e) re i _- SCENERY—DURASNO. 47 
Sail ini «chapels that have been raised on the little 
hills. ‘The lands are separated by enclosures form- 
ed of the agave and cactus. Multitudes of crypto- 
_gamie plants, especially ferns, cover the walls. In 
winter, »vhile the volcano is wrapped in snow, 
there is contiuued spring in this beautiful district ; 
and in summer, towards evening, the sea-breezes 
diffuse a gentle coolness over it. From Tegueste 
and Tacoronte to the village of San Juan de la Ram- 
bla, the coast is cultivated like a garden, and might 
be compared to the neighbourhood of Capua or Va- 
lentia ; but the western part of Teneriffe is much 
more beautiful, on account of the proximity of the 
Peak, the sight of which has a most imposing effect, 
and excites the imagination to penetrate into the 
mysterious source of voleanic action. For thou- 
sands of years no light has been observed at the 
summit of the mountain, and yet enormous lateral 
eruptions, the last of which happened in 1798, 
prove the activity of a fire which is far from being 
extinct. There is, besides, something melancholy 
in the sight of a crater placed in the midst of a fer- 
tile and highly-cultivated country. 
Pursuing their course to the port of Orotava, the 
travellers passed the beautiful hamlets of Matanza 
and Vittoria (slaughter and victory),—names which 
occur together in all the Spanish colonies, and pre- 
sent a disagreeable contrast to the feelings of peace 
and quiet which these countries inspire. On their 
way they visited a botanic garden at Durasno, where 
they found M. Le Gros, the French vice-consul, who 
subsequently served as an excellent guide to the 
Peak. The idea of forming such an establishment 
at Teneriffe originated with the Marquis de Nava, 
