A Child of the Glens

of the traveller, like a white boundary line between cliffand wave. You wonder at first if the road was made merely to gladdenthe tourist, for it does not seem likely that there could be muchtraffic other than that of pleasure-seekers thus along the margin ofthe sea. The configuration of this part of the County Antrim, however,explains the position of the road, and justifies the engineer who wasso happily enabled to combine the utilitarian with the romantic. Aseries of deep cut gorges, locally known as "The Glens," intersect thecountry, running at right angles to the coast-line and thus forming asuccession of gigantic ridges, over which it would be impossible todrive a road. For this reason it has been found necessary to windround the mouths of these romantic valleys, which are guarded and shutoff from each other by a number of formidable and noble headlands,foremost among which ranks the beautiful Garron Point. Thus asuccession of surprises await the tourist. Having fairly made your waybetween the foot of the towering cliff and the inflowing tide, with noprospect in front but huge and grotesque-shaped rocks, which look benton opposing all further advance, you suddenly find that you havedoubled the point. A blue bay opens before you, shut in at its fartherside by the next promontory, at the base of which you can distinctlytrace the white streak of dusty road, that sweeps round the bay in agraceful semicircle. To your left--or while you are speaking, almostdirectly ahead--is the wide opening of one of the "Glens"--sweet,retired abodes of peace, sheltered and happy as they look out foreveron the sea. The barren and rocky highlands, terminated by the wildbluffs that so courageously plunge themselves into the waves, becomegradually softened and verdure-clad as they slope downward, while thenarrow valley itself is studded with trees and pretty homesteads.