THE VOYAGE OP THE BEAGLE 



457 



land are under cultivation, the greater part yet remains as 

 when first discovered. 



The extreme uniformity of the vegetation is the most 

 remarkable feature in the landscape of the greater part of 

 New South Wales. Everywhere we have an open woodland, 

 the ground being partially covered with a very thin pasture, 

 with little appearance of verdure. The trees nearly all 

 belong to one family, and mostly have their leaves placed in 

 a vertical, instead of, as in Europe, in a nearly horizontal 

 position : the foliage is scanty, and of a peculiar pale green 

 tint; without any gloss. Hence the woods appear light and 

 shadowless : this, although a loss of comfort to the traveller 

 under the scorching rays of summer, is of importance to the 

 farmer, as it allows grass to grow where it otherwise would 

 not. The leaves are not shed periodically: this character 

 appears common to the entire southern hemisphere, namely, 

 South America, Australia, and the Cape of Good Hope. The 

 inhabitants of this hemisphere, and of the intertropical 

 regions, thus lose perhaps one of the most glorious, though 

 to our eyes common, spectacles in the world — the first burst- 

 ing into full foliage of the leafless tree. They may, however, 

 say that we pay dearly for this by having the land covered 

 with mere naked skeletons for so many months. This is too 

 true; but our senses thus acquire a keen relish for the ex- 

 quisite green of the spring, which the eyes of those living 

 within the tropics, sated during the long year with the gor- 

 geous productions of those glowing climates, can never ex- 

 perience. The greater number of the trees, with the excep- 

 tion of some of the Blue-gums, do not attain a large size; 

 but they grow tall and tolerably straight, and stand well 

 apart. The bark of some of the Eucalypti falls annually, or 

 hangs dead in long shreds which swing about with the wind, 

 and give to the woods a desolate and untidy appearance. I 

 cannot imagine a more complete contrast, in every respect, 

 than between the forests of Valdivia or Chiloe, and the 

 woods of Australia. 



At sunset, a party of a score of the black aborigines passed 

 by, each carrying, in their accustomed manner, a bundle of 

 spears and other weapons. By giving a leading young man a 

 shilling, they were easily detained, and threw their spears for 



