CHAPTER I 



The Island of Guernsey' 



The Island of Guernsey and the sister islands of Jersey, 

 Alderney, Sark, Herm, and Jethou, and several others that are 

 little more than rocks, form the Channel Islands group, and 

 are situated in the English Channel not far from the coast of 

 France. Guernsey is 69 miles southeast of the nearest point 

 on the English coast and about 28 miles from the nearest 

 point on the coast of France. Jersey is about 22 miles south- 

 east of Guernsey and 15 miles from the coast of France, and 

 Alderney is 22 miles northeast of Guernsey and only eight 

 miles from the nearest point on the French coast. Sark and 

 Herm, the only other islands of the group that are inhabited, 

 lie between Guernsey and the coast of France. Jersey, the 

 largest of the group, contains about 45 square miles ; is in 

 general conformation sloping to the south; and has a slightly 

 milder climate than Guernsey, where the general slope of the 



Rocquaine Bay, Guernsey. 



land is northward. Jersey is noted not only for its cattle but 

 also for the enormous quantities of early potatoes that are 

 raised and shipped to the English markets. 



Guernsey is nine miles in extreme length and five miles 

 in width, and has an actual area of 24 square miles. Ragged 

 granite bluffs characterize almost its entire coast, and the sur- 

 rounding sea is very dangerous to navigate, due not only to 



