The great drawback to its situation is the dense forest of timber of the largest size by which it is shut in. The little clearing which has been already done has been effected with great labour by the help of the engineers quartered there for several years; but, although the land is fertile enough, the expense of clearing it is so heavy that but little farming has been carried out. The place is still unsightly, from the stumps of trees sticking up on every side. The river is navigable to this point for vessels drawing eighteen or twenty feet of water, and, should direct communication be established with England, it may eventually rival Victoria. As yet, however, it is completely eclipsed by that more favoured city. Staying only one night in New Westminster, we took our passages on board the _Enterprise_ for Victoria, Vancouver Island, on the 19th of September. We were presently surprised by encountering Mr. O’B., who had come by way of Lilloet and Douglas. He was wonderfully altered since we parted from him a week before. He, like ourselves, had become somewhat corpulent, and had quite regained his spirits, and the loquacity which had flagged so notably during our journey through the forest. On entering the Gulf of Georgia, Mount Baker, a magnificent snow-clad peak, about 10,700 feet in height, comes into view in the east, and the thousand islands of the gulf, rocky or richly wooded, offer a succession of beauties which render this voyage to Victoria one of the most charming in the world. We reached our destination about dark, and immediately betook ourselves to the Hotel de France. The proprietor, however, mistrusting our leather shirts, and total want of luggage, declared he had no room, and we moved off disconsolate. Before we got far, a waiter came running after us to say it was all a mistake, and requested us to go back, having, no doubt, discovered that we were respectable, although at first sight our appearance was unpromising. But we turned a deaf ear, and continued on our way to the St. George, where we found capital accommodation, and having properly refreshed ourselves, took the rough hint we had received, and betook ourselves to the nearest tailor, to obtain more civilised attire. CHAPTER XVIII.