Chapter I: Front Matter

The Highland Bagpipe

“THE CORONACH”

(_From the Painting by R. R. Mac Ian_)
]

The Highland Bagpipe
Its History, Literature, and Music
WITH SOME ACCOUNT OF THE
Traditions, Superstitions, and Anecdotes
Relating to
The Instrument and Its Tunes

BY

W. L. MANSON

_The tune with the river in it, the fast river and the courageous, that kens not stop nor tarry, that runs round rock and over fall with a good humour, yet no mood for anything but the way before it._—NEIL MUNRO.

ALEXANDER GARDNER

Publisher to Her late Majesty Queen Victoria

PAISLEY; AND 26 PATERNOSTER SQUARE, LONDON

1901

TO

A. DEWAR WILLOCK

EDITOR OF THE

_Glasgow Weekly Herald_

WHO JUDICIOUSLY BLUE-PENCILLED THE
FIRST ISSUE OF THESE ARTICLES AND
ENCOURAGED THE WRITER TO GIVE THEM
TO THE PUBLIC IN THIS MORE
PERMANENT FORM

Preface.

This book was not written on a preconceived plan, drawn up from the beginning of the work. It “growed.” It had its inception in a commission to write for the _Weekly Herald_ half-a-dozen biographical articles on famous pipers. The necessary investigation produced a mass of material too interesting to be left unused, and the half-dozen articles of the original commission became twenty-seven, with very little of the biographical in them. These, after being finally recast, revised, and in several cases re-written, are now in the form of a book flung at an unoffending public. If the volume interests any one—well. If not—well. There is nothing more to be said on that point.

It were vain to attempt to acknowledge indebtedness to books or to men. Every available book bearing on the subject even in the most indirect way has been consulted, in many cases read. A great deal of the material used is of course common to all Highland literature, and one book cannot be quoted more than another. With men it is equally impracticable to give names. So many have helped, so many have written giving additional bits of information or suggesting improvements, so many have, in reply to requests, kindly supplied matter dealing with phases of the subject on which they have intimate knowledge, that one could not do justice to all without naming all. Still, while this may not be done, I cannot possibly refrain from saying that without the assistance given by Mr. Henry Whyte (“Fionn”) in matters of Highland history and questions connected with the Gaelic language, the book could hardly have been published; while Mr. John Mac Kay, editor of the _Celtic Monthly_, in throwing open to me his valuable library of Celtic literature, did very much to lighten my labours. This, I think, is all I can safely say. If I said more, I would have to say so very much.

W. L. M.

GLASGOW, _April 27, 1901_.

Contents.

PAGE

CHAPTER I.—TUNING UP, 9

“A Hundred Pipers”—Scotland becoming Cosmopolitan—The War spirit of the
Pipes—Regiments, not Clans—Annual Gatherings—Adaptability of Pipes—
Scots folk from Home—An aged Enthusiast—Highlands an Extraordinary
Study—Succession of Chiefs—Saxon introduced—Gaelic printed—Highlands
in 1603—The Mac Neills of Barra—Highland hospitality.

CHAPTER II.—HARPERS, BARDS, AND PIPERS, 18

Ancient musical instruments—Priestly harpers—Hereditary harpers—Irish
_versus_ Scottish harpers—Royal harpers—Use of harp universal—Welsh
sarcasm—Mary Queen of Scots’ harp—The last of the harpers—“The Harper
of Mull”—From harp to pipes—The _clarsach_—Pipes supplanting bards—
The last clan bard—Bardic customs—Bards’ jealousy of pipes—The bard
in battle—Duncan Ban Mac Intyre—Two pipers scared—When the pipes
became paramount—The fiery cross—The coronach.

CHAPTER III.—THE TALE OF THE YEARS, 30

The time of the Flood—Pipes in Scripture—In Persia—In Arabia—In Tarsus—
Tradition of the Nativity—In Rome—In Greece—In Wales, Ireland, and
Scotland—Melrose Abbey—In France—In England—At Bannockburn—Chaucer—In
war—First authentic Scottish reference—Oldest authentic specimen—
Became general—Rosslyn Chapel—Second drone added—At Flodden—“A maske
of bagpypes”—Spenser—Shakespeare—James VI.—A poetical historian—Big
drone added—The ’45—Native to Scotland—The evolution of the
Highlands.

CHAPTER IV.—THE MAKE OF THE PIPES, 59

The “Encyclopædia” definition—The simple reed—Early forms—Simple
bagpipes—The chorus—The _volynka_—Continental pipes—British pipes—The
Northumbrian—The Irish—The Highland—Tuning—Modern pipes—Prize pipes.

CHAPTER V.—WITH AN EAR TO THE DRONE, 73

Dr. Johnson—Inspiration of Scottish music—Professor Blackie—Highland
music simple—Scottish airs once Highland—Age of Highland music—
Capability of the bagpipe—How it has suffered—Peculiarities of the
pibroch—Pipe music not fitted for inside—How it troubled the
pressman—Chevalier Neukomm—Professor Blackie again—A Chicago jury’s
opinion—An ode to the pipes.

CHAPTER VI.—THE “LANGUAGE” OF THE PIPES, 87

Have the pipes a language?—A wild, fanciful notion—How it got a hold—
How much of it is true?—The reed actually speaking—A powerful
influence—The power of association—Neil Munro—Descriptive Highland
airs—_A Cholla mo run_—Military stories—In South Africa—An
enthusiastic war correspondent.

CHAPTER VII.—THE LITERATURE OF THE PIPES, 98

Ancient music lost—Transmission by tradition—Druidical remains—Systems
of teaching—No books—“Unintelligible jargon”—_Canntaireachd_—The Mac
Crimmon System—The Gesto Book—A scientific system—A tune in
_Canntaireachd_—Pipers unable to explain—Earliest printed pipe music—
Mac Donald’s Books—More recent books—Something to be done.

CHAPTER VIII.—THE PIPES IN BATTLE, 113

A Culloden incident—Ancient Celts in battle—The harper and bard
superseded—First mention of pipes in battle—First regimental pipers—
In the navy—Prince Charlie’s pipers—An “instrument of war”—A Mac
Crimmon incident—Power of pipes in battle—A Magersfontein incident—
Byron’s tribute—Position in actual battle.

CHAPTER IX.—THE PIPER AS A HERO, 126

One cowardly piper—At Philiphaugh—At Bothwell Bridge—At Cromdale—The
Peninsular War—At Waterloo—At Dargai—Reay Country pipers—At Candahar—
At Lucknow—In America—In Ashanti—In the Soudan—In South Africa.

CHAPTER X.—THE REGIMENTAL PIPER, 136

Preserving the pipes—Regimental bands—Pay of army pipers—The seven
pipers of Falkirk—Duties of regimental pipers—The meaning of
“Retreat”—A story of Napoleon—In a social capacity—An army wedding—A
military funeral—At the officers’ mess—Awkward incidents—
“Boberechims.”

CHAPTER XI.—THE PIPER AS A MAN OF PEACE, 146

Clan pipers—Chief’s retinue—At weddings—Pipers prohibited—In sorrow—At
funerals—Queen Victoria’s funeral—To lighten labour—The harvest
dance—The shepherd’s pipe—In church architecture—In church services—
As a call to church—Ministers and the pipes—Falling into disrepute—
“As proud as a piper”—Jealousy of the old masters—“As fou as a
piper”—An Irish piper.

CHAPTER XII.—THE BURGH PIPERS OF SCOTLAND, 168

Royal pipers—In France—At the English court—The Edinburgh Piper—
Dumbarton—Biggar—Wigtown—Glenluce—Dumfries—Linlithgow—Aberdeen—Perth—
Keith—Dalkeith—Dundee—Peebles—A weird story—Falkirk—“Gallowshiels”
pipers’ combat—The Hasties of Jedburgh—Habbie Simson of Kilbarchan—
Bridgeton—Neil Blane of Lanark—The Piper of Northumberland.

CHAPTER XIII.—FROM THE SEAT OF THE SCORNER, 192

Poking fun at the pipes—English caricature—Mixed metaphor—Churchism and
pipes—Fifteenth century satire—A biographical sneer—Thackeray—Bitter
English writers—Testimony of a Jew—Home sarcasm—The bards—Joanna
Baillie—A Frenchman’s opinion—William Black—Ignorance breaking its
shins—Imported sportsmen—The duty of Highlanders.

CHAPTER XIV.—THE HUMOUR OF THE PIPES, 205

_Punch’s_ joke—King Charles’s heads—An amusing competition—A
Highlander’s Irishism—Wedding experiences—A piper’s fall—A
resourceful piper—A Cameron piper and his officer—Lochaber no more—An
elephant’s objection—Embarked in a tub—Glasgow street scene—Bad
player’s strategy—What the wind did—A new kind of tripe—A Pasha and a
piper—A Gordon nervous—A jealous piper—Dougal Mac Dougal’s downfall.

CHAPTER XV.—DEMONIAC PIPES AND PIPERS, 223

Tam o’ Shanter—The Devil’s favourite instrument—“Sorcerers” burned—A
bard’s satire—Glasgow Cathedral story—A Hebridean Tam o’ Shanter—
Continental ideas—Reformation zeal—Ghostly pipers—A “changeling”
piper—_The Lost Pibroch_—The Chisholm “enchanted” pipes—The Black
Chanter of Clan Chattan.

CHAPTER XVI.—PIPERS AND FAIRIES, 233

In fairies’ hillocks—Stories with a common origin—Sutherlandshire
version—Away for a year—Harris piper and the fairies—Seven years
away—Fairies helping pipers—Helping the Mac Crimmons—A boy piper—How
the music went from Islay to Skye—Faust-like bargains—A Caithness
story—A fairy piper.

CHAPTER XVII.—PIPERS IN ENCHANTED CAVES, 247

Allied to fairy stories—Venturesome pipers—The Skye cave—The Mull
version—The Argyllshire—The Ghostly piper of Dunderave—“Wandering
Willie’s Tale”—A Sutherlandshire cave—A Caithness cave—Underground
passages.

CHAPTER XVIII.—THE HEREDITARY PIPERS, 257

Hereditary in two senses—When they ceased—The Mac Crimmons—A
traditional genealogy—A Mac Gregor tradition—The Mac Crimmon College—
Dr. Johnson—College broken up—An Irish college—Its system—A Mac
Crimmon’s escapades—Respect for the Mac Crimmons—The Rout of Moy—The
last of the race—How they excelled—The Mac Arthurs—The Mac Intyres—
The Mac Kays—The Rankins—The Campbells—The Mac Gregors.

CHAPTER XIX.—SOME LATTER DAY PIPERS, 276

Angus Mac Kay—Queen Victoria’s first piper—His book—Donald Mac Kay—John
Bane Mac Kenzie—The Queen’s offer—The piper’s reply—Donald Cameron—
His achievements—His theory of pipe music—His system of noting—His
last competition—A special reed—“The King of Pipers”—Other latter day
pipers.

CHAPTER XX.—HOW PIPING IS PRESERVED, 287

The waking—Professor Blackie—Highland Society of Scotland—Highland
Society of London—The system of competitions—The first competition—
The venue changed—The gold medal—Present day competitions—Some
suggestions—R.L.S.—Pipe bands—Examples from high life—Quality of
music—The pipes abroad—Sir Walter Scott.

CHAPTER XXI.—THE OLDEST PIPE TUNES, 299

Unreliability of tradition—Lost in antiquity—Occasions of tunes—
Interest of stories—The Mac Raes’ March—Story of “Suarachan”—Hal o’
the Wynd—The Mac Intosh’s Lament—Two different stories—_A Cholla mo
run_—Duntroon’s Salute—The Campbells are coming.

CHAPTER XXII.—SOME WORLD-FAMOUS PIBROCHS, 314

Mac Crimmon’s Lament—Best known of all pipe tunes—Its story—Blackie’s
poetry—Scott’s—The war tune of Glengarry—A tragic story—The Pibroch
o’ Donuil Dhu—Too long in this Condition—Pipers and inhospitality—Oh,
that I had three hands—Lochaber no More—Allan Ramsay’s verses—An
elated Mac Crimmon—Rory _Mòr’s_ Lament—Clan Farlane Pibroch—Pipers,
poetry, and superstition.

CHAPTER XXIII.—SOME WELL-KNOWN GATHERINGS, 335

A Tune with four stories—The Carles wi’ the Breeks—The Mac Gregor’s
Gathering—Scott’s verses—_Caber Feidh_—The Camerons’ Gathering—Well-
matched chiefs—The Loch of the Sword.

CHAPTER XXIV.—MORE STORIES AND A MORAL, 346

The Clan Stewart March—Mac Gregor of Ruaro—The Braes of the Mist—
Episode at a Dunvegan competition—A Mac Crimmon surpassed—Mac
Pherson’s Lament—Burns and the story—Rob Roy’s Lament—The Mac
Lachlans’ March—_Gille Calum_—The Reel o’ Tulloch—The Periwig Reel—
Jenny Dang the Weaver—Mac Donald’s Salute—Mac Leod’s Salute—
Disappearing lore—What might be done.