aJcbw, to them. They were the fame who had behaved fo well:
to us the day before, and they now fent fome of their people
up into the country, as foon as they faw us. Mr.
Hodges lketched fome views, whilft we paffed our time in
examining feveral plants, and fufpended a thermometer,
with Fahrenheit’s fcale, on a tree in the fhade. This thermometer
flood at 78° on board the Grip, at half an hour
paft eight, which was the time of our departure. Having
been carried up clofe to the body, it had rifen to 8 7 a ; but
after hanging five minutes, at a diftance of twenty yards
from the folfatarra, it remained at 80?. We made a hole
in the earth, deep enough to contain the thermometer in
its whole length, and fufpending it from a flick into this
hole, it rofe in half a minute to 170°. We left it there
for the fpace of four minutes, and at the end of that time
it ftitl marked the fame degree. The inftant it was taken
out, it fell to 1 6o°, and in a few minutes gradually to 80^'
again. The fleam which iffues from this place is consequently
of the hotteft. The natives, who obferved that we
fiirred in the folfatarra, defired us to leave it, telling us it-
would take fire, and referable the volcano, which they
called ajfoor. They feemed to be extremely apprehenfive of
fome mifchance, and were very uneafy as often as we made
the leaft attempt to difturb the Sulphureous earth. We-
walked higher, and found feveral other fpots fmoking, and
of the fame nature with that before defcribed. By thistime
time the meffengers, whom the people had fent off, came
back with fugar-canes and coco-nuts, and treated us as
they had done the preceding morning. After this refreshment
we advanced higher up the hill, towards another in
fight, from whence we hoped to have a nearer view of the
volcano ; but upon our approaching fome plantations, the
natives came out, and pointed out a path, which they pretended
led directly to the volcano or affoor. We followed
them for feveral miles, through various windings, being
continually furrounded by woods, which hid the country
from us on all fides. At laft we found ourfelves near the
fea-lhore, from whence we had fet out, and faw, or thoughc-
we faw, that the inhabitants had been artful enough to lead
us far from their dwellings, where they diflike the prefence
of Grangers. One of them was a very intelligent man, and
gave us the names of feveral iflands in the neighbourhood,
fome in directions where we had not been. As we knew
that captain Cook had collected a lift of names of countries
the day before, all which he afterwards found to be diftriCls
on the ifle of Tanna, we particularly enquired of our Indian,
whether the places which he enumerated were like-
wife Situated on this ifland ; but he exprefsly laid there was
the fea (taffee) between them ;' and feeing us make circles
on a paper, made figns that we were right.
We fpent the afternoon in an excurfion round the flat hill
to the fouth-eaftward. Here we found fome new plants,
and