104 cook's voyage to march, 



the path ceased, had become exceedingly fatiguing; 

 and every moment they advanced, was growing still 

 more so. The deep chinks, with which the ground 

 was every were broken, being slightly covered with 

 moss, made them stumble at almost every step; and 

 the intermediate space was a surface of loose burnt 

 stones, which broke under their feet like potsherds. 

 They threw stones into several of these chinks; 

 which, by the noise they made, seemed to fall to a 

 considerable depth, and the ground sounded hollow 

 under their feet. Besides these discouraging cir- 

 cumstances, they found their guides so averse to 

 going on, that they believed, whatever their own 

 determinations might have been, they could not have 

 prevailed on them to remain out another night. 

 They, therefore, at last agreed to return to the ships, 

 after taking a view of the country from the highest 

 trees which the place afforded. From this elevation 

 they saw themselves surrounded on all sides with 

 wood toward the sea; they could not distinguish, in 

 the horizon, the sky from the water; and between 

 them and the snowy mountain, was a valley about 

 seven or eight miles broad, above which the moun- 

 tain appeared only as a hill of a moderate size. 



They rested this night at a hut in the second wood, 

 and on the 30th, before noon, they had got clear of 

 the first, and found themselves about nine miles to 

 the north-east of the ships, toward which they di- 

 rected their march through the plantations. As they 

 passed along, they did not observe a single spot of 

 ground that was capable of improvement, left un- 

 planted; and, indeed, it appeared, from their account, 

 hardly possible for the country to be cultivated to 

 greater advantage for the purposes of the inhabitants, 

 or made to yield them a larger supply of necessaries 

 for their subsistence. They were surprised to meet 

 with several fields of hay ; and on inquiring to what 

 uses it was applied, were told it was designed to 

 cover the young tarrow grounds, in order to preserve 



