always Masters where-ever they come and have already banished several Species of Fowls from this Isle There was an Earthquake here in the Year 1686 which lasted but a few Minutes it was very amazing to the poor People who never felt any such Commotion before or since To the West of Borera lies the Rock Stack-Narmin within Pistol-Shot this Rock is Half a Mile in circumference and is as inaccessible as any the above-mentioned there is a possibility of Landing only in two places and that but in a perfect Calm neither and after Landing the Danger in Climbing it is very great The Rock has not any Earth or Grass to cover it and hath a Fountain of good Water issuing out above the middle of it which runneth Easterly This Rock abounds with Solan Geese and other Fowls here are several Stone Pyramids as well for Lodging the Inhabitants that attend the Seasons of the Solan Geese as for those that preserve and dry them and other Fowls c. The Sea rises and rages extraordinarily upon this Rock We had the curiosity being invited by a fair day to visit it for pleasure but it was very hazardous to us the Waves from under our Boat rebounding from off the Rock and mounting over our Heads wet us all so that we durst not venture to Land though Men with Ropes were sent before us and we thought it hazard great enough to be near this Rock the Wind blew fresh so that we had much difficulty to fetch St. Kilda again I remember they brought 800 of the preceeding year's Solan Geese dried in their Pyramids after our Landing the Geese being cast together in one heap upon the Ground the Owners fell to share out each Man his own at which I was a little surprised they being all of a Tribe but having found upon Enquiry that every Goose carried a distinguishing Mark on the Foot peculiar to the Owner I was then satisfied in this piece of singularity There is a violent Current whether Ebb or Flood upon all the Coasts of St. Kilda lesser Isles and Rocks It is observed to be more impetuous with Spring than Neap Tides there are Eddies on all the Coasts except at a sharp Point where the Tides keep their due course the Ebb Southerly and Flood Northerly A S. E. Moon causeth high Tide the Spring-Tides are always at the Full and New Moon the two days following they are higher and from that time decrease until the increase of the Moon again with which it rises gradually till the second after the Full Moon This Observation the Seamen find to hold true betwixt the Mule of Kantyre and the Farrow Head in Strathnaver The Land-Fowls produced here are Hawks extraordinary good Eagles Plovers Crows Wrens Stone-Chaker Craker Cuckoo this last being very rarely seen here and that upon extraordinary Occasions such as the Death of the Proprietor Mack-Leod the Steward's Death or the Arrival of some Notable Stranger I was not able to forbear laughing at this Relation as founded upon no reason but fancy which I no sooner express'd than the Inhabitants wondred at my Incredulity saying that all their Ancestors for a Series of several Ages had remarked this Observation to prove true and for a further confirmation appealed to the present Steward whether he had not known this Observation to have been true both in his own and his Father's time who was also Steward before him and after a particular enquiry upon the whole he told me that both in his own and Father's life-time the truth of this Observation has been constantly believed and that several of the Inhabitants now living have observed the Cuckoo to have appeared after the Death of the two last Proprietors and the two last Stewards and also before the Arrival of Strangers several times it was taken notice of this Year before our Arrival which they ascribe to my coming there as the only Stranger the Minister having been there before The Sea-Fowls are first Gairfowl being the stateliest as well as the Largest of all the Fowls here and above the Size of a Solan Goose of a Black Colour Red about the Eyes a large White Spot under each Eye a long broad Bill stands stately his whole Body erected his Wings short he Flyeth not at all lays his Egg upon the bare Rock which if taken away he lays no more for that Year he is Palmipes or Whole-Footed and has the Hatching Spot upon his Breast i. e. a bare Spot from which the Feathers have fallen off with the heat in Hatching his Egg is twice as big as that of a Solan Goose and is variously spotted Black Green and Dark he comes without regard to any Wind appears the first of May and goes away about the middle of June The Solan Goose as some imagine from the Irish word Sou'l-er corrupted and adapted to the Scottish Language qui oculis irretortis è longinquo respicit praedam It equals a Tame Goose in bigness it is by measure from the tip of the Bill to the extremity of the Foot Thirty four Inches long and to the end of the Tail Thirty nine the Wings extended very long there being Seventy two Inches of distance betwixt the extream tips its Bill is long strait of a dark Colour a little crooked at the point behind the Eyes the Skin of the side of the Head is bare of Feathers the Ears of a mean Size the Eyes Hazel-coloured it hath Four Toes the Feet and Legs Black as far as they are bare the Plumage is like that of a Goose The Colour of the Old ones is White all over excepting the extream tips of the Wings which are Black and the top of the Head which is Yellow as some think the Effect of Age. The Young ones are of a dark brown Colour turning White after they are a Year old its Egg somewhat less than that of a Land-Goofe small at each end and casts a thick scurf and has little or no Yolk The Inhabitants are accustomed to drink it raw having from Experience found it to be very Pectoral and Cephalick The Solan Geese Hatch by turns when it returns from its Fishing carries along with it Five or Six Herrings in its Gorget all entire and undigested upon whose arrival at the Nest the Hatching Fowl puts its Head in the Fisher's Throat and pulls out the Fish with its Bill as with a Pincer and that with very great noise which I had occasion frequently to observe They continue to pluck Grass for their Nests from their coming in March till the Young Fowl is ready to Fly in August or September according as the Inhabitants take of leave the First or Second Eggs. It 's remarkable of them that they never pluck Grass but on a Windy day the reason of which I enquired of the Inhabitants who said that a Windy day is the Solan Goose's Vacation from Fishing and they bestow it upon this Employment which proves fatal to many of them for after their fatigue
for this might endanger them therefore they drop Anchor without at the Entry judging it the securest place The only place for landing here is on the North side of this Bay upon a Rock with a little declination which is slippery being cloathed with several sorts of Sea-Weeds these together with a raging Sea render the Place more inaccessible it being seldom without a raging Sea except under favour of a Neap Tide a North-East or West Wind or with a perfect Calm when these Circumstances concur the Birlin or Boat is brought to the side of the Rock upon which all the Inhabitants of both Sexes are ready to join their united Force to hale her through this Rock having for this end a Rope fastned to the Fore-part a competent Number of them are also employed on each side both these are determined by a Cryer who is employed on purpose to warn them all at the same Minute and he ceases when he finds it convenient to give them a breathing At the Head of the Bay there 's a plain Sand which is only to be seen in Summer the Winter-Sea washing it all off the Stones there is no landing upon this place with safety which the Steward has learn'd to his Cost There is a little Bay on the West side of this Isle all fac'd with an Iron-colour'd Rock some Vessels take shelter here when the Wind is at South or North-East there is a place of the Rock here on the South-side the Rivulet where you may land if a Neap-Tide or Calm offer The Sea is very impetuous every where about this Isle they shewed me big Stones which were lately removed out of their place and cast into the Gallies Dock I measured some of them which were in length seven others eight Foot and three or four broad There is a little old ruinous Fort on the South Part of the South-East Bay called the Down It is evident from what hath been already said that this Place may be reckoned among the strongest Forts whether Natural or Artificial in the World Nature has provided the Place with store of Ammunition for acting on the Defensive that is a heap of loose Stones in the Top of the Hill Oterveaul directly above the Landing-place it is very easy to discharge Vollies of this Ammunition directly upon the place of Landing and that from a great height almost Perpendicular this I my self had occasion to demonstrate having for my Diversion put it in practice to the great satisfaction of the Inhabitants to whom this Defence never occurr'd hitherto They are resolved to make use of this for the future to keep off the Lowlanders against whom of late they have conceived Prejudices A few hands may be capable of resisting some hundreds if the above-mentioned Weapons be but made use of Those Four Mountains are fac'd on that side which regards the Sea with Rocks of extraordinary height the Hill Conagir on the North side is about Two hundred Fathom height perpendicularly above the Sea There are round this Isle Four Arches or Vaults through which the Sea passes as doth the Day-light from either side which is visible to any though at a good distance some of them representing a large Gate Two of these look to the South and two North-West that on the Point of the West Bay is six Fathom high above Water four in breadth fifty Paces in length the top two Fathom thick and very strong the Cattle feeding upon it There are several Veins of different Stone to be seen in the Rocks of the South-East Bay upon the North side of this Rock is one as it were cut out by Nature resembling a Tarras-Walk The Chrystal grows under the Rock at the Landing-place this Rock must be pierc'd a Foot or two deep before the Chrystal can be had from the Bed of Sand where it lies the Water at the bottom is of a black Colour the largest Piece is not above four Inches long and about two in Diameter each Piece Sexangular Upon the West side of this Isle there is a Valley with a Declination towards the Sea having a Rivulet running through the middle of it on each side of which is an Ascent of half a Mile all which Piece of Ground is call'd by the Inhabitants The Female Warrior's Glen This Amazon is famous in their Traditions Her House or Dairy of Stone is yet extant some of the Inhabitants dwell in it all Summer though it be some Hundred Years old the whole is built of Stone without any Wood Lime Earth or Mortar to cement it and is built in form of a Circle Pyramid-wise towards the Top having a Vent in it the Fire being always in the Centre of the Floor the Stones are long and thin which supplies the defect of Wood The Body of this House contains not above Nine Persons sitting there are three Beds or low Vaults that go off the side of the Wall a Pillar betwixt each Bed which contains five Men apiece at the Entry to one of these low Vaults is a Stone standing upon one end fix'd upon this they say she ordinarily laid her Helmet there are two Stones on the other side upon which she is reported to have laid her Sword She is said to have been much addicted to Hunting and that in her time all the space betwixt this Isle and that of Harries was one continued Tract of Dry Land There was some years ago a Pair of large Deers-horns found in the top of Oterveaul Hill almost a Foot under Ground and there was likewise a Wooden Dish full of Deer's Grease found in the same Hill under Ground 'T is also said of this Warrior that she let loose her Greyhounds after the Deer in St. Kilda making their Course towards the opposite Isles There are several Traditions of this famous Amazon with which I will not further trouble the Reader In this Isle there are plenty of excellent Fountains or Springs That near the Female Warrior's House is reputed to be the best the Name of it Toubir-nim buey importing no less than the Well of Qualities or Virtues it runneth from East to West being sixty Paces Ascent above the Sea I drank of it twice an English Quart at each time it is very clear exceeding cold light and diuretick I was not able to hold my hands in it above a few Minutes in regard of its Coldness the Inhabitants of Harries find it effectual against Windy-Chollicks Gravel Head-aches this Well hath a Cover of Stone There is a very large Well near the Town called St. Kilder's Well from which the Island is suppos'd to derive its Name this Water is not inferior to that above-mentioned it runneth to the South-East from the North-West There is another Well within half a Mile of this nam'd after one Conirdan an hundred Paces above the Sea and runneth from North-West towards the South-East having a Stone Cover Within twelve Paces of this is a little and excellent Fountain which those of Harries and St.
Kilda will needs call by the Author's Name and were then resolved to give it a Cover of Stone such as is above describ'd There is a celebrated Well issuing out of the Face of a Rock on the North-side of the East Bay called by the Inhabitants and others The Well of Youth but is only accessible by the Inhabitants no Stranger daring to climb the steep Rock the Water of it is received as it falls into the Sea it runs towards the South-East The Taste of the Water of those Wells was so pleasant that for several Weeks after the best Fountains in the adjacent Isles did not relish with me There is a Rivulet runneth close by the Town and another larger beyond Kilder's Well this last serves for washing Linnen which it doth as well without Soap as other Water does with it of this we had Experience which was a Confirmation of what had been reported to us concerning this Water We searched if in the Brinks we could discover any Fullers-Earth but found none we discovered some Pieces of Iron-Ore in several places of it this Rivulet drops from the Mossy Ground in the top of the Hills The whole Island is one hard Rock form'd into four high Mountains three of which are in the middle all thinly covered with black or brown Earth not above a Foot some places half a foot deep except the top of the Hills where it is above three Foot deep and affords them good Turf the Grass is very short but kindly producing plenty of Milk the number of Sheep commonly maintained in St. Kilda and the two adjacent Isles does not exceed Two thousand and generally they are Speckled some White some Philamort and are of an ordinary size they do not resemble Goats in any thing as Buchanan was informed except in their Horns which are extraordinary large particularly those in the lesser Isles The number of Horses exceeds not Eighteen all of a Red Colour very low and smooth Skinn'd being only employed in carrying their Turf and Corn and at the Anniversary Cavalcade of which hereafter The Cows that are about Ninety Head small and great all of them having their Foreheads White and Black which is discernable at a great distance are of a low stature but fat and sweet Beef the Dogs Cats and all the Sea-Fowls of this Isle are Speckled The Soil is very grateful to the Labourer producing ordinarily Sixteen Eighteen or Twenty Fold sometimes their Grain is only Bear and some Oats the Barley is the largest produced in all the Western Isles they use no Plough but a kind of crooked Spade their Harrows are of Wood as are the Teeth in the front also and all the rest supplied only with long tangles of Sea-ware tied to the Harrow by the small ends the Roots hanging loose behind scatter the clods broken by the Wooden Teeth this they are forced to use for want of Wood. Their Arable Land is very nicely parted into Ten Divisions and these into Subdivisions each Division distinguished by the Name of some Deceased Man or Woman who were Natives of the Place there is one spot called Multa Terra another Multus Agris The chief ingredient in their Composts is Ashes of Turf mixed with Straw with these they mix their Urine which by experience they find to have much of the Vegetable Nitre they do not preserve it in quantities as elsewhere but convey it immediately from the Fountain to the Ashes which by daily practice they find most advantageous they join also the Bones Wings and Entrails of their Sea-Fowls to their Straw they Sow very thick and have a proportionable growth they pluck all their Bear by the Roots in handfuls both for the sake of their Houses which they thatch with it and their Cows which they take in during the Winter the Corn produced by this Compost is perfectly free of any kind of Weeds it produces much Sorrel where the Compost reaches The Coast of St. Kilda and the lesser Isles are plentifully furnished with variety of Fishes as Cod Ling Mackarell Congars Braziers Turbat Graylords Sythes these last two are the same kind only differing in bigness some call them Black Mouths they are large as any Salmon and somewhat longer there are also Laiths Podloes Herring and many more most of these are Fished by the Inhabitants upon the Rock for they have neither Nets nor long Lines Their common Bait is the Lympets or Patellae being par-boil'd they use likewise the Fowl called by them Bowger its Flesh raw which the Fish near the lesser Isles catch greedily sometimes they use the Bowger's flesh and the Lympets Patellae at the same time upon one Hook and this proves successful also In the Month of July a considerable quantity of Mackarell run themselves ashoar but always with a Spring-Tide The Amphibia seen here are the Otters and Seals this latter the Inhabitants reckon very good Meat there is no sort of Trees no not the least Shrub grows here nor ever a Bee seen at any time CHAP. II. Of the inferior Isles and Rocks their Product Solan Geese how Killed A branch of the Officer's Salary Staller-house Pyramids Policy of the Inhabitants An Earthquake A Fountain The taking away or leaving the Eggs in the Nests by the Inhabitants advances or retards the hatching of the Fowls by the space of Eighteen Days sooner or later Our progress to Borera Every Solan Goose catch'd is presently mark'd on the Foot by the Owner Of Eddies Tides Land and Sea-Fowls their description various Properties Seasons for their coming and going away Their Prognosticks of Winds Storms Calms c. Barren Tribe of Solan Geese The Solan Geese's Centinels Fulmar Oyl its properties Eggs their various Properties and Effects LEVINIS a Rock about Fourteen Paces high and Thirty in circumference narrower at the top it stands about half a League to the South-East Bay and is not covered with any kind of Earth or Grass it hath a Spring of Fresh Water issuing out at the side this Rock by an ancient Custom belongs to the Galley's Crew but the above-mentioned allowance disposes them to undervalue it Betwixt the West point of St. Kilda and the Isle Soa is the famous Rock Stackdonn i. e. as much in their Language as a Mischievous Rock for it hath prov'd so to some of their Number who perished in attempting to climb it it is much of the Form and Height of a Steeple there is a very great dexterity and it is reckoned no small gallantry to climb this Rock especially that part of it called the Thumb which is so little that of all the Parts of a Man's Body the Thumb only can lay hold on it and that must be only for the space of one Minute during which time his Feet have no support nor any part of his Body touch the Stone except the Thumb at which Minute he must jump by the help of his Thumb and the Agility of his Body concurring to raise him higher at the
same time to a sharp point of the Rock which when he has got hold of puts him above danger and having a Rope about his Middle that he casts down to the Boat by the help of which he carries up as many Persons as are designed for Fowling at this time the Foreman or Principal Climber has the Reward of Four Fowls bestowed upon him above his proportion and perhaps one might think Four thousand too little to compensate so great a danger as this Man incurs he has this advantage by it that he is Recorded among their greatest Heroes as are all the Foremen who lead the Van in getting up this Mischievous Rock Within Pistol shot from this place is the Isle Soa a Mile and an half in circumference but contracted narrower toward the top being a full half Mile in difficult Ascent all round most of it bare Rock some parts of it covered with Grass but dangerous to ascend the Landing is also very hazardous both in regard of the raging Sea and the Rock that must be climb'd yet the Inhabitants are accustomed to carry Burthens both up it and down and of this I was once a Witness There is scarce any Landing here except in one place and that under favour of a West Wind and Neap-Tide the Waves upon the Rock discover when it is accessible if they appear White from St. Kilda the Inhabitants do not so much as offer to launch out their Boat in order to Land in Soa or any other Isle or Rock though their Lives were at the stake This little Isle is furnished with an excellent Spring the Grass being very sweet Feeds Five hundred Sheep each of them having generally Two or Three Lambs at a Birth and every Lamb being so fruitful that it brings forth a Lamb before it self is a Year old The same is also observed of Lambs in the little Isles adjacent to the Isles of Harries and North-Wist The Sheep in this Isle Soa are never Milk'd which disposes them to be the more prolifick There are none to catch them but the Inhabitants whom I have seen pursue the Sheep nimbly down the steep descent with as great freedom as if it had been a plain Field This Isle abounds with infinite numbers of Fowls as Fulmar Lavy Falk Bowger c. There was a Cock-boat some Two years ago came from a Ship for Water being favoured by a perfect Calm the Men discerned an infinite number of Eggs upon the Rocks which charm'd them to venture near the place and at last purchased a competent number of them so careful was one of the Seamen as to put them into his Breeches which he put off on purpose for this use some of the Inhabitants of St. Kilda happened to be in the Isle that day a parcel of them were Spectators of this diversion and were offended at it being done without their consent therefore they devised an Expedient which at once robb'd the Seamen of their Eggs and Breeches and 't was thus They found a few loose Stones in the Superficies of the Rock some of which they let fall down perpendicularly above the Seamen the terror of which obliged them quickly to remove abandoning both Breeches and Eggs for their safety and those Tarpawlin Breeches were no small Ornament there where all wore girded Plaids About Two Leagues and a half to the North of St. Kilda is the Rock Stack-Ly Two hundred Paces in circumference and of a great heigth being a perfect Triangle turning to a point at the top it is visible above Twenty Leagues distant in a fair day and appears Blew there is no Grass nor Earth to cover it and it is perfectly White with Solan Geese sitting on and about it One would think it next to impossible to climb this Rock which I express'd being very close by it but the Inhabitants assured me it was practicable and to convince me of the truth of it they bid me look up near the top where I perceived a Stone Pyramid-house which the Inhabitants Built for Lodging themselves in it in August at which time the Season proves inconstant there this obliges the Inhabitants in point of prudence to send a competent number of them to whose share the Lots fall these are to Land in this Rock some days before the time at which the Solan Geese use to take Wing and if they neglected this piece or foresight one Windy day might disappoint them of Five Six or Seven thousand Solan Geese this Rock affording no less yearly and they are so very numerous here that they cannot be divided with respect to their Lands as elsewhere therefore this is the reason why they send here by Lots and those who are sent act for the publick Interest and when they have knock'd on the head all that may be reached they then carry them to a sharp Point called the Casting-Point from whence they throw them into the Sea the heighth being such that they dare not throw them in but near the Boat until the Boatmen cry Enough lest the Sea which has a strong Current there should carry them off as it does sometimes if too many are thrown down at once and so by degrees getting all in they return home and after their Arrival every Man has his share proportionable to his Lands and what remains below the number Ten is due to the Officer as a branch of his yearly Salary In this Rock the Solan Geese are allowed to Hatch their first Eggs but it is not so in the Rocks next to be described and that for this reason That if all were allowed to Hatch at the same time the loss of the product in one Rock would at the same time prove the loss of all the rest since all would take Wing almost at once The Isle Borera lies near half a League from Stack-Ly to the North-East of it being in circumference One Mile and an half it Feeds about Four hundred Sheep per Annum and would Feed more did not the Solan Geese pluck a large share of the Grass for their Nests This Isle is very high and all Rock being inaccessible except in a Calm and there is only one place for Landing looking to the South In the West end of this Isle is Stallir-House which is much larger than that of the Female Warrior in St. Kilda but of the same Model in all respects it is all Green without like a little Hill the Inhabitants there have a Tradition that it was Built by one Stallir who was a Devout Hermit of St. Kilda and had he Travelled the Universe he could scarcely have found a more Solitary place for a Monastick Life There are about Forty Stone Pyramids in this Isle for drying and preserving their Fowls c. These little Houses are all of loose Stones and seen at some distance there is also here a very surprizing number of Fowls the Grass as well as the Rocks filled with them The Solan Geese possess it for the most part they are