Note 30 — Front matter (continued 5)

Thibault de Chanvallon, writing of Martinique in 1751, declared:—"All possible hindrances to study are encountered here (tout s'oppose à l'étude): if the Americans (creoles) do not devote themselves to research, the fact must not be attributed solely to indifference or indolence. On the one hand, the overpowering and continual heat,—the perpetual succession of mornes and acclivities,—the difficulty of entering forests rendered almost inaccessible by the lianas interwoven across all openings, and the prickly plants which oppose a barrier to the naturalist,—the continual anxiety and fear inspired by serpents also;—on the other hand, the disheartening necessity of having to work alone, and the discouragement of being unable to communicate one's ideas or discoveries to persons having similar tastes. And finally, it must be remembered that these discouragements and dangers are never mitigated by the least hope of personal consideration, or by the pleasure of emulation,—since such study is necessarily unaccompanied either by the one or the other in a country where nobody undertakes it."—(Voyage à la Martinique.)... The conditions have scarcely changed since De Chanvallon's day, despite the creation of Government roads, and the thinning of the high woods.