384 THURSO HARBOUR. CHAP. xxn. 



him some specimens of fossil fish in exchange for 

 botanical specimens. To gratify his request, Dick 

 searched along the shore ; and, after an hour's labour 

 with his heavy hammer, his wedges, and his chisels, he 

 found a good fossil fish quite whole. Whether this was 

 sent to Mr. Henslow we know not, as no further refer- 

 ence is made to the subject. 



MOUTH OF THUBSO KIVER. 



About the same time Dick discovered another singular 

 object. " A recent spate," he says, " laid bare part of 

 the skeleton of a whale, which apparently had been 

 buried many hundreds of years. It was very much 

 decayed. It lay near the mouth of the river. Most 

 probably some of the old Caithness cannibals feasted on 

 the monster." 



A Society for the study of Natural History was 



