17?0. THE PACIFIC OCEAN. 127 



cution of our voyage, some of our officers made an 

 excursion to take a view of the neighbouring coun- 

 try. Mr. Anderson, my surgeon, who was one of 

 the party, gave me the following relation of their 

 proceedings * : 



" On the 16th, in the forenoon, I set out in a wag- 

 gon, with five more, to take a view of some part of 

 the country. We crossed the large plain that lies to 

 the eastward of the town, which is entirely a white 

 sand, like that commonly found on beaches, and pro- 

 duces only heath, and other small plants of various 

 sorts. At five in the afternoon we passed a large 

 farm-house, with some corn-fields, and pretty con- 

 siderable vineyards, situated beyond the plain, near 

 the foot of some low hills, where the soil becomes 

 worth cultivating. Between six and seven we ar- 

 rived at Stellenbosh, the colony next to that of the 

 Cape for its importance. 



" The village does not consist of more than thirty 

 houses, and stands at the foot of the range of lofty 

 mountains, above twenty miles to the eastward of 

 the Cape Town. The houses are neat ; and, with 

 the advantage of a rivulet which runs near, and the 

 shelter of some large oaks, planted at its first settling, 

 forms what may be called a rural prospect in this 

 desert country. There are some vineyards and 

 orchards about the place, which, from their thriving 

 appearance, seem to indicate an excellent soil ; 

 though, perhaps, they owe much to climate, as the 

 air here has an uncommon serenity. 



* In the Philosophical Transactions, vol. lxvi. p. 268 to 319, 

 is an Account of Three Journies from the Cape Town into the 

 Southern parts of Africa , in 1772, 1773, and 1774 ; by Mr. Francis 

 Masson, who had been sent from England for the discovery of new- 

 plants, towards the improvement of the Royal Botanical Garden 

 at Kew. Much curious information is contained in Mr. Masson's 

 account of these journies. M. de Pages, who was at the Cape in 

 1773, gives some remarks on the state of that settlement, and also 

 the particulars of his journey from False Bay to the Cape Town. 

 Voyage vers le Pole du S?id, p. 17 to 32. 



