HARRIS, a parish, in the county of Inverness, 44
miles (N. W.) from Portree; containing, with the islands
of Bernera, Ensay, Hermitray, Killigray, Pabbay, Sealpay,
Scarp, and Tarrinsay , 4429 inhabitants. The parish
of Harris was till lately called Kilbride; its present
name is corrupted from the Gaehc term na hardibh, signifying
" the heights ", this district being the highest and
most mountainous of any in the large Hebridean island
of Lewis. It consists chiefly of the southern part of
that island, separated from the northern portion by an
isthmus about six miles across, formed by the approach
to each other of the two great harbours. Loch Resort
and Loch Seaforth. The Atlantic Ocean bounds it on
the west; on the east is the Minch, which separates it
from the Isle of Skye; and on the south is the channel
generally called the Sound of Harris, but sometimes
Caolas Uist, or the Sound of Uist, lying between Harris
and the islands of Bernera and North Uist. The parish
is fifty^miles in length, varies in breadth from eight to
twenty-four miles, and comprises an area of upwards of
118,000 acres, of which about 107,000 are moor and
pasture, 1000 subject to tillage by the plough and "'tOO
by the spade, 400 under plantations, and the remainder
sand and rock. The shore on the west is in some parts
sandy, and in others strongly marked by precipitous
rocks; the eastern coast is broken with many harbours,
bays, and creeks. At a small distance on the west are
the inhabited islands of Tarrinsay and Scarp; on the
east side is the inhabited isle of Scalpay; and in the
Sound of Harris, a channel about nine miles in breadth,
affording a communication for vessels between the Minch
and the Atlantic, are the inhabited islands of Bernera,
Pabbay, Ensay, and Killigray; with many smaller ones,
uninhabited, and entirely appropriated to pasturage. The
coasts abound with oysters and lobsters, and several
boats are engaged in taking the latter: the sun-fish,
also, is sometimes taken in the summer months, with the
harpoon; and in the island of Gaasker, seals are killed
in large numbers with clubs.
The mainland of the parish is divided into two distinct
portions by an isthmus about a quarter of a mile in
breadth, formed by an arm of the sea on each side,
respectively called East and West Loch Tarbert. The
northern district is prominently intersected by part of a
range of mountains running longitudinally throughout
the parish, and which attain an elevation of from 2000
to 3000 feet above the level of the sea. This portion is
traversed by large herds of deer, which range among the
hills and glens; and, though destitute of wood, is called
the Forest, having at one time, as is supposed, been a
royal forest. The surface of the southern portion of the
parish is similar in appearance to that of the former,
but marked by more moderate elevations: grouse, wildgeese,
plover, and pigeons are numerous on the moors
and lower grounds; and the eagle is a visitant of some
of the most lofty rocks. There are fresh-water lakes
and rivulets in the parish in every direction; the waters
of Lacksta, Scurt, and Obbe abound with salmon and
trout. Harris is chiefly pastoral, only a very small
portion, on account of the intractable nature of the
ground, being capable of the regular operations of husbandry.
The soil of a large part of the land in cultivation
is very poor; and several of the best farms, formerly
possessed by small tenants, have been consolidated,
and converted into sheep-walks. The crops consist
principally of oats, barley, and potatoes; the lise stock
are mostly black-cattle and Cheviot sheep, to the breed
of which particular attention is paid. The small tenants
occupy cottages of unhewn stone, cemented with clay,
and covered with straw thatch, the one building in some
instances serving for the family and the cows and horses.
On all the larger farms are steadings of a superior order.
Here is a shooting-seat belonging to the Earl of Dunmore,
who is proprietor of the parish, the annucd value
of real property in which is £4015.
About 250 families are engaged during the summer
months in the manufacture of kelp, 600 tons of which
are annually prepared: attempts were made by the late
proprietor to establish fishing-stations in several parts
of the parish, but they all proved unsuccessful. The
harbour of Scalpay, on the eastern coast, is much frequented
by foreign ships; and the numerous bays and
creeks are convenient places of resort for small craft.
Kelp, and wool and other country produce, are sent off
by sea to market; and the lobsters taken here are regularly
sent by smacks to London. A packet runs twice
a week in summer, and once a week in winter, between
Tarbert, in Harris, and Uig, in the Isle of Skye. An
annual fair is held at Tarbert, in July, for the sale of
cattle and horses; the sheep graziers send their stock to
the Falkirk tryst. Ecclesiastically the parish is in the
presbytery of Uist, synod of Glenelg, and in the patronage
of the Earl of Dunmore: the minister's stipend is
£158. 6. 8., of which nearly two-thirds are received
from the exchequer; with a manse, and a glebe valued at
£45 per annum. A new church with 400 sittings has
been lately built, the old edifice, accommodating only
250 persons, having become too ruinous for public worship.
At Bernera is a government church, erected in
1829, to which a district is attached consisting of the
islands adjacent to Bernera belonging to the parish. A
missionary is supported at Tarbert by the Royal Bounty;
the church and manse were provided by A. N. Macleod,
Esq., the late proprietor, and the Earl of Dunmore has
granted an excellent glebe to the missionary. His lordship,
also, secures to the parish the services of a surgeon,
who, in addition to his fees from the people, receives
from Lord Dunmore a salary of about £70 a year. The
parochial school affords instruction in Latin, in addition
to the ordinary branches; the master has a salary of
£30, with a house, and about £6 fees. Other schools
are supported, and at Tarbert is a school maintained by
the Education Committee of the General Assembly. The
chief relic of antiquity is the ruin of a church at Rodil,
once attached to the priory of St. Clement's, and, until
it became too much dilapidated, used as the parochial
place of worship.