FÀILTE AIR AIS !

We're back!! Yes, the Editorial bucket and spade have been packed away for another year and the trusty Corncrake computer has again been cranked into gear.

So, just what has been happening since our last Issue? Well, it must firstly be reported that the weather has been remarkably kind of late, with seemingly endless days of cloudless blue skies. The sun has even been unseasonably warm, almost Spring-like, leading to queues in the Doc's surgery as islanders seek treatment for gardening strains and the odd case of sunstroke. Your Editor could even be seen lounging in the policies of Corncrake Towers, vainly hoping to top up that fading tan. The birds of the air have also been affected by this early warmth, and the dawn chorus just outside the Editorial bedroom window reaches a crescendo every morning just about er, well, dawn. Well, it certainly beats the old jet-lag...

And while your Editor was away, the island enjoyed one of its most successful Burns' Suppers in memory (at least that's what we keep being told...) With the Hotel closed for refurbishment, it was all hands to the deck for the second year in succession in order that the Supper could take place in the Hall, complete with haggis and all the trimmings for all party participants. And didn't those responsible do a grand job :

Yes, that is one replendent Hall, and heartiest congratulations are due to all those involved. Some 56 souls then sat down to supper, and we are reliably informed that no one went home hungry. Ah, we can just imagine the taste of Ross's succulent haggis, but imagining is all we can do, with no one remembering to keep a 'wee drappie' for your Editor...

 

The night, of course, "drave on wi' sangs an' clatter" and a memorable evening was enjoyed by all. With Donald MacAllister (the younger) on accordion and Jim McLaughlin (the elder) on bodhran, there was much mirth and dancing. And, as the photographic evidence reveals, the assembly were even treated to a spot of Irish dancing. Yes, a grand night, and as dawn broke, the last of the revellers (we are told) could be seen winding their way homewards. Or at least winding their way somewhere...

 

ANOTHER PARTY!

There were two references in that last article which require a few more Corncrake words of elucidation, namely the Hotel and Jim McLaughlin (the elder).

Taking the former first, The Colonsay (for that is its name) has effectively been closed since mid-January to allow for significant refurbishment of the kitchen and the bar. At this time of year, it is a bar closure which would appear to most greatly affect the citizenry, and so the bar was decanted (ged it? C'mon, stay awake!) to the front Lounge. And so, for the last few weeks, the temporary bar in the Lounge has been the scene of many a happy hour - and a contentious one or two too, what with the Six Nations tournament taking place at the moment, and representatives of all four home countries repairing thereto to glory in the victories and drown their sorrows in the defeats.

Here we see MacPhee of that Ilk, who, with young Jodi, have catered for the drouthiness of their island neighbours during this contingency, replenishing stock between games :

Meanwhile, a squad of Poles and a Slovak, under the supervisory eye of Andrew Howard (who said Nepotism was dead?) proceeded with refurbishing the kitchen and the bar. Here we see Andrew, as work in the bar draws to a close, selflessly taking on the onerous duty of testing the quality of the beer. Yes, someone's got to do it...

It should be noted at this juncture that the above photographs were taken only 24 hours before the refurbished bar was due to be opened and christened, allowing islanders to celebrate the fact that Jim McLaughlin had reached 60 years of his youth. A gigantic task, and it needed a giant of a man to make it happen. Step forward and take a bow the DNA-proven MacPhee of that Ilk who decanted (yes, we've done that one...) the temporary bar and by the time Jim and his fellow revellers arrived the following evening, their drouth was met with appropriate and copious levels of a wondrous range of the finest that the brewers and distillers of the world have to offer. Well done, big man.

And so Jim's 60th celebrations could commence, and it is fair to say that his birthday was well and truly celebrated. Certainly the bar was slighly more full than on the previous evening :

 

And what, we hear you ask, of the birthday boy himself? Well, Jim is an aficianado of the music and voice of Scottish recording artiste Moira Kerr, particularly of that fine song of her's, "The Island of Tiree". Imagine Jim's surprise then, when he opened a surprise present to discover a Moira Kerr CD, sent by Moira herself, with a signed personal birthday wish especially for Jim!

This was the cue for the assembled throng, all prepared with the lyrics beforehand, to sing "The Island of Tiree" in Jim's honour. Well done all, and well done Moira Kerr!

And nor did Jim stick to his bodhran playing all night; once the dancing started, Jim was up on the floor, strutting his stuff with the best of them. Here we see him dancing the light fantastic with the last person to celebrate a birthday in the bar, Mary MacLeod (the young) :

Yes, a great christening for the refurbished bar!

THE PASSING OF FRIENDS

The Corncrake is saddened to report the passing of Anne 'Gartcosh' McNeill, who passed away quietly after a long illness on Sunday 12th February at a nursing home in Dumfriesshire.

Anne, who was born on June 1st 1920, was a Yorkshire lass from Bradford. When the war came, she enlisted in the A.T.S. and was posted to Essex. It was there in 1943 that she met and fell in love with a Colonsay man, Donald McNeill, who was serving with the Signals.

Anne's first visit to Colonsay was in 1945, and she and Donald married that year, eventually setting up home in Gartcosh, which is why they were always known to Colbhasachs as Donald and Anne Gartcosh. A family followed, Anne producing three lovely daughters, Diane, Morag and Alison.

Anne and Donald ‘came home’, as it were, to stay on Colonsay permanently in 1972 when Donald took early retirement from the Post Office where he was employed as an engineer. Anne by this time was a very young 52 with boundless energy and she was never one to be idle. She brought a host of skills with her to the island, including cooking, baking, sewing, knitting, jam making, piano playing, hairdressing, gardening and even DIY! It was therefore not long before she became an integral member of the island community.

Many happy island years ensued, during which time Anne became a very active member of the Women’s Guild, and she even started a senior citizen's club as well, organising events, parties, trips and, a speciality of her own, quizzes.

Alas, Anne and Donald's life together on the island came to an end in 1992, when Donald passed on. Anne however, continued to be an active member of the island community until four years ago when failing health necessitated leaving the island for a nursing home on the mainland.

Anne is survived by her three children as well as three grandchildren, Barbara, Malcolm and Catriona. Diane of course still lives on the island with husband John Clark, as does their daughter Barbara.

Anne's remains were returned to Colonsay for a well-attended funeral service in the Church of Scotland in Scalasaig on Friday 17th February. Thereafter, Anne was laid to rest beside her late husband in the graveyard at Kilchattan.

The Corncrake is also saddened to report the passing, a day after Anne, of a close friend of hers and of the island. Elsie McNeill, wife of the late Alastair (brother of A.S.) and father of Peter, Andrew and Morag, passed away on Monday 13th February.

Older Readers will recall with affection the annual visits Elsie, Alastair and family made to Colonsay throughout the 1950s and 60s, staying with Anne's family at Port Mór or with A.S. and Flora over on Oransay. Peter still returns each year, staying with his Aunt Flora at her Glassard home.

Elsie is survived by her three children and by four grandchildren, Iain, Kate, Flora and Bradey. Peter still runs the family business in Helensburgh, which has been in operation since 1854.

Our thoughts are with both families at this time.

BABIES!

At the other end of the spectrum, The Corncrake is pleased to announce that the stork has been busy delivering babies with Colonsay pedigrees.

In our last Issue, we announced to the world the arrival on January 6th of Madeleine Grace, a second granddaughter for Kevin and Christa Byrne. Four days before this however, Frank Nicholson was blessed with a great-grandson, Quincy Francis Charles Keegan, who was born at home in Brighton to Fran's daughter Meredith and husband Tim.

Unfortunately, this happy news only reached Corncrake Towers just as our last Issue hit the ether. We can now however make amends for our belated reporting by including for our Readership a photograph of Frank's great-grandson :

Frank himself has not yet returned to the island from his wintering in the balmy South, and so the bairn's head has not yet been properly 'wet' on the island. No doubt that situation will be strongly addressed by Frank in the not too distant future, and Meredith and Tim have also promised Quincy a trip to Colonsay as soon as they can.

Moving on a few weeks, we can announce another baby born with Colonsay connections, for on 18th February, Isabel Robertson's daughter Debbie gave birth to a 7lb 14oz daughter whom she and husband Steevie have named Megan Rose. And yes, we do of course have a photograph of Megan Rose for our Readers :

Apparently the baby's cousins, Calum, Craig and Daniel McNeill, think that she is the best baby that they have ever seen. Even if she is a girl...

And if you think that we are finished at that, think again! For we hear of a number of other Colonsay related births. Unfortunately, details and photographs are not yet to hand, so book the next Issue of The Corncrake today!

COLONSAY CROFTING DEVELOPMENT PROJECT

The people of Colonsay achieved a long-held objective recently when the Colonsay Community Development Company (CCDC) purchased some croft land, bringing it into public ownership. The land, part of Donald and Maggie Gibbie's croft of Baile Iochdrach, will now be held in public ownership in perpetuity.

The island community has long identified enabling young people to stay on the island, and encouraging young families to relocate to, and remain on, the island, as crucial factors in securing the island's long-term future. Housing has also been identified as a key issue to be addressed, with a need to increase affordable housing opportunities - there is currently a high demand, and subsequent high value, placed on available land for development on the island.

Born from the need to explore options on the provision of land/housing to local and incoming economically active young people/families, CCDC has been working with the Scottish Land Fund and the Crofters Commission for some considerable time to purchase croft land at Baile Iochdrach in Lower Kilchattan. The land purchase now gives the community the opportunity of addressing the next objective of creating a minimum of four smaller crofts for a minimum of four young people/families wishing to live and work on the island.

The croft tenancy will enable each crofter access to assistance for house building and business support, whilst also allowing the land to be utilised fully. While allowing each individual crofter a route to building and owning his/her home on the island, the conditions of Scottish Land Fund grant dictates that the crofters signs away their right to purchase the croftland, thus retaining all land in community ownership in perpetuity.

There is a significant demand for crofts on Colonsay and the Crofters Commission is eager to facilitate the expansion of crofting activity on the island; the Commission's input will ensure that the masterplanning exercise and allocation of crofts policy will be undertaken in a fully transparent and consultative manner. The Commission will also endorse the building of a croft house and related buildings on each of the individual crofts.

CCDC wish to thank Duncan Baird, Jacqui MacLeod of the Crofters Commisssion, Neil Ross of the Scottish Land Fund and Sarah Duncan of R&R Urquhart LLP for their perseverance in getting the sale to a conclusion. Without them and the unflagging commitment of Donald and Maggie the chance for this important purchase would have undoubtedly been lost. Much work however now needs to be done to make sure the project is a success and this will only be achieved through community consultation and involvement. The people of Colonsay now have the chance to have a say in this aspect of the future development of the island.

BURNING ISSUES

Our regular Reader may recall that in Issue 129, we reported that Ross Moodie had stood down as Senior Firefighter in Colonsay's small but gallant firefighting crew.

Well, we can now exclusively reveal that a successor to Ross has now been appointed and it is none other than Donald MacAllister (the elder). And what's more, we even have a photograph of the man himself in full regalia :

So, our congratulations go to Donald on his appointment. But this is not the only burning issue at the moment involving our local Fire and Rescue Service. No indeed. Fanning the flames of journalistic fire further is the fact that our gallant crew have just taken delivery of a new fire tender - a brand new fire tender!

Yes, all eyes were agog at the pier the other day when a big, red, shiny Mercedes fire tender arrived, majestically, from the bowels of the 'Isle of Mull'. And a superb piece of machinery she is, fully equipped with all the latest firefighting equipment. Worthy of a photograph thought your Editor, and so he wound his way to the Fire Station. Alas however, our local firefighters were having none of it and threw a human shield round their new pride and joy. Your Editor had no choice but to back off, but not before he got a really good shot of the windscreen of the new appliance :

Flamin' cheek!

POLICE BULLETIN

Now there's a heading that none of us thought would ever grace the pages of The Corncrake. Exclusive 'scoops' abound in this Issue however, and as well as a new Fire Chief, The Corncrake can reveal that the island is also about to have a new polisman, or "Special" as they are so appropriately called.

With Nigel Grant announcing that he is to renounce these shores and take up farming in the south of France near his son Graham, speculation has been rife (yes, this is Colonsay for Goodness' sake!) as to who would step into Nigel's shiny, black, policeman's boots. (It is testament to Nigel's low-key approach to policing that few even knew that he possessed such a pair of boots!).

So, we hear you ask, just who is the new Special to be? Well, in this wondrous world that is the Press, 'scoops' can be pretty hard to come by, especially with a resident population of only some 130 souls. There again, oftimes the great Press Baron in the sky smiles down benificently on his foot soldiers toiling below. And so it was the other day, when on long grass crawling duty up in the stratosphere that is Uragaig, your Editor came upon a sight that took his breath away. For, it was none other than our new polis-to-be, shining like a new Shilling (or should that be a Bob-by?) :

Yes, the Special-Elect is none other than that man of many talents, Don MacLeod.

In an exclusive interview, Don tells us that he is still unsure as to exactly when he will be taking up his new duties. He has still to receive further training and then there is the matter of his taking the oath of office. Not a problem though we would have thought for our Don...


But that is not all in this 'special' police bulletin article. Hold on to your seats for the next piece of news, for a call has been made for a RESIDENT police service to be established on the island! Yes, this is true, we're not making this up simply to boost circulation figures!

This alien concept was actually raised at a recent Ministers Questions in the Scottish Parliament by Conservative MSP Jamie McGrigor. He said his question was raised in view of the planned future introduction of scheduled air routes from Oban to Colonsay.

Mr McGrigor asked Justice Minister Cathy Jamieson whether she would support a request from Strathclyde Police for additional funding for police services and accommodation on Colonsay and on Coll, which will also be served by the planned new air service. The minister replied that it was important there should be correct staffing levels to tackle crime, but refused to give assurances on funding, claiming it was up to Strathclyde's Chief Constable to decide on operational matters.

Mr McGrigor said: "The upgrading of Oban/Connel airport, and the new routes to Coll and Colonsay, are expected to lead to increases in movement of people between the mainland and the two islands. This has led Strathclyde Police to seek additional funding to provide improved police services and accommodation on those islands and it would seem quite reasonable to me that the executive provide them with the support they need."

Well, opponents of the planned new air service argued that it would change the island forever, but we doubt that they could have foreseen such a drastic change being mooted, and the actual air service still a long way off from being an operational reality.

Watch this space...

HOUSE OF LOCHAR

The island has now one less business venture with the news that the island-based publishing company, House of Lochar, has been sold.

Kevin and Christa Byrne, who purchased the business in 1996 and re-located it to Colonsay, reluctantly came to the conclusion that the growth of the enterprise has been such that it has now outgrown resources locally. Kevin confirmed that the company passed into new ownership on February 1st, and summarised the situation thus : "We purchased the business in 1996 when digital communications reached Colonsay and re-located it in Colonsay as the first business in the island not dependent upon tourism, agriculture or fishing. In those days, tele-working was all the rage and House of Lochar demonstrated that Colonsay was no longer disadvantaged for a mainstream activity. The business grew steadily throughout the decade and now includes c. 90 titles and some highly-prestigious authors."

Kevin also added that "although it has outgrown our resources, all of us who have been involved in its progress will watch with satisfaction as it spreads its wings to fly in the wider world. The new owner, Bruce Campbell, is a go-ahead individual with a very great enthusiasm for the existing list and every intention of expanding it within the same field."

Already, a significant part of the company's Scalasaig-held stock has been transferred to the company's new base in South Queensferry, and it is anticipated that the remainder will be tranferred over the next few months.

It was however heartening to hear that the island bookshop at Port Mór will continue as normal and Kevin and Christa wish to thank residents and visitors alike for their continuing support. The West Highland Series of guide books is also unaffected by this development and, with Bruce Campbell's agreement, Kevin and Christa have retained a modest imprint, "Colonsay Books", so as to be able to publish the occasional work of very local interest such as "Colonsay's Fallen" by Alan Davis, which was published in 2004.

ELECTRONIC CROFTER UPDATE

Our regular Reader may recall that in our last Issue, Angela Skrimshire very kindly presented us with a summary of the island broadband situation, given problems with the current provider Zetnet and the changing status of the island exchange. The situation continues to be a very fluid (and confusing!) one, so Angela has again very kindly provided a summary of the current situation :

"There appear to be at least 4, maybe more, people who have now been supplied with equipment by BT Retail, but denied a connection by BT Broadband. Reasons for this (all given verbally – nothing in writing) have ranged widely, but most recently seem to focus on the “ownership” of the capacity at the island’s Exchange."

"Reading between the lines it seems that we are now unlikely to get any movement from BT unless and until they have finally taken over the Zetnet accounts. Meanwhile new customers could try Scotnet (or possibly AOL) and see if they are also now able to act as ISPs for this exchange. Scotnet is another small company like Zetnet, but maybe will fill the gap."

"BT's monopoly at these small exchanges is hopefully under discussion at ScotExec level, so in the longer term the exchange may eventually be opened up to a full choice of ISPs and to higher speeds. However, as far as I can see, it sounds as though Colonsay will still have problems even then because:

a) we are repeatedly told cabling restrictions will shortly prevent further removals/jugglings of DACS...

and perhaps

b) wireless backhaul (and/or ? cabling except where it was renewed recently within about half a mile of the exchange) may also continue to restrict speeds - but I must say that I am very unsure about this."

"This is in spite of the following information (supplied to the Community Council on 26 January by phone only) from Ricky Scoular, Regional Manager of BT Scotland , and summarised below:

* Colonsay exchange is now on the same footing as all the 147 EAs.
* BT is contracted as the lead provider for "at least" 5 years.
* Zetnet is no longer re-selling to any new end users here.
* New users who prefer not to sign up with BT directly will be able to sign up with 4 sub-allocated ISPS, which at present include Scotnet, AOL and Entagroup (4th not yet negotiated).
* Colonsay exchange has been upgraded so that it can accommodate more than 30 broadband connections at 512k speed if/when required.
* However there is no prospect for the time being of it being fully converted, to permit supply at higher speeds or by any other ISPs.
* Rate of full conversion will be based on take up of existing provision. At the moment Colonsay is right at the bottom, so other areas would get it first. Our take up is only 7.9% at the moment, compared with e.g. about 40% in Achiltibuie.
* BT is not obliged to remove DACS boxes if it costs more than £1000 to do so. He could not offer any general concessions for Colonsay."

Again our thanks go to Angela for her determined research on this very fluid but vital topic - if you don't receive your next issue of The Corncrake, you will know that our existing provision has been pulled...

MY COLONSAY PHOTOGRAPH

And so we find ourselves at an increasingly popular Corncrake feature (keep sending those snaps in...), the one where locals and visitors alike have the opportunity of sharing a Colonsay photograph with a wider audience, ie you.

For this Issue, we are indebted to Norman Hall-Gardiner for a shot of the oft-photographed 'Strand', or to give it its proper Gaelic name, An Fhaoghail. This time however, there is just that something different about Norman's photograph; perhaps it is the way he has captured the sunlight shining in the pool indents left by vehicular traffic earlier in the day. See what you think :

Our grateful thanks to Norman.

NATURE NOTES

In Issue 131, we asked for Readers' assistance in identifying the creature responsible for the 'molehills' which appear all over the island each year just before the onset of Winter :

A number of theories were postulated, some more sensible than others, but none of which appeared to hold water in the sober light of day.

It was at this juncture that we received a communication from a Dennis Snuggs who had happened upon The Corncrake. Dennis writes :

"I was looking at the NATURE NOTES, and the "molehills" which are not molehills. Not being funny, BUT. (It made me laugh when I thought of it). Seeing it happens every year, at a certain time of year, "the mounds appear every year around the onset of Winter and seem to be most prevalent on hilly ground." The mounds seem to be equal distance apart as well."

"It wouldn't be some kind soul digging up piles of sand for when the road gets icy, would it? Seeing it is on hilly parts also. Just a thought."

By Chove!! Could Dennis be on to something??

POETRY CORNER

The recent fine weather has been mentioned elsewhere in this tome, but the dry, sun-filled, windless days have not solely been enyoyed since your Editor's return from his sojourn furth of these shores; similar fine weather was enjoyed by the island during his absence. And so it was upon his return that, entering the grounds of Corncrake Towers in mid-February he was able to gaze at an early daffodil in full bloom :

Such events can trigger long-forgotten thoughts and after much dusting down of books, a long-forgotten poem was found from our distant schooldays, which could perhaps go quite some way to explaining why it was long-forgotten in the first instance...

It is a ode from the New England poetess Amy Lowell. And its title? Well, it is after all fairly appropriate :

NOW WHERE COULD THAT BE?

Our 'Where?' photograph for Issue 131 was one kindly provided by regular Reader Alastair Morton and it featured a rather unusual plaque. So, where is it to be found, and just where on earth did it come from?

Taking its current location first, this is one which stumped a great deal of local residents. Indeed, the first person to identify its location was a lady, Catie May, who has only been to Colonsay once and that was two years ago! So, shame on you fellow Colbhasachs - we obviously need to get out more often!

Catie May was able to tell us that the plaque is to be found on a bench "at the pond in Colonsay House Woodland Garden". Well done Catie - and we will hear more of Catie's sleuthing in 'Snippets' in this very Issue... And for visual proof of the plaque's location, Alastair Morton provided a wider-angle snap, allowing all you lazy residents to go and find it for yourselves :

And for your added information, the lady scratching her ear is apparently Alastair's wife...

Having identified the location of the plaque, we can now turn our attention to from whence it came, and again it is a visitor, (although a much more regular one!), Kate Kay (nee Cooper), who was able to provide the answer. Kate, who will be visiting the island again in July, was able to tell us "that the plaque was 'liberated' from one of the old CalMac ferries which I just about remember - you can make a guess at my age from that!"

So well done Kate, and we look forward to having you back amongst us in July.

Which brings us neatly of course to our 'Where?' photograph for this Issue. And here it is :

So, just where on Colonsay or Oransay would you see the above community bathing spot?

Entries as usual to : editorcorncrake@yahoo.co.uk ; by telephone : 01951 200336 ; or by post to : The Editorial Suite, The Corncrake, Corncrake Towers, Scalasaig, Isle of Colonsay, Argyll, PA61 7YW, Scotland. Entrants are encouraged to obtain all their essentials, including al-fresco bathing requisites, from Colonsay Stores.

LOOK BACK IN ALBUM

In Issue 131, we asked Readers to identify three worthies sheltering in the lee of a dyke and, somewhat tongue-in-cheek, also to identify the dog also to be seen in the photograph :

Well, the worthies were very quickly identified as being John Clark, Iain McGilvray and Archie MacConnell, but the greatest interest shown by Readers was in the dog!

First up was Calum Kennedy who correctly identified the dog as being Tot or Toat and speculated that the venue may have been be the sheep dog trials (Toat was innocent) held at Machrins circa 1959.

Next up was Angus Clark, who quite openly admitted that he was more interested in the dog than his brother and his cronies. And little wonder, for Angus writes :

"This was my first sheep dog Tot, which was born in 1952, her sire being Tom Nicholson's Risp Tighnabruaich and her dam being Andrew.S.McNeill's Flo. She was given to me by good friend Andrew as a pup, who later tutored me in training Tot. I ran Tot at both Colonsay and Islay Sheep Dog Trails."

Angus continued : "I think the venue of the photo was the Colonsay Trial & the reason my brother John had Tot was that I was running another dog called Mae. Later in life, Tot changed her allegiance to John who used to take her to feed some sheep - Paddy Leahy mentioned this on my recent sad visit to Colonsay. I still have a sheep dog that is called Tot the 3rd."

So there we have it. If any Reader has any photographs of dogs, send them in, this could be an exciting new feature for The Corncrake!

And so we move on to our new old photograph. Who can tell us who is pictured here, and for a bonus point, what was the occasion?

SNIPPETS

As previously reported within these pages, local resident Betty Galbraith, following a fall at home in early December, has been off the island, firstly in hospital in Oban and latterly recuperating at the home of her daughter Mamie. Well, the good news is that Betty has now recovered sufficiently to return to her Kiloran home. Her injury has not quite yet healed though, but the visits of home-helps have allowed Betty the joy of being back at her own fireside.

Unfortunately, Georgina Hobhouse remains off the island, and is currently receiving treatment in Inverclyde Royal Hospital in Greenock. We look forward to seeing her at home soon.

In Issue 131, we announced the availability of the new 'Isle of Colonsay' malt whisky, complete with tasting notes straight from the pen (or should that be the throat?) of your Editor.

Your Editor then proceeded, uncharacteristically of course, to provide Readers with some spurious information; the reason for this error is still somewhat unclear...

Anyway, to the point; the e.mail address for potential purchasers of this mightily fine malt was given as shop.colonsay@virgin.net and not, as it should have been, colonsay.shop@virgin.net

If this error has in any way impacted upon your opportunity to sample this particular nectar, please accept our profuse apologies. It will surely not happen again...

For those Readers not clutching your social diary as you read these pages, we would strongly exhort you to grab a hold of it fast; for we bring important news.

Following on from the huge success of the Colonsay Gathering held in Glasgow in February 2005, we can reveal that the follow up, the Colonsay Gathering 2007 (Ceilidh and Dinner Dance), will be held on Saturday February 17th at the Grosvenor Hotel, Glasgow.

Further details as they become available will of course be published in The Corncrake in due course, but this is a date for the diary. Further information and early reservations from Christa on 01951 200320 or byrne@colonsay.org.uk

We are constantly being reminded by Readers just how long it is since the publication of the last Corncrake. In response, we would now ask Readers to see if their memories can stretch back that whole 6 weeks to the plea for Readers' help from Roger Butler to solve the 'mystery' of why the Strathcona and Mount Royal crest should be mounted on the ceiling in the council chamber in the Aberdeen Town House.

To the rescue came Aberdeen resident and Colonsay visitor Catie May (see 'Now Where Could That Be?' in this very Issue) who, whilst not being aware of the solution to Roger's little puzzle, sensibly asked the same question of her local council. In turn, Douglas Campbell of the Aberdeen City Heritage Trust, very quickly came up with the solution :

"Baron Strathcona and Mount Royal (1820-1914), otherwise known as Donald Alexander Smith, was born in Forres. He left for Canada as a young man in 1838 where he joined the Hudson Bay Company and ended up being builder and financier of the Canadian Pacific Railway. He was described as the "grand old man of Canada" (britannica.com). The family, with its local roots, later made charitable donations to the city, hence the honour of having a crest in the Council Chamber."

So there we have it! Many thanks to Douglas and of course to Catie. The Corncrake currently basks in the glory of this success!

As if the ego of The Corncrake staff had not been inflated enough by the foregoing success (on behalf of Readers of course...), word reaches us of progress in a query which began away back in our Issue 114. Ewan Barr, who instigated the query concerning the ultimate fate of the then Lord Strathcona's motor yacht, "Kiloran", has been in touch to say that he has been contacted by a gentleman by the name of David Mitchell. Mr Mitchell confirmed that the "Kiloran" eventually became a pleasure vessel in Torquay and enclosed a photograph of the vessel plying her Torquay trade, together with one of himself on her stern deck returning from Brixham in 1953 or thereabouts :

All grist to the mill, but alas it does not address Ewan's original request for information concerning the vessel's ultimate fate. So, not yet quite a total success for The Corncrake and its Readers - unless of course some new Reader knows something we don't...

Buoyed however by this marginal success, The Corncrake has yet another mystery for its Readers to solve.

Some 15 years or so ago, a regular visitor mentioned to Kevin Byrne that he had purchased a second-hand fiddle and had arranged to have it rebuilt. When it was dis-assembled, a piece of paper was discovered glued to the inside of the instrument which mentioned the name of its 18th century owner, a native of Colonsay who was serving in the Revolutionary War in America. It gave the name of his regiment and his own name; from memory Kevin believes it was a McNeill.

Unfortunately, the years have taken their toll on Kevin's memory (join the club...) and he cannot find his notes on the matter or remember the name of his informant. If any Reader can help with any aspect of this little 'mystery', Kevin would be delighted to hear from you ( byrne@colonsay.org.uk or telephone 01951 200320).

Not being a huge fan of contact sports, your Editor was totally unaware of the existence of the sport of 'sumo-wrestling-while-on-space-hoppers'. That is, until he received a communication from Nia Ball, who was apparently on the island at the New Year.

It was then that we learned, not only of the existence of this somewhat esoteric sport, but that a Colbhasach is the undisputed 'sumo-wrestling-while-on-space-hoppers' World Champion!

And who, we hear you ask, is this sporting legend? Well, it is none other than Kenny Rutherford! As evidence of Kenny's prodigious prowess, Nia forwarded photographs of Kenny winning his world title on the sands of Kiloran on Sunday January 1st. And, here is "Kenny the King", beating off the other finalist to claim his title :

So that's what Doctors of Philosophy get up to on Ne'ersday!

Videos of the Championships, we hear, may soon be on sale in the Post Office...

So, have you got your holidays planned for this year? Well, as part of the Small Islands for Survival and Understanding (SISU) project, there is a trip planned to Finland, leaving Colonsay on the 26th September 2006, returning again on the 2nd or 3rd of October.

This will be to attend the SISU conference in Finland, and to visit a variety of communities and projects. There will be feedback forms to be completed and some limited reporting for participants to do on the visit.

All reasonable travel and subsistence expenses will be paid and the trip is open to all community members. If you are interested in attending, please contact Chris at the Service Point on 200263.

A good opportunity we thought to show again photographic evidence of the last SISU trip to Sweden :

And no, we refrained from making the cheap joke about this being the finnish of this article...

NEW COLONSAY VEHICLES - PART 4.

When we first thought of this little feature, we had anticipated that it would only appear on an occasional basis. Yet, here we are now with it in our fourth consecutive Issue.

When word got round the island that Angus MacPhee was to get a new vehicle as part of his duties for Colonsay Estate, your Editor smelled 'scoop!', and in seconds flat he was in his own vehicle and heading for the Estate Office in the hope of securing an exclusive snap of said vehicle. And an exclusive snap we got, but the vehicle was not quite what we had mentally pictured :

Yes, it would have been more of a scoop if we had snapped Angus actually riding it...

And while we are on the subject of Colonsay vehicles, your Editor did sneak back and get a shot of our lovely, big, red, new, fire engine. But shh, don't tell anyone :

CAPTION COMPETITION

At last, we arrive at the spot in The Corncrake where Readers have the opportunity to make other Readers chortle. Yes, it's Caption time again!

Our caption photograph from our last Issue showed a man at peace with his pipe in the grounds of The Colonsay. It seemed wholly appropriate that we ask the man in question to judge the entries this time round, and this he duly agreed to do.

Given the imminent ban on smoking in public places in Scotland, there were quite a few entries pertaining to this. The entry selected by Angus came however from a man who is probably unaware of the smoking ban, given that he lives in Washington, North Carolina, USA. What's more, John Leslie, for that is our winner's name, has never been to Colonsay! Still reads The Corncrake though...

And the entry selected by Angus? Well, here it is :

Yes, very good, John, and our thanks to Angus for being such a good sport.

Which of course brings us to the competition for this Issue. Never having been to Colonsay, John was of course unable to provide a suitable photograph. A quick fumble through the Corncrake archives however soon produced the necessary. And here it is :

Entries as usual to : editorcorncrake@yahoo.co.uk ; by telephone : 01951 200336 ; or by post to : A.N.Other, The Corncrake Caption Competition (Issue 132), c/o The Editorial Suite, The Corncrake, Corncrake Towers, Scalasaig, Isle of Colonsay, Argyll, PA61 7YW, Scotland. Calls may be monitored for quality control purposes.

WHAT'S ON IN COLONSAY

Please note that there is also a Notice Board on the Homepage; anyone wishing to publicise any event or attraction is invited to send details to the Editor.

TOPICAL LETTERS

Instructions are supplied, but two hints may help:
1. When using phrases, enclose them in quotation marks. For example, [lifting stone] will get you every instance of [lifting] or [stone] but ["lifting stone"] will get you what you want.
2. When you see the results, they may seem unlikely. This is because many documents (e.g. each issue of The Corncrake) are in reality just one single "page", covering many unrelated topics. No problem! Open the page, then go to the "Find (on this page)" option at the top of your screen, on a drop-down menu presented by the second button from the left. Type in the word you seek and hey-presto, it is highlighted for you. Note that you must give the page time to load (an issue of The Corncrake takes up to a minute), also that there may be more than one example on the page, so use the "Find (on this page)" function again to check that you have not missed anything.

REGULARS

GENEALOGICAL LETTERS Dear Editor, Greetings from a Canadian descendant of Colonsay living in the US! My name is Greg Munn. I now live in Nebraska but am from Eastern Canada. My Munn’s emigrated from Colonsay on the Ship Spencer in September of 1806, meaning this year is our 200th anniversary on this continent. I am planning a family reunion in July in the little village called Murray River on Prince Edward Island, not far from where the Munn’s landed two centuries ago. My uncle Jim Munn visited Colonsay a couple of years ago, and will be back in a few months. He told me that he believes there will be an event regarding the Spencer that will take place on Colonsay some time this year, and I am enquiring if you have any information on this or a contact that I can make. For your information, I have enclosed a couple of photographs of my ancestors :   The man is James Munn, born on Colonsay around 1785 and died on Prince Edward Island in 1868. The woman is his wife, Elizabeth MacMillan, also born on Colonsay, and died on PEI in 1872. I have photographs of every generation since, and have done a reasonable job over the years of researching the family genealogy on this side of the Atlantic. It is one of my life’s ambitions to visit the home of my ancestors one day. This feels like I am sending a letter back in time. If you have any info I would be delighted to hear about it. Thank you. Greg Munn 121 S. 13th Street, Suite 200 Lincoln, NEBRASKA 68508. www.bvh.com EDITORIAL POLICY Corncrake is published to keep all our friends in touch with life on the island. Contributions are invited and welcomed. Fortnightly editions will carry details of coming events, special offers etc. Please send letters and proposals for specific articles to the Editor Brief genealogical and related queries are also welcome from Colbhasachs overseas, as are obituaries and family traditions relating to Colonsay emigrants. This publication will hopefully develop to reflect the interests of the readership so please feel free to make your contribution. The magazine section needs articles on flora, fauna, geology, fishing, crofting etc.