76 Notes on the Island of Palma. 



5000 feet. But this is said to be the deepest crater in the 

 world. It is only at this point that the wall of rock is ab- 

 solutely perpendicular. 



In a few minutes a volume of cloud came rolling up the 

 southern gap in the crater, and filled it to Avithin 1000 feet 

 of the rim with what seemed a solid mass. Very wonderful 

 it was to see the sharp rim on which we sat standing out 

 in a perfect circle, with only a piece broken out to the south. 

 We were able to tell exactly the height of the clouds, for 

 we knew exactly the measurement of our position and that 

 of the pass from the Ciudad opposite, which was just 

 reached by the clouds. The top of Gomera peered up like a 

 little island, and the Peak of Tenerife beyond, but not a 

 trace of the Canadas of Tenerife ; all below 6000 feet was 

 buried. There was not the slightest haze. There was not 

 a ripple on that pavement of cloud. The crown of Gomera 

 looked so close that at first we thought it must be a piece of 

 the edge of our own crater, and Tenerife looked not twenty 

 miles off. Of course the sea was equally covered with the 

 drapery, and we had an unbroken panorama on all sides. 

 Above us the Choughs soared in flocks till almost lost to 

 sight in the empyrean, the Swifts dashed about us, but 

 other life there was none. We were on the Cumbre, or barren 

 heights, and could see how exactly the cloud-line is limited 

 to the forest-zone or, perhaps, rather fixes its limits, while 

 all above it is dreary, barren desolation. Nor does this 

 daily-recurring cloud result in rain. On this, as on other 

 occasions, we passed through the cloud to the coast, where 

 rain had not fallen for weeks. It was in the northern laurel- 

 forests, after we left the pines, that we had our most inter- 

 esting rambles and scrambles after Pigeons, both White-tail 

 and Bar-tail, which with their results have been so fully 

 described by Mr. Meade- Waldo in the last number of ' The 

 Ibis.' 



