The morning call., 1890-12-21
THE DIALECT OF THE PEOPLE.
The Several Industries on the Shet-
land and Orkney Islands
Arrival of the First Steamer at
Lerwick-The Red Granite Quar-
ries of Peterhead-Th Cathe-
oral of St. Magnus.
Special to THE SUNDAY CALL,


and intermarrage for AGO years
~ show marked Scottish, and
especially Highland Scottish, influence and
similarity of customs and manners the
Shetlanders refuse to consider themselves,
or be called, Scotch" They have always
been "SheLlanders" Those from the main
land are Scotch" Thus it has always
stood. and stands TO this day with resolute
obstinacy. Both the Shetland Islands and
the Orkneys, lying between the SEetlands
and Scotland, originally belonged TO the old
scandinavian kingdom of Norway and Dem
mark. In point of fact they still do. That is,
they were never formally transferred to Scot
land. When, in 1863, James III of Scotland
took for his bride Margaret. daughter of
Christian l of Denmark, both groups of
Islands were merely assigned in "wadset,"
or as pledge for Margaret's dowry. This
form Of mortgage has never been redeemed,
nor has it ever been foreclosed, unless time
may be said 10 have done so; and if at any
time the 5000 people of the Orkneys. who
derive their name 0rcadians, IRON the
islands ancient name. the Roman Orcades,
and the $4,000 souls of Shetland, Zetland
tancient Morse, Hjaltland, or highland
should at any time desire to renew their al
legiance either to Denmark or to Norway
and Sweden, nothing existing in interna-
tlonal comfy could justly oppose their doing
SO. There are hfty-siX islands, islets and
hoims IN the Orkney group, twenty-nine of
witch are inhabited, and the Shetland group
comprises 100 islands and iSlets, of which
twenty eight are peopled.
In remote parts OF both the Orkneys and
Shetiands much of the dialect of the natives
IS so impregnated with Scandinavian words
and idioms as to be very difficult for even
Highland Scotchnen, between whom and
these folk there are
STRONG AFFINTTIES
In speech and customs, to understand. At
the time these Islands were pledged to
James III for the payment of Margaret's
dowry, 1t was distinctly provided that Morse
Government should be continued and that
the law Of ST. Olai''-that good saint who
Is not dead but only sleeping, and hiding his
time to return with all power and greatness
to Norway-shall prevail. relic OF this
ancient system is found in the ''peerie
lairds,' or little lords. who still hold and
may transfer their lands by word of mouth,
no written document being required. These
are to-day the only absolute freehoders of
land in both island groups. The region
about Harray, on the northeast shore of the
Loeb OF Stenness, in the Orkneys, and the
township of Fladdabister about ten miles
south of the City of Lerwick. in the
Shetland Mainland, are still peopled
by these "peerie lairds." They are
wondrous Boosters over their pure Morse
descent, and are poor, proud and i'll
sOent. The herring fishing industry has
within few years given both the Orkneys
and ohetlands unusual prosperity, and as
the total catch of all fish on the Shetland
coasts now equals one-third of the entire
annual catch Tor Scotland, 1t would seem
mat the Scotch were destined to reap AS
great rewards from this source as formerly
did the Dutch. Previous to the British i'm
position of salt duties in 1712 the fisheries
of Shetland were in the hands of the Dutch,
who il is said derived an annual profit of
SJo.eoO.oeO from the same, or the enormous
profit during their entire control of
S1,000 100000! More than 1000 "busses"
or fishing vessels might have been seen in
Lerwick Harbor at one time; while few
miles from Lerwick, toward Scalloway, the
ancient capital of Shetland, is still seen the
- HolIanders Knowe' or hillock, where in
the old times, when the Dutch fishers and mer-
chants were in the ascendant. was held a
great annual fair, where the simple island
ers bartered their
FISH AND wooLENs
For tobacco, spirits and other iuXuries from
Amsterdam. Other industries of the islands
are very noted hosiery and various knit
fabrics of marvellous pattern and delicacy of
texture; sheep-raisiDg, regarding which most
interesting tales are told of the carrying
of sheep for summer grazing to almost in
accessible ard uninhabited islands; and
the native cattle have been improved by
cross with the southern shorthorns and
the Scottish polled Angus. In the DIRK.
sive and excellently cultivated farms; and
during 1886 over COG eggs were ex-
ported. The salubuty of the climate in
both these island groups is remarkable.
Though SO far north that in the longest
day i'll the year the sun rises at two min
utes past 3, setting at twenty minutes
past 8, newspaper can be read at mid
night and the lark begins singing at /
o'clock in the morning, and in the short
est day there are only six hours and seven
minutes between the rising and setting Of
the sun. the mean temperature is as high
as 40 degrees. This is undoubtedly owing
to the influence of the Gulf Stream
Spring begins in April; summer termin-
ates about the middle of September; and
then after few weeks of clustering
weather there is month of the most beauti-
full and genial weather. answering to our
own Indian summer" and called here "the
peerie summer, ''peerie' in orkney, Shet-
land and fifeShire, Scotland, meaning
"wee," tiny, little or brief.
1t was not very long ago that the Orkneys.
and especially. the Shetland Islands, were
regarded as wholly remote from and mac
cessible TO the civilized world. The revolu-
tion of November, 1858, was not known of
in Shetland until the following May. As
late as 1904 the British mails for three or
four months time would arrive al the same
hour.
THE FIRST STEAMER
Appeared off the Shetland coast in 1882 the
peasantry believing it 10 be ship on fire;
and it was not until 1S47 that one was seen
in the ports of the North Isles. They still
have many anecdotes here of the effect of
its arrival of Lerwick. A sample one is
that on the occasion of the craft blowing off
steam with great noise. two simple island
ers engaged In gathering llmpets off the
rocks nearly went mad with fright. AT
length, surveying the ''fire-ship' monster
with desperate dlsmay, the stronger-minded
of the two handed his snuff-horn to his COM
panion with the exhortation,
49, H. r.
doo'l snuff nae mair wi Inc till we snuff the
gi!her in gloryp' He thought the great
day had come. and that the angel was
aboard the steamer trumpeting the signal
= for universal dissolution.
Sailing packets were finally superseded,
and large steamers regularly ply between
Scottish ports and those of the Northern
Isles, furnishing the remotest and dreariest
fishing hamlets with three mails week.
The tremendous increase in the Importance
OF the herring fishing industry of the Ork-
neys and Scotland is not alone responsible
for the establishment of convenient means
of intercommunication with England, South
ern Scotland and the near mainland. Euro
pean summer tourists have within few
years come here in great numbers. On the
Continent, and especially in London, now
that the lochs and glens of Northern Scot
land have been pretty well explored, there
is an increasing enthusiasm in penetrating
northernmost regions. Only this season pc
rodic excursion parties to Iceland were Or
ganized with great success. The spirit of
adventure, easily and pleasantly gratified,
the grand and magnificent rock scenery, es-
pecialy Of the western sea-walls of both
island groups, the fascination of the fierce
tideways and whirlpools with which the
coast abound, locally called
'.RoosTs."
The gruesomeness and grandeur of the out
lying islets and hoims, the occasional roar
ings of the Atlantic which may often be
heard for distance of twenty miles as the
bowling storms beat upon mural precipices
of the western shores, and, above all, prob
ably the grandest free fishing in the world,
liz Shetland. where the lochs and tarns
which communicate with the sea are alive
with brown trout, and the woes and gios in
denting the coasts swarm with a-trout In
Vulnerable, have all contributed In render