128 A summer's cruise to northern LABRADOR. 



regarded as the sole existing type of a distinct order 

 iPhyllocarida), whose gigantic fossil prototypes, some of 

 them nearly two feet in length, occur in the palaeozoic 

 rocks in America and Europe. 



The next day also we were wind-bound, but the gale- 

 was from the southwest ; the wind blew very fresh, hav- 

 ing a good sweep over the Gulf, the breakers ran high, 

 as nearly all the harbors in Southern Labrador, i.e., south 

 and west of Belle Isle, are exposed to gales from this 

 direction. We put out our kedge anchor, and fre- 

 quently had to haul in a part of the cable to keep the 

 vessel off the rocks. We should have put out to sea 

 and taken advantage of the gale to go on our course up 

 the coast, but. were afraid of running upon a sunken 

 rock at the mouth of the " tickle" or narrow passage 

 forming our harbor. 



A part of the day was spent about and upon the 

 Devil's Dining Table. This is a mass of columnar basalt, 

 which has been described by Lt. Baddely in the Transac- 

 tions of the Literary and Historical Society of Quebec 

 for 1829. The height of the rock above the sea is 225 

 feet, to the base of the pillars of basalt 180 feet; the 

 height of the columns themselves being 25 feet. The 

 columns are quite regularly prismatic and of nearly the 

 same size and nature as those of the Giant's Causeway. 



Ascending the terrace, carpeted with the mountain 

 trident, I climbed up the cliff over the basaltic steps, 

 by the only means of ascent situated on the eastern side, 

 where the columns had been worn away by a little 

 stream, on top of the flat table, which was 125 paces 

 broad at the widest part. The ends of the prismatic 

 columns occasionally protruded through the dense 



