New-York daily tribune., 1857-04-23
A JOURNEY IN CUBA.
NO. ".
NO. ~.
HAVANA TO TRINIDAD DE CUBA.

Bahupg nlh near tbe theH NOpH -qua''u "''"'
ne hines Of Notifications In the vicinity Of the city
Aae had been rain enough TO sustain verdure, anu
kem this and the irrigation employed In the vslFyT'
Ae crops were in fourishing condition. fu',"''
nnpd there had been scarce any rain since November
and the country looked exceedingly pafche" ~
We were told that the Winter had been of renaIk
.sxsrtv the Thermometer having fallen at some Of the
10 3S1 degree Of cold which haa injured
a. .ane In Havana the greatest cold had peen ~
tn. vsge,stiop was almost entirely new 10 our eyes,
~. "rovalpalm was universally abundant, scattered
An oroves lines and single trees over all the country
m : the taest and most majestic, but not the most
graceful of the palms. Its trunk rises about n1ty
feet from thick base first diminishing, then swelling
N an ungracefl thickness near the middle, then again
s.ntyactpg at its summit From this rises the bright
resn spsthe or bundle of leafstalks, which inclose
.ash other for an additional hight Of six feet Ike the
A,sks OF an car of maize then spread like huge oSrcn
psumes into symmetrical tuit of foliage the iea'eS
hsing ten or fifteen feet in length The fruit Is oone
n heavy grape-ke clusters, hanging al the Junction
Of the gray trunk with the green spathe' Inc leaves
I'm off one AT time the baee OF each iOot-staik ieav-
hs scar or ring around the trunk, which Is marked
With these traces every three or four inches OF It's
hight This thick base of the leaf fatened out INTO
b,osd Dl,te quarter of an inch thick, is used for
ydee boarding at the apex of the roof TO keep the
rain from entering the thatch at its summit. The re-
remainder Of the leaf is used for thatchng often laid
On 10 the thickness of two feet.
A. the old leaf falls of at the base Of the green
spathe, new one appears projecting upward from its
summit among the oder leaves, at first appearing like
tall green spike and gradually opening from its tip
downward Thus a constant succession is maintained,
and through the whole year the green crown is per-
peually growing
The cocoa palm noticed at Key West is planted ex-
&ensveIy Less formal and more graceful in growth
than the royal pam its thin trunks bend far from the
perpendicular its long leaves hang and sway freely in
all directions and its heavy nuts are borne IN dense
clusters at the base of their stalks.
The date palm is but rarely seen; its trunk erect,
covered with rough protuberances where old leaves
have fallen, its green leaves borne in stiff crown
dating in all directions We had opportunity Of
seeing it in fruit.
A fourth palm was less abundant on the line of
days ride than Guines and Matanzas. II is
much like the palmetto in its fanke leaves borne on
long ootstalks but taller and slender, its thin
trunk reaching apparent hight of fifty or sixty feet
The other trees in part green Others bare.
Among those in leaf the mango was one of the most
beautiful strikngly like the horscchesnut in general
FORM and also in density Of foliage, and covered with
clusters of greenish flowers The fruit, said to be
seIlent when mature scarcely yet visible. The
mammee tree, in size like a large oEle-tree bears
dense rounded head of evergreen fhage; the leaves
thick and glossy as those of the magnolia The guava
was seen in orchards and also growing Wild it resen
bles small and slender apple-tree, with thin foliage
Orsngetrees conrasted their rich green leaves with
their heavy crops Of golden fruit; many of the
a Al
ably plenty or cheap. Their usual price five for
a dime The ceiba a conspicuous tree its trunk
colored like the hide of an elephant, and smooth as
that of q young basswood, with slight curve
seventy or eighty feet then spread horizontally into
huge crooked bo.ghs and a Of leafless twigs its
roots were prolonged four or five feet upward from
the ground in fiat buttresses that its base seemed,
at diStapce conical that of the English oak.
similar form is not uncommon i'll our northern elm.
Groves of tall cane stood wet ground, growing in
dense stools clumps OF dozen or two stalks rising
sxty feet and bending outward gracefully as sheat
Of wheat and forming Gothic aies and gToned arches
over the crooked allies between them.
Near Havana fences were few, and horses and cattle
grszed tethered to stakes by long cords; but further
southwark there hedges of species OF aloe, less
stout and rigid than the hothouse species but thorny,
and forming capital fence though too wide, and afford.
ing shelter to vermin They were in some places per-
fectly ovenrn by convovuh, like the common morning
glory, full Of blossoms In the center of the island,
the fences were wemado walls, built OF q ragged, por
sus, yellow limestone.
Batabano is a mere fishing village, with few rail
road buildings standing low marshy shore. At
the end of long pier We found the steamer Rapdo
formerly the St. Lawrence of line intended TO run
from Havana to Vera CRUZ, an Americanbmlt
steamer like those on our akee-clean, roomy and in
good order-but in Spanish hands, with the exception
Of the engineer who, seems always to be the case
both Cuban steamers and railroad engines, was an
American lie Of eleven who came to the
ISLAND two or three years before of whom but five sur
vived the acclmating diseases.
The sea (the Caribbean was smooth, as is usual
onder the southern side of Cuba where the tradewinds
are kept off by the land, aud We ran quietly as on
river Our course lay within sight Of the coast, which
vas all alike low tract Of marshy woodlands, the
green foliage seeming to come down to the water with
out any intervening beach for many miles, but AFTER
ward bright belt of sandy shore was seen. We
passed among many low islands known as the Jardi-
nos covered with wood or bushes but rising scarcely
at all above the One or two were nearly circular,
with pools or lagoons contained within them recalling
The descriptions of the coral atos of the Pacific. The
water was shoal, the bottom plainly visible, and the
sea varying through many shades of color from the
effects of depth, character OF bottom cloud-shsd-
sws, &c.
The table on board most profuse dishes not
only covering the table, bu, piled upon each other
We were doomed, however, notwithstanding this abun
dance of meats to experience the truth Of the old
proverb as to the derivation of cooks for the good
v;apds were generally spoiled by being smohercd in