MEMOIR OF DR. WALKER. 23 



"Western Islands, with regard to tlieir moral and 

 physical state and capabilities for those improve- 

 ments which they were so anxious to promote ; and 

 accordingly he received the appointment. He was 

 at the same time requested by the Society for Pro- 

 pagating Christian Knowledge to visit their stations 

 and report upon the progress of their schools. Both 

 of which objects he accomplished, much to the satis- 

 faction of those who had employed him. 



The Report which he made to the Board of this 

 journey, which lasted seven months, during which 

 he had traversed, by his own computation, a space 

 of above three thousand miles by land and water,^ 

 relative to the then state of agriculture, fisheries, 

 and manufactures in those, at that time, almost 

 unknown regions, with an ample detail of the best 

 means for their improvement, as suggested by the 

 nature of the country and its local advantages, was 

 esteemed highly interesting and important, but was 

 not printed by the Commissioners. It was, how- 

 ever, found, after his death, among his papers, new 

 modelled, and published by his friend Charles 

 Stewart, printer (himself favourably known as the 

 author of " Elements of the Natural History of the 

 Animal Kingdom"), under the title of " An Econo- 

 mical History of the Hebrides," 2 vols. 8vo. 



Although there has been a great and beneficial 

 alteration in the state of the Hebrides since the days 

 when this inspection took place, yet the following 

 letter which he addressed to Lord Kames from the 

 isle of Lewes is not without interest. 



