415 
ISLE 
At the prelent time the number of inhabitants is thought 
to be mor£ than 30,000, a population nearly proportionate 
to that of England. 
The ifland is divided into two unequal portions by a 
chain of moderately-high mountains, running from north- 
eaft to fouth-weft, broken at one part, between Mount 
Kreevey and South Bartule. The moll^onfiderable fum- 
mits are Snawfel and North and South Barrule, the two 
Lift forming its extremities. The height of Snawfel, as 
taken by the barometer, is five hundred and eighty yards 
above the level of the fea; and the two Barrules are in- 
conliderably lower. The high land between North Bar- 
rule and Mount Kreevey gives rife to feveral rivers, the 
chief of which empty themfelves into the fea at Ramfey, 
at Laxey, and at Douglas. Ramfey river is the largeft ; 
and the flat country, through which it finally runs, per¬ 
mits fpring-tides to produce their effect upon it two miles 
from the fea. The northern branch of Douglas river 
rifes on the weftern fide of Mount Garrahan. The northern 
fide of South Barrule contributes a portion of its waters 
to Peel river, and another to the river of Glenmay. The 
fouthern fide fends forth a ftreamlet; one of the branches 
of Caftletown river, which joins the other branch a little 
above Athol bridge, running nearly fouth. All the ftreams 
are very fliallow ; and fmaller ones, not large enough in 
fummer to turn a mill, are very frequent. 
The northern portion,of the ifland is a light fand, reft- 
ing on a bed of common clay 5 the greateft portion of the 
ifland confiftsof a barren foil, refting on grey wacke-flate, 
and on clay-flate ; a fmall portion around Caftletown is 
compofed of lime-ftone of tranfition; and the mountains 
are formed chiefly of ftrata of clay-flate, much interfered 
by veins of quartz, and which feem to l'elt on mica-flate, 
a mineral that occurs on the fides and fummits of feveral 
of them, and which probably relts on granite. The dip 
of the ftrata, whether of (late, of lime-ftone, or fand-ftone, 
is almoft invariably fouth-eaft. The chief metallic re- 
pofitories are veins of lead and copper ores near Laxey, 
at Foxdale, and at Breda-head, near Port Erin. Such is 
the general diftribution of the mineral productions in the 
ifland. For a detailed account of the individual minera- 
{ -'gy, we beg to refer the reader to Woods’s Account of 
the Ifle of Man, juft publifhed, and from which this arti¬ 
cle is compiled. 
In many parts of the flat diftrift peat is found in con- 
fiderable quantities, ufually from fix to eight feet thick, 
and fometirnes much more, it refts upon clay, frequently 
much mixed with fand. Trunks of the pine and of the 
oak are often obfervable. The former is accounted the 
mod common, but I (fays Woods) faw only the latter. 
It is black, very hard, quite free from decay, and is fome- 
times ufed by cabinet-makers. The two forts of tree are 
rarely or never found together ; the trunks of oak lie in 
clutters ; hence an opinion has been formed that the fir 
was indigenous to the country, and that the oak, the fa¬ 
vourite of the Druids, was brought hither either by fuch 
of them as were fortunate enough to efcape the army of 
Suetonius, or by thofe who fled from Anglefey when that 
country was finally conquered by Agricola. To have le¬ 
velled thefe trees with the ground muft have required a 
confiderable convulfion of nature ; and if they exifted 
alive till the extermination of the Druids from Wales, it 
feems probable that we Ihould have fome tradition of their 
deftruflion. 
We have faid that the chief mines are in the neigh¬ 
bourhood of Laxey. Thefe are fituated on the banks of 
Laxey river, about one mile above that village. They 
are worked by two levels driven from the fteep banks of 
the river. The upper level was begun about thirty years 
ago, but has not been regularly worked, and is partly 
filled up with water. It runs to the depth of about a 
hundred yards, following a vein nearly four feet wide, 
dipping to the eaft upwards of one foot in fix. The vein 
confifts of quartz, common brown blende, lead glance, or 
galena, and occafionally fome copper-green or carbonat 
or M A N. 
of copper. Of the metallic matters, the blende is the moft 
abundant, next the lead, and laftly the copper ore. The 
height of the excavation is from four to fifteen feet, ac¬ 
cording to the extent or goodnefs of the ore. For a con¬ 
fiderable period the copper ore was difregarded, and 
thrown away among the rubbifti. Some time ago the 
miners requefted and obtained it of the proprietors. What 
they collected was fold at the rate of 23I. 14s. 6d. per 
ton, a price which fhows that it was not a very pure cop¬ 
per ore. The blende here, as at other mines, was till 
within thefe few years thrown away, but is now fold at 
the rate of feven pounds per ton. This fubftance, till 
lately confidered of no value, is at prefent ufed to glaze 
the coarfer kinds of earthenware. The lead glance of 
this mine is very rich in filver, one ton of it affording,, 
on aflay, one hundred and eighty ounces of filver, or about 
•j-^th part, according to the report of thofe employed i» 
the works. This lead ore is therefore the great objeft of 
the miner’s refearch. It is common foliated galena, with 
a pretty freflt lead-grey colour and ftrong metallic luftre. 
It is faid that the other lead ores of this ifland never 
yielded above, and rarely fo much as, feven ounces per 
ton. Where the copper ore appears in the vein, the lead 
is in fmall quantity, and even that quantity is poor, be¬ 
ing what the miners call burnt. The new level, which is 
now carried on, is fituated about a quarter of a mile fur¬ 
ther down the river. It is twenty-eight yards below the 
level of the old excavation. One purpofe of it is to drain, 
the old level of its water. In the autumn of 1808, it ex¬ 
tended about two hundred yards; and three miners were 
at work upon it. The only metallic fubftances yet found 
are carbonat of copper and blende. Its produce hitherto 
has not been fufficient to pay the expence of working; 
but the copper ore improves as they proceed. 
All mines belong by prerogative to the lord-proprietor 
of the foil. They are let by him to one company of nine 
or ten perfons, himfelf being one of thefe; and he claims^., 
as lefl'or, one eighth part of their grofs produce. 
The zoology of the Ifle of Man is not a very fertile 
theme.—The birds obfervable upon the coafts are the La- 
rus fufcus, white and grey, and the L. ridibundus, gulls;. 
Pelecanus baflanus, the jannet; P. carbo, the cormorant; 
P. graculus, the lhag; Ardea major, the heron; and the 
Corvus cornix, or Royfton crow. The birds of paflage 
that fpend the breeding-feafon upon the Calf are faid to 
confift of eight fpecies, among which are the Alca arftica,. 
or puffin, and the A. torda, or razor-bill. The puffin is 
extremely fat, and is reckoned by fome a great delicacy. 
They build their nells in rabbit-burrows ; and fo abun¬ 
dant were they, that five thoufand young ones were annu¬ 
ally taken without any apparent diminution of the num¬ 
ber. Some years ago a large' Ruffian merchant-velfel was 
wrecked upon the coaft. The crew of failors periffied ; 
but many rats efcaped to ffiore, and, taking pofleffion of 
the neareft burrows, almoft exterminated the poor puffins. 
Not one was taken for many years afterwards. A few 
are now occafionally feen, and it is thought their number 
is increafing. Colonel Townley fays, that the fea-parrots 
which are found here, meaning probably the puffins, make 
excellent foup. The Scolopax arcuata, or curlieu, is not 
uncommon. Bifliop Wilfon mentions the exiftence of 
eagles in his time. The airy lall known was upon 
Snawfel. 
Hares are not very common, for wantof cover; and 
the birds which the fportfman experts to meet with are 
partridges, woodcocks, groufe, fnipes, and wild ducks. 
Partridges are irt fome feafons very plentiful. 
Some beautiful fpecies of mollufca, the Aftinia rufa, 
are feen adhering to the rocks where pools are formed, 
waiting for their prey with extended arms. See vol. i. p. 
101. and the Plate there referred to. Of this genus per¬ 
haps may be the battlecock mentioned by Townley: it is 
faid to poflefs nearly all the defirable properties of the 
turtle, not excepting the green fat, and to make excellent 
foup. 
Noxious 
