Chapter 1

PAGE Departure. -- On Board Ship. -- Arrival at Nassau. -- Capital of the Bahamas. -- Climate. -- Soil. -- Fruits and Flowers. -- Magic Fertility. -- Colored Population. -- The Blockade Runners. -- Population. -- Products. -- A Picturesque Local Scene. -- Superstition. -- Fish Story. -- The Silk-Cotton Tree. -- Remarkable Vegetation. -- The Sea Gardens. -- Marine Animal Life. -- The Bahama Banks. -- Burial at Sea. -- Venal Officials. -- Historical Characters. -- The Early Buccaneers. -- Diving for Drinking-Water. 1