BARBADOS-ANTIGUA EXPEDITION 225 
by coral reefs. Here and there are stretches of sand beaches 
and back of them very picturesque villages with thatched huts 
under the ever graceful palm trees. The surf along this coast 
is heavy, being kept up by the strong trade-winds which were 
continuous during our stay. The headlands are high and end 
in lofty cliffs, against which the white-crowned breakers leap to 
a height of 100 to 150 feet in their ceaseless attack. The con- 
stant bombardment results in erosive phenomena on a grand 
seale, best exhibited perhaps by the ‘‘Pillars of Hereules’’ so 
often mentioned on preceding pages and excellently well pic- 
tured in the accompanying photograph. 
The island is at a disadvantage agriculturally on account of 
its scant water supply which is at all times precarious and some- 
times results in serious droughts. St. John’s the capital, is sup- 
plied from reservoirs; but in the country districts the problem of 
water for domestic use is a serious one, as there are few 
springs and throughout the central valley the water obtained 
from wells is brackish and unpalatable. The main dependence 
is on cisterns which are often owned by the government and 
used in common by the inhabitants of a village or district. 
There was one near English Harbor and at certain times during 
the day a procession of women would pass from the common 
pump, each with an oil or gasolene can filled with water poised 
on her head. Even small children were thus burdened, but the 
men seemed entirely immune from such labor. These common 
‘“wells,’’ as they are called, are in charge of the police and there 
is much wrangling among the negroes waiting for their turn. 
Another disadvantage suffered by Antigua is the absence of a 
suitable harbor for large vessels. This is true of most of the 
islands, but here, although St. John’s has an extensive harbor, 
the water is so shallow that passenger steamers are compelled 
to ancher about three miles from the town and passengers and 
their luggage are transferred in a decrepit steam launch to the 
government landing, an uncomfortable procedure if the sea is 
choppy or a rain-squall comes on. 
Another thing that strikes the writer unfavorably is the ab- 
sence of hotel accommodations for transient visitors. There 
is but one hotel, the ‘‘Esperanza,’’ which is limited in the 
amount of room and perpetually filled with permanent patrons. 
