Gestern hat mein lieber Übersetzer, Colin MacDougall wieder ein weiteres Kapitel abgeliefert, das vorletzte. Es ist toll zu lesen wie das alles in English klingt... Hier für alle English Fans oder Muttersprachler ein kleiner Ausschnitt. Alan berichtet über seine Erlebnisse in Culloden:...Alan was looking at her pensively and then took her hand. „Yesterday you asked me about the evil things Ive seen. Catherines death was one of them,“ he began quietly. „She was married to my best friend, Donald MacColl from Cuil. We were both in the Appin Regiment.“ Alan looked at Andrea inquisitively. „Youve heard of Culloden?“ The girl nodded. „Everyone in Scotland knows about Culloden. Those who died there have not been forgotten,“ she told him carefully. The man took a deep breath before he continued. „Thats good to know. That not everything is forgotten,“ he said softly. „We were lucky and survived the Redcoats cannon at the beginning of the battle … It was hell … The wind blew gunpowder smoke in our faces and burned us … Next to us friends and relations were cut to pieces …,“ he began to relate falteringly. How much it pained him to talk about it was obvious. „… Donald fought well when we finally charged … until the English began to fire with grapeshot. “ He stopped for a moment and looked at Andrea questioningly. „Do you know what grapeshot is?“ The girl shook her head in silence. „… Grapeshot is hellish … canvas bags filled with gunpowder, nails, musket balls, all kinds of scrap iron. The bags explode in front of you and the iron penetrates your body and rips you apart.“ After this down-to-earth explanation Alan was forced to take a deep breath. „Donald … he was lying there wounded … I was hurt too. Not all of the scars on my face are from the pox. I dont know how often I was hit nor how many balls, nails, lumps of iron stuck in my clothes … I looked as if I had been butchered. There was blood all over me and it wasnt all my own. Thats the only luck I had that day!“ Again Alan paused and looked down at the loch. „When it was over there were hundreds of wounded Highlanders lying on the moor, screaming and moaning. Ill be hearing that for as long as I live, Annie! “. The mans voice began to break. „The cries of the men when Cumberlands butchers came … they spared nobody. Those who had not got away to safety were shot or beaten to death. Donald had crawled under a bush but they dragged him out and battered him to death with the butts of their muskets. He was screaming and begging for mercy … but when they were finished with him there was only a bloody mess on the heather … all that was left of my friend, my brother-in-law, the husband of my sister Catherine … wee Donnies father!“ Then there was silence and a chill ran down Andreas back. Alan was pressing her hand so hard that it was hurting. His voice was trembling as he continued. The girl had never been to Culloden and had only read about what Alan was telling her. But it was not history for this man – he had been there and survived the cruelty. That was his life, cruel and bloody reality. „I lost consciousness … The way I looked with my face burned and covered with blood, they thought I was dead … I lay there on the battlefield the whole night, in the cold rain, filled with fear, freezing, trembling, crying like a baby. The next morning I found myself half frozen, lying amongst dead bodies … I was barely able to drag myself away!“. Alan let go of Andreas hand and took a gulp of air. „But it wasnt enough for them to have defeated us in battle. They wanted to wipe the Highlanders from the face of the Earth. Murdering, burning and raping they made their way through the Highlands. They forced men, women and children to flee into the snow-covered mountains, They had no pity for the innocent. They burned down the houses, shot the cattle and ruined the fields. In the winter of 46 a lot of people starved to death here. Many others froze to death in the mountains. My sister was one of them. Catherine died soon after Donnies birth after being raped by a Redcoat,“ he told her with anger and hate in his voice. Andrea was suddenly shivering in the thin dress she was wearing, Catherines dress. She pressed up close to Alan who put his arm around her. „When I fell into the water I relived all of these terrible scenes and I saw you fighting to save me,“ he went on. „I think you should have let me die. That would have spared a lot of people a lot of trouble. It might even have saved Jamess life,“ he went on. Andrea was terrified when she heard these words. Alan was obviously not in the best state of mind. „Im going to pretend I didnt hear that. It wasnt for nothing that I fought for your life, Alan. Nobody could stop what happened, nobody. You understand? We tried our damnedest! But its history. It was your fate and Jamess destiny. Maybe it was the will of God. Thats how James saw it. Thats what he told me!“ She called out, trying to stop him thinking such black thoughts. „Ill never be able to forgive myself for what Ive done to James, Annie. What a bloody fool I was to allow myself to be used as a distraction. I thought I might be able to stop it but I wasnt able to … I just made it worse for James!“ ......
Posted on: Fri, 15 Nov 2013 16:13:00 +0000
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