Ebranche. Here we remained surveying the adjacent coast, till the Advice brig returned: we then proceeded in her to Port Spain, and shortly after I was seized with a violent and long illness. This, and the ship being ordered on other duty, put a stop to all further surveying. I have, therefore, little more to add, except a short account of the east coast,* from the Oropuche southward, and some general remarks.

The land about Manzanilla Point is extremely fertile; there are prodigious numbers of cabbage trees about it, and between it and the Oropuche, they commonly denote a rich soil. It wants fresh water, but this might easily be procured by digging wells. The face of the ground to the northward of this point is very much broken for about three miles, and contains also some large swamps, of whose extent I could not even guess, the woods are so impracticable. The earth here seems strongly impregnated with salt. Down the sides of some bluff points+ projecting into the sea, we perceived small drains of water, but they were all salt, though far within the range of the sea, and at least twenty or thirty feet above high water mark. Three or four days after they were perfectly fresh, rain having fallen in the mean time. A heavy surf breaks along Patura Bay, so that there is no landing between Salibia and Manzanilla. In moderate weather the Caribs get their canoes into the Oropuche; but its bar is so bad, and the surf always so great upon it, that it never can be used as a commercial communication with the sea on this side, which is much to be regretted, as it is navigable for several miles into the body of the island. The Ebranche is a small river, navigable in common for a boat about one mile and a half. It might be made to communicate with the Mitan, and as its mouth is protected by a rocky promontory, the sea is unable to throw a bar across it, as is the case with most of the other rivers. Its banks and the adjacent country are very rich, but low. Some timber for ship building, particularly coarse cedar, (Cayou) might be procured hence and floated down the river. It is either fresh or salt, as rain or dry weather predominates.

A sandy shore extends ten miles from hence to the southward, but the surf prevents landing on any part of it. It is named Cocos Bay, from the singular circumstance of having its shore bordered by a grove of cocoa-nut trees seven or eight miles long. In the middle of this bay the river Mitant empties itself. It derives its waters from the swamp in which it is situated, and as it runs parallel and close to the shore, it seems as if the sea had made a continual effort to wash up the sand on the coast, but the drain of the swamp had still preserved for itself an open channel along its face.

I made repeated attempts to get into this river before I succeeded,

Out of seven of us who remained on the east coast to survey it, two died, and none of the rest escaped a dangerous illnesss. The east coast being open to the wind and accounted remarkably healthy;-I can only attribute our suffering so much to the unavoidable exposure and fatigue we were subject to, and our inconvenient mode of living.

These consist chiefly of earth, with a small mixture of sand-stone. They run into the sea in high ridges very steep, and so narrow, that atter climbing the first, we nearly pitched over the top, not being aware of this circumstance.

The Mitan is the name commonly used by the Caribs and inhabitants of the east coast. It is sometimes also called the Neg, (from Negro.)

ENLARGED SERIES.-No. 8.-VOL. FOR 1841.

3 Y

and at length could not effect it, but by having a small canoe drawn from the mouth of the Ortoire by my people, along the shore within the surf. Its magnitude will be seen by the survey to differ most materially from Mallets, and as to the two navigable canals, by which he asserts that the Mitan and Ortoire are connected, I could find no traces of them in either of these rivers, nor had the best informed inhabitants of Mayero, people fond of the chase, and pursuing it through this district, any idea that such channels exist.

The water in it is remarkable for its blackness, which is said to proceed from iron ore, supposed to be in this neighbourhood. This does not seem improbable, as I found in the sand stone rocks at Point Manzanilla, and Point Mayero, great quantity of iron ore, exposed clearly to view in large flakes, or in long spikes from which the sea had worn away the surrounding stone. Whatever this blackness of the water may arise from, whether from iron ore or from the black stain issuing from the mangrove trees, the reflection produced by it is astonishingly strong. The surrounding objects were shown as clear as in a lookingglass, and I could read the large letters on my note book by reflection in the water. Along the whole of Cocoa Bay not a single stone or pebble of any kind is to be found, it is all sand. The same is to be observed of Patura Bay, with some triflug exceptions of sand-stone; Mayero Bay is also without a stone, except some sand stones at the south part, but I did not see a morsel of granite or real rock, from the north end of Patura Bay to Guaya-guayare ;* although there are in that space three bold projecting points, composed of sand-stone rocks impregnated with iron.

The Ortoire is a very fine deep river, and will be of the utmost utility as the cultivation of the island increases. For although its bar is bad, yet the Caribs manage to get through the surf, except in bad weather, in large canoes, capable of carrying at least two or three tons. At present its banks are every where thickly overgrown with large trees of various kinds; their branches often meet across the river; and as a very considerable part of them consists of the flowering trees, which abound in Trinidad, they exhibit a very rare and fine scene. These flowers are in endless variety, and of a size proportioned to the trees which bear them; all upon a small scale. Frequently we met with branches hung full of pensile bird nests,§ and iguanas were continually leaping out of the trees into the water, alarmed as our boat approached. It may be imagined that the mind and eye would find sufficient enjoyment for days in the Ortoire; but the heat of the sun which is here excessive, (the trees on either side excluding the smallest breeze) added to the activity of the musquitoes, made us heartily wish to bring our measurements to a conclusion. Even the trees on the banks, beautiful

* About thirty-five miles.

It is supposed to run twenty-four miles into the country, and is navigable for large canoes about eighteen. It is laid down in my chart as far as we surveyed it, which is twelve miles, where it is thirty feet wide and eighteen deep. The banks are low for this distance, particularly towards its mouth, the river running through a country nearly plain for that space; afterwards moderate hills arise, and its banks increase in height.

We saw them in August. In May and June they are still more abundant. § Onole.

531

as they are, yet being continued in endless rows, without any break, began to be tiresome. This river as well as the Mitan abounds with fish. The lamentine, or sea cow, and shark are to be found there; and large water snakes from fourteen to nineteen feet long; they are harmless, and often at night are heard lashing the water with their tails, producing a noise like a cart whip. Here is also a kind of amphibious hog; and the mangrove trees on its banks, as well as those at L'Ebranche, afford plenty of delicious small oysters.

In the woods are abundance of deer, laps,* and various animals, none of them either willing or able to contend with man; although their loud roarings in the night would lead a stranger to conclude that he was in a very dangerous neighbourhood. One of the most remarkable of them is an animal about the size of a dog, with a long neck and small mouth, out of which it projects a very long tongue, laying it quietly upon the ground to decoy the ants, who soon cover it, and are immediately devoured. Its legs are short, but armed with long and powerful claws when attacked it lies on its back, and seizes its enemy with them. The best dogs are often destroyed by it in this manner, and it would be difficult to disengage a man if he imprudently attempted to handle it.

The Ortoire is subject, in the rainy season, to violent but short overflowings, they are however, confined to its upper part. When its bed is already full, an additional fall of heavy rain brings down a sudden flood which rises to a considerable height, as may be seen by the slime and filth left by it high up in the trees; sometimes upwards of thirty feet, where its course is narrowed by the adjacent hills. Large trees The are torn up, and carried along with the rapidity of an arrow. forest itself bends before the torrent. But this lasts only some hours, and never reaches far down the river, being chiefly absorbed by the The continual sandy soil of the country, over which it disperses itself. decay of vegetable matter during a course of ages, has, with other causes now covered this sand with earth; but the basis of all the east side of the island is sand.

I have observed already that in the rainy season the water in the Ortoire is fresh; but that in the dry season the influx of the sea, overpowers the small drain from the interior, and makes it salt to the distance of eighteen miles from its mouth.

I was assured that eighteen miles up the river there is a great quantity of moura trees, a hard wood; and from the curvatures of its form very proper for knees in ship-building. It is wonderfully durable under water, and squares from one to three, and sometimes even to four feet. In many parts along its banks trees are to be found useful in shipbuilding, such as the cayou, a coarse kind of cedar, and copayu,+ of which there is a great quantity; a hard wood very proper for ships' planks.

These might be floated down the river, either by lashing casks to them, or by simply boring large augur holes in their ends, and plugging the holes securely to confine the air. If government should think worth The lap is something like a rabbit, but its flesh more resembles pork.

+ Called Copaw by Mr. Burnett.

I have heard that filling the hole with oil answers the purpose better, but do not understand upon what principle,

NOTES ON TRINIDAD.

while to try an experiment on a cargo of this timber, a ship providedwith good anchors and cables, might lie securely off the Ortoire to receive it.

The district of Mayero is low; the soil is sandy, but covered with good earth, and very fertile. It is bounded by a long sandy bay; in the northern part of which the water is always sufficiently smooth to afford good landing for two or three miles; although it is as much exposed to the east as the rest of the bay, where a heavy surf breaks.

The sea shore is well settled, entirely by French: who till now had only cultivated cotton; but when we were there, they were converting three estates from cotton to sugar. The French colonists are mostly of respectable families, driven out of the other islands, and robbed of their property by republican rage; and still retaining that sense of loyalty to which they have sacrificed so much. They feel a rational, and I believe, sincere attachment to the English government; as it secures their property from depredation, and their persons from insult. It would Le straining the bounds of truth to say as much of the neighbouring French Colony at Guaya-guayare.

The river Ortoire runs for some miles at the back of Mayero; and as its present mouth is bad, it has been proposed to cut a new one for it into this bay. The length requisite for the cut being only 1,570 yards.* But how is it to be imagined that an artificial mouth dug out through a sandy soil in the face of the ocean could be kept open and free from a bar; when the river cannot keep its natural mouth clear, although it has the advantage of being protected on one side by a rocky cliff.

About two miles from the shore of the bay, in the spring of the year, a short eruption of flame and smoke breaks out through the sea, throwing up a quantity of pitch, with which the coast is afterwards

strewed.

A few miles from Guaya-guayare among the woods is a pond whose surface is covered with liquid tar. There are several inhabitants, (French) at Guay-guayare, they cultivate cotton only. From hence to point Icaque the south coast about fifty-five miles is uninhabited; there being but one miserable plantation in the whole extent. I can say nothing respecting this side of the island, my survey ending at Point Casa Cruz; further than that it appeared as we ran along it, to be of very easy access; and, although very hilly, cannot properly be called mountainous. The whole of it is covered with woods.

A channel eight miles across divides the south-west point of Trinidad from the coast of South America; which is low and flat, and so very shallow and muddy, that the mangroves and other trees have grown into the sea several miles beyond the land, which is for a great extent a mere muddy swamp. These trees are thinly inhabited by the Guaranoes; a race of Indians who build their huts among the branches, and live on fish and the fruit of the trees. They are barmless and carry on a little traffic with Trinidad in baskets, nets, and fish.

The Weather. The rainy season is reckoned to commence about May or June, and to continue three or four months; but the year 1802,

Mallet calls it 2,600 races; if he means a space of 24 feet, this would be equal to 2,170 yards.

was remarkably rainy, it scarcely ceased for eight or nine months, and the weather was not settled before the middle of January 1803.*

It is observed that within these few years more rain has fallen than formerly. The Spaniards attribute it to the presence of heretical English !

One remarkable circumstauce attends the rain in the Gulf; which is, that it begins in the morning, increases with the sun, till its greatest violence is at noon: decreasing towards the evening; and generally leaving the night, clear, serene, and tolerably cool. In 1803, a moderate quantity of rain fell in June, July, and August; but in general it was so dry that there could not be said to be any rainy season, and in the spring of 1801 the drought was so long, that every building being thoroughly parched up, and ready to catch fire by the smallest spark, some plantation houses, many huts, and a few patches of cane and cotton were destroyed. Even the woods whose smaller underwood and grassy vegetation were almost burnt up by the sun, easily caught fire in many parts either by accidental sparks, or by design to assist in clearing the land. Much of the northern mountainous ridge was in this state, and exhibited at night a magnificent spectacle; particularly at Chaguaramus, where both the opposite mountains were in a blaze; and the valley itself filled and covered with thick smoke far above their summits. The additional heat was plainly perceptible on board the ship near a mile and a half distant.

[The effects of exposure from surveying were tolerably severe in this instance. Out of seven, two died, and none of the rest escaped a dangerous illness on a coast reckoned remarkably healthy !—ED.]

(To be concluded in our next.)

LOCAL ATTRACTION,

THERE are two subjects in navigation which have obtruded themselves of late years, on the attention of certain careful navigators, but which, by the majority of our seamen, are considered of too trifling a nature to be worth thinking about. The effects of local attraction on the coinpass remain still unattended to, and the management of a ship in meeting a hurricane, so as to adopt the proper course for avoiding it soonest, is yet we fear little understood; and yet these two points are fraught with danger, and have, it is well known, caused the destruction of many a goodly ship. Both of these subjects have been largely treated on in the Nautical Magazine, and although we may incur the risk of being considered tedious, we shall not let slip any favourable opportunities as they present themselves, of illustrating their dangerous tendency, until we find them take that place in ships' reckonings which they ought to have. The former of these subjects is well illustrated, in the following letter from her Majesty's harbour-master at Plymouth. This talented gentleman has alluded to ample directions for finding the amount of local attraction, which we published in our volume for 1837,

* Thunder and lightning denote the approach of the rainy season, during which they are sometimes very severe. At other parts of the year they seldom happen,