OF MT. KINABALU AND BRITISH NORTH BORNEO. 45 
but the angle of the peak was too great, and it did not seem advisable to 
move about much on the loose stones. On being joined by the advance 
party, which had explored the farther end of the plateau, reported as 
absolutely devoid of any vegetation, a point since confirmed by Captain Lear- 
month, we wrote down our names with those of the policeman and the Kiau 
Dusuns, deposited them in a bottle and, with befitting dignity, built a small 
cairn of stones over it; this ceremony being evidently looked upon as our 
share of solemnities of the occasion. 
On this peak Low and St. John had left, the former a bottle, and the 
latter a tin, which were both brought down by Little’s guide Limbawan, 
Little himself not leaving the plateau, and it was not until his return to 
Kiau that he learnt of the abstraction of the bottle or tin. He gives the 
sum of their contents, but unfortunately does not mention the fate of the 
interesting relics (15. 157). 
Once back on the plateau, I tried to get down over the edge of the abyss, 
but the Dusuns brought me back each time, on the score of loose stones. 
Little (15. 156) had the same experience, and I can thoroughly endorse 
his remark that it would be beyond mortal power to dislodge one of those 
blocks. I desisted, however, as he had done, thinking that they had some 
religious prejudice on the subject. Captain Learmonth, during his stay on 
the summit with Lieutenant Harvey, associated with him in the Survey, went. 
down with him a certain distance without any difficulty, but the natives 
absolutely refused to accompany them, and the mist and rain being very 
persistent, they thought it wiser to desist. I was interested to hear that no. 
plants were observed there on any of the peaks, all of which were ascended 
for the purpose of the Survey. The entire absence of all so-called rock plants 
ix the most peculiar botanical feature of the granite core, and is entirely due 
to the nature of the rock. On the plateau of the actual summit, cracks, 
so conspicuous a few hundred yards farther down, are hardly present. In a 
few very small ones Deschampsia flexuosa and Poa epileuca were growing, 
and in one of Dr. Foxworthy’s photographs a few plants of Coprosma 
Hookeri are shown (Pl. 7. fig. 6) ; otherwise nothing breaks the majestic 
sweep of the rapidly disintegrating granite, where erosion is too rapid for the 
establishment of any permanent botanical factors. I saw no lichens or 
mosses on the rain- and wind-swept rock, the smooth surface of which 
prevents the formation of crannies or ledges, and opposes the consequent 
accumulation of detritus. A few shallow depressions held water, and alge 
form a brown deposit on the surface of the rock, of which I took a scraping, 
resulting in 10 species. 
In considering the summit vegetation of the granite core, we may suppose 
that the granite erupted into the old red sandstone, which still persists on 
the lower spurs and the coast ranges. The vegetation of that formation is 
