232 
A NATION. 
The one solitary instance which has come to my knowledge 
of an attempt to domesticate the Hooper was communicated to 
me by the members of a fisherman’s family in the island of 
Yell, while the good man was preparing his boat previously to 
taking me across the water. It appears that very early one 
morning in autumn, on looking out of his cottage door, he 
observed one of three Swans, feeding in a shallow burn upon 
the shore, leisurely walk into the short covered drain which 
passed under the road. Accompanied by his boy, he crept near 
with sufficient caution not to disturb the two outside, and then, 
rushing to one mouth of the drain while his son guarded the 
other, succeeded after some trouble in capturing the unfortunate 
bird. Being unwilling to kill it, and thinking that it might per- 
liaps improve the breed of his geese, he cut the wings, and shut 
it up in the byre. It was kept plentifully supplied with water, 
of which it drank eagerly, but no temptation would induce 
it to take any more substantial food until the third day, from 
which time no further difficulty in the matter was experienced. 
In about a fortnight it had become so tame that it was allowed 
to wander within the enclosure ; and soon afterwards, it having 
become very gentle and familiar, no further restraint appeared 
necessary, and it was permitted to go where it pleased. It as- 
sociated freely with the tame geese, but the two species never 
agreed well, and the Swan was often seen with lowered bill and 
waving wings in full pursuit of some offending member of the 
fiock. It spent a great deal of its time floating upon the sea 
or wandering up the burns, but never more would it venture into 
the drain which had been the scene of its capture. YTiat it fed 
upon at these times was never ascertained, but it was very 
fond of grain, boiled potatoes, cabbage, or turnips ; yet to all these 
it preferred oatmeal porridge, especially when, in times of plenty, 
a little whey or butter-milk could be also spared. It was ex- 
tremely cleanly in its habits, nearly always going down to the 
sea or to the burn after a meal, and there spending a consider- 
able time in swimming and washing its plumage. After a while 
it learnt to understand and to wait for its call to food, to which 
