The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1869-08-01

g
S saif that Is French Here beside us are
frc dozen bury fellows throw ng salt with shoveis
asoost 70 s mp, ssaS aer labor Win sne
tor the song pleasant ana they throw their shOveI
tui OF salt only with tine cadence. That 10 TO say,
less musical principles would throw four; and. as
they more intent ON the song Than the salt, The
shovel Is never SO iuii az 1t might be. Thus singing
hghtens labor.
come houses and hill together and there before us ~
ST. Pierre. 81. Pierre IL properly named. IL ~ y
stone bare sterile with iorbidding and utterly IN
hosptable aspect, when seen; but mostly unseen In
ID It's mantle OF fog lies IKE huge boulder su0.
meraed below II has not even that magnificent
vocanic rift and rupture OF stone gives TO many an
island In the sea. That sort OF island seems 70 stand
up eloquent with its defiance Of the elements. ST.
Pierre though there IL enough high land on 1t,
The streets Of the town slspe up from the waters
edge to tOerably steep declivty Of the mountain
SIDE They cross at right angles with the regularity
OF Philadelphia, and except for that one TACT are
completely French in style and tone-picturesque
quaint lively nlthy, and, after day or two. mo-
notonous. Looking up or down one OF these queer
alleys one finds himself reminded OF streets In the
older part OF Montreal or quebec, and cannot put
fancy that very much what Quebec was III the days
OF Montcalm st. Pierre Is now. Here - convent:
there IL the Governors house; there again the nos
pital near 1t the church, and no limit can DC mxed
to houses of entertainment. There Is the Gale bar
ritz, the Cafe J0invlle the Cafe Granvilais, and 80
on. Every house has its sign. Houses that are not
Gales are shops where there IS bewlderlng assort-
drink more KINDS OF liquid from more Kinds OF cups
than at any other place In the known world.
h he '1W owl as ehep sHes Ssvaed 70 the
salaison'-salting the fish that Is made here-anu
dotng the rocks everywhere Is seen stacked up Inc
harvest OF the country Viewing these STACKS IRON
no great distance one might readily suppose tins
harvest was hay or grain; out It is all hsn Inc
spit fish laid out hat are put with their tails to-
gether so tnat the circumference forms circle
more or less regular, and the structure. 30 begun Is
carried up three or four feet high; and the fish,
hay When the sun shines II Is spread out on the
stones to dry but the weather s such as to threaten
ram, then 1t Is hastily gathered up into the little
mounds stacks and closely covered ana wrapped
with canvas or other weather-proof material
StPlerre has no public library no booksellers shop,
place Of rational amusement no places OIL public
resort the socaiied cafes. Brandy Is very cheap
horrible climate 1t Is somewhat matter Of surprise
thai OF all parts OF France the part best represented
ontnumber all others Faces are less Frenca than
Spanish. Blazing black eyes, CRISP, thick jetty hair
and olive skins are the rule among the little girls
IN the cafes, and when the people, in speaking,
desire relief from the formaty OF French and the
awkwardness Of English they take refuge in Basque.
BASQUE ~ spoken here as commonly as Gaelic IN
Cape Breton.
iumblng down from the mountain behind the
town comes little stream that In Its Journey among
the rocks forms many picturesque pool, and hther
the women OF the village resort to wash their Clothes
Each one carries sort OF tub that Is used however,
quite otherwise than tubs In other countries. Laun
dresses generally put the clothes IN the tub, but in
ST. Pierre the women get in the tub and the clothes
|
pool and the woman gets inside to keep dry, as she
leans over and bathes the garments IN the clear
water ner WasaoSard y SORT 0 naa coage wa
stone, and then as each piece is rlnsed Is spread
out on the grass near by to bleach Babies and dogs
play meanwhile among the rocks. and altogether the
scene ~ not without a certain charm OF the quaint
and lanciiu
ONE OF THE INSTITUTIONS.
The advertising medium OF the place is n town
crer, who beats drum with stately sense OF ms
Importance. This functiOnary tramps from street TO
thus, having attracted attention, reads his ad-
vertisement This ~ martial and effective mode
of calling attention to the cheapness Of cheese and
the plentifuness Of shingles. As happens with
other advertising media tins worthy also the gene
street at the dead Of night beating an awakening
rattle that Gabriel himself may ger hint from, and
you thrust your head OF the window 10 ind that
some Ones house Is on fire.
CABLE PREPARATIONS.
To this place the Great Eastern was To come
There fury OF excitement to see her. In
talking ab0ut her and her expedition so many Eng
lish words had 10 be used Tor want OF French equiv
however OF the characteristic enthusiasm of French
for all things French IL was little strange TO
note the apathy with which they heard Of the Cabie
greater interest in the event.
At about the same time the Great Eastern went to
Brest with the cable two separate forces left Eng
land Tor ST. Pierre to facilitate the great labor by
Oae was force Of men charged especially with the
construction, the other q force OF operators.
Ss rhess s ,send Which, Consists Of two
houses one '.n town" and one on the western
shore at rAnse st. Pierre tSt. Peters covel: The
house In town is chateau an establishment OF more
architectural pretenson than any other edifce here
and all visitors will undoubtedly take it for the
Governors residence. 1t Is christened SOlOmOn's
Temple Here all the members will reside. and the
rooms already fitting with furniture from Boston.
Here also VIII be the instruments and the general
operating establishment
The house at pAnse ST. Pierre is called the Cable
House. II Is at a very wild spot, on the northwest
coast. looking towards the island OF MiQueOn. Here
the highest land on the island slopes suddenly
down the sea, the slope covered thickly with the
matted, inextricabe, sparse vegetation vouchsafed
by the niggardly SOIL At the base OF the rocks the
sea breaks with terrible fury but one uttng cape OF
the bare stone reaches 200 300 yards
the course IN which the breakers drive np and TINS
keeps tue space behind In comparative quiet At
tins point, In the more quiet water, the cable goes
down to the sea.
on the land Immediately above this little cove
stands the cable house small, substantial struc.
ture built of the stone abOunding 81 the place and
finished within as to afford comfortable accommO
datiOn in the severe weather to the person who
NAV be called thither by any mishap. From this
cable house trench IA cut across the mountains to
Solomon's Temple In TO wn and in this trench is TO
ments there This wire is not less than three miles
long. The laying down OF the shore end here was
begun on the 4th of July. This viii answer all the
better for an omen, because 1t was quite uncon-
sci0usy done. No patriotic fancy induced the choice
OF that day above any other, Tor directors and labor
ers were all Englishnien and Englishmen who take
pains not TO he suspected OF the weakness OF com
plimcnt lest 1t should compromise their dignity.
or the shore end proper, cable weighing twenty
tons TO the MILE there Is but five miles. But beyond
this there is twenty.nye miles q wnat Is called an
intermediate cabc-smailef than the shore end.
heavier than the ocean line. All this thirty miles
was laid by the steamer william Cory and buoyed at
the outer end to await the arrival OF the Great
Eastern.
This part OF the work was completed BY the 10th.
and then all was IN readiness should the Great
Eastern arrive to take up the shore end buoy aud
complete the labor by merely splicing the two
cables. To facilitate this completion the Cory and
the Guinare laid 10 out at near 10 the buoy await
Ing the Great Eastern, who thus would only have To
ind these steamers and not the buoy "a precaution
emlnenty necessary In a sea constantly more or less
blinded with foQ.
ARRIVAL OF THE STEAMER.
On Tuesday July H. it was announced from the
signal station on the island that the Great Eastern
was In sight, apd there n general muster OF
1shng boats and scho0ners for u trip or twenty
miles out 10 see her. Viewed from the deck OF a
uftp scnoonpr there n sea The ureat shin woo IN