the matrons of England were distinguished for their hospitality, and this lady certainly possessed no such quality; as, with a vinegar aspect, she informed us of the absence of her spouse, looking at us meanwhile as if she thought us a party of marauders come to storm her vineyard. She indulged in remarks which, without misconstruing, easily made known to us her desire for us to begone; but we were of too turgid a composition to comply with her wishes. We had come for a day’s pleasure, and we were bound to have it whether my lady was desirous or not; and we did have it too, for the butler, and several others, finding that we were in no hurry to decamp, to relieve the old lady from the infliction of looking on such barbarians as we, made a virtue of necessity and asked us down into the vineyard. Here the gardener, as if to make amends for the churlishness of the others, took considerable pains to show us over the grounds, and gave us full permission to regale ourselves with as much fruit as we could eat. We took him at his word, and soon were deep in the discussion of splendid grapes, water and musk-melons, mulberries, bananas, and peaches. There were acres of grape vines--the proprietor cultivating them for the manufacture of wines. They were splendid specimens; and as they were a novel dish to us, we were not the most moderate consumers of them, as the skins that strewed our paths testified. The mulberries were larger, but much tarter than ours at home. The bananas were not of so good a flavor or such a size as those we had seen at Balli. The gardener informed me that the banana plant bore the whole year round. The fruit is preceded by a splendid flower resembling the dahlia in color, but treble its size. Besides these fruits the usual garden vegetables were growing, amongst which I noticed the tomato, and, strange to say, the taste of its raw fruit was pleasanter and more refreshing than that of the more valued kinds I had been eating. Deeming this a freak of my palate, I mentioned it to my companions as singular: several of them said that such was precisely the case with them, and they preferred it to the other fruit. After several hours spent in rambling, we returned to the house for the purpose of procuring a draught of water, which was drawn from a well by means of a hydraulic pump, and which, by the way, was the only spot where I procured a good, cool drink of water in New Holland. We were again attacked by the old lady, who, to some extent, apologizing for her brusqueness in the morning, very plainly intimated that, for a suitable return, she could supply us with a repast. Like most sailors, having receptacles capable of and requiring more substantial food than fruit after our exercise, we closed with her very liberal offer, and were soon seated at a table furnished with excellent edibles, bread and butter, milk, jam, and other articles, making together a first rate supper. On our taking leave we gave to