A PLEA FOR THE WASTES. 27 



which is always reared over the spot where a dead body is 

 found upon the mountains, I asked Sandy to relate the 

 story, the substance of which is as follows : A tinker and 

 his termagant wife had long travelled the country. He 

 was much older than his wife, who was a woman of 

 immense muscular power, and nearly six feet high. " The 

 puir body," said Sandy, " had little peace wi 1 her. A 

 perfect she-deevil was Kirsty ; I kent her weel. Mony a 

 day after the deed was done she travelled the country, and 

 her sons are to the fore yet." One day they left Cladich, 

 and took their course over this mountain, in the way of 

 their trade. From what motive is not known, but when 

 they came to this spot, she seized a stone, murdered her 

 wretched husband, then coolly walked on to the next 

 shieling, where she slept, and in the morning pursued 

 her way through the hills. A shepherd soon after dis- 

 covered the poor tinker, lying stark and gory upon his 

 cold hard bed. The woman was taken up, but dismissed 

 for want of evidence. Life was held light in the High- 

 lands in those days, and soon little was said or thought 

 about the poor lost tinker or his tyrant mate. 



I felt relieved to quit this dismal scene, and to descend 

 the more sunny side of the hill. We were now threading 

 the waving woods of Sonachan and Bock Hill, where the 

 blithe mavis was pouring its evening melody from the 

 topmost bough of many a tall pine or shadowy beech. 

 I took the opportunity of explaining to Johnny that the 

 large " stells " paid a deal o* money to Government, which 

 they could not do if the little ones were allowed to 



