ascent of the latter. At last came an obstacle somewhat more formidable than any we had previously encountered. Solly recognised the place and believed it to be known as the "Mauvais Pas" of this particular ridge. He had negotiated it once before, and although the conditions on the present occasion were not altogether favourable, for the hot sun was melting the snow above and making the rocks most needed for hand and foot holds wet and slippery, he still hungered to surmount the difficulty. Doubtless he would have done so, if my hunger had not been so overbearing and overwhelmingly absorbing on physiological more than on physical grounds. We therefore sat down to lunch with our backs to the buttress and with Loch Coir a Ghrunnda below us placidly nestling in the amphitheatre formed by the surrounding mountains. How beautiful it was, with the dazzling whiteness of the snow in the clear sunlight, recalling more a day in the Alps than one on the Scottish hills. The snow which had fallen somewhat abundantly on preceding days had formed large fields, and what in the summer are long and rugged slopes of scree and broken rock, were now evenly coated with snow. It was easy to linger here and lazily scan the many beauties of the surrounding scenery, ever changing in sunlight and shadow. It was easy, too, in the silence that seemed to pervade all things to let one's thoughts ramble restfully on memories that such scenes are wont to awaken. But why, oh, why, will Solly keep looking round at that ten feet of vertical rock that bars our progress upward? "It overhangs," say I. “It's sloping in the wrong direction,” again I venture. "If I give you a shoulder you'll poke me into eternity or at any rate into Corrie Ghrunnda." At last I tried another tack, and suggested a seductive-looking glissade with the ascent of Sgurr nan Eag; and in order to add force to my proposal and create diversion by my absence, I started off sliding down rapidly about 300 feet, and then commencing an easy traverse towards the bealach between Alasdair and Sgurr Dubh na Dabheinn. There was no sign of Solly. Should I after all see him victorious on the top of Alasdair? Soon, however, I heard shouts behind, and looking towards our resting-place, found he had

XLVIII. B

torn himself away from the " Mauvais Pas" and was quickly following in my track. When we did join, it was no small source of satisfaction to me to learn, that instead of receiving his imprecations for throwing up the sponge, he owned that, considering the conditions, it was wise not to have attempted to force a passage. As Sgurr Dubh looked more attractive than Sgurr nan Eag, we made for it, and soon were on the summit. So easily and so rapidly was this peak gained that we at once decided to tackle Sgurr Dubh Mhor. Here again we encountered nothing that could be called difficult. Difficulties there may be and probably are in summer, but on this propitious day snow had graciously filled up for us many an ugly gap, and what otherwise might have taken minutes to negotiate, was now passed over in a few seconds.

Here we were basking in the sun on the summit of Sgurr Dubh. We had both wanted to do the Dubhs, but our most sanguine expectation would never have led us to anticipate such an easy and delightful accomplishment. We had been told that it meant a long day, and doubtless under other conditions than those which favoured us, it would be so. As it was, we had only taken a comparatively short time to pass from Sgumain to the tops of two out of the three Dubhs. What a view point was that summit of Sgurr Dubh Mhor! Look north, east, south, or west, and up there crops at each point of the compass a series of rugged pinnacles-the summits of known peaks or the jagged projections of unnamed ridges. Had we been bent on making a record bag of peaks in one day, we could easily have accomplished it. Sgurr nan Eag, Sgurr a Coire Bheag, and Gars-Bheinn would very quickly have succumbed to our attacks. Life, however, seemed almost more enjoyable on its passive than on its active side. To loiter and look and get indelibly impressed on the mind the lights and shades, the dazzling whiteness of the sun-smitten snow, the many-shaped peaks and pinnacles that broke the skyline both far and near-these it seemed to my then sentimentally disposed nervous system dearer and more to be enjoyed than the hours we might have spent in attempting to negotiate that pseudo-inaccessible

obstruction on Sgurr Alasdair. What were the thoughts which occupied Solly's mind, I knew not. That the strings of his heart did not altogether vibrate to the same tender strains as mine I had some reason to believe; not that I wish to imply he felt no soul-stirring emotions in the sight or contemplation of the beauties around, but occasionally the silence was broken by some such interjection as the following:-" The finger-tips of the right hand ought to have got a grip on the left-hand ledge of the upper projecting slab, while the toes of the left foot got a hold in a notch of the greenish bit of rock that stuck out from the overhanging blocks to the left of the ridge." "Exactly," said I, "but look at those wandering shadows chasing each other across the corrie below us. See, yonder lies Rum, Eigg, and Canna, and there, too, are the outer Hebrides."

We at last talked of going home to tea, and the thought, alas, fired our energies to consider the easiest and quickest way to accomplish that end. A long snow traverse around the north side of Coir a Ghrunnda brought us to the bealach between Sgurr Sgumain and Sgurr Alasdair. Here we descended into Coire Labain, and soon had all the poetry shaken out of our sentiments by the broken rugged masses of rock over which we had to scramble. But our joys were yet once again to be awakened by the sight of little purple patches of Saxafraga oppositifolia in full bloom. It was a pleasing contrast, this bit of brilliant colouring set in amidst the cold grey of the surrounding scree, and again carried our thoughts for the moment back to the Alps. It was not long ere we reached the moor and found ourselves rapidly approaching our destination and our tea! Nine and a half hours saw us again at the keeper's cottage, and what a time it had been. Nothing exciting to relate, no tons of rocks slipping between our legs, no hairbreadth escapes, nothing to gasp at or tremble over, but only the simple record of a heavenly day on the hills.

THE CROWBERRY RIDGE OF BUCHAILLE ETIVE MOR.

BY JAMES MACLAY.

IF he who makes two ears of corn grow where one grew before is to be accounted a benefactor of humanity, in like manner he who finds a route possible for twenty parties, where before only one of them could go, may perhaps claim to be held in esteem among climbers. The object of this paper is, however, a humbler one than this. It is not to describe a new route, but merely to indicate how the grand climb which the Crowberry Ridge affords may be enjoyed by any party of competent climbing capacity, instead of being reserved for an occasional one of exceptional skill and boldness.

The Crowberry Ridge is undoubtedly the finest ridge on Buchaille Etive Mor. Its precipitous south-west face makes it a most imposing spectacle from below, and its length and steepness make it a fascinating climb. The Tower which forms its upper extremity was ascended by Dr Collie's party in their well-known pioneer climb. The Ridge itself was first attacked by Naismith and Douglas, who, however, skirted the lower part of it on the north or right by ascending the gully alongside, and got upon the face of the Ridge about half way up. Then came the first climb right up the face by Mr G. D. Abraham's party. After careful prospecting and discovery of the route to be described in this paper, Mr Abraham eventually succeeded in forcing a direct route up the face by a traverse followed by a difficult and sensational climb up smooth rocks beyond. This passage is described by Mr Raeburn, the leader of the only party who have repeated this part of the climb, as one of the most difficult climbs yet done in Scotland. It involves certain disaster to the leader should he slip, and is, in the opinion of the writer, at least on the verge of the unjustifiable even for the very best climber. It is certainly out of the question for the great majority of parties. It is the writer's desire in this paper to show that