He could discover nothing around him but a dreary waste of immense plains, and towards the north, beneath him, bare mountains of the aridest character.
Not the slightest vestige of man's work could be detected over the vast expanse.

Not the slightest sign of a ruin spoke of his ever having been there.

Nothing betrayed the slightest trace of the development of animal life, even in an inferior degree.

No movement.

Not the least glimpse of vegetation.