LOCH LEVEN, with the remains of its well-known castle. The lake in form is an irregular oval, extending from ten to eleven miles in circumference. It contains four islands, of which one, St. Serf's Isle, near the east end, was so named from its having been the site of a priory dedicated to St. Serf. Wyntoun, the author of the rhymed "Chronicle Crougkit of Scotland," was prior of this religious establishment. The ruins of Lochleven Castle, celebrated from its having been the prison-house of the unfortunate Queen Mary, occupy an island near the shore. In 1542, Lochleven Castle was granted by James V. to Sir Robert Douglas, stepfather of the famous Earl of Moray; and in 1567, Queen Mary was imprisoned there after her surrender at Carberry Hill. The engraving which illustrates our text represents Lord Lindsay and his party on the occasion of that memorable visit to Queen Mary, which terminated in her abdication of the Crown. The pennon of the ruthless baron is displayed by one of his attendants as a signal for the boat, while he himself blows "a clamorous blast on his bugle." Queen Mary escaped from the castle, May 2, 1568, through the aid of young Douglas, and is said by general tradition to have gone ashore on the lands of Coldon at the south side of the lake, whence she was conducted by Lord Seton to Niddry Castle near Linlithgow. The keys of the castle, which were thrown into the lake at the time of her escape, were recently found by a The young man belonging to Kinross, who presented them to the Earl of celebrated for the excellence of its trout. Morton. Loch Leven rich taste and bright red colour are derived chiefly from small crustacea and shell-fish upon which they feed. The silver grey trout is apparently the original native of the loch, and, in many respects, the finest fish of the whole. The char or gelly trough, rivalling in richness and flavour the best specimens of this kind, have of late years disappeared. Kinross House (Sir Graham Montgomery), erected in 1685 for the Duke of York, stands on a promontory once occupied by a stronghold of the Earls of Morton. In the neighbouring village of Kinneswood, Michael Bruce the poet The river Leven flows from the lake on the east side, and was born.* pursues an easterly course through the woods of Leslie House, the seat of the Earl of Rothes. The road from Kinross to Perth (which is 17 miles distant), passes the village of Milnathort, and the ruins of Burleigh Castle, formerly the property of Lord Burleigh, attainted in 1715. It is then carried through Glenfarg, a romantic valley enclosed by the Ochils, to the Bridge of Earn, famed for its mineral wells, and over Moncrieffe Hill, affording one of the finest views of the Carse of Gowrie. * See the interesting life of this poet, by the Rev. D. M'Kelvie, who has proved that a number of the paraphrases and other poems ascribed to Logan were really written by Bruce. PERTHSHIRE. Among all the provinces in Scotland, if an intelligent stranger were asked to describe the most varied and the most beautiful, it is probable he would name the County of Perth. A native, also, of any other district of Caledonia, though his partialities might lead him to prefer his native county in the first instance, would certainly class that of Perth in the second, and thus give its inhabitants a fair right to plead, that— prejudice apart-Perthshire forms the fairest portion of the northern kingdom. It is long since Lady Mary Wortley Montagu, with that excellent taste which characterises her writings, expressed her opinion, that the most interesting district of every country, and that which exhibits the varied beauties of natural scenery in greatest perfection, is that where the mountains sink down upon the champaign or more level land. The most picturesque, if not the highest hills, are also to be found in the county of Perth. The rivers find their way out of the mountainous region by the wildest leaps, and through the most romantic passes connecting the Highlands with the Lowlands. Above, the vegetation of a happier climate and soil is mingled with the magnificent characteristics of mountain scenery, and woods, groves, and thickets in profusion clothe the base of the hills, ascend up the ravines, and mingle with the precipices. It is in such favoured regions that the traveller finds what the poet Gray, or some one else, has termed Beauty lying in the lap of Terror. From the same advantage of situation, this favoured province presents a variety of the most pleasing character. Its lakes, woods, and mountains, may vie in beauty with any that the Highland tour exhibits; while Perthshire contains, amidst this romantic scenery, and in some places, in connection with it. many fertile and habitable tracts, which may vie with the richness of merry England herself. The country has also been the scene of many remarkable exploits and events, some of nistorical importance, others interesting to the poet and PERTHSHIRE. romancer, though recorded in popular tradition alone. It was in these vales that the Saxons of the plain and the Gael of the mountains had many a desperate and bloody encounter, in which it was frequently impossible to decide the palm of victory between the mailed chivalry of the Low Country and the plaided clans whom they opposed.* * To the Tourist it presents attractions of almost every kind. It is a sort of shifting diorama, in which new scenes remarkable for new beauties continually present themselves to his view, leaving upon his mind the impression that the last is, in some respects, the finest he has yet beheld. Fertility and barrenness, the wildest alpine magnificence, and scenes upon which the eye of the lover of natural beauty could desire to rest; the rugged mountain towering in rude majesty, and the sweet glen enlivened with sunshine or curtained with mist; the rich alluvial plains of England contrasting with the glories of Switzerland in a more softened and subdued form; these are the general and prominent features by which this county is distinguished. To the Sportsman it opens a boundless field of amusement in its beautiful streams and its extensive moors, where the grouse, undeterred by the deadly hostility of man, renew their race, but only to invite renewed destruction. Feathered game of every description abounds in the upland district of Perthshire, and affords a rich treat to the sportsman. Many of the moors are let, and bring large sums annually. The deer-forest of Athole is said to contain about 100,000 acres; and the number of deer in the whole county is estimated at 6000, of which about 100 are annually killed. Harts are destroyed in the months of August and September, and hinds in January, the last month of the season. From several of the large proprietors having combined to preserve the deer, it is considered that their number Salmon is plentiful, must be greatly upon the increase. especially in the Tay, and is also found in the tributaries of that river. The fisheries on the Tay alone are understood to bring a rental of £10,000 a year. Mountains.-Benlawers (the highest), 3984 feet; Benmore, 3903; Stobinian, 3813; Cairn Gower, 3690; Schehallion, 3564; Ben Feskineth, 3521; Benvoirlich, 3300; Farragon, 2584; Benvenue (South), 2388; Benledi, 2381; Bencleugh, * Quotation from Fair Maid of Perth. |