1895-96-] Gossip about Gulls. 161 



For close on thirty years a sea-mew was the darling of the 

 old laird, our uncle. Every spring she found a mate, and 

 brought him and the yearly babies to the house. Doubtless 

 her nest was on some cliff not far away, but she evidently 

 looked upon her master's house as home, and when the young 

 ones were off her mind she would return to her wonted habits 

 of appearing under the window at meal-times and of following 

 her special friends around the lawn or farmyard. Her mate 

 often attended her, but he took evidently a second place until 

 spring returned, when, according to Tennyson, the fancy of 

 birds and men " lightly turns to thoughts of love." What 

 became of this dear bird we do not know. What becomes of 

 all the birds who do not fall a prey to a stronger than them- 

 selves is one of the unsolved mysteries of Nature. I am fond 

 of imagining that there is an elysium somewhere in the uni- 

 verse where those delightful creatures find endless happiness. 

 If a sparrow falls not to the ground without the knowledge of 

 the All-Father, surely He has prepared a place for all innocent 

 and beautiful beings He has created. 



If the Shetlander wished to adopt any emblem for his 

 island-flag he should choose the sea-mew, which adds so much 

 life to the wild rock-scenery, whose fearless, tireless, graceful 

 vitality seems to blend with the life of the islands, making 

 one of its chief characteristics. Flocks of those gulls accom- 

 pany the fishermen to the haaf and return with them. When 

 weird apparitions appear during some wild storm, or when they 

 are lying by their lines amid the great solemn billows, or when, 

 mist-girdled, they are striving to reach their desired haven by 

 a trackless course, or when their boat is plunging across the 

 " stoing 0' the tide," in imminent danger of being overwhelmed 

 — at such times strange revelations come to fishermen, and 

 they usually come in the form of a " white maa." It will 

 hover over the boat, or rest on the bow, or settle on the 

 thwart. And the men know that their visitant is a witch in 

 disguise predicting evil, or a guardian angel bidding them take 

 courage, or the soul of some one beloved coming in familiar 

 form on a mission of love. But the " white maa " does not 

 attend upon man only as a beneficent power. It has consti- 

 tuted itself the vigilant picket of other less wary birds, as 

 well as seals. The sportsman stealing upon his quarry will 



