nner by the
patient natives. The Bahama sponges are not equal to those obtained in
the Mediterranean. But they are marketable for certain uses, and Nassau
exports half a million dollars' worth annually. It is said that sponges
can be propagated by cuttings taken from living specimens, which, when
properly attached to a piece of board and sunk in the sea, will increase
and multiply. Thus the fine Mediterranean sponge can be successfully
transported to the coral reefs of the Bahamas.

A short drive or walk inland over smooth roads, formed of smooth,
levelled coral rocks, brings us to the extensive pineapple fields, where
this handsome fruit may be seen in the several stages of growth, varying
according to the season of the year and the purposes of its use. If
intended for exportation, the fruit is gathered when well-grown but
still in a green state; if designed for canning,--that is,
preserving,--the riper it is, the better it is adapted to the purpose.
Great quantities are put in tin cans carefully sealed for use in this
and other countries. The visitor is sure to be impressed by the beauty
and grace of the cocoanut-trees, their plume of leaves, often sixty feet
from the ground, notwithstanding that the bare stem or trunk is rarely
over two feet in thickness.

There are said to be six hundred of the Bahama Islands, large and
small, of which Nassau is the capital, and here the English
governor-general resides. Many are mere rocky islets, and not more than
twenty have fixed inhabitants. The sea-gardens, as they are called,
situated just off the shore of the main island, are extremely
interesting. We go out a short distance in a row-boat, and by means of a
simple contrivance of wood and glass we can look many fathoms below the
surface of the sea. These water-glasses are easily made, being formed of
a small wooden box three or four inches square, open at the top and
having a water-tight glass bottom. With the glass portion slightly
submerged one is able to see distinctly the beautiful coral reefs with
their marvellous surroundings. There are displayed tiny caves and
grottoes of white coral, star-fishes, sea-urchins, growing sponges,
sea-fans, and bright-colored fishes, including the hummingbird fish, and
others like butterflies with mottled fins and scales, together with that
little oddity, the rainbow-fish. The prevailing color of this attractive
creature is dark green, but the tinted margins of its scales so reflect
the