The news and herald. (Winnsboro, S.C.) 1877-1900, 1880-03-11
West India Docke.

You approach the West India Dock!
through the Great Eastern Railway Com
pany's terminus at Fenchurch street; ant
nowhere in England are railway appoint
ments more abominabe. Greasy platforms
under rickety sheds; trains like that ''srne
of secondhand eotfins" in which Artcmu>
Ward travelled to the south; servants who
look as II they had been rugged out 1T ran
dom by contract with the second hand slop
dealers in Houndsditch The mixture OF
your fellow passenger is picturesque, though
you may be surprised to meet most of them
In flrst-cass carriages; and already you arc
conscious of some reflections of the sunshine
OF Eastern lands. The diamond that adorns
tho middle finger of that shipbroker oppos,
itc has barbaric look; and the talk of the
gentleman in shaggy pilot cloth, with the
slight gold circlets in his rosy ear, IS Of reefs
In the Red Sea and tho bars of Chinese riv-
ers. 1t is characteristic by the way that
ho presses full favored MANILA on the
good d-humorod woman who is huggcd under
his arm and who is evidently his lawful
wife; while as for the lady, she bites the
end Of the cigar as if she were used to it,
and laughingly proceeds to light the weed
at her lords. The steep descent from tho
platform Of the dock station is like diving
down the companion hatch into the fore
castle, except that you emerge into space
and comparative light. The sun is blinking
teebly through a watcry log, and as yet the
scene is intensely British. There is a cease
less roll of heavy traffic on tho thorough
fares; the driver of the trucks and wagons
and frollios arc swearing with Anglo Saxon
energy as they choke in the gulf stream bo-
fore tho narrow bridges; there are gangs Of
laborcrs busy under the cranes that crcal
hoarsely from the dock lofts overhead. AS
you pass the gates where the policeman
stand sentinel, tho first appearances arc de-
cidcdly depressing Considering the damp
that pervadcs the murly atmosphere, you
do not wonder that the adjacent public
houses arc doing a lively trade. Dimly
through the veil of vapor you distinguish
tho masts and spars of the tier of shipping
while the solid cordage of their rgglngs
shows like the delicate traccry work in 4,
cobwcb.
But, in connection with the East, what
strikes orc most in the docks nowadays
especially in tho Victoria Docks--is the en-
ormous number of Oriental seaman. All
tho steamers passing through tho Suoz Canal
arc manned by crews of Lascars; and tho
Canal and tho Lascars together have wrought
complete revolution in the Eastern traffic.
Within the memory Of man it has passed
through three distinct stages. First were
the goldon days Of tho lGnst India Company s
navy, when happy officials were shaking
the pagoda tree, and lrcghts vi priceless
value were being shipped from Il country
that was popularity believed an lei Dorado
The very pickings Of the trade were 50 val
liable that captain could gam Compet-
ency in single trip; and VIC believe that,
after making tue fortune that three voyages
insured him, ho was compelled to retire in
favor Of his Juniors. Tho camc Wnghorn and
his exploration of the Overland route, and
the establishing of the Pcninsularand Orient
al Company. The men who used TO furnish
their cabins sumptuously for the long voy-
ago around the Cape, who used to victual
themselves with all manner OF private de-
licacies and lay in cases of wine nnd casks
OF acratcd waters, were precisely those TO
whom time seemed valuable and who did
not gludgc the prices of the new route The
Pcnlnsuiar and Oriental Company for years
had monopoly of aristocratc business
"hd, it may be snid. they we'll deserved it.
If they charged hig they gave value for
the money in the sha q Of swift and pune
tual passages, with every reasonable luxury
The passage paid, you travelled en- 1y'uhd
Seigncur. 1t gladdencd tho heart of the
shareholder after tho railway had been
opened across the lsthmus, to see the crowds
OF passengers ut the meeting Of the tides
that ovcrflowed the hotel accommodation of
Alexandria. And, though their vessels
were built for tho accommodation of pass
cngcrs, what freight they carricd-in handy
little packages of silks and musins--w,s
extremely valuable. III. Icsscps, in his
character OF cosmopolitan bcncfactor knock
cd that lucrative monopoly OH the head.
ucnccforth the company had to compete
with rival associations whose steamers had
been built especially for the canal trade.
1t has been forced to rebuild its fleets. re-
duco its charges, cut down tho salaries and
pay OF lis employees, and man it's ships with
l'ascars on both sides of the lsthmus, The
public generally have cause to be graf crul,
except Tor tho single drawback that the
comfortable old paddle boats are done away
with 1t must ho allowed, however, that
several OF tho newest vessels, such ns the
kaSer'i-llind, with her saloon that can oinc
lSOpasscngers, herspacious sleeping cabins,
and her ten bath rooms, arc magnificent.
And tho Kaiser, for example, is built tc
carry 5000 tons of cargo without in any
way affecting her speed. 1t used to be sad
that the lascars were irritable and revenge.
full, SO that they wcro generally kept in q
minority in tho crew. SO far, however, il
has been found i'll practice that they arc
sober and amcnablc to discipline Bu,
tho first thing done with thom is to deprive
them of tho knives they carry. They arc
oorthcd tier ovcr tier in great saloon in the
lorecasllc, screened off from the quarter.
masters cabins behind by canvas that may
DO raised for purposes OF supervision. They
include men Of ali the manlicr Indian races
sikhs, Pathans, and Afghans among tn,
rest-and no fewer than 1870 of then
have been passed already through the books
OF the Pcninsular and Oriental Compan;
alone.
CheuN Nyay To f:ct ., xvu,