386 Proceedings of the Royal Physical Society. 



give a little more information, and thus, by adding another 

 stone to the cairn, advance glacial science. 



Our first landing was at Lerwick, where little time was spent 

 either then or when returning. In a short walk that I took 

 in the immediate vicinity of the town, at the Bay of Sclate, 

 I found the sandstone on the top of the cliff deeply rutted, 

 striated, and polished; and a little inland, on the side of the 

 famed loch of Clickainin, similar markings. They may be 

 seen also on the opposite side of the bay. The ruts, &c, are 

 all in a north and south direction, with slight deviations to 

 the east and west. The drift evidently came from the 

 north, and may be traced up the valley, as shown by the 

 wide-spread ruin and large blocks scattered all over it, rest- 

 ing on striated and polished rocks. The hills on each side 

 of this valley, and those at the head beyond the docks, bear 

 unmistakeable evidence also of polishing and grinding. 



After leaving Lerwick the Out Skerries of Whalsey 

 became our home. The three small islands forming this 

 group lie far out to sea. They are called Gruna, Bruray, 

 and Housay. There is a pretty good harbour here, having 

 two entrances for vessels and boats, and a third into which 

 boats can run when the tide answers. These entrances are 

 triradiate, with the harbour in the centre, sheltered by the 

 three islands from every wind. The islands have been the 

 scene of great grinding, all being more or less rounded into 

 the Roches moutounnes form, whether composed of granite, 

 gneiss, quartz, or limestone, all these rocks being inter- 

 , mingled throughout the group. Although corroded by 

 atmospheric action, — the limestone, as might be expected, 

 most deeply cut, — the rounding can be everywhere seen* 

 Striae, &c, in the exposed parts, are thus generally oblite- 

 rated. I was, however, fortunate enough to meet with re- 



* To show how abundant lime is in this rock, I obtained living specimens 

 of Saxicava rugosa burrowed into it in the Skerries harbour ; they were very 

 abundant, and had riddled the limestone beds in all directions. This is rather 

 against the opinion of those who consider that this mollusc could not live so 

 far north, and who stoutly opposed me when I said that they occurred in situ 

 at Wick. It was, therefore, somewhat gratifying to me to meet with them so 

 much further north. 



