580 



SCOTLAND. 



with iliis, the part of liini who " gathers 

 samphire " on the Dover clifls is one of 

 safety and pleasure. In the cavities of the 

 beethng crags the sea-fowl resort, and the 

 natives, by means of a rope about their body, 

 overhang precipices nearly one fourlhofa 

 mile in height, merely to look over which 

 would disorder any common nerves. Yet 

 the adventurer, with a line of many fath- 

 oms, held by several companions above, 

 descends, and disengaging himself from 

 the rope, enters cavities in the rock, 

 higher than the arch of any gothic church. 

 This is not without danger ; and many 

 perish from falling stones, and other casu- 

 alties. It is recorded, that one of these 

 adventurers discovered that the rope by 

 which he was suspended was so much 

 chafed by an edge of the rock, that he 

 hung by a single strand ; he could not give immediate signals to his comrades, and when he 

 was drawn up, it was found that the extremity of his terror had been such as to blanch his hair. 

 From the tops of these dizzy precipices, the mountainous waves breaking below seem like rip- 

 p.es, and the roar can hardly be heard. 



16. Amusements. These are chiefly such as are common in England, except bull-baiting, 

 cock-fighting, and pugilistic combats. Quoits are common, and there is a favorite game of 

 ball, called golf, which is often played with great animation on the beach. The field sports are 

 not neglected, and the streams abound with excellent fish, while the heath and mountains have 

 much game. Dancing is a general amusement, but except in the cities it displays more agility 

 than grace. 



17. Education. The Universities of Scotland are somewhat different from those of Eng- 

 land. Instruction is communicated by professors, who deliver public lectures, and not by the 

 private lessons of tutors, as in England There are also many minor points of difference. 

 There are 4 Universities in Scotland. That of St. Andrews was founded in 1458, and is 

 composed of 3 colleges with 11 professors. That of Glasgoiv was founded in 1453, and has 

 18 professors. That o? Aberdeen has 2 colleges, each of which is styled a University ; both 

 have 18 professors. That of Edinburgh was founded in 1581, and has 27 professors ; its 

 medical classes are attended by students from all quarters of the world, and the whole number 

 usually exceeds 2,000. The High School, and Academy of Edinburgh contain together above 

 1,000 scholars. Common schools are established by law in every parish, and in many of the 

 larger towns are charity schools and academies. 



In some districts there is more intelligence among the laboring class, than in that of any 

 other country. In the Highlands it is very different. In 1822, there were 70 in 100 of the 

 inhabitants of the Hebrides v/ho could not read, and in Argyleshire and the interior of Caith 

 ness, there were but 30 in the 100, and in Orkney and Zetland 13 in the 100, that could 

 read. In these districts, above one third of the inhabitants are not within 2 miles of a school, 

 and many thousands not within five. 



The laws provide for one school in every parish, besides which there are numbers of pri- 

 vate schools. The peasantry of the Lowlands have made admirable use of all the advantages 

 within their reach. They are to a great degree intelligent ; and have more taste and refine- 

 ment than can elsewhere be found in the same class. In Iceland, the common people may be 

 equally or more learned, but they have infinitely less taste. The popular ballads and songs, 

 and the sweet music, necessarily circulate much taste, feeling, and poetry. The Scotch have 

 the advantage of excellent books, adapted to their own dialect, which is read wherever the 

 English language is known. From one of their cottages has arisen a peasant, one of the most 

 extraordinary men of his age, who wrote upon things familiar to his countrymen and class, and 

 whose works are indelibly fixed in their hearts. His fame has gone over the earth, and who 

 IS there in Scotland, that can read, who is not as familiar with the thoughts of Burns, as his 

 own ; those who cannot read also are familiar with his strains, which are more tender than 



Bird Catching. 



