46 THE SERVICES [OF LIEUT.-COLONEL FRANCIS DOWNMAN, R.A. 
long, for another person, who had more interest with the Governor than 
myself, was put in my stead, and I received orders to repair to Grande 
Terre to take the command of the artillery in that island. I immediately 
set out by land for that place, passing over the Dos d'ane, through the 
Capes Terre, St. Marie's, Goyave, and then to Petit Bourg, my old 
quarters, from whence I took boat and crossed over to Fort Louis (now 
Fort George) on Grande Terre. This place I found very different from 
what it was at the time of the siege. Major Appleton, who commanded 
here, had taken great pains and trouble to have the wood cut down 
that was growing near the fort; and likewise to have the water con¬ 
veyed away by ditches, which before used to lie in stagnant pools, and 
besides the pernicious effect of such water, it used to breed innumerable 
quantities of mosquitoes and sand flies, which are the only disagreeable 
things to be met with in this country. 
Fort George is a very insignificant fortification, the walls being so 
weak that the firing of its own guns is sufficient to bring them down 
without the assistance of an enemy. However, there are very good 
quarters in it both for officers and men, but from being entirely shut 
out from the wind, the mosquitoes are intolerable. Just below the 
fort we have erected a barbette battery, mounting 12 or 15 cannon, 
but from the difficulty of getting stone it was not finished before giving 
up the island. Very good barracks for the officers were made here 
just under the fort, and a large house was built upon a hill near it, 
wherein the commanding officer lived. This place was very unhealthy 
at first, but through the improvements that were made, it became as 
good a situation as any in the island. This island labours under the 
irreparable disadvantage of want of good water; except rain water, 
there is none that can be drunk with any degree of pleasure, and 
the only place where this can be had is in a wood about a mile from the 
fort. The rain water that is procured in the fort is preserved in a tank 
or reservoir, which will contain a great deal, but you may imagine it 
cannot be very good, as it is under the buildings, and of course 
deprived of air which is the only thing that can keep it sweet. Every 
house in the fort has troughs under its eaves, which communicate with 
each other and convey the water to the tank. 
This place agreed with me very well, and it is well adapted to any 
person who is fond of the diversion of either fishing or shooting. A 
number of little islands lie between the fort and Petit Bourg, which in 
the season abound with curlew and plover, and at other seasons you can 
always find something or other to give you entertainment. A great 
variety of fish are to be caught here, and very good, and there are a 
great many ways of taking them, either with the seine, cast net, 
harpoon or dart, with a rod, or with a hand line, and by a method 
which will at once supply 200 or 300 men, which is this. You observe 
when it is low water, and on the fiats that lie just within the harbour, 
you make a fence, either with boards or as a hedge. If the latter, it 
must be very closely twisted together, and well driven down with 
stakes; it need not be above 3 feet high, but this depends upon the 
