Letters of Rustic us. 2447 



although, partly owing to the motion of the boat, our shots were not invariably suc- 

 cessful, yet we soon managed to cover the greater part of the bottom of the boat with 

 the slain. • 



" The birds, after the first rush, soon diminished in numbers, and in about an hour 

 became so thin as scarcely to afford us the chance of a shot ; so we proceeded on our 

 way past Sun Corner, and found that between this point and the Needles a whole co- 

 lony of corvorants had established themselves : the old hens were visible by dozens 

 sitting upon their nests. Precisely under the spot where the corvorants were sitting 

 was a narrow slip of beach. On this we landed with great difficulty, as the swell of 

 the sea continued very heavy, and the bottom is here very bad ; and, being almost 

 perpendicularly under the birds, we could plainly see their long necks and stiff still 

 heads poked out to seaward : so we spent much time, swan-shot, bullets, and excellent 

 powder ; and finding that they did not move their heads one inch to the right or left, 

 we got into our boat, and floated onward with the tide towards the Needles ; resolving, 

 however, to try the effect of shots from above, as it was very clear they took no effect 

 from below. To accomplish this, we had to pass through the Needles, and land in 

 Alum Bay, whence there is a decent foot-path up the cliff, and across to the top of 

 that other cliff, on the ledges of which the old hen corvorants were so sedately plan- 

 ning for the welfare of their future progeny ; in fact, where they were reckoning their 

 chickens before they were hatched. The water had gone down about three hours, 

 and the passage through the Needles was a ticklish affair. The gap which we were 

 about to attempt was little wider than our boat, and had a constant current running 

 rapidly at ebb tide towards Alum Bay. The depth varied as each successive swell 

 rolled in from the ocean, from 1 foot to 20 feet, and at low water was left quite dry. 

 Two of us knew something of old ocean and old ocean's ways ; and though we were 

 ignorant of this particular spot, we learned sufficient from the fishermen to know the 

 thing was to be done. Off went the coats ; two men to each oar : we held our craft 

 steadily against the current, which was tremendously strong, and kept her head right 

 for the opening. An enormous swell rolled seaward, leaving us almost aground : 

 rattle, rattle, and thump, thump, we heard the stones and fragments of rock beneath 

 us; it seemed an hour running out: at last another came: "Here she comes 

 again ! keep her head right, and stand by ! " — up, up, we rose. " One stroke, up 

 oars, let her drive!" — and through we went, in gallant style, on the very crest of the 

 swell. 



" On the Alum-Bay side of the Needles there was no swell to be felt; but the 

 meeting of opposing tides and currents, the influence of the winds, and the rough 

 rocky bottom, keep the water in a sort of perpetual boil. As we approached the shore, 

 we had to pass over a good many lobster-pots, which we took the liberty of examining, 

 and found, among other contents, a great many soldier crabs, which had established 

 themselves in the shells of the common whelks : we did not rob the poor people of 

 their lobsters, but carried off the soldiers and a few species of crabs which could only 

 be useful to a naturalist. The geology of Alum Bay must be very interesting ; the 

 cliff above it presents all the colours imaginable. The poor people in the neighbour- 

 hood get sands from it of a dozen different colours ; and, running them into a phial, 

 make each colour form a distinct ring, which has a very pretty effect: these phials, 

 so filled, they sell for a shilling each. 



" We ascended the cliff, examined the lighthouse, purchased a variety of eggs, 

 and crossed the hill to the corvorant colony : then, by lying down on our bellies on 



