20 A NATURALIST IN THE MAGDALEN ISLANDS. 
everywhere in fact, the air was full of birds. Those on 
the ledges did not offer to fly, but sat still and stared at us 
stupidly. The air was tainted with the odor arising from 
hundreds of fish in all stages of decomposition. Such a 
horrible clamor was kept up, too. One can never realize 
the sight until it has been seen. About halfway up, the 
captain and our man began to tremble and turn pale. The 
way they hung on to the chains was a beautiful sight to see. 
Every few feet the chain would run over itself as it was 
wound up by the windlass, and in slipping back to its place 
it gave us a slight jerk, that caused the captain to mutter his 
prayers faster than ever. 
The ascent took twenty-seven minutes, and it really is not 
a pleasant sensation being swung about over a hundred feet 
in the air, supported only by a rusty chain. As we neared 
the top, the captain kept crying out, “ For God’s sake, hurry!” 
and when we were swung over the cliff above solid ground, 
he gave a deep sigh and swore that if he got down alive he 
would never again make the ascent. 
We were kindly received by Mr. Peter Whalen, the light- 
keeper, and after a dinner on Guillemots’ eggs we made 
