I.] ACTIOX OF THE SPAXISH. 5 



and we found one of them to be a certificate addressed to Spanish 

 ships, and stating that the Pangerang was to be trusted ; while the 

 other was a sort of passport to enable the latter to visit any of the 

 Spanish possessions. On learning our nationality the old fellow 

 became communicative, and confided to us his dislike of the 

 " Castillans." It appeared that the captain of the Sircnia had 

 given him a Spanish flag with instructions to hoist it on the arrival 

 of a vessel, telling him at the same time that the island was a 

 Spanish possession, and that the flag had been sent by the Sultan of 

 Sulu himself.^ He said that for his own part he acknowledged no 

 sovereignty but the Sultan's, but added that he would be afraid 

 not to hoist the flag in the event of a visit of a Spanish man-of- 

 war. 



Beautiful as are almost all tropical islands, I do not think 

 I have ever seen one more captivating than Cagayan Sulu. ]\Ir. 

 St. John calls it a "true gem of the ocean"; and as the boat 

 glided over the coral-gardens, bright with vividly-coloured fish, and 

 landed me, gun and collecting-box in hand, on the snowy sand, I felt 

 as if I could cast off civilisation and European clothes alike, and 

 cultivate my mealie patch and grove of coconuts wdth the natives 

 for the remainder of my natural life. It is the feeling that every 

 lover of Xature doubtless has on revisiting scenes like these, but 

 in ninety-nine cases out of a hundred we should soon find our- 

 selves sighing for our morning papers, and calling the place a 

 "vvretched hole," were we to try the experiment. The sauce of 

 life is variety, and just as the restraints and conventionalities of 

 civilisation become after a time unbearable to those of us who have 

 once tasted of the sweets of rough travel, so there are occasionally 

 moments when, even in Palm-grove and Coral Land, the thoufrht of 

 a high hat and a white shirt is actually not unpleasing. Habit is, 

 after all, too strong for us, and however often we may succeed in 

 breaking its bonds, there must sooner or later come a tune when 



^ We learnt afterwards from the Sultan that this was a pure invention on the 

 part of the Spaniards. 



