THE BLACK-THROATED DIVER. 17 



again, and, mounting it on our shoulders, carried it across the 

 hill to the other lake. Little, however, had we reckoned on 

 the distance we had to go. 



" How far is the lake from here ? " was our inquiry on 

 leaving the water-side. 



" Oh, just ower yonder brae," was the answer of the inn- 

 keeper, as he pointed to a height a few hundred yards off. 



" How far do you say ? " 



" Just a wee bit." 



But that weary " wee bit " of the innkeeper's ! Many an 

 anathema was poured on the head of our guide before we had 

 got the boat fairly afloat in Loch Urigil. Once there, how- 

 ever, our cares were soon forgotten. My friend put his 

 fishing-rod together ; while I, accompanied by Mr. Ihmbar, 

 went off in the boat to the islands on the lake, in order to 

 see what birds were breeding there. We first made for a 

 small island covered with the brightest green foliage that I 

 ever saw, which, however, turned out to be nothing but the 

 wild leek. The nature of the plant was most unpleasantly 

 forced upon my observation by the very strong scent the 

 leaves produced when trodden upon. 



There were three of these beautiful birds (the black- 

 throated diver) on the loch, but no eggs. On some of the 

 other islands were a number of wild geese (Anser ferus), the 

 original kind from which our common domestic goose is 

 derived. They had two or three nests on one island, but we 

 found no eggs. Their nests were large and quite exposed ; 

 consisting of a large mass of down, kept together by coarse 

 grass and herbage. The old birds, when disturbed, flew off 

 the island, some of them alighting on the loch, and others on 

 the short green grass about the edge of the water, where they 

 commenced grazing after the manner of tame geese. Having 

 procured one or two specimens of the black-throated diver, 

 I landed, and sat down to enjoy the magnificent scenery and 

 all its accompaniments. The pewit, redshank, curlew, and 

 golden plover kept up a constant warfare of clamour against 

 me for some time, till, finding that I did not molest them, 

 they gradually returned to their domestic occupations. All 

 these birds had probably eggs near the spot. After a short 

 time they ran and walked about fearlessly, quite regardless 

 of my being so near them ; while the lively and restless little 

 dunlin ran almost over my feet without fear, as I sat near 

 the edge of the loch. 



