Guernsey. 
—_——— 
Religious 
and puliti- 
cal state, 
Principal 
town St Pe- 
ter’s Port. 
Ancient 
castles, 
GUE 
is not subject to excessive heats or colds. ‘The winters 
and springs are moist, and high winds often prevail. 
Guernsey is divided into ten parishes, each of which 
is divided into several vintons, for the better manage- 
ment of affairs. The island is in the diocese of Win- 
chester, and province of Canterbury. The convention 
of the state, consists of the governor, a bailiff, 12 jurats 
appointed by the king; who administer the Jaws, which 
are quite different from ours, These officers hold their 
places during pleasure ; and they judge in all civil and 
criminal cases excepting high treason. The governor 
receives tythes of all kinds of grain. He has under 
him a lieutenant-governor, who is called the constable 
of the castle. The prevailing religion is that of the 
church of England, though the followers of Wesley 
are numerous. The Catholics are very few in num- 
ber. 
The only town in the island is St Peter’s Port. It 
originally consisted of a narrow street of high houses, 
but the buildings have been extended across a ravine 
over the surrounding heights. The lower streets are 
narrow, dirty, and irregular, The principal church, 
built in: 1312, is of granite. It has Gothic mouldings, 
though. no pointed. arches. Its exterior is handsome. 
Its porch is remarkable for the depth and extent of its 
mouldings ; and its tower is a great ornament from the 
pier and road It contains some good modern monu- 
ments. The new court-house is handsomely built of 
granite, and fitted up with suitable offices for the pre- 
servation of a few records. The new prison, built af- 
ter the model of the debtors’ gaol at Manchester, is 
very spacious and commodious. The work-house, or 
hospital, is supported by an endowment, and by an 
assessment on lands and houses. The harbour af- 
fords sufficient shelter and security to shipping. The 
keys and the piers are immense masses of rough ma- 
sonry formed of granite, and extending out into the 
harbour. These walls are paved, and have parapets, 
and they inclose a space of several acres. The harbour 
and the road are exposed to the south-east. Harbours 
for vessels of light tonnage occur on the north and west 
sides of the island, at the creeks of Bazon, L’Accousse, 
Ferminer, St Sampson, and the west passage. The 
market-house for meat and vegetables, is a large build- 
ing erected in an open square. Two large and ‘hand- 
some rooms have been fitted‘up above the market-house, 
for the public assemblies and entertainments, which are 
held monthly during the gay season. There is also a 
small theatre here. An ascent of about 100 steps, leads 
from the level of the market-place up the side of a'ra- 
vine to the new town, where there are many good and 
open streets, one of which, called George Row, contains 
several ene houses. The government house, the 
public walks at L’Hivreur, and the college founded by 
Queen Elizabeth, are the only other objects of interest. 
There were formerly four castles in ‘the island, viz. 
Castle Cornet, the Castle in the Marshes, Vale Castle, 
and the Castle of Notre Dame. Castle Cornet is situa- 
ted-on a rock of gneiss often approaching to granite, 
and intersected by veins. of quartz, trap, and felspar, 
curved and mixed in various ways. This rock is about 
a quarter of a mile. from the shore, and near Port St 
Peter's, It is scarcely accessible but on one side, It is 
surrounded with an outer wall of great thickness, flank- 
ed-by several machicolated towers, and the k has 
been converted into casemates. Elizabeth enlarged it 
with a lower line of curtain and bastions 3 and barracks 
and ‘accommodation for a numerous garrison have since 
540 
GUT 
been formed: It is now defended by a considerable ¢ 
quantity of heavy psa 2 
The Castle in the Marshes appears to be very ancient. 
It is encircled with a double wall of granite, and has an 
outer and inner ditch, and a keep in the Norman 
form. 
The Vale Castle, which is also ancient, stands upon” 
a commanding eminence, near St Sampson’s harbour. 
It was once reckoned to be strong, but it has now on 
a surrounding wall, with flanking towers, and a portal. 
There are barracks for a garrison; and several pieces of’ 
cannon on the ramparts, command a passage called the 
Russel. The castle of Notre Dame, and that of Rocquane, 
no longer exist. ‘ 
The inhabitants are chiefly emp in agriculture, M 
and in the cultivation of their ens and orchards, tw 
from which great quantities of excellent cyder are made. 
The only manufacture is that of woollen goods. They 
are allowed to import 1000 tons of wool annually 
from England, which is made into stockings, waist- 
coats and breeches. Lobsters are the only fish which 
is ex d. Guernsey was, before the establishment 
of the London Docks, the grand bg of all the forei 
wines and brandies. Towards the bay of St Sampson’s, 
there is a fine rock of grey or black ite, which 
is exported in large quantities to London and Ports~ 
mouth. 
stone, and being hard and tough, it is admirably 
ed for building and paving, as it easily breaks into 
square masses before the hammer. Dr Macculloch could 
not obtain any physical or historical evidence that em: 
was a production of this islnd, as has been generally 
stated. Every part of the coast of Guernsey is fortified 
with strong batteries and breast works. The number” 
of houses in St Peter's is about 800, and the population 
of the island about 15,000. f 
See Dicey’s History of te yf 3 Grose’s Antiqui- 
ties of England and Wales ; and Macculloch’s Account 
of Guernsey, in the Transactions of the Geological So- 
me vol. i. p. 7. 
U 
IANA, an extensive country in South America, situat 
is bounded by the river Orinoco on the north, by the and ex 
river of the Amazons on the south, by the Atlantic 
Ocean on the east and north-east, and by New Granada 
on the west. It is nearly of a triangular form, and is 
computed to contain 250,000 square miles. It extends 
along the coast from the mouth of the Orinoco to that 
of the Maranon or Amazons river, about 700 miles ; 
and stretches inland from east to west about 1200. 
The Orinoco is known to communicate by several 
branch-streams with the Maranon ; and one of these, 
called the Yupura, is considered as the western verge 
of Guiana. It is therefore completely an insulated tract, 
and is probably capable of fiends orediites 
The discovery of Guiana has been attributed by some pj. 
to Columbus in the year 1498, and by others to the and hi 
Spanish navigator Vasco Nunes, who, after ascertaining — 
Cuba to be an island, landed in 1504 on the continent 
of South America; and, having traced the coast from 
the Orinoco to the Maranon, comprehended the whole 
tract in that extensive country, to which, in contradis- 
tinction to Cuba and the adjacent islands, he gave the 
general name of Terra Firma, But, though originally 
seen by the Spaniards, Guiana was little known, till it 
was visited by Sir Walter Raleigh in the year 1595; 
who not only explored the coast, but also sailed up the 
river Orinoco about 600 miles in quest of the imagi- 
nary El Dorado. | Several English: buccaneers next res 
It is called the Guernsey or St Sampson’s 
