"Oh, ascend it! ascend it, my dear captain! What would be the good
after Humboldt and Bonplan? That Humboldt was a great genius.
He made the ascent of this mountain, and has given a description
of it which leaves nothing unsaid. He tells us that it comprises
five different zones--the zone of the vines, the zone of the laurels,
the zone of the pines, the zone of the Alpine heaths, and, lastly,
the zone of sterility. He set his foot on the very summit,
and found that there was not even room enough to sit down.
The view from the summit was very extensive, stretching over an
area equal to Spain. Then he went right down into the volcano,
and examined the extinct crater. What could I do, I should like you
to tell me, after that great man?"

"Well, certainly, there isn't much left to glean.
That is vexing, too, for you would find it dull work waiting
for a vessel in the Peak of Teneriffe."

"But, I say, Mangles, my dear fellow, are there no ports
in the Cape Verde Islands that we might touch at?"

"Oh, yes, nothing would be easier than putting you off at Villa Praya."

"And then I should have one advantage, which is by no
means inconsiderable--I should find fellow-countrymen
at Senegal, and that is not far away from those islands.
I am quite aware that the group is said to be devoid
of much interest, and wild, and unhealthy; but everything
is curious in the eyes of a geographer. Seeing is a science.
There are people who do not know how to use their eyes,