ON THE BEAVEltS OF SCOTLAND. 213 



Scotland. " The name (says the Doctor) is Los- 

 leathan, derived from los, the tail, point or end of a 

 thing, and leathan, broad ; or Dobhran losleathan, 

 the broad-tailed otter." The similarity between 

 this Gaelic name, handed down by tradition to the 

 19th century, and the Welsh name (Llosdlydan) 

 recorded in the Leges Wallicae of the 9th century, 

 is very striking : the etymology of the names is evi- 

 dently the same ; and indeed they may be regarded 

 as identical. Dr Stuart adds, that he recollects 

 to have heard of a tradition among the Highland- 

 ers, which he thinks is probably still preserved in 

 the country, that the " beaver or broad- tailed otter 

 onee abounded in Lochaber." 



I have now to state, that the evidence, written 

 and traditionary, which has just been detailed, tend- 

 ing to show that beavers formerly inhabited Scot- 

 land, has received the most ample confirmation, 

 from the occurrence of unaltered fossil remains of 

 the animal on two occasions ; first to the north, and 

 next to the south of the Forth. 



The first instance I have to mention, occurred a 

 good many years ago. From an entry in the mi- 

 nutes of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, 

 dated 16th December 1788, it appears, that " Dr 

 Farquharson presented to the Society the fossil 

 skeleton of the head and one of the haunch-bones 

 of a beaver," dug up in Perthshire. These bones 

 are still preserved in the Museum of the Society ; 

 and I was liberally allowed to examine them, and 



