13 



with little darkies, romping, laughing, and chasing each other 

 round and about, whilst neatly-dressed women, standing at their 

 doors, or leaning out of their open windows, watch the return of 

 their ' men,' as they boldly call their husbands. The air is still, 

 and laden with the penetrating perfume of the Cape jasmine, the 

 white blossoms of which gleam like stars amidst the dark foliage, 

 and of the crimson and pink oleander which flowers here to great 

 perfection. No pen can describe or give even a faint idea of the 

 delicious peacefulness of the scene, of the cheerful sounds of 

 greeting, of the merry clatter of the negroes, the tuning of banjoes, 

 and above all, of the beautiful sunset-lit clouds above, which shed 

 a rosy tint abroad, and mark in bold relief the tall stems of the 

 waving palms, and of the strange-named but useful trees, whose 

 bizarre foliage so attracts attention, and between whose gnarled 

 boughs you catch glimpses of the high-roofed houses of the city, 

 of the cathedral spire, and of a sea as blue as a turquoise, now 

 shivering in the gentlest of breezes. 



" The town of Nassau itself is not particularly interesting, inas- 

 much that, with the sole exception of the cathedral, it cannot 

 boast of a single monument of any artistic importance. The 

 houses are mostly built of stone faced with wood, and possessed of 

 high-slated roofs and wide verandahs, which surround each story 

 and afford cool shade during the sunny hours of the day. The 

 public buildings are clean and unpretentious, and evidently 

 modelled after those of some English village in which the sturdy 

 and inelegant Georgian architecture predominates. There are 

 few traces anywhere of the influence of the higher art, although 

 the cathedral itself is an exceedingly handsome Gothic building, 

 wherein the services of the Church of England are most admirably 

 conducted. 



" The gardens are trim and pretty, but, notwithstanding their 

 profusion of tropical plants, lack the luxuriant charm which 

 makes the ill-kept garden of Havana so romantic and picturesque. 

 Very few of the private houses are of superior size, and even the 

 Governor's palace is a modest-looking dwelling, situated on the 

 highest of the surrounding hills, and commanding a fine view of 

 the town and harbour. 



