The circular towers, which are numerous, appear to have been sometimes placed singly, as that of Dunalis kaig, on the Dornoch Firth in Ross-shire; sometimes one large tower is found, encompassed by two or three small er ones placed about 5 or 6 paces from the large one, and from each other, as Dun Dornadilla, near Tongue in Sutherland ; and sometimes several large towers are found situated at a considerable distance from each other in the same district, as in Glen Elg in Inverness shire.
With regard to the latter, we have been enabled to give the following account of their present state, by the kindness of Mr John Mitchell, the general inspector of the parliamentary roads now carrying on in the north of Scotland, who has been so obliging as to examine and measure them at our request. Glen Elg is the name of a considerable district in the Mainland, lying opposite the south-eastern parts of the isle of Skye, from which it is only divided by a narrow arm of the sea. It consists chiefly of two valleys or glens, that is to say, Glen More or the great glen, and Glen Beg or the little glen. Both of these face towards the isle of Skye. Four of the round towers stand in Glen Beg, and they are all situa ted on the north-east side of its river. The first stands about a mile and a half from the sea shore, upon the west shoulder of the ridge which separates the two glens : it is considerably elevated above the bottom of the valley, and commands a view of the narrow part of the strait call ed Kyle Rhea, and also a considerable portion of the southern end of the isle of Skye towards the island and bay of Oronsay. This tower has been totally demolished ; a circle of loose stones only distinguishes its site; they are generally large, and naturally well shaped. From this a second tower is Ken, at the distance of about half a mile from the former. It stands upon a piece of flat ground close by the side of the river. It is of a circular form, and the external circumference is 178 feet. Of this, 112 feet appear above the surface of the ground, only sufficient to skew the thickness of the wall to be 10 feet ; but 66 feet of the north-east quarter is still 26 feet high. This part is 10 feet thick at the foundation, and 4 feet at the top. Near the western extremity of the part which is standing, but on the northern part of the gene ral circle, there is an entrance doorway 6 feet high, and 3 feet 6 inches wide. The bottom of this doorway is a little below the present surface on the outside, but on the same level with the surface within the tower. On enter ing this doorway, there is an entrance to a passage nearly in the middle of the wall, which is 5 feet 9 inches high, and 2 feet 8 inches wide at the bottom, and from 12 to 20 inches at the top, which is lintelled with flat stones. There is no other opening but the aforesaid doorway in this standing part, The diffenence between the top and bottom thickness of the wall is all taken off the outside by a concave batter, resembling that of the Eddystone light-house, the inside surface of the wall being nearly perpendicular. Nearly in the middle of the wall, there are four heights of passages over each other. The lower one is ascended from the doorway, by a few steps and an inclined plane to the height of about five feet. The pas sage, as has already been observed, is abot!t. 5 feet 9 inches high, and 2 feet 8 inches wide, and is lintelled with thin flat stones. The upper passages are from 3 to 4 feet high, and 12 to 20 inches wide. Within the tower, immediately over the doorway, there are seven small openings perpendicularly over each other, and on ly separated from each other by thin flag stones, which also alternately form the divisions between the passages.
The lowest of these openings are each about 20 inches square, the uppermost 18 inches square. Near the other extremity of the standing part, there is another range of openings exactly similar to those already mentioned ; and half way between them, there are two openings of about the same size, and on a level with the uppermost of the said ranges. On a level with the top of these open ings, a course of thin flag stones project from six to eight inches all along the part of the wall which now re mains. The external face of the tower is composed of stones naturally well shaped, laid in a very close and regular manner. For about six feet in height, the stones are rather of a larger size than those above them, but all are equally well laid. In the interior surface of the tower they are also well laid, but not quite so perfectly as in the external surface. In the passages the surfaces are more irregular ; but in no place is there any appearance of any sort of mortar, or the use of hammer, or other instrument. From this second tower there is seen, at the distance of about 600 yards, a third, standing in the bo som of the hill about 400 yards from the river, and on ground elevated about 30 feet above it. It is of a circular form ; the external circumference is 165 feet. Of this, feet of the eastern quarter is 21 feet in height, the wall is 12 feet thick at the bottom, and 6 at the top. The re maining 84 feet of the circumference is about 12 feet high on the lower side, but owing to the steep declivity of the ground, the top of this part rises only to the level of the surface of the ground on the upper side. There is no entrance visible on the outside of what now remains. Nearly in the middle of the wall, there are three stories of passages divided from each other by thin flags ; they are each four feet in width, and from 3 to 3 feet 6 inches in height. The bottom of the lowest passage is about 7 feet above the surface of the ground. There is in the part now standing, five openings similar to those de scribed in No. 2. They are each from 2 feet to 18 inches square ; the external surface is built with a straight bat ter; the internal nearly perpendicular ; the masonry is composed of stones rather larger than the former, not of so good a quality, but quite as regularly laid. The whole of the interior surface of this tower appears as if it had been injured by the fire. From this third tower, at about a mile and a half still further up the glen, a fourth tower is situated upon a bold point of rock, close to and about 120 feet above the river. This is of an oval shape. Its interior diameter is in one direction 53 feet, in the other 38 feet. In the southern quartet', there is from 6 to 12 feet standing above the general surface of the rock, all the rest is demolished. In some parts, the stones arc lying about the foundation; in others, part of the rock has given way; and, with the stones of the building fallen down into the river, the thickness of the part now remaining is 12 feet. On the north-east side, there is a doors ay- 3 feet in width, and the height is from 5 to 6 feet. At one place in the southern quarter, there is a passage 7, feet wide, and 3 feet high, The external surface of the part now standing is built of well-shaped stones, regularly laid, but not of a large size. From this tower, that which we have named No. 3, is seen, but none of the others, and it is from No. 1. only that there is a view of the sea. There is also another of these sort of towers upon the shores of Loch Duich, standing upon a rocky eminence immediately above Tuteg ferry; and it is said the remains of others may still be traced in Glen Elg, but we have not received any authentic account of them.