208 Mr Scouler's Voyage to the Pacific Ocean. 



almost uninjured, is situated on an eminence about 500 

 yards from the beach, and effectually commands the landing- 

 place. Most of the guns remained till a few years ago, when 

 they were removed by the Chilians to prevent their falling in- 

 to the hands of the Spanish royalists. The ground on which 

 the fort stands consists of a red-coloured earth, formed by the 

 decomposition of the basaltic rocks, and is plentifully covered 

 by strawberries, now in a state of ripeness, and very abundant. 

 To the west of the battery a church, and an excellent oven, 

 still remain. The church is built in the form of the Latin 

 cross, and bears the following inscription. " La caza de Dios 

 overtodel cielo y saccolacaesta, 24 de Septiembre 1811." Al- 

 though the doors and windows of this building; had been re- 

 moved, it still possessed the font, and the walls still retained 

 their whitewashed appearance. To the north east of the 

 church this beautiful valley is quite covered by corn-fields, 

 which are still divided from each other by their former land- 

 marks. As the valley approaches the mountains, the clus- 

 ters of ferns raising their green fronds on the margins of the 

 stream, have a most pleasing appearance, and, in my opinion, 

 forms the most beautiful vegetable ornament of the island. 



Such is the present state of that island which afforded to 

 Lord Anson's ships so much refreshment after his voyage round 

 Cape Horn, and fully merits all the praises he bestows on 

 it. With a climate similar to Madeira, and a similar geolo- 

 gical structure, it is probable that Juan Fernandez should af- 

 ford equal advantages for the cultivation of the vine ; and those 

 plants which we saw appeared to grow luxuriantly, and were 

 loaded with plenty of grapes, but still in an early state. 



Land animals are by no means numerous, nor, with the 

 exception of the seal, can Juan Fernandez boast of a single 

 indigenous mammiferous animal. The bullock, the goat, 

 and the rat, are the only other animals of this class, and all of 

 them have been introduced. The cattle are now driven from 

 the north side of the island, since the hunters have fixed 

 their residence there; but they are still abundant on the south- 

 ern extremity, which is more inaccessible. The hunters in 

 killing the bullocks drive them into a small plain, bounded 



