farther progress was stopped by the rocks
closing in so much as to leave room for
nothing at their base but the narrow and
furious course of the river. It was near
this spot that I found both Fontinalis squamosa
and falcata full of capsules, in a deep
pool among the rocks, and mixed with them
was also Rivularia angulosa in some plenty.
The rocks in a steep ascent, which I climbed
in order to reach the top of the chasm, produced
an Epilobium which was not yet in
blossom, but appeared, from its broad and
glaucous leaves, to be undoubtedly new to
me. Veronica fruticulosa was here in full
flower, and some unknown Salices, likewise,
rewarded my morning’s excursion^ Fearing
lest I should not have sufficient time to ascend
Skoul-a-fiel, if I proceeded any farther
in the same direction, I returned to the tent,
and, after a hasty breakfast, set off on horseback
with Jacob, on our way to the mountain.
We forded the river, and afterwards
climbed a steep but grassy hill, whose
swampy summit afforded me some fine specimens
of the rare Splachnum vasculosum.
On descending by the opposite side,. and
crossing; another stream, we came to the
base of the mountain, up the precipitous
sides of which we mounted in a diagonal
direction, keeping in a beaten track for some
way, but at length directing our course,
in the nearest line, for the highest summit.
We were soon compelled to leave our horses;
for, though the base of the hill had been
firm rock, interspersed with a few patches
of vegetation, we shortly came to a part,
from which, to the very peak, the whole was
altogether composed of small loose pieces
to the greatest degree' barren and desolate;
except in those little spots in which the
Trichostomum had formed a bed, and retained
a sufficiency of moisture to supply
with scanty nourishment a few miserable
specimens of Salix herbacea or Silene acau-
lis. It is hardly possible for any person,
unless from experience, to form an idea of
the fatigue of climbing a mountain like this:
wherever we placed our feet a vast number
of pieces of rock were immediately set in
motion, and rolled for a considerable way
down, causing us to lose nearly as much
ground as we gained, and as often as, to use