460 THE MOOR AND THE LOCH. 



gesture, he called to me that there was a black rat, with a 

 white throat, walking at the bottom among the trout. I was 

 soon by his side, and at the same moment the little black- 

 and-white intruder sneaked out of his bath and took shelter 

 in a hollow of the rock. He was easily dislodged and 

 captured, when the prize turned out to be that rare species, 

 the water-shrew. We were told that they are numerous in 

 that quarter, although I never met with one in any other part 

 of Scotland. 



So clear is the channel of Loch Assynt that, although we 

 trolled deep for the loch is large, and requires it we scarce- 

 ly gripped a weed, and only once or twice raked the bottom 

 the whole time we were out. Some of the best fishing-ground 

 was passed, however, before we had the first run, and landed 

 a very handsome twelve-pound fish. We then trolled down 

 to the island ; only common gulls on it, and a pair of mer- 

 gansers. As the wind was favourable for the return, we came 

 back over the same ground, which is decidedly better for 

 heavy fish than the opposite side, and killed another good 

 ferox. We had only one more run, which slipped off no 

 other offers ; but we were only out from twelve till four, being 

 obliged to be at Loch Inver in the evening. We never fished 

 the lower end of this fine trolling loch, whither all the heaviest 

 feroxes resort. 



During this visit to Sutherland I had enjoyed the unex- 

 pected treat of going over the Duke's Museum of the natural 

 history of the county. Only specimens killed on the estates 

 are admitted, and, like the hieroglyphic histories of Mexico, a 

 naturalist could from them surely discover the character of 

 this large and interesting tract of country. The golden eagle 

 stood for the mountain and deer forest ; the erne for the sav- 

 age rock coast; the phalaropes, sand-pipers, and tringas told 

 of sandy, gravelly creeks and harbours ; the black and red 

 throated divers, and many fresh-water dabblers, of the lonely 

 hill lochs ; the peregrine vouched for grouse-moors, or rocks 



