The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1850-08-20
and ragged enough. and were fiddling 10 the peo.


| and ragged enough, and were fddling to the peo-
| pie for love, not msBey. After a time, a space
was cleared be tween decks-the emgrants, young
and old, sat down upon their boxes or barrels, or
upon the edges Of their berbs, while the children
formed IA ring, al little distance. An Irish reel
was then got up. A rudy. checked young woman
with all the beauty peculiar to the people of the
south of Ireland in their youth, but which priva-
ton and suffering do not suffer to adorn them until
the prime of their wOmanhood accepted the hand
Of an Irish gallant, of about iory years of age, in
very ragged and long tailed coat; while another
damsel not GOOD looking, but brisk and cheer
ful, granted similar favor 10 an lTish lad about her
own age, and The reel began. What the exhibi-
ton wanted in elegance, IL made ~ Tor Ia vigorous
Joyousness. The four danced as il dincing were
business 10 be gone into with all the nnd with all
the soul, and with all the strength ard kept at il
till mortal limbs could endure II no logger, without
a reviying period Of repose. As soon rs they were
thoroughly exhausted, another party OF four, in
GLIDING an old dame, who looked nearly sixty,
stepped into their vacant places, the whole assem-
blaue at this time amounting 10 upwards OF hun
bred spectators looking on with delighted gravity
The children were in ecsacies, and E.sny of them
kept time with their fact and hands 10 the mu-
sic of the fidders. When this party, like the
previous one, tired out with the cxerlion, a
very decently dressed mddle-aged man, with
good black coat and trowsers, and clean neck
cloth, stepped forward and claimed the privilege
of dancing a jig with comedy looking woman,
who was nursing her child. No sooner said than
done His fair partner handed the child to a wo-
an instant. The man danced with yigor that
never saw surpassed; and as | admired his evident
satisfaction with the exercise young lad standing
beside NE volunteered the information that the
dancer had originally been The manager of a large
mill in the North Of Ireland, and person very
well to do in the world lie danced until his part
ner could dance no longer, and kept up the jig by
himself for frly ten minutes after she had slid
back 10 her seat 10 resume possession of her child
loud burst of applause greeted him when he sat
down, and the fidders took rest ami refreshed
themselyed with cakes and oranges After an in
teTval OF ten minutes, or quarter of an hour, the
dance was recommended, and | left the group in
the full enjoyment of their pastiIne. was after
wards assured by the captain that such scenes
were OF common occurrence and that very often
the bogpipfs instead OF the violin, was the-~lstru-
men that set the feet Of his passen gers in motion
The eX-manager of the mill, who seemed person
Of considerable education and experience, al
though so much reduced as 70 be compelled by
hard fortune TO emigrd,e IN the steerage with the
poorest classes of his counrymen, said he had
brought a flute with him to make music for his
iellow-travellers on their voyage, and thought
that between him ard the two yiolonists they
might manage 10 amuse the people pretty well, and
make The time pass agIeeably on the Atlantic
The scene when the Isaac Webb-crowded with |
passengers both above and below-passed through !
the dock gates, was lively and peculiar. As usual,
although the vessel was two days beyond the time
OF sailing, great number of her passengers had |
deiayed coming on board until the last moment. |
considerable portion of those who had already |
TO sroll about the town, sit drinking in the beer
shops 10 lingering in the dark steerage were also |
among the absentees-and their sole chance of get
ting OH board was AT the dock gates, where the !
pas sage was not many inches wider than the deck
OF the vessel. AT the critical moment, donkey carts
laden with luggage drove up, and the rush OF those
be lated to get on board with their goods and chat
tells, was tremendous Thick as flies upon honey |
pot, they might he seen clambering over the side
of the vessel, threading their difficult way among
ropes and coidaee Here and there woman be-
coming entaDged. with her drapery sadly dsconi-
posed, and her legs still more sadly exposed TO the
LOTTERIES on shore, might be heard mploring aid
from the sailors or pas sengers above. Men might
be seen, lmpeded with luggage, and hurting snail
ter them with hot haste. Many package, con-
tanning property of value 10 these poor people,
missed It's mark and fell into the dock, whence il
was rescued, ard handed up by a man in small
ship Ultimately, the whole OF the passengers got
safely on boardelthough il is difficult To say how
they managed II, amid the uproar, turmoil, confu- |
SION, erd pressing VI one over another, that oc-
CURED within the few minutes that the ship lay |
between the walls Of the dock gate. II as d,l-
hcut TO get out Of her 10 get in, but several Wis
tiers took this opportunity OF leaving her, and !
among the number When at last, the ship cleared
the gate, end foated right out into the Mcrsey her
full proportions became disentanged from the maze
OF shipping in which she had been formerly in
The spectators on shore took of their hats and
cheered Justify, and the cheer repeated by the
whole body Of emigrsnts on deck, who raised a
shout that, ! supposed, must have been heard at
the distance OF a mile even in the noisy and busy
thoroughiares of Liverpool.
The departures OF the West Point, the New
World, and The Yorkshire, were equally charac-
terisiic. The wind and weather being highly IA
yorabie on the day appointed for the sailing Of the
Wett Point, proceeded twenty miles 20 sea in that
vessel We were nominaIy towed out by " tug"
but ne soon as the broad sails of the West Point
were spread to the propItious wind, the sailing
vessel oufsiripped the steamboat, and we tugged |
The tug" In conversation with the passengers |
during the short but agreeable sail Of twenty miles,
found that very many Of them were going out 10 |
join friends and relatives in the Unted States who
had preceded them years before, and who had fer
wafded them money to pay their passage. Some
lew were going TO remain in the State of New York
but by far the greater proportion were bound for
Ohio, Illinois, Wisconsin and Missouri. Very few
OF them seemed TO know whether Canada was or
was not, British possession; one Of the IRISH
TO whom put the question had ever heard Of Nova
Scotia, Newfoundland, or New Brunswick. One
Iespectable-lsohing lad, Of about twenty, said he
IN Amencs, but as he had heard OF the State Of
OHIO, and that land was cheap, and labor well paid,
be was going thther to try his fortune. He was
not he raid, afraid OF hard work, and had no fear
but that he should get on. The English emgrants
in the second class cabins knew all about Canada
and the Bntish North American possessions, but
thought the United States preferable 60 either Of
them: I" Besides" said one sturdy man from Lin
colnshre, we don't know what's TO happen 10 Can.
ada IL won't always belong TO England, and
there may be rumpus' It's all right in the
States, and that's the place for my money" This
man and his family were bound for Wisconsin.
The Opium Trade.
tfrom the Overland Friend OF China
/ fhaf h. Of k..