Guano Islands in the Indian Ocean [pp. 222-225]

GUANO ISLANDS IN THIE INDIAN OUCEAN.
aftert a shot, they literally darkened the sky, and before I had time to lower the
gun, some settled down on thb very muzzle of it, and others on my head and
shoulders, so that I had to shake them off as one would do with flies or mnius quitues.
On my traversing the island, I met several flocks of domestic fowls, appa rently escaped frmi some wreck. The captain and I killed three score in as
many hours; their flesh was savory, white, and as tender as pheasants. The
presence of these birds induced me to taste the damp, boggy soil in the centre
of thle island, which proved sweet. We found no snakes, but two grey and
black spotted lampreys, of some three feet in length, which had the daring to
face us. I killed one and had it cooked, the flesh was white and delicate, but
full of small bones; none else would taste of it, all had it for granted that it
should be a snake in spite of the fin on its back.
The part of the mound fromn opposite where we landed was covered with
birds' nests, in some were but eggs, in others goslings, or mother fowl of the
albatross, the frigate birds, and other large sea fowl. The eggs were lying
on the bare soil, and the twigs and bits of wood marking out the circumference
of the nests, were apparently but to guide their proprietors on their return
from a fishing cruise. The mother birds were not shy at all, only the huge
albatross opened drowsily their bills on my approach, and I had to stun them
before I could safely lay my hands on. The goslings of the albatross were
then of the size of a full grown goose, covered still with snowy white down,
which looked more like fur than anything else. Unfortunately I was not
aware of the value of these downs with our softer sex, and as I was then in fected with the mania for bird skinning, too, I despised the goslings, and bur dened the carpenter, my companion, hut with a dozen full grown birds, to oper ate upon. We collected also some baskets full of eggs, with which we man-.
aged to entertain all hands with first rate pancakes for two days.
The captain was accompanied in this excursion by the cabin boy, and I, as already stated, by the carpenter, an ignorant old sailor. The captain died,
three years afterward in Zanzibar, after deserting me in the Red Sea, and robbing me of the vessel with the assistance of his firiends in Hamburgh. Only in
the year after my visit to this island, the value of bird's dung, or guano, became
known to the commercial world and of course it is only by reading the reports
on this new trade, and the description of the bird islands in the Pacific, that I
came to think of the analogy they present with my accidental discovery, which,
to all appearance has not been interfered with yet.
The British in Aden knew of no other guano deposits in the Indian Ocean,
two years ago, but those on the Curria Murria islands, on the southeast coastof Arabia, and of three small islands near Mehte, on the part of the Somalee
coast belonging to the Habart el Hadjiss tribe. The Somalee bring this guano
to the market of Aden, where it sells for six and a quarter dollars the hundred
Aden kehle, or about twenty dollars the English ton. This guano is said to
be worth twelve pounds sterling in England. The guano from the Curria Murria island is of inferior quality, and the loading of it costs much trouble and
time; so much so, that the English proprietors of these islands are in trouble,
over head and ears, with almost every vessel they engage. The English conmpanly is said to hold their lease or title-deed from the Imaann of Muscat; if true,
their right is but might; because this part of the Arabian coast never belonged
to the Imaun of Muscat, but to Omar Ben Affarir, the Sheikh of the Mahllara
Arab tribe, who owns also the island of Socotra.
The inhabitants of the Hadramaout for over a hundred years have used guano,
which they call Rebsh" in their language, as a fertilizer in the cultivation of'
the Toombak Hamoomee, or yellow Persian tobacco, exclusively smoked in the
nargileh. Toombak and betel leaves are the principal articles of barter to the
fishermen from Sheker and Macallah, two seaports in the Hadramaout; by-theby, the best on the'whole coast. These fishermen visit the Red sea annually,
at fixed epochs, where they provide themselves with grains (principally Toaree),
dates, and articles of European and Indian industry. Such as are in quest of"rebsh" touch the island or rock of Fatma, on their way up the Red sea, to set,
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