On an inn-window at Tarbet, in Dunbartonshire, is perhaps the longest
specimen of brittle rhymes ever written. They are signed "Thomas Russell,
Oct. 3, 1771," and extend to thirty-six lines, being a poetical description
of the ascent to Ben Lomond. What would Dr. Watts have said to such a
string of inn-window rhymes!
_Ossian._
The principal curiosity in the environs of Dunkeld is the Cascade of the
Bran at Ossian's Hall, about a mile distant. This hermitage, or
summer-house, is placed on the top of a perpendicular cliff, 40 feet above
the bottom of the fall, and is so constructed, that the stranger, in
approaching the cascade, is entirely ignorant of his vicinity to it. Upon
entering the building is seen a painting, representing Ossian playing on
his harp, and singing to a group of females; beside him is his hunting
spear, bow and quiver, and his dog Bran. This picture suddenly disappears,
and the whole cataract foams at once before you, reflected in several
mirrors, and roaring with the noise of thunder. A spectacle more striking
it is hardly possible to conceive. The stream is compressed within a small
space, and at the bottom of the fall has hollowed out a deep abyss, in
which its waters are driven round with great velocity.
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