Sir James Macdonald intended to have built a village here, which would
have done great good. A village is like a heart to a country. It
produces a perpetual circulation, and gives the people an opportunity to
make profit of many little articles, which would otherwise be in a good
measure lost. We had here a dinner, _et praeterea nihil_. Dr. Johnson
did not talk. When we were about to depart, we found that Rasay had been
beforehand with us, and that all was paid: I would fain have contested
this matter with him, but seeing him resolved, I declined it. We parted
with cordial embraces from him and worthy Malcolm. In the evening Dr.
Johnson and I remounted our horses, accompanied by Mr. McQueen and Dr.
Macleod. It rained very hard. We rode what they call six miles, upon
Rasay's lands in Sky, to Dr. Macleod's house. On the road Dr. Johnson
appeared to be somewhat out of spirits. When I talked of our meeting
Lord Elibank, he said, 'I cannot be with him much. I long to be again in
civilized life; but can stay but a short while;' (he meant at
Edinburgh.) He said, 'let us go to Dunvegan to-morrow.' 'Yes, (said I,)
if it is not a deluge.' 'At any rate,' he replied. This shewed a kind of
fretful impatience; nor was it to be wondered at, considering our
disagreeable ride. I feared he would give up Mull and Icolmkill, for he
said something of his apprehensions of being detained by bad weather in
going to Mull and _Iona_.
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