96 THE LOCH. 



dive and skim along the bottom, the depth of water not 

 being more than two feet at the most : and then waiting 

 our opportunity, as they rose to take breath, Alister 

 killed his bird, and I winged mine, which after two or 

 three dives was secured by the dog. 



We then took a circuit round to the farther side of 

 the loch, where the weeds were tallest and thickest, and 

 commenced wading. And now began the tug of war. 

 On first stepping into the water we found ourselves 

 immersed to the knees, the reeds reaching almost to 

 our breasts; and so stout were they and thickly packed 

 that we found it very difficult to make head against 

 them. What the equestrian would call " lofty action " 

 was indispensable, as well as great endurance. More- 

 over rest, or pausing to recover wind, was out of the 

 question ; for no sooner did I become stationary, than 

 I discovered the treacherous nature of what I had 

 fondly imagined the bottom of the loch. Whether it 

 were really a bottomless pit or not, would be difficult 

 to prove ; for the substance upon which I walked was 

 composed of an endless tissue of reeds and dead weeds, 

 the deposit and growth of ages ; forming a kind of 

 platform, which supported me while in motion, but the 

 instant that I came to dwell upon any one spot, I 

 became aware that I was gradually sinking through 

 this floating carpet ; though instead of arriving at a 

 firm bottom beneath, the deeper I pierced through it, 

 the softer it seemed to become. Not wishing, therefore, 

 to disappear altogether from the stage of this world's 

 scenes, I saw that there was nothing for it but to keep 

 constantly in motion, though not encouraged to rash 

 haste by Alister's informing me that when he had 

 visited the loch on a former occasion, a friend who 

 accompanied him, in his anxiety to secure a duck 



