A la Mémoire de M. de La Pérouse. Cette terre, qu'il visita en 1778, est la dernière d'où il a fait parvenir de ses nouvelles. Erigé au nom de la France, par les soins de M. M. de Bougainville et Ducampier commandant la Fregatte "La Thétis" et la corvette "Espérance" en relâche au port Jackson en 1825. On the north side is an English translation of the above, and on the west a French translation of the English inscription on the east side. "Foundation laid 1825. Completed 1828." Close by this simple monument, more interesting owing to the subsequent fate of the renowned French navigator than by its merits as a work of art, is Botany Tower, a sort of look-out for the whole coast-line. This octangular tower stands quite by itself, and commands a magnificent and extensive view over Botany Bay. To the N.W. one perceives a flagstaff of Banks's establishment, a pleasure resort of the Sydneyites, which, on account of its small zoological garden, is likewise of some scientific interest. S.E., on the opposite side of Mud Bay, is visible the point of land where Captain Cook, accompanied by Banks and Solander, first trod the soil of Australia. Among the sandstone rocks adjoining, a brass tablet, with a suitable inscription, commemorates this interesting fact. The botanical garden attracted very much of the attention of the scientific staff. It possesses, next to that of Buitenzorg (see vol. ii. p. 204), the largest and most valuable collection we saw throughout our voyage. In addition to its splendid specimens of _coniferæ_ and the incomparable Dammara pine-tree; it also enjoys well-merited celebrity for its successful rivalry with that of Java in rare specimens of palms. The climate of Sydney is admirably adapted for experimenting on the cultivation of plants from the most various parts of the world; and while in one part of this garden we find the plants of every clime, which flourish here in great luxuriance, another portion is dedicated exclusively to the cultivation of Australian trees and canes. At the entrance stands a magnificent _Araucaria excelsa_, like a sentinel on guard over this singular vegetable world. A gigantic _Grevillea robusta_ attracts the eye by the striking tint of its luxuriant orange-yellow blossoms, shining with indescribable charm through the dark green of the foliage. _Banksias_, _Casuarinas_, different species of _Callitris_, _Xanthorrhea_, _Proteaceæ Eucalypti_, the beautiful _Telopea speciosissima_, the giant lily (_Doryanthes excelsa_), and many others indigenous to the Australian continent, such as never meet the European's gaze, or, at all events, only very rarely in forcing houses, here arrest the attention by their towering forms, their elegant foliage, and their grand proportions, as compared with their brethren of northern climes. One species of weeping willow (_Salex Babylonica_), which grows here in the utmost luxuriance, has a special historic interest, as it was a shoot from