“DINNA YE HEAR THEM?”
September 1, 2010

I absolutely love the bagpipes. From the beginning sound of the drone, my spirits start to soar. No matter how weary or defeated I am, the roar of the pipes quickens my pulse and renews my resolve.

Sadly, few people share my adoration of the pipes. In September of 1990, my family gathered around the television for news of whether hostilities had broken out in the Gulf War. We watched as the British warships arrived. The gangplank was lowered and I thrilled to see the pipers appear. As they fired up the pipes, my 14 year old daughter sadly shook her head and announced, “The fighting will now begin.”

This year, on August 17th, World War II hero Billy Millin died at the age of 87. Piper Millin served under Lord Lovat who led the First Special Service Brigade on the D-Day assault on the Normandy beaches. Although English law forbade the use of pipers in leading war charges, Lovat reasoned that as he and Millin were both Scots, the law did not apply to them. The 21 year old Millan began playing the pipes, marching along the beach, giving heart to his fellow soldiers despite the hail of German bullets. While the Allied soldiers credited Millan with inspiring them to victory, the Germans stated that they could have easily shot Millan, but assumed he was a crazy man and took pity on him. Once again, one man’s passion is another man’s pain. Some have even argued that “The Longest Day,” a movie about the D-Day invasion, got its name from the fact that bagpipe music played during the entire assault.

Allegedly, the bagpipes were the musical instrument most hated by Americans until the recent soccer matches when the buzzing vuvuzela took over the number one slot. So, it is not surprising that Piper Davenport of Alexandria, Virginia, ran into legal problems when he wanted to play the pipes as he marched along the sidewalks of the city’s Central Business District (CBD). Perhaps, if he had been Harper Davenport, he would have been spared a lengthy legal battle. Arlington refused to allow Davenport to pipe on its streets, pointing to an ordinance that banned all performances in the CBD.

Piper Davenport argued that the ban violated his First Amendment right to freedom of speech. Although the Constitution forbids “any law” abridging the freedom of speech, the courts have ruled that reasonable laws governing speech are permissible.

To the Davenport Court’s credit, its examination of the City’s actions toward Piper Davenport did not address the impact of bagpipe music on businesses, pedestrians, policemen and others who would be trying to concentrate of their daily tasks despite stirring renditions of “Scotland the Brave” or “Amazing Grace.” Rather the Court focused on traffic patterns, the width of sidewalks, whether performers would impede public access to buildings, and parking availability. It ruled that the ban on all public performances in the CBD violated the Constitution as it did not take into account the factors mentioned above. At the end of the protracted litigation, Alexandria found it had to “pay the piper” as the Court ordered the City to reimburse Davenport’s attorney fees.

The beloved poet Whittier knew the power of the bagpipes when he wrote “The Pipes at Lucknow.” The poem was about a rebellion that broke out in India against the British. Civilians in and near the town of Locknow ran for safety to the compound known as “the Residency”. There, the rebels surrounded and besieged them for three months. The people knew that surrender was impossible as the rebels had recently massacred those who had surrendered in a neighboring city. As the siege dragged on, food, water and supplies were exhausted. Many fell sick and died. One morning, a feverish Scottish woman threw herself on the ground and yelled, “Dinna ye hear it?” Others rushed to her believing she had become delirious. But she insisted “Hear ye no MacGregor’s, the grandest o’ them all.” Finally, the others “fell silent” and heard at last as “rose and fell the piper’s blast . . . the piping of the clans.”

So, hats off to the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals for rescuing the pipers. Perhaps one day, as I sit in court, withering under the attack of some insurance company lawyer’s malignant legal maneuvering, I will hear the strains of “Heiland Laddie” as a tartan-kilted piper bravely breaks out his pipes on the sidewalk outside. In fact, I should probably start taking my IPod to court, just in case the pipers are busy elsewhere when I need back up.