viii PREFACE. 



proprietor of Hoy, we were enabled to make, ourselves, 

 an almost complete survey of that island, which includes 

 North and South Walls, and we are extremely indebted 

 to him for his hospitality and aid. His own perfect 

 knowledge of the island helped us to visit, without loss of 

 time, the breeding-places of the more interesting birds, 

 and the knowledge thus obtained was largely supple- 

 mented by notes kept for many years both by his father 

 and himself, and since then by continued correspondence. 

 Indeed we think better results might have been arrived 

 at had Mr. Moodie-Heddle and Mr. Irvine-Fortescue 

 taken the whole subject in hand themselves. 



The schedules we have received from the Pentland 

 Skerries show that Mr. Gilmour, the assistant light- 

 keeper, entered into that work con amore ; and the 

 number of interesting facts brought to light by the 

 Migration Reports can best be realised by a reference to 

 the chapter on those islands. We here tender him our 

 best thanks for the intelligent interest he has displayed 

 all through. 



Wherever we have gone among the islands, we 

 have always met with the greatest kindness, and our 

 numerous inquiries have been answered to the best of 

 the giver's ability ; and we here wish to place on record 



