The Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1837-1867, 1855-05-26
From the knickerbocker Il
THE MAN IN ARMOR.
4 SKETCH OF WEST INDIAN LIFE,


SKETCH OF WEST INDIAN LIFE
Few sights are so beautiful to Northern
eye as night in the tropics. The suddenncss
OF night-fall; the instantaneous beaming
forth OF those wondrcus stars, 50 apparently
near ; the feeling that earth, and moon and
stars are floating together in lambent e...ner,
ali Is new, wonderful, and beautiful,
Srch were my delicious emotions as | ar
rived after i wearisoIhe sea-voyagc, in the
harbor OF st. Thomas, in the West Indies
As we app. cached the town. the gun fired
from tie fort at sunset, and evcnin. descend
g.. instananeously. Venus. the star of the
night bealncd forth ; not the cold beauty Of
OF: Northern SKY, out the sweet, burning
queen @: the South. Every planet scemeda
echbor: and it was some time before |
could move my eyes from TIE heavens, and
gaze upon the scarcely less beautiful earth.
The town, with its many liShts-always a
welcome sight to the travellers the hilltop
crowned with the buccaneers Tower: the
light, graceful boats Of the negroes. crowdinc
round the ship: their songs in the melarchov
".inor key the warm and tranquil amos
phor". altogether carried NE away into the
land Of rcverie ana dreams. and a Pleasant
!;sngonr and :ndis'inctne:s took possession OF
i;,n.
IAN enchantin. picture" sai. voice De
.iind me. 1t was my friend. the silent Eng
l.hman, As we called hin, Oh board.
Il: is, indeed" was all felt inclined to
say.
"ihe town, rising Ike the codless iror,
the waves: :he palms. tossing their branches
: IN the ar; above. this transcenLent SKY; at
: oar feet, ocean. blue ard brautitul "'
wa, a>tonishr,i to hear nv silent friend
talk on at tins rate, and turned to look =.
him. Ike was pale. sorrowtu. man and
i'h .cd hm 10 be one Of those nvaiids who
Try to piece o.t broken life by retreat to
these ls.iuC,.
: "You are i..":ia: with this part @. til.
world ~ ! sus-cstel
Yes these are romantic places | have
: an estate or one o: them. They give the es
, tatcs very queer names Diamond and Hu
, by is one OF them; 'Prosperi.v.' Mary
| Hope ETC.. etc Nine IS called the Man il
Armor'"
''Ah then yours na> the queercst nam,
yet"
''Ies. and the Quecrcst story: 4 story Of
crime, of misfortune and retribution a me
lo-lramati- story, for West Indian lite is al
mcio-drama. Crime grows here like the
plants which grow in the iungIes. as Wild ant
distorted as they"
In the hustle of landing, lost nv friend
and forgot him, his estate, and his story, un
til the next evening, met him pacing the
piazza OF the hotel, and smoking his secar
We ioined company, and smoke together "a
z:iv watr,iin" tho necrcSse> poi~;nc their bur.
icns on The head, anl walking under then
with the n,a.iestv O, t!ark CIeopatras chant
inc. as they waiAed. their Wild, melanchol,
sonrS.
BY IA" wav," ! remarked: 'yoa spoke Of
yorr eat" ''' night and its history. as if i
were no secret. Might stranger ask tt
hear it, or is it OF private nature :"
"Ch by all means. Every body know
u it. On its own island, it is the f,vo,i.c after
dinner topic ard if YOU will take passag,
with me on the little schooner which tomor
" row night will take NE over to the neichbor
" inc island. will tell it to you by the witch
" inc light of these stars"
" ] accepted with aIacrity. The next nigh,
:, (tor they do every thing in the night in tn
" West Indies y we embarked on a very Graz
- little schooner; and almost repented, whe1
= | saw Our crew. that a foolish desire to hoa
=, story had cause'. me to intrust my prcciou
:. -elf 20 a captain who whistled for the wind
" and who seem'd descended from some Africa
," as himself However, my friend sccme
T. satisfied. and tried to be.
u "iOu know" nv friend bocan "that thes
?" planters generally send their sons toEncan
:" or the United States to be educated, and vo
y have probably some West Indian bov in YOU
+ memory who was the bri sanl, the despera,l
- OF Your class at school. Two bows. Of tn
true type Oh ungoveTned tropcals, left th
" island we are now approaching many yea,
" ago for England. They were placed ;
T. school, and were endured for the sake of thci
'e money which was supposed to be inexhaust.
AZ Die. Philip, the eldest, was somewhat amer
u able to law and order. after time: hut Wi
~ lIam,the younger,put ali authority at defianc,
~ and at length, in fit of passion, stabbed on
y Of the boys.
Before the young murderer could be caurf
he and his brother had efiectually escaped
and the only trace of them was to a neicl
~ borlns seaport, where they were supposed I
- have embarked for home.
Meanwhile the father, whom | shall ca
- Nickars, received from England intellgenc
~ OF this transaction, but no news of his bov
His distress can DC better imagined tha
- described. His wife, Spanish woman, die
under the agony and suspense. All that ";
on left to him was one daughter, Anrunciata,
child OF twelve years. lie sent east an
ar west for his lost children but no tidings can