186 
with a thin coating of slippery clay; add to this a straight-away 
course in some places several hundred feet long at an incline of 
about 30°, and you have the components for an exciting descent. 
Even the Haitian generals, as reckless as they are in riding, dis- 
mount when they get to this place, and no one will pass through it 
after dark. The sides of this gorge are perpendicular, 300-400 
feet high, the shaded side supporting quite a dense vegetation ; 
the opposite side is more exposed to the sun and presents a xero- 
phytic vegetation, largely made ed of agaves and bromeliads. 
Nos. 1475-1514 were secured her 
Leaving this gorge, we ee upon a densely wooded tract, 
Sa some of the largest trees I have seen in Haiti. 
Several stops were made here to collect, nos. 1515-1528 being 
secured ; more time could profitably have been given to this sec- 
tion, but it was necessary to reach Gonaives before nightfall, as 
we were in a strange country without camping facilities and 
without permits to travel. After traversing this region for s 
eral miles the road suddenly leads out into the plain of ne 
which begins at an elevation of about 850 feet. I think the 
flora of this region is the most interesting I have yet seen in 
Haiti. At first the pica consists of small trees, mingled 
with which are numerous shrubs, the former supporting many 
bromeliads, especially great masses of Tillandsia usneoides L. 
e advances into the plain, the shrub element takes a more 
prominent place. Cacti are quite common. The first species 
Soon an arborescent member of the genus, entirely unknown to 
me, was encountered. This had an unbranched stem ten to 
twelve feet tall, densely armed with tufts of long spines. At the 
apex the trunk is diffusely branched in a dense manner, giving a 
very compact appearance to the general effect. e whole of 
the stem and branches is a gray green. This grows in company 
with one of the columnar forms of Cereus and also with a Pilo- 
cereus, the three forming characteristic features in the landscape. 
There is in addition a second species of Cereus of the slender 
columnar type. <A third species of Opuntia is also very commo 
This belongs to the section having the fragile ae which ae 
