14 
LETTERS FROM HIGH LATITUDES. 
At Kylakin we were obliged to bring up for tbe 
night; but getting under weigh again at daylight, we 
took a fair wind with us along the east coast of Skye, 
past Raasa and Rona, and so across the Minch to 
Stornaway. 
Stornaway is a little fishing-town with a beautiful 
harbour, from out of which was sailing, as we entered, 
a fleet of herring-boats, their brown sails gleaming like 
gold against the dark angry water, as they fluttered 
out to sea, unmindful of the leaden clouds banked up 
along the west, and all the symptoms of an ap¬ 
proaching gale. The next morning it was upon us; 
but, brought up as we were under the lee of a high 
rock, the tempest tore harmlessly oyer our heads, 
and left us at liberty to make the final preparations 
for departure. 
Fitz, whose talents for discerning where the vege¬ 
tables, fowls, and pretty ladies of a place were to be 
found—I had already had occasion to admire, went 
ashore to forage; while I remained on board to super- 
* 
intend the fixing of our sacred figure-head—executed 
in bronze by Marochetti—and brought along with me 
by rail, still warm from the furnace. 
