southern cape of Newfoundland, and is the last land to
be seen on the American coast, in crossing the Atlantic.

After about a quarter of an hour, the boat began to approach the shores
of the little island. And now the great square tower, and the rampart
wall connected with it, came plainly in sight. There were a few very
large and old trees overhanging the ruins, and all the rest of the
island was covered with a dense grove of young trees. The boat came up
to the land, and Mr. George and the boys stepped out of it upon a sort
of jetty, formed of stones loosely thrown together. There was a path
leading through the grass, and among the trees, towards the ruins of the
castle.

The castle consisted, when it was entire, of a square area enclosed in a
high wall, with various buildings along the inner side of it. The
principal of these buildings was the square tower. This was in one
corner of the enclosure. At the opposite corner of the enclosure were
the ruins of a smaller tower, hexagonal in its form. The square tower
contained the principal apartments occupied by the family that resided
in the castle. The hexagonal one contained the rooms where Queen Mary
was imprisoned.

Then, besides these structures, there were several other buildings
within the area, though they are now gone almost entirely to ruin. There
was a chapel, for religious services and worship; there were ovens for
baking, and a brewery for brewing beer. The guide showed Mr. George and
the boys the places where these buildings stood; though nothing was left
of them now but the rude ranges of stone which marked the foundations of
them. Indeed, throughout the whole interior of the area enclosed by the
castle wall there was nothing to be seen but stones and heaps of
rubbish, all overgrown with rank grass, and tall wild-flowers, and
overshadowed by the wide-spreading limbs and dense foliage of several
enormous trees, that had by chance sprung up since the castle went to
ruin. It was a very mournful spectacle.

The boys walked directly across the area, towards the hexagonal tower,
in order to see the place where Queen Mary escaped by climbing out of
the window.

Mr. George had thought that Waldron would not succeed in obtaining any
satisfactory information from the guide in respect to the circumstances
of Queen Mary's escape; for, generally, the guides who show these old
places in England and Scotland know little more than a certain lesson,
which they have l