two shires of Scotland, so curiously mixed up in geographical position, and so closely united politically, as to render their description under one head a matter not merely of convenience, but even of necessity. They are bounded on the N. by Sutherlandshire, E. by the German Ocean, S. by Inverness-shire, and W. by the Atlantic; and lie between N. Lat. 57° 8' and 58° 6', W. Long. 3° 46' and 5° 50'. Besides this portion of the mainland, the northern portion of the island of Lewis in the Hebrides is included in Ross-shire. The whole area is 3151 square miles, or 2,016,375 statute acres; length, from E. to W., 67 miles; average breadth, 58. Ross-shire, comprising the districts of Easter and Wester Ross, Ardmeanach, or the Black Isle, and the island of Lewis, is the third in size among the counties in Scotland. The county of Cromarty, on the other hand, is comparatively small. It is divided into eleven portions, which are whimsically inserted into various parts of the larger county of Ross, like fragments of a more ancient rock in some newer geological formation. One of these parts is the original county of Cromarty, anciently called Crumbachty,—that is, "Crooked Bay," from the windings of its shores, consisting of that portion which lies in the peninsula to the S. of the Cromarty Firth, and which surrounds the county town. This part rises like a huge lump to a height of 470 feet above the level of the sea, which washes the base of its cliffs, and it is this space—containing a parish and a half—which still preserves for the county a separate lord-lieutenancy and commission of supply. As a county, it was originally very inconsiderable both in extent and in value; but by the straggling additions which were made to it towards the end of the seventeenth century, it was increased to fifteen times its former extent. Of these additions, one is a small district surrounding Tarbat House, on the northern shore of Cromarty Bay; and a second runs from the S. side of the Tain Firth to Moray Firth, cutting off that portion of the county of Ross which terminates in Tarbat Ness, the extremity of which also belongs to Cromarty. Two more fragments are found lying on the south of the River Carron, which has its embouchure near Bonar Bridge; a sixth is that which runs northward from the burgh of Dingwall, taking in Castle Leod and part of Ben Wyvis; the seventh lies to the N. of Loch Fannich, at some distance to the N.W. of which a triangular morsel is found to the N. of Loch Nid; the ninth is that which stretches along the southern shore of Little Loch Broom; and the tenth is the large district of Coygach, lying between the northern shore of Loch Broom and Sutherlandshire; to which may be added the Summer Islands, at the mouth of Loch Broom, which are about 60 miles distant from the town of Cromarty. This strange arrangement of territory was produced by the influence of that great and powerful proprietor, George, Viscount Tarbat, afterwards Earl of Cromarty, who, wishing to have all his various lands included in one shire, got them annexed to his own county in 1685 and 1698. But these were not all, nor the most extraordinary, annexations which he accomplished. For, as a part of the county of Cromarty, we are compelled to notice Royston, or Caroline Park, locally situated within the county of Edinburgh, and but a couple of miles from the Scottish capital. But such arrangements were by no means singular. The district of Ferintosh, belonging locally to Ross-shire, is in fact a part of Nairnshire; and from similar causes many of the houses in the Canongate of Edinburgh belong to different counties in Scotland, from their having been the town residences of Scottish noblemen whose estates lay in those different shires. By the addition of all those portions which we have enumerated, the extent of Cromarty is calculated to be equal to an area of 345 square miles, or about 220,800 imperial acres.

The united county extends, as has already been stated, across the island from the German Ocean to the Atlantic. On the eastern coast, Cromarty Firth shoots inland from that of Moray through the narrow strait produced by those grand and picturesque headlands called the Sutors of Cromarty, and expands into a still and land-locked basin, capable of holding the whole navy of Great Britain. The headlands themselves are so lofty and precipitous that it is not uncommon during gales of wind from the north-eastward, to see waves breaking upon them to the height of 100 feet, whilst all within is smooth. The firth is rather more than 5 miles broad at the widest part, and its length is about 18. The depth averages from 9 to 12 fathoms, but in the entrance it in some places exceeds 30; a depth which nearly doubles that of Moray Firth, into which it opens. The western coast is indented by many bays and sea-lochs, which afford numerous havens of shelter from the storms of the Atlantic. From S. to N., these are Loch Alsh, with its two branches Loch Duich and Loch Ling; Loch Carron, with its branch Loch Kesshorn; Loch Torridon, Gairloch, Loch Ewe, Loch Greinord, Little Loch Broom, Loch Broom, and Loch Enard. All these exhibit magnificent scenery. That of Loch Torridon, for example, is of the grandest and wildest character; as is likewise that of Loch Duich, rendered peculiarly interesting by the remains of the castle of Eilan Donan, the ancient stronghold of the Mackenzies, the lords of Kintail. The outer headlands of the western coast of Ross-shire, N. of Loch Carron, are composed of sandstone, exhibiting the usual smooth and regular outline characteristic of that formation; and hence the promontories are tame, and of an unvaried reddish aspect, and the shores of the bays are for the most part covered over with brown heath. It is therefore more in the inner recesses of these inlets, and perhaps somewhat inland, that the most romantic scenery is to be found.

The general surface of Ross and Cromarty is wild and mountainous, the mountain chains and groups being interspersed with valleys, glens, lakes, and rivers, exhibiting nature in every variety of form and character.

Amongst the numerous fresh-water lakes and rivers to be found in Ross and Cromarty we may particularize the following:—The River Oikel, which divides Ross-shire from Sutherland, rises near the eastern side of the island, and after a course of 20 miles, finds its way into the upper end of the Tain or Dornoch Firth, a few miles above the fine iron-arched bridge of Bonar. Then, as we move southwards, we have the River Carron and the Water of Fearn, discharging themselves into the same firth. Cromarty Firth receives the large and important stream of the Conon, and its affluent the Raney or Blackwater. On the W. coast we have the rivers Shiel and Ling, the one tributary to Loch Duich, and the other to Loch Ling; the River Carron discharging into Loch Carron the waters of Lochs Doule and Scaven. The River Ewe, which is only 1 mile in length, discharges into Loch Ewe the waters of the grand Loch Maree, which is by far the largest and finest lake in Ross-shire. It is 12 miles long and about 2½ broad, and the greater part of it is full 60 fathoms deep; so that it has never been known to freeze even in the most intense frosts. It contains no less than twenty-four islands, its mountains... are magnificent, and it is now quite accessible. The only other fresh-water lakes of any size or importance are Loch Fannich, Loch Luichart, and Loch Glas, all near the centre of the county. The whole area occupied by water is estimated at 90 square miles.

The scenery on the River Conon and some of its tributaries is beautiful and interesting. The falls of Rogie are by many considered as inferior only to those of Foyers and Moness. We may indeed affirm that most of the valleys or river-courses in the united counties are more or less worth visiting, for the wild, the romantic, or the retired pastoral scenes which they contain. The waterfall of Glomach, in the parish of Kintail, is one of the highest and finest in the kingdom. The road from Keshorn over the mountain to Applecross is like a Swiss pass, and is probably the only drive from which ptarmigan might be shot from a vehicle.

The mountain groups of Ross and Cromarty are very lofty. They rise gradually from the east coast, and more suddenly and boldly from the western sea, to which the summit-level of the country is more generally approximated. Granite and mica slate occupy the centre of the county; while for 10 or 15 miles inland from the coasts the substratum is generally old red sandstone. There are also argillaceous formations abounding in animal remains, with plates resembling those of the tortoise, pieces of rough skin like that of the shark, the scales and bones of fish; and in a ridge of bituminous shale near the Cromarty rocks we find ammonites, belemnites, scallops (plain and striated), pieces of wood, and a thick fleshy-looking leaf resembling that of the aloe. The mineralogical catalogue is large. Limestone and primitive limestone of the character of marble are very commonly to be met with. Ironstone is disseminated in great abundance. On the farm of Scorraig, on the Dundonnell estate, there is a prodigious quantity of bog-iron ore, which gives a strong and harsh chalybeate taste to all the springs in the neighbourhood. There are various mineral springs in the united shires of Ross and Cromarty, but those which have attained the greatest celebrity are the two wells of Strathpeffer, which have now for many years attracted numerous visitors to their neighbourhood in search of health and recreation. Both of these springs have the smell of sulphuretted hydrogen gas, but the upper spring is stronger than the lower.

Many of the mountains of Ross and Cromarty are among the highest in Britain. Ben Wyvis or Ben Uaish,—that is, the Mountain of Storm,—is one of the most remarkable mountains, not only in Ross and Cromarty, but in Scotland. Its height is 3422 feet; but it is most wonderful for its immense bulk, by which it stands prominently distinguished from the other hills around it, so as to be peculiarly striking from great distances. Ben Dearg, on Loch Broom, is 3551 feet in height. The chief other heights are Kea Cloch, near Loch Broom, 3600 feet; Ben Lair, near Loch Maree, 3000 feet; and Ben Attow, on the border of Inverness-shire, 4000.

The soil of Ross-shire varies in its character in different parts of the county. In the E., there are two peninsulas,—the Black Isle, between the Firths of Beauly and Cromarty; and Easter Ross between those of Cromarty and Dornoch,—which, along with some of the adjacent country, contain arable land of much fertility; but the great mass of the country, including the central and western portions, is rugged, mountainous, and unfit for the plough. The mountains, and particularly those towards the W., are covered with excellent pasture for sheep. Some of the sheep-farms are extensive, and possessed by farmers of capital, who have introduced the Cheviot breed of sheep, or a cross of that breed. The valleys and glens are also depastured for the most part by sheep. Although agriculture is found in patches in the valleys and on the shores of the W. coast, the great agricultural districts of Ross and Cromarty are those extending from Dingwall along the northern shore of Cromarty Firth, and so onwards in a north-eastern direction along the Moray Firth and that of Dornoch, and the district of the Black Isle. All the grains and other agricultural produce of Britain are raised in perfection; and the farming is as well carried on here as in any part of Scotland. The roads made in Ross-shire by the parliamentary commissioners and the proprietors are extensive and excellent, and they are kept in the highest state of repair. Many of the wildest and most unapproachable districts have thus been opened; and though there are still many left hermetically sealed against all but the adventurous horseman or the unwearied pedestrian, there has been much done very recently.

The total number of acres under crops in 1857 was 72,851; and of these, 9715 were occupied with wheat, 6435 with barley, 16,256 with oats, 212 with rye, 289 with bere, 437 with beans, 360 with peas, 911 with vetches, 12,228 with turnips, 4471 with potatoes, 550 fallow, and 20,869 with grass and hay. The number of horses in the same year was 4759; of cattle, 17,610; of sheep, 304,444; of swine, 1761; in all, 331,381 head of live stock.

The natural woods in Ross and Cromarty, though much diminished, are still numerous, and widely scattered through the glens and over the mountain-sides. The trees are chiefly firs, oaks, ash, birch, and alder. The whole face of the wilder country bears evidence of its having been once covered with extensive forests, fragments of which only now remain in certain places. The climate is exceedingly variable, differing much on the two sea-boards, and in general rainy, though there are often long periods of dry weather, and sometimes the same day appears as if it belonged in succession to all the seasons. The annual mean temperature is 46°. In the arable districts the climate has been sensibly improved of late years by drainage and other improvements in agriculture and planting.

From the great extent and immense variety of elevation and of surface of Ross and Cromarty, it naturally contains by much the greater part, if not nearly all, the plants to be found in the Flora Scotiae; and in the same way, speaking generally, almost all the animals to be found in the zoology of Scotland have been discovered to belong to it. The larger wild quadrupeds are red and roe deer, hares, alpine hares, foxes, badgers, wild cats, &c. Grouse, partridge, black game, and partridges abound; and in some places pheasants have been introduced, and have amazingly increased. The golden eagle and the osprey are both common, as well as all the other birds of prey. Waterfowl of all kinds abound on the coasts; and the Firth of Cromarty is especially remarkable for the number and variety of sea-fowl which may be obtained by the skilful sportsmen. In severe winters it frequently happens that many wild swans are shot there. All the lochs and streams abound with fish, and salmon are particularly abundant in all the rivers, especially in the Oikel and in the Ewe. Short as is the course of this last-mentioned stream, it so swarms with salmon that twenty fish are no uncommon number for an expert angler to take in one day. The trouts of Loch Luichart and many other lakes are far-famed. The pearl mussel is found in the stream of the River Conon, and frequently affords pearls of remarkable beauty.

The number of proprietors in the county is 117, and the valuation of rent for 1858–9 is £1,753,355.

The introduction of steam navigation has done much to improve Ross and Cromarty, not only by making them more easily accessible, but by the opening which it has created for the export of cattle and sheep to the southern markets. The change in this respect may be readily conceived when we consider the immense land-journey which the animals had to undergo before they could be brought to the Edinburgh market. They were driven off in a lean state, and were fed in the south country, before they could be sold for food. Now, a Ross-shire farmer frequently imports lean cattle from the south, and returns them so fed as to be in a condition for immediate slaughter. On the east coast, the principal shipping port for cattle, sheep, and all kinds of farm produce by steam-vessels is Invergordon, a very thriving village on the Ross-shire side of the Cromarty Firth, midway between Tain and Dingwall. It has an excellent harbour and new piers, from which it is intended to have a steam ferry to some point of junction with the railway on the Morayshire coast. The western coast is also connected with Glasgow by an admirable steam service. The effect of these facilities in raising the value of property in the northern counties may easily be imagined.

There are no important manufactures of any kind in the county, but a large proportion of the inhabitants are employed in fishing. The following table exhibits the number and tonnage of the boats, and the number of persons employed in connection with the fishery in the several districts of the county in the year 1856:

| Districts | Boats | Crews | Other persons employed | |-----------|-------|------|------------------------| | Loch Carron | 325 | 3001 | 3022 | | Loch Shildag | 310 | 1490 | 1088 | | Loch Broom | 264 | 2763 | 2216 | | Stormoway | 568 | 5856 | 237 | | Cromarty | 279 | 2167 | 917 | | **Total** | **2547** | **15,237** | **9499** |

In the same year the number of barrels of herring caught, cured, and exported in the several districts, was:

| Districts | Caught, but not cured | Cured | Exported | |-----------|----------------------|------|----------| | Loch Carron | 8500 | 5517 | 1235 | | Loch Shildag | 1670 | 2478 | ... | | Loch Broom | 390 | 296 | ... | | Stormoway | 2046 | 26,769 | 15,451 | | Cromarty | 550 | 10,203 | 9524 | | **Total** | **13,156** | **47,201** | **26,209** |

The number of barrels of cod, ling, and hake caught, cured, and exported in the same year is exhibited in the following table:

| Districts | Caught, but not cured | Cured | Exported | |-----------|----------------------|------|----------| | Loch Carron | 3500 | 5370 | ... | | Loch Shildag | 1410 | 1363 | ... | | Loch Broom | 690 | 710 | ... | | Stormoway | 5322 | 17,970 | 800 | | Cromarty | 1400 | 34 | ... | | **Total** | **12,323** | **25,447** | **800** |

In the above tables it must be observed that the column of persons employed comprehends the coopers, labourers, gutters, packers, and those engaged in cleaning and drying the fish. It is also to be noticed that the Loch Carron fishery district includes the Isle of Skye in Inverness-shire. Every kind of fish that frequents the northern seas may be taken on the coasts of Ross and Cromarty, particularly on those of the island of Lewis. The Broad Bay flounder of Stormoway is the finest in the world. The saithe is much more delicate than the whiting. The haddock is remarkably good on the east coast, and is a great branch of trade in its cured or smoked state. Turbot, lobsters, and even wilks, are now also exported to London.

The burghs of Cromarty, Dingwall, and Tain, along with Dornoch, Wick, and Kirkwall, return a member to Parliament. Fortrose and Rosemarkie, two small adjacent towns included in one burgh, return a member along with Inverness, Nairn, and Forres. Besides these burghs, the united county has several villages or small towns in it, such as Invergordon, Alness, Evantown, Portmahomack, Conon, Shieldaig, Dornie, Plocktown, Jeantown, and Ullapool.

Ross-shire is divided into 33 parishes, of which 29 are on the mainland and 4 in the island of Lewis. The whole number of places of worship, according to the census of 1851, was 75, with 44,644 sittings. Of the former, 27 belonged to the Established Church, 40 to the Free Church, 3 to the Episcopalians, 2 to the United Presbyterians, and one each to the Independents, Baptists, and Roman Catholics. At the same period the county contained 148 public and 19 private schools, the former attended by 9379 and the latter by 600 scholars; 70 Sunday-schools, with 5243 scholars, and one evening school with 22.

In Ross and Cromarty there are many ancient and curious remains. In the parish of Nigg, the site of the castle of Dunskeith, built by William the Lion in the year 1179, is still to be distinguished. At Shandwick is the Clach-a-Charridh, or the "Stone of the Burial-place," an obelisk covered on all sides with curious Runic sculptures. There is a similar though smaller stone in the church-yard of Nigg. It originally stood near the gate, but it was thrown down by the fall of a belfry in 1725, and it is now fixed to the eastern gable. These obelisks or crosses are supposed to be of Scandinavian origin. Craigchenichenan, or the Rock of Lamentation, in the parish of Kincardine, marks the place where the Marquis of Montrose was defeated by Colonel Strachan, after which he swam across the Kyle, and lay concealed in Assynt until apprehended and sent prisoner to Inverness. The abbey and castle of Lochslin, in the parish of Pearn, are remarkable. Of the former, the chancel nave and two side chapels still remain, though greatly dilapidated. The castle of Lochslin is supposed to be more than five centuries old. It stands on an eminence about 4 miles to the eastward of Tain, but it is now very much gone. The castle of Cadboll, of which little remains, is supposed to be yet more ancient than that of Lochslin. Balone castle, in the parish of Tarbat, is also a very fine ruin. Near Ob-Inag, in the parish of Glenshiel, is to be found a fine specimen of what has been called the Pictish Tower. At Dingwall are the remains of the ancient castle of the earls of Ross. The hill of Knockiaril, in the parish of Foddery, is crowned with one of those curious and puzzling morsels of antiquity usually known by the name of vitrified forts. There are many ancient single stones, and circles of stones, and cairns, in different parts of Ross and Cromarty, and many interesting antiquities have been discovered at various places in the county.

The principal seats of noblemen and gentlemen in Ross-shire are Brahan Castle, belonging to Mrs Stewart Mackenzie of Seaforth; Belmaduthy House, to Sir Evan Mackenzie of Kilcoy; Flowerdale and Conon, to Sir Kenneth-Smith Mackenzie of Gairloch; Coul, to Sir William Mackenzie; Rosehaugh, to Sir J. J. Randell Mackenzie of Seatwell; Fonlis Castle, to Sir Charles Munro of Fonlis; Balnagowan, to Sir Charles Ross; Redcastle, to Henry James Baillie, Esq.; Stormoway Castle, to Sir James Matheson of Lewis and Achany; Ardross Castle, to Alexander Matheson, Esq.; Geamies House, to W. H. Murray, Esq.; besides Tarbat House, in Cromarty, belonging to the Marquis of Stafford. The two counties of Ross and Cromarty form one sherifdom, and return one member to Parliament. Pop. (1801) 56,318; (1811) 60,853; (1821) 68,762; (1831) 74,820; (1841) 78,685; (1851) 82,707.