Taylor, Alistair
Willie Birse wis the fairmer up at Tillfowdie. Tillfowdie wis at the fit o Mortlich, an Willie's wife hid bin deed a lang, lang time. I eesed tae gae up an help wi the hairst..he wis jist himsel, an on his own.The road up tae the fairm wis a lang roonaboot road frae Boddom En which is hauf wyes atween Dess an Abyne. Bit the direct way wis up across the moor. There wis a footpath up across the moor tae Tillyfowdie.
The day came that Willie hid tae gie up the fairm, an he rowpit oot. And he said tae ma mither, 'Is there onything ye'd like frae the hoose as a keepsake?'
Weel, there wisna, bit jist tae please him, she chose an aul granfather clock. It hid niver wirked as far as I can myne. An it wis clartit in soot ,an affa mess.
Bi this time he'd rowpit oot. He'd nae cairts or naething. So how on earth war ye tae get the granfaither clock frae Tillfowdie till the station? It wis dark. It wis Wintertime. There wis a full moon. So efter the last train, half past sivven, aneth a bonnie full moon, ma father an I wi the stretcher (every station hid a stretcher in case o an accident) an ma mither cairryin the auld station lamp, gied up tae Tillfowdie. We pit the granfaither clock face upwards on the stretcher an ma faither an I cairriet it doon,wi ma mither comin in front cairryin the lamp aneth the full moon. An if onybody'd bin oot poachin that nicht, they'd hae run for their life!