226 SUNSHINE AND SPORT IN 



Quinine, an admirable preventive of malaria^ of 

 which I took from six to eight grains daily for five 

 or six weeks, and with the best results, does 

 nothing to allay the misery occasioned by the bites, 

 and I was a mass of wounds, the half of them self- 

 inflicted, for, against all counsels of perfection, I 

 scratched myself until my ankles were raw and on 

 the verge of blood-poisoning. By day I tore 

 myself with intent, by night without^ for whenever 

 I woke up I remember that my nails were busy. I 

 am not of the stuff that made martyrs at the stake ; 

 God and my dentist know that I am a woeful 

 coward in the matter of physical pain, and to keep 

 my hands off such irritation is beyond me. Where 

 the mosquitoes leave off", I begin, and the result is 

 appalling. One of my most agonising experiences 

 of these residents at Montego Bay was one evening 

 when playing lawn-tennis in a gentleman's garden 

 that gives a wonderful view of the Bogue Islands 

 and shipping in the bay. Even a bonfire of 

 pimento leaf, which is regarded as efficacious, 

 failed to keep the swarms off the courts, and I 

 enjoyed the novel sensation of feeling a couple at 

 work on my eyelids at the moment of serving or 

 taking a half-volley. 



It is true that the orthodox tourist season is not 

 supposed to last beyond the end of April, but there 

 is no other reason than the mosquitoes why — at any 

 rate for those who do not mind moderate heat and 

 wear light clothing, best bought in the island — it 

 should not be prolonged a couple of months. 



It is time therefore that something should be 

 done to cope with what must undoubtedly be 

 regarded as a serious drawback to any tropical 



