them Petrels, from the attempt o f the apoftle S t. Peter to tread
the water. They are feen in all parts o f the ocean; and were notl
overlooked by the antients, who named them Cypfelli, and take notice
of this remarkable particular.
Mr. Rhompfon alfo fhotone of thofe enormous feals, or the great!
feal fyn. quad. No. 266; but to my great regret it funk as foon as I
killed.
Have a full view, o f the ifle o f Lewis, the Lodhus of the!
Norwegians: and off it a groupe of little ifles called Slant, or Schm\
and fomewhat to the north of thofe is the fine harbour, and!
town of Stornaway. It was my intention to have fleered fori
that port, but was difiuaded from it by the accounts I had frora|
the gentlemen of Skie, that a putrid fever raged there with great!
violence,.
Diredt our. courfe for Loch-Broom,. in the county of Rofs. An)
eafy breeze carries us off the cape Ruth an ri, in the maps Row-rit. I
About eight o’clock in the morning of
J u l i e 2y. — find ourfelves near a confiderable number of fmall ifles, withal
moft dreary appearance,, mifcalled the Summer ijlands. Within is a I
great bay fix miles broad and eight deep, bounded by vail and!
barren mountains, patched with fnow. The wind chops about-and |
blows very frefh, fo that after many teizing tacks, about nine!
o’clock in the evening drop anchor under file Martin, in thel
bottom of the bay, which is here called Loch-Kinnard. To the I
South is a hill, which we landed on, and afcended; and law on the I
Loch-Broom. other fide great loch Broom, or Braon, narrow, of a vail depth, and i
running many, miles up the country. At its head receives a river j
frequented by falmon in April.
This
•phis parifh is one o f thé largefl on the mainland o f Scotland, being
hirtv-fix miles long and twenty broad. It has in it feven places of
vorihip three catechifts *, and about two thoufand examinable
nerfons but is deftitute of a parochial fchool. None of the peo-
nle except the gentry underlland Englijh. The country is inhabited
by the Mackenzies, even quite from Kintail, whofe chieftain is the
Earl of Seaforth. .
It is aland of mountains, a mixture of rock and heath, with a few
flats between them producing bear and black oats, but never fuffi-
cient- to fupply the wants of the inhabitants.
Cattle are the great fupport of the country, and are fold to
graziers who come for them even as far as from Craven in M Jhire
at the rate of thirty ihillings to three pounds a head. A great deal
o f butter and cheefe is fold to the buffes. Land is fet here by the
B Ü or half Davoch -, the lail confifts of ninety-fix Scotch acres of
arable land, fuch as it is, with a competent quantity of mountain
and grazing ground. This maintains fixty cows and their followers ;
and is rented for fifty-two pounds a year. To manage this the farmer
keeps eight men and eight women fervants ; and an overfeer,
who are all paid partly in money and partly in kind. The common
fervants have thirty ihillings per annum, houfe, garden, fix bolls
1 meal and ihoes. The dairy maids thirteen ihillings and four
pence ¿nd ihoes : the common drudges fix and eight pence and
Ihoes. -
• A catechift is one who goes from houfe to houfe to mftruft the people in the
principles of religion, and in the catechifms, approved by the general affembly,
are appointed by its committee, and are fupported out of h» majefty’ s bounty.