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Atlanta, Ga. f Week Ending October 29, 1904
VOLUME XLII—NUMBER THIRTY-FIVE.
big through palm groves, plantations of
sisal hemp, ami ncivs of pineapples. Ami
tins ro.-k in the negro settlement, of Congo
Town iinct Grant's Town, which Ho Just
outside of Xaps.ui. is of sueh solidity that
when they plant il is necessary to use the
built with broad piazzas and latticed ver
andas half hidden in roses and jasmines
and pink and white oleanders.
PERPETUAL SUMMER.
The equable temper.!tare and soft o- eu»
breezes make this a land of summer, rv. n
in midwinter season, the orange and
'onion and lime perfuming tile air with
their delicious fragrance, and bowers of
'•loom envelop’ng the island in their
beauty. The absence of soil—the island
is of coral formation—-Is a striking pecu
liarity,'- the more that the trees are ob
served to grow right from the roek, and
even from the tops of walls. Among the
unusual Lees the most remarkable speci
men is the ancient cel bn or silk cotton
tree near the public buildings, its im
mense buttresses attracting universal ad
miration and wonder. And the whistling
le an is most interesting, being so named
from the sound produced by the blowing
of the wind upon its sc-ed pods. Another
name given tin's curious tree is "the old
woman's tongue"—since il is never quid.
The royal poineiana a Iso grows here.
There are no running streams, and with
tile exception of tho hare, no wild ani
mals- oven of snakes there are none, ex
cept the harmless cliiokt n snake.
The rock which nourishes vegetation is
also fine for road building, the roads
New Providence are noted for their <.x-
collenco for driving and wheeling, ie.-id-
By PAUL LINCOLN
HE little city of Nassau.
'J' headquarters for (he block
ade runners during Inc
civil war. is inseparably
associated in the mind with
t th.it period and the stir-
wiien it was the scene of
more hazard and exciting:
lessness and dare-devil
mggpgg sible to imagine, visiting
today the. beautiful island
of New Providence and its gay little capi
ta] with her happy, hospitable people.
It is a different place from what is was
in the war times, a resort for invalids,
the land of sunshine and home of pleas
ure and indolent ease.
As Nassau is the capital, not oniy of
New Providence, but of the: Bahama, is
lands. it is here resides the governor, ap
pointed by the crown. Of the 15.000 in
habitants in the little city, about four-
tilths are negroes, the remaining fifth,
the white population, being descendants
ot English colonial families who live in—
or rather, on the outside of, for most of
the time is spent out-of-doors—houses
These people, diminutive in size- and
of a wondrous simplicity in cuarneTer
and habits of living. nr<- descended from
slaves, and from A T,-uus taken from
sP ve ships b> British men of war and
left on the island. They preserve many
of their primitive native ways. One of
the most piclui• sqno customs in Congo
Town is that o! holding nignt market!',
when lives an- kindled by the roadside
v, ::ere are displayed vegetables and
fruits grown in the- diminutive garden
patches surrounded by waits of rocks.
I he night markets, accompanied by "lire
dancing."
The sea here is irans-.-endauily bril
liant. every color of the rainbow every
lint of sky at sunrise or sunset, appear
ing in the water. Tills is due in part to
the sand bottom which gives the light
color, and streP-hes of vegetable growth
which cau.-e i : • «jurk shading. At a
pe nt in the channel known as the "Sea
Gardens" the bottom is covered with
fan-loaf coral <V various vivid hues, and
here are seen swimming graceful and
brilliant colored fishes, the rowboats be
ing made with glass plates in the bottom
through u':VTi study 6C marine life may
be made. The "Lake of Eire," w'nic-i
visitors find so attractive, is an arti
ficial pond, a storage reservoir for live
fish .and green turtle, which is brightly
phosphorescent, arid very beautiful by
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The Colonial. Nassau,
THE FORTIFICATIONS.
The old fortifications which are now
in ruins appear to have been built ail
in the latter part of the eighteenth -fi
lmy. After the French and Spaniards
destroyed Nassau, in 1703. il was re
built in 1718, but Foil Charlotte was
tint built until 1788. and Fort Flncastk
.n 1789—and Fort Montague was pre
sumably about. Ha- same time. Leading
up from the street below to Fort Fin-
c-nstle—also called Ship Fort, because of
its supposed resemblance to a vessel—
is the Queen's Staircase, a long llight of
slep-s cut in the side of an old stone
quarry. The likeness of the fort to a
ship is made the more real by the flags
Which signal to the town the sighting of
ships at sea. Fort Charlotte, a massive
I'ortiflcaUon hcwfi on! of solid rock.
Is also used as a signal station.
Nassau was well chosen l'or iicadqtui!
belore the war were the collection and
exportation of sponges, corals, etc., and
wrecking, to which was added, during
'the leg.. 1 iu if GV«- Aid* of picking
and stealing, Tlie inhabitants may he
classed ns “amphibious,’’ and are known
among sailors by the generic name of
“conch!?.” Tho wharves of Nassau dur
ing the war were always piled high with
cotton, and huge warehouses we-“ stoi’-‘
od full of supplies for the Confederacy.
The harbor was crowded at tUbes with
lead-colored,’ short masted, rakish look
ing steamers: the streets alive with bus
tle and activity during day time and
sw.ynf.ng with drunken revellers by
chiefly under the British flag wen- con-
stoutly loading.
EXCITING TIMES.;
j’v: pfath TVilkinson. of the Oorfod va-t
States, navy, gives us perhaps the mosr
comprehensive as well as most entertain
ing account of tho blockading of any
participant in its exciting adventures,
tie it was who was sent to England to
purchase rue little steftmer “Kate,”
which made such famous record as a
blockade runner. And later, the^ “Gir
affe," roohristened the "It. E. Lee,”
which was also under his command. ITc
think we cannot do better than to give
his own words describing the little capi
tal as il was, as he knew it:
“Nassau was a busy place during Un-
war: the chief depot of supplies for Ilia
Confederacy, and the port to which most
of tho cotton was shipped. Its prox
imity to the ports of Charleston and
Wilmington gave it superior advantages,
while it was easily accessible to the
swift, light draught blockade-runners
• d! of which carried Bahama bank pilM:-
who.km w every channel, while the Uni
ted States cruisers, having no “bank pilot;
and drawing more water, were compelled
to keep the- open sea. Occasionally on*
of La- latlei would heave to outside the
harbor -and send in a boat to communi
cate piui tile American consul; but their
usual cruising ground was off Abaco
light.
"The distance from Charleston to Xa
sau is about 500 miles, and from SVi’-
mingto:; about 550. Practically, how
ever. they were equi-distant because
blockade runners bound from either port
In order to evade the cruisers Tying in
wait off Abaco, were compelled to give
that headland q wide berth by keep
ing welt to the eastward of it. But in
avoiding Scylla they ran the risk of
striking upon Charybdis; for the danger
ous reefs of Eieuthers Were fatal to
many vessels.
"The chief industries of the islands
“Every nationality on ea.rth, nearly,
was represented there; tho high wages
ashore and afloat, tempting adventurers
of tire baser sort, and the. prospect of
enormous profits offering equally strong
inducements to capitalists of a. spccula-
Typical Street Scene in Nsssau
Fort Fincastle, Nassau.
By Stewart Edward White
First of Series of Love Stories
by Prominent Writers
***■■*^1 .VRE.VRA hesiiated long bc-
B tween the openwork stock-
■ ings and the plain silk, hut
3 finally determined on the
former. Then she vouch-
^E safed a pleased little smi‘e
BjS I to her pleased little image
Bti 9 hi the mirror and stepped
pMBH j through the door into the
jajBate E presence of her mint. The
jfmMJB aunt was appropriately as-
rw'titr'C S tonished. This was tlie
'*“**••* first time Barbara iiad
spread her dainty chiffon
gs in the air of tlie great north woods,
fter her plain old backwoods aunt had
lircd ar.d exclaimed over the butterfly
Inexpectedly developed from the brown
br-made chrysalis,
while with the same hand she swept her
skirt clear of the ground.
"Phew!" came a most terrible, dread
ful sound from the thicket close at hand.
Barbara dropped her parasol, and
clasped her heart with botli hands, and
screamed. From the thicket two slen
der ears pointed inquiringly toward her,
(wo wide brown e.ves stared frightened
into hors, a delicate nose dilated with
terror. "Phew!" snorted the deer again,
and vanished in a series of elastic stiff
logged springs.
"Oh!" cried Barbara, “you horrid
thing! How you frightened me!"
Biie picked up her parasol and resumed
her journey in son»o perturbation of mind,
reflecting on the liter rudeness of tlie
deer. Gradually tlie trail seemed to be
come mvore difficult. After a time it was
obstructed by the top of a fallen bass
wood. Barbara looked about her. She
was not on the trail at all.
At first she proceeded circumspectly,
with an eye to the chiffon. It was torn
in a dozen places. Then she thrust one
dear little slipper through the moss into
black water. Three times the stiff
straight rods of the tamarack whipped
her smartly across the face. When fin
ally she emerged on the other side of the
hundred feet of that miserable cedar
The tone had it3 effect.
"What do you advise?" she asked.
“That, we camp here." ho proposed,
calmly, with an air of finality.
"Oil!" dissented Barbara in alarm.
“Never! I am afraid of the woods’ It
will be wet and cold. I am hungry. Mi-
feet arc just sopping!"
"I will watch all night with ray rifle."
lie told her. "I will fix you a tent, and
will cook you a. supper, and your feet
shall not be wet and cold one moment
lunger than you will.”
"Isn't your homo nearer?” she asked.
“My home is where night finds me,'
be replied.
Barbara lfteSttatcd. It was going to
be dreadful, She know she would catch
her death of cold. But what could she
do about il?
“You may - do 1.1:e wet feat part.” she
assented at last.
‘‘All right.” agreed the young man
with alacrity. He unslung the pack
from his back, and removed from the
straps a little axe. “Now I am not go
ing to bo gone a moment,” he assured
her, “and while I am away, you must
take off your shoes and stockings, and
put these on.” He had been fumbling
swamp she had ceased to hold up the
chiffon skirt. :inu Was most vexed.
“I think you’re just mean!” she cried'
p'tlishly to the still forest, ami then
caught her breath in the silence of awe.
'file forest had become suddenly un-
friondly; Its kindliness had somehow van.
i.shej. In all directions it looked the
same—straight towering trunks, saplings,
undergrowth. H had shut her in with a
wall of green, and hurry in whatever di
rection she would, Barbara was always
inclosed in apparently (lie same little ceii
of leaves.
Frightened, but with determination .she
commenced to walk rapidly in the. direc
tion she believed would lead her out. The
bushes now caught at her unheeded. ph*
tore through briers, popples, moose ma
ples alike. The chiffon was sadly marred,
the picture hal stained and awry, the
brave little shoes. with their silver
buckles and their poinled high heeis, were
dull with wet.
She dropped to the ground and gave
way to her wild terror, weeping with the
gulping sobs of a frightened child, hut
even in extremity dabbing her eyes from
time, to time with an absurd tiny hand
kerchief of drawn work border.
Poor, little Barbara; she was lost.
"That's bad,” sympathized the other.
“Where are you lost from?”
‘The Adams, or the Maxwells. I
don't know which. 1 started to go from
one to the other. Then there was a
deer, and sa I got lost."
“1 see," ho agreed, with entire assur
ance. “And now what are you going to
do?”
"1 am not going to do anything. You
arc to take me home.”
"To the Adams or tlie Maxwells? - ’
"To whichever Is nearest.”
The young man seemed to he dcbailrg.
Barbara glanced at his tiiougUtiu?.
strong face from under the edge of her
picture hat., which slyly she had r- -
arranged. She liked his face. It was
so good humored.
“It is almost sunset." replied the youth
at length. “You can sec the shadows
are low. How ilo you hope to push
through the woods after dark? There
are .wild sBltmals—wolves!” lie added lna-
U-dousiy.
Barbara looked up again with sudden
alarm.
"But wliaT shall we do?” she cried,
less composedly. "You must take mo
hem*.”
"I can try.” said he. with the resig
nation of a man who can but die.
A i ter u while, subtly, she felt that some
one- was standing near her. She looked ut>
The somebody was a man. He was
young. Barbara saw three tilings—that
he h;qd kindly, gray eyes, which just now
were twinkling at her amusedly; that the
handkesehief about Ms neck was clean:
and that the line •? his jaw was un
usually elear-ut ana fine. An observant
person would have, noticed, further, that
the young man carried a rifle and a pack,
that he wore a heavily laden belt about
the waist, and moccasins on his feet; that
his blue flannel sl~rt, though clean, was
faded: that hi 1 ? skin was brown as pine-
bark. Barbara had no use for such de
tails. The eye was kinfllf: the. jaw was
strong neatness indicated the gentleman.
And a strong, kindly gentleman was just
what poor little lost Barbara needed the
most. Unconsciously she tilled her point
ed chin forward adorably, and smiled.
“Oh! now it’s all right, isn't it?” said
slip.
“1 am glad," be replied, the look ot
amusement deeping in ids gray eyes,
“and a moment ago !t was all wrong.
What was the matter?”
•*1 am lost,” answered Barbara con
tentedly as one would say. "Mv shoes
tire a litt.le dusty.”
Barbara determined
ke a walk. She knew that through
cool, fascinating- forest, only half a
a.way, dwelt the Adams. T1k- Adams.
Kero oniy of the woods people, but
[were human, and chiffon is chiffon.
I' wilderness as in the towns. So
Ira announced he.r intention and
Ed into the open sunlight.
■y soon the trail entered the great,
Krecn forest. Barbara closed her
■1 and carried it under one arm.
CONTINUED ON LAST PAGE.
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