interesting to record, the monument erected in the churchyard of this parish to the memory of Sutherland's bard, Rob Donn Mackay, elegist, satirist, lyrist. In the limestone has been found pieces of porphyry, which were easily cut into seals and other ornaments.

The parish anciently comprehended the district lying between the river Borgie, in the east, to Kyle Sku, on the west. It was only in the year 1724 that it was divided into the ecclesiastical and civil parishes of Tongue, Durness, and Eddrachilis. The latter parish anciently formed a part of the Barony of Skelbo, of which Richard Murray, brother of Bishop Gilbert Murray, was chieftain in 1230. Durness seems to have been an appanage of the Cathedral Church of Dornoch after Bishop Gilbert regulated the affairs of his diocese, between the years 1225 and 1245. Tongue formed part of the ancient "Strathnavernia."

Durness, as now constituted, is naturally divided into three sections--1. Parph, between the Atlantic and the Kyle of Durness. 2. Durness proper, between the Kyle of Durness and Loch Erriboll. 3. West Moine, between Loch Erriboll and the middle of the morass called The Moine, half-way between Loch Hope and the Kyle of Tongue.

There are in the valleys of this parish ten Pictish or Scandinavian towers, circular in form, some of them surrounded by several circles of outworks. The one in Strathmore, called "Dornadilla," is an immense structure 150 feet in circumference, consisting of two concentric walls of flagstones, said to be the hunting tower of Dornadilla, king of the Scots. On the side of BeinnSpionnaidh is a building twelve feet square, called "Carn-an-Righ” (the King's Cairn), probably where the King of the Scots lodged while hunting, and where he stood to view the gathering of the deer. It commands a very extensive prospect. Torfacus mentions. that "Sweyn, an Orkney magnate, waited on the King of Scotland when hunting in the hills of 'Dyrness.' This king may have been Malcolm II. There are also several subterranean buildings, called by the natives "leabaidh fholaichte" (hidden beds, or hiding places). One of these, lately discovered on the west side of Loch Erriboll, measured 40 feet long, 6 feet wide, and 6 feet high, built of dry masonry, covered with flags, the descent to it being by regular steps, and the entrance covered by flagstones. Near it are large stones placed on end in an elliptical form.

The area of the parish is 147,324 acres, inclusive of 3726 acres. of water and 2541 acres of foreshore, and the islands Choarie, Hoan, Garvellan.

The etymology name of this parish has been much controverted,. and various derivations assumed. A traditionary one is that a Skye

A

man from Duirinish, named Y. Ay. Aodh or Hugh MacThormaid, of the Clan Morrison, trading in meal between the Lewis and Thurso, had frequent dealings with the Bishop of Caithness, whose seat was near Thurso. He fell in love with, and married, the Bishop's sister or daughter, receiving as her dowry the Church lands of Durness and Ashir, an extensive Highland estate, and, in taking possession of it, named it Duirinish, from the place of his nativity in Skye. It is said that a colony of Skyemen followed him, who became the progenitors of the Morrisons of Durness and Ashir, and held these lands for several generations. The last chieftain of these Morrisons married a daughter of Donald Ban Matheson, of Shinness, and died without an heir. His widow, harshly treated after his death by his successor, escaped at night to her father's house in Shinness, taking away with her the charters by which the Morrisons held their lands from the successive Bishops of Caithness. She handed them, probably for a consideration, to the Earl of Sutherland. Possessed of these muniments, the Earl claimed rent from the Morrisons. Encouraged and supported by the Mackays, the Morrisons refused to acknowledge the Earl as superior, much less to pay him his demands for rent. Wearied out at length by the obstinacy of the Morrisons, the Earl agreed, for sixty merks a year, to hand the Morrison district over to the Mackay chief, Huistean Du-Na Tuagh (Black Hugh of the Battle Axe), father of the first Lord Reay.

There is a more romantic tradition connected with this Morrison district, not as to its name, nor of its origin, but involving the loss of it by the Morrisons, and the acquisition of it by the Mackays, along with Eddrachilis, characteristic of the times. A Mackay chief, probably Y. or Aodh Mackay, father of Huistean Du-Na-Tuagh, was hunting one day in the Dirrimore forest, near Loch Stack. The custom was, while the chief and his party were located in the hunting bothy, to make requisitions for food upon the nearest inhabitants, many of whom of their own accord brought whatever necessaries they could supply, such as bread, butter, cheese, and milk. One day a handsome young woman presented herself with such a present for the High Chief of Farr. captivated the Chief, who expressed a wish to detain her. woman, as high-minded as she was handsome, repelled the advances of the chief, declaring, while her husband lived, she would submit to no dishonour to him, or to herself as his wife. Some of the gillies were sent for the husband. On the way they slew him, cut off his head, and brought it to the wife. Terrified of being similarly treated, she felt obliged to remain. A son was born,

She

The

fostered and reared by order, in the house of the Morrison chieftain. Some years thereafter the Morrisons had contentions with the Macleods of Eddrachilis and Assynt, resulting in disorder and much bloodshed. The Morrisons, unable to cope with the Macleods, had recourse to intrigue and assassination, and called in the aid of the Mackays, proposing to divide Eddrachilis into two parts, giving one-half of it to the bastard son of the Mackay chief, Donald Balloch, brought up amongst themselves, and the son of the Morrison Bathsheba, the result of the Loch Stack captivity, and the other half to Donald Mac Mhurchaidh Mhic Ian Mhor Macleod, who agreed to assassinate the youthful chieftain of the Eddrachilis Macleods, and thereby open the way to take possession. A battle became imminent. The Morrisons and Macleods gathered for the fight, and were about to engage, when the Mackay chief made his appearance with three hundred men. The Macleods saw the hoplelessness of a combat, and submitted to be despoiled. The territory thus surrendered was given to the bastard son, and Donald Macleod, for policy's sake, was induced, in lieu of the half of Eddiachilis, which was to be his reward, to accept of the Davoch of Hope, and the Morrison Bathsheba for his wife. This Macleod was the notorious Rob Roy of Sutherland. He died at a great age, leaving by this wife seven sons, of whom nothing is known. He was the Donald Mhic Mhurchaidh Mhic Ian Mhor, whose epitaph is

"Donald Mack here lies lo;

Vas ill to his frend and var to his foe,

True to his maister in veird and vo.-1623."

Durness, in the Sutherland charters, 1223 to 1245, is spelled Dyrness; in those of 1541 to 1544, Ardurness; in 1559, Ardwrness; in 1630, Duriness; in 1640, Durenish; in 1726, Durness. The village is still called Durine, which, with Ness, Norse for promontory, forms Durin-Ness. It has been said that the derivation of Durness is from the Gaelic word Dorrain, storms, and Ness, meaning the cape, or promontory of storms, not an inapplicable signification. But there is another given, that its derivation is from Du, black, and raoin, fields, pronounced and spelled Du-rine, which would apply to the village name, and, adding Ness to this word, it becomes Du-rin-ness, a compound of Gaelic and Norse. But yet another derivation has been given to make it out that the word is essentially Gaelic-Du, black, thir, gen. of tir, land, and innis, grazing, when it becomes Du-thir-innis, the black grazing land. Setting this aside as somewhat fanciful, and having regard to the orthography of the word as given in the ancient

charters of 1223-1245, when Bishop Gilbert Murray assigned the district to be an appanage of Dornoch Cathedral previous to the arrival of the Morrisons from Lewis, and, knowing that the last syllable is "Ness," Norse term for cape, we are led to the conclusion that the whole word is from the Norse or Icelandic. Dyrness, dyr, deer, and ness, promontory, the promontory of the deer. Durin is also Norse, from Dyr, deer, and, inn, resort, habitat, the resort of deer-where they came down from the hills to graze.

the

Parph-Norse, hvarf, a "turning away," receding, in reference to appearance of the land in rounding Cape Wrath from the east, as seen by the Norse mariners. The Cape gave the name to the district. The Norsemen called Cape Wrath, Hvarf. people named Cape Farewell in Greenland, Hvarfs-gnipa, the peak of the receding land.

The same

A Mhoine Gaelic, the moss, a morass, a most applicable It is entirely a moor or morass. It is the eastern division of the parish between Loch Hope and the Kyle of Tongue.

name.

MOUNTAINS.

An-Lean-Carn-G., leathan, broad, the broad cairn, here applied to a mountain 1705 feet high, having the aspect of a cairn.

Ben-Hee-G., sith, peace, solitude, the mountain of solitude, as it really is; sith, as an adjective, means a spirit, or like a spirit. It is a prefix in many mountain names in the Highlands. Here it is a substantive name, and may mean fairy, the most active spirit in Gaelic mythology. The belief in fairies is traceable to the early ages of British Druidism. Sith-ich, fairy, literally means peacemaker, hence Ben-Hee may mean the mountain of the fairies, both from its solitude and belief in its being an abode of the tiny little creatures called Fairies.

Ben-Hope-N., so named from its being at the upper end of Loch Hope. This mountain is the highest in the parish, 3040 feet, Ben-Hee being 2864 feet. This mountain with its imposing precipices presents the finest mountain outline of any in Scotland. For the definition of Hope, see Loch Hope.

Ben-Spuinne-G., spionnaidh, strength, mountain of strength, 2507 feet in height. The appellation refers to its immense size

and breadth of base.

Ben-Ceanna Beinn-G., mountain at the end of a mountain. This mountain runs down from the interior to near the sea-shore. Near its end is a hamlet named Ceann-na-beinn, the mountain end, hence the name. Its end furthest from the sea is the highest, 1257 feet.

Cona Mheall-G., cona is O.G., fir tree, and meall, lump, eminence, a hill, the hill of the fir trees. At the foot of this mountain, 1527 feet high, there is a pass named Bealach-a-Chonnaidh, the pass of the firewood.

Cran-Stackie-G., crann, plough-shaped, and stacach, abounding in precipices. Highest point, 2630 feet.

Carn Dearg-G., carn, a heap of stones, dearg, red, the mountain of red stones or rocks.

Cnoc-Chraois-G., craos, wide opening, hill of the wide opening a large wide gap between mountains.

Creag-Carn Chaoruinn--G., rock of the rowan trees, growing out of a pile of stones.

Foinne-bheinn-G., foinne, wart, the wart mountain, in reference to the several protuberances on its summit, respectively 2980, 2960, 2750 feet high. There are other mountains of the same name in the parish, distinguished by beag and mor.

Glas-Bheinn-G., glas, grey, or faded green, the grey mountain; Wel., glas, green; Ir., glas, grey; Arm., glas; Corn., glas, blue, green; Gaelic, each glas, grey horse; Corn., marc glas, grey horse; Arm., march glas, grey horse. In Radnorshire there is Knucklas (cnoe-glas), green hill; Manx, glas, grey. The GlasBheinn is 1085 feet high.

Meall-Ceithir-Mheall-G., meall, lump, hill, ceithir, four, and mheall. More correctly, mhill, gen. plu. of meall, hill of the four lumps or summits.

Meallan-Liath-G., meallan, dim. of meall, and liath, grey; Wel., lluyd; Manx, leah, hoary; Ir., liath; 2625 feet high. So called from its terminating in a conical peak or lump.

Meall-Garbh-G., rough lump, 2471 feet high. So named from its rough lumpish summit; Manx, garroo, uneven; Wel., garw; Corn., garou. In the Punic language garvr meant rapid. The O.G. garv also meant rapid, as applied in the Highlands to rapid turbulent streams and rivers, as in Garv-allt, so in the Armonic, as in the river Garonne, Garv-amhuinn, rapid turbulent river.

Creag-na-Faoilinn-G., faoilinn, sea gulls, rock of the sea gulls. At the upper end of Loch Erriboll, 954 feet high.

Beinn-an-Amair-G., amair, gen. of amar, a narrow rocky channel, in reference to a channel in the Kyle of Durness which passes at its foot opposite Keoldale. 911 feet high.

Creag Stuanisat-G., staoin, juniper, and aite, place, rock of the place where juniper bushes grow. There is a lake of the

same name.