l6o CAMPS IN THE CARIBBEES. 



were obliged to use as substitute the seeds of a species 

 of palm, a tall and slender tree with drooping leaves. 

 It is a species not yet described, I think, and is either 

 a cocos or a gconoma. The seeds are dark and shining, 

 and grow in clusters at the bases of the leaf-stalks. 

 They are edible, and constitute an important portion 

 of the food of the forest Caribs. 



A beautiful plant, which nearly covered the trees 

 along the streams, was the Hillia longifolia ; it had 

 white, star-shaped flowers, and glossy laurel-like 

 leaves. Every old stump and decaying tree was 

 covered with a fuchsia-like plant with lovely pink and 

 scarlet flowers, the Alloplectus cristalus, which en- 

 veloped every disfigured tree in a garment of beauty. 



We reached without adventure the great river, and 

 followed it down to its mouth, where was an abandoned 

 plantation in the possession of negroes. A dilapidated 

 hut was pointed out to me as being occupied by a 

 famous sorceress, a priestess of Obcah, who could 

 give one a charm' that would kill one's enemy, or cause 

 a robber to restore stolen property. Her fame extended 

 beyond the confines of the island, and she was visited 

 by many credulous negroes from other places. 



Obcah, a relic of African witchcraft, has strong 

 hold upon the ignorant blacks and Indians. Salibia, 

 the valley in which I camped for more than a month, 

 was once the stronghold of the priests of Obeah. For 

 years they held sway there, and many people are 

 supposed to have been killed by their poisons. The 

 laws of the English government are severe in its 

 punishment, but it is practiced to a greater extent than 

 is generally known. 



It was the middle of the afternoon when we reached 



