8. The Agricultural and Commercial Interests of the Highlands...... KINTAIL.. ......... PROVOST MACANDREW. "Gu'm b'i 'Ghaidhealtachd an tìr bhaigheil, 'S an tir phairteach, bhiadhar; Tir a' phailteis, tir gun ghainne, An tir bhainneach, uachdrach, mhealach, Tir an arain, tir an tachdair, Sithne, 's pailteas iasgaich."-Uilleam Ros. 9. Kindred Societies......DR F. M. MACKENZIE...BAILIE ALEX, Ross. "Bidh caoimhneas, comunn, iochd, a's gradh Eadar far an eirich grian 'S far an laidh i 'n iar 'sa' chuan." 10. The Non-Resident Members SKAEBOST. MR COLIN CHISHOLM..... MR REG. MACLEOD. "'Bhi ga'n cuimhneachadh 's ga 'n iondrainn.”—Oran Gailig. 11. Provost, Magis. trates, and Town MR J. BARRON..................BAILIE MACBEAN. Council "Na abraibh ach beag, ach abraibh gu math e."-Sean-Fhocal. 12. The Clergy of all MR WM. MACKAY.............. Denominations.... ............................Rev. A. C. MACDONALD. "Ged nach deanainn fidhleireachd 13. The Press.............. COUNCILLOR STUART ......... !...... "Buaidh leis na seoid." 14. The Chief....................................MR E. H. MACMILLAN.......THE CHIEF. “O Dhomhnuill nan Domhnull ga'm bu chòireach deadh bheus, Sliochd nan cuiridhean gasda, sliochd nan lasgairean treun, A bha uasal na'n cleachdadh, 's ioma eachdraidh rinn sgeul, Agus bard a rinn duan mu an uaisle 's an euchd."-Mairi Nic-Ealair. 15. The Croupiers........ MR G. J. CAMPBELL.......... .THE CROUPIERS. "Dithis a tha òg iad, Dithis a tha boidheach, A chorr air a cheile."-Rob Donn. "Da churaidh 'chaidh sios air chomhladh 'Measg mhiltean an comhstri nan slògh."-Fingal Duan III, "DEOCH-AN-DORUIS." Deoch-an-doruis, deoch-an-t-sonais, Nithibh sona gu'n robh againn', After dinner, the Secretary (Mr William Mackenzie), stated that apologies for unavoidable absence had been received from Mr Baillie of Dochfour; Mr Charles Fraser-Mackintosh, M.P.; Mr J. P. Grant, yr. of Rothiemurchus; Rev. A. Bisset, Stratherrick ; Professor D. Mackinnon, Edinburgh; Mr A. Mackintosh Shaw, London; Mr Hew Morrison, Brechin; Colonel Macpherson of Glentruim; ex-Bailie Macdonald, Aberdeen; Mr Angus Mackntosh of Holm; Mr Alexander Macpherson, Kingussie; Mr D. Menzies, Blairich; Bailie Stewart, Dingwall; Mr P. Burgess, Drumnadrochit; Rev. J. Macpherson, Lairg; Mr D. Macrae, Ardintoul; Mr D. Cameron, late of Clunes, Nairn; Dr Stratton, Devonport; Mr Charles Innes, Inverness; Mr A. Burgess, Gairloch; Mr Simon Chisholm, do.; Rev. R. Morison, Kintail; Mr Duncan Maclachlan, publisher, Edinburgh; Mr D. R. Ross, GlenUrquhart; Mr Osgood H. Mackenzie; Mr John Mackay of Ben Reay; Mr Charles Fergusson, Cally, Kirkcudbright; Sir George Macpherson-Grant, M.P.; Mr D. Davidson of Drummond Park; Mr D. Forbes of Culloden; Mr A. Ross, Alness; Major Colin Mackenzie, London; Captain A. M. Chisholm, Glassburn; Mr Clunas, 4 Morningside Park, Edinburgh; Mr Alex. Macdonald, Highland Railway, Inverness; Mr Thomas Cook, 108 Patrick Street, Cork, &c. Mr C. Ferguson, who is the author of the paper on the Gaelic names of plants published in vol. vii. of the Transactions, in apologising for his absence, wrote:— "As an example of the good a word of encouragement and advice from those at headquarters does us, wandering-Jew members of the Society, I may mention that the idea of making up this list of Gaelic names of birds was first suggested to me when I was in the wilds of Ireland, by reading in volume viii. of our transactions, page 53, that the Rev. Mr Mackenzie, in his speech to you at your seventh annual dinner, did me the great honour of coupling my name with that of NetherLochaber, urging him to go on with his proverbs and poetry, and me to go on with natural history, taking up the animal and vegetable life. I began there and then to write down all the Gaelic names I knew; I have been hunting for them in every likely corner ever since. I have now got the Gaelic names for 240 different birds, and over 500 names in all, which I hope to see published in our next volume." Major Colin Mackenzie of the Seaforth Highlanders, 39 Pall Mall, London, telegraphed— "Trust gathering will be successful. While deploring my unavoidable absense, shall drink to-night success to the Gaelic Society of Inverness.” The Chief then rose to propose the first toast. He was received with loud cheers. In proposing the health of the Queen, he said they could not but often recognise the ardent love and affection with which her Majesty was regarded by all classes of her subjects, and by none more so than by the members of the Gaelic Society of Inverness. (Applause.) That love and affection was, he ventured to say, reciprocated by her Majesty, as was manifested by the many public acts, and especially by those writings of her Majesty, in which she had described with touching simplicity that part of her life which she passes in the Highlands. (Applause.) Nor could he pass from this subject altogether without referring to an incident not strange to her Majesty's subjects, although it might appear strange to dwellers in foreign countries. Last autumn, as they all knew, there was a considerable agitation on foot on the part of the democracy of this country; and they knew that meetings were held at which the democracy was very largely represented; but at none of these meetings, when men's passions were more excited than usual, was one word levelled against the Crown, still less against the Queen. (Applause.) For this evening, at any rate, he supposed they were all Jacobite (Hear, and laughter)—and he ventured to think that the Queen herself was perhaps the greatest Jacobite among her subjects. It struck him the other day as a rather singular circumstance that, whereas there is now in Europe, he believed, only one royal pretender to a throne, that pretender should happen to be called the Duke of Cumberland. That was a singular coincidence, and it was excessively interesting to all those of them who studied those times and Jacobite relics. He would not add more, but ask them to drink to her Majesty the Queen. (Cheers.) The Chief, in proposing the Prince and Princess of Wales and other members of the Royal Family, said there were two incidents which gave him an opportunity of getting beyond the conventional remarks common to such occasions. Within a few days the eldest son of the Prince of Wales would attain his majority, and it was an occasion which was deeply interesting to all classes of her Majesty's subjects, for he was the heir to the British Crown, which he would reach in due course of time; and they must all hope that his career would be moulded in such a manner as would render him worthy both of the care of his parents and the excellent example set him by the Queen and the late Prince Consort. (Applause.) The only drawback to the interesting event of the majority of the Prince, so far as he was concerned, was, that the time appeared to be really very short since he was born-(Laughter) -but as a Prince came of age at eighteen and not twenty-one, he had the consolation that things were not quite so bad as he thought. (Laughter.) The other event to which he referred was the betrothal of the Princess Beatrice, and those who had the opportunities he (the Chairman) had of knowing the tender affection that existed between the Princess and her royal mother, could realise the effort it must have cost the Queen in consenting to lose the society of her last-born child. (Applause.) He was sure they would all cordially join in wishing all happiness to the Princess Beatrice and the other members of the Royal Family. (Cheers.) The Chief, in proposing the Army, Navy, and Reserve Forces, took occasion to refer to the death of Cluny Macpherson, who, in his time, was connected with the army, and was for a long period Colonel of the Inverness-shire Rifle Volunteers. He leaves behind him, said Lochiel, a memory not only connected with the Volunteers of which he was so distingushed an ornament, and the raising and organisation of which he did so much to promote, but he will long live in the recollection of all classes of Highlanders, and the nearer the people reside to the old ancestral home of Cluny, the deeper will be their grief at his departure. Cluny was a soldier in every sense of the word. He served gallantly in the 42nd, and then took his full share in the duties belonging to him as commanding the Inverness Rifle Volunteers. He knew, and many of those present would know, the great gratification Cluny experienced in taking his place at the head of his distingushed and well-equipped regiment when the Volunteer Review took place in Edinburgh before his sovereign. There was nothing within the last few years of his life which gave Cluny greater satisfaction, and to which he was more pleased to refer, than the part he took in the proceedings of that memorable day. His sons he had brought up to the profession of arms. One of them was Colonel of the 42nd, a gallant soldier who had seen many campaigns, and had always served with distinction, and his brother was an equally distinguished Highland soldier. He would not say more, but ask them to drink to the toast. (Loud cheers.) Mr R. C. Munro-Ferguson of Novar, M.P., who replied for the Army, said he felt he was but a degenerate representative of his family, so far as military distinction was concerned, for his greatgrandfather was colonel of the gallant "Forty-twa," and his grandfather and father were both colonels, while he (Novar) had merely been a degenerate guardsman-he acknowledged it with a blush. (Laughter.) He hoped the 42nd would be the first regiment to reach Khartoum in the expedition now in progress up the Nile, and at present, from all accounts, it bade fair to win. (Applause.) Captain Beaumont replied for the Navy, Captain Munro of Fowlis for the Militia, and Colonel Macandrew for the Volunteers. The latter made a brief reference to the late Cluny. There was not a volunteer in the county of Inverness, he ventured to say, who did not sincerely and deeply regret that the gallant old Chief was gone; and not one in the regiment but stepped more briskly at the Royal Review, because so gallant an old man was at the head of the regiment. (Applause.) Mr William Mackenzie, the secretary, then read his annual report, in the course of which it was pointed out that the publication of the Society's Transactions made it unnecessary to go into the doings of the Society during the year at any great length. During the spring of 1884 the ordinary meetings of the Society were well attended, while the annual assembly in July, notwithstanding the attack of gout which had so effectually disarranged the programme, was of a highly successful character. During the year twenty-two new members had joined the Society. An abstract of the Treasurer's intromissions to date showed that the income (including £28. 9s. 5d. from last year) amounted to £123. 2s. 2d., while he paid accounts amounting to £42. 15s., leaving a balance of £80. 7s. 2d. now in bank. The Chief, on rising to propose the toast of the evening, was received with loud and prolonged cheers. He said I must ask you to fill your glasses now for a bumper. The toast I have to propose is that of the Gaelic Society of Inverness. (Applause.) Gentlemen, before proceeding to make a few observations on the subject which I know you all here have at heart, I must again refer to the great loss which this Society has sustained in the death of Cluny Macpherson. I am informed by the Secretary that Cluny was the first landed proprietor in the Highlands who joined this Society. (Applause.) There is no element of social life in this country with which Cluny was not connected, and in which he did not take a warm interest, when he thought that he |