Mountaineering In Scotland, by W. H. Murray. 8vo., xii, 252 pp., 31 photographic illustrations, 5 maps. New York, 1948: The Macmillan Company. Price, $4.50.

None of the Scottish mountains rises much above 4000 feet, and their average elevation is considerably less; there are certainly a dozen summits in our Appalachians that top the loftiest of them by a thousand feet and more. But they are unmistakably mountains from the climber’s point of view; their precipitous slopes and serrated ridges afford an endless variety of routes to test the accredited expert’s skill and mettle. Such are the routes, followed in summer and in winter, with which Mr. Murray is concerned, and the American climber whose home is east of the Rockies may well envy his British cousin their easy accessibility. Mr. Murray’s descriptions are detailed and lively; his is primarily a book for climbers, for great attention is paid to technical matters, to the means employed to overcome the formidable obstacles which the Scottish mountains present at all seasons, but most especially in winter, when snow and ice add Alpine, even Himalayan, complications to routes difficult enough under the summer conditions. The excellent photographic illustrations greatly reinforce the interest of the text.