1894
April 5
Trinidad, B.W.I.
Caura
  Early morning fine save for one light shower. Remainder
of the day cloudy with frequent showers.

  After early breakfast and a delicious bath in the
river pool below the house Lickfold and I started
up the mule track which we took yesterday. On
that occasion we marked a pomarack tree on the
mountain side about a mile from the house
at which the Hummers were feeding in great numbers.
This tree, the proper name of which is Malacca Apple,
is not indigenous to Trinidad but came originally
from the East. I have seen perhaps a dozen specimens
in the Caura valley but none elsewhere. When in
full bloom, as they are at present, they are by
far the most beautiful of all the tropical trees
which I have thus far seen. They have long,
rather narrow, bright green leaves which are as
highly polished as if they were coated with varnish.
These leaves grow chiefly at or near the ends of the
twigs and branches whereas most of the flowers are
attached to the stouter portions of the branches along
which they [delete] gro [/delete] are disposed in crowded clusters. Each
flower is of about the size and somewhat the general
shape and character of a small thistle or still more
like the flower of the blazing star. Its color is
the deepest and richest possible rose red. This
description fails utterly to give any idea of
the wonderful beauty of the tree which must
be seen to be appreciated. It is a rather small
tree - fifteen to thirty feet in height of erect habit &
tapering shape like a straight slender young maple.