126 



WITH NATURE AND A CAMERA. 



St. Kilda who knew how to make one was long- 

 since dead. My purchase weiglis three pounds, 

 and measures iifty-two feet m length, and is, I 

 need hardly say, treasured as a prize of con- 

 siderable value amongst my collection of curiosities. 



Kenneth Macau- 

 lay describes the 

 fowling-rope in use 

 at the time of 

 his visit as thirty 

 fathoms long, ' ' made 

 of a strong, raw cow- 

 hide . . . capable 

 of sustaining a great 

 weight, and lasting 

 for about two gener- 

 ations." He adds 

 tliat " in tlie testa- 

 ment of a father it 

 constitutes the very 

 first article in favour 

 of his eldest son ; 

 should it happen to 

 fall to a daughter's 

 share in default of 

 male heirs it is 

 reckoned equal in 

 value to the two best 

 cows in the isle." 

 Four years ago a girl, whilst watching the men 

 collect eggs on the Doou, had her petticoats 

 ballooned by a sudden squall of wind, and was 

 lifted clean over the clift'. She fell one hundred 

 and eighty feet without a break, and alighted on a 

 ledge which was covered with earth. The cragsuuMi 

 descended to pick uj) what tliey very natm-ally 



HORSEHAIR ROPE. 



