Land Struggle: Pairc June 27, 2008 § Leave a Comment The Parc
Memorial. Balallan. District of Lochs In November, 1887, several
hundred crofters from the Pairc region staged a deer raid in
protest at their treatment by The Matheson’s, landlords of the
Lewis Estate. Prior to the raid, many Pairc townships had been
systematically cleared to give greater access to land that was
regarded primarily as deer hunting ground. The boundaries of the
deer forest widened as townships were cleared and tenants
marginalised; crofters working the land for survival were
regarded as a hindrance to sporting pleasure, and were treated
accordingly. The raid was planned and co-ordinated by six men,
amongst them Donald Macrae, the schoolmaster from Baile Ailein
(Balallan). Already an eloquent spokesman for the Land League,
Macrae also alerted sympathetic journalists in Glasgow with a
three-word telegram: HUNT IS UP. The raiders met Mrs Platt, the
sporting tenant of Pairc, as they approached their agreed
starting point. She invited th