OBAN  , a municipal and

police burgh and seaport of Argyll-shire, Scotland . Pop . (1901) 5374 . It is situated 113 M . N.W. of Glasgow by the Caledonian railway via Stirling and eallander, and about the same distance by water via the Crinan Canal . The fine bay on which it lies is screened from the Atlantic gales by the island of Kerrera (41- M. long by 2 M. broad), which practically converts it into a land-locked harbour . Being also sheltered from the north and east by the hills at the foot of which it nestles, the town enjoys an exceptionally mild climate for its latitude . The public buildings include the Roman Catholic pro-cathedral, erected by the 3rd marquis of Bute, the county 1 Wellhausen and Nowack regard vv . 8, 9 as a later addition, intended to apply vv . 1-7 to the future; so Marti, who groups with these verses 15a, because of the common reference to " the day of Yahweh." 2 The Judaeans are addressed in v . 16 (" as ye have drunk "), not the Edomites . Verse 20 anticipates that the exiles from northern Israel will occupy Phoenician territory, whilst those from Jerusalem " which are in Sepharad " will occupy the southern districts in the Messianic restoration .

" Sepharad " has been connected with various places, e.g . Saparda in

south-west Media (G . A . Smith), and cparda of Darius in the Behistun inscription (Robertson Smith) ; whilst, according to Winckler (K.A.T.3 p . 301), it is the name, from the Persian period onwards, for Asia Minor . Many of the Jews were doubtless sold as slaves by Nebuchadrezzar . Lydia was a great slave-market, and Asia Minor was a chief seat of the Diaspora at an early date (comp . Gutschmidt, Neue Beitrage, p . 77), so that " Sepharad " in itself does not supply ground for Hitzig's argument that Obadiah was written in the Greek period, when we read of many Jews being transplanted to Asia Minor (Jos . Ant. xii . 3) . buildings and two hospitals .

It is the centre of tourist

traffic for western Argyllshire and the islands . Oban was a small village at the date of Johnson's visit during his Hebridean tour; in 1786 it became a government fishing station; it was made a burgh of barony in 1811 and a parliamentary burgh in 1832 . With Ayr, Campbeltown, Inveraray and Irvine (the Ayr burghs) it unites to send one member to parliament . At the north end of the bay stands the ruin of Dunolly Castle, the old stronghold of the Macdougalls of Lorne, whose modern mansion adjoins it . In the grounds is a huge conglomerate rock called the Dog Stone (Clash-a-chain), from the legend that Fingal used to fasten his favourite dog Bran to it . About 3 M . N.E. are the ruins of Dunstaffnage Castle . It was here that the " Stone of Destiny," now contained in the base of the coronation chair at Westminster Abbey, was kept before its removal to Scone . At the south end of the island of Kerrera stand the ruins of Gylen Castle, an old fortalice of the Macdougalls .