The British Press; or, Morning Literary Advertiser.
London, England, 1824-11-27 00:00:00

THE SHETLAND ISLANDS.

TO THE EDITOR OF THE BRITISH PRESS.
Sta—The Shetland Islands, though capable of brine
made productive of far greater advantages to our commen;
as well as much greater wealth to individual speesdaso4
than they have ever hitherto been, have never yet had three
advantages at all explored, nor the sources of wealth which
they contain at all appreciated. The people of Eng'ilid
are, for the most part. as utterly ignorant of Ouse
as if they were in Kentucky or Kamschatka. pree
no details of any consequence, or of any accuracy, rdc,
to them. The limits of your papt r will not, lam aware°
permit me to enter into any lengthened detail, btu I athd
you, et..aprescing them u much at I can, the oh,-erratio,,
which I bad the personal opportunity of making 0,1 sh,„
during the three years ending with the present year, IN
The appearance of Shetland, as you advance towards ~
is not prepossessing, and a nearer approach does not add;
its beauty : you have hills of moderate elevation, ennead
with the brown heath ; and, drawing close in-shore, st,
face of the country has a slight tinge of gibs,
high and low shores alternately, from the high rl4
where the ocean is in continual foaming aurae,
the somewhat low slums where you hear the bass,
rushing of the spray on the stony beach. The
round Shetland, from whatever point the wind 1,1014,
is waging continual warfare with its shores ; and the at..
mense waves, rolling with the full sweep of the 5t e;!„,„
Ocean, carry their huge macs of waters with tt nine ':ta•
deur against the high promontories, while the dashing
carried up the dills in whirlwinds, completely 0v,17..i.,3
the mind with sublimity and awe. In a gale of tine
when the hills are covered with thick fog. and the %vim,
the most dreadful commotion, especially between 1:
Island and Sunburg Head, the situation of the mr'n r s
awful beyond description. On the other band, front
turbulent ocean to the mow!) placid loch, is hot a I
minutes sail, where you anchor in safety, and to which tb.
inhabitants come off is their little skiffs, with fowls,
ter, eggs, stockings, and numberless other articles, Nay
for barter.

Shetland is truly blest with a superabundance title
• finest lochs, sufficient to contain a large fleet, me of
access, and within which vessels ride in the greatest to
It would be a great improvement in the navigation if
Shetland, were the Commissioners of the Northern Lieu
to erect a beacon on the treat side I,f Shetlnnd, where tle
stranger, not being able to weather the land on sae
tack, not knowing the land. and seeing the sea hnak eat
long reef to leeward, is wholly lost ; whereas, if a lean
were erected, and noted in the charts and direction tele,
he would immediately be able to steer boldly for Sta.
bucks Mine, Hones Voe, or for Valley Sound, where lt
would find mast excellent anchorage, completely lane.
locked. A beacon stioukl likewise he erected on thew
side of Shetland, on the Skerries, which would direct th
stranger into Yell Sound, which abounds with safe Incise
age; or into Colgrave Sound, where, as soon as the mewl
has got round the Isle of Hascosca, she is in safe anchorage
Had Shetland the climate of England, or wire it situated
where the Isle of Wight is, it would be an earthly Pats
dice. Even as it is, and with all its disaivantages, Shet-
land is a cluster of fine islands : there are large turner
wastes of very fine improvable land, but which, beingfit
the most part in common, are totally neglected. Tress the
proprietors have tried, which do not thrive; because, tee
stead of planting seedlings from the Scottish or NorinTin
fir, they wish to have nothing less valuable than the oak,
ash, elm, plane-tree, thorn, and suchlike trees, of a
finer climate and a more genial soil. With the scedliegs
of the former, there is not the least doubt but they would
succeed, while in raising the latter sort of timber they at
necessarily fail. Arthur Gifford, Esq. of Busts, has sti
excellent copse of wood, but mostly all of the ash, eke,
plane-tree, and thorn, and there are some other, but (Zee-
anent generally is not much studied. Proprieties ale
have a few ornamental trees, look more to the ocean than
the land—the cod, ling, and tusk fish, is what they look to;
while they find profit here, they are content—the picturesqu •
they leave to nature. The Shetland proprietors, shilosii
Gentlemen of the greatest urbanity, possess a luerer.:
monopoly, and do not fail to ensure the lull bins t•:
By letting their fishery stat ions to tacksmen and factorcley
keep the lower class in a very dependent and eject sea.
Each proprietor has a number of factors, who take chi:!
of the fishing materials, and as merchants furnish the
habitants with what necessaries they may require, the land
is divided into what are called marks, which, in (latter:
places iu the islands, have a different value, according a
the rent that is paid for them, and which they are malted
at: for instance, they have fourpenny, sixpenny, tints
penny, and twelvepenny land; that is, land for which tle
respective prices are given per ,-nark; ninepenny land a
about an English acre, and twelvepenny about a Scetc'e
acre ; but the several values arc only known amongst then:-
selves, and they turn this exclusive knowledge to gaol
account. According to the number of marks of Lind at-
tached to each little township, the tenants furnish so mar
boats' crews, each family having one, two, or three marls—
about an acre and a half or two acres of English measure-
ment; and as the lands are undivided, each eccupies
much cattle pasturage, or free common, as he pleases: the
consequence of which is, that the whole is grazed sit!: a
half-starved race of cattle, sheep, and shelties, cioprins 3
miserable herbage, barely sufficient to Lap them in Isis.-
ence. The tenants pay from 40s. to SOL a-year for their
houses and land ; they receive about four shillings per cat.
for the green fish, froth which, on the settlement of secants.
a part is deducted for boat and lines, and for necessaries ler
the wife and children, which generally absorbs t!,, u!:ele;
and, if the fishing has been unsuccessful, the factor or
jai:Lumen sells the cattle of the poor tenant by auction, fee
the arrear of rent ; and thus their sole reliance for seppert
through a long winter, and every article the poor wretches
have, is taken from them. The Almighty and the roes,—
that is, the creeks or hays, which, penetrating tar into ti
land, intersect the different parishes,—is th, is their 0r..?
resource ; their neighbours tale them in—the roe set:
plies them with sideles (the name given to the fry of fe'e
fish with which their rots abound) and potatoes, and es
the spring the young men proceed to Greenland or Dan,
Straits ; those that have land, to the fishery, and the s,e
men to veir the land (that is, tilling it for the next lee:
spring crop).
-

The higher chases here are opultnt ; p. rs, n s rmy be far•
worth from 40,0001. to 50,0P0/. ; and. wit Lord Iturte
advertised the j; duty (trround-roals) for FAL.. th le,e.
themselves, with the exception of one or two.
up, and thus became freeholders, exenne froet e!:'•''
control, and exercising an authority over is ;ea tlivin
well fitted to demonstrate the ex tjtit of tber
premacy. The middling and lower 0:1,4 srf 110
bi tants of Shetland are an honest induetriee- 4,1
extrt mely penurious and saving, hoarding ev.l7
in the shape of coin that they can obtain. Tie•
this provident disposition was singularly t
time ago when the old coinage was ; titt I u.l4i
credibly informed, being then on the sp.it. t! at the
for the Banks in Edinburgh carried :max
Q 7,0410/. of old silver, which was dopesited as a pree7l-.
against a rainy day, in the chests of these prudent
landers. The nwn are a set of hardy bray, fishermen, 3:
the greater part of them excellent sailors. who st'l,P-
Greatlimd and Davis' Strait ships. Their ti:'!ing-hosts
got from Norway, and arc about from '3t4 :.1311 feet I'"-
and six feet broad. These they call ei.r s ; that tae
carry six men. Their provision is a kite! of rott:11,
oatmeal and barley cake, called buref,.s. f w
eggs, soured milk, called Amen, which 0,,,y keep in SIIL,.
cass, and which is always best after kept for two
three years, it becoming then an acidous spirit, like
Russian or Tartar 10,ilmiss. With this hotudy
and their frail bark they go 30 miles out to eea before the.
go a line. 1 have oft: n SWAMI in-shore with them,
wind, and have been astonished to see with what co.,:ts--;
and dexterity they managed their bolts in a lee-way arn
1 have frequently heard them &dare that they ye"r
feared danger until they came within two miles Of Me
shore, where the tide or the current oee3sioned the ses t'
break. The reason of this is manifest. for their oven
are not fitted f - this desperate encounter with the
menu; and it would be well for hummiitv's sale if
could be enabled to substitute small decked vessels. ci
daily in the spring and autumn of the ye: in a s,w,
fel fishery they Ire from twelve to fourteen poune,!..i...
The women knit StilaitiS, mittens, and ether art,:.e