TO THE FOREST AGAIN. 171 



passage was slightly curved, about thirty feet long, and 

 towards the far end grew a little wider as well as 

 deeper. But it contained nothing beyond the little 

 earth which had fallen in from above. For what 

 purpose the place could have been originally destined, 

 I leave others more learned than myself in such 

 matters to decide. Possibly further remains may be 

 found on some future occasion, which will throw more 

 light upon the question ; though I believe this is 

 not the only place of the kind which has been 

 discovered. 



The top of a rising ground, near at hand, is con- 

 secrated as the last earthly resting-place of some hero 

 of a bygone age, whose name and deeds, unchronicled, 

 have, like himself, become forgotten. But though the 

 tomb itself, rudely constructed out of slabs of rock, 

 never touched by chisel, still remains to tell of the 

 past, the bones which it once contained have long since 

 been scattered to the winds of heaven. 



But "hactenus htec:" to return to my rambles. 

 After my attendant and I had examined the Celtic 

 tower, and carried on a learned archaeological dis- 

 cussion, in which Johnny had decidedly the best of it, 

 we turned our faces to the hill, and purposing to visit 

 a mountain loch, often frequented by ducks, com- 

 menced the ascent of a very steep brae in the eye of a 

 cutting wind. On the way we flushed five woodcocks, 

 two of which fell to my gun. Just as we reached the 

 crest of the hill, the loch now lying a little before us, a 

 small flock of ducks rose out of reach, warned doubtless 

 by my shot at the last woodcock. Crossing the loch, 

 they of course communicated the alarm to every bird 

 there, and I had the mortification of seeing a couple of 

 wild geese, and some more ducks, go off in the wake of 



