42 WILD LIFE IN NORTH CANARA. 



mangosteen trees ; the crimson rind of 

 the fruit and its pearly white contents 

 exactly resemble those of the culti- 

 vated mangosteen in appearance, but 

 are intensely sour. The same gamboge 

 resin distils from both trees, and fur- 

 nishes I think the gamboge of com- 

 merce. 



Towards the end of the promontory 

 the sea at high water and in storms 

 dashed against the cliff, and here was 

 a large cave in which a troop of sea 

 otters generally harboured. The floor 

 of the cliff was under water, but as 

 it was piled with laterite boulders for 

 many feet above sea level, the otters 

 were provided with absolutely impreg- 

 nable fastnesses under the boulders and 

 in the labyrinth of interstices which 



