AND PORTO SANTO. 39
with a canvass of large dimensions, and there make an oil painting,
where every touch would be from nature ; the artist giving himself
time to seize the most favourable moments only,; and which, in the
regular climate of Madeira, would occur daily at nearly the same
hours : for instance, he should be there at sunrise, to see the peaks
without clouds ; he must then wait until about two o’clock, to
catch the clearest outlines of the rocks of the rugged side; two
hours later would throw the buttresses projecting into the abyss
completely into view, with every crag and line distinct ; and sunset
would give him the glow that makes the whole valley so
lovely. The* accompanying sketch was made in the course of two
mornings, and I can only hope that the geologist may be interested
by it, and that some skilful hand will yet have time, and feel
sufficient interest in the labour, to giv^the world a correct view of
this wonderful scene. It has been remarked, that had the drawing
been broader than long, it would have conveyed a better idea of
depth, but this was triedy-and the proportions would not admit of
it ; each method of shading, with the light or dark foregrounds, was
also tried; but that adopted seemed best to me : this I think is the
grand obstacle to success, depth being generally given by the
deepest colouring, and by gradually losing outline in darkness,
whilst in the Goural, you even distinguish the houses1 at the depth
of 1500 feet, and every line is perfectly clear. The most minute
crags, however distant, continue distinct, from the clearness of the
atmosphere ;; and it is almost impossible to preserve a light foreground,
from the rich colouring and the quantity Of deep verdure.
A morning mist was thrown over the rocks of the opposite side,
to give distance ; and through that mist it was a mattéf of no small
difficulty to preserve the outlines of the cragsv The season being
unfavourable, hours were spent to catch the ‘peak of Ruivo, and
the greater part of the second day’s labour was performed in the
rain. The dense mists which cover these heights, morning and