Product Description
There is a tradition that an infant son of the chief fell from a window of the castle, and was dashed to death on the rocks below. The enraged chief, with bitter rage in his heart, vented his rage on the unfortunate nurse. She was placed in a leaky boat, with no oars, and cast adrift in the stormy waters of the Minch. It is said, however, that she was rescued and hidden until the chief left the castle. The agonized shrieks of the terrified nurse haunted his daily and nightly hours. That, combined with the spectral ghost of Donald Gorm Mor, forced the departure of the chief to Mogstad...
Mackenzie's Old Skye Tales is an extraordinary compilation of lore, legend, tradition, and incident from the Isle of Skye, collected and written by a man of considerable intelligence and observation. It is one of the most important sources for the history of the island. As well as containing a large amount of information of the geography of the island (particularly the north), there are also important sections on crofting, the church, as well as local superstitions, sayings, second sight, and even local characters of his time.
An entertaining and witty book, it as a marvelous resource for the historian, as well as a fascinating compendium for all those who love one of Scotland's most famous islands, and a great tribute to a man with all the born ability of the Gaelic seannachie or storyteller.
About the Author
William Mackenzie was born in 1851 in Melness, Sutherland, though moved to Skye at an early age. He began teaching in Uig and in 1879 was appointed headmaster of Valtos in Staffin. He became active in the crofter agitation of the 1880s and was one of the crofters' representatives at the Napier Commission of 1884. He retired in 1915 and began to write his reminiscences, which were published in two books in 1930 and 1934. The present volume is an edited compilation of these two works.
