Issue 186 - March 2008 - e-mail edition

CONTENTS - USE EDIT / FIND ON YOUR TOOLBAR TO READ ARTICLES LISTED BELOW

JOHN ANGUS McKAY FORBES

COMMUNITY COUNCIL MISCELLANY
HA(U)LLING FOR 30 YEARS
TALKING RUBBISH
GLENCREGGAN
SOCIAL WORK EVALUATIONS
GENDER EQUALITY SCHEME
COUNCIL AIMS TO IMPROVE AIR QUALITY THROUGH VEHICLE EMISSIONS
HOME COMING SCOTLAND 2009
HOSPITAL PARKING
TRAILER SAFETY
LETTER TO THE EDITOR (SINGLE STATUS)
YOUNG VOICES NEED TO BE HEARD
VILLAGE HALL QUIZZLE 7(2007) -ANSWERS
QUIZZLE RESULTS
LETTER TO THE EDITOR (Councillor Anne Horn)
FAIRTRADE FORTNIGHT
RE-UNITED WITH RAOUL - MATTHEW RAMSAY RETURNS TO THE AMAZON
RAINFALL RESULTS – JANUARY 2008
SADDELL & CARRADALE GUILD
PLANNING APPLICATIONS
SEASONAL PROBLEMS IN KINTYRE
LETTER TO THE EDITOR - POWER PROBLEMS
KINTYRE FORUM ON COMMUNITY CARE - CONFERENCE & EXHIBITION - Thursday March 6, 2008

JOHN ANGUS McKAY FORBES - 14th April 1926 – 21st January 2008

Dad was a man of endearing charm. He was always ready for a chat, and to share a story, a joke or a glass or two of whisky.
He had a deep love of the countryside and of the country way of life. He felt at home in wild places where nature was at its
purest and the fishing and shooting at its best. He was an excellent fisherman and shot, but for him these pursuits were never
about numbers, but of exercising skill in a beautiful setting and talking about it afterwards with friends, preferably with a dram
in hand.

Dad was born in Hove on 14th April 1926. His father was Scottish/Irish and his mother English/Welsh leading Dad to
classify himself as a 'quarter of everything' or an 'Anglo-Scot'. He was brought up mainly in southern England where he, and
his sister Maya, were left with various relatives as their parents were with the Gurkha Regiment in India.

He went to Wellington College and was there during the Second World War. He was good at games, excelling at cricket,
tennis, shooting and snooker. He joined the army and just missed active service as he caught scarlet fever during training in
Wales. He was then posted to Greece and Egypt to help with the management of transit camps handling the repatriation of
troops from all over the world. This was followed by a period of water pipe laying and road building in Kenya. Dad saw active
service in the Korean War and was mentioned in Dispatches in 1952.

Dad married my mother, Rosemary, in 1960. Joanna arrived in 1962 and I two years later.

In 1968 he was posted to the British Embassy in Copenhagen as Military Attache or 'spy' as the Russians were to think as we
were in the middle of the Cold War at the time.

Dad left the Army in 1971 and went to the Royal Agricultural College to requalify as a rural estate manager. He was the eldest
student in his class but excelled and obtained a First Class Diploma. Mum and Dad then hit on a novel way of keeping the
1
family together when Dad went on interviews as we would all go on tour in a caravan around Scotland.

In 1973 Dad became the Factor for Dunlossit Estate on Islay. A position he was to hold until his retirement in 1993. My
parents loved both Islay and its people, and therefore thoroughly enjoyed their time on the island. For Dad it was the perfect
place to pursue his passion for fishing and shooting. He would haunt the River Laggan if there was the slightest chance of a
fish often using his own hand-made flies, particularly a 'Forbes Special' which consisted largely of hairs plucked from our
Labradors! His favourite shooting expeditions were going rough shooting for woodcock and most summer evenings would be
spent trout fishing on Loch Lossit well within earshot of the call for supper.

On retiring in 1993 Mum and Dad moved to Barmollach in Kintyre as this was on the mainland but still a wild and beautiful
spot. Their energies were then turned to making Barmollach into a home. They worked hard in the garden and soon the 3ft
docks and thistles were replaced by lawn. Dad's main area of expertise was the vegetable patch and under his green fingers this
soon became very productive.

Dad was devastated by the early loss of Mum to cancer in 2001. Joanna then moved to Barmollach to care for him. During his
illness he was well looked after at home by Joanna and Irene, and in the final few months also by Maya and Mitch.

Dad's warmth and enthusiasm in company, his ability to deal with people from all walks of life and his inherent wish to do his
best for any people under his responsibility, combined to make him what he was - 'a gentleman and a character'.

He will be sorely missed by his family and friends.

R.McK.F

COMMUNITY COUNCIL MISCELLANY

FIRM HANDLING

When is a community council meeting a sell out success? Answer - when there’s nothing worth watching on the Telly, when
there are visiting speakers and inter-tribal hostilities threaten to produce an altercation worthy of reporting in ‘The Sun’.
Unfortunately these factors failed to produce the expected ‘fisty-cuffs’.

The visiting speakers put their case for a wind-farm at Cour with great sensitivity, it was received courteously and the
expected ‘rough-stuff’ was handled firmly by the Chair-person, Shelagh Cameron, and by the reticence of those aggrieved -
more on this under ‘Parking Fiasco.’

MINUTELESS MINUTES

While 25 is not a record attendance, chair upon chair was added to the Hall Caretaker’s carefully arranged setting. After
‘remembering’ the minutes - the recording device had failed - and, without waiting for adverse comment, Shelagh coyly asked
for them to be approved. They were duly nominated and seconded, but were wisely not voted on.

By this time the speakers arrived, having overcome satellite navigation problems at Dippen. They were followed by a lone
Councillor, Rory Colville - an all-time EKCC supporter. Rory said that he had risen from his sick bed to attend because of
criticism in ‘the press’ !

ITS IN THE WIND OR NOT

After explaining the extent of the proposals for Cour, Airtricity’s officers answered residents questions, and one from a
member of Tarbert and Skipness’ catchment area - another first.

A second ‘first’ for Kintyre was the confirmation that, because of technical problems, the Tangy Wind-farm was still failing
to produce power for the National Grid.

PENINVER MEETINGS

Councillor John Semple has asked for community council meetings to be held in Peninver. Two previous EKCC Chairman
pointed out that during their times they had held meetings in Peninver Village Hall and made concerted attempts to attract
nominations from Peninver. On each occasion local attendance was absent or could be counted on one finger of one hand. A
decision was taken to hold two (unstated) meetings a year in Peninver.

2
SADDELL WATER

Residents of the village are still enamoured by the burn passing through their village, but are furious over the continuing
delays in dealing with other Saddell water coming through their gardens, round their houses and putting down beds of rich
alluvial soil on on their paths and road. Despite continuous efforts by Rory Colville and by earlier EKCC Chairmen, the
promised solution faces more administrative delays. The time for direct action may not be far away. Anyone with a bulldozer ?

ST JAMES PLACE

After helping the former EKCC secretary to correct a missing item from a community council minute last May, the same
community councillor has now decided to help the Wind-farm Treasurer to ensure that he is investing the Common Good
wisely. The Treasurer, as Chairman of the Abbeyfield organisation in Scotland and a past-Treasurer of Abbeyfield UK, as well
as an experienced financial adviser, took the offered brochure and will, no doubt, study it with interest. One wonders if other
members will be helped to do their job by this well meaning councillor.

GREEN GYM ‘COMPO’

Please don’t associate this initiative with an elderly TV actor in a woollen hat and wellies standing by the side of a large pile or
rotting material dishing out shovels of fresh compost to eager gardeners. The real community council proposal, made some
months ago, was to establish a community compost ‘station’ with fellow travellers ‘steaming’ into sight and ‘puffing away’ with
‘truck’ loads of friable well rotted manure, after contributing their own raw materials and helping others to turn and aerate the
maturing product. So if you wish to join in contact Shelagh Cameron on 01583 431345.

MOINERUADH HEDGE

Concern has been expressed over the Moineruadh beech hedge, which, while cut back along its sides by trade vehicles and
seasonal trimming, is a hazard to passing traffic and overweight or tall pedestrians! Despite this problem, because of limited
visibilty, pedestrians may well decide to transgress the walking code and walk back-to-the-traffic when heading north-west. The
matter was reported at the EKCC meeting.

PARKING EMBARGO

The expected highlight of the night turned out to be yet another ‘power failure,’ although the litigants made a strong case for
the ability to park outside their own houses, an acceptable privilege denied by the owner of a large number of vehicles and
trailers, who insisted that the he had to leave them outside their houses because the bus needed room to turn outside his house
& shop

As the member of a family originally from the north-east of Scotland, he tried to endear locals to his view by allegedly
claiming that the litigants were ‘in-comers’ and should move back to where they came from. When asked if his trailers could
be moved to the car park across the road, he showed his unique talent for subterfuge by stating, quite correctly, that trailers
were not allowed in the car park and in any case he wasn’t prepared to discuss the matter.

The families affected by his cussedness are now prepared to pay upwards of £60 to have a designated residents parking
area outside their houses. They showed commendable restraint in dealing with the evasive answers of the intransigent fishing
boat owner and in resisting the temptation to ‘deal’ with the alleged comments in more direct ways.

The Chair-person has now to decide, with Argyll & Bute Council and Strathclyde Police, if an alternative would be to have
double no-parking lines placed on both sides of the road at the harbour.

If this is the outcome, not only will all residents and harbour users have to move their vehicles to the car park, but the
aforesaid fishing boat owner, by his own argument, will have to move his trailers elsewhere on what he described as his ‘tidy’
premises.

IDIOT- PROOF SIGNS

As a retirement gift to the B842, Donnie McLeod has been persuaded by Shelagh Cameron to supply three signs asking
drivers to allow faster vehicles to overtake them. In the light of ABC’s interest in dual or multi-language road signs perhaps
continental drivers will still be puzzling over the traditional British inability to produce high quality graphic signs, while trying
to understand both English and Gaelic translations: they may well be past all three signs before under-standing their message.

3
PAID FOR IN FIVE YEARS - WIND-FARM PROFITS

While you may be surprised to learn that the East Kintyre area benefits by up to £30,000 a year in grants from the Beinn an
Tuirc and Deucheran wind-farms, you may have been even more surprised to read Jonathan Leake’s, article in the Sunday
Times on February 3rd. He said that “a typical 2 megawatt (2MW) turbine could generate power worth £200,000 on the
wholesale markets and with another £300,000 of subsidy from taxpayers can pay for its construction and installation in four or
five years”. He went on to add - “there are already 165 farms operating 1,944 turbines in Britain with another 34 under
construction. A further 118 have planning consent and 220 are under consideration. If they are all built, up to 4,000 more
turbines would be built across Britain - a prospect that is also generating a wave of protest”.

With two more wind-farms being presented for planning permission in Kintyre, one at Cour and the other at Southend,
and one already built at Tangy but failing to provide current to the National Grid, one wonders if the rush for environmentally
friendly production of electricity is somewhat of a ruse for the unfriendly accumulation of wealth at the expense of the general
population.

BROOMFIELD CIRCULAR SEAT

Gales, old age and minor vandalism may all have paid a part in the early demise of the Broomfield circular seat. Originally a
gift from a local benefactor, it has served its purpose well over the past few years. If anyone is capable of repairing it the
Antler Editor (01583 431281) or Shelagh Cameron (01583 431345) would be only too pleased to co-ordinate the supply of
materials, either through the Community Council or the Wind-farm Trust

HOMECOMING 2009
Dear Sir,

THE SCOTTISH GOVERNMENT’S HOMECOMING SCOTS INITIATIVE

I was delighted to learn of this new scheme designed to bring natives back to their homeland as visitors or returning tax-
payers. I am sure Gordon and Tony would be the first to support this move to bring restore quality to a country flooded by
immigrants from other parts of the European Community.

I note that in Argyll and Bute the move towards ethnic cleansing is described as “a programme which will seek to attract
ex-patriots and those with an interest in Scotland to visit the country during 2009. The year has been selected as it is the 250th
anniversary of the birth of Robert Burns. Given the strong South Ayrshire links with Burns, the hope is that the Homecoming
will generate particular visitor interest in this area. The Homecoming will however not only be a celebration of Burns but also
some of Scotland's other great contributions to the world - Golf, Whisky, the Enlightenment and Innovation - as well as the
rich culture and heritage of Scots at home and through the many people of Scots descent who live out-with our shores”.

While not quite with the literary eloquence of Ratko Mladic, Saddam Hussein or Robert Mugabe, this statement of intent
should be supported by all discerning Scots. In the Community Councils elections of 2005 at least one candidate had the
courage of his convictions in attracting the native vote. He is still prepared to stand by his principles and resists moves by in-
comers to hog parking places near the base of East Kintyre’s principal industry.

An unenlightened , non-golf playing, abstaining resident. (name and address supplied)

HA(U)LLING FOR 30 YEARS

Many congratulations to Mrs Edna Paterson, who saw out 2007 in style by celebrating her 30th year of service to Carradale
Village Hall. Fellow Committee members, through a private collection, organised a surprise presentation where the Chairman,
Mrs Elizabeth McMillan delivered a warm and heartfelt speech, highlighting the Treasurer’s dedication, steadfast approach and
tireless efforts on behalf of the village over the last three decades. Mrs Paterson was then presented with a silver salver,
followed by a buffet tea and a chance to reminisce before getting down to the more usual task of Hall business. We all agree, a
tremendous achievement and one very worthy of note. Here’s to the next 30 years…! P.D.

TALKING RUBBISH
"DON'T SHOOT THE BIN MEN THEY'RE DOING THEIR BEST"
The local re-cycling arrangements changed while I was away and they now collect tins, plastic and cardboard. Things were, of
course, disrupted over Christmas/New Year so I put everything out last Wednesday morning, the former Rubbish Only day.
Everything was taken except the papers. I thought it might be because there was an old telephone directory on top and maybe
4
this ought to be in the cardboard box, so I re-arranged everything for this Wednesday and they still didn't take the papers. I
left it until today because papers used to be taken on Fridays, but they weren't.

I rang the Council (again) and was told my papers were not collected because they were in the black bin and not in the blue bag.
Papers used to go in the black bin and I have never had a blue bag! He said he would put a note out for me to receive a blue
bag but this would not be for 2 - 3 weeks. I said that I already needed 2 bags because I had 4 weeks of paper and he said he
would organise this, but I pointed out that if I couldn't have my papers collected, correctly, for another 2-3 weeks I would
probably need 3 bags. He said I would have to go and collect them from the local library! The black bin is now only for glass
and, he added, for plastic, cardboard, tins etc. I said that I had a separate sac with pictures of plastic etc on the side and
thought that was for those things. "Oh no" he replied, "the sac is only for any overflow from the black bin". I give up

(E-mailed heart-cry from a north London resident who lives on the boundary between two local authorities).

GLENCREGGAN A HIGHLAND HOME IN CANTIRE BY CUTHBERT BEDE

Following the introduction to Cuthbert Bede (alias the Reverend Edward Bradley) in the January edition of the Antler,
following issues will contain extracts from his comments on places and people in the west of Scotland. This issue gives Bede’s
preface to the book published in 1861, and sheds some rather quaint comments on the Kintyre of his day.

In the following pages I essay to guide my readers to new ground, even to "the Land's End" of Scotland, — for such is the
English meaning of the Gaelic word Cantire, Ceantire, "the Land's End" which is the southern part of the county of Argyle,
and is a peninsula only twelve miles removed from Ireland, washed by the Atlantic, and flanked by the Isles of Arran and the
southern Hebrides. I venture to call Cantire new ground, for in truth it is somewhat of a terra incognita, and is but rarely visited,
and has been but barely mentioned by the guide-books, some of which indeed do not bestow any description upon Cantire,
evidently regarding it as a Western Highland district which no tourist would desire to explore.

For, it is a country which must be visited for its own sake; and the traveller, in quest of Highland celebrities, need not, on his
way to them, pass through Cantire. It lies south and west of the better-known portions of the Scottish Highlands; and
although so many thousand tourists annually visit those spots which fashion has very justly pronounced to be so invitingly
beautiful,—but which, rather more than a century ago (as they were hard to be got at), were deemed to be the types of all that
was uninteresting and repulsive,— yet not even a driblet of this annual stream is filtered through Cantire. It lies out of the
beaten track; it is somewhat of a journey to get at it, to get through it, and to get away from it; and, in these days of rapid
locomotion, when the British tourist can breakfast in Glasgow, and "do" Dumbarton, Loch Lomond, Rob Roy's country,
Loch Katrine, the Trossachs, and Stirling, within the limits of one summer's day, and can sleep in Edinburgh the same night,
he can get more for his money and for his after-conversation out of such a tour as this, than he can do by going out of his way
to see a district of the Highlands, which must consume at the very least three or four days of his time to get to and away from,
and in which his home friends will probably not take the slightest interest. For the British tourist is a gregarious and sheep-like
animal, and Brown's instinct leads him along the beaten track, where he is sure to meet with Smith, Jones, and Kobin-son, and
where railways, steamers, coaches, and well-appointed inns fit into each other with ease and comfort.

And thus, although the Western Highlands have been so much visited and described, the peninsula of Cantire has well-nigh
escaped notice. It is true that when compared with certain other better-known districts, the scenery of the Land's End of
Scotland must (in some particulars) take an inferior rank; but it only fails when put to the test of comparison; and after all this
test is but a variable one, dependent upon the diversities of taste, and for all practical purposes next to worthless. Brown's
remark, that the Fall of Foyers is a hundred times as big, or ten times as stunning, as that tiny cascade in the glen which honest
Smith is admiring with all his artistic heart and soul, is no real depreciation of the smaller fall. Nor ought the satisfaction with
which Robinson, prone in heather, regards the Cantire panorama from his hill twelve hundred feet above the Atlantic, to be in
any way damped by the sneer of travelled Jones: « Ah! you've never been up the Coollins !"

But whatever may be said of the general scenery of Cantire, when compared with that of better-known districts in the Western
Highlands, yet it has its distinguishing characteristic of a peninsula to mark it out as mi generis; and as the peninsula, in its
widest part, is not more than ten or twelve miles, the sea is a main object (this is mentioned as a fact and not as a pun) in all
the Cantire views. Stand where you will, unless buried deep in the winding glens, and you have abundant sea-scape as well as
landscape. Traversing the centre of Cantire, and forming the back-bone of the peninsula, is a range of hills and mountains,
averaging about twelve hundred feet in height, but including greater altitudes, and crowned by Cantire's "monarch of moun-
tains," Beinn-an-Tuirc, "the Wild-Boar's mountain," whose summit is 2170 feet above the sea. The view from nearly every
heathery moor is panoramic in its extent, and varied and beautiful in its details. To the west is the great Atlantic, its broad
bosom studded with the Highland gems of the southern Hebrides; to the east is Kilbrannan Sound and the Firth of Clyde,
with the torn peaks of the lovely isle of Arran. Further north is Loch Fyne, the Isle of Bute, and a mass of mountains, among
which Ben Lomond is plainly to be discerned.

Due north may be seen Ben More and the mountains of misty Mull; and to the southward lies, like a blue cloud upon the sea,
5
that portion of the northern coast of Ireland that extends from Fair Head to the Giant's Causeway. Every way there is a sea-
view, diversified for the most part with islands; and when we combine this with the varied inland scenery, we might almost
apply the words of Milton to this Highland ground of Cantire, and say :

"AH is here that the whole earth yields, Variety without end; sweet interchange Of hill and valley, rivers, woods, and plains,
Now land, now sea, and shores with forest crown'd, Bocks, dens, and caves."

The "forest-crowned" shores are even found here and there, though the greater part of the sea-board is destitute of timber.
The Mull of Cantire,—the veritable " Land's End,"—is peculiarly bare, and is for the most part a wild region of heath-covered
hills, girdled by ragged rocks, against which the waves of the Atlantic, after their three-thousand-mile race, are dashed with a
furious roar, that has been heard (so it is stated) at a distance of forty miles. The highest mountain upon the Mull is Cnoc
Maigh, which attains an altitude of 2063 feet, and which has apparently been named Cnoc Maigh, or "the Hill of the
Plain," on the lucus a non principle, as it rises from a confused pile of mountains, some of which are but little its inferiors in
altitude, and from all of which the views axe varied and magnificent. To the wildness of the scenery in the southern portion of
the peninsula, the soft beauty of the northern affords a marked and agreeable contrast, and the loveliness of West Loch
Tarbert is like a confused memory of Loch Katrine and Windermere.

But, whatever difference of opinion may exist as to the scenery of Cantire, there can be but one opinion as to its being a
district which yields to no other in the Western Highlands both in interest and importance. Cantire was the original seat of the
Scottish monarchy, and its chief town was the capital of the Scottish kingdom centuries before Edinburgh existed. It was the
first part of Western Scotland where Christianity took root; for in Cantire St. Columba's tutor, and then St. Columba himself,
preached the Gospel before it had been heard at Iona, or in any other part of the Western Highlands and Islands. From its
nearness to Ireland it was subject to other invasions than those by the Danes; and from its being one of the chief territories of
the Lords of the Isles, and having within its boundaries some of their most important strongholds, its soil was the scene of
perpetual feuds and chronic wars, In the following pages these points will be found to be treated, I trust, with conciseness and
clearness, but yet with sufficient fulness.

My visit to Cantire was made during the months of August and September, 1859; and since then I have been at considerable
pains to collect from reliable sources a large body of information, statistical and archaeological, on every point that would
illustrate the history, antiquities, scenery, and characteristics of this interesting Highland territory of the Lords of the Isles, as
well as the dress, manners, customs, sports, and employments of the inhabitants, together with their moors and glens, their
lochs and rivers, their towns, villages, churches, castles, farms, and cottage dwellings, In short, so far as in me lay, I have
endeavoured to give a full and informing sketch of the peninsula and people of Cantire. I have also added a description of the
route to and from Cantire by the Firth of Clyde, the coast of Arran, Kilbrannan Sound, Loch Fyne, and the Kyles of Bute;
together with a brief account of Islay and Jura, and those other islands of the Southern Hebrides that lie off the western coast
of Cantire.

My knowledge on many points must necessarily have been but slight and superficial, and I therefore gratefully pay testimony
to the kindness of those Cantire friends who have so readily assisted me with information. I have acknowledged my
obligations to them in various portions of my book; and I need here but mention the names of the Rev. Duncan Macfarlane
of Killean, Keith Macalister, Esq., of Glenbarr Abbey, the Hon. A. H. Macdonald Moreton, of Largie Castle, and William
Hancocks, Esq., of Glencreggan, without whose kindness and hospitality this book would not have had an existence.

I would also wish to especially acknowledge my obligations to Mr. Peter Mcintosh, of Campbelton, for the greater part of
those curious and characteristic tales and legends with which iny descriptions are relieved. During a long and well-spent life
Mr. Mcintosh has turned his attention to the collection and preservation of the fast-dying records of past customs and beliefs,
and has been a pioneer in that movement which Mr. Campbell has so well inaugurated in his lately-published volumes of the "
Popular Tales of the West Highlands," to which I have frequently referred in the following pages, although their mention of
Cantire is confined to five brief passages.

Greatly aided, therefore, by Mr. Mcintosh, with slight help from other sources, both public and private, I have been enabled to
collect upwards of fifty popular tales relating to Cantire: the titles of the principal stories will be found (under the head of
Story) in the Index which I have prepared for the book, and which, without being overladen with references, will I trust be
found sufficiently compendious for all useful purposes.

Cantire has hitherto been very imperfectly and incorrectly mapped, and it is hoped that the map given in the present work will
be found to surpass its predecessors. If the truth must be told, it has given me more trouble than all the rest of the book. I
compiled it from various sources, — my own observation, private charts kindly placed at my disposal, and the best published
maps. The coast lines have been adopted from those in the Admiralty charts,—("Scotland, West-coast; Sheets 2 and 3, —
1966, 2159 — surveyed by Captain Kobinson;") and the mountain ranges and other portions are chiefly based upon Mr.
Keith Johnston's large map of Southern Argyleshire, which (the Ordnance Survey not having mapped Cantire) is said to be
the best map of the peninsula. There are many errors, however, in Mr. Johnston's map, and considerable differences and
6
discrepancies will be found on comparing his map with that in the present work. This is notably the case with regard to the
names of places, and in this respect I encountered considerable difficulties. Scarcely any two maps agreed upon this point, and
when I went to original authorities, and to people upon the spot, the Gaelic name has been spelt for me by my Celtic
informants in so many different ways,* (owing chiefly to the variations in dialect) that after all, I have had to choose between
several varieties, and to select that name which seemed to me to have the best title for correctness. In this dilemma, I have
generally been guided by the author of the " Statistical Account" of .each parish, who, from his local knowledge and
acquirements, could speak on this point ex cathedra. I also received the valuable assistance of Mr. Edward Weller, F. K. G. S.,
under whose careful superintendence the map has been engraved.

A Route Map, and a Geological Map, have also been added. For the latter I am indebted to the kindness of an eminent
geologist, whose name (were I allowed to mention it) would be a sufficient guarantee for its correctness. That it greatly differs
from Macculloch's map is attributable partly to the older map being limited to " the general features" of the Cantire geology,
and partly to the science having been somewhat revolutionised since Macculloch's day.

With regard to the Illustrations, those in colours have been copied in chromo-lithography from my large water-colour
drawings, a task which has been performed by the Messrs. Hanhart, with great skill and fidelity, to my own satisfaction, and I
trust, to the gratification of my readers, who will be enabled to judge from them, better than from any verbal description, how
wild and picturesque is the scenery of Cantire. The woodcut illustrations (engraved by Mr. Branston) are from my own
sketches, assisted, in a few instances, by photographs specially taken for this work. The greater part of the landscape
illustrations have been drawn upon the wood by Mr. J. Willis Brooks, and are denoted in the Lists of Illustrations prefixed to
the volumes. For all the other woodcuts I myself am answerable.

My thanks are due to the publishers, who have not spared pains or expense on the production of this work; VOL. I., and I
trust that by their aid my sketches and descriptions may tempt some of the numerous Highland tourists, who have never had
an opportunity of seeing the originals, to take as pleasant a tour as I myself enjoyed in the land of the Lords of the Isles—
Cantire — the " Land's-End " of Scotland

SOCIAL WORK EVALUATIONS

The Social Work Inspection Agency undertook an inspection of the Social Work Services in Argyll & Bute including Criminal
Justice Services between February and June of 2007. Their findings were that services were considered ‘adequate’ on
‘outcomes for people who use services’, ‘impact on staff’, ‘impact on the community’, ‘policy & service development’,
‘planning & performance management’, ‘management and support of staff’, and ‘resources and capacity building’. It was said
to be ‘weak’ on ’impact on adults, carers, children and young people who use the service’, ‘delivery of key processes’ and on
‘leadership and direction’, but ‘good’ on ‘capacity for improvement’

GENDER EQUALITY SCHEME - ABC AND THE EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES

COMMISSION : THE PRESENT SITUATION

ECONOMIC ACTIVITY
Male Female Total
Working Age Population 33,410 33,096 66,506
Economically active %
Full-time employees 47.78 27.5 37.69
Part-time employees 3.37 20.44 11.87
Self-employed 16.19 6.81 11.52
Unemployed 5.17 2.87 4.03
Full-time student 1.49 1.88 1.68
Economically inactive %
Retired 13.62 18.97 16.28
Student 2.6 2.53 2.57
Home/family carer 0.7 9.95 5.3
Sick/disabled 6.3 5.38 5.84
Other 2.78 3.68 3.23
% of different categories of Unemployed
Youth (16-24years) 20.38 21.16 20.66
Older (50+ years) 26.46 20.32 24.28
Never worked 5.85 6.95 6.24
Long term 36.54 34.74 35.90

The Council is required to comply with specific equality duties for Gender. This will be added to the Equality and Diversity
Scheme which contain equality duties for Race and Disability as agreed in October 2006. In order to comply with these duties
the Council must produce and publish equality schemes to outline policy and actions.
7
RECOMMENDATIONS

Agrees to adopt and implement the attached Gender Equality Scheme into the Equality and Diversity Scheme.

DETAIL

The Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC) has prepared and issued a Code of Practice under the Sex Discrimination Act
1975, as amended by the Equality Act 2006 to give practical guidance to Scottish public authorities on how to meet the legal
requirements to the gender equality duty. The Council is subject to the Gender Equality Duty under the Sex Discrimination
Act, as amended by the Equality Act 2006. The Council is obliged to publish an equal pay statement no later than 28
September 2007 and report on this progress every 3 years. The Gender Equality Duty came into force in Scotland in April
2007. Public authorities have a general duty to have due regard, when carrying out their functions, to the need to eliminate
unlawful, discrimination and harassment and to promote equality of duty between women and men. In order to meet these
equality duties, and in .anticipation of future equality duties, a combined Equality and Diversity Scheme has been produced.
The combined Scheme also recognises that people belong to more than one equality 'strand' and that no-one should
experience discrimination.

CONCLUSION

The Council is required to produce and publish equality schemes to meet its statutory duties. In response to this a Gender
Equality Scheme has been produced and it is recommended that the Council agrees to adopt and implement this Scheme into
the overall Equality Diversity Scheme which the Council currently has in place.

ARGYLL & BUTE COUNCIL COMMENT

Over the last 3 years, while the figures for Argyll and Bute have shown some improvement, there is a widening gap between
these and the figures for Scotland. The figure for Scotland is an average of all Scottish Councils.

In terms of gender equality, the lack of women at senior management level in the Council can have an impact on attitudes
towards roles for women. The Council's Best Value Review of Human Resources (2001) identified that employees wanted
equality in terms of everyone working to common systems and having the same terms and conditions. The review
recommended that flexible working practices should be retained and expanded. Legislation on parental leave has been
implemented and the Council has developed a variety of family-friendly and flexible working policies. These need to be
promoted and monitored to allow employees to fulfil their family, caring and other responsibilities.

Perceptions of, and attitudes towards, female managers can be affected by the limited number of examples of female
managers and role models. The following figures show the balance of male and female role models :

• Following the 2007 election, 19% of elected Members are female

(7 out of 36) - an increase of 5% from 2003;

• None of the Strategic Management Team are female;

• 27% of Heads of Service are female (4 out of 15).

These figures do not reflect the employee population as a whole which is 70.63% female and 29.37% male.

The Council needs to consider good practice elsewhere and review models used by other local authorities and other
organisations to improve gender equality. As an employer, the Council needs to consider a range of factors that impact
differently on women and men.

In the documents supplied to the Antler there follows proposals to increase ensure compliance with the EOC Code of
practice including service re-design plans for girls physical activities, the special travelling needs of women, for the re-
assessment of traditional gender roles and the implications of trans-gender and trans-sexual reassignment.

COUNCIL AIMS TO IMPROVE AIR QUALITY THROUGH VEHICLE EMISSIONS

Argyll and Bute Council has been busy carrying out tests on vehicle exhausts in a bid to improve air quality in the area.

The testing is part of a campaign by the Council that aims to drive home local air quality and the benefits of ensuring that
vehicles are regularly maintained and serviced in accordance with manufacturers’ recommendations.

8
The Council can, under the Road Traffic (Vehicle Emissions) (Fixed Penalty) (Scotland) Regulations 2003, penalise drivers of
vehicles whose exhaust gases exceed the prescribed emission levels by issuing them with a fixed penalty notice. However,
during this campaign no formal action will be taken as a result of the emission results.

Councillor Robert Macintyre, the Council's spokesperson for Economy, Environment and Rural Affairs, said: "Traffic
emissions can have a significant impact on local air quality and it is important that drivers in Argyll and Bute do their part in
maintaining good air quality standards.

"Road traffic is the major source of air pollution in the UK. Low emissions and good fuel economy are vital for the
environment and there are various ways to reduce pollution from your vehicle. These include making sure your vehicle is
regularly maintained, driving slowly and gently, switching off your engine if you are stuck in traffic for more than a minute and
not making unnecessary journeys."

The roadside check points are being set up by Strathclyde Police and officers from the Council’s Protective Services. Vehicles
will be selected for testing at random and emissions will be sampled and analysed by trained officers. Drivers will receive a
briefing on the purpose of the monitoring, the results, and advice on any actions they may need to take to improve their
vehicle’s performance.

Councillor Ron Simon was happy to have his car put to the test. Talking afterwards he said: "It is important that vehicle
engines are regularly serviced and maintained to reduce emissions to the atmosphere. I welcome and support this campaign
and the work of the Council officers and the co-operation of Strathclyde Police during the road checks”.

The campaign will take place in the Dunoon and Helensburgh areas over the next few months.

HOME COMING SCOTLAND 2009

The particular reason for sending this information out at this time is that Events Scotland have - very recently - announced a
funding stream associated with the Homecoming which may be of interest to voluntary and community organisations
involved in arts and heritage activities, and/or in potential tourism projects.

The closing date for applications to this funding source is very tight - submissions have to be with Events Scotland by the
28th of February 2008.

Information about the funding source - and a link to obtaining guidance material and application forms - can be sourced at
http://www.homecomingscotland.com/funding.aspx

Given the very short time scale, I would be grateful if you could circulate this e-mail to any organisation which you feel might
have an interest in offering a Homecoming Event during 2009

For information, Homecoming Scotland is a programme which will seek to attract ex-patriots and those with an interest in
Scotland to visit the country during 2009. The year has been selected as it is the 250th anniversary of the birth of Robert
Burns. Given the strong South Ayrshire links with Burns, the hope is that the Homecoming will generate particular visitor
interest in this area.

The Homecoming will however not only be a celebration of Burns but also some of Scotland's other great contributions to
the world - Golf, Whisky, the Enlightenment and Innovation - as well as the rich culture and heritage of Scots at home and
through the many people of Scots descent who live out with our shores.

Regards, Sonya Thomas on behalf of Eileen Wilson Unit Argyll & Bute Council, Chief Executive's Unit

HOSPITAL PARKING
ABC: NOTICE OF MOTION UNDER STANDING ORDER 13
By Provost Petrie, seconded by Councillor Walsh

That the Council resolves as follows :-

The Council notes that NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde decided in July 2007 to impose car parking charges in hospitals
across their area. The Council further notes that a Review Group was established by the Cabinet Secretary for Health and
Wellbeing to investigate the effect of the car park charging policy.

The Council welcomes the findings of the Review Group which states that :
9
1. Free car parking at hospitals should be provided, unless all other management measures have been exhausted.

2. Any car parking charges that are implemented must not be used for income generation.

The Council notes that one reason for introducing car parking charges at hospitals is to discourage commuters who use
hospital car parks but do not attend the hospital. The Council believes that the Vale of Leven Hospital should be exempt
from car park charging because it is not affected by this problem of commuters using car parking inappropriately and
therefore believes that car parking should be provided for free.

The Council believes that to implement car parking charges at the Vale of Leven Hospital would be an unfair burden on low-
paid staff and for patients and visitors.

Accordingly the Council resolves to write to NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde and to the Cabinet Secretary for Health and
Wellbeing to request that the Vale of Leven Hospital be made exempt from the car park charging scheme.

TRAILER SAFETY
Dear All

Please excuse the nature of this approach as it is a personal thing I am writing to you about and need your support with.
Please do not feel under any obligation but read on before making a decision. I am writing to you because I am fighting for a
change in the law…

My youngest sons best friend, a little boy called Finlay Martin aged only 4 was killed in my village (Heage, Derbyshire) on July
19th 2007 by a runaway trailer which came away from the car pulling it. The brakes did not work, the jockey wheel was
dangerous and the break away cable was missing. There is currently NO SYSTEM of roadworthiness checks in our country
for TRAILERS/CARAVANS etc.

I am attempting to bring in compulsory MOT's for car trailers, caravans, towed plant vehicles such as chippers used by tree
surgeons and horse trailers. Until we do lives are being lost on a daily basis! I have found hundreds of examples of accidents in
the UK by trailers breaking free from vehicles. Many deaths and serious injuries have resulted but no action has been taken by
this or any previous government. A colleague of mine has set up a petition on the number 10 website which we need as many
people to sign as possible. If you have children of your own or if you are an Auntie, Uncle or Grandparent just imagine what
my friend is going through after losing his son to an accident that could have been avoided.

Please click on the link http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/Trailers/ and sign

Next time you are driving along the motorway near any towed vehicle such as a caravan, trailer, plant trailer (such as a chipper
used by tree surgeons) or horse trailer please think of this email and wonder whether or not that towed vehicle is in a
roadworthy condition. In Finlay’s case the coroner reported at the inquest on 4 th January 2008 that the brakes did not work,
there was no breakaway cable to apply the brakes if the towing vehicle and trailer became apart and the jockey wheel was
totally broken. Without a compulsory test system for towed vehicles people will continue to tow vehicles like this. I am told
that Germany and New Zealand among others are countries that operate excellent systems for MOT type testing and
registration of trailers. Any trailer in Germany has to have a two-yearly check and its own unique registration number on the
back of it. Please do the same here. In an interview on Radio Derby several people phoned up admitting they have un-
roadworthy trailers and saying that they still tow them because there is nothing to force them to get them regularly checked
and maintained. Quite often caravans are left from one year to the next and so are horse trailers.

Sadly the message that has gone out following Finlay’s inquest is that nothing will happen to you even if you do kill anyone.
The owner of the trailer admitted to the inquest that he had noticed that the break away cable was missing, and the driver of
the vehicle towing the trailer obviously knew it was missing as he was the one who hitched it up, the CPS have not pressed
any charges against either of them.
Craig Walker, Tool & Coupling Sales Manager, Nitto-Kohki Europe Co. Ltd. Home Office/Fax: 01773 852544 Mobile: 07739
187704

A RELATED EXPERIENCE FOR A LOCAL RESIDENT

In about 1960 I was driving a small RAF truck with trailer attached. The trailer had a small generator for the equipment in the
truck and the towbar had just been repaired by our General Fitter. Going down the hill in the village in Bavaria where we were
based I heard a noise, looked in the mirror and saw the trailer overtaking me. It turned 90 degrees left and entered a driveway

10
to a commercial yard where the remains of the towbar dug in and it stopped- luckily without hitting anything or anybody. It
was the only space going down that hill where it could have gone without causing damage to person or property. The new
weld had broken !

Brian Gee

LETTER TO THE EDITOR SINGLE STATUS

Dear Editor,

The news this week that the cyclical recession will soon be flooding in is no surprise to anyone who wondered why any free
market Government would pour billions of pounds of public money into a private corporation to prop it up whilst cutting
money to public services. Gordon

Brown's Government was clearly worried. With this in mind it seems disappointing that the Scottish Government did not
assist Councils to tackle the problem of the Single Status agreement which affects not only the Council staff, but which will
also affect everyone else's pay by association.

The Single Status deal has left Councils and workers with a problem. How to bring the pay of the least well paid (traditionally
jobs filled by women) up to the level of similar jobs (traditionally filled by men), in the spirit of the original agreement over
equal pay? The only option open to Councils has been to rob Peter to pay Paula, or to cut services still further, on top of
existing cuts expected by central Government. Quite understandably this has upset and split the workforce – especially the
lowest paid who appear to be losing disproportionately. We now enter a period of 'work to rule' where demoralised staff can
use of the few tools at their disposal (their good will to work over and above the call of duty) to voice their dissatisfaction at
the situation they are being forced in to.

I have very few criticisms with what the minority Scottish Government has been doing since May's farcical election but surely
this is one area that should have been addressed when the funding agreement was made with COSLA? Maybe the Scottish
Government might like to reconsider their position ?

I would also like to congratulate the union staff and volunteers who must be working overtime to keep up with the huge
amount of paperwork generated by this dispute to do the best for their members and the wider community.

Yours sincerely,
Deirdre Henderson, Branch Organiser, Solidarity. Crocken Cottage Southend Argyll PA28 6RU Tel: 01586 830669
solidaritykintyre@hotmail.co.uk

YOUNG VOICES NEED TO BE HEARD

Are you aged between 12 and 26? Are you fed up with decisions being made for you ?

The Argyll and Bute Community Planning Partnership has been working closely with Argyll and Bute Young Scot/Dialogue
Youth and the Council’s Community Learning and Regeneration Service to give young people a voice in decision making in
Argyll and Bute.

Community Planning is about working together to deliver better services in our communities discussing issues from transport
to housing, from health to leisure…and everything in between.

Youth Focus is the name of the new initiative which will enable young people and youth groups to comment on issues that
affect them. The Youth Focus meeting will be held at Council Headquarters three times a year and will feed directly into the
Community Planning Process.

Chair of the Community Planning Partnership Councillor Dick Walsh said, "Democracy is about hearing what everyone in
Argyll and Bute has to say. The Youth Focus will give a new perspective on what young people want from local government
and I look forward to hearing what they have to say."

If you want to have your say or get involved log on to the Young Scot Argyll and Bute website
www.youngscot.org/argyllandbute or contact your local Youth Forum. - Kintyre – Jane Cowan 01586 552732

Issued by Janet West on 29/01/2008 11:53:33

11
VILLAGE HALL QUIZZLE 7(2007) ANSWERS
NB: Some alternative answers may be allowed. Markers decision is final

Eg 7D in a W 7 days in a week
3BM 3 Blind mice
1. 3 L on a T 3 legs on a tripod.
2. 4 LW(LMA) 4 Little Women.(Louisa May Alcott)
3. 7 C in the R 7 colours in the rainbow.
4. 2 W on a T 2 wheels on a tandem.
5. 1N =20B 1 Nebuchadnezzar= 20 bottles.
6. 1801 the FC 1801 the first census.
7. 1, 2 BMS 1, 2 buckle my shoe.
8. 8 F in a M 8 furlongs in a mile.
9. 4 CP 4 cardinal points
10. 3 BM 3 blind mice.
11. 1,2,3,4,5 O I C a F A 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 once I caught a fish alive.
12. 36, the HN on a RW 36, the highest number on a roulette
wheel.
13. 150 D in an IA of a D 150 degrees in an internal angle of a
dodecagon.
14. 603 M from J o’G to LE 603 miles from John o’Groats to Lands
End.
15. S18- SICT to a SD (S) Sonnet 18- Shall I Compare thee to a
Summer’s Day (Shakespeare).
16. 100 K in a R 100 kopecks in a rouble.
17. 12 O in a TP 12 ounces in a troy pound
18. 206 B in the AHB 206 bones in the adult human body.
19. The P W H 0 T (EL) The Pobble Who Has 0 Toes (Edward
Lear).
20. 21 S in a G 21 shillings in a guinea.
21. 7 S on the H of the S of L 7 spikes on the head of the Statue of
Liberty.
22. 5C&I 5 Children & It.
23. 2 T & a P in a PT. 2 turtledoves & a partridge in a pear tree.
24. 7, the AN of N 7, the atomic number of nitrogen.
25. 70- TSY &T 70- three score years & ten
26. 3 LKLTM 3 little kittens lost their mittens.
27. 8 the S for E 8 the symbol /sign for Eternity
28. 7 P in a QT (HP) 7 players in a quiddich team (Harry
Potter).
29. a SITS9 a stitch in time saves 9.
30. 100 T in a G of S 100 tiles in a game of Scrabble
31. 3 FP (A,L & W) 4 fingerprint patterns (arch, loop & whorl
).
32. 10 AN 10 Arabic numerals.
33. 144 =TD 144= twelve dozen
34. 7 FaSNTBT 7 for a secret never to be told.
35. SW & the 7 D Snow white & the 7 dwarfs.
36. E,E N 9 (S by RM) Engine, engine number 9 ( song by Roger
Miller).
37. 8 M in an O 8 musicians in an octet
38. 8 D aW (the B) 8 days a week (the Beatles).
39. on D6 GCM On Day 6 God created Man.

12
40. 22 L in the HA 22 letters in the Hebrew alphabet.
41. 6 FU 6 feet under.
42. the 4E (M, M, L &J) the 4 Evangelists (M, M, L &J)
43. 6 P on a S of D 6 points on a Star of David.
44. 3 FS (F, E & S) 3 fencing swords (foil, epee & sabre)
45. 1967 I of the B 1967 Introduction of the Breathalyser.
46. 16GO17 (the S of M) 16 going on 17 (the Sound of Music).
47. CD is 70 YAD Copyright duration is 70 years after death
48. 2 H in a D at S 2 hours in a dogwatch at sea.
49. an E has 10 H An earthworm has 10 hearts.
50. T is E102 Tartrazine is E102.
51. The JT by U2 The Joshua Tree by U2.
52. 24 W on an AC 24 windows on an advent calendar
53. (in C) circa 8 P to a T (in cooking) circa 8 pinches to a teaspoon.
54. 32C on the LE 32 capsules on the London Eye
55. F14 -SVD February 14th- St Valentine’s Day
56. 6 AS 6 Australian States.
57. 979 M is the H of the AF 979 metres is the height of the Angel Falls.
58. HCB,HCB,1aP,2aP HCB Hot cross buns, ditto, 1a penny, 2 a penny
HCB.
59. 1001 CC 1001 carpet cleaner.
60. 1 W on a U 1 Wheel on a Unicycle

FRUIT FOR THOUGHT

The answers to the next few questions are different varieties of fruit.
eg. I’m taken in by the French ( L IM E ) lime

61. Embargo on two articles Ban an a.

62. Bed for a month without end Apri cot.
63. Drink of the Gods in joining a Nectar in e
point.
64. My, the French are all muddled up! mon + le = Lemon.
65. Sounds like to inter behind dry Strawberry.
stalks

NAMES.
The following clues will reveal a Christian, first
or fore name.
eg. Spoil part of an atom mar + ion = Marion.
66. Piece of sound equipment. Mike.
67. No going back on hesitation following Cam er on.(no)
river.
68. Do you have an endless drinking vessel? Do u glas. glass
69. Bow that is. Arch ie.
70. Hidden in a land of fantasy. Alan. “a land”

FAMOUS WOMEN
The answers to the next few questions are
famous women
eg. Queen with a cooking method Elizabeth Fry
71. A plum ruler. Queen Victoria.
72. Prayer and a term of endearment. Grace Darling.
73. Margarine at a fast food place? Flora Macdonald.
74. American State & General. Virginia Wade.
13
 75. Italian city with a bird. Florence Nightingale.

Puzzlers straightforward, cryptic, maybe even devious!

76. Which boat has four of only one vowel? A catamaran.
What has teeth which close together, but which
77. A zip.
never eat?
78. Which key for MNO? 6 (on a phone)
Which one syllable number has the greatest
79. Twelve.
magnitude?
80. What holds water in spite of being full of holes? a sponge.
What has five faces, rudely points, has devious
81. ways, lasts ages, is huge, keeps a secret and is a one of the pyramids.
wonder?
82. Which historic Scotsman died from leprosy? Robert the Bruce.
83. Where does 4 come between 18 and 13? on a dart board.
84. Of which animal are Jill & Hob the parents? a ferret.
85. Everyone round one for a Scottish town. Alloa.

QUIZZLE RESULTS

Thank you and well done to all those who supported Carradale Village Hall by taking part in the Quizzle. There was a good
response with many locals, their relatives and their friends having a go. The Quizzle now provides Christmas mind exercise
throughout the UK and even overseas.

Several entries were returned and it was a close competition. The winning margin was just a single point.

Once again, answers were very inventive. It took some time to research permissible alternative answers on the internet. Some
had to be rejected, never the less, but full marks for ingenuity! This year two questions managed to fool everybody.
Fingerprint patterns and the duration of a dogwatch at sea obviously not being to the forefront of your minds.
Congratulations go to the overall winners, Ian and Anne Currie, who were 5 answers short of a full complement. The
Macalister Halls were second, David and Pamela Hornsby third and Margaret Walsh fourth.

The final winnings await the return of entry monies but the prize this year is exceeds £40 with over £160 being raised for the
Hall. By popular demand Quizzle 8 will come out in November. Tony and I continue to be amazed by the on-going interest in
what is now an annual Carradale institution. But “Good News” it will be easier as there will inevitably have to be repeats…
quizzles by their very nature are finite.

Happy Quizzling & Quizzing in 2008. ML

LETTER TO THE EDITOR (Councillor Anne Horn)

4 Lochgair Place Tarbert PA29 6XH

01880 820947
Email anne .horn@argyll-bute.gov.uk

Dear Mr Page
REF - ANTLER ARTICLE

Thank you for forwarding the copy of the Antler to me.

You point out to your readers that I have only held one very busy surgery in Carradale in December and that I had not
advertised through your newsletter although I did place an advertisement in the Campbeltown Courier and the Argyllshire
Advertiser and relied on the goodwill of residents of Carradale to place posters in their establishments.

I apologise if I have not been as consistent with my surgeries in Carradale as my fellow Ward 2 Councillors but they had the
advantage of being elected throughout 2007 although I am sure that my fellow Councillors would have relayed any concerns
passed to them at their surgeries if they thought I should be dealing with them.

I have also held surgeries every month in every area of Ward 2 including each of the islands.
14
I did ask the Ward 2 Councillors if we could rotate attendance at Community Council meetings but the suggestion was not
acted on.

I am happy for anyone to telephone or email me with any issues and I have made many visits to constituents in Carradale who
contacted me with their concerns which I continue to pursue with relevant departments and officers within the Council.

I hope this letter will alleviate any concerns you have over me taking a wage that I am not earning, I must give my apologies
for the next meeting as I am on annual leave, my first holiday since last June which is less than Council Staff entitlement.

Please convey my good wishes to the Community Council and I will endeavour to attend your next meeting.

Yours in good faith

Anne Horn

FAIRTRADE FORTNIGHT
Fairtrade Fortnight is just around the corner. This year it falls between 25th February to the 9th March. There is no better
time to try out fairly traded foods, clothes, toys and other items. Most supermarkets have great offers during Fairtrade
Fortnight.

The work of the Fairtrade Foundation (www.fairtrade.org.uk) is backed by numerous charities and church groups as a
meaningful way for shoppers to use their buying power to support growers who want to work their way out of poverty by
being able to sell their produce at a fair price. For a few pence more you can invest in rebuilding communities not as charity
but as fair trading.

The Fairtrade Foundation always runs fair trading alongside developing the infrastructure of the communities that they work
with so that the profit from the produce also funds local schools, etc. This builds a viable economy not only for this
generation but for generations to come.

There are resources available for individuals, groups, work places, shops, schools and cafes to help you to convert to using or
stocking Fairtrade products and give you ideas and resources to celebrate Fairtrade Fortnight.

If you would like to contact a local Fairtrade group or would like to help promote Fairtrade Fortnight locally then contact
Deirdre at fairtradekintyre@hotmail.co.uk or call 01586 830669.

RE-UNITED WITH RAOUL MATTHEW RAMSAY RETURNS TO THE AMAZON

Last November, I was given time off work to finish what I had started some two years earlier.

After a long journey from the U.K. to the Jungle City of Iquitos in Peru, we eventually arrived as a Marine Work Party of the
‘Vine Trust,’ to assist in maintenance of the boat that I had helped to deliver, the Amazon Hope 2, but her sister ship A.H.1
was after being lengthened by ten metres in the local shipyard, and was behind schedule for returning to her medical work, so
it was decided to concentrate on her.

We tore into a lot of painting, mainly assisted by some ‘street kids’ (one of which was my friend from my previous journey,
Raoul)

As well as the work on the boats we were shown the various Children’s homes, the water purifying plant, the various bakeries,
the Mototaxi venture and the car park below the Children’s home in Lima. These were all vitally important for raising finance
so that the projects are not wholly dependent on donations from the Vine Trust and Scripture Union Peru, who play a huge
part in this project.

Before returning home, three of us journeyed to Machu Pitcchu, but before we flew up there, we were all deflated and wished
we were back in Iquitos with the locals; such was the effect that it produced on us. Basically we felt guilty about spending
money on a luxurious sight seeing trip when so many of the ‘street kids’ were living in such poverty.

Raoul had now become a dad again and he had to support his family by taxi-ing, He paid the trust so much per day for his
Mototaxi and any extra was his earnings. This Taxi was provided by a micro industry of Vine Trust/Scripture Union.

When I met Raoul, he was wearing a pair of Sandshoes that he got from Roy the Producer of Amazon Heartbeat some 17
months ago, I informed him that I would buy him a pair of shoes before going home.

15
What next ? Who knows, but I am certainly smitten by the bug which makes me do this, and to see the grateful, loving
children showing their appreciation makes it all worthwhile, thanks to all who supported me yet again, Matthew M. Ramsay.

Matthew hopes to hire the hall sometime and show pictures of both journeys, but at the moment Matthew’s boat, the
‘Vigilant’ is being laid up and his leave pattern may change substantially.

RAINFALL RESULTS – JANUARY 2008

January felt generally wet and miserable. There was 191mm ( 7.5 inches) of rainfall which was marginally below average for
January.

Almost half of the days in the first half of the month were dry, but the second fortnight more than made up.
Our totals contrasted with Eastern Scotland who experienced above average rainfall for the period.

SADDELL & CARRADALE GUILD

On Tuesday 29th January Dr Robert Abernethy gave Guild members, and a large number of non-members, a most interesting
talk on changes in medicine in the last 50 years. He traced the beginning of the NHS in 1948 to the present-day, explaining
how the various contracts enabled doctors to expand their surgeries, take on staff and run special clinics. However he
suggested that the latest changes to doctor’ contracts have been retrograde and left patients of lone practices without 24-hour
care.

Dr Abernethy spoke of the many very beneficial developments over the years including advancement in drugs, vaccinations,
genetics, increasing knowledge of DNA, heart surgery, cancer treatments and transplants, had improved patient health and
prolonged life. He felt that the way forward was with genetic research, stem cell and gene manipulation, all of which have
ethical considerations attached but could result in disease being prevented. He advised that to live a healthy life, residents
should take exercise, avoid smoking and pursue moderation in all things.

PLANNING APPLICATIONS
Residents and Community Councils have the right to express their opinions on planning matters within the terms of the
planning regulations.

Such comment is considered by the Planning Department and, when appropriate, by Unitary Authority Councillors. Where
application notices appear in the Courier and the Antler the entry follows the format issued by Argyll & Bute Council
Planning Department. Community Council comment is sent to the Planning Department and only the salient points are
included in minutes. The February Antler entry seems to have been misunderstood in that an exclamation mark was thought
to have been a comment on one of two applications. This exclamation mark was in fact a comment on the first instance of the
planning sub-committee meeting to discuss both applications before the February community council meeting.

Application Ref: 08/00159/DET Officer: Peter Bain Telephone: 01546 604082

Ward Details: 02 Kintyre And The Islands
Proposal: Erection of a 70m meteorological mast for a temporary period of 24 months
Location: Beinn Bhreac Carradale Argyll And Bute
Applicant: Airtricity Developments (UK) Ltd 16 Robertson Street Glasgow G2 8DS
Agent: RPS Planning And Development Ltd 7 Clairmont Gardens Glasgow G3 7LW
Development Type: 5B All other developments: Minor Grid Ref: 179201 647800

Application Ref: 08/00224/DET Officer: Peter Bain Telephone: 01546 604082

Ward Details: 02 Kintyre And The Islands
Proposal: Erection of extension
Location: Bruce Cottage Carradale Campbeltown Argyll And Bute PA28 6SE
Applicant: Mr James McKinven 8 Culzean Glenmavis Airdrie ML6 0QB
Agent: Tom Grant Partnership Campbeltown 41 Longrow Campbeltown Argyll
Development Type: 1 Householder Development. Grid Ref: 181620 637959

SEASONAL PROBLEMS IN KINTYRE

Christmas and New year are traditionally difficult times of the year for Mr Claus, Argyll & Bute Council and local residents.
This year was no exception. The Council’s ‘Single Status’ dispute led to the withdrawal of scheduled gritting services on the
southern section of the B842, endangering lives on more than one occasion, while the northern unscheduled section
16
continued to threaten the safety of regular daily travellers to Tarbert, Lochgilphead and Glasgow, leaving motorist stranded
for up to five hours.

Snow threatened holiday visitors returning to the east on the 2nd of January and was evident in the suburbs of Glasgow
the following day. Heavy snow fell in other parts of Scotland on January 4th and North-west gales added to residents
concerns. Heavy rain, thunder and lightning had a part to play on Saturday 5th of January in keeping internet nerds off their
computers.

On Tuesday 8th January it was very wet from mid-morning and became very windy overnight; most people in Carradale
were without electricity from 11.30 on Tuesday until 7.30pm on Wednesday. A large number of trees blocked roads and
structural damage was done to buildings. Gaz lamps, candles and solid fuel fires were the order of the day. Strong winds
returned on Wednesday 23rd and lasted until Saturday 26th.

Heavy showers of hail and very strong winds served to distress Thursday shoppers in the Longrow gorge and disrupted
electricity supplies overnight from 2.30am on Friday 1st of February until 5.40pm. The early morning bottle distributors
dropped off supplies of bottled water in case anyone was tempted to drink the heavily chlorinated drips coming from the tap.

The real event of the day was the arrival of a huge generator at Dippen - too large to reach the main transformer at
Sandspoint. Eventually, perhaps for its health, it was moved to the Surgery car park where it happily supplied power to the
whole village until calls were made to householders warning them power would be cut off at 10.30pm; supplies of diesel could
not reach Carradale because of untreated roads. Two families of Semple were able to supply diesel from their supplies and
power was maintained.

A fall of snow on Friday night isolated a number of vehicles in Saddell glen; drivers being taken home by 4-wheel drive
vehicles - I wonder if they claimed part of their road tax back by refusing to be classed in Group G (power-hungry enemies of
the environmental lobby) and acting as drivers of Group A vehicles (tender angels of mercy).

The final threat came on Sunday 3rd of February when, without warning, the supply was cut for two hours to enable
connections to be made. That’s another meal into the compost.(see letter on page 4).

If there’s a mixed moral to the story is it down to Baden Powell and the Wise Virgins, - preparation being the guiding
principle, or is it more philosophical? Do we add to pollution by running private generators, burning candles - scented or
otherwise, or do we simply go to bed early and boost the Scottish Government’s ‘Homecoming Scots’ initiative by providing
new Scots blood ?

LETTER TO THE EDITOR POWER PROBLEMS

Lefkara
Carradale East
Argyll
PA28 6SA
09 February 2008

Dear Sir

At about 01.40 on the first day of this month we had a total loss of electricity supply in Carradale, although some parts of the
village had been off from earlier the previous day. The cause was damage to lines from fallen trees brought down by the
severe gales overnight. Customer Support in Perth told me the damage and weather conditions made an early repair unlikely
and a generator was being brought in to supply the whole village. I saw the generator near the top of the hill just south of the
village at 10.30 on 01-02-08 but by mid- afternoon we still had no supply and a complete lack of information. At 15.00 I had
a call from Perth telling me the generator should be up and running between 16.00 and 17.00 but in fact it was 18.00 before a
supply was restored. I later discovered part of the delay had been caused by a decision to try to locate the generator at the
sub-station down the Waterfoot Road. Looking at the narrow access from the B842 road at Dippen onto this road I cannot
believe anyone would attempt to get the generator down there. Eventually it was located in the surgery car park.

At 17.20 on 03-02-08 the electricity was switched off. I drove to the generator and asked the two engineers why this had
happened and was told they were about to re-connect to the normal supply. I was told this would take about one hour. I
pointed out that some warning to customers might have been appropriate but it seemed they didn’t have the time to organise
this. I then said that most of the village was in the process of cooking dinner, with daylight fading fast and that it might have
been more considerate and customer-friendly to leave the switch-over until the next morning. Their reply was that the
generator might be needed elsewhere by then. In fact it hadn’t moved by mid-day the next day.

17
I also discovered the engineers had been eating in the nearby restaurant just prior to switching off the generator and had
casually mentioned to other customers they were about to make the changeover.

Over the same weekend we also lost the mains water supply and when this was restored, around mid-day Saturday, the water
as unfit to drink for a few hours. Scottish Water did find time to notify every property when it was potable and also sent a
van to every home later to assure the occupants and check all was OK.

My personal feeling, and that of many others here, is that while the engineers did a great job repairing the damaged power
lines in very bad weather, some very poor decisions were made with reference to the timing of the change back to mains
supply. I spoke to a manager at the Scottish Hydro-Electric office in Oban early on 04-02-08 but he was unable to comment
until he had spoken to the people who had been on-site. He did agree it might have been better to have delayed the
switchover to Monday. I would welcome your comments on the situation and, I hope, your assurances we shall be more
considerately treated during the inevitable future power outages in Carradale.

Yours sincerely
Brian Gee

KINTYRE FORUM ON COMMUNITY CARE

CONFERENCE & EXHIBITION Thursday March 6th, 2008
VICTORIA HALL CAMPBELTOWN 1.00pm - 7.00pm

The Conference & Exhibition will have 4 main themes :

• Transport, Mobility and Access

• Home Care and Money Matters

• Mental Health & Dementia

• Learning Disabilities and Transitions

Its purpose is to bring together as many organisations and people as possible who are involved with care, health and well
being of people in need of care in the widest sense.The Conference will start at 1.30pm and finish at 4.30pm at which point
those unable to attend will be able to come along to meet with exhibitors and advisors until 7.30pm.The four themes will be
examined by contributors from a variety of organisations, business and members of the public to enable all to put forward
their views, make suggestions and look for solutions for those working in and with carers, clients and organisations involved.
For further information please contact Susan Paterson on 01586 830335 (email, susan.patersonl @tesco.net) or Jane
Gallagher, 01586 552294

18