six vowels, a, e, i, o, u, ao. Ch, ng, bh or mh, dh or gh, and ao represent simple sounds, and are to be regarded as single letters. Ch is the same letter as the Greek chi. Bh and mh stand for v. Generally mh is a nasalized v, or a v sounded partly through the nose. Dh and gh stand for y. There is no word in Gaelic that begins with the sound of h, v, or y. Ph is always sounded like f; as in phaisg e, faiss e, he folded. Th is sounded like h as in thilg e, hilg e, he threw. Sh is also sounded like h ; as in sheall e, heall e, he looked. Fh is silent, as in chan f haca mi, chan aca mi, I did not see. THE CONSONANTS. The names of the consonants are ba, ca, cha, da, fa, ga, ha, la, ma, na, ang, pa, ra, sa, ta, va, ya. The correct pronunciation of these names will be found in the following words ; — /^at/i-is, forehead ; caf/i, battle ; f/iat/i-ich e, he fought ; (fat//, dye ; /at/i, a mole ; gat/i, a sting ; ihath-xoh e, he frequented ; /a-sir, a flame ; math, good ; nath-vc, a serpent ; i-ang, a sheep-pen ; pa-cz-ix a peddler ; rath, luck ; Y)\-sath-\\\xr\, Saturday ; ^a//^-ich, frequent ; a vath-\s, his forehead ; yaih e, he dyed. The words or parts of words con- taining the names of the letters are printed in Italics. In explaining the sounds of the consonants it will be convenient to treat each of the letters 1, r, and n as two letters. The six letters arising from this division may be written Ih, 1, rh, r, nh, n. Lh, rh, and nh maybe called liquid or soft letters, and 1, r, and n hard letters. In using these terms, however, it must be distinctly understood that 1, r, and n are hard letters only in comparison with lh, vn. rh, and nh ; not in comparison with other letters of the alphabet. The difference in sound between Ih and 1, rh and r, nh and n will be readily noticed by com- paring the sounds of each of these pairs of letters in Ihian, a net, and mo lian, my net ; rhamh, an oar, and mo ramh, my oar ; nhamh an enemy, and mo namh, my enemy. Of course Ihian, rhamh, and nhamh are invariably spelt in books lian, ramh, and namh. The letters p, b, f, v and m are called labials, or lip-letters ; and the letters h, c, ch, g, y, t, d, Ih, rh, nh, 1, r, n, ng, and s, linguals or tongue- letters. As m, n, and ng are sounded partly througli the nose they are called nasals, or nose- letters. All these letters have two distinct sounds, a low or flat sound, and a high or sharp sound. In the case of the labials, however, the difference between these sounds is of so slight a character that it is scarcely worth taking into account. In the case of the linguals the difference amounts to a good deal. Compare for instance the sound of t in tal, an adze, with its sound in tinn, sick. The difference between its sounds in these two words is almost equal to the difference between th in thank and t in tin. By the low or flat sound of a consonant is meant its sound in union with a low or flat vowel, such as a, o, u, or ao ; and by its high or sharp sound, its sound in union with a high or sharp vowel, such as i. It is not to be assumed that the Gaelic consonants agree in sound OR IN POLITICS with the same consonants in English. The fact is that with the exception of h and m there is not a consonant in Gaelic that has the same sound, and only the same sound, as the same consonant or any other consonant in English. GAELIC BARDS The difference in sound between Ih and 1, rh and r, nh and n will be readily noticed by com- paring the sounds of each of these pairs of letters in Ihian, a net, and mo lian, my net ; rhamh, an oar, and mo ramh, my oar ; nhamh an enemy, and mo namh, my enemy. Of course Ihian, rhamh, and nhamh are invariably spelt in books lian, ramh, and namh. The letters p, b, f, v and m are called labials, or lip-letters ; and the letters h, c, ch, g, y, t, d, Ih, rh, nh, 1, r, n, ng, and s, linguals or tongue- letters. As m, n, and ng are sounded partly througli the nose they are called nasals, or nose- letters. All these letters have two distinct sounds, a low or flat sound, and a high or sharp sound. In the case of the labials, however, the difference between these sounds is of so slight a character that it is scarcely worth taking into account. In the case of the linguals the difference amounts to a good deal. Compare for instance the sound of t in tal, an adze, with its sound in tinn, sick. The difference between its sounds in these two words is almost equal to the difference between th in thank and t in tin. By the low or flat sound of a consonant is meant its sound in union with a low or flat vowel, such as a, o, u, or ao ; and by its high or sharp sound, its sound in union with a high or sharp vowel, such as i. It is not to be assumed that the Gaelic con- sonants agree in sound with the same consonants in English. The fact is that with the exception of h and m there is not a consonant in Gaelic that has the same sound, and only the same sound, as the same consonant or any other consonant in English. How are we to know when 1, r, and n have their soft or liquid sound, and when they have their hard sound ? As an almost invariable rule 1, r, and n have their soft sound at the beginning of words. The only exceptions to this rule are le, with ; ri or ris, to ; riamh, ever ; roimh, before ; and ni, will do, as in ni mi sin, I will do that. Reir, according to, and ris, again, are only apparent exceptions, these words being merely shortened and improper forms of a reir and a ris. So far as leibh, with jou, ruibh, to you, and romhabh, before you, are 'concerned, they are simply contracted forms of le sibh, ri sibh, and roimh sibh. When 1, r, and n have their liquid or soft sound in the middle or end of words they are generally written double ; as in balla, a wall ; garrach, a worthless little fellow ; bonnach, a cake ; call, loss ; gearr, a hare ; tonn, a wave. b, c, ch, d, g, r, h, Ih, 1, m, nh, n, ng, p, rh, r, s, t, V, and y have thek' low or flat sound, and when they have their high or sharp sound ? When a syllal)le begins with a consonant, the consonant has always its low sound before a, o, u, or ao ; and its high sound before e or i ; as in sar, a hero ; sor, spare ; suil, an eye ; saor, a carpent- er ; sen, old ; sith, peace. When a syllable ]>egins with a vowel the consonant coming after it has its low sound after a, o, u, ao, and e ; and its high sound after i; as in as, out of ; osnadh,asigh; uspag, a push ; aosmhor, aged ; es, a water-fall ; isban, a sausage. When a syllable begins and ends with a con- sonant, as a general rule the sound of the last consonant is determined by the character of the vowel ; as in bas, death ; cos, a crevice ; tus, beginning ; taod, a hair rope ; ses, stand ; dis, soft. When the consonant has its low sound after i, the letter o is inserted between it and the i ; as in fios, knowledge, which without the o would be pronounced fish. Again, when the consonant has its high sound the letter i is inserted between it and the vowel ; as in braid, a horse-collar ; boid, a vow ; tuis, incense ; and taois, dough. Of course the o is totally silent in fios, and the i in braid, boid, tuis, and taois. at the end of an accented syllable, is generally pronounced like chc, as in mac, machc, a son. Chd, originally cht, is also generally pro- nounced like chc, as in smachd, smachc, authority. Cn and gn are sometimes sounded like r. Thus we hear croc, a bill ; craimh, a bone ; gruis, the countenance ; granda, ugly ; and griomh, a deed ; in place of cnoc, cnaimh, gnuis, gnada, and gniomh. In English the c and g are wholly omitted as in knock, know, gnat, gnomon. In pronouncing rt, it is a common practice to insert s between the r and the t ; as in mart, a cow, cert, right, which are pronounced as if written marst, cerst. Some insert the s between r and d, as in ard, high, ceard, a tinker, which they pronounce arsd and cearsd. In pronouncing 1 or r and a following b, g, m, or v, it is customary to insert the sound of a short u, like that of u in agus, between the 1 or r and the succeeding consonant ; as in Alba, Aluba, Scotland ; ferg, ferug, wrath ; arm, arum, a weapon ; garbh, garubh, stout. The same short sound is inserted between n and m or V ; as in ainm, ainum, a name ; ainbhach, ainuvach, a debt. The sound of nn is frequently omitted between a vowel and s ; as in annsachd, a beloved person ; oinnsech, a silly woman ; unnsa, an ounce ; Innsainech, an Indian. An before Z' is O- sounded like ung, as in an cu, ung cu, the dog. Fhuair, found, fhein, self, and fhathast, yet, are pronounced as if written huair, hein, hathast. Thu, thou, is pronounced u, not hu. S after t- is silent, as in 'san t-slige, 'san tlige, in the shell, S has its high sound in so, this; sud, that; but these words might be written seo, siud. S has its low sound in is, the verb is, and also and. Y or ya is frequently silent in the end of a syllable ; as in fiodh-al, a fiddle ; briagh-a, beautiful. V also at the end of a syllable is treated by many persons as a silent letter ; as in ga, take, for gav or gabh ; la, hand, for lav or lamh.

ch stands for tsh, as in tshurtsh or church. 
Gaelic d is never sounded like English j. English 
j stands for dzh, as in dzhig or jig. The man 
who says jirech sin for direch sin, just that, is 
simply mispronouncing the d. The expression 
tha eolas aige, he has knowledge, is not to be 
pronounced as if written tha yeolas aige. Eo 
never takes y before it except after do, to ; as in 
do dh-Eoghan, or do y-Eoghan, to Ewen. Gh in 
laogh, a calf, is not a peculiar and jaw-breaking 
sound. It is simply the consonant y, as can be 
easily seen by saying, first, lao-ya and next lao-y, 
dropping the a. Uh" f h is not an unpronounce- 
able combination of letters. Let us examine it in 
the sentence dh' f hag e mi, he left me. Dh stands 
for y and f h is silent. Surely any one who can 
speak at all can say yag e mi. A duck could almost 
say dh' f hag, or yag. 



THE VOWELS. 

The vowels a, o, u, ao, i, and e are named after 
their sounds in the following words: — a, out of; 
^Ic, evil ; z^rra, a person ; a(?dcich, clothes ; /se, 
she ; (?ch, a horse. A, o, u, and ao may be termed 
broad, low, or flat vowels ; i, a slender, high, or 
sharp vowel ; and e an intermediate vowel. 

A vowel may have two or more short sounds, 
and corresponding long sounds. When a vowel 
is sounded partly through the nose, which takes 
place only when sounded in union with m or n, it 
is said to be' nasalized. 

In giving the various vowel sounds in the 
Gaelic language I will give the short sound in the 
first word and the corresponding long sound in 
the next. 



xu. 



A IS SOUNDED 



1. As in grad, quick ; gradh, love. 

2. As nasalized in mac, a son ; mathair, mother. 

3. As in lagh, law ; ladhran, hoofs, as pronounced 

in Western Argyleshire. 

The sound of a in lagh is the same as that of u 
in lug. Its long form in ladhran can be ascer- 
tained by lengthening that of u in lug. 

IS SOUNDED 

1. As in brod, lid ; cos, a crevice. 

2. As nasalized in cnoc, a hill ; comhradh, con- 

versation. 

3. As in gobhar, a goat ; gobhlag, a fork. 

U IS SOUNDED 

1. As in cus, too much ; cmbach, lame. 

2. As nasalized in muc, a pig ; much, quench. 

3. As in agus, and, or like a in hospital. 

The long form of this sound is represented by a 
as sounded in Inverness-shire in ladhran, hoofs, and 
also by ao as sounded in Inverness-shire in laogh, 
a calf. 

AG IS ALWAYS LONG. IT IS SOUNDED 

1. As in laogh, a calf, in Western Argyleshire. 

2. As in laogh in Inverness-shire. 

1 IS SOUNDED 

1. As in ise, she ; i, an island. 

2. As nasalized in min, meal ; minn, kids. 

3. As in gabhibh, take, or like u in agus. 



XUL 



It is really sounded in three dift'erent ways in an 
unaccented syllable like ibh in gabh-ibh. Some 
say gav-iv, some say gav-uv or ga-uv, and others 
ga-u. Those who say gav-iv sound the i distinctly 
like i in ibh, drink ; those who say gav-uv or gauv 
sound the i like u in agus ; whilst those who say 
ga-u drop the bh or v both in gabh and il>h and 
sound the i like u in ugh, an egg, 

E IS SOUNDED 

1. As in fer, a man ; ferr or fearr, better. 

2. As nasalized in nech, a person ; nebh, heaven. 

3. As in egal, fear, or like a in maple ; as in cem 

or ceim, step, or like a in fame. Many 
sound e in egal like e in fer, 

4. As in fine, a clan, or like u in agus. 

The short sound of e in fer is the same as that 
of e in ferry. The corresponding long sound, or 
that of e in ferr or fearr, does not exist in English, 
Some find it in there and where, but they do so 
by mispronouucing these words, a thing that is 
very comiuonly done. 



DIPHTHONGS. 

A diphthongal sound is formed by the bkndlng 
together of two vowel sounds. Two vowels 
placed side by side do not necessarily form a 
diphthong. If they are both soandeil they con- 
stitute a di])hthong ; if one of them is totally silent 
they are merely a digraph. The (laelic diphthongs 
are ai, oi, ui, aoi, ci ; au, ou, ua ; ia or to, iu ; 
eo, eu. \ 



XIV. 



AI IS SOUNDED 



1. As in saighit, an arrow ; saill, fat. 

2. As nasalized in naidhechd, news ; scraing a 

scowl. 

3. Like aoi, as in aibhnen, rivers, as pronounced 

in some places. 

01 IS SOUNDED 

1. As in roimh, before ; Roimh, Rome. 

2. Like aoi, as in oidhirp, an attempt ; oidhche, 

night. 

UI is sounded as in suip, wisps ; luib, the 
genitive case of lub, a bend. 

• AOI is always long, and is sounded as in aoibh- 
nes, joy. 

EI is sounded as in beinn, a mountain. 



AU IS SOUNDED 

1. As in aubhin, as pronounced in Western 

Arg}deshire ; as in daull, blind. 

2. As nasalized in laumhan, hands, in Western 

Argyleshire ; as nasalized in maull, slow. 

OU is sounded as in foughar, autumn, in parts of 
of Argyleshire ; as in toull, a hole. 

UA IS ALWAYS LONG, AND IS SOUNDED 

1. As in ruadh, reddish. 

2. As nasalized in nuadh, new. 

3. As in fuar, as pronounced in Athole. 



XV. 



lA OR lO IS ALWAYS LONG, AND IS SOUNDED 



1. As in diar, tear ; fion, wino. 

2. As in tiar, crooked ; fior, true. 



lU IS SOUNDED 



1. As in tiugh, thick ; cliu, praise. 

2. As nasalized in os-ciunn, overhead, or above. 



EO OR EA IS SOUNDED 

1. As in Seoc, Jock ; leon, a wound. 

2. As in leabhar, a book ; teoma, skilful, teagh- 

lach, a family. 

EU is sounded as in geumhtach, short and thick ; 
ceunn, head. 

In some parts of Argyleshire the sounds repre- 
sented by au, ou, and eu are not used. Dall, 
tonn, anj ceann are pronounced as these words 
are spelt, the a, o, and e being lengthened to 
some extent. According to the present mode of 
spelling, io is frequently a digraph, ea and ei are 
generally digraphs, whilst eu is always a digraph. 
There are no triphthongs either in Gaelic or English. 



THE ACCENTS. 

In pronouncing a word of two or more syllables 
we lay a certain pressure or stress of voice upon 
one of the syllables. This stress is callctl the 
accent, and the syllable upon which it falls the 
accented syllable. In (iaelic the accent invariably 
falls upon the hrst syllable of a word, except when 
that syllable happens to be a prefex, as in las-ir, 
a flame. It never falls upon a prefix tliat is known 
and felt to be such. In the word co-chruinn-ech- 
adh, a collection, no one would ever think of put- 
ting the accent upon co. Any one would put it 
upon chruinn, which is the main part or root of 
the word. 



SYLLABICATION. 

With regard to syllabication, or the division 
of words into syllables the following rules may be 
laid down : — 

1. As a general rule the second syllable of a 
word begins with a vowel, and also the third 
syllable ; as in benn-ach-adh, a blessing. The 
tendency is to end a syllable with a consonant. 

2. Ch, th, bh and mh, dh and gh, 11,. rr, and nn 
must always be joined to the vowel before them ; 
as in clach-air, a mason ; Leth-an-ach, a Maclean ; 
clobh-a, a pair of tongs ; samh-ach, quiet ; claidh- 
ebh, a sword ; bragh-ad, the neck ; dnill-ech,. 
foliage ; dann-arr-a, stubl)orn. 

3. In the case of compound words the syllabic 
division must always take place between the twa 
words that form the compound ; as in gnath- 
f hacal, a comnion saying or proverb. 

4. Prefixes and suffixes always form distinct 
syllables, as in do-leighes, incurable ; coill-tech„ 
one who lives in the woods. 



THE USE OF THE APOSTROPHE. 

When a word is contracted by omitting one or 
more letters generally used in pronouncing it, the 
omission should be indicated by an apostrophe, 
as in bhuailt' e for bhuailtedh e, he would be 



XVll. 

struck. Again, when a word generally used and 
necessary to make a sentence intelligil^le has Ijeen 
omitted ttie omission should be indicated l)y an 
apostrophe, as in an te 'bh' ann san taigh for an te 
a bha ann san taigh, the woman that was in the 
' house. 

As no one ever says an bhen, the woman, gu 
am faod mi, that I may, gu an deid mi, that I will 
go, na an rachadh e, if he would go, na am faicedh 
e, if he would see, we should not write a' bhen, 
gu'm faod mi, gu'n deid mi, na 'n rachadh e, na 'm 
faicedh e ; but a bhen, gum faod mi, gun deid mi, 
nan rachadh e, nam faicedh e. It may be replied 
that some one said an bhen and gu an deid mi 
long ago. What of that ? We do not write to 
instruct people in anti(juarian matters or the 
original forms of words, but to convey our ideas to 
them. As a matter of fact no one ever said gu an 
deid, except perhaps in singing a line which 
lacked a syllable of the number required. 



THE ORIGIN OF CERTAIN WORDS 
AND LETTERS. 

The word thanic is from do and anac or ananca, 
which is from the Indo-Keltic root nak, to reach. 
To write d' thanic instead of danic or d' anic would 
be equivalent to writing do do-bhuail instead of 
do bhuail. As the verb anac or anic is never used 
by itself, there is no necessity for writing d'anic. 
Ranic, reached, is from ro and anac, or anic, the 
form of the word always used by early writers in 
the third person singular. Thic, will come, is from 
do and ic ; and theid, will go, from do and eit. 
Thuc, gave, is from do and uc ; and thoir, give, is 
from do and bheir. A bheil thu, are you ? is for 
am feil thu. Is, and, is a diftercnt word from agus. 

 In songs, or poems intended to be sung, 
all the verses must be of the same length. Of 
course this rule does not apply to poems composed 
in the same style as Beinn-Dorainn, which con- 
tains several parts, each to be sung to an air suit- 
able to itself. 

In order to understand the full meaning of these 
rules it will be necessary to examine the structure 
of a few verses. Let us begin with the following 
verse : 

Cha robh na Gaidhil fAILinnech ; 
B' e 'm beus 'bhi sesmhach, trt:bhachdach, 
'Bhi bechdail, rechdmhor, ardanach, 
'Bhi' dan a dol 'san tuasaid. 

CHORUS 

Deoch-slainte htchd-na}n-hrecanan ; 
'S e \iir nut '« aiairt a />' aite leinn 
'6" guit olatnid gti scairtail i 
Air lascairen a chruadail. 

The first line, Cha robh na Gaidh-il fail-inn-ech, 
contains eight syllables. The second and third 
lines are of the same length. The fourth line, 
Air, las-cair-en a chruad-ail, contains seven syl- 
lables. In the first line the accent falls upon robh, 
Gaidh, and fail, or upon the second, fourth and 
sixth syllables. In the second and third lines, and 
also in the fourth, it falls u]:)on the same syllables. 
The end-rhyme comes in at fail, or the sixth syllable. 

It conies in in the same syllable in the 
second and third lines. Ffli/linnech, tabhachdach

 LEIS a' BHARD mac MHURCHIUH MHIC IAIN RUAIDH. 

Och nan ochan 's mi scith, 
'Falbh nan cnoc so ri sion ; 
Gur neo-shocrach an scriob 'tha 's duthich. 

Cha b' e t' f hasach gun ni, 

No t' f herann-aitich 'chion sil, 

Ach sceul ro chraitech a mhill ar sugradh ; 

Thu bhi, 'Mhurchidh, air chall, 

Gun aon chuimse cia 'm ball ; 

Sud an urchair 'bha cailltech dhuinne. 

'S beirt nach guidhinn de m' dheoin, 

Ach 's ni 'lughaig Dia oirnn, 

Do chul buidhe bhi 'choir na h-urach. 

'S cruaidh an cas 'sa bheil sinn, 

Is goirt craitech gach cridh', 

'S cha chuir cairden an ire dhuinn e. 

Och, mo chlisgedh 's mo chas, 

Gun thu 'n ciste chaoil chlar, 

Le derbh f hios aig do chairden ciuirt' air. 

Bu chall ceiir agus baigh' 

'vS gum bu mhisde mo chad, 

Mur a tuigt' air mo dhan gum b' f hiu thu. 

'Nuair a shuidhedh tu, 'sheoid, 

Mar-ri Iniidhinn ag ol, 

Mar bu chubhidh bhiodh ceol mu 'n turlach. 

Slan le treubhantas seoid, 

Slan le gleusdachd duin' oig, 

'N uair nach d' fheud thu bhi beo gun churam. 



Slan le gliocas 's le ceill, 
'S a bhi mesail ort f hein, 
'S nach h-'eil fios ciod e 'n t-eug a chiurr thu. 

Slan le binnes nam bard, 

Slan le grinnes nan lamh, 

Co 'ni mire ri d' mhnaoi, no sugradh ? 

Slan le grinnes nam meur, 

Slan le binnes luchd-theud, 

'Nuair a sheinnedh tu 'm beul gun tuchan. 

Slan le uaisle na 's leoir, 

'S tu bhi suairce gun bhron, 

Bho nach d' f huaras tu, 'sheoid, gu h-urail. 

Slan le fiadhach nam beann, 

Slan le iasgach nan allt ; 

Co chuir iarunn an crann cho cliutech-? 

Do luchd-fair' tha gun f hiamh, 

Bhon bha t'air' orra riamh ; 

'N nochd cha gherain am fiadh a churam. 

'S ait le binnich nan allt, 

'Chor 's gun cinnich an clann. 

Gun do mhilledh na bh' ann de dh-f hudar. 

Faodidh 'n erbag an nochd, 

Etar mhaoislech is bhoc, 

Cadal samhach air cnoc gun churam. 

Faodidh ise bhi slan, 

'Siubhal iosal is aird 

Bhon a chailledh an t-armun cliutech. 



In the line, Do luchd-faire tha gun f hiamh, the reference 
is to the red deer. Binnich nan allt, the roe deer. Turlach, 
a large fire. 



27 

CUMHA. 

Do dh-Iain Ruadh Mac DhughailL 

LE A MHATHAIR. 

'S daor a chennich mi 'm fiadhach 
A rinn Iain I)i-ciadain ; 
Rinn an t-eilain dubh riabhach mo leon. 
'S daor a chennich, etc. 

Bu domhain an linne 

'San robh fir ga do shiredh, 

Ann san d' f huair iat mo chion 's gun e beo. 

'N uair a thug iat a stech thu 

Jjha iX^ ghruaidhen air secadh ; 

Och 's e m' eudail a bh' aca gun deo ! 

A Dhomhnaill Mhic Iain, 

An nochd 's cruaidh let mo naidhechd ; 

'S ann a tha iat gun aigher 'san Strom. 

Gur h-e mis' 'th' air mo chrechadh, 

'Dol a dh-ionnsidh do lepadh, 

'S gun mo lamh air do chraicenn gel og. 

Tha do phethrichen truagh dheth, 

Air dhroch chengal tha'n gruagabh ; 

On 's e 'n losgadh a f huair iat 's an leon ! 

Is gur h-iomad duin' uasal 

Leis 'm bu duilich mar chual iat, 

Bho an Teist gun am buail iat an Strom. 

Cas a shiubhal nam fuar bheann, 

Ghabh thu raghain 'bha uasal, 

'S tu gun trebhadh no buailten air doigh. 

Gur a h-iomad bian beiste 

'Chunnic inise mu d' reidhlein 

'S e mo chrech nach do dh-fhcud thu 'bhi beo 



28 

Gum bu lionmhor dhuit carid 

Etar Leodhas 's na Herradh 

Fir nach treigedh am barail le 'n deoin. 



Murdoch Macaulay, a grandson of the celebrated 
Donald Cam, lived at Valtos in the parish of Uig in Lewis. 
He married Elizabeth Macpherson from the Isle of Skye, 
by whom he had John, Zachary, and other children. John 
who was known as Iain Ruadh MacDhughaill was only in 
his fifteenth year when his father died. He grew up to be 
an athletic and handsome man, and was celebrated as a 
hunter. He was drowned in Loch Langabhat whilst 
swimming to an island in the middle of that lake, an t-Eilain 
Dubh. A large stone marks the spot on which his body 
was laid after it was taken out of the water. His bereaved 
mother used to visit this spot on almost every Wednesday 
of the year. He was born about the year 1600. 



X 



FEAR AICHALIDH. 

Murchadh Mor mac mhic Mhurchidh was the fifth 
Mackenzie of Aichilty in Ross-shire. He lived a long time 
in Lewis. He was factor in that island for the Earl of 
Seaforth. He was a clear-headed and well informed man. 
He composed several poems. 



AN LAIR DHONN: 
Oran molidh do shoithech a bha aige. 

LE FER AICHALIDH. 

Tha mise fo ghruaim 
'S gun mi 'n caidremh a chuain, 
Cha chaidil mi uair air choir 
Tha mise fo ghruaim, etc. 

Ge socrach mo ghleus 

Air capul 'na leum, 

Cha chaisger lem m' f heum le treoir. 



Loth phellagach bhreun, 
Fo phillein 's fo shrcin ; 
Aon ghille 'na deidh bu lod. 

Cha dugadh i 'n cein 

Ach duine 's i-fein, 

'S gun cuiredh i feum air Ion. 

Nan eighedh i scios, 

'S e b' f heudar 'dhol sios 

'S a treigsin, ge b' fhiamh an toir. 

Cha b' ionnan 's mo lair, 

Air linge nam bare, 

Ag imechd a ghnath le treoir. 

Bu mhaisech a loinn, 
Ri grinnes na gaoith. 
Gun bhioran ri 'taobh, 's i 'falbh. 

'S i 'b' f heraile ceum 

De 'm faca mi-fein, 

'S cha bu gheran d'i feum air Ion. 

lubhrach shocrach a chuain 

Dha 'n cliu toisech dol 'suas, 

'vS giuthas dosrach nam buadh fo sheol, 

Air bharrabh nan stuadh 

'Cur darich 'na luaths, 

'S buill tharruinn nan ilual 'san dorn. 

'Reubadh mara gu dluth, 

Fo bhcul sgar agus suigh, 

'N deidh a barradh gu h-ur bho 'n ord. 

Ruith chuip air a clar, 

'S i druidte fo 'sail, 

Bu chruit leinn a gair fo sheol. 



30 • 

Chluinntedh faram nan ramh, 

Bho 'n charric a snamh, 

'S bhiodh barant an laimh gach seoid. 

Chan iarradh i moll, 

No fodar no pronn, 

Ach sadadh nan tonn ri 'sroin, 

B' e sud m' aigher 's mo mhiann 

Ged a ghlasich mo chiabh, 

'S cha bu shlat agus srian a' m' dhorn. 

Ged thigedh an ruaig 

Le caithemh a chuain, 

Cha laighedh oirnn fuachd no leon. 

'N uair a ghabhtedh gu tamh 

Ann an cala puirt sheimh, 

Cha b' fhallain bho m' laimh-s'an ron. 

'S bhiodh eilid nam beann 

Ga h-imain le gleann, 

'S mo pheileir gu teann 'na lorg. 

Ga fennadh air luib, 

Fo mhellabh na stuic, 

Gum b' fhallain mo shunnd 's gach doigh. 

Ar scennan bhiodh geur 

Gu fennadh an fheidh, 

'S cha b' annas an gleus sin oirnn. 

'Fhir a dh' imiches 'n iar, 

Bho nach cinntech mo thriall, 

Bi 'g innsedh gur bliadhn' gach lo. 

Beir an t-soridh so 'null, 
Air fad chuan an fhuinn. 
Far am faightedh na suinn ag ol. 



31 

Gu eilain an fheidh, 

Gu eirthir an eisc, 

Far nach paighamid feich air Ion. 

Gu comunn mo ruin 

Nach cromadh an t-suil 

'N am tromachadh dhuinn am poit 

Gun ardan, gun strith, 

Gun airemh air ni, 

Ach 'cur saridh am fion 's ga ol. 

Bhiodh ceol fidhle ri 'r cluais. 
Bho 'n Eoin fhinalt'gun ghrugim, 
Fer bu rioghail cur dhuan air falbh. 



The poet went to England with a drove of cattle. 

While waiting for an opportunity to sell the cattle, 

he hired a horse 
and gig 

and visited several places. It was whilst on this 
excursion that he composed the above song. 

He would 
rather be in Lewes than in England, 

and would prefer a sail 
in his own vessel to a ride in a gig.  

 E ho, hi u ho, ro ho eile, 

E ho, hi u ho, 's i ri ri u. 

Ho hi u o, ro ho eile. 

Mo dhiobhail dith nan ceann-feadhna. 

Mo chruit, mo chlarsach, is m' fhiodhul, 

Mo theud chiuil 's gach ait am bidhinn ; 

'N uair a bha mi og a' m' nighin, 

'S e 'thogadh m' inntin thu 'thighin ; 

Ciheibhedh tu mo phog gun bhruidhin, 

'S mar tha mi 'n diugh 's math do dhligh' oirr'. 

'Mhoire 's e mo run am firionn ; 
Cha bhuachaille bho 'san innis, 
Ceann-feadhna greadhnach gun ghiorag, 
Marcich' nan steut a 's leoir mire, 
'Bhuidh' nedh na cruinten d'a ghillen, 
'S nach sechnadh an torachd iomairt : 
'Ghaolich nan deanadh tu tilledh, 
Gheibhedh tu na bhiodh tu 'siredh, 
Ge do chaillinn ris mo chinnech, 
Pog o ghruagich dhuinn an fhirich. 

'S truagh nach h-'eil mi mar a b' ait lem, 
Ceann Mhic-Cailain ann am achlais, 
Cailain liath an deidh a chascairt, 
'S an crunair an deidh a ghlacail ; 
Bu shunndach a gheibhinn cadal, 
Ged a b' i a 'chreg mo leba. 

M' eudail thu 'dh-fherabh na dilin, 

'S math 's aithne dhomh do shloinnedh innsedh, 



'S cha b' ann an cagar os 'n iosal