164 VISIT TO SUTHERLANDSHIRE. 



had the pleasure of passing a month with him on 

 the banks of the Shin. The object of my visit 

 was manifold ; to obtain from Mr. Young's own 

 lips his knowledge of the history of salmon, and 

 of its habits ; to see his museum ; to see how and 

 where he had made his experiments ; and, finally, 

 to furbish up my piscatorial practice, getting 

 rusty, I felt, for want of a sufficiently stimulating 

 arena wherein to exercise it. Mr. Young com- 

 municated to his Grace the Duke of Sutherland 

 the object of my visit to his princely land and 

 water domains, and the " Good Duke," for which 

 I, with most cordial gratitude, thank him, issued 

 orders that I was to be allowed to circulate freely 

 throughout the length and breadth of more than 

 five-sixths of Sutherlandshire. The result of 

 this gracious permission, and of my friendly visit 

 to Mr. Young, is the preceding and subsequent 

 part of this book. 



If in the pages that follow this, the errors of 

 any writer are confuted, I beg, on the part of Mr. 

 Young and of myself, to declare that we are ac- 

 tuated by no other motive than the establishment 

 of truth. With respect to Mr. Shaw, to him, I 

 believe, belongs the merit of originating the arti- 

 ficial breeding of salmon, and if he have erred, he 

 has done much good, by striking out the first 



