312 APPENDIX II 



very beautiful ; the ground, though hilly, is covered with a tolerably 

 thick coating of soil, which supports a fine sward of Grass, Ferns, climbing 

 plants, and in some places, timber of considerable size, Coa, Tutui, and 

 Mamme trees. Though fallen trees and brushwood occasionally inter- 

 cepted the path, still it was by no means so difficult as that by which I 

 had ascended Mouna Kuah. To avoid a woody point of steep ascent, 

 we turned a little eastward, after having travelled about five miles and 

 a half, and passed several deserted dwellings, apparently only intended 

 as the temporary abodes of bird-catchers and sandal-wood-cutters. 

 Calabashes and Pumpkins, with Tobacco, were the only plants that I 

 observed growing near them. At eleven a.m. we came to a small pool 

 of fresh water, collected in the lava, the temperature of which was 55°, 

 here my people halted for a few minutes to smoke. The barometer 

 stood at 26 inch., the air 62°, and the dew point at 58°. The wind was 

 from the South, with a gentle fanning breeze and a clear sky. Hence 

 the path turns North- West, for a mile and half, becoming a little steeper, 

 till it leads to a beautiful circular well, three feet deep, flowing in the 

 lava, its banks fringed with Strawberry Vines, and shaded by an Acacia 

 Tree grove. Here we again rested for half an hour. We might be said 

 here to have ascended above the woody country ; the ground became 

 more steep and broken, with a thinner soil and trees of humbler growth, 

 leading towards the South-East ridge of Mouna Eoa, which, judging 

 from a distance, appeared the part to which there is the easiest access. 

 I would recommend to any Naturalists who may in future visit this moun- 

 tain, to have their canteens filled at the weU just mentioned, for my 

 guide, trusting to one which existed in a cave further up, and which he 

 was unable to find, declined to provide himself with this indispensable 

 article at the lower well, and we were consequently put to the greatest 

 inconvenience. Among the brushwood was a strong kind of Raspberry- 

 bush, destitute of leaves ; the fruit, I am told, is white. At four p.m. 

 we arrived at a place where the lava suddenly became very rugged, and 

 the brushwood low, where we rested and chewed sugar-cane, of which 

 we carried a large supply, and where the guides were anxious to remain 

 all night. As this was not very desirable, since we had no water, I pro- 

 ceeded for an hour longer, to what might be called the Line of Shrubs, 

 and at two mUes and a half further on, encamped for the night. We 

 collected some small stems of a heath-like plant, which, with the dried 

 stalks of the same species of Compositae which I observed on Mouna Kuah, 

 afiorded a tolerably good fire. The man who carried the provisions did 

 not make his appearance— indeed it is very difficult, except by literally 

 driving them before you, to make the natives keep up with an active 

 traveller. Thus I had to sup upon Taro-roots. Honori, as I expected, 

 did not come up. I had no view of the surrounding country, for the 

 region below, especially over the land, was covered with a thick layer 

 of fieecy mist, and the cloud which always hovers above the great volcano, 

 overhung the horizon and rose into the air, like a great tower. Sunset 

 gave a totally different aspect to the whole, the fleecy clouds changed 

 their hue to a vapoury tint, and the volume of mist above the volcano 



