322 THE GREAT NORTH-WEST 



dropping a line over the edge. Some of the cliffs were 

 undermined, and others sloped under water ; but at 

 places, from a boat lying only a few yards from the 

 rocks, depths of two to four hundred feet were obtained. 

 Sometimes the bottom was very rough and irregular, 

 seeming to be a mass of piled-up rocks which had fallen 

 from the cliffs above. 



None of the Picture Rocks showed a red colour, but 

 almost every other imaginable tint was found in strange 

 combination, such as a person acquainted only with the 

 dull-coloured rocks of Europe can have no idea of. 

 Bright blues and greens were very conspicuous, due 

 probably to the presence of copper in some form ; and 

 these various tints have much to do with the fanciful 

 shapes the cliffs seem to assume. From a distance many 

 of the bare rocks appear to be covered with luxuriant 

 forest, among which nestle towns, castles, forts, and 

 picturesque cottages. As you approach nearer all these 

 forms change in a wonderfully grotesque way, like the 

 ever-recurring alterations in a kaleidoscope, often assum- 

 ing the figures of gigantic men and animals. The 

 resemblance was often perfect from a certain point of 

 view, but half-a-dozen strokes of the paddle were enough 

 to dispel the illusion, or transform it into a greater. 

 The best, and most grotesque views, perhaps, are obtained 

 at about a mile from the shore ; but the atmosphere is 

 usually so beautifully clear that good views are obtained 

 at much greater distances. 



" Chimney-rocks " are very common on this part of 

 the coast, but none of the pinnacles struck me as being 

 very extraordinary. I was far more interested in the 

 caverns and perforations. A remarkable projection, called 

 the Sail Rock, cannot be passed without notice. This 

 is one of the least changeable of the rock-objects. It 

 is such a faithful likeness of a sloop-rigged boat that 

 strangers have repeatedly believed it to be such. A 

 short distance beyond is a very remarkable natural per- 



