496 SMITH. 



McCall, the last named having the kindness to furnish a launch to take 

 ns from Da-\-ao to Daron^ and our thanks are extended to him for the 

 courtesy. 



We began the ascent of the first long, gradual slope toward Mount 

 Apo on December 29. The trail first passes through hemp fields on the 

 coastal plain and afterward.it ascends gradually through a long, grassy 

 slope which is strewn with occasional bowlders. 



The first stopping place was at the house of Tankalin, the chief of 

 the Bagobos. In appearance he and his people are very much like the 

 Manobos. A short description of these people and one of their peculiar 

 ceremonies has Ijeen given by me in a previous number of this Journal."" 



The remaining details of the ascent can best be given by extracts from 

 the diary. 



December 30 : We are delayed because of lack of cargadores, the rear of our 

 party not leaving until 10.30 a. m. We paused at 2.30 p. m. in the river bottom. 

 Here some representative samples were collected from tlie bowlders in the agglo- 

 merate. These are largely angular and andesitic. The stream at this point is 

 engorged in a steep-sided caiionj 300 meters deep. There are neither signs 

 of ashes nor of lava in this canon, although a great section is exposed. Every- 

 thing points to there having been at some time a violent explosion, probably 

 Krakatoan in magnitude. We jjushed on to Pandaj'a, arriving 5.30 p. m. in a 

 pouring rain and found one small, miserable hut. 



The elevation of this place is 870 meters and in the early morning the temper- 

 ature was 20°. 5 C. During the night over half our carriers ran away, so we 

 were left in a fairly precarious condition. 



December 31 : Messrs. Goodman and Ickis went ahead with part of the bag- 

 gage; the remainder of the party remained to procure carriers, of whom we finally 

 secured three, and to examine the rocks in the vicinity more carefully. There 

 were five heavy packs, the lightest weighing 35 pounds. As Goodman and Ickis 

 were also heavily loaded, all were compelled to assume the role of carriers. 



The first, almost perpendicular rise of 180 meters was reached in a verj' short 

 time, but the work was very trj'ing to tliose who were unused to this kind of labor. 

 The trail finally led along on a high ridge 300 meters above the water until nightfall. 



January 1, .1908: About 10 a. m. some Bagobos came back on the trail as 

 carriers, and soon after the camp of the advance party was reached. This 

 place had been established by Major B. A. Mearns, Medical Corps, United States 

 Army, who had been in this region collecting botanical and zoological material. 

 The elevation as determined by the boiling-point method is 1,854 meters; the 

 barometer reading giving 1,062 meters. This camp is situated on a little shoulder 

 of the ridge in a fair growth of timber and close by is a small stream of cold 

 water, containing both iron and sulphur salts in solution. The siunmit of the 

 mountain can be seen from here through an opening in the trees and the fumes 

 issuing from the huge crevasse on the eastern side are also plainly distinguishable. 

 (See Plate XIX.) 



January 2, 1908: The trail first leads upward through the hea-\y timber in 

 the mossy forest belt, and then drops into a small creek bed which it follows up 

 to 2,250 meters; here it passes beyond the timber line and through a growth of 

 small blueberry bushes and stunted shrubs finally reaching exceedingly rough 



-' This Journal, Sec. A. (1908), 3, 188. 



