“The vast expanse of water undulating onward, until it softened into the distant line of the horizon; the gentle curling of the crisp blue waves, as they were agitated by the passing breeze; the hoarse scream of the sea mew, as it blended with the lulling cadence of the billows; the occasional dash of distant oars, as the pleasure-boat or fishing smack glided gaily past upon the glassy surface before them; the cheerful note of the rower, as he timed the stroke of his oar to the rough measure of his song; the distant shouts of yo heave ho from the small trading vessels, as they were unlading or taking in their cargoes on the opposite shore,–– all imparted a variety and picturesque harmony to the scene, producing those lively emotions, which make us forget for a while the progress of time, when the objects that surround us are such as to entrance our attention and to elate our feelings.”
[The Sand Bank, The Athenæum Journal of English Literature and the Fine Arts, Vol.IV, 1833]