BOT.— Vol. I.] EASTWOOD— STUDIES FROM THE HERBARIUM. 93 



a canon, monster-capped and sculptured by sand and wind, 

 is literally snowed-in by vast banks of sand. These are 

 exquisitely marked by the action of the wind, as are the 

 snow banks of colder climes. 



"The shell heaps and rancherias are chiefly at the West 

 End, thousands of them, while at the East End there may 

 be a half dozen. One may tramp for miles at the West 

 End upon nothing but shell sand, gathering bone imple- 

 ments, abalone ornaments, and other relics of the former 

 inhabitants. The reason of the signs of habitation being 

 concentrated at the West End is evident; there the fresh 

 water drips from the rocks above the reefs, while no water 

 is found at the East End, though Dr. Bowers says that there 

 was an abundance of water on the island when he visited 

 it. A tiny lake fringed with Eleocharis surprised me one 

 day; near by were found Lupinus micranthus, several clo- 

 vers, Pectocarya and Orthocar-ptis. 



"In all the kitchen middens large heaps of charcoal yet 

 remain. Great mortars, too heavy for a white man to lift, 

 are found on the highest peaks, miles from fresh water; 

 yet water they must have had near by. 



"It is said that forty years ago the Httle harbor where 

 we landed, known as Corral Harbor, was filled with sand — 

 now, our schooner anchored in the surf outside, we took 

 the waves at just the right moment, shooting in between 

 the reefs where there was barely room, and entering the 

 sand-bound bit of a key inside. I have seen seven breakers 

 twenty feet high, without a lull, plunging in over the reefs 

 into this same Corral Harbor. 'Harbor?' you say as you 

 stand watching them. 



"Another landing place is marked 'Anchorage' on the 

 sea charts, situated near the sand spit on the south side; 

 but there, a run has to be made through the breakers which 

 are often so heavy that landing is impossible. 



" Day after day, there is the cry of the gull and shag, 

 the voice of otter and seal, the boom of the heavy surf, and 

 the wind and fog and sand toihng on at their unending 

 tasks." 



