2SS On a Suhmaring ForeJS 



19th of the month, being the firft day after the equino6liai 

 full moon, when the loweft ebbs were to be expected, we 

 went in a boat about half pad twelve at noon, and loon fet foot 

 upon one of the largcft iflands then appearing. Its expofed 

 furface was about thirty yards long, and twenty-five wide, 

 when the tide was at the loweft. A great number of fmallcr 

 iflets were vif;l)lc around us, chiefly to the eaftward and 

 fouthward; and the fifliernien, whofe authority in this point 

 is very competent, lay, that fimilar nioors are to be found 

 along the wliole coaft, from Skegncfs to Grimfby, particu- 

 larly off Addelthoqie and Mablelhorpe. The channels di- 

 viding the iflets were, rt the time we faw them, wide, and 

 of various depths ; tlic idands thcmfclves ranging generally 

 from call to weft in their largcft dimcnfions. 



We viftted them again in the ebbs of the 20th and aift; 

 and thouoh it did not generally , ebb fo far as we expeAed, 

 we could notwilhftanding afcertain that they confifted al- 

 moft entirely of roots, trunks, branches and leaves of trees 

 and flimbs, intermixed with fome leaves of aquatic plants. 

 The remains of fome of thefe trees were ftill Handing on 

 their roots, while the trunks of the great part lay fcattered on 

 the oround inevery poftible dircdion. The barks of trees 

 and roots appeared generally as frefli as when they were grow- 

 ino-; in that of the branches particularly, of which a great 

 quantity was found, even the thin filver membranes of the 

 outer (kin were dircerniblc. The timber of all kinds, on the 

 contrar^-j was dccompoicd, and foft in the greateft part of the 

 trees: in fome, however, it was firm, efpcciallv in the roots. 

 'The people of the country have often found among them 

 ven,' found pieces of timber, fit to be employed for feveral 

 economical purpofes. 



The forts of wood which a|| ftill diftinguifhable, are, birch, 

 fir, and oak. Other woods evidently exift in thefe iflets, 

 of Ibuic of which we found the leaves in the foil ; but oui* 

 prefent knowledge of tlie comparati\e anatomy of timber is 

 not i"o far advanced as to afford us the means of pronouncing 



with 



