"A great part of the population live entirely upon the water. Long, large, unwieldy boats thatched over, not an uncomfortable dwelling in a climate like this. An earthen fireplace for cooking, a very rude spinning wheel, a hutch for fowls, a fishing net and a few earthen cooking pots seem the sole furniture. I don’t know what becomes of the men belonging to these boats, for one seldom sees in them any but women and children. The women here row stoutly and the children are quite amphibious. It is strange to see the swarms of little things, dark and shining like tadpoles in the shallow water near the banks."