DISTILLATION. 283 



in drunken hospitality. If, after all these drawbacks, 

 the residue be disposed of in the town, or sold to some 

 itinerant whisky-dealer, the adventure is prosperous ; 

 but the chances of detection, seizure, fine and imprison- 

 ment are so multitudinous as to render the vending 

 of this pernicious article a ruinous trade. To succeed 

 encourages him to continue in this hazardous manu- 

 facture ; and then upon him who night and day parches 

 in a still-house, certain drunkenness is entailed, with 

 sooner or later a loss of property, from the casualties 

 incident to the adventure ; and hence, more people 

 have been beggared by this demoralising traffic than all 

 the misfortunes which bad seasons, bad crops, and worse 

 still, bad landlords could accomplish. 



Difficult as the task is found of conveying grain 

 from the highlands, the denizens of the coast possess 

 little advantage from their own locality. Want of 

 harbours renders the voyage hazardous, and the arrival 

 of the grain at market an uncertainty ; and many a 

 peasant, from rough seas and contrary winds, has been 

 ruined. One instance of this was mentioned, and 

 it so forcibly exemplifies the misfortune, that I shall 

 transcribe it. 



A person of comfortable means, having suffered 

 severe loss from private distillation, determined that he 

 would never ** wet a grain during his natural life." He 

 shipped his corn accordingly in a hooker for Westport, 

 it being the nearest place where a purchaser could be 

 found. Bad weather and contrary winds came on, and 

 during eight days, for so much time was occupied in the 

 passage, the grain was exposed to rain and spray eter- 

 nally, and when it reached its destination, was found 

 to be so much damaged as to be rendered unfit for sale. 



