HEBRIDES HECATE. 



665 



rity which results from an equitable and a powerful 

 government. The abolition of the heritable jurisdic- 

 tions conveyed to their inhabitants the full privileges 

 of British subjects ; and if they have not since that 

 period been so well governed as other portions of 

 our empire, the cause is not to be looked for in any 

 neglect or injustice of the legislature, but in circum- 

 stances of a local nature, which it will require much 

 time and powerful exertions to remove. 



These circumstances are, the disjoined, uncon- 

 nected, geographical state of the Western Islands, 

 their great distance from cities and markets, the im- 

 mediate nurses of wealth and of refinement, the diffi- 

 culty of intercourse on account of the boisterousness 

 of the seas around them, and the storms which so 

 frequently prevail during nine months of the year ; 

 but above all, the non-residence of many of the pro- 

 prietors, who drain the poor Hebrides of their 

 wealth, and, too often residing in other parts of the 

 empire, pay little attention to the improvement of 

 their estates. It may be mentioned, however, that 

 the introduction of steamboats has been of great 

 benefit to the Hebrides, by opening up an easy and 

 regular communication between them and the Low- 

 lands. 



The Hebrides are usually classed with reference to 

 their latitude, relatively to Scotland, into two grand 

 divisions, the Southern and Northern Hebrides ; and 

 both divisions are distinguished by their size into first, 

 second, and third rate islands. 



The first rate isles of the southern division are 

 Islay, Mull, Arran, and Jura ; and of the northern, 

 Skye, Lewis, and Harris, and the island of Uist. 

 These contain 2846 square miles, or 1,423,000 Scots 

 acres, and are, to the smaller isles, as 8.V to 1. The 

 promontory of Ardnamurchan, the most westerly 

 point of the British continent, is understood to form 

 the line between the southern and northern Hebrides. 



The isles of secondary size are, 



North. 



Rum, 



Raasay and Islets, 



Ron a, 



Barray and Islets. 



South. 

 Bute, 

 Cumbraes, 

 Gigha and Cara, 

 Collonsay, 

 Lismore, 

 Tyree, 

 Coll, 

 Ulva and Gometra, 

 Kerreray, 

 Luing, 

 Seil, or Saoil. 



The isles of third rate size are, 

 South. North. 



Scarba, Muck, or Monk, 



Lunga, Cannay, 



Shuna, St Kilda, or Hirt, 



Icolmkill, or lona, Ascrib, 



Eisdale, Fladday. 

 Inch Kenneth, 

 SlafFa. 



The southern isles of Bute, Arran, Inchmarnoch, 

 and the Cumbraes, constitute the county, of Bute. 

 Lewis is a part of Ross-shire; Monk, Rum, and 

 Canuay, of Argyle-shire ; and all the other northern 

 isles are attached politically to the county of Inver- 

 ness. 



Altogether they are computed at about 300 in 

 number, eighty-six of which are inhabited. Their 

 population, which, at a rough estimation, may be 

 stated at 100,000, subsist chit-fly by fisheries and the 

 rearing of cattle. 



The climate of the Hebrides is cold an- 1 moist, and. 



consequently, the soil proportionally unfit for cultiva- 

 tion ; a few of the islands, however, are well ma- 

 nured with sea-weed thrown np by the surf, and 

 yield tolerable crops of barley and oats, while others 

 afford pasturage for vast herds of cattle and sheep. 

 The mountainous parts contain lead mines, quarries 

 of marble, freestone, and limestone, with iron, talc, 

 crystals, and'valuable pebbles of almost equal brilli- 

 ancy to the South American topaz. Scarcely a tree 

 or shrub is to be met with excepting the wild myr- 

 tle, but these, with a great variety of useful plants, 

 spring up and flourish spontaneously. The bays, 

 harbours, and creeks, abound with prodigious quan- 

 tities of fish of different kinds, and literally swarm 

 with herrings, which with black cattle, sheep, woo), 

 knit hosiery, tartans, and coarse cloth, may be con- 

 sidered the staple commodities of the inhabitants, 

 who use the same language, observe similar customs, 

 and appear in the like costume as the rest of the 

 Highlanders. 



The more important of the Hebrides are described 

 in this Encyclopedia under the respective names, to 

 which the reader is referred. See, also, Dr John- 

 son's Tour to the Hebrides, made with Boswell in 

 1773 ; Macdonald's View of the Agriculture of the 

 Hebrides, (Edin. 1811, 8vo), an excellent work 

 from which we have borrowed the most of this arti- 

 cle ; and Macculloch's Highlands and Western Isles 

 of Scotland. 



HEBRIDES, NEW ; a group of islands in the 

 South Pacific ocean, discovered by Quiros in the year 

 1506. In 1773, captain Cook surveyed this group, 

 and gave to the whole the appellation of New He- 

 brides, from considering them to be the most western 

 islands of the Pacific ocean. They are situated be- 

 tween Ion. 166 41' and 170 21' E., and lat. 14 

 29' and 20 4' S., extending 125 leagues, in the 

 direction of N. N. W. A W. and S. S. E. E. These 

 islands are fertile, producing figs, oranges, bananas, 

 the bread fruit, and the sugar cane. The only 

 quadrupeds are rats and swine. The inhabitants are 

 of different races, but in general are less pleasing 

 than those of the other islands of the Pacific. Like 

 other inhabitants of the tropical regions, they are 

 active, but impatient of labour. They are of a 

 dark complexion, and have black, short, frizzled hair. 



HECATE ; the daughter of Tartarus, or, accord- 

 ing to some, of N ight. Others callJupiter her father, 

 and Juno, or Ceres, or Asteria, or Phtfcaea, a daughter 

 of ^Eolus, her mother. She was the infernal goddess, 

 who presided over magic. Juno having committed 

 the care of her education to the nymphs, she stole 

 the paint-box of the queen of the gods, and gave it 

 to Europa, the daughter of Phoenix. When Juno was 

 about to punish her, she fled to a woman in childbed, 

 and afterwards to a funeral procession. Jupiter 

 caused her to be plunged into the pool of 

 Acheron, by the Cabiri, tor the purpose of purifi- 

 cation ; and from that time she became an infernal 

 goddess. Various accounts are given of her. 

 Hesiod says, her power extended over the earth and 

 sea ; she had a place among the stars, and enjoyed 

 peculiar honour with the gods. She gave fame and 

 wealth to her favourites. She made the warrior 

 victorious, sat by the judge' to aid him in his deci- 

 sions, strengthened the athletes, blessed the labours 

 of the fisherman and the herdsman, and promoted 

 the growth and progress of the young. All the magic 

 powers of nature were at her command. She after- 

 wards became the symbol of the moon, and was then 

 the same as Diana ; but her authority extended to 

 the infernal world, whence she was called the Infer- 

 nal Diana. As a goddess of the lower regions, she 

 I is generally called Hecate; in heaven, Luna; and on 

 earth, Artemis or Diana. Magicians and witches 



