210 SPORT IN NORTH AMERICA. 



Two-and-twenty voices sang the chorus of eacli 

 verse, and I can assure the reader that, in the stilly 

 evening, this primitive concert produced quite an 

 imposing effect. 



After that, we all talked about the peculiar fishery 

 which brought us to the Bahamas, and as night drew 

 on, preparations were commenced. It was necessary 

 to be on the spot some time before the turtles quitted 

 the water to lay their eggs in the sandbanks best 

 adapted for hatching the progeny. These little 

 islands, divided by deep channels and formed of 

 broken and comminuted shells, are close to the 

 great coral reef which is so frequented by the ocean 

 Chelonia. The whole bottom of the sea along the 

 coasts of Florida is covered with a thick layer of 

 coral, coralines, sea-weeds, and other crops of the 

 deep, which give shelter to an innumerable quantity 

 of Crustacea. About these sandbanks, innumerable 

 flocks of sea-birds are flying night and day, looking 

 at a distance like swarms of enormous flies. We 

 arrived at the great sandbank just as the god of 

 day was plunging into the sea. To any one who 

 has never seen a sun-set in these latitudes, it is 

 a grand and glorious spectacle, unequalled by any- 

 thing I know of. One-fifth of the vast, red disc, 

 whose dimensions seem tripled, has disappeared 

 below the line of the waters, and the part still visible 

 is adorned with a fringe of purple clouds which float 

 upon the horizon. Through the gates of the west 



