New Orleans Republican. [volume] (New Orleans, La) 1867-1878, 1873-07-12
Especial Correspondence Of the Republican,
OUR SEASIDE VILLAGES.
BAY ST. LOUIS, july II. 1873


by lmparting to every day places and people
an interest which all have felt who appre-
ciate emotion. This preface does not imply
that Bay st. Louis is especially dull or that
Its people vary in any way from the ordi-
nary American average. 1t sits. in one
sense. like Venice on the sea. The tides which
show the tiniest white caps. roll in from
the far tropics, and the wavelet that laps
the sand at your feet may have passed the
La Plata, swept past the Amazon, and es-
Gaping from the gulf stream, lodged into
THIS placid little bay. like other visitors,
fora little rest and recreation. There is
not sail in sight except the fishing smacke.
Except when the trains rush past and thun-
der across the long treesel which crosses
the bay. or save when the numerous lone
hose shays" raise the dust with their glow
ing wheels, nothing occurs to stir the pulse
or quicken the thought Of the stranger
within its gates. And if a stranger did not
owe debt in the world, and was neither
debtor nor creditor for i'll will, if he had
none Of that irrepressible anxiety to be the
richest, or the most distinguished among
men, which haunts 60 many of US Ameri-
cans like . spirit, he could find no more
congenial corner in which to rest and culti-
to all. Here is the breeze and the
shade. and here is the oyster and the POM
pano and sheaphead. The fig is here, with
| the plum and the grape, and the orange,
now a deep dark green, will be along with
his golden coat and luscious juice in good
there being nothing but forest around the
place, there is good cattle range. with game
and milk and butter. From abroad is
brought ice and all the luxurles that the
| outer world can supply and that you can
pay for. But as Eden itself was imperfect,
here is the mosquito; then, in an adjacent
saloon, an amateur, who has evidently been
at some period familiar with the lyric
drama, is reproducing with an extremely
| false baritone some tenor gems from, as
near as can be judged, La Juice. Some one
has arrested him, possibly with an invita-
,ion to drink, and the tranquility of Bay
ST. Louis is again unbroken. and nothing,
we may suppose. would disturb this cor.
pora.e complacency, unless it might be
politics or the posters of big show.
Here comes another train across the
| bridge. There are twenty cars. How such
trade has sprung up along road
! which traverses, in about equal proportions.
marsh, pine barrens that won't even make
decent turpentine. and trestle work, we can
not imagine; but here is the road, active
and at work, and galvanizing Bay St.
Louis a dozen times a day and night, until
it must be set back few miles into the
forest to recover the natural rest and con-
temptation of its good people.
We omitted in it's place to mention one
beautiful feature of the landscape here,
which may have escaped even the observa-
ton of the citizens. 1t is the semi-circular
boundary of the bay. Seen in the evening,
the deep green border around the silver
sea looks like an amphitheatre, with it's
seats robed in green, all ready for some Of
those nautical combats which, you know,
the Romans used sometimes to give.
SOUTHERN VILLAGES.
Il can not be disputed that such scenery,
with the shade and flowers which for miles
embower the dwellings along the single
street of Bay St. Louis, all combine in
charming contrast to the dust Of our ]evee
and the heat Of our banquette. Yet there
is another side to this picture of Arcadia or
Tempe. Here is town with 5000 inhabi-
tarts, many years older than it's namesake
of Missouri with 100000. Il has no COM
merce worthy the naue, employs nobody
in agriculture. shipping OF fabrication.
except in so far as these several occupa-
tions may incidentally conduce to the con-
venience of the inhabitants. This is a pic
.ure of Southern village possessing un-
usual advantages. But from this example
may be deduced the great want of the
South. 1t is the employment OF moneyed
industry. Almost all the villages Of Ala
bama, Mississippi and Louisiana subsist on
the culture and sales of cotton and sugar.
Given, the number of bales marketed at
ary such village and the population may be
inferred. 1t is precisely the number which the
merchants and mechanics Of repairs. and sa-
loon keepers, public officers and professional
men Of the village can maintain with the
share of the cotton and sugar crops which
fall to and is divided among them. Now
can not these village people do something
else besides In other countries they have
no such staples as we have. Switzerland
ha. frozen lakes and perpendicular noun
tairs: Holland reclaims morass and
daily defends it from the offended sea.
The products Of industry are sent by
these people across lands and seas for
exchange against the almost spontaneous
PRODUCTS Of our soil. Within my sight
is the clock and the glass. and within
nv hearing the hand organ Of these
-o;,ers under the glacier and over the
marsh. Here. where intelligent industry
oon,d stretch out its hand to exchange pro-
ducts with the planter, all is apathy and
depeudence. Why is it not done ihere
are none to teach them. The general idea
of .be more intelligent throughout the
South is that politics is a trade whereby an
,a,c;.I right to live at the cost OF others Is
procured. There are none 10 tel 'nese
villa gers that there are a hundred hgn'
+rades bv which 5000 people might be sup
norted. Such facilities OF food material
and market as cluster around county
.eat of the South would. in Germany at
tract and employ many thousands.
There are handicratt trades of wool and
leather, which if adopted would cause any
village to prosper. In the beautiful ana
- 1;++,e town described there are null