146 ZOOLOGICAL RESEARCHES 



Grand Cape Mount is by far the most important 

 promontory of the whole Liberian coast, and entirely 

 covered with virgin forest. Its shadowy valleys are ani- 

 mated by beautiful noisy rivulets of the coolest and most 

 excellent drinking water in Liberia. On its western slope, 

 which projects pretty far out into the sea and thus form- 

 ing a fine large bay, is situated the Liberian settlement 

 of Robertsport, and on a terrace, far above this settle- 

 ment , the American Missionary Station , with an un- 

 rivalled view over the open blue sea, the marshy estuaries 

 of the Sugary, Marfa and Grand Cape Mount River, 

 covered with Mangrove, oil- and wine-palms and crossed 

 in all directions by numerous creeks, and eastward over 

 the Fisherman Lake with the vast forest-region of the in- 

 terior and a background of blue mountains in the distance. 



The Fisherman Lake at the northern foot of the Moun- 

 tain , as the promontory is called there , is the jewel of 

 Grand Cape Mount Country. It is about 10 miles in length 

 and from 3 to 4 miles in width , growing narrower at 

 its lower western end, and forming the Grand Cape Mount 

 River , which connects it with the bay of Robertsport. Its 

 tributaries are numerous fresh-water-creeks , the most remark- 

 able of which are the Morfi River and the Jonny Creek, 

 During the wet season its blue, clear water is, on ac- 

 count of the immense supply of rain-water , perfectly sweet 

 but gets salt towards the dry season and becomes then so 

 shallow as to be hardly navigable except by small canoes. 



The fauna of the lake depends much on the seasons, 

 as during the rains only sweet-water-fishes are found, 

 while in the dry season thornbacks , soles and other sea- 

 fish are caught. 



The Vey-people which inhabit this country, are very 

 fond on fishing , which is performed in the most various 

 ways. Women fish in the shallow water along the shore 

 with small nets , while the men prefer to fish on moonless 

 nights by the light of torches, made from palm-leaves, 

 and armed either with the cutlass or with a long-shafted 



.Notes from the Xjeyden IMuseum, Vol. VII. 



