大象传媒

Tha cairidhean ann an grunn 脿iteachan air a鈥� Gh脿idhealtachd. Tha iad uile sean. Cha do chleachd daoine iad airson 霉ine mh貌r. Tha cairidh a鈥� ciallachadh balla beag cloiche a bha daoine a鈥� togail air tr脿igh. Bha 猫isg a鈥� sn脿mh thairis air a鈥� bhalla nuair a bha a鈥� mhuir a鈥� l矛onadh. Nuair a bha an tr脿ghadh ann, dh鈥檉halbh an t-uisge; ach cha do dh鈥檉halbh na h-猫isg. Bha e furasta do dhaoine na h-猫isg a thogail far na gainmhich.

Bhiodh e math seann chairidhean a thogail agus a chleachdadh a-rithist. Bhiodh iad ag obair fhathast, tha mi cinnteach. Anns an t-seann aimsir bha daoine a鈥� glacadh bhradan annta. Nise, nuair a chanas mi 鈥渂radan鈥�, tha mi a鈥� ciallachadh 鈥淎tlantic salmon鈥�. Tha mi ag innse sin dhuibh oir tha 鈥渂radain鈥� eile ann. Mar eisimpleir, tha am bradan sligeach ann 鈥� 鈥渢he scaly salmon鈥� 鈥� am bradan sligeach. A bheil sibh e貌lach air? 鈥橲 e sin an sturgeon. Tha am bradan sligeach a鈥� f脿s uabhasach m貌r. Tha na h-霉ighean luachmhor. 鈥橲 e sin stuth ris an canar caviar. An toigh leibh e?

Bha daoine a鈥� glacadh bradan sligeach ann an cairidhean bho 脿m gu 脿m. Tha e cl脿raichte ann an seann l脿mh-sgr矛obhainn, am Wardlaw Manuscript. Thachair e ann an Linne Fharair (am Beauly Firth), siar air Inbhir Nis, anns a鈥� bhliadhna sia ceud deug is seasgad (1660). Bha am bradan sligeach deich troighean a dh鈥檉haid.

Aig an 脿m sin, bha gearastan de shaighdearan Sasannach ann an Inbhir Nis. Cheannaich iadsan am bradan sligeach. Chosg e ceithir puinnd Shasannach. Thug iad air ais don ghearastan e. Bha iad dhen bheachd gun d鈥� fhuair iad bargan. Ann an Sasainn, bha iasg mar sin air cosg co-dhi霉 deich puinnd Shasannach.

Anns an latha an-diugh bhiodh iasgair a鈥� faighinn 鈥檚 d貌cha ochd m矛le not airson iasg mar sin! Bhiodh cairidh 霉r an uair sin gu math prothaideach. Ach tha cnap-starradh ann. Ma tha thu ag iarraidh bradan sligeach a reic, feumaidh tu cead fhaighinn bhon bhanrigh. A r猫ir an lagha, 鈥檚 ann leathase a tha gach bradan sligeach ann an uisgeachan Bhreatainn.

There are cairidhean/yairs in many places in the Highlands. They are all old. People haven鈥檛 used them for a long time. Cairidh means a small stone wall that people were building on a beach. Fish were swimming over the wall with the flood tide. When the ebb occurred, the water left; but the fish didn鈥檛 leave. It was easy for people to pick up the fish from the sand.

聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 It would be good to rebuild and reuse old yairs. They would still work, I鈥檓 sure. In olden times people were catching salmon in them. Now, when I say 鈥渟almon鈥� I mean 鈥淎tlantic salmon鈥�. I鈥檓 telling you that because there are other 鈥渟almons鈥�. For example, the scaly salmon. Do you know it? That鈥檚 the sturgeon. The sturgeon grows to a prodigious size. The eggs are valuable. That鈥檚 the stuff called caviar. Do you like it?

聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 People were catching sturg-eons in yairs from time to time. It鈥檚 recorded in an old manuscript, the Wardlaw Manuscript. It happened in the Beauly Firth, west of Inverness, in 1660. The sturgeon was ten feet long.

聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 At that time there was a garrison of English soldiers in Inverness. They bought the sturgeon. It cost four English pounds Sterling. They took it back to the fort (鈥渢he citadel鈥�). They reckoned they got a bargain. In England, a fish like that would have cost at least ten English pounds.

聽聽聽聽聽聽聽 Today a fisherman would get perhaps eight thousand pounds for a fish like that! A yair would then be very profitable. But there is a problem. If you want to sell a sturgeon, you have to get permission from the queen. According to the law, she owns every sturgeon in British waters.