The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1878-04-27
CRUISE OF THE OMAHA.

| PILoT-THE ROMANTIC ANDEs- GORGEOUS
| GLACIERS UNRIvALLED sCFNERY-THF
! MOUNTAIN PATHS or TIE GLACIERS -
THEIR PICTURESQUE BEAUTY-yoLCANIC
| PEAKs-THE TURRETED CASTLES OF Oil
BoREAs-FoRT FAMINE OLD ATLANTIC
AT LAST.
| DEAR F.-Although my eyes arc very
| troublesome, yet | will try to tell you some
of the wonders aud few of the beauties
which we have seen during our homeward
voyage. We sailed from Valparaiso, Chill,
January 3rd last and shaped our course
southwark to the Gulf of Penas, or pro
perly speaking, Cape Tres Monies, in lati-
tude Al south and longitude - west, it
! being the intention to run through those
narrow and almost unknown passages called
Messier and Smyth's Channels, which eX-
| tend along the mainland and bounded ON
the outside by chain OF Islands, reach
down to the mouth Of the Straits of Ma
gellan, in latitude So south aud longitude
10 west, rather than encounter the heavy
| gales that generally prevail on the open sea
| in these far Oft regions. The time passed
on as usual, nothing worthy Of note until
about noon of the 18th, when we entered
! the Gulf of Peuas rounded Cape Tres
| Monies, and magnificent inland sea open.
| ed to our view, the land rising bold. and
! beautiful from the clear, calm water to
| thousands of fee. in the blue sky above and
| clothed from base to brow i'll purple and
dark green foliage. Very beautiful it
| looked to ours eyes, as we had met some
very unpleasant. cold, strong winds, and
| rain; but here all was quiet, and although
! the air was chilly the genial and warm rays
of the Summer sun caused our cold and
stitfened limbs to become supple. About
p. NJ. we came to the narrow entrance to
| Messier'S Channel. 1t being mid summer the
sun was yet up and streams of golden light
were reflected from the bosom of the water
| The land Gu both sides of the entrance
towers up TO great height the tops of the
clags and ridges being covered with snow.
forming fitting portal to the mysterious
! roadway beyond. 1t would not strain the
| Imagination great deal to convert it into
| the lurking place Of some old gOd-perhaps
| Neptune himself as II is SO near his wild
| est field of terror--and we might hear a
hoarse call from some cavern commanding
us to heaVe TO and explain our intrusion, in
those sacred waters. Tie appearance OF
the scenery was striking in the extreme.
! The lofty, rugged hills assumed most wild
and fantastic forms, here d great dome,
! there towering steepie, and of yonder a
beautiful spirc, the lower sides OF which
| being wooded were clothed in an imperial
purple robe, while the tops being covered
| with ice and snow glowed like mOiica gold
! Ill the light of the setting sun. Night fall,
! and our road is a most dangerous one but
| our young navigator, who is also our pilot,
and one Of old Cecil county's good sons, -
| Lieut.. Thomas Perry, says he can take
| her through, ana so we run all night and
! by morning were well into the Straits OF
our homeward way. We pass Cracker
| Head, Wander Mullen Inlet, Waterfall Bay,
Coldsclough Inlet, Riches Bay, Conner
Cove, White kelp Cove, Silver Bay all
| in succession; aud as we advance
into the channel, the scenery becomes
holder and grander wilder and more fan
tastic in outline and formation have not
time or space to name all the places and
points of interest, as well as the distances
from one important point to another. in fact
did not Lave an opportunity To collect the
necessary information, and So / will send
you an outline sketch and you can fill in
the picture Give your mag ination the
widest play, it cannot exaggerate We are
sktting along the foot hills of the Andes
and here indeed they show their toughest
front. At about 8 A. NJ, while passing
Seymour Inlet, the sun shining brightly,
the sky clear and blue. with hardly breath
of air stirring, and looking toward the
ridge of glistenng peaks behold, our
Mother Earth is giving birth to young
volcano. The mountain seemed to be
about three thousand feet high and covered
with snow and ice. There being no wind,
the smoke issuing from the crater assembled
heavenward, forming itself into vast coils
as it arose, and it being a highly heated
vapor, when touched by the frosty atmos
phere it became frozen, and iioated away,
a snow cloud of vast proportions. Eagerly
we looked. expecting to see the young fire
demon leap forth, to feel the wild throb
and hear the dreaded rumble of the earth
quake shock: but all was calm and peaceful.
The Smoke has not been seen before and
so we conclude that this is the beginning of
another of those wonderful vents III the
crust of the earth.
About noon we arrived at the most danger
Gus point in our dangerous Journey, it is
called English Narrows.', The channel
here is made very crooked aud very narrow,
by a jutting point on one side and an Island
on the other, We run direct for the island
until our jlb boom almost touches the trees,
:then hard a port the helm" and stand
over for the projecting point, and just here
comes the tug OF war, as we are running
across five mile current. We stand in
to within a hundred feet OF the point and
then put the helm hard starboard but
will she answer her helm? The current
has caught her on the bow and quarter, the
steam had been "bnttled up" ready for
this pinch, all hands are at their stations
to bring ship to anchor" all IS as still as
the grave-no sound save the great throbs
Ia Str nf
and the stern command of " starboard the
helm, hard Il starboard." Hard and
froWning and almost verticle the old cliff
looks, and the ship going at nine miles
speed If she strikes there will be a mass
of splinteTs and bunch of bubbles atlpat
on the dark water, and may be, tonight,
the cold moon will look down on some
white, upturned faces strewn along the
shore, sleeping the sleep that knows no
waking. Calm. and self confident our
young pilot stands, attentivey watching
the ships head. and again calls ont to the
he Inns man, is your wheel hard a star
board ?" "hard a starboard it is sir"
The supreme moment has come, she feels
her helm. her head falls off, and the way
we shoot around that point, brought to
my mind. boyish sorapes in the years gone
by, when we coasted it on the down grade,
round old StanclIi1"s corner.
Again we have clear road. we draw
long breaths, and go down to breakfast.
This is wonderful natural canal, and
must have been intended by the great
Architect to be the calm high road of com
merce, whereby ships might escape the tre-
mendous storms on the open ocean off Cape
Horn. All along its sides are beautiful lit
tie lake-like bays, wherein ships can anchor
when the dark and stormy night comes on;
and as the sides of the hills are covered
with a beautiful evergreen tree, called the
6: antartic beech" there is no scarcity of
fuel, and the glstening waters leap from
every height. A the year round those
lofty crags are covered with ice and snow,
and in the months of November, December