LEE SIDE OF THE MOUNTAIN. 395 



satisfaction to see its summit, the delicate blue 

 outline of which now appeared high above them, soar- 

 ing as it were in the upper air. It was about twenty 

 miles from us, in a straight line, and rose more than 

 11,000 feet above the sea. As the sun sank, it 

 became more distinct, and the clouds settled down 

 more and more, hiding themselves in the valleys and 

 ravines, and allowing the crests of the lower but 

 nearer ridges to emerge. We were now on the 

 northern side of the mountain, where it rises ab- 

 ruptly from the sea ; and here ridge after ridge 

 successively appeared, rough with crags, and broken 

 by narrow gullies, and separated apparently from 

 each other by deep valleys of some width, in which 

 we saw the tops of the clouds still boiling and rolling 

 about. On the nearest ridges, we could make out 

 rows of noble trees, looking like pines.* As we came 

 out of the strait, we had a fine southerly fresh breeze, 

 before which we were running at ten knots an hour ; 

 but on hauling up to the north-west, we passed 

 suddenly into a broad tract of smooth water, that 

 stretched out for some miles under the lee of the 

 mountain ; and soon after entering this, we lay 

 with hardly a breath of wind. Three large 

 prahus were in sight at sunset ; and soon after 

 dark we floated past them. They were steering to 

 the eastward, being probably bound to Bima, in 

 Sumbawa. 



* These were probably Casuarina, such as we afterwards saw 

 on the mountains of Java. 



