Page:Voyage in search of La Perouse, volume 1 (Stockdale).djvu/186

176 one frequently meets with it piled up between the roots in conequence of natural caues. At any rate, the natives of this country, as we hall ee hereafter, do not make their fires upon hearths, but kindle them on the bare ground, and prepare their victuals over the coals.

Some of the larget trees were hollowed by the fire throughout the whole length of their trunks, o as to form a ort of chimnies: nevertheles they continued to vegetate.

Many of the large trunks that we felled during our tay at this place, were found, notwithtanding their apparent oundnes externally, to be rotten at the heart.

After having followed the hore that extends with numerous windings, towards the outh-eat, we attempted to make our way acros ome marhes, in order to get into grounds that had acquired a more olid conitence from the roots of the plants; but a pecies of the clerya, which grows to the height of ix or eight feet, cut our hands and faces, with its leaves, in uch a manner that we were obliged to deit from our attempt.

During this excurion I killed everal birds of the genus motacilla, and ome parrots, amongt which was the parrot of New Caledonia, decribed by Latham.

We now directed our route towards the en- entrance