FALLS OF KILMORACK. 385 



in the same district, contains pike. The Glass, Farrar, 

 and Cannich, are not in much repute as angling 

 streams. They are thinly stocked with small trout. 

 Occasionally, a large one is met with, and in some 

 places, a few pike are found. 



The Beauley so called, extends from the point of 

 confluence betwixt the Glass and Farrar rivers, to the 

 Beauley Firth, a distance of nine miles. It abounds, 

 below the falls of Kilmorack, with salmon, grilses, and 

 sea-trout. Lord Lovat is sole proprietor of the fishings 

 on this river. They bring a rent of nearly two thou- 

 sand pounds per annum, and are conducted by the tacks- 

 man at a comparatively small expense, employing only 

 twelve men. A singular story is related as to the way 

 in which these fishings came into the possession of 

 the old Lovat family. It is said that Simon, Lord 

 Lovat, on the occasion of the estate being forfeited 

 after the first Rebellion in 1715, requested the Duke of 

 Gordon, his personal friend, to present a petition which 

 he had drawn out to the king. The substance of his 

 request was, that ' ' one lea rig behind the castle" might 

 be given to him and his heirs in perpetuity. Amused 

 with the eccentricity which appeared to have dictated 

 this demand, the king gave orders that it should be 

 complied with. The " lea rig " meant the river. 



About two miles west from the village of Beauley, are 

 situated the celebrated falls of Kilmorack. These, in 

 conjunction with the story of the kettle, into which 

 salmon leapt of their own accord, have been often de- 

 scribed, and are visited annually by numbers of tourists. 

 The lower of the falls is about eight or ten feet in height. 

 Over it the salmon find their way with comparative ease. 

 The principal obstacle to their progress is the upper 

 cataract, which, besides being at least a couple of feet 



