taking what he wanted himself,
and giving the rest to some of our people.

When I got them on board, I went with them all over the ship, which they
viewed with uncommon surprise and attention. We happened to have for their
entertainment a kind of pie or pudding made of plantains, and some sort of
greens which we had got from one of the natives. On this and on yams they
made a hearty dinner; for, as to the salt beef and pork, they would hardly
taste them. In the afternoon, having made each of them a present of a
hatchet, a spike-nail, and some medals, I conducted them ashore.

Mr Forster and I then went over to the other side of the harbour, and,
having tried, with Fahrenheit's thermometer, the head of one of the hot
springs, we found that the mercury rose to 191 deg.. At this time the tide was
up within two or three feet of the spring, so that we judged, it might, in
some degree, be cooled by it. We were mistaken however, for on repeating
the experiment next morning, when the tide was out, the mercury rose no
higher than 187 deg.; but, at another spring, where the water bubbled out of
the sand from under the rock at the S.W. corner of the harbour, the mercury
in the same thermometer rose to 202 deg.-1/2, which is but little colder than
boiling water. The hot places before mentioned are from about three to four
hundred feet perpendicular above these springs, and on the slope of the
same ridge with the volcano; that is, there are no vallies between them,
but such as are formed in the ridge itself; nor is the volcano on the
highest part of the ridge, but on the S.E. side of it. This is, I have been
told, contrary to the general opinion of philosophers, who say that
volcanos must be on the summits of the highest hills. So far is this from
being the case on this island, that some of its hills are more than double
the height of that on which the volcano is, and close to it. To these
remarks I must add, that, in wet or moist weather, the volcano was most
violent. There seems to be room for some philosophical reasoning on these
phenomena of nature; but not having any talent that way, I must content
myself with stating facts as I found them, and leave the causes to men of
more abilities.

The tiller was now finished; but, as the wind was unfavourable for sailing,
the guard was sent on shore on the 19th as before, and a party of men to
cut up and bring off the remainder of the tree from which we had got the
tiller. Having nothin