154 THE DEER FORESTS OF SCOTLAND. 



entirely exploded, that babies could not come into 

 the world unless the mother had plenty of whisky, 

 and at the time of this catastrophe one of the Gaick 

 foresters was returning from the purchase of a cargo 

 of whisky (carried outside him) for his wife when 

 he met the party in search of Captain Macpherson, 

 and having joined them, it is almost needless to say 

 the whisky did not reach the wife. The baby was, 

 however, born all right, and without the help of spirits, 

 was duly named Donald Macpherson, and lived to 

 become head forester in Caennocroc, where he died 

 not so very long ago, for he lived to a great age. 



Stories of witches and fairies are rife in every 

 forest, and indeed for that matter all over Scotland, 

 Gaick being no exception to the rule, and the follow- 

 ing two may serve as specimens for this forest and all 

 the others : — A noted deerstalker was out early one 

 morning in the forest, and observing some deer at 

 a distance got near them, but without being quite 

 within shot ; on taking a peep at them over a 

 knowe, he was astonished to see a number of tiny 



