OF LA PEROUSE. 12\ 



nomination of lufi. We obferved a thin fmoke 

 iflue in puffs from a f'mall fubtcrraneous aper- 

 ture at a little dittance from the fhore : we were 

 ignorant whether thefe forefis h.ad been fet in 

 flames by the fubterrancous fire or by the hand 

 of man. I learnt at the Ifle of France, at 

 the time of my return from the South Sea, 

 that an iVmerican fhip had carried to the Iflands 

 of Amtterdam and of St. Paul, fome men com- 

 miffioned to extract oil from the feals, which 

 are there very numerous. Notwithftanding our 

 attention to difcover if our affiflance would not 

 be required, we faw no fignal to apprife us that 

 this ifland was inhabited. Beiides, it would have 

 been impoliible to have put in there, for we 

 could leek a fhelter only to leeward of this land, 

 where the thick fmoke would have put us in 

 danger of being fufTocated. The fmell of this 

 fmoke indicated nothing but vegetables on fire. 



The mountains flope towards the fouth-eaft; 

 fo that in favourable weather it would be ,eafy 

 to land on that fide. We here faw fome little 

 rivulets, which, after a meandering courfe, mix 

 their waters with thofe of the fea. 



We were only at a fmall difiance from the 

 ifland when the night came on. This land then 

 appeared all in a blaze ; and the fmoke, which 

 imbibed all its bright nefs, gave to the fky a 



copper- 3 



