Notes by a naturalist : an account of observations made during the voyage of H.M.S. "Challenger" around the world in the years 1872-1876

Front matter

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V.ViiCs.

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Chapter I

TENERIFE. ST. THOMAS. BERMUDA.

PAGE

Circumstances of the Voyage. Tenerife. Cochineal Plantations. Excursions up the Peak. Trade-wind Cloud. Zones of Vegetation. Sunset seen above the Clouds. Rabbits and other Animals on the Peak. Peculiar Spider’s Web. Catching Sharks off Sombrero Island, West Indies. Appearance and Habits of Remora. Pilot Fish. Island of St. Thomas. Calcareous Seaweeds. Sea Urchins with Poisoned Spines. Burrowing Spider. Nest of Termites. Pelicans edible. Sand-box Tree. Defensive Colouringof Spines of Cacti. Beach Conglomerate. Sea-beans. Bermuda. Calcareous Sand-rock. Caves. Vegetation. Peat. Boatswain Birds. Land Nemertine. Corals in Caves i

Chapter II

AZORES, MADEIRA. CAPE VERDES.

Fayal Island, Azores. Porpoises on the Feed. Town of Horta. Peculiar Dress of the Women. Island of Pico. St. Michael’s Island. Native Ferns and Australian-introduced Trees. The Threshing Floor and Women at the Mill. Vegetation of the Azores. Hot Springs at Furnas. Plants Growing in the Hot Water. Caldeira des Sette Cidades. Madeira. Grand Cural. Curious Caps worn by the Men. The Island at Sunset. St. Vincent Island, Cape Verdes. Vegetation of the Island. Ascent of Green Mountain. Different Causes of Variation of Vegetation with Altitude. Structure of Basaltic Dykes. Calcareous Seaweeds on Bird Island. Habits of Crabs. Miniature Oasis. Flying Gurnet Hooked. Mode of Catching Bonito. Island of Fogo. Porto Praya, St. Jago Island. Use of Foot in Feeding by Kites. Kingfisher and Galinis. Hauling the Seine. A Large Shark. San Domingo Valley. Monkeys. Remarkable Freshwater Crustacean. Limestone Band in the Cliff of the Harbour 26

CHAPTER HI.

ST. Paul’s rocks and fernando noronha.

St. Paul’s Rocks. Equatorial Current. Nests of Noddies. Predatory Habits oi Grapsvs strigosus. Fishing off the Rocks. Nests of Boobies. Pugnacitj’

b

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of the Young Birds. Other Inhabitants of the Rocks. Fishing for Qivalli with Salmon Tackle. Geological Structure of the Rocks. Seaweeds growing on the Rocks. Fernando Noronha. Calcareous Sandrock containing Volcanic Intermixture. Tree Shedding Leaves in Dry Season. Jatropha urens. Birds. Brazilian Convicts. St. Michael’s Mount. Frigate Birds Nesting. Pigeons Nesting with Sea Birds. Lizards of the Islands 58

Chapter IV. Bahia

Harbour and Town of Bahia. Religious Procession, Black Angels. Land Planarians. Clicking Butterfly. Primaeval Forest. Shooting Humming Birds and Toucans. Caxoeira. Mewing Toads. Excursion to Feira St. Anna. Mule Riding. Former Highway Robbers. Inn at Feira St. Anna and its Guests. The Fair. Anteaters Eaten as Medicine. Vaqueiros. Tailing Cattle. Horse Dealing. German Settler in the Country. Driving Cattle in the Bush. Farm Slaves. Preparation of Cassava. Overburdened Ant. Three-toed Sloth. Slavery in Brazil 74

Chapter V. Tristan Da Cunha, Inaccessible Island, Nightingale Island

Settlement of the Island. Geological Structure. Vegetation. Temperature of Fresh Water. Phylica arborea. Rigorous Climate. Condition of the Settlers. Inaccessible Island. Rock-hopper Penguins. Tussock Grass. Penguin Rookeries. Peculiar Land Birds. Noddies and other Sea Birds. Southern Skuas. Wild Swine. Change of Habits of Penguins. Nightingale Island. Vast Penguin Rookery. Seal Caves. Rocks Worn by the Feet of the Penguins. Mollymauks and their Nests. Derivation of Seamen’s Names for Southern Animals. Dogs run Wild in a Penguin Rookery. Migrations of Penguins and Seals. Insects, etc., of the Group. Flowering Seasons. Sea Beans. Relations of the Flora 93

Chapter VI. Cape Of Good Hope

Aspect and Formation of the Country. Simons Bay. Appearance of the Vegetation. The Road to Cape Town. The Silver Tree. Habits of Baboons.

The Rock Rabbit. Habits of Rodent Moles. Kitchen Middens. Burial Places of Natives. Antelopes. An Ostrich Farm. Tracks of Animals in the Sand. Great Variety of Flowering Plants. Clawless Otter. Land Planarians. Chameleon. Jackass Penguins. BdeUostoma. Rare Whale with Long Tusks. PcriJ>atns capensis, the Ancestor of Insects. The Turacou ”9

Chapter VII

PRINCE EDWARD ISLANDS. THE CROZET ISLANDS.

Appearance and Formation of Marion Island. Vegetation of the Island. Azorella sclago. Limit of Vegetation in Altitude. Relations of the Flora.

CONTENTS.

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Former Extension of Land in this Region. N esting of the Great Albatross. Mode of Courtship. Skuas. “Johnny” Penguins. Rock Hoppers. Rookeries of King Penguins. Absurd appearance of the Young Birds. Singular Mode of Incubation. Habits of Sheath-bills. Appearance of the Crozet Islands. Tree-trunks found in the Islands by former Voyagers . 141

CHAPTER VIII. Kerguelen’s land

Position of the Island. Its Mountains and Fjords. Active Volcano. Christmas Harbour. Sea Elephants and Fur Seals. Shooting Teal. The Kerguelen Cabbage. Wingless Flies and Gnats. Vegetation at Successive Heights. Fossil Wood. Rookeries of Rock Hopper and Macaroni Penguins. Penguins Inhabiting a Cave. Betsy Cove. Glaciation of the Land Surface. Iceborne Rocks. Excavation of the Fjords. Beds of Burnt Coal. The Sea Leopard. Killing Sea Elephants. Nature of the Trunk of the Sea Elephant. Carrion Birds. The Giant Petrel. Habits of Several Burrov?ing Petrels. The Diving Petrel. Habits of Sheath Bills. Struggle for Existence amongst the Birds. Mode of Whaling amongst the Kelp .... 160

Chapter IX. Heard Island

Diatoms on the Sea Surface. Macdonald Island. Whisky Bay, Heard Island. Coast-line composed of Glaciers. Structure of the Glaciers. Terminal and Lateral Moraines. Glacier Stream. Rocks cut by Natural Sand Blast. Lava Flow and Denuded Crater. Scanty Vegetation. Range in Elevation of Arctic and Southern Plants Compared. Mode of Hunting Sea Elephants. Habits of these Animals. Sealers Inhabiting Heard Island. Birds of the Island

Chapter X. Amongst The Southern Ice

First Iceberg Sighted. Typical Forms of Southern Bergs. Preservation of Equilibrium. Wash Lines. Caverns. Bi-tabular Bergs, How Formed. Weathering of Bergs. Stratification of Ice in Bergs. Cleavage. Scarcity of Rocks on Bergs. Discoloured Bands in the Ice. Rev. Canon Moseley on the Motion of Glaciers. Colouring of Bergs. Blue Berg. Surf on the Coasts of Bergs. Scenic effects of Icebergs. Appearance of the Pack Ice. Discolouration of Ice by Diatoms. Gales of Wind amongst the Icebergs. Snowbow. Whales Blowing. Grampuses. Birds amongst the Ice. Antarctic Climate in Summer

Chapter XI

VICTORIA. NEW SOUTH WALES.

Excursions into the Bush near Melbourne. Opossum Snare. Tracks of the Aborigines on Free trunks. Town of Sandhurst. The Highest Tree in the World. Aborigines on a Government Reserve. Ornithorynchus

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paradoxus. Leaves of Australian Trees, why Vertically Disposed. Fur- Seal in the Open Sea. Sydney Harbour. The Blue Mountains. Excavations in the Ground caused by Rain. Shooting Opossums by Moonlight. Fruit-eating Bats. Hunting Bandicoots. Browera Creek. Intimate Relation of Land and Sea Animals. Geological Import of this. Medusae in Fresh Water. Kitchen Middens. Drawings by Aborigines. Handmarks. Trigonia and Cestracion . . . ^ 222

Chapter XII

NEW ZEALAND. THE FRIENDLY ISLANDS. MATUKU ISLAND.

Wellington, New Zealand. The Rata Tree. Kingfisher with Littoral Habits. Peripatus. Egg Capsules of Land Planarians. The Vegetation of the Kermadec Islands. Red-coloured Muscles of the Shark. Island of Eua. General Appearance of the Island of Tongatabu. Tongan Natives. Mode of Hairdressing. Facial Expression of the Nativ'es. A Pea Jacket a Badge of Distinction. Town of Nukualofa. Dress of Tongan Women. Getting Fire by Friction. Deserted Plantations. Fruit-bats Feeding on Flowers. Herons, Tree-swifts, and other Birds. Parasitic Algae in Foraminifera. Matuku Island, Fiji Group. The Island an Ancient Crater. Its Vegetation. Encircling Reef. Flocks of Lories. Periophthalmus, a Fish living on Land. Living Pearly Nautilus. Its Mode of Swimming. Account of the Nautilus, by Rumphius 240

Chapter XIII. Fiji Islands

Position and Area of the Islands of the Group. Kandavu Island. Grind- ■ stones for Stone Adzes. Shooting Birds in the Woods. Terrestrial Hermit Crabs. Visit to a Barrier Reef. Ovalau Island. Excursion to Livoni. Fijian Convicts. Log Drum. Native Hairdressing. Kaava Drinking. Buying Stone Adzes. Excursion to Mbau Island. Structure of the Island. Na vatani tawaki. Relics of Cannibalism. Interview with King Thackombau. Connection of Wooden Drums and Bells. Excursion up the Wai Levu. Sugar Plantations at Viti. Freshwater Sharks. Joe the Pilot. Fijian Fortifications and Tombs. A Chiefs House and his Children. A Missionary Meeting. Various Modes of Painting the Body. Grand Dancing Performances. Primitive Origin of Music, Poetry, and the Drama. Wesleyan Missionary. Albino Native. Congregation of Races at Levuka. Fijian Modes of Expression. Laughter. Cicatrization. The Ula. Particulars concerning Cannibalism 260

Chapter XIV

NEW HEBRIDES CAPE YORK. TORRES STRAITS.

Api Island, New Hebrides. Fringing Reefs. Proofs of Elevation. Conal Living Detached. Natives of Api, their Ornaments and Weapons. Condition of Returned Labourers. Expression of the Emotions. Raine Island. Its Geological Structure. Its Vegetation. Nesting of Wideawakes. Gannets and Frigate Birds. Dead Turtles. Somerset, Cape York. Nests of

CONTENTS.

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White Ants. Combination of Indian and Australian Features in the Vegetation. Various Birds. Habits of the Rifle Bird. Birds Fertilizing Plants. Camp of the Blacks. Habits of these Natives. Curious Mode of Smoking. Food of the Blacks. They cannot Count higher than Three. Absolute Nudity of the Men. Coral Flats. Collection of Savage Weapons at Cape York. Wednesday Island, Torres Straits. Structure of Coral Flats. Giant Clam. Native Graves. Booby Island. A Halting Place for Birds during Migration. Many Land Birds on an Almost Bare Rock . 295

Chapter XV

ARU. KE. BANDA. AMBOINA. TERN ATE.

Appearance of the Aru Islands. Trees Transplanted by the Waves. Masses of Drift Wood. Malay Language. Ballasting a Guide. Management of Clothes during Rain. Black Country Natives. Great Height of the Trees. Nests of the Metallic Starling. Parrots and Cockatoos. Bird Winged Butterflies. Shooting Birds of Paradise at Wanumbai. Deposit of Lime in Streams. Boat Crews from the Ke Islands. Fungus Skin Disease.

Ke Island Dancing. Houses at Ke Dulan. Leaf Arrows. Bird caught in a Spider’s Web. Ascent of the Volcano of Banda. Algae Growing in the Hot Steam Jets. Numerous Insects at the Summit. Alteration in Sea Level, Marked on Living Corals. Nutmeg Plantations. Transportation of Seeds by Fruit-Pigeons. Saluting at Amboina. Danger to the Eyes in * Diving for Corals. Raised Reefs. Myrmecodia and Hydnophytum. Moluccan Deer. Ternate Island. Chinese and their Graves. Sale of Birds of Paradise. Ascent of the Volcano. The Mountain Vegetation. The Terminal Cone. View from the Summit . % 316

Chapter XVI. The Philippine Islands

Zamboanga, Mindanao Island. Paddy Fields and Buffaloes. The Lutaos and their Pile-Dwellings. Pile-Dwellings on Dry Land. The Ground Floor, a Late Addition to the First Story. Wide Distribution of Pile-Dwellings. Their Possible Origin. Dances Performed by the Lutaos. Bamboo Jew’s H.irp. Lutao Canoe and Weapons. Search for Birgus Latro. Birds’ Eggs hatched in the Sea Sand. Alcyonarian Corals. Basilan Island. Cart-wheels cut from Living Planks. Galeopithecus and Flying Lizard. Cebu Island. Mode of Dredging up Euplectella. Mactan Island, Raised Reef. Large Cerianthus. Trachytic Volcano at Camiguin Island. Temperature at which Plants can Grow in Hot Mineral Water. Manila-Hemp Plantations. Manila. Shirt Worn over Trousers. Clothes Originally Ornamental only. Plalf-hatched Ducks’ Eggs Eaten. Cock Fighting. Sale of Indulgences

Chapter XVII

CHINA. NEW GUINEA.

Hong Kong. Pigeon English. Chinese Method of Writing compared with European Methods. Development of Chinese and Japanese Books from

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Rolls. Plants colonizing a Pagoda. Sights of Canton. Chinese and English Examinations, and their Subjects compared. The Honam Monastery. Chinese Floral Decorations. A Chinese Dinner. Dragons’ Bones and Teeth. Origin of Mythical Animals. Chinese Account of the Dragon.

The last Dragon seen in England. Use of Unicorn’s Horn as Medicine in Europe. Chinese and English Medicine compared. Chinese Accounts of the Pigmies and of Monkeys. English Mythical Animals. The Sea Serpent. Owls living with Ground Squirrel in China. Off the Talaur Islands. Driftwood off the Ambernoh River, New Guinea. Animals Inhabiting it. Humboldt Bay. Signal Fires of the Natives. Bartering at Night. Numbers of Canoes. Relative Prices of Native Property. Attempts at Thieving. Modes of Expression. Mode of Threatening Death by Signs. Armed Boat Robbed. Villages of Pile-Dwellings . . .358

Chapter XVIII. The Admiralty Islands

Histor3' of Visits to the Islands. Eagerness of the Natives for Iron. Trade Gear. Trading with the Natives. Geological Structure of the Islands. Orchids and Ferns overhanging the Sea. Fern resembling a Liverwort. Difficulties in Collecting Words of their Language from the Natives. Their Methods of Counting. Curious Mode of Expressing Negation. Physical Characteristics of the Natives. Hairiness of Races Compared. Possible Signification of Moles. Clothes, Hair Dressing and Ornaments of the Natives. Tattooing and Painting. Betel-Chewing and Food. Houses, Temples, and Canoes of the Natives. Their Implements and Weapons. Artistic Skill of the Natives. Their Musical Instruments, Dancing and Singing. Their Polygamy. Fortification of their Villages. Wooden Gods. Skulls and Hair in their Temples. Their Religion. Disposition of the Natives. Their Fear of Goats and Toys. Population of the Islands. Domestic Animals, Birds and other Animals at the Islands. Habits of Gar-Fish 387

Chapter XIX

JAPAN. THE SANDWICH ISLANDS.

Tedious Voyage to Japan. Jinriksha Coolies. Worship of the White Horse. Japanese Sight-Seers. Consulting the Oracle. Japanese Pilgrims. Book Shops and Religious Shops. River Embankments. Rice Fields. Houses of Wood and Paper. English Bed-room Exhibited at the Exhibition. Money Boxes. Pilgrims and Priests. Interest taken by the People in Tojins. Cold Water Cure. Painting of the Face in China and Japan. Japanese Tattooing. Japanese Modes of Expression. Japanese Pictures and Theatres. Barren Appearance of the Sandwich Islands. Honolulu. Supremacy of American over Native Productions. Principal Trees of Oahu Island. King Kalakaua. Hawaian Burials. Visit to the Crater of Kilauea. Ponds of Fluid Lava. Mode of Formation of Pole’s Hair. Lava Fountains and Cascades. Recent Eruptions. Hawaian Hook Ornament. Its Probable Religious Signification. Hawaian Stone Club. Affinities between New Zealand and Hawaian Art. Inter-breeding on Isolated Islands 416

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Chapter XX

TAHITI. JUAN FERNANDEZ.

PAGE

Death of Rudolph Von Willemoes Suhm. Scientific Papers and Journals left by him. Papeete. Excursion into the Mountains. Fly-Fishing in a Mountain Stream. Uses of the Wild Banana. Vegetation Composed mainly of Ferns. Camping at Night. Tahitian Mountain Map. Ascent to 4,000 feet Altitude. Petrels Nesting at this Height. Their possible Influence in Distribution of Plants. Ignorance of the Natives concerning the Mountains. Mode of Alternation of Generations in the Mushroom Coral. Structure of Millepora. Structure of the Stylasteridae. Catching Land-Crabs. Tahitian National Air. Juan Fernandez. Preponderance of Ferns. Destruction of Trees. Gunnera Chilensis. Conspicuous Flowers. Humming Birds of the Island. Their Fertilization of Flowers. Smallness of the Island compared with the Number of Endemic Forms. Endemic Palm. Dendroseris 445

Chapter XXI

CHILE. MAGELLAN’S STRAITS. FALKLAND ISLANDS. ASCENSION.

Valparaiso. The Andes not Con.spicuous. Cattle lassoed in the Streets. Excursion up the Uspallata Pass. Leafless Mistletoe on the Leafless Cactus. An Equestrian Hair-Cutter. Dead and disabled Animals on the Pass. Use of the Lasso in Robbery and Flirtation. Cleverness of a Horse on a Mountain Path. Fjords of the Western Coast of Patagonia. Density of the Forest. An Anchor Broken. Fuegians. Wild Geese at Elizabeth Island. Kitchen Middens. The Falkland Islands. Visit to Port Darwin. Scotchmen turned Gauchos. Chapinas and Tropijes. Wild Horses and their Habits. Various Modes of Handling Cattle in Difierent Parts of the World. Goose-Bolas made of Knuckle-Bones. Flies and Gnats with Rudimentary Wings. Skeleton of Ziphioid Whale. Fuegian Arrow-heads Scattered in the Islands. Habits of Jackass Penguin. Ascension Island. Land Crabs. The Hatching of Turtles’ Eggs. Shooting at Flying Fish. Birds at Boatswain Bird Island 472

Chapter XXII

LIFE ON THE OCEAN SURFACE AND IN THE DEEP SEA. ZOOLOGY AND BOTANY OF THE SHIP. CONCLUSION.

Plants of the Ocean Surface. Fauna of the Sargasso Sea. Protective Colouring of Pelagic Animals. Variety of Pelagic Animals. Flight of the Albatross. Flight of Flying-fish. A Pelagic Insect. Pelagonemertes described. Phosphorescence of Pelagic Animals. Giant Pyrosoma. Uncertainty as to Range in Depth of Pelagic Animals. The Depth of the Oceans and Depressions on the Earth’s Surface. Deep-Sea Dredging. Vast Pressure existing in the Deep Sea. Experiment showing this made by Mr. Buchanan. Conditions under which Life Exists in the Deep Sea. Range of Plants in Depth. Food of Deep-Sea Animals. Experiment on the Rate of Sinking

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of a Salpa. Vegetable and Animal Debris Dredged from Great Depths.

The Deep Sea, a High Road for the Distribution of Animals. Deep-Sea Faunas and Alpine Floras Compared. Nature of the Deep-Sea Fauna a source of Disappointment. Remarkable Deep-Sea Ascidian. Localities specially Rich in Deep-Sea Forms. Relations of Deep-Sea Animals to One Another. Phosphorescent Light in the Deep Sea. Colours of Deep-Sea Animals. Cockroaches. Moths, Mosquitoes, House-flies, Crickets, Centipedes and Rats on board the “ Challenger.” Plants on Board the Ship. Pet Parrot, Cassowary, Ostriches, Tortoises, Spiders, Fur-Seal, and Goat on Board. Adaptation to Sea Life. Smallness of the Earth’s Surface. Slow Rate of Travelling. Man and possibly Protoplasm existent on the Earth alone. Necessity for Immediate Scientific Investigation of Oceanic Islands 4go

S2I

INDEX .

^ ftaturalist 0n “ C|alkit0£r.”

Chapter I

TENERIFE, ST. THOMAS, BERMUDA.

Circumstances of the Voyage. Tenerife. Cochineal Plantations. Excursion up the Peak. Trade-wind Cloud. Zones of Vegetation. Sunset seen above the Clouds. Rabbits and other Animals on the Peak. Peculiar Spider’s Web. Catching Sharks off Sombrero Island, West Indies. Appearance and Habits of Remora. Pilot Fish. Island of St. Thomas. Calcareous Seaweeds. Sea Urchins with Poisoned Spines. Burrowing Spider. Nest of Termites. Pelicans edible. Sand-box Tree. Defensive Colouring of Spines of Cacti. Beach Conglomerate. Sea-beans. Bermuda. Calcareous Sand-rock. Caves. Vegetation. Peat. Boatswain Birds. Land Nemertine. Corals in Caves.

Circumstances of the Voyage. — H.M.S. “Challenger,” a main-deck corvette, with auxiliary steam power, left Portsmouth on December 21st, 1872, for a voyage of three years and a half round the world. The object of her cruise was to investigate scientifically the physical conditions and natural history of the deep sea all over the world. The ship was with that aim specially fitted with sounding and dredging apparatus, and carried a scientific stalf, appointed by the Lords of the Admiralty, and placed by them under the direction of Sir Charles Wyville Thomson, F.R.S., etc. I accompanied the expedition as one of the naturalists on this staff.

In consequence of the special nature of the mission, the sea voyages were tedious and protracted, the ship being constantly stopped on its course to sound and dredge. Since the results obtained by deep-sea dredging, even in most widely distant localities, were very similar and somewhat monotonous, all reference to them will be deferred to the end of this narrative, where their natural-history aspects will be discussed

C.

I

TENERIFE.

shortly as a whole, and where oceanic animals and plants will also be treated of to some extent.

The voyage of the “ Challenger ” occupied three years and 155 days, and out of this period about 520 days, or portions of these, were available for excursions on shore. A very large proportion of the time in harbour was necessarily spent at places where dockyards and workshops were available for repairs to the ship. The stays made at less-frequented places of especial interest to the naturalist were comparatively short. This circumstance should be borne in mind by the reader.

After stopping at Lisbon, Gibraltar, and Madeira — which latter island was afterwards visited a second time, and will be referred to in the sequel — the ship reached Tenerife, one of the Canary Islands, and anchored off Santa Cruz, the chief town of the island, on February 7th, 1873.

Tenerife, Canary Islands, February 7th to 14th, 1873. — The most striking feature in the natural vegetation of Tenerife is the Euphorbia canariensis. The fleshy prismatic branches of this plant are devoid of leaves, have a bluish-green colour, and are perfectly straight and perpendicular, being disposed side by side, and 10 or 15 feet in height. The plant is abundant all over the rocks at a low elevation, and resembles a cactus in appearance. It has an abundant milky juice, which is very acrid and poisonous. Of the introduced vegetation, the plantations of the broad-lobed cactus [Opuntia), employed for the raising of the Cochineal insect, are curious. The crop of insects was, in the month of February, just being started on the plant, that is to say, the female insects were being placed upon the leaf-shaped lobes of the plant to lay their eggs, and start a fresh brood. The females are, when thus put out at the beginning of the season, held on to the plants by means of white rags tied round the lobes. Hence the fields, when seen at a distance, look as if they contained some crop bearing a continuous sheet of large white blossoms. I was greatly puzzled by them when looking at them as the ship was approaching the island. The island is so steep and rocky that it has been terraced for purposes of cultivation, and nearly every available spot has been treated in this manner.

I accompanied a party on an excursion up the Peak. The way led from Santa Cruz, through the Cochineal fields, and up a steep but well-engineered road, planted with tamarisk trees to the summit of the central ridge of the island. Here was passed a dilapidated town, thoroughly Spanish in its architecture, with some fine houses in it in a ruinous condition. The central square of the town was overgrown with weeds, and its streets mostly covered with grass; but so are many in the capital,

TENERIFE.

Santa Cruz, itself. On the way, droves of mules, ponies, and donkeys were passed, laden with country produce. The countrymen wear a peculiar dress, black trousers reaching only to the knee, and an ordinary blanket of the natural colour of the wool, drawn into pleats at one end to go round the neck, and worn over the shoulders as a cloak. If the blanket were dyed of some dark or bright tint the dress would not look very remarkable ; but its dirty-white colour has a strange appearance. The countrywomen have very fine figures, and are most of them very handsome. We passed through another town where a private collector has a museum containing a number of mummies, skulls and relics of the Guanches, the ancient inhabitants of the Canaries. The “gabinfete,” the owner of which was absent, was in a somewhat decayed condition, and was a sort of general collection of curiosities, a survival of the old Raritatenkammer, which is the parent of modern more select collections, just as the West African fetisch house may be regarded as the primitive and savage representative of the Raritatenkammer. Man seems to be almost the only mammal that collects and stores uneatable objects. Amongst birds, on the other hand, the collecting instinct is widely spread, as witness magpies and Bower-birds,* and even Penguins, one of which collects variously-coloured pebbles. It will be a great pity if the Guanche remains, contained in the Tenerife gabinhte, do not reach some good European museum.

From the neighbourhood of this second town was obtained the first view of the far-famed Peak, “ Pico de Teyde.” The middle part of the mountain was concealed by a dense bank of white clouds, the condensed vapour of the trade wind. Beneath, a broad valley stretching down to the bright blue sea, with its snow-white edging of surf, was thrown partly into deep shadow by the cloud-bank, partly lit up by the bright hot sun. The sun shone brilliantly upon the snowy peak of the mountain, high up in the sky above the clouds. On the shore lay the town of Orotava, from which the ascent was to be made. The English vice-consul at Orotava, who kindly made arrangements for the trip, told me that the growth of the vine in Tenerife was fast being supplanted by the cultivation of Cochineal;

2.000 pipes only were being produced around Orotava, whereas

200.000 were formerly made. He expected, however, that since Cochineal was falling in price, the wine trade would revive. The Canary wine is certainly of most e.xcellent flavour.

The route up the mountain lay up a long sloping ridge,

* O. Beccari, “ Le Capanne ed i Giardini del Amblyontis hiornatiu" Ann. del Mus. Civ. di St. Nat. di Genova, Vol. IX., 1876-7, which leads to the base of the actual cone of the Peak. This ridge is bounded by a precipice on the side facing Orotava. The villagers tried to dissuade the party from going farther after we had ascended about 2,000 feet, saying that we should be frozen to death.

The well-known zones of vegetation of the Peak of Tenerife are not very well defined on the route which we adopted. The limit of cultivation was reached at about 3,000 feet, at which height corn of some kind was just springing up, and we passed above this into a zone covered with a tree-like heath {Erica

PEAK OF TENERIFE FROM THE ROAD ABOVE OROTAVA. (From a sketch by the Author.)

arborea). This heath continued for about 2,000 feet, and then ceased abruptly, and we came, higher up, a.mongst large bluish-green bushes of a sort of broom {Spartocytisus nubigetius')^ called by the natives “ Retama,” amongst which we pitched our tent, at an elevation of 6,500 feet. Above the Retama, a small violet {Viola teydeana) is said to extend up to 10,000 feet, and above this all is barren. The pine {Finns canariensis) which grows on some parts of the mountain is not seen on the usual track of ascent. A halt was made amongst the heath for lunch, and plenty of water-cresses were found growing in a spring. We had to carry water up with us from this spring since there is no water to be obtained above, except by melting snow. The porous volcanic ashes soak up all the

SUNSET ABOVE THE CLOUDS.

water yielded by the natural melting of the snow above, and there is no place where any can be gathered.

At about 4,000 feet elevation we went through a dense bank of cloud, formed by the trade wind, a similar one to that which was seen from below on the day before, and which had hidden the middle of the mountain from our view, but not the same, for in the early morning there had not been a cloud in the sky. The bank formed at about mid-day. At our camp, far above this cloud-bank, the sun shone brightly, until about six o’clock in the evening, when it began to disappear, and the air, which had been almost too hot, became suddenly cold, the temperature going down almost to freezing point.

We enjoyed a very extraordinary sunset effect. The upper surface of the cloud-bank stretched away like a snow-white billowy sea beneath us in every direction, hiding the actual sea from our sight entirely, but just allowing us a glimpse of the far-off island of Palma, which appeared as a purple streak at the edge of the cloud horizon. As the sun went down the clear sky beyond the white motionless cloud-bank became tinged of a brilliant orange colour, and over it there shot out from the descending sun a fan of pale crimson streamers deeply tinted at their base, and gradually fading off into the dark blue sky above, but visible nearly to the zenith. Beyond the great cloud-bank more distant streaky clouds, lit up of a brilliant violet, formed a sort of background to the scene. Some amongst these little distant clouds from time to time assumed fantastic shapes, and once we were almost persuaded that we were looking upon the sea in the distance with two very far-off ships upon it, but it was merely a delusion. The sea was entirely shut out from our view, except once for a few instants when a small rift in the cloud-bank occurred, and gave us a momentary glimpse of the rippling surface far below, a sort of vista view dimmed by the misty ffame through which it was seen.

All the while the snowy peak itself was perfectly cloudless, and stood out clear and sharp against a deep blue arctic-looking sky. Soon the sunlight faded and the moon came out bright, and the peak glistened in its light, which was strong enough for me to read by easily. The view of our tent and camp fire amongst the dark broom bushes with the moonlit snowy peak in the background, fronted by some dark ridges of lava, was most picturesque.*

We set fire to some of the large Retama bushes and soon

* For an account of the Peak of Tenerife and its cloud phenomena, see C. Piazzi Smyth, F.R.S., etc., “Tenerife: an Astronomer’s ~ ment.” London, Reeve, 1858.

TENERIFE.

had a tremendous blaze, the bushes fizzing and crackling loudly in the flare, the flames shooting high up into the air so that they were seen at Orotava, and even at Santa Cruz. The ground froze on the surface around our tent during the night, the thermometer standing at 30° F. just before sunrise.

I walked from the camp to the Canadas — a remarkable plain covered with scoriae, and shut in on nearly all sides by a perpendicular wall of basaltic cliff. From this plain of vast extent the present terminal cone of the mountain rises. The Canadas represents an ancient and much larger crater, in the centre of the remnant of which the more modern smaller peak has been thrown up. The bottom of the Canadas is dotted over with the Retama. The ground was devoid of any other vegetation. I was surprised to find that rabbits were tolerably abundant in the Canadas. I saw several, but could not manage to get a shot, as they were wary. They feed on the Retama. They have no holes, but live in any chance crack or hole in the rock or under the bushes ; hence I could not trap them, though I took traps with me for the purpose. They are small. I obtained in Orotava a stuffed specimen of a black variety with a white spot on the forehead, which is occasionally found. Of birds in the Canadas I saw only a lark and a warbler {Sylvia), and of lower animals I found only a Lepisma and a Centipede {Scolopendra), which were very abundant under the blocks of pumice.

The radiant heat of the sun was extremely powerful on the arid plain of the Canadas. We had no guides, and our mule drivers had left us. All refused to accompany us at this season of the year to the top of the peak. We therefore ascended only to the height of about 9,000 feet, the last 200 feet of which was climbed over snow. Here we watched the often described struggles of the opposing winds, the trades and anti-trades, as shown by the eddying and twisting of the wreaths of cloud.

In the neighbourhood of the camp at 6,500 feet, winter was evidently still in force as far as the animals were concerned. All the spiders and beetles I could find there were under stones, apparently hibernating. I was astonished to find at this altitude a Gecko {Tarentola?) also hibernating, coiled up in a hole under a stone. This lizard has a long range in altitude, since I found another specimen close to sea level.