The coastland times. [volume] (Mnateo [i.e. Manteo], N.C.) 1947-1959, 1954-07-09
THE HIGHER
THE FEWER
There's Always Plenty of Room
At The Top
By
NANCY ]. MIDGET

isn't,-my thoughts turn to the
holidays spent in the hills and
mountains of Cumberland and
Westmoreland and in the west
ern Highlands of Scotland. If
only one could mix a climatic
cocktail; say a dash of the cool
clear air of the Highlands with
out the mist one so often gets,
although even that would be
cooling right now; then the
beautiful views with their shad-
owing from mauve in the dis
tances to deep purple in the
folds of the mountains that eases
the eyes, and round the lochs
when the sun has gone over the
rim there is the still stiffness, if
one can use such a term. A quiet
ness that is not just noticed by
the ear but enters deep into you
and lets the kinks out of ones
spine and nervous system. With
that perhaps we could have in
the mornings some of the North
Carolina sun, for it is then that
the freshness is still on the earth
and clear and clean, before the
heat of midday and afternoon
starts the whiting process. The
late falls and early springs of
these parts with all the beauti-
full Towering shrubs and trees
would round out the year, with
night temperatures of not higher
than IS degrees to 70, all year
round. l know! / would still not
be satisfied.
In 1947 l took a vacation in
Scotland and stayed for two
weeks in the little town of Gou-
rock some few miles down the
Clyde below Glasgow. 1t is a
lovely little place with its golf
course above the town looking
out over the Clyde towards Loeb
Long, Care Loeb and Holy Loeb.
Lower down the hillside toward
the town are the bowling greens,
not the bowling alley type but
velvet like grass, in this case
domed toward the center; The
game is played from the sides of
the green to the centre. South
in my part of England the game
is played from one end of the
green to the other. Much time
and l expect, money, is spent on
these green's for they are of the
finest grass,-just what variety
this female doesn't know,-but
there is not one weed to be found
thereon, or woe betide the
greensman when the players
wood deviates from its course
because of one. Flat rubber soled
shoes only must be worn on the
green's. 1 have never played it
but have spent many hours sit
ting on the seats round the Can
bury Garden greens by the river
at home, Kingston Thames,
watching the local lights. 1t is
fascinating to even watch and l
must say that l found the great
est fun in listening as we'll. Some
of the older players would fol-
low the woods up the green,
talking to them like a fond faith
er to his child, or sometimes like
a dutch uncle depending on what
bent they decided to take when
the Jack" was approached.
From Gourock you can take
the steamer up or down the
Clyde, on trips up the lochs or
round the Kyles of Butte. I took
that trip on a crisp sunny day to
Tighnabruaich stopping at Kim,
Dunoon "a well known beach
holiday resort and Innellan on
the way. These steamers carried
the mail, goods and passengers
coming and going from the isles
and lochside dwellings and viii
lagos, and it was fascinating to
stay on deck and watch the
changing scenery and houses,
some of them hundreds of years
old and built from the native
rock, merging in with the greens,
greys and puppies of the coun-
tryside.
It took me some time to find
the correct or near correct pro-
nunciation of many of the place
names including Tighnabruaichi
in fact I wondered at times by
the expression on the face of the
ticket clerk whether / would ar
rive at the right destination OF
whether he would blow a gasket
trying to be polite and keep his
face straight at my efforts. My
previous vacations had been
spent on the east coast of Scot
land where / was more familiar
with place names and pronuncia-
ton, my mother and father being
from the east.
l am sorry that I wasn't able
to visit the Isle of Arran and that