INTRODUCTION. xxv 



beetling cliffs, then the note of the Northern Hareld strikes 

 the ear from the midst of the wild waters ; the wail of the 

 Great Northern Diver — the " Herdsman of the Deep " — is 

 heard above the booming of the billows, and the Storm 

 Petrel is seen riding upon the tempest. 



In spring the rocky coast is enlivened by the shrill 

 whistle of the Curlew, the Eedshank, and the Oyster- 

 catcher ; far to seaward the eye is attracted by the white 

 plumage of the Gannet returning to its home on the Bass, 

 whilst nearer the shore the Herring Gull wheels in airy 

 flight. 



Proceeding eastwards, the ruins of Past Castle — the 

 " Wolfs Crag " of the Bride of Lammcrmoor, and, of old, 

 the fastness of one of the Gowrie conspirators ^ — are seen 

 mouldering on a lofty sea-girt rock ; the harsh scream of 

 the Peregrine, as the bird flies from its historical eyrie in 

 the adjoining cliff, and the weird cries of the sea-fowl on 

 their rocky citadels, being in singular unison with the 

 wildness and desolation of the scene. 



We now pass the Brander Cove — a resort of the Green 

 Cormorant; Earnsheugh, a name suggestive of the Sea 

 Eagle, where the Common Gull is said to have nested in 

 former times ; Ptavensheugh, of old the habitation of the 

 bird of ill omen ; and arrive at Petticowick, the ancient but 

 now deserted home of the Chough. 



Leaving this romantic and picturesque little harbour, 

 we row close round the rugged base of West Hurker, as 

 well as the lofty isolated rocks of Plot Carr and Skelly, 

 reaching the Eampart — in bygone days the haunt of the 

 Kittiwake — before the full grandeur and magnificence of 

 the scenery burst upon the view. The stupendous preci- 

 pices of Powl Carr, and the opposing perpendicular cliffs 



1 Logan of Restalrig. See Carr's History of Coldingham, Priory, pp. 90-95, 

 and 202-213. 



