Page:Voyage in search of La Perouse, volume 1 (Stockdale).djvu/124

114 together with ome of my travelling companions, at the houe of a M. de Lettre.

19th. The ummit of the Table Mountain was hid in thick clouds, which at this eaon of the year is a certain prognotic of high winds from the outh-eat, that generally continue for two or three days. The gales were this time o violent, that during the whole time they prevailed no veel of the ize of a loop dare venture to approach the hore.

Though the clouds appeared immovably attached to the top of the mountain, even when the winds blew with their greatet violence, they were, in fact, perpetually replaced by others; but the force with which they were driven along, after their eparation from the mountain, diminihing their coheion, they were oon diipated in the atmophere. We often oberved large maes of thee clouds, which as oon as they were detached from the ummit, immediately diappeared.

Thee violent gales from the outh-eat, which have often been noticed by travellers, appeared to me to proceed from the nature of the coat, which forms a very high ridge from the Cape Town as far as to the mouth of Fale Bay, and acts as a barrier, preventing the outh-eat winds from paing beyond it. Whenever thee winds get into