for those articles which they are continually either bringing to their island, or sending off to other places where they are wanted.  By means of all these commercial negotiations, they have greatly cheapened the fitting out of their whaling fleets, and therefore much improved their fisheries.  They are indebted for all these advantages not only to their national genius but to the poverty of their soil; and as proof of what I have so often advanced, look at the Vineyard (their neighbouring island) which is inhabited by a set of people as keen and as sagacious as themselves.  Their soil being in general extremely fertile, they have fewer navigators; though they are equally well situated for the fishing business.  As in my way back to Falmouth on the main, I visited this sister island, permit me to give you as concisely as I can, a short but true description of it; I am not so limited in the principal object of this journey, as to wish to confine myself to the single spot of Nantucket.

LETTER VI

Description of the island of Martha’s vineyard; and of the whale fishery

This island is twenty miles in length, and from seven to eight miles in breadth.  It lies nine miles from the continent, and with the Elizabeth Islands forms one of the counties of Massachusetts Bay, known by the name of Duke’s County.  Those latter, which are six in number, are about nine miles distant from the Vineyard, and are all famous for excellent dairies.  A good ferry is established between the Edgar Town, and Falmouth on the main, the distance being nine miles.  Martha’s Vineyard is divided into three townships, viz.  Edgar, Chilmark, and Tisbury; the number of inhabitants is computed at about 4000, 300 of which are Indians.  Edgar is the best seaport, and the shire town, and as its soil is light and sandy, many of its inhabitants follow the example of the people of Nantucket.  The town of Chilmark has no good harbour, but the land is excellent and no way inferior to any on the continent:  it contains excellent pastures, convenient brooks for mills, stone for fencing, etc.  The town of Tisbury is remarkable for the excellence of its timber, and has a harbour where the water is deep enough for ships of the line.  The stock of the island is 20,000 sheep, 2000 neat cattle, beside horses and goats; they have also some deer, and abundance of sea-fowls.  This has been from the beginning, and is to this day, the principal seminary of the Indians; they live on that part of the island which is called Chapoquidick, and were very early christianised by the respectable family of the Mahews, the first proprietors of it.  The first settler of that name conveyed by will to a favourite daughter a certain part of it, on which there grew many wild vines; thence it was called Martha’s Vineyard, after her name, which in process of time extended to the whole island.