180 PHILOSOPHICAL TRANSACTIONS. [aNNO 1715. 



While we sat at the foot of the sugar-loaf, resting and refreshing ourselves, 

 as before in other places, we saw the smoke break out in several places, which 

 at first looked like little clouds, but they soon vanished, others not long after 

 succeeding them, from the same or other places. We set forwards to ascend 

 the last and steepest part of our journey, viz. the sugar-loaf, exactly at half past 

 3, and after we had rested twice or thrice, we all arrived there by 4. 



The shape of the top of the peak is partly oval, the longest diameter lying 

 N. N. W. and S. S. E. and is, as near as I could guess, about 1 40 yards long ; 

 the breadth the other way being about 110. Within the top of the peak is a 

 very deep hole, called the Caldera, or Kettle, the deepest part of which lies at 

 the south end: it is I believe 40 yards deep, reckoning from the highest side of 

 the peak : but it is much shallower reckoning from the side opposite to Gara 

 chica. The sides of this kettle are very steep, in some places as steep as the 

 descent on the outside of the sugar-loaf. We all went to the bottom of this 

 kettle, where a great many very large stones lie, some of them higher than our 

 heads. The earth that is within side the kettle, being rolled up long and put 

 to a candle, will burn like brimstone. Several places within side the top of the 

 peak are burning, as on the outside ; and in some places on turning up the 

 stones, is found very fine brimstone or sulphur sticking to them. At the holes 

 where the smoke comes out, there also comes forth a great heat, so hot that 

 one cannot endure one's hand there long. At the N. by E. side, within the 

 top, is a cave, where we found a dead goat; in which cave sometimes the true 

 spirit of sulphur distils, as they say, but it did not drop while I was there. 



The report is false about the difficulty of breathing upon the top of this 

 place; for we breathed as well as if we had been below : we ate our breakfast 

 there, and I was there in all for about 2 hours and a quarter. Before the sun 

 rose I think the air was as cold as I have known it in England, in the sharpest 

 frost I was ever in ; I could scarcely endure my gloves off. There was a great 

 dew all the while we were there till sun rising, which we could find by the wet 

 ness of our clothes; but the sky looked there as clear as possible. A little after 

 sun rising we saw the shadow of the peak on the sea, reaching over the island 

 of Gomera ; and the shadow of the upper part, viz. of the sugar-loaf, we saw 

 imprinted like another peak in the sky itself, which looked very surprising : but 

 the air being cloudy below us, we saw none of the other islands, except Grand 

 Canaria and Gomera. 



At 6 on Thursday morning we came down from the top of the sugar-loaf; 

 at 7 we came to the cistern of water which is reported to be without bottom : 

 this the guide says is false, for about 7 or 8 years ago, when there was a great 

 volcano in this country, the cave was dry and he walked all about it, and 



