stellations, like silver
spangles on a background of blue velvet. We anchored off the island an
hour before daylight, the harbor being too shallow to admit the ship.
A forbidding sand bar blocks the entrance, inside of which the water
is but fifteen feet deep. Indeed, Nassau would have no harbor at all
were it not that nature has kindly placed Hog Island in the form of a
break-water, just off the town. The vibrating hull of the Cienfuegos
was once more at rest; the stout heart-throbs, the panting and
trembling, of the great engine had ceased; the wheelhouse and decks
were deserted, and one was fain to turn in below for a brief nap
before landing on this the most populous of the Bahamas.

The island, which was settled by Europeans as early as 1629, embraces
nearly a hundred square miles, forming an oasis in the desert of
waters. It is sixteen miles long and about one half as wide,
containing fourteen thousand inhabitants, more or less, who can hardly
be designated as an enterprising community. On first landing,
everything strikes the visitor as being peculiarly foreign,--almost
unique. The town is situated on the northerly front of the island,
extending along the shore for a couple of miles, and back to a crest
of land which rises to nearly the height of a hundred feet. This
elevation is crowned by the residence of the English Governor-General,
in front of which may be seen a colossal but not admirable statue of
Columbus. The town boasts a small public library, a museum, theatre,
several small churches, a prison, a hospital, and a bank. The
government maintains one company of infantry, composed of black men,
officered by whites. It must be admitted that they present a fine
military appearance when on parade. Nassau has long been a popular
resort for invalids who seek a soft, equable climate, and as it lies
between the warm South Atlantic and the Gulf Stream it is
characterized by the usual temperature of the tropics. There seemed to
be a certain enervating influence in the atmosphere, under the effects
of which the habitues of the place were plainly struck with a spirit
of indolence. The difference between those just arrived and the
regular guests of the Victoria Hotel, in this respect, could not fail
to be observed. The languidly oppressive warmth imparts a certain
softness to manners, a voluptuous love of idleness, and a glow to the
affections which are experienced with less force at the North. Neither
snow nor frost