Blair Collection > Deo-gréine

AN DEO-GHREINE.
habitats. Not until the seventeenth century
did its vitality show symptoms of serious
weakening. Since that period, considering the
enormous pressure of the forces behind modern
English, the resistance offered, and still being
offered, is astonishing. The Gaelic Tradition
was a living energetic force for many centuries
and, consequentlv, it is hard to kill.
Why should it be killed, or even allowed to
die, now ?
The language has evidently had its lapses —
and serious ones — long, long ago : lapses which
preceded periods of re-adjustment. If we were
to assume that the language is now emerging
from a lapse which is about to be followed by
a season of re-adjustment, and if we, at the
same time, were to act on that assumption, we
would not be assuming too much. The "Welsh
language, we are told, recovered from a serious
lapse which was at its lowest point three
centuries ago. We know that on the continent
of Europe, at the present day, languages are
emerging from lapses as great as the latest
which overtook the Gaelic language. The
English language, as we know it, is the out-
come of a re-adjustment which followed a
very serious lapse.
Altogether, there is, to say the least, nothing
absolutely hopeless — as some think — in the
cause we have taken in hand. The forces
opposed to us are formidable, no doubt, but
not such as to engender despair. It is the
wavering hesitancy of the forces behind us
which tends to lower hope and slacken zeal.
It is the main purpose of " An Deo-ghrèine "
to remove that hesitancy, and to imbue the
movement which The Comunn Gaidhealach
is endeavouring to lead, with the rigidity it
requires to enable it to work out suet ess.
A' GHAIDHEALTACHD.
Ciod è is Gaidhealtachd aim ? An e roinn a
dh' Alba a tha innte ? Seadh, agus barrachd
air e sin. Tha iomadh ni eile aim a tha toinnte
ris a' Ghaidhealtachd : iomadh ni mion agus
garbh ; buaidhean air leth, fo mheas mòr aig
na cinnich Eòrpach eile ; buill-shinnsearachd
a bha ruith air an t-sluagh o 'n tàinig sinn.
Tha suidheachadh ar breacain fein innte, agus
dualchasan eile. nach tuig coigreach. Tha
feartan agus càiltean inntinn air nach ruig
cainnt, agus, seachd àraidh, mothachadh
mùirneach agus gràdh cridhe air siubhal an
fhacail.
Is leis an righ rloghachd ; agus is leis a'
Ghaidheal a' Ghaidhealtachd. Co chunnaic
riamh rloghachd le sealladh a shul ? Cha mhò
chunnacas le sùil riamh a' Ghaidhealtachd sin
a tha fo aire agam. Agus 's e sud a' Ghaidh-
ealtachd a tha mi a' togail dhuit : comunn is
co - chomunn, ceatharnachd fhoghainteach,
cur-le-chèile agus càirdeas. Agus, ciod e
is bun do 'n chàirdeas so ? Tha, Cànain.
Cha Ghaidheal neach gun Ghàidhlig. Cha
Ghaidhealtachd tir gun Ghaidheil. Far am
bheil a' Ghàidhlig'na làn ghreim : sin duthaich
nan Gaidheal. Thoir thusa sùil ami an cuid
a dh' àitean. Abair gur e Canada a th' aim,
agus an earrann sin dith anns nach cluinn thu
facal ach Fraingis ; agus gach re dhuine a
thachaireas ort, tha ainm Gaidhealach air ;
agus cumaidh e am mach dhuit gur e Gaidheal
a th' aim fein agus nach Frangach idir a th'
aim, agus e gun fhacal Gàidhlig no Beurla
'na cheann. Agus a luchd-daimh a rugadh 'sa
Ghaidhealtachd, cha 'n 'eil aige dhaibh ach
gleadhar Frangach ; agus na briathran a
chanas «?, 'nan sgoileam gun seadh aca. Dà
charaid a' bruidhinn ri chèile, 's gun chomh-
luadar aim : cha bhràithrean na 's mò iad, ach
luchd-togail Bhabeil do 'n dual dol am mi-
bhàigh d' a cheile. Aon uair is gu 'n tig
bèarna-cànain eadar bràithrean, beannachd
leis a' bhràithreaehas.
Car son a leanamaid as dèigh a h-uile
cànain ùr a thig oirnn ? Is e comharradh an
dearg amadain teannadh ri toileachadh na
h-uile. Co is neònaiche Gaidheal Frangach
no Gaidheal Sasunnach !
Coinnichidh na h-Eireannaich ann an Tir-
an-airgid : ciod e is ceangal 's is comh-thional
daibh ? Cànain. Gearmailtich, ge b'e co an
t-àite 's am bi iad, agus iad a' bruidhinn na
cànain a th' aca fein mar shluagh air leth —
Und Gott in himmel lieder singt —
sin far am bheil a' Ghearmailt. Ach far an
caill iad an c\ànain fein, caillear iadsan cuid-
eachd, agus sgaoilear air a' Ghearmailt. Is
ionann car mar a dh' èireas do na Gaidheil.
Cha 'n 'eil dol as bhuaidh. Ma threigeas sinne
cànain-ceangail ar càirdeis, cha bhuan càirdeas
duinn. Bithidh sinn dol 'nar Sasunnaich a
chuid 's a chuid, gus rau dheireadh is orra a
shloinnear sinn; agus cha bhi mòran taoibh
no cuim do'n Ghaidhealtachd againn tuilleadh,
ach uiread 's a tha aig na Sasunnaich. B'e 'n
t-aobhar pròis duinn sin !
Ach mo dhiobhail ! A' mhòr-chuid de na
Gaidheil a th' ann an Albainn, cha tuig iad
mar a tha. Agus an ni nach tuig iad, cha
chuir iad meas air. Tha a' bhuil : gu 'in bheil
iad a' call dùthchais is dualchais. Cha 'n
aithnich duine dhiubh a bhràthair. Ge math
le each aobhair a' phaisg-shlat, is fèarr leò-san
sgapte iad. " Ciod e am feum a tha air
co-chomunn mur cuir e salann air a' chàl
duinn," ars iadsan. An cruinne-cè 's a chuid
mhlorbhuilean, na chi iad bhuapa, is na th'
ann gu lèir, is beag am meas orra sud, ach