CATALOGUE OF BIRDS. 65 



much the same sort of sheen as you see on a 

 window pane when the sun is on it. 



I was once after this species with Simon 

 McKenzie, lessee of the Castle Bay Hotel, Barra, 

 in a sailing-boat in the Sound. Whenever the 

 Diver disappeared below the surface, which it 

 generally did on my sailing to within from 200 to 

 300 yards of it, I used to put the sail well up to 

 wind and try and overtake it, so that the next time 

 it came up I might chance to be within shot. The 

 bird, however, was always too dodgy, for instead of 

 diving straight away in the direction it had been 

 swimming in it would double back or strike off at a 

 right angle to the left or right, with the result that, 

 when it came to the surface, I would find it far 

 away to the rear or to the right or left of the boat. 

 McKenzie lent me a very heavy, badly-balanced, 

 double-barrelled 12 -bore to shoot with ; on one 

 occasion I shot at two of these birds on the water, 

 one being just in front of the other, the distance 

 being about 1 20 yards. Owing to the ground-swell 

 and the clumsiness of my weapon, my shot just fell 

 about an inch too short. They were both under 

 the water like a flash and dived away, and I saw 

 nothing more of them. 



Once when sailing by myself I believe I wounded 

 one of these Divers, but never got it. You must 

 shoot them right through the head with rather large 

 shot to have a chance of getting them. They 

 generally keep along the shore just out of range, 

 but sometimes come in nearer to land off rocky points 



