EEMTNISCENCES OF THE LEWS. 123 



■strange medley of things. But times altered 

 much. The geese, as I have said, disappeared ; 

 so did the deer, though that was to be ac- 

 counted for by the foresting of the southern 

 part of the Lews and the northern part of 

 Harris. What deer would stay in the northern 

 part of the island, where they were always 

 disturbed, when they had the South Lewis and 

 North Harris to go to ? But why the snipes 

 went I never could account for, except that 

 once I perpetrated an act that must have given 

 offence to the fairies of the place. 



I actually gave a party on this Deer 

 Island, as I used to call it, a dejeuner : now, 

 it would be termed a garden party. Over 

 the fair waters of my wild Trialaval passed 

 sundry boats, freighted with smiling, hand- 

 some faces, determined on pleasure for the 

 day. The old story — "Youth at the prow, 

 and Pleasure at the helm." Not that I 

 was a youth, or had much pleasure left in 

 me ; still, I led the way — not in gilded galley, 

 with silken streamers, but in my india-rubber 

 boat, that looked exactly like one of the 

 bottle-nosed whales I have been lately talking 

 about — to my sacred island. We feasted, we 

 made speeches, we gave toasts, we listened to 

 the pipes ; all seemed so pleased that even fair 



