( 87 ) 



got all onr baggage on board without mishap. About 11 o'clock next morning we 

 anchored off Santa Cruz, Graciosa, the most northerly island of the group, about 

 1.^0 miles east of Flores. Mr. Filippe Andradc met us at the landing-place, and 

 conducted us to a little house which he had hired for us on the outskirts of the 

 town. He had hojjcd to get the loan of the Quinta Boa Vista, in a wooded valley 

 a))ove Praja, but unfortunately the owner was al)sent, and his consent could not 

 be obtained in time. The greater part of Graciosa is but poor collecting ground, 

 being mostly under cultivation, and the only i]art with any extent of wood is the 

 valley above Praya. Quails and Bnzzards were particularly numerous, and on no 

 other island did we see so many. Far the most beautiful spot in Graciosa is the 

 C'aldeira, one of the most perfect in the Azores. To the south of the lake, which 

 lies within its cup-shaped crater, there is a deep narrow rift through the upper crust, 

 known as the Furna do Enxnfre (Cave of the Suli)hur), by which one can descend 

 into the bowels of the earth and explore an extensive underground lake stretching 

 nearly to the outer wall of the crater. Being anxious to visit this curious spot, we 

 engaged a stalwart man to meet us with the requisite rope and lower ns into the 

 abyss. The rocky sides of the chasm are smooth and almost perpendicular, but 

 the distance to the floor of this arched cave is not very great— probably less than 

 a hundred feet. Near the edge of the lake there is a boiling spring ; but though 

 the place is very curious to behold, we found no animal life of special interest, 

 and apparently the lake does not contain any vertebrate fauna. The only living 

 animals of this dismal place were Eock-Pigeons ; on the ground we saw several 

 skeletons of goats and sheep, which must have accidentally fallen in and been killed. 



While at Graciosa I had the singular good fortune to kill two rights and lefts 

 at " Milhafres " (Buzzards) in a couple of minutes. One evening on returning 

 home I heard that an Owl had been seen the night before in an old disused Quinta 

 surrounded by large trees. Mr. Andrade's son having procured the key of the 

 garden, we at once set off, and after a weary tramp of three miles along a lava- 

 strewn track, arrived at our destination just as it was beginning to grow dusk. We 

 had scarcely entered the garden when eight buzzards got on the wing, and before 

 they had time to escape half their number were collected. No doubt our informant 

 had mistaken a Buzzard for a large Owl. We were, however, well satisfied with 

 our evening's work, as " Milhafres " were always difficult to shoot, and such a uni(pie 

 chance was never likely to occur again. The Goldcrest, curiously enough, does not 

 occur on Graciosa. 



On April 28th we made an early start for Praya, where we expected the 

 Funchal to pick us up about 9 a.m. It had been blowing hard in the night, and 

 though there was a big sea running, with huge breakei's, we hoped that, witli the 

 rising tide, it might moderate sufficiently to allow us to ship our baggage. Graciosa 

 being nearly round in shape and devoid of any good harbours, there is no shelter in 

 a high sea, and communication is difficult or impossible. The Funchal, after waiting 

 for two hours and seeing that it was Impeless to land her mails, much less take 

 up passengers, left for San Jorge. The distance to the latter island is not very great 

 (about forty miles), but at this season no sailing-boat could be hired, their owners 

 fearing the risk while the weather remained so unsettled. In this dilemma I 

 telegraphed to Captain Lima, telling him we were marooned on Graciosa, and asking 

 if he could come to our assistance, and had the satisfaction of hearing tliat he 

 would start as soon as the weather moderated. Meanwhile we took up our (juarters 

 in a draughty old house situated among the vineyards above Praya, and waited. 



