Mr. Atkinson's Notice of St. Kilda. 



No. VII. — A Notice of the Island of St. Kilda, on the North-west Coast 

 of Scotland. By Mr. G. C. Atkinson. 



Read, January 16, 1832. 



During an excursion among some of the less-explored Hebrides, 

 made last spring, I was astonished at the frequent occurrence of the most 

 magnificent rock scenery, in its most imposing forms, and, the more so, 

 that it is almost unknown. The Isle of Skye abounds in it, and Harris, 

 which is the only other I saw much of, has some magnificent preci- 

 pices ; but they are both inferior to the solitary isles of St. Kilda, which 

 far exceeded any conception I had formed of their grandeur, and 

 seemed so interesting to me, both on that account and from their in- 

 habitants, that, I beg leave to present the following notice of them to 

 the Natural History Society, under the impression that a description 

 of that which was so abundant in interest to me, may not be devoid of 

 it to others, and perhaps induce some more competent person to visit, 

 and describe more fully, these magnificent islands. 



From the infrequency, I imagine, of the visits of strangers to St. Kilda, 

 a most unreasonable degree of difficulty is attributed to the undertaking ; 

 so much so, that McCulloch is not exaggerating when he observes, in 

 his amusing Letters on the Highlands and Western Islands, " In Scotland 

 universally, we had heard of the voyage to this island, as of a mighty 

 problem in navigation," for I can add in corroboration, that on our 

 return, the fact of our departure for it had been reported throughout 

 the islands, and the oft-repeated questions about it soon became suffici- 

 ently tiresome. 



It will be asked, " What, then, is the usual communication ?" The 

 island belongs to McLeod, of Harris, and is visited twice a year by 

 his tacksman, who generally goes from a small island, called Pabbah, 

 situated somewhat nearer to it than Harris, to which it lies nearly 



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