Traditions of John MacCodrum – III

Another humorous anecdote concerning John MacCodrum and another famous bard, namely Alasdair mac Mhaighstir Alasdair, was taken down by Calum Maclean from Angus MacLellan, (1879–1949), styled Aonghas mac Iain ’ic Chaluim and also Aonghas mac Anne Bàine, Griminish, Benbecula, on 10th of January 1947: 

 

Thàinig an siud Alasdair mac Mhaighstir Alasdair air chuair^st a dh’Uibhist. Thàinig e gu h-àraid mu thuath, agus bha e ag iarraidh stiùireadh air taigh MhicCodrum, am bàr^sd eile. Thachair feareigin ris ach cha do dh’aithnich iad a chèile. Cha robh fhios aig Alasdair gur h-e MacCodrum a thachair ris idir, agus thuir^st e mar seo:

 

“Am bidh thu cho math,” or’ esan, “agus gu stiùir thu mi air taigh MhicCodrum.”
“De ’n colas an taighe a th’ aige?”

 

“Well,” ors’ an duine, “taigh MhicCodrum,” ors’ esan, “is an dala taobh air a thughadh is an taobh eile gun tughadh idir dheth.”

 

Chum Alasdair roimhe. Rinn e siubhal mòr mun d’fhuair e an taigh. Bha e a' dèanamh gum biodh ceann dheth gun tughadh agus ceann eile air a thughadh. Ach ’s e bha Mac Codrum a’ ciallachadh, an taobh a-staigh dheth bha e gun thughadh idir, is bha an tughadh air an taobh a-mach.

 

Tha iad ag ràdha gum bheil Alasdair mac Mhaighstir Alasdair, ga brith a bheil e fior neo nach eil, nach eil oidhche deug sa bhliadhna nach eil e a’ fal^abh air a mhàgan ò Bheinn Chàrsabhal chon na Fadhlach a Deas aig Beinne na Faoghla. Ga brith gu dè am breitheanas na am peanas a chuireadh air, tha seann-sean^achas ag innse gum bheil e mar sin, agus tha daoine ann a tha ag ràdha a chunnaic e agus a bha e a’ bruidhinn riutha: agus tha feadhainn ann a dh’innis e dhaibh mar a thachradh dhaibh, agus mar a dh’innis e dhaibh ’s ann a thachair dha na daoine sin, ga brith gu dè an seadh a th’ ann.

 

And the translation goes something like the following:

 

Alasdair mac Mhaighstir Alasdair (Alexander MacDonald) came on a trip to Uist; he came north and he wished to be directed to MacCodrum’s house, the othe poet. He met a man but they didn’t recognise one another. MacDonald had no idea that he had met MacCodrum, and he said:

 

“Would you so good,” he asked, “as to direct me to MacCodrum’s house?”

“What does his house look like?”

 

“Well,” said the man, “MacCodrum’s house is thatched on one side and doesn’t have any thatch on the other.”

 

MacDonald kept on. He travelled a great distance before he found the house. He thought that one side of the house wouldn’t have thatch but the other side would. But what MacCordum meant that the inside wouldn’t be thatched and the thatch was on the outside.

 

They say that Alexander MacDonald, whether this is true or not, that ten times a year he can be seen crawling from Ben Carsaval to the South Ford in Benbecula. Whatever judgment or punishment they inflicted on him, the old stories tell us this was so, and folk say that the saw him and that he spoke with them: and a few were told what happen to them, and that what was told to them indeed happened to them, in whichever way this happened to be.

 

The first anecdote shows MacCodrum trying to outwit the other with his sharp mind and, it might be supposed, is rather a tame version of poetic flyting. The next one contains a very definite supernatural element and claims that Alexander MacDonald’s ghost could be seen and allegedly spoke with folk and would offer predictions, some of which turned out to be true. Other sources claim that it was not Alexander MacDonald’s ghost but rather that of his brother, Lachlan, who was resident in South Uist for many years.

 

References:

NFC MS 1053: 79–80

William Matheson (ed.), The Songs of John MacCodrum: Bard to Sir James MacDonald of Sleat (Edinburgh: Oliver & Boyd, 1938)

 

Image:

Hebridean Blackhouse