82 CAPTAIN TUCKEY’S NARRATIVE. 
trifle, a fresh water turtle weighing 40lb., which, when drest, 
we found equal the green turtle. 
The method of closing a bargain, and giving a receipt, 
is by the buyer and seller breaking a blade of grass or a 
leaf between them, and until this ceremony is performed, 
no bargain is legally concluded, though the parties may have 
possession of each other’s goods; this we only learned by 
experience, for having bought, and, as we thought, paid for 
a couple of fowls, they were immediately slaughtered for 
dinner, but the owner taking advantage of the omission of 
the ceremony, pretended that he had not concluded the 
bargain, and insisted on another glass, which we were 
obliged to give him, but profited by the lesson. 
During our forced detention at Shark point, the Naturalists 
made some excursions on shore, and were gratified in their 
respective pursuits, particularly Dr. Smith, who procured 
many interesting plants. Mr. Cranch shot some birds, 
amongst which were an eagle, an anhinga, several varieties 
of the king fisher, a toukan, and many small birds.. Near 
the shore, these gentlemen saw, close to a place where had 
been a fire, human skulls and other human bones. Ob- 
serving the natives take considerable numbers of fish with 
nets, we sent two boats to haul the seine at day-light of 
the 11th. On the outside of the point they were entirely 
