260 FIELD-NOTES FOR THE YEAR. CH. XVIII. 



been uttered by an old hag in the neighbourhood, 

 to the effect that all the country within six miles of 

 the coast should be swallowed up by floods during 

 the last week of this very July. So strong an 

 effect had this prediction on the minds of the lower 

 orders, that almost all the Highlanders who had 

 come down to the coast, according to their custom, 

 for the herring-fishing, had returned homewards 

 without putting their foot in a boat, to the great 

 loss and inconvenience of the owners of the boats 

 and nets, who had reckoned on the usual assist- 

 ance of these men. It is singular that floods of 

 a most mischievous and unusual extent should 

 actually have taken place at the very time this 

 woman had foretold. 



For my own part, I felt chiefly annoyed at the 

 alarm our absence would occasion at home, as it was 

 already evening, and we had no means of making 

 signals or of sending word where we were, it being 

 quite impossible to cross the river at any point. 



The water still rose, and continued to do so for 

 half an hour longer, washing away our standing- 

 place slowly but constantly. On looking round I 

 could not but feel most grateful at our not having 

 been overtaken by it before we reached this part of 

 the island. Had we been in many of the places 

 over which we had so lately passed, we must have 



