A Sketch of Old Cregneigh.†
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"In the time of my boyhood, Sir, every house in Cregneish had a stack of heather at its gable. They called it "conney freoaie," and gorse "aittin." Everyone about the Mull that
owned a bit of mountain was cutting turf in May—they called it "sod," and then spreading
it to dry, and the sods being well dried, they made stacks of them for the winter fire; they called the stack "eekad," also "eek moaney" (turf stack). I don't remember a fire-grate in any Cregneish houses, but burning heather and sods on the hearth.\*
There were only two farmers in Cregneish who had a pair of horses, but there were a good many of them who had one; and then two of them joined together at ploughing time, and ploughing together like they are in the West of Ireland at the present time: one man driving and the other holding the plough. They had wooden ploughs in those days. I remember
- † Re- told in Mr Farquhar's own words.— C.R.
- * A Shetland hut had a fire on a floor, but no chimney, and the smoke eddied near the opening in the roof. See "Excursion to the Shetlands," by Rev. Dan. M'Allum, London, 1829.— C.R.
