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Table Of Contents
CHAPTER PAGE
I. The Run to St. Thomas i
II. Porto Rico 28
Chapter I
the: run to ST. THOMAS.
Making up for Departure — New York Letter Carriers' Farewell — Impressions of Congress — The Scene at the Death — Power of the Press — The Five O'Clock-Gridiron-Burton Dinner — Under the Grrman Flag — A Lesson in Ship Subsidies — The Speaker Slumbers — Tawney Disturbed — Mann on the Food Supply — Passengers Becoming Acquainted — Reception to the Speaker — Arrival at St. Thomas — "Toss de Coin, Massa !" — A Sunday Parade in Colors — Cable Company Courtesies — Danish West Indian Prison — Our First Consular Experience — The Popular Post Card.
"It looks good to me!"
My friend Kendrick had attended the Five O'clock Club-Gridiron Dinner in honor of Mr. Burton, of the Rivers and Harbors Committee; he had taken a berth on the 12.35 train from Washington that he might see me off; he had joined Speaker Cannon and the others O'f the McKinley party at breakfast in Jersey City, and he now stood upon the promenade deck of the Bluecher, aft, overlooking the passengers, who were saying good-bye to the friends who had received the first summons to go ashore. My old friend. Dr. Keely, of the first Peary Relief Expedition, had introduced us to some of the mysteries of the ship (to be sure, he had the assistance of Bilderbeck, of the Customs Service, whose participation in the ill-fated DeLong expedition had served as a talisman), and he had discovered a few Philadelphians on the passenger Hst and in the passage-ways. The indefatigable Eversman, who was to superintend the McKinley party, had Hned up the
2 WITH SPEAKKR CANNON THROUGH THE TROPICS.
trunk man, the deck-chair man, and others having to do with the comfort of the party, and "Uncle Joe" was the center of an admiring group of ladies and letter carriers, the latter having brought aboard a large floral horseshoe, with silken ribbons inscribed with the names of the Congressional party, in recognition of their support of the increase-of-pay bill, just passed by Congress.
On all sides bustle and activity, salutations and blessings ! The great ship — one of the finest of the Hamburg- American Line — was clean as a new pin. And the officers and crew ! Who, after one swift glance at the nobby uniforms, the slick hairdressing, the Emperor William mustachios, the trim beards, and the "present arms" appearance of the entire outfit, could ever forget the picture? There they were, all of the same mould, officers, men, musicians — if not the Kaiser's kin, surely the Kaiser's kind. No Hoboken for theirs — they were German to the core. And so polite ! Xothing too difficult, nothing too^ troublesome. A nobleman here, with the military posture and a gracious "Yes, madam" ? No, only a room steward standing guard over milady's trunks. An ambassador, at the gang-plank yonder, exchanging a few parting words with the American society lady? No, only a subordinate officer receiving final instructions (and something on the side) to keep an eye upon the young gentleman in 743.
Altogether, a pretty scene — husbands and wives, sweethearts and beaux, young and old, some for rest and some on pleasure bent, nearly three hundred in all, married and single, the Congressional party held in leash by admiring friends and serenaded by the Letter Carriers' Band, the ship's band alternating, until the last bugle call — no wonder Kendrick, bright, athletic, handsome^ no wonder he gave vent to his feelings.
'It looks good to me, too," I said, ''but what about the rest the doctor ordered?"
Kendrick didn't answer, for the movement toward the gang plank cut short all further talk. The hawsers came up, and in a few moments the great ship, with her three hundred passengers, her crew of nearly five hundred, and her cargo of provisions and coal for a month's voyage, was steering out of the Hudson River, through the picturesque New York Harbor, into the Atlantic Ocean. But we were not to go unheralded. The letter carriers are a persistent lot. They had fought many long years for an increased compensation, and they rightfully believed that every Congressman on board had been their friend. Most men who seek favors of public officials are inclined to forget what has been done for them when the object sought has been attained, but the letter carriers of New York apparently were not of that stripe, and they wanted Speaker Cannon to know it. They wanted Senator Curtis, of Kansas, to know it; they wanted Mr. Sherman, of New York, Chairman of the Republican Congressional Campaign Committee, and in Congress, Chairman of the Committee on Indian Affairs, to know it ; they wanted Mr. Tawney, of Alinnesota. Chairman of the Committee on Appropriations, to know it; they wanted their particular friend, Mr. Olcott, of New York, to know it ; they wanted Mr. Loudenslager, Chairman of the Committee on Pensions, to know it. They knew what a great objector Mr. Mann, of Illinois, was, and they wanted him to know how they appreciated his support of the measure; and they were especially anxious to let Mr. McKinley, of Illinois, the host of this distinguished party, know how glad they were to have the opportunity, under his auspices, to express their gratitude. So, after they had left the great ship, with its five hundred and
4 WITH spkaki:r cannon through the tropics.
twenty-five feet of length and sixty-two feet of beam, they took their band and their megaphone, captured Congressman Calder, of New York, boarded a tug, and set up a voluntary escort out to quarantine.
This was the morning of Tuesday, March 5th, 1907. The day before had been a busy one in National affairs. The Constitution provides that Congress shall adjourn March 4th. All work must be done by high noon. I was filling an unexpired term and had served but three months. I had never seen a Congress die. Throughout the session the proceedings had greatly interested me. I had been impressed by the wonderful grasp of public affairs exhibited by the older men. Their knowledge of law and of precedent had admonished me to study, to read, to think. Apart from the many exactions of my own district and the hurried researches necessary to a crude understanding of the practice and privileges of the House, I had come to respect the personnel of the House and to appreciate the learning, ability and patriotism of the leaders. The professional writer's estimate of the Congressman no longer affected me. I had attempted a few things which I believed to be in the interest of my constituency, and soon learned that patience and diplomacy were valuable adjuncts. It was not wise, I found, to assume too much, and did not. The men, whose colleague I had become, were picked men ; here and there, owing to peculiar political conditions, there were some who might not stand in the rank of Clay or Webster, but there were few, very few, who were to be set down as weaklings. Before I knew the Speaker very well, I had heard him, in public utterance, present the situation :
''These men have been sent to Congress by the people of the various Districts. Theirs is the responsibility of repre-
THi: RUN TO ST. THOMAS. , 5
senting the people as the people desire to be represented. If they come back, it's a pretty fair sign that the people are satisfied. If the people are not satisfied, the chances are they will not send them back."
This is not an exact quotation, but it is very like. I have often used the argument with regard to municipal and State legislators, and now believe it to be true of the National legislature — that the masses of the people are fairly represented in legislative bodies. It may shock the grammarian that an unlettered man may go into the City Councils, or the State legislature, but it will generally be found that the representative who is not pleasing to the social leader is the choice of a District which has no social aspirations, and that he is closer to the body of the people than the satuant would be.
I say the personnel of Congress impressed me. As I looked about, listened and studied, pondering over the significance and magnitude of the proceedings, marvehng at the development of the country from the four-million-perannum, eight-per-cent. -interest, mule-train days of the founders of the nation, to the billion-dollar days of scientific agriculture, varied manufactures, vast transportation facilities, enormous trade and wealth of eighty millions of people, I could not believe that the Jeffersons, the Adamses, the Hamiltons, the Clays and the Websters were all dead. I believed we had them in all their strength and learning and patriotism; had them in such profusion that, because of their numbers only, they must travel along with the multitude, dependent for their halo upon the opportunity which now of necessity must come to the fg;w.
It was agreeable to meet and hear the men, some of whom I had known only through the newspapers. To watch the Speaker and the leaders upon either side was a study of itself. The "pulling and hauling" of the committee chairmen was amusing and interesting. Every Congressman, whether first termer or not, gets a little of it, too. As his influence increases, he gets more; and so, experience and observation are valuable to him. He learns to be amiable; he learns to promise little. After one or two rubs he learns to go slow.
"Better feel your way, young man ; don't do it all at once. The nation's gone along fairly well during the last century — better not upset it right off!"
I heard an old-timer apply this advice to a young member — I suspect he was a reformer — and I guess the advice was good. Come to think of it, the nation has done tolerably weh.
But I am thinking of the last day in Congress. It was a day of excitement. All was tension on the floor of the House; the galleries were packed to the doors; Speaker Cannon and the leaders had been under heavy pressure for the past week ; they had crowded their work into nights and Sundays, and at times had been under such stress for a quorum that dinner parties were broken up and homes were invaded to bring the weary members in. Through it all the Speaker had suffered from an attack of the grip, which quickened his desire to close the session successfully.
And now the last bit of buttonholing had been done, the last report had been filed. The trophy of his affectionate colleagues had been presented to General Grosvenor, of Ohio ; the usual felicitous speeches of Mr. Williams, the leader of the Opposition, and of the Speaker had been made ; business and partisanship had been given over to sentiment and brotherhood, and the American Congress was about to quit.
As the gavel of the Speaker fell the House broke into song, the crowded galleries catching up the refrain. Democrats and Republicans, mingling with each other and with their troops of friends, waved tiny American flags, shook hands in good old American fashion, said their fond "goodbyes," and sang the short and busy second session of the 59th Congress to its death. It was grateful to many, but some were not to return — some whose associations and services had endeared them to the House — and so a touch of sadness at the parting was easily detected in the closing hymn, "God be with you till we meet again."
But we were out upon the broad Atlantic. The morningnewspapers, God bless them, we had barely seen them, were now being opened, the last time, perhaps, for thirty days. Think of it ! Going out of newspaper range for a full month ! The Speaker of the House of Representatives, members of the Senate and House, and nearly three hundred other active spirits addicted to the newspaper habit, living upon newspapers, in fact, cut ofif entirely from their favorite morning diversion ! We had the Marconi, and we expected to make a few stops, but where would the big events in the world's daily routine catch up to us? Perhaps it was a good thing. The reading habit is like the tobacco habit — like every other habit — it becomes a part of the nature of a man. If you can shake it off now and then the change may be good for you. On one occasion I accompanied the Pennsylvania Editors' Association on an annual excursion to Long Branch and Coney Island. The ladies and gentlemen of the party were having a good time, and when, in the course of their wanderings, they met the Mayor of Newark — a Mr. Haines, I think — they insisted upon a speech. The Mayor didn't want to speak, but the editors persisted. At last the Mayor lifted his silk hat and began. He jollied the ladies and praised the men.
8 WITH spi:ak^r cannon through thk tropics.
"And do I understand," he said, suavely, "that Coney Island, whose hospitality I am myself enjoying, has the honor of entertaining the entire editorial force of Pennsylvania ?"
A youthful enthusiast answered "Yes."
"Then I am thinking," added the Mayor, "what a great relief it must be to the grand old Keystone Commonwealth !"
The power of the press ! In its province is the making or breaking of reputations, homes, business ; and yet, if the truth be known, there is a deal of satisfaction to most men in having their names in print. We may go a step farther, and suggest that the passion for newspaper notoriety is sometimes so great that men would rather be assailed in public than not be mentioned at all.
But I had not intended tO' fathom the depths of newspaper ethics. The papers, this morning, were doing all I could wish them to do; they were giving full reports of the Five O'clock Club-Gridiron Dinner and, incidentally, were vindicating again the great power of the press to mould public sentiment. I found Speaker Cannon and the rest of the party interested in what they were saying. For several years the necessity for deepening the channel of the Delaware had been urged upon Congress. That it was not deepened as rapidly as commerce seemed to demand was generally attributed to Chairman Burton, of the Rivers and Harbors Committee. The more Chairman Burton stuck to what he believed to be equitable in the general treatment of rivers and harbors, including the Delaware, the more insistent the newspapers of Philadelphia became. They made the fight ; commercial and trades bodies followed. They attacked Burton, and so did the trades bodies; The harder they hit the more determined they made the Chairman and the tighter around him they bound the leaders of
Congress. The bitterness of the fight was manifested in the session just closed. At last, Mr. Burton was sustained by the House. The great majority of the members believed him to be right. But the fight was not lost. In th^ closing days of the session the newspapers were appealed to; so was Mr. Burton. The Philadelphia Five O'clock Club dinner to the famous Gridiron Club, of Washington, was coming on to put the finishing touches to the last day of Congress. Mr. Burton accepted the invitation to attend; so did the newspaper editors of Philadelphia.
The retiring Secretary of the Treasury, Mr. Shaw, opened the speech-making with a farewell to official life; the redoubtable Champ Clark, and his veteran, but admiring, antagonist. General Grosvenor, followed. Then came a long list of distinguished speakers, men conspicuous in the popular eye; the former Speaker of the House of Representatives, General Keifer, of Ohio; Congressman Nicholas Longworth, son-in-law of President Roosevelt; Richmond P. Hobson, whose individual heroism at Santiago had attracted the attention of the world, and who had since been elected a member of Congress ; Senator Scott, of West Virginia, the bosom friend of President McKinley, and of the late Senator Hanna; Judge Dimner Beeber, President of the Union League, of Philadelphia; eloquent, forceful, witty — all en rapport with the spirit of the meeting. Interspersing the speeches were occasional features of the two distinguished clubs, led by President Blythe, of the Gridiron, and President Blankenburg, of the Five O'clock, and then the pitting against each other in song of the two Vice- Presidents, Henry and McCall.
The famous newspaper writers of the Capital, and visiting editors of great newspapers, vied with the statesmen and the politicians in the good fellowship of the moment. In this delightful presence, Mr. Burton — the bitterly assailed Chairman of the Rivers and Harbors Committee — was introduced as the guest of the evening. If ever the bitterness of a strong heart might be forever banished and the spirit of good fellowship admitted, here was the opportunity for it. Mr. Burton rose; he had promised to talk of the great subject he had made his life study, and he launched it immediately. His deep knowledge, his unquestioned sincerity, were at once manifest. The whole subject was hurriedly gone over, the importance of the development was clearly stated, and then he touched upon the Delaware. At this the Philadelphians cheered. Then came the longlooked-for promise — the promise that when certain reasonable conditions were complied with, the great river of shipbuilding, of manufacturing and of commerce should be reached. It was the coming together of two imperious bodies. The Philadelphians were made happy, and Mr. Burton sat down satisfied. Good feeling had been restored.
Then Speaker Cannon added a little oil to the hitherto troubled waters, with praise for the Chairman of the Rivers and Harbors Committee and praise for Philadelphia and her great manufacturing and commercial interests. ''Great city, Philadelphia," said the Speaker, "worthy of all that Congress may do for it, and, in the fullness of time, she will come into possession of her own."
The man whose power in the United States is second only to that of the President; the Chairman of the Appropriations Committee, which had just disposed of nearly a billion dollars for the needs of the Government; the Chairman of the Republican Congressional Committee, and other official advocates of an American Merchant Marine, were now familiarizing themselves with a great ocean liner, from the broad stern of which floated the the: run to ST. THOMAS. . II
flag of the German Empire. They had fought for an American Merchant Marine, and had won out in the House, but the measure failed in the Senate. What was the use of worrying about it now ? The people of the United States had not fully realized the importance of putting the American service upon the seas. The farmer, in many instances, had not been able to understand that he must necessarily participate in the development of the American Merchant Marine, and yet, we had fought for it because we knew that England and Germany were developing their shipping, and believed we should be abreast of them.
Here was an evidence of Germany's success : "Built especially for the tropics. Twin-screw steamship; tonnage, 12,000; horse-power, 8,000." What special interests in the tropics had the German Empire? What islands of the West Indies owed her allegiance that she should build and subsidize "especially for the tropics."
"Grand cruise to the West Indies," said the advertisement :
"From New York, January 31, 1907, and March 5, 1907, to San Juan (Porto^ Rico), St. Thomas, St. Pierre, Fort de France (Martinique), Bridgetown (Barbados), Port of Spain, La Guayra (Venezuela), Puerto Cabello, Colon (Panama Canal), Kingston (Jamaica), Santiago de Cuba, Havana (Cuba), Nassau, N. P., and returning to New York."
Rather close to the United States all these places, and rather remote from the German Empire, but still, the fact remained that Germany provided the ship and we — proud, boastful citizens of the United States — were sailing along our own coast under her auspices, with a non-Englishspeaking crew and with every cabin, gangway, deck and door labeled in German letters. First was the boat deck, with the wheel house, the officers' quarters, the gymnasium.
12 WITH SPE:aKI:r cannon THROUGH THI^ TROPICS.
supplied with all the modern athletic' training devices, for which the Germans are famous, and the grill room; then the promenade deck, with its social hall, with its writingdesks, its library, its private suites, and its smoking rooms and Marconi station — a deck so long that nine times around was reckoned a mile ; then the salon deck, with its dining room, its private suites, its baths and social halls, upper and main decks lined with extensive apartments for tourists. With nearly 300 rooms or suites in all, at rates ranging from $150 to $2,000, it is not difficult to estimate for one trip alone how much passes from American into German hands. But who cared? It was good service that was wanted, and the Americans had the money to pay. "The best is none too good for the American traveler," said the observer, and the German was giving him the best. Nor was the German forgetting the Fatherland. The paintings in the various salons and smoking rooms were patriotic. The life story of the great ''Bluecher," after whom the ship was named, was told in medallions and carvings in the decorations of the dining salon. The other great field Marshals and Generals — Bismarck, the elder Wilhelm, and the present Emperor — were conspicuous among them. The Germans were giving us better service than we could get at home. They were competitors for passenger traffic, as they were very successful competitors for the merchantcarrying trade of the world. The fact that we were sailing under German auspices occasioned no complaint. The safe and business-like captain, the well-trained officers and crew and the nimble stewards were there for service. They inspired confidence and appreciation. The horrible word, "subsidy," didn't scare them, their government, or their farmers — they were settling the subsidy question, and they were doing it with our money. If we didn't care, why need they?
THE spe;ake;r on de:ck.
Speaker Cannon, still wearing the overcoat that had sheltered him from the chilly air of New York, drew his slonch hat down over his forehead until the rim nearly touched the ashes of the well-chewed cigar that was rising to an angle of 45 degrees, and running his eye along the line of deck chairs labeled ''McKinley," made his choice, and fell lazily into the ample folds of one of them. He had taken a few turns around the deck, had investigated the mysteries of the gymnasium, even to the camel-back rider, which he pronounced good, had acknowledged the salutations of the Captain and the many passengers who had sought an introduction, and now he imagined himself in the restful purlieus of — well, back to Danville. Not Danville, ''111," as someone dared to suggest, but Danville, "hale and hearty." As Curtis, Sherman, Tawney, Mann and others closed in about the Speaker, I watched the promenaders, passing to and fro, and listened to their comments.
"Did you see him?"
"Who?"
"Uncle Joe."
"Yes, I was presented to him."
"Likes his cigar, don't he?"
"He don't look so autocratic."
"Has he such power as the papers say?"
"Is he a candidate for President?"
"How old is he?"
"Seventy-one? Do you think it would be safe to elect him President?"
"Don't you deceive yourself, he's the youngest old man you ever saw!"
But national greatness yields as common clay to the call of Morpheus. The Speaker was asleep. The ample l6 WITH SP^AKl^R CANNON THROUGH THE: TROPICS.
German lunch, with its soporific tendencies, had gotten in its work ; the ship subsidy, the tariff, the appropriations bill, the national forest reserve, John Wesley Gaines, those ancient war claims, the speech of '73, the President's Porto Rican message, the old home at Danville, and our international relations were now floating in sweet ethereal harmony. The powerful left hand, which lately gripped the dreaded gavel on the call of ''division," no longer chopped its way through space, ''countin' 'em up" by sixes, nines and elevens. It was now inactive and still. The great master of legislative direction had put behind him all the cares of oflice and was asleep. Our host, McKinley, was certainly a wonder ! The Speaker asleep ! Who had ever caught the Speaker napping? What the greatest corporations had tried to do, what the cleverest manipulators in national politics had vainly attempted, had been accomplished easily and innocently by this modest Congressman from the Champaign District of Illinois.
For one full hour the ship ploughed on with no sign of returning life from the McKinley deck chairs. We were beyond sight of land, and the hitherto greenish water, true to the narrative of Lafcadio Hearn, was growing bluer and more blue. The deck stewards came with their bouillon and raw beef sandwiches, but there was no response. The Speaker was free from cavil and from care. Senator Curtis was dreaming of the grassy slopes and gorgeous sunflowers of his beloved Kansas ; Sherman was clipping coupons in his bank at Utica ; Olcott was purchasing crash suits in the far-away Barbados ; Loudenslager was out at sea in a pilot boat cutting luscious Jersey cantaloupes ; Mann was raising royal palms in his Chicago flower garden ; Tawney was leading the singing of ''Old Hundred" in the Methodist Sunday-school at
Winona, and McKinley was uniting the cities and towns of Illinois in one grand network of tracks and trolleys.
It was Tawney who awoke first. An over-attentive gentleman from New Jersey, escorting a lovely young widow from South Carolina, crowded her too closely upon the Minnesota statesman, and the collision had aroused him. It was as if someone had criticised the action of the Appropriations Committee, as though some temeritous individual still persisted in making provision for Geological Survey tests. There was opposition somewhere, and it must be stamped out at once. So it seemed as Tawney spoke :
''What the " — he saw the sweet face redden — "are
you doing, Mr. Speaker?"
The young lady passed by; the roused Speaker rubbed his eyes ; the good old childhood days were lingering as a memory.
''A soft answer turneth away wrath !" he said, and then, with a resounding smack upon the extended hand of Sherman, exclaimed :
"Why stand ye here idle?"
It was the signal for the promenade — a promenade which became a part of the thirty days' routine.
With such a large company, dependent entirely upon the ship refrigerators, I was interested in knowing how we were to be fed. So, also, I found was Mann, whose demonstrations in open Congress in support of a pure food bill had been handed down as worthy the admiration of his beloved Chicago, the greatest food-producing, packing and distributing center of the country.
I studied Mann's philosophy, and found he believed it necessary to life that man should eat; that if, after eating, he had nothing else to do, then he might sleep; that if the l8 WITH SPIJAKER CANNON THROUGH THE TROPICS.
cuisine pleased the eye, it might be found to please the stomach, especially under a foreign flag and a new chef.
When, therefore, the Captain announced at the evening meal that there was coal enough aboard to keep us under steam for thirty days and food enough to sustain us for a like period, I appreciated the few ''asides'' which indicated that the "Great Objector" intended having proof.
"German pancake? Yes, I think I will try a German pancake. Otto," he would say. "Let Tawney have his seabarbel; I can get fish at any time." Then the Chairman of the Appropriations Committee would take up the menu, and, in choicest German, exclaim :
"Otto, never mind him, bring me some 'Doppelschrauben- Postdampfer !' " and Otto would smile and say :
"Sorry, Mr. Tawney, but dat's yust oud."
"Then bring me fish — and bring it quick! And say, Otto, what is this Schaumspeise von Ganseleber?"
"Well, pass that on to Mann !"
"Very well, I'll try it," Mann would reply.
Day by day the other passengers were coming into closer contact with the Congressional party.
"I have been introduced to him," some one would say of the Speaker, "and he is very companionable, but he doesn't say much ; can't we get him to speak ?" The Speaker had been adroit. He was agreeable to all comers and ready for any introduction, but he was out for rest, too.
"And then what would McKinley think," he said, "I am under orders."
But the resourceful Eversman and a few of the enthusiastic ladies arranged that Mr. McKinley should give a reception to the Speaker. The printing machine was set in motion and each passenger, on the morning of March 8th, the fourth dav out, was handed an invitation .
the: run to ST. THOMAS. I9
At dinner that evening the whole ship was astir, many of the ladies appearing decollete and in reception attire, while the gentlemen were in full evening dress. It happened that the day set apart was also the birthday of one of the Congressional party. He, taken by surprise, was led into the great dining room by the Speaker, who insisted upon sharing the honors of the evening.
The dinner over, followed by frequent calls for speeches, which were not made, Mr. McKinley led his guest, the Speaker, accompanied by the Captain of the ship, to the leeside of the promenade deck. What the Germans do, they do well. The open view of the sea had been shut out completely. From the railing to the deck above, the whole side of the ship had been closed up with canvas coverings and the deck itself, polished like a ball-room floor, was briUiantly illuminated by electric bulbs in the American national colors, with lavish festoons of artificial greens and colored flowers. Then the reception began, the ladies and gentlemen greeting the Speaker with messages of congratulation and he returning a pleasant word to each. Down the line of Congressmen they came, from the oldest and most experienced, to the youngest, until the reception was over. ''On with the dance," was then the cry. The American papers, which came to us later in the course of our travels, commented upon the Speaker's ability as a dancer. Had they seen him, at the suggestion of a bevy of ladies who surrounded him, offer his arm to one of the stately matrons of Chicago and lead her forth, they would have admired his grace and suavity as well as his choice. It was the old style dance, a little too far back into the woods of the terpsichorean art for the youngsters of the modern ''light fantastic," but it had the good old swing of the Western school days, and it caused the passengers to "sit up and take notice." The dance over, the band proceeded
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You’ve reached the end of With Speaker Cannon through the tropics : a descriptive story of a voyage to the West Indies, Venezuela and Panama: containing views of the Speaker upon our colonial possessions.
