SHIANT ISLES. GENERAL DESCRIPTION. 437 



their natural positions, at others fallen and intermingled 

 with steep and impracticable grassy slopes. Towards 

 the north it exhibits one continuous perpendicular face 

 of naked rock ; which, at the eastern end, terminates in 

 the sea that washes its foot, while, toward the western, 

 its base is concealed by a great accumulation of earth 

 and fallen fragments. This face, measured by the 

 sounding line, was found to vary from three to four 

 hundred feet in height. It is columnar throughout, and 

 forms a magnificent scene for the pencil ; spreading 

 in a gentle curve for a space of 1000 yards or more, 

 and impending in one broad mass of shadow over the 

 dark sea that washes its base. In simplicity and grandeur 

 of effect it exceeds StafTa almost as much as it does in 

 magnitude ; offering to the tourist an object as worthy 

 of his pursuit as that celebrated island, and of no very 

 difficult access from the northern extremity of Sky. 

 Although the columns which form thi& extensive and 

 elevated face, are scarcely less regular when separately 

 considered, or when detached, than those of StafTa, they 

 do not impress the spectator with the same idea of regu- 

 larity, or excite the same feeling of artifice. Different 

 causes unite to prevent this. One of these is the want 

 of that contrast which in StafTa results from the irregular 

 masses of rock on which the pillars repose and which 

 at the same time surmount them. Another cause is to 

 be found in the great height of the columns composing 

 this face, which, being prolonged from the sea to the 

 very summit, exceed six times in length those of StafTa, 

 while they do not generally surpass them in dimension. 

 They consequently appear small; while the distance required 

 for viewing the whole to advantage, diminishes them still 

 so much more, as almost to render the columnar structure 

 of the cliff invisible from a proper point of sight. Lastly, 

 the great length of these columns generally prevents 

 them from being continuous, as at StafTa, from the summit 

 to the base; and the effect of regularity is therefore 



