Equatorial America, descriptive of a visit to St. Thomas, Martinique, Barbadoes, and the principal capitals of South America

Front matter

AMERICA

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.

EQUATORIAL AMERICA. Descriptive of a Visit to St. Thomas, Martinique, Barbadoes, and the Principal Capitals of South America. A New Book. Crown 8vo, $1.50.

Preface

" I am a part of all that I have seen," says Tennyson, a sentiment which every one of large experience will heartily indorse. With the extraordinary facilities for travel available in modern times, it is a serious mistake in those who possess the means, not to become familiar with the various sections of the globe. Vivid descriptions and excellent photographs give us a certain knowledge of the great monuments of the world, both natural and artificial, but the traveler always finds the reality a new revelation, whether it be the marvels of a Yellowstone Park, a vast oriental temple, Alaskan glaciers, or the Pyramids of Ghiza. The latter, for instance, do not differ from the statistics which we have so often seen recorded, their great, dominating outlines are the same as pictorially delineated, but when we actually stand before them, they are touched by the wand of enchantment, and spring into visible life. Heretofore they have been shadows, henceforth they are tangible and real. The best descriptions fail to inspire us, experience vi PREFACE.

alone can do that. What words can adequately depict the confused grandeur of the Falls of Schaffhausen ; the magnificence of the Himalayan range, — roof -tree of the world ; the thrilling beauty of the Yosemite Valley ; the architectural loveliness of the Taj Mahal, of India ; the starry splendor of equatorial nights ; the maritime charms of the Bay of Naples ; or the marvel of the Midnight Sun at the North Cape ? It is personal observation alone which truly satisfies, educating the eye and enriching the understanding. If we can succeed in imparting a portion of our enjoyment to others, we enhance our own pleasure, and therefore these notes of travel are given to the public.

M. M. B.

Chapter I. Page

Commencement of a Long Journey. — The Gulf Stream. — Hayti.

— Sighting St. Thomas. — Ship Rock. — Expert Divers. — Fidgety Old Lady. — An Important Island. — The Old Slaver,

— Aborigines. — St. Thomas Cigars. — Population. — Tri- Mountain. — The Negro Paradise. — Hurricanes. — Variety of Fish. — Coaling Ship. — The Firefly Dance. — A Weird Scene.

— An Antique Anchor 1

Chapter II

Curious Seaweed. — Professor Agassiz. — Myth of a Lost Continent. — Island of Martinique. — An Attractive Place. — Statue of the Empress Josephine. — Birthplace of Madame de Maintenon. — City of St. Pierre. — Mont Pel^e. — High Flavored Specialty. — Grisettes of Maritinque. — A Botanical Garden. — Defective Drainage. — A Fatal Enemy. — A Cannibal Snake.

— The Climate 33

Chapter III

English Island of Barbadoes. — Bridgetown the Capital. — The Manufacture of Rum. — A Geographical Expert. — Very English. — A Pest of Ants. — Exports. — The Ice House. — A Dense Population. — Educational. — Marine Hotel. — Habits of Gambling. — Hurricanes. — Curious Antiquities. — The Barbadoes Leg. — Wakeful Dreams. — Absence of Twilight. — Departure from the Island 51

Chapter IV

Curious Ocean Experiences. — The Delicate Nautilus. — Flying- Fish. — The Southern Cross. — Speaking a Ship at Sea. — viii CONTENTS.

Scientific Navigation..— South America as a Whole. — Fauna and Flora. — Natural Kesources of a Wonderful Land. — Rivers, Plains, and Mountain Ranges. — Aboriginal Tribes. — Population. — Political Divisions. — Civil Wars. — Weakness of South American States

Chapter V

City of Para. — The Equatorial Line. — Spanish History. — The King of Waters. — Private Gardens. — Domestic Life in Northern Brazil. — Delicious Pineapples. — Family Pets. — Opera House. — Mendicants. — A Grand Avenue. — Botanical Garden. — India-Rubber Tree. — Gathering the Raw Material. — Monkeys. — The Royal Palm. — Splendor of Equatorial Nights 94

Chapter VI

Island of Marajo. — Rare and Beautiful Birds. — Original Mode of Securing Humming-Birds. — Maranhao. — Educational. — Value of Native Forests. — Pernambuco. — Difficulty of Landing. — An Hl-Chosen Name. — Local Scenes. — Uncleanly Habits of the People. — Great Sugar Mart. — Native Houses. — A Quaint Hostelry. — Catamarans. — A Natural Breakwater. — Sailing down the Coast 115

Chapter VII

Port of Bahia. — A Quaint Old City. — Former Capital of Brazil. — Whaling Interests. — Beautiful Panorama. — Tramways. — No Color Line Here. — The Sedan Chair. — Feather Flowers. — A Great Orange Mart. — Passion Flower Fruit. — Coffee, Sugar, and Tobacco. — A Coffee Plantation. — Something about Diamonds. — Health of the City. — Curious Tropical Street Scenes 138

Chapter VIII

Cape Frio. — Rio Janeiro. — A Splendid Harbor. — Various Mountains. — Botaf ogo Bay. — The Hunchback. — > Farewell to the Vigilancia. — Tijuca. — Italian Emigrants. — City Institutions. — Public Amusements. — Street Musicians. — Churches. — Narrow Thoroughfares. — Merchants' Clerks. — Railroads in Brazil. — Natural Advantages of the City. — The Public Plazas. — Exports 155

CONTENTS. ix

Chapter IX

Outdoor Scenes in Rio Janeiro. — The Little Marmoset. — The .. - Fish Market. — Secluded Women. — The Romish Church. — y Botanical Garden. — Various Species of Trees. — Grand Avenue of Royal Palms. — Ahout Humming-Birds. — Climate of Rio. — Surrounded by Yellow Fever. — The Country Inland. — Begging on the Streets. — Flowers. — " Portuguese Joe." — Social Distinctions 180 ^

Chapter X

Petropolis. — Summer Residence of the Citizens of Rio. — 1 Brief Sketch of the late Royal Family. — Dom Pedro's Palace. \

— A Delightful Mountain Sanitarium. — A Successful but Bloodless Revolution. — Floral Delights. — Mountain Scenery.

— Heavy Gambling. — A German Settlement. — Cascatinha. — Remarkable Orchids. — Local Types. — A Brazilian Forest. — Compensation 201

CHAPTER XL

Port of Santos. — Yellow Fever Scourge. — Down the Coast to Montevideo. — The Cathedral. — Pamperos. — Domestic Architecture. — A Grand Thoroughfare. — City Institutions. — Commercial Advantages. — The Opera House. — The Bull- Fight. — Beggars on Horseback. — City Shops. — A Typical Character. — Intoxication. — The Campo Santo. — Exports. — Rivers and Railways 217

Chapter XII

Buenos Ayres. — Extent of the Argentine Republic. — Population. — Narrow Streets. — Large Public Squares. — Basques.

— Poor Harbor. — Railway System. — River Navigation. — Tramways. — The Cathedral. — Normal Schools. — Newspapers. — Public Buildings. — Calle Florida. — A Busy City.

— Mode of furnishing Milk. — Environs. — Commercial and Political Growth. — The New Capital 244

Chapter XIII

City of Rosario. — Its Population. — A Pretentious Church. — Ocean Experiences. — Morbid Fancies. — Strait of Magellan.

x CONTENTS.

— A Great Discoverer. — Local Characteristics. — Patagonians and Fuegians. — Giant Kelp. — Unique Mail Box. — Punta Arenas. — An Ex-Penal Colony. — The Albatross. — Natives. — A Naked People. — Whales. — Sea-Birds. — Glaciers. — Mount Sarniiento. — A Singular Story 271

Chapter XIV

The Land of Fire. — Cape Horn. -^In the Open Pacific — Fellow Passengers. — Large Sea-Bird. — An Interesting Invalid. — A Weary Captive. — A Broken-Hearted Mother. — Study of the Heavens. — The Moon. — Chilian Civil War. — Concepcion.

— A Growing City. — Commercial Importance. — Cultivating City Gardens on a New Plan. — Important Coal Mines. — Delicious Fruits 297

Chapter XV

Valparaiso. — Principal South American Port of the Pacific. — i A Good Harbor. — Tallest Mountain on this Continent. — The Newspaper Press. — Warlike Aspect. — Girls as Car Conductors. — Chilian Exports. — Foreign Merchants. — Effects • of Civil War. — Gambling in Private Houses. — Immigration.

— Culture of the Grape. — Agriculture. — Island of Juan Fernandez 315

Chapter XVI

The Port of Callao. — A Submerged City. — Peruvian Exports.

— A Dirty and Unwholesome Town. — Cinchona Bark. — The Andes. — The Llama. — A National Dance. — City of Lima.

— An Old and Interesting Capital. — Want of Rain. — Pizarro and His Crimes. — A Grand Cathedral. — Chilian Soldiers. — Costly Churches of Peru. — Roman Catholic Influence. — Desecration of the Sabbath 334

CHAPTER XVn.

A Grand Plaza. — Retribution. — The University of Lima. — Significance of Ancient Pottery. — Architecture. — Picturesque Dwelling. — Domestic Scene. — Destructive Earthquakes. — Spanish Sway. — Women of Lima. — Street Costumes. — Ancient Bridge of Lima. — Newspapers. — Pawnbrokers' Shops.

— Exports. — An Ancient Mecca. — Home by Way of Europe. 355

EQUATORIAL AMERICA.

Chapter I

Commencement of a Long Journey. — The Gulf Stream. — Hayti. — Sighting St. Thomas. — Ship Rock. — Expert Divers. — Fidgety Old Lady. — An Important Island. — The Old Slaver. — Aborigines. — St. Thomas Cigars. — Population. — Tri-Mountain. — Negro Paradise. — Hurricanees. — Variety of Fish. — Coaling Ship. — The Firefly Dane. — A Weird Scene. — An Antique Anchor.

In starting upon foreign travel, one drops into the familiar routine on shipboard much after the same fashion wherever bound, whether crossing the Atlantic eastward, or steaming to the south through the waters of the Caribbean Sea ; whether in a Peninsular and Oriental ship in the Indian Ocean, or on a White Star liner in the Pacific bound for Japan. The steward brings a cup of hot coffee and a slice of drytoast to one's cabin soon after the sun rises, as a sort of eye-opener ; and having swallowed that excellent stimulant, one feels better fortified for the struggle to dress on the uneven floor of a rolling and pitching ship. Then comes the brief promenade on deck before breakfast, a liberal inhalation of fresh air insuring a good appetite. There is no hurry at this meal.

There is so little to do at sea, and so much time to do it in, that passengers are apt to linger at table as a pastime, and even multiply their meals in number. As a rule, we make up our mind to follow some instructive course of reading while at sea, but, alas ! we never fulfill the good resolution. An entire change of habits and associations for the time being is not favorable to such a purpose. The tonic of the sea braces one up to an unwonted degree, evinced by great activity of body and inind. Favored by the unavoidable companionship of individuals in the circumscribed space of a ship, acquaintances are formed which often ripen into lasting friendship. Inexperienced voyagers are apt to become effusive and overconfiding, abrupt intimacies and unreasonable dislikes are of frequent occurrence, and before the day of separation, the student of human nature has seen many phases exhibited for his analysis.

Our vessel, the Vigilancia, is a large, commodious, and well appointed ship, embracing all the modern appliances for comfort and safety at sea. She is lighted by electricity, having a donkey engine which sets in motion a dynamo machine, converting mechanical energy into electric energy. Perhaps the reader, though familiar with the effect of this mode of lighting, has never paused to analyze the very simple manner in which it is produced. The current is led from the dynamos to the various points where light is desired by means of insulated wires. The lamps consist of a fine thread of carbon inclosed in a glass

COMMENCEMENT OF A JOURNEY. 3

bulb from which air has been entirely excluded. This offers such resistance to the current passing through it that the energy is expended in raising the carbon to a white heat, thus forming the light. The permanence of the carbon is insured by the absence of oxygen. If the glass bulb is broken and atmospheric air comes in contact with the carbon, it is at once destroyed by combustion, and all light from this source ceases. These lamps are so arranged that each one can be turned off or on at will without affecting others. The absence of offensive smell or smoke, the steadiness of the light, unaffected by the motion of the ship, and its superior brilliancy, all join to make this mode of lighting a vessel a positive luxury.

Some pleasant hours were passed on board the Vigilancia, between New York and the West Indies, in the study of the Gulf Stream, through which we were sailing, — that river in the ocean with its banks and bottom of cold water, while its current is always warm. Who can explain the mystery of its motive power ? What keeps its tepid water, in a course of thousands of miles, from mingling with the rest of the sea ? Whence does it really come ? The accepted theories are familiar enough, but we place little reliance upon them, the statements of scientists are so easily formulated, but often so difficult to prove. As Professor Maury tells us, there is in the world no other flow of water so majestic as this ; it has a course more rapid than either the Mississippi or the Amazon, and a volume more than a thousand times greater. The color of this remarkable stream, whose fountain is supposed to be the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, is so deep a blue off our southern shore that the line of demarcation from its surroundings is quite obvious, the Gulf water having apparently a decided reluctance to mingling with the rest of the ocean, a peculiarity which has been Jong and vainly discussed without a satisfactory solution having been reached. The same phenomenon has been observed in the Pacific, where the Japanese current comes up from the equator, along the shore of that country, crossing Behring's Sea to the continent of North America, and, turning southward along the coast of California, finally disappears. Throughout all this ocean passage, like the Gulf Stream in the Atlantic, it retains its individuality, and is quite separate from the rest of the ocean. The fact that the water is Salter than that of the Atlantic is by some supposed to account for the indigo blue of the Gulf Stream.

The temperature of this water is carefully taken on board all well regulated ships, and is recorded in the log. On this voyage it was found to vary from 75° to 80° Fahrenheit.

Our ship had touched at Newport News, Va., after leaving New York, to take the U. S. mail on board ; thence the course was south-southeast, giving the American continent a wide berth, and heading for the Danish island of St. Thomas, which lies in the latitude of Hayti, but a long way to the eastward of that uninteresting island. We say uninteresting with due

PEOPLE OF HAYTI. 5

consideration, though its history is vivid enough to satisfy the most sensational taste. It has produced its share of native heroes, as well as native traitors, while the frequent upheavals of its mingled races have been no less erratic than destructive. The ignorance and confusion which reign among the masses on the island are deplorable. Minister Douglass utterly failed to make anything out of Hayti. The lower classes of the people living inland come next to the inhabitants of Terra del Fuego in the scale of humanity, and are much inferior to the Maoris of New Zealand, or the savage tribes of Australia. It is satisfactorily proven that cannibalism still exists among them in its most repulsive form, so revolting, indeed, that we hesitate to detail the experience of a creditable eye-witness relating to this matter, as personally described to us.

Upon looking at the map it would seem, to one unaccustomed to the ocean, that a ship could not lay her course direct, in these island dotted waters, without running down one or more of them ; but the distances which are so circumscribed upon the chart are extended for many a league at sea, and a good navigator may sail his ship from New York to Barbadoes, if he so desires, without sighting the land. Not a sailing vessel or steamship was seen, on the brief voyage from the American continent to the West Indies, these latitudes being far less frequented by passenger and freighting ships than the transatlantic route further north.

It is quite natural that the heart should throb with increased animation, the spirits become more elate, and the eyes more than usually appreciative, when the land of one's destination heaves in sight after long days and nights passed at sea. This is especially the case if the change from home scenes is so radical in all particulars as when coming from our bleak Northern States in the early days of spring, before the trees have donned their leaves, to the soft temperature and exuberant verdure of the low latitudes. Commencing the voyage herein described, the author left the Brooklyn shore of New York harbor about the first of May, during a sharp snow-squall, though, as Governor's Island was passed on the one hand, and the Statue of Liberty on the other, the sun burst forth from its cloudy environment, as if to smile a cheerful farewell. Thus we passed out upon the broad Atlantic, bound southward, soon feeling its half suppressed force in the regular sway and roll of the vessel. She was heavily laden, and measured considerably over four thousand tons, drawing twenty-two feet of water, yet she was like an eggshell upon the heaving breast of the ocean. As these mammoth ships lie in port beside the wharf, it seems as though their size and enormous weight would place them beyond the influence of the wind and waves : but the power of the latter is so great as to be beyond computation, and makes a mere toy of the largest hull that floats. No one can realize the great strength of the waves who has not watched the sea in all of its varying moods.

" Land O ! " shouts the lookout on the forecastle.

A DECEPTIVE ROCK. 7

A wave of the hand signifies that the occupant of the bridge has already made out the mote far away upon the glassy surface of the sea, which now rapidly grows into definite form.

When the mountain which rises near the centre of St. Thomas was fairly in view from the deck of the Vigilancia, it seemed as if beckoning us to its hospitable shore. The light breeze which fanned the sea came from off the land flavored with an odor of tropical vegetation, a suggestion of fragrant blossoms, and a promise of luscious fruits. On our starboard bow there soon came into view the well known Ship Rock, which appears, when seen from a short distance, almost precisely like a full-rigged ship under canvas. If the sky is clouded and the atmosphere hazy, the delusion is remarkable.

This story is told of a French corvette which was cruising in these latitudes at the time when the buccaneers were creating such havoc with legitimate commerce in the West Indies. It seems that the coast was partially hidden by a fog, when the corvette made out the rock through the haze, and, supposing it to be what it so much resembles, a ship under sail, fired a gun to leeward for her to heave to. Of course there was no response to the shot, so the Frenchman brought his ship closer, at the same time clearing for action. Being satisfied that he had to do with a powerful adversary, he resolved to obtain the advantage by promptly crippling the enemy, and so discharged the whole of his starboard broadside into the supposed ship, looming through the mist. The fog quietly dispersed as the corvette went about and prepared to deliver her port guns in a similar manner. As the deceptive rock stood in precisely the same place when the guns came once more to bear upon it, the true character of the object was discovered. It is doubtful whether the Frenchman's surprise or mortification predominated.

An hour of steady progress served to raise the veil of distance, and to reveal the spacious bay of Charlotte Amalie, with its strong background of abrupt hills and dense greenery of tropical foliage. How wonderfully blue was the water round about the island, — an emerald set in a sea of molten sapphire ! It seemed as if the sky had been melted and poured all over the ebbing tide. About the Bahamas, especially off the shore at Nassau, the water is green,- — a delicate bright green ; here it exhibits only the true azure blue, — Mediterranean blue. It is seen at its best and in marvelous glow during the brief moments of twilight, when a glance of golden sunset tinges its mottled surface with iris hues, like the opaline flashes from a humming-bird's throat.

The steamer gradually lost headway, the vibrating hull ceased to throb with the action of its motive power, as though pausing to take breath after long days and nights of sustained effort, and presently the anchor was let go in the excellent harbor of St. Thomas, latitude 18° 20' north, longitude 64° 48' west. Our forecastle gun, fired to announce arrival,

EXPERT DIVERS. 9

awakened the echoes in the hills, so that all seemed to join in clapping their hands to welcome us. Thus amid the Norwegian fiords the report of the steamer's single gun becomes a whole broadside, as it is reverberated from the grim and rocky elevations which line that iron-bound coast.

There was soon gathered about the ship a bevy of naked colored boys, a score or more, ja*bbering like a lot of monkeys, some in canoes of home construction, it would seem, consisting of a sugar box sawed in two parts, or a few small planks nailed together, forming more of a tub than a boat, and leaking at every joint. These frail floats were propelled with a couple of flat boards used as paddles. The young fellows came out from the shore to dive for sixpences and shillings, cast into the sea by passengers. The moment a piece of silver was thrown, every canoe was instantly emptied of its occupant, all diving pell-mell for the money. Presently one of the crowd was sure to come to the surface with the silver exhibited above his head between his fingers, after which, monkey-like, it was securely deposited inside of his cheek. Similar scenes often occur in tropical regions. The last which the author can recall, and at which he assisted, was at Aden, where the Indian Ocean and the Red Sea meet. Another experience of the sort is also well remembered as witnessed in the South Pacific off the Samoan islands. On this occasion the most expert of the natives, among the naked divers, was a young Samoan girl, whose agility in the water was such that she easily secured more than half the bright coins which were thrown overboard, though a dozen male competitors were her rivals in the pursuit. Nothing but an otter could have excelled this bronzed, unclad, exquisitely formed girl of Tutuila as a diver and swimmer.

But let us not stray to the far South Pacific, forgetting that we are all this time in the snug harbor of St. Thomas, in the West Indies.

A fidgety old lady passenger, half hidden in an avalanche of wraps, while the thermometer indicated 80° Fahr., one who had gone into partial hysterics several times during the past few days, upon the slightest provocation, declared that this was the worst region for hurricanes in the known world, adding that there were dark, ominous clouds forming to windward which she was sure portended a cyclone. One might have told her truthfully that May was not a hurricane month in these latitudes, but we were just then too earnestly engaged in preparing for a stroll on shore, too full of charming anticipations, to discuss possible hurricanes, and so, without giving the matter any special thought, admitted that it did look a little threatening in the northwest. This was quite enough to frighten the old lady half out of her senses, and to call the stewardess into prompt requisition, while the deck was soon permeated with the odor of camphor, sal volatile, and valerian. We did not wait to see how she survived the attack, but hastened into a shore boat and soon landed at what is known as King's wharf, when the temperature seemed instantly to rise

NATIVE GROUPS. 11

about twenty degrees. Near the landing was a small plaza, shaded by tall ferns and cabbage palms, with here and there an umbrageous mango. Ladies and servant girls were seen promenading with merry children, whites and blacks mingling indiscriminately, while the Danish military band were producing most shocking strains with their brass instruments. One could hardly conceive of a more futile attempt at harmony.

There is always something exciting in first setting foot upon a foreign soil, in mingling with utter strangers, in listening to the voluble utterances and jargon of unfamiliar tongues, while noting the manners, dress, and faces of a new people. The current language of the mass of St. Thomas is a curious compound ofnegro grammar, Yankee accent, and English drawl. Though somewhat familiar with the West Indies, the author had never before landed upon this island. Everything strikes one as curious, each turn affords increased novelty, and every moment is full of interest. Black, yellow, and white men are seen in groups, the former with very little covering on their bodies, the latter in diaphanous costumes. Negresses sporting high colors in their scanty clothing, set off by rainbow kerchiefs bound round their heads, turban fashion ; little naked blacks with impossible paunches ; here and there a shuffling negro bearing baskets of fish balanced on either end of a long pole resting across his shoulders ; peddlers of shells and corals ; old women carrying trays upon their heads containing cakes sprinkled with granulated sugar, and displayed upon neat linen towels, seeking for customers among the newly arrived passengers, — all together form a unique picture of local life. The constantly shifting scene moves before the observer like a panorama unrolled for exhibition, seeming quite as theatrical and artificial.

St. Thomas is one of the Danish West Indian Islands, of which there are three belonging to Denmark, namely, St. Thomas, St. Croix, and St. John. For the possession of the first named Mr. Seward, when Secretary of State, in 1866, offered the King of Denmark five million dollars in gold, which proposition was finally accepted, and it would have been a cheap purchase for us at that price ; but after all detail had been duly agreed upon, the United States Congress refused to vote the necessary funds wherewith to pay for the title deed. So when Mr. Seward consummated the purchase of Alaska, for a little over seven million dollars, there were nearly enough of the small-fry politicians in Congress to defeat the bargain with Russia in the same manner. The income from the lease of two islands alone belonging to Alaska — St. George and St. Paul — has paid four and one half per cent, per annum upon the purchase money ever since the territory came into our possession. There is one gold mine on Douglas Island, Alaska, not to mention its other rich and inexhaustible products, for which a French syndicate has offered fourteen million dollars. We doubt if St. Thomas could be purchased from the Danes to-day for

IMPORTANCE OF ST. THOMAS. 13

ten million dollars, while the estimated value of Alaska would be at least a hundred million or more, with its vast mineral wealth, its invaluable salmon fisheries, its inexhaustible forests of giant timber, and its abundance of seal, otter, and other rich furs. A pennywise and pound-foolish Congress made a huge mistake in opposing Mr. Seward's purpose as regarded the purchase of St. Thomas. The strategic position of the island is quite sufficient to justify our government in wishing to possess it, for it is geographically the keystone of the West Indies. The principal object which Mr. Seward had in view was to secure a coaling and refitting station for our national ships in time of war, for which St. Thomas would actually be worth more than the island of Cuba. Opposite to it is the continent of Africa ; equidistant are the eastern shores of North and South America ; on one side is western Europe, on the other the route to India and the Pacific Ocean; in the rear are Central America, the West Indies, and Mexico, together with those great inland bodies of salt water, the Caribbean Sea and the Gulf of Mexico. It requires no argument to show how important the possession of such an outpost might prove to this country.

Since these notes were written, it is currently reported that our government has once more awakened to the necessity of obtaining possession of this island, and fresh negotiations have been entered into. One thing is very certain, if we do not seize the opportunity to purchase St. Thomas at the present time, England, or some other important power, will promptly do so, to our serious detriment and just mortification.

St. Thomas has an area of nearly fifty square miles, and supports a population of about fourteen thousand. In many respects the capital is unique, and being our first landing-place after leaving home, was of more .than ordinary interest to the writer. The highest point on the island, which comes first into view from the deck of a southern bound steamer, is West Mountain, rising sixteen hundred feet above the level of the surrounding waters. Geologists would describe St. Thomas as being the top of a small chain of submerged mountains, which would be quite correct, since the topography of the bottom of the sea is but a counterpart of that upon the more familiar surface of the earth we occupy. When ocean electric cables for connecting islands and continents are laid, engineers find that there are the same sort of plains, mountains, valleys, and gorges beneath as above the waters of the ocean. The skeletons of whales, and natural beds of deep-sea shells, found in valleys and hills many hundred feet above the present level of tide waters, tell us plainly enough that in the long ages which have passed, the diversified surface of the earth which we now behold has changed places with these submerged regions, which probably once formed the dry land. The history of the far past is full of instances showing the slow but continuous retreat of the water from the land in certain regions and its encroachment in others, the drying up of lakes and rivers, as