small flies attached to our line, now hauled some three or four fish at a time into our boat, who were sufficiently unwise or greedy to snap at the many-coloured bait which streamed along the surface of the glassy lake as we glided on, reclining in our gondola; now lost in admiration of the wild but quiet scene by which we were encircled, now barbarously removing the little trout from their native element for our amusement, but, doubtless, to their dismay; now ruminating on the many cares of life, and thinking at the same time our position, for the time being, was vastly agreeable. So you may take note, gentlemen sportsmen, that even should you be afflicted with the gout, and cannot always walk over the heathered hills in search of the game, you may even pass an hour or two reposing in a boat, and do a little business in the fishing line in memory of Izaak Walton.

We had scarcely proceeded half a mile further up the glen when an unusually rocky and almost perpendicular side of a steep mountain was pointed out to our notice. High in this craggy mount there was a deep fissure or hollow, called the "Eagle's nest," from which projected a curious-shaped projecting ledge, whereon the mind could readily imagine one of these noble birds, " sitting in the pride of place," as surety of his mate and young within.

"It was from that place," said F., that the eagles were taken which were sent you last year."

"Is it possible," we replied, "that any human being could venture to obtain a footing there, and return with life?"

"Oh, yes," he said, "it is a constant practice for the boys of this glen to lower themselves with ropes, and thus they secure the eggs, as also frequently the young birds; and I have never known an accident to occur.'

But with reference to these eagles, two young birds were kindly sent to us when staying in the neighbourhood of Perth. These birds were duly deposited in a hamper, with ample provision for their journey; a letter having been previously forwarded to announce their arrival. At length the expected hamper made its appearance; but on opening it we only discovered one--a fine, living bird of the Falco Chrysaetos, or golden eagle, who had trampled on the breathless body of his companion: a trifling scrimmage must therefore, doubtless, have taken place during their transit; and, as is ever the case, the weak succumbed to the strong. Our living friend, however, was so splendid a specimen of his race that we forthwith took the precaution to secure his comforts as well as his presence in our garden, and by general consent christened him "Meggernie." His growth, however, was so rapid, his strength so wonderful, and his appetite really so untiring, that neither his education nor consumption were unimportant matters. Nevertheless, for his bodily comfort we had a sort of wooden house built; and, for his better security, a very light chain was attached to his leg; which the sequel will show was by no means an unnecessary precaution. His food-of which the daily consumption was enormous-consisted of raw meat, poultry when he could get it, rabbits, and every species of bird, dead or alive, from a raven to a pigeon, which might be tendered to appease his appetite. Offer him a living bird, he clutched it in his talons, and forthwith it ceased to live; present him with a dead one, and his beak instantly tore it

asunder. Now we chanced at that time to have a Highland terrier named Quiz, a very gem of his race-the very writing of whose name is really a matter of pain to us, for, as a puppy, he had been kindly presented to us by a friend, and though we have seen hundreds of these little cheerful animals, he was, without exception, the most attached and faithful companion man could desire to possess, and we have never known the dog whose death caused us such real regret as he, who during life gave us such a constant fund of entertainment, whether m the house or out. Now the jealousy of this little animal, in regard to the intruding eagle, was something marvellous; indeed, so hateful was the presence of the bird, we firmly believe he would have sacrificed his own life could he have made the eagle succumb in the same struggle for existence. But his enemy was too wary, and, indeed, far too powerful for us to permit their coming to close quarters; for, doubtless, he would have seized the little terrier at once with his talons, and having pecked out his eyes, destroyed him in no time. When bones or meat were thrown to the eagle, the little fellow, with ears erect, would watch the opportunity of his back being turned, and then make a dart at the provision: this was an every-day practice, and caused us endless fun and merriment. In proof, however, of the powers of this bird, we will merely add, that on one occasion he broke his chain short off at the end attached to his domicile, and with this, notwithstanding the whole length of its weight, flew up to the top of a high fir-tree, from which, with great precaution and difficulty, we succeeded in again securing him. At length, however, his quarrels with Quiz, his everlasting and unsatisfying appetite, with its consequent outlay for provisions, and his eternal screaming near the house, together with the knowledge that he would not be unacceptable to a kind friend in England, induced us to part with him. And he was once more deposited in a large hamper, and by steam conveyed from Glasgow to Liverpool. And if he hath not departed this life since the winter of 1844, he still lives as one of the not least noble specimens in the splendid collection of the Earl of Derby, at Knowsley.

But here we bid adieu to our trusty guide. Had he been a Frenchman, doubtless we should have embraced him, and said, au plaisir, or, au revoir, or some similar humbug; as it was, we parted from him with the feeling that he was an honest man and a good sportsman: would that we could quit all men with a similar feeling of good will, amid the varied scenes of this passing dream of life-him we have never since beheld.

"You must continue straight up the glen," said he, "passing by Loch Damh at the extremity, about ten miles forward; the mountain-bases will there almost close in the valley; you will then come to the high road which runs from Tyndrum to Kingshouse, and a short walk further to your right you will find the inn at Inverouran, a lone house which stands on the banks of Loch Tallie, or Tulla, at the southern extremity of the Black Mountain; there you will find accommodation for the night; and for the morrow, your way is clear." With these instructions he bid us farewell.

* Damh is Gaelec for stag, and certainly has a great affinity to the French word daim, which signifies fallow-deer.

It will be uninteresting to our readers to fatigue them with any lengthened details of this day's excursion, as we did ourselves with the walk, notwithstanding its great interest to sportsmen, though literally through a rough, wild valley, formed of the extended bases of high, rocky and heather-covered mountains, by which it was hemmed in, as it were, from the wide world. Beyond these limits, and through the centre of which, becoming at last a mere mountain rivulet, runs the river Lyon. It would also be uninteresting to others, though certainly not so to ourselves, to describe how here we crossed a rushing mountain-torrent knee deep, and there floundered in a swamp, declaring each moment that the Scotch miles were English leagues, that we must have lost our way, for there was no end to the glen; and as for high road, it could only have existed in the imagination of F., and not in reality. Indeed, had we not managed to keep up animal excitement during the morning excursion by tumbling over a few grouse and a snipe, in addition to the blackcock, and fancied we saw a deer on the mountain-top, which was probably only a heifer, we really think we should have been food for the eagles ere day-break, and our bones, bleached by time and exposure, would have adorned the top of some shepherd cairn, as a warning to sporting gentlemen from the south never to attempt the passage of a Highland glen without a guide. We allude, of course, to a regular, positive, readymade, absolute glen; not one of your glens through which runs a McAdamized road, with halting points of admiration, made for tourists, like vistas cut through the labyrinths of a Dutch garden. As it was, wet, weary, feet sore, and half famished, we at length beheld with joy the long-looked-for road, and with renewed courage, after a brisk walk, arrived at Inverouran. Imagination loves to revel in comforts, and anticipation had led us to hope that the hovel we beheld, nick-named an "inn," might prove a harbour of rest and refreshment. Of rest, however, we had little; and as for the refreshment, more of that anon. The closing evening was wet, dark, and dreary, as our little cavalcade halted before the door of this house of entertainment, which in good truth it was in every sense of the word, but that we desired at the moment: entertained mentally unquestionably we were; bodily, however, we had no entertainment whatever; nevertheless we managed to pass the time merrily..

For one moment, however, do us the favour to fancy a lusty citizen tourist-fresh and blooming from turtle and sirloins-hungry, wet, fatigued, and grumpy, driving up to the Hôtel de l'Inverouran, and on being ushered into a sitting-room eight feet by ten, half filled with smoke from a smothered peat fire, and redolent with the smell of whiskey and bad tobacco, and having therein seen his goods and chattels deposited, in despair requests a shoeless Highland lassie, who scarcely understood one word of English, to show him his sleeping apartment, that he might refresh himself previous to the evening's repast; imagine, we say, this damsel pointing to two large cupboards,built in the wall, almost exactly similar to those on board a Scotch smack in days lang syne, and saying, with perfect coolness, "you may e'en take your choice." We say, imagine such a scene occurring to such an individual, because the absurdity would be great. To us it did actually occur; and we laughed aloud, and

took our choice, and tried to sleep therein, and should have slept soundly had it not been for the numerous visitors of the flea family who supped on us, as almost supperless we retired to our berth. Having, however, secured our sitting-room, we opened the shutters to let out the smoke-for glass there was none and made ourselves as comfortable as Englishmen generally do on all occasions. We next solicited refreshment: tea, fried ham and eggs, bannocks or oat cakes, and what we surmised to be smoked mutton ham, were soon placed on the board; and board it literally was, for no white cloth concealed the dirt of an unwashed deal table. Urged by hunger, we attacked the dainties thus rudely set before us; and had they been eatable, a sportsman's appetite would not easily have been checked, and after a rough day's walk he might readily have dispensed with the damask. The tea, however, was out of the question-no senna was ever half so nauseous; and as for the fried ham, we insult the excellence of such a dish by giving its name to the wedges of smoked bacon which floated in their own grease. The eggs were tolerably fresh, and being protected by their shells from the dirty hands of the lassie who placed them on the deal, were clean within, if not without. But the mutton required consideration: "What is it?" we exclaimed, as with some difficulty we made an incision into the hard and flatlooking joint; but whether it was a leg or shoulder it was utterly impossible to decide. "What is it!" exclaimed the damsel, who barefooted stood at hand, as if in admiration of the bounty with which she had supplied us, "why braccy to be sure."

"Braccy, my bonnie lassie! and what may braccy be?"

But we must again request permission to give her explanation in plain English. "Why braccy, sir, is just a sheep which dies of the rot, or, we should rather say, which would have died without the aid of butcher's knife if master did not supply his own just in the nick of time; thus saving a coroner's inquest of eagles and ravens, who doubtless would soon have appeared to set on the body of the defunct. Having done this little act of politeness by relieving the unhappy animal from probably an hour's internal torture, he next proceeds to skin and cut up the carcass; this process being over, two or three gillies set to work in the nearest brook to pound the flesh with stones till all the blood is extracted; the meat and joints are then salted and hung up the chimney to dry and smoke, till some hungry traveller or excursionary sportsman, like ourselves, may chance to halt at the pasada' and require a mutton ham."

But we really speak nothing but fact when we assert the above occurrence, such as we have related it, to be a constant practice in the Highlands; and so far from any disgust arising, as it did to us, at the bare idea of feasting on meat so luxuriously prepared by Highlanders, it is esteemed as one of the greatest delicacies with which their larder can be supplied for winter consumption. They do not eat it, however, as served to us; but a large slice is cut from time to time from the joint, and then with onions, cabbages, and such herbs as may be at hand, it is thrown into the "pot au feu" till a greasy broth is prepared, which, to a resident on the heathered mountains, is preferred to all the turtle which Birch would supply, or Soyer set before the most delicate palate. To them, without one feeling of jealousy or

regret, we leave the braccy so liberally offered to us, and for which, of course, we had as liberally to pay. Ŏne smoking tumbler of toddy, in recollection of the last night savory supper; and with some difficulty, and not without danger of a broken head, we crawled into the berth we had selected. Take heed, however, sporting travellers in the land of the mountain and the flood, that on this occasion we wore the breeches; and why? the game is plentiful on the borders of the Black mount; and notwithstanding our precaution, ere the light of morning had peeped through the ill-secured shutters, we were up and ready to fly "over the hills and far away," whether wet, fine, or gloomy, so fiercely had we been feasted on during the night.

"And if my voice break forth, tis not that now

I shrink from what I suffered."

Let us forgive however, if we cannot well forget, the miseries of that night. For, lo! the glorious sun once more beams in all its splendour on mountain, wood, and vale; the rain of yesterday is gone, and all nature, as if laughing with joy, shines forth bright and beautiful. Where is the heart that is not touched with gladness by the fresh and exhilarating air of a clear and brilliant autumnal morning in the Highlands! Where the sportsman who does not carry his gun with double vigour when the sky above is clear, the air light, and all nature smiling around him!

"The sluggards deem it but a foolish chase,

And marvel men should quit their easy chair
The toilsome way, and long, long league to trace.
Oh! there is sweetness in the mountain air,

And life, that bloated ease can never hope to share."
(To be continued).

PRESERVATION OF FOXES.

BY A SALOPIAN,

In this most inclement weather, which, from its severity, seems likely to still further diminish the remainder of the hunting season, it may not be uninteresting to consider how we can best promote the sport of next year, and of which we have had so little in this. The preservation of foxes is one of the first things to be attended to. In many places, even where fox-hunting is encouraged and patronized, great difficulty too often arises in saving foxes from the constant destruction which is taking place secretly by rabbit-trappers, who, finding the rabbits taken out of their traps and snares by the foxes, are but too happy to cause their destruction under any pretext; but which traps, if only properly set, would never destroy an old fox. But that is not the object of the trapper; anything besides the rabbit it being, in general, his object to catch. To show the little damage that need be done by these men, I may mention that on a very limited space I had