to be sold above
a stated value.
With a view, too, to-encouraging
enlistment in the Perth Town Company, persons joining
22o
The Gaelic Language and "Society"
Cumha Oisein do Chraoibh a bha air Tuiteam
the local corps were entitled to the freedom of the burgh
after three months' service with the colours.
Not long after the unsatisfactory engagement at the
Sherra Muir, the King landed at Peterhead. His person
and parts are variously described and estimated by his
Scottish subjects in arms. One wrote: " The next day I
saw the Prince of Wales, who is a handsome, sprightly
youth.
He performs all his exercises to perfection, and
is one of the best marksmen in France. He delights so
much in shooting that when he is abroad, he will make
shift with any sort of victuals, and eat on grass without
linen, perhaps on a sheet of white paper.
He bears
fatigue so well that he tires all his attendants with
walking. He is not like the late King, but very much
resembles the Queen." By another he is described as
"an upright, moral man, very far from any sort of bigotry
". He usually had a chaplain in Anglican orders with
him.
In person he was said to resemble Charles II.,
and was a " well-fixed, clean-limbed man," who " from his
faced, and very ill cullored and melancholy ". But against
this, we have the word of a Jacobite observer, to whom
the royal adventurer appeared as " the handsomest man
in the world, and the most metled, dos business to a
wonder, and understands everything without being told ".
The King "lost all his baggage in coming over" (to
Peterhead), but " the laird of Grantullie presented him
with his gold and silver (? plate), and Lady Panmure
arranged his household affairs, so that Scoon House was
now well mounted ". It is necessary to observe here that
Scone was in a dismantled state before the King took up
his residence there. On his way to Perth his Majesty
stayed at Glamis, where he was hospitably entertained,
over eighty covers being laid at the dinner which was
given in his honour. His arrival at Perth, however, failed
to put much new life into the languishing Jacobite cause,
though the magistrates dutifully expressed their
satisfaction at the event in an address of welcome. " 5
Jan., 1716. This day the Council resolved to address His
Majesty upon his safe arrival at this place, in being
brought through the dangers of the sea, and saved from
the horrible attempts of malicious enemies " ; and the
address being read " they were very well satisfied
therewith and appointed the same to be written with a
fair hand on a clean skin of parchment, to be subscribed
by this house ". Alas ! that so promising beginnings were
destined to have so melancholy an end.
M. A
EIRE AGUS ALBA
Is geall le dha mhar a cheile Eire agus Alba. Ta cnuic
ailne mora leathana; ta aibhne binne geala, ta gleannta
glasa ceomhara, ta comair dhoimhne dhiamhara, ta
coillte gorma scathmhara i ngach tir diobh ; ta daoine
fiala
failteacha
daoine
calma
crodha,
daoine
spioraideamhla cneasta, daoine muinte beasacha 'n-a
gcomnuidhe
i
ngach
gleann
is
cumar
da
ruaidh-shleibhtibh. 'Seadh agus ta a dteanga dhuthchais
ar mairthean fos aca. Is fior go bhfuil an Bearla ag
221
infancy had made it his business to acquire the
knowledge of the laws, customs, and families of his
country, so as he might not be reputed a stranger when
the Almighty pleased to call him thither ". Spottiswood
adds some particulars about the king's household in
France which would be much appreciated by modern
newspaper readers. " There is every day," says he, " a
regular table of ten or twelve covers, well served, unto
which some of the qualified persons of his court, or
travellers, are invited. It is supplied with English and
French cookery, and French and Italian wines ; but I
took notice that the King ate only of the English dishes "
! This was patriotism in a King who designed to be
ruler of England as well as Scotland, with a vengeance !
Face Spottiswood, let us hope that the Anglican cookery,
as the Anglican chaplain, were more for show than
actual use. A Whig describes the King, whom he saw
at his landing, as " a tail, lean, black man, loukes
half-dead already, very thine, longiarraidh an ruagadh do chur uirthi agus e fein do chur
'n-a hionad : acht ta greim daingean aici fos ar na
shleibhtibh is na reidh-chnocaibh i n-a bhful
comhnuidhe na nGaedheal.
Is 0 fhuil is fheoil Gaedheal na hEireann do
shiolruigh a lan de mhuinntir Alban, agus ni ro-fhada o
ghlaoidhti Scotia ar Eirinn, agus gairm-tear cineadh
Scuit ar Ghaedhealaibh Eireann gus i ndiu. Ni docha go
bhfuil duine ainmighthe i stair na hAlban gur mo le
radh e ag Gaedhealaibh na tire sin 'na Colum Cille do
chaith a lan da shaoghal i n-Oilean I agus fuair bas
naomha ann. Is e Colum Cille do leath fior-chreideamh
Chriost ar fuaid tuaiscirt na hAlban; agus is iomdha
mainistear do chuir se ar bun chum solus leighinn agus
naomhthachta d'fhadughadh is do choimead ar
bhuan-lasadh i mease garbh-chnoc na duithche. Agus
nar bh'Eireannach Colum Cille, nar bh' Eireannaigh na
manaigh do chuidigh leis is do lean a reir is do chuir
crioch ar an deagh-obair do chuir se ar bun. Ni fhagfaidh
cail is gniomh-artha Choluim Cille croidhe na nAlbanach
is na nEireannach an fhaid is bheidh mor-chnuc 'n-a
sheasamh os cionn locha i nDun na nGhall na i
d-tuaisceart Eireann; an fhaid is bheidh fiadhain-tonn
na fairrge da radadh fein an thraigh-charr-aigeachaibh I
an fhaid is bheidh Iomradh fraoich arshleasaibh
Shleibhe Shneachta an fhaid is bheidh cioch os cionn
cloiche i nDoire. Baineann Colum naomhtha le hAlbain
is le hEirinn agus an fhaid fhanfaidh a chuimhne againn
is ceart do mhuintir na hEireann agus do mhuinntir na
hAlban bheith snaidhmighthe i ndluth-charadas le
cheile.
Is deacair a radh cia 'ca na hEireannaigh no na
hAlbanaigh is mo d'fhulaing fa dhaorsmacht na
Sasannach. 'Se mo thuairim-se fein gur mo d'fhulaing na
hEireannaigh; gur mo an tsainnt do bhi ar na
Sasannachaibh chum Gaedhil Eireann do chradh is do
cheasadh 'na Gaedhil Alban. Is mo an fhuath a bhi ag
na Sasannachaibh-riamh ar chreideamh na nEireannach
na ar chreideamh na nAlbanach.
67
Eire Agus Alba
Acht
na
tighearnaidhe
talmhan
saidhbhre
neamh-thruaighbheileacha. ni miste a radh na gur
dheineadar leirscrios ar gach taob de'n fhairrge. Is
iomdha Gaedheal breagh corach calma do chuir-eadar le
fuacht is le fan a criochaibh Eoghain is Airt agus a
tuaisceart Alban. Do thug Gaedhil Eireann is Alban a
gcuid fola go fuidheach ar mhaichre an choimheascair
chum a gceart d'fhaghail do Sheamas is do Shearlas. Bhi
Gaedhil Alban ullamh chum teacht go hEirinn chum cuis
an riogh do phleidhe i bfochair a lucht comhgais. Acht b'e
toil De gur " lom an cuireath an cluiche ar an righ
coroinneach" agus gur luigheadh trom-chos ar
Ghaedhealaibh agus gur fhanadar fa an-bhruid is fa
dhaor-smacht go dti le deidheanaighe.
Da mbudh is na beadh aon nidh eile san sceal acht
stair an lae-i-ndiu fein, budh cheart d'Eireann-achaibh
baidh do bheith aca le hAlbain mar is mor da sliocht i
gcathrachaibh is i mbailtidhibh mora na duithche sin.
Eirigh go Glascu; seasaimh i gcuinne sraide moire eigin:
tabhair na daoine gheobhaidh thart fa ndeara.
Eireannaigh is eadh a leath, de'n chuid is lugha agus is e
an sceal ceadna e i gcathrachaibh eile.
Ar na hadhbhraibh sin go leir is dearbhtha gur cheart
do mhuinntir na hEireann is do mhuinntir na hAlban
baidh dhith-cheangailte do bheith aca le cheile gur cheart
doibh eolas cinnte do chur ar a cheile agus cabhrughadh
le cheile i ngach cruadhtan. Deallruigheann an sceal go
bhfuil an chuid is measa da saoghal caithte ag an da
chineadh agus go mheidh feabhas ag teacht ortha feasta.
Acht fairior craidhte, ta teanga a sinsear ag dul uatha i
mbathadh, o bhliadhain go bliadhain agus gan dul ar i
shaoradh o'n mbas, muna rud e go ndeanfar imshniomh
di i n-am agus iarracht do thabhairt chum a saortha is a
saoruighthe. Ni gan cruadh-obair a saorfar teanga na
nGaedheal agus mara saorfar i n-am i beidh si
galaruighthe tar foir. Ni haon mhaitheas maise na
breaghthacht tire na bionn greim ar a dteangain fein aici.
Da mbeadh saothrughadh mar is coir da thabhairt ar
an Ghaedhilg tail is i bhf us is mo an rath is an bhail do
bheadh ar Ghaedhealaibh ar fuaid an domhain na mar
ata. Ni hi an f hirinne d'aithristear ortha i gcomhnuidhe i
starthaibh Bearla. Ni'l o'n Sasannach acht cos do luighe
ortha agus a dteanga do ciunughadh 'n-a gceann agus
annsain a chruth fein do chur ar an sceal. Ma
imthigheann an teanga imtheochaidh fior-spioraid na
nGaedheal is ni fhanfaidh i nGaedhealaibh acht driodar
balbh na beidh aca chum a ngno saoghalta do dheanamh
acht droich-bhearla.
Ni'l aon deifridheacht mhor idir Ghaedhilg na
hEireann is Ghaedhilg na hAlban leightear is tuigtear
Gaedhealg na hEireann i nAlbain; leightear is tuigtear
Gaedhealg na hAlban i nEirinn bionn meas ar
cheoltoiridhibh is ar amhranuidhthibh Eireann i nAlbain
agus meas ar cheol-: toiridhibh is amhranuidhthibh
Alban i nEirinn? Is ionann a dteanga; is ionann a gcuid
fonn; isi ionann a gceol; is ionann a sinsear—no a lan
de—■ agus budh choir gur bh'ionann an croidhe bheadhl
aca is gur bh'ionann a spioraid. Nar leigidh Dial go
dtiocfaidh eascairdeas eatortha go deo.
PADRAIG UA DUINNIN.
Eire Agus Alba
233
GAELIC ARTS AND CRAFTS
ARCHITECTURE
I. ECCLESIASTICAL
FERGUSSON, in his Histwy of Architecture, pays a high
tribute to the artistic genius and other brilliant
distinctive characteristics of the Celtic race. HeS goes so
far as to say that the pre-eminence of thej western
nations of Europe in art, poetry, music, de-1 ductive
insight, politeness, valour and patriotism isj entirely due
to the existence of the Celtic elemenn in the population,
and he says that the larger the] proportion of this
element, the more distinguished] will a nation be for
these qualities. This last ideal however, seems to be
carrying the eulogy too far,] and to be hardly consistent
with actual experience.] Fergusson admits that there is
one defect in Celtic] character which has hitherto
prevented the evolution] of a perfect nationality, namely,
an inability—a disinclination—to submit to those
restraints which] community on a large scale imposes.
Hence tha disunited Celtic tribes were gradually broken
ua before the more stolid and homogeneous races bjj
whom they were opposed and, in many casesl ultimately
absorbed. For, unlike the Semite, the Celt is
sympathetic, and, coalescing with other races, produces
a combination which can hardly be excelled. But the
excellence of the result of that combination depends, in
my opinion, not so much on the proportion of the Celtic
element, as Fergusson suggests, as on the inherent
qualities of the associated races.
This view is confirmed by a reference to the history of
art in our own country. In early times, 'when both
Ireland and Scotland might be correctly described as
Celtic, there was evidence of artistic appreciation, but
not much of artistic performance, [except in the
departments of jewellery and illumination. It was not till
a large infusion of alien blood pad modified the purely
Celtic character of the [population that an approach to
settled government [and peace made any exhibition of
the higher 'branches of art practicable, and introduced
certain [valuable elements into our national life which
the iCeltic idiosyncrasy lacked.
It was not the preponderance of the Celtic [element
which raised Scotland to the proud position she holds
among the nations, but the excellent qualifies of the
blended nationalities,—Scandinavian, [Saxon, and
Norman—who became identified with [the native race.
Such national pre-eminence could never have been
reached
whilst
the
country
remained purely
Celtic—whilst Celtic architecture prevailed and ran its
very restricted course. No doubt many circumstances
combined to interfere with its development: internecine
wars and foreign [invasions left little leisure for peaceful
pursuits, and [even in Ireland, where the style was
retained longer pan in Scotland, the chance of its ever
developing nnto a noble national style was lost by the
introduction of Norman architecture in the first
instance, and by the distracted state of the country in
the reign of Elizabeth, and subsequently.1
There can be little doubt that Celtic architecture did
not appear in Scotland till after the introduction of
68
Eire Agus Alba
Christianity by St. Columba ; and it is probable that it
did not first appear in the Sacred Isle.
It is, of course, extremely difficult for us nowadays to
realise the conditions under which the Columban
missionaries had to carry on their stupendous task in the
face of dangers and difficulties innumerable and, indeed,
inconceivable to us. Their first care would be to build
houses for their own protection and comfort. These would
resemble the houses of the natives rather than houses in
the land they came from, for the construction of which no
materials available at Iona
]} With all due respect to this author, whose opinions in
many ways are respectable, we cannot here approve of what he
says. Dr. Honeyman can hardly have pushed his investigations
and his reading so far as to embrace our earlier Gaelic
literature, in which will be found abundant evidence tending to
establish the very contrary of what he here, somewhat
dogmatically, asserts. His contention that Celtic proficiency in
the arts and crafts was confined to the " departments of
jewellery and illumination " is strikingly disproved by the
remains of our early literature, as we shall have occasion to
show in the course of subsequent papers on these topics. It is
evident that Dr. Honeyman has here based his conclusions on
the results obtained not from the latest, but from earlier
investigations into the particular field of whioh he is treating.
With his remark that the growth of Celtic Arts was arrested by
political disturbances, we agree. But it by no means follows
from thence, as he seems to imagine, that the Celtic peoples
could never have become proficients in these respects. His
notion, too, which he here gravely sets forth, that the Celtic
peoples required the assistance of foreigners, who, from the
point of view of civilisation, were notoriously vastly inferior to
them, to teach them how to become artists and craftsmen is
equally antiquated and whimsical.—ED. G. N. B.~\ might be
suitable. They had no need of a church, but only of an
oratory which was probably little different from their
dwellings—unless, knowing, as the first missionaries did
before they emigrated, of stone structures in common use
in Ireland, built in horizontal courses overlapping each
other till they met in the centre in the form of a vault,
they adopted this form of building for their oratories.
Evidence of the existence of such buildings, either
circular or rectangular in plan, exists in several parts of
Scotland.
Such buildings, however, cannot be classed
as architecture of any kind.
They are curious and
interesting from an archaeological and anthropological
point of view, but the only art they exhibit is the art of
the mechanic, not of the architect, in which we look for
art of a higher kind. The grace of architectural
refinement was reserved for the service of the Church
and for several generations was not required, as the
policy adhered to by Columba and his successors was
simply that prescribed by our Lord when He said, " Go
and preach the Gospel. Do not go and ask people to
come to church to hear you preach.
Search for them
and teach them." In this way they had to traverse the
whole of Scotland and a large portion of England and
Wales. They had to make haste and scatter the good
seed as they went, leaving it to their disciples under more
settled conditions to set a seal, as it were, to their
profession of faith by the erection of permanent places of
worship, after the model of sister churches in Ireland,
and displaying similar artistic adornments. It seems a
reasonable conclusion that no examples of Celtic
ecclesiastical architecture existed in Scotland before the
seventh or eighth century; and the fragmentary remains
which still exist were for the most part not
erected till the tenth and eleventh centuries, and, iul a
short period thereafter, the distinctive characteristics of
Celtic architecture gradually disappear till the Columban
Church loses its identity in the embrace of the Catholic
Church.
Eire Agus Alba
233
My readers hardly require to be told that the
religion of Ireland, from whence our Celtic branch! of the
Church came, traced its origin to the Eastern! section of
the Church, and the details of its architecture confirm
this belief; such details being in many particulars unlike
the contemporaneous Romanesque of the Western
Church.
So long as the Celtic Church had a corporate
existence it maintained its distinctive character and its
aversion to the encroachments of the Roman Church. 1
Its existence is recognised, though not emphasised, by
His Grace the late Lord Archbishop of Glasgow in his
interesting life of St Cuthbert, one of the most
distinguished of Columban missionaries. One difference
in the practice of the two Churches which had an
important influence on Celtic architecture, and which
prevailed even after the Catholic faith had been fully
accepted as the religion of the country, was the result of
the Eastern origin of the rule. I refer to the small size of
its ecclesiastical buildings. The cathedral was a Roman
idea. Its genesis has been skilfully traced back to a quite
natural evolution from the Roman Scholse to the
magnificent Basilica and modifications, by Professor
Baldwin Brown.
The Greek Churches and those of Asia Minor
adopted a totally different course. They made no
[' Pray, where and when was this alleged " aversion"
shown? When Patrick received his commission from Borne, or
when St. Columba daily offered up Mass in conformity with tìle
tenets of the Universal Church?—ED. G. N. B.] attempt to
make an impression by the magnificence of their
buildings, but thought it better to multiply the number
of their churches and restrict their size; and naturally
the Irish and Scottish Celtic Churches adopted this
practice, with the result that we have no cathedrals in
Scotland exhibiting any traces of Celtic architecture.
Another circumstance which left its mark on the
early architecture of our country was the absolute
despotism of reigning kings and chiefs. They were
supreme in religious, as well as in secular, affairs.
Columba—a man of kingly birth himself— was quite
aware of this and wisely devoted all his-energy in the
first instance to the task of converting to the faith the
most powerful ruler of his time. The risk was great, but
was more than justified by the result. Again, a
significant change occurs in the architecture of the
country owing to the king's change of views. We are told
that Nechtan, having jn'ven up his adhesion to the Celtic
Church, wrote letters to the Pope asking him to send
artificers to enable him to erect churches here in the
Roman style.' But Nechtan was succeeded by monarchs
P Our readers do not require to be told that there was no
inch thing as a " Celtic Church " having a separate corporate
existence, and independent of Eome. Nechtan expelled certain
Columban clergy because they had become corrupt; but this
tact no more affected the religious tenets of the displaced clergy
than it did those of the originator of these drastic measures. It
seems to be well-nigh impossible to get a Protestant to understand the difference between Dogma and Discipline, including
forms and ceremonies. We have yet to learn that the suppression of the Jesuits by the Holy See signified a change of
faith on the part of either the Pope or the members of
the-suppressed order. Both events were merely in the nature of
disciplinary measures; and, as such, had nothing to do with
articles of Faith. Dr. Honeyman here alludes to the employment of Irish clergy and architects as though it were something
who harked back to the older national cult, and went so
69
Eire Agus Alba
far as to induce many of the Irish clergy to settle in
Scotland, bringing with them artificers skilled in the
Celtic style, to whom we are indebted for—among other
things—the round towers at Brechin and Abernethy. But
the pendulum swings again, and once more a sweeping
change is made through the influence of a sovereign less
gifted with despotic power than her predecessors, but
armed with the omnipotent panoply of Faith .and
Love—the saintly wife of Malcolm Canmore. Such
weapons, for the first time in the history of the Church,
had been used and the resulting change was permanent.
Men changed, not because they were ordered to do so, but
because they were persuaded. But, as in other cases, the
change in belief involved a change in the prevailing architectural style. Letters from Queen Margaret to Turgot,
Prior of Durham, her Father Confessor, are extant which
prove that it is to her we owe the introduction of the
Norman style into Scotland. And so we arrive at this
general conclusion regarding the prevalence of Celtic
architecture that it extended from the close of the sixth
century till the middle of the eleventh—or in some remote
places rather later. Celtic art in the form of sculptured
slabs and crosses was of course continued till a much
later period—down even to the •sixteenth century.
The remaining examples of Celtic architecture
■extraordinary, instead of being, as it was, the most natural
thing in the world. Was not Columba himself an Irish Oael?
Throughout these pages, otherwise so commendable, Dr.
Honeyman gives many proofs that he has not yet taken .to heart
the vulgar saying touching the tailor and his last.— JED. 0. N.
B.] in Scotland are so few and so much mutilated that to
convey an intelligible idea of the style it may be necessary
to generalise and describe a typical example. From what
has been already said it will be understood that the Celtic
chapel or oratory was a small building, usually about
thirty feet by fifteen feet and correspondingly low. It was
intended for devotion only—to enable the monastic
worshipper or the missionary in the distant settlement to
obey the direction of the Master: " Thou, when thou
prayest, enter into thy cell". For such a use the cell was
admirably adapted. Some approximation to the usual
orientation was generally adopted. The door was placed
sometimes in the west gable, but more frequently in the
north wall near the west end, while the "dim religious
light" which alone was required was supplied by two very
small windows, one in each side wall close to the east
end, so as faintly to illuminate the altar, while the rest of
the interior was in deep shade. Such a place of retirement
could not fail to be attractive to the religious worn out by
the incessant worries of a missionary life. But this does
not seem to me to justify the tradition, usually attached
to the remains of such primitive cells—that they were, in
effect, hermitages to which holy men of old resorted to
spend their lives in prayer and meditation. I have formed
a totally different conception of the men who reared these
humble oratories. They had something else to do than to
spend lives in meditative indolence. If they wished the
doctrines they sought to promulgate to make any
permanent impression on the natives, they knew that
direct personal contact for teaching and persuading was
necessary, if not also for controverting the opposing
doctrines of the heathen.
It was no time for
day-dreamers when these cells were built; but the
circumstances demanded the constant activity of physical
and mental powers of strong, courageous, God-fearing
men, de-l voted to their cause and upheld by the
conscious-1 ness of heaven's approval: such were the men
who I could best appreciate, and most lovingly long for,
the hour of secret devotion in the consecrated ceill The
principal architectural feature in the chapel was the
doorway—sometimes a mere plain opening with sloping
jambs and lintel, but more frequently having moulded
jambs bearing a semicircular arch. At first sight the door
might be mistaken for a ] Norman doorway, but the
difference is easily de-J tected. If we take a door with
two orders, for example, we find in the Norman example
Eire Agus Alba
233
that the! arch mouldings rest on columns which are less
in diameter than the face or the soffite of these
mouldings, so that in both directions the mouldings
project beyond the face of the column, and, there J fore,
the capital of the column has to be brought out over the
column to the same extent as the superimposed
mouldings.
The same arrangement is maintained in
each order.
The chief difference! between this
arrangement and that exhibited in I the Celtic doorway
is that, in the latter, the jambsl are not recessed under
the arch mouldings, but arel carried down to the base
with the same projection both ways, whether moulded or
not.
Generally a I large bead on each angle of the
jambs takes thel place and has very much the
appearance of a l column. But its face is flush with
the superimposed archstone although separated from it
byl a few horizontal mouldings having very little projection, which can hardly be said to form a capital,! but,
as an impost moulding, serves to disconnect! the
mouldings of the arch from those of the jamb.
When these mouldings are introduced over large ■angle
beads and the projecting angle is carved, as it generally
is, some effect of a capital is obtained in perspective, but
to eyes accustomed to the graceful capitals and
overhanging mouldings of later times the absence of
such projections in Celtic arches has an effect which is at
once distinctive and disagreeable. Those without some
technical knowledge will not readily understand a mere
verbal explanation of this peculiar feature, but the effect
will be at once appreciated by any one who compares the
arched openings in the church of Leuchars with those in
the small church of St. Begulus at St. Andrews, one of
the latest examples extant of our Celtic architecture.
The church of St. Regulus may be regarded as •one
of the results of the last Celtic revival, and reference to
it throws light on several interesting points in the
history of the style.
It is evident that the altered circumstances of the
kingdom, and the freer intercourse with England and
other countries, had gradually led to changes in the
methods, if not in the tenets, of the Columban Church;
and the need for churches for congregational use had
been recognised as we see by all the fragmentary
remains of buildings erected after the tenth century. But
a comparison between Leuchars and St. Regulus brings
out another important point, that, although the Norman
succeeded the Celtic, there was at that period a distinct
break in the continuity of style. There was no transition,
such as we see between the Norman of Leuchars and the
Transitional of the eastern end of St. Andrews
Cathedral, nor was there any need either for cathedrals
or cathedral builders in either Scotland or Ireland till
the prevailing influence of the
246
Gaelic Arts and Crafts
Gaelic Arts and Crafts
Western Church spread northwards, even to distant
Kirkwall, and the Romanesque of Italy, transformed by
the Celtic genius of Northern France, emerged as the
foundation style of Gothic architecture.
In McGibbon and Ross's well-known work on The
Ecclesiastical Architecture of Scotland a considerable list of
early churches is given; but many of these have no
pretension to architectural treatment, and hardly any are
recognisable as examples of Celtic art. Even at Iona,
where numerous oratories were at one time to be found,
there is not now one entire example, the nearest approach
to this being St. Oran's Chapel. Other remains there are;
but so completely ruined that they can with difficulty be
identified.
Returning to our verbal description, the arch
mouldings are generally enriched with sculpture in very
low relief- little more than incisions—of lines, in various
combinations or flat moulded bands with balls or
nail-head ornaments sparingly introduced, the treatment
being more refined though less effective than in the
succeeding style.
There is no apparent indication in the few remaining
examples which may be regarded as original that the
small side-lights of these chapels were even glazed; but
there are, or, at least, there were (at Oransay) small
windows each cut out of a single slab of slate which had
shallow checks all round into which horn may probably
have been fitted. In one of the small chapels at Iona where
the windows have not been glazed, shutters have been
used.
The purpose for which these small churches were
erected is obvious as has already been indicated ; and
there is therefore no difficulty in accounting for their
multiplication in monasteries where the brethren were
numerous.
I
The round tower was not introduced into Scotland till a
comparatively late period. They probably owed their
introduction towards the close of the tenth century to
circumstances already referred to. We have only two
examples corresponding to the round towers so numerous
in the sister isle; and, as the design of these undoubtedly
came from Ireland, we may be content with that step
backward in their history and not exhaust the reader's
patience by discussing the question whether we are to
seek their prototypes at Ravenna or Corsica, in
Afghanistan or Delhi. The Brechin example is the most
perfect, and I may briefly describe it.
This remarkable monument stands on the brow of a
ravine at the south-west corner of the cathedral. It
measures 16 feet in diameter and tapers slightly towards
the top which is crowned by a conical roof, which, however,
is not original. The total height is 103 feet. It is built of
247
large courses of well-dressed freestone of good quality,
and is in an excellent state of preservation. As usual in
such structures, the door-sill is about 7 feet above the
ground; and it is in the decoration of the doorway that
the characteristic features of the style are exhibited. A
broad back fillet with a beaded border on each side
surrounds the opening, on which a crucifix is sculptured,
and at a lower level two figures, presumably the Blessed
Virgin and St. John, all in low relief. These sculptures
are now much weather-worn but are sufficiently
recognisable. It is an interesting fact that although this
tower was not erected till about the year 1000 the design
of its doorway and the details of its sculpture seem as
archaic as on examples in Ireland many centuries older.
Indeed, the persistence of style during the Celtic period
is very remarkable ;
248
Gaelic Arts and Crafts
Gaelic Arts and Crafts
249
and in this respect it comes into striking contrast with
the styles which followed each other in rapid succession
after the Norman Conquest, where development was
continuous whilst the supremacy of the Roman Church
was recognised. I must briefly refer to another feature of
this interesting structure, which seems to throw some
light on the vexed question of its purpose. A few years
ago I had an opportunity of examining its foundations.
An accumulation of rubbish was cleared out of the
inside, and at a depth of about a foot below the external
surface of the ground we came upon a layer of small field
boulders, not exceeding a foot in diameter, covering the
whole area and extending apparently under the walls.
On excavating outside we found that they did continue
under the walls, and that this thin course of rounded
loose stones with some traces of clay on the top of them
actually formed the foundation of this imposing building.
This being so it can hardly be supposed that the tower
was reared as a stronghold. The truth is that a few
hours' work in removing the soft till from under these
loose stones would suffice to hurl the tower, and all its
contents, into the ravine, on the edge of which it stands.
These round towers may, or may not, have served
many different purposes. There is one only, in regard to
which we need have no doubt—they were designed to be
landmarks. To understand this we must go back in
imagination to the state of society at the time of their
erection. It is not easy to do this as we gaze, for example,
on the magnificent group of consecrated buildings which
overlook the city of Durham, and which seem coeval with
the rocks on which they rest. We feel it hardly possible to
imagine a time when only one tail pillar pointing
heavenwards occupied the site of the venerable pile, the
only sign of the Bethel there, and the only guide to the
sacred spot oyer miles of trackless plains and moors in
all directions. Nothing could be better designed for its
purpose, and that it was designed for this purpose I
have no doubt.
There can be little doubt that the distinctive
character of Celtic architecture was not due to the study
of pre-existing buildings, but rather to the study of the
representations of buildings in the illuminated
manuscripts of the time. Many of these manuscripts
came from countries where architecture had reached a
high state of perfection ; but the illuminating artists
were not architectural draughtsmen, and they
represented architectural details incorrectly, just as
most artists of the present day do. Hence one of the
most striking peculiarities of the style which stuck to it
till the last—the absence of projecting capitals with
correspondingly projecting arch voussoirs. The illuminator represented his capitals by two or three straight
fines, sometimes plain, sometimes enriched, and the
architect copied this treatment, which we find
appearing in other ways, revealing the source from
which the suggestion had been derived. So on the
artistic side of architecture we have copyism and the
usual result, whereas on the constructional side—where
originality was indispensable—we have progress and a
large measure of attainment.
Whilst there is something like unanimity regarding
the source from which the religion of Ireland came, I am
not prepared to dogmatise regarding the origin of the
distinctive varieties of its religious art. We can find
architectural prototypes in Lombardy, as well as in
Byzantium, and
making allowance for the limited range of development
possible in the construction of small chapels during
many centuries, while the religious motive was
missionary, rather than devotional, we can quite well
understand that while the characteristics which for
centuries predominated may have originated, as I have
suggested, from the linear representation of buildings
regardless of perspective, a clearer light regarding many
features would gradually be obtained from many sources
as civilisation spread, and intercourse between the
Christianised nations increased. Some of the most
common ornaments in Celtic work are not peculiar to
any style or period. They are found alike on the
cinerary urns of our aborigines, the marble capitals of
Justinian's time, the walls of Pisa, and the carved prow
of the Maori's war-canoe. There is little wonder, then,
that with one variety of such ornament we should have
long been familiar—the complicated interlacing work
which retained its fascination for the Celt after all other
trace of the peculiarities of Celtic architecture had
disappeared.
The history of Celtic architecture is indissolubly
connected with the history of the Celtic Church. With it
it came into existence and with it it disappeared, shortly
after the reign of St. Margaret of Blessed Memory.
JOHN HONEYMAN.
HITHERTO I have dealt, in a general way, and with
HISTORY AND PATRIOTISM
unavoidable brevity, with certain outstanding events in
Scottish history. My design has been rather to indicate
the lines on which future Gaelic historians should write,
than to treat of those events in a particular manner or
from the point of view of the " scientific " historian. On
each of the events which I have but glanced at in
passing, it is safe to say that a respectable volume
might be written. The fact is, that it is almost
impossible to get a history which narrates those events
as we would have them written. Persons with Jacobite
sympathies frequently complain that the existing
histories of Scotland do but scant justice to the cause to
which their ancestors so heartily, and for the most part,
disinterestedly subscribed. No doubt they have
foundation enough for their complaint. Mankind, whose
nature is to despise failure, is slow enough to champion
a beaten cause, however respectable it may be, or
however patriotic and disinterested may have been the
motives of those who gave their support to it. The
Jacobite wars, however, are but incidents in our story,
though the principles from and on which they proceeded
date from antiquity; whilst the Gaelic cause is really the
cause of all times, past, present and to come; and
embraces the whole country. The importance of histoiy
lies, not so much in its verities, which, after all, have,
alas, almost a purely antiquarian interest, as in its
power to mould the minds of the young. In every
History and PatriotismHistory and Patriotism
European country the extreme importance of histoiy is
being increasingly recognised. In France and Germany,
historical studies are very properly regarded in the
public schools as of the first importance, and even in
England, a sorry laggard in educational affairs, as her
national and private educational systems abundantly
testify, they are beginning to realise that unless the
young are inspired with proper historical principles, the
patriotism of the youth or man cannot be implicitly relied
on in any national emergency.
In Scotland we may be said to oscillate between two
historical systems. That which is admittedly] English—a
silly importation from across the Border] —and that
which is styled " Scotch " ; but which is really but the "
Lowland Tradition" reduced to] writing. By Gaels of
to-day, neither of those two] systems—these two
extremes—is likely to be apa proved. The first is plainly "
impossible," for th| simple reason that it does not
concern us ; and thè] sooner it is sent flying, bag and
baggage, across th! Tweed the better it will be for the
country. With] regard to the second—the "Scotch"
system, or] cycle of historical events—our sympathies
cannot be with it either; for the equally plain reason
that] it has none for us. It is devoutly to be hoped that!
as soon as ever Inverness is made the educational
headquarters of Celtic Scotland, this system will be
thoroughly overhauled, and the doubtful or] injurious
elements in it promptly eliminated. To] teach the
children of the Gael of Scotland spurious] or prejudiced
history is consistent neither with] reason nor fair-play.
Besides, the histories which] obtain elsewhere do not
deal sufficiently exhausts ively with our own national
concerns; and if] patriotism is to be revived amongst us,
it is essential that more time and talent should be
devoted to the] consideration of purely Gaelic affairs
than they ard at present accustomed to receive. We must
have] good popular histories written in the Gaelic lan!
guage, and from the Gaelic mental standpoint. We do not
want mere vulgar panegyric—any baogk-allan who is
sufficiently acquainted with pen and] ink can write as
much—but sympathetic narrai tives, in which, whilst full
justice shall be done to] our national virtues, our faults
and failings as al people shall be sympathetically pointed
out; and] foood morals drawn with a view to the
avoidance of [similar miscarriages in conduct and
character on $he part of the rising generation of Gaels. It
has been justly observed, also, that more time should be
devoted to purely local history; for we Gaels fhave our
provincial as well as our national politics, ljust,
surprising as it may seem to an English edu-lcationist,
as other peoples have.
Local events should be brought prominently before
the young, who, after all, are but human, and Rake more
interest in what immediately concerns Khem than they
do in, say, the sack of Troy, or the kPunic wars. It is
sincerely to be hoped, therefore, tlhat as soon as
Inverness vindicates some part of her constantly boasted
claim to be considered as the I" capital of the Highlands "
by taking some
practical [interest
in their
welfare—which she can best do by insisting and
persuading others to insist, that the [Education Bill now
before Parliament shall contain la clause erecting her
into an educational centre for ^Celtic Scotland—that
these several matters will receive adequate attention,
and that an end will be [put to the existing system of
teaching history in [Gaelic schools, a system which like
many anotherthat [our sapient rulers in the South have
made us a super-[fluous present of, seems to start from
nowhere in f particular—if we except English ignorance
and [prejudice—and to end at any given point (provided
[it be sufficiently extravagant and unprofitable) [which
you may chose to mention.
The "scientific" tendency nowadays is to disregard
race, but to magnify country. The race [question is
declared to be infinitely too complex [to be ever
satisfactorily settled, at least on the [lines of existing
nationalities. There may be truth, lor a conspicuous
absence of it, in this dictum ;
but personally I do not see that it much matters
whether we start from the point of view of races or from
that of country, provided the end is] patriotism. The
Gaelic race, for which I pleadJ has absorbed various
foreign elements; yet for all] practical intents and
purposes it is still the Gaelic] race. The same
observation is equally true, of] course, of many other
existing nationalities. " The English race" is a perfectly
comprehensible exl pression, though it may not be a
strictly "scienJ tific" one; for the English, like most
other races]] is a polyglot affair—a sort of
blood-cosmopolitanism!l Still, we all know what we
mean when we speak of] " the English race " ; and we do
not require pedants] and refiners to say us nay.
Similarly, when we] speak of the Gaelic race we know
sufficiently well what we mean ; and if any one pretends
to think] otherwise, the best answer one can give to
such an] objector is to invite him to raise his eyes from
his] books and to look about him. Let him go to] Ireland
where, at the present moment, many thouf sands of
people are engaged in learning the GaeliJ language in
simple faith in the race theory and] movement. These
patriots may not all be Gael! by blood; but that they are
so by spiritual ana] mental adoption must be patent to
the meanest intelligence.
So, whether we believe in the race theory or do not,
the important point for each country ana people to
consider is, the instilling of patriotic] principles into the
minds of the young, through! the channel of history.
This is particularly rej quisite in the case of the Gael, by
reason of th| fact that this department of our national
life ha| hitherto been woefully neglected, thanks to
thafl political arrangement in virtue of which we havl
no real control over our national affairs, and because
patriotism has sunk to an exceedingly low ebb amongst
us in consequence of that neglect.
Now that it is too late in the day, and Cesarean notions
of Empire are everywhere falling back before
Individualist principles, as applied to Nationalities, the
English are making frantic endea-ivours to enlist the
sympathies of the young people Lof these islands in
behalf of their overgrown Empire. But the trend of
modern political thought is, fortunately, in exactly the
opposite direction to that in which the friends of
"expansion" would like to oblige the minds and
consciences of our children to proceed. The collapse of
the Russian ,;Empire has proved not only the
hollowness of the [pretensions of that power, but has
History and PatriotismHistory and Patriotism
also exposed the difficulty of successfully maintaining a "
worldwide" empire against anything approaching an
effective onslaught. And the recent avowal of Lord
Roberts in solemn debate in the House of Lords, that, in
his opinion, the English army is ■as little fitted now to
cope with a serious national emergency as it was during
the time of the late [Boer War, must be cold comfort to
the disciples [■of "Empire," and to those others who pin
their kfaith to an exploded system of political Csesarism.
[These are days, indeed, not of empire making, but of
empire smashing. The clumsy expedient of governing
by nominal force, by a parade of resources in men and in
money on paper is everywhere breaking down; and the
smaller nations of Europe, taking courage by the
discomfiture of some of the big bullies, are everywhere
asserting themselves in undeniable fashion. The
comparative ease with which a determined people can
arm themselves to throw off a yoke which they hate and
despise, the desperate and bloody resistance which even
a handful of determined individuals can offer to all
efforts] made to bring about their subjection, the
expense] and uncertainty of war, viewed from the "
imperial '4 standpoint, the growing hatred of despotism,!
whether benevolent or otherwise, and intolerance] of
interference, and above all, perhaps, the spread] of
education, and with it the growth of that pride] of race
and love of country with which it is sol closely
identified—all these causes, I say, operate to] discourage
the " Imperialist," and to pave the way] for the inevitable
collapse of those governing prini ciples in which he
believes, and which give him his] epithet.
Hitherto, as I have said, I have dealt with Scottish
history in a general way, indicating the lines] on which I
conceive its study should proceed,! rather than
attempting closely to consider those] various events
themselves. In future, I mean to] address myself in these
pages to the task of writing] Gaelic history as, in my
opinion, it should be com| piled. The periodical character
of this Review! coupled with the limited space at my
commandj will prevent me from attempting anything in
the] nature of an elaborate treatise. The most I eag here
endeavour will be to write a series of popular! historical
papers, with a view to their eventual publication in book
form. My observations will be addressed principally to
the Gaelic youth of this] kingdom, whose cause is a
statesman-like one, anòj whose early infection with right
historical notions! and principles is of the utmost
importance to our] race; and in order that my endeavour
may lack] nothing in the shape of completeness and
appro
priateness which it is in my humble power to]
bestow on it, I purpose addressing my youthful
constituents in the Gaelic language.
H. M.
-1
DOIGH-SGRIOBHAIDH
CIOD e dòigh-sgriobhaidh ? 'S e dòigh-sgriobhaidh a'
mhodh a tha aig duine anns am bheil e 'nochadh 'le
sgriobhaidh no le labhairt na smuaintean a. .th'aige. 'S e
Fileantachd eòlas chum labhairt gu maith; ach 's e
dòigh-sgriobhaidh, air an taobh teile, a' mhodh a tha aig
duine anns am bheil e ideanta ri sgriobhadh no ri
bruidhinn.
Tha na cleachdaidhean a 's fhearr air
dòigh-sgriobhaidh a' sruthadh a mach o 'n inntinn, ach
pa e comasach, cuideachd, beagan de na cleachdaidhean
so 'fhaotainn le cleachdadh is foghlum.
Tha na h-aobharan a tha aig bun dhoigh-sgriobhaidh
bunaichte gu maith anns gach àite, is gach cearn do 'n
t-saoghal uile; ach cha 'n 'eil te comasach na h-aobharan
a tha aig bun an dara-puid de dhòighean-sgriobhaidh a
chur ris a' chuid reile. Tha so ceart cho fior 'thaobh
cainntean na. [Roinn-Eorpa's tha e thaobh cainntean
nan duth-chanan 'san Aird'-an-Ear.
Thug na Romhanaich 's na Greugaich spèis, mhòr do
dhòigh-sgriobhadh; agus dh'fhàs iad ainmeil as a leth.
Mar sin, bha an fheadhainn a leanas: Antiphon,
Andocides, Lidhcurgus, Din-archus, Demosthenes,
Lisias, Pindar, Libhidh, Iso-lcrates, Isseus, Cicero, agus
moran eile. Thug na. [Romhanaich's na Greugaich aire
mhòr do dhoigh-[sgriobhadh, oir, 'n am beachd-san, bha
dòigh-sgriobhaidh cho feumail ri brigh a' ghnothaich.
'Gar
taobh-ne,
thug
ar
sinnsearan
dòigh-sgrio-[bhaidh a stigh do 'n duthaich so linnteann
air ais. Chreid iad, maille ri Mirabeau, gu bheil "focail
[mar nithean" ; agus, mar sin, chuir iad " làmh nan
diochiollach" ris a ghnothach sin da-rireadh.
258
Dòigh-Sgriobhaidh
Theagamh, gu 'n do ghabh iad saothair tuille's a choir a
thaobh dhòighe-sgriobhaidh. Nach e Bacon a thubhairt gu
'n robh snàs-labhairt 'n a eòlas, " excellently well laboured
? " Tha sàr-fhios againn gu 'm feumadh nithean glic is
eireachdail 'bhi air an tarraing a mach ex visceribus causae.
Coma co dhiù, thug na Gaidheil spèis mhòr do
dh'fhocail; agus, mar a thubhairt mi cheana, bha iad
eòlach air thar tomhas agus thar ceartas; oir is
lion-lannachd 'thaobh fhocail ceart cho airidh air
achmhasan agus a tha lion-lannachd a thaobh bhrigh.
Chuir Cicero sgriobhadh àraidh ainmeil dh'ionnsuidh a
charaid, Atticus, aig an robh roimh-ràdh snàs-labhairt;
ach chuir a charaid air ais e, ag ràdh gu 'n do chuir Cicero
an earrann ceudna mar prooemium cheana, anns obair eile
; agus ghearr Cicero a mach e. So eisimpleir math dhuinn
chum pongalachd ann an sgriobhadh. B'fhearr leis dragh
a chur air fhein, agus an earrann a sgriobh e, a
sgriobhadh a rìs, na 'bhi air a chronachadhair son a
chuairt - bhriathar, eadhon thaobh na smuaintean a,
bh'aige.
Ach roimh so, thug na Gàidheil spèis gu h-anabarrach
mòr do dh'fhocal; agus ghabh iad tlachd gu pongail air
sruth-fhocal, seòrsa eòlas a bha ro mheasail leo. Tha na
sgriobhaidhean Gàidhealach o shean gu math làn de na
sruthan-fhocal so, a chionn gu bheil iad misneachail agus
brioghmhor a thaobh an dòigh' air an do sgriobhadh iad.
Thug ar n-eachdraichean a stigh iad d' an oibrichean, Ios
gu 'n sgeadaicheadh iad dhuinne an sgriobhaidhean fein,
agus gu 'n dùisgeadh iad leo smuaintean d'an
luch-leughaidh.
Tha e ro dhuilich ri ràdh aig a' cheart àm so ciod e an
t-àm no 'n dòigh air an robh am fasan 'thaobh an
sgriobhaidh so air a thoirt a stigh do dhùthaich nan
200
Dòigh-Sgriobhaidh
graise; agus do chuir uime go h-èasgaidh an teideadh
oir-chiùmsach soin, agus is e comhphad do dhion a
dheagh-chotun
Donnchaidh,
ie
o
iochtar
a
mhaothbhraghad mir-chorcra, go mullach a ghlun ghasta,
ghleighil, choir," etc., etc.
Bitheamaid measarra! Is maith thig e do
dhòigh-sgriobhadh am buidh-fhocal; ach is comasach
tuille 's a choir eadhon do 'n ni math sam bith 'fhaotainn,
mar tha an t-sean fhocal ag ràdh. Gidheadh, bu
thaitneach do mhoran ughdaran Ghàidhealach, a bha
maireann mu 'n ochda-linn-deug, agus aig toiseach na
linn so chaidh, an ■dòigh-sgriobhaidh so; agus chum iad
suas e gu h-eudmhor, misneachail. Chuir an t-TJrramach
Pòl O'Brian an cèill, 'san Taibs'-ionnsachadh a sgriobh e,
an taobh blath a bha aige ris an fhasan so; agus bu
lion-mhòr iadsan a bha 'ga mholadh as a leth. Gun
teagamh is math is freagarach do sgriobhadh am
buidh-fhocal. Ciod ris an coimeas mi an roinn a leanas, a
thug mi o leabhar ainmeil priseil a tha' agam :—
" Esan an là mu 'n d'fhuluig e, a ghlac aran 'na
lamhan "naomh agus urramach agus a shuilean a' togail
suas ri neamh ruitsa a Dhia, Athair uile chumhachdach a'
toirt taing dhut, bheannaich e bhrist e, 's thug e dh'a
dheisciopuil." Agus, " air an dòigh cheudna, an deigh na
suipreach, a' glacadh na cailis àghoir so na lamhan naomh
agus urramach, cuideachd a' toirt taing dhutsa, bheannaich
e, 's thug e dh'a dheisciopuill".
So againn, ma tà, roinn, a 's maise, agus a's
urramaiche's a leugh mi riamh, agus m'a dheimhinn
dh'fheudar a ràdh gu'm bu choir dha bhi taitneach do
Dòigh-Sgriobhaidh
2 59
Gàidheal. Bha aig na h-Arabaich, agus cuid eile de na
cinnich a thainig o 'n Aird'-an-Ear, sgriobhaidhean air
an dòigh cheudna; ach cha 'n 'eil e comasach gu 'n robh
eòlas sam bith aig Gàidheil agus na h-Arabaich air a
chèile aig àm cho tràthail ri so. Air an leabhar ris an
goirear Tain Bò Cuailgne, tha mòran eisimpleirean ann
air an dòigh-sgriobhadh so. Tha e air a ràdh gu n do
sgriobhadh na h-oibrichean so mu dheireadh na
seachdamh linn; ach cha 'n 'eil e cho làn de
shruthan-fhocal ri obair ainmeil eile ris an abrar Fleadh
Dùin nan Geadh. Air son so, agus a chionn gu bheil na
sgriobhaidhean a 's traith' againne—'s e sin ri ràdh
Leabhar
Ar-mhaighe,
an
Liber
Hymnorum, na
leabhraichean mu Naomh Pàdraig ni 's traithe, agus na
leabhraichean mu Naoimh eile na Gàidhealtachd—uile
air an sgriobhadh air dòigh a's nadurra co dhiù, tha mi
lan-chreidsinn gu 'n deachaidh an sgriobhadh roimh
do'n dòigh-sgrìobhadh at-mhòr so a bhi air a thoirt a
stigh do dhùthaich nan Gàidheal. Air an leabhar ris an
abrar Hi-Manaidh le Seamus O'Dian, a fhuair bàs anns
a' bhliadhna 1372, tha moran eisimpleirean ann air an
dòigh-sgriobhadh so, ach 's e an leabhar ris an abrar
Caithreim Toirdhealbhaigh le Iain Mhic Ruaidhri Mac
Grath, a chaidh a sgriobhadh anns a' bhliadhna 1459 a's
ainmeile agus a saothaireachaile air son an fhasan so.
So againn samhladh :—
" D'aithle na h-imagallmha sin, Donnachaidh re n-a
dheagh-mhuintir, ro eirigh go h-ùirmheisneach
osgardha d'a eideadh fein 'san ionad soin. Agus tugadh
ar d-tus a uasaleide d'a ionnsaighidh ie cotun daingean,
deaghchùmta,
dluith-iomaireach,
din-eitrigheach,
dearg-anpa
dhach,
des-chiumas-bhlàith,
de
albhnuadhach, dath-chroidhearg, dio-
261
Res Publica
gach fear, air son an dòighe earalaich agus iongantaich
anns a' bheil na buidhean-fhocal air an toirt a steach.
'Nam bu mhiann leinn a bhi
'n ar deagh ughdaran, feumaidh sinn meudachadh a
sheachnadh a thaobh fhocal, cho maith ri smuaintean.
Agus is coir dhuinn cuimhn' a bhi againn nach 'eil mar
fhiachaibh oirnn' a bhi moladh gach abhaist is
cleachdadh a thainig nuas dhuinn o na linntean
mheadhonach.
I. B.
RES PUBLICA
HERALDRY, like other sciences, has its temptations. No
doubt, its misdemeanours are comparatively trifling and
innocuous ; but a tendency to pun (in or out of season) is
an offence which the public is apt to resent, as being
untimely. And this is, or rather was (for, alas! in some
respects, its punning days are over), Heraldry's besetting
sin. No doubt, it had others: such as credulity beyond
measure, and a tendency to exaggeration in the matter of
the number of the progeny of Adam. But these, after all,
were but secondary considerations, which took their rise
rather from temperament than design. The grave
misdemeanour was the tendency to pun, and, what is
worse, to joke not so much with difficulty as with
deliberate and
serious intent.
The Celtic families of Scotland have been rather hard
hit by Heraldry in this respect. The names of those
families whose progenitors originated in puns, are, with
us, numerous. And what is more serious still is the fact
that there is a suspicious and by no means specious
202
Res Publico,
enemy, and a simple humble peasant—varied by a "
Highland Chief"—who comes, single-handed, or with a
score of stalwart sons, to the rescue of the endangered
Scots in the very nick of time. The! grateful King
rewards the simple peasant (or the "Highland Chief") on
the field of battle ; and the new-made knight receives a
surname (generally a " punning" one) and vast landed
estates there and then.
Sometimes there is a Gaelic tag introduced
into-these romancing tales, no doubt to heighten the
effect, and to lay the suspicions of doubting souls. What
matter if the Gaelic be execrable, and understandable of
few. The tag is there, so that the unlearned may not lift
up their horns on high, and speak with stiff necks. A
collection of these tales would be amusing; but a single
example may perhaps suffice. The blushing champion, in
this case a " Norman " of obscure origin, is led before the
grateful King (who in these tales, more frequently than
not, is Pictish—remember, gentle reader, that no true
genealogist of the old school ever waited] for time or
tide), who inquires of the hero (in the English language
apparently) "Will you be my Chancellor of the Exchequer
?" The wily Norman, who knows better, replies, " Cha
bhi" whereupon the thunderstruck Prince observes,
"Then Harvey shall be your name," and dismisses the]
saviour of his throne and country loaded with lands and
honours. Of course, these tales are not without their
variations. Second in popularity to the battlefield yarn,
was the tale setting forth the marriage of some bold
Norman to the beautiful Gaelic maiden of Heraldry and
Romance—"the] last of her race and name" (and very
comfortably dowered into the bargain). There seems to
have been a number of these desirable orphans in Celtic
Scotland in the old days, and were it not that the
genealogists have kindly furnished us with their names,
one might indulge a little scepticism upon the point. As
for their pedigrees, which a layman like myself would be
disposed to regard as of just as much importance as their
appellations, our friends the genealogists have either
drawn a complete veil over them or have told us so much
only as suffices to whet our appetites, to raise our
curiosity, and to excite our expectations—and no more.
The accounts of these transactions are in general related
in so graphic and lively a style, and are accompanied
with so many circumstantial details, that one wonders
that, since the genealogists were about the business,
they did not anticipate these objections on the part of a
sceptical posterity, and complete their narratives with
the necessary particulars. It is a little remarkable, too,
that these tales of bold wooing on the part of gallant (but
tocherless) Norman adventurers all hail from Norman
sources. No doubt the Gael was too much honoured by
these condescending alliances to have breath left
wherewith to signify his gratitude for them. Hence the
modesty of our records in this respect.
From joking about names of persons to jokes touching
names of places is not a far cry—at all events from the
genealogist's point of view, whose fertility of invention is
similarity about these original tales. For the most part,
their "period" is the Scoto-Norman ; and their place of
birth the inevitable battlefield. Thus, we have a valiant
King of Scots, hard pressed by a cunning and relentless
Res Publico.
263
here something remarkable. And, by the way, the Saxon
who remarked that a surgical instrument is the
appropriate agency to employ to introduce a joke into a
Scotsman's head, could have had no experience of
certain Scottish genealogists. It is a little hard that a
simple crooked mouth such as the eponymous of the
Cian Campbell evidently had, should have been brushed
aside, as it were (by the genealogists), in favour of their
ridiculous Campo hello, vide Beau-champ, Beecham, et
multis aliis. What possible connexion between the two
there can be, I, for one, fail entirely to see. A crooked
mouth is a crooked mouth, surely, all the world over; and
the same remark applies to a fertile plain, wherein, by
the way, the cart is never put before the horse, at least
by knowledgable persons. On the other hand, mirabile
dictu, the devious proboscis of the Camerons has come off
Scot free, so far, at all events, as our " national"
genealogists are concerned. Why is this? Cameron is
certainly a place-name, somewhere near the Border, I
believe ; and why, in this case, to hold scriptural
language, one should be taken and the other left, is, to
me, a mystery. Is not a crooked mouth as honourable a
peculiarity as a crooked nose, and just as worthy to be
handed down bodily as well as patronymically ? I have
tried, mentally, to account for the existence of this myth
on the ground of the alleged acquisitiveness of the
Campbell family; but cannot. Is a crooked mouth more a
sign of acquisitiveness of the landed kind than, say, a
wry neck, or a squinting eye? Obviously this is a simple
case for physics to decide, and I shrewdly suspect that
were it not for the genealogist and his bag of snobbish
tricks, such a head-splitting conundrum would never
have existed. My congratulations to Cian Cameron,
which has been spared the foolish attentions of the
genealogists, so far at all events as the appearance of the
person of their eponymous was concerned.
Heralds and genealogists are, doubtless, kittle cattle;
but what shall be said (and done) unto the novelist? I
confess the novelist who puts broad
Scotch into the mouths of Gaels is to me a thing
abominable and unforgivable. Personally, I start with a
loathing for the speech of the kailyard—in which respect
I yield to the soft impeachment of being a trifle
prejudiced—but to be treated to a "discourse," not beside
a cabbage stalk, but beneath a birch tree, or by a
mountain loch, is simply maddening. And the worst of it
is, that the impudence and effrontery of these
clod-hopping quill-drivers does not end here : they have
actually appropriated, by laying profane hands on, some
of our Gaelic sayings, and have put them into their
vulgar jargon. For instance, every one knows who was
the author, and what were the circumstances, of the
following familiar saying, Bhiodh an oidche an oidche, nam
bu ghilkan na gillean. The man who made that remark
was a Gael, and had Gaelic in plenty : yet my
non-content novelist must needs relate the story as
though he were an English speaker, to whom his
preposterous " the nicht would be the nicht, if the lads
were the lads " was appropriate and normal utterance.
Probably Sir Walter Scott was as frequent and flagrant
an offender in this respect as any—his Gaels were
obviously born at lime-light, and spoke an English all of
his own " nain sel'"— but peace be to his literary ashes,
since he sometimes meant well, and, at a season when
to give the Gael any other than a bad name was
unfashionable, if not treasonable, made some
respectable pleas in our behalf. Besides, there is a vast
difference in point of talent, if not in point of view,
between the Kail-Yairders and the Wizard of the North,
and, doubtless, something should be forgiven the latter
on that account. I do not protest that neither kailyard
nor midden should have its cheap literature ; but I
certainly think that honest Jock's blas sounds
266 Res Publico,
we want—not so much its mere externals, useful and
admirable though they may be when united to the
other. We want work, not play. Our nationality will not
live by tartans alone, nor by dint of that which cometh
out of the haberdashers' shops. Duisg suas a' Ghàidhlig,
tog do ghuth: na biodh ort geilt no sgàth! Yes : but wiser and
more patriotic are those who face
Cumha na Frainge
267
barbarously in Tir nam beann, 's nan gleann, 's nan
gaisgeach—-in the land hallowed by memories of classic
Ossian and secured to us and to our posterity for ever by
the music of the bards.
I have yet another bone to pick, which is the
Highlander à Voutrance—attired o mhullach gu bonn —or
Stage Gael. They have the same kind of misfortune over
in Erin, but, thanks to the Gaelic League, his sun is set.
Here he still flourisheth, not so much on the stage—for
with us the mummer's trade is not popular—as in real
life. He is much "in evidence," as the saying is, at " social
gatherings "■ -to which the epithet " Celtic" is frequently
(mistakenly) applied —and by his Cairngorms you may
know him. He is the first to drink an honest toast "
Highland " fashion (that is to say, with one of his hind
legs on the table) and always the last to do anything
practical to advance the Gaelic cause. Is there a so-called
" Highland " regiment threatened with the breeks, or a
"sword of honour" to be presented to some fool in pipeclay who hath deserved exceedingly at the hands of his
brethren asses, and straightway he arises to do his bit of
public shouting (a nasgaidh) or to put his useless name to
the still more useless parchment. Such "Gaels" we have,
alas! and, abundantly, to spare. Who will rid us of them?
What kind fate will overtake them ? It is the Gaelic spirit
the music than such as create or merely call the tune.
FEAR DO CHRIDHE.
CUMHA NA FRAINGE
[Chaidh an t-òran so a sgriobhadh 'sa bhliadhna
1871.]
A CHRUITHFHEAR an t-shaoghail
A Righ mhòr gun tùs ;
A chruthaich sinn ri t'iomaigh,
Dion sinn fo d'sgiath,
Na d'mhathas, 's na d'mhòr thròcair,
Deonaich sinne sheoladh;
'S le'd ghrasan iochd-mhor treoraich,
Gu d'innis flathail sinn.
Res Publico,
264
Res Publico
Ach's mor an t-aobhar smaointean Dhuinn,
buaireas na Frainge ; A Eigh! na chuir thu d'chùl,
Ris an rioghachd ud s na h-innte; No le cogadh's le
gach plàigh, Le goirt, 's le blàiran bàs-mhor; 'M beil
acasan ri phaidheadh, Trom chis dhuit, O Ard-Righ
?
268
Cumha na Frainge
0 ! 's muladach dha rireadh, Gach
naigheachd bhochd o 'n tir ; Tha 'n diugh a
'n cas na b'eiginn, 'S gu fior bu mhor am
beud; Ach co's urra dhe leirsinn, An cradh
'sna lotan creachdach ; Tha 'n diugh a'
meath 'sa lèireadh, Na miltean de sluagh!
Tha piuthar ann gun bhrathair,
Tha mathair ann's i 'caoidh,
Athair a cuid paisdean,
Nach till rithe a chaoidh ;
Tha sin ann's a charaid,
'S a Eigh ! nach cruaidh an caradh,
Tha cumha a mic aluinn,
A thuit am blàr gun bhuaidh.
Ach nach truagh leibh cor na ribhinn
Is glana gnuis 'us snuadh !
Tha sior ospagaich's a' caoineadh,
'S a' fasgadh dhorn gu cruaidh.
A falt cuaileanach 'ga reubadh,
'S a tùr an ire a treigsinn,
'S i gal 'sa caoidh a ceud ghradh,
'S gu brath cha dean i a luaidh.
Ach mu dhiobair Mac na h-Eeirinn,1 A
choisinn cliù's gach buaidh, Cha bann gun
fhuil's gun, èirig, A liubhair e srian a
riaghaill. Bha esa' 's a chuid fiuran, Mar
h-aon do shianar dhiubh-sa, 'S cha bann
gun chosgais dubhlan, A chail na
Frangaich buaidh.
1
Mac Mahon.
Ach sguireamaid mar thoisich,
Us guidheamaid glòr do 'n Ti,
Tha 'riaghladh anns na h-Ardaibh,
'S a' ceadachadh gach ni:
'Na d'mhathas, 's 'na
d'mhor-throcair,
Deonaich sinne a sheoladh,
'S le d'ghrasan iochd mhor treoraich
Gu d'innis flathail sinn.
ALASDAIR BISSET.
Air fonn, " Gu ma slàn chi mi".
LITRICHEA
N
. TI
AGUS
TALAMH
A CHARAID,—Is lionmhor na dòighean
eibhinn a th'aig daoine an là an diugh air
airgiod a chosnadh, agus reic fhaotainn
d'an cuid bathar. 'Se 'n dòigh mu
dheireadh dhiubh seo air an d'fhuair mi
265
O! 's muladach ri innseadh, Gach naigheachd
bhochd 'n tir Bha uaireigin dhe 'n t-saoghail, Na
taice mhath dhuinn fhein; Tha bailtean 'sa
raointean, Air snamh am fuil a laoich threun, 'Sa
mnathan òga a' caoineadh Tuiltean de dheur.
269
Litrichean
iomradh a th'aig lighiche's a' bhaile ris an abrar Camus
a' Chorra an Ceannd.
Tha dòigh aige air ti mhath fhaotainn gu saor, agus
tha e 'cur roimhe gu'n toir e crioman beag talamh a
nasguidh do gach duine a cheannaicheas dà cheud
phund de'n ti aige. Feumaidh duine ceithir punnd
fhaotainn comhla air thoiseach, agus leis a seo gheibh e
comhchordadh air a sgrìobhadh le fear-lagha, agus air a
sheuladh leis an lighiche, a' gealltainn uiread seo de
thalamh a thoirt seachad a nasguidh, cho luath 'sa
bhitheas an dà cheud punnd iomlan air a cheannach.
Feudar seo a bhi air a dheanamh leth-phunnd aig àm,
an deigh do'n cheud ceithir phunnd fhaotainn comhla.
Tha e air innseadh gu'm bheil an talamh seo an Albainn
agus Eireann cho math ri Sasunn.
Tha sinn a' cluinntinn bitheanta mu'n stri laidir a
270
Litrichean
tha daoine a' deanamh air son beatha na Gaidhlig a
neartachadh 'sa Ghàidhealtachd, agus cha'n 'eil duine
beò a tha m's dèigheil air soirbheachadh fhaicinn air
cuisean na Gàidhlig na mi fhèin, ach ciamar a bhitheas
daoine ann a bhruidhneas a' Ghàidhlig fhad 'sa tha'n
dùthaich 'na fàsach fo chaoraich agus fèidh ?
Leinn fhein, cha'n 'eil ni a's fheumaile do na Gàidheil
an dràsd na cothrom beagan talamh fhaotainn uair 'sam
bith tha feum aca air, agus obair leis an cosnadh iad
uiread 'sa chumas iad beò aig an taigh. Tha moran
miotailtean 'san talamh 'sa Ghàidhealtachd agus
rachadh mèinnean gual agus iaruinn fhosgladh le glè
bheag de dhragh no cosdais do'n chuid a's mb de na
h-uachdrain. Nan rachadh an dà obair seo a chur air
dòigh bhitheadh fada tuillidh airgiod tighinn do'n
Ghàidhealtachd, agus an sin nan deanadh meall de
dhaoine am measg marsantan nam bailtean riaghailt air
beagan talamh a thoirt seachad a nasguidh do dhaoine a
cheannai-cheadh fiach sium suidhichte de'n bhathar aca,
cha 'n 'eil teagamh nach bitheadh toiseachadh againn air
na seòid a chur air ais an Tir nam beann.
Tha gnothach 'eile ann a tha 'na bhacadh mhòr do
dhaoine tighinn do'n Ghàidhealtachd a dh'fhuir-eachd
ann, 'se sin na càintean. Tha tri no ceithir sgireachdan
ann far am bheil na càintean tuillidh air deich tastain 'sa
bhliadhna mu choinneamh a h-uile nòd de mhàl. Cha'n
'eil an leithid ach 'na sgainneal do dhùthaich coltach ris
a' Ghàidhealtachd, oir ciod an goireas a th'aig an luchd
àiteach-aidh air son suim cho mòr a phaigheadh a h-uile
bliadhna ?
Cha'n 'eil rud sam bith ach rathadan agus sgoiltean
math aca. Gheibh duine a'cheart uiread agus mìltean de
ghnothaichean beaga comhla ris cha mhòr am baile sam
bith gun tuilleadh cosdais air seo. Tha iomadh sgireachd
an Sasunn far nach tig na càintean gu leth uiread sin.
Cha'n e gur toigh leam Sasunn : cha toigh, ach an sud a
ghabhadh faotainn an Sasunn bu chòir dha a bhith an
Albainn cuideachd leis an leithid sin de ghnothach, oir's
iad na roinntean a's bochda de Shasunn am bitheantas
far am bheil na càintean a's ìsle.
Bu chòir do chuid d'ur luchd-leughaidh feuchainn an
dòigh a dh'ainmich mi roimhe air ti agus talamh, oir tha
mi cinnteach gun oibricheadh an gnothach air dbighean
eile. Le'r cead, Cailleach an Ti.
"BRITAIN" AND ENGLAND
SIR,—Will you allow me some of your space to
ventilate a matter which appears to me to demand some
attention on the part of the inquiring public ? I allude
here to the practice which has sprung up of late of
styling England " Britain," and of calling Englishmen
(and Scotsmen) "Britons". I believe this custom is largely
in deference to Scottish sensitiveness, which is prone to
take offence at the public and official use of the appellations " England " and " Englishmen," when reference is
made to the United Kingdom, and to the inhabitants
thereof. Though I by no means wish to decry the
patriotism of the real Scots, and, though an Englishman
(and proud of the fact) can understand in a measure
their reluctance to be dubbed Englishmen, yet I cannot
help feeling that the way out of the dilemma which your
countrymen in general have chosen is pedantic and
Litrichean
78
unscientific. In the first place, why should Englishmen,
or for that matter, eke Scotsmen, be called " Britons " ?
The true descendants of the ancient inhabitants of the
country now known as England are, according] to all
accounts, the Welsh, who constitute but a fraction of the
population of England, and who occupy but a small portion
of that country which once upon a time belonged to them.
The Britons-were Celts; the English are not, and I fail altogether to see why by bestowing that appellation upon them
they should be classed as such. One] hears a great deal
nowadays—perhaps some of it is neither in the best of
taste, nor much illumined by learning—touching the
Anglo-Saxon race; but what sense can there be in our
indulging our pride in that direction if in another we put
up a claim to be considered as Celts by styling ourselves,
or allowing others to style us, Britons ? Obviously we
cannot be both Anglo-Saxons and Britons ; and for my part
(and I trust you will excuse the preference) I would much
rather be styled the former than the latter, not because I
am so ignorant and prejudiced as to despise my fellow
countrymen, but because I am an Englishman—an
Anglo-Saxon if you will—and I like my national beverage
un-l diluted. It seems to me, too, that the case against your
own countrymen, so far as the claim to be considered
Britons is concerned, is just as conclusive as it is against
mine. The Scots, no doubt, are, in the main, a Celtic race ;
but I have yet to learn that they have any right to the title
of Briton.
The small kingdom of Strathclyde (which was
undoubtedly British, i.e., Welsh) was wiped out of existence
many hundreds of years ago ; and the little British blood in
that part of Scotland which was left in it after the
sanguinary events preceding and following its suppression,
must have disappeared long ago—have disappeared as
completely and effectually as the British language itself.
Why, then, should the modern Scots elect to be styled "
Britons," seeing that history and every ethnological reason
is opposed to them ?
It may be objected, of course, that although the
race-argument is weak in both cases, justification for the
existence of this fashion—for really it can be no more—is
to be found in the fact that once 'upon a time the whole
island was styled Britain. I confess myself, however, no
more an admirer of this line of argument than I am of the
other. I do not dispute the fact that the island wherein are
England and Scotland was anciently styled Britain (not by
the Britons themselves, be it observed, but by the Romans
and the classic world in general), ibut, pray, what sound
reason have we here why we should cling to the obsolete
momenclature of antiquity? France was formerly called
Gaul, yet the Frenchman who should seriously allude to
his country by that appellation, or should insist on being
described as an inhabitant of Gaul, that is, a Gallician,
instead of a Frenchman, would assuredly be laughed at for
his pains. And what is sauce for the Frenchman, the "
Carthaginian," the " Phoenician," and so forth, is surely
sauce for the rest of the hemisphere.
For my part, I must acknowledge myself more an
admirer of the Irish in this respect than I am of the Scots.
As for my own countrymen, I fancy if it were not for the
Scots and the umbrage they are [apt to take at
insignificant trifles, we should hear little of "Britain" (save
in romance and poetry) and the "Britons". The terms
270
Litrichean
"England" and "Englishmen" are, I believe, good enough
for most of us over the Border. But the Irish, whose consistency I admire, but whose politics I deplore, are
nothing if not, at all events, " thorough ".
They never
dream of styling themselves "Britons" (which racially
and territorially they are no more than are the English
and the Scots), but reserve that appellation for
Englishmen; and the word " British " for things
English—indeed, if I mistake not, these terms " Briton "
and " British " are with them obnoxious epithets, which
they make use of entirely for English consumption! For
instance, the English government (which they frequently
style " British ") is in their eyes simply a thing of English
creation, and, therefore, detestable. When they use the
terms "Briton" and "British" in this connexion, they do
not undertake any indirect reference to themselves (as
the Scots are accustomed to do to save their national
skins, I suppose), but simply use the words as
expressions synonymous with " English" and
"Englishmen".
How far this absurd custom is the result of a
well-meaning desire to appear more ancient than we
English really are, and how far it is a feeble outcome of
the times and existing political arrangements, I will
leave it to others to decide. I cannot help thinking,
however, that your Anglicised countrymen would be well
advised in dropping it. After all, the Act of Union of 1707
cannot be gainsaid ; and whether they like them or not,
Scotsmen should make up their minds to accept its
political consequences with as little grimace as possible.
The spirit of our Government is English, not " British".
England's army is English, so is her navy—not " British
". It is the English language we speak-not the British;
and Englishmen, not " Britons," with a few Anglicised
Scotsmen and Irishmen thrown in, are at the head of all
our national affairs. If, say, Mr. Lloyd-George were
suddenly made Dictator of England, and Welsh
principles of government—if there be such things—and
the Welsh language became everywhere predominant,
then, indeed, might the Britons of Britain have
something reasonable to say for themselves and their
claims ; but until that consummation actually arrives, I,
for one, will be content to consider this country as
England, my compatriots as Englishmen, and their
concerns as English. As for the Celtic Renaissance and
those who are in sympathy with it, that, as the saying
goes, is another story. Personally, I rather admire the
man or men who, from out of the past, as it were, speak
to the future through the medium of the present. At all
events, such a one is, in my humble opinion, a more
understandable and conscionable being than the refining, pettifogging individual who having deliberately
made his bed, refuses, or rather churlishly objects, to lie
on it; and what I claim for myself, I am neither fool nor
bigot enough to withhold from others—if they can show
just cause why they should have it—that is to say, if they
are strong enough to seize and to hold it. I enclose my
card, and subscribe myself, sir,
Your obedient servant,
AN ENGLISHMAN.
HOUSE OP COMMONS LIBEAEY,
29th June, 1905.
Litrichean
79
[We heartily sympathise and agree with our
correspondent. It is certainly highly absurd, specious,
trifling, pedantic and " unscientific " to characterise as
"British" men and things which are nothing if not English.
Let us not, in the meantime, endeavour to shut our eyes to
unpleasant facts, nor, by a transparent process of verbal
legerdemain, try to shuffle out of rendering to Caesar the
things which, unfortunately, are Csesar's.
We shall
certainly give no encouragement to the " British "-cum-"
Briton " sophistry in these pages. Such familiar
expressions as the English King, the English Government,
the English Army and Navy, English letters, etc., etc.,
have not only long established usage, but common-sense to
recommend them. This periodical is written partly in the
Gaelic and partly in the English languages ; but it is
designed principally for Gaels —not for " Britons," though,
to be sure, we have one or two Welshmen amongst our
subscribers.—EDITOR G. N. B.]
GAEL AND "HIGHLANDER"
SIR, I observe the following paragraph, under the
head of Cèile, in the seventh part of the new Gaelic
Dictionary which is being compiled, and admirably
compiled, too, by Macdonald & Co., of The Gaelic Press. "
The term Gaidheal is frequently erroneously translated '
Highlander,' which is only a political Sasunnach word
invented to keep Gaels asunder, and consequently,
comparatively helpless." The compilers of this Dictionary
have already accomplished many useful things; but I think
that this is one of the best of them. I am glad that an
ancient, though not venerable, superstition, the creation,
as the writer justly observes, of our friends the enemy, has
been authoritatively disposed of. Time was, however, and
that not so long ago either, when even Gaels bowed the
knee to the Sasunnach Baal, in so far as they generally
translated the word Gàidheal in the shape of the term
"Highlander". I remember well that An Comunn
Gàidhealach, in the days when it thought it necessary to
give the English equivalent of every Gaelic word or phrase
officially used by it—now happily over-past—gave
the world to understand that its English designation was
"The Highland Association," instead of the Gaelic League or
Association, which, of course, it should be. The popular
English abuse of these simple words Gàidheal and
Gàidhealach (meaning, not "Highlander " and "Highland,"
but Gael and Gaelic) dates far back in history. The English
in their conversation and literature seem to have found an
insuperable difficulty in translating these words into their
correct equivalents. With them, the Gael of Scotland is
always a " Highlander "—not a Gael, as his own language
insists on his being. That portion of the country which is
mostly inhabited by Gaels is, to them, the " Highlands,"
and any one not inhabiting those regions, or not bearing
what they are pleased to consider as a " Highland " name,
is not, and cannot be, a " Highlander " ! Of course, all this
is highly unscientific, fantastic and woefully misleading;
but is simply part and parcel of a number of similar
fallacies connected with the Gaels of Scotland, and for
which our English neighbours are mainly responsible,
though it must be confessed that by tacitly, if not
explicitly, sanctioning these erroneous usages, the Gaels of
270
Litrichean
Litrichean
Scotland have themselves been largely to blame for the
existence and continuance of such indefensible practices.
Though in ancient writings I find that the Gaelic
language was frequently styled the "Irish language" by
English authors, and by travellers hailing from the
Anglo-Scandinavian fringe of Scotland, I do not find that
the Gaels of this country were ever described by these
writers as " Irishmen," or even as " Scoto-Irishmen ".
Among the uncomplimentary epithets with which the
Saxon and his friends branded the proud Gael of
Scotland, there are "Redshanks," "Wild men," etc., etc.;
but few, if any, references to their Gaelic stock. This
may be accounted for by the fact that these early foreign
observers did not come in actual contact with our
ancestors, but accepted without questioning the partial
and prejudiced accounts of us retailed to them by our
enemies in Scotland.
The mental transition from
"Redshanks" or "Wild men" to "Highlander"—i.e., an
inhabitant of the "Highlands," a district which abounded
in mountains and torrents and lochs, and into which a
self-respecting Saxon could scarce venture to
penetrate—seems-easy and natural enough.
Besides,
what good reason was there why the Gael's description of
himself should be at all regarded, seeing that his
manners, language and customs were those of barbarians—meet only to be stamped out! And so it came
to pass, whether he liked it or not—though. in too many
cases, it is to be feared, the Gael himself was, if not a
consenting party to the absurdity, at all events an
indifferent observer of it—that the Gael of Scotland's
description of himself was contemptuously thrust aside,
and his conqueror's label for him accepted without
dispute or question in its room. To the Saxon, it was
natural that that part of the country which was
inhabited by the Gaels, and which enjoyed an evil
reputation on that account in his eyes, should be styled
the
"
Highlands,"
seeing
that
hills
and
mountains-abound there.
It was natural, if not
inevitable, too, in consequence of his so naming the Gàidhealtachd of Scotland, that he should christen the
inhabitants therefore " Highlanders".
The Saxon,
primarily, at all events, designed to draw no special
racial deduction from his (to him) convenient and
reasonable, if somewhat arbitrary, nomenclature. The
constituents of the Anglo-Scandinavian fringe, however,
soon saw the political uses of this artificial and very
unscientific division ; and hastened to avail themselves
of it with characteristic unscrupulousness. They
accordingly divided the country into " Highlands " and "
Lowlands," not so much territorially as racially. Thus, every
Gael inhabiting a county which, by reason of this
political arrangement, ipso facto became Lowland, ceased
to be a Gael, and henceforward was styled a "
Lowlander," i.e., a foreigner or Saxon (in our eyes) instead
; whilst the Gàidhealtachd, on the other hand, became
shorn of half its extent and power; and from that time
forward passed into a definite political entity with
well-defined limits which it was the sole business of the "
Lowlands," and consequently of " Lowlanders," to
oppress and depress. This racial way, too, of looking at
the matter soon became fashionable in England (where,
by the way, it still flourishes); and after a time (probably
after the fall of the lordship of the Isles, towards the end
80
of the fifteenth century) the infection extended even to the
" Highlanders " themselves, who learned the lesson which
their enemies taught them with that thoroughness, and
applied it with that zeal, which are only to be found in the
highest degree amongst a conquered and a dispossessed
people. Now, however, that the Gaels themselves are
beginning to protest against a practice which has neither
interest, convenience nor propriety to recommend it, we
may surely look for its speedy discontinuance, so far at
least as Celtic Scotland is concerned. The true
representation of the matter, moreover, cannot fail to do
good in circles other than our own. The Anglo-Scandinavian fringe must be taught that the Gaelic cause and
Gaelic blood are not confined to the "Highlands," and that
we have something more in our view than the revival of
patriotism, and its attendant benefits, amongst the
scattered population of the garbh criochan. If there be any
sense and meaning in our propaganda at all, we aim at
nothing more nor less than the restoration to our race of
the land which bears our name, not fragmen-tarily, but in
its entirety.
Your obedient servant,
JAMES MACDONALD.
INVERNESS, 5th July, 1905.
DUNNACHADH BAN
MAC-AN-T-SAOIR1
THA e air aithris gu tric ann am measg nan Gàidheal gur e
Dunnachadh Bàn Mac-an t-Saoir bàrd is fheàrr a thog
Gàidhealtachd Alba bho laithean Oisein; agus gur e
Moladh Beinn Dòrain cuibhrionn de bhàrdachd is fheàrr a
chuir Dunnachadh Bàn ri cheile. Cha'n 'eil mi ag ràdh
nach fhaod daoine a bhi air am mealladh anns an dà ni
sin. Tha iad na mo bheachd-sa gu h-àraidh air am
mealladh a thaobh an dara ni; is e sin gur e Moladh Beinn
Dòrain cuibhrionn de bhàrdachd is fheàrr a chuir
Dunnachadh Bàn ri chèile. Neach air bith a leughas
Moladh Beinn Dòrain gu faicilleach bho thoiseach gu
deireadh, faodaidh an neach sin eòlas fhaotainn air na
buadhan a bhiodh feumail agus freagarach do dheagh
shealgair, air cumadh a' ghunna 'bha cleachdte ann an
làithean a' bhàird, agus ainmeannan lusan gun àireamh ;
gheibh e na
1
Leabhar Chomuinn Ghdilig Inbhirnis, Earrann xii.
nithe sin air an cur sios ann an cainnt bhuin, fhileanta,
agus bhlasda, a dh' fhaodas a bhi 'n an lòn taitneach do 'n
chluais, ach nach dean mòran àrdachaidh no beathachaidh
air buadhan na h-inntinn. Tha 'm bàrd a' toirt dhuinn trì
seallaidhean àraidh air Beinn Dòrain. Anns a' chiad àite
tha e 'g a h-ainmeachadh na "monadh fada, rèidh," ach's
ann a tha 'bheinn coltach ris mar gu 'm biodh i ag
atharrachadh nan cruth fa chomhair sùil inntinn a' bhàird
mar a bha e 'dol air aghaidh leis a' mholadh aice. Agus an
àite i bhi 'n a "monadh fada, rèidh," 's an a tha i tionndadh
gu bhi cho corach, carach, bideanach, ri sruth Choire
Bhreacainn, 'n uair a tha i fàs—
" Gu stobanach, stacanach, Slocanach,
laganach, Cnocanach, cnapanach, Caiteanach,
270
Litrichean
ròmach; Pasganach, badanach, Bachlagach,
bòidheach ".
Anns an treas sealladh a tha'm bàrd a' toirt dhuinn air
Beinn Dòrain, tha e 'g a h-ainmeachadh 'n a " monadh
fada, faoin ". Tha sin a' leigeadh fhaicinn duinn nach b' e
idir cumadh agus maise na beinne 'bu mhomha bha anns
an amharc aig a' bhàrd ann a bhi 'seinn a cliù, ach a bhi
a' taghadh briathran fìnealta ruithteach a rachadh gu
snasmhor ann an eagan a chèile, agus a bha freagarrach
air fonn a' phuirt air an do sheinn e am moladh, co dhiù
a bha 'chainnt sin seasmhach ri lagh Nàduir no nach
robh. Tha aon rann beag anns nach 'eil ach ceithir
sreathan goirid, ann am Miann a' Bhàird Aosda, air cliù
agus maise beinne, anns am bheil barrachd brigh agus
bàrdachd na 'tha ann am Moladh Beinn Dòrain bho cheann
gu ceann.
" Chì mi Beinn-àrd is àillidh fiamh;
Ceann-feadhna air mhìle beann;
Bha aisling nan damh 'na ciabh,
'S i leabaidh nan nial a ceann." I Tha e air a
mheas 'n a mhaise air bàrdachd agus] air sgriobhadh no
comhradh sam bith, mar isl momha 'thèid de chiall agus
de ghliocas a chun ann an tearc de bhriathran. Ach cha
d' thugj Dunnachadh Bàn mòran aire do 'n teagasg SÌM
Agus cha b' e 'mhàin Dunnachadh Bàn, ach bha] agus
tha a' chuid mhòr de na bàird Ghàidhealach] againn
ciontach dhe sin. Cho fad's a gheibheadh] iad briathran a
ghabhadh tàthadh agus fuaim! neachadh ri 'cheile,
leanadh iad air sniomh an] orain a mach cho fad 's a
ghabhadh e deanamh a co dhiù a bha beachdan ùra 'g
am foillseachadh! fhèin ann no nach robh. Ma bha 'mhin
gann, bha iad a' fuine 'bhonnach a mach cho tana's a
ghabhadh] iad sgaoileadh.
Cha ghabh e àicheadh nach e fior bhàrd a bha 'n
Dunnachadh Bàn, ach bàrd aig an robh buadhan cainnte
pailt air thoiseach air a' chumhachd inntinn; Ach ma
rinn e bàrdachd lag, rinn e bàrdachd làidir! Ann am
moladh Coire-cheathaich tha againn dealbhan air an
tarrainn cho oirdherc agus cho mais-] each, ann an
cainnt cho finealta, snasmhor, 's a tha ri 'fhaotainn anns
a' chanain Ghàidhlig—cainnfl a tha 'sealltain dhuinn a'
bhàrd, agus an toilinntinn] a bha e 'faotainn ann an
co-chomunn ri maise] obair Nàduir.
" 'Sa' mhaduinn chiùin-ghil an àm dhomh dùsgadh,
Aig bun nan stùc b' e an sùgradh leam." Anns an rann
so tha againn inntinn agus spiorad! an fhìor bhàird a'
briseadh a mach. Anns a] mhaduinn chèitein tha 'n
driùchd a' dealradh ain gach feòirnein, a' ghrian ag
èirigh suas 'n a glòir, le sgiathan sèimh a' sgaoileadh a
brat òrbhuidh air gach srath agus sliabh. Is e miann a'
bhaird a bhi 'g èirigh gu moch agus a' dìreadh suas gu
bun nan stuc a ghabhail compairt le eunlaith nan speur
ann a bhi 'seinn agus a' deanamh gàirdeachais ann an
[glòir agus maise 'chruinne che. Tha e duilich a
chreidsin gu'n cuireadh ùghdar Coire Cheartaich bàrdachd
ri' cheile (ma dh' fhaodair bàrdachd a [ràdh ris) cho
leanabail, lag, agus leibideach, ri Alastair nan stop. Rinn
Dunnachadh Bàn a trì fno ceithir a dh' òrain-ghaoil, ach
a mach bho Mhairi Bhàin Oig, cha 'n 'eil iad ach fuar,
tioram, agus lag. Ann a h-aon de na h-orain-ghaoil sin
tha'n rann so—
Litrichean
81
" 'S do chùl daithte làn-mhaiseach, Mu 'n cuairt do d'
bhràigh' an òrdugh, Air sniomh mar theudan clàrsaiche
'N a fhaineachan glan nòsar : Gu lìdh-dhonn, pleatach,
sàr-chleachdach, \ Gu dosach, fàsmhor, domhail, Gu
lùbach, dualach, bachlach, guairsgeach, Snasmhor,
cuachach, òr-bhuidhe ".
Tha 'n t-òran a' toiseachadh leis na facail so— " A
Mhairi bhàn, gur barrail thu ". Tha e duilich a dheanamh
a mach ciod e 'n seòrsa dath a bha Lair an fhalt aig a'
mhaighdinn so, ma bha e "bàn," " lidh-dhonn," agus "
òr-bhuidhe ". Ann ann òran main Bhàn Og tha 'm bàrd a'
bualadh teudan na [clàrsaich aige le dùrachd ni 's blaithe,
leis a bheil faireachadh a' ghaoil agus spiorad na bàrdachd
a' comhnadh a chèile, agus a' sgeadachadh Mairi le
trusgan maiseach finealta nach caill i cho fad 's a bhios
Gàidhlig ghlan Albannach air a labhairt no air a seinn air
feadh an t-saoghail.
Ann an Oran an t-Samhraidh tha 'n rann a leanas:—
" 'S fior ionmhuinn mu thràth neòine, Na laoigh òga
choir na buaile sin, Gu tarra-gheal, ball-bhreac,
botainneach, Sgiuthach, druim-fhionn, sròn-fhionn,
guaillin-nach,
Buidh', gris-fhionn, crà-dhearg, suaichionta, Seang,
slios'ra, dìreach sàr-chumpach, Cas, bachlach, barr an
suaraiche ". Faodaidh e 'bhith gur e nach 'eil mise 'tuigsinn
ciod 'is ciall do fhior bhàrdachd, ach feumaidh mi
aideachadh nach 'eil mi 'faicinn bàrdachd air bith anns an
rann sin, no ann am moran rann eile de'n t-seòrsa
cheudna. Tha cainnt gu leor ann, air a' càrnadh air
muin 's air muin a chèile, facail fhadaa thioram làidir, gun
bhinneas, gun ghrinneas. Agus] ann am measg a
cho-thionail bhriathran sin, bu cho] math a bhi 'g iarraidh
snathaid ann an cruaichl fheòir, agus a bhi 'g amharc air
son a' bheachd ain an robh am bàrd ag iarraidh solus a
chur.
Tha bàrdachd agus tuigse anns an oran chiatach sin,
Cead deireannach nam Beann. Cha'n 'eil ana bàrd a'
deanamh strìth air bith gu bhi taghadh] facail mhora
chruaidhe thioram. Tha na fairichean aige mar a tha iad a'
dùsgadh suas 'n a chom, a| sruthadh a mach ann an cainnt
cheòlmhor, bhog.i bhlàth; cho binn sèimh ri crònan an
uillt. Anns an òran so, tha'm bàrd a' toirt dhuinn dealbh
tait] neach dhe fhèin, ach dealbh a tha air a mheasgadh] le
cianalas agus bròn. Tha 'm bàrd 'n a sheann] aois ag
gabhail a chuairt mu dheireadh, agus am sealladh mu
dheireadh de Bheinn Dòrain, agus] faodaidh sinn a bhi
cinnteach mar a bha e 'dìreadh] ri uchd an t-sleibhe le
anail ghoirid, le ceann liath:* 's le chiabhan tana, le ceum
mail, 's le cridhe tromjj gu'n robh iomadh smaointinn
thùrsach mhuladach a' snamh 'n a chom, ag
cuimhneachadh air na laithean a dh' fhalbh, làithean
taitneach na h-oige .nach till air an ais ni's mò.
" N uair 'sheall mi air gach taobh dhiom, Cha'n
fhaodainn gun 'bhi smalanach."
Tha mi creidsinn gur h-ann le cridhe trom a
[thearnaidh Dunnachadh Bàn gu baile air an fheas-ìgar
sin, a' mothachadh 'aois agus a lag-chuis fhein; fagus an
uair a chunnaic e ceo an anmoich agus [neòil dhorcha na
h-oidhche a' sgaoileadh am brat tiamhaidh mu ghuaillean
Beinn Dòrain nach robh esan gu fhaicinn gu bràth
tuilleadh.
270
Litrichean
" Ghabh mi nis mo chead de'n t-saoghal, 'S de na
daoine dh' fhuirich ann ; Fhuair mi greis gu
sunndach aotrom, 'S i 'n aois a rinn m' fhagail fann.
Tha mo thàlantan air caochladh,
'S an t-aog air tighinn's an àm,
'S e m' achanaich air sgàth m' Fhir-shaoraidh
Bhi gu math's an t-saoghal thall."
[Rinn Dunnachadh Ban beagan aoirean anns am [bheil
brod bàrdachd, ged nach 'eil iad ri am moladh [air dhòigh
eile. Ach cha 'n eil teagamh nach do thoill Nighean dubh
Raineach na fhuair i
'.' A chionn gu'n do ghoid i 'N rud beag bha 'n sa
chlùdan, Bh' agam's a' chùil Nach d' innis mi
chach."
[Agus tha e coltach nach robh Uisdean Piobaire air •na
daoine 'bu mhodhaile agus 'bu bheusaiche. Ach
Litrichean
82
4
286
The Oldest Scottish MS.
tha sean-fhacal ag ràdh gur e "searbh a' ghloir nach
fhaodar èisdeachd". Cha'n 'eil e na chomharradh laidir
air inntinn mhor a bhi 'gabhail gnothaich ris gach peasan
leibideach a thig 'n a rathad. Agus cha mhomha a bha e
ag àrdachadh cliù Dhunnachaidh Bhàin a bhi cumail
connspaid ri Uisdean Piobaire, Iain Faochaig, an TàUeir,
agus Anna nighean Uilleam an Cròmpa. Ach cha b'e paipeir
goirid a chaidh a sgriobhadh ann a' cabhaig mar a chaidh
am paipeir so a bheireadh ceirteas do Dhunnachadh Bàn
agus d'a chuid bàrdachd.
Bha sinn a' toirt cliù dha agus a' faotainn coire dha;
ach tha sinn a' creidsinn nach cuir aon choire a gheibh
sinn dha tolg no dealg 'n a chliù. Tha dòchas againn gu
'm bi a chliù mar bhàrd cho seasmhach buan ri beanntan
a dhùthcha. Agus tha eagal orm gu'm bi iomadh latha
agus linn mu'n siubhail Gàidheal eile firichean Bheinn
Dòrain a ni a feum de 'bheul agus de 'shùilean, agus a
chuireas urad de bheatha agus de mhaise ann an cainnt
agus ann am bàrdachd ar dùthcha's a chuir Dunnachadh
Bàn Mac-an-t-Saoir.
NIALL MACLEOID.
THE OLDEST SCOTTISH MS.
[SOME NOTES ON THE BOOK OF DEER]
THE early literature of Scotland cannot, unfortunately,
compare with that of the sister kingdom. We cannot boast
the rich literary remains of Ireland. We have no such
annals as those of the Four Masters, or of
Clonmacnoise—no such historical tract as that of the
Wars of the Gaels vrìth m *
The Oldest Scottish MS.
287
the Galls. The trail of the destroyer has passed with a
vengeance over our early national MSS., leaving what
should have been a fruitful field barren and bare, scored
and seamed by the ruthless agencies that have been at
work. Time was when it was the fashion to ascribe the
depletion of our national literary exchequer to causes
other than those which were really responsible for it.
Margaret, Saint and Queen, was said to have ordered
the wholesale destruction of priceless Gaelic MSS., under
the mistaken impression that such national possessions
savoured of ungodliness, and interfered with her
self-imposed task of " Romanising " the nation. This, of
course, was a Protestant superstition—perhaps calumny
would be a better word—invented to coincide with the pet
Protestant dictum that St. Columba was a sort of
Presbyterian forerunner, and that the early Celtic
Church held strict evangelical views which, of course, St.
Margaret made it her business to upset. Even
Protestants know better nowadays, however. With none
of the clergy was St. Margaret more popular than she
was with the Culdees; and her many munificent grants to
the churches of such religious show how thoroughly she
valued and appreciated their holy work. As for the
alleged destruction of Gaelic MSS. by the Saint's orders,
there is not a particle of evidence to support so ignorant
and contemptible a charge. From all we know of the
Queen, we are more than justified in believing that she
would have been the last person in Christendom to act in
so barbarous and unworthy a manner.
Edward I. of England—the hammer of the .Scots—is
yet another character who is charged with having laid
violent hands on our national
288
The Oldest Scottish MS.
MSS.; and in his case, part of the charge, at leastJ may be
admitted as proven. Without doubt, the! English King
negotiated the destruction of a great! number of MSS.; for
our Scoto-Norman chroniclers inform us to that effect; but
I much doubt if therèj were many Gaelic MSS. amongst
the number sacri1] need to the rage and barbarity of the
Saxon mon-| arch. Besides, Longshanks's real prey was
thej Anglo-Norman literature dealing with the status ofl
the Scottish crown in relation to the presumptuous]
claims of England. All that he could seize andl burn in
that direction he certainly did, without! the slightest
remorse, or consideration for the well! merited curses of
Scottish posterity. His Scottish^ expeditions, moreover,
were confined to the Fringes Here and there, indeed, he
penetrated into the! country of the Gael, but his visits
brought him little! grist to his mill, in the shape of either
credit orj pelf. The Western Highlands, and, more particuj
larly, the Isles, were then the home, as the reposi^ tories,
of our national literature ; and these he] never so much as
set foot in. Consequently, thel number of Gaelic MSS.
carried away and destroyed! by Longshanks cannot have
been large. And if to this you add the fact that Edward
cared about nothing which did not bear on his own
case—hiaj quarrel with the Scots touching the
throne—you! will probably believe, as I do, that Edward's
bon-3 fires contained few, if any, Gaelic MSS.
The real destroyer of our national records wasj no
doubt, the unspeakable Lochlannach. To him! literature
and art seem to have been as rousing! as the proverbial
rag to the bull. Whatever he] could lay hands on in that
way he, generally! promptly destroyed. He does not even
seem much to have contented himself with the minoq
barbarity of carrying his spoil away with him— pence, no
doubt, the comparative infrequency of [Celtic "finds" in
modern Scandinavia and their' relative poverty. For over
three hundred years the Lochlannach infested the
Western Highlands [and Isles, and even when he turned
nominal [Christian his barbarous propensities largely remained with him. Several times he devastated 'Iona,
butchering the pious inhabitants and consigning their
books, historical as well as religious, to the flames. And
what he did in Iona there' is every reason to believe he
perpetrated elsewhere. From Mull, Kintyre, Islay, Skye,
Eigg, [and from the mainland itself, come the same
dismal [tales of wholesale slaughterings, and burnings of
books and art treasures for mere barbarity's sake. rLittle
wonder, then, that the early national records lof the Gael
of Scotland are few and far between t The marvel is that,
considering his then stormy story and the dark, troublous
pages of his later I romance, there should be a single
Gaelic MS. left to us in the land of our fathers.
The MS. known as the Book of Deer was discovered in
1860 by Mr. Bradshaw, the librarian of Cambridge
University. It had lain unnoticed in the library of that
University since its purchase-in 1715 from the executors
of John Moore, Angli-ican Bishop of Ely. Its previous
history (says Dr. MacBain) is unknown, but that it was
once—in the [eleventh and twelfth centuries—in the
Columban ■Monastery of Deer in Aberdeenshire is a fact
testified by the book itself in a manner that can 'admit of
no doubt. The contents and appearance [of this
remarkable book are thus described: It consists of
eighty-six parchment pages, and its 'contents are the
The Oldest Scottish MS.
289
Gospel of St. John, which is complete, preceded by
portions of the other three Evangelists. These are all in
the Latin text of St. Jerome. The book ends with the
Apostles' Creed and an old Irish colophon, which asks a
blessing on the soul of the " traughan " who wrote it from
every reader of it.
These, says Dr. MacBain, were the full contents of
the original MS., and experts in the handwriting of Irish
MSS. ascribe its composition to the ninth century of our
era. The book, of course, is written in what is called the
Irish character, which is merely a modification, like all
the other so-called national alphabets of Western
Europe, of the Roman writing. Irish writing is descended
from the Gallo-Roman cursive handwriting of the fifth
century, and was introduced with Christianity. The
writing of the MS. is good throughout, and there are
illuminated figures (for the most part not very well done)
of the four Evangelists separately and in groups; whilst
the initial letter of each Gospel is enlarged, illuminated
and ornamented.
As a work of art the Book of Deer cannot compare with
the best known Irish religious MSS., whose
embellishments are justly the admiration of the polite
world. But for Scotsmen the little time-worn tome must
ever possess an attraction and an interest which such
gorgeous productions as the Book of Kells can never lay
claim to. In the first place, it is our very own- -all that
remains to us of our early national literature—a solitary
(almost melancholy) fragment of the great wreck of the
past. In the second place, it is a Scottish production—the
sole record that we possess of the time when Scotland
was indeed Scotland, when Gaelic was the daily
language of even so "Lowland" a country as Buchan.
In the third place, it allows us to peep through the
curtained past into the Scotland of our far-away
ancestors in a manner which no other existing MSS.,
Scots, or Irish, or foreign, enable us to do. For these
things, surely, the famous Book of Deer deserves to be
venerated —to be inwardly digested—by every patriotic
Scotsman. How many of our sons and daughters, I
wonder, are aware of even the existence of this
wonderful book ? Is there a so-called school throughout
the length and breadth of the land wherein it is so much
as mentioned ? I doubt it. " Literature" there is in a
measure; but, alas! it is not our literature, which makes
all the difference. They expound Shakespeare and Scott
(by way of graceful concession to "national" prejudice
perhaps), but the Gael, even in his own land, they leave
to shift for himself! How long will these things be ? How
long will the following remarkable words, written by a
good patriot though bad man, Simon Fraser, Lord Lo vat,
continue to fall short of being realised ?—
"So that it is plain that our age is more degenerate,
more corrupt and more cowardly than the worst time of
King Balliols reign who gave himself and his nation up
as tributarys to the cruel and barbarous Edward the
First of England, who had such an inveterate malice and
hatred to our nation that in his own time he had almost
extinguished the name of Scots, and to use his own
expression when he sent his last army against us he said
it was ad delendum nomen Scotorum. And if Providence had
not taken him at that very time out of the way and that
he was succeeded by a fool and a coward by all
288
The Oldest Scottish MS.
The Oldest Scottish MS.
289
probability he would have accomplished all his wicked
designs against our nation; and I admire (wonder) how
any true well-
born Scotsman can forget those days in which our]
■country labour'd under such dismall oppression andj
■slavery, and that we should be again infatuate toj give
up our libertys and independency which we] then
recovered at the expence of the blood of al great many
brave and heroick persons by the] singular providence
and protection of Heaven] against such a powerful and
cruel nation. Thol we see no more now of the glorious
spirit and re
.solution of our antcestors, yet I hope
Divine provi-1 dence will be alwayes the same towards us
and] that when God is satisfied of our just sufferings] and
punishments for our manifold sins and offences] He will
in His own good time take away His scourge] from us and
relieve us from the iron yokes than •our necks are too
clossly bound to at this time.'j
Observations touching the Book of Deer naturally fall
under two heads - those which refer to the etymological
aspect of the work; and those] which concern its social
and political character
istics. The first has been
admirably treated of by] Dr. MacBain; the second has
been learnedly disl ■cussed by the late Dr. Stewart, the
accomplished Editor of the version of this celebrated MS.
pub-] lished, a good many years ago, by the Spalding]
Ciub. Of the two accounts Dr. MacBain's (Jwl ■ness Gaelic
Society's Transactions) is perhaps tha more interesting. It is
certainly the more "sugj .gestive"; for in it the author
rides his familian hobby touching the origin of the Picts
with no] .small skill if, as I hope to show, with but littll
profit to himself.
It is noticeable that, in support of his contention that
the Picts were not Gaels, Dr. MacBain else! where
asserts that the social system " outlined by] the Book of
Deer " was not the same with that of]
Ireland, though he acknowledges that it bore a great
resemblance to it. And it is just on this point that I wish
to join issue with that author. I am not aware, however,
that Dr. MacBain has jever publicly indicated the point
at which this resemblance ends; which, it must be
allowed, is an unfortunate omission on his part; for
without feome such guide the task of criticising his
criticisms .is rendered considerably less easy than
otherwise it would, and should be. However, let us take
the ■"social system" itself, as outlined—-to hold Dr.
MacBain's own language—by the Book of Deer, and see
what it amounts to.
In the first place, the Gaelic entries do not err on the
side of prolixity in this respect. They consist, for the most
part, of brief records of grants of lands on the part of local
magnates. The legend of the founding of the Monastery of
Deer, as related by the Scribe, contains little, if anything,
tof which to construct even the foundations of a
social
system ". We have here the Saint and his disciple, the
local Morair or Righ, the Tòiseach, and little else from
the social point of view. Passing to the entries
themselves, we find here reproduced the bare outline of
the same " social system," tit may be with a little more
detail; but it is scarcely more than a bare outline
nevertheless.
It may be as well to quote Dr. MacBain again St this
conjuncture. " Again," he says, " we get a glimpse of the
political and social systems of the times. The Ardri, or
chief
king,
rules
the
leading—
Lseven
originally—provinces
of
Scotia.
Under
him
tìmmediately, and over these provinces, are the
Mor-[maers, that is the Earls of later times; and under
$he jurisdiction of the Mormaers are the tribal or
raistrict chieftains called the Tosechs (chiefs) known
-J
-J
I
29°
com]
Evai
St. J
Cree
bless it
fr<
tent:
writ
the :
is ^
whi(
so-c;
the
fron
fifth
The
ther
verj
and
Gos
com
whc
the
wor
inte
Boa
plac
of (
mel
pas
tior
wh<
was
cou
The Oldest Scottish MS,
294
The Oldest Scottish MS.
295
ed in Ireland was precisely that " outlined"
among the Saxons as Thanes. All these , Sook of Beer. The Pictish succession, as
grades of power had their ' exactions' out lacBain justly observes, was through the
land, besides having their own manor land. ,. but here we see, not Pictish succession,
had rights of personal service, civil and m »^* c pUre and simple, under which " sons
of entertainment when travelling and of ei >j 0ften succeed to fathers and brothers were
rent in kind or in money. These are th re(j ^ children". Under the Gaelic system,
exactions' referred to iri the entries in the i re WOmen succeeding to lands and husDeer. The somewhat bewildering success^ holding in right of their wives. We have
names in the entries is also of interest. S< aDle instance of an Irish queen succeeding
not often succeed fathers, and brothers ar^ a throne in the case of Queen Maebh.
ferred to children. This points to sm, j)r MacBain would not contend that sucPictish influence in the succession, where s j m her case was regulated by Pictish insion was in the female line. The mention ^ 1 ^e know that the ecclesiastical systems
the daughter along with her husband as gr and Ireland were precisely the same;
lands conjointly, shows the husband's right > f ar |j.0IQ regarding " the social system outon the female alliance."
by t^e Book of Deer" as supporting Dr.
For my part I fail entirely to see inLjn'g peculiar theories on the Pictish ques-respect this social
system differs from the|regar(jit,asnothingif not entirely destructive The Ard - Righ is obviously the
same ro|m
countries.
The Morair—or Mor-mhaor- '
F. S. A.
sponds to the provincial "Righ," so famil students of the early [To be continued.)
literature of Erin; an Tòiseach, or Chief, is common enough
to countries. As for the " exactions " spoken ol are
in every respect identical with those men' by
O'Curry in his Manners and Customs, 1 one can
ascertain for himself by referring ti work. The "
brithem," or judge, who also i in the Book of Deer,
as also the "Ferlegin Reader, are surely typical
Gaelic offices, who troduction here serves to
complete the pictnn the purely Gaelic point of
view. Dr. MacE gards the system of succession
outlined by thi of Deer as due to Pictish influences
; but here.| I fail to see what need there was to go
to; for an explanation. The system of succession]
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Chloinn-Dòmhnuil a bha 'Athair (Iain Ailein òig). Mu'n robh e ach
dusan bhlaidhna 'dh'ois, chaidh a chuir do Cholaisde a' Bhleirich
faisg air Abareadhainn. As a sinn chaidh a chuir do'n Spàin, do
Cholaisde nan Albanaich ann am Bhaladolid. Bha e daonan
ro-ghàolach air a* Ghàidhlig, agus ged a bha e air bhacadh dha a,
bhi labhairt cainnt a mhathar anns a' Cholaisde thuathach na
dhùthaich fhèin, thòisich e fhèin,
A
(87)
AM FOGHAR, 1905.
[AIREAMH 4.
Maighstir Ailean, Eiriscaidh
agus a chompanaich, air a chainnt cheudna ionnsachadh
gu pongail ann an tir chèin. An uair a thill e dhachaidh,
fhuair e Ordugh Naomh ; agus fad dà bhliadhna
shaothraich e anns an Oban-latharnach ann an seadh
nach leigar air diochain 'an cabhaig.
As 'an Oban, chuir an t-Easbuig Aonghas e do
dh'Uidhist-a-chinn-deas, do Dhalabrog. 'S i Sgireachd
Dalabrog is mua ann an Sgireachd-Esbuigachd
Earraghaidheal's nan Eilean ; agus an àm air bheil mi a
labhairt, bha eilean Eiriscaidh fuaighte ri Dalabrog. Ach
ged a bha, cha robh an domhain fhein tuille 's farsuinn
airson eud-anama Mhr. Ailein. Cha d'thug e riabh
cothrom dha fhèin. Shaoirich, agus shaoirich, e daonan
cearta coma air fhèin, gus mu dheireadh, bhris a
shlàinte. 'S math a dh'fhaodamaid a ràdh mu Mhr.
Ailein:—
" Tha mo chridhe air a leòn Le
saighead a' bhròin
Gur a fràsach na deòir bho'm shuil.
Fàth m'èislean ri m' bheò A bhi
g'eisdeachd a sgeòil
Gu'm beil Sagairt mo ghaoil fo'n uir.
Bha e caoimhneil làn bàigh Bha
'ghnùis aluinn làn gràidh
Air nach laidheadh a ghruaim no mhùig.
Och! nan ochain! mar tha Tha
mise tùrsach an dràsd'
Mo chreach lèir, gu la bràth gu'n dùil.
Och ! 's ann aige 'bha'm beul Bu
mhath gu teasgasg a' threud
'S brigh sòisgeul Mhic Dhè 'thoirt dhuinn.
Mar chithear sneachda bho'n speur Dhòirteadh
briathran bho 'bheul Sèimh, tuigsineach, rèidh, ro
chiùin.
Mar ghaoir sheillein am bruaich 'N deis nead a
thoirt bhuap' 'S amhuil cor do shluaigh do
dhùthaich.
Tha d'eaglais an diugh fàs Co ghabhas dith càs
Chaill i 'n caraide b'aird's a' chuirt.
Oir tha fior agam fhèin Gu'm bith sonas is sith Agus
sòlas gun chrich gu bràth leis."
An uair a bhris slàinte Mhr. Ailein, chaidh a chuir do
dh'eilean Eiriscaidh. Thog a stigh dha fhèin, agus cha do
stad e gus a fac e eaglais anns an eilean a tha cho grinn
ri eaglais sam bith's an dùthaich. Bha meas mòr aig a
h-uile duine air Mr. Ailean. Neach air bith a thachair air,
bha iad ro dhèidheil air. 'S e duine fòghlumte a bh' ann.
Bha e 'na sgoilear Gàidhlig cho maith 's bha 'sann
dùthaich. 'S e rogha agus taogha 'bhaird bh' ann. Sgriobh
e Laoidhean a tha fior bhriagh, agus tha mi 'm beachd
nach 'eil eaglais eile 's a' Ghàidhealtachd anns a faighear
Laoidhean Gàidhlig 'gan seinn mar a sheinneas iad ann
an eaglais Eiriscaidh. Bha eòlas mòr aig Mr. Ailean air
luibhean na dùthcha, agus bha e ainmeil leis an eòlas a
bha aige air sgeulachdan agus seann chleachdainean an
t-shluaigh.
Ach dh'fhalbh Mr. Ailean! Dh'fhiach e e fhèin fhalach,
fhad's a bha beò e. Ach cho luath 's thàinig crioch air,
sgaoil a chliù anns gach cearna. Bha na
papeirean-naigheachd a' stri ri chèile cho a b'airde a
Maighstir
Ailean,
Eiriscaidh
29
9
thogadh chliù, air allt agus gu'n cuala domhain gu lèir
mu Mhr. Ailean. Eisdeamaid ri bhriathran agus
gabhamaid sùim ris na tha e ag ràdh.
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" Tha bràth agaibh bho'n chiad latha a thàinig mi . . .
cia mar a ghiulain mi fhèin maille ribh fad na h-ùine: a'
seìrbhiseachadh an Tighearna leis a h-uile umhlachd, 's
le deòir, 'us buairidhean. . . . Cia mar nach do chum mi
aiteal bhuaibh a bha gu leas dhuibh, gun innseadh
dhuibh, 's gun a theagasg dhuibh gu follaiseach, 's bho
thigh gu tigh."
" Bithibh aoibhneach, a bhriathrean ! bithibh
coimhlion, gabhaibh comhairle, bithibh a dh-aon inntinn,
bitheadh sith agaibh ; agus bithidh Dia 'na sith agus a
ghràidh maille ribh."
Fois agus tàmh soirruidh dh'a anam !
GILLE ASPUIG MAC DHÒMHNUILL MHIC EOGHAW.
CAS NO BAS
THE current number of this Review brings to a' conclusion
our second year of publication, consequently, with our
February impression, we shall enter upon the third year
of our existence as a Catholic bilingual periodical. We beg
leave to tender our thanks to all those who have hitherto
supported us, and to express the hope that they will
continue to do so in future. Our aims are clear, and have
never been disguised; and although we are not to suppose
that all who read these pages do so from a conviction that
what is set forth in them is entirely agreeable to their
religious or political opinions, we are at least entitled to
assume that they find our point of view not uninteresting.
To be able to engage the attention, is the next best thing
to bringing home conviction.
Since this periodical was started some considerable
advance has been made in both the causes which lie near
to our hearts. The progress of the
Catholic Religion in Scotland, though slow, yet is sore.
In proportion to population, we may make fewer converts
per annum than the Church makes in England, but there
is less " leakage ". Scottish bigotry dies hard, as befits
our strenuous climate; but perishable vessels of this sort
must one day swim to the bottom. Our Presbyterian
fellow-countrymen are beginning to realise that slavery
and wooden shoes are not necessarily symbolic of
Catholicism, and that the Pope and the Devil are not as
nearly related as at one time they were imagined to be.
More enlightened and tolerant views are beginning to
make their influence felt throughout Protestant Gaeldom,
in consequence, we believe, of the growth of historical
research and study What might be characterised as the
" out-and-out" Protestant view finds no support in history
as science now requires it to be writ. The old lies, the
old calumnies which the older generation of Protestant
pamphleteers—historians they can scarce be described
as—indulged in, with a view to bubbling the public, have
been swept away. They could not bear the fierce light
shed on them by historical science; and although a
considerable substratum of ignorance and prejudice may
remain, yet the spirit of sympathetic and intelligent
inquiry which that science has been the means (under
God) of eliciting is an encouraging augury for the future.
And on the Catholics of Scotland themselves these
discoveries (for such they really are) are beginning to
have a stimulating and bracing effect. Time was when
Cas No Bas
89
Catholics skulked about the country much as a "Little
Englander" would do at a Primrose League gathering. In
many cases their attitude towards their Faith was one of
unceasing and humble—if not abject—apology. Hence
arose] that feverish desire—by which so many
well-meaning] but timid souls were at one time
grievously pos-j sessed and tormented—to show
themselves just as many other men are—" loyalists," "
jingoes," " imj perialists," "patriots," big-Englanders,
King-worshipa pers, and all the stupid rest of it. To take
pride in] religion, to cherish the principles for which
thein ancestors fought and died, were forms of "disl
loyalty " to the State. The Catholic, to be merely tolerable
to his fellow-countrymen, must imitate] them in
everything, nay more, must devote all his] talents, time
and energies to going one better. Asj to his religion, he
would profess it, of course; hel would even avow it, if
called on to do so; but, in] consideration of the feelings of
his Protestant fellow-countrymen, the less said about
that matter—at all events in public—the better.
These were the views of certain bad old days not so
very long overpast; and we confess thau they are not
particularly beautiful in our eyes! History, however,
always nowadays indulgent to] merit, however timid and
bashful, has refreshingly come to his rescue ; so that that
curious crustacean! the hermit or shell-living Catholic
may now safe™ emerge from his place of concealment
without] causing scandal, or seriously outraging the
feelings! of his Protestant fellow-countrymen. The lesson]
of history is, that we should take pride in our
religion—not that we should endeavour to make ouq
actions and opinions " square " as much as possible] with
those whose religious and political faith is still] summed
up in the word Protestantism. We have nothing to do
with Protestantism; let us consist-, ently show it. History
teaches us to be proud alike of our Faith as of our country
when unden the influence of the Faith; let us act on that
lesson. ■The principles for which our ancestors fought are
ithe same to-day as they were when they laid down [their
lives in behalf of their Faith and their country; llet us not
run away from them to please any one, or [suffer
ourselves, or any one else, to compromise [them. History
shows us that the so-called Reformation and all its
works, religious and political, twere anathema; let us
spend our lives in getting Bid of that humiliating and
ridiculous incubus. LWe have a clear field before us.
History—experience—are on our side. Nearly every great
evil, religious, political, social and commercial, [which
Alba labours under, owes its existence, hor its
continuance, to Protestantism. Protestantism despoiled
Alba of her brightest jewel, which was her Faith, and has
multiplied her sects and her schisms till they are almost
as numerous as the sands of the sea-shore. Protestantism
robbed Scotland of her independence. Protestantism
introduced the English influence, which is hostile to our
language, manners and customs. English misrule keeps
the Highlands and Isles impoverished, neglected,
sparsely populated and undeveloped; and [the causes of
English misrule came in with English [gold at the time of
the so-called Reformation. The cause of England cannot
possibly be our cause if, as we maintain, we are a nation;
and the English cause is essentially Protestant. Poland
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Cas No Bas
and Ireland—the two countries in Europe which have
made the best fight for their national rights and liberties,
and which have refused to be absorbed by powerful and
tyrannical neighbours—are Catholic countries, in the
true sense of the word. Scratch a Scots [Protestant and
you will find him little better than an Englishman;
scratch an Englishman and you will soon find that with
him Protestant ascendancy and Englishism mean the
same thing—namely, Anglo-Saxon ascendancy. Is it to be
wondered at therefore that the Gael of Scotland in
ever-increasing numbers is turning his back, in disdain
and disgust, upon so foolish and mischievous a creed ?
To turn from things sacred to profane, there is the
same encouraging progress to report. The Gaelic
movement is undoubtedly increasing in Scotland; and
here again progress, though slow, yet is sure. It is true
that our rate of progression is not what it ought to be,
considering either the simple common-sense principles
upon which the movement is founded and proceeds, or
the splendid example offered us by Ireland ; but in these
hard times of small mercies, it behoves us to be grateful.
The people of Alba—as the Highland News recently
remarked—"may not be very specially interested in the
work" of the Gaelic Association; but as that periodical
justly remarked they are at long last beginning to realise
the thundering mistake they made in neglecting
language and nationality. Near two hundred years of
English rule, and with nothing to speak of at the end of
it, save what is attributable to the species of creeping
paralysis which passes for " progress" in the Highlands
and Isles is a fact which is beginning to stagger even the
denationalised spiritless humanity which still has
foothold—and barely that—in our straths and glens. Two
hundred years of almost unmitigated neglect of
nationality and all that it best comprises—two hundred
years during which the Gael of Scotland has done
everything that his political pastors and masters advised
him to do—two hundred years during which Lord
Rosebery's foolish and pernicious advice to the Isles men
to go forth and take their part in the work of supporting
the " burden " of Empire—that is, to go into England's
army and navy—has been followed as generously in spirit
as it has been scrupulously as to letter—and what is at
the end of them ? If in the year after next, in 1907 that is
to say, any one should be so foolish and misguided as to
propose a national celebration of the two hundredth
anniversary of the passing of the Union, we venture to
prophesy for it, so far as the Highlands and Isles are
concerned, as great and humiliating a " frost" as that
which mercifully has attended the recent " celebrations "
in honour of that earlier Jingo, Missionary of Empire,
and Pretender to Liberal Principles—John Knox. For our
own parts, we promise to use our very best endeavours to
knock the bottom out of any ridiculous proposal of that
kind.
But though we have progress to register, paradoxical
as it may seem, out of our people's retrogression, yet
timidity and subserviency are still rampant amongst us ;
and these two evils constitute a formidable obstacle to the
cause. Ignorance and timidity are our besetting sins. We
are ignorant when we despise or neglect our nationality;
we are timid to the verge of abjectness when we refrain,
Cas No Bas
90
from a motive of fear, from giving voice to that which we
know, and is in us. Timidity taints even the highest
places of the Gael; ignorance is the portion of the common
run. To begin with timidity. The Gaelic Association is
timid when it transacts all ite important business at the
annual Mòd in English. The chosen vessel, or
presidential figurehead, is all very well in its way, and
doubtless, like the ordinary gramophone, which, by the
way, it painfully resembles, it has no Gaelic; but consistency, to say nothing of scholarship, requires! at least
one oration in the language of the Gael, in which the
year's work—the year's output—shall I be briefly
summarised and some attempt made tol canvass the
future. A " cautious policy," since it is felt to be the best
and safest one, for the present! at all events, commands,
as moderate men, ourj warmest support; but we venture,
nevertheless, tol plead for just one Gaelic annual oration.
We hope! that our audacity will be taken in good part,
and! that it will be found to offer no appreciable violence]
to that " cautious policy " which it is the manifest!
intention of the Association in question to pursue.!
We think, also, that jokes at the expense of the Gaelic
language savour somewhat of timidity, tol say nothing of
vulgarity, especially when they are] perpetrated at the
Mòd and, according to newspaper] report, are received
with " laughter and applause "1 by the audience. At the
Dingwall Mòd a Mr.j Davidson, of Tulloch, stated that his
medical at-1 tendant had advised him not to attempt to
learnl Gaelic, as it might injure his jaw. We strongly ad\
vise any one desirous of emulating the example] of
Samson with the jaw-bone of an ass to apply to J this
intelligent son of David for the loan of a] suitable weapon;
but is not such "joking," andl the mind which can find
humour in it, a trifle con! temptible? The Gaelic
Association has now itsl own organ, An Deo-Ghrèine (to
which we wish all] manner of success); it should set to
work to ridia cule this kind of thing out of existence. :
We find the same note of timidity struck in Professor
Mackinnon's recent address from thel Edinburgh
University Celtic Chair, on the subject! of Gaelic in the
Schools. It struck us as a very! tame performance,
spiritless and absurdly apologetic!
an tone. His argument seems to be that Gaelic 'should be
encouraged to the extent only of making it an occasional
and limited medium for the teach-[ing of English to
Gaelic-speaking children, and after [that—the deluge, so
far as Gaelic is concerned, krhis sort of attitude is all very
well in Anglicised Scotland; but in Ireland the occupier of
a Celtic. [Chair who should presume to indulge in such
pre-Iposterous language would be promptly, and deservedly, "howled down". Verily, we are yet lamentably
timid.
We are ignorant when we refuse or neglect to profit by
the lessons of history, and when we subordinate
ourselves and our interests to foreign influences. The
Gaelic cause stands in no need of apology; nay more, we
hold that he who condescends to argue the point with
such as oppose us is guilty of a species of insult to nation
and language. If we were better informed, we should bo
less subservient—less timid; but it is because we are
ignorant—because our people do not know as pey should
do the proud and splendid past that-lies behind us—that
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we are so ridiculously timid. ■The Gaelic cause stands in
no need of apology, fit is above it. If we were really worthy
of it— Ireally worthy descendants of the men from whom
we are descended—we should recognise this and act on it.
But we do not so recognise ; we do not. so act. So we are
yet absurdly timid, and child ishly, fantastically,
superstitiously ignorant.
There is one thing more in conclusion of these; heads.
If the movement is to make better progress in the future
than it has done in the past more-pttention must be paid
to the purely commercial [side of the question. In Ireland
the literary and Ithe commercial movement go hand in
hand; they are there rightly regarded as inseparable. A
peopli does not live by literature alone: neither does it^
live by bread and butter alone; but the two things]
-combined are necessary to the civilised state. In Alba we
have plenty of people talking about lan: guage and
literature; but comparatively few who] concern
themselves with the bread and butten which is necessary
to support them. The grievance] tof Alba is, primarily and
fundamentally, largely ain -economic one ; and if we
would make the national! cause not only attractive but
essential to the great] mass of our countrymen, we must
embrace all avail-] •able means to improve their social
condition! Two hundred years of distress and stagnation
are not a bad capital to start a comprehensive national
cama paign on. For our parts, we are quite willing and]
^prepared to embark on the speculation.
FOCAILIN
Is fada an la o bhi Gaedhil na hEireann agul Gaedhil na
hAlban fa aon ri amhain.
Do scaradar o cheile aimsir an Righ Aedh] Mac
Aenmire ins an mbliadhain 574 A.D. agua bhi "Home
Rule" agus a righthe fein os cionn] Albanach as sion i
leith.
Is docha go bhfuil eolas ar an meid sin ag gach aon
Albanach indiu.
anach e, acht beidh failte againn roimhe aris ma thagann
se isteach sa Ghedealtacht, agus beidh se 'na bhrathair
againn aris le congnamh Dè." Is èl mo thuairm gurab e sin
smuaineamh na nEireannl ach agus ni mheasaim go
bhfuil aon bhaoghal gel ngeillfidh Eire do Shasana, 'na go
mheidh cion aicl uirthe go dtugaidh Sasana a ceart di.
Ba mhaith le hEire cabhair na nAlbanach agus ta suil
aici leis an gcabhair sin, acht ma ta se ìl ndan do
mhuinntear an da rioghacht caidreamh dol bheith
eatortha ar an chuma do bhiodh fado, ntì fhuil aon nidh
eile chomh maith leis an gcaradai subhailceach ud do
thabhairt ar nais, leis an dteanga] bhinn sin ar sinnsear
do labhairt aris, mar is daoinl sinn d'aon treibh agus d'aon
chinneadh agus ta se do reir riaghlacha Dè aon teanga
umhain do bheith againn.
CONAN MAOL.
DEER FORESTS
IT is hard to find any discussion respecting tha vexed
question of deer forests conducted in an] impartial and
Cas No Bas
91
Gidh nach rabhadar fa churam an ri ceadhna o
aimsir Aedha mhic Aenmire ar a shoin sin nior fhag sin
na go raibh caradas eatortha go cearna mile bliadhan 'na
dhiadh sin agus ba mhinic do •chabhradar le cheile.
Bhi dream calma de Ghaedhealaibh na hAlban -ar
chluain Tairbh i nEirinn ins an mbliadhain 10l3 ag
eabhra le Brian Boirmhe i gcoinnibh Lochlannach, agus
bhi dream laidir de Ghaedhalibh na hEireann ar Blàr-allt
a' Bhonnaich ag tabhairt con-gnaimh do Riobard Bruis.
Feach cad deir an file Sasannach, Chaucer, i dtaoibh na
nEireannach la-an chatha mhoir ud :—
" To Scottish . . . we ne'er would yield, The Irish
bowmen won the field ".
Ba mhor an truagh na'r lean na hEireannaigh agus
na hAlbanaigh ar chabhra le cheile riamh o-shoin mar
dheanfadh an meid sin moran maitheasa !dhoibh araon.
Thainig na Sasanaigh idir Eire agus Albain
agus-cuireadh o na cheile muintear an dha thir. Ta an
Sasanach 'ga ndeighilt gus indiu agus ni doich tliomsa go
mheidh aon rath ortha araon go dtugaid isiad druim
lamha leis an Sasanach soin. Ni leigeanm 'na hAlbanaigh
ortha go dtuigid siad an meid sin ach muna ndeinid mar
sin ni mheasimse gur feidir le daoine an da thir an
sean-chion ceadhna do bheith aca ar a cheile fa mar do
bhiodh ins an. aimsir do ghabh tharainn.
'Se mo thuairm gur mhaith leis na hEireannaigh-an
tsean-bhaidh agus an tsean-charadas do bheith-aca aris
leis na hAlbanaigh, mar nior bhuail aon 'Eireannach
Horn ar feadh mo shaoghail 'na go raibh "muinntearas na
chroidhe aige do Ghaedhealaibh, Alban.
Deir siad mar seo: " Is d'ar dtreibh fein iad. agus ba
mhor againn acheile fado ; ni maith linn amh go bhfuil
uraim agus cion chomh mor soin lag an Albanach ar an
Sasanach mar da reir sin fchabhrochadh se leis an
Sasanach 'nar gcoinnibhne agus ni mar sin do
ghnidheadh se ins an tsean-[shaoghal. Nior thugamair
aon chuis ghearain do'n Albanach le bheith 'nar
gcoinnibh. Mheall an Sas-
statesmanlike manner.
The opa ponents of deer
forests, equally with their apologists and supporters, are
wont to approach the subject with biased minds, the
consequence being that the general public is left in
considerably doubt as to the respective merits of the two
cases! The man who denounces deer forests wholesale] is
just as familiar (and obnoxious) as the person] in whose
opinion all forms of "sport" constitute ■a species of selfish
and ignoble fetish. Both extremists are in our view
equally absurd, though! were we obliged to state a
preference, we would! •sympathise rather with the
anti-deer-forester than
with the other fellow. After all, those who have
themselves been expelled in order to make room ilor
deer, or whose forebears were set adrift for the same
reason, can scarcely be expected to discuss [this subject
without some heat. The old word says : "An cunnart a
chaidh seachad, is cùis fhar-maid"; and on much the
same principle we who have not suffered, or whose
ancestors suffered not, [may be too apt to cry " Hold !
Deer Forests
Deer Forests
enough !" to those who have been less fortunate in this
respect than [ourselves.
Still, our opinion is that the views of a disinterested party
are more likely to find acceptance with the general public
than are those of either of the extremists
above-mentioned. The proprietor who seeks to prove
that deer forests, so far from being a curse on the land, are
a social and economic blessing, is not likely to find his
views endorsed I to any great extent, save by the limited
class to [which he appeals. On the other hand, the "
agi-rtator," as he is termed by the deer-preserving
[fraternity, prejudices his case by reason of his [violence.
He seeks to prove too much.
Deer and deer-forests are
not necessarily an evil. It is 'only the abuse of both
which constitutes the i scandal, which is true of a great
many other things besides that which we are presently
discussing.
The truth of the matter, therefore, lies where the
sensible man will naturally expect to find it, I namely,
between these two extremes. It is something
disagreeable to our vanity to be obliged to confess that the
"golden mean," which so many i trifling and commonplace
people unite in praising, is, after all, the wise man's
portion. It is not too much to say that contempt for
these shallow-pated 1 reasoners frequently drives a young
man of genius
to regrettable extremes. He hates "moderation'^ because
it is preached by so many ridiculous peoples We admit
that it is unfortunate that many good] causes cannot be
dissociated from the blockheada who subscribe to them,
not because they have] arrived at that end by a process of
intelligent] thought, but simply by dint of prejudice,
breeding! and other circumstances over which they are as]
incapable of exercising any control as they are ofj
understanding them. This is the penalty, however,! which
the wise man must pay, sooner or later, to! the
commonplace world in which he moves; and! however
much he may despise the company of foolsj and dunces, he
will be wiser still if he discovers] sufficient philosophy to
put up with them. I
We propose to approach this subject of deer forests
entirely from the Gaelic point of view:! As to any other
there may be, we earn »1ess|^M than the proverbial two
straws whether or not ifc'J be agreeable, or the reverse, to
our ownìl It is indeed high time that the Gael of Scotland
began! to look at questions which concern him, not froml
the point of view of his political pastors and masters J but
from the standpoint of his own individuality— of his own
race. We shall, accordingly, have our] say on this
subject without fear and without^&vour; and we trust
that what follows will recommend itself to our
countrymen, irrespective of creed and party.
One of the earliest views of our history is that which
discovers to us our ancestors as mainly subsisting by
hunting; and even when the nomadic state of society
passed away, and the primitive tribal system gave place to
more settled conditions, we find that hunting formed no
small part of the occupation of our ancestors. Ancient
Gaelic literature abounds in references, poetic and
otherwise, [ to the chase. The exploits of the Fianna of
Scotland [and Ireland constitute a moving tale, in which
'.hunting and fighting go hand in hand. The same llove
of venery, the same keen appreciation of the fchase, in all
its forms and aspects, characterises the ■writings of the
I
I
best of our Gaelic poets. In Moladh .Beinn Dòrain, one of
the best known poems in ; the Gaelic language, and
justly admired on account rof its many excellencies, we
have a beautiful picture I of hunting presented to us by
one who was himself I a hunter; and, as a modern critic
has justly observed, "neach air bith a leughas Moladh
Beinn Dòrain gu faicilleach bho thoiseach gu deireadh,
faodaidh an neach sin eòlas fhaotainn air na buadhan a
bhiod feumail agus freagarach do dheagh shealgair, agus
air cumadh a' ghunna 'bha cleachdte ann an I làithean a'
bhàird ". Other well-known Gaelic poets have left on
record their appreciation of the delights and beauties of
the chase.
In the works of Rob Donn, Alasdair Mac
Mhaighstir Alasdair, Mac Lachlan, etc., will be found
abundant evidence of [their author's acquaintance with
the habits of deer, and of that intimate knowledge of
nature, in her [sterner and wilder aspects, which this
noblest of sports is eminently calculated to foster and encourage.
And here we may well turn aside a moment 'from our
main theme in order to make a few I observations
touching the ancient method of hunting the deer. In the
extensive literature connected with the Fianna of
Scotland and Ireland are to be found many particular
accounts of the old Gaelic manner of handling the chase.
The more common way of hunting the deer and other
wild animals 4 which then abounded in Erin and Alba
was in
B
company; that is to say, a particular part of thel country
having been selected as likely to affordj good sport, the
hunters, to the number sometimesl of several hundreds,
would surround the hill or. forest to be beaten; and the
dogs being unleashed] the whole company at a given
signal would then] move forward, with the object of
surrounding thel game. The startled animals would
naturally avoid] the hunters and their hounds as far, and
as long,1 as possible ; but in the end, of course, the
quarry, by dint of being driven together to one place, inj
one confused mass, would fall an easy victim to the]
hunters, who either made a general slaughter of the
terror-struck and distracted creatures'enclosed] within
the human net, as it were, or slew them] singly as by
breaking back upon the ever-eontractj ing ring of hunters
they endeavoured to effect theig escape. This, according
to the ancient sgeulan was] the more common and popular
way of managing the chase.
The Silva Gadelica of Mr. Standish O'Grady, and other
works, prove to us, however, that thè] chase was also
frequently undertaken by single] individuals, or by
parties of two or threeJlThus, we see that the " deer
drive," and the infinitely morel enjoyable and scientific
"stalk," of to-day are] but simple evolutions of the
time-honoured practices] of our far-away ancestors. The
hunt in company—, the chase as generally managed by
Finn Mac Cumhal and his band of heroes—continued to
be] popular in Scotland down to a comparatively] recent
date. Indeed, the account of a hunting in] the Braes of
Mar furnished us by Taylor, the selH styled " Water
Poet," who himself was present at] such an undertaking
in the year 1618, reads exactly] like one of the many
descriptions of such exploits] in which ancient Gaelic
literature, more especially that connected with the
Fianna, abounds. The aer I count in question has often
Deer Forests
been quoted; but since jit supplies us with a terse and
vivid description of Ithe chase as generally practised by
our forefathers, I we make no apology for reproducing it
here. " The [ manner of hunting," says Taylor, " is this :
Five or
I
six hundred men doe rise early in the morning,
and [they doe disperse themselves divers wayes, and
II
seven, eight or ten miles compasse, they do bring
\ or chase in the deer in many heards (two, three, or
I four hundred in a heard) to such or such a place as
Ithe noblemen shall appoint them ; then, when day
is come, the lords and gentlemen of their companies [do
ride or go to the said places, sometimes wading-[up to the
middles through bournes and rivers, and [then they being
come to the place doe lie down on Ithe ground, till those
foresaid scouts, which are called the Tinckhell (Gaelic,
Timchioll, a circuit, compass) doe bring down the deer; but
as the proverb says of a bad cooke, so these Tinckhell
rmen doe lick their own fingers; for besides their 1 bowes
and arrows which they carry with them, wee Jean heare
now and then a harquebuse or a musquet goe off, which
doe seldom discharge in vaine; then after we had stayed
three hours or thereabouts, we [might perceive the deer
appeare on the hills round rabout us (their heads making
a show like a wood), which being followed close by the
Tinckhell are phased down into the valley where we lay;
then all the valley on each side being way-laid with a
hundred couple of strong Irish grey-hounds, they ■are let
loose as occasion serves upon the hearde of deere, what
with dogs, gunnes, arrows, durks and! [daggers, in the
space of two hours four score fat deere were slain, which
after are disposed of some one way and some another,
twenty or thirty miles, and more than enough left for us to
make merry withal at our rendevouze."
Let us now proceed to examine the question of deer
forests from the Gaelic legal point of view. It has been
asserted with more vehemence than knowledge, that the
Gaelic people have an inalienable right to the deer of our
glens and forests, which, if it means that any Gael has, or
used to have, an inalienable right to kill deer whenever
occasion or humour urged him to do so, we have no
hesitation whatever in characterising such a belief as
absolutely unfounded. Such loose assertions are too
frequently in the mouths of those who, meaning well no
doubt, yet allow their prejudices to exceed their
discretion—to say nothing of their learning. It would say
little, indeed, for our boasted Gaelic civilisation if the
conditions under which our ancestors lived were so far
removed from "law and order" that license of this sort was
everywhere tolerated if not explicitly sanctioned and
encouraged.
We have observed a similar tendency to exaggeration
on the part of those who advocate what is called "land
nationalisation". With the view that the Gael is the proper
and rightful inhabitant of our straths and glens we have,
of course, all imaginable sympathy; but we beg leave to
state that, contrary to what is often asserted, the socialistic notions underlying many of these revolutionary
schemes of land reform derive absolutely no justification
from Gaelic law. It is as well that we should be clear on
this point; for it will be found, on examination, that
certain predatory instincts, for the exercise of which what
is loosely described as the "cian system" is frequently
erroneously referred to as supplying sufficient
Deer Forests
justification for the same, have really no justification at
all, so far at all events as Gaelic custom and law are concerned. Even the " cian system," touching which much
glib language is wont to be held, was in rapid process of
decay when Gaelic civilisation was at its best; and a code
of law which was so searching and particular that the
very bees were subject to a law of injury and trespass, is
hardly likely to have left undefined (and unsafeguarded)
the rights of property holders, and, by consequence, the
legal status, as it were, of so noble and important an
animal as the deer.
The most important existing source of ancient Gaelic
criminal law is the compilation known as Leabhar Acaille,
the Book of Aicile. This code, or rather digest, says Dr.
Hyde, "professes to be a compilation of the dicta and
opinions of King Cormac Mac Art, who lived in the third
century, and of Cennfaeladh, who lived in the seventh"
{Literary Histoid of Ireland, p. 584). Unfortunately, like most
of the ancient Gaelic law books, it is a digest rather than
a code, and contains a number of hypothetical cases,
which may, or may not, have actually come under the
cognisance of the laws of the land. However, in this book,
as in the Seanchus Mòr, and other law tracts, we find the
law of trespass, and of compensation for trespass, on the
part of deer and other animals clearly set forth; and
under the heading, "what is lawful in deer judgments," in
the first mentioned book we find the expression "the
unlawful hunter" constantly used. The learned translators
of this interesting digest have the following note upon
the use of this term. " If the hunter were ' unlawful,' i.e., if
the hunting was an illegal act, the amount of dire-fine in
each case was fixed in a greater ratio." It is evident, then,
that in addition to our ancient Gaelic law providing for
compensation to be paid to the person whose crops or
other property were damaged by deer, the trespasser in
pursuit of game which did not belong to him was
considered as " unlawful," and was mulcted accordingly.
Not only this, and other entries in our ancient law books,
but the whole tenor and spirit of Gaelic jurisprudence
seem effectually to dispose of the theory that the Gael
had an " inalienable right" to go forth and slaughter deer,
and to appropriate the spoils of the chase, whenever his
larder needed replenishing or his sporting proclivities
roused him to action.
We are convinced that it only requires a little
thought on the part of the candid and unprejudiced
reader to enable him to arrive at the conclusion that this
must needs have been so. No doubt, in primitive
communities the unwritten law is that what a man finds
or acquires that he shall keep, if he can. But it is obvious
that such an understanding refers only to very early, not
to say barbarous, stages of society. Our primitive
ancestors were, no doubt, in this respect no better and no
worse than are the negroes of Central Africa to-day, to
many of whom hunting is the sole means of subsistence.
But as soon as ever the Gaels of Scotland and Ireland
passed out of the nomadic state and became a civilised
people with fixed habitations, and all the multiform
rights, privileges, duties and responsibilities which such
a state of society necessarily involves, the old
happy-go-lucky, selfish and irresponsible existence could
no longer be endured, and, for its own well-being and
safeguard, society became hedged about, as it were, with
all manner of laws with their consequent penalties and
Deer Forests
prohibitions. That Gaelic jurisprudence lacked what we
should nowadays regard as the essential accompaniment
of an executive authority was, no doubt, a serious blot
upon the social and legal system under which our
ancestors lived ; but it has to be remembered that
although the responsibility—even the concern—of the
judge ended with the formulation of the sentence
attaching to the cause he was by birth entitled to decide,
yet public opinion was so strong that the wrong-doer or
trespasser rarely, if ever, escaped the just penalty of his
misdemeanour. The extraordinary "particularism," and, in
some respects, exactitude of the whole body of Gaelic
law—of such, at all events, as has come down to us, and it
should be borne in mind that of our ancient jurisprudence
but a moiety has been preserved—joined to the swift and
sure manner in which, thanks to a highly developed state
of public opinion, justice was executed, forbids the notion
either that the "unlawful hunter" was regarded with
unconcern or that he could reckon on the sympathy of the
populace to enable him to shirk or escape from the just
penalties of his misdeeds.
There is one other aspect of this branch of our theme to
which we should like to draw attention before bringing
this head to a conclusion. The existing game laws are, no
doubt, the offspring of the feudal system, but as in many
other departments of Scottish law, it is curious to note
how much these laws have been influenced, and to some
extent modified, by pre-existing Gaelic laws and customs.
The vivid narrative left us by Taylor discovers to us a
whole country-side employed in hunting. The men of the
glens—alas! where are they now 1—go forth to the sport
armed as hunters.
They even lend their hounds to " bring down the* deere,"
and themselves assist at the slaughter of the quarry.
"And," says Taylor, "unless men are kind unto them, and
are in their habite," i.e., wean the Gaelic dress, they will on
no account participate] in the chase. What a difference is
here exhibited; between the ruthless and barbarous
manner in which the feudal game laws were executed im
England, and the spirit in which the same observances
were administered in Scotland. A difference,! we beg leave
to state, which took its rise from thej infinitely milder,
more reasonable, and humane, views of our Gaelic
ancestors. On the other handi it must not be imagined
that under the Scottish' feudal game laws (as under the
Gaelic system) thej subject was free to kill deer whenever
he had a mind to do so. It is significant of the hold which
even the tradition of a vast body of Gaelic law had on
feudal society, and of the respect which, even under that
system, was paid to Gaelic opinion and' customs, that in a
document which is before us as we write and which
belongs to feudal times, the tef^H of the law are to be
invoked to restrain those only who hunt " unlawfully,"
that is, for such as have no right, or have obtained no
proper permission to do< so. Here, then, we obtain a
glimpse again, after, the lapse of many hundreds of years,
and under a totally different social and legal system, of
the "unlawful hunter" of our ancient Gaelic laws!! Whilst
at the same time, reading not only between but the actual
lines themselves of Taylor's descriptive narrative, we
obtain a clear view of manners] and customs, of rights and
privileges, which must] have come down to the Gaelic
people of Scotland from time immemorial. Truly, it has
been welll said that Gaelic manners and customs die hard!
Deer Forests
|:Long may they continue to do so, if deserving and?
worthy to be had in remembrance !
We have left ourselves but little space in which [to
refer to our concluding head, which is the abuse* 1 of deer
forests.
It is hardly necessary to state [that we view
with consternation and alarm the-recent increase in the
number of these jealously guarded preserves. The
modern sportsman is, un-[fortunately, in too many cases,
nothing if not selfish ~ and, if the choice has to be made,
he is neither [slow to express his preference for deer over
men. nor ambiguous in the statement thereof. It seems
to be the view of a class of sportsmen which is unfortunately much on the increase that nothing—no
[human or social interests and obligations, that is to
say—must be suffered to come between themselves and
the selfish prosecution of their sport. We are* very far,
indeed, from thinking that all sportsmen are of this
dangerous and disagreeable type; but. it is useless to
attempt to disguise the fact that [sport tends more and
more to become the exclusive-[privilege of a few rich men,
whose first and last concern is the dimensions of " the
bag " which they are able to fill. This being so, and
modern sports-^Bl||ing what they are, it is hopeless to
expect pat the argumentum ad hominem, however temperately urged and dexterously employed, will
produce-jmuch effect in the quarter indicated by these
re-^EKS. We shall be callously told that the time
when men and deer flourished abundantly side by side,
as we know they did in the days of our1 ancestors, is long
gone by ; and that since modern ' requirements insist
that the presence of deer in-pur glens and forests is
incompatible with that of [human beings, the latter must
be discouraged, and,, if necessary, expelled, in order that
the moniedt
bounder from England or America may gratify his "
sporting " propensities in the manner and in the form
which he demands. In these circumstances we see
nothing for it but the continuance, in the meantime, of
that agitation whose object is the compulsory limitation
of these overgrown and superabundant preserves. It is
really monstrous that huge tracts of the Highlands and
Isles should be denuded of their inhabitants in order to
make room for deer; and we beg leave to remark that
were this country governed at home instead of at
Westminster a state of affairs so humiliating and
depressing, so morally unsound and so economically
wrong as this is would never have been suffered to
endure, much less to attain to its present scandalous
dimensions.1 For ourselves, we have as little faith in
appeals and applications to the English Parliament with
a view to the curtailment of this evil as we have liking for
and confidence in some of the arguments which those
employ who would be our friends in this matter.2
1When the Crofters Commission was sitting there were 109
deer forests in Scotland, and they covered an area of 1,975,000
acres; now there are 150 deer forests, and they occupy an area
that cannot be less, and that may be considerably more, than
3,000,000 acres. What this means in extent two simple
illustrations will suffice to show. If the united •counties of
Aberdeen, Kincardine, Forfar, Fife, Haddington, Edinburgh,
Linlithgow and Stirling were all converted into wild and given
over to red deer, they would hardly do more than suffice for the
forests of the north. And if Kinross, Clackmannan, Dumbarton,
Lanark, Benfrew, Ayr, Dumfries and Wigtown were similarly
restored to nature, they would still be lacking, by an area
Deer Forests
greater than that of Peebles, of the domain presently oocupied by
deer. In other words, from one-seventh to one-sixth of Scotland
belongs to red deer.
2 For instance, we like not the sound of the argument that
sour lands should be repeopled in order that, like fat stook, the
Experience shows that our national concerns are
systematically neglected in that clubmen's paradise; and
that the deaf adder of the Psalmist is attention and
sympathy itself compared with the average English
statesman's attitude towards Gaelic affairs. We can only
hope, therefore, that as part and parcel of the infinitely
more important and more solemn question of national
self-government, this question of deer forests will not, in
the meantime, be lost sight of by the Gaels of Scotland;
and that however much our friends the politicians may
strive to ameliorate existing conditions, through the
channel of the English Parliament, they will not lose nor
be allowed to lose sight of the future —of that day when
Alba will be Alba—in deed, in name and in spirit—once
more.
AN T-ARM DEARG AGUS AN DEARG AMADAN
BHA mi 'leughadh 's na paipearan-naigheachd air an àm
mu'n Rannsachadh mhòr a bh'ann dlùth do Dhun-eideann
o chionn ghoirid. Bha seachd a' chorr air 30,000 de
dhaoine air an cruinneachadh, agus a' chuid mhòr dhuibh
o'n Ghàidhealtachd. Bha Righ Eideard e fèin air an ceann,
agus thug e suil gu geur orra 'na shean laoch mar a tha e.
Fhuair mi fios o chuid gu'm b'e an Rannsachadh mor so
am fear bu mhò a bh'ann o linn a' 5 mh Righ Seumas, an
uair a bha Alba uile air an
inhabitants might be reared for the English military market. He
must be a very unsophisticated individual, however, who pins
his faith to so visionary a consummation.
cruinneachadh fo armaibh chum dol gu cogadh ris na
Sasunnaich. Co dhiùbh, ciod is ciall da so ? An e ni maith
no olc do Ghàidheil na h-Alba a bhith air an
comh-cruinneachadh mar shaighdearan 's an dòigh so?
Deich mile thar fhichead de dhaoine air an cruinneachadh
fo armaibh, agus a' chuid mhòr dhuibh o'n Ghaidhealtachd ! Le armailt cho lionmhor, cumhachdach ri sin,
bheireadh sinn buaidh air na Sasunnaich gu lèir; ach 's e
so a' chuis, nam biodh toil is fàth againn an ni sin a
dheanamh. An e ni maith no-olc do Ghàidheil na h-Alba
an cùl a chur ris an Arm-dhearg no nach 'eil ? Tha cuid ag
ràdh gu bheil: air an dara làimh, tha cuid ag radh nach
'eil. Ciod e, mata, mo bheachd-sa air an gnothach so ? Gun
teagamh, is feàrr agus is freagarraiche do Ghàidheal air
bith a chùl a chur ris an Arm-dhearg shuidhichte, a
aig an àm ud, ach, gun chleachdadh ri annaibh, cha'n
urrainn sinne a dheanamh na chaidh a dheanamh air an
àm ud. Is ann mar sin a bha. Ach a nis tha Sasunn 'n a
charaid duinn, ma 'a fior na tha iad fèin ag ràdh air an
àm so: agus, leis a sin, tha sinn dol gu cogadh an aghaidh
a naimhdean-sa, o'n nach 'eil comas no cumhachd aige a
chùisean fein a chur air adhairt! Gu dearbh,, is taitneach
sin! Nach iongantach am buidheachas bu chòir a bhi
oirnn ? Agus car son, nach 'eil ? Nach e Gàidhealtachd na
h-Alba tha na tir bhainne is mheala? Nach 'eil ar
Deer Forests
chionn gur e an t-Armailt Sasunnach a th'ann. Tha feum
mòr aig na Sasunnaich air an àm so air saighdearan. Car
son? Chum gu'n cuireadh iad cinnich is dùthchannan eile
fo smachd, agus o'n nach urrainn doibh am muinntir fèin
a thoirt a steach do'n Arm fèin le duais 's le tàladh is
èiginn doibh sluagh eile fhaotainn, Ios gu'n lionamaid na
brogan tha falamh, gun fhiù, aca a nis. Air mo
chomhairle's e sin a' chùis. Ach ciod e a thachaireas do na
Ghàidheil, agus e cho amaideach gu bhi'n a shaighdear
dearg ? Mur 'eil e cheana 'na Shasunnach thaobh inntinn
is mothachaidh is cainnt, gu dearbh bithidh e mar sin an
prioba na sùla. Tha a' bhuil ann. Is e an t-arm
Sasunnach a th'ann. Nach e an t-Arm Sasunnach a
th'ann ? 'Se Sasunnaich a th'anns na h-oifigich. Tha a'
chuid is mò de na daoine 'tha fo ughdarras doibh
Sasunnach, agus tha a gach ni's gach neach a bhuineas
dha Sasunnach.
Cainnt is inntinn an dà ni bu chòir a bhi nan cuisean a's
dluith'
agus
a's
priseile
do
chridhe
nan
Gàidheal—falbhadh iad sin oirnn nam bitheadh sinne 'n
ar saighdearan Sasunnach. Gu dearbh, is dearg-amadan
esan a tha 'treigsinn a dhachaidh is dhùthcha chum
fuaim na druma Shasunnaich a leantainn. Tha Gàidheil
na h-Eirinn a 'cur an cùil ris an Armailt Shasunnach aig
an àm so. Foghnadh sin duinn mar eisimpleir mar an
ceudna.
Ach ciod e mo bharail-sa thaobh an armaillte
neo-shuidhichte, "armailt nam Breacan" anns a'
Ghàidhlig—an t-Armailt ris an abrar's a' Bheurla the
Volunteers? Theagamh, tha cùis eile ann an so. Gun
teagamh is maith agus is glic do Ghàidheil na h-Alba is
na h-Eirinn iad a' bhi làn-deanta ri armaibh, ma's
urrainn duinn gabhail a steach do'n armailt Sasunnach
agus sinn fein a' ghleidheadh 0 shalachadh. Ach neach
air bith tha dol a steach •do dh'armailt nam Breacan
chum cinnich eile a shàrachadh no a mhilleadh, no 'n
Iompaireachd Shasunnach a chuir am farsuinneachd —
is fear-brathaidh agus amadan e. Rachamaid a steach
anns an arm chum gu'n deanamaid sìth (no rèite) air
ar-son fèin, agus air son ar dùthcha-ne. Cuimhnichibh
air na daoine o'n d'thàinig sinn, agus air an sean fhacal,
a tha ag ràdh :—
" Is maith an duine còir ; Ach's e duine còir fo
armachd Ni's fheàrr na esan ".
Gun teagamh ma tha sinne lag, meath-chridheach, is
aineolach air armaibh, bithidh sinn air ar cur an
•dimeas le 'r naimhdean. Is e aonachd neart: ach ciod e
sin duinn gun armaibh, gun neart ? Thug sin buaidh air
Sasunn gu h-iomlan ach beag 's a' bhliadhna 1745.
Bha Alba uile deanta ri armaibh
gleanntan 's ar srathan fèin luma-lan de mhuinntir,
sona, is soirbheach? Nach 'eil an talamh fo ar chasaibh
fèin againn fèin 's le 'r cuid cloinne ? Agus ar cuisean
fein, nach iongantach a leithid sin de chaoimhneis's de
bheachdachaidh a tha iad faotainn 's a Pharlamaid ann
an
Lunnain
?
Mo
thruaighe!
na
Gàidheil
neo-mhisneachail, dìm-buaidheach sin, air a bheil
mi-thaingealachd 'thaobh Shasuinn nan tiodhlaicean I
Thugadh ar saorsa mar chinneach air leth air falbh 's a
bhliadhna 1707, agus o'n àm sin tha sinn 'suidhe aig
casan nan Sasunnach, co dhuibh, tha iad 'n an
326
An t-Arm dearg Agus an dearg Amadan
fior-chairdean ruinn no nach 'eil. Tha gaol aca aig an àm
so do na h-Iaponaich, mar an ceudna ! Tha gaol is dèidh
aig na Sasunnaich daonnan, cha'n ann air son na
feadhnach tha 'toirt cuideachaidh riu fein, ach air son
neach air bith tha 'toirt cuideachaidh riu-san! Bha feum
aca o chionn ghoirid air saighdearan chum criochan
Innsean na h-aird-an-Ear a dhion o'n Russianach—o'n
nach 'eil comas aca an gnothach sin a dheanamh gun
chuideachadh leo fèin. Mar so thuit iad ann an gaol mòr
air na h-Iaponaich: agus s'ann (ma' s e fior) a bha meas
aca do mhuinntir chalma thuigseach nan eileanan so,
agus thug na Sasunnaich orra còrdadh a dheanamh
eatorra, le sùil aca fèin ri'n seilbhean fèin ann an
Innsean na h-aird-an-Ear^. agus ann an aiteachan eile
air feadh an t-saoghail. Nach iongantach a' mhuinntir a
th'anns na Sasunnaich ! Bha " cluichean Gàidhealach "
ann o chionn ghoirid, dluth do dh'Inbhirnis, agus bha
Gàidheil is Iaponaich le cheile à lathair. Rinn an caraid
òg; iomairt is togail ris an t-sean-charaid do Shasunn,
agus bu mhòr is àrd an tlachd a bh'ann. Chùm na
Sasunnaich an sùil gu geur orra. B'ann mar sin a
b'abhaist doibh ! An ceann beagan bhliadhnaichean, ni
na h-Iaponaich agus na Russianaich iomairt ri cheile air
blàr Innsean na h-aird-an-Ear7. agus mur 'eil mi air mo
mhealladh bithidh na Sasunnaich à lathair a rìs le suil
aca ri geall, agus-'gam brosnachadh gu cothrom na
Feinne! B'ann mar sin a b'abhaist doibh !
Anns na linntean a dh'fhalbh, b'abhaist do-Ghàidheil
na h-Alba èiridh fo armachd air uairibh chum droch
chomhairlichean a chur a mach o-chomhair an Righ. Is
ann mar so a bha 'nuair a bha Alba 'n a rioghachd shaor,
air a bonn fèin le a righibh, 's a laghanna, 's a cainnt, 's a
cleachdaidhean fèin; agus bu mhòr am feum a bh'ann air
son a leithid sin de ghiùlan, mar a tha ar sean
eachdraidh a' nochadh gu soilleir dhuinn. Gu dearbh, tha
droch luchd-comhairle ni 's leoir fo» chomhair an Righ aig
an àm so — daoine fein-chuiseach, aineolach, sanntach,
uaibhreach, cuil-hheartach, agus aig nach eil facal maith
'nan cinn as leth muinntir na Gaidhealtachd, no 'chainnt
no-na cleachdaidhean a tha aca. Ach ciod tha sinn a
'deanamh aig a' cheart àm so gu droch luchd-comhairle a
chur air falbh à lathair an Righ? Rùnaich cuid de na
daoine so o chionn ghoirid na duaisean sonraichte, a tha
na maighstireansgoile ann an Eirinn a' faighinn airson
teagaisg na Gàidhlige, a thoirt air falbh. Thàinig na
duaisean so gu £12,000 Shasunnaich's a bhliadhna, agus
is mòr agus trom am bacadh a tha iad dol a' chur air a'
Ghaidhlig leis an ordugh mi-rùnach dimeasach so. Is ann
air son ni bheannaichte sin ris an canar Economy's a'
Bheurla 'tha iad 'deanamh mar so: ach is cealgairean,
fir-aithris-bhreug iadsan. Nam b'e economy a mhàin ris an
robh an suil, bheireadh iad na duaisean so seachad gu
h-iomlan. Ach ciod e 'tha iad dol a dheanamh leo ? Cha
toir iad air falbh iad idir, deir iadsan, "ach cuiridh sinn
iad air còcaireachd is an Fhraingeis !" Gu fior, 's i a'
GAELIC ARTS AND CRAFTS
ARCHITECTURE
II. DOMESTIC
An t-Arm dearg Agus an dearg Amadan
i >27
Ghàidhlig a mhàin a tha iad a' fuathachadh : cha'n e
còcaireachd no'n Fhraingeis anns am bheil iad 'gabhail
tlachd mòire !
Tha aon ni eile ann air am feum mi iomradh a
dheanamh mu'n toir mi crioch air na briathran so.
Labhair luchd-sgriobhaidh is luchd-comhairle na
riogachd mòran nithe as ùr 'thaobh daingneachaidh
chum muinntir is dùthcha—ni ris an abrar's a' Bheurla
national efficiency: 'nis ciod e national efficiency f agus co iad
'tha labhairt mu dheidhinn aig an àm so ? Tha national
efficiency a' ciallachadh daingneachaidh, sabhailteachd
agus dion air Sasunn a mhàin : agus tha an t-Iarla
Rosebery agus Ioseph Chamberlain 'nan ard-fhaidhean
dheth. ^Siad sin ris an canar Missionaries of Empire's a'
Bheurla, agus is mòr agus nimheil an spairn agus stri
'tha eadar an dà laoch sgaiteach so. Ach ciod .so, no
iadsan, dhuinn ? Chunnaic sinn, mar chin-neach air leth
" Sasunn laidir " iomadh uair, agus o chionn iomadh
bliadhna, agus am bheil sinn ni's fheàrr dheth a nis
'thaobh nan uile nithe 'tha feumail dhuinn mar
mhuinntir air leth, na bha sinn anns na linnibh a
dh'fhalbh?
Ciod e "Sasunn laidir " (no lag is faoin)
dhuinn fein ? Nach Sasunn a mhàin a th'ann ? Gu
dearbh, gu dearbh, cha'n 'e a' Ghàidhealtachd no Albainn
a th'ann. Thuig ar sinnseara so gu math, agus, leis a sin,
chog iad ris na Sasunnaich uair is uair, cha' n' ann air an
taobh mar a tha sinn a' deanamh, air an àm so. Agus ged
a chaidh an ruaig a chur orra mu dheireadh mu'n àm ris
an abrar "Bliadhna Thearlaich" is dona a thig e dhuinn a'
bhi daonnan a' striochdadh ri agus (ni a's miosa na sin) a'
bhi' cuideachadh ar naimhdean, agus sin anns na
slabhraidhean a chuir sinn orinn fein. National efficiency
ciod e sin dhuinne ? 'S e bheir freagairt gu ceart do na
cheist sin, ar gleanntan fàsail, neo-threabhta, gun
mhuinntir 's ar taighean briste, lèir-sgriosta, 's ar
cinneach is muinntir ar gràidh air am fuadachadh a
mach do gach cearn's do gach aite de'n t-saoghail. Gu
dearbh tha national efficiency cosmhuil ri deirceachd—'s e
sin ri ràdh bu choir dha 'toiseachadh 'nar measg fhein,
air neo tha è 'na sheorsa de dh'fhochaid's de
chealgaireachd a mhàin.
Tha e 'na amadan 'na aonar—gach neach 'tha 'dol a
steach do'n Armailt Shasunnach, a chionn's gur e an
t-arm Sasunnach a th'ann. Tha Arm nam Breacan
beagan ni's fhearr na sin, chionn's gur e seorsa de
dh'armailt Gàidhealach a th'ann; ach co dhiùbh a's fearr
no a's miosa e na sud, 's e so ar comhairle fèin do na
h-uile fear " Cuimhnichibh na daoine o 'n d'thàinig sibh,"
agus cumaibh bhur n' urchuir air a h-ais ! Theagamh
gu'n d'thig an latha sin fhathast anns am faod sinn a
ràdh a ris Bithidh an oidhche na h-oidhche nam biodh na
gillean 'nan gillean.
FEAR-TOGAIL NAN SPRAIDH.
IT is unnecessary in these pages to enter at all deeply into
the early beginnings of domestic architecture, as
practised by the Gaelic race.
The primitive dwellings
of our Celtic forefathers were but rude structures to
which the description of "houses" can scarcely be applied
330
Gaelic Arts and Crafts
with any degree of propriety. They were simple
habitations built 1 for the most part of wattles and rudely
thatc^M and were obviously more designed for shelter
tham| for "show".
There is a good representation of J
one of these primitive dwellings on the column of\
Antoninus at Rome. It shows us what the Gaulish!
habitations were like in those far-off days; but its
primitiveness is such as to discourage the expression] of
more than a very temporary and languid interests in the
subject of primitive Gaelic " architecture ".
It is difficult to determine even approximately the
date at which Gaelic pagan civilisation first! came in
contact with that of Rome. It seems probable, however,
that the event of which I speaki antedated by at least a
couple of centuries the-arrival of St. Patrick in
Ireland—the period com-J monly ascribed to the opening
up of that country] to the influences of Latin civilisation.
All modern Celtic scholars seem to be pretty well agreed
that the art of building in stone was at least known in]
Ireland before the arrival of Christianity; and on] the
hypothesis that the Christian religion was] practised in
Ireland before St. Patrick touched its shores, this theory
seems probable enough. Un9
fortunately, we have no accurate means of knowing
^^tjmeasure of correspondence there was between
[pre-Christian or rather pre-historic Ireland and the 1
nations of the continent. - On the whole, however,
considering the utterances of Gaelic tradition on [this
subject, it seems only reasonable to suppose Kthat some
such correspondence there was, however Ismail in volume
and intermittent and precarious in character; and that
amongst its earliest fruits L-was some acquaintance with
the highest branch lof the architect's art, that of building
in stone. ■■Roughly speaking, however, the assertion no
[doubt holds true enough, that stone architecture WAS a
fine art introduced into Ireland from the ^^ment of
Europe at the same time as the blessings of Christianity
were first made effectually known to her through the
channel of St. Patrick and his fellow missionaries. It is
not to be supposed, however, that between that date and
that of the [primitive wattled " bee-hive " dwelling which
figures fon Antoninus's column no progress in the art of
building had been made.
The next step in the
[evolution of Gaelic architecture was the substitution of
wooden buildings, of more or less substantiality and
durability, and possessing more or [less claims to
architectural feature, for the primitive [habitations
already briefly described.
And that [our Gaelic
ancestors had made considerable proGRESS in this branch
of the art before they began [to acquire that of building in
stone, we have [abundant means of knowing from written
records. [The ancient descriptions left us of the great hall
[at Tara of the kings, supply positive proof that khe more
Scottorum—as Venerable Bede styles the jancient Scottish
practice of building in wood— had attained to no
inconsiderable dimensions, and
acquired no mean architectural features, in pagan
Ireland. In his essay on the History and Antiquities of Tara
Hill the late Dr. Petrie went exhaustively into that
subject, and his learned and interesting description of the
huge building alluded to above will be read with profit
Gaelic Arts and Crafts
331
and satisfaction by all who take an interest in the subject
of Gaelic architecture.1
The plain square houses such as we see to-day dotted
in their hundreds over the fertile plains of Ireland, and,
to a much lesser extent, over the low country of Scotland,
are symbolic of Teutonic influences in architecture. The
houses, etc., of the Gaels of Ireland and Scotland were
either round, oval, or oblong in shape —the square house
being unknown amongst them. A curious feature of the
ancient Gaelic residence was that each room of the house
formed a separate building. The inconvenience of this
arrangement does not seem to have struck our ancestors ;
and though it points to very primitive influences, yet the
obvious inference to be deducted from that circumstance
is by no means borne out by fact. The richness and
splendour of the houses of the Gaelic nobility are, indeed,
favourite themes with our Gaelic poets; and allowing for a
certain amount of exaggeration on the ground of poetic
license, the accounts left us of the residences of some of
the Gaelic kings and nobles are altogether too
circumstantial and detailed to be dismissed as purely
imaginary. In the Colloquoy, translated by Mr. Standish
O'Grady,
1 Keating, writing from ancient authorities, states in his
History of Ireland that the dimensions of the great hall at Tara
were as follow: length 300 feet, breadth 75 feet, height 45 feet.
The interior of the hall was much carved and the exterior
brilliantly decorated.
and published in his Silva Gadelica, there is a wonderful
account of a Gaelic mansion of the period of St. Patrick.
We read of green door-posts ornamented with gold, silver
and precious stones, of the roof composed of the
variegated wings of birds, of couches encrusted with the
precious metals, and of the ceiling and roof-tree similarly
adorned and elaborately carved. We know little,
unfortunately, as to the architectural form, or rather
value, if I may so express myself, of these fairy-like
mansions; but from the description left us of the interiors
it is at least permissible to argue that they showed considerable taste and skill on the part of the makers.
However severe and simple the architectural form of
these ancient buildings, they must, nevertheless, have
presented a very imposing and picturesque, if not weird,
appearance, with their rich interiors and gorgeously
painted exteriors. The now familiar Celtic work seems to
have been extensively used in the embellishment of the
outside of the house—red, yellow, blue and green being
apparently the colours most frequently employed to
complete the exterior decoration of the dwellings of the
Gaelic upper classes.
If we bear in mind the fact that houses made of
wattles were in use by the poorer classes, at all events in
some parts of the Highlands and Isles, even so late as the
middle of the eighteenth century, the conservative
attachment of the Gaels of Scotland and Ireland to the
mare Scottorum—an even later evolution—will not be
wondered at. Again and again we read in the Annals of the
Four Masters, and other similar compilations, of the destruction by fire of this or that Dun or Eath in Ireland or
Scotland. At least down to the time of Malcolm III. (Caenn
?nor), and perhaps later, the dun of wood seems to have
been the favourite habitation of the Gaelic magnates of
330
Gaelic Arts and Crafts
Scotland. In numerous cases the sites occupied by these
wooden structures became those, in later years, on which
famous feudal castles of stone were erected. The castles of
Kildrummie (in Aberdeenshire) and Dunstaffhage (in
Argyllshire), to cite but two, are certainly cases in point;
and to the obstinate partiality of the Gael for his native
perishable wood must undoubtedly be ascribed the
lamentable dearth of early architectural Celtic
remains—an observation which applies even more to the
field of Gaelic domestic architecture than it does to the
ecclesiastical.
It may be inquired, how came it to pass that so
ingenious and artistic a people as the Gaels preferred
wood to stone as building material? So acute a nation as
the Gaels, and one so ready to apply and so quick to
improve foreign inventions, and customs introduced from
without, must surely have recognised the superiority of
stone over wood as building material, if but by reason of
the former's greater durability and resisting powers. The
solution of this problem is, perhaps, less difficult than it
seems at first. The Gael was, and is, intensely
conservative in his likes and dislikes. We know, from
many ecclesiastical authors, how obstinately he clung to
the more Scottorum, long after the Latin or continental
method of building in stone was familiar to him. His
attachment to his own customs was, in this respect,
something remarkable; for we have it on good authority
that the Scotic missionaries who flooded Europe during
the eighth and ninth centuries almost invariably
preferred to build in their native manner (even in France,
Germany, Switzerland, etc.) than to adopt the
Latin method of building in stone—a manner which their
country had been familiar with for some hundreds of
years. Apart from inborn prejudice, however, something
must be allowed on the ground of political dislike to a
radical change of this kind. There is evidence to show that
the Latin civilisation was not everywhere acceptable; and
certainly in the case of Scotland, the tendency of our
kings to extend their dominions southwards operated to
confirm and to foster the perhaps hereditary tendency
mentioned above. But there is another and more
important factor in the situation, which yet remains to be
mentioned. The Gael's love of bright colours and artistic
decoration for art's sake alone, is well known, and
requires no proof in these pages. Now the castle of stone
afforded but few opportunities—or rather outlets—in this
respect, so far at all events as exterior decoration was
concerned ; and, as is well known, this was a feature to
which very properly —for the house beautiful must, to be
harmonious, be beautiful without as well as within—our
Gaelic ancestors paid great heed. In spite, therefore, of its
greater durability and substantiality, the fact that the
stone house did not at all adapt itself to the peculiar
method of external decoration practised by our ancestors
is one and by no means the least of the various reasons,
social and political, why the Gaels of Ireland and Scotland
used wood long after stone had almost everywhere else
expelled the more perishable, but by no means necessarily
less artistic material. What might have happened had
Scotland and Ireland been left free to work out their own
respective political destinies it is, of course, impossible to
say, and perhaps idle to speculate at any length. The
Gaelic Arts and Crafts
331
group of " houses " would no doubt, in course of time, and
in obedience to the inexorable laws of evolution, have
assumed a composite form, and we should have had a distinctively Gaelic style of architecture, just as we had, and
have, a Norman and a Gothic. Under favourable political
circumstances the Gaelic prejudice against stone would,
no doubt, have worn itself out as the years went on; and a
school of architects would have arisen who would have
frankly recognised the superiority, utilitarian and
artistic, of the more durable material, and have
accommodated their genius to the erection of grand and
beautiful buildings in the manner first made known to
this country through the channel of Latin civilisation. Nor
is there any discoverable reason why the more Scottorum
should not have flourished side by side with the
continental method. The rich and beautiful effects that
can be produced by wood are familiar to every student of
architecture; and however unsuitable that substance may
be— owing to its lesser durability and greater liability to
destruction by fire, etc.—for edifices ecclesiastical and
lay, which are designed to last for all time, and to serve
the greatest ends which the mind of man can conceive,
the artistic effect produced by wood is, in some respects,
even greater than that which is the outcome of building in
stone, and, generally speaking, is not much inferior to
that which is the consequence of the exclusive use of the
more durable material. If we could dissociate our minds
from ideas springing from a consciousness of the
perishable nature of wood, it would be found that the rival
merits of the two materials—looking to their purely artistic
effects—would, in the opinion of competent judges, be
considered to correspond more than, owing to this
prejudice, they do at present. Those to whom the rich and
mellow interiors of some of our cathedrals, where wood is
largely employed, especially in roofings, ceilings,
rood-screens, etc., are familiar, must at all events incline
to this opinion. Unfortunately, in this branch of art, as in
almost all others, the Gaelic people were cut off and
reduced to political and social subjection before their
talents had time to mature, and to produce imperishable
art-forms, stamped with the indelible impression of their
rare genius. Their history resembles, in this respect, a
gorgeous spring morning, whose bright promise it would
appear to be the evil intention of a dark and stormy day,
the posthumous offspring of winter, to defeat. " It is too
bright to last!" we are accustomed sorrowfully to remark
of so fair a beginning. It may be unfashionable to quote "
Ossian " nowadays ; but the following beautiful lines seem
to me to be here charged with a double lesson and significance; so, with many apologies to the expositors of
Macpherson, I venture to give them :—
"As a beam of the wintry sun swift gliding over the
plain of Leno.
So are the days of Fingal's race, like the sun gleaming
by fits through the shower.
The dark grey clouds of the sky have descended, •and
snatched the cheering beam from the hunter.
The leafless branches of the wood are mourning, and
the tender herbs of the mountain droop in sadness.
But the Sun will yet revisit the fair grove, whose
boughs shall bloom anew.
330
Gaelic Arts and Crafts
And the trees of the young summer shall look up,
smiling, to the son of the sky."
There are unfortunately no remains of Gaelic
domestic architecture in Scotland to-day, a fact which
must be ascribed to causes glanced at above. Even in
Ireland, such remains as there ar'efifi&iram from
purely ecclesiastical edifices, either belong to a period
before the art was properly formulated upon true
Gaelic principles, or are here interesting only as
supplying evidences of the existence of Gaelic
influences in architecture long after the political
system had undergone radical change!; In Scotland, as
I have said, there are no remains which might be
described as distinctively Gaelic. Here, as in Ireland,
the character of the political changes introduced was
highly unfavourable to the development of native art.
The Gaelic nobfiS seem to have shut themselves up,
as it were, in their wooden palaces and to have
thought to defy, by so doing, the irresistible inrush of
the age of stone. In one or two castles yet remaining
we have traces of Gaelic exterior decoration, such
as-at Dunderave in Argyll, and at one or two others,
but no such thing as Gaelic lay architecture, if we
except the Round Tower at Brechin, exists to-day in
Scotland.
The introduction of the Norman castle into the south
of Scotland by David I. meant the ruin of native domestic
architecture, just as the substitution of feudalism for the
Gaelic system of government revolutionised Scottish
contemporary politics. The example of David rapidly
spread throughout the kingdom. It would even appear to
have infected the semi-independent Lords of the Isles,
who soon gave up their Raths and Duns for feudal strongholds built of lime and stone. The "Norman Conquest,"
however, so far as Scotland is concerned, was limited to
stone and mortar, but the changes-introduced by the
Norman castles and keeps were scarcely less weighty and
important than if they had been effected by force of arms.
The Norman influence, however, like the Norman
language, was. not destined to be an abiding force—even
in architecture, in Scotland, and the later entente cordiale*
with England soon gave place to the French alliance,
^^M1 to hatred of everything English.
Without in any way intending it, of course, the
alliance with France profoundly influenced our domestic
architecture, which, under the aegis of that arrangement,
soon began to re-assert some of its latent original
principles. The Franco-Scottish, or so-called Scots
baronial style, undoubtedly owes some of its most
pleasing and characteristic features, to Celtic influences.
The round tower, and theMfèndency to floriation in respect of ornamental detail so
observable in some of the best specimens,, reveal at once
their far-off Celtic affinities. Nor is this to be wondered
at, if we consider for a moment, the source from which
this imposing and agreeable style emanated. It was
from the district of the Loire, and, generally, from the
south of France— the most Celtic parts of that
country—that the French style of architecture was
brought to us; The warmth of its welcome in Scotland,
and the rapidity with which it spread, testify to the
existence of inherent, though latent, corresponding^
Gaelic Arts and Crafts
331
tendencies in the inhabitants of Scotland. We do-not
find that the French language ever became the speech of
the Scottish court, which, considering the-intensity of
the hatred for England and things. English, and the
cordiality and strength of the French political
connexion, it might reasonably be; expected to have
done. The explanation of this seeming phenomenon lies
in this, namely, that whilst the French language was not
in the blood of: our people, no small part of the principles
underlying French domestic architecture was so. The
oblong building flanked by turrets, and the "
high-shouldered"
ornate
place
of
strength—modifications, and yet elaborations, of
pre-existing Celtic architectural forms—appealed to our
ancestors with a force and to an extent which are not
understandable save on the ground of affinity. I venture
to think that in this case, at all events, imitation
implied no flattery. It owed its existence to
race-tendencies, which though sub-conscious, perhaps
altogether unconscious, yet were bound to manifest
themselves, whenever circumstances proved favourable
to their appearance. On no other hypothesis, I venture
to think, can our ancestors' attachment to French
architecture, and the avidity with which they adopted
it, be satisfactorily explained.
In my next paper I propose to treat of the application
of Gaelic principles to modern architecture, domestic as
well as ecclesiastical.
G. L.
GUTH O THIR NAN OG
EATH 6 ghrein agus ò ghaoith oraibh, rath 6 mhuir agus 6
thir oraibh, rath anuas agus rath anios oraibh, a shliocht
na bhFiann. Buadh trèine, buadh fèile, agus buadh
filidheachta agaibh, agus beannacht an fhir ghlègil
Columcille, teachtaire an Biaraidhe Mhoir.
Mise Feargus mac Fhinn agaibh, a thainic ar cuairt
chughaibh 6 Thir nan Og, agus seo dhuibh m' im th each
ta.
Och monuar! an chead uair riamh a bhi me ins an tir
aluinn seo bhi Fionn le m' chois, agus
Diarmuid O Duibhne, agus Oisin, agus Oscar, agus
moran eile de'n Fhèinn. Bhi ceol agus aoibhneas againn,
agus sealg ar sliabh, agus marcuigheacht ar eachaibh;
agus do chlos duinn fuaim na h-adhairce agus guth nan
gadhar imeasg nan gleannta. Agus do chuadhmar ar ais
go h-Eirinn. Agus do thuit Fionn agus Oscar agus mise i
gcath Ghabhra. Agus do chuadhmar sios as san go Tir an
Uaignis. Och monuar!
Tri chead bliadhain dom i dTir an Uaignis, agus, an
rae cèadna d' Oisin i dTir nan Og. Thainic Oisin ar ais go
hEirinn, agus do chonnaic Padraic mac Alpruinn è. Agus
do rug Padraic Oisin leis go Tir na Naomh. Bhi Niamh
chinn Oir bean Oisin go dubhach bronach ag caoineadh
Oisin, go bhfuair Oisin d' athchuinge ò Phadraic mise
dh'fhuasgailt 6 Thir an Uaignis, agus leigint dom dul go
Tir nan Og ag cantann laoi do Niamh chinn Oir, ar ghail
agus ar ghaisge agus ar fhèil© na Fèinne. Agus tagaim ar
an gcuairt seo uair ins na tri chead bhiadhain ar m' each
caol bàn.
330
Gaelic Arts and Crafts
Ar mo chead chuairt 6 Thir nan Og bhi Suidhe Finn
agus Dun Diarmuda 'n a bhfàsach. Thainic me ins an tir
seo ar thuairisg na bhFiann, agus nior chualaidh me rosg
catha na fuaim cloidhimh re sgèith, acht clèirigh agus
maighdin ag cantann salm. Ba bhinn an ceol san, acht ba
bhinne liomsa ceol cloidhimh ar mhachaire an air; agus,
do chuaidh me ar ais go Tir nan Og.
Rae tri chead bliadhain eile, agus chonnaic me
cruadh chomhrac agus gniomhartha gaisge, agus an cath
dà chur go dian ag Danair ar fhearaibh Eireann. Agus bhi
iomarbhadh idir chlannaibh Baoisgne agus chlannaibh
Mòrna. Thainic me anail thar Maoil do'n chor soin, agus
chonnaic me Danair dà n-èirleach agus dà ruagadh as
Albainn ag Roibeard Brùs; agus bhi adhbhar laoi agus
rosg agam ag filleadh dhorn go Tir nan Og.
Tri chead bliadhain eile agus thainic me aris; agus
bhi neul dubhròin os cionn Eireann agus Albann. Tir
Chonaill agus Tir Eoghain ag caohv eadh na dtaoiseach a
bhi ag imtheacht tar sàile, ag caoineadh na laoch a
dh'imthig agus nar thainic. Agus bhi Fianna Albann go
deorach ag caoineadh na mnà mania do cuireadh chun
bais go grànda insa charcair iasachta. Ochon na
treun-fhir, dà ndibirt as Eirinn. Ochon an choròin
riogdha, dà leigint as Albainn choidhche.
Is troma-chridheach a bhi me an uair sin ag dul thar
n-ais dom ; agus bhi rùn agam gan teacht ins na tiorthaib
se go deo aris. Acht tar èis tri ■chead bliadhain eile ise
do ràidh Niamh, "Sgeala Chlanna Gaedheal agat dom, a
Fhearguis". Do ghluais me aris, agus mo bhuaireamh cad
è seo ■dochim:—
Sliocht nan Gaedheal i ngèibhean chruaidh, Gan
duan na dreucht, acht Beurla fuar, |
Gan aoibhneas sèin, gan eucht ag sluagh, % Na
gniomhartha treuna ag èigse 'a luadh. Is beag a shil me
go bhfeicfinn go brath sibh in... chàs so. Is baoghal Qs
liom, nuair a chloisfidh Niamh an sgeula ata agam go a
mbrisfidh a cridhe le h-uabhar agus le nàire.
mil
A Ghaedheala Albann, feuchaidh in bhur ndiaidh
agus feuchaidh romhaibh.
Ma thrèigeann sibh caint
agus ceol agus laoithe agus meanma na bhFiann ni
344
The Scots at Clontarf
host to Clontarf that sooner or later he must
try-conclusions with an enemy who had been despoiling
and oppressing his country for the best part of 300 years.
Such " intelligent anticipations " are the essence of good
statesmanship. Nowadays, we speak of wars as being "
inevitable" long before they actually come to pass. A
similar gift of prophecy was probably amongst the many
accomplishments of Brian Borumha.
When the Irish Ard-Righ determined to give battle to
the Danes, he by no means under-rated the magnitude of
the task that confronted him. Indeed, both sides seem to
have simultaneously reached the conclusion that the
coming contest would be upon no ordinary scale. Gaels
and
Black
and
White
Foreigners
had
been
conducting-"little wars" against one another for centuries,
and with varying success to both belligerents. The time
Gaelic Arts and Crafts
331
Tri chead bliadhain eile dhorn annsan gur thainic me
aris. Fuair me Brian agus Maoil-sheachlain ag cosgairt
Danar in Eirinn, agus fuair me Maolcholm ag cosgairt
Danar in Albainn, agus d' f hill me go meidhreach go Tir
nan Og ag cantann laoi agus rosg catha do Niamh.
bheidh de shliocht agaibh acht Danair dura go brath aris.
Bhi agallamh agam le Righ Fheinnibh na hEireann indè,
agus do chuireadar iad fein fè gheasaibh fior laoich go
leanfadis raon na bhFiann. Sin iad na geasa ata uaim
oraibh-se a Righ Fheinnidhe Albann. Muna bhfuigh me
uaibh iad càinfidh me sibh, agus aoirfidh me sibh, go
dtògfaidh me tri cluig ar eudan gach mac mathar [agaibh.
Agus ma thugann sibh dom na geasa san beidh àthas ar
mo chridhe ag filleadh dhorn go Tir nan Og.
FEARGUS FINNBHEIL.
THE SCOTS AT CLONTARF1
THE battle of Clontarf, fought on Good Friday in the year
1014, is deservedly regarded as one of the most famous
and important in Gaelic history. The events immediately
preceding the battle may be briefly recalled. Brian
Borumha had made himself Ard-Righ of Ireland by a
combination of talents lof which military address and
dexterity were the principal characteristics. His throne,
however, ■could not be regarded as secure, so long as the
Scandinavian settlers in Ireland possessed more than a
jWe foothold in that country. With Dublin, or
Bail'-ath-Cliath, and other important ports in the hands of
the sea-faring Lochlannach, no Ard-Righ of Ireland could
consider his power as consolidated, or his sovereignty as
intact. Brian Borumha, who was as good a statesman as
he was a warrior, must have perceived long before he led
the Gaelic
lErom the Gaelic Cluain, a meadow, and Tarbh, a bull =
Cluain Tairbh.
was obviously now approaching, however, when these
series of fisticuffs or "pin pricks" would give place to
something infinitely more serious and destructive; and
when the die would be cast, one way or another, which
must finally decide all the points in dispute. Both sides,
accordingly, began their preparations with an evident
eye to the future.
The preparations of the Lochlannach were both
careful and extensive; but with these we are here not so
much concerned. Suffice it to say that they literally
scoured the seas for armed support; and that practically
all their available resources were laid under
contribution. The kingdom of Man, their settlements on
the Western Coast of Scotland, the Orkneys and, of
course, Scandinavia itself, were actively recruited, and
with encouraging results to the barbarians.
On the
other hand.
The Scots at Clontarf
345
the Gaels of Ireland were no less solicitous of augmenting
and strengthening their forces, and no less determined to
put the best possible face which they could upon their
affairs by inviting assistance from every likely and
available quarter. Centuries of Danish warfare, and alas!
of internecine strife had drained Ireland of much of her
best blood. Instead of composing their differences until at
least the foreigner was expelled, the Gaelic rulers (of
which the Celtic system allowed too many) had persisted
in the prosecution of their private feuds under the very
noses, as it were, of the Danish invaders, with the
inevitable result that the best strength and manhood of
the nation had been ignominiously frittered away in
these extravagant, costly and contemptible quarrels.
Moreover, even in view of the solemn and extensive
preparations which the Ard-Righ of Ireland now found
himself obliged to undertake, in order to counterbalance
those of his enemy, whose galling yoke he designed to
throw off, there were found some Gaels so mean-spirited
and unpatriotic as to prefer the indulgence of a feeling of
spite and revenge against Brian to the performance of
their obvious duty. Happily, however—happily for the
cause of civilisation in Ireland, and for the honour of the
Gael—these hirelings and traitors were in a minority.
Throughout almost the length and breadth of Ireland
Brian's preparations for the offence against the common
enemy actively proceeded. From North and South, East
and West, recruits for the Ard-Righ's army daily poured
in;: and either anticipating or imitating his enemy's,
preliminary tactics in respect of his own allies,,
messengers were sent to the Gael of Scotland to implore
his immediate assistance.
346
The Scots at Clontarf
The battle of Clontarf was fought on Good Friday,
1014. The contest began in the early morning, and
continued to be waged, with great courage, fierceness and
determination on both sides throughout the day. For
many hours the event was in suspense; but towards
sundown the Danes began to give way, and to flee. Many
picturesque details of this famous battle are supplied by
the Irish historians and annalists, whose accounts may,
in general, be implicitly relied on, being no less
remarkable for the plain and easy style in which they are
written than they are for their moderation and fairness to
a barbarous, though gallant, enemy.
The Scots contribution to this Homeric contest will
be, however, I imagine, a Scotsman's principal concern.
And in this respect, too, the Irish annalists have
fortunately not left us without some information, though
it is much to be regretted that the wholesale destruction
of our national records prevents us from indulging the
hope that that information will ever be appreciably
supplemented.
In the first place, it must be remembered that the
ancient relations between Scotland and Ireland were of a
very close and intimate character. Dal-riada was an Irish
colony, and whatever may be thought as to the ethnology
of the Picts, the "Scottish conquest" of Alba, as this
country used to be called, and still is called, in the Gaelic
language, is a well-ascertained historical fact. The
language of Scotland and the language of Ireland
moreover were practically identical at the time Clontarf
was fought. The social and commercial correspondence
between the two countries was great. The arts and crafts
of Ireland were precisely the same as those of Scotland,
and, to
The Scots at Clontarf
complete the resemblance, the ecclesiastical systems
were, so far as we know, precisely the same.
Under these circumstances, we should naturally
expect to find the Gaels of Scotland assisting their
kindred in Ireland to throw off the hated Scandinavian
yoke. Besides, the interest, as well as the inclination,
of the Scottish Gaels was actively engaged by the Irish
cause. The west coast of Scotland had been the scene
of countless barbarities on the part of these ferocious
and, for the most part, heathen " Summer-sliders," who,
in their bloody depredations, had not even respected the
sacred soil of Iona. The settlements of these
marauders, too, along the entire west coast, and in the
islands adjoining thereto, constituted a standing menace
to the Gaelic power, and constituted a species of insult
which a high-spirited people would be apt to avenge at
the first favourable opportunity. Accordingly, when
Brian's messengers arrived in Alba announcing that at
long last a determined attempt was about to be made to
crush the Danish power in Ireland, the Scottish Gaels,
whose sympathies in such an undertaking were
naturally with their Irish kinsmen, needed little
encouragement to induce them to take up arms, with a
view not only to assisting their allies, but with the
further object of including their own country in the
promised emancipation.
The late Mr. Skene, whose valuable work on Celtir
Scotland is still the accepted authority on our early
history, and whose principal conclusions have, on the
whole, stood the test of time and later scholarship in
remarkable fashion, was of opinion that the Scottish
contribution to the army of the victors at Clontarf was
more than respectable both as to quality and quantity.
It is probable, he says,
348
The Scots at Clontarf
that the "whole force of Alban was arrayed on Brian's
side". And considering all the circumstances of the
conflict, and its importance to Scotland, as well as to
Ireland, Dr. Skene was probably not far wrong in his
surmise. The best Irish historical source, however—the
historical tract known to English readers as "The Wars of
the Gael with the Galls" (Gaelic, Gall, a foreigner
generally speaking; but here more particularly a
Northman or Scandinavian)—mentions the name of only
one Scottish chief as having been present at the battle,
namely, Donald, the son of Eimin, the son of Cainnich,
Mormaer or sub-king of Marr in Aberdeenshire. I regret
that a very careful search amongst the available early
Irish historical sources has failed to establish other
names in this connexion, although, with Skene, I am
strongly of opinion that if not the whole force of Alba, at
all events the greatest part of it went to the assistance of
Ireland on that memorable occasion. It is worthy of note
that the tract in question states that Brian had ten
Mormaers with him at Clontarf, with their foreign
auxiliaries. Now, the word Mormaer (Gaelic, Mòr-mhaor,
modern Morair, a lord or great man) is seldom met with
in Irish literature. No doubt the title had its Irish
equivalent in the familiar Righ, which does not so much
mean a king, as nowadays we understand such to be, as
a sub-king or provincial prince. Consequently, the employment of the word Mormaer—a purely Scottish
appellation—by an Irish writer seems strange. Again,
the plural of the word Gall, a foreigner or Northman, is
Gaill, and this is the word used to describe the auxiliaries
who were with the Ard-Righ and the ten Mormaers at
Clontarf. Skene says "the word Gall, here translated
'foreign' (by himself), usually means the Northmen; but it
seems here used as its general sense of foreign ". I beg to
differ. The word Gall was, I believe, never applied to a
Gael; and in the particular circumstances we are
considering would surely be the last epithet a Gaelic
historian would employ to designate some of his own
allies! For my part, I believe that the ten Mormaers of
Brian were Scottish Mormaers who with their foreign
auxiliaries had gone over to Ireland to share the fortunes
of the day with the Irish High-King. It would not be
difficult to compose a list of ten contemporary Scottish
Mormaers, without exhausting the number of such
dignities, then subsisting. And as for the allusion to the
ten Mormaers'/ore^w auxiliaries—it would not be
necessary to allude specifically to their own men—what
with Saxon and Flemish and even Scandinavian settlers
in Scotland, it would be by no means surprising if some
volunteered for, or, what is more likely, were pressed by
their Gaelic overlords into, this momentous service.
Again, foreign auxiliaries, assuming for the sake of
argument that they were Scottish, would hardly be likely
to engage under Irish Mormaers. The prominence given
to Donald by the Irish historians, and his evident
importance in their eyes, both as magnate and ally,
precludes all idea of such a thing.
As I have already said, the Irish historians and
annalists mention the name of only one Mormaer as
being present at Clontarf, viz., Morair Mhair?', the
above-mentioned Donald. From this circumstance, Skene
places Donald of Marr at the head, that is, in command
The Scots at Clontarf
102
of the Scottish forces. " In addition," he says, "to the
native tribes of Munster, Con-naught, and Meath, who
followed Brian, he had also an auxiliary force from
Alban under Donald son of Eimin son of Cainnich, the
Mormaer of Marr."1 But with this opinion, also, I do not
agree. If the Mormaers were practically independent
princes, as there is every reason to believe they were,
who rendered to the Ard-Righ of Scotland such
allegiance only as he was able to exact from them vi et
amis, it surely follows from thence that they would not
have submitted to the authority of one of their own
order, especially upon so public and formal an occasion.
Skene thought that Donald was in command of the
Scottish forces at Clontarf, from the circumstance that
the Irish historians mention no other Mormaer. For my
own part, I am disposed to attribute Donald's isolation in
this respect to a different cause, which I shall proceed to
explain.
O'Flaherty, who wrote his Ogygia (or History of
Ireland) in Latin, states in the second volume of that
work (page 304) that "in the battle of Clontarf, fought in
the year 1014, we read there fell on the side of Brian,
monarch of Ireland, Donald the son of Evin, the son of
Canich Mor-mhaor Mair (Mor-mhaor Mhairr) and
Muredach Mormaer of Lennox. From the former, the descendant of Carbery2 the Pict, are sprung the ancient
Earls of Marre. From the latter we are of opinion that
the Earls of Lennox are descended."
I have already said that, to the best of my knowledge
and belief, no available ancient Irish account of the
battle mentions the names of any Scottish Mormaer save
that of Donald, the Righ
Celtic Scotland, vol. i., p. 387.
Carbery, son of Core, hereinafter mentioned: he was a
Piet on his mother's side, and was so called (by the Irish) because he was brought up in Pictavia.
1
2
or Mormaer of Marr. O'Flaherty, however, composed his
Ogygia at a time when the terrible and lamentable
destruction of priceless Irish MSS. had not proceeded as
far as, unfortunately, we have bitter reason to know that
it has since been carried; and I have no doubt whatever
that, in the composition of his history, he had access to
materials now, alas! lost to us. But the significance of
the appearance of these two names (those of the
Mormaers of Marr and Lennox) in connexion with the
battle of Clontarf has yet to be explained.
Brian Borhuma, Ard-Righ of Ireland, and King or
Righ of Munster, was of the line of Heber, son of
Milesius, the Spanish eponymous, according to the
genealogists of Ireland and Scotland, of the Gaels of
these two countries. Oilioll Olum, a descendant of the
above-mentioned Heber, and who was certainly an
historical personage, had two sons by his wife Sadbh,
viz., Eoghan Mòr (slain A.D. 250) and Cormac Cas. From
the second of these two the Ard-Righ of Ireland (Brian)
was descended; whilst from Eoghan Mòr, the ancient
earls (or rather Mormaers) of Marr and Lennox derived
their descent, according to the same authorities. It
should be explained that Oilioll Olum had a son called
Maccon Lughaidh, whom he banished; but, before his
death, the Munster king settled his kingdom, or rather
348
The Scots at Clontarf
principality, upon his two sons, Eoghan Mòr and Cormac
Cas, and their posterity; and, in accordance with a fatal
Celtic custom, directed that the Toiseachail or heirs of
these two clans should succeed alternately. That some
such arrangement actually took place is rendered certain
by the fact that succession to the throne of Munster was
in constant dispute between two rival families, both
claiming descent from the above-mentioned Lughaid;
which deluged that province with blood and kept it in a
state of unrest and turmoil so long as the Gaelic chiefs
were in possession of the predominant power. Doubtless,
the fact that Brian and the Mormaers of Marr and
Lennox could claim a common ancestry, however
visionary and remote, would be sufficient to account for
their presence as Brian's allies at Clontarf; but the
connexion between the Ard-Righ and his Scottish
auxiliaries is rendered yet more certain and significant
in view of what follows.
Eoghan Mòr had a descendant called Conall Core,
who was banished by his father (Lugaid) to Scotland, on
account of an animus which Lugaid's wife had conceived
against her step-son, the above-mentioned Conall Core.
Whilst in Scotland, Con-all Core, who be it observed was
equally the ancestor of the Mormaers of Lennox, married
a wife (a "Pictish" princess), and by her founded the
houses of Marr and Lennox. Core (from whom the town
of Cork in Ireland derives its name) eventually returned
to Ireland, apparently on his father's death, and became
Rìgh of Munster. The connexion between the houses of
Munster, Marr, and Lennox was thus established upon a
twofold basis—the common claim to be descended from
the same remote ancestor, and the much later and more
certain one which I have just explained. In these
circumstances, I conceive the presence of the Mormaer of
Marr (and in all probability that of the Mormaer of
Lennox) at Clontarf is easily accounted for, as is the
particular manner in which the former is mentioned by
the Irish historians.
There is one other point which serves to give emphasis to
the probability of this explanation so far as it concerns
the Mormaer of Lennox; and which I will briefly refer to
before concluding. O'Flaherty, who bears the character of
an accurate and honest historian, states that the Lennox
Mor-inaer's name was Muredach. Now, "there is a
Muredach occurring at a very early date in the Lennox
pedigree, who was probably the individual alluded to by
O'Flaherty. I say "probably" advisedly ; for, of course,
since no date is given in the pedigree, nor other
particular serving to fix his identity, I am unable to
prove it. The conjunction is, nevertheless, I conceive,
significant; and in view of what has been stated above
the conjecture I have founded on it will not, I hope, be
considered as extravagant.
J. CHISHOLM.
CIAD MHAC RIOGH AFRICA
[An so sìos focal air an fhocal leis an Ollamh Seòrus
Mac Eanraig o bheul-aithris Iain Mhic Fhiongain, an
Dalabrog, Uidhist Chinn A Deas.]
The Scots at Clontarf
103
BHA Africa uile gu lèir aige dha fèin. Cha robh aige
shliochd ach dithis ghillean agus dh'èug a bhean air.
Cha do phòs e riamh tuilleadh. Bha e fhèin a sin a fàs
sean agus a tuiteam sìos le h-aois. Dh'fhàs e sin bochd s
laidh e suas air leabaidh. Nuair a dh'aithnich e gu robh
'm bàs air chuir e fios air a dhithis mhac airson gu'n
dianadh e 'thiomnadh riutha. Thuirt e riutha gur h-e'n
lagh a bh'aig righrean eile mar a chual esa riamh bho
thùs bhi toirt tiotal agus fearainn do'n chiad mhac, ach
nach b'ann mar sin a dhianadh esan; "a chionn, 'illean,
tha fhios agaibhpse gu bheil a h-uile fear agaibh cho
dligheach agus se'n aon rud bonn dhe na bhonn dheth
gach nì bhi agaibhsa dheth na bhios mise fàgail as mo
dheoghaidh. Riutsa (os esan), ris an fhear bu shine, tha
mise ag earbs an gnothuch a dhianamh ceart agus
dligheach. Thoir do cheart aire gu bheil mise ag earbsa
riut bonn dhe na bhonn thoirt do d'bhrathair òg mar
bhios agad fhèin; cha'n eil mo chaistealsa cho faoin agus
ma phosas sibhse nach bi e cho mòr s gu faodadh bean a
fear bhi agaibh ann gun a chèir fhaicinn fad na
bliadhna. Air an taobh eile mur cord sin, tha Africa
farsuinn s-faoduidh sibh leth an aoin bhi agaibh s crann
a chur mu dhèighinn." Is ann mar seo a bha. Chaochail
an Riogh s thiodhlaic a chuid mac à.1 'Nuair sin bha
dithis chlann an Righ a falbh dh'ionnsuidh na
beinn-sheilg a h-uile la diag sa bhliadhna; cha robh'n
còrr cosnaidh aca; air dhaibhsan bhi ris an obair sin
thuirt am fear bu shine gu'n dheonuich e posadh s nam
bu deonach esan gu'n tugadh e dhachaigh a chaisteal
athar i a bhi dianamh co-chuideachaidh dhaibh fhein le
chèile. An uair sin phos am fear bu shine dhiubh ; thug e
dhachaigh a bhean 's rinn e bainnis mhor eibhinn
aighearach bha seachd la agus seachd oidhche na
suidhe. Bha bhrathair òg an uair sin ceart cho gaolach
air a mhnaoi ris fhèin gad nach d'robh e dol na dh'aon
leabaidh rithe. Bha ià-san dol a shealg mar a b'abhuist.
Fhuair ead moran shaighdearan s moran oifigearan s
bha ead ag geaird a chaisteil. Là dhe na lathaichean
shuidh ead air an torn sheilge: thubhairt a fear bu shine
cha'n urrainn a bhith gu bheil thu cho toilichte riumsa's
mar sin tha mise ag orduchadh dhuitsa posadh agua
1
Dialectal for e — him.
bean fhaotuinn; cha'n eil feum sa bith againn air ar cuid
a roinn mar a dh'àithn t'athair ach dur bhios sinn pòsd'
roinnibh1 sinn bonn air bhonn. "Tà gad a dhianainns a
sin," os a fear og, "tha fhios agam gad nach fhaiceadh na
boirionnaich a chèile fad bliadhna gur h-e dol far a cheile
nì ead." "Ma tà," os a fear bu shine, "cha bhith sin mar
sin; faodaidh sin cnaimh-aimhreit a thogail eadar mis'
agus tusa; tha Africa farsuinn s. cuirinn2 sinn litir gu
taobh tuath Africa caisteal thogail a sin; nur bhios sin
dianta s na h-iuch-raichean a'sna glasan cuiridh sinn dà
chrann dh' fhiachainn co theid ann, mise no thusa."
S ann mar sin a bha. Thainig ead dhachaigh as8 a
bheinn-sheilg. Sgriobh ead gu luchd-ciùird gu h-ealamh
gu taobh tuath Africa caisteal a thogail. Sgriobhar air
ais gu'm biodh sid dianta aig àm mar bha iàd-san ag
iarraidh s nach robh sion a dhìth orra-san ach obair.
Leum a' luchd-ciùirde rompa gos an robh 'n caisteal
ullamh gus na chuir ead na h-iuchraichean air na glasan
am muigh agus a stigh. Dar a rinn ead sin sgriobh ead a
348
The Scots at Clontarf
dh'ionnsuidh Riogh Africa le cunntais mu fhad 's a liad s
na bh'ann a sheomraichean. Chairich Clann Righ Africa
an t-airgiod air falbh. An uair sin bha clann an righ dol a
shealg mar bu ghnath dhaibh o thus. Thubhairt fear bu
shine ris an fhear a b'oige gu'm b'fhearr dhàsan posadh s
gu'n cuireadh ead cruinn, gu'n robh esan deonach falbh
nan tigeadh an crann air gad bha bean agus dragh aige.
"A. bhrathair ghaoilich! tha bean agus dragh agadsa mar
nach eil agamsa s falbhaidh mi do'n chaisteal
For roinnfidh = roinnidh. 8
So the reciter.
8 à in this word thus accented means that the pronunciation
is with short, open e and not a.
1
The Scots at Clontarf
104
.105
Ciad Mhac Riogh Africa
Ciad Mhac Riogh Africa
357
shin1 gu deonach gun chrann a chur ged is e caisteal
m'athair is docha leam air an t-saoghal." Thuirt e ris gu
fagadh e seann chaisteal athair 2 aige o b'e bu shine s
bho'n bha esan gun dragh gun tòrachd air gu falbhadh e
fhein. Rainig a fear og nuair sin taobh tuath Africa na
aonar fada goirid dha'n tug e air an rathad. Nuair a
rainig e e s nuair chunnaic e'n caisteal bha e a cordadh ris
cho math ri caisteal athair. Se'n aon fhada s an aon
mhiad a bh'annta. Bha fear og a sin a dol a
shealgaireachd -an taobh tuath Africa mar a bha e
cleachdadh s mar a bha e cur roimhe mar ghnàths. Nuair
sin bha e a coimhead mu'n cuairt dh'fhiach an tachradh
boirionnach air chum gu'm posadh e i. Thachair .a sin
boirionnach mor briagh ris na rioghachd fhein s thubhairt
e rithe gu na ghabh e cuid du8 ghaol .anamanna oirre s
dh'fheoruich e dhi biodh i toilicht a phosadh. Rinn ead
airson posadh s rinn ead bainnis mhor eibhinn
aighearrach an sin dhaip fhein. Thug e dhachaigh bhean
d'a chaisteal fhein. San àm sin lean esan a sealgaireachd
mar bha e fhein a cleachdadh bho thus. La dheth na lathaichean is ann a smaointich e gur ceacharra rinn e s gu'm
bu dona rinn e nach d'fhiathaich e bhrathair bu shine
chum na bainnse mar bu chòir dha. Sgriobh e gu
bhrathair bu shine s ghearain e ris an dearmad a rinn e.
Bha bhrathair bu shine a gabhail a lethsgeuil, nach robh
duine sam bith a dianamh leithid sin gun bhi dearmalach
aig an àm. Nuair sin sgriobh a bhrathair ga ionnsuidh
nach robh esan cho bochd s nach fhaodadh ead bainnis
dhianamh eadar dhaibh fhein mar thoileachas agus mar
shòlas a chionn gu robh bean a fear ac' agus gu faigheadh
esan a dha roghainn ar
n-eadh fios a chur chuige-san banais a dhianamh san aite
bu docha leis, ann an seann chaisteal athairsa ar neo na
chaisteal fhein. Sgriobh a fear og ga ionnsuidhsa nach
fhac e aite fhathast a bu toilichte leis bainnis a bhi innte
na ann an seann chaisteal athair comhla ris fhein.
Sgriobh am fear bu shine ga ionnsuidh e thighinn air
aghart e fhein s a thriall s air cho mar1 s dha'm biodh i
gur h-e bonn air a bhonn dh'fheumadh bhi ann.
Dh'uidh-eamaich a fear og e fhein s a chuid daoine s a
chuid cairtean airson dhol gu taobh tuath Africa s dh'fhag
e bhean a stigh na chaisteal fhein. A's an àm sin bha
pèids aig an riogh òg s dar dh'fhalbh e fhein agus a thriall
ghearain e gu'n dh'fhag e diochuinn sa chaisteal s gu'm
feumadh e tilleadh gu iarruidh agus dh'iarr am peids
airesan tilleadh air ais mu'n tugadh duine sam bith'n aire
dha gu'n d'fhag e'n urrad ad cearbach. Air dha tilleadh
dhionnsuidh a theagh fhein, fear a b'airde dhe na
h-oifigich fhuair e cuideachd ri mhnaoi ann san leabaidh.
Dh'fhalbh e s dh'fhuaith e comhla ris an leabaidh ead s
dh'fhag e sid ead. Thill e air ais s mu'n d'ghluais duine s a
chammp bha e aca s cha do leig e air gu'n do chairich e.
La 'n na mhaireach tharruing ead air ais ead fhein s an
triall gu taobh deas Africa. Dh'innis esan dha'n pheids
bh'aige fhein mar dh'eirich dha s dh'iarr am peids air seo
chumail air fhein gun a leigeil air ri neach sam bith. Mu'n
do stad air an t-sriop sin rainig ead seann chaisteal
athair. Rinn an dithis bhraithrean toileachadh mor ri
cheile agus gairdeachas. Dh'uidh-eamaich iad2 iad fhein
chum gu'n dianadh ead2 bainnis mhor eibhinn aighearach
bhiodh ainmeil tlachdail ann sna h-uile doigh. Rinn ead
sin ach nuair a bha
For sin.
= athar. The reciter often made no difference between
r and ir in these forms.
* = de.
mòr.
forms used thus, the diphthongised form and the form
with short, open e.
1
8
\
1=
2 Both
-106
Ciad Mhac Riogh Africa
bhainnis cruinn s a fear og a cosg uidhir ri bhrathair cha
tigeadh e an còir na cuideachd s a bhrathar gu sprogadh.
Lean e fo sprochd s fo leann dubh s cha robh fhios aig a
bhrathair gu de bha e ciallachadh. Seo seachad,
dh'fheoruich an fhear bu shine bu mhath leo falbh chom
na seilge mar bu ghnath dhaibh 'nan oige, ead fhein s an
cuid sluaigh. Cha robh fear og deonach falbh ach fo
sprochd s fo mhulad san t-seann seomair a bh'aig athair
an druim an teagha.
Chomhairl a bhrathar bu shine
dha falbh le uidheam le ghunna s le chomhlan daoine.
Nur rainig ead cnocan thill esan cho'n cheart bhad às an
d'fhalbh e. Bha duil aig' na dh'fhag ead aig an tigh nach
robh duin air sgial. Bha e coimhead a mach bharr na
h-uinneig. Cha robh e fada mar sin nur chunnaic e'n
t-oifigeach bu mho agus naonar eile tighinn a mach s
bean a bhrathair agus te a fear s iad a laidhe leo ann sa
ghàrradh.
Smaointich esan an uair sin aige fhein gu'n
robh 'n fhàgail ad aig na h-uile gin. Am bial na h-oidhche
chaidh e'n comhdhail a bhrathair s dhinnis e dha rud a
chunnaic e. Nur a dhinnis e seo dha bhrathair cha
chreideadh e à. La 'r na mhaireach bha àsan a falbh a
shealgaireachd mar a b'abhaist. Nur dh'fhalbh na
saighdearan thill an da bhrathair le cheile s leig ead cach
air aghart do'n bheinn sheilg. Nuair sin chunnaic a
bhrathair bu shine le dha shuil an ni bha esan ag radh s
chreid e seanchas bha bhrathar og ag innseadh dha. An
uair dh'innis a bhrathar og dha rud a thachair ris fhein
thuirt fear bu shine ris gu faodadh gu'n robh 'n fhàgail ad
aig an t-saoghal uile s nach b'urrainn daibh thighinn as
aonais. " Cha mharbh mis' a bhean idir mar a rinn
sibhse ach cuiridh mi air falbh i s gheobh mi teile dhomh
fhin." Cha robh air a sin ach sin fhein.
360
Ciad Mhac Riogh Africa
bean aon oidhche. Thubhairt esan an uair sin nach
d'eirich riutha ach mar a dh'eirich dha'n damh » dha'n
asal. " Gu de," os ise, " dheirich dha'n damh s dha'n asal
?" " O," os esan, " se bh'ann a sin sgialac." " Ma tà," os ise,
" nach gabh sibh dhuinn an sgialac air chor is gu'n cluinn
sinn i." "Ma ta," as esan, " tha mi gle dheonach."
Bhuail e sin air innse dhaibh gu robh treobhaiche aig
duin uasal aon uair s gu'm biodh e treobhadh am
bicheantas leis an damh bh'aig an duin uasal s nach robh
beothach sam bith aig an duin uasail airson treobhadh
ach an aon damh. Bha aiseal aige s bhiodh e aige fhein a
marcachd air a mhuin na h-uile latha dh'fhalbhadh e
bho'n tigh. Cha robh 'n t-aiseal dianamh car cruthaicht
c-r-u-i-t) ach sin. Cha robh damh a faighinn sgàth ach
canabhalach garbh chruaidh chrineachd bh'an treobhaich
a tilgeadh uige s a stall. Bha'n t-aiseai a faighean pronn
cruithneachd agus bhriosgaidean ann an leann am
brainn tuba airson gu'm biodh e air a dheagh
bheathachadh. Nuair dh'fhalbhadh an treobhaiche leis an
damh bhiodh a leisean fuar fliuch. Bha'n t-aiseal air a
chìreadh s an deagh bheath aige h-uile là diag sa
bhliadhna. Bha iad air an suidheachadh mar sin ach
oidhche dheth na h-oidhcheachan nur thainig an damh
dhachaigh s nur dh'ith e roinn dhe an fhodair gharbh
chruaidh chruithneachd laigh e s leag e osann throm
bhruit às. "Is trom t'osann," as an t-aiseal, s e shios. " 0
seadh," ors an damh, "ciod a ni mi ? Bheirinnsa comhairl
ort nan dianadh tusa mar a dh'iarainnsa ort cha ruigeadh
Ciad Mhac Riogh Africa
359
Nuair thainig na h-oifigich dhachaigh, là na
mhaireach ghabh iad tàmh. An là sin thill ead air ais s
bha iad san t-seombar air an doigh chianda dh'fhiachainn
co no de a chitheadh ead cearr no ceart. Air an là sin
fhein gu de a mhuthaich a fear og ach spèill (gruthann)
dhe na cearcan s an •coileach g an iomain. H-uile te
dh'fhanadh air ais chuireadh an coileach air aghart i
comhladh ri cach. Dh'fhoighnic e ri bhrathair, an robh e a
faicinn an obair bh'aig a choileach ag iomain an treud
chearc ? Gus am biodh smachd aig a h-uile fear air a
mhnaoi s gu'n cumadh e bhean fodh chiseag nach biodh
an gnothuch doigheil. Os a fear bu shine, "tha mi tuigsinn
gu bheil sin ceart gu leoir ach gidheadh cha mharbh mis' i
ach cuiridh mi air falbh i".
Dh'fhalbh fear og an uair sin gu rioghachd fhein.
Nuair chuir a righ sin air falbh a bhean dh'iarr e air
fhear-comhairle bean og a thoirt uige h-uile oidhche na
bhliadhna s a marbhadh ann sa mhad-uinn a maireach.
Thoisich a fear-comhairl aige air sin a dhianamh. Thug
ead ùin mhor air an obair sin, e fhein s fhear-comhairl
ann sa staid sin chor agus gu'n robh a chuis collach nan
leanadh a Riogh air an obair sin nach biodh boirionnach
beo fad Africa. Bha dithis nigheana mora briagha aig an
fhear-chomhairle s ead a faicinn a ghnath dhiol bh'air na
boirionnaich. Dhoighnic ead da'n athair na mharbh e
boirionnach an diu. Thubhairt e gu'n mharbh s gu'm
marbhadh e t'èile maireach. " Feumaidh tu," os ise, mise
thoirt an nochd do'n Riogh. As esan: "de am beachd a
th'agad smaointinn ma theid thu dha'n Riogh gu faod
mise t'fhagail beo na's mugha na dh'fhaodas mi t'èile ".
Thubhairt an nighean gu'm feumadh gu'n tugadh e
ann i s gu'n rachadh e ann gun taing chor s gu'm
b'urrainn di radh gu'n robh i aige mar mhnaoi 'na
tu les (pron. as Eng. less) bhi air do sharachadh mar a tha
thu s bhiodh do bheath cheart cho math ri m' bheatha
fhin. Siud an rud a nì thus, maireach nuair thig an
treobhaiche mor ga d'iarruidh s a bheir e leis air falbh a
threobhadh-thu nuair a bheairtaicheas e thu ann sa
chrann s
Ciad Mhac Riogh Africa
36i
nur a shrachdas e air falbh thu gabhadh tu cam a
null agus cam a nall leis agus cha dion thu aon sgriob
dhoigheil. Eiridh esan air do shrachdadh s air do
chuipeadh le chuid lainichean ach ann sa spot laigh thusa
s leig ort gu bheil thu bochd. Nuair sin (os esan)
feumaidh' treobhaiche do leigeil às s do thoirt dhachaigh
do'n stabull s na h-uile seorsa 's fhearr thoirt dut nur
bhios e smuainteachadh gu bheil thu bochd."
Binn an damh mar a dh'iarr an t-aiseal. Nuair a
dh'fhairlich an damh air an treobhaiche b'fheudar an
treobhaiche leigeil às s dh'imich e dhachaigh leis dha'n
stabull. Cha robh seorsa beath b'fhearr na cheile nach do
dh'fhiach an treobhaiche ris an damh s e smuaintinn gu
robh e bochd. Sa spot na thilg e biadh dho na damh1
dh'fhalbh e dh'innseadh do'n duin uasal, a mhaighstir,
gu'n robh 'n damh bochd. Nur chaidh e ga ghearain fhein
thubhairt an duin uasal, "cha'n eil fhios a'am ciod a nì thu
mur toir thu leat an trusdair aiseal sin as an stabull;
fiach an dian e aona sgriob dhut". "Cha mhor as fhiach na
nì e," os an treobhaiche, "an t-aiseal fhein." " O! gu de'n
cothrom air," os an duin uasal; " ach thugaibh sibhse
leibh e ged nach biodh e ach thu fhein se fhein nar
seasamh ann sa phairic." Rinneadh seo. 'Nuair a rainig e
cheana-bhag chuir e'n t-aiseal ann sa chrann agus
bheart-;aich e e. Tharruing e air falbh leis an aiseal agus
bhuail e air treobhadh. Mhuthaich an duin uasal dha'n
treobhaiche treobhadh s dh'fhalbh e dh'fhaic-ainn de bha
ead a dianamh. Thainig gu leoir dhaoine choimhead an
aisil s ma thainig thainig am feolad-air mor s ioghnadh
air. Dh'fhoighnic am feoladair, c'ait an robh 'n damh mor.
Thubhairt an duin
= do'n damh.
362
Ciad Mhac Riogh Africa
uasal gu'n robh 'n damh mor a stigh agus e bochd. " Nach
ceannuich thu'n damh ? Gu de bhios e orm ?" " Bidh e
lethid seo ort." " Se mti chuid e," ars am feoladair.
Dh'fhalbh am feoladair s dh'fhalbh an duin uasal
dhachaigh am bial na h-oidhche. Nuair thainig an
treobhaiche dhachaigh bha'n damh ann sa stabull roimhe
leis an aiseal. Dhoighnic an damh dha'n asail: ciamar a
chord obair an là'n diugh ris. "Chord gle mhath," ors an
t-aiseal, "ach s coma dhut-sa de th'ann, tha thu air do
chreic an diugh ris an fheoladair mhor s marbhaidh e
maireach thu. Tha aon chothrom agamsa ort (ors an
t-aiseal), nach ith ead m' fheoilsa gu brach."
Is e seo 'n sgiala bh'aig an fhear chomhairle dha
dhithis nighean fhein. " Cha dubhairt sin dad," ars an
nighean, "feumaidh gu'n teid mise comhla ris an righ air
na h-uile cor." Dh'fhalbh piuthar comhla rithe gu dorus an
Righ. Dar a choinnich an righ ann sa dorus e dh'fhoighnic
e gu de chuir air tighinn leis an nighean aige fhein da
ionnsuidh-san, gu'm feumadh e marbhadh là na
mhaireach cho math ri teile. "Ni mise sin," ors a fear
comhairle, "mar tha sibhs ag iarraidh." " Bheil sibhs (ars
an righ) deonach thighinn stigh comhladh riumsa seo an
nochd agus t'athair thoirt dhiot a chinn am maireach?" "S
mi tha," os is, "ach 's ann na chumhnantan tha mi
deonach dol ann." "De na cumhnantan a ghalad tha thu'g
iarraidh," ors an righ. "Cha'n eil sion ach mo phiuthar bhi
ann an aite claistinn domhs agus do'n riogh gus am bidh
'n ceann air a chur dhiom air a la maireach." "Cha'n eil do
chumhnanta (os an righ) trom na cudthromach agus
faodaidh sinn an toirt dhut." Nur thuirt an nighean seo ris
an riogh thuirt i gu gabhadh i leabaidh-làr mur biodh
leabaidh fhreagarrach ann di.
Thubhairt esa gu
faigheadh i sid agus gu dianar siud suas air a son.
364
Ciad Mhac Riogh Africa
uamhasach toilichte s cha robh air an t-saoghal na
bheireadh air an righ a bhean na phaisde mharbhadh air
dhoigh sam bith. Mar sin lean am boirionnach ris s cha
do mharbhadh bean ann an Africa riamh tuilleadh. Sin
obair gleusd s mar bhiodh an nighean bhiodh h-uile
boirionnach bha'nn an Africa marbh aig an Eiogh.
[Note.—The above is from the oral recitation of John
Mackinnon, Dalibrog, South Uist. His father was a noted
reciter and Campbell of Islay took many tales from him.
By reciting stories at night for three-quarters of a year a
certain woman is the means of warding off death from all
the women in Africa at the hands of a wicked, savage
king, who killed a young wife for every night of the year.
The reciter learned it from his father, who did not get it
from any written source directly, for he could neither
read nor write, although a master of plot and narrative.
The diction, which in this story is simple, shows some
variation, but I followed the sgialaiche closely. He knew
about forty different tales fifteen years ago; though close
on seventy he could recite many tales word for word in
the traditional manner of the Seanachie. His style was
rich in incidents, and from the point of view of folklore
very interesting, though not so terse in the above tale as
in others. I heard a story from John Smith, son of the
noted reciter Patrick Smith, South Uist, in which a
Ciad Mhac Riogh Africa
108
Thugadh a stigh dithis chlann an fhir chomhairle a
sheombair an righ. Fhuair an nighean nach robh dol a
dhianadh car na h-aon oidhche comhladh ris an righ
leabaidh dhi fein s chaidh a piuthar a laigh leis an righ
mar bu choir dhi.
Nuair thug an righ lamh air a
mhnaoi dh'fhoighnic an te bha thall: " bheil sibh 'n 'ur
dusgadh a Riogh V " S mi tha," os a Riogh. " Nam biodh
sibh cho math," as an nighean, "s gu fanadh sibh 'n 'ur
dùisg gus a gabhainn fhin sgialachd dhuibh bhithinn
fada'n'ur comain." Thoisich a piutharsa thall ri gabhail
sgialachd. Dh'iarr i air s gheall an Righ fuireach na
dhuisg. Nur a chunnaic ise colas an la tighinn ghrad sguir
i. "Bheil sibh ullamh dheth na sgialachd?" ors an riogh.
" Cha'n eil na leth na trianach," ars an nighean. " Ciod
is aobhar nach eil thu cumail air aghaidh ma ta ?" "
Tha (ors ise) mi a' smuaintinn e doruinneach duilich an
ceann bhi ga thoirt dheth mo pheathar an diugh." "A
nighean thapaidh!" ors an righ, " cum air t'aghart s
gheobh do phiuthar an diugh a saorsainn airson do
bhriathran agus air chul sin bidh 'n riogh fhein ad
chomain airson cho math s a labhair thu bho na thainig
an oidhch." Lean an nighean reapa1 air gabhail a
sgialachd mar a bha i reamha gus an robh 'n t-àm aca bhi
'g eirigh agus a cur umpa. Thainig an sin an athar, an
fhear-comhairl gus an ceann thoirt de'n nighean s
choinnich an Righ e sa dhithis nighean air a ghualainn.
" Fois air do laimh, oganaich, tha saors aic, bithidh i
nochd fhathast comhla ris an righ." Lean an nighean
roipe mar sin ag gabhail sgialachdan gus robh ceann na
tri rèithchan ann s bha saors aice fad an t-siubhail. An
ceann na tri rèithchan rug i leanabh mic dha'n righ.
Bha e
1
With nasal e.
The Oldest Scottish MS.
365
young daughter saves her sister by telling stories which
introduce genii, griffins (griomhain), as in Arabian Nights.
"Riogh bha'n Alba s bha e marbhadh na mnathan air a
chiad oidhche. Mu choimeas seo dh'innis an nighean a
h-ochd fichead sgialachd s h-ochd diag," etc. The theme is
well known to students of folklore, and has traces of
savagery.—Gr. H]
THE OLDEST SCOTTISH MS. SOME NOTES ON
THE BOOK OF DEER
OPPORTUNITY makes the traveller as well as the thief!
What a number of historical places in Ireland have I
resolved to visit—and have not visited! I suppose other
people make this kind of resolution, and break it just as
easily (and frequently) as, alas! I do. When one reads an
interesting book—or even a book that is not interestingly
written—about interesting places, one feels inclined to
rise up there and then, and, staff in hand and scrip at
side, to go out and set one's pious curiosity at rest.
Ireland is peculiarly rich in these places—historic places,
I mean—which every Gael ought to visit, though more
frequently than not he knoweth them not. I could name,
off-hand, at least a score of such places to which I am
pledged to go, and to which, I hope, some time or other, I
shall indeed travel. Doubtless many of the Gaels of
Ireland are of the same mind regarding interesting
places in this country. They would like to see Iona,
Kintyre (so rich in Celtic remains), Skye, Mull, or some
other country in Scotland rendered familiar to them by
our common history. It is, surely, sheer laziness which
prevents us from carrying out these pious resolutions.
366
The Oldest Scottish MS.
The spirit is all agog to go; but the laggard flesh eagerly
lays hold on any and every excuse to postpone the useful
day. However, these being times in which conditional
offers are popular, I herewith and hereby promise to discharge all my arrears in the matter of historical
pilgrimages to Ireland, provided that there can
The
Oldest
Scottish
MS.
36
7
be found a Gael in Erin who is prepared to do the same
thing in respect of his projected pilgrimages to Alba. I
venture to think that if the Gaels of Scotland and Ireland
were simultaneously to take to discharging one another's
obligations and engagements in this manner and in this
respect, it would be an excellent thing for the cause we
both have at heart—to say nothing of the railway and
steam-boat companies, and the commercial side of our
common movement.
There is a place of places to which I would direct the
attention and footsteps of the Irish historical pilgrim; and
the name which is on it is "Deer," in Aberdeenshire. To
Deer came once upon a time my dear little Columba—the
saint of saints in the common calendar of the Gaels of Erin
and Alba.
"Columcille and Drostan, son of Cosgrach,
his pupil, came from Hi, as God had shewn to them, unto
Aberdour (a small sea-port on the north coast of Buchan),
and Bede the Pict was Mormaer (Righ) of Buchan before
them; and it is he that bestowed on them that town in
freedom for ever from Mormaer and from Tòisech. They
came after that to the other town; and it was pleasing to
Columcille, for it was full of the grace of God, and he
asked of the Mormaer, viz., Bede, that he should give it
him, and he did not give it, and a son of his took illness
after the refusal of the clerics, and he was dead but a very
little. Thereafter, the Mormaer went to entreat of the
clerics that they should make prayer by the son that
health should come to him. . . . They made the prayer and
there came health to him. Thereafter Columcille gave to
Drostan that town, and blessed it and left the saying, '
whoever should come against it, let him not be
many-yeared, victorious'. Drostan's tears (De'ara) came on
parting with Columcille. Columcille said, ' Be Dear (dear)
its name from henceforth'." So runs the simple story in the
famous Book of Deer, the only early Gaelic national MS.
which the Gael of Scotland can boast of, owing to the
barbarous book-burnings of the unspeakable Lochlannach.
What is called the " Legend of Deer" is regarded in
some quarters rather as a picturesque summary of the
views which were popular in Scotland in the eleventh and
twelfth centuries respecting the foundation of the Abbey,
than as an historical representation of the actual facts
relating to its foundation. It does not appear, according to
this view, that St. Drostan, the companion of Columba in
the narrative quoted above, was ever connected with that
saint; but although the naming of the town from the
circumstance of Drostan's tears coming from him on his
parting with St. Columba may be regarded as apocryphal,
the founding of the monastery by Colum Cille is probably
true enough. We know from St. Eunan (Adamnan) that
the labours of that Saint were by no means confined to
Iona; and that he travelled over a large part of northern
Scotland preaching the Holy Scriptures, baptising
converts, and founding monasteries. St. Drostan was
certainly a contemporary of St. Columba; and though the
former may not be found actually mentioned in connexion
with the latter, there is nothing inherently improbable in
the theory that they knew each other, and even laboured
together for the salvation of souls. Names do not occur so
frequently in those early times, nor are our existing
records so numerous and so complete that we can afford
to affirm that because individuals who we well know to
have been contemporaries
and engaged in similar tasks are not actually associated
together in those tasks in the annals that have come
down to us, that, therefore, they did not know each other
and could not possibly have acted as the writers of a later
age, who must necessarily have known more than we
know, positively asserted they did indeed act.
The Book of Deer affords us, alas! but little information
regarding the daily life of the pious inmates of that
ancient monastery; but it is intensely interesting to the
Scottish Gael for a threefold reason. In the first place, it is
our earliest national MS.; in the second place, it contains
the earliest specimens extant of Scots Gaelic; and in the
third place, it gives us a glimpse of the social and political
conditions under which our far-off-ancestors lived.
The Gaelic of the Book of Deer is written in what is
called the Irish character, which, as every one knows, is a
modification of the signs of the Latin alphabet. But as
this department of my subject belongs strictly to the
etymologist, I apprehend I cannot do better than here
quote the opinions of Dr. MacBain of Inverness (author of
the standard etymological Dictionary of the Gaelic Language)
as to the etymological character of these Gaelic entries. "
The Gaelic of the Book of Deer" says he, "differs in spirit
and even in form from the Irish Gaelic of the same period.
The two Gaelics—Irish and Scotch—could not have been
very different at that time in any case, at least as spoken
languages. Irish had been a literary language for some
centuries previous to this, and as such we cannot trust
that it exactly represents the popular language of the
date at which it was written. The Scotch Gaelic, whilst
keeping to the general style of spelling and writing which
the Irish had, was not weighted by precedent and literary
forms of bygone times. It consequently adapted itself to
the time and locality in which it was produced. Hence it is
that the Gaelic of the Book of Deer, as compared with the
Gaelic of Lebor na h-Uidri, the oldest Irish literary MS.,
composed about 1100, and, therefore, of nearly the same
age, has the appearance of a descendant which is two or
three centuries later. In fact, the Gaelic is well advanced
in what is called ' Middle Irish'. . . . But the most marked
Scottish tendency is the way in which the n of the
preposition 'in' is dealt with. Whilst n disappears in early
Irish before s and p, we have in the Book of Deer the
thoroughly (Scotch) Gaelic method of keeping it, . . . and
certain tendencies are displayed which nowadays
characterise Scotch Gaelic only, as compared with the
Irish; so that we are quite warranted in accepting the
book as containing genuine Scotch Gaelic of the time." In
conclusion of this head it may be observed that Stokes
and Windisch are both of opinion that the oldest source
extant for Scotch Gaelic is the Book of Deer.
But there is a "human" as well as an antiquarian and
purely etymological interest attaching to the Book of Deer;
for in it we are treated to a brief and all too insufficient
glimpse of the social and political conditions under which
our ancestors lived. Enough is told us, however, to justify
the belief that the social and political systems of Ireland
and Scotland were in those early days identical. To
students of the Gaelic history of both countries this will
seem natural enough ; but it is satisfactory, nevertheless,
to find our historical beliefs confirmed in so striking and
authentic a manner, more especi-
368
37o
The Oldest Scottish MS.
The Oldest Scottish MS.
ally as there have been attempts of late to set aside the
lessons of history in favour of the Pictish heresy, whose
twofold aim is the minimising of the importance of the
Scottish conquest of Alba, and the separation of the Picts
from the Gaelic branch of the great Celtic family. The
Gaelic entries in the Book of Deer consist, for the most part,
of brief records of grants of lands on the part of local
rulers. In later times, these formal entries would,
doubtless, appear in the familiar form of charters. The
names and designations of these benefactors and their
witnesses, coupled with the character of the grants
themselves, and the manner in which they were made,
suffice to import us into an atmosphere which will be
familiar to every student of early Irish history. For the
information of the Irish reader, I append the translation
(Stokes's) of a typical entry in the Book of Deer.
" Gartnait, son of Cannech and Ete, daughter of
Gille-Michel gave Pet-mec-Cobrig for the consecration of a
Church of Christ, and Peter (the) Apostle, and to Colum
Cille and to Drostan, free from all exactions with the gift of
them to Cormac, Bishop of Dunkeld, in the eighth year of
David's reign. Testibus istis, Nectan, Bishop of Aberdeen,
and Leot, Abbot of Brechin, and Maledonni, son of Mac
Bead, and Algune, son of Arcill and Ruadri Mormaer of
Mar and Matadin, Judge, and Gille-christ, son of Cormac
and Malpeter, son of Domnall, and Domongart, Reader of
Turriff, and Gille-colaim, son of Muredach and Dabui, son
of Mal-colain."
It will be observed by the reader that most, if not all, of
these names are to be encountered in Irish history.
Gartnait, Cainnech and Ete are frequently met with in
early Irish MSS. The same remark applies to Ruadri and
372
The Oldest Scottish MS.
outlined in the grants bears no traces of " Pictish "
influence. It is certainly true that we know little or
nothing touching that system. Indeed, the Pict in
Scottish, as in Irish, history is little more than a name.
But one would naturally expect to find some traces of that
alleged system surviving in the grants of lands, if traces
of such a thing were anywhere to be found. That the
landed system outlined by the Book of Beer should be
distinctively Gaelic—such as was common at that time to
the Gaels of Ireland and Scotland—is a circumstance that
cannot be regarded otherwise than as exceedingly
damaging to the Pictish theory.1
According to MacBain, Pictish influences are plainly
observable in the way in which succession occurs in the
Book of Beer. " Sons do not often succeed fathers," and
uncles rule in the place of heirs. " The mentioning of the
daughter along with her husband as granting lands
conjointly, shows the husband's right rested on the female
alliance "—a " Pictish " custom. Now, what was Pictish
succession? According to tradition—for we have nothing
better to guide us—Pictish succession consisted in
succession through the female. Marriage was uncertain
(at least amongst the Picts, apparently), so to secure
succession of blood, they adopted the simple device of
limiting it to the female. This custom, assuming that it
really obtained, shows that the Picts were barbarians; for
it discovers plainly that the sanctity of the marriage
iMuch has been made of the supposed Pictish word Pet,
meaning a portion of land. In Professor Ehys's recently pub-
The Oldest Scottish MS.
369
The Oldest Scottish MS.
371
Muredach; whilst such names as Malpeter, Mal-colain
Mac-Bead, Maledonni, Gille-Michel, Gille-Colain, etc., are
too obviously Gaelic (Irish as well as Scotch) to offer the
slightest encouragement to the most reckless " Pict".
Moreover, the dignities and offices named are either such
as were common to the Gaels of Ireland and Scotland, or
such as had their equivalents on both sides of the water.
The " Righ," mentioned in a previous grant, obviously
corresponds to the Irish Ard-Righ or High-king. The
Mormaer is the Scottish equivalent of the familiar Irish
provincial Righ or sub-King. The office of Toiseach
(Chief)—also mentioned in a previous grant—is,
doubtless, the same as the Irish Toiseach. The "Brithem"
or Judge was an important Gaelic functionary in both
countries ; and the ecclesiastical systems of Alba and Erin
being the same, it is not surprising to find mention made
in the Book of Deer of the office of " Ferleginn" or
ecclesiastical " Reader ".
Moreover, the grants of land are just such as we
should expect to find in a Gaelic community, and serve to
complete the picture, so far as it goes, from the purely
Gaelic point of view. Dr. MacBain has been ready enough
to discover traces of " Pictish influence" in the " somewhat
bewildering succession of names " in the ^Gaelic entries in
the Book of Deer. He says, " Sons do not often succeed
fathers, and brothers are preferred to children," i.e., to
heirs of dignitaries. "This points to surviving Pictish
influence in the succession, where succession was in the
female line." But setting aside, for a moment,
consideration of the character of this succession, which I
by no means admit was " Pictish," or influenced by Pictish
customs, it is surely very remarkable that the landed
system
The Oldest Scottish MS.
373
lished Celtae and Galli he states that the word occurs in the
recently found Coligny calendar. The language of this calendar
bears strong affinities to ancient Irish—a fact which should
surely prove somewhat discouraging to our Pictish protagonists.
tie was not recognised, even supposing that it was
understood, by them. What, on the other hand, was
Gaelic succession ? Oddly enough, its essential principles
could scarcely be better summarised than they are by the
very description given by Dr. MacBain of what he believes
to be " Pictish succession " ! Sons did not often succeed
to fathers, and brothers were preferred to children. I
make bold to state that the succession outlined by the
Book of Deer is typically Gaelic succession; and that it is as
true to affirm that that succession was influenced by the
barbarous Pictish custom referred to above, as it would be
to maintain that the Koran is a Christian work, because it
recognises the existence of the Deity! There are many
examples of what is called "alternate succession"—a
device much resorted to by the Gaels, whose leading
maxim in public affairs was " divided responsibility " —in
the Gaelic entries of the Book of Deer, and these examples,
taken into consideration with the peculiar Gaelic custom
by virtue of which the uncle was frequently, though not
necessarily, preferred to the nephew—a custom several
instances of which are also recorded in the Book of Deer—
renders it certain that the principles of succession therein
laid down or rather outlined are not as MacBain and
others suppose Pictish principles, or principles emanating
from or influenced by Pictish sources, but are indeed what
their face-value, as it were, plainly declares them to be,
namely, Gaelic principles.
From the circumstance that a Mormaer (Righ) of
Buchan became so in right of his wife, and gave grants of
lands on that footing, Dr. MacBain argues that here, also,
we have an instance of Pictish influence. I beg leave to
differ, however.
In the long list of more or less
suppositious "Pictish" kings given by our historians, the
name of no woman occurs; and if no woman was allowed
to occupy the Pictish throne, their exclusion from that of
the provincial Righ follows almost as a matter of course.
Again, if the tradition concerning Pictish succession,
referred to above, is true, it is obvious that the social and
political status of women under the Pictish regime was
exceedingly low ; and that such a thing as a woman
exercising regal or semi-regal functions amongst these
people would not have been tolerated for a moment. On
the other hand, we know that the social and political
status of women under the Gaelic system was not at all
unfavourable to the sex.
Our Gaelic laws expressly
sanctioned the holding by a woman of landed property,
and of the offices associated with landed property,
provided that she could command the following necessary
to support her authority in the exercise of those offices.
In the case of Maebh, Queen of Connacht, we have a
remarkable instance of a woman's being invested with
and exercising the princely power, apparently without the
slightest opposition on the part of her subjects on the
ground of her sex. We know nothing, apart from the
discreditable tradition above mentioned, of Pictish
women, or of the part they played in history; whilst, on
the other hand, it would be easy to multiply the names of
Gaelic women of noble blood, as of humble parentage, who
rose to great eminence under the Gaelic system, and who
enjoyed all those prerogatives and privileges which it was
the aim of the later feudal system to reserve exclusively
for men.
I contend, therefore, that so far from
supporting the Pictish ■case, the entries in the Book of
Deer, so far as they concern women, do precisely the
reverse; and I feel sure that were he not in a manner
pledged to the theory that the Picts, though Celts, were
not Gaels, Dr. MacBain would be the first to subscribe to
this opinion.
A few words may be written, in conclusion, touching
the later history of the famous monastery of Deer. When
the monastic system in Scotland everywhere gave place to
the parochial, the Abbey passed, with many others, under
that dispensation, being refounded in the year 1209 by
William Cumyn, Earl of Buchan (the first of that great
Anglo-Norman family to hold the ancient Gaelic honour).
It preserved its character of a Cistercian monastery until
the so-called Reformation, when it fell upon evil days and
subsequently, being totally neglected, became a ruin,
which it remains to this day ; and so waits the coming of
that true Reformation when the Catholic religion will
again be .the religion of the entire Scottish nation, and
when the Gaelic language will again be the everyday
speech of Buchan and the Gaelic plains of Scotland.
F. S. A.
"EDUCATION" IN THE WEST OF IRELAND
I FIND myself on a long stretch of mountain road in
remotest Iar-Chonnachta. I am in the heart of the lonely
silent land in which the Gael maintains his last firm
foothold. Anglicisation, as a living energetic fact, is at
least a score of miles behind me. I should have to travel
the distance, either to Galway or to Oughterard, to find a
community whose daily speech is English.
In the
cabins which dot these brown hillsides, or which lie along
the shores of these sheltered bays, Irish is the only
language known. The thought makes my journey
pleasant. In the kindly Irish west I feel that I am in
Ireland. To feel so in Dublin, where my daily work lies,
sometimes requires a more vigorous effort of imagination
than I am capable of.
But even in Iar-Chonnachta Anglicisation has its busy
agents. A car approaches, driving rapidly to catch the
Galway train at the roadside station ten miles off. As it
passes me the driver, a country Iad in bàinins, salutes me
cheerily in Irish. The passenger, an important-looking
person enveloped in a huge overcoat, salutes me neither
in Irish nor in English. He favours me instead with a
supercilious stare. In the west it is not customary for two
strangers to pass on the road without exchanging
greetings. But allowance must be made for the difference
in status between the important-looking gentleman and
myself. I am a mere member of the general public. He is
an Official Personage. He is the representative of the
English State. He stands for Civilisation. He incarnates
Education. To be precise, he is an Inspector of "National"
Schools.
He is evidently returning from "inspecting" the
"National" which lies half a mile ahead on the roadside. I
marked it when I passed this way twelve months ago. I
knew it to be a " National" School by its ugliness.
Moreover, as I cycled past, I heard the loud voice of a man
talking in English. It is only inside "National" Schools
that one hears English in Iar-Chonnachta.
Scarcely has the car rattled by when in front of me on
the road there arises a cheerful clamour. Plainly, the
children let loose from school. The din grows nearer. I
catch lively interchanges in Irish.
"Togha fir, a
Sheaghàin !"
"Do shlàn fùt, a Mhàirtin !"
" Ara, a
Chuilm, a dhiabhail, ceard tà tu a dhèanamh ?"
It
sounds wondrously pleasant, this sudden and jocund
uproar amongst the silent hills. There is still life and
joy in Ireland. Even a spell of five hours a day in a "
National" School does not avail to still the song of youth in
the heart of a child. " Is breagh an rud an òige, agus is
breaghtha 'na sin an tsaoirse!" says a recent Irish writer,
recalling school days spent in this very region which I am
traversing. So these boys feel now, though the thought
may not shape itself into so many words. But there is a
special reason for this sudden and vociferous outburst of
Irish on the part of these liberated scholars. They have
spent five hours in a "National" School. This means, my
Scottish Gaelic reader, that for five mortal hours they
have been precluded from exchanging as much as a
syllable with one another or with any one else in the only
language they know.
And why?
Understand that
they are being " educated ". We have unique and
wonderful " educational" methods in the west of Ireland.
One of them is to ignore the only language spoken by the
pupils. Another is to pretend that there is no such place
in the world as Ireland. A third is to inculcate that the
English Government is Almighty Providence, and that
America is an El-Dorado in which gold is to be picked up
on the streets. So our children, who enter school with
an abundant store of pure and vivacious Irish, leave it "
educated" into ignoramuses who speak no language, who
own no country, who have but one ambition in life—to
shake the dust of Ireland off their feet as soon as they can
; mere atrophied intelligences;
countryless waifs; industrial inefficients carefully and
laboriously manufactured under the aegis of the State
and at the expense of Irish ratepayers.
But I digress. The merry group of school boys
approaches me. These are but in process of " education".
Intelligence has not yet been " educated " from their
countenances, nor laughter from their hearts. That will
come all too soon. In school, indeed, they are blocks,
stones, clods. But here, with the mountain road beneath
their bare feet and the mountain breeze blowing in their
faces, they have hearts, they have intelligences, they
have--as my ears tell me—voices. Facts which my genial
friend the Inspector, who has spent some hours in vain
endeavours to induce them to speak English, is doubtless
far from suspecting.
The clamour is hushed into comparative decorum as
the group draws near me. As each passes he salutes me
shyly but pleasantly in Irish. Most of them know by sight
the "diune uasal" from Baile Atha Cliath who stayed in
the village last year, who went boating with some of their
fathers and elder brothers, and who so often made
one of the fireside group at Conn ----------------- 's evening
cèilidh. So they have a merry nod and a smile for
me, and give me voluble answers to my questions,
which range from the state of the parish priest's
health to the recent improvements in the handballcourt behind Pat ----------- 's shop.
The group passes on with renewed outburst of joyous
clamour. A race is started, and they soon disappear over
the brow of the hill in the road. As I approach the
schoolhouse, I descry coming towards me a solitary
straggler from the merry band—a small gasùr, in bare
feet and bdinius like the rest. He comes along slowly, and
as he draws near I perceive that he is crying bitterly.
Now
I recognise him as the little son of Màire ------------------at
the cross-roads. He it was whom I took with me as my
companion when I climbed Cnoc —-— last year.
Naturally, I stop him to renew acquaintance, and to
inquire the cause of his tears.
" Ceard tà ort, a Sheaghàinin ? "
" Bhu-bhu-bhuail an maighistir mè ì"
" 0-6. Agus ceard rinne til as an mbealach ? "
" L-labh-labhair mè Gaedhilge leis an ' In-specthor'."
The child had been caned- cruelly caned, as I learned
afterwards—because, in a moment of confusion, he had
spoken Irish to the Inspector!
If these things happened in Poland or in Finland or in
Alsace-Lorraine these islands would ring with
denunciations. The British and the West British and—for
aught I know—the North British press would report the
facts under scare headings. We should hear of the "
Language War in Finland," or of the "Reign of Terror in
Polish Schools," or of " German Aggression in
Alsace-Lorraine ". But when Connacht is the theatre of
tyranny the outside world hears nothing, for England
controls the press agencies.
I want my Scottish Gaelic friends to realise the
sternness of the fight which is being waged in Ireland. We
have nearly 700,000 Irish speakers. Over one-third of the
area of the country Irish is the language of the majority of
the homes. We have wide districts, west, and north-west,
and south-west, in which for practical purposes Irish is
the only language known. Yet the school system in these
districts still, broadly speaking, ignores Irish as an
instrument of education. In
380
"Education" in the West of Ireland
only thirteen schools in all Ireland has the Bilingual
Programme, recently wrested from the Commissioners of
"National" Education, been officially sanctioned. Not
one-sixth of the schools in the Irish-speaking area make a
genuine effort to utilise the vernacular as a medium of
instruction. There are still schools in purely
Irish-speaking localities in which Irish has absolutely no
place whatever on the school programme. There are still
schools in which, whilst the pupils speak no English, the
teacher speaks no Irish—schools, that is to say, in which
the instructor and the instructed have no means of
communicating one with the other. There are still schools
in which children are punished for speaking
Irish—furtively, of course, for if the facts were made
known it would, in the present state of public opinion, be
rather awkward for the teacher and manager. Finally,
the general progress of Irish-speaking children is
everywhere tested by Inspectors who know no Irish, and
permission to teach Irish as an " extra " subject is
conditional on a favourable report as to general progress
from these incompetent and often hostile Inspectors!
Such is " Education " in the West of Ireland!
PADRAIC MAC PIARAIS.
P. H. PEARSE, Editor of An
Claidheamh Soluis.
òran do Dhon Alfonso Infante na Spàinne 381
ORAN DO DHON ALFONSO INFANTE NA
SPAINNE
MILE fàilte dhuit, a shil an Righ !1 A thàinig
gu Alba o'n Spàinn ; Mòran làithean sona
dhuit is sith, Le maitheas Dhè, is thu gun
chron.
Tha mi 'faireachduinn gu'm bheil e fior, Na thuirt
cinn-feadhna a bh'ann o shean, Gur e Spàinn an talamh
sunndach Tir mam beann's nan gaisgeach treun !
Ràinig thu nall gu Alba a' cheò, Mar
dhearrsa na grèine o'n tir ud thall Mhic na
Spàinne! Fhir mo chridhe ! Is coma leam
ni, mur bi thu'n so.
Togamaid gunna, 's deanamaid spraidh, 'S e Mac na
Spàinne 'tha 'siubhal an fhraoich; Mo mhullachd air gach
eun nach tuit a sios, D'ur ac fhuinn a's turail' 's a chunna
mi riamh.
0 till a ris d'ar dùthaich's d'ar glinn, Do dhùthaich an*
fhraoich, 's do bheannaibh an fhèidh;
Na leig sinn air falbh ; dean cuimhne oirnn Is leat-sa ar
chridhe : biodh leat-sa ar crùn!
1
Mile, Righ na Spàinne.
382
L'Art, comme Etude Religieuse et Historique
L'ART, COMME ETUDE RELIGIEUSE ET
HISTORIQUE
L'ART, au point de vue religieux et historique, a un
meilleur droit à notre consideration qu'on ne l'a
gènèralement compris. Depuis plus de quatre siècles la
connexion et la correlation existant jadis entre TArt et la
Religion ont non seulement ètè rompues, mais mème
imparfaitement saisies et in-adèquatement reconnues.
L'intimitè de leurs relations mutuelles avait ètè intense
durant cette vaste et importante pèriode qui prècèda la
Rèforme. Tantòt la Religion se reflètait dans TArt; tantòt
TArt prèvenait l'enseignement religieux formel de
l'Eglise. Quelle majestè dans la mission, et quelle vie
dans la predication de TArt, alors qu'il incarnait
l'enseignement chrètien de l'èpoque sous des formes que
pouvaient saisir les plus humbles et qui ser-vaient de
guides à leur pensèe! Le jour n'ètait pas encore venu où
l'Art devait ètre supplantè par les Lettres. Aux ages du
Puritanisme et plus tard, l'harmonie n'existait plus dans
les relations entre les instincts artistiques de l'homme et
ses croyances thèologiques. Les problèmes spirituels de la
vie et la nature passagère des choses terrestres et
humaines, ont souvent ètè reprèsentès sous des formes
qui impliquent une condamnation et une repudiation de
l'Art.
II est done besoin de manifester plus clairement
comment le sens peut et doit ètre force à servir plus
gènèreusement l'esprit, comment l'Art peut devenir, dans
un sens large, une expression vraie de la Foi chrètienne.
II faut rèclamer et consacrer le ministère du beau, dans la
couleur, la forme et le son, avec le legitime sentiment que
cette consècrationl de l'Art est d'une haute importance
dans l'ordre religieux. Comment la Religion pourrait-elle
ètre indiffèrente aux formes de la peinture, de la
sculpture, de la musique, de l'architecture, et— ne
devrions-nous pas ajouter ?—de la poèsie, quand son Dieu
n'est nul autre que 1'Artiste supreme, avec la Nature
comme son oeuvre d'art universelle ?
Peut-ètre pourrait-on dire que le lien intime qui,
d'après le philosophe Schelling, " unit l'Art et la Religion,"
est maintenant reconnu; que, par consequent, la
connaissance scientifique de l'Art, est, sinon plus
nècessaire, au moins plus conforme à l'esprit vraiment
religieux. Aujourd'hui le beau trouve, à còtè du bien et du
vrai, le rang qui lui revient. L'Art, d'après notre rècente
manière de voir, est, selon Emerson, " la voie par où le
Crèateur atteint son ceuvre ". Les enseignements de
Ruskin ont puissamment aide les hommes, à notre
èpoque, à sentir combien l'Art est religieux, combien il est
apte à inspirer la croyance en Dieu et " l'adoration en
esprit". II faut considèrer que l'Art est vraiment spirituel
et synthètique, tout comme Test la Thèologie elle-mème.
De plus, l'Art est tèlèolo-gique, et tend vers l'idèal
spiritualiste, encore une fois, tout comme la Thèologie.
C'est l'esprit chrètien qui a sauvè la Nature du
matèrialisme qui voudrait ètouffer l'Art; c'est lui qui peut
encore nous conserver la beautè de la vie, et les influences
purifiantes de l'Art qui aura atteint son apogee et qui
sera vraiment grand. C'est alors qu'on verra la vèritè de
ce que disait Sydney Lanier, " queia beautè artistique et
la beautè morale sont comme, deux lignes convergentes
L'Art, comme Etude Religieuse et Historique
115
qui remon-tent à un ideal commun, à une mème origine,"
si bien que, pour l'esprit èthique du jour, la beautè de la
saintetè et la saintetè de la beautè ont presque une mème
signification. L'estime croissante de l'Art religieux a
produit un surcroit de vigilance, grace à laquelle
l'influence matèrialisante provenant d'une exagèration de
l'aspect symbolique de la religion ne saurait mettre
d'entraves à l'esprit ni l'empècher de s'èlever audessus de
la forme pure-ment extèrieure.
L'Art, sous toutes ses formes, sans rien sacrifier de ce
qui le caractèrise comme Art vrai, s'est efforcè de
correspondre, d'une facon harmonieuse et sympathique, à
Inspiration spirituelle, qu'il veut respecter, aimer et
favoriser. C'est là ce qu'il fait, quand cherchant à rèaliser
l'idèal thèologique, il supplie que " la beautè de Dieu le
Seigneur y soit marquee ".
L'Art est done, à sa manière, une revelation du
divin. Cela semble, à l'auteur de cette etude, aussi vrai de
l'histoire de l'Art que de l'histoire de la Doctrine.
Cependant, mème dans le grand Art, se glissent parfois
des incongruitès et des anach-ronismes : c'est le cas, non
seulement pour un Paul Veronese, mais mème, par
exception, pour un Raphael. L'Art n'atteint pas toujours
sa propre perfection, et mème un Albrecht Diirer peut
inopinèment nous fournir une conception plus idèale que
Raphael. C'est par sa vitalitè que vaut l'oeuvre de
1'artiste, plutòt que par sa conformitè avec une tradition
artistique aveuglante. Le grand artiste est tout
simplement celui qui Test comme penseur, non moins que
comme ouvrier. Ce qui a precede les formes de l'Art aussi
varièes que celles de Protèe, ce qui prèdominait aux yeux
du grand artiste, ce n'est nulle combinaison de forme et
de couleur, mais l'idèe religieuse, la conception ou la
construction idèale, et les idèes divines ou conceptions
idèales sont le don ultime et le plus èlevè que nous
apporte 1'ètude de l'Art. C'est pourquoi nous entendons
dire à Schiller1 que le veritable artiste prendra, il est vrai,
ses matèriaux dans le present, mais qu'il empruntera sa
forme à une èpoque plus noble, voire, au delà de tout
temps, à l'unitè absolue, immuable de son essence. Ici, du
pur ether de sa nature divinement concue, dècoule la
source de la beautè, libre de la souillure des races et des
siècles, qui " s'agitent loin au-des-sous d'elle dans des
gouffres tumultueux ".
De la facon la plus ènergique, Ruskin declare que le
plus grand Art est prècisèment celui qui exprime le plus
grand nombre d'idèes, et que rien ici-bas ne peut racheter
l'absence de vèritè. Fran-chement, je n'aime pas la norme
quantitative de Ruskin relativement au nombre des idèes.
L'Art est assurèment une chose qualitative, et la
pro-fondeur des idèes compte bien plus qu'aucune
enumeration qu'on puisse faire de leur quantitè.
Dans l'Art, comme dans la Religion, ce à quoi Ton
s'adresse, c'est le sentiment immèdiat, et non les
conceptions abstraites. II ne faut done guère s'ètonner si
nulle parole ne saurait rendre l'ineffable signification, la
beautè, la force suggestive d'une representation telle que,
par exemple, La Sainte Famille de Francois Ier, de Raphael.
Parmi tous les trèsors du Louvre il n'y a rien de plus
beau, les figures de la Mere et de l'Enfant formant un
tableau inexprimable. Son Saint Michel triomphant de Satan
ne le cede guère au precedent. C'est l'àme
souverainement belle de 1'artiste que nous voyons, dans
ce cas, luire à travers son art.
382
L'Art, comme Etude Religieuse et Historique
Je viens de dire que la vie spirituelle ou religieuse est
crèatrice de l'Art le plus èlevè, avec sa
1
Lettres philosophiques, lettre neuvième.
beautè, sa libertè, son unite et sa puissance idèales.; Ce
n'est pas tout de dire, comme on vient de le; faire, que la
vie spirituelle est crèatrice de l'Art 4 il faut ajouter que
les revelations du monde) spirituel,—le monde de la
beautè
spirituelle,—nous]
sont
communiquèes
prècisèment par les formes etf la vie du monde naturel.
L'art n'est pas une chose arbitraire ; c'est plutòt, comme
on l'a dit, la faculty de rendre l'imagination productive, en
conformity avec la loi. La parole suivante de Keats
exprimè; done une profonde vèritè :—
Le beau, c'est le vrai; le vrai, c'est le beau.1
II n'est pas nècessaire de faire en sorte que, l'Art,
expression du vrai sous une forme sensible,; soit
tellement la servante de la morale qu'il ne; sache rendre
justice à la beautè. . II suffit d'affirmer que la beautè est
incommensurablement' approfòndie par l'esprit èthique.
Nous pouvonsj encore concèder que l'Art a sa valeur
propre, la] forme et la matière ètant ici inseparables.
On comprend encore trop peu que l'Art impose ses lois
à des natures dont le gout a ètè l'objet d'une culture
spèciale. II peut ètre tout à fait vrai que de grands
artistes -Raphael, Rembrandt, le Titien,-Michel-Ange,
Leonard de Vinci, et autres—se sont; adressès aux
sentiments ou aux emotions èlè- i mentaires du peuple.
Ainsi, mème le spectateur d'occasion ne peut se dèfendre
d'etre saisi par des representations telles que La descente
de la Croix, L'Assomption de la Vierge, ou La Resurrection dei
ce maìtre en coloris, Rubens; ou par La mise aiti Tombeau
de cet autre roi du coloris, Titien, au; Louvre; ou mème,
peut-ètre, par des tableaux comme la Nativite, le
Crucifiement ou la Rèsurrec1
Beauty is truth; truth, beauty.
tim d'un maitre aussi primitif de l'art italien que Giotto,
tellement tous ces tableaux s'adressent à tous sans
distinction. Mais il n'en est pas moins vrai que l'homme
vulgaire ou non-initiè ne voit rien de plus dans les
grandes creations de l'Art que dans celles de la plus
affreuse mèdiocritè, jusqu'à ce que sa facultè
d'apprèciation air ètè cultivèe et ses puissances mises en
activitè. II ne voit pas plus que ce qu'il a appris à
chercher. Et cela peut ètre Bbien peu de chose; car
Ruskin nous dit quelle apathie il a rencontrèe chez
certains hommes, mème après que la beautè de l'Art avait
ètè signalèe à leur appreciation.
La discipline artistique est chose très distincte,, positive
et nècessaire, car les beautès de la Nature line sont pas
rèvèlèes, à qui ne les cherche pas—non moins nècessaire,
en vèritè, que la discipline et d'entrainement religieux.
L'Art vise, comme le fait la Religion elle-mème, à
instruire et à èlever, et non pas seulement à amuser, à
ètonner et à fasciner; mais l'Art ne produit cet effet par
aucune sorte de contrainte continuelle, atteignant plutòt
sa fin par Ka discipline propre, suivant les voies les plus
naturelles et les plus gracieuses. La puissance
lènnoblissante de l'Art est le plus efficace prècisèment
quand il est plus simple et plus grand.
II peut se faire, comme a dit Goethe, que l'Art "soit
ainsi nommè simplement parce qu'il n'est pas la Nature;
mais cela ne l'empèche pas d'etre une activitè très
L'Art, comme Etude Religieuse et Historique
116
naturelle.
L'Art
a
toujours
en
vue,
bien
qu'inconsciemment, les hauteurs de la morale. vLes
divinations du grand Art semblent provenir de ^'empire
inconscient de l'esprit èthique le plus èlevè. Mais c'est
bien ce mème esprit qui caractèrise les conceptions les
plus hautes de la Religion.
La nècessitè de cette culture spèciale en vue de
Fapprèciation de l'Art repose sur le fait que nous avons
dèjà signalè : que 1'artiste a des pensèe idèales, que sa
sensibilitè plus pènètrante et son intuition plus profonde
voudraient dècouvrir à d'autres hommes. L'Art vrai,
comme la vraie pensèe religieuse, sera toujours suggestif;
l'Art le sera à un degrè incalculable. L'Art, comme dit
Browning, " peut dire la vèritè de f aeons di verses ".
Le veritable Art est aussi, dans un sens, reli-gieux; il
a un attachement passionnè, et souvent austere, pour le
divin, pour la divine rèalitè, en sorte que, comme l'a dit
Carlyle, dans l'Art le divin est rendu visible. II demande
ainsi à ses zèlateurs que chacun d'eux realise le vceu du
poète latin, integer vitce scelerisque purus, qui n'est qu'une
sorte de version antique de l'appel de Goethe à la vie dans
le Parfait, le Bon et le Beau. II n'y a, en effet, rien de plus
certain que la degradation de l'Art par l'ègoisme sensuel:
le culte mystique de la beautè par l'Art peut nous mener
loin, dans la voie de la grace, de la saintetè, de la religion
et vers les sommets de la vertu, de la moralitè. Quand
1'Amour assume le travail de la vie, il dilate et confond
les choses de la Religion et de l'Art, de sorte qu'elles
s'unissent en une puissante opposition contre un
matèrialisme sans àme. Sans doute, il y aura toujours
une difference dans leurs modes d'influ-ence; car, tandis
que l'Art s'adressera de preference à la vie èmotionnelle,
la Religion, plus spècialement dans ses plus hautes
portèes thèologiques, s'adressera de facon prepondèrante
aux facultès cognitives de l'homme.
Un caractère frappant de l'Art est d'exiger
l'ap-parence du mouvement. L'artiste apprend combien il
lui faut, dans son art, exprimer le mouvement de la
nature. Sa vision de la nature est, si Ton peut s'exprimer
de la sorte, non pas momentanèe, mais successive, non
pas statique, mais dynamique. Ce fut pour l'artiste une
heure importante que ceile où il fit cette dècouverte :
vèritè peut-ètre importune de prime abord, mais qui, en
definitive, lui apporta puissance et profit.
La pensèe religieuse a, sans doute, appris de pareille
fai^on, que ses vèritès doivent ètre saisies et presentees
dans leur mouvement progressif et leurs phases
successives. Cette reflexion nous conduit tout
naturellement à la pensèe de l'Art dans ses vastes
relations et dèveloppements historiques. L'histoire de
l'Art, comme ceile de la Religion, a eu ses grandes
èpoques.
L'Art ancien nous est parvenu presque entière-ment
sous les formes de la sculpture et de l'archi-tecture. C'est
à la lumière de l'histoire que l'architecture atteint la
dignitè d'une science. L'art grec est redevable de
beaucoup à l'art ègyptien primitif; mais l'art grec acquitta
noble-ment sa dette par la lègèretè, la grace, la beautè et
la gaietè par lesquelles il remplaca la massive et sombre
architecture ègyptienne. L'architecture grecque est
rèsumèe dans le Parthenon et les edifices qui l'entourent.
La fameuse èglise de la Madeleine, à Paris, est bàtie sur
ce modèle, et c'est un superbe edifice classique, avec les
382
L'Art, comme Etude Religieuse et Historique
colonnes de sa facade, ses portes de bronze, et les
sculptures qui en surmontent l'entrèe.
Dans les temps anciens dont nous venons de parler,
nous voyons comment les systèmes religieux de l'Egypte,
de la Grèce et de Rome ont alimentè l'Art. Là nous voyons
la sculpture grecque don-nant libre carrière à la beautè
sensible et à la tendance matèrialiste dans des statues
telles que celles d'ApolIon, de Venus et de Bacchus.
L'in-comparable Laocoon mèrite tous les èloges, du
present comme du passè.
Rome ne fut pas longue à rèaliser un compose de force
ègyptienne, d'èlègance et d'adaptation grec-ques. Sans
mentionner l'art ètrusque, on peut signaler des
constructions romaines massives comme le Colisèe et le
Pantheon, ce dernier contrastant de bien des manières
avec le Parthenon de l'art grec. II faut ici mentionner
l'influence importante de l'art byzantin, dont l'exemple le
plus remarquable se trouve à Venise. Là, nous avons
l'èglise de Saint-Marc et le palais des Doges, ce dernier
appelè par Ruskin l'èdifice central du monde. II contient
"les trois elements en proportions exactement ègales, le
romain, le lombard et l'arabe" ; mais il faut avouer que la
main de la period byzantine sur le monde de l'Art a ètè
quelque peu lourde.
Advenant la fin de l'art ancien, le règne du système
gothique commenca. Le gothique a tenu le sceptre jusqu'à
l'ouverture du quinzième siècle. Les nouvelles tentatives
de l'Art se firent surtout dans la peinture, bien que
l'architecture fùt loin de n'en pas subir l'influence. Depuis
le debut du quatorzième siècle jusqu'à la fin du
quinzième, l'iconographie eut une belle pèriode de
floraison. Cette èpoque fut illustrèe par Giotto, Fra
Angelico, Lippi, Verrochio, Ghirlandaio, Botticelli, le
Perugin, et maints autres dont les noms sont inscrits au
livre de l'histoire de l'Art.
C'est maintenant que nous abordons le siècle des
grandes cathèdrales et des puissants artistes comme
Alberti, Brunelleschi et, comme nous le verrons bientòt,
Michel-Ange. Saint-Pierre de Rome, et l'Escurial dans
l'art espagnol, sont des monuments de cette èpoque. La
puissance et l'influence de Saint-Pierre de Rome, comme
edifice unique et magnifique, dans la realisation des vues
de ceux qui l'ont fondè, a dèpassè tout calcul. Le seizième
siècle brille par sa trinitè de l'Art: Raphael A l'àme si
belle, de Vinci à l'intelligence et au gènie lumineux
comme le soleil, et Angelo à la puissance et à l'habiletè
hors de pair.
II n'est pas question ici d'essayer de suivre la
peinture à travers les grands dèveloppements de
l'idèalisme artistique dans l'art europèen de la pèriode
moderne. II suffit d'avoir montrè quelles grandes pèriodes
historiques ont marque les dèveloppements de l'Art
comme ceux du sentiment religieux. Et, en vèritè, il faut
regarder ces phases de l'Art comme portant avec elles
leurs propres lacons de la philosophie de l'histoire;
c'est-à-dire, qu'elles doivent pouvoir nous apprendre,
moyennant chaque pèriode et chaque siècle, à interpreter
le caractère et le progrès des nations.
En tout ceci, il ne faut pas mèconnaìtre la relation
entre l'Art et la personnalitè. La conscience artistique—la
conscience de l'artiste lui-mème,— doit compter pour
beaucoup plus qu'on ne l'a gènèralement admis dans
l'ètude qu'on fait de son oeuvre. La libertè de l'esprit qui
L'Art, comme Etude Religieuse et Historique
117
crèe est l'àme de l'oeuvre du veritable artiste, inspirèe
comme Test cette oeuvre par le sens de la beautè
esthètique. L'Art nous èlève à un monde d'idèal et de
libertè, produisant en nous quelque chose de sa propre
harmonie et uniformitè intèrieures. L'idèal de l'Art n'est
jamais realise ni atteint: l'Art est ainsi dèsintèressè quant
à la qualitè. Son motif intèrieur est cette recherche du
complet, qui, en fin de compte, demande que ses creations
soient des expressions sensibles conformes aux exigences
de la beautè morale. Car ces idèes de beautè morale
392
L'Art, comme Etude Religieuse et Historique
sont, en elles-mèmes et dans leurs relations, telles qu'en
definitive les formes de la beautè ou de la representation
sensible doivent y ètre conformes.
Mais instinctivement l'esprit tend plus haut, et il
n'est pas besoin de contraindre l'Art pour l'amour de la
moralitè, ce qui serait toujours fertile en rèsultats
malheureux. II y a, pour ainsi dire, un fonds de
conscience morale, qui, tout en laissant l'Art libre, assure
que le bien ne sera pas sacrifiè au beau. La personnalitè
parfaite, comme l'art ideal, n'est pas, mais est toujours à
venir, et la jouissance esthètique est ainsi faite qu'elle
reflète à la fois et favorise le plein èpanouissement de la
personnalitè.
On pourrait signaler, comme un bel exemple de la
personnalitè de l'artiste et de sa puissance de suggestion
religieuse, un tableau tel que Amour et Vie, dans la galerie
Tate de l'Art britannique, par Georges-Frèdèric Watts, le
dernier des grands artistes de l'èpoque de Victoria. La
Vie, personni-fièe par une forme feminine tremblante, est
conduite dans un sentier rocailleux par l'Amour, qui nous
apparalt comme un gènie au vol puissant, heureux de son
immortelle jeunesse, et qui, sous ses larges ailes, abrite la
Vie contre les vents du ciel, pendant qu'il verse dans son
àme des paroles de joie et d'en-couragement. La morale
est èvidemment, que la fragile vie humaine ne peut
poursuivre avec succès son chemin vers les hauteurs sans
le secours et l'encouragement de l'amour divin.
JAMES LINDSAY.
KlLMABNOCK, BcOSSE.
LITIR
SIR,
Can any of the numerous readers of Guth na
Bliadhna give me the other verses of the following song
which I have heard attributed to Alasdair Mac
Mhaighstir Alasdair? They would greatly oblige by so
doing.
Your obedient servant,
ALEXANDER MACRAE.
NEWER CASG ILL, WINTON,
NEW ZEALAND.
" Tha mi 'creidheamh a' Phapa, Cha dean mi
aicheadh nach ann, Is gur e 'chreidheamh is fearr
e, Dh' fhàg ar Slànuighear ann. 'E gun bhristeadh
gun fhiaradh, Bho linn Chriosd tha e ann ; Is na
h-uile neach dh'fhalbh bhuaith, Mar chaoraich
fhuadain air chall."
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