Chap, v.] VEGETATION. 95 



low land which extends westwards. In the margin of this 

 lower tract a small low secondary clift' has been formed by the 

 waves. Steep debris slopes lead from the cliffs above to the 

 settlement tract, and the cliffs are here and there broken into 

 ledges and deep gullies, by which ascent to the summit is easy. 



At the landing-place the beach is formed of black volcanic 

 sand, but elsewhere in the neighbourhood, of coarse basaltic 

 boulders. At the summit of the Peak, as the inhabitants told 

 us, is a crater basin with a lake at the bottom of it. From 

 their description given, it appears that there is something like 

 the Canadas of the Peak of Tenerife around the terminal 

 crater. 



The cliffs have a scanty covering of green, derived mainly 

 from grasses, sedges, mosses, and ferns, with darker patches of 

 the peculiar trees of the island {Fhy/ica arborea), and the crow- 

 berry {E/iipetru/n nigrum var. rubriim). These dark patches 

 become more and more marked towards the summit. Con- 

 spicuous patches of bright green are formed under the cliffs 

 at the foot of the watercourses by a dock {Rumex). Further 

 dotted about amongst the other herbage are rounded tufts of 

 pale bluish-green, consisting of the tall reed-like grass {Spartina 

 anmdinacea), which is peculiar to the Tristan da Cunha group 

 and Amsterdam Island. 



On nearer inspection the damp foot of the cliff is found to 

 be covered with mosses and liverworts, which latter form, in 

 favourable situations, continuous green sheets covering the 

 earth beneath the grass. 



Two ferns, an Asplenium {A. obtiisatiim, Forst.), growing in 

 the clefts of the rocks just as does our home A. viariniun, and 

 Lomaria alpifia are most abundant under the cliffs. The 

 Lomaria plants where situate on stony slopes, and compara- 

 tively starved, were all provided with fertile fronds, whilst 

 those growing in rich vegetable mould were commonly without 

 fructification. 



The commonest flowering plants under the cliffs are Apium 

 anstrak, wild celery, almost the same as the common garden 

 plant abundant here, in Tierro del Fuego, and in the Falkland 

 Islands : the crowberry : the common sow-thistle, a cosmo 

 politan weed : and a plant with strongly scented leaves 

 \Chetwpodiu)n tomentosiiiii), which is used as tea by the is- 

 landers, a decoction of the leaves being drunk with milk and 

 sugar. The islanders call it " tea." 



Creeping amongst the damp moss, is a small narrow-leaved 

 plant with small bright red berries {Nertera deprcssa). 



The streams which run down the cliffs, and which vary 

 from violent dashing cascades in rain time, to narrow rills fed 



