512 



CHARLES DARWIN 



rocks of elevated coral. We passed through pleasant gar- 

 dens, and fine fields of sugar-cane growing amidst huge 

 blocks of lava. The roads were bordered by hedges of 

 Mimosa, and near many of the houses there were avenues 

 of the mango. Some of the views, where the peaked hills 

 and the cultivated farms were seen together, were exceed- 

 ingly picturesque; and we were constantly tempted to 

 exclaim, " How pleasant it would be to pass one's life in 

 such quiet abodes ! " Captain Lloyd possessed an elephant, 

 and he sent it half way with us, that we might enjoy a ride 

 in true Indian fashion. The circumstance which sur- 

 prised me most was its quite noiseless step. This elephant 

 is the only one at present on the island; but it is said others 

 will be sent for. 



May pth. — We sailed from Port Louis, and, calling at the 

 Cape of Good Hope, on the 8th of July, we arrived off St. 

 Helena. This island, the forbidding aspect of which has 

 been so often described, rises abruptly like a huge black 

 castle from the ocean. Near the town, as if to complete 

 nature's defence, small forts and guns fill up every gap in 

 the rugged rocks. The town runs up a flat and narrow 

 valley; the houses look respectable, and are interspersed 

 with a very few green trees. When approaching the anchor- 

 age there was one striking view : an irregular castle perched 

 on the summit of a lofty hill, and surrounded by a few scat- 

 tered fir-trees, boldly projected against the sky. 



The next day I obtained lodgings within a stone's throw 

 of Napoleon's tomb; 1 it was a capital central situation, 

 whence I could make excursions in every direction. During 

 the four days I stayed here, I wandered over the island from 

 morning to night, and examined its geological history. My 

 lodgings were situated at a height of about 2000 feet; here 

 the weather was cold and boisterous, with constant showers 

 of rain ; and every now and then the whole scene was veiled 

 in thick clouds. 



1 After the volumes of eloquence which have poured forth on this sub- 

 Sect, it is dangerous even to mention the tomb. A modern_ traveller, in 

 twelve lines, burdens the poor little island with the following titles, — it 

 is a grave, tomb, pyramid, cemetery, sepulchre, catacomb, sarcophagus, 

 minaret, and mausoleum 1 



