274 NATURAL HISTORY OF 



in the borrowes, and ordinarily there was no Drove which yielded vs not 

 a thousand and more : the manner of killing them which the Hunters 

 vsed, beeing in a cluster together, was with their cudgels to knocke them 

 on the head, for though a man gave them many blowes on the body 

 they dyed not : Besides the flesh bruized is not good to keepe. The, 

 massacre ended, presently they cut off their heads, that they might 

 bleed well ; such as we determined to keepe for store, we saued in this 

 manner. First, wee split them, and then washed them well in Sea- 

 water, then salted them, hauing laine some sixe houres in Salt, we put 

 them in presse eight houres, and the blood being soaked out, wee salted 

 them again in our other caske, as is the custom to salt Beefe, after 

 this manner they continued good some two months, and serued vs in 

 steed of Beefe. 



"The Guls and Gannets were not in so great quantitie, yet we 

 wanted not young Guls to eate all the time of our stay about these 

 Hands. It was one of the delicatest foods that I haue eaten in all 

 my life. 



" The Duckes are different to ours, and nothing so good meate ; yet 

 they may serue for necessitie : They were many, and had a part of the 

 Hand to themselves seuerall, which was the highest Hill, and more than 

 a Musket shot ouer. In all the dayes of my life, I have not seene greater 

 arte and curiositie in creatures void of reason, than in the placing and 

 making of their Nests ; all the Hill being so full of them, that the 

 greatest Mathematician of the World could not deuise how to place one 

 more than there was upon the Hill, leaving only one path-way for a 

 Fowle to passe betwixt. The Hill was all leuell, as if it had been 

 smoothed by arte ; the Nests made only of earth, and seeming to be of 

 the seKe-same mould ; for the Nests and the soile is all one, which, 

 with water that they bring in their Beakes, they make into Clay, or a 

 certain dawbe, and after fashion them round, as with a compasse. In 

 the bottome they containe the measure of a foot ; in the height about 

 eight inches ; and in the top, the same quantitie ouer ; then they are 

 hollowed in, somewhat deep, wherein to lay their Egges, without other 

 preuention. And I am of opinion that the Sun helpeth them to hatch 

 their young ; their Nests are for many yeares, and of one proportion, not 

 one exceeding another in bignesse, in height, nor circumference ; and in 

 proportionable distance one from another. In all this Hill, nor in any 

 of their Nests, was to be found a blade of grasse, a straw, a sticke, a 

 feather, a weed, no, nor the filing of any Fowle, but all the Nests and 



