32 ' A ROTA??IST’s KAMBLIS IN CENTRAL AMERICA | 
to a genus closely allied to the Passiflore.^, . and a curious 
Anonaceus plant, probably a Xylopia which exhales a perfume 
very similar to the allied Oanaga odorata, which gives the name 
to the celebrated ^^Canaga Water’' sold by perfumers. Here 
was a- so found the new. Tree Fern named by Mr. Baker, 
Hemitelia Hartii, Bak. 
A day or two afterwards we bent our way, by canoe of course, 
to the settlement of ^^Boques Mouth,” formerly mentioned as the 
local name of what is known to navigators as Bocas-del-Drago, or 
Mouth of the Dragon. This settlement consisted of a few houses 
onl}q but its thriving condition will be indicated when it is men- 
tioned that at the time of our visit a Chapel was in course of 
erection capable of seating over 200 people, and that, without any 
extraneous help. The building placed on piles near the shore 
was. being very neatly built with American pitch pine, and the 
workmanship would compare very favourably with similar erec- 
tions in Jamaica, in fact, I found a Jamaica carpenter engaged in 
the work. The weather here again proved very unfavourable for 
Botanical work, but we managed to get out a little at times, and 
added some novelties to the collections. We noticed on the sea 
beach an enormous tree of Achras sapota, the Sapadilla” or 
^^Zapatilla” locally, but the ^^Naseberry” of Jamaica, which was 
laden with fruit of very large size. Sea Grapes and Mangroves 
abounded in the more swampy districts immediately on tlie beach, 
but the inner lands were dry, and were producing vegetation of 
the general tropical character before described. During our stay 
here we heard some wondrous shark stories. They were such as I 
had never before heard, or even read of, and it so excited our 
curiosity, that we afterwards endeavoured to test what amount of 
truth they contained by introducing the subject apparently in an 
inadvertent manner, in the several districts we afterwards visited. 
But there was no apparent contradiction in any of the several 
stories h^ard ; they all agreed in the most important particulars, 
and were lastly confirmed by the Captain of a trading schooner 
who could not possibly know what we bad previously been told, 
and therefore, if I give his description it will suffice for all. He 
told us, that when sailing his schooner on the Bluefields Coast, that 
on a calm clear day in a smooth sea, he was seated in the after- 
part of his vessel, when he saw over the side, what at first appeared 
to be a siioal ; in consequence he started up for the purpose of 
altering his course, when the object was discovered to be an enor- 
mous shark. The schooner was over 40 feet in length and he 
declaied topis, that the shark w^s of equal dimensions. It came 
alongside, rubbing itself against the side of the schooner for 
several minutes. He said to us, that it struck him that he could 
XI 1 it with a magazine rifle he had on board, but on second 
