h the hole, a kind of tunnel
through which the sea rushes with great violence, so much more terrible
than that of Penmarch, that the noise has been compared to the distant
roaring of some thousands of wild beasts issuing from the depths of a
forest. In the mean time, we remained seated on the bank enjoying the
view. On the south lay the Bay of Audierne, extending in the form of a
crescent, the promontories of Penmarch and Raz forming the extreme points.
The currents, and the numerous rocks of the bay, render it a dangerous
coast, formerly peopled by barbarous wreckers, who despoiled the
shipwrecked mariners as our Cornish men of old. Opposite the Raz, about
seven miles distant, is the Island of Sein, and to the right, the Baie des
Trepasses. The island of Sein was anciently the seat of an oracle,
interpreted by nine Druidesses, who were versed in every art and science.
Moreover, they appear to have been accomplished needlewomen; for a Breton
chronicler, giving an account of the coronation of an early king (Erech)
at Nantes, describes his mantle as embroidered by these priestesses with
figures of Arithmetic, Astronomy, and Music. Their skill in divination
caused them to be associated with the fairies; and Morgan--_i.e._ "born of
the sea"--one of these priestesses, who lived in the first century of the
Christian era, was famous among the British fairies.

"Avec succes cultivait la magie,
Morgan de plus, etait assez jolie."

Chateaubriand celebrates Velleda, the last of the Druidesses of Sein, tall
in stature, her eyes blue, with long fair floating hair, dressed in a
short black tunic, without sleeves, bearing a golden sickle suspended from
a brazen girdle, and crowned with a branch of oak. Here King Arthur was
brought by Merlin to recover of his wounds. The inhabitants of the island
were celebrated for their ferocity as wreckers.

The passage between the island and the point or Bec du Raz--"qu'aucun n'a
passe sans mal ou sans crainte"--is very dangerous, owing to the number of
rocks and the violence of the currents; hence the well-known prayer of the
Breton sailor, "Mon Dieu, secourez-moi pour traverser le Raz, car mon
navire est petit et la mer est grande." Having no wish to run the risk of
being detained at the island by rough weather, we did not attempt the
passage.

The Baie des Trepasses, over which we looked on the right, is so called
from the Celtic legend that the Druids embarked in this bay after t