from behind tliese banks, on which cannon could have
made no impression. To force one of these embankments
would have been futile, because another would
have been discovered at the distance of a musket shot
farther. And if an enemy should have attempted to
move a body of troops forward in one of these lanes,
it might probably terminate in the court-yard of a
farm house.
But all this intricacy is destroyed by the construction
of the new roads; and the difficulties which
would otherwise have been encountered by an enemy,
greatly smoothed. Good carriage roads now lead
down to the bays: these roads join a circular communication,
which runs round the island; and crossing
this, proceed in direct lines to St. Helier. Now,
therefore, an enemy has only to keep the high road
Avitli the main body of his troops, and thus gaining
the heights which surround the town, invest both it
and Fort Regent. I ought, perhaps, to ask forgiveness
of the general reader, for this short military
digression.
Of the state of cultivation of Jersey, I shall have
occasion afterwards to speak; but, remarking at present
on the general features and character of the
island, I would observe, that one sees but very little
waste land,—unless, indeed, that which is wasted by
reason of the broad banks which skirt the roads and
paths; and by the quantity of useless wood. In rambling
over the island, however, the wooded fertility
Avhich I have described, as being characteristic of the
scenery of Jersey, will not be constantly applicable.
On one part of the island,—that towards the northwest,—
you emerge from the orchards, and deep dells,
and shady paths, and find open downs, which reach to
the sea in that direction. These are all enclosed, and
afford good pasture; and although the beautiful and
the picturesque, be here left behind, these scenes are
not without their charm. There is a freshness in the
air, and a buoyancy of spirit felt, in treading these
high open grounds: the very contrast afforded with
the rest of the island, is pleasing,—since variety is
always pleasing; and these downs are, besides, adorned
by several kinds of flowering heath, far excelling in
the size, and in the tint of its blossoms, any that is
seen growing wild in Britain. It even reminded me
of that which grows so abundantly in many parts of
Spain, particularly on the road by San Felippe, between
Murcia and Valencia.
CH A PT ER H I.
The Town of St. A.ubin, Situation, Inhabitants—Grouville, and its
Church—The Island Churches—The Tovi^n of Gorey—Mont
Orgueil Castle—Magnificent Prospect—The Oyster Fishery of
Gorey—Traditions—Prynne, and his Poetry—The Island Hamlets—
Farm Houses— Manor Houses—Villas, and Gardens—
Flowers— A few words on Climate.
S t . H e l i e r , although the chief town of Jersey, is not
the only one. .lersey contains two other towns, and
many hamlets. Let me first speak briefly of St. Aubin
; which gives a name to the magnificent bay in