Widely regarded as one the greatest poets of all time, it is no surprise the nation is still celebrating the life and works of Robert Burns 225 after his death. The Scottish Bard, born in Alloway on 25 January 1759, was the eldest of farmer William Burnes and Agnes Broun’s seven children. Growing up, Burns was tutored in reading and writing by his father before receiving a Latin and French education from John Murdoch between 1765 and 1768. Though he was not formally encouraged into poetry until he met Captain Richard Brown in the early 1780s, Burns first attempt is believed to have been inspired by Nelly Kilpatrick at the age of 15. An assistant on the farm during the harvest of 1774, Nelly is thought to have been his first love and the the subject of “O, Once I Lov’d a Bonnie Lass”.
Dursley residents believe a raven, missing from the Tower of London and feared dead, could actually be on holiday in their town. Raven Merlina (on the right of the picture) has not been seen at the Tower for several weeks, which coincides with the arrival of a raven in Dursley (pictured on the left). Although ravens traditionally have their wings clipped, current Ravenmaster Christopher Skaife has reduced this practice and Merlina regularly spent time outside the Tower walls. If she is now in Dursley however, her distinctive pink band appears to have gone missing. Keen birdwatcher John Murdoch, 85, said it was the first time he had ever seen a raven when he spotted it outside Gravity fish and chip shop on Parsonage Street on Saturday.
Winnipeg Free Press By: Cody Sellar
MIKAELA MACKENZIE / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS
Curtis Garson (left) and Richard Dumas give away boxes of pickerel to families in need, at the Canad Inns in Winnipeg on Thursday.
The vehicles were lined up Thursday behind the Canad Inns hotel at Polo Park, and the fish were flying out the door.
The vehicles were lined up Thursday behind the Canad Inns hotel at Polo Park, and the fish were flying out the door.
Volunteers from Dakota Ojibway Tribal Council and several other groups scooped up free boxes of filleted pickerel and other freshwater fish to load into waiting trunks, all along playfully teasing each other.