The inhabitants of the islands were once known for their smuggling and wrecking propensities.  A fisherman whom we fell in with--a venerable-looking man, with white hair streaming under his cap--pointed out several spots on which ships with rich cargoes had run on shore, and assured us that coin was still to be picked up in the sand, if people would but take the trouble to look for it.  In former days everybody was engaged in smuggling, or trusting to salvage from wrecks.  There was but little farming.  No potatoes were grown, and there were no gardens, while their huts were as low and damp as those in the Hebrides.  But when Mr Smith came he changed all that; and now the people live in comfortable houses, have gardens full of flowers, and the productions of the islands afford them ample support.  Wheat and rye, and every description of vegetable, are grown; scarlet geraniums flourish, while fuchsias, and a variety of other magnificent flowers, not only grow in the gardens, but form hedges several feet in height.