spent there, the cold never was much below the
freezing point; and I do not think the heat ever exceeded 76 deg.. Westerly
winds prevail from the early part of spring, and during a part of the
summer; that wind generally springs up with the flood tide, and tempers
the heat of the day. The northwest wind prevails during the latter part
of summer and commencement of autumn. This last is succeeded by a
southeast wind, which blows almost without intermission from the
beginning of October to the end of December, or commencement of January.
This interval is the rainy season, the most disagreeable of the year.
Fogs (so thick that sometimes for days no object is discernible for five
or six hundred yards from the beach), are also very prevalent.

The surface of the soil consists (in the valleys) of a layer of black
vegetable mould, about five or six inches thick at most; under this
layer is found another of gray and loose, but extremely cold earth;
below which is a bed of coarse sand and gravel, and next to that pebble
or hard rock. On the more elevated parts, the same black vegetable mould
is found, but much thinner, and under it is the trap rock. We found
along the seashore, south of Point Adams, a bank of earth white as
chalk, which we used for white-washing our walls. The natives also
brought us several specimens of blue, red and yellow earth or clay,
which they said was to be found at a great distance south; and also a
sort of shining earth, resembling lead ore.[V] We found no limestone,
although we burnt several kilns, but never could get one ounce of lime.

[Footnote V: Plumbago.]

We had brought with us from New York a variety of garden seeds, which
were put in the ground in the month of May, 1811, on a rich piece of
land laid out for the purpose on a sloping ground in front of our
establishment. The garden had a fine appearance in the month of August;
but although the plants were left in the ground until December, not one
of them came to maturity, with the exception of the radishes, the
turnips, and the potatoes. The turnips grew to a prodigious size; one of
the largest we had the curiosity to weigh and measure; its circumference
was thirty-three inches, its weight fifteen and a half pounds. The
radishes were in full blossom in the month of December, and were left in
the ground to perfect the seeds for the ensuing season, but they were
all destroyed by the ground mice, who hid themselves under the stumps
which we had