107 — 
plainly see the houses on shore and people moving about, and 
a flag staff with the English ensign but no one came off, and 
after waiting some time, the midshipmen volunteered to go 
on shore in the whale boat. In rounding the island we lost 
sight of them, and supposed they intended landing on the other 
side which is very high, and we expected to see them, b it as 
a good time elapsed and no appearance of them, some fears 
were entertained for their safety. After waiting till 3 p.m., 
we fired another gun, when in a few minutes we saw a very 
large whale boat approaching, and it proved to contain M. 
Savy the proprietor of the place, come to invite the party on 
shore, to visit his house, an offer willingly accepted, and we 
anded on a bold .shore, the waves breaking directly on the rocks 
near us. Our landing w r as effected by anchoring the boat in 
the surf about 50 feet from shore, when two men paid out the 
cable till her stern was near enough the rock, that we could 
leap out. 'We had to climb up the side of the only mount a : n 
there, about 280 feet high through a few stunted trees, passed 
over the top where the bare rock shews in many places and in 
others patches of coarse grass, and descended the opposite side 
to the low land where Mr Savy’s house stands, shaded by mag- 
nificent Bauian and other trees. This gentleman was exceed- 
ingly polite and hospitable and after offering refreshments 
proceeded to do the honors of his Island home. 
“ He has a Distillery for Rum made from sugar-canes, a 
plantation of which looked well. His vegetable garden was 
flourishing and we were all astonished at the monster cabbages 
growing there. A number of Madagascar cattle were grazing 
about the place, and he told us he made considerable oil from 
the cocoa-nut trees which were most prolific, and employed 
about 40 men in all. 
“ It appears to me a great pity that some enterprizing men 
does not introduce into these islands proper machines for tho- 
roughly expressing the oil from the “ coperee ” or kernell of 
the cocoa-nut. It is an item of great financial importance, cs 
a fair price is given, and a ready sale always found for it in 
Mauritius. I fiud that in 1862 about £10,000 worth was ex- 
ported and with proper appliances that amount might, according 
to good authority, be easily doubled. 
