292 DUMBARTON-BATH INN. about this country as in England, with the same accompaniments of plantations and lawns, although, perhaps, not so neatly kept. The great number of watering and sea-bathing places, where people resort in summer, had made me doubt their love for the country, and its retirement. But the number of gentlemen's houses is so prodigious, that all the places of public resort together, could not hold any considerable part of their inhabitants, and most of them must be supposed to remain at home. The Fort of Dumbarton is, like its fellow of Edinburgh, perched on an insulated rock; this one, however, rising at once like a vast pillar in the middle of a plain, or rather marsh, and without any accompaniments, is more astonishing. I have not looked at it near, but I have no doubt it is basaltic like the others, or what is called in Scotland whin, of a dark iron grey colour, or greenish with light specks, hard, ponderous, fine grained, and decomposing slowly in the air. Whenever a piece is broken, you find the paleness of the surface penetrating half an inch or more. This rock is always in great masses, and never stratified. At the Bath Inn, very pleasantly situated on the estuary of the Clyde, seven miles below Dumbarton, and twenty-three from Glasgow. We travel now with a pair of horses, hired at Glasgow for our tour of the Highlands, where post-horses are not to be had, and pay 40s. a-day, and about 4s. to the man, but have nothing to do with the maintenance of horses or driver. August 27. From the Bath Inn by Ardincaple, along the banks of the Clyde, and of Loch Gare, nine miles to its northern extremity-where, leaving the carriage, we ascended a hill which ARDINCAPLE-LOCH GARE, &c. 293 separates Loch Gare and Loch Long, and from the top of which both are in sight:-The former a lively inhabited pretty scene, with gentle hills, trees, and fields; the latter sunk into a deep frame of rugged rocks, rising abruptly from the water. The steep ascent of the mountains above was clothed with purple heath, terminated in irregular jagged summits, hung with heavy clouds. The unruffled surface of the water reflected every object, and, doubling round projecting points, formed deep bays, and was lost among the mountains it penetrated. No habitations, no trees, no cultivation, no sound. A few sheep in the distance were the only objects that had motion or life. Both lochs are arms of the sea. Leaving this scene of melancholy greatness, we retraced our steps to Ardincaple, and, en attendant dinner, took a boat, crossed Loch Gare, and landed near the house building by the Duke of Argyll, on his estate of Roseneath. It is situated on a peninsula, formed by the three arms of the sea I have mentioned. The principal front of the building is handsome, the other side is disfigured by a huge tower in the centre, totally out of place and proportion. The grounds appear neglected. After dinner we proceeded to Luss, on Loch Lomond, a fresh water lake. The first appearance disappointed me. The immediate banks are low, and vulgarized with small inclosures, potatoe patches, and white houses three stories high. The hills are coppice, lately shorn. Multitudes of small islands, low and naked, seem to fill up the lake without adorning it. On the other side, Ben-Lomond, enveloped with heavy clouds, was quite invisible, except its base. August 28. We had proposed crossing the lake 6 294 BEN-LOMOND-LOCH-LOMOND. this morning and climbing up Ben-Lomond, 3400 feet high, a feat generally performed in five hours, partly on foot and partly on horseback. The mountain is, however, not only covered with clouds, as yesterday, but it rains; we have contrived, notwithstanding, to paddle to the principal island, which is high and woody. From its summit, the multitude of islands which fill this end of the lake give it the appearance of a marshy plain, intersected by streams. The lake is seen to more advantage from the slate quarry behind Luss. Aug. 29. After losing our time yesterday, and this day not promising more favourable weather, we abandoned our designs on Ben-Lomond, and prosecuted our journey northward-Ben-Lomond's base and cap of clouds continued in full view across the lake for three hours as we skirted along the narrow and sinuous road; a steep woody mountain on our left, and the clear water and pebbly shore on our right. Once we thought we had a glimpse of the top of the mountain; it was very high, but I am not sure that it reached quite the mark we had made for it among the clouds. The character of the northern extremity of the lake is that of greatness; its head penetrates into a deep recess of dark mountains, the majestic forms of which we guessed at, rather than saw, through the thick haze hanging over them. At length, turning from Loch-Lomond, by a defile to the left, still among high mountains, another loch (Loch Long) soon opened again to our view, nearly such as we had seen it two days ago, and, if possible, more awfully beautiful. The opposite mountains rose perpendicularly from the water's edge, surmounted with black pinnacles of crumbling rocks. The vulgar, who delight in ignoble resemblances, |