across Houston Stewart Channel, around Provost Island, entering
Provost and Luxana Bays and Seal Cove, rounding Cape St. James, and
then along the west coast, northward, via the village of Ninstints,
Henry and Robson Inlets, Grand View Inlet, Tassoo and Gold Harbors, to
the southern or Canoe Passage of Skidegate Channel, through which,
touching at the abandoned village of Cha-atl, we returned to
Skidegate, the round trip of about 325 miles having been made in
twenty-three days.

GENERAL PHYSICAL FEATURES.

Steep and often precipitous mountains, ranging in elevation from 800
to 4000 feet above the sea, rugged and rocky on their western slopes,
densely covered with forests of spruce, hemlock and red cedar, extend
from Skidegate to Cape St. James, and from Queen Charlotte Sound to
the ocean, over all the islands, so far as my observation extended,
except the comparatively small tracts as hereafter described. The
small diameter of the islands south of Skidegate Channel leaves but
little room at any point for an interior beyond the range of the human
eye, when standing upon the summits of the highest mountains, after
having traversed their shores. The latter are uniformly rock-bound,
frequently bluff or precipitous for from 25 to 1500 feet, with
generally very limited borders of level country, the base of the steep
mountains reaching down to the sea, with but narrow foothill slopes.
There are occasional short stretches of fine sandy beaches, especially
on the bays and inlets. The streams flowing from the short water-sheds
are small, but numerous, and without exception filled with fallen
trees from near their mouth up. Their waters are generally rapid,
clear and good. Trout are found in most of them, and a small, very
excellent salmon is caught in considerable numbers in several of the