PERCE AND BONAVENTURE 139 
IT may seem to give undue attention to the boat- 
men of a day; but there are days and days in our 
lives, and with neither my companion nor myself 
will time dim the memory of the day off Bona- 
venture. 
There had been a heavy blow from the east the 
night before, the tide was ebbing, and ere we had 
passed the Rock, and while still under the lee of 
Bonaventure, our boat began to toss in a very dis- 
quieting manner. As we rounded the southwest end 
of Bonaventure we were more exposed to the action 
of the waves, but my physical balance was sustained 
by the anticipation of seeing “two, tree million of 
bird,’ which the men declared would soon be visible 
on the cliffs. 
The farther we advanced the less shelter had we 
from the land, and finally, passing the northwest 
end of the island, we were at the mercy of the full 
force of a long rolling sea, which made it impossible 
to stand, or even sit, without clinging to one’s sur- 
roundings. At this point, I believe, the promise of 
the most wonderful sight in the bird world would not 
have induced me to continue on our course another 
minute; but fortunately no promise was required, 
the sight itself existed, and under its inspiration I 
battled with weak nature for the next half hour 
with a courage born of enthusiasm and a desire to 
picture the wonders of the scene before me. 
On the ledges of the red sandstone cliffs, which 
rose sheer three hundred feet above the waves at 
their base, was row after row of snow-white Gan- 
nets on their nests.” Their number was incredible, 
and as we coasted slowly onward, the red walls above 
