NORTH AMERICA. 65 
fular eftates, who rear flocks of horned cattle, 
horfes, fwine, and poultry, and protect: the game for 
sheir proprietors. The inhabitants of thefe iflands 
alfo lie open to the invafion and ravages of pirates, 
and in cafe of a war, to incurfions from their ene- 
mies' armed vefTels ; in which cafe they mail either 
remove with their families and effects to the main, 
or be ftripped of all their moveables, and their 
houfes laid in ruins. 
The foil of thefe iflands appears to be particularly 
favourable to the culture of indigo and cotton, and 
there are on them fome few large plantations for 
the cultivation and manufacture of thofe valuable ar- 
ticles. The cotton is planted only by the poorer 
clafs of people, juft enough for their family con- 
fumption : they plant two fpecies of it, the annual 
and Weft Indian ; the former is low, and planted 
every year ; the balls of this are very large, and the 
phlox long, ftrong, and perfectly white ; the Weft 
Indian is a tall perennial plant, the ftalk fomewhat 
fhrubby, feveral of which rife up from the root for 
feveral years fucceffively, the Items of the former 
year being killed by the winter frofts. The balls of 
this latter fpecies are not quite fo large as thofe of 
the herbaceous cotton ; but the phlox, or wool, 
is long, extremely fine, filky, and white. A plan- 
tation of this kind will laft feveral years, with mo- 
derate labour and care, whereas the annual fort is 
planted every year. 
The coafts, founds, and inlets, environing thefe 
iflands, abound with a variety of excellent fifh, par- 
ticularly Rock, Bafs, Drum, Mullet, Sheeps-head, 
Whiting, Grooper, Flounder, Sea Trout, (this 
laft feems to be a fpecies of Cod) Skate, Skipjack, 
Stingray. The Shark, and great Black Stingray, 
F are 
