186 STUDIES IN BIRD-MIGRATION 



kindly offer made to me by Capt. Donald Craig, of the 

 Aberdeen trawler Wamba, of a passage to the island of 

 Lewis. 



Our second voyage to St Kilda almost resulted in 

 the wreck of our hopes of reaching the island. We 

 left Glasgow on 28th August 191 1 by the last steamer 

 of the year, and all went well until we emerged from 

 the Sound of Harris on the early morning of the 31st. 

 Here we found the Atlantic in a state of great unrest, 

 due to the prevalence of a south-westerly gale, and 

 after proceeding some twenty miles in the direction 

 of St Kilda, it was found impossible ' to proceed 

 further, owing to the increasing violence of the wind 

 and waves. The.S.S. Hebrides was compelled to 

 return to Lochmaddy, where we left her. Our luck, 

 however, had not entirely deserted us, for on our proceed- 

 ing to Loch Tarbat on the following day, my friend Mr 

 Carl Herlofson most kindly sent us out in one of 

 his whaling steamers, and, after a rough passage, we 

 slept at St Kilda only twenty-four hours later than 

 we had originally hoped to do. 



Along with George Stout, I remained six weeks 

 on the island, and left on 12th October on board 

 the steam trawler Mercury, of Hull, whose captain, 

 William Rylatt, most obligingly conveyed us to 

 Stornoway, and showed us great kindness and atten- 

 tion on the voyage. That the fishery cruiser again 

 failed to relieve me, was in no way her fault ; she was 

 prevented by unexpected official work from visiting 

 the island at the time arranged, but arrived there to 

 take me off the day after I had flown. I have to 

 thank the Fishery Board for the great obligation 

 under which they again laid me : without their 



