JAN. 1769 TERRA DEL FUEGO 49 



butica), 1 both which are as pleasant to the taste as any 

 herbs of the kind found in Europe, and, I believe, possess 

 as much virtue in curing the scurvy. 



The trees here are chiefly of one sort, a kind of birch, 

 Betula antarctica 2 with very small leaves. It has a light 

 white wood, and cleaves very straight. The trees are some- 

 times between two and three feet in diameter, and run thirty 

 or forty feet in the bole ; possibly they might, in cases of 

 necessity, supply top-masts. There are also great quantities 

 of cranberries, both white and red (Arbutus rigidcu}? Inhabit- 

 ants I saw none, but found their huts in two places, once in 

 a thick wood, and again close by the beach. They are 

 most unartificially made, conical, but open on one side, where 

 were marks of fire, which last probably served them instead 

 of a door. 



15tk. By dinner we came to an anchor in the Bay of 

 Good Success [Terra del Fuego] : several Indians 4 were in 

 sight near the shore. 



After dinner, went ashore on the starboard side of the 

 bay, near some rocks, which made the water smooth and the 

 landing good. Before we had walked a hundred yards, 

 many Indians made their appearance on the other side of 

 the bay, at the end of a sandy beach which forms the bottom 

 of the bay, but on seeing our numbers to be ten or twelve 

 they retreated. Dr. Solander and I then walked forward a 

 hundred yards before the rest, and two of the Indians 

 advanced also, and sat down about fifty yards from their 

 companions. As soon as we came up they rose, and each 

 of them threw a stick he had in his hand away from him 

 and us: a token, no doubt, of peace. They then walked 

 briskly towards the others, and waved to us to follow, which 

 we did, and were received with many uncouth signs of 

 friendship. "We distributed among them a number of beads 

 and ribbons, which we had brought ashore for that purpose, 



1 Closely allied to the common English weed, Cardamine Mrsuta, Linn. 



2 The Betula, of Banks is a species of beech, Fagus betuloides, Mirb. 



3 Pernettya mucronata, Gaudich. 



4 Banks constantly uses the term Indians to denote the natives of a 

 country, throughout the "Journal." 



E 



