SCOTLAND 



5259 



SCOTLAND 



more craggy. The Grampian Hills in the west, 

 the loftiest mountains of Scotland, are sepa- 

 rated from the Northern Highlands by Glen- 

 more, a deep glen which stretches across the 

 country from sea to sea. Here Ben Nevis, the 

 highest mountain of Great Britain, rises to an 

 elevation of 4,406 feet. The deep glens, craggy 

 peaks, lovely moors and beautiful lakes, echo- 

 ing to the din of Highland battle, have become 

 famous through Scott's Lay of the Last Min- 

 strel, Marmion and the Lady of the Lake. 

 The central plain, a region of grassy slopes and 

 dells, rippling brooks and wooded hills, lies 

 between the Highlands and the Southern Up- 

 lands (see below). It resembles the rolling 

 fields of England, and is the richest mineral 

 and agricultural region of Scotland. 



Rising abruptly to the south are the Up- 

 lands, a rolling table-land of grassy moors, 

 broken by low, verdant mountains and a few 

 bare precipices. The grassy heights furnish 

 pastureland for large flocks of sheep, and in the 

 valleys grains and other crops are grown. To 

 the Uplands belong the Cheviot Hills, famous 

 in border warfare. 



The land is penetrated by many inlets, or 

 sea lochs, and few places are more than forty 

 miles from the sea. Because of the remark- 

 able irregularity of the coast line, Scotland, 

 though smaller than England, has more miles 

 of seacoast. On the west the cliffs rise from 

 the sea in a great rock wall, in some places 

 projecting in rough piers and buttresses, in 

 others, cut by deep, narrow fiords resembling 

 those of Norway. Tall pillars of rock, called 

 stacks f , are often left standing alone amidst the 

 waves, and are the lonely habitation of myri- 

 ads of sea birds. Numerous islands border this 

 western coast, including the Hebrides and the 

 Isle of Skye. The largest of the sea lochs 

 penetrating the west shore are the firths of 

 Lome and Clyde. 



On the east coast, the Firth of Forth and 

 Moray Firth extend far inland. These inlets 

 and the Firth of Tay are bordered by low, 

 sloping beaches, but in the south the Uplands 

 plunge boldly to the sea, and a few rocky cliffs 

 rise between the sandy beaches to the north. 

 Caithness, in the extreme northeast, meets the 

 sea in a broad, level moor. The rocky Orkney 

 and Shetland islands are the only groups off 

 the north coast. 



Rivers and Lakes. The most important com- 

 mercial river of Scotland is the Clyde, upon 

 which Glasgow is situated. This river flows 

 into the wide Firth of Clyde, an inlet of the 



Atlantic Ocean, but the other large rivers of 

 Scotland flow east to the North Sea. Among 

 these are the Tay, which has a greater volume 

 than any other river of the British Isles, the 

 Tweed, Forth, South Esk, Don, Dee, Spey and 

 Findhorn. Among several small rivers of the 

 west coast are the Ayr and the Doon. The 

 Nith flows into Solway Firth, an inlet of the 

 Irish Sea. 



The Highland streams rush through deep, 

 narrow gorges, and over rocky ledges in foam- 

 ing cataracts. In the central and southern re- 

 gions the rivers are bordered by high, grassy 

 banks and braes. 



The central and western portions of the coun- 

 try are studded with a multitude of beautiful 

 lakes, ranging in size from picturesque Loch 

 Lomond to the numerous small rock tarns 

 nestling in the western mountains. Among 

 these lakes, noted for their beautiful scenery, 

 are the lonely and wild Loch Skene of the 

 Southern Uplands, the Lowland Lake of Men- 

 teith, and Loch Katrine, of which Scott says: 



Where, gleaming with the setting sun, 

 One burnished sheet of living gold, 

 Loch Katrine lay beneath him rolled ; 

 In all her length far winding lay, 

 With promontory, creek, and bay, 

 And islands that, empurpled bright, 

 Floated amid the livelier light, 

 And mountains, that like giants stand, 

 To sentinel enchanted land. 



Climate. Owing to the warm waters of the 

 Gulf Stream, which washes the west shores of 

 the British Isles, the west coast of Scotland 

 is milder in winter and cooler in summer than 

 the east coast. The North Sea has a moder- 

 ating influence upon the climate of the eastern 

 shore, but in a much smaller degree. Summers 

 are cool throughout Scotland, and winters are 

 cold, especially in the inland districts, where 

 the mountains and uplands are covered with 

 snow three months of the year. Much of the 

 moisture of the prevailing Atlantic winds falls 

 on the Western Highlands, where the annual 

 precipitation exceeds 100 inches and on the 

 summit of Ben Nevis reaches 150 inches. The 

 eastern section is comparatively dry, especially 

 in those districts protected by the highest west- 

 ern mountains, as in Tweedale, East Lothian 

 and the lowlands of Moray Firth, where the 

 annual rainfall averages but twenty-six inches. 



Agriculture. Less than one-sixth of this 

 mountainous country is arable land, and this is 

 confined chiefly to the Lowland districts. The 

 farm lands, as in England, are parts of large 

 estates and are rented to farmers whose fami- 



