THE MAGDALENE ISLANDS — PATTERSON. 47 



four miles long and aljout one Ijroad. The surface is generally 

 high and uneven, steep hills and deep hollows, with sometimes 

 small lakes, succeeding one another. To the north it is connected 

 by a sand beach with the East Island, which is about four miles 

 in length by about two in breadth. Though this has one cliff 

 240 feet high, it is generally low-lying and marshy, and much of 

 it is occupied by shallow lakes. Grosseisle, which is again joined 

 to it at its north end by a sand-ridge, is smaller, being less than 

 two miles in length by less than a mile in breadth. It forms, 

 however, the most prominent object in the landscape, being quite 

 elevated and being distinguished by three or four conical peaks, 

 which form cliffs over 300 feet high. These have suggested the 

 name. From the summit of any one of them the view on a sum- 

 mer day is one of surpassing grandeur. North Cape is a small 

 circular island about half a mile in diameter, joined to Grosseisle 

 I)y marsh and sandy beach. 



The shores of this group, if I may call it so, present a varied 

 and often very striking appearance. Besides the high cliffs of 

 Grosseisle, there are others as at North Cape, Old Harry Head, 

 and East Island, between two and three hundred feet hiMi, and 

 sometimes worn into rugged or even fantastic shapes. Then 

 there are miles of sand ridges, inside of which are peaceful 

 lagoons, while again the low-lying sea-board, with reefs extend- 

 ing for miles seaward, and sometimes spurs of sand, covered with 

 shallow water, is sometimes more dangerous to navigators than 

 even the loftiest cliffs. 



In that part of this island which I saw, the soil did not seem 

 as good as on the others. In some places I saw sub-soil of white 

 sand, on which the growth and decay of vegetation had formed 

 a peaty mould. But still the crops were generally fair, The 

 inhabitants subsist mainly by the fisheries, Ijut the most of them 

 cultivate small plots of land, from which they receive a good 

 return according to the labor bestowed upon them. Much of it 

 is still covered by wood, stunted in dimensions. 



All these islands from Amherst to Grosseisle were formerly, 

 and perhaps sometimes are yet, spoken of as one, the Magdalene 



