Morning journal and courier., 1881-01-10
Price Four Gents.

but no such thing would ever be known if
 they would just let Gods free air in An other trouble among the colored people is } known as the sleeping disease,' the tenden- cy being to sleep constantly until the day
 comes when 1t comes to be the long, long
 sleep. Nassau is sadly lacking in nice drives
 The hotel prospectus says Nassau has the
 finest drives in the world, but that's a woful
 mistake, something else. Nature has done
 so much for the place that the
 result, and while fine roads might be laid
 out and delightful drives arranged, the ques-
 ton asked every day, 'Where shall we drive
 to-day ?" has for the answer, ''Oh, the same
 as usual, to the eastward. There is a vast l difference between this place and Bermuda,
 which, while only one-quarter the size of ! Nassau, has 125 to 150 miles of very fine roads. There is a very pleasant drive to Blue Hills, (through Grants Town), where l you find Captain Ightbourns fine planta- ] tion of P, GOO orange trees, or west to MT. Johnson's pineapple plantation, ill the vicini- ] ty of which there is a sugar mill for grinding sugar cane and a little farther on, over rougher road, to the Killarney lake. The ] eastern road is the principal drive winding l for four or five miles by the water front, un- l til you reach Fox Hill,- when you return, | either by the shore road or one further in- l land.
 The sponge trade is very large interest | here, to the extent of $200, 1000 annually. 1 About 500 small vessels, averaging from l twelve to fifteen tons each, are engaged in it. l They leave Nassau and are gone from three I to six weeks, coming back laden with sponges. These were formerly obtained by diving, Enow almost altogether by hooks. The vessel on | it's return to Nassau is unloaded at the sponge wharf, where at Il a.. m. daily the many lots | of sponges are sold by tender to the highest | bidder. Oftentimes there will be over $1, ,O0O worth of sponges on the wharf in one morn l ing. The bidder puts in his tender, then, when all have been received, the auctioneer announces publicly to whom the different lots fall. At once teams are set at work taking them to the sponge houses, and by night the wharf is cleaned and ready for next days consignments. At the sponge houses, the sponges are put through the following pro- cess Bleaching, clipping, drying, asserting and packing. There are seven different vari- cites shipped. all coarse, the most valuable being worth but $1 per pound, while from the Mediterranean Sea there are brought sponges worth $60 per pound. The business is much greater in Nassau during the sum mer than the winter.
 Another large item for all the Bahamas is the pineapple trade, also about $200 GOO per annum Shipment of these commences April 20th to May 1st. Much attention is now being paid to cocoanut tree paintings. These trees grow readily on any of the islands, require cultivation after they are once we'll started. bear in seven or eight
 
 ite period, and the net profit for each tree is between four and five dollars. Some of the trees grow to great height and make land marks for vessels One gentleman in Nassau has B. 500 of these trees, about three years old, and another has just purchased POO acres of land in one of the out islands, which he proposes to stock extensively with them. They are planted twenty-five feet apart and make beautiful grove.
 There are small settlements in Nassau oc-
 I. II. ~ Her De Bayo, was instrumental in establish / ing ''polo" club, which plays, and quite well, every Wednesday. There is also a ''footbalr' game every Friday, and to these many of the strangers go as something to help pass the time. Once in a while too, the colored boys get up game of ''base ball. the main interest of which is that they evidently have their hands greased for the oc- casion. I had the privilege to be in Nassau Christmas day. This is, to them, tue day in en the year, and preparations are made for it's celebration, privately, days and weeks in advance. About two ill the morning of Christmas day at the Royal Victoria were awakened by a serenade from the brass band (eight pieces). It was very good as far it went, and there was really enough of it, such as it was. About six or seven o'clock some of us took walk down to the market. Bay street was fairly packed with colored people about 2,000 3,000-with no apparent purpose but to see and be seen, everyone ar rayed in his or her -'store clothes, y and general feeling of jollity in the air. Occa- sionally eight or ten ''horribles' would gal lop through the crowd, and then they would all howl and chase them. About nine o'clock quiet relgned and the people had dispersed to celebrate privately. It a great day for firecrackers (our Fourth of July over again). The churches were all open, and the cathedral (EpiscopsD was finely trimmed. The saddest part was the great amount of drunkenness. never many people Gall black, men and women) drunk in so small a place. The celebration was contn- ued during the next week, every day small crowds of nlasqueraders parading the streets with drums, tin horns, etc., and invariably asking for money. Tin horns were the fla vorite instruments of torture on Christmas day, and the success with which they were handled and the din they made would have filled Yale student with envy.
 The matter that creates the greatest interest in Nassau, at any time, is the arrival of the New York steamer. There was an interval Of month between arrival and the next steamer, so were as anxious to see her as anybody, particularly so as we had not heard from home during that time. This time the steamer arrived in the evening, just at the full moon, and when she whistled mile or so out it seemed to the whole town, and the wharf soon full of people. Every steamer brings out load of provisions for Nassau and Matanzas, and on the return takes sugar from Matanzas and fruit from Nassau. The English steamer arrived two days after Christmas, two weeks overdue, and she had many cases of Christmas goods on board the shopkeeprs were greatly disappointed, but her non-arrival en- abled them to clear out their old stock. A schooner came in a few days ago with full cargo of spars from Nova Scotia They had heard of the hurricane in August in Jamaica and thought it might have reached Nassau, so came there but found no market.
 The paOOla of Nassau (NasSa11riaDs they are called) are very social, warm-hearted, hospitable people. I was in their homes, their churches and their schools, and made many very pleasant friends. My visit on the whole was very agreeable and was enjoyed more from the fact that I was able to do something for the enjoyment of the citizens. conducted thirteen services of song" in nine different chapels and halls and had the pleasure of receiving many earnest requests to come again. That I shall not be likely to do unless my nerves get unstrung pretty badly, and in that case know of no better place to be put in good shape again than at Nassau or the Bahamas. c. B. Willis. Saved by a Dog-A Faithful Animals
 Snsacity.
 The fire in St. Marys block, Chicago, on Wednesday morning, is worthy of a further mention on account of the conduct of dog The only occupants of the building were T. LluCO1u, OL OOOGS duQ 6nO66, his wife, and their faithful dog, Jack. The dog discovered the fire, broke his chain, and making for the door where MT. and Mrs Lincoln were asleep, yelled and howled fu- riously. Finally, bursting open the door, Lincoln was awakened by the animal licking his hand. The room was full of smoke, and escape by the stairway cut on. Opening the window, MT. Lincoln saw fireman be- low, and threw him his pocketbook, contain ing $193, with business papers and insurance, placed his wife outside on the ledge, and climbed out himself, hanging on swinging sign fully twenty minutes before the firemen could get a ladder up to rescue them. whole window sash fell on him, cutting his hands and face. Both MT. and Mrs. Lincoln were badly scorched by the flames shooting out of window. The dog was also saved, but was badly burned.
 Beauty Before Age,
 An amusing incident occurred on Cleve- land street car the other day. A woman of fifty, made up to look about twenty five years old, got aboard at a crossing to find every seat occupied. She stood for mo- ment, and then selecting a poorly dressed