1 86 LOCH CRERAN. 



to fresh, or the reverse, with equanimity ; and what it is 

 that causes it to act almost as a poison upon creatures 

 apparently closely allied to those that are invulnerable. 



The land that was greatly washed by the sea last 

 severe winter is now blooming under a crop of ryegrass, 

 and showing very well indeed already, despite the salting 

 the soil received. But there is a line curving along, 

 occasionally in the middle and sometimes on the verge, 

 that looks as if the track of a fiery dragon has passed 

 along and left all barren behind it. Its irregularity and 

 peculiar appearance prevented us at one discovering the 

 cause, which, however, was simple enough. At the 

 highest swing of the tide during the November gale the 

 storm left a line of straw and seaware and other floating 

 debris at the highest point reached, and this had acted 

 as a complete destroyer of vegetation, nothing whatever 

 coming up where it had lain. No doubt it had " burned " 

 the soil ; whereas, had it been distributed, the result 

 would have been advantageous. 



We have had bursts of severe weather and storms of 

 hail, with "glimpses that have made us less forlorn" 

 between. As we return laden with mollusca from a sea- 

 ward ramble, a shout from our comrade informs us that 

 a " flounder " was in one of our ponds ; so, armed with 

 our i8in. "spatula," we approached, in hope of securing 

 a nice fresh supper. The captive turned out to be a 

 plaice in wretched condition, and quite covered with a 

 whitish fungus ; and the poor fish had evidently retired 

 to the quiet of the pond to ponder over the great question 

 of how to recuperate, leaving the more important 

 consideration of whether the fungus had been induced 

 by its low physical condition being incapable of throwing 

 off the disease, or whether the low state of body was 



