The book Arran; - Cook Clan

288 THE BOOK OF ARRAN
is a seal-maiden, and the ' MacCodrums of the seals' in North Uist owe their
description to this descent. The item of the boy following his mother is not
general.
The lost or sea-covered island, sometimes a city as in Brittany, is common
to the Celtic peoples.]
Ill
FORETELLINGS AND SiGNS
A cave at Kilpatrick was used for a considerable time as a place of
public worship, and is still known as the Preaching Cave.^ A certain
man with his brother was one day on his way to a service to be held
in the cave when he suddenly stopped, and pointed towards the rocks
on the shore, saying to his brother, ' Do you see that ? ' The brother
said, ' I can see nothing.' ' Well, place your foot on mine and look
again.' ^ This being done, the astonished man beheld his brother's
wraith at the spot pointed out to him. The man who had seen his
own wraith died in the cave.
APPARITIONS
Some thirty-five years ago a shoemaker named Galium went
amissing at Blackwaterfoot. For a short time before his death a
strange light was observed almost nightly to rise at the mouth of the
Blackwater and to float sometimes along the shore. It was seen by
a large number of people, many of whom considered it to be a sign of
the impending death of some one, and that probably by drowning.
Among those who professed to hold this view was S , who used to
jocularly remark that when So-and-so was drowned they'd have to
take a liberal supply of whisky with them when searching for the
body. It so happened that S was amissing and search for him
went on for many days, during which time the mysterious light was
more or less in evidence. After the finding of his body on the shore
(he had been drowned in the Blackwater) the light was no longer seen.
Several people saw this light rise from the mouth of the burn, float
over to Cleit an Ruithe, a distance of from 200 to 300 yards, and
then fly back. It then disappeared or sank. They described the
1 See p. 145.
2 This was the usual means employed to convey the power of seeing to another.