THE STRAIT OF SUNDA. 159 
€ultiva1cd nature, mingled with the still more varied shades 
produced by human industry, and heightened and rendered 
more prominent by the contrast of rugged and naked moun- 
tains, imparted to the surrounding prospect an infinite diver- 
sity, which the eye could not behold, nor the mind con- 
template, Avithout experiencing that succession of new delight 
which variety seldom fails to communicate ; but here, in the 
strait of Sunda, and particularly on the island of Sumatra, 
which forms its left or western boundary, all is vegetation 
and verdure — all repose, and yet not a single marked point 
for the eye to rest on. The colour of the picture is one mass 
of soft and luxuriant green, which, though the most agreeable 
and delightful of tints, is particularly heavy unless relieved 
• by variety. The eye of the painter, whether it wanders in 
search of scenery whose character is softness, or rudeness, or 
picturesqueness, still requires variety ; like the taste of the 
epicure, it is seldom contented to feast on simple food, or to 
sit down to a single dish, however richly it may be seasoned. 
To a moral philosopher the appearance of an unbounded and 
unbroken forest, like that on Sumatra, is productive of few 
consoling reflections, being the sure indication of a paucity 
of human inhabitants, and of the little progress made by 
those few in the arts of civilization. On the opposite shore 
of Java the forests are considerably broken, and the inter- 
mediate patches of cleared ground exhibit evident marks of 
cultivation. 
Of the many little islands scattered over the surface of 
the strait we visited only two, that are situated at no great 
distance from the shore of Java. They are known to seamen 
