the fire, and turning first one side towards it, and then
the other. Half wet through, and tolerably fatigued, I retired to
my couch of dry leaves immediately after partaking of our scanty
meal.

It is a fortunate circumstance that in these wild and remote
districts neither men nor beasts afford the slightest grounds for
apprehension; the former are very quiet and peaceably inclined, and,
with the exception of a few wild boars, the latter are not
dangerous. The island is especially favoured; it contains no
poisonous or hurtful insects or reptiles. It is true there are a
few scorpions, but so small and harmless, that they may be handled
with impunity. The mosquitoes alone were the source of very
considerable annoyance, as they are in all southern countries.

8th May. It began to rain very violently during the night, and in
the morning I was sorry to see that there was not much hope of its
clearing up; on the contrary, the clouds became blacker and blacker,
and collecting from all sides, like so many evil spirits, poured
down in torrents upon the innocent earth. Nevertheless, in spite of
this, there was no other course open to us but to bid defiance to
the angry water deity, and proceed upon our journey. In half an
hour I was literally drenched; this being the case, I went on
uncomplainingly, as it was impossible for me to become wetter than I
was.

On my return to Papara, I found that Tati's son was not buried, but
the ceremony took place the next day. The clergyman pronounced a
short discourse at the side of the grave; and, as the coffin was
being lowered, the mats, straw hat, and clothes of the deceased, as
well as a few of the presents, were thrown in with it. The
relations were present, but as unconcerned as I was myself.

The graveyard was in the immediate vicinity of several murais. The
latter are small four-cornered plots of ground surrounded by stone
walls three or four feet high, where the natives used to deposit
their dead, which were left exposed upon wooden frames until the
flesh fell from the bones. These were then collected and buried in
some lonely spot.

The same evening I witnessed a remarkable mode of catching fish.
Two boys waded out into the sea, one with a stick, and the other
with a quantity of burning chips. The one with the stick drove the
fish between the rocks, and then hit them, the other lighting him in
the meanwhile. They were not very fortunate, however. The more
common