130 COOK'S VOYAGE TO NOV. 



alogists, Saturn conglutinatum, and consists chiefly 

 of pieces of coarse quartz and glimmer, held together 

 by a clayey cement. But the vein which crosses it, 

 though of the same materials, is much compacter. 

 This vein is not above a foot broad or thick; and its 

 surface is cut into little squares or oblongs, disposed 

 obliquely, which makes it look like the remains of 

 some artifical work. But I could not observe whether 

 it penetrated far into the large rock, or was only 

 superficial. In descending, we found at its foot a 

 very rich black mould ; and on the sides of the hills, 

 some trees of a considerable size, natives of the place, 

 which are a species of olea.* 



In the morning on the 20th, we set out from the 

 Pearl; and going a different road from that by which 

 we came, passed through a country, wholly uncul- 

 tivated, till we got to the Tyger hills, when some 

 tolerable corn-fields appeared. At noon, we stopped 

 in a hollow for refreshment ; but, in walking about 

 here, were plagued with a vast number of musquitoes 

 or sand-flies, which were the first I saw in the coun- 

 try. In the afternoon we set out again, and in the 

 evening arrived at the Cape Town, tired with the 

 jolting waggon." 



On the 23d, we got on board the observatory, 



* It is strange that neither Kolben nor de la Caille should have 

 thought the Tower of Babylon worthy of a particular description. 

 The former vol. ii. p. 52, 53, English Translation,] only men- 

 tions it as a high mountain. The latter contents himself with tel- 

 ling us, that it is a very low hillock, un tres-bas monticule. Voyage 

 tie la Caille, p. 341. We are much obliged to Mr. Anderson for 

 his very accurate account of this remarkable rock, which agrees 

 with Mr. Sonnerat's, who was at the Cape of Good Hope so late 

 as 1781. His words are, " La Montagne de la Perle, merite 

 d'etre observee. C'est un des plus hautes des environs du Cap. 

 Elle n'est composee que d'un seul bloc de granit crevasse dans 

 plusieurs endroits." Voyage aux Indes, torn. ii. p. 91. 



Mr. Sonnerat tells us, that Mr. Gordon, commander of the 

 troops at the Cape, had lately made three journies up the country, 

 from which, when he publishes his Journal, we may expect much 

 curious information. 



