WHALING AND BEAR-HUNTING 113 



of Aros Castle, the Allans' mansion, and as he lay in the grass 

 and ferns under the birches his thoughts went back to his 

 professional work and he drew plans and symbols, and a 

 native came dandering along, full of the kindly interest the 

 west highlander takes in the stranger (I like it myself, 

 but some people call it mere curiosity), and he ventured: 

 " You will shust pe arrived, maybe by the Lochinvar ? 

 Aye, aye, shust so, she's a wonderful boat. Aye, you will be 

 from Glasgie ? That's a fine toon Glasgie. I wass there 

 for the Exheebition. Och, no, you will not be from Glasgie. 

 From Sweden ! Do you tell me so ? ma Cot ! that's a long 

 way. I see, I see, so you will be a foreigner. Weel, weel, I 

 will wish you a coot day," and he went. But he had seen 

 the symbols, and he knew the Fleet was at Oban, and he had 

 been reading the papers about invasions, so when he met the 

 policeman, who pays a visit to Tobermory once a year to 

 sign his name, he said to him that " there wass a lad at Aros, 

 in the 4 furrns,' drawin' plans and things would he be a 

 spy?" After due consideration the policeman decided to 

 walk round the bay. It is not very far round the bay, not 

 far for anyone but Tobermory natives, who are restful people. 

 I once saw them watching Aros Castle on fire with their 

 hands in their pockets, and it never occurred to them to trot 

 round the half-mile to help. 



Well, the policeman did not go quite round the bay, for he 

 met the young man coming back and he said : " It's a fine 

 day, Mister, for the time of year, and you will haff been 

 drawing ? " and asked very politely if he might see the 

 sketches ; in the West we are very polite, for the climate is so 

 mild. And as the young Swede modestly refused to exhibit, 

 MacFarlane accompanied the visitor rather silently till they 

 came to the famous Mishnish (famous for drams since the 

 Flood), and then the young Swede began to see the humour 

 of the situation, and allowed MacFarlane to examine his 

 baggage, and got him at last to understand, with great diffi- 

 culty, for he only spoke very little English, that he was wait- 

 ing for a Diesel engine motor- whaler called the St Ebba, and 

 mentioned this writer's name, which made it all right with 

 MacFarlane. And the hotelkeeper, and one or two friends 



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