60 TOUR IN SUTHERLANDSHIRE. 



straight north-west, thus making the two miles into at least 

 five, when we came within view of a larger loch, which 

 seemed to wind round the hills to nearly where the sea was. 

 In this we again descried the peculiar shaped rock on which 

 the osprey builds. Although we were too far off' to dis- 

 tinguish either nest or bird, we at once, without hesitation, 

 made for the loch, over the rocks and swamps of which the 

 whole line of country seemed to consist, and our perseverance 

 was rewarded by presently making out that one osprey was 

 on the nest, and the other soaring above her. 



Dunbar again swam off to the rock, which was about the 

 same distance from the shore as the last one was, and found 

 three young birds in the nest, which he brought to land in 

 his cap. I saw the male osprey perch on a rock on the 

 opposite side of the loch, where he sat lazily, and apparently 

 not inclined to join the female in her rapid flight round 

 Dunbar's head ; on looking at him attentively, through the 

 glass, I saw, or fancied that I saw, his crop much distended 

 with food. Knowing that if this was the ease he would 

 probably remain on his perch for some time, I started off 

 round the loch, taking a long circuit in order to approach 

 him from behind and from above. I hud not calculated on 

 the rocks I had to climb and the passes I had to take to get 

 at him, or I do not think that I should have undertaken the 

 task. I had frequently to lift my dog up the steep rocks 

 over which I had to climb. At last I came to a point from 

 which I could get a look at the bird, and with as much care 

 as if he had been a stag, I crept to a convenient place, an4 

 looking over, saw him still perched on the pinnacle of a rock, 

 but quite out of reach. I found that i must still make 

 another long circuit, or that I could not get unperceived 

 within reach of him. 



This time, on looking carefully over, I saw that he must 

 be within shot of me, but the place I was perched on was so 

 high and steep that it almost made me giddy to look down 

 from it. I was completely out of breath, too ; so lying down 

 on my back, I waited a minute or two, and then scrambled 

 down to within forty yards of the bird, and immediately 

 above him. As my gun was loaded with a cartridge, I knew 

 that he could scarcely escape ; so standing up, I took a good 

 look at him, expecting that he would see me and fly off the 

 stone, and intending to shoot him flying. Whether from the 

 earnestness with which he was watching the movements of 



