440 THE MOOR AND THE LOCH. 



Away rows the fleet, a " look-out " man leaning against the 

 mast, the creaking oars making for a distant movement of the 

 waters. That well-known ruffle on the sea announces the 

 welcome tidings the herring-shoal is in sight ! 



On other nights, when a stiff breeze swells the canvas, and 

 the craft flashes past with crowded sails, managed and steered 

 with consummate skill by their pirate-looking crews, they 

 always recall to me Byron's lines, addressed to larger ships, 

 but not to more daring or truer seamen. 



The hand-line, like white-feather fishing, is seldom good 

 before sunset. As soon as the glare is off the glittering sea 

 the fish begin to bite freely, and the tugs at the bait increase 

 as twilight deepens, until it becomes too dark for the lure to 

 be seen. In July good sport seldom begins before seven, and 

 lasts till about half -past nine o'clock. 



There is, however, much to interest the naturalist and 

 terrify the novice (!) before it is time to put down the lines. 

 The distant roaring and thumping behind that promontory are 

 caused by a troop of porpoises. The larger are called " buckers," 

 which snort and tumble in the water ; the " pellochs," or 

 smaller ones, spring several feet into the air, coming down 

 with a thud on the sea which sounds like a blow from a 

 sledge-hammer. Gradually they come round into sight, and 

 swim nearer and nearer, continuing their gambols. The sea 

 round them is " churned with white foam," and the " green 

 hands " of our boats look uneasily to the shore. Before 

 coming very close they sheer off for a distant bay. Our 

 tyros, however, have scarcely congratulated themselves on 

 their escape, when a detached couple of awful monsters, the 

 size of Smithfield oxen, rise within twenty yards of our tiny 

 vessel, and, giving ample proof of their bulk and strength, 

 vanish again into the deep with a terrific grunt. In spite of 

 the laughter of their associates, the novices steal many a furtive 

 glance over the gunwale, lest these leviathans should reappear, 

 and either upset the little skiff or tear it to the bottom. 



