wever, I am by no means persuaded. This was so
low, that no man could stand upright in it. By their construction they
are all so narrow, that two can never pass along them together, and being
subterraneous, they must be always damp. They are not the work of an age
much ruder than the present; for they are formed with as much art as the
construction of a common hut requires. I imagine them to have been
places only of occasional use, in which the Islander, upon a sudden
alarm, hid his utensils, or his cloaths, and perhaps sometimes his wife
and children.

This cave we entered, but could not proceed the whole length, and went
away without knowing how far it was carried. For this omission we shall
be blamed, as we perhaps have blamed other travellers; but the day was
rainy, and the ground was damp. We had with us neither spades nor
pickaxes, and if love of ease surmounted our desire of knowledge, the
offence has not the invidiousness of singularity.

Edifices, either standing or ruined, are the chief records of an
illiterate nation. In some part of this journey, at no great distance
from our way, stood a shattered fortress, of which the learned minister,
to whose communication we are much indebted, gave us an account.

Those, said he, are the walls of a place of refuge, built in the time of
James the Sixth, by Hugh Macdonald, who was next heir to the dignity and
fortune of his chief. Hugh, being so near his wish, was impatient of
delay; and had art and influence sufficient to engage several gentlemen
in a plot against the Laird's life. Something must be stipulated on both
sides; for they would not dip their hands in blood merely for Hugh's
advancement. The compact was formerly written, signed by the
conspirators, and placed in the hands of one Macleod.

It happened that Macleod had sold some cattle to a drover, who, not
having ready money, gave him a bond for payment. The debt was
discharged, and the bond re-demanded; which Macleod, who could not read,
intending to put into his hands, gave him the conspiracy. The drover,
when he had read the paper, delivered it privately to Macdonald; who,
being thus informed of his danger, called his friends together, and
provided for his safety. He made a public feast, and inviting Hugh
Macdonald and his confederates, placed each of them at the table between
two men of known fidelity. The compact of conspiracy was then shewn, and
every man confronted with his own name. M