THE ANAKIRIMA ISLANDS. 
188 
treating ravines or concealed valleys, as if they were 
anxious to remove as far as possible from the observation 
of strangers. Their year is divided into the calm and 
windy seasons, and it was our fortune to visit them during 
the former. Like most of these islands, those of this 
group are of volcanic origin, and offer but slight promise 
of agricultural yield along their steep and bare or densely- 
wooded sides. Some of the valleys, however, grow tine 
rice, and a few of the slopes were planted in sweet potato. 
The largest of them is not more than three miles in length 
by a mile in breadth, and altogether they do not number 
over a dozen, including islets. Some of them rise to an 
elevation of several hundred feet, and abound with deadly 
snakes : more than once we made narrow escapes from 
their fangs while climbing the precipitous heights to 
obtain angles for the survey. It was any thing but 
pleasant to climb those hills — often on one’s hands and 
knees — and to grasp a bunch of grass to secure your 
footing, while under the very next bunch you probably 
saw a snake coiled snugly away. Let me relate an adven- 
ture of this kind : it will give an idea of the scenes 
through which we passed while thus “surveying around 
the world.” 
I turn to my journal for assistance: — 
“April 14. — I came unpleasantly near breaking my 
neck yesterday. McCullom, Carnes, and myself left the 
ship at an early hour to scale three licights where wo 
were to measure base by sound and take a round of 
angles. Having landed at the foot of that -which had 
been assigned me, and seen the boat hauled up above 
high-water mark, I left her in cliarge of three of the 
