e filled up_, were of a
great depth.' He is very quick in shewing that he does not give credit
to careless or exaggerated accounts of things. After seeing the castle,
we looked at a small hut near it. It is called _Teigh Franchich, i.e._
the Frenchman's House. Col could not tell us the history of it. A poor
man with a wife and children now lived in it. We went into it, and Dr.
Johnson gave them some charity. There was but one bed for all the
family, and the hut was very smoky. When he came out, he said to me,
_'Et hoc secundum sententiam philosophorum est esse beatus_[797].'
BOSWELL. 'The philosophers, when they placed happiness in a cottage,
supposed cleanliness and no smoke.' JOHNSON. 'Sir, they did not think
about either.'

We walked a little in the laird's garden, in which endeavours have been
used to rear some trees; but, as soon as they got above the surrounding
wall, they died. Dr. Johnson recommended sowing the seeds of hardy
trees, instead of planting.

Col and I rode out this morning, and viewed a part of the island. In the
course of our ride, we saw a turnip-field, which he had hoed with his
own hands. He first introduced this kind of husbandry into the Western
islands[798]. We also looked at an appearance of lead, which seemed very
promising. It has been long known; for I found letters to the late
laird, from Sir John Areskine and Sir Alexander Murray, respecting it.

After dinner came Mr. M'Lean, of Corneck, brother to Isle of Muck, who
is a cadet of the family of Col. He possesses the two ends of Col, which
belong to the Duke of Argyll. Corneck had lately taken a lease of them
at a very advanced rent, rather than let the Campbells get a footing in
the island, one of whom had offered nearly as much as he. Dr. Johnson
well observed, that, 'landlords err much when they calculate merely
what their land _may_ yield. The rent must be in a proportionate ratio
of what the land may yield, and of the power of the tenant to make it
yield. A tenant cannot make by his land, but according to the corn and
cattle which he has. Suppose you should give him twice as much land as
he has, it does him no good, unless he gets also more stock. It is clear
then, that the Highland landlords, who let their substantial tenants
leave them, are infatuated; for the poor small tenants cannot give them
good rents, from the very nature of things. They have not the means of
raising more from their farms[799].' Corneck, Dr. Johnson said, w