Tom and the gentlemen
went for a walk, whilst we ladies rested and chatted and wrote
letters.
After lunch we all started--a large party--to go to the athletic
sports on the racecourse, where an impromptu sort of grand stand had
been erected--literally a stand, for there were no seats. There were a
great many people, and the regimental band played very well. To us it
appeared a warm damp day, although the weather was much cooler than
any we have felt lately. This is _the_ week of the year, and everybody
is here from all parts of the island. People who have been long
resident in the tropics seem to find it very cold; for the men wore
great-coats and ulsters, and many of the ladies velvet and sables, or
sealskin jackets. On the way back from the sports we drove round to
see something of the settlement; it cannot be called a town, for
though there are a good many people and houses, no two are within half
a mile of one another. There are two packs of hounds kept here, one to
hunt the big elk, the other a pack of harriers. The land-leeches,
which abound in this neighbourhood, are a great plague to horses, men,
and hounds. It rained last night, and I was specially cautioned not to
go on the grass or to pick flowers, as these horrid creatures fix on
one's ankle or arm without the slightest warning.
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