THE BUILDING OF AN ISLAND. 6 1 



CHAPTER YIII. 



The Sculpturing of the Island. 



At the beginning of our study of the island we saw that the outline con- 

 sisted of three parts, a narrow triangle to the east, an oblong to the west and 

 a sloping neck connecting these two, but we did not then go further into 

 details. 



When we now proceed to examine this outline more fully, one of the first 

 things that strikes us is that there are many projecting points or capes, and 

 on examination these points most often prove to be rocky, though not always 

 so, for we find conspicuous examples to the contrary in Sandv Point at the 

 southwestern extremity of the island and at Krause Point on the south shore, 

 both of which, except where the sand has been converted into rock, appear to 

 consist of loose sandy material. As a rule, however, the capes are rocky. And 

 we further notice that most of these rocky headlands are small hills, whose 

 seaward slopes have been cut away into cliffs by the wearing action of the 

 waves. 



Fig. 22. 



h. Hilltop, 

 c ClilT. 



s. Shore. 



r. t. Rockv table. 



1. Sea level. 



At the foot of the cliff the sea has, moreover, ground down a rocky table 

 or platform, which now projects from the shore below the level of the water. 

 How were these platforms made ? The water alone could hardly have carved 

 them out of the solid rock, but we must remember that the water is continually 

 carrying sand and the stones previously broken out of the cliff backwards and 

 forwards over the rocky table, and that these can and doubtless do grind down 

 the surface. It sometimes happens, too, that off shore at such a point we find 

 that a small reef has been formed, its foundation being, in all likelihood, a still 

 earlier remnant of the projecting point. Between the capes there are bays 

 which sweep round in concave curves from cape to cape. The sandy shores 

 of these bays are mostly backed by banks of debris from the hills, and there is, 

 apparently, nothing to prevent the sea from carrying off both sand and debris 

 and so pushing the curve of the bay farther and farther back. As, however, 

 these curves remain pretty constant, it is plain that the sea must be prevented 

 bv some fixed law from doing this ; and the law is not difficult to discover. 



