228 BOTANY OF VAN DIEMEN’S LAND. 
too, fruits abundantly. I have seen Oaks heavily laden with well-grown 
acorns; but there are no trees, as yet, of large size. Elms and Ash 
are occasionally cultivated, but are not common. I do not think I have 
seen any of the Pine tribe in cultivation, except a few recently intro- 
duced to the Botanic Garden at Hobart-town. The great staple, in 
the garden way, of the Colony is in Apples, Pears, and Plums and 
Cherries ; all of which thrive remarkably well, and they have already 
raised some seedling apples and plums, which are well deserving of 
cultivation. There is a large trade in apples to Melbourne. The 
smaller fruits are made into jams or consumed at home; and often 
suffered to rot on the trees, from their abundance. Gooseberries, Cur- 
rants, Raspberries, and Strawberries grow equally well. But Peaches 
and Nectarines are only fit for tarts, and often fall off before they are 
ripe. Grapes just ripen and no more, and are of small size. I have 
been here the hottest months of summer without experiencing greater 
heat than we often have in England. There is less rain, and a greater 
number of clear days; but on the whole I scarcely think the summers 
hotter than those of England. People here complain (as in all the 
Australian colonies) of the rapid changes of temperature; but with 
less reason for complaining than in any other country I know of. To 
me the climate seems as nearly perfect as a sublunary climate can 
well be. 
From Georgetown I steamed up the river to Launceston, forty miles, 
the scenery of the river very beautiful, and strongly reminding me of 
that of the Hudson in New York, but on a much smaller scale. There 
are broad and narrow reaches alternately, and the banks vary from 
point to point; being sometimes steep and bold, and again sloping 
gently off to the more distant hills. Much of the land is still covered 
with forest, but cultivation increases as you approach the end of the 
navigation, where the town is built. It contains about 10,000 in- 
habitants. The streets are wide and macadamized, and the houses 
either of brick or plastered, or of wood, and of all sizes and shapes in- 
termixed. Some of the streets are as steep as those of Clifton, as the 
_ town lies among several hills, in the forking of the two rivers north-east 
_ and south-east. The south-east flows through a narrow defile of the hills, 
continued nearly to the town, and about a mile up the gorge tumbles 
over some rocks at a place called “ the Cascades,” just above which is 
a circular depression surrounded by steep rocks, and with a pond in 
