Sutherland and Caithness in Saga-time. By James Gray. (Edinburgh. Oliver
and Boyd. 108. 6d. net.) This unpretentious essay, well equipped with notes, gives an interesting account of the Norse rule in Northern Scotland between the eighth and thirteenth centuries—an obscure but important episode which most Scottish historians have been inclined to ignore. The Sagas, especially that of Orkney, are highly picturesque and dramatic ; it does not follow, as has too often been assumed, that they are therefore less truthful than the dull entries in monastic annals, whether Latin or Irish. Mr. Gray condenses the Saga-narratives and shows how usefully they supplement the received history of Central and Southern Scotland. The political dominion of the Norsemen ceased in the thirteenth century, but their influence on the people of the far north may still be traced in language, habits and character. The blend of Norseman and Gad, as the author says, made a fine race.
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