82 Burn side, 



There are no pale or black moths here ; all agree exactly in 

 tint with the redder-coloured rock on which they rest. Black 

 moths and pale ones would be equally conspicuous here ; 

 hence Nature has got rid of these forms, and produced a race 

 which is better fitted to compete with its enemies in this 

 sheltered nook. 



Occasionally we miss our footing, but tread with more 

 caution after drawing a dripping leg from its unexpected 

 bath. At last we reach the top of the dingle. The course of 

 the burn higher up is bare and precipitous, as it rushes 

 through rocky gullies with here and there a solitary moun- 

 tain ash or gnarled and twisted thorn standing in loneliness 

 on the mountain side. But although we have ascended thus 

 far, we are not going to attempt to scale the mountain from 

 this side ; so, skirting a boggy piece of ground, we keep a 

 somewhat level track until we strike the path to Glencroe 

 at a considerable distance ahead of and above the spot at 

 which we left it. 



As we look back to that part of the path which we have 

 just skipped, we see that it skirts a little wood, the plants 

 growing in which tend to prove the truth of the statement 

 that 



" The oak, the ash, and the bonnie ivie tree, 

 Oh, they flourish best at hame in the north countrie." 



From this point, too, we can see the base of the hills oppo- 

 site Ben Donich thickly covered with a dark pine wood. The 

 lovely sunshine brings to mind the contrast of the previous 

 afternoon, when we were obliged to ask for shelter from a 

 storm in a hut in that wood, and were thankful for the protec- 

 tion which was kindly afforded us in common with the poultry 

 and other inmates. The rain fell in torrents, bright flashes of 



