int, but underneath it gradually
softens and furnishes an admirable stone for building which can be sawn
into blocks of any size, hardening on exposure to the atmosphere. The
highest hill in the whole range of the islands (in Cat Island) is only 400
ft. high. It is a remarkable fact that, except in the island of Andros, no
streams of running water are to be found in the whole group. The
inhabitants derive their water supply from wells. As a result of the
porosity of the rock, many of the wells feel the influence of the sea and
exhibit an ebb and flow. There is an extensive swampy lagoon in Eleuthera,
the water of which is fresh or nearly so; and brackish lagoons also occur,
as in Watling Island. An artificial lake in New Providence, constructed for
the use of the turtle-catchers, is noted as exhibiting an extraordinary
degree of phosphorescence. A remarkable natural phenomenon is that of the
so-called "banana holes," which frequently occur in the limestone. Their
formation has been attributed to the effect of rotting vegetation on the
rock, but without certainty. These holes are of various depths up to about
40 ft., and of curiously regular form. The Mermaid's Pool in New
Providence, which is deeper still, is partly filled with water.

_Geology_.--The Bahamas consist almost entirely of aeolian deposits (cf.
BERMUDAS) and coral reefs. The aeolian deposits, which form the greater
part of the islands, frequently rise in rounded hills and ridges to a
height of 100 or 200 ft., and in Cat Island nearly 400 ft. They vary in
texture from a fine-grained compact oolite to a coarse-grained rock
composed of angular or rounded fragments, and they commonly exhibit
strongly marked false bedding. The material is largely calcareous, and has
probably been derived from the disintegration of the reefs, and from the
shells of animals living in the shallows. When freshly exposed the rock is
soft, but by the action of rain and sea it becomes covered with a hard
crust. The surface is often remarkably honeycombed, and the rock weathers
into pinnacles, pillars and arches of extraordinary shapes. On the island
of Andros there is an extremely fine white marl almost resembling a chalky
ooze. The coral reefs are of especial interest from their bearing on the
general question of the formation of coral reefs.

_Nassau_.--The scenery of the islands is picturesque, gaining beauty from
the fine colouring of the sea and the rich vegetation. Nassau is a win