Frìth: A Method of Divination

Silhouette in Doorway

A name by now very familiar to this blog is John Ewen (Iain Eòghann) MacRury who hailed from Torlum, Benbecula, and who supplied quite a lot of information to Alexander Carmichael. It appears that he was something of a tradition bearer himself and so it is rather difficult to ascertain if some of his anecdotes were his own or came from some other source. Either way, what he did write down contains some fascinating details particularly about superstitious beliefs. In this narrative, a Donald MacInnes (fl. 1850), styled Dòmhnall mac Ailein, is name-checked as someone who had a particular bent for making auguries using the frìth. In short, this allowed the augurer to obtain occluded information previously hidden which allowed in some instances to find out the whereabouts of missing people or cattle. The first story tells of a lost vessel and its crew who were thought to have persished but are found safe and well in remote St Kilda whereas the second ones tells of the tragic drowning a young man from Howgarry, North Uist:

MacCallain Duncan
McInnes Balavanich
Benbecula was known
far and wide for his
power of Frith making.


On one occasion a
boat with four men
were driven, by a severee [sic]
storm from the N[orth] E[ast]
off the coast of Uig
Lewis. The idea was
at the time that the
boat was swamped
and all perished but
as no wreckage was
cast on shore on
the west of Lewis
or Harris resembling
the belongings of the
boat people thought
they managed to get
on shore in the Flannan
Isles. A boat & crew
went there but got
no trace of the miss
ing boat.
People advised
the nearest relative
of the missing crew
to visit MacCallen
in Benbecula and
he lost no time in doing
so. In his arrival at
his destination Mac
Callen received him
hospitably and told
him to at rest
It was late at night
for to make a Frith
but early the following
morning he told him
that his missing friends
were all well on
the Islan[d] of St
Kilda, and were actually
k[i]l[l]ing & flaying a
cow along with
some of the natives
and that they could
not come home till
the Month of March
This happ[e]ned in Winter.


On another occasion
a fine young man
from Howgarry
North Uist was
drowned and his
remains could not
be found,
His father
weeks after the
accident visited
MacCallen and
he told him to
go back at onc[e]
and that his son
was lying face
downward under
a quantity of sea-
weed in a “geobha”
at the point of
Ard-a-Runaira
Balranald.
Instances of this
sort could be followed
to a great length.

Elsewhere in Carmina Gadelica, Alexander Carmichael offers a description of this method of divination in connection with Frìth Mhoire (‘Augury of Mary’):

The ‘frith’ augury, was a species of divination enabling the ‘frithir’, augurer, to see into the unseen. This divination was made to ascertain the position and condition of the absent and the lost, and was applied to man and beast. The augury was made on the first Monday of the quarter and immediately before sunrise. The augurer, fasting, and with bare feet, bare head, and closed eyes, went to the doorstep and placed a hand on each jamb. Mentally beseeching the God the unseen to show him his quest and to grant him his augury, the augurer opened his eyes and looked steadfastly straight in front of him. From the nature and position of the objects within his sight, he drew his conclusions.

References:
Carmina Gadelica, ii, p. 24, p. 158, p,. 295; iii, p. 156; iv, p. 150; v, p. 286, p. 290, p. 292, p. 294, p. 296.
CW 1/65, ff. 28r–30r.
Image:
Silhouette in Doorway.

The Gaels Have a Word for It

John Ewen MacRury (1853–1909)

John Ewen (Iain Eòghann) MacRury, from Torlum, Benbecula, and the various materials that he collected for Alexander Carmichael has been the subject of numerous blogs on previous occasions. Here, for example, are a couple of very useful words if you ever get into a dispute and are looking for just the right words:

Feicheantas a common word
in olden times for an arugment [sic]
between man and wife about
paltry dispuits [sic], especially when
such dispute took place regarding
each other’s people.


Cramhan is a continual
low murmuring complaint
by any person kept up for
no other purpose than to keep
on grumbling and dissatisfy[ing]
others.

Both these words can be found in Dwelly’s dictionary where they are glossed as ‘friendly dispute’ under the heading féicheanas and as ‘unceasing, vexatious talk’ under the heading cnàmhan. MacRury’s definitions are certainly more colourful that those given by Dwelly and reflect the intricate nuances of a rich Gaelic vocabulary.

References:
CW1/106 & 107, f. 111r.
Dwelly, Edward, The Illustrated Gaelic-English Dictionary (Glasgow, 1994), p. 217 & p. 426.
Image: John Ewen MacRury (1853–1909). Reproduced with the kind permission of Calum Laing.

Latha Fhèill Mìcheil – Michaelmas

Alexander Carmichael in a letter of 1898 to his friend Fr Allan McDonald (of Eriskay) once wrote with regard to Michaelmas: ‘The more I think of the Festival of Michael the more convinced I am that there was no festival in the wide world like it. A variety of interests combined to render it great.’ Certainly, there was a great deal of festivities (in particular horse-racing) going on around 29 September, particularly in the Southern Outer Hebrides, when it came to celebrate Michaelmas. By the time Carmichael came to write about Michaelmas it had all but died out but his older informants and those from whom Fr Allan received information would have remembered a great deal of this old custom. An excerpt from his letter to Carmichael, Fr Allan relates that: ‘The religious functions most commonly assigned by the people here to St Michael are his meeting of the souls of the elect at the moment of death, and his presiding at the balance where the soul’s good and bad works are weighed.’ This reflects the esteem and importance of the Archangel Michael in Hebridean tradition and doubtless elsewhere.

Elsewhere, John Ewen (Iain Eòghann) MacRury of Torlum, Benbecula, notes down some of the customs that were once commonly held at this particular time of the year:

(In general) was observed
all over the country.
Every wife in the family
way had to go round
local burying ground or
some other burying place
agreed upon previously
Believing that the sanc-
timonious odour of the
graves was sufficient
to prevent premature
birth. In like manner
every mare expected
to be in foal went rou-
nd it also ‘A dol deas
al a chlaidh’ Going right
round it or following the
sun. There was no bridle
in the mouth of the animal
“Aodhstar” was the head
gear Cock-fi[gh]ting was
also to the fore. Every
defeated cock went to
the schoolmaster gratus [sic]
The winners were taken
back by their respective
masters, with a share
of the spoil. After all
the performances were
over the balls were held
one in each township and
many a ball terminated very
suddenly, by a severe fight.

References:
CW 1, fos. 15v–16r.
Carmina Gadelica, iii, pp. 138–42
Image: Horses Racing.

Souming

Common Grazings, South Uist

Yet another anecdote, written on 15 December 1894, from the pen of John Ewen (Iain Eòghann) MacRury from Torlum, Benbecula, concerns ‘souming’, the agricultural practice of enumerating the type of stock that an individual croft is allowed to have on the common grazings. As previously noted in this blog, Alexander Carmichael had been commissioned to write a report for the Napier commission about Hebridean agricultural practices and customs and one part of this picture was the topic of common grazings. It is interesting to note that these varied from place to place and from one landlord to another for in 1810 Lord MacDonald and MacCoinnich Bodhar of Lewis introduced new rules whereas Clanranald had no souming until 1820. MacRury states that in 1830 his grandfather had to send five heifers to Barra from North Uist because of a disagreement over souming rights. It also seems as if the system was open to abuse as in the case of Mull people taking advantage over grazings near Ben More, South Uist.

When a cow reached
ten years, a quoy
calf was not counted in soum
ing till she was
four years old so
as to keep the
“leibhidh” in full. The “leibhidh”
was kept in full
in the Long Island
till about the year
1810, when Lord –
MacDonald and Mac
Coinnich Bodhar
of Lewis introduce
ed new rules of sou
ming on their estates
Simply for to get
more money out
of the tenants.
Clanranald had
no such souming on
their extensive till
1820. But those
tacksmen who held
ground under the
Still-bow tenure
could do as they
pleased with their
own subjects.
My grandfather
in 1830 had actually
to send five heiffers
to Barra from
Carinish North Uist
as Lord MacDonald
would not grant
on any account graz
ing to any person
and not only that
but other tenants
who was short
of full souming were
strictly prohibited
from giving it for full
value to their neigh
bours. The generous
laird of Barra gave
pasture to MacRae
& Cameron also
other two tenants
in the township of
Carinish. Beinn-
Mhor a chinn-a-
deas, was open
to all, even people
from Mull used
to send cattle &
horses there and
take them away
without paying
a fraction for
them. The curtail
ing
of the Common
in the Long island
was the first attempt
to saddle the indu
strious natives.
Under these circumsta
nces the tenants who
were unsuccessful in
rearing stock were not
benefited, and those who
were more lucky were
handicaped in increase
ing their fortune in
an honest way. To put
it in the plain word
of one of their sons
deceased twenty years
ago, Mhill iad (“na
h’ uachdaran) a chuid
a b’ fhearr dheth ’n tuath
’s cha do mhathaich
iad a chuid bu m[h]iosa.”

References:

Carmichael, Alexander, ‘Grazing and Agrestic Customs of the Outer Hebrides’, The Celtic Review, vol. 10, no. 37 (1914), pp. 40–54; vol. 10, no. 38 (1914), pp. 144–48; vol. 10, no. 39 (1915), pp. 254–62; vol. 10, no. 40 (1916), pp. 358–75.

CW1/55, ff. 19r–22r

Image: Common Grazings, South Uist.

Blood Brotherhood

John Ewen (Iain Eòghann) MacRury from Torlum, Benbecula, took down a note about ‘goitseachd’. Under the heading ‘goistidheachd’, Dwelly’s dictionary glosses the word as: ‘Office or duty of a godfather. 2 Gossiping. Ri goistidheachd, assuming the office of a godfather; cleamhnas am fagas is goistidheachd am fad, affinity at hand and sponsorship afar off.’ It seems that this definition does not take into account all its meanings, for it is rather interesting what MacRury reveals about this word by the way in which he offers some social contexts behind the word:

Goisteachd
I remember when a
school boy of Goist-
eachd being a common
saying with us,
If I were bristeadh
rudan with another
and blood issuing
from the knuckles
of either of us the
one producing blood
put it on the bare
skin of the other and
say roinn mi
goisteachd riut,
signifying that we
were friends in all
plays henceforth, but
very often the friend
ship did not last very
long, for as soon
as play commenced
every one so positive
we were sure to fall
out, and ultimately
end the dispuit with
blood which very
often produced more
blood than on the
occasion on which
we made the goist
eachd. However there
was something in it
as the goistidhean
showed a warm
side to each other
“an am cruaidh chais[”]
in time of hardship,
If I were to put the
blood on the bare
hand of a girl for
it was mostly on
the back of the
hand the blood was
put “air cul an
duirn[”] then they
would say “roinn
thu goisteachd rithe”
and that signified
that she was to be
one of my Godmother[s]
and if I were to fall
in love with her I
dared not say a word
to her for my life
as goisteachd was made
with her, It was a
common occurrence
for boys to put a
drop of their blood
on the hands of
girls that were not
nice looking signify-
ing that they would
not have anything to
do with them as their
lovers. Nice young
girls did the same
on coarse wild boys.

References:
CW1/70, fos. 35v–38r.
Dwelly, Edward, The Illustrated Gaelic-English Dictionary (Glasgow, 1994), p. 516.
Image: Drops of Blood.

Horse Senses

Sandwiched between notes about fish spawn and Latha Fhèill Mìcheil (Michealmas), John Ewen (Iain Eòghann) MacRury of Torlum, Benbecula, wrote down interesting notes consisting of Gaelic vocabulary and dialectical variations regarding horses. It is no coincidence that this short note presages another note about Michaelmas for this day was renowned for horse races. In some Roman Catholic districts of the Highlands and Islands the 29th of September was referred to as latha na marcachd (‘the riding day’), where horse races were held and where other celebrations were performed in order to mark this special day in the calendar.

Bionach or Biorach
In one part of Skye a
colt or a filly is called
Bionach whereas in an-
other part of it the word
is changed into Biorach,
In Uist & Barra it is
generally termed Loth,
whether masc[uline] or fem[inin]e.
In Harris they term a
foal, Isean an eich (or
the chicken of the horse),
till they are six month[s],
and after that till they
are put in harness are
termed Spriodach, Faol
Searach, in Uist when
a foal is six month[s]
it is generally termed both
afterwards Blia[dh]nach,
Da-bhlia[dh]nach Tri-bhli[a]dh
nach, above that termed
horse or mare, a horse
is at its best at seven
a mare at nine if not
ill used, As long as the
four leggs of the animal
are right and the inside
souind good feeding and
cleaning will build up
the frame

Reference:
CW 1, fos. 15r –15v.
Image: Horses Racing.

The Butterfly of Death

Golden Butterfly

In a short note taken down by John Ewen (Iain Eòghann) MacRury of Torlum, Benbecula, the subject of death and its connection with a type of butterfly is mentioned. There are, of course, many different words for the butterfly in Scottish Gaelic, but one of the most common is dealan-dè (sometimes dearbadan-dè, depending on dialect) and another fairly frequent one is amadan-dè. This superstitious belief was probably once common in other areas of the Highlands and Islands as well as in other localities:

The “Dalan De” of golden

colour is considered of
great importance at
the time of death,
If seen after, flying
over the remains, whether
in coffin or shroud it was
supposed the spirit was,
in heaven. There is only
one class of “Dalan De,”
of medium size & of fine
yellowish colour, like gold.
“All the other kinds are of
moss, or other worms,
such as the grub, turning
into flies.

Elsewhere in Carmina Gadelica, Carmichael writes: ‘There are many kinds of Butterfly, but the kind we speak of is not so plentiful. The true Yellow Butterfly is near half an inch in length, and stouter about the body than any other kind, covered with pretty down or plumage, very small about tail—more so than any other kind under the sun. The top of his head is like a king’s crown with a fringe around it. His hue is half-way between fine gold and the white snow of the hill. He is always seen in summer, quiet and peaceful, without heat of flurry, above the corpses of infants and of other good people. It is a good sign to see the Yellow Butterfly upon a corpse or near a corpse. They say that every furrow and streak in his wings and in his head and in his body is exactly the manner of those that were in the sacred corpse and body of the Saviour lying in the linen shroud.’

References:

CW1/45, ff. 13v–14r
Carmina Gadelica, iv, pp. 4–5.

Image: Golden Butterfly.

Fuath – An Evil Spirit

Here is a very short anecdote―leaving the original spelling intact―written down by John Ewen (Iain Eòghann) MacRury, from Torlum, Benbecula concerning the Fuath. By anyone’s standards it was best avoided and it seems to have haunted those remotest of places ready to pounce on an unexpectant wayfarer.

Fuath,
Is considered an invissible
spirit generally in a
whirel wind & in sec-
luded places or felt
at wakes of wicked
people. A bad omen
for any family as they
are to loose all their
possession[s] shortly.

Elsewhere in Carmina Gadelica, Carmichael glosses the wordFuath as ‘a spectre, a kelpie, a demon, a water-fiend frequenting glens, rivers and waterfalls.’

References:
CW 1, fol. 12v.
Carmina Gadelica, ii, p. 296.
Image: Am Fuath © Andy Paciorek http://www.batcow.co.uk/strangelands
This and many other images can be found in the Strange Lands book:
http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/1957828

An Tuairisgeul Mòr – An Epic Tale

One of the stories that was prized above all by reciters was an epic one known as An Tuairisgeul Mòr, sometimes translated as ‘The Chief Story’. Unsurprisingly, this tale has been much sought after by collectors of Gaelic folklore and has been recorded and published on numerous occasions. In a marginal note, dated 11 November 1883, by John Francis Campbell in his copy of The Scottish Celtic Review he writes: ‘This story is considered to be one of the first class by story tellers all over the far west. This version is rather shortened [Gregorson Campbell’s Tiree version] and made reasonable by my friend the Minister but so far as it goes it is good and genuine.’ John Francis Campbell was in a position to know for the had printed versions of this tale in his Popular Tales of the West Highlands some two decades previously.

Here, John Ewen (Iain Eòghann) MacRury, from Torlum, Benbecula, provides a social context (and perhaps even a rather romanticised one) for the telling of this particular tale. The man name-checked as being ‘a famous old piper’ was Donald MacDougall, styled Dòmhnall Bàn Dùghallach (c. 1813–1893), a joiner by trade and a resident of Creagorry in Benbecula. The old man passed the tale on to his son, John, who settled at Crinan Canal and plied his trade as a steamer skipper on the Clyde. Perhaps in order to pass the time he might have even regaled his crew with this very story. It looks as if neither of these two men were actually recorded telling this particular tale but, fortunately, many others were such as those collected in South Uist, Eigg, Tiree, and Islay during the nineteenth century. The story was still evidently in circulation for it was collected by Calum Iain Maclean and John Lorne Campbell from Duncan MacDonald of South Uist in 1947 and 1950 respectively as well as also being recorded from Alick Stewart then residing at the Muir of Ord in 1953.

Tuaireasgeul Mor.
How he was put to death or how
he went to death, was a wonder-
ful tale. I heard old men well
versed in folk-lore say that it wo[u]ld
take a good reciter seven winter long
nights from beul na hoi[dh]che dusk
to Gairm-chailleach cock-crowing
to repeat it in full. In olden times
they used to meet, heads of families
in an appointed place to hear it re-
cited. It was divide[d] into chapters
and each chapter would take a whole
night. Domhnull Ban Dughallach
Donald Macdougall a famous old
piper of the MacCrimmon school
was considered the best reciter
of his day. His son John who
left Benbecula about thirty
years ago and settled down at Crinan
Canal could recite it word for
word, but not with the same
emphasis as his father.
John is still living and one
of his sons is Skipper of one of
the Clutha steamer up & down
on the Clyde. 1895

References:
CW1, fos. 109r–110v
Campbell, John Gregorson, ‘West Highland Tale: How the Tuairsigeul Mor was put to Death’, The Scottish Celtic Review, no. 1 (1881), pp. 61–77.
Macperson, Donald C., [=Abrach], ‘An Tuairisgeal’, An Gàidheal (1875), pp. 303–10.
MacKay, John, ‘An Tuairisgeal’, The Transactions of the Gaelic Society of Inverness, vol. XXXIV (1927–28), pp. 1–112.
Duncan MacDonald’s recitation of An Tuairisgeul Mòr recorded by John Lorne Campbell:
http://www.tobarandualchais.co.uk/en/fullrecord/24966/1

Image: Illustration from Campbell’s Popular Tales of the West Highlands (though not of the Tuairisgeul Mòr!)

It’s No Use Crying Over Spilt Milk

Milk Drop

According to John Ewen (Iain Eòghann) MacRury, from Torlum, Benbecula, the old people had a saying which they said whenever some milk had been accidently spilt. The phrase which he gives is: ‘Coma leibh dheth, tha beul feumach a’ feitheamh air’ which may be literally translated as ‘Never you mind, there is a needy mouth waiting for it.’ Given that milk and its derivative products was a staple part of the islanders’ diet, from which they produced many foodstuffs such as cheese, butter, buttermilk, crowdie, cream and so on, it seems that the above phrase reflects their rather philosophical stance: if even only a little was spilt then even that would still not go to waste:

Spilling Milk
In olden times the
Inhabitants of the
Outer Hebrides when
Milk was spilt would
say “Coma libh dheth,
tha bial feumach a
feathamh air,” mean-
ing that there was
a thirsty mouth –
waiting for it somewhere
else, and that the thirsty
party would get the[ir]
thirst quenched.

Reference:
CW 1/60, f. 27r.
Image: Milk Drop.

Clach Nathrach – The Serpent Stone

Another anecdote noted down by John Ewen (Iain Eòghann) MacRury, from Torlum, Benbecula, concerns the serpent stone or clach nathrach. Since classical times there has been a strong connection between serpents and healing. One only needs to think of the logo for the British Medical Association with a rod and a single snake wrapped around it. Sometimes this symbol is mistaken for a caduceus, a winged staff with two serpents entwined, carried by Hermes, the messenger of the gods, which later became known as a symbol of peace. Rather the BMA’s logo symbolises the rod of Asclepius, a son of the God Apollo, who was a practitioner of medicine in Greek mythology. No mention of the druidic cult would seem to be complete without the mention of the serpent’s egg or adder stone which was believed to have magical properties.

Clach Nathrach
Is an accumulation
of liquid matter from
the mouth of the
serpent and is alw-
ays found among
rank heather where
it is spiralled by
the serpent going con
stantly round the
stem or stalk till
all the matter ronan
is accumulated on it.
It gets very hard and
of a darkish colour
and light in proportion
to its size. I remember
when in School in Uig
Lewis of seeing one
about the size of a
small hen egg. It was
found by the herd-
boy of Croulista who
was sometimes attend
ing school with me
on the South side
of Suanaval hill.
It was greatly val
ued by the more in
tellegent people who
saw it, as it is
good for taking
away any bad or
rotten matter on
a wounded swelling or
cut. Serpents are
common enough
in Uig, but not of
a big Size. I remem
ber of one being killed
on the public
road in the glen betw-
een Balnakill and
Miavaig Uig. It would
be about a foot
long but very thick
in proportions to its
length. Since then I
have seen plenty of
serpents but the
biggest was in the
Island of Mull in 1889.
It was dead on the public road
between Daircraig
and Tobermory.

Elsewhere in Carmina Carmichael, Carmichael provides some more detail in rather wide-ranging entry under the header ‘nathair’:

A product called ‘clach-nathrach,’ serpent stone, is found on the root of the long ling. It is of steel-grey colour, has the consistency of soft putty when new and of hard putty when old, and is as light as pumice-stone, which it resembles. It is of a globular form, and from one to three inches in diameter. There is a circular hole, about a quarter of an inch in width, through the centre. This substance is said to be produced by the serpent emitting spume round the root of a twig of heather. The ‘clach-nathrach’ is greatly prized by the people, who transmit it as a talisman to their descendants.

There are many sayings dealing with the serpent:–

‘Tha e ann an grath na nathrach dhuit.’
He is in the spirit of the serpent towards thee.

‘The nimh na nathrach aig dhuit.’
The venom of the serpent he has towards thee.

‘Cho carach ris an nathair nimhe.’
As twistful as the sepent venomous.

‘Cleas na nathrach cur a chraicinn.’
The trick of the serpent changing the skin.

‘Cochul nathrach is olc a dh’fheumadh tu.”
The sheath of the serpent badly wouldst thou need.

According to the Rev. John Gregorson Campbell, serpents were also associated with healing. Serpent stones (clach nathrach) were a sort of bead used in healing rites to cure diseases for people or livestock, or else they were used to aid women in labour or to protect against enchantment. The sloughed skin (cochall) of a snake, or the severed head, could also be used for healing. Either the stone or the skin was placed in water, which was then given to the patient either a bewitched person or beast to drink in order to aid healing, presumably after a charm had been sung over it. It was commonly thought that these stones had once been used by the druids themselves, and they were sometimes also referred to in Ireland and Wales as ‘druid’s glass’.

References:
Black, Ronald (ed.), The Gaelic Otherworld (Edinburgh, 2005), pp. 219–21.
CW 1/81 fos. 52r–54r.
Carmina Gadelica, ii, p. 335.
Image: The rod of Asclepius.

Channelled Wrack – Feamainn-chìreann

On 14 February 1895, John Ewen (Iain Eòghann) MacRury, from Torlum, Benbecula, noted down a fairly long list of different types of seaweed, giving their Gaelic equivalents, and also writing down interesting details and observations about their properties. The twenty-first item on the list is known in Gaelic as feamainn-chìrean (sometimes cìreanach), which, rather pleasingly, has its equivalent in English as channelled wrack. As can be seen from the following note its properties were well-known and, apart from producing the most productive kelp, was extremely useful for the manufacture of cattle feed, which helped to produce good quality livestock, something which the Western Isles are still renowned for to this very day:

Feamuinn Chirinn the
most productive of all
seaweed for Kelp it grows
higher than any other marine
plant. Just at the height
of tide and unlike other
sea weed is generally ex
posed to the elements of
nature for a period of 18
hours out of the twenty
four hours. It is one of the
best feeding stuff for cattle
when well boiled. The juice
should be allowed to cool
and two pints given to each
beast when stalled at night
and much as a person
could lift twice in his
hand of the feminn [sixed
bith boan?] or clean chaff
or oats or bear or any
other sort of corn, three
times a week during the
month of March and April
It regulates cattle and cle
ans the inside and gives
a very glossy appearance
to the new hair in Summer.

Edward Dwelly notes in his Gaelic dictionary similar properties: ‘feamainn-chìrean or chìreag. It is known as feamainn chìreanach in Uist, and feamainn-chìreag in Skye and Lewis. It is only a few inches in length and grows only on rocks that are seldom under the water during neap-tides. It has a strong laxative property, often being plucked off the rocks and boiled, when it is given to cattle that are suffering from dryness.’ The initials appended to this piece of information are JM and by looking up Dwelly’s authorities that he quotes from throughout his work it can be revealed that this was Rev. John MacRury of Snizort [Skye & Uist.]. This was John Ewen’s elder brother and it may well be the case that this information noted down by him came as a result of an enquiry made by his brother who served as a minister in the isle of Skye for over twenty years until his death in 1907.

Interestingly enough, dúlamán, Irish Gaelic for channelled wrack, is the subject of a popular folk-song whereby the practice of collecting seaweed during times of scarcity is referenced throughout:

Dúlamán na binne buí, dúlamán Gaelach
Dúlamán na farraige, b’fhearr a bhí in Éirinn
Tá ceann buí óir ar an dúlamán gaelach
Tá dhá chluais mhaol ar an dúlamán maorach
Bróga breaca dubha ar an dúlamán gaelach
Tá bearéad agus triús ar an dúlamán maorach


Seaweed from the yellow cliff, Irish seaweed
Seaweed from the ocean, the best in all of Ireland
There is a yellow gold head on the Gaelic seaweed
There are two blunt ears on the stately seaweed
The Irish seaweed has beautiful black shoes
The stately seaweed has a beret and trousers


Reference:
CW 1, fos. 100r–100v.
Dwelly, Edward, The Illustrated Gaelic-English Dictionary (Glasgow, 1994), p. 421.
Image: Channelled Wrack or Feamainn-chìreann.

Dustaidh: A Bad Kelper

As mentioned in a previous blog, John Ewen (Iain Eòghann) MacRury from Torlum, Benbecula, supplied a great deal of traditional lore, of many different varieties, to Alexander Carmichael. Here, for example, is an anecdote recorded on 18 May 1895 regarding the word ‘Dustaidh’, apparently an English loan-word. The kelp industry (obair na ceilpe) was a mainstay for the economic well-being of the Western Isles for several generations. Kelp – a type of seaweed – was converted by burning it in kilns and the resulting ash was used for many purposes, particularly in the production of soda and iodine. The alkaline product from the ash was also used in the manufacture of soap and glass, and is still used today for this purpose. The versatility of the alginate derived from seaweed can also be seen through its use as a thickening agent in such diverse products as ice-cream, jelly and toothpaste. With regard to the Western Isles, the ending of the Napoleonic Wars, which led to cheaper sourcing of soda ash from continental Europe, meant that the kelp industry had all but collapsed by around 1830. During the boom years, landlords wishing to exploit the profits from this lucrative industry – the price of soda ash had risen astronomically from two pounds per ton in 1760 to twenty pounds per ton by 1808 – crowded families into crofting communities on the western seaboard to create pools of cheap or virtually free labour. The resultant economic collapse was disastrous not only for the profit-mongering landlords but more so for the islanders who faced either involuntary or voluntary eviction as well as an uncertain future.

Dustaidh a modern name for
a bad kelper. The kelp industry
was carried on rigorously on the
West during the later end of last
century and the present century.
A man that did not burn the
seaweed well and in the
usual manner, was known as to
have a great deal of duast
dust, which would require to be
reburnt with some well seasoned
seaweed very carefully. There was
a man in North Uist known as dust-
aidh dust-man after being a season
kelp making in Rona it would not
stick together and the ground officer
who was also kelp officer gave him
a lump sum for his dust and
procured another practical man
to reburn it with his own sea
weed deducting the allowance made
to dustaidh. I cannot say what
became of dustaidh, but a daugh-
ter of his was in Carinish very
recently have only one issue
as son who was also know[n]
as dustaidh og, young duster.
She was know as nighean ruadh
dhustaidh – red daughter of –
duster. She was a very upright
industrious woman, and never
thought of the name, no more than
her Christian name Mary.


Reference:
CW1, fos. 109v–110r
Image: Kelp

A Method of Recovering Stolen Goods

John Ewen MacRury (1853–1909)

A remarkable method – which may be termed witchcraft – was said to have been a favoured way in which to claim the recovery of stolen goods. This particular tradition was recorded not by Alexander Carmichael – although he may have been aware of it – but rather by his friend and colleague John Ewen (Iain Eòghann) MacRury of Torlum, Benbecula. Born in Benbecula around 1853, MacRury was nearly twenty years younger than Carmichael. He died in Airdrie Poor House aged fifty-four in 1909. Between 1887 and 1895 he gathered in a great deal of material at the behest of Carmichael who remembered him as: ‘A highly intelligent man, for whose knowledge of old lore I am greatly indebted in this work.’ The following example of his collecting, where the original spelling has been retained, was entitled in the notebook as ‘Togal an Doinis’ or rather ‘Togail an Donais’, which, in other words, was ‘Raising the Devil’. No reciter is noted down from John Ewen – he was a tradition bearer himself – but it is likely that he heard this anecdote from someone in Uist:

This extraordinary stroke
of art in olden times
was very effectual am-
ong the inhabitants of
the North. When anything
was stollen, and no
clear clue attached could be found
to any person in par-
ticular, all under sus-
pission were named out
by the looser to the
party gifted with the
art, their names were
written on parchment
or paper, and if the
party could not write
there was a different
mark for every one
under suspission.
The paper was fould
ed longways, and rub
bed between the pa[l]ms
of his hand, and in
the name of the Dev
il allowed to fall
gently into a basin
or a big bowl full
of cold water. If the
name of the guilty
party was among them
it would go to the
bottom and the rest
would float on
on the surface. Then the party
possessed of the art
was to inform the thief
of what happened and
unless the stolen
property was restored
to the right
ful owner within three days
the whole affair was
proclaimed publicly
and would be compelled
to submit.
They greatly object
ed to the raising of
the D[evil] as several y[ea]rs
famine was
sure to follow in
the township after
that.

References:
CW1, fos. 32r–33.
Carmina Gadelica, ii, p. 381.
Image: John Ewen MacRury (1853–1909). Reproduced with the kind permission of Calum Laing.