18II. 
EXCURSION TO TABLE MOUNTAIN. 
39 
Mountain on the following morning, I feared the fire might spread 
along the path by which we were to ascend, and, consuming all the 
vegetation in the way, disappoint my expectation of seeing the mul- 
titude of curious and beautiful plants which were said to grow on this 
celebrated mountain. The slaves who daily frequent its rocky sides, 
to collect fire-wood for their masters, or for sale, often light a fire to 
warm themselves, or, perhaps, merely that they may sit round it, and 
indulge in a pipe and a little idle gossip ; and though it be a punish- 
able offence to leave it burning, it sometimes happens that they 
neglect extinguishing it properly, and thus occasion, almost every 
year, a conflagration of this kind, which not only destroys the beauty 
and verdant clothing of the mountain, but, in time, renders fire- 
wood more scarce than ever. It is a very common practice through- 
out the colony, at certain seasons of the year, purposely to set fire to 
the old dry grass and bushes, for the purpose of clearing the land, and 
allowing the young and fresh pasture to spring up clear from the dry 
stubble and withered grass, which is found to prevent the cattle feed- 
ing with advantao-e on the new herbao;e. 
As the view from the top of Table Mountain is considered 
to be most interesting, just at sunrise, we began, at a very early hour, 
to make every necessary arrangement, that we might reach the sum- 
mit about that time. The party consisted of Mr. Hesse, Mr. Pole- 
mann, Mr. Renou, Mr. Jones chaplain of the Scipion man-of-war, 
and myself ; being all, as we remarked, of a different native language, 
belonging respectively to Hanover, Denmark, France, Wales, and 
England ; and, to increase this variety of tongues, the slaves v/hom 
we took with us happened also to differ from each other. 
Our polyglot party being assembled at the hour appointed, v/e 
set out at a quarter past three in the morning. As the town is not 
regularly lighted by lamps, we depended entirely on the light of the 
stars. Nothing but the sound of our early footsteps disturbed the 
dead silence of the night; for here no bawling watch tells the towns- 
man the hour, at a time when it can be of no use to know it. 
From the town, the ground rises in a regular ascent to the foot 
