WILD SPORTS OF THE HIGHLANDS 



channel; we came after them as hard as we could row. At 

 first, when they struck the net, some turned back, but 

 frightened on by our shouts, they made a rush at the net. 

 We got to one end of it, detached the anchor, and began 

 to haul it round, so as to enclose the seals; then began a 

 noise and clamour which surpassed anything of the kind I 

 ever heard — the seals splashing and snorting like drown- 

 ing horses, while we were all straining every nerve to row 

 round the boat, with the weight and struggles of seventeen 

 seals, large and small, against us; my crew of six High- 

 landers, shouting, cursing and swearing, and encouraging 

 each other in Gaelic — presently a more furious shout from 

 the leader of the crew announced that something unex- 

 pected had happened, and looking round, we saw that 

 thirteen of the seals had escaped, partly by jumping over 

 the net, and partly by breaking through a weak part of it. 

 One very large seal, who we afterwards found had left her 

 young one within the net, returned in her maternal fond- 

 ness to rescue it; she swam round,and finding her offspring 

 in the midst of all the confusion, swam away again from 

 the net, leading the way for the little one to escape also. I 

 snatched up my gun and fired, killing her on the spot, so 

 that she fell back into the net, and we managed to land her, 

 and the other four, and dispatched them, despite their 

 struggles, to the great joy of the salmon-fishers of the 

 Cromarty Firth. At another time, several years ago, J was 

 put into rather a dilemma by one of these animals; we had 

 shot a three-parts grown seal, as she was asleep on an isol- 

 ated rock. Having got her into our very frail and crazy 

 boat, we proceeded towards the land in high spirits, but 



378 



