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Article DESCRIPTION OF THE PEAK OF TENERIFFE. ← Page 3 of 5 →
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Description Of The Peak Of Teneriffe.
were used to engage them to proceed ; they did so for another hour , in which , however , little progress was effected . It thenjjegan to rain , the cold to become more intense , and the wind more violent . But the travellers were j'et far distant from their intended resting place , usually known by the name of La Estancia dos Inglescs , the restingplace of the English . ' Thither they were anxious to arrive , in order to attainthe next forenoonif practicablethe summit of the cone .
, , , But the guides , who perceived a tempest then approaching , in which they declared the unsheltered traveller infallibly must perish , insisted on stopping where they were , under the brow of a projecting rock , which , diverted in some degree , the current of the wind . One of the party tried the experiment of proceeding on his mule , as . far as he was ableup the hill ; but soon finding it was utterlimpost
, y sible to resist the impetuosity of the storm , returned to his compa- > in ' ons , in order to provide for the night , in the . manner the least uncomfortable in their power . They had been supplied with abundance of refreshments from Orotava ; but no tent was to be found there to rest in upon the mountain . This circumstance , however unpleasant , could not deter them from the undertaking ; they had now
no other resource than that of strewing the bare ground , near them , with leafy branches of the Spanish broom , by way of beds to sleep on . There was little shelter from the wind , and none against the rain , which , though not violent , was frequent . The air also was keen and cold ; the thermometer at forty-five degrees ; but the branches of the C 3 "tistus , growing on this dreary mountain , proved to be excellent fuel ; and though- greenproducedreadilya blaze : the windindeed
, , , , , which blew in eddies , drove the flame , sometimes to a distance from the travellers ' resting-place , who lost thus its influence in their favour , and sometimes , turned it to their faces , so near as to scorch them . At times , however , they had opportunities of contemplating , as they lay under the grand canopy of heaven , the awful scene around them . The moon , then in its second quarter , shone at intervals very
brilliant ; the zenith happened to be clear , towards which the Peak upreared its hi g h and tapering point , and as the eye descended down the slanting sides of that immense cone , it perceived that the base was lost in black rolling clouds , which , whirling impetuously from thence into the vallies far below , reached , at last , the ocean , over which some remained suspended , while others seemed incorporated with its waters .
On the approach of day the party rose , little refreshed by sleep , and their clothes dripping with the rain which had fallen upon them . The summit of the mountain , on which the 3 stood , appeared only at a little distance , but the weather was extremely , boisterous , and the wind drove with violence heavy drops of rain . The point of the upper cone or sugar-loaf was clearbut the large conical frustrum
, which supported it was enveloped in thick clouds , rolling in continued sucession , along its sides , and hurled rapidl y from thence into the vallies between the hills , against which they were impelled , and quickl y condensed into rain .
Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software.
Description Of The Peak Of Teneriffe.
were used to engage them to proceed ; they did so for another hour , in which , however , little progress was effected . It thenjjegan to rain , the cold to become more intense , and the wind more violent . But the travellers were j'et far distant from their intended resting place , usually known by the name of La Estancia dos Inglescs , the restingplace of the English . ' Thither they were anxious to arrive , in order to attainthe next forenoonif practicablethe summit of the cone .
, , , But the guides , who perceived a tempest then approaching , in which they declared the unsheltered traveller infallibly must perish , insisted on stopping where they were , under the brow of a projecting rock , which , diverted in some degree , the current of the wind . One of the party tried the experiment of proceeding on his mule , as . far as he was ableup the hill ; but soon finding it was utterlimpost
, y sible to resist the impetuosity of the storm , returned to his compa- > in ' ons , in order to provide for the night , in the . manner the least uncomfortable in their power . They had been supplied with abundance of refreshments from Orotava ; but no tent was to be found there to rest in upon the mountain . This circumstance , however unpleasant , could not deter them from the undertaking ; they had now
no other resource than that of strewing the bare ground , near them , with leafy branches of the Spanish broom , by way of beds to sleep on . There was little shelter from the wind , and none against the rain , which , though not violent , was frequent . The air also was keen and cold ; the thermometer at forty-five degrees ; but the branches of the C 3 "tistus , growing on this dreary mountain , proved to be excellent fuel ; and though- greenproducedreadilya blaze : the windindeed
, , , , , which blew in eddies , drove the flame , sometimes to a distance from the travellers ' resting-place , who lost thus its influence in their favour , and sometimes , turned it to their faces , so near as to scorch them . At times , however , they had opportunities of contemplating , as they lay under the grand canopy of heaven , the awful scene around them . The moon , then in its second quarter , shone at intervals very
brilliant ; the zenith happened to be clear , towards which the Peak upreared its hi g h and tapering point , and as the eye descended down the slanting sides of that immense cone , it perceived that the base was lost in black rolling clouds , which , whirling impetuously from thence into the vallies far below , reached , at last , the ocean , over which some remained suspended , while others seemed incorporated with its waters .
On the approach of day the party rose , little refreshed by sleep , and their clothes dripping with the rain which had fallen upon them . The summit of the mountain , on which the 3 stood , appeared only at a little distance , but the weather was extremely , boisterous , and the wind drove with violence heavy drops of rain . The point of the upper cone or sugar-loaf was clearbut the large conical frustrum
, which supported it was enveloped in thick clouds , rolling in continued sucession , along its sides , and hurled rapidl y from thence into the vallies between the hills , against which they were impelled , and quickl y condensed into rain .