THE MASCARENES 
173 
nient to the mother country is great and well founded, 
for France has always bestowed remarkable attention on 
this colony, and in times of need has lent it powerful 
support. Though the people of Mauritius have been 
under English rule since 1810, the fidelity to their some¬ 
time mother country has remained unchanged, and they 
are in general very exclusive towards the English officials. 
In good-nature the Creole is more highly endowed 
Creole Country-house in Reunion. 
than the average Frenchman of the present day, and he 
seeks the centre of gravity of his existence in the family 
circle. Externally this makes itself felt through the pleasing 
arrangement of his house. The dwelling of a well-to- 
do Creole is surrounded by charming gardens, a broad 
roadway shut in by cocoa-nut palms leads to the tasteful 
house, whose roomy veranda serves the inmates as a 
sitting-room in the mild tropical evenings. 
The Creole women are with justice looked upon as 
