Page:Wanderings of a Pilgrim Vol 2.djvu/409

 stem was of the most brilliant crimson tint—the prickly pear in full bloom, with its white and crimson flower, and its deep crimson buds mixed beautifully with the aloes in the fore-*ground; and in the distance beyond lay the sea and the Blueberg Mountains. I found a great variety of the most beautiful heaths, also a number of bulbs. The Africander was in bloom, as well as those bulbs that give forth their scent at sunset. The Malays are extremely partial to these sweet night-scented flowers, and collect them by the handful.

17th.—From the foot of the Devil's Peak I sketched the Lion Mountain; it was covered with a deep driving fog that hung in wreaths not unlike a mane around it; the fog covered the shipping that was just visible below it, and the town looked indistinct: it was a most cold and unwholesome day; but I gathered beautiful flowers; the arums and prickly pears were in full bloom.

29th.—Ascended the Lion's Rump, and arrived at the signal-post in time to see a magnificent sunset: took a sketch of the Lion's Head, to the right of which was the back of Table Mountain, and the Southern Ocean to the left. The town and the bay from this mountain are seen to great advantage; the regularity of the plan on which the town was built by the Dutch is excellent. The walk this evening delighted me; my young companions and I sat down many times, and employed ourselves with digging up the bulbs with which the mountain is literally covered. The size of some of the bulbous roots is surprising, one weighed three pounds and a quarter, and measured in circumference twenty inches and a half; the height of the bulb was five inches and a half, and the leaves were eleven inches long. The fragrance of the flowers of the night-scented bulbs became delicious as we descended the mountain very late in the evening; it is rich in fine grass, and bulbs innumerable.

Aug. 4th.—Visited the Botanical Garden under the Lion's Head; a number of trees and plants from Australia are collected there. The most brilliant African plant in blossom was the Strelitzia regina, with its orange and purple blossom, and its long wand-like leaves. The Kaffir bread-tree (Zamia horrida)