Macquarie Harbour . 
109 
and the whole improved by a mixture of compost, wood- 
ashes, and the small quantity of clay the island itself 
afforded. 
The gardens, however, finally produced peas, cauli¬ 
flowers, cabbages, beans, onions, carrots, turnips, rad¬ 
ishes, celery, lettuces, &c., of a quality and size which 
would not have disgraced the stalls of Co vent Garden. 
Owing to the weather, and the absence of proper ma¬ 
nure, melons and cucumbers were not raised; a few 
pumpkins scarcely reached their full growth. 
English fruit trees, such as apples, peaches, and quince, 
were tried: they blossomed, but the nortlx-westers would 
not allow the fruit to ripen; red currants, and the Cape 
gooseberry, were the only fruit that came to maturity. 
Philip’s Island could boast of a much better soil, and 
produced nearly forty tons of potatoes annually. 
The soil on the main land near the Settlement is, in 
general, of the same cold and hungry description as on 
Sarah’s Island. There are a few tracts of land which to 
the eye would appear susceptible of cultivation; but it is 
evident that the number of acres that could repay the far¬ 
mer would be very small, and these would be mostly chosen 
from the swampy spots on the banks of the Gordon, 
requiring extensive drainage. As far as the produce 
of the soil can recompense the toils of the cultivator, 
Macquarie Harbour will never be selected as a spot 
to settle upon. The very cold and bleak appearance 
of the high lands in the vicinity of the Settlement would 
deter any new settler,—they look as if they were, winter 
and summer, covered with an irremoveable mantle of snow; 
this is owing to the greater part being composed of white 
quartz, and destitute of vegetation. The land lying at 
the foot of these hills is uniformly sterile, the soil being 
composed of sand and diminutive pieces of quartz and 
crystals; the only symptoms of vegetation being of the 
