CHAP. 11. ] THE CRUISES OF THE ‘ PORCUPINE.’ 107 
with twelve blue-jacketed Shetlanders sitting like 
statues, their white oars glittering in the sun. The 
Governor looked with the critical eye of a sailor at 
the two boats,—he still spoke lovingly of the ‘Maid 
of Féroe,’ but I suppose he saw that, as Tennyson 
says, ‘we were all of us Danes;’ and the question 
of a trial of strength lapsed by mutual consent ! 
We were obliged to remain a few days at Thorshayn 
replenishing in various ways, and while there we were 
very anxious to have had an opportunity of seeing 
Myling Head—a magnificent cliff at the north-western 
point of Strome, which falls perpendicularly, even 
slightly overhanging its base, from a height of upwards 
of 2,000 feet into the sea. The tide runs among and 
round these islands like a mill-race, and the Governor 
told us that if we started with the morning flood, 
and our vessel kept pace with the tide, we might 
make the circuit of the island, passing under Myling, 
and returning to Thorshavn in six hours. If we did 
not carry the tide with us, it became a matter of dif- 
ficulty only to be achieved at considerable expense 
both of fuel and time. 
We found that high water would occur on the fol- 
lowing Monday, Aug. 28, at 4 o’clock in the morning ; 
and as the weather was brilliant up to the evening 
of Sunday—unusually brilliant for those regions—we 
made all our arrangements in high hope of a pleasant 
trip, as we had persuaded our kind host and hostess 
to accompany us. With the first dawn of Monday 
morning it was blowing and pouring, and we were 
obliged to defer our visit to the celebrated headland 
to some possible future opportunity. 
The next morning was fine again, and we left 
