feet. And here the remark may be made, that in no part of
the great Lake of Bay has the depth been found to exceed seventy-five
feet; from which it may be concluded, as we have previously stated,
that the lake of Socolme is formed within the crater of an extinct
volcano, its waters having percolated or filtered through from the
outer lake of Bay.

From Socolme I took my guests to Los Banos, at the foot of a mountain,
several thousand feet high, from which several springs of boiling
water flow into the lake, and, mixing with its waters, produce every
temperature to be desired in a natural bath. There also, on the hill,
we were sure to meet with good and plentiful sport. Wild pigeons and
beautiful doves, perched upon majestic trees, "mistrustful of their
doom," allowed our sportsmen to approach very near, and they never
returned from "the baths" without having "bagged" plenty of them.

Upon our appointed days of relaxation from labour, we would go into the
neighbouring woods, and wage war on the monkeys, our harvest's greatest
enemies. As soon as a little dog, purposely brought up to this mode
of warfare, warned us by his barkings that marauders were in sight,
we repaired to the spot, and then the firing was opened. Fright seized
hold on the mischievous tribe, every member of which hid itself in its
tree, and became as invisible as it possibly could. But the little
dog would not leave his post, while we would turn round the tree,
and never failed discovering the hidden inmate. We then commence
the attack, not ceasing until pug was laid prostrate. After having
made several victims, I sent them to be hung up on forks around the
sugar-cane fields, as scarecrows to those that had escaped; I, however,
always sent the largest one to Father Miguel, our excellent curate,
who was very fond of a monkey ragout.

Sometimes I would take my guests to a distance of several days' march,
to show them admirable views, cascades, grottoes, or those wonders
of vegetation produced by the fertile nature of the Philippines.

One day, Mr. Lindsay, the most intrepid traveller I had ever known,
and who had recently accompanied me to the lake of Socolme, proposed
to me to go with him to the grotto of San-Mateo, a place that several
travellers and myself had visited more than once, but always in
so incomplete a manner, that we had only been able to explore
a small portion of it. I was too well pleased with the proposal
not to accept it with eager