大象传媒

An cuala sibh riamh mu faire chlaidh? Graveyard watch. Faire chlaidh. Bha daoine a鈥� creidsinn gun robh an spiorad aig duine a bha air a thiodhlacadh a鈥� cumail faire air na mairbh. Bha e a鈥� d猫anamh sin gus an robh duine eile air a thiodhlacadh. Bha daoine ag iarraidh nach robh aig spiorad an duine sin a bhith a鈥� cumail faire ro fhada. Uaireannan dh鈥檃dhbharaich sin str矛 is sabaid.

聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Dh鈥檌nns Iain D貌mhnallach, B脿rd Loch Abar, do Chalum MacGhilleathain naidheachd mu dheidhinn. Bha ministear a bha seo a鈥� gabhail cuairt. Bha e faisg air 脿th air bruach Abhainn Spiothain. Th脿inig d脿 bhuidhinn de dhaoine. Bha iad a鈥� dol don chladh air taobh thall na h-aibhne. Bha ciste-laighe aig gach buidhinn. Bha argamaid ann. Th貌isich iad air sabaid. Fhuair a鈥� bhuidheann a bhuannaich an cothrom a dhol don chladh an toiseach. Cha robh aig spiorad an duine aca ri feitheamh fada mus tigeadh an ath dhuine marbh.

聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Bha faire de she貌rsa eile a鈥� dol anns na cladhan cuideachd. Bha clach-uaighe ann an Cladh Chill Mo Naomhaig faisg air Drochaid an Aonachain. Bha toll anns a鈥� chloich. Chaidh an toll a dh猫anamh le peilear.

聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Bha feadhainn a鈥� goid chorp bho chladhan 鈥� daoine mar Burke is Hare. Bha fear 脿 Loch Abar na oileanach ann an D霉n 脠ideann. Bha e a鈥� d猫anamh dotaireachd. Th脿inig corp don deuchainn-lann. 鈥橲 e boireannach a bha ann. Bha fiaclan math aice. Bha an t-oileanach dhen bheachd gun robh na fiaclan coltach ri fiaclan t猫 脿s an sg矛re aige fh猫in. 鈥橲 e bean Dh貌mhnaill 鈥檌c Iain an t-ainm a bha oirre.

聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Sgr矛obh an t-oileanach dhachaigh. Dh鈥檉haighnich e an robh duine sam bith air b脿s fhaighinn o chionn ghoirid. Th脿inig fios gun do chaochail bean Dh貌mhnaill 鈥檌c Iain.

聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Co-dhi霉, oidhche a bha seo bha athair Iain Dh貌mhnallaich ann an Cladh Chill Mo Naomhaig. Bha e a鈥� cumail faire an aghaidh m猫irlich nan corp. Bha gunna aige. Dh鈥檉h脿s e sg矛th. Thuit e na chadal. Dh霉isg e gu h-obann. Chunnaic e rudeigin. Loisg e an gunna. Ach chan e m猫irleach a bha ann. 鈥橲 e clach-uaighe a bha ann. Agus rinn am peilear toll anns a鈥� chloich.

Have you ever heard of faire chlaidh? Graveyard watch. Faire chlaidh. People were believing that the spirit of a person who had been buried was keeping watch over the dead. He was doing that until another man was buried. People were wanting that that man鈥檚 spirit would not be keeping vigil too long. Sometimes that caused discord and fighting.

聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 John MacDonald, the Lochaber Bard, told Calum Maclean an anecdote about it. A particular minister was taking a stroll. He was near a ford on the bank of the Spean River. Two groups of people came. They were going to the cemetery on the far side of the river. Each group had a coffin. There was an argument. They started to fight. The group that won got the opportunity to go to the graveyard first. The spirit of their man was not having to wait long until the next dead person came.

聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Another type of watching also took place in the graveyards. There was a gravestone in Kilmonivaig Cemetery near Spean Bridge. There was a hole in the stone. The hole was made by a bullet.

聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Some people were stealing bodies from graveyards 鈥� people like Burke and Hare. A man from Lochaber was a student in Edinburgh. He was doing medicine. A body came to the laboratory. It was a woman. She had good teeth. The student thought that the teeth were like those of a woman from his own area. Her name was 鈥渢he wife of Donald son of John鈥�.

聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 The student wrote [a letter] home. He asked if anybody had died recently. News came that 鈥渢he wife of Donald son of John鈥� [had] died.

聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Anyway, on a particular night, John MacDonald鈥檚 father was in Kilmonivag Cemetery. He was keeping watch against grave robbers. He had a gun. He became tired. He fell asleep. He suddenly woke up. He saw something. He fired the gun. But it wasn鈥檛 a robber. It was a gravestone. And the bullet made a hole in the stone.