THE REVOLT IN SKYE.

Inangahua Times, Volume X, Issue 1505, 4 February 1885, Page 2

THE REVOLT IN SKYE.

AN INTERVIEW WITH " THE GLKsDALE MARTYR." On Saturday evening, 15th November (writes one of tbe correspondents of the Pall Mall Budget'), hearing that ! John Macpherson, who had been lighting the crofters' battle with such determination for the'ast four years, was staying at the • ortt-ee Hotel, I called upon him, and fou- id him sitting with some, companions from Giendale in the kitcheu of the hotel. He at once expressed his anxiety to lay the case of .he crofters before the English public through the medium of the ' Pall Mill Gazette.' Mr Macpherson is a fine looking Highlander of some fifty years of age, with kindly eyes, a fine mouth, aud short brown beard. His ancestors for years past lived at Greendaie, and he himself has settled there, and now has six children. I had heard him abused as a professional agitator, so I commenced our conversation by asking him how long he had been agitating. " Well," he said, "I have always had this matter at heart since I was a boy but I have never been able to stir people till within the last three years, for I have had no help. But about three years age we started ; there was a farm beside us left vacant, and we jumped on it, for we wanted the land, and were willing to pay a fair rent the same as any other tenant." " And was it for taking part in this agitation that you were arrested ?" •* Yes, and for sixty one days I was imprisoned in Edinburgh because I disobeyed the interdict and placed some beasts on the vacant firm." Did you take any part in the Braes agitation two years ago ?" No, it was too far off fron Giendale, but I was in full sympathy vith the crofters there. The chief want of the people there is more land." " And could they the* make a living'?" ' 4 lt is the first thing to get. Up till within forty years ago most of the land was common, the arable land only being allotted to the crofters. But now rents have been raised three times 'what they were, while the crofts have been diminished, becauso the people were so timid that they did not dare to object ; now however they are getting bold, and already are getting better prices for the fish they catch For cod and ling they used to get 5d and 6d, now they get fid and Is. I have a croft myself, for which I pay £5, aud it has been cultivated over and over again, so that I get hardly anything from it, and can only pay the rent by going south and fishing. If a crofter gets any corn he cannot use or sell it ; he _us»*s it to feed his stirk or sheep. Ues soil the cattle ami buys food and clothing in the town. In the old times they used to l»e clothed with their own wool, but now tho large farmers send all their wool south. 1 don't believe that the largo farmers are doing well ; the land is getting so exhausted. Where they could once keep 60,000 sheep they can now only keep 5.000." *« It is said by the landords that the crofters are idle, and that their poverty '

is due to that ; is this the case ?" «We ue idle, it is true. But why? Because the landlord will not let us work, and then we are so often evicted, three or four times in twenty years. What heart could you have to work in sneh case?" "Do you think a law on the li.ies of the Irish Land Act would helpf " Well, the first thing must be that the crofters mnst have more land. with pasture lands in common and LlO to LSO crofts the people would do well. Tbe landlords must be compelled to break up the large farms ; there is plenty of land for all. We dou't want to take it from the landlords without compensation. I should be in favor of having a law officer to decide fair rents, and would "ather the rent should be paid to the Crown than the landlords. It would be a good thing for the people to have fixity of tenure bnt the crofters will not take a lease, for they believe that the land is their own as long as they pay rent, and they should be let alone no less the neighbors all say that a man is a bad man. " Would yon be in favor of the Government advancing money to enable the men to buy their own holdings?' •• I would be in favor of the Government advancing money to enable the men to stock their farms and build decent houses, but surely not to be the proprietors of their crofts. I It would be nice to have a bit of land, but any man that it looking only on himself is not a fair man. Nothing is so fair as to pay rent, but I should not like that any man should call the land his own. We are saying that the land belongs to God, and if we say that it is ours we should be as bad as the lairds. Tlie agitation we got np at Waterstein three years ago Fo<^ty families, 240 souls, wanted the land from Dr Martin when it was vacant, and were willing to pay the same rent, and you can judge whether it was better to give it the 240 people or one man who had nine farms already and no family. It waa for this I was imprisoned Their are no better ssen to work ashore or at sea than as, bnt we have no heart to work when we can only work from three to foor acres and I do bless the Irish for putting it into our heart to commence this agtiation." As John Macpherson had been on board tbe Lochiel to see Sheriff Ivory, who is at the head of the police and marines, to say that the crofters would not resist, I asked whether the people would lose heart, and the agitation die down. '• Far from it," he replied ; *** wo are doing finely. This is only the beginning it is as easy to keep back the Atlantic from the Skye rocks as to put down this agitnton. I could bring down men who could beat all tbe troops they hive here no ~ bat what good wonld that be? They would only send more, who would kill ns all ; bat even now, if the people were being pnt out of their homes on the roadside, we would first die before we allowed it to be done." " But will you allow any one to be taken to prison T " What harm would that do ; the people aro taken the more it will pierce the heart of the crofters, and the stronger tho agitation will become, till we obtain justice." " But how will the agitation be kept up ?' John was too wise to reply, and merely said : •• Perhaps yon will allow me to think of that myself." " Is the agitation likely to be confined to Skyer " Not merely here by any means, bnt I have been through all the islands myself, and they are on fire. We know that we are not only fighting our own battle; for if we get what we want, others all through Britain wil I be wanting to know why they do not have it too, and messages we have received will be helping us, for th c crofters will never lose heart now they have thrown off their fear." " Do you expect that the Franchise Bill will help yon, and that yen will get what you want through Parliament ?" " Yes, and we are getting a member who will be true and will protect tlie crofters. We are willing to die fighting if it will be necessary but we want as many years of life as we can have if it will l»e possible to get it otherwise." Here the Giendale martyr broke off, and said: "There; but I have told yon enough for to-night. Yon must come to Giendale, aud I will show you how the people are being rented, that you may tell them in London what you have seen with your own eyes.'' The Government and tho landlords may be perfectly certain that the agitation will never stop till justice is done to tho crofters, and whether Macpherson will be satisfied with au Irish Land Act for Scotland seeois doubtful frotn the tone of his conversation.