ARTIFICIAL ISLANDS IN LOCHS OF HIGHLANDS OF SCOTLAND. 219 
women, who use stepping-stones so far apart that none else could use 
them.’ The island is 50 yards from the shore, and measures 35 by 
5 feet. 
; Isle of Skye.—Although artificial islands are so common in the other 
Hebrides, the only one reported from Skye as probable is that mentioned 
by Major Kenneth Macdonald, of Skeabost, ‘in the old Loch of 
Monkstadt, now drained. There are the remains of an old monastic 
building, on what was an island in the loch. The loch was drained 
about eighty years ago, and now gives a wonderful crop of hay.’ Hon. 
Godfrey Macdonald, Armadale Castle, and MacLeod of Macleod both 
write that they know of no artificial islands on their properties, which 
comprise by far the greater part of Skye. 
In singular contrast to the preceding, artificial islands occur in a 
continuous line throughout the Long Island. In Barra there is one in 
Loch an Duin, close to the road from Castlebay to North Bay. In 
S. Uist they occur almost exactly every three miles, and may be seen 
from the high road which runs through the centre of the island. That 
on Loch Dunnakillie has the remains of buildings upon it, and is a 
fairly large island. In Loch na Faoillen— a small loch only a quarter 
of a mile across—there is an excellent specimen, with causeway to the 
shore. When staying in §. Uist in 1909 [ had this island for six 
weeks just opposite my house, though it was with some difficulty that 
T had a tiny boat put on the loch and landed on the island. It is 50 feet 
in diameter, and is certainly artificial. The causeway to the shore, 
though quite distinct, is now unpassable except as a trial of skill. Three 
miles further N., and again alongside the high road, there is another 
similar island, with causeway, in Loch a Mhuillinn. To these, which 
I frequently saw myself, Rev. Alex. Macdoughall adds’ the islands 
in Loch Ard Bornish, Loch Ceann a Bhaigh, in the Ormaclate district, 
Loch Alt a Briac, in the Stoneybridge district, and in Loch Druidiveg, 
in the Stillingarry district. These are quite independent of the great 
number of natural islets with which most of the lochs abound, and 
which make the presence of so many of the artificial islands all the 
more surprising. 
Benbecula.—Regarding the examples in Benbecula, I have the 
promise of a full report from Dr. Eric Gardner, M.D. 
North Uist.—As already mentioned, N. Uist has been fully and most 
ably described by Dr. Erskine Beveridge in his work published as 
recently as last year. ‘Treating of island forts, he says: ‘ Our list 
includes no fewer than seventy island forts, each as a rule provided 
with a causeway from the neighbouring shore, whilst in exceptional 
cases it would seem that the only access was by means of a boat. The 
causeways show considerable divergence in type, and most of them 
have evidently been submerged to the extent of 12 or 18 inches, though 
others stand at about the normal surface of the loch. It was of special 
interest to find seven of these approaches interrupted by structural 
gaps, obviously arranged so as to give additional security. Again, and 
no doubt with a similar purpose, the causeways display much irregu- 
larity of outline, in general taking a curvilinear form, but sometimes 
that of zigzag, or of a double curve, shaped like the letter S ’ (page xv). 
