SMITHSONIAN EXPLORATIONS. I928 45 



and sculling. r.i\ing quarters were estahlished in one of the larger 

 caves of the Playa Honda coast locally known as " Uoca del Infierno," 

 the Mouth of Hell. Except for annoyance caused hy the small sand 

 flies, living in the cave was pleasant enough, as the cave floor was 

 drv and the entire cavern well ventilated. Three main openings, two 

 of which faced the bay, and several large openings in the roof caused 

 l)y the fall of rock masses loosened by water seepage, were not sut^- 

 ciently large to allow daylight to penetrate the entire cavern. Recourse 

 was had to artificial lighting, in which a curious collection of electric 

 lanterns, flashlights, paraffine candles, kerosene lanterns, and candle- 

 wood torches each played a part. 



The cave selected as the expedition's headquarters had several com- 

 partments, one of which served as packing room and laboratory, others 

 as dormitories. The lal)oratory was also used as kitchen and dining- 

 room. At mealtime the bottled lizards and the plant presses were 

 removed from the packing box work table and were replaced by 

 kidney l)eans, rice, fish, and Dominican coiTee roasted to a crisp in 

 sugar, pounded to a powder, and boiled interminably. The merits of 

 native Dominican coffee thus jn'epared may well be remembered if 

 not appreciated. 



Abraham Lewis, a St. Kitts negro long established near the town 

 of Santa Iiarbara de Samana. with his two helpers, one a Dominican, 

 the other a deep water English negro sailor from Jamaica, operated 

 the small and none too comfortable sailboat which was our only means 

 of communication with the outside world. The desire to w(n-k for 

 the Americans was so great that Abraham, in order to accommodate 

 his friends, was compelled to change the crew each week. This novel 

 form of labor turnover proved somewhat annoying to us, l)ut it had 

 to be put up with for the good of the expedition. 



No fresh water was found in any of the caves explored, although 

 a small quantity of water saturated with carbonate of lime drij^ped 

 from the cave ceiling at many points. This water, because of its lime 

 content, was not potable, but a]i]~)arently it had been used bv the 

 aboriginal occupants of the caves, as shards of broken earthenware 

 vessels and a few unbroken bowls were picked up from the floor of 

 the caves near the stalactites. These shards were coated with car- 

 bonate of lime and were not recognized as earthenware fragments 

 until the lime incrustations were removed. Streams of good fresh 

 water at places flowed from the base of the clifl^s in the narrow 

 ravines. The nearest of these streams was two miles away from our 

 cave, and from it our water supply had to be brought by the sailboat 



