From the inability of the Author (through local circumstances) to superintend the revision of the sheets as they passed through the press, some typographical errors have unavoidably crept into the following pages. For those which are of so trivial a nature as neither to affect the sense nor the grammatical construction of the passages in which they appear, perhaps no apology will be expected. The rest may be rendered sufficiently intelligible by attention to the following

VIEW

OF THE

PRESENT STATE

OF THE

SCILLY ISLANDS.

Part I.

GENERAL DESCRIPTION.

CHAPTER I.

Geographical Position of the Scilly Islands.Their Bearings and Distance from the nearest Head-lands of England, France, and Ireland. Their general Appearance, Number, Extent, Dimensions, and Population.-Their Importance to Great Britain demonstrated, from a variety of Considerations.-Analysis of the Report of the Surveyor General of the Duchy of Cornwall on the Improvement of the Roadsteads at Scilly; with Remarks, obviatory of popular prejudices, and elucidatory of the subjects contained in the Report.

THE SCILLY ISLANDS (more commonly, though vaguely, known under the general name of Scilly)—are situated at the entrance of the British and Bristol Channels, which are first

B

separated and distinguished by their interposition. They lie in latitude 49 degrees, 57 minutes, North; longitude 6 degrees, 43 minutes, West; bearing about West-by-South from the Land's End; due West from the Lizard ; North-West from Ushant; and South-East from Cape Clear. They are distant from the latter place, 51 leagues; from Ushant, 34; from the Lizard, 17; and from the Land's End (whence they may be seen by the naked eye, on a clear day) between 9 and 10 leagues. From London, their distance is 320 miles."

a Although it is not intended, in this work, to follow the examples of Heath and Troutbeck, by inserting a variety of articles connected merely with the local navigation of the Isles, and therefore wholly uninteresting to the general reader; yet it may be remarked, as an observation of the accurate Dr. Halley, that in the charts extant in his time, they were laid down too far Northerly; in some instances, full 50 deg. 10 min. This, as he adds, was not without a good effect so long as the magnetic variation continued Easterly; but since it became Westerly, as it has been from the year 1657, ships steering in Easterly by the compass, get the variation to the Northward of their true course, which may expose them to mistakes and danger, especially if Scilly be reckoned in or above 50 degrees. He contends that the in-draught of St. George's Channel is not sufficient to occasion these accidents; and therefore advises masters of ships coming into Channel to "steer on a course as much to the Southward of the East, as the variation, at any time, is Wester-. ly; which will exactly keep their parallel. And also that

Soon after leaving the Land's End, the shadowy forms of the Islands are seen, apparently combined in one long low line, stretching on the verge of the horizon like a slight cloud. St. Martin's Head, (the Northernmost point of the Islands, on which is a white day-mark) is first perceived; but the Isles and rocks lie in such clusters, that the divisions and channels between them can only be discerned on a near approach. These groups shift their forms continually, according to the different points of view in which they are contemplated. At the distance of ten or twelve miles, the Islands appear in one connected mass, yet with numerous abrupt ridges; but, seen from each other, the Islands of St. Mary's, St. Martin's, and Tresco, seem nearly level at top, and about the same height, their head-lands being terminated by carns or piles of rock.

they come out of the ocean on a parallel not more Northerly than 49 deg. 40 min. which will bring them fair by the Lizard."

I have only further to observe on this head, that although Heath, agreeably to Halley's suggestion, has laid down St. Mary's Castle in lat. 49 deg. 55 min. and St. Agnes' Light-house in 49 deg. 53 min. 30 sec.; more recent and more accurate observation has fixed the former in the situation mentioned on the preceding page; and St. Agnes in lat. 49 deg. 54 min. N.; lon. 6 deg. 19 min. W. (See Mackay's Navigator.)