114 
SURVEV OP tHE INTERTROPICAL 
1821. which Peter Botte, and the Pouce are conspicu- 
Sept. 27. ous features. Tlie streets are laid out at right 
angles, the principal of which lead from the 
Chaussee to the Champ de Mars, a plot of 
grassy land, about half a mile square, that in- 
tervenes between the town and the hills. This 
is the promenade, the drive, the race course, and, 
in fact, the principal resort for the inhabitants. 
It is skirted by houses, and gardens, and is a 
valuable acquisition to the town. The Chaussee 
and other streets are well furnished with useful 
shops, of which those of the Tinman, the Drug- 
gist, and the Conservateur et Patissier, are the 
most numerous. 
The houses, generally of wood, are irregularly 
built, and far from being elegant in their appear- 
ance ; those, however, that have been lately con- 
structed by our countrymen have already given 
the place an appearance of solidity, that it 
could not boast of before, and several sub- 
stantial stone dwellings and stores have lately 
been erected. The roads, for seven or eight 
miles out of the town, leading to Pamplemousses, 
to Plains Wilhems and to Moca districts, are 
very good, and are kept in repair partly by Ma- 
labar convicts from India ; but travelling beyond 
that distance is performed in palanquins, which 
