29 
vessels of war, commanded by navy officers, the others were the 
old packets in charge of their former captains. 
Soon after our arrival we were visited by the consul of the 
Netherlands, Mr. Lake, who brought me several letters. We 
afterwards received a visit from Captain King, a very entertain¬ 
ing old gentleman. At eleven o’clock, Captain Ryk and I went 
on shore, where we found a crowd assembled to witness our land¬ 
ing. We took lodgings in the Royal Hotel, a large, tastefully- 
arranged building, though in a very filthy street. We were much 
annoyed by the fish-market, which was immediately opposite to 
us; in this we saw very large and fine fish, as well as enormous 
shrimps, which are here very cheap. We repaired to the Custom 
House, where I made the necessary arrangements relative to the 
landing of my baggage, after which we visited Mr. Lake and 
Captain King. The latter lived without the limits of the city, 
near the bay, in a house, which, though old and small, is very hand¬ 
somely situated in a garden, and commands a very fine prospect 
of the bay. TJie house is also historically remarkable: it was 
once inhabited by Oliver Cromwell. 
The citadel, named Pendennis Castle, stands, as has been al¬ 
ready remarked, on an eminence near the entrance of the bay, 
which it defends. It occupies the entire height, and is not over¬ 
looked by any other fortress. The soil consists of slate, and many 
of the works are cut out of the rock. It has six bastions, and on 
the water side, two batteries, each of about twenty pieces. 
A furnace for heating shot stands near the upper battery, and the 
lower, which lies close to the shore, is attached by its left wing 
to an old tower erected during the reign of Henry VIII. The 
fortress was built in Cromwell’s time. At the southern point 
stands an old tower, built of granite and surrounded by a ditch, 
which was erected in the reign of Henry VIII. This tower, the 
original fortress, serves at present as the dwelling of the com¬ 
mander. It may be compared with the French tours modeles . 
From the pinnacle, a tolerably extensive prospect of the surround¬ 
ing country may be obtained. The day on which I visited the 
fortress with several officers from the Pallas, was very favourable, 
and yet a fog on the hills, descended into the vale between the 
fortress and the city of Falmouth, so that some time elapsed before 
we could see the rocky shore of the sea. These fogs are said to 
appear very frequently, even on the finest summer days. The 
fortress, which is capable of containing a garrison of two thousand 
men, was merely occupied by a detachment of veterans. There 
is an arsenal in it, where we saw nearly four thousand stands of 
arms for infantry and marines, besides a number of sabres, &c. all 
very handsomely arranged. I observed in this, as in other English 
fortresses, that even during peace, nearly all the cannon are suf~ 
