SALVAGES. 291 



our information concerning the Terrestial fauna, — even whilst 

 bringing away with him, like Mr. Leacock, from the southern 

 island, or ' Great Piton,' the only Helix which has yet been de- 

 tected in the Group, — namely that very remarkable variety of 

 the H. pisana which was subsequently described by Mr. Lowe 

 under the name of H. ustulata, and by Pfeiffer under that of 

 MacAndrewiana, but which in reality merges so completely 

 into the ordinary pisana-type that it is quite impossible to 

 uphold it as specifically distinct. 1 



The two uninhabited islands of which this intermediate 

 Group is made up (for, as just stated, the third one, or ' Little 

 Salvage,' which is said to be low and with an appreciable 

 amount of vegetation, must be dismissed as altogether and 

 hopelessly inaccessible) are the northern or larger one, known as 

 the ' Great Salvage,' and the southern or smaller one (separated 

 from the former by a channel of about eleven or twelve miles in 

 breadth), called the ' Great Piton.' The Great Salvage con- 

 tains the largest superficial area ; and the landing there, in 

 a certain cove, when the sea is tolerably calm, although more 

 or less dangerous, is by no means impracticable. But the Great 

 Piton (which, from a distance, appears like a gigantic ruin, or 

 castle, rising out of the ocean) seems to be the more interest- 

 ing, and was described by Mr. Leacock as a rocky cone covered 

 rather thickly with vegetation, and resting upon a sandy base. 

 I need scarcely mention that it is chiefly on this ' sandy base ' 

 that the Helix pisana, with its most beautiful and character- 

 istic varieties, more particularly abounds ; and one can hardly 

 believe that the densely clothed cone, if carefully searched, would 

 not be found to harbour something equally curious in the way 

 of Terrestrial Mollusks. At any rate, judging from the analogy 

 of the Beetles, which, although Canarian in their affinities, are 

 nearly all of them peculiar, we may expect that this would be 

 the case ; though the opportunities for reaching spots which are 

 thus isolated, and difficult of access, must ever remain so ex- 

 tremely exceptional that it is impossible to look forward to a 

 thorough investigation of the Salvages as coming within the 

 range of even a remote probability. 



1 I may just mention that a landing on the Great Salvage was attempted 

 by Mr. Gray and myself, on the 6th of January, 1858, when we were bound 

 for the Canaries in his yacht, the ' Miranda ' ; but the sea was running so 

 high at the time that no boat could have approached ihe cliffs nearer than 

 within a stone's throw without the utmost risk. Nevertheless we did our 

 best to accomplish what we so much desired, though the inhospitable aspect 

 of the rocks as we neared them made us anything but reluctant to pull back 

 again to the vessel and resume our voyage to Teueriffe. 



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