Plymouth advertiser. [volume] (Plymouth, Ohio) 1853-1988, 1854-02-04
A Trip 20 the IsthmuS

to to our readers the following exIrse,
from q letter from our friend s. B. CoS-
GER, who left this place in December
las, for California. Ths letter was not
intended for publication, but is none the
worse for that, and we feel certain that
others will derive as much satisfaction
from its perusal as we have done. Ere this,
we presume, Mr.. c. has reached the land
Of gold, where we hope he may succeed
in filling his pockets with ''the rocks. "
The letter was written from Panama
We left New York on the steamer IL
linois. on the afternoon Of the 5lh Of De-
cember. The second day sea sickness
came on board and kept me company ill
we reached Jamaica. The passage was
very rough and stormy, so much so that
our captain lost his course and ran two
days sail out of his way, and when we
reached jamaica we were forced TO lay off
the Island all one night before We could
get into the harbor of Kingston. This
by nature is a lovely place, but the town
is poor miserable attempt, which will
never succeed until the Yankees take hold
of the matter. We lay there "a hours to
AXE in coal and water, and 10 me, it was
a novel sight. On the dock was a large
heap of coal, which was shouldered by
tlack men into tubs (made by saving n
barrel across the middle) each holding so
lbs., then placed on the heads of black
women and carried up into tho ship and
emptied down into the bottom of the ves-
sci. This was he most degrading sigh
| ever Witnessed. Black and while men
with pieces of rope in their hands stood
about and when ever poor wench would
stop or step out of the line, they would
give them cut across the oack, besides
sundry curses in Spanish. On leaving
the dock the passengers are beset with
forty thousand beggars who kept up their
cry as long as any remain on shore. l
saw more begging in that one day than
in the whole course of my life before
We were all glad to get ashore anywhere,
| can assure you, and TO make up for los,
time, we made for hotel TO get some
thing 10 eat. Our fare on board had been
miserable. Afterwards I wandered abou,
sometime and then took hack and rode
back into the country. Here nigh, be a
small paradise ii it were not for the blacks
who were squatted around in their huts or
lying at full length in the shade Of the
orange trees. If their condition was
worse in slavery Ipity them, for more
degraded set of wretches cannot be imag-
ined, But the country is beautiful
flowers in bloom, birds singing. trees in
full summer dress, the air mild and pleas.
an,-rsther warm for US coming as we
did from snow and ice. We rode through
an old Spanish garden which was going
to ruin, but still had some splendid trees
from every country in the world that
would grow there; the flowers and weaker
plants were all gone and their place sup
piled with weeds. A fence of cactus still
surrounds it, some Of the shoots growing
twelve feet high and six inches in diane
ter here / first saw the cocoa~nut tree.
the palm, plantain, and orange, with many
others of which | did not learn the name.
The arrival of steamer is god-se to
this place as by begging, stealing and
overcharging. they manage to realise
something handsome from the passengers,
but wo 10 the poor wretch who gels
drunk iE one of the native houses, for he
generally remains till the steamer sails,
if not forever, and always with the loss
Of what money or valuables he may have
about him. Wednesday, the l4th, we
again sailed for Aspinwall. Weather fine
sea smooth as mirror, aad all hoping for
a good time. During the night, man
who had got DRINK at Kingston. anL con.
.inued so on board. fell down the stair
way, and was so much injured that he
died the next night, and Friday he was
thrown overheard, with weights tied tc
his feet, and down, down, he wen. Who
cared9 No one. He a0as only a steer,
age passenger. Friday, before P. NJ.
we reached the dock Of AspInwall and re
mained there that night. This is new
town built for the trade of California, anc
is poor show Tor city, as it is called
AT 9 o'clock VIC left on the cars for Barba
Goes, which is the present terminus of thu
railroad. 1t passes through flat coun
try, covered with rank vegetation, such a
| should expect 10 see in southern cane
break. fl Barbacoas we found boats i,