Cavity, and fo vanished till the Sky was as clear as before. I faw very few small Birds there (not above twenty I believe,) and none of the English kind. N. B. That at Nevis and St. Chriftopher's, we have a few Birds called Mountain-Thrushes, that are wondrous fat, and resemble the English ones; and at the Sun's declenfion towards the Tropick of Capricorn from the Equator, we are visited by a few Swallows. Our other Birds are a small kind of Screech Owls, Noddies, SpoonBills, Pelicans, Boobies, common Pidgeons, two or three forts of wild Pidgeons, Ground-Doves a beautiful fort of bird, and Humming-Birds: In the dusk of the Evening we have fome Batts flying about; but it was never my fortune to knock down one, though I employed a sharp-fighted and nimble Negro feveral times for that purpose. We every quarter of a minute heard an odd tho' regular and periodical noise (which founded exactly like the creaking of a Sugar-mill, or Cart when it wants greasing) from two or three different places that were not very far from us, tho' we could not poffibly find out the cause of it; and I took notice that we could not hear this noise near so distinctly at the bottom where we dined, as we did about forty or fifty yards before we came down to it, though it seemed to proceed wholly from the bottom. We beheld continual Clouds of Steam arifing out of the Veins of Sul

phur, Brimftone, and hot breathing holes, upon which (as I faid before) I looked down with horrour from the Rim or Verge at the top of this Cavity. Many of the Rocks on all fides round us were of such strange uncouth shapes, as would I am apt to think, have puzzled an expert Geometrician to delineate: And beneath these monstrous Rocks, were thick Woods quite down to the aforementioned uneven Plain. In fhort; a Man who would make farther Discoveries, and give a more accurate description of this Place, fhould carry along with him a Tent to sleep in, and so spend two or three days there. What alas! fignifies a two hours vifit to fuch a Place?

30. This Cavity from top to bottom (upon a ferious review of it after dinner) could not exceed three hundred yards in perpendicular depth in my own opinion, though the rest of my Companions contended strenuoufly for more; and indeed it was meerly to comply with them that I allowed so much, for it certainly could not poffibly exceed two hundred and twenty yards: It chagrines me to think that a Traveller must either forego Truth in fome cafes, or else differ with his Company. However, upon maturely weighing the whole state of this Mountain, we unanimously agreed, that it must be on fire underneath us, and that this Cavity where we then fate was formerly (perhaps ages ago) occafioned by fome furious

and

and dreadful Eruption, when it might be a Vulcano for a while, like Ætna, Vefuvius, or Strombolo. Before these Islands were inhabited by Europeans, the Charibees their ancient Natives were entire strangers to all forts of Literature, and of course must want Annals to tranfmit down to Pofterity fo memorable an Occurrence. And here, a difficult Query does naturally arise, viz. What Right had we to difpoffefs the honeft Charibees of it, who are now almost extinct in race, and confined to the forry Island of Dominico; nay, I lately heard from a Surgeon aboard a Ship of Sir Chaloner Ogle's Squadron who touched there, That the French have lately made a Settlement at Dominico; fo that I suppose the poor Remains of the Charibees, must soon pack up their alls, and

be gone to fome one of the uninhabited Islands. To deal plainly with you, I do not remember any Christian rule that does in the lowest degree countenance fuch cruel acts, nor did I ever yet meet with a Casuist, who durft take up the Cudgels to defend them; and our Ancestors who dispoffeffed them are not justifiable: Nay, to perpetrate fuch Actions under the fpecious title or pretence of civilizing them, does in my mind vastly enhaunce the horrid Crime. But enough upon that Topick for the prefent, because I defign to make it the business of my next Letter to demonstrate, that we of this Century do tread in

the Foot-steps of our Ancestors who difpoffeffed the honeft Charibees.

31. We returned back again the fame way, and after a long day's fatigue, reached my Friend's House just as it grew duskish; where I stayed three or four days, and then travelled home to Nevis, where I fafely arrived without any thing extraordinary happening to me. Father Ovalle. fays, that on the top of the Cordillera or Mountains of Andes, they cannot fee the Country below for Clouds, though the Sky over their heads is clear and bright, and the Sun fhines with admirable beauty. It was the fame cafe with us on the top now at our return from the Cavity, for about the space of four or five minutes; and had our Mountain been as high as the Cordillera, it might have continued fo for as many Days, or perhaps Weeks together. Not but that the Clouds blow quite over the fummits of the highest Mountains, fuch as the Cordillera, Alps, Pyrenees, Apennines, &c. Woods Rogers, page 21, infifts, That they faw the Pico Teneriff plain but once whilst they continued at the Port of Oratava, it being gene rally clouded; you may (adds he) often fee the top above the Clouds, when the rest is all covered with them.

32. N. B. In my Parish of St. John in the Island of Nevis, there is a confiderable spot of fulphurous ground on the fouth fide, at the up

per

per end of a deep rupture in the earth vulgarly called Sulphur Gut, which is fo exceffive hot (like that near the Devil's Coppers in St. Chriftopher's) as to make us immediately feel it thorough our Shoe Soals. And I must farther affure you, That two Doctors (my particular acquaintance) were fo curious as to bury fome Eggs about an inch deep in that spot for the space of three or four minutes, in which small time they were full as hard quite thorough, as boyling or roasting could make them.

33. At the foot of a declivity adjoining to the fouth fide of Charles Town our Metropolis, we have a little hot River called the Bath (fuppofed to flow from the aforementioned Sulphur-ground, which is not above three quarters of a mile higher up in the Country) that runs half a mile or better before it loofes itself in the Sea-fands. I knew a Negro Boy who was fent down from Barbadoes to Nevis for that very purpose (after being twice falivated in vain) cured of a very bad Leprofy by using it, and indeed all distempered People both Whites and Blacks find great benefit by it: The Salivations had caused the Boy to break out in running Sores or Ulcers all over from head to foot, and they being added to the Leprofy, made him a fad (rueful) fpectacle; however, by drinking and washing three or four times a day, for an hour at least each time, in the water of this