The shores of the bay no longer presented a scene of wild and solitary magnificence.

Forests, which had defied the blasts of ages, were swept away; and, in their stead, fields of waving grain hung their golden ears in the ripening sun, ready for the coming harvest.

Flocks and herds grazed in the green pastures which sloped to the water's edge, or collected in meditative groups beneath the scattered trees that spread their ample branches to shelter them.

The noble range of hills which rose beyond in beautiful inequalities, girdling the indented coast, presented a rich and variegated prospect.

Broad patches of cultivation appeared in every sheltered nook, and tracts of smooth mown grass relieved the eye from the midst of sterile wilds.