Page:Voyage in search of La Perouse, volume 1 (Stockdale).djvu/304

280 Laig Island, there is sufficient depth to allow ships a passage.

A great quantity of rain having fallen in the night, there arose so much humidity out of the woods, as formed clouds every instant, which originating chiefly in the lowest places, resembled, at first sight, the smoke of fires kindled in the forest, and as soon as they had acquired sufficient elevation to be exposed to the current of air, they presently disappeared.

Large trees, which always preserve their verdure, cover the island of Cocos. Though their roots find little vegetable mould among the calcareous stones, between which they penetrate, yet, in that moist situation, they flourish very luxuriantly. It was a pleasant spectacle to see the fine tree, known by the name of barringtonia speciosa, attracted by the humidity, extend its branches horizontally a great way over the sea. That island produces fig-trees of different species; and we expected to find there abundance of cocoa-nuts. This expectation was indeed one reason for our preferring this anchoring place to several others at no great distance. But we found it difficult to procure even a dozen of those nuts. We saw, with concern, that some of the party, who had been sent on shore for wood, had allow- ed