COUNTIES OF ELGIN AND NAIRN. 7 



the lowland districts. The lower part is known as the " Laigh 

 of Moray," and is said to be one of the finest agricultural 

 districts in the kingdom. It is about 30 miles in length, and 

 from 5 to 12 miles in breadth. It is extremely well sheltered 

 from southern, south-eastern, and south-western tempests by the 

 Dallas hills, Black hills, Mannoch hills, Brown muir, Heldon 

 liill, TuUoch hill, Burgie hill, and Knock of Alves, which chiefly 

 comprise the range just mentioned. The highest peak in Moray- 

 shire is Carnan-Lion, which is 1797 feet. The upper or Strath- 

 spey division of the county differs in contour and also in soil 

 from the " Laigh of Moray." It is of course much higher, and 

 is more irregular in surface, but in many parts the soil is 

 almost as fertile as in the lower districts. Along the valley of the 

 Spey, there are some charming little straths, displaying much 

 natural beauty. The county ranks well with sportsmen. There 

 are no deer forests in it, but the moors carry heavy stocks of 

 grouse and hares; while in the lower grounds good bags are to be 

 got of snipe, partridges, and pheasants, and also rabbits and 

 hares, but especially the former. On some small hills in the 

 " Laigh of Moray " there are a few grouse to be seen occasionally. 

 The chief home of these birds in the county is the chain of hills 

 which I have already described. Of the two natural divisions of 

 the county, the maritime one stands highest, from an agricultural 

 point of view. The land here is of an undulating character in 

 the east, and is almost a dead level in the middle and in the 

 west. In the more inland districts the elevation of the land is 

 steep, with a south or south-east exposure. There is very little 

 level land on the south side of the Mannoch hills. The 

 geological features in Morayshire are of great variety. There 

 are four sandstone ridges, viz., Covesea Hill, 288 feet in height ; 

 Quarry wood Hill, 280 feet; Pluscarden Hill, 77G feet; and the 

 hills of Dallas, 850 feet. The hills further south consist of 

 granite, mica, slate, quartz, gneiss, schist, &c. In the " Laigh of 

 Moray," sandstone of the old red formation, liniesbone and 

 yellow or grey sandstone prevail, while gneiss and granite 

 abound principally in the upper districts. 



The finest and most extensive lake in the county is Loch-an- 

 dorb, in the parish of Inverallan, and about 9 miles from the 

 village of Grantown. It is fully 2 miles long and 1 mile broad, 

 and is famous for its trout. In the centre of this beautiful lake 

 are ruins of a stronghold, once in possession of the " Wolf of 

 Badeuoch." The Loch-an-dorb trout weigh on an average, from 

 J lb. to h lb., and they are of excellent quality. Loch IMair, in 

 the parish of Forres, is 30 acres in extent, and contains good 

 trout, varying from i lb. to f lb. Loch Lossie, in the parish of 

 Dallas, is a mile long and a (piarter of a mile broad. The trout 

 cau«!ht in it run from h lb. to 6 lbs. Loch-an-Tore is also in 



