A HUNDRED YEARS IN THE HIGHLANDS 75 



would be grand sport, so to shore we went for a spear, 

 and in about an hour we got seventeen fine flat-fish, 

 besides a large cat-fish or ' father lasher,* and also a 

 sea-devil, both frightful in the extreme. I had never 

 seen a sea -devil before, and when the spear went into it 

 it turned round and bit the spear, leaving the distinct 

 marks of its teeth on the steel prongs. We also found 

 a rock-pigeon's nest with two young ones in it, but left 

 them till they should grow larger and be fitter to leave 

 their nest. 



" We stopped at Little Sand, where the fish were 

 cleaned and some of them sent to a cottage to be boiled, 

 whilst we sat on the rock, and along with the excellent 

 fish came fresh oat-cakes from Iain Buidhe's wife. 

 There we made a good breakfast, and then got again 

 into the small boat to go to Longa Island, at the farthest 

 end of which I had ordered the Jessie to call for us. 

 It was nearly midday before we went on board, and by 

 that time a nice breeze had sprung up from the north- 

 east. Our crew consisted of the Skipper Ali Ban, the 

 Gillemor (or Alexander Eraser), and Sandy Longa 

 (a Maclean). Besides these three, I had engaged two 

 extra hands, Alexander Macmillan and William Grant, 

 both capital fellows. The former is considered the best 

 seaman in Gairloch, and neither of them cared what 

 they did nor how much they worked so that they did but 

 please us and add to our comfort. 



" Besides the five seamen and myself, Osgood and 

 his tutor, there were four more persons — namely, George 

 Ross, the keeper, Simon Eraser, the butler, and the two 

 hall-boys Ali and Duncan — just a round dozen of folks 



