unshine, the mountains rose from the
water's edge; grey masses of stone tumbled in confusion from a height of
four thousand feet to the shore, with clusters of towering pine and
larch and groups of pensile birches in every sheltered nook. Here the
mountain showed patches of dark green and purple heath; there brilliant
green and creamy beds of bog moss, among which seemed to run flashing
veins of silver, which disappeared and came into sight, and in one place
poured down with a deep, loud roar, while a mist, looking like so much
smoke, slowly rose from the fall, and floated away with a rainbow upon
its breast.

On every side, as Kenneth Mackhai gazed around from the rocky foot of
the mouldering old castle, there were scenes of beauty which would have
satisfied the most exacting. Cloud shadow, gleaming sunshine, purple
heather, yellow ragwort like dusts of gold upon the mountain side, and
at his feet the ever-changing sea.

It was all so lovely that the lad stood as if entranced, and exclaimed
aloud,--

"Bother!"

Then there was a pause, and, with an impatient stamp of his foot, he
exclaimed,--

"Oh, hang it all! what a bore!"

But this was not at the scene around. Ken had looked upon it all in
storm and sunshine ever since he could toddle, and he saw none of it
now. His mental gaze was directed at the salmon stream, the trouty
lochs, the moors with their grouse and black game, and the mountains by
Glenroe where he was to have gone deer-stalking with Long Shon and
Tavish, and with Scood to lead the dogs, and now all this was to be
given up because a visitor was coming down.

"Ah-o! ah-o!" came from the water, and a boat came gliding round from
the little bay behind the castle, with Scood standing up in the stern,
and turning an oar into a fish's tail, giving it that peculiar waving
motion which acts after the fashion of a screw propeller, and sends a
boat along.

But the boat needed little propelling, for the tide swept swiftly round
by the rocky promontory on which the castle stood, and in a few minutes
Scood had run the little vessel close beside a table-like mass of rock
which formed a natural pier, and, leaping out, rope in hand, he stood
waiting for Kenneth to descend.

"Look here, you sir," cried the latter; "didn't I tell you to put on
your shoes and stockings?"

"Well, she's got 'em in the poat all ready."

"I'll get you in the boat all ready!" cried Ken angrily. "You do as
you're told."

"A