J. F. Campbell Collection > Popular tales of the West Highlands > Volume 4

WEST HIGHLA2fD STORIES. 3 I 7
There is a childish game played in the Highlands
called " uinneagan arda," high windows, in which a
circle of children dance round one who tries to escape.
Another anmsement is to whirl a lighted stick so as
to produce a circle of fire, hut that is forbidden hy old
dames, who say, " Tha e air a chrosadh," "It is crossed,"
or forbidden. There are plenty of crosses on stones
which seem to have pagan symbols on them.
There are several " knocking-out games," which are
played in circles, or a half circle, round the peat fire in
the middle of the floor.
A string of words is repeated by a performer with a
stick in his hand, who strikes a foot of one of the
players as he says each word, and at the end of the
performance he says, " Cuir stochd a staigh," and the
last player sticks his right foot into the circle. The
game goes on sunwise till all the right feet are in, and
then all the left, and the last has either to take three
mouthfuls of ashes, or go out and repeat certain quaint
disagreeable phrases, one of which is —
" My own mother burned her nails scraping the
sowen's pot."
" Loisg mo mhathair fhein a h-inen a sgriobadh na
poite chabhrach."
Another is, to light a stick and pass it quickly round
while it is red. The player who has the stick says —
" Giir ite-a gochd." The next to the left replies —
" Cha 'n f hior dhuit e ;" and the fire holder repeats
as fast as ever he can —