VILLA DE LA LACUNA. 37 



appearance of having been formed by a current of 

 lava from the Peak. Some arborescent Euphorbia;, 

 CacaUa kleinia, and Cacti, were the only plants ob- 

 served on these parched acclivities. The mules 

 slipped at every step on the inclined surfaces of the 

 rock although traces of an old road were observ- 

 able, which, with the numerous other indications that 

 occur in these colonies, afford evidence of the ac- 

 tivity displayed by the Spanish nation in the six- 

 teenth century. 



The heat of Santa Cruz, which is suffocating, is 

 in a great measure to be attributed to the reverbera- 

 tion of the rocks in its vicinity ; but as the travellers 

 approached Laguna they became sensible of a very 

 pleasant diminution of temperature. In fact, the 

 perpetual coolness which exists here renders it a 

 delightful residence. It is situated in a small plain, 

 surrounded by gardens, and commanded by a hill 

 crowned with the laurel, the myrtle, and the arbutus. 

 The rain, in collecting, forms from time to time a 

 kind of large pool or marsh, which has induced 

 travellers to describe the capital of Teneriffe as 

 situated on the margin of a lake. The town, which 

 was deprived of its opulence in consequence of the 

 port of Garachico having been destroyed by the 

 lateral eruptions of the volcano, has only 9000 in- 

 habitants, of which about 400 are monks. It is sur- 

 rounded by numerous windmills for corn. Hum- 

 boldt observes that the cereal grasses were known 

 to the original inhabitants, and that parched barley- 

 flour and goats' milk formed their principal meals. 

 This food tends to show that they were connected 

 Avith the nations of the old continent, perhaps even 

 with those of the Caucasian race, and not with the 

 mhabitants of the New World, who, previous to the 

 arrival of the Europeans among them, had no know- 

 ledge of grain, milk, or cheese. 



The Canary Islands were originally inhabited by 

 a people famed for their tall stature, and known by 



D 



