New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1853-02-24

SEASONS, and cay with signihcancy
These, a. they change Almighty Father. these
| Are but the varied Cod
For here the flowers Of spring" never wither; the
"glory Of the summer months never fades the "com-
mon feast which boun,eous autumn spreads Is con
tinuous and perpetual and "dresd winter never ex-
tends over this islet his " desolste domain."
Although dninuive conglomerste speck, this KEY
has geographical and commercial prominence snd
importance Through the Florida Straits and within
sight Of the "cupoas Of this Island there foass snn1-
ally property Of the aggregate value Of -Four Hundred
Millions of Dollars; and so long there are currents
and eddies and reefs and shoals along this great CON-
mercial channel 30 long will wrecks frequently occur
in this immediate vicni;y-skng this spot the wreck
ing metropolis Of the Union and designating il IS the
only suitable place for q Southern Nasal Depot and
Fertilization to protect secure and defend ocesnic
commerce.
Florida has q white population Of less than 5000
smaller than any other Of the thryone St4tesyet ST.
Augustine s the Oldest town in the United States. hav
in been founded in 1904 and the City Of KeyWesi'
s the most popuous town in the State and the south
ernmost settlement in the United States.
This city contains about 900 abitAnts, Of which
about 300 slaves LOO are Coaeis and the remain
ing thousand descended from the rest Of mankind"
These Conehs are peculiar specimens Of human kind
2Go miles east Of this upon the other side Of the Gulf
Stream. When fret, or wherefore they were called
CoHchs authentic history has not informed Us. We
know however, that they The descendants Of Eng
lsh emgrsnts and the Royalists Of Georgia and Caro-
lima who settled upon and fed TO the sandy and barren
Bahama Islands. Living there in comparative ndo
lence and dsrcgsrding the laws Of Nature and Of Ma
lures God, by marrying and ntsrmsrrying within the
prohibited degrees OF conssnguiny they have become
distinct class race whom the Almighty has, appar
emily marked with degenerscy Among their children
and they are Iesion-you can only occasionally
cognize an expression feature Of the human face
| divine"
| Many and indeed most of the Bahama Islands, are
quite barren and unproductive and the residents live
mainly upon fish The shelfsh called conch e0Hchd
Astounding it became and is their principal fayorite
food, and hence suppose, they acquired the name OF
ConeAs However this may be, or whether the name
was originally adopted by themselves applied BY
others a nickname it is now and for long period
has been the distinctive reorganization of large por
ton of the Bahamians and upon their native islands,
the conch.she is the abusive picture emblem upon
ell their flags and banners Even at the time Of the
Goyernorship Of the notorious Lord Dunmore, the
name was Familiarity recognized by the Bahauans for
at their party meetings and publications. to petition the
King for his continuance in Office the following sent
ment in doggerel, was favorite:
Here sa health to Lord Dunmore:
The conch is out, the she'll at his door
He who for Lord Dunmore,
He is COnoh, am sure
Tradition slightly aided by fertile Imagination, how
ever, assign to this peculiar people far more
ancient and classical name and habitation NEPTUNE
the God Of the Sea- we are told had numerous prOge
/ by by goddesscs and mortas. TRTToS was his only
son by Amphitrte, and he became sea deity and the
trumpeter to his father Now know that the nstru
ment or "trumpmarine" used by TRrroN to call and
msrshal bis fathers clan, eoEchshd, for Ovid
says:
Triton vocat: ooHoha-que sonorH
Inspure jubet.
And may we not reasonably infer that the clan who
obeyed the call of the loud sounding e0Hchsh, when
blown by the deifed TRIToS were called CoRehs, and
that they the real progenors Of the present diving
amphibious race who rally around and follow the
coNcH sIHLL their armorial ensign, and who are
now distinctly known among men as CoRehsi
The CoscHMES of this day and generation at least
upon this island are a cadaverous sorry, and hshy-
looking genus lOmiHHm. They are proyerbialy
peaceful, honest temperate and religious, but have
none Of the pugnacious energy scheming proclivty'
and perpetual mobility of the Yankees. Their chief
business fishing, sponging, turtling and wrccking
and generally on their own account, and not rs the
"hrelings" Of others The labor which Northern or
Western man performs at dollar day, aud one hun
bred and fifty year the C0Heh regards scribe, and
three dollars per day would rot hire him TO perform
the same labor Their wants are few, and in this aii'
ude and locality easily supplied Their principal food
being feb the around the Key furnish coHtin'
nous and ncxhaustble supply, aud occasional wreck
ing procure for themselves aad families the necessary
clothing bread, groceries, &C.
S0ngiRg Is the gathering Of sponges along the reefs
i'll. slN t,Vo
dollars month is easily earned
Turtling is favorite employment with the C0Hehs
ard so abundant are they that every family upon the
Key. for bit Twelve and half cents) can dine daily
upon fine turtle soup and turtlesteaks. These large
seatortoises are sometimes taken in nets sometimes
by turning" ard sometimes by "pegsing AT Ger
tain seasons they come out upon the beach In large
numbers to deposit their eggs in the sand. AT such
times particularly moonlight nights they are suddenly
approached and arned upon the back, before reaching
the water Ii is a very exciting sport, requiring great
skill as well practice to be successful This 10 called
turning turtle" And "pegging turtle Is equally ex'
citing and requiring more skill and experience lake
stick twelve OF fourteen feet in length insert into one
end pointed STEEL like that Of the shOemakers awi'
and fssten TO II line cord armed with this instru
ment you sail aeng the reets and throw H. harpoon'
fashion a, the turtles back and the steepont seS's 80
firmly in the shell, that turtles weighing 400 pounds
are securely hauled n'-and this Is called "Pegsing
turtle Lsrge pens cribs are built in the Bay, In
which are Kept large supply, constantly on hand Tor
home consumption and expectation
There is portion, and very important and inter.
estinc portion of the wreckDg business, performed
exclusively by the CoRcA meA-it is the diving ana
working under water When vessel bilges and nils
with water or sinks they employed to dire into the
hold of the vessel and there make fast TO and save me
cargo Forty and fifty feet is regarded as good woFA
ing depth of water, and Coneh has been known 70
dive down ninety feet, carrying along ca0ie, anu
make fast to an anchor They are trained 70 a'r'Ns
from esrlv childhood and boys of ten years old win at