1696.] WILD. HORSES. 209 



were found there by those that first cliscover'd it, but they 

 must of necessity have been brought thither one time or 

 other. Here are also many wild Horses,^ which are some- 

 times kill'd to feed Dogs with. These two sorts of Animals, 

 I mean Dogs and Horses, are subject to the Falling-Sickness,^ 

 and several of them die of it, especially when they are 

 young^. 



This Island formerly abounded with wild Geese^ and 

 Ducks, Moor-Hens, Water-Quails, Sea and Land Tortoises, 

 but now all these are become scarce. The Sharks also, and 

 divers other Sea-Animals^ have forsook it, since the Natives 

 have been accustom'd to lay Nets for them. You shall see 



1 " Horses are very dear, and by no means fine ones. A common 

 horse cannot be bought for less than a hundred pistoles. They fall to 

 decay very soon at the Port, from the excessive heat. They are never 

 shod, although the island is so rocky. Mules are rarely seen. The 

 asses are small, but few in number." {B. de St. Pierre, p. 135.) 



2 In orig. : " au haut mal," i.e., the staggers. 



3 Writing in 1769, Bernardin de St. Pierre remarks : " There is 

 great plenty of every-thing at Black River, of game, venison, and both 

 fresh-water and sea fish. While we were at dinner one day, a servant 

 came to tell us that some lamentins were seen in the bay ; we ran 

 down immediately ; they cast nets across the entrance, and, when 

 drawn ashore, we found a great quantity of sword-fish, of skates, two 

 sea-turtles, and other kinds of fish ; but the lamentins had escaped" 

 (/. c.,p. 141). 



Bernardin de St. Pierre visited this port in 1769, at which time 

 he writes : " The South-East Port was formerly inhabited by the 

 Dutch, one of whose ancient buildings is now used as a chapel. 

 There are two ways to enter the Port, one at Point Diable, for small 

 vessels ; the other, which is much wider, is by the side of an island 

 {Ik de la Passe) towards the middle. At each of these places is a 

 battery, and at the bottom of the bay is a third, called the Queen's 

 battery" {I. c, p. 166 ; vide ante, p. 196, to which page this note belongs.) 



* " Whales frequently come into the South-East Port, where it would 

 be very easy and safe to harpoon them. Fish is very plentiful upon 

 this coast, especially shell-fish of the most beautiful kinds. Whales 

 are often seen to the windward of this island about September, the 

 time Of their coupling. I have seen many this season, that kept them- 

 selves upright in the water, and came very near the coast. They are 

 smaller than the northern ones. There is no whale fishery, but the 



F 



