340 FEEJEE GROUP. 
Windsor and long-pod beans, three sorts of peas, five varieties of 
gourds, two of pumpkins, two of cucumbers, three varieties of musk 
and water-melons, two kinds of turnips, parsley, cabbage, cresses, 
several kinds of small salad, a few tomatoes, together with the Peru- 
vian cherimoyer and Tahiti orange, were vegetating together, and I 
trust will establish themselves in these islands for the benefit not only 
of the natives, but of our navigators who may hereafter visit these 
parts for refreshments. The garden was left under the charge of 
David Whippy, a native of New Hampshire, of industrious habits, who 
I trust will not fail to take the best means to preserve and perpetuate 
what will no doubt prove a great blessing to the future population of 
this group. 
The climate of the Feejee Islands is well adapted to all the various 
tribes of tropical plants, and to not a few of those of the temperate 
zone; for many of the islands are of a mountainous character, and 
numerous localities present themselves adapted to the growth of the 
latter. 
These islands were once covered with vegetation from the coral 
reefs to the top of their highest peaks, but below the elevation of one 
thousand feet, on the leeward side of the large islands, the original 
vegetation has been for the most part destroyed by the fires which the 
natives use to clear their planting grounds. During our sojourn we 
occasionally saw the fire running over vast fields. The forest above 
that elevation, having escaped its ravages, forms umbrageous masses, 
where the underwood and herbaceous part of the vegetation disappear. 
As the ridges and summits are approached, the trees become more 
sparse, giving an opportunity to the numerous species of ferns (Filices), 
to receive both light and air; these are found in great quantities, and 
varieties, both terrestrial and parasitical, intermingled with various 
forms of epiphytical orchidez, and many mosses, with which the trees 
are decked. Climbing plants are numerous, but are found chiefly to 
prevail around the margin of cultivated patches and the banks of 
rivulets, finding there more nutriment for their support. Three species 
of Freycinetia, a melastomaceous and asclepiadeous plant, were the 
only climbers observed above the height of two thousand five hundred 
feet. The lower region is usually appropriated to plantations of fruits 
and roots. The yams are generally planted in dry open situations, but 
the bananas and plantains are found in extensive plantations, growing 
in rich soil, protected by the bread-fruit and ivi trees from the violent 
winds which they occasionally experience. The plants that strike the 
eye of a stranger visiting these islands, are those immediately above 
high-water mark, viz,: Hibiscus tiliaceus, Barringtonia, Hernandia 
