| Manx | English | |
|---|---|---|
| Ayns yn nah vlein lurg dou goll gys yn eeastagh scaddan hoshiaght va’n traa va ny baatyn currit er traie ayns Gansee, as va’n baatey ain brisht myrgeddin as yn snaie rowlit er yn traie myr famlagh. | In the second year after I first went to the herring fishing was the time the boats were put ashore at Gansey, and our boat was broken also with the net rolled on the shore like seaweed. | |
| Ren my ayr cordail rish sheshaght yn Prince of Wales dy gholl maroo, eh hene as mish myrgeddin son yn chooid elley jeh’n traa eeastee. | My father agreed with the crew of the Prince of Wales to go with them, himself and I as well for the rest of the fishing season. | |
| As ren eh cur mish maroo son shiaghtin choud as veagh eh hene kiartagh yn snaie; v’ad sheshaght dy veshtallee. | He sent me with them for a week while he would be repairing the net; they were a crew of drunkards. | |
| Va Billie Yeaman y Cubbon yn mainshter. | Billy Yeaman y Cubbon was the master. | |
| As va Harry Cooil (veagh ad gra Meseff rish), as Thom Yuan Andra (veagh ad gra Butters rish), as Juan Bill y Greasee (v’eshyn dooinney aeg), as shenn John Quayle as e vac, marish Charles Archie as yn aarleyder Billy Phat Chustal (v’ad gyllagh Giarran [1] da er boayrd). | And there was Harry Cooil (they called him Meseff), and Thom Yuan Andra (they called him Butters) and Juan Bill the Cobbler (he was a young man), and old John Quayle and his son, with Charles Archie and the cook Billy Phat Chustal (they called him Giarran on board). | |
|
[1] Giarran - ‘a Galloway pony’ Broderick (1982b: 125), ‘a gelding…but in general it signifies a poor worthless horse, a hack’ Kelly.
| ||
| Va Billy Phat as mee hene daa aarleyder. | Billy Phat and myself were the two cooks. | |
| Hie shin magh yn chied oie jeh’n chiaghtin ayns yn astyr er yn oyr dy row yn tidey anmagh, as va shin shiaulley dy akin yn scaddan ayns yn ushtey, as haink shin er reeayllagh braew. | We went out the first night of the week in the evening because the tide was late, and we were sailing to see the herring in the water, and we came on a fine spread [of herring]. | |
| Ghow shin aanrit as ghow shin toshiaght dy chur snaie jee. | We took a cloth and began giving a net to it. | |
| Va Charles cur yn lint [2] as cha row eh son ceau magh eh tappee dy liooar. | Charles was giving the lint, but he could not cast it out fast enough. | |
|
[2] lint - ‘Netting for fishing-nets’ OED.
| ||
| Ren mee goaill voish yn lint as ceau magh eh cha tappee as va’n baatey goll. | I took the lint from him and cast it out as fast as the boat was going. | |
| Lurg dooin ve coyrt cha row ad gra padjer erbee roish goll dy lhie. | After we had been casting they were not saying any prayer before going to bed. | |
| Ayns yn voghrey ren shin troggal mysh shiaght meaishyn dy scaddan. | In the morning we lifted about seven measures of herring. | |
| Ren fer jeh ny cadjeryn kionnagh yn scaddan ayns baie Phurt le Moirrey, as ren shin cur yn scaddan ayns yn baatey beg, as hie Meseff as Butters stiagh ayns yn phurt lesh. | One of the cadgers bought the herring in Port St. Mary bay, and we put the herring in the small boat, and Meseff and Butters went into port with it. | |
| V’ad traa liauyr er thalloo as tra haink ad magh v’ad lieh scooyrit. | They were a long time ashore and when they came out they were half drunk. | |
| As v’eh jeeaghyn dy row ad er yannoo seose nyn aignaghyn dy yannoo irree-magh as yn vainshteraght ad hene. | And it seemed they had made up their minds to mutiny and to take over themselves. | |
| V’eh tammylt mie er yn fastyr tra haink ad er boayrd as va’n flod ersooyl. | It was quite late in the evening when they came on board and the fleet was away. | |
| Ren shin geddyn fo raad cha tappee as oddagh shin as goll geiyrt er ny baatyn elley. | We got underway as fast as we could and went after the other boats. | |
| Tra va shin goll sheear ec Perwick hie Meseff sheese er y chullee yerree as ghow eh greme er yn mainshter dy chur eh voish y maidjey stiuree as dy ghoaill yn vainshteraght eh hene. | When we had gone west at Perwick Meseff went down on the steering gear and took a grip of the master to take him from the steering rod and to take control himself. | |
| Ren yn mainshter goaill holt er Meseff as ceau eh seose ayns shamyr yn snaie. | The master took a hold of Meseff and threw him up into the net room. | |
| “C’raad t’ou nish, Stych?” dooyrt Meseff. | “Where are you now, Stych?” said Meseff. | |
| Haink Stych agh cha ren eh jannoo cooney erbee da Meseff. | Stych came but he did not give Meseff any assistance. | |
| Va sheean dy mie oc as arganey mysh quoi jeu veagh yn mainshter gys ren Juan Bill y Greasee jalloo yn phomp [?] [3] as dooyrt eh dy jinnagh eh marroo ad ooilley. | They were making a lot of noise and arguing as to which of them would be the master, until Juan Bill y Greasee in his pomp declared he would kill them all. | |
|
[3] MS galloo yn fomp, ‘put an end to it’ Broderick (1982: 126). Obscure, but jalloo yn phomp ‘the
[very] picture of pomp, ostentatious display’ (R Teare) seems the most intelligible interpretation.
| ||
| Eisht ren ad cur seose ayns aggle roish Juan as goaill shee. | They then gave up for fear of Juan and went quiet. | |
| “Cha vel mee madyral,” va John Quayle gra, “dy bee son y yuilley quaagh;” shen va mee hene. | “I don’t care,” John Quayle was saying, “were it not for the strange boy;” that was myself. | |
| V’eh smooinaght dy beign’s agglit oc as dy jinnin faagail ad; ny-yeih ren mee ceau yn chiaghtin maroo. | He was thinking that I would be frightened by them and that I would leave them; however I spent a week with them. | |
| Va shen yn chied cheayrt ren mee rieau fakin deiney tuittym magh er boayrd baatey, as cha ren mee rieau fakin agh feer veg jeh er dy henney. | That was the first time I ever saw men falling out on board a boat, and I have only ever seen very little of it since. | |
| Hooar shin gys yn flod keayrt ennagh ayns yn oie, as ren shin cur yn snaie, as hie Meseff as Butters dy lhie. | We got to the fleet some time in the night, and we cast the net, and Meseff and Butters went to bed. | |
| Tra haink shin seose dy chur er boayrd ayns yn voghrey v’ad ooilley cordit dy liooar, agh va’n greie ain fest ayns greie Tommy Arklow, as va ny Tommeeyn [4] geamagh dooin dy row shin er ghoaill unnane jeh ny mollagyn moddee oc, agh cha ren shin goaill ee edyr. | When we came up to haul on board in the morning they were all friends again, but our gear was stuck in the gear of an Arklow Tommy, and the Tommies [4] were shouting to us that we had taken one of their dogskin buoys, but we did not take it at all. | |
|
[4] Tommeeyn - ‘i.e. from Arklow, Co. Wicklow, Ireland’ Broderick (1982: 126).
| ||
| Dooyrt yn mainshter roo nagh row shin er ghoaill mollag erbee voue; ny-yeih v’ad geamgh. | The master told them we had not taken any buoy from them; but still they were shouting. | |
| Dooyrt John Quayle roo ec y jerrey, “She moddey elley uss!” as ren ny Tommeeyn goaill shee. | John Quayle said to them in the end, “You’re another dog!” and the Tommies shut up. | |
| Cha row tuittym-magh oc ny lurg shen choud as va mish maroo. | They did not fall out after that as long as I was with them. | |
| Agh haink Jesarn as va’n baatey currit stiagh ayns y phurt. | But Saturday came and the boat was put into port. | |
| As ren ad gaarlagh lane-pot dy scaddan as jannoo brott scaddan ayns thie-oast, as v’ad ooilley cordit dy liooar harrish yn brott scaddan as ny gogganyn jough. | And they prepared a potful of herring and made a broth of herring in an alehouse, and they were all getting on well enough over the broth of herring and the noggins of ale. | |
| Ren mee gobbal dy gholl maroo ny sodjey. | I refused to go with them any more. | |
| Ren my ayr, tra v’eh er thalloo kiartaghey yn snaie, meeiteil rish Thomas Nicky. | My father, when he was ashore repairing the nets, met Thomas Nicky. | |
| V’eh mainshter baatey mooar va enmyssit H. B. Duke. | He was the master of a big boat called H. B. Duke. | |
| V’eh hene ny veshtallagh [5] as sheshaght dy veshtallee myrgeddin. | He himself was a drunkard and the crew were drunkards as well. | |
|
[5] MS ‘ve hene ny veshtal’.
| ||
| Va ooilley ny deiney va ny baatyn oc currit er traie as brisht er gheddyn burt ayns ny baatyn elley va foast er-mayrn. | All the men whose boats had been beached and wrecked had got a berth in the surviving boats. | |
| Va my ayr eh hene taaghey yn thie-oast feer vennick, as t’eh er ny ghra dy vel ushagyn jeh’n un fedjag chaglym cooidjagh as taaghey sheshaght y cheilley. | My father himself used to frequent the alehouse very often, and it is said that birds of a feather flock together and frequent each other’s company. | |
| Va sheshaght yn H. B. Duke, Thomas Nicky yn mainshter, veagh ad gyllagh yn Gaaue Garroo da er yn oyr dy row eh goll gys thie yn gaaue smoodee ayns Balley Chashtal cha mennick. | The crew of the H.B. Duke used to call Thomas Nicky the master the Gaaue Garroo [rough blacksmith] because he was going to the calender smith’s house in Castletown so often. | |
|
[6] ‘the Calender smith’s house’ (Broderick 1982: 127), lit. ‘smoothing smith’.
| ||
| V’eh poost rish ben Yernagh; Rose va’n ennym eck, as v’ee freayll shapp ayns thie ec mullagh Broogh Perwick creck tey as shugyr. | He was married to an Irish woman; Rose was her name, and she kept a shop in a house at the top of Perwick Broogh selling tea and sugar. | |
| As veagh Thomas cur lesh ny reddyn shen voish Rose, as cha row eh cur lesh coontey erbee cre wheesh v’eh cur lesh, agh goaill punt ny jees jeh’n voayrd as gra dy row eh goll dy chur lesh shoh hug Rose. | And Thomas would bring those items from Rose, and he would not take any account as to how much he would bring, but would take a pound or two off the table and say he was going to take this to Rose. | |
| As va’n cheshaght agglagh roish nagh jinnagh ad gra veg mygeayrt-y-mysh. | And the crew were afraid of him so they would not say anything about it. | |
| Veagh eh geiyrt er ny drogh vraane ayns dy chooilley phurt v’eh goll ayn. | He used to go after the bad women in every port he would enter. | |
| She yn gorley-scoaldee ren marroo Rose as ren cur jerrey er yn vea echey hene ny lurg shen. | It was venereal disease which killed Rose, and put an end to his own life after that. | |
| Va fer elley jeh’n cheshaght Johnny Yuan Bet—Pally Beg v’ad gyllagh da. | There was another of the crew Johnny Yuan Bet—Pally Beg they called him. | |
| Va fer elley Johnny Nicky—Clim v’ad gra rish. Danny yn Chenegs as Jim Fayle—yn Tabernacle v’ad gyllagh da. | Another was Johnny Nicky—Clim they called him. Danny the Chenegs and Jim Fayle— the Tabernacle they called him. | |
| As Nick Johnny Nicky, braar da’n mainshter, as yn aarleyder Johnny Cooil; v’ad gyllagh eh Cronybock Beg. | And Nick Johnny Nicky, the master’s brother, and the cook Johnny Cooil; they called him Cronybock Beg. | |
| Veagh Clim tra v’eh cheet er boayrd toshiaght yn chiaghtin cur lesh cabbage dy chaashey marish v’eh er gheid ass thie ennagh yn oie Jedoonee. | When Clim would come on board at the start of the week he would bring a block of cheese with him which he had stolen from some house on the Sunday. | |
| V’eh mie dy gheddyn reddyn liorish geid as t’eh er ve ymmodee bleeantyn currit ersooyl son y gheid. | He was good to get things by stealing and he has been many years put away for theft. | |
| Va fer elley v’ad gra Thom Elly rish as v’ad ooilley son goaill yn cappan dy neu-heeltys agh Nick as mee hene. | There was another fellow they called Thorn Elly, and they all used to take the cup of intemperance apart from Nick and myself. | |
| Hie shin shiar gys yn Vack [7] as ren shin eeastagh feer vie son shiaghtin ny jees, as haink shin gys Purt le Moirrey Jesarn. | We went east to the Back and fished well for a week or two, and came back to Port St. Mary on Saturday. | |
|
[7] ‘The ‘back’ fishing began at Douglas about the last week in August when the Peel herring fishing ended’
[Vocabulary of the Anglo-Manx Dialect]. ‘It takes its name from ‘the back’, a bank running parallel with the coast near Douglas’ - Broderick (1982: 127).
| ||
| Ayns toshiaght yn chiaghtin ny lurg shen tra haink yn Gaaue Garroo gys yn phurt, dooyrt eh nagh voddagh eh goll voish yn thie son dy row Rose feer ching as dy row my ayr dy ve yn mainshter. | At the beginning of the following week when the Gaaue Garroo came to the harbour, he said he could not leave home as Rose was very ill and that my father was to be the master. | |
| Myr shen hie shin shiar gys yn Vack reesht. | So we went east to the Back again. | |
| Va shiaghtin dy earish feer aalin ayn, as va eeastagh mie ain dy chooilley oie. | There was a week of very fine weather, and we got good fishing every night. | |
| Veagh shin creck yn scaddan ayns Roonysvie rish Clague va jannoo scaddan jiarg da Holmes. | We would sell the herring at Ronaldsway to Clague who made kippers for Holmes. | |
| Veagh ad cur baatey mooar magh, yinnagh cur lesh keead meaish, as veagh unnane jeh ny baatyn-eeastee goll er dagh cheu jee as coontey scaddan as deayrtey aynjee. | They would send a big boat out which would bring a hundred measures, and one of the fishing boats would go on each side of it and count herring and pour into her. | |
| Tra haink shin magh er y Vack yn oie Jeheiney va ny baatyn ooilley coyrt as v’ad ayns daa hammag [8] as va baarney vooar eddyr yn daa flod. | When we went out on the Back on Friday night the boats were all casting and they were in two ‘bushes’ [of herring] and there was a large gap between the two fleets. | |
|
[8] daa hammag
[MS hummag] – ‘two packs’ Broderick (1982: 128). The spellings thammag and thummag are both used by Faragher. This is the same word as thammag ‘bush’ (Irish tomóg).
| ||
| Ren shin cur ayns yn vaarney foddey voish dy chooilley unnane coontey nagh row veg dy scaddan ayns shen, as dy voghe shin oie dy chadley as dy ghoaill nyn aash. | We cast in the gap far from everyone thinking there was no herring there, and that we would have a night to sleep and take it easy. | |
| Cha row gobbag er yn Vack ayns ny laghyn shen, as veagh shin lhie son daa oor jeig ny cheayrtyn. | There was no dogfish on the Back in those days, and we would lie for twelve hours sometimes. | |
| Myr shen ren shin lhie fud ny hoie, as tra ghow shin toshiaght dy chur er boayrd, cha leah as haink snaie haink scaddan. | So we lay all night, and when we began to haul on board, as soon as net came, herring came. | |
| Ren shin troggal mysh keead meaish. | We lifted about a hundred measures. | |
| V’eh feer chiune as aalin, agh tra va shin er boayrd haink farrane beg dy gheay voish yn twoaie. | It was very calm and fine, but when we were on board there came a little breath of wind from the north. | |
| Tra haink shin er-gerrey da Ellan yn Fort va dooinney voish Purt le Moirrey ayns shen ayns baatey beg. | When we drew near to Fort Island there was a man from Port St. Mary there in a small boat. | |
| As dooyrt eh dy jinnagh eh cur skillin ’sy veaish smoo dooin son goll gys Purt le Moirrey lesh yn scaddan, as va shin booiagh dy liooar dy gholl gys shen Jesarn; as va’n tidey goll sheear er yn Fort traa shen. | And he said he would give us a shilling a measure more for going to Port St. Mary with the herring, and we were happy enough to go there on the Saturday; the tide was going west on the Fort by then. | |
| As cha row shin foddey gys va shin sthie ec mullagh yn phurt. | And we were not long until we were in at the top of the harbour. | |
| Cha row shin foddey ayns shen gys haink yn Gaaue Garroo as chur eh lesh boteil dy rum marish. | We were not long there until the Gaaue Garroo came and brought a bottle of rum with him. | |
| Tra va’n boteil follym, ghow shin toshiaght dy chraa yn scaddan ass yn snaie, as ayns traa gerrid va boteil elley geddynit. | When the bottle was empty, we began to shake the herring out of the net, and in a short time another bottle was found. | |
| As va ny deiney va ny hassoo craa yn scaddan tuittym ayns yn scaddan, bwoalley gollrish gantyn dooey. | And the men who were standing shaking the herring were falling into the herring, thrashing like black gannets. | |
| Va Clim as Thom Elly caghlaaghyn keayrt er yn thalloo dy yeealley y cheilley, as va my ayr gra roo dy jinnagh eh goll roish as faagail ad. | Clim and Thom Elly were several times ashore to fight one another, and my father was telling them that he would go off and leave them. | |
| Eisht veagh ad cheet er boayrd reesht. | Then they come on board again. | |
| Ec yn jerrey hooar shin ooilley yn scaddan ass yn snaie, as ghow shin toshiaght dy choontey yn scaddan as cur eh er boayrd smack [9] va rish yn lhiattee ain. | Finally we got all the herring out of the net, and we began counting the herring and putting them on board a smack that was beside our us. | |
|
[9] smack - ‘a single-masted sailing-vessel, fore-and-aft rigged like a sloop or cutter, and usually of light burden, chiefly employed as a coaster or for fishing’ OED.
| ||
| Haink yn oie orrin as va ny deiney gaase thanney cour y traa gys nagh row ayn agh Nick as mish. | The night came upon us and the men gradually grew thinner on the ground until there was no-one but Nick and myself. | |
| Va shin lhieeney ny baskadyn gys v’eh mean-oie, as cha row aynjee traa shen agh ghaa ny three dy veaishyn. | We were filling the baskets until it was midnight, and there were only two or three measures in her by that time. | |
| Ren Nick as mee hene gaase skee as ren shin goll dy valley as faagail yn baatey myr v’ee gys Jelhein, as va lane scaddan brisht as trustyr aynjee. | Nick and myself got tired and we went home and left the boat as she was until Monday, and there was a lot of broken herring and rubbish in her. | |
| Ghow eh traa liauyr dooin dy niee as dy ghlenney ee. | It took us a long time to wash and clean her. | |
| Cha row monney scaddan goit ny lurg shen. | Not many herring were taken after that. | |
| Hie shin shiar er y Vack reesht agh cha row caslys erbee ry akin as haink shin gys baie Ghoolish. | We went east on the Back again, but there was no sign of them to be seen and we came to Douglas bay. | |
| Eisht hie ad ooilley er thalloo ayns Doolish ec yn oie as va mee faagit er boayrd ny lomarcan fud ny hoie gys fastyr laa-ny-vairagh. | They then all went ashore in Douglas at night and I was left alone on board all night until the following afternoon. | |
| Haink fer jeu magh ayns yn baatey beg dy gheddyn beaghey, son v’eh feer accryssagh. | One of them came out in the small boat to get food, for he was very hungry. | |
| Choud as v’eh gee, hooar mish ayns yn baatey beg as ren mee goll er thalloo. | While he was eating, I got into the small boat and went ashore. | |
| Va mee kiarail dy gholl dy valley as dy aagail yn baatey agh cha row enney aym er yn raad. | I was intending to go home and to leave the boat, but I did not know the way. | |
| Hooar mee my ayr ayns thie-oast as paart elley jeh’n cheshaght. | I found my father in an alehouse with some others of the crew. | |
| Hie mee stiagh ayns shamyr raad va mee clashtyn garaghtee, as va shenn John Quayle ayns shen daunsin marish Stick-in-the-Mud [9] as v’eh paagey ee. | I went into a room where I heard laughter, and old John Quayle was there dancing with Stick-in-the-Mud and kissing her. | |
|
[9] Stick-in-the-Mud - ‘nickname of a local ?streebagh’ Broderick (1982: 129).
| ||
| Haink ad er boayrd as hooar shin gys Purt le Moirrey reesht. | They came on board and we got back to Port St. Mary. | |
| Va’n eeastagh harrish. | The fishing was over. | |