famous hard walk. This morning I came on here by the Queen's private road
through Balmoral and Invercauld. The scenery is wonderfully beautiful; and,
if it were not for my love of the sea, I should admit that Braemar is the
finest thing in Scotland. I have been up the glen this afternoon, past Mar
Lodge, to the Linn of Dee--a fine cascade through rocks; the water is so
clear that you can see the rocks under it, and wild blasted pines growing
all round. I was sorry to leave Birk Hall. The Clarks are admirable hosts,
and made their house most agreeable.... You will have lamented, as I do,
the untimely cutting off of our poor friend, the late Lord High--I mean
Ward. [Footnote: See _ante_, vol. i. p. 314.] There seems to be a fatality
about Madras. _Somme toute_, the more I see of the chances of life, the
more I am persuaded that, as my lot has been cast on such small but easy
cushions, I ought to be perfectly content.

The Queen came back on Wednesday night in high glee with her lark over the
hills to Grantown. [Footnote: The Queen's account of this 'lark over the
hills' is in _Leaves from the Journal of Our Life in the Highlands_ (8vo.
1868), pp. 189-203.] They slept at a very little Highland inn, and were
waited on by the maid only. The beds were awful, for they could not stand
the feather bed, and, that being thrown aside, nothing soft remained
beneath. General Grey found it so hard that he got up and put on his
clothes to lie in. However, they were in high glee, and were not found out
till they went away in the morning, when the man of the house said, 'Gin
I'd known it was the Queen, I'd hae put on my Sunday claiths and waited on
her mysel'.' They gave the Highland lassie a 5 L. note, at which she nearly
fainted.

I hope by this time to-morrow I shall be at Keir. I am here at a little
Highland inn for to-night, but not so ill off as H. M. I shall have to post
to Blairgowrie to-morrow to get there in time for the train.