282 LATER YEARS 



have liked to use my stick on 2 or 3 boys, besides, 

 not knowing the laws of the country, I might have 

 brought them down upon me.* 



In 1891 they went up through the Minch to Orkney, 

 thence to several outlying skerries and to the FUnnans, 

 west of Lewis. 



I write to report our return from a charmhg cruise, 

 though we saw nothing of any great imporance and 

 performed no great achievement. The 2nd day after 

 our arrival here Evans took us over to Oroisay for the 

 afternoon. I wish we had had the whole da/ there, for I 

 should like to have searched some of ttose kitchen- 

 middens, and indeed I failed to find tie one which 

 Grieve depicts. If he had only given a nap instead of 

 a useless figure it would have been betfrr. We found 

 one that had been cut into, but from hs description it 

 can't be that in which he got the Grea^ Auk bones. I 

 made some notes upon it which I can ;end you if you 

 think they will be of any use to you but I fear they 

 are worthless. We saw the usual trds, but nothing 

 more. Next day we started for the iorth, and got up 

 to the skerries on Sunday, the cliffs ooked as grand as 

 ever, and so did the Eagles, both of which we saw 

 sitting and for a good long time, Hie on each side of 

 the nest. I believe I saw a yovig bird in it, but 

 neither Evans nor my brother f> so far as that - 

 though both agree as to its beim the nest. We had 

 your book in the boat with us ancwent to the very spot 

 where your photographer must ha^ stood, but thence the 

 sight of the eyry is not visible, beig round the corner of 

 the first projection. On this weH agreed. Your photo- 

 grapher has " distanced " the re^ of the cliff more than 

 he ought, I suppose to increase fcs picturesqueness. We 

 were in the boat or on the roc's on that side for more 

 than 2 hours, having the E^les in view most of the 



* Letter to J. A. Harvie->wn, July 29, 1887. 



