After leaving the Ridge, we turned down a slight declivity, by the victualling offices, on our way to Bat’s Cave, and the Savannah. Our road lay through groves of loblolly, manchineel, and acacia, which, twining their long arms together, formed various natural colonnades; while the ground was strewed with their matted leaves, in all stages of decay. Having alighted, we walked through the interwoven path, carefully avoiding as we went the different varieties of cactus, which spring up on all sides, and guarding our faces from the long sharp thorns of the acacia, and the boughs of the poisonous manchineel. The ground, rugged and broken, was plentifully sprinkled with disrupted portions of spar, which glittered in the sunbeams like so many gems, and put me in mind of Sinbad’s walk in the “Valley of Diamonds.” Immense ground-lizards were trailing their long bodies about, in search of their daily food, so amply provided for them by the great Benefactor of all; while others were basking upon these dazzling fossils, to imbibe the heat of the meridian sun. After taking many devious routes among the impending bushes, in order to discover the wished-for cavern, I was well pleased to hear the cheerful voice of our pioneer shouting forth “Come this way; I’ve found the right path.” Scrambling, as best we could, over a huge bed of prickly pear, (one of the cactus family,) we gained an opening in the copse, and stood before the mouth of the cave. Two large trees, which grew on each side, extended their gnarled roots (from which the earth had been washed) across the opening, forming natural steps, by which we descended, and stood within the cave. Huge masses of the rock which forms the cavern have fallen in, and in great measure blocked it up, so that it now only presents an arena of about 50 feet in circumference, although in time past it was of considerable extent. From the main cavern, two passages branch off in opposite directions. They are perfectly dark, the only means of exploring them being by the use of flambeaux; but to what length they extend has never been discovered. Mr. McLane, a late resident of English Harbour, (now of Canada,) has made several attempts to that purpose, all of which proved fruitless; the greatest distance he ever proceeded was to the extent of two sea-lines, about 120 yards. The only known occupants are bats, which breed there in immense numbers, and often attain the size of a common pigeon. A dank unhealthy vapour is emitted from these openings, proceeding, no doubt, from the carbonic acid gas they contain. This vapour soon extinguishes the light of a torch, which is one reason this cavern has never been further explored.[88] A streak of dark green runs down one side of the cave, which was pointed out to me as indicating the existence of copper; but upon examining a portion of the rock I brought away with me, I found that the colour was occasioned only by a vegetable substance adhering to the stones.