516 



DISTRIBUTION OF PLANTS. 



on the Island of Setoal." The mountain had not the outline and 

 regular shape of a volcano, and was somewhat obliquely truncated at 

 the npex. 



For the first twenty miles, the island of Panay seemed lower than 

 Mindoro, with its surface more even; but as we continued saiHng along 

 the Western shore, the land by degrees became mountainous; and in 

 the afternoon, lofty and very much broken. A remarkable terrace 

 liere commenced, extending for miles midway along the face of the 

 mountain slope ; while lower down, some of the nearer hills were ob- 

 served to be unwooded. — On the 28th, communication was held with 

 the shore; and a quantity of fine-grained and beautiful iron sand was 

 brought off " Irom the beach ;" also rolled pebbles, one of them jaspery, 

 with seams of chalcedony ; but among all the specimens, there was 

 nothing of a volcanic character. — On the morning of the 29tli, the 

 wind was light, as during most of the time that we have been under 

 the land, all the way from the Northern Extreme of Mindoro: the line 

 of shoals leaving a continuous deep passage close along the shore, and 

 entirely safe for vessels, at least during this the Northeast Monsoon. 

 From Panay, the Vincennes proceeded South, the wind increasing; 

 and in a few hours, we entirel}' lost sight of land. 



On the 30th, the weather was cloudy ; but during the forenoon, we 

 distinguished the outline of the Western Extreme of Mindanao. Ap- 

 proaching obliquely, at 5 p.m. we were sailing close along the land ; 

 everywhere covered with an unbroken forest of large trees, far exceed- 

 ing in magnificence the portion of the East Indies we had previously 

 visited. In the absence of all signs of inhabitants, the large luxu- 

 riant forest-trees were evidently in great variety ; but througliout the 

 landscape, neither palms nor bamboos were visible. At sunset, the 

 Vincennes rounded a point of land, and anchored close to the small 

 Spanish fort of Caldera. 



On the 31st, I landed with others on a beach composed in part of 

 saml, but mainly of small pebbles: some of them chalcedonic ; others 

 porphyritic ; others again of conglomerate rode, and entirely similar to 

 many seen later in the day in the bed of an inland stream. For nei- 

 ther here, nor throughout our day's excursion, did we meet with solid 

 rock; the soil over which we passed being chiefly clay. 



Beyond the sea-beach, we Ibllowed a path through the forest directly 

 towards the Interior; the trees exceedingly lofty, everywhere a hundred 

 feet or more high ; with the trunk singularly straight for a good part 



