Page 583 - for-the-term-of-his-natural-life

CHAPTER III. EXTRACTED

FROM THE DIARY OF THE

REV. JAMES NORTH.

ay 12th—landed to-day at Norfolk Island, and have
Mbeen introduced to my new abode, situated some
eleven hundred miles from Sydney. A solitary rock in the
tropical ocean, the island seems, indeed, a fit place of ban-
ishment. It is about seven miles long and four broad. The
most remarkable natural object is, of course, the Norfolk Is-
land pine, which rears its stately head a hundred feet above
the surrounding forest. The appearance of the place is very
wild and beautiful, bringing to my mind the description of
the romantic islands of the Pacific, which old geographers
dwell upon so fondly. Lemon, lime, and guava trees abound,
also oranges, grapes, figs, bananas, peaches, pomegranates,
and pine-apples. The climate just now is hot and muggy.
The approach to Kingstown— as the barracks and huts
are called—is properly difficult. A long low reef— proba-
bly originally a portion of the barren rocks of Nepean and
Philip Islands, which rise east and west of the settlement—
fronts the bay and obstructs the entrance of vessels. We
were landed in boats through an opening in this reef, and
our vessel stands on and off within signalling distance. The

For the Term of His Natural Life