Friday, July 19

I'm writing this a little earlier today as Marilyn's cleaning lady has arrived, spot on 8 o'clock.  I was in the shower and have now been told to sit at my desk and keep out of the way.  Breakfast is on hold although I could probably get a cup of coffee if I sulked enough.  

Nera's nephew, Brendan, is coming around later this morning with Jamie and will detail both our cars, for a fee.  He starts his coutse on Monday and is desperate to find ways to earn a quid.  He has put in applications in various places and we'll just have to see how it works out.  At least he seems willing.

I like today's story because it is true and mentions fishing boats from Gourdon, a village on the East Coast of Scotland.  During the time mentioned in the story, several of my ancestors were fisherman from that town so could well have been involved in the incident.  Mr McGonagall's poetry is a bonus.

WHEN THE SHIP COMES IN                                                            APRIL 9, 2021

 

In 1965, everyone from Bob Dylan to the Clancy Brothers was singing When the Ship Comes In and,  even though I thought it was a great song, I couldn’t get out of my mind that the words were wrong.  To me, it should have been  ‘When the Boat Comes In’, preferably said with a strong Geordie accent.  These were familiar words from my childhood, from a song my mother used to sing:

“Thou shall have a fishy

On a little dishy 

Thou shall have a haddock

When the boat comes in.”

 

It became a common saying in my family and every time my brother or I asked for something, Like “When are we going to get that record player you promised?” the reply would come “When the boat comes in.”

In our minds, ‘when the boat comes in’ came to mean ‘some time, never’.  And, in any case, if all your dreams depend on a fishing boat bringing it to you, you’re sure to be disappointed.  But who is to say that a fishing boat might not be capable of bringing home something much more exciting than a fishy on a dishy?

 

In the year 1883, some fishermen from the port of Dundee in Scotland seized on an opportunity which might only arise once in a lifetime.  They heard the news that a humpback whale had been sighted in the Tay River close to the town.  Without any thought of what might come of it, they grabbed harpoons and set sail in their little wooden fishing boats, determined to capture the beast.  A local poet, William McGonagall, now widely regarded as the worst poet in the English language, was on hand to record the event.

 

‘Twas in the month of December, and in the year 1883,

That a monster whale came to Dundee,

Resolved for a few days to sport and play

And devour the small fishes in the silvery Tay.

 

Then the people together in crowds did run,

Resolved to capture the whale and to have some fun!

So small boats were launched on the silvery Tay,

While the monster of the deep did sport and play.

 

Oh! It was a most fearful and beautiful sight,

To see it lashing the water with its tail all its might,

And making the water ascend like a shower of hail,

With one lash of its ugly and mighty tail.

 

Then the water did descend on the men in the boats,

Which wet their trousers and also their coats;

But it only made them the more determined to catch the whale,

But the whale shook at them his tail.

 

Heading for the open sea, the whale finally succumbed to its injuries and was sighted, floating on the surface, by two fishing boats from the nearby village of Gourdon.  Tying ropes to the monster’s tail, they towed it to shore at Stonehaven.  People watching from the shore would have had no idea what they would see when those two boats came in.

 

Mr McGonagall’s poem brings the saga to its conclusion:

 

And my opinion is that God sent the whale in time of need,

No matter what other people may think or what is their creed;

I know fishermen in general are often very poor,

And God in His Goodness sent it to drive poverty from their door.

 

So Mr John Wood has bought it for two hundred and twenty-six pound,

And has brought it to Dundee all safe and all sound;

Which measures 40 feet in length from the snout to the tail,

So I advise the people far and near to see it without fail.

 

Then hurrah!  For the mighty monster whale,

Which has got 17 feet 4 inches from tip to tip of a tail!

Which can be seen for a sixpence or a shilling,

That is to say, if the people are willing.