Blair Collection > Celtic gleanings, or, Notices of the history and literature of the Scottish Gael

LECTURE I. 33
awakened with regard to the division of the
presents, and they doubted much whether they
could be apportioned without giving offence.
On consulting with one of the community, he
at once relieved their fears, saying, " Oh, leave
that to ourselves !" This was accordingly done,
and in half an hour the w^hole was divided with-
out a murmur. It was done at their " Mod,'*
an institution of which we have a perfect speci-
men among a purely Celtic population in this
secluded island.
These are a few of the features that distin-
guished the social and political system of the
Celtic races, and such were a few of the advan-
tages which that system possessed. Under the
government of our well-beloved Queen we have
a grateful blending of the peculiarities of both
the contending systems — the Feudal and the
Celtic. We have the strength which is said to
characterize the former ; we have the mutual
affection between the governor and the governed
that marks the latter. We have the Feudal
sovereign blended with the patriarchal head of
her race ; the representative of the Saxon
monarchy of England, as well as of the ancient
Celtic monarchies of Scotland and Ireland.
Every excellency that was characteristic of both
seem to have, at any rate for once, met together
to distinguish the reign of Queen Victoria.
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