10 L 



the head of the valley, and their union is marked by a very steep 

 grassy slope, encumbered with granite blocks projecting from the 

 soil in situ, or deeply imbedded in it, but free from the huge flat 

 and smooth sheets along which it is difficult and dangerous to cross. 

 This depression or break is in the direction of the head of the valley, 

 and owes its origin to a basaltic dike, which appears at the beginning 

 of the ascent, and is seen to enclose masses of granite as in the case 

 already mentioned. Its range is magnetic north and south, and width 

 about twelve feet. The situation of the Pass to which we are now 

 to mount, and which is fully 1,000 feet above us, is indicated by a 

 bold rocky point, a little in advance of Beilach-an-id-bho, the last 

 high summit of the Ben-Ghnuis range. Marking its position by 

 the compass, and then pressing up the steep, we gain a wide and 

 grand prospect from the summit of the Pass. Clambering to the 

 top of the rocky point, we look down from a height of fully 2,000 

 feet into a nook or recess of Glen Eosa on one side, and into Glen 

 lorsa on the other. The descent towards the latter is easy ; towards 

 the former, it should not be attempted; for, if practicable, it is 

 highly dangerous. From the Garbh-Alt valley, in fact, the only 

 access to Glen Rosa is by the way we have come up. 



67. We are now at the southern extremity of the Ceims (Kyims) 

 which link on Cior-Mhor to the Ben-Ghnuis range. This is the 

 ridge whose sharp and rugged outline, seen from the shores of 

 Brodick bay, is well known as bearing a striking resemblance to the 

 profile of a distinguished living statesman and writer. The ridge 

 is formed by the edges of vast tabular masses or sheets of granite, 

 inclined towards Glen lorsa at a considerable angle, and cut sharply 

 down on the side next Glen Eosa, so as to present towards it a con- 

 tinued precipice, formed of successive tiers of granite sheets and 

 rhombic blocks. The jagged outline is due in part to the irregular 

 wearing of the coarse-grained granite, but still more to the intersec- 

 tion of the ridge by a series of whin dikes. The horizontally pris- 

 matic structure of these subjects them to a more rapid decay than 

 even the friable coarse granite ; and hence most of the deep notches 

 of this jagged ridge mark the situations of whin dikes. The fact is 

 curious and interesting, and has not been before noticed. Eanging 

 up the front of the precipice from Glen Eosa these dikes cut right 

 through the crest of the ridge, and pass downwards into the fine- 

 grained granite, which occupies most of the lorsa valley, and rises 

 up on the back of the Ben-Ghnuis range and the Ceims, as far as the 

 level of many of the cols, that is, the lowest parts of the ridges be- 

 tween the glens. Here, then, we have a decided case of a system of 



