Notes on the Catrail. By Miss Russell. 97 



had sometliing to do with all these names meaning colour. The 

 word maud for the shepherd's plaid of uncleaned wool, is even of 

 importance to the history of Scotland, for it is obviously the old 

 Gaelic maudal or maundal for mantle, only used in poetical G-aelic. 

 Plaidie, on the other hand, is the regular Gaelic word for a 

 blanket. The shepherd's plaid in Dumfrieshire is sometimes 

 woven of red and white. It is sometimes called the Johnstone 

 tartan, and I believe it has as much to do with the Johnstones as 

 many of the tartans have to do with the clans, as clans. The 

 regimental tartans seem to be the truest representatives of the 

 old dress, in so far as they are supposed to mark the men who go 

 out to battle from a particular district. The use of the gray 

 plaid, as one would have expected, extends into Northumber- 

 land ; its southern limit, to speak botanically, would be an inter- 

 esting subject of enquiry. 



It will be observed, the theory of an original Gaelic population 

 in Lothian and Berwickshire (though I do not know that any of 

 us in the south of Scotland have ever doubted it) is of great con- 

 sequence to the nationality of Scotland, and shows that it is not 

 merely a result of the welding of the English wars ; for one 

 thing, it explains how Scotland came to extend to its present 

 limits, for it accounts for the incessant attempts of the Scoto- 

 Pictish kings on Lothian and Northumberland. Mr Skene 

 remarks upon the extreme persistency, and sometimes unaccount- 

 ableness, of these attempts ; but he has latterly seen that the 

 true explanation is, that the districts in question had been old 

 Gaelic territory. See page 135 of the 3rd volume of " Celtic 

 Scotland," "Land and People." He also mentions the High- 

 land tradition to that effect. 



I cannot say much of the remains of the Catrail from personal 

 observation : the southern half I do not know, and as to the 

 northern part, as far as my experience goes, there is not a great 

 deal to be seen. Alter it enters Selkirkshire, the mouth of 

 Rankilburn is one place where lines are marked by the map, 

 parallel to the Ettrick ; but I can hardly say they are visible. 

 The bank does not look as if it had been ploughed of late years. 

 But on the west side of the Ettrick the map gives a significant 

 name which Gordon has not got — the Ramper Knowe — though 

 the rampart is a scarcely perceptible rise in a ploughed field at the 

 foot of the steep Gilmanscleuch Law. There is no appearance of 

 any line ascending the hiU, and it is impossible to see what use 



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