BARBADOS-ANTIGUA EXPEDITION 13 
In the midst of these preparations came the declaration of 
war by the United States! Of course we knew that events were 
shaping themselves in this direction, but we were hoping against 
hope that the German government would not insist on making 
an additional enemy of our country. Having definitely 
committed himself to the carrying through of the proposed ex- 
pedition, the writer followed his customary course of going 
ahead with an undertaking until he is stopped; a state of mind 
considered perseverance by friends and regarded as pig-headed- 
ness by the unfriendly. He accordingly decided to go on with 
the preliminary trip at any rate, a decision in which he was en- 
couraged by University authorities and members of the party. 
On June 16, 1917 I sailed from New York on the steamer 
‘*Parima’’ of the Quebec Line, not greatly heartened by the war 
color of the vessel nor by the absence of lights at night. Lights 
have always been associated with the idea of safety at sea; 
and their absence was, to say the least, depressing. 
A six days’ sail brought us to St. Thomas, one of the posses- 
sions recently acquired from Denmark. Although there is 
doubtless good collecting around this island, it soon became 
apparent that there were no available quarters for so large a 
party as ours bade fair to be. 
St. Croix, or Santa Cruz, the next island visited, although 
sufficiently attractive from a scenic standpoint, and possessing 
inviting coral reefs, offered the same difficulties. Mr. Smeige- 
low, a Danish gentleman who managed a very extensive sugar 
plantation, took me over the island in his automobile, on roads 
that were as good as city boulevards, and through enchanting 
scenery. He offered to find accommodations for us in houses 
owned by him and at a very reasonable rate, but the expense of 
fitting them up for our purpose would have been considerable 
and moreover they were quite an appreciable distance from the 
sea. 
St. Kitts, the first of the British Islands, came next. It 
seemed that each island was more beautiful than the preceding 
and one wanted to stay over at each of them, had time per- 
mitted. From our standpoint, however, we could see very lit- 
tle that was particularly inviting to the marine zoologist in 
this beautiful island. 
