The Cincinnati daily star. [volume] ([Cincinnati, Ohio]) 1875-1880, 1879-11-10

so very thick that the incongruity does
not strike one as remarkable. Unfortu-
nately, we experience some difficulty In
making ourselves mutually intelligibie;
for our views as to the grammar and pro-
nunciation of the English language do
not entirely coincide, and this drawback
somewhat prevents the flow Of soul that
might otherwise be expected.
But we get on capitally together, in
spite of minor obstacles, for every negro
is good humored and communicative, if
you will merely take the trouble to listen
and answer; while |, for my part, am
glad to embrace the opportunity of
studying comparative psychology in the
concrete whenever / come across my fell
low-man (or fellow-woman) in suitable
positions for rational conversation. Thus
we managed to strike up quite friend
ship by the time we reached my friends
house; and actually went so far in my
generosity as to present Clemmy with an
extra shilling over and above her exorbi-
tant bargain, on the distinct understand
ing that she should come up the hill
again to carry my luggage down on the
return trip-which l need hardly say she
never did. The whole family doubtless
paid for board, lodging, washing and to-
bacco for an entire month out of my
nine shillings; and can venture to as
sert that neither Clemmy nor her great
hulking husband did another stroke of
work Of any sort till every penny Of it
was spent.
And the road? And the scenery9 Well,
| have more than once admitted that /
am somewhat prejudiced against the
tropics, but I freely allow that the
Port Royal Hills are beautiful. A
narrow horseback, often scarce
ly distinguishable, curves and zigzags
round the spurs of the hills, opening at
each turn new and more extensive pano-
ramas in the deep green valleys below.
They say that Queen Isabella, the Catho-
lie, once asked Columbus to give her
some idea of the new island which he had
discovered, and that the old sailor
crumpled up piece of note-paper in his
sunburnt fist, laid it down on the table,
and said, That is Jamaica Whether
the story is true or not, it affords a very
good description of the country. jana
lea is one great tangled network of noun
tains, intersected in every direction by
valleys and gorges, which look as though
some huge giant had crumpled the plas-
tic rock in his fist, just as Columbus
crumpled the sheet of paper. To get
from one point at the foot of the hills to
another point some five miles off in a
straight line, as the crow flies, but per-
haps a few thousand feet above you, one
must wind round ten or fifteen miles of
iutting shoulders, and cross half-a-dozen
intervening gullies. Newcastle the
chief military cantonment, CLEANS like a
white streak on the mountain side Just
across yonder valley, and should guess
by an English standard that it might
take me some twenty minutes to ride
over the distance between it and me !:
but | now know that couple of hours
will hardly suffice to circumyent all the
twisted wriggles of the path, Or to foil up
and down all the intermediate
ascents and descents of the weary road.
Yet weary it can not really be, while
such lovely prospects keep opening out
afresh at every turn. The hills on either
side, above and below-for we are steadi-
ly winding along the steep slope, with q
precipice rising over us on one hand, and
a precipice yawning beneath US on the
other-are thickly clad with an exquis-
ite covering Of tropical ferns, huge
club-mosses, and matted underground OF
lesser vegetation. Here and there, in the
valley below, a great cotton-tree rises
from its buttressed trunk, and reras wide
into the sky its massive branches, pen
dent with the thick grey lichen which ne
groes graphically know as old mans
beard On the rounded bosses of the hill,
above, groves of mango-trees spread theil
thick shade; and through the dense foil
age the pink-cheeked fruit CLEANS az
beautifully as the apples in Devonshire
orchard-not more beautifully however
I must stoutly assert, for nothing tropi
cal will ever shake my allegiance to the
loveJiness of our own dear English soil
Then the broad-leaved banana bushes, the
great-slender cocoa-nut palms, the occas
ional tree-ferns, the rarer mountain-cab
bages, the monstrous aloes, with Their
huge spike Of yellow blossoms reared like
a may-pole to the clear sky overhead, the
very negro huts that we pass at different
intervals, surrounded by crimson hibis
Gus trees, and fanked by struggling
patches Of haf-uncultivated yam and
coffee plantation-all these go together
to make up a picture which is like Q
strange fairyland to one who sees it fol
the first time.
But even this is not the tropics of oul
imagination. 1t is beautiful, it is quaint
it is luxuriant, but it is not "all oul
fancy painted it," You remember the
painting in "Enoch Arden;;" you re-
member the lines in "Locksley Hail."
Larger consultations burning, mellow moons and
happy skies,
Breadths Of tropic shade and palms in cluster
knots OF Paradise.
Never comes the trader, never floats an European
flag
Slides the bird oer lustrous woodland, swings tht
trailer from the crag;
Drops the heavy blossomd bower, hangs thu
| heavy-fruited tree
Summer islcsof Eden lying in dark purple spheres