Eriska (Norse Eiriksey), an island of South Uist parish, Outer Hebrides, Inverness-shire, separated by a channel 2 miles wide from the S end of South Uist island. It measures 3 miles in length from N to S, and 1½ mile in breadth; and it is notable for having been the place where Prince Charles Edward first set fopt on the kingdom of his ancestors, 23 July 1745. He landed with his attendants from the outelle, and passed the night in the house of the tacksman, Angus Macdonald - an uncomfortable night enough, since the beds were few, and the Prince resigned his to Sir Thomas Sheridan, whilst the smoke from the chimneyless fire obliged him ever and anon to go out into the fresh air. ` What a plague is the matter with that fellow, ' asked honest Angus, ` that he can neither sit nor stand still, and neither keep within nor without doors ? ' The channel between Eriska and South Uist is used as a boat harbour for the export of local produce. Pop. (1841) 80, (1861) 396, (1871) 429, (1881) 466.
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