Beverly banner. [volume] (Beverly, N.J.) 1877-1964, 1924-06-20

remains Of a circle of similar stones.
not quite so large as the Watch Stone,
In the midst of which is a rude table.
or altar, made Of three short stones
standing on end, and ~surmounted by a
large fat stone or slab. This Is the
Ring Of Stenness. or the Circle of the
Moon.
Across the bridge, a quarter Of a
mile away, Is a larger group, properly
designated as the Ring of Brogar, but
commonly known as the Circle Of the
Sun. 1t is about 100 yards in diam
eter and was surrounded by a fosse or
trench atsleast six feet deep, the out
lines Of which are distinctly traceable.
The stones of this large circle are
from s to 16 feet high; one is from
8 to 6 feet wide, and all are crude
and irregular in shape.
Fifteen remain standing, although
the group originally contained 80 or
40. They have a strange, shaggy COW
ering Of unusually long lichens, like
an ancient sheep whose coat has be-
come scraggly with 6 and exposure
to the weather.
North of the Ring of Stenness was
the famous Stone of Odin, which diff
fered from the others chiefly in having
a hole through II. The Stone Of Odin
was visited by Sir Walter Scott In
1914, and he made a romantic use of 1t
IN "The Pirate" In the same year a
ne~ighborfng farmer broke 1t up, with
several other stones from the Ring
Of Stenness, to build q foundation for
his cow-house for which act of van
dalism he was boycotted and driven
out Of the country.
There is nothing about the stones
themselves that Is wonderful. Any
body could erect similar circles with
modern appliances. But these monu-
ments were here when the Norsemen
landed and were probably at least
three centuries old even then. They
have stood for 1,4OO years. They were
doubtless quarried with stone imple-
ments and set in place by the exertion
Of sheer brute force. Their history
is shrouded in obscurity, their very
purpose a mere conjecture. They are
a part of the mystery of the Islands.
Lerwick, shetland's Capital.
No mention has been made so far of
the largest and most commercial city
Of the archipelago, because its impor-
lance Is entirely modern and its place
In history small. This Is Lerwick,
| the capital Of Shetland. 1t is far more
picturesque. as well as more imposing,
than its southern rival, Kirkwall. 1t
is the center of a vast fishing industry,
and from Saturday to Monday, in the
season, its harbor is crowded with
"steam-drifters" the modern style of
fishing-boats which now control the
herring industry.
Lerwick Is on high ground. with a
road running along the shore, as at
Stromness. It is a narrow street,
though wide enough for vehicles to
pass. and much buster than the streets
of Kirkwall. Narrow lanes, for pedes-
TRANS only, lead off the main thor
oughfare up the slope of the hill, and
these are %curiously provided with
ropes along the buildings to prevent
slipping IN Icy weather.
The city has a large fish market,
where the boats dispose of their catch
by auction. a handsome town hall, and
many substantially built churches and
| dwellings.
Shetland It must be remembered,
lies north of the Goth parallel. Trace
the line around the globe and 1t will
be seer that 1t touches Greenland,
passes above the northernmost extrem-
ity of Labrador, goes through the up
per half of Hudson bay, skirts the
shore Of Alaska. and ~traverses the
dreary wastes of Siberia.
But the climate of the islands is so
modified by the sea that they are
neither excessively coldlin winter nor
warm In summer. AN strong wind
blows across them most of the time,
and this has interfered with vegeta-
ton to such an extent that few trees
are to be found. The thland scenery
is, therefore. not attractive, but the
rugged outlines of the boast, cut up
by the action of the sea ipto numerous
inlefk or woes. and carve into fantas-
tic Racks and ''castlls.H like the
Old an OF Hoy, have w beauty
OF thp r own.