Weird Superstitions

Superstitions abound in the traditions of the fishing communities, names, appearances, days and seasons, all had their influence on luck. Some animals and people were so unlucky they must never be named. The salmon could be alluded to as "the red fish", the pig as "curly tail" and the rat as "lang tail"; the Kirk Minister was "the man wi' the black coat", "white-throat", "predikanter" and so on. Other inutterable words include certain surnames, among them Ross, Coull and Whyte. That indispensable commodity "salt" must never be mentioned at sea. An Eyemouth boat ran short of salt when fishing in 1905 and hailed a Yarmouth drifter: "We need something we dinna want tae speak aboot". The English Skipper bawled back: "Is it salt ye want?" The crew escaped the consequences of the dread word by keeping out of earshot below deck during the transaction, and the salt was handed over safely.