 Whatever the privations , the St Kildans were fortunate in some respects , for their isolation spared them some of the evils of life elsewhere . Martin noted in 1697 that the citizens seemed " happier than the generality of mankind as being almost the only people in the world who feel the sweetness of true liberty " , and in the 19th century their health and well being was contrasted favourably with conditions elsewhere in the Hebrides . Theirs was not a utopian society ; the islanders had ingenious wooden locks for their property , and financial penalties were exacted for misdemeanours . Nonetheless , no resident St Kildan is known to have fought in a war , and in four centuries of history , no serious crime committed by an islander was recorded there . 
