Chap, ii.] PRECIOUS CORAL AT SAN JAGO. 57 



closely similar nodules to these in ten fathoms off the Philip- 

 pine Islands, in bushelfuls. These nodules were living masses 

 of CoraNi/iacecv, but loose, rounded, and unattached, yet cover- 

 ing and composing the sea bottom. The basalt, undermined 

 by the cropping out of the limestone, falls in large masses, and 

 splitting off with great regularity leaves the cliff with a remark- 

 ably smooth vertical surface. 



Red or precious Coral occurs at San Jago, and also at St. 

 Vincent. There are four or five Spanish boats, and seven 

 belonging to Italians, engaged in the fishery for it at San Jago. 

 It occurs in about 100 to 120 fathoms, and is dragged for with 

 swabs as in the Mediterranean : the strands of the swabs are 

 made up into a net with about a four-inch mesh. A duty of a 

 dollar a kilogram is paid to the Government on the coral. 



A pair of huge fish came round the ship whilst at anchor in 

 the harbour during the afternoon ; one, supposed to be the 

 male, was struck with a harpoon, but after some time managed 

 to draw it out by its struggles ; it twisted up the harpoon, and 

 was said even to have moved the ship in its throes. I did not 

 see the fish, but from the description, coupled with the fact 

 that there were a pair of them, it seemed probable that the 

 fish were the huge ray Cephaloptera, the " Devil fish," which 

 has curious horn-like projections sticking out in front on either 

 side of the mouth. The fish were described as "as big as an 

 ordinary dining room table." * 



The voyage from San Jago to St. Paul's Rocks occupied 

 nineteen days. When we were two days out some swallows 

 paid us a visit, flying behind the ship. We ran at first parallel 

 with the African coast, and then stretched over westwards to 

 St. Paul's Rocks. We passed first through a region where we 

 had a pretty steady south-west wind, an African land breeze or 

 monsoon. Here we had occasional heavy showers, but not so 

 much rain as was to be expected, since we were passing a 

 region where it rains on an average for seven hours out of 

 every twenty-four, all the year round. We next steamed 

 through the belt of equatorial calms to reach the south-east 

 trade winds, and left the Guinea current, which was running at 

 the rate of 21 miles in 24 hours. We entered the trade wind 

 on August 2 1 St, and the air became damp and cooler than 

 before, and we were soon running before the wind at the rate 

 of seven or eight knots. 



* For an account of a visit to Porto Praya, see G. Bennett, '' Wander- 

 ings in New South Wales," Vol. I., p. 15. London, K. Bentley, 1834. 



