270 CRUSOE'S ISLAND. 



probably at the time when the Spaniards had a colony 

 here, for the stone walls which served to divide the in- 

 closure are still to be seen. There are also the remains of 

 a small fort and a few tumble-down shanties, in which at 

 the present time dwell some forty or fifty people, who get 

 a precarious living by rearing cattle, cutting wood, etc., 

 for supplies to vessels that occasionally call here. 



"It was late in the evening when we anchored in 

 Cumberland Bay, in twenty-five fathoms — a pleasant, se- 

 cluded spot, with precipitous cliffs all around us, and a 

 good beach for landing and roads leading up to the set- 

 tlement. Time would not permit a longer stay than two 

 days here, and that was made the most of. All the places 

 immortalized by Selkirk were visited — the caves, ' His Val- 

 ley,' ' His Lookout,' etc. This gap is some two thousand 

 feet above the level of the sea, and from it a glorious view 

 was obtained, both north and south. ' Robinson ' used to 

 daily visit and wearily watch for the coming sail. Here 

 her Majesty's ship Topaze, in 1863, placed a tablet. 



" Hill and dale were tramped over by naturalists and 

 others, and numerous specimens of birds and plants ob- 

 tained ; and what was very acceptable, plenty of fresh 

 food, for the bay proved a very prolific fishing ground, 

 and from the settlement beef of an excellent quality was 

 to be had. At the present time Juan Fernandez is leased 

 to a Chilian, who employs the settlers in woodcutting, at- 

 tending the cattle, and in the season seal-hunting, of 

 which at times they capture large numbers (some they 

 had on hand they were willing to sell at twelve to sixteen 

 dollars each)." 



JUAN FERNANDEZ. 



LATEST DESCRIPTION. 



* One Swiss, two Grermans, one Frenchman, one Portu- 

 guese, and about twenty Chilians, men, women, and chil- 



