30 THE HOME OF A NATURALIST. 



ran upstairs and kissed his little ones, hauled on his 

 ample riding overalls, threw on his capacious heavy- 

 pilot-cloth cloak, and was ready for the journey. 

 " Good-night," he said cheerfully, " I hope to be back 

 sometime to-morrow." 



We accompanied him to the door. "Take care," 

 said our mother anxiously, and with a little tremor 

 in her voice. " I hope you won't run any unnecessary 

 risk." 



" I won't," he replied, " but you know we are all in 

 God's good hands on land or sea." And then mount- 

 ing his trusty shelty, he set out accompanied by the 

 messengers. A six-miles' ride over rocky, treeless, 

 roadless hills brought them to Uyeasound, near the 

 south extremity of Unst, where the six-oared boat 

 from Fetlar, manned with hardy fishermen, was in 

 waiting. It was not without much consultation, 

 hesitation, and misgiving, that it was determined to 

 risk the passage. No time was to be lost, as it was 

 just the "slack of the tide" — the brief period between 

 flood and ebb tide when the currents cease their wild 

 race amongst the islands. In a short time, when the 

 ebb tide would set in and be running furiously down 

 Blummelsound, it would be utterly impossible for any 

 boat to cross. By this time the snow was not falling 

 so heavily, but came now rather in fitful showers. 

 The wind, however, was little abated. But a human 

 life was at stake, and our father was the last man in 

 such an emergency to shrink from the danger he was 

 encountering. None knew that danger better than he, 



