INTRODUCTION I. General Physical Features /^ORNWALL, the most westerly as also the most southerly county in England (the term " county " must be used without prejudice, for Cornwall is strictly a duchy), is bounded on the E. by Devonshire; on the S. by the English Channel; on the W. and N. by the Atlantic. Its shape, somewhat resembling that of Italy, has been compared to a long boot ; it has also been compared to a horn, with an attempt to thus account for the origin of its name. No other British county has so much sea-board. Its greatest length, from the N.E. corner to Land's End, is 80 miles ; greatest breadth, Marsland Mouth to Rame Head, 46 miles. At its narrowest, St. Ives Bay to Mount's Bay, it is only 6 miles across. While Land's End is the most westerly point of England, the Lizard is the most southerly. The area is 1365 square miles. The climate is the most equable in Eng- land, with little extreme either of heat or cold. This is more especially the case in West Corn- wall; the N.E. and S.E. coincide respectively with North and South Devon. At Penzance
