APPENDIX. 297 



and in 1872 it had decreased to 7296. Since 1872 it 

 is probable that the wooded area has again increased to 

 10,000 acres to date of 1883. 



The physical features of our Highland counties are 

 often indicated in the appropriate Gaelic names, usually- 

 descriptive of mountains, lochs, rivers, headlands, vales, 

 valleys, rocks, and islands. Scourie means the pointed 

 rock ; Stoir, the high-peaked cliff ; Meallmeadhonach, the 

 middle or central hill ; Ben Chaoran or Harran, a high 

 ridge contiguous with Ben More, means the hill of the 

 cloudberries ; Glasbhein, the gray {i.e. stony) hill. So 

 also Loch Gorm means the blue loch ; Loch Griam, the 

 hill of the sun ; Loch-an-Hard, the high-lying loch ; Loch 

 Clashmore, the loch of the great hollow, and so on. It 

 has often seemed to us desirable that some good Gaelic 

 scholar would work out all these interesting Gaelic names 

 and tabulate them in each county, with their correct 

 meanings : and we believe that Mr. Mackay of Portnacon 

 could largely contribute towards such a desideratum. 



Description of the Physical Features of the 

 Eastern Division of Sutherland. 



On the north coast, and east from the Kyle of Tongue, 

 the shore gradually rises, and ex adverso of this part are 

 small green islands, lying not far from the mainland, 

 principal among which is the island of Boan, which 

 is inhabited. At Naver Bay there is a considerable 

 extent of flat sandy coast, the only bit of any size of the 

 kind, until Sandside, on the Caithness side of the county 

 boundary, is reached. From here the coast-line becomes 

 bold and rocky, with vertical headlands of considerable 

 height, such as Skerra and Strathy Points, and occasion- 

 ally indented by small sandy bays of no great size, again 

 getting lower, flatter, and of a more sandy character as 

 the county of Caithness is approached. 



The eastern coast-line of Sutherland consists mostly of 

 sandhills, stretching from Port Gower in the north to the 



