The peat-fire flame : folk-tales and traditions of the Highlands & Islands

THE BROWNIE
From Sir Norman MacLeod of Berneray, Martin Martin
heard tell of another occasion upon which this Brownie made
his presence known. Sir Norman had left his island for
Skye, on a visit of indefinite duration. In his absence his
servants and other employees assembled one night in the
large hall of his residence. One of them, reputed to have
been endowed with the second-sight, quite unexpectedly
informed the company that it ought to quit the hall without
delay, since the place would be recpired later in the evening
by another company. His fellow-servants dismissed the
suggestion with the observation that there was very little
likelihood that Sir Norman and his entourage would return
that night, having regard both to the lateness of the hour,
and to the fact that in the darkness the voyage to his island
from Skye was beset with so many perils. But the seer
maintained his prediction against all argument and reasoning.
Within an hour, however, one of Sir Norman's men
arrived on the scene, and bade the company provide lights
and in other ways render assistance, since their master had
just come ashore in the dark.
When, later. Sir Norman MacLeod was told of this
prediction, he sent for the seer, that he might question him
personally as to its authenticity. The seer answered that on
several occasions during the evening he had observed the
Brownie enter the hall in human form, and purport to carry
to the door an old woman seated by the fire, and that
eventually the Brownie ejected her by seizing her by the
neck and the heels. When the seer observed this in the hall,
it caused him to laugh heartily—and for no reason, so far as
his fellow-servants could see ! And they concluded, therefore,
that the seer's mirth was complete evidence that he was
quite daft.
The Eighth Part Measure of a Carle.
The beneficent activities of Sir Norman MacLeod's
Brownie recall the following traditional tale connected with
the Island of Islay.
In the autumn of 1598, and at the head of Loch Gruinard,
in Islav, was fought one of the most sanguinary feuds in
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