Sir

I had the honour of your Letter on ^my Arrival in Kilmuir, inclosing Another from Mr Archibald Macdonald to Whom I ow a great deal of Respect. Had I come home two days Sooner I would have the pleasure of Over takeing you near My Place and would have tryed to prevail with you to Stop a Litle to Survey further, the face of this Countrey, where you wou'd meet with some Natural Curiosities, the dismal dwellings of the first Inhabitants, Caves or Subterraneous houses, Several Danish Edifices, Many Inclosures of Different Forms, wh had been consecrated to Druidical Worship And Many More Christian Chapels where Service was performed by the Monks of the Monastery in My Neighbourhood on Columba's Lake, the only one in the Island. You woud be the only proper Judge how far Any of these things deserved Any Regard or how far they were connected with your Design; I woud however have attempted to Write you something if I had not been some how Employed in a More disagreeable Way. In the Mean time, I would Chuse to know, whether you have picked up in your Travels or whether your own Countrey may not Afford the Elf-arrow or the Elf-spade, so Called; both of the flint kind of Stone. The former was surely the Point of An Arrow As the Later seems to have been Used in Smoothing Stone or Timber. I have Also found a stone in a Druid's house which from that Circumstance I conceive Might have been Used in their Sacrifice Operations for it is very Sharp at the broad End, Smooth And Oblong at the Other which was the handle. I take it that before the Discovery of Mettals our Ancestors were Under a Necessity of Useing some such tools from any hard stuff that offered itself. Superstitions And prejudice might Also give them an Immaginary Sanctity or value that would preserve them After better Materials⁺ⁱ¹ were discovered. In fact, Some of the Ignorant Farmers Amongst Us applyed these stones to the Cure of Some diseases when the help of man failed. And Whoever had the Arrow About him woud never be Elf-shot for Whoever dyed of an Apoplexy whether Man or beast was Supposed to be shot by the Fairies; which are Vulgar Errors that can be accounted for without Much difficulty from the Beliefs which prevailed in former Ages. If you have Any Taste for these stones I will take the first Occasion to Convey them to Mr William Macdonald writer to the Signet Edin^r..

I will write some kind of answer to Your Printed Papper

I am with Much Esteem Sir
Your Very Obedient and humble Servant

Don: Macqueen

Kilmuir Oct. 29^th
1772.

If you are pleased to write direct for Me ––––– Minister in Sky
by Sconsar.

M^r Macquin
oct. 29 1772.

4

M^r M^cQueen

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Editorial notes

1. A reference to a tool used in Biblical verse: 'Then Zipporah took a sharp stone, and cut off the foreskin of her son, and cast it at his feet, and said, Surely a bloody husband art thou to me.'