90 The Wilson Bulletin — No. 79. 



roimdcd area one mile in width by nearly a mile and a 

 half in leng-th. of similar high ground underlaid by stone oc- 

 cupies the eastern side, a little north of the middle, and an 

 area of about half the dimensions occupies the middle and 

 base of the north-eastern point, while a larger area forms the 

 north-western point, extending also to the middle of the 

 North Bay, and down the west shore nearly two miles. The 

 interior, which is more than half surrounded by these high 

 limestone areas, was once a marsh, but all of it has been 

 drained out and is cropped every summer. The staple crop 

 is tobacco — the same kind that is raised in Kentucky. Corn, 

 oats, wheat; and potatoes are also grown. The only swamps 

 upon the island now arc a somewhat extensive one which oc- 

 cupies the north end of Light House Point. This covers an 

 area rather less than 500 acres. There is a smaller marsh 

 bordering the middle of South Bay, and one of perhaps thirty 

 acres on the east side of the base of Fishing Point. There 

 is also a very small muck swamp, of much less than an acre, 

 on tlie west side of Alosquito Point. Thus the conditions 

 which prevail on this island are now quite dissimilar from 

 those on Point Pelee as reported by Taverner and Swales.* 



Of course Fishing Point runs out into the lake much as 

 the extreme point of Point Pelee does, and conditions here 

 are the same. It might be said, however, that conditions on 

 Fishing Point are much nearer primitive than is the southern 

 end of Point Pelee. Fishing Point contains no dwellings, and 

 the single narrow road is almost no disturbance to the forest. 

 We were told that in the earlier days the island was densely 

 wooded with red cedars. There is still evidence that the 

 higher areas were covered by deciduous forests. 



That Fishing Point is gradually being shifted west there 

 is abundant evidence in the cutting away of the east beach 

 and the building up of the west beach, as well as the sub- 

 merged roots and stumps of huge trees now rods from the 

 east beach. Every year witnesses the overthrow of trees, 

 some of them of more than a foot in diameter, on the cast 

 * Wilson Bulletin 19, p. 30 ct ffcq. 



