PORT LOUIS. 33 



morning-, with bright sunshine, smooth water, a 

 gentle trade wind, and an unclouded sky. The view 

 was very beautiful, and quite equalled my expecta- 

 tions, based, though the}' were, upon the glowing 

 descriptions of La Pierre, The extremes of the island 

 are low, but the centre is occupied by the partially 

 wooded crest-like ridge, rugged and pinnacled, con- 

 necting La Pouce with the famous Peter Botte. 

 Viewed in a mass, the country looked burnt up, of a 

 dull yellowish red hue, — the higher hills were dark 

 green, and the lower grounds partially so. To the 

 left was the fertile plain of Pamplemousses, even 

 now, in the beginning of winter, one mass of green 

 of various degrees of intensity. As we approached 

 we began to make out more distinctly the sugar 

 plantations, the groves of cocoa-nut trees and 

 casuarinas, the features of the town, and the dense 

 mass of shipping in the harbour. We hove to off 

 the Bell Buoy (denoting the outer anchorage), for 

 the steamer which towed us to our berth abreast of 

 Cooper's Island. 



The harbour of Port Louis is of singular forma- 

 tion. It is entered by a narrow passage or break 

 in the coral reef surrounding* the island, leading- into 

 a large basin, the central portion only of which has 

 sufficient water for shipping. The bottom is mud, 

 M'hich, they say, is fast accumulating", especially 

 in a small big-ht called the Trou Fanfaron, where a 

 few years ago a line-of-battle ship could float, but 



VOL. I. D 



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