344 TRANSACTIONS LlV&RtfOOL BIOLOGICAL SOCIETY. 



unmistakable ; a little more ami the giant cliffs of Hirta 

 suddenly loomed up under our bow. The men at once 

 recognised the spot, and we had then only to follow the 

 line of the cliffs round, until we were safely landed in 

 Village Bay at 9.30 p.m. — about 1* hours over our time. 

 We had gone a good mile out of our course to the west- 

 ward, and had we steered two or three more points in the 

 same direction, we should have rowed about parallel with 

 the island, and would probably have missed it altogether, 

 in which case morning might have found us on the broad 

 Atlantic, out of sight of land, and with but small chance 

 of being picked up by any passing vessel, as St. Kilda lies 

 out of the usual track of steamers. I mentally resolved 

 that if we went to Boreray again, I would take care to 

 see that there was a compass in the boat. 



The next day an expedition was organised for Soay, 

 but when we got to Soay Sound there was such a heavy 

 swell rolling in that it was found impracticable to land, 

 so we proceeded through the Sound, passing Stack 

 Biorrach, and after some little difficulty succeeded in 

 landing on the lee side of Soay Stack. The rocks here 

 for the first twenty feet or so were pretty perpendicular, 

 but when this portion was surmounted the rest of the 

 climb was quite easy. Owing to the stormy weather which 

 had till lately prevailed, the natives had been unable to 

 effect a landing on this Stack that season, previous to my 

 visit, and so the birds had been undisturbed. Many 

 Fulmars were sitting on their scanty nests in the angles 

 of the rocks, and saluted me with their usual discharge of 

 oil, as I ascended. Numerous Guillemots were sitting in 

 little colonies on projecting angles of the rocks, and the 

 eggs lay thickly scattered in these situations. The ledges 

 here sloped somewhat inwards and downwards, and in the 

 hollows thus formed rain-water had collected, and sonic 



