high. The asphalt lake of L a Brea (“ The Pitch ” )
is in the south-western peninsula, near the coast, and
ninety feet above the sea-level. It is reached up a
kind of bituminous glacier, has the appearance of
an exposed coal-pit, nearly circular, and half a mile
across, and is surrounded by woods in which tall
palm trees are conspicuous. Even upon its surface
are clumps of vegetation, but their existence is precarious.
The contents of this huge receptacle of unknown
depth are of a vegetable origin, like coal,
lignite, and peat, and are in a state of instability on
account of the warmth and of pressure from below,
which causes the substance to rise in the middle and
subjects it to a slow movement, breaking it into
irregular masses, and producing crevices or channels,
which are filled with water. A s part of the mass is
removed, its place is filled again by the pressure from
below upon the plastic material, and the supply
seems to be inexhaustible. It is mingled with a
good deal of earth, and the soil about contains much
of the pitch, which does not affect its fertility. Near
by on the coast there are vents from which petroleum
flows, and even below the water both oil and asphalt
come to the surface. This spot is one of the marvels
of the earth, and the pitch from L a Brea, or L a
Braye, as the English call the place, goes to the
composition of cement and of paving material in
far-off cities. .A n American corporation has obtained
a monopoly of the supply for a long term of
years at $60,000 a year, and is growing rich in paving
streets by the use of “ Trinidad asphalt.”
This island is watered by many streams, and some
of them are navigable by small craft for a considerable
distance. In the northern part, flowing west
into the Gulf of Paria, is the Caroni; and farther
south the Gueracuero falls into Naparima Bay, an
inlet from the gulf. T he Nariva and Guartaro, or
Ortoir, reach the eastern coast by a common delta.
There is hardly any rain from November to April,
but very heavy dews which keep up the vegetation,
while from May to October there is much wet
weather, with frequent sudden showers and occasional
violent storms. T he island is not subject to
hurricanes, but has been shaken by earthquakes.
The temperature is very equable, ranging from 750
to 8 50, and rarely reaching 90° in the hottest months;
and the climate is regarded as very healthful. A n imal
life is as varied and abundant as vegetable, and
includes most of the species found in the northern
part of South America. Among them are the peccary,
armadillo, porcupine, and sloth, a tiger cat,
several kinds of monkeys, and a gentle variety of
deer. Birds are numerous, and some have brilliant
plumage, including parrots, parrakeets, and humming
birds; but their ranks have been reduced by
the insatiate demands of civilised society for feathered
adornment. Insects are something too plentiful,
and some of them are decidedly obnoxious to
comfort; but they, too, are sometimes brilliant, even
illuminating. Reptiles are many, but mostly innocuous.
Turtles are less common than in former
times, because they have been persistently robbed
of their eggs, but the waters abound in fish of many