and the Canary Islands. 75 



harbour, could be seen by the eye, among plants and layers of 

 white pumice. 



On 6th May, at 10 a. m., we landed at Puerto Orotava. To 

 render our stay on this island ever worthy of remembrance, it 

 was scarcely necessary to be admitted to the hospitality of 

 (Barry and Bruce), one of the most intelligent, amiable, and po- 

 lite famiUes in the town. When evening recalled us from our 

 excursions in the neighbourhood, we hastened home, to find 

 there united every thing that genius, intelligence, fine feeling, 

 and Spanish warmth of temperament, could produce. Having 

 thus explored the woods above Villa Orotava, the rocks of St 

 Ursula, Ria Lejo, La Rambla, the environs of Garachico and 

 Icod, we at length, on the 18th May, undertook to ascend the 

 Peak. 



Being tolerably intimate with the works of other travellers, 

 we did not stop by the way to discover new phenomena unob- 

 served by oihers, but to discover some traces of what we found 

 related in these old accounts. We hence expected, after leav- 

 ing the beautiful chesnut wood above Villa Orotava, to meet 

 with the woods of pines, which Humboldt supposed were cer- 

 tainly a new species, hitherto undescribed, (Rel i. 186.) We 

 saw only the celebrated Pmo del Dornc0ito, the only one that ap- 

 peared the whole way. Still it is certain, that their way to the 

 foot of the peak was through a thick wood of trees of this 

 description. This was the case at the beginning of the last 

 century ; and according to the observation of Edens and P. 

 Feuille, the ascent in this wood, through pine trees of strik- 

 ing shape and size, was divided into several sections, the 

 Pino de la Caravela, and higher, the Piiio de la Merienda. 

 These the destructive axe has not spared ; and the Pino del 

 Dornqjito, the only one the whole way up, owes its preservation 

 solely to the spring which it overshadows. At present there is 

 no trace of the pine-trees, and the ground is covered with small 

 bushes of heath and plants of fern. At present, we meet with 

 no object, which, like a pillar, could point out the path ; and 

 we perceive, with surprise, that we have spent a number of 

 hours in climbing from the chesnuts to Portillo, by a road over 

 which we do not appear to make the least progress, by reason of 

 the uniformity of the objects around it. 



