458 KALM'S ENGLAND. 



Avas a very high land, but yet near the shores mostly 

 long-sloping. The soil was there of chalk, but this chalk 

 is said not to be so good as that near Gravesend, but 

 harder. On both sides of the Isle of Wight appeared 

 high steep cliffs of bare chalk. The land on the surface 

 of this island seemed to be divided by hedges. 



At 5 o'clock in the afternoon, we began to see the Isle 

 of Portland, nearly in front of us at a great distance. We 

 also saw the English coast right opposite us, but a long 

 .way off. This was [T. II. p. in J, mostly steep enough, 

 and seemed quite white, but whether it was chalk or 

 some white kind of stone or other, I could not determine, 

 for the long distance. 



The nth August, 1748. 



Resan. The Voyage. We sailed quickly the whole 

 -of the previous night, and also this day. At 6 o'clock in 

 the morning we saw Bolthead, a promontory of England, 

 inside which Plymouth (Pleymouth) lies. Porpoises 

 tumbled about here and there in the Water. At noon the 

 wind moderated, and almost died away, so that the ship 

 could not travel very fast. Otherwise our ship was a 

 very fast sailer. The captains who were onboard agreed 

 that they had scarcely ever seen any ship which sailed so 

 fast. They reckoned it thus, than when other ships in 

 one hour sailed three miles, ours in the same time sailed 

 5 miles. At noon we left the English Coast, and saw it 

 again no more. Vi lamnade vid Middagstid 

 Angelska vallen och sago den ej mera. 



