THE MAIN GLEN. 129 



and looking down, as I did, for the first time, on 

 this variegated pavement during a sudden hurst 

 of sunshine after a heavy shower of rain, the 

 whole scene was almost enough to enable me to 

 realize, for a moment, the fabulous but fascinat- 

 ing description of Sindbad's valley of precious 

 stones in " The Arabian Nights." A narrow 

 track, winding down along the steep side, leads 

 to the bottom, and on arriving there, the peculiar 

 character of the scenery becomes even more strik- 

 ing. It is impossible to resist the conviction that 

 you are walking over the dry bed of what must 

 have been at some former and, geologically 

 speaking, not very distant epoch, a powerful 

 torrent. All the loose stones under your feet are 

 rounded and water-worn, and although the sides 

 of the main glen are less precipitous than those 

 of the lesser fissures that run in diagonally, yet 

 the erosive action of the water can be traced where 

 the lower and more indurated portions present 

 occasionally sharp perpendicular sections, above 

 which the natural woods of spruce and larch seem 

 to cling with difficulty, and to sprout out in 

 almost impossible places, while every now and 

 then a ferruginous peak, like a great sugar-loaf, or 

 two in juxtaposition, like Siamese twins, shoot up 

 from the midst, in striking contrast to the sur- 



