INTRODUCTION. 



our most lofty mountains, or cruising in a boat along the shores, 

 where rocks and caves give a chance of finding sea-fowl and 

 otters ; at one time wandering over the desert sand-hills of 

 Moray, where, on windy days, the light particles of drifting 

 sand, driven like snow along the surface of the ground, are per- 

 petually changing the outline and appearance of the district ; at 

 another, among the swamps, in pursuit of wild ducks, or attack- 

 ing fish in the rivers, or the grouse on the heather. 



For a naturalist, whether he be a scientific dissector and pre- 

 server of birds, or simply a lover and observer of the habits and 

 customs of the different ferce natura, large and small, this dis- 

 trict is a very desirable location, as there are very few birds or 

 quadrupeds to be found in any part of Great Britain, who do 

 not visit us during the course of the year, or, at any rate, are to 

 be met with within a few hours' drive. The bays and rivers 

 attract all the migratory water-fowl, while the hills, woods, and 

 corn-lands afford shelter and food to all the native wild birds 

 and beasts. The vicinity too of the coast to the wild western 

 countries of Europe is the cause of our being often visited by 

 birds which are not striclly natives, nor regular visitors, but are 

 driven by continued east winds from the fastnesses of the 

 Swedish and Norwegian forests and mountains. 



To the collector of stuffed birds this county affords a greater 

 variety of specimens than any other district in the kingdom, 

 whilst the excellence of the climate and the variety of scenery 

 make it inferior to none as a residence for the unoccupied 

 person or the sportsman. 



Having thus described that spot of the globe which at present 

 is my resting-place, I may as well add a few lines to enable my 

 reader to become acquainted with myself, and that part of my 

 belongings which will come into question in my descriptions of 

 sporting, &c. To begin with myself, I am one of the unpro- 

 ductive class of the genus Homo, who, having passed a few years 

 amidst the active turmoil of cities, and in places where people do 

 most delight to congregate, have at last settled down to live a 

 busy kind of idle life. Communing much with the wild birds 

 and beasts of our country, a hardy constitution and much leisure 

 have enabled me to visit them in their own haunts, and to follow 

 my sporting propensities without fear of the penalties which are 



