CRUCES. 



255 



lodged^ nor can I say a very tough fowl without 

 any sauce was better than dried beef and water* 



Not wiUing to be unnecessarily annoyed by 

 the crawling insects and creeping animals which 

 haunt tropical residences^ I stretched my blan- 

 kets on two broad planks raised upon a couple 

 of broken down chairs^ where they were not 

 very easily maintained. The heat at night was 

 tempered by the land-breeze^ which I should 

 imagine is more agreeable at Cruces to the 

 sensation than to the health of the sleeper; 

 for it necessarily blows over endless woods 

 impregnated with putrescent odours of decayed 

 vegetation and swampy marshes. 



The door and windows of the house were 

 open to the invasion of any inhabitant of the 

 isthmus^ whether man^ beast, or bird; but^ 

 with the exception of an occasional howl or 

 croak^ I should not have complained of any 

 disturbance on my rickety couch^ had not an 

 odious bat^ ever and anon, fluttered his enor- 

 mous wings in my face, till a cat on the 

 alert, which was actively engaged in chasing 

 the intruder^ at length secured him in her 

 clutches, and rescued me from further alarms. 



