to Spittal of Glen-Shee. 



in appearance as we approached Tombey, the inn of the Spittal 

 of Glen-Shee. The situation of the Spittal is beautiful, — the 

 surrounding hills green, the valley wide and ornamented with 

 cultivated fields and wood *. After leaving Tombey the hills 

 become gradually lower, the valley wider ; but, in some places, 

 the sides of the hills are extremely rough, owing to the vast 

 number of blocks of mica-slate spread around. In the mica- 

 slate there are beds of chlorite-slate and bluish-grey granular 

 foliated hmestone; also beds of hornblende-rocks and hornblende- 

 slate, the outgoings of which frequently project above the mica- 

 slate, forming rough and picturesque cliffs in this and in the 

 neighbouring Strath Ardle. The mica-slate, as we walked on- 

 wards, is at length succeeded by clay-slate, which, like the mi- 

 ca-slate, ranges NE. and SW., and dips to N. 25° to 40". At 

 the bridge of Caley, conglomerate and old red sandstone make 

 their appearance in nearly horizontal strata, resting upon the 

 outgoings or upper ends of the strata of clay-slate, which latter 

 rocks are inclined to the south at an angle of 70°. The conglo- 

 merate is composed of rolled pieces of porphyry, amygdaloid, 

 quartz, mica-slate, clay-slate, and hornblende-rock. The masses 

 are frequently the size of a man's head, even, as is the case with 

 the amygdaloid, several feet in length. At the line of junction 

 of the clay-slate and red sandstone, we observed fissures in the 

 slate filled with sandstone, and at times are disposed in such a 

 manner as to give the masses of slate somewhat the appearance 

 of conglomerate. These secondary sandstone and conglome- 

 rate rocks extend down to Blair-Gowrie. 



The water of Ardle passes Blair-Gowrie, and in its course 

 displays good sections of the strata of the district, which are red 

 sandstone and conglomerate. The masses in the conglomerate 

 vary in size from that of a pea to a man's head, and larger ; 

 are principally porphyry, with amygdaloid, quartz, and mica- 

 slate. The strata dip to the SW. and direction NE. and 

 SW. The finest display of the conglomerate is at Craig-Hall, 

 at the time we visited it in the possession of a particularly inte- 

 resting and delightful old lady. Miss Rattray, but now the seat 

 of Baron Clerk Rattray. The residence is perched on a tre- 



• Dr aiacknight met with a bed of an impure gj'aphite, in mica-slalc, half 

 a mile south of the inn of Tombey.— Tirfc Wern. Mem, vol. iii. p. 121. 



