The Hickman courier., 1873-07-05

are offered. and the ladies leave by the
great door of the church, where the
carriages. summoned 10y the shouts OF
the attendant foot-men, await them
while the gentlemen, indulging IN most
worldly conversation, scrutinize at lei
snre tbe toilets and salute the wearers.
A foreigner who happened to light upon
such a scene might well imagine himself
witnessing the dispersion Of an audi
ence which had been attending the first
representation of new play.
Glimpses OF the Gulf.
A Travellers Thrilling rale-Cast Up by
In Ligpincosts for 1ne terrible re-
given by traveller, who, sailing IN
fishing smack with the hardy fishermen,
fell upon a strange adventure, which he
relates as follows Suddenly the travel
er fancied he heard cry, but the fish
erman said no, it was the scream of wa
ter-fowl or the shrill call of an eagle
far above, dropping down from the
blue zenith and they sailed on. Again
he heard the distant cry, and was told
cf the panther in the bush and wild
birds that drummed and called with AL
most human intonation; they sailed on
AGAIN. But again the mysterious,
troubled cry arose from the labyrinth
of green, and the traveller entreated
them to go in quest Of it. The fishers
had their freight for the market, delay
would deterrioate it's value but the
anxious traveller bade them put about
and he would bear the loss. 1t was well
they did. There, in the dense coverts
of the sea-swamps, amid the blacklsh
water-groths and grasses, they found
man and woman, ragged, torn, starved.
For nine days they had had no food but
the soft pith of the palmetto, coarse
mussels, or scant poison berries, their
bed the damp morass, and their drink
the blackish water, and they told the
wild and terrible story Of Last Island.
Last Island was the Saratoga and Long
Branch of the south, the southermost
watering place in the gulf. Situated on
a fertile coral island enriched by innu-
merabl eTffocks of wild fowl, art had
brought its wealth of fruit and flowers
TO perfection. The cocOanut-palm,
date-palm and orange orchards con-
trasted their rich foliage in the sunshine
with the pineapple, banana, and the
.,sch soft turf of the mesquit grass.
| The air was fragrant with magnolia and
orange bloom, the gardens glittered
with the burning beauty of troDi"~'
flowers, jessamine thicketss balm Owe.
GUS grape arboEgte cottages iestooneu
! s,n ,no,T--.l Wili'0 chalet or Chi
sun :..1S;nes. with curying ca,Ss .lsd a arbors
and shadowy retreats OF espallers prev
- ..,,,.,i srr.srs, and fafr shining
hotel in the midst, with arcades and
porches and galleries, the very dream
of ease and luxury, as delicate and trim
as if made of cut paper in many forms
of prettiness. Here was the naoobs
retreat; in this balmy garden OF delight
all that luxury, art and volumPtuous
desire could hint or hope for was col
leeted : and nothing harsh or poor OF
rugoed Jared the fullness Of its luxu-
rious case.
,,.o,, ACTIVE LIFE TO SUDDEN DEATH.
Ten nights before, its fragrant at
mosphere was broken into beautiful
ripples by the clang and harmony OF
dancing music. 1t was the night OF
the "hop." The hotel was crowded.
Yachts and pleasure vessels pretty as
the petals of flower tossed on the wa
ter. or as graceful shells banked the
shores: and the steamer at twilight
came breathing shert, excited breaths
with the last relay, for it was the
height of the summer season. In their
LIGHT. air dresses as the music swan and
sung. bright-eyed girls hoated IN grace
ful waltzes down the voluptuous waves
Of sound, and the CLEAN of light ana
oslor was like a butterflies ball. The
oueeply lucious night sank deeper and
lovers strolled in lamp-hghted arcades'
and dreamed and hoped Of life ike
that the fair existence Of love and
neace and so till, tired OF play, sleep
and rest calm in the small hours. Hush
All otonce came the storm, not, as IN
northern latitudes, with premonitory
rourmur and fretting, lashing itself by
slow degrees into white heat and ram
I,,t the storms of the tropics, carrying
the sea on its broad, angry shoulders
till reaching the verdurous, love cius-
tered little isle, it flung the bulk OF wa
ters with all its huge, brawny force
right upon the cnt-paper prettlnesses'
and broke them into sand and sp1nters
Of all those pretty children with oln'
T ana with opalescent eyes, arrayed hA'
flowers of the field; of all those lover
! dreaming of love in summer dalilanoe
and of cottages among figs aud olives
Of all the vigorous manhood ana ZIP
n womanhood. with all the skill an
, ao,,,.o,e of successful life in them, nc
, a tithe was saved. The ghastiy ma"
l. the waters covered them and swaliowe
Ii them. A few sprang, among crashin
4 +imbers. ON floor laden with lmPe''
l. ons water. the many, perhaps, new
wotad at all. or woke to but one sho
E nrover The few who were saved mar
- ly knew how they we're saved =
n many who died never knew no" TN
nu were slain or drowned. The pair lou, lou,
ne m by our fishing-smack, were weal'l
~ rIanter and his wife. For nine DAYS
- starvation and danger they haa cru
- together. When think OF the n'
30 - bands manly care in thus abiding
ror his wife, 1 find it hard to reconcne
- - with the fact that he only valued
s's life and hers at few dollars.
to enough to compensate the traveller
nee the loss incurred as demurrage 70
md fisherman. Now, Last Island Is Du'
md low. sandy reef, on which few sur
nk. cling fruit trees try to keep the ren'
nks brance of it's bygone beauty. Is -
she hare and desolate as the bones OF va
to who filed its halls in the caeaciy 9nl
in that dreadful night, bones when
the waste to whiteness on sterile shores
ical are wrought into coral IN the unoei
ully -.