The Somerset press. [volume] (Somerset, Ohio) 1873-1977, 1881-09-01
Life i'm the Bahamas.

ANYBODY who wishes to survey the
most picturesque aspect of Nassua life
should visit the quays between seven
and eight o'clock in the morning.
Then there is great hustle at the
market-place, where the fishermen
bring in the nights catch, and remark
able varieties of strange creatures of
the deep. glowing with prismatic hues,
are tumbled out upon the planks.
Grotesque old women display their
little stock of fruit and vegetables. No
one seems to possess more than a few
cents worth; but if their business is not
extensive it is conducted with amazing
ylubility. A little pile of cocoanuts, q
mall basket of oranges, and q bunch of
ananas, will be enough to furnish
tall of the better class; while the
smaller dealers set forth penny
salads, consisting of half an onion and
two or three minute fig-tomatoes, ar
ranged in piece of oOcoanut-shell, with
maybe q sprig of some savory herb.
Here is a tray of shelled peas; there
dozen or so of wrstched Irish potatoes,
quite put out of countenance by a
mighty yam. An armful of crooked
sticks-the tlotsam of the reefs-is
offered for fre-wood, a commodity OF
which there is but small consumption
In a town where nearly all of the houses
are built without chimneys. At every
turn there are supplies of sugar-cane,
cut into lengths convenient for chewing.
Almost every body has a piece; the
| Nassau negro must be wretched. indeed,
who cannot afford himself this luxury,
and it is offered for sale ut most of the
cabins along the roads Close by the
market is the mooring place of the
sponge fishers; on a neighboring wharf
is the Sponge Exchange, where the
product of the fishery is sorted in heaps
according to quality; and there are ware
houses on Bay street where it is packed
in bales for expectation. The sponge is
obtained in various parts of the Bahia
ma waters. some of it by divers. some
with the aid of graphing hooks. and it
undergoes a preliminary pur' fication be-
fore il is brought into port-a necessary
precaution. for the smell of fresh
sponge is not nice. The boats of the
spongers are not pleasant to look at.
Most of them are shabby, sloppy, and
dirty to the last degree. The negro
crew is generally a large one in proper
tion to the size of the vessel. There is
a dreadful little cabin at the stern, and
amidships on deck is an open box filled
with sand and stones as a fireplace or
cooks galley. l have noticed pig on
board these vessels; but 1 cannot de-
eide whether he sails as a passenger
or as scullion. Perhaps the captain
takes him along for the sake of his
company.
Nothing is more amusing. in the mar
ket-place and on the adjacent quays and
| at tho tho I'm. rs he
Three quarters of the population are
black, and the crowd in all public re-
sorts is almost exclusively black. The
for fnery, and for many of them the
market becomes place of fashionable
assembly. Their broad straw hats are
lined with white lawn, wreathed
with pink flowers and bits of gay ribbon.
and tipped up jauntily behind. The
gown of muslin or thin calico is bright
: in color, clean, well fitting, amply
fiounced and ruffied, and in most cases
it expands behind into long sweeping
train. But when the dusky wearer has
added to this dress pretty neoktie and
maybe a snowy belt, her ingenuity in
personal decoration comes to a prema-
ture stop. The gown is short in front.
, and below it appear bare feet. or else a
pair of ragged boots. badly broken al
the toes and invariably cut down at the
heels; they are kept on with difficulty
: and reduce the gait to 3 Gathering sort
of scuffie. so that in the movement of 6
crowd of women there is a peculiar anC
8 altogether comical resonance. She
|. who can show ''proper good' pair O
shoes is proud indeed i met a youns
lady of color yesterday who had lace(
C her Oxford ties with rose ribbon, fin
tished off with large bows; and it is need
; less TO add that her skirts were not per
i mitted to hide these luxuries from tn
n public eve.
Out of town the apparel of the colorc,
l. people is by no means SO elaborate
vi Women half cover their shrunl
= shanks with a single scanty petticoat
20 and throw over their bodies wretche
y garment of a character and a colo
r. equally impossible to define. The dres
of the men consists almost UNIVERSAL
u Of rags. and very little of them. me
!. an old negro who wore, besides pants
looms, the sleeves and yoke of a blu
'o shirt without any body, the tattered re
TO mains hanging like fringe across hi
m chest and shoulder blades. Except fo
Appearances sake l should think h
- might rs we'll have worn no shirt at al
10 On the same road | encountered
young gentleman OF about fifteen year
who carried burdun on his head. an
wore doubled breasted waistco:
Us With nothing whatever below it. Tt
f. weather, in this deleetable isle, whel
the summer lasts all winter long, col
~ tinues to be very Ike the northern Jun
K, 1t is true that the general disturbanc
,d of the elements which has vexed bot
hemispheres this season has not bee
or without some influence even in Nassn
all but the deviations from the norm
:. warmth and sunshine have not bee
40 great. The thermometer of late b.
ps stood three or four degrees below i
of customary mark. but it has been
steady IS ever, almost invariab
ur recording seventy or seventy -or
,w degrees at breakfast time, and sevent
three or seventy-four at dinner, whit
70 is certainly comfortable and geni
in temperature. A day and half Of ra
n, was followed by a day of wind-squa
:" and there have been several days
ig alternate sunshine and cloud III
Tn people af Nassau call these days of b,
weather, i wonder what they wou
10 think of our weather at home. Co
Ia NeU Yors Tribune.
Trans for fho Trnworv