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 Electric
Scotland's Weekly Email Newsletter
   
  
Dear
Friend
It's your
Electric Scotland newsletter meaning the weekend is nearly here :-)
You can view what's new this week on Electric Scotland at
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See our Calendar of Scottish Events around the world and add your
own at
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CONTENTS
--------
Electric Scotland News
The Flag in the Wind
Books of John McDougall (New Book)
Poetry and Stories
Book of Scottish Story
The Bark Covered House
Fraser's Scottish Annual
Biographical Record of the County of Kent,
Ontario
The Sailor
Whom England Feared
Recollections of a Long Life 1829 - 1915
Robert Burns Lives!
Oor Mither Tongue
John's Scottish Sing-Along
Songs of Lowland Scotland
"Curdies" a Glasgow Sketch Book
The Black-Bearded Barbarian (New Book)
Journey Planner for Scotland Using Public
Transport
ELECTRIC SCOTLAND NEWS
----------------------
On the domestic front they've started on the
repair of my porch this week and that should be finished by Friday
and then it's onto the painting when they can get a few dry days.
-----
On our Aois system we've
added a few new forums one of which is a Celtic Music forum. Ronnie
Simpson is going to be the moderator of that one and he has over 30
years experience in that genre being a record producer. He's
volunteered to add some regular articles as well as do his best to
answer any questions.
I might add that we are looking to add other
forums on topics where we can get a real expert to agree to moderate
the forum and offer information and advice.
This
actually takes me back to the old ILink network that I was part of
in the old BBS days prior to the Internet. These expert forums were
kept very much on topic and so they became a really great resource.
Should any of you be a real expert on some topic or know of someone
who is we'd love to hear from you. The criteria for creating a new
forum is mostly to do with being able to find an appropriate expert
who will undertake to add regular informative posts and also be
around to answer questions.
Being a moderator of a forum
just gives you the ability to move inappropriate posts to other
forums. Like were we to add a Windows forum then we wouldn't want to
see postings about your holidays in there and so they would be
re-directed to another forum. This way all the messages in the
windows forum will be something to do with windows only.
You'll
also see a new graphic appearing in our Aois header where our Aois
girl on the right will be replaced by our Piper. The new graphics
have been designed by Todd DeBonis and you can learn more about him
at http://www.dvtvfilm.com/.
In
addition Todd has written a book for children of ages 8+ and you can
read about this book at
http://www.themonkeykingsdaughter.com/
-----
We are also looking at doing
Electric Scotland T-Shirts with these graphics. You can see the
graphics we're looking to use at
http://www.electricscotland.com/merchandise
Should
you be interested in one then do let us know which graphics you'd
like best :-)
ABOUT THE STORIES
-----------------
Some of the stories in here are just parts of a
larger story so do check out the site for the full versions. You can
always find the link in our "What's New" section at the link at the
top of this newsletter or on our site menu.
THE FLAG IN THE WIND
--------------------
This weeks Flag is for some reason not
available. Might be up tomorrow.
You can read the Flag at
http://www.scotsindependent.org
Christina McKelvie MSP's
Weekly diary is not available as the Parliament are now on the
Summer recess.
Books of John McDougall
-----------------------
I mentioned last week that I'd be starting on
this 6 book set and have now made a start at the first of those
books, Forest, Lake and Prairie, Twenty years of frontier life in
western Canada, 1842-62.
The chapters added so far
are...
Chapter I
Childhood - Indians - Canoes - "Old Isaiah " -
Father goes to college.
Chapter II
Guardians - School - Trip to Nottawasaga -
Journey to Alderville - Elder Case - The Wild Colt, etc.
Chapter
III
Move into the far
north - Trip from Alderville to Garden River - Father's work - Wide
range of big steamboat - My trip to Owen Sound - Peril in storm - In
store at Penetanguishene - Isolation - First boat - Brother David
knocked down.
Chapter IV
Move to Rama - I go to college - My chum - How
I cure him - Work in store in Orillia - Again attend college -
Father receives appointment to "Hudson's Bay" - Asks me to accompany
him.
Chapter V
From Rama to St. Paul - Mississippi steamers -
Slaves - Pilot - Race.
Chapter VI
Across the plains - Mississippi to the Red -
Pemmican - Mosquitoes - Dogs - Hunting - Flat boat - Hostile
Indians.
Chapter VII
From Georgetown on the Red to Norway House on
the Nelson - Old Fort Garry - Governor MacTavish - York boats -
Indian gamblers - Welcome by H. B. Co. people.
Here is
how the first chapter starts...
My parents were pioneers. I
was born on the banks of the Sydenham River in a log-house, one of
the first dwellings, a very few of which made up the frontier
village of Owen Sound. This was in the year 1842.
My earliest recollections
are of stumps, log heaps, great forests, corduroy roads, Indians,
log and birch-bark canoes, bateaux, Mackinaw boats, etc. I have also
a very vivid recollection of deep snow in winter, and very hot
weather and myriad mosquitoes in summer.
My father was first settler,
trapper, trader, sailor, and local preacher. He was one of the grand
army of pioneers who took possession of the wilderness of Ontario,
and in the name of God and country began the work of reclamation
which has ever since gone gloriously on, until to-day Ontario is one
of the most comfortable and prosperous parts of our great country.
God fitted those early
settlers for their work, and they did it like heroes. Mother was a
strong Christian woman, content, patient, plodding, full of quiet,
restful assurance, pre-eminently qualified to be the companion and
helper of one who had to hew his way from the start out of the
wildness of this new world. My mother says I spoke Indian before I
spoke English.
My first memories are of these original
dwellers in the land. I grew up amongst them, ate corn-soup out of
their wooden bowls, roasted green ears at their camp-fires, feasted
with them on deer and bear's meat, went with them to set their nets
and to spear fish at nights by the light of birch-bark flambeaux,
and, later on, fat pine light-jack torches. Bows and arrows, paddles
and canoes were my playthings, and the dusky forest children were my
playmates.
Father, very early in my childhood, taught me
how to swim, and, later on, to shoot and skate and sail. Many a trip
I had with my father on his trading voyages to the Manitoulin and
other islands of Lake Huron and Georgian Bay, where he would obtain
his loads of fish, furs and maple sugar, and sail with these to
Detroit and other eastern and southern ports. Father had for cook
and general servant a colored man, Isaiah by name. Isaiah was my
special friend; I was his particular charge. His bigness and
blackness and great kindness made him a hero in my boyish mind. My
contact with Isaiah, and my association with the Indians, very early
made a real democrat of me. I never could bear to hear a black man
called a "nigger," nor yet an Indian a "buck." Isaiah was an expert
sailor, as also a good cook, but it was his great big heart that won
me to him, and which to-day, though nearly fifty years have passed
since then, brings a dampness to my eye as I remember my "big black
friend."
On some of his voyages father had a tame bear
with him. This bear was a source of great annoyance to Isaiah, for
Bruin would be constantly smelling around the caboose in which the
stove and cooking apparatus were placed, and where Isaiah would fain
reign supreme. One evening Isaiah was cooking pancakes, and was,
while doing so, absent-minded—perhaps thinking of those old slavery
days when he had undergone terrible hardships and great cruelty from
his ignorant and selfish brothers, who claimed to own him," soul and
body." Whatever it was, he forgot to watch his cakes sufficiently,
for Mr. Bear was whipping them off the plate as fast as Isaiah was
putting them on. Father and a fellow-passenger were looking on and
enjoying the fun. By and by Isaiah was heard to say. "Guess he had
enough for the gentlemans to begin with;" but, lo! to his wonderment
when he went to take the cakes, they were gone; and in his surprise
he looked around, but there was no one near but the bear, and he
looked very innocent. So Isaiah seemed to conclude that he had not
made any cakes, and accordingly went to work in earnest, but, at the
same time, determined that there should be no mistake in the matter.
Presently he caught the thief in the act of taking the cake from the
plate, and then he went for the bear with the big spoon in his hand,
with which he was dipping and beating the batter. The chase became
exciting. Around the caboose, across the deck, up the rigging flew
the bear. Isaiah was close after him, but finally found that the
bear was too agile for him, for presently he came back, a wiser and,
for the time, a more watchful man.
You can read the rest of
this chapter at
http://www.electricscotland.com/history/mcdougall/forest1.htm
The book index page where you can get to the other chapters is at
http://www.electricscotland.com/history/mcdougall/forestndx.htm
Poetry and Stories
------------------
Donna has been posting up some family stories
which give us life lessons.
You can read these stories
in our Article Service and even add your own at
http://www.electricscotland.com/article
Book of Scottish Story
----------------------
Thanks to John Henderson for sending this book
into us.
This week he's sent in chapter 3 of "Basil
Rolland" which starts...
Day was dawning as our
travellers reached the camp of the Covenanters. They rested for some
time to partake of victuals, which their journey rendered necessary.
Isaac Rolland then judged it proper to present his son to Montrose,
and accordingly conducted him to Dunottar, where the general then
was.
They were
admitted to his presence.
"I expected you sooner,
Rolland," said Montrose. "What intelligence have you gathered?”
"The enemy are preparing to
take the field with a numerous and well-appointed force, and I have
gathered, from a sure source, that it is their intention to attack
our forces as soon as some needful supplies are received from the
north.”
"How do the citizens stand affected? "
"Almost to a man they have
joined Aboyne. They have fortified the city and the bridge, and are
determined to hold out to the last. "
"The ungrateful
truce-breaking slaves!" said Montrose. . "But vengeance is at hand.
Who is this young man whom thou. hast brought with thee?”
"My son," said Isaac, "whom
grace hath inclined to take part with us.”
"A youth of gallant bearing
! Young man, thy father’s faithfulness is a warrant for thine. Let
thy fidelity equal thy reputed spirit, and thou shalt not lack the
encouragement due to thy deserts. You may both retire to rest, and I
will apprise you of the duties required of you.”
They
saluted the general, and retired.
A foraging party returned
with a report that Aboyne was already on his march. This was found
to be incorrect by some scouts who had been dispatched that evening
to gather what information they could about the enemy’s motions.
They brought the intelligence, however, that Aboyne’s equipments
were completed, and that it was the popular belief that he would
march immediately to meet the Covenanters. Preparations were
accordingly made for immediate marching. Numerous foraging parties
scoured the adjacent country for provisions, and horses for
transporting the baggage and ammunition. According to the custom of
the Congregation, when about to engage in warfare, the next day was
appointed for a general fast throughout the host.
The rest of this chapter can
be read at
http://www.electricscotland.com/books/story/story92c.htm
All the
other stories can be read at
http://www.electricscotland.com/books/story/
The Bark Covered House
----------------------
We have now completed this book with the
following chapters...
Chapter 27. Thoughts in Connection with Father
and Early Pioneer Life
Chapter 28. Father's New House and Its
Situation—His Children Visit Him
Chapter 29. My Watch Lost and Visit to Canada
Chapter 30. Mother's Visit to the East—1861
Chapter 31. Leaving New York City for Home
Here is how Chapter 27
starts...
I FOLLOW father, in my mind, to his last farm
which he bought in 1849, where he lived out his days. It was not
cleared up, as he wished to have it, and he continued to labor as
hard as ever before, trying to fix it up to suit him and to get it
in the right shape for his comfort and convenience. The soil was as
good as the place he left. He raised large crops on it. One day I
went to father's and inquired for him. Mother said he was down in
the field cutting corn. I went to him; he had a splendid field of
corn and was cutting it up. The sweat was running off from him. I
told him it was not necessary for him to work so hard and asked him
to let me take his corn-cutter, as though I was going to cut corn.
He handed it to me, then I said I am going to keep this corn-cutter:
I want you to hear to me. Let us go to the house and get some one
else, to cut the corn; so we went to the house together.
But it was impossible for me
or anybody else to keep him from hard labor, although he had plenty.
He had become so inured to hard work that it seemed he could not
stop. He finally got all of his farm cleared that he wanted cleared.
A few of the last years of his eventful life, he let some of his
land to be worked on shares and kept his meadow land and pasture. He
needed all of that, for he kept quite a stock of cattle, sheep and
horses and took care of them himself, most of the time, up to his
last sickness.
He was a great lover of good books; and spent
much of his leisure time reading. He did not often refer to the
hardships which he had endured in Michigan; but often spoke of the
privations and endurance of others. Thus, in his latter days, not
thinking of what he had done, he seemed to feast on the idea, that
America had produced such and such ones, who had been benefactors
and effectual workers for the good of our race.
Most of those men who came
here in the prime of life, about the time that father came, are
gone. The country shows what they have done, but few consider it
properly. Some know what it was then and what it is now and know
also, that it has arrived at the exalted position it now occupies
through the iron will, clear brain and the steady unflinching nerve
of others. Yet they pass on in their giddy whirl and the constant
excitement of the nineteenth century, when wealth is piled at their
doors, and hardly think of their silent benefactors.
You can read the rest of
this chapter at
http://www.electricscotland.com/history/bark/chapter27.htm
You can read the other chapters at
http://www.electricscotland.com/history/bark/
Biographical Record of the County of Kent,
Ontario
--------------------------------------------------
Our thanks to Nola Crewe for sending these into
us.
NEIL A. McGEACHY, a successful farmer and
dairyman of Harwich township, residing on Lot 3, Concession 3, was
born in that township on the same Concession, December 1st, 1844, a
son of John and Flora (McNauten) McGeachy, old pioneers of the
county. John McGeachy was born in Scotland in 1800, a son of Neil
McGeachy, who died in Scotland. Flora McNaughten was a daughter of
John and Johanna McNaughten, who came to Harwich township from
Scotland and settled on Lot 10 about 1838. Neil McGeachy had three
daughters, Margaret, who married Peter Longwell, and is now
deceased; Catherine, who married Peter McKerrell, and settled in
Chatham township; and Mary, who married Edward McTaggert, and
settled in Virginia, where she died leaving two sons, of whom Edward
McTaggert is now a resident of the State of Washington, and
Archibald lives on the old homestead in Virginia.
John McGeachy and his wife
were reared and married in Scotland, and in 1840 came to Canada via
New York on a sailing-vessel, the trip taking six weeks. They
settled in the dense forests of the County of Kent and suffered all
the hardships incident to pioneer life, but by steadfast industry
they brought peace and plenty out of the wilderness and became very
prominent people in their locality. John McGeachy died at his home
in 1862, and his wife survived him until 1898. Both were founders
and consistent members of the St Andrew Presbyterian Church of
Chatham. Politically Mr. McGeachy was a Reformer, but he never
aspired to municipal office.
You can read the bio at
http://www.electricscotland.com/history/canada/kent/mcgeachy.htm
The Sailor Whom England Feared
------------------------------
Being the Story of John Paul Jones, Scotch
Naval Adventurer and Admiral in the American and Russian Fleets By
M. Mac Dermot Crawford.
Added more chapters this week...
Chapter XV - 1778
Chapter XVI - 1778 - 1779
Chapter XVII - September 23, 1779
Chapter XVIII - 1779
Chapter XIX - 1779
Chapter XX - 1779
Chapter XXI - 1780 - 1783
Here is how Chapter XVIII
starts...
A PLACID harvest moon shone unheeding on the
havoc of war, its untempered, ghastly white light enhancing the
awful scene of carnage; on decks drenched with valiant blood, on the
threescore of peaceful dead, lying unshriven, their brief span
ended. More than twice their number lay as they had fallen, writhing
and groaning, or numb with the agony of mortal wounds, and the
cockpit was a horrible pandemonium of suffering, to which the "good
old surgeon, Lawrence Brook," unassisted as he was, could give but
scant attention. Wreckage of every description cumbered the decks,
confusion reigned supreme. Those who rushed to and fro at the orders
of their captain stumbled over the bodies of their dead comrades,
over the spent shot, over the weapons fallen from inert, lifeless
hands, and the fragments of burst guns, slipping as they ran on
gruesome fragments of what had been living men. It was a scene of
"carnage, wreck and ruin, unimaginable unless seen."
Only a hundred or so of her unwounded crew
remained to man the Bonhomme Richard, the other forty or thereabouts
were with Mayrant aboard the prize. The poor Richard was indeed a
wreck, she had sunk so that the shot-holes "'twixt wind and water"
could not be plugged. The starboard side of the ship was driven in.
Every gun on the starboard side was disabled. But for a few frames,
futtocks and stanchions that still remained intact, the whole
gun-deck would have fallen through."
"Such was the condition of
the Richard, when sinking and on fire she was still the conqueror,
and could by signal command the ship that had destroyed her! Nothing
like this has ever been known in the annals of naval warfare."
The terrific battle had
lasted nearly three hours without pause in its unremitting fury. So
dense was the smoke hanging over the ship, that for some minutes
after the Scraps had struck, both sides continued firing, and it was
not till Mayrant on the Serapis called to Dick Dale, that the news
spread over the ship. Then came a sudden calm, the rattle of combat
stilled as if by magic, the ships drifted together on the moonlit
water, and there was no sound save the groans of the wounded, or the
hoarse commands of the officers. The mingled emotions in the hearts
of commanders and crews can only be imagined in their complexity.
The Richard's rudder had
been shot away early in the action, and had not Jones, with much
foresight, had a second one rigged by the carpenters before leaving
l'Orient, the ship would have lain like a log at the mercy of wind
and tide when the lashings holding her to the Serapis were severed.
Through the confusion of victory and defeat, the Captain led a party
to make a complete survey of the Richard, which took until five
o'clock the next day (September 24th), when the Richard was
condemned as utterly unseaworthy, and her wounded and prisoners
ordered to be transferred to the Serapis and other ships of the
squadron without a moment's delay, for, in the event of wind and sea
rising, there was no hope of keeping the Richard afloat.
Staggering with exhaustion,
hardly seeing from their dazed, sleepless eyes, the tattered,
powder- stained sailors and marines slaved at the call of humanity,
for, should the sea become disturbed, the catastrophe would be too
frightful to picture, and the brave old Richard was sinking fast. A
crew from the Pallas manned the pumps, but the water gained steadily
in the hold. There were only three boats left to move the "poor
fellows, who had to be handled tenderly," and two died in the boats.
The means of transport was painfully crude, the unprecedented
situation one of extreme peril, which every moment increased. The
crew of the Serapis behaved splendidly, tirelessly helping the enemy
of the night before as the wounded and prisoners quite outnumbered
the able-bodied crew of the Richard. At last the transfer was
complete; and dusk fell, but still they worked. A shiver of rising
wind made those who waited with the untiring Commodore urge him to
leave his task of hastily gathering up the ship's papers. All the
stores had to be abandoned, and scarcely any of the ammunition was
saved. Jones's loss amounted to 50,000 livres, as he managed to save
"only a few souvenirs from feminine friends in Paris, his journal,
and a bag of linen." "Most of the officers lost everything." Thanks
to his journal, Jones leaves us a word-picture of the last minutes
of the ship he had fought so daringly.
You can read the rest of
this chapter at
http://www.electricscotland.com/history/jpj18.htm
The other
chapters can be read at
http://www.electricscotland.com/history/jpjndx.htm
Recollections of a Long Life 1829 - 1915
----------------------------------------
By Isaac Stephenson (1915)
This week we've added the
following chapters...
Chapter XII
Scarcity of politicians in early lumbering
settlements - The Congressional Globe - Early recollections of
politics - Distributing ballots in Chicago in 1856 - Experiences as
supervisor and justice of the peace - An Indian wedding - Campaign
of 1860 - Beginning of the Civil War - Furnishing recruits -
Assassination of Lincoln - Fear of Indian massacre
Chapter XIII
Business revival after panic and Civil War -
Development of Menominee River region and creation of boom company -
William B. Ogden and Samuel J. Tilden - I become manager of Peshtigo
company - Erection of woodenware manufacturing plant - Establishment
of barge lines for transporting lumber - Origin of signal for tows -
Construction of Sturgeon Bay canal - Adoption of cedar for railroad
ties
Chapter XIV
Difficulties at Peshtigo - Extension of the
Northwestern railroad northward from Green Bay-Forest fires- The
great fire of 1871 - Destruction of Peshtigo with loss of eleven
hundred lives - Relief work - Antics of fire - Horrors of holocaust
- Conflagration at Chicago - Distributing supplies and rebuilding of
village - Resumption of lumbering - Difficulties of reconstruction
Chapter XV
Early experiences in politics - Election to the
Assembly in 1863 - Revocation of the Oconto River grant - Candidacy
for House of Representatives - Maneuvers of political leaders -
Election to Congress - Campaign of 1884 in interest of Spooner -
Re-election of Sawyer in 1886 - Withdrawal from political field -
Efforts in behalf of Henry C. Payne - Election of Quarles to Senate
Chapter XVI
Experiences in Congress-Friendship with
Democratic leaders - A conference with President Arthur
Congressional economy - The Navy - Interest in river and harbor
improvement - Possibilities of waterway development - Disappearance
of business men from public life
Chapter XVII
Organization of the Half-breed faction in
Wisconsin and election of La Follette as Governor - Railroad
doniination of politics - Financing the La Follette campaign -
Nomination and election of La Follette - Establishment of the Free
Press as the Half-breed organ - Eastern corporations enter Wisconsin
fight - La Follette's proposal that I run for Senate - Half-breed
emissaries - Early reforms accomplished by legislature
Chapter XVIII
Half-breeds successful in 1902 and 1904 -
Demoralization of Stalwarts - Rifts in the reform party and early
defeats - Setback in Third Congressional district - Fight over
election of successor to Senator Quarles -Half-breeds pick La
Follette for Senate his apparent reluctance to leave Wisconsin -
Lieutenant-Governor Davidson picked for slaughter - Another
Half-breed defeat - Campaign for unexpired term of Senator Spooner -
Discord among the reform leaders - My election to the Senate
Here is how Chapter XIV
starts...
Up to the autumn of 1871 the huge outlay we had
made at Peshtigo on the construction of factories and mills had
brought us no return. The market for woodenware appeared to be
glutted and in some instances we were forced to sell our product at
a loss. Moreover, the expenses of handling, transporting, and
storing, in spite of the reductions we had made by the use of
barges, were still excessive.
To improve these conditions
our efforts had been directed toward securing the extension of the
Northwestern Railroad from the city, of Green Bay to the Menominee.
Mr. Ogden, so long as he remained on the directorate, was unwilling
to use his influence in furthering this plan for fear his motive
might be misinterpreted as a desire to advance his own interests at
Peshtigo. The burden, therefore, fell principally upon me, and I
made a number of trips to New York, not to speak of many to Chicago,
to confer with the railroad officials and lay the case before them.
Finally we succeeded, two
years alter Mr. Ogden had retired from the directorate. In 1871 the
railroad company began to extend its line northward, giving us the
prospect of a much-needed outlet which would enable us to distribute
our products directly throughout the West without the necessity of
reshipment at Chicago. In other respects also the outlook brightened
and we were confident that we had reached a point at which we could
make a profit on our operations.
But in our efforts to better
our position we unwittingly paved the way for disaster. The summer
and autumn of 1871 were unusually dry and the forests and brush were
reduced to tinder. To make conditions worse, the wind blew almost
continuously for day after day from the south-west. When work on the
railroad was begun fires were started to clear the right of way. The
contractors carelessly allowed these to spread and they ran through
the country with startling rapidity, feeding on the dry forests. In
some instances even the marshes and bogs were burned to a depth of
four feet.
For five weeks before October 8 we had fought
small fires in the woods in the vicinity of Peshtigo and the air was
so murky with smoke that people went about on the streets with red
and watering eyes. On afternoon of Saturday, October 7, I drove from
Marinette to the village of Peshligo and went down to the harbor
where the steam sawmill was situated. On my return on the evening of
the same day tongues of flame darting through the woods were visible
from the roadway. These were the forerunners of the great disaster.
The sporadic fires seemed
only to kindle the forest and bring it to the point of inflamability
to be consumed later. On the night of Sunday, October 8, about nine
o'clock, the flames, fanned by a high wind, leaped into a fury and
sweeping in a northeasterly direction over a path twelve miles wide
encompassed the village of Peshtigo, transformed it into a smoking
waste and took toll of its people to the number of eleven hundred.
Gathered into a tornado of fire they rushed on incredible rapidity,
vaulted the river, and died out only when they reached the
impassable barrier of water which confronted them on the shore of
Green Bay, north of Menominee.
In the blackened wake every
form of life was obliterated. In many instances tiny heaps of white
ashes marked the places where men, women, and children had fallen;
and where the forest had been, gaunt disfigured tree trunks stood
like sentinels of death under the low-hanging pall of smoke.
In Peshtigo a number of
people took refuge in the river and stood for an hour or more in the
water, all but blinded and suffocated by the intense heat and smoke,
while the fiery turmoil raged on all sides of them. But most of the
population had been overtaken in their houses or on the streets by
the sudden outburst and were numbered among the missing. Every house
was gone and only twisted ruins marked the places where the factory,
mills, the supply store, and other buildings had been. Even a mile
of our railroad had been burned and the locomotive and cars were a
tangled mass of iron. The loss was complete.
In Marinette we were
struggling with another fire which broke out later and burned
everything from the middle to the lower end of the city. The path of
the flames which had devastated Peshtigo lay just to the north.
Between the two we struggled all night in the blinding smoke and
intense heat, not knowing how soon the seething fringes of fire
would close in upon us. The air itself was livid and seemed to burst
into sheets of flame, and the withering maelstrom spat fiery tongues
that consumed whatever they touched. In some places they overleaped
piles of dry brush which a spark would have ignited, yet burned the
grass to within tell of them. The fire appeared to break out
spontaneously in pockets or dart forward in tortuous flashes instead
of progressing with uniform pace, which accounted for the strange
contrasts it left in its ruined wake. None the less its path from
Peshtigo to the bay was clearly marked and varied little in width
for the entire distance.
You can read the rest of
this chapter at
http://www.electricscotland.com/history/stephenson/chapter14.htm
We
now have several chapters up which can be read at
http://www.electricscotland.com/history/stephenson/index.htm
Robert Burns Lives!
-------------------
By Frank Shaw
Robert Burns made haggis the
National Dish of Scotland in 1786 when he published “Address To A
Haggis”, a dish you either love or dislike. I fall in the former
category – I love good haggis! I now want to introduce you to James
Macsween who makes a living selling haggis and is known all over
Scotland as “the king of haggis”. He and his sister Jo operate
Macsween of Edinburgh, the business started by their grandfather,
making them third-generation haggis makers. To hear James Macsween
present the “Address To A Haggis” at a Burns Night Supper would be a
royal treat. Unfortunately, you can’t buy his haggis here in the
States (the “food police” will not allow you to do so), but when you
are in Scotland, you can find it almost everywhere. If I told you it
was good, that would not be good enough! The Macsween recipe is as
well protected as that famous American icon, Coca-Cola.
In a New York Times article
by Warren Hoge, he quotes Macsween as saying that “people have the
wrong concept of what haggis is until they try it because all
they’ve heard is that it is full of guts, it’s full of brains, they
just pick up these tales. We have a phrase, ‘He who tastes knows’.”,
And, I might add, when you think of haggis in Scotland, the name
synonymous with it is Macsween of Edinburgh.
One
regret I had on a recent trip to Scotland with my family was not
finding time to meet with Mr. Macsween, even though we talked over
the phone in Edinburgh and swapped a couple of emails. Certainly my
loss. Next time I’m there, meeting with Macsween and having some
haggis will be high on my list! His company’s website states “Macsween
of Edinburgh is approached every year by people wishing to organize
their own tributes. As guardians of Scotland's national dish,
nothing gives us more pleasure than to share our ideas about
arranging a Burns Supper. We want you all to enjoy the whole
experience of fine poetry, fine humour, fine discourse and, of
course, fine haggis.” I love that phrase - “guardians of Scotland’s
national dish”! I have a pretty good idea that their father and
grandfather would be very proud of the way these two haggis makers
are taking care of their great family tradition.
Recently
on this website I have had several prominent Scots discuss “What
Burns Mean To Me”. Among them are Ken Simpson, Gerry Carruthurs,
David Purdie, Billy Kay, Ross Roy, and singer Eddi Reader. It is an
honor to have James Macsween share his thoughts with our readers as
he did earlier on Scotsman.com.
You can read this article at
http://www.electricscotland.com/familytree/frank/burns_lives63.htm
You can get to all the articles at
http://www.electricscotland.com/familytree/frank/burns.htm
Oor Mither Tongue
-----------------
An Anthology of Scots Vernacular Verse by
Ninian Macwhannell (1938) and our thanks to John Henderson for
sending this into us.
We have the poems up of...
ANONYMOUS:
A Hen's a Hen for a' That
Holidays
Bruce and the Ettercap
BAIN, ROBERT:
In Oor Kailyard
Shakespeare and Dickens and Me
Cock o' the North
which you can read at
http://www.electricscotland.com/history/mither/
John's Scottish Sing-Along
--------------------------
Provided by John Henderson
This week we've added...
The Road To The Isles
Just A Kelty Clippie
The Slippy Stane
I would
just note here that while the page should appear quite quickly the
actual song might take a wee bit longer to load depending on its
size and if you have a slow internect connection it will take a wee
bit longer.
You can find these songs at
http://www.electricscotland.com/poetry/henderson/singalong/index.htm
Songs of Lowland Scotland
-------------------------
From the times of James V, King of Scots, A
book of c. 600 pages of songs published in Scotland in 1870, and
arranged in episodic form by John Henderson.
We've added another 30 pages
this week as a pdf file which you can get to at
http://www.electricscotland.com/history/songs/index.htm
"Curdies" a Glasgow Sketch Book
-------------------------------
By Hugh S. Roberton
We now have up...
Chapter I - The He'rt o' a
Lion
Chapter II - The
Blantyre Bodie
Chapter
III - Nancy Pretty
Chapter IV - The "Ayes" have it
Chapter V - The Fairy Queen
Chapter VI - His Master's Voice
Chapter VII - The Foggy Morning
Chapter VIII - A Sair Tranchle
These are all pdf files and
I have to say I'm really enjoying these stories and getting a good
chuckle at the same time :-)
You can read these at
http://www.electricscotland.com/history/curdies/
The Black-Bearded Barbarian
---------------------------
The Life of George Leslie Mackay of Formosa by
Marian Keith
The first chapter sets the scene...
Up in the stony
pasture-field behind the barn the boys had been working all the long
afternoon. Nearly all, that is, for, being boys, they had managed to
mix a good deal of fun with their labor. But now they were tired of
both work and play, and wondered audibly, many times over, why they
were not yet called home to supper.
The work really belonged to
the Mackay boys, but, like Tom Sawyer, they had made it so
attractive that several volunteers had come to their aid. Their
father was putting up a new stone house, near the old one down there
behind the orchard, and the two youngest of the family had been put
at the task of breaking the largest stones in the field.
It meant only to drag some
underbrush and wood from the forest skirting the farm, pile them on
the stones, set fire to them, and let the heat do the rest. It had
been grand sport at first, they all voted, better than playing
shinny, and almost as good as going fishing. In fact it was a kind
of free picnic, where one could play at Indians all day long. But as
the day wore on, the picnic idea had languished, and the
stone-breaking grew more and more to resemble hard work.
The warm spring sunset had
begun to color the western sky; the meadow-larks had gone to bed,
and the stone-breakers were tired and ravenously hungry--as hungry
as only wolves or country boys can be. The visitors suggested that
they ought to be going home. "Hold on, Danny, just till this one
breaks," said the older Mackay boy, as he set a burning stick to a
new pile of brush.
"This'll be a dandy, and it's the last, too.
They're sure to call us to supper before we've time to do another."
The new fire, roaring and
snapping, sending up showers of sparks and filling the air with the
sweet odor of burning cedar, proved too alluring to be left. The
company squatted on the ground before it, hugging their knees and
watching the blue column of smoke go straight up into the colored
sky. It suggested a camp-fire in war times, and each boy began to
tell what great and daring deeds he intended to perform when he
became a man.
Jimmy, one of the visitors, who had been most
enthusiastic over the picnic side of the day's work, announced that
he was going to be a sailor. He would command a fleet on the high
seas, so he would, and capture pirates, and grow fabulously wealthy
on prize-money. Danny, who was also a guest, declared his purpose
one day to lead a band of rough riders to the Western plains, where
he would kill Indians, and escape fearful deaths by the narrowest
hairbreadth.
"Mebbe I'm going to be Premier of Canada, some
day," said one youngster, poking his bare toes as near as he dared
to the flames.
There were hoots of derision. This was entirely
too tame to be even considered as a career.
"And what are you going to
be, G. L.?" inquired the biggest boy of the smallest.
The others looked at the
little fellow and laughed. George Mackay was the youngest of the
group, and was a small wiry youngster with a pair of flashing eyes
lighting up his thin little face. He seemed far too small and
insignificant to even think about a career. But for all the
difference in their size and age the bigger boys treated little
George with a good deal of respect. For, somehow, he never failed to
do what he set out to do. He always won at races, he was never
anywhere but at the head of his class, he was never known to be
afraid of anything in field or forest or school ground, he was the
hardest worker at home or at school, and by sheer pluck he managed
to do everything that boys bigger and older and stronger could do.
So when Danny asked, "And
what are you going to be, G. L.? "though the boys laughed at the
small thin little body, they respected the daring spirit it held,
and listened for his answer.
"He's goin' to be a giant,
and go off with a show," cried one, and they all laughed again.
Little G. L. laughed too,
but he did not say what he intended to do when he grew big. Down in
his heart he held a far greater ambition than the others dreamed of.
It was too great to be told--so great he scarcely knew what it was
himself. So he only shook his small head and closed his lips
tightly, and the rest forgot him and chattered on.
We have the first two
chapters up which you can read at
http://www.electricscotland.com/history/china/mackayndx.htm
Journey Planner for Scotland Using Public
Transport
---------------------------------------------------
I just came across this site while browsing for
something else and noted that they let you embed a search box into
your own web site so thought this would be a useful service to offer
under our "Services" section.
You can get to this at
http://www.electricscotland.com/services/journey_planner.htm
The Tower of Craigietocher
--------------------------
You may remember that this is a Tower that is
being built from scratch and the owner said he'd keep us up to date
with developments. And so we got in some new pictures which you can
see at
http://www.electricscotland.com/history/articles/cragietocher.htm
At
the foot of the page you'll see a link to July 2009 pictures which
are at
http://www.electricscotland.com/history/articles/cragietocher3.htm
And that's it for now and hope you all have a
good weekend :-)
Alastair
http://www.electricscotland.com
OUR
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-----------------------
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