A VISIT TO MADEIRA AND THE CANARY ISLANDS. 12] 
Parrots, canaries and love-birds are in open cages outside 
many of the houses, and with a ring attached to the foot 
by a thin cord enjoy a good measure of freedom. Even 
here the canaries turn yellow by confinement. 
Las Palmas has a remarkably Moorish appearance, with 
its irregular flat-roofed houses and high palm trees; and a 
few camels near the landing place help the resemblance. 
Never was there a more atrociously planned town. A long 
street, the main thoroughfare, composed of poor houses 
with their backs close to the sea, obstructs any view or 
promenade; but as the upper part is on a steep declivity, 
fine views are obtained from the roofs, which are all 
accessible from the houses, and all being white, the glare 
is very trying. A secluded spot on the roof of our hotel 
made an excellent drying ground, and there our daily 
captures of Echinoderms, Physalia, &c. were spread out to 
bake in the sunshine. 
We paid several visits to Confital Bay, at the other side 
of the Isleta, wading about amongst the rocky pools, and 
found it a capital hunting ground. Physalia, with their 
long spreading tentacles, were left high and dry all about, 
but with bare feet had to be carefully avoided. We found 
five species of Nudibranchs, some of them very large, 
several Ascidians, a few species star-fish and sea urchins, 
actinia, &c. We were not so fortunate as to find 
the Stellaria webbiana or Asteria canariense, two large 
species of star-fish sometimes found in this locality, 
measuring about a foot from the ray tips across. The 
little cowrie shell was very abundant in all the pools, as 
was also the beautiful iridescent Haliotis tuberculata, 
and many spiral shells. Strewed along the sandy shore 
were thousands of the elegant little white Spirula peronii, 
and rarer was the very fragile blue ocean snail Janthina 
Jragilts, which secretes a float of numerous air bladders. 
