The point for which I was aiming was about three miles north of the little cove in which I had landed, and the intervening ground was rugged, with many outcrops of rough, jagged rock, and much overgrown with thick, tangled scrub; the "going," therefore, was a bit toilsome, but that did not greatly matter to me, for the night air was distinctly raw, I was none too thickly clad, and the exertion kept me warm. When I reached the belt of fir wood that seemed to completely encircle the range of heights which I was climbing, the obscurity was such that it was only with the utmost difficulty I was able to make any headway at all; and at length, coming to a spot where the grass was exceptionally thick and dry, feeling somewhat fatigued with my unwonted exertions, I flung myself down for a short rest, and before I knew what was happening, fell fast asleep. I awoke, chill and cramped, at the sound of a distant bugle call, to find that the sky over the summit of Mount Sampson was just paling to the approach of dawn. I therefore scrambled to my feet, much refreshed by my nap, and resumed my climb, eager to get a glimpse of my surroundings with the first of the daylight; for I had a great deal to do, and not very much time in which to do it. A quarter of an hour of brisk walking brought me to the upper edge of the fir wood, and there before me, scarcely a mile distant, stood the peak which I had chosen as the starting-point for my operations. I had been guided by the map in my selection of it, for the contours showed me that, apart from Mount Sampson, it was one of the most lofty elevations in the neighbourhood, and also that it rose somewhat abruptly to a small, well-defined point. My first glance at it assured me that, so far at least, my map spoke truly, for the summit appeared to consist of a rocky knoll, the highest point of which was a short, stunted, conical mass, the top of which seemed scarcely capable of affording standing room. Nothing could possibly have been better for my purpose, and I hurried forward and upward, eager now to get at my work.