New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1850-08-14
Bsipe so much exposed to cold water without he
ee -. ,omsch guarded against its attacks, az

lOSe
rent is part coloTed the psntaoon cut high at the
apc,e and low in the wRist, hsnored with large
matches in the breech and knees the coat which
he rarely wears, tinted as vsrously as that of ia
cob, fayo,ite son. On land, no cultivates asmal
.,,don spd the domestic affections, with the help
efh, yife-raisipgs small crop Of corn, potatoes
"a cnoun,bers-sn and family oft0urtsen Esaslons
- a;vsr,e sex and ages who have each little
catches oftheir own There are now II this gems
no le,s than twenty-pine voterSin New ohorehsm
hesi5e come full grown mem0ers who ID nJt en-
low the elective franchise. This amphb Gus worthy
,ook M out TO fish. Appointing US our places, and
s;vine us our lines, no sst at the stern with tho
silier iu one band fish line fast by his side, aud
his ewes on that the sails, the ropes aud the
breakers all At once Away we dashed, as one eau
dash on the water only in a Block Island boat
The craft here is peculiar 10 the place, and the
management Of the same peculiar to it's people Old
sailors have tOld me that they would no; dare TO sail
one In high wind, though an Islander goes fear.
lessly in ali kinds Of weather. When the gunwa'e
ia on the water, the seadsshing over the DO vs. the
light boom bending like withe, and breakers are
at hand he cracks his rough joke ss merrlly as
farmer at bis ireHde; or has at most, only that
agreeable excitement that good rider feels on
spirited horse.
These boats are all without decks, built sharp a.
10th nds ing some what tow ard the DO We, and
setdeep in T. water The larger ones have two
mssts The smaller one, but none are so heavy that
they cannot be easily drawn up on land IN case OF
storm Tor there is 10 harborRge. The cost OF hrst
class boat is about four hundred dollars The fret
requisite is speed, which is better obtained by
Island builders than BY the most skiLol oftaose on
the main.
Onour frat excursion we caug no fish, the wind
having sent them oHt This ill-uck was more to the
worthy CommodoTe's chagrn than to our own. His
kindly heart was touched at our disappointment;
his Island pride was wounded that we should not
afoo
Our proposed game that day was blne fish, called
there horse msckerel. Is ia good for the table i
cooked imme dstely from the water, and especially
sGvory when baked, but otherwise inferior. 1t is
fierce animal in its kind biting like dog and dan
gerous for inc X perienced fingers TO take from the
hook These fan are caught In great abundance
over four thousand weight are sometimes brought
in of en afternoon. The fishermen however, bear
them grudge for driving away the cod which are
ofmuch more worth. the value Of these last has
been increased by the late use Of cod liver oil for
medicinal purposes. Ccd from here bring higher
price in market than those from the Banks, and
stand prominent among the articles OF export, to
which may be added blue fish, beeves, mutton wool,
srAip paving stone, writing sand and sailors.
MANY of the farms MANFRED with fish and sea
weed, chow fine crops of grass, Indian corn, oats
and barley. One is surprised at first 20 see 40
barns for there are not half dozen of any size
the Island. This is partly owing to the expense
and difficulty Of bringing lumber from oil, as the
m6In.leI0 IS CeuSO. Oftm IN btaInpeQ OUT on
swarded ground by horses. Cattle and sheep can
endure without shelter the cold Of the winter,
which, owing TO The close neighborhood Of the
ocean, is never extreme neither is the heat
While you were melting last week in linen we
were comfortable in double flannel The very day
that your poor horses were dropping deadIn Broad
way we then took a cool ride to the Light House.
But how hat wss done-how part of the time l
rode on pilion behind one OF the joliest Of horse
men, and how, part Of the time, slipped oH-aRd
how, finally, be sat aftride OF the Piiion and
astride of the saddle, and so we rode dos a dos
back to our isn- cannot be told till the illustrator
of the "Oyster War furnishes etchiOgs.
Now, | could tell you how tbs Island measures
about seven miles by four, in latitude Az N, and
how Verazano the Italian navigator, sailing past
it in the service of Francis lat struck with its
resemblance to Rhodes and called it Louise, in
honor Of bis patrons mother; bow il afterwards
took its pretent name from Adrian Block, Dutch
sailor regardless Of womsns rights how, as early
as 1886, some sixty Indian wigwams and two hun
bred acres of corn we're wasted by party OF mill
tary puritsns from Massachusetts anticipating the
spirit Of our missionary movements IN Mexico;
how in 1888 the Indians were paying tribute OF
ten fatboms Of wGmpum how, Oct ~, 1908, Mas
sachusetts granted b ock Island TO John Enicott
and three Others; how read in a book, where |
learned the above historical facts, that la Sept.
1911 the Assembly made order that persons
owning large tracts of land in Narragan,ett shall
cell it out TO persons in want OF ia procedure
GreeleSism, Fourersm Infdelity, &c among the
conservatives Of that time and place how in 1912
Block Island wa, erected into the township OF
New Shoreham, belonging now to Newport Co. Il.
l. aRd numbers al out 800 inhabitants-or as some
would iEdiscrimiLstely say, 1900 souls-who have
the peculiar privilege Of electng as their hepresen
tatives in the Legislature persons not resident In
the town how It is Whigglsh In politics and has
aGOverpment officer whose daty 1t is to prevent
smuggling and TO aid shipwrecked mannersi and
G.ba luyoua DO with
stout arms and warm hearts, to lend aheping hand
and do all that men can for the rescue and comfort
of the unfortunate; how at present there are not
aoozen trees on the Island though it was once
well wooded, and the fuel is good quality Of peat,
which is called tug; how tail coats and lace are
rare, and manners primitive, but hospitality and
friendness, the stamina OF polteness, universal
how there are two good schools, ditto windmills,
a double headed lighthouse and a mineral spring
of tonic natuIebut leave all this 70 an ADLER pc a.
which is already employed on the task, and will
say last WORD OF
The SITUATION OF BLOCK ISLAND, AND HOW THREE
OF Us SAILED AWAY
1t may iurprise you to hear that have actually
seen two weil-wrought, highly.coored tales Of do
mestic manufacture at New Shoreham do not
know the name of the original author nor am at
liberty TO give that OF the modest bat gifted gentle
man whose warmth Of feeling indu es him to edit
them. They appear to be fragments separated
from the body of larger work.
Last Wednesday we babe farewell to our hon.
ored hos. and his family, and entered boat
under the guidance Of Mr. Dodge. The wiad was
light, and we had not made more than ten miles
when the sun went down. and so thick fog closed
about US that we could not see any object at q
distance Of fifty yards. We sailed on in the dim.
ness till it grow too dark to distinguish the points
Of the compass card, and we had come withinsound |
of surf Nothing was left for us but to drop an
Choir. Here was prosPect-bus no. there was