The Argosy — page 61: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

46 The Channel Islands. the waves dashed over them with tremendous fury. Dashed too, against the island itself, as if they would hurl it from its very founda- tion. We rounded, and came up with the immense breakwater, which, owing to some error in site or construction, has not with- stood the sea, and has fallen away in two places. It was a veritable witch’s caldron. The whole scene was sublime and terrific. Great waves were rushing in, wave after wave, rolling and breaking, and sweeping onwards. They met the breakwater and dashed over it with a noise of thunder. White foam and spray swept high into the air, and the water swirled over the inner walk of the breakwater like a miniature Niagara. ll around, far as the eye could reach, the sea was heaving and swelling, rising and falling. The sky, now black and lowering, seemed to frown upon our approach. It threw a dark shadow upon Alderney, which looked indescribably grand and gloomy, but chilling and inhospitable. The forts themselves, on the right hand and on the left, seemed to declare that the place existed only for the stern and cruel purposes of war, and that pleasure and profit would not here be found. Up, within the breakwater, passed the steamer, but owing to the two breaches in the masonry, by no means into calm waters. Even when alongside the jetty, it was some time before she could be moored, for she floated like a cork upon the waves, and fenders and other safeguards had to be used to keep her from beating against the stonework. All this time, down the length of the breakwater, which is considerable, the sea was ever and anon flush- ing over, and pouring in a torrent of foam and spray that few would have cared to encounter. At length we landed; the difficult fact was accomplished. <A small crowd waited there to meet the boat, and one or two vehicles, half carts, half baggage-waggons. But everyone seemed to have his destined occupation, and not a creature would, for love or money, con- sent to carry our bag to the hotel. At last—necessity is the mother of invention—H. suggested that we should become our own porters and lighten our labour by slinging the bag on our sticks and carrying it between us, after the manner of Caleb and Joshua with the grapes of Eshcol. In this way we made progress, even though it was uphill work. ‘The steamer remained long enough to transact her business, and then proceeded on her way to Cherbourg. She would return in the afternoon of the next day, when, if we had had enough of Alderney, we might set sail for Guernsey. Certainly the earliest impression one gains of Alderney is that it is strongly fortified. Immense sums have been spent upon the works. At first sight these fortifications seem utterly out of place and unnecessary, but the position of Alderney is said, by those who ought to know, to require all the strength that has been given to it. We accepted this declaration in faith, nothing doubting. The second impression, to those who are carrying their own Gomicbooks.co m