I had recollections, too, of fair and fertile holms,
or level plains, extending between the wooded
banks and the bold stream of the Clyde, which,
coloured like pure amber, or rather having the hue
of the pebbles called Cairngorm, rushes over sheets
of rock and beds of gravel, inspiring a species of
awe from the few and faithless fords which it presents,
and the frequency of fatal accidents, now
diminished by the number of bridges. These
alluvial holms were frequently bordered by triple
and quadruple rows of large trees, which gracefully
marked their boundary, and dipped their long arms
into the foaming stream of the river. Other places
I remembered, which had been described by the old
huntsman as the lodge of tremendous wild-cats, or
the spot where tradition stated the mighty stag to
have been brought to bay, or where heroes, whose
might was now as much forgotten, were said to
have been slain by surprise, or in battle.
It is not to be supposed that these finished landscapes
became visible before the eyes of my imagination,
as the scenery of the stage is disclosed
by the rising of the curtain. I have said, that I
had looked upon the country around me, during
the hurried and dissipated period of my life, with
the eyes indeed of my body, but without those of
my understanding.
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