Letters, Extracts, Notices, S^c. 167 



The island slopes steeply to the water at the northern end, 

 but on the other faces is cliffy, particularly at the south. It 

 is composed of rough sandstone, bits of which treacherously 

 break off in the hand ; but on the whole, if you wear india- 

 rubber-soled shoes, the climbing is good. Vegetation is scarce, 

 a few rock-plants and wild asparagus being all that I saw. 

 The southern end of the island is split from the main portion 

 by a deep crevice ; but we managed to scramble up the face 

 of it, and shortly afterwards I heard a shout from Stenhouse 

 announcing that he had found eggs : and, on joining him, 

 sure enough, in a little sandy-floored cavern, some 25 feet 

 down the face of the cliff, lay three eggs. I was so pleased 

 that I did not wait to put myself in the sling, but threw the 

 rope over and, with the Doctor and my coxswain Muckle 

 holding on above seated with their feet against a rock, down 

 I went, hand over hand, and was soon in the cavern. Two 

 eggs were lying side by side, and a third some two or three 

 feet away. There was absolutely no attempt at a nest, or 

 even a hollow : the eggs lay on the bare dry sand. I soon 

 had them in my handkerchief, and holding this in my mouth, 

 made a bowline in the end of the two-inch mauilla, and in a 

 minute or two was at the top exulting. 



After a few moments' gloating we proceeded with our 

 search, and fifty yards further on ray coxswain saw some more 

 eggs, this time not more than 12 feet down the cliff. More 

 cautious this time, I got into the canvas sling, of which 

 Col. Willoughby Verner had given me the pattern, and was 

 soon over the edge and in possession of the clutch of three, 

 again curiously arranged, tAvo of the eggs being together, 

 the third being some two feet away. This clutch was 

 handsomer than the other and more boldly blotched. 



We now thought that we had done well, and seeing 

 nothing more retired across the crevice with the intention of 

 returning to the boat and going after Blue Rock-Pigeons, 

 of which there were a good many on the island and yet more 

 on the cliffy coast of the mainland. Taking one more look 

 with the binoculars at the face of the cliff we had left, the 

 Doctor declared he saw an egg ; further looking revealed 



