76 THREE DAYS IN THE FALKLAND ISLAND3. 



Deluge, when the Deity committed to him and his descendants for ever, 

 the earthly sovereignty of the universe: — "And the fear of you and the 

 dread of you shall be on every beast of the earth, and upon every fowl 

 of the air, upon all that moveth upon the earth; into your hands are 

 they delivered." 



Walls of peat, with a ditch on one side, are built across various peninsulas; 

 the tame cattle and horses are thus confined. Water is procurable in all 

 situations, by digging a few feet into the porous soil. 



Large numbers of the eggs of Penguins and Albatross, (Diomedea,) are 

 brought into the settlement during the breeding season, from the "rookeries" 

 on the rocks and islands round the coast. 



There were formerly a great many Fur Seals, but these animals are now 

 nearly exterminated. A good deal of oil of an excellent quality is procured 

 from the Hair Seals, which are still tolerably numerous; but as these are 

 generally killed when they have "pups" by their side, it is expected that 

 they also will soon become scarce. 



After we had supped at Port Louis, I tried in vain to induce my 

 companions to accompany me on a stroll, so I took my gun and walked 

 out alone along the shores of the bay. At a few hundred paces distant 

 I came upon the ruins of the old fort, around which were the vestiges of 

 three or four houses. This place, like more flourishing settlements, had a 

 history of its own — of battle, and murder, and sudden death. It was 

 here that the Americans had performed the valorous exploit of destroying 

 this wretched township, and the debris of the houses almost levelled to 

 the ground attested their prowess. Here too, more than twenty years 

 ago, the Guachos and Indians having mutinied against the English com- 

 mandant, had cruelly massacred him and his companions, and had dragged 

 their dead bodies with their lassos into the interior. The scene looked so 

 dreary that it required little stretch of the imagination to picture to one's self 

 the wild Guachos galloping across the plain, with their ghastly burdens 

 trailing at the horses' heels. But now a flock of beautiful Kelp Geese 

 were quietly feeding upon the glacis of the battery, and a colony of rab- 

 bits had taken up their quarters amongst the ruins. 



Having crossed a point of land, I came upon the shores of Berkeley 

 Sound; the whole bay seemed alive with Wildfowl and Gulls, and I found 

 several young Snipes, only a few days old. I also saw some Upland Geese, 

 but they were so wary that I could not get a shot, whereas I might 

 have "bagged" any number of Kelp Geese and Logger Ducks, but they 

 were not worth the trouble of carrying home. 



I cannot explain the sense of desolation I experienced, as I wandered 

 over this miserable country. I could almost fancy that it lay under the 

 spell of some potent magician, who had doomed it to utter sterility. 



