138 BEAUTIFUL PROSPECT. 



siderable distance to the left in the north-east. 

 We reached towards noon, at a distance of 

 thirty miles from our ship, the common mouth 

 of the two before-mentioned rivers, which here 

 fall into the bay. 



The breadth of this embouchure is a mile 

 and a half, and the banks on both sides are 

 high, steep, and little wooded. It is crossed by 

 a shallow, not above two or three feet deep ; 

 but on its east side the channel will admit ships 

 of a middling size fully laden. The current 

 was so strong against us, that it was with much 

 exertion our rowers accomplished crossing the 

 shallow. We landed on the left bank in order 

 to determine the geographical position of the 

 mouth, and found the latitude 38° 2' 4", and 

 the longitude 122° 4'. After finishing this 

 task, I ascended the highest hillock on the 

 shore, which consisted of strata of slate and 

 quartz, to admire the beauty of the prospect. 

 On the south lay the enviable and important 

 Bay of St. Francisco Avith its many islands 

 and creeks ; to the north flowed the broad 

 beautiful river formed by the junction of the 



