154 



SCOTLAND (DESCRIPTIVE GEOGRAPHY). 



spreading upland, the heath-clad height or naked 

 rock, to the mountain ridge of the Grampians, and 

 the snowy peaks of Ben Lawers and Ben Nevis, the 

 loftiest in the island. Wide tracts of moss urd 

 moor, sandy plains, deep melancholy glens and val- 

 1"\<. Through which rush mountain streams, often 

 forming in their descent grand and beautiful cata- 

 KICIS, and terminating in lakes, some of which are 

 interesting from their picturesque scenery, and some 

 from their vast extent and importance ; all contri- 

 bute to the richness and variety of the prospect. 

 Nor are the milder features of the landscape want- 

 ing ; for in some parts are fertile cornfields, and 

 verdant meadows and pastures, interspersed with 

 woods and plantations, and exhibiting the effects of 

 human art and industry. 



Scarcely any country has its shores indented with 

 BO many bays, lochs, and inlets of the sea as Scotland ; 

 and such is their extent and variety, that there is 

 no place above forty miles distant from the waters 

 of the ocean. On the eastern side of the kingdom 

 are the firths of Dornoch, Cromarty, and Moray, 

 the last mentioned communicating with the great 

 chain of lakes crossing the kingdom ; and the firths 

 of Tay and Forth with their various harbours ; and 

 on the south and west sides are Wigton Bay, that 

 of Luce, Loch Ryan, the Harbour of Ayr, the firth 

 of Clyde, with its communicating lochs and inlets, 

 Loch Fine, Loch Linnhe, and a multitude more of 

 various extent and importance. 



The chief rivers of Scotland are the Forth, the 

 Clyde, the Tay, the Spey, the Dee, the Don, the 

 Tweed, the Annan, and the Nith. It possesses 

 also a number of smaller streams, distinguished by 

 the beauty of the scenery through which they pass. 

 An account of the more important rivers will be 

 found under their respective heads, in this Ency- 

 clopedia. 



The lakes of Scotland are extremely numerous, 

 and some of them of great extent. In beauty and 

 sublimity of scenery, some of them are not to be 

 surpassed. They form, indeed, the most striking 

 and interesting feature in Scottish landscape. 

 Descriptions of the more celebrated will be found 

 either under their proper heads, or under the coun- 

 ties to which they belong. The following table 

 exhibits the superficial extent of a few : 



Square Mile, of Surfai 



1 . Loch Lomond, Dumbarton and Stirling 



2. Loch Awe, Argyle 



3. Loch Ness, Inverness . - . 



4. Loch Shin, Sutherland 



5. Loch Mair, Ross 



6. Loch Ta. Perth 



ieg, I 

 8. Loch Shiel, Inverness 



7. Loch Arkieg, Inverness 



9. Loch Lochy, Inverness 

 10. Loch Laggan, Inverness 



The principal ridges of mountains in Scotland are 

 those of Ardross, in Ross-shire; the Grampian 

 hills; the Ochil hills, in Perthshire; the Pentland 

 hills, in Lothian; the hills of Lammermuir, in 

 Berwickshire; the great chain of hills between the 

 shires of Lanark and Dumfries; and the Cheviot 

 hills, on the English border; besides which there 

 are several mountain-peaks of great elevation, as 

 Ben Nevis, Ben Hope, Ben Ledi, Ben Lomond, 

 Ben Ivas, Ben Voirlich, Benvenue, Ben More, 

 Ben Lawers, Belrinnes, Cruachan Beinn, Cairn 

 Eilar, Cairn Harrah, Cairn Naple, Cairnsmuir, and 

 Glenquhargen Craig. Ardross is a rugged moun- 

 tain chain, occupying the central part of Ross-shire, 

 almost destitute of inhabitants. The Grampian 

 hills extend across the centre of Scotland, from the 



district of Cowal, in Argyleshire, bordering on thtf 

 Atlantic, to Aberdeen, on the German ocean, 

 whence another ridge diverges in a north-westerly 

 direction, through Aberdeenshire to that of Elgin 

 and the confines of Inverness. These mountains 

 vary in elevation, from 1400 to 3500 feet above the 

 level of the sea, and some peaks are of much 

 greater height. The southern side of the principal 

 ridge declines gradually into a champaign country 

 of great extent and fertility; and the mountains 

 themselves, though often clothed with heath, or 

 consisting of naked rocks, are intersected in nume- 

 rous directions by winding valleys, watered by 

 limpid streams, and covered by verdant pastures, 

 sheltered by flourishing woods and plantations. 

 There are some deep and narrow defiles, through 

 which the rivers falling from the mountains rush 

 with impetuous force, and form grand and beautiful 

 cataracts. These openings are called passes, some 

 of which were highly dangerous, and scarcely pas- 

 sable before bridges were erected; such are the 

 pass of Lenny, that of Aberfoyle, and the famous 

 passes of Killicranky, and the Spittal of Glenshie. 

 Beyond these defiles are plains of various extent, 

 covered with villages and cultivated fields, amidst 

 expanses of water, fed by a multitude of rivulets, 

 stored with fish of different kinds. The higher 

 levels and more irregular heights of the mountains 

 afford excellent pasture for sheep; and the glens 

 and valleys supply food for numerous herds of 

 black-cattle. The northern side of the Grampian 

 hills is much more rugged than the southern ; and 

 there are seen vast masses of rock piled one upon 

 another. To this range belongs the Cairngorum, 

 or Blue Mountain, situated in the parish of Aber- 

 nethy, between the shires of Banff and Elgin, of a 

 conical figure, having its summit, which is 4050 

 feet above the level of the sea, generally covered 

 with snow. The Binnabaird, in Aberdeenshire, 

 and some of the heights in the shires of Perth and 

 Forfar, are among the loftiest peaks of the Gram- 

 pians. The lofty range, called the Ochil Hills, 

 extends from the parish of Dumblane, in Perth- 

 shire, into the county of Fife. These mountains 

 are covered to their summits with verdure, and 

 overspread with flocks and herds; and the inter- 

 vening glens and hollows are watered by streams, 

 stealing gently through them, or rushing with noisy 

 violence from the precipitous cliffs; while in various 

 parts are villages, farms, and cottages, sometimes 

 skirted and sometimes enclosed with woods. The 

 highest hill is Bencloch, or Bencleugh, the head ot 

 which is 2420 feet above the level of the sea. The 

 Pentland hills extend from the vicinity of Edin- 

 burgh westward to the borders of Clydesdale. 

 The termination of this range towards the east is 

 somewhat abrupt; and on the north side the sur- 

 face of the rock, when viewed from a distance, ap- 

 pears of a bright white hue, at the height of 1460 

 feet above the level of the sea. The hills of Lam- 

 mermuir, or Lammermoor, consist of an elevated 

 tract of moorland, stretching from Dunglass,in Had- 

 dingtonshire, and Coldingham, in Berwickshire, on 

 the east, to Soutra Hill, in the western part of the 

 former county, arid having a breadth of from thirty 

 to forty miles. They are interspersed with well- 

 watered vales and glens ; and the whole district is 

 generally appropriated to the feeding of sheep; 

 turnips, &c. being raised in the cultivated parts for 

 their support during the depth of winter. The 

 mountainous ridge on the borders of the shires of 

 Lanark and Dumfries, forms part of a waving line 



