25^ 



MR. DAVIS S JOURNAL. 



then we have enjoyed the regular S. E. trade, under the steady 

 breezes of which we are now getting along. Warm sunny 

 days, refreshing moonlight nights, and all the attendants of 

 fine weather. Unhappily, we have some restless, discontented 

 spirits on board. 



Dec. 14. Lat. 10° 58' S. Long. 34° 59' W. 



Our worthy captain is making for Bahia, where I presume 

 we shall get ashore to-morrow or next day. 



Bahia. Dec. 20, 1837. 



" We little thought, when we set out, 



Of running such a rig." — John Gilpin. 



Here we are ! What would our friend Doubleday say if he 

 had strolled, as I have done, the last two or three days, under 

 the tamarinds, cocoa-nuts, mangoes, oranges, bananas, and 

 hosts of other trees too numerous to mention ? How he would 

 have shouted, as I have done, at the splendid Papilios and 

 Hymenopterous tribes which flit around! Their variety is 

 charming, from the little skip and jump style of the little 

 Hesperidce, to the wide circling flight of some of the larger 

 Morphos. I have managed to save a few, caught with my 

 hands, for I have neither forceps nor net left out. Coleoptera 

 I have yet seen none. The city is besieged, and we are now 

 and then amused with a few shots from the fort to the block- 

 ading squadron. On Sunday, while at anchor here, a flight of 

 Neuropterous insects, something like Nemoura, hovered round 

 the poop ; they had long dark wings, nearly as long again as 

 the body, so that they could not run fast: when they were 

 caught, they bit ofi^ their wings, and ran with great rapidity. 

 I captured several, but at first lost all their wings ; I then 

 nipped them hard at first, and thus kept them on. On close 

 examination of those which lost their wings, I found they were 

 bitten off' close to the side, leaving four processes like abbre- 

 viated elytra. On taking down the awning next morning, lots 

 of the insects ran out, all wingless, and the wings fell down in 

 profusion on the deck ; these must have performed the amputa- 

 tion without any apparent necessity. At night we had a swai'm 

 of what they call here the winged ant ; they were in sufficient 

 abundance almost to put out the lights ; I do not think it is a 

 true ant. I also took a {cw Ichneumons. As to the rest, you 



