42 MEMOIR OF PENNANT. 



manner, the adventurer wafts himself over, and 

 returns with his booty, which is the eggs or young 

 of the black-backed gull, and the herring gull." 



We shall next accompany Pennant to the Faroe 

 Islands, of which he has given an interesting de- 

 scription ; as also of the common land birds, and 

 the method of fowling practised by the inhabitants. 

 " The list of land birds is very small ; the cinereous 

 eagle, the larmer, the sparrow-hawk, a species of 

 owl, the raven, and hooded-crow, are the perni- 

 cious species. Ravens were so destructive to the 

 lambs and sheep, that in old times every boatman 

 was obliged to bring into the Sessions-house, on 

 St. Olaus's day, the beak of one of those birds ; or 

 pay one skin, which was called the raven-fine, in 

 case of neglect. The remaining land fowl are wild 

 pigeons and stares, white wagtails, wrens, and some- 

 times swallows. The snow-bunting only rests here 

 in spring, on its passage northward. The heron is 

 sometimes met with ; the spoon-bill is common ; 

 the sea-pie, water-rail, and lapwing are seen here. 

 The birds of the rocks, such as puffins, razor-bills, 

 and little auks, foolish and black guillemots, swarm 

 here ; and the geyir-fugl or great auk, at certain 

 periods, visits these islands ; the last, by reason of its 

 short wing, incapable of flight, nestles at the foot of 

 the cliffs. The skua, arctic, black-backed, and her- 

 ring gulls, fulmars, manks, stormy petrels, imber 

 and northern divers, wild swans and geese (the 

 swans only vernal passengers towards the north), 



