1G2 WILD SPORTS OF THE HIGHLANDS. [CHAP. xx. 



which in this arid district appear to me sharper and more pene- 

 trating than anywhere else. 



Westwards, towards Nairn, the sandhills are interrupted by 

 an extent of broken hillocks, covered with the deepest heather 

 that T ever met with, which conceals innumerable pits and holes, 

 many of the latter not above a foot in diameter, three or four feet 

 deep, and so completely concealed by the growth of moss and 

 heather as to form the most perfect traps for the unwary passer- 

 by. I never could find out what these holes were originally made 

 for, as they evidently are not the work of nature. A large part 

 of the ground is here well wooded ; the trees do not, however, 

 appear likely ever to come to a large size, well as they flourish 

 when young. This district of wood and heath is here and there in- 

 tersected by nearly impassable swamps, the abode of mallards and 

 teal, and occasionally of geese. In the wooded parts are plenty of 

 roe, who feed about the swamps, and in the warm weather lie like 

 hares on the hillocks, covered with long heath, and under the 

 stunted fir-trees in the midst of the wet places. Throughout the 

 whole tract of this wild ground there are great numbers of foxes, 

 who live undisturbed, and grow to a very great size ; feeding 

 during the season on young roe, wild ducks, and black game ; 

 and when these fail, they make great havoc amongst the game, 

 poultry, and rabbits in the adjoining country. I have frequently 

 started and shot a fox here out of the rough heather, when I have 

 been looking for wild ducks, or passing through the place on my 

 way to the sea-shore. Farther westward, the sandhills are 

 bounded by a large extent of marsh and water, terminating at 

 last in an extensive lake, dreary and cold-looking ; the resort of 

 wild fowl of every kind, from the swan to the teal; but said to 

 contain no fish excepting eels. 



I never yet could get a good account of the origin of these sand- 

 hills ; I say origin, because they are evidently of a more recent 

 formation than any of the surrounding land. In several places, 

 where the sand is blown off, you see the remains of cultivated 

 ground, the land below the sand being laid out in regular furrows 

 and ridges, made by the plough ; and, from their regularity and 

 evenness, one would suppose that agriculture must have been well 

 advanced when these lands were in cultivation. Did the covering 

 that now conceals these fields consist wholly of sand, one would 



