8 ON THE GRAMPIAN HILLS. 



of moorland, where, to quote one of Scott's vivid 

 descriptions of wild scenery : 



There's nothing left to fancy's guess, 



You see that all is loneliness ; 



And silence aids though those steep hills 



Send to the lake a thousand rills ; 



In summer time so soft they weep, 



The sound but lulls the ear asleep. 



It is not only sportsmen who are devoted to shoot- 

 ing that I seek to interest, but those disciples of Isaac 

 "Walton as well who delight to follow the more gentle 

 art, by telling of swiftly-flowing streams, pellucid 

 lochs, and countless brawling burns, the homes of the 

 salmon and the trout. 



As many of my readers, in addition to indulging in 

 the pleasant pastimes of shooting and fishing, may take 

 a delight in all matters appertaining to the chase, I 

 have, following the course successfully adopted in my 

 former publications, " Tally ho " and " Harkaway/* 

 given some sketches of hunting in the shires ; telling 

 of the doings of an Imperial huntress when in pursuit 

 of the fox ; particulars of a royal stag-hunt over the 

 moors in Devon and Somerset; driving red-deer in 

 Thorndon Park, with some remarks on coaching, etc., 

 with the view of upholding the manliest and most 

 popular of our national sports at a time when they are 

 not unfrequently attacked by a small and effeminate 

 minority who are ever ready 



To compound for sins they are inclined to 

 By damning those they have no mind to. 



