66 CAMPS IN THE CARIBBEES. 
than to bear about with you a clumsy cup. Its utility, 
then, is second only to that of the cocoa palm. 
They had brought up huge bundles of the leaves 
from the river below. Slicing the under side of the 
mid-rib half-way through with a diagonal cut, leaving 
a barb by which to attach it to the cross-pole, Fran- 
gois handed the leaves to Joseph, who rapidly placed 
them in position, attached to the pole and kept in 
place by the projecting point, one row overlapping 
the other. In a short time they had made a thick 
roof, completely impervious to water, which was good 
for a week, so long as the leaves remained green and 
were not split and shrunken by the sun. 
A raised platform of poles, all cut with the cutlass, 
was covered with a good layer of leaves, and upon 
this I spread my blanket and reposed quietly all night, 
my faithful boys stretched upon the ground, lulled to 
sleep by the rushing of the waterfalls. 
“La belle,” the firefly, illumined our camp in the 
evening, and an odorous fire of the gum of the flam- 
beau-tree gave both light and fragrant incense. Over 
this, Joseph, in his French patois and broken Eng- 
lish, told the story of the discovery of the lake by 
Mr. Watt, the one who first surmised its existence, in 
1875. This gentleman, a magistrate in the colony, 
was prone to wander in the mountains in search of 
adventure. One day he had penetrated farther than 
usual, by following a valley that led up into the inte- 
rior, and noticed in the air distinct and powerful sul- 
phur fumes. Later, he set out to ascertain the cause, 
taking with him two negroes as guides, but, through 
the pusillanimity of his men, who abandoned him, 
was lost in the forest for several days. Let Joseph 
tell the story: 
\ 
