SHIANT ISLES; LEWIS; LOCIS.

(A. D. 1827. SEPT.)

THE Southern and western sides of the Shiant Islands exhibit little of the basaltic formation. The perfect stillness of the water afforded us a good opportunity of witnessing the mode in which the Soland goose, the albatross of the northern seas, drops for fish. Towering to a great height, the bird folds its wings, and descends, head-foremost, with prodigious velocity into the water, which resounds as if a large stone had fallen into it, and recovers its smoothness before the bird re-appears, usually bringing a fish in its beak. The Soland goose destroys a great quantity of herrings. The head, neck, and shoulders of this bird are exceedingly tough and strong; so much so as to resist all small shot, but slugs or swan. The cormorant is equally thick-skinned, and extremely full of blood, of which the natives of the Hebrides are said to make a soup, somewhat resembling hare-soup, the standard dish of the eastern coast of Scotland, little known on the western, on account of the rarity of hares. It is remarkable that hares were unknown on the western coast of Scotland, till their migration to it was facilitated by the military roads. The cormorant is said to have been anciently used in Scotland as a whet to the appetite before dinner. The young of the kittywake gull was eaten for the same purpose.

We met, on returning to the coast, a large wherry proceeding to the islands, to convey the shepherd and his family away after the harvest. No one can be prevailed on to reside there. A former shepherd lost his wife, a son, and daughter, at different times, by their falling over precipices.

Touching at Loch Brolum, we coasted Lewis, to Loch Shiell, and proceeded to the inn, a neat slated house. To our dismay, as we had consumed our original stock of provisions, we found, save a bowl of excessively sour milk, the negative catalogue complete. We were assured, moreover, that not even oat-cake could be procured in any of the cottages in the neighbourhood: and that as to whisky, it was not to be found in the whole country. The latter statement was very questionable. The boatmen, to whom we had promised whisky, expressed no disappointment at not meeting with it, doubtless well prepared for the denial, and returned without a murmur to Valamis. We had before us a walk of several hours; and it was already evening. A guide offered his services, professing knowledge of the track: but as we advanced he became bewildered by the multitude of lakes and the multifarious gleaming of the water, which at first served to direct his course, and at length was brought to a stand-still, by an arm of the sea, along the rugged shore of which he led us scrambling on, till we stumbled upon a cottage half buried in the ground, when he discovered where he was. The inmate, being summoned, instantly sprung from his bed, satisfied our craving appetite with a bowl of delicious milk, launched a boat, and conveyed us across Loch Eisort amidst a blaze of phosphoric light. A single light on the opposite shore served as our beacon, and comforted us with the assurance, that though the time had advanced an hour beyond midnight, some one was yet watching in the manse of our old friend, the Minister of Lochs. On our arrival, we found his daughter prepared to receive us, and a table laden with viands, the ample remnants of a supper, of which some Irish gentlemen, who had been fishing in the neighbourhood, had already partaken, and which were reserved in the event of our coming; for the arrival of a guest, in Scotland, is welcome at any hour. The minister met us at breakfast next morning, and expressed great indignation at the reception which we experienced at Loch Shiell.

LOCH TUA; GRACE, CAVES; LOCH BERNERA; CALERNISH; STONE CIRCLES.

To the north of Stornaway are some natural phenomena well worth visiting. We proceeded to these along the shore of Loch Tua or Broad Bay, on the north side of the Aird, a safe roadstead for shipping, to the farm-house of Grace, which has been occupied by the present tenant and his ancestors for 200 years. A neighbouring creek presents an extraordinary natural wall of rock of little breadth, seemingly of artificial construction, emerging from a bed of plum-pudding stone, the material of which the coast is chiefly composed, and disappearing in the sea. The existence of a corresponding stratification on the opposite coast of Scotland, of which I was assured, would indicate its extension to a distance of at least forty miles. The other wonders of this part of the coast are two caves, the larger of which, being accessible only at the spring ebb, we could not enter. The smaller is deep, lofty, and spacious: we appeared to each other but pigmies, standing at opposite extremities of it. Its sides are incrusted with stalactical frost-work of variegated colours, in some places assuming, as in the cave of Strath Aird, the columnar form. The other is said to be superior to this, not only in size, but in the splendour of its sparry decorations. These caves still afford a retreat to seals and sea-otters; but the number of these animals has been greatly diminished by the unre lenting warfare waged against them.

To the northward of Grace the coast becomes bolder, and terminates in the long and narrow promontory of Tolsta Head. Near this point are an old tower, the scene of a traditionary tale; and a cairn, the tomb of a Norwegian princess. The hills in this neighbourhood yield deer. Lewis, Sky, and Jura, are the only three Scottish islands in which these animals are still found. Dr. Clarke informs us that they were extirpated in Rum by the eagles, some years before his visit. They existed in Mull at the time of the statistical survey. The destruction of the copse which supplied cover to the fawns, is assigned as one cause of their disappearance.

The western coast of Lewis is deeply indented by Loch Bernera. The rocky shores and surface of this arm of the sea, sprinkled with numerous groups of islands, appear in long and picturesque perspective, whilst the hills of the southern district of Lewis finely bound the spreading branches of the bay. Near its shore are some interesting monuments, of the kind commonly called Druidical: the remains of three stone circles. The principal, and by far the most perfect of them, one of the most remarkable in form and extent in the British Isles, stands on the brow of a promontory overhanging the bay, striking the eye at a considerable distance, like a cemetery of thickly-clustered tomb-stones. It has been visited by Martin and Macculloch. To the latter we are indebted for the following description of it.

"The general aspect of this structure is that of a cross, nearly of the proportions of the Roman crucifix, with a circle at the intersection. But a nearer inspection discovers more than is essential to that form. The largest line lies in a direction of about twenty-four degrees west of the true meridian, or pretty nearly in that of the magnetic variation at present, which is therefore the general bearing of the work. Great stones intermixed with some that have fallen, and with blank spaces whence they may have been removed, or where more probably they are covered by the soil, are found along this line for the space of 588 feet, including the circle; their number amounting to fourteen, and eleven of them being still erect. If we were allowed to fill up the blanks according to the general proportions of the intervals between those that remain, the number would be twenty

within that distance. But following the direction of this line further on, there are indications of other stones, all of them fallen, and nearly covered by earth and vegetation, that would justify us in extending it ninety feet, or more, further, thus making the total length about 680 feet. Parallel to the long leg of the cross, and to that only, is another line, now far less perfect than the first, since it contains only three erect and seven fallen stones, and reaches, as far as I could discover, only to 480 feet. Thus these two lines may be conceived to form a sort of avenue to the circular enclosure; its breadth being exactly equal to a semi-diameter of the circle, as the additional line touches the edge of this. The shorter line of the cross, at right angles to the other, now measures 204 feet, including the circle: but as it is longer on one side than the other, its original length has probably been greater, though I was unable to detect any traces of fallen stones; the progress of some enclosures having here interfered with the integrity of the work. This line contains ten erect stones. The diameter of the circle is sixty-three feet from north to south, and sixty-two from east to west, and it contains fourteen erect stones in the circumference, with one in the centre. This central stone is twelve feet high; one near the end of the long line measures thirteen, a few are found reaching to seven or eight, but the height of the greater number does not exceed four.

The intervals between the stones vary from two to ten yards, but the larger ones are probably the consequence of the loss of those which once occupied these places. I ought to add that the total number of stones which I could discover, either erect or recently fallen, is forty-eight; and that if the whole rank were complete, as it appears originally to have been built, they would amount to sixtyfive or sixty-six." My measurements did not entirely coincide with those here stated: but on the whole they are doubtless accurate. The recent removal of the peat-moss, in which the stones are half buried, from the sides of one of them, exhibits not only the surprising growth of this vegetable production, on a height where it could not receive any alluvial contributions, or deposit of extraneous decayed vegetable matter, but also the method employed by the rude architects who erected them, to fix them on those bases on which they have remained unmoved for centuries. The stone is inserted in a hole, filled up with small loose fragments of the same material. The elevation of the stones of the central circle must have amounted to thirty feet above the ground. Where exposed to view, the substance is as white as a bleached bone, contrasting singularly with the "gray" hue produced by the atmosphere.

The fanciful conjecture of Toland respecting this structure, which I have read detailed in an Encyclopædia, is ridiculed by Dr. Macculloch. The circular or oval form of these edifices was selected, no doubt, as best adapted to the purpose for which they were erected, and not with reference to the signs of the zodiac, as the number of stones in the circle varies indefinitely. The extensive appendage to the circle at Calernish, which distinguishes it from other circles, consists of the four avenues of stones directed towards it, from the four principal points of the compass, and is also so simply constructed that its origin may be accounted for without imputing to the architect an astronomical design exhibited in no other structure of the same kind. The other two circles in the neighbourhood are composed of much smaller stones; one is incomplete, the other has a double row still standing, and arranged in an oval form. The people have no tradition respecting them.

Doubtless, while the world lasts, Stonehenge and all similar remains of antiquity will be commonly attributed to the Druids. Yet they are found in countries, such as the Scandinavian, and in Scotland, where it does not appear that the Druids were known. Of the Druids, we have no information except from the Roman writers, who state that their chief seats were in Gaul and Great Britain, and that they worshipped exclusively in groves. The monuments of antiquity miscalled Druidical, were clearly constructed for all public purposes, whether legislative, judicial, festal, or sepulchral; and consequently vary much in form and dimensions. A copious account of those existing in Sweden, illustrated by numerous engravings, has been published at Stockholm, by M. Siöborg, the principal antiquary of that country, but unfortunately in his native language, which is little known beyond his own country. One of those described by him is remarkable, as the stones of which it is

composed, are arranged in the shape of a vessel, some of them representing the position of the masts;-indicating the burial-place of a celebrated pirate.

That the remains in Scotland were of Scandinavian origin, there can be little doubt, the probability being heightened by the circumstance of their being found chiefly on the coasts and islands which were most frequented by the Danes and Norwegians. Pennant took for granted that they were Druidical, and under the influence of this prepossession, found in the immediate vicinity of one which he examined on the mainland, the residence of the Arch-Druid. "The Druids undoubtedly possessed Iona, before the introduction of Christianity. A green eminence close to the Sound of Iona, is to this day called the Druids' burial-place*. A cottager, some years ago, planting potatoes in this spot, and digging earth to cover them, brought up some bones which the people of the island immediately concluded to be the bones of the Druids: the tradition is, that the first Christians banished the Druids, and took possession of their seat. The Druids also had a temple on the head of Loch Swidain in a farm called Rossal. The temple is but small, and several of the stones have fallen down. Here, as the name of the place indicates, they held courts of justice."-Statis tical Survey.

Borlase and others attribute the famous rocking-stone in Cornwall to the mechanical skill of the same sages; and discover in the granite blocks, of which a hill near Penzance consists, their instruments of worship and magic. As well might the construction of the Land's End, which is composed of similar materials, and put together in a similar fashion, be ascribed to them. The Druids may possibly have erected some of the remains in Britain, and in France: the existence of such monuments in the latter country, though most of them have been probably destroyed, being proved by the large one still standing near Quiberon Bay, and another near Orléans. The most perfect extant was perhaps that discovered in Jersey, which is now preserved at Park Place, near Henley-upon-Thames, having been presented by the inhabitants of that island to Marshal Cornway, the governor.

The improbability of the Druids having built in countries where they cannot be supposed to have existed, needs not the refutation implied in an improbability of an opposite import, that they should not adopt the rude style of architecture common in the age in which they lived. It is possible that Stonehenge may have been raised by the Druids, whilst the similar remains in Scotland must be referred to architects of later date, and less dubious celebrity. Dr. Macculloch opposes the exclusive claims of the Druids with his usual ability

LEWIS; STORNAWAY; FUNERALS.

DURING my stay at Stornaway, I received an invitation to attend the funeral of a wealthy old lady, who had made numerous and liberal bequests. She was sister of Colonel Colin Mackenzie, who long held with considerable reputation the office of Surveyor General of India. Immediately after the decease of this lady, a cask of Madeira was opened in her house, a wake had been kept up, and the house nightly illuminated according to the custom of the country. The chief-mourner, who arrived in an open boat from the main-land, was a minister, and the funeral was attended by all the principal inhabitants of Stornaway. Our party from the lodge arrived too late at the house of the deceased to partake of the preliminary refreshments, but we overtook the procession on the road to the ancient cemetery of Stornaway, which is situated on the beach of Broad Bay, about four miles from the town. Another burial-place used by the people of Stornaway, near the town, has been so encroached upon by the ravages of the sea, that the bodies will probably soon be consigned to a watery grave.

An old chapel, the larger half of which is unroofed, stands in the cemetery. Beneath a flagstone on the pavement, undistinguished by any inscription, lies the body of the last Earl of Seaforth, who forfeited his title in consequence of his participation in the rebellion of 1715, and lived and died afterwards in a species of exile in Stornaway. The loyalty of succeeding generations has purged the attainder which attached to the rebellious ancestors of many of the noble families of Scotland, and the restoration of the forfeited titles must be regarded with unmingled satisfaction. But great difficulties must embarrass the exertion of the royal prerogative, arising from the separation of the hereditary estates from the line upon which the title would now devolve, the difficulty of preserving the descent, the existence of collateral heirs alone, and other perplexing circumstances. There are other monuments of the Mackenzies of Seaforth, some of which bear the family crest, the stag's horns, assumed by an ancestor who saved the life of Malcolm king of Scotland, whilst hunting, from the attack of a stag, an achievement which forms the subject of one of West's finest paintings. The unroofed part of the chapel contains the tombs of nineteen of the Macleods, the ancient proprietors of the island a warrior in armour is represented upon one of them in basso-relievo. The graves of the principal families are enclosed by four walls forming a sort of mausoleum. That of the lady whose obsequies we were celebrating, contains a marble monument to the memory of Colonel Colin Mackenzie, bearing a highly panegyrical inscription. Stornaway, in which town he filled the office of Inspector of the Customs, is proud of his fame. The Duke of Wellington is reported at Stornaway to have said at Badajoz, when some difficulties obstructed the progress of the siege, "Oh, that old Mackenzie were here!"

In Scotland, the funeral ceremony is celebrated without any religious rite. The minister of the parish attends only when invited, and not officially. He sometimes embraces the solemn opportunity of offering up a prayer among the assembled mourners at the house of the deceased, previous to the departure of the procession, though he may not accompany it. On the present occasion, as soon as we reached the cemetery, the coffin was deposited in the grave with all possible decency, and the whole body of mourners instantly adjourned to a tent pitched in the cemetery, within a few yards of the mausoleum, where we found tables groaning beneath a plentiful repast. As soon as we were all arranged, 120 in number, the minister, who presided as chief-mourner, delivered a grace in the form of a prayer; and the minister of the parish offered up another, accompanied by thanksgiving after dinner. The bottle was then circulated, and many loyal, patriotie, and complimentary toasts, including the Church of England, and the Kirk of Scotland, followed: nor was the memory of the deceased forgotten, whilst the toasts

*See account of this distinguished native of Lewis, Saturday Mag. Vol. IV., p. 241, and Journal of Royal Asiatic Society, No. 11.

The estates forfeited after the Rebellion of 1745 were vested in the Crown, and afterwards unalienably annexed, and the rents and profits appropriated to the improvement of the Highlands and prevention of disorders. In 1784 they were restored, on condition of the grantees paying back the amount of the debt upon them discharged by government; and the fund thus placed at the disposal of government was dedicated to economical moral and religious purposes in Scotland.-See Report of Commissioners on Forfeitea Estates

were as usual accompanied with appropriate speeches. The presence of several ministers, and one acting as chairman, no doubt tended to preserve a certain degree of sobriety in the midst of revelry and merriment, inseparable from such a meeting, as the occasion would be necessarily speedily forgotten by the greater part present. But at length the chord was touched, to which the bosoms of the Islanders responded, amidst the flow of wine and whisky, with resistless accordance. "The chief of the Macivers" was proposed amidst loud applause. The guests became now quite tumultuous, and the Rev. Chairman immediately rose up and left the tent, accompanied by nearly all the party. The expectation of the gleanings of so plenteous a repast had attracted to the spot a multitude of people of all ages, who thronged around and closed in upon the tent, eager for the signal for rushing in upon the remains of the feast. A man was constantly employed in walking round the tent, armed with a long whip, with which he inflicted perpetual, but almost fruitless, chastisement on intruders. A few of the guests, who had not heeded the example of the chairman, continued long carousing, and one of them was brought to Stornaway on the bier which conveyed the body to the grave. A Highland laird, to whom I afterwards mentioned the circumstance, observed that he was "a very lucky fellow to get so good a berth." The festivities were, however, attended with much less excess and confusion than occur frequently on such occasions. Such disorderly proceedings are happily growing into disuse, and the beneficial example afforded more recently at the funerals of the celebrated Glengarry and the late Duke of Gordon, has tended to accelerate the reform.

While on this topic, I may mention the following circumstances which occurred at the cemetery of Assynt, which were narrated to me by a gentleman present. The habitation of the deceased was distant from the place of interment. The body was borne on men's shoulders during part of the journey, and then conveyed in a boat over the lake. The bearers became so drunk by frequent recourse to the whisky, that at length there was scarcely found a sufficient number of persons sober enough to deposit the coffin in the boat, many of the attendants being drunk when they left the house of the deceased. When they reached the shore, the body was forgotten, and a detach ment was sent in quest of it, after a numerous muster had been made in the churchyard, and the cause of the delay which prevented the last act of the ceremony was ascertained. But the collection of a multitude of fiery spirits, heated by intoxicating liquors, was attended by its probable consequences. The sexton happened to cast up, whilst digging the grave, a large thigh-bone, which proved in very deed a bone of contention. On the northern shore of Loch Assynt, contiguous to each other, stood an old castle and a mansion-house, in which resided formerly two fami lies, Mackenzies and Macdonalds, between whom a violent feud subsisted. The bone was of such large size that the Mackenzies claimed it as having belonged to one of their race, a man of gigantic stature. This point was, however, disputed by the other party, and a desperate fight ensued. My informant, who was a boy, took refuge inside the church to avoid the fray of the combatants, and surveyed the battle from the window. But he had reason to rue the chcice which he had made of his asylum, for some wag locked the door and carried off the key, and he spent the night in his prison.

At the more recent funeral of a distinguished officer, a large body of Highlanders assembled. A man of the country, pointing out to me the place of interment, spoke of the circumstance with characteristic animation: "Oh sir, it was a grand entertainment, there were five thousand Highlanders present: we were very jolly: some did not quit the spot till next morning, some not till the day following; they lay drinking on the ground it was like a field of battle!"

At a late interment in Ross-shire, the mourners engaged in a general row, and the loss of lives was the result, a consequence by no means uncommon. Dr. Macculloch mentions that it was matter of boasting, that at one funeral a pipe and a half of whisky had been drunk.

So inseparably blended in the mind of the Highlanders are the funeral and festal preparations, that a worthy minister of a small island directed that the cakes and other ingredients of the banquet, sent to him from Campbelltown in Argyleshire, should be packed in the coffin destined for his wife. A gentleman who purchased an estate in Inverness-shire, being present at a funera. soon