A VOYAGE TO 
[At Mauritius . 
isos. th an s j x miles ; the descent is therefore rapid, and is rendered 
September. 1 
more so from three-fourths of the space being flat, low land; in 
comparison with Le Tamarin, Vacouas is in fact an irregular plain 
upon the top- of the mountains, to which there is almost no other 
access than by making a circuit of four or five miles round by the 
lower part of Wilhems Plains. Three rugged peaks called the 
Trois Mamelles, and another, the Montagne du Rempart, all of 
them conspicuous at sea, are the highest points of a ridge somewhat 
elevated above this irregular plain, and bounding it to the westward; 
and the road forming the ordinary communication between the high 
and low land passes round them. My retreat, which very appro- 
priately to the circumstances of my situation bore the name of The 
Refuge, lay two or three miles to the south-east of the Trois Mamelles. 
The principal rivers in the neighbourhood are the R. du 
Tamarin and the R. du Rempart, each branching into two principal 
arms ; these collect all the smaller streams in this portion of the 
island, and' arriving by different routes at the same point, make their 
junction at the head of the Baye du Tamarin, where their waters are 
discharged into the sea. In wet weather these rivers run with great 
force, but in ordinary times they do not contain much water ; and 
their smaller branches are mostly dried up in October and November. 
Both arms of the R. du Rempart take their rise between one and two 
miles to the S. by E. of the Refuge, and within half a mile of the Mare 
aux Vacouas, from which it is thought their sources are derived; 
the western arm bears the name of R. des Papayes, probably from 
L 
mometer stands at 70° in both places ; and therefore the approximate elevation of Vacouas 
above M. Pitot’s house, should be 187? toises, or in French feet, - - 1123 
Correction for excess of thermometers above 70°, - - + 25 
Supposed elevation of M. Pitot’s house above the sea, - - +40 
Elevation of Vacouas in French feet, ) - ] 188 
The English foot being to the French, as 12 is to 12,816, the height of Vacouas above the 
level of the sea should be nearly 1269 English feet. 
