By sending a boat to the east point of the bay, to fish in forty fathoms water, a most delicious kind of cod-fish may be taken, in such numbers, that two men, in half an hour, could fill the boat. Craw-fish, of large size, are almost equally abundant; they are taken with a hooked stick: one of our boats caught forty-five in a very short time. The inhabitants catch them, and cure their tails, by exposure to the sun, for exportation to Chile, where they are much esteemed, and fetch a high price.
Wild-goats are very numerous among the inaccessible parts of the island, but are not easily obtained; they are sometimes shot, or taken with a lazo. These animals, according to Woodes Rogers, and other writers, were originally left on the island by Juan Fernandez, who, for a short time, lived there. According to the 'Noticias Secretas,' p. 50 to 56, they are supposed to have been landed by the Buccaneers, who frequented this island. Certain it is, that, without such refreshments, the Buccaneers would not have been able to carry on their harassing war of plunder against the Spanish possessions on the American coast to such an extent; nor should we, perhaps, have heard anything more about Commodore Anson, and the crews of the Centurion and Gloucester, who were, on their arrival at this island, in the last stage of scurvy.
To prevent Juan Fernandez from being so tempting a resort to Buccaneers, the Viceroy of Peru caused a great many dogs to be landed, which hunted down and destroyed the goats in great numbers: this in some measure has prevented their subsequent increase. The dogs however drove the goats to places where they could not follow them, and were then obliged to destroy seals for food. Large troops of these dogs still range about the lower grounds; but the heights are in the undisturbed possession of wild-goats; which may be seen in numbers browsing on elevated and almost inaccessible places, where they live in safety.
The geological character of this island, according to Mr. Caldcleugh, who accompanied me in this trip, is of basaltic
green-stone, and trap, which appears, at first sight, to be volcanic; but, on a more particular examination, the lava-like appearance of the rock does not seem to arise from an igneous origin.
The green-stone is full of crystals of olivine, which, as they decompose, leave hollows, resembling those of scoriæ. Mr. Caldcleugh communicated an account of the structure to the Geological Society.[[163]] In Captain Hall's interesting journal, there is a list of Geological and Mineralogical specimens, of which one from Mas-a-fuéra[[164]] is named 'Vesicular Lava.' May it not be this same rock in a decomposed state?
The late Signor Bertero, whose botanical collections from Chile have enriched many of the principal herbaria in Europe, accompanied me to make a collection of the Flora of the island; and he considered that the character of the vegetation was very little allied to the Chilian, but partook more of that of California. The sandal-wood, which has been described as indigenous to this island, was not found by us, growing, but a large quantity was collected about the hills and vallies, in a dry state, and apparently very old. It is of the red kind, and still preserves a strong scent. The mayor-domo told me there were no sandal-wood trees in the island; but we had reason to think his information was incorrect, for one of the inhabitants would have taken us to a place where he said they were growing in large quantities, had not our arrangements for sailing interfered.
The island produces several kinds of grass; but the most abundant herbaceous plant is a species of oat, which grows very luxuriantly, and towards the westward covers the ground for many miles. The neighbourhood of Cumberland Bay is over-run with strawberry plants, wild radishes, mint, and balm, besides peach, apple, cherry, and fig trees, which are
found wild every where, and remind one of Lord Anson's visit.[[165]]
Not only in its botanical productions does this island differ from the Chilian coast, but also in its shells: the shell fish being extremely scarce, and dissimilar in character. On the rocks we found a patella and a small chama, but we saw no mytilus. From the deep water I fished up some coral, and attached to one fragment was a new species of arca.[[166]] The fishing-lines brought up, from the depth of eighty fathoms, a branch of coralline, to which an infinite number of a species of caryophyllia were attached. The existence of coral is mentioned in Mr. Barry's translation of the 'Noticias Secretas de America; por Don J. Juan, y Don A. de Ulloa,' a work which contains a long and, generally speaking, good account of the island; but their description of the anchorage does not agree with ours. They say, "The distance between the two points, which form the bay, is two miles, and its depth about half a league; and, although the depth is nearly the same in all parts, the best berth to moor ships is in the front of the 'Playa del Este;' but it is necessary to be close to the stones of the beach, for at one or two cables' length there are fifty fathoms water, and the outer anchor is in the depth of seventy or eighty fathoms; but if the vessel is three or four cables off, it will be necessary to drop the outer anchor in one hundred fathoms, which, even with two cables an end, will scarcely secure the ship." Now, at three cables' length from the beach, we had only ten fathoms, our outer anchor was dropped in seventeen fathoms, and in a line between the two points of the bay there is not more than fifty fathoms.