water. Past low cliffs of ash and volcanic boulder, sloping
westward to the sea, which is eating them fast away, the steamer
runs in through a deep crack, a pistol-shot in width. On the east
side a strange section of gray lava and ash is gnawn into caves. On
the right, a bluff rock of black lava dips sheer into water several
fathoms deep; and you anchor at once inside an irregular group of
craters, having passed through a gap in one of their sides, which
has probably been torn out by a lava flow. Whether the land, at the
time of the flow, was higher or lower than at present, who can tell?
This is certain, that the first basin is for half of its
circumference circular, and walled with ash beds, which seem to
slope outward from it. To the left it leads away into a long creek,
up which, somewhat to our surprise, we saw neat government-houses
and quays; and between them and us, a noble ironclad and other ships
of war at anchor close against lava and ash cliffs. But right
ahead, the dusty sides of the crater are covered with strange
bushes, its glaring shingle spotted with bright green Manchineels;
while on the cliffs around, aloes innumerable, seemingly the
imported American Agave, send up their groups of huge fat pointed
leaves from crannies so arid that one would fancy a moss would
wither in them. A strange place it is, and strangely hot likewise;
and one could not but fear a day--it is to be hoped long distant--
when it will be hotter still.

Out of English Harbour, after taking on board fruit and bargaining
for beads, for which Antigua is famous, we passed the lonely rock of
Redonda, toward a mighty mountain which lay under a sheet of clouds
of corresponding vastness. That was Guadaloupe. The dark
undersides of the rolling clouds mingled with the dark peaks and
ridges, till we could not see where earth ended and vapour began;