Page:Oregon Historical Quarterly vol. 6.djvu/73

67 JOURNAL OF A VOYAGE TO N. W. AMERICA. 67 culty he had repaired it with a wooden one & when he had occasion to boil anything he buried his pot in the earth so high as to prevent the fire from injuring the wood, & then made a fire around the sides. During our short excursion to the interior, we had no occasion to complain of the poverty of the country, which abounded in the most beautif ull plants & shrubs ; the dry soil was covered by an ever green arbutus & a herbaceous species of Campanula, & almost every shady rock afforded a different species of ferns. Cumberland Bay used to be the favourite resort of the English cruisers & whalers & its utility to them in time of war was so great as to excite the jealousy of the Span- iards who in 1765 constructed a battery mounting 50 guns to command the harbour, & at the same time formed a settlement on the island. In a few years the Spaniards abandoned their establishment which was revived in 1811 by the Chilean government as a place of banishment for their convicts. This settlement like the preceding one was abandoned after a short trial. At present the island is visited only by the English & American whalers, & is the more permanent residence of the adventurers who are employed in killing & curing cattle. The battery which still remains almost uninjured is situated on an emminence about 500 yards from the beach & effectually commands the landing place. Most of the guns remained till a few years ago when they were removed by the Chilians to prevent their falling into the hands of the Royalist privateers. There are also the remains of the church which the in- dependents had erected and of many houses. The church is built in the form of the latin cross & bears the follow- ing inscription : La cara de Dios puerto del cielo y saco- lac aesta 24d septembre 1811. Although the doors & windows of the building are removed it was still possessed