THE MAILS. 541 



even the Excise officers to be asked, when they were 

 treated to a glass, which whiskey they preferred, " Coll," 

 or " Gress," both of which farms had celebrated stills. 

 Distilleries were erected in the island to counteract the 

 illicit trade, which, however, died hard. In 1833, Storno- 

 way had no less than eighteen licensed houses, some of 

 them shebeens of the worst description. The changed 

 sentiment of the community has effectually purged the 

 town of these moral pests. 



As we have seen, Stornoway had a Custom House in 

 the first half of the eighteenth century. A Post-Office was 

 erected in 1752, the first, apparently, in the Hebrides. 

 Communication between Lewis and the mainland, about 

 the middle of the nineteenth century, was of the most 

 uncertain character. At the beginning of the eighteenth 

 century, the isolation of the island during the winter 

 months was complete. In 1707, a suggestion was made, 

 in consequence of this isolation, that " a substantial " 

 inhabitant of Stornoway be appointed to collect the Excise 

 duties on commission. In 1759, a fortnightly packet 

 service was established between Stornoway and Poolewe, 

 and about the end of the century, a new packet was 

 bought, which sailed once a week, weather permitting, 

 between the two ports. The cost of the service was i$o t 

 of which the Government paid 70, and Lord Seaforth 

 60, the latter recouping himself by passengers' fares, 

 which, it may be observed, were only 2s. 6d. to 45. 6d. each 

 passenger. In 1823, Mr Stewart-Mackenzie bought the 

 Glenelg of Glenelg, a smack of about sixty tons, to run 

 weekly between Stornoway and Poolewe. On a stormy 

 morning in November, 1824, she was lost with all on 

 board, soon after leaving Poolewe ; one of the three 

 passengers being the Rev. Mr. Fraser, minister of Storno- 

 way, who over-persuaded the master to attempt the 

 crossing. The packet that succeeded her is described by 

 Lord Teignmouth, who travelled by her in 1827, as an 

 ill-found craft, with a cabin which no passenger could 

 enter ; on the occasion in question, she took seventeen 



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