82 RAMBLES OF A NATURALIST. 



only terminate with the rupture of this transverse 

 rocky mass, unless the overhanging walls, shaken by 

 their incessant warfare with the ocean, should suc- 

 cumb, and in their fall bury the huge bridge and 

 the Pass of the Paon in one common wreck. 



This remarkable spot enjoys an immense reputa- 

 tion both at Brehat and on the neighbouring coasts 

 as a place of divination. The young girl, who 

 wishes to know how long she has yet to wait before 

 she can exchange the circlet of betrothal for the 

 marriage ring, goes unaccompanied to the point of 

 the Paon at the time of low water during the spring- 

 tide. She picks up a pebble on a particular part of 

 the beach, and advancing to the entrance of the 

 passage throws the stone into the yawning chasm. 

 If the stone falls to the very bottom of the abyss 

 without rebounding against the rock, the maiden 

 returns to her home with a lightsome step, for she 

 knows to a certainty that she will marry before the 

 year is closed. Woe be to the poor thing if the 

 stone has swerved from its course^ for every rebound 

 of the pebble against the rock, adds a year of weary 

 waiting ; and thus the maidens who consult the 

 oracles too often return with saddened hearts. The 

 chasm of the Paon which has been hollowed out by 

 the constant rushinjr of the waters between the two 

 banks of rocks is by no means perpendicular ; hence 

 it requires a certain address, which few women 

 possess, to throw a stone with unerring aim to the 

 bottom without touching the sides ; indeed the main 

 essential to the success of the charm is that the stone 

 should be thrown at random. 



