VALUE OF FORESTS. 353 



Wigan, the wild stag is affording more employment 

 to the surrounding, or local labouring population, 

 than the flocks of sheep. Over ground that would 

 have maintained but one shepherd, on its being 

 turned into a deer forest, ten men are employed in 

 the shape of keepers, assistants, and gillies. Here, 

 close to Achnacarry, whence I write this portion of 

 my Reminiscences, there are two new forests already 

 made, and thanks to the poicer of machinery^ the deer 

 and the game have become the most lucrative pro- 

 perty of the Highland laird. "Where is all this to 

 end ? If steam brings tenants who will give treble 

 the rent for these wild hills for the maintenance of 

 deer, that farmers can afford to do for the production 

 of sheep, and, looking south, a less breadth of wheat 

 is sown, under what is erroneously called free trade, 

 than used to be under protective enactments ; if war 

 spreads — thanks to Lord Aberdeen's timid pohcy, it 

 does exist — how is the population to be fed? As a 

 politician, I feel as if Manchester, conjointly with 

 Lord John Russell, had flung me into the eddies of 

 Lochiel's waterfall, and I am twisting round and 

 round, I know not whither. Prices are infinitely 

 higher than I expected they would be under free 

 trade, and have been lower than the Whigs and Lord 

 John Russell bargained for ; and it is evident enough, 

 that not only were we all wrong, I fear to a terrible 

 extent, in our speculations as to the effect of the 

 measure ; but at this moment w^e, none of us, politi- 

 cally speaking, know where we are, what will be the 

 state of the country, or where we may be next year. 

 Lord John Russell and his tutors ^lessrs. Cobden and 

 Brif>-ht, havinj? Avon for themselves the disagreeable 

 position of being forced to admit that their object 



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