58 VOYAGES OF A NATURALIST 



was water more refreshing, and not even the 

 presence of vast numbers of land-crabs was suffi- 

 cient to deter us from a long and much-needed 

 drink. Then, feeling greatly refreshed, we fol- 

 lowed the course of the " Cascade," and little by 

 little made our way down towards the shore. 



In many places the " Cascade " formed waterfalls 

 as much as ten or twelve feet in height, and these 

 falls were not easy to negotiate. " Jack," however, 

 produced a piece of rope, and so we were able to 

 lower ourselves down from rock to rock, and 

 finally reached the shore without mishap. 



The sailor who accompanied us on this, and 

 afterwards on many excursions of this kind, was 

 the coxswain of the steam launch, and volunteered 

 to carry our extra baggage, such as cameras and 

 so on. Throughout this voyage he gave his 

 services in this way, and to his untiring persever- 

 ance and willingness we are greatly indebted. 



We reached the " Pier " about six o'clock in 

 the evening, and for my part I was most thankful 

 to get into the boat and rest. Notwithstanding 

 the hard work, however, I had never spent a more 

 delightful or interesting time. 



During the three voyages that it has been my 

 good fortune to make in the " Valhalla " with 

 Lord Crawford, many interesting and beautiful 

 islands were visited, but to my mind none of these 

 places possesses the charm of this small uninhabited 

 spot in the South Atlantic. 



