THE ISLAND OF THE SACRED CROSS 271 



it, and many visitors are not welcome yet to this vale 

 of peace in the lee of Concepcion. 



Santa Cruz is one of the largest of the islands, its 

 long axis being parallel to the neighboring mainland 

 shore. It is twenty-one miles long, extending almost 

 east and west, with an average width of five miles. 

 On the western end a commanding peak rises to an 

 altitude of half a mile or more, or, to be exact, two 

 thousand four hundred and seven feet. Another peak 

 on the east end is fifteen hundred and forty-nine feet 

 high. Santa Cruz has a number of peaks with respec- 

 tive altitudes of thirteen hundred and twenty-nine, 

 thirteen hundred and seventy- four, fourteen hundred 

 and ninety-six, and fifteen hundred and forty-nine 

 feet. On the northern ridge there are peaks of eighteen 

 hundred feet, twenty-four hundred and seven feet, and 

 twenty-one hundred and forty-four feet. According 

 to Goodyear, three-fourths of that ridge consists of 

 volcanic material. From these peaks I have had com- 

 prehensive views of the island and the Santa Barbara 

 Channel. In climate this island compares most favor- 

 ably with any part of the Riviera, as here are none of 

 the hot winds of Africa or the cold breezes from the 

 Maritime Alps. The eastern end, San Pedro Point, 

 is twenty-one and one-half miles from Santa Barbara 

 and four miles from Anacapa; and the deep, riotous 

 little channel abounds, as I well know, in game bonitos, 

 great schools being seen everywhere on clear days. 



The Santa Barbara Channel is about fifty miles 

 long. Here the United States cruisers and battleships 

 launched on this coast are tried out. The channel 

 between the islands is a canon about half a mile deep. 

 The Uttle channels between all the islands are not 



