Scotland/Scots > Black's picturesque tourist of Scotland

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THE HEBRIDES.
miles beyond this is Dornie ferry, by which the tourist may
reach Shiel Inn and Loch Duich. This route is described in
connection with Inverness going westwards.
The Outer Hebrides, which lie to the west of Skye, consist of the Lewis,
Harris, North and South Uisf, Benbeeula, Barra, St. Kilda, and a num¬
ber of other small islands, the whole length from Barra-head to the Butt
of Lewis being about 130 miles, are almost wholly destitute of wood.
For miles the eye ranges over tracts of dreary moss, though efforts have
been made in Lewis to redeem the sterility of the soil. At one time the
manufacture of kelp from the sea-ware afforded employment to the people,
but the reduction of the duty on salt and barilla has nearly extinguished
this branch of Hebridean trade. When Dr. Johnson visited Skye in
1773, agriculture was neglected, and there was scarcely a vegetable grown
on the island. Now arable farms, cultivated with care and skill, and gar¬
dens producing all the fruits and flowers grown in Scotland, are found. The
mild and humid climate of the islands is peculiarly favourable to vegetatiop.
and vast improvement has been effected. Arable cultivation, however,
is in most districts considered subordinate to grazing and sheep-farm¬
ing. The greater part of the surface consistsof mountains incapable of culti¬
vation. The valleys by which these mountains are intersected are nap-
row, and frequently covered with peat-moss, and the sides of the valleys
are often too steep and rocky to be fit for tillage. But the most formi¬
dable obstacle to the profitable pursuit of corn-farming is the excessive
humidity of the climate, which no industry can overcome, and no skill
obviate. The drenching rains and cloudy skies for which the Hebrides
are so notorious, frustrate the efforts of the cultivator in every stage pf
his operations. The islands are, therefore, essentially pastoral. Drain¬
age and artificial manures have done much, and there are farms in Skye
and Islay which may vie with any on the mainland, but the general cha¬
racteristics of the islands are such as we have described. Bearing pf
cattle (which is carried on to a considerable extent) and sheep-farming
seem to be the only sure and profitable occupations. Much of the land has
been converted into sheep-walks, on which large flocks of Cheviot sheep ape
now reared, and sold at the Inverness or Falkirk trysts. The Crinan and
Caledonian canals offer facilities for export and inter-communicatiop;
steam-boats from Glasgow now visit most of the islands; and ex¬
cellent roads, under the charge of a parliamentary commission, traverse
the principal districts. The impulse which all these combined have given
to trade and production need not be described. The moors and desolate
tracts are often let at high prices to English sportsmen. Every year the
passion for field sports, especially deer-stalking, seems to increase, and
many Highland lairds derive a larger revenue from their moors than their
grandfathers did from their whole estates. One great and permanent