Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1881-07-16
A PECULIAR PEOPLE.
Queer Ways OF Living on the Hatteras Banks
Hogs and Cattle.

From the Raleigh News and Observer
| The people OF this region are of an amphibious
nature, and live so much on and i'm the water
that most of them, I am sure are web-footed.
They live mainly on fish. clans oysters crabs.
terrapins. and wild fowl. When they leave home
they 90 in a boat, and whether they 20 to court
or 90 counting. or TO trade. or to MILL or to a
funeral, they always go 10y sail. Their corn mills
are run by sails. and some of them pump their
water with windmils. They don't go up stairs,
but ''go aloft:" and when they 20 to bed they
! turn in:" when they are i'll they 'are under
! the weather. and when i'm robust health
! they say they are 'bun@ up and bilge free"
/ They speak Of trim-built sweetheart as
! clipper-buit." If she is little stout they
says she is broad in the BEAM" or she lie wide
across the transom." Many Of them have ships
cabin doors in their houses that slide on grooves
and to their buildings they give a coating of tar
| instead of painting them. The ''old woman"
blows a conch shell when dinner is ready and
| they measure time by bells Their babies are
not rocked in cradles but swung i'm hammocks.
They chew black pig-tail tobacco, and drink q
wild tea called .'Yeopon." They manure their
land with sea grass and bury their yam potatoes
in the sand hills. When they want the doctor
they hang a red flag against hill side as a sig
nal of distress. If he don't come, because the
wind amt fair" they take dram of whisky
and copperas. soak their feet in water, turn
in" and trust to luck. III they die they will be
buried on the top Of a sand ridge; and when you
see several sail boats on the water i'm procession
. with a flag at half mast. you are looking at q
| funeral
They ornament their houses with whales ribs
and jaws, sharks teeth. swordfsh snoots, devil
fish arms sawfish swords (siy feet long,, minia-
tnre ships camphor-wood chests Honduras
gourds, spy glasses. South American lariats,
war clubs from the Mozambique islands, Turk
ish pipes, West India shells, sandal-wood boxes,
Chinese chessmen Japanese faces. Madagascar
idols. Australian boomerangs and other strange,
outlandish things. Their hogs are rased on
CLAIMS. mussels. offal OF fish and garbage. and
| their cattle wade out on tile shoals for miles,
! where the water coTers their backs to feed on
sea grass and if they are carried up-country
and fed on corn and fodder, they viii not live.
| Every man is captain of some kind of o boat,
and ''she" is always better than any other boat
| in some way. ''She is hard 10 beat i'm a gale OF
wind" or ''5cfore the wind" or beating to
windward. OF with the wind on the beam" or
"she can sail closer to the wind, or ''wil carry
sail longest" or ''hard TO beat i'm light wind"
or totes more stock" or is stronger" or
dryer, or bigger" 'she is big little boat,
or draws the least water" or needs less bal
| last, or ''she is the newest" or has the best
timbers or steers the best. or ''she Is lucky
boat, or stands up better" or needs less sail
than any other boat" or "sie is best for fishing
&c. Perhaps Isle comes about better than any
| other boat" She If bourd to have something
about her better than anybody else's boat.
A CORRESPONDENT of the Pal Mall Gdzet.e
! writing from Gotha. Germany. describes the
Cremation Hall i'm that place, with the exception
| Of Milan. the only one in Europe. Ii was built
two and half years ago, and since that time the
bodies of fifty-two persons, including five women,
have been ineinerated. The correspondent
writes: Mine aours of preliminary preparation
are nee ,ssary: and il must be explained, in order
to remove any feeling Of repugnance on the part
Of the reader. that the body is not burned in
flame, but is reduced to ashes by air heated to
600 deg. Reaumer. Two hours eapse before the
ashes are coected-six pounds being usual in
the case of a man. four i'm that of a woman. As
/ have before said. the process is not visible and
Is SO scientific that every element of horror is
eliminated. The ceremony takes place in silent
solemnity, only the necessary officials and one
or two near relatives being admitted. think
few visitors will visit this cremation hall without
being deeply impressed in favor of a system SO
advantageous 10 the living and it must be ad-
mitted-at least of France and GeIInany-also
advantageous to the dead. Here. as in France.
the law eompels such prompt internent that in
many cases it has been known to take place
before the breath had left the body. In Algeria
have known personally victim Of this misap-
prehension; and my German friends all speak 10
me in warm terms Of the new system as ire
ture burial"
DOMESTIC DANGER SIGNALs.-On the subject
OF domestic management / may quote a rccipe
FOR avoiding family quarrels which | think NAV
larry ciaim credit for good sense. IL was given
me by an old man as invented and practiced by
couple whom he used to know. down .-Chid-
dlng-lye' way. ''You see sir" he said. they'd
agree between themselves that whenever he
came home little contrary and out Of tsm-
per. he wore his hat on the back of his head ana
then she never raid a word; and if she carle in a
little Grass and crooked. she threw her shawl
over her left shoulder. and then lac never said q
word III simiiarly wise danger signals could b
pretty largely used. how many unnecessary col
lisioas would ke avoided. and how many a hong
train OF eyi consequences wsaid De .aisiv STUNT
cd till tae Tine Was clear aeain--SsssI Fol-, n
Lesssa'e iiosi'. I--i. -1' -