from Rum, and is about 4 computed miles long, and one broad. Ifle Muck lies about 4 miles W S. W. from the nearest part of Eigg is between 2 and 3 miles in length, and one in breadth. This ifland is called in Gael.c, Eilean nan Muchd, which, literally tranflated, is, Ifland of Swine; hence Ifle Muck, and Buchanan very properly calls it Injula Por

corum.

Appearance. The island of Eig is partly flat, but principally hilly and rocky. The hills are covered with heath, which, in fome places, is mixed with coarfe grafs. Its low grounds are partly deep, partly fhal ow, and tolerably productive, where there is a depth of foil. Rum is in general hilly, mountainous, and rocky, much fitter for paiture than Canna is partly high, and partly low ground, the high Ifle Muck is pretty

crop good for pasture, and the low for crop low, excepting one hill of no confiderable height; its foil is in general good. The height of the Rum hills alone feems worthy of notice, but for want of proper inftruments, it cannot at present be afcertained. Of these the fummits are almoft wholly rocky and barren.

Vegetable and Animal Productions.—The parish produces, barley, oats, potatoes, flax, kails, and a few other garden Atuffs in fmall quantities. In Canna, great oats anfer pretty well; on Eigg, the cultivation of this grain has been attempted for two years paft, but did not succeed. Af er it comes to the ear, it is lodged, and great part of it rots on the ground, owing to the frequent and heavy falls of rain. On barley and fmall oats, the rain has often a fimilar eft. &t, though not in an equal degree. It is with reafon believed, that green crops would antwer better. The crop feldom affords the inhabitants a competent fubfiftence. For feveral VOL. XVII.

N n

years

years paft, a confiderable quantity of meal has been annually imported, it having been neceffary to feed their cattle with a great part of their own crop, during the winter season, especially when fevere. The feed time begins about the first of April, and the harvest about the 12th of September. In Ile Muck the harvest is fomewhat later, and yet the feedtime fomewhat earlier. Last year, 1793, the crop was not all got in till near the end of November. The fhores would produce about 50 tons kelp annual'y, if the season was very favourable, but the quantity muft depend greatly upon the weather. The animals reared in the parith are hortes, horned cattle, fheep, and a few goats. Hories are reared for fale in Rum only: They are hardy and high mettled, though of a fmall fize. The horned cattle of Canna and Ile Muck grow to a confiderable fize, owing to the finenets of their grafs; but, when carried to market, they are liable to a diftemper called the bloody urine. which of courfe reduces their price. Most of the farmers in Eigg, and the principal tackf man in Canna, rear a few of the fmaller fort of sheep for the use of their families. One farm in Eigg was begun to be ftocked with black faced theep, about two years ago. They feem to multiply and thrive well. There are no sheep in If Muck. In Rum, there is a confiderable number of fmall native fheep; their flesh is delicious, and their wool valuable. A quantity of it is fent yearly to the Redcaftle market, near Invernefs, where it often fells at 14 s. the flone, while other wool fells about half that price. This ifland feems beft calculated for rearing fheep, being almost wholly covered with hills and high mountains, but the proprietor's attachment to the inhabitants, has hitherto prevented its being ftocked with them only. In Rum there were formerly great numbers of deer; there was alfo a copfe of wood, that afforded cover to their fawn from birds of prey,

particularly from the eagle: While the wood throve, the deer alfo throve; now that the wood is totally destroyed, the deer are extirpated. Before the ufe of fire arms, their method of killing deer was as follows: On each fide of a glen, formed by two mountains, ftone dykes were begun pretty high in the mountains, and carried to the lower part of the valley, always drawing nearer, till within 3 or 4 feet of each other. From this narrow pafs, a circular space was inclosed by a stone wall, of a height fufficient to confine the deer; to this place they were purfued and deftroyed. The veftige of one of thefe inclofures is ftill to be feen in Rum. In Canna, there are fome wild rabbits of a greyish colour. In this parish rats abound; lately a remarkable one, purely white, has been killed in Eigg. It was the only rat of this appearance ever feen in the place. The amphibious animals are feals and otters; the blubber of the one is made into oil, and the skin of the other is fold for fur, at a price proportionate to its fize; fome of them have been fold for above 12 s. Sterling. Though the grown up feals feed at fea, they fuckle their young on thore. There are two diftinct fpecies of feals, a smaller and a larger; the fmaller brings forth its young about the middle of fummer, and the larger about the middle of harveft. It is faid the young are fully fat, and often killed, before they bring them into the fea. The principal kinds of fith caught upon thele coafts are herrings, cod, and ling. The herrings are fome years caught in Loch Serefort in Rum, during the month of Auguft; but the inhabitants being ill provided in fifhing materials, feldom catch a competency for their own families. The cod and ling are caught mostly on the coafts of Canna and Ifle Muck, the fishing ground being moft convenient to the harbours in thefe flands. They are exported to the Clyde market, and the ling fold from 3 1. to 31. 10 s. per 120 ling. The Cear

ban

ban or fun-fifh appear in May, and fometimes remain till July. Their liver alone is ufeful for making oil, some of then yielding 12 barrels. This oil is also most frequently exported to the Clyde market. Different other kinds of fishes are caught, of fome benefit to the inhabitants; but it is unneceffary to particularife them here.-The land and fea birds in this parish are much the fame with those in the neighbouring iflands. Birds of prey are numerous; groufe are found in Rum and Eigg There are some pigeons, and a few wild ducks. The puffins are found in confiderable numbers, which, though fea fowls, lay and hatch fometimes at a great distance from the fhore, even near the tops of high hills. Their young, before they leave the neft, are as large as the dam, transparent with fat, and delicious to the taste of many. It is believed, that the young puffin becomes fo weighty with fat, as to be unable to take the wing and leave its neft: To remedy this inconvenience, the old puffin is faid to adminifter forrel, to extenuate, and render it fit for flying. It is, at any rate, a known fact, that forrel is commonly found to grow near the puffin's neft. There is a fmall kind of black crow peculiar to Eigg, having its body, back, head, and neck, of a greyish blue colour, and feemingly of the fize of a pigeon. In fome of the high hills of Rum, ptarmigans are found. In refpect of size, they are fomewhat less than groufe; and, for fecurity against birds of prey, they affume the colour of the ground; in cold feafons they are white as fnow; in other feafons they are spotted white and blue, like the craggy cliffs among which they live. Here plovers are not numerous. There are a few curlews, fnipes, and herons, with many other birds, of too little importance to be feverally mentioned. Our migratory birds are rails, cuckows, woodcocks, fwallows, arctic gulls,

and

1

and folan geefe. The periods of their arrival and departure are too well known to be infitted on.

Tides. Iflands, and Harbours.—In general, the tide of flood fets north, the tide of ebb fouth; but it often varies, according to the fituation of the coafts of the islands. On the fouth coast of Eigg, there is a fmall ifl.nd, called Eillan Chaftel. which is good for patture, and a pend.cle of a contiguous farm in Eigg. A few perions, tending cattle, live upon it during a part of the fummer months only. The found between this island and Eigg, makes a tolerabie harbour for a few veffels not exceeding 70 tons. It has no great depth of water, and confequently, with fpring tides, fuch veffels are apt to take the ground, the confequence of which, in severe weather, might be dar gerous. This harbour is in the course of veffels from the point of Ardnamurchan to ifle Oronfay in Sleat, opposite to Loch Urn, and nearly equidiftant from the latter and Tobermory. There are two entrances to it, the one from the fouth-weft, and the other from the north-caft, in a line parallel to the above course, and fo muft be a good outlet for either of the aforefaid harbours. Within this harbour, a pier has been built by the inhabitants, for the fecurity of fishing boats and fmall veffels, but on a plan not fufficiently extenfive for accommodating veffels of the above mentioned fize; befides that, it has been neglected for tome time, and become in a manner ruinous. If a pier, properly planned to afford protection in cale of ftorms, were built here, this harbour might facilitate the navigation of herring buffes, both north to the fishing, and fouth to the market. It lies in a centrical fituation, between the two former harbours, and, if accommodated as above, might prevent boffes, when overtaken by contrary winds, or difagreeable weather, from driving back to either,

and