that he could fancy himself transported into the most fertile
plains of Europe; not a spot of waste ground was to be seen. Fences
were often formed of useful plants, and the road occupied as little
space as possible. In other places the inhabitants resembled those of
the Society Islands.

As it was now time to prosecute his researches in high southern
latitudes, he sailed on the 7th of October, and having sighted Pilstart,
he on the 21st descried the land of New Zealand, though, owing to
contrary winds, he did not reach Queen Charlotte's Sound until the 3rd
of November, having in the meantime lost sight of the _Adventure_. He
here remained three or four weeks, waiting for her appearance, and then
sailed in the hopes of completing the circle round the pole in a high
latitude.

This was a most dreary part of his voyage. Immense masses of ice were
seen, and occasionally the antarctic petrels, grey albatrosses, and some
other birds; but there were few other objects of interest to amuse the
minds of the crew. Often the ship was in great peril from icebergs. At
one time no less than ninety-seven were seen within a field of ice,
besides a number outside, many of them very large, and looking like a
range of mountains rising one above another until they were lost sight
of in the clouds. The outer or northern edge of this field was composed
of loose or broken ice, so closely packed together that it was
impossible for the ship to enter it. Since therefore he could not
proceed farther to the south, he determined to stand back in search of a
more genial clime. Many of his crew were suffering, and he himself was
seized with so dangerous an illness that his life was despaired of.
Unable to leave his cabin, Mr Cooper, his first officer, took charge of
the ship. When he began to recover, a favourite dog, belonging to Mr
Forster, was killed to supply him with fresh meat and broth.

The first land made was Easter Island, which had been in vain looked for
by Byron, Cartaret, and Bougainville. There was no anchoring-ground,
and but a very small supply of fresh provisions or water. The
inhabitants, numbering between six and seven hundred, had made less
progress in the arts than any other tribes of Polynesia. The objects of
chief interest in the island were gigantic statues, some from fifteen to
twenty-seven feet in height; on the head of each was a cylindrical block
of red-coloured stone, wrought perfectly round. The carving