Isle des Roches — Plan is. 223 



shape, about two miles in circumference, and it has a broad fring- 

 ing reef composed of drift coral and sand, but exhibiting no live 

 corals and very few shells. 



We cast anchor off the north-west side of Isle des Roches on 

 the evening of the 25 th of March, and stayed there for four days. 

 This is the largest island of the Amirante Group, being three and 

 a half miles long, and having an average width of half-a-mile. It 

 is visible for a long distance off, on account of its possessing several 

 large groves of tall Casuarina trees, many of which are one hundred 

 and eleven feet in height. On the shore, immediately opposite to 

 our anchorage, was the settlement, which then exhibited a rather 

 desolate appearance, as many of the houses were in an abandoned 

 condition, most of the inhabitants having recently gone back to 

 Seychelles. Only two individuals remained, French Creoles, who 

 seemed to have acquired, from their solitary situation, habits of 

 taciturnity, which they found it difficult to break through. At all 

 events, we could not succeed in extracting much information from 

 them. They were well off for supplies, having a large stock of 

 pigs and poultry, besides fruit and vegetables. Cocoa-nuts had 

 been planted extensively, but as yet few of these trees were old 

 enough to bear fruit. At the time of our visit, the natives were 

 engaged in planting vanilla cuttings about the bases of the 

 casuarina trees, which furnished excellent supports for the creeper 

 to attach itself to. 



The flora was more extensive than that of the other islands. 

 There was a large-leafed shrub with thick branches like cabbage- 

 stalks, the Scxevola Kamgii, which over ran the island. There 

 were also herbaceous plants of the families Malvacea, Solanaceir, 

 CinchonacecB, and Convolvulacm. Among the trees I noticed a 

 FicHs, which, however, may have been introduced ; and here I 

 obtained the only^ fern met with among the Amirantes, the 

 Nephrokpis exaltata ; it was growing near the sea beach at the 

 eastern end of the island. 



There were six land birds : viz., a red-legged partridge, a pigeon, 



