A SPRING VISIT TO NASSAU. 775 



castor beans, morning-glories, lantanas, four-o'clocks, and tecomas, 

 with their white and yellow blossoms, at this season the most con- 

 spicuous wild flowers; and the life plant (Bryophyllum calycinum), 

 a single leaf of which, if pinned to the wall of a room, will send ont 

 rootlets and grow. These last are seen in every direction, and grow 

 wild among the rocks. Orchids, air plants (epiphytes), and palmet- 

 tos, which are so carefully cherished in our hothouses or homes, here 

 run wild and cover large areas of waste land. Cacti, agaves and 

 aloes are common, and from them good commercial fibers are made. 

 Sisal hemp and sisal grass are terms used for fibers of probably more 

 than one species of agave. They have always grown wild on the 

 islands, and were formerly considered a nuisance. Of late years the 

 production of sisal has formed a large industry, and hundreds of 

 acres are given up to the growth of the plant, which thrives on the 

 poorest soil. The cultivation of sisal is only exceeded in extent by 

 the sponge industry, in which six thousand people and a great many 

 small vessels are engaged, Nassau being the principal port for sponge 

 trading in the West Indies. The men engaged in gathering the 

 sponges go off on cruises of five or six weeks. They get the sponges 

 by means of a hook attached to a long pole, and then leave them 

 in the sun till the animal matter decays. They are then brought to 

 the sponge exchange, sold in large quantities, and afterward taken by 

 each buyer to his wharf. Here women are employed in cutting, 

 trimming, and packing them for exportation. 



In early spring, before the trees put forth their leaves — for there 

 are many deciduous trees even in a tropical region — there are fewer 

 flowers in bloom than later in the season. Some have their season of 

 growth and rest, though the climate has a nearly equal temperature 

 throughout the year, while other trees and plants, like tea and coffee, 

 produce several crops annually. In tropical regions, sequence of 

 crops depends largely upon a rainy and a dry season. The absence 

 of grass is quite noticeable. Very few cows are kept, and this 

 has its effect upon food, as condensed milk must always be used. A 

 tree of great interest, particularly to those interested in the dissemina- 

 tion of seeds, is the sand-box (Hura crepitans). Its pods explode 

 with a pistol-like noise, scattering the seeds to a great distance. I 

 secured a good specimen, and packed it carefully in a box. Some 

 five or six weeks later, when at home, I untied the pod and put it 

 on the table with a collection of corals, shells, and curios from the 

 West Indies. Coming home one day, I was told that it would be 

 unsafe ever to go out again and leave Sam, the pet cat, alone in the 

 sitting room, for he had been on the table and made great havoc, 

 scattering sponges, shells, etc., all over the room. I rushed to see 

 if any of my specimens had suffered, and found that not Sam, but 



