OF LA PEROUSE. I5 



litated our journey to the weft ward, as far as the 

 foot of the mountains that we had to crofs ; and 

 at length we penetrated into the middle of the 

 forefts, having now no other guide than the 

 compafs. 



Wc direcSted our route to the northward, and 

 advanced but flowly, being obliged to over- 

 come the obftacles which were oppofed to us at 

 every ftep, by enormous trees heaped one upon 

 the other : moft of them, rooted up by the tem- 

 peft, had raifed in their fall part of the foil in 

 which they had grown : others, fallen down 

 from age, were worm-eaten in every part ; and 

 frequently the lower extremity of their trunk 

 was fecn ftill upright in the midft of the pro- 

 digious heaps of their remains. 



After an extremely laborious walk, we at laft 

 reached the funimit of a mountain, whence we 

 perceived, to the fo'Jthvrard, the middle of the 

 roadftead of the South Cape, and, to the 

 north-weft, the great mountain towards which 

 We were directing our fteps. 



Prefently the night forced us to flop. Wc 

 kindled a great lire, near which a pleaf?nt flcep 

 foon overtook us, and refreflied us after the fa^ 

 tigues of the day. We ficpt in the open air, 

 bccaufe it would have been very difficult for 

 us to build quickly a place of {helter in the 

 miJH of thefe large trees, their branches being 



dueflv 



