/ 
 
 THE LIBRARY 
 
 OF 
 
 THE UNIVERSITY 
 OF CALIFORNIA 
 
 LOS ANGELES 
 
 CUBTlj
 
 RAMBLES 
 
 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 BY A NATURALIST. 
 
 PUBLISHED UNDER THE DIRECTION OF 
 
 THK COMMITTEE OP GENERAL LITERATURE AND EDUCATION, 
 
 APPOINTED BT THE SOCIETY FOR PROMOTING 
 
 CHRISTIAN KNOWLEDGE. 
 
 LONDON: 
 
 FKINTID Kill THK 
 
 SOCIETY FOR PROMOTING CHRISTIAN KNOWLEDGE ; 
 
 SOLD AT THE DEPOSITORT, 
 
 GREAT QUEEN STREET, LINCOLN'S INN FIELDS ; 
 
 4, ROYAL EXCHANGE; 16, HANOVER STREET, HANOVER SQUARE; 
 AND BY ALL BOOKSELLERS.
 
 LONDON: 
 H. CLAY, PRINTER, DREAD STREET HILL.
 
 DA 
 
 sM 
 
 INTRODUCTION. 
 
 THE Writer of the present work, while 
 endeavouring to preserve its scientific accuracy, 
 has not sought to render the volume only 
 of interest to scientific readers. -His object 
 has been to offer a popular survey of the 
 interesting group of Islands to the more 
 accurate knowledge of which his book may 
 serve as an introduction to the general 
 reader. 
 
 This work was never intended to be a mere 
 visitors' handbook, and no attempt to make 
 it such would have been consistent with its 
 general plan. But it will assist the visitor to 
 
 632385
 
 IV INTRODUCTION. 
 
 a better knowledge of the romantic and inte- 
 resting scenery which these Islands present ; 
 and if the natural history of this scenery have 
 any charms for him, he will probably find it 
 a useful, and, it may be hoped, an instructive 
 companion. 
 
 The writer is under obligations to several 
 eminent men of science residing in the Islands, 
 for their assistance in the preparation of portions 
 of the work, and for their careful correction of 
 the sheets in its progress. Among this num- 
 ber he may be permitted to name Dr. S. E. 
 Hoskins, F.K.S., and F. C. Lukis, Esq. F.S.A.
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 PADS 
 
 HISTORICAL OUTLINE 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 THE HOCKS . 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 GEOLOGY AM> MINERALOGY 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 THE BATS . 
 
 . . . . Ifil 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 TUB CAVES lgs 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 THE WATERS 203 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 THK PLAMS ASI> ANIMALS . >-,!
 
 Mil CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 PAGE 
 
 THE Am AND CLIMATE . 310 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 SPECIAL OBJECTS OF INTEREST IN THE ISLANDS . . . 329 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 ANTIQUITIES, LANGUAGE, LAWS AND CUSTOMS .... 352 
 
 APPENDIX . , 375
 
 HARBOUR AT SI. PETER PORT, GUERNSEY. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 HISTORICAL OUTLINE. 
 
 IF we would investigate the early state of 
 the interesting group of islands among which 
 we propose to conduct the reader, we find 
 that our researches can only carry us back to 
 a period about and prior to which all is dark 
 and confused. As in all history, so in that of 
 these small islands, authentic records are only
 
 4 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 of a comparatively recent date. Tradition and 
 fable, and often pure invention, fill up the long 
 interval antecedent to the date of truthful his- 
 tory. It is owing perhaps to their insular 
 position, and proximity to the French coast, 
 combined to the difficulties which until late 
 years attended the passage of travellers to the 
 islands, that so much ignorance prevails as to 
 their history in the parent country. 
 
 The Channel Islands, in many respects highly 
 deserving of the notice of the naturalist and 
 traveller, nor less of the student of history and 
 antiquity, have been most singularly neglected. 
 In reference to this it has been said, that less 
 is known of the Channel Islands than of any 
 other colony or dependency of the British 
 crown of equal size and importance. It has 
 even been asserted that more is actually 
 known, and more accurate information is to 
 be gathered from authentic sources, respecting 
 the smallest of the colonies which lie in the 
 Atlantic or Indian Oceans, than respecting 
 Jersey or Guernsey, or the other islands of 
 this group; and this appears the more extra- 
 ordinary when we consider that there are cer- 
 tain points of interest attached to the Channel 
 Islands peculiarly their own, and which essen- 
 tially distinguish them from the other colonies 
 and dependencies of Great Britain. Among
 
 HISTORICAL OUTLINE. O 
 
 them may be enumerated their connexion with 
 the Norman conquest, and long dependence 
 upon the British crown; their separate and 
 independent constitution ; the peculiar laws by 
 which they are governed ; their singular privi- 
 leges; their native civilized inhabitants; their 
 vicinity to the coast of France, and the general 
 use of the French language. To these may be 
 added the variety of interesting points which 
 their natural history presents to the geologist, 
 botanist, and zoologist. We shall attempt in 
 the following pages to supply the deficiency 
 thus existing. 
 
 Information respecting the early history of 
 these islands appears to be furnished to us in 
 their names. There appears to be little doubt 
 that the names of the islands at present in use 
 are corruptions of ancient Latin names. The 
 following is the account of these names which 
 is most generally accepted. Guernsey was 
 ancientlycalled Sarnia; Jersey, Caesarea; Alder- 
 ney, Aurica; Sark, Sargia; Herm, Armia. 
 Hence it seems probable that the Channel 
 Islands were known to the Romans. In the 
 Commentaries of Julius Caesar there are some 
 islands mentioned which were supposed by 
 him to be formed by the action of the tides, 
 and to which some of the Britons are stated 
 to have taken flight These islands have been
 
 6 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 considered to represent those in question. It 
 is probable that at least the largest islands 
 of the group were in the occupation of the 
 Gauls prior to the invasion of Britain by Caesar. 
 Numerous Celtic remains have been discovered 
 in the islands, which prove that they were occu- 
 pied at a very remote period. That the Romans 
 for some time held possession of them, appears 
 probable from the existence of ruined forti- 
 fications of Roman character. At the romantic 
 and precipitous part of the southern coast of 
 Guernsey, called Jerbourg, a name derived, 
 it is said, from a corruption of the words 
 Ccesaris burgum, there are the remains of a 
 Roman trench, and other evidences of the 
 spot having been at a former period selected 
 for defence by this warlike people. In Jersey, 
 adjoining to Mont Orgueil castle, and having 
 a communication with it, there is an old for- 
 tification called to this day Caesar's Fort, a 
 Roman camp having been supposed to have 
 formerly existed near one of the manors in 
 the same island. Some Roman coins of the 
 later periods of the empire have also been dis- 
 covered in this island. 
 
 Little or nothing upon which reliance can be 
 placed is known of the interval from the period 
 in question down to about the middle of the 
 sixth century. It appears that the Saxon
 
 HISTORICAL OUTLINE. 7 
 
 invaders, who had carried desolation among the 
 inhabitants of the plains in England, driving 
 them to the sea-coast, or to inaccessible fast- 
 nesses in the mountains of Wales, were instru- 
 mental in assisting to colonise the Channel 
 
 ST. SAMPSON'S HARBOUR. 
 
 Islands by the expulsion of the flying aborigines 
 from their homes in England. Some of them 
 fled to Brittany, and others, it is supposed, 
 took refuge in these islands, where they con- 
 tinued in safety from the fury of the invaders. 
 This took place, probably, about the com-
 
 8 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 mencement of the sixth century. About the 
 same period, Sampson, Bishop of St. David's 
 in Pembrokeshire, quitted his native country, 
 and went over into Brittany, where he re- 
 ceived the bishopric of Dol, to which Childe- 
 bert, then King of France, added Guernsey and 
 Jersey, with the other islands contiguous to 
 them. This bishop appears to have visited 
 Guernsey, and was probably the first who intro- 
 duced the knowledge of Christianity into the 
 island. The port where he landed is called 
 St. Sampson's harbour to this day, and the 
 bishop is said there to have erected a small 
 chapel. 
 
 Sampson was succeeded in his episcopal office 
 by a relation of the name of Maglorius, who is 
 said to have visited the islands and preached 
 the Gospel among their inhabitants about the 
 year 565. He appears first to have landed 
 at Sark, where he founded a sort of mis- 
 sionary house, which it is interesting to find 
 was still in existence eight hundred years 
 subsequently, as may be gathered from a record 
 in the Remembrancer's office, from which 
 it is evident that a small sum for the sup- 
 port of this establishment was allowed by the 
 crown. In Guernsey, Maglorius built a chapel 
 in the parish of the Vale; and though the 
 building itself has long since gone to decay,
 
 HISTORICAL OUTLINE. 9 
 
 the site is still recognised, and is called by 
 the inhabitants St. Maliere, an evident corrup- 
 tion of the word Maglorius. In Jersey the 
 success of this pious and zealous missionary 
 among the pagan occupants of that island was 
 remarkable. There, by his powerful preaching 
 and by his exemplary life, the word of the 
 Gospel proved so great a blessing to the inha- 
 bitants, that it is said they all cast away their 
 idolatrous rites and practices, and, including 
 their governor, were baptized into the Christian 
 faith by the Bishop himself. There Maglorius 
 died, and was buried in a little chapel, the 
 foundations of which are still pointed out in the 
 parish of St. Saviour's. Thus, says the historian 
 Falle, " Thus did Christianity gain an entrance 
 into these islands, and that at a time when it 
 was yet pure, unmixed with any hurtful errors, 
 either in faith or practice. It was the same 
 Christianity which the old British Churches 
 professed antecedently to Austin's mission into 
 England by Gregory the Great. For they who 
 first preached it to us were themselves ministers 
 of those Churches." 
 
 About the ninth century a horde of pirates, 
 banded together under the name of Sarrazins, 
 distinguished themselves in the annals of these 
 islands. Their very name inspired terror along 
 the coast of France, and their career was
 
 10 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 marked with bloodshed and desolation in every 
 direction in which they pushed their piratical 
 expeditions. By the advantage of their light 
 vessels, historians tell us that they went up 
 the rivers, and penetrated into the very heart 
 of France, sacking and burning the towns, 
 shedding torrents of human blood, and carrying 
 ruin and desolation in their progress. They 
 struck such terror throughout all France, that 
 in the Litany, after the words, " From plague, 
 pestilence, and famine," were added, " and from 
 the fury of the Sarrazins, good Lord deliver us." 
 These pirates are accused of having murdered 
 a pious man, who, having withdrawn from the 
 world, established himself in a little hermitage 
 upon a rock at the entrance of the harbour of 
 St. Helier's, Jersey. The remains of this her- 
 mitage are still visible, and form one of the 
 attractions to which the attention of visitors is 
 often directed. 
 
 The Sarrazins, sensible of the natural advan- 
 tages offered by reason of the inaccessible 
 nature of the waters around the Channel 
 Islands, selected Guernsey for the erection of 
 a strong fortification, called the castle of 
 Geoffrey the Grand Sarrazin. This fort was 
 situated on an eminence nearly in the centre of 
 the island, and commanded from its summit a 
 beautiful and expansive view of the ocean and
 
 HISTORICAL OUTLINE. 
 
 11 
 
 all the bays and principal landing-places on the 
 coast. It is the site of the modern church, called 
 by the peasantry the Catel, or Castle Church. 
 The north and eastern walls of this structure 
 
 CATEL CHURCH, GUERNSEY. 
 
 appear to be older than the others, and some 
 stones project from them which appear to have 
 formed the supports of gates in past time. 
 
 A more interesting, and, indeed, a more 
 authentic period in the history of these islands 
 now opens before us. In the year 912, Charles 
 the Simple, King of France, ceded to Hollo, a 
 Norwegian chieftain, the province now called 
 Normandy, of which he became the first duke.
 
 12 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 This chieftain appears to have been a wise, and, 
 it is said, became a Christian governor. His 
 laws were certainly well adapted to the neces- 
 sities of the state he governed. A singular 
 custom still prevails in Guernsey and Jersey, 
 which, if not originating with Hollo himself, 
 shows the sacred light in which the people 
 regarded his laws and justice. The custom is 
 this: in case of encroachment or invasions 
 of property, or, in fact, of any other act of 
 oppression and violence requiring a prompt 
 remedy, the injured person calls aloud upon 
 the name of Hollo three times, repeating the 
 words, "Ha JKo, a Vaide, man Prince ;" which is 
 an appeal to Hollo for succour. This singular 
 method of appeal is held so sacred, that the 
 aggressor immediately desists, and nothing 
 further can be done by him until the matter of 
 dispute has been settled by a court of law. The 
 following remarkable anecdote will show in 
 how solemn a light the " Clameur de Haro," as 
 this form of appeal is called, was considered. 
 One hundred and seventy years after the death 
 of Hollo, the remarkable event occurred to 
 which we allude. The occasion was the funeral 
 of William the Conqueror. It appears that in 
 order to build the great abbey of St. Stephen 
 at Caen, in Normandy, where he intended to 
 place his own tomb, William had caused several
 
 HISTORICAL OUTLINE. 13 
 
 houses to be pulled down for the purpose of 
 enlarging the area, and amongst them one 
 whose owner had received no satisfaction for 
 his loss. The son of this person, observing 
 that the grave of the Conqueror was being pre- 
 pared in the very spot of ground which had 
 formerly belonged to his father, came fearlessly 
 into the assembly, and in the name of Hollo 
 forbade them to proceed with their work. He is 
 said to have made use of the following bold 
 language : " The ground wherein you are 
 going to lay this man is mine, and I affirm that 
 none may in justice bury their dead in ground 
 which belongs to another. If force and vio- 
 lence are still used to detain my right from me, 
 I appeal to Hollo, the founder and father of our 
 nation, who, though dead, lives in his laws. I 
 take refuge in those laws, owning no authority 
 above them." This courageous appeal, made in 
 the presence of the deceased monarch's own son, 
 produced a striking effect : the undertaking was 
 immediately suspended, the man's claims were 
 adjusted to his satisfaction, upon which he with- 
 drew his opposition, and the body of the king 
 was laid in the grave. Pope alludes to this 
 incident in his " Windsor Forest," in the fol- 
 lowing lines: 
 
 " But see, the man who spatious regions gave 
 A waste for beasts, himself denied a grave."
 
 14 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 Trials in this peculiar form of appeal are still 
 frequently brought before the royal court of 
 Jersey. The prosecution is carried on by the 
 crown, and the losing party, whether plaintiff 
 or defendant, pays a small fine to the sovereign, 
 because the sacred name of Rollo is not to be 
 causelessly invoked. 
 
 For some lapse of time, history is again 
 almost silent as to the Channel Islands; but 
 in the reign of the sixth Duke of Normandy, 
 this ruler, Robert I. visited Guernsey, and 
 his fleet anchored in a bay on the north- 
 ern side of the island, which has since that 
 period received the name of "La Baie de 
 1'Ancresse," or Anchorage Bay. This duke is 
 also said to have built two castles in the island, 
 the castle Des Marais and that of Jerbourg. 
 But this is questionable. The castle Des 
 Marais still remains, but in a very dilapidated 
 state; the old walls are covered with ivy, 
 whence it is now commonly called Ivy Castle. 
 That of Jerbourg exists only as a heap of ruins. 
 In the following duke's reign, this island was 
 attacked by a strong piratical force ; the inha- 
 bitants, in terror and surprise, sent intelligence 
 to the duke, who immediately despatched troops 
 which landed at St. Sampson's harbour. The 
 officer of this relief expedition was soon joined 
 by the monks and many of the people, and
 
 HISTORICAL OUTLINE. 15 
 
 assailing the invaders with great courage, he 
 defeated them with much slaughter, and burned 
 their ships. 
 
 The reign of William the Conqueror forms 
 an important epoch in the history of these 
 islands. By the success which attended this 
 Norman duke's invasion of England a success 
 known in English history as the Conquest, and 
 the determination of which was accomplished at 
 the battle of Hastings the Channel Islands, 
 together with Normandy, became united to the 
 kingdom of England. This connexion dates so 
 far back as the year 1067 ; and it is deserving 
 of remark, that, with a brief exception, the 
 union of these islands to our own has never 
 been severed from that period to the present 
 hour. <e This," says the old and pious historian 
 Falle " this gives the inhabitants of these 
 islands the precedence, as to priority of time, 
 before all others their majesties' subjects, saving 
 only the purely English ; Ireland not being sub- 
 dued till the reign of Henry II. nor Wales 
 reduced till that of Edward I., and neither the 
 one nor the other perfectly even then. Thus also 
 the accession of Scotland happened not till the 
 beginning of the last century, to say nothing of 
 the plantations abroad, which in comparison are 
 but of yesterday. I speak not this to derogate 
 from the honour of kingdoms or principalities
 
 16 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 which do vastly exceed us in expansion of 
 country, and have brought a far greater addi- 
 tion of power to the English empire ; but to 
 demonstrate their majesties' ancient and indis- 
 putable right over us, and show at the same 
 time how strong our attachment is to England, 
 which has stood the long test of so many ages." 
 It is not to be forgotten, however, that the first 
 connexion of the Channel Islands with our own, 
 was that of a part of a conquering state with a 
 vanquished kingdom. Subsequently, the fidelity 
 of the Channel Islands to England was remark- 
 ably tried, and was not found wanting under 
 circumstances peculiarly perilous to these little 
 states. 
 
 The conquest of England by William produced 
 little or no effect upon the customs and constitu- 
 tion of the Channel Islands. Their constitution, 
 resembling in many respects that of Normandy, 
 could not, of course, be affected by the mere fact 
 of the duke of that country having added ano- 
 ther kingdom to his duchy. While the most im- 
 portant changes were introduced into the laws, 
 manners, and language of England, these islands 
 remained, and to this day in many respects 
 remain, the same. The inhabitants were at- 
 tached to their ancient institutions, and it would 
 neither be the wish nor the interest of the 
 sovereign to operate any change in them. All
 
 HISTORICAL OUTLINE. 17 
 
 the change at any rate, for a considerable 
 period that was experienced, was that, instead 
 of having a duke, the inhabitants had now a 
 great and powerful king for their sovereign, or, 
 rather, had both in the same person. 
 
 On the death of William the Conqueror, 
 Normandy and England were again disunited, 
 and the Channel Islands formed naturally a 
 part of the latter kingdom, and so for a time 
 lost their connexion with the realm of England. 
 In the reign, however, of Henry I. they were 
 again united to England, together with the 
 Norman crown. This union appears to have 
 been disturbed during the struggle which 
 ensued between Stephen, who had usurped the 
 crown of England, and Henry II. Prior to 
 his succeeding Stephen, Henry was Duke of 
 Normandy and also of the Channel Islands; 
 and at this period Stephen, as King of England, 
 had no royal jurisdiction in the Channel Islands; 
 and their inhabitants held unshaken fidelity to 
 their duke, though then at war with the king of 
 England. During this contest, the island of 
 Guernsey was additionally fortified by the 
 erection of a castle on a little islet close to the 
 harbour of St. Peter Port. This islet was 
 called Cornet, and the castle was subsequently 
 known, as it is now designated, by the title of 
 Castle Cornet. This fortification exists on the
 
 18 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 same site to the present hour, and forms one 
 of the defences to the port and shipping of the 
 chief town of this island. 
 
 When Henry succeeded the usurper Stephen 
 on the throne of England, the Channel Islands 
 became once more, and now permanently, 
 united to the English crown. The king ap- 
 pointed John, his youngest son, the lord and 
 governor of these islands, and bestowed certain 
 estates in Guernsey upon him. During the 
 reign of Richard this grant was confirmed, and 
 John wielded the authority he had received 
 apparently with great consideration and kind- 
 ness towards the inhabitants. After the death 
 of Richard, John murdered Arthur, whose claim 
 to the throne was more valid than his own, and 
 so became King of England. This shameful deed 
 excited the anger of every foreign power, and 
 among others of that of France, whose monarch, 
 Philip, only too gladly availed himself of any 
 pretext for the annexation of Normandy to his 
 own dominions. Being cited to appear before 
 Philip, John refused, and was then declared by 
 that monarch to have forfeited all right and title 
 to Normandy; and accordingly the province 
 was reunited to France in 1204. Although, 
 however, Normandy was thus again severed 
 from England, the union between these islands 
 and England was not disturbed. It does not
 
 HISTORICAL, OUTLINE. 19 
 
 appear to have been ascertained whether these 
 islands were included in John's forfeiture of the 
 Duchy of Normandy, but their connexion with 
 England was not disturbed by the act of Philip. 
 An attempt was indeed made to excite an 
 insurrection in Guernsey, but the principal 
 inhabitants were unaffected by the seditious 
 efforts of the few priests and others who made 
 this attempt. The island, with the adjoining 
 isles, continued faithful to its sovereign, and 
 former lord and governor, John ; the lands of 
 the seditious were seized, and disposed of in 
 such a manner as to reward those who had 
 evinced their attachment to their monarch 
 and to England. Until this period Nor- 
 mandy and these islands were connected by no 
 ordinary links. Their interests, civil and re- 
 ligious, were similar, and their union had been 
 so intimate, that, in the words of an old writer, 
 " they made but one. Briefly, it may be said 
 that in every thing we were as much Norman 
 as the Normans themselves. But now the time 
 was come when all these ties which united us 
 to them, and them to us, must be dissolved, and 
 these islands have nothing more to do with 
 Normandy unless in the way of hostility and 
 enmity." This separation from Normandy 
 unquestionably proved a blessing in after ages 
 to these islands, and this is feelingly expressed
 
 20 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 by the pious historian, Falle. This separation, 
 he says, " through the merciful providence 
 of God has turned to our great good. That 
 large and once flourishing province feels now 
 the heavy weight of a French government, 
 and is known to be the most oppressed of any 
 in that kingdom. The same would our miser- 
 able fate be at this day were we still attached to 
 it as heretofore, besides our remaining under the 
 darkness of popery, a greater evil even than 
 the other. Our people," he adds, "are very 
 sensible of how much better their condition is 
 than that of their neighbours, and behold them 
 with much contempt; who, perhaps, should 
 rather be pitied." 
 
 A singular degree of obscurity prevails over 
 the history of the Channel Islands at this par- 
 ticular juncture. It would appear scarcely 
 probable that Philip, whose darling ambition it 
 was to regain Normandy, and to reannex it to 
 the French crown, would be wholly indifferent 
 to the possession of these islands with which this 
 province had been so closely and intimately 
 connected, and within sight of the shores of 
 which they lay. Yet, whether or not an inva- 
 sion of the French was actually attempted, is 
 still a matter of uncertainty. It is indeed 
 asserted that in the latter end of King John's 
 reign some epidemic disease prevailed to such
 
 HISTORICAL OUTLINE. 21 
 
 an extent as materially to weaken the martial 
 force of the Island of Guernsey. Taking ad- 
 vantage of this calamity, the Normans attempted 
 to surprise it, but were repulsed. The attach- 
 ment of the islanders to the King of England 
 at this critical moment may well excite surprise. 
 When it is considered that at the distance of a 
 few miles was a large, populous, and martial 
 province, full of strong castles, fortified cities, 
 and men accustomed to war, at enmity with the 
 inhabitants of the islands, and, in all probability, 
 eager to join them with itself in allegiance to 
 France, and when the strength and size of the 
 islands is also considered, their loyalty to the 
 English crown, and their courage in resisting 
 and repulsing the invaders, may well excite our 
 admiration. 
 
 The islands thus perilously situated, and 
 peculiarly exposed to attacks, owed much of 
 the security in which they remained to those 
 defences which the hand of God has reared 
 around them, and the mere sight of which seems 
 to the present hour to strike terror into the 
 hearts of the sailors whose ships are driven near 
 these frowning coasts. At low water the scene 
 is truly appalling, and the eye in every direction 
 meets with the frowning head of some half 
 sunken rock, hoary with the foam of the angry 
 waters rushing past it. It must not, also, be for-
 
 22 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 gotten that both in Guernsey and Jersey strong 
 castles and fortifications existed, which rendered 
 particular parts of the sea-coast impregnable. 
 Other parts were, however, neither defended by 
 nature nor by art, and at these points it is stated 
 that a second attempt was made at invasion on the 
 part of the French. This attempt was equally 
 unsuccessful with the former, and with the ex- 
 ception of a successful enterprise at Guernsey, 
 no footing was obtained in the islands. At 
 Guernsey it is said that through some official 
 negligence Castle Cornet was left without a 
 supply of ammunition. Under these circum- 
 stances it was taken by the enemy, but was 
 recovered soon after by the courage of the in- 
 habitants. The date of this attack appears un- 
 decided. 
 
 In the eyes of King John, small and insignifi- 
 cant a portion of his territory as these islands 
 were, they now assumed a degree of importance, 
 which, considering the extraordinary apathy of 
 that prince to his losses, appears the more 
 remarkable. Possibly the recollection of his 
 having there first wielded the reins of authority 
 caused him to view them with a care which he 
 was little in the habit of exercising. He now 
 thoroughly bestirred himself, and addressed his 
 mind to the task of endeavouring to preserve 
 this only portion of his Norman possessions in
 
 HISTORICAL OUTLINE. 23 
 
 his power. It is said that John visited the 
 islands in person, in order to animate his people, 
 and sustain their courage by his presence among 
 them. He made such arrangements as were 
 necessary for their defence, and established in 
 each island a jurisdiction of his own to do justice 
 between his majesty and his subjects ; the king 
 being confident that in placing this authority in 
 the hands of the islanders, it would be the best 
 security for retaining them under the subjection 
 of the English crown. Such conduct, and at so 
 momentous a crisis in the history and affairs of 
 these islands, has struck the historian conversant 
 with the miserable indolence, injustice, and 
 cruelty of John's character with amazement. 
 It has been, indeed, said that however guilty 
 John was to the Normans and English, he was 
 the best friend the islanders ever possessed, as 
 the founder of their present freedom and hap- 
 piness. 
 
 It may here be remarked, that to the present 
 day the inhabitants are very careful to be un- 
 derstood to have no connexion with France. 
 The mistake commonly made by strangers, in 
 consequence of the French language being that 
 of the peasantry of the islands, in confounding 
 the inhabitants with their neighbours on the 
 opposite coast, is sometimes looked upon as an 
 offence. And indeed their long and faithful
 
 24 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 adherence to the English government justly 
 entitles them to be considered, in the words of 
 one particularly jealous of this honour, " not 
 mere English subjects, but Englishmen; and 
 we are proud of the name, yet reckon it a 
 happiness to be suffered to live under our own 
 laws, and enjoy our ancient usages, though it 
 must necessarily keep up a sort of distinction 
 between the strictly English and us." The 
 French themselves, we are told, did not con- 
 sider the fact of the peasantry being Norman in 
 all their connexions, and speaking the dialect 
 of that province, to be any link between their 
 country and the Channel Isles, and were accus- 
 tomed, after their separation, to call them the 
 " English Isles" 
 
 The French, however, still cherished the 
 hope of reconnecting these islands with their 
 own country, and in the reign of Edward I. 
 made a fresh assault upon them. This invasion 
 was not more successful than their previous 
 attempts, and after a sharp and hardly con- 
 tested struggle, the invaders withdrew. The 
 islanders lost a good many men, the widows 
 and children of whom were specially provided 
 for afterwards by a royal decree. During the 
 reign of Edward III., and in the contest that 
 ensued between that monarch and Philip de 
 Valois of France, these islands became again
 
 HISTORICAL OUTLINE. 25 
 
 the scene of a fierce and arduous struggle 
 between the French and the inhabitants. By 
 means of a powerful fleet the French com- 
 mitted many aggressions on the English coast ; 
 and after sacking and plundering Southampton, 
 this formidable armament directed its course 
 towards these little islands. After a severe 
 resistance, they obtained possession of Guernsey, 
 and retained it for upwards of a year. Even 
 the strong fortress Castle Cornet, which had 
 been considered impregnable, was obliged to 
 capitulate, and fell into the hands of the French. 
 The interior of Jersey, however, remained 
 still unsubdued. The island was subsequently 
 evacuated by the -enemy, and restored to the 
 English, by a truce between Philip and Edward. 
 Notwithstanding, however, the several truces 
 agreed upon at different times between the 
 contending nations, they were so ill observed 
 that they existed only in the name, and war 
 may be said to have been still carried on. A 
 definitive treaty of peace was, however, finally 
 entered into between Edward III. and the 
 King of France, by which he renounced all 
 claim to the province of Normandy, but re- 
 served to himself the Channel Islands. 
 
 When Charles V. succeeded to the throne 
 of France, these islands became again the scene 
 of a most bloody and obstinate struggle. A
 
 26 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 pretended Welsh prince, of the name of Yvans, 
 or Evans, a refugee in France, under orders 
 from Charles, set forth from Harfleur with 
 four thousand fighting men, and landed in 
 Guernsey. This invasion is still commemorated 
 in popular tradition under the title of " La 
 descente des Saragousais." The first encounter 
 took place at Vazon Bay, situated on the north- 
 western coast of this island. The invaders far 
 outnumbered the opposing force, and after a 
 sanguinary resistance the Guernseymen re- 
 treated, leaving four hundred of their number, 
 nearly half of the resisting force, dead upon the 
 shores. On the ground on which the new town 
 is now erected, the retreaters made a stand, 
 and the spot is still known as La Bataille. The 
 governor of the island fortified himself in Castle 
 Cornet, and repulsed all the attacks of the 
 enemy to dislodge him. Charles V. despairing 
 of success, and having perhaps little calculated 
 on so obstinate a resistance, commanded Yvans 
 to withdraw, and the island was once more in 
 the peaceful occupation of its inhabitants. 
 
 The Constable of France is related to have 
 made a somewhat similar attack upon Jersey. 
 He came suddenly to the island at the head of 
 an army of ten thousand men ; among his staff 
 were the Duke de Bourbon and the flower of 
 the French chivalry. The invaders encamped
 
 HISTORICAL OUTLINE. 27 
 
 before Mont Orgueil Castle. No resistance 
 to the landing of this overpowering force appears 
 to have been made, but the besieged manfully 
 opposed the attempts of the enemy against the 
 castle. The besiegers made little or no pro- 
 gress in their attempts on this strong fortress, 
 and at length grew weary of the protracted 
 siege, coming to a sort of honourable com- 
 position with the besieged, that the latter 
 would capitulate, if within a certain period 
 relief did not appear. The expected aid from 
 England arriving within the stated period, the 
 castle was relieved, and the Constable retired 
 to France. 
 
 In the reign of Richard II. the Channel 
 Islands again attracted the unfavourable notice 
 of France, and a confederacy was formed be- 
 tween the kings of France and Castile, the 
 object of which was the destruction of these 
 islands, together with the Isle of Wight. The 
 intention was to burn the houses to the ground, 
 to uproot the trees, and so thoroughly to devas- 
 tate these islands as to render them uninhabit- 
 able for the future. These wicked intentions 
 appear to have been frustrated, for no such 
 attempt was made. In the reign of Henry VI. 
 of England, the French were more successful ; 
 but on this occasion more by art than by force. 
 An agreement was made between Henry's
 
 HISTORICAL OUTLINE. 29 
 
 queen and a powerful Norman noble, that if 
 the latter would assist this monarch's cause 
 with a speedy reinforcement, the Channel 
 Islands should be his reward. The Norman, 
 giving his ready assent, brought over two 
 thousand men into England to the relief of 
 King Henry's cause. Meanwhile the gover- 
 nor of Mont Orgueil Castle, in Jersey, had 
 secret orders to deliver up that fortress. A 
 Norman gentleman, appointed by the noble 
 who had gone to the succour of Henry, took 
 over a considerable force to the island, and 
 was by consent admitted by night into the 
 castle, the commander being taken in bed, in 
 order to give the whole matter the air of a 
 surprise. The Jerseymen were, however, soon 
 enlightened, and became highly enraged at the 
 base manner in which they had been sold to 
 this Norman. He remained in possession of 
 the island about six years, not being able, how- 
 ever, to reduce more than one-half of the in- 
 habitants to allegiance to himself. A brave 
 islander having secured a strong fortress on the 
 western coast, and supported by a large number 
 of the inhabitants, resisted during the whole of 
 this period the attempts of the invaders to sub- 
 jugate the remaining parts of the island. Relief 
 at length appeared. An English fleet pro- 
 ceeded to Jersey, and blockaded the French by
 
 30 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 sea, while the natives invested them by land. 
 The French now became extremely anxious to 
 communicate with Normandy, and, according 
 to the historian Falle, adopted the following 
 ludicrous stratagem in order to effect it. They 
 imagined that possibly a small boat might pass 
 undiscovered through the fleet, under favour of 
 the darkness of night; this being their last 
 resource, they resolved to make the attempt. 
 Though they required but one boat, they 
 caused two to be built; one openly on the 
 ramparts, in view of the besiegers ; the other 
 near the former, but in a concealed position. 
 The workmen were ordered so to time their 
 blows, and strike nearly together upon the 
 two boats, that from the camp without no 
 sound might be heard but what would be sup- 
 posed to come from the boat on the rampart. 
 By this artifice the concealed boat was com- 
 pleted while the workmen were still apparently 
 busied about the other. The besiegers might 
 have remained in ignorance of this artifice, had 
 not a Jerseyman, who had been constrained to 
 work at the boats against his will, shot an 
 arrow, to which a letter was attached, and 
 which revealed the whole scheme, into the camp 
 of the besiegers. The fleet were thus put on 
 the alert, and when the boat was launched, it 
 was quickly intercepted. The French then, in
 
 HISTORICAL OUTLINE. 31 
 
 despair, are said to have surrendered. It must 
 be acknowledged that this anecdote wears more 
 of the character of fiction than of fact. Orgueil 
 Castle was recaptured, and the French expelled 
 the island. 
 
 In the reign of Edward IV. Guernsey re- 
 ceived the privilege of neutrality. It had been 
 noticed how exposed these islands were in time 
 of war, occupying, as they did, a position so 
 close to a great power, with which England 
 was not unfrequently at variance ; and appa- 
 rently with a view to its security, and to the 
 preservation of its inhabitants from the mis- 
 fortunes always attending the outbreak of war, 
 this privilege was conceded. 
 
 In the intervening period between the reign 
 of this last monarch and that of Edward VI. 
 few events of interest relating to these islands 
 are on historical record. In the early part of 
 Edward VI.'s reign, the islands again came to 
 their remembrance, and the French resolved on 
 a desperate attempt at their surprise and cap- 
 ture. Having fitted out a naval squadron with 
 a strong force, they came down upon and with- 
 out resistance captured the little island of Sark, 
 lying over against Guernsey, and distant from 
 it about nine miles. This island appears to 
 have been almost deserted at the time: its 
 former principal occupants, having been monks
 
 32 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 and friars, had retired to France soon after the 
 Reformation . Having fortified this singular 
 and remarkably precipitous island at the few 
 points where it was accessible to an invader, 
 they commenced a system of incursions upon 
 the shipping, by which they hoped ultimately 
 to bring Guernsey to submission. Leaving a 
 strong guard at Sark, they fitted out an expe- 
 dition, which, sailing by night, reached the 
 harbour of St. Peter Port in two hours. There 
 they set upon the ships, and the men, being 
 asleep and unsuspecting, were little able to 
 offer any resistance, and for a time the success 
 of their expedition appeared certain. The whole 
 town soon became alarmed, and a strong body 
 of troops was got down to the harbour. The 
 artillery from Castle Cornet also speedily 
 opened fire on the enemy, and great loss on his 
 side soon took place. The invaders, perceiving 
 that it would only expose them to utter anni- 
 hilation to persevere in their attempt, retired, 
 and sought refuge in the rocky island from 
 whence they set forth. A similar expedition 
 was equipped against Jersey, and landing in 
 Boulay Bay, an attempt was made to enter 
 the island. The population, however, were 
 quickly under arms, and the islanders, as- 
 sembling on the summits of the tall cliffs which 
 environ this bay, so galled and annoyed the
 
 HISTORICAL OUTLINE. 33 
 
 forces of the enemy below, that their progress 
 was arrested, and on coming to closer conflict, 
 they were repulsed and driven back to their 
 ships. The loss of the French in these expe- 
 ditions amounted to not less than a thousand 
 men; and it is said that the King of France 
 was so bitterly disappointed at the failure, that 
 he forbade the subject being ever mentioned 
 again in his presence. Sark for a time still 
 remained in the occupation of the French. 
 
 The recovery of this island was accomplished 
 under circumstances so curious and interesting, 
 as perhaps to have no historical parallel. Sir 
 Walter Raleigh, who was for some time governor 
 of Jersey, gives a full account of it. He says, 
 this island, surprised by the French, could 
 never have been recovered again by strong 
 hand, having cattle and corn enough upon the 
 place to feed as many men as will serve to 
 defend it, and being every way so inaccessible, 
 that it might be " held against the Grand Turk 
 himself." In the Edinburgh Journal, No. 136, 
 New Series, the subject is treated in a familiar 
 style, and we shall make such extracts from 
 the paper in which the event is noticed, as 
 may convey a lively account of the remarkable 
 recapture of this island. 
 
 " A single ship anchored before Sark, having 
 all the appearance of a merchant vessel, which 
 D
 
 34 T.HE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 excited an unusual commotion and surprise 
 among the vigilant inhabitants of the island : 
 her sails were hauled down, and preparations 
 were made on board for a temporary stay. 
 There was something rather alarming in all 
 this; but it was carefully remarked by the 
 look-out on shore, that no weapon of offence 
 was -visible on deck, or in the hands of the 
 seamen. There were all sorts of conjectures 
 as to the object of the arrival, and the most 
 sedulous preparations were made by the French 
 for a vigorous defence in the event of any attack 
 upon the island. Nothing, however, appeared 
 to be further from the minds of the occupants 
 of the ship, A white flag waved from her top, 
 and every demonstration of a pacific nature 
 was exhibited. But the French were not with- 
 out suspicions of treachery ; and when they 
 beheld a boat leave the side of the vessel with 
 a white flag at her bow, and containing only 
 a few sailors, and make for the rocks, which 
 formed the only landing-place, they crowded to 
 meet them with loaded harquebusses and other 
 weapons of offence. The sailors, however, 
 making parade of their defenceless condition, 
 were permitted to approach within ear-shot of 
 the rocks, and then explained the object of 
 their visit. A comrade had died on board a 
 day or two previously. Their vessel was out-
 
 HISTORICAL OUTLINE. 35 
 
 ward bound ; they might not, within a consider- 
 able period, touch at any part where there was 
 consecrated ground, and they prayed permission 
 to inter his remains in the little chapel erected 
 on the island. No weapon should be brought 
 on shore, and, in return for the permission, a 
 present would be made of suck commodities as 
 they had on board ; their only object was, that 
 the bones of their departed friend might be 
 committed, not to the mercy of the waves, but 
 to a peaceful rest in the holy chapel. Accessible 
 through their religious feelings to this demand, 
 the .French were nevertheless somewhat sus- 
 picious ; but the seamen acted their parts with 
 so much simple earnestness, and they had 
 already given such a striking evidence of the 
 perfect harmlessness of their intentions, in 
 voluntarily throwing themselves into the power 
 of the others, that permission was at length 
 given, upon the express condition, however, 
 that not so much as a ' pocket-knife ' would be 
 allowed to be brought on shore a condition 
 which obtained the readiest assent from the 
 men, who returned to the ship, concealing their 
 exultation, until beyond the reach of detection, 
 at the partial success of their adventure. 
 
 "On shipboard that night a goodly-sized coffin, 
 which, in anticipation of the mournful event, 
 had been prepared, was filled, not with the cold
 
 36 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 remains of their comrade an individual of 
 fictitious origin altogether but with a large 
 number of swords, targets, and harquebusses, 
 carefully packed, to provide against any risk of 
 detection by their rattle, over which the coffin 
 lid was secured, but in such a manner as to 
 admit of its ready removal. The next day saw 
 the boat leave the ship with a few more men 
 than on the previous occasion, containing in 
 her centre the coffin, covered by a flag, and 
 having in its interior the pseudo corpse. It 
 was met by the French at the landing-place 
 nothing more than a few rude steps cut into 
 the face of the cliff; and each man was per- 
 mitted to leave the boat only after undergoing 
 a rigid search. All suspicion was at rest with 
 the French, who proceeded to give assistance 
 to the removal of the coffin. To the invaders 
 this was a particularly anxious time, as it was 
 absolutely necessary that none of the islanders 
 should have any idea of its weight. Long 
 ropes had been provided, as, from the pre- 
 cipitous nature of the place, it was requisite 
 to draw the coffin up the rocks ; and the sea- 
 men, taking great care that none of the French 
 should lend a hand to the work, with hearts, 
 as may well be conjectured, full of the most 
 painful excitement, eventually, after the greatest 
 difficulty, and by an amount of exertion the
 
 HISTORICAL OUTLINE. 37 
 
 more painful, from the necessity of its conceal- 
 ment, succeeded in effecting its safe landing 
 upon the summit of the rock. The men drew 
 a long breath : one of the most formidable of 
 their difficulties had been overcome, and they 
 began to make arrangements for the completion 
 of the funeral ceremony. The French sent 
 a body of men to secure the boat, while the 
 rest accompanied their visitors, who shouldered 
 the coffin with a solemnity becoming the 
 supposed character of the occasion, and with 
 much of the semblance of unfeigned sor- 
 row, carried the remains towards the burial- 
 place. 
 
 Those of the French who had secured the 
 boat then pulled toward the ship in anticipation 
 of the promised commodities, and, without a 
 dream of treachery, on arriving at the vessel, 
 clambered up her sides. As soon as they 
 touched her deck, a number of seamen rushed 
 upon them, disarmed them without a blow, and 
 bound them together and to the deck by heavy 
 manacles. A party then entered the boat, and 
 rowed hard for shore, to the rescue and assist- 
 ance of their companions engaged in the funeral 
 obsequies. 
 
 " These, being at the head of the procession, 
 proceeded at a steady pace until within a short 
 distance of the chapel, where they quickened
 
 38 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 their steps. All had entered before the arrival 
 of the French, who had followed them. The 
 coffin was set down, the chapel door closed and 
 fastened, the coffin lid was rapidly removed, its 
 contents drawn forth, the men arming as silently 
 and swiftly as possible, and by the time the 
 French had arrived at the chapel, there was a 
 company of men armed to the teeth ready to 
 salute them. The chapel door was unfastened ; 
 and the French, to their horror and amazement, 
 received their first intimation of the real object 
 of the mourners in a furious attack, before which 
 they fell like sheep. 
 
 " The suddenness of the onset took away all 
 power from the men, and they fled with the 
 wildest precipitation from before the murderous 
 weapons of their assailants. A few, of bolder 
 hearts, made a short defence, but were swept 
 down by the swords of their enemies. The 
 rest flew hither and thither; and, rendered 
 almost senseless by surprise, some plunged with 
 mad haste into the yawning abysses around the 
 island. Others, more wisely perceiving all 
 efforts at defence and escape to be alike in 
 vain, surrendered themselves to their victors. 
 In a word, the island was depopulated, and the 
 Channel Islands ridded of one of the most 
 serious and mischievous annoyances to which 
 their trade and security had ever been subject.
 
 HISTORICAL OUTLINE. 39 
 
 The current of historical events connected 
 with the Channel Islands runs more smoothly 
 during the reign of Elizabeth than probably at 
 any other period, and indeed this and the follow- 
 ing reign are sometimes called the Golden Age 
 of the Channel Islands. This quietude, however, 
 refers chiefly to external sources of alarm, for 
 internal dissensions were very numerous and 
 harassing. During Elizabeth's reign Castle 
 Cornet was fortified, and in Jersey the beau- 
 tiful castle at the entrance of the harbour of 
 St. Helier's, since called Elizabeth Castle, was 
 founded. * In order to prevent the capture of 
 Sark by the French, it was made the subject 
 of a royal grant to Philip de Carteret, that he 
 might let it out in forty different tenements, in 
 order that there might be at least as many men 
 to resist any sudden attack. In Guernsey 
 Elizabeth endowed a grammar-school, which 
 formed the origin of the present large institu- 
 tion called Elizabeth College. 
 
 Events of a more exciting character arose in 
 the reign of the unfortunate Charles I. In the 
 civil war which rent the parent country, and 
 distracted the minds of all classes of persons, 
 Guernsey and Jersey, singularly enough, took 
 opposite sides, Guernsey adhering to the par- 
 liament, and Jersey to the king. War existing 
 between England and France, the king of the
 
 40 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 latter country determined upon an expedition 
 for the recovery of the Channel Islands, and 
 their re-annexation to his crown. This design 
 was not, however, accomplished, and a small 
 armament from England was sent over to pre- 
 pare the islands in the event of an attack. In 
 Guernsey the deputy-governor remained faithful 
 to the king, and obtaining possession of Castle 
 Cornet, terrified the inhabitants of St. Peter 
 Port, by firing cannon upon the town. The 
 governor of Jersey fitted out about ten armed 
 vessels, and these, cruizing about against all 
 ships carrying a parliamentary commission, did 
 an infinite amount of damage to the mercantile 
 marine, and Channel trade. During this un- 
 happy reign the two islands were in continual 
 commotion, from the strife of the contending 
 parties, some of whom were found in each 
 island, as obstinately attached to the one cause, 
 as the majority to the other. Prince Charles, 
 pressed hard by the Parliamentarians, fled to the 
 West of England, and being in danger of being 
 pent up at the Land's End, he was compelled 
 to seek shelter by passing over to one ot the 
 Scilly islands. From hence he fled to Jersey, 
 where a safe asylum and a cordial welcome 
 awaited the fugitive. After a short stay in 
 this island he went over to France. 
 
 It must not be forgotten that for ten years of
 
 HISTORICAL OUTLINE. 41 
 
 this period Castle Cornet, incredible as it may 
 appear, held out and appeared invincible. This 
 fortress was nevertheless easily accessible from 
 the main land, and probably might have been re- 
 duced in a short time by a commander of sufficient 
 energy, and provided with heavy artillery. With 
 reference to this protracted siege, of which his- 
 tory furnishes few parallels, an old historian thus 
 expresses himself : " In the time of the Grand 
 Rebellion, Castle Cornet held out a tedious long 
 siege, yet was never taken, although assaulted 
 with the utmost vigour two several times by 
 Oliver's forces, when the soldiers in it were 
 most of them sick with the scurvy. But after 
 all attempts to have taken it proved ineffectual, 
 and in which great numbers were slain, the 
 gallant cavaliers who defended this impregnable 
 fortress withstood the enemy with the bravest 
 intrepidity, and underwent many hardships, 
 until their provisions were wholly spent, when 
 they were forced to surrender upon honourable 
 terms, not before they had obtained the sum of 
 1,500/. sterling, to secure themselves, when 
 marched out, from further distress by Cromwell's 
 party." The castle yielded to a formidable fleet 
 of eighty sail, under command of the celebrated 
 Blake. Shortly afterwards, Jersey was also 
 compelled to acknowledge its allegiance to the 
 parliament ; an attempted resistance was for a
 
 42 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 short time offered by the governor within the 
 strong fortress, Elizabeth Castle, but at length 
 it also capitulated. During the period when 
 Castle Cornet was in a state of siege, the 
 cannon did frequent damage to the town of 
 St. Peter Port, and a singular anecdote is re- 
 lated which seems to show that the artillery- 
 men were excellent marksmen. A gentleman 
 was seen walking in front of the court-house, 
 and became an object for the marksmen at the 
 castle, of which they speedily availed themselves. 
 A cannon was fired, and in a few seconds this 
 unhappy gentleman was struck by the ball and 
 killed. Unfortunately, he is said to have been 
 a zealous royalist, and was consequently mur- 
 dered by the very persons whose cause he 
 espoused for his own. 
 
 During the whole period of this painful con- 
 test between the royalists and republicans, the 
 islanders suffered greatly. Commerce was en- 
 tirely at an end, the towns were deserted, and 
 the country was uncultivated. Perhaps this is 
 best set forth in a declaration drawn up by the 
 inhabitants themselves, and submitted to Oliver 
 Cromwell: " The inhabitants during the heat 
 and danger of war were in continual fears, 
 services, and watchings, twice a-week, some- 
 times thrice. They had frequent alarms from 
 Jersey, from Castle Cornet, from Normandy,
 
 HISTORICAL OUTLINE. 
 
 43 
 
 from Brittany, and from the king's ships. They 
 were always in arms. They, constructed forti- 
 fications, and several other works for their own 
 defence, and were at their own charges for 
 reducing and keeping Sark. They were kept 
 under like slaves, appointed, threatened, beaten, 
 their orchards were robbed, their trees cut down, 
 and their sheep stolen." 
 
 On the restoration of Charles II. to the throne, 
 the inhabitants of Jersey experienced the re- 
 ward of their previous adherence to the royal 
 cause in the marked approbation of the king, 
 who had twice found the island a safe retreat 
 
 for himself. The inhabitants of Guernsey im- 
 mediately renounced their former opinions, and 
 from having been resolute parliamentarians, now 
 became decided royalists.
 
 44 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 At a period subsequent to these events, Castle 
 Cornet became again an object of most painful 
 attention in consequence of an awful calamity 
 which befell that fortress during the governor- 
 ship of Lord Hatton, the second of that name. 
 The event is sufficiently remarkable to merit 
 one extracting an account of it which is given 
 by Dicey in his History of the Island of 
 Guernsey: "On the night of Sunday, De- 
 cember 29, 1672, the magazine of this castle 
 was blown up by lightning. The night was very 
 stormy and tempestuous, and the wind blew 
 hard at south-west, to which aspect the door of 
 the magazine exactly fronted, and the thunder- 
 bolt which caused this dreadful calamity, was 
 s heard to come circling, or serpentining over 
 the platform from the south-west. In an in- 
 stant of time, not only the whole magazine 
 was blown up into the air, but also all the 
 houses and lodgings of the castle.' The resi- 
 dence of the governor, together with the other 
 buildings, were in a few minutes reduced to a 
 confused heap of stones, and several houses lay 
 buried in the ruins. In the upper part of the 
 castle Lady Hatton, mother of the governor, 
 was killed by the fall of the ceiling of her 
 apartment. The lady of the governor, terrified 
 at the extraordinary fury of the tempest, had 
 previously insisted on being removed to the
 
 HISTORICAL OUTLINE. 45 
 
 nursery, where she and her attendant joined 
 in prayer. In a few minutes the wall of the 
 room fell upon them, and both were killed. 
 A nurse in the same room was also killed ; yet 
 an infant daughter of the governor's, who was 
 lying in her arms, escaped without the least in- 
 jury, a silver cup which she had held in her hand 
 as a plaything, having been crushed forcibly by 
 one of the falling masses, which had provi- 
 dentially missed her. In the cradle lay a little 
 babe, the cradle was partly filled with fallen 
 rubbish, but the infant was not in the least 
 hurt. Many other persons were found crushed 
 by the fallen masses. 
 
 Some of the escapes from the effects of 
 this distressing calamity were almost miraculous. 
 The governor himself was fast asleep at the 
 moment when the explosion occurred. He was 
 actually carried away in his bed, and deposited 
 upon the battlement of a wall which was 
 battered by the sea, and yet remained asleep. 
 It is said that he was first awoke to a sense of 
 his dreadful calamities by a shower of hail 
 falling on his face. Very possibly, he re- 
 ceived a slight concussion in his fall, which 
 rendered him insensible for a short time, as 
 it is wholly inconceivable that he should na- 
 turally have remained asleep under such cir- 
 cumstances. The house in which the governor
 
 46 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 was sleeping was razed to the ground. Several 
 other persons had remarkable escapes, but none 
 so singular as this. This dreadful catastrophe 
 filled the inhabitants of Guernsey with sorrow 
 and dismay, and a public fast was ordered by 
 the states. 
 
 Toward the beginning of 1678, Guernsey was 
 again threatened with a French invasion. Re- 
 lief from England was sought for and readily 
 obtained, and it is deserving of notice, that on 
 this occasion the troops paid for their accommo- 
 dation. On all previous occasions, the soldiers 
 had obtained their provisions either by force, 
 or at any rate, without offering any remu- 
 neration for them to the inhabitants. The 
 threatened attack was not made, and the tran- 
 quillity of the island was restored to it again. 
 The reign of James II., whose Roman Catholic 
 sentiments are well known, Avas marked by the 
 attempted introduction of that apostasy into 
 the Channel Islands. At Guernsey and Jersey 
 Roman Catholic governors were appointed, and 
 the garrison consisted chiefly of soldiers of the 
 same persuasion. The inhabitants, who have 
 always maintained a high character for their 
 adhesion to the principles of the Reformation, 
 were highly indignant at this attempt. In 
 Guernsey a conspiracy was formed, which, im- 
 mediately on the landing of the Prince of
 
 HISTORICAL OUTLINE. 47 
 
 Orange at Torbay, came into active force, and 
 in a short time the Roman Catholic soldiers and 
 officers were disarmed. At this period the 
 French court, favouring the cause of the Stuarts, 
 again meditated the invasion of these islands. 
 A powerful fleet under the command of Admiral 
 Tourville was in the Channel. At this critical 
 juncture a gentleman of Guernsey passed either 
 through or within sight of the French fleet, 
 and promptly conveyed to Admiral Russell, 
 who was lying at St. Helier's, the important in- 
 telligence of the position of the French admiral. 
 The famous naval battle of La Hogue ensued, 
 in which the French fleet was almost entirely 
 destroyed, and by means of which the security 
 of the Channel trade and of the islands was ob- 
 tained. It is important to remark, that during 
 the reign of William and Mary, Guernsey was 
 deprived of its charter of neutrality, apparently 
 with a view to cut off all communication between 
 James II. then in exile in France, and his ad- 
 herents in England. 
 
 The continental wars in which the French 
 were engaged during the reigns of William III. 
 Anne, George I. and George II., directed the 
 attention of the French for a time from the 
 Channel Islands, and it does not appear that 
 any events of importance disturbed the internal 
 peace of the islands during this period. Party
 
 48 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 spirit, at all times violent, occasionally disturbed 
 the states; but the matters of dispute have 
 only a local, personal interest, and do not jus- 
 tify attention. During the reign of George II. 
 many events of minor importance mark the 
 history of the islands, and legislative amend- 
 ments and enactments of various kinds were 
 made. The course of events continued undis- 
 turbed until 1755, during the seven years' war 
 with France. At this period great preparations 
 were made at Granville and St. Malo for the 
 invasion of these islands. In order to avoid the 
 danger thus threatened, Howe was despatched 
 with a small fleet, in order to strike a blow upon 
 a part of the French coast, which might lead to 
 the abandonment of the project. The expedi- 
 tion under this gallant seaman proved highly 
 successful ; the French abandoned their design, 
 and withdrew their troons to Brest. Two 
 years later, a similar invasion was threatened ; 
 an English fleet under Lord Anson set sail in 
 order again to anticipate their design, and a 
 destructive attack was made upon St. Malo. 
 
 During the early part of the reign of George 
 III. the affairs of the Channel Islands were 
 undisturbed by any outward cause of alarm ; 
 but on the breaking out of the American war, 
 the French, in order to embarrass England, and 
 to withdraw a part of her naval force to the
 
 HISTORICAL OUTLINE. 49 
 
 defence of these islands, formed a plan for the 
 invasion of Jersey. An army of four or five 
 thousand men appeared in sight of the island in 
 about fifty flat-bottomed boats, protected by 
 five frigates and several armed cutters. A 
 debarkation was attempted at St. Ouen's Bay 
 in that island, but experienced so vigorous a 
 resistance as to cause them to relinquish the 
 enterprise. A second attempt was then planned, 
 but before it could be carried into effect, 
 the fleet destined to cover the invasion was 
 attacked by a British squadron, and nearly 
 annihilated. 
 
 The last attempt made by the French to 
 obtain possession of the Channel Islands was 
 one of a highly singular and dangerous charac- 
 ter. On the night of Christmas, 1780, a fire 
 was seen blazing between Rosel and La Crepe, 
 two points on the north-eastern coast of Jersey. 
 It was answered by another fire on the coast of 
 France. On the following morning a French 
 officer, the Baron de Rullecourt, embarked at 
 Grandeville, in order to invade the island of 
 Jersey. The weather, however, becoming tem- 
 pestuous, his final departure did not take place 
 until Jan. 5, 1781; he reached Jersey at eleven 
 at night, having been piloted by a traitorous 
 Jersey man, well acquainted with the coast. 
 The troops disembarked with much loss, in
 
 50 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 consequence of the dangerous part of the coast 
 to which the tide had carried the expedition. 
 They proceeded to St. Heliers without any 
 alarm of their presence having been given, and 
 filled the market-place, to the inconceivable 
 terror and surprise of the inhabitants on the fol- 
 lowing morning. The lieutenant-governor was 
 taken prisoner in bed. By barbarous threats 
 he was compelled to sign a capitulation, and, 
 greatly to his discredit, he ordered his troops 
 to surrender. This order was disregarded by 
 Pierson, a mere boy, and he bravely led the 
 attack on the invaders, and for a time Rullecourt 
 appeared to be entirely successful. The whole 
 island was alarmed; several regiments, then 
 quartered at different stations, marched toward 
 the town, and the fortunes of the invaders ap- 
 peared less promising than at first they seemed. 
 At length, an impetuous attack was made upon 
 the invaders by the island forces, under the 
 command of a brave young officer, Major Pier- 
 son. The French troops gave way, and were 
 driven from every street toward the market- 
 place. Rullecourt, when the attack commenced 
 in this spot, seized the lieutenant-governor by 
 the arm, and declaring that he should share his 
 own fate, led him out of the court-house under 
 a shower of bullets, exposed to which the unfor- 
 tunate prisoner was compelled to stand, by the
 
 HISTORICAL OUTLINE. 51 
 
 side of Rullecourt. The latter at length dropped, 
 after having received three or four mortal 
 wounds. It appears almost miraculous that his 
 prisoner escaped without injury, although one 
 or two bullets passed through his hat. Unfor- 
 tunately, at the first onset the brave Major 
 Pierson fell, shot through the heart. A monu- 
 ment, commemorating this invasion and the 
 bravery of this young officer, was subsequently 
 raised at the expense of the inhabitants of the 
 island. Never was any defeat more signal and 
 complete: the whole French party that had 
 landed, probably not fewer than seven hundred 
 men, were killed or taken prisoners. Thus 
 terminated the last attempt of the French at 
 the recovery of one of a group of islands, placed 
 by nature almost within her grasp, yet for so 
 long a period successfully resisting every at- 
 tempt on the part of France at its recovery. 
 Guernsey was not molested on this occasion, and 
 lying at a little greater distance from the French 
 coast, was less liable to attacks of this kind. 
 
 The small island of Alderney figures but 
 little in the annals of history. It became, how- 
 ever, in the summer of 1781, the object of an 
 attack by a French expedition despatched from 
 Cherbourg, with two hundred soldiers. Under 
 cover of the night, the ships came to an anchor 
 within musket-shot of a guard-house, where
 
 52 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 they were perceived about two o'clock in the 
 morning, it being at that time moonlight. The 
 French were busy in an attempt to land. The 
 guard was composed only of four men, who, per- 
 ceiving the object of the invaders, immediately 
 opened a fire upon them, which cut down several 
 on board the ships. A large English privateer 
 was lying at anchor in the Alderney roads, and 
 her captain, immediately upon hearing the guns 
 from the battery, beat to arms. The French 
 imagined the sound to arise from a large body 
 of militia, and abandoning the attempt at land- 
 ing, made all sail as soon as it was day, and 
 directed their course to Cherbourg, pursued for 
 a short distance by the privateer. Thus, by 
 the energy of four men, this important island 
 was preserved from falling into the hands of 
 the enemy. 
 
 Since this period, the Channel Islands, though 
 experiencing at different times both menace 
 and alarm, have not been subject to any actual 
 assault. Napoleon, in the boastful language 
 he was accustomed to use, when meditating 
 his invasion of England, called the Channel 
 Islands stepping-stones to that kingdom. But 
 the project and the author of it experienced 
 the same fortune, and no attempt was made 
 to use the islands in the manner he had con- 
 templated.
 
 HISTORICAL OUTLINE. 53 
 
 If undisturbed by foreign invasion, Guernsey 
 had her share of disquietude in a year or two 
 after the date of the last attack. A most 
 daring mutiny broke out among some of the 
 military, but was ultimately suppressed by the 
 energy of the officers and fidelity of the 18th 
 regiment. During the revolutionary war 
 against France, one of the most remarkable 
 examples of successful seamanship, accom- 
 plished under circumstances of a most peculiar 
 character, has always been a prominent point 
 with the annalists of these islands. The Cres- 
 cent frigate, under the command of Captain 
 Sir James Saumarez, accompanied by two 
 others, was chased by a French squadron of 
 vastly superior force. The Eurydice, being a 
 bad sailer, was ordered to make the best of her 
 way to Guernsey, while the Crescent and 
 Druid kept under easy sail, occasionally en- 
 gaging the French ships. The Eurydice having 
 gained some distance a-head, the Crescent and 
 Druid made all sail. The enemy gained rapidly 
 upon them, and no possibility of escape pre- 
 sented itself but by piloting the ships through 
 a part of the coast beset with sunken rocks, 
 and where the tidal currents were strong. 
 There was on board Captain Saumarez's ship a 
 king's pilot, who undertook this dangerous task. 
 This man succeeded in carrying the ships in
 
 54 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 safety through a series of intricate passages 
 where no king's ship had ever before ventured ; 
 and as they sailed along the perilous coast, large 
 numbers of the islanders assembled to witness 
 this extraordinary feat. So near did they 
 sail to the shore, that Captain Saumarez 
 could actually see his own home, while in 
 his rear was a powerful enemy, and a prospect 
 of capture and imprisonment in a French 
 prison. 
 
 On the renewal of hostilities between Great 
 Britain and France, in 1803, the Channel 
 Islands were put in a complete state of defence. 
 Batteries were erected in the bays, and the 
 coasts were protected by fortifications of various 
 kinds. The governor of the Island of Guernsey 
 at that period was General Doyle. By his 
 zealous exertions a large tract of land which 
 had been overflowed by the sea, in the Vale 
 parish, was recovered. This land proved ulti- 
 mately very fertile, and corn now waves where 
 the billows of the Atlantic once rolled without 
 control. The produce of its sale was applied to 
 the formation of the excellent roads which in 
 every direction run through the island. These 
 roads are interesting, since they exhibit one of 
 the earlier specimens of the method of road 
 making called macadamization. The stones 
 employed were not to be larger than a walnut
 
 HISTORICAL OUTLINE. 55 
 
 in size. Sir John Doyle subsequently left the 
 island, but returning in 1826, he had the grati- 
 fication of seeing the Doyle monument at 
 Jerbourg, which had been erected during his 
 absence in grateful remembrance of his past 
 services. On the proclamation of peace the 
 towns of St. Helier's and St. Aubin's, in the 
 Island of Jersey, were generally illuminated, 
 and a day of public thanksgiving was ob- 
 served. 
 
 The most important event in the recent history 
 of these islands was the unexpected visit of her 
 present Majesty, accompanied by Prince Albert. 
 About seven o'clock on Sunday evening, August 
 23, 1 846, the royal squadron was seen off St. Mar- 
 tin's Point, Guernsey, and in about half-an-hour 
 came to anchor in the roads. The news of her 
 Majesty's approach penetrated even into the 
 churches and chapels, at that time filled with 
 their respective congregations. As soon as 
 Divine Service was concluded, large crowds of 
 spectators thronged every part of the street, 
 and many embarked in boats. As it became 
 dark, the houses from one extremity of the 
 town to the other were illuminated, and fire- 
 works were let off in different directions till a 
 late hour on an evening that appeared to have 
 little accord with the peaceful repose of the 
 Sabbath. The islanders were highly enthu-
 
 56 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 siastic, and many remained in the streets the 
 night through. A number of hasty prepara- 
 tions Avere made for ornamenting the town with 
 flowers, and on the following morning at the 
 earliest hour various arrangements were made 
 to welcome her Majesty to the island. Perhaps 
 the most tasteful of these consisted in the 
 arrangement of a number of young ladies 
 belonging to the highest families of the island, 
 dressed in white, and carrying baskets of 
 beautiful flowers, who \vere stationed imme- 
 diately adjoining the landing-place. On the 
 arrival of her Majesty, flowers were strewn in 
 her path, and the national anthem was sung. 
 The enthusiasm became unbounded as the 
 Queen, accompanied by her royal consort, 
 proceeded along the slip, and entered the 
 royal carriage. Her Majesty, the Prince, and 
 suite, were conducted along the principal street 
 of the town, greeted at every step with the 
 most enthusiastic cheers, and proceeded to 
 Fort George ; after inspecting which, the 
 royal party returned through the town, and 
 re-embarked. A little after eleven o'clock 
 the royal squadron was on its way to Ports- 
 mouth. 
 
 The inhabitants of Jersey received notice 
 that her Majesty would in a short time visit 
 that island also; and opportunity was thus
 
 HISTORICAL OUTLINE. 
 
 57 
 
 given for making the most extensive prepara- 
 tions for her reception. Some splendid pieces 
 of ornamental architecture in the form of 
 triumphal arches were made ready, on which 
 appropriate mottoes were inscribed. About 
 
 ST. HELIKR'S HARBOUR, JERSEY. 
 
 forty of these arches were erected in various 
 parts of the island. On Thursday, Septem- 
 ber 3d, the royal squadron anchored in the 
 harbour of St. Helier's, Jersey. At night the 
 town and its environs were illuminated in every 
 direction ; rockets were discharged, and large 
 bonfires lighted. A magnificent reception was
 
 58 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 given to her Majesty on her landing the follow- 
 ing morning. Flowers were strewed along her 
 Majesty's path, and an elegant pavilion was 
 provided for her accommodation during the re- 
 ception of the addresses. Her Majesty, the 
 royal consort, and suite, were then conducted 
 through the town to Mont Orgueil Castle. 
 After a short stay, her Majesty and suite re-em- 
 barked, expressing themselves highly delighted 
 with the beautiful scenery of the two islands. 
 It is worthy of remark, that since the time of 
 King John, no English monarch had visited 
 these islands up to the period of her Majesty's 
 auspicious visit. This event naturally closes 
 our summary of the history of the Channel 
 Islands.
 
 MOULIN HUET. 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 THE ROCKS. 
 
 FROM the deck of the Southampton mail 
 steamer, through the mists of a summer morn- 
 ing, the traveller commonly catches the first 
 glimpse of the group of islands we are about 
 about to describe. Through the haze which 
 frequently envelopes the surface of the sea, 
 the frowning summits of the formidable rocks 
 called the Caskets appear. As now pursued, 
 the journey to the Channel Islands is commonly
 
 60 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 made by a mail packet, which leaves South- 
 ampton at a quarter to twelve at night, and 
 reaches Guernsey at times varying with the 
 state of the weather, but most commonly at 
 about nine o'clock on the following morning. 
 The rocks in question lying in the direct route 
 to the latter island, are generally approached 
 rather closely ; and, when enwrapped with mist, 
 and consequently only indistinctly seen, they 
 communicate an impression akin to that of awe 
 to the mind ; and the idea of coming in contact 
 with such fearful obstacles seldom fails to 
 suggest itself. The early hour in the morning at 
 which these rocks are first seen also combines 
 to convey a feeling of vague alarm ; and though 
 in the present state of navigation such fears may 
 be groundless, history records, with mournful 
 frequency, the losses of life and ships upon 
 these wild and gloomy rocks, at a period when 
 there existed no sea-marks upon them, and 
 when the power of steam was less employed than 
 it is at present in marine navigation. As the 
 sun rises and dispels the morning obscurities, 
 and as the steamer glides swiftly past the rocks, 
 their real form and characters become evident ; 
 but it is difficult even then to survey the Caskets 
 without a shudder ; and as they sink into the 
 distance, leaving only the white summits of the 
 artificial structures reared upon them, the eye
 
 THE ROCKS. 61 
 
 gladly turns from them to the more pleasing 
 prospect of Guernsey, and the group of isles 
 which present themselves to view. 
 
 The Caskets are in reality a group of deso- 
 late and barren rocks, on which scarcely a lichen 
 can grow, and which long remained a terror to 
 mariners, and the abode only of a few sea-fowl. 
 Their appearance is peculiarly stern and rugged. 
 The rocks belong to the granitic series, and 
 project above the waters in forms the most 
 uncouth. Though destitute of a regular stra- 
 tified character, they have an inclined strike 
 which renders their appearance singularly fan- 
 tastic, since great masses of them lean over the 
 surging waves, as though ready at any moment 
 to become buried in the tumultuous tide which 
 sweeps around them. They stand out of the 
 water in forms so abrupt and rugged as to leave 
 no shore ; and, although about a mile in circum- 
 ference, there does not exist a single spot where 
 sand or pebbles can accumulate. There is 
 therefore no natural beach for the accommoda- 
 tion of boats, and landing can only be effected, 
 and that alone in calm weather, by stepping 
 from a boat on to the rock itself. The out- 
 line, below water, of these rocks must be as 
 abrupt and perpendicular in its character as that 
 above the waves, for the lead drops to from 
 twenty to five-and- twenty fathoms down on all
 
 62 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 sides of them. Thus, were such a group of rocks 
 seen from the base to the summit, it would ap- 
 pear in the form of a tall mass of rocks inclined 
 probably in one direction, but on the others 
 having perpendicular sides. The effect of such 
 a mass standing up from the sea-bottom, upon 
 the vast body of water impelled by the Atlantic 
 wave along the channel, may be readily con- 
 ceived. In consequence of the perpendicularity 
 of this rocky sea-tower, vessels of the greatest 
 burden may pass so closely as almost to scrape the 
 sides of the rock, without fear of touching the 
 bottom. It has been said that a line-of-battle 
 ship may pass safely within an oar's length of 
 the rock. It is impossible, however, to view 
 the velocity with which the tide sweeps round 
 these rocks without a suspicion that beneath the 
 circling green waters some sunken masses must 
 lie hid ; and the broken aspect of the whole 
 group appears to confirm this idea. For at va- 
 rious distances from the main mass of rock, the 
 heads of rocks, half hidden, half exposed, occa- 
 sionally appear rising over the waves. The 
 tide runs through the channels left between the 
 main rock forming the Caskets, and the rocks 
 which stud the waters in its vicinity, with such 
 violence as to render it comparable to a great 
 river ; and under the shelter of the rocks a 
 number of mimic whirlpools are produced. The
 
 THE ROCKS. 63 
 
 course taken by the steamers lies often be- 
 tween these rocks and the Caskets ; and al- 
 though in reality void of danger, timid persons 
 can scarcely feel at ease until the vessel has 
 stemmed her way through the current, and 
 enjoys sea room again. 
 
 Passing thus closely these formidable rocks, 
 we were enabled to obtain an excellent view of 
 the form and outlines of them ; and the accom- 
 panying cut conveys a correct idea as to these 
 particulars. On one side the Caskets are so 
 formed as to produce a sort of natural dock. 
 A projecting rampart of rock resists the immense 
 volume of water poured past this rocky island ; 
 and by the shelter thus created a small harbour 
 of refiige is formed, where a frigate might lie, 
 and, perhaps, even in safety, weather out a 
 storm, if her anchor and cables were to be relied 
 on. In consequence, however, of the tremendous 
 risk which would arise on their failing, it may 
 be imagined that few ships are likely to be 
 entrusted to the tender mercies of the elements 
 and rocks at the Caskets. This harbour is, 
 however, convenient, in order to facilitate com- 
 munication with Alderney. Steps are conse- 
 quently cut in the rock, in order to form a land- 
 ing-place, from the boats which occasionally 
 visit the Caskets. They are seldom or perhaps 
 never visited by the traveller. The access is
 
 64 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 peculiarly difficult, and depends upon so many 
 contingencies of wind and tide, that the inter- 
 course of the neighbouring island of Alderney is 
 rendered very occasional, and is generally con- 
 fined to visits of necessity or authority. Only 
 in calm weather is it safe for boats to attempt a 
 landing, as the least swell, superadded to the 
 powerful tidal currents, would imperil the safety 
 of all on board. 
 
 For a considerable period these dangerous 
 rocks were totally undistinguished by any mark 
 for the guidance or warning of the navigator. 
 Yet fogs are of frequent occurrence ; and, well 
 known though the passage is, even in our own 
 day and distinguished as these rocks are by the 
 peculiar form and arrangement of the light-houses 
 placed on them the mail steamers are continu- 
 ally compelled to move at half-speed, and, some- 
 times, even to stop, when they approach this dan- 
 gerous vicinity, until the obscurity has been 
 dispersed by sunrise or wind. The result of this 
 culpable negligence in not providing a light- 
 house may readily be conceived : the most fear- 
 ful disasters have taken place on these rocks, 
 some of which have been so complete as to 
 leave not one to narrate the mournful calamity, 
 which has been indicated on the following day 
 by the floating remnants of the wreck. It has 
 been frequently said that the darling son of
 
 THE ROCKS. 65 
 
 Henry I. was lost on these rocks ; but it appears 
 tolerably certain that this catastrophe must 
 have occurred nearer to the mainland, either to 
 Alderney or to France, than the Caskets. At 
 twilight it is said the young prince's vessel left 
 the harbour of Barfleur for England, manned 
 with fifty rowers. Wine had been too freely 
 given to the sailors, who, with the captain and 
 attendants of the prince, all became intoxicated. 
 Desirous of passing by every ship that was 
 before them, the sailors rowed with unusual 
 speed, when, by the drunken carelessness of 
 the helmsman, it struck suddenly on a rock, at 
 that time covered with the waves, but known 
 and visible at low water. The remaining part 
 of this painful accident has been often told. It 
 is, however, apparent from the account itself 
 that the Caskets were not the rocks in question, 
 since they are not only never covered by the 
 waters, but actually stand a considerable height 
 above them. A calamity attended with a far 
 greater loss of life, and which upon all testimony 
 appears to have taken place on the Caskets, was 
 the loss of the Victory, October 5, 1744. Ad- 
 miral Sir John Balchen's fleet had been on a 
 cruise of ten weeks in quest of the Brest fleet, 
 and, being unsuccessful in meeting with the 
 French squadron, were returning to port, when 
 they encountered a tremendous gale, which 
 F
 
 66 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 dispersed the fleet, and disabled several of the 
 frigates composing it. The other ships, after 
 the gale was over, safely reached Spithead; 
 but the Victory, having on board the admiral, 
 a splendid line-of-battle ship, carrying 110 brass 
 guns and eleven hundred men, among which were 
 about fifty gentlemen volunteers, was nowhere 
 to be found. Two of the King's ships were 
 sent in search of her, and met with several 
 pieces of a wreck, and part of a carved work 
 which belonged to the stern. On making in- 
 quiry at Alderney, it appeared that on the 
 night in question they had heard upwards of a 
 hundred guns fired, which they conceived to 
 have been from some vessel in distress. At 
 daylight the vessel was clearly seen making 
 signals of distress, but the tremendous storm 
 which was blowing rendered it impossible to 
 render any assistance. The signal guns con- 
 tinued to be fired during the next night, and 
 ceased at the break of day, when probably the 
 magnificent ship went to pieces. The inha- 
 bitants of Alderney saw the sea covered with 
 pieces of the wreck, and not a single individual 
 of the eleven hundred on board escaped to give 
 an account of the calamity. The Victory was 
 the largest ship in the British fleet, possessed 
 the finest set of guns, masts, and rigging, was 
 manned by the flower of the navy, and carried
 
 THE ROCKS. 
 
 67 
 
 many noble and precious lives all were lost. 
 Previous to this calamity, the Caskets had 
 attained a painful notoriety in consequence of 
 repaeted disasters occurring in this part of the 
 channel. 
 
 In 1723, after a petition from the Governor 
 of Alderney, the lighthouses were erected on 
 three rocks. The great rock on which they- 
 are built is thirty feet above the level of the 
 sea. The three lighthouses are built in a 
 triangular space, enclosed by a strong wall. 
 Two of them are lower than the others, and 
 are about fifty feet from each other. The 
 higher one lies toward the north, and is placed 
 on the most elevated part of the rock, being 
 about one hundred and fifty feet distant from 
 the others. Within this area, which forms a 
 sort of walk, and is kept in good order, is con- 
 tained a plot of ground, where a few vegetables 
 and flowers are cultivated. As the rocks are 
 themselves entirely barren, and afford no shelter 
 for the accumulation of soil, the whole of the 
 earth in which these plants grow was brought 
 in boats from Alderney. The spot forms a sort 
 of mimic garden, where the solitary hours of 
 the individuals who attend to the lights are 
 wiled away. There is also a small house for 
 the accommodation of the Trinity House Master 
 when he visits the establishment, with a ware-
 
 68 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 house and shop for the workmen who are 
 required to make occasional repairs to the 
 lighthouses. Within the lighthouses are apart- 
 ments for stores and provisions for the winter, 
 when it would often be impossible to obtain the 
 necessary supplies from the land. In an old 
 writer's account of the Caskets, he states that 
 these rocks are much dreaded by the mariners, 
 who call them " Quasquettes," and out of one 
 of them, " properly named Casquet, there 
 gusheth out the most sweet spring of fresh 
 water, which is a great comfort to the whole 
 island, but more especially to the fishermen 
 who beat up and down about them." It is said 
 that this spring was first discovered by some 
 pigeons which were kept there by the persons 
 having charge of the lighthouse. It has, how- 
 ever, now entirely dried up, and no other spring 
 can be found among the rocks. The supply of 
 water is consequently obtained from rain, or by 
 occasional subsidies from Alderney. When the 
 keepers of the lighthouses wish to communicate 
 with the neighbouring island of Alderney, they 
 do so during the day by means of a small 
 telegraph, or at night by lighting a fire on the 
 rock. The force of the elements is sometimes 
 severely felt by these isolated buildings. In 
 the storms of winter the wind howls furiously 
 around them, and the sea, provoked by its
 
 THE ROCKS. 69 
 
 violence, and receiving the additional impulse 
 of the tidal current, dashes enormous bodies 
 of water over the rocks, striking and often 
 seriously damaging the lights. At such times, 
 birds, unable to contend with the wind, are 
 often dashed against the glasses, which are 
 shivered into fragments, while the poor birds 
 fall dead within the building. The tumult of 
 the elements at such times is grand and terrible, 
 and the keepers must need much self-possession 
 and a well-grounded reliance on Him who is 
 mightier than the roaring sea and howling 
 tempest, to maintain their sense of security 
 undisturbed. And, indeed, at times consider- 
 able cause for alarm exists, for in the month of 
 October, 1823, a violent storm altogether de- 
 stroyed the lights. Each lighthouse is called 
 by its own name ; one has that of St. Peter, 
 another that of St. Thomas, and the tnird is 
 called Donjon. In order to avert the calamity 
 of destruction by fire of which lighthouse 
 annals present some terrible examples the 
 platforms of each are sheathed with copper, as is 
 also the staircase. The persons in charge are 
 required to keep a journal of wind and weather, 
 and of such circumstances as occur deserving 
 of notice, and they receive a salary of about 
 fifty pounds a-year. One would suppose that 
 life must be very monotonous on these rocks, and
 
 70 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 the confinement to this narrow spot irksome 
 in the extreme, particularly as the inhabitants 
 of Alderney can be seen enjoying their liberty 
 in their comparatively extensive territory. Time 
 and habit, however, reconcile man to the most 
 wearisome mode of life, and it has been said 
 that one of those whose life is ordinarily spent 
 on these rocks, after a temporary absence 
 from them, returned without a wish to enter 
 into the great world again ! To persons thus 
 separated from human society how precious 
 should be that exhaustless Volume which reveals 
 the council of God toward mankind, and the 
 great plan of man's redemption, renewal and 
 sanctification, through the atonement of the 
 Redeemer, Jesus Christ. 
 
 The Caskets fall naturally under considera- 
 tion in a chapter specially dedicated to the 
 "Rocks" of the Channel Islands, since they 
 are not only the first encountered by the tra- 
 veller, but they also constitute a good example 
 of the stony guardians of these isles. The 
 Island of Guernsey itself has been called, 
 and appropriately so called, the Isle of Rocks, 
 and, as it is approached, the significance of this 
 title is rendered manifest by the number of 
 rugged masses which rise above the surging 
 waters. It is necessary to give an outline of 
 the relative position of the Channel Islands
 
 THE ROCKS. 71 
 
 before proceeding to consider specially their 
 geological structure and physical peculiarities, 
 and this is, perhaps, the best place for such a 
 purpose. Jersey is the largest of the group ; 
 Guernsey the next ; after this come Alderney, 
 Sark, Herm, Jethou, L'Isle des Marchands, 
 the Isles of Lihou, Burhou, and the Caskets. 
 In most geographical works the existence of the 
 latter small islands is ignored, and the Channel 
 Islands are known in schools as Jersey, Guern- 
 sey, Alderney, and Sark. Yet the small isles 
 in question, Herm, Jethou, L'Isle des Mar- 
 chands, or, as it is sometimes called, Brechou, 
 and the small islands of Burhou, Lihou, with the 
 rocky group of the Caskets, contribute much of 
 their charm and local interest, though little of 
 their importance, to the Channel Islands. The 
 form of the Island of Jersey is oblong ; it is 
 about eleven miles in length from east to west, 
 and varies from four to five and a half miles in 
 breadth. Together with the others which form 
 this group, it lies in that part of the English 
 Channel called Mount St. Michael's Bay, at 
 no great distance from the coast of Normandy 
 and Brittany. Jersey contains a superficies of 
 between thirty-nine and forty thousand acres. 
 Its contour line exhibits that of an inclined 
 plain. Its northern coast is elevated to rather 
 more than 300 feet above the level of the sea,
 
 72 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 into which it usually descends abruptly; but 
 from this coast to its southern extremity the 
 elevation of the land declines until the south 
 coast is only just above high-water mark : thus 
 the general inclination of the land is from north 
 to south. In this respect it offers a striking 
 contrast to the Island of Guernsey, which in- 
 clines in exactly the opposite direction. The 
 whole surface of the island is intersected by 
 deep valleys, down which tiny rivulets flow, 
 and, after wandering among a few fields, are 
 lost in the sea. The sides of these valleys are fre- 
 quently steep and craggy, and such an abundance 
 of fresh water springs is found in them, that 
 perhaps few tracts of country of equal extent 
 are so lavishly supplied with water. Nearly the 
 whole island is divided into small enclosures by 
 lofty hedges, thickly studded with timber, which, 
 together with the numerous orchards, gives a 
 woodland character to the landscape. In the 
 western part of St. Brelade's parish is situated 
 an elevated tract called the Quenvais, covered 
 with loose drifting sand ; and adjoining this, but 
 at a much lower level, is the sandy district of 
 St. Ouen's Bay. The scene presented on ap- 
 proaching St. Helier's is extremely beautiful. 
 The abrupt, precipitous, and formidable line of 
 the northern coast is past, and, after sweeping 
 round a point called Noirmont Point, the mag-
 
 THE ROCKS. 73 
 
 nificent bay of St. Aubin is entered. The sloping 
 shores of this bay, above which rise woods, or- 
 chards, and fields, with numbers of villas and 
 cottages dotted among them, together with the 
 commanding heights which rise boldly above 
 the town, and the stern appearance of Elizabeth 
 Castle, combine to give an air of great beauty 
 and picturesqueness to the island, and form in 
 all respects a striking contrast to the eye lately 
 dwelling on English scenery. The coast of 
 France is very plainly perceptible from Jersey, 
 and it is situated at a distance of about ten 
 leagues from Cape la Hague. The distance 
 from Guernsey to Jersey is about seven 
 leagues. 
 
 Guernsey, the next in point of size, differs in 
 many respects remarkably from its sister island. 
 In shape this island is nearly triangular, the 
 longest side being about nine miles and a half 
 in length, and lying toward the north-west. 
 This coast is low and flat in many parts, and is 
 broken into a number of small and picturesque 
 bays, offering a singular contrast to the Avail- 
 like northern coast of the island of Jersey. 
 Proceeding toward the south, the land rises 
 until the southern boundary is reached, which, 
 like that in the opposite direction in Jersey, is 
 steep, abrupt, inaccessible, and almost every- 
 where, throughout its extent of six or seven
 
 74 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 miles, plunges down into the blue waters which 
 career along its base. The high ground is 
 intersected by several narrow valleys and beau- 
 tiful glens, among which the brightest and 
 purest springs of water are found abundantly. 
 But the valleys are not so numerous nor so 
 deep as those of Jersey, the southern half of 
 the island presenting an elevated table land 
 descending rather suddenly to the wide and 
 rich plain which, interspersed with a few small 
 hillocks, occupies the rest of the island. Guern- 
 sey has much less timber than the sister island, 
 and its surface is divided into a number of fields 
 and enclosures which mimic those of larger 
 regions. At the northern extremity of the 
 island is situated a sandy common, which is 
 scantily covered with the vegetation peculiar to 
 such a soil. On this coast also sevei'al small 
 marshes exist. The gradual rise of the land 
 may be seen, and an excellent contour line 
 might be drawn of the whole island, by view- 
 ing it from an elevated point in the opposite 
 island of Herm. 
 
 Alderney, separated from the rest by a con- 
 siderable interval, is the nearest of these islands 
 to the French coast, being about seven miles 
 west of Cape La Hague, in Normandy, from 
 which it is separated by the strait or Race of 
 Alderney, a channel whose swift tidal current
 
 THE ROCKS. 75 
 
 renders it peculiarly unsafe in stormy weather. 
 So clear at times does the French coast appear, 
 that it might be mistaken by a stranger for a 
 distant part of the island itself. It is about 
 three miles and three quarters in length from 
 north-east to south-west, and is scarcely a mile 
 and a half across its broadest part. The south 
 and west coast, like those of Guernsey, are 
 greatly elevated and precipitous, and the land 
 inclines toward the eastern and northern shores, 
 presenting a pretty uniform surface without 
 any valleys or glens to give variety to its 
 aspect.. There is an almost total absence of 
 trees or plantations of any kind, and this gives 
 to the island a bare and deserted aspect. There 
 are few enclosures, and hedge-rows are sup- 
 planted by low stone walls. The appearance 
 of the land under cultivation is very singular ; 
 in consequence of the operation of a law which 
 subdivides landed property to a most minute 
 degree, the cultivated parts of this little island 
 present a most odd and patchwork-like aspect. 
 It is all laid out in narrow stripes, producing 
 different sorts of crops. These lie in a number 
 of different directions, and are so narrow, that 
 in watching a proprietor ploughing his scrap of 
 land, it is sometimes difficult to see how he will 
 find space enough to turn his plough on his 
 own land. There is a good supply of excellent
 
 76 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 water in almost every part of the island. Seen 
 from the island of Herm, Alderney stands out 
 of the sea like a massive tower, and has a 
 beauty peculiarly its own when thus viewed 
 under the light of a southern sun, which renders 
 manifest, even to the unassisted eye, many of 
 the rugged features and rocky chasms of its 
 southern coast. From every elevated part of 
 Alderney the white lighthouses on the Caskets, 
 are distinctly visible in ordinarily clear weather. 
 Sark, or as it is sometimes, and probably 
 more correctly written, Serk, is almost seven 
 miles east of Guernsey, from which island it is 
 seen with great distinctness, and its general 
 outlines are well defined. Its greatest dimen- 
 sion is about three miles from north to south, 
 and it is about a mile and a half wide at its 
 widest part. It is so constructed near the 
 centre of the island that it may be, and is com- 
 monly, regarded as divided naturally into two 
 parts Great and Little Sark. To the part 
 connecting these two, which is often incorrectly 
 called a natural bridge, being in fact an ex- 
 tremely narrow and lofty pass attention must 
 be again directed. Sark differs from all the 
 
 o 
 
 other of the larger islands in having no beach, 
 properly so denominated, in any part. It is an 
 excellent example of a table-land. Its walls 
 tall, precipitous, and abrupt, stand on every
 
 THE ROCKS. ' 77 
 
 side out of the waters, offering defiance to the 
 entrance of man ; and although here and there 
 a tiny shore is formed in some inlet, the greater 
 part of the coast has a wall-like character, ren- 
 dering it formidable to any who might attempt 
 to force an entrance into it. The ordinary means 
 of access are through a tunnel driven through a 
 rock, or by climbing by the assistance of ropes 
 and steps cut in the face of the cliff. The 
 interior of the island presents a charming con- 
 trast to the forbidding exterior. Its surface is 
 broken into several romantic valleys watered 
 by tributary brooks, diversified with wood, and 
 in many parts under extensive cultivation. The 
 transition from the outside to the luxuriant 
 interior of this beautiful island, leaves an im- 
 pression on the mind which cannot soon be 
 effaced. Sark is the most beautiful island of 
 the whole group, and perhaps of any attached 
 to the British crown ;. but until of late years 
 it has been seldom visited, and its scenery is 
 but little known beyond the group of islands 
 of which it forms one. 
 
 At a short distance from Sark, and separated 
 from it by a narrow strait, through which the 
 tide courses furiously, is the remarkable island 
 called L'lle des Marchands, or Brechou. Like 
 Sark, from which the sea seems to have torn 
 it asunder, Brechou stands from the waters
 
 78 THE 'CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 with abrupt and lofty sides. It has no shore. 
 An attempt to cultivate the land was made a 
 few years ago, but it is now given up. On our 
 visit we were compelled to climb up a natural 
 staircase to gain access to its interior. The soil 
 appears good, but the difficulty and uncertainty 
 of approach renders it an undesirable place 
 for any farming operations. A deserted cot- 
 tage and stables exist in one part of it. A few 
 sheep find pasture there, and a multitude of 
 rabbits thrive on the desolate spot. The rugged 
 and beautiful sides of Sark are best seen from 
 this island; its chasms, indented rocks, and 
 stern outline are nowhere beheld in greater 
 beauty. 
 
 A little to the northward, and between 
 Guernsey and Sark, lies the island of Herm. 
 This island is about three miles distant from 
 Guernsey, and the same distance from Sark. 
 It is about a mile and a half long, and about 
 half a mile in breadth. Like Guernsey, it is 
 loftiest in its southern part, where the whole 
 coast line is formed by steep and tall cliffs. It 
 inclines toward the north abruptly, until its 
 southern shore gently slopes into the waves. 
 On this side are some sandy plains and dunes, 
 and the celebrated " shell -beach," to which 
 our attention must be again brought, forms the 
 shore in this direction, extending from half to
 
 TIIE ROCKS. 79 
 
 three quarters of a mile. Herm contains many 
 Druidical remains. 
 
 Jethou, a singular little island, lies about 
 half a mile distant from Herm, with which 
 there exists evidence to show that it was formerly 
 connected. It is less than half a mile long, 
 and is about a quarter of a mile broad. It is 
 considerably elevated in proportion to its extent, 
 and is precipitous on all its sides except one. 
 There is a small orchard in it and two houses. 
 Upon the most elevated part is a flag- staff. At 
 each end of this little island rock are two conical 
 eminences, separated from it at high tide, but 
 accessible at half tide. They are merely rocks 
 covered with a scanty clothing of lichens, and 
 with here and there a tuft of grass. Upon one 
 of them a sea-mark for navigators has been 
 raised. From Herm, the appearance of the 
 central eminence, with its rocky appendages at 
 each end, is very peculiar 
 
 The little island of Lihou is united to the 
 north-western coast of Guernsey by a narrow 
 causeway. For several hours, from about half- 
 tide to half-tide, or rather less, this causeway is 
 passable for horses and carts, as well as for 
 pedestrians who do not mind wetting their feet. 
 After this time it is completely covered by 
 the sea, and is accessible only by boats. The 
 island is, perhaps, a mile in circumference, and
 
 80 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 less than a quarter of a mile in breadth. On 
 the side next Guernsey the beach is composed 
 of pebbles, but all the other sides are rocky, 
 and the masses which compose them are tossed 
 about in great confusion. It contains some inte- 
 resting antiquarian remains. There is one house 
 in it, with a small cultivated patch of ground 
 walled in by a high and strong wall. The 
 island is peculiarly exposed to the buffetings 
 of the elements ; and during the tempests of 
 winter the inhabitants of the single house must 
 be placed in no very enviable position, amid the 
 howling of the wind, and the incessant noise of 
 the sea dashing its immense waves upon the 
 rugged wall of rocks which begirts the little 
 isle. 
 
 Burhou is a small island lying a little distance 
 to the north-west of Alderney. It is separated 
 from the latter island by a formidable passage 
 called the " Swinge." It is surrounded by 
 rocks of the wildest aspect, and access to it is 
 difficult in any but the calmest weather. It is 
 uninhabited. It is of considerable extent, and 
 a multitude of rabbits thrive in it almost un- 
 disturbed. In some points of natural history 
 the island of Burhou is interesting. 
 
 Returning now to the more immediate sub- 
 ject of this chapter, the rocks of the Channel 
 Islands, it may be remarked that they consist
 
 THE ROCKS. 81 
 
 exclusively of the primary, or, as they are often 
 called, the granitic, or crystalline rocks, and 
 the unstratified rocks derived from them. Sur- 
 prise is always experienced by those who, 
 leaving the shores of England at night, see 
 the peculiar and rugged features of these rocks 
 in strong contrast with the scenes left behind 
 on the following morning. The point of em- 
 barkation being commonly Southampton, the 
 impression of the alluvial tracts around that 
 town, and especially of that most remarkable 
 series of strata presented by the Isle of Wight, 
 are not effaced before the eye is called upon to 
 survey a scene of the most opposite description. 
 In this contrast we have an interesting illustration 
 of the fact, that the geological structure of any 
 district is the determining cause of its peculiari- 
 ties in respect of scenery. No rocks can be more 
 strongly in contrast with each other than those 
 belonging to the granitic series and regularly 
 stratified rocks, such as the chalk of the Needles. 
 The appearance of a stratified rock evidences a 
 certain degree of mechanical regularity in its 
 formation which is generally absent from rocks 
 belonging to the unstratified class, granite, 
 syenite, &c. The one sometimes resembles the 
 works of art ; the other wears resemblances the 
 most wild, irregular, and fantastic, to almost 
 every object that can be named, and particu- 
 o
 
 82 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 larly to heads and bodies of animals. The 
 appearance consequently of such rocks as these, 
 seen lifting their foam-covered heads above the 
 blue waves, together with that of the islands 
 into whose structure they enter, may be in 
 some degree imagined. The scenes themselves 
 are singularly wild and peculiar. 
 
 The rocks of the Channel Islands are in no 
 instance of the lofty and imposing character 
 of those which enter into the composition 
 of the western islands of Scotland, with many 
 of the wondrous beauties of which most persons 
 are familiar from the pictures of them extant. 
 The loftiest rocks in the whole group are those 
 of Sark, and here they do not exceed four 
 hundred feet in perpendicular altitude. The 
 highest rocks in Guernsey are about three 
 hundred feet above the sea-level, and those in 
 Jersey and Alderney are not higher. The 
 rocks which render the coast terrible to the 
 navigator are not above twenty feet high ; 
 many are just visible at high water, and many 
 more are only visible at low water: per- 
 haps the majority are entirely hidden by 
 the sea. Approaching the Channel Islands 
 from any direction, and perhaps more par- 
 ticularly from England, these stone guards of 
 the iron-bound coast appear in great numbers 
 for some time before the harbour is reached.
 
 THE ROCKS. 83 
 
 The position of these rocks is in many instances 
 marked by beacons of various kinds; but the 
 closeness of these to each other indicates the 
 danger of the passage, and the formidable line 
 of rock-defences with which the islands are 
 protected. And in truth shipwrecks of the 
 most lamentable kind have taken place at times 
 among these rocks. 
 
 An old writer describes the perilous position 
 of a vessel among these rocks in an interesting 
 manner. The account is given in Dicey's History 
 of Guernsey, and the author himself was a par- 
 taker of the perils he describes. The vessel was 
 bound from Antigua to London, and had entered 
 the English Channel, when darkness came on, 
 accompanied by tempestuous weather ; the cap- 
 tain, ignorant of his proper position, gave wrong 
 orders for steering the vessel, and about twelve 
 o'clock at midnight all on board were dreadfully 
 alarmed by the noise of the sea breaking against 
 the rocks. The night was so intensely dark as 
 to render objects at the smallest distance wholly 
 imperceptible, and on sounding the sailors 
 found not above one fathom more water than 
 the ship drew. The alarm on board was intense, 
 and the shrieks and cries of the passengers tended 
 in no slight degree to add to the confusion 
 and distress. An attempt to get down the
 
 84 THE CHANNEL I8LAND8. 
 
 anchors was made, but two were actually cut 
 to pieces by the rocks. The sheet anchor 
 providentially held, and the ship was thus pre- 
 vented falling on the rocks. When morning 
 broke, the surprise of all on board at their 
 perilous position can hardly be conceived. The 
 ship was completely environed by rocks, and 
 the mainland was close to them. Great 
 numbers of the people of the island, for it was 
 found to be on the coast of Guernsey that they 
 lay, came running to the shore, astonished at 
 beholding a vessel at anchor where was never 
 one before. Sail was instantly made, and with 
 the utmost difficulty the ship was safely navi- 
 gated between two rocks, even with the benefit 
 of daylight, through which the hand of the 
 providence of God had guided them in security 
 during the darkness of the night. A large 
 ship which accompanied this vessel was lost 
 near the same spot with all on board. More 
 recently, a large homeward-bound ship was lost 
 with all on board upon the same coast, and a 
 tablet to commemorate the painful event was 
 placed in the Vale Church. It may appear 
 surprising that amid dangers so numerous, the 
 pilots themselves should be able to steer cor- 
 rectly ; but a long acquaintance with the coast, 
 accompanied as it often is with some memorable
 
 THE ROCKS. 85 
 
 escapes of their own, fixes indelibly the for- 
 midable features of the region upon their 
 memory, and accidents are seldom or never 
 heard of with ships when once in the pilot's 
 charge. 
 
 Perhaps the most painful instance of the 
 dangers of the sea surrounding these islands, 
 and of the negligence of those who had the 
 charge of the vessel, Avas the wreck of the 
 Superb steamer during the summer of 1850, 
 On the 16th of September a small steamer 
 called La Polka, set out on an excursion to 
 St. Malo from St. Helier's, Jersey. When 
 within six miles of a singular group of rocks, 
 called the Minquiers, she sprang a leak, and 
 the captain had barely time to run her within 
 a quarter of a mile of the easternmost rock, 
 called the Matrielle, and land his crew and 
 passengers, before she foundered in deep water, 
 and entirely disappeared. After passing a 
 dismal night on the bare rocks, the passengers 
 were picked up by the captain of a steamer who 
 had perceived them through his glass. They 
 had been twenty-four hours on the rock, living 
 on two loaves and some biscuits, and water 
 furnished them by the poor fishermen living 
 on the rocks. They had lighted a fire during 
 the night without attracting any assistance. It
 
 86 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 was upon these rocks, attracted, it is said, to the 
 dangerous spot by the desire of the passengers 
 to see the wreck of the Polka, that the Superb 
 steamer became itself a wreck. The Superb was 
 on her way from St. Malo to St. Helier's, in broad 
 daylight, and with scarce a ripple on the sea, 
 when suddenly she struck violently on the rocks, 
 which were then covered with water, and im- 
 mediately she filled. The boats were lowered, 
 and one was immediately filled with persons. 
 Sad, however, to relate, the plugs were not in 
 the boat, and it was seen gradually sinking by 
 those still in the steamer, without possibility 
 of relief, and the countenances of those un- 
 happy persons presented a scene of horror 
 beyond description, for they sank shortly in 
 smooth water. The tide falling fast left the 
 rest in safety on the rocks ; but the scene of 
 anguish and alarm baffles description. They 
 were taken off the rocks by a cutter, and from 
 her they were shortly after taken by a steamer ; 
 but on approaching St. Helier's in the dark, 
 she also touched the rock called the Oyster 
 Rock, to the further alarm of the surviving 
 passengers, already exhausted by their fearful 
 position and anxieties. Two little children, 
 who in the previous week had been rescued 
 from the wreck of the Polka on the same spot,
 
 THE ROCKS. 87 
 
 were thrown by the shock into the sea, and 
 were no more seen. A more remarkable suc- 
 cession of calamities on the same spot has never 
 occurred in the history of these islands ; and the 
 melancholy catastrophe of the wreck of the 
 Superb only too accurately confirms the state- 
 ments made as to the dangers which render 
 these islands so difficult of approach whether by 
 friend or foe. 
 
 The forms assumed by the rocks on the coast, 
 and the detached masses in the sea surrounding 
 these islands, are in some instances apparently 
 the result of weathering, and in others of the 
 mechanical action of the waves. It is incon- 
 ceivable that some of the wild-looking forms 
 which stand in grisly majesty out of the waters, 
 were of their present shape when first produced. 
 The action of the elements, and the attacking 
 force of the waves, have sculptured them as 
 with nature's own hand into their fantastic 
 shapes. The finest example of wild scenery, 
 produced by such causes operating upon the 
 naturally bold and uncouth figure of the pri- 
 mary rocks, is to be found at one extremity 
 of the beautiful bay called Moulin Huet, in 
 Guernsey. These rocks are shown in the 
 frontispiece to this work, in one of their most 
 picturesque aspects. The summit of the tall
 
 88 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 cliffs on its eastern side is broken into singular 
 turreted masses, between which intervals are 
 left so as to give to the rocks the almost precise 
 resemblance to a ruined fortress, which is height- 
 ened by the luxuriant growth of mosses, lichens, 
 and ivy which climb over the mimic masonry. 
 This part is appropriately called the Castle. 
 But in order to obtain the best view of rocks 
 carved into a wild group by the elements and 
 the waves, it is necessary to descend to almost 
 the sea level within the bay. Then the four 
 black and strange-looking rocks, known as the 
 "Needles" or the "Stacks of Peas," which 
 project like a vast pier in ruins across the 
 mouth of the bay, stand in bold relief against 
 the sky, while in the intervals which separate 
 them the blue and curling waters of the tide 
 without are seen when all is still and peaceful 
 within. These rocks, of which a beautiful pho- 
 tographic representation was obtained, forming 
 the original of the engraving at the head of this 
 chapter, are of gneiss, and appear at one time to 
 have been united into a solid mass a lofty 
 and magnificent natural breakwater to this bay. 
 The action of the elements above, and that of 
 the waves below, appears to have washed away 
 the softer portions which united them. The sea, 
 provoked by southerly gales, drives its immense
 
 THE ROCKS. 89 
 
 waves with the utmost force and fury on this 
 coast, and a little breach once commenced 
 became in time wider, until now, at high water, 
 the waves roll uninterruptedly through the 
 chasms they have formed for their passage. The 
 summit of one of these beautiful rocks wears a 
 grotesque resemblance to a human head when 
 seen in certain directions. A curious detached 
 piece of rock projects from near the summit of 
 another, at an angle of almost precisely forty- 
 five degrees. The outermost of the four, which 
 breasts the strong influx of the tide into the 
 bay, ia a bold square mass, well fitted for such 
 a position. 
 
 The whole of this coast exhibits those features 
 of abruptness and ruggedness which give to the 
 scene a character peculiarly wild and interest- 
 ing. In consequence of the unequal durability 
 of many of the rocks, and of the abrading in- 
 fluence of the powerful waves which dash upon 
 them, they are occasionally met with carved into 
 the most singular shapes, but in such cases ex- 
 hibiting that smoothness of outline which indi- 
 cates the fact of the shape having been pro- 
 duced by the agency of water. At one point 
 of this coast is a black mass of hornblende, 
 fashioned into the rude semblance of a gigantic 
 beast couchant, and defending the narrow 
 entrance to a cave extending a little way into
 
 90 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 the cliffs, and nearly filled with water at high 
 tide. When the waves rise with foaming 
 summits over this mass of rock, a very pictu- 
 resque appearance is given to it. At a spot 
 called the Gouffre, on this coast, and at 
 another more westward, called the Bigard, 
 the rocks assume their greatest degree of wild 
 and confused arrangement. Their hardness of 
 outline is particularly visible at these places, 
 and the almost adamantine resistance they offer 
 to the incessant buffetings of the sea, tends to 
 preserve this character. Lichens of various 
 hues, green, golden, and white, clothe the 
 higher parts of the rocks, and communicate to 
 them a solemn and ancient look. Clusters of 
 samphire here and there rest upon the narrow 
 ledges, and look green and fresh by the side of 
 the apparently juiceless and withered vegeta- 
 tion which enwraps the surface of the cliffs. 
 The sea-gull dwells in the inaccessible heights, 
 and sea-fowl scream over the boisterous waters 
 below. The wind, bearing clouds of vapour 
 from the bosom of the warm Atlantic, often 
 clothes their summits with white, while the 
 heavy surf also shrouds in white their wave- 
 washed base. 
 
 A continued succession of similar scenes, yet 
 each diverse from the other, presents itself, to 
 the termination of the coast, on this side of the
 
 THE ROCKS. 
 
 91 
 
 island. One rock in particular attracts notice, 
 from its isolated position in the waters ; and 
 from the peculiar boldness of outline which it 
 
 ' 
 
 ROCKS AT GlEKXSKY. 
 
 exhibits it is called the Congerel. It can 
 only be reached by means of a boat, and its 
 solitude is consequently seldom invaded by any
 
 92 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 creatures other than the sea-birds, which make 
 it their abode. At Pleinmont, where the rocks 
 receive the full force of the Atlantic storms, 
 some interesting effects of their action upon the 
 rocks are observable. In the parish of Torteval, 
 at a spot called Les Thielles, the intrusion of 
 veins of trap into the gneissic rocks gives a new 
 feature to the latter. The lines of dark veins 
 strongly contrast with the colour of the gneiss, 
 and something of the step or terrace-like ap- 
 pearance peculiar to rocks thus constituted, 
 becomes visible. In some places the intruding 
 veins are as thin as the edge of a knife, in 
 others they are some feet in breadth. 
 
 The rock scenery of Alderney is scarcely 
 inferior to that of any other of these islands. 
 Its tall, perpendicular, southern and western 
 coasts, which are composed of porphyritic rocks, 
 are, in many parts, singularly beautiful and 
 picturesque. One remarkable stone on this 
 rock of the island has been carved by nature 
 into the resemblance of a chair, and is now 
 known as the Lover's Seat. On the north- 
 western coast is another similar stone, which is 
 called the Monk's Chair. The porphyritic 
 rock on the western and southern sides of the 
 island, appears to have a great tendency to wear 
 before the effects of time. At the western 
 point in particular, where it is exposed to the
 
 THE ROCKS. 93 
 
 undiminished force of the wind and the sea, it 
 has undergone considerable changes, and many 
 detached rocks of the most rude and picturesque 
 forms are the result. About a mile and a half 
 to the westward of this island, a well-known 
 isolated and precipitous rock, called Ortac, is 
 situated. This singular rock, which is rendered 
 conspicuous by its form and position, is about 
 an hundred feet high, and connected with the 
 chain of rocks that stretches from the little 
 island of Burhou. The figure of this rock gives 
 the impression that it is formed of porphyry. 
 Perhaps one of the most singular rocks about 
 Alderney is that called La Pendante. This 
 rock is to be found at a point on the southern 
 shore of the island. It resembles exactly a 
 square tower of masonry, but it has the curious 
 peculiarity of being inclined almost as much as 
 the Leaning Tower of Pisa, whence probably its 
 name, the Hanging Rock. This rock is about 
 twenty feet high, and consists of portions of 
 a stratified rock resembling grit, which is found 
 in Alderney. A very singular and picturesque 
 scene is presented by a headland, called Four- 
 chi Point. Here, in consequence of a great 
 fracture in the porphyritic rock, of which it is 
 composed, are two singular pyramidal rocks, 
 flanked by a bluff square mass, and resembling 
 in some respects those at Moulin Huet, in
 
 94 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 Germany. Tbese rocks are represented in the 
 accompanying engraving ; the open water is the 
 
 FUUHCHI POINT, ALDERNEY. 
 
 Race of Alderney, and Cape La Hague ap- 
 pears in the distance. 
 
 The most remarkable rocks about Jersey are 
 to be found on its northern coast. Near the 
 beautiful cove called Greve de Lecq, a large 
 rock, called the Chateau de Lecq, is found. 
 The base of this cliff on the land side presents 
 some appearance of a rampart. Its northern 
 declivity is, in several places, so precipitous, as 
 to assume a beetling form; in other parts it 
 descends to the sea in huge masses of bare and
 
 THE ROCKS. 95 
 
 rugged rock. This part of the coast is very 
 difficult of access, the descent being nearly per- 
 pendicular. In order to obtain the sea-weed, 
 the collection and use of which must be noticed 
 in another place, a staircase has been cut by 
 the ingenuity of a few peasants, the very ap- 
 pearance of which is terrific. By this means, 
 though not without danger, the coast is acces- 
 sible to the adventurous foot. A dreadful 
 accident, however, happened on this curious 
 staircase. One evening a man, laden with sea- 
 weed, in going up the steps, fell over ; he was 
 found on the following morning in a deplorable 
 condition at the base of the rock, and soon after 
 died of the injuries he had received. Near this 
 spot two fine pyramidal rocks stand in bold 
 outline from the turbulent waters at their feet. 
 These rocks are detached, and advanced in 
 front of the coast. The imagination might find 
 a number of grotesque resemblances in the 
 masses of rock which compose them. They are 
 represented in the annexed cut. The more 
 distant of the two is perforated by an arched 
 cavity, so as to give it something of the ap- 
 pearance of part of a Gothic ruin. From the 
 point of view at which this picture was taken, 
 this arch cannot be seen. The rocks are com- 
 posed of granite or syenite. At the north- 
 western boundary of Jersey, the rocks assume
 
 96 
 
 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 their most formidable aspect. Only a few 
 straggling and devious sheep-walks lead down 
 the cliffs in this quarter. The view of the over- 
 towering rocks above renders the scene from the 
 
 ROCKS AT GREVE DE LECQ, JERSEY. 
 
 coast extremely grand and beautiful. Masses 
 of rock rendered hoary with lichens, the growth 
 of ages, protrude in rugged grandeur, and give 
 a solemn stillness to the scene in that direction, 
 which strongly contrasts with the long and 
 heavy roll of the waters, incessantly grinding 
 down slowly, but surely, the obdurate masses 
 which resist them. Not fur from Guernsey, in
 
 THE ROCKS. 97 
 
 this part of Jersey, rises a most singular co- 
 lossal rock. It is an irregular pillar, more than 
 a hundred feet in height, and tapering but little 
 from the broad craggy head. This natural 
 tower is very appropriately called Le Pinacle. 
 In addition to the rocks forming the coast line, 
 enormous beds of rocks stretch for several miles 
 from high-water mark, on the southern and 
 eastern shores. Great chains of rock extend 
 at some distance from the shore, along both the 
 north and south of the island. Numerous iso- 
 lated groups, many of which are but a little 
 elevated above the surface of the water, render 
 the seas terrible to the mariner, so much so, 
 that it is usually said, when a vessel is seen in 
 distress in a heavy gale, that if she belongs to 
 the island, she is safe ; but if otherwise, she is 
 in imminent peril of being lost. 
 
 The rock scenery of Sark is, perhaps, the 
 most imposing of any, and has long attracted 
 .the admiration of the residents in the other 
 islands. The approach to this romantic island 
 has already been briefly noticed, and is such as 
 to excite the most lively anticipations of sur- 
 prise and admiration. It is reached from Guern- 
 sey by means of a small cutter, which plies 
 frequently across, and in favourable condition 
 of wind and tide the passage may be accom- 
 plished in two or three hours ; but the velocity
 
 98 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 of the tidal currents, and the capricious nature 
 of the winds, may often combine to render the 
 voyage one of ten hours, or more. 
 
 The ordinary places for landing are at the 
 remarkable harbour called the Creux, and 
 among the wild and precipitous scenery of a 
 spot on the other side of the island nearest to 
 Guernsey, called Havre Gosselin. The latter 
 is the place of debarkation to be selected, if a 
 beautiful view of Sark rock scenery is desired. 
 On climbing the wall-like sides of this wonder- 
 ful natural harbour, and gaining the summit of 
 the rocks at the side, a picture of broken water 
 and confused masses of rock is presented, which 
 is perhaps without its parallel in these islands. 
 Water deep and clear washes the base of the 
 rocks on which the spectator stands, and con- 
 trasts, by its stillness and unbroken surface, with 
 the eddying and boiling current a little beyond, 
 where a strong tidal stream rushes between 
 Sark and the island of Brechou. Dark masses 
 of rock oppose this stream, and receive the full 
 impulse of the resisted current. Across the 
 strait the sides of L'lle des Marchands, which 
 are cleft and rugged, and stained with dark 
 seams, present themselves to view. In the 
 midst of the strait masses of rock appear, 
 whose green-capped summits form a singular 
 contrast to their barren sides and base, around
 
 THE ROCKS. 
 
 which violent eddies are created in the waters. 
 The whole scene, though not on a very large 
 scale, nor of imposing area, is one of great beauty 
 and picturesque arrangement. 
 
 The Coupee, which constitutes a kind of 
 
 THE COUPEE, SARK. 
 
 natural bridge between Great and Little Sark, 
 deserves particular notice, and constitutes one 
 of the natural curiosities of this island. The 
 following description of this part of Sark is 
 given by a friend of the writer's, for some time 
 resident in the island : 
 
 " This singularly formed and narrow isthmus
 
 100 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 is a natural bridge of connexion, and the only 
 link of communication, between Great and 
 Little Sark; it is four hundred and fifty-six 
 feet in length, varying in width from five to 
 eight feet. The western, or Jersey side, is 
 quite inaccessible indeed, it is but forty-one 
 feet out of the perpendicular at its base. The 
 altitude, from high-water mark to the top of 
 the cliff, is three hundred and eighty-four feet, 
 by actual admeasurement made by Mr. John 
 Prince, late superintendent of the mines. This 
 elevation, higher than St. Paul's Cathedral, is 
 lost to the eye in looking down, unless some 
 fishing-boat, or vrec gatherer, should be below, 
 whose pigmy size would dispel the optical 
 illusion. The distance is also rendered more 
 deceptive by the magnitude of surrounding 
 rocks. A portion of the cliff having fallen in 
 1811, near to the junction with Little Sark, 
 the path was cut through the rock, in order to 
 lower the road, before which it passed, in an 
 undulatory form, nearly over the top of the 
 pinnacles, and was not more than four to six 
 feet in width : but, nevertheless, traversed by 
 horsemen occasionally. Doubtless, the Coupee 
 is shorn of many of its terrors, and, at the same 
 time, robbed of some of its sterner features, by 
 this necessary precaution. Imagine the originally 
 dangerous state of this lofty pass, and the situa-
 
 THE ROCKS. 101 
 
 tion of a horseman on its slippery tract, or any 
 pedestrian on the apex of this one-sided pyra- 
 mid, 'who, whilst leaning from the abyss on the 
 one side, seems borne up by the stormy wind 
 from the other. It is not surprising that some 
 fatal accidents should have occurred, especially 
 to persons crossing over in a state of inebriety 
 indeed, since the alteration, an old man, laden 
 with bundles of straw, Avas carried over by the 
 wind, and died the following day, in conse- 
 quence of the injuries he sustained. Another 
 person, a miner, subject to attacks of delirium 
 tremens, when crossing the Coupee, was fre- 
 quently attacked with violent paroxysms of 
 terror, and with difficulty prevented by his 
 companions from falling over. The present 
 road, in some parts, is still without wall or 
 protection of any kind on either side, and the 
 rocks, being of micaceous schist, rapidly decom- 
 posing by the action of air and water, large 
 masses hang, apparently loose, on the verge 
 of the precipice, ready to be launched into the 
 abyss below, or detached piece by piece, and 
 carried away by the fury of the elements. 
 
 " The objects worthy of notice on the shore 
 are the strata the caves the arch the tunnel 
 rock and broken Creux, near the Pointe 
 zoophytes and some rare marine plants, well 
 deserving the botanist's attention. ' The stra-
 
 102 
 
 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 tification of the rocks is open and extensive ; 
 from east to west there is a vein of porcelain 
 clay, eleven or twelve feet thick, intersected 
 with grains of quartz, and purple, red, and 
 yellow oxide of iron, which are probably the 
 
 VIEW OF SARK, PROM BKECI1OU. 
 
 remains of veins running through the granite, 
 from the decomposition of which the porcelain 
 clay appears to have originated. The appear- 
 ance of the original granite is in many parts 
 visible.' "
 
 THE ROCKS. 103 
 
 We shall close this chapter on the rock scenery 
 of the Channel Islands, by a slight reference to 
 that of Brechou, or L'lle des Marchands. In 
 order to reach this little island, a boat must be 
 taken from Sark. Its sides are steep and inacces- 
 sible, excepting at a small natural harbour on 
 the Guernsey side, and at a little landing place 
 01 the side towards Sark. The highest point of 
 reck being gained, the view toward Sark across 
 the Gouliot stream well repays the fatigue of 
 the ascent. Standing here, and looking toward 
 Sark, a wild scene opens to view. The pre- 
 cipitous sides of Sark lie in the distance, cleft 
 in a remarkable manner, and the deep chasms 
 running diagonally across the island. The roar- 
 ing stream impetuously dashes against the 
 cavernous sides of the rocks beneath the feet, 
 and in the middle distance an uncouth mass 
 of rock breasts the current. This mass is 
 deeply hollowed by a cave on the side next 
 Brechon, at the entrance of which a singularly 
 formed rock projects, not unlike a sphinx in 
 outline, and seeming to guard the approach. A 
 numerous flock of gulls whirling below give 
 animation to a scene otherwise solitary and 
 wild.
 
 KOCKS ON THE COAST OF JERSEY. 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 GEOLOGY AND MINERALOGY. 
 
 THE Geological structure of the exposed parts 
 of any country may be said to determine its 
 general features. It appears singular that this 
 has escaped the attention of those whose beau- 
 tiful representations of nature line our walls 
 and ornament our books. The artist spends 
 much of his time in the study of human anatomy, 
 and devotes special attention to those parts of 
 the frame which give the peculiarities of form
 
 GEOLOGY AND MINERALOGY. 105 
 
 and expression appropriate to each action of 
 life. But it seems to have been forgotten that 
 there is an anatomy of nature as well as of 
 man; and that the splendid scenery of the world, 
 formed for man's enjoyment and instruction by 
 the hand of a beneficent Creator, is as entirely 
 dependent upon the mechanical and often che- 
 mical peculiarities of the rocks and solid portions 
 which compose it, for its expression its aspect 
 of nature as is the face of man, or the outline 
 of his limbs, upon the muscular arrangements 
 beneath the external skin. The study of geo- 
 logy becomes, therefore, as essential to the 
 landscape-painter, as that of anatomy to the 
 historical or portraiture artist. Even the un- 
 educated and unscientific are able to recognise 
 the imperfections of landscape-painters in this 
 particular, and though perhaps unable to ex- 
 plain their faults and inconsistencies, they 
 nevertheless recognise the fact that something 
 is wrong about the picture, although they do 
 do not know what. The geologist at a glance 
 perceives, and is able to point out the inac- 
 curacy, and he marks the almost ludicrous fact, 
 that to the characters of what should be a 
 stratified rock, the artist has given those be- 
 longing to a non-stratified one, or the contrary ; 
 while the peculiar forms of vales and hills, 
 which are all determined to a great degree by
 
 106 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 their geological structure, are strangely blended 
 together. 
 
 Dr. Macculloch, a native of Guernsey, in his 
 work on the Western Isles of Scotland, has written 
 some excellent remarks on this subject. Speaking 
 of the works of various painters, with reference 
 to their geological accuracy, he says, " Salvator 
 is beautifully correct in his fine picture of the 
 preaching of John the Baptist, a landscape evi- 
 dently painted from the life. But to compensate 
 for that, he is wrong twenty times even where he 
 seems equally to have painted from nature, and 
 evidently from want of scientific knowledge in 
 this particular department. Nor is it possible 
 to contemplate that picture without being aware 
 of the value which it derives from its truth. 
 Thus, also, in his magnificent composition of 
 the Golden Calf, Claude has treated his rocks 
 with as much truth as effect. Yet, even with 
 him, the careful painter of nature, that perfec- 
 tion in this department of landscape is rare a 
 proof of the necessity which a landscape painter 
 is under of knowing the anatomy, if I may use 
 such a term, of his rocks as well as of his trees, 
 his plants, his shipping, his architecture, and 
 his animals. Of Roth, the Poussins, and of 
 Nicolo chiefly, I may say what Peter Pindar 
 says of many landscape-painters, that there are 
 too often " garret rocks" though sometimes
 
 GEOLOGY AND MINERALOGY. 107 
 
 marked by truth ; and if Gainsborough's are 
 like nothing on earth, it is no cause of surprise, 
 when we know from what materials he con- 
 structed at least his style of landscape. I 
 might illustrate this without end, for good and 
 for bad, but chiefly the latter, from painters 
 without number ; from Berghem, Du Jardin, 
 Ruysdael, Wilson, Rubens, Turner, and many 
 others, but it is unnecessary. I must maintain 
 that until landscape painters are familiar with 
 the leading rocks of the earth and their cha- 
 racteristic differences, their works will be 
 imperfect. To represent her correctly, nature 
 must be known 'intus et in cute.' I know of no 
 place where, from want of this species of know- 
 ledge, artists have so invariably failed in their 
 attempts, as in representing Staffa ; nor is there 
 any class of rock to the right representation of 
 which minute geological knowledge is so indis- 
 pensable as the columnar ones. No artist, be 
 his eye, his practice, and his patience what they 
 may, can draw these rocks from nature, merely 
 by co Py m g what is before him ; particularly in 
 that case where they form causeways, so daz- 
 zling is their intricacy, and so inextricable their 
 forms. If he attempts to construct them with- 
 out the requisite knowledge, all truth of cha- 
 racter, as well as all possibility of right position 
 and relation disappears, and the drawings assume
 
 108 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 that hideous air of regularity and falsity toge- 
 ther, which we see in every representation of that 
 place which has been made. All the arts and 
 sciences mutually aid each other: to a pain- 
 ter's necessary knowledge, I know of no limits : 
 and even geology, I trust, may be rescued from 
 some portion of the contempt which the crowd 
 of its miserable cultivators has brought' on it, 
 when it shall have been raised to the dignity of 
 a handmaid to the arts of design." The truth 
 and justice of these remarks scarcely require 
 corroboration. In order to obtain correct repre- 
 sentations of the geological structure of the 
 Channel Islands, the pencil of Nature has been 
 employed in furnishing the originals for this 
 work, the illustrations consisting of faithful 
 copies from photographic pictures taken by 
 the author. 
 
 The manner in which these experiments were 
 pursued, on the occasion of one of the writer's 
 visits to the islands in question, may have some 
 interest to those who are acquainted with the 
 beautiful results of the Calotype process. It was 
 our first design to have employed the process for 
 obtaining these pictures by. the assistance of Mr. 
 Fox Talbot's method. Paper for this process is 
 thus made : good writing paper, or paper made 
 for this purpose, is washed with nitrate of silver, 
 and subsequently with iodide of potassium
 
 GEOLOGY AND MINERALOGY. 109 
 
 a process which leaves in the pores of the 
 paper a pale yellow iodide of silver. Such 
 paper is called " Iodised Paper." In order 
 to render it sensitive to the light, a dilute 
 solution of nitrate of silver, of glacial acetic 
 acid, and of gallic acid, is smoothly applied to 
 its surface. The paper is now capable of re- 
 ceiving luminous impressions. In order to 
 effect this it is enclosed in a dark frame, and 
 subsequently exposed for a minute or two to 
 the picture formed at the back of a photo- 
 graphic camera obscura. A picture is now 
 impressed on its surface. Yet, if the paper 
 were examined in a room lighted with a yellow 
 light, or by candle-light, no appearance of a 
 picture would be visible. In order to make it 
 visible, the paper is washed over again with a 
 solution of gallic acid, and nitrate of silver, 
 and acetic acid. It is then warmed over a 
 basin of hot water, and as though by magic, 
 the delicate and beautiful outlines of the pic- 
 ture begin to appear, until the whole scene is 
 revealed with surprising brilliance and effect, 
 but all in contrasts : the sky is black, the fore- 
 ground is white. This paper is then properly 
 finished, and when laid on the surface of paper 
 covered with 'a preparation of silver, and ex- 
 posed to the sun, a picture is produced on the 
 latter, precisely according to nature the sky
 
 110 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 white and the shadows black. In consequence, 
 however, of the protection under which this 
 process is preserved, it was not employed for 
 the purpose in view.* A large number of ex- 
 periments were made with another process of 
 obtaining sun pictures, much more simple, but 
 also much more uncertain than the Calotype- 
 Among other results, a new photographic pro- 
 cess was discovered by the writer, by means of 
 which some pictures were obtained. Paper, on 
 the surface of which a slight deposit of iodide of 
 silver has been laid, is washed first with a dilute 
 solution of nitrate of silver, and immediately be- 
 fore exposing in the camera with a solution of 
 the protonitrate of iron. The remarkable part 
 of this process is, that the pictures develop 
 themselves without requiring a second wash. 
 At first the paper is quite blank, but in a 
 minute or two the picture begins to appear, and 
 soon becomes beautifully distinct. This pecu- 
 liar salt of iron has not hitherto been employed 
 in the photographic art : possibly it may prove 
 ultimately of value. t It is necessary, however, 
 that the paper should be exposed while still 
 wet, and this reduced us to the necessity of 
 
 * Since this was written, Mr. Talbot has withdrawn his 
 patent rights as far as they relate to landscape photography. 
 
 f Experience has justified this anticipation, and the sub 
 stance in question is now very largely used by photographers 
 as a developing fluid.
 
 GEOLOGY AND MINERALOGY. Ill 
 
 contriving a portable dark room, in which the 
 process could be carried on at the spot itself, 
 where the view was to be taken. By means of 
 a triangular tent made of glazed oil-cloth this 
 was accomplished, and upon the most exposed 
 situations in the broad sunshine of noon-day, 
 a dark room was formed large enough to sit 
 upright in, and to prepare the paper for taking 
 the pictures. The difficulty, and indeed the 
 danger, of carrying the apparatus down the 
 sides of rugged and precipitous rocks, can 
 scarcely be imagined. On the sea-shore in 
 the bays, it was easy to pitch the tent and 
 prepare the paper, and infinite surprise was 
 excited by the operations necessary, among the 
 few peasantry passing by. But among the 
 rocks it became impossible, and a small room 
 was hired near the coast, where, to the incon- 
 ceivable wonder of the poor people who owned 
 it, the photographic paper was prepared. The 
 most serious inconvenience was experienced 
 in consequence of the exceeding hygrometric 
 state of the air near the sea-coast. The delicate 
 equilibrium of the chemical ingredients on the 
 paper, so essential to their susceptibility to the 
 light, was thus annoyingly interfered with, 
 and numberless disappointing failures were the 
 result. For such an object, the daguerreo- 
 type is unquestionably the best form of photo-
 
 1 12 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 graphic procedure. But the plates must be 
 prepared on or near the spot, and developed as 
 quickly as possible after the impression has 
 been received on their surface. The grand and 
 romantic scenery in many parts of these islands 
 would afford a beautiful selection of subjects to 
 a good daguerreist. It is gratifying to be able 
 to add, that a most extensive series of daguerreo- 
 types were ultimately taken by the writer, from 
 which the engravings which illustrate the present 
 work are copied. 
 
 Recurring now to the subject which has sug- 
 gested these digressory but it is hoped not 
 useless remarks, it is interesting to notice the 
 operation of the principle laid down, that 
 geological structure determines the character 
 of a scene to a great extent. Mrs. Somerville 
 makes the following just observations upon this 
 point. "A difference in the composition and 
 internal structure of a rock has a great influence 
 upon its general form, and on the degree and 
 manner in which it is worn by the weather. 
 Thus, dolomite assumes generally the form of 
 peaks like saw-teeth ; crystalline schists assume 
 the form of needles, as in the Alps ; slates and 
 quartziferous schists take the form of triangular 
 pyramids ; calcareous rocks a rounded shape ; 
 serpentine and trachyte are often twisted and 
 crumpled ; phonolites assume a pyramidal form ;
 
 GEOLOGY AND MINERALOGY. 113 
 
 dark walls, like those in Greenland, are of trap 
 and basalt, and volcanoes are indicated by blunt 
 cones and craters. Thus mountain peaks often 
 indicate by their form their geological nature." 
 The careful researches of M. Boue" have also 
 shown that on a broader scale the same is true, 
 and that there is a very striking connexion 
 between the physical geography (or external 
 aspect) of different countries and their geological 
 structure. By a minute comparison of the 
 different parts of the land, M. Boue" has shown 
 that a critical similarity of outward forms, while 
 indicating a similarity in the producing causes, 
 must also to a large extent indicate identity of 
 structure; arid, therefore, from the external 
 appearance of an unexplored country, its geolo- 
 gical structure may be inferred, at least to a 
 certain extent. 
 
 We are accustomed to regard the forms of 
 different countries, as they are depicted on our 
 maps, as without order or law. But the prin- 
 ciple in question leads us to the remarkable and 
 important conclusion, that, in the formation of 
 different countries, in the more essential pecu- 
 liarities of their contours, the Great Author of 
 all Nature has not produced an indefinite num- 
 ber of types or models, but that, on the contrary, 
 the fundamental types of form are very few. 
 The whole of our land and sea, in fact, may be 
 i
 
 114 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 decomposed into a less or greater number of 
 masses, either exhibiting all their fundamental 
 forms which are derived from the action of 
 definite constructive forces under the direction 
 and control of the Mighty Creator or merely 
 a portion of them. It follows as a consequence 
 of this fact, that analogy of form and contour 
 throws the greatest light on the constitution of 
 countries far removed from each other. Thus, 
 as it has been aptly remarked, even the pic- 
 turesque descriptions of a traveller often afford 
 information of which he may himself be little 
 aware. 
 
 Applying these remarks to the geology of the 
 Channel Islands, it has been already observed 
 that no one who has just left the alluvial dis- 
 tricts of England, and visits these islands, can 
 fail to be struck with the fact, that a strange 
 difference exists between the scenery of the 
 islands and that of the districts in question. 
 Perhaps every person may not be able to ac- 
 count for the difference, or, in strictness, to 
 describe it ; but it is universally felt and recog- 
 nised. What, then, is the difference ? and what 
 is its cause? The difference is simply this: 
 the contour of the islands is that of a district 
 composed exclusively of primary rocks, while 
 that of the alluvial country is that exhibited by 
 land appropriately called derived that is, ob-
 
 GEOLOGY AND MINERALOGY. 115 
 
 tained by the destruction of other rocks. The 
 one is rugged, fantastic, gloomy-looking, preci- 
 pitous, abrupt, and ungraceful. The contour 
 of the other is rounded, smooth, gently rising 
 and falling, and it is adorned with trees, and 
 enlivened with quiet-flowing rivers and brooks 
 of water. The cause of the difference lies in 
 the nature of the constructive forces by which 
 each district respectively was formed : the one, 
 by some great convulsion of nature, was thrust 
 up to its present height above the waters ; the 
 other appears to have been formed by the accu- 
 mulating materials of the waste of other rocks 
 in the course of many centuries. The one 
 country is formed on the type of a country con- 
 sisting of primary rocks ; the other on that of 
 one consisting of derived materials. To the geo- 
 logist well acquainted with the forms assumed by 
 different rocks, an easy, and oftentimes an ac- 
 curate, means of obtaining geological informa- 
 tion as to the structure of mountains or cliffs 
 far distant is thus afforded. While, however, 
 the principle holds good on the broad scale, it 
 must not be relied upon where strict accuracy 
 and local information of a precise kind is re- 
 quired. 
 
 The whole of the islands consist essentially 
 of primary rocks, and, as this term may not be 
 fully understood by some who read these pages,
 
 116 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 it may be useful to explain its meaning. The 
 term includes all those rocks which do not 
 contain the fossil remains of animals or vege- 
 tables, and in the ' production of which the 
 agency of an intense heat at some period is 
 generally considered to have had a large share. 
 Although the term has been properly objected 
 to, and is now generally supplanted by a more 
 definite and correct expression, it is still useful, 
 as it is very widely understood. Sir C. Lyell 
 proposes to call such rocks the " nether-formed," 
 or Hypogenous, and they have been appro- 
 priately called by Humboldt "rocks formed from 
 within," or endogenous. Their mode of forma- 
 tion is considered to be as follows. They are 
 supposed to have been once in a fluid state, to 
 which the agency of heat reduced them, and to 
 have been forced up from beneath by some 
 vast internal upheaving power. Granite and 
 syenite, porphyry, greenstone, serpentine, trap, 
 and many varieties of these rocks, belong to this 
 series. But lying on the surface of these rocks, 
 as a general rule, another series of rocks, also 
 belonging to non-fossiliferous rocks, is met with. 
 The rocks of the first series exhibit no trace 
 of arrangement in the form of stratified beds. 
 In other words, there is none of that appear- 
 ance resembling the leaves of a book, which is 
 so conspicuous in many rocks in England, and
 
 GEOLOGY AND MINERALOGY. 117 
 
 which serves to show that they were formed by 
 the deposit of layer upon layer of the sub- 
 stance of the rock, in a mass of granite. It is 
 all solid, compact, crystalline, and homogeneous, 
 or nearly so. But the rocks of the second 
 series, still belonging to the rocks destitute of 
 organic remains, and including gneiss, chlorite, 
 hornblende, schists, &c., appear to have been 
 formed from alterations taking place in the 
 rocks belonging to the first series, and such 
 rocks, often called metamorphic, exhibit traces 
 of stratification. As a general rule, such rocks 
 appear to be next in point of antiquity to those 
 of the first series. After these, and generally 
 overlying them, in other countries, not in the 
 Channel Islands, are found rocks and beds 
 containing various organic remains : and up to 
 the surface itself such remains continue to be 
 found, and in greater abundance. All those 
 strata containing organic remains or fossils are 
 considered to be newer than those of the first 
 and second series, and it is deserving of especial 
 notice, that no such strata are to be found in 
 the Channel Islands. The older beds of strati- 
 fied rock, and the granite, the most ancient of 
 all, form their external structure. It is of 
 rocks belonging to these two classes or series 
 the rocks of eruption, and the rocks formed 
 by alteration of these rocks that the Channel
 
 118 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 Islands are composed. The consequence is, that 
 there are no organic remains of any kind to 
 be found. From this general definition of the 
 geological character of these islands, which will 
 enable the reader to obtain a clear outline of 
 their structure, we may pass to the considera- 
 tion of the geology of each of the more im- 
 portant of these islands. 
 
 Since the period when Alderney was visited 
 by Dr. Macculloch, it does not appear that its 
 geology has been carefully examined by scientific 
 geologists; at any rate, such investigations, if 
 they have been made, have not been published. 
 The principal rocks entering into the composition 
 of this island are porphyry, and a reddish grit. 
 The latter is an aggregate formed from a detritus 
 of granite, regularly varying in its texture and 
 colour. At the north-east coast of the island, this 
 rock is red and coarse-grained, but it becomes 
 gradually whiter and of a finer texture toward 
 the west till it ceases, resembling there the finest 
 sandstone. It is stratified through its whole 
 extent, in parallel and equal strata of about a 
 foot in thickness. These strata are straight 
 and continuous in most parts, and are almost 
 every where inclined in an angle of 45, dipping 
 toward the east. Here and there some strata 
 are of a more horizontal tendency. Their 
 equality and the regularity of their position
 
 GEOLOGY AND MINERALOGY. 119 
 
 give them in some places, where their edges 
 are exposed, a form apparently so columnar 
 that they might at a distance be mistaken for 
 basalt : and when a succession of these ribs 
 appear cropping through the grass, the appear- 
 ance as of the skeleton of a mountain is ex- 
 hibited. The lower portions of this rock are 
 the whitest and finest. The stone is easily 
 quarried, and breaks naturally into masses 
 having their sides slightly inclined or absolutely 
 rectangular. It is therefore well calculated 
 for architectural purposes; and abundance 
 might be procured at a small expense, very 
 nearly adapted for square building without 
 the assistance of the chisel. This rock exhibits 
 a number of varieties in different places, de- 
 pendent on the greater or less degree of meta- 
 morphic action to which it has been subjected. 
 "Where the strata of this rock cease, an inclined 
 stratum of a black rock composed of hornblende 
 and quartz is found. It is in some places 
 accompanied by syenite. Red and purple lime- 
 stone, sandstone, schist, and varieties of syenite 
 are also found entering into the structure of the 
 island, until we come to a mass of porphyry, of 
 which the remainder is formed, and it is the 
 broad and perpendicular fracture of this rock 
 which causes the picturesque appearance of the 
 western extremity of the island.
 
 120 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 The geological structure of Guernsey differs 
 from that of Alderney. It is almost entirely 
 of granitic formation, the southern half, or 
 thereabouts, of the island consisting of gneiss, 
 and the north part exhibiting various kinds of 
 granite and syenite. The town of St. Peter 
 Port extends through a glen formed by the 
 elevation of the beds of syenite and hornblende 
 on the north side, and the commencement of 
 the gneiss on the southern side. In the bed of 
 this glen, intervening between the syenite and 
 the gneiss, serpentine makes its appearance, and 
 is found running beneath the town, in a direc- 
 tion eastward toward Castle Cornet, and skirting 
 the syenite and hornblende rock near the port. 
 The serpentine passes insensibly into a talcose 
 schist, and with the others forms a transition 
 into chlorite and greenstone. The high grounds 
 of the south, as has just been observed, are com- 
 posed of gneiss and other associated rocks of 
 that series. The whole of this elevated portion 
 of land may be considered as forming the bulk 
 of the island. Granite, in all its varieties, pre- 
 vails over the northern portion of the island. 
 The western coast presents an uninterrupted 
 band of syenitic rock to the ocean wave. Near 
 the bays of Cobo and Albec this rock is found 
 of a red colour, traversed by veins of epidote 
 and richly coloured felspar. This rock is sue-
 
 GEOLOGY AND MINERALOGY. 
 
 121 
 
 ceeded in the neighbourhood of Pleinmont by 
 the grey and blue varieties. In some parts on 
 this coast the rock is of the finest and most 
 
 ROCKS AT PLEINMONT, GUERNSEY. 
 
 brilliant quality, so much esteemed for the con- 
 struction of national edifices and monuments, 
 and it is here raised in blocks of considerable 
 magnitude. Hornblende rock next follows, 
 and it is found both in its amorphous and 
 schistose structure extending along the east 
 coast towards the town, the syenite only 
 occasionally making its appearance where the
 
 122 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 stratum is upraised. On the southern side of 
 the island the alternations and passages of the 
 intruding series of rocks which accompany the 
 gneiss can be beautifully seen. In the neigh- 
 bourhood of Torteval alternating lines of the 
 dark strata may be seen traversing the cliffs of 
 reddish gneiss, and in the bay of Bon Repos 
 they are found in every possible state of dis- 
 turbance. They are observed to issue from near 
 this spot and intrude their dark streams into 
 the main body of gneiss in all directions. The 
 gneiss cliffs continue to range toward the wes- 
 tern extremity of Guernsey, where they become 
 less accessible to the rambler, but present, from 
 their summits many points of bold and pic- 
 turesque scenery. The hills thus formed break 
 into numerous slopes and glens, leading in a 
 northerly direction, from whence are derived 
 the tortuous valleys which diversify the interior 
 of the island. These little glens are generally 
 supplied with small and rapid streams, along the 
 edges of which a green and teeming vegetation 
 will generally be found. The termination of 
 the hills and valleys on the western side opens 
 into a succession of sandy bays, diversified and 
 broken by several tongues of land and rocky 
 eminences. Some of these bays are of con- 
 siderable extent and continue for several miles, 
 appearing in succession along this coast until
 
 GEOLOGY AND MINERALOGY. 
 
 123 
 
 the first division of the island of syenitic for- 
 mation is gained.* 
 
 The island of Herm resembles in the leading 
 features of its geological structure that of 
 
 KOCKS ON THE COAST OP GUERNSEY. 
 
 Guernsey. On the northern coast is a sandy 
 shore, protected by sand dunes alone, and pro- 
 ceeding southward, granite and syenite become 
 visible, and have in fact been exposed by quar- 
 rying. Proceeding still southward, the meta- 
 
 * For most of these particulars relative to the geology of 
 Guernsey, I am indebted to F. C. Lukis, Esq. F.S. A. Having 
 gone over most of the ground described, I can corroborate 
 the facts stated.
 
 124 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 morphic rocks make their appearance. The 
 south coast, like that of Guernsey, is abrupt 
 and precipitous, and is constituted of gneissic 
 rock. The rocks on this coast are in a greater 
 state of disintegration than any we have met 
 with in these islands. The whole surface of 
 the rock for some distance is covered with a 
 mass of debris and disintegrated material. We 
 have detached pieces nearly a foot thick from 
 the face of the rock, and with a slight blow 
 crumbled them to powder. This renders it 
 very perilous to attempt to climb them, and on 
 one occasion we had a narrow escape of falling 
 from this cause. Having reached some height 
 up the side of the rock, a precipitous part pre- 
 sented itself, which, before gaining the summit, 
 must be ascended. At every step the broken 
 surface crumbled down, and rendered a secure 
 footing impossible. A ledge of rock on which 
 standing-room was found, appeared ready to be 
 detached from the face of the cliff. To ascend 
 was impossible, and to descend appeared equally 
 dangerous, as neither the hands nor feet could 
 avail themselves of any sound part upon which a 
 hold could be got. At length, by the assistance of 
 some rock-plants, whose roots penetrated deep 
 into the disintegrated mass, we were enabled to 
 descend, and reaching the shore, gained the 
 summit of the rock by a more circuitous and
 
 GEOLOGY AND MINERALOGY. 125 
 
 safer route. The mineral products of this 
 island will be presently noticed. Alternating 
 with the syenite of Herm appears a rock which 
 is allied to some varieties of the augite rocks 
 of Scotland. 
 
 To the north-east of Herm lie several groups 
 of rocks called the Anfroques. These rocks 
 afford a singular spectacle when seen from the 
 deck of the cutter on the passage from Sark to 
 Guernsey. The rocks are not very high, but 
 are remarkable for the resemblance they bear 
 to the ruins of a city half buried in the waters. 
 These rocks are considered to be granitic. Their 
 appearance in this picturesque form, if such is 
 the case, may be accounted for by the mass 
 being divided by cleavage planes. This is a 
 very common circumstance in rocks of a granitic 
 structure, and portions of them often appear as 
 if artifically arranged, from this cause. Sir H. 
 De la Beche observes " The cleavage of granite 
 is generally such that the mass is divided into 
 numerous short prisms with a rectangular face. 
 These, when exposed to the action of the atmo- 
 sphere, or that of the sea on coasts, frequently 
 present the appearance of some huge ruin." 
 Whether these rocks may present the same 
 appearance on a closer inspection, I am unable 
 to say, as they are not accessible to investiga- 
 tion, but seen in the distance it is difficult to
 
 126 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 conceive the masses which rise above the sea 
 to be of natural and not artificial construction. 
 The powerful current which streams through the 
 channel called " the Great Russell," must have a 
 strong action against these rocks, which form 
 the north-eastern boundary of this passage. 
 
 The island of Lihou contains some rocks of 
 highly coloured gneiss, which are traversed by 
 veins of felspar. Some singular excavations 
 in these rocks, which have been, as it is said, 
 used at a former pei'iod as baths, will again 
 come under notice. Lihou is interesting in one 
 respect to the geologist, as at the Guernsey 
 side of the causeway which leads to it are 
 evidences of a " raised beach." 
 
 The geology of the Isle of Sark is the most 
 interesting of all, and attracted the particular 
 attention of Dr. Macculloch, as it has also that 
 of every geologist who has visited it. In conse- 
 quence of the peculiar formation of this island, 
 and its abrupt wall-like side, its structure is 
 more perfectly exposed than that of the others. 
 It has been already mentioned that Sark is a 
 table-land, having no declivity to the sea at 
 any part, except a small descent at its northern 
 extremity. A general outline of the geology 
 of this island is all that can be given, as it 
 would demand a rigid investigation of its struc- 
 ture to enter minutely into the subject, and
 
 GEOLOGY AND MINERALOGY. 127 
 
 geologists' accounts are discrepant about it. 
 So far as we have been able to examine its 
 structure, the following particulars may be 
 relied on. Its northern and southern boun- 
 daries are composed of rocks of syenite or 
 granite, and between these points a series of 
 the metamorphic rocks make their appearance, 
 constituting the main body of the island. Thus 
 the primitive crystalline rock forms apparently 
 a hollowed interval, in which are contained a 
 large variety of rocks, derived from the altera- 
 tion of the rocks, of the first series, or from 
 intrusions into the former from below. At 
 each extremity the original granitic rock ap- 
 pears unaltered. The rocks contained between 
 these two points are remarkably diversified in 
 their character. They comprise every mixture 
 of micaceous schists with hornblende, actinolite, 
 chlorite, talc, and potstone, and the frequent 
 interchange of ingredients has caused, no doubt, 
 much of the perplexity of the different .geo- 
 logical accounts given of this island. The 
 metamorphic influence also of the rocks which 
 have been intruded into these schistose and agil- 
 laceous beds that is, the alterations effected in 
 their composition and structure by the forcible 
 injection of igneous rocks into their mass tends 
 greatly to confuse the whole, and to produce 
 combinations of an intricate kind. The western
 
 128 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 parts of the island are composed chiefly of 
 deposits of schistose and argillaceous rocks. 
 On the eastern and north-eastern coasts large 
 veins of trap and greenstone make their appear- 
 ance. The most interesting part of the geology 
 of this island is at the Port du Moulin. The 
 descent to this place is extremely wild and 
 picturesque, leading through a narrow pass of 
 tall rocks down to the sea. Detached masses 
 of rock surrounded by the sea, and relieved by 
 the broad cliffs which bound it, constitute the 
 peculiar feature of this port. The stratification 
 of the rocks is here remarkably horizontal. 
 They appear to be composed of a micaceous 
 schist, and are occasionally intersected by veins 
 of quartz. The rock in many places breaks 
 into pieces well adapted for square masonry, to 
 which purpose it is applied by the islanders. 
 Near this spot is found the celebrated lapis 
 ollaris or potstone, and in the land lying above 
 the cliffs. This stone is singular in consequence 
 of its properties of infusibility, softness, and 
 tenacity. It is capable of being turned and 
 cut in a lathe, and has been used for the pur- 
 poses of domestic life from time immemorial. 
 It is mentioned by Pliny as applicable to the 
 formation of vessels of various kinds. From 
 its use in this way its present name potstone is 
 derived. The islanders of Sark avail them-
 
 GEOLOGY AND MINERALOGY. 129 
 
 selves of this stone for the purpose of making 
 various utensils. Near the celebrated pass 
 the Couple, the geologist will also find much 
 to interest him. In particular, there is at this 
 spot a vein of porcelain clay, ten or twelve feet 
 in thickness, and extending across the direction 
 of this narrow ridge. This seam is rendered 
 conspicuous even from Guernsey, in conse- 
 quence of its whiteness, and the contrast be- 
 tween it and the dark rocks on either side 
 of it. It is not white throughout, but is in 
 many parts much contaminated by purple, 
 red, and yellow oxides of iron. Veins of 
 quartz also intersect it, and grains of the 
 same mineral are found dispersed through it. 
 Were there nothing else to distinguish this tall 
 pass, the conspicuousness of the vein in ques- 
 tion would render it the subject of attention to 
 the most careless eye. 
 
 The island of Brechou, or L'Isle des Mar- 
 chands, appears to consist chiefly of gneiss, and 
 of the rocks belonging to that series. The lines 
 of stratification are in many places very evident. 
 The rocks are very abrupt and of singular 
 forms. Between this island and Sark is an 
 isolated rock, the summit of which is covered 
 with grass, and occasionally affords pasture to 
 a few sheep. From its position, with reference 
 to the latter island, it may be taken to consist 
 K
 
 130 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 of the same rocks as the main land, from which 
 it is separated by a short interval. 
 
 In a general view, the geological structure of 
 Jersey may be described as that of an island, 
 the greater part of whose high and northern 
 tract consists of granitic rock, upon which the 
 remainder of the island toward the south re- 
 poses. The granite or syenite, which has a 
 pleasing reddish tint in some places, forms the 
 lowest rock, and upon it an argillaceous and 
 schistose series of rocks rest in a south-western 
 direction ; while toward the north-east a con- 
 siderable mass of hornstone and conglomerate 
 is found running. Veins of porphyry, and par- 
 ticularly of felspar, are also found intersecting 
 the other strata in various places, and in a 
 greater or less degree of decomposition, and 
 variously tinged, green, red, and yellow. Beds 
 of amygdaloid and green porphyry are also met 
 with, and are quarried and employed for paving 
 and in the construction of walls. The singular 
 rock, conglomerate or pudding-stone, is found 
 near Rozel Bay. It consists of rounded frag- 
 ments of rock, cemented into a hard mass by a 
 medium apparently of an argillaceous or elayey 
 nature, with some traces of iron. To those 
 who are not conversant with the formation of 
 mineral substances, few objects can be more 
 surprising and perplexing than the large masses
 
 GEOLOGY AND MINERALOGY. 131 
 
 of these rocks which form the coast line in 
 this part of Jersey. A very fine rock of a 
 similar nature is found in Boulay Bay, the 
 mass of which is of a beautiful dark green. 
 The well sunk in the tower hill of St. Helier's 
 passes through about from forty to fifty feet of 
 decomposed syenite, and beyond this to the 
 depth of about two hundred feet in syenite in 
 its fresh state. 
 
 In no part of any of these islands does there 
 occur a fossiliferous bed. Lime is only dis- 
 covered in small veins of calcareous spar, sel- 
 dom exceeding six inches in breadth, and found 
 traversing some of the rocks of the gneiss series 
 in Guernsey, or filling the cavities of the argil- 
 laceous strata in Jersey. In some places in 
 Guernsey scanty and insignificant portions of 
 the recent formations may be found dispersed 
 upon the surface ; but of organic remains, in 
 the sense in which that term is properly under- 
 stood, there are none. 
 
 The mineralogy of these islands is interesting; 
 but in consequence of the almost endless inter- 
 mixtures and combinations of the simple minerals 
 in the various rocks and veins, it is also com- 
 plicated. There are a number of varieties of 
 granite found in the various quarries worked on 
 the northern coast. The composition of this 
 rock, it may scarcely need to be said, consists
 
 132 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 of variable proportions of the minerals called 
 felspar, quartz, and mica, and these are inti- 
 mately blended together. Felspar is usually 
 the predominating rock. Of the mixtures of 
 these three ingredients in varying relative quan- 
 tities, the granite of these islands, properly 
 so called, is composed. From this variation 
 in the relative proportion of its ingredients 
 arises the difference in the brilliancy, texture, 
 and colour of the rock. These minerals are 
 generally united in what is termed a confused 
 crystallization ; that is to say, there is no regular 
 arrangement of the crystals in ordinary granite ; 
 but a singular variety is sometimes met with, 
 and exists in the rocks of the northern coast of 
 Guernsey, which is termed, from its remarkable 
 appearance, graphic granite. It is found chiefly 
 in veins.* It is a compound of felspar and 
 quartz, so arranged as to produce an imperfect 
 laminar structure. The crystals of felspar 
 appear to have been first formed, leaving be- 
 tween them the space now occupied by the 
 darker-coloured quartz. This curious mineral 
 presents nothing unusual when a section is made 
 perpendicularly ; but, when cut at right angles 
 to the alternate plates of felspar and quartz, it 
 presents broken lines which bear a singular 
 resemblance to Hebrew characters. 
 
 * Lyell, Elements of Geology.
 
 GEOLOGY AND MINERALOGY. 133 
 
 The term syenite has been repeatedly em- 
 ployed in the present chapter, and it becomes 
 desirable to give precision to its tenor. The 
 name is derived from the ancient Egyptian 
 quarries of Syene, which yielded this rock in 
 splendid masses. It is a variety of granite in 
 which the mica is replaced, or almost replaced, 
 by a mineral called hornblende. This rock is 
 occasionally coloured of a beautiful red, as in 
 that raised from the quarries of Mont Mado 
 in Jersey, and is on this account a valuable 
 stone for ornamental architecture.* Veins of 
 the mineral called epidote, and of red horn- 
 stone porphyry, are found in the mass. A few 
 specks of iron and copper pyrites and titanium 
 have also been found dispersed in the rocks; 
 otherwise, metallic indications are rare. 
 
 The mineral called hornblende, with other 
 rocks of the series to which it belongs, forms an 
 important part of the geology of these islands. 
 It is characterised by its dark green or velvet 
 black colour, its peculiar form of crystallization, 
 and its shining lustre. Hornblende rock, also 
 often called amphibolite, is composed of this 
 mineral united with felspar. A variety of this 
 kind is found in some parts in these islands, in 
 which the short crystals of the hornblende, 
 
 * The beautiful red granite of which the Egyptian statues 
 and other sculptures are made is a syenite of thia description.
 
 134 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 being disposed at opposite angles, form spots as 
 though the stone had been sprinkled by a 
 passing shower. Stone of this description is 
 called by the Guernsey masons Talvaen, pro- 
 nounced Talvawne. 
 
 Associated with the hornblende rock is a rock 
 called greenstone. It is composed of horn- 
 blende and felspar, the latter in a more or less 
 highly crystalline condition. Chlorite occurs 
 united with hornblende, and narrow beds of 
 chlorite schist are also found. This is a green 
 slaty rock, often asociated with, and graduating 
 into gneiss. 
 
 Gneiss, a rock forming so large and conspi- 
 cuous a portion of these islands, also demands 
 our notice. It is a mineral formed of the same 
 ingredients as granite, but with this remarkable 
 difference, that, instead of being arranged, as in 
 the latter, in a crystalline mass, they are ar- 
 ranged in layers; in other words, gneiss is a 
 stratified rock, composed of felspar, quartz, and 
 mica. Its white layers consist almost exclu- 
 sively of granular felspar; the dark layers, of 
 grey quartz and black mica. Many varieties 
 of this mineral are met with. In some, the 
 stratification is perfect ; in others, it is scarcely 
 apparent. It is also met with of a red colour. 
 
 Traversing the gneiss, and often alternating 
 with it, is the rock called trap. This rock
 
 GEOLOGY AND MINERALOGY. 135 
 
 forms the singular veins before alluded to as 
 intruding into the other rocks on the coast. The 
 name trap is derived from its often assuming 
 the form of terraces or steps, from a Swedish 
 term, trappa, signifying a flight of steps. Strata 
 of quartz rock are also found in many places, 
 traversing the gneiss, and the rocks associated 
 in that series. 
 
 Mr. Curtis has drawn up the following list 
 of minerals found in the gneissic district of 
 Guernsey, and the names will have a tolerably 
 general application to most of the other locali- 
 ties : " Sulphate of iron, mundic, specular iron 
 ore, sulphuret of copper, black and green car- 
 bonate of copper, carbonate of iron, grey iron 
 ore, brown and pearl spar, sulphuret of lead, 
 carbonate of lead, sulphuret of manganese, epi- 
 dote, chlorite, actinolite, prehonite, steatite, 
 asbestus, talc passing into lapis ollaris, or pot- 
 stone." 
 
 The islands of lierm and Sark afford the 
 most interesting study to the mineralogist. In 
 both these isles mines of silver, copper, and lead 
 have been worked. In Sark particularly a 
 large number of mineral veins exist; but no 
 attempt at their exploration was made until 
 1834; a short time previous, a mineral lode 
 having been discovered at a place called the 
 Pot. But a very curious circumstance occurred
 
 136 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 a short time after the discovery of this metalli- 
 ferous vein. A gentleman being at the south- 
 western part of the island rabbit-shooting, shot 
 one of these little animals near the edge of the 
 cliff, over which it fell. A man was sent to 
 look for the rabbit, and he brought up in addi- 
 tion several stones exhibiting glittering metallic 
 indications. After a little search the vein was 
 discovered standing quite out of the cliff: the 
 surrounding rock being more easily acted on by 
 the waters and chemical influence of the air than 
 it, wasted away around it, leaving the metalli- 
 ferous vein untouched. Mr. Darwin relates in 
 almost the same terms the discovery of the 
 lucrative silver mines of Chanuncillo, from 
 which silver to the value of many hundred 
 thousand pounds has been raised in the course 
 of a few years. A man, in that instance, threw 
 a stone at his loaded mule, and, thinking it 
 very heavy, he picked it up, and found it rich in 
 pure silver. By a little scrutiny the vein was 
 discovered close by, standing up like a wedge of 
 metal. 
 
 The vein thus discovered was speedily worked, 
 and received the name of Sark's Hope. A 
 landing place for vessels was formed, a road to 
 the newly-discovered mine was made, shafts 
 were sunk, steam-engines erected, with the 
 necessary machinery, for the preparation of the
 
 GEOLOGY AND MINERALOGY. 137 
 
 ore, and the once almost forsaken island of Sark 
 was made lively and bustling with the presence 
 of the miners, and the noise of the engines and 
 machinery. One of the galleries of this mine 
 was driven three hundred feet under the sea. 
 The rock is a very hard syenite, except near 
 the lode, where it is decomposed to a greater or 
 less degree. The minerals found in this mine 
 comprise the following compounds : Carbonate 
 of copper, phosphate of lead, carbonate, sul- 
 phate, and sulphuret of lead, antiinoniferous 
 galena, chloride and sulphuret of silver, sul- 
 phuret of silver and antimony, and copper, &c. 
 On our first visit to these islands, in 1845, these 
 mines were in full operation ; and up to that 
 period many tons of lead had been raised, and 
 the total yield of silver amounted to twenty- 
 five thousand ounces. Shortly afterwards, how- 
 ever, the works were abandoned, the existing 
 steam power not being sufficient for the proper 
 drainage of the mine ; and, it being thought not 
 desirable to incur the expense of a larger engine, 
 the whole works were given up, and they now 
 present a most wild and desolate appearance. 
 At the present time no mines are worked in any 
 part of the island. That numerous metalliferous 
 lodes exist in other parts of Sark is fully believed 
 by many mineralogists, and it is possible that the 
 experiment of working them may again be made.
 
 138 THE CHANNEL ISLAN1 
 
 A valuable copper lode was found in the 
 island of Brechou, (L'lle des Marchands,) and 
 was attempted to be worked, but the land- 
 springs proved so strong as to cause the attempt 
 to be abandoned. On the eastern and western 
 coasts of Herm, mining operations have also 
 been carried on, and shafts have been sunk ; but 
 in no instance as yet has the attempt been a 
 profitable one. The cost of fuel, and the wild 
 and remote regions in which these operations 
 must be carried on, seem to render the prospect 
 of these mines being again opened an unpro- 
 mising one. 
 
 Before concluding the present chapter, it may 
 be interesting to add a few particulars relative 
 to the stone quarries of the Channel Islands, 
 which have yielded and continue to supply 
 large quantities of the most valuable qualities 
 for architectural purposes, paving, &c. 
 
 The island of Herm contains a supply of 
 granite almost inexhaustible. On that part of 
 the island which lies over against Guernsey the 
 granite rocks exist, and there extensive quarries 
 have been formed. Not far from the quarries 
 there is a pier, which protects a small harbour 
 in which the vessels conveying the stone used 
 to anchor. This harbour was constructed at 
 the expense of a Mr. Duncan, and vessels of 
 250 tons burden could load in it, even in
 
 GEOLOGY AND MINERALOGY. 139 
 
 boisterous weather, with the greatest safety. 
 From the quarries to the pier an iron tramway 
 was laid down, and as much as 600 tons of granite 
 a-day could by this means be shipped for ex- 
 portation. Mr. Duncan also built houses for 
 400 workmen, an inn, a brewery, and a bake- 
 house, and several forges for making and re- 
 pairing the implements used in the quarries. 
 The granite could be raised in very large blocks, 
 some of them exceeding, it is said, one hundred 
 tons in weight. The stone was of the most 
 excellent quality for all building purposes. 
 A large mass of it was once required for a 
 public monument. The colour desired could 
 not be obtained at the quarries at Herm, and 
 men were sent to search over the island in 
 order to obtain a mass fit for such a pur- 
 pose. Except in one situation, no mass of 
 stone sufficiently good could be found ; and it 
 became necessary to remove a very large stone, 
 which, with some others in a confused heap, 
 formed a cluster, long but incorrectly supposed 
 to have been Druidical remains. This large 
 stone, having long formed a conspicuous object 
 from the sea, and assisting mariners in ascer- 
 taining their bearings, could not be removed 
 without permission of the States. This was 
 granted on condition that an object equally 
 conspicuous should be reared on exactly the
 
 140 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 same site. The large stone was accordingly 
 removed for the monument, and in its place a 
 curious stone pillar was built. At the base of 
 this pillar is a little recess, which appears to 
 be occasionally used for shelter by animals. 
 Large stones lie all around this spot, which are 
 becoming half buried by the sand raised up in 
 dunes along this coast, and which in time will 
 bury the pillar also, unless means for its pre- 
 vention are taken. This might easily be 
 accomplished by encouraging the growth of 
 the arenaria, &c., which grows near there in 
 abundance. 
 
 The granite, of Avhich large quantities have 
 been exported, is of a brilliant bluish grey colour. 
 This colour gives to houses built with it a pecu- 
 liarly stern, cold, and forbidding aspect. The 
 town of St. Peter Port is built of granite of 
 this colour, and it is difficult to forget the chill 
 and ghastly look worn by these solid and stern 
 houses of the town seen in the grey light of 
 early day. The warm tone of our brick-built 
 houses, or the sprightly one of our stuccoed 
 dwellings, glittering with white or yellow paint, 
 renders the appearance of these granite build- 
 ings, which seem as if they would last out all 
 time, the more unwelcome. Its properties are 
 very remarkable. It resists the action of 
 atmospheric influences for an amazing period.
 
 GEOLOGY AND MINERALOGY. 141 
 
 Houses which have been built several hundred 
 years of it in Guernsey are little altered in 
 appearance at the present day, and have lost 
 none of their ancient solidity. The lettering 
 cut in the ancient arch over the doorway is 
 almost as clear and sharp in 1850, as it was in 
 1649, when it was executed. The slightest 
 marks of the chisel are scarcely effaced. In 
 addition to its excellent property of resisting 
 the weather, it is extremely hard and ponderous, 
 and consequently resists friction and wear of all 
 kinds. A table of the relative power of resisting 
 wear, and of the weight, &c. of different kinds 
 of granite, was published some years ago in the 
 Mining Journal, from which a few particulars 
 may be taken. Several masses of stone obtained 
 from different quarries were laid down in the 
 road leading to the East and West India Docks, 
 in London. The test thus applied was one of 
 the most severe that can be conceived. On this 
 road some of the heaviest laden wagons in the 
 kingdom are almost incessantly passing, and 
 the friction, pressure, and destructive effects of 
 such vehicles may readily be imagined. After 
 a trial of seventeen months, the stones were 
 taken up, and their loss in weight ascertained. 
 The following was the remarkable result. 
 While granite from Guernsey and Herm lost 
 during this period, per superficial foot, respec-
 
 142 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 lively, four pounds and a half, and five pounds 
 and a half, granite from Dartmoor lost twelve 
 pounds and a half, and from Aberdeen, a mass 
 of the blue granite lost, per superficial foot, 
 fourteen pounds and three-quarters. Thus the 
 granites of Guernsey and Herm last rather 
 more than three times as long as that from 
 Aberdeen. The durability of the same stones 
 has also been proved by their being laid down 
 in the greatest thoroughfare in the world, 
 that of Cheapside. The chief excellence of 
 this granite is said to consist in its wearing 
 down rough, and not becoming smooth by 
 friction, probably in consequence of the supe- 
 rior density of some of its component parts 
 to that of others. Experiments have also been 
 made with the hydraulic press on this im- 
 portant subject with a view to ascertain the 
 best stone for building purposes. A pressure 
 of upwards of six tons on each square inch of 
 Herm granite was requisite in order to crush 
 this obdurate stone, while at a pressure of rather 
 more than three tons on the same surface, 
 granite from Penrhyn, in Cornwall, crumbled 
 into powder. The quarries of Herm fell sub- 
 sequently into the hands of a Company, and 
 were for a time carried on with vigour, and the 
 little island began to assume a lively aspect 
 with its then pretty extensive population;
 
 GEOLOGY AND MINERALOGY. 143 
 
 schools were established, and divine service 
 was regularly attended. They have, however, 
 lately been relinquished ; the quarries are 
 deserted, numbers of houses some of which 
 in the midst of their desolation look strangely, 
 adorned with such titles as " Hyde Park 
 Corner" are vacant; the population consists 
 of a few fishermen and their families, and the 
 island is resorted to only occasionally by the 
 conchologist or the traveller. 
 
 In Guernsey extensive quarries of the same 
 kind of granite are still in operation. These lie 
 on the flat northern coast of the island, and yield 
 much stone for exportation to London. It is 
 said that a former quarryman at these quarries 
 raised himself in London to the dignity of 
 Lord Mayor by his persevering industry and 
 knowledge of the qualities of the stone, and of 
 the island. There are several varieties of 
 granite raised, some more, some less ornamental 
 in their character. 
 
 In Jersey, the celebrated quarries of Mont 
 Mado have long yielded most valuable stone 
 for architectural purposes. The rock is granitic 
 in its character, but differs in some respects 
 from that of Herm and Guernsey. It naturally 
 separates into distinct masses, forming blocks 
 of considerable size, more or less prismatic in
 
 144 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 form. The stone is of a close and small grain, 
 and is extremely valuable for all purposes where 
 great solidity and important powers of resisting 
 wear and weather are required. It does not, 
 however, appear to resist these destructive forces 
 as much as the granite of Herm and Guernsey, 
 which is due to a slight variation in the pro- 
 portions of its chemical constituents. 
 
 From the fact already stated of the structure 
 of these islands consisting essentially of granitic 
 rocks, it is very interesting to inquire into the 
 phenomena which have led to the production 
 of a friable and fertile soil on the surface of 
 such hard and resisting materials. And many 
 places exist in which this process of the formation 
 of the soil can be traced even at the present 
 day. In order to render this subject clearly 
 intelligible, it may be just necessary to remind 
 the reader that in the valleys and on the plains of 
 England the soil is very generally derived from 
 the waste of some distant mountainous part, 
 and has been deposited by water. Such soil is 
 called alluvial. It lies just beneath a thin 
 stratum composed of vegetable matters in a 
 state of decay, and it consists of sand, gravel, 
 stones, and fine sediment or mud, all of them 
 the products of elemental disintegration of 
 elevated rocks or mountainous districts in
 
 GEOLOGY AND MINERALOGY. 145 
 
 other places, and borne thither by rivers and 
 floods. The vegetable soil, on the other hand, 
 is of purely local origin. It is produced by the 
 decay of successive generations of plants, dying 
 on the spot where they came to live, and once 
 luxuriantly flourished. Ordinary alluvial soil, 
 that is, the soil in which we sow, plant, dig, 
 and plough, the soil of our fields and orchards 
 in England, has generally a remote and a proxi- 
 mate origin ; the remote dependent on the chemi- 
 cal and mechanical destruction effected by the 
 air and water on rocks and mountains, and the 
 proximate on the exercise of the same agents 
 upon the tender tissues of plants, and occasion- 
 ally of animals also. 
 
 In the Channel Islands this remarkable dif- 
 ference in the formation of the soil exists, that 
 it is wholly of local origin, or nearly so. On 
 all the more elevated portions it is unquestion- 
 ably local in its character, but in the low-lying 
 portions a thin layer of alluvial soil exists, 
 which has been washed down from the higher 
 parts. It has often formed a pleasing occu- 
 pation for the naturalist, to endeavour to ac- 
 count for the production of soil and a suitable 
 bed for plants upon a rock just raised from the 
 waters which had previously covered it ; and 
 the Channel Islands present a real example of 
 L
 
 146 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 the production of such a soil. This process 
 may be considered of as going on in the fol- 
 lowing manner: When a surface of rock is 
 exposed to the air, and also to the water, a slow 
 and gentle act of chemical decomposition is set 
 up. By this act the forces which bind the 
 particles of the rock together into a solid mass 
 are gradually loosened, and the elementary 
 substances of which they consisted undergo a 
 new arrangement. This goes on much more 
 rapidly if the rock is fissured, and in that 
 manner exposed to some depth to the action of 
 percolating water ; otherwise it is very slow and 
 gradual ; but it is progressive, and ultimately 
 the upper portion of such a rock becomes friable, 
 or even pulverulent. The changes in question 
 still proceed, and penetrate for some feet into 
 what was previously an impenetrable stony 
 mass, apparently capable of resisting all outward 
 violence for an indefinite period. A rough 
 mineral soil is thus in the end produced ; and 
 though full of stones of various sizes, and appa- 
 rently offering little promise of fertility to the 
 agriculturist, it is really the basis of a very 
 fruitful land. Long prior to this, however, the 
 seeds of plants have been lodged in it, carried 
 thither by numerous agents, the wind, animals, 
 birds, or man himself. They take root, pene-
 
 GEOLOGY AND MINERALOGY. 
 
 147 
 
 trating into the minutest crevices of the dis- 
 integrating mass, flourish, live out their allotted 
 seasons, and die. Immediately on their death 
 decay commences, and only ceases when it has 
 reduced stalks, leaves, and wood to a brown 
 powdery substance, called humus. Such is the 
 
 origin of the vegetable soil ; and it is now 
 merely necessary to suppose those agents long 
 continuing in force in the work of destruction, 
 and also of reproduction, to have a clear outline 
 of the manner in which such a soil has been 
 produced.
 
 148 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 In numerous places in these islands the 
 present activity of these causes can be plainly 
 beheld. By standing on the shore where, as 
 in the scene represented above, the rocks rise 
 abruptly above the spectator, it is possible 
 by the eye to trace the gradual disintegra- 
 tion of the surface of the rock from above 
 downwards, until the eye rests on a solid 
 wall-like mass, as yet little affected by the 
 change. Inland the same may also be wit- 
 nessed in many parts where a natural fault 
 exists, or where man has cut through the rock 
 for the construction of roads. On the surface 
 of such sections will be seen a thin layer of 
 vegetable mould, supporting numerous plants ; 
 a little lower down, the mass is composed of 
 angular fragments of rock, of small size ; still 
 lower, these fragments are of greater dimen- 
 sions, deeper down, the rock is merely fissured ; 
 whilst at the bottom, a depth of perhaps fifteen 
 feet from the surface, the structure of the rock 
 is still unaffected and entire. 
 
 It is not necessary to produce instances in 
 other districts of the real power of such gently 
 acting causes as we have described; for the 
 fact of their operation, and also of the magni- 
 tude of the results they produce, is admitted by 
 all who have thought on this subject. Such
 
 GEOLOGY AND MINERALOGY. 149 
 
 evidences of the power of chemical and me- 
 chanical forces, acting through long periods on 
 atom after atom of granite or its associate rocks, 
 until their surface is literally broken up into a 
 powder, are interesting illustrations of a well- 
 known natural law, that the greatest effects often 
 arise from causes of slow operation, and whose 
 immediate results are apparently insignificant. 

 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 THE BAYS. 
 
 " Here in a royal bed the waters sleep ; 
 When tired at sea, within this bay they creep." 
 
 DRYDEN. 
 
 ONE of those features of the natural scenery 
 of these islands which have rendered them 
 celebrated to the tourist, is the existence of an 
 almost incredible number of beautiful and gene- 
 rally minute bays. Perhaps no country in the 
 world can exhibit so large a number within 
 the same area ; and the diversity thus given to 
 the scenery is very pleasing and picturesque. 
 The bays of Jersey and Guernsey are the most 
 numerous and the most beautiful ; but even in 
 Sark, all hemmed in as it is by steep and in- 
 accessible rocks, minute bays are here and there 
 found, across which a child might easily throw 
 a stone. The bays of Herm are flat and 
 spacious. The existence of this feature in the 
 scenery of the Channel Islands is unquestionably 
 dependent upon some definable cause. Most 
 probably it is due to the peculiar formation of 
 the islands, to the fact that the fundamental
 
 152 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 rock is granite, and the overlying rocks are all 
 of the dense, compact, and durable character of 
 metamorphic rocks in general. A few con- 
 siderations will render this more apparent. 
 The position of these islands in the midst of a 
 powerful tidal current, and the fact that the 
 great Atlantic wave is propelled against them 
 with a force but little diminished from its 
 having entered the Channel, deserves particular 
 notice when we seek to account for the pecu- 
 liarities of its coast line. The comparative 
 durability also of the rocks which form it, their 
 chemical composition, and their mechanical 
 structure, should be borne in mind would we 
 inquire into the effect of such a position 
 upon these islands. It will be again necessary 
 for us to remark upon the waste of the coast 
 by the incessant action of the sea and its restless 
 currents ; but in the meanwhile it may be ob- 
 served, that this is very much determined, not 
 alone as to its extent, but as to the form it 
 assumes, by the greater or less resistance of the 
 materials operated upon. The existence of a 
 number of minute bays having strictly defined 
 outlines can nowhere be pointed out in an island 
 the coast of which is composed of alluvial 
 matter, or of the ordinary materials composing 
 fossiliferous strata. The formation of a bay in 
 the coast of an island situated like that of
 
 THE BAYS. 1.53 
 
 Guernsey, or any other of this group, depends 
 upon the projection into the sea of a tongue of 
 land which, if it were not composed of long- 
 enduring materials, would in a few years be 
 devoured by the turbulent waters sweeping 
 past it, and the distinctive outline of a bay 
 would thus be for ever lost. In the place of an 
 island formed of granitic rocks, let it be con- 
 ceived that an island of chalk were exposed to 
 the destroying force of the tidal currents. The 
 coast line of such an island would be hollowed 
 here and there, but its general outline would 
 be smooth and rounded. Such a bay as Fer- 
 main Bay, in Guernsey, or any of the bays on 
 the northern and north-eastern coast of Jersey, 
 would never be found in such a spot. The 
 perpetual waste caused by the sea would obli- 
 terate every outstanding portion of land, and 
 if bays were formed, their outlines would soon 
 be destroyed, and the rounded contour become 
 again predominant. 
 
 When, therefore, it is inquired, what is the 
 cause of the formation and of the persistance 
 of form of the bays of the Channel Islands, the 
 most satisfactory reply appears to be, that they 
 depend upon the position of the islands in the 
 midst of a turbulent tide, and upon the obdu- 
 racy of some of the rocks entering into their 
 geological composition, and partly also upon
 
 154 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 the rugged and broken outline presented by 
 the primitive rocks on their first upheaval. The 
 formation of many of these bays may have 
 taken place under the following circumstances. 
 An original chasm between two rocks existed, 
 and was widened by the action of the elements. 
 A softer portion of the strata lying between the 
 sides of this chasm yielded with greater readi- 
 ness than the extreme points and sides them- 
 selves to the wasting influence of the sea. 
 Thus a bay was produced, the sides of which 
 were of a more enduring nature than the centre* 
 and remained little altered by the waves, not- 
 withstanding their unceasing action upon them. 
 Such a bay might increase in depth and slightly 
 in width, but its outlines would long remain 
 the same, and only yield after the lapse of an 
 immense interval to the destructive violence of 
 the current, and even then the tongues of rock 
 forming its sides would be broken up into 
 jagged masses, almost as effectually preserving 
 the form of the bay as though in their original 
 rampart-like state. 
 
 Another circumstance tending in a great 
 degree to produce and to enlarge the little coves 
 and inlets of various forms, which render these 
 islands so attractive, is the existence of a rapid 
 little stream, which may generally be found 
 running through the centre of each into the
 
 THE BAYS. 155 
 
 sea. The action of water in these instances 
 may be trifling so far as its mechanical effects are 
 concerned, but its chemical effects are impor- 
 tant, and a vast amount of disintegration of solid 
 rock may be produced by a little stream only a 
 few inches in depth, and scarcely a foot in width. 
 If the explanation thus given of the produc- 
 tion of these bays and coves be correct, we 
 should expect to find in any islands similarly 
 placed with them, and of a similar constitution, 
 the same results. The Shetland Isles may be 
 taken as affording an illustration of this subject. 
 Like the Channel Islands, their geological basis 
 is a primitive rock. Granite, syenite, gneiss, 
 and porphyry, form the principal constituent 
 rocks of the coast. A superficial survey of the 
 excellent map of these isles drawn by Dr. 
 Hibbert reveals the fact, that wherever the 
 coast is exposed to the conflicting currents of 
 the tides, it is eaten away into creeks, coves, 
 and inlets well-nigh innumerable. Where, how- 
 ever, the full force of the Atlantic wave falls, 
 as on the western coast, the appearance of coves 
 and bays is not to be met with ; the tremendous 
 force of the surge beating against this coast 
 grinds down even the granite rock of which 
 it is composed, and levels the whole line. Where 
 the tidal current flows in conflicting eddies and 
 streams, and where the wasting force of the
 
 156 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 sea is opposed by strata of various degrees of 
 durability, there are to be found the Voes, bays, 
 friths and sounds, the number of which, named 
 and not named, exceeds belief. The number 
 and peculiarities of these indentations of the 
 coast has in the Shetland Isles given rise to 
 several different terms applicable to them. 
 " The name of Voe," observes Dr. Hibbert, 
 "from the Scandinavian Voge, is given to a 
 narrow inlet of the sea of moderate extent; 
 but to an estuary of considerable width the 
 common English term of Bay is applied. An 
 inlet of diminutive size is called a Gio, or Geo, 
 from the Scandinavian Gea. Some idea, though 
 certainly an incomplete one, may be formed of 
 the comparative magnitude of a Voe and a Geo, 
 by supposing that the former, if deep enough, 
 is capable, from its width, of affording a harbour 
 for ships, but that the latter is, from its narrow- 
 ness, only proper for boats. There is etill 
 another small inlet of the sea distinguished by 
 the Shetlanders as being more open than the 
 Geo ; it is named a Bite, the word having been 
 probably derived from the popular phrases of 
 English and Scotch sailors, among whom I have 
 occasionally heard it used. The Bite of the 
 Shetland shores is nothing more than the Latin- 
 ized expression of indentation of the coast." 
 If the following sentence had been applied to
 
 THE BAYS. 157 
 
 many parts of the Channel Islands, instead of 
 the Shetland Isles, it could not have been more 
 correctly descriptive of their features : " From 
 this point of rock, as we cast our eyes to the 
 north, an extensive view of the country is ex- 
 hibited ; yet nothing is to be observed but the 
 most frequent constituents of Shetland scenery 
 islet*, holms, creeks, precipices, and a long line 
 of rugged coast" Of each and the whole of 
 these varieties of coast indentation which have 
 been distinguished by the Shetlanders, examples 
 may be found in various parts of these islands. 
 That a powerful tidal current scours the shores 
 of these islands of the north, one of them the 
 Ultima Thule of Agricola, needs scarcely to be 
 said, when their position is remembered; and 
 that, though in a somewhat less degree, a 
 similarly powerful stream sweeps around the 
 Channel Islands, it remains for us in another 
 place to show. We have entered at some length 
 into this subject, because we are anxious to give 
 to any one who may visit these islands a precise 
 clue to their physical peculiarities, and to 
 render their scenery not merely attractive but 
 instructive also. 
 
 The beautiful little bay situated at a short 
 distance from the town of St. Peter Port, in 
 Guernsey, called Fermain Bay, is an exact type 
 of the Shetland Voe. The line of the water's
 
 158 
 
 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 edge is almost straight from one side of the bay 
 to the opposite. At each side the waters con- 
 tend with rugged and perpendicular walls of 
 rock, against the sides of which their force seems 
 expended in vain. The bay is protected on 
 each side toward the sea by a long but uneven 
 
 FEUMAIN BAY, GUERNSEY. 
 
 ledge of broken rocks ; these project some 
 distance into the waters, and to a considerable 
 extent protect the bay from the influx of those 
 tumultuous waters which often rise between it 
 and the opposite coast of Sark. The descent 
 to the bay is through a steep but extremely 
 beautiful glen, down the sides of which the
 
 THE BAYS. 159 
 
 road winds in a serpentine direction. A little 
 rill runs down the middle of this glen, and 
 burying itself among the pebbles in the beach, 
 passes invisibly to join the waters of the sea. 
 The lower part of the shore consists of a fine 
 white sand, which gives a peculiar brilliancy to 
 the clear waters overlying it. Above this the 
 beach is formed of rolled pebbles. A Martello 
 tower defends the bay, and together with a 
 battery and rampart renders hostile access by 
 this bay extremely difficult. Upon the shore 
 of Fermain Bay we made our first out-of-door 
 photographic experiment. The appearance of 
 the camera obscura, the tripod on which it 
 was supported, and particularly the ingress and 
 egress of the operator out of the curious tent, 
 with the photographic papers prepared on the 
 spot, all formed an exhaustless theme of 
 wonder to some of the islanders, who were 
 wholly at a loss to comprehend the matter in 
 hand. The view of Sark is very beautiful as 
 the glen is descended. A life-boat is kept 
 near the Martello tower ; and one or two boats 
 are commonly seen gently gliding from one 
 point to another, bearing persons anxious to ex- 
 amine into the scenery of the rocks around. 
 
 Moulin Huet of the rocks defending the en- 
 trance to which we have before spoken is one of 
 the most extensive of the bays in Guernsey, and
 
 160 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 affords an endless variety of beautiful scenery. 
 Its projecting rampart of rocks contracts and 
 defends the entrance of this bay, which is much 
 more exposed to the fury of the Atlantic than 
 the former. The spot from whence the photo- 
 graph of those rocks was taken forms a kind of 
 watch post, and contains one or two rusty and 
 dismounted cannon. The cliifs forming the 
 sides of this bay are in many places quite per- 
 pendicular, and as smooth as a wall ; in others, 
 they actually appear as if nodding to their fall. 
 We found several places in which a mixture of 
 iron with the other constituents of the rock was 
 hastening its destruction. No term can better 
 express the state of the cliffs forming the curve 
 of the bay than that of indentation. The whole 
 coast appears bitten out. Lodges of uneven 
 rock project into the waters at intervals of a few 
 yards, leaving little creeks and narrow passages 
 of great intricacy. When the tide is rising, 
 and the pedestrian's access to a smoother part 
 of the bay is intercepted by the waters sur- 
 rounding the seaward edges of these masses of 
 rock, escape is difficult, and in some places 
 might be impossible. Caves of various kinds 
 are also seen on this part of the coast, and one 
 in particular demands our more particular con- 
 sideration. The water in the bay contains 
 many sunken and exposed rocks.
 
 THE BAYS. 161 
 
 Whether the inhabitants of the other islands 
 will allow it or not, we think there can be no 
 question that Petit Bo bay, in Guernsey, is the 
 most beautiful of all those beautiful inlets in 
 the Channel Islands. This bay opens into the 
 sea at the termination of a narrow glen, one of 
 the sides of which is formed of abrupt and 
 uneven rocks. A little stream runs down the 
 ravine, appears among the pebbles of the upper 
 part of the beach, and then becomes lost, 
 appearing only when the tide is low in the 
 form of narrow bands of Avater, rising through 
 the sand, and then losing itself again in the 
 sea. A wall, partly natural and partly artificial, 
 through which a narrow entrance is made, 
 guards the upper part of the beach, with a 
 Martello tower at a little distance, on a gentle 
 rising. On the summit of a bold mass o frock 
 at one side of the bay, a fortification exists, 
 which commands the whole bay. The scenery 
 to the north-east of this spot is extremely fine. 
 The bold outlines of the rocks at Moulin Huet, 
 with the fantastic architecture of those nearer at 
 hand, and the blue stretch of the water, filling 
 in every creek, and adapting itself to all the 
 ruggedness of the coast line, form a picture 
 composed of beautiful elements, and arranged 
 so as to produce the best effect. Some of the 
 rocks forming the sides of this bay have a pecu-
 
 THE BAYS. 163 
 
 liarly grand appearance. Their sides are vertical, 
 and they plunge without a break into the pure 
 and transparent waters below, their hard out- 
 lines being distinctly visible below the surface. 
 This wall-like conformation, when two rocks 
 stand close together, produces a deep chasm, at 
 the bottom of which the occasional foaming of 
 the resisted waters may be seen. The waves, 
 in some places, roll under the edges of the rock, 
 and their muffled fall as they strike the end of 
 the cleft produces a singular impression on the 
 ear of the observer. There are several caves 
 extending to a small depth in the rock at the 
 side of this bay; and the naturalist will here 
 find, both in them and among the rocks which 
 surround the bay, plants, animals, and shells, 
 to the special consideration of which another 
 place must be devoted. 
 
 Rocquaine Bay, on the western coast of the 
 same island, presents a contrast, in many points 
 remarkable, to the last-named bay. A little 
 beyond Pleinmont the abrupt coast-line of rocks 
 suddenly ceases, and from the summit of the 
 last rock a beautiful panoramic view of this bay 
 is gained. It stretches out at the feet of the 
 observer in a beautiful curve, terminating on the 
 opposite side in a rocky promontory, separated 
 by a small interval from the island of Lihou. 
 The engraving on the last page represents cor-
 
 164 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 rectly the principal features in this scene. The 
 bay is defended by two round batteries at each 
 side, and a low fortification at its entrance. Per- 
 haps its best defences are the array of formid- 
 able rocks which are studded about its waters, 
 and which, at low tide, give an aspect of fright- 
 ful ruggedness to many parts of the bay, which, 
 at full water, appears safe and enticing. The 
 whole outline of the islet of Lihou is here 
 visible, and its wild and desolate position may 
 be imagined. The idea is also suggested by 
 the masses of rock which protrude above the 
 waters at low tide, whether the whole bay, now 
 given over to the dominion of the waves, was 
 not at some former period dry, and perhaps fertile 
 land. But this is an inquiry to which the cir- 
 cumstances observed in connexion with a bay 
 a little to the north of this, more particularly 
 invite consideration. Upon some grass at the 
 foot of the rock on which we stood while sur- 
 veying this coast, many loads of sea- weed, 
 which is called Yraic, were spread out to dry ; 
 and the same appearance is to be seen in many 
 parts along this coast, where it grows in great 
 luxuriance. 
 
 To the geologist Vazon Bay appears one of 
 the most interesting bays in Guernsey, but 
 there is little in its conformation to attract the 
 attention or deserve the notice of the mere
 
 THE BAYS, 165 
 
 seeker after beauty. After crossing a pebbly 
 beach, the shore becomes sandy, and is remark- 
 ably free from those rocky protuberances which 
 render the shores of other bays so formidable. 
 Some wild rocks guard its northern boundary, 
 but these are chiefly distinguishable for their 
 irregularity and ruggedness, as they are of in- 
 significant height. In order to obtain an idea of 
 its geological interest, Vazon Bay should be 
 visited at the lowest spring tide, when occa- 
 sionally a singular spectacle is beheld. The 
 ebbing of the tide is awaited by parties of the 
 islanders, who are provided with iron rods, hoes, 
 and spades. So soon as it has receded suf- 
 ficiently far, the bottom is probed with the 
 rods, until certain indications of the existence 
 of the object of their search are met with. A 
 circular pit is then rapidly dug out and carried 
 down until the diggers encounter a mass of peat. 
 They then cut the mass into square pieces and 
 fling it out of the pit, and it is carried away by 
 women, boys, girls, or carts, beyond the reach- 
 ing of the waters. The diggers work with all 
 their strength, for they are aware of the short- 
 ness of their time of labour, and a considerable 
 quantity of peat is excavated. The sure- 
 returning waters begin to tend land-ward ; the 
 pit begins to stream with water soaking through 
 the porous beach; yet, while a moment may be
 
 166 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 snatched from the tide, the diggers are hard at 
 work ; and it is only when resistance to the over- 
 flowing waters is altogether vain, or even danger- 
 ous, that they abandon the spot, which speedily 
 becomes obliterated with the return of the tide. 
 This substance has been known to exist 
 beneath the sands of this bay for a considerable 
 period, but it is not in any place visible on the 
 surface. It forms a useful fuel, and has received 
 the singular scriptural title of Corban,or Gorban 
 a gift. In an able letter, addressed to a local 
 paper, Mr. Lukis has detailed some very remark- 
 able and interesting facts in relation to this sub- 
 stance and the part of the island in which it 
 has been found. A violent gale occurring early 
 in the month of December 1847, at the time of 
 the spring-tide, caused the peat-bed to break 
 up at its sea-weed edge; and masses of this 
 substance were observed driving up towards 
 the land at the flowing of the tide. The allu- 
 vial bed of sand and gravel on which the bed 
 of peat reposes became exposed to the fury of 
 the waves at low water, and this being partly 
 removed, the bed of peat was lifted like an ice- 
 floe, and carried to the land by the force of the 
 waves. Its appearance was truly interesting. 
 " Trunks of full-sized trees, which once grew 
 on the spot from whence the waves were now 
 for the first time dislodging them, accompanied
 
 THE BAYS. 167 
 
 by the meadow-plants which ornamented their 
 grassy habitation ; roots of rushes and weeds, 
 surrounded by those of grasses and mosses, 
 gave evidence of the luxuriance of the locality. 
 The very perfect state in which the trees were 
 found shows that they had been for a long 
 time buried under sand. The compression of 
 their trunks and boughs exhibits the first indi- 
 cation of that flattening of the form which 
 plants undergo under such circumstances. The 
 trees, when uncovered by the sand and gravel 
 which form the bed of the sea, were covered 
 with corallines, fuci, and sertulariae. Some of 
 the trees and portions of the boughs having 
 been separated by the fury of the gale from the 
 peat-bed in which they had been contained, 
 were driven to land, and gave rise to the idea 
 that some wreck had taken place upon this for- 
 midable part of the coast. Some of the wood 
 was so perforated by the pholades, that it 
 resembled timber used for naval architecture, 
 the holes being like those for the passage of the 
 ropes of a ship. The Pholas dactylus was the 
 creature which had drilled those perforations 
 into the wood, and I saw specimens taken from 
 it five or even six inches in length." 
 
 In addition to the Pholas dactylus two other 
 varieties of these shells were found, Pholas Can- 
 dida and Pholas parva, imbedded in the peat.
 
 168 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 Mr. Lukis's specimens were all dead, but Mr. 
 Macculloch, of Guernsey, has informed me that 
 he obtained living shells of the Pholas dactylus. 
 Birds'-nests, and hazel-nuts, with the kernels yet 
 within them, have also been found in the peat. 
 This latter fact is the more observable in conse- 
 quence of the infrequency of the occurrence of the 
 tree in the island. In addition to these, the teeth 
 of horses and hogs have likewise been found in it. 
 
 " Another fact," observes Mr. Lukis, 1 " of 
 much interest to the antiquary is, that pottery 
 and stone instruments, the tools and vessels of 
 the first inhabitants of these islands, materials 
 in character co-existent with our cromlechs, 
 and their contents recently discovered within 
 them, formed of the same substances, and in 
 every respect connected with the races which 
 have created them, have been from time to time 
 found in the vegetable deposit in Vazon Bay. 
 It is also reported that several hundred Roman 
 coins were discovered in the peat some years 
 ago." No human remains have yet been found 
 in the peat. 
 
 From many circumstances which have been 
 noticed, it is extremely probable, if not posi- 
 tively proved, that this bay is of recent forma- 
 tion, comparatively speaking with, for example, 
 
 1 The Star, Guernsey, December 1847. See Appendix to 
 this work.
 
 THE BAYS. 169 
 
 Petit Bo, or Saints' Bay. The vegetable 
 deposit is known to extend, beyond the present 
 low-water mark, to some distance toward the 
 west and south under the sea. From this 
 it may be concluded that the present domain 
 of the waters must have considerably extended 
 itself after that the waves had surmounted the 
 original barriers which opposed their invasion 
 of the land. The present rocky islets and 
 sunken rocks which skirt the sea edge of this 
 bay have been thought to be indications of 
 the original coast-line, having the additional 
 protection of an accumulation of drift. In 
 consequence of some great event, the land 
 they protected became overwhelmed with the 
 waters, and the sea has since that time held 
 undisputedly the territory of land comprised 
 within Vazon Bay, and its promontories. It 
 is said that the lord of the " Fief le Comte," 
 which includes Vazon Bay, has deeds by which 
 the tenants were bound .to pay a trifling duty, 
 called penage, for the privilege of feeding their 
 swine in the forest of the Vazon ; and that in the 
 reign of Henry II., was granted part of the 
 island to the Count of Mortain, from whence 
 was derived the title of Fief le Comte, or 
 " Count's Fief." The following additional facts 
 appear, however, to set this statement in a very 
 questionable light.
 
 170 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 The tenants of the Fief le Comte still pay 
 the duty called penage for the swine kept by 
 them ; but this duty, so called from the French 
 word pene, which means oak and beech-mast, 
 was often exacted where no forests existed. 
 And as to the deeds spoken of, competent 
 authorities have stated that no such exist ; and 
 the manor bore the name of " Terra Comitis " 
 long before it came into the possession of 
 Henry II. 's son, John, Earl of Mortain, having 
 belonged in earlier days to the famous Earls 
 of Chester. 
 
 There is every reason to believe that the 
 submersion of the Vazon took place long before 
 the Conquest, probably at the time of the great 
 cataclysm which inundated the large tract of 
 land in the Bay of Avranches in 709. 
 
 From this spot to the termination of the 
 northern coast are several small bays, resem- 
 bling in their form and outline those of Rocquaine 
 and Vazon. Some proceed to a greater, some 
 to a less depth inland. They are uniformly 
 defended by rocky promontories, insignificant 
 in point of height, but composed of the most 
 solid and enduring materials, since it is upon 
 this coast that the granite rocks make their 
 appearance. The foundation of these bays, by 
 the preying of the waters upon the unresisting 
 materials composing the tracts between these
 
 THE BAYS. 171 
 
 promontories, is evidently much more recent in 
 its date, and has been infinitely more rapid in 
 its progress, than that of such bays as Fer- 
 main or Petit Bo bays, where the rocks have 
 yielded only particle by particle to the destroy- 
 ing agency of the waters and currents. 
 
 The abrupt and perpendicular outline of 
 Sark appears to forbid the idea of its possessing 
 any bays ; yet on all its sides there are hol- 
 lowed into the wall-like cliffs mimic harbours 
 and bays, some of which are even dignified 
 with this title. One of these is the beautiful 
 inlet called Dixcart Bay. It lies at the ter- 
 mination of a pretty valley, down the centre 
 of which a tiny rivulet gushes, and terminates 
 in a little cascade falling into the sea. The 
 beach in this bay is very*white, and consists 
 of fine sand. The cliffs around exhibit the 
 dark veins of trap underlying other strata. The 
 rocks have been much weathered, and show, by 
 their polished and excavated bases, the powerful 
 influence of the tides and the waves which beat 
 against them. Various shallow caves and per- 
 forated rocks constitute, in addition to the 
 natural beauty and picturesque character of this 
 bay, an additional attraction. 
 
 On the east coast of Sark the hollowing out 
 of the cliffs by the waters becomes very conspi- 
 cuous perhaps in no place more so than at the
 
 172 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 extraordinary harbour called the Creux. Few 
 things are more remarkable in the impression 
 they produce on the mind than that of a first 
 visit to this singular island, when the landing is 
 effected at this Creux Harbour. On the arrival 
 of the cutter at Sark, she is moored in a little 
 bay entirely surrounded with perpendicular 
 rocks, in most parts as smooth as a wall, and the 
 inquiry naturally suggests itself as to what 
 mode of access into the island can possibly exist 
 out of this bay. To ascend the cliffs were as 
 hopeless and as dangerous a task as to scale the 
 side of a house. On landing, the entrance to 
 the interior of the island is perceived to be by a 
 tunnel cut in the rock at one extremity of the 
 bay. Through this tunnel, which is twenty-five 
 yards long and wide enough for the passage of 
 a horse and cart, every one who lands at this, 
 the best harbour of this wild island, must pass, 
 in order to reach its interior. The tunnel is of 
 artificial origin, and was cut through a soft vein 
 in the rock by a former lord of the island, of 
 whose perseverance and ingenuity it remains a 
 singular evidence. The steep rocks which guard 
 this remarkable spot are in some places tra- 
 versed by argillaceous veins, and in others the 
 stains of oxide of iron stream down their sides. 
 The outer rocks on each side are of more 
 enduring material, but at the base of the others
 
 THE BAYS. 173 
 
 a mass of debris indicates the destructive agency 
 of atmospheric elements. The tidal current runs 
 with great velocity outside the harbour, and a 
 group of curious rocks called the Burons are 
 placed in the midst of the foaming stream of 
 waters. 
 
 The most picturesque bay in Sark is that of 
 Havre Gosselin. The rocks at this spot, as at 
 the Creux, are, on either side, not only inacces- 
 sible, but absolutely incline over at a conside- 
 rable angle. The detritus of the rocks above the 
 minute shore of the bay has sloped the descent 
 in some degree at that side ; yet here it is very 
 abrupt, and is only mounted by a steep zigzag 
 pathway, at places almost precipitous. There 
 is another path up the rocks at this tiny bay, 
 but it is one which requires considerable courage 
 to attempt. An iron ladder is fixed into the 
 side of a perpendicular mass of rock, at the top 
 of which are some rude steps, to ascend which 
 the assistance of a rope fastened to the rock is 
 necessary; a rough path then conducts to the 
 summit. The beautiful transparency of the 
 waters here reveals their depth, which adds to 
 the sense of danger experienced. 
 
 The most interesting and beautiful scene we 
 have beheld in these islands, is that presented 
 at the Port du Moulin, a small bay on the 
 north-west of Sark. The cliffs still preserve
 
 174 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 the same character of abruptness of outline and 
 perpendicularity of face, and their height is, 
 probably, nearly three hundred feet. To look 
 down upon the rapid current of blue sea below, 
 foaming against the broken masses of rock 
 which lie at the base of the cliffs, presents the 
 spectator with a scene not only wild in its cha- 
 racter, but peculiar in its features, A tolerably 
 easy pathway leads to the shore, and the re- 
 markable constituents of the picture here appear 
 still more surprising. The cliffs, which are of 
 schistose rock, have yielded with greater facility 
 than usual to the destructive influence of air and 
 water. Fragments of broken rocks detached from 
 their summits lie prostrate at their base, and are 
 now the prey of the overwhelming surge, which 
 is constantly removing them particle by particle, 
 and rounding their general outline. Some of 
 these great masses are twenty feet or so square, 
 and have been polished in a remarkable manner 
 by the action of the waves. Their composition, 
 texture, and colour, vary greatly. 
 
 But in order to obtain the best view of what 
 we may consider to be the most striking objects 
 in the natural scenery of these islands, the bay 
 must be quitted, and a boat employed in order 
 to land upon some of the projecting rocks a 
 little outside the bay. Upon a rock which was 
 slowly being relinquished by the tide, we stood
 
 THE BAYS. 175 
 
 and contemplated the extraordinary appearance 
 of this spot. At a little distance in front were 
 four masses of rock, so regular in their outline 
 and so just in their proportions, that it required 
 some abstraction of mind to realize the fact that 
 they were not of artificial origin. These are 
 called the Altars Les Autelets. They are 
 
 THE ALTARS, SARK. 
 
 cuboidal heaps of rock, standing at some little 
 distance apart from each other, and separated 
 by the tide. On approaching them more nearly, 
 the singularity of their structure becomes evi- 
 dent. Their planes of stratification are almost 
 horizontal, and are so distinctly marked, that 
 the rocks appear as if formed of masses of
 
 176 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 masonry squared by the chisel and laid by the 
 builder. On carrying the eye horizontally from 
 the Altars to the cliffs from which they are 
 separated, it is evident that the stratification of 
 the latter is precisely similar to that of this 
 group ; and that consequently they were at some 
 former period united with the main land appears 
 a reasonable conjecture. It appears not impro- 
 bable that these Altars are only the remains of 
 a grand natural arch formed above by horizontal 
 strata of the same rock, of which the Altars 
 were the buttresses. The furious storms which 
 prey upon these coasts probably brought about 
 the destruction of this arch, since the sea around 
 the Altars is filled with broken masses of rock, 
 but the Altars remained, and in time assumed 
 their present picturesque and suggestive appear- 
 ance. They are the favourite resort of hundreds 
 of sea-gulls, whose incessant cries are heard even 
 above the thunder of the waves beating against 
 this rugged coast. Among the rocks at the 
 side of this interesting bay exist several caves, 
 which exhibit evident traces of their having 
 originated by the grinding of the waves upon 
 the cliffs into which they have been hollowed. 
 It is now time that we quitted the bays of Sark 
 for those of Jersey. 
 
 The whole of the northern shore of Jersey is 
 indented with small coves and bays, some of
 
 THE BAYS. 177 
 
 which are extremely picturesque, and are, con- 
 sequently, well known to those who visit the 
 island. On the western, southern, and part of 
 the eastern sides, the bays assume the form 
 belonging to bays properly so called. The coasts 
 have shelving shores, and the bays are wide 
 and sandy : they are separated from each 
 other by high rocks which project into the sea, 
 forming the headlands. The most beautiful 
 of these as respects its extent is St. Aubin's 
 Bay. The width of this bay at the mouth is 
 about four miles, and it is about two miles in 
 depth. It extends in a beautiful curve from the 
 town of St. Heliers to that of St. Aubin. " The 
 harbour itself," says the old author Heylin, " is 
 of good capacity, in figure like a semicircle or 
 crescent, and, by reason of the town adjoining, 
 known by the name of the Haven of St. Hila- 
 ries." At the present time it is universally 
 known as St. Aubin's, not St. Heliers' bay. 
 About three quarters of a mile from St. Heliers, 
 the fortress Elizabeth Castle is seen apparently 
 rising out of the waters of this bay. This 
 castle, which has before come under notice, 
 is situated upon a mass of rugged rock, and 
 has been quaintly described as "so naturally 
 defended with sharpe rocks, and craggy cliftes, 
 that though the accesse to it may be easie, yet 
 the surprizal would be difficult." It is, how- 
 
 N
 
 178 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 ever, of little present value as a fortress, the 
 whole bay being commanded by Fort Regent. 
 At about half ebb tide the sea leaves these 
 rocks, and there is then a free passage from the 
 town to the castle, which is called the bridge. 
 This is a natural causeway formed by the con- 
 fluence of the tides, and is useful as a medium 
 of communication with the land. At the opposite 
 side of the bay is another, but much smaller for- 
 tification, sometimes called St. Aubin's Castle. 
 Both these castles are built upon schistose rock. 
 The peculiar ruggedness of this rock gives a sin- 
 gular appearance to the bay as it is entered by 
 the traveller, and suggests a number of wild 
 and fantastic forms. 
 
 The bays of St. Clement's, Grouville, and 
 St. Catherine's, lie on the south-eastern and 
 eastern coasts of Jersey. Like that of St. 
 Aubin's, St. Clement's and Grouville Bays have 
 low sandy shores, but the waters beyond are 
 thickly studded with rocks. A somewhat poe- 
 tical description of this part of the coast of 
 Jersey has been given by Dr. Plees : " When 
 the tide rises to its full height, the view presents 
 a most picturesque scene, exhibiting a multitude 
 of islets issuing from their green limpid bed, and 
 seeming to invite the incautious mariner to 
 approach this attractive archipelago. But wo 
 to the stranger thus allured, for as the flood
 
 THE BAYS. 179 
 
 recedes, the number of these projecting rocks 
 increases until the whole coast is laid open, and 
 discloses a terrific congeries of rugged rocks, 
 varying in height and dimensions, and that 
 appear to render all access to the island abso- 
 lutely impracticable. In fact, the whole marine 
 extent, from Elizabeth Castle to the long and 
 narrow point which forms the southern boun- 
 dary of Grouville Bay, is completely studded 
 with irregular rocky masses, and this natural 
 embossed shield is rendered more eminently 
 defensive by the strong and varying currents 
 that intersect these craggy protuberances." 
 Grouville Bay forms a beautiful curve, at the 
 northern extremity of which Mont Orgueil 
 Castle appears, standing in bold relief against 
 the sky. A cut on a preceding page gives an 
 extremely accurate view of this spot. There is 
 an interesting group of schistose rocks at its 
 southern boundary, among which is an isolated 
 rock, which, though connected with the land at 
 low water, is completely surrounded at high 
 water. It then appears like a tall column in the 
 midst of the waves. It is frequently obscured 
 by clouds of spray, and during storms, when 
 the waves reach an unusual height, it seems 
 almost absorbed by the ocean. St. Catherine's 
 Bay, to the north of the latter, presents no 
 features demanding particular notice. But it is
 
 180 
 
 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 interesting in several respects to the geologist, 
 as at its northern termination the remarkable 
 pudding-stone rock abruptly commences, con- 
 tinuing from that point some distance along 
 the north-eastern coast of the island. 
 
 Rozel Bay is, perhaps, one of the most at- 
 tractive of the whole, and lies on the eastern 
 
 KO/KJ. BAY, JERSEY. 
 
 coast. Like Fermain Bay in Guernsey, it is a 
 Voe or deep creek rather than a bay. Deep 
 and shady glens, wooded with various trees, 
 lead from it into the interior, while its sides are 
 rugged and precipitous, and echo the sound of
 
 THE BAYS. 181 
 
 the long roll of the waves upon the beach. The 
 descent to it is by a tortuous path, and near the 
 sea are scattered the cottages of a few fisher- 
 men. Some untenanted barracks are also seen 
 near the spot. The form of this little bay is 
 semicircular. It is largely resorted to by 
 visitors to the island. Boulay Bay lies to the 
 eastward of Rozel, and is a much larger bay 
 than it. A spirally descending road leads 
 to the beach, where an extremely beautiful 
 prospect is gained. The bay is defended by 
 steep cliffs, which extend a considerable dis- 
 tance on each side, terminating on the one side 
 in a promontory called Rozel Tower, and on 
 the other in a point called Belle Hague. The 
 outline of the bay is, however, interrupted by 
 several projecting crags, and by some rocks 
 which are of an abrupt form, and are commonly 
 inundated when the tide is at the full. Along 
 the rocks of the bay a number of small coves 
 are found, up which the waves roll with an in- 
 cessant dash. The depth of water in this bay 
 is considerable, even at low tide. In most of 
 the other bays the depth is but trifling and a 
 large portion of the beach is quite dry. This 
 has attracted official attention to the spot, as 
 offering some advantages for the formation of a 
 naval station. A pier of a rude kind at present 
 exists, but it has been in contemplation to con-
 
 182 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 struct one on a more extensive scale, with a 
 breakwater, so that a haven might be formed 
 capable of receiving ships of the highest class. 
 The undertaking has not, however, as yet been 
 commenced ; and the excellent new pier at St. 
 Heliers seems to render it less necessary now 
 than formerly. The beach is composed entirely 
 of loose rolled stones. The bay is defended by 
 a battery. From the heights that overlook it, 
 the opposite coast of Normandy was so dis- 
 tinctly visible, that we could have believed we 
 saw the water's edge. A curious variety of com- 
 pact felspar, tinged green, occurs in masses in 
 this bay, numerous specimens of which, in 
 various conditions, may be found on the beach. 
 Boulay Bay is represented in the frontispiece 
 to this chapter. 
 
 The very beautiful cove called Greve de 
 Lecq lies near the north-eastern boundary of 
 this island. It is approached through a narrow 
 and deep valley, of a wild but beautiful aspect ; 
 on either side are high chffs, and the falling 
 of the blue waters on the beach renders the 
 scene very attractive. The rocks in this 
 bay are inclined at a considerable angle, and 
 rising, as they in many places do, abruptly from 
 the water, their appearance is very singular. 
 The force of the waves is greatly felt on these 
 cliffs, and their effects are visible in the disin-
 
 THE BAYS. 183 
 
 tegration and decomposition of the rock, and in 
 the production of a number of little coves and 
 creeks. It has been already mentioned, that 
 the seaward line of rock, at this part of the 
 coast, is advanced by a sort of ledge in front of 
 the cliffs, which rise abruptly and steep behind. 
 The only bays in Jersey now remaining for 
 notice are those of St. Ouen and St. Brelade. 
 The former of these occupies the greater part 
 of the north-western side of Jersey, and is the 
 largest bay of the whole. The northern boun- 
 dary of this bay is formed by a large irregular 
 rocky mass called L'Etac, a site fatal to ships. 
 The southern boundary is formed by a rocky 
 group called La Corbiere. Near this boundary 
 a tower is erected, accessible at low water, but 
 sometimes, in consequence of the fury of the 
 elements, inaccessible for many days from its 
 exposed position. The whole upper part of the 
 beach in this bay is flat and sandy, and receives 
 the fury of the Atlantic waters beaten into it by 
 north-westerly gales. It is consequently dreaded 
 by the mariner from the boisterous condition of 
 its waters. The lower part of the beach con- 
 sists of exposed beds of rock, over which the 
 surge breaks with uncontrollable fury. Above, 
 the sand accumulates in dunes, the form of 
 which is perpetually altering in consequence 
 of the strength of the winds acting upon this
 
 THE BAYS. 185 
 
 part of the island, which scatter the fine sandy- 
 particles to a great distance over the land. 
 There is evidence to show that a great part of 
 this bay was formerly dry land, as has been 
 already adverted to in a previous page. 
 
 St. Brelade's Bay presents some points of 
 interest peculiar to itself. A sloping valley, 
 well-wooded and dotted with houses, leads 
 down to this bay. The road to it runs along 
 the edge of a ledge of rock at some height 
 above the level of the water ; the rocks tower 
 above. The cliffs forming the natural boundaries 
 of this bay on both sides are very abrupt and 
 picturesque. The most singular circumstance 
 about the bay, is the extraordinary situation of 
 the old church, the most ancient religious edi- 
 fice in the island. This church, which is said 
 to have been consecrated in 1111, or upwards 
 of seven hundred years since, is situated close 
 to the water's edge, on the west side of the 
 bay. It ia elevated but a little from the waves, 
 which at high tide reach the churchyard. Tra- 
 dition relates that this edifice was to have been 
 built on the eastern, instead of on the western 
 side of this bay ; but whenever any materials 
 were collected for the purpose, fairies carried 
 them away, together with the workmen's tools, 
 to the place where the church now stands. 
 This, being done repeatedly, was at length con-
 
 186 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 ceived to be a miraculous interposition to point 
 out the divinely selected site. Sceptical per- 
 sons, however, assert that the removal was 
 effected by human hands, under the direction of 
 the priest, who had an objection to the eastern 
 side of the bay. The bay is a semicircular 
 basin, but its regularity of outline is broken 
 on the eastern side by a projecting mass of 
 rocks, by which a second creek is made, forming 
 a smaller bay. On the land side, high rocky 
 eminences surround and hem it in. The cliffs 
 on the eastern and northern side are full of 
 vertical fissures, intersected by horizontal ones, 
 so as to divide the rock into cuboidal masses, 
 giving rise to an appearance resembling ma- 
 sonry. It has been elsewhere remarked, that 
 this sort of cleavage is very commonly met 
 with in granitic rocks; and these belong to that 
 series. Near the eastern point of this bay there 
 are quarries, in which are raised good masses of 
 compact syenite for building purposes. 
 
 The whole of these bays in each of the islands 
 form an interesting study to the naturalist. 
 Their formation and scenic peculiarities are 
 often of a remarkable character, and it is to 
 be regretted that so small a degree of scien- 
 tific attention has been bestowed upon them. 
 When we regard them, as unquestionably many 
 of them must be regarded, as the results of the
 
 THE BAYS. 187 
 
 combined mechanical and chemical forces of 
 nature, acting through long periods upon the 
 most resisting materials, and successful in their 
 operation, we cannot consider the most minute 
 of these bays as undeserving the notice of 
 science. In the production of the larger bays 
 an additional force is called into action, that 
 vast exercise of internal power which slowly, 
 but surely, uplifts, or, as in the present case, 
 depresses whole districts, and thus exposes the 
 low-lying parts a prey to the desolating waters. 
 Of this, however, we are again to speak.
 
 CAVE OS THE COAST OF JERSEY. 
 
 CHAPTEK V. 
 
 THE CAVES. 
 
 AMONG the many evidences presented by the 
 rocky coast of these islands, of the destructive 
 force of the tides, currents, and waves, the pro- 
 duction of a large number of caves is, perhaps, 
 the most interesting. As we have visited most 
 of the caves in these islands, we are able 
 to give an account of them, in most instances 
 from personal observation. From the popular 
 interest which attaches to natural excavations
 
 THE CAVE8. 189 
 
 of this description, the caves of the Channel 
 Islands, or, at least, those of them which are 
 readily accessible, generally prove objects of 
 attraction to tourists. Many, however, remain 
 unknown, excepting to the inhabitants of the 
 neighbouring coast. A considerable number 
 have received more or less appropriate titles. 
 It is remarkable to how great an extent popular 
 superstition has, in all countries, invested caves 
 with a supernatural character. Among the 
 Romans, caves were consecrated to fabulous 
 nymphs, who were there worshipped as in 
 temples, as it was conceived, fitted by nature for 
 their use. Numa consulted Egeria, as fable says, 
 in a cave, which is still shown at Rome. And 
 among the mythological records of other coun- 
 tries, the same indication of the desire to attach 
 a sacred and mystical importance to these exca- 
 vations appears. Nor is this less so in these 
 islands, and, perhaps, more particularly in that 
 of Guernsey. The inhabitants of the Western 
 Isles have, in like manner, guarded the innu- 
 merable caves of their coasts with legends of the 
 wildest description. Of some it is said that 
 whoever penetrates to the end will return with- 
 out his skin. Some are said to be endless, and 
 that the piper who entered never returned, the 
 sound of his pipes vanishing by degrees till it 
 was lost. Dr. Macculoch says " Among the
 
 190 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 people of this country, as well as with us tra- 
 vellers and cockneys, there is always something 
 mysterious and marvellous attached to the notion 
 of a cave. Like cascades, they have some hid- 
 den charms which render them among the first 
 objects of attraction ; and whether good or bad, 
 hideous or beautiful, it is quite sufficient if th*y 
 are black and dirty. There is not one through- 
 out the country which has not its guide, and its 
 fable, and its farthing candles." Superstition 
 has peopled the dark caverns of these coasts also 
 with fairies, and though the occupants are not 
 to be found there in our own century, the 
 names remain, and the superstitious veneration 
 also, but in a diminished degree. Perhaps there 
 is no cave on these coasts so formidable to enter 
 as that of Trophonius, into which none but the 
 purified were permitted to enter; but most of 
 them require the exercise of some degree of 
 caution, and oftentimes the use of a boat and 
 the assistance of a guide. 
 
 The caves on these coasts appear to me to be 
 divisible into two classes, according to their 
 mode of formation. The majority appear to 
 have been produced exclusively by the mecha- 
 nical erosion of the waves, assisted by the 
 chemical process of disintegration set up in the 
 rock by water and air. But another class of 
 caves, generally very long and narrow, cannot
 
 THE CAVES. 191 
 
 have had this origin, and are, without doubt, 
 fissures caused in the original rock by the up- 
 heaval which, at a period very far back, first 
 lifted it above the level of the waters. We shall 
 speak of each of these kinds of caves in turn. 
 
 A very remarkable instance belonging to the 
 latter class is found in Guernsey. This exists 
 on the side of Vazon Bay. The entrance to the 
 cave has nothing remarkable in its appearance. 
 It is found near a tower called Hommet Tower, 
 on the coast. It is known as the " Greux des 
 Fees" or Fairy 's Cave. The cave extends only 
 to a depth of about thirty or forty feet. A 
 number of wild fables have become associated 
 with this cave. It has been said to be im- 
 passable beyond a certain depth, in consequence 
 of the existence of mephitic vapours within it. 
 This is highly improbable in a geological dis- 
 trict, which from the nature of its constituent 
 rocks can scarcely be thought subject to emis- 
 sions of carbonic acid gas from the earth. 
 In fact, the cave is of very limited extent. 
 The cave is thought by the country people to 
 have been formed by a band of fairies. It does 
 not appear to have been in any degree due to 
 human agency, however possible the conjecture 
 that it might have served in time of war for 
 purposes of concealment. 
 
 The Creux Mahie, the most considerable
 
 192 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 cavern in point of size in Guernsey, is situated 
 on the southern coast, in the parish of Torteval. 
 It lies at the head of a small creek, and appears 
 to have been formed by the action of the waves 
 wearing away the softer portions of the rock. 
 At some distant period, a large piece of the 
 cliff above the cave has fallen down, partially 
 blocking up the entrance, and forming a sort of 
 terrace which keeps out the sea. Rude steps 
 lead down from this terrace to the floor of the 
 cave ; and when the eye becomes accustomed 
 to the imperfect light, or that the place is illu- 
 minated by means of a bundle of ignited furze, 
 the lofty dome-shaped vault, and the huge 
 masses of detached rock which seem to have 
 been rolled together by the action of the waves, 
 present a striking and impressive scene; while a 
 feeling of mystery is excited by smaller caves 
 and fissures in the walls of the cavern, which, 
 although easily traced to the termination, are 
 confidently asserted by the peasantry to lead 
 deep into the bowels of the earth, even to the 
 very centre of the island, a tale told also, and 
 with quite as little truth, of the Creux des 
 Fees at the Hommet. 
 
 Another cave of a similar kind, and evidently 
 not produced by the action of the sea, exists at 
 Plerm. We found the entrance of this cave 
 almost blocked up by masses of fallen rubbish,
 
 THE CAVES. 193 
 
 reaching to such a height as to render its explo- 
 ration impossible. One of the oldest residents 
 of the island assured me that it extended far 
 into the centre of the island, preserving its 
 character as a narrow rugged fissure to its ter- 
 mination. Unless the sea removes the debris 
 which is now choking up the entrance, to the 
 height of perhaps thirty feet, it will soon become 
 entirely obliterated. The waves have, at pre- 
 sent, no access to this cavern. We believe that 
 in the isle of Brechou, and probably also in 
 Sark, similar fissures exist, but we had no oppor- 
 tunity of personally ascertaining the fact. 
 
 Caves of this kind differ essentially from those 
 which are commonly found on the coast, in their 
 mode of origin, as already observed. While, on 
 the one hand, the action of water in widening 
 the entrance is not to be questioned, yet, on the 
 other, it is only a secondary agency in the 
 enlargement of the cave or fissure, which always 
 had existed. In what precise manner such fis- 
 sures are formed, (and they exist in all classes of 
 rocks,) it is difficult to ascertain. Most probably 
 they arise either in consequence of some violent 
 subterraneous shock, or are formed during those 
 upheaving movements which must have accom- 
 panied the elevation of these islands above the 
 sea-level. The operation of internal springs of 
 water in the production of the caverns cele- 
 o
 
 194 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 brated in other countries is well known, and it 
 is possible that the percolation of water through 
 the crevices of the rock, and its effect on the 
 mass, may materially assist in the formation of 
 the other kind of caves, but such is not the origin 
 of the class of caves in question. 
 
 The next class of caves have the following 
 characters. They do not extend to a very great 
 depth, their dimensions are moderate, they 
 often narrow to their termination in a crevice 
 into which a knife can just be inserted, and they 
 are always found on the sea-coast, being at full 
 tide more or less filled with the waves. The 
 greater number of the caves of the Channel 
 Islands have these characters, and consequently 
 belong to this division. The distinguishing- 
 
 O DO 
 
 character of these caves is, that they are chiefly 
 formed by the mechanical and chemical waste 
 resulting from the incessant action of the waves. 
 Perhaps the following may be taken as a tole- 
 rably correct account of the various methods of 
 their formation. A softer vein of rock was 
 exposed to the beating of the waves against the 
 shore. The mechanical effects of this force, 
 Buperadded to the chemical changes established 
 between the rock, the air, and water, became in 
 time more felt by this than by the surrounding 
 rocks, whose chemical composition and structure 
 better enabled them to withstand the waves
 
 THE CAVES. 195 
 
 than it. Particle by particle yielded to the 
 destroying powers, crumbled to dust, and was 
 swept away by the waters. Occasionally, in all 
 probability, large fragments having lost their 
 support would fall out, and these also in turn 
 would be hurried into the common wreck of the 
 rest, would remain for a time scattered on the 
 beach, and then become rolled away by the 
 billows. 
 
 But there are some caves of no great depth in 
 many parts of this coast, which can scarcely be 
 thought to have thus originated. They are 
 evidently fissures which, originally existing in 
 the rock, have widened by the action of the 
 waves, until ultimately they assumed their pre- 
 sent size. On the southern coast of Guernsey, 
 in many places in Sark, Herm, and Jersey, we 
 have seen caves of small dimensions whose 
 evident origin was in a fissure, the original size 
 of which is yet visible at a height above where 
 the waves can reach. In some places the rock 
 is very much cracked within these caves, and 
 large fragments can be detached with no great 
 difficulty; a sure evidence that while much is 
 due in the process of their formation to the 
 mechanical action of water, much is also due to 
 the slow disintegration produced by chemical 
 forces. At the end of such caves, the fissure, 
 which was originally the only solution of conti -
 
 196 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 nuity in the surface of rock, is very distinctly 
 seen. 
 
 The most interesting- as well as the most ex- 
 tensive caves in any of the islands exist at Sark. 
 In almost every exposed cliff, near to the water's 
 edge, a large number of excavations, some of 
 greater, some of less depth, are to be found. 
 These caves give a great charm to the wild 
 coast, and supply an almost endless subject for 
 the explorations of those interested in such 
 scenes. But the great caves of Sark are all 
 found at no great distance from each other on 
 its western coast. These are Les Boutiques, the 
 Gouliot caves, and that of La Moie de Mouton. 
 It is probable that, in the formation of the 
 whole of them, the mechanical and chemical 
 forces to which I have alluded have fulfilled 
 an important part ; but it is also probable that 
 they were originally rather wide fissures in the 
 primitive rock, which time and elemental war- 
 fare have excavated to their present size. 
 
 The caves called Les Boutiques or " The 
 Shops " are among the most remarkable 
 caverns of whose existence we have any know- 
 ledge in our own islands. The approach to 
 them is from the sea, and their appearance seen 
 in thus drawing near to them is grand and im- 
 pressive. There is deep water at low tide almost 
 to the entrance, and rugged masses of broken
 
 THE CAVES. 197 
 
 rock form a sort of rude terrace, which leads 
 to the caves. On either side rise dark walls of 
 rock, piled above one another in a sort of regu- 
 lar and yet confused arrangement. The mouth 
 of the cave is divided by a natural partition 
 somewhat inclined, and which extends some 
 little way into the cave. The entrances thus 
 divided are not of equal dimensions, and the 
 slope of the larger one is more regular than 
 that of the smaller. One might suppose, from 
 its external appearance, that this were some 
 grand double tunnel formed by nature for the 
 passage of the waters. The cliff above slopes 
 in some degree down toward the entrance, but 
 those on each side rise up in rugged grandeur 
 to a considerable height, and from their regular 
 stratification wear some resemblance to an arti- 
 ficial structure. Some curious veins of quartz, 
 which have been exposed by the waste of sur- 
 rounding materials, are visible in the roof of 
 these caves, and suggest the idea of an arch, 
 the keystones of which are about to drop from 
 their position. The roof drips with water, and 
 in the decomposing material which finds a lodg- 
 ment in the crevices near the summit of the 
 entrance, clusters of ferns luxuriate, flourishing 
 in the subdued light and perpetual moisture 
 which bathes their roots. The contrast of their 
 intensely green fronds with the amethystine
 
 198 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 colour of the projecting veins is very beautiful. 
 A cave thus adorned by nature, and thus wildly 
 situated, would seem a fit abode for those fabled 
 occupants of the deep of which the traditions 
 of all islanders speak so much, and often so 
 poetically. 
 
 The exploration of the interior of these caves 
 can only be made by the assistance of a guide, 
 furnished with a rope and ladder, and with 
 torches. A little distance from the mouth of 
 the cave are several pools of beautifully clear 
 water, left by the retiring tide. Through these 
 it is often necessary to wade in order to reach 
 the wider parts of the cave within. By the 
 ladder being laid across these pools a wet foot 
 may often be avoided. The advance beyond 
 this point is not difficult. One of the passages 
 opens into a large vaulted chamber, the ceiling 
 of which is perhaps fifty feet from the floor, 
 and, singularly, an opening exists at the top, 
 through which daylight streams down, and dif- 
 fuses a subdued light over this subterranean 
 hall. Torches, or fagots of furze, light up 
 with a singular effect the gloomy and rugged 
 walls of the passages leading into this chamber, 
 which branch off to the right and left. The 
 whole extent of these caves is very consider- 
 able. When the tide is at the full the entrance 
 to them is not entirely covered by the waters,
 
 THE CAVES. 199 
 
 a fact sufficiently indicated by the green and 
 drooping luxuriance of the ferns growing from 
 the roof. Nevertheless, to be overtaken in 
 these caves by a spring tide, urged onward by 
 a westerly gale, were a position the terror and 
 danger of which few could encounter. That 
 Les Boutiques have been chiefly formed by the 
 action of the waves, can, I think, be scarcely 
 doubted ; but, in consequence of the fissured 
 state of the overlying rock, the disintegrating 
 process has been immensely forwarded by the 
 percolation of water from above, which accounts 
 for the production of the lofty chamber and its 
 opening at the top. The action of the waves at 
 the entrance is, at the present time, furious 
 during storms ; and hence, very probably, the 
 circumstance, that while the unfissured rock on 
 either side has been little affected, that part of 
 the cliff into which these tunnels are pierced 
 has receded backwards from the general coast 
 line. Great fragments of broken rock, rounded 
 by the waves, bestrew the sea-approach to these 
 interesting excavations. In the cliffs along this 
 coast of Sark, which, commencing at the northern 
 extremity with granite, display various modi- 
 fications of the metamorphic rocks as we pro- 
 ceed southward, numerous fissures exist, the 
 materials of which are partly washed out, while 
 those which remain consist of decomposing fel-
 
 200 
 
 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 spar, iron pyrites, and quartz. Occasionally, 
 metallic indications are perceptible. 
 
 Some little distance to the southward, but 
 on the same line of coast, is the cave of the 
 Moie de Mouton. This cave is wholly inac- 
 cessible by land, in consequence of its being 
 
 MOIE DE M9UTON CAVE, SARK. 
 
 formed in the side of a peninsular mass of rock, 
 separated by a steep precipice from the main- 
 land of Sark. The form of this rock is very 
 peculiar, and resembles that of a shoulder of 
 mutton very closely. Its sides, up to a certain 
 height, are in most parts precipitous, and in the
 
 THE CAVES. 201 
 
 rest shelve in a very slight degree. The sum- 
 mit of the rock is capped with herbage. As I 
 passed this rock with its scanty green covering, 
 and saw with surprise eight or ten sheep brows- 
 ing upon it, in places inaccessible to the foot of 
 man, the boatmen told me the following curious 
 anecdote about these sheep. They are carried 
 thither in a boat from Sark, and are made to 
 scramble up the rock, where they are then left. 
 Escape is impossible, for on the land side is the 
 steep precipice of which I have spoken, and on 
 all the others are dangers equally great, with 
 the additional one of the foaming current which 
 sweeps the base of the rock. The sheep are 
 securely left here to browse upon the scanty 
 pasturnge the surface of the rock supplies 
 until they are wanted. Their owners then 
 bring a boat to fetch them ; but as it would be 
 hazardous in the extreme to send a man after 
 them, they are captured by the following sin- 
 gular expedient : The best-conditioned sheep 
 of the number is selected, and the owner aims 
 at it with a musket. The poor animal, stricken 
 by the ball, falls and rolls down the cliff, either 
 to the spot where the owner is waiting to seize 
 upon its lifeless body, or into the waters, from 
 which it is rescued by him and taken home for 
 domestic use. The same individual also told 
 us, that having occasion one foggy evening to
 
 202 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 land a person on Sark, he unfortunately mis- 
 took this curious rock for another near it, from 
 which access to the island is very easy. The 
 person was landed on the Moie de Mouton. 
 After groping his way up the rock, his com- 
 panion having bidden him good night and made 
 sail for Herm, he reached the summit, and 
 here, to his terror and surprise, he 'found, in- 
 stead of a path for his safe guidance homeward, 
 a steep precipice, which he dare not attempt to 
 descend. Immediately the truth flashed upon 
 him, that he was on the Moie de Mouton, and 
 must be content to wait the night there, in 
 hopes of being seen and rescued on the day 
 following. It may be imagined, that that night, 
 spent in this desolate spot, where every fall of 
 the waves upon the rock produced a mournful 
 sound, was long and anxious to him who had to 
 endure it ; and it is well to be able to add, that 
 early the next day he was seen in his perilous 
 position and rescued from it by one of the Sark 
 fishermen. 
 
 The cave in this singularly formed rock is 
 very regular in its outline. It is somewhat 
 triangular in shape, the base of the triangle 
 forming the roof. Veins of felspar are seen 
 within it, the glitter of which forms a pleasing 
 contrast to the blackness of the interior pas- 
 sages, It can only be entered, and that not
 
 THE CAVES. 203 
 
 without danger, by a boat, to a small depth. 
 In stormy weather it is of course wholly inac- 
 cessible. As the evening was closing in we did 
 not enter it, but, by passing near to the mouth 
 in a boat, a good general idea of the excava- 
 tion was formed. 
 
 The Gouliot caves, which are a little further 
 to the south, and exactly opposite the Isle of 
 Brechou, are larger and more remarkable than 
 any caves, except the Boutiques, in this or any 
 of the islands. The gneissic rocks, which once 
 seem to have connected this island with Sark, 
 do not present the same appearance of horizon- 
 tal stratification so remarkably shown in the 
 schistose rocks a little to the north, at the Port 
 du Moulin and Les Autelets. They would seem 
 to have been upheaved by the trappean rocks from 
 below on their eastern side ; and thus the incli- 
 nation of the strata is considerable, and the rock 
 slopes westward. In consequence, probably, of 
 the disturbance thus produced, two chasms were 
 formed at the sea-level, and as the tidal current 
 runs at a furious rate against the rock, in time 
 the present extensive excavations were pro- 
 duced by the wasting effect of the waters. One 
 of these chasms runs so across the direction of 
 the rock, and, consequently, so nearly parallel 
 to that of the current, that the waters pour 
 through it in boiling eddies when the tide is
 
 204 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 at half-flood, and up to full water. This chasm 
 is narrow, and extends about fifty yards into 
 a small creek. It is difficult to convey an idea 
 of the extreme beauty of this wild spot of 
 the singular and fantastic play of light and 
 shadow which it affords in consequence of its 
 broken and rugged character. When the tide 
 pours the waves through it, and when the sun 
 is strongly shining on the entrance, the intense 
 blue of the waters is exquisitely seen. 
 
 The caves consist of two vaulted chambers, 
 into which a number of fissures open. One of 
 these is said to have a most singular conforma- 
 tion, resembling the human ear, and possessing 
 a trumpet-like form. In this respect it differs 
 from the other fissures, which are all straight. 
 The operation of the waters against the rocky 
 walls of these caverns is very conspicuous. The 
 walls are, in places, covered with deep red 
 sea-anemones, with corallines, madrepores, and 
 sponges. It is impossible to stand in these 
 caves and listen to the occasional angry hiss 
 of the waves on the rock outside, without 
 a vague fear of being surrounded by the 
 waters, and hopelessly imprisoned in the dark 
 recess. 
 
 Fiction of the flimsiest kind has attached 
 certain relations to some of these caves ; but 
 there is a cave in L'lle des Marchands, in
 
 THE CAVES. 205 
 
 which the fabulous tales receive an apparent 
 corroboration, in the existence of traces of its 
 having been formerly occupied. This cave is 
 called the Pirate's Cave, and it appears in reality 
 to have been used as a place of concealment 
 and shelter; their boats would be well con- 
 cealed among the broken rocks, and there being 
 no approach from land, it would be a very 
 secure retreat. A quantity of red ashes, three 
 feet or more in depth, was found in an attempt 
 to excavate a mine ; some pieces of wood were 
 also found, and other evidences were discovered, 
 which pbinly indicated the fact of its having 
 been at one time occupied. The entrance to 
 the copper mine is in this cave, and by means 
 of a lantern it is not difficult to penetrate some 
 distance into the levels. The mine is not now 
 worked. 
 
 Whilst exploring the western coast of Sark, 
 we were often surprised at the regularity with 
 which a deep-toned but low and muffled sound 
 filled the air, resembling the concussion of a 
 discharge of artillery, but greatly subdued. 
 This sound many times suggested the idea that 
 cannon was being fired at Guernsey, eight or 
 nine miles off. We felt for some time perplexed 
 as to the origin of this sound, which appeared 
 the more noticeable amid the intense stillness of 
 the surrounding scene. The fishermen were
 
 206 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 unable to give any account of it. It was found, at 
 length, that it arose from the concussion of the 
 long swell of the wave against the mouth of a cave 
 on the western point of L'Isle des Marchands. 
 The air in this cave havingno outlet, a large wave 
 striking its mouth, produces the same kind of 
 sound as may be produced by striking a tum- 
 bler with the open hand. Many of the caves, 
 lying just at the level of the sea, are exposed 
 occasionally to the influx of a higher wave than 
 ordinary, and the result is the production of 
 this sound, resembling a muffled drum. During 
 storms, such sounds multiply both in number 
 and in loudness. 
 
 The formation of the northern coast of Jersey 
 naturally leads us to expect to find in that part 
 of the island the most frequent instances of the 
 occurrence of caves. We are not acquainted with 
 any instance of these excavations occurring on 
 the southern coast, at any other part than at 
 La Moie, and on the eastern and western 
 coasts there are none. A very interesting cave 
 exists at the beautiful cove, Greve de Lecq ; 
 except by approaching it in a boat, access to 
 it is difficult. The cliffs in this vicinity rise so 
 abruptly out of the water, that it is difficult to 
 descend to the sea-edge at any place. Under 
 a hill on the western side of this bay, which 
 shelves rapidly until it has an abrupt termi-
 
 THE CAVES. 207 
 
 nation in a precipice, the base of which is 
 washed by the waves, the cave in question 
 is found. By carefully descending a rough 
 and narrow path, which in some places as- 
 sumes a rather formidable appearance, the 
 rocks at the bottom may be safely reached, and 
 after a little climbing, the entrance to the cave 
 is gained. The entrance to this, as to the 
 greater number of the smaller ones which are 
 to be found on this coast, is grand and im- 
 posing. The sea has excavated for its impe- 
 tuous waters a broad passage, guarded on each 
 side by black and precipitous rocks, the sides 
 of which are polished by the perpetual friction 
 of the waves. These rocks give to the dark 
 excavation itself a character of solemnity and 
 grandeur, which a mere opening in a rock would 
 not have obtained. They form the porch to 
 the cave, and give to the latter the appearance 
 of a mighty tomb, dedicated by the rocks and 
 waters to some of the inhabitants of the deep. 
 The cleavage of the overlying rock into masses 
 more or less resembling those piled by human 
 masons, adds to the imposing aspect of this cave, 
 and appears to support the idea which might be 
 formed by the imagination of its artificial origin. 
 The cave does not extend to any great depth, 
 probably not further than from fifty to sixty 
 feet from the entrance. The floor is of broken
 
 208 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 rock and white sand. The height at the en- 
 trance is less than that of the interior. The 
 aperture is, perhaps, fifteen or twenty feet, 
 while the height of the roof from the floor is 
 upwards of twenty feet. Like all caverns of 
 this description, it is greater in height than in 
 width ; and the entrance has a jagged irregular 
 outline. The tide enters and penetrates to its 
 remotest extremity, but does not fill the cavity. 
 From the end of this cave a beautiful and sin- 
 gular picture is presented to the eye. The 
 darkness of the position occupied by the ob- 
 server, and the effect of the sides of the cave in 
 cutting off the extremely divergent rays, so as 
 to limit the field of vision, are of great value 
 in giving depth and tone to the picture. On 
 either side rise the dark water-worn rocks 
 which form the entrance, breaking the edges of 
 the picture by the projection of their singular 
 and rugged forms. In the distance the blue 
 level of the sea appears, while along the white 
 sandy floor the eye is conducted to the masses 
 of fallen and broken rocks which form the fore- 
 ground of the scene. During sunshine, when 
 deep shadows and strong lights arc formed by 
 the various wild constituents of the picture, the 
 prospect is extremely beautiful. Within the 
 cave itself the gradations of light and shadow 
 are very pleasing ; and the rugged form of the
 
 THE CAVES. 209 
 
 roof, with the irregular structure of the dark 
 but glittering sides which support it, are well 
 seen at such a moment. The cut at the head 
 of this chapter represents this cave. 
 
 The caves at the promontory of Pleinmont, also 
 on this coast, are more frequently visited and 
 better known than that at Grave de Lecq. The 
 caves at this part are found on the western 
 shore of a little bay, the eastern and northern 
 boundary of which is formed by the promontory 
 of Pleinmont. The rocks at this part are in 
 some places nearly perpendicular, Pleinmont is 
 connected with the main land by a very narrow 
 isthmus, and the cliff on one side of this isth- 
 mus drops in a direction absolutely vertical 
 from a height of two hundred feet into the sea. 
 The caves are reached by a steep and narrow 
 descent which leads to the rocky shore. There 
 are several of them at no great distance from 
 each other, and the easiest and perhaps the 
 safest mode of exploring them is by a boat, as 
 the tide flows into and partially fills the whole 
 of their number. The management, however, 
 of the boat must be exclusively entrusted to 
 the fishermen conversant with the coast, as the 
 currents and the half-sunken rocks render that 
 a difficult and dangerous task to those unac- 
 quainted with them. Few of them penetrate 
 to a greater depth than thirty or forty feet-
 
 210 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 but tradition relates that some are of an amaz- 
 ing depth. This may probably arise from the 
 fact that they are seldom explored beyond a 
 short distance from their entrance, and the dark 
 beyond serves to convey, however incorrectly, 
 an idea of the infinite. 
 
 But we should convey an inadequate idea of 
 the beauty of this romantic coast if it were 
 supposed from what is here written that there 
 are no other caves deserving notice than those 
 here mentioned. The contrary is the truth. 
 At various distances from each other a consi- 
 derable number are to be found by that rock- 
 climber who has confidence in the steadiness of 
 his head and feet ; and perhaps these are even 
 more interesting than the deeper excavations 
 in question. On a careful examination of 
 them the process of their formation may be 
 seen, from the insignificant rent to the deeper 
 and broader cavity. In almost every instance 
 there exists that long passage cleft through 
 masses of polished rock which constitutes a sort 
 of portico to the cave, so that the long roll of 
 the waves washes to the very end of the exca- 
 vation without resistance. The origin of many, 
 in a rent of the rock, is also often conspicuously 
 seen. Even in calm weather the attrition of 
 the waves is considerable against the sides of 
 these caves, and the rolling up of masses
 
 THE CAVES. 211 
 
 of pebbles at each fluctuation, with the rattling 
 return of the same, strongly suggests the con- 
 ception of the means by which the sea has 
 wrought out these excavations into rocks whose 
 composition is very hard and enduring. 
 
 In many places on the coast of these islands 
 we have been much interested in observing the 
 formation of caves of another kind, and differ- 
 ing from both classes of caves hitherto noticed. 
 The peculiarity of these caves is this, they 
 are perforations in a rock which terminate in 
 a chamber open from above. Their shape con- 
 sequently often resembles that of a horn, or of 
 a wide-mouthed funnel, the small part of which 
 is curved and brought into the horizontal direc- 
 tion. It appears to me that these caves are 
 only extensions, under peculiar circumstances, 
 of the caves of the last description. We have 
 found them in almost every state of progress ; 
 from the first opening in the cliff with the 
 perforation from above, to what we are led to 
 believe is the ultimate state into which they 
 are brought by the wearing down of the ele- 
 ments, when scarcely a trace of what had once 
 been a cave of this description exists beyond 
 a part of its broken sea-margin, and the rounded 
 excavation in the rock. 
 
 We shall first proceed to describe several ot 
 these caves, and then endeavour to offer a few
 
 212 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 ideas as to what may be conceived to be their mode 
 of origin. One which has attracted hitherto but 
 little attention is situated near La Moie Point 
 in Jersey, on the southern coast. The line of 
 coast is formed by rocks of some elevation at 
 this part, and the action of the sea, when 
 aroused by south-westerly gales, is extremely 
 furious against this rocky barrier. The cave 
 can only be safely approached by sea, although 
 it is accessible with some difficulty and risk from 
 the land. The entrance of it is surrounded by 
 rocks, and is of no great height ; but the pas- 
 sage is of some length, and when explored on 
 the retiring of the tide, few places have a more 1 
 singular appearance. The observer, standing 
 in the dark and gloomy entrance, sees before 
 him at a little distance a rugged excavation, 
 the sides wet with the waters which have just 
 left it, and the whole cavity illumined by the 
 perpendicular light thrown into it from above. 
 The chasm which has thus connected the 
 gloomy passage with the open daylight at the 
 summit of the cliffs, is said to be about a 
 hundred feet deep; but it is impossible to 
 descend it, except by the assistance of ropes. 
 It is necessary to be extremely careful to ascer- 
 tain the state of the tide when exploring this 
 cave, as, when at the full, it entirely covers up 
 the entrance, filling the passage and the open
 
 THE CAVES. 213 
 
 cavity to some height. On the northern coast 
 of Jersey, and in the vicinity of Gre 1 ve de Lecq, 
 we found several traces of similar caves, but 
 none perfect. We here also found what we 
 have considered to be the ruins of a large 
 funnel-shaped cave, to which we must again 
 advert. 
 
 It may serve to strengthen the analogy be- 
 tween the features of these coasts and those of 
 the Shetland Isles, if we quote from Dr. Hib- 
 bert's work his description of caves so pre- 
 cisely similar in their character, and probably 
 in their mode of formation, that they might be 
 applied to several of those in 'the Channel 
 Islands with equal correctness. Thus, in the 
 island of Uist, Dr. Hibbert writes as follows : 
 *' Near this place, [at. Lambaness,] at the dis- 
 tance of a few yards from the brink of a 
 precipice, we look down upon a very deep 
 sloping cavity, of a circular form, arising from 
 the disintegration of the gneiss, which at the 
 bottom communicates by a subterraneous chan- 
 nel with the ocean, so as to admit into it the 
 flowing of the tide. This hole is named Saxe's 
 Kettle, being a culinary vessel (and certainly a 
 leaky one) that was used by the Shetland 
 giant." Again, at the island of Meikle Roe, he 
 writes : " Its rocks are wrought by the inroads 
 of the sea into steep precipices and excavations,
 
 214 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 Avhich extend for a considerable distance under- 
 ground, being the dark abode of seals. These 
 can only be penetrated in the serenest weather; 
 it was therefore unfortunate for my visit that 
 the murmur of the waves, as they sullenly 
 broke on the sides of the ravines, might be 
 heard at some little distance from the coast, in 
 forbiddance of thecharming pleasure of exploring 
 these dismal recesses. After several ineffectual 
 attempts to struggle through passages beset on 
 each side by white breakers, that burst with 
 loud commotion over disjointed rocks, our un- 
 steady yawl was at length safely steered into 
 what appeared the gloomy mouth of a cave ; 
 but we had not rowed many yards, when, 
 emerging from a black and shady vault, we 
 found ourselves floating upon a narrow canal- 
 shaped basin, about twenty feet in width, that 
 was completely open to the sky; and, at the 
 same time, the full light of the sun burst upon 
 us in its meridian splendour. The pellucid 
 water of this retired shelter, undisturbed by a 
 single ripple, beautifully reflected the lofty per- 
 pendicular walls of granite, through which it 
 extended, in a straight course, for a considerable 
 distance; the channel resembling, in the undevi- 
 ating regularity of its form, some stupendous 
 work of human ingenuity, where the solid rock 
 had been pierced so as to form a deep secure
 
 THE CAVES. 215 
 
 cove. But nature soon appeared to be the sole 
 engineer of this well-wrought excavation. It 
 was the result of atmospheric elements acting 
 for an incalculable number of years upon the 
 soft and mouldering materials of a dike, or vein 
 of granite, enclosed within a matrix of the 
 same substance, but of a much firmer texture." 
 The same combination of circumstances which 
 produces these excavations in one district, must, 
 of course, produce them in another, cceteris 
 paribus. Hence the fact, that even in minute 
 details, the scenery of places so widely sepa- 
 rated from each other as the Shetland and the 
 Channel Islands, corresponds, in a remarkable 
 degree, due allowance being made for the fact, 
 that in the former islands the masses of rock 
 are far more stupendous, and consequently 
 the operations of nature more magnificent than 
 in the latter. 
 
 There are two formations of this kind in 
 Sark, which are very interesting. The first of 
 these is called the Pot, and the other the Creux 
 Terrible, or Terrible Cavern. The Pot presents 
 a most curious scene. The approach to it is by 
 a narrow and precipitous path on the side of 
 the cliff, and requires care in making it. The 
 termination of the path introduces the spec- 
 tator to the edge of a large natural caldron, 
 rounded as though by art, and scooped ver-
 
 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 tically out of the rock. The sides of this 
 caldron are covered with debris, in which ferns, 
 ivy and grass find nutriment, and flourish luxu- 
 riantly, ibr some little distance down : but at a 
 height of some feet from the bottom the sides 
 of the Pot are smooth and water-worn. The 
 bottom of this excavation is covered with large 
 rounded blocks, polished by the action of the 
 waves. On the seaward side, at the bottom, is 
 a tunnel-shaped excavation, connecting the 
 bottom of the Pot with the sea-shore, and 
 through which one can pass to the shore. It 
 is this tunnel which has given to the Pot its 
 celebrity, and probably its title. In high spring- 
 tides, accompanied with a gale, a singular phe- 
 nomenon presents itself at this wild spot. 
 The waters, urged forward by the force of the 
 wind and the pressure of the long swell, foam 
 with violence through the tunnel, and partly 
 fill the caldron with foaming surge. The 
 scene is now most peculiar, as the spray comes 
 rising out of the caldron, and the eye looking 
 down sees its deep recesses full of tumultuous 
 and agitated waters. This singular excavation 
 is in Little Sark, and it will be observed that 
 it agrees in every respect with the general 
 features of the scene just described, although 
 necessarily on a much smaller and less im- 
 pressive scale.
 
 THE CAVES. 217 
 
 The excavation called the Terrible Cavern, or 
 Creux Terrible, is on the same coast, but in 
 Great Sark. It is of much larger dimensions than 
 the preceding ; and it may be readily conceived 
 there are seasons when this vast perforation has 
 its terrors for those of ignorant and superstitious 
 minds. The Creux Terrible is like a large crater, 
 of a somewhat pentagonal form, near the sea. 
 It is a conical cavity, having precipitous rocky 
 sides, nearly two hundred feet in depth. The 
 portion next the sea is supported upon columns 
 carved out and fashioned by the sea, resembling 
 the piers of a bridge, and this similitude be- 
 comes still more sensible as the tide rushes 
 through the arches at the entrance to the Creux. 
 In a stormy sea the appearance of this gulf is 
 very imposing and almost terrific, the spray rising 
 above its sides like a pot over-boiling, whilst 
 the roaring of the waves below is carried up 
 and reverberated from the surrounding heights, 
 augmented by the acoustic figure of the Creux. 
 But such scenes as these lose much of their 
 force and elevating power over the mind, if 
 viewed in the calm serenity of a summer day. 
 To examine minutely the bottom of the Creux, 
 the creeks and cavities in the strata, a boat is 
 the best and the safest means, taking advantage 
 of the low tide. 
 
 At some distance from this Creux is another,
 
 218 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 called the Little Creux, and evidently of similar 
 conformation to the greater excavation of the 
 same name. In the island of Herm I found 
 several interesting excavations of this descrip- 
 tion, of various sizes and in various conditions. 
 One of these is extremely singular, and may be 
 found on that part of the coast which I have 
 already described as being in a mouldering 
 condition. Seen from the shore, to which a 
 descent must be made in order to investigate 
 its size and position, it presents the aspect of a 
 jagged chasm, with rough angular sides and a 
 flat roof, beyond which the bottom of a per- 
 pendicular excavation may be seen. This ex- 
 cavation is of no great size, but it is an interest- 
 ing specimen of a Creux, and as such is a type 
 of the rest. The perpendicular funnel-shaped 
 perforation in the rock is considerably larger 
 than the horizontal passage entering it at right 
 angles. The effect of light and shadow in 
 these Creux is very singular, resembling that 
 thrown into the right-angled elbow of a tube. 
 In the instance in question a little rill of water 
 ran down the upright part of the Creux, and 
 appeared with picturesque effect as it was seen 
 from the shore through the perforated tunnel. 
 At full tide the water washes around and into 
 the base of this Creux, representing one of the 
 forces by which it has been produced; while
 
 THE CAVES. 219 
 
 the tiny rill of water, trickling down from the 
 summit of the pit within, may be regarded as 
 the representative of another of these agents. 
 
 The only other example of a Creux to which 
 it is necessary to direct particular attention, is 
 one which will be found on the north coast of 
 Guernsey. It is called the Fairies' Cave, and is 
 easily explored from the shore at the ebb of the 
 tide. Its size is not equal to any of the Creux 
 at Sark, but it deserves notice as another 
 instance of these excavations. The entrance is 
 open to the sea, and is filled with rounded and 
 water-worn blocks of stone. A little distance 
 from the mouth two passages open and pene- 
 trate into the rock, separated by a massive wall 
 of stone. The most curious part of this cave, 
 and that which brings it under the proper 
 denomination of a Creux, is the entrance-hall, 
 out of which three horizontal passages run. On 
 looking upwards there is a large round perfora- 
 tion seen passing perpendicularly through the 
 rock, and forming the channel by which a 
 stream of vertical light is thrown into this sin- 
 gular place. With a little aid from the imagina- 
 tion, it would not be difficult to suppose this the 
 portico to some great structure, to which the 
 passages led off on either side, and the peculiar 
 illumination of the space from above might lend 
 reality to the conjecture. In the popular appre-
 
 220 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 hension the spot is already occupied, and has long 
 been tenanted. In the eyes of the naturalist, 
 however, the Fairies' Cave is merely a further 
 evidence of the power of the united agencies of 
 the atmosphere and the waters. 
 
 From what has already been said it will be 
 evident that these excavations may be ac- 
 counted for on ordinary principles ; and it would 
 form an interesting occupation for any natu- . 
 ralist's leisure, to examine these physical features 
 of the Channel Island rocks. Their origin is 
 undoubtedly traceable, in most instances, to the 
 existence of a dike or vein of softer rock 
 enclosed within a mass of much more resisting 
 nature. If it be supposed that this vein were 
 fissured at the top, and then percolated by 
 water, as in the instances at Herm, whilst 
 laterally its seaward edge were within the 
 reach of an impetuous tide, we have all the 
 necessary conditions for the production of the 
 Creux. The disintegration of a mass placed in 
 these circumstances would be rapid. The 
 outer masses being swept away by the waves, 
 the interior perpendicular mass would come to 
 be acted on by the combined forces of atmo- 
 spheric disintegration, and of the attrition of 
 masses of stone dashed against its base by the 
 waters. In process of time portions of this 
 softer column of stone, already softened and
 
 THE CAVES. 221 
 
 fissured by the weather and the percolation of 
 water from above, would give way at the 
 bottom : these would in time be removed by 
 the waters, until the whole mass had fallen and 
 been removed in successive portions, leaving 
 a right-angled excavation, such as we have 
 described. If this be a correct explanation of the 
 formation of these curious cavities, it would not 
 be difficult, on exploring the coasts of these 
 islands, to adduce numerous instances in which 
 the processes in question would seem to be 
 going forward. The lapse of time necessary 
 must, of course, be considerable, although pos- 
 sibly not so long as might at first have been 
 anticipated. The ultimate result of atmospheric 
 influence, added to the destroying effect of the 
 waves, would be to bring down the mass of rock 
 forming the side of the Creux nearest to the 
 sea. And on the coast of Jersey, near the 
 place called Plemont, an instance of the com- 
 pletion of this work of destruction may be seen. 
 A hollowed perpendicular excavation is found, 
 at the upper end of which a little rill trickles 
 down, and the masses of rock below seem to 
 have once formed a portion of one of these 
 curious Creux. 
 
 In concluding this chapter on the caves of the 
 Channel Islands, we may be allowed to add, 
 that much pleasantly occupied time was spent
 
 222 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 in their exploration; and that while they 
 afford an interesting study to the geologist, 
 they have also attractions for the botanist in 
 the numerous native plants to be found in or 
 near them, and for the zoologist in the lively 
 contents of the sparkling pools of salt-water 
 which they often contain. It may be useful, 
 however, to add, that with a rising tide their 
 exploration is a dangerous task, and might 
 lead to very alarming results, as many of them 
 are liable to be so surrounded by water as to 
 leave no chance of escape to the too venture- 
 some explorer, Avho had entered them at the 
 wrong opportunity.
 
 PERFORATED ROCK AT SAHK. 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 THE. WATERS. 
 
 To those who are at all familiar with the 
 chemistry of the sea, the fact that on approach- 
 ing the Channel Islands they are nearing some 
 rocky district becomes evident by the colour of 
 the waters. This subject has scarcely met 
 with the attention it deserves, and it may, per- 
 haps, be questioned whether out of the numbers 
 who visit these islands, there are more than a 
 few who have even made the inquiry as to the 
 cause of the beautiful blue colour of the
 
 224 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 waters, which is one of the first phenomena 
 attracting general notice. Perhaps the contrast 
 between the colour and transparency of the 
 waters which lave these islands, and those which 
 wash the English shore from Southampton 
 Water up to the north, is best observable on 
 returning from the islands to that town, as this 
 passage is commonly made in the daytime. The 
 beautiful and intense blue of the sea is percep- 
 tible for many, miles after the steamer has 
 quitted the port of Guernsey, but before 
 reaching mid-channel, the colour begins to lose 
 its intensity, and shades into a yellowish green, 
 which continues with little alteration until the 
 English coast comes in sight. At this point, 
 the green colour begins to fade, and a tinge of 
 light brown is intermingled with the yellow, 
 and remains of the green. The transparency 
 of the waters diminishes in the same proportion, 
 until, at the shore itself, they become positively 
 charged with mud and sediment, the colour of 
 which varies with that of the land forming 'the 
 coast. But in consequence of the predominance 
 of chalk at the Isle of Wight, at the point 
 where the current is most impetuous, a milky 
 hue is the prevailing tint communicated to the 
 sea, and its degree and extent can scarcely be 
 imagined by any who have not observed these 
 points.
 
 THE WATERS. 225 
 
 There is a certain gratification afforded by 
 being able to supply to the inquiries of our 
 own mind the scientific explanation of appa- 
 rently the most insignificant phenomenon. Even, 
 therefore, if the colour of the sea were a sub- 
 ject less philosophically important than it is, we 
 should consider it deserving of a passing atten- 
 tion. But in reality this phenomenon, which, 
 it may be observed, has engaged the attention 
 of many learned philosophers, is an extremely 
 interesting one, and the cause of the peculiarly 
 intense blue colour, and exquisite transparency 
 of the sea around these islands, is explicable on 
 simple, but very interesting principles. 
 
 The tides of the English Channel exercise an 
 important influence upon those abrupt and 
 enduring rocky masses which oppose the trans- 
 mission of the tide- wave along the channel. AVe 
 presume that it is scarcely necessary to observe 
 that the phenomena of the tides are in reality 
 produced by the transmission of a great wave of 
 water having its origin in the ocean, where it 
 has been formed by the attractive influence of 
 our attendant satellite, the moon, or, at spring- 
 tides, by the coincidence of the action of the 
 sun and moon. The large mass of water thus 
 raised can only expend the force it has acquired 
 by pushing before it other masses of water, 
 and, consequently, raising them too in the form 
 Q
 
 226 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 of a wave. In this way the wave originally 
 generated in the ocean travels onward long 
 after the forces which formed it have ceased 
 to act on the first mass of water. The 
 Antarctic sea has been called the cradle of the 
 tides. It is here that the sun and moon have 
 presided over their birth; and it is here also 
 that they are, so to speak, abandoned to their 
 own guidance. The luminaries continue their 
 apparent course from east to west, but the 
 tides no longer follow them. The great tide- 
 wave travels hence through the Atlantic, at the 
 rate of a thousand miles an hour. On the 
 morning of the second day of its existence, this 
 wave brings high- water to the western coasts of 
 Ireland and England. At midnight of the 
 second day the wave, having turned the corner 
 of Scotland and descended the Channel, reaches 
 the mouth of the Thames, and, on the morning 
 of the third day, wafts the merchandise of the 
 world into the port of London. But the tide- 
 wave which arrives from the Atlantic on the 
 south-western extremity of the British Islands, 
 pursues a different course. One great wave, 
 thirty-nine hours old, is seen approaching the 
 British Islands from the Atlantic, and, proceed- 
 ing in a north-easterly direction, strikes on the 
 south-western promontories of France, near 
 Brest; of England, off Falmouth; and of
 
 THE WATERS. 227 
 
 Ireland, off Cape Clear. This wave carries 
 high-water along the southern coast of England, 
 and the opposite coast of France, and so proceeds 
 up the Channel, until it meets the wave de- 
 scending it. 
 
 The wave thus proceeding from the Atlantic 
 strikes the projecting coast of Normandy, fills 
 the bay of Mount St. Michael, and then con- 
 tinues its course along the islands, and round 
 Cape la Hague up the English Channel. It 
 was the observation of a competent writer, some 
 time ago, that the directions of the tidal cur- 
 rents on this side of the Channel turn in twelve 
 hours, in the opposite direction to that of the 
 hands of a watch. But in consequence of the 
 innumerable rocky projections which break the 
 current, and of the position of the islands them- 
 selves, a great variety of currents of a minor 
 kind is the result, the intricacy and rapidity of 
 which render the navigation of these seas ex- 
 tremely difficult and uncertain. So rapidly do 
 these currents succeed one another, that at no 
 period of the tide is there still water. Even in 
 calm weather, large portions of water in vio- 
 lent commotion are seen whirling and eddying 
 round in a manner likely to give alarm to the 
 inexperienced in these currents. Upon many of 
 the elevated parts of Guernsey, and particularly 
 of Sark, we have watched the tidal current
 
 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 rolling past, and its direction and rapidity were 
 as strongly marked as if the waters had formed 
 part of some impetuous and majestic river. 
 Near the north-western extremity of the latter 
 island, in particular, where bridges of detached 
 rocks stretch out seaward, the current is ex- 
 tremely rapid, yet the fishermen alone in their 
 boats, moored in these impetuous waters by 
 a single rope, the surge beating against its 
 bows, and eddying around the little craft, have 
 little difficulty in mastering the current, and 
 gain the land again. The base of the rocks is 
 white with foam in the most serene weather. 
 Through the narrow passage which divides 
 LTle des Marchands from Sark, the tidal stream 
 flows also with great impetuosity, and the 
 current has received the name of the Gouliot 
 stream. As we passed in a small boat twice 
 through this current, and beheld the strength of 
 its impulse against the rocks, which project in 
 the midst of it, we could not but ask how long 
 it was possible that even the hardest materials 
 could withstand its attacks ? In any but tole- 
 rably calm weather even the Sark boatmen, 
 who constantly cruise about among these 
 waters, have a dread of the Gouliot streams. 
 It has been observed, that only the fishermen 
 who continually frequent the waters around 
 their own island arc properly acquainted with
 
 THE WATERS. 229 
 
 the intricate currents which affect, the move- 
 ments of the waters ; and that the boatmen of 
 other islands will not undertake the navigation 
 of other waters than those with which they are 
 themselves familiar. It is of not unfrequent 
 occurrence that persons adventuring to sail in 
 the sea around these islands, become carried to 
 a far greater distance than they desire, and 
 are often detained for many hours among the 
 opposing waters. 
 
 The currents about Alderney have long 
 enjoyed a popular reputation for velocity and 
 impetuousness, and not without justice. Avoid- 
 ing notice of the minor currents, the " Race of 
 Alderney" and the " Swinge" are tidal streams 
 as impetuous as can well be conceived. The 
 Race is on the south side, between Alderney 
 and the French coast, the Swinge is on the 
 north side, between Alderney and the little 
 island of Berhou. The current which runs 
 through the Race of Alderney has a velocity of 
 about eight English miles an hour, and the 
 appearance of this great tidal river when its 
 waters are buffeted by a contrary wind is very 
 fine. The Swinge, though a much lesser cur- 
 rent, is not less swift, and is more dangerous 
 than the Race. Through this narrow passage 
 all vessels from England or the neighbouring 
 islands to Alderney must pass, and though the
 
 230 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 water is deep, the rocks which appear protruding 
 above its agitated surface give an unpleasant 
 sense of danger. Through this passage the tide 
 pours a vast volume of water, which, meeting 
 with a variety of obstacles seen and not seen, is 
 thrown into a state of violent commotion, and 
 its surface eddies and tosses about in a highly 
 threatening manner. Occasionally it is quite 
 impossible to stem the current, and the traveller 
 may be detained for a disagreeable length of 
 time an unwilling prisoner in the island. 
 
 It has always been considered that these 
 conflicting and impetuous currents which we 
 have noticed are among the best defences of 
 these islands. A manuscript account of the 
 Channel Islands, with a detailed statement as to 
 the best means of their approach, was kept from 
 the reign of James the Second till about the 
 close of the last century, as a state secret. It was 
 then published for the benefit of the ships sailing 
 to the respective ports. The date of this singular 
 manuscript is 1685, and a minute account of 
 the rocks and anchorage is contained in it. 
 
 The height to which the tides rise on these 
 shores is considerable, although not equalling 
 that on the shores of St. Malo. The height of 
 the tide in this, as in all other cases, is affected 
 in a great degree by the figure of the shore, the 
 form of the bottom, and the direction of inci-
 
 THE WATERS. 231 
 
 dence of the tidal wave. The more slowly 
 shelving and nearly uniformly sloping the bot- 
 tom, the higher the rise of the tide, and such is 
 peculiarly the nature of the bottom in the Bay 
 of Mount St. Michael. So slight is its decli- 
 vity, that the ebb of the tide lays bare an extent 
 of shore amounting to from twelve to sixteen 
 miles in depth, and the bay is filled over this 
 large extent of surface in about two hours. The 
 result is, that the range of the tide is elevated 
 to an extraordinary height. At St. Male's it is 
 said to exceed fifty feet: at Guernsey and Jersey 
 the elevation is less considerable, and only 
 amounts to from thirty to forty feet. Yet this 
 greatly exceeds the height of the tides on many 
 parts of the coast of England and Ireland, and, 
 singularly enough, even on the opposite coast 
 of England, as at the Bill of Portland, where 
 the rise does not exceed eight or nine feet ! It 
 is easy to imagine that the periodical rise and 
 subsidence of water attaining this height upon 
 a coast abounding in rocks, must give rise to a 
 number of powerful currents. 
 
 The depth of the sea around the islands 
 exhibits some remarkable variations, but on the 
 whole the bottom is tolerably uniform. The 
 average depth of water in their neighbourhood 
 is about thirty-five fathoms, and it is scarcely 
 any where more than forty. Between Jersey and
 
 232 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 the opposite coast of Normandy, the water is 
 in many places extremely shallow. For more 
 than one-third of the distance between the fatal 
 rocks Les Minquiers and the town of St. Malo, 
 the water is so shallow and the bottom so 
 broken, that it is considered impassable for 
 ships. In some parts the depth of water is only 
 from two to five fathoms. A large part of the 
 sea also on the north of the island of Herm, and 
 on the west of Guernsey, is shallow. Many 
 circumstances appear to indicate that the sea 
 now occupies a larger extent than it formerly 
 did, and that an extensive tract of land has dis- 
 appeared, and as this forms a very interesting 
 part of the natural history of these islands, 
 we shall devote some space to its consideration. 
 The traditional history of a district is often of 
 service to the geologist, not so much in supply- 
 ing him with accurate information, as in directing 
 his investigations into subjects which he might 
 not otherwise have considered worthy of his 
 attention. Pie is thus often enabled to expose 
 the little nucleus of truth around which fable 
 has concreted much extraneous matter. The 
 tradition is current in the Channel Islands that 
 they were once connected with the opposite 
 coast of Normandy, and that some great cata- 
 strophe separated them from the main land. On 
 the opposite coast a somewhat analogous tradi-
 
 THE WATERS. 233 
 
 tion is on record, and the question of the primi- 
 tive union of the islands with this part of France 
 has consequently often been raised. Among 
 the numerous exploits attributed to Arthur, 
 was one which gave him the memorable title of 
 " Uter pen dragon," the conqueror of the dragon. 
 This celebrated victory is said to have taken 
 place in a forest near Morlaix. This forest is 
 now nowhere to be found, having disappeared 
 together with other woods which have a tradi- 
 tional existence. "In 1812," observes Mr. 
 Lukis, " the Comte de la Feuglaye discovered 
 after a violent storm which had devastated the 
 shore near jMorlaix, in the very place where it 
 was related that a forest once existed, an im- 
 mense area of vegetable matter, consisting of 
 large trees, and other detritus of the same 
 nature, and in the same state of preservation as 
 we find the Gorban on our own coast. He 
 further states that the oak and the beech predo- 
 minate among these interesting remains, but 
 that the latter tree is now scarcely to be seen 
 in Brittany." In exploring the Celtic remains 
 of these islands, certain indications confirmatory 
 of the existence of this submerged area were 
 perceived. 
 
 The following extract from Dugdale's Mo- 
 nasticon is quoted by Plees as in some degree 
 establishing the fact that Jersey and Xoriuandy
 
 234 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 were at a past period much nearer each other 
 than at present : " Bernard d' Abbeville, to 
 avoid being chosen prior of St. Cyprian's, pro- 
 ceeded to the borders of Brittany, into the 
 peninsula of Chauzez, on the north side of that 
 province." This peninsula of Chauzez is sup- 
 posed to refer to the rocky island of Chauzez, 
 to the south-east of Jersey. Jersey is also 
 mentioned in some ancient records as an island 
 off the shore of Coutances, an expression which 
 in its present relation to the coast of France 
 would scarcely be justifiable. 
 
 A favourite legend having reference to this 
 subject is that Jersey was once so near to 
 France, that persons passed over on a plank or 
 bridge from the island to the main land, paying 
 a small toll to the abbey of Coutances. 
 
 Of direct historical evidence there is little or 
 none upon which reliance can be placed, rela- 
 tive to the whole matter. It is probable, there- 
 fore, that if this union had ever in reality 
 existed, it must have been at a very remote 
 period, to which, indeed, the traditions that 
 exist appear dimly to point. 
 
 The question then arises, To what physical 
 phenomena was this separation, presuming it to 
 have taken place, attributable ? Two explana- 
 tions may be given, but in both the destructive 
 influence of the sea is directly concerned. It
 
 THE WATERS. 235 
 
 must have been due either to the general subsi- 
 dence of the whole district, or to the invasion 
 of lands originally lying at a low level, by the 
 sea, on some extraordinary rise of the waters. 
 That there is no violence in the former of these 
 suppositions, namely, in that of a general subsi- 
 dence or change of level of the whole district, 
 will be readily conceded by the geologist, who is 
 familiar with the records of such phenomena. 
 Numerous instances exist where districts of vast 
 extent, greatly superior in point of area to that 
 under consideration, have had their level mate- 
 rially altered by the action of powers of eleva- 
 tion or depression exercised in the interior of 
 our planet. Whole countries are at the present 
 day undergoing a change of level, and it is not 
 improbable that England itself has been subject, 
 over large tracts of land, to these vast altera- 
 tions of the condition of its surface. Such a 
 change may, consequently, have affected the 
 district in question. It has been thought that 
 the low lands of Guernsey have been invaded 
 by the subsidence of the rocks upon which they 
 rest, no alteration of level having taken place in 
 the high ground. But a little attention to the 
 conformation and position of the rocks in this 
 island will be sufficient to show the incorrect- 
 ness of this conclusion. The rocks of gneiss, 
 and those of that series associated with it in the
 
 236 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 structure of the high land on the south of 
 Guernsey, are in exact geological relation with 
 the granite on which they rest, and which ex- 
 tends to the northern coast of the island. There 
 is no appearance of disturbance of level in 
 their order of superposition, and the slight depo- 
 sits of alluvial matter which rest upon the gra- 
 nite bed of the northern half of the island 
 sufficiently indicate the fact that the surface on 
 which they have been deposited remains unal- 
 tered with respect to its relation to the other 
 parts of the island. In a word, this part of 
 Guernsey exhibits no traces whatever of its 
 having been depressed while other parts re- 
 mained in their original position. 
 
 We are brought consequently to this con- 
 clusion, that if the land has subsided in this 
 district, so as to expose it to the destroying 
 influence of the sea, this subsidence must have 
 been a general and not a local disturbance of 
 level. The whole district, and not any one 
 part of it, must have been lowered, and to this 
 opinion, although it is contrary to that of some 
 eminent in geological science, the parts brought 
 under my own notice lead me. There is an 
 ancient gateway between the islands of Herm 
 and Jethou, now half buried in the waters. 
 The large round perforation in one of these 
 upright stones is plainly of artificial origin,
 
 THE WATERS. 237 
 
 and formed in fact the hole, through which 
 the posts were secured. The position of these 
 stones does not appear to have been altered 
 from that in which they were originally set 
 up, and they rest, we believe, upon syenitic 
 rock. Formerly a road existed between 
 these islands, which are now separated by a 
 channel of considerable width, with which road 
 this gateway was connected. As the tide rises, 
 these stones are now nearly covered by the 
 waves, and at low -water they are still sur- 
 rounded by water. At the same time the 
 channel is now impassable, and the only access 
 to Jethou from Herm is by means of boats. 
 Perhaps few facts appear more conclusive 
 than this, of an actual subsidence having 
 taken place, and that within a comparatively 
 recent period. 
 
 Although little reliance is to be placed upon 
 the statements of the inhabitants of a district, 
 when scientific information is the object of 
 inquiry; yet these have their importance and 
 their value when they can be supported by 
 collateral evidence, deduced from the physical 
 phenomena of the district itself. Coupled there- 
 fore with the foreging evidence of the sunken 
 gateway, it may strengthen the conclusion 
 arrived at, to learn upon the testimony of an 
 occupant of the island of Herm, that it had
 
 238 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 been observed that access to a detached rock at 
 the extremity of Jethou was now only to be 
 gained at a considerably later period of the tide 
 than formerly, an effect which, while probably 
 due in great part to the abrasion of the neck 
 of land by water, may also be in part attri- 
 buted to the same depression of general level 
 as the subsidence of the causeway and its pro- 
 jecting gate. 
 
 Upon the western coast of Guernsey, about 
 three miles from the mainland, are the Hanois 
 Rocks, situated at a little distance from the 
 small island of Lihou. These rocks are now 
 in a great measure covered by the tide, but 
 there is evidence to show that at a former period 
 they must have been if not actually a part of 
 the mainland, yet closely connected with it. 
 A curious discovery was made upon one of 
 them some time ago. Attached to a stone 
 which seemed to have formed part of a gate- 
 way, was an iron hook, which appeared to have 
 been part of the hinge. This no longer exists, 
 but it is said that at very low tides, even now 
 evident traces of roads are discernible, in cart- 
 ruts worn into the surface of the rock. It is 
 said also, that an old order for the repair of the 
 roads is still extant. Upon no other supposition 
 than that of subsidence can these facts be 
 explained.
 
 THE WATERS. 239 
 
 Some account of a large peat-deposit inVazon 
 Bay has been already given ; and the submarine 
 extent of this important formation has been 
 hinted at. The existence also of various 
 antique remains in this peat bed, as in that of 
 the Bay of Mount St. Michael, has been alluded 
 to. In Jersey, a somewhat similar submarine 
 formation exists. The following extract from 
 a document in the British Museum, among the 
 Harleian manuscripts, refers to this fact : " It 
 is acknowledged, and the records of those times 
 testify it, that in the parish of St. Ouen the 
 sea hath overwhelmed, within these 350 years, 
 the richest soil of that parish, that is, a vale 
 from beyond the pool towards Lestac in length, 
 and in breadth from the hill very farre into the 
 sea, and that to this day, stumps of oakes are 
 found in the sand during the ebbe, and some 
 mines of buildings among the rocks. The like 
 whereof is also seen in the Bay of St. Brelade. 
 But of late years, within the memory of most 
 men, two great rocks lying one behind another 
 in the sea, at a place called Le Hoc, in St. 
 Clement's parish, the nearest of which is severed 
 from the land a bow-shot at full sea, were 
 joined to it, and served many yet alive to dige 
 vraic upon, which in former times was the 
 fate of a great tract of land near Mont Orgueil 
 castle, called Le Bane du Viollet, which ap-
 
 240 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 peareth above water at halfe ebbe, like an 
 island at some distance from the main land." 
 
 In St. Brelade's Bay, Jersey, the singular 
 position of the church has been before alluded 
 to. It appears scarcely conceivable that when 
 a choice of site existed free from such an incon- 
 venience, a church would have been erected 
 so near to the water's edge, that at high tide 
 the spray would fall upon the churchyard ! 
 Such is the present position of this ancient 
 edifice, and its antiquity may be in some 
 measure taken as an indication of the extreme 
 slowness with which the depression of level 
 supposed has taken place. Below the sand 
 with which the shore is covered, the rock is 
 syenite, corresponding in point of age to that 
 of Guernsey, Sark, and Herm. 
 
 In consequence of the encroachment of 
 the sea upon the land in the vicinity of St. 
 Ouen's, Jersey, the shore has of course ad- 
 vanced inwards to the body of the island, and 
 the result has been very remarkable. As this 
 bay is exposed to all the fury of the westerly 
 gales, and is not defended behind by high 
 rocks, the influence of the wind upon the sand 
 is very powerful. When these storms blow, 
 they sweep up volumes of the dry sand, and 
 continuing their course over the land, scatter 
 the minute particles over the districts lying in
 
 THE WATERS. 241 
 
 the vicinity of the shore. Beyond a certain dis- 
 tance, it does not appear that the wind has power 
 to transport these particles. The result is, that 
 the whole district over which they are carried 
 becomes bestrewn with constant showers of 
 sand. Now it will be readily understood, that 
 the more remote the shore was, the more limited 
 the inland district thus visited. This part is 
 now called the Quenvais, but there is a tradi- 
 tion that it was not always the sandy, barren, 
 and desolate tract it now is ; and below the 
 surface, a soil of vegetable mould is disco- 
 vered, and remains of buildings have been 
 met with in some places where the sand has 
 been removed. The tradition states, that this 
 district of the Quenvais was overwhelmed in 
 ancient times as a punishment for the inhu- 
 manity of the inhabitants, who plundered five 
 Spanish vessels wrecked there. It is unneces- 
 sary to inquire into the truth of this part of 
 the account, since the fact of this district having 
 been formerly a fertile and inhabited spot, is 
 that which is of the most importance to our 
 inquiry. If, now, it is imagined that the sea 
 extended with slow but sure progress its inva- 
 sions upon the island in this quarter, so as to 
 bring the shore nearer to this once fertile tract, 
 then it is easy to foresee the result, and to at- 
 tribute the apparently disconnected events of the
 
 242 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 desolation of the Quenvais with drifted sand to 
 the encroachment of the waters upon the island. 
 At Guernsey a somewhat similar result appears 
 to have taken place, but over a smaller area. 
 
 But in certain parts on the coast of Guernsey, 
 and also of Jersey, there are indications which 
 seem to show that the present level of this 
 district is, notwithstanding its apparent subsi- 
 dence, considerably higher than it was at a very 
 remote period. It has been remarked by Mr. 
 Trevelyan, and we have examined one of the 
 localities he describes, that near the island of 
 Lihou, and on the north-west coast of Guern- 
 sey, there exist unquestionable marks of ancient 
 sea-margins upon the rocks. In a letter to 
 Dr. Buckland Mr. Trevelyan says, "On the 
 shore near the point where the road descends 
 towards the rock or islet of Lihou, on the east 
 of Guernsey, may be seen a section where, above 
 the present high-water mark, the granite bears 
 evident signs of having been worn by the action 
 of the waves, previously to the deposition on it 
 of a bed of gravel which now covers the granite, 
 and fills up the inequalities of its surface. The 
 gravel, which is firmly bound together by a 
 ferruginous sand, consists of pebbles of the 
 neighbouring rocks, also of chalk flints, some 
 not much rounded, and it extends to about 
 eight feet above the present high-water mark,
 
 THE WATERS. 243 
 
 ranging also apparently a little inland. On the 
 gravel is a bed about three feet thick of dis- 
 integrated granite, mixed with irregular frag- 
 ments of that rock, and covered by the surface 
 soil." 
 
 On the south-west of Guernsey, near Fort 
 Doyle, a similar gravel occurs, about eight feet 
 above high-water mark, resting principally on 
 the surface of the syenite rocks of a low cliff, 
 but occupying also fissures, which Mr. Trevel- 
 yan is of opinion were formed during a slight 
 elevating movement, and into which he believes 
 the gravel fell, and was even forced laterally 
 under the syenite. The gravel is in parts so 
 firmly cemented by a ferruginous sand, as to be 
 able to support the roof of a small cavern 
 where the substratum had been washed away. 
 
 From the facts which have been advanced, it 
 appears to follow that the district occupied by 
 the Channel Islands, and probably part of the 
 coast of Normandy, has experienced two decided 
 changes of level. From the evidence afforded 
 by the raised beach at Lihou and elsewhere, 
 it appears that the district was, at a remote 
 period, at a much lower elevation than it now 
 possesses ; that it subsequently became elevated 
 to a little above its present level, and that at 
 the present time a slow process of subsidence is 
 taking place. In explanation of the origin of
 
 244 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 the beds of gravel near Lihou, and on the 
 north-west of the island, Mr. Lukis, whose 
 opinion deserves the utmost attention, considers 
 them to be accounted for as simply resulting 
 from the carrying down to this lower part of 
 Guernsey the detrital matter from its elevated 
 southern part. But it is adverse to this opinion, 
 that an apparently similar and, probably, iden- 
 tically formed bed of gravel exists among the 
 cliffs on this southern coast ; and it is also to be 
 remembered, that the rivulets in this island, to 
 the transporting power of which this gravel is 
 attributed, are very minute rills, the velocity 
 and strength of current in which appear 
 scarcely equal to the effect ascribed to them. 
 
 Whichever of these opinions is entertained, 
 there neither is nor can be any question that 
 the extent of superficial area now occupied by 
 the waters visibly exceeds that which formerly 
 they possessed. 
 
 The strongest evidence of the mechanical 
 power of the waves on these coasts, is afforded 
 by the groups of stern and rugged rocks which 
 stud the surrounding waters. There can be 
 little doubt that most of these rocks, whose de- 
 tached summits cover the waves with forms 
 terrible to the mariner, originally formed a part 
 of the solid ground, and that some were even 
 occupied by men. We have already alluded to
 
 THE WATERS. 245 
 
 the singular masses of detached rock on the 
 coast of Sark, called the Altars. These masses 
 are monumental tokens of the force and fury of 
 the waters. Near this spot is another remark- 
 able evidence of their power. A very large 
 wall of a reddish granite, the end of a vein from 
 which the schistose strata had been washed, 
 stands far out on the shore, forming a natural 
 arch. Where the arch is formed, a softer cross 
 fissure seems to have existed, from which the 
 looser materials have been washed away. The 
 cut at the head of this chapter represents this 
 rock. The detachment of the isle of Brechou 
 (LTle des Marchands) from Sark may, perhaps, 
 be partly attributed to the same power. The 
 rock called St. Pierre, which stands in the middle 
 of the Gouliot stream running between this 
 island and Sark, is clothed at the top with a green 
 capping of turf, upon which occasionally a few 
 sheep are turned out to graze, and it presents 
 much of the appearance of a mass whose sides 
 have been wasted by water. The considerable 
 angle at which the rocks incline at this part, and 
 the existence of fissures in them, extending to 
 some depth, may have facilitated the removal of 
 the material, as their inclination is exactly across 
 the direction of the stream. There are several 
 other of the little islands surrounding these 
 coasts, whose separation from the main body of
 
 246 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 their respective islands must be attributed in 
 some considerable degree to the mechanical 
 force of the currents which sweep along 
 them. 
 
 Some interesting experiments have been made, 
 with a view to determine the force with which 
 water, in the form of currents and waves, influ- 
 ences substances exposed to its action, and it has 
 been found that water, when flowing at various 
 rates per second, has the power of transporting 
 materials of considerable weight and size. Its 
 force, however, in this respect is chiefly felt on 
 land and in mountainous countries, where rapid 
 streams rush down the sides of steep declivities. 
 Yet even among these islands the transporting 
 power of the incessant currents which wash 
 their coasts is considerable. The chief me- 
 chanical power is that of the waves, and that 
 this must be vast in its character and results 
 will be best appreciated by those who have 
 stood on the south-western coast of Guernsey 
 during a gale. At a point near Pleintuont on 
 this coast, the fury of the waters is felt more 
 than at any other part of the island. 
 
 On the coast of Jersey, while wandering 
 among the rocks on its northern coast, a 
 curious example of the power of the waves 
 was encountered. It was a basin of consider- 
 able size scooped out of the rock, at the sea
 
 THE WATERS. 247 
 
 level, and filled with large water-worn and 
 rounded blocks of stone. These blocks did not 
 seem to have fallen from the rocks above, but 
 appeared to have been lifted up and deposited 
 in the cavity by the force of the waves which 
 incessantly strike upon this rugged and preci- 
 pitous coast. And when it is remembered that 
 stones as well as other substances, heavier than 
 water, do not weigh as heavy in water as in 
 air, in consequence of the amount they displace, 
 this will appear less improbable. 
 
 It is often difficult to appreciate the effect of 
 causes operating chiefly through prolonged 
 epochs, and it becomes more easy to estimate 
 such as produce an immediate effect. The 
 effects of the violence of the waves on this and 
 on other of the exposed coasts of the Channel 
 Islands, in the disintegration of the rocks, 
 and the removal and upheaval of masses of 
 stone, can scarcely be appreciated by those un- 
 accustomed to the contemplation of such forces; 
 and it may, therefore, be useful to mention, that 
 the most undoubted evidence exists that the 
 waves of the sea possess the power here ascribed 
 to them. During the period of construction of 
 the Bell-rock Light-house, abundant oppor- 
 tunity was afforded of estimating the upheaving 
 power of the stormy waters, in the midst of 
 which that structure has been reared. It has
 
 248 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 been stated by the engineer employed, that 
 drift rocks measuring upwards of thirty cubic 
 feet, and weighing not less than two tons, have 
 been lifted up from the deep water around 
 during a storm. Evidence also of the upheaving 
 and transporting power of the waves is abun- 
 dantly afforded in certain parts of the rocky 
 coast of the Shetland Isles, where great masses 
 of stones have been carried away and deposited 
 in heaps by the waters, resembling an accumu- 
 lation of quarried masses more than a heap 
 raised by natural forces alone. 
 
 At one extremity of Little Sark a more con- 
 spicuous monument of the power of the currents 
 which sweep around it appears, in the form of a 
 perforated rock standing up out of the water, 
 and in form resembling the solitary arch of a 
 bridge, the remaining portion of which had 
 been washed away. It is a mass of great 
 strength and of considerable size, but its sides 
 are exposed with ruinous effect to the impulse 
 of the powerful current which sweeps around 
 this island. There can be little question that 
 it was once solid, and probably connected with 
 the rock of Little Sark. Its peculiar position, 
 however, rendered it particularly obnoxious to 
 the battering power of the waters, and a softer 
 vein of rock existing near the middle first 
 yielded to their influence. The breach once
 
 THE WATERS. 249 
 
 made, was rapidly widened, and a tunnel has 
 now been cut completely through the mass, 
 through the foaming sides of which a roaring 
 tide rushes along, carrying away continually 
 fresh portions of the rock, and gradually though 
 imperceptibly enlarging the cavity, and pre- 
 paring the mass for total annihilation when its 
 outer side is worn through. 
 
 The impetuosity of the currents around Sark 
 has more than once proved fatal to adventurous 
 persons. A very memorable instance occurred 
 some years ago, which filled many hearts in the 
 island, and in others of the group, with sadness. 
 A party of persons who had arrived from 
 Guernsey were overtaken by bad weather, and 
 were advised not to attempt the return passage 
 in consequence of the furious tide running 
 through the strait between the isle of Brechou 
 and Sark. Disregarding this counsel, they em- 
 barked, and for a certain distance proceeded 
 safely, until they encountered the Gouliot cur- 
 rent, as this tidal stream is called. Here, in 
 the midst of a vain struggle against its force, 
 the boat upset, and every soul perished in a 
 moment, while a few spectators on the high 
 land close by the scene looked on in agony, 
 without the power to render the least assistance. 
 
 It is dangerous in boisterous weather to stand 
 too near these impetuous waters, for the long
 
 250 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 swell occasionally reaches to the very feet of 
 the spectator. One of the persons employed in 
 the mines at Sark was engaged in contemplating 
 the grandeur of the waves as they broke upon 
 the rocky coast at the foot of the mines, and, 
 heedless of the danger to which he was exposed, 
 he ventured yet nearer to the edge. While 
 thus situated a larger wave than the rest sud- 
 denly broke over him, and carried him instantly 
 into deep water, where he perished, nor was his 
 body ever recovered.
 
 i - T^*^ ,-1 *' 
 C^ J 
 
 STACKS OP SEA-WEED, ALEXANDER'S HOTEL, GUKRNSEY. 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 THE PLANTS AND ANIMALS. 
 
 SEVERAL circumstances combine to render 
 the Channel Island marine vegetation ex- 
 tremely interesting, and more extensive than 
 it is on many rocky coasts. In speaking there- 
 fore of the plants of these islands, we shall begin 
 at the sea-shore : and in so doing, we must recal 
 to the attention of the reader the statement 
 made in a former page as to the extent of 
 the tides in these islands. The perpendicular 
 height of the highest tides is about thirty-nine 
 feet ; it may therefore be easily conceived that
 
 252 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 at the fall of the tide a large extent of coast 
 is laid bare, and this of a nature peculiarly 
 adapted to the requirements of marine plants. 
 It is now generally admitted that sea-plants 
 are much less dependent upon the nature of the 
 soil if we may so term it on which they grow, 
 than plants living on the land. It has been 
 shown by Liebig that marine plants generally 
 live not so much by the materials derived 
 through the medium of the root, as by absorp- 
 tion of the elements they require in the form 
 of soluble compounds, or solutions of gases, by 
 their entire surface. Land plants, on the con- 
 trary, derive all their saline and earthy consti- 
 tuents by their roots from the soil in which they 
 grow their woody tissue being formed by the 
 absorption of carbonic acid from the air. To 
 the latter it is consequently of the most vital 
 importance in what soil they grow. Sea- weeds 
 in their maturer stages require little assistance 
 from their roots beyond that of retaining them 
 to the rocky surface : in their earlier conditions 
 these organs may be more important. Conse- 
 quently, the geological nature of the district is 
 of little importance to the marine plants, pro- 
 vided that its outward form is such as adapts 
 itself to their requirements. 
 
 The form of the coast is therefore of more 
 consequence to the number and variety of its
 
 THE PLANTS AND ANIMALS. 253 
 
 marine vegetation than its chemical constitution. 
 Now, the general face of a granitic coast is 
 unfavourable to the growth of sea-weeds, 
 because its rounded and lumpish character 
 generally forbids the existence of those little 
 rock-pools where the water can lie until the 
 return of the tide, and in which sea-weeds 
 delight to luxuriate. " And thus," observes 
 Professor Harvey, " the vegetation of granitic 
 shores may be characterized as poor; but this 
 poverty is owing altogether to outward form. 
 For wherever the granite affords a tolerably 
 flat surface, intersected with deep cavities in 
 which pools of water are constantly main- 
 tained, a vegetation will be found as varied 
 and copious as on stratified shores of a totally 
 different composition of rock." * The coasts 
 of the Channel Islands are in many places 
 remarkably beautiful, in consequence of the 
 number of these rock-pools, places where the 
 naturalist may sit and for hours occupy himself 
 in the study of the miniature translucent sea 
 at his feet. Two of the most remarkable of 
 these rock-pools exist on the coast of the little 
 isle of Lihou, and in consequence of the in- 
 terest attaching to them, we venture to digress 
 into a little description of them, since they are 
 types of many less beautiful in form, but not 
 * Sea-side Book, p. 55.
 
 254 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 less interesting to the naturalist, with which 
 the coast of Guernsey especially abounds. 
 
 On this little island exist the remains of an 
 ancient priory; and the rock-pools in question 
 are found among the gneiss rocks on the 
 eastern side of the ruins, at about half-water 
 mark. At this spot a vein of felspar traverses 
 the gneiss, and it is partly in this vein that 
 the pools are excavated. We had some difficulty 
 in finding them, and the approach is not an 
 easy one in any direction except from the 
 sea. They are two almost circular excavations 
 in the rock, the one placed a little above the 
 other, and the water of the upper one dripping 
 over a little ledge into the lower, while a 
 rounded lip carries off the water from the 
 latter, leaving both pools full nearly to the 
 brim. The position of those pools is extremely 
 beautiful, and the quiet repose of their crystal- 
 like waters contrasts well with the disturbed 
 and tumultuous character of the rocky scene in 
 which they are placed. Their dimensions are 
 inconsiderable, and their depth about four or 
 five feet, with a shelving bottom. They are 
 said to have been used by the nuns of the 
 priory, but it appears to me that this is a mere 
 fable, originating in the suggestion that they 
 might have been used as baths, for which 
 purpose indeed their form renders them singu-
 
 THE PLANTS AND ANIMALS. "255 
 
 larly suited. Unless however the nuns had 
 some easier way of approaching their baths 
 than we could discover, it would be a hard 
 matter for them to get there without more 
 bruises and scratches than a lady might like to 
 endure. They appear to have been formed by 
 the action of the waves, which on this side of 
 the Bay of Rocquaine fall thunderingly upon 
 the coast, and hurl great masses of stones 
 against the cliffs. During storms their violence 
 can scarcely be appreciated by any who have 
 not. witnessed their fury. 
 
 These pools, diminutive though their size, 
 afforded us amusement and instruction for good 
 part of a summer's day. Their beautiful lining 
 of corallines and sponges, with many minute 
 and rosy algae; their pellucid and motionless 
 waters, slightly tinged with blue ; their ani- 
 mated occupants, tiny molluscs and crusta- 
 ceans, the one in leisurely movement, the 
 other darting among the sea- weeds, presented 
 a picture of a microcosm, a world in little, 
 such as only a rock-pool can display. What 
 is seen in miniature in these pools, is displayed 
 on a larger scale in numbers of others on the 
 southern coast of this beautiful island. How 
 great is the pleasure of watching some of these 
 pools, half-hidden by wall -like rocks above, and 
 opening to the sea through a vista of dark
 
 256 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 rocky masses still wet with the waters which 
 for years have been polishing down their once 
 rugged surface ! In their clear depths beautiful 
 zoophytes display their flower-like arms, their 
 pink, brown, and blood-red hues making beau- 
 tiful the grey rocks on which they rest. The 
 sea-weeds there also wave their variously 
 coloured structures, some green, some red, but 
 most of an olive tint ; and among them, lurking 
 out of human sight, minute fishes lie, now and 
 then darting across, and again lost among the 
 green leaves of the sea-plants. Limpets abound 
 on the rocks at their edges, and in the fissures 
 in the rock surface are to be found microscopic 
 shells for a whole day's investigation. 
 
 In consequence, as we have observed, of the 
 great fall of the tide, and of the extent of sur- 
 face which is thus daily covered and left by 
 the waters, the littoral zone, as it is called, of 
 marine plants is extensive. But this remark 
 does not apply to Sark, where, although the 
 fall and rise are equally great, yet the perpen- 
 dicular character of the rocks renders the island 
 almost destitute of sea-plants ; and very few 
 species of them, and those chiefly of the coarsest 
 kinds, are to be met with. This term ' littoral 
 zone ' is to be understood as denominative of 
 the belt of rock or shingle extending between 
 high and low water-marks. From the re-
 
 THE PLANTS AND ANIMALS. 257 
 
 searches of Professor Forbes it appears that 
 marine vegetation generally may be divided 
 into that occupying the belt of shore in ques- 
 tion, and into another extending from low- 
 water mark to a depth of from seven to fifteen 
 fathoms. The lowest plant of this second 
 zone is a coralline, which does not extend 
 below the depth of sixty fathoms. This sub- 
 division into zones has its foundation in a 
 natural arrangement, which, with few excep- 
 tions, is found to regulate the distribution of 
 sea-plants. The plants in the littoral zone 
 are those which are adapted to the measure of 
 light, air, and duration of immersion found in 
 that region of the coast; those of the second 
 zone are plants whose requirements in each 
 and all of these respects are such as to confine 
 them to a locality in which constant immersion 
 and a subdued and faint allotment of light are 
 given to them. The peculiar brilliancy and 
 transparency of the waters around the coasts 
 of these islands cannot fail, consequently, to 
 exercise some influence upon the distribution 
 of the marine vegetation, since light is one 
 of the agencies, the intensity of which in 
 some degree determines this fact. "Within the 
 littoral zone a large proportion of the sea- 
 weeds of our latitude is produced. The re- 
 maining species and genera occur, with the 
 s
 
 258 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 exception of a few which extend into deeper 
 water, within the limit of three or four fathoms 
 beyond the lowest water of spring-tides.* 
 
 The prevailing colours of the sea-weeds 
 which the naturalist meets with in still weather 
 upon this rocky coast, are olive and green. But 
 during storms the deeper plants are torn from 
 their fixed abode, and cast by the violence of 
 the waves upon the shore. The prevailing 
 colour of these is red. This interesting fact is 
 due to the modification experienced in the 
 relative intensity of the light received by the 
 marine vegetation. And it is a remarkable 
 result of Professor Forbes's dredging researches, 
 that the same law has been found to apply to 
 the animal world of the deep. It is highly 
 instructive to mark the various gradations of 
 colour, from green to a pale olive, which can be 
 traced on many parts of this coast, as of most 
 others where sea-weeds are abundant. In the 
 shallow pools near the base of the cliffs the 
 grass-green Uhce and Enteromorphcv will be 
 found, covering the broken masses of rock 
 below the surface, and the stones, with a clothing 
 of the richest green. As we walk toward the 
 margin of the sea the green sea-weeds are lost 
 sight of, and olive-coloured plants appear on 
 the rocks, or in the pools, the luxuriance and 
 * Harvey ; Sea-side Book, p. 56.
 
 THE PLANTS AND ANIMALS. 259 
 
 depth of tone in which increase remarkably as 
 we increase our nearness to the low-water 
 mark. On the shore, among the ruins of the 
 last storm, will be found many withered speci- 
 mens of the deeper sea-weeds, to obtain which, 
 the dredge must be employed, if they are 
 wanted in their perfectly fresh and living state. 
 The conformation of many parts of this coast is 
 however such, that some of the deep water 
 kinds are often to be found in the rock-pools, 
 where the dark colour of the rock itself, and 
 the shady position of the pool, appear to com- 
 bine some of the most essential conditions found 
 in their native depths, for their growth in such 
 a position. 
 
 A very few remarks will suffice for the 
 Chlorosperms, or green sea-weeds, found on these 
 coasts. The beautiful genus known to botanists 
 under the expressive title Cladop/tora, or branch- 
 bearing, has several elegant representatives 
 upon these coasts. The Cladophora refracta 
 has been found at Jersey. It is a most 
 delicate and elegant plant, of a pale green 
 colour, formed of a profusion of minute branch- 
 lets. Deep, clear, and cold pools are its 
 favourite abodes, generally near the extreme 
 of low-watej mark. Another species, uncialis, 
 appears in the form of shaggy, deep-green 
 rope-like tufts, and grows on the rock. An-
 
 260 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 other, and the most beautiful of all, Clado- 
 phora falcata, whose delicate green feathers 
 curve into the most graceful forms, is also 
 found in deep rock-pools, and was found in 
 Jersey. And a fourth, a very rare species, 
 C. repens, was picked up on the beach after 
 a heavy gale at Jersey. Of the genus Codium, 
 the species tomentosum is frequently met with 
 on rocks, near low-water mark; it may be 
 known by its bright green colour, its curious 
 and often-repeated forkings, and particularly by 
 the fact of its entire structure being invested 
 with a downy coat of the most delicate fila- 
 ments; this can only be seen when the plant is 
 in the water. It is a curious fact, that this 
 plant, unlike many other sea-weeds, is a cosmo- 
 polite, is found, that is to say, on almost every 
 shore in almost every country. Among the 
 pools may also be found the soft and green 
 feathers of the elegant Bryopsis plumosa. This 
 little plant appears, in common with the rest, 
 to discharge a most important office in the 
 aeration of sea- water. " Few of our marine 
 plants," observes Professor Harvey, " are more 
 beautiful; and the pleasure of admiring its 
 graceful characters may be indefinitely pro- 
 longed, as it is one of the plants which may be 
 most easily grown in bottles of sea-water. 
 While it continues to vegetate it will keep the
 
 THE PLANTS AND ANIMALS. 261 
 
 water sweet and pure, and no care is needed, 
 except to close the mouth of the bottle so as 
 to prevent evaporation." Among the Conferva? 
 are some species which, in various parts of the 
 coast, cover the rocks with a green coating, 
 upon which a safe footing could not be obtained, 
 were it not for the naturally rough and fis- 
 sured state of many of the rocks. At Jersey 
 have been found the rigid species, C, mela- 
 gonium, a green, tail-like bundle of filaments, 
 standing erect at the bottom of rocky pools, 
 near low-water mark.* Among the members 
 of the family of Oscillatoriae was found a sin- 
 gular-looking species, on the coasts of Jersey, 
 named Lyngbya majuscula. It thrives at and 
 below half-tide level, and is often thrown up 
 after storms, from deep water. But for its 
 bluish green colour, one might suppose it a tuft 
 of some marine monster's hair. Belonging also 
 to the same group, the green sea-weeds, the 
 Ultce, or Lavers, are plentifully found on the 
 coasts ; the Uha linga, or ribbon green laver, 
 the most delicately beautiful of the genus, and 
 the Ulva latissima, of a bright green, almost 
 transparent structure, wave their tender fronds 
 in the clear water. The Enter omorphce, plants 
 of grass-like structure, may also be found dis- 
 playing their bright green leaves in confined 
 * Harvey's Phycologia Britannica.
 
 262 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 groups, under the water, or upon the rocks, 
 near high-water mark. 
 
 By the inhabitant of the Channel Islands the 
 whole group of the green sea- weeds (and of the 
 red) is little accounted of; but that of the 
 olive-coloured is considered of so much import- 
 ance, that it has been taken notice of in the 
 Insular laws, and forms, in fact, a group of 
 plants not less necessary to the prosperity of the 
 islands than is the practice of agriculture itself. 
 These sea-weeds are not, however, known 
 under their scientific terms, but are called under 
 the general denomination of Vraic. These 
 olive sea-weeds form, in fact, the great part 
 of the vegetable vesture of the coast, and 
 the luxuriance of their growth will be fully 
 appreciated when we come to describe the 
 purposes for which they are collected and ap- 
 plied. 
 
 These olive-coloured sea-weeds, called by the 
 marine botanist Melanospermece, in consequence 
 of the dark colour of their reproductive spores, 
 extend from high-water mark to a depth of 
 one or two fathoms below low-water mark, and 
 from their size, the luxuriance of their growth, 
 and the extent of the coast surface covered by 
 them, are extremely conspicuous in many parts 
 of these coasts. The genus Fucus supplies the 
 greater part of these marine plants. The Fucus
 
 THE PLANTS AND ANIMALS. 263 
 
 canaliculatus grows highest of the species, and 
 is commonly found in scattered tufts on the 
 rocks about high-water mark, where daily it is 
 exposed to the air for some hours. It is often 
 found on rocks where only the spray can reach 
 it, but it does not thrive in such situations. 
 It grows in greatest luxuriance midway between 
 half low-water and high-water mark, and puts 
 out fronds five or six inches in length. It is 
 rarely met with below half-tide, and appears 
 to be endowed with peculiar properties of re- 
 sisting drought. This species does not con- 
 tribute much to the vegetation clothing the 
 coast. The F. nodosus, or Knotted fucus, is a 
 species which, in consequence of its size and 
 luxuriance, forms a thick vesture for large 
 surfaces of the rocks. This is a large species, 
 and forms a great proportion of the Vraic of 
 the Channel Islands. Its peculiar intumescences 
 in the stem, and the bright orange colour of 
 its spore receptacles, when it is in fructification, 
 render it easily recognisable. Like the last it 
 grows high, and bears exposure well. The 
 F. vesiculosuS) or Bladder fucus, is equally 
 common with the last, and from its gregarious 
 habits is found covering wide patches of rock as 
 far as low- water mark. It is not, as in some 
 of the northern isles, applied to any purpose 
 of domestic or farm-yard economy, but it,
 
 264 . THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 together with the last, constitutes a consider- 
 able part of the Vraic. Its place of greatest 
 luxuriance is near low-water mark, and in still 
 deeper water, where its fronds may be seen 
 several feet long. At and below half-tide level, 
 another species, F. serratus, appears. The 
 toothed margin of its leaves distinguishes it 
 from all the other species. This fucus is obtained 
 by the gatherers of Vraic only from the rocks 
 which are uncovered at extreme low-water, and 
 consequently its existence is of less importance 
 to the farmer than that of the other species. 
 In addition to these species, which are common 
 to all our coasts, there is a plant allied to the 
 same genus, Avhich is found not unfrequently 
 on those of the Channel Islands, but which is 
 a stranger to most of our northern shores ; 
 this is Pycnopliycm tuberculatus. It is found 
 on the coasts of Cornwall, and on some of the 
 south-western shores. It is considered to form 
 a distinct genus, and its peculiar and awkward 
 name is derived from two Greek words, signify- 
 ing "thick sea- weed." 
 
 Next to the genus Fucus, that of Laminaria 
 supplies the largest part of the Vraic. The 
 well-known L. digitata, commonly known by 
 the names Sea-girdles, Tangle, Sea-staff, or 
 Oar-weed. This plant is to be found abun- 
 dantly among the rocks, at the extreme level
 
 THE PLANTS AND ANIMALS. 265 
 
 of low-water, at Rocquaine Bay, on the Isle of 
 Lihou, Guernsey. The plant, however, chiefly 
 thrives in deep water, and its beautiful glossy 
 olive leaves form a highly interesting submarine 
 vegetation in many of the bays. Its immense 
 size, the fronds sometimes measuring eight feet 
 in length, and two in breadth, and the stem 
 being sometimes six feet long, renders it a 
 valuable capture to the Vraicker. The L. lul- 
 bosa, a species which generally grows in deep 
 water, is thrown on shore by storms on the 
 south-western coasts, and is collected by the 
 careful scavengers of the sea-shore. Some- 
 times a single specimen is a load for one man, 
 so great is the size of its bulb, and of the ex- 
 panding fronds which proceed from the short 
 stem. The L. saccharina is also commonly 
 found among the heaps of Vraic. In other 
 countries this sea-weed is useful for food, but 
 we have not met with any instance of such an 
 application of its properties in these islands. 
 It contains a sweet chemical principle in consi- 
 derable abundance, which is called mannite. 
 
 In addition to these genera of sea-weeds are 
 various others, which, though not constituting 
 a large proportion of the Vraic, are nevertheless 
 to be found in it in greater or less abun- 
 dance. Among these is the Sea-thongs, a 
 curious sea-weed, putting forth from a cup-
 
 266 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 shaped frond, which adheres to the rock, long 
 green straps, sometimes reaching a length 
 of twenty feet. The long strings also of 
 Chorda filum, known under the various names 
 Sea-whiplash, Sea-catgut, &c. This sea-weed 
 is particularly abundant in the water a short 
 distance from Castle Cornet, where its long 
 and slippery lines lie on the blue surface of the 
 wave in great numbers. From this place we 
 have drawn up specimens some thirty feet and 
 upwards in length. 
 
 Among the rarer of the olive sea-weeds, the 
 beautiful Padina Pawnia, or Peacock's-tail, or 
 Turkey-feather, is to be found. This plant, a 
 stranger to most of our northern shores, finds 
 in the warm and genial climate of the Channel 
 Isles a suitable habitat, and may be found 
 during summer in shallow tide-pools, at half- 
 tide level. Its elegantly formed and painted 
 fronds are seen in beautiful tufts below the 
 surface of the clear water. Its resemblance in 
 the brilliance of its colouring to the object 
 after which it is named, is best seen Avhen 
 under water, the fringes of capillary fibres 
 which adorn it decomposing the rays of light, 
 and giving rainbow colours to the surface. 
 Another curious, but less elegant one, is the 
 Asperococcus Turneri, which has been found in 
 Jersey. This extraordinary looking plant de-
 
 THE PLANTS AND ANIMALS. 267 
 
 lights to dwell in the shelter of the bays, 
 and in deep water. It somewhat resembles, 
 when seen in tufts of a small size, a group of 
 amputated fingers ! But occasionally, spe- 
 cimens are found upwards of three feet in 
 length, in deep water. The Asperococcus com- 
 pressus, a sea-weed of less singular character, 
 is interesting as having been as yet only found 
 along the southern shores of England, and on 
 the coasts of the Channel Islands. 
 
 The red sea-weeds of these isles require a 
 brief notice prior to a description of the in- 
 teresting operation of Vraicing. These plants 
 are called Khodo-sperms, and from the exquisite- 
 ness of their colouring and structure, are among 
 the most beautiful and popularly interesting of 
 the whole of the marine plants. They are the 
 inhabitants of deep water, or of deep shady 
 tide-pools. From their habit of flourishing in 
 greatest [luxuriance in clear water, the marine 
 flora of the Channel Isles is very rich in these 
 beautiful red-coloured sea- weeds. An interest- 
 ing kind is the Crunia Pellita, which has been 
 found in Jersey. This plant resembles patches 
 of blood, and is found upon the surface of 
 smooth rocks, exposed by the tide. Few 
 would imagine it to be a plant, as it more 
 closely resembles a patch of dry skin. Very 
 varied and extensive is the first of the red sea-
 
 268 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 weeds on these coasts. It includes Rhodymenia 
 palmata, the Pulse of Scotland, used in many- 
 parts for food an ingredient, according to 
 Professor Harvey, in M. Soyer's soup for the 
 poor Irish, " St. Patrick's soup " and many 
 others. 
 
 The marine botany of these islands has a 
 peculiar interest, in consequence of the use 
 made of the sea -weed by the farmers and 
 agriculturists. Sea-weed is known all over 
 these islands under the general term vraic, and 
 this term includes all kinds of marine plants 
 gathered at certain seasons, or thrown on the 
 shore by the violence of the waves. The word 
 has a resemblance to wrack) an obsolete word 
 equivalent to the modern wreck.* Sea-weed 
 cast on shore is often called sea-wrack. On 
 the adjoining coasts of Normandy and Brittany 
 sea-weed is called varech, a term evidently 
 identical with vraic. The principal use of the 
 vraic is for manure, and for this purpose it 
 is highly esteemed. 
 
 It is well known to chemists that marine 
 plants contain a large proportion of mineral in- 
 gredients. If a dried fucus were burnt, and the 
 
 * In legal phraseology " varech de mer" is equivalent to 
 the English term " wreck of the sea," meaning whatever is 
 cast up by the waves. In Normandy and Brittany sea-weed 
 is called " gocsmon," and sometimes also " varech."
 
 THE PLANTS AND ANIMALS. 269 
 
 ashes collected, they would be found to contain 
 a good deal of the alkalies potash and soda ; and 
 if dissolved in water, the solution would give 
 evidence of its alkaline nature by turning red- 
 dened litmus paper blue; or if a few drops of 
 vinegar were dropped into it, it would effervesce, 
 in consequence of the combination of the acid of 
 the vinegar with the carbonates of the alkalies 
 which it holds in solution. This fact has been 
 known to the dwellers on seaweed-covered coasts 
 for many years, and has been turned to good ac- 
 count in time past. In the Scottish Islands and 
 Highlands the collection of sea-weed, first com- 
 mencing on a very limited scale, ultimately 
 attained immense importance, and the revenues 
 derived by landed proprietors from the sale of the 
 sea-weed on their coasts were very large. This 
 sea-weed was called kelp, and was burned on 
 the shore for the sake of the ashes which it 
 yielded in incinerating the dried plants. Heaps 
 of smoking kelp-fires studded the shores of 
 these districts in the gathering season, and filled 
 the air with a peculiar odour, which extended 
 for many miles. The fused ashes of these 
 plants, called kelp, were collected and sent to 
 be purified. 
 
 This was for a long time the principal source 
 of the soda used in commerce and the arts. For 
 the ashes, on being dissolved in water, were
 
 270 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 found to be very rich in this alkali, and many 
 tons were every year extracted from it. In 
 addition to the alkali, various other substances, 
 as iodine and bromine, were also obtained from 
 the kelp. But immediately on the reduction of 
 the duty on common salt, the greater part of 
 this branch of industry was swept away. By 
 an ingenious chemical process manufacturers 
 are now weekly manufacturing hundreds of tons 
 of soda from the decomposition of salt ; and the 
 kelp-burners and gatherers have lived to see 
 their occupation entirely pass away from them. 
 In the Channel Islands the vraic represents 
 the kelp of the northern gatherers, and although 
 not collected with a commercial object, it is still 
 gathered and valued because of its mineral com- 
 ponents, which tend to enrich and reinvigorate 
 the exhausted soil. It will be readily under- 
 stood that in these little islands, whose whole 
 area might be comprised in some of our large 
 estates in England, land is very valuable, and 
 is taxed to the utmost limit of its productive 
 powers. This is rendered still more inevitable 
 in consequence of the custom of dividing the 
 land among the children of the owners of the 
 soil. The islands are consequently parcelled out 
 into the most minute portions, each belonging 
 to some separate freeholder. The result is ob- 
 viously to reduce the proprietors of the ground
 
 THE PLANTS AND ANIMALS. 271 
 
 to the necessity of the most careful tillage and 
 abundant manuring, to keep up the fertility of 
 their land. Hence the vraic comes to be of 
 such general use, and so highly valued, since it 
 meets the requirements of the agriculturists ; 
 and it may be had in sufficient abundance to be 
 a cheap as well as an efficient manure. 
 
 The collection of vraic is not confined to the 
 large landholders, but is common also to the 
 poorer ones, and the latter turn it to good 
 account in the following manner. The sea-weed 
 is gathered by them, dried, and stacked, and in 
 this state is regarded as forming an important 
 part of the fuel for the succeeding winter. A 
 stack of vraic is represented at the head of this 
 chapter. When winter sets in, the dried vraic is 
 brought into use, and forms a tolerable fire, 
 valued, however, rather for the ashes it yields 
 than for the heat it communicates, and were 
 other fuel to be had, it would doubtless be 
 greatly preferred as a source of domestic heat. 
 The ashes are collected with great care, and 
 preserved until a considerable quantity, repre- 
 senting, in fact, many pounds of alkaline and 
 mineral substances, is accumulated. This is 
 then sold by measure, and is used by the farmers 
 and agriculturists. About twenty bushels of 
 such ashes are used to one vergee of land. 
 
 The following account is derived from a local
 
 272 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 author's work on these islands. It gives an 
 interesting picture of the collection of vraic 
 generally, and is applicable in almost every 
 particular to that season in all the islands of the 
 group. " The vraicking season in Jersey is fixed 
 by the island legislature, and is named twice 
 a-year, commencing generally about the 20th 
 July, and the 10th March ; and continuing 
 each time about ten days. 
 
 " When the vraicking season begins, those 
 whose families are not numerous enough to col- 
 lect the needful supply, assist each other ; and 
 the vraicking parties, consisting of eight, ten, or 
 twelve persons, sally forth betimes, from all 
 parts of the island, to their necessary, laborious, 
 but apparently cheerful work. Although a 
 time of labour, it is also a season of merriment : 
 ' vraicking cakes,' made of flour, milk, and 
 sugar, are plentifully partaken of, and on the 
 cart which accompanies the party to the sea- 
 beach, is generally slung a little cask of some- 
 thing to drink, and a suitable supply of eatables. 
 Every individual is provided with a small sickle, 
 to cut the weed from the rocks, and with strong 
 leg and foot gear. The carts proceed as far as 
 the tide will allow them ; and boats, containing 
 four or six persons, carry the vraickers to the 
 more distant rocks, which are unapproachable 
 in any other way.
 
 THE PLANTS AND ANIMALS. 273 
 
 " It is truly a busy and a curious scene : at this 
 season, at half-tide, or low-water, multitudes of 
 carts and horses, boats, and vraickers, cover the 
 beach, the rocks, and the water ; and so anxious 
 are the people to make the most of their limited 
 time, that I have often seen horses swimming, 
 and carts floating so unwilling are the vraickers 
 to be driven from their spoil by the inexorable 
 tide. 
 
 " But this sea-weed is not, as I have said, 
 employed solely as manure, but is also used as 
 fuel; and for this purpose it is collected at other 
 times than at the regular vraicking seasons, 
 not from the rocks, indeed, but from the sea- 
 beach ; for of course some of the weed is con- 
 stantly detaching itself from the rocks, and is 
 borne to the shore by the tide. The collection 
 of this sea-weed is a constant employment with 
 those who live near the sea-shore; and the 
 produce of their labour is either used for fuel, 
 or is sold to those who want it. At almost all 
 times, men, women, and children, but chiefly 
 the two latter, are to be seen at this employ- 
 ment, gathering or spreading the weed out to 
 dry ; they use a rake, or three-pronged pitch- 
 fork, and a wheelbarrow, in which it is carried 
 above high-water mark to be dried. This is 
 the universal fuel of the country, and it makes 
 a hot if not a cheerful fire. Coal is scarcely at 
 T
 
 274 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 all used; and only a very small quantity or 
 wood along with the vraic, and this even not 
 universally. On feast days only, and family 
 gatherings, a coal fire is lighted in the best 
 parlour." 
 
 Upon the surface of the rocks, just above 
 high-water mark, and extending also below it, 
 a peculiar aspect is given by a black coating 
 which covers them as though they were painted. 
 This coating is due to the presence of a minute 
 lichen, called Collema nigra. Our attention has 
 been much directed to this subject, both from the 
 peculiar aspect given to the rocks by this lichen, 
 and also from the fact that this black coating 
 seems hitherto almost to have escaped the notice 
 of those who have described the scenery of 
 these islands. The rocks around Guernsey 
 chiefly appear to be thus covered, and in places 
 the coating is so dark as to give the aspect of 
 its having been covered with soot. This is 
 especially observable on the rocks near Plein- 
 mont. The rocks here, from the sea-level 
 to a height of several feet, as high, in fact, 
 as they are washed by the spray, present the 
 appearance as though some conflagration had 
 taken place, and charred their sides and edges. 
 The fact that on such exposed surfaces any 
 plant could exist, and particularly in such situa- 
 tions as at Pleinmont, where the fury of the
 
 THE PLANTS AND ANIMALS. 275 
 
 Atlantic billow is experienced in overwhelming 
 force, is interesting, and teaches us that the 
 most wild region is not too wild for the main- 
 tenance of organic life in some form or other. 
 It is also a suggestive thought, that these minute 
 plants, which thrive where nothing else can 
 live, draw sustenance from the very elements 
 which one might suppose would produce their 
 destruction. 
 
 This subject wears an additional interest from 
 the fact that Huinboldt, in his travels, has 
 noticed the same blackened appearance of rocks, 
 but offers no satisfactory explanation of its 
 nature. We subjoin the following extracts from 
 his Views of Nature : " To the south a drear 
 and savage wilderness bounds the steppe. 
 Forests, the growth of thousands of years, in 
 one impenetrable thicket, overspread the marshy 
 region between the rivers Orinoco and Amazon. 
 Huge masses of leaden-coloured granite contract 
 the beds of the foaming rivers. Mountains and 
 forests re-echo with the thunder of rushing 
 
 O 
 
 waters, the roar of the tiger-like jaguar, and 
 the dull, rain-foreboding howl of the bearded 
 ape." 
 
 The following note he gives in illustration 
 of the "leaden-coloured granite." "In the 
 Orinoco, and more especially at the cataracts of 
 Maypures and Atures (not in the Black River
 
 276 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 or Rio Negro), all blocks of granite, and even 
 pieces of white quartz, wherever they come in 
 contact with the water, acquire a greyish-black 
 coating, which does not penetrate beyond 0.01 
 of a line into the interior of the rock. The 
 traveller might almost suppose he was looking 
 at basalt, or fossils coloured with graphite. 
 Indeed, the crust does actually appear to contain 
 manganese and carbon. I say appears to do so, 
 because the phenomenon has not yet been 
 thoroughly investigated. Something perfectly 
 analogous to this was observed by Rozier in the 
 syenitic rocks of the Nile (near Syene and 
 Philoe) ; by the unfortunate Captain Tuckey on 
 the rocky banks of the Zaire, and by Sir Robert 
 Schomburgh at Berbice. On the Orinoco 
 these leaden-coloured rocks are supposed, 
 when wet, to give forth noxious exhalations, 
 and their vicinity is believed to be conducive to 
 the generation of fevers. It is also remarkable 
 that the South American rivers generally, which 
 have black waters (aguas negras), or waters of 
 a coffee-brown or wine-yellow tint, do not darken 
 the granite rocks ; that is to say, they do not 
 act upon the stone in such a manner as to form 
 from its constituent parts a black or leaden- 
 coloured crust." 
 
 From the fact stated in the above passage by 
 Humboldt, that the coating in question contained
 
 THE PLANTS AND ANIMALS. 277 
 
 a portion of carbon in its composition, there can 
 be little doubt that it was really a minute 
 lichen. The whole history of this dark coating 
 observed by Humboldt renders this supposition 
 extremely probable, and it is also deserving of 
 notice, that the rocks upon which it was ob- 
 served were granitic, in this respect rendering 
 the analogy between them and those of the 
 Channel Islands still more close. It is evident, 
 from Humboldt's account, that he regards it 
 rather as a chemical than an organic product. 
 This view, however, does not appear so pro- 
 bable as the suggestion just given. 
 
 Among the grasses of the Channel Islands 
 there is one species which is interesting from 
 the uses to which it is applied. This plant, 
 known to botanists as Cyperus longus*. is called 
 " han " by the islanders, and is used for a great 
 variety of purposes. It grows abundantly in 
 some of the meadows, and is collected and pre- 
 served for textile purposes. At the Great 
 Exhibition a very complete set of articles made 
 of this substance was exhibited, including speci- 
 mens of the raw and manufactured material. 
 Among the manufactured articles was a Guern- 
 sey farm saddle, in constant use in every farm 
 for riding, and for carrrying bags and panniers. 
 There was also a mat and footstool, and a bul- 
 lock's and horse's collar made of han. Han is
 
 278 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 also made into ropes of tolerable strength, much 
 used by fishermen, and valued from its not being 
 affected as hemp is by salt water. This rope 
 is also used for tethering cattle. The material 
 is less costly than hemp, but is very inferior 
 to that substance in all the more valuable 
 qualities of a textile material. 
 
 It will be naturally expected that, in a work 
 such as the present, an account of the beautiful 
 flower, the Guernsey Lily, should have a pro- 
 minent place. 
 
 The very general taste for the culture of 
 flowers and for horticulture prevalent among 
 the inhabitants of the Channel Islands, may 
 be accounted for by the peculiarly favourable 
 nature of the climate assisting the efforts of the 
 florist, and from the fact, that the little plots of 
 ground in the occupation of individuals are of 
 so limited an extent, as to concentrate attention 
 entirely upon their cultivation. A greater 
 number of plants will live and flourish in the 
 open air in Guernsey than in almost any other 
 spot in the north of Europe; and many of those 
 which are natives of warm climates, and are 
 destroyed by the severe frosts of England and 
 France, are capable of enduring without injury 
 the mild and equable winters of the Channel 
 Islands. This is remarkably exemplified in the 
 case of the Guernsey Lily a plant of peculiar
 
 THE PLANTS AND ANIMALS. 
 
 279 
 
 beauty, but of a very tender and apparently 
 capricious constitution. 
 
 This plant has largely 
 attracted the notice of 
 authors. An old writer 
 thus expresses himself \ 
 on the subject : *' Na- 
 ture, assisted by the pe- 
 culiar hand of fortune, 
 has blessed us with this 
 treasure without our 
 asking for it, and the 
 only suitable return we 
 can make for so great 
 a happiness (i. e. having 
 the Guernsey Lily!) is 
 in perfecting by art and 
 care what she has so 
 bountifully begun. I 
 therefore heartily invite 
 all lovers of flowers to 
 the culture of the Guern- 
 sey Lily, the great 
 empress of the whole 
 flowery world, and the 
 noblest plant that Eng- 
 land can boast of." 
 
 The following account 
 of its history has been 
 
 THE GUERNSEY LILT.
 
 .280 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 given by a botanical author of the last century, 
 Dr. James Douglas; and without pledging 
 ourselves to every statement he makes, we 
 transcribe it for its curiosity. It is said to be 
 a native of Japan, and was brought by a 
 French botanist to Paris in 1634, where it 
 flowered. The plant was seen by Kempfer 
 growing in Japan, and known by a variety ot 
 names among the natives, who appear to have 
 held it in great estimation. Dr. Douglas is 
 highly indignant against those who denied its 
 Japanese origin, and declared that the idea 
 of such a birth-place only originated in the 
 resemblance of its glittering petals to the kind 
 of varnish called Japanning ! " It ought 
 rather to have been concluded," he observes, 
 " that since that workmanship, as well as this 
 plant, came first from this happy island, the 
 first invention of it might probably be owing 
 to the beautiful mixture of colours and sparkles 
 observed in these leaves/' 
 
 Its introduction into the British Islands 
 " happened by a very singular, melancholy 
 accident, of which Dr. Morison, who no doubt 
 had it from some persons then residing in 
 Guernsey, gives us the following account. A 
 Dutch or English ship, it is uncertain which, 
 coming from Japan with some of the roots of 
 this flower on board, was cast away upon the
 
 THE PLANTS AND ANIMALS. 281 
 
 island of Guernsey; the roots were thrown 
 upon a sandy shore, and so by the force of 
 the winds and waves were soon buried in the 
 sand. There they remained for some years, and 
 afterwards, to the great surprise and admira- 
 tion of the inhabitants, the flowers appeared in 
 all their pomp and beauty. The Lord Hatton 
 was then governor of that island for King 
 Charles II. His second son was by good luck 
 a curious person, and a great lover of flowers, 
 and therefore he not only took care to trans- 
 plant and cultivate this flower himself, but sent 
 roots of it to a great many botanists and florists 
 in England." 
 
 Some of the features of this narrative wear 
 a doubtful aspect, but it may be accepted in 
 place of a better account of the origin of this 
 very beautiful flower. Since the period of its 
 discovery to the present time, it has attracted 
 much admiration, and is cultivated with more 
 or less success in England and on the Continent. 
 Large quantities of the bulbs are exported 
 every year. 
 
 The flower certainly presents a very lovely 
 appearance when seen in all its newly expanded 
 glory, and only an imperfect idea of its beauty 
 can be formed from an engraving, even with 
 the addition of careful colouring. The raptu- 
 rous author above mentioned, confesses his
 
 282 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 inability to describe the colour of this flower 
 " with that accuracy and liveliness which it 
 deserves ; however, in the main, I may venture 
 to say, that each flower, while in its prime, looks 
 like a fine gold tissue, wrought in a rose- 
 coloured ground ; but when it begins to fade 
 and decay, it looks more like a silver tissue on 
 what they call a pink colour. When we look 
 upon the flower in full sunshine, each leaf 
 appears to be studded with thousands of little 
 diamonds, sparkling and glittering with a most 
 surprising and agreeable lustre ; but if we view 
 the same by candle-light, these numerous specks 
 or spangles look more like fine gold-dust. 
 What that uncommon appearance proceeds 
 from, or how to account for it, I own I cannot 
 tell, but must leave it to others of better 
 judgment. However, since it is very certain 
 that there is nothing to be seen without the 
 help of the glorious rays of the sun or the 
 adventitious light of a candle, on either sur- 
 face of the leaf, it would seem as if it were 
 owing to something contained between the 
 surfaces." In allusion to this gold-spangled 
 appearance, Evelyn says, 
 
 Purple Narcissus of Japan now flowers, 
 Its leaves so shine as if with golden showers 
 It had been wet, which makes it far outvie 
 The lustre of Phenician tapestry.
 
 THE PLANTS AND ANIMALS. 283 
 
 It would certainly seem probable that the 
 climate of Guernsey has some peculiar charac- 
 ters, which render it in a remarkable degree 
 suitable to the culture of this tender flower. 
 In England it can only be made to flower a 
 second time with great care, and very frequently 
 dies after its first development into blossom. 
 Even in Jersey, which lies within so short a 
 distance from Guernsey, the plant does not 
 flourish as it does in the latter island. There 
 can be little question that it is to the remark- 
 ably small range of temperature, that this 
 circumstance is chiefly due. In the succeeding 
 chapter we propose to show how prominent a 
 feature this constitutes in the climate of 
 Guernsey; while on the contrary, that of 
 Jersey, as of our own country, is subject to 
 a considerable fluctuation in the twenty- four 
 hours. A very frequent cause of the death of the 
 Lily in the hands of English florists, appears to 
 arise from negligence in winter, and from 
 cutting off the leaves too early. 
 
 It is well remarked with reference to this 
 flower, by the Rev. W. Williamson, that the 
 leaves are the great organ by which the 
 roots are brought to maturity, and as the 
 bloom is the consequence of this maturity, the 
 leaves must precede rather than succeed the 
 blossom. In autumnal bulbs, to an inattentive
 
 284 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 observer, the very reverse seems to be the 
 fact ; but we ought to consider that if the 
 bloom be produced by the agency of the leaves, 
 the bloom which appears in one autumn must 
 be the consequence of the leaves which sprung 
 up after the decay of the bloom of the preced- 
 ing year. The beginning, therefore, of their 
 year is when the leaves first spring forth after 
 the decay of the flower, and their use and end 
 is to perfect the blossom for the succeeding 
 autumn. 
 
 Reasoning on these principles, Mr. Wil- 
 liamson placed some pots of Guernsey lilies, 
 which had flowered, under the glass of a frame 
 in which melons had been grown the summer 
 preceding, and in which the heat of the tan 
 was very nearly, if not entirely exhausted. 
 The leaves grew luxuriantly ; and when they 
 decayed he took up the bulbs, and in the next 
 autumn repotted them in fresh earth, and 
 placed them under a frame as before. They 
 were again taken up and potted in August of 
 the third year, and five out of seven showed 
 blossom in as great perfection as the fresh 
 imported roots. 
 
 It would appear from this that the bulbs 
 of this elegant flower need not be thrown 
 away as useless by those who have a green- 
 house or frame, as by the protection of glass
 
 THE PLANTS AND ANIMALS. 285 
 
 alone, without artificial heat, they may be 
 again brought to flower. 
 
 Mr. Williamson found that the soil best 
 suited for the Guernsey lily must be very rich, 
 and rendered light by the addition of sand. 
 Care must be taken not to give the bulbs too 
 much water at first, which is liable to cause 
 them to rot 
 
 Mr. Herbert says that the only attention 
 which the Guernsey lily requires at Spafforth, 
 in Yorkshire, is to give it sufficient air while 
 the leaves are growing, that they may be 
 produced strong and dark coloured ; to pro- 
 tect the leaves from frost; and to keep the 
 pots, if under glass, near the light ; to give a 
 moderate and regular supply of water ; and to 
 leave the bulbs nearly dry from the time the 
 leaves decay, about midsummer, at latest, till 
 the end of August, when the flowers should 
 appear. If the bulbs are not left dry early in 
 the summer, the autumnal shoot will be 
 delayed till the season becomes too cold for 
 the proper growth of the flowers or leaves, 
 and the natural course and vigour of the 
 plant will be interrupted, which will afterwards 
 require at least a year to repair the injury it 
 will have received. Whenever the sprouting 
 is tardy, it should be assisted by placing it in 
 a wanner situation. After the expansion of
 
 286 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 the flower, if the summit of the pistil do not 
 appear to be three-cleft, it is a proof that the 
 temperature is rather too slow to suit the 
 plant, and the leaves will not perhaps push 
 freely without more heat. 
 
 The soil recommended by Mr. Herbert, is 
 a good yellow loam without any manure, but 
 they will thrive in any soil that will not, by its 
 moisture, produce canker. They ought to be 
 planted partly above ground for the same 
 reason.* 
 
 In Guernsey, every gardener, and almost 
 every farmer who has a piece of garden ground, 
 appropriates a patch to the culture of this 
 favourite flower. Even there, however, the 
 tenderness of the flower is often a source of 
 disappointment to the florist. If a slight frost 
 injures the foliage, it is generally fatal to the 
 bloom. It is of great consequence, observes 
 Mr. Lukis, to the formation of the flower, that 
 the foliage which is produced in autumn should 
 continue in a healthy growing state during the 
 whole rainy season, until it is checked and 
 finally dried up by the hot weather in May and 
 June. The plant then remains dormant till 
 the month of September, when the flowers 
 
 The facts here stated are derived from " The Flower 
 Garden," published by W. M. S. Orr & Co., Amen Corner, 
 Paternoster Row, 1838.
 
 THE PLANTS AND ANIMALS. 287 
 
 begin to appear. It is only, however, after 
 particularly mild winters that they are pro- 
 duced in remarkable abundance, the average 
 number of flowering plants having been esti- 
 mated at fifteen to eighteen in a hundred, and 
 for some years past it has not exceeded half that 
 quantity. Very little care is bestowed on the 
 beds of Guernsey Lilies. They are never 
 manured, but merely weeded and sometimes 
 slightly covered with sand. The warmest spots 
 in the garden are seldom allotted to them, and 
 they are usually found under apple-trees, or in 
 other partially shaded situations, not the most 
 favourable to the growth of other plants. 
 
 The botanical name of the Guernsey Lily 
 is Amaryllis Sarni easts, or Nerine tenusta. An 
 almost equally beautiful flower is the Ama- 
 ryllis belladonna, which is also largely cultivated 
 in Guernsey and Jersey. This flower is much 
 more hardy than the other, and blossoms with 
 certainty every year, often producing seeds. 
 It may be constantly seen embellishing with 
 its richly coloured blossoms the tiny gardens of 
 the cottages on the road-side. 
 
 The climate appears peculiarly suitable to 
 the culture of roots and bulbs, and especially 
 of those kinds whose period of rest is the 
 summer season, and which vegetate principally 
 during the cool and rainy months of the year.
 
 288 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 Among the more interesting flowers belonging 
 to the class of winter growing plants, are many 
 species of Ixia, Sparaxis, and other genera of 
 Cape bulbs. Many of these appear to thrive 
 in nearly the same perfection and beauty as in 
 their native soil ; all of them perfecting their 
 seeds, and some propagating in this manner 
 almost like weeds. Many fine sorts, says 
 Mr. Lukis, are frequent in cottage gardens, 
 where, though treated with no particular care, 
 they emulate the commonest flowers in health 
 and luxuriance. 
 
 The beautiful shrub called Magnolia grandi- 
 flora, which is shy of flowering in England, 
 excepting in Cornwall, the climate of which dis- 
 trict approximates nearly to that of Guernsey, 
 flowers with the greatest profusion in that island, 
 and attains a very considerable size. Among 
 other tender plants, which in many parts of 
 England are destroyed if exposed to the winter's 
 cold, the following grow in the Channel Islands 
 with surprising luxuriance, and are seldom, if 
 ever, injured by the climate. This list comprises 
 splendid Hydrangeas, which almost grow wild ; 
 Fuchsias, which attain a height of twelve to 
 twenty feet in the open air, and a circumfer- 
 ence of perhaps thirty feet ; and many species 
 of tender Geraniums, which in England require 
 all the care of the florist, and the protection of
 
 THE PLANTS AND ANIMALS. 289 
 
 the greenhouse for their preservation during 
 the winter months. The Camellia Japonica 
 grows with very little care out of doors the 
 year through, and often attains a height of 
 twenty feet. The Bath scarlet geranium has 
 for years been seen clothing cottage walls 
 to the height of ten or twelve feet, with its 
 dazzling blossoms. The Cape heaths also with 
 
 a little care flourish in the open air, and 
 grow with almost native luxuriance. Many 
 of the curious plants of Australia, Central 
 America, and other warm climates, also grow 
 u
 
 290 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 in the open air. The Myrtle, as may be 
 imagined from the accompanying cut, grows 
 with surprising vigour, and attains a great 
 height and age. The winters of 1837-8, and 
 of 1840-1, proved, however, very destructive 
 to many of these tender exotics, and did a 
 large amount of mischief by their unusual 
 severity. 
 
 Many of the fruits produced in these islands 
 also deserve notice from their size and luxu- 
 riance of growth. Of these the most delicious 
 and best known is the celebrated Chaumontel 
 Pear. Several trees of this pear are found in 
 every garden. " There must," observes Mr. 
 Lukis, "certainly be something in the soil or 
 climate of the Channel Islands peculiarly suited 
 to this pear, for it seems to attain its highest 
 perfection nowhere else. The French gardeners 
 themselves acknowledge that their own speci- 
 mens cannot be compared with ours either for 
 size or flavour. Indeed in France this pear is 
 considered inferior to many other kinds. It is 
 exported from the Channel Islands in con- 
 siderable quantities." The large sized fruit, 
 being destined for presents, is sold at a high 
 price, from 31. to 41. being readily obtained 
 per hundred for pears that weigh from nine to 
 twelve ounces, and 51. or even 6/. for those of 
 twelve to eighteen ounces. The smaller ones,
 
 THE PLANTS AND ANIMALS. 291 
 
 of five to eight ounces, which form by far the 
 largest portion of the crop, are sold by the 
 bushel comparatively cheap. Nearly ten thou- 
 sand good-sized pears and two hundred and 
 twenty bushels of small fruit were exported 
 from Guernsey in the year 1840. Occasionally 
 these pears attain an enormous size; and one 
 was exhibited some years ago which weighed 
 thirty and a half ounces avoirdupois. 
 
 Figs grow in great profusion, and the purple 
 and green kinds are produced in perfection 
 every year. The purple kind is however pre- 
 ferred, and is brought in quantities to the 
 markets in September, where the fruit is often 
 sold at from three-pence to four-pence per 
 dozen. Beautiful grapes are also produced, 
 with the assistance of the greenhouse, and are 
 exported in large quantities to London. Straw- 
 berries and Raspberries are also very abundant 
 and it is stated as a curious fact, that the old 
 pine kind, which in England is seldom grown 
 for sale, in consequence of its unprofitable 
 bearing, in the Channel Islands proves more 
 fruitful than any other kind, and is the only 
 one cultivated for the market. In the season 
 it is produced in such large quantities, as to 
 net sometimes only 2d. or \\d. per pound. In 
 some gardens the Seville and sweet orange 
 have flourished, under the shelter of a wall, and
 
 292 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 have produced fruit freely. In winter, however, 
 protection is necessary for them. 
 
 Even the greenhouse, says Dr. Macculloch, 
 is influenced by the climate. As an illus- 
 tration of this, it In well known that the 
 Heliotropium Peruvianum, a plant otherwise of 
 sufficiently easy cultivation, is in England much 
 limited in its growth, becoming woody and 
 feeble after it has attained a certain height. 
 In these islands, on the contrary, if placed in 
 the bed of earth in the greenhouse, although 
 no artificial heat be applied, it soon fills the 
 whole space, running over the bed, and striking 
 fresh roots as it advances. But of all those 
 shrubs which require the protection of the 
 greenhouse in England, the Verbena triphylla 
 is that of which the luxuriance is the most 
 remarkable in these islands. Here it flourishes 
 even in the open air, and attains the height of 
 a tree of twenty feet and upwards, spreading in 
 a circle of a diameter equal to its height, and 
 its long branches reaching down to the ground 
 on all sides. Its growth is indeed so luxuriant 
 that it is necessary to keep it from becoming 
 troublesome, by perpetually cutting it almost 
 to the root, from which fresh shoots, fourteen 
 feet in length, resembling those of the osier 
 willow, arc annually produced. 
 
 Dr. Macculloch noticed another curious fact
 
 THE PLANTS AND ANIMALS. 293 
 
 connected with the botany of these islands, the 
 naturalization of a native of very warm climates, 
 the Canna Indica. This very tender plant has 
 become thoroughly habituated to the climate, 
 scattering its seeds every year, so as to prove 
 as troublesome as a weed in those gardens where 
 it has been introduced. From this and many 
 similar facts, it will be abundantly evident that 
 the climate of these islands exerts a singularly 
 beneficial influence over many of the tenderer 
 plants originally denizens of a more southern 
 latitude. But it is curious that the hardier 
 kinds are not so successfully cultivated. Trees, 
 more especially, are scarcely to be seen of any 
 noticeable size. The high winds to which the 
 islands are subject, and especially the south- 
 westerly gales, have a very baneful influence 
 over the taller species of trees. And it is 
 curious to observe the diversified and stunted 
 appearance of all such as are to be found grow- 
 ing in any exposed situations. Every unsheltered 
 tree soon loses its symmetry, and in the form of 
 its head, slanting away from the south-west, suf- 
 ficiently indicates the power and direction of 
 the prevailing wind. The luxuriance of the 
 lesser vegetation, and the variety and splendour 
 of the productions of the gardens, contrast 
 remarkably with the sterile aspect of the trees. 
 The latter certainly assist in giving an unfavour-
 
 294 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 able impression of the character of these islands 
 to the observer at first sight ; and it is only 
 when wandering in the green lanes and sheltered 
 gardens that the prolific character of the soil 
 really renders itself manifest. Ferns are par- 
 ticularly abundant, and may be found in the 
 shady walks, and in the greatest Inxuriance 
 hanging from the dripping roofs of the caves on 
 the coast. Many of these plants appear capable 
 of thriving with very little light, and are to be 
 found in parts of the caves, where only a 
 glimmer of daylight can generally reach them. 
 The total number of flowering plants and ferns, 
 exclusive of varieties found in each of these 
 islands, has been thus estimated by an author 
 who gave much time to this investigation.* 
 
 Plants natives of Jersey 692 
 
 of Guernsey 553 
 
 ofSark 247 
 
 ofAldcrney . . .. . 313 
 
 ofHerm 174 
 
 ofJethou 113 
 
 The total number found in the Channel Islands 
 amounted to 848. 
 
 Quitting now the botany of the islands, a few 
 notes may be added on the zoology of the shells, 
 insects, fish, &c. The shells form a rather inte- 
 resting portion of the natural history of these 
 * Babington's Flora Sarniensia.
 
 THE PLANTS AND ANIMALS. 295 
 
 islands ; but we shall only notice one or two of 
 the most popularly known kinds. One of the 
 most common of these is the Ormer. This word 
 is said to be a corruption of the words oreille de 
 mer, or sea-ear, and the name appears to have 
 been given to it from its resemblance in form to 
 that of the ear. The scientific name of this shell 
 is Haliotis tuberculata. It is found in great abun- 
 dance on the coasts of Guernsey and Jersey, and 
 the shells are frequently used for ornamenting 
 in some simple way the outside of the cottages, 
 being often cemented into the mortar, with the 
 inside exposed so as to show its beautiful 
 colouring. It is curious, however, that though 
 these shells are abundantly found in these 
 islands, and consequently at no great distance 
 from the English shores, they are seldom col- 
 lected on our coasts. In the islands they are 
 so abundant as to be cast aside often as refuse. 
 Externally, the Ormer -s present nothing de- 
 serving of notice, and it is only the interior 
 of the shell which is really ornamental in its 
 character. The shell is perforated with holes, 
 which are intended for the passage of the lobes 
 of the animal's mantle, and are made at regular 
 intervals as it increases in size. It is deserving 
 of notice, that there are seldom more than seven 
 or eight of these perforations open at the same 
 time, for as each new one is formed, the one
 
 296 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 nearest the shell is closed up. The animal has 
 a singular appearance in consequence of the 
 double-festooned margin of its foot. In its 
 state of rest it clings with extraordinary tena- 
 city to the substance on which it is fixed, and 
 can only be removed by exerting a very con- 
 siderable amount of force, although it can 
 detach itself with ease. It is always found 
 near the surface of the water, and on serene 
 nights feeds on the surface vegetation which 
 clothes the shores of the Channel Islands. 
 Ormers are found at low water, attached to the 
 under surface of masses of stone, and on the 
 least alarm they fix themselves to the rock, so 
 as to resist forcibly any attempt to dislodge 
 them. 
 
 The collection of Ormers takes place in the 
 months of February, March, and April, when 
 an immense supply is brought to the markets. 
 There is a considerable demand for them for 
 the table, and they are capable of being cooked 
 in a variety of ways, so as to render them an 
 agreeable article of food. The flavour of them 
 when cooked has been compared to that of veal 
 cutlets. The shells have, however, a small 
 commercial value. After the extraction of the 
 animal, they are preserved, and large quantities 
 are thus collected. A sufficiency having been 
 obtained to render their exportation of value,
 
 THE PLANTS AND ANIMALS. 297 
 
 they are packed in sacks and sent to London. 
 From that city the Ormer shells are sent to 
 Birmingham, where their nacreous or pearly 
 lustre is duly appreciated. Here they are cut 
 for a variety of purposes, and applied to orna- 
 ment different objects of papier-mache work, 
 and in japanning, in which the brilliancy of 
 their prismatic colouring presents a beautiful 
 contrast with the dark surface in which they 
 are imbedded. 
 
 The shell beaches of Herm, the little island 
 lying immediately opposite to Guernsey, have 
 before been noticed. These have been long 
 known to conchologists, and have been ran- 
 sacked for specimens. For about three-quarters 
 of a mile on one side of this island the beach 
 consists entirely of shells, chiefly of a minute 
 kind, and intermixed with a profusion of broken 
 fragments of shells, but with very little sand or 
 pebbles. Upwards of forty genera of shells, 
 with about two hundred varieties, have been 
 found on these shores. The collection of the 
 shells at Herm is chiefly carried on by children, 
 who take home to their parents all the rare 
 kinds they can meet with. These are in due 
 tiuae brought to Guernsey for sale, and are 
 disposed of at small sums varying with their 
 respective merits and beauty. At Guernsey the 
 shells are made up into a variety of devices,
 
 298 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 some of a pleasing and some of an absurd 
 description ; and considerable taste and skill is 
 often displayed in their arrangement. The 
 prices of these objects are considerable when 
 they contain some of the rarer shells. Speci- 
 mens of the latter are also sold to collectors. 
 
 The oyster fishery at Jersey is perhaps the 
 most important part of the shell history of these 
 islands, in a commercial point of view. This 
 fishery constitutes the chief support of the 
 village of Gorey, at the foot of Mont Orgueil 
 Castle, in Jersey. The village is most pic- 
 turesquely situated, as may be imagined from 
 the engraving of this castle, shown on a pre- 
 ceding page, which is a transcript of a photograph 
 taken on the spot. The venerable ruins of the 
 castle rise above it, and a wide sea view is 
 spread before. The oyster fishery occupies 
 the principal population of the town, and has 
 attained a position of some notoriety in conse- 
 quence of the disputes which are constantly 
 arising with the fishermen of the opposite coast 
 of France. On several occasions these disputes 
 have assumed a somewhat serious aspect, and 
 have threatened to disturb the peace and good- 
 will which should subsist between such near 
 neighbours. Large quantities of oysters are 
 obtained during the season at Gorey. These 
 are divided into two sorts, the one kind duly
 
 THE PLANTS AND ANIMALS. 299 
 
 destined for the London market, and the 
 other for consumption in Jersey. The latter, 
 which are coarse, large, and tough, are sent to 
 St. Heliers, where they are used by the lower 
 classes. The former are packed in sacks, and 
 forwarded by the mail steamers to Southampton, 
 and in other ways to Colchester. This is the 
 kind which after a little preparation on the part 
 of the dealers, is called " London natives." At 
 Colchester and other places in Essex are the 
 great oyster nurseries or feeding places, from 
 whence the metropolis and England generally 
 are supplied. Here the oysters collected at 
 Gorey are brought and laid on beds in creeks 
 along the shore, where their size and flavour 
 are rapidly improved. It appears that the 
 waters near these feeding grounds are abun- 
 dantly stocked with the infusorial food on 
 which the oyster lives, and which renders it fat 
 and tender. The annual value of the Gorey 
 oyster fishery is not less than from twenty to 
 thirty thousand pounds sterling; and a large 
 number of individuals are supported by it. 
 
 Oysters are also found on the coast of 
 Guernsey, and a small bed is said to exist near 
 Castle Cornet, but they are not sufficiently 
 abundant to be easily obtained, and are conse- 
 quently of no commercial importance. Large 
 quantities of limpets are obtained in all the
 
 300 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 Channel Islands, and are used by the poorer 
 persons as an important article of food. The 
 quantity of shells exposed over the surface, or 
 occasionally dug up, shows the extensive use of 
 these animals by the early inhabitants ; and in 
 some places they are found at a distance from 
 the cottages, and at a depth of many feet below 
 the soil. Beds of limpet shells are not unfre- 
 quently cut through in the island of Herm, 
 where it is difficult to account for their accu- 
 mulation. This mollusk abounds on all the 
 rocky coasts of the islands, and appears to defy 
 the utmost violence of the tremendous seas 
 which break upon them. The scientific name 
 for the common limpet is the Patella vulgata. 
 It was formerly believed by naturalists that 
 this animal, -after it is once attached to the rock 
 in a suitable position, appeared never after to 
 move from the spot selected ; and it seemed to 
 have the property of removing, either by solution 
 or abrasion, some of the solid rock to which it 
 adheres, so as to form a cavity in its surface. 
 This, however, is not the fact. The limpet 
 unquestionably does roam about, but returns 
 again to the same place. 
 
 There is little to attract the collector of 
 shells, apparently, to the coasts of Sark ; the 
 precipitous and stormy rocks which constitute 
 its boundaries, offering but little encouragement
 
 THE PLANTS AND ANIMALS. 301 
 
 to their occupation by any of those marine crea- 
 tures which require the repose and stillness of a 
 sandy shore for their vigour and production. 
 Yet some rare kinds of shells have been found 
 even in Sark, and the collector will not explore 
 it in vain. In some of its caverns have been 
 found some of the univalve shells called volutes. 
 These are chiefly the residents of hot climates, 
 and are not ordinarily met with in a living state 
 on other shores. Several specie* of these shells 
 have been met with in this singular position. 
 
 Crabs and lobsters are caught in great num- 
 bers on all these coasts, and are brought to the 
 excellent fish markets at a reasonable price. 
 It has been stated as a curious fact, that the 
 male of the common crab is more frequently 
 caught than the female. The velvet crab and 
 the spider crab are also abundantly met with, 
 and are brought in quantities to the markets. 
 At Sark, and on the coasts of Guernsey, lob- 
 sters and cray-fish are most abundant, and are 
 caught in such numbers as to be exported to 
 England, France, and Jersey. 
 
 The supply of fish is most abundant in 
 Guernsey, where a very superior fish-market 
 has been erected for its sale. The quantity 
 of this excellent food brought there for sale is 
 sometimes very great, and in addition to sup- 
 plying the local demands, much of the produce
 
 302 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 of the fishermen is sent to Jersey, France, and 
 England. The farmer, the pilot, and the fisher- 
 man, aptly observes Mr. Lukis, " are often united 
 in the same individual, and by the active and 
 successful exercise of these occupations a valu- 
 able class of men is preserved to the island. 
 The common conger is often caught of a very 
 large size, and is freely used as an article of 
 food by the inhabitants. 
 
 There is not much in the Zoology of these 
 islands calculated to interest the naturalist. 
 Their area is so very limited, and their phy- 
 sical characters are such as not to afford an 
 opportunity for the existence of many species 
 in a wild state. Among domestic animals, how- 
 ever, the Alderney cow deserves notice, and has 
 long enjoyed a wide celebrity for the excellence 
 of its character as a source of milk and butter. 
 There is a great contest- between the farmers 
 of the Channel Islands as to the respective 
 merits of their cows. In Jersey the farmers de- 
 clare theirs to be the only genuine cow; but in 
 Guernsey, and in Alderney, the same assertion 
 is made by the occupants of those islands with 
 respect to theirs. It is stated by an historian 
 of the last island, that the only pure race of 
 these animals is to be obtained in Guernsey. 
 These cows are larger, taller, and darker in 
 colour than those which are usually sold in Eng-
 
 THE PLANTS AND ANIMALS. 303 
 
 land as " Alderney " cows, which come from 
 Jersey and are rather cheaper. These docile 
 and beautiful creatures are greatly cherished 
 and valued in all the islands. The treatment 
 of these animals is thus described by an old 
 author : " It is true that in summer she must 
 submit to be staked to the ground : but five or 
 six times in the day her station is shifted. In 
 winter she is warmly housed by night and fed 
 with the precious parsnip. When she calves she 
 is regaled with toast, and with the nectar of the 
 island cider, to which powdered gingeris added." 
 The system of tethering these animals, arising 
 out of the very limited pasturage they enjoy, 
 although apparently a hardship, very probably 
 conduces to the production of more and of 
 better milk, for the cow is thus prevented from 
 exhausting any of her strength in wandering 
 about in search of food. The practice is uni- 
 versal, applying to other animals equally with 
 the cow, and submitted to with tolerable equa- 
 nimity by those which in England would ill 
 endure the restraint. A true Guernsey cow 
 must, in order to be considered thorough bred 
 by the local Agricultural Society, possess twenty 
 points of merit. 
 
 The butter produced by these cows is of a 
 golden yellow colour and of an excellent flavour. 
 The milk appears extremely rich in this sub-
 
 304 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 stance, but is quite unsuited for the production 
 of cheese. The general average supposed to 
 be yielded by a cow of the pure breed is a pound 
 of butter daily throughout the year, or about 
 eight quarts of milk. In summer some of the 
 best cows will, it is said, yield fifteen pounds of 
 butter weekly ! 
 
 From the position of these islands it is easily 
 conceivable that they are occasionally visited 
 by migratory birds (and other animals), but 
 the local residents are not very varied. The 
 wild swan and duck are frequently seen pass- 
 ing southward, and woodcocks, snipes, quails, 
 rails, and plovers, are stated to appear in their 
 season on the islands. The red-legged partridge 
 was formerly a resident of Guernsey, but it has 
 long been extirpated, and is now only occasionally 
 met with as an importation from France. 
 
 Of late an attempt has been made to pro- 
 pagate the ailk-worm for the sake of its pro- 
 duce in Guernsey. A zealous lady, residing 
 formerly in Hampshire, made many experi- 
 ments with a view to determine the disputed 
 fact, whether the culture of the silk-worm could 
 be profitably carried on in the southern districts 
 of England. After a trial of some years, in the 
 course of which she introduced a fine variety 
 of the mulberry from the Philippine Islands 
 for the food of these insects, she succeeded, and
 
 THE PLANTS AND ANIMALS. 305 
 
 appears to have established the fact, that this is 
 possible wherever the requisite care and intel- 
 ligent supervision can be bestowed the climatic 
 temperature of course being suited to their ten- 
 der constitutions. In Guernsey, where the 
 climate approximates so nearly to that of re- 
 gions much further south, and where the tem- 
 perature is so wonderfully uniform, where 
 vegetation is so luxuriant, and intelligent per- 
 sons, not wanting in skill for the management 
 of the worms, are to be found the experiment 
 appears even more hopeful. To a certain extent 
 it has been tried and attended with success; 
 and a Company has been established for its 
 commercial prosecution. Specimens of the raw 
 and manufactured silk produced in Guernsey 
 by this company of silk-growers were shown at 
 the Great Exhibition of 1851. On the same 
 occasion were also exhibited a series of beau- 
 tiful specimens of manufactured silk produced 
 by worms reared by Mrs. Whitby, the individual 
 before mentioned, at Newlands, in Hampshire. 
 It may be hoped that this effort will not fail of 
 due encouragement in the Channel Islands, for 
 while it may be often doubtful to what extent 
 the worms may be profitably reared in many 
 parts of England, in consequence of the com- 
 parative severity of the climate, this obstacle 
 certainly has no existence there. 
 x
 
 306 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 The following portions of a letter from a 
 zealous entomologist in Guernsey will give 
 a few interesting particulars about the insects 
 of the Channel Islands : * 
 
 " You may still remember that I, some two 
 years since, called on you with a species of 
 Tetrarynchus, taken from the scabbard-fish. 
 Since that time I have pursued the above sub- 
 ject, chiefly with the view of comparing the 
 Entomology of this island with that of the 
 neighbouring countries of England and France, 
 but also to ascertain whether this branch of our 
 Fauna has the same type of the tropical or 
 warmer latitudes as our Ichthyology seems, and 
 our Conchology and Cryptogamic Botany un- 
 questionably do hold. 
 
 " It was interesting to ascertain, further, 
 whether some species which are rare in Eng- 
 land or France were not so here, and vice versa. 
 And I may here mention the peculiarity which 
 obtains in this island, in which we somewhat 
 resemble Ireland, viz. the total absence of the 
 mole, the toad, water newts, &c. &c., and among 
 the more commonly known insects, the glow-worm, 
 the Lucanus cervus, many of the larger Lepido- 
 ptera, and I should have added, the only one of 
 the snake form we possess is the common blind- 
 
 * Dr. F. C. Lukis, in a private letter to Wm. Yarrell, Esq. 
 published by the author's permission.
 
 THE PLANTS AND ANIMALS. 307 
 
 worm. It may have been from a knowledge 
 of these facts among our forefathers, that the 
 designation of La Sainte lie was given to 
 Guernsey, and memorialized by Drayton in his 
 * Polyolbion ' in the same character. 
 
 " Now the islands of Jersey and Alderney 
 possess numbers of the above, particularly the 
 mole and the toad, yet the islands are only 
 twenty miles apart from Guernsey. Again, the 
 Island of Herm, scarcely three miles from this, 
 has a different Entomology ; there I find Nebria 
 complanata, but never have I seen it here. In 
 Sark I find quite a different catalogue. There 
 the Cetonia aurata is common, but exceedingly 
 rare here. Though the black variety may be 
 sometimes taken on the cliffs on flowers of 
 the Rag-wort, also the Pavonia minor, &c., 
 yet the distance from Guernsey is about eight 
 miles, and this difference obtains in many 
 other genera and relative quantity of species. 
 I have merely alluded to the more generally 
 known insects. As regards the comparison with 
 England, I must acknowledge we cannot boast 
 one half the insects of that country, yet we have 
 some of the rarer varieties and species. As, for 
 a general instance, Astynomus cedilis, Onthopha- 
 gus taurus, Vacca, &c. ; and one unnamed in 
 Stephens' work, which is not uncommon, though 
 local, affecting open sandy plains. Several
 
 308 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 among the Histers, a Lixus and also a Bradytus (?) 
 I have found in damp places on the coast." 
 
 The fact alluded to by Dr. Lukis of the 
 peculiar character of the fauna of each island 
 is interesting, although only a very few in- 
 stances in confirmation of it are adduced. The 
 same fact, only in a much better marked degree, 
 and on a larger scale, has been observed by 
 Mr. Darwin in the natural history of the Gala- 
 pagos Archipelago. A portion of his remarks 
 we shall here extract. He says, " The different 
 islands to a considerable extent are inhabited 
 by different sets of beings. I never dreamed that 
 islands about fifty or sixty miles apart, and most 
 of them in sight of each other, formed of pre- 
 cisely the same rocks, placed under a quite simi- 
 lar climate, rising to a nearly equal height, would 
 have been differently tenanted." Such proved 
 to be the case in a most remarkable degree, 
 in the ornithology and other portions of the 
 natural history of this Archipelago. The fact is 
 certainly very difficult of explanation. " I must 
 repeat," observes Mr. Darwin, " that neither the 
 nature of the soil, nor height of the land, nor 
 the climate, nor the general character of the 
 associated beings, and therefore their action on 
 one another, can differ much in the different 
 islands." Yet several of the islands possess 
 their own peculiar species of the tortoise, mock-
 
 THE PLANTS AND ANIMALS. 309 
 
 ing thrush, finches, and numerous plants, unlike 
 those of the other islands, and nevertheless 
 allied to them, although peculiar to each. The 
 same circumstance, as has just been observed, 
 although in a greatly inferior degree, marks the 
 natural history of the Channel Islands ; and it is 
 quite possible that this might be made still more 
 evident if the attention of competent naturalists 
 were closely directed to its examination. 
 
 The fact appears long since in a certain de- 
 gree to have attracted the attention of Dray ton, 
 who, in his celebrated " Polyolbion," gives the 
 following description of the whole group of 
 these islands, with which we shall conclude our 
 present chapter: 
 
 " Thus scarcely said the Muse, but hovering while she hung, 
 Upon the Celtic wastes, the sea-nymphs loudly sung : 
 ' ever happy isles, your heads so high that rear, 
 By nature strongly fenced, which never need to fear ; 
 On Neptune's watery realms, when Eolus raiseth wars, 
 And ev'ry billow bounds, as though to quench the stars. 
 Fair Jersey, first of these, here scatter'd in the deep, 
 Peculiarly that boast 'st thy double-horned sheep ; 
 Inferior not to thee, thou Guernsey, bravely crown'd 
 With rough embattled rocks, whose venom-hating ground 
 The harden'd Eineril hath, which thou abroad dost send. 
 Thou Ligni,* her beloved, and Sark that dost attend 
 Her pleasure ev'ry hour ; as Jethou them at need, 
 With pheasants, fallow-deer, and conies that dost feed, 
 Thou fruitful Aurney.t near the ancient Celtic shore .... 
 Ye happy islands, set within the British seas. 
 With shrill and jocund shouts the unmeasured deeps awake, 
 And let the gods of sea their secret bowers forsake." 
 
 The Polyolbion, by M. Dray ton, canto i. p. 25, Ed. 1622. 
 
 * Probably Henn. t Alderney.
 
 IVY GATE, GUERNSEY. 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 THE AIR AND CLIMATE. 
 
 THERE appears to be a very general opinion 
 that the climate of the Channel Islands is of a 
 mild and uniform character. Although their 
 distance from the English coast is not great, 
 yet the difference of annual temperature is 
 considerable, and its effect, combined with other 
 causes, upon external objects of nature, and 
 especially in the vegetable world, is interesting, 
 and deserves our notice. Until lately accurate 
 data were not to be obtained upon this subject ; 
 but a distinguished physician and meteorologist,
 
 THE AIR AND CLIMATE. 311 
 
 resident in Guernsey, has collected a large body 
 of facts, and having employed good instruments, 
 his results are of great value to all interested 
 in the natural history of this group of islands. 
 It is also an interesting subject of inquiry to 
 many invalids, as to whether the Channel 
 Islands would be a suitable residence for persons 
 in delicate health, and to this the present 
 chapter will furnish an answer. 
 
 The paper published by Dr. Hoskins, and 
 read before the Meteorological Society, will be 
 the source from which we shall derive much of 
 the information in this part of our work, to 
 which it may be useful to add some observa- 
 tions of our own. Since, however, this paper 
 refers only to the climate of Guernsey, every 
 particular it contains will not be equally ap- 
 plicable to the other islands ; it will, however, 
 furnish a tolerably accurate general view of the 
 whole. 
 
 The character of the vegetation, even out of 
 doors in the winter months, in these islands is 
 sufficient to indicate that the mean annual tem- 
 perature of the climate must be high. This is 
 about one and a half degree above that of 
 Greenwich, being 51 9' on Fahrenheit's ther- 
 mometer. January and February are the coldest 
 months in the year, and July is the hottest, but 
 August is almost as warm, the observed dif-
 
 312 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 f'erence being very slight. The uniformity be- 
 tween these warm months prolongs the summer, 
 and is highly favourable for the ripening of 
 grain and fruits. In May, June, and July the 
 mean temperature is lower than that of Green- 
 wich, but higher during the remaining nine 
 months of the year. The result of this dis- 
 tribution of temperature is interesting, tending, 
 as it does, to equalize that of the year. The 
 summer months are cool and bracing, while 
 those of winter, spring, and autumn are mild 
 and uniform. This fact is well known to 
 meteorologists as one of constant observation in 
 places on the coast, and is explained by Mr. 
 Grainger in the following sentences : 
 
 " In winter, when the air is colder than the 
 water, it takes a portion of the heat from the 
 surface of the sea, which, cooled by being thus 
 brought in contact with the cold air, sinks, and 
 is replaced by warmer portions from beneath, 
 whilst heated air rises and flows over the land. 
 In summer, when the air is warmer than the 
 water, much heat becomes latent by the quick 
 evaporation of the water. The water, changed 
 into vapour, and mixed with the air as an elastic 
 fluid, passes inland, takes a share in the total 
 pressure of the atmosphere, and is of the utmost 
 importance in reference to barometric vari- 
 ations." This is the uniform result of the pre-
 
 THE AIR AND CLIMATE. 313 
 
 sence of a large body of water. The sea be- 
 comes thus a reservoir of warmth, which in the 
 winter it communicates to the coasts on which 
 it washes, and to the over-lying air. In the 
 summer, on the contrary, it moderates the 
 intensity of the heat, and in this manner 
 renders the whole temperature of the spot not 
 only more equable, but also more salutary in its 
 influences on those of tender constitutions. 
 
 The interesting phenomenon, called in the 
 Channel Islands " Le petit eti de Saint Martin? 
 is peculiarly well marked ; it is also called, " Le 
 petit ete de Saint Michel" or the short Michael- 
 mas summer. On this subject Dr. Hoskins 
 makes the following observations : " The 
 equability of autumn and its duration constitute 
 peculiar features in the climate of Guernsey ; 
 for notwithstanding the light south-east breezes 
 of September, the storms and rains of October 
 and November, this season is often remarkably 
 fine and genial, extending even to the middle of 
 December, and abridging most agreeably the 
 duration of winter. So frequent is the oc- 
 currence of this second summer, that it is 
 proverbially designated by the peasantry as 
 ' Le petit eft de Saint Martin,' in consequence 
 of its dating in general from the 10th of Oc- 
 tober, old Michaelmas, or St. Martin's-day. 
 The enduring foliage of the Guernsey elm, and
 
 314 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 the length of twilight, favours the illusion, and 
 completes the reality of this summer dream." 
 This partial return of summer is not peculiar to 
 these islands, but has been repeatedly noticed 
 in other localities, in which it is known among 
 the common people by various names of more 
 or less significance. 
 
 The equalizing influence of the waters sur- 
 rounding these islands on its winter tempe- 
 rature, has been before noticed by the writer 
 in another work, a sentence or two from which 
 he may be here permitted to extract : 
 
 " In consequence of the low radiating pro- 
 perties of water, the temperature of the ocean 
 is much less subject to variations than that of 
 the air, and those which do occur are small in 
 amount. The result of this is, that the air 
 overlying the ocean is much more uniform in 
 temperature than that over the land. In 
 parallels where the range of the thermometer 
 suspended in air over land amounts to twenty 
 or thirty degrees, or even more, a thermometer 
 suspended over the ocean's surface does not 
 range more than five or six degrees. Thus 
 the effect of the presence of the sea upon a 
 climate is to equalize it ; and this is remarkably 
 the case in the climatology of small islands. 
 In the Channel Islands, for example, in Guernsey 
 and Jersey, this influence is most remarkable ;
 
 THE AIR AND CLIMATE. 315 
 
 frosts are of rare occurrence there, and of the 
 shortest duration, and the extreme of heat is 
 seldom experienced there. In the quarter 
 ending December 31, 1849, the mean tempe- 
 rature of Guernsey was 49 2', while that of 
 Greenwich was 44 8', a difference of about five 
 degrees.* Thus summer and winter are not 
 separated by the chasm which divides them in 
 the climate of great continents, and the exces- 
 sive degrees of temperature are almost unknown 
 on either side of the thermometer scale. The 
 influence of such a climate upon the floriculture 
 and horticulture of these islands can scarcely be 
 believed. The most delicate and beautiful 
 plants, which in England must be carefully 
 kept during the winter in our conservatories, 
 and cherished with artificial warmth, are there 
 exposed without injury all through that part of 
 the year ; and the markets in summer exhibit 
 an appearance of exuberant fertility of soil 
 scarcely seen in districts much further south 
 than is their position."f 
 
 The winters of these islands are so warm 
 that frost is regarded as a most unusual occur- 
 rence. This may be gathered from the evident 
 surprise with which the keeper of a meteoro- 
 
 * During the present winter, 1853-4, the minimum tem- 
 perature in Guernsey was never below 30 Fahrenheit ; in Jersey 
 it was five degrees lower. 
 
 f Chemistry of Creation, 2d Edit. p. 405.
 
 316 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 logical journal, from 1777 to 1844, remarks its 
 having taken place. " Memorandum. De- 
 cember 20th, 1799. During the night the 
 weather was so intensely cold, that the water 
 in a jug in my bed-chamber was frozen !" And 
 again : " January 19th, 1838. This night was 
 so severely cold, that the water in a washhand- 
 bason in my room was frozen ! " During ob- 
 servations taken by Dr. Hoskins, and extending 
 over nine years, the thermometer only fell 
 below 32 fifty times, thirty-five of which 
 occurred in 1843-4, and 5. These details 
 show that frost is neither frequent nor lasting. 
 The small ponds of water here and there in the 
 island are very seldom coated with ice, and 
 when such is the case, it is very thin and soon 
 passes away again. 
 
 From what has been already stated, it will 
 be understood that the difference between the 
 temperature of the day and that of the night 
 is much less in these islands than it is on the 
 main land. The nights are warmed by the 
 temperature of the surrounding waters. But 
 it will scarcely be expected that there should 
 be any considerable difference in this respect 
 between the two principal islands, Jersey and 
 Guernsey. Such, however, is the case, and 
 to such an extent, that it is actually necessary 
 to keep the results from Jersey and Guernsey
 
 
 THE AIR AND CLIMATE. 317 
 
 uncombined in the meteorological report, on 
 account of the great difference in the ranges of 
 temperature between these two places. This 
 range is very much greater in Jersey than in 
 Guernsey. The causes of this singular and 
 interesting circumstance in their natural his- 
 tory, are probably to be found in the peculiar 
 position of the island of Guernsey. 
 
 The nearest continental headland, Cape 
 Flamanville, is at the distance of twenty-eight 
 statute miles, in a, direct line to the eastward. 
 In the north-east it is open to the German 
 Ocean, in the west and south to the vast 
 expanse of the Atlantic, without any inter- 
 vening continent nearer than America. It is, 
 therefore, evident, that from whatever quarter 
 the wind may blow, it is not intercepted by 
 any land of sufficient extent or proximity to 
 prevent its being tempered by passing over a 
 much larger proportion of water. 
 
 Dr. Hoskins makes another interesting obser- 
 vation as regards the climate of Guernsey. 
 Most persons are aware that the navigation of 
 the British Channel is often seriously inter- 
 fered with by the prevalence of dense banks of 
 fog, which envelope every object, and render 
 sailing highly dangerous during their existence. 
 It not unfrequently happens that the mail 
 steamers, on their way to the Channel Islands,
 
 
 318 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 become thus enveloped, and are compelled to 
 lay by, frequently for many Lours off the coast 
 of England, and especially in Southampton 
 water, whilst the atmosphere is clear in Guern- 
 sey, until the wind shifts, and carries away the 
 dense cloud of mist covering their path. Yet the 
 climate of Guernsey, which is placed in the midst 
 of this Channel, and which might be naturally 
 supposed to be enveloped in the same character 
 of atmosphere, presents a curious example of 
 the opposite kind. The atmosphere of Guernsey 
 is comparatively dry in its nature, although of 
 course not so much so as that of an inland dis- 
 trict. Dr. Hoskins, in reply to the question, 
 What becomes of the humidity necessarily pro- 
 duced by the evaporation from so large a sur- 
 face as the sea around ? replies, " The solution 
 is to be found in the heavy rains, the copious 
 dews, the constantly interchanging currents of 
 air between land and sea, and the power of 
 the sun's rays, which during the morning im- 
 pinge directly on a surface steadily declining 
 from west to east. These circumstances, added 
 to the absence of rivers, marshes, or large 
 bodies of inland water, account for the rarity 
 of land fogs of any intensity or duration. Sea 
 haze, however, is by no means uncommon, 
 especially in spring and autumn, forming what, 
 on the Cornish coast, is called the pride of
 
 THE AIR AND CLIMATE. 319 
 
 the morning, but it dissipates as soon as the 
 sun acquires sufficient elevation; and, unless 
 in the total absence of a breeze, never spreads 
 to any extent over the land. The springing up 
 of a light breeze, or veering of the wind a 
 point or two from south to west, or east, 
 suffices to disperse the vapour, and restores 
 the blue of the sky to its usual depth of hue 
 and transparency." 
 
 To the photographer, as the author of this 
 work can unfortunately testify, this sea haze 
 often proves a most annoying and vexatious 
 feature in the climatology of these islands. 
 Repeatedly, when least expected, when a bril- 
 liant sun and blue sky are overhe'ad, the haze 
 will come and shroud the scenery in impene- 
 trable obscurity. More than once or twice has 
 the camera been repacked, and the prepared 
 plates taken home useless. On the whole, how- 
 ever, the frequent changes in the direction of 
 the wind render the sky tolerably free from 
 cloud, and a considerable portion of the blue 
 sky is generally visible in the day, enabling the 
 observer to pursue his photographic studies on 
 inland objects, even when the coast scenery is 
 impenetrably hid from view. 
 
 No person can survey the waters around 
 these islands at the ebbing tide, and in calm 
 weather, without being impressed with the perils
 
 320 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 likely to arise to the sailor if darkness and 
 storms overtook his ship while yet in their 
 vicinity. And these anticipations are unfortu- 
 nately only too forcibly realized when gales 
 really occur. The winds which prevail are 
 northerly in their general direction, with an 
 occasional combination of westerly, and less 
 frequently of easterly currents. In autumn 
 and winter the north-westerly winds are strong 
 and boisterous, and are accompanied with rain, 
 heavy gusts and squalls. Gales from this 
 quarter, observes the careful meteorologist 
 just quoted, may generally be foretold by the 
 arrival of French chasse-marees. The island 
 is generally encircled by these storms some 
 days before they appear, and when the masters 
 of these small coasters observe heavy banks of 
 cloud and mist hovering over Cape Frehel, 
 they immediately alter their course and steer 
 for some secure haven. It is seldom that these 
 harbingers of a storm are mistaken, and foi'tu- 
 nately so, for westerly gales are in general very 
 fatal to shipping off the coast during their 
 occurrence. 
 
 Many deplorable wrecks have been recorded 
 as having taken place on these coasts, and the 
 evidence of one is still perpetuated in a monu- 
 ment in a small church not far from the scene 
 of its occurrence. Occasionally those remark-
 
 THE AIR AND CLIMATE. 321 
 
 able phenomena, called revolving storms, sweep 
 over these islands. Their occurrence is gene- 
 rally preceded by a sudden retrograde motion 
 of wind from S.W. to S.E., i.e. against the 
 course of the sun, accompanied by a rapid 
 and considerable depression of the barometer. 
 These storms, though furious, are not pro- 
 longed generally beyond twelve hours, and cease 
 as suddenly as they arise. 
 
 It has been found that rather more than one 
 quarter of the total amount of rain falling 
 in Guernsey, is collected in two months 
 January and October. Copious showers at 
 all seasons are not unfrequent, and occur 
 either in the morning or evening, leaving the 
 middle of the day fine. " The loose gravelly 
 nature of the soil," remarks Dr. Hoskins, 
 "allows of ready percolation, the brisk wind 
 and warm sunshine favour rapid evaporation, 
 so .that pedestrian exercise may be taken soon 
 after the fall of the heaviest shower. Charles 
 II. , although the founder of the Royal Society, 
 can scarcely be looked upon as a high authority 
 in matters of science. Neverthless, his well- 
 known remark, that, ' take one day with 
 another, and you may be out more days in 
 the open air in England, than in any other 
 country in Europe,' may be applied with much 
 truth to Guernsey."
 
 322 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 It has been aptly observed, that " more con- 
 clusive evidence in favour of climate is fur- 
 nished by the growth of exotic plants, than 
 by thermometric results." The latter are in 
 fact often very deceptive, and do not furnish 
 an accurate standard of comparison as regards 
 the felt temperature. This is often dependent 
 in a great measure on the presence or absence 
 of a current of air, for if a sharp breeze is 
 blowing on one day, during which the ther- 
 mometer is at a stated point, and if no breeze 
 be felt on another day with the thermometer 
 and condition of the sky similar, the latter day 
 will appear considerably warmer and more 
 agreeable than the former. This is due to 
 the fact, that the evaporation produced from 
 the surface of the body by a current of air 
 always gives a sensation of coldness to the 
 same atmosphere, which without wind is not 
 felt to be cold or unpleasant. In those latitudes 
 where extreme cold is often observed, its 
 effects are by no means so severely felt by 
 the body, if the air be still and calm. The 
 thermometer is therefore not to be regarded 
 as an unfailing index of the sensible tempera- 
 ture of a climate ; but the state of its vege- 
 tation furnishes a faithful picture of its true 
 characters. 
 
 The Channel Islands have been long and
 
 THE AIR AND CLIMATE. 323 
 
 deservedly celebrated for the peculiar luxu- 
 riance attained by exotic plants, even in the 
 open air. Guernsey, especially, is remarkable 
 for the extraordinary beauty and vigour as- 
 sumed by many tender and in England hot- 
 house plants, which thrive freely there. The 
 following observations of Dr. Hoskins furnish 
 a valuable standard of comparison in this re- 
 spect, with the state of our own gardens and 
 flower-beds. " The frequency with which the 
 aloe flowers, the vast size of the hydrangea, and 
 the profusion of its blossoms, the spread and 
 vigour of the myrtle and Banksia rose, the har- 
 dihood of the scarlet geranium, of the American 
 and Mediterranean heaths, but more than all, 
 the luxuriance of the Camellia japonica, attest 
 the mildness of the winter season. The latter 
 tree flourishes in every garden and shrubbery, 
 either as a standard or trained against walls ; and 
 it is worthy of remark, as showing the effects of 
 acclimatization, that these trees, which on their 
 first introduction commenced flowering in Octo- 
 ber, remaining covered with blossoms through- 
 out the winter, have become tardier and more 
 tardy in their period of inflorescence with each 
 succeeding year, assimilating more and more to 
 the habits of ordinary shrubs which bloom in 
 early spring." 
 
 The following dimensions of three camellias
 
 324 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 trained against a south wall eleven feet high, 
 will convey some idea of the size these trees 
 attain. The lateral extent of the double 
 white camellia is twenty-five feet six inches, 
 the girth of its stem being two feet eight 
 inches. The spread of the double red is 
 twenty-five feet ten inches, the circumference 
 of the trunk two feet one inch. The camellia 
 warata spreads eighteen feet six inches, its 
 stem being one foot four in circumference. 
 These trees are covered with blossom from Janu- 
 ary to April, and flourish in spite of occasional 
 frosts, snow, wind, hail, and rain. Orange 
 trees, also, of considerable size, are to be found 
 in this and other gardens, and ripen their fruit 
 in perfection. These are mentioned as in- 
 stances, among many, that exotics which grow 
 with reluctance, or not at all, in the mildest 
 districts of England, flourish during winter in 
 Guernsey, and in summer emulate the luxu- 
 riance which they possess in their native 
 climates. 
 
 It may be desirable, before drawing the pre- 
 sent chapter to a close, to state a few facts as 
 to the vital statistics of these islands. To 
 invalids it becomes an important question as to 
 what classes of ailments are likely to be bene- 
 fitted by residence in these islands ; and some 
 information on that subject may possibly prove
 
 THE AIR AND CLIMATE. 325 
 
 useful in this place. In consequence of consi- 
 derable improvements in the reclamation of 
 land submerged partly by the sea, and kept in 
 a wet state after the waters had subsided, inter- 
 mittent diseases are scarcely known. These 
 diseases it is well known are most frequently 
 met with in marshy districts, and appear to 
 take origin from the decomposition of vege- 
 table matter in a moist state. In Guernsey a 
 marsh is almost unknown, and ague with its 
 kindred diseases has very seldom, since the 
 improvements in question, come under the 
 notice of the medical residents. 
 
 The infantile diseases are generally of a mild 
 type, but occasionally it has been observed 
 that scarlatina assumes a very formidable and 
 dangerous form. This appears to be due to 
 a want of effective ventilation and drainage. 
 This complication of the disease is known in 
 all populous districts in England, where these 
 important particulars are neglected. It is ob- 
 served by Dr. Hoskins, that from the intro- 
 duction of vaccination into Guernsey at the 
 commencement of the present century, to the 
 year 1825, small-pox made its appearance only 
 once. It has since then, however, visited the 
 island more frequently, but its occurrence is 
 always ascribable to importation. 
 
 It would seem that the most predominant
 
 326 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 malady is indigestion, an ailment more justly 
 attributable to errors and excess in diet than 
 to climate. The poorer residents suffer from 
 it in consequence of their unwholesome and 
 insufficient diet of soup, tea, and fish, animal 
 food being seldom seen at their tables. Those 
 of better means suffer from the very opposite 
 cause, namely, an over-stimulating diet, to 
 which they are prompted by the cheapness and 
 abundance of the necessaries and luxuries of 
 life. Asthma is very rarely met with, and those 
 who resort to the island for relief from this 
 disease frequently lose it altogether after a 
 prolonged residence; since it is a spasmodic 
 disease of the lungs, it seems very probable 
 that the reason why Guernsey especially is 
 beneficial to this class of sufferers is, that the 
 temperature is so uniform there, and conse- 
 quently that these organs are less subject to 
 irritation from vicissitudes in the state of the 
 air, than in less constant climates. 
 
 It is very possible that persons of a scrofulous 
 constitution, and those predisposed to consump- 
 tion, or actually suffering from that disease, 
 will derive benefit from residence in these 
 islands. The state of the vegetation would 
 appear to indicate in a striking manner the 
 absence of rigour in the climate, and the in- 
 sular position of these places would justify the
 
 THE AIR AND CLIMATE. 327 
 
 belief a belief confirmed by the results of 
 thermometric observation that a more con- 
 stant and equable state of the atmosphere 
 obtains here, than in many districts in England 
 to which invalids are often dismissed. In ad- 
 dition, it deserves notice, that in consequence 
 of the large consumption of sea-weed as fuel, 
 a considerable addition of iodine is constantly 
 made to the local atmosphere of the islands, 
 and no medicine has proved more serviceable 
 than this in the treatment of those diseases to 
 which consumption is closely allied. 
 
 It appears that persons from the northern 
 and midland counties of England, debilitated 
 by dyspepsia, but without any other pristine 
 ailment, derive considerable benefit from re- 
 moval to these islands. But in order to secure 
 its permanently beneficial effects, it is neces- 
 sary to remain for a year or two. For aged 
 persons, and young children also, it appears 
 that a residence in these islands is productive 
 of benefit. They are also largely resorted to 
 as a transition stage between the East and 
 West Indies and England, by individuals whose 
 health has suffered from long residence in tro- 
 pical countries. 
 
 The elaborate paper of Dr. Hoskins, as 
 already noticed, has formed the basis of most 
 of these remarks on the climate of the Chan-
 
 328 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 nel Islands. That paper has an exclusive 
 reference to the climate of Guernsey, and has 
 been compiled with extraordinary pains and 
 care. It is accompanied by extensive tables, 
 exhibiting clearly results of observations carried 
 over several years. This chapter may be taken, 
 although principally referring to Guernsey, as 
 a tolerably accurate picture of the climate of 
 the whole group. The exception, with regard 
 to the daily range of temperature in Jersey, 
 has already received notice. For all practical 
 purposes, the facts here stated are applicable 
 to each of the islands, and they exhibit in a 
 striking manner the great mildness and general 
 character of the climate of the group.
 
 ST. JAMES' CHURCH, ST. PETER PORT, GUERNSEY. 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 SPECIAL OBJECTS OF INTEREST IN THE ISLANDS. 
 
 IT is difficult to convey a clear idea of the 
 individual features of each island of this group 
 in a work only professing to treat generally 
 of the Channel Islands, and that rather from 
 the point of view selected by a naturalist than 
 from that ordinarily chosen by the general 
 reader. Whilst endeavouring to collect under 
 the general heads which have preceded this 
 chapter all the more prominent features of in- 
 terest of the group, a little yet remains to be
 
 330 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 said about each island separately, in order to 
 complete our picture of them. The present 
 chapter will be devoted to a few brief notes 
 upon each of the group, in which we will set 
 down what may have been unnoticed in the 
 preceding pages. For the purposes of the 
 tourist local guides are easily obtainable, and in 
 those collectively will be found all necessary 
 information on general subjects. 
 
 Since notice has already been taken of the 
 small but dangerous group of the Casket Rocks, 
 it will be unnecessary to speak of them here, 
 beyond recalling the fact that they are gene- 
 rally the first object seen on the way to 
 Guernsey, and give intimation, by their rugged 
 characters, of the nature of the scenery of the 
 Channel Islands generally. The island of 
 Alderney is seen away to the east of the path 
 of the steamer, and presents a bold and pic- 
 turesque object, standing out of the blue water 
 like a great mound, its sides rugged and yellow, 
 and the summit covered with green. The island 
 is four miles in length from north-east to south- 
 west, with an average breadth of 1^ mile, and 
 about twelve miles in circumference. The new 
 harbour of refuge. in process of construction by 
 the English government at a place called Braye, 
 on the north of the island, is a work of con- 
 siderable size, and of much importance, in a
 
 SPECIAL OBJECTS OF INTEREST. 331 
 
 portion of the Channel where nature denies to 
 the mariner any safe anchorage. It is intended 
 to enclose a natural bay by two arms of sea- 
 wall, constructed of large masses of stone and 
 concrete. These works are still incomplete. 
 Large blocks of stone are dug from the quarries 
 in another part of the island, and are conveyed 
 to the spot on railroads, and these blocks, toge- 
 ther with vast masses of concrete, are laid down 
 in deep water with the utmost precision, by 
 divers dressed in water-proof clothing, and fur- 
 nished with helmets, to which air is conveyed 
 by tubes from air-pumps worked above them. 
 Fortifications for the defence of the island are 
 also being constructed by the Board of Ord- 
 nance. Since the commencement of these im- 
 portant works the population of Alderney has 
 nearly trebled; workmen from the United 
 Kingdom, France, and the neighbouring islands 
 being attracted hither by the hope of finding em- 
 ployment, and detachments from the companies 
 of the Royal Artillery and depot of the line sta- 
 tioned in Guernsey being quartered in the island. 
 The island of Alderney is well known to 
 most persons from the beautiful little cows so 
 much prized in the English dairy, of which 
 nearly a hundred are every year exported from 
 the island, and which, from their diminutive 
 size and other peculiarities, appear to be a
 
 332 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 distinct race from those of the sister islands. 
 The origin of this peculiar variety of cattle is 
 not, however, to be looked for in the existence 
 of fine pasturage and a fertile soil in this island. 
 On the contrary, its general aspect is that of a 
 barren spot, with little or no pasture, beyond 
 what the sandy downs, parched cliffs, and here 
 and there a field of lucerne or clover afford; 
 but the island is nevertheless not devoid of pic- 
 turesque beauty, though of quite a different 
 character. The cliffs on the south-west coast, 
 richly covered with lichens, and intersected by 
 deep ravines, rise boldly from the sea to the 
 height, in some places, of 100 or 200 feet; 
 while isolated rocks of fantastic shape add to 
 the wildness and interest of the scene. The 
 highest point in the island is 281 feet above the 
 level of high water, and the land slopes gra- 
 dually towards the north-east, where the coast 
 consists of low cliffs alternating with small bays 
 and flat shores. Except in one or two sheltered 
 valleys near the town, not a tree is to be seen, 
 nor is the face of the island diversified by the 
 homesteads and cottages so thickly scattered 
 over the other islands. A new church has 
 recently been erected in Alderney, replacing 
 an ancient one which had fallen into decay. 
 The passage to Alderney is generally made 
 from Guernsey in a steamer or cutter.
 
 SPECIAL OBJECTS OF INTEREST. 333 
 
 The island of Herm is next approached, and 
 lies also eastward of the direct route to 
 Guernsey. This little island has been already 
 noticed as having yielded at one time employ- 
 ment to a number of quarrymen, in the extrac- 
 tion of granite from the excellent quarries. It 
 may be readily explored by leaving Guernsey 
 in a small boat, and its rocks and beaches 
 deserve and repay the attention of the natu- 
 ralist. The rocks on the southern side of the 
 island are abrupt in their outline, and often 
 perpendicular. The mines and quarries once 
 actively wrought in this island, are now neg- 
 lected, or nearly so. The Druidical remains 
 in the island deserve attention. Herm is se- 
 parated from the small islet, Jethou, by a deep 
 but narrow channel. This little spot is singu- 
 larly placed, and exhibits a curious outline, 
 resembling a green hillock set in the waters, 
 and defended at either end by a smaller hil- 
 lock. It has but one house upon it. 
 
 From an elevated spot on the coast of Herm, 
 a good outline can be obtained of the relative 
 position of the other members of the Channel 
 Island series. Alderney and the Caskets lie 
 behind the spectator, as he looks southward. 
 Sark is on his left hand, with its satellite 
 island, Brechou, or L'lle des Marchands ; and 
 Guernsey lies on the right, prominently con-
 
 334 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 spicuous by its windmills, column, and Vic- 
 toria Tower ; and in the remote distance is 
 Jersey, baring her precipitous and rugged coast 
 to the tidal stream. 
 
 Guernsey and Jersey are the islands most 
 frequently visited and best known, and they 
 are, perhaps, the most interesting of the 
 group. In Guernsey we have but a few addi- 
 tional topics of interest for discussion. The 
 large tower, called Victoria Tower, is a recent 
 structure, and was erected in commemoration 
 of Her Majesty's visit to the islands. It is 
 placed on an eminence at the upper part of the 
 town of St. Peter Port. It is a square tower, 
 slightly tapering from the base upwards, sur- 
 mounted by a battlemented gallery, with square 
 turrets at the angles, resting on bold machico- 
 lations. From the centre rises an octagonal 
 lantern or tower, with lancet windows on every 
 side, and terminated by a battlement and small 
 pinnacles at the angles. The total height is 
 100 feet. The doors, windows, and other de- 
 tails are in the Pointed style of architecture ; 
 and the material is a reddish-coloured granite, 
 procured from the neighbourhood of Cobo Bay, 
 in the Catel parish, the warm hue of which, 
 seen against the sky, is far more pleasing than 
 the dull grey of the granite usually employed 
 in the island for building purposes. The sum-
 
 SPECIAL OBJECTS OF INTEREST. 
 
 335 
 
 mit is reached by a stone newel staircase, con- 
 structed in the thickness of the wall to about 
 two-thirds of the height, and by wooden stair- 
 cases for the rest of the way. The view from 
 the top is splendid, commanding nearly the 
 whole of the island, all the other islands of the 
 Chanhel Archipelago, and the coast of France. 
 
 1-Ll/AbETH COLLKGE. 
 
 Seen from the sea, the tower is a very striking 
 and ornamental object, and is of considerable 
 use as a landmark. The foundation-stone of 
 the building was laid on the 27th of May, 1848, 
 by the lieutenant-governor. 
 
 The large building, appearing above many 
 others as St. Peter Port is approached by the
 
 336 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 water, and presenting a castellated tower, is 
 called Elizabeth College. It is shown in the 
 cut. This structure is in the form of an oblong 
 
 B 
 
 square, having a castellated turret at each angle, 
 with a fifth turret larger than the others in the 
 centre of the building. It is an educational 
 institution, originally established by Queen 
 Elizabeth, and subsequently remodelled by the 
 island authorities. 
 
 In descending the tower, a beautiful view of 
 the adjoining islands and the rocky coast of 
 this island is afforded to the spectator. On 
 reaching the harbour, and looking back, it will 
 be seen how elevated above the sea-level are 
 many portions of this populous sea-port. The 
 harbour itself is of small size, and quite inade- 
 quate to the wants of the town. The piers are 
 constructed of large blocks of granite, which 
 are retained in their place merely by their own 
 weight, as there exists no cementing material 
 to hold them together. A lighthouse at the 
 end of the south pier indicates the narrow 
 entrance to the harbour, to the mariner seeking 
 to enter it after dark. The cut at the com- 
 mencement of the first chapter represents the 
 harbour seen from the extremity of the north 
 pier, and including the ancient parish church, 
 which is close to the water-side. 
 
 Efforts are being now made to construct a
 
 SPECIAL OBJECTS OF INTEREST. 
 
 337 
 
 new harbour, enclosing and protecting the old 
 one by the erection of a new pier on the south 
 side.* This part of the coast is well protected 
 by the point of land seen in the cut, which 
 projects into the sea, leaving a small inlet or 
 bay, where, in the roughest weather, the water 
 
 NiW HARBOUR, ST. PETER PORT. 
 
 is seldom disturbed to any great extent. A 
 fort of considerable size and importance is placed 
 on an eminence at this part of the island, pro- 
 tecting the town and harbour. The view of 
 
 * The first stone of the new harbour was laid on the 24th 
 of August, 1853, the anniversary of the Queen's visit to the 
 island.
 
 338 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 St. Peter Port afforded from this spot gives 
 the spectator a good general idea of the extent 
 and character of the town. 
 
 The town has four churches : the interesting 
 old parish church near the sea; and a new pro- 
 prietary church, called St. James's, near Eliza- 
 beth College ; and the district churches of St. 
 John the Evangelist, and the Holy Trinity. It 
 is a populous town, and contains a considerable 
 number of houses occupied by the higher classes. 
 The inequality of the surface on which it is 
 built makes it of a very unsymmetrical charac- 
 ter ; nor, indeed, does any settled design appear 
 to have been adopted in the erection of its 
 streets and houses. Many of them are of very 
 ancient date, and being built of granite show 
 little indications of decay. The streets are nar- 
 row, and awkward in their arrangement, but 
 a good trade exists among the various shops. 
 The fish and meat-markets are structures of 
 considerable size and importance. There is also 
 a gaol, and a hospital which combines the advan- 
 tages of an infirmary and of an asylum for aged 
 and destitute persons. 
 
 It is perfectly easy to make the tour of this 
 island on foot, and its insular character is con- 
 stantly presented to the mind of the tourist in 
 so doing, since from almost every point the sea 
 is visible, and a walk of a few miles brings him
 
 SPECIAL OBJECTS OF INTEREST. 
 
 339 
 
 to the coast from any part of the island. Pro- 
 ceeding along to the north of St. Peter Port, 
 a little village, called St. Sampson's, is entered. 
 It has the advantage of an excellent harbour, 
 from which large quantities of granite are ex- 
 ported. This harbour is protected by a mar- 
 
 
 VALE CASTLE. GUERNSEY. 
 
 tello tower and an ancient fortress, represented 
 in the cut, called Vale Castle. The coast on 
 this side of the island is generally flat, but of a 
 rocky character. The old church of St. Samp- 
 son is a singular and venerable looking edifice. 
 It is one of the most ancient in the island, and
 
 340 THE HANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 was consecrated in the year 1111. The granite 
 quarries near the harbour well deserve atten- 
 tion ; from their proximity to the latter, large 
 masses of stone are conveyed without much 
 difficulty or expense to the shipping, which lies 
 awaiting its freight in the harbour. The stone 
 is of excellent quality, and is largely used in 
 the metropolis for paving and macadamizing. 
 
 Proceeding in his tour, the coast, with its 
 minute bays, creeks, and inlets, will afford in- 
 teresting matter for the naturalist's investiga- 
 tion. The rocks are never far from the scene, 
 and often rise in wall-like masses, here and there 
 giving to it a wild and confused aspect. There 
 are four bays on the north-west coast, which 
 are often visited ; these are Cobo, Yazon, Pe- 
 relle, and Le Ree. Of these, Vazon Bay is 
 most interesting, in consequence of its yielding 
 the fossil wood before spoken of, and in the 
 vraicking season it presents a most lively and 
 pleasing picture, the sea-weed gatherers being 
 then out in great numbers, and being occupied, 
 with the assistance of horses and carts, in se- 
 curing the valued plants for the future fertiliza- 
 tion of their fields. 
 
 liocquaine Bay, on the western coast, is 
 undoubtedly the finest in Guernsey; and its 
 picturesque character may be appreciated from 
 the representation before given, which is a literal
 
 SPECIAL OBJECTS OF INTEREST. 341 
 
 transcript of the scene, being accurately copied 
 from a photograph. The outline of this bay is 
 beautifully curved, and nearly in the centre 
 rises Fort Grey, a fortification of considerable 
 strength and of local importance. A number 
 of small fishing-boats are generally seen shel- 
 tered in this bay. At its south-western boun- 
 dary is the little barren-looking island, called 
 Lihou. Access to this island can be had at low 
 water over a rough stony path ; but when the 
 tide is in, this path is covered, and a powerful 
 current sets through the channel. The ruins 
 of an ancient priory, represented in the following 
 cut, exist on this wild spot, and are, in parts, in 
 a tolerable state of preservation. There is also 
 a dwelling-house upon the island; its most 
 numerous inhabitants are, however, the rab- 
 bits. The rocks are wild and irregular in their 
 character ; they are much exposed to the wes- 
 terly gales and seas. The singular natural 
 baths before alluded to are to be found, by 
 those who do not mind scrambling, on the south 
 side of this island ; but to suppose that these 
 excavations were ever really used as baths by 
 the nuns, would imply a much greater facility 
 in climbing over rough and slippery rocks in 
 those days than is enjoyed by women in our 
 own. 
 
 Still proceeding with his tour round the
 
 SPECIAL OBJECTS OF INTEREST. 343 
 
 island, the naturalist now enters upon the more 
 imposing scenery of the southern coast. From 
 the promontory called Pleinmont Point, to St. 
 Martin's Point, the western and eastern boun- 
 daries respectively of this coast, the rocks rise 
 often perpendicularly to a considerable altitude 
 from the sea, and are indented at frequent in- 
 tervals with bays, chasms, and creeks of roman- 
 tic beauty. These have been described in 
 preceding portions of this work, to which refer- 
 ence may be made. 
 
 In returning to St. Peter Port, there are 
 many picturesque portions of the various roads 
 by which the town may be entered. The 
 denseness and luxuriance of the vegetation adds 
 great beauty to these scenes, and gives a vivid 
 impression of the fertility of the soil. Occa- 
 sionally, an old ruin, covered with ivy, will be 
 found by the road side, the history of which is 
 as usual surrounded with superstitious fictions. 
 One of these, called the Ivy Gate, is shown in 
 the cut at the head of the last chapter, and 
 though not constituting a place of any import- 
 ance, appears entitled to a representation by its 
 venerable and artistic character. The cut is, 
 like others in this volume, taken from a da- 
 guerreotype. 
 
 The town of St. Heliers, Jersey, to which 
 place the steamer conveys those who purpose
 
 344 
 
 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 visiting that island, is one of considerably 
 greater size and importance than the more 
 quiet capital of Guernsey. The entrance to 
 the harbour is protected by the fortress, called 
 
 ENTRANCE TO ST. HELIER3, JERSKY. 
 
 Elizabeth Castle, situated on a rocky island 
 near its mouth, and by the still more im- 
 posing fortification, called Fort Regent. The 
 bastion itself is a noble structure, covering a 
 considerable area, and affording shelter to a 
 large number of ships. 
 
 Fort Regent, placed on the summit of the town 
 hill, is more than one hundred and fifty feet 
 above high- water mark. It was built about 1806,
 
 SPECIAL OBJECTS OF INTEREST. 
 
 345 
 
 and is very extensive, having cost the British 
 nation not less than 800,000/. sterling. It is 
 built of granite, is bomb proof, and covers more 
 than four acres of ground, having accommo- 
 dation for five thousand men. All that human 
 art could do appears to have been called into 
 
 FORT REGENT, JERSEY 
 
 service to render this fortification inaccessible, 
 with bastions, half-bastions, outworks, and 
 glacis ; and except on the side which faces the 
 sea, with a ditch, a counterscarp, and covert way, 
 which encircles it. The well from which the 
 garrison is supplied with water, is two hundred
 
 346 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 and thirty feet deep, one hundred and ninety- 
 five feet of which is bored through solid rock ; 
 a dozen men can raise the water into cisterns 
 by means of a forcing-pump, and they can 
 thus bring up about six thousand gallons per 
 day. 
 
 The smaller fortress, Elizabeth Castle, forming 
 a very picturesque object, outside the harbour, 
 is placed upon a rocky island of about a mile in 
 circumference. It was commenced in the reign 
 of Queen Elizabeth. It may be explored at 
 ebb of tide on foot, but when the tide flows the 
 path is covered ; and immediately before this is 
 the case, a bell rings in the castle, warning the 
 visitor to depart before it is too late. On the 
 summit of a rock, near the castle, the rude 
 remains of a hermitage are descried, the com- 
 fortless abode of the saint whose name has 
 been conveyed to posterity by the town of St. 
 Heliers. 
 
 This town contrasts forcibly with the quiet 
 little town of St. Peter Port, in Guernsey. It 
 resembles in many respects our English water- 
 ing places, differing, however, in the character 
 of its inhabitants, and slightly in their costume, 
 in both of which points they assimilate to their 
 neighbours of the opposite coast of France. 
 St. Heliers is, in fact, the abode of a consider- 
 able number of French as well as of English
 
 SPECIAL OBJECTS OF INTEREST. 
 
 347 
 
 families, and a constant intercourse is kept up 
 between the island and the French coast. It 
 contains several churches and public buildings, 
 including among the latter a new educational 
 institution, founded in honour of Her Majesty's 
 visit to the island. 
 
 PR1SCE S TOWER, JERSEY. 
 
 A tour round Jersey is not so e.isily accom- 
 plished, in consequence of the size of the island, 
 as that of Guernsey. Out of the many inte- 
 resting spots which may be thus visited on 
 successive occasions, we shall merely notice a 
 few of the more important. On leaving the
 
 348 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 town of St. Heliers, and proceeding in a south- 
 easterly direction, an elevated mound, called 
 Prince's Tower, or La Hougue Bie, is generally 
 visited. This is the chief elevation of Jersey, 
 and commands a most extensive and pleasing 
 prospect. The tower stands upon an artificial 
 mound, surrounded with trees, and is a little 
 removed from the way-side. It is visible at a 
 great distance, and is much resorted to by tourists 
 for the panoramic view obtained from its summit. 
 The mound is said to have been raised to the 
 memory of her husband by the lady of a 
 Norman knight, who had been treacherously 
 murdered near this place ; a chapel was erected 
 on the summit of the mound, by one of the 
 Deans of Jersey, before the Reformation ; and 
 the present tower was built by Philip d'Au- 
 vergne, Prince de Bouillon, a native of Jersey, 
 and admiral in the British navy. 
 
 At a little distance from La Hougue Bie is 
 the pretty Bay of Grouville, the northern boun- 
 dary of which is formed by the rock on which 
 the celebrated castle of Mont Orgueil is built. 
 This venerable ruin is beautifully situated on 
 a rocky headland ; its towers are still in many 
 places little affected by the progress of decay, 
 and are clothed with a most luxuriant growth 
 of ivy. Formerly this fortress was a place of 
 some consequence. Charles the Second inha-
 
 SPECIAL OBJECTS OF INTEREST. 349 
 
 bited it for some months after the death of his 
 father, and his rooms are still shown. The 
 well-known Prynne was a prisoner here for 
 three years, and his poetical description of the 
 castle still exists. From an elevation near 
 Mont Orgueil Castle a pretty view of the 
 surrounding country is gained, with the pic- 
 
 turesque church of St. Catharine in the fore- 
 ground. 
 
 Proceeding along the northern coast of Jer- 
 sey, the finest and most picturesque part of the 
 island will become visible. It has already been 
 noticed, that while the northern coast of Guern-
 
 350 
 
 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 sey is flat, and its southern rocky and precipitous, 
 the northern coast of Jersey is, on the contrary, 
 steep and bold in character, while its southern 
 shores are flat and sandy. The picturesque 
 bays, coves, and inlets, to which we have before 
 made allusion, lie on this side of the island, and 
 
 ST. BIIELADE'S CHURCH, JERSEY. 
 
 afford occupation for the investigations of the 
 naturalist for many pleasant summer days. On 
 this coast the action of the waves is very vio- 
 lent, and its effects on the rocks exposed to 
 their fury are discernible in many places. 
 
 On reaching the western shore the magni-
 
 SPECIAL OBJECTS OF INTEREST. 351 
 
 ficent Bay of St. Ouen opens to view, and con- 
 trasts well with the minute inlets dignified with 
 the title of bays on the northern coast. In re- 
 turning towards St. Heliers, the beautiful Bay of 
 St. Brelade is passed, with the old church near 
 the water side. The village of St. Aubin is the 
 last place of note on this route. This town was 
 once the principal seat of the commerce of the 
 island. It is most picturesquely placed at one 
 extremity of the noble bay, which is bounded 
 at the other by St. Heliers, and the two for- 
 tresses, Elizabeth Castle, and Fort Regent. 
 The town is defended by a circular battery, 
 accessible at low water. It is almost four miles 
 from St. Heliers, and is much frequented by 
 visitors and others desirous of escaping from 
 the more bustling streets of the latter town.
 
 GBODP OF OBJECTS FROM THE CROMLECHS. 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 ANTIQUITIES, LANGUAGE, LAWS, AND CUSTOMS. 
 
 MUCH attention has been excited among an- 
 tiquaries by the abundance of the remains of 
 those curious monuments, called Druidical, 
 which exist in the Channel Islands. A distin- 
 guished local antiquary, Mr. F. C. Lukis, has 
 devoted many years to the collection of facts 
 bearing upon this subject; and in our neces- 
 sarily brief notice of it we shall be dependent
 
 ANTIQUITIES, LAWS, AND CUSTOMS. 353 
 
 chiefly upon his published accounts for the facts 
 stated. In the Channel Islands, the Cromlech, 
 the Kistvaen, and the simple Maenhir are the 
 most conspicuous forms of these Druidical 
 remains. The cromlechs appear to have been 
 used as catacombs by the Celtic tribes by which 
 these islands were inhabited. The flooring was 
 of irregular flat stones, and round smooth peb- 
 bles, on which were deposited the bones, urns, 
 and other vessels left by the affection of the 
 friends of the deceased. Burnt bones and ashes 
 are found in various parts, with bone instru- 
 ments, perforated stones, amulets, and other 
 articles which were deposited by the side of the 
 remains of the departed friends Arrow-heads 
 of flint, portions of weapons, implements of 
 stone, and the singular wedge-shaped, sharp- 
 edged instruments called " celts, " some of 
 which are exhibited in the cut, are also occa- 
 sionally found. 
 
 The most interesting of the cromlechs, and 
 that to which the steps of every visitor are 
 directed, is one which stands upon a hill on the 
 south side of a common, called L'Ancresse 
 Common, in Guernsey. This cromlech is 
 very perfect, and picturesquely situated, and is 
 represented in the cut on page 355, from a 
 photograph taken on the spot. In the imme- 
 
 A A
 
 354 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 diate neighbourhood are others more or less 
 perfect, but of smaller size. It is thus de- 
 scribed in a local work : 
 
 " The finest cromlech in Guernsey is called 
 the Druids' Temple, and stands on an eminence 
 near L'Ancresse Bay and the Vale Church. It 
 is composed of five cumbent stones, decreasing 
 in size from about twenty to ten tons in weight, 
 covering an area twenty-nine feet long, and 
 nearly twelve feet wide. The drifting sands 
 had once completely covered this monument of 
 antiquity, and it was only accidentally disco- 
 vered in 1811. The remains of several antique 
 earthen vessels were then dug up, and an im- 
 mense quantity of human teeth and bones, some 
 of them bearing evident marks of fire, which is 
 sufficient proof of its having been a sepulchre, 
 if not devoted to the purpose of human sacrifice. 
 The sands are again gathering round it, and 
 possibly, in a few years, it will have disap- 
 peared, unless it is secured by a wall, or some 
 kind of protection. 
 
 " There is another fine cromlech at Paradis, 
 near Bordeaux harbour, in this parish, consist- 
 ing of two immense flat stones, lying north-east 
 and south-west, inclining towards the former 
 direction, and supported by a number of smaller 
 ones. This is the most perfect cromlech unco-
 
 ANTIQUITIES, LAWS, AND CUSTOMS. 355 
 
 vered, the land round it having been purchased 
 by a private individual for the purpose of pre- 
 
 serving it. 
 
 "A third cromlech, of smaller size, stands 
 midway on the common, between Mortemar 
 Height and Vale Church. 
 
 " A fourth, in a field near St. Sampson's, 
 
 DRLIDICAL HtMAINb, GOKRhiCT. 
 
 called Le Champ de 1'Autel, which has been 
 preserved, although the land all round it was 
 purchased for quarrying, owing to a superstition 
 which led the seller of the property to warn 
 the new proprietor, that, if ever he removed or
 
 356 
 
 injured the altar, he would never be happy or 
 prosperous. This superstitious feeling is con- 
 firmed in the peasants by a singular coincidence, 
 which occurred some years ago, and which they 
 invariably relate to strangers. 
 
 " In a field, about half a mile from the church, 
 still called ' Le Courtil de la Roche qui sonne,' 
 or ' Field of the Sounding Stone,' there was a 
 large stone, supposed to be a Celtic remain, 
 which, on being struck, emitted a clear, hollow, 
 ringing sound, and which was considered as 
 sacred; but, about forty years ago, the owner 
 of the field, being on the point of building a 
 house, determined to make use of the idle stone ; 
 when, in spite of all warning, and to the great 
 terror of the neighbours, he unscrupulously 
 broke it up, and used it for supports to his door 
 and window openings. No immediate judg- 
 ment fell upon the sacrilegious offender ; but in 
 less than twelve months his new house was 
 burnt to the ground. He built it up again ; 
 and a second time, in a most unaccountable 
 manner, it shared the same fate. Then, resolv- 
 ing not to hazard a third attempt, he sold the 
 stones, and shipped them off for England ; 
 but stilf the same fatality attended him the 
 vessel foundered at sea, and all on board 
 perished." 
 
 The Logan, or balancing stone, called 'Le
 
 ANTIQUITIES, LAWS, AND CUSTOMS. 357 
 
 Roc Balan,' has been found in Guernsey, but, 
 unfortunately, was blasted unawares by some 
 men employed in an adjoining quarry. 
 
 In the Bay du Roc, at the north-west 
 point, there is an immense heap of such large 
 stones, evidently of Celtic formation : some of 
 them must weigh full one hundred tons. And 
 in this neighbourhood many antique remains 
 have been excavated, such as cleavers of fine 
 marble, edged and pointed, similar to those 
 which the Druids used for flaying their victims. 
 When they were first found, some of the coun- 
 try-people took them for thunderbolts ! 
 
 At Herm there exist many evidences of 
 Druidical remains of the same general charac- 
 ter as those found in Guernsey. In Jersey, 
 also, a variety of cromlechs and other structures 
 attributed to them still remain, but present 
 nothing sufficiently prominent in interest to 
 render a special notice of them desirable. 
 
 The language spoken in the Channel Islands 
 is a species of Norman French. In the towns 
 tolerable English is spoken, though often with 
 a French accent ; but in the country districts, 
 although English is very commonly partially 
 understood, the patois in question is generally 
 used. The original stock from which this 
 patois has been derived, appears to have been 
 the old Norman French, but in progress of time
 
 358 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 it has received numerous additions and concre- 
 tions from other tongues, and more particularly 
 from the English language. Many of the words 
 in common use are in fact English, with the ad- 
 dition of a French termination; the result is 
 consequently occasionally very ludicrous. In 
 all probability, as education advances among 
 the poor, the English language will supplant 
 this patois, and this process appears in fact to be 
 now gradually being accomplished. The follow- 
 ing lines in the Guernsey patois present the 
 reader with a curious specimen of the Guer- 
 nesiais. The piece, of which an imperfect 
 extract is here presented, is called, L'AssEM- 
 BLAIE DE PARESSE, and is a sketch of a parish 
 meeting, convened in the town church, to take 
 into consideration the proposed plan of pulling 
 down Old Fountain Street, and building the 
 present one. 
 
 Un matin coum j'etais au marchi 1 dans le skweeze 3 , 
 
 J'oui la klidque 3 , qui sonnait coum si ch'tait pour 1'Eglise ; 
 
 J'en d'mandit la raison a une fern me qui passait, 
 
 " Ah ! mafai," me dit alle, " ch'est pour pu que j' n'en sait." 
 
 Aussitflt j'rencontri un Moussieu d' Guernezi. 
 
 Qui kwarrait* coum si I'Connetable 5 etai souventre 6 li. 
 
 1 Marchi, market. * Skweeze, crowd. 
 
 3 Klioque, bell. 4 Kwarrait, running. 
 
 * Connetablc, constable. 6 Souventre, after him.
 
 ANTIQUITIES, LAWS, AND CUSTOMS. 359 
 
 " Mais pourqu'est che done?' jli d^mande. " Pourqu'estche 
 
 done tant d' tripo 1 1 
 
 " Nous dirait qu' ch'est rallarme, et k' 1'enmi est ilo*." 
 I* s'arrfite un p'tit brin, pour reprendre s'n halaine, 
 Et met taut ses daeui mains d' chaque cotai d'sa bedaine ; 
 " J'allais scie vous," m'dit-il, " et j'y-allais pour vou kenre*, 
 " Une assemblliaie d' Paresse s'en va s'faire toute a 1'b.eure." 
 
 Divine Service is performed in the parish 
 churches, and justice is administered in the 
 courts in pure French. Although the Channel 
 Islands have been attached to the Crown of 
 ngland ever since the time of the Conquest, 
 they have nevertheless preserved to the present 
 day their own laws and institutions, based on 
 those of the Duchy of Normandy, but modified 
 by local custom, and consequently differing in 
 some respects in the two bailiwicks of Guernsey 
 and Jersey, the former of these including within 
 its jurisdiction the islands of Alderney and 
 Sark, together with several smaller islets, such 
 as Herm, Jethou, &c. 
 
 It is not very easy to say what was the con- 
 stitution of the islands before their final sepa- 
 ration from Normandy, when that province 
 was lost by King John. But it appears probable 
 that, divided as they are from the mainland 
 and from one another, they must at all times 
 have enjoyed in some degree the privilege of 
 
 1 Tripo,/tw. * Ilo, there, 
 
 3 Keure, to fetch.
 
 360 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 self-government. No doubt the institutions 
 were modelled in part on those of the parent 
 country, but it is also far from unlikely that 
 they were modified by customs handed down 
 from a more remote Celtic or Gaulish an- 
 tiquity. 
 
 Before the loss of Normandy, tradition in- 
 forms us that judicial matters were treated by 
 knights, who held assizes at stated periods, 
 and who appear to have had for assessors the 
 bailiff of the island, and jurats, who were pro- 
 bably chosen for the occasion from among the 
 principal tenants 'of the Crown. But after the 
 loss of that duchy, King John established 
 twelve jurats in each island, as mean judges 
 between the Crown and the subject, who were 
 to be chosen for life from among the natives 
 of the island, by the officers of the king and 
 the principal inhabitants; and who together 
 with the bailiff were empowered to judge of 
 all causes arising in the island, with the excep- 
 tion of treason, and laying violent hands upon 
 a magistrate in the execution of his duty. 
 These laws of King John were collected and 
 committed to writing, in the reign of his suc- 
 cessor, Henry III., by whom they were con- 
 firmed; and under the name of the Constitu- 
 tions of King John, they have always been 
 looked upon as the basis of the liberties and
 
 ANTIQUITIES, LAWS, AND CUSTOMS. 361 
 
 privileges of the islands. This charter has, at 
 various times, been amplified and confirmed by 
 succeeding sovereigns. 
 
 Time and local circumstances have naturally 
 given rise to some differences in the laws and 
 constitutions of the respective bailiwicks of 
 Guernsey and Jersey, but, without entering at 
 large on these differences, it will not be diffi- 
 cult to give a general idea of the governments 
 of both islands. 
 
 In early times the government of the islands 
 seems to have been committed to one person, in 
 whom was vested both the civil and military 
 authority, and who is sometimes denominated 
 ballivus or bailiff, but more commonly custos 
 or warder. This officer, who was generally a 
 nobleman of high rank, received all the reve- 
 nues of the islands, and appointed his deputies in 
 the civil and military departments, changing 
 them whenever he pleased. From the time of 
 Edward I. the office of bailiff, or chief civil 
 magistrate, appears to have been made perma- 
 nent; and finally, in the reign of Henry VII. in 
 Jersey, and of Charles II. in Guernsey, the Go- 
 vernors were deprived of the power of naming 
 tins functionary, the Crown reserving to itself 
 that right. 
 
 The Governor has precedency over all other 
 public functionaries, by reason that he repre-
 
 362 ' THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 sents more immediately the person of the sove- 
 reign. To him is intrusted the defence of the 
 islands, and, consequently, the command of the 
 military force. 
 
 For the last two centuries the office of Go- 
 vernor has been a sinecure, the duties being 
 performed by a Lieutenant-governor, appointed 
 and paid by the Crown. Since the death of the 
 last Governors, no others have been appointed, 
 and the revenues of the islands, after deducting 
 certain local expenses, are paid into the Trea- 
 sury. Before the Lieutenant-governor can 
 exercise any function of his office, he must pre- 
 sent his commission to the Royal Court, by 
 whom he is sworn to be faithful to the Sove- 
 reign, and to uphold and defend the privileges 
 and liberties of the island. 
 
 The next authority to be noticed is that of 
 the Royal Court, composed of the Bailiff, ap- 
 pointed, as before mentioned, by the Crown; 
 twelve Jurats, elected by the people, for life, 
 and certain Crown officers. The functions of 
 this body are, of course, principally judicial, but 
 they are also in some degree administrative, but 
 less so in the island of Jersey than in that of 
 Guernsey. In both islands, the Jurats are, ex 
 officio, members of the States, but their mode of 
 election differs considerably. In Jersey, they 
 are elected by the rate-payers of all the parishes,
 
 ANTIQUITIES, LAWS, AND CUSTOMS. 363 
 
 which gives rise to a good deal of party-spirit. 
 In Guernsey, the choice of the Jurats is vested 
 in a body called the States of Election, com- 
 posed of the Bailiff, Jurats, eight Rectors of pa- 
 rishes, and the Douzeniers of all the parishes, 
 and of the four cantons into which St. Peter 
 Port is divided. These Douzeniers are mem- 
 bers of a sort of parochial council called the 
 Douzaine, and consisting of twelve or more 
 men elected for life by the rate-payers from 
 among the most influential parishioners, and 
 having certain local duties to perform. 
 
 The States may be very properly termed a 
 general council of the island: to them belongs 
 the regulation of all matters of finance affecting 
 the island at large; no tax for general pur- 
 poses can be levied without their consent, nor 
 can any alteration be made in the existing laws, 
 or any new law be enacted but by them. All 
 such laws, however, still require to be sanctioned 
 by the Sovereign in Council before they can be 
 acted upon. The States in either island are 
 convened and presided over by the Bailiff. The 
 Lieutenant-governor has a seat and deliberative 
 voice. The other members are the Jurats of 
 the Royal Court, the beneficed Clergy, and 
 representatives from each parish. Alderney 
 has also its States, but the Court of that island, 
 consisting of a Judge and six Jurats, has but a
 
 364 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 limited authority, an appeal lying in most cases 
 from their decision to the Royal Court of 
 Guernsey. Sark possesses only a feudal Court. 
 
 The States, as we have before mentioned, 
 possess a legislative authority, subject to the 
 approbation of the prince, who is the source and 
 fountain of all jurisdiction, and of late years 
 many alterations and reforms in the existing 
 laws have been made in both islands. The 
 authority of the Crown, acting with the advice 
 of the Privy Council, to legislate for the islands, 
 is admitted; but not to the extent of altering 
 the constitution, abolishing customs, abrogating 
 privileges, or levying subsidies without the con- 
 sent of the inhabitants. Acts of Parliament, in 
 which the islands are specially named, when 
 transmitted from the Privy Council, have also 
 force of law; but if supposed to trench upon 
 local immunities, the registry of them is sus- 
 pended, or made under protest; and on a repre- 
 sentation being made in the proper quarter, the 
 obnoxious order is withdrawn if it be found 
 that the objection is valid. 
 
 We have spoken of the peculiar privileges of 
 the island. One of these, to which the greatest 
 importance is attached by the inhabitants, is the 
 not being obliged to answer to any suit instituted 
 against them in the English courts, if the cause 
 have originated within the islands. Causes,
 
 ANTIQUITIES, LAWS, AND CUSTOMS. 365 
 
 however, may be carried by appeal from the 
 local jurisdictions to the Privy Council. No 
 writ out of any other Court in England runs 
 into the Channel Islands with the exception of 
 writs of Habeas Corpus, and it is only of late 
 years, after a strenuous opposition, that the 
 registry of the Act of Habeas Corpus has been 
 insisted on. It is even now next to a dead 
 letter; for, in the few instances in which a writ 
 has been issued, on its being shown that the 
 person applying for it was incarcerated by sen- 
 tence of a Court having competent jurisdiction, 
 the matter has dropped without any further 
 investigation being gone into. 
 
 Another and valuable immunity is the ex- 
 emption from taxation for the general purposes 
 of the empire. It is of course clear that com- 
 munities having no representatives in Parlia- 
 ment could not with any fairness be subjected 
 by that body to taxation; but, besides this, the 
 inhabitants of the Channel Islands have another 
 strong claim for exemption ; This is the per- 
 sonal service which every able-bodied man, in 
 every rank of life, from the age of sixteen to 
 sixty, is bound to perform without fee or re- 
 ward, in the ranks of the local militia. This 
 corps has existed from the earliest times; and 
 although, in time of peace, only called out 
 for exercise four or five times in the year, is
 
 366 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 so steady under arms, and so soldier-like in 
 appearance, as to excite the admiration of all 
 unprejudiced observers. 
 
 Before the principles of free trade were car- 
 ried out to the extent they now are in England, 
 the right possessed by the islands of importing 
 all their produce into the mother country free of 
 duty was a source of great emolument to the 
 agriculturists ; for no duties being levied in the 
 islands on imports, they were enabled to procure 
 supplies for local consumption in the cheapest 
 markets, and to export almost all their own 
 produce to England, where it fetched high 
 prices. 
 
 This rapid and imperfect sketch of the con- 
 stitution and privileges of the Channel Islands 
 will serve to show how large an amount of self- 
 government they possess. This naturally fosters 
 a spirit of independence in the people, which is 
 still further encouraged by the laws regulating 
 the succession of property. The Norman law, 
 which, as we have before said, is the basis of 
 the code of the Channel Islands, does not allow 
 a parent to favour one child to the prejudice of 
 the others. The eldest son has some advantages 
 in the division of real property over the other 
 children, and sons take a larger share than 
 daughters ; but all must be divided in certain pro- 
 portions among them. The consequence is, the
 
 ANTIQUITIES, LAWS, AND CUSTOMS. 367 
 
 creation of an immense number of small landed 
 proprietors. These are frequently artisans, such 
 as masons, carpenters, bricklayers, &c. ; and the 
 greatest ambition of a labouring man being to 
 possess a cottage and garden or field of his 
 own, and the transfer of land being easy and 
 unembsirrassed with troublesome or expensive 
 forms, industry and frugality are encouraged, 
 and pauperism among the indigenous population 
 scarce. Pauperism does exist, and to a large 
 amount in the towns ; but the great majority 
 of paupers are the descendants of strangers who 
 have settled in the islands. On the whole, it 
 may with safety be affirmed that the laws and 
 institutions of the Channel Islands have tended 
 to create a happy, contented, and industrious 
 population. 
 
 A population so peculiarly situated as that 
 inhabiting the Channel Islands, will naturally 
 be supposed to have retained many local habits 
 and customs. Lying within sight of the coasts 
 of Normandy, and speaking the same language 
 as the people of that province, with whom, in 
 time of peace, they kept up a constant inter- 
 course, nothing would be less surprising than 
 that they should have retained the same manners 
 and customs. This, however, is far from being 
 the case, and the fact may be easily accounted 
 for. Although speaking a dialect of French, it
 
 368 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 must not be forgotten, that for eight hundred 
 years they have been subjects of the British 
 Crown, a distinction on which they highly pride 
 themselves, for, though glorying in the name of 
 Norman, no greater insult can be offered to an 
 islander than to call him a Frenchman. The 
 difference in religion is another cause which has 
 tended to distinguish them still further from 
 their continental neighbours. The doctrines of 
 the Reformation penetrated into the islands at 
 an early period, and the Governors of both 
 Jersey and Guernsey in the reigns of Queen 
 Elizabeth and King James I., being inclined to 
 the party of the Puritans, the Presbyterian 
 form of church government was established, 
 and prevailed in the former island until the 
 reign of Charles I., and in the latter until the res- 
 toration of Charles II. The Presbyterian clergy 
 appear to have possessed considerable influence 
 even in civil matters, and to have used it in 
 eradicating all customs which, in their opinion, 
 savoured in any degree of the ancient super- 
 stition. The increased communication with 
 England during the last half century, and the 
 great influx of artisans and labourers, princi- 
 pally from the western counties, are gradually 
 modifying any remaining peculiarities; and 
 already many customs may be looked upon as 
 things of a bygone age, being only remembered
 
 369 
 
 by the older members of the community. Still 
 there are some things, even in the every-day 
 occurrences of life, which strike a visitor as 
 strange, and of these the manner in which the 
 land is laid out and cultivated is among the first 
 that attracts attention. To a person accustomed 
 to the broad fields of England and the culture 
 of one particular cereal or root on a large scale, 
 the small inclosures of the Channel Islands, 
 each containing perhaps three or four different 
 crops, appear like mere patches of garden- 
 ground. The universal practice of tethering 
 the cattle, instead of allowing them to roam at 
 large in the meadows, is another peculiarity, 
 but this, as well as the careful culture of the 
 land, is prompted by a spirit of economy which 
 strives to make the most of every available inch 
 of ground, and is rendered necessary by the 
 large population, which is calculated to be 
 above a thousand persons to every square mile. 
 Nature has given to the Channel Islands a- 
 mild climate, a fertile soil, and an inexhaus- 
 tible supply of manure in the sea-weed which 
 covers their rock-bound coasts. 
 
 Another agricultural custom is the deep 
 ploughing for the parsnip crop, or, as it is called, 
 " lagrande charrue" For the successful culture 
 of this valuable root, it is found necessary to 
 turn up the earth to a considerable depth, and 
 B B
 
 370 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 this is effected by means of a large plough, 
 drawn by four or six oxen, and sometimes twice 
 as many horses. So large an array of cattle 
 is not to be found on one farm, and the work 
 is therefore performed by a contribution of the 
 neighbours, who are repaid by the like joint- 
 stock assistance, the whole being attended by 
 a sort of holiday bustle, that cannot fail to 
 surprise a stranger. It is, in fact, a holiday, 
 for besides being regaled with cakes and cider 
 during the work, those who have given their 
 assistance are entertained in the evening by the 
 proprietor of the field with a substantial supper. 
 The inhabitants of the islands, and those of 
 Guernsey in particular, are a holiday-loving 
 race. Two days at Christmas, as many at the 
 New-year, Easter, Whitsuntide and Midsum- 
 mer, are devoted in Guernsey to amusement. 
 Servants, when they engage in families, stipu- 
 late to be allowed to have some of these days to 
 themselves, and in most households cakes are 
 made on these festivals. It is usually at 
 these seasons that the Militia is reviewed, and 
 the exercising grounds then become centres of 
 attraction to all classes. In both islands the 
 continental custom prevails of paying visits of 
 congratulation on New Year's Day to friends 
 and relatives, and to persons holding official 
 situations.
 
 ANTIQUITIES, LAWS, AND CUSTOMS. 371 
 
 In Jersey the great holiday of the year is 
 Easter Monday, at which time people from all 
 parts of the island assemble at Mont Orgueil 
 Castle. Although the day has been changed, 
 this custom may be traced to the middle ages, 
 when a sort of fair or wake appears to have 
 been held on the 23d of April in honour of St. 
 George, to whom the chapel in the castle was 
 dedicated. On the festival of All Saints a 
 particular sort of cake is made, and in some of 
 the rural districts of Jersey, and particularly 
 in the parish of St. John, a singular custom 
 prevails, which may very possibly have originated 
 in Celtic times, being still practised in some 
 parts of Brittany and Normandy: "On Mid- 
 summer eve, a number of persons meet together 
 and procure a large brass boiler : this is partly 
 filled with water, and sometimes metallic 
 utensils of different kinds are thrown in. The 
 rim is then encircled with a strong species of 
 rush, to which strings of the same substance 
 are attached. When these strings are suffi- 
 ciently moistened, the persons assembled take 
 hold of them, and drawing them quickly through 
 their hands, a tremulous vibration is excited in 
 the boiler, and a most barbarous, uncouth, and 
 melancholy sound produced. To render this 
 grating concert still more dissonant, others blow 
 with cows' horns and conches. This singular
 
 372 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS, 
 
 species of amusement continues for several hours; 
 it is termed, ( faire braire Us poeles? " 
 
 At Midsummer crowds of Jersey people visit 
 the sister island of Guernsey, and the same 
 season is frequently chosen by the inhabitants 
 of the latter island for visits to their friends and 
 relations in Jersey. 
 
 On the last Sunday in July, and on those of 
 the month of August, persons assemble from 
 all the parishes of Guernsey on the embank- 
 ment at St. Samson's harbour, known by the 
 name of "le grande pont." The object of this 
 meeting seems simply to see and to be seen, 
 but it is not improbable that it had its origin in 
 some religious festival in honour of St. Samson, 
 who is said to have been among the first who 
 preached Christianity in the island, and whose 
 feast falls on the 28th of July. 
 
 It must not be supposed that this love of 
 holidays arises from lazy habits, or fosters 
 idleness. On the contrary, the inhabitants of 
 all the islands are a hard-working and peculiarly 
 frugal race. The desire and opportunity of 
 acquiring landed property stimulate them to 
 industry and repress intemperance. 
 
 In the country in Jersey, during the winter 
 season, it is usual for female neighbours to 
 assemble together in a room, where, by the 
 light of a lamp, they sit and knit. During the
 
 ANTIQUITIES, LAWS, AND CUSTOMS. 373 
 
 time, some tell stories, others sing, and thus 
 amuse themselves, and beguile the passing 
 hours. 
 
 In Guernsey this mode of passing the long 
 winter evenings has almost fallen into disuse, 
 but a remnant of the custom still affords an 
 excuse for a social meeting, called "la longue 
 veille," which is held on the 23d of December. 
 In former days, when knit woollen articles, 
 such as Guernsey frocks, stockings, petticoats, 
 &c., formed the staple manufacture of the 
 island, it was usual to sit up on this night to 
 finish the work, and to get it in readiness for 
 the market held on Christmas-eve. The reason 
 for the meeting has ceased, but the night is still 
 observed by all classes, as affording an oppor- 
 tunity for family meetings. In Jersey a similar 
 excuse is found in the preparation of a kind of 
 conserve of apples, which is used for spreading 
 on bread in lieu of butter when that article 
 is scarce or dear. A number of neighbours 
 assemble together, and all employ themselves 
 busily in paring and carefully cutting out the 
 cores of apples, which are then put to stew 
 with a certain quantity of cider and sugar 
 until they have acquired a proper degree of 
 consistency. 
 
 Some superstitions still linger among the 
 people : notwithstanding the march of intellect
 
 374 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 the belief in witchcraft is still very prevalent. 
 Holy wells are still resorted to for the cure of 
 diseases ; an innocent kind of hydropathy, pro- 
 bably quite as efficacious as the more scientific 
 appliances of wet blankets and watering pots. 
 
 We have thus completed our sketch of these 
 islands. Upon all those subjects in which a 
 naturalist is likely to feel interested, we have 
 endeavoured to give all the information which, 
 with some diligence in search, and by personal 
 investigation, we could collect; and these are 
 subjects which no description of these islands 
 hitherto published has minutely given. The 
 ordinary topics of interest minutely detailed in 
 Guide-books have been merely glanced at in 
 the present chapter; and for all who require 
 information on these and kindred subjects, the 
 works published in Guernsey and Jersey will 
 be best consulted.
 
 APPENDIX.
 
 The following Letters of Mr. Lukis, published in a local 
 paper, will be read with interest by all naturalists, and are 
 here reprinted in the form in which they were originally
 
 APPENDIX. 
 
 LETTER I. 
 
 To the Editor of the Star. 
 
 SIR, The late severe gale, although deprived of the 
 awful casualties too frequently accompanying the storms 
 on this coast, has left many traces of its fury and power, 
 by the removal of gravel and sand from one place to 
 another on the shore ; but nowhere has the force of its 
 waves been more visible than in the drifting up of large 
 masses of peat or submarine forest, which extend over 
 a great part of the flat shores of the west and north 
 portions of this island. At the low spring tide of Monday 
 and Tuesday last the prevalence of the gale caused 
 the breaking up of the -peat-bed at Vazon bay, and it 
 was during this period of its continuance that the 
 masses of this substance were observed driving up 
 towards the land at the flowing of the tide. The allu- 
 vial bed of sand and gravel on which this stratum of 
 vegetable matter rests, became exposed to the fury of 
 the waves at low water, and the substratum once 
 removed, the bed of wood and peat was uplifted like an 
 ice-floe, and carried to the land by the force of the 
 waves. 
 
 It is in Vazon bay especially that the extent of our 
 submarine forest is observed, although the same sub-
 
 378 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 stance is found in many parts of the coasts of these 
 islands. It is a wide bay, having an extensive flat bed 
 of sand superimposed upon the vegetable deposit 
 beneath it, and which extends beyond low-water mark, 
 far towards the west and north under the sea. It is 
 somewhat difficult at present to place the original 
 barriers which once opposed the encroachment of the 
 waves upon the land. The present rocky islets and 
 breakers may, however, be supposed to show the ex- 
 tent of the outer line of coast a natural accumulation 
 of drift may readily be conceived as then limiting the 
 inroad of the sea, and serving as a protection to the 
 forest lands spread within this area. 
 
 This ancient forest, which was still in part occupied 
 by the early inhabitants of this island, has now disap- 
 peared, and it is only known to have once existed by 
 the arduous operation of digging through the sand in 
 this locality, for the purpose of obtaining it for fuel. 
 
 The force of the late storm has, however, proved a 
 " God-send," or as its local name imports, " a gift " 
 corban known with us as " gorban." 
 
 Its appearance on Tuesday last was truly interesting. 
 Trunks of full-sized trees, which once grew on the spot 
 from whence the waves now were for the first time 
 dislodging them, accompanied by the meadow plants 
 which once ornamented their grassy habitation roots 
 of rushes and weeds, surrounded by those of grass and 
 mosses gave evidence of the luxuriancy of the locality. 
 These roots exhibited a lengthened period of growth, 
 and, like some other bog plants, they grew upwards as 
 the vegetable covering increased, leaving their dead 
 roots and fibres below to add their quota to the further 
 accumulation of vegetable matter. 
 
 The very perfect state in which these trees were, 
 shows that they have been for a long time buried under 
 sand. The compression of their trunks and boughs
 
 APPENDIX. 379 
 
 exhibits the first indication of that flattened form which 
 all fossil plants undergo by the slow decomposition of 
 the vegetable fibre without entirely destroying the tex- 
 ture of the wood. 
 
 These trees, when uncovered by the sand and gravel 
 which form the bed of the sea, are overspread with 
 corallines, fuci, and sertulariae, although these marine 
 productions do not appear favoured in their growth on 
 this vegetable matter. 
 
 Some of the trees and portions of boughs having 
 become stranded and separated from the peat-bed on 
 which they grew, were at first mistaken for portions 
 of some wreck ; and this gave rise to the report so 
 generally current during the gale, that some vessel had 
 foundered on the coast. Another appearance of the 
 wood above alluded to was the numerous perforations 
 in it, which looked like the bolt-holes of ship timber. 
 These perforations were the work of the pholadea ; and 
 the amateur had a good opportunity of enriching his 
 collection with a fine series of the Pholas dactylus, from 
 four to six inches in length. 
 
 This shell is rather a stranger to this coast, and, 
 though an inhabitant of both sides of the British 
 Channel, has not been found in the living state on this 
 shore. 
 
 The absence of limestone rocks may in some measure 
 account for this. The mode of burrowing into a stone, 
 sometimes of considerable hardness, has employed the 
 reasonings of naturalists for a long time. The lithodomi 
 are well known for their power in boring into stones, 
 but why the pholadea above mentioned should prefer 
 the peat timber is yet to be known ; certain it is, that 
 if Olivi and other zoologists were doubtful of the habit 
 of Pholas dactylus as regards their perforating wood, 
 the question may be set at rest by the examination of 
 our gorban and forest timber ; and as this shell is still
 
 380 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 retained among the lithodomi, they must be now also 
 considered as deserving the already assigned term of 
 xylophagus. 
 
 The extent and varieties of Gorban on these shores 
 would be a subject which would scarcely be admissible 
 in the limits of your paper; if however, Mr. Editor, 
 you have no objection, I may resume this subject in a 
 future number. F. C. L. 
 
 LETTER II. 
 
 To the Editor of the Star. 
 
 SIR, By your permission I shall resume the subject 
 of my letter inserted in your paper of last Monday. 
 
 The only three varieties of shells hitherto discovered 
 in the submarine forest or gorban are : Pholas dactylus, 
 Pholas Candida, and Pholas parva of Montagu (not 
 decidedly the young of Pholas dactylus, as questioned 
 by De BlainviUe in the Diet. Nat., p. 530). All 
 these were in their dead state when found, and their 
 condition gave evidence of the manner of their death. 
 It is the habit of these shells, as of most of their con- 
 geners, to inhabit substances either partly immersed 
 just below the surface of the bed of the sea, or where 
 they can have ready access to it ; and as they receive 
 their nourishment from that element, they become 
 liable to suffer from such changes as may withdraw the 
 advantages of their situation. Every change, therefore, 
 which affects the bed of sand and gravel, may cover 
 their habitats some few inches and cause their death. 
 
 To this may be attributed the condition in which they 
 have been found, and the reason of their shells being 
 filled by extraneous substances not immediately con- 
 nected with the peat itself.
 
 APPENDIX. 381 
 
 Another fact of much interest to the antiquary is, 
 that pottery and stone instruments the tools and 
 vessels of the first inhabitants of these islands, mate- 
 rials in character coexistent with our cromlechs, and 
 those contents recently discovered within them, formed 
 of the same substances and in every respect connected 
 with the races which erected them have been from 
 time to time found in the vegetable deposit in Vazon 
 Bay. It is also reported that several hundred Roman 
 coins were discovered in the peat some years ago. I 
 learn that the neighbourhood of La Mare Carteret, near 
 Cobo Bay, was the favoured spot where these were 
 found. 
 
 The teeth of horses and hogs have likewise been 
 discovered in the peat. No human remains have as 
 yet been found. The antiseptic quality of peat and bog 
 is well known, and the abundance of tannin which is 
 contained in them might have easily produced remains 
 of our race in good preservation. Acorns and hazel- 
 nuts the latter the produce of a tree not productive, 
 and scarcely to be seen in this island have frequently 
 been observed. 
 
 Let us take a rapid survey of the coast line, com- 
 mencing with the hills near Pleinmont Point in Roc- 
 qnaine Bay, and continuing our view over Vazon and 
 Cobo to the north of the island, and then terminate near 
 the town. We here find an almost uninterrupted level 
 Sat of low but fertile land. In most places it skirts the 
 base of those hills which form the elevated part of our 
 island, and its limit is only a slightly raised embank- 
 ment, which defends it from the incursions of the high- 
 water waves. 
 
 Over this extensive margin of our island the imper- 
 fection of drainage has greatly encouraged the growth 
 of bog and peat ; and this substance is still frequently 
 dug up from ditches which are now more generally
 
 382 ' THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 constructed for the purpose of draining these ancient 
 meadows. This lacustrine area is now tolerably firm 
 upon its surface, but beneath it there are regular sedi- 
 mentary deposits of sand and peat ; and these, again, 
 appear laid over the diluvial materials of an early date. 
 In the neighbourhood of La Grande Mare the deposit 
 has been cut to a considerable depth, and it is stated 
 that two twelve-feet boards in succession have been 
 sunk and disappeared in some of the boggy or more 
 fluid spots. 
 
 This now brings us in connexion with the gorban of 
 the sea, and we must also suppose that the sub-soil 
 drainage communicates with it in many parts. 
 
 The north-west coast does not appear so favourably 
 disposed for the growth of timber, and here we find the 
 peat less woody and more compact in its structure. 
 This part of the coast is much more interrupted by 
 rocky hillocks, and consequently a more shallow depth 
 of soil prevails. The Grand Harbour Bay and the 
 Braye du Valle offered a more favourable bed for the 
 unmolested accumulation of soil and vegetation, and 
 therefore we again meet with it at low depths beneath 
 the sand or recent bed of the sea, which was only 
 excluded by an embankment near the Vale Church, in 
 1808, and by which five hundred English acres were 
 converted into arable land. 
 
 The stratum of peat which is spread over the area of 
 the Braye we shall not be at a loss to connect with the 
 peat-bed under the sea, the destruction of which may 
 likewise date w ith the successive encroachments of that 
 element which we have been considering. 
 
 The church of the Vale, its priory, and other anti- 
 quities, denote the existence of this inland sea ; so that 
 the change we allude to must have occurred long before 
 the introduction of Christianity in this island. 
 
 We have again proofs of the recent accumulation of
 
 APPENDIX. 383 
 
 sand over the once Celtic -ground of Lacnresse, where 
 the various cromlechs in that district are planted upon 
 a soil which is unaccompanied by sand. The stone 
 lines and divisions near these, and on the hills over- 
 looking this plain, show their freedom from the silted 
 sand which now covers them to the height of ten or 
 twelve feet. Again : on this plain, where the sandy 
 hillocks prevail, we find pottery and other ancient 
 relics coeval with the same materials generally seen 
 in the contents of these ancient sepulchres of our 
 aborigines. A series of sections of this super and sub- 
 strata may be seen in the first volume of the British 
 Archaeological Society, where this subject is fully 
 treated of. 
 
 I shall continue the subject in a future letter. 
 
 F. C. L. 
 
 LETTER III. 
 To the Editor of the Star. 
 
 SIR, The Brave du Valle, the once forest land of 
 this part of the island, exhibits all the gradations which 
 geology would require in the explanation of its present 
 state. The wide-spread layer of sand, clay, and gravel 
 over this area shows the work of a quiet sea, which 
 gradually carried materials and deposited them over 
 the forest land, whilst at the same time the fresh water 
 courses and land drains brought down earthy matter, 
 and thus added their quota to the accumulating efforts 
 of the daily tides which rode triumphantly over this 
 extensive plain. Across this wide bed of the sea there 
 was a causeway of large stones for foot passengers at 
 low tides : it was commonly called Le Pont Colliche, 
 and probably was the work of the monks of the Abbey
 
 384 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 St. Michel : near it stood a cross to remind the weary 
 pilgrim of the dying love of his blessed Saviour. The 
 stone base of this relic is at present in the yard of the 
 farm at Les Grandes Capelles, where it was removed 
 on the demolition of the causeway. By the recent 
 works constructed to regain this spacious basin, where, 
 only a few years since, we were accustomed to see 
 numerous boats spreading their white sails over the 
 bosom of this inland sea, a new vegetation and soil are 
 now forming. This new and artificial covering may 
 again become forest land, and again, in its turn, create 
 an upper bed of peat for future generations. The sec- 
 tion would consequently stand thus : 
 
 1. Recent vegetable deposit. 
 
 2. Alluvium (sand, clay, gravel, and beech stones). 
 
 3. Peat, or gorban. 
 
 4. Diluvium (sand, gravel, and rolled pebbles). 
 
 5. Granite. 
 
 Proceeding round the north coast of the Valle, we 
 arrive at the entrance of the Little Russel, which is a 
 strait now separating us from the islands of Herm and 
 Jethou, and from their ranges of rocks and islets. The 
 formation of this entrance may very probably date with 
 the period of the destruction of the forest land of the 
 west coast of Guernsey. Tradition, however, here fails 
 us, excepting in the common opinion entertained by 
 the natives of this part of the island, that the priest of 
 the chapel of Herm was wont to visit the chapels of St. 
 Magloire, near Paradis, and that he traversed the then 
 narrow strait upon a plank laid from side to side. 
 Although this may be somewhat exaggerated in respect 
 to the date of the fact being within the Christian era, 
 there is nothing to afford an insuperable bar to the 
 narrowness of the strait. The northern shore of Herm 
 is beset by a great extent of rock and semi-isles, some
 
 APPENDIX. 385 
 
 of them still having green sward reposing on their now 
 isolated summits, on which it is not unusual to detect 
 portions of ancient pottery and stone mullers. Again, 
 the mielles of Herm speak the same tale to the geolo- 
 gist, and the silt, although somewhat higher, exhibits 
 the same covering as the western shore of Guernsey. 
 
 The bay of Herm, with its numerous rocks, offers 
 evident proofs of the foregoing observations ; and the 
 sedimentary beds of clay and sand extend from its 
 shore to nearly a mile towards that of Guernsey. 
 
 Jethon, with its range of rocks on the south, might 
 probably have been separated from Herm at the same 
 period, and it may be assumed that this island and 
 shore might have formed the eastern arm of a -wide 
 bay, which was protected on the west by the heights of 
 St. Martin's and those near the town of St. Peter-Port. 
 Brchon would then have formed a high cairn over- 
 looking the centre of this semi-lune, and its ancient 
 name perhaps designates an important station we do 
 not at this time value. 
 
 The island of Sark being a table-land, bounded on 
 all its sides by abrupt cliffs has no shelving _shores to 
 admit of a similar edging of vegetable matter. 
 
 Having traced the broad outline of this probable low 
 forest land, from the west of Guernsey to the opening 
 of the great south bay near the town, it will only be 
 necessary to say a few words relative to the common 
 opinion entertained by many here, viz. that the low 
 lands to the north and west are the effects of subsi- 
 dence ! a simple statement unsupported by geological 
 observation. 
 
 The elevated portion of Guernsey is of gneiss and its 
 intruding series of rocks. The whole of this range of 
 land stands on the granitic base, which is the formation 
 of the Valle and low lands, and consequently in exact 
 geological relation with each other. It is upon this 
 c c
 
 386 THE CHANNEL ISLANDS. 
 
 base of granite that the residue of transportable mate- 
 rials may be looked for ; and in fact we find in the 
 Valle and St. Sampson tracts entirely overspread by 
 diluvial deposits. By confounding these last with the 
 more recent accumulation of sand and gravel much 
 confusion ensues. The presence of rolled pebbles, of 
 diluvial formation, with some examples of elevated 
 rocks eroded by atmospheric influence, has added to 
 conjectures at variance with geological fact. 
 
 Such is the structure of our primary series of rocks, 
 and a little examination will prove them to be in exact 
 geological relation with each other, excluding on the 
 one hand the possibility of subsidence, and on the other 
 the supposed lowering of the level of the present sea. 
 
 If the isle of Portland, or the high hill through which 
 the celebrated Box Tunnel on the Great Western Rail- 
 way is cut, were to subside one into the sea and the 
 other into the valley to the north of it-^-no geologist 
 would feel surprised at this movement, however extra- 
 ordinary it might be to the common observer. 
 
 It is to other causes, then, that we are to look for 
 the present appearance of our low lands and their beds 
 of peat. 
 
 To the effects of water courses and drainage, added 
 to the alternate movements and encroachments of the 
 sea, and to the power of the wind in transporting;* and 
 other detritus, we are to look for a solution to the 
 question before us. The same causes are and have 
 always been in operation throughout the latter period 
 at least of this world's history, and producing results 
 derivable from the continual working and opposing of 
 powerful Agents. F. C. L.
 
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