NATURAL HISTORY NOTES 
125 
of the Azorean whortleberry ( Vaccinium cylindvaceum) gives a touch 
of colour with its brightly-tinted young leaves. Soon after we 
enter on a rough track enclosed by Hydrangea hedges, finally 
emerging on what might be a Scotch hill-side with its mountain- 
grass, ling and tufts of rushes. After many a climb, that last 
shoulder of the hill, which has so long been eluding us, is finally 
reached, and we suddenly stand on the edge of the Caldiera. 
There it lies, a vast circular “ cauldron,” a mile across and 
a thousand feet deep. Before us a path with scanty foothold 
descends into the abyss, elsewhere the great enclosing cliffs 
rise from the depths irr black precipices, their vertical line only 
broken here and there by some drooping veil of greenery, or, 
lower down, by the flanking buttresses of lava that suggest the 
final upleap of the fiery torrent, unable then to break its bounds, 
and the slow solidifying of the recoiling mass. The level floor, 
far below, is partly occupied by a lake or pool, from the dull 
surface of which mossy islets emerge, and near it rises a small 
hollow cone. The mists drift along the heights, stray rays of 
sunshine strike out patches of tender green against the surround- 
ing gloom. It is a striking contrast to the last great crater we 
have seen, that of the Sete Cidades in St. Michael’s, a valley 
with shining lakes, a prosperous village, fields and woods. Here 
it seems as if out of the dark depths any destructive force might 
suddenly break forth : a more eerie and impressive place was 
surely never seen. 
The return to Horta was made in time to rejoin our steamer 
at twilight, our only regret being that time did not allow of the 
descent into the crater. It is said to be carpetted with Sphagnum 
and patches of the ice-plant ( Mesembryanthemum crystallinum). On 
a route trodden by tourists we knew we were not likely to find 
the one great botanical treasure of the Azores, a Campanula 
(C. Vidalli) “ with the habit of a shrubby Sempervivum.” The 
few plants here mentioned have been verified from Watson’s 
account of the flora in Godman's “ Natural History of the 
Azores;” but of the forty plants he gave as “peculiar to the 
islands,” many have since been found elsewhere, and others 
are regarded as mere varieties. A more detailed account of his 
forty is given in “ A Visit to the Azores,” by Mrs. C. Roundell. 
L. Copland. 
NATURAL HISTORY NOTES. 
355. Hippopotami. — It is reported from Rhodesia that two hippopotami, 
the “ sea-cows ’ of Natal in former days, have taken up their abode in the Matopo 
Dam, a few miles from Bulawayo. How they got there is somewhat of a mystery, 
for the lower regions of the Umzingwani River, from which it appears they must 
come, are over too miles from the dam. This is the first year in which the dam 
has been quite full of water, and if, as is supposed, the animals began to move 
early in the season when the rains were backward and the river was in conse- 
quence low, the instinct displayed by them is perhaps worth investigating by 
those interested in such matters. The hippopotamus is seldom found in Rhodesia, 
except in the larger livers, such as the Zambesi, where in the lagoons ab ive the 
Victoria Falls one may often see several at a time. 
356. Eggs in Mole-hills. — In reply to Mr. Alfred Nield’s query in the 
June number of Nature Notes (p. 116 ), it is probable the egg had been secreted 
