New Ulm review. (New Ulm, Brown County, Minn.) 1892-1961, 1899-01-25
ONE PIBROCH

This is the story that Donald Mao
Pherson told me one day last autumn
on the Black Moor that is over Glen
Roy It was after long mornings
shoot, and hesand | were lying upon
the heather in the fraternal enjoyment
of usquebaugh unpolluted by the fiscal
eye and surrounded by the soothing reek
Of our postprandial pipes. had won
Donald's heart by certain qualities
which once had the felicity Of acci
dentally overhearing him name to a
fellow gillie who was charging him
with undue friendship for "a bit Of q
Sassenach body He. is no .Sassenach
bodyl' cried my indignant champion
in excited Erse 8 He lisa highland gem
tleman, for his mother will have been
a daughter of the Clan 49,, which is
a very good name whatever He isa
very straig bit shooting gentleman, more
over, and he has the Gaelic as well as
or you, Angus Macintosh! I" So, when
Iasked him that day with due. cere-
mony) to explain his ''to name'' of
s MACE Chat a Fraoch (son Of the heath
er cat), and to tell me curious legend
which had somehow learned in the
hamlet to be attached to the name. he
readily responded to my request
/ translate his wild tale from the
Gaelic in which he told it me How
much it loses in the process those who
know that beautiful language will
easily understand.
1t is from the father of my great
grandfather, said Donald, that will
be having the name. A very pretty man
he was, Dougal MacP herson. He stood
mere than 6 feet high. His back was
as broad as the door of his dwelling,
and he.could carry a full grown stag IN
his shoulders over Ben Mhor, and the
activity Of him was as great as his
strength, for at the hattie of Falki1k,
where he was fighting in the first rank
of Clan Mhuirach, he sprang against
the side of a dragon horse and slash
ed off the head Of the rider with one
sweep Of his claymore in the leap And
5Cluny himself called him next morning
in front Of the clan and said that it was
q spring like the spring Of Cnchulaind
at the ford fight with Ferdia in Ireland
long ago, and that he should be hence
forth called the Heather Cat for his
fierce, active, heroic deeds in the battle
and as name Of honor upon him.
!. Now, there were very few in the
highlands that could be matching Dou-
gal in strength or. feetness or in the
managing Of the gun. OF the dirk. OF
the claymore, but there was one art
that he could never at all be the master
of and that is the.art of playing the
pipes, though he longed for that one
more than for any other, and the want
of it was avery great loss to him what
ever, as ! shall be explaining to You,
for the piper of Glen Roy-and that was
Duncan Gamer on-had daughter, the
sight Of whose fair face was dearer to
Dougal than the sight of moor cover
ed with deer. or of "a river full OF
salmon, or Of battle line Of the slider
roy, and her heart was given to Dougal,
as his was to her, but her father had
said that no man should have her in
marriage who could not play the pipes
1t is q very dour, hard, obstinate man
he was, Duncan Cameron, and Dougal
could never at all persuade him to let
him have his daughter Helen to wife on
any other conditions, ard it was q hope
less task for him to be trying to learn
the pipes. Duncan liked him very we'll,
and would be giving him plenty of in